Chantrea watches warily ahead, while occasionally glancing behind them on the road. After a time, she scrunches her face a little and says to Nelly, "Do you think something's wrong? He- uh, it's been gone a while now."
The dwarf's brow knits up as she thinks about Chantrea's question. Thinking, always the most dangerous of pursuits... after a few seconds, she shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly and says "Nothin' can squirm out of a trap like a gobbo. Real tricksy, that lot. I 'spect he's fine."
Nelly smiles with a peculiar blend of encouragement and bloodthirst, then starts stretching her legs in preparation for sudden movements. This is the kind of quiet she's used to. The quiet before the screaming and bloodshed starts. Best be ready for it.
Nelly just readies herself when a screaming voice is heard, seemingly, from down the road. While at the beginning it seems muffled and too quiet, you think you can make out the word 'help' at the end of it.
**I am going to treat this as if everyone was in combat and Chantrea and Nelly were "Ready". If you choose to you can move normally or dash down the road, travel through the trees etc. This action would have already occured and brought you closer to the map if you choose. You can also stay and watch the cart. You will not need to roll initiative this round but dashing another round would bring you to the edge of the map. (I hope that makes sense)
after playing around with Roll20 I decided to just post maps here. . easier for everyone. Each square is 5' on this one.
The "ninja" icon on Daeris means she is hidden (don't worry she isn't drow. . she just reeeally wanted that portrait. . imagine very light skin). . the symbol on Nelly and Chantrea means that they are not on the map yet but the token shows the direction they are in.
I am just going to use roll 20 but put the maps here . . or a link to the maps here :)
Chantrea's eyes widen at the noise, and she seems to shrink down, shuddering. Quickly, she regains her composure and presses her hand over the divine symbol she wears at her throat. After a deep breath, the blonde young woman grabs her bow and rushes off towards the scream, calling to Nelly over her shoulder, "Let's go! He needs help!"
Recovering from illness. Will post Update tomorrow (evening) with some ideas / questions around meta gaming and how i post... (Some might actually be good)...stay tuned.
Although the article makes it seem like D&D faded into obscurity for the past couple decades, that's not really been my experience. But I guess the people behind the game would support that (based on comments about sales).
OOC: I have been considering posting more things for everyone to see. For example you could know what Glen was doing. Normally I would try to keep things tight to the character's perspective to avoid meta-gaming and add some suspense and realism. This is something I like generally. I am wondering for Play by post if it might work better for everyone to see what is going on (unless I think it should be secret or just between a player and NPC. . a conversation for example or if some one opens a chest). The reason that I am thinking of changing thing sis that it could be more interesting for everyone to be able to read what is going on (like with Lowblo so far). They will get more of the story and it might actually save time and make the story more cohesive to have some ^gasp^ slight meta-gaming for story and momentum's sake. For example. . Lowblo could say he fills everyone in and you could comment on a part without having dialogue back and forth to get details. Let me know your thoughts.
Round 2 results
Chantrea and Nelly:
Chantrea rushes down the road calling back to Nelly who responds with eagerness to the call. The screams of a goblin have them thinking that their newly met acquaintance may be in desperate need of assistance and Nelly could smell the battle to come in the air.
Lowblo / Daeris:
A terrified goblin in leather armour runs into the road clutching a shortbow with a cutlass at his side. He pauses, taking a break from screaming to catch is breath as a second goblin, also wearing worn leather bursts out of the trees to the north of the road. sliding down the embankment, "What?!. . what are. . ". His words are cut short as something glistening flashes out of the top of the trees to the north west. A shard, seemingly of ice, lances into the goblins side. He grunts and begins to look down just as the shard explodes in a five foot radius shredding the right side of his body and face. He falls to the ground lifelessly.
The first goblin's eyes widen in horror and then freezes as a crossbow bolt slams into his back. He kneels down, both hands reaching for his back desperately, and falls gracelessly onto his face.
