Shipwrecked! Exploration "Writer's Guild"

[smartaleq]

This is the IC/OOC thread for exploration in week 3 of Shipwrecked!

Our merry band of skillful non-adventurers will set off in search of civilized life. With no better trail to start on, we will first ascend the cliffs to gain a better vantage. As we are the first group to explore the cliffs, we will leave behind the necessary ropes and other affordances so later non-climbing groups can follow our footsteps.

- Preparation leadership and goals provided by Gil
- On the spot leadership by Maria, the most familiar with these woods

Our marching order is Epswitch (Climb+2, Use Rope+1) - Gil(Climb+0, Use Rope+7) - Maria(Climb+1, Use Rope+3) - Elias(Climb+1, Use Rope+2) - Roostin(Climb+0, Use Rope+5)

Standard practice is for our ascent:
-Epswitch decides how to best get up
-Epswitch climbs, with rope tied to him and rest of group
-Epswitch checks out area, relays information, looks for place to tie rope
-If he can tie rope, he does so, Gil climbs - reties, Roostin secures rope for future climbers rest of group climbs up, repeat.
-If no place to tie rope, Roostin climbs next, then those two pull up Maria, Gil, and lastly Elias

Whenever we get to a stopping point, Roostin will Spot+4, and Elias will Search+4, Maria will Survival+4 for usable plants

Once we see some sign of a trail or outside civilization, we will change plans/marching order/etc.

[jagadaishio]

Maria will also make a point of noting any caves which would be viable for even a small group to live in.

[Fisher]

Elias
Jogging slowly towards the departing group, Elias barely catches the four before they leave.

"Hey guys, I heard your going up towards the cliffs to search. Mind if I tag along?"

Slung over one shoulder is his backpack, a constant companion over the past few weeks. In one hand he holds a lantern while the other carries a simple walking stick fashioned from a fallen branch. He had hastily gathered several supplies to assist the search amongst the islands northern cliffs.


Supplies on person for the trip:
-Backpack
-Rope, 50ft
-Lamp, Common
-Oil, 1 Pint
-Flint and Steel
-Empty Flask x2
-Shortspear

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

{{ Oh, sure, put the little one in front. I hope y'all like walking slow. }}

Epswitch, having not particular object to Elias, says, "Of course not. There is safety in numbers."

As the team prepares to move out, Epswitch says, "I do have these 4 ten foot long ladders. I'm not sure if they'll be useful, but maybe we should bring one or two. They are really awkward to carry... but really useful for getting at chicken nests. They might help us with the cliffs."

As the team begins the long march to the cliff, Epswitch's thoughts dwell on his chickens.... I hope Larry is taking good care of them

Gear :

Padded Armor
Sling+bullets
Backpack
Hammer
Knife
Rope
Ladders?

[TwoCents]

Roostin

Burdened with all the ropes he could collect from Imbrallius for this task, Roostin picked up his makeshift pack and took his place at the rear of the line. "Y'all don't rush now, cause all this dang stuff Ah'm carrying is slowing me down."

Climb +0, Use Rope +5, Spot +4, Listen +4

Gear:
block & tackle
grapple hook
all the rope he could cadge from the group stores
enough spare canvas to rig a bosun's chair
flint & steel
2 candles
knife
spear
bosun's whistle

[storyteller]

Epswitch takes point and you begin your march to the cliff. After a long walk through the forest, you notice that the trees become sparser and the terrain gets rocky and uneven - you're close to your destination.

You reach the tree line, and you can see the cliff looming ahead, rising 100 feet above sea level. The cliff face continues to the northwest.

OOC:

If you want to try climbing here, Epswitch must make three DC 15 Climb checks to reach the top of the cliff (at 20', 50', and 70'). Failing by 5 or more means that you fall and take falling damage (2d6, 5d6 or 7d6).

Of course, you can follow the cliff face to the northwest and try to find an easier place to make the climb, or improvise somehow to lower the DC.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

{{ No problem walking slow. I can only do 20 and I might also be encumbered, so maybe only 15 }}

Finally having arrived at the cliffs of insanity, Epswitch looks up the massive cliff face that is more than 25 times his height. Epswitch lets out a whistle and says, "That is one big cliff. So.. what do think? Should we walk around to the left or to the right?"

