In the city of Neverwinter, a dwarf named Gundren Rockseeker, asked you to bring a wagonload of provisions to the rough-and-tumble settlement of Phandalin. Gundren may be something different to each of you, a friend or yours or your family, a former employer or associate that you have worked with before, or a new employer who offered you an easy job. Phandalin lies a couple of days’ travel southeast of the city proper, down the well travelled coast road and a little inland on a less used stretch called the Triboar trail. Gundren provieds you good directions and a simplictic map, yet was clearly excited and more than a little secretive about his reasons for the trip, saying only that he and his brothers had found “something big,” and that he’d pay you ten gold pieces each for escorting his supplies safely to Barthen’s Provisions, a trading post in Phandalin.
He then set out ahead of you on horse, along with a warrior friend who would be his personal escort and boadyguard, a well-built human named Sildar Hallwinter. Gundren spoke some rushed words about claiming he needed to arrive early to “take care of business”, yet the excitement and urgency to his tone leads you to believe that there may be more to all of this. Regardless, the job is easy money and you'd be a fool to turn it down, so you accept and spend one last night in Neverwinter at Gundren's expense.
You each rise in turn, as the dawn's light creeps in through the curtains of your rooms. The wagon you are to drive down to Phandalin is already loaded with supplies, and the oxen pulling it are being hitched as you check the good and fastenings. The wagon is a flat bed cart with shallow sidewalls to stop goods sliding off more than tipping over, a hinged footboard of the same height, and a bench at the front upon which two people could comfrtably sit to drive the team of oxen.
The day is bright and the weather warm as you set out. Now would be an ideal time to get to know your companions a little better, though the chance of trouble is slim banditry is not umcommon and knowing the people that may have your back, or expect you to have theirs, could be the difference in the heat of the moment.
Use this as an opportunity to describe your character and intiate some dialog and roleplay with your fellow party members. When your character is speaking, pick a colour for your character and colour their speech text, this makes it easy for everyone to pick up on spoken words
Gilroy stood atop the supplies piled into the lumbering cart. He rummaged through seeking out something to swipe for a snack or something to drink. 5 (investigation) OOC: I'm new to this so not sure how you want this to look when we attempt a skill check. Gilroy is primarily looking for something to munch on seeing as he is completely unprepared for too long of a journey. But his curious nature might be piqued if he sees something interesting in the supplies.
Returning to sit down by his pack, he nestled himself up against the side-rails of the cart. He smoothed the wrinkles from his dark brown corduroy jacket, and checked his pockets for any forgotten trinket tucked away from the previous evening. Even having only just met his benefactor the night before, Gundren Rockseeker seemed a pleasant enough fellow for a dwarf. Anyone that enjoyed a frothy beer as much as Gilroy had to be excellent folk. As luck would have it, Gilroy was running low on funds, and Gundren was in need of someone he could count on. The pay was extremely generous, and Gilroy leapt at the idea, bathing Gundren in all his personal talents and references. He was soon enough invited on the excursion to the little town of Phandalin. Gilroy knew of the spot, though he'd never been. Perhaps there was opportunity to ply his trade there, he thought, looking at the viol case resting next to him.
There had been little opportunity for everyone on the journey to do more than quick introductions before they set out on the road. Gilroy glanced over at the one calling herself Truffle. She was quiet, and seemed shy. Gilroy flashed a smile at her hoping to put her at ease. "Fine day," he ventured. "Quite perfect weather for a trip." He was no fan of silence, and thought to try and help brighten everyone's spirits with a travelling tune...
@Gilroy - Your search of the cart's goods is a thorough one as you carefully root around, avoiding the rigging that holds all the good safely in place. There are a multitude of things, barrels of tack, crowbars, rope, picks, boards and wheels. All items are carefully packaged and everything is clearly itemised on papers attached to each individual container. There is a small cask of salted pork that, opening it to confirm you see the contents or raw meat are all well packed and crusted with salt to prevent rotting.
