Qidira looks up to confirm that there are no ledges or elevated areas where they could be hiding and continues to watch the exits, especially any unattended in a semi-patrolling motion to be sure they aren't surprised by anything. She tries to zero in on the croaking and where its coming from. "Remember, anything found in here may be potentially causing this sickness. What about the fire pit, anything in there?" She will move to look herself if she sees exits are covered, but otherwise will defer to keeping them covered.
“I doubt anything left here will cause the illness. Those bandits we fought didn’t seem ill. It appears that only direct contact with one of the Eisselcross relics will cause it.” Durnham says as he continues his patrol and scanning of the area.
As Durnham starts his ritual to scan the room for magic, the rest of the party help Brandon search through the camp. Apart from bedrolls and a few personal items, the only thing of note is an unopened bottle of Bald Dwarf Whiskey, a valuable alcohol made by elves in Uthodurn.
Ressys heads north far enough to check his theory and try to communicate with the bats; the north corridor does indeed lead to the bat cave and there is no response to the firbolg’s series of clicking noises.
Qidira spots no ledges and the fire pit reveals nothing of interest; she may need water to clear the ashes from her hands.
By the time the search is complete, Durnham finishes his ritual and starts to scan the room for signs of magical energy; he sees none whatsoever in any part of the cave.
Brandon holds up the unopened bottle of whiskey. “At least this camp isn’t a complete bust, I had some of this in Uthodurn. It is good stuff, too good for the likes of these bandits. We will have to share a drink when this is over. Otherwise, there is nothing here but junk.” He slips the bottle into his pack and turns to Durnham “Do you see anything in your search?”
He looks at the others. “No clues on where Hulil could be, shall we continue to explore the passage to the northeast?”
Qidira wanders over to him,"We need you at your best, don't let it distract you. I value your company and wouldn't want the distraction to cause you harm. Something I saw often on the streets of Uthodurn." She whispers grasping his shoulder and meeting his eyes briefly. She looks over his shoulder at the entrance in the direction of the second pond, still hearing the croaking. Then realizing she's just put an ashen hand print on his gear, dusts it off quickly.
Ressys stands, looks and listens but as he does not see the sign indicted. Ressys reports to the others what he has found.
"This first passage connects and is one and the same as the one the bats were in. I have called to the bats and they did not answer me indicating there is nothing hidden within. Hulil must be deeper within the caves. If there is nothing else here to note let us continue deeper within."
You take the north east passage and arrive at another pool, about 35ft long and 20ft wide. Water dripping down from stalactites in the ceiling fills a dark pool that completely covers the floor of this cavern. As you approach there is an unmistakable ripple as something sinks quickly beneath the surface, followed by a large flurry of bubbles rising to pop on the disturbed water.
A moment later a very large, blue-skinned frog appears in the same place where it had just disappeared. Easily twice the size of the frogs you encountered earlier and covered in vicious-looking spines, it treads water with about half its mass protruding above the surface.
The giant frog stares at you implacably in the darkness. And croaks.
Before leaving the area, Durnham tells Qidira, “I’m fine. I just don’t like not knowing things and not being able to discover or learn when I can.”
Durnham will collect the lantern from Kotar before the group moves on so the Goliath can have use of both hands. As they reach the pool he holds the lantern up and leans on his staff as he looks into the pool and at the large frog.
“Winter, I hope you can convince this one to let us by... he doesn’t look too friendly. That must be Ole Croaker.”
”It doesn’t make sense though. Hulil must have a way to cross this. Does anyone see a boat or bridge or something?”
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Ressys looks at the the giant frog, "Well, this must certainly be Old Croaker . Let me speak with him and see what is what here. It may be best if the rest of you back up about 20 feet while I converse with him so as not to appear threatening while still close enough to aid if needed."
Ressys motions the others to move back and as the rest of the party hopefully backs up Ressys approaches to about 5 feet from the water's edge. He then begins to speak with the giant frog croaking to him.
We come in peace and I wish to speak with you. If you allow a moment we can talk better. Nod if you accept
CHA if needed 12
If the frog nods agreement Ressys will then sit and cast Speak with Animals as a ritual.