[storyteller]

OOC: To give you an idea of what the cliff might look like from the perspective of a dragon hovering 120 feet above the sea: link (http://www.thisfabtrek.com/journey/africa/morocco/20050729-tan-tan/cliff-lr-4.jpg)

Ignore the vehicle.

[smartaleq]

Communicating in the traditional manner: "Perhaps we need not be discouraged, Maria should have pitons in her pack, and the four of us could stand below Epswitch with a cargo net taut to catch him if he falls. But it does not hurt to look for a better place to ascend."

[jagadaishio]

"I would rather not risk any of our lives until we must," says Maria. "Let's look around first."

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch nods at the woman and looks up at the others, with what would be a big puppy dog expression, if he weren't so bad at it and so darn ugly. Finally he says, "I agree, we can always come back to these cliffs if we don't find anything better. Its not like they are going anywhere."

[smartaleq]

Gil will defer to Maria's judgment and will follow as the group heads northwest along the cliff.

[storyteller]

A few hundred feet to the northwest, you find another place suitable for climbing. Here it takes two DC 15 Climb checks to make it to the top: one at 30' and another at 60'. Better yet, halfway up the cliff face there's a ledge wide enough to rest on between the climb attempts. You also notice small openings in the wall just above the ledge. Maybe natural caves?

[smartaleq]

Gil shrugs and points to the ledge, "Ep?"

If we decide to go here, I will again get out my cargo net to hold as a cradle beneath the climber.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

The little man looks up at the massive cliff, still more than 20 times his height. "I think that is a cave. Maybe we'll be able to throw up a lasso and get it to snag on a ledge or a rock. I don't weigh much, so it wouldn't need to be a very big rock. I could probably get up there, but it'd be better if I could make use of the rope while climbing." Epswitch takes a couple minutes to scan the area looking for a rock, ledge, or jut that we might be able to get the rope attached to or looped over from the ground.

(( Take 20 on spot ))

[Fisher]

Elias
Looking upwards toward the cliff ledge, Elias wondered if those were really caves. From here it could be a trick of the light. Shrugging nonchalantly, he begins to unpack his supplies.

Strange, these cliffs remind me of a story I heard somewhere. I wonder...


Spot Check (+2): [roll0]
Search Check (+4): Take 20 while Epswitch climbs.
Looking for signs of impact from above or that something heavy was dragged away.

[jagadaishio]

Maria gives Epswitch her pitons so that he can fasten more permanent rope once her gets to the top or use them to aid his climbing. "Be careful when you climb."

[storyteller]

Ep spots a number of places to throw a lasso to get the rope attached.

OOC: We'll use the same rules as for securing a grappling hook. There are many rocks, juts, etc, so just tell me how high up the wall you try to throw the lasso; this determines the DC. Max. height is 50' as per the Use Rope skill. You cannot take 10 or 20.

Elias finds no tracks of the sort Fisher described.


Epswitch

The little man looks up at the massive cliff, still more than 20 times his height. "I think that is a cave. Maybe we'll be able to throw up a lasso and get it to snag on a ledge or a rock. I don't weigh much, so it wouldn't need to be a very big rock. I could probably get up there, but it'd be better if I could make use of the rope while climbing." Epswitch takes a couple minutes to scan the area looking for a rock, ledge, or jut that we might be able to get the rope attached to or looped over from the ground.

(( Take 20 on spot ))

[lawful_evil]

{{ OOC: Actually, I was talking about throwing the rope up and over something, not really trying to attach it with a lasso type action(although I used that word). I was thinking more like tying a the rope to a small rock and then throwing the rock up and over a fairly low ledge/outcrop/etc. We'd then have both ends of the rope with it draped over the part on the cliff. It couldn't come loose and we could easily pull it down if needed(by releasing one end.) }}

[smartaleq]

Looking carefully up the cliff face, Gil decides that throwing the rope high enough to make a significant difference is unlikely. Even so, He'll make an attempt at grabbing on to something halfway to the ledge, at about 30'.

[roll0] +6 use rope, +1 dex, -1str (if it plays a part)

[storyteller]

Gil successfully throws a lasso around a protruding piece of rock at 30' on the cliff face. (Use Rope is Dex-based, so I guess your result was 17?)

You'll still have to make a DC 15 climb check at 30', but at least you can use pitons to better secure the rope and maybe some special knots so that Ep won't fall all the way down and take 3d6 damage if he fails. Once you've made the check, you can tie the rope around something on the ledge so that the rest of your group can climb up easily.

