Anglon takes the lead on his proud new steed. He leads the entire group across the river; a task only possible with the help of the assembled Kobolds and their giant spider ally.
Travelling south he leads the group along the western riverbank. After about 5 hours they land has risen and the river runs through a deep gorge. Here they pass a rickety bridge. Without stopping to investigate they continue even further.
After 8 hours the living horses are flagging, and the land starts to drop away again. In the distance hints of the terrain tell Anglon that it is likely the river curves around to the south west.
"There's no sense in pushing ourselves to exhaustion while expecting a fight sometime soon. Let us travel at a sane pace, arrive at the enemy's location fresh and strong, and attack at a time of our choosing. Besides, I would love some tea and scones."
Ronald doesn't ride extremely well. Servicable, but the constant miles and bouncing does not agree with his general demeanor.
"If we're settling down for the night, we might as well settle down, no?" he asks with a grin.
"There's no sense in pushing ourselves to exhaustion while expecting a fight sometime soon. Let us travel at a sane pace, arrive at the enemy's location fresh and strong, and attack at a time of our choosing. Besides, I would love some tea and scones."
Ronald doesn't ride extremely well. Servicable, but the constant miles and bouncing does not agree with his general demeanor.
"If we're settling down for the night, we might as well settle down, no?" he asks with a grin.
"They've had a year. Giving them another day won't hurt. "
Grey sets the Servants and his Horror on watch and goes about his usual night's work of carving, inscribing, shaping and crafting.
"Perhaps it would be prudent to send Molly under the cover of night to reconnoiter the Stag Lord's encampment?"
Grey sets the Servants and his Horror on watch and goes about his usual night's work of carving, inscribing, shaping and crafting.
"Perhaps it would be prudent to send Molly under the cover of night to reconnoiter the Stag Lord's encampment?"
Good idea.
Simon casts a spell on Molly.
Sometime in the dark of night Molly flies off to investigate.
Perception
Stealth
Molly flies close and otherwise tries to act like a normal raven. Perhaps joining with a murder (group of ravens) that might already be close if not inside the keep somewhere.
EDIT: Actually just take 10 on perception until she gets closer. She'll take her time scouting, though she keeps her distance. She's counting troops, looking for fortifications, weak points, etc.
Turning to Grey,
"Hey Grey, I assume you brought some extra robes for your minions, right? If you have extra we should probably all wear them. It'll be good and creepy to disorient the enemy. Plus they won't know who to target. What do you think?"
"A good idea, Simon, however..." Anglon points to the large floating rune above his head. "It may not work."
"A good idea, Simon, however..." Anglon points to the large floating rune above his head. "It may not work."
"Hummm…. Good point. Of course we could put some penny lights on the undead roughly around the head area. "
"Hummm…. Good point. We'll need to put those away for this to work."
The night passes uneventfully
A herd of fifteen elk, each as high at the shoulder as a human come down to the river to drink, there they drink carefully while an enormous stag keeps watch towards your camp.
There is a sudden thrashing that turns out to be one of the enormous elk being dragged into the river by some ophidian monster.
The runelords continue to follow the river.
It seems this river and another branch from the same source. Presumably the bandit camp is along one of the other rivers; one heading west, one east (see map).
Survival and perception rolls: you reason the bandits wouldn't have crossed to this side of the river unnecessarily, therefore you probably need to follow the river west.
"I have plenty, in a variety of sizes." Grey said. "I think that between distance and unfamiliarity with Thasselonian runes, our foes are unlikely to be able to tell us apart. However, they would quickly realize that those of us with runes were the leaders of our forces."
"We will be casting numerous effects down on their fortress, many of which are likely to be disorienting to any unfamiliar with magic. An illusion may help broaden the scope of this deception."
"Ronald, would you be capable of creating an illusion that would increase the apparent number of Runelords? Perhaps an additional dozen false images, all making casting gestures and sounds, appearing to be teleporting, flying and creating illusory effects around themselves?"
"If we were to primarily employ spells that do not have an obvious point of origin, we may be able to trick our enemies into wasting efforts in attacking phantasms."
"In addition, adding false runes to our minions and disguising their archery as conjuration of arcane arrows may add to the overall confusion."
"I recommend that as many of us as possible employ magics such as Invisibility and Mirror Image. The combined effect has a high chance of rendering our enemies nearly incapable of mounting an effective offense against us."
"Something big and flashy, I can certainly do. Maintaining multiple moving and changing images, that may be a bit more challenging. I do have several image spells memorized, as well as several different kinds of invisibility, from sphere down to the short duration vanish. I would recommend mirror image and physical disguises as well, and lets try to limit spells like fireball and lightning bolt which would provide our location immediately. Also, anyone with cloud spells will limit their line of sight as readily as rendering them blindn or us invisible. Just one more avenue to consider."
"I intend to set people on fire from a distance… Repeatedly. The point of origin won't be obvious. It'll get to the point where they're afraid to look over the wall. "
"I don't think the bandits would have crossed to this side of the river unnecessarily. We should probably follow the river west."
