Liam securely nets a rock while Valena advances into melee. Eliastra fires an arrow past Valena's ear, piercing one kobold's leg. The little beast screams a shrill cry, but doesn't fall.
Thorny's glaive glances off the boulder between him and his target and the kobolds attack.
A sling arrow smacks into Valena's shoulder. It's going to leave an ugly bruise.
STATUS
Valena (10/11 hp, 1 nonlethal)
Kobold Guards)
Thorny
Eliastra (10/11 hp)
Liam
Liam moves to the other side of Val and targets the kobold closest, in melee with Thorny, conjuring another ball of dripping, ectoplasmic goo...
vs Touch AC
Val stands her ground and smacks at the kobold with her mace.
Thorny crushes the spine of another kobold. He can see the fear on the faces of the others.
Eliastra kills another kobold outright, her arrow piercing the space between two boulders and then the space between two ribs.
The remaining pair of kobolds turn to flee. Thorny sweeps his glaive down, killing both with a single blow.
Suddenly, the only sound in the quarry is your own intense breathing.
COMBAT OVER
STATUS
Valena (10/11 hp, 1 nonlethal)
Kobold Guards)
Thorny
Eliastra (10/11 hp)
Liam
Yep.
It's dark in there.
The bodies have little more than the small-sized spears and slings they fought with.
Liam takes his voice low, "Hold up a sec," he looks around the quarry one more time, somewhat confused, "is this the only way in and out? Is there just one cave for this clan or tribe or whatever?"
Val looks to Eli for confirmation, "I'm guessing the caves open up the further back we go." She gives her a nod. "I had to try. Now we know for sure they won't be friendly."
You can see a second entrance just to the south.
Assuming someone tells the woman who can only see 30 feet away about the second entrance. "This one or to the south? If we go south we might surprise them."
"We've got a decision, then. If we go check out the south and it dead ends with no connection to tribe tunnels, by the time we get back, the kobolds may know the guards have been killed and reinforce or be better prepared. Bird in the hand, I think we should enter here at this spot, we've still got surprise. What do you all think?"
It's on the map.
Liam will take up the rear.
A twisting passage leads to a foul-smelling cavern littered with mounds of moldy straw.
Eli's motion draws forth the denizens of the moldy straw: a handful of enormous feral rats! They hiss and rush forward to defend their territory!
Initiative
STATUS
Liam
Eliastra (10/11 hp)
Valena (10/11 hp, 1 nonlethal)
Thorny
Rats
Val moves in. She has not problem seeing the rats because of her curse.
She swings her mace at the one in front of her. Though she misses as it hisses at her frighting her a little.
While Valena and Thorny move in to confront the rats, Eliastra draws the string of her beautiful new bow back to her ear and lets fly, slaying a mean-eyed brute one with a quick arrow. Thorny crushes another with the broad blade of his guisarme.
The rats rush in, biting at your ankles, but they fail harm you.
Liam gets up in there between Val & Eli and hold action -
Val not willing to leave Liam in harms way stands her ground and goes full defense.
"Thorny and Eli knock them back."
Thorny and Eliastra rapidly destroy two more of the giant rodents, which die pitiably, curled up and squealing. The last rat bounds away into the eastern darkness.
COMBAT OVER!
"I hope he doesn't show up. I hated him."
She looks to Eli "On in the direction you were headed?"
Wide steps have been carved into the rock in each tunnel that intersects with this large cave. A five-foot-wide circular pit is the chamber’s only feature. It is a deep well with water running some 10' below.
After glancing down the water well, Liam looks around at the walls to his left and straight ahead. "What do you think? Straight or to the right? I vote straight... we know we have the outer wall on our left, so nothing can come at us that direction. If we go right, it could branch off with intersections who knows what all direction. The straight, though... it could only curve inward."
Val casts detect magic on the well. "You never know."
"Straight sounds like an excellent plan."
The well reveals no magic. It's just a well.
Proceeding down the stairs to the left, you see a many-chambered room. A few torches wedged into niches in this cave’s rocky walls burn fitfully. This area is obviously used for labor-intensive tasks such as making rope from vines, drying meat, and tanning hides, but the working conditions are squalid at best.
Four kobolds stand guard over three wretched human prisoners who are laboring to weave baskets. The humans cry out in fear at your approach, but the kobolds are ready, having heard your previous battle. They hurl sling stones as soon as you appear. The sling fire is comically inept, and the stones spatter across the cave wall above, left and right. One plinks ineffectually off of Eliastra's armor.
Val casts Bless on the party. I assume something attacked you Eli. What was it?"
Not sure of their numbers, how close they are, or anything in the next room Liam stays back, sincerely asking, "How can I help?"
Eliastra's arrow hits one kobold in the shoulder, though Thorny fails to connect with his own blow.
The kobolds rush Thorny and find out the hard way how dangerous his glaive is.
Thorny slashes out as the little menaces try to surround him, leaving three dead and one injured in the space of as many seconds. The injured kobold reverses course and flees, wailing, towards the prisoners.
"What happened? What happened?"
Liam is immensely curious, keeping his voice low and suddenly flushed red in embarrassment remembering Val's vision limitations...
Val moves toward the sounds of battle. "I'll do my best to keep them from getting past me."
She readies an attack with her mace if an enemy comes in melee range of her.