Blood of the Ashlands (IC)

[nettle3305]

Blood of the Ashlands

OOC thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?503984-Blood-of-the-Ashlands-(OOC))

Gelećek finds himself in Barley and the Brew, a small tavern tucked away in a quiet corner of Borden's trade district. The tavern is clean and homely, and the bartender is a fashionable wood elf woman with rosy cheeks and a small smile. There are eleven tables in the main room, four of which are occupied. One seats three humans and a dwarf playing cards. (Perception check.) (Insight check.) (Intelligence check.) Another seats a human man and woman speaking over drinks. Another seats a half-elf in a worn traveling cloak, drinking alone. (Perception check.) The last seats two human men, one in fine clothes, eating and drinking, and the other in hide armor, watching alertly with a greataxe at the ready.

The bartender looks up at Gelećek and says, "Need anything, love?"
Astella stands on a lightly-trodden dirt path. Behind her is the fey forest and in front of her is Argenweld. It is midday and the sun is beaming bright overhead. On either side are windswept fields of grass as tall as she is. (Perception check.)

On the path ahead are two human girls, dressed in ragged cloths and carrying empty woven baskets. They are walking towards Astella and the forest.

Since the pact, the Archfey has not spoken to Astella or really given her any means of contacting him. (Arcana check.) (Wisdom check.)
Evodine finds herself in one of the courtyards of Tolzburg's Royal Palace. The courtyard has colorful, dense flower beds, and a well-paved path leading through the flowers to the large, elegant double doors of the Order's headquarters. There is a marble fountain with an angel statue atop it, clear water pouring into its basin with a gentle trickle. Behind Evodine is a path to the Palace's main halls, and branching off that path is one which, passing through a lavish garden, eventually leads to the front gates.

In the courtyard with Evodine are four Order guards. Two wear half-plate and wield greatswords, one wears a robe and wields a quarterstaff, and the last wears leather armor and carries a longbow. All wear the Order's insignia, a stylized griffon, on fine cloth wrapped around their torsos. The Order's official uniform is very stately. (History check.)

A few days ago, Evodine was delivered a verbal message to report to headquarters. Only full members who completed their training were ever invited to headquarters. This is a rare honor.
Stran finds himself in the front office of Goldtooth's business, the Copper Emporium. Tools and items sit on musty shelves, gathering dust, and the floor is dark and grimy, as if having never been cleaned. Every step Stran takes causes the floorboards to creak. The windows are covered in cobwebs and dust, letting in very little light. On the whole, the place is grungy.

Goldtooth sits at a counter, giving Stran a dirty grin. The only other presence in the shop is a human man in torn, shabby clothes walking among the shelves. The man is visibly tired. (Insight check.)

"Stran," says Goldtooth in his croaking voice, "jus' the man I wanted t' see."
Errich is standing in the entrance hall of Duke Faust's castle in Borden. Room-sized tapestries depicting battle decorate the walls and a rich red carpet marks the path from the large front doors to the throne room entrance. There are two knights in plate armor guarding the throne room, as well as six guards in chain mail watching the front doors. Seneschal Jurgen Herzfeld and a young human scribe stand to the side. Upon seeing Errich, Herzfeld beckons. With a quick order, he sends away the scribe, who scurries off through one of the many side doors. (Perception check.)

"This is urgent," says Herzfeld. "Affairs of the state. Come. We mustn't tarry."
Theren stands before the front gates of Borden. The walls are well over thirty feet high with at least four guards with heavy crossbows stationed atop in plain view. The gates themselves are open and appear to permit free passage, though there are three guards with longswords and shields watching the traffic through. It is a busy scene, with more than five dozen carriages and loaded carts in sight, and over a hundred people entering or exiting. Among these people Theren can see travelers, traders, and common folk. (Perception check.)

The midday sun beams down. It is hot, but the occasional breeze keeps things bearable. It looks as if a fight is starting between two merchants, one gnomish and one human. Two guards accompany the gnome, whereas only one accompanies the human. The gnome is accusing the human of stealing things. The human is hurling back racial epithets. (Perception check.) (Insight check.) The city guards warily watch the scene unfold.
Guhzunthite finds himself on a well-trodden dirt path just outside the Arashk. The midday sun causes the air to be more humid than usual, and the marshes are swarming with midges, but unlike most races, the lizardfolk find this state of affairs tolerable, especially when compared to the cold of winter, when the marshes begins to fog, and treacherous shadows seem to lurk within.

There are four lizardfolk militia just down the path. They are confronting a group of eight humans, two of whom are armed with maces, and the remaining six who look to be commoners. Two of said commoners are children.

"Musst pay," hisses one of the lizardfolk. "Takess advantage of uss." The lizardfolk is struggling to speak Common, his voice tinged with a Draconic accent.

"We've nothing," says one of the human men. "Got stood up on the road, on the other side of your fine settlement. We've nothing!" (Insight check.)

"Not sso," says the lizardfolk. "Sstoress of foodss."

"We must eat," says a human woman.

"Then huntss!" snarls the lizardfolk. "Musst pay!"

[Zaydos]

Astella

The half-elf watches the two girls closely as she walks towards them. They look unlikely to be a threat, rags and baskets, but even so she can't help but wonder what business brings them towards the fey woods.

Perception [roll0]
Arcana [roll1]
Wisdom [roll2]

Question: What time of year is it?

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

I'll take the house blend thanks, nodding to the casks behind the bar. He followed up with a smile whilst she was pouring, tapping the wooden rod at his hip; Coin or trade?.

He'd often pay off his meals trading Unseen Servants to clean and serve patrons, though looking at the room and it's keeper he suspected she probably didn't need it. Always worth a punt though.

------
Card players
Perception: [roll0]
Intelligence: [roll1]
Insight: [roll2]

Half-Elf
Perception: [roll3]

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite stood foward, spoken in Draconic: " I will handle it. My Common is way better then yours. "

he walked foward from his spot behind. He missed the sea already. He had return because of some clan business and was waiting for his next assignement here, at the border.

He was now behind the guard instead of sitting inside the border hut...

I rolled a total of 18 in the OCC thread, don't wanna roll again haha!

I'll roll here next time, since its what you want.

[nettle3305]

(The last days of summer are here, and fall is fast approaching.)

Though the pact itself was a powerful event, it was a bit anticlimactic that Astella received little indication as to what she, a newly pledged champion of the Lord of Autumn, should be doing for the Archfey. She suspects that there was an attempt to communicate, as if the Archfey had attempted to instill in her feelings, or a sense of direction towards some goal, but that the attempt failed during the making of the pact.

As the girls approach, there is a loud rustling in the tall grass nearby. Astella spots a big dog, the size of a halfling, padding through the grass, eyes fixed directly on her. The dog is hairless, ugly, and has vicious teeth. (Arcana check.) (Insight check.) The human girls are oblivious to the dog, surprisingly enough. They nonetheless eye Astella cautiously. One gives Astella a curt nod.
A small inflection in the man's tone indicates he is not being entirely truthful, though there is a genuine sense of loss and distress in his words.

After Guhzunthite speaks, the lizardfolk militia who was confronting the humans nods and backs off. "Thankss, brother. They left our innss without payingss."
The bartender pours Gelećek a glass of dark, foaming drink. "Draught with a hint of apple," she says. After a moment she adds, "You have a name, stranger? I'm Sinda."

Over at the cards table, the game is going quite quickly. It is hard to tell what exactly is being played, but it seems like one human is very clearly winning, what with the big grin on his face. The lone half-elf has a large, cloth-wrapped pack at his table's side, but it is hard to tell what is under the wraps.

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite nod to his brother, turn to the humans: " Humans, you being enjoying our inn hospitality and the rules wont be bend because of you. Especially since I suspect you didn't told us everything. If you dont wanna give us your money or your food, we will take either your weapons or make some of you work at the inn until they paid for your debts. However, they will sleep with the horses and wont get paid for their labors. If you dont wanna accept this final offer or give us a bit of face yourself, "

He take a arrow, put it on his bow, point it to his charge behind him: " I do not want to do this, travelers. Think carefully of your next move, as our kind are familiar with poison and poison coating on our weapons. "

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gell, pleased to meet you (returning a hand or other courtesy if offered). He takes a drink with a satisfied gasp before motioning towards the man with the greataxe.

This doesn't seem like the bar brawl sort of place, should I have brought my warhammer?

-----
If necessary, Charisma check to get some info on the two men at table #4: [roll0] (plus another 2 if it counts as persuasion).

[2D8HP]

Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)

As he walks towards the city gates with an exhausted and dour facial expression. The closer to the gate and with more witnesses his face visible brightens, and a smile forms on his face. He looks out for a place with a lot of prosperous looking foot traffic, and as he gets closer he curiously eyes a gnome and a human talking


Insight: [roll0]

Perception:[roll1]

[Saint Jimmy]

[I]Ugh. I just got finished recovering from the business last week.[\I] Erich thought. However, he straightened his shoulders, adjusted his collar, and walked toward Herzfeld, fine red and gold clothes barely concealing the leather armor he wore, the dagger up his sleeve, and the dagger strapped to his leg. Noting the odd expression on the faces of the guards, Erich just gave them a polite nod. After all a halfling walking around in incredibly fine clothes with two short swords openly worn on his belt wasn't exactly a common occurrence. As he reached Herzfeld "Alejandro" gave him a polite nod, and extended his hand.

"Good day, schensal. Is this going to be important matters like you said, or another insufferable dinner I must sit though to enhance my credibility?


Perception: [roll0]

[Zaydos]

Astella

It was frustrating knowing there was something she was still supposed to do to obtain the power she needed, but not knowing what it was. Even so she turns her full attention onto the dog, hand reaching for one of her daggers. "Be careful, that dog looks dangerous," She says to the two women, gesturing at the dog with her free hand.

Arcana [roll0]
Insight [roll1]

[Saint Jimmy]

Hope the roll actually works this time...


[roll] 1d20+3 [\roll]


Ignore this roll, i screwed it up as well.

[Saint Jimmy]

I think I figured it out now.


[roll]1d20+3]

[nettle3305]

(Intimidation check.) [roll0]
The draught is strong and creamy, yet well-balanced. As promised, the taste and smell of apple linger after the drink. It is definitely a well-made drink; this is a good establishment.

"The pleasure's all mine, Gell," says Sinda in a soft, mock-noble tone. With a grin, her voice returns to normal. "We don't see many fights. I'm thankful the sorts I get have little patience for that nonsense. Not to mention—" she nods towards one of the front windows, which gives a view of a busy, well-to-do street, "—the city guards and passing folk willing to help." She pauses, then says, "You obviously didn't come here for a fight either. Looking for work? I get requests from my old contacts in Tullinstadt. Plenty of places to put that warhammer to use."

(Insight check.) [roll1]
The human does not appear to be lying about not having stolen anything, though he clearly has no reservations with racial slurs. On the other hand, the gnome appears to be truthful that something was stolen.

"It's him!" shouts the gnome, looking about wildly, as if expecting strangers to step in and help. "I saw him step out from between our carts, and lo! My globe was gone!" The gnome's two guards look at one another uncertainly.

"I was just walking to the front, you damned gnome!" growls the human, "it's always the same with you lot! Can't admit you dropped it somewhere up the road, eh? Trying to extort a stranger for funds? Go shove yourself up a—" and he begins to list off expletives, none of which made much semantic sense in context. The human's guard looks the gnome's guards in their eyes, unafraid of a tussle.

Theren spots a young human girl quickly weaving through the crowd away from the commotion. A momentary gust reveals she is carrying a globe under her cloak. She is trying to make it past the gates into the city.
(Perception check.) [roll2]
The dog does not seem quite right to Astella, but fortunately, despite its appearance, she senses no hostility from it. It is merely watching.

Nonetheless, at Astella's warning, the girls look at the dog and freeze. They look ready to run.

[Zaydos]

Astella

Moves to place herself between the girls and the dog, gesturing them on their journey. "I don't know what it's here for, but perhaps it'd be best if you continued on your way cautiously." She keeps her own eyes on the dogs, watching it, her head tilting to the side, as her amethyst eyes observe it. "What do you want hound?" She asks in Sylvan, hoping that it might understand her.

[2D8HP]

. She is trying to make it past the gates into the city.

Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) Points towards the fast moving girl
Gnome!, That girl is taking your globe!

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

I'm always glad of something to pay the day's expenses, but truth be told I'd probably be more use to a friend from Kempten way. He flexed his arm with a laugh to highlight that he's probably never held a mallet, let alone a warhammer.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine enjoyed sitting in the courtyard, taking in the smell of the fresh flowers. She had sat here for well over an hour watching as people come and go from the headquarters of the organization she was so recently initiated into. Being early and scouting out an area was a new habit drilled into her. Though I'm sure they didn't intend me to be scouting them.

She watches the Order guards for a bit before finally jumping down off the decorative half-wall she had been sitting on. She starts toward the double doors, thoughts racing as she walks, What could they possibly want with me?

[Fishybugs]

History check, because I had previewed my previous post:

History: [roll0]

Bah! posted two seconds too soon. I'll post OOC to avoid cluttering up the thread.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran

Stran took a peek at the shaggy man, but shook his head, giving his attention back to the dwarf. He knew that what that greasy smile meant, either a large shipment coming through, or something entirely to stupid for Stran to care about. The bandit leaned against the counter,"Alright little man, wipe that dumb look off your face and tell me the news."

Insight check for a total of [roll0]

[nettle3305]

The two armed humans hold their maces limply at their sides. The children cower behind the humans' cart, and the remaining humans look both afraid and resigned. A human woman who did not speak before steps up and says, "Take this." She takes a necklace off from around her neck and holds it up. It is silver with an aquamarine pendant. It looks very valuable. "This was given to me by my husband during the Iron Wars. (History check.) It is dear to me, but it seems foolish to hold onto it given our options."

The human man who was arguing with the lizardfolk militia says in a weak voice, "N-No, you can't—"

"I must," says the woman.

"Take our food instead," says the man, pleading with the lizardfolk militia who he had argued with. "Four crates in all."

The lizardfolk militia steps forward and says, "Accsseptable."

"No," says the woman, "we cannot survive this path scrounging and hunting. We cannot stay here to work because there are mouths back home to feed. I managed to keep this necklace from the ruffians who accosted us earlier, but I am satisfied with giving it to our gracious hosts at Arashk."

"But it's worth hundreds of times more than a stay at even the best of inns!" says the man. "Don't do this. It's the only thing you've left from him."

The lizardfolk militia seems uncertain. (Insight check.)
The girls nod and back off slowly. One turns to her companion and says, "We should be back to town." The other nods and says to Astella, "Thank you, stranger." They run back in the direction of Argenweld.

In response to Astella's query, the dog's ears stand up. (Insight check.) It makes a beckoning motion with its head.
Gelećek immediately notices that Sinda deliberately avoided revealing any information on the finely dressed man or his companion with the greataxe. Something about the care in her words and her demeanor suggests that she knows the two and is concerned for their well-being. Her eyes shift discretely but alertly between the lone half-elf and one of the human card players (not the one who appeared to be winning). Her motions reveal a very subtle pattern, one which causes Gelećek to suspect that she is no stranger to combat, and moreover, that she is used to performing the somatic components needed to cast spells.

The intensity of the small moments seem to fade away when, following Gelećek's response and flexing, Sinda smoothly laughs and says, "So you were a student of Altona?"
The merchants stop arguing, and they and their guards turn to the direction of the girl, their faces showing surprise. The crowd quickly shifts as it turns inwards towards the girl. The girl nonetheless manages to slip out of the crowd before anyone manages to catch her. Having heard Theren's call, the girl gave up any pretenses of stealth or deception, and broke into a sprint for the gates. As she runs towards the city guards, she attempts to dodge them—but the very first city guard deftly picks her up bodily and retrieves the globe. The city guard pins her to the wall with his boots and examines the globe.

Looking slightly embarrassed, the gnome merchant ignores the human he was just shouting at and makes his way to the city guards. "That's mine," he says breathlessly. "My globe."

"I don't know that," says the city guard. "Can you prove it?"

The gnome's face turns red. "It's mine! I've owned it my entire life!"

The human merchant the gnome was arguing with watches the scene coolly. (Insight check.) The girl the city guard is pinning down is struggling break free. Her eyes shine with fear.
Errich caught the barest of glimpses at the stack of papers the page carried away. They looked like secret military reports. Unfortunately, Errich was not close enough nor did he have enough time to see any details.

Herzfeld leads Errich through a long series of the castle's well-lit and comfortably furnished halls. In response to Errich's quip, he says, "Were I able to convince you of the importance of networking, I'd invite you to more such events. Alas." He turns down a slightly narrower corridor, and he and Errich walk down the corridor alone for a few moments, accompanied only by the sound of their own footsteps. At the end, after yet another turn, is a door to a small room with a single guard stationed just outside. Herzfeld orders the guard to patrol the hall's entrance, away from the room, but in a position allowing the guard to stop anyone trying to sneak up on the room. When the guard leaves, Herzfeld beckons Errich into the room and shuts the thick doors.

The room is just as well furnished as the rest of the castle. It looks like a small office. Sunlight filters through the room's only window, which looks upon the bay from up on high. The window is open and Errich can feel the sea breeze on his face. The room is silent, besides the distant cries of seagulls. From the window, far below the rocky cliffs, Errich can see Borden's massive harbor and the hundreds of ships docked there, as well as the harbor district and its tightly packed shops and warehouses.

Herzfeld walks to the window and looks out. Without turning around he says, "What I have to say to you here is for your ears only. You are not to repeat this to anyone." He pauses, then continues. "My sources inform me of two new arrivals in Borden. Both are members of the Order: Commander Second Class Hektor Allbach and Knight First Class Peren Wolfsbane. Have you heard of these men?" (History check.)
(Investigation check.) (Perception check.) (Stealth check.)

Evodine recalls that being assigned to guard duty in the Order is something of a punishment; it is boring, especially following the high intensity Order training, and is somewhat demeaning considering how they were supposed to be elite, the best of the best, and yet wound up in the same position as any other city guard. Nonetheless, guarding headquarters is an important task. It is not that anyone would be stupid enough to attack the Order, but rather that the Order needs to catch spies, both domestic and foreign.

Evodine is aware that the next few years are very important to the Order. Since the Queen is young, and despite her war room genius has no knack for courtroom politics, the Order must protect her from ambitious nobles hoping to take advantage of her political naivete. It is always like this with a succession to the throne. Moreover, there are always internal power struggles, and the Order often turns its attention to within—to root out the disloyal and corrupt.
Goldtooth amplifies his grin, giving it a toothy edge this time. "Always the charmer, this one." He licks his lips. "Come on to th' back."

Goldtooth leads Stran through the dirty, damp hallways behind his shop, past the entrances to his warehouses, to a small office on the side. The office is messy with stacks of papers lying about and baubles scattered about the floor.

"Take a seat," says Goldtooth, offering a partially-rotted wooden chair. He sits in his own, a moth-eaten cushioned chair, and says, "We've a shipment, see, an' not jus' any shipment. My experts in forgery tell me this cargo's manifest has been forged, an' it's a good forgery too, a masterwork, so I've heard. Passed customs with flyin' colors. An' this piqued mine interest, see. I've asked aroun', what could be in it, where's it dockin', all sorts o' questions. The receiver is some halflin' by the name o' Thom Trickstone. It's a big piece o' cargo, too. Landin' tonight with the Norour Estran merchant fleet. Pretendin' to be one o' them, 'cause it sure as the nine hells didn't sail from Ys! Far as I can tell it comes from Shaanxi. Anyways, it's dockin' by Eimsbek Ward. Ship goes by The Red Jailer. (History check.)

"All I want from you is to know what's in that cargo. Nothin' more. Also try to find out who this Trickstone fella is. Been asking around, got nothin'. Pay is fifty gold base on the cargo. That is if you don't find anythin', so even I won't be screwin' you out of your money on this one. Then you get another fifty gold base on Trickstone, if you find me somethin' useful. Any questions?"

[Zaydos]

Astella

Watches the dog carefully for a moment, whispering low so that the women hopefully don't hear, "Did Cuinn send you?" Her voice is a bit tentative and apprehensive, but she sheaths her dagger once more on her belt and takes a step off of the path towards the dog.

Insight: [roll0]

Also can I make a Nature check to recognize anything about the dog? If not ignore the following, if so just including it now for convenience. Nature: [roll1]

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite is surprised by their attitude. he say to the other lizardfolks in Draconic:

" Maybe they hold valuable information from the outside, like a plague, to value this food so much. Stand down. "

He say outloud in Common for the humans:

" So it was truth that you met some trouble along the way. Travelers, where are you heading? How come this food is so important? Does nobody know how to hunt where you come from? Or are your lands plagued with something? "

He lower his bow and arrrow slightly, to show he is willing to discuss...




History [roll0] - 1

Insight [roll1] + 5

[Saint Jimmy]

"well then... this seems actually serious. I would go on a rant about how it's easier to lie if no one knows what your lie is, that way you can change it, therefore the dinners are ultimately bad for us, but I can tell something got you riled up.

Seeing the glare coming from Herzfeld, Alejandro sighs and quickly bounds over to a corner, facing the whole room, motioning for Herzfeld to follow. Once he gets there, Alejandro says

"a little trick I learned on the street. If you have something you don't want others to hear, you stand in the corner. That way it's out of the reach of most windows, and you can see all of the room, as well as the door. No one can sneak up on you, and it's harder to hear".
Alejandro cracks a grin as he motions to the schensal.
"Have you started keeping a few hidden daggers like me? You never know when someone's gonna try to sneak up on you...

Anyway, let's get down to business. About these two men..."



History[roll0]
If I still need Perception:[roll1]

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

My master fell in with the Gods before I had the chance. I can keep up if you know anyone who's in need though.

With a wink Gelećek steps away from the bar to seat himself at a table behind the half-elf and table #4. He orders another drink and a cold meal as he moves away.

Once seated he begins to sketch runes with his finger on the table and takes another look at the half-elf's pack. They didn't look up once whilst Gelećek was making a fool of himself flirting with the barkeep, a rare occurrence.

-----
Perception check on the Half-Elf now that I know I have new information that there's something to notice: [roll0]

Perception check on the Human now that I know I have new information that there's something to notice: [roll1]

Begin ritual casting Detect Magic.

[DJCamWozzle]

"No thanks.Stran opts out of the chair, choosing to stand and think to himself about everything his was just told.

History check for [roll0]

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine walks slowly toward the doors, partially stalling due to nerves, and partially because she wanted to figure out these guards. She looks surreptitiously at the guards, wondering what each of them did to get assigned this duty, but doesn't want to attract attention and shifts her attention back to the flowers.

Investigation: [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]
Stealth: [roll2]

EDIT: Ouch. I ain't seeing anything today.

[nettle3305]

The Order headquarters has a modest amount of traffic going in and out. Given the nature of the Order, it is hard to discern any details. When Evodine approaches the front entrance of the headquarters, one of the guards steps forward and says, "State your business."

Just as the guard finishes speaking, the front doors of the headquarters are thrown open, and a half-elf woman and a human man stride out. They are both dressed in fine clothes, but have shortswords and hand crossbows hanging from their belts.

"Initiate," greets the half-elf. "I applaud you for scouting your target before approaching, but—"

"Your technique has holes," says the human. "Anyhow, let's not keep your mentor waiting."

She and the human lead Evodine into the Order headquarters. The building's interior is elegant but not fancy, comfortably furnished and with seemingly unrelated landscapes hanging on the walls. Further in, Evodine sees the first signs the building is not just any office: There are vaults with no indication as to how they are opened, and hallways that appear to lead to dead ends.

A few more moments and the human stops. He points to a door and says simply, "In there." He and the half-elf leave.

In the room is Pfeifferspiel sitting at a desk, reading a report. Seeing Evodine, he stands up, smiles, and says, "Have a seat. We've a lot to discuss. But first—" He offers tea and cookies.

Pfeifferspiel shuts the door and returns to his desk. "Now we discuss the details of your first real assignment," he says, his expression turning serious. "A week ago, the Order sent two of our best to Borden, and they were made almost immediately." He pauses to pour himself tea. "This is a bit of a strange situation, you see. I'm not actually permitted to know what their mission is. But through a process of elimination we've determined the cause of the leak. It's a halfling in Borden who goes by Thom Trickstone. What's interesting is that he has no connection to the Order. How he can recognize two of our agents is beyond me.

"Your objective is to determine who he works for. Other details are left to your discretion. If you feel there is information worth pursuing, we will wait on you before executing the next stage of the agents' missions. I particularly would like to know how this Trickstone identified our agents. When you've completed your primary objective and are satisfied with what you've learned, you will make contact with our agents in Borden. Go to the establishment known as Barley and the Brew, and ask the bartender to see Wesh. Our agent will find you a safehouse and debrief you." He takes a sip of tea. "Any questions?"
Astella suspects, based on the way the dog followed her words, that it understands but does not speak Sylvan. Its intent appears to be urgent but non-hostile.

To her query, the dog shakes its head and, with a sudden movement, dashes back through the tall grass, promptly disappearing behind swaying patterns of green. Following will require deftness (Dexterity check) and good vision (Perception check).
Guhzunthite knew the Iron Wars well. A dozen years ago, Ostmark declared war on Votland over a disagreement regarding a major iron and steel trade route. Very soon, due to poorly-conceived international aid agreements, every nation but one was dragged into the conflict. The war lasted for almost exactly a year, and what a bloody year it was. Ostmark was a nasty place to fight, and sometimes entire battalions of Votlandian levies would disappear without a trace.

Some lizardfolk had gone to fight as well. Of those who went, few returned.

The lizardfolk militiaman who had previously argued with the humans now shows reluctance to take the necklace from the woman. Guhzunthite senses sympathy in the militiaman; no doubt the militiaman felt a connection to the Iron Wars.

"We don't know how to hunt because we're cityfolk," says the human who was arguing before. "We've just enough food left to return to Borden. We also have family back at home, so we can't just stay here and work off our debts. Um... I don't think there's a plague. Besides what we could hide on us, the bandits took everything. Every coin, every crate, everything but the grain, fruits, and jerky which we begged them to leave."
Errich knows Allbach was a commando in the Iron Wars who earned many medals for his feats, most of which were assassination. Wolfsbane is a name he has never heard.

"Indeed," says Herzfeld, "even if you haven't heard of these men, all that needs to be said is that they work for the Order. While I'm certain the Order maintains a token number of agents in Borden, I'm surprised to learn that the likes of Allbach and Wolfsbane were sent here. This compels me to believe that our house will soon be on fire, in a manner of speaking. What the Duke needs to know—what I need to know—is the nature of the Order's recent interest in Borden. Let me be clear on this: You must not confront either Allbach or Wolfsbane. The Order cannot even suspect that we are meddling in the Queen's affairs. Instead, shadow the Order agents and determine through their contacts what their intentions are.

