The plain little village green of Criplot is awash with hubbub and noise. Most of the menfolk have already left for their day's work in the mines, but the green is thronged with women and children, some peeking out nervously from behind the doors of their simple cottages; several gathered on the steps of the village shrine on the eastern edge of the green. All have congregated to gawk at the unusually large number of strangers that have stopped here to rest their feet on this pleasant autumn morning.

The sounds of chatter and giggling are suddenly interrupted by a woman's panicked cries. A middle-aged woman, dirty and disshevelled, with a trickle of blood dried on the side of her face, comes running into the green from the northeast road. A boy of about 8 or 9 with tears streaking his muddy face is hot on her heels.

The woman looks around her with frantic eyes, pausing to quickly gasp for air before blurting out 'My babies! Help! They took my babies!'

Maiya had many questions in life--some of which were the more higher, philosophical kind--like why the sky was blue of all colors.

Others were more down to earth, like "What am I going to do for dinner tonight" or "Why, precisely, did someone call this place Criplot of all things?  What story is behind that because it has unfortunate connotations and suggests a vaguely goblinoid origin."

But she was still a knight errant of the Order of the Steel Pen, and that meant something darnit!  So even though allegedly she was serving as the bodyguard to the priestess here...

Well, there was only one thing to do, one question relevant at the moment.

"Which way Ma'am, and how many?"  She asked, clinking forward and all business.  There was no time to lose!
This message was last edited by the player at 06:30, Wed 14 Aug 2019.

Harbek had been on the road since first light, hoping to get in as many miles as he could before the morning heat really made itself felt. At the moment he was taking a welcome respite under the shade of a tree in a little roadside Human village when a Human female came rushing up, wailing that "they" had taken her babies.

Harbek rose to his feet, but a different Human female -- a much younger one, wearing armor -- had already stepped in and was asking questions. Mindful of the proper etiquette, Harbek waited until the Human had finished asking her questions before he asked a few of his own.

"What sort of creatures took your bnarrs . . . ah, your children, goodwife?" he inquired gently, in his rumbling baritone.

"If you are not sure, please describe them for us. Also, how many creatures are we dealing with here, and how many of your children were taken?"

In his own mind Harbek was uncertain as to whether the armor-clad female had inquired as to the number of marauding creatures or children that they should be seeking to rescue, so he asked the question a little differently.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:40, Tue 13 Aug 2019.

Daniel heads for the northeast road to look for trail signs...not that he actually expects to find them on the road, buy hope springs eternal.

Dorian was walking down a road, trying to remember how he got there. A recurrent question in his life. He's sure that he's walking in a straight line, though gravity seems to be messy right now, forcing him to constantly maintain his equilibrium.

And suddenly a scream! He sees a desperate person talking to a heavily armored woman and instinctively he raises his hands "It wasn't me!". He freezes in this position as another one joins the party, a dwarf, interesting. Dorian then starts to feel his jacket's sleeves get wet. The Horror! He was spilling his precious wine all over himself from the bottle in his hand. He lowers his arms, annoyed by the situation and mentally cursing the strangers. But one must not cry over the spilled wine, so he joins the group "What's happening here?"

The woman glances around her in dazed confusion for a moment, obviously overwhelmed by emotion and barely registering what's said to her. She stares at Mariya blankly for a moment until, taking in her martial gear and religious iconography, her eyes suddenly fill with hope.

"Oh, praise the Good Lady for bringing you to us!" She reaches out imploringly. "Goblins, my lady! Goblins! They attacked us on the path a ways back. They left me and Jon," at the mention of Jon she suddenly glances around in panic, relief showing on her face as she sees the boy she arrived with being comforted by a matronly villager. Her eyes flick back to Maiya "But they took little Ami and Todd with them! Snatched them up and dragged then away!"

Her voice rises to almost a scream as she speaks, and a wave of gasps and muttering ripples through the crowd of gathered village women. "Goblins?!" "Right on the road?!" "In broad daylight?!"

Without responding to him directly -- Harbek supposed that it was appropriate for the distraught woman to look to a person who apparently was, given her martial equipment and the village woman's choice of words, one of their primary goddess's warriors -- for aid, the villager answered the Dwarf's questions. Goblins were the culprits and they had snatched two children, apparently.

Harbek made no comment, seeing as how the villager was more comfortable addressing the female warrior. He had noted, however, a Human male hurrying down the road in the direction where the attack had apparently occurred, and a second Human male had just joined them and asked what was happening.

It did not escape the orderly Dwarf's notice that the Human male who stood close by held a bottle of wine in his hand, and the fellow's breath stank of liquor. The corners of Harbek's mouth turned down in a disapproving frown -- seemingly this Human had started his drinking much too early, (or mayhap more likely, given the fact that the fellow seemed a trifle unsteady on his feet, had been drinking the whole night through).

~Disappointingly undisciplined,~ Harbek thought to himself as he turned back to face the armor-clad Human female, giving her the opportunity to represent her goddess well and take charge in this trying situation.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:58, Wed 14 Aug 2019.

Mari sent a quick prayer of thankfulness to Ellantha for the fact that nobody was paying too much attention to her or her flaming cheeks. She tried to tell herself, you're a Chosen of Ellantha, carrying out her divine wishes in the world, conduit of power most people only dream of... But to no avail, when she had met her mother and siblings again, it was as she had never left and was still a teenager.

Sight of commotion distracted her from more inner dialogue and the mention of goblins was sure to draw her attention to the group that was crowding around Kara. She noticed the holy warrior of Ellantha with interest, Criplot didn't usually draw people like her.

Weaving carefully around all the people until she was near enough that she could be seen and heard by the distraught woman, she asked, "Mrs. Flitfoot, how many goblins did you see and what direction they fled to?" Her cheeks reddened even more with drawing so much attention but she reached for Kara's hand and took it onto her own holding tightly. "By Ellantha's grace we will find Ami and Todd unharmed, but you need to calm down and help us help you." Looking into her eyes, she hoped Kara could see the sincerity of her offer. "Are you and Jon unharmed, do you need healing?" Mari glanced around to see the boy taken care of.

Today seemed to be another typical day for Karadin. Following the road west, he was passing through a simple human village and figured it was a good place to stop for a rest. It had been the same pattern day after day, and he was starting to question why he'd left home. The hardy dwarf sat with his back against a large rock, pondering questions of self-doubt, as he absently picked at his teeth with a small piece of wood.

There was some commotion in the northeast part of the green. Karadin watched with half-hearted interest as some human woman cried about frantically. Several other humans seemed to scramble to assist her, but when Karadin noticed a fellow dwarf in the crowd, his interest increased when he noticed a fellow dwarf in the crowd. And when the shouts of "Goblins" echoed through the crowd, Karadin jumped to his feet, grabbed his pack in one hand and his axe in his other, and ran toward the crowd.

Stopping next to the other dwarf. "Goblins, eh? How about we go have some fun? Show these humans how dwar handles goblin problems." he said in Dwarvish.