[jagadaishio]

Gil successfully throws a lasso around a protruding piece of rock at 30' on the cliff face. (Use Rope is Dex-based, so I guess your result was 17?)

You'll still have to make a DC 15 climb check at 30', but at least you can use pitons to better secure the rope and maybe some special knots so that Ep won't fall all the way down and take 3d6 damage if he fails. Once you've made the check, you can tie the rope around something on the ledge so that the rest of your group can climb up easily.

According to the SRD, "A rope with a wall to brace against, or a knotted rope, or a rope affected by the rope trick spell" is a DC 5 check, and I'm not sure what this is if not a rope with a wall to brace yourself against.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch says, "Good throw." Epswitch secures his hammer and a couple pitons and walks up to the face of the cliff and grasps the rope. He then says, "So.. how do these pitons keep me from falling? Am I just supposed to climb up to the ledge, attach a piton and then transfer the rope to the piton?"

Epswitch pauses and looks at the various pitons and rope trying to puzzle out how to use the pitons and rope to keep himself from falling(much). After a while he says, "Uh... I've never really used this stuff before. What exactly do I do?"

{{ A rope with a wall to brace against.. DC 5. Can I just take a 10? }}

[TwoCents]

Roostin

RL: Sorry I didn't get back sooner, but between computer troubles, AOL trouble, and the site issues, it's been an interesting few days.

OOC: We have a grappling hook...and a block & tackle.

Roostin waited at the foot of the cliff, keeping Epswitch's line cleared and prepared to belay as needed. He stood ready to grab his assigned end of the safety net in case of any sudden emergencies.

[storyteller]

OOC: I required you to make a DC 15 check at 30' so that you can advance up from that height, because the Climb DC of the wall is 15 above 30'. Now the rope is looped around a piece of rock at 30', i.e. the DC is now 5 (instead of 10) below 30'. This is what I meant, see the difference?

(According to the SRD, "With a successful Climb check, you can advance up, down, or across a slope, a wall, or some other steep incline (or even a ceiling with handholds) at one-quarter your normal speed." In other words, you make the check against the DC of the wall "square" you're about to enter, not the one you're leaving. I know, nitpicking.)

Anyway, if Gil ties a few knots that prevent Ep from falling too fast and someone tells him how to use pitons, I won't require you to make the Climb check. Just RP it.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

After a moment Epswitch says, "Well we have more rope, right? I'll climb up till I have a place to stand on the ledge and then lasso something up even higher, just like Gil did here."

Epswitch takes the rope and puts a few knots in it, then makes the lasso so he has it handy one he gets to the ledge.

[roll0] Climb to the ledge at the top of the rope. (not sure if I need the roll, but it doesn't hurt)

Attach a piton to the stone. Transfer the lasso from the stone to the piton.

[roll1]Lasso the top(another 30 feet).
[roll2]If the lasso falls(miss by 1-4), try again

Don't climb yet, but tie the bottom of the new rope to the piton as well(that way if the top lets loose, at least the bottom is attached and I don't fall really really far)

[roll3]Climb up to the top (again, not sure if I need it given the wall and knotted rope).

[lawful_evil]

Gosh, I really hope Epswitch didn't need that last climb roll...

At least I managed to lasso the top!

[storyteller]

Epswitch makes it to the top! From the top, the cliff looks like a long, rocky ridge. The cliff top is fairly level. The highest point is 100 feet above sea level, and looks much like the cliff in the photo I posted earlier.

The view is magnificent - blue sea, green hills, dark green forest and white sand.

Ep looks around, trying to detect any signs of civilization on the cliff top or the surrounding area, but no, no buildings, ships or anything.

Map updated:


??????????????
????????????*-
???????????**-
???????^??*tt-
??????^^^ttt.-
???????^ttt.--
??????ttttt.--
??????tttt^---
?????ttttt^---
????ttttttt^--
---.tttttt.---
----.tttt.----
-----..tt.----
-------..-----
--------------

^ cliffs or hills
* marsh
? unknown; "fog of war"

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch looks around and around and around. He then calls down, "I don't really see much. Anyone have anything to make a map on? Bark and sharp stone maybe?"

Epswitch steps away from the edge to make sure he isn't accidentally pushed off a sudden wind.

[smartaleq]

OOC: can we all climb up those ropes? DC? what would we need to do to secure these ropes so others can follow?