When completed he speaks in the language of beasts
"I am Ressys, druid and protector of nature. We seek a dwarf, she is sick and brought sickness to your home. We want to help her and remove the sickness. Do you know where she is? Hulil is her name."
Durnham’s words about not finding anything magic seemed to only confirm Kotar’s thoughts that searching the cave was a waste of time. For the goliath their mission was clear, they had a person to find and all the rest in the hideout didn’t matter. All the rest in the hideout could and maybe even should be checked later, after they finished the ordeal. Thoughts that he did not voice, for it would help nothing to do so then.
Brandon found a bottle of a good whiskey, Bald Dwarf. A creation of the uthordonian elves, named to poke fun at the dwarves. Coming from a race where the men usually don’t have any hair, the fighter couldn’t understand the joke at first.
“Something to heat the body after all this.” He said satisfied that none of his companions tried to drink while in the mission. He learned first hand that it was never a good idea to fight after taking a sip. Another dare from his younger days in the clan.
As Ressys confirmed the connection to the cave of bats the group decided to move deeper within the cave. Didn’t take long for the light of the hooded lantern, that he had forgotten to return to Durnham, reveal the familiar sight of a murky pool of water. What was not unfamiliar was the giant spined frog in the middle. As soon as he saw it, Kotar put the lantern at the floor, and ready himself to strike, should the creature attack.
Notes:
Kotar uses the Ready action to prepare an attack with his longsword. The trigger is Old Croaker attacking the party (if Old Croaker does not attack the party Kotar won't attack either).
Old Croaker bobs slightly in the water, acknowledging Ressys' question. As the giant firbolg begins his ritual to allow him to speak to the huge amphibian, Old Croaker stares impassively, croaking slowly.
When Ressys has finished his ritual and speaks to Old Croaker, the frog replies "Sick dwarf across the pool. Croaker take you, get on back"
For all his threatening appearance Old Croaker made no mention of attacking the group. On the contrary, they would come to find ten minutes later, when Ressys finished some kind ritual magic. Better yet, the creature confirmed Hulil location and offered to ferry the druid to the other side of the large pool.
“Now, that is god news but before making the crossing there is something we need to discuss.” He said getting the hooded lantern and returning it to Durnham. “After our encounter in the other pool - the noise and the killing - there is a good chance Hulil is waiting for us on the other side with a trap ready and even if she didn’t hear a thing, if she is not waiting for us, and that is a big ‘if', she will want to get back at us as soon as she gets what happened. Be it by asking how we got to her without escort or by going to the edge of that pool, she will go after our heads, probably with help of the Uttolots.”
As he finished speaking, Kotar could almost hear the words of the fallen elf. The family will see you all die for this.
“The way I see it we either subdue and hand her to Elro or we get her before she get to us.” Asked taking a good look at the faces of each and every one of them. What an unlikely group. “What you guys want to do?”
When Ressys explains old Croaker’s intent, Durnham’s eyes go wide. “This thing wants us to ride it!? Are you sure it won’t just dump us in the water and eat us!?” He eyes the frog warily.
Kotar’s words concern him.“You might be right Kotar... but I also think Hulil may be too ill to put up much of a fight. If we tell her about my Uncle, and Tulgi... maybe she’ll listen to reason and help us track down these artifacts. I worry she has already sold them and sent them south though.”
“Very Interesting” Brandon exclaims as Ressys talks with Old Croaker and gets on his back to go across the pond. “Is this how the bandits cross this area? Should we all go? I don’t like the idea of Ressys going over by himself, we don’t know what to expect on the far side, but will Old Croaker shuttle us all back and forth? How many can he take at a time?”
He ponders Kotar’s question for a moment. “I don’t know. If Hulil is sick, she is likely too weak to do anything at all against us. Let’s talk with her and see what we find out about the items and the Uttolots first, but if she was involved in crimes, she should stand before Elro. There is also still another bandit in the caves somewhere, so we must be on our guard.”
