"There is always the option to rest before visiting the specter, as to align the time more favorably, but if you would prefer to make haste then I suppose Ryona's plan is the most efficient."
"I'd also like to go visit the dragonborn first. He will probably be able to give us information on how to face the other challenges that we have. And although I'd also like to get on with this as quick as possible, I also think that it is a little arrogant on our part to believe that we'll be able to go through all of these quests without having to rest in the middle."
Falenas stops a little bit to think about all of this, why is he doing all of these things. Hasn't he already gotten what he was looking for? He's not looking for treasure. Nontheless, it seems necessary to honor his master's last desires, and to get to the bottom of her death.
Falenas' words cause Ryona to puff her cheeks slightly a moment. "I was hoping we might be able to. If we don't have to stop, we can be back at the manor before morning. When we go to the next closest one, it would be Vixthra's spider-ogre lair. That's probably when we'll decide whether or not we'll camp for the night. Plan for the unknown, Falenas, not failure."
Ryona averts her eyes toward her feet. "I was hoping there would be more reason to go to the Steps though. And if we do get through the spider-ogre and don't need to rest yet, what's a little visit with a ghost with a rotting corpse in a deep forest at night?" With a little shiver of fear, she turns her eyes up, still averted. It's unclear if its of the prospect of moving in the dark forest with undead or for speaking of her belief to the group. "There's only... roughly, dozens of stories of the fey that go like that. Let's just hope the vault isn't holding a live and hungry Master Feywing who faked her death with an Elaria puppet."
She takes a deep breath and steadies herself. "I suppose Scaevola probably would have a greater dislike of being visited at night as well. So, let's go to the Steps as we first planned."
Jarnick crosses his arms and smirks when he hears Ryona’s worry of ghost, as he is a fearless halfling, then Ryona suggest that Elaria could be an undead lurking in the vault, “Um… your mind went to a dark place quickly… Alright, let’s go climb some steps then. Although I long for a battle to test our strength, I do not mind doing this strategically with caution, since any failure might lead to other people getting to the answer faster.”
Cool air blows off Lake Mirianthi as you walk into the grassy plain of the Merriam Vale. To the North and South mountains rise high into the sky, full of silver and mithral. To the East, the dark of Dolor Forest rustles in the wind. This is the unexplored valley of riches and danger that calls to so many that have made Parabor Home. This is where you set forth to fulfill Elaria Feywing's last request.
It is late in the afternoon, almost evening, when you depart the mansion to trek along the banks of Lake Mirianthi, mud caking your boots as you progress toward the Staircase Cliffs.
OOC: Pausing for a moment for any discussions or planning that may be taking place during this travel.
Yevele didn't really have any strong feeling about which task to undertake first, so she was willing to let the others debate the move and agree with whatever seemed to be the consensus.
On they start out on the road, Yevele asks "Is this area dangerous, should we assemble into some sort of defensive marching order, perhaps with Jarnick and myself in front, Ryona in the rear and the two spell casters in the middle? And, for the cliffs, should we tie ourselves to each other with rope or each of us ascent individually?"
"As you say, I'll be the rearguard." Ryona looks up to the nearby silvery mountains, trying to make out the trail from hardly more than a mile away. "If it is more a climb than a hike, I think you have the right idea to tie together."
She didn't believe that anything dangerous would be so close in the open to the town that regularly sees adventurers. Despite the doubt, she kept vigil watch over the others, shield in hand. Continuing the march from behind, she starts speaking far more quietly than she usually does, but more than a hush. "Hello Mr. Scaevola, we're here for the tiles Ms. Feywing entrusted to you. Oh, you can trust us. Actually, we wanted to know if you'd tell us all about the other two that might not just let us have it. Oh, you'll just let us have it, right, Mr. Scaevola? Aw, thanks."
