"You sneaky little bastard, this is none of your concern, back off now." Not intimidated despite the halfling having snuck up on him the guard reaches for his dagger and shortsword.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
"You're not listening," Gryffen says, lifting the sickle slightly to apply pressure to sensitive tissue. "You'll not have the option of children if you do not heed."
The halfling lowers his hood with his free hand. For a moment, perhaps no more than a second, the guard and the girl see the visage of death itself, as if the flesh has half rotted from Gryffen's face, his eyes long since removed, and the white of his skull showing where his nose should be.
"Embrace the life you have been given or it will be taken back,"he says in a wicked, unearthly timbre.
The Hour or Reaping:
At 6th level, you gain the ability to unsettle or terrify those around you as an action, for your soul has been touched by the shadow of death. When you take this action, each creature within 30 feet of you that can see you must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC 15) or be frightened of you until the end of your next turn.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Guard 13
Girl 14
The guard shows Gryffen how scared he is by losing control of his bladder, the positioning of the halfling giving him a ringside seat of the event. The girl is caught in the surge of fear and whimpers pressing herself even harder against the caravan.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
"I want to hear you say it," Gryffen says. "This girl will be safe; from you and from the dangers of the road. Her life is hers and yours will be yours."
The guard seems amazed as well as terrified as Gryffen seems to disappear in the shadows, he stares for a second at the girl as if deciding what to do then turns and runs away towards the area where the guards sleep when they are not on duty. Gryffen cannot see him after he heads that way. The girl seems equally confused and then backs away mumbling, "thanks mister" before heading towards a nearby caravan which she jumps up into.
The rest of the night passes without incident in the camp, Gryffen heads off to bed himself shortly afterwards, the guard rotations are made although Kai and Gideon are both surprised when they are woken in the morning by the Chief with the news that one of the guards, a tall man named Csengar has disappeared in the night.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Kai casts around and (Survival Roll - 18 & Perception Roll - 18) says "it looks like he went that way Chief" pointing in the direction of the tracks he has found. "Do we want to follow him or leave him go?"
"The tracks head into the woods, let's go and see if he has gone far. You two with me, the rest of you keep your eyes open. Everyone else get ready to move out, daylight's wasting" the Chief calls out to the assembled people. "Good work by the way, you have sharp eyes, I missed those tracks myself." The Chief calls over to Kai as he gestures for the elf and Gideon to follow him further into the trees.
Sadly they do not have to go far, they find Csengar hanging from a tree, a rope tied to high branches leaving him swinging in the gentle breeze of the wood. His face seems calm and almost relieved. The Chief makes a superstitious mark of protection on himself as he sees the corpse. "Damn, he was a good man, scared a little bit easily but he never caused trouble and he'd been on the crew for about a year. Did think he seemed a bit upset recently, but this is strange...damn strange." The big man shakes his head, then looks at the others. "Give me a hand cutting him down, we can bury him and then get they hells away from here. Sharp-eyes, go and tell Alson what happened, try not to make a big scene, tell him we'll need an hour and bring back some shovels and another of the lads."
The mood in the camp is strained, they are clearly aware that something is up and nobody knows what is going on. Gryffen sees no sign of the young girl and nobody speaks to him and Ophelia. Breakfast things are packed away and when Kai and Gryffen return from their grim task they finally have a few moments to speak to Ophelia and Gryffen as they are camped nearby and have ten minutes before they need to move out.
Over to you all, interact as you wish with each other and then we will move into the rest of day 3
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Before they leave the site where the guard's body was found, Kai again looks around to see if he can determine whether this was a suicide or was somebody(s) else involved (Survival -15 / Perception 23)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond DM - Four bards walk into a bar... Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
Kai's keen eyes detect a second trail, lighter than the first walking in from a slightly different direction and then walking away in a wider arc before returning to the camp, the trail disappears as they close with the caravan, leaving Kai uncertain of which caravan the second person might have been heading to.
