Quillary, as is her fashion, didn’t pay, leaving that to someone else (probably Drusk, party treasurer). Money and Quillary are acquainted, but not really friends.

(Spar already has the information for her questions, but I'll summarize in case my earlier posts were confusing.
For the scout teams, the ones you talked to were looking in different areas of the Underdark than the ones who went missing. The first 2 teams that went missing were headed in the same direction, and then the next 2 were trying to track the first 2 teams. Whether any of those missing teams deviated from the plans submitted before they left, you don't know yet.

Talking with these scouts lets you know where to start looking (from post 5847), and some of the dangers they have run across in the nearby Underdark.

In the part that I edited at the end of post 5831, no more scout teams are being sent in, since they've already lost 4 teams and are now short-handed. It will stay that way until your group has explored below.)

After being shown the writ, the apothecary's face shows a quick grimace, and then he mentions new prices:
vial of acid (27 GP), a flask of alchemist's fire (55 GP), 3 antitoxin doses (55 GP), 3 healer’s kits (6 GP), an herbalism kit (6 GP), and a pair of regular potions of healing (55 GP).
Still higher than a shopping trip in Waterdeep, but no longer a complete rip-off.

Drusk thanks Spar for the quick thinking, as he was about to complain to Quillary that impulse shopping can lead to terrible deals.
For the 3 antitoxin and the 4 kits, Drusk hands over 189 GP from the party funds.

(OOC: As observed, anti-toxin is prophylactic. But many poison effects ask for saving throws at the end of every turn to ward off ill-conditions. So it is possible for anti-toxin to help out even after the initial poisoning. If someone is paralyzed or unconscious due to a poison, they could recover quicker. And if the poison doesn't have end-of-turn re-saves, I'll allow another saving throw when the anti-toxin is first administered.)

(Was more pretending to play scholar dumb [insincerely] and find out if any of these were on those scouting missions or knew people who were… and also find out more specifically about the travel plans they mentioned.)

Quillary hardly notices as she sniffs and tastes the contents of the new herbalism kit.

Quote from rkmobius >>

(Was more pretending to play scholar dumb [insincerely] and find out if any of these were on those scouting missions or knew people who were… and also find out more specifically about the travel plans they mentioned.)

(OOC: Fair enough.
The trek through the Underdark in the module does not have any maps, so it is stringing individual encounters together with skill checks, and not choosing left-right in a maze.
The answers the scouts are giving seem vague and evasive because I don't have more information I can give you.
Assume that they are giving you more detailed answers, and if sometime later it seems like I'm putting the party a bad situation, you can argue if the scouts' answers would have the party better prepared.)

The scouts know each other during their off-time, but are usually stay with a specific squad during assignments.
They have all spent some time working in the past with Captain Brannigan (the experienced scout leader mentioned by the commander), so they were surprised that even the larger, better armed 4th team went missing.

Quote from Mingofaust >>

Quillary hardly notices as she sniffs and tastes the contents of the new herbalism kit.

Vastly inferior to what Pascal makes in the kitchen, but almost as good as what you were just served in the Alliance mess hall.

(Added a bag of holding to Hildi's inventory and put the four healer's kits and three antitoxins in it. I also moved the healer's kit that was in Hildi's inventory into the bag of holding. I also added the two ropes.)

Hildi decides to sidle up to apothecary. "If you hadn't hypothesized, we're new to the area," the halfling says brightly. "We've been tasked to search for the missing scout teams. My fellow scholars and I are keen to put our observation skills to good use in the Undermountain. You wouldn't happen to have any insights you'd like to share about our upcoming adventure, would you? Suggestions? Observations? Gossip?"

The apothecary mumbles that he doesn't have anything to contribute to your visit of the Underdark, since you are far away from Waterdeep and the Undermountain.

(You can tell that he has genuinely never been down there and hasn't heard anything useful.
And even if he had some knowledge, he is a little surly about having to lower his prices from the Commander's writ.)

Soar watches the exchange, pacing around the store and surreptitiously conjures a mage hand behind the apothecary where it begins to make rude gestures, and then taps him on the shoulder when no one else is hear him and then disappears.

