Eberron - Echoes of the Past (Inactive)

Game Master Dennis Harry

"Maybe try pressing the gem like a button while you point the rod at something," says Caelan as he scrutinizes the surprising letters of credit.

Erix chuckles at Pink-Eye's comments "My large friend, Caelan and I are couriers. Normally we charge for such services, but I think we can let you slide, this time." He says with a friendly grin.

Turning to his cousin he says "Why don't you deliver our minotaur friend's letter, and I will go to enclave and arrange transportation."

Caelan passes the letter to Erix and says, "Quite so. My tall friend? Would you let me do the honors?"

it is nothing against either of you but I wanted it delivered two or three days after I left as I eas working for house Cannith specifically the enemy of our lady friend as a guard and I dont want to tip our hand. Do you have a truated friend to do that for me?

If permitted to do so, Xetovia will take the opportunity to refill the empty Poisoned Sand Tube with some dirt and sand from the surrounding park area. Would there be a skill check roll needed to do so?

With the contents of the extra-dimensional pack revealed, Xetovia will feel quite relieved that some of the preparations for travel have already been made, thanks to the (former?) Lady of House Cannith West.

At least we won't have to make any hasty, last minute shopping for our supplies... that might tip off our enemies to our whereabouts, thanks be to our Lady of House Cannith West- may the Silver Flame watch over her, wherever she is.

Ama continued to study her spellbook, taking idle note of the discussions, though she had little to offer in the planning.

Closing up the enchanted pack, gauntlet will shoulder it again and turns to Pink-Eye.

"Let's hope we can keep hiding here safely in this park long enough to get our ride out of Sharn. Why don't you find a place out of sight, but nearby and 'redirect' anybody wandering too close?"

Finally turning to the stranger in the group, Gauntlet sounds suspicious as he begins a list of interrogative questions.

"You! New guy! Why did you help us? Where are you from? Why are you here?"

most people know by now that I am sleeping in this spot so only those who want trouble will be walking in this small private grotto of mine, but I am on watch Pink eye says as he hands his letter over keeping a watchful eye.

"I'll have a three-day escrow put on this so it isn't sent until then," says Caelan as he accepts the letter. "Erix? Shall we?"

Xetovia gets this sudden, unexpected thought into her head and after a bit of momentary consideration (hastened, no doubt, by Caelan's and Erix's preparation to leave the park grotto for their delivery) calls out to both Caelan and Erix with "I may be overthinking things a bit here but I've just had this sudden notion that it might be for the best if you both were to stay together during your deliveries and not split up individually on your own."

With a glance towards the outskirts of the park area, Xetovia gives further clarity to that thought by adding, "We know that the Warforged who attacked us and Lady d'Vown is still out there somewhere. While he may still be seeking out Lady d'Vown, I'm certain that he wouldn't pass up a chance at attacking any one of us if we are spotted by him or his ilk."

"It may even come to having at least two or more of us accompanying one another if any of us has something that we may need to get before we head off to Darguun."

Caelan snaps his fingers, points at Xetovia, and says, "Just so. If he shows up again I'll give him the one and Erix will give him the two."

Caelan snaps his fingers, points at Xetovia, and says, "Just so. If he shows up again I'll give him the one and Erix will give him the two."

Letting out a small chuckle, Xetovia smiles back at Caelan and says, "Silver Flame Willing, you and Erix will both be sure to regale us with a stirring- but suitably seemly- tale of what you both did to that wicked miscreant."

Finally turning to the stranger in the group, Gauntlet sounds suspicious as he begins a list of interrogative questions.

"You! New guy! Why did you help us? Where are you from? Why are you here?"

Seeing that Gauntlet is starting up his questioning again of the youthful stranger that barged in on the Kobold and Warforged attack at the Broken Anvil, Xetovia pauses in mid-thought before deciding to intercede on the stranger's behalf.

While Gauntlet is certainly and justifiably suspicious of this latest newcomer, the fact that this youthful stranger had intervened in the favor of the group at his own risk (when most others would sensibly keep their distance) could not be denied. Such a situation would demand that recognition be given favorably upon that person, even at the risk of deception- at least from the Vampire Hunter's decidedly Thranish point of view.

Turning back towards Caelan and Erix, Xetovia will say, "The two of you be careful out there; may the Silver Flame keep ever watch over you both. I shall go and help Gauntlet with ascertaining our new arrival's motives and reasons."