[storyteller]

OOC: with ropes the DC is 5, so you don't even have to roll. You can secure the ropes with pitons, for example.

[jagadaishio]

Maria calls up to Epswitch, "Are there caves up there?"

[lawful_evil]

{{ So.. I'm a bit confused... Where on the map are we? How did we approach the cliffs from the bottom and still approach from the inland side? Wouldn't that mean that the ocean was lapping at the top of the cliffs?

I assume that "t" on the map means 'forest' or 'tree covered'?

Where on the map would the pond and/or the original beach landing be?

It seems like, from the map, that we could have approached these cliffs from either side by just walking around(unless this is like a plateau or something). I'm wondering why Epswitch risked his life to get to the top.

Not sure if there are any caves, but you didn't say anything about them, so I'll answer no.
}}


Epswitch

Epswitch looks around again to make sure and then says, "No. No caves. No nothing. No villages, no cities, no smoke trails rising from the forest or anything that suggests intelligent life."

{{ Take a 20 on a spot check to look around. }}

[storyteller]

I mentioned that above the ledge, there are some openings on the wall. You didn't say that Ep wants to investigate them so I didn't write anything about them. I understood he went straight to the top.

And no, Ep didn't risk his life for nothing. The walls of the cliff are simply too steep to walk up. The checks were necessary.

You are now in the map square with the third ^ symbol in the southeastern part of the map, the one you could already see before the map update. The symbols t (forest) and . (beach) are the same as in the map I posted earlier in the IC thread. The locations of the pond and stone circle have not changed either.

[lawful_evil]

{{ What I mean is... We walked along the beach, found the cliffs and climbed up? Right? Now that I'm on the top, I could walk to the west and then to the south and end up back at the beach. Am I on a plateau or mesa?

I guess I don't understand the 'side view' aspect of this.




Side View of Mesa/Plateau
E
SSSSSR
SSSSS
SSSSS
SSSSSL
SSSSSS
SSSSSS
SSSSSS GMR
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSWWWWWWWWW

R = Rope Attachment
L = Ledge
S = Solid Rock
E = epswitch
W = Water
GMR = Other players








Side View of Cliff at Water Edge
E
SSSSSR
SSSSSSSSSSS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSL
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS GMR
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSWWWW WWWW

R = Rope Attachment
L = Ledge
S = Solid Rock
E = epswitch
W = Water
GMR = Other players





Both of those are consistant with your picture. I'm just trying to understand what this looks like.
}}

Epswitch

Calling down again, "None of the caves in the cliff face have exits on the top." Epswitch uses the piton and hammer to better attach a piton to the top and then transfers the rope from the lasso'd rock to the piton. He then calls down, "The rope is now secure."

[storyteller]

Yeah, you could call it a mesa. If viewed from above, it would look like a banana, the inner curve of which embraces the sea.

Side view of the place where Ep climbed up:



E__
/ I
Ledge I I
I \
________I I Sea
I____________________
\
\
\
\ Seabed
\_______________

[lawful_evil]

{{ Great. Now, that was useful. I've totally got the visual. }}


Epswitch

Calling down again, Epswitch yells, "Not much here, you want me to check out those caves?"

[jagadaishio]

"Yes. They could be useful if they're large enough to serve as shelters."

[TwoCents]

Roostin

"You want anybody else to come up there and watch your back?"

If invited, he put down everything except the spear and another coil of rope and began to climb. Once on the ledge, he readied his spear and prepared to follow Ep into the caves.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch calls down and says, "Come up if you like. The view is great." Epswitch climbs down and to one of the cave entrances. He says, "Okay, I'm going in." Its a cave 30 feet up a cliff, what kind of wild animals could possibly be hiding in it. Jumping bears?

Climb down to the cave and step/climb into it. Stay within a couple feet of the opening until his eyes adjust to the light/dark. Call down to the others, "Its pretty dark inside. Did anyone bring some fire?"

[Fisher]

Elias
"I've a lamp here if that'll help," Elias calls up to the people above.

Lugging the small amount of supplies over his shoulder, he begins to climb upward to deliver the light source. Upon reaching the top, he carefully lights the lamp to illuminate the dark cave. After the fire sparks to life he cautiously looks about the surroundings, looking for anything of note.


