"I believe you had the right idea Rall. I will need someone who can move silently and hide as well. The rest should stay about twenty feet back, so if danger occurs the rest can charge to the battle."
Bowen begins moving forward and draws his bow.
"I believe you had the right idea Rall. I will need someone who can move silently and hide as well. The rest should stay about twenty feet back, so if danger occurs the rest can charge to the battle."
Bowen begins moving forward and draws his bow.
Rall emphatically waves his hands as if to say 'Not me ... one of these others' but the point seems to be moot as the halfling and the gnome have already started off in the direction Bowen indicated.
Rall says "I'll guard the rear ... make sure nothing tries to sneak up on us from behind."
"I will stay with the main group then. My speed means that i will be able to reach you quickly should you get in any trouble."
"I will stay with the main group then. My speed means that i will be able to reach you quickly should you get in any trouble."
Rall, at the prospect of finding himself all alone in the woods, finds he is as scared of whatever may be lurking out here as seeing whatever happened to those kids and hurries to keep up with the others. Sneaking up on whatever it is that got them doesn't seem like an option now anyhow. 'Please, oh please,' he prays 'Let the children be alive.'
The party, all in a long strung out row, reaches the eaves of the woods.
Under the trees, there is a light breeze blowing and the various brambles, shrubs and ivy plants gently shake. Above, the leaves whisper gently as they rub together. There is enough ambient light below the leaves to see, but it is much dimmer beneath the branches.
Bowen moves up close to Fee and begins scanning the ground. The trail is fairly obvious. Five kids and any number of captors made a discernable trail that Bowen easily follows. The trail begins in a westerly direction but then swings to the north. As the party heads deeper into the vale, the light entering through the leaves slowly decreases until finally it becomes necessary to stop and admit that a light of some sort is needed to go any further and still follow the tracks.
Bowen stops and rummages through his pack finally produces an unlit torch along with flint and steel.
Looking up to his new companions, "If we light this it will be near impossible to catch our prey unaware. Any other options?"
Bowen stops and rummages through his pack finally produces an unlit torch along with flint and steel.
Looking up to his new companions, "If we light this it will be near impossible to catch our prey unaware. Any other options?"
Rall remains quiet having nothing to offer here.
"I might make mention that one benifit of being...a stunt...is that we can see fairly well when there is little light. Let one of us, or better yet, the dwarf who can see in the dark, help lead the way if stealth is deemed important." Turnipin says.
"Myself, I say light a fire and let us hurry! Whatever has the children may...we really should throw caution to the wind and hurry. Draw your weapons and make ready for battle!" he finishes with a bit too much drama.
"Perhaps a cautious approach is advised at this point" warns Dunham. "If we keep a lit torch it might make us a tad bit exposed. I will move out of the light just a short distance and watch over the rest of you runts. Perhaps I can be of best help there."
Dunham moves into the shadows just to the side of the party and uses whatever cover he can as they progress to keep himself concealed.
"It seems settled then." Bowen strikes the flint and after a few tries ignites the torch.
"Let us move out and as quick as possible."
Rall feels the knot in his stomach pulling even tighter.
"I'll ... continue to guard the rear," he says grimly.
The light of the torch reflects off of the bottom of the leaves and branches overhead, making it seem almost as if the party is in some cavernous hall. For a moment, a wind blows in from the west, the flames flicker and the trees seem to whisper nervously. Then all seems still. By the light of the torch, Bowen can once more make out the tracks of their quarry.
The pounding of Rall's heart and the voice shouting 'No more dead children' in Rall's head drowns out any possibility he would hear anything of relevance.
Keeping an eye on the tracks Bowen pays only slight attention to his surroundings.
Listen Check (1d20+6=10)
Balnar keeps his eyes and ears open for trouble.
Bowen
"I believe we should slow down. Master dwarf could you scout ahead I believe I here something but you would be able to see something before I could."
Turnipin moves through the forest as fast as he can, staying near the light but keeping to one side of the larger folk in hopes of noticing anyhting.
Dunham's Alter Ego gumbles and moves to just outside the torch light. He puts his stubby little hands on either side of his eyes to block out the glare from behind. He squints and peers in the woods.
"Blah! I can not see anything. It's too bright. I say we just follow the tracks. It's the fastest way to the children and a big ale afterwards," the dwarf's alter ego grumps as he stamps back to the group.
"I agree with the dwarf. We should continue following the footsteps if the ranger does not suspect a double cross. However, haste should not replace caution. Perhaps one of the more sturdy of our group should take the vanguard and keep a wary eye behind us?" Turnipin says in response to Dunham's odd behavior.
Rall calls from the back of the party "Pssst. What are we waiting for? Let's move it."
Let us move on then. Balnar carries on along the tracks once it is becomes clear that no one else seems willing to lead the way.
Chronicler
All attack rolls are assumed to be unmodified (no power attack, no charge etc). The only automatic condition I use, is to rage automatically the moment I drop below 1/2 health (+2 Attack, +3 Damage, +2hp, +2 Fort, +2Will, -2AC)
Confirmation roll on the threat: 1d20+3, 6d6+12=[12, 3], [1, 5, 2, 3, 3, 4, 12]
Miscellaneous Rolls:
Random rolls: (1d20=18, 1d20=14, 1d20=1, 1d20=14, 1d20=5, 1d20=16, 1d20=18, 1d20=10)
Catch you in a few days, (I get home wednesday night)...