"My sources have revealed to me the Order agents are staying in a small place called Barley and the Brew. They wouldn't use their real names, as those who study our military history might recognize them. Expect aliases." Herzfeld turns away from the window and faces Errich. "I won't lie to you: This is dangerous. Your compensation will be a hundred and fifty gold, guaranteed, plus a bonus based on the quality of your work. Is there anything you'd like to know?"
Gelećek notices nothing out of the ordinary with the half-elf and the card player. Sinda delivers to Gelećek's table a plate of salted shellfish and blue cheese, pours a glass of spiced rum, returns Gelećek's wink, and heads back to the bar.

(I'd say casting detect magic without making its somatic components obvious requires a Sleight of Hand check. The verbal component can be whispered without a check. Or is Gelećek just casting out in the open for everyone to see?)
Stran knows nothing more.

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite was pensive for a moment, He put back his arrow in his quiver:


" In that case, how about you hire some of my kind to escort you back to the city? Is there somebody there to take care of your total bill? I know you dont have money on you but do you have a strong backing in Borden? I have some contact there myself so I would be part of the expedition. This way, you wont need to worry about further attacks as well. I could spray the word to recruit only some of our hunters, so that we dont use your food supplies on the way back... "

Rangers were abundant among Lizardfolks, being the favorite warrior class among them. So in term of survival, Lizardfolks were generally more trained in the wild compared to humans.

[Zaydos]

Astella

It said no, right? Well regardless it understood her well enough, and her curiosity was peeked. She took off after it, pushing into the grass hoping to keep her eyes upon it, hoping that her mother's elven blood was strong in her today.

Here's hoping I get lucky.

Dexterity: [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]

Edit: With 2 perception I did not.

[2D8HP]

Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)


Insight: [roll0]

[nettle3305]

The human man sighs and says, "I appreciate the offer, but there's no one back home to foot the bill. If there were, they could take care of themselves and I could just work off my debt here."

"Hang on," says the woman with the necklace. "What if we get back to Borden and pay off the debt plus interest in a month? We're resourceful. We can make it work once we're back in the city." She turns to Guhzunthite. "Is that acceptable? We'd have to agree on interest, but does the plan sit well with you?" (Intelligence check.)
Astella follows the dog into the grass. She is able to match its pace for a minute, but loses sight of it when it turns sharply. Astella is lost and the dog is nowhere to be seen. (Survival check.) [roll0]

(Waiting on results of roll.)
Theren sees the exasperation in the gnome's eyes. It has a tinge of truth; the gnome is not lying when he says the globe belongs to him. On the other hand, Theren recognizes the look in the city guard's eyes. Apathy. Tiredness. The guard has no intention of giving the globe back, and intends to push procedure as far as he can to keep it. Just because. Something else? Yes, there is a brutal glint in the guard's eyes. The guard is looking forwards to hurting the would-be thief. Looking at the thief girl, there is no doubt she is afraid of this exact thing.

As for the human merchant, a cool, detached look in his eyes seems to convey to Theren that he knows how to make this situation better. At the same time, he appears to not want to.

[nettle3305]

Examining her surroundings, Astella notices the smallest of signs—rocks, smudges, bent grass, angle of sunlight—and determines both a path back to the trail and a path following the strange dog.

[2D8HP]

Theren sees the exasperation in the gnome's eyes.. Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) says to the guard If you keep both the globe and the girl, then you do evil!

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine looks up to the guards, somewhat imposing against her small frame. She starts to speak when the doors open and she is greeted by two knights. When called out on her scouting, she starts to answer, "It...I..." she glances at guards she had been watching. "The flowers...they..." She then concedes the point that she hadn't been extremely elusive and stops trying to make an excuse. "Thank you, milord knights, for greeting me at the door."

As Evodine follows the knights into the building, she looks again at the knights guarding the building. Whatever you do, Evi, don't fall from grace. Don't bring shame to yourself. Your family has frontloaded you in that department. Her nerves show as she walks through the building, a slight tremor in her hands, and a small glisten to her brow as she perspires just a bit. After the two knights leave her at the door and walk off, she watches them go for a moment. After they have left ear-shot, she mumbles under her breath, "Nice to meet you, milord knight. You've nearly talked my ear off, milord knight." She guiltily looks over her shoulder before entering the office to make sure she wasn't overheard.

She is relieved to find Knight Pfeiferspiel's office is where she's been led. She visibly lets out a sigh of relief. As he stands and approaches her, a genuine smile crosses her face, and her eyes light up when he offers tea and cookies. "Oh...is that the Camillia tea? It's delicious." She takes a cookie and examines it. "Oh, are these the fruit-filled ones I like so much? They are..." Evodine's face grows a little suspicious and she looks at her mentor. "Why do I have the feeling you're going to be asking me for something?"

She sits and listens quietly to the proposal, tea and cookie resting on the desk now that her mind has turned to business. "They were made...but...did they come back? Am I being thrown to the wolves here? Why me?" She pauses and thinks a bit more. "I haven't travelled that far on my own before...I'm going to need some supplies, ya know. Maps...some better travel gear." Her mind runs for a few moments, then adds hopefully with a big smile on her face, "A horse?"

Before Pfeiferspiel can answer though, something strikes her. "Wait. Didn't you say you don't know what the objectives of the agents was? If that's the case, then how do you know what the next stage of the plan is if I determine there is information worth pursuing?"

Persuasion: [roll0]

[Emmerlaus]

The Lizardfolk sigh heavily, losing patience:


" Look, I tried to be patient but your misfortune is also because of your bad luck and/or lack of preparation. I will give you ONE final offer: I'll accept the pendant as payment. In exchange, your debts will be cleared, we will give you protection for the rest of your travel and MAYBE if your records are clean with our country in the coming months, I'll consider letting you pay back the pendant from me. You'll have to look for me at the docks of your city. Im often hired there as magical support. "

He cross his arms, his eyes locked on the woman, waiting for her decision.

Intelligence
[roll0] - 1

[Zaydos]

Astella

The half-elf calls out in exasperated sylvan, "You know if you wanted me to follow you then you could at least wait up a bit!" Still she'll do her best to follow the fae-hound's trail, trying to figure out where it was leading her to at least, and hoping that it'll wait to see how long it takes her to catch up ahead.

[nettle3305]

The city guard who caught the girl turns and looks at Theren incredulously. "What?" he says. "The girl is a thief and the gnome has no proof this thing is his."

Four more city guards arrive. Two pick up the girl and hold her in place. The other two begin speaking to the city guards who were there earlier.

The guard who caught the girl motions to Theren and says, "Is this elf for real?"

"He saw the girl steal the globe," says another city guard, shrugging. "Deserves a pat on the back."

"Well," says the former guard, turning to Theren, "thank you for your service. Now keep out of our damned way."

The two guards carrying the girl start escorting her into the city. The guard with the globe follows behind.
Pfeifferspiel laughs. "Well, yes, our agents were made, but they yet live. I hear they chose to stay anyways. If only I were so confident of my own abilities. It's the same agents you'll be contacting, mind. And—" he furrows his brow and his tone grows serious "—I would not send you into a death trap, now or ever. Know this, if nothing else." He folds his hands. "In any case, how could I deny my favorite initiate the supplies she needs? Speak with the quartermaster for supplies, and the stable master for a horse." He gives directions to both. "When you meet them, tell them what you'd like to requisition. They should have it ready within minutes, after clearing it with me, of course.

"Now, as for your last question: I do not personally know the plan. Indeed, as soon as you leave town, I'm to pretend that I've never heard of this mission or you. They've assigned me to Norour Estra for the next month." He sighs. "It's a bit harsh, leaving an initiate out in the cold like this, but I wouldn't have recommended you if I didn't know you were capable." He leans back in his chair. "The two agents in the field should outrank me. They also work directly for the Commander Grand Cross. And they have need of people like you.

"By the way, your week's salary, in advance." He tosses a coin pouch to Evodine. It contains ten gold pieces. "We take care of our people around here. But don't expect to be collecting your coins while out in the field, of course."
The woman pauses, then says, "Will we be paying back the pendant at the price of what we currently owe Arashk?"
Astella finds her way through the tall grass with minimal difficulty after realizing that even this kind of terrain has natural landmarks, albeit subtle and small ones. She emerges into a small clearing atop a hill with three giant oak trees providing shade. Off to one side she can see Argenweld roughly a mile away.

In the middle of the clearing is a small shrine made of stone and wood. The dog is lying down by the shrine, apparently sleeping.

"Servant of Cuinn," says a disembodied male voice. It sounds young. "Or perhaps, I should say, Champion of Autumn. Ah, the smell of a newly-formed pact." The voice laughs. "I am Oisian, Prince of Luck. And you made a poor, poor decision. Cuinn is my foe, you see. But I won't take my anger out on his mindless servants. I have better things to do. And I have something to ask of you." (Arcana check.)

A shimmering, translucent figure appears, floating just above the shrine. It resembles a handsome young elf man with golden eyes.

The figure speaks. "I do not feel Cuinn's presence. That means you do not feel Cuinn's presence. I can fix this for you, for a price." He pauses. "That Ninian is bothering me again. This time I cannot deny the logic of his words. We immortals know much mortals do not, though this time there a few mortals who know what we do, that great calamity will befall the northeastern seaboard of our precious continent if action is not taken. The calamity will corrupt this very forest, and I shall have to seek a new home. If only I had physical form, I could march to the coast and put an end to this mortal silliness.

"At the same time, I do not have any champions to speak for me." The figure's voice takes a bitter edge. "The Prince of Luck can hardly make promises. An unattractive feature for picky warlocks and binders.

"Ah, but where was I. Right. A demented mortal and his fool followers in the human city of trade. It's near here. They bring corruption from the Ashlands to ours. Stop them, and I shall form a ritual which will allow you to see and speak with your patron. Ah, alright I'll throw in a magic item or two. Mmm... Mortal, do you like this deal? I'm not used to bargaining, and I've been taking lessons from that frightening Ninian."

The figure looks down at Astella inquisitively. The dog yawns.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gelećek thanks Sinda for the meal.

-----
He's not booming the spell out with incense and fireworks, but he's not intentionally hiding it or that he's a mage either. If someone recognises it and takes offence he'd tell them it's a habit; if he's sat somewhere too long he starts casting harmless spells to give his hands something to do. Rolled to see how distracting he's being to others I guess.

Sleight of Hand: [roll0]

[Zaydos]

Astella

The half-elf understood immediately two things. Firstly that she was in over her head, if Oisian wanted to kill her he could. Secondly that if what he was saying was true she ought to agree. He had openly admitted to being the enemy of her own patron, of course that did nothing to prove that the Prince of Luck was trustworthy. Still she hungered for power, and this was a chance at it. Then again he just called her mindless, still anger at the fay lord would do nothing for her.

She did not, however, want to anger her patron, a misstep here could be very dangerous, but if what Oisian said was true it was unlikely that it'd anger Cuinn. She needed to be in contact with the Lord of Autumn, and she did not think he wanted corruption to spill into the forest.

"Before we make an agreement," She said, her purple eyes meeting the image's golden ones, steeling herself to meet that gaze. "I must know more. What can you tell me about this corruption? What can you tell me about this demented mortal? Do you know his name, do you know a way I can identify him? What can you tell me about his defenses, and what challenges I will have to face?"

More then anything of course she was just trying to get a measure on Oisian.

Arcana [roll0]

Also Insight [roll1]. I don't think I can succeed on it, but I have to at least try it, before agreeing to a deal.

[Emmerlaus]

My character snort: " This will include what you own us for escorting you to the city and only if your records are better in our book Miss. Im a good friend with the cleric at our inn on the road too, I'll know if you are paying your tabs or if you guys are being rude guests again. I think you should be more worried about when you are gonna see that pendant again as Im not setting a price here. It will only when I feel a sincere repentance for what happened today that I will give it back... Its not the money loss that irritate me more Miss then the lack of face and disrespect you gave us. I think I would have being willing to compatize more if it wasnt for the fact that none of you guys apologize for what happened. "

He sigh, a bit irritated: " We can discuss how that repentance of yours can manifest on your way back. And it will start with one of those crate of food here that you will leave behind. Our warriors can hunt food for all of us on the way there as we will travel throught the forest. If you guys are nice enough, we might share the product of our hunt with you guys too."

He turn to the others lizardfolk in Draconic: " Go search for at least four of our rangers. Tell them we received payment to guard humans to their city."

[2D8HP]

"Well," says the former guard, turning to Theren, "thank you for your service. Now keep out of our damned way."

The two guards carrying the girl start escorting her into the city. The guard with the globe follows behind.

Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) mutters Humans?! and spits in disgust.
Then tries to track the guard with the globe unseen until the guard is seperate from his fellows.

Mask of the Wild,

Stealth: [roll0]

Survival: [roll1]

[Saint Jimmy]

As he scansthe room again, Erich answers
"Yes. There always is a chance that they find me out. What then?"


Perception [roll0]


-the edit was adding a question mark.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran thought about the job, and smiled. "Seems simple enough, just sneak up close enough to see what I can about Trickstone and the cargo." Stran reached out to shake the old dwarf's leathery hand, but stopped halfway. "Actually, I think I'd like..." He paused, "I'll NEED 5% upfront before anything gets more serious. You know, gotta get some fresh tools before this mission, maybe a costume or two? Could be highly secure, and I'll need every bit of help I can get."

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine takes in the information, delighted at the idea of being able to requisition her own horse. I wonder if I'll get to name it, she thinks to herself. Wallflower. Or Buttons! Breeze? Oh so many options... A moment of daydreaming and she comes back to business. "Okay. It's a bit unusual for a single person to be travelling around by herself. What's my cover?"

The bag of gold disappears into Evodine's pouch so quickly, one may wonder if it had existed at all. "Your faith in me is appreciated, sir. I won't let you down." She pauses for a moment, then raises one eyebrow, a small look of surprise on her face. "Huh, I didn't think people really said things like that." She shakes her head slightly, bringing herself back into the conversation. "If there's nothing else, sir, I'll start my preparations immediately."

[nettle3305]

(So I assume Gelećek is not concealing his somatic component.) As Gelećek begins casting, the rest of the bar glances over, curious. The half-elf leans back while taking sips from his mug. The card players pause their game briefly. Sinda leans forward on the bar with an expressionless look. The finely dressed human starts eating more slowly, eyes following Gelećek's motions. (Insight check.) His companion watches warily, one hand resting on the handle of his greataxe.

Twenty seconds into the ritual, everyone in the bar returns to their usual activities. (Perception check.)

When the ritual completes, an aura of abjuration emanates from one of the human card players. (Insight check.)
The apparition shrugs. "At present, we archfey find it difficult to properly interact with your world. Only by divining the stars can I read the machinations of men. If it is details you seek, seek Lewinna, Consort of the Fire Lord, a lovely woman who is far too friendly with Cuinn and his servants, but knows well the map of mortal affairs. Mmm... Oh yes, your fellow mortal, Segeric Elswin I believe, is not as foolish as the rest of you. Perhaps you should try him. Or perhaps not. (History check.)

"I have reached into the fabric of fate, but I reached too far. I felt the presence of The Other. A perversion of the order of things. The most unholy mind and being. In comparison, the Lords of the Infernos seem tame. I withdrew to preserve my sanity, then followed a strand of this blackened fate back to my homeland. It hides in the mind of one too far gone, but I felt as well tens of thousands of minds connected to this one, their fates bound together by strands of corruption." The apparition stops and shudders, as if reliving an unpleasant memory. With a shake of his head, he speaks again. "Go to the city of trade, where the minds of mortals are preoccupied by silver and gold. If you look in the right places, you too shall feel the blight."
"We were never rude—" starts a human man angrily, but the woman with the necklace interrupts him.

"This is acceptable to us," she says, handing Guhzunthite the necklace. "We'll strive for an end to these affairs which still satisfy our hosts at Arashk."

The lizardfolk militiamen head back to the settlement. After a few minutes pass, during which time the humans prepared for travel, only two lizardfolk return, the original militiaman who confronted the humans, and a different lizardfolk Guhzunthite has never seen before.

The latter speaks to Guhzunthite in Draconic. He says, "Off season, brother. Not many volunteers are willing to travel with you. The human city is a week away, with good weather." (Intelligence check with advantage.) He shakes his head. "I travel to supply Vazak with potions and other enchanted essentials." Vazak is the chief cleric of Arashk.

The militiaman says in Draconic, "I must join my brothers in defeating the swamp raiders. Best of luck. May Farlengh watch over you." He leaves.

"Farlengh," snorts the remaining lizardfolk. "A nonexistent god. How long has Kezhall been spouting that nonsense? It's no wonder Vazak is the chief cleric." Kezhall is the inn cleric. (Religion check.) "Matters not. Are you ready to leave? We must keep a brisk pace."
Theren follows the guard with the globe through the gates, leaving the sputtering gnome merchant behind. The streets are bustling with trade and traffic, and Theren manages to hide among the crowd. Just in front of the guard with the globe, the thief girl being forcibly escorted by the two guards attempts to hide her face. Passerbys jeer and yell at her.

After a minute of walking, the guards escorting the girl arrive at a fortified tower. They enter with the girl and the door shuts behind them. There is another guard stationed just outside the door. The guard with the globe whispers to the guard at the door, who nods. (Perception check.)

The tower is on a busy street. There are businesses and stalls nearby, with many commoners and traders walking about.
"Deny everything," says Herzfeld. "Deny spying on them. Deny knowing anything. Deny working for me. These are Order knights, not common bandits or smugglers. They won't attack you without good reason. Even if they don't believe you, they won't take serious action without concrete information. The other side of this, however, is that if you're found, you cannot contact me directly. If you can discretely message me your reports, that's excellent. If not, I'll understand. Be careful; if it goes against your gut, don't do it."

The room looks to be a cross between an office and an archive. There are dozens of shelves, locked behind glass and wood, of scrolls, papers, and folders, stacked densely and neatly, marked by dates and locations. There is a plush, cushioned couch and a lamp standing next to it. A sturdy-looking desk sits by the window. On the desk are blank sheets of parchment, quills, jars of differently colored inks, and a glass jug of spiced red wine with an empty tin cup next to it. The chair behind the desk is cushioned.
(Persuasion check.) [roll0]
(Waiting on results of roll.)
"Your cover is left to your discretion," says Pfeifferspiel. "If you need false identification, the quartermaster will requisition it for you. Or—" he grins "—you could just improvise in the field. That's what I did on my first mission. We were sent to infiltrate an Ostmarkian slaver camp, and my colleagues pretended to be traders from Prespes. They had papers and everything. Their papers were taken by the slavers as collateral, but I, on the other hand, went in pretending to be some village herbalist. No papers, as is typical of villagers, but my skills were needed to heal their wounded, so they let me in anyways. After our mission was complete, when we returned to Tolzburg, they got chewed out by the Commander for leaving evidence at the target site. The slavers managed to learn a lot by studying the forged identifications. They later tried to ambush my colleagues, but we anticipated that they would study the forged papers, so we ambushed them instead.

"Oh, goodness, I've kept you for too long. Sorry, sorry, I have tendencies to daydream of my earlier years in the Order. Just to be clear, it's never a bad idea to have a cover. Just be precise about where you use it." Pfeifferspiel stands up. "Alright, Evodine. I'll see you in a month, in one piece. I'm sure by then I'll have heard of what a success your mission was. Be safe, be smart. Don't take stupid risks."

[nettle3305]

"How 'bout no," snorts Goldtooth angrily. "Don't ever try an' haggle with me on my jobs. You do the work, you get paid. Simple, right? Bring this up again an' I'll start dockin' gold. If you don't want the job, I'll just give it t' someone else."

[Saint Jimmy]

Alright. I'll get going then.
Alejandro walks out of the room, down the hallway, out into the street, and to the Barly and the Brew.


Sorry about the short post, I'm super busy.
Perception to notice stuff on the road if necessary[roll0]
Perception to attempt to locate the men at the tavern[roll1] (does this add a bonus due to my successful history check?)
Ok, the second check should be a 10 because it's actually plus three.

[2D8HP]

Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)

Perception: [roll0]

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gelećek keeps his tone quiet and even as people look round, no need to make anyone nervous by flinching.

-----
Insight (well dressed human): [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]
Insight (card player): [roll2]

Well I doubt I come up with anything useful, but lets see.

EDIT: Is the player with the aura the one who's winning?

[Zaydos]

Astella

"How can I find Lewinna, or this Elswin?" She asks, still meeting the apparition's eyes. "Still I can see no harm to helping you in this deed," She says, perhaps rather naively. "So I will accept your bargain, and I hope you'll wish me luck." She breaks her gaze then glancing about, "Also if you could provide me with transport to the trade city I may be able to do something more quickly, hopefully stemming this corruption sooner. Else I had best get started, it is the same duchy but still far."

History: [roll0].

Question: How far is it from Borden to Argenweld? The information just says Argenweld is far south of Borden. I'd be planning to pick up extra food with this information but as long as the land offers berries and plants I can find food (Wanderer feature from Background). Can't afford a horse either way, still nice to know.

[DJCamWozzle]

"Alright fine Goldtooth, only because you've been good business these past years. I'd say a friend, but I don't want to be seen around someone as ugly as you." Stran jokes with the dwarf before taking his leave. He walks out of the office after giving a small wave to his partner. "See you next morning!" Stran takes one more peek at the ragged man before walking out the door, off to find some ink and a small journal before his quest.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine stands, walks around the desk, and gives a quick hug to Pfeiferspiel. "I'll get this done, then I'll be back to cause you more trouble, don't you worry a bit." She heads out and wanders toward the quartermaster's office, thinking of what supplies she'll need. A horse! That'll be the first thing I ask for. She'll need saddlebags, of course. A map. What'll my cover be?


Int check: What do I know about Borden? Is it near a forest, open plains? Primary source of commerce? Population make-up? [roll0] (Unless that counts as 'history' then it's a +4)

[Emmerlaus]

"We were never rude—" starts a human man angrily, but the woman with the necklace interrupts him.

"This is acceptable to us," she says, handing Guhzunthite the necklace. "We'll strive for an end to these affairs which still satisfy our hosts at Arashk."

The lizardfolk militiamen head back to the settlement. After a few minutes pass, during which time the humans prepared for travel, only two lizardfolk return, the original militiaman who confronted the humans, and a different lizardfolk Guhzunthite has never seen before.

The latter speaks to Guhzunthite in Draconic. He says, "Off season, brother. Not many volunteers are willing to travel with you. The human city is a week away, with good weather." (Intelligence check with advantage.) He shakes his head. "I travel to supply Vazak with potions and other enchanted essentials." Vazak is the chief cleric of Arashk.

The militiaman says in Draconic, "I must join my brothers in defeating the swamp raiders. Best of luck. May Farlengh watch over you." He leaves.

"Farlengh," snorts the remaining lizardfolk. "A nonexistent god. How long has Kezhall been spouting that nonsense? It's no wonder Vazak is the chief cleric." Kezhall is the inn cleric. (Religion check.) "Matters not. Are you ready to leave? We must keep a brisk pace."


" What's your name, ranger? "



Knowledge nature (with advantage)

[roll0] -1

[roll1] -1

Knowledge Religion

[roll2] +1

[nettle3305]

Herzfeld calls a guard who escorts Errich out of the castle.

Errich now stands just outside the Duke's castle in Borden's noble's quarters. The streets are wide and paved, and iron lamps appear at regular intervals, though said lamps are currently dark being that it is afternoon with the sun shining brightly. There are several mansions and gardens nearby, as well as businesses catering to the wealthy. It is not crowded, though some nobles walk about.

In front of the castle are two guards. Further down the street are four guards.

It will take some searching to find Barley and the Brew. (Investigation check.)

There is an elegant-looking bar and inn nearby called Belia's Rest. Guarding its entrance is a large man wearing studded leather with a scimitar at his side. Nobles and well-to-do merchants frequently enter and exit the establishment, and sometimes travelers as well.
Theren could not hear what the guard was whispering. Nonetheless, the guard does not enter the tower, instead returning to the streets and continuing to walk. After about a minute of walking in a giant U-shaped path, the guard turns down a deserted alley, away from the crowded streets. (Perception check.)
The card player with the aura does not look happy, both with the state of the game and in general.
The apparition shrugs. "I know not how you should reach Elswin or Lewinna. Nor can I teleport you from where I stand. If you search my shrine, though, you should find the offerings the locals brought me. I don't know why they think I need mortal currency. What am I going to do with it?"

Astella knows the name Segeric Elswin well. Properly, it is Archmage Segeric Elswin, rector and professor of Altona University in Kempten. Elswin pioneered the enchantment process for many magical items, as well as conducted several bookshelves' worth of original research into arcana and religion, especially on the subjects of planar conjunctions, arcane geometries, and cosmological dynamics. He is well-regarded across several continents for his contributions, both in the civilian domain and the military domain. He has also personally fought in several wars, typically for Votland (though not always), winning all of his battles but three. He carries a reputation for his intelligence. He is also quite old now.

Lewinna has a secluded shrine all the way in Tullinstadt duchy, on a mountain northeast of Tullinstadt city. Many centuries ago, settlers of what is now Votland were very close to nature, living in harmony with wildlife and fey. A mysterious event known only to historians as the Second Disjoining reduced the fey presence in Votland significantly (and perhaps the rest of the world as well), severing the connection between the settlers and nature, causing society in Votland to begin developing past the tribal stage. Lewinna's shrine has since become deserted, being of only archaeological interest now to most.

Searching the shrine reveals 5 gold pieces, 50 silver pieces, a silver ewer, and a gold locket with a portrait of a handsome half-elf man painted inside.

"When you are done," says the apparition, "my most loyal of servants will escort you to the nearest mortal settlement." The dog stands up from resting position and shakes itself. It gazes intently at Astella.
Stran walks back to the front office of Goldtooth's business. The shabby man is gone. (Intelligence check.)
Part of Borden is set upon a big cliff overlooking the coast, and the rest is at coast-level. The land around Borden is mostly hilly plains with some rivers. There are trade routes in all the cardinal directions and many of the directions in-between. The population is generally human, with communities of many other races due to the fact that Borden is a metropolitan trade center. Though trade is Borden's primary source of commerce, it also benefits from the local production of the town of Argenweld.

Evodine finds herself in the requisitions hall. There are several people going about their businesses, including among others clerk-looking Order members carrying obviously magical items and soldiers in plate armor carrying large packs of supplies. Doors to the side lead to requisitions offices. Pfeifferspiel's instructions directed her to a specific office.

Upon entering the office, Evodine sees an older halfling woman sitting at her desk, reading a report and humming. The woman looks up.

"Well aren't you the cutest thing," she says. "Name then rank, honey. And what is it you need?"
"I'm no ranger," says the lizardfolk, switching to Common and spreading his arms wide to reveal that he has no weapon. "But do not underestimate my prowess. You may call me Lothzar. Who are you?"

Guhzunthite believes that some clever routing and short cuts through the wilderness, away from the beaten path, could save the trip two days at no cost to safety or practicality.

When the lizardfolk first arrived in Votland, they came with their old gods, including Farlengh, the god of travel. But as the lizardfolk mingled with humans, elves, and dwarves, the lizardfolk began importing the dominant religion of most of the world, which originated from ancient Chanpat philosophy. In this religion, the most attractive gods to the lizardfolk are Gruumsh, lawful evil god of destruction, Kord, chaotic neutral god of strength and storms, and Melora, true neutral goddess of wilderness and sea. Back at Arashk, the leaders generally subscribe to this religion rather than the traditional lizardfolk one, but the occasional lizardfolk still believes in their old gods.

