Rai tries to ride well on his horse not much skill but he has his heritage.
Then as Rai rides he scouts looking for anything unusual imagining ancient fortresses or worlds hidden in trees.
Rai will also keep an eye out for moon radishes
And finally he will attempt to not allow them to get lost
EXPLORATION SUMMARY
It is a long day, and a long night, and a long day again.The fog simply doesn't let up. You would think a fog would burn up easily by mid-day, but its constant presence is enough to make you start wondering more about the powers of the woman you saw last night.
Arlen and Sigurd in particular spend significant time pondering the First World. They are able to teach the others that the First World was a sort of... first draft, when the gods created the material plane. It was never erased though, when our own world came into being. It parallels our own world in many ways, but the laws of nature are strange, and can decide to stop or change. It would not be unusual to see a tree the size of a mountain, or suddenly to have gravity stop working. And it is the home of the Fey. Powerful fairies, with their own courts, kings, queens, and constant battles among them all.
As Arlen and Sigurd contemplate this all, Arlen also remembers that there are places on the Prime World--your world-- that are... thinner, for lack of a better word. Places where the First World and the Prime World are more likely to intersect, where fey are more likely to accidently wander into the Prime World, and vice-versa. Could the Stolen Lands be one of those places?
As the end of the second day approaches, and the sky grows dark, through the fog Diceros hears a soft rumbling. Poking his head into a small clearing, he quickly pulls it back into cover and motions for the entire group to be quiet. "A clearing! Kobolds cover it, and there are moon radishes. But they must have eaten too many, for they all lie there, asleep. Snoring."
Rai whispers "I am not stealthy so I vote we bomb them and attack them." Rai looks over the sleeping kobolds planning.
Ike paused listened quietly to the group as they mentioned sleeping... kobolds? It sounded like they were intentionally guarding the moon radishes they were looking for... slinking over to the edge of the cover they had, Ike poked a tendril out and studied the strange creatures a bit, before ducking back in and shuddering into a puddle for a moment.
Then, he began to reform into a solid figure. Much smaller than he usually took on. Trying to pack as much of his goop into a small space as possible, he started to stand upright and develop the usual arms and legs... but these were much slimmer. His hands and feet ended in sharp claws and a tail protruded down from the end of his spine. His head shaped into a reptilian form as his color shifted from the usual greenish gray to a deep red. He scrunched his snout up as spikes grew from the back of his head. His slick skin formed into sleek scales.
"I'm veeling a bid stobbed ub." he said, sounding like his had a cold. Looking at his back, Ike hunched over for a moment, before a pair of pointed wings suddenly swirled out of his back, looking razor sharp along the edges. "Ahhhhh... much better! It gets hard to talk when you try to pack so much into so little space like that. Here! Now I'm a kobold! I'll just go ask them for the radishes and they'll never know!"
Arlen whispers to his companions. "Wait! Weren't we supposed to deal with some problematic kobolds? Perhaps this could be our opportunity! They are asleep and gathered together, after all."
Arlen peers at the kobolds, trying to figure out whether or not they are the kobolds they were tasked with dealing with.
I say we deal with them as a threat! Rai says one last time trying to convince the group.
Brokk'r grumbles something toward Ike about scaring the crap out of him with his transformations, but his tone is less hostile than it has been.
"Really, elf?" Brokk'r says, shaking his head in disgust as Arlen dissects the gremlin.
"Right. I've no objection ta sneakin' around 'em, but I'm not gonna be very good at it either," the dwarf says. "Seems it might be easier just ta kill 'em."
"Now wait just one slick second here!"
Ike has been quiet and defaulting to letting the others take the lead, since they would know the region best. He has a hard enough time trying to fit in, much less make decisions for others. But perhaps it was the high of his finally seeing success in defeating those gremlins, or perhaps it was his natural wish to infiltrate and bond with groups rather than attack them, or perhaps just being a monster like them made him sympathetic, but treating these little guys as a threat when all they've done so far is sleep seemed... mean!
To him, anyways.
"Now... I know I'm not a leader or anything like that, and maybe since you guys might see me as a monster, my opinion might not mean much... but darn it, I want to talk!" Ike folded his little scaly arms over his chest and huffed. "...I might not know much about kobolds, or settling things, or any of that... but this is their home. I can understand fighting the bandits, because they're jerks and hurt people... but we're doing the same thing they are! This is their home, and we're just coming in, taking their stuff, and threatening to beat them up! We're supposed to be the good guys! Maybe that's why that strange lady was so angry with us a couple nights ago."
