Draylin is too far away to reliably make out which tent is the armoury, but the camp entrance is clearly far busier than the area around you. He can't quite make out how many guards are in the watchtower either.
What he can see is a pair of young lads dragging shovels, followed by a half-elf woman in dark leathers. She's clearly a guard, not a captive: her posture is loose, annoyed, and she's muttering under her breath as she herds the boys southward. He catches only fragments, something about 'babysitting prisoners' and 'missing all the fun'.
His sharp ears catch something interesting. "Missing all the fun..." he said softly to the group, subtlety nodding his head in her direction. "That doesn't sound good. Looks like they are piling up around the entrance too. Getting out will be easier when they move out for their next raid. If we find any flasks of oil maybe we can take out the guard towers, a functional distraction, especially with arcane flame to set it ablaze from a distance. That can be Tam's signal as well, hug the south side, move as quietly as possible with some haste to the entrance. We may just have to throttle a few raiders in the confusion to pick up weapons. Grabbing our actual weapons may prove tricky, but a blazing pair of towers will help, I should think "
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Montar stares at the half-elf woman. "I have an idea. Let's tail her from a distance 'n, if she's alone with the prisoners a good ways from anyone else, we knock her out, free them, and borrow her weapons 'n clothes. If they fit Tam, that'll help our ruse too."
Miss all the fun indeed, he thought to himself. Montar did not walk off alone. He fell in a half step behind Montar and a little to his right. He put on a sour look, brows furrowed and mouth held in a scowl.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Amadeus considers following the others briefly. Then, without a word, he turns and heads in the opposite direction. If the others want to free prisoners, by all means. Their efforts will undoubtedly bear fruit. The gnome instead goes about in search both of a route to the weapons tent and perhaps finding a meaningful distraction for their escape along the way. Escape, in his eyes, is the priority. Even their weapons are an optional endeavor, as far as he's concerned.
A sliver of sun was edging upward from the horizon, causing the sky to shift through the colors of the rainbow to settle upon a brilliant blue. Thistlewick slipped through the enemy encampment, each movement a desperate gamble against being recaptured. He tried to give the impression of 'I belong here.' Performance: 8
The scent of woodsmoke and unwashed bodies clung heavy in the air, a stark reminder of just where the group was - surrounded by raiders and mysterious masked 'masters' and at least one black half dragon commander. A shiver ran up Thistlewick's spine as he followed the others. The coarse material of the stolen... 'borrowed' clothing scratching against his skin; working to keep his heart from hammering a frantic rhythm against his ribs. Tents, like dark sentinels, loomed on all sides, the muted snores of slumbering soldiers a chilling soundtrack to this treacherous journey. The raiders were stirring as the sun rose and lit up the area.
Ahead lay the tent that 'might' hold the group's weapons and armor.. if Ann give them good information and nothing had been shifted about the camp. 'Now, if only we could reach it undetected,' he thought. The crunch of dry leaves beneath a raider's boot sent a jolt of panic through the gnome, , making him nearly stumble against a nearby tent. He caught himself yet, his every muscle tense while holding his breath, expecting to be discovered at any moment. The raider passed, whistling a low, tuneless tune, oblivious to the escaped prisoners just feet away.
The path to the perimeter was clearer now, the urge to bolt almost overwhelming, but caution tethered Thistlewick to a measured pace in the loose group of his companions. The sound of his own footsteps seemed deafeningly loud in the oppressive silence. 'Oh for the nice, soft flooring of a green wood,' he mentally lamented as they moved closer to their 'target' and potentil escape.
Montar, Draylin, and Tam trail the half-elf guard and the two young lads as they head south through the camp. About a hundred feet in, another raider leans against a post, watching with open amusement. Ten feet behind him, half-hidden in shadow, you spot the slumped form of a man shackled against the rocky wall of the plateau. "Prison duty, eh?" the second raider calls after her with a laugh. "Drew the short straw again? Don't worry, I'll bring you a souvenir from the raid tonight!" She doesn't even slow as her hand rises in a crude gesture over her shoulder. Another fifty feet on, she stops near a patch of churned earth and snaps at the boys with the shovels. The stink of latrine holes wafts in the air. "Here. Dig." When they hesitate, she threatens. "And dig fast. If you think going to bed hungry's bad, keep testing me, you dimheads." The boys begin digging clumsily. The guard drops onto a nearby rock with a scowl, clearly annoyed she’s been stuck babysitting instead of joining the raid.
