Re: Adventure #1 - The Jolly Toad

[Glitz]

"Before we go, though, I'd like to take a closer look at these potions--Randal said that he was carrying healing potions, and from the looks of things, you could use one," Elodie nods towards Jeremiah. Pulling one of the vials out, she pries the cork out and tips the vial slightly, spilling a drop onto her finger. She tastes it, attempting to determine what kind of potion this is.

Identify potion: 9 + 6 (craft:alchemy) +2 circumstance = 17
GM Edit: I added a +2 circ bonus, because Randal told you what kind to expect

[Malazek]

Elodie tastes and smells the mystic fluids and determines that it is, in fact, a healing potion ... not the strongest one she's ever encountered, but it will work. As she does this, Stephen speaks up "Hey! Those are mine, now! You heard my uncle, they're for emergencies only and they cost ... 50 gold. If you want to drink one, you owe me 50 gold."

[Glitz]

Elodie quickly turns and raises her hand, summoning the power of fire once more to strike the ground at Stephen's feet. "I believe that our original agreement with Randal is over, and this man who saved your life needs a healing potion. Now, if you want to be part of this group, you'll have to share these resources with the rest of us--after all, what's stopping us from taking it all and leaving you here alone with your knife?"

Cast Fire Bolt, targeted at the ground in front of Stephen's feet
Intimidate: 15 + 1(CHA)=16

[Malazek]

Stephen stares silently back at Elodie, clearly blanched by her sudden burst of anger and by the fire by which she expresses it. After a moment, he grabs the shovel and begins looking for a hill on which to bury his uncle. As you are in the valley of the Angers, this takes no time at all. He reaches the apex and starts digging.

[Alpha Omega]

"I don't know about the 50 gold bit, but I think by the time that boy finishes digging, it will be time to make camp. If I can get a good nights rest, I shouldn't need one of those potions. We will need to find a more discreet location, however, if were going to lay down in this neck of the woods.

Randall starts to scout around the immediate area trying to pick a direction they should head in to make camp for the night...

Survival Check: 11 + 7 = 18

[Malazek]

Jeremiah looks around while Stephen digs and finds a defensible spot to camp that isn't too far away. The spot he finds is nestled between hills, so any campfire you construct shouldn't be see from too far away. If you post a sentry, they can see a good distance from atop any one of the surrounding hills. Furthermore, he doesn't find any wasps nests or ant hills at the location. Fallen branches, dried leaves, and scattered twigs litter the area, which should allow for easy maintenance of the fire.

[Alpha Omega]

"This spot will do.." Jeremiah lets the others know that he has found a suitable location, then steers the horses to the site and ties them up. He proceeds to assemble a fire pit, cooking station and shelter, which is just normal procedure for him. After spending an extra minute or two on his shelter, making sure all the gaps were filled, that it was structurally stable and had proper bedding; he went out to place a few traps. If he could snag a couple varmints over night, it would make for a nice breakfast.

Survival Check (Shelter): 9 + 7 = 16
Profession (Trapper): 12 + 7 = 19

[Glitz]

Elodie lets Stephen dig for a while, as she looks around the area that Jeremiah has selected. If Jeremiah's shelter is intended for the group, she helps him with it--if not, she begins work on her own. She also looks around the area to see what kind of edible plants and fungi are in the area, to help offset the use of rations.

- Survival (shelter): 6 + 11 = 17 (OOC: Wasn't sure if Jeremiah's shelter was for the group or personal use...so I covered both possibilities)
- Survival (foraging): 14 +11 = 25

After taking care of her shelter, Elodie approaches Stephen. "Would you like some help?" she asks, holding out her hand for the shovel.

[Malazek]

Elodie gathers enough tubers, truffles, nuts, and berries for a light meal ... but could easily gather more, given the time. Knowing Jeremiah is also setting some traps, however, she takes her find to the campsite and works her way over to Stephen.

Stephen gladly hands over the shovel to Elodie (or anyone else willing to help); he is clearly exhausted after two hours of digging ... but he doesn't rest; not yet. He begins gathering stones with which to top the grave.

An hour or so later, the traps are set and the hole is deep enough. Stephen drags his uncle's body to the hole and drops it in. He begins crying, again, and mutters some sort of unintelligible final words before shoveling dirt back into the hole to cover up the deceased. Once a layer of dirt is laid down, he begins piling rocks on top of the grave site to create a small cairn.

