Nali grins the grin of someone who likes the person making the joke, but doesn't really get the joke itself. Then, when Sasha has spoken, she replies: "In that case we should just continue making mediocre traps for her to enjoy herself with, while gathering the stuff for a more sophisticated trap.
What kind of creature is she?"
Henris smiles at Aerys. "Myself? I've followed Gozreh every since
he sheltered me from a storm as a child. As I grew older, I chose to leave my caravan in Varisia so I could sail upon Her seas. I've crewed a few different ships over the years. Most recently, the Jenivere." Henris grimaces as he thinks of what happened, both on his last ship and on this one. "I actually sailed with the Jenivere because of a vision from Gozreh, of a wild, untamed jungle and crystal clear lake somewhere within the Mwangi Expanse. Once the Jenivere reached Sargava, I intended to set out into the jungle in search of this place of untouched nature."
@Nali from sasha- "Its a Chupacabra, a BIG one." she smiles wistfully, " it will be quite a battle if we do catch it. If it kills somone in camp, lets say a weaker person i guess could be bait if we needed it to come out for a ambush. " nali can see that she is excited about the prospect of hard battle, alomost like a death wish.
@henric and Roland- Arys laughs "well you cant get any flaming more in the "untouched" burning jungle than this, priest." she tips her cup towards him to show that there was no sting in the words. Arys accautlly seems better company with a drink in her hands, and plesant. You can see however, her eyes keep darting towards the cask.
Thraxis nodded when Jask made his offer. "It is good knowing that when we go on an expedition there will be a skilled healer to tend to the sick.
We recovered a boarding axe that will be useful for cutting wood, and there is plenty of rope to be had. Unfortunately I don't have any particular skill or knowledge in building.
Thraxis turns to the group of assembled survivors "Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with building? Carpentry or engineering or the like?"
Pausing for a moment as a thought came to him, Thraxis adds "Is anyone here skilled at carving or scrimshaw?" He turned back to Jask "I apologize if this is a naive question, but if someone could carve a holy symbol for you, would you be able to sanctify it for your purposes?"
@thraxis- jask replies, "possibly, I would need to attune myself to it, because to use it I will have to KNOW that it would be my holy symbol not just that it could be. "
@everyone- Wishing all of the others goodnight Jask and the other survivors start going to sleep. Irhirou switches places with one of the others and finally gets some much needed sleep, the flies getting close to night swarm on the party like some vicious beast. Around the campfire some of the others gather to discuss witch direction to go tomorrow. The fire cast lurid shadows about. Grelik and Arys are by the fire, when Arys peaks up, "well tomorrows a flaming new day, what direction should we start to explore?" (see map on google slides; west, east or south.)
Roland stares into the fire sullenly, his mind far from their current concerns. When Arys asks where they should go tomorrow he seems to come out of his stupor. "Hmmm? Oh, well, any direction is as good as any to me. Thraxis, Hendris, you are both men of the land, what do you think?"
Henris considered their options, then said, "Well, I'm not sure which part of the Shiv we're on, but east seems like a good direction to start. We'll want to be careful though - if we range too far, we'll be caught out in the worst heat of the day, which can be fatal."
@everyone- Gelik pipes up and says, "I was talking to Jask, it seems he knows some of the basic layout of the island. You might could ask him in the morning before you leave."
Arys also adds "Some of us wont be much good in the Blasting jungle, Out of all of us I would recommend Ishrou he seems to have been in the jungles before unlike Me and Gelik, I wouldn't take Jask either he doesn't seem much of a fighter. Possibly Sahsa, But she Flaming annoys me So I cant imagine what that would be like listening to that Tart all day." Arys is Much more pleasant with a drink in her.
@heric- You cant say for sure you might have to spend several days away from base camp to truly search the island only half a day to leave and come back and not walk in the middle of the day wouldn't be very far. (ill let you know when you have to head back to "resupply" We will say you load yourself up.)
Thraxis nods "Along the shoreline, East is as good a direction as any. If there is fresh water, a stream will lead to the ocean. If there are other survivors, we will find evidence of them on the shore as well. With luck, we might find a bed of shellfish or a good spot for fishing. There might even still be cargo to scavenge."
"East then, in the morning. Let's take Nali with us, and Arys, you should come too. I think Sasha is too busy worrying about the chupa thing, and Ishirou seems content to keep guard. As long as we're sticking to the coast having a true sailer along may be very helpful."