With that, Xetovia will then go and approach where both Gauntlet and Dalaan are. Any of my previous OOC statements regarding Dalaan mentioning of Pierce (that is, if Dalaan's player chooses to do such a thing) still stands. ;)

Sharn - City of Towers - 998 YK - Fourteenth Day of Dravago - City Park

Dalaan shrugs, "I was asked by my employer to keep an eye on the Broken Anvil and watch out for any unusual Warforged activity. When I saw you go in" he motions to Gauntlet "my interest was peaked. It was downright impossible though to let a Warforged with seven armed Kobolds go in without at least getting a closer look. I'll bet my employer will be well pleased as I believe the Lady was somehow loosely connected to him uh it. Well, whatever a gender a Warforged would be".

"Happy to help out but I am not going with you to wherever it is you are going. I;ll report to my employer what happened and leave it at that. Good luck to you all. I've heard Darguun is an inhospitable place..."

He turns to leave just as Erix and Caelan move to take their leave.

---

Caelan and Erix are able to secure the delayed letter delivery with only a 1 gold charge for Pink-Eye.

They also learn that while no airships are currently available, nor do any make runs to the goblin nations, a House Lyrandar galleon regularly
travels from Sharn to Rhukaan Draal. The water vessel follows the southern coast of the continent before turning inland and traveling up the Ghaal River to the goblinoid city.

House Orien offers a land route to Rhukaan Draal. It requires the group to travel by lightning rail to Sterngate, and then to complete the journey through Marguul Pass along the Orien trade road with the next caravan heading east.

The letters of credit cover either journey.

The galleon journey will be much faster (four days) versus the overland route (a total of 15 days).

Neither member of the House Orien senses that they are being followed or watched.

---

Within the hour, the Dragonmarked cousins return to the Park, which true to Pink-Eyes' word, is not disturbed by anyone. Oh people pass near it but none enter.

---

Fast or slow?

I'm tempted to say 'faster' but I'm sure the slower travel will be more interesting. What do you all think?

It may be foolish, but I trust my own House more.

I had not thought about that, but you are right. While a tad slower it would be a bit safer since we will have two Orien with us, and that way we could have some minor support/protection for at least the first part of the journey.

Within that same hour, Ama finally closed her spellbook, latching the cover closed, and leaned back to see who was still nearby and what was going on. A stretch pulled a slight groan out of her and she put her book away, wandering over to Pink-Eye and essaying a smile. "Did I ever get a chance to apologize for my behavior that night we met?"

Her smile drooped a little at the mention of the Professor, though.
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Ama would be dismayed to hear that the sea route was passed over. Her vote would be by water.

Pink eye smiles a big toothy tusky grin at Ama and says I am glad we got through that and are friends

Fast or slow?

Heh, is it bad that my first thought when I saw the choice of fast or slow was everybody either stepping up or scaling back our entire posting amount to this gameplay thread? ;p

In game-wise, Xetovia would be fine traveling by either method. :)

Dalaan shrugs, "I was asked by my employer to keep an eye on the Broken Anvil and watch out for any unusual Warforged activity. When I saw you go in" he motions to Gauntlet "my interest was peaked. It was downright impossible though to let a Warforged with seven armed Kobolds go in without at least getting a closer look. I'll bet my employer will be well pleased as I believe the Lady was somehow loosely connected to him uh it. Well, whatever a gender a Warforged would be".

Approaching to where both Gauntlet and Dalaan are at, Xetovia has her attention far more focused on the youthful Zulaat wielder than upon Gauntlet- after all, a Zulaat stuck into the back would still hurt just as much as a Zulaat pushed deep into the gut!

As Dalaan makes his reply to how he was hired to look out for Warforged at the Broken Anvil, Xetovia will cut after his first statement with "Employer!? Is it someone who is part of House Ca...I mean, part of the Dragonmarked Houses?"

Then realizing mere moments afterwards that her manners was not quite as cordial as it should be to someone who tangentially helped out the entire party back at the Broken Anvil with the Warforged and Kobolds, Xetovia will have the decency to look suitably abashed before adding in with a more subdued, "Silver Flame forgive me; with all that happened beforehand- along with our swift retreat to this park, I never got the chance to give you my thanks for your help earlier upon our behalf. Not many would do such a thing during an attack, so I commend you for it."