Amadeus sets northwest instead. After about two hundred feet, he spots a small commotion ahead. A cluster of raiders has gathered around two commoners leading mules laden with freshly killed antelopes. One carcass already lies on the ground, skinned and half-butchered as the men hack off chunks of meat and toss them to waiting hands. "Meat meat! Hunters back! Meat!" kobolds shriek with glee, crowding in with small wooden bowls clutched in their claws. Amadeus is close enough to notice the kobolds climbing up and down the watchtower at the camp entrance, but he sees no other raiders manning it. A halfling woman elbows past Amadeus and jerks her chin toward the hunters. "If you're after fresh meat, best get in quick," she mutters equal parts to him and herself. "They'll want to feed the drakes before the raid."
Thistlewick's stumble doesn't go unnoticed. A stocky dwarven raider in dark leathers slows, then turns sharply toward him. Her eyes narrow beneath a soot-smeared brow as she strides over, boots crunching against the dirt. "Hey. You," she snaps, planting herself squarely in Thistlewick’s path. "What’s wrong with you?"
The half elf was insightful, and remarkably good at sensing the emotions or motives of others. He could all but feel Thistlewick's apprehension and discomfort with their current course of action. He feared that a direct confrontation with the suspicious dwarf may result in their return to bonds, or worse...
While Thistlewick seemed on edge, Tam had a confident, if not quirky manner. She also didn't hesitate to act. He didn't know her well, but he took a chance anyway. She seemed clever, he just hoped she played along and that Thistlewick would forgive him.
Moving before he lost his nerve, Draylin stepped back to Thistlewick, and cuffed him sharply in the back of the head. He grabbed him by the collar and shook him, and then backhanded him hard across the face. His right hand drew back in a fist but he paused. He leaned out, around the dwarf and looked to Tam for direction or approval, left hand holding Thistlewick,s shirt, right hand poised to deliver a beating. "Might be good wit' the beasts, but he's a half blind cluts," he grumbles under his breath, loud enough for the dwarf to hear. He then leans in and hisses, "If I gets prisoner watch cuz of yer stupidity, I'll break yer scrawny neck."
***OoC: the cuff was firm, but a glancing blow; not intended to do harm. Right as his hand neared for the backhand his fingers curled slighty back, creating a soft curve that made a loud smack on delivery, but applied very little force to the recipient. He completely ignores the dwarf, looking to Tam for direction. ***
Thislewick gave a sharp yelp as he was nearly jerked off his feet. His eyes were saucers - yet his mouth was set in a smirk only Draylin can see. With the pulled backhand, Thislewick tried to cower and mutter a stream of 'yes master... no master... yes yes' to show his willingness to obey (and avoid further beatings).
Tam is nowhere to be seen, having slunk off into the bushes behind the half-elf.
[nat 20 total 23 stealth check].
She sneaks up behind the half-elf, preparing to sneakily attack and hoping she and her companions can disable her before she makes a noise and before they are seen.
[if i can make a makeshift sap with some rocks and a bag or piece of cloth and if that can be counted as a finesse weapon so I can get sneak attack, I'd like to do that. Otherwise, I'm assuming my fists can be finesse weapons and therefore sneak attack material?]
After a long look at the slumping figure, Montar's eyes track Tam as she disappears into the bushes. He makes haste to reach her target at the same time she does, moving briskly but not so briskly that he would stand out in a crowd. Once he's within twenty feet of the half-elf, he draws the dagger he found and readies himself to charge in and help take out the half-elf.
[Nat 20 total 24 for the perception check on the figure.]