[DJCamWozzle]

Rolling an Intelligence check only worthy of a man with a smart mind [roll0]

[Zaydos]

Astella

Makes quick work of searching the shrine, but hesitates for a moment with the locket, before her greed, or as she justifies it her necessity, gets the better of her. After all the fae lord gave her permission, and whoever left this locket here left it to him. Still she wonders quietly on that for a brief moment. "I had best be on my way then, I will have much traveling to do." She turns then to the dog, "Lead the way."

Can I try a check to appraise the approximate value of the ewer? I'm guessing that'd be Int (or History which I'm not proficient in), if I'm wrong just tell me, Int [roll0]

And the same for the locket Int [roll1]

As for questions, from where I am how far (days travel preferably) is it to Borden? How far and what direction to Tullinstadt and Kempton (not assuming they're near each other just asking about both)? Have to decide whether its worth the time to detour to one or both, or whether I should go to Borden and learn what I can there first (somehow this seems like a bad idea, but it is one Astella might make).

Or do I need to make a check for that? Would that be Int or Nature or History or? Int? [roll2] (add +2 if nature, add +1 if Survival, I can't imagine it'd be anything else that I'm proficient in, subtract 1 if Wisdom, ignore if I don't need to roll, etc).

[nettle3305]

(Perception check.) [roll0]
As Stran glances at the aisle where the shabby man was browsing earlier, he notices that an item is missing. A closer look reveals that his memory does not deceive. When Stran was in this room earlier, there was a dusty rock-like object sitting on one of the shelves. Now the object is gone. Looking around the shop it becomes clear the object was not merely moved to another aisle.
The apparition bows then promptly vanishes in a blink of light. The dog whines (the first sound Astella's heard from it), shakes itself again, then suddenly dashes down the hill into the tall grass. (Dexterity check.) (Perception check.)

[Zaydos]

Astella

She was expecting something like this, and she rushes off after the dog, red hair flowing behind her as she runs.

Dexterity: [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]

[nettle3305]

Theren is standing in the busy streets, looking at the deserted alley across from him, which is where the guard with the globe went.
Almost immediately Astella becomes once again lost in the tall grass. (Survival check.)

[Zaydos]

Survival check [roll0]

[nettle3305]

And almost just as quickly, Astella finds herself back near the trail between the forest and Argenweld where she first saw the dog.

Before she actually steps out of the tall grass, however, she sees a human man standing on the trail, looking around. The man is wearing leather armor and wielding a longbow. At his side hangs a shortsword. The dog is nowhere to be seen.

[Zaydos]

Astella

The half-elf makes no attempt to hide from the man, emerging from the tall grass, nearby. She did however try and take his measure, glancing him over. The first thought was whether he was the hound somehow assuming human form, the second, though, prompted her to call out to him, "Hail traveler, seeking something? Some animal you were hunting perhaps?"

Insight: To get a feel of some sort for the man, or at least try to, [roll0]

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran looks back to the office and opens his mouth to let Kurg know what happened, but saves his breath. That kind of treatment is only for clients that pay a little up front. The bandit walks out the front door, looking for the nearest place he could get a new journal for the night's mission. Stran decides to keep an eye out for the mystery man as well, maybe get some leverage on ol' Goldtooth if he can get back the stolen item.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

A scowl flickers across Evodine's face at being called cute, but it is gone again before anyone could even notice. Though she is overwhelmed with the bustle of activity, she is straight to business with the supply clerk. "Evodine Morth....Evodine Sildacin, Initiate of the Order. Knight Pfiferspiel is sending me into the field. I'm here to requisition a book on herbs and spices, a little additional food and water, a bag of herbs, a map of the area surrounding Borden....and a horse with saddlebags."

[nettle3305]

"Seeking a half-elf woman," says the man, raising an eyebrow, "and a large, wild dog. But being that there is no dog and I have a healthy-seeming woman standing before me, I am compelled to wonder what could have happened here."

(I missed the earlier spoiler on rolls, so I'll do them here.)

The ewer is a beautiful object. It looks as if it belongs in the mansions of only the wealthiest families. At least twenty gold pieces, probably more.

The locket is quite beautiful as well. It is, however, harder to determine a price range for it. Ten gold pieces sounds like a good lower bound.

Borden is not close, but nor is it unreasonably far. At normal pace, probably more than day, less than a week. (Need two separate Intelligence checks, one for Tullinstadt and one for Kempten.)
Stepping outside the shop, Stran finds himself on a relatively quiet street of Borden's harbor district. People walk by quickly and quietly, even though it is midday, and the businesses are small and dingy. The roads are just dirt and mud, and there are no light sources. At night, this street grew truly dark and menacing. Just opposite the Copper Emporium is a small butcher shop called Lower Harbor Meats. Through the shop's windows, Stran can see its butcher, Guntmar Cake (yes, really), working on a gutted pig behind the counter.

Just to Stran's left is Cobbo. Just Cobbo, no known last name. Hired by Goldtooth almost a decade ago, Cobbo guards the Copper Emporium's front entrance every afternoon.

Cobbo nods at Stran.

Stran needs to look for a shop to buy the journal. (Investigate check.)
The woman nods, her demeanor suddenly turning to business. "You must be specific, Initiate. Which of our tens of thousands of texts on herbs and spices interest you? How much food and water do you need? Do you prefer any kind of food? What herbs do you need and how much? How large or detailed of a map are you looking for (it's a trade off)? Are you looking for a specific breed of horse? Keep in mind, if you lose or injure your horse, barring mitigating circumstances, you will be charged, either directly or by deducting from your pay." The woman pauses, then sighs. "Initiate, precision is highly valued around here. Thousands of platinum worth of items are requested every day. But don't worry—" her eyes twinkle "—every initiate is like you at the start."

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran nods to Cobbo, and inquires about the mystery man before making his way through the dirty road. "Hey Cobbo, see any shady fellas exit the shop besides myself?"

Investigation for [roll0] and Stran will follow the trail of the mystery man if Cobbo has any information, and look for the shop if Cobbo doesn't

[Zaydos]

Astella

"And just why are you seeking her? And why the dog? Far as I can tell the hound ran off already," She responds raising her own eyebrow.

Int for Tullinstadt [roll0]
Int for Kempten [roll1]

[Emmerlaus]

"I'm no ranger," says the lizardfolk, switching to Common and spreading his arms wide to reveal that he has no weapon. "But do not underestimate my prowess. You may call me Lothzar. Who are you?"

Guhzunthite believes that some clever routing and short cuts through the wilderness, away from the beaten path, could save the trip two days at no cost to safety or practicality.

When the lizardfolk first arrived in Votland, they came with their old gods, including Farlengh, the god of travel. But as the lizardfolk mingled with humans, elves, and dwarves, the lizardfolk began importing the dominant religion of most of the world, which originated from ancient Chanpat philosophy. In this religion, the most attractive gods to the lizardfolk are Gruumsh, lawful evil god of destruction, Kord, chaotic neutral god of strength and storms, and Melora, true neutral goddess of wilderness and sea. Back at Arashk, the leaders generally subscribe to this religion rather than the traditional lizardfolk one, but the occasional lizardfolk still believes in their old gods.

" My name is Guhzunthite," he say in Draconic. " And every gods exist, otherwise their wouldn't be cleric of them. Im not asking to belive in Farlenght but Im asking you, please, dont curse him or insult his name before hitting the roads. Such things attract bad luck, " he say sounding apologetic to say it but very serious.

Then to everyone in common: " I have a plan. I know some shortcut in the wilderness that could save us two days. I will explain my idea to my fellow Lizardfolk here and he will lead the way. I'll be in the carriage in the front. "

Once he done explaining his idea to Lothzar, in Draconic, he goes to the Miss with the necklace: " Do you have some room in your carriage for me, Miss... ? "

To her, now, he seemed no more hostile. His tone is very polite and warm, like the irritation before didn't happen.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Sinda's apple brew must have been stronger than he realised,he was usually better at reading people than this. He was also surprised by the lack of magic on Sinda herself.

As he eats his lunch, currently passing on the second drink, Gell considered the one spell he had found.

As he finishes his meal (tasty) he withdrew a letter from his pack and approached the half-elf.

Sorry to interrupt but you seem like a well-travelled sort and I wonder if you could identify the script of this letter.

---
Arcana check to try and identify the spell: [roll0]

Letter is the "letter from a dead colleague" that the Sage background gives you. Backstory says it's written in a language he doesn't read. If the half-elf offers anything other than a swift "**** off", Gell will ask to take a seat - [roll1] Cha+2/Persuasion+4, if needed.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine lets out a little huff, more in determination than exasperation. "Okay. A backpack full of herbs and spices. It doesn't matter which; I'm using them for my cover as an herbalist looking to buy and sell herbs. I'd like Coleson's Plants for Another Season, the map..." She pauses a moment to think how to describe a map. "It should show Borden, all the roads in and out as well as any major geographic hazards such as impassable cliffs. Dragon lair's to avoid would be nice, but I can probably figure that out on my own if need be. Waybread dried meats for five days and a large bladder of water, probably. That will give me almost two ten-days of food. Should be plenty. The horse....male, quarterhorse, at least six years old, somone who won't spook easily. Chestnut. Fun personality, likes to run, but is okay taking it slow as well. Saddlebags. Some oats and apples for the horse for when there isn't grass. A horse brush. Equipment to tack up."

She stand and waits to be berated for failing to think of something.

[2D8HP]

Theren is standing in the busy streets, looking at the deserted alley across from him, which is where the guard with the globe went.]

Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) Searches for where the guard disappeared to.

?: [roll0]

[nettle3305]

Cobbo scratches his head, laughs, and says, "Everyone 'round these parts look shady, chief. If you mean the fella who just left, he headed just opposite the harbor." Cobbo points down the road. "Well, I don't see 'im anymore. But he definitely went thataway." (Investigation check with advantage.)

By heading to the right street and asking around, Stran manages to find a specialized store selling, among other things, calligrapher's supplies for ten gold, or cartographer's supplies for fifteen. Purchasing a blank book costs one silver for each page plus one gold for the binding. A one ounce bottle of ink costs ten gold, and an ink pen costs two copper.
"So there was a dog," says the man. "I was told a story that two of our foragers, on their usual walk to the forest, ran into a large wild dog. Then, supposedly, a stranger selflessly stepped between them and the dog. Not the sort to leave such charity unreciprocated, Lord Breton asked our hunters to aid this stranger. Seeing you here forces me to conclude that this stranger either needed no help, or that you are not the stranger in question, though you match the description very closely." The man grins and relaxes his grip on his bow. "But few enough match your description as it is."

Tullinstadt is definitely far. More than a week's travel away at a regular pace.

To get to Kempten from Argenweld, one would have to reach Borden first, then take one of the routes outbound between the mountain path and the coastal path. A journey along this route at a regular pace should take no less than eleven days, and no more than thirteen. This is, of course, barring poor weather conditions and other misfortunes.
In response to Guhzunthite, Lothzar says, "Wise enough. The ways of the gods are unknowable. I shall nonetheless pray to Melora." And so he does, clasping his hands together and bowing his head.

Lothzar is also agreeable to Guhzunthite's travel suggestions. "It's only a shortcut if the cart makes it through," he says, "but if it does, then your company will have been a true blessing."

The traveling party is composed of Lothzar, Guhzunthite, two armed humans with maces, two human children, four adults with no real weapons to speak of besides daggers, clubs, and sickles, a small cart with six crates on-board, and a draft horse pulling the cart.

Without further ado, the party begins their journey.

One human man is sitting on the cart and driving the horse with his reins. At the front and the back walk the humans with the maces. The owner of the necklace is walking alongside the cart with the children and the other two adults. Lothzar is walking much further in the front, eyes scanning the horizon.

(Since there is no sitting on a carriage to speak of, I will ignore that segment of your post.)
The half-elf regards Gelećek for a moment, then he looks at the letter.

"It's in Celestial," says the half-elf in a raspy voice. "I'd be interested in reading it."

The aura feels like a spell cast by a cleric. It is a second level abjuration.
The halfling woman laughs. "You could give our veterans some pointers. Several mistakes, but most unimportant. Just bear in mind, even though I might guess it, do not tell me more than I need to know to do my job. So the comment on your cover was ill-advised. Now, enough with the paper-pushing." She clears her throat. "You'll get your map. The copy I'm thinking of does not mark dragon lairs, though I suspect this is because there aren't any in Borden's vicinity. For herbs you will receive two gold's worth of thistle, primrose, garlic, ginkgo, and cinnamon in separate cloth bags. I'm not personally familiar with Coleson—could be worthless, for all I know—but policy is to return books in good condition, barring, of course, work-related circumstances. Waybread is not something we typically stock, but I can meet you halfway with smoked and salted meats, dried vegetables, and hard biscuits. I'm not certain I'll be able to get you ten days' worth, since it's not up to me.

"As for horses, none of ours spook at all. You can be sure of that. I can probably get you the age you want but not the coloration. Riding saddles and saddlebags are a given." The woman pauses for a moment, tallying up everything. "Very well. Wait outside." She gives Evodine instructions for where to wait. "Gods watch your steps, Initiate."

It turns out Evodine was asked to wait in a hidden courtyard behind headquarters. This courtyard is much plainer, without embellished fountains or colorful gardens. It is nonetheless well-kept; the hedges are neatly trimmed and the grass is freshly cut. At the side, there is a path through a guard station leading out of the headquarters.

Men and women came promptly within ten minutes to deliver Evodine's supplies. The supplies contain the requested map, book, herbs, spices. Only seven days' worth of rations are delivered, but these are the rations the requisitions woman indicated. (The map gives advantage on geography-related rolls near or in Borden.)

After another minute, a man arrives with a bay riding horse. The horse is equipped with a riding saddle and saddlebags. The man leads the horse to Evodine and says, "I'm a stable master, which means I get upset if I don't see my boys and girls again. I wish you luck, Initiate, if only because I don't want my horse hurt." The man leaves. (Animal Handling check with advantage.)

On the upper levels of headquarters, Pfeifferspiel is standing at one of the windows, looking down at Evodine. He waves when Evodine sees him. (Insight check.) With that, he turns away from the window and disappears.
Theren did not need to search to know, the alleyway only appears deserted because he is standing across the street. The guard with the globe definitely walked in the alley. No doubt he is in some corner Theren cannot see from the streets. To pursue on foot would mean to walk into the alley as well.

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite ask to the woman once they are far enough from the borders: " So, would it be impolite from me now that you given me your necklace to ask for your name, Miss...? "

Once he knows the answer, he nods and smile: " Lovely name. And are those your childrens? "

[Zaydos]

Astella

She nods. "There was a dog. I went after it to investigate and it fled, ended up leading me in a big circle, and I have no idea where it is now. Since you missed it, and I've lost its tracks it's gone now. It doesn't seem an actual threat to people fleeing as it did. And now that that distraction has led me off track for long enough I had best be on my way."

She begins to at least try and continue on her way, and if he does not try and stop her she will return home and pack her belongings, and set forth with haste. While talking to Lewinna is an appealing idea, she'd rather not give this too much extra time to fester, and the archmage probably would not believe her if she went to him unless he already has his suspicions. That said sending a messenger from Borden might work in that case, but it'd be best to find more proof there first.


Edit OoC Clarification: Just to clarify intent, not trying to rush this social encounter along, but just providing 'this is what she does' in case he doesn't do something to stop her, I'm sort of guessing he might try and engage her in conversation further, but if not, just figured I should state her further intent to make things flow more smoothly.

In case it's needed since she's avoiding the truth quite a bit, Deception [roll0]

Also I'm guessing she still lives with her human father (probably a logger miner given the region), if she lives alone, well she probably practices a profession as well as able (with survival to maintain a comfortable lifestyle). Just figure she probably would have to actually pack her bags and not just walk around with rations all the time. Feel free to correct these assumptions.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran looks up and down the street before heading into the shop

Investigate check for two! [roll0] and [roll1]

He enters the shop and checks the prices, keeping note that he only has 5 gold on him at the time. Stran keeps his one good eye out for the shop keep and attempts to swipe one of the ink vials, grabbing a journal and inkpen in the process to purchase.

Gonna try to nab this real quick with some superior Slight of Hand skills! [roll2]

"Hey shopkeep, I don't got any silver on me, anyway you could give me pass for just a single gold and a single favor?" Stran gives him a real "winning" smile.

Let's hope I get real lucky for my third check and get a Persuasion roll [roll3]

[2D8HP]

Theren did not need to search to know, the alleyway only appears deserted because he is standing across the street. The guard with the globe definitely walked in the alley. No doubt he is in some corner Theren cannot see from the streets. To pursue on foot would mean to walk into the alley as well.Sensing a trap Theren the Wood Elf Fighter (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) looks for a way to look down into the alley from above.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine thanks the clerk and almost rushes to the courtyard to look for her horse. People start showing up with supplies and she politely, but curtly thanks them. When she sees the stablemaster leading the bay over she stands with excitement, which is suddenly curbed with the brisk brush-off she receives from him. "Nice to meet you too," she mutters under her breath as he stalks off.

Her discontent is short-lived however when she turns around to meet her new mount. "Well, I am pleased to meet you, boy." She checks his tack and saddlebags to see if his name is included somewhere. You're a little too old to get used to a new name, aren't ya?" She runs her hand along his neck as she speaks ressuringly to him.

Evodine packs her stuff into the saddlebags, all the while taking breaks to pet and speak to the horse, getting him used to her voice and her touch. She makes a thourough count of each item and catalogs it into her journal. As she is getting herself ready, movement catches her eye, and she sees Knight Pfeiferspiel watching her a moment before he turns away.

Anamal handling with advantage: Roll 1: [roll0] Roll 2: [roll1]
Insight: [roll2]

[nettle3305]

"Tellier," says the former owner of the necklace, "Esther Tellier. That would be my brother—" she indicates the man who was arguing before "—his wife—" she indicates the other woman "—and my cousins." She gestures at the remaining unarmed man and the armed men. "The children are my brother and his wife's." (Insight check.)
The man seems satisfied with Astella's response. "Well," he says, "I won't keep you. The next time you're in town, though, stop by and say hello. It still takes a certain something for one's first instinct to be protecting others, even if the threat wasn't real." He heads back to town.
Stran quickly deduces the likeliest streets the shabby man could have gone down, and by following the trail using the man's description, state of dress, and mannerisms, Stran determines by asking around discretely exactly where the man lives. It is a small, thatched cottage in the harbor district's slums. There is a small fenced garden by the house. A middle age human woman is in the garden, washing torn clothes in a basin. A large but skinny hound rests lazily at the cottage's front doorstep.

After identifying the location of the shabby man, Stran goes to the store.

Stran manages to pocket the ink bottle without a peep from the storekeeper, an aging gnome man.

When Stran speaks to the man, the man responds with a smile and says, "Sure thing. What's this favor?"
The horse takes to Evodine well. It nuzzles her and whinnies. (Nature check.)

[Zaydos]

Astella

She smirks a bit with her back turned to the man, "I'll consider it." Let him think that she was acting to protect them, and not that her first thought was the dog was there for her anyway and that she didn't want to have to worry they were there to help it in whatever it was there to do if they fled quickly. Still she had a job to do, and it didn't take her to town. She'd return to her home, pack her things, leave a note for her father that the fae had called her away, and then head towards the road to Borden, she'd get a better price for the ewer there than in Argenweld most likely.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran pulls out a gold coin and tosses it to gnome man, "Oh you know, anything'll do really. Need a couple of heads knocked or something special from some place...lawfully secure, I can be your go to guy. Ah! Yes, sorry to ask of something again, but do you know of any men that live in a cottage in the slums of the harbor district? Saw him drop something a while back and just wanted to make sure it got back to the right person."

[nettle3305]

On the alley's left is a two-story tall building whose first floor is an antique furniture store. It does not seem very busy. On the alley's right is a three-story tall apartment building. Occasionally a person enters or exits the building.

The street Theren is on is quite busy, with plenty of traffic.
(Nature check.) [roll0]
It took an hour at regular pace for Astella to get home.

Astella's home is a big two-story log cabin at the very edge of the forest. A chimney extends from the cabin's roof, smoke wafting lazily out. There are a sawmill and watermill nearby, the latter next to a pristine, quickly flowing river.

The house is comfortably furnished and has a rustic charm to it. On the mantlepiece over the fireplace is a small painting the father commissioned years ago. The painting depicts a much younger Astella and her parents.
"Lots of people live in the slums of the harbor district," says the gnome, confused, "almost by the very nature of slums. Say, about this favor... If you're serious about the head-knocking thing, then some thugs have been taking my ink shipments. Funny thing is, Paloka's Trade Goods down by the Eimsbek Ward docks has been selling plenty of ink recently. Well, long story short, I'm betting they've been stealing my inventory. If you can get some back for me, there's four gold per ounce of ink in it for you."

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite was worried to dig too deep in the womans wounds: " Im sorry if Im reopening old wounds. Im sorry about your husband. "

[nettle3305]

After a few moments with the horse, Evodine realizes that, contrary to her request, the horse is female.

The horse bows its head and starts sniffing Evodine's supplies.
Esther does not respond immediately and continues walking.

After a long silence, she speaks. "My husband vanished with the rest of the Two-Hundred and Seventh, just like several other legions sent into Ostmark's frigid wastes. No one will answer my questions. No one will speak to me. Perhaps no one has any answers. What happened the day my husband and thousands of others ceased to exist?"

[Zaydos]

OoC Question: Is her father home? I'd imagine not if he is performing day labor, but figured I should... prepare two versions of the IC post just in case.

If not

Astella

She hurriedly grabs what she needs for a journey, her backpack, rope, rations, torches, piton, hammer, crowbar, and other adventuring supplies, going outside to fill her waterskin. She'd prefer to avoid a tearful goodbye, after all. Instead she writes a rather brusque and curt note to her father.

The time has come, the fae have asked a task of me. I must go with haste, traveling to Borden and perhaps even beyond. Be well, be safe. Do not worry about me, they have given me a portion of their power, they will not throw me, she paused thinking on just how this could be a trap by the Prince of Luck, after all if she died he lost nothing, away recklessly. I will send news when I can. We knew this day would come since I went into the forest.

She had known it would come, and taking her staff, really more of a walking stick than a weapon, in hand, she set forth on her journey, still trying to settle her fears that it may be a trap by one of Cuinn's admitted enemies.

If he is

Astella

She set about hurriedly packing her supplies, backpack, rope, rations, and so forth, filling her waterskin, and hoping to avoid her father's notice as long as possible. Once she was ready, and she was already more than half ready, she'd find her father and approach. "Dad, the fae, you know I made a deal with them, a pact for a chance not to end like mom did. It means I have to help them, and they've asked me to perform a task. They want me to go to Borden, it shouldn't be too dangerous, just something that they lack the material form to do. I can't say how long it'll take, though, I'll try and send word if I learn I will be gone too long. Don't worry, though, they'd not just throw me away, they invested too much into me. Besides they need this done. We knew this would come, and the sooner it did the better my chance of actually being ready when I needed to be. I don't want you to have to outlive me, after all." She blurted out, hoping to spill it all before he has a chance to respond. Of course saying this she couldn't help but start thinking on just how this could be a trap by the Prince of Luck, after all if she died he lost nothing.

Deception for lying through her teeth [roll0]

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

And I'd be VERY interested in finally finding out what it says says Gelećek, glad to have found a connecting line. He takes a seat to join the half-elf, genuinely curious but also considering nudging table to see if Sinda was just leading him on about the contents of their pack.

-----
I don't know if this works, but Religion check to identify the deity or at least domain of the cleric who cast the spell: [roll0]

Half-elf: male/female, visibly armed, anything of note about them up close?

[2D8HP]

On the alley's left is a two-story tall building whose first floor is an antique furniture store. It does not seem very busy. On the alley's right is a three-story tall apartment building. Occasionally a person enters or exits the building.

The street Theren is on is quite busy, with plenty of traffic.Theren
AC:15, HP:11, Perception:15 (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)

Enters the apartment building

[Emmerlaus]

" I wish I had the answers for you... So nobody would tell you how he dies? Hummm... In any case, no matter the race, their is one thing that is certain: he didnt come back. If he was alive, like any mans send on the front, he would have done anything in his power to come back. "

" Im sure others more powerful or free to go there must have made the journey to get those answers, right? Yet if they don't have any, why stop living and aiming for happiness? Habbakuk is teaching his followers that life is unfair but that we MUST persevere. Only throught trials does a a soul shine at its brighest. You, today, have impress me. While others skull grew numb on my threat, you still proven to have insight and one who managed for the conflict not to escalate. You, today, showed to your kind that you must to do what you must, lower your head when you are in the wrong and not let your worries and pride blind you. Although the cost was great, you didn't hesitate in giving me this momentum of yours. "

" If it wasn't that I had to give face to my kind and followed my own heart, I would have let you guys go from the start. However, life is not a compassionnate mistress. We too need to eat and seek warmth in winter just like humans. And what happened in our lands cannot be changed, exactly like what happened during this war. The only thing we can do is live life to its fullest with what we have. The past must not become a burden as our loved ones wouldn't be happy from the misery their lost bring us. I know what Im saying is easier said then done. Love is a root that ingrain in the heart and the bigger it is, the deeper the hole it leave once its gone. "

" Im sorry, you probably don't need me to tell you all this. I guess its my second nature as a cleric. When spreading our gods teaching, we can get a bit preachy."

[nettle3305]

Astella's father was not home.

The road to Borden is oft-traveled by locals but still potentially dangerous.

Astella can begin traveling immediately. (Intelligence check.)
The half-elf is a man. He has a dagger at his side. Gelećek can tell that the half-elf is quite muscular, even under his traveling cloak. There is a large, cloth-wrapped pack sitting at the foot of the table, right beside the half-elf.

The half-elf takes the letter and spends a moment looking at it.

Then he says, "Apologies, I misspoke. The script is Celestial, but I can only decipher the first quarter of the letter. The last three quarters are in some cipher." He pauses a moment, calculating. "I'd say each of the last three quarters are written in different ciphers. Judging by symbol incidences, they're no simple substitutions. As for the first quarter..." He begins to dictate.

To my former student and apprentice, now a wizard true:

It is not on a whim that I now leave the cloistered halls of the Monastery. I know that I will miss my late nights in the library, poring over ancient volumes on magi and the cosmos, and my quiet days of contemplation in the Rock Gardens of Istus, expanding my mind to that which exists beyond my mortal form. I know that, by leaving, I can no longer educate the next generation of magi, one of the most important tasks of every great mage. Such is the magnitude of the sacrifice I have made, and so I expect you to grasp the significance of my decision.

I have been in communication with many esteemed mages across several continents. Masterful diviners, conjurers, transmuters, abjurers, and illusionists, the lot of them. It has come to our attention, though at such a cost it pains me to discuss it, that there is a connection between the War of Freedom fought many centuries ago and the Iron War, which was but a decade ago. Moreover, we discovered that this connection is not merely of academic interest but rather is a matter demanding total and immediate attention. A failure to properly understand this connection may have dire consequences.

