Episode I: A Rough Awakening

[DiscipleofBob]

OOC Thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?436575-Long-Term-Campaign-OOC)

[???]

You awaken groggily, being jostled back and forth by the movement of the room. Or is it even a room at all. You open your eyes to find yourself not where you were when you fell asleep. Immediately you can tell you're in some kind of covered wagon, your hands and feet are bound, you're in an iron barred cage, and you're not alone. Two cages, with two people each, of which you are one. While you each have the dignity of clothes, your weapons, armor, and other gear is missing. Everyone else is gradually awakening as well.

Whatever happened last night is still groggy in your mind. You can't even be sure it was only last night. For all you know you could have been asleep for days. Perhaps you went to bed and woke up here. Perhaps you were in a brawl and got knocked unconscious. Perhaps you were minding your own business and got jumped from behind. Either way, the more you realize your situation, the more a sense of urgency wakes you up faster than any coffee could.

What do you do?

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
Roran looks around, groggily, and is very curious as to his whereabouts. He looks at the person next to him, and then the other two in the cage next to him and his new roommate. Clearly, none of these people had kidnapped him, for they, too, were bound and stripped of their gear, same as him. Last thing he remembered he was leaving a farmer's house. He had just helped him replace a wheel on a wagon and after a nice dinner and a place to sleep, he was on his way back on the road. After that, things get fuzzy, and can't remember much....though he thinks he passed a man in a cloak on the road. Or maybe that was a dream, he isn't quite sure.

He does notice, when he finally wakes up, that he is the last to do so. Once he finally has his whits about him his stomach starts to protest and he quickly sticks his head between the bars and throws up. After his stomach has settled, he waves a hand over his mouth and flicks it at the puke that lay in front of him. It cleans up nicely, but he still feels a little nauseous.

He then looks around to see is their captors are around and, if they aren't, starts up a conversation. Albeit quietly, "Sorry about all that. Apparently my head was hit a little harder then I thought. I know that I didn't drink too much last night. How about all of you?" He blinks a few more times, eyes squinted and head pounding.

[Princess]

Cecily rises to her feet with a surprising grace and ease, finding her footing and looking around to orient herself.

[roll0]

[DiscipleofBob]

As soon as you wake up, adrenaline takes over and you are instantly wide awake, albeit still with a pounding headache, before anyone else.

Your hands are bound behind your back, and your legs are chained together. The same chain around your legs wraps around your cell-mates, another half-elf, albeit male. The bonds are sloppy work by the standards you're used to. They'd probably keep your average captive from moving, but not someone with actual skill.

There are only the two cages in the wagon, but at the front end there are several closed chests, trunks, and a few open crates, some of which look like they contain food. Nothing that looks like it'd contain anything valuable, but one of the large burlap sacks in the food crates seems to be moving a lot.

[Khy]

The already awakened half-elf to his left's hue pales to a faintly greenish tinge as he groans, "... Nnghr-- what did they put in that smallbeer..?!"

The burly man suddenly makes a strangled sound rushes to the cage's edge-- tripping on his leg-irons along the way-- wretches out the side as soon as he slams into its boundaries. After a few more seconds of dry heaving, he wipes his cheek against one of the corroded black bars and rises from his kneel into an unsteady lean.

The horseman-- for few professions required such a musculature or posture as his-- turns his head to glance towards the source of the unfamiliar voice. "Who are you," he asks, between grunts, while he tests the bonds pinning his hands with a flex of his cord-like biceps. Through the haze of nausea, he keeps a lone hazel eye warily fixed on the other young man as he awaits a response.

[DiscipleofBob]

Rogan manages to snap the ropes binding him and, with a little bit of leverage, break the chain binding his legs as well. Doing so might have also freed his cellmate, but Cecily has already slipped out of all of her bindings with ease when no one was looking. Now the two are free of their bonds, but still stuck in the iron barred cage.

Across from them, in the other cage, one of the prisoners is having more trouble with his bonds. What's not helping is how sick he's looking, and it's not entirely clear whether he's struggling to get loose or if his stomach is lurching.

