Jolted again, but the centipedes remain standing!
◆◆◆) Stride x3
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STRANGE AGGRESSION...?
Reactions: Unready (Ambush)
Dim Lighting: Unless you have Lowlight Vision, all creatures (even allies) are Concealed to you!
Concealed: After expending your ◆s to declare a target but before rolling, you must pass a DC 5 flat check or lose the activity - if you pass, you roll normally
Terrain: Rocks are obstacles, Colored Trees are Difficult Terrain but allow (◆) Take Cover
Take Cover: Centipedes begin encounter benefitting from Cover
Cover: +2 circumstance to AC, Reflex, and Stealth
Monster ID: Hunting Lore, Nature, Survival, Occultism, or Religion (GM will roll Secret Recall checks!)
Auntie Wu @ -7 damage
Sigurd
Purple @ -7 shock
Kazuki
Orange
Lan
Green
Blue
Vekka
Red
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"I have no plans to retreat." Sigurd keeps his response short. He points his katana at the Orange hued centipede.
Then he raises his shield. "Come!"
Decapitating Orange and nearly cutting Red in half, Sigurd’s katana flies and sullies itself with green g%$@ as insects wail!
With the blue centipede marked as his prey, Kazuki continues to fire arrows at it. It's going to be a bit tricky, though, at such close range with a powerful longbow and with dim light...
Kazuki smirks as the final shot strikes true.
4 arrows stick out of Blue Centipede as it continues to writhe - with a single arrows wide, it is the ranger's 5th that finishes the deed - it drops to the ground motionless...
...and remains so...
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STRANGE AGGRESSION...?
Reactions: Unready (Ambush)
Dim Lighting: Unless you have Lowlight Vision, all creatures (even allies) are Concealed to you!
Concealed: After expending your ◆s to declare a target but before rolling, you must pass a DC 5 flat check or lose the activity - if you pass, you roll normally
Terrain: Rocks are obstacles, Colored Trees are Difficult Terrain but allow (◆) Take Cover
Take Cover: Centipedes begin encounter benefitting from Cover
Cover: +2 circumstance to AC, Reflex, and Stealth
Monster ID: Hunting Lore, Nature, Survival, Occultism, or Religion (GM will roll Secret Recall checks!)
Auntie Wu @ -7 damage
Sigurd
Kazuki
Lan
Green
Vekka
Red @ -4 chop
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Lan is Up!
Lan will cast ◆◆ electric arc again, and then ◆ glass shield.
vs DC 5
vs DC 5
Another bolt of jolt!
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With his blade at heightened potency and running out of targets, the tengu jogs in precise movements to stand alongside Sigurd before he beats the familiar spell drum of basic flame. He watches the red flames gush from the dark-blue shimmery blade for a sufficient moment before slashing down at the creature.
Velka obliterates the final Centipede - nothing survives the annhilation!
The party takes stock of their wounds, and decide how best to proceed next…
"We don't have time to waste. The trail could have gotten cold." He looks at his teammates.
"Auntie Wu, allow Shizuru to heal your wounds."
"Can we pick up the trail again? It seems to have scattered. Maybe we follow the majority of the prints?"
"Has everyone learned all they can about what happened here? Some kind of ritual? This just all seems very familiar, so if we can figure out what's going on, maybe we can find a way to end it."
Yes, they footprints do scatter, but is there any pattern here within the campsite before they do.
Vekka is wondering if something like a ritual is obvious here.
Sigurd takes an opportunity to search for anything of religious significance. Some of the ghost faces seemed to worship something.
CS ➤ You travel one or more hexes in half the standard time, following your quarry
S ➤ You travel one or more hexes in the standard time, following your quarry
F ➤ You travel one or more hexes in twice the standard amount of time, following your quarry - subsequent check increase in DC
CF ➤ You are "lost" for an amount of time determined by GM, and lose your quarry, ending up in a hex determined by GM
The party chases tracks of ones and twos tither and yon, which at first seem to lead to somewhere, until ones seem to doubleback and twos to part again, an utter lack of organization that leads the party in circles, and leading them to second guessing themselves, until finally the conclusion is reluctantly reached: This set of tracks simply doesn't lead anywhere; whatever grouping had existed has now disbanded!
As darkness hits, the party realize they have no recourse but to turn back to the Lumber Camp or head back to Willowshore (or, to venture deeper into the Hinterlands?) - in the dead of night!
Vekka thinks on their options.
At the lumber camp there are at least safe enclosure and even some high spaces to wait out the night. Perhaps some of them may circle back to the camp overnight and we can get a glimpse of where they head next. It's not without danger but it may be better than starting over.
Nothing. Just darkness.
"We may as well return to the Lumber Camp. We won't survive the night wandering in the darkness." Sigurd sighs.
"May Shizuru protect everyone, for a bit longer."