Zarth strides up next to the group speaking loudly in broad daylight, his hood pulled up to obfuscate his face. He listens intently to the conversation of goblins and missing children, nodding along with information. Having nothing of importance to add to the conversation himself he simply readies to follow along and get in a fight, he's had a bad past few tendays anyway.

"Not for long if I've anything to say about it.""  Maiya nodded, satisfied at the report.  "Then, everyone willing to fight, with me!  We'll retrieve them before the goblins can get very far!"

An adventure!  How exciting!

You can all see Kara (as the cleric referred to her) visibly try to calm herself, fighting back the tears from her eyes. She smiles gratefully at Maiya, hope showing in her face, before turning to answer Mari.

"Oh, sweet Mari. You've changed so much in such a short time. We are fine," she glances at Jon as she says this and lets her hand drift to the cut on her forehead. "It's just a scratch; don't worry about me. Please save the young uns. We know what you can do. I don't know how many - it all happened so fast. It was about a mile back, near the fork in the road towards Everlun. I don't know where they went." Tears start to well up again.

"South!" The young boy raises his head from where he had been crying. "They ran south from the road, I saw them go."

OOC: Real life has unexpectedly detained Raven for a few days, so don't worry about waiting on her to post for now. If you decide to leave before she's ready to post, I'll have her tag along.

"Mrs. Flitfoot... Kara. We will do everything we can to get your babies back to you. The information you gave will be enough to find them," she said with more conviction than she felt inside. Tracking could be a tricky thing but by the sounds of it they had not been trying to hide.

With a final pat on Kara's hand she turned to Maiya who seemed to be excited about the prospect of following goblins to their lair. "I will join you, it has been a few years since I've been here last but I have some memories of the areas close by that could be helpful." She wasn't at all sure she was willing to fight, like the holy warrior had requested, but she was prepared to support anyone that would help save the children.

Harbek smiled broadly when the second Dwar appeared and suggested that they "show these Humans how Dwar handle Goblin problems." "That sounds like an excellent idea, Stone-Brother!" he exclaimed happily, also speaking in Dwarven. "But do you need a moment to don your armor?"

He was pleased to see the Human female holy warrior -- for this was what she appeared to be, a paladin -- and the female priest take charge of the situation and organize a group to track the Goblins down and deal with them.

Switching to heavily-accented but understandable Merinthian, Harbek raised his hand and spoke to the paladin. "My fellow-Dwar and I are eager to aid you. You can count on us to take the fight to the Goblins."
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 22:55, Wed 14 Aug 2019.

Dorian stands aside as the crowd grows bigger. He makes a quick scan to search for unsupervised pockets, but this idea leaves his head as fast as it came. He takes a big sip of wine while listening to the happening, until it is finally said: Goblins. Yes, that makes sense. Goblins like having little kids either to eat or to sell. He may or may not have already traded some stolen goods for a couple of young slaves...I mean...crew.

But that was good sign, not for the lady, of course, but for Dorian. If there were goblins, there could be some treasure.

Dorian sees that some of the stand out people have already prompted themselves to help and, even though that was already spoken, he raises his voice and says "No fear, ma'am! Your kids will be rescued! Rescue team, assemble!".  And readily starts his unsteady walk toward south, not waiting particular manifestations, but still doing it rather slowly so he could see if anyone would join. He surely wouldn't go alone.

"My good friend, armor would only slow me down. Besides, its just goblins," he laughed. He grabbed the shaft of his axe. "Shall we?"

Just outside of the small village named Criplot in the direction of the northeast road, a pale-skinned and dark-haired woman sat atop a small rise to the north of the road, enjoying a bit of peaceful solitude and fresh air, and reading from a book which sat open on her lap. She had been so engrossed in what she was reading that she had completely missed seeing...

A middle-aged woman, dirty and disheveled, with a trickle of blood dried on the side of her face, comes running into the green from the northeast road. A boy of about 8 or 9 with tears streaking his muddy face is hot on her heels.

... but the noise of a growing clamor coming from the village drew her attention and looking up she noted that a small parade of people -- and what appeared to be two dwarves -- were making their way down the northeast road. She closed her book, placed it back in her pack, and rose gracefully to her feet. Curious as to what was going on, she moved to follow the procession at a distance -- content for the moment to satisfy her curiousity with a bit of remote observation.

OOC: Please note that the above happens once the group actually begins to make their way out of village in pursuit of the goblins. If there's more dialogue to be had before that happens, just kindly retcon this post where it needs to be in the story sequence. Also, if I happened to get the directions wrong, I apologize. My intent was to have Raven see the group leaving the village wherever that happens to happen. Thanks! 

Several village women cluster forward to comfort and support Kara as she pours out profusive thanks to all those volunteering to help.

A diminutive figure forces his way through the crowd to stand before the gathered adventurers. While most of his clothes are the same, drab peasant garb as the rest of the villagers, he wears over it a bright red coat of fine leather, which has evidently seen better days but was presumably once quite pricey. Clearing his throat, he pulls himself up to his full 5'5" and puffs out his rather scrawny chest.

"My good people! As bailiff of this village, and official representative of the honourable Lord Oterhal," his puffy cheeks noticeably redden, while most of those present pay him little attention and continue to soothe Kara and Jon. "I will not stand idly by while our children's safety is threatened! I will secure the aid of a Champion of our Lady; and even Dwarven warriors from distant lands!" he proudly declares as if such aid was not already offered.

Seeing little reaction from his audience, he holds his hand overheard in a gesture presumably intended to be dramatic, and delcares "Great rewards will be offered for those who will step forth to save our threatened kin!" after which a look of panic momentarily crosses his face on considering what he just said.

Ignoring the bailiff's theatrics, Kara turns again to Mari, clearly now in more control of herself. "Please hurry child. It was on the northeast road, near the Everlun junction; not an hour past. Please find them, before they.." She cuts off with a choked sob.

'Not quite that distant I think?'  Maiya thought, but the point was taken, and the response rallied.  She hoisted up her pack and gestured down the way.  "Let's be off then while the trail is still warm!  Swiftness is our greatest ally in this!"

Like everyone, Mari ignored the bailiff other than noting his words in passing. She remembered him from before and it didn't seem he had changed much other than few grey hairs. She nodded to Kara to confirm she was on it, simply turning to walk away towards the road to Everlun.

Grabbing the straps of her pack to adjust it more comfortably on her shoulders, she concentrated on the road before her and prayed to the success of their mission. After a while few beads of sweat started to run down her forehead from the exertion.

Harbek looked askance at his fellow-Dwar when he replied that armor would only slow him down. Then it dawned upon Harbek that he must be in the presence of one of the hvati hjorleiks* -- fearless warriors who were quick to charge into battle, but who purposefully did not wear armor. They were not overly common among the Dwar, and Harbek himself had never met one before, so he was rather curious to see how this fellow would conduct himelf in battle.

"Aye, I'm with you," Harbek replied, strolling over to the tree where he been resting, and picking up his backback.

Rejoining the other Dwar and shrugging his shoulders into the straps of the pack, he said, "Let me deal with the formalities first, as is meet and proper. I am Harbek, of the Hardstone family, of the Hardshaft clan, and I hail from Krak Vestri**.