[Princess]

Cecily examines the cell itself, searching for any interesting contents and checking to see how readily she might escape this situation entirely.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[DiscipleofBob]

It's an iron barred cage more suitable for animals than people. You could probably stick your hand through the bars with little trouble. The door to the cage is locked with a crude padlock on the outside. The cage floors are dirty with bits of straw and dried material you'd rather not speculate too much about. They're otherwise bare.

[DiscipleofBob]

Cecily is the first to wake up, followed shortly by Rogan. Rogan manages to break his bindings, but by the time he does so, Cecily has already cleanly slipped out of her bindings.

While the two of them figure out what to do about the cage, Ashurelion, the dragonborn, wakes up in the same cell as Roran, the latter of which can barely sit up straight and is likely making Ashurelion very uncomfortable.

The two cages are still intact, and there are still several chests and crates in the wagon as well. It's worth noting that the wagon is still moving without anyone, say a driver, checking back to investigate.

[Princess]

Cecily examines her former bindings and anything else in the cell that she might use to either pick, or break, the lock to the cage.

[OhMyGodImOnFire]

Darkness. Ashurelion slowly stirs, his ebony scales scratching against the planks beneath him. Planks? Have I fallen out of bed? His eyes open, pupils slivers against a backdrop of bright teal, slowly adjusting to his surroundings. Suddenly aware, the dragonborn bolts upright, causing his thick skull to smash against the iron bars surrounding him, rattling the cage and sending a shudder through the entire wagon. A dull roar resonates in Ash's throat as he feels the prisoner next to him, his pounding head not helping the situation in the least. "Anyone know what the hell's going on," he growls, low, "now's a good time to spit it out."

[Princess]

Drawing a concealed set of lockpicks, Cecily begins to try and foil the lock on her cage.

[roll0]

[DiscipleofBob]

The lock clicks open with ease as the cell containing Cecily and Rogram swings open.

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
After another moment of his stomach lurching, the dragonborn next to him starts talking and smashing against the cage, making even more noise. "Whoa there big fella. None of us no what is going on and making me throw up what is left in my stomach is not a solid plan. Now, you there, half elf with the picking skills. Do you mind helping me out of this stuff? I don't know what they gave me but it seems to have thrown me for a very large loop." Roran holds his hands out, hoping that Cecily will help him get out of the bindings and cage, filled with a very grumpy dragonborn.

[Khy]

"I think we've been kidnapped," the burly half-elf reports, with an incredulous rub of his brow. "Huh."

He then kneels next to the rogue beside him. "You need any armstrength, here," the young half-elf asks in a low whisper. "If you can get him loose, we might be able to apply some team-torsion to those bars with our irons and pop 'em out of their sockets. What do you think?"

[Princess]

"Obviously you'll be owing me comparable favors later," Cecily remarks before proceeding to get to work on the other cell locks. "Perhaps making short work of anyone who tries to stop our escape would be a good start."

[roll0]

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
Roran smiled Cecily a groggy smile as she went to work on his bindings and their cell. "Slash our way out of here? Yeah, I'm up for that. Just need to find my stuff first and I'll punch you a hole so wide you can go sideways through it and still not get hit by anything."

The moment he is out of his cage and bindings, Roran is looking through the boxes and such around them, trying to find his belongings.

[Khy]

Rogan stares at the two, obviously perplexed as to why they keep ignoring his questions, given his quirked eyebrows. "Uh-- well-- that works, I guess. Anything I can help with? I can throw a mean punch but I can't break through solid wood-- well, not unless I'm sloshed'n beyond. I'd need a hammer or my mace to really go at it."

[DiscipleofBob]

Cecily easily undoes the locks on the cells as well as any remaining bindings. The four are now free. Despite the commotion, the wagon doesn't stop or even change speed.

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
Roran rubs his wrists and ankles, "Thank you much. Still a little shaky from that blow to the head, but seem to be fairly alright now. I'm Roran Godshammer, lets try to find our stuff and see if we can't figure out what in the nine hells is going on here." Roran then goes about trying to quietly find his things.

Perception, search? [roll0]

[DiscipleofBob]

Roran rummages through some of the other cargo on the wagon. The chests turn out to not even be locked. Opening them, the four captives find their possessions, albeit poorly sorted as they seem to have just been thrown in whatever boxes they would fit in.

Among an open crate of food and rations, a bag continued to squirm as something mumbles angrily in a muffled voice.

