Zaba wishes you luck on your search and promises to save you dinner, plus extras.
When you return to the reception hall, Commandant Nattensbarn has already returned and resumed her work. She doesn't look any different than she did when you entered the Three Frogs earlier, and doesn't act any different either: Mostly ignoring you while trying her best to concentrate. Lieutenant Tireur again reads from the same sheet as he did before.
"Here: Take this." Walnuts tosses the key to the carriage's storage space from across the room to 'Tace'. "There's a lantern in the carriage, and there should be enough candles. Each one should last about four hours." He then reminds you once more to stay vigilant and be careful. Commandant Nattensbarn stays silent, but you notice she's not oblivious and not pleased with all the talking.
Getting to the stables where the carriage is doesn't take long, and you can open the storage space and take what's there: your private belongings, as well as the Lieutenant's and some of the Commandant's, and all the equipment that is used by the entire crew on your travels, including many of the military's field-rations. You find a small lantern that can provide ample protection from the weather for a candle inside, and candles that fit into it. (OOC: But lasts for ~4 hours instead of one, on average.)
'Tace' deftly catches the thrown key and nods to the Lieutenant. Heading out to the stables, he will unlock the storage space and open it so he and the Sergeant can retrieve the lantern and candles.
Once the Sergeant has then got everything he needs, 'Tace' will delve into his pack whilst his body shields what he does from the Sergeants view. He rustles around a bit for a moment. "Mustn't forget this", he says holding up his tinderbox before stowing it somewhere dry and safe under his raincoat.
"Should we take the key back to the Lieutenant or just get going?", he asks, and allows the Sergeant to make that choice.
(OOC: Bryn may have grabbed more than just his tinderbox but will be trying to do this discreetly. Not sure whether you want some kind of contested roll for this?)
Arren takes his belongings from the storage compartment and spends a moment adjusting his weapons, while Tace picks up the tinderbox and locks the compartment once again. He'll also take one of the ration packs, tucking it into a side pocket from which he will take small bites from time to keep the hunger at bay.
He gives Choco and Mocha a gentle nudge, and when Tace finishes and asks about the key, he replies, "I'll feel more comfortable returning it. I wouldn't want to lose it in the forest, even if the Commandant has a spare."
They return to the street separating The Stewpot from The Three Frogs. Within a matter of seconds, Arren slips into the latter—a few steps, enough to toss the key back to Walnuts so he can catch it with ease. He doesn't want to approach too much to the table and risk soaking the Commandant's papers with rainwater. Then he returns to the street again.
Once outside, the Half-Elf faces toward the setting sun, then glances at the Corporal. "Guiding and spotting things aren't really my forte. I trust your eyes more than mine. Perhaps you should be the one taking the lantern."
If the Elf agrees and is ready, they begin walking west, towards the forest.
'Tace' obediently takes hold of the lantern and joins the Sergeant moving to the west, where they envisage the setting sun would be.
"If Emma was a young child, this special place surely wouldn't be too far into the forest", he comments as they move towards the trees.
Once in the forest, he draws one of his daggers and makes sure to mark a tree with an arrow pointing in the direction they are heading. If they change direction, or if they have walked more than 30 feet in one direction, he will carve a new arrow.
Bryn, please include a Survival check in your next post, for use in any action you might take next.
By the time you return to the Three Frogs and drop off the key, it is already dark outside. Whether the sun has set entirely or its last light is too weak to pierce through the dark blanket of clouds covering the sky, it is as dark outside as it is at night. Fortunately, your Elven heritages yielded superior sight in the dark, and you have a lantern to boot (I assume you lit a candle?). As you walk through the town, you see that most houses are dimly lit by hearths.
After swiftly returning the key to your comrades in the inn, 'Tace' leads in the direction he estimates is west, navigating as best he can between the houses in the way while trying to maintain a mostly straight path.