A light drizzle hits the camp around nighttime, and even though the rain is cold it temporarily relieves the relentless mosquitoes from the camp. Snoring from gelik and a constant background noise of the jungle makes for a very uncomfortable night. the next morning very early the party wakes up and starts getting ready for the journey. Roland gets up and asks Arys to accompany the group despite Arys complaints she finally relents and will leave the camp with the party when the time is ready. Gathering several containers of food and large containers the companions don't know how long they will be out. Ishiou says that he will lead a group out after 10 days if they don't hear anything. Ishirou and Jask see all of you off, jask says a prayer over the group. and Ishrou asks, " Can you think of anything else before you leave?"
Before they head out, Henris also takes the time to gather together the group and says a prayer to Gozreh with them, as well - a traditional Varisian caravan prayer.
"Nothing I can think of. Just try to keep everyone safe. Thank you Ishirou." With that said Roland shoulders the fine cutlass and turns to go.
Thraxis woke with the light of dawn. He was accustomed to the noises of the wild and they did not bother him. The noises of the snoring gnome however was another matter entirely.
He sat at the edge of the camp facing into the forest and breathed in the humid morning air and let all the sounds of these untamed lands wash over him. He focused on the land, the vegetation, the insects and animals and drew primal power from them as he strengthened his connection to this place.
After doing his morning preparations he turned his attention back to the other survivors "There isn't food and water enough for ten days. If that much time has passed you would be better served fending for yourselves rather than attempting to find us. I appreciate the offer, and if something happens and you do come to our aid I would not object, but be practical about your own survival first. I would not fault you for taking such a stance."
Setting out East the party follows the best path by staying as close as they can towards the beach. The echo's of the wild animals of the jungle creates a cacophony (I hope I used the word right) of sound. if you were to pretend the situation was changed you would be in a idealistic setting for a nice vacation on a remote island. Knowing to stop before the midday heat you manage to see in the distance the beach slowly goes away to a steady cliff face slowly getting taller. not knowing when the cliff would end the party decides to go into the jungle still staying close to the edge of the cliff where they can see the ocean as a guide. (I went with the most logical choice, after reading that guide I'm going to try to not allow so many, Blah, blah, choices and try to only do the most important. I am going to try it for awhile and tell me if it helps the flow better. if not ill switch back to you making more choices.) toward evening time after a hard days march from up on the cliff the party sees two things, out in the ocean there is a large rock with the remains of another ship that has crashed (area D2 on map). the second thing that the group notices is a small group of dimorphodons have crated a nest high on the cliff face. (C1 on map) Arys who is having a hard time of all the travel goes back to her complaining ways. Looking down at the animals, "No flaming way that will be me. " and she backs up. (smiley face where the party is.) Currently the weather is cool and pleasant on top of the cliff, and the rain has temporarily let up at the moment.
description
A brightly colored creature swoops down to land on the branch above. Its head is overly large, with a mouth full of sharp teeth and bright, shiny eyes. The thing chirps, lashes its long thin tail, and then with a flap of leathery wings is in the air once again.
Henris squints out in the distance towards the other wrecked ship.
"That wreck might have more supplies. I suspect that we'll have to deal with those animals if we try to swim out there, though. Of course, they might make for good eating, too."
Thraxis kneels down and observes the avian beasts alongside Henris
He wasn't certain he had ever seen creatures like this before. Visiting foreign wilds was always fascinating, seeing the vast variety of life that populated Galorion was humbling.
"Can you see if there are any eggs in the nest? We might want to consider if they might be an ongoing source of food rather than hunting them immediately, though by their appearance harvesting eggs may prove challenging."
He peered out over the waves at the wrecked ship. "Can anyone see a clear path to the derelict? Swimming these waters would seem a foolish idea and unless we were lucky enough to find a skiff it would be a challenge to bring anything back."
He thought about the problem for a moment more "Does anyone feel confident about building a raft? We have plenty of rope from our ship"
Speaking quietly to Henris and Thraxis Roland says, "To be honest all of this wilderness stuff is something I don't know much about. I think you two should lead this expodition for the most part. If you want somebody to hit something just let me know."
@everyone- just wanna make sure yall know you are up on the cliff the cliff is roughly a 200ft drop from where you are at, you will either need to climb down, backtrack, or jump? if you want to get to the ship right now, and the dinoes are about half way down on the cliff. there are handholds but looks dangerous, (DC 15 climb check.)
@henris- the wreaked ship appears to be a ship smaller than the Jeniver, only half of it is above water. knowledge check- (You know that the creature has a vicious bite with poison, and a flyby attack with scent. a special plus is they are encountered typically in areas with OTHER dinosaurs. so this island probably has more dino's.)