By now the Human female holy warrior was doing her best to get the unwieldy group of would-be rescuers moving, and Harbek nodded his understanding to her. Turning to the other Dwar, he smiled and exclaimed "Let us be off to kill some Goblins! You can return the formalities as we move along."

---

OOC:

*Bold warrior, brave warrior in the Merinthian tongue.

**The Western Hold, or Westhold, in the Merinthian tongue.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:33, Thu 15 Aug 2019.

Daniel will follow the NE road in whatever actual direction it goes that is closest to south.


OOC: What actual directions does the road go?

Nodding along with the rest of group as they introduce themselves and gather information from the distraught mother, always picking through for the important bits.

"Zarth Willowstriker, I think it best not to tarry much longer in the face of abduction of children by goblin."

His voice feels a bit forced and stilted but does show a modicum of compassion as he speaks. All the while his hood remains pulled up, casting dark shadows across where his face would be.

"Maiya Greenfield, guardian of the Sturmbund in the Order of the Iron Quill"  She explained, as she began to hustle up now that the direction was granted.  "If Goblins are striking at people this close to town, it's our Goddess-ordained duty to remind them of the folly of such villainy!"

One by one, the hastily assembled group of strangers sets out eastward along the road to Everlun, Dorian belatedly joining on the rear as he notices through his drunken haze that everyone else went the other way. Daniel is already some distance ahead of the group, scanning for tracks further along the road; while Raven tags along a short distance behind.

The 'road' is little more than a dirt path through the surrounding fields; where mounds of the recently harvested wheat are piled high to dry. Deep ruts left by the regular passage of carts form muddy little puddles everywhere you step.

It only takes about 20 minutes or so of walking before you're able to see a fork in road some way ahead; one path heading off to the north east and one to the south east.

~Commendable, very commendable -- especially for a Human, who is not favored with a Dwar's innate sense of discipline,~ Harbek thought to himself as he noted the activities of the lone Human who was several dozen yards ahead of the main body. The fellow had quickly moved down the road towards the spot where the Goblins had made their attack -- and this was on his own initiative, without having anyone tell him so, which was what Harbek found so impressive.

To Harbek's eye, the Human seemed focused on the roadway and adjacent portion of the fields, and it seemed obvious enough that he was attempting to find tracks that would lead them to the raiders and the captive children.

Glancing behind him, Harbek noted the drunkard staggering along some little distance behind the main body. ~That fellow, on the other hand,~ the Dwar thought to himself, ~could simply fall into a ditch, and 'twould suit me just fine.~

As was ususal, given their shorter strides and slightly slower pace, as compared to most Humans, the two Dwar found themselves at the tail-end of the formation. Harbek turned back to the front and stepped out into the field to the side of the road, so that there was no one in front of him to block his voice.

Intending to hail the Human who was a goodly distance ahead of them, he raised his voice and called out "Hoi! Tracker! Have you found any signs of their passage?"
This message was last edited by the player at 19:30, Fri 16 Aug 2019.

Mari glanced back rather sharply at the shouting dwarf, but kept walking, the fork in the road was the one Kara had mentioned, so there should be tracks there if there was anywhere. There was no need to announce their arrival for the whole countryside by being so loud.

She walked at the northern edge of the path, figuring it was the best way to avoid trampling on any tracks that might show on it or at the southern side where the goblins had retreated. In her mind, she started going through of her memories of the area and tried to assemble them to a formate that would be useful even for those that had never visited there. Along the way she picked up a stick that could be used for drawing on dirt, perhaps she could make a rudimentary map for the benefit of all.

When arriving closer to the junction she kept more close eye on any tracks there might be on the muddy path or leading away from it.

Taking a moment to draw with her stick on the ground Mari produced a rudimentary map. When finished she spoke up to everyone that might be listening:

"This is a general look on this area. As you can see, the north is at the top. This path leads to the mine, although it stops before it, because the land is too rough for carts. The other path goes to Everlun. For now it looks like the goblins are running towards the hills and while there could be good hiding places for them there, naturally they might also change direction before reaching there." She pointed south where the bushes next to the path had been broken and marks of small muddy feet and dragging could be seen leading off of the road.



OOC
Cartographer's Tool check to see if Mari could draw a rudimantary map of the area close by (if she is familiar enough with it).
Survival check for finding tracks.

22:35, Today: Mari Taysley rolled 13 using 1d20.  Cartographer's Tool check, add suitable stat modifier and proficiency.
22:34, Today: Mari Taysley rolled 17 using 1d20+5.  Survival, tracking.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:28, Fri 16 Aug 2019.

As he was walking away, Dorian looked over his shoulder and realized that not only he had been completely ignored, but also that he was going the wrong direction. Clearly his guidance skills were much better at the sea than in firm land. Or the boy was simply misleading with all his three hands. But maybe it was time to sober up a little, so Dorian make a quick turn and headed to the well, as if it was his intention all along. He picked  some water from the bucket and splashed it into his face. Then a quick shake to put the brain back on tracks, being careful not to drop his hat.

Okay, so people seemed to know where they were heading. It even seemed that at least one of them, a beautiful blond woman, was a local. He simply followed the group as steady as he could until they found themselves in a fork. He watched as he blond woman drew the map and pointed south. Yes...now south, definitely. But just to be sure this time, he decided to wait the others move first.

As the rest of the group gathered their gear and started off to the northeast, Karadin introduced himself to Harbeck. "I am but a common laborer with a love for crafting fine drink and meals, and am not accustom to such formal greetings. I am Karadin, of the Axebeard family with the Craghaven Dwar, located in... well, Craghaven."

Once the group reached the fork in the road, Karadin dropped his pack to the ground with a small sigh of relief. He took a small sip from his waterskin. "I'd say we need to head south based on what that child said," he said as he wiped the excess water from his beard. "But I will leave the decision making to those of you much more accustomed to making decisions."

Daniel does not wait for the rest of the group to catch up and ignores Harbek's hails. By the time Mari is drawing her map and pointing out the signs of a recent struggle, Daniel is already striding southwards over the fields.

The dark-haired stranger that followed behind the group seemed to easily move at a quicker pace than most of the others in the procession, and before the group had made it to the fork in the road she had caught up to the pair of dwarves who lagged a bit behind the other longer-legged folk. When the armored dwarf sought to hail someone farther down the road, the stranger then saw that a lone figure had moved far out ahead of the procession, and it almost seemed as if the group were chasing this lone individual. Curious though that the dwarf had called him a tracker though, and to whose passage was he referring?

She cleared her throat politely to announce her presence to the dwarves ahead of her -- just in case they hadn't noticed her behind them -- and spoke, her voice heavily accented and marking her as a foreigner to Merinthia, though she seemed to speak the local language (Merinthian) quite well. "Excuse me, sirs. What is going on? Are you chasing that fellow far up ahead?" 
This message was last edited by the player at 07:53, Sat 17 Aug 2019.