Afterwards, he returns to camp and slumps down beside the fire. He looks to Maius and asks "Can we get a song or story for the deceased, Sir Maius, grandest of all storytellers?"

When the tale is done,* Elodie finds time to gather a few more vegetables and Jeremiah checks his traps ... between the two of them, there is plenty of food for another meal or more. At this rate, they should have enough to feed a party three times the size of this one, provided they keep finding food at a steady rate.

*OOC: Assuming Maius tells one. Maius, are you going to post a tale? Or would you prefer to just roll? Or just refuse the request?

[Swifthand]

O.O.C. - Sorry about the lack o' posts, was on a Memorial Day holiday. I'll try to catch up here.....btw, great game so far!

Spellcraft or Knowledge: Arcana on the type of casters Elodie and Maius are...19+9=28, 13+9=22

Talmut silently observes the interactions between the others, frowning a bit at Elodie's invocation at the adolescent's feet and the cavalier attitude taken toward the dead ranger's belongings. Respecting the youth's pride and pain, I keep my distance, allowing the hard labor to cool both. Unused to physical labor himself, but wanting to help where he can, the conjuror aid's Jerimiah and sets his bedroll up for the night. As Elodie goes to approach the boy at the gravesite, I keep a keen eye on the two of them for a moment, and then turn back to the task at hand - whatever conclusion drawn a mystery.

Seeing Elodie and Stephen finish the cairn and begin to head back to camp, I finally break my silence, a deep bass rumble over the sounds of the forest.

"We should return this boy to his mother in the morning, along with her brother's belongings. Then we can seek out the beast's lair...and the ruins, our duty met."

Knowledge: Religion on this area's funeral customs - 10+9=19

[Malazek]

Talmut watches the two magic-users and discerns that Elodie draws her magic from powerful spirits and lesser gods. Maius, on the other hand, seems to affect the fabric of reality more directly; not unlike the magic Talmut himself uses ... there's no way to be certain after seeing just one spell, but Talmut would guess their magicks are analogous to the Kahins and Rawuns, back home.

OOC: Elodie is a druid; Maius is a bard.

From what Talmut has studied of local burial customs, cairns such as this are not uncommon. They were more common in the region's past than they are in the current day, but they are still not unheard of. Ancient cairns, similar to this one, are found all over the Umbrafall region. Sometimes crypts and burial vaults, containing dozens of bodies, were constructed inside of hills, but that custom has been more-or-less abandoned. In recent times, however, it is far more common to bury the dead in a cemetery; but when someone dies away from civilization, like this, a shallow cairn is the typical practice.

OOC: Burial customs vary, but these sorts of tombs are used throughout the Realms. The Danmarians, for example, prefer funeral pyres to graves, but tombs are still used. Burial vaults are still constructed in the Moledro region of the Narland, but the most elaborate ancient crypts were built in the southern Daxony.

When Talmut suggests taking the boy home, Stephen objects, "No! I want to go with you! These monsters slew my uncle, so I should get to kill them, too. Besides, you still need a guide."

[Alpha Omega]

"I agree, we should return the boy to his mother. I have a good feel of the land now, I'm sure I could get us back to both the Ogre's layer and the ruins."

[Alpha Omega]

In the mean time Jeremiah will periodically check his traps for victims. He we then skin the animal for its pelt and smoke the meat over a small pit to the side of the main camp fire. Offering any of the food he obtains to the other party members.

Survival Check: Skinning 9 + 7 = 16
Profession Trapping: Pelts 12 + 7 = 19

[macksgarageusa]

"Where was your uncle from son?" Maius awaits his reply and then begins his story. He paces steadily around the campsite as he weaves his tale. He waxes poetic about the history of the area Randal hailed from, as well as some stories he has heard of its citizens and customs. He speaks of the bravery of the man who led so many novice explorers to what may have been their lives' most exciting adventures. Near the end of his story, he asks the boy "Are you sure you are willing to face the potential fate of your uncle? What are your particular skills?"

Perform(Oratory): 1d20+7= 17
Knowledge(History) 1d20+6= 22
Knowledge(Local) 1d20+8= 9

[Malazek]

OOC: When Jeremiah set-up the campsite, did he construct shelters for everyone? or just himself? If he set-up for everyone, then Elodie helped him; if he only set-up his own, then Elodie set-up her own ... but I'd like to know where everyone else is sleeping (in some make-shift bedding or on the ground). Remember, too, Randal had a tent on his horse.

