Meifinas gently taps the hilt of his rapier before following after Havel. "It's probably not going to be pretty, but hopefully it won't be the worse case scenario..." He trails off slightly for a moment before shaking his head slightly. "Well whatever happens, I'll have you guys' backs."

As they move, Rothgar will scan the woods about them, to make sure nothing is prowling near them (Perception: 21; Nature: 7)

As you leave town, following the map and Holly's very obvious tracks, you find the winding path through a pine forest to Kringle’s Workshop. You don't encounter anything out of the ordinary, just some rabbits, a fox and an owl hooting from the tree branches somewhere around you. After traveling through scattered pine woods for an hour, the forest thins and you enter a large clearing lit by the partial moon, a large figure standing in the middle of it, some 50 ft away. Rothgar quickly discerns the figure to be a snowman. 

Rothgar raises his eyebrows when he sees the large snowman, but does not let down his guard. He continues to watch the woods, keeping his great axe ready. Perception: 20

In merrier times Havel would appreciate a good snowman, but he is on a mission and quickly continues on walking towards Kringle's workshop.

Meifinas glances at Rothgar for a moment as he continues walking but he begins to look around. His hand resting on his hilt, preparing himself just in case. 

Perception: 10

As you continue walking, Rothgar can swear that out of the corner of his vision, he catches the snowman's head shifting slightly, almost imperceptibly, as if it were tracking the party movements.

Meanwhile, Meifinas witnesses a peculiar phenomenon. As he looks around, he notices the snow around them appears to be unnaturally gathering in a few places, almost as if it were flowing or drifting towards a singular point. The bard can even hear the soft crunching of the snow as it moves in various directions. 

“P-pardon me?” Unnoticed by the group, the small human girl is trailing close behind them

Not sure what to make of the snowman, Rothgar calls out to halt the party, he wants to take a closer look at the snowman. When he here's the little girl's voice, he remains wary and on guard. This is no place for a little girl, he tries to see if it is a girl or a gnome Perception: 17. He is very wary at the moment, believing he thought he saw the head move, and with the concern of dark forces in the area, it would not surprise him if this was a foul creature in disguise.b 

Havel instinctively grabs the hilt of his great sword when he hears the voice of a little girl. He turns and asks "Who are you and what are you doing out here among the snow?" 

Meifinas was about to say something about what he had seen but when he heard the girl's voice  he jumped slightly. When he turned around he took a moment to compose himself before giving a small hint of a smile. 'I doubt that she was what caused the snow to move like that...' He thought before looking at the snow, half expecting something to pop up. 

As Rothgar approaches the snowman, a deep guttural sound reverberates from its direction, resonating with a menacing undertone. Suddenly, Rothgar realizes it's not just any sound—it's a growl. In an instant, the snowman extends its twig-like appendages, looking ready to strike.

Simultaneously, the snow around Meifinas begins to stir with increased intensity, rising up to take humanoid forms. Within moments, three more snowmen take shape, their icy figures standing menacingly with an aura of hostility, poised to attack the group.

Combat initiative:

Snowmen - 7

Party - 12

The party goes first.

There is no required order, post when available. There are four snowmen in total, one around five feet away from Rothgar, the other three approximately 15 feet away from you as a group.

With a battle cry, Rothgar attacks the snowman: Attack: 22; damage: 12

With a grunt Havel unsheathes his greatsword and moves into slash at the nearest snowman. "You should have stayed as snowflakes" 

Attack: 7 Damage: 9

Meifinas curses to himself before grabbing his rapier and moves towards one of the snowmen. "Never thought that I'd be going toe to toe with a snowman. Let's try to put on a good show." He hums before thrusting his rapier at the snowman in front of him.

Attack: 12 Damage: 6 

Faune casts create bonfire

Rothgar and Havel successfully fend off the snowmen attacking them, while Meifinas narrowly misses striking the third one. Cast by Faune, a bonfire appears in the space of the last one. Fourth snowman Dex Check 12. 

Still, the last snowman takes some 4 damage from the bonfire.

Snow people turn:

The snowman in front of Meifinas retaliates, swinging with its frozen stick against the bard for a slashing attack. Attack: 14 Damage: 9

The snowman facing Faune performs a bizarre maneuver, melding into the snow and blending seamlessly with its surroundings. Moments later, it resurfaces about 15 feet away, approximately doubling its initial distance. Now poised in its new position, it seems to be gearing up for an attack. Suddenly, a packed snowball hurtles through the air toward the druid for Attack: 11 Damage: 5


It's the party's turn again

Havel turns and moves to attack the snowman in front of Melfinas with his great sword. 

Attack: 12 Damage: 12