Head Marshal Hawke elaborates further, "Each group seems to be led by a fire giant, along with a smattering of lesser giants or humanoids like ogres, and a band of goblinoids, orcs or the like. Many groups have some other monsters along as well, whatever they could convince to join on it seems."
"Since the addition of wyverns and manticores and other flying beings, we have not been able to gather as much information through scouting. We have tried divination, but it is time consuming and costly and we are out of time."
"If you are in, pick a spot on the map and we will assign it your group, and we will get you outfitted and on your way."
Be nice to get into something that fits a bit better.
Shaeyl takes a look at the map, so they are following dry river beds and washes? Any natural choke points where we could engage them and retreat?
"There will be many choke points and places to assault them. They are not expecting a force, as they realize the dwarven units are slow and not prone to large scale outdoor fights. They also know that unless we call in the army, we do not have the offensive force with my riders to tackle them as well. They may be overconfident, taking less precautions as they travel, partly due to their own scouts. Beware of hell hounds, wyverns and manticores."
"Perhaps if we could find a way to deal with a wyvern or manticore it could help. Do they travel alone?"
"There is typically one or two per group at most."
Grubgullet listened, with as much attention as he could muster, to the list of enemies they would be facing.
"Gobbos is good eats."
I think trying to take advantage of lone troops might be a better idea for us. With the numbers on our side, we should be able to take care of some of the elite troops.
The Head Marshal shakes his head slightly. "Will your group need provisions and any equipment within reason?"
Aury'tss raises her hand. "I need a longbow of my size and some arrows in a quiver."
"We can find a smaller sized longbow, there are some halfling hunters who find the bow more to their liking than the traditional sling." He nods at one of other marshals who takes a note.
"Any other formal requests?"
By the gods, yes! Shaeyl hands over his list of items.
Head Marshal Hawke nods and notes some things to the other marshals. "We will get you some provisions for a week, and also a map of the area you will be in. Safeguard this map at all costs. Destroy it if you must to prevent it from falling into the enemy hands."
Unless further questions are asked the meeting wraps up and you are escorted back to your room for the evening. You wait and partake of your meal and study the map. In the morning they bring you the requested supplies and equipment (everything that was approved at least). Several dwarves knock early and the sentries lead them in. A marshal and the dwarves wheel in some crates on wheels that look like a cross between a dolley and a small cart. They unload the supplies and then hand you a sheet to sign. Your share languages has worn off, so unless you have another or a comprehend languages, you can't really make out much of the document they have given you.
Aury'tss casts comprehend languages so she can read the sheet before signing it. That's just common sense.
Day 6 - Morning
Aury'tss reviews the sheet and nothing seems to be out of the ordinary or tricky. The dwarves grunt in acknowledgement as she signs, and then pack up their crates and wheel them away. The marshal with them look at the group and nods to you all in a respectful sort of way, understanding the danger you are placing yourselves in for the community.
You sort through the items and begin to don the gear and pack things away into sacks, bags and packs. They gave you extra food too it looks like a week's worth.
You appear to be ready to head out. The group looks to each other in a 'this is it' sort of manner and decides if there is any last thing they want to do before leaving.
Aury stuffs a loaf of bread in her mouth, adjusts her backpack, and gets ready to travel to the location pointed out on the map.
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As he does every morning when he wakes, Sly checks over his shoulder. And, as he always does, he sighs quietly when he realizes that his wings still haven't developed. But he quickly moves on to helping everyone sort and pack the supplies.
He grins at Aury's antics of trying to eat a whole loaf of bread. "Spending too much time with Grub?," he teases.
Otherwise, he is ready to depart after a similarly hasty breakfast.
Aury says something, but it is completely impossible to understand due to the bread.
The group hefts their packs up and raps on the door to notify the sentries. They summon a guard unit to come and escort you away. Instead of leading you to the large exit gate, you are led further underground to a deeper chamber that opens into an underground dock. There a boat waits with several marshals and Head Marshal Hawke himself to see you off on your mission. The head marshal nods at you "Your journey will be arduous and dangerous, but your training hopefully will see you through. I wish there was more time to prepare, to run through drills and scenarios, to provide support and so many other things, but as is the nature of war, we must do what we can. Return here as needed, whether you succeed or fail, or to replenish on supplies, or if you discover information that you deem more important than your mission of attacking the enemies. Any final questions?"
The marshals begin loading your gear in the boat and the pilot waits as you board.