OOC: Also, it seems the party is faced with two dilemmas: 1) whether or not to return Stephen home, and 2) whether or not to track the ogre to his lair. A votes were called for, but I don't believe consensuses were reached. -

• As it stands, Talmut and Jeremiah have voted for returning Stephen home; what do Maius and Elodie think?
• As far as the ogre goes, Maius suggested following the tracks, but coming back later to deal with the ogres; Jeremiah agreed to follow the majority; Elodie said she wanted to check Randal's saddle bags before going. Does that mean the party plans to do that? Or is it still up in the air?

Regardless of the answers, dilemma #1 will need to be decided on before dilemma #2 is put to action.

At this point, the party has settled down into their camp. Yet, it's still pretty light out; late afternoon, maybe early evening. Normally, most of you wouldn't go to sleep this early, but its been a long day for all of you. You traveled to Umbrafall only this morning, and then rode out again a few hours later, only to fight a savage giant. Some of you then worked hard to either dig a grave or construct a camp. You're probably exhausted. And since Jeremiah is bruised and rattled, settling down for the evening is probably a wise idea ... nonetheless, it will likely be the middle of the night when you wake up, if you go to sleep so soon.

Stephen tells Maius that his uncle was from the Timberwyld and hill that lie in the shadow of the angers (i.e. from just outside Umbrafall). He answers the second question. "I won't meet the same fate. That nasty ogre surprised Uncle Randal, but next time, I'm gonna surprise them. My uncle taught me how to trap and hunt, how to survive off the land ... um ... I know how sneak around in the woods and I know how to use THIS," he says brandishing his dagger.

OOC: Is the party going to do something to pass the time for a few hours? Or are they ready to sleep? If they're ready to sleep?

[Glitz]

As the bard finishes his tale and begins to question Stephen, Elodie digs the iron pot out of her pack and positions it over the campfire. She takes some of the tubers and things that she gathered and prepares a simple stew (nowhere near as delicious as the stew from the inn...but then again, she hasn't had 30 years to perfect it).

After Stephen has said his piece about surviving in the wild, Elodie says, "I think the boy should go back to his mother. As for us, we all came out here in search of something--treasure, fame, or a good meal, I don't know. But no matter, I think we could handle the ogres if we came back and tracked them. We still managed to take down the one that surprised us quickly, and we made it through okay...mostly."

[Alpha Omega]

OOC: Jeremiah only built a shelter big enough for himself, the rest of the night he will continue with his traps and skinning animals for meat and pelts until he is tired. As stated before Jeremiah will go with the groups decision on where to go next, unless the vote is tied. Is there a way I can get more than 1 HP back over the night if someone makes skill checks?

[Swifthand]

The conjuror nods at the deciding vote on the boys fate and then sits on his bedroll (set up near the fire), studying a book for a couple hours.

"I can stand as sentry for some time. The hill gives a good vantage point, yes?

[Alpha Omega]

"Yes, that hill will provide a great vantage point for sentry duty. Talmut, if you would like first watch than I will volunteer for second." Jeremiah than pulls out his new pipe and decides to break it in while he tends to his chores for the evening...

[macksgarageusa]

O.o.C.: at work for few more hours.

"I vote the kid stays, for now. His uncle is dead and we have no real guide to the ruins. I still say we track the ogre far enough to see where it came from and come back later." He sets up his bedroll near the fire, staking out a flat spot for rest. "How much rations did Randal have with hm?" Maius takes his whip and sap and heads for a nearby tree, he wedges the sap into a nook and jumps back. He cracks the whip loudly, then spins and tries to grab the sap from its resting place. He continues with this until he hears his comrades setting up a watch schedule. "I'll take any watch available."

[Malazek]

OOC: Sounds like the vote is 3 to 1 in favor of returning the kid to his mother ... and it seems everyone is in favor of tracking the ogres, at least partway.