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Qidira watches the exchange between Old Croaker and the Druid curiously. Then surprised when Ressys advises the group that Old Croaker has offered to ferry them across. She can't help but be leery about the situation. She remembers a children's story about a fox that helped a fowl across a pond. Didn't go too well for the fowl and she was feeling like the fowl in the story at the moment. How else were they going to get there though? "Shouldn't we offer him something for the service? Hulil must have some sort of agreement with him, why else would he keep doing it? What do frog's like?"
(Long shot but insight check for Old Croaker's intentions - 21 )
Durnham nods at Qidira “I think you’re right Qidira. Remember that bucket back in the other cave? I wonder if it had fish or some kind of bribe or payment for the frogs. They must have some way of training these frogs to do what they wish.”
He listened carefully as Brandon and Drunham voiced their opinions. They were all valid and the human even remembered of the last bandit Kotar had forgot, but were also too optimistic for his taste.
“I wouldn’t expect reason from any of them.” He says to the wizard while shaking his head. “You saw how it worked back there.” The fighter pointed in the direction where they had come from, battled and killed. “I shouted Tulgi sent us, something that Tulgi said would be enough, yet if we hadn’t them put down we would, at the very least, be tied, disarmed and trying to convince them to let us see Hulil before they decided to end us. And you said it, may be too ill to put up much of a fight or she may not. If we don’t prepare to worst possible scenario we will be betting with our lives.”
Kotar turned to Brandon, genuinely intrigued by how the warlock could doubt that Hulil was involved in crimes after everything Tulgi had told them. He even contemplated asking, but give up on the idea, fearing it would sound too confrontational.
“The bandit is probably with her and if they have a trap set up our numerical advantage may go up in smoke on a blink.”There was no other place he could be. At least not that they knew about. “We can scan the area before going in and talk with Hulil after immobilizing her and her friend. Would be safer.”
Qidira looks up to confirm that there are no ledges or elevated areas where they could be hiding and continues to watch the exits, especially any unattended in a semi-patrolling motion to be sure they aren't surprised by anything. She tries to zero in on the croaking and where its coming from. "Remember, anything found in here may be potentially causing this sickness. What about the fire pit, anything in there?" She will move to look herself if she sees exits are covered, but otherwise will defer to keeping them covered.
“I doubt anything left here will cause the illness. Those bandits we fought didn’t seem ill. It appears that only direct contact with one of the Eisselcross relics will cause it.” Durnham says as he continues his patrol and scanning of the area.
Noob
As Durnham starts his ritual to scan the room for magic, the rest of the party help Brandon search through the camp. Apart from bedrolls and a few personal items, the only thing of note is an unopened bottle of Bald Dwarf Whiskey, a valuable alcohol made by elves in Uthodurn.
Ressys heads north far enough to check his theory and try to communicate with the bats; the north corridor does indeed lead to the bat cave and there is no response to the firbolg’s series of clicking noises.
Qidira spots no ledges and the fire pit reveals nothing of interest; she may need water to clear the ashes from her hands.
By the time the search is complete, Durnham finishes his ritual and starts to scan the room for signs of magical energy; he sees none whatsoever in any part of the cave.
Brandon holds up the unopened bottle of whiskey. “At least this camp isn’t a complete bust, I had some of this in Uthodurn. It is good stuff, too good for the likes of these bandits. We will have to share a drink when this is over. Otherwise, there is nothing here but junk.” He slips the bottle into his pack and turns to Durnham “Do you see anything in your search?”
He looks at the others. “No clues on where Hulil could be, shall we continue to explore the passage to the northeast?”
”No, nothing magical around. Which way next?” He responds in a grumpy and sullen manner. Still irritated at being rebuffed by the Druid.
Noob
Qidira wanders over to him, "We need you at your best, don't let it distract you. I value your company and wouldn't want the distraction to cause you harm. Something I saw often on the streets of Uthodurn." She whispers grasping his shoulder and meeting his eyes briefly. She looks over his shoulder at the entrance in the direction of the second pond, still hearing the croaking. Then realizing she's just put an ashen hand print on his gear, dusts it off quickly.
Ressys stands, looks and listens but as he does not see the sign indicted. Ressys reports to the others what he has found.