Seeing Tam somehow vanished into the mist, the monk swore softly under his breath. He reserved such language for the most dire of situations. This qualified.
Thinking quickly on his feet he tried to roll with the punches. "Lucky little worm, boss got ahead of us and didn't see." With a sneer at the dwarf he said, "Kill him if ye like, nothin' but a pain in me arse since we picked him up. If ye wet yer blade on him ye might be explainin' it to a purple robe though. One of them thinks he's useful." With a shake of his head, he turned and spit on the ground. "Useful, ha! Well get on with it then, split his fool skull or let us catch up with his handler." ***deception: 19***
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Tam practically vanishes into thin air. She sneaks through the bushes and between the rocks and finds herself a few rocks of suitable size to make an improvised weapon.
I'll allow the sneak attack due to the high roll and the rule of cool :) you can make an attack roll with advantage and add your proficiency and dex modifier. If it hits, that would be 1d4 bludgeoning + dex modifier + sneak attack damage and it will count as nonlethal.
Montar studies the slumped figure against the rock wall. It's a half-elf man, chained upright with his arms wrenched high above his head. His feet barely touch the ground. Blood masts his hair and streaks his face, swollen and split beyond recognition. One eye is sealed shut. He lifts his head slowly and for a moment his remaining eye fixes on the dwarf.
The dwarven woman gives Thistlewick a deeply disapproving look and clicks her tongue. "They'd be letting any dimwit join the cult these days," she mutters, then turns her sneer towards Draylin. "Ye seen a scrawny woman human? Heard some fool tried to make a run for it."
Draylin shakes his head nay with a wicked grin, "This fool?" he says with a contemptuous look at Thistlewick. "Somebody's fer thinkin' he's useful. When he ain't useful no more..." he says with an evil laugh. "I know nothing o' some other wretch, this pitiful worm is more than I'm wantin' to keep track o'."
With a rough shove (that again ruffled Thistlewick's cloak more than physically hurt him), Draylin pushes him in the direction he saw Tam heading. Considering the matter closed, he was eager to end this discussion before someone recognized them. "Move, Maggot!" he snarls to his "prisoner".
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
[13+2+1=16 to hit. Damage is pathetic. 3+1=4] Tam sneaks up behind the woman and clocks her on the head with her improvised sap, but she doesn’t think she hit very hard.
"Just recall," Thistlewick spoke up. "Gaining all our armor and weapons is fine but it also will make us stand out as we wander the camp."
Draylin
With a pause and thoughtful look at Thistlewick, he carefully considers his words. "In a camp of war, do we not look out of place unarmed?"
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Draylin is too far away to reliably make out which tent is the armoury, but the camp entrance is clearly far busier than the area around you. He can't quite make out how many guards are in the watchtower either.
What he can see is a pair of young lads dragging shovels, followed by a half-elf woman in dark leathers. She's clearly a guard, not a captive: her posture is loose, annoyed, and she's muttering under her breath as she herds the boys southward. He catches only fragments, something about 'babysitting prisoners' and 'missing all the fun'.
DM: Hoard of the Dragon Queen Adventure
Draylin
His sharp ears catch something interesting. "Missing all the fun..." he said softly to the group, subtlety nodding his head in her direction. "That doesn't sound good. Looks like they are piling up around the entrance too. Getting out will be easier when they move out for their next raid. If we find any flasks of oil maybe we can take out the guard towers, a functional distraction, especially with arcane flame to set it ablaze from a distance. That can be Tam's signal as well, hug the south side, move as quietly as possible with some haste to the entrance. We may just have to throttle a few raiders in the confusion to pick up weapons. Grabbing our actual weapons may prove tricky, but a blazing pair of towers will help, I should think "
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Montar stares at the half-elf woman. "I have an idea. Let's tail her from a distance 'n, if she's alone with the prisoners a good ways from anyone else, we knock her out, free them, and borrow her weapons 'n clothes. If they fit Tam, that'll help our ruse too."
Seeing the half-elf moving away, Montar decides not to let the moment pass and starts after her.