Molly, now given direction, is sent out to scout () and returns with a report containing the following information
There is an eagle nest in the fort - Molly find this quite important.
The fort is on a hill.
Most of the hill is rough rock, covered in thorned vines. You might be able to sneak some people up it.
There is a path that leads up the hill you could not sneak people up.
The fort has a big wooden wall about 3 people high.
There are watchtowers and spots where guards can see over the wall. Most watch the path.
There are a lot of people. She saw at least 15, with bows.
"I am afraid that my split focus on both arcane and martial training is not compatible with this kind of plan, I have almost no ranged capability. I expect my blade-brother is rather too distinctive as well." Forsten observes as they observe the river. "There is a large Serpent I observed last night take down a large Elk by the river's edge. I would advise caution when we find a place to cross."
"Could we utilize that serpent in our assault? A big enough snake to take an elk would do very well at distracting a bunch of bandits, no?"
A few hours later molly flies back into camp and lands on the top of the head one of Grey's nearby minions.
She speaks very quickly and excitedly. Remember she's very smart for a raven, but not for a person.
Is it a giant eagles nest or a regular eagles nest?
"Ok, so I saw a bunch of stuff. First, There's an eagles nest in the fort. It's probably important, but I'm not sure why. It's on a big rocky hill with a bunch of thorn vines. I used those to get close without anyone seeing me. I kept the vines between me and them. There's enough space to sneak a some man sized things and keep the vines between you and them. There is a path that leads up the hill, but it's cleared away and you couldn't sneak anyone up that way. There's a big wooden wall about three men high with watchtowers and spots where guards can see over the wall. They were mostly watching the path up. There were a lot of men. At least 15 with bows. I think one saw me, but I was with a bunch of other ravens so he didn't look twice."
"I am afraid that my split focus on both arcane and martial training is not compatible with this kind of plan, I have almost no ranged capability. I expect my blade-brother is rather too distinctive as well." Forsten observes as they observe the river. "There is a large Serpent I observed last night take down a large Elk by the river's edge. I would advise caution when we find a place to cross."
"No worries. We'll get close eventually. We're just going to soften them up from range. "
"Could we utilize that serpent in our assault? A big enough snake to take an elk would do very well at distracting a bunch of bandits, no?"
"Does anyone have the ability to control or at least drive it toward the camp? if not it's probably best we leave it be. "
Regular eagle's nest. They crop up from time to time. Molly's keenly aware of it because a nesting eagle is a serious danger to her. You can send her closer if you like.
Because of the eagle there are few ravens around the area.
On the other hand there are any number of spells that would make her safe to scout, or able to take an eagle in combat.
** spoiler omitted **
"So can you drive the snake thing or no?"
"Why do we worry and fret over simple river beasts? We are Runelords! Let us be done with these endless deliberations, march in strength upon them and shatter their gates!"
"Well, if we are ready to proceed, please gather round. Note: as soon as you attack or move more than ten feet from me, you will become visible once again."
Ronald casts mage armor while everyone moves into range. Once everyone gathers round, he casts mirror image via mythic power (6/7 remaining) , then arcane sight, then invisibility sphere.
He then casts mythic silent image (5//7 remaining) to create an amalgalm runelord, composing all seven runes in a constant orbit around his head, standing easily 7' tall, armored in glistening scales and draped multi-colored robes. He carries a huge, multi-pronged polearm in one hand and a metal-bound grimoire in the other.
"Am I doing the talking, or do we have someone better able to bluff these bandits into surrender?"
"Well, if we are ready to proceed, please gather round. Note: as soon as you attack or move more than ten feet from me, you will become visible once again."
Ronald casts mage armor while everyone moves into range. Once everyone gathers round, he casts mirror image via mythic power (6/7 remaining) 1d4+2, then arcane sight, then invisibility sphere.
He then casts mythic silent image (5//7 remaining) to create an amalgalm runelord, composing all seven runes in a constant orbit around his head, standing easily 7' tall, armored in glistening scales and draped multi-colored robes. He carries a huge, multi-pronged polearm in one hand and a metal-bound grimoire in the other.
"Am I doing the talking, or do we have someone better able to bluff these bandits into surrender?"
** spoiler omitted **
"It's not really a bluff if it's in there best interest. "
"In that case, someone has to be better than me in face-to-face diplomacy."
"Why do we even presume to offer them words? Flatten them and their puny fort into the dust and make a lasting example of them. The only words they need to hear are ones which announce our arrival and their imminent end!"
"While I appreciate your gusto, hear me out. If we become known as the group which offers one, and only one opportunity to surrender, before demolishing our foes, We stand to win much more efficiently. That reputation can precede us, and win us battles, hearts, and minds without expending any effort. I am sure you can appreciate that, right?"
Ronald makes a placating gesture and shrugs a bit.
"Now, I expect them to refuse, and then we blast them back into dust. Sound good?"