It doesn't take long to reach the forest. Most trees appear to be pine trees. They're tall and easy to walk underneath, but their brown needles cover the ground. As wet as they are, they don't make a lot of noise when you walk, and they mostly keep your boots clean from mud. Bryn finds that the pine tree is relatively soft (for a tree) and easy to carve into. The trees don't do a great job of covering from the rain, but there are spots where the rain is directed away from, slightly less rainy, and spots that have a stronger downpour in them to compensate. Neither is particularly significant in any way.
However, even after venturing over 30' into the forest, neither Arren nor Bryn see the clearing with the rock in it. (You can keep going, of course, but I'm stopping here to see Bryn's roll.)
'Tace' does indeed make sure there is a lit candle in the lantern before they head out into the rain. Not ideal circumstances for following a trail, and not the ideal person to be doing it. Very much a city dweller, tracking is way outside of his comfort zone.
Getting through the town is easy, but heading into the forest is a challenge he is not exactly looking forward to. Anything is better than prison, is the mantra the runs through his mind.
He is determined to do his best though as they reach the edge of the forest.
Survival: 3+3=6(Unless there is the chance for Arren to provide help, I think we are getting lost :-) )
(ooc: Would love to help, but I'm not proficient in Survival, so I guess I can't?)
Arrenfollows Tace's steps closely, careful not to wander too far from the lantern's light, which helps have a clearer view on top of their darkvision. As they walk, his thoughts return to what his companion said earlier. If Emma was very young when she found this place, she couldn't have gone too deep into the woods.
When they find themselves deep in the forest with no sign of a clearing after what feels like thirty minutes, Arren halts. He surveys the darkened forest and says quietly, "You are right in your logic that Emma shouldn't have gone too deep into the forest being so young. But we have walked about thirty minutes and there is no cleaning, no rocks large enough to hide a cave, which must mean ... this isn't the way?" He pauses. "Might be best to stop and rethink our options."
He scans their surroundings again, this time looking upward, wondering if getting to the canopy might offer a clearer view of the area. The lantern would be a challenge to carry up, but if he climbs first and then lowers the rope, perhaps Tace could tie it securely, keeping it safe from a fall.
Firecat: would climbing up a tree offer a better view? I'm assuming the conditions don't allow that, but wanted to ask just in case!
After a moment, Arren points to the nearest trunk. "We could mark this tree and then fan out a bit—thirty feet or so—first in one direction, and then in the opposite. This way we could look for sings of a clearing, or rock formations, in the surroundings. If nothing turns up, we can try again a couple of times in different directions, marking the trees differently in every attempt. What do you think?"
1. (ooc: Would love to help, but I'm not proficient in Survival, so I guess I can't?)
2. When they find themselves deep in the forest with no sign of a clearing after what feels like thirty minutes, Arren halts.
3. Firecat: would climbing up a tree offer a better view? I'm assuming the conditions don't allow that, but wanted to ask just in case!
1. That's right.
2. 30' as in 30 feet as VolcanoLair wrote. 30'≈9.1 metres, or 9 if we follow the simple conversion of 5 feet ≈ 1.5 metres. (I believe you're both more comfortable with metres, right?) That wouldn't take 30 minutes, yet.
3. Pine trees aren't great for climbing if view is what you hope to achieve even on the clearest days. Their branches are pretty thin and weak. Arren believes that wouldn't work well.
It doesn't take long for Bryn to realise he has no idea where he's going. There is no trail to follow, and he's unable to find a reference point to correct himself if he goes in the wrong direction. He assumes he could still try to estimate a direction and then hope to walk straight on it, but he knows that if he goes off-track, he won't even know it. At least marking trees does help with back-tracking.
From where you are now, Arren and Bryn can still see (thanks to their darkvision, not the candle's faint light) the edge of the treeline, so they aren't lost yet. Do they proceed?
If they do choose to proceed, I want a d12 roll from Bryn, with no bonuses.
((I remind you that to get a second try for a roll, if that's what you want, you'd have to try a distinctly different approach. Simply leaving the forest and heading in again will not be enough.))
'Tace' turns to the Sergeant, "Ok, I'll admit that I am no woodsman. All the trees look the same, and without the sun I am not sure we are going the right way".