Draylin
Miss all the fun indeed, he thought to himself. Montar did not walk off alone. He fell in a half step behind Montar and a little to his right. He put on a sour look, brows furrowed and mouth held in a scowl.
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
***ooc oops***
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Amadeus considers following the others briefly. Then, without a word, he turns and heads in the opposite direction. If the others want to free prisoners, by all means. Their efforts will undoubtedly bear fruit. The gnome instead goes about in search both of a route to the weapons tent and perhaps finding a meaningful distraction for their escape along the way. Escape, in his eyes, is the priority. Even their weapons are an optional endeavor, as far as he's concerned.
Tam is torn on which way to go. Ultimately, she decides that there are strength in numbers and follows Draylin and Montar.
Author of Kid Comet and the Sixth Grade Shadow and other Middle Grade Novels
Montar, Draylin, and Tam trail the half-elf guard and the two young lads as they head south through the camp. About a hundred feet in, another raider leans against a post, watching with open amusement. Ten feet behind him, half-hidden in shadow, you spot the slumped form of a man shackled against the rocky wall of the plateau.
"Prison duty, eh?" the second raider calls after her with a laugh. "Drew the short straw again? Don't worry, I'll bring you a souvenir from the raid tonight!"
She doesn't even slow as her hand rises in a crude gesture over her shoulder. Another fifty feet on, she stops near a patch of churned earth and snaps at the boys with the shovels. The stink of latrine holes wafts in the air.
"Here. Dig." When they hesitate, she threatens. "And dig fast. If you think going to bed hungry's bad, keep testing me, you dimheads."
The boys begin digging clumsily. The guard drops onto a nearby rock with a scowl, clearly annoyed she’s been stuck babysitting instead of joining the raid.
Amadeus sets northwest instead. After about two hundred feet, he spots a small commotion ahead. A cluster of raiders has gathered around two commoners leading mules laden with freshly killed antelopes. One carcass already lies on the ground, skinned and half-butchered as the men hack off chunks of meat and toss them to waiting hands.
"Meat meat! Hunters back! Meat!" kobolds shriek with glee, crowding in with small wooden bowls clutched in their claws. Amadeus is close enough to notice the kobolds climbing up and down the watchtower at the camp entrance, but he sees no other raiders manning it.
A halfling woman elbows past Amadeus and jerks her chin toward the hunters. "If you're after fresh meat, best get in quick," she mutters equal parts to him and herself. "They'll want to feed the drakes before the raid."
Thistlewick's stumble doesn't go unnoticed. A stocky dwarven raider in dark leathers slows, then turns sharply toward him. Her eyes narrow beneath a soot-smeared brow as she strides over, boots crunching against the dirt.
"Hey. You," she snaps, planting herself squarely in Thistlewick’s path. "What’s wrong with you?"
DM: Hoard of the Dragon Queen Adventure
Draylin
The half elf was insightful, and remarkably good at sensing the emotions or motives of others. He could all but feel Thistlewick's apprehension and discomfort with their current course of action. He feared that a direct confrontation with the suspicious dwarf may result in their return to bonds, or worse...
While Thistlewick seemed on edge, Tam had a confident, if not quirky manner. She also didn't hesitate to act. He didn't know her well, but he took a chance anyway. She seemed clever, he just hoped she played along and that Thistlewick would forgive him.
Moving before he lost his nerve, Draylin stepped back to Thistlewick, and cuffed him sharply in the back of the head. He grabbed him by the collar and shook him, and then backhanded him hard across the face. His right hand drew back in a fist but he paused. He leaned out, around the dwarf and looked to Tam for direction or approval, left hand holding Thistlewick,s shirt, right hand poised to deliver a beating. "Might be good wit' the beasts, but he's a half blind cluts," he grumbles under his breath, loud enough for the dwarf to hear. He then leans in and hisses, "If I gets prisoner watch cuz of yer stupidity, I'll break yer scrawny neck."
