Also able to mending, Silvosh works on repairing the bricks on the oposite side of the hole from Abishai. She positions herself so as to not get in the way of those working in the center.

OOC: she stands parallel to an undamaged section of the wall so as to not take up space in front of the hole.

The nurses working on the wall chuckle at Abishai's question, and respond with 'Of course we have, it's more than half the reason why Ilkalith's on the map in the first place! Although, I'd say that most of us think it's just a legend, but there are always the more imaginative amongst the population that swear on its existence; you'll find a large sample here.' They then shrug at his query of working under Mr Lumens, and reply 'He's just like any other boss really. It was odd at first but there's never been any issues with him at all. Only issue is that whilst he's happy to run this as charity, us staff can't exactly feed our families with stories, so the majority of us are only part time. I know a good few of the nurses who have relatives staying here too, so that's why they're happy to help out, I guess.

Aralia will help with laying the new bricks and mortar in place, listening to Abishai's conversation with the nurses curiously as she works. "Hm, I wonder if the Balowang appears mainly to adventurers, or people become adventurers because they saw it..." She murmurs to herself. Whatever the case this does seem like a perfect place to gather information.

Athletics to lay bricks: 15

Wendell went down with the others, and seeing the damage and work being done, will spend 10 minutes ritually casting unseen servant (if permitted to). He commands the servant to help with laying the mortar down, allowing others to focus on lining the bricks up instead. 

Everyone pitching into help means that the wall is as good as new in no time, even though you're yet to hear if that gnome artificer was ever captured and brought back again. 

I think now is a good time to explain how the following quest will go and give a basic itinerary of what's ahead. The way you will gather clues during social times is through Deduction Checks, i.e. Charisma (Insight) checks (So effectively a base Charisma roll with your PB added if you're proficient in Insight). Each of you will have the opportunity to make Deduction checks during points when all the residents are gathered together (So mealtimes or whole group events). The higher you roll, the more clues you will gather, the more detailed they will be, and the more trustworthy they will be. This way you can gather a lot of clues without having to go through the monotony of actually roleplaying each interaction, as now the quality of your investigations can effectively be summed up montage-style in a roll. Also, if you are consistently making an effort to be polite, kind, helpful and listening to the residents, you may earn advantage on a Deduction check, and the same applies the other way (disadvantage for consistently rude, threatening or dismissive behaviour)

As for the itinerary, the rest of this in-game day is basically yours to use, so you can explore the castle and all make your first Deduction check at dinner if you wish to. The next day will be Beholder Golf, which whilst also being a fun side-quest minigame type thing, you'll also have opportunities to make Deduction checks throughout that time. Then, the final few days will be up to you as a party to spend, as you can either take some more time to make more checks and gather more intel, or if you're satisfied with what you've learnt you can cut the quest short and head back to report on the results to Brimbul. And of course, there may be some twists amongst all of this along the way!

Okay, now that's sorted and you know how things coming up will work, it's back to you guys to do what you like! 

Wendell is not the best at reading people (+1), however talking is something he is good at, having been a lecturer and researcher. This is both an opportunity for him to research the Balowang but also hear some people's stories on magic and the world in general. 

If there is a rafter in the artificer's room, he will leave his raven familiar there, checking in through its senses every so often to see if the artificer returns. If it does, he will go to speak to them in particular. With the rest of the time before dinner, he will try and get a feel for the castle and looks out for any residents that might look unhappy to be there.

 Charisma (Insight) check: 28 If advantage is earned: 16

Performance: 22

During the evening mealtime, Abishai walks around the cafeteria while playing his lute. He uses his charisma and insight to glean information from the elderly adventurers around him to create a ballad meant to flatter those individuals he singles out while playing. He's satisfied with his ability to create the words to his song on the spot as he plays. While he does focus more on the ladies in the room, he doesn't shy away from singing about the gentlemen as well. He sings for some time before ending the performance. He then sits down with a group of people he believes enjoyed his performance the most and strikes up a conversation about their past adventures and encounters with the Balowang, if any. During this conversation, he uses his charm and active listening skills to engage with the storyteller and make them feel they are the only person in the room in that moment as he takes in their telling.

[[ OOC: I think I messed up my dice rolls and rolled both with advantage. Reroll without advantage is here. 28 so we can drop the second roll with advantage rolled above. ]]

Insight: 13

Aralia will spend the day observing the normal goings on in the castle and assisting the nurses with their tasks as needed. They are used to interacting with the residents, so she believes she can get a good idea of the general mood of the place and any stand-out personalities by accompanying them. At dinner she will help with service and try introducing herself to the residents and light conversation, letting Abishai set the mood.