Kazuki studies his surroundings and the tracks they are following.
"They split off again." he laments.
"Maybe I can get us back on track."
The party returns to the Lumber Camp with Kazuki's expert navigation, staying the night in a building of their choice, and keeping watch...
LINK
Night Watch Order
1st Watch (2hrs) @ Sigurd
2nd Watch (2hrs) @ Vekka
3rd Watch (2hrs) @ Auntie Wu
4th Watch (2hrs) @ Lan
5th Watch (2hrs) @ Kazuki
Night Watch Mechanics
Best of Perception, Stealth or Survival - I will roll for you.
CS ➤ 0 rolls for Random Encounter
S ➤ 1 roll for Random Encounter; if results in an Encounter, Watcher gets 1 free round to act!
F ➤ 2 rolls for Random Encounter
CF ➤ 5 rolls for Random Encounter; if results in a Hostile Encounter, enemy starts with 1 free round to act (or similar advantage)!
The current Random Encounter chance is 20% (per "roll") in the Hinterlands
□ Guard's Dorm
□ Loading Island
□ Log Piles
□ Perimeter of Wall
□ Worker's Dorm
□ Warehouse
□ Guard Tower
□ Guest House
□ Manager's Dorm
□ Kitchen
□ Office
□ Shallow Dirt Mound
□ Storeroom
□ Treasury
□ Outhouse
□ Meeting Room
□ Ox Stables
Lan is fine with the current watch system. He'll just Seek, and if possible, keep a fire burning for light (or he can go through torches, I'm not sure how long those are supposed to last).
Lan will advocate staying in a room that we've thoroughly searched. For instance, he would see it as tempting to stay in one of the dorms, but nobody's cleared it of dangers. He'd rather stay in the meeting room or ox stables (which he searched), or the warehouse or treasury (which others have searched) instead.
He's going to invest in his pearly white spindle aeon stone the next day, although he doesn't know what it does yet (he just knows it's magical).
Sigurd is fine with the night watch.
Listening to Lan, he suggests they stay in the meeting room, as it was cleared and should be easy to defend against invaders.
Kazuki suggests holing up in the treasury for the night, especially if it can be securely locked. He's also fine out in the open, by the campfire in the center of the camp. He agrees to the routine of the night watch from the other night.
Kazuki considers keeping watch from a rooftop, however, soon decides it is probably best to keep watch close to the group so he can quickly alert his friends and spring into action, if necessary.
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Auntie Wu agrees to spend the night in the Treasury. She likes the idea of having the walls around her.
During her watch, she allows Mogu to keep an eye on the outside, reducing her need for light. They know to tap her head on the corresponding side if they see anything amiss. She prepares and drinks a cup of special tea to help her stay awake for a bit, making sure to time it so the drowsiness that follows comes after her shift is over.
Cantrips (level 1): Detect Magic, Electric Arc, Guidance, Ignition, Light, Vitality Lash
1st: Heal, Grease, Pummeling Rubble
2nd: Heal, Restoration
The party holes up in the Treasury...
1st Watch (2hrs) @ Sigurd (DC 10)
2nd Watch (2hrs) @ Vekka (DC 10)
3rd Watch (2hrs) @ Auntie Wu (DC 10)
4th Watch (2hrs) @ Lan (DC 10)
5th Watch (2hrs) @ Kazuki (DC 10)
...The night passes without event - rising early in the morning, the party decides their next move!
Sigurd finishes his katas as the sun rises. "How likely are we to find them? The trail may have gotten cold. If we still have a chance, I would like to help Ugly Cute. If they were to scatter someone would have to carry it."
Vekka largely agrees with the others to spend the night in a camp location that they've searched before. The only criteria he adds for consideration is that it allow sufficient portholes, windows, or cracks to watch out through, while not revealing their presence.
Recovers focus point
Memorizing same spells as yesterday:
2nd blazing bolt
1st runic weapon (2)
Cantrips (2nd) caustic blast, frostbite, light, shield, tangle vine
--------------------
Now
Vekka weighs in Perhaps we give the trail one more day before declaring it cold.
Kazuki thinks for a moment before chiming in.
"I vote for following another trail. We've turned up nothing so far. If that is Ugly Cute's trail, it may need our help."
The party quickly musters in the morning and heads Southwest…
…hoping to discover the fate of Ugly Cute…
…Kazuki leads the way through the forest with Auntie Wu’s assistance…
Sigurd keeps his shield and katana at the ready. He prepares to Defend himself, and his allies.
The party hikes under Auntie Wu's expert guidance for about 10 miles, the first half of the journey through alternating forest and plains Southwest, the second half of the journey entering a rocky badlands after turning Southeast, and descending into the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth!