In reply to Raven (msg # 31):

"The pleasure of the meeting is mine, Karadin of the Axebeard Family, of the Craghaven Dwar," Harbek responded in the accepted manner, completing the Greeting Ritual that Dwar all over Merinthia followed when first meeting another of the Stout Folk -- and, by extension, members of other races whom the Dwar wished to honor by following the same formalities that they would with another Dwar.

As Karadin spoke to the others in the group, a dark-haired Human female caught up with them and inquired in the Human tongue what was going on, and whether they were chasing the Human male whom Harbek had just hailed.

"Nay, Human stranger," Harbek replied, not being able to honor her by addressing her by name, since she did not follow the formalities of the Greeting Ritual -- not that Harbek held that oversight against her, since she was a Human, and most likely did not know any better.

He turned and glanced ahead at the fellow whom the female had inquired about. "Apparently a group of Goblins carried off a couple of bnarrs . . . umm, children, from the family of a female who resides in that village behind us."

"I had thought that the Human male who is out ahead of us was tracking the raiders and their captives -- and I suppose that must be the case, since we are all following along behind him, like unto a pack of canine puppies."

"However, he did not respond to my hail inquiring as to whether he had succeeded in his efforts to find signs of our quarries' passage. Seemingly he is either hard of hearing, or quite rude. Thus, we are left somewhat in the dark -- as I believe you Humans say -- on the matter, and can only hope that he will prove to be competent."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:01, Sat 17 Aug 2019.

Zarth nods somewhat with Harbek.

"Generally those that run ahead with disregard for potential assistance are the first to die. A stubborn mind is difficult to sway anyway, I wouldn't pay it any mind."

Nodding once again, clearly pleased with his social skills today Zarth becomes quiet once more and looks around for signs of goblins... and potential ambushes.

"Goblins kidnapping children in broad daylight?!" The woman gasped in surprised shock, her drawling accent making the words sound strange as she unnecessarily drew out the vowel sounds. "That's horrible. May I join you in helping to recover the children?" She asked, addressing the dwarf who had spoken, genuine concern showing in her tone voice and body language. "The folk here have been kind to me, a stranger to these lands, and I would repay their kindness if I can." She would have gone further and introduced herself but she still habitually followed the customs of her native culture, which demanded that she wait until her hosts had the honor of introducing themselves first -- and as far as she could tell these lands belonged to the dwarves too.

"Indeed," she agreed, as another one of the procession -- a man who kept his hood pulled up --  commented on the behavior and implications of the one who they had named the Tracker.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:06, Sat 17 Aug 2019.

"Time will tell," Harbek replied, affably enough, to the Human male who had strolled up and joined the conversation. It was a Human phrase that Harbek actually liked, acknowledging as it did one of the inexorable primeval Forces of the multiverse, although the Dwar very much doubted that Time meant the same thing to Humans as it did to his own people.

Harbek turned back to face the Human female who had responded to his comments. He decided that he liked her, mayhap because it seemed that she was also a stranger to these lands. It was not her accent that gave it away -- his ears were not yet accustomed enough to hearing the Human tongue spoken to be able to distinguish the speech of one region from another -- 'twas the fact that she came right out and said it.

"I do not believe that this is an organized group, although mayhap the female holy warrior in armor who is at the head of the column might be considered a leader of sorts. But insofar as I can tell, all who have a desire to rescue the children and punish the raiders -- and who are willing to put their own lives at risk to do so -- are welcome to join in."

"The more the merrier," he added, giving a slight shrug. This was another Human saying that he had heard, although truth be told, he thought it quite silly. He found himself wondering if the Elves had originally coined the phrase.

After a moment's thought, Harbek decided to honor the Human female -- and, by extension, the Human male who had joined the conversation -- by gracing them with the Greeting Ritual. He squared his shoulders and sketched a bow to the two Humans. "'Tis time to perform the formalities, methinks. I am Harbek, of the Hardstone Family, of the Hardshaft Clan. Although I would not expect either of you to recognize it, I hail from Krak Vestri -- 'Westhold', in the Human tongue. 'Tis in the foothills of the Worldtop Mountains, and guards one of the approaches to the High King's Hold."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:39, Sat 17 Aug 2019.

"Zarth Willowstriker, I'm from... here and there."

The hood visibly rustles a bit as Zarth dodges introduction with the grace of a cat avoiding water. He does return the bow though it feels a bit forced, clearly he's not the type that bows much.

"I may be a bit harsh, I'm not very accustomed to interacting with other people lately and have been left with my thoughts of late."

He trails off a bit awkwardly at the end of his last statement, as if to leave an opening to speak more though no more words spill forth from the hood.

The woman smiled at the dwarf's invitation, her expression turning serious though as he continued on to introducing himself. She was no stranger to ritualized greetings, her own people had similar customs, and she returned his bow with a graceful curtsy. "Honored I am to met thee, Harbek of the Hardstone family of the Hardshaft clan," she replied sincerely, her words taking on a more formal tone.

(Edit) "And also thee, Zarth surnamed Willowstriker," the woman continued, including the hooded man.

 "May Rahashu's winds bring both of thee and all thy kin favor and fortune," she added, spreading her hands, palms up, in a symbolic act of giving, as she dipped her head slightly in respect. "I am Raven of the city of Arvada of the Sapphire Empire, which lies across the eastern sea and beyond the Acanti coast."     
This message was last edited by the player at 19:45, Sat 17 Aug 2019.

Harbek pursed his lips thoughtfully as the two Humans replied to his Greeting, and smiled broadly when the Human female replied with what he recognized as a Greeting Ritual of her own people. Truth be told, it sounded quite well-mannered and cordial to his ears, although he found it odd that she did not name her family. He had grown accustomed to Humans not giving a clan name, since belonging to a clan was seemingly not oft-practiced in their realms.

Nodding in acknowledgment of their replies, he completed his portion of the Ritual by speaking the words "The pleasure of the meeting is mine, Zarth of the Willowstriker family, hailing from Here and There, and Raven, hailing from the city of City of Arvada of the Sapphire Empire."

Turning to Zarth, he added "I will admit to not being familiar with your home place of Here and There. Admittedly the name sounds a bit odd to my ear, but I do not mean to give offense. Mayhap you can tell me more of it, once we have vanquished the Goblins and are talking to one another over ales, back in yon village."

Although all Dwar were tutored in basic geography before they reached adulthood, Harbek had to think for a moment to remember the whereabouts of the Sapphire Empire. He found that he was unable to place the city of Arvada within the general location of the afore-mentioned empire.

"And although I am sadly lacking in details concerning your homeland and your people, Mistress Raven, I would also be honored to learn more about both, as time allows."

After a moment's hesitation, he added "Lastly, there is a matter concerning my people that I am most anxious to better understand, Mistress Raven. I would be interested to hear if your people have ever experienced such a thing, to your knowledge."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:24, Sat 17 Aug 2019.

Feeling a bit more refreshed, Karadin put his waterskin away, stood up and grabbed his pack again. "The more we talk the further away those goblins are getting. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad y'all came to help, I just hope there's enough goblins for the rest of you." He started walking after the human already heading toward the south.

Mari left the stick she had drawn her map with laying on the ground among the other discarded branches and walked towards the south following the track, carefully seeing if there was any footprints diverging from it.