It appears to have been suicide as the second figure seems to have kept a distance.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
As Kai and the others are walking back to the camp he says quietly "Chief, there is no doubt that Csengar did himself in, but somebody from camp watched him do it, or didn't try and stop him from doing it, before they returned to camp!"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond DM - Four bards walk into a bar... Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
"Who on earth would behave like that, and then say nothing. I will talk to Alson, but I suspect he will not want it to go any further, be on your guard though. It's possible something is afoot, I'll tell the rest of the lads to be wary." Alson and the Chief do speak but Kai is too far away to hear what is up but in the guard's briefing before they depart the Chief does tell them what has happened and to be on the lookout for anybody acting in an unusual manner.
OOC the party still have the opportunity to speak with each other if required. The caravan will them move off, in similar formation to the previous day. Later in the day Gideon and Kai will be working as Outriders again, scouting ahead of the main party by several hundred feet keeping an eye out.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Watching the commotion from afar, perched on top of her cart, Ophelia notes Kai and Gideon both heading into the woods with their new boss, and eventually reappearing, looking the more somber for their trip. Figuring she would eventually hear what events had transpired, she slips off her cart and begins to pack up her life, ready for the next stage of the journey.
"More time in the saddle now thanks to this" Gideon points over his shoulder talking to Kai as they approached the area they both slept, he was secretly pleased at the prospect, more time away would certainly break the monotony of camp life his fondness of being alone and admire the wild could be satisfied for a little while longer it would seem. "I wonder why" he thought aloud his voice trailing off as he reached the bedrolls. "Could you discern anything about the watcher from what you found?"
Packing his things for the road Gideon dons his mail and fixes his shield to the side of his mount. "That's me out again Kai, maybe you could join me as a bird of prey sometime, it would certainly make things a tad more interesting"
"Could you discern anything about the watcher from what you found?"
"All I can say is that the tracks were not as deep as Csengar's. As to transforming into a bird of prey that is beyond my skills at the moment, an ostrich is about all I am capable of!"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond DM - Four bards walk into a bar... Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
Gideon frowns before climbing his mount, leaning forward his weight on the saddle horn Kai passes him his spear. "Thank you" Gideon hefts the weapon up making himself comfortable "An ostrich out here would be quite amusing."
The trio walk slowly now to the front of the caravan Kai leading Gideons horse at a steady pace. As they reach the front the pair bid each other farewell for the moment Gideon putting his heels to the horse and riding out.
OOC if Ophelia and Gryffen wish to talk they can, the opportunity to talk to the others has passed for now.
The caravan moves off, Ophelia finds herself driving alongside an older woman, who gives her name as Zsena, she tells the younger woman that she has been driving this caravan route for a couple of years and that the next day or two should be easier, the journey becomes harder as they cross some hills after that especially as bandits use the cover to stage ambushes from time to time. She tells her she is carrying an assortment of spices from the north which don't grow on the East Coast so fetch a reasonable price despite being common where they are from.
As the third day closes, the party are accustomed to the routine and settle in for the night, Gryffen sees nothing of the girl in the common areas, assuming she must still be in her caravan. The guards are as Gideon surmised asked to do more, both men have slightly longer watch times tonight and Kai catches The Chief complaining to Alson that this is exactly the reason they should have hired a couple of extra men. The caravan leader has the good grace not to argue the point and asks if they will need to plan in more rest breaks or should they reduce the number of men on guard duty. Kai hears the Chief suggest asking the passengers to take spells on watch with a guard, Alson says he will think on it and turns in for the night.
Unless the party wish to do anything particular they will turn in for the night. Kai and Gideon will both have watch duty in the night, if they stay up too long they risk not getting enough rest to function well.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
DM roll 9? Nothing happens on either Kai or Gideon's watch, another of the guards reports seeing a man on a horse in the very early morning watching them for a while before riding off.
The fourth day begins without further incident and the party could have breakfast together if they wished. The weather seems on the turn, Kai is fairly certain it will be raining before they plan on making camp tonight. The land around them could do with the water, everything is very dry, and vegetation is still sparse with no real cover. Without significant delays they will reach the hills that represent the halfway point of the trip in terms of distance, but the days will be harder from tomorrow and they will make less progress as they go.?
Either rp some breakfast chat or we'll move forward again in about 12 hours.
"You sneaky little bastard, this is none of your concern, back off now." Not intimidated despite the halfling having snuck up on him the guard reaches for his dagger and shortsword.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
"You're not listening," Gryffen says, lifting the sickle slightly to apply pressure to sensitive tissue. "You'll not have the option of children if you do not heed."
