Hudud pockets the seeds, saying "I don't think we should plant these, so I'll keep them off the ground for now."

Jander will make rope as long as the party lingers, stopping when they prepare to move on. I don't want to delay or endanger our party by taking too long.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:39, Thu 08 Mar 2018.

As Brightwit nurses his belly wound, he gazes further up the causeway.  “I see a portcullis up there, leading into the castle.  Or we could try going around, but if we go left it looks like there’s some rubble we’ll have to deal with.”

“Still talkin’ after all this,” Ron Hell adds.

Durian looks around at the others. “So...it’s the portcullis then?”

Ischium shrugs in semi-agreement. “Well, why go ‘round when we just killed these buggers?”

Tarlton laughs  - in agreement or contempt who knows?

Gristle remains silent for the moment.

Adam starts advancing on the portcullis hoping to prove his worth.

Borrs and Squire Roland both nod in agreement, "I appears as though we have a concession."

Hommund: if you want to have Jander continue forward immediately, you may write down 10' worth of vine-rope on your sheet.  Or have him linger behind for a little while, and make it 20'.  (Of course, it might be safer to stick with the party.)

As Adam advances, his eyes feast upon a grim sight.

---

The dark, moss-eaten gatehouse towers
above you, grim and forbidding. Murder holes, fashioned in the like-
ness of looming toads, threaten to gout forth flaming oil and tar.
Black arrow slits pierce the high stone walls. You can hear the flap
of the heretical banner above, hidden from sight by the vine-draped
battlements.
The ancient drawbridge has long since fallen away into ruin, leav-
ing only a few rotting planks placed across the ditch. The heavy iron
portcullis stands half-raised, the rusty spikes a mere four feet above
slots cut into the stone floor.

---

Tell me which characters are doing what.  If some characters are staying put, post that information as well.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:21, Thu 08 Mar 2018.

Jander stops making rope when the party continues to the portcullis. (10' it is!)

Adam, Roland and Borrs will cautiously advance across the boards one at a time. Then hug the wall as they approach the gate.

The three succeed in crossing over, and are now hugging the wall to the left of the portcullis.  Do you wait for more adventurers to join them, or proceed immediately?

Jandar, Hudud, Fasur, and Jander watch Adam, Roland and Borrs move across the boards toward the gate. If they're able to make it under the gate safely, the four will follow carefully.

Homund: Are you waiting until the others have passed under the portcullis?

“If they made it across, I guess we can,” Thorrible says, in spite of his reluctance.

Ducius, Thorrible, Brightwit and Ron Hell cross over the boards and join the others.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:02, Fri 09 Mar 2018.

Once Adam, Roland and Borrs see that they are not alone on this side of the bridge they will slowly enter the courtyard with weapons at the ready.

Led by Adam, the seven of you boldly make your way into the courtyard.  Too late, you hear a mirthful snarling coming from the upper level of the gatehouse.  The portcullis slams down, trapping one of you.

It’s Thorrible!  His guts ooze out around the spike that has pierced him.  With his last breath, he mutters,

“It hurts... it hurts!”

Then he coughs, blood pouring from his mouth.  Soon he is still.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:22, Fri 09 Mar 2018.

---

The courtyard is overgrown with sickly
weeds and thick brambles. A deathly silence hangs in the air, as if
even the frogs and insects are afraid to draw attention to themselves.
The smell of rotting vegetation is pervasive, and the ground sucks at
your boots with every tentative step.
Nearly all of the courtyard’s buildings have fallen into ruin. A single
burnt-out shell set against the keep’s east wall is the only remaining
structure. Set near the heart of the courtyard is a well, framed with
a crude pulley system. To the east is the keep’s sole standing tower.

---

Reminder: only Smithy's characters and the NPCs have entered the courtyard.  All other characters are on the other side, and the portcullis (with Thorrible's impaled corpse) is down.

Jandar, Hudud, Fasur, and Jander have crossed what remains of the drawbridge, but they are outside the castle.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:16, Fri 09 Mar 2018.

“Well that didn’t go very well, did it?” Tarlton  said with a sad chuckle.

“Now what do we do fellas?” Ischium asked

“Hey!” Gristle yells to the guys inside the courtyard. “You guys see a switch to re-raise the portcullis over there?”

Durian pipes up;  “ And lock it in place so the rest of us don’t become Shish Ka-bobs?”

Adam and Borrs will look around for a way to raise the gate while Roland keeps a watchful eye.

Adam and Borrs look around the lower level of the gatehouse (your present location), but they don’t see any levers or any other obvious way to raise the portcullis (which was only half raised to begin with).

You hear boots clomping overhead, and then a loud, ominous bell tolls.

(Those of you who are on the other side of the portcullis may also act.)

Jandar, Hudud, Fasur, and Jander approach the portcullis. The first three try to raise it, lifting, while Jander collects any personal items of Thorrible's that might be of use.

Roland will try helping lift the gate. Adam will keep an eye out.
Borrs will search for something to put under the gate if it is able to be lifted up.

Jandar, Hudud, Fasur, and Roland manage to lift the portcullis up far enough to give about two feet of clearance, and for now, are able to keep it up.  Thorrible's body rises at first along with the gate, then slides off the spike, landing with a grisly plop.  Jander crawls to it and searches quickly, and takes the following items off his unfortunate comrade:

1 hammer (as club), 1 oz. Mithril, a small sack.

As for Borrs, where exactly is he searching?  He finds nothing in the gatehouse that could be used to prop up the portcullis.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:01, Fri 09 Mar 2018.

That's good for Borrs, he didn't want to stray too far.

Will wait for the other people make it through.

Jander holds up the 1 hammer (as club), 1 oz. Mithril, a small sack for others to see and says, "If anyone else needs this stuff, we have it now." He puts it in his pack.

Can two people hold up the portcullis? If so, one will slide under, as will Jander. They will then hold it up for the remaining people to come over.

Durian crawls carefully under the portcullis, muttering muttering promises to Gods that are forgotten as soon as he regains his feet.

Ischium and Gristle go through next, then Tarlton, pushing his backpack ahead of him.

They all stand silent as they scan the area, wondering about the source of the bell and the clomping boots.

Hold on, players.  You’re getting way ahead of yourselves.

Oofi, to perform the actions you just described, first your characters must cross the planks leading over the ditch. Only then will they be next to the gatehouse. Secondly, they need to address the problem of the portcullis.

Homund: can two people hold up the portcullis?  You won’t know until two people have tried.  At the moment, four people are barely holding it up, but only by a two foot margin.  If they continue doing that, characters may attempt to crawl through (past Thorrible’s corpse).  But there is no guarantee they’ll be able to keep holding it up.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:29, Fri 09 Mar 2018.