"Happy to help out but I am not going with you to wherever it is you are going. I;ll report to my employer what happened and leave it at that. Good luck to you all. I've heard Darguun is an inhospitable place..."

He turns to leave just as Erix and Caelan move to take their leave.

Sense Motive on Dalaan about his mysterious Employer and if said mysterious Employer is hostile to the party and Lady d'Vown: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (10) + 6 = 16.

Not being entirely certain for sure if she should be pressing any further on the departing bald youth about the identity of his "Employer", Xetovia decided that she should let down her guard, now that Dalaan has proven himself to be non-hostile.

Naturally that meant, in turn, that Dol Durand didn't have to stay on any sort of heightened, shared caution from any hostility from Dalaan either. Instead, the Possessed Left hand did what its' own natural inclinations would lead it to do under normal circumstances, as the case may be. And with Gauntlet being so close by...

Xetovia suddenly finds herself blindly half-stumbling in some sort of side wards motion (being forcefully propelled by her waywardly errant Possessed left hand in one swift motion) before finding some sort of purchase to help prevent the near flailing Vampire Hunter from falling over in a disorganized heap; a solidly firm and unyielding purchase that is almost seemingly comprised entirely out of a mixture of wood, stone, and metals- including the tell-tale darker hued adamantine...

Having regained her bearings again, Xetovia finds herself leaned up towards Gauntlet with her Possessed Left hand firmly planted against the area between the Warforged's chest and where the solar plexus would be upon a normal human male.

With a furiously embarrassed blush slowly spreading across her partly mortified, half-horrified face, Xetovia is barely able to stammer out a near gibbering, half-garbled utterance of apology to Gauntlet before righting herself back up as she forcefully yanks Dol Durand away from the Gauntlet's person with her right hand.

After all that, Xetovia didn't really feel all that inclined to question Dalaan any further or prevent him from leaving, needless to say.

Feeling the odd sensation of the young woman's weight falling into his solid bulk, Gauntlet turns to immediately apologize for getting in her way, until he sees she seems to have stumbled and is now retreating hastily.

"Are you OK Xetovia? You seem...impaired somehow? Were you poisoned by one of the kobolds? I understand thier kind can be quite underhanded in their tactics..."

He then turns to the welcoming bulk of Pink-Eye.

"Would you take a look at her Pink-Eye to be sure? My knowledge of soft bodies is minor at best."

Ama thought that she was not one to be put off by the wide grin of a Minotaur, but she did shrink back a little, and then looked immediately ashamed of her reaction. Gauntlet turning to address Pink-Eye gave her a bit of a distraction, though the annoyed sigh at herself came out as the beginnings of wind over rough seas. She did have to remind herself that her smile might garner the same response, and made to apologize again before Gauntlet's terminology made her turn her eyes to Xetovia in curiosity. Her blush got a bit of a bemused smile, but no comment.
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heal: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13

Pink eye looks over his smaller friend to see what might be the matter with her.

Sharn - City of Towers - 998 YK - Fourteenth Day of Dravago - City Park

Dalaan grins at Xetovia, "Pierce of the Wandering Eye was the one what hired me". He states as he trails off behind the d'Orien's.

Pink-Eye, Xetovia's left hand looks similar to her right hand but a bit discolored, it could well be a graft or just some sort of odd birth defect...

---

Erix and Caelan recommend the overland route and the bulk of the group with the exception of a wistful Ama agree to that course.

---

Ama, I forget, did we handle your graft already? If not know is the time! If any of you wish to do last minute purchasing in Sharn now is the time. I'll hold right before the caravan journey begins to give you all a chance to take care of any last minute details.

I'd like to pick up a heavy darkwood shield and a +1 mithral longsword!

With a looked of flustered consternation upon her face, Xetovia appears almost to be glowering mostly towards her tightly held left hand for a few moments (at least that's how it appears to any interested onlookers) before she says, "M-my apologies, Gauntlet, for my own...carelessness, Flame forgive me, it wasn't from any poison by the kobolds- I merely got distracted...", in response while Pink-Eye looks over her for any signs of poisonous injuries.

Upon hearing of Pierce's name being mentioned at Dalaan's departure, Xetovia (hoping to have a quick change of subject) will quickly add, "I know of his Employer... he could be trusted."

