Hildigrim realizes he didn't ask JibberJabber about the quartz. He makes a little sound with his tongue. "He's right," he says to the others, ignoring or oblivious to the sudden tension. "We should go back and ask the ettin about the quartz."
Drusk: "Marcher reminded us that using darkvision is in black & white. JibberJabber probably uses his darkvision instead of torchlight. It could have looked at the quartz formation many times, and never have seen the color pattern we are looking for. I don't think we can rely on the ettin's observations."
(OOC: If the party gets near the location, I'll tell you. When entering a new cavern, you may have to wait until any threats are dealt with, but I'll tell you if the quartz pattern is in there.)
(OOC2: I should have mentioned before that the quartz pattern is near the river, quite a bit downstream from where you entered this level. That's why I had Marcher talk about the difficulties of staying near the river, since a lot of creatures use the river.)
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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)
Jorin's body relaxes a little, but his hands stay near his weapons, "Thank you for speaking more plainly. You need not put on a show for us, as we are just travelers passing through."
leave (say where you are going, using the map in post 4415),
or 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)
Jorin pulls back and says to the group, "I would follow river, it seems the clearest path out. More dangerous, aye, but my axe will cleave skulls and cut threads along the way."
OOC > the river moves through the caverns in such a way that we can’t just find a boat and move along it, correct? I imagine it surfacing in one cavern then passing under rock and surfacing in another cavern, and a party would have to sort of “follow” it by moving from one cavern it is in to another cavern it is in, via tunnels and hallways. Do I have that right? Quillary is considering a wild shape into something with a swimming speed, like a kind of snake.
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ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he). Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
OOC > the river moves through the caverns in such a way that we can’t just find a boat and move along it, correct? I imagine it surfacing in one cavern then passing under rock and surfacing in another cavern, and a party would have to sort of “follow” it by moving from one cavern it is in to another cavern it is in, via tunnels and hallways. Do I have that right? Quillary is considering a wild shape into something with a swimming speed, like a kind of snake.
(OOC: No one has seen the river yet. So while that is a reasonable assumption, you don't know if that is correct or not. Or where to find a boat. I'd be worried if Quillary was in snake (or fish) form and was too far from the party. Don't want to be alone when the kuo-toa or trogs decide to forage in the river for food.)
Drusk to Quillary: "Scouting ahead sounds good, like Volo did in the air. But if there is something wrong with the water (J-J said it tasted bad), do you want to be swimming in it for a prolonged time, even in animal form?"
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)
OOC > Those are all really good points that someone who actually could turn into an animals would clearly know to think about, and I did not, so yeah.
Quillary raises her eyebrows. "Oh, that is true. I had not made that connection... thank you Drusk," and she gives him a friendly squeeze of the shoulder. "Then we are on foot. Let us follow my rat," she says, pointing in the direction it fled. "Surely its instincts will have been sound."
(That would be towards E)
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ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he). Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
(Same map as post 4415 on page 221) The party leaves the odd young man at map location G, heads west to B, then south to E. From where that map ends, you travel 30' south, then it turns left (east / south-east) for another 10' before the passage ends in a rockfall. You can't tell how deep it is, but it seems to be solidly blocked.
(No sign of the rat. The rat may have found a way through the blockage. But it could have backtracked to B, when the party was talking to the Ettin at C or the Alchemist at G.)
Drusk: "Looks like our options are
South from the ettin. But even if it seemed friendly now, its mood could have changed from all that mead drinking.
South from F. Thanks to Volo, we can avoid walking under the Piercers on the ceiling.
East from F."
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)
"Let us go south from where the piercers are. A danger we know and can avoid does not sound too bad. It is also the closest option."
The party backtracks from "E" to "B", then east to "F" and south. To the frustration of the ceiling-mounted Piercers, Volo is able to guide you to avoid walking underneath them.
After 30' more south (past the edge of the posted map), the passage opens to an irregularly shaped cavern, about 50' (west-east) by 40' (north-south). (A map will be posted if needed.) Volo has a little trouble working his way through the colony of harmless bats, fluttering below the 30-foot-high ceiling.
A thick mix of mud and bat guano covers the ground. This area is treated as difficult terrain (half movement).
You've entered from the NE corner.
Another passage is on the west side, which goes about 10' before ending in a rockfall. (This is probably the other side of the rockfall you just left in the other cavern.)
There is another passage in the SW corner, going south.
On the west side of this cavern, in front of those other two passages, are a trio of Xorn. (Link to the image.) They are busy using their 3 arms (each) to shovel crystals into the maw on top of their bodies. They are not reacting to the party (currently 50' away), but it is hard to tell what an elemental is paying attention to, with 3 eyes around its barrel body.
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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)
Quillary stands up straight and tilts her head, watching the xorn. She looks at the others for help. Quietly, she asks, “Does anyone know what those are? Some sort of... tunnel cow? Are they dangerous?”
OOC > okay, wow. I looked at the linked pic after writing this. Xorn have gotten a lot scarier looking since the last time I saw a picture. Still, Quillary doesn’t put stock in appearance, so she’d probably have the same reaction.
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)
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Arcana is Jorin's long lost passion: 19
Jorin's boots suck into the mud as he enters the chamber. He lifts one foot up and shakes it a bit, flinging mud around a bit before catching sight of the Xorns.