Assuming you all follow Karadin and Mari, you head southwards through gently rising land, progressively rockier and drier as you head southwards. You all note Daniel, far ahead, taking a sharp turn to the east and continuing upwards into the hills.

It was not by mere chance that Raven had not given a family name. True, humans tended to put more emphasis on belonging to a location rather than a bloodline, but "Raven" wasn't even the woman's real name, only the one she had assumed on arriving in Merinthia. She was starting life anew here, and that meant setting down new roots and building new family ties... and right now she had no family ties to name. Besides, any family she still had left in Arvada likely didn't want her back anyway, not after the...

Her thoughts trailed off as she realized Master Harbek was addressing her again...



"Of course," Raven replied. "It would be my pleasure to help in any way I could, Master Harbek. I..." She began, but was interrupted by the other dwarf.



"Oh, yes! Of course!" Raven exclaimed, blushing in embarrassment at holding up the posse from following the goblins -- even then color barely flushed her face and her complexion remained almost unnaturally pale.

"By your leave, Master Harbek, I'll walk beside you and we can talk as we go," she offered, awaiting the armored dwarf's response.

In reply to Raven (msg # 42):

"Aye, 'twould be best if we walk along as we talk, I believe," Harbek replied to Mistress Raven. "I have learned that once I fall behind Humans, I cannot catch up to them without running -- which I deem to be highly undignified in such circumstances." Someone else might have laughed and made a jest out of the reference to a running Dwar looking undignified, but Harbek stated it very matter-of-factly, as if he was simply speaking the facts.

He glanced over at Raven as they moved along at the tail-end of the column. "I will admit to finding you most intriguing, Mistress Raven," he said after a moment.

"As you may know, many of us Dwar do not travel far from our Home-Place. Some live out their entire lives amongst family and kin, in the very same Krak were they were born. But you ... you have traveled what must be many hundreds -- if not thousands -- of leagues, leaving family and kin, hearth and home behind you. Ah, the sights you must have seen, and the peoples you must have seen along the way!"

Harbek paused for a moment, and then continued. ""If you do not mind my asking, Mistress Raven . . . I will admit to finding your situation intriguing, in part because it is so un-Dwar-like . . ."

"But, any way . . . is it proper amongst Humans to ask personal questions when one has just met the other? If 'tis, please do tell me what has lead you so far from your Home Place -- and your family and your people?"

"Oh, and before I forget, do Dwar live in your Home Country?"

Now Harbek did smile. "I must admit that I found basic geography to be quite the boring subject when I was being tutored as a young lad, so I am sadly remiss when it comes to knowing such details. I was day-dreaming of weapons-training nearabouts the entire time that our tutor -- Master Thorin, the Floating Nose-Bleed -- was droning on . . . and on, and on."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:54, Sun 18 Aug 2019.

Mari was quietly singing a hymn while she walked, just to calm herself and focus to the task at hand.

"Glorious Mother, who nurtures us,
we praise you.
Good Lady, who banishes darkness,
we praise you.
Shining Lady, who teaches us,
we praise you.
Gentle Lady, who soothes our pain,
we praise you.
Righteous Lady, who helps us fight evil,
we praise you.
Ellantha, creator of all life,
we praise you."

While it wasn't meant as marching song, it lend itself to it well. She felt the weight of her gear lessen, her mind elevate to shed the boredom of walking and she even forgot to be conscious about her less than perfect voice.

Mari was taking note of the change in terrain and seeing the man at front change direction she grew worried of losing the track, since the ground would turn only more rocky the further they would go to the hills. Paying even more attention to the ground, she continued following the track.

"Much haste makes great waste," Raven replied sagely, purposely taking smaller strides to match pace with the shorter-legged Harbek. "Besides, if we recall the moral of the tortoise and the hare then 'tis slow and steady that wins the race."

Raven laughed at Harbek's imagined fantasy of what her journey to Merinthia must have been like. It was a beautiful sound, like crystal chimes in a gentle breeze. "If you count endless leagues of oceans and waves, then I have indeed seen sights beyond number," she said. "Arvada is a sea port and it was by ship that I left. We did stop at several ports of call before crossing what the folk here call the eastern sea, but truth be told I never left the boat. Acanti sailors are a superstitious lot," she explained. "And a woman on board is said to bring a ship and her crew bad luck. The captain was gracious enough to grant me passage, but the bargain was I had to stay out of sight. On the bright side though, Rahashu's winds were kind and I found that the first mate was a Merinthian. It was he who taught me the language during the voyage."   

Raven's expression then grew serious and she was silent for a several paces before she answered the dwarf's question about why she left Arvada. "In only the short time we have spoken I have already gathered that you Dwar," she began, using the same word Harbek had used for his own people. "Value kith and kin much more than we humans, but it would be a mistake to conclude that it is simple for us to pull up roots and leave our homes so easily. I don't think I'm prepared to tell the tale of why I left Arvada... not yet anyway. Suffice it to say that staying would have meant my death, and life without a home or family is still life -- and where there is life, there is always the chance to build something new."

"But please don't let that discourage you," she continued, favoring Harbek with a kind smile. "Ask what you will and if anything else is too personal, I will be honest and say so without taking offense."

"However, perhaps you can answer a question of mine first. Since I arrived in Merinthia, I have encountered many people, but I have seen or heard of no wizards or sorcerers here. The people I've met are very reluctant to talk about such things, and I think they take offense when I ask -- which I quickly learned not to do. But you aren't human and seem an honest sort, so I think you will tell me plainly. Are there any mages in these lands? Any that practice the arcane arts?"     

In reply to Raven (msg # 45):

Harbek's expression turned serious when Raven asked about arcane arts and whether they were practiced in Merinthia. "I believe that you are speaking of what my people call Alfr fjolkyngi -- which would, I think, be rendered as 'Elf-magicks, or Elf-sorcery' in the Merinthian tongue."

"We consider true magicks to have been gifted to the Dwar by the Allfather and our other gods, whereas Elf-magicks are considered by Dwar to be a black art, and are shunned by my people."

Harbek sighed. "We Dwar are very good -- nay, superior, even -- at most things that we attempt. Most of my people would not admit to it, but I have a niggling suspicion that part of our distaste for Elven magicks may come from the fact that we have no affinity for such things, and hence are unable to . . . well, to do whate'er 'tis that magickers of that sort do."

"In any event, suffice it to say that Elf-magicks are frowned upon and shunned in the realms of the Dwar."

Harbek walked along beside Raven in silence for a short while, then spoke again. "I have not been in the realm of the Humans for very long, but my impression from snatches of conversation that I have overheard is that Merinthians also shunn . . . what was it that you called them . . . Arcane magicks? But, in all truth, I believe that you would be better-served asking that question of a Human Merinthian . . . one whom you deem to be worthy of your trust, I might add."

Eying Raven solemnly, he added "The circumstances that led to your departing your Home Place sound quite dire, Mistress Raven. I believe that you are wise in refraining from speaking of them -- to me, or anyone else, for that matter. For now, any way -- circumstances may change over time, as you well know. In any event, I take no offense in your decision."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:57, Sun 18 Aug 2019.

