Jungle Ruins of Madaro-Shanti [IC]

[Mercurion 2]

Cederick's cursory examination didn't show any external injuries to account for the antelope's death, but it did confirm the animal had been dead for at least several days. In general it did have a brittle, wasted look; he couldn't be sure, but it could have fallen victim to the black cloud itself, which as reported to cause death to those exposed too long to its proximity.

[Alan]>"You know Pisco, you have refered to both Cederick and myself as tz'iik now and I must admit I am curious about the meaning of the term. Is it possible to translate that into common?

"It means one who is fierce, or brave...which you must be, hunt the black cloud. Or else foolish," he added with a laugh and wry grin.

[Cederick]>"Are there any other accounts of people seeing the ghosts of antelopes or animals in general? Those the antelope have any special meaning in local religion?"

Pisco glanced at the dwarven cleric before himself answering. "Ghosts? No, I would not say xtaabay, not ghosts. But spirits, yes, the nature spirits make themselves seen and known all the time. Too much, I would say. As to antelope, it is not a totem animal for any of the nature spirits here. The shamans would say that it represents the peasant, or the farmer, or the laborer. The common folk of Chologadi."

[Goby]

Later in the day, following the upheaved stone blocks of the road, they passed by another large statue, this of a standing jaguar, its stone cracked with broken pieces littering the jungle floor, and draped with thick vines. Yet still, even in its dilapidated state, the party could almost sense the stone eyes of the 10-foot tall figure watching them warily as they passed by.

Thorik

As the party journeys slowly through the jungle, Thorik pauses as they pass the statue. He stares at it for a moment, as if remembering something.
Walking near to Axwheel and Pisco, he engages them in conversation about the jungle.

"Axwheel, yer knowin more about the spirits of this place than I do. Tell me, who is Cho-Oda? This statue reminds me of a strange dream last night where animal spirits spoke to me and told me to help their brother, who had changed. Might've been a place we'll come to in the ruins, but I saw a room full of statues."

[Fitzroy95]

Axwheel glanced across at him thoughtfully
"Cho-Oda you say? hmmm"

Spoiler: dice roll 3

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Knowledge nature - (1d20+4)[7]

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* post roll count doesn't match database

[Fitzroy95]

stupid bloody dice roller...

Spoiler: dice roll 1

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Knowledge religion - (1d20+3)[16]

[Fitzroy95]

really stupid dice roller

Spoiler: dice rolls 2

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[roll=Knowledge arcana]1d20+2[/roll]

[Mercurion 2]

The caravan rolled forward throughout the day, fortunately running in to no more resistance beyond the ever-present and threatening black cloud pressing down from above. By mid-afternoon Pisco began watching the jungle more intently as they went until he finally saw whatever it was he sought and called the group to a halt.

“This is where we stop, hunters. You’ll find the ruined gate into Madaro-Shanti down the road, less than two miles from here I should say. The masters of Chologadi have paid me to wait here for up to three days, though I know brave tz’iik like you will rid us of the boox muyal well before then. Take all the gear you need from the wagon, and may your maskab’ be sharp!”

Spoiler: OOC

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You have an overview map of the city ruins that Pisco sketched out, so now it is up to you to decide how you want to approach it from here.

[Fitzroy95]

[backpost to Thorik]
"Cho-Oda is a nature spirit, kind of a small god in this place.
Worshipped by some, but mainly a small power of nature.
He's cunning, he's playful, he's inquisitive. His totem animal
is the monkey, always getting into mischief, but just for fun."

She waved her hand to encompass the surrounding jungle
"He lives anywhere in the area, tends to leave people alone as
long as they leave the jungle alone."

She paused briefly as she considered his words
"but if the other powers around here are trying to tell you that he's changed,
then maybe he's connected to this cloud somehow.
If he's decided that he wants everyone to leave his jungle alone, there's
no way ta know what he could do."