OOC - If you want to attempt something, then feel free to roll. If the roll isn't required or would not affect the outcome then I will disregard it. If a different roll would be appropriate, then I'll let you know. If it is the roll I wanted then you've just saved us all time :)
In this instance, the roll makes no real impact to the outcome, you are escorting the goods and have free access to them without time being a factor. As you rolled well though, I have allowed you to complete your search without causing much disruption to the rigging and fastenings holding all the goods in place. Whether you partake in anything you find is up to you.
hello my name is Fionn the slayer ( Fionn is Elvish for Hawk) I am a half elf elf so I’m brooding in the corner I expect everybody not to like me but I hope they do. I keep to myself but I nod and smile when spoken to I’m Thin and wirey but strong, i’m reading a book that I brought with me and I keep trying to make a light with my hand but I’m not having any success.
Your journey along the coast road is uneventful, you pass caravans and other travellers heading towards Neverwinter and beyond and are passed by the fleeter moving folk such as messengers and even what looked to be a troupe of adventurers heading somewhere on horseback at pace. You draw off the coast road on onto the Tri-boar trail late in the afternoon, hoping to push through the last hours of travel and reach Phandalin shortly after the sun sets this evening.
Another half an hour down the trail though, you reach a natural chicane in the roadway and though the light is starting to wane, you can see something in the middle of the road. You slow your approach but continue onwards until you can make out the shapes ahead.
You are now about 200ft away and the block is unclear. Please give me your respective positions on or alongside the cart (which would only be moving at walking pace), including one person driving it. Also, please give me a perception check each, which will determine how close you are before you can see more about the scene.
Fionn sitting in the back right corner and with his general distrust attempts to slide out of the wagon unnoticed and into the woods alongside to flank the obstruction ahead
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Sitting on his wadded up jacket as a pillow had brought very little reprieve to the chaffing caused by the rhythmic back and forth rocking of the wagon over the rutted road they travelled to Phandalin. Gilroy had taken his turn at driving the wagon around noonday, and neither of his companions had seemed eager to take the reigns from him since. As the day began to wane, he grew concerned as to whether they would make it to their destination before nightfall. Another bump in the road brought a wince, and Gilroy's eyes caught the shape of something up ahead. He loosed his grip on the reigns and looked back towards the half-elf, Fionne, but curiously, the elf was gone. Missing! Just moments before he had been having a delightful conversation with the fellow about his taste in wine! One-sided as it may have been, it had at least been helpful in passing the time. He did a double-take, scanning quickly, wondering where their companion had wandered off to. Truffle, who was immediately behind him, seemed unfazed by the absent half-elf. She appeared tense, focusing her attention on whatever lay ahead.
Instinctively, Gilroy's hand went to his pocket to fetch some tobacco for his pipe, but very quickly the realization hit him that both his pipe, and his tobacco, were still resting on the nightstand of a very pleasant, but also very clingy barmaid, back in Neverwinter. He fretted only momentarily. Those would have to be replaced immediately on the morrow, he thought to himself. He let the oxen ease forward at a slower pace.
"What do you see?" he asked Truffle, bringing his own hand up to shield his eyes from the late afternoon sun. 7
ooc: Original roll was a 15. I was under the impression that I could edit my post with the dice roll in the quotation block and it wouldn't mess with it. Sticking with the 13 seems more on point for how Gilroy's day is going.
@All - The chicane ahead is caused by steep hill that the road cuts through at a low point, the embankment on either side rises about 15-20ft from the road. You can see the top of a treeline set back behind the crest of the northern elevation, to the south there appears to be just rolling plains.
@Truffle - you have only moved a little bit forwards before the object clarifies itself in your vision. There appear to be two fallen horses lying in the middle of the road, each has several black-feathered arrows sticking out of it. You are about 120ft away when this becomes clear to you. You can share this with your companions at any point.
@Fionne - There are woods that you can head towards, but they are well enough back from the road and up the incline that you will be in open ground and clearly visible if you head straight towards them.