The halfling lowers his hood with his free hand. For a moment, perhaps no more than a second, the guard and the girl see the visage of death itself, as if the flesh has half rotted from Gryffen's face, his eyes long since removed, and the white of his skull showing where his nose should be.
"Embrace the life you have been given or it will be taken back," he says in a wicked, unearthly timbre.
The Hour or Reaping:
At 6th level, you gain the ability to unsettle or terrify those around you as an action, for your soul has been touched by the shadow of death. When you take this action, each creature within 30 feet of you that can see you must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC 15) or be frightened of you until the end of your next turn.
Guard 13
Girl 14
The guard shows Gryffen how scared he is by losing control of his bladder, the positioning of the halfling giving him a ringside seat of the event. The girl is caught in the surge of fear and whimpers pressing herself even harder against the caravan.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
"I want to hear you say it," Gryffen says. "This girl will be safe; from you and from the dangers of the road. Her life is hers and yours will be yours."
Persuasion: 15
"Fine, fine, whatever you say. Lease just back off." The guard seems close to tears, as does the girl.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Gryffen slips his hood back on and tries to blend back into the shadows, watching the pair in the aftermath of his encounter with them.
Stealth: 23
The guard seems amazed as well as terrified as Gryffen seems to disappear in the shadows, he stares for a second at the girl as if deciding what to do then turns and runs away towards the area where the guards sleep when they are not on duty. Gryffen cannot see him after he heads that way. The girl seems equally confused and then backs away mumbling, "thanks mister" before heading towards a nearby caravan which she jumps up into.
The rest of the night passes without incident in the camp, Gryffen heads off to bed himself shortly afterwards, the guard rotations are made although Kai and Gideon are both surprised when they are woken in the morning by the Chief with the news that one of the guards, a tall man named Csengar has disappeared in the night.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Kai casts around and (Survival Roll - 18 & Perception Roll - 18) says "it looks like he went that way Chief" pointing in the direction of the tracks he has found. "Do we want to follow him or leave him go?"
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
"The tracks head into the woods, let's go and see if he has gone far. You two with me, the rest of you keep your eyes open. Everyone else get ready to move out, daylight's wasting" the Chief calls out to the assembled people. "Good work by the way, you have sharp eyes, I missed those tracks myself." The Chief calls over to Kai as he gestures for the elf and Gideon to follow him further into the trees.
Sadly they do not have to go far, they find Csengar hanging from a tree, a rope tied to high branches leaving him swinging in the gentle breeze of the wood. His face seems calm and almost relieved. The Chief makes a superstitious mark of protection on himself as he sees the corpse. "Damn, he was a good man, scared a little bit easily but he never caused trouble and he'd been on the crew for about a year. Did think he seemed a bit upset recently, but this is strange...damn strange." The big man shakes his head, then looks at the others. "Give me a hand cutting him down, we can bury him and then get they hells away from here. Sharp-eyes, go and tell Alson what happened, try not to make a big scene, tell him we'll need an hour and bring back some shovels and another of the lads."
The mood in the camp is strained, they are clearly aware that something is up and nobody knows what is going on. Gryffen sees no sign of the young girl and nobody speaks to him and Ophelia. Breakfast things are packed away and when Kai and Gryffen return from their grim task they finally have a few moments to speak to Ophelia and Gryffen as they are camped nearby and have ten minutes before they need to move out.
Over to you all, interact as you wish with each other and then we will move into the rest of day 3
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Before they leave the site where the guard's body was found, Kai again looks around to see if he can determine whether this was a suicide or was somebody(s) else involved (Survival -15 / Perception 23)
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
Kai's keen eyes detect a second trail, lighter than the first walking in from a slightly different direction and then walking away in a wider arc before returning to the camp, the trail disappears as they close with the caravan, leaving Kai uncertain of which caravan the second person might have been heading to.
It appears to have been suicide as the second figure seems to have kept a distance.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
As Kai and the others are walking back to the camp he says quietly "Chief, there is no doubt that Csengar did himself in, but somebody from camp watched him do it, or didn't try and stop him from doing it, before they returned to camp!"