"While I appreciate your gusto, hear me out. If we become known as the group which offers one, and only one opportunity to surrender, before demolishing our foes, We stand to win much more efficiently. That reputation can precede us, and win us battles, hearts, and minds without expending any effort. I am sure you can appreciate that, right?"
Ronald makes a placating gesture and shrugs a bit.
"Now, I expect them to refuse, and then we blast them back into dust. Sound good?"
"He's right. Offering one chance is just pragmatic in the long run. "
"It does give up the element of surprise, but if it is to be an investment then so be it." Forsten adds his weight to the arguement. "Do we plan to assault the gate directly, or should we dismount and attempt to scale the walls along a less guarded area?"
"It does give up the element of surprise, but if it is to be an investment then so be it." Forsten adds his weight to the arguement. "Do we plan to assault the gate directly, or should we dismount and attempt to scale the walls along a less guarded area?"
"This is a siege. I don't think we ever had the element of surprise."
Turning to Ronald,
"Throw in something about 'any man who surrenders will be unharmed and have a place in our kingdom' etc etc etc. That way we can possibly cause infighting and have them abandon their posts. Hopefully, anyway. "
"That was my idea. Chaos and confusion!"
Ronald smiles with anticipation.
"So, if I have this right, we form a nice phalanx with the skeletons and try to blend in while one of us asks them nicely to surrender or die? Then, when they say no, we blast them to the Boneyard?"
"If the plan is to be invisible, would it not make more sense to set the grey servants up in an obvious location with Ronald's illusion to do the talking while we advance slowly to the gates?"
"To modify Anglon's plan, yes. The illusory Runelord will be at the van, surrounded by grey servants, while we stay just behind under cover of invisibility. And then they refuse to surrender, and we zap them. Sound good to everyone?"
"Sounds good to me."
"I still find this skulking and sneaking and token offers of clemency to be distasteful, but we shall do as you all suggest."
HP: 62/42
AC: 17 (11 T / 16 FF)
Fort: +4 // Ref: +4 // Will: +6
Cantrips Prepared (4): mage hand, mending, prestidigitation, read magic
Level 1 Prepared (3+2+1): enlarge person [ ], illusion of calm [ ], liberating command [ ], mirror strike [ ] [ ], shield [ ]
Level 2 Prepared (3+1+1): alter self [ ] [ ], blindness/deafness [ ], bull's strength [ ] [ ]
Level 3 Prepared (2+1+1): extended false life (mythic) [X], haste [ ], monstrous physique (mythic) [ ], resinous skin [ ]
Bonded Item Spell: [ ]
Augment (+2/+2) used: 0/8
Mythic Power used: 1/7
Ongoing Effects:
extended mythic false life (6/12 hours)
HP: 62/42
AC: 25 (12 T / 23 FF)
Fort: +4 // Ref: +5 // Will: +6
Cantrips Prepared (4): mage hand, mending, prestidigitation, read magic
Level 1 Prepared (3+2+1): enlarge person [ ], illusion of calm [ ], liberating command [ ], mirror strike [ ] [ ], shield [X]
Level 2 Prepared (3+1+1): alter self [ ] [ ], blindness/deafness [ ], bull's strength [X] [ ]
Level 3 Prepared (2+1+1): extended false life (mythic) [X], haste [X], monstrous physique (mythic) [X], resinous skin [ ]
Bonded Item Spell: [ ]
Augment (+2/+2) used: 0/8
Mythic Power used: 2/7
Ongoing Effects:
Str: 24 (+7)
extended mythic false life (6/12 hours)
mythic monstrous physique- gargoyle (+4 str, +3 nat armor, darkvision 60, fly 30) (4/10 rounds, 0/6 minutes)
bull's strength (+4 str) (3/10 rounds, 0/6 minutes)
shield (+4 AC) (2/10 rounds, 0/6 minutes)
haste (+1 to hit, +1 dodge, +1 ref) (1/6 rounds)
"Think about it like this, Valerianna: this time, we offer to accept surrender, then slaughter all but one of the occupants. That one we deliberately release, possibly with a message written on their body in some fashion. The next time we encounter bandits, they are more likely to simply surrender to our rightful demands."
Ronald wipes his hands together, clapping them apart much like a card dealer would to show he is not hiding things in his fingers.
"This is but the first foray of many, and the easier we make it on ourselves, the more we can concentrate on the True Work, our magic."
Valerianna waves her hand dismissively, "I still think the stronger message is to stamp these curs into dust with sudden and total finality. I can think of no better deterrent than the knowledge that there are no second chances: to be a bandit in our lands is to commit oneself to a swift and bloody end, without exception. But as I said, we will do it your way."
"Right, right. That's all well and good. But who delivers that message? How do they learn of the futility of resistance? There needs to be survivors, or witnesses of some kind, that will spread our statements."
"Men with no hope of redemption will fight to the bitter end. Those who think they might survive by surrendering might. "