As the group was walking Dorian kept paying attention to the conversations. An interest one in particular was being held by on the dwarves a the black haired woman. How he could have missed her? That accent brought so many memories that almost brought tears to his drunk eyes. As she was talking about the time spent in the sea he almost joined in, feeling that they had so many experiences to share. And also the dwarf seemed really interested in them and Dorian have always loved an audience.

But the moment he was preparing to start his passionate talks, she mentioned being a crew member in a ship from Acanti, probably a merchant ship. Just the kind that Dorian used to loot in his pirate days. Arvada didn't seem an unknown name as well. He knew what his crew would do if they found a woman like her in some of their plunder, so maybe, just maybe, they have never met in unpleasant circumstances. Still, it would not be ideal for him to bring that up. Instead he takes off his hat, the one thing left from his captain, and put it into his bag.

Having done that, he decides to join in "Hello, fellas! I couldn't help not to hear It seems that we will be together for some time so it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Dorian 'The Snake' Payne!". Oops, his middle name could betray his origin, but he was so used to say it. So he quickly add "Raven, if I heard it correctly? And..I'm sorry dwarf, but I had some difficulty understanding yours". His breath is highly alcoholic, and the Acanti accent also very pronounced.

The vegetation gets thicker and wilder once you move away from the heavily cultivated lowlands, and thanks to the uneven ground and obstructed view you have by now completely lost sight of the tall fellow who'd been striding ahead of you.

It seems that the goblins you're tracking became more careful with their movements once they left open ground, and the trail is not as obvious. Thanks to Mari's skill and knowledge of the local terrain, though, you see the point where they cut sharply eastwards and head off that way, as you'd seen Daniel do from a distance earlier.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:40, Mon 19 Aug 2019.

As Harbek finished speaking and gave his view on her keeping some information about herself secret, even implying that he would keep her confidence, Raven again smiled and briefly bowed her head. "You are a fair and wise ma... Dwar," she said and let the matter drop.

Raven was quiet as she pondered Harbek's words. So no mages among the Dwar and they seem to think magic is nothing but elvish witchcraft. Raven thought. It was the same among the human folk she'd asked about it too. There were no mages here in Merinthia, except perhaps among the elves, and everyone who had the courage to speak to her about it claimed magic was an evil and wicked thing. I'm going to have to be careful, very careful.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the arrival and self-introduction of a man, who by his accent and dress was surely an Acanti sailor. Now Raven had spent a lot of time among Acanti sailors recently and she had learned that they seemed to have an unofficial hierarchy among themselves, which depended a great deal upon one establishing oneself as proficient in either brawn or brains. Raven wasn't much with the former, but she'd developed a rapier wit with the later.

At the mention of his moniker, "the Snake", she arched an eyebrow and pointedly looked directly at his crotch. "Of the smaller garter variety, right?" She replied dryly.

About half an hour's trek through the rocky hills passes without encountering anything more interesting than the odd squirrel, until you eventually hear some rustling up ahead. You cautiously advance into a relatively open clearing, where you can see a figure rummaging around in some laurel bushes at the base of a rocky outcrop up ahead.

As the figure raises its head and turns at the sound of your approach, you all realise that it's the tall, brown-haired tracker you'd been following before.

Map added for Group 0. Grid refs are included to allow you to specify precise positions as and when needed. On this map, boulders represent rocky exposures. You're on a hill sloping upwards to the right.

As the hills grew rockier and the path harder, Mari's hymn quieted. She had to concentrate on her breathing, so she wouldn't be huffing and puffing in undignified manner unsuitable for a priestess. Mistress Selena had always said to the novices that they were the to act dignified in every situation. Not that it had worked much. Sweat was glistening on her brow and she reached for her waterskin often enough to drain half of it.

She stopped for a short moment to survey the scene in front, when seeing the figure out ahead. It looked to her that either he had lost the track or was trying to find something in the bushes.

Mari approached carefully towards the brown-haired man, looking to see if she could see any tracks herself. She stopped at a careful distance away from the stranger, but close enough to speak quietly to him. "Could you please tell what you have found? You've been keen on the track as far as I could see." She strained to see why he was trying to search the bushes.


OOC
Move to about M17.
Depending on scale, trying to stay out of melee range of the tracker.

Zarth will cautiously approach, staying on the periphery of the group if possible just in case this person is hostile. He doesn't speak, merely observes at first but does have his weapon at the ready.

OOC
Move to K6
Have shortbow out and ready.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:26, Mon 19 Aug 2019.

Daniel sees folks finally catch up and shakes his head, "Gods, but you people are loud. And who was doing all the shouting? If you were trying to make sure the goblins heard you and knew they were being followed, I'm thinking you succeeded. Luckily there was no indication they just killed the children and ran for it. However, I'm reasonably sure they know we are here. Hell, I suspect they're mere feet away. I just hope they haven't hurt the kids. Yeesh."

Harbek smiled at the dark-haired Human female's complimenting him as being fair and wise. "Well . . . as long as I have, ah, pulled the wool over your eyes -- as I believe the Humans say it -- in that respect, I shall hazard a suggestion."

"Please understand that I do not wish to cast . .  aspersions upon your character, I merely suggest something that I might do, if I were to find myself standing in your boots."

"I will say that if I were you, I would quite audibly give praise to . . . Rahashu, was it? To your god or goddess when . . . well, at the appropriate times. Much like our priests and clerics give praise to Moradin, Clangeddin Silverbeard, and our other gods and goddess, in thanks for Their divine blessings."

"The Merinthians think nothing of it -- or at least accept it, seeing as how we are Dwar. And you -- well, you are from a far-away foreign land, with customs, gods and goddesses all your own. Who is to say what unusual powers They might have gifted to you, in Their divine wisdom?"

Harbek smiled again, and shrugged his shoulders. "'Tis what I would do. Do with it as you will."

Just about then the Human drunkard staggered up, having not fallen into a ditch, to Harbek's great disappointment. He addressed Mistress Raven and Harbek as "fellas" -- seemingly a Human word that Harbek was unfamiliar with, but which, to the Dwar's ear, sounded as if the drunkard was being presumptuous and taking ungranted liberties. The Human fell even lower in Harbek's estimation when he addressed him as "Dwarf", making the lame excuse of having difficulty understanding his name.

~Undoubtedly the fact that you are staggering-around drunk had something to do with that,~ Harbek thought to himself, rather sourly.

Harbek did not at first understand Mistress Raven's comment about a garter snake, but suddenly he realized, ~She is speaking of his private parts! That . . . that is hilarious~ He turned away and covered his mouth with his hand to hide his smirk.

---

OOC: Will move Harbek up with the rest of the party, once Raven, Dorian, and HH have finished their conversation. Physically, HH would have marched along with everyone else in the column (so it can be assumed that he is there), we just aren't quite in the same spot yet, posting-wise. :)

Karadin fond the rocky, hilly terrain pleasing to his mood even if it was harder than traveling the road. As their scout finally came to stop and looked back, Karadin grabbed his axe and headed to the southern point of the rock outcropping. "Well if they're here, then lets root 'em out like the vermin they are. I'll circle this way" he points in a counter-clockwise motion and then begins scanning the rocks for any sign of the goblins.

