As you take time to assessment the situation, you (especially Sha from his vantage point) notice that not everyone in the camp is HMC... there are a few faces that you do not recognize from your encounter with the HMC sp far, and those are attached to bodies and gear that looks more like soldiers than workers/prisoners. Among the larger group by the horses, half look like they are Viconia's men rather than HMC folks. The two nearest you now you do recognize from the fight on the other side of the bridge - dwarves still carrying injuries from that fight.
Saoirseclenches her teeth as she watches the woman and her guardian. It was like reliving the same scene from the mines. Were all wizards in service to Strixwell like Viconiaand Samatha? Were all their guardians bound to them, like Sebastian was? The idea enraged her, and this rage intensified when the armored man slapped one of the firbolg with his gauntleted hand. Could this man have belonged to her order, too? After all, Hamza had said that there would be others like her childhood friend.
In any case, they couldn't just stand there. Either the skyoak would burn to ashes, the two firbolg would be hurt, or both, and they couldn't allow that. Taking in the scene, she looked first at Billy Beerbelly, then at the larger camp, and finally at the horses. An idea began to form in her mind.
"Viconia and her guardian are surely going to be tough foes," she whispered,"and contrary to what happened in the mines, this time they have allies. We need strength in numbers. What if we spoke to Billyand the dragonborn, Ahmed? If we sway them to our side, the rest of the HCM might follow them. We'll have to take into account that Viconia will surely use enchanting magic on some of our possible allies. That is going to be problematic, but... Hemlock, do you think we could ask those horses to cause a little havoc for us when that happens?"
Hemlock's demeanour has not changed, in fact he seems even more irate having seen what is going on.
He looks to Saoirse as she speaks, and it takes a moment for her words to sink in.
"I think talking to Billy is a good idea. We should head that way. I can try and convince the horses to cause a distraction, but ideally it would have to be when we need it. They can be trained well, but really need prompting. I could try though if you really want?".
He will follow Saoirse's lead, either heading to the horses or to Billy.
Saoirse ponders Hemlock's words. "Hmm, it's probably best to speak to Billy first. Let's see the next steps after that is done," she says, not really considering that the dwarf may not want to stand up to Viconia. If that were the case, then no amount of horses would help them with the situation at hand.
Waiting for all the companions to be ready, she begins to move silently towards Billy and Ahmed, keeping close to Hemlock so that she's covered by the druid's veil of shadows. She'll try to find the closest spot to Billy's tent which is also covered by foliage and by the eastern cart. This will hopefully keep then hidden from Viconia and her guardian, and also from the rest of HCM folk and Springdawn's soldiers.
From the shadows, Lam stares down the armored man and the woman hiding behind him. What he wants to do is rush the armored man, or even the woman herself- surely he could do some damage with the element of surprise on his side. But he doesn’t want to bring the fight to his friends before they are ready, so he sticks close to Hemlock and follows him and Saoirse to get closer to Billy and Ahmed without giving their position away.
When they reach the other side, close to Billy, Hemlock motions for the others to wait and reaches out into the dwarf's mind as quietly and gently as possible.
"This is Hemlock, please be calm and do not react", he starts. "I can speak to you in your mind, but cannot hear your thoughts. I am here with Saoirse, Lam and She-Gravis. We want to help the Firbolgs and stop Viconia. It looks like she has a lot of protection. If you are willing to help us, scratch your head. If you aren't fold your arms".
He watches Billy, and if he sees a reaction, he will explain to the others what it means.
Billy's eyes widen in shock, and his hands go to the warhammer hanging from his belt. He begins ro stand up, but as he listens to the rest of Hemlock's message he sits back down, and forces an unconvincing poker face into place. Ahmed looks curiously at him, and asks "what is it? You look like you are seeing ghosts."
"Nothing... well, something. The runaways." He whispers those two words, then speaks again - a little too loudly: "I thought i saw a bear but it was just a squirrel." He looks around to check if anyone else is watching him - they aren't - then reaches up to scratch his beard, and waves Ahmed close so that he can whisper to the dragonborn.