As Bowen seems outvoted about examing the noise he hears to the north, the party presses on towards the northeast, following the light of the torch and the bent form of the ranger.
Meanwhile, the dwarf, who had volunteered to shadow the rest of the party as guard off to the side, continues to remain unseen and unheard. He is obviously very good at his job.
About four hours later and what feels like many, many miles of following twisted trail through moss covered tree tunks and over gnarled root, the party comes to a river bank. The sunlight seems suddenly and incredibly bright as it reflects off the water flowing towards the west.
The bank is about ten feet above the actual water and at the water's edge below, there is a small bank where one can stand next to the river. The water is not deep here but is filled with many rocks.
About four hours later...
Bowen leans down and examines the different tracks trying to see if he can make heads or tales out of any of the stories that they tell but alas they allude him.
"I apologize all but this will take a little longer. Enjoy the sunlight before we travel back into the sun-less area of the woods."
Rall, having sat himself upon a stone, begins to mutter "This is madness. We've been traipsing all over the bloody forest on the word that of this man. How do we know he even knows where he's going? The only evidence we've got that the kids have been this way are a bunch of footprints in the sand!"
Bowen
All
Light will be an issue when Bowen once more leads the party beneath the dense leaves of the forest.
Bowen
** spoiler omitted **All
Light will be an issue when Bowen once more leads the party beneath the dense leaves of the forest.
Balnar
All
Bowen has determined the direction the tracks lead in. Rall has a lantern, will that be enough to last through the dark travels through the forest? Where is the dwarf? What has happened to the children? Questions fill the parties minds as they prepare themselves to move on.
With a sudden roar Balnar makes a dash for the undergrowth he believes the person or persons he heard are hiding in.
Bowen jumps in startlement as Balnar yells and goes to kill a bush, "There goes our 'quite' approach," Bowen grumbles quite loudly.
A frightened young human girl, dressed in ragged, dirty clothing, shoots out of the bushes in surprise. She runs back a few steps and then stops at a tree, breathing heavy. There are twigs in her hair and her barefoot feet are muddy.
"Don't hurt me," she stammers, looking the group over, her eyes wide. Her age is hard to determine. Certainly she is older than ten and likely she is younger than eighteen.
"Please don't hurt me. I've been following you, hoping to find some food. I'm all alone. Please don't hurt me."
A frightened young human girl, dressed in ragged, dirty clothing, shoots out of the bushes in surprise. She runs back a few steps and then stops at a tree, breathing heavy. There are twigs in her hair and her barefoot feet are muddy.
"Don't hurt me," she stammers, looking the group over, her eyes wide. Her age is hard to determine. Certainly she is older than ten and likely she is younger than eighteen.
"Please don't hurt me. I've been following you, hoping to find some food. I'm all alone. Please don't hurt me."
"By the powers that be!" Turnipin stammers and quickly moves toward her. "Dear heart, are you hurt?"
A frightened young human girl, dressed in ragged, dirty clothing, shoots out of the bushes in surprise. She runs back a few steps and then stops at a tree, breathing heavy. There are twigs in her hair and her barefoot feet are muddy.
"Don't hurt me," she stammers, looking the group over, her eyes wide. Her age is hard to determine. Certainly she is older than ten and likely she is younger than eighteen.
"Please don't hurt me. I've been following you, hoping to find some food. I'm all alone. Please don't hurt me."
Rall almost leaps out of his skin as the girl comes out of the bush. Then, trying to hide his reaction from the others walks past the girl towards the bush where she came out of saying "Are there any others? Are you alone?"
"I won't hurt ye girl," growls out Balnar as he shoulders hi axe, "but we do need to know now... have you seen a group of children pass by here? and did they seem to be in any danger?
The girl’s brown dress was obviously once a nice dress. But the sleeves have been torn off, the hem is tattered and torn, and it looks like the girl has not changed her dress for some time. It is very filthy. Her hair is light brown, almost blonde, and her eyes are bright green. She is barefoot and her feet and legs are dirty. She appears unhurt, but there is a hint of some sort of old wound on her shoulder, hidden by her dress. She is very thin but does not appear either sick nor malnourished.
“You’re not going to hurt me,” the girl says with a sigh of relief. “I didn’t know. I’ve been alone ever since the fire. So lonely. I’ve been following you since you entered the woods. I was too scared. I wanted to get your help but some men are bad. “
“There were some children at the… at the.. orphanage, but before I could join them, small lizard men took them. I followed them for a while but I knew where they were going. It’s a scary place. There’s a dwarf ghost there. So I came back. Do you have any food?”
"Don't fret now, you will be safe with us." Reaching into his pack, Balnar removes his winter cloak and settles it on the girl's shoulders. "Now if you stay close to Sherrif Rall here, I imagine he would be very good at keeping you safe, would you be able to guide us to where those childre have been taken? There is a very good chance they could be in serious trouble and need our help."