The Undying Dragons - Campaign Thread

The hob guard in the guard post moves across the room before Hob-Jan can get through the door. Jisthelek is looking back towards where Haguur, Ula and the orcs are waiting and doesn't even register that Hob-Jan is moving inside until it's already happening.

The guard opens the viewing plate on the other door and his eyes go wide as he sees both Drusus and Gillian Hargrove waiting.

Drusus barks an order at the hobgoblin.

The guard goes to the wall and selects the correct key for the door and turns back to unlock it.

Hob-Jan is up, followed by Jisthelek. If they get noisy then everyone else will be up.

((Did the viewing plate get closed per protocol? Or is it open with Gillian and Drusus visible?))

"Help Ethel, she's surrounded by the Hargroves."  She whispers back, with some urgency in her voice.  She was glad Marrin got out, though worried where she was, and their predicament wasn't good at all.  She fills her tray up with more ale and wine and heads to the main door while the Hargroves were occupied with Ethel.

Peaking out the door and seeing that Drusus was gone, she takes her tray and starts serving the crowd outside.

For a moment Ethlehyn forgets the escape plan.  She forgets all the urgency of the moment and just stews on this fact.  These Hargroves... they have grown so wealthy, so powerful... making so much coin on illicit trade and humanoid trafficking....

And through it all, the coin has flowed so freely and abundantly they haven't even been forced to keep proper records?  No accounts payable/receivable?  To think of what they must be losing in the margins.  Yet, it must be true that the waste and loss associated with this negligence isn't enough to put a dent in their lifestyle, so they haven't been motivated to take action... even now they seem to see it as 'maybe a good idea.'  The audacity is almost too much.  

Realizing time is passing and that she needs to get a hold of herself before her contempt for these people bubbles over and exposes itself, she manages to spit out an "...Oh.  I see."

((The grate is open but you’d need to be closer to it to see Drusus and Gillian))

((Well crap, was hoping it was closed... :D Missed my window to ask if an opportunity attack was possible... Is there a key still in the door between the guard post and the caverns? Is there a keyhole on the other side, or just the guard post side? There's another locked door heading to the arena, or is that an open hallway? Jan's frantically assessing the situation too, not just me....))

Seeing there are a couple of guards still at the main entrance, Avaria does an awkward curtsy in her yellow dress, then gestures to the tray full of drinks, "Excuse me good sirs, but I was asked to come out here and make sure the rest of you are having fun as well."  She winks at the closest one of them, "Trust me, the stuff they serve inside is much better than the swill they have been serving you lot out here.  Take a mug, I won't tell.  Looks like your boss won't notice anyways."

Performance/Persuasion (same modifier)  14

In the downstairs world:

Mar-Gil is with Drusus and the two hobgoblin guards. All she is aware of at this time is that the viewing plate on the door into the guardpost has been opened and Drusus has yelled something at the guard.

Jan-Hob can see into the guardpost. Directly north of the open doorway where she and Jisthelek are, on the other side of the guardpost is a locked door, with an open viewing plate. The hobgoblin guard in the guardpost has retrieved a key from a wall of keys and is heading to unlock this northern door, that there are apparently people on the other side of.

There is a third, similar door, in the western wall. From experience Jan knows this leads to the arena area. It looks locked and requires a different key from the wall of keys.

The southern door that Jan is looking through does have a key in the lock, the guard apparently getting distracted by the arrival of whoever is at the northern door.

Haguur, Ula and the others wait for a signal not far down the hallway.

Jan and Jisthelek will have actions each before the guard can unlock the northern door.

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In the upstairs world:

Gillan nods at Ethel's apparent interest.

"We'll need to find you more convenient accommodation too," Gillian says. "We can't be going down to the caverns every time we need you."

She looks over at her husband.

"We can set up something in one of the warehouses," he says, then he looks around, back to the table that he was at, frowning deeply once he sees that it's now empty.

Dodds drunkenly weaves over to Ethel and the senior Hargroves, bumping into William when he does.

"Watch it, Dodds," William Hargrove says, his mood not improving. 

Dodds bows, unsteadily.

"Ah Will," Dodds says. "I was looking for you. I've managed to get my hands on some Thayan Red, your favourite. Let me borrow your servant here and I'll send her back with some."

William Hargrove's mood changes immediately and the frown is replaced by a smile. 

"I knew we right to keep you here," William Hargrove says. "You always come through. Yes, yes. Be quick about it."

Dodds waves a finger at Ethel to follow him and he staggers out through the side entrance to the 'Inn'.

