Soar will wait for both of her friends to return, trying to remain as boring as possible. Being boring is not one of her favorite things but she wants to keep everyone safe so boring it is. She will keep a close watch and listen for anything interesting. She says a quick prayer to Kelemvor and even does a nod to Bahamut to keep Jalt safe.
Are the stacks of books and parchments all in line of sight of the woman? If possible, Elspeth would like to peek at whatever writing may be on the parchments around the tent but if there's any possibility the woman might lift her head and notice a spider crawling on her notes then Elspeth would give them a wide berth. If not, Elspeth is going to climb the side of the tent the woman has her back turned towards and try to get a look at whatever the woman's writing.
Is there anything especially unique about the woman's appearance? Elspeth would like to ensure that she'd be able to identify the woman if she sees her again.
Soar, make a Stealth or Deception check for standing around and not attracting attention.
Elspeth, the stacks of books are all near the woman and within her line of sight if she turned her head slightly. So you climb up the side of the tent. Make a Perception check to get a look at what she is writing. And you have seen her before; she was in Greenest, talking to some cultists and under the guard of some elite-looking warriors who match the two now standing guard outside the tent.
Soar, as you are waiting around, you hear a clatter coming from the tent nearby and Breena comes racing back. I don't think there was anyone there, but I knocked something over and...
She stiffens in alarm as she sees a guard headed towards you; not one of the elite guards, just a regular cultist you've seen around the camp. He is walking briskly in your direction, though he hasn't drawn his weapon.
Elspeth, you can see very little, and this person keeps moving the paper as she writes; she seems less than happy to be writing this. Looking from afar you are able to see the words, but they appear to be in a language that you cannot read (Elspeth doesn't speak draconic, does she?)
Soar just looks down at Breena and, just loud enough for the cultist to hear, admonishes her. "What did I tell you about wandering? We've still got errands to run and the night's not over. Come on, let's get moving."And she tries to guide Breena along perpendicular to the direction the cultist's heading.
Elspeth, satisfied that she would be unable to collect much more information, will leave the tent with the intention of rejoining Soar. Upon seeing the cultist approach, however, she would like to keep her distance and keep a little away. If there's any grass or cover nearby, Elspeth will head towards there first to conceal herself until she is sure that the cultist is no longer interested in Soar.
Soar, the guard approaches and overhears you. Get back to your camp. You know they don't like us messing around near their stuff. Go celebrate, while you have the chance. He points you in the general direction of the main road, and then heads back to whatever he was doing. Breena seems eager to go along with you.
Soar tries not to look at the tent where Elspeth went. She nods at the cultist, making grumbly, sleepy, but still apologetic noises. "Hope you get a break soon. Thanks, and sorry to bother."Turning to Breena, she puts her hand on the woman's shoulder and says, "now come on, let's get back."
She takes a few brisk steps and then settles into an easy, tired gait back to the main road.
Was the guard human-looking? Or some other race? If human, she'll whisper to Breena once they get further away, "he probably can't see in the dark too well -- should we try to loop back to that final camp to see if your prisoners are there? I hope... Legs catches up with us and isn't stuck in the tent."She looks around behind her on the ground.
Soar smiles down at the spider. "Glad you could make it. Hope you're learning interesting things. Breena wants to make one more stop to look for prisoners. We can do it. We've made it this far."
She weaves down the main road and after about 100 feet, sticking to darkness and away from the lights, she'll casually loop back around to the last mercenary camp. When she's way out of earshot, she'll tick through the counts she tried to make of each camp.
-80ish kobolds in first camp -60ish mercs in second camp -40 tents, 60 people in third cultist camp -another 40ish tents in final merc camp
Which is about 200-300 people total, 260 to try for a more exact estimate. "You okay Breena? We still haven't seen the guy we were supposed to look for. Let's just take a look at this last one, see if anyone can easily get out, and then leave to go find our friend. I miss him."
Soar and Breena, with Elspeth still in spider form, approach what seems to be the last camp. You count around twenty tents, and they seem most like the other mercenary camps you have seen. Though there is no-one awake in the camp itself, there is an area between the camp and the rocky sides of the hollow where you see two guards stationed, apparently on duty, guarding something that is a little difficult to make out from where you are. You can definitely see sticks or poles stuck into the ground, but not much else yet. You can get closer and/or make a Perception check if you wish.
Soar will try to stick a bit closer to the rocky sides of the hollow to do her best not to be super obvious and see-able.