After the repairs are finished, Silvosh will ask if the gnome has been found. If not, she'll help with that task (though she might not bring him back if he doesn't want to go).

While helping she ask, "So does he often blow holes in the wall? Is he trying to escape or is it experiments that don't quite work?"

Abathax will spend the final daytime wandering around the castle to get a good sense of the lay of the land. What kind of adventurers are these? Are they all clearly expert adventurers, or also some that went on some, but not a lot? Are there any that might have had a shady past or are they mostly the good and kind kind? To gather this information he'll mostly talk to the nurses he sees along his walk around the care-home.

[We'll start with everything going on with the gnome and then go to the pre-dinner exploration of the castle before then going onto dinner, just to avoid a time-split! I'll make sure to save any rolls and the roleplay for when it gets to it though!]

As the majority of the party finish up the repairs on the third floor with the nurses, Wendell takes the opportunity to leave his familiar in the nearby room, which he assumes is the artificer's considering the nearby location, and more tellingly, the menagerie of mechanical items within. The bird nestles itself in a suitably hidden place, and as he does this, the nurses explain the situation to Silvosh, 'It's not the first time he's done this, but it's all been very recently. We're not quite sure why it is, though he's suddenly grown very restless to escape for whatever reason. We've chalked it all up to his age causing a bit of paranoia and confusion, which isn't unusual.' 

The gnome in question is then returned to his room a short while later, carried on the shoulder of the nurse that pursued him. Wendell sees through his raven that she tells him off, though not with much energy, as if she's done this many times and is now bored of it, before leaving. Almost immediately after she's gone, the old man gets back to scrabbling about with his doohickies and swirling an array of potions, analysing all of the strange noises the clockwork constructions might make and the colours of the bottled liquids, with the results seeming to be negative, as he grows increasingly despairing the more values he takes down. 

 [[ OOC: Sorry for messing up my previous post. ]]

Before dinner, Abishai would accompany Abathax in his wanderings. Specifically looking for any areas where guards are posted or look to be restricted access. He would also try to make small talk with Abathax to try and get to know him better. "So... where are you from?"

Seeing the gnome now alone in his room, Wendell will go to the room and knock on the door. "Hi there. I am a friend and not a worker. May I come in for a chat?"

Aralia finishes her portion of the repairs, stepping back to assess the work with a critical eye before wiping dust from her hands. Hearing the nurses’ comments about the gnome, she narrows her eyes thoughtfully, the edges of her mind catching on the oddity of his behavior.  

Noticing Wendell slip away toward the gnome’s room, she considers for a moment before following at a measured pace, keeping a deliberate distance.

Insight on gnome if he answers the door: 21

Silvosh is also curious about the gnome and has questions to ask him, but decides to wait on that. She didn't want to overwhelm the gnome with too many people coming at him all at once. But she is starting to wonder if the gnome is a captive here.

Wendell goes to the gnome's room, Aralia behind at a distance. They answer, and are surprised to be eye to eye with the halfling, but sniff at his question and say 'I am in the middle of very important business! If you must, you can come in, but do not touch anything! These are highly calibrated instruments built to predict disasters, and at current the readings are all bad, bad, bad! Not that you'd know anything about the fine intricacies of divining the future, of course, since it is a very specialist subject! Sit on the bed and say what you will whilst I work, and if you don't cause mischief, I might send you off with a clockwork toy!'

Aralia listens to the gnome's rude replies, and gathers a fair bit He seems to have some haughty superiority about him, that's for sure, though she also picks up on a lot of distress and anxiety, which in turn is being channelled into the artificer's crabbiness. She also pieces together that the mention of his instruments of prediction giving bad omens surely must align with his reasoning behind his recent escape attempt too.

Wendell decides to humour the gnome, pretending he is right with the lack of divination powers, and sitting on the bed as requested. "Divining the future sounds like something only those with the sharpest minds could manage to achieve. I would hate to ruin your hard work. Talking of that, as you clearly have such as powerful mind and based on the damage in the wall we saw as we arrived, I would say your body is as strong as your mind too, it has me wondering. Why are you here and not in your own place where there are no nurses to ruin your work when they think they are just cleaning?"

Aralia moves to stand outside the door after Wendell goes inside, trying to listen in and also keep a lookout for any suspicious activity in the halls.

Perception: 12

Abathax looks at Abishai

"Well, have you ever heard of the city of Acheron?"

History: Nat 20+2=22

In reply to Abathax, Abishai says, "I've read about it, though it's been several years now." Abishai takes a moment to think on the topic before continuing. "It gets pretty hot there, and I remember reading it was a never-ending battleground." Surprised, Abishais brows elevate. "Are you saying you're from there? It's no wonder you left."

[[ OOC @ DM What else would I remember about Archeron, if anything? ]]