Below you shall find a survey of my research. I have encrypted the information so that, in the event this letter falls into the wrong hands, no harm will come of it. Nonetheless, I understand you may feel compelled to trace my steps. Curiosity is innate in us magi. Hence, the encryption also serves a dual purpose: By the time you have the machinery needed to decipher my code, I know you will also be knowledgeable enough not to make the same mistakes I made.

I wish you the best. Remember you have the lineage of my magic within you. Carry that and be proud.

-J

(Two History checks.)

The half-elf mulls over the message. (Insight check.)

After a moment of silence, he says, "Curious letter. Are you comfortable with sharing the full name of this 'J'?"
Theren enters the apartment building.

He is in a narrow and plain, but clean, hallway. There are four doors on either side and a stairway at the far end. A dwarf man is currently unlocking the door to an apartment, carrying a basket of grains and fruits. The apartment in question is on the left, two doors away from the stairs.

The man looks at Theren and nods courteously.
Esther replies, "Loss comes in like the tide. I have become accustomed to it, letting it wash past me as though I am reed in the waters. I do not dwell on my late husband, but his legacy. Nor has time dulled my senses; we know far too little of what transpired during the Iron Wars, when so much blood was shed over so little."

Lothzar calls out to the entire group. "We shall soon leave the limits of Arashk's patrols. We must now be cautious in our movements; this is not dangerous territory, but it is still the wilderness. Many lives were claimed when fools falsely thought themselves safe."

"Fools like us," mutters the carriage driver. He says more loudly, "We should never have brought you, Esther."

"No," says Esther. "The trip was a financial failure, true enough, but that is not why I came."
Asking around, Errich manages to pinpoint the location of The Barley and the Brew. It is located on a relatively quiet but well-to-do street of the trade district. There are regular guard patrols, and just enough people wandering about at any time of the day to put one's mind at ease. The buildings here are elegant but not extravagant, and include both residences and businesses. The streets have iron lamps at regular intervals to light the way, though being midday, they are currently unlit.

The Barley and the Brew itself is a small establishment with a quaint storefront. It does not appear to have much traffic.

[Zaydos]

Int [roll0]

Not completely sure what the check is for so waiting for that before actual IC actions of any sort.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine packs things up then examines the map. She takes one last look around the courtyard, then decides to head out. She mounts up, pats the horse on the shoulder and says, "Let's go girl. We're gonna show these 'experienced' agents how it's done." Evodine then turns the horse towards the exit and heads down the road toward Borden. Her internal monologue is not nearly so confident as she lets on. Oh gods, oh gods...please let us get through this alive.

How far is it to Borden? I'll update my char sheet with the new supplies tonight when I'm at home.

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite nodded to his colleque. Then he say: " If I ever learn something in my travels about the mysteries of the Iron Wars and that my feets allow me too, I'll try to remember to come by your place. Your husband was a lucky man I must say."

He was no longer concentrating at looking at her but rather was looking around, alert at the surrounding. He still asked however:

" But then why did you come on this trip? "

[Zaydos]

Astella

The girl hurries on her way, moving quickly until she's put some distance between her and home. Once she has done so, however, she settles into a more normal walking pace, eyes peeled and pointed ears pricked for any signs of danger.

OoC: Go at a fast pace (passive perception drops to 7) for 2 hours (8 miles) and then drop to a normal pace (passive perception 12) for the rest of the way (3 mph).

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gelećek's eyes bulge for a second as he tries to digest the information provided without seeming too interested. He fails.

Well...sh*t, I figured he had his reasons for leaving but I never thought he was so opposed to Enchanters, Evokers and Necromaners. My master always seemed so tolerant of the aggressive schools of magic. Thank you sir.

He then cast his arm wide to aim the question at any who would answer, shoving his stool to one side and knocking the table so that the half-elf's pack is knocked over: Sinda, my lovely. Know any code breakers in this part of the city?

-----
History 1: [roll0]
History 2: [roll1]

Insight: [roll]d20+3[/roll

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

-----

Insight: [roll0]

[Saint Jimmy]

Erich quietly walks in, not trying to avoid attention but not trying to attract it either. He does a quick scan of the room before sitting down.

[roll0]

Sorry I am on my phone and I don't have access to something else, so I can't post spoilers....

[2D8HP]

Theren enters the apartment building.

He is in a narrow and plain, but clean, hallway. There are four doors on either side and a stairway at the far end. A dwarf man is currently unlocking the door to an apartment, carrying a basket of grains and fruits. The apartment in question is on the left, two doors away from the stairs.

The man looks at Theren and nods courteously.

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) nods back, and continues to walk purposely, while trying to find a way to view the alley below. As nonchalantly as an Outlander carrying a Longbow and Sword can!

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran shakes the gnomes hand and assures him of his success, "Don't worry my good shopkeep, I'll return with plenty of ink. I'm sure that dirty Paloka is loaded with vials. See you later friend!" The rugged bandit left the shop and went down the street towards the direction of the cottage he tracked out, noting down all of the facts from his job with Goldtooth and the gnome before looking to see if anyone is outside.

Stran hails them with a simple greeting, "Hello there, do you know the man who lives here?"

Stran works his way to the docks.

[nettle3305]

(Intelligence check.) [roll0]
Esther walks closer to the cart, wary of her surroundings.

"Let's see," she says, "why did I come? I sought the help of the diviners of Lienzen Monastery, being as close to the gods as they are. I thought they could lay my questions to rest. Instead they raised but more questions. It was not a fruitless effort, however." Her face turns grim. "That's the last I'll speak on the matter for the time being. I must focus my attention on ensuring that my family is financially stable."

"We took a loan on this trade," says the carriage driver. "From Trickstone, no less. I suspect any semblance of financial stability is far off. Being a debtor to that abominable halfling puts me ill at ease."
The lands blur by as Astella travels at her quick pace. Forests and hills turn into rivers and plains, and for a while small hamlets begin appearing, surrounded by expanses of farmland. The afternoon sun is beginning to dip, though it is still very much daytime.

Two hours pass. Astella saw farmers on the fields and fishers by the rivers, and traders on the road with their carts and horses. There was also the occasional traveler, walking with a pack or riding a horse.

The hamlets become more and more infrequent, and the plains turn into sparse woodlands.

(Perception check.) [roll1]
The half-elf tries to catch his belongings as they fall over, but he is not quick enough. His belongings fall, coming unwrapped and scattering across the floor. He swears.

Among the items revealed under the wrapping are a maul, alchemist's supplies, cartographer's tools, disguise kit, forgery kit, poisoner's kit, thieves' tools, a large backpack, several map cases, and several flasks of acid and alchemist's fire.

The half-elf nonchalantly begins picking up his belongings and wrapping them again.

"Uh," says Sinda, "try to be more careful. If those flasks broke, I'd have to replace the floorboards. And probably more." She goes to assist the half-elf.

After she and the half-elf are done, Sinda returns to the bar and says, irritation creeping into her voice, "Try not to be so careless next time." Her voice returns to normal immediately. "Anyhow, you said code breakers? I wouldn't know where to find any except in the Duke's castle, where I imagine His Grace's loyal spies are hard at work deciphering foreign letters." (Insight check.)

Gelećek has heard of the War of Freedom, but knows little of it other than that it was the largest war ever fought.

Gelećek knows of the Iron Wars. Begun over a minor disagreement over an iron shortage, initially it was called the Iron War and was fought between Ostmark and Votland. Unfortunately, due to poorly-conceived-of aid treaties, all other nations but one was dragged into the war, turning it into the Iron Wars. Despite lasting only a year, it was a terribly bloody war, and even today, a decade later, the dead are still being accounted for.

In fact, the war killed so many people that one can still feel the dent in the population of Ostmark.
It is at this time that the front doors swing open and Errich walks in.
Stran manages to find a human woman wandering by the shabby man's house. He questions her.

"Hey," says the woman, "isn't this where the fishmonger lives? Heard he hit some hard times recently." She shrugs. "Poor fella. Time's been hard on us all."

[nettle3305]

(Investigate check.) [roll0]

Some clever spatial and architectural reasoning leads Theren up to the second floor. There, from the staircase, the second door to the right. That apartment should have a good view of the alley.

The door is closed. There is no one in sight.

Trying the door reveals it is locked.
After walking for a while, Astella spots the body of a boy no more than ten, slumped over a rock. The boy is wearing rags and is covered in deep knife cuts. His blood streams down the rock and pools on the grass.

The body is some sixty feet away from where Astella stands, just up the trail and a little off the path.
Evodine knows of a good, civilized route to Borden that will get her there in four days on horseback at a regular pace. If she is willing to brave the wilderness she can do it in three.

[Zaydos]

Astella

It's not my business. It's not my respon... Astella thinks to herself, Could be bait for a trap. I shouldn't go... She sighs and walks off the path, drawing her crossbow just in case, eyes darting about the area. She moves through the underbrush, and woods as much as she can while making her way towards the boy, doing her best to hide herself in case it is a trap. She'll pause before the boy to take in the region with a few glances, before moving towards the boy to check on him.

Rolls: Gonna try Stealth [roll0] even though I figure if this actually is a trap it's far too late.

Also Perception [roll1] or should it be Investigation [roll2].

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

After the minor commotion, Gelećek downs his drink and sobers up. He'd wanted to see if he'd been misdirected to the half-elf and he had been by all accounts. He had all the trappings of a moderately-priced assassin, and knowledge of Celestial to boot. Probably best to stop annoying him, now that he finally had a link to follow.

My apologies, I've been trying to get that letter deciphered for months, finally finding you appears to have overwhelmed the good sense my master tried so hard to instruct me in. If anything has been damaged, I'll make good on repairs.

Gelećek looks over the new arrival with his spell, before retrieving his letter.

He never told me his full name, claimed it would take too long, the most I got was Jimajuramentum.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

-----
Insight: [roll0]

[Emmerlaus]

" Hummm... Trickstone. "

He tried to recall that name...



I rolled 13 to know who Trickstone is and 16 to know about safety on this caravan travelling path (roads or whatever)

[Saint Jimmy]

Erich orders a glass of wine, and quietly sits down sat a tablein the back, facing the door so he can see the entire room, as he discreetly scans around the room for he two men, as well as get a general feel of the inhabitants.


Perception: [roll0]
Insight:[roll1]
Deception (so people think he's not scanning anything)
[roll2]

How much does it cost?

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine heads out of Tolzberg on the road to Borden. Once she is about a mile from the city, she pauses and looks back, locking this view in her memory. As she travels on through the day, she stops at a roadside peddler and get some carrots and apples for the mare. During a rest break, she gives her horse a treat, talking to her the whole time. "I can't just call you 'hey you,' now can I? What kind of name do you like? You're fast...how about Breeze? But you're soft too....Chiffon? But you're also very noble....Countess? Majesty?" Evodine watches to see if the mare responds favorably to any of the suggestions.

Shortly after her break, Evodine comes to the point where she could diverge from the road. Do I want to save a day and risk cutting through the wilderness? She spends about five minutes considering both paths, reviewing her map, and thinking aloud to herself. "There's not any guarantee the road is safer, really. Who knows what troubles are plaguing the land. Though the road may be safer for you," she says to the mare, "where we have a guaranteed path and you're less likely to throw a shoe..."

A few more minutes of pacing, talking to her horse, and she finally decides to flip a coin.

[roll0]

1= By road; 2=Wilderness

Placing her coin back into her belt pouch, she mounts up and heads down the road. And Pfeiferspiel was worried about me. Ha!

[nettle3305]

Some clever spatial and architectural reasoning leads Theren up to the second floor. There, from the staircase, the second door to the right. That apartment should have a good view of the alley.

The door is closed. There is no one in sight.

Trying the door reveals it is locked.
The wine is of good quality. Since you are paying immediately, the bartender charges you five silver.

The room is quiet. The table of four card players feels rather suppressed. The gleeful grin on one of the human players is offset by the dour looks on the faces of the others. The lone half-elf is quietly sipping from his glass.
Sinda definitely knows more cipher experts than she claims to. Indeed, at the mention of 'code breaker', her quick glances around the room suggests there is at least one present right now.
One of the unhappy-looking card players is sneaking glances at Errich and the half-elf.

The half-elf is calmly watching Errich, not even trying to conceal his observation. He takes his eyes off Errich briefly to respond to Gelećek. (Deception check.) [roll0]

After preparing the new arrival's drinks, Sinda sits on a chair behind the bar and leans forward, brows furrowed, deep in thought.

When Errich sits down, the finely-dressed man suddenly stands up and says, "Thank you Sinda for the excellent meal. But I feel the need for a walk. I shall return in a few moments." (Insight check.) Sinda looks up and waves. The finely-dressed man and his armed companion stand up and leave through the front doors.

One of the human card players quickly excuses himself from the game, stammering apologies and saying that he needs some fresh air. (Insight check.) He puts down his cards and walks out through the front doors.

The card player who just left is the one with the aura.
The half-elf leans back on his chair, calculating. He continues to watch Errich.
(So, actually, the check to know Trickstone was Intelligence, not History. My bad. But it doesn't matter, because Guhzunthite knows nothing either way.)

Guhzunthite knows nothing of anyone named Trickstone.

Guhzunthite believes the road should be relatively safe, though the occasional bandit attack is not unheard of. A fool can get by on these roads with a little luck, but vigilance is still needed to guarantee absolute security, especially when transporting valuable cargo.

[Emmerlaus]

" I never heard of this Trickstone before... In any case, how many were you to defend your cargo versus how many thieves their was? "

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran gives the stranger a nod, "Ah, just the man I was looking for. Thank you for your time." He walks up to the cottage and knocks, "Hello, anybody home? I heard this is where someone lives that's looking for a little extra money in these difficult times." Stran creates a devious plan, ready to put his masterful banditry to work.

[nettle3305]

"It's no matter," says the half-elf mildly, in response to Gelećek.

Upon hearing the name Gelećek provided, the half-elf looks comically surprised. "Jimajuramentum? I suppose it's conceivable..." He trails off, bewilderment breaking through his otherwise expressionless demeanor.

(So I think with a name like that, it should've been a Deception check with disadvantage. But whatever, what's done is done.)

[nettle3305]

"Just us," says the carriage driver, "but we stayed on the safe paths, behind other caravans. When we were attacked, had the others helped, we could've driven off the raiders with little difficulty. Instead they turned tail and ran."

"My cousins are a bit soft," says Esther, indicating the armed humans, "being cityfolk and all, but they used to be officers in the Queen's Army. Against most bandits we'd have little trouble."

"But we were outnumbered," says the driver dryly. "Four to one. Riddle me this, how does a pack of twenty-four outlaws make it into the vicinity of a settlement's patrols?"
The cottage's door opens, revealing the woman Stran saw washing clothes earlier in the garden. A large but skinny hound saunters over to her side.

The woman looks at Stran warily and says, "What is it?"

Inside the cottage, from Stran's limited viewpoint, are old furnishings, some partially broken. There is a table missing a quarter of a leg with a temporary fix in the form of a stack of rocks. Old, desiccated herbs hang above the fireplace. There is a bed with dirty sheets. At the foot of the bed is a wooden chest.

[Emmerlaus]

" For now, I wanna know what were you having other then food as a cargo? The more precious the marchandise, the more you have to protect it."

[DJCamWozzle]

"Pleasure to meet you ma'aam, call me Dervin Shrut, a traveling business man that finds workers in the slums in hopes of making their lives better. I heard from the grapevine that a man lives here that isn't in the best financial position, and I just want to extend a helping hand where I can. I have a job opening currently that pays in gold." Stran flips out a single gold piece from his purse and shows it off, putting it back after it has her attention. "Could I speak to him please?"

Just wondering if I should need a deception check at any point, or if this is all just roleplay based.

[Saint Jimmy]

"I'll pay for it later"Erich promises. He walks over to the half elfs table, a scowl on his face. "What do you want?"he asks. As the half elf answers, Erich looks over to the men who attracted his attention, trying to figure out what they were doing.


What does the half elf look like and what equipment?
Insight rolls:
[roll0]
[roll1]

[nettle3305]

Before Astella approaches, she spots a human man hiding behind a tree near the boy's body. The man is wearing mud-covered commoner clothes and carrying a bloodied dagger. There is a manic look in his eyes, which are looking directly at Astella.

He yells and charges with his dagger. (Wisdom check.)

(Roll initiative.) [roll0]
The countryside around Tolzburg is populated with villages and farms. After half a day of riding, however, the civilization gives way to unsettled woodlands. The path Evodine is taking nonetheless looks well-trodden, even in the depths of the forest. She occasionally sees travelers and traders on the same road.

As the day draws to a close, Evodine emerges from the forest onto a plain with a gentle river running parallel to the road. A side path leads off the road, over a wooden bridge, to a village on the plains. The village consists of over fifty buildings and two large farms. There are sawmills by the forest outskirts and windmills amid the farms. The village itself consists of sturdy-looking log houses, some of which are quite large.

The sun has dipped low and the sky is a dark blue shade. Clouds begin forming overhead. (Survival check.)

Torches flicker on the village streets, their carriers barely visible at this distance. Warm lights come from the buildings' windows.

A young elf woman is just down the path with two human children, a boy and a girl, playing on the riverbank. The woman is holding a basket of what looks to be flowers and berries.
"Enchanting supplies," says the cart driver. "Rare metals, exotic stones, and so on. We are one of Lienzen Temple's suppliers. It's not the first time we've done this route, nor the first time some have tried to rob us."

"It's the first time anyone's been successful," grunts one of the armed humans, speaking for the first time.

"We were outnumbered," says Esther, "and there's no cause to throw your life away."

The armed human snorts but says nothing more.

The path the group is traveling down snakes through dense and wet woodlands, where daylight is filtered through the dark canopy of broadleaf trees. The sun slowly sets over the course of the next few hours.

It is quite dark now, and the armed humans and the cart driver have lit torches. Lothzar still walks in the front of the group, though without a torch and in the dark. This does not seem to bother him, however. Esther walks by the cart, dancing shadows cast on her face by the driver's torch.

"We should stop," says one of the armed humans. "Any more walking and we risk exhaustion."

"Agreed," says Lothzar, moving back to rejoin the group. "Rest is essential part of travel. Decision must be made, however. If you humans set your tents on the road, it'll be easier to spot us. On the other hand, if you set your tents in the woods, you run the risk of walking into a bog in the dark. Dangerous."

"They took our tents," says the cart driver.

"Even worse," says Lothzar. "Then you must sleep naked under the sky. Find a tree to rest your head against. Be careful: Painful insect bites in these parts."

"Wonderful," mutters Esther. She walks to the cart and says, "Let's loft hammocks with the cloth we have." She begins offloading sheets of cloth and handing them out to the other humans.

Lothzar chuckles. "None for us, eh?"

"I don't know how lizardfolk prefer to sleep," she says. "If you want cloth, just ask."

"No worries," says Lothzar. "I prefer to sleep near the ground."
No, you need to roll a Deception check [roll1] for the lie and a Persuasion check [roll2] to convince the woman. In general, if you feel a roll is useful, go ahead and make it. If not, and I needed the results of a roll, I will make it. Like above.
The half-elf's belongings are wrapped in cloth and set by the foot of the half-elf's table. It is not possible to discern what is under the cloth. The half-elf, even under his traveling cloak, is obviously muscular, though his face is typically expressionless. At the half-elf's side is a dagger.
"What do you want?" says the half-elf mildly, taking a sip of draught from his glass. "If you want a fight, I'm sure you can find one elsewhere."

[nettle3305]

It is your turn.
"I... see," says the woman. "Well, my husband's in the back. Go around the house." She nudges her dog. "Back in the house, boy."

The door shuts.

As promised, the shabby man Stran saw earlier is in fact in the back. There is an open yard behind the cottage, though a small one constrained by the neighbors' residences. The shabby man is sitting on a stool amid the yard, scaling fish on a tree stump. There is a rack of at least thirty fish hanging by hooks. The grass near the man is littered with scales and strips of pungent fish meat.

[Emmerlaus]

" We should set up a guard watch. It would be easier for all of us if Me, Lothzar to take each a 4 hour watch each. Your two male companion can help us if they think they can handle a 2 hours guard shift but Its not necessary. "

He goes to Esther: " Miss Esther, you can share my tent if you would like. I got only one bedroll though. You can use my backpack as a cushion if needed. "

[Zaydos]

Astella

She raises her arcane crystal in one hand, pulling her hand to her lips and blowing upon it as she speaks, "Cuinn, panya yúcalë cotumo," letting a pink haze seem to spread in the air near the man to try and push him to slumber. She'll then draw her dagger just in case.

Action: Casts Sleep (PHB 276), puts [roll0] hp of creatures to sleep, position it so I'm not in the area and neither is the unconscious lad, preferably above the guy's head so as to be unlikely to catch random animals. Undead and creatures immune to charm are immune (as are elves/half-elves).

[Zaydos]

Wisdom [roll0]

Perception [roll1]

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine approaches the family at the riverside and pulls in the reins about 10-15 feet from them. She addresses the mother. "<Elvish>Hello, there! I think I've ridden about as far as I can go today. Can you tell me the name of the town there, and if there's an inn I could stay in for the night that can accomodate Countess here," she says as she pats her mare on the shoulder.

Survival: [roll0]

[nettle3305]

Before Astella does anything, however, she notices hiding behind another tree a wounded and bleeding man. This man is currently holding a light crossbow, but he has a longsword at his side. He is wearing traveling clothes.

The man aims for Astella.

[Zaydos]

Astella

Seeing the second and better armed attacker she dives into the bushes and releases her spell upon him instead.

[DJCamWozzle]

"Hey there friens, Dervin Shrut at your service." Stran walked closer, trying his best not to let the fishy smell bother him. "I saw you earlier and was wondering if you wanted a little job on the side that pays for a little more than what I here you're used too." The bait was set.

[nettle3305]

"I'll take the dawn watch," says Lothzar. "I'm most alert when I've just woken."

Esther nods and says, "In truth, I wish to spend some time under the stars tonight. If I am to be outdoors, then I may as well take second watch. Also, hand back that cloth; I need it for my hammock."

One of the armed humans says, "Then I will take the third watch."

"That leaves you with first watch," says the other armed human to Guhzunthite. "Unless you'd prefer I take it instead?"

"Not taking the tent offer?" says the cart driver to Esther in a sardonic tone.

"As I said," says Esther, "I want to be outdoors tonight. Why don't you see if our lizardfolk companion would be willing to let you sleep in his tent?"

The driver snorts and says, "I decline." He turns to Lothzar. "Should we set a fire? It would put the horse's mind at ease, and I'd like to sleep near the horse lest it frightens and bolts away in the dead of night."

"Heh," says Lothzar. "Smoke drives away pesky bugs but attracts fouler beasts. At your own discretion, human."
The man with the light crossbow slumps to the floor. The man with the dagger, screaming maniacally, dashes until he is face-to-face with Astella.

It is Astella's turn.
The elf looks surprised, but then smiles, replying in Elvish, "It's been a while since I've spoken in my mother tongue." She switches to Common. "This is the town of Lahn. We have an inn and we're used to getting travelers from the capital. Is that where you're from?" She ushers the children to her. "It is getting late and we should go home."

"Nuh uh," says the boy. "My sister's a big evil river dragon and I need to slay her!"

"Hey!" says the girl. "That's not the game we're playing!"

The elf turns to Evodine and says, switching back to Elvish, "Pray, dine and stay with my family tonight."
"Hey," says the shabby man, recognition in his eyes, "didn't I see you in the Copper Emporium?" His voice suddenly turns wary. "What do you want?" He puts down his knife and the fish he was scaling with it.

[Zaydos]

Astella

She gives the maniac a level stare, and then stabs at him with her dagger. "Try not my patience mortal," She says in her most menacing tone as she does so.

Action: Melee attack with dagger [roll0] for [roll1] damage plus [roll2] on a crit.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

"Sinda as my witness, that's what he told me the one time I got to ask him in one of his trances. But thank you, sincerely, I appreciate your help.

(Unless the half-elf has more to say) Gelećek returns to his table and begins cleaning his dishes whilst he considers whether to accuse anyone else of something, like being a code-breaker, or just to move on to the Baron's castle.


"If you want a fight, I'm sure you can find one elsewhere."

"I'm sure my friend with the axe would be interested if you asked nicely Gelećek said to the newly arrived Halfling, nodding at the man just leaving with his finely-dressed companion.

-----
Cantrip: Prestidigitation. Use it to clean my plates and glass whilst I wait for roll outcomes.

Insight (well dressed man): [roll0]
Insight (card player): [roll1]

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine returns the woman's smile, dismounts Countess and leads her closer to the family. She crinkles her face a bit and responds, "<Elven> Yeah...I came from the capital, and I'm heading back out this way to restock my supplies. My name is Trayvara, by the way. I would be honored to accept your hospitality." Evodine looks at the children and adds, "And that of your family. You have quite the spirited littles."

Evodine then leans down to the little girl, "You know...the big river dragons have the most fun. They get to play with the fish, and they are friends with all the beautiful animals in the forest."

Do I need to roll deception? She has no reason to suspect I would lie. Just in case: [roll0]

[DJCamWozzle]

"What I want depends on what you want really. I can give you a smooth beating and take back what you stole from Goldtooth, or you can help me stop a corrupt business man's stealing from a poor gnome, and make a couple gold in the process." Stran cracks his knuckles and smirks, letting the guy know he means what he says, one way or another.

Just gonna roll an Intimidation as I'm trying to sucker this guy into working for me or getting his faced roughed up [roll0]

[Saint Jimmy]

Erich sighs and swallows his pride.

I apologize, I am exhausted from my travel to your land, and where I come from that kind of stare is a sign of ill intent, and with my position in my land, I have to deal with that more often than most. However, I am afraid that I still must ask why you were watching me.



I think this is a good time to remind you that Erich always has a dagger up his sleeve or in his boot.
Deception:d20+6

Well then, my edit because I forgot to roll isn't working, I'll post it (the roll) in the OOC.

[2D8HP]

(Investigate check.) [roll0]

Some clever spatial and architectural reasoning leads Theren up to the second floor. There, from the staircase, the second door to the right. That apartment should have a good view of the alley.

The door is closed. There is no one in sight.

Trying the door reveals it is locked.

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) Looks for another way, perhaps a roof access?

[Emmerlaus]

"I'll take the dawn watch," says Lothzar. "I'm most alert when I've just woken."

Esther nods and says, "In truth, I wish to spend some time under the stars tonight. If I am to be outdoors, then I may as well take second watch. Also, hand back that cloth; I need it for my hammock."

One of the armed humans says, "Then I will take the third watch."

"That leaves you with first watch," says the other armed human to Guhzunthite. "Unless you'd prefer I take it instead?"

"Not taking the tent offer?" says the cart driver to Esther in a sardonic tone.

"As I said," says Esther, "I want to be outdoors tonight. Why don't you see if our lizardfolk companion would be willing to let you sleep in his tent?"

