Padraig and Melinda bring their gear  with their horses (provided) and a pack horse to the rendezvous, where they find 4 Bowmen dressed in standard ranger garb, each with a horse and a second shared pack horse. The Duke's Chamberlain makes introductions and Indicates Lem is the leader of the Scout team. Within about15 Minutes you are ready to proceed West North West toward the river and thence to freehold.

Padraig nodded to the men as they approached "Ah, so you're the men that will be coming with us. he said as he and Melinda pulled up.

"Alright, well the way we should work this is have two of you range forward as we travel, and we can cycle. Anything of particular interest, and we can investigate. But we'll stop an hour or two before darkness comes and each of us can take a shift of guard duty. he said, hoping that the talk would naturally cue the other men to speak up so he could get a measure of their character.

Lem Nods We dun it afore, we kin handle it, ready to go?

"Aye, certainly am. For the most part this should be a reconnaissance mission, but I don't doubt that there will be times when we need to get our hands dirty. So, lets head out and keep our heads about us, eh? he said before picking out the first two rangers to scout ahead as they set off north.

"I imagine it won't be a problem, but Melinda, if any fighting starts, you stay by my side and do not leave it, okay? he said, leaving no question about the tone of his order.


23:04, Today: Padraig MacTire rolled 12 using 3d6.  Leadership. // Pass by 4, with charisma bonus and other status bonuses, I reckon that's pretty good going.


OOC: I guess we'll need to go over kit.

I would guess we'd need to go over equipment a little bit.

1) Could I switch 'boxing' to 'brawling' (as this feels better when considering that after firing a pistol he'd be using it as a cudgel or something with a 'loaded hand' - very brawling esque

2) is there a reason to actually have 'broadsword' and 'rapier'? Could I just pick one and assume that that's the skill he trained with?

3) I would guess he has a pistol or two, and some bullets.
3b) I would guess he'd also have a sword and cloak on (Need to get that +2DB for a heavy cloak)
3c) I guess not a shield.

4) Musical instrument (guitar) instead of fiddle please.


Ahg, we have a list of equipment. nevermind!

1) Could I switch 'boxing' to 'brawling' (as this feels better when considering that after firing a pistol he'd be using it as a cudgel or something with a 'loaded hand' - very brawling esque

Sure, no issue

2) is there a reason to actually have 'broadsword' and 'rapier'? Could I just pick one and assume that that's the skill he trained with?

One defaults to the other, a Rapier is basically a slightly lighter broadsword anyway.

3) I would guess he has a pistol or two, and some bullets.

ONE Pistol and enough stuff to reload it  about 22 times

3b) I would guess he'd also have a sword and cloak on (Need to get that +2DB for a heavy cloak)
I guess,

3c) I guess not a shield.
a Buckler, but not a shield

4) Musical instrument (guitar) instead of fiddle please.
Too big, flute, maybe a lute ...

OOC: I mean I could have an 'aptitude' for guitar, without having one with me.

In reply to Padraig MacTire (msg # 6):

Oh, sorry, misunderstood I guess... Yes, an aptitude for strummed/picked Stringed instruments with a Fret would be fine.

You head just west of north initially then about 3 hours later turn west along a fair sized river. The Duke's forces are in evidence all along it here.
By evening you find a deserted farmstead that  a group of soldiers is camped around. Security in numbers! The soldiers steer you away from the farmhouse it self, small little thing that it is, as there are some long dead bodies still in it.
Melinda makes a face And no one has buried them yet?   She finds a raised round of earth and sweeps it clear, the charred post in the middle suggests it once stored hay. She then starts erecting the tent that Padraig brought with help from a scout or two.

Padraig looked at the soldiers camped about. "Where is your sergeant? And why are there bodies in there? Why haven't they been buried? he asked.

Not our job, we wuz told to move up asap and join the army, we stopped only a wee bit afore' you did. Jus followin' orders.

"Well, while we're waiting and camping here we got a whole night to us, haven't we. Come help me dig graves. We can say some words.

Remember, you're soldiers fighting for these people to save them, the least you can do is honour their sacrifice..."