Apart from any further food or water supplies, I'll have to think upon anything else to bring along for the trip.

I think I'm OK for now. BTW, I added the Handy Haversack to my avatar under a "Group Treasure" tab. For now I'll keep anything we don't immediately use in the pack for distribution or sale later. Let me know if you want something from the pack so I can cross it off as we use it! Is that acceptable for everyone?

Ama was still pouting of the loss of sea travel, but had to concede the safety of the overland route. Considering that they were given an imperative to travel, Ama did make a point to acquire a crossbow and a case of bolts, just in case. There was some consideration for a couple more scrolls that she could scribe into her spellbook on the way, and she really did not want to carry that much gold around... It was probably better to divest herself of the majority of the gold she held.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be", she declared a bit reluctantly. Leaving the "safety" of the city towards their destination was something that gave her no small amount of trepidation, but she did have goals, and they were ones that were not likely to be reached if she remained idle. "Xetovia, you seem the kind of person who is always prepared, would you mind giving my gear a once-over?"
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Graft has been handled. Crossbow, 10 bolts, Hold Portal, and Alarm purchased to be added to her spellbook later.

"Xetovia, you seem the kind of person who is always prepared, would you mind giving my gear a once-over?"

Giving a nod and a smile to Ama, Xetovia replies with, "By the Blessings of the Silver Flame, I'd be more than happy to help you out with that"- her tone of voice carries the sense of being seemingly much more relieved to have something else to worry over besides the decidedly awkward set of events from the past few minutes prior.

@Ama: Would your new elemental graft be noticeable to Xetovia now that the two are in close proximity?

Will have Xetovia take a 10 on Spellcraft for a 15 total to determine that Ama carries an Wizard's Spellbook. If a roll is needed for for that instead, then the roll will be at spellcraft: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17 then.

As the Thranish Vampire Hunter starts to mentally catalogue the type of things that the former Librarian has, Xetovia notes the presence of Ama's Spellbook and asks of her, "By any chance, Ama, that tome of yours- unless I've missed my guess badly- does it happen to be a Wizard's Spellbook? I've also noted some scrolls in your pack, as well... No sign of any Placards though- unless you're keeping those elsewhere?"

Ama blinked at the odd wording of the inquiry. "Placards?" she said with a bit of a curious look, not understanding the word. "Why would I carry those?" She tried to think of any sort of placard that would be mentioned in the sense of a spellbook or magic, but drew a blank on the term. Were they placeholders of some sort, or some kind of magical marker, maybe?
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The graft is definitely noticeable up close, her voice would sound vaguely like waves, and any time she would show her teeth, it would be visible.
K.Arcana: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19 "Placard" is uncommon terminology, as well as not being the area of focus, I'd say she needed a 20 to get it.

Sharn - City of Towers - 998 YK - Fifteenth Day of Dravago

The adventurers spend the rest of the day and the next morning preparing for their trip but simultaneously looking over their shoulders...

House Orien’s lightning rail travels north and east out of Sharn, making stops at Wroat and Starilaskur before turning south to Sterngate. The trip takes just under three days to accomplish. Nothing out of the ordinary occurs during the lightning rail journey and due to Caelan and Erix's positions within the House, the group is able to have its own section of the rail undisturbed, perhaps Pink-Eye's unnerving presence to the other patrons also aided in this decision by the conductor...

Breland - Sterngate - 998 YK - Eighteenth Day of Dravago

In Sterngate, the travel itinerary also includes an Orien caravan that will move through Marguul Pass and into Darguun.

The caravan boss Quethhas takes your group aside aside as the caravan is being loaded, "Glad to have adventurers such as yourselves along for this trip. The mountain clans have been acting up lately, and we could use your steel and muscle to make sure all of us make it to Rhukaan Draal in one piece. To show my appreciation, I’ll give you twenty-five gold apiece when we safely make it to the goblin city.”

Hesitant, Gauntlet turns to the caravan boss.

"The mountain clans? I can only assume you mean goblins, correct? Are they truly a threat to a caravan as large as ours? Since this is our first time on this trail too...are there any other regular hazards we should worry about Master Quethhas?"

35 gold each, and any loot from what we assist in killing along with any costs of healing or replacement of equipment. How does this sound caravan master?