She’s ready to move along but makes sure she has plenty of food to bring along. She asks to store it in the bag of holding (thinking a ham, a keg of ale, some produce, bread). She ensures she brings and extra coil of rope (ignoring any comments about her saying she doesn’t need any) and waits for others to get ready.

"A keg of ale, in the holding bag?" Jorin says dumbfounded, "I have never thought of this!"

He slaps Spar on the back and laughs, "You have lived up to your promise of weight carrying."

The party leaves the apothecary, after Spar has finished pulling her pranks.

You step into the hallway, organizing Quillary's recent purchases. At that time, an elven cleric stumbles toward you, hair in disarray and self-inflicted scratches on his face. With a trembling voice, he cries to your group: "In the gaping nothingness, red eyes spiraling with chaos flash, spreading webs that rot the soul and brain... In the darkness of this night, they will die horribly, one by one..." He lets out a shriek and passes out.

A trio of Alliance guards come rushing from the same direction, and converge on the fallen cleric. They quickly check that the elf is still breathing, and they get ready to carry him off.

The leader of the guards notices the party. She informs you: "He is alive, and we will take him to the infirmary to recover. Sleep is what his tormented mind needs now... He was soothsaying, to try to get hints on where to find our missing colleagues, when he went mad and ran to you." They quickly and carefully pick up the cleric, who still seems tormented in his sleep, and head towards the infirmary.

Drusk frowns a bit.
"That talk about darkness and webs reminds me of the disturbing dreams that I mentioned this morning. I wish I could remember more, but like dreams, it is fuzzy and fleeting... It is almost noon. If that guy was right about the scouts dying, it could be as late as the dawn, even as early as nightfall in 8 hours."

Quillary takes it all in with equanimity, observing carefully as the cleric rants, collapses, and is taken away. She responds to Drusk with briskness, "Then we should tarry no longer."

She is ready to go.

Hildigrim pauses. "If this one can see what others cannot, would it behoove us to inquire whether he would be willing to accompany us?"

Quote from DirtyDogP >>

Hildigrim pauses. "If this one can see what others cannot, would it behoove us to inquire whether he would be willing to accompany us?"

The soldiers moving away, carrying the passed out cleric, turn around to give Hildigrim a quick incredulous look.
If it is the right decision to wait for the currently insane, self-harming cleric to regain consciousness, they tell you where the infirmary is.
You can stay there until the cleric's situation changes.

"No, I believe him spent. We must move quickly if we are to save their lives. And if it is a trap," Quillary grins with a glint, "Then best we not keep them waiting."

“I’ve sprung traps before. Trappers don’t like me.” Spar says, finalizing the few things she’s bringing with her, most of which go into the bag of holding, though she does have a small pack. She’s ready to get this over with.

Quillary is fine with the bulk of her purchases going into the bag of holding, but retains one antitoxin and one healers kit, and her original herbalism kit.

So, into the Bag of Holding:

2 antitoxins
2 healers kits
1 (new) herbalism kit

When the mad cleric finishes his ravings, Jorin spits on the ground and then agrees with Quillary and moving along, "It sounds like the sun is setting on those we have come to save."

(OOC: Before your party heads into the Underdark, you'll have to make some choices.

There will be a series of Survival (WIS) checks for tracking the lost scouts. A success means normal travel, failure means some time lost before getting on the right path.
You can decide to have 1 person try it (DC 15) or a group check (majority have to pass DC 11).
Quillary is the only one with proficiency, so she is the only one who can Help. (Her helping Drusk is almost the same as her just doing it directly).
Let me know whether you want single or group check. You can change your mind before the next check happens.

I'll need marching orders, particularly for single file.
Otherwise, you can say front/middle/rear.

Any other preparations?
I'm assuming you are using Jorin's moon blade and Drusk's Light spell.
For anything else, this search & rescue will take many hours, and any ritual casting takes 10+ minutes.)

All OOC >

Yeah, it's a toss up between Quillary doing it solo (+8) and her Helping Drusk (+4 w/Advantage so roughly +9?). I'll entertain opinions.

For single file, Quillary is inclined to be near the front, but behind Jorin. If she's in a Wild Shape, that would probably change, depending.

For otherwise, she'd want to be in the front, again, with Jorin. She fancies herself a fighter.

I suppose I should look at her spell load out, as she knew we would be going underground before the last Long Rest, right? So she could choose suitable spells?