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
"Who on earth would behave like that, and then say nothing. I will talk to Alson, but I suspect he will not want it to go any further, be on your guard though. It's possible something is afoot, I'll tell the rest of the lads to be wary." Alson and the Chief do speak but Kai is too far away to hear what is up but in the guard's briefing before they depart the Chief does tell them what has happened and to be on the lookout for anybody acting in an unusual manner.
OOC the party still have the opportunity to speak with each other if required. The caravan will them move off, in similar formation to the previous day. Later in the day Gideon and Kai will be working as Outriders again, scouting ahead of the main party by several hundred feet keeping an eye out.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
Ophelia
Watching the commotion from afar, perched on top of her cart, Ophelia notes Kai and Gideon both heading into the woods with their new boss, and eventually reappearing, looking the more somber for their trip. Figuring she would eventually hear what events had transpired, she slips off her cart and begins to pack up her life, ready for the next stage of the journey.
"More time in the saddle now thanks to this" Gideon points over his shoulder talking to Kai as they approached the area they both slept, he was secretly pleased at the prospect, more time away would certainly break the monotony of camp life his fondness of being alone and admire the wild could be satisfied for a little while longer it would seem. "I wonder why" he thought aloud his voice trailing off as he reached the bedrolls. "Could you discern anything about the watcher from what you found?"
Packing his things for the road Gideon dons his mail and fixes his shield to the side of his mount. "That's me out again Kai, maybe you could join me as a bird of prey sometime, it would certainly make things a tad more interesting"
"All I can say is that the tracks were not as deep as Csengar's. As to transforming into a bird of prey that is beyond my skills at the moment, an ostrich is about all I am capable of!"
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
Gideon frowns before climbing his mount, leaning forward his weight on the saddle horn Kai passes him his spear. "Thank you" Gideon hefts the weapon up making himself comfortable "An ostrich out here would be quite amusing."
The trio walk slowly now to the front of the caravan Kai leading Gideons horse at a steady pace. As they reach the front the pair bid each other farewell for the moment Gideon putting his heels to the horse and riding out.
OOC if Ophelia and Gryffen wish to talk they can, the opportunity to talk to the others has passed for now.
The caravan moves off, Ophelia finds herself driving alongside an older woman, who gives her name as Zsena, she tells the younger woman that she has been driving this caravan route for a couple of years and that the next day or two should be easier, the journey becomes harder as they cross some hills after that especially as bandits use the cover to stage ambushes from time to time. She tells her she is carrying an assortment of spices from the north which don't grow on the East Coast so fetch a reasonable price despite being common where they are from.
As the third day closes, the party are accustomed to the routine and settle in for the night, Gryffen sees nothing of the girl in the common areas, assuming she must still be in her caravan. The guards are as Gideon surmised asked to do more, both men have slightly longer watch times tonight and Kai catches The Chief complaining to Alson that this is exactly the reason they should have hired a couple of extra men. The caravan leader has the good grace not to argue the point and asks if they will need to plan in more rest breaks or should they reduce the number of men on guard duty. Kai hears the Chief suggest asking the passengers to take spells on watch with a guard, Alson says he will think on it and turns in for the night.
Unless the party wish to do anything particular they will turn in for the night. Kai and Gideon will both have watch duty in the night, if they stay up too long they risk not getting enough rest to function well.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales
As soon as Kai's watch is over he turns in!
DM - Storm King's Thunder - The Gods Respond
DM - Four bards walk into a bar...
Cracitus Tibicen (Tibi) - Aarokocra - Rogue [Swashbuckler] / Fighter [Battlemaster]
DM roll 9? Nothing happens on either Kai or Gideon's watch, another of the guards reports seeing a man on a horse in the very early morning watching them for a while before riding off.
The fourth day begins without further incident and the party could have breakfast together if they wished. The weather seems on the turn, Kai is fairly certain it will be raining before they plan on making camp tonight. The land around them could do with the water, everything is very dry, and vegetation is still sparse with no real cover. Without significant delays they will reach the hills that represent the halfway point of the trip in terms of distance, but the days will be harder from tomorrow and they will make less progress as they go.?
Either rp some breakfast chat or we'll move forward again in about 12 hours.
Vhon - Level 2 Warlock - What shall become of the Drunken Sailor?
Lyreis - Level 6 Elf Fighter - Eberron: Omega
DM - Dzenda: The Cracks - DM - Dzenda: Whispered Tales