"I wonder though, the rock in the clearing, are we thinking about that too literally? If the pond is actually the inn, perhaps the rock denotes the mountains? If that is the case, we might be able to figure out a direction that is on an incline. What do you think? Or would you prefer to try your suggestion?", he asks. Roaming blindly into the forest does not seem like a good idea.
"It makes sense to me for the cave to be closer to the mountains too. And those black lines might be Emma's way of showing sloped ground", he adds before the Sergeant has chance to reply.
He will lower the lantern so he can get better look at the ground and whether it flat or sloped.
(OOC: Will wait for Arren to reply before rolling the d12. If this new strategy is not enough to get a re-roll, I am out of ideas)
"Neither of us is," Arren replies, giving Tace an understanding nod.
"At first I thought the black lines might be some kind of scorching, but… I'm not so sure anymore. Could be something else entirely. Let's try your idea first. I just hope that if the pond isn't a real pond, and the rock and clearing aren't literal either, the cave at least is real."
He pauses, scanning the woods. "How do you think Emma found her way in and out? Her father seemed like a hunter, and could have taught her to navigate. Or maybe she had her own marking system, signs only she would know."
As they search for sloped ground that might lead toward the mountains, Arren tries to keep an eye out for any unusual markings or signs Emma might have left behind.
"Anything is possible, I guess", 'Tace' replies. "I assume the bowman, as you say possibly her father, would have been involved. It's a good call to check for markings".
"We shouldn't spend too long searching.Assuming the weather is better tomorrow, I assume we will leave very early. I will be fine spending a couple of hours out here and still have time to trance, but we need to be mindful of your sleep", he suggests.
The ground nearby isn't sloped in any remarkable way. To search for any markings, you may roll a Perception check; without a disadvantage, thanks to your lantern.
OOC:
To my understanding, you have not yet moved farther than the initial 30 feet into the forest. Bryn's suggestion does not provide new insights as far as navigation does, so the roll remains. IF you choose to venture deeper into the forest in any way, please roll the d12.
'Tace' studies the floor and finds no slope yet. We are obviously not close enough to the foothills. Makes sense I suppose, being so close to the town.
He then uses the lantern to check the trees in the vicinity for markings with the Sergeant. He thinks back to his own youth, exploring the city he grew up in. I navigated by landmarks to find my way about, until it became second nature. I am sure. But out here everything looks the same, especially in the dark. Perhaps that is just to a city folk's eye though.
As they check for the markings, he keeps an eye out for anything different, like a fallen tree. If they find nothing, he will start moving into the forest, making sure to mark the direction they headed as well as the direction back the way they came.
"You're right. I think there's still enough time, but if this search ends up interfering with my duty to protect the Commandant, I'll have to call it off," Arren replies regarding his sleep schedule. "I hope it doesn't come to that, though."
He searches as carefully as he can for any visible signs Emma might have left—perhaps markings she might have used to navigate the forest before the incident, or traces she and the so-called monster left behind in their rush out of town. Bent branches, bits of clothing snagged on brush ... anything might help.
There are plenty of rocks, small slopes (could be a small ledge about a metre tall, not anything significant) and oddly shaped trees (nothing outstanding though) along the way. Each could be used as a landmark... if one knew what to look for. Clueless as they are, neither Arren nor Bryn can tell which landmarks on the way could have guided Emma years ago when she traversed the trees looking for her cave.
Bryn estimates where the west is and follows that direction, walking straight as best he can while navigating around obstacles on the way: Large rocks, small ledges and thorny bushes. Despite his best efforts, Arren sees no marks of passage that seem like they could hint at Emma's passage here, but he can't tell whether they're on the wrong path or perhaps all signs were just washed away in the rain.
((Bryn's roll determined how bad his estimate of "west" would be, according to the following computation: ([roll]-6)*10° away from the right direction. This results in a very small deflection of a mere 10° south of the actual west!))