He said, holding back any suspicion he may have had. Then, as the others prepared, he went into the building and looked at the aftermath to ascertain precisely how they died, and how long ago. He also glanced around the camp for anything that might give away a tall tale or lie.



OOC: I think Padraig should have at least 1 point of soldier given his background.

17:40, Today: Padraig MacTire rolled 10 using 3d6.  Soldier/Fast/tAlk (lying?).
17:40, Today: Padraig MacTire rolled 11 using 3d6.  Heraldry.

There is some grumbling but they get up and start digging graves where directed.

Inside the house are the badly decomposed bodies of a man on the floor, a woman on the bed who may well have been used and abused before being killed, a young boy and a younger girl. The smell is still bad, but was probably much worse in the past.

Moving the bodies is a gruesome task, but there are enough sheets, blankets etc. to make it easier. The soldiers use shovels and a pitch fork to move the remains onto the sheets and you really can't blame them at all.

No Soldier skill.
Your noble status is clear, but not worth too much at this point, but the Dukes sigil on the ring he gave you and the comments of the scouts making it clear you are on a mission for the Duke, count for a lot.

"How did this happen?" he asked.


OOC: I assume that they 'are' soldiers then and not just outlaws?

They don't know but surmise ghat the rebels came and killed the, taking fodder and food for their forces.

These are soldiers for the Duke's army.

"Unsightly, and all too a common occurrence from soldiers..." he said to himself having not directly experienced such acts, but been witness to their discussion during some of the border skirmishes he attended with his father and brothers.

He glanced at the soldiers and then smiled widely though "Not you though, eh, boys? Upstanding soldiery of the Duke himself! Pride and honour held under your banner! he said emphatically and said, with perhaps an undertone of irony that would perhaps leave them sheepish, but clinging to the notion that they were better men.

Before they got too far through witht be bodies and covered in the rot of death, Padraig waved his hand and decided again "I was expecting more in-tact bodies, these look like they've been dead for a while. Put them to fire instead.

---

After the ordeal of dealing with the bodies, Padraig suffered through the stench enough to have a look around the house to see if he could find anything of note. He stepped from the house feeling truly nauseated and afterwards spent a good while rummaging round in his pack for a bottle of brandy to settle his stomach.

Once they'd set up camp and assigned watch, Padraig offering to half the burden of watch with one of his own men per shift, Padraig offered the brandy around but warned "Nobody gets drunk..." and then asked about the soldiers situation.

"So, why are you out here by yourselves? Scouts?

What is going on with the main army, or are there only pockets of resistance to rebels?

Where is trouble, what have you heard? What are plans? all the questions he could think of.

All the men, your scouts included refuse to burn the bodies ... since they have mostly finished the graves, they carry on, although several retch as they do what is necessary.  If you search the building, you do so alone; no one else cares to go back in ... and honestly there isn't much besides a small doll made out of grass bundles tied together with strands of grass and some very cheap pottery. These folks lived very close to the earth indeed.

Watches are et between the soldier and the scouts with two men up at all times ... your willingness to pull a shift goes over well. Quelling some of the disgust that your suggestion of burning the dead raised.

The soldiers have been told they are behind the lines marching to catch up to the army, they have no scouts. They have no further information.

You and Melinda share the tent, she has gone to some length to split the tent down the middle with a cloth, so the soldiers/scouts know that you aren't that kind of people ... but as things calm down she slips over to your side and quietly screws your brains out. She whispers I promised and I  am a woman of my word.

Come morning you eat and break camp; the scouts want to know if you want to continue on with this group of soldiers or move on ahead.

OOC: Well the premise was that they would burn them instead of digging the graves. so does that mean they've all just refused my orders?
 because that kind of undermines the whole leaderdynamic.. ARE they even allowed to refuse?

Why would burning the dead raise problems?

I am assuming a bit of time had passed and they had 4 graves well under way in the soft ground that was once a field.
Burning bodies is seen as unholy (that's what happens in Hell) and disrespectful.

As for directly disobeying your orders ... more like they sort of sidestepped them.
So I'll assume you move on with out bothering with the infantry guys?

Ooc: ah alright a.miscommunication then..

I'll.post shortly.