Taking ten on the climb check: 11
Spot Check: [roll0]

[smartaleq]

Gil

Seeing the ropes secured and everything in place, Gil follows Elias up to the ledge. Un-interested with the cave, Gil surveys the island, now realizing it is much bigger than many of them thought. He points to the distant hills, and shrugs at the others. Writing in the dirt of the ledge "Hills next?"

[storyteller]

Elias and Epswitch check out the caves. Only one of them is big enough to fit in comfortably. It could be used as a shelter for a small number of people. You notice narrow cracks and openings on the walls, but they may be too small for even Ep to crawl in.

OOC: Do you want to continue your exploration on week 4? The hills maybe, as Gil suggested, or the marshland. You may also change teams now.

50 xp everyone!

[Fisher]

I'd be willing to continue exploring if you guys are. Either Hills or Marshlands sounds fine. :smallsmile:

Week 4
When not exploring, Elias will continue to gather food for the camp.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch could go for hills. Marshland doesn't sound fun given his height and the depth of some bogs and all that.

[lawful_evil]

{{Epswitch could go for hills. Marshland doesn't sound fun given his height and the depth of some bogs and all that.}}


Epswitch

Seeing him writing in the dirt again, Epswitch just has to ask, "Do you no like to speak anymore? Who could possibly overhear our conversation? Tiny insect people in those cracks?"

With a sigh, Epswitch scrawls back "Yes OK"

[jagadaishio]

"Hills sound good to me," Maria says after climbing up to the caves and looking out. "We may also be able to use this cave for something at a later date."

OOC:
How large are we talking with these caves? Enough for two people to squeeze bedrolls into? The size of a small apartment? A large one?

[Fisher]

Elias
"These caves would make a good lookout towards the sea. Maybe raise our chances of seeing a ship passing by the island," Elias quietly mused aloud.

"Probably should return to camp and report our findings soon. Once there we can plan out future explorations a tad better and resupply.

[storyteller]

To the hills, then?

[smartaleq]

To the hills, then?

Yes, we're agreed. Let's continue to the hills in the center of the map. Marching order is Maria-Roostin-Epswitch-Gil-Elias for the woods section, climbing order is the same as for the cliffs.

[TwoCents]

Roostin

"Aye, let's go to the hills. Ah like the idea of maybe setting up a lookout on a hilltop."

OOC: Sorry I didn't get back to it sooner...

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch carefully climbs down and says, "We just going to leave our rope here? We've got pretty limited resources, seems kind of a shame to waste the rope and pitons."

Epswitch is ready to march. hiho, hiho, its off to the hills we go.

[storyteller]

You head for the hills. The walk through the dense forest is long and uneventful. Towards the center of the island, the terrain becomes hilly and your progress becomes slow and difficult.

Maria spots curious marks on the bark of a large tree. At first it looks like they're three bear claw marks, but upon closer inspection you realize that the marks actually resemble spears or arrows in shape. The three arrows point in the same direction: the tallest of the hills, rising 100 feet above the surrounding area.


| |
| ---> |
| ---> |
| ---> |
| |

OOC: To avoid continuity issues with the other team, let's assume that you left a rope for them so they can climb onto the ledge without difficulties.

[smartaleq]

OOC: To avoid continuity issues with the other team, let's assume that you left a rope for them so they can climb onto the ledge without difficulties.
Agreed, -100ft rope


After looking at the mark Maria discovered, Gil makes an ugly face. He pantomimes to the others "three options"
1) press on, watching carefully
2) sneak towards the hill, going slowly but very deliberately
3) return to camp for more help

Gil Advocates 2, and mentions sending Elias for home if we find something worrisome. Gil also suggests the group should spread out some, so that we can not all be surrounded at once.

[jagadaishio]

Maria gives a quick sweep of the area, looking for any human, humanoid, or generally unusual tracks on the forest floor. She holds a finger to her lips and makes a hand gesture to suggest that they should move quietly while she searches. If she finds no tracks, she'll agree with Gil. If she finds tracks, it depends on how many distinct sets she finds.

OOC:
Taking 10 on survival to find tracks, result of 12.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

When seemingly instructed to keep quiet, Epswitch whispers back, "You think someone is over there? I can sneak over and check it out. We halflings can be quite discrete."

Epswitch begins to move in that direction silently, and starts to hide as he goes, once out of sight of the team.