Catching a glance from one of the others, she shrugs. "Oh, I'm sure it won't be that easy. He'll probably be, like... Rrrgh, I'll only give my tiles to someone who can survive a my breath. My flame breath, fools! Rrrgh. Step forward, prove yourselves, rrrgh." She shrugs again. "Probably not that easy either."
During travel, Noah heeds Yevele's words and remains more or less in the center of the marching order, not being equipped to be on the frontlines during an ambush. He tries to keep the spirits up, but reminds everybody to keep it down - especially during talk of their plan of action. He hums along a tune when conversation dies down, enjoying the fresh air. Though Feywing and the mystery still weighs heavy on all of them, Noah seems to be enjoying the newfound freedom in their expansive trek.
Noah chuckles as Ryona acts out a surly Scaevola. "I'm not inclined to be so pessimistic, but that would be an entertaining complication. Well, except for the person who would get incinerated."
Noah will take any good oppurtunity available to practice his spellcasting without the use of his arcane focus. If he is asked to stop, he desists for the rest of the trip.
It's been long since Falenas went out like this, so he's enjoying the hike. He feels more relaxed seeing his companions taking these things with a more light hearted spirit. "Maybe we could bring Mr. Scaevola a gift? Since he can't come down from his mountain we could pick up things that could be used for cooking. Although I wouldn't know too much about what's good enough around here. That could also lighten the blow of the news that we carry with us."
Jarnick's also quite excited to leave Parabor, the place he stayed in for a year, into the wild. He leads the way during travel and looks around less vigilantly than usually, admiring the view of the dangerous landscape. He laughs off Ryona's concern, "You're so paranoid, I'm sure he is a nice dragonborn. This all seem so mysterious, maybe master planned this long ago and he already know we are going to reach for him." and to Falenas, "What do you reckon his would like? What would a person living in solitude like?"
"Aw, just joking around, Jarnick. Mostly. In seriousness, I have no idea what to expect. Elaria's reclusive friend could be a graduate student under a curse, or a comfortable old man who prefers the company of flowers, puppies and riddles. Maybe her own secret half-dragon offspring?"She smirks a little at the possibility. "Whatever the case is, I think we can expect that he is aware that someone could come for the tiles under her instruction, eventually. And that some might come seeking them without her instruction. Who knows how tight-lipped others have been about this little puzzle?"
She continues for a while, listening to Noah's tune. Before reaching the mountains, she calls for a short stop.
"Let's go over our strategy one more time.
We don't have much in the way of attack combinations, so it's simple. Falenas' magic first, if possible. That's it. So our general plan of attack is... hit them harder than they hit us. This means we don't have to take anyone's lead, and can act independently, as long as we follow a simple, general plan. That's good.
Given that general strategy, there are three priorities we should keep in mind, in order.
Protect each other's weakness.
As you saw from our water balloon fight, I can't avoid very well. If I'm crowded by you guys, I'll be toast to fire bombs and magic bursts.
We should try to keep Maelferance and Falenas out of sword reach. If something gets on either of you, you two have to stand your ground until help comes. Just backing away as soon as you can won't help us survive. Noah... you're tough, you'll be fine."She winks at him with a smirk.
"If a fairy charms someone, it'll be Jarnick. Sorry, Jarnick... at least you know we'll forgive you.
Keep fighting.
You're going to get hit eventually. You can't stop fighting when you get hurt, even badly. If we're in a pitched combat, don't mind your wounds. We're not militia. We're going to survive by fighting to the end together, because...
You won't die to your wounds, as long as Yevele, Malfearance or I stand. If it's an ogre-club... well... try not to lose your head.
It's not just Maelfearance and Falenas that have to stand their ground. Everyone does. If you wake up in lots of pain and we're still fighting, you had better get up and join us. Dream of pearly gates later.
Focus and put yourself in the right place.
Whatever seems the easiest to defeat, focus on that if you can reach it.
Try to find ground that will benefit us. Make it as hard for the enemy to fight us as you can.