"Report to the docks outside of the wall and you will be ported over. Clearly if the fort is under siege that will not be a good idea, but you can skirt to the south wall or downriver and come up near the dam. The enemy may be powerful, but I doubt they have the numbers to encircle the walled lake entirely. Their assault will be direct."
Shaeyl had already finished stowing his new gear and preparing himself for the journey ahead. Settled down at one of the central seats of the boat he idly stroked the shaft of his crossbow.
My boots are collecting dust.
"Maybe they're magic dust collecting boots, because didn't you just get them?"
"I'm ready if all of you are!"
The boat pilot pushes off from the dock and the boat moves out through a series of heavy gates, portcullises and the myriad of defenses you are used to around Cliffort.
You emerge from the fort into the lake and are immediately escorted by a patrol boat to the gap between the towers and through the security there. The small boat drops you off at the riverside dock and the group steps from the boat, rocking dangerously as Grubgullet steps from the small craft.
The marshal piloting the boat make as a farewell type gesture and sets back toward the lake. There number of people milling about the dock has dwindled to almost none now. The place has some security and a few marshals but just keeping an eye on things.
The group pulls out the map and sets their sites to the north. Far away you know the mountains of black ice and your foes lurk. You start by putting some miles on your feet. The initial hours are easy, following the trails near the fort used by miners, loggers, trappers and hunters. The walk is easy even if the terrain is rugged. The day is overcast and a bit glum but the fresh air of the outdoors is a welcome change to the cool clammy interior of the fort.
The journey is uneventful and the terrain gets harder and the trails less the further you go. By midday you have to abandon the trails and start using natural game trails or terrain features to ease your travel. You stop for a brief snack and adjust your gear and take a breather, you realize you may need to set both a marching order, a camp watch for the night and perhaps any other preparations or precautions now that you are in the wilderness and while close to the fort yet and no enemies likely, there may be other dangers out here and eventually you will be facing potential foes. Your idle chat over lunch makes you realize you have no real plan for any scenario.
The group winds its way to the north and west as it pushes towards the mountains. You have days ahead of you yet, at least four or so before you reach your assigned territory. The group snacks a bit again as they wind down their day's trek and begins to find a campsite for the evening.
Chta and Aury take turns following the map and keeping the group from getting lost. Shaeyl arranges for an excellent campsite for the evening and keeps the group away from any hazards and from getting lost during their trek. Sly and Grubgullet attempt to assist but are having off days.
The group settles in for the first evening away of their new journey away from the fort, one week after their arrival in the world from Master Goodwin's domain.
Day 6 - Evening and overnight
The group sets up their watch order and the night sets in. It is a bit damp a few sprinkles fall but not much.
Day 7 - Morning
The night seems uneventful and the group wakes up for a day of new journeying, the morning is a bit sunnier, and somewhat windy. You pack up camp and set out for the day, following what terrain you can and consulting your map with a rough idea where to go. You are interested in making solid time. You tackle some rough terrain as you pass through a narrow gap in some rocky hilly area, and make your way along a ravine with steep hills to each side. You muse about giants trying to traverse the same route. Grubgullet has to squeeze a few times past some boulders. A few hours later you break for lunch in a wooded area, and you notice an old broken down shack not far off from the stream. It doesn't appear to have seen any attention on a long time. It is rough hewn and rugged, built on the spot.
Aury'tss peers through some brush to get a better look at the shack. "Maybe Shaeyl or I should investigate. If anyone's there, we're small enough that maybe no one will notice."
You peer at the shack for a bit, it appears abandoned, at least at the current moment.
Aury sneaks towards the shack, hiding behind shrubs and trees.
Shaeyl gives Ptery a toss into the air, go check out that shed, be careful.
Ptery's rolls
Shaeyl accompanies Aury.
Shaeyl and Aury slip into the underbrush and stealth up to the shack as Ptery takes to the air flapping toward and wheeling about above the old building.
The duo creep up to the edge and peer into a window. No warning comes from Shaeyl's familiar and the two on the ground see no danger in the hut. As their eyes adjust to the dark interior they see some old broken rotten furniture, a table, two chairs, several empty shelves and the wooden frame of a bed. The elements have taken their toll on the inside. Leaves and debris are everywhere. Spiderwebs hang from all corners and nearly everything else. Squirrels and chipmunks or other rodents have left the shells of years of nuts, acorns and other food all over the floor. A skeletalized bird lies on the floor in a corner. In another corner several wasps work on their new nest.
Barely visible under the layer of dust and debris the two of them perceptively spy the outlines of a trapdoor on the floor.