(OOC: no need for new stealth rolls until one of you tries something that might be conspicuous. Hemlock's telepathy feat is really doing a lot of legwork, I've got to say.)
"There is no chief, and the temple is forbidden. You stop your assault on this sacred tree."Though the firbolg woman's skin is rising and flushing with colour where she was struck, her voice is slow and steady as spring sap. She begins to sing; a low, undulating tone, with slight variance. The younger firbolg woman joins the song, and Viconia looks on them in fury. The flames from her hand intensify, and you can hear the skyoak's bark crackle and pop. Her armored guard lifts his sword and looks back at her. She shakes her head very slightly. "Not just yet. But if they force our hand, kill the young one first."
Saoirseflinches upon hearing Viconia's orders. They don't have any minute to waste and must think fast.
First, she focuses on Sha. By the cleric's body language, it seems he might jump ahead and attack and if he does that before the plan is set in motion it could have bad consequences not only for the young firbolg but for all of them. So she grabs his arm and says, "Don't jump in there alone, Sha. Let us act coordinately, or this could go terribly wrong".
Then she turns to Hemlock, "Tell Billy that he and Ahmed have to divide. Ahmed must go to the two tents on the left, and Billy to the other two just in front of him. They must tell everyone to stand ready to attack Viconia when we give the order. If possible, one of them (Ahmed, for example) should spread the word among the bigger camp and have the HCM there prepare to deal with Viconia's soldiers. I'm not entirely sure this last part will work out, since we don't have much time, and if it doesn't we will have to hope that those three will know what to do when the time comes. Everyone else must focus on Viconia. The four of us can focus on the armored man mainly, or support those attacking Viconia, as we see fit. Billy will give the signal to the HCM folk after you give it to him, Hemlock".
Turning to look at Lamand Sha, she adds "And if this doesn't go quickly enough and the armored man tries to attack the child first, then Lam, Sha and I will jump in and try to deal with him. I'd include you Hemlock, but I don't know if at this point you'll need to be focused on guiding Billy?".
The blood hunter looks intently at her friends, waiting for their opinion. Whether they agree or want to make changes to her proposal, she'll unsheathes her rapier and dagger to be ready for the moment the plan is set in motion.
Hemlock listens to Saoirse, trying his best to remember the whole plan so he can relay it to Billy. There is a lot of detail, and he does his best.
"Billy, we need you and Ahmed to rally your friends against Viconia and her soldiers, so that when we make our move, we have your support and a bit of a distraction. We will try and deal with her bodyguard. Scratch your head again if you understand. I will let you know when we are ready, and give you a bit of time to give your signal to your people. Make sure you come back to this side of the Sky Oak, as my ability to speak into your mind is limited".
Billy's mouth falls open. He takes a few moments to consider, then crosses his arms pointedly. He stands up, and mimes unbuttoning his trousers and leaning against a tree. He doesn't seem to think this is a good plan, and is suggesting a way he could get close enough to talk to you, wherever you're hidden in the forest.
As the firbolgs sing, the skyoak's bark seems to heal and regrow in the places furthest from the current flames... but it does not look like their healing song will be enough to overwhelm the damage Viconia is doing to the tree. "Stop your wailing!" She seems flustered by this type of resistance.
Saoirse frowns when she sees Billy moving towards the trees instead of towards the tents, and turns to look at Hemlock questioningly. "I take it he doesn't like the plan. But we don't have much time ...", she says clearly worried. But then, thinking the dwarf may know something they might be unaware of, she sighs. "Well, let's go to him, he may know something we need to know before we do anything?".