"Breena, can you see anything over there? Wonder what those poles are. Maybe sneak a bit closer, but not too much, since you're a bit quieter than I am? Just to take a look and come right back."
She'll try to make out what they're guarding from where she is by the sides of the hollow, and maybe Breena wants to go closer (and do her own roll, or if you'd prefer we roll with advantage, let me know).
Breena heads a little closer and takes a look: Perception19
She comes back, looking concerned. Well, I found the prisoners, I think. There are stakes in the ground, and people tied to them. I couldn't see them all - maybe a dozen all told. And two guards. She looks nervous, but determined. We can't leave them here. But how can we get them out?
"Well, we're pretty close to the cliff walls,"Soar whispers to Breena. "Can you see any way to get up there? The question is could we take out the guards without attracting attention in the rest of the camp, free the prisoners, and then get them away, perhaps up into the cliffside? Don't know if we could just lead them out the way we came. Would take some doing but we've made it this far. I don't know what Elspeth's learned but I'm not sure we'll find out more from spying. So we've fulfilled our mission and we have to get out of here and the question is how do we take some folks with us. Can you ask your animal friends to go take a message or look around? Or even cut the prisoners loose?? I wonder if that monk fellow is there and if they'd be able to find him. I don't really have a good way of keeping things quiet. You saw how well it went when I tried to use magic before."
[This is where Soar's optimism falls short when it comes to the limitations of practical planning.]
She looks around again. How far away are the tents from the area with the poles and the two guards? Would sound carry far? And are there other people wandering around nearby? (Basically wondering if there's any tactical chance of sneaking up, trying to knock them out, or at least taking them down, and if they cried out, would people likely hear easily or is it sort of far away.)
Soar turns back to Breena. "Having your animal friends, or us if we can sneak close enough, free the prisoners quietly might give us a chance to either get away clean or give us more numbers in taking down the guards without a sound. Do you think that's possible? Elspeth, if you have any ideas, now may be the time."
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Soar will wait for both of her friends to return, trying to remain as boring as possible. Being boring is not one of her favorite things but she wants to keep everyone safe so boring it is. She will keep a close watch and listen for anything interesting. She says a quick prayer to Kelemvor and even does a nod to Bahamut to keep Jalt safe.
Are the stacks of books and parchments all in line of sight of the woman? If possible, Elspeth would like to peek at whatever writing may be on the parchments around the tent but if there's any possibility the woman might lift her head and notice a spider crawling on her notes then Elspeth would give them a wide berth. If not, Elspeth is going to climb the side of the tent the woman has her back turned towards and try to get a look at whatever the woman's writing.
Is there anything especially unique about the woman's appearance? Elspeth would like to ensure that she'd be able to identify the woman if she sees her again.
Soar, make a Stealth or Deception check for standing around and not attracting attention.
Elspeth, the stacks of books are all near the woman and within her line of sight if she turned her head slightly. So you climb up the side of the tent. Make a Perception check to get a look at what she is writing. And you have seen her before; she was in Greenest, talking to some cultists and under the guard of some elite-looking warriors who match the two now standing guard outside the tent.
Deception: 8
Perception: 20
10
Soar, as you are waiting around, you hear a clatter coming from the tent nearby and Breena comes racing back. I don't think there was anyone there, but I knocked something over and...
She stiffens in alarm as she sees a guard headed towards you; not one of the elite guards, just a regular cultist you've seen around the camp. He is walking briskly in your direction, though he hasn't drawn his weapon.
Elspeth, you can see very little, and this person keeps moving the paper as she writes; she seems less than happy to be writing this. Looking from afar you are able to see the words, but they appear to be in a language that you cannot read (Elspeth doesn't speak draconic, does she?)
Soar just looks down at Breena and, just loud enough for the cultist to hear, admonishes her. "What did I tell you about wandering? We've still got errands to run and the night's not over. Come on, let's get moving." And she tries to guide Breena along perpendicular to the direction the cultist's heading.
((No, Elspeth cannot speak draconic.))
Elspeth, satisfied that she would be unable to collect much more information, will leave the tent with the intention of rejoining Soar. Upon seeing the cultist approach, however, she would like to keep her distance and keep a little away. If there's any grass or cover nearby, Elspeth will head towards there first to conceal herself until she is sure that the cultist is no longer interested in Soar.
Elspeth, you hide successfully behind a nearby barrel and are unnoticed for the moment.
Breena nods in agreement. Just needed a rest, that's all, friend, she says to you to try to reinforce what Soar is saying.
Soar, make a Deception check with advantage.
