|
|
Post by sojourn on Jan 20, 2020 19:40:44 GMT
Y|NIKQyu1d20-11d20-1
|
|
|
|
Post by 3personal5me on Jan 20, 2020 21:21:45 GMT
Investigation: kgd0WRhS1d20+61d20+6
|
|
Jarovbees
Approved
Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
Posts: 706
|
Post by Jarovbees on Jan 21, 2020 0:33:36 GMT
Kara and Anthony, through careful searching, eventually found the remains of a skirmish. Broken pitchforks and blood were the first immediate clues that something had gone awry. Drag marks and bare humanoid footprints could also be found, leading into the swamp. Umbrae, distracted with trying to give her sense of smell some relief, hung back until she adapted to the unwholesome stench surrounding them.
"Does anyone need light? I don't, but I have the spell if it's needed...." She paused to cast Prestidigitation on her clothing, trying to keep as much of the swamp's scent off it as possible. It was a lost cause and she knew it, but that gave her a moment to gather her wits and try to keep a balance between alert and not too on-edge.
|
|
|
|
Post by moralhazard on Jan 21, 2020 19:05:48 GMT
Kara blinked owlishly at the dark-haired human from behind her nightvision goggles, and then turned her attention back to the ground. The air smelled foul, like decay, like the rot that bodies left behind when all the rest was gone, like the smell that hung in the air in the absence of hope.
For a moment, Kara lost herself; for a moment, she saw nothing of the woods before her. Her eyes closed behind the goggles, and she drew her glaive. She knew it; through her armor, she knew the feel of it, the weight, the size, even the push of it against the gloves. She gripped it, tightly, breathing deep, until she could bear the smell. Then she opened her eyes again, and continued the hunt, one small, gauntleted hand wrapped around her weapon. She drew the leather sheath tied to the top of it, and stored it away, the bare, polished metal gleaming even in the dingy swamp air.
"Here," Kara said, gruffly, at the sight of the first broken pitchfork. Her jaw tightened at the sight of blood smeared against nearby leaves. She took a few steps further, kneeling to study the tracks closely, careful to keep the butt of her glaive out of the muck. It was hard to tell, with the sludge of the swamp; she could not rule out that the humanoid footprints were orc or orckin.
"This way," Kara said, glancing back over her shoulder at the strange assembly behind her. She turned back to the drag marks, pointing at the length of them with the blade of her glaive. She glanced around the clearing one last time, then turned back to the marks, and let them lead her deeper into the swamp.
|
|
Jarovbees
Approved
Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
Posts: 706
|
Post by Jarovbees on Jan 22, 2020 14:39:37 GMT
As Kara pointed out what Umbrae had been too distracted to notice before, Umbrae frowned. Blood and broken pitchforks were definitely not a good sign, not that she was expecting anything else at this point. Since Kara was leading them further in, following those drag marks, Umbrae decided to follow...but not by foot. Taking out her broom, she softly spoke a command word after standing astride and it hovered, carrying her into the air. She still kept herself below the treeline, not wanting to stray far from her companions, but at least that way she wouldn't have to deal with the sludge directly.
After an hour, the trail was finally lost into the sludge of the swamp. Kara's sharp eyes kept following it as long as she could, but eventually there was nothing to follow. Umbrae slowly circled around in an attempt to pick it up again, and though she could not find a trail, there was something else. She -and the rest- could make out a hooded figure ahead, making no effort at concealment. The figure was pulling something out of a murky pool.
|
|
|
|
Post by 3personal5me on Jan 25, 2020 22:42:28 GMT
Anthony stuck close to the group, the thick mud threatening to steal the boots right off his feet as they walked. He would occasionally spy signs that they were on the right track. A footprint here, a spatter of blood there, it wasn't much but it was enough. The real challenge was the terrain itself. This eventually changed though, as he (and likely the others) realized how much harder it was becoming to follow the tracks. When it eventually faded completely, it seemed like they might have hit a dead end. That was when he spied the cloaked figure in the distance, doing something at the edge of the water.
"A person" he whispered quietly, hoping to be heard by his allies without tipping off the figure. Even with the light amplification of his helmet, it was hard to pick out any details. the Artificer would rather sit and wait, seeing what would happen before heading in. The figure could be friendly, fishing his gold bars and diamonds out of the lake to share with the first strangers he met. He could also be retrieving a Wand of Kill Anyone. With that said, if someone else wanted to barge in, Anthony would back them up.
|
|
|
|
Post by enchilada on Mar 3, 2020 13:35:47 GMT
Dhaunmyr took their sweet time, content that they’d be able to hear, if not, see, if not, sense where Kara had scurried off to in her investigation. Dhaunmyr did not consider themself a great help for anyone involved, despite their ability to navigate both the world below and above. It wouldn’t hurt to wait a little while. Maybe it was the lack of mental preparation, they had to transition from big and bold to head in the game, which they struggled with frequently and rarely had a moment to do. They never voiced this to anyone, for a fear of seeming imperfect, or worse, like a liar. What else do you call someone so rarely themself?