Listening to the caravan master, Ama was curious about these "clans", as she had not had enough time once they arrived to do what research she could, and was not feeling all that confident about not knowing what they were walking into. She had spent time conversing with Xetovia, and had gotten to know Pink-Eye better, though the member of House Orien was not someone that she had the chance to speak to as of yet. As the negotiations continued, she listened, but was considering what they could possibly encounter on their travels.
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Spellcraft Alarm: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (18) + 9 = 27
Spellcraft Hold Portal: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (5) + 9 = 14

Erix shakes his head at Pink-Eye trying to get more money from Quethhas, truly a mercenary. "I can't speak for the others, but I will not ask nor accept more from a caravan belonging to my House." He says firmly, not open to being swayed.

Btw, Ama, there are *two* members of Orien. Unless you only want to speak to me or Caelan.

Ama blinked at the odd wording of the inquiry. "Placards?" she said with a bit of a curious look, not understanding the word. "Why would I carry those?" She tried to think of any sort of placard that would be mentioned in the sense of a spellbook or magic, but drew a blank on the term. Were they placeholders of some sort, or some kind of magical marker, maybe?

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The graft is definitely noticeable up close, her voice would sound vaguely like waves, and any time she would show her teeth, it would be visible.
"Placard" is uncommon terminology, as well as not being the area of focus, I'd say she needed a 20 to get it.

There was something remarkably different about Ama that Xetovia had subconsciously picked up upon but was not quite able to piece together what that difference was since that last fateful meeting between the two factions of House Cannith took place. Perhaps it was because the Aundairian, Former Librarian was now much more confident of her place within the Party compared to back then? And is it just me or does it sound like there's gentle ocean waves lapping nearby whenever she speaks?

Upon Ama's apparent curious look showing upon the Half-Elven Former-Librarian's countenance however, along with her questions about the aforementioned 'Placards', it was enough to give Xetovia a moments' pause as the Thranish Vampire Hunter mentally began to review over her past recollections with her many past interactions with the various spell-casters of the Arcane who had been fellow members of the Argent Anthracites.

The 'Placards', due to their reliable re-usability, had found much use among the Anthracite's numbers during the Last War, both with those commensurately compatible to either the Divine or the Arcane. Yes, I do clearly recall their being very much in use prolifically among both our clergy members and our Wizardly spell-casters; the ones inscribed with 'Keep Watch' were especially popular due to the increasing number of Warforged being deployed by our enemies...

Unsure of how she should proceed, Xetovia carefully began describing these wooden etched, metallic inlay-ed 'Placards' to Ama, "...I am not entirely certain how they are created or when they first came into popular use, but they are very much like the Eternal Wands- only that they can be used once per day, indefinitely- so long as the Placards themselves remain intact."

Heh, maybe Xetovia could give a Spellcraft roll, (Spellcraft: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10), to help Ama match up the descriptions of the Schema and the 'Placards'? ;)

Another stray bit of remembrance suddenly creeps into Xetovia's thought process as she suddenly recalls the exorbitant price that the 'Placards' went for upon the open market in Sharn. "Flame forgive me, Ama- I've nearly forgotten that it wouldn't be so readily affordable to the average person; it really did seem that the events of the Last War skewed things more than I'd care to recall. In such an event, I'd say that apart from a place to protect your scrolls with, you're outfitted just fine."

Breland - Sterngate - 998 YK - Eighteenth Day of Dravago

Quenthas responds, "Correct 'Forged, the Goblin Clans. The occasional falling rocks or bad storms but the weather should hold up so its just the Clans we need to worry about".

Quenthas waits for Erix or Caelan to speak up before he responds, "Aye, its puttin money outta yer own friends pockets ah... Minotaur. I'll agree ta heal ya if'n yer injured in any fighting though".

I mean to negotiate for everyone, not just myself friend. So if you mean to cause issues we willbe happy to simply travel along and not fo guard duty.

Ama was looking between the others during the negotiation, curious about how this was going to go. She had not done much negotiation, though the offer of healing was a good offer— she thought. How much trouble were they expecting on this trip?

Gauntlet pulls Pink-Eye aside for moment.

"Pink-Eye my friend? Forgive me for interrupting, but don't forget we are here on our own with no knowledge of the terrain and very little experience of the surrounding dangers either. You may be formidable in the wilderness, but the others are mostly city-bred. The caravan offers more than basic comfort and protection for them."