Gilroy pulled back on the reigns of the oxen, halting them in the dust of the road. Two dead horses, he thought to himself. "You sure?" he asked. The cut in the hill ahead was the perfect spot to set an ambush for unwary travelers. Since leaving his home, Gilroy had spent ample time on the roads between towns and cities, and knew there was always a chance to run into a bandit or two, and other nasty ilk that occasionally preyed on the unsuspecting or ill-prepared. He hopped back into the bed of the wagon and dug out his dagger from his traveling pack, attaching the sheath to his belt. He donned his wrinkled jacket and sat back down in the driver's-seat. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, not alone from the afternoon heat. He rubbed his hands together and began thinking about what route he wanted to take the wagon. He looked back over his shoulder, down the trail they'd come. How far back had been the nearest house or road-side inn?
"What do you think, Truffle?" he asked. "Get closer? Take a wide berth around the hillock? I'm not sure how well the wagon will handle getting off the road. A broken axle or wheel might put us in even more danger." He wiped his forehead with the sleeve of his traveling jacket.
I work my way up towards the dead horses scouting all around looking for signs and clues about who did this and why. I study the ground and the horses, getting a close look and the arrows in the horses i hope to figure out who made them.I try to make my presents known to my troop , if I dont find any bad guys.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
OOC: there’s that scene in the first Jurassic Parkwhen the lawyer runs to the restroom when the Trex breaks through the fence — and Grant asks, “Well where does he think he’s going.” And Ian Malcolm retorts, “when you gotta go you gotta go.” This is SO that moment.
Fionn's approach of the horses will trigger our first combat.
Fionn, please roll Stealth and Perception.
Everyone please roll initiative (I will do this for everyone in future encounters to speed things up, but i don't want to take it away for the first one))
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
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In the city of Neverwinter, a dwarf named Gundren Rockseeker, asked you to bring a wagonload of provisions to the rough-and-tumble settlement of Phandalin. Gundren may be something different to each of you, a friend or yours or your family, a former employer or associate that you have worked with before, or a new employer who offered you an easy job. Phandalin lies a couple of days’ travel southeast of the city proper, down the well travelled coast road and a little inland on a less used stretch called the Triboar trail. Gundren provieds you good directions and a simplictic map, yet was clearly excited and more than a little secretive about his reasons for the trip, saying only that he and his brothers had found “something big,” and that he’d pay you ten gold pieces each for escorting his supplies safely to Barthen’s Provisions, a trading post in Phandalin.
He then set out ahead of you on horse, along with a warrior friend who would be his personal escort and boadyguard, a well-built human named Sildar Hallwinter. Gundren spoke some rushed words about claiming he needed to arrive early to “take care of business”, yet the excitement and urgency to his tone leads you to believe that there may be more to all of this. Regardless, the job is easy money and you'd be a fool to turn it down, so you accept and spend one last night in Neverwinter at Gundren's expense.
You each rise in turn, as the dawn's light creeps in through the curtains of your rooms. The wagon you are to drive down to Phandalin is already loaded with supplies, and the oxen pulling it are being hitched as you check the good and fastenings. The wagon is a flat bed cart with shallow sidewalls to stop goods sliding off more than tipping over, a hinged footboard of the same height, and a bench at the front upon which two people could comfrtably sit to drive the team of oxen.
The day is bright and the weather warm as you set out. Now would be an ideal time to get to know your companions a little better, though the chance of trouble is slim banditry is not umcommon and knowing the people that may have your back, or expect you to have theirs, could be the difference in the heat of the moment.
Use this as an opportunity to describe your character and intiate some dialog and roleplay with your fellow party members.
