Benedict's arrow and Jie's crossbow both find their marks, sending blood and scales flying across the stream. The drake roars, tail lashing, before leaping into the air, wings beating furiously. It gains just a few feet of altitude before turning the upward movement into a flat dive, rushing down on Benedict with its fanged maw open wide. Just before it strike him, Amkarang's meteor hammer lashes out. The heavy stone catches the drake in the side, but doesn't stop the drake's charge.
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The drake takes a deep bite out of the aasimar's shoulder, and for good measure, its tail whips him across the pate, drawing blood from just along his hairline as well.
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"Archers, READY!"
Benedict calls for a volley to distract the creature (Aid Another from followers - does that work?).
Then he will step back and shoot.
Jie smiles as her and Benedict's crossbow bolt hits home and actually gives a little cheer when Amkarang smashes it with his hammer. She quickly draws her shortbow and sends an arrow flying towards beast at Benedict's call for archers.
Benedict and Jie leave the drake staggering, and Grum's massive blade ends the draconic threat.
The nearby island proves to be the drake's lair, and you recover a few items of apparent value from it: a decorated electrum serving tray (worth 110 gp), an engraved jade scarab (worth 85 gp), a candelabra, holy symbol and mask all made of silver and bearing the insignia of the god Razimir (worth 175 gp total), a small collection of semiprecious stones worth a total of 29 gp, and a pair of magical elixirs.
The rest of the day proves largely uneventful, and you call a halt while there's still a little sunshine left, to start building shelters again. You're pleased to learn that, with the sheer number of people you are traveling with who understand the basics of animal husbandry, none of your recovered livestock was lost on the trip. You're just over a mile from where the Ranger redoubt should be.
It's clear that the area isn't as well-suited to finding shelter materials as your previous spot.
Jie pitches the small tent and then goes about trying to build more shelters.
She also tries to determine whether the drake would be good to eat or not.
Benedict will try to build shelters.
He manages to construct one that will accommodate five people.
Amkarang tries to make a shelter out of a log and some smaller branches, and constructs a decent shelter, but accidently catches his meteor hammer on a support, causing it to crash to the ground.
Since there won't be enough shelters for everyone, Benedict is willing to draw straws. He will suggest that Aubrin be guaranteed a spot, as well as anyone else injured and recuperating.
We have 12 spots (11 Survival checks plus the tent) plus whatever Lissa can do.
He would like to make sure the people with Survival skills are not taking a penalty the next day, but that would mean privileging the Aristocrats over everyone else, and that seems not the Nirmathi way.
Willing to entertain other ideas.
Jie excludes herself from the drawing of straws as she has endured worse sleeping conditions during her job as a mail carrier (Indeed, she and Feng have the endurance feat) and plants her bedroll on a small knoll nearby and starts grooming Feng for the night. She also makes sure that the animals we have with us will not wander. "I think those who can build shelter, should have first pick. It would be unfair to have to build a shelter and then not enjoy the fruits of one's labor. Also, should we bury the drake? It being a worthy adversary."
Jie will take the middle watch, but before she goes to bed, she will try to talk to and negotiate with a night based bird (Speak with animals with perhaps an owl) to provide a warning if something approaches. If they watch over the camp they get some jerkey at the end of the night.
"Agreed, Jie. We should bury the drake."
To Grum, he says,
"Yes, the story of your dragonslaying will be told. But as to the creature's flesh, please do a favor to those of more delicate sensibilities and do not eat it. The Fangwood will provide. And if it does not, you may have my rations."
As to the shelters, Benedict will accept Chang's idea and modify it a bit.
"Netthias, you have constructed a sturdy shelter. It is yours to do with as you wish. I would ask that since you have so much room, you share with some others, but I leave it to you to decide. I cannot tell you what to do with what you have made.
For my own shelter, I think I have room for four more. Since I have built this, I will decide how to share it. We will straws."
Netthias insists that the leadership and Aubrin take the spots in his shelter.
Jet
Rhyna
Kining
Farrow
Clidon
Mershan
Andrum
Toriya
Likolm
Salesi
Yangvit
Phersi
Ednu
Tushina
Shillein
Minshiel
Rori
Geerum
Varesha
Tanram
Ramtan
Imiraq
The next night is a bit colder than the night before, and there is frost on the ground when you next waken. Those who slept out are cold indeed, despite the small fires dotting the campsite, and all are quite fatigued.
If we scout the redoubt and get back with several hours left in the day, can Benedict make multiple rolls to build temporary shelters? He would like to ensure that nobody has to sleep out in the cold again.
Does fatigue impact the Handle Animal and Survival skill checks that the NPCs will be making?
My idea:
Party scouts, then builds temporary shelters.
Survival experts forage all day. They will have time for one shift building temporary shelters?
Commoners and warriors try to round up any livestock that wandered this way, with 2 keeping an eye on our 9 animals (Ramtan takes 5, Imiraq takes 4). That leaves 13 more to make checks. That should be another 6 animals or so.
Maybe one or two of the adepts follow us to assist in a support role? There isn't that much else they can do. I guess they can keep trying to identify items, like the potions from Edran and from the Drake's lair, as well as the things they didn't ID so far.
We should be able to gain around 20-25 provision points today and we consume 23 as long as the PCs' rations last. So we can go on full rations. We will do better when we can have the PCs forage for a day, but there could also be resources at the Ranger camp.