At this point Gauntlet looks at the delicate Ama, her pale skin shining in the intense sun when it flashed occasionally.

"I'm more than willing to give up a few extra coins in order to make sure we all make this journey together and as safely as possible. The Mournlands await us, remember? We will be on our then. That is not any journey to take lightly as I understand it. Let this trip be a cold bath for them to get used to the temperature of our future needs. Agreed?"

"Flame forgive me, Ama- I've nearly forgotten that it wouldn't be so readily affordable to the average person; it really did seem that the events of the Last War skewed things more than I'd care to recall. In such an event, I'd say that apart from a place to protect your scrolls with, you're outfitted just fine."

Taking on last glance over at Ama's oft-used Tome of spells, Xetovia adds in with an amended, "...Come to think of it, so long as you have a way to keep your spellbook proofed against the weather, I'd say your preparations should be sufficient."

As a brief aside, just in case anyone was wondering what that whole bit with the Schema/Placards was about, suffice it to say that Xetovia's home nation of Thrane- in as far as she's aware of- refers to Schemas as "Placards", thanks to wartime propaganda (Schema sounds like something aligned with House Cannith which was viewed as favoring Cyre while it existed). Think of it as something along the lines of freedom fries/french fries debacle nearly a decade and a half ago in RL- but much more rancorous. ;)

The caravan boss Quethhas takes your group aside aside as the caravan is being loaded, "Glad to have adventurers such as yourselves along for this trip. The mountain clans have been acting up lately, and we could use your steel and muscle to make sure all of us make it to Rhukaan Draal in one piece. To show my appreciation, I’ll give you twenty-five gold apiece when we safely make it to the goblin city.”

Apart from just the party and our caravan boss, who else of interest is among the caravan besides the Caravan Boss? Come to think of it, is our Caravan Boss a fellow human or is he of some other race? And are all of us traveling just on foot or are we mounted/riding along in the caravan?

With a bit of some concern (perhaps even some slight consternation) on her part, Xetovia mentally resolved to herself to not wander off on her own to do any sort of supplemental hunting or herb gathering while on the trail with the caravan.

Twenty-Five Gold plus Healing seems fairly generous already, but Silver Flame willing, I do hope this journey doesn't come to anything drastic...

As the rest of the party banters among one another (with Gauntlet playing the part of the tactful negotiator, Pink-Eye playing the part of hard-driven mercenary, Erix playing the part of the unswerving advocate for the House, and everybody else being caught in between!), Xetovia will, in turn as Gauntlet is pulling Pink-Eye aside, try to keep Quethhas's attention away from the two of them as best she can by openly inquiring to the Caravan Boss, "It sounds troubling that these Mountain Clans are causing such a ruckus- have they always been so querulous? Shouldn't the Local Authorities be doing more to keep these Goblin Clans on a tighter leash?"

Breland - Sterngate - 998 YK - Eighteenth Day of Dravago

Quenthas is human.

Quenthas grins at Xetovia, "The authorities of Darguun? Lhesh Haruuc can barely keep the country from falling into chaos. It's a wonder a nation of such creatures has any order at all. The Mountain Clans are the most volatile I suppose trying to keep the "old" traditions though the wiser Hobgoblins like Haruuc see the wisdom in cultivating trade with the Nations and the Houses.

Very well, those who wish to guard may do so and those who do not need not".

The caravan is rather large and consists of several dozen wagons. The interests of may Houses are no doubt represented here. The explorers have their own set of two wagons with two men each assigned to their wagons. Both are skilled horsemen and wagoneers. Three are human and one is a half-elf. They are friendly but not too friendly as they are well aware of the pair that are favored of the House who they have been assigned to ferry along into Darguun.

The days pass by uneventfully. The pass has its own sort of beauty but it seems to be mainly a rocky carving through scrublands so that beauty is rugged at best.

Erix and Caelan tighten up on the third day, recognizing that this part of the pass is a good one for the laying of an ambush. Their instincts from being House trained are spot on as an attack from the Mountain Clans begins, it appears that the attack is well coordinated and is taking place up and down the line!

Despite seeing the ambush for what it is, the foes have the advantage of the high walls of the pass to protect them!