Billy walks to the edge of the underbrush to the east, and stands facing a young tree. He puts his hands on the front of his trousers, and hopefully anyone looking at him from the other side will make the natural assumption. He whispers quickly: "She has promised that once she has accomplished her task in the valley, any prisoners who aid her will recieve a full pardon from Strixwell herself. Those who don't will go to the dungeons in the city... or the gallows. Look, we all like Captain Jonah, and we all hate this woman. Ahmed and I will even be willing to fight her, I think, even though she will probably kill us, but for everyone else this is the only hope we've got left. Jonah is a prisoner now, and she's got full legal control of this HMC operation. So for all the workers and prisoners... it's either work for her, die, or run away and hope for pity from the locals that we've been harassing for months. I don't think I can convince anyone to fight against her and her guards...
... also, I still can't quite see you, but now I'm so nervous that I actually need to take a leak. So if you're still looking at me, um, please don't."
Sha-Gravis notices movement in the woods, and though he does not see the source, he can make out large footprints, just like the ones Hemlock makes. There are other Firbolgs about. (delayed reward for your very high perception check).
Hemlock looks to Saoirse as Billy finishes speaking, partly to see her reaction, partly to give the dwarf some privacy. He doesn't speak, but his expression is questioning.
When Sha mouths the message about Firbolgs, he nods and then looks around, wondering if he can spot the firbolgs or potentially see any hidden messages known to druids.
Perception: 15+6=21 (For spotting Firbolgs. Spotting messages in druidic is automatic according to the link)
There are many criscrossing trails through these woods, and a heavy firbolg presence, but there are no messages in druidic right where you can see. The direction of the footprint that you can see, and some bends of twigs, suggest the the most recent firbolg to pass by headed north of where you are, staying fairly close to the clearing.
The singing from the two firbolgs in the clearing stops suddenly, as Viconia points behind them and mutters. Then she cackles, watching the singers mouths move to no avail. Neither can you hear any conversation from the HMC folks on the opposite side of the clearing from you. There is an invisible zone of silence in the middle of the clearing. The tree stops healing and fighting off the flames.
Then, many voices begin to sing, somewhere just north of the clearing, out of sight. The tree starts to heal faster, and Viconia's face descends into fury. You have every reason to believe that she is about to give the fatal order to her guardian.
Saoirselistens to Billy, averting her eyes when he asks her to, and sighs. Then, making eye contact with Hemlock, she nods slowly. The dwarf is right; given what they know now, she realizes that her plan wouldn't have been the best idea. She whispers to the druid, and to Lamand Sha: "We cannot risk Billy or Ahmed getting hurt or—gods forbid—dying. They are the closest thing to a good leader, to Jonah, that these people will have for the time being. And having the HMC on our side is paramount if we ever want to stand up to Strixwell."
Raising her voice slightly so that Billycan hear her, she adds, "Understood. It's better if you are not involved. Not at first, at least. Without Jonah, your people need someone to look up to, and that someone is you and Ahmed."
She pauses, thoughts racing. "But what to do, then?" That's when Sha whispers that there are more firbolg nearby. With hope reflected on her face, she turns to Hemlockagain. "They are our chance! Can you speak to them? Meanwhile we —", she begins to say, only to realize that the two firbolg have gone silent. What is happening? Glancing towards the center of the clearing and noticing Viconia's demeanor, who clearly intends to order her guardian to finish the young one, Saoirse tenses and looks at her friends. "Hemlock, go! Sha, Lam and I can handle them meanwhile!"
With that, Saoirsecharges north, away from Billy's tent, and then towards the armored man. As she does this, a slight cut on her finger causes her rapier to crackle with lightning. "Don't you dare", are her only words as she approaches the man, pointing her weapons at him.
BA: Rite of the Storm on the rapier (costs 3 HP to activate)
Movement: 25 feet up north, so it doesn't look I have been just speaking to Billy! + Action: Dash to move another 30 feet to reach the guardian (I've drawn this on the map with an orange line)
As you take time to assessment the situation, you (especially Sha from his vantage point) notice that not everyone in the camp is HMC... there are a few faces that you do not recognize from your encounter with the HMC sp far, and those are attached to bodies and gear that looks more like soldiers than workers/prisoners. Among the larger group by the horses, half look like they are Viconia's men rather than HMC folks. The two nearest you now you do recognize from the fight on the other side of the bridge - dwarves still carrying injuries from that fight.