---

OOC: Move to M18

Daniel blinks, "Um, if they were around the rocks, I'd hardly have waited and chatted with you folks while they could ambush us. You weren't the genius that shouted at me, by any chance?" Daniel shrugs, "In any event, I think we need to go THAT way" He points down.

Dorian was caught off-guard by Raven's commentary. First a bit of anger came into his head for she had mocked his acquired name, the one that really mattered, the one that posed him as a member of the crew. But then he remembered other names such as "The Toothless", "The Coward" and "No Knees"...oh the "No Knees"...life was not pleasing with that short kid. Soon Dorian was smiling "Hahaha what a sharp tongue! It looks like you're the viber around here after all!".

Just as he was exclaiming, the man who was chasing the tracks returned with an urgency in his face. Dorian remembered why they were there after all, and could tell that the man's words about all the noise could be applied to him as well, and he was done playing the fool. It seemed that they were close to where the goblins could be, so it was time to be quiet. He followed the directions pointed by the tracker, joining the others. But first he couldn't resist not whispering to Raven "You will soon see why they gave me this name. I just can't say it will be gentle"

Maiya was--on the whole--attempting to keep up an aggressive pace, but with things starting to get sidetracked...

"All things considered, this is all a distraction, and the children must be recovered.  Now, I understand that you...  Seem to be a tracker?"  She asked the one who ran ahead.  "Apologies if we were loud, but haste is important in this circumstance as well--stealth is not particularly an option in light of the party we have available at this very moment.  I'm unsure of your intent at this time, but I will presume that you're friendly, despite your refusal thus far to cooperate.  You say they've gone downwards?  Then downwards we shall go.  If you wish to join us, you're free to do so, but either way, we cannot expect to conceal a group of this size from any realistic sentries, and if they are going to slay the children on principle the moment we make contact, we cannot expect them to be any more restrained if we simply give them the time to do what they please--so I am willing to gamble on them caring for their own skins over slaying the weak and throwing themselves upon our vengeance.  Foul as they are, such vermin would not be a problem if they were prone to self destruction--and the risks of them eating the children should we simply take our time to try and move 'Quietly' seems to me to be greater than otherwise."

Really, the Goddess instructs to protect when possible--but to act too slowly might as well be the same as not acting at all--either the trail would go cold or they'd get hungry.

In reply to Maiya Greenfield (msg # 58):

Daniel rolls his eyes Maiya, "'Not cooperate'? I've no idea what you're going on about. A woman ran into town crying that her children had been taken by goblins. I went immediately to where she said it happened. The rest of you stayed in town for a bit. Eventually you finally left town searching for them and ... did your best to warn their captors you were coming, and I still hadn't met any of you and couldn't have been uncooperative. As to time....you're only now realizing it matters? The time lost NOT warning them we are coming is small. And yes, I CAN expect a group this size to be quiet. I'm quite used to it, in fact. Now, if you're DONE blaming me for your staying in town, and your rather extreme noise making, could someone help me move these rocks, possibly? For the children? Remember them?" Daniel point at the outcroppings. "There should be a passage underneath one of them. Either that or the goblins can fly, and flying wouldn't have damaged the laurel bushes, so..."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:01, Tue 20 Aug 2019.

Maiya stopped, stared at the man for a moment, and then shook her head dismissively, this wasn't the time to get in an argument with a hermit.

What she did instead was something constructive, move up to help move the rocks out of the way.

After the brown haired man ignored her question and instead just started berating them , Mari decided that he was someone that thought he would be on the right no matter what the facts were and chose to ignore him completely. He must be embarrassed of losing the track and projecting the frustration on others.

Stepping around the man and leaving him to talk with the holy warrior Mari started to search for entrance tunnels in the bushes and the surrounding rock outcrops. One thing he had got right was that they didn't have time to lose.

OOC
Please DM, make an appropriate roll for me for looking where the goblins went, whether investigation, survival or perception or whatnot.

It takes little time that realise that moving heavy rocks will not be necessary. The bush which had originally caught Daniel's attention is not attached at the roots, and moving it aside reveals that it was placed so as to conceal a narrow opening in the rock face, leading directly in to the hillside. The ground in front of the opening, which had been concealed by the relocated bush, is heavily scuffed with drag marks.

The opening is about 5 foot wide, but very low. You'd need to crawl on your bellies to fit.

No roll necessary. It's pretty self-evident once you know where to look.

Karadin shook his head as the conversation escalated and muttered "[Language unknown: Relema]." He looked at the man that had scouted ahead "You worry about the noise, yet the light from the torch you're inevitably going to ask for down there is going to give away your approach even more so. Let's just find that entrance and get moving." The strong dwarf started moving smaller rocks and looking for sings of the entrance.

Harbek moved up to where he could see the Goblin-hole, which had apparently been concealed by a low bush of some sort. "Well done," he said, nodding to the Human male who had led the rest of the group straight to this spot. "Your tracking skills are impressive."

He glanced at the Goblin-hole, and was pleased to see that it was bigger-around than he feared it might be. When Karadin made his comment about torchlight, Harbek nodded. "You make a good point, Stonebrother."

"Given our ability to see in the dark, mayhap you should take the lead in the gloom of the Goblin-tunnels," he suggested. He tapped his own chain-mail armor and added "I would be happy to join you in the lead, but my armor tends to clink and clank, and as you know, sounds can carry quite far in the quietness of the under-ground."

After a short pause, Harbek chuckled and said, "Just be sure to leave a few Goblins for the rest of us, if you are the one who reaches them first."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:53, Tue 20 Aug 2019.

Karadin's grin grew big and wide. "I'll gladly lead the way, Stonebrother. But when I find them, I will pause for a moment to give you a chance to approach. I wouldn't want you claiming I had an advantage when I fell more of the vermin than you," the tattooed dwarf retorted in a traditional dwarven competitive nature.

Harbek chuckled at Karadin's retort. ~What a fine day this is shaping up to be! I shall soon have the opportunity to be Goblin-slaying in the company of a like-minded Stonebrother, and also in the company of a group Humans who, to their credit, seemingly have a goodly measure of courage, themselves.~

He glanced around at the Humans in the party. "Any who have doubts about this course of action should speak quickly, lest they lose the opportunity."

"For my Stonebrother shall not long delay, given his eagerness to bring his axe within striking-range of the foul Goblins."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:41, Tue 20 Aug 2019.

Mari was kneeling next to the hole trying to see how deep it continued before opening out, she spoke with her back to the others, "Based on the tracks there were at least seven goblins in the group that snatched the children, then who knows how many more there is in the cave waiting otherwise. I understand that we humans have not the sharp eyes of the dwar, but I would prefer staying as a group." Mari took her pack off of her shoulders, thinking it would be just a hindrance withing the tight confines of the hole.