Grubgullet, of course, not being one for stealth, stays behind and scratches himself.
Aury excitedly whispers "Ooh!" after spotting the trapdoor, and clambers through the window.
Aury gets through the window nimbly. Trying to move stealthily across the floor is all but impossible given the layer of cracked dried nuts shells. She has to proceed cautiously and shuffler her feet to slide the shells away bit by bit, placing her feet in the tiny spots she clears. Nothing seems to stir, although spiders, centipedes and dozens of bugs and beetles skitter at her disturbance.
Closer, the trapdoor has an old iron ring in it that you would pull up. Luckily no furniture or other large items are over the door, but there is a significant layer of dust and debris which will slide off and scatter and clatter if the door is able to be lifted. A lot if dirt and dust has also clogged the outline of the cracks between the door and the floor.
Shaeyl motions the others forward as he watches Aury creep across the nut shelled floor.
Hey Grub, careful that you don't fall through, but Aury may need your assistance in a moment.
Sly and grub move up to the hut. One of the door hinges had long ago rotted off of the frame, the weight of the door pulling it out and hanging half in the frame now.
They pull open the half rotted slab and set it aside and step gingerly into the hut. The crunching of the debris under their feet. Grubgullet has to stoop considerably, and his face is immediately covered in old dusty cobwebs and fresh spiderwebs; a few spiders go skittering away, one of them dropping down a fresh line to race across the floor to safety.
Sly is already big himself but Grubgullet's bulk causes the floor to groans as the old floorboards creak dangerously under his massive weight. You aren't sure how much of the shack is open underneath. Shaeyl gets down at ground level and tries to peer under the shack but its built onto the ground fairly flat, and years of debris have covered the edges. He starts to dig with a broad stick and uses a knife to cut away some old vegetation. In a short bit he sees that there the trapdoor has its own wooden chute, and the rest of the shack's floor is just suspended over dirt. A collapse of the floor would not send the contents of the cabin into mysterious depths.
The ogre watches as his friends pry open the mysterious hole in the floor.
"What now?"
Aury'tss peers down the dark chute.
She picks up a stone or piece of wood and casts a light spell on it. The debris glows with a soft blue light, and drops it down the chute.
Shaeyl gives a thumbs up to the group inside and Aury tries to open the trapdoor, which seems warped or stuck after having not been opened in who know how long. After struggling a bit, Grubgullet rips the door from its fastenings. Debris and dust scatter and piles of dirt and nut shells fall down the shaft. After the dust clears, Aury sees an old rickety ladder that descends into the depths. It only goes down about fifteen feet perhaps into some sort of root cellar. The narrowness and depth of the shaft prevents getting a good look at the room at the bottom. What little she can see appears to be mostly dirt and some crumbling masonry. Some put a small amount of effort into making sure the room below had some structure and wasn't just a dirt hole.
Nothing stirs in the darkness other than vermin from the ruckus that was made opening the door. The ladder and shaft down are covered in dust and webs, old and new. The hole below has that damp earthy smell and the air wafting out was stale and cool.
That ladder doesn't look good. Shaeyl pulls the rope from his pack, and after making his rope use check, ties a sling into one end.
Grub, would you mind being ever so helpful? I'd like to take a look down there.
Shaeyl holds the other end of the rope out to Grubgullet.
Grubgullet nods and takes the rope from Shaeyl. "Uh huh."
With Grubgullet holding the rope, Shaeyl is able to lower himeslf into the chamber below. At the bottom is a root celler. Any food stores that were here are long gone, eaten or rotted. You cannot even find any remains. A smashed fermenting crock you guess lies in one corner, never again to make delicious sauerkraut. Shaeyl moves about carefully the tiny underground chamber and inspects it.
As he moves about the room, he fit detects an oddity in the earthen floor. Kicking away some of the accumulated earth, he sees yet another access to deeper. This time the 'door' seems to be more of a seal, formed of masonry, circular and covering a five foot diameter tube perhaps. The circular masonry disc fits tightly inside the outer ring. It is slightly cracked, and perhaps meant to be permanent as no handle or ring exists to lift it out. It is likely extremely heavy. A very narrow stilleto could fit along side into the crack between the disc and the outer ring, but it would do little could except to prove that it fit as it would not be strong enough to pry up the massive plug.
Hey guys! Found something, but I'm going to need some help!
Shaeyl considers for a moment, he hadn't prepared reduced person today. Anyone have a spell for shrinking Grub? I didn't prepare it today.