DM: Heavy is the Head
Saoirse clenches her teeth as she watches the woman and her guardian. It was like reliving the same scene from the mines. Were all wizards in service to Strixwell like Viconia and Samatha? Were all their guardians bound to them, like Sebastian was? The idea enraged her, and this rage intensified when the armored man slapped one of the firbolg with his gauntleted hand. Could this man have belonged to her order, too? After all, Hamza had said that there would be others like her childhood friend.
In any case, they couldn't just stand there. Either the skyoak would burn to ashes, the two firbolg would be hurt, or both, and they couldn't allow that. Taking in the scene, she looked first at Billy Beerbelly, then at the larger camp, and finally at the horses. An idea began to form in her mind.
"Viconia and her guardian are surely going to be tough foes," she whispered, "and contrary to what happened in the mines, this time they have allies. We need strength in numbers. What if we spoke to Billy and the dragonborn, Ahmed? If we sway them to our side, the rest of the HCM might follow them. We'll have to take into account that Viconia will surely use enchanting magic on some of our possible allies. That is going to be problematic, but... Hemlock, do you think we could ask those horses to cause a little havoc for us when that happens?"
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Sha returns to his comrades and gives layout and descriptions of all he observed.
Sha is ready to fight this mind control is beyond despicable and must be stopped.
Hemlock's demeanour has not changed, in fact he seems even more irate having seen what is going on.
He looks to Saoirse as she speaks, and it takes a moment for her words to sink in.
"I think talking to Billy is a good idea. We should head that way. I can try and convince the horses to cause a distraction, but ideally it would have to be when we need it. They can be trained well, but really need prompting. I could try though if you really want?".
He will follow Saoirse's lead, either heading to the horses or to Billy.
Saoirse ponders Hemlock's words. "Hmm, it's probably best to speak to Billy first. Let's see the next steps after that is done," she says, not really considering that the dwarf may not want to stand up to Viconia. If that were the case, then no amount of horses would help them with the situation at hand.
Waiting for all the companions to be ready, she begins to move silently towards Billy and Ahmed, keeping close to Hemlock so that she's covered by the druid's veil of shadows. She'll try to find the closest spot to Billy's tent which is also covered by foliage and by the eastern cart. This will hopefully keep then hidden from Viconia and her guardian, and also from the rest of HCM folk and Springdawn's soldiers.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
From the shadows, Lam stares down the armored man and the woman hiding behind him. What he wants to do is rush the armored man, or even the woman herself- surely he could do some damage with the element of surprise on his side. But he doesn’t want to bring the fight to his friends before they are ready, so he sticks close to Hemlock and follows him and Saoirse to get closer to Billy and Ahmed without giving their position away.
When they reach the other side, close to Billy, Hemlock motions for the others to wait and reaches out into the dwarf's mind as quietly and gently as possible.
"This is Hemlock, please be calm and do not react", he starts. "I can speak to you in your mind, but cannot hear your thoughts. I am here with Saoirse, Lam and She-Gravis. We want to help the Firbolgs and stop Viconia. It looks like she has a lot of protection. If you are willing to help us, scratch your head. If you aren't fold your arms".
He watches Billy, and if he sees a reaction, he will explain to the others what it means.
Billy's eyes widen in shock, and his hands go to the warhammer hanging from his belt. He begins ro stand up, but as he listens to the rest of Hemlock's message he sits back down, and forces an unconvincing poker face into place. Ahmed looks curiously at him, and asks "what is it? You look like you are seeing ghosts."
