((Wild shape: "You also retain all of your skill and saving throw proficiencies, in addition to gaining those of the creature. If the creature has the same proficiency as you and the bonus in its stat block is higher than yours, use the creature’s bonus instead of yours." So I would use the weasel's higher Stealth +5 but my own higher Perception +7, not so?))
(You are right. I had copied the weasel modifiers for convenience, and forgot to check your sheet.)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM) Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy) DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
((OK, thanks. I actually never played a druid before so wasn't sure. I'll go ahead and use weasel since I just realized there is no entry for squirrel in the monster manual.
(OOC: Is everyone else waiting passively until Ana returns? Was there any discussion about how long she was expected to be gone? At what point should the party be concerned, if she is delayed?)
The party sees Ana shift into a large grey squirrel/weasel beast, native to this area. The snow (a foot deep) provides cover, and assists with her stealthy movement. (The party can see the snow moving as she leaves, but that is only because you were already watching for it.)
Trimyrai keeps an eye on the guard by the fire barrel and the one on the warehouse roof. They don't change their watchful behavior. It doesn't seem like they've noticed the Ana-squirrel.
For Anaskyrath only to read:
I'm assuming that she is going for the warehouse, avoiding the areas where footprints would have compressed the snow. That means she can't observe either of the guards, unless she is willing to pop her head above the snow cover. Let me know if she wanted a closer look at the guard by the fire barrel.
When she gets close to the warehouse entrance, she sees that the bottom corner of the door, on the handle side, has been broken away, like a large rat hole. It is large enough for a cat, so she can definitely fit through it. However... she notices 3 strands blocking most of that hole. Each is about the width of two fingers, semi-translucent fluid but thick like gravy. Each of them independently pulses and twitches every few seconds. One strand goes up the side of the warehouse to the roof. The other two are hidden by the snow, but one of them is leads in the direction of the guard by the fire barrel.
OOC: If it helps the visual, think of 3 garden hoses, originating from inside the warehouse.
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM) Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy) DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Ana would like to nonchalantly, like an ordinary animal, climb up the side of the building to see what the one strands leads to. Is that possible? Let me know if you need checks or if the form has climbing speed. While there, she will want to see if it's attached to someone, and also look down to confirm whether one of the other strands is also attached to a guard. OOC I figure its an oblex so let me know what I need to roll to figure that out.
After some time, you notice a squirrel-weasel climbing the side of the warehouse, towards the roof. The guard by the fire barrel is watching the surroundings. If he turns around, he might notice the animal climbing up...
For Anaskyrath only:
Ana gets to look over the roof of the warehouse. Whether she gets back down safely, will depend on what the rest of the party does, and some DM rolls.
Ana does climb the side of the warehouse, and sees that the strand does connect to the heal of the guard on the roof. And that guard smells faintly of sulfur. Even if Ana doesn't know exactly what an oblex is, that is still suspicious.
Roll an Arcana check. With 10-14 Ana suspects something ooze-like, 15+ suspects an Oblex although only she would only remember some of the details of what it can do (like creating copies of people, and erasing memories).
The strands at ground level are hidden by the snow, so you can't be sure about the guard by the fire barrel. You know another guard went around the corner of the warehouse, out of your sight, so you think it is possible that the last strand is headed in that direction.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM) Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy) DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Isk will find a small stone and cast Light on it and ready to throw it towards the guard, but oppose side of the warehouse if he starts to turn to look where Ana is scurrying.
(OOC: I assume Isk lets Light drop before the guard gets a better look.)
As the guard starts to turn towards the warehouse, with the Ana-squirrel hanging onto the wall in plain sight, Iskander chucks the bright pebble towards a demolished hut in the opposite direction. The "plink" noise and the flash of light redirect the guard's attention to that area. Even though it is cloudy, some sunlight still reflects off the snow, and debris blows around when the wind gusts. After a few seconds, the guard continues normal watching (not turning towards the warehouse, for now).
With that Arcana check, Ana (the character) only has her obvious suspicions about the situation. She is not thinking what ikarbino (the player) suspects.
(OOC: Does Ana-squirrel want to go up to the roof, try to enter the warehouse, or do something else?)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM) Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy) DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Ana will try to find another entrance in, hopefully without any strands in the way. Are there any windows? She'd want to at least peek inside to try to see what the thing in there looks like. If neither of those is successful, she has seen enough and will go back to report.
The warehouse has no windows, and apparently only one door.
For Ana only:
Those were good Perception rolls. Ana can peek into the hole, although the field of vision is limited with those strands in the way. So she only sees parts of the middle third of the warehouse.
The ground is almost bare dirt and dried stubs of grass. There are small piles of garbage scattered about, but not much else. She can see the sergeant standing over a table, stuffing his face with food. That 4th guard is standing impassively next to the sergeant. There are multiple chains lying on the ground, with (empty) manacles attached to the ends.
Out of her field of view, she can hear the rattle of chains. The sergeant makes an annoyed glare in that direction until the sound stops, then he resumes gorging himself with food.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM) Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy) DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Since she wasn't about to try going though that one opening, Ana made her way back to the group, going in a somewhat roundabout fashion to avoid drawing suspicion. When finally out of sight, she changed back to her normal form to report her findings.