Don't make yourself an obvious target. You put the rest of us at risk if you go somewhere where its hard to support you."
Through all that, she maintains confidence. Ryona doesn't show any fear now, completely trusting in her allies in the fights to come. The small scars on her, despite her youth, are a reminder that she's been in fights before.
"As a whole, we all can attack from a distance. If we can, we should take advantage of that. We've also got a few neat tricks. Malferance's invisible servant... Falenas' and Noah's illusions... and my thaumaturgy. That can be plenty distracting. And... one more thing..."She points to the silvery mountains and takes a deep breath. "It must look amazing up there. Let's enjoy the adventure."
Maelfearance mostly just goes along and says little to the team, occasionally having quiet whispered discussions with his unseen wife. He will note, when it is brought up, that perhaps the only gift needed is that of company. Perhaps it is lonely living up so high. It is wise to be prepared for trouble, but we don't have to invite it when unnecessary.
Not knowing the difficulty of the Staircase Cliffs it is hard to gauge a real plan for climbing them. Perhaps it shall not be so difficult as needing climbing gear and tying each to the other... But when the path does seem more easy, and like we're soon to arrive where headed, Maelfearance will try to find the time to ritually cast Unseen Servant and have it on "follow"...
The short venture to the Staircase Cliffs is uneventful, and slowed only slightly as Malfearance pauses to cast up an invisible arcane servant.
A series of plateaus stacked on top of one another rise high into the sky and give the Staircase Cliffs their signature look. Here the wind comes down hard from the Icebound Peaks in the North, chapping your face as you draw near. When you get closer, you can make out the details of the lowest plateau.
The 75-foot-high cliff leading up is marred with small, circular holes big enough for a rat. At its top, you can make out a yurt covered in animal skins.
The cliff face is dotted with small ledges with varying length, and a width of around 5 feet. At 40 feet up the cliff's face, one of these ledges spans the width of the entire cliff.
OOC: The cliff has many handholds, and a climb does not look terribly difficult. If you are climbing, please let me know approximately where on the cliff your character is starting their climb.
Yevele is relieved when they reach the cliffs. At least this first part of their journey as gone off without any hitch. Looking up the cliffside and seeing the yurt, Yevele assumes that is where the reclusive dragonborn Alcaeus lives. Staring at the cliffs for a little bit while she fastens her quarterstaff to her pack with the rope, the monk decides to head to the far right where the lower ledge seems easily accessible. The red-head will climb up to the first ledge, and then begin climbing up to the next higher ledge to her left. Once she gains the second ledge, she will rest for a minute before climbing up to the next highest ledge, again to her left. From there, she will climb up to the wide ledge that spans the entire cliff.
When Yevele makes this ledge, she will look down at those below and offer to lower her rope to any who may want the additional assistance for the climb up.
athletics18 (ooc) I don't know if I need to do this, but, figured I'd go ahead and include the roll. Hopefully, it won't be a natural 1
Looking up at the cliffs with a frown, Ryona puts her open hand on her hip. She glances at her companions when Yevele moves, then back up as she stows her shield. "Can I get a light in that low hole there?" She hustles to the cliff. Ambling up to the closest hole to take a look, she tries to discern if they should beware of something potentially hazardous that uses them. Survival11
She declares her finding and pushes up to the first ledge, her chainmail rattling as she hefts herself up. Athletics5
From there, she waits for Yevele's rope, keeping an eye out for any threats that might emerge, lending a hand to any who take the same ascent to the same ledge. Perception7
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Before any attempt the climb, if possible, Maelfearance will cast Dancing Lights and have the created lights bob and weave their way up the face of this cliff, pushing into the holes closest to the path they seem likely to use. While the lights would harm nothing, perhaps the mere presence of light might cause a reaction from a creature possibling living in the small holes that dot the rock face? Then, assuming nothing comes skittering out or anything, Maelfearance will wait for a nice secure rope before he attempts the climb. Even then he is unsure if he can make it but has little choice but to try. Athletics3 (Maelfearance may just be waiting on ground level...)