Not sure how many hide/move silently rolls you need. Generally, the player isn't supposed to know their roll, so my modifiers are :
Move Silently : +3
Hide : +5

[TwoCents]

Roostin

Remembering the one time he had been part of a "cutting out expedition" to sneak aboard a ship, Roostin used the time while Maria was searching to prepare. He carefully muffled any clinking bits on his gear or clothing and tightened the straps on his makeshift pack.

OOC: He has Alertness, giving him Listen +4 & Spot +4

[storyteller]

You find some animal tracks but no humanoid tracks or anything that indicates that intelligent (humanoid) creatures have moved through this area recently. The marks on the trees could be months, even years old. Ep and Roostin scout ahead but all you find is more of those arrow marks on trees. Each time, the arrows point in the same direction, the tallest of the hills.

[smartaleq]

Gil

Gil writes in the dirt - "to the hills! together". He'll keep a careful lookout for traps as they go.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Having returned from scouting and relayed his information, Epswitch looks to the team and is about to suggest they stop standing around and get moving, when Gil does it for him. Adding his idea, Epswitch says, "You said it Gil."

Epswitch turns to head back in the direction they scouted.

[Fisher]

Elias
Nodding in agreement, Elias continued to follow the others to the hills.

"Who do you suppose left these marks? Besides that altar, there has been little sign of natives or any civilization."

[storyteller]

You approach the hills. Following the marks on the trees, you're now at the foot of the tallest hill. You spot a path leading up the hillside. The path looks narrow and precarious, and the hillside is steep and rough and rocky in places, but someone has hewn rough stone stairs into the side of the hill where ascent would have otherwise been impossible without ropes or ladders.

[smartaleq]

How's the visibility here? Could we leave someone/a few people at the bottom of the steps in sight of the ones climbing?

[storyteller]

The path winds around the hill, so you won't be able to see any people left behind if you walk all the way up. Otherwise, visibility is good. No fog or heavy undergrowth here. Only a few small bushes grow on the slopes of the hill.

[jagadaishio]

Maria

Maria draws her sling but doesn't yet load it with a stone. The hill makes her nervous, because of how dangerous of a position climbing the steps will put them in. She continues to scan for any signs of foot prints or other signs of humanoids (or anything else unusual).

[smartaleq]

Gil is at a loss for how to best approach this situation. He'll defer to Roostin and Maria's judgment for the time.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Having little fear, and not really knowing what everyone is all worried about, Epswitch begins the long climb up the staircase to the top of the hill. Nice stairs. At least that is a sign of intelligent live on this island. Knowing my luck and bunch of grubby dwarves made them.

[TwoCents]

Roostin

"Well, I don't see as much has changed. We still know dang-all nothing about this island and we still think that there may be somebody not very friendly living here. I say we stick together, climb up carefully, and see whut is whut." Roostin bowed to Epswitch and prepared to follow him up the stairs. He stayed behind a few steps, far enough to have a chance to catch the halfling if he started to fall down the steps but not so close the two would be caught in a common disaster if a step loosened.

[storyteller]

You begin the long climb. The fearless halfling takes point, Roostin following close (but not too close) behind, and Maria going third and looking for footprints or other signs of intelligent life. Gil is last, looking a little hesitant while he climbs up the uneven stairs.

Halfway up the ascent, Maria suddenly stops and picks up something she spots behind a loose rock. It's a toy rat, made from cotton cloth, with black buttons for eyes and a piece of string for a tail.

Maria finds no footprints, but then again, the ground is quite firm here and any tracks left are likely to be swept away by wind or rain in a matter of days.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

When the footsteps up the hill stop suddenly behind him, Epswitch also stops and turns to look. Seeing Mara(maria?) with that toy, Epswitch smiles. "Awh, just like I had when I was a kid."

With a smile, Epswitch renews his climb, hopeful he'll find a whole clan of halflings.

[jagadaishio]

Maria looks the toy over to see how old it looks, then stashes it in her bag before starting again, continuing to sweep for any traces of inhabitance.

[Fisher]

You begin the long climb. The fearless halfling takes point, Roostin following close (but not too close) behind, and Maria going third and looking for footprints or other signs of intelligent life. Gil is last, looking a little hesitant while he climbs up the uneven stairs.

Halfway up the ascent, Maria suddenly stops and picks up something she spots behind a loose rock. It's a toy rat, made from cotton cloth, with black buttons for eyes and a piece of string for a tail.

