"Not to mention that the people in town quite need this place and its winery to remain at least intact enough to receive their shipment of libations, least the misery of these lands truly drive them all insane, haha!" Jack conveyed alongside what he thought was a quiet chuckle. "Besides, even if this druid has lost their way, it isn't too unlikely they have yet the means to call upon this land corrupted spirits. Spirits, I might add, who can be quite capable of snuffing a blaze should they wish! No, no, no! Better to guarantee we take out root least it slip away somehow and dig itself yet deeper." He further yet quietly addressed when next opportunity presented itself. At that, he turned to Nivi once more, ready to follow her to the next hiding spot.

Stealth: 20.

(I will assume everyone is moving forward in the same manner if no other word by friday)

Beren, VERY aware of how visible he is in the darkness, does his best to cover his head with his hood. Luckily he has some leather gloves to conceal his hands, but that only does so much for the overall affect... 

Unfortunately his attempts at keeping his face covered only result in him stumbling more... (nat 1 for stealth re-roll) He grits his teeth, not wanting to suggest splitting with the group, but also feeling like he'd be better off letting them go ahead of him. He should have just offered to be a distraction or something rather than even try with stealth. Too late now...

(I'll update somewhere in the next 12 hours)

Despite some of the parties clumsiness, the blights seem not to notice... at first. Even Jacks stumbling movements fail to catch their attention, likely thanks to the distance. However, as Beren readjusts his gait, his foot catches on one of the stability rods for the grapes, and down the line of it in a hissing rattle of leaves immediately following the dull clunk of the foot. The air seems to shift as all the blights turn their deformed, human-like heads towards the source of the noise. (oof)

The party now has two choices.

A) Engage the blights out in the open, in this case I would allow setup/positioning - And to immediately roll initiative.

B) Dash towards the winery door. It's roughly 40 feet away from the party. If the party chooses this, I need everyone to make a perception check as their character makes it inside.

Or.. C) flee, I suppose.

"You know," Nivi grins sardonically at Beren, "might be one, way in the back, who didn't hear that.  Bottleneck at the winery it is, then.  Double time."

Your own bloody fault, girl, she hears her Waterdeep crew-leader chastising her in her mind.  You don't know your partners' weaknesses, you lose.

The elven rogue takes off for the winery door, all attempts at stealth abandoned for now, her owl familiar keeping pace in the air above her.  She does not think the blights have ranged attacks, but she bobs and weaves nonetheless, taking evasive maneuvers.  Holding the door open for others once she enters.

Bonus Action, Free Action and Movement:  Dash 60' towards the winery door (Cunning Action), open it, and step inside, holding it open with one hand.

Action:  Dodge - all attack rolls against her have disadvantage and her own DEX Saves have advantage.

Shiv also flies up to 60' and takes the dodge action, winging in to alight on Nivi's shoulder as she moves inside the building.

Nivi's Perception:  17
Shiv's Perception (advantage from Keen Hearing and Sight):  11

"Oof~ Spend a second too long coiled like a spring and your legs forget how to be free!" Jack chuckled, then with a spring in his step while rushing for the door. The eladrin warlock barely made it a few steps before his body appeared to disintegrate into ash and fire, only to reappear a second later far closer to the door, still running even as his body resolidified as ash and burning leaves smelling oddly of fresh cut grass and summer flowers. "

He stops only briefly while near the door to wave any who lagged behind on, before then stepping away to find a spot out of view from the door to those outside; his hands set to weaving a magical charm that would see the entryway filled with literally razor sharp leaves caught in a miniature whirlwind. "That will hold them for but a moment, so best we not linger if we don't have to!" He warns the party.

Bonus Action: Fey Step 30' towards winery Door.

Movement: Up to 20ft past winery door(and if possible, out of immediate view from Doorway from creatures looking in from the outside).

Action: Ready to Casting Whirlwind of Razor Leaves once everyone was inside.

Jaception: 18.

(refreshing status in peoples threads.)