Noah hangs back as the rest begin the climb, and once a rope has been produced, he will attempt it himself (assuming Malfearance's spell did not rouse any critters).
If Ryona falls before he scales the craggy wall of rock, Noah will step over and help her to her feet, and then reluctantly attempt to use the rope to climb up.
(Edit: He's going to attempt the climb towards the left side of the wall.)
"There is always the option to rest before visiting the specter, as to align the time more favorably, but if you would prefer to make haste then I suppose Ryona's plan is the most efficient."
"I'd also like to go visit the dragonborn first. He will probably be able to give us information on how to face the other challenges that we have. And although I'd also like to get on with this as quick as possible, I also think that it is a little arrogant on our part to believe that we'll be able to go through all of these quests without having to rest in the middle."
Falenas stops a little bit to think about all of this, why is he doing all of these things. Hasn't he already gotten what he was looking for? He's not looking for treasure. Nontheless, it seems necessary to honor his master's last desires, and to get to the bottom of her death.
Falenas' words cause Ryona to puff her cheeks slightly a moment. "I was hoping we might be able to. If we don't have to stop, we can be back at the manor before morning. When we go to the next closest one, it would be Vixthra's spider-ogre lair. That's probably when we'll decide whether or not we'll camp for the night. Plan for the unknown, Falenas, not failure."
Ryona averts her eyes toward her feet. "I was hoping there would be more reason to go to the Steps though. And if we do get through the spider-ogre and don't need to rest yet, what's a little visit with a ghost with a rotting corpse in a deep forest at night?" With a little shiver of fear, she turns her eyes up, still averted. It's unclear if its of the prospect of moving in the dark forest with undead or for speaking of her belief to the group. "There's only... roughly, dozens of stories of the fey that go like that. Let's just hope the vault isn't holding a live and hungry Master Feywing who faked her death with an Elaria puppet."
She takes a deep breath and steadies herself. "I suppose Scaevola probably would have a greater dislike of being visited at night as well. So, let's go to the Steps as we first planned."
OOC: It sounds like the first step is to head to the Staircase Cliffs. Once I see a couple more characters confirm that, we shall advance.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
((Mael is fine with the steps..))
Jarnick crosses his arms and smirks when he hears Ryona’s worry of ghost, as he is a fearless halfling, then Ryona suggest that Elaria could be an undead lurking in the vault, “Um… your mind went to a dark place quickly… Alright, let’s go climb some steps then. Although I long for a battle to test our strength, I do not mind doing this strategically with caution, since any failure might lead to other people getting to the answer faster.”
Cool air blows off Lake Mirianthi as you walk into the grassy plain of the Merriam Vale. To the North and South mountains rise high into the sky, full of silver and mithral. To the East, the dark of Dolor Forest rustles in the wind. This is the unexplored valley of riches and danger that calls to so many that have made Parabor Home. This is where you set forth to fulfill Elaria Feywing's last request.
It is late in the afternoon, almost evening, when you depart the mansion to trek along the banks of Lake Mirianthi, mud caking your boots as you progress toward the Staircase Cliffs.
OOC: Pausing for a moment for any discussions or planning that may be taking place during this travel.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
Yevele didn't really have any strong feeling about which task to undertake first, so she was willing to let the others debate the move and agree with whatever seemed to be the consensus.
On they start out on the road, Yevele asks "Is this area dangerous, should we assemble into some sort of defensive marching order, perhaps with Jarnick and myself in front, Ryona in the rear and the two spell casters in the middle? And, for the cliffs, should we tie ourselves to each other with rope or each of us ascent individually?"
"As you say, I'll be the rearguard." Ryona looks up to the nearby silvery mountains, trying to make out the trail from hardly more than a mile away. "If it is more a climb than a hike, I think you have the right idea to tie together."
