|
"Trap, see all those torches? Wouldest thou go and take a look, scout the area for what we are up against here. See what you can see, but quickly. We shall handle this rabble. If thou getest lost, fall back to that large red boulder thou found so interesting. That is out meet up point should we become seperated. You knowest the spot?"
"Sir Elf, ready our horses, if you would, and ready that bow. Should we need to retreat, we will be counting on you to cover our fall back. What do thine keen eyes detect?"
Durom, close with me, like in the old days. We form a line that these "creatures" do not pass."
Rumal, dust thou have any tricks up thine sleeve? Now may be the time. Help Hu'tonkton ready our mounts and gather our gear. Thou shalt also cover our escape, with fire if need be.
Attack:
Damage:
Trap heads toward the torches though he knows caution and thinks it to be odd that goblinoids would use torches.
"Might be friends, goblins err not known fer using torches."
Perception
To over-hear conversations
Automatic perception check within 10 of a trap
Stealth
"Bah! These greenskins aren't worth our time anyway." The dwarf says as he misses the goblin again.
Goblins were skipped.
1. Hu, 2. Trap, 3. Enemies, 4. Rumal, 5. Durom, 6. Janos
Hu needs a crit roll after that nice 20. If the crit is successful, it will be likely that the goblin falls unconscious, so I'll leave out his turn.
The two remaining goblins bare their teeth and hoist their spears. One tries to impale Janos, the other Durom.
[ooc]Damage
The second goblin finds an opening and skewers Durom.
"Durom look out!"
"Nevermind..."
Rumal winces at the horns blare, the noise doing nothing for his hangover. He grabs the closest thing and throws it at the goblins fighting the members of his group. "Herejustgoawayalreadyandtakethatblastednoisewithyou."
After he throws he heads in the direction of his mule, trying to remember how clear-headed he was when they stopped to camp, and if the clearest path out to the southwest was where they wanted to go or not.
Hu, there are other rules for critical tables- but I don't think I have that handy. A confirmed crit means you get to roll damage again.
Rumal's attack thunders between the goblins.
Goblin 1
Golbin 2
Durom fails to connect.
Janos strikes a final blow to the 2nd goblin.
The immediate threat has passed- but the horns and torches draw near.
Hu looks up from the dead goblin, ready to carry the fight to the next interloper. But it seemed his erstwhile companions had felled the remainder. The forest echoed with the call of horn. For the moment.
Using the dead goblin as a cleaning cloth, he wiped the blade clean of blood, then sheathed the weapon. Retrieving his bow, he moved swiftly toward the mounts.
Hu frowned at the drunk gnome. As useless as he is surly. His horse snickered and danced sideways at his approach. The noise in the forest had unnerved the mare, and it surely could smell blood on the air. He nuzzled the horse's nose with his hand and whispered softly.
He risked a glance toward the others as he prepared his mount for travel. Be quick about it. Time spills from the glass.
The night is filled with sounds. Cries in goblin, other voices - undecipherable calls in the common language of men. Your camp is not far off the main path, but the clamor being raised by such a host must have overwhelmed the ancient and abandoned road, spilling a wide arch into the woods.
The dead goblins at your feet bear the same heraldry markings of the earlier band, yet upon closer examination are tattooed and pierced in a distinctly different tribal pattern from the first group. Normally different tribes would war against each other. Only one thing could bring them under the same banner.
Someone, or something has conscripted these goblins to war. Trap is right- goblins make no use of torches unless they are burning villages, they have no need to use them to guide their nighttime journey. These goblins are likely scouts; and given the noise bearing down upon you- scouts of a much larger host heading straight toward Solace.
"Move away I shall scout towards those who approach!"
"They might even ignore a single kender drawn to their noise and light."
Hu'tonkton looked at the human knight like he'd sprouted leaves from his ears. "Are you mad? Stay, and risk more of this army stumbling into our midst? I say we go.
"I owe naught to the town, but the priest might needs know what is coming his way.
"Aye, let's move. Forward or backward, but standing still is the slow death."