"Nothing... well, something. The runaways." He whispers those two words, then speaks again - a little too loudly: "I thought i saw a bear but it was just a squirrel." He looks around to check if anyone else is watching him - they aren't - then reaches up to scratch his beard, and waves Ahmed close so that he can whisper to the dragonborn.
(OOC: no need for new stealth rolls until one of you tries something that might be conspicuous. Hemlock's telepathy feat is really doing a lot of legwork, I've got to say.)
"There is no chief, and the temple is forbidden. You stop your assault on this sacred tree." Though the firbolg woman's skin is rising and flushing with colour where she was struck, her voice is slow and steady as spring sap. She begins to sing; a low, undulating tone, with slight variance. The younger firbolg woman joins the song, and Viconia looks on them in fury. The flames from her hand intensify, and you can hear the skyoak's bark crackle and pop. Her armored guard lifts his sword and looks back at her. She shakes her head very slightly. "Not just yet. But if they force our hand, kill the young one first."
DM: Heavy is the Head
If they move to slay the child Sha will charge… as it is he is intensely watching Hemlock.
“I think he is willing to help, what should I tell him to do”, Hemlock whispers to the others. He will pass on to Billy whatever is decided.
Saoirse flinches upon hearing Viconia's orders. They don't have any minute to waste and must think fast.
First, she focuses on Sha. By the cleric's body language, it seems he might jump ahead and attack and if he does that before the plan is set in motion it could have bad consequences not only for the young firbolg but for all of them. So she grabs his arm and says, "Don't jump in there alone, Sha. Let us act coordinately, or this could go terribly wrong".
Then she turns to Hemlock, "Tell Billy that he and Ahmed have to divide. Ahmed must go to the two tents on the left, and Billy to the other two just in front of him. They must tell everyone to stand ready to attack Viconia when we give the order. If possible, one of them (Ahmed, for example) should spread the word among the bigger camp and have the HCM there prepare to deal with Viconia's soldiers. I'm not entirely sure this last part will work out, since we don't have much time, and if it doesn't we will have to hope that those three will know what to do when the time comes. Everyone else must focus on Viconia. The four of us can focus on the armored man mainly, or support those attacking Viconia, as we see fit. Billy will give the signal to the HCM folk after you give it to him, Hemlock".
Turning to look at Lam and Sha, she adds "And if this doesn't go quickly enough and the armored man tries to attack the child first, then Lam, Sha and I will jump in and try to deal with him. I'd include you Hemlock, but I don't know if at this point you'll need to be focused on guiding Billy?".
The blood hunter looks intently at her friends, waiting for their opinion. Whether they agree or want to make changes to her proposal, she'll unsheathes her rapier and dagger to be ready for the moment the plan is set in motion.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Hemlock listens to Saoirse, trying his best to remember the whole plan so he can relay it to Billy. There is a lot of detail, and he does his best.
"Billy, we need you and Ahmed to rally your friends against Viconia and her soldiers, so that when we make our move, we have your support and a bit of a distraction. We will try and deal with her bodyguard. Scratch your head again if you understand. I will let you know when we are ready, and give you a bit of time to give your signal to your people. Make sure you come back to this side of the Sky Oak, as my ability to speak into your mind is limited".
Billy's mouth falls open. He takes a few moments to consider, then crosses his arms pointedly. He stands up, and mimes unbuttoning his trousers and leaning against a tree. He doesn't seem to think this is a good plan, and is suggesting a way he could get close enough to talk to you, wherever you're hidden in the forest.
As the firbolgs sing, the skyoak's bark seems to heal and regrow in the places furthest from the current flames... but it does not look like their healing song will be enough to overwhelm the damage Viconia is doing to the tree. "Stop your wailing!" She seems flustered by this type of resistance.
DM: Heavy is the Head
Saoirse frowns when she sees Billy moving towards the trees instead of towards the tents, and turns to look at Hemlock questioningly. "I take it he doesn't like the plan. But we don't have much time ...", she says clearly worried. But then, thinking the dwarf may know something they might be unaware of, she sighs. "Well, let's go to him, he may know something we need to know before we do anything?".