An arrow comes out of the woods, north of where the 2nd goblin arrived. It flies in the general direction of Lowblo and falls harmlessly to the ground.
Chantrea and Nelly begin to round the corner and can just make out the body of a dead goblin laying on the south side of the road and the horses that Lowblo had mentioned earlier.
Let me know what your characters are going to do. . dashdodgeready etc. Give me a second option just in case and any die rolls you think you might need.
*Lowblo can finish round 2 by hiding or moving (3o feet - each square is 5 including diagonal 10 for squares with difficult terrain like trees, dense brush) . . or moving and then hiding since you are a goblin. Let me know how you want to finish this round and then your plans for Round 3.
OOG: I think including everyone in the narrative is a great idea, it will help keep the interest up. I think we're all experienced enough that we can avoid metagaming. My 2 cents anyway.
So, just to clarify, the ice bolt and the arrow did not come from one of us, right?
Lowblo will try to meld into the woods again and search for the origins of the other attackers.
"Fin'ly, a fight! 'BOUT TIME, YOU LAZY BOGGERS!" Nelly's shout rings eagerly through the forest as she sprints forward into the woods, eyes darting from side to side as she searches for something to hit. The girl makes no attempt at stealth or subtlety, opting instead for the time-honored tradition of running headfirst into danger, just like her papa used to do.
Chantrea starts off along the road, but then sees Nelly head into the woods on the north side of the road instead. "Well, ok, we can go that way I suppose," she says to herself, and follows in after the dwarf, pushing branches out of the way with her bow.
Chantrea chases off after Nelly through the woods. After a short distance you come to a path that leads north / south. You follow the path to the south (in the direction of the dead horses and sounds of combat - north leads further into the woods). It ends before reaching the road . You can make out the road from here down the slope and have a good view of the horses.
Chantrea notices that it looks as though there has been a lot of movement in the area recently. If she had to guess she would say that goblins had been using this area to stage ambushes for quite some time. There are also signs that two bodies have recently been dragged away to the north, roughly human sized.
As you quickly survey the area, Daeris approaches both of you from the west making her presence known, although she managed to get fairly close without you noticing her, "Someone shot an arrow from this direction just a few moments ago. There were two goblins on the road. . I'm sure I killed one and I think Lowblo killed the other."
Lowblo
You rush across the road. As you pass the two horses you realize that they belonged to Gundren and his escort Sildar Hallwinter. Ignoring that for the moment you quickly enter the woods on the other side of the road and head in the direction the arrow seemed to come from slowing down to remain as quiet and hidden as possible. You see no sign of anyone who may have fired the arrow. It leads you to the trail you had passed while scouting the north end of the woods. Here you see Chantrea and Nelly a little further up the trail, soon joined by Daeris. They don't appear to have seen you.
You are about 24 hours away from Phandalin and it is just passed mid-day.
The dwarf looks back and forth between the North path, and the South. Then between her axe, and the drag marks on the ground. Then between Daeris and Lowblo - though she seems oblivious to the latter's glare. After nearly half a minute of thoughtful stares and more thinking than she usually does in a week, Nelly's grimace blossoms into a gleeful smile. "Looks like we 'ave ourselves a whole cave of spindly boggers to cleave through. The day is lookin' up, aye!"
She waves her axe eagerly and starts trotting up the North path. "Last one there is an owlbear's arse."
Chantrea looks from the back of Nelly's retreating form to the others. "It does appear that the riders of those horses were dragged off that way," she says, gesturing North. "I guess we should follow her."
The blonde young woman starts heading north, following after the dwarf.
He returns to the wagon and tries to lead the animals into the woods where they can be concealed. The Goblin reasoned that ff they find Gundren and he's still alive, he might be upset about losing the shipment.