Ike huffed again and grumbled a bit, before kicking at the dirt, like a little kid throwing a fit. "I will help get the radishes.. there seems to be a lot to spare. But if we go picking a fight with them without even trying to talk to them first... I won't help. I want to fit in with other creatures... not kill them."
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Ike has a point. They're helpless right now. Gorum likes battle, but to attack sleeping creatures would be closer to slaughter.
"You're right. We shouldn't kill them if we don't have to. We must be prepared, though, for it to come to that. I have faith in your ability to get those radishes in the most non-violent way possible, but things might go south. We need to be prepared for every eventuality."
Arlen nods at Ike. "He has a point. Perhaps we should not slay them before we know more about them. Stealth does seem to be a difficult option. I cannot provide assistance for more than the first bit of sneaking but I will be prepared to help should the need arise."
Ike creeps out and starts to slowly tiptoe through the tangle of kobolds, finding that, surprisingly, his new tail helps him a great deal in keep his balance!
Now he just hopped that none of the kobolds woke up as he gathered the radishes...
Arlen watches his slimy and smiley friend creep around the clearing, gathering moon radishes, impressed with his stealth.
As quiet as a slimy cat, or maybe an oozey fox... Ike in kobold form tip-toes through the sleeping kobolds. He is so quiet that not one even stirs. Dancing through kobolds as if he is hearing his own special music, Ike scoops up the few moon radishes remaining, and quietly returns to the group. You all quickly depart to put space between you and them, and once at a safe distance everyone congratulates Ike on such a amazing performance!
In your celebrations, everyone feels strangely and unexpectedly more powerful, as you move up to LEVEL 2!!!!!
Another night and day passes, and you feel like you have properly explored this area. You are careful to avoid the clearing, and do not encounter the kobolds again.
As you make camp for the night, you consult your notes and map drafts. You managed to put a lot of detail in this map, and eventually, you feel that you can get... oh... let's say 268 gold for it.
CAMPING PHASE
Ike's stealthy performance remains a high topic of conversation. Eventually others start talking about their own skills, and how they came to learn them.
As soon as they are far enough away from the clearing, Arlen loudly and enthusiastically praises the exploits of Ike.
"What stealth and agility! He crept through their number unimpeded and silently! A virtuoso's performance!"
Around the campfire, Arlen grins.
"Unsurprisingly, my knowledge of magical and natural phenomena came to me through years of study in my library. What of yours?"
A while later, he brings up another topic.
"Shall we return to the fort with these moon radishes for Svetlana? I'm sure she would appreciate them and we could benefit significantly from our reward."
"that was truly a great performance Ike. I may have been hasty but we were told of kobolds causing trouble. I got over zealous. My greatest skill of course is alchemy which I have studied since being a young child as I watched a powerful elixir save my mother's life." Rai says as he sets up camp and after hunting for the party.
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Sigurd feels refreshed in a way he's never felt before. He likes this feeling. It's as if he's gotten more skillful. Maybe Arlen will know more about this...
"Ike, you were absolutely amazing. I, for one, am glad you're on our side."
Later, after setting up camp and sitting around the fire, Sigurd thinks back to his childhood. "I guess I've always been singing. It's a big part of life in our tribe. We sing to Gorum during battle. We sing to learn our history. My father even sang over the kettle as he made his beer."
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"Ike, would that any of us could be that stealthy. Not only were your feet nimble, but your ingenious shapeshifting is quite a boon to all of us.
My mother taught me much of communing with Nature and survival. But my uncles taught me how to fight with the elven spear. I hope to someday achieve a true mastery of the spear, to fight Nature's enemies with Pygmy at my side."
Brokk'r doesn't care one way or the other about killing the kobolds. They're pests and killin' 'em would certainly make someone's life easier, but their charter didn't specify sleepin' pest extermination.
Back at camp, Brokk'r catches Ike alone for a moment. He stands in awkward silence briefly before saying, "Ye done good, ooze." He then returns to his quiet observation of the group.
Ike returns to a host of praise and, truthfully, feels a bit embarrassed by it. He was not used to getting such glowing praise... but it was nice. Intoxicating, even. As someone who desperately sought a place among others, it was emboldening to be appreciated so much. Even Brokk'r seemed pleased!
He just had to keep it up!
As the others spoke of their experiences, Ike paid attention, listening as he recovered from his shapeshifting to once again take on a more human form, sitting on a log nearby. "Well... I don't really know how my creator made me. I don't think I am supposed to be as smart as I am... but I guess something went... right? But I sat on his shelf for three years, watching him work below. He always muttered to himself, so I learned to talk that way, and he was always working, and I was so... fascinated by his work. He always changing stuff... like me! Then, when those thugs attacked him, I managed to escape, come back, and take over his shop... took a couple months to figure out how to keep myself from melting, but I did it!"