[when they stop]
Axwheel trudged back to where Patience was hitched to the rear of the wagon and unlooped her lead rope from where it was tied to the wagon frame.
As she waited for the others to collect their gear and prepare to move out, she leaned over close to Pisco
"If what Thorik says is true and Cho-Oda isn't so friendly any more,
you need to be careful while you wait here."

She waved her hand at the jungle
"better not go cutting down trees for firewood, or killing any animals,
although there don't seem to be any around here anyway.
No knowing what he might try to get up to if he thinks you're messing
with the place."

[Koral]

Igansio inspected the surrounding jungle at the spot they were stopped by Pisco and found it to be completely indistinct. There were no signs of a city nearby, no widening of the path, no signs of ruins or more elaborate statues than the ones already encountered, no broken remains of watch towers or outer walls. Just….. jungle. He tried to spot any stone structures through the dense trees but found none. He listened for a moment hearing nothing out of ordinary beyond the voices of the local escorts unpacking and raising camp.
Finally he approached Pisco hesitantly, like a student scared of asking a silly question in front of the entire class "Say, as much as I would like to view the glory of Madro Shanti the way it was meant to be seen, have you any knowledge of a side path that might lead us through some less obvious way into the city? Any branching pathways from here on? Alternate routs into the city or around it that the locals are using?"

[Mercurion 2]

“I am sorry to say, tz’iik, but no. As you see, even the paved road we traveled is much broken and difficult to travel. If there were any smaller paths, the jungle has long since devoured them,” their guide answered Ignasio. “Without the wagon, you can cut through the Ambicuaria with a sharp maskab’,” he added, slapping the sheath of his own ornate machete, “though the going will be slow.”

[backpost to Thorik]
As she waited for the others to collect their gear and prepare to move out, she leaned over close to Pisco
"If what Thorik says is true and Cho-Oda isn't so friendly any more,
you need to be careful while you wait here."

She waved her hand at the jungle
"better not go cutting down trees for firewood, or killing any animals,
although there don't seem to be any around here anyway.
No knowing what he might try to get up to if he thinks you're messing
with the place."

“Ah, you mistake my handsome features for the inexperience of youth,” Pisco said with an easy grin. “I am not so old to one of your race, but my parents were the leopard and the elephant, did you not know? The jungle was my playpen as a child and I was weened on the milk of the sweetvine. The nature spirits will find no cause to be unhappy with us.” He glanced up to the blackness pressing from above and added, “I cannot say if it will be the same with the boox muyal.”

Spoiler: OOC

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You can absolutely chose to enter Madaro-Shanti at whatever point you’d like by cutting through the jungle. The gates on the road ahead are about a 30-minute walk. Cutting through the jungle to loop around to the opposite side will take an estimated three hours, with of course any intermediate entry points taking a proportional amount of time to reach.
It is currently 3:00pm. The jungle will start to darken further (it already being dim and gloomy due to the black cloud) around 6:00pm as the sun starts to set, and darkness will be complete by about 7:00pm.

[Koral]

Ignasio smiled back at Pisco and shrugged “Well then, through the main gate, like the distinguished guests that we are! We cannot leave our hosts waiting long, it is a thin line between a classy delayed entrance and plain rude being late”.
He fitted his backpack, making sure that the cooking kit was well fastened as was his favorite fur blanket, shaving tools, brandy flask and other necessities. The pack was heavy but lifestyle did not come without some drawbacks.
He then re-checked that his crossbow and bolts were in easy access and set his hat in the exact right angle. Once again.
“OK than” he looked around at the group “There and back again, shall we?”

Spoiler: OOC:

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Should I contact Adam? :)

[Stepfan]

Alan gathered all his items together, filled with excitement. At last the actual work could begin. And he now had enough information to disregard the threat from his dreams! Some nature god who had gone crazy was a problem, of course, but it seemed unlikely to have anything specifically for him and more malice towards the group in general. Which was just fine with Alan, though if the cloud in general was channeling some sort of natural wrath it did make it unlikely he would be able to duplicate the effect wholesale.