Once the horses and wagon are as hidden as possible, he returns to the trail and quickly follows his new companions.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Lowblo
You head back to the cart and lead the ox farther into the woods. It isn't too difficult. You find suitable materials and cover the wagon the best you can. The tarp covering most of the goods helps. You tie the ox to a tree and return to the road quickly to check. Even knowing where it is you have a very hard time making out anything that would give it away. You begin heading back through the woods to the path when you notice a human walking down the road. He is wearing chain armour and is carrying a long sword. He looks possibly familiar to you. You think you saw him standing beside a man Gundren was speaking to once just before he left Neverwinter. You are pretty sure he has seen you as well. I'll let Ruvaar describe himself and his approach.
Daeris
You return to the road, first checking the goblins. They are indeed dead. Each one has a scimitar, short bow, a small shield, goblin sized leather armor and arrows (you can take these if you want). As you are checking the second goblin you take note of something strange. The goblin's teeth are filed into points. This might not be so strange except you noticed that on the first goblin as well.
Moving to the dead horses of Gundren and Sildar, you see that they have each been pierced by many arrows with black fletching similar to those you found on the bodies of the goblins. Moving closer you check the saddle bags. They lay open and empty. Nearby you find an empty leather map case.
Not seeing much else of interest you begin to head north across the road toward the trail.
Nelly and Chantrea
You are both moving along the trail for about 10 minutes, Nelly happily leading the charge in search of sure adventure! When . . 7perception check for Nelly vs. DC 12. Nelly steps down to the sound of a snap as a twig is broken beneath her excited dwarven feet. 19Dexterity Saving Throw vs. DC 10 for Nelly. I think I got these right with the bonuses? Reacting quickly Nelly drops and rolls to the side just avoiding being caught up in a snare. The rope is pulled 10 feet into the air under a nearby tree!
Chantrea watches warily ahead, while occasionally glancing behind them on the road. After a time, she scrunches her face a little and says to Nelly, "Do you think something's wrong? He- uh, it's been gone a while now."
Nelly Stonebottom ~ AC 18 ~ HP 12
The dwarf's brow knits up as she thinks about Chantrea's question. Thinking, always the most dangerous of pursuits... after a few seconds, she shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly and says "Nothin' can squirm out of a trap like a gobbo. Real tricksy, that lot. I 'spect he's fine."
Nelly smiles with a peculiar blend of encouragement and bloodthirst, then starts stretching her legs in preparation for sudden movements. This is the kind of quiet she's used to. The quiet before the screaming and bloodshed starts. Best be ready for it.
Nelly just readies herself when a screaming voice is heard, seemingly, from down the road. While at the beginning it seems muffled and too quiet, you think you can make out the word 'help' at the end of it.
**I am going to treat this as if everyone was in combat and Chantrea and Nelly were "Ready". If you choose to you can move normally or dash down the road, travel through the trees etc. This action would have already occured and brought you closer to the map if you choose. You can also stay and watch the cart. You will not need to roll initiative this round but dashing another round would bring you to the edge of the map. (I hope that makes sense)
after playing around with Roll20 I decided to just post maps here. . easier for everyone. Each square is 5' on this one.
The "ninja" icon on Daeris means she is hidden (don't worry she isn't drow. . she just reeeally wanted that portrait. . imagine very light skin). . the symbol on Nelly and Chantrea means that they are not on the map yet but the token shows the direction they are in.
I am just going to use roll 20 but put the maps here . . or a link to the maps here :)
Everyone has a PM
Chantrea's eyes widen at the noise, and she seems to shrink down, shuddering. Quickly, she regains her composure and presses her hand over the divine symbol she wears at her throat. After a deep breath, the blonde young woman grabs her bow and rushes off towards the scream, calling to Nelly over her shoulder, "Let's go! He needs help!"
Recovering from illness. Will post Update tomorrow (evening) with some ideas / questions around meta gaming and how i post... (Some might actually be good)...stay tuned.
Crappy. Hope you feel better soon.
Interesting article: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-uncanny-resurrection-of-dungeons-and-dragons
Although the article makes it seem like D&D faded into obscurity for the past couple decades, that's not really been my experience. But I guess the people behind the game would support that (based on comments about sales).