When your character is speaking, pick a colour for your character and colour their speech text, this makes it easy for everyone to pick up on spoken words
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
Truffle looks just like in the picture but in a thinner cloak. Shes not very social so she isn't saying anything, just staring at the ground.
https://ddb.ac/characters/100210920/jLGNe1
OOC: My character is being played by a 3'4" Mr. Alden Ehrenreich (Solo Movie)
Returning to sit down by his pack, he nestled himself up against the side-rails of the cart. He smoothed the wrinkles from his dark brown corduroy jacket, and checked his pockets for any forgotten trinket tucked away from the previous evening. Even having only just met his benefactor the night before, Gundren Rockseeker seemed a pleasant enough fellow for a dwarf. Anyone that enjoyed a frothy beer as much as Gilroy had to be excellent folk. As luck would have it, Gilroy was running low on funds, and Gundren was in need of someone he could count on. The pay was extremely generous, and Gilroy leapt at the idea, bathing Gundren in all his personal talents and references. He was soon enough invited on the excursion to the little town of Phandalin. Gilroy knew of the spot, though he'd never been. Perhaps there was opportunity to ply his trade there, he thought, looking at the viol case resting next to him.
There had been little opportunity for everyone on the journey to do more than quick introductions before they set out on the road. Gilroy glanced over at the one calling herself Truffle. She was quiet, and seemed shy. Gilroy flashed a smile at her hoping to put her at ease.
"Fine day," he ventured. "Quite perfect weather for a trip."
He was no fan of silence, and thought to try and help brighten everyone's spirits with a travelling tune...
Gilroy's Travelling Song
https://youtu.be/ePdC5IVtlsc
@Gilroy - Your search of the cart's goods is a thorough one as you carefully root around, avoiding the rigging that holds all the good safely in place. There are a multitude of things, barrels of tack, crowbars, rope, picks, boards and wheels. All items are carefully packaged and everything is clearly itemised on papers attached to each individual container. There is a small cask of salted pork that, opening it to confirm you see the contents or raw meat are all well packed and crusted with salt to prevent rotting.
OOC - If you want to attempt something, then feel free to roll. If the roll isn't required or would not affect the outcome then I will disregard it. If a different roll would be appropriate, then I'll let you know. If it is the roll I wanted then you've just saved us all time :)
In this instance, the roll makes no real impact to the outcome, you are escorting the goods and have free access to them without time being a factor. As you rolled well though, I have allowed you to complete your search without causing much disruption to the rigging and fastenings holding all the goods in place. Whether you partake in anything you find is up to you.
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
hello my name is Fionn the slayer ( Fionn is Elvish for Hawk) I am a half elf elf so I’m brooding in the corner I expect everybody not to like me but I hope they do. I keep to myself but I nod and smile when spoken to I’m Thin and wirey but strong, i’m reading a book that I brought with me and I keep trying to make a light with my hand but I’m not having any success.
Truffle acknowledges Gilroy's smile with a nod but doesn't speak.
Your journey along the coast road is uneventful, you pass caravans and other travellers heading towards Neverwinter and beyond and are passed by the fleeter moving folk such as messengers and even what looked to be a troupe of adventurers heading somewhere on horseback at pace. You draw off the coast road on onto the Tri-boar trail late in the afternoon, hoping to push through the last hours of travel and reach Phandalin shortly after the sun sets this evening.
Another half an hour down the trail though, you reach a natural chicane in the roadway and though the light is starting to wane, you can see something in the middle of the road. You slow your approach but continue onwards until you can make out the shapes ahead.
You are now about 200ft away and the block is unclear. Please give me your respective positions on or alongside the cart (which would only be moving at walking pace), including one person driving it.
Also, please give me a perception check each, which will determine how close you are before you can see more about the scene.
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
Truffle is just sitting behind the driver. Even though she doesn't know what it is yet, she tenses.