Still he was able to being work now and perhaps there would still be some ties to the shadow he could explore and exploit. His hunch still burned deep within him and he was ready to seize whatever was on offer. Plus if the whole expedition was a dud, being a local hero might help him acquire some new lab space for a while before he returned home.

He drew his sickle and tested the edge before hopping off the wagon to join the others.

[Fitzroy95]

Once the team was ready, equipment being carried and weapons in hand, Axwheel headed down the path leading towards the fallen city, leading Patience, battle axe in hand, and eyes slowly scanning their surroundings as she walked.

[Stepfan]

As the group started to depart Alan weighed the options of how to continue, it would seem they were down a fair amount of their starting company though as to why he could not truly say, nor was he honestly concerned at their fates.

Their absence however, especially in relation to possible enemies with murderous intents threatening his person was indeed of some concern. But there might be a replacement in the works already for that predicament. He turned back to the caravan they were departing.

"Hey Pisco, I'm sure a capable and jungle present man such as yourself hardly needs such capable guards to keep yourself safe from the local fauna. Perhaps they would care to venture forth for glory and to help save this place from the menacing curse that has surrounded us all?

There, now that should put a few more bodies between danger and himself...

[Koral]

Ignasio watched with mixed feelings as Alan tried to talk the guards into joining them.
The guards themselves were visibly undecided and he found it hard to talk them into a situation where he could not guarantee their safety, quite the contrary.
On the other hand, they chose this life of danger and having a few bulky men swinging swords on his behalf would be reassuring and they already proved that they were not cowards. Far from it.
So, overall, he felt relieved that Alan took upon himself to do what Ignasio himself was too undecided to, and than immediately he felt ashamed of himself
"We will, of course, pay you extra for your bother "He added meekly" almost wishing he would not be herd.

[Mercurion 2]

The black cloud pressed overhead like a poisonous blot as the expedition stumbled over the broken road, creeping closer to the doom of Madaro-Shanti. Around a bend a pile of animals skulls appeared, stacked like a cairn as if marking the path towards death. Suddenly, a horrible visage emerges from the jungle behind the cairn.

Oh wait, you think, that’s just Karan, returning from scouting ahead…

<tag all>

[Oso]

The half-orc walked swiftly and quietly towards the group, but then paused, his hand moving towards his bow, as he saw Patience and Axwheel approaching.
He relaxed a bit as the others came into view, but his voice came in even more of a growl than usual:

"Some changes to the group, I see. Better keep it quiet, anyhow - there are Borsin around, and they're territorial hunters. That's their cairn here, and it's made from the skulls and bones of their kills."

He turned to re-enter the forest, stopped, and reluctantly turned back and took a few quick steps towards Axwheel.
"It's not safe for the mule here. We won't be able to protect her." He raised his hand to touch Patience's muzzle, thought better of it, retreated, hung his head, and muttered angrily at himself.

[Fitzroy95]

Axwheel shrugged and responded quietly.
"Bit late now, she ain't going back by herself.
Guess I'll just keep her along with me, she ain't as old and helpless as she looks.
So did ya find another trail there, or do we just continue strolling down the main road
an through the front door ?""

[Goby]

Thorik

Once the caravan stops, Thorik retrieves his gear from the wagon, shouldering the heavy pack with ease. He checks that everything is in place, and grips a large axe in one hand. Moving to the front of the group, he heads off into the jungle.

"Ah, Karan, good to see ya return. What's the best route ahead of us?
Borsin, you say? Are they close?"

Spoiler: Knowledge check

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What's a Borsin? Thorik has traveled in this jungle, does he know of them?
Knowledge nature: (1d20+8)[10]

[Mercurion 2]

OOC: Hmmm, Thorik can't seem to recall. Maybe they are a type of monkey? Or perhaps an antelope?? He's pretty sure it is an animal of some sort and not some fancy cheese, though.

