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"Look here. Notice scuff marks on the trees and partial footprints on the ground below, clearly from bipedal, medium-sized humanoids. The only problem is, there's no way to tell what kind."
Rax eyes the river and feels confident in his ability to check it out.
When he gets out, he tries to take in the fauna
He then takes in the flora, though it's not his strong suit: . He quickly gets bored and turns to something else....
Something like looking for a good point to ford:
Assuming he finds a good spot, he tries to put some solid rocks into place to make the softer agents feel better about crossing:
Rax is easily able to swim across the stream and back, while Packet succeeds in a quick survey of the local plants and animals. While on his swim, Rax identifies an excellent spot for fording the creek, but he’s a bit worn out from the crossing and can’t quite get enough boulders into position to make it easier for others who might follow.
A map of the terrain could come in very handy, if someone were to draw one up.
If a good ford location is found, someone strong could move boulders into better position to make fording the stream easier.
It might be possible for a bridge to be built across the stream, but it will have to be at a narrow point where the bank is sound. Someone skilled enough might be able to locate a suitable spot.
If a good spot for a bridge is identified, the party could try to improvise a bridge.
Biago makes an excellent map of the local area, which will certainly come in handy to document this new route through the mountains.
Identify local wildlife.
Identify local plants.
Chart the terrain.
Find the best place to ford the stream.
Improve the ford.
Select a bridge location.
Improvise a bridge.
Biago, having finished his map, looks around and spots a good location for a bridge, where the river narrows and the banks are firm.
Biago checks with his companions and discovers that Rax and Valeros both have rope. After studying the problem a bit, and shouting some directions at the others, he almost manages to jury-rig a bridge, but it keeps crashing into the water when any weight is put upon it.
Hampton has had to rig up a few crossings of desert canyons in his day, and figures the basic idea is the same. He suggests a different approach from Biago's, and it works!
After crossing the stream, the Pathfinders find the going gets a bit harder, as the terrain steepens and it begins to get cold.
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Ordinarily I wouldn't think twice about using it here, as it's what the feat is for (plus Hampton got it for free), but: having run this a couple of times this past weekend, as a player I know what the DCs are so I know his Assurance will be enough for it.
Your call if you'd rather have me roll as a result of that.
I don't have a problem with you using Assurance here, but thanks for asking. If Hampton is accustomed to succeeding with Assurance, which is likely given DCs at this level and his bonus, then it makes perfect sense that he would use it here.
Biago and Packet both need a little help from time to time getting over some of the more challenging bits of the trail, but they manage to keep an eye out for some juicy berries that grow low to the ground. They compete to see who can collect the most, with Biago's haul just edging out Packet's harvest.
Surprisingly for a mountain man, Rax also struggles a bit with the rugged terrain, but he easily contributes to making sure the group is reasonably well-fed as they travel.
After several more days of travel, the Pathfinders move out of the mountain forest, cross the tree line, and approach the snow line. Without cover from the trees, the freezing temperatures at these altitudes can quickly turn deadly. Fortunately, the cold weather clothing provided by Calisro Benarry provides sufficient protection against the snow and cold. As the party continues to travel upward, they approach a wide valley that seems to offer a clear pass over the mountain range.
Studying the terrain ahead, Rax observes that the wind has built up layers of snow on the slope; however, the bottom layers appear unstable, as they lie on top of loose scree. Disturbing the slope might trigger an avalanche, but it is the only way forward. From their experience in the outdoors, Rax and Hampton know that splitting the party into smaller groups might make the route up the slope easier, and reduce the risk and severity of avalanches.
The stalwart - and lightfooted - Pathfinders make it up and over the pass without triggering an avalanche!
The party crosses through the wide valley and over the mountain pass, and begins to descend again, now on the Molthuni side of the Menador Mountains! The group makes good time heading down, soon reaching the tree line. After a couple of hours in the forest, the Pathfinders come upon a very large and extremely fluffy dog, wearing a small barrel, like a miniature brandy keg, on the thick leather collar around his neck.