Rumal huffs, irritated that there is so much chatter at this moment, "Theforcesmaybegoingtothetownforallthetroublewestirredup. Thelfisright, weneedtokeepmovingtowardourgoalandgetsomedistancebetweenusandthisforce. Wecandonothingaboutthemwithjustthefewofus, wearebetterofffindingthegodsthataresaidtobearoundandgettingthemtohelp." he agrees with Hu, for those that are able to pick the individual words out of his unslurred gnomish speak.
The goblin soldiers lay bleeding and unconscious. One with the horn fled, sounding the alarm. The flames of the fire have died; the glowing coals provide a dim light. It would take 1 round to quickly gather your belongings to flee. You camped 100 yards off the trail leading north or south- it appears that most of the noise is coming from directly north, but several horns have sounded from patrols on all sides.
To hide, the player with the highest rank can attempt to hide the group (or survival check for camouflage).
After picking up his gear, the dwarf's face turns red in anger that he can't protect his home. "Rumal you speak the truth, let us hide and make it around this force. Will do better hiding and you better be right about the gods elf were taking a big risk." It's odd to the new comer that Durom understood the gnome pretty well.
|
|
I will gather my belongings quickly, and also attempts to quickly bind the unconscious goblin's mouth, and carrying him. Quickly patt it down for hidden weapons, and disgard them.
"Durom, help me quickly, would you, I want to arrange the bodies to appear as if they attacked each other.", as I slide some over to one side of the fire, and others opposing them. "Dust though still have the sword from the Hobgoblins we encountered back before Solace? The one you told be about being "mass produced?"" "Place it here, and perhaps this will slow the army a bit, or decrease their ranks. . ."
"I never tried tah camp in tha middle o an army before, tha is a great plan! I saw a thicket o briars tha rings around an has jus one way in we could hide there."
Hu'tonkton scowled. The human was not moving with enough speed for his taste. I'm surrounded by fools, with only a drunk for support.
"Leave the bodies where they lie. We need to move at speed." He finished securing his belongings to the horse.
"Send the kender to his doom if that is your wish. I'll not miss him. But do not expect me to sit idle in the while."
Hu'tonkton laughed - a hard, cruel sound without mirth.
"The great mother is sacred, but not everything that clings to life upon her is worthy of the gift."
He leapt nimbly into the saddle. "Do not presume to know me, boy. Or mistake our lot for friendship."
Hu gave his heels to the mare and spurred away. I should ride hard, put these ones at my back. There was risk in that, though. Many and more were the enemies in this place. The boy spoke much, but wasn't worthless in a fight. The dwarf as well, he conceded. He could do without the other two runts.
Hu pulled up after twenty yards and glanced back at the campsite. Fools. He needed them though, for the meantime. Not only for eyes to look upon his back. This land was a stranger to him. It was only by their help that he'd find what he sought.
He put an arrow to his bowstring and watched the woods.
Considers the elf for a moment
"Might be trouble so tha answer is tah run?"
"You might be being herded like a sheep, all that noise an torches an your gonna run right into the trap?"
Trap throws a smokestick into the dying campfire.....
Then the impulsive kender fires a thunder stone straight towards one of the horns......
Jumps on his horse...
"That might slow them down a bit."
"Come on Donner! You can't stay here!"
Rumal, during the talk, gathers what he can and stuffs it all in his mule's bags. He struggles to climb up, his head killing him, following close behind the elf. "Despitehisattitude, Sirdonner, theelfhasapoint. Wedon'thavetimetositandwaitforthemtofindus, andifwestaytoolongmakingitlookjustrightitwillallbefornaughtifwearestillhere whentheyarrive. ByReorx, Ineedadrink."
Initiative
Perception
Automatic perception check within 10 of a trap
Stealth
"Either way no more time to talk!"
The dwarf looks onto the weapon Sir Donner holds up to him, "Let me see lad, it does have the same look look to it." He takes a closer look at the blade seeing if its the same cheaply made weapon like the other gobbos had. And thinks about the weapon as he starts to help the human set up the bodies
"Aye lets move lads, stay quiet and Trap avoid shiny objects."