[Oso]

Karan looks at the two dwarves, at the rest of the group, and then back at the couple.
Why were the others so silent? Did the short duo intimidate them? Control them somehow? Was this Thorik's wife? Mistress? And how did the mule come into this? Was this some sort of magic? Oh, gods, were they actually a trio? Was this some sort of sex magic?

He took a step back, dropping his hands to his sides, his muttering taking a singsong quality before he stopped it, shook his head and forced a crooked, horrible, smile around his tusks.

"Umm, hello Thorik. Good, yes. Good. The route is the one we're on, didn't see any other. We can try and cut through the jungle, but that will be more noisy, especially for these city folk -" he waved his head towards the others, who just stood there
..these poor, zombified, city folk..
swallowed, coughed, and continued
"uh, you know how they are. On the other hand, the open spaces seem to belong to the Borsin now - you know, the half-monkey, half antelope beasts? The ones that smell of cheese?"

As he spoke, he kept, ever so slowly, backing away.

[Koral]

"…… now, you must remember that if you use the Green Pargaron you must NOT let the water boil or you will lose all the fruity taste and your meat will become bitter. If, however you use the Gray Paragron instead, the one with the longer leaves and white flowers you must add it to the pot only AFTER the water boiled. Hmmm, speaking of white flowers, did I tell you of that girl I knew once, Oh, look! Here's Karan"
Ignasio was mostly talking to patience by now and he couldn't care less. It seems that neither the oppressing clouds nor the piles of bones or intimidating scenery had any impact on him and his full, and most inefficient review of cooking herbs continued from the exact spot where it stopped last night, putting Axeheel's patience (pun intended) to a real test of durability.
He watched Karan approaching and listen to his somewhat incoherent and ever so gloomy report. The man definitely needed a good hot cup of tea.
Now, Borsin, that was an exotic name if he ever heard one. He did know a Boris once (who made excellent honey cakes) but never seen a Borsin, and a full tribe at that.
He kept quite while his mind kept racing sideways, pretending to seriously consider the news while nodding his head thoughtfully.

[Stepfan]

Alan just stared at Karan. He had to admit he wasn't terribly familiar with the man, but still what a strange person. He wasn't certain why suddenly everyone had become nervous.

On the plus side Ignacio had shut up about herbs so everything was not all bad.

"Why yes there is Karan. Perhaps we can start investigating the temple now? Unless the way that we are includes not accomplishing the job we came here to do?"

Alan wondered if perhaps he was being slightly to harsh, before that thought was squashed by his intense desire to get started examining the temple ripping it apart piece by piece...

[Oso]

As Alan and Ignasio spoke, Karan stopped moving backwards, laughing with relief. He didn't know these two too well - and he had every intention of keeping it that way - but they seemed to be acting like themselves alright. No hint of any mule-involved shenanigans, Elhonna be praised.

He then noticed he was laughing for no apparent reason, stopping abruptly. Stupid, stupid!

He turned his head towards Alan, but kept his eyes averted as he spoke:
"Yes, we should move ahead. But we need to be careful. Borsin are aggressive, they work in packs, and while they're not very bright, they do have some cunning. They can set traps, for instance. I'm pretty good at spotting those, so I can go first."

Without waiting for a reply, he turned around and started moving towards the ruins, keeping his eyes and ears open.

Spoiler: OOC

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Karan is back in Ranger mode, which means his Survival and Listen skills with a dash of Knowledge (nature)) are on alert. He doesn't bother to Move Silently, though, with that noisy group right behind him.
For good measure, he adds a Detect Snares & Pits spell to the mix.

[Mercurion 2]

The expedition moved cautiously up the old, broken road, with Karan scanning for any traps laid in their path. They passed two cairns stacked four feet high with an assortment of animal skulls: the markings, as the half-orc had said, of the territory of borsin.

Breaking through the trees ahead, the gatehouse of Madaro-Shanti loomed into view, a two- story affair. The structure showed some damage from when the city had been sacked, but appeared to be in better shape that the walls around it which were now nothing more than tumbled down ruins.