@nali- yes you pass the knowledge check you can look at (giant winged Chupacabra) to get the base info, however this is a special one so there is a little difference but you cant make knowledge checks on specific creatures. needless to say they are dangerous.
and you can easily rejoin the party in a jungle setting you simply get "lost for a time" lol. "I'm baaackkk!" (please think of the south park, kyle's cousin in glasses.) there might be even hope for almonds character eventually finding his way back to the group.
@thraxis- unfortunately you don't recognize the creature, but i think your character would think they are pretty in a survival sort of way.
@roland and everyone- at Rolands comment you hear a "Damn right!" behind you Arys has taken off her hat and letting the cool air blow through her hair to dry it off. In addition she is also leaning up against a tree her pack slugged off and pulling out a waterskin.
After sitting down and taking a drink of water with Arys, Roland asks, "well, what do you guys think? Should we just keep going?"
"The ship looks smaller than the Jenivere, and is half-submerged underwater. I doubt we'd recover anything useful from it. As for the creatures, they are dimorphodons. They possess a poisonous bite, track with scent, and like to swoop in, attack their prey, and swoop out, letting the poison finish them. They are a type of dinosaur, and are typically found near other types of dinosaurs. We are most definitely not the apex predators on this island. Let's move on."
"Hmm, small or not, the ship is worth investigating at some point in time, but perhaps not right now." Thraxis stood up and shielded his eyes from the glare of the sun as he surveyed the surroundings from the top of the cliff. "Lets focus on seeing what there is on this excursion. We can come back later better prepared for the specific tasks at hand."
Roland stands up. "Alright then, lets keep moving then while it's not so hot."
without any complaints about continuing east you eventually leave the hilltop that the cliffs were on and head back down. From the summit on the Hill you spot another wreckage in the distance that has crashed on the beach, however you would be unable to make the distance today while there is daylight. It is getting close to nighttime. you can either push onward to the ship or you can choose to stay put.
There are some thunderstorms moving into the Area, even though it might be unsafe to travel at night the storm looks bad, filled with heavy rain and winds.
Arys stands behind Tharxis on trail when you stop, "damn you Druid, Why must every limb that Flaming gets in your way seem to hit me?' She glares at you.
Tired and sweaty Roland isn't rude, but there is an edge of irritation in his voice as he says, "Sorry. You can go first though if you want. I don't mind.
Are we stopping for the night? Do I need to gather some firewood or something."
"Yes, let's stop for the night. Firewood would be very welcome, as would a shelter, which we kan make with some big leaves on roped together sticks. I'll start digging us a better campsite"
Nali looks for a spot that's relatively flat, but out of the wind, that won't become a water basin if it would rain. She uses her tiny claws to dig a heat wall and a cold trench, plus a water canal, and a small mound to support a shelter.
Take 10 survival = 15
"I agree. We don't want to be wandering the jungle at night, and a fire will help keep the animals away. Nali, I'll assist you in gathering firewood."
Seeing that Henris agrees Roland begins helping where he can.
Thraxis frowns and says nothing as he stands aside, gesturing for Arys to take the lead and then falls in behind her.
At the mention of stopping for the evening, Thraxis looks to the sky. He takes a deep breath of the ocean air and studies the clouds on the horizon. "We will need more than just a fire tonight if we can manage. There is a storm brewing, a bad one by the looks of it. If we can do anything to get some shelter, no matter how makeshift, it would serve us well."
He turned to the group "We should start looking immediately. When the storm hits it will not be safe to travel."
Thraxis does his best to find some shelter, but he is unaccustomed to traveling with such a large group. If it was just himself, he might be able to find a little nook under a log or among the roots. But nothing he saw would accommodate the entire party.
When Thraxis mentions finding shelter Roland nods and moves to help look.
As Roland works he tries to strike up a conversation, "so, back home, what do you guys do for fun?"
Ayrs complains bitterly about the heat, and the fact that the rest of there party doesn't have to do this kind of thing, as she helps gather wood for the fire, eventually the party finishes all the camp setup work for the night. however only a few hours after the sky goes dark a cool wind begins to blow and before long a sever storm hits the campsite. the winds are strong enough to tear down the makeshift shelter.
teeth chattering from the wind and rain Arys yells out, "This is a fine Flaming mess!" tucked against a tree the winds and torrent drowns out her shout to any not in her immediate area.
Likewise hiding beneath a tree Roland calls out, "what do we do now?"
Henris desperately racked his brain, trying to figure out the best solution, but it was hard in the storm. He just shook his head and prayed to Gozreh. Gozreh, shelter us from your raging blast, and grant us the strength to survive this storm.