"This first passage connects and is one and the same as the one the bats were in. I have called to the bats and they did not answer me indicating there is nothing hidden within. Hulil must be deeper within the caves. If there is nothing else here to note let us continue deeper within."
You take the north east passage and arrive at another pool, about 35ft long and 20ft wide. Water dripping down from stalactites in the ceiling fills a dark pool that completely covers the floor of this cavern. As you approach there is an unmistakable ripple as something sinks quickly beneath the surface, followed by a large flurry of bubbles rising to pop on the disturbed water.
A moment later a very large, blue-skinned frog appears in the same place where it had just disappeared. Easily twice the size of the frogs you encountered earlier and covered in vicious-looking spines, it treads water with about half its mass protruding above the surface.
The giant frog stares at you implacably in the darkness. And croaks.
Before leaving the area, Durnham tells Qidira, “I’m fine. I just don’t like not knowing things and not being able to discover or learn when I can.”
Durnham will collect the lantern from Kotar before the group moves on so the Goliath can have use of both hands. As they reach the pool he holds the lantern up and leans on his staff as he looks into the pool and at the large frog.
“Winter, I hope you can convince this one to let us by... he doesn’t look too friendly. That must be Ole Croaker.”
”It doesn’t make sense though. Hulil must have a way to cross this. Does anyone see a boat or bridge or something?”
Noob
Ressys looks at the the giant frog, "Well, this must certainly be Old Croaker . Let me speak with him and see what is what here. It may be best if the rest of you back up about 20 feet while I converse with him so as not to appear threatening while still close enough to aid if needed."
Ressys motions the others to move back and as the rest of the party hopefully backs up Ressys approaches to about 5 feet from the water's edge. He then begins to speak with the giant frog croaking to him.
We come in peace and I wish to speak with you. If you allow a moment we can talk better. Nod if you accept
CHA if needed 12
If the frog nods agreement Ressys will then sit and cast Speak with Animals as a ritual.
When completed he speaks in the language of beasts
"I am Ressys, druid and protector of nature. We seek a dwarf, she is sick and brought sickness to your home. We want to help her and remove the sickness. Do you know where she is? Hulil is her name."
Qidira steps back and crouches low against the wall keeping her daggers hidden waiting and watching to see the monstrous frog's reaction.
Durnham’s words about not finding anything magic seemed to only confirm Kotar’s thoughts that searching the cave was a waste of time. For the goliath their mission was clear, they had a person to find and all the rest in the hideout didn’t matter. All the rest in the hideout could and maybe even should be checked later, after they finished the ordeal. Thoughts that he did not voice, for it would help nothing to do so then.
Brandon found a bottle of a good whiskey, Bald Dwarf. A creation of the uthordonian elves, named to poke fun at the dwarves. Coming from a race where the men usually don’t have any hair, the fighter couldn’t understand the joke at first.
“Something to heat the body after all this.” He said satisfied that none of his companions tried to drink while in the mission. He learned first hand that it was never a good idea to fight after taking a sip. Another dare from his younger days in the clan.
As Ressys confirmed the connection to the cave of bats the group decided to move deeper within the cave. Didn’t take long for the light of the hooded lantern, that he had forgotten to return to Durnham, reveal the familiar sight of a murky pool of water. What was not unfamiliar was the giant spined frog in the middle. As soon as he saw it, Kotar put the lantern at the floor, and ready himself to strike, should the creature attack.
Notes:
Kotar uses the Ready action to prepare an attack with his longsword. The trigger is Old Croaker attacking the party (if Old Croaker does not attack the party Kotar won't attack either).
Old Croaker bobs slightly in the water, acknowledging Ressys' question. As the giant firbolg begins his ritual to allow him to speak to the huge amphibian, Old Croaker stares impassively, croaking slowly.
When Ressys has finished his ritual and speaks to Old Croaker, the frog replies "Sick dwarf across the pool. Croaker take you, get on back"
"I thank you" Ressys replies to Old Croaker, "My companions as well? I presume one at a time."