About 300 feet (~91 metres) into the forest, which takes a little longer than walking such a distance normally would, due to obstacles on the way and circling a small ledge that the rain had turned into a waterfall to avoid climbing it, the pair begin to doubt they're on the right path. It feels like going any farther might result in getting lost, if you aren't already. However, while Bryn carves a new mark into a nearby tree, Arren inspects his surroundings once again, hoping to find a clue, and instead spots an area about 50 feet away (52 feet or ~15.7 metres, in fact, so within his darkvision limit!), where there are fewer trees.
Taking a few steps in that direction, he can now clearly see how the treeline stops and an open area lies beyond it. He can't see any large rock there from where he stands right then, but if he walks a little closer, roughly 30 feet from where Bryn marked the tree, he'll see a large grey rock sticking out of the ground.
Arren lets out a relieved breath when they reach the clearing and spot the rock. "I don't think I've ever been more glad to see a rock in my life,"he says with a grin.
Still, he doesn't step in right away. He pauses at the edge, eyes scanning the space, ears tuned for anything that doesn't belong in what should be a quiet, rain-soaked clearing. They'd been told wild animals would probably be hiding in their dens because of the storm—but wild animals weren't the only things to worry about. They were following people. And at least one of them wouldn't want to be found.
After a moment, if Arren doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary, he steps into the clearing and begins searching for the black markings, trying to determine what they are. He recalls the drawing—were they scattered all around the clearing, or concentrated in a specific spot?
As 'Tace' walks through the forest, leading the Sergeant, he marvels at how things have turned out. If someone would have told me I would be a soldier and a wilderness guide one day, I would have put money on them being wrong.
But here he was, and all he can do is his best to keep them on the path west. Or what he hopes is west.
After the 300ft, he is becoming unsure, with no signs of Emma's trail or the rock. He is about to turn to Sergeant and suggest this is not working, but instead notices him moving determinedly towards what he now sees is a clearing. He makes sure to mark the tree before following and when he arrives at the tree line.
"You can say that again", he replies as he stands next to the Sergeant. He takes the Sergeant's lead in waiting and observing before entering the clearing. But whilst he does so, he takes a quick look for any tracks that seem to enter the clearing, walking a little way around the tree line, realising that he must have veered off course a little.
Zaba wishes you luck on your search and promises to save you dinner, plus extras.
When you return to the reception hall, Commandant Nattensbarn has already returned and resumed her work. She doesn't look any different than she did when you entered the Three Frogs earlier, and doesn't act any different either: Mostly ignoring you while trying her best to concentrate. Lieutenant Tireur again reads from the same sheet as he did before.
"Here: Take this." Walnuts tosses the key to the carriage's storage space from across the room to 'Tace'. "There's a lantern in the carriage, and there should be enough candles. Each one should last about four hours." He then reminds you once more to stay vigilant and be careful. Commandant Nattensbarn stays silent, but you notice she's not oblivious and not pleased with all the talking.
Getting to the stables where the carriage is doesn't take long, and you can open the storage space and take what's there: your private belongings, as well as the Lieutenant's and some of the Commandant's, and all the equipment that is used by the entire crew on your travels, including many of the military's field-rations. You find a small lantern that can provide ample protection from the weather for a candle inside, and candles that fit into it. (OOC: But lasts for ~4 hours instead of one, on average.)
Varielky
'Tace' deftly catches the thrown key and nods to the Lieutenant. Heading out to the stables, he will unlock the storage space and open it so he and the Sergeant can retrieve the lantern and candles.
Once the Sergeant has then got everything he needs, 'Tace' will delve into his pack whilst his body shields what he does from the Sergeants view. He rustles around a bit for a moment. "Mustn't forget this", he says holding up his tinderbox before stowing it somewhere dry and safe under his raincoat.
"Should we take the key back to the Lieutenant or just get going?", he asks, and allows the Sergeant to make that choice.
(OOC: Bryn may have grabbed more than just his tinderbox but will be trying to do this discreetly. Not sure whether you want some kind of contested roll for this?)
Arren takes his belongings from the storage compartment and spends a moment adjusting his weapons, while Tace picks up the tinderbox and locks the compartment once again. He'll also take one of the ration packs, tucking it into a side pocket from which he will take small bites from time to keep the hunger at bay.