"I've seen some things which I don't understand. Some kind of... strands or ropes but not artificial, leading out of the warehouse. For some reason they made me think of slugs, or slimes. I followed one and it was connected to the heel of one of the guards. I smelled brimstone from that guard. Whatever it is, it definitely isn't natural and doesn't belong here. Also, I saw briefly inside the warehouse and there were some chains and manacles. The ones I saw were empty but I heard the sound of rattling chains from out of sight, so they might have a prisoner or hostage in there." She paused to let it all sink in. "I don't think this is a government operation. So I think if we were to bust in there, it wouldn't cause trouble with the real guards."
Brin frowns at the description. "That ring any bells for any of ye?" He asks the others. He would call on his god's guidance for someone who thinks they might be able to recall something, I.E. anyone with some profficiency in arcana.
(OOC: I'll allow one more person to try an Arcana check, with a d4 from Guidance.)
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM) Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy) DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Isk says, "These guards are all wrong, their behavior is not that of trained soldiery. I don't know what they are, but if they have some sort of tether to something in the warehouse, then maybe they are weaker than what a normal guard would be. Either way, I'm of a mind that we go back with a more aggressive posture. I am quite certain these are not actual guards."
(Reverie has a one plus to Arcana so maybe not...)
Reverie looks back at Iskander. "However, if this is not operated by the government or by the Earl, then it could be the followers of Talona or someone who wants to distract part of this system and having full support from Talona or already a member of Talona's followers. We must be careful. Also, there was a guard who knows us as well." A pause as she looks back to the others. "I think we need to give a message to Iron Gate about this matter first, even if it may take some time."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Reverie Forestgleam—Human Paladin Level 5 in Frontier City of Nunkreet Extremely busy and busy as ever recently, but I will trying to catch up as much as I can
((Trimyrai, go ahead and roll with the guidance bonus so we can move on. Ana will use the Help action by describing the threads and everything else in as much detail as possible.))
(You are right. I had copied the weasel modifiers for convenience, and forgot to check your sheet.)
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec
Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM)
Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
((OK, thanks. I actually never played a druid before so wasn't sure. I'll go ahead and use weasel since I just realized there is no entry for squirrel in the monster manual.
Stealth 1: 12
Stealth 2: 11
Perception 1: 15
Perception 2: 11
Perception 3: 16 ))
(OOC: Is everyone else waiting passively until Ana returns? Was there any discussion about how long she was expected to be gone? At what point should the party be concerned, if she is delayed?)
The party sees Ana shift into a large grey squirrel/weasel beast, native to this area. The snow (a foot deep) provides cover, and assists with her stealthy movement. (The party can see the snow moving as she leaves, but that is only because you were already watching for it.)
Trimyrai keeps an eye on the guard by the fire barrel and the one on the warehouse roof. They don't change their watchful behavior. It doesn't seem like they've noticed the Ana-squirrel.
For Anaskyrath only to read:
I'm assuming that she is going for the warehouse, avoiding the areas where footprints would have compressed the snow. That means she can't observe either of the guards, unless she is willing to pop her head above the snow cover. Let me know if she wanted a closer look at the guard by the fire barrel.
When she gets close to the warehouse entrance, she sees that the bottom corner of the door, on the handle side, has been broken away, like a large rat hole. It is large enough for a cat, so she can definitely fit through it. However... she notices 3 strands blocking most of that hole. Each is about the width of two fingers, semi-translucent fluid but thick like gravy. Each of them independently pulses and twitches every few seconds. One strand goes up the side of the warehouse to the roof. The other two are hidden by the snow, but one of them is leads in the direction of the guard by the fire barrel.
OOC: If it helps the visual, think of 3 garden hoses, originating from inside the warehouse.
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec
Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM)
Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Ana would like to nonchalantly, like an ordinary animal, climb up the side of the building to see what the one strands leads to. Is that possible? Let me know if you need checks or if the form has climbing speed. While there, she will want to see if it's attached to someone, and also look down to confirm whether one of the other strands is also attached to a guard. OOC I figure its an oblex so let me know what I need to roll to figure that out.
For the rest of the party:
After some time, you notice a squirrel-weasel climbing the side of the warehouse, towards the roof. The guard by the fire barrel is watching the surroundings. If he turns around, he might notice the animal climbing up...
For Anaskyrath only:
Ana gets to look over the roof of the warehouse. Whether she gets back down safely, will depend on what the rest of the party does, and some DM rolls.
Ana does climb the side of the warehouse, and sees that the strand does connect to the heal of the guard on the roof. And that guard smells faintly of sulfur. Even if Ana doesn't know exactly what an oblex is, that is still suspicious.
Roll an Arcana check. With 10-14 Ana suspects something ooze-like, 15+ suspects an Oblex although only she would only remember some of the details of what it can do (like creating copies of people, and erasing memories).