Thaxis stoically endured the torrential rain and storming wind. While he would rather have had a nice shelter to weather the storm, there was a primal simplicity to simply holing up in whatever shelter nature herself provided to wait out her wrath.
"We wait." He said simply. "As bad as enduring this weather is here, consider being caught in this same weather trapped at the bottom of a ravine you missed because you could not see it, or swept away by the stream you were crossing because a moment ago it was a small trickle and is now a raging river. As uncomfortable as it is, we are safer with what we have."
With that, he pressed himself closer to the trunk of a tree and wrapped his sopping cloak about him trying to maximize what little respite he could get from the rain and the wind.
yelling among the storm, Arys states " I thought you would bloody say that." Squeezing as tight as she can towards the tree she huddles in her soaking wet blanket as best she can. You see tatters of your base camp blowing away. several time members of the group need to protect the foodstuffs and equipment.
Throughout the night the wind and rain never lets up, not until morning does it finally pass. Lighting, wind and rain pound you all night. With several flashes from lighting hitting the island. The night is miserable and several times you flinch from the closeness of the strikes, no one gets any true sleep.
Fatigued
A fatigued character can neither run nor charge and takes a –2 penalty to Strength and Dexterity. Doing anything that would normally cause fatigue causes the fatigued character to become exhausted. After 8 hours of complete rest, fatigued characters are no longer fatigued.
Henris handles the night poorly, and awakens tired in the morning. He's stiff, sore, and soaking wet. Still, he makes his prayers to Gozreh, including praying for better weather that night.
Roland fairs better. When dawn comes he crawls out from beneath the tree that sheltered him. "that was rough. I hope it won't be like that again tonight. So, should we keep going East then?"
Despite the raging storm, Thraxis had managed to find a reasonably comfortable little nook to hunker down in. Although tired he was no worse for wear.
After spending some time meditating on the storm and basking in the aura of the primal life surrounding him he was ready to go. "I hope that those back at base camp fared better than we did. It would be a shame if we lost what little cache of supplies we had to return to."
He turned towards the beach and peered along the shore. "I should have used the opportunity to refill our water. I'll be more vigilant when an opportunity presents itself in the future."
"So, what now?" Roland says. "We still need to see if we can find some help."
Well next time I flaming want this much water in my face is if Im taking a shower." Looking at Roland, "Blast you choosing me mate. Next time bring the uppity Gnome.' Arys seems to be ringing out her hat and form fitting coat.
@thraxis- Luckly Arys thought ahead to capture some water throughout the night, you figure you have at least three more days of travel before you need to head back due to food and water needs.
After a miserable night of rain, the party heads toward the boat that was in the distance, chopping through trees and vines is very time consuming as it takes a better part of the morning to get to the ship. when you exit the jungle you can see the ship is in far worse shape than it looked in the distance. the ship is upside down and on its side the faded letters of the "golden Bow" is carved into the side. the ship appears to have been in this state for a long time barnacles from the waves are on the boat as when the sea rises most of the ship must be submerged, however to call it a ship is a overstatement because the wood is rotted and in some cases simply pulled away from the ship simply by the currents.
Henris was fairly tired from having slept poorly, and the slog through the jungle was tiring as well. Now he was looking at a ship in terrible condition. Sighing, he said, "I don't think we'll find much from this ship. Should we check it anyway?"
"It looks pretty old, I don't know that there will be anything on board. It's a risk. Remember the sharks we had to deal with when we were salvaging our ship? I'd rather not have to do that again."
Nali is annoyed by the tough night, but a quick shake of her fur and fifteen minutes of sun makes her feel better.
"after this night, I'd definitely like to salvage a canvas. I've lost my raincoat to our initial wrecking.
Thraxis gazes at the hulk, contemplating its decay. This once majestic creation of man now just a mass of rotted wood, no more significant than any tree felled in the woods, returning to nature. It was symbolic in its own way.
"I would think that as long as there is no swimming involved it would be worth our time having a look while we are here"
As the party heads towards the ship, a cool breeze shifts in the air before you see several skeletal shapes come out of the water and the beach, their eyes all have the menacing green color that has been accompanying most of the undead you have seen. rusted rapiers and longswords are the most common weapons. however you see two of the skeletons weilds a flail and cutlass with a almost human fluidity rather than the short bits of movement from the other skeletons.
On edge Roland springs into action quickly. He moves to block the nearest skeliton while drawing his sword and calling out, "Stick close together. If we spread out they'll pick us off."
Then he takes an double handed overhead swing at the skeleton.