He gives Choco and Mocha a gentle nudge, and when Tace finishes and asks about the key, he replies, "I'll feel more comfortable returning it. I wouldn't want to lose it in the forest, even if the Commandant has a spare."
They return to the street separating The Stewpot from The Three Frogs. Within a matter of seconds, Arren slips into the latter—a few steps, enough to toss the key back to Walnuts so he can catch it with ease. He doesn't want to approach too much to the table and risk soaking the Commandant's papers with rainwater. Then he returns to the street again.
Once outside, the Half-Elf faces toward the setting sun, then glances at the Corporal. "Guiding and spotting things aren't really my forte. I trust your eyes more than mine. Perhaps you should be the one taking the lantern."
If the Elf agrees and is ready, they begin walking west, towards the forest.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
'Tace' obediently takes hold of the lantern and joins the Sergeant moving to the west, where they envisage the setting sun would be.
"If Emma was a young child, this special place surely wouldn't be too far into the forest", he comments as they move towards the trees.
Once in the forest, he draws one of his daggers and makes sure to mark a tree with an arrow pointing in the direction they are heading. If they change direction, or if they have walked more than 30 feet in one direction, he will carve a new arrow.
Bryn, please include a Survival check in your next post, for use in any action you might take next.
By the time you return to the Three Frogs and drop off the key, it is already dark outside. Whether the sun has set entirely or its last light is too weak to pierce through the dark blanket of clouds covering the sky, it is as dark outside as it is at night. Fortunately, your Elven heritages yielded superior sight in the dark, and you have a lantern to boot (I assume you lit a candle?). As you walk through the town, you see that most houses are dimly lit by hearths.
After swiftly returning the key to your comrades in the inn, 'Tace' leads in the direction he estimates is west, navigating as best he can between the houses in the way while trying to maintain a mostly straight path.
It doesn't take long to reach the forest. Most trees appear to be pine trees. They're tall and easy to walk underneath, but their brown needles cover the ground. As wet as they are, they don't make a lot of noise when you walk, and they mostly keep your boots clean from mud. Bryn finds that the pine tree is relatively soft (for a tree) and easy to carve into. The trees don't do a great job of covering from the rain, but there are spots where the rain is directed away from, slightly less rainy, and spots that have a stronger downpour in them to compensate. Neither is particularly significant in any way.
However, even after venturing over 30' into the forest, neither Arren nor Bryn see the clearing with the rock in it. (You can keep going, of course, but I'm stopping here to see Bryn's roll.)
Varielky
'Tace' does indeed make sure there is a lit candle in the lantern before they head out into the rain. Not ideal circumstances for following a trail, and not the ideal person to be doing it. Very much a city dweller, tracking is way outside of his comfort zone.
Getting through the town is easy, but heading into the forest is a challenge he is not exactly looking forward to. Anything is better than prison, is the mantra the runs through his mind.
He is determined to do his best though as they reach the edge of the forest.
Survival: 3+3=6 (Unless there is the chance for Arren to provide help, I think we are getting lost :-) )
(ooc: Would love to help, but I'm not proficient in Survival, so I guess I can't?)
Arren follows Tace's steps closely, careful not to wander too far from the lantern's light, which helps have a clearer view on top of their darkvision. As they walk, his thoughts return to what his companion said earlier. If Emma was very young when she found this place, she couldn't have gone too deep into the woods.
When they find themselves deep in the forest with no sign of a clearing after what feels like thirty minutes, Arren halts. He surveys the darkened forest and says quietly, "You are right in your logic that Emma shouldn't have gone too deep into the forest being so young. But we have walked about thirty minutes and there is no cleaning, no rocks large enough to hide a cave, which must mean ... this isn't the way?" He pauses. "Might be best to stop and rethink our options."
He scans their surroundings again, this time looking upward, wondering if getting to the canopy might offer a clearer view of the area. The lantern would be a challenge to carry up, but if he climbs first and then lowers the rope, perhaps Tace could tie it securely, keeping it safe from a fall.
Firecat: would climbing up a tree offer a better view? I'm assuming the conditions don't allow that, but wanted to ask just in case!