[Khy]

With the door invitingly open thanks to his fellow captive's efforts, Rogan clambers over to the chests. "Rogan Wolfsram of Ashdale," he offers on his way over.

After quietly (or as quietly as possible) snagging his mace from among the wooden box's contents, he pivots towards the crate crammed with foodstuffs. The half-elven warrior pulls the lips of the wriggling bag apart and peers inside. In a low, throaty whisper he also ventures an uncertain, "Hullo?"

[Princess]

"Ladies first," Cecily declares, and retrieves all of her possessions as quickly as she can. Drawing a dagger, she points at the wriggling sack.

"Someone should take a look in their before things get worse."

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
Roran gears himself up, and gathers all his belongings. He then turns to the squirming bag and looks fairly confused. "Hmm." Roran then gets behind Rogan and pulls out his hammer, making sure to be ready in case whatever is inside the bag should attack.

[DiscipleofBob]

Rogan undoes the bag, and inside is a small humanoid bound and gagged, who stops squirming as soon as the bag's removed, who starts eyeing the four of you warily.

The gnome has a short black tuft of hair on his head, a large bulbous nose, a long pointy goatee, and a long, thin black moustache that hangs over his gag.

[Khy]

Rogan motions with his forefinger and lips for silence before unwrapping the gag from around the diminutive humanoid's head.

"Don't panic," he whispers and holds up his wrist to show the gnome the band of puffy red skin where the rough iron shackles sat not moments before, "I'm a friend. We'll take you to safety once we escape. We can talk then."

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
Of all the things he was expecting, a gnome wasn't one of them. "Anyone order a gnome, anyone?" Roran chuckles a bit, "Sorry gent. Humor is how I relieve the tension. We have been kidnapped as well, just like you." Roran follows Rogan's lead and shows the gnome his wrist. "Rogan, you got him taken care of? I am going to go poke my head out of this place and see what is going on out there."

Roran then gets very near the opening of their little caravan and looks through, hoping to see something other than the inside of their cart.

Perception [roll0]

[DiscipleofBob]

When the gnome's gag is removed, his muffled grunts turn into deranged shouting. "Who are you brutes?! Do you even know who I am?! Or who I work for?! You won't get a dime of ransom money, no you won't! I have friends in high places I'll have you know! You won't get away with this insult!" Fortunately, Rogan manages to talk him down a little and the gnome starts to calm afterwards. [b]"So you aren't responsible for this? Very well. Then you will help me find whoever did this and enact swift, bloody retribution on them!" the gnome says matter-of-factly.

Roran peeks his head through the flaps of the wagon, and immediately notices there's no driver. A small splatter of dried blood and an arrow lodged in the wood tells him that there was at least one driver at one time, though he must have fallen off the wagon, and not in the fun alcoholic way. The cart is being pulled by two creatures that sort of resemble horses, except for their black scaly hides instead of fur or leather and serpentine mouths. They seem unfazed by the lack of someone directing them and instead have been pulling the cart on autopilot, for how long who knows.

It's difficult to hear over the shouting gnome, but Roran manages to hear something small latch onto the cart and peeking around the front towards the back he can catch an unwary goblin struggling to pull itself up on the back of the wagon. Some rustling in the woods alerts Roran to possibly more coming soon after, but it doesn't look like he's been seen yet.

[Khy]

Rogan winces and recoils at the sudden blast of noise. Slowly, he turns his head to glance towards the front of the cart, as if expecting a boatload of warriors to pour out.

When none come, his head snaps back around to face the small, noisy humanoid. "SHHH," he hisses at the gnome, "Focus on not attracting things that want to kill us first! Plenty of time for investigation if we're alive."

[Irish Musician]

Roran Godshammer (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=296313), Favored Soul of The Gods
Roran very slowly moves back into the room. "Well, that will be enough right now, I think. Goblins are all about and one is trying to climb up onto the carriage, where there is no driver I might add, most likely to gain control of us and then most likely kill us." Roran looks around at his newfound friends, "Ready for some action?" A very mischievous smile grows on his face and he jumps through the opening onto the front of the carriage and swings his hammer at the unsuspecting goblin's face, hopefully knocking it off the cart.

Turn
Move - Over to the goblin
Action - Knock it in the face :smallbiggrin: [roll0]
Damage - [roll1]