***OoC: the cuff was firm, but a glancing blow; not intended to do harm. Right as his hand neared for the backhand his fingers curled slighty back, creating a soft curve that made a loud smack on delivery, but applied very little force to the recipient. He completely ignores the dwarf, looking to Tam for direction. ***
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Thislewick gave a sharp yelp as he was nearly jerked off his feet. His eyes were saucers - yet his mouth was set in a smirk only Draylin can see. With the pulled backhand, Thislewick tried to cower and mutter a stream of 'yes master... no master... yes yes' to show his willingness to obey (and avoid further beatings).
Tam is nowhere to be seen, having slunk off into the bushes behind the half-elf.
[nat 20 total 23 stealth check].
She sneaks up behind the half-elf, preparing to sneakily attack and hoping she and her companions can disable her before she makes a noise and before they are seen.
[if i can make a makeshift sap with some rocks and a bag or piece of cloth and if that can be counted as a finesse weapon so I can get sneak attack, I'd like to do that. Otherwise, I'm assuming my fists can be finesse weapons and therefore sneak attack material?]
Author of Kid Comet and the Sixth Grade Shadow and other Middle Grade Novels
After a long look at the slumping figure, Montar's eyes track Tam as she disappears into the bushes. He makes haste to reach her target at the same time she does, moving briskly but not so briskly that he would stand out in a crowd. Once he's within twenty feet of the half-elf, he draws the dagger he found and readies himself to charge in and help take out the half-elf.
[Nat 20 total 24 for the perception check on the figure.]
Draylin
Seeing Tam somehow vanished into the mist, the monk swore softly under his breath. He reserved such language for the most dire of situations. This qualified.
Thinking quickly on his feet he tried to roll with the punches. "Lucky little worm, boss got ahead of us and didn't see." With a sneer at the dwarf he said, "Kill him if ye like, nothin' but a pain in me arse since we picked him up. If ye wet yer blade on him ye might be explainin' it to a purple robe though. One of them thinks he's useful." With a shake of his head, he turned and spit on the ground. "Useful, ha! Well get on with it then, split his fool skull or let us catch up with his handler." ***deception: 19***
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
Tam practically vanishes into thin air. She sneaks through the bushes and between the rocks and finds herself a few rocks of suitable size to make an improvised weapon.
I'll allow the sneak attack due to the high roll and the rule of cool :) you can make an attack roll with advantage and add your proficiency and dex modifier. If it hits, that would be 1d4 bludgeoning + dex modifier + sneak attack damage and it will count as nonlethal.
Montar studies the slumped figure against the rock wall. It's a half-elf man, chained upright with his arms wrenched high above his head. His feet barely touch the ground. Blood masts his hair and streaks his face, swollen and split beyond recognition. One eye is sealed shut. He lifts his head slowly and for a moment his remaining eye fixes on the dwarf.
The dwarven woman gives Thistlewick a deeply disapproving look and clicks her tongue.
"They'd be letting any dimwit join the cult these days," she mutters, then turns her sneer towards Draylin. "Ye seen a scrawny woman human? Heard some fool tried to make a run for it."
DM: Hoard of the Dragon Queen Adventure
Draylin
Draylin shakes his head nay with a wicked grin, "This fool?" he says with a contemptuous look at Thistlewick. "Somebody's fer thinkin' he's useful. When he ain't useful no more..." he says with an evil laugh. "I know nothing o' some other wretch, this pitiful worm is more than I'm wantin' to keep track o'."
With a rough shove (that again ruffled Thistlewick's cloak more than physically hurt him), Draylin pushes him in the direction he saw Tam heading. Considering the matter closed, he was eager to end this discussion before someone recognized them. "Move, Maggot!" he snarls to his "prisoner".
“Let him not vow to walk in the dark, who has not seen the nightfall.” — Elrond
[13+2+1=16 to hit. Damage is pathetic. 3+1=4]
Tam sneaks up behind the woman and clocks her on the head with her improvised sap, but she doesn’t think she hit very hard.
Author of Kid Comet and the Sixth Grade Shadow and other Middle Grade Novels