Morning breaks! Pharast 12, 4710.
It is one of the those spring days no one expects. It is warm; hot! Even in the early morning. Surely this day will bring about the end of the snow on the ground.
Heat Wave: Living creatures are fatigued unless protected through magic.
Rai will hunt once more for the group and then will also suggest returning to Oleg's to order an alchemical lab so he can start making items for himself and the group.
Arlen surveys the area around them as they travel, attempting to identify useful features to place on a map.
"Ah, do you see those two hills over there? That will be a useful marker to show on a map as they are approximately one mile west of the small river we saw a while ago. Should someone seek drinkable water, they could orient themselves from that feature. The taller one is exactly due east of the shorter one, pointing towards the river."
The party heads back to Oleg's Trading Post, through known territory. It takes 6 hours to make it out of the woods, and when the plains open up before you, you mount up and cross the flats in a 4 hour time. This brings you back to Oleg's by late afternoon on the 12th, and you are all worn and weary. None of you are used to the heat yet. When summer comes, it will be like second nature, but a summer day in the middle of spring takes some getting used to.
"Heya! Heya! They are back! Wow, gosh gee, I can't wait to hear your stories!"
Noober waves from the walls as you approach. The fort looks to be in the same condition as when you left. The bandit's bodies are still hanging, and are certainly rank and ripe in this heat. The guards are on the walls, and Oleg is tramping about, cleaning up this and that. Svetlana waves as you enter.
As they approach the fort, Arlen asks "What next shall we undertake? I do believe that there is a large and troublesome boar in these parts. Could we deal with him, perhaps? I feel marvelously competent at the moment."
Arlen attempts to move past James without drawing his attention, leaving that for the rest of his teammates.
He brings the moon radishes to Svetlana with a bow.
"Madame, I believe you requested these."
"Ike! Ike! Tell me a story!
"Ooooo... Moon radishes! Just what I was hoping for! Oleg will be so happy. I will start making a moon radish stew right now. Any of you will be welcome to try it! I have to warn you, though... it can do some weird things to you. Still, it is delicious."
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Sigurd heads into the fort. After putting down his gear in the bunkhouse, he grabs a mug of beer and goes over to check out the job posting board. He looks at the posting about the boar that Arlen mentioned.
"It says here that boar's called Tuskgutter. Seems like it might be a nice challenge for us. Let's ask around and see if anyone knows where we might find him."
If there are other people around, Sigurd offers to buy them a drink and asks about the boar.
"Tuskgutter? Bwa ha ha ha! You don't find Tuskgutter, big barbarian. He finds you! Bwa ha ha!"
Arlen stands up, proud. He declares for all the fort to hear
"Simply point us in the direction of the creature's haunt! We shall defeat the scourge with the power of knowledge and detailed academic insights of a biological nature!"
He looks to his comrades for confirmation, both of their prowess and intellectual methods.
"It's an animal. Ye track it," Brokk'r says matter of factly. "Where's the last place ye seen the beast?"
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"Hey Oleg, I've got a rather fun order for you. I'm looking for someone who can create rhinoceros armor. I'm thinking about some basic studded leather armor would look pretty good on him; some spikes and all.
I think it'll run you some 50 gold. Don't worry about how long it might take to get the order. I know it's pretty crazy."
Diceros also listens to the talk about Tuskgutter. Again, he is torn between wild Nature and civilization. Still, if this boar has hurt many people, it is probably best stopped.
He considers what he knows about the local area and what he knows about boars to see if he might discover a likely location to hunt.
"Well if you really wanna get that bounty, you best look in the woods-- the Narlmarches. That is where the hunters have reported getting attacked, and boars live in the woods, ya know. Where in the Narlmarches? Wherever it wants to be!"
To Diceros, he says, "Let's do some measurements. Can you get him to stand still? Girth... length.... Couple of straps here.... Yeah, I know a guy in Restov. We'll get er done. Anyone else? Who wants something special?"
"I will need a master worked alchemists kit placed on order as well." Rai says with a smile hoping to once more start on his love of alchemy.
"OKAY, EVERYONE! WHO WANTS TO TRY THE MOON RADISH STEW? DINNER'S READY!" Svetlana yells out to attract the attention of the whole post.
Oleg's face brightens and he quickly heads over to the tables.
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"If there's food to be eaten, then I'll not be left behind!"
Sigurd heads over to the tables and awaits the stew he KNOWS will be delicious. On the way, he remarks to Oleg, "You let my friends and I deal with this boar. I tell you, we'll bring back it's head to adorn your walls just like those bandits."
"Aye! I'll certainly have some!"