He looks back to the others. "He says Hulil is on the other side of the pool and is sick. He will carry me, hopefully us, across."
Ressys then steps out and climbs onto the back of the giant frog.
For all his threatening appearance Old Croaker made no mention of attacking the group. On the contrary, they would come to find ten minutes later, when Ressys finished some kind ritual magic. Better yet, the creature confirmed Hulil location and offered to ferry the druid to the other side of the large pool.
“Now, that is god news but before making the crossing there is something we need to discuss.” He said getting the hooded lantern and returning it to Durnham. “After our encounter in the other pool - the noise and the killing - there is a good chance Hulil is waiting for us on the other side with a trap ready and even if she didn’t hear a thing, if she is not waiting for us, and that is a big ‘if', she will want to get back at us as soon as she gets what happened. Be it by asking how we got to her without escort or by going to the edge of that pool, she will go after our heads, probably with help of the Uttolots.”
As he finished speaking, Kotar could almost hear the words of the fallen elf. The family will see you all die for this.
“The way I see it we either subdue and hand her to Elro or we get her before she get to us.” Asked taking a good look at the faces of each and every one of them. What an unlikely group. “What you guys want to do?”
When Ressys explains old Croaker’s intent, Durnham’s eyes go wide. “This thing wants us to ride it!? Are you sure it won’t just dump us in the water and eat us!?” He eyes the frog warily.
Kotar’s words concern him. “You might be right Kotar... but I also think Hulil may be too ill to put up much of a fight. If we tell her about my Uncle, and Tulgi... maybe she’ll listen to reason and help us track down these artifacts. I worry she has already sold them and sent them south though.”
Noob
“Very Interesting” Brandon exclaims as Ressys talks with Old Croaker and gets on his back to go across the pond. “Is this how the bandits cross this area? Should we all go? I don’t like the idea of Ressys going over by himself, we don’t know what to expect on the far side, but will Old Croaker shuttle us all back and forth? How many can he take at a time?”
He ponders Kotar’s question for a moment. “I don’t know. If Hulil is sick, she is likely too weak to do anything at all against us. Let’s talk with her and see what we find out about the items and the Uttolots first, but if she was involved in crimes, she should stand before Elro. There is also still another bandit in the caves somewhere, so we must be on our guard.”
Qidira watches the exchange between Old Croaker and the Druid curiously. Then surprised when Ressys advises the group that Old Croaker has offered to ferry them across. She can't help but be leery about the situation. She remembers a children's story about a fox that helped a fowl across a pond. Didn't go too well for the fowl and she was feeling like the fowl in the story at the moment. How else were they going to get there though? "Shouldn't we offer him something for the service? Hulil must have some sort of agreement with him, why else would he keep doing it? What do frog's like?"
(Long shot but insight check for Old Croaker's intentions - 21 )
Durnham nods at Qidira “I think you’re right Qidira. Remember that bucket back in the other cave? I wonder if it had fish or some kind of bribe or payment for the frogs. They must have some way of training these frogs to do what they wish.”
Noob
He listened carefully as Brandon and Drunham voiced their opinions. They were all valid and the human even remembered of the last bandit Kotar had forgot, but were also too optimistic for his taste.
“I wouldn’t expect reason from any of them.” He says to the wizard while shaking his head. “You saw how it worked back there.” The fighter pointed in the direction where they had come from, battled and killed. “I shouted Tulgi sent us, something that Tulgi said would be enough, yet if we hadn’t them put down we would, at the very least, be tied, disarmed and trying to convince them to let us see Hulil before they decided to end us. And you said it, may be too ill to put up much of a fight or she may not. If we don’t prepare to worst possible scenario we will be betting with our lives.”
Kotar turned to Brandon, genuinely intrigued by how the warlock could doubt that Hulil was involved in crimes after everything Tulgi had told them. He even contemplated asking, but give up on the idea, fearing it would sound too confrontational.
“The bandit is probably with her and if they have a trap set up our numerical advantage may go up in smoke on a blink.” There was no other place he could be. At least not that they knew about. “We can scan the area before going in and talk with Hulil after immobilizing her and her friend. Would be safer.”