Thia, enraged to the point that you can almost see smoke coming out from her nose and ears, escorting you out replies to Hart (but of course you all hear also): "How dared, that fart-inflated pig's bladder Adran! Ooooppps, sorry my lady, I usually moderate my language better..." she looks really ashamed for a moment, as if you could blame her for what she said - but she then goes on "The elf was Adran Liadon, the husband of mistress Martha's cousin, Tharby. He (like many other memvers of the family) despises Dobbian, but to speak like that... Plus, if he hadn't offended poor Dobbian so meanly and cruelly at that dinner, perhaps all this would never have happened!"

Once outside, where the snow has not yet begun to fall again, but a cold, uninviting wind is now blowing, the braided half-elf young girl starts jumping and waving vigorously, wishing you all: "Good luck! Do your best, save Dobbian, please... mostly for my lady... but also to make Adran eat back some of his boast! Come on! I believe in you!"

Tarysaa smiles as she pats Thia's shoulder, "Thank you for your care and support.  Reassure Lady Martha, we shall do all we can to accomplish this goal."   Turning to the others, she lightly touches each on their cape, cowl or furry wrap.      Prestidigitation

Everyone:

 Taking one last look at Thia bouncing on the front porch, Tarysaa pulls tight her hood and looks south and down the road ahead.

Ilwythe will speak a brief prayer to Ilmater before following Thia.

Hart shakes her head at Thia, looking serious. "I've known plenty like him. Don't pay him any attention. That's exactly what they want. If you can ignore him, he'll find someone else to bother." She pauses, and her lips lift ever so slightly at the corners. "'Fart-inflated pigs bladder.' That's pretty good. I'll remember that one."

Engelhart turns, pulling her hood up over her own braids once again as she steps back outside. As Tarysaa warms her cloak, Hart takes a deep breath and whispers, "Thanks," before joining the others heading south toward town and this hills beyond.

And so the handful of adventurers leave the hopping Thia (and the Sharnshield Mansion), protected by the magical warmth evoked by Tarysaa, heading out of the town of Longsaddle, following the Long Road in a southerly direction.

The road is fortunately in good condition and the snow (previously fallen) not too deep, therefore the 4 mile journey is covered in less than an hour and a half, during which the only noteworthy events are, in the order:
- a fox spotted in the distance by Ilwythe.
- small humanoids still further away, towards the hills to the west, noticed by Engelhart.

(OOC: I assume you don't want to stop and try to reach either the fox or the other humanoids - if you do, no problem, we'll role-play that)

Now, this map shows where you are and what you see.

You all are in the position with the red P.
North is towards the top side of the map - so west is towards the left side of the map.
Each square measures 200' therefore you cover about 4 squares every 3 minutes (therefore 40 in half an hour, or 80 in one hour - just so that you have an idea of the travel times).

The black path is the Long Road.
The light green squares are plain.
The dark green ones are dense forest - movement costs double there.
The brown ones are hill sections (light brown lower, dark brown higher) - movement costs double there.

Of course, right now you can't see what's behind stretches of dense forest or hills (because vegetation or terrain blocks your view).

There's no marble arch in sight, but it's time to start looking for it, it seems...

You have to decide:
1) in what formation and marching order to travel.
For example: one per row? Two per row? Three? And who is in front, who is in the middle, who is behind...
2) where to start going.
For example: As you can see, if you went directly west from where you are now, after 5 squares of plains (a few minutes) you would start traveling through dense forest...going to find out what lies beyond.
But if you go southwest, after a bit of plain you'll find a hill...
Or if you bypassed the stretch of dense forest you could go and explore the stretch of hill you see towards the northwest...

Tyrgram's mood improved somewhat when the elf heaped praise upon the party. 'Thanks.' He replied in response to the clapping, taking it as genuine praise. 'It's nice to be appreciated.'

He did not catch whatever else was said as he mentally went over the things he would need for the journey. Most things he had on him and rations had been handed out. His waterskin was full and his pelts protected him from the weather. He was ready. Tyrgram followed the others out the mansion. Whether subconscious or deliberate, he moved more towards the front of the group to use his large frame to shield some of the smaller partymembers from the wind. 

'The hills then?' He pointed towards the elevated grounds. 'To my knowledge there are more caves around hills and mountains than there are in forests.'

As we stop to decide our next path, Ardana has some ideas.

"We need to search the south side of a hill for the marble arch, maybe we can skirt the northern edge of the tree line of the hill to our left and start our search there?   If the arch is hidden it is likely among the trees.  Does anyone have wilderness skills?  I do not.   Someone should keep a watch out for those people to the west as we search."

Before we go deep off the Long Road, Tarysaa tries to scan the area as she secures her belongings and prepares her shortbow.

Tarysaa's Passive Perception is 13

After organizing yourself into a three line formation with two members in each line (Ardana/Tyrgram, Daisy/Tarysaa, Hart/Ilwythe) start heading up the hill to the southwest to gain altitude and get a better overview . The land rises slowly, becoming steeper only in the last stretch, the highest one.