(OOC: Quillary, Hildigrim, and Pascal have the option to do an Arcana check. Maybe they remember someone bragging over tavern drinks about the time they ran into a bunch of xorn, or something.
Even if rolls are not tried, a plan for what to do next needs to be decided.)
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)
Hildigrim realizes he didn't ask JibberJabber about the quartz. He makes a little sound with his tongue. "He's right," he says to the others, ignoring or oblivious to the sudden tension. "We should go back and ask the ettin about the quartz."
Drusk: "Marcher reminded us that using darkvision is in black & white. JibberJabber probably uses his darkvision instead of torchlight. It could have looked at the quartz formation many times, and never have seen the color pattern we are looking for. I don't think we can rely on the ettin's observations."
(OOC: If the party gets near the location, I'll tell you. When entering a new cavern, you may have to wait until any threats are dealt with, but I'll tell you if the quartz pattern is in there.)
(OOC2: I should have mentioned before that the quartz pattern is near the river, quite a bit downstream from where you entered this level. That's why I had Marcher talk about the difficulties of staying near the river, since a lot of creatures use the river.)
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)
Jorin's body relaxes a little, but his hands stay near his weapons, "Thank you for speaking more plainly. You need not put on a show for us, as we are just travelers passing through."
Let me know what you want to do:
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)
Jorin pulls back and says to the group, "I would follow river, it seems the clearest path out. More dangerous, aye, but my axe will cleave skulls and cut threads along the way."
Quillary nods. “If need be, I can... swim well. I could scout the river’s length...”
ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he).
Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
Hildigrim shrugs and says following the river is as good a plan as any.
OOC > the river moves through the caverns in such a way that we can’t just find a boat and move along it, correct? I imagine it surfacing in one cavern then passing under rock and surfacing in another cavern, and a party would have to sort of “follow” it by moving from one cavern it is in to another cavern it is in, via tunnels and hallways. Do I have that right? Quillary is considering a wild shape into something with a swimming speed, like a kind of snake.
ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he).
Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
(OOC: No one has seen the river yet. So while that is a reasonable assumption, you don't know if that is correct or not. Or where to find a boat. I'd be worried if Quillary was in snake (or fish) form and was too far from the party. Don't want to be alone when the kuo-toa or trogs decide to forage in the river for food.)
Drusk to Quillary: "Scouting ahead sounds good, like Volo did in the air. But if there is something wrong with the water (J-J said it tasted bad), do you want to be swimming in it for a prolonged time, even in animal form?"
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 > Those are all really good points that someone who actually could turn into an animals would clearly know to think about, and I did not, so yeah.
Quillary raises her eyebrows. "Oh, that is true. I had not made that connection... thank you Drusk," and she gives him a friendly squeeze of the shoulder. "Then we are on foot. Let us follow my rat," she says, pointing in the direction it fled. "Surely its instincts will have been sound."
(That would be towards E)
ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he).
Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
(Same map as post 4415 on page 221) The party leaves the odd young man at map location G, heads west to B, then south to E. From where that map ends, you travel 30' south, then it turns left (east / south-east) for another 10' before the passage ends in a rockfall. You can't tell how deep it is, but it seems to be solidly blocked.
(No sign of the rat. The rat may have found a way through the blockage. But it could have backtracked to B, when the party was talking to the Ettin at C or the Alchemist at G.)
Drusk: "Looks like our options are
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)
"Let us go south from where the piercers are. A danger we know and can avoid does not sound too bad. It is also the closest option."
Quillary nods distractedly, crouching to look for where a rat might have gone. But she stands up and follows the group back out.
ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he).
Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
The party backtracks from "E" to "B", then east to "F" and south. To the frustration of the ceiling-mounted Piercers, Volo is able to guide you to avoid walking underneath them.
After 30' more south (past the edge of the posted map), the passage opens to an irregularly shaped cavern, about 50' (west-east) by 40' (north-south). (A map will be posted if needed.) Volo has a little trouble working his way through the colony of harmless bats, fluttering below the 30-foot-high ceiling.
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)
Quillary stands up straight and tilts her head, watching the xorn. She looks at the others for help. Quietly, she asks, “Does anyone know what those are? Some sort of... tunnel cow? Are they dangerous?”
OOC > okay, wow. I looked at the linked pic after writing this. Xorn have gotten a lot scarier looking since the last time I saw a picture. Still, Quillary doesn’t put stock in appearance, so she’d probably have the same reaction.
ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he).
Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
(OOC: Roll an Arcana check if you want more information besides their appearance.)
Drusk arcana: 11 (I'll wait and see what the other rolls are.)
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)
Arcana is Jorin's long lost passion: 19
Jorin's boots suck into the mud as he enters the chamber. He lifts one foot up and shakes it a bit, flinging mud around a bit before catching sight of the Xorns.
Safe to say Quillary has no knowledge of these things.
ey/em/eirs, or they/them works, too (just not he).
Role-playing since that keep on those borderlands. I love it so.
(OOC: Quillary, Hildigrim, and Pascal have the option to do an Arcana check. Maybe they remember someone bragging over tavern drinks about the time they ran into a bunch of xorn, or something.
Even if rolls are not tried, a plan for what to do next needs to be decided.)
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)
Is the cave set up such that we could attempt to sneak past them?