As Jeremiah returns from a round of checking his traps, he finds the Elodie making stew, Maius practicing with his weapons, and Talmut reading. He also finds Stephen pouting by his bedroll, clearly disappointed by the Verdict. It is agreed that Talmut will take first watch and Jeremiah will take second. Maius agrees to take any watch necessary and Stephen volunteers, as well: "I'll take third watch, if that's okay. How many watches will there be? Five? One each? So, Talmut, Jeremiah, me, then Maius, then Elodie?"

When Maius asks about the rations, he pipes up again: "Thirty man-days' worth; that's enough to feed six people for five days ... or ... I guess, five people for six days? ... but only one water-skin. We'll need to find water, eventually. I have some on my horse, too, but not enough."

The sweet aroma of burning pipe-weed permeates the air, as Jeremiah savors the flavor of his pipe. Your daylight dims as the shade of the surrounding hills stretch out over the campsite, though the sun still lingers well above the horizon.

OOC: After 8 hours of sleep, you regain hit points equal to 1 x your level. Any significant interruption prevents you from healing (taking watch does not; but combat would). With the healing skill, another character can provide "long term care," which doubles the rate of healing. Providing LTC counts as light activity.

[macksgarageusa]

Maius will heal jeremiah before resting.

O.o.C.: still at work ... Mal, can u roll? d8+1

DM Edit: 5

[Swifthand]

Talmut-Xisper stands, looks down for a moment, palms something from inside his pouch, and then thrusts his arms out, hands clenched with his ring fingers extended, the tips trailing blue fire, crafting an eldritch cage in the air around him- the Second Permutation of the Infinite Octohedron.

SA ARIT!

Just as the cage is complete, with a thrum, it blinks out, invisible to the naked eye.

"Good rest." At that, the conjuror places his book back into this backpack and climbs the hill, beginning his watch. Talmut acts as sentinel for 2.5-3 hours before waking Jerimah.

"Let us leave the boy to sleep - we do not need him running off on some fool's mission."

Cast Mage Armor - +4 to AC

---

HP: 7/7	AC: 12 (16 M.A)	Fort: +1, Ref: +2, Wil: +2	Init: +2	M.W. Quarterstaff: -1Atk 1d6-2
BAB: 0	Mov: 6	CMB: -2 | CMD: 10	Per: +0	Spell Save DC=Spell Level+15, 16 Conj.

Spells Learned - 0: Acid Splash, Flare, Detect Magic; 1st: Mage Armor, Summon Monster 1, Summon Monster 1

[Glitz]

Elodie agrees to take whichever watch shift is assigned to her. Since it doesn't seem like she has the first one, she heads to her prepared shelter and gets cozy, hoping to get some good rest before her turn to watch.

[Malazek]

Talmut's watch is uneventful. From atop the hill, he watches as the shadow of the Angers darkens the valley and his companions drift slowly to sleep. The sun has finally dipped behind the mountains, and he figures its about time to wake Jeremiah. Jeremiah makes another round to check his traps, and comes back with a couple more carcasses. As the trapper climbs the hill, the wizard returns to his bedroll and settles in for an early sleep.

With his catch hung firmly from a nearby branch, the woodsman is able to ring and skin his pelts, even while keeping watch and staying relatively hidden. He feels confident these furs will earn him a few shiny coins.

About half way through his watch, he is pretty engrossed in his craft when he hears two harsh voices, nearby. Quickly, he takes cover behind the tree and looks around. As dark as it is, a few moments pass before he makes out where the voices are coming from ... a couple of giants are passing by, just a few hills over. They seem to be dragging a large load along the ground, heading in the direction Jeremiah thought the Ogre came from. From this distance, he cannot make out for sure what type of giants they are, but judging by their voices, size, and demeanor, he would guess they are Ogres.

"Who'd go an' kill Pa? When I find who kilt Pa, I gonna do worse dan jus' kill 'em! I'm gonna rip off his ..."
"No! No, yer nots ... cuz I'm gonna do it!"
"Ya inner rupped me, 'gain."
"'Inner rupped?' Wasdat?"
"I done tol' ya, 'ready ... inner rupped when ya start yappin' 'fore I fin ..."
"Yappin?! Ya callin' me a yapper?"
"Ya done it again!"
"Done what?"

Jeremiah's Stealth Roll: 13 (9 on the die, +3 dex, -3 armor, +2 darkness, +2 from finding such a good spot with survival)
Jeremiah's Perception Roll: 23 (14 on the die, +7 skill bonus, +2 Favored Enemy)

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