The dog freezes in place and stares inscrutably at the party.
The great big dog barks loudly and excitedly at the friendly greetings! He seems quite confident of the answer to the age-old question ‘Who’s a good boy?’ and is also happy to share his goodness with others. His bark, though as deep as the rumble of an avalanche on a mountain pass, is eager and friendly. He barks again, then and turns and takes a few steps down the mountain, then pauses and looks back, clearly wishing the Pathfinders to follow him. Once he’s confident the party is coming along, he leads them a couple of miles downhill.
He stops at the edge of a clearing, in the center of which is a simple cabin, surrounded by gnarled old trees laden with ripe pears. The dog barks again once, and a moment later an elderly half-orc opens the cabin door and steps out.
In a slightly rusty voice that clearly doesn’t get much use, the man says, ”Well, Wilbert, I see you’ve made some new friends.” Scanning the party briefly, he continues, ”Hello, I am Bark. What brings you to my woods? I have seen more traffic through here than usual, and am unsure what to make of it.”
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Packet takes off his hat and gives the half-orc a nod in greeting.
”Hail and well met. I am Packet Spoonshine, formerly of the Sleepy Detective Agency, and now of the Pathfinder Society. My friends and I are looking to form a trade route through the mountains. Perhaps we could offer some of our provisions and you could tell us about the traffic that’s been coming through?”
”Well, that explains why I’ve seen other parties come by, must have been after the same goal, though I didn’t get a chance to talk to them,” Bark replies. He gestures to the party to join him on a couple of logs laid on their sides, saying, ”I don’t get much company, so no fancy furniture or anything. But my pear schnapps is tasty.” He steps inside the cabin and comes out with a couple of tall earthenware bottles and simple mugs and sets them out on a tree stump. He pours generous mugs of schnapps and takes one for himself, raising it to the group and saying, ”As I said, I don’t get many visitors, but you’re welcome to camp in my meadow for the night, as it’s not too long until dark.”
As the party enjoys his schnapps – which is indeed quite tasty, and strong – Bark opens up a bit in response to their questions, ”I don’t know what you’ve seen coming over the mountains, but the journey ahead might get more dangerous. I’ve got an understanding with the orc tribes round here - they leave me alone, and I leave them alone. But recently they have been crossing through my territory more often, even hunting and placing traps.” He takes another sip of his schnapps and continues, ”This is strange. While the local tribes can be as brutal as any other orc tribe, they have kept this arrangement with me for many years, and I have been unable to contact the tribe to find out what’s going on. I’m thinking there’s either been a dispute between the tribes over territory, or otherwise a disease in one of the camps. Either way, I’m not opposed to a trade route going through my territory, especially if there is a bit of trade in it for me, since I make enough schnapps to sell and trade. But for any caravans to be safe, you all would need to either make a pact with the orcs or drive them off. If you want to talk to them, I can tell you the way to one of the smaller scout camps nearby.”
"Let's go meet 'em tonight," suggests Valeros, recalling orcs' preference for darkness. "I think we can make 'em see reason."
"Yep, Shattered Fang is what they call themselves," Bark says in reply to Hampton's question. "As to going to meet them tonight, you won't get there in one night's journey, so you might as well avoid traveling in the dark. In any case, they'll be suspicious of you, not being orcs. Showing up at night, with you not being orcs and all, they'd be extra suspicious of you, I'd wager."
"Didn't have any particular diseases in mind," Bark replies, his own grin a bit loose and wobbly as he sees the effect the schnapps has on Packet, "just speculating, really."
After enjoying a bit more schnapps, the Pathfinders make camp in Bark’s meadow, where the lush grass makes for a comfortable, peaceful night’s sleep. Well-rested, they set off through the rocky forest, following the directions Bark has provided. After a few hours, the Pathfinders find themselves at the base of a tall cliff that reaches above the surrounding trees. If someone could get on top of it, the cliff would provide an excellent of the surrounding area and assist greatly with scouting the terrain.