Initiative -- Round 1:
Ama - GO!
The Attackers
The Rest of the Group.
All foes are on the walls of the cliffs and must be attacked at range or the cliffs must be scaled to attack in Melee. The cliffs are 20' high but climbable. I'll get a map up tomorrow. For now assume 4 foes on each side of the wagons - to the left are Goblins and to the right are Bugbears. You can decide who you want to be in the first or the second wagon and whether the tops are up or down for this ambush.

standing on a wagon with reach can I hit the buggers on the sides?

While Xetovia wouldn't have any overall personal preference for sitting in either the first or second wagon, the one thing that she may have to take into consideration (apart from whomever she gets to spend time with upon the journey) is which one Gauntlet would be placed in- if she's in the same wagon that he is, she'll definitely have to keep her left hand under close supervision. ;p

Come to think of it, is there an "in-game"/"to hit" difference between having the top down or not; and would that top be strong enough to support the weight of people standing on top of it?

During the attack, Xetovia may (depending on the actions of those whom she's seated with) end up using her tube arrow shooter to make a ranged attack. I was thinking of having her load up on the arrow shooter as a full round action and having her left hand, Dol Durand, make the actual ranged attack on it's own full round action. Would something like that be okay by you, GM the Dragon Above? If not, it's not really an issue- Xetovia will just have to make an attack with the shooter every other round. ;)

Rather than make a target of herself, Ama had enough awareness to react, letting the others know with a shout that sounded like the crash of waves and spray across a rocky cliff. "TO ARMS! TO ARMS!!" Then she was pulling at the magic, weaving it into a protective pattern against oncoming injuries as she tried to anticipate where the attacks would come from, so she could not be there.
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Mage Armor cast, AC16

Pink eye with the wagon top down unfolds himself cackling like a maniac and will reach up with his battle axe and whack the first one in line as the wagon drives up
didnt count on a minotaur did you?

attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24

damage: 1d12 + 8 ⇒ (2) + 8 = 10

if its a bugbear will also channel smite

channel smite: 1d6 ⇒ 1

Caelan is probably inside, riding in style, as befits someone Favored in House.

In order to distribute his weight better, Gauntlet would be in whichever wagon Pink-eye is not in...Or he would be walking along side one of the group's two-wagons since he doesn't get tired like 'soft' people do. Most likely he would be walking if he can keep up with the wagons movement at all.

Caelan is probably inside, riding in style, as befits someone Favored in House.

Sounds like a vote for having the wagon-top on to me, 'cause when I think of riding in style, being all covered and in the shade sounds stylin' enough to me ('specially in them rocky scrublands). ;)

And also for the record, as I had already posted in the discussion thread, Xetovia will also opt to ride in the wagon that has the top up, attached, and on in order to benefit from that sweet, sweet cover. :)

In order to distribute his weight better, Gauntlet would be in whichever wagon Pink-eye is not in...Or he would be walking along side one of the group's two-wagons since he doesn't get tired like 'soft' people do. Most likely he would be walking if he can keep up with the wagons movement at all.

Heh, I could almost see Gauntlet just casually walking by the top covered wagon that Xetovia's in and having her possessed left hand immediately try to reach outside for a quick grab attempt (much to Xetovia's surprise and chagrin). ;p

P.S. Is it bad that I also had this cartoony-like visual of Gauntlet sitting on one side of an open wagon, Pink-Eye sitting on the other end/side of that same open wagon, with Ama stuck in the middle between the both of them... that poor wagon would be teeter-tottering back and forth from Gauntlet's side to Pink-Eye's side from the combined weight- and Ama would end up providing the ambient ocean-wave noise, like those higher-end Wave Machines. ;)

P.P.S. One other hand, if it was Xetovia that was stuck in between Gauntlet and Pink-Eye's imaginary wagon, the teeter-tottering movement of that poor wagon would be even more extreme as Xetovia's left hand would be attaching itself all lamprey-like to Gauntlet (causing said wagon side to lean over to one side) and Pink-Eye would have to go and pull Xetovia cleanly off from Gauntlet's side (causing the wagon to lean over back towards the other side); rinse and repeat, ad-infinitum (Dol Durand don't give up dat easily!)... luckily that wagon would already be uncovered, lest folks get the wrong idea about what's causing the wagon to be rocking back and forth! ;p

P.P.P.S. Would it be fair to say that we start the wagon ambush with full hit points? ;)