Also, I assume the adepts healed us up last night?
Jie wakes up, refreshed and thanks Netthias for being so generous with the shelter. She spends a few minutes meditating with nature and getting Feng ready for the day.
She spends some time amongst those who did not get a night's sleep, talking with them and trying to keep their spirits up. When Benedict outlines his plan, she comments.
"That sounds like a good plan. I say let's do it. With haste. I don't like seeing the good people of Phaendar suffering out in the open like this."
Serving out the morning's food helps restore some of the group's morale, and they take to their assigned tasks with a will.
You leave the Phanedarites to their work and head off toward the Ranger redoubt. It's in a smaller, "satellite" wood separated from the larger Fangwood by a gap of a few hundred yards, but none of you knows the name of this fell, if indeed it has one. Entering the smaller copse feels distinctly different than traveling through the Fangwood, however. The forest grows thick here, trees pressed close together with their branches intertwined. A gloom hangs in the air. Foliage around the base of the trees is sparse, stunted by lack of sunlight. The songs of birds and noises of small animals have ceased, adding to the eerie atmosphere of the ancient woods.
Benedict looks around for any tracks.
"Something has the animals spooked." Jie remarks as she rides Feng up to near the copse. She peers into the murky foliage trying to see any sign of the ranger camp.
Benedict sees no signs of tracks, nor does Jie see anyone lurking in the trees, but careful examination immediately reveals to all of you that the tree branches are thick with sheets of spider webbing.
Ahead, a structure is visible through the gloomy trees, no doubt the Redoubt - but it's both smaller and much less occupied than you had hoped. No larger than a typical forester's cabin, it is built into the lowest branches of the largest tree in the area, one climbing up from a small hillock surrounded by what looks like ankle-deep water.
Benedict approaches slowly, with his bow out.
"Everyone have an alchemist's fire? If there is a swarm we will have to burn them."
Jie laughs at Grum's joke, but checks her pack to make sure just in case. She rides next to Benedict with a loaded crossbow, but stops short of the water. "There may be quicksand here." she mentions as she dismounts. Storing the crossbow back on Feng, she tries to find a long stick and proceeds to test how stable the ground is under the water.
Benedict likewise checks the water.
Jie's pokes turn out to be wise - what look like shallow basins with just a few inches of water turn out to be much deeper beds of soaking wet sand and mud, eager to clutch at unwary feet. Benedict's sharp eyes not only note the quicksand ahead of him, but also the thin, almost invisible stretch of webbing on the pathway ahead.
Benedict believes something is nearby, but doesn't see anything. Pointing out the webbing, he silently motions for everyone else to look around before proceeding.
Amkarang looks around for anything suspicious. Much like Benedict, he thinks something might be wrong but can't quite place it.
Jie motions Feng to stay, but grabs her crossbow from the horse. After a moment of thought she grabs her rope and lasso also. "Be careful, Grum. Where there's webs, there's spiders."
"Jie, Lissa, can you tell from the web what type of spider we are dealing with? And how big it is?
I am pretty sure there are spiders nearby, though I can't see them. Maybe we can lure them out instead of blundering into an ambush."
Jie frowns. "I think it or they is really big. If it were a small spider swarm that made this much web, I think it would be large enough for us to see it.
She ties one end of the rope to Feng's saddle and gets ready to toss the lasso around Grum if he gets stuck in the mire.
"How would we lure the spiders out? Poke the web with a branch? Use some food as bait? Throw rocks into the nearby shrubbery in hopes of hitting them?
I really don't want to let them get the jump on us."
Seeing Grum stepping forward, sword raised to cut through the webbing ahead of the group, something near the cabin decides that's far enough and suddenly scuttles free of the shadows below the redoubt. It looks humanoid, roughly, but its face is more spider-like than human, and sickle-like claws are where its arms should be.
It scrambles through the trees, moving quickly through the canopy over the quicksand toward the group. Even as it does, sticky ropes of webbing fly from the trees, attempting to ensnare Amkarang and Grum. The sticky silk wraps around them, leaving them caught like flies.
The ettercap scrambles closer still, until it is right over Grum, then it drops down on him, its fangs flashing.
Jie brings up her crossbow and fires at the northernmost spider.
Benedict steps up to attack the strange spider-creature.
"Lissa, ready! Amkarang, step north and ready!"
Ready to attack a foe within reach (like if the spiders move).
I try to keep my in-combat speech short since a round is only 6 seconds.
One of the things Benedict would have tried to instill in the reach weapon users is maximizing their advantage. Attacking from 10' away means the enemy just 5' steps and attacks so no AOO. Moving to 15' or 20' and readying means you get 2 attacks if it closes with you.
If the enemy has multiple attacks (which I believe spiders do not) it is even more important to make them come to you, rather than advancing on them.
Amkarang steps backwards and readies to attack any hostile that comes in reach.
Spiders' turn!
Except for Lissa, who I think is gone.
Benedict cuts deep into the spider-like humanoid, while Jie's crossbow bolt finds its mark as well, causing a spray of ichor. The two spiders in the trees rush forward, hoping to take advantage of their entangled prey. One sprints for Grum, mandibles snapping - and they gleam with an ominous wetness. Even shrouded in the webbing, though, Grum has no difficulty keeping the venomous mandibles away from his flesh.
The other rushes up from behind, but Amkarang and Lissa are ready. Amkarang's hammer finds its mark twice, but the spider keeps coming.
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