Just over ten minutes, and you reach the top. Up there, with fewer trees and hills to shield it, the wind is stronger, but Tarysaa is still comforting you with her magical powers. On the other hand, you have a much wider view... and you also find the source of a small stream (although you shouldn't need it for now - you filled the skins with water before leaving Longsaddle).

Don't notice the marble arch... so it must be hidden by something (perhaps by stretches of deep forest near the base of a hill). However, Tarysaa and Daisy notice that the hill north of the one you climbed up is inhabited! Or perhaps, in a sense, fortified. The walls are steeper than those of the other hills, there is only a narrow winding path that allows you to go up (unless you proceed by climbing) and on the top little creatures similar to those you had noticed in the distance when you came here they built a village of rudimentary huts.

You can decide where to go or explore next (of course, the blue lines are small streams - no problem in crossing them and the water should be clear and clean, should you ever need it).

I updated the P position, the arrow shows the path you took.

While we look around from the hilltop, Ardana has an idea.

"I think that those people over there might know more about the area.  I wonder if we can approach them and ask them about the marble archway, what do you think?"

      "Well, we could try that, but I don't know how friendly they'll be," Daisy replies. "Though I don't know if those folk are wanting guests, though. Looks like from here that they've made not too easy to get to the top of the hill." She points out the switch-back path that leads around the hill.

     "Just be prepared for a less than warm welcome."

Quote from Tordon38 >>

 

While we look around from the hilltop, Ardana has an idea.

"I think that those people over there might know more about the area.  I wonder if we can approach them and ask them about the marble archway, what do you think?"

'What people?' Tygram replied as he peered at what he thought the direction was Ardana pointed out.

    "There's some smaller human-type creatures over there," Daisy adds, pointing Tygram in the right direction. "I've heard some goblins may be nestled in theses hills. Harassin' travelers along the road."

Ilwythe will top off his waterskin (regardless of how much he’s drank).

To Daisy, he responds “I’ve had luck dealing with Goblinoids before. Others treating us both as sub-human(oid) has bonded us together before.”

"I'll go with Ilwythe," Englehart says. "If they are wary of outsiders, we'll be less threatening just the two of us." She produces a horn from under her cloak and shows it to the others. "If we run into any problems, I'll blow this, and you can come running." The horn disappears once again. "We should be fine. And hopefully they'll know where we can look for this marble arch." She looks at the half-orc. "Ready, big guy?"

"How far should we hold back?  The base of the hill?"

Tarysaa mutters under her breath while she stows her short bow and quiver case.   Securing her spellbook and firmly grasping her staff (arcane focus), she surveys the area.  "I have better luck with a spell at longer ranges anyway.  On a tactical note, if we have to 'fall back'... we should come back to this hilltop.  My professor said having the high ground was an advantage... though he also said, Always have an exit plan."

Quote from DirtyDogP >>

"I'll go with Ilwythe," Englehart says. "If they are wary of outsiders, we'll be less threatening just the two of us." She produces a horn from under her cloak and shows it to the others. "If we run into any problems, I'll blow this, and you can come running." The horn disappears once again. "We should be fine. And hopefully they'll know where we can look for this marble arch." She looks at the half-orc. "Ready, big guy?"

 Ilwythe sighs.

”Ilmater give me strength. I’m ready when you all are.”

Quote from Saute_Monkey >>

    "There's some smaller human-type creatures over there," Daisy adds, pointing Tygram in the right direction. "I've heard some goblins may be nestled in theses hills. Harassin' travelers along the road."

Tyrgram felt slightly awkward when the smaller Daisy adjusted his view to where everyone else was actually looking. 'Thanks.' He mumbled underneath his breath. With some effort he could indeed now see the small, rudimentary huts dotting the landscape. The others helpfully informed him that they were in all likelihood looking at a goblin encampment. Two of them volunteered to check it out, meaning the others would stay behind. 

'Be careful.' Tyrgram said. 'Goblins are notorious ankle biters, so I've heard.' He took out his crossbow just in case things got dicey. 

To reach the path that goes up toward the goblin village you are forced to go around their hill; it takes almost 40 minutes to get to the start of the trail.

(OOC: Not to get you stuck with my question of how far back is the 'backup', I'm assuming it's 200' back, for now... if you prefer a different distance, let me know)

Ilwythe and Hart are perfectly sure that the goblins kept an eye on them as they approached... and in fact, as confirmation, here is that from above, very high up, on the steep-walled plateau (still about 600' higher ) on which the village is located, a voice in goblin shouts something... which you don't understand (unless you know the goblin).

After a few moments, however, something is also shouted in Common: "Go away! You have no hope of defeating Rukuz the Merciless's tribe! You will all die if you try to attack us! They won't even find your bones!"