"Well done, well done." Teela smiles when the trackers are able to follow the trail. "Not that I am good at this, but you guys make it look easy."
She looks at the state of the light around them. "But can you do that overnight? I can provide some light, but if we want to sneak up on them, that's probably not a good idea. We would shine like a lighthouse on a moonless night."
Velas glances at the horizon as well. "Yes, let's camp nearby and get an early start tomorrow. Maybe we'll be able to surprise them."
Velas does his usual portion of the camp setup and readies himself for his watch later in the evening.
Do you set up usual camp, including fire, for the night? if not, what are the differences in the usual plan?
Alvis tries his best but still tends to wander off the trail only to recover it later. Alvis prays, "My lord Abadar, may you conceal the efforts of your poor servant so the Sky Father doesn't notice me , so the weather may hold and keep the trail clear."
He looks embarrassed at the effusive praise. "Oh, Fean's help did much of it, and a true forester would long be done." Alvis replies to Teela, "I could, darkness means little to me, but leading five people and maybe the horses through the dark? I'm sure someone, person or equine, would break a twig or a leg in woods. Best to wait till morning."
On setting up camp, Alvis says, "We are close enough that a fire or its smoke might be spotted, but the warmth of it could mean a less stiff morning and satisfied bellies. I suggest we dig a deep hole while it's light, put the fire there with dry wood that does not smoke with a goodly pile of rocks to absorb heat and smother the fire before twilight. Spend the night with all vision adapted to the dark. Otherwise as normal."
6 Pharast, along the Thorn River, Greenbelt, The Stolen Lands
You take appropriate precautions, still lighting a fire for warmth, as the early spring nights have a hint of frost about them still. The warmth is somewhat hampered by the hole dug to hide the flames, but you all make it through the night without interruption or incident.
Dawn breaks in the woods, and a moderately heavy fog settles in between the trees of the Greenbelt. It lowers visibility a bit (only 20' without concealment) but not enough to keep you from getting bearings. Being adjacent to the narrow but swiftly flowing river also allows you to easily determine direction if you get disoriented.
It appears the tracks led north along the east bank of the river, but you can choose other tactics or plan your approaches in case you stumble upon a bandit camp in the foggy dawn light.
With a hint of anticipation and excitement, Teela snickers. "Alright..." She pulls off her eye patch and ties it around her wrist. She hisses and blinks a few times as her eye adjusts to the light conditions, then reaches for the rope in the saddlebags and tosses the other end to Alvis. "Can you hold on to this? I'll go a bit ahead, and this fog is pretty thick. If we can't see each other, at least we'll stay in reach."
"Graham," she turns to the man "want to come with me? We'll head north along the river, and we'll stumble into the bandits, hopefully."
"We'll play the carrot. A lost couple on a nice ride through the woods. If they go for the bait, we'll keep them busy for a moment and the rest can charge in and we'll see what happens."
She looks around. "Unless someone has other ideas? I'm all ears."
Quintessa listens to Teela. "I don’t hate it. But let’s make sure the carrot has a stick waiting in the mist."
She loads her crossbow with a click. "If you’re bait, I’ll stay close enough to watch from the edge. I can cover you if things go south quickly.
If they don’t bite, we’ll know they’re more cautious than expected."