You recall that the Town Guardian - Ugly Cute - was "born" from the quarries from the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth. However, your knowledge confirms an area with a 2-mile diameter, within which there are no less than different small (and mostly abandoned) "hidden" mines...
Critical Success?
You will be able to recall the name of the shaft that was used to originally contruct Ugly Cute's stone vessel.
You have a flash of inspiration!
Ugly Cute - an eternal spirit guardian whose soul would be able to reincarnate into a new vessel if he were ever destroyed - could likely only permanently be killed by conducting a special ritual at his "birth place" - perhaps right here in the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth!
Critical Success
Such a ritual would need to involve materials collected from this "birth place" - but also, such a ritual may involve waking nearby spirits who would be able to "ride" the ritual from their own plane of existence to inhabit suitable vessels upon this plane!
It is here that the party loses the trail in the rocks, stuck now, and deciding how to proceed...
Well, the Fangs and Teeth sure are a pretty scenery change from the endless, haunted forests.
He admires how the sun hits the formations to make multiplied fangs and teeth patterns across the landscape.
Sigurd feels so lost. What could they have possibly done with Ugly Cute? And the trapped villagers? Did they flee? Did they complete their horrid ritual? Did their superiors punish them for failure?
"Perhaps we have lost the trail entirely." Sigurd takes a moment to enjoy the landscape. Many artists have been inspired by the formation. "Maybe it's best we return to Willowshore."
vs DC 16
vs DC 20
"The gods are not with us. We are lost and the meanings here are so far beyond us."
"Maybe Ugly Cute has retreated here to heal, to recover." Hope seeps into Sigurd's voice. "Unless someone has an inkling to which quarry we should search, let us leave them be for now. When the crisis in Willowshore is averted, we will return and take another look."
Kazuki is awestruck by the alien landscape of the rocky badlands. He is much more comfortable in the forest. He attempts to get his bearings straight and tries to figure out what's going on in the area...
Kazuki shares what he knows with the group...
Ugly Cute - was "born" from the quarries from the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth. However, your knowledge confirms an area with a 2-mile diameter, within which there are no less than 9 different small (and mostly abandoned) "hidden" mines.
Ugly Cute - an eternal spirit guardian whose soul would be able to reincarnate into a new vessel if he were ever destroyed - could likely only permanently be killed by conducting a special ritual at his "birth place" - perhaps right here in the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth!
"How I know this, I do not know." Kazuki says with a look of surprise.
With Kazuki's revelation, the party weighs their options... and importantly, their time...
Summary
➤The DC to Reconnoiter the Gorge of Fangs and Teeth: Expert (DC 20)
➤It takes 2 Hexploration Actions to Reconnoiter, because it is Difficult Terrain
➤Each Hexploration Action takes about 2 hours to complete as a group
...Looking at the Sun, because of Auntie Wu's excellent outdoor guidance, it is still the early morning!
"I see. Maybe we can spend some time to look for that awful ritual." Sigurd relaxes a bit. "They would need some kind of religious marking, or a symbol, or rare ingredients. Maybe we can look for that?"
"If it's afternoon and we haven't seen anything, then we should turn back. Perhaps Ugly Cute managed to retreat safely. Or those fools failed..."
"I see. Maybe we can spend some time to look for that awful ritual." Sigurd relaxes a bit. "They would need some kind of religious marking, or a symbol, or rare ingredients. Maybe we can look for that?"
"If it's afternoon and we haven't seen anything, then we should turn back. Perhaps Ugly Cute managed to retreat safely. Or those fools failed..."
"I agree. Let's start searching. We should be able to find something out here. Whether it's Ugly Cute himself or one of the mines, we're bound to happen upon something."
Once the group is ready to head out and start searching, Kazuki keeps his eyes peeled for any notable landmarks or features.
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As Kazuki reveals the likely evil intent of bringing Ugly Cute here, Auntie Wu's blood runs cold. "We need to stop them!" Frantically, she fishes in her pack, grabs a package, and pulls a couple of leaves out of it. After stuffing the leaves in her mouth and returning the package to her pack, she scans the Gorge for signs of which direction to go. Speaking around the leaves she's alternately chewing and sucking, she says: "I think if we follow that route there, we'll be able to rule out certain sections, based on what we can see."
"Wait, do you think they are-" Sigurd's eyes are wide with shock.
Sigurd is unable to focus and provide any assistance.
The party picks back up the tracks - same type of tracks as before - that seem to head into a nearby (abandoned?) mine…
…the party decides how to approach!
Lan throws out a tidbit of information that might help Auntie Wu know what to do.
"Does anyone have a plan? I cannot see in the darkness, and my armor is loud. I can alight four of us, but stealth is out of the question at that point."
He holds his shield and draws his katana. "I am ready to Defend us, if they are enacting the ritual they will fight to the death."
"I'm always willing to just walk in and try to talk our way out of any jam we might get into."