The driver snorts and says, "I decline." He turns to Lothzar. "Should we set a fire? It would put the horse's mind at ease, and I'd like to sleep near the horse lest it frightens and bolts away in the dead of night."

"Heh," says Lothzar. "Smoke drives away pesky bugs but attracts fouler beasts. At your own discretion, human."

" Horses can be tied up and if a wild beast does come, Im sure we would all appreciate to see it then rather fighting the dark. We just have to get our eyes peeled and hope for the best. That's what Im suggesting anyway," he answer, shrugging.

I got a total of 18 in Insight to realize what those humans think of me or if they have catch on to my secret motive

[nettle3305]

Astella misses. She nonetheless menaces the manic man. (Intimidation check with disadvantage.) [roll0] [roll1]
The card player who just left no doubt has violent intentions for the finely-dressed man.
In response to Errich, the half-elf man shrugs and says, "Seeing if you'd do anything stupid. This is a small shop that doesn't get many new customers, and the first one already knocked my pack over. Speaking of which." He stands and lifts his cloth-wrapped belongings. "I should move these elsewhere." (Insight check.)

He walks with his belongings to an ascending staircase in the back of the room. As he begins to climb, a human man in a dark cloak and studded leather appears at the top of the stairs. The two silently nod at one another as the human rapidly descends the stairs. The human has a crescent-shaped scar across his face. He has both a shortsword and a light crossbow strapped to his hip.

The human quickly walks out through the building's front doors. (Insight check.)

In the meantime, Gelećek's spell has cleaned his dishes and silverware.

Sinda looks up and grins. "If only all my customers did that."
"Wow, really?" says the girl.

"No way!" says the boy. "That's unfair!"

"Hello, Trayvara," says the elf. She turns to the children. "Be polite and say 'hello' to our guest."

"Hello," repeat the children obediently.

The elf smiles and says to Evodine, "My name is Neresinde. Follow me. It's the big house on the hill."

Neresinde and the children lead Evodine across the bridge and into town. The town itself is clean and its streets are paved. The buildings are large, some as tall as three stories, but well-constructed, made of neatly-sawed dark pine wood with stone foundations. While there are few people on the streets at this time of day, the environment still feels safe and non-threatening. Wooden lanterns hang on buildings' exteriors, providing light as the group walks.

A wide three-story building passes on the right. Neresinde indicates it and says, "This is our inn. It's quite large and used to handling even the bigger merchant caravans passing through this route."

The group continues down a street which, after a minute, begins to ascend a grassy hill near the center of the village. The air shimmers with fireflies.

Evodine finds herself standing in front of a mansion, albeit one constructed in the style of the other village buildings, with pine logs and stone. A half-orc man and a human woman, both in chain mail, stand at the front doors.

The half-orc greets Neresinde and opens the doors. "Madame, should I inform the chef that we have a guest for supper?"

"Please," says Neresinde. "And prepare a guest room." The half-orc bows and disappears into the mansion. The human woman reaches for Evodine's horse and says, "We have a stable around the corner. Your friend will be groomed and fed."

The mansion's interior exudes wealth. A wide variety of classical and contemporary portraits and landscapes decorate the walls, and the furniture ranges from elegantly luxurious to exotic and colorful. Maids and servants scurry about.

One maid descends a spiral staircase and addresses Evodine. "Your room and bath are prepared, ma'am."

Neresinde says, "Take some time for yourself. Dinner will be in about an hour." She looks around. "Where's my husband?"

"Speaking to a guest," says the maid, bowing her head. "A traveler to Borden."
"I don't know what you're talking about," says the shabby man. "And if you need help with your gnome friend, go ask someone else."
Theren goes up the stairs once more to the third floor. The stairs end here, so there is no obvious roof access. At the far end of the hallway he is in is a window looking out onto the busy street. There are four apartment doors on either side of the hall. A human woman walking towards Theren and the stairs.
Esther legitimately wants to sleep outdoors. It is otherwise hard to read her feelings. The cart driver is being rather cool towards Guhzunthite. Esther's brother definitely does not like Guhzunthite. Esther's brother's wife is wary towards Guhzunthite. The armed humans are also wary towards Guhzunthite.

Lothzar is smirking. He definitely knows or suspects.

The camp is set and a fire is lit with a tinderbox. People retire to their hammocks.

An armed human approaches Guhzunthite and says, "So what is it? First watch or not?"

[nettle3305]

The manic man, uninterpreted by Astella's menacing, slashes with his dagger. He gets a clean hit for 2 damage.

It's Astella's turn.

[Emmerlaus]

Esther legitimately wants to sleep outdoors. It is otherwise hard to read her feelings. The cart driver is being rather cool towards Guhzunthite. Esther's brother definitely does not like Guhzunthite. Esther's brother's wife is wary towards Guhzunthite. The armed humans are also wary towards Guhzunthite.

Lothzar is smirking. He definitely knows or suspects.

The camp is set and a fire is lit with a tinderbox. People retire to their hammocks.

An armed human approaches Guhzunthite and says, "So what is it? First watch or not?"

" Sure, I'll take the first watch. "

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran lifts his arm to throw a punch and knock him out, but figures against it. "Fine, suit yourself. You don't want 20 gold then go ahead and scale fish for the rest of your life and live in this pitiful dump. I'm sure the lady and dog in there will appreciate that." Stran walks away, but slow enough to hear if the fishmonger has any last retorts. He wanted to look like he was tired of this, but if the man sat there and said nothing, then he's about to get a face full of fist until he coughs up what he stole.

[Zaydos]

Astella

She winces a bit at the slash, but returns the blow, or at least tries to luck permitting.

Action: Dagger attack. To hit [roll0] for [roll1] piercing damage plus [roll2] on a crit.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine smiles at the children and says, "<Common>It's so nice to meet you both." She makes small talk with Neresinde as they walk through the town, nodding in appreciation of the well built structures and acknowledging how clean and tidy the town appears. "How do you possibly keep things so neat, tidy, and new-looking? The capital isn't even this beautiful."

Insight on Neresinde. Is she as she seems? [roll0]

She hesitates before allowing the woman to take Countess then adds, "She's grumpy if she doesn't get an apple for the evening...and she's not used to being away from me for long." As they enter Neresinde's house she adds, "Your house is beautiful, milady...are you sure you want one as dirty as me staying here?"

Things seem....too perfect... At the mention of a bath, all wariness flies out the window. "Oh, that sounds lovely. I'd love to get the layer of dust off me." Evodine heads up to the room set aside for her. She eyes the freshly drawn bath hungrily, but her training kicks in and she inspects the room looking for anything unusual: listening holes, something left by a previous occupant that seems out of place, or anything strange.

Investigation: [roll1]

After this, Evodine finally removes her armor and leaves it in a pile on the floor. That's way too dirty to leave on the floor after a day's ride. I'll clean it up after... Once she has disrobed, she sinks into the warm water. Ahhhhhhh Training and habit force her to keep her dagger and a shortsword within reach of the bath. As her muscles relax from the trials of the road, she nonetheless keeps her ears open for signs of danger.

Once she deems herself clean enough, she steps out of the bath and folds one of the lavish towels around her. Where do they find fabric so soft? She pulls out her set of fine clothes, a full length nice, but simple blue dress which had been altered to conceal her two daggers. Usually of good enough quality for her, she was afraid she would be under-dressed here.

She takes the damp towel and wipes the dust off of her armor and sets it in the closet of her room, then makes her way down for dinner. "Thank you so much for that," she says when she meets Neresinde again. "I feel much better already."

[2D8HP]

Theren goes up the stairs once more to the third floor. The stairs end here, so there is no obvious roof access. At the far end of the hallway he is in is a window looking out onto the busy street. There are four apartment doors on either side of the hall. A human woman walking towards Theren and the stairs.Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) attempt to smile in a non-threatening way at the human, and looks out the window to the alley below

[nettle3305]

Perception check with disadvantage. [roll0] [roll1]
Persuasion check with advantage. [roll2] [roll3]
The manic man ducks around the tree trunk. Astella misses.

The man slashes again, though Astella dodges the attack with ease.

Astella's turn.
Neresinde seemed honest of intent. Even so, there was an apprehensiveness about the young elf.

The guest room provided to Evodine was large, with a comfortable linen bed, a wide stone fireplace, a wooden tub, and an elegant desk. Draped over the tub's sides were fresh cotton towels. Just behind the desk was a big glass window providing an excellent view over the scenic, quiet town and the nighttime sky above. Neither the moon nor the stars were visible on account of the gathering clouds.

Evodine's search of her guest room yielded a small slip of paper that read 347 Borden East in cursive handwriting. Judging by the fact that she found the slip under the night table, it was fair to say that it was not left there for her. She also managed to find some amenities, including five sheets of blank parchment, a one ounce bottle of ink, an ink pen, soap, and a vial of perfume.

A knock on the door announced dinner. A maid brought Evodine to the dining room.

The dining table is long and can seat around two dozen. A glass chandelier hangs above the table. A large, aging human man in fine clothes sits at the front of the table. He is wearing several gold rings. To his immediate right are the two children, and to his left is Neresinde. Further down the table is a human man in traveling clothes. Dinner appears to be served, with goblets of wine and dishes of quail eggs and poached veal set out.

When Evodine sits, she is immediately served food and drink. When she thanks Neresinde, the elf merely smiles and says to the large man, "Dear, this is Trayvara." Neresinde turns to Evodine and says, "This is my husband, Joris."

"A pleasure," says the large man. "Allow me to introduce my guest—" he gestures at the man in traveling clothes "—Tappe Bredenbent. He's a, how do you call it—"

"A courier," says Bredenbent, "for the Amsbaden Group."

"Yes, yes," says Joris.
Theren walks down the hall and looks out the window. The window overlooks the busy street outside, not the alley. The alley would be overlooked by one of the apartments. Alternatively, Theren can climb out the window and up to the ceiling, using the grooves in the building's wood panel exterior as handholds. This is an Athletics check. He would have to hope nobody below is looking up. This is a Stealth check with disadvantage.

The woman in the hall gives Theren a parting curious look as she descends the stairs.

[Zaydos]

Astella

She tried to frighten him, and having gotten cut that probably wouldn't work if she tried again, so she wouldn't try it further. "Why are you here?" She asks as she stabs for his gut.

Action: Attack with dagger [roll0] to hit, and [roll1] piercing damage on a hit plus [roll2] on a crit.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine frowns at the note she found and stuffs it into her belt pouch. I'll have to look that up when I get there. She dabs a little of the perfume behind her ears, then rubs some into her wrists before descending for dinner.

Though descended of a noble line, Evodine's house was indeed considered poor amongst the nobility. She constantly found herself staring in awe at the finely crafted items surrounding her in the house. Well, that'll play into my cover, I guess, she concedes to herself. She takes only small sips of the wine, drinking mostly water throughout the meal.

Upon being introduced to Neresinde's husband, she bobs her head in a small bow. "Milord Joris, the hospitality of your house is much appreciated." She looks over Joris' guest a few moments then says to him, "It's a pleasure Sir Bredenbent. I haven't heard of the Amsb...Ams...hehe..I'm sorry, it'a little hard to get my mouth around. Amsbaden Group? Is that a family in this part for whom you work?"

[2D8HP]

]
Theren walks down the hall and looks out the window. The window overlooks the busy street outside, not the alley. The alley would be overlooked by one of the apartments. Alternatively, Theren can climb out the window and up to the ceiling, using the grooves in the building's wood panel exterior as handholds. This is an Athletics check. He would have to hope nobody below is looking up. This is a Stealth check with disadvantage.

The woman in the hall gives Theren a parting curious look as she descends the stairs.


Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) attempts the climb;

Athletics: [roll0]

Stealth:[roll1]

(Disadvantage): [roll2]

[nettle3305]

The camp is asleep, with the humans on their hammocks tied between trees and Lothzar on the ground, resting his head against a beech tree's thick, exposed roots. The campfire flickers and crackles but burns strong.

An hour passes without incident.

A quarter of an hour into the second half of Guhzunthite's watch, the lizardfolk spots movement in a bush past the campfire's light. A moment later, the source of the movement is revealed to be a tabby cat, which steps on a noisy branch and jumps in surprise when the branch snaps.

The cat makes eye contact with Guhzunthite and meows.
The shabby man watches as Stran motions to leave without saying anything.
Astella makes a poor attempt at a stab and the man easily dodges.

The man swings but Astella just manages to dodge in time.

(Astella's turn. It's like watching paint dry.)

"Milord Joris, the hospitality of your house is much appreciated."

"It's just Joris," says Joris, chuckling. "I'm no noble, just a lucky merchant. And I'm always happy to have guests."


"It's a pleasure Sir Bredenbent. I haven't heard of the Amsb...Ams...hehe..I'm sorry, it'a little hard to get my mouth around. Amsbaden Group? Is that a family in this part for whom you work?"

"Ams-ba-den," says Bredenbent patiently. "It's a bank and I deliver important documents for it. The headquarters are pretty far away in Landsburg, but we have a local office in Borden."

"I've worked with the Amsbaden Group before," says Joris. "Helped me sell futures on Lienzen rice shares. They've got plenty of financial wizards over there. And what are you up to now, if you don't mind me asking?"

Bredenbent takes a sip of wine. "I don't mind at all. A fellow in Borden who goes by Trickstone wants to bundle his goods with the Norour Estran merchant fleet. However, the clans won't sell cargo space unless they understand the risks involved, and Trickstone does not wish to reveal what's in the cargo. Our role—the Amsbaden Group's role—is to verify that this cargo is low risk, that is, to stake our reputation on this matter as intermediaries. I am merely delivering a message of confirmation from headquarters to our local branch."

Joris raises an eyebrow. "Sounds to me like smuggling."

"You'd think so, but apparently the manifests have already been cleared by port authorities."

"So... this Trickstone doesn't want the dwarven clans knowing what he's transporting, but he's fine with Borden's bureaucrats?"

Bredenbent shrugs. "We don't make a habit of questioning our clients. Anyhow, enough of this business talk." (Insight check.) He turns to Evodine. "What brings you down this road, Miss Trayvara? What did you say you do?"
Theren pulls himself out the window and establishes a firm grip on the grooves of the exterior wall. He slowly ascends just under ten feet and pulls himself onto the building's sloped roof. (Perception check.) [roll0]

On the roof is a chimney with smoke rising from it. Theren moves to the side of the roof overlooking the alleyway. (Looking over requires a Stealth check to avoid being seen with one's head poking out from the rooftops.)

[nettle3305]

Just as Theren pulled himself onto the roof, he noticed that someone on the busy streets below had seen him climbing. That someone rushed down the street, presumably to call for guards.

[Zaydos]

Astella

The warlock remembers she has a second dagger pulling it out and slashing with both to try and catch her foe between them.

Free Object Manipulation Draw 2nd dagger. Action: Attack with primary dagger [roll0] for [roll1] damage plus [roll2] on a crit. Bonus Action: Offhand attack with 2nd dagger [roll3] for [roll4] damage plus [roll5] on a crit.

OoC: If she misses again she will start cussing out fae lords.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

To Sinda's comment on the dishes; If anyone ever wants to learn, send them my way. I also teach no-effort household chores and spell-reading.

Tracing the magic he found, Gelećek pays his bill and goes to follow the sudden exodus of the Barley and Brew. I'll likely be back for directions to the Lord Faust's loyal spies, as you put it, later.

-----
Insight (half-elf): [roll0] (this mysterious half-elf is starting to get on my nerves, haven't rolled over a 10 on him yet)
Insight (human): [roll1]

[Saint Jimmy]

*well that's odd...* Erich thought.

Insight [roll0]
Second insight [roll1]

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran sighed, he was never a fan of the hard way. "You could've just got rich, but now we gotta do things like this. Did you forget where you saw me earlier?" Stran walks back towards the man fist clenched. "Tell me what you took from Goldtooth before I leave YOU with the name Notooth."

[Emmerlaus]

The lizardfolk eyes narrowed. Why a tabby cat would be in the middle of nowhere?

I rolled Insight (rolled 21 total) and Intelligence check (rolled 15 total) to know if its normal for a tabby cat to be here AND if its behavior is strange or not. Cause it might be a familiar (yeah I know, call me paranoiac). Depending of what said to me, I might have to try to kill that kitten... :smalleek:

[2D8HP]

Just as Theren pulled himself onto the roof, he noticed that someone on the busy streets below had seen him climbing. That someone rushed down the street, presumably to call for guards.Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) Time to skedaddle! Looks for fastest way out of there!

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine nods at the appropriate places. When Bredenbent asks about her she replies, "I'm a merchant of sorts, myself, though I haven't had quite the luck of Lord....erm..of Joris here. I trade in herbs and spices. I'm heading back out from the capital to replenesh now."

Insight: [roll0]

[nettle3305]

The first dagger strike catches the man squarely in his chest. Blood streams from the wound and the man staggers, then collapses in a heap upon the grass. He yet lives, though his breathing is shallow and strained.

(Combat is not strictly over yet, but provided you do not do anything too crazy there is no more need to play this turn-by-turn or use Roll20 for mapping.)
Upon the arrival of the halfling, the half-elf seemed uninterested in getting his things knocked over again. The human who just left, on the other hand, was no doubt pursuing either the finely-dressed man and his companion or the card player. The human's stance indicated a readiness for combat.
The half-elf clearly does not want Errich knocking over his belongings. The human who just left was definitely in a hurry.
Sinda totals Gelećek's bill to eight silver.
The streets outside are removed from the bustle of the nearby markets, and as such are empty enough that Gelećek can spot the finely-dressed man and his companion hurrying further down the road. The card player follows thirty feet behind them at a fast pace. There is no doubt that the duo and the card player are aware of one another's presence.
(Perception check.)

Two human city guards are standing outside a restaurant, leaning on the building and chatting. They give the finely-dressed man and his companion a passing look but do not notice the pursuing card player. The guards wear chain shirts and each has two spears and a shield on their back.
(Intimidation check.) [roll0]
The cat seems non-hostile and curious about the camp. It does not appear to have any ulterior motives. (Nature check.)

The cat makes eye contact with Guhzunthite and meows again. It starts plodding over to where Lothzar is sleeping on the ground.
The fastest way down is certainly to jump off the roof, but the fall is about thirty feet and the landing looks hard. Alternatively, Theren can try to climb back through the window he came from, but that might take too much time. (Perception check.) [roll1]

He can check the alley for options, but that would mean potentially exposing himself for those below to see. (This would require a Stealth check to avoid being seen.)
It is clear that Bredenbent was not convinced of the legality of what Trickstone is doing, but he seems used to not questioning things. He is nonetheless perturbed by this Trickstone character, as if Trickstone is somehow different from all the other legally and ethically gray individuals he has dealt with before.


"I'm a merchant of sorts, myself, though I haven't had quite the luck of Lord....erm..of Joris here. I trade in herbs and spices. I'm heading back out from the capital to replenesh now."

(Deception check.) [roll2]

[Zaydos]

Astella

Combat may be over but time was still pressing. She had about thirty seconds before the first man awoke, and she needed to spend it well. She gave no more regard to the crazed dagger-wielder for now, if he lived till she could attend to his wounds all the better, but the one who was still a threat came first, as did the dying youth. She rushed to his side and took his sword and crossbow from his sleeping form. She did not stop there to tie him up or search for other weapons, instead she moved to the injured child and attempted to check for signs of life keeping a wary eye on the sleeper.

I guess that last would be Medicine (or in Astella's case Wisdom). [roll0]. If it'd be Int add +1. If I don't need to roll ignore the roll.

[Emmerlaus]

The lizardfolk go to the kitten, try to grab it... He stay alert of his surrounding as he does, finding the situation a bit surreal. He have his bow in one had however, just in case.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

-----
Perception check: [roll0]

[nettle3305]

Gelećek does not see the human man who came from the second floor of The Barley and the Brew.
The shabby man stands, looks at Stran defiantly, picks up his knife, and says, "Get out of my yard."
(Sure, we'll use the OOC Intelligence roll for the Nature check.)

As far as Guhzunthite can tell, the cat is behaving like a cat. It seems unusually comfortable with humanoids, though two factors can explain this. The first, the cat lives near a trade route, meaning it interacts with humanoids regularly, many of whom likely feed it. The second, the cat was formerly domestic and was later turned to the wilderness, though Guhzunthite suspects, judging by the cat's coat and gait, that it was a wild cat through and through.

Guhzunthite can attempt to approach the cat calmly. (Animal Handling check.)

Or he can dash and try to nab the cat. (Dexterity check.)
Theren spots a wide copper pipe on the building's exterior running all the way from the top of the third floor to ground level. He can try to climb down it (Athletics check), which would be the safe and slow option, or he can try to slide down it (Acrobatics check), which would be the risky but fast option. Either way, the pipe faces the busy street, so descending without attracting further attention would be difficult. (Stealth check with disadvantage.)

"I'm a merchant of sorts, myself, though I haven't had quite the luck of Lord....erm..of Joris here. I trade in herbs and spices. I'm heading back out from the capital to replenesh now."

"Indeed?" says Bredenbent. "I don't suppose you're passing through Borden, are you? If you're on horseback, we should travel together. The roads aren't particularly bad, but an extra pair of eyes is always useful."
Fortunately, it seems that during the fight the injured boy stabilized. His wounds are deep and significant, consisting of numerous dagger-like lacerations, but blood has stopped flowing and he is still breathing, if unconscious.

It occurs to Astella that the boy's face looks a lot like a younger version of the maniac man's face. She suspects the boy is a close relative, perhaps the man's son.

[Zaydos]

Astella

"Just great, did I kill the boys father who was only trying to protect him from the other man? If so why'd he still attack me when I put the other man to sleep?" She wonders, moving over to the crazed acting man, and one eye still glancing at the man soon to wake from ensorcelled sleep, attempted to make sure he too would survive this day. Hopefully she had gotten all of the sleeping man's weapons and he didn't have more squirreled away somewhere.

Medicine [roll0]

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

"I would enjoy the company, sir. Countess is great to talk to, though she doesn't talk back much. As long as you don't mind an occasional quick stop if I see an herb to add to my supply."

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran pulls his Battleaxe from his waist and grips it tight with both hands, "You really think a man like me is gonna back away from someone who has something he wants because of a puny knife? No more chances big guy." Stran steps forward and strikes at the man.

I'm unsure if you want initiative or not in case this would be some sort of surprise round, but here it is just in case. Initiative [roll0]. And now for the Attack [roll1] and the possible Damage [roll]1d10+1[roll]. If it at any point in this combat he were to hit 0 hp, I would like the damage to be nonlethal.

[2D8HP]

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)

Acrobatics:[roll0]

Stealth:[roll1]

Disadvantage:[roll2]

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite was about to go to the cat but change his mind. Since the cat is no threat and seem friendly enough toward humans and sentinent creature, he look at it with a smile but doesnt do anything. He follow his duties, keep looking around. But everytime his eyes fall on the cat, his looks become a bit softer. He felt a bit envious of his lizardfolk companion...

I wont roll for that. He wont get distracted from hsi duties. Im also curious of why teh cat approach his lizardfolk friend. Im guessing its because he is a druid lol :smallwink:

[nettle3305]

Astella fails completely to help the unconscious man in any way.

"I would enjoy the company, sir. Countess is great to talk to, though she doesn't talk back much. As long as you don't mind an occasional quick stop if I see an herb to add to my supply."

"Excellent," says Bredenbent. "I shall be up early tomorrow, though I am willing to delay 'till noon. If you don't mind, I'd like to tell you what path I have in mind." He describes the route the intends to take. Evodine notes that while it is not a bad route by any means, it is actually slower than Evodine's route by a day's ride.

After supper, Joris retires to his bedroom and the maids begin cleaning the table. Bredenbent says he wishes to explore Lahn a bit and leaves the manor. The children take supper's leftover scraps and run to a pond behind the house to play with fishes.

Neresinde invites Evodine to play chess with her in the library.
The shabby man, seeing Stran go for his battleaxe, yelps and dashes for a neighbor's house. As he runs he screams, "Help, help, bandit!" When he reaches his neighbor's door he starts pounding.

(It is now Stran's turn. Go to the Roll20 map.)
Theren attempts to slide down the pipe. He makes it a third of the way before he slips and falls (for [roll0] bludgeoning damage).
The cat curls up by Lothzar, apparently intending to sleep. Its plans are interrupted when Lothzar awakens suddenly and jumps to his feet. The cat meows in alarm and bounds away into the dark of the forest.

"Ah," says Lothzar with a laugh, "would this count as a failure of your duty as watch?"

He returns to sleep and the next hour passes uneventfully for Guhzunthite.

[nettle3305]

Theren hits the ground, hard.

The people on the street are now looking at him, whispering among themselves. No one approaches and everyone keeps their distance.

[2D8HP]

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) if he can, gets out of there while trying to look like nothing is amiss.

[Zaydos]

Astella

She sighs, still trying to staunch the bloodloss, and still glancing nervously at the sleeper. She wants answers as to what was happening here, and when someone wakes up, she intends to make sure that one of them is going to give her some.

Medicine: [roll0]

[Emmerlaus]

The cat curls up by Lothzar, apparently intending to sleep. Its plans are interrupted when Lothzar awakens suddenly and jumps to his feet. The cat meows in alarm and bounds away into the dark of the forest.

"Ah," says Lothzar with a laugh, "would this count as a failure of your duty as watch?"

He returns to sleep and the next hour passes uneventfully for Guhzunthite.

" No, I saw it but found it too cute and harmless to act upon," he say with a smile, as he look at where the cat have disappear. Being on the road meant no stability in having a pet. He wish sometimes he could have a familiar like the wizards, one he can hide on himself. He doesnt hide in his voice or in his eyes how disappointed he is seeing the cat leaving. He give a long sigh and return to duty soon after however. Once its time, he go wake up the next person in line to guard and goes to his tent after. He makes sure their is no nasty bugs in it before relaxing too. He left his weapon close though and put this head the furthest away from the tent entrance. His feet were at the tent entrance.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine agrees to Bredenbent's timeline. One day won't matter one way or the other...especially if her travelling companion is meeting up with Trickstone. To Neresinde she replies, "I would enjoy the game, though I fear I won't be much of a challenge if you have any skill yourself."

[nettle3305]

It is a bit too late to act like nothing is wrong.

Five guards appear around the corner just down the street. People approach the guards and point at Theren, saying something. The guards begin rapidly advancing on Theren's position.

Theren estimates there is eighty feet between him and the lead guard. If Theren intends to run, there are three possible escape paths. The first is down a street at an oblique angle relative to the guards' location. There is unfortunately a crowd in this direction, which Theren will have to push or dodge through. The second is in the exact opposite direction of where the guards are. This path is filled with carts and stalls which will slow Theren down unless he is agile enough. The third, though uncertain, is the alley Theren saw the guard with the globe go into. If the alley has an exit on the other side, it could well be an escape path.
The manic man's condition appears to grow worse. The sleeping man behind Astella begins to stir; she estimates he will be awake in about twelve seconds.
The manor's library is large, housing many books on its dusty shelves. Two large windows gaze out over the nighttime village and the cloudy skies above. There is a study table with a chessboard set on it. The crackling fireplace gives the room a low but comfortable light.