Perhaps against the expectations of those who knew them, the smell barely bothered Dhaunmyr. The streets they grew up near were either crusted with gore, rotting in the dark, damp warmth, or flooded with it, leaving residents to pick their way through with incredibly high heels, or very tall boots, or both. And people thought they were impractical - only slightly. They did notice it, though, but decided not to comment. The air was so incredibly pure most of the time, here... not exactly here. Like, in general.
Dhaunmyr hung close to Kara, holding their bow with slight apprehension whitening their fingertips and knuckles. Blood, pitchforks, scary bit of quiet wood-swamp-whatever... it was basically right out of a horror novel with some kind of horrid twist. Not their thing at all, but it made up a rather disturbing proportion of available literature in their childhood home, and, before they made a large amount of purchases in their local bookstore, recommended books. It wasn’t hurtful or meant with malice, they were sure.
But this was, this happening, these signs. They felt left on purpose, making a point before disappearing to lead into an ambush. Was this such a good idea? At least they were all in one place. And- fuck, shit. On instinct, Dhaunmyr drew back an arrow with almighty speed, staring down the figure. “I don’t like it.” They mumbled to Kara, not breaking their watchful stare on the ‘fisherman’, arms steady but only just.
|
|
|
|
Post by moralhazard on Mar 8, 2020 13:27:32 GMT
Kara knew something of tracking in the woods. She knew that mud was a double-edged sword, when it came to tracks; ground too firm or too wet would not keep the traces of a man gone by. She knew to look for snapped off branches, for small twigs crushed under large feet; she knew to look for tramped grass and splashes of mud on nearby trees. For the better part of an hour, Kara went through the woods, glaive in hand; she crouched, here, to check the direction of prints; she stopped there, to check that the trail still went.
The others followed behind.
In the end, the trail went cold. Kara circled, and circled again; she went back to the last markers she had seen, and she tried what she could. In the end, there was only so much she could do. There always had been.
The man who had come with them whispered. Kara’s gaze jerked up and settled on the distant hooded figure pulling something from the pool.
Kara glanced at Dhaunmyr when her friend spoke, and then at the rest of the party. No one moved.
Kara moved.
She went forward. She knew better than to block Dhaunmyr’s line of sight; she went to the side, and then towards the hooded figure, leaving Dhaunmyr a clean shot. Her gauntleted hand rested on the shaft of her glaive; she let the butt of it brush the ground as she went. Like the figure, she made no attempt at concealment; her half-plate, as well as she kept it, rattled softly when she moved.
Kara stopped ten feet from the figure. Her gaze swept over him, and she stared, for just a moment. Her jaw worked; she swallowed. She shifted, once, from foot to foot.
“We’re looking for missing townsfolk,” Kara said, finally, surprisingly clearly. Her voice was low and rough, as always, but she enunciated, clearly, staring at the hooded figure. She stood straight and upright; she looked right at him. “Have you seen anything strange?” Kara asked.
|
|
Jarovbees
Approved
Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
Posts: 706
|
Post by Jarovbees on Mar 8, 2020 16:28:36 GMT
The figure, once Kara was close enough to realize it, was an orc male pulling out the bloated body of a human woman from the water, only half visible. He hadn't finished when the rattle of Kara's armor alerted him to her presence. Dropping the body instantly, he backed away with wide, fearful eyes and was about to turn and run.... (Everyone, make Perception checks.) Umbrae: 8BQDaaZ31d20+3sojourn 3personal5me enchilada moralhazard1d20+3 |
|
|
|
Post by moralhazard on Mar 8, 2020 16:31:21 GMT
Kara: wwdGk2Md1d20+31d20+3
|
|
|
|
Post by enchilada on Mar 8, 2020 16:35:01 GMT
xsvVI6oA1d20
1d20
|
|
|
|
Post by 3personal5me on Mar 8, 2020 20:02:50 GMT
kvI50eQM1d20+21d20+2
|
|
Jarovbees
Approved
Playing: Solstice (Paladin 6)/Umbrae (Sorcerer 1/Warlock 4)/Avren Wands (Rogue 2/Sorcerer 1)
Posts: 706
|
Post by Jarovbees on Mar 14, 2020 23:12:46 GMT
sojourn I need a Perception check for Kieran.
|
|
|
|
Post by 3personal5me on Mar 15, 2020 13:52:07 GMT
(literally a week later, I remember that Anthony has the Alert feat, so that perception check should be a total of 11)
|
|
