Sir Alboc, Sir Aeddan, and Sir Daron discuss the subject of launching a raid into Salisbury while the knights of Salisbury are off fighting the Saxons.  Being newly knighted and quite poor,  the three are excited by the prospect of acquiring some wealth that can be used to improve their lands, provide some safety against future ill harvests, or be used for unexpected expenses (replacing a horse that dies, purchasing gifts, ransom, etc.).  Not to mention that the potential for glory is always a draw.

However, never having led a raid, they are a little unsure of the procedures and it seems that having a few more swords around could be useful, especially if they run into a militia or roving band of Saxons.  So they privately discuss the matter with the other knights who accompanied them to the river crossing.  Five of the eight agree to join the small expedition, all but one of whom are quite young, like the trio.  It seems that getting a bit of financial security and winning some honor are goals shared by many new knights.

The one older knight, Sir Ceinlys, is in his late 20s and has some welcome experience to offer.  Although getting older, he is still a bachelor and this seems a good opportunity to him to make some inroads on finding a good wife.  Sir Ceinlys offers to get Earl Guinier's approval and to provide some strategic advice for the raid.  All five knights agree that the trio are the leaders of the group and will be responsible for making the decisions.

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For planning purposes, see Game Map 4 for details on Salisbury.  Generally speaking, cities in Blue are going to be defended by footmen and walled cities and castles in Blue will be defended by knights.  Sir Ceinlys suggests staying well clear of either.  Hitting the black and crimson manors is where the easy goods will be found.

The dotted (poor) road in the upper left of the map, which splits, is from Bath, directly East of your current position.  The solid (good) road that exits the map in the middle of the left side of the map heads toward Cornwall.  Poor roads are harder to ride and much harder to drive wagons or livestock on but are less heavily traveled.  Good roads are easier to ride and much easier to drive wagons or livestock along but will tend to be busier.  Traveling through the woods is more difficult and fording rivers is very difficult without a bridge or ferry.

You need to decide how you are entering Salisbury, which if any roads you are using in Salisbury, and which manor(s) you are heading toward.  Having a general exit strategy is probably not a bad idea.  Surprising the enemy is preferred as it reduces the chances of an armed response or the gratuitous hiding of valuables.  Expect any given manor to have approximately £4 worth of lootable goods.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:54, Sat 05 June 2021.

Sir Aeddan proposes to Sirs Daron and Alboc the following plan:
-Travel east toward Sarum via the poor road.
-Give Warminster as wide a berth as possible -- leaving the road and swinging north around it, traveling at night when things are quieter, etc.
-Hit the manors north of the river as rapidly as possible, one after another, trying to get movable goods and money out with promises not to kill inhabitants, steal daughters, and so forth.  Kill as few people as we can manage.
-Plunder as far as Stoford, then turn west along the good road.
-If things are quiet, and word doesn't seem to have spread about our raids, plunder our way back west along the good road, hitting the manors there with the same emphasis on speed.
-If, on the other hand, there are indications that the word has gone out about us, especially if we start seeing knights arriving to defend the manors, then we make haste along the good road instead, ignoring the manors south of the river.
-Head back home along the good road heading west, bypassing Vagon by swinging south of the road if necessary.

"A wise and cunning plan Sir Aeddan. How can it possibly go wrong?" He nods in agreement and is still young and naive enough to believe that the plan is flawless.

"A sound plan," Sir Daron agrees, stroking his trim beard. "I suggest we only take prisoners for ransom on our return trip, so as to not slow us down and force us to always keep some of our number as guards."

See Game Map 5, you are following the dotted red line starting on the left edge of the map, giving Warminster a wide berth.  You are currently at the "X."

The group rides along the poor road, branching to the south toward Warminster.  It takes a day from the fork in the road to get to the outskirts of Warminster.  There is not much traffic on the road and what there is gets out of the way of the party of knights.  The commoners you pass seem to give little thought to what a group of knights is doing on this road, seemingly figuring it is none of their business.  In the evening, as it is getting dark, the party leaves the road and heads to the north, skirting the city.

It is difficult riding through the woods in the dark, while trying to follow a game trail and Sir Abloc and Sir Aeddan quickly lose their way.  Fortunately, Sir Daron manages to keep to the trail and lead the group toward the hills north of Warminster.

Sir Daron, rolled 2 using 1d20.  Hunting.
Sir Aeddan, rolled 16 using 1d20.  Hunting.
Sir Abloc, rolled 18 using 1d20.  Hunting.

Sir Daron takes a check in Hunting.

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It takes a few hours to ride around Warminster at night in the woods.  Where would you like to camp and for how long?

Note:  You only ransom knights and lords.  With luck, you won't see either.  No, really, it could happen!  :)

"I do not care where we camp, brothers. I will it to you to decide. But we should not make campires and I think we should strike out again in the early morning hours. If we are spotted by anyone our chances of a succesful raid is over."

Sir Aeddan agrees that a campfire might not be a good idea, although he'd sure like some roasted meat for dinner.  But cold leftovers will do.  He suggests that they camp on a hill, to allow the watch to see as much as possible, and he agrees with Sir Abloc that an early-morning departure would be ideal.

"We have to ensure our horses are well watered and fed," Sir Daron suggests. "We'll be pressing them hard over the next few days. Even a small stream might be helpful there."