After a moment, Arren points to the nearest trunk. "We could mark this tree and then fan out a bit—thirty feet or so—first in one direction, and then in the opposite. This way we could look for sings of a clearing, or rock formations, in the surroundings. If nothing turns up, we can try again a couple of times in different directions, marking the trees differently in every attempt. What do you think?"
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
1. That's right.
2. 30' as in 30 feet as VolcanoLair wrote. 30'≈9.1 metres, or 9 if we follow the simple conversion of 5 feet ≈ 1.5 metres. (I believe you're both more comfortable with metres, right?) That wouldn't take 30 minutes, yet.
3. Pine trees aren't great for climbing if view is what you hope to achieve even on the clearest days. Their branches are pretty thin and weak. Arren believes that wouldn't work well.
It doesn't take long for Bryn to realise he has no idea where he's going. There is no trail to follow, and he's unable to find a reference point to correct himself if he goes in the wrong direction. He assumes he could still try to estimate a direction and then hope to walk straight on it, but he knows that if he goes off-track, he won't even know it. At least marking trees does help with back-tracking.
From where you are now, Arren and Bryn can still see (thanks to their darkvision, not the candle's faint light) the edge of the treeline, so they aren't lost yet. Do they proceed?
If they do choose to proceed, I want a d12 roll from Bryn, with no bonuses.
((I remind you that to get a second try for a roll, if that's what you want, you'd have to try a distinctly different approach. Simply leaving the forest and heading in again will not be enough.))
Varielky
'Tace' turns to the Sergeant, "Ok, I'll admit that I am no woodsman. All the trees look the same, and without the sun I am not sure we are going the right way".
"I wonder though, the rock in the clearing, are we thinking about that too literally? If the pond is actually the inn, perhaps the rock denotes the mountains? If that is the case, we might be able to figure out a direction that is on an incline. What do you think? Or would you prefer to try your suggestion?", he asks. Roaming blindly into the forest does not seem like a good idea.
"It makes sense to me for the cave to be closer to the mountains too. And those black lines might be Emma's way of showing sloped ground", he adds before the Sergeant has chance to reply.
He will lower the lantern so he can get better look at the ground and whether it flat or sloped.
(OOC: Will wait for Arren to reply before rolling the d12. If this new strategy is not enough to get a re-roll, I am out of ideas)
"Neither of us is," Arren replies, giving Tace an understanding nod.
"At first I thought the black lines might be some kind of scorching, but… I'm not so sure anymore. Could be something else entirely. Let's try your idea first. I just hope that if the pond isn't a real pond, and the rock and clearing aren't literal either, the cave at least is real."
He pauses, scanning the woods. "How do you think Emma found her way in and out? Her father seemed like a hunter, and could have taught her to navigate. Or maybe she had her own marking system, signs only she would know."
As they search for sloped ground that might lead toward the mountains, Arren tries to keep an eye out for any unusual markings or signs Emma might have left behind.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
"Anything is possible, I guess", 'Tace' replies. "I assume the bowman, as you say possibly her father, would have been involved. It's a good call to check for markings".
"We shouldn't spend too long searching.Assuming the weather is better tomorrow, I assume we will leave very early. I will be fine spending a couple of hours out here and still have time to trance, but we need to be mindful of your sleep", he suggests.
The ground nearby isn't sloped in any remarkable way. To search for any markings, you may roll a Perception check; without a disadvantage, thanks to your lantern.
OOC:
To my understanding, you have not yet moved farther than the initial 30 feet into the forest. Bryn's suggestion does not provide new insights as far as navigation does, so the roll remains. IF you choose to venture deeper into the forest in any way, please roll the d12.
Varielky
'Tace' studies the floor and finds no slope yet. We are obviously not close enough to the foothills. Makes sense I suppose, being so close to the town.
He then uses the lantern to check the trees in the vicinity for markings with the Sergeant. He thinks back to his own youth, exploring the city he grew up in. I navigated by landmarks to find my way about, until it became second nature. I am sure. But out here everything looks the same, especially in the dark. Perhaps that is just to a city folk's eye though.