OOC: I have been considering posting more things for everyone to see. For example you could know what Glen was doing. Normally I would try to keep things tight to the character's perspective to avoid meta-gaming and add some suspense and realism. This is something I like generally. I am wondering for Play by post if it might work better for everyone to see what is going on (unless I think it should be secret or just between a player and NPC. . a conversation for example or if some one opens a chest). The reason that I am thinking of changing thing sis that it could be more interesting for everyone to be able to read what is going on (like with Lowblo so far). They will get more of the story and it might actually save time and make the story more cohesive to have some ^gasp^ slight meta-gaming for story and momentum's sake. For example. . Lowblo could say he fills everyone in and you could comment on a part without having dialogue back and forth to get details. Let me know your thoughts.
Round 2 results
Chantrea and Nelly:
Chantrea rushes down the road calling back to Nelly who responds with eagerness to the call. The screams of a goblin have them thinking that their newly met acquaintance may be in desperate need of assistance and Nelly could smell the battle to come in the air.
Lowblo / Daeris:
A terrified goblin in leather armour runs into the road clutching a shortbow with a cutlass at his side. He pauses, taking a break from screaming to catch is breath as a second goblin, also wearing worn leather bursts out of the trees to the north of the road. sliding down the embankment, "What?!. . what are. . ". His words are cut short as something glistening flashes out of the top of the trees to the north west. A shard, seemingly of ice, lances into the goblins side. He grunts and begins to look down just as the shard explodes in a five foot radius shredding the right side of his body and face. He falls to the ground lifelessly.
The first goblin's eyes widen in horror and then freezes as a crossbow bolt slams into his back. He kneels down, both hands reaching for his back desperately, and falls gracelessly onto his face.
An arrow comes out of the woods, north of where the 2nd goblin arrived. It flies in the general direction of Lowblo and falls harmlessly to the ground.
Chantrea and Nelly begin to round the corner and can just make out the body of a dead goblin laying on the south side of the road and the horses that Lowblo had mentioned earlier.
Let me know what your characters are going to do. . dash dodge ready etc. Give me a second option just in case and any die rolls you think you might need.
*Lowblo can finish round 2 by hiding or moving (3o feet - each square is 5 including diagonal 10 for squares with difficult terrain like trees, dense brush) . . or moving and then hiding since you are a goblin. Let me know how you want to finish this round and then your plans for Round 3.
OOG: I think including everyone in the narrative is a great idea, it will help keep the interest up. I think we're all experienced enough that we can avoid metagaming. My 2 cents anyway.
So, just to clarify, the ice bolt and the arrow did not come from one of us, right?
Lowblo will try to meld into the woods again and search for the origins of the other attackers.
If applicable:
Stealth: 19
Perception: 10
I should have posted for Daeris. That was her but you wouldn't know that I suppose.
Also, I should get initiative rolls from Nelly and Chantrea.
Nelly Stonebottom ~ AC 18 ~ HP 12
"Fin'ly, a fight! 'BOUT TIME, YOU LAZY BOGGERS!" Nelly's shout rings eagerly through the forest as she sprints forward into the woods, eyes darting from side to side as she searches for something to hit. The girl makes no attempt at stealth or subtlety, opting instead for the time-honored tradition of running headfirst into danger, just like her papa used to do.
Initiative 20
Chantrea ~ 12 AC ~ 10 HP
Chantrea starts off along the road, but then sees Nelly head into the woods on the north side of the road instead. "Well, ok, we can go that way I suppose," she says to herself, and follows in after the dwarf, pushing branches out of the way with her bow.
Initiative 17
Chantrea and Nelly
Chantrea chases off after Nelly through the woods. After a short distance you come to a path that leads north / south. You follow the path to the south (in the direction of the dead horses and sounds of combat - north leads further into the woods). It ends before reaching the road . You can make out the road from here down the slope and have a good view of the horses.
Chantrea notices that it looks as though there has been a lot of movement in the area recently. If she had to guess she would say that goblins had been using this area to stage ambushes for quite some time. There are also signs that two bodies have recently been dragged away to the north, roughly human sized.