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Hemlock shrugs, and says to Billy, "We are East of you, come to the edge of the forest and we will hear you".
He then moves closer to the forest edge directly East of Billy.
Billy walks to the edge of the underbrush to the east, and stands facing a young tree. He puts his hands on the front of his trousers, and hopefully anyone looking at him from the other side will make the natural assumption. He whispers quickly: "She has promised that once she has accomplished her task in the valley, any prisoners who aid her will recieve a full pardon from Strixwell herself. Those who don't will go to the dungeons in the city... or the gallows. Look, we all like Captain Jonah, and we all hate this woman. Ahmed and I will even be willing to fight her, I think, even though she will probably kill us, but for everyone else this is the only hope we've got left. Jonah is a prisoner now, and she's got full legal control of this HMC operation. So for all the workers and prisoners... it's either work for her, die, or run away and hope for pity from the locals that we've been harassing for months. I don't think I can convince anyone to fight against her and her guards...
... also, I still can't quite see you, but now I'm so nervous that I actually need to take a leak. So if you're still looking at me, um, please don't."
Sha-Gravis notices movement in the woods, and though he does not see the source, he can make out large footprints, just like the ones Hemlock makes. There are other Firbolgs about. (delayed reward for your very high perception check).
DM: Heavy is the Head
Sha-gravis
i quietly whisper, “Shepherds are about.” Then wave to Hemlock and mouth ‘Firbolgs hidden’.
Hemlock looks to Saoirse as Billy finishes speaking, partly to see her reaction, partly to give the dwarf some privacy. He doesn't speak, but his expression is questioning.
When Sha mouths the message about Firbolgs, he nods and then looks around, wondering if he can spot the firbolgs or potentially see any hidden messages known to druids.
Perception: 15+6=21 (For spotting Firbolgs. Spotting messages in druidic is automatic according to the link)
There are many criscrossing trails through these woods, and a heavy firbolg presence, but there are no messages in druidic right where you can see. The direction of the footprint that you can see, and some bends of twigs, suggest the the most recent firbolg to pass by headed north of where you are, staying fairly close to the clearing.
The singing from the two firbolgs in the clearing stops suddenly, as Viconia points behind them and mutters. Then she cackles, watching the singers mouths move to no avail. Neither can you hear any conversation from the HMC folks on the opposite side of the clearing from you. There is an invisible zone of silence in the middle of the clearing. The tree stops healing and fighting off the flames.
Then, many voices begin to sing, somewhere just north of the clearing, out of sight. The tree starts to heal faster, and Viconia's face descends into fury. You have every reason to believe that she is about to give the fatal order to her guardian.
DM: Heavy is the Head
Raising her voice slightly so that Billy can hear her, she adds, "Understood. It's better if you are not involved. Not at first, at least. Without Jonah, your people need someone to look up to, and that someone is you and Ahmed."
She pauses, thoughts racing. "But what to do, then?" That's when Sha whispers that there are more firbolg nearby. With hope reflected on her face, she turns to Hemlock again. "They are our chance! Can you speak to them? Meanwhile we —", she begins to say, only to realize that the two firbolg have gone silent. What is happening? Glancing towards the center of the clearing and noticing Viconia's demeanor, who clearly intends to order her guardian to finish the young one, Saoirse tenses and looks at her friends. "Hemlock, go! Sha, Lam and I can handle them meanwhile!"
With that, Saoirse charges north, away from Billy's tent, and then towards the armored man. As she does this, a slight cut on her finger causes her rapier to crackle with lightning. "Don't you dare", are her only words as she approaches the man, pointing her weapons at him.
BA: Rite of the Storm on the rapier (costs 3 HP to activate)
Movement: 25 feet up north, so it doesn't look I have been just speaking to Billy! + Action: Dash to move another 30 feet to reach the guardian (I've drawn this on the map with an orange line)
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra