x2 = 24
The common room of the inn is bustling in the evening, with a fair smattering of locals as well as travelers of various sorts - merchants, laborers moving to town, mercenaries, itinerants. If you were so inclined you could perhaps make a few inquiries and see if there is any local news to supplement your current information, but it seems likely that Burne is as well-versed on the surrounding area as any man - although there are, of course, always rumors.
The usual business of the inn is afoot: People drinking, dining, playing cards with a skinny mustachioed man, haranguing the servers drunkenly for refills or news, and so on.
Kyrie sips a single warm ale with Deko and Bats, and goes to bed with the cleric.
...that is, when the cleric goes to bed, not in the same bed. >.<
Feeling somewhat uncomfortable in such a large group, Fezzik finds an out-of-the-way spot to eat dinner and washes it down with a drink. He then retires early, wanting to have a clear head in the morning.
Deko manages to get into several rounds of drinking and arm-wrestling with a small contingent of mercenaries from out of the Yeomanry of Geoff. They're on the road toward the coast, looking for work as they go, though they think a quiet village like Hommlet will have little to offer.
Deko wins 8 silver pieces and has his drinks paid for in his arm-wrestling challenges.
First, Enoby thinks at Zinnath: "Little dragon, the mercenary dining alone at yonder table, his demeanor is suspicious to me. I need less rest than the others, so I will stay up late to watch him until he retires. Please warn the others to be wary of him."
To Enoby: "Will do. Please try and be quiet when you come into the room, I need my beauty sleep."
To the rest of the group (except Enoby): "Hey, everyone, Enoby has asked me to let you all know that the lonely mercenary eating seems suspicious. She wants us to go on to bed, and she will stay up and watch him. She says we should be careful about him. Do any of you have a response I should send to Enoby?"
[mentally to Zinnath (not sure snarkiness treanslates in telepathy)]: But Deko wants more drink! Seriously, though, that might work to our advantage. Let Deko stay here a while--that way Enoby won't be alone if things go south.
Bat finishes her drink, wishes Deko a good night, and heads off to her shared room.
Enoby tries to remain inconspicuous and stays to see what the warrior does. He finishes his dinner, sits and looks about the room for a few minutes, then he approaches a pair of traveling merchants and engages them in conversation. He declines an offer to join the card game with the tall, mustachioed man. Then, finally, he heads to the staircase to go upstairs to one of the private rooms.
Shortly after the fighter leaves, a somewhat nebbishy skinny man in a long robe and pointed hat makes his way down the stairs and purchases a small bite to eat, then takes it back up to his own room.
The night passes uneventfully after that, and in the morning you are refreshed and ready to go!
The next morning, Zinnath sleeps as late as possible, slowly creeping his way across the bed, trying to keep in the lone sunbeam as it comes through the window.
When finally, aroused, he is immediately hungry.
To Bat: "What sort of eats do you have for me today?"
To Everyone except Bat: "What is for breakfast?"
[Mentally to Zinnath]: Same sort of eats as yesterday, only a day staler. I take it Deko and Enoby encountered no problem last night after Kyrie and I left?
To Bat: "Those apples will still be ok, I'm sure. You got some nuts too right? As for them, they never told me there was a problem. I haven't heard yet this morning."
Bataleigha allows Zinnath to loot her stores of rations, packing 2 days' worth into her backpack and leaving the rest in her room. The cleric then sits cross-legged on the floor and prays to Pelor for an hour before getting up, eating a light breakfast, and then donning her armor, weapons, and other equipment.
Zinnath will settle down for a nap while Bat prays. Again, trying to stay in the rays of the sun, if possible.
Obviously, that all took a while, so if the others communicated then, Zinnath would respond.
You hoist your gear and head out midmorning. Per the directions you received previously, you follow a narrow trail that heads northeast through the grass at the eastern edge of the village.
Now it's time for some old school BOXED TEXT!
A scrub of thorns, thistles, weeds, and shrubs grows thickly along the edge of the track which leads to the ruins. Even the track is mostly overgrown and cluttered with fallen branches and trees. Here and there it is washed out, in other places a mire.
Some game evidently still follows the pathway, however, for after a mile or so faint traces can be seen. But even considering this, going is slow, and it takes over an hour to reach the place on horseback, or two to trudge along on foot. Considerable hacking and clearing is necessary to make the way passable, so double the time required for the first trip. After two miles, as the track turns more northerly, the land begins to sink and become boggy. Tall marsh plants grow thickly where cattails and tamaracks do not. Off to the left can be seen the jagged silhouette of the moathouse.
A side path, banked high to cross over the wetland to either side, just north to the entrance of the ruin. The track here is only about 15 feet wide or so, with crumbling embankments making travel near the edge dangerous. The bogs stink. The vegetation appears dense and prolific, but somehow sickly and unhealthy, creepers and vines throwing their strangling loops over the skeletons of dead saplings and living bushes alike. The rushes and cattails rustle and bend even to a slight zephyr, and weird birdcalls, croakings, and other unwholesome sounds come faintly across the fen.
To All: "I'm glad I'm not a horse."
Zinnath will snuggle down and hide against Enoby's neck.
+4 in forests
Bataleigha doesn't like the looks of the moathouse. Its moat and nearby bogs she finds particularly alarming--one misstep and her heavy armor could drag her down to a muddy and watery doom.
The cleric briefly considers using a spell to sharpen her senses but decides against it, not wanting the sound of spellcasting to alert hidden enemies to the group's presence. Instead, she silently looks around for any hidden dangers or anything out of the ordinary.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
|
As the sun rose at some side of the sky, Deko was found passed out over a table in the tavern, his snores causing the furniture to vibrate with its force. As the others gathered to travel to the moathouse, the snoring tapered off as he blearily sat up and rubbed his eyes. After eating enough food to feed a whole tribe of little Zinnaths, he was good to go.
The trip was aweful for Deko. He hated riding on horsies, they were always so bumpy and it hurt his backside! It wasn't helped by the difficulty of the rip, the trail being as overgrown as it was only made things worse. The entire way, a constant stream of comments flowed from his mouth, from "Are we there yet?" to "Deko spy something brown!"
Finally, they approached the moathouse, and Deko fell silent.
Fezzik trudged along for the long walk, slowly pulling the cart over the broken trail. He frequently found himself getting frustrated by all of the fallen trees and bogs. "Why need cart? Easier just to carry things," he would think to himself each time they came across another obstacle and each time he would look at the dragon, wondering if he could read his mind.
Once they reached the moathouse, his demeanor improved as he hoped all of the work was going to be worth it. As they got closer, he warily eyes the drawbridge. "Leave cart here or try to cross?" he asks the others.
"Let's leave it for now and test the bridge--that may not be strong enough to handle your weight," Bat answers Fezzik. "If it holds--and the area beyond the door is safe--maybe we can store it inside."
Bataleigha draws her heavy mace after casting a light spell on her buckler.
"I'll check out the bridge and--if that's safe--try to open the front door. Cover me."
Enoby nods quickly in response to Bat's request and draws her short bow, knocking an arrow.
"Consider yourself covered."
Bat pauses as she approaches the bridge. Off to the right, just a few feet from Fezzik, a few bubbles burble up in the pool of stagnant, reedy water.
Already suspicious, the cleric goes for her weapon as she spots a pair of unblinking amphibious eyes in the mud. Then there is a flurry of motion and several enormous frogs, ranging from the size of a dog to the size of a pony, burst out of the mud and reeds where they were waiting, unmoving.
Enoby lets loose an arrow immediately.
Her arrow glances off the thick hide of the nearest frog, causing it to crouch and let out a burbling sound.
Zinnath flies forward, just to get to his 30' range, careful to stay high enough to avoid the frogs.
He will fire an elemental ray of cold at the frog nearest to Bat.
vs touch
Enoby swiftly knocks a second arrow and lets it fly, focusing her fire on the frog she previously struck.
Enoby's second arrow hits its mark and the frog that she hit with a glancing blow earlier is rendered unconscious as the follow-up strike hits its throat.
15' in the air seems sufficient, and 30' total feet from my target.
Bataleigha moves back to the main group and casts a spell to aid them in the coming battle.
|
|
As they all dismounted to make sure the bridge was safe to cross, Deko let his attention wander. 'Pretty flower,' he thought to himself before the big frogs jumping out of the water brought him back to reality. Giving a grin and cracking his knuckles, Deko moved towards the closest future-snack and let his fist fly.
Deko rushes off the path and slogs through the thick mud to reach the edge of the pond where one of the bigger frogs has arisen. He lashes out and, thanks to Bataleigha's blessing, he manages to smash down on the frog with a telling blow.
Kyrie's force bolt smacks into the toad like a small rock. The frog winces and then lunges at Deko!
The brawling half-orc easily pushes the frog away.
Small frog #2 foolishly hops toward Fezzik, provoking an attack of opportunity as it passes through the half-ogre's area of reach.
(includes bless)
SPLAT! His halberd cleaves the small frog in twain.
Small frog #3 moves to a position where it can try to bite Deko.
Still the brawler manages to fend off the creatures.
Small frog #4 hops the long way through the difficult swamp, trying to reach Enoby and Kyrie.
Medium frog #2 hops slightly to one side, then launches its tongue at Deko.
Its sticky tongue hits, but Deko twists and the tongue yanks free!
Fezzik's turn, then ROUND 2 and the party goes!
Wanting to protect the others, he moves towards the closest one and swings his halberd again.
Fezzik's halberd smashes down on the small frog (#4) trying to reach Enoby and Kyrie, and cleaves through its skull in one clean stroke.
Party's up!
Enoby darts around Fezzik's massive frame and repositions herself nest to Bataleigha before firing another arrow, this time at the frog still waiting within the swamp.