As you quickly survey the area, Daeris approaches both of you from the west making her presence known, although she managed to get fairly close without you noticing her, "Someone shot an arrow from this direction just a few moments ago. There were two goblins on the road. . I'm sure I killed one and I think Lowblo killed the other."
Lowblo
You rush across the road. As you pass the two horses you realize that they belonged to Gundren and his escort Sildar Hallwinter. Ignoring that for the moment you quickly enter the woods on the other side of the road and head in the direction the arrow seemed to come from slowing down to remain as quiet and hidden as possible. You see no sign of anyone who may have fired the arrow. It leads you to the trail you had passed while scouting the north end of the woods. Here you see Chantrea and Nelly a little further up the trail, soon joined by Daeris. They don't appear to have seen you.
You are about 24 hours away from Phandalin and it is just passed mid-day.
Lowblo steps onto the path out of the foliage and walks towards the group, "Yes, Lowblo kills the 'greenie.' " He shoots Nelly a scathing look.
Pointing back to the main road, "Dead horses belonged to Gundren. This not right."
Nelly Stonebottom ~ AC 18 ~ HP 12
The dwarf looks back and forth between the North path, and the South. Then between her axe, and the drag marks on the ground. Then between Daeris and Lowblo - though she seems oblivious to the latter's glare. After nearly half a minute of thoughtful stares and more thinking than she usually does in a week, Nelly's grimace blossoms into a gleeful smile. "Looks like we 'ave ourselves a whole cave of spindly boggers to cleave through. The day is lookin' up, aye!"
She waves her axe eagerly and starts trotting up the North path. "Last one there is an owlbear's arse."
Chantrea looks from the back of Nelly's retreating form to the others. "It does appear that the riders of those horses were dragged off that way," she says, gesturing North. "I guess we should follow her."
The blonde young woman starts heading north, following after the dwarf.
Lowblo sighs and shakes his head.
He returns to the wagon and tries to lead the animals into the woods where they can be concealed. The Goblin reasoned that ff they find Gundren and he's still alive, he might be upset about losing the shipment.
Once the horses and wagon are as hidden as possible, he returns to the trail and quickly follows his new companions.
Lowblo
You head back to the cart and lead the ox farther into the woods. It isn't too difficult. You find suitable materials and cover the wagon the best you can. The tarp covering most of the goods helps. You tie the ox to a tree and return to the road quickly to check. Even knowing where it is you have a very hard time making out anything that would give it away. You begin heading back through the woods to the path when you notice a human walking down the road. He is wearing chain armour and is carrying a long sword. He looks possibly familiar to you. You think you saw him standing beside a man Gundren was speaking to once just before he left Neverwinter. You are pretty sure he has seen you as well. I'll let Ruvaar describe himself and his approach.
Daeris
You return to the road, first checking the goblins. They are indeed dead. Each one has a scimitar, short bow, a small shield, goblin sized leather armor and arrows (you can take these if you want). As you are checking the second goblin you take note of something strange. The goblin's teeth are filed into points. This might not be so strange except you noticed that on the first goblin as well.
Moving to the dead horses of Gundren and Sildar, you see that they have each been pierced by many arrows with black fletching similar to those you found on the bodies of the goblins. Moving closer you check the saddle bags. They lay open and empty. Nearby you find an empty leather map case.
Not seeing much else of interest you begin to head north across the road toward the trail.
Nelly and Chantrea
You are both moving along the trail for about 10 minutes, Nelly happily leading the charge in search of sure adventure! When . .
7 perception check for Nelly vs. DC 12. Nelly steps down to the sound of a snap as a twig is broken beneath her excited dwarven feet.
19 Dexterity Saving Throw vs. DC 10 for Nelly. I think I got these right with the bonuses?
Reacting quickly Nelly drops and rolls to the side just avoiding being caught up in a snare. The rope is pulled 10 feet into the air under a nearby tree!