Thallan steps hard on his right foot, the chain mail clinking in a cacophony of radiating noise, "Chain does not step lightly in places where echo's stir, I am predisposed to trust in my mail more than the sounds of silence, but if it be the wish of the group, I will doff and stow my armor. you... Aasimar, you too wear the weave of steel... will you relinquish its protection in favor of soundless steps?"

Speaking quietly to the group in hushed tones, "Thallan is right. Our armor is our lifeblood and we may need to sacrifice the lightness of foot for the sturdiness of sword and steel. One of our stealthier companions might be able to successfully scout the path, though, to provide a better sense of what lay ahead. Galben or Bearkiller, the two of you look particularly spry on your feet."

(Galben moves in closer towards the group)  I believe I may be the best choice to go ahead of the group a little and scout as we move through the cave. I can use my dark vision and stealth to see what lies in front of use and let the group know if I see anything.

(Galben looks around at the group). What do you think of that idea?

Nods head at Galben, "This seems a sound strategy. We will wait here at the ready to come to your aid if needed, friend; all you need is to call." Quietly draws my longsword from its sheath on my back and assumes a ready battle posture.

(Galben puts his long bow on his back and draws his two short swords,  walks slowly towards to opening of the cave, letting his eyes adjust to the changing of light to dark)

(Stealth roll 12+5=17) (Galben walks into the opening of the cave and sees/hears...)

Galben approaches the small stream and the party watches as he silently hops from rock to rock, landing gently on the other side without a sound (stealth check passed). When he reaches the east side of the stream, he notices a small area in the briar thickets has been hollowed out to form a lookout post or blind. Wooden planks flatten out the briars and provide room for guards to lie hidden and watch the area—including a pair of goblins lurking there right now! He notes that one appears to be dozing off a bit and the other is absentmindedly fiddling with its shortbow. Because of your light footfalls, they have not seen you, Galben and don't appear to be paying close attention to their surroundings at this moment. What would you like to do?

(Galben quitely slides his short swords into their scabbards and takes his long bow off his back. While he drops to one knee to steady himself he pulls an arrow from his quiver and takes aim at the awake goblin that is fiddling with his shortbow(Goblin 1).)

Suprise attack roll (14+5=19) (damage 1+3=4) I draw back my bow (taking a deep breath) and let it fly with the element of suprise. The arrow flies true piercing the thigh of Goblin 1. Damage has been done but not without a price (I have given my position away).

I yell across the stream to the rest of the group, "Two goblins this way! I need your help!"

Jake rushes across the stream, mace in hand, ready to bash some skulls.  With a shout of "By the light of Ilmater!" he brings the mace down on the sleeping goblin (Goblin 2.) 

16 to hit, 6 bludgeoning damage.

The party watches as Galben draws his long bow and takes aim at something. A screaming yelp erupts from behind the thicket, indicating that Galben's arrow found its mark.

Rolls initiative:

1. Goblin 1 (22)
2. Goblin 2 (21)
3. Bearkiller (18)
4. Jake (16)
5. Thallan (15)
6. Regula (7)
7. OldMan (6, higher dex than Galben)
8. Galben (6)

Goblin 1 rises quickly to its feet, swiftly taking aim at Galben as the arrow protrudes from his thigh. In his haste, the goblin sends the arrow whizzing past Galben's right ear, clinking high against the stone cliff beyond (10 to hit; attack fails).

Goblin 2 wakes from his nap at the sound of his fellow guard's cry of pain. Quickly assessing the situation, the goblin draws its bow and goes to release the arrow, aiming just above the thicket at Regula. Bracing for what he presumes will be a sure hit, Regula hears a loud twang as the arrow that had been aimed directly at him mere seconds ago bobbles and falls embarrassingly right in front of the goblin (crit fail on that attack roll), clearly still a bit disoriented from his nap.

It's your turn, Bearkiller.

FYI to all - the goblin have half cover behind the thickets, so their AC is increased by +2 to 17 and they get +2 to dex saving throws. This only applies to ranged attacks (non-magical) from location 1 across the stream; for melee attacks, the AC would remain 15 but movement through the thickets are 2x, so each grid square is 10' rather than 5'.

Bearkiller pulls out his longbow. He takes aim at the puny creature, but his archery skills leave much to be desired as the arrow goes sailing over the head of goblin 1 (8 to hit, fails). He then runs to the front of the pack between Jake and Thallan, preparing for an opportunity to stare the enemy directly in the eyes. This cowardly beast is in for a rude awakening should he charge on us!

(See post #70) Jake smashes his mace into goblin 2, very nearly collapsing his chest. Jake stand firm, shield up, ready for a followup swing.

Jake takes his turn (see above) and deals a whopping 6 bludgeoning damage to Goblin 2. A mighty cleric, indeed.

Thallan, it is your action.

Drawing his longsword, Thallan moves to flank Galben, (C7, R2)

Letting out a low growl, Regula rushes up and around the thickets, sidestepping Galben, and down toward Goblin 2 - ending up adjacent to the box labelled 2. Drawing my longsword back in a half swing, I bring the sword forward, hilt to the front, smashing against the goblins head. The goblin crumples to the ground, alive but unconscious (21 to hit; 10 damage).

"We should leave one alive to interrogate."

OldMan, it's your turn! Here's the board as I understand it:

OldMan seeing the melee getting crowded decides to cast magic missile at the injured but conscious Goblin with the arrow in it's leg.  (auto hit for 1D4 +1).   Three small green darts fly out of OldMan's hands and wiz through the thicket.  One dart enters his eye, one flies into his ear and one slams into the gaping wound near the arrow.  The Goblin screams in agony and collapses in a pool of green Goblin blood. 

Feeling a sense of blood lust after killing another Goblin, OldMan mutters to himself, "go back to Gringotts your ugly animal."

(Galben thinking that the group could get information from the other goblin takes off to try and catch the wounded creature)

"He can be useful to us!"

(As he gets close he pulls an arrow from his quiver and nocks it, drawing back slow aiming at the goblin)

"Stay where you are, we have some questions" (panting a little from the quick sprint)

Regula walks over to the remaining goblin and ties its hands and feet with rope. "We have to wake him up first, Galben," I say bemusedly as I smile over my shoulder at Galben looking like a hair trigger will set the arrow loose. I start shaking the creature, and as it begins to come to, I pull my javelin from my back slowly and dramatically place the point firmly against the goblin's throat.

"Now," I say flashing a threatening smile, "we have some questions for you." (Intimidation check 24).

The goblin glances anxiously around at the party surrounding him, his eyes darting quickly from Galben's aimed bow to Regula's sharp javelin pressed against his throat. The goblin nods quickly, noting his compliance.

"Very good. First, how many more of there are you?"

The goblin thinks for a moment, pondering the request, its brow furrowing as it appears to attempt to do mental math.

Speaking with a bit of a broguish inflection, "Can't have been more than 20 of us, sir, but then again I never was much good at counting past 4."

I look around at the other party members, "I guess I'll buy that. What else do we need to know?" (Perception check 18)

The goblin gives no reason for you to doubt its response.