The strands at ground level are hidden by the snow, so you can't be sure about the guard by the fire barrel. You know another guard went around the corner of the warehouse, out of your sight, so you think it is possible that the last strand is headed in that direction.
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec
Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM)
Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Isk will find a small stone and cast Light on it and ready to throw it towards the guard, but oppose side of the warehouse if he starts to turn to look where Ana is scurrying.
Arcana 3
(OOC: I assume Isk lets Light drop before the guard gets a better look.)
As the guard starts to turn towards the warehouse, with the Ana-squirrel hanging onto the wall in plain sight, Iskander chucks the bright pebble towards a demolished hut in the opposite direction. The "plink" noise and the flash of light redirect the guard's attention to that area. Even though it is cloudy, some sunlight still reflects off the snow, and debris blows around when the wind gusts. After a few seconds, the guard continues normal watching (not turning towards the warehouse, for now).
With that Arcana check, Ana (the character) only has her obvious suspicions about the situation. She is not thinking what ikarbino (the player) suspects.
(OOC: Does Ana-squirrel want to go up to the roof, try to enter the warehouse, or do something else?)
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec
Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM)
Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
(OOC: Trim will be relaying what he sees back to the group, other than that, yes He will be passive until Ana returns.)
list of my games/characters in the spoiler
Looking for a new game, if you need a player private message me.
(Huzzah, glowy rock worked!)
Ana will try to find another entrance in, hopefully without any strands in the way. Are there any windows? She'd want to at least peek inside to try to see what the thing in there looks like. If neither of those is successful, she has seen enough and will go back to report.
The warehouse has no windows, and apparently only one door.
For Ana only:
Those were good Perception rolls. Ana can peek into the hole, although the field of vision is limited with those strands in the way. So she only sees parts of the middle third of the warehouse.
The ground is almost bare dirt and dried stubs of grass. There are small piles of garbage scattered about, but not much else. She can see the sergeant standing over a table, stuffing his face with food. That 4th guard is standing impassively next to the sergeant. There are multiple chains lying on the ground, with (empty) manacles attached to the ends.
Out of her field of view, she can hear the rattle of chains. The sergeant makes an annoyed glare in that direction until the sound stops, then he resumes gorging himself with food.
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec
Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM)
Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
Since she wasn't about to try going though that one opening, Ana made her way back to the group, going in a somewhat roundabout fashion to avoid drawing suspicion. When finally out of sight, she changed back to her normal form to report her findings.
"I've seen some things which I don't understand. Some kind of... strands or ropes but not artificial, leading out of the warehouse. For some reason they made me think of slugs, or slimes. I followed one and it was connected to the heel of one of the guards. I smelled brimstone from that guard. Whatever it is, it definitely isn't natural and doesn't belong here. Also, I saw briefly inside the warehouse and there were some chains and manacles. The ones I saw were empty but I heard the sound of rattling chains from out of sight, so they might have a prisoner or hostage in there." She paused to let it all sink in. "I don't think this is a government operation. So I think if we were to bust in there, it wouldn't cause trouble with the real guards."
Brin frowns at the description. "That ring any bells for any of ye?" He asks the others. He would call on his god's guidance for someone who thinks they might be able to recall something, I.E. anyone with some profficiency in arcana.
guidance
(OOC: I'll allow one more person to try an Arcana check, with a d4 from Guidance.)
Beegred Thornpost - Lvl 8 Halfling Ranger - Out of the Abyss by Kerrec
Drusk - Lvl 8 Half-Orc Life Cleric - The Long Road: Dragon Heist by Mingofaust (player & current DM)
Hunferho Aelorothi - Lvl 5 Half-Elf Bard/Rogue - Baldur's Gate: Descent Into Avernus (by Pokepaladdy)
DM - Frontier City of Nunkreet (ended)
(OOC: if no one else wants to do it, Trimyrai could give the arcana check a try.)
list of my games/characters in the spoiler
Looking for a new game, if you need a player private message me.
(Isk has a big old +0 to Arcana)
Isk says, "These guards are all wrong, their behavior is not that of trained soldiery. I don't know what they are, but if they have some sort of tether to something in the warehouse, then maybe they are weaker than what a normal guard would be. Either way, I'm of a mind that we go back with a more aggressive posture. I am quite certain these are not actual guards."
(Reverie has a one plus to Arcana so maybe not...)
Reverie looks back at Iskander. "However, if this is not operated by the government or by the Earl, then it could be the followers of Talona or someone who wants to distract part of this system and having full support from Talona or already a member of Talona's followers. We must be careful. Also, there was a guard who knows us as well." A pause as she looks back to the others. "I think we need to give a message to Iron Gate about this matter first, even if it may take some time."
Reverie Forestgleam—Human Paladin Level 5 in Frontier City of Nunkreet
Extremely busy and busy as ever recently, but I will trying to catch up as much as I can
((Trimyrai, go ahead and roll with the guidance bonus so we can move on. Ana will use the Help action by describing the threads and everything else in as much detail as possible.))
Arcana: 22
Guidance: 2
list of my games/characters in the spoiler
Looking for a new game, if you need a player private message me.