Beren grimaces visibly, light flickering as the consequences of his mistake ring loudly through the vineyard. At Nivi's remark, the light's flickering subsides and grows dimmer for a moment as he lowers his chin slightly. Wordlessly, he draws his longsword, ready to engage the enemy while his companions escape. He very obviously considers standing his ground, hesitating a moment as the others rush for the door. However, its clear that at least one of them has a plan so instead of turning to face the oncoming threat he follows after the group, staying at the back until they reach the door and Jack waves them through. 

He doesn't sheathe his sword, loathing the thought of fighting indoors again as it will restrict his movement with a blade. During the brief lull in action, he lets out a quiet huff, irritated with himself for the mess he made even though he had a feeling this is how it would end up anyways. 

Perception: 12

Olamoira runs after the others, murmuring to herself as she gestures, readying a spell that she will place when Jack does, once they are all through... though she wishes for fire against the blights, she thinks resignedly, There is no light of the sun in the twilight... not yet. The moon will have to do.

Olamoira Perception: 8
She will Ready Moonbeam to cast it in the path of the winery door ince everyone is through, either in the same spot as Jack's leaves if that's the best bottleneck, or adjacent to it in such a way that it helps bar the entrance better.

(Stuff came up this week, so I'll aim to post by early friday._)

Everyone just barely makes it inside, before the dull barrage of wooden thuds hit the outer wall, like a hundred splinters piercing into the winery at once, which would confirm Nivi's fear.. the needle blights could fire from a range. And if not for the angle, and full cover, with the door remaining open is all that keeps Beren from taking a lifetimes worth of piercings. Just as Beren enters, Jack casts his readied spell, and the door becomes filled with .. leaves of all things, swirling within an invisible dust devil filling that gap, and just barely missing the door frame with each revolution. Soon after, glowing radiance fills the same spot, looking like moonlight except dangerous to the touch. Like a rose, it has thorns. The doorway awash with light and whirling leaves that promise pain to all whom would enter it, even allies.

Within the room itself, strips of iron and wood lie in neat piles on the floor of this workshop, the walls of which are lined with tools. Two worktables stand against the east wall. Towards the opposite wall is a large double door, leading into another room near Jack. The grotesque sound of cracking wooden limbs grows frantic outside as the blights begin to run, dashing and making it to be just outside the door. Their twisted, human-like faces staring at the party with pure malice, and the promise of a slow, agonizing death.

The party also has Bluto and Arugal with them inside. Nivi will control Arugal for this combat. And Jack will control Bluto. I will be keeping the current initiative - and by that I mean, this would end up being an AVERAGE initiative roll normally, due to the sheer NUMBER of enemies. But as they JUST dashed, I will count that as their 'collective turn' meaning it is the players turn now.

Arugal Stats

Bluto Stats (Bluto has 11 armor. and a 0 for ALL bonuses. And he is currently equipped with a Mace (1d6 Bludgeoning)

Pretty sure you can all figure out which names belong to whom. And just outside the door, filling every square for a total of 30 squares, are blights. I will add their letters once it becomes a more manageable number... and many of them are likely to die fairly quickly.

(they will begin trying to pile in on the next round, and i have the moonbeam/blades halfway between both squares)

Nivi grins wickedly.  "Got to give it up for the thorny little moonlit welcome mat Shorty and Prophet just laid out," she drawls with genuine appreciation.  "Solid bottleneck.  Everyone get up against the left wall.  Unless you want a face full of splinters from our needle chucker buddies outside."

She takes a step back and to the left between Olamoira and Jack, drawing her longbow and nocking an arrow, then ducking down behind one of the woodpiles.  Arugal darts across the doorframe to the northwest corner of the room and holds his borrowed dagger in a backhand grip.  Shiv flies above the Vistani man's head, ready to flap his wings to distract any blight that makes it through the northern doorframe and its hazards.

Movement:  Nivi moves 5' SW next to the SW door, Arugal moves 10' W to the NW corner and Shiv flies from Nivi's shoulder 15' N above Arugal's head.

