Chilling Adventures in the North

"Hm." Mutters Muharg at the mention of starving dwarves. "Our kin is usually honest, but in desperate times I can't say there aren't some who would not steal a goat or two. But as Shad said, that wouldn't explain the pearls or the lantern."

He then addresses the twins "Is there a reason for them to be hungry?"

Then back at the party. "Agreed. I think the glacier can wait for now. Let's try and get this situation fixed."

"Right," Arogna nods, in between gulps of ale. "You oughta help your kin out."

Qinfaren looks at the twins.

"Is it hard to find this valley? Is there a trail?" Qinfaren asks. 

He rubs his whiskered chin for a moment then speaks again.

"Should we bring food? I could start making Goodberry but that will only help for a day or two," he says then pauses. "Muharg's onto it though. Why are they hungry? That's the problem that needs fixing."

"I did miss that about the pearls, yes," Shad says. "Hmm. I am in favor of helping the dwarves. We can learn more about the mystery by doing so, possibly, especially if we also chat with Jarlaxle." He will sort through his backpack and all the pockets in both his coats. "I'm surprised to find I have nine days of rations," he says.

(OOC: Is that right? How many rations should we have?)

"The glacier can wait. But we should be mindful that Jarlaxle may not be on the glacier anymore by the time we get done with this. Which could actually be a good thing for us," Bjorn leans against the wall as he waits to hear the sister's answer to thier questions.

"Well," Cori begins. "Food is scarce this far north. Even for this little fishing village, what with the frozen waters. These are harsh times."

"As for a trail, come with me," Allie then leads you into the back of the inn, with Torvin and Cori following behind. Here Allie indicates feint footprints in the snow heading towards Kelvin's Cairn.

"It might be difficult to follow, but hopefully that will lead you in the right direction," Allie then looks at Bjorn. "You look the sort to know your way around the north, and I bet you are good at tracking. If not, perhaps it would be worth while enlisting the help of Jarthra from Frozenfar, maybe even secure a dog sled.

Muharg nods at Allie's explanations. "Oh, we already have a sled and dogs, but thank you for the heads-up anyway. These footprints, however, are these supposed to be here, or do you suspect them to be from the thief?"

Then turning to his friends. "Might be worth it to recruit Jarthra as a guide, don't you think, lads?"

"We think it is footprint of the thieves," Allie confirms.

"However, you had better hurry if you plan on following those prints. They won't last long before the snow fills them in," explains Cori

"How long till dark?" Arogna asks, quickly finishing her ale. "We can go get the dogs an' the guide, if there's time to set out an' not get caught out."

"Can we tell how old the prints are?" Shad says. "Should we try to catch the thief now? I think getting the dogs and the guide might take so much time the prints will be gone. Bjorn, what do you think?"

(OOC: Shad is not great at Survival: +3, but he can take the Help action.)

(OOC2: Thank you, TheBritGeek, for those notes on the campaign page. Helpful!)

Qinfaren kneels down next to the tracks to see if he can tell more about the size and number of individuals involved.

Survival: 9 

He then looks at the sky and depth of the prints to see if he can estimate how much time they might have.

Survival: 18  w/ Shad's help.

"Muharg and I could start along the trail," Qinfaren says. "While the rest of you grab the dogs and whatever else you think we'd need. My weight will make deep prints that will be easy to follow."

Allie looks outside the door and looks at the position of the sun, "We've got about an hour of daylight left. Then you will be out in the dark."

Qinfaen studies the tracks and sees that they are of a size similar to that of a dwarf's. However, there only seems to be one set of tracks. Whoever or whatever made the tracks must have been travelling alone.

He then calculates that there is a good chance the tracks will only last roughly an hour before they are filled in by snow, and you will lose the tracks.

Qinfaren shares what he thinks he's learned about the tracks with the others.

"As much as I'd like to curl up here by the fire," Qinfaren says with a wistful smile, which he then changes to what he thinks of as his serious face, "If we're doing this, we need to move quickly."

"I'll run over an' get the dogs," Arogna says. "Shad, you wanta come with me? Bjorn, whyn't you go with them. We can catch you all up in no time on the sled."

Shad stands and moves toward the door with Arogna. "Thank you for the wonderful smell of your stew! And the information!" he says. "Now, where did we leave those dogs?"

Qinfaren nods to Shad and Arogna and gives them a small wave.

"We'll be as messy as we can be to make sure our trail is easy to follow," Qinfaren says.

He turns to Bjorn and Muharg.

"Well, shall we?" he says gesturing in the direction of the footprints. "If I help Bjorn keep an eye on the trail, Muharg can keep an eye on our surroundings and make sure we notice any danger before it notices us."

Qinfaren hitches up his pack and starts down the trail of footprints.

Shad remembers that you all left the dogs at the Hook, Line and Sinker which is in the other direction to Frozenfar Expeditions.

Muharg, Bjorn and Qinfaren begin to follow the tracks towards Kelvin's Cairn.

“Let’s go, lads!” Muharg keeps an eye on the surroundings for any potential danger.

Perception 11

Arogna hurries back to the Hook, Line, and Sinker with Shad to reclaim the dogs, who jump at them enthusiastically, as does Arogna at the dogs. Thanking the minder, she quickly harnesses them to the sled and checks the remaining packages and gear are lashed on tightly. "Let's both ride, Shad. I'll drive, you track, how 'bout that. Qinfaren said they'll make a mess, so it oughtn't to be hard."

"Outstanding," Shad says. He hops on the sled without really greeting the dogs. When they return to Cori and Allie's place, he looks for the trail the others promised to leave them.

Survival: 4

Survival with advantage because Arogna and the dogs are helping and/or the others want to be found: 18