Playing chess requires calculation and pattern recognition. (Intelligence check.)

While Evodine and Neresinde play chess, the latter talks in Elvish about her home in the forests of Vath-Viela. She has childhood memories from there, memories of its magnificent halls and towering trees, and its sweet honey bread and clear spring waters. She recalls her parents, stern and proud. She recalls painting with her peers on forest canopy walkways high above ground level. She recalls the cool northeastern breeze she felt standing atop Vath-Viela's tallest tower. She recalls the beautiful and powerful golden magic wrought by their matriarch, how it shaped the trees and changed the winds. (History check.)

It all seems very distant.

"And then the mercenaries came," she says, still in Elvish. "They took me and my sisters. Not even the matriarch could rescue us." Anger flashes across her face and she switches to Common. "Mercenaries of the Green Arrow! They made us slaves, and only I survived the ordeal."

She pauses, and says in Elvish, "Trayvara, perhaps this is a bit much to ask a stranger, but the mercenaries must be brought to justice. I cannot ask Joris this. He is dear to me but he cannot get it done." She falls silent and closes her eyes. "No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't. Please forget I said anything." She opens her eyes and looks directly at Evodine. "I was ungracious as a host to request that you perform such an undertaking, especially over a game. I apologize."
Guhzunthite awakens Esther, who wordlessly climbs off her hammock and begins her watch sitting atop the crates on the cart. She looks to be deep in thought.

Guhzunthite falls asleep. He sleeps through the night uninterrupted.

(I will pause your game for a moment here until some time has passed for other players' stories.)

[Zaydos]

Astella

She sighs, and tries one last time to save the manic man, before rising, and turning towards the other man, raising her crossbow to point at him. When he wakes she will say, "I have your weapons, and I took care of your friend, so tell me what's going on here quickly, my finger is beginning to itch."

Medicine: [roll0]

Intimidate [roll1] Dis/Advantage die if needed [roll2]

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Int: [roll0]
History: [roll1]

Evodine is silent while she listens to the other woman's request. "A band of mercenaries, milday? I...I'm afraid it's much more than I can do anything about. Truly, I have a sword and a knife, but they are mostly for show. Is there not a constable about, or certainly a woman of your means could hire someone to take care of them?"

[2D8HP]

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) It seems fate demands it.runs for the alley.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran curses, putting his axe back on his person and turning tail from the combat. Sure, dishing out a beating was always fun, but there comes a time where slapping the dirty fish monger about a few times isn't worth it. He had other things to this day, just gonna be a little harder.

Stran is going to book it and just head down to the harbor in the Eimsbek district, first trying to see if the Red Jailer has come into the port yet. Stealth check to make sure the Fishmonger doesn't get any guards after me [roll0]

[nettle3305]

Astella finally managed to stanch the manic man's bleeding, stabilizing him. His breathing returned to normal, though he was still unconscious.

The other man wakes to a faceful of crossbow.


"I have your weapons, and I took care of your friend, so tell me what's going on here quickly, my finger is beginning to itch."

The man nods quickly. "Okay," he says, "I'll talk." He points at the unconscious boy. "I was leading the brat and his dad to Borden. The brat had different plans and stabbed me. I didn't touch the kid but the dad has a temper. Beat his boy half-to-death. I swear to the wyrmking himself this is the truth." (Insight check.) [roll0]
Neresinde played skillfully but Evodine won the opening with her calculations, managing to convert that advantage into a strong kingside attack. The game was over with most of the pieces still on the board.

"Excellent play," says Neresinde. "You should join the Kasselshut Chess League. It seems like you have the talent for it." She stands up. "Wait here a moment." She leaves the room and returns in a few minutes holding a pouch. "You said you trade in herbs and spices? This is saffron, a whole pound of it. Imported from Chanpat, so I've heard. I'm not one to let an opponent who defeated me so handily walk away unrewarded." She places the pouch on Evodine's side of the table.


"A band of mercenaries, milday? I...I'm afraid it's much more than I can do anything about. Truly, I have a sword and a knife, but they are mostly for show. Is there not a constable about, or certainly a woman of your means could hire someone to take care of them?"

"Forget I asked," says Neresinde. "If you're curious, the reason why I cannot hire someone to 'take care' of these mercenaries is because I'm not interested in physically hurting them. What I want is to expose their trafficking of sentient humanoids. Slavery is illegal in Votland, as decreed by our Queen, but this does not stop the Green Arrow Mercenaries from dabbling in it. I asked you rather than some former Order knight because—" she pauses to lower her voice "—I overheard you speaking to Mister Bredenbent. He said he's looking for someone called Trickstone. I know this name well: Trickstone is a business associate of the Green Arrows. Since he's headed for Borden, I thought maybe you could—" she stops and sighs. "No. It was an unfair request. Let's forget I mentioned this at all."

Evodine knows of Vath-Viela. It is an old city-state predating the Cascata Republic where it currently resides as a polity. Its population is predominantly high-elf and it is known for its magical traditions. Many great sorcerers of legend hail from Vath-Viela. During the War of Freedom many years ago, Vath-Viela was one of the few places that withstood a direct siege by the Indarran Empire. More recently, Vath-Viela participated in the Iron Wars, though this one ended with the disappearance of the then-matriarch as well as a legion of her elite battlemages.
Theren turns into the narrow alley and heads further in. It does not take him long to realize that the alley is a dead end, terminating in a ten-foot stone wall. Fortunately, the stones are poorly hewn and stacked, so climbing is a feasible option. (Athletics check.)

(Perception check.) [roll1]
Stran successfully ran from the scene. There was not much in the way of a pursuit, so Stran managed to make it to the harbor district without difficulty. Now it was only a matter of finding Eimsbek Ward... (Investigation check.) [roll2]

[nettle3305]

Though Astella feels she does not have a good read on the man, his words sound like truths.

The man looks up hopefully. "So, am I free to go? I'd be happy to pay for my release."
Theren sees nothing else.
Stran finds the Eimsbek Ward without much difficulty.

It is now late dusk. The sky is turning a dark blue and the sun is just about to dip below the horizon. A pillar of light is cast from the setting sun, radiant upon the harbor waters. The bobbing masts of numerous docked ships silhouette against the sky.

Entering the Eimsbek Ward, Stran immediately sees that it is a poor neighborhood. Warehouses line the dark, muddy streets and the few pedestrians wear cloaks and hoods and walk quickly. Due to the time of day, the ambient lighting is dim, and Stran finds it difficult to see (disadvantage on all sight-based Perception checks). Nonetheless, he knows what street he is looking for and has no trouble navigating.

Before he reaches the docks proper, however, he spots a partially-concealed body in an alley behind a broken cart. Blood from the body mingles with the mud it lies in.

[Saint Jimmy]

"Here,"
Erich says, throwing the five silver on the bar.

*thats odd... Maybe he's one of those two men. People generally don't just sprint out of a tavern for no reason...
errich thought

[ooc]
Erich exits the tavern, and looks for the man who sprinted away.

[roll0]

Yes! Nat 20!

[2D8HP]

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)
Climbs away!
Athletics: [roll0]
Perception:[roll1]

[Zaydos]

Astella

She shakes her head. "If you hadn't done any of the violence, then why was your first response to my arrival to train a crossbow on me?" She sighs, she had wanted to be on her way, then again a man going mad might be connected to the corruption for all she knew. "You got any rope? Way I figure I ought to take all of you in to the nearest township and let a magistrate clear it up. That said the least I can do is hear both sides before sending anyone off with weapons, and I'd just not feel right stealing someone's sword and crossbow if they didn't do anything other than defend themselves. So we tie the man up because he's crazed with something and wait for the boy to wake."

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran stops for a moment, making sure to keep his good eye on the bleeding out body. He grips one of his handaxes in case whoever or whatever caused this was still sticking around. Stran approaches the body to identify it.

[nettle3305]

(Since this is my one chance to post today, I'm going to assume that Gelećek pursues. If I'm overreaching, then we can retcon this later.)

Errich does not see the human who came from the second floor of The Barley and the Brew.
In front is the pair, the finely-dressed man and his greataxe-wielding companion, walking quickly and glancing over their shoulders. Following just behind is the card player, keeping pace without breaking into a run. The street is not crowded, but nor is it empty; several well-to-do people walk about, and guard patrols pass regularly.

Gelećek manages to keep up without difficulty. Just behind him Errich matches his pace.

The path of the duo up front takes the spread-out group into the trade district proper. The streets get rougher and the buildings dirtier. Carts and stalls line the streets and crowds block the way. The duo begin making sharp turns around street corners, hoping without success to lose the card player.

(Perception check.) [roll0]
(Perception check.) [roll1]
Theren scales the wall smoothly and climbs down the other side. He is once again in an alley, but as he runs out into the adjoining street, he disappears into the crowd without issue.

Theren might be in the trade district, judging by the stalls and carts on the streets and the sizable crowd of people. (Perception check.) [roll2]

"You got any rope? Way I figure I ought to take all of you in to the nearest township and let a magistrate clear it up. That said the least I can do is hear both sides before sending anyone off with weapons, and I'd just not feel right stealing someone's sword and crossbow if they didn't do anything other than defend themselves. So we tie the man up because he's crazed with something and wait for the boy to wake."

The man nods agreeably. "So long as you know the nearest courthouse is in Borden." He looks at the boy and the manic man. "Provided we tie 'em up and bring 'em with us, I won't cause you any trouble. Soon as we get to Borden, we head straight for the courthouse. Deal?" He points to a pack lying by a rock. "There's rope in my supplies. I warn you right now there's a dagger in there. You can toss or take it if you want, but I need to bring the rest with me."

If Astella checks, she does in fact find fifty feet of hempen rope and a dagger, as promised. Additionally, the pack contains ball bearings, string, candles, a crowbar, a hammer, pitons, a hooded lantern, flasks of oil, seven days of rations for one, a tinderbox, and a waterskin. There is a net strapped to the pack's side.

"We'll have to wait for 'em to wake," says the man. "I don't fancy carrying them."
The man is clearly dead. Upon a closer inspection, Stran finds a dagger, a light crossbow, thirty bolts, a pouch containing ten gold, and a letter. The letter reads:

Eimsbek Ward. Red Jailer. Trickstone.

If you find out anything, come to me and you'll be well-paid.

If you don't, don't bother coming in.

-K

(Intelligence check.)

[Zaydos]

"We'll have to wait for 'em to wake," says the man. "I don't fancy carrying them."

Astella

"Neither do I, and I was planning to go to Borden anyway," She said, more than happy to rest a while, it'd give her time to regain her magic. She'd tie up the unconscious maniac as well as she could, searching him for, well anything she could find but especially noting any weapons, and then does the same with the boy. "So any idea why these two were going to Borden in the first place, or why the lad thought stabbing you was an appropriate way to try and get out of it?" She's willing just to talk, and watch for now while she waits.

[nettle3305]

Two human men, one finely-dressed and another in hide armor wielding a greataxe, walk into an open warehouse just across the street from where Theren is standing. Following close behind them is a human man in pursuit.

Further down the street is Gelećek, watching the duo and their pursuer enter the warehouse. Just a bit further down is another observer, Errich.

Among the street crowd, nine figures in cloaks begin advancing on the warehouse entrance. It is not hard to see that under the cloaks the figures are wearing leather armor and wielding scimitars.
Among the street crowd, nine figures in cloaks begin advancing on the warehouse entrance. It is not hard to see that under the cloaks the figures are wearing leather armor and wielding scimitars.
Among the street crowd, nine figures in cloaks begin advancing on the warehouse entrance. It is not hard to see that under the cloaks the figures are wearing leather armor and wielding scimitars.
(Intelligence check.) [roll0]

"So any idea why these two were going to Borden in the first place, or why the lad thought stabbing you was an appropriate way to try and get out of it?"

"The dad's bringing the kid to a boarding school," says the man. "The kid's a massive brat, though." (Insight check.) [roll1]

[nettle3305]

Stran feels the letter's handwriting is familiar. It occurs to him that the handwriting is none other than Goldtooth's.
The man is totally lying.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran got the sudden suspicion that something was up, especially with the letter and the dead man. He would have to keep his guard up on this mission, now more than ever. Stran pocketed the 10 gold and swiped the dagger, and started searching around the docks, trying to find a hint of the Red Jailer. As bad as this all looked, Stran wasn't about to give up.

[roll0]

Edit: the roll is for Investigate

[Zaydos]

Astella

She nods along, idly half-playing with her dagger, her eyes staying on the man. "And yourself? You're a guide you said?" Between the lies and starting things off by pointing a crossbow at her she is more than a little wary as she watches the man.

Was the man's longsword recently used, i.e. did it have blood on its blade? Also did the kid have a weapon or anything of note when I looked over his body to tie him up?

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Seeing the number of blades increase suddenly, Gelećek remembers how many times he cut himself harvesting. Breaking his pursuit he ducks to the side and grips the sceptre at his belt and draws a glyph on his chest.

If the Halfing at the tail end of their little convoy goes to pass him, Gelećek will let him.

-----
Cast Mage Armor on self.

Sleight of Hand to minimise his somantic component: [roll0]

[2D8HP]

Theren (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) goes to the Halfling (Errich Thorntounge), and asks:

Nine blades against two seems uneven odds. Do you know anything about these human doings?

[Saint Jimmy]

As Erich passes the man, he says "why are they chasing each other? It looks pretty shady.
He sprints ahead of the men (hopefully) and knocks over some sort of table with not fragile stuff into their way, and shouts
"I don't know who you are, or what you want, but this ends right now. Why are you chasing these men?
(If the mage doesn't tell him he says that. if he does then Erich says something that has to do with that.)
If anyone attacks him Erich reacts with extreme prejudice, attacking thrm back with both short swords or a dagger if too far away.
Rolls if nessecary
Attacks: [roll0]
[roll1]
Damage
[roll2]
[roll3]
[roll4]

[2D8HP]

Theren
AC: 15, HP: 4, Perception: 15
(http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)
Theren attempts to slide down the pipe. He makes it a third of the way before he slips and falls (for [roll0] bludgeoning damage).Leaves to try and heal (short rest?)

[Fishybugs]

"Excellent play," says Neresinde. "You should join the Kasselshut Chess League. It seems like you have the talent for it."

"I shall certainly consider it, milady, though my travel schedule is quite unpredictable, and truly I feel this game was just luck."


"You said you trade in herbs and spices? This is saffron, a whole pound of it."

Evodine looks at the pouch of saffron with dismay. "I could never accept such a rich gift, Neresinde. I have nothing with which to repay your kindness as it is."


"Since he's headed for Borden, I thought maybe you could—"

"I can't make any promises, but neither can I neglect the pleas of one who has shown me nothing but kindness, nor can I abide sentient trafficking." Evodine pauses and thinks for a moment. She looks over her shoulder to make sure nobody else is close-by, then leans in toward Neresinde in a conspiratorial manner. I will be travelling with your husband's guest, Bredenbent. Should I see or hear anything awry, I will do what I can to break things up. I may not be strong, but I have a brain. I can do something, I'm sure. For Vath-Viela."

[nettle3305]

Night came swiftly and the streets turned dark. Doors were locked and windows shuttered, and what few people walked the streets went indoors, leaving Eimsbek Ward all but deserted. The sky was clouded and the harbor water still, numerous ship masts looming overhead like giants.

Stran is able to find the docks with the help of a torch. The ships here are generally rough, dirty, and unmarked, but one ship stands out for its massive size and what looks like a painting on its side, though in the dark it is hard to discern. (Perception check.) [roll0]

Stran sees fifteen figures standing at the entrance to the pier. Five are armed and armored. Nine look like sailors and dockworkers. One is short in stature and dressed in fine clothes. Of the fifteen, eight carry torches.

Stran is too far to see any finer details.
The man's longsword is bloodless and even looks unused. His light crossbow, on the other hand, looks well-worn, with visible strain on the wood around its metal rivets. However, the boy's injury is definitely from a slashing weapon, and there are no used bolts in sight. The boy did not have a weapon when Astella found him.


"And yourself? You're a guide you said?"

"No," says the man, "I'm a mercenary. Green Arrow Company, at your service." (Insight check.) [roll1]
Upon receiving no response from the halfling, Theren leaves. Might be for the best; he looked quite bruised.

Errich manages to catch the duo in the front in the middle of the warehouse. He steps between them and their pursuer and speaks.


"I don't know who you are, or what you want, but this ends right now. Why are you chasing these men?

"It's a halfling from the bar," says the card player loudly with a smile. "A do-gooder, no doubt. Perhaps we ought to teach him a lesson?"

"Stay out of this, stranger," says the finely-dressed man. "You risk your life needlessly."

Gelećek finishes his casting of mage armor. He is standing by the warehouse entrance.

The card player laughs. "You were fools to return here. As you can see, we were prepared." He gestures at the nine cloaked figures arrayed around the warehouse. "It's time to die, traitor."

"What now, boss?" says the man wielding the greataxe.

"Kill or be killed," says the finely-dressed man. "Or, at least, it's what I would say had I my blade. We should run for the stairs."

"You can try!" snarls the card player, leaping into action.

(Errich initiative roll.) [roll2]
(Gelećek initiative roll.) [roll3]
Theren leaves the scene and wanders the district to find a place to rest. He finds such a place just down the street, an inn and tavern called The Rowdy Jester.

The inn and tavern's interior is large but crowded. There are at least forty tables, and most of them are occupied by traveler-, laborer-, and mercenary-looking folk. There is a lot of yelling and shouting. Occasionally, two patrons would exchange a punch or two before onlookers stepped in to break up the fight. The innkeeper is yelling orders at five servers, who dart between customers and tables carrying large trays of drink and food.

Against all odds, Theren manages to find an empty table. Almost immediately a small elf serving girl pops up and says, "Watcha havin', sir?"

"I could never accept such a rich gift, Neresinde. I have nothing with which to repay your kindness as it is."

"Not so much a gift," says Neresinde with a smile, "as a matter of 'thanks for giving me a great game.' But do as you will. I won't take it personally if you choose not to accept it; I understand it's in the nature of receiving that one expects to give in return."


"I can't make any promises, but neither can I neglect the pleas of one who has shown me nothing but kindness, nor can I abide sentient trafficking." Evodine pauses and thinks for a moment. She looks over her shoulder to make sure nobody else is close-by, then leans in toward Neresinde in a conspiratorial manner. I will be travelling with your husband's guest, Bredenbent. Should I see or hear anything awry, I will do what I can to break things up. I may not be strong, but I have a brain. I can do something, I'm sure. For Vath-Viela."

"Thank you," says Neresinde, "for giving consideration to my selfish request." She looks down. "But try not to get hurt. Justice is justice, but a life is irreplaceable. Now—" she stands abruptly "—I won't keep you. If you wish to speak to me, you may find me here, reading romances from Arta Sona." She smiles. "I wish you the best of luck on your journey."

Should Evodine return to her quarters, she will find that her bed has been prepared with fluffy pillows and a soft blanket. If she sleeps, the night passes uneventfully.
Guhzunthite awakens to the sound of birds chirping. He sees that it is day, though most of the humans are asleep. Lothzar is standing on the road and looking further down, though the subject of his watch cannot be seen from Guhzunthite's angle.

The two armed humans and the cart driver are awake. The driver is opening one of the crates for breakfast. One of the armed humans says, "Pass me some jerky."

[nettle3305]

Stran sees nothing further.
Okay, so the man is telling the truth. But Astella suspects he is not saying something which, were he honest, he would be saying.
(Head to the Roll20 map. It's Errich's turn, then immediately after it's Gelećek's. Errich should use his damage rolls from before, but he needs to indicate in the Roll20 where he's moving and who he's attacking.)

[Zaydos]

Astella

She nods a bit, but furrows her brow as well. "Why did they need a mercenary to guide them?" She checks the boy's pulse again, worried about him at least, and almost wishing she'd just knocked out the mercenary with her dagger while he was still enspelled. "Who exactly are these two that they needed a mercenary to guide them, and could afford it?"

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite awakens to the sound of birds chirping. He sees that it is day, though most of the humans are asleep. Lothzar is standing on the road and looking further down, though the subject of his watch cannot be seen from Guhzunthite's angle.

The two armed humans and the cart driver are awake. The driver is opening one of the crates for breakfast. One of the armed humans says, "Pass me some jerky."

Guhzunthite make sure everything he own still in its place. Then he get out of his tent and go see Lothzar and see what he is watching, before joining the other for breakfast.

" Nothing unusual this morning? "

[2D8HP]

Theren
AC: 15, HP: 4, Perception: 15
(http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)


Theren manages to find an empty table. Almost immediately a small elf serving girl pops up and says, "Watcha havin', sir?"Bruised and bewildered, Theren can barely whisper, water, and.... brandy?
(If the server is a fellow wood elf, Theren asks her, "How are you, in this human place?")

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran looked long and hard, but couldn't get any info. He knew he'd have to get closer for this to work. He flipped the hood on his black cloak and snuck closer, trying to get more information from the 15 strangers.

Rollong Stealth for a total of [roll0] to get nice and close.

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine pauses for a moment in thought. She thanks Neresinde, saying "I'll tell you what. I'll take the saffron as a loan...I'll use it to start my fortune, then come back here and you can show your husband you're quite the merchant as well." She hugs Neresinde, "I'll be back. I promise."

Before bed, Evodine heads out to the stable and combs out Countess....just in case it got missed. "We're gonna do great, girl. You'll see. We're already making friends and getting started." She was purposefully vague in case someone was spying.

After caring for Countess, she heads back up to her room and oils her armor, wiping the rest of the road dust away and getting things ready for the next morning. After a good night's sleep, she gets ready for the road and heads downstairs.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

-----
DM Question: The boxes on the Roll20 map, are we able to see over them? Do they provide cover?
DM Question: Has my Detect Magic expired?

Whilst waiting for Saint Jimmy's action, some rolls for my turn.

Is Well-Dressed-Man lying about being un-armed (Insight): [roll0]

Gauge the strength of the opponents (Hit Points, level, etc. abstracted for a character), not sure if this would be Int or Wis:
Card Player: Int - [roll1] / or Wis - [roll2]
Cloaked assassins: Int - [roll3] / or Wis - [roll4]

[nettle3305]

"Why did they need a mercenary to guide them?" She checks the boy's pulse again, worried about him at least, and almost wishing she'd just knocked out the mercenary with her dagger while he was still enspelled. "Who exactly are these two that they needed a mercenary to guide them, and could afford it?"

The boy is doing well. He will certainly recover.

"I wasn't really their guide," says the man, his tone turning annoyed. "What's this, an interrogation? All your questions will be answered in Borden." Further attempts to talk to the man are met with evasive one-liners.

Two hours pass without trouble.

The man is napping against a rock, sound asleep, while the boy and the manic man begin to stir. (Late Dexterity check for using rope.) [roll0]

" Nothing unusual this morning? "

Lothzar points down the road. Dust rises in the distance. "Riders on horseback," says Lothzar. Without further comment, he turns and heads back. "Come, let's break camp." He goes to each sleeping person and wakes them.

Soon the whole group is packing their hammocks and breaking fast. Lothzar and an armed human stand watch on the road. If Guhzunthite requests food from the cart's supplies, he will see that there isn't much to go around, though the cart driver will grudgingly part with a meal's worth of salted meat and hard biscuits. Otherwise, he must consume a ration (which will last him the full day) or search for food later.

Within ten minutes the group is ready to travel. Lothzar addresses everyone. "Half-a-dozen horseback ride our way. Might be a caravan. Might be raiders. Both are strange for this terrain and season. We can either leave the roads, risking our horse and cart in the bog-filled woods, or we can continue on this road. For the latter, I suggest I take my fellow lizardfolk and one of you armed humans to meet the riders ahead of the group. This way we do not put civilians in potential crossfire."
The girl is indeed a wood elf.


Bruised and bewildered, Theren can barely whisper, water, and.... brandy?
(If the server is a fellow wood elf, Theren asks her, "How are you, in this human place?")

Ignoring Theren's question, the girl runs to serve another table, then another, then another, disappearing into the crowd. In a minute, the girl returns to Theren with two glasses, one brandy and the other water.

She says, "Jenfeld Circle. Artisans' district. Outsider: Plenty of our kind live here. That will be five copper." When she receives the money she leaves, disappearing once again into the crowd.
(By the way, Stran had to use a torch to find his way to the docks. I also assume he puts out the torch before he sneaks.)

Stran keeps to the shadows of the buildings as he moves up to the pier. Now closer, he can see the image on the side of the massive vessel, a red humanoid skull surrounded by chains. The paint looks to be fraying from prolonged exposure.

The figure of short stature is a finely-dressed halfling, his voice barking commands in the dead silence of night. There is a rapier at his side. The sailors and dockworkers are unarmed and offloading crates onto carts. The armed and armored figures wear chain shirts and wield spears and shields. They stand watch.

"We smoked one of 'em," says one of the armored figures. "Think he was workin' for Goldtooth."

"The dwarf?" says the halfling with a laugh. "We can take care of him later. We have other problems."

"The Order?"

"Precisely. We identified their agents but that didn't stop them from decimating our ambush. I forget that, minus the secrecy, they're still fully-trained royal knights."

"But how do they know?"

The halfling pauses. "That," he says, "is a very good question. No matter. Our honored guest wishes to speak to the Duke as soon as possible. Especially in light of the betrayal."

The armored figure shrugs. "We already sent one o' our own and near-a-dozen hired muscles to take care o' the traitor."

Silence reigns for a minute as the group waits and watches the entrance of the vessel.

The door swings open softly and a figure in thick, overflowing robes emerges onto the dock. It is impossible to determine any features of the figure other than that it is humanoid, as its robes obscures all.

The humanoid in robes speaks in a strange, chilling voice. Stran does not recognize the language.

The halfling nods. "Yes, my Lord. The Duke is ready to receive you."

The halfling, the humanoid in robes, and the armored figures leave the pier, heading down a dark and grimy street, their only sources of light being three lanterns three of the armored figures are carrying. The sailors and dock workers split, six pushing carts down the harbor street, presumably to a warehouse somewhere, two heading to a tavern a block away, and one heading back onto the ship.
When Evodine wakes, she finds a simple breakfast of eggs, muffins, and orange juice waiting for her in the dining room. Bredenbent is there as well, drinking orange juice and checking his maps and ledgers. "Good rest?" he asks without taking his eyes off his papers.

Later in the entrance hall, a sleepy Neresinde with mussed hair is there to say goodbye to Evodine. Neresinde offers a hug and a wave. Joris descends from the spiral staircase moments later in bathrobes. He and Bredenbent shake hands. "Gods watch your path," says Joris.

Evodine's Order horse is waiting for her outside, groomed and fed as promised. Another horse, presumably Bredenbent's, stands next to Countess, sniffing a servant setting up his saddlebags.

"Unless you've plans in Lahn," says Bredenbent, "I suggest we get going with all due haste."
(The boxes provide half-cover and count as difficult terrain for purposes of movement.)

Gelećek's detect magic has expired. The well-dressed man appears to be telling the truth, though he obviously intends to obtain a weapon as soon as possible. Of the bunch, the card player acts like an experienced warrior, but the others in cloaks have the mannerisms of common thugs or bandits. The well-dressed man's companion seems as well to be an experienced warrior.