Actions:  Shiv readies the help on anything getting through the north door.  Nivi and Arugal both ready attacks with their longbow and dagger.

Bonus Action:  Nivi crouches, attempting to hide behind a woodpile along the western wall (Cunning Action), Stealth:  20 (dirty)

Nivi's readied Longbow to hit with advantage from hiding OR from Shiv's readied help, best of 3 d20s from Elven Accuracy Feat:  26
Nivi's readied Longbow damage plus Sneak Attack:  13 + 8 = 21 (piercing)

Arugal's readied Dagger to hit:  23
Arugal's readied Dagger damage plus Sneak Attack (Shiv and perhaps Beren adjacent):  1d4+3 + 4d6 = 2 + 3 + 16 = 21 (piercing)

"What can I say except that I live to please! Hahah!" Jack replied with a smile in his voice. Meanwhile, Bluto lets out a noise that somehow managed to sound like a mix of a shriek and a horrofied gasp of surprise as the needle blights began swarming just outside the door, but with shaky hands continued to hold his mace high up as if uncertain on whether to throw the thing or simply hold it ready to smack down any monsters to get close!

Nivi's words appear to snap him out of it, if only for a second, and in a panic the fisherman turned adventuring sidekick immediately tried to beeline it for the door to the west. Although with Nivi beating him to the punch, and out of fear of catching an arrow for trying to bully her out of the way, Bluto cursed, and in the process of grabbing one of the nearby worktables, dropped his mace to try and flip it over, scattering any tools on it.. Just so he could angle it in such a way that at least the south east corner would be well shielded for a time, and so by happenstance there'd only be enough room for him after ducking and angle it in such a way as to provide at least him some cover.

In watching most of this happen, Jack shares a look with anyone else who happened to have seen it as well and simply shrugged, before with a casual flick of the wrist, the leaves fly just outside the door, shredding the needleblights looking inside as they miniature tornado of death reformed itself. "I must say that while I find your idea to be a lovely one Nivi, it may yet behoove us to relocate deeper before they try anything funny, yes?"

Jack's Action: Move Cloud of Leaves to A20, inflicting 11(7) slashing damage to any creature in that square
Dip, Dive, & Dodge.

Bluto's Movement: To E-21.

Bluto's Action: Flip over Table at E-21/F21 and shift it around, making it into a makeshift barricade  across G-20/E-21.

Bluto's Movement: To E-22 and fall prone for full cover behind new barricade (if possible).

Beren stands his ground at 20C for now, deciding it best to deal with these creatures before trying to get further into the building. 

He readies an attack, debating on whether or not now would be the best time to smite these fiends or if he should hold off on expending his power until they get deeper into the winery. That's always the question isn't it? He grits his teeth, holding his sword in a low, two handed guard as he stands squarely with the door. 

Beren's Action: 

Ready Greatsword Attack: 20 Damage 9

As the crackling hordes bear in, Ola moves to the left side of the room, out of the line of fire, watching the doorway, the Moonbeam washing through her mind as the back of her senses gazes on its burning light. Waiting. Ready.

(Ola will take the Dodge action and maintain concentration on Moonbeam)

Nivi, Shiv, and Arugal all tense in readiness to deal with whatever happens to get past the multiple barrages of death impeding the doorway. Jack remaining where he was, and seemign to begin some kind of interpretative dance in the spot, likely some elvish heritage or quirk he personally possessed. 

Bluto running to, then flipping one of the tables over to it's side, making a thin, makeshift barricade that he promptly dives beneath after the literal hail of thorns outside and doign little else other than cower from his 'safe place.' Making a racket of noise as the parts settled.

Beren remains stoically where he was, sword in hand, ready to sunder anything that the five other contingencies couldn't handle. While Olamoira remains where she stood, though readying herself to dodge, while taking advantage of the partial cover of the woodpile there. (+2 ac)

It was then that the Horror began, though for whom, was yet to be determined.

 Saves Above.

Moonbeam Damage: 10