Maria finds no footprints, but then again, the ground is quite firm here and any tracks left are likely to be swept away by wind or rain in a matter of days.

Did Elias get lost somewhere along the path? :smalleek:

[smartaleq]

Elias is in front of Gil

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch continues the climbs the darn hill. Who built this hill so high? Who wanted to be able to get to the top so bad they'd carve freaking stairs into the side of it?

Finally getting to the top, Epswitch looks around and whistles. "The view is almost as good as that cliff thing."

[storyteller]

The toy has tiny bite marks on it but it doesn't seem to be very old.

You reach the top of the hill. There's a monument there; a circle of standing stones. Its diameter is about 20 feet and there's a stone slab in the center of the circle, maybe an altar.

You can see the surrounding terrain well from here: the forested are continues in all directions around the hills. Far below and to the north of your location, you also notice a stream flowing to the northeast through the hills and towards the marshland.

[TwoCents]

OOC: Oh, we are soooooooooooo in trouble...

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Epswitch runs up into the circle of stones and climbs up on the big stone table(alter) and says, "Ha! This is much better place to build a settlement than that place the dwarf choose. We can see everything for miles. There is only one way up, so we can protect against wild animals." Epswitch smiles and spins around and around looks at everything and dreaming and then says, "Oh, and the vertical supports for the structure are already in place. We just need wood for a roof and walls."

Looking around at the vegetation, Epswitch does concede, "It may not be the best place for the chickens though. Perhaps down by that stream. Moving water is so much better than a stagnant pond. At the very least, I will look into moving my operation over there."

[jagadaishio]

Maria

Maria's mouth drops at the sight of this structure. "We might be in trouble," says Maria, immediately moving throughout the place. Her eyes and hands test every inch of the structure for any sign that their presence here may start a small tribal war.

Taking 20 on both Search and Survival checks to find any such evidence, the results are 21 and 22, respectively.

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Still in awe of this place, Epswitch barely hears the woman speak and when he finally does hear and comprehend her words he is puzzles. Yes, Common was a second language for him, but still, he'd been speaking it for years.

He looks around and around and finally says, "Trouble how? I mean.. what could possibly give us trouble?" His mind races through outlandish possibilities finally picking the most possible of all of them and says, "Do you think this may be the crown of slumbering buried titan?" Still standing atop the alter, Epswitch doesn't even have to look up to stare at her breasts face while he talks.

[jagadaishio]

Maria

"This looks like a sacred place. We may be trespassing on someone else's land," she says as she continues to search the place.

[smartaleq]

Sacred this and sacred that... We've found plenty of rubble, and not a whole lot of trouble. Gil agrees with Ep, we should move here, and set up traps... we could better see boats coming too!

[lawful_evil]

Epswitch

Momentarily confused, Epswitch says, "Wait.. you think that fat dwarf already claimed this?"

Epswitch hops down and heads to the top of the stairs and then starts searching adding, "If anyone has already claimed this, they had better have marked it or left a sign or something."

{{ Take 20 on search. Examine area within 2-3 meter of the top of the stairs. }}

[jagadaishio]

Maria

"No, the fact that this structure is standing implies that someone else built it. I'm checking now to see if it's ancient and abandoned or still owned by some sort of local people," said Maria, cocking an eyebrow at Epswitch's statement. "If it's ancient and abandoned, it would be the perfect place to situate a new home, though."

[TwoCents]

Roostin

"Hey, that toy whut you found was in pretty good shape. That means there was somebody nearby with little ones not too long ago, right? Ah ain't sure that we ain't getting into a world of hurt, but Ah don't know whut we can do about it anymore. Ah think we all got to be ready for trouble, though."

With that, Roostin also began to search the area, starting with a circuit of the hilltop.

Listen: [roll0]
Spot: [roll1]
Search: [roll2]

OOC: If the standing circle is 20' diameter, how big is the hilltop?

[storyteller]

You take a closer look at the standing stones and the stone slab. Maybe a certain "fat dwarf" would be able to tell you how long the stones have been there, but it is evident that someone has been using this site recently: dried splatters of what appears to be blood can be seen all over the stone slab and on the ground around it.

The stones bear some kind of runic inscriptions.

The hilltop is roughly circular, about 50' in diameter.

OOC: 100 xp, everyone! No exploration quests on week 6. More about that in the main IC thread a little later.