Soar deception: 15
Soar, the guard approaches and overhears you. Get back to your camp. You know they don't like us messing around near their stuff. Go celebrate, while you have the chance. He points you in the general direction of the main road, and then heads back to whatever he was doing. Breena seems eager to go along with you.
Soar tries not to look at the tent where Elspeth went. She nods at the cultist, making grumbly, sleepy, but still apologetic noises. "Hope you get a break soon. Thanks, and sorry to bother." Turning to Breena, she puts her hand on the woman's shoulder and says, "now come on, let's get back."
She takes a few brisk steps and then settles into an easy, tired gait back to the main road.
Was the guard human-looking? Or some other race? If human, she'll whisper to Breena once they get further away, "he probably can't see in the dark too well -- should we try to loop back to that final camp to see if your prisoners are there? I hope... Legs catches up with us and isn't stuck in the tent." She looks around behind her on the ground.
The guard was human-looking, yes.
Breena responds, Yes, let's try that. That will be the last camp. I hope you've been keeping count.
As you speak, an inoffensive-looking spider crawls from the darkness up Soar and perches on her shoulder once again.
Soar smiles down at the spider. "Glad you could make it. Hope you're learning interesting things. Breena wants to make one more stop to look for prisoners. We can do it. We've made it this far."
She weaves down the main road and after about 100 feet, sticking to darkness and away from the lights, she'll casually loop back around to the last mercenary camp. When she's way out of earshot, she'll tick through the counts she tried to make of each camp.
-80ish kobolds in first camp
-60ish mercs in second camp
-40 tents, 60 people in third cultist camp
-another 40ish tents in final merc camp
Which is about 200-300 people total, 260 to try for a more exact estimate. "You okay Breena? We still haven't seen the guy we were supposed to look for. Let's just take a look at this last one, see if anyone can easily get out, and then leave to go find our friend. I miss him."
Soar and Breena, with Elspeth still in spider form, approach what seems to be the last camp. You count around twenty tents, and they seem most like the other mercenary camps you have seen. Though there is no-one awake in the camp itself, there is an area between the camp and the rocky sides of the hollow where you see two guards stationed, apparently on duty, guarding something that is a little difficult to make out from where you are. You can definitely see sticks or poles stuck into the ground, but not much else yet. You can get closer and/or make a Perception check if you wish.
Soar will try to stick a bit closer to the rocky sides of the hollow to do her best not to be super obvious and see-able.
"Breena, can you see anything over there? Wonder what those poles are. Maybe sneak a bit closer, but not too much, since you're a bit quieter than I am? Just to take a look and come right back."
She'll try to make out what they're guarding from where she is by the sides of the hollow, and maybe Breena wants to go closer (and do her own roll, or if you'd prefer we roll with advantage, let me know).
Soar perception: 11
Breena heads a little closer and takes a look: Perception 19
She comes back, looking concerned. Well, I found the prisoners, I think. There are stakes in the ground, and people tied to them. I couldn't see them all - maybe a dozen all told. And two guards. She looks nervous, but determined. We can't leave them here. But how can we get them out?
(How long has it been since Elspeth wildshifted into a spider?)
(Getting close to an hour, which is the limit.)
"Well, we're pretty close to the cliff walls," Soar whispers to Breena. "Can you see any way to get up there? The question is could we take out the guards without attracting attention in the rest of the camp, free the prisoners, and then get them away, perhaps up into the cliffside? Don't know if we could just lead them out the way we came. Would take some doing but we've made it this far. I don't know what Elspeth's learned but I'm not sure we'll find out more from spying. So we've fulfilled our mission and we have to get out of here and the question is how do we take some folks with us. Can you ask your animal friends to go take a message or look around? Or even cut the prisoners loose?? I wonder if that monk fellow is there and if they'd be able to find him. I don't really have a good way of keeping things quiet. You saw how well it went when I tried to use magic before."
[This is where Soar's optimism falls short when it comes to the limitations of practical planning.]
She looks around again. How far away are the tents from the area with the poles and the two guards? Would sound carry far? And are there other people wandering around nearby? (Basically wondering if there's any tactical chance of sneaking up, trying to knock them out, or at least taking them down, and if they cried out, would people likely hear easily or is it sort of far away.)
Soar turns back to Breena. "Having your animal friends, or us if we can sneak close enough, free the prisoners quietly might give us a chance to either get away clean or give us more numbers in taking down the guards without a sound. Do you think that's possible? Elspeth, if you have any ideas, now may be the time."