Perception: 20
OOC- woaahhhhhhhh 20
Fionn sitting in the back right corner and with his general distrust attempts to slide out of the wagon unnoticed and into the woods alongside to flank the obstruction ahead
Sitting on his wadded up jacket as a pillow had brought very little reprieve to the chaffing caused by the rhythmic back and forth rocking of the wagon over the rutted road they travelled to Phandalin. Gilroy had taken his turn at driving the wagon around noonday, and neither of his companions had seemed eager to take the reigns from him since. As the day began to wane, he grew concerned as to whether they would make it to their destination before nightfall. Another bump in the road brought a wince, and Gilroy's eyes caught the shape of something up ahead. He loosed his grip on the reigns and looked back towards the half-elf, Fionne, but curiously, the elf was gone. Missing! Just moments before he had been having a delightful conversation with the fellow about his taste in wine! One-sided as it may have been, it had at least been helpful in passing the time. He did a double-take, scanning quickly, wondering where their companion had wandered off to. Truffle, who was immediately behind him, seemed unfazed by the absent half-elf. She appeared tense, focusing her attention on whatever lay ahead.
Instinctively, Gilroy's hand went to his pocket to fetch some tobacco for his pipe, but very quickly the realization hit him that both his pipe, and his tobacco, were still resting on the nightstand of a very pleasant, but also very clingy barmaid, back in Neverwinter. He fretted only momentarily. Those would have to be replaced immediately on the morrow, he thought to himself. He let the oxen ease forward at a slower pace.
ooc: Original roll was a 15. I was under the impression that I could edit my post with the dice roll in the quotation block and it wouldn't mess with it. Sticking with the 13 seems more on point for how Gilroy's day is going.
@All - The chicane ahead is caused by steep hill that the road cuts through at a low point, the embankment on either side rises about 15-20ft from the road. You can see the top of a treeline set back behind the crest of the northern elevation, to the south there appears to be just rolling plains.
@Truffle - you have only moved a little bit forwards before the object clarifies itself in your vision. There appear to be two fallen horses lying in the middle of the road, each has several black-feathered arrows sticking out of it. You are about 120ft away when this becomes clear to you. You can share this with your companions at any point.
@Fionne - There are woods that you can head towards, but they are well enough back from the road and up the incline that you will be in open ground and clearly visible if you head straight towards them.
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
OOC: ok so i rmbed i had a perception +3 so technically my roll was 23
@Truffle - 20 was good enough to get you max distance.
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
Its... two dead horses...
Truffle tells the others in the cart.
Can she look around to see if there are any archers nearby?
"Its... two dead horses..."
Gilroy pulled back on the reigns of the oxen, halting them in the dust of the road. Two dead horses, he thought to himself. "You sure?" he asked. The cut in the hill ahead was the perfect spot to set an ambush for unwary travelers. Since leaving his home, Gilroy had spent ample time on the roads between towns and cities, and knew there was always a chance to run into a bandit or two, and other nasty ilk that occasionally preyed on the unsuspecting or ill-prepared. He hopped back into the bed of the wagon and dug out his dagger from his traveling pack, attaching the sheath to his belt. He donned his wrinkled jacket and sat back down in the driver's-seat. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, not alone from the afternoon heat. He rubbed his hands together and began thinking about what route he wanted to take the wagon. He looked back over his shoulder, down the trail they'd come. How far back had been the nearest house or road-side inn?
"What do you think, Truffle?" he asked. "Get closer? Take a wide berth around the hillock? I'm not sure how well the wagon will handle getting off the road. A broken axle or wheel might put us in even more danger." He wiped his forehead with the sleeve of his traveling jacket.
Where is the damned half-elf, he thought again...
Truffle sees no-one other than her travelling companions.
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
I work my way up towards the dead horses scouting all around looking for signs and clues about who did this and why. I study the ground and the horses, getting a close look and the arrows in the horses i hope to figure out who made them.I try to make my presents known to my troop , if I dont find any bad guys.
OOC: there’s that scene in the first Jurassic Parkwhen the lawyer runs to the restroom when the Trex breaks through the fence — and Grant asks, “Well where does he think he’s going.” And Ian Malcolm retorts, “when you gotta go you gotta go.” This is SO that moment.
Perception roll to see if Gilroy notices Fionn 3
Fionn's approach of the horses will trigger our first combat.
Fionn, please roll Stealth and Perception.
Everyone please roll initiative (I will do this for everyone in future encounters to speed things up, but i don't want to take it away for the first one))
Bring out your inner chatacter class...