Spoiler: OOC

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Everyone can make a Spot check.

[Oso]

Karan tensed as he left the cover of the trees, feeling exposed.

Spoiler: Dice roll

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Spot - (1d20+11)[26]

[Koral]

Ignasio walked in relative silence now, feeling the weight of the occasion. He did, however, pay close attention to Karan, trying to look carefully at whatever it was that the ranger was looking for and carefully examining the spots where he stopped, he didn’t want to miss anything interesting but was to intimidated to ask about the specifics of his findings.
And then, for the first time In a very long while he was left speechless for a few seconds as the huge remains of the encient city emerged from the canopy, as if it was jumping at them from a hideout, all of a sudden it was there. Huge and silent and majestic even in its disrepair.
“Ooooh” he finally let out, examining the guard tower.

Spoiler: OOC:

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couldn't help remembering my visit to Chichen-Itza, Mexico. those huge Pyramids and building suddenly appearing from between the trees. I was practically breathless for quite a long while. Still feeling lucky to have been there

[Stepfan]

Alan followed along with the group, grateful for the ongoing silence. As the temple forms bared from the jungle his breath caught in his throat for a moment. They were impressive, standing in defiance against the untamed wilds. And he also had to give pause as the anticipation of the moment came upon him. This buildings as majestic as they were in ruins represented something far more then a powerful culture.

It was here after all that another key to power might lie, and even if the hints so far were discouraging at least he would finally be able to confirm and deal with it. At least it would give him a chance to practice his art, something that was hard in more civilized realms.

Spoiler: rolls

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(1d20+9)[24] - Spot

[Koral]

Alan followed along with the group, grateful for the ongoing silence.

Spoiler: OOC:

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Don't feel too comfortable, this will not last long ;-)

[Fitzroy95]

Axwheel trudged along quietly with the group as they made their way towards the ruins of town, her eyes scanning the surrounding jungle for any hints of cheese monsters coming to eat Patience, while her mouth attempted to periodically convey semi-intelligent responses to Ignacio's flow of information. She certainly wasn't ignoring him, but she was a little distracted by their surroundings and gently bounced the haft of her battle axe from one hand to the other.

Borsin weren't something to take lightly, and while Karan was slightly dismissive of Patience's future life expectancy, Axwheel had no intention of letting her old travelling companion become the dinner of a wandering pack of carnivores. And, while she had often heard of Madaro-Shanti, she'd never really had the need to travel in this direction, and as such the current trail was all new to her.

And so, with periodic expressions of interest and grunts of acknowledgement, she let much of Ignacio's wisdom slide over her. Which was a bit of a shame, usually she would have enjoyed learning more about the subtle uses of spices and herbs in the concoctions of foreign realms, but right now, her attention wasn't really on it. And she was fairly sure that Paragon, whether grey or green, didn't tend to grow in these jungle climes, so it was unlikely that she was ever going to get a chance to experiment with it anyway.

as the gatehouse appeared from amongst the trees, she paused and redirected her attention at the structure ahead of them. She had often seen old abandoned buildings of that type serving as a "cave" for a range of dangerous inhabitants, and the tumbled walls seemed likely a safer path to approach the city and examine its layout.
"Hey Karan. You been here before ?
How about we look in through them fallen sections of the wall
afores we start entering no old buildings, Could be all sorts uv nasty
buggers hiding in there. there'll be more spiders'n'scorpions'poisonous
bugs hiding in that building than out here in the open...."

[Oso]

Karan looked sharply at Axwheel, touching his lips and making slow lowering gestures with his hand, then looked down, shook his head, raised it, gave one of his horrible smiles, and nodded in an attempt to seem affable.
He turned his attention to the fallen section of the walls, first observing them keenly and them slowly moving forward.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Karan still has his spot roll from before, and his Detect Snares & Pits spell is still on. Otherwise, in case it's needed:
Listen - (1d20+11)[21]
Move Silently - (1d20+9)[28]