She glanced towards the two dwarves, with a small smile playing on her lips,

"I didn't hear your name before, holy warrior, but maybe we should take the second line after the dwar," she commented towards Maiya. Mari patted her scale mail armor and flashed her shield, "With my armor I will be as loud as master dwar there," she nodded towards Harbek.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:42, Tue 20 Aug 2019.

"Reasonable enough, I'll ensure you come to no harm lady priestess"  Maiya agreed.  "Second line it is!"

Harbek smiled at the human female when she spoke to him and Karadin in the Dwar-Tongue, and his smile broadened when she gave a very passable rendition of the Greeting Ritual. He bowed in response to her honoring him with her names, and replied, "Greetings, Mari of the Taysley Family. I am Harbek, of the Hardstone Family, of the Stoneshaft Clan. My Home-Place is Krak Vestri, in the foothills of the Worldtop Mountains."

Harbek paused just long enough to be proper about it, and closed the Greeting Ritual by adding "The pleasure of the meeting is mine."

Admittedly Harbek had to think for a moment in order to recall the Human female holy warrior's name, for he had heard it back at the beginning of the march and there had been no formal Greeting Ritual involved to help the parties remember the details. But at length it came to him -- Maiya Greenfield . . . he felt confident that 'twas the holy warrior's name.

As he listened to Mistress Maiya and Mistress Mari discuss forming up as a second line inside the Goblin-tunnels, he suggested "I would like to join with you, if you have no objection. I need to remain far enough behind Karadin of the Axebeard Family so as to not ruin his efforts at stealthy scouting by reason of the clink-clanking of my armor."

"One benefit to my marching alongside you is that I can keep my Stonebrother in sight, evan if he is a ways ahead of us, and even in the darkest gloom. Thus, I should be able pass along any of his signals to you."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:14, Tue 20 Aug 2019.

"Greetings, Harbek of the Hardstone family." Her cheeks reddened but Mari smiled pleased that she had remembered enough of her lessons that she hadn't made a fool of herself in front of the dwar speaking their language and using their greetings. "I welcome you to join us and your guidance is appreciated. However we will be as blind as newborn kittens if there is no light, so we will have to bring some with us."

"Thank you for your support, warrior of the Sturmbund. I am Mari, please don't call me Mother Mari." It made her feel ancient, even if it was the right form to speak to a priestess.

Mari bent to take a palm sized stone from the ground and considered it seriously, she took hold of her holy symbol and spoke reverently, "Shining Lady, help to illuminate our path." There was a brief shimmer of light on her holy symbol and then the stone flickered alive with bright golden light shining on her upheld palm. "Good Lady provides. I am ready."

Mari pocketed the still shining stone, stuffed her backpack under a bush to hide it a little and unstrapped her shield so she could push it in front of her while crawling to the hole.

Assuming the group was about ready, Karadin also stashed his pack behind some brush. "No sense having me pots and pans clanging through the tunnels." As he started down the hole, and Mari illuminated the stone he looked at Harbek "I will use hand signals to advise whether to stop or approach, but if you hear the vermin yipping, you come running lest I get too much of a head start." With that he turned and headed down the tunnel as quietly as he could.

---

OOC: 18:18, Today: Karadin Axebeard rolled 10 using 1d20+2.  Stealth Check.

Dorian observed as the group started debating and moving stones. It would be a dark hunt and he felt that he had little to contribute if he couldn't see the the enemy. Though he spend most of his life going in and out the dark deck of the ship, he still didn't have a nightvision. In fact that was the source of several broken little toes and bumps in the forehead. The group was deciding a formation, with the dwarves going first and leading the way, and though that seemed like a good idea, another thing crossed his mind: He used to have..."business" with goblins, an though they were not the smartest kind, they were surely not stupid. It could have a main way in, but if he was the one living inside the cave, he would have some alternative way out, just in case.

He tried to catch the attention of the human tracker, whose bad manners and arguments he started to enjoy, and said "Hey. You can't see in there as well, can you? What if, while these first brave warriors go ahead, you and I try to find another entrance to surprise the scared ones?"

Daniel shrugged "You mean an emergency exit? They probably have one, but they wouldn't use it they have 2 brain cells to run together. No indication topside, if its not used. Still..." He starts looking around for another potential area that might have an entrance down. "The dwarves would probably be better at guessing where the back door would be...."

Karadin's feet are the last thing to vanish into the darkness as he crawls along on his belly through the opening.

(Mari, Maiya and Harbek - are you going in hot on his heels or giving him some head start?)


Those with any familiarity with goblins will know that Dorian is, of course, correct. It would be very unusual for them to build a den with only one way in and out. Daniel's detailed search of the immediate surroundings had uncovered no sign of other entrances, though.

(I overlooked a question about map scale earlier. Unless otherwise indicated, the grid squares on the maps will all be 5' by 5'.)

“Spread out,” Raven said to the others who were remaining above-ground, once it became clear that the backdoor, if it existed at all, wasn’t so easily located. “If they do run, we stand a better chance of catching them if we can watch several locations at once.”

Harbek watched as Karadin's feet disappeared into the Goblin-hole, shrugging his shoulders free of his pack-straps as he looked on. He counted to sixty, then flopped down on his belly and followed his fellow-Dwar into the dark hole.

~Well, this is a very undignified way to start things off,~ he thought to himself. ~But 'twill all be worth it if we can rescue the bnarr and wipe out the Goblins.~

~I assume that the two Humans will be following me into the entrance-hole, so I need to move ahead enough to give them room to deploy. Once we are all inside, we can get ourselves sorted and start exploring this place.~
This message was last edited by the player at 01:20, Thu 22 Aug 2019.

Mari motioned with her arm for Maiya to go first after Harbek. She was taking deep breaths trying to calm herself at the thought of crawling between the pressing earth.

What if I get stuck? I hope the tunnel opens up soon.

When it came to her time to crawl into the embrace of the dirt, she pushed her shield in front.

Daniel watches the various folks go divide up into tunnelers and watchers, shrugs, and pulls out his bow. He steps onto the highest outcropping to get a good view of all directions, and pulls out an arrow.

Karadin moved through the tunnel. When he reached an area with a bit more room, he paused and looked back to ensure the others were indeed following. As soon as he caught the first glimpse of the party moving in behind him, he turned forward and continued on.

A short while later, he again paused and when Harbek came in to view, Karadin made a slicing motion across his neck with his now dirt stained finger and then pointed downward. Then he began climbing downward.
This message was last edited by the GM at 08:55, Thu 22 Aug 2019.

”Dorian, takes that clump of trees,” Raven said pointing toward the northwest. (cluster near D-2) ”Zarth, take those other rocks other there,”(rocks at O-20)”I’ve got these trees over here,” she added, running past the main outcropping of rocks to a tree-cluster toward the northeast.

Moving to D-22

Dorian was pleased to be heard and agreed with Raven "Aye, splitting sounds good". He unsheathed his rapier and moved to northeast as Raven pointed. Once in position he started looking for something that could suggest an emergency exit.

Moving to D-2

Taking everything in, looking around the area and heeding the call from Raven he moves quickly and quietly to the rocks she pointed at. He takes up a readied position with a bow of his own and hides his body as best he can.