[Zaydos]

Astella

Is glad for the two hours of rest in that it at least allows her to regain her magic, but her eyes stay on the man. Something is up here, and she doesn't trust it at all. Maybe one of these two will give her an answer when they wake. The maniac is more likely to be dangerous than the boy, presumably at least, so she moves closer to him, crossbow drawn and waits for consciousness to dawn on either of them.

[nettle3305]

The manic man wakes with a start, breaks free of Astella's binding after a short struggle, and stands. He looks at Astella, expression mixed between confusion and hostility.

"Now, now," says the other man. "The good news is, your son is still alive."

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine eats her fill of breakfast and chats with each person as she readies herself. She responds to Bredenbent, "The earlier the better. I'll see to my horse and meet you in the stable when you're ready."As soon as bids farewell to Neresinde with a quick hug and another promise to return. Finally, Evodine heads to the stables to prepare Countess. She goes through her saddlebags, ensuring each thing is in its proper place, stuffing the found note deep in the bags. She then places the saffron with the rest of her herbs. Once Bredenbent joins her, she rides out with him.

[Zaydos]

Astella

"Tell me why you attacked me. Tell me why you were standing over the body of that boy. Tell me what is going on here."

She waits, watching him, circling to stand closer to the boy, not so much threateningly as protectively.

"I could have killed you both in your sleep, so you will give me some straight answers. What was going on here?"

Possible Intimidate [roll0], and if it is at dis/advantage [roll1].

Also Astella may be almost ready to shoot them both.

[2D8HP]

Theren
AC: 15, HP: 4, Perception: 15

(http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119) After an hour's rest,
Short rest: [roll0]
Theren heads to Jenfield Circle.


The girl is indeed a wood elf.
Ignoring Theren's question, the girl runs to serve another table, then another, then another, disappearing into the crowd. In a minute, the girl returns to Theren with two glasses, one brandy and the other water.

She says, "Jenfeld Circle. Artisans' district. Outsider: Plenty of our kind live here. That will be five copper." When she receives the money she leaves, disappearing once again into the crowd.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran waits in silence for the other leaving parties to get far enough for him to easily sneak after the six pushing the carts, somewhat worried in his core. He couldn't stop thinking about the strangeness of that hooded man and what relations he could possibly have with Stran's Halfling target. Trickstone even knew about Goldtooth, which means Stran had limited time to get this info on the cargo before the jig was up. Someone had to warn the dwarf before he bit it, and while Stran wasn't his biggest fan, Goldtooth always gave him a good pay.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek - HP 7/7, AC 14, Perception 13

The halfling having ignore the card-player's (in Gell's mind, reasonable) instruction to back down, Gelećek began intoning a whispered curse to assist. He'd been fixating on the well-dressed man since he arrived in the bar, clearly aiding him was where the thread led.

He completed his spell and made a dash for cover, praying one of the didn't have a crossbow he missed.

-----
Cast Cantrip: Chill Touch, on the nearest cloaked man to me on my north-east.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
Crit: [roll2]

Spectral hand appears and grabs at his arm. If it hits, it remains attached until my next turn, preventing him from recovering hit points. If he is actually undead, he has disadvantage on attack rolls against me too.

If he is still standing or the spell misses, run left and duck behind the boxes. If he falls, run right to put some more distance between remaining combatants.

[nettle3305]

"Tell me why you attacked me. Tell me why you were standing over the body of that boy. Tell me what is going on here."

She waits, watching him, circling to stand closer to the boy, not so much threateningly as protectively.

"I could have killed you both in your sleep, so you will give me some straight answers. What was going on here?"

The manic man's eyes widen. "My boy," he whispers, "my boy."

"Still alive," says the other man in a bored voice. "Tell the nice lady what she wants to know."

"Yes... Yes." The manic man takes a deep breath. "We... We were travelin' to Borden. Sendin' my boy to a school. I don't know what overcame him. He took my knife and stabbed at the man accompanyin' us—" he points at the other man "—oh I tried to wrestle the knife from him, but—" his voice cracks "—my son, all my fault, all my fault. All YOUR fault!" With the last pronunciation he turns to the other man. (Insight check.) [roll0]

"What?" The other man's voice turns angry. "This is on you. You stabbed your own child. And now you're trying to cover for yourself!"

"You... You! You lured me!"

"This is—" begins the other man, outraged, but he is interrupted.

The boy behind Astella stirs. Despite his wounds, he immediately sits upright and gasps in pain. "What?" he says, looking around, confused. A glance down at his wounds causes him to wince. Then he looks up at Astella. "Army? Militia? No, you don't have the uniform. Who are you?" He struggles to his feet and backs off.

"My son, my son," says the manic man, moving towards the boy.

"Stay the hells back," says the boy.
Evodine and Bredenbent leave Lahn, crossing the river bridge on horseback, and head down the road in the direction of Borden. The sun is out, though obscured by sporadic clouds, and winds are strong and cool, if intermittent. The land leaving Lahn is hilly grasslands and light woods with a clear, flowing river running parallel to the road. Bredenbent occasionally stops at the banks to drink and refill his waterskin. Every now and then other travelers appear on the road, most in slow-moving and lightly-guarded caravans, but some alone or in small groups, the latter mostly represented by army or militia patrols. To all travelers Bredenbent shows courtesy, usually giving a small nod of acknowledgement and a quick greeting, but he also exhibits caution, always keeping himself and his horse out of striking distance.

If Evodine inquires, Bredenbent replies that Amsbaden Group couriers are lucrative targets, not for what they carry but what they know. For the same reason, many Group couriers are subject to kidnapping attempts: How much is one of the world's most powerful banks willing to pay for secrecy? In line with Bredenbent's concerns, he has a longbow and quiver strapped to his back, a shortsword hanging from his side, and is wearing leather armor.

Four uneventful hours pass.

The woods grow thicker and the river turns away from the road, disappearing into a clump of trees at the base of a distant mountain. Evodine sees cottages further down the road and between the trees. There are at most two dozen, with small adjoining gardens, mills, and wells. A village. Common folk and hunters mill about.

"This place has no name," says Bredenbent. "It's a hunting hamlet for locals and a rest stop for travelers. Stopping here is your call. I usually just ride past, but it won't impact our time, since I only intend to be on the road for four more hours anyhow—no cause to exhaust ourselves."
(You rolled HP wrong. It's [roll1].)

Theren attempts to leave The Rowdy Jester. The girl tugs his clothes and says, "You forgot to pay, sir. Or is there going to be trouble?"
(Stealth check.) [roll2]
Errich throws a dagger and strikes, then dives behind a crate. The card player gasps and clutches his wound.

Gelećek's spell hits the cloaked man. The cloaked man shudders as a wave of cold and pain washes over him. He looks frostbitten.

A cloaked man runs up to Errich to strike—

And a figure drops from the rafters, draws a shortsword midair, and strikes the cloaked man twice, landing nimbly on two feet. The cloaked man falls in a pool of his own blood; there is no doubt he is dead. Errich and Gelećek recognize the figure. It is the human man who came from the upper floor of The Barley and the Brew, and left in a hurry after the duo and the card player.

The man speaks calmly: "Halfling, go help our caster friend. I will handle our adversaries here. And I should like to speak to the both of you... After we take out the trash." He moves to the finely-dressed man's side. "You chose a poor location to make a stand."

The cloaked person Gelećek struck draws a scimitar and dashes between the crates in the wizard's direction.

The finely-dressed man laughs and says, "Well I was going to run, but I take it you're my contact? Then I will stay put and try not to get hurt." He ducks into a corner.

The finely-dressed man's companion with the greataxe runs to the card player, hopping over a crate, and swings twice. The card player dodges the first blow but steps into the second, which was a graze, but even a graze by a greataxe can have painful repercussions, as it does here.

The card player strikes back at the greataxe-wielder with a flurry of punches. Only one hits, but it looks painful, and the greataxe-wielder flinches.

Towards the back, cloaked figures draw their scimitars and light crossbows and dash into fray, attacking when possible. A bolt strikes the greataxe-wielder, followed by the graze of a scimitar. If either hit stung, it did not show. All shots aimed at the man who dropped from the rafters miss, unable to anticipate his quick movements.

One cloaked figure (in an orange diamond on Roll20) draws a light crossbow and fires at Errich. The bolt barely misses the halfling as he ducks behind a crate.

The man who dropped from the rafters pulls a light crossbow and shoots at one of the cloaked people also using a crossbow. He misses.

(It is once again Errich's turn, then Gelećek's.)
Lothzar tells Guhzunthite that he can scavenge for food, but not right now.

It might be possible to cut down a tree as a barricade, but one needs the right tools (and an Strength check).

Guhzunthite does not know if the group can outrun the approaching riders.

The road is not large, but the cart is small, so the riders should have no trouble circumventing any attempt at using the cart to blockade without stepping off the path.

[nettle3305]

Astella knows nothing more.
Quiet as a shadow, Stran follows the six and their carts, smoothly dipping into the shadows of alleys and between buildings periodically to maintain stealth. The six dockworkers and sailors do not spot him.

Strangely enough, their half-an-hour-long path leaves Eimsbek Ward and heads into a better lit and paved section of the harbor, with more reputable-looking ships and buildings and common folk wandering the streets at night. Stran has no trouble staying hidden.

The six stop in front of a respectable waterside building, apparently a warehouse, and open the front doors. They push the cart in, enter themselves, and shut the doors behind them. Moments later, the doors open and four walk out. Two wave goodbye and head down the street. One stands just outside the front doors and watches.

The building appears to consist of only one floor, but a quick look reveals no ground-floor openings besides the front doors and a backdoor, the latter of which is approachable without alerting the dockworker standing out front, but is otherwise locked. The steeply-sloped roof appears to have an opening facing the sea. The building is constructed out of logs on a stone foundation. The logs are pretty round and rough, so climbing should not be too difficult.

[Saint Jimmy]

I'm sorry, but I don't have access to a computer for a long time again so cannot access roll20. Because of that, I will have to leave some stuff up to you, and I apologize for it.

Erich follows the mans advice and moves to a clocked assassin and attacks, if possible one who is close to an ally to get sneak attack with his short sword, but not before tossing his other short sword to the finely dressed man.

Again, I'm very sorry for putting the added weight of moving my character and stuff for me, but I can't access a computer for at least twelve hours, so the time I would have to wait would cause too much of a wait for the other players.

Attack roll
[roll0]
Ad/disadvantage
[roll1]
Damage
[roll2]
Sneak attack (if used)
[roll3]

[Zaydos]

Astella

"Both of you stay the hell away from the boy," She says gesturing her crossbow threateningly at the two men. "I am the one with a crossbow who already had you both try and murder her in cold blood and who is quickly running out of patience, now I want actual answers, and I am going to get them from the one of you who has not actually tried to kill me today since I don't trust one piece of horse**** that spills out of your mouth. What kind of person needs an armed mercenary to send their child to school?" She half sighs, half growls, and then looks at the boy, "Can you tell me what happened?" Before he can answer, though, she looks at the other two with murder in her eyes, "One word from either of you before he has had his chance to finish telling his story and I will shoot you."

At this point she just assumes the mercenary is lying about things, and that the other confirmed it while acting a bit edgy and being told things by the mercenary before he has a chance to react assumes that it's a pre-worked out story... which isn't fully logical (the story would have to have been worked out assuming really weird conditions), but still taints the evidence.

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite groan, tell his lizardfolk teammate: " We need to scarm, full speed. Our horses are fresh from teh morning and we dont carry lots of cargo. I'll rather not trust people who are using this backwater road and avoid teh main road, not after they got robbed like this. If yuou have a way to attack at range, help me protect the back this group. "

Once he get teh approuval of his lizardfolk friend, he go see Ester: " Miss, we have to go, as soon as possible. We cant let those riders catch us. I wouldnt be taking any chance if I was you. Regroup everyone. Go with the food and the childrens in the wagon in the front. I'll be in the last wagon with my scaly fellow protecting our back."

he takes oen of the humans ration, not wasting his own. He plan to repay them once they arrive in the city anyway, especially if Ester prove herself to be... generous, without him asking for it.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran looks the building over from all angles, trying to think of the best way to sneak into it the warehouse and past the two that are still inside. Although...they might be tampering with whatever was in the box and he could sneak a quick peek from that window...

Stran made up his mind and decides to circle around the building and try climbing the jagged wall and take a look through the window, maybe even slip in if he coast is clear enough.

Stran is going to Climb that wall and climb it good with a spectacular [roll0].

[2D8HP]

Theren
AC: 15, HP: 11, Perception: 15 (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)
Theren attempts to leave The Rowdy Jester. The girl tugs his clothes and says, "You forgot to pay, sir. Or is there going to be trouble?" pays (if he didn't lose his coins to a pickpocket or in the fall), and gives an additional gold piece as a tip In Elvish:
I thank you for your care

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine listens to Bredenbent's narrative throughout the morning, nodding and responding in appropriate places. At one point she asks him, "If you're subject to being kidnapped...would I not be safer travelling on my own?"

As far as stopping in the small village she responds, "If we're in no hurry, I wouldn't mind spending a few minutes rummaging through the woods for a few herbs. I wouldn't require more than a quarter mark..."

If he agrees to pause, she'll do just what she said: Survival check for wild herbs: [roll0]
Investigation check to look in town: [roll1]

If he wants to push on, she'll look wistfully at the village, but agree to ride on.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek - HP 7/7, AC 14, Perception 13

Glad that he'd missed the man in the rafters (he'd been a bit worried for a moment about being outnumbered), Gelećek decided he didn't want to appear selfish in the aftermath; judging his closest opponent's speed, he decides the guy with the crossbow is the bigger immediate danger to himself and the Halfling. Grateful his spells reach further than a sword-blade he intones again and runs.

-----
Cast Cantip: Chill Touch on the guy in the orange diamond with the crossbow.

Attack: [roll0] :smallannoyed:
Damage: [roll1]
Crit: [roll2]

Spectral hand appears and grabs at his arm. If it hits, it remains attached until my next turn, preventing him from recovering hit points. If he is actually undead, he has disadvantage on attack rolls against me too.

Movement noted by green line. Again duck down behind a crate once I finish.

[nettle3305]

Having no time to toss the finely-dressed man a weapon (this would take an action), Errich runs to the crossbow-wielder and strikes with his shortsword. The sword goes deep and leaves a gaping wound. The crossbow-wielder looks to be in great pain.

Gelećek's cantrip, taking the form of a ghostly, disembodied hand, strikes a crate behind the crossbow-wielder. The hand disappears with a swirl and the crate looks worse for the wear.

The fight near the finely-dressed man intensifies, with crossbow bolts flying through the air and swords swinging in the mass of people. The cloaked figures attack the man, his companion greataxe-wielder, and the man who dropped from the rafters. The greataxe-wielder takes two hits from a sword but does not flinch. He brings his greataxe down upon the card player in a clean hit, splitting the card player's torso. The card player falls to the floor, motionless with blood pooling around him. In the meantime, the finely-dressed man ducks a scimitar and says, "I'm okay!"

The cloaked person with a scimitar who was dashing for Gelećek sees Errich strike the crossbow-wielder and decides instead to attack Errich. He runs, hopping over a crate, and swings for the halfling. He hits. (For [roll0] damage.)

The crossbow-wielder Errich attacked fires off a bolt in panic. It hits the ceiling and showers splinters on the floor. He then runs from Errich, who takes the opportunity to strike again. (Opportunity attack.) [roll1] [roll2]

"Both of you stay the hell away from the boy," She says gesturing her crossbow threateningly at the two men. "I am the one with a crossbow who already had you both try and murder her in cold blood and who is quickly running out of patience, now I want actual answers, and I am going to get them from the one of you who has not actually tried to kill me today since I don't trust one piece of horse**** that spills out of your mouth. What kind of person needs an armed mercenary to send their child to school?" She half sighs, half growls, and then looks at the boy, "Can you tell me what happened?" Before he can answer, though, she looks at the other two with murder in her eyes, "One word from either of you before he has had his chance to finish telling his story and I will shoot you."

The boy looks at Astella warily and says, "Well, I still don't know who you are, but what happened is these men were kidnapping me. Which is apparently fine with the town militia, being that one of the kidnappers is my pa."

The manic man looks as if he wants to interrupt, but he glances at crossbow pointed at him and decides to stay silent.

The boy continues. "Oh, I'm sure they fed you some tale of sending me to boarding school. They tried to get me to behave with that line. Dumb story. Do either of them look rich enough to pay for school? Plus the man's a Green Arrow, which means he's probably into slavery. I can put two and two together. So I did just that, grabbed my pa's knife when he wasn't looking, and stabbed the merc. My pa wrestled the knife from me 'cause he's a giant wimp who only takes on people half his size. Then I guess he decided I needed to be punished so he stabbed me. At least the Green Arrow has the sense not to damage their goods." The boy looks between his father and the Green Arrow member coolly. "I say you shoot the merc. He can make your life real hard if you leave him be, since Borden's corrupt to the core and Green Arrow's bought out most of its politicians. Either way... I don't know where you're going, Miss, but take me with you. I've had enough of this life."

Guhzunthite groan, tell his lizardfolk teammate: " We need to scarm, full speed. Our horses are fresh from teh morning and we dont carry lots of cargo. I'll rather not trust people who are using this backwater road and avoid teh main road, not after they got robbed like this. If yuou have a way to attack at range, help me protect the back this group. "

Once he get teh approuval of his lizardfolk friend, he go see Ester: " Miss, we have to go, as soon as possible. We cant let those riders catch us. I wouldnt be taking any chance if I was you. Regroup everyone. Go with the food and the childrens in the wagon in the front. I'll be in the last wagon with my scaly fellow protecting our back."

The group finishes packing within minutes and is ready to go. It splits, with Lothzar and Guhzunthite taking the back and the humans up front with their horse and cart. "We'll be a bit far up," says Esther to the two lizardfolk.

"I think perhaps we're overreacting," says Lothzar, "but no matter. It's usually smart to be safe."

The group leaves the road and enters the wet woodlands. The trees are dark and willowy and small ferns cover the ground. Bogs are plentiful and the driver is careful to pick a path on solid earth. Fortunately, his skill is more than sufficient for the task, and he manages to guide the horse and cart through the woods without much difficulty. After several dozen minutes, Guhzunthite can see dust swirl above the trail where the group camped.

An hour passes and there is no longer any indication of where the riders are. Lothzar believes that the group is not being followed. "We should head back to the road," he says, "lest we lose any more time wandering these wilds. Our pace has been slow thus far."
Stran scales the log walls and pulls himself onto the sloped roof. (Acrobatics check.) [roll3]

I thank you for your care

The girl takes the gold with a surprised gasp and replies in Elvish, "Thank you!"

Theren leaves The Rowdy Jester and searches for Jenfeld Circle. (Investigation check.) [roll4]

Evodine listens to Bredenbent's narrative throughout the morning, nodding and responding in appropriate places. At one point she asks him, "If you're subject to being kidnapped...would I not be safer travelling on my own?"

"Never said I was traveling with you for your sake," says Bredenbent with a small smile.


"If we're in no hurry, I wouldn't mind spending a few minutes rummaging through the woods for a few herbs. I wouldn't require more than a quarter mark..."

Bredenbent agrees to stop. He leads Evodine to one of the village's larger buildings and dismounts his horse by its walls. "This is their 'tavern'," he says. "When you're done you'll find me here."

Evodine finds half-a-pound of buckthorn while scavenging the nearby woods. Afterwards she returns to the village and looks for general information. Apparently times are not so great: Bears are getting aggressive and bandit raids have become more common. The local hunters feel that boars, their primary source of food and export, are becoming scarcer, and those they do find are unusually skittish. (Two Nature checks.) [roll5] [roll6] "Wish I were a mage," grumbles one hunter, "so I have some way of dealin' with strangeness such as this that isn't jus' me goin' to church and prayin'. But if I could pay for school, then I wouldn't have to hunt."

The village tavern is small and ramshackle. Its tables and chairs are either dirty, broken, or both, and its denizens are dressed in rags. Bredenbent is at a table speaking to the tavern keeper, a man just as grubby as his establishment. "Come now," says Bredenbent, "have I ever been anything but a friend?"

The tavern keeper shrugs. "You only come to me when you need something. And this time you're not even offering gold."

"Well, if it's gold you want..." Bredenbent pulls a gold coin from his belt pouch. "But you'll have to earn it. So I ask again, why are the caravans emptier than usual?"

"One of the traders told me it's 'cause they lost a mine down south." (Insight check.) [roll7]

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite sigh: " Better safe then sorry. We are guarding childrens and we are not on a well known road. Being careful is a priority. Beside, this road will still save us time, even if its only one day and a half of travel. Let's go. You can go scavenge some food for now for the time we get to return to the main road? By the time we do so, at least it would save us some of the rations we used. "

[nettle3305]

Errich's attack brings the crossbow-wielder down.

The man who dropped from the rafters dashes between the cloaked figures, striking in between blinks with his shortsword. He manages to badly injure the person attacking the finely-dressed man. His target staggers a bit, apparently able to weather the shock of his wounds, but suddenly collapses as though his heart just stopped.

(It is once again Errich's turn, then immediately after Gelećek's.)
Stran lightly walks upon the sloped roof with no difficulty and makes his way to the opening. Approaching, Stran sees an empty hallway with offices on either side. A closed door at the far end appears to lead to the main warehouse storage. Stran hears whistling from within one of the offices. A seaside shanty tune.
Theren manages to get directions to the Circle by asking around. He heads for his destination.

Jenfeld Circle is in the slums, with dark, narrow streets and grungy buildings. The denizens are wood elves, most in torn, dirty clothing, plying their trades in craft or artisan shops or selling food from carts. As Theren walks the streets, he sees an elf woman backed up against a wall, being harassed by two large human men. She is carrying a basket of linens.

"How 'bout you come with us, darling?" says a man. "You need a big, strong human to protect you." The other man snickers.

"P-Please," says the woman, "I want to go home."

The streets are quite crowded, but no one tries to intervene. Elves whisper among themselves, making noises of disgust or shame. Some look on the spectacle sadly, others angrily. Many just walk by quickly, averting their eyes.
Evodine believes the bears are aggressive for two reasons. One, they will be hibernating in a few months, so they are on the prowl for food. Lots of food. Two, if boar populations are reducing, then desperate bears will attack even humans, and less desperate ones will still approach human settlements to search for scraps.

With regards to boars, Evodine is reasonably certain that the current season, even with the bears, should not lead to the significantly lower populations that are being reported. Moreover, the skittish behaviors, as described by local hunters, are well outside of normal boar activity, indicating either an artificial cause or a change in environment.

Evodine is pretty sure the tavern keeper is making stuff up. Bredenbent seems to have caught on as well, sighing and putting the gold piece back in his pouch. "If you don't know, why lie to me? Either way, you're not getting anything."
"We will travel half as fast off the trail," said Lothzar, "but as we're currently here, I will try to forage." He leaves the group.

In an hour he returns with two dead marsh rabbits, a handful of some kind of red berry, and a filled waterskin. "Food," he says simply. "Now, do we return to the trail or not?"

[2D8HP]

Theren
AC: 15, HP: 11, Perception: 15 (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=980119)





Theren manages to get directions to the Circle by asking around. He heads for his destination.

Jenfeld Circle is in the slums, with dark, narrow streets and grungy buildings. The denizens are wood elves, most in torn, dirty clothing, plying their trades in craft or artisan shops or selling food from carts. As Theren walks the streets, he sees an elf woman backed up against a wall, being harassed by two large human men. She is carrying a basket of linens.

"How 'bout you come with us, darling?" says a man. "You need a big, strong human to protect you." The other man snickers.

"P-Please," says the woman, "I want to go home."

The streets are quite crowded, but no one tries to intervene. Elves whisper among themselves, making noises of disgust or shame. Some look on the spectacle sadly, others angrily. Many just walk by quickly, averting their eyes.
Arrow from Longbow to human head,
Initiative: [roll0]
Attack: [roll1]
Damage: [roll2]

[Emmerlaus]

Errich's attack brings the crossbow-wielder down.

The man who dropped from the rafters dashes between the cloaked figures, striking in between blinks with his shortsword. He manages to badly injure the person attacking the finely-dressed man. His target staggers a bit, apparently able to weather the shock of his wounds, but suddenly collapses as though his heart just stopped.

(It is once again Errich's turn, then immediately after Gelećek's.)
Stran lightly walks upon the sloped roof with no difficulty and makes his way to the opening. Approaching, Stran sees an empty hallway with offices on either side. A closed door at the far end appears to lead to the main warehouse storage. Stran hears whistling from within one of the offices. A seaside shanty tune.
Theren manages to get directions to the Circle by asking around. He heads for his destination.

Jenfeld Circle is in the slums, with dark, narrow streets and grungy buildings. The denizens are wood elves, most in torn, dirty clothing, plying their trades in craft or artisan shops or selling food from carts. As Theren walks the streets, he sees an elf woman backed up against a wall, being harassed by two large human men. She is carrying a basket of linens.

"How 'bout you come with us, darling?" says a man. "You need a big, strong human to protect you." The other man snickers.

"P-Please," says the woman, "I want to go home."

The streets are quite crowded, but no one tries to intervene. Elves whisper among themselves, making noises of disgust or shame. Some look on the spectacle sadly, others angrily. Many just walk by quickly, averting their eyes.
Evodine believes the bears are aggressive for two reasons. One, they will be hibernating in a few months, so they are on the prowl for food. Lots of food. Two, if boar populations are reducing, then desperate bears will attack even humans, and less desperate ones will still approach human settlements to search for scraps.

With regards to boars, Evodine is reasonably certain that the current season, even with the bears, should not lead to the significantly lower populations that are being reported. Moreover, the skittish behaviors, as described by local hunters, are well outside of normal boar activity, indicating either an artificial cause or a change in environment.

Evodine is pretty sure the tavern keeper is making stuff up. Bredenbent seems to have caught on as well, sighing and putting the gold piece back in his pouch. "If you don't know, why lie to me? Either way, you're not getting anything."
"We will travel half as fast off the trail," said Lothzar, "but as we're currently here, I will try to forage." He leaves the group.

In an hour he returns with two dead marsh rabbits, a handful of some kind of red berry, and a filled waterskin. "Food," he says simply. "Now, do we return to the trail or not?"


" Yeah, let's return on the trail. Then we can hurry along. With luck, we wont be meeting anyone else, this road isnt supposed to be used a lot."

He give the food to Ester and her folks with a smile: " That's for the breakfast this morning. It should make up for it. "

[Saint Jimmy]

So I know that Errich has both of his swords drawn, as drawing it would be action number three.

Erich's response to being hit is to cuss out the assassins.

"Fricking assassins! In my dutchy I had to deal with bastards like you, willing to kill good men for money all too much.