Over at the entrance, one of the hobgoblin guards starts to reach for the proffered drink that Avaria has mentioned, but his guard partner reaches across and punches his shoulder. She then shouts at the 'tempted' hobgoblin.

While the two of them argue, Avaria finds she can just walk out past them and onto the main concourse. The edges of the arena are still dark, though moonlight from above shines down into the arena itself. But from where Avaria is, she can't see the arena floor.

There are still several drunks arguing, one pair fighting, and another group signing.

((Okay, one more clarifying question before I actually do something! Does the door that Jan is at, with Jiselthek on the other side, and a key in the lock, have a corresponding lock on the far side of the door, or is it only key-able from the guard post?))

Breathing a sigh of relief and hoping Dodds is helping Ethel out, Avaria decides to head to the guard post in case there is trouble there.  The moonlight catches her eye though, and sticking to the shadows, she heads toward the arena itself to peer down on her way to the guard post.

((Okay, Jan taking action!))

Jan moves into the room, striding along the wall to the door with the open grate and slides it shut, placing her back against the lock as she reaches out to take the hob guard by the cheeks and puckers up for a kiss.

She hopes Jiselthek's going to take the opportunity to knife the guy before that goes any further.

((Looking to block vision to he hallway and provide Jiselthek the Help Action.))

(I think if Jan didn't already have inspiration, that move would have been inspiration worthy).

Avaria makes it over to the edge of the arena opening without attracting attention. Once there she notes that the edge around the arena has no protective railing and it would be quite easy to fall in to and down to the arena floor if you weren't paying attention. In the moonlight, Avaria can see that the sand floor is empty, and all of the portcullises are down. Looking around she notes the gleam of reflected moonlight off the chains of the winches above the doorways that raise and lower the gates from this level. The arena floor is about 45, maybe 50' down. Weather and time have smoothed the walls of the arena, but they still look climbable. 

Across the main concourse, and in the maze of sheets and sail divided 'rooms', Dodds turns to Ethel once they've left the Amorous Octopus, all sign of his previous drunkenness gone. 

"That will buy a little time, but that old bastard loves his Thayan Red wine and he won't forget that he was promised some. He'll eventually wonder where you are with it." Dodds says to Ethel.

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In the guardpost, the hobgoblin guard is completely surprised by Jan's kiss. But he's not unappreciative of it. In fact, he's so taken with it that he doesn't hear a quick whistle from Jisthelek signalling to Haguur. 

Jisthelek then races through the open door, leaps up on to the table in the middle of the room, runs along it and leaps on to the hobgoblin's back. With a dagger in each hand, he stabs downwards, searching for the hobgoblin's vulnerable neck.

 To be continued.

Despite Jisthelek's frenzied assault, the daggers are unable to find a gap in the guard's armour and no blood is drawn.

In the midst of Jisthelek's stabbing attempt, Haguur, his eye's wide with blind rage races into the room, shouting as he does, and with no regard for his own safety slashes away at the guard with his short sword.

The blade bites deeply, wounding the guard severely.

But the guard is well trained and he takes in the situation quickly he pushes Jan out of the way to put the key in the lock.

Hob Guard: Shove - 21  

Jan needs to resist the shove or that door's getting unlocked.

From the other side of the doorway, Marrin, and Drusus and the hobgoblin guards first see the viewing plate slam shut and then can hear the unmistakable sounds of yelling and crashing around.

Drusus bellows at the door again and bangs on it in anger.

He yells at one of the hobgoblin guards, who quickly turns and starts running back up the stairwell.

Jan tries to avoid the initial push in a way that lets her reposition herself in front of the lock, wincing at Haguur's non-stealthy approach.

Acrobatics (using inspiration, since I was reminded she has it to negate her disadvantage): 20

She stumbles back, cursing.

Avaria notes how easily it would be for someone to fall, or be pushed into the arena. 

Taking a quick look towards the group of people and sticking to the shadows, she then heads towards the guards tower, hoping to find Marrin or that woman that left looking sick that she assumed is Marrin, along with Jan, Ula and the others.

Mar-Gil looks annoyed and says to Drusus,

"I don't have time for this Drusus. Come and get me when you are done with this."

As she turns and walks off after the hob sent to get reinforcements.

Once out of sight of Drusus and co she'll call, not too loudly, to the hob,

"You're going to break your neck running like that."

Unsettling words (-minus from saving throw): 3

She'll then open her mouth and release some horrible, clashing whispers after him.

[Tooltip Not Found] (DC 14 wisdom save): 6

((Not going to mess up the rolls but it's dissonant whispers. He'll have a minus 6 to whatever he rolls.))