Rumal slumps forward in his saddle, spending much of his time grumbling and complaining about his headache and the dang horns.
|
|
After a quick set up, I'll get my horse and begin riding as well, following Hu.
Init: in case, keep in mind, I'm probably fairly blind, letting my steed guide me as it can with it's better senses.
Perception:
Stealth: (My armor only appears as knightly plate, but still, I'm no thief and honestly am not liking this idea of hiding.)
Trap notes to himself to have everyone remove the cowbells from their mounts as soon as possible.....
The party quietly nudges their mounts forward, slipping through the trees at a route diagonal to the road. Several tense moments were spent trying not to breath and holding skittish animals still, as patrols pass either side. It is nearly 10 minutes before the dead patrol of goblins is discovered. More warhorns sound, and noise indicates that the main column on the road has halted.
At one point of the journey, the trees thin giving you a frightening view of the army. Hundreds of goblins are being lead by groups of hobgoblin officers, marching long columns. Here and there, though, are packs of humans- separated from the goblinoid forces by dozens of yards, bearing torches to help them see through the night. They appear to be dressed in skins and leathers, but all carry swords and spears to battle. With short glimpses through the wood, it's impossible to estimate the number of soldiers. The free folk of Solace cannot withstand this army. As you spy upon them, it appears that their nighttime march is over, and they begin fortifying their encampment their diurnal rest.
The dwarf stays quiet as he looks on at this army of gobbos mixed in with humans. He whispers, "By Reorx's anvil, why are there humans with these greenskins. Any of ye know who marches with them."
The dwarf stares onto the humans traveling with the goblins and tries to make out any symbols or coat of arms they might be displaying. "By the way I knew, gobbos didn't make those weapons."
"Goblins eats humans.....I thought."
"Of course everyone likes kender.....you meant to eat didn't you?"
Hu'tonkton listened to the banter with half an ear whilst watching the army move about. He was surprised that none of them yet had the thought to send the kender into camp to look about, once the tents were up and the bulk of the army at slumber. Best he hurry them along before such a thought came to them.
"Unless we mean to watch them sleep, I say we move on. You light-eyes may see danger in traveling at night, but tis no safer to linger here. Let us put some miles between and make camp anew elsewhere."
Traveling by the coast slows your pace, but avoids the danger of the marching army.
As you approach the point where the ruins of Xak Tsaroth rest, the ground grows wet, then swampy. Knee deep water slogs down the horses, and the air begins to take on an air of methane and decomposing plants.
The day passes uneventfully, unless you count swatting stinging flies as combat. You camp on a small dry patch of trees.
Hu'tonkton did not trust this place.
During the journey, the false ground had sucked at his horse's legs like a hungry mouth, creating a soft ploop with each step. He'd felt some small measure of relief when the ground gave way more fully to water, though the swamp could hide any manner of creature beneath its murky surface. Worse was the smell - a heady mixture of the dead and dying earth that made him feel queasy if he took too deep of a breath.
When they made camp, he first saw to his horse before coming to sit near the center of camp. He propped his bow up next to him and surveyed the area, then looked to the others. "This place we go - this Xak Tsaroth... what do you know of it?"
Once the army settles the Kender goes to see before we head away...
Perception
To over-hear conversations
Automatic perception check within 10 of a trap
Stealth
"The humans set their own camp apart from the gobbies. No flags or heraldry only beads, feathers, and bones, barbarians for sure with dark skin. Hobgoblins keep the gobbies in line. The gobbies has banners with a large red wing; many of their outfits are splashed with red."
"Traps right, thats what me dwarven eyes spotted as well. As for this place Xak Tsaroth, I don't know much about it. But I am going to see if I can catch some dinner so we don't need to use our supplies up." The dwarf hefts up his repeating crossbow and heads out into the wooded area. The members of the group that have known the dwarf to usually make one person go with him so he could blame them if he didn't catch anything. They know the dwarf needs to think of something.
As he stalks outside in the hunting grounds, he goes over in his mind of the other elves acclaim to the gods being back.