With that, he spins on his feet, smiling savagely as he attempts to plunge his twin blades into the torso of the man.
After that he tosses a blade to the finely dressed man after shouting for his attention, and picks up the assassins hand crossbow (if the assassin is dead)
Attack rolls
[roll0]
[roll1]
Damage
[roll2]
[roll3]

[Zaydos]

Astella

Looks at the two men. The boy's story makes sense. Theirs doesn't. You don't have a mercenary to take a child to school, even a problem one. Also they tried to kill her, after hiding in the bushes, if that doesn't read guilty nothing does. Without the boy's story she might have accepted something about magical compulsion, or some taint that touched their minds, and that might still be true, but if the mercenary is dangerous he's dangerous. Still she does try to get a gauge for the boy's trustworthiness, though if nothing reads amiss she shoots the mercenary without another moment of hesitation.

Insight [roll0]

Assuming nothing pings, attack on the mercenary [roll1] on a hit [roll2] and on a crit [roll3].

Also can I make a ... um History? Int? Some type of roll to see what she'd know about the Green Arrows? Int roll? [roll4].

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine walks in on the tail end of the conversation. "Thanks for stopping. I found enough Buckthorn to prevent heart pains for a year. I'm ready whenever you are." She pays the man behind the bar to refill her waterskin with clean water, and purchases a skin full of wine as well.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gelećek's divination training was that we can choose the action, but not the outcome, ergo his cantrip was always going to miss and it was his fault for not recognising that in advance and choosing another action.

That fact did not stop him quietly cursing out the assassin for it before throwing another.

-----
Cast Cantrip: Chill Touch on the assassin next to Errich (right of the dead crossbow diamond guy). If he is already dead from Errich's attack, cantrip goes to the top left assassin I put in a green square

Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
Crit: [roll2]

No movement this turn. Duck back down beside the crate after casting.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran slips into the hallway, keeping his step silent and his hearing sharp. He reaches down and pulls out his battleax with both hands, ready to strike at a moments notice. Stran slowly works his way down the hall, stopping at the room where the whistling is coming from, putting his ear up to the closed door, trying to determine how many people are in the room, and how close they are to the door.

Gotta stay sneaky with my Stealth roll of [roll0] and listen close with a Perception check of [roll1].

[nettle3305]

In a crowd of elves, Theren nocks an arrow and aims his bow at one of the humans without either human seeing him. The nearby elves, however, look at him with shock on their faces. Before anyone has a chance to react, he lets loose his arrow and strikes his target in the shoulder.

(Because Roll20 is allergic to splitting parties, we'll wait for the other concurrent encounter to resolve before moving onto yours. Alternatively, if you log on the same time I'm on at least once, then I can pull you onto a different map.)

" Yeah, let's return on the trail. Then we can hurry along. With luck, we wont be meeting anyone else, this road isnt supposed to be used a lot."

"Yes," says Lothzar, "I'm eager to be on our way."


" That's for the breakfast this morning. It should make up for it. "

Esther looks confused as she accepts the foraged food. "Breakfast this morning...?"

"Ah," says the cart driver, "he ate some of our stock. It looks like he's returning the favor. Fresh meat and fruits, what's more."

Within half-an-hour, the group is back on the dirt trail. The noon sun's beams fall through the woodland's canopy. (Perception check.) (Intelligence check.)
Errich misses his first attack but strikes a solid blow with his second. His sword cuts deep into the cloaked figure's side. The figure gasps in pain and staggers, blood streaming out from under his cloak and staining its fabrics. Gelećek's spell strikes before he could regain balance, reducing him to a crumpled, bloody heap on the ground.

The finely-dressed man picks up a scimitar from one of the fallen cloaked figures and yells, "Ha, ha! Back in the game!" He runs into the fray and attacks one of his companion's assailants. He misses, says, "Oops," and quickly backs up, but not before taking a glancing blow from the assailant. "Ow!"

Enraged, the companion executes a brutal swing at the assailant. The assailant avoids the worst of the attack, but still takes a painful hit to his side. He staggers.

The other cloaked figures continue their attacks. The man who dropped from the rafters takes a glancing hit from a scimitar but barely reacts. When his attacker backs up, he strikes his attacker cleanly, spilling blood on nearby crates. His attacker staggers back. The companion dodges an attack but is hit by another one. He shrugs off the blow and ducks a bolt flying by.

Errich is struck by a bolt. (The shooter is boxed in green. Errich takes [roll0] damage.)

The man who dropped from the rafters attempts to finish off the cloaked figure who attacked him. He draws his crossbow and shoots true, striking the figure on the hip. The figure drops to the floor, motionless.

(It is now Errich's turn, then immediately after Gelećek's.)
Astella's first bolt hits the mercenary. The mercenary cries in alarm, turns, and dashes away, dripping blood as he runs. He is still close enough for Astella to shoot at again twice. Afterwards, Astella either has to give chase or shoot past normal range.

The manic man is frozen with fear. The boy, on the other hand, gives Astella a curious look and says, "Well, you're certainly not Army. So who are you, again?"

Astella does not feel she has a good grasp on the boy. She knows nothing of the Green Arrow Mercenary Company.
Evodine's purchases come out to four silver.

In a moment, she and Bredenbent are back on the trail, the verdant woodlands rushing by. Day turns to noon, and noon to dusk, as the air grows cooler and the wind blows stronger. The trail is now in the thick of the woods, and even with the dusk light, Bredenbent had to light a lantern to see at all. Besides the trees rustling in the wind, it is quiet, with little in the way of small animal or insect sounds. Additionally, in the past four hours since leaving the hunting hamlet, Evodine and Bredenbent have only run into two other travelers. The second of the travelers was an Army messenger, who only paused briefly to give greetings before riding past.

In the dark of the woods, illuminated only by the lantern he carried, Bredenbent stops his horse and says, "Let's set camp. We've still a long ways to go and I do not wish to strain ourselves." He ties his horse to a tree and begins putting up his tent. The wind picks up in the meantime and begins to howl. "Lovely night," he says, shivering, "I think I'll leave my lantern out since I don't think we'll get a fire started. Cold food tonight!"
Stran soundlessly pulls himself over the opening, drops into the hallway, and inches up to the room with the whistling. The whistling only comes from one voice. He cannot hear anyone else.

[Zaydos]

Astella

She of course takes another shot at the fleeing man, moving after him at a regular pace as she does so. "A passerby," She says fairly flatly. After all that's all she had been when this happened. "Who didn't like being stabbed at, lied to, or having a weapon pointed at her."

Attack [roll0] to hit [roll1] damage [roll2] extra on a crit.

If I should go ahead and make the 2nd attack just in case [roll3] to hit [roll4] damage [roll5] on a crit.

[nettle3305]

Astella's first shot hits but the second misses. The man stumbles as he is hit, bleeding profusely, but continues to run. "Wow," says the boy, "he's pretty tough. I wonder if all cityfolk are like that."

The man is now beyond the normal range of Astella's crossbow. She can shoot twice more before the mercenary passes beyond her maximum range and is completely gone, or she can give chase. (Or, if she has another idea...)


"A passerby," She says fairly flatly. After all that's all she had been when this happened. "Who didn't like being stabbed at, lied to, or having a weapon pointed at her."

"Okay, Miss," says the boy, "I'm also not a fan of those things too. Um... No offense, lady, but he's getting away."

[Saint Jimmy]

Erich spits out a curse as the bolt bit into him. After feeling the blood where he was stabbed, he decides that it's better to play it safe for now. He sheaths both of his blades as he crouches, and picks up the fallen assassin's crossbow, and fires back at his attacker. He then quickly drops to the floor.


So I think that crouching to pick up the crossbow and sheathing the swords counts as one action, as he is doing the, at the exact same time, and dropping is a free action I believe. If not, please tell me so I can change my turn.
Attack roll:
Damage roll: [roll1]
EDIT
shoot I used the wrong damage die. Reroll here
ACTUAL DAMAGE: [roll]d6+3
Gosh darn it it still won't work. Oh well, the ten most likely won't hit.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gelećek continues his spell assault, popping up to throw another spectral hand before ducking down again and shuffling around to the other side of his crate.

-----
Cast Cantrip: Chill Touch on green square assassin with the crossbow. If Errich's attack drops him first, spell goes to the turquoise square assassin instead.

Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
Crit: [roll2]

Move along the green line (10ft) to the other side of the crate. Duck down again.

[Emmerlaus]

"Yes," says Lothzar, "I'm eager to be on our way."



Esther looks confused as she accepts the foraged food. "Breakfast this morning...?"

"Ah," says the cart driver, "he ate some of our stock. It looks like he's returning the favor. Fresh meat and fruits, what's more."

Within half-an-hour, the group is back on the dirt trail. The noon sun's beams fall through the woodland's canopy. (Perception check.) (Intelligence check.)

" Esther, do you know someone in Boden who could make me travel clotches? Or at least is selling clotches for lizardfolks? "

The lizardfolk try to do some light conversation with her while looking around, on guard...

I rolled a Perception roll of 15 and a Intelligence roll of 20 (total for both, critical hit on Intelligence check lol)

[Zaydos]

Astella

Takes one last shot at the man before glancing at the boy and saying, "If he's as dangerous as you say we better run after him." Then she takes off to give chase.

Attack [roll0] Disadvantage [roll1] Damage [roll2].

If he's within 120 ft still she'll just use eldritch blast (no range disadvantage) for [roll3] damage.

[DJCamWozzle]

' The whistler couldn't be to far from the door, right? ' Stran thought to himself. ' I mean, it'll sure be a surprise for me to flip the corner and knock him out with a clean swipe...yeah. ' Stran makes his decision, and chooses to turn on his toes quickly and rush the man with his axe, ready to use both arms to make this fight a one hit interaction.

Stran will quickly run at the man and try to knock him out with a single blow, rolling to hit with an Attack of 1d20+3 and the possible Damage being [roll0]

[nettle3305]

Astella fires off a beam of crackling energy which just grazes the mercenary's arm. The mercenary continues running, dripping blood on the trail. "Aw," says the boy, "well, if you're going to give chase, then so am I. I ain't sticking around here with the guy who tried to sell me off. Also: Damn, you can do magic, Miss? Can you teach me? Later, I mean." The manic man is still frozen with fear, though his stare seems to have turned from Astella's crossbow to the wielder herself.

Astella dashes after the mercenary, followed closely behind by the boy. The mercenary turns a sharp right and heads into the woods, which are sparse enough to see through easily, but are on rocky, hilly terrain with ravines and nettle aplenty.

The mercenary dashes up a hill, still dripping blood as he goes, and jumps a ravine. He barely clears the gap and lands on a small patch of nettle which brushes his lower legs. Swearing and cursing, he continues to run, apparently unabated.

Astella can cross the ravine by jumping (Athletics check) or balancing on a fallen tree (Acrobatics check).
The attacker quickly ducks Errich's bolt but is hit squarely by Gelećek's spell. He yelps as the necrotic energy seeps into his side.

The finely-dressed man charges once again at the assailant he had previously tried to attack, swinging more cleanly this time and slashing a gaping wound in the assailant's torso. The assailant crumples to the floor. The man's companion roars a battle cry and swings at his remaining assailant, instantly reducing his target to a bloody heap on the ground.

The two remaining cloaked figures see their fallen friends and dash for the exits nearest them. The man who dropped from the rafters fires a bolt at one headed for the back entrance, but misses, the bolt striking instead the door frame next to the fleeing figure's head. Without missing a beat, the man sheaths his sword, straps his crossbow to his belt, and says, "So it's done. So much for an ambush."

(It is now Errich and Gelećek's turn. The only thing that remains is to take shots at the fleeing cloaked figures, then combat ends. Alternatively, if you don't plan on doing that, then combat just ends right now.)

" Esther, do you know someone in Boden who could make me travel clotches? Or at least is selling clotches for lizardfolks? "

"No doubt," says Esther, "there are some retailers who routinely stock clothes for lizardfolk. Borden is a large and diverse enough city that I should expect it. But off the top of my head I know of none who do so. If you have coin to drop, there are two exceptional tailors I know of who can no doubt fit anything on anyone. One is on retainer for an establishment called Belia's Rest in the Nobles' Quarter. He's an older gnome, goes by Wredon. Gentle, likes to listen, loves his craft. I admire him. The other is in the Artisans' District. She owns a shop called The Argent Couture and goes by Ilsevel. Stunningly beautiful elf, very sharp and intelligent about her work. As I recall, the Queen herself had Ilsevel on retainer for a while, which speaks for her skill and talent."

Guhzunthite spots the hoof-prints left by the riders the group avoided earlier. There are eight unique prints in all, and all eight seem to be wearing horseshoes—and quality horseshoes at that. It is unlikely that any mean bandit would use precious metal on their horses, and significantly more unlikely that they would have anyone who can professionally fit horseshoes, which is what the prints indicate. This meant the horses were either military-bred or show horses. The former seems more likely given the locale.
Stran quickly dashes into the room. He sees on one side a desk, a stack of papers, and a sailor sitting behind the desk. On the other side he sees shelves filled with souvenirs and framed paintings, the former an odd assortment of mostly figurines and statuettes, the latter mostly depicting coastal city landscapes. The sailor is reclining on his chair, reading some document, and whistling a sea shanty.

Stran steps around the desk and hits the sailor. The sailor yelps, stands, clutches his bleeding wound, and staggers back. His papers fall to the floor. Cargo manifests.

"Ow!" says the sailor. "What is this, a robbery? I have nothing valuable."

(Roll for initiative if you plan on continuing the attack.)

[Zaydos]

Astella

Doesn't answer the boy at the moment, except with a curt, "Run don't talk." She sprints after the mercenary, trying to balance her way across the beam as she follows him. He fell to her sleep spell, but he was wounded and the rest... still she felt certain one more good shot should do him in if she could just get the chance.

Acrobatics [roll0]

[Emmerlaus]

The lizardfolk point out: " Thanks for the information. Although I think that elf you mention might be too high class for my current need. I like to look good but as a adventurer, I cant afford expensive good looking outfits, especially if they are gonna be milled down a lot on the roads. "

He point up ahead:

" And oh, It looks like I was too careful earlier. Look, those hoofprints a bit further... Their probably from teh group we dodged this morning. There are eight unique prints in all, and all eight seem to be wearing horseshoes—and quality horseshoes at that. It is unlikely that any mean bandit would use precious metal on their horses, and significantly more unlikely that they would have anyone who can professionally fit horseshoes, which is what the prints indicate. This meant the horses were either military-bred or show horses. The former seems more likely given the locale. "

He tried to impress her with his deduction skills.

Rolled 18 for a Persuasion check to impress her with my intelligence

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Gelećek throws a final spell at the assassin fleeing past him. Once the dust settles and assuming nobody else attacks (and the three don't suddenly turn on Errich or him) he will pop his head out again and walk around the crates, cleaning himself off as he goes.

Well that was intense, glad I got to experience it. You know. From a distance.

Whilst quite glad he hadn't ended up bleeding all over the place like everyone else, Gelećek had apparently walked into a political thriller story and kept a clear line between him and the south exit to dash through if anyone else suddenly popped up.

-----
Cast Cantrip: Chill Touch on fleeing green square assassin.
Attack: [roll]d20+5[roll]
Damage: [roll0]
Crit: [roll1]

Cast Cantrip: Prestidigitation to clean my clothes and self.

If there's a light crossbow going spare at some point from a defeated opponent, he'll snag it. Obviously any generally acceptable looting for cash and supplies would also be good. But only if it's not going to get me shot.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

-----
Attack: [roll0]

Let try that again.

[DJCamWozzle]

Stran holds his axe up, ready to strike at a moments notice. "You cooperate, you live. Tell me everything you know about the cargo aboard the Red Jailer and why it's so important to Thorn Trickstone."

[nettle3305]

Astella loses her balance and falls into the ravine (for [roll0] damage). She tumbles down rock and bushes and lands in the shallow stream below. Above, she sees the boy attempt to jump the gap. His foot catches on a rock and he falls as well, tumbling down the steep terrain into a bush. He emerges from the bush with a few scratches and cuts, which pale in comparison to his still-visible knife wounds. He looks a bit dazed from his plummet.

"Uh..." says the boy incoherently.

The mercenary is now long gone, but Astella can still attempt to track him (Survival check).

" Thanks for the information. Although I think that elf you mention might be too high class for my current need. I like to look good but as a adventurer, I cant afford expensive good looking outfits, especially if they are gonna be milled down a lot on the roads. "

Esther shrugs. "That's fair. I myself can't afford that lifestyle, though I've had the pleasure of having tea with Ilsevel twice. Perks of working for a bank, I suppose. Definitely consider Wredon at Belia's Rest, though; he tailored my dress clothes, and they've served me well through several years of stately dinners and meetings with officials."


" And oh, It looks like I was too careful earlier. Look, those hoofprints a bit further... Their probably from teh group we dodged this morning. There are eight unique prints in all, and all eight seem to be wearing horseshoes—and quality horseshoes at that. It is unlikely that any mean bandit would use precious metal on their horses, and significantly more unlikely that they would have anyone who can professionally fit horseshoes, which is what the prints indicate. This meant the horses were either military-bred or show horses. The former seems more likely given the locale. "

"Sharp eye," says Esther, "though if it was military, then I'd say leaving the road was an error."

Lothzar shakes his head. "Why do they come? Arashk has always been friendly to non-lizardfolk." He looks down the road with worry.

"Might be too late to do anything," says the cart driver. "Should we keep going?"
The figure is struck by Gelećek's spell. He stumbles, but keeps running.
(Intimidation check with advantage.) [roll1] [roll2]

[Emmerlaus]

Guhzunthite shake his head: " We have a timed mission here anyway. We need to get to Borden as soon as possible to not take too much rations on our way back. Beside, even if it was a error, I don't regret it. They COULD be performers on the road, what I said was only a assumption. So let's just continue our journey. Im a lizardfolk of my words so I WILL bring this cargo back to Borden as soon as possible! If anything, us lizardfolk can hide in the waggon."

He then take out the medallion of her late husband, give it back to her after a moment of thinking: " Hummm... I figure I can let you have it for now, at least until we reach Borden. If we get seperated or we are killed protecting this wagon, I would hate for you to get seperated from it permanently. Count it as a show of trust. "

[Zaydos]

Astella

At this point she's committed. The man is a threat, whatever a threat he is he is now more of one if he gets away. She has to follow after him. She attempts to follow the tracks.

Survival [roll0]

[Saint Jimmy]

The first thing Errich does is retrieve his dagger, and wipe the blood off of it and his swords on the clothes of the fallen assassins. He then picks up a crossbow (a hand one if there is one) and some bolts for it. He then walks over to the targets of the ambush and introduces himself.


My name is Duke Alejandro Desafios. I hail from lands far away, and I am visiting your great cities. However, in my land..."events" like those that have just transpired are all too common. Because of that, I was raised from an early age to recognize them, given my position. I saw that this was happening, and decided to give chase, as assassins are generally not working for the best sorts of people. Based off of that, I could assume that the ones they were targeting would be of opposite character. Am I correct in that assumption?

[Fishybugs]

Evodine Sildacin (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=982930), Initiate of the Order of the Griffon

Evodine looks around the area and nods. "It looks like a good spot." She helps to make a small camp, then brushes out Countess. "I'll probably look around the woods a bit before it gets dark if you don't mind. I can take first watch as well."

Nature check to find herbs: [roll0]
Insight roll to see if I think I need to sleep with one eye open around Bredenbent: [roll1]

[nettle3305]

" We have a timed mission here anyway. We need to get to Borden as soon as possible to not take too much rations on our way back. Beside, even if it was a error, I don't regret it. They COULD be performers on the road, what I said was only a assumption. So let's just continue our journey. Im a lizardfolk of my words so I WILL bring this cargo back to Borden as soon as possible! If anything, us lizardfolk can hide in the waggon."

"This is so," says Lothzar. "Let's be on our way."


He then take out the medallion of her late husband, give it back to her after a moment of thinking: " Hummm... I figure I can let you have it for now, at least until we reach Borden. If we get seperated or we are killed protecting this wagon, I would hate for you to get seperated from it permanently. Count it as a show of trust. "

"Thank you," says Esther, accepting the pendant, "I appreciate your trust, though a life is a life, and a trinket is but a trinket. If people are to die, I assure you this pendant will be the last thing on my mind."

The group continues their journey through the marsh woodlands for three hours, in suffocating humidity and swarmed by midges. The hot noon sun begins to dip on the fourth hour of travel, and the group emerges onto windswept plains with vast, golden fields of wild wheat, leaving behind the heat and insects. The trail has thus far been devoid of any life but squirrels, rabbits, and the occasional fish in nearby rivers. By the fifth hour dusk has come, and the sun, its lower half below the horizon, casts streaks of brilliant orange across the dark blue sky. In the distance, silhouetted against the sun and sky, is a watermill by some rapids. The watermill is surrounded by no more than a dozen cottages. The sound of the fast-flowing rapid waters mingles with the rustling of the wheat fields in the strong wind. The hamlet's evening lanterns are lit, small flecks of warm light dancing about the horizon.

"A place to say," says Lothzar, "for which I am thankful. This path is wilder than I am accustomed to, but it is good to see some semblance of civilization."

"I'm just glad to be out of the marshes," says the cart driver with a sigh. "Seriously, that place can go burn itself to the ground for all I care. No offense to our hosts, of course, but I've had enough midges in my mouth for a lifetime."

"Ho, ho," says Lothzar with a chuckle. "City boy."
Astella and the boy, the latter still too dazed to speak or do anything coherent, find a gentle slope out of the ravine a little further down, and continue their pursuit. It is not hard to follow a trail of blood, and indeed, Astella finds the path marked by red-stained ferns and earth. She and the boy spend the next ten minutes hiking through the hilly woodlands. As they come over the crest of a rocky mound, they look down upon a small river valley. In the middle lies the body of the mercenary, motionless and blood everywhere, surrounded by three black bears. The bears look up at Astella and the boy and roar.
The fleeing cloaked figures make their escape.

The man who dropped from the rafters searches the card player's body. He retrieves a sealed letter and a pouch of coins. He leaves on the body a playing card set. The finely-dressed man and his companion do not bother any bodies, and instead chat.

"Did you see that?" says the finely-dressed man. "Hooligans don't respect anything these days."

"Sure thing, boss," says his companion.

As for the other bodies, between Errich & Gelećek, they find five coin pouches, the amount within totaling to ten gold, forty-five silver, and seven copper. Additionally, they find three light crossbows, three daggers, five scimitars, seven sets of traveler clothes, seven sets of leather armor, two sets of thieves' tools, a crowbar, a hooded lantern, two flasks of oil, two days of rations, three waterskins, and a hundred feet of hempen rope.


Well that was intense, glad I got to experience it. You know. From a distance.

"I'm glad you both made it," says the man from the rafters, approaching Errich and Gelećek, "if only so I can ask you why you followed us here from the bar, then lent us your assistance in the ensuing battle."


My name is Duke Alejandro Desafios. I hail from lands far away, and I am visiting your great cities. However, in my land..."events" like those that have just transpired are all too common. Because of that, I was raised from an early age to recognize them, given my position. I saw that this was happening, and decided to give chase, as assassins are generally not working for the best sorts of people. Based off of that, I could assume that the ones they were targeting would be of opposite character. Am I correct in that assumption?


(Deception check.) [roll0]
The powerful wind blows through the woods, drowning out all noises but the rustling of countless trees, and flinging about Bredenbent's lantern, which is tied to a branch. The shadows cast by the lantern's flickering lights expand and diminish rapidly and violently, almost life-like, and the tents protest loudly the weather they were erected in, their flaps banging against their frames.

Evodine cannot light any of her torches in this weather, try as she might. If she wanders into the woods without a light source, she will be entirely in the dark. Nonetheless, she manages to find a patch of floral ferns near the campsite, illuminated periodically by the swinging lantern.
(We'll wait on Theren's combat to end before getting to your encounter.)
(Go to the Roll20. It's Theren's turn. The ruffian he just surprise attacked is marked with a blue square.)

[nettle3305]

My name is Duke Alejandro Desafios. I hail from lands far away, and I am visiting your great cities. However, in my land..."events" like those that have just transpired are all too common. Because of that, I was raised from an early age to recognize them, given my position. I saw that this was happening, and decided to give chase, as assassins are generally not working for the best sorts of people. Based off of that, I could assume that the ones they were targeting would be of opposite character. Am I correct in that assumption?

"That depends on your view of morality," says the man from the rafters, "but, in any case, nice to meet you, Duke Desafios." He smiles sardonically, then turns to Gelećek. "And who might you be?"

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

A lovely Elven woman told me the Duke had people who could translate for me. Your friend with the silk shirt and expensive bodyguard there seemed like my best bet. But apparently I was following the wrong path with another Duke in my midst the entire time.

He nods towards the Halfling respectfully, without it turning into a full bow.

As for aiding in battle, after His Grace escalated the situation I was left with little choice if I wanted to speak to you without the assistance of a necromancer.

-----
Not sure what Errich's deception goes up against, but if it's a dice roll let me know. Gelećek's action won't change regardless of outcome.

5gp, 22sp, 4cp, light crossbow, all scimitars, 1 hooded lantern, 1 flask of oil, all rations & water (Alejandro is a Duke after all, what does he need with meager provisions) and 50ft of rope claimed. Unless Saint Jimmy wants to oppose any of my claims.

That said, if His Grace is above looting the bodies in order to maintain his cover, I'll also take anything he doesn't. Some of us live hand to mouth.

[Saint Jimmy]

Gosh darn it that cover is now frustrating me. It would look really bad if I looted the bodies... Oh well, I still take the crossbow. If anyone asks it's because obviously Alejandro is hurt and if the assassins or anyone tries to take revenge he won't have to get in range of a blade.

He also adds,

I apologize if it was unwise of me to escalate the situation. It appeared that those men were out for blood. If my choice was indeed unwise, I ask for your forgiveness.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

Being unharmed I admit I might seem flippant, but debating the wisdom of your actions won't change them in hindsight Your Grace. So why concern yourself further?

That said, I might consider heading to a healer before anyone in your entourage.

-----
Sounds to me like Errich/Alejandro is giving up everything except the crossbow and bolts. In which case Gelećek takes anything that's not nailed down, and a chip from the damaged crate he hit with his second spell - he then ties it to his Wand as a reminder of his poor foresight.

[Zaydos]

Astella

She has absolutely no desire to fight a group of bears over the man's corpse, so simply shrugs and turns to the boy. "We should make our way back to where we let your father, and should he still remain there what is it you want to do with him?" The man had tried to sell his own son into slavery, it was fitting the boy would have the right to choose his fate if it was still possible.

[Kobold-Bard]

Gelećek

-----
Insight vs. Errich/Alejandro's Deception (19): [roll0]

Edit: Fail. Gelećek believes Alejandro is a Duke and is a little bit worried about being imprisoned at some point for offending him.

Even though offending him was obviously pre-destined. As all things are. That still doesn't make the idea of prison any more palatable.

[Saint Jimmy]

Feeling a little guilty for how he obviously worried the man, yet finding it humorous, Errich laughs and says

Yes, that would be a good course of action. Thank you for that advice.

He then turns to the finely dressed man and his bodyguard and says


If it is not too much I ask why those assassins were pursuing you?

If they are offended he apologizes, saying that he does not know the customs of the land here very well.