She didn't believe that anything dangerous would be so close in the open to the town that regularly sees adventurers. Despite the doubt, she kept vigil watch over the others, shield in hand. Continuing the march from behind, she starts speaking far more quietly than she usually does, but more than a hush. "Hello Mr. Scaevola, we're here for the tiles Ms. Feywing entrusted to you. Oh, you can trust us. Actually, we wanted to know if you'd tell us all about the other two that might not just let us have it. Oh, you'll just let us have it, right, Mr. Scaevola? Aw, thanks."
Catching a glance from one of the others, she shrugs. "Oh, I'm sure it won't be that easy. He'll probably be, like... Rrrgh, I'll only give my tiles to someone who can survive a my breath. My flame breath, fools! Rrrgh. Step forward, prove yourselves, rrrgh." She shrugs again. "Probably not that easy either."
During travel, Noah heeds Yevele's words and remains more or less in the center of the marching order, not being equipped to be on the frontlines during an ambush. He tries to keep the spirits up, but reminds everybody to keep it down - especially during talk of their plan of action. He hums along a tune when conversation dies down, enjoying the fresh air. Though Feywing and the mystery still weighs heavy on all of them, Noah seems to be enjoying the newfound freedom in their expansive trek.
Noah chuckles as Ryona acts out a surly Scaevola. "I'm not inclined to be so pessimistic, but that would be an entertaining complication. Well, except for the person who would get incinerated."
Noah will take any good oppurtunity available to practice his spellcasting without the use of his arcane focus. If he is asked to stop, he desists for the rest of the trip.
It's been long since Falenas went out like this, so he's enjoying the hike. He feels more relaxed seeing his companions taking these things with a more light hearted spirit. "Maybe we could bring Mr. Scaevola a gift? Since he can't come down from his mountain we could pick up things that could be used for cooking. Although I wouldn't know too much about what's good enough around here. That could also lighten the blow of the news that we carry with us."
OOC Does anyone grab the will before we left?
Jarnick's also quite excited to leave Parabor, the place he stayed in for a year, into the wild. He leads the way during travel and looks around less vigilantly than usually, admiring the view of the dangerous landscape. He laughs off Ryona's concern, "You're so paranoid, I'm sure he is a nice dragonborn. This all seem so mysterious, maybe master planned this long ago and he already know we are going to reach for him." and to Falenas, "What do you reckon his would like? What would a person living in solitude like?"
"Aw, just joking around, Jarnick. Mostly. In seriousness, I have no idea what to expect. Elaria's reclusive friend could be a graduate student under a curse, or a comfortable old man who prefers the company of flowers, puppies and riddles. Maybe her own secret half-dragon offspring?" She smirks a little at the possibility. "Whatever the case is, I think we can expect that he is aware that someone could come for the tiles under her instruction, eventually. And that some might come seeking them without her instruction. Who knows how tight-lipped others have been about this little puzzle?"
She continues for a while, listening to Noah's tune. Before reaching the mountains, she calls for a short stop.
"Let's go over our strategy one more time.
We don't have much in the way of attack combinations, so it's simple. Falenas' magic first, if possible. That's it. So our general plan of attack is... hit them harder than they hit us. This means we don't have to take anyone's lead, and can act independently, as long as we follow a simple, general plan. That's good.
Given that general strategy, there are three priorities we should keep in mind, in order.
Through all that, she maintains confidence. Ryona doesn't show any fear now, completely trusting in her allies in the fights to come. The small scars on her, despite her youth, are a reminder that she's been in fights before.
"As a whole, we all can attack from a distance. If we can, we should take advantage of that. We've also got a few neat tricks. Malferance's invisible servant... Falenas' and Noah's illusions... and my thaumaturgy. That can be plenty distracting. And... one more thing..." She points to the silvery mountains and takes a deep breath. "It must look amazing up there. Let's enjoy the adventure."