As they check for the markings, he keeps an eye out for anything different, like a fallen tree. If they find nothing, he will start moving into the forest, making sure to mark the direction they headed as well as the direction back the way they came.
Perception: 10+5=15
d12: 7
"You're right. I think there's still enough time, but if this search ends up interfering with my duty to protect the Commandant, I'll have to call it off," Arren replies regarding his sleep schedule. "I hope it doesn't come to that, though."
He searches as carefully as he can for any visible signs Emma might have left—perhaps markings she might have used to navigate the forest before the incident, or traces she and the so-called monster left behind in their rush out of town. Bent branches, bits of clothing snagged on brush ... anything might help.
Perception: 19+3 = 22
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
There are plenty of rocks, small slopes (could be a small ledge about a metre tall, not anything significant) and oddly shaped trees (nothing outstanding though) along the way. Each could be used as a landmark... if one knew what to look for. Clueless as they are, neither Arren nor Bryn can tell which landmarks on the way could have guided Emma years ago when she traversed the trees looking for her cave.
Bryn estimates where the west is and follows that direction, walking straight as best he can while navigating around obstacles on the way: Large rocks, small ledges and thorny bushes. Despite his best efforts, Arren sees no marks of passage that seem like they could hint at Emma's passage here, but he can't tell whether they're on the wrong path or perhaps all signs were just washed away in the rain.
((Bryn's roll determined how bad his estimate of "west" would be, according to the following computation: ([roll]-6)*10° away from the right direction. This results in a very small deflection of a mere 10° south of the actual west!))
About 300 feet (~91 metres) into the forest, which takes a little longer than walking such a distance normally would, due to obstacles on the way and circling a small ledge that the rain had turned into a waterfall to avoid climbing it, the pair begin to doubt they're on the right path. It feels like going any farther might result in getting lost, if you aren't already. However, while Bryn carves a new mark into a nearby tree, Arren inspects his surroundings once again, hoping to find a clue, and instead spots an area about 50 feet away (52 feet or ~15.7 metres, in fact, so within his darkvision limit!), where there are fewer trees.
Taking a few steps in that direction, he can now clearly see how the treeline stops and an open area lies beyond it. He can't see any large rock there from where he stands right then, but if he walks a little closer, roughly 30 feet from where Bryn marked the tree, he'll see a large grey rock sticking out of the ground.
Varielky
(ooc: super nice d12 roll there, @volcano!)
Arren lets out a relieved breath when they reach the clearing and spot the rock. "I don't think I've ever been more glad to see a rock in my life," he says with a grin.
Still, he doesn't step in right away. He pauses at the edge, eyes scanning the space, ears tuned for anything that doesn't belong in what should be a quiet, rain-soaked clearing. They'd been told wild animals would probably be hiding in their dens because of the storm—but wild animals weren't the only things to worry about. They were following people. And at least one of them wouldn't want to be found.
After a moment, if Arren doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary, he steps into the clearing and begins searching for the black markings, trying to determine what they are. He recalls the drawing—were they scattered all around the clearing, or concentrated in a specific spot?
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
As 'Tace' walks through the forest, leading the Sergeant, he marvels at how things have turned out. If someone would have told me I would be a soldier and a wilderness guide one day, I would have put money on them being wrong.
But here he was, and all he can do is his best to keep them on the path west. Or what he hopes is west.
After the 300ft, he is becoming unsure, with no signs of Emma's trail or the rock. He is about to turn to Sergeant and suggest this is not working, but instead notices him moving determinedly towards what he now sees is a clearing. He makes sure to mark the tree before following and when he arrives at the tree line.
"You can say that again", he replies as he stands next to the Sergeant. He takes the Sergeant's lead in waiting and observing before entering the clearing. But whilst he does so, he takes a quick look for any tracks that seem to enter the clearing, walking a little way around the tree line, realising that he must have veered off course a little.
Bryn, please roll a Survival check. Arren, please roll a Nature check.
Varielky
A magnificent 2+1! 🥲
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Survival: 7+3=10