Tests and Trials Game Thread

(I was going to make a joke of saying in the same post that I rolled "In case it changes, the roll is a 20" - and saying that it was a joke just in case the lack of an edit mark was missed - but a 21 is even better)

Kroshav can even see the wall he is hacking at and Cladmir only, as always, has eyes for the mighty paladin.

Ernos listens carefully and risks a step forward and hears the not too distant whoosh of wings flapping and spots suspicious shadows moving rapidly across the ground. He isn't sure if they are waiting for the second grifflet or are just still riled up, but they are still around out there.

((What's the plan? Going to try and wait them out or digging deeper? Or making a runner? Or...?))

According to Cladmir Kroshav is the center of knowledge and wisdom and so when stuck in a tight spot in the dark and cold he will just wait to follow the heroic paladin wherever the path may take!

((@Spider and @Hound? What do you want to do?))

At least dig until he can turn around and look at the others.

After a minute more of digging Kroshav has turned his narrow space into an interconnected grouping of narrow spaces filled with stone dust. The extra room grants Kroshav more turn space, but now he is sharing it with three others (and a grifflet), so it is far from spacious. It does also mean the party can talk directly to one another without shouting.

"Ah, that's better!" Kroshav says, spitting out some rock dust and melted ice that was turning it to slushy mud. "Now what's the plan?", he says, looking at Cladmir, surely testing the old soldier's judgement and leadership capabilities, and not forgetting that anything approaching a plan was only half thought out.

Surprised and amazed, Cladmir found himself speechless as the paladin directed the question right at him.  

"Well," started the old soldier considering their options.  "Our aim is to lure these beasts to the dragon, right?  That means having them on our tail is good, but having them too close to us is bad.  Our first aim will have to be getting out of here without fighting the beats, which means we need to check if they are still out there.  If they are not we can sneak away quietly.  Otherwise, we will need to find a way to lure them away from here."  

Kroshav peers behind Cladmir looking for a tail that had escaped his notice until now, before realizing it was a figure of speech.

3

Thir looks at Cladmir a long time, clearly trying to understand what has been said, before she offers,

"Thir can look."

She then proceeds to creep towards one of the exits and quickly darts her head, looks all around and jerks her head back as a screech sounds. She scrambles back to the rest of the group and says flatly,

"Some still there." 

This is emphasized by shadow blocking most of the light through the entrances and a talon groping around the path Thir took.

Thir seems unperturbed by this and continues,

"Saw three. Kroshav dig way out?"

 She doesn't seem to have understood the rest of what Cladmir explained.

Cladmir tries to think of how he had gotten away in the past when enemies are closing in:  misdirection.

"Instead of digging deeper, what if Kroshav digs in a big curve so we can exit somewhere far from the opening?  We will need someone here of course to keep the creature's attention, and ideally when we are ready to exit we will need to magic up some distractions to keep the beasts occupied at this entrance?"

Cladmir had no doubt Kroshav will be inspired to dig exactly in the way that will make this work -- the paladin is guided by the hand of the divine after all.  His dubious knowledge about magic and how that can cause distraction, however, is lacking. 

Thir looks intently at Cladmir and appears to silently repeat some of the bigger words used before saying,

"Thir keep attention. Kroshav did. Ernie magic? Old one magic?"