Maelfearance mostly just goes along and says little to the team, occasionally having quiet whispered discussions with his unseen wife. He will note, when it is brought up, that perhaps the only gift needed is that of company. Perhaps it is lonely living up so high. It is wise to be prepared for trouble, but we don't have to invite it when unnecessary.
Not knowing the difficulty of the Staircase Cliffs it is hard to gauge a real plan for climbing them. Perhaps it shall not be so difficult as needing climbing gear and tying each to the other... But when the path does seem more easy, and like we're soon to arrive where headed, Maelfearance will try to find the time to ritually cast Unseen Servant and have it on "follow"...
The short venture to the Staircase Cliffs is uneventful, and slowed only slightly as Malfearance pauses to cast up an invisible arcane servant.
A series of plateaus stacked on top of one another rise high into the sky and give the Staircase Cliffs their signature look. Here the wind comes down hard from the Icebound Peaks in the North, chapping your face as you draw near. When you get closer, you can make out the details of the lowest plateau.
The 75-foot-high cliff leading up is marred with small, circular holes big enough for a rat. At its top, you can make out a yurt covered in animal skins.
The cliff face is dotted with small ledges with varying length, and a width of around 5 feet. At 40 feet up the cliff's face, one of these ledges spans the width of the entire cliff.
OOC: The cliff has many handholds, and a climb does not look terribly difficult. If you are climbing, please let me know approximately where on the cliff your character is starting their climb.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
Yevele is relieved when they reach the cliffs. At least this first part of their journey as gone off without any hitch. Looking up the cliffside and seeing the yurt, Yevele assumes that is where the reclusive dragonborn Alcaeus lives. Staring at the cliffs for a little bit while she fastens her quarterstaff to her pack with the rope, the monk decides to head to the far right where the lower ledge seems easily accessible. The red-head will climb up to the first ledge, and then begin climbing up to the next higher ledge to her left. Once she gains the second ledge, she will rest for a minute before climbing up to the next highest ledge, again to her left. From there, she will climb up to the wide ledge that spans the entire cliff.
When Yevele makes this ledge, she will look down at those below and offer to lower her rope to any who may want the additional assistance for the climb up.
athletics 18 (ooc) I don't know if I need to do this, but, figured I'd go ahead and include the roll. Hopefully, it won't be a natural 1
Looking up at the cliffs with a frown, Ryona puts her open hand on her hip. She glances at her companions when Yevele moves, then back up as she stows her shield. "Can I get a light in that low hole there?" She hustles to the cliff. Ambling up to the closest hole to take a look, she tries to discern if they should beware of something potentially hazardous that uses them. Survival 11
She declares her finding and pushes up to the first ledge, her chainmail rattling as she hefts herself up. Athletics 5
From there, she waits for Yevele's rope, keeping an eye out for any threats that might emerge, lending a hand to any who take the same ascent to the same ledge. Perception 7
(edit: still don't use the right parse commands)
Before any attempt the climb, if possible, Maelfearance will cast Dancing Lights and have the created lights bob and weave their way up the face of this cliff, pushing into the holes closest to the path they seem likely to use. While the lights would harm nothing, perhaps the mere presence of light might cause a reaction from a creature possibling living in the small holes that dot the rock face? Then, assuming nothing comes skittering out or anything, Maelfearance will wait for a nice secure rope before he attempts the climb. Even then he is unsure if he can make it but has little choice but to try. Athletics 3 (Maelfearance may just be waiting on ground level...)
Noah hangs back as the rest begin the climb, and once a rope has been produced, he will attempt it himself (assuming Malfearance's spell did not rouse any critters).
Athletics 15
If Ryona falls before he scales the craggy wall of rock, Noah will step over and help her to her feet, and then reluctantly attempt to use the rope to climb up.
(Edit: He's going to attempt the climb towards the left side of the wall.)