Like the notice board in the Elder Beerman said, many scarecrows are lined up in a row along the roads near town. They are all identical, uniform like a parade of soldiers standing at attention. Each one comes equipped holding a simple farmer's pitchfork as if holding a spear. The whole display is as much unusual as it is slightly intimidating.

Leto was a bit the worse for wear after the festivities the previous night. He was however a consummate professional at such matters and powered through it. He walked a bit away from the rest of the group as they made their way to the scarecrows. He was getting used to his new weapon and was idly practicing drill routines with the whirling and spinning meteor hammer as they walked. When they reached the lines of scarecrows he allowed the weighted chain to weapon around his waist and slipped the handle through the links to secure it.

He pulled out his whip and cracked it once. "So the obvious worry is that they are some hedge magician's attempts at guardian golems or some such and they'll attack us if we pass, right? I have half a mind to steal that one at the end's pitchfork and see if he has something to say about it. Can anyone detect magic?"

Maury finishes off writing in his chronicle about the events of the day before, including the plan to investigate the Scarecrows.  He dries the ink carefully before closing the book and only then does he consider Leto's question.

"I'm pretty sure" he says, "That I do have a spell, possibly even two but I'm equally sure that it's not detect magic.  Then again, given these golems, if that's what they are, are made of straw, I wonder whether anyone can do that trick where they produce flame."

"If all we want to do is destroy them then I can do the trick where I throw a lit torch. But if they are just some farmer's passion project he will probably be mad if we just start burning them."

Maury nods. "Right.  I never thought of that.  Maybe we should ask the farmer."

"Right. Lets ask someone then." Brewzila headed to the nearest farmhouse, and knocked on the door. "Excuse me" she asked whoever answered, "we noticed that you have a lot of scarecrows around here. What's up with that? Do you have that many crows?"

I don't know how far the farm house is, hopefully not too far.

Feyis looked up and down at the row of Scarecrows.

"Well this is just plain unsettling."


She looked over at Leto.

"I have never heard of a Witch who does not need Detect Magic on a daily basis... of course I have it ready."

Feyis walked up 10 ft from the scarecrows so she could catch a few in the range of the spell, she then fell into her spell casting, the connection with her patron opening slightly to give her a sliver of power.   The words to this one of the most basic spells in existence flowed out of her.

She was so focused on doing something she did not notice, Brewzilla and Maury talking about farmers.

OOC: Cast Detect Magic

 Each Scarecrow does have an aura of magic about and when concentrating, the magic can be isolated to a strange sigil marked on each straw statue. The first enchantment attached to the sigil is a natural resistance to fire. Someone didn't want people to just come along and burn them away.


 The nearest Farmhouse one could find nearby was a good ways away. The people living there had noticed the sudden scarecrows, but insist they had nothing to do with whatever is going on.

 Kook also walks up to a scarecrow. Bird as he is, he is no Crow, so it's not all that scary. He looks up to the Scarecrow and just starts dancing, trying to see if he can get it to dance back. The little guy has a bit of energy and overall cheerfulness to him.

"What are you, and how can I make my own?"

 Nefaria goes to also look over a scarecrow. Already figuring out they are magic, it was time to discover all of the secrets. She makes a few hand gestures and mutters as her eyes visibly glow for whatever spell She is weaving.

OOC: Cast "Identify"
12:19, Today: Nefaria Obscura rolled 25 using 1d20+19.  Spellcraft check with Identify bonus.

Brewzilla jogged back from the house. "They say they scarecrows aren't theirs, so we can light'm up."

Leto pulls one of his whips from his belt, twirls it around his head once and then snaps it forward. The end wraps deftly around the haft of one of the scarecrow's pitch forks and then he pulls with all his might ripping the impromptu weapon out of the scarecrow's facsimile of a hand.

"Lets see how they liked THAT!"

OOC: Seems clear at this point that that won't do anything.

After watching the scarecrow stand inertly for a few seconds he says "Well it was worth a shot. Is anyone a tracker, someone set these up, they might have left tracks if it was recent."

 The scarecrow is "Disarmed" of the pitchfork with little effort and no response. Nefaria's spell reveals exactly why that is.

 OOC: The Sigil marking on each scarecrow gives it a resistance to fire and also is similar to the means to animate objects and some sort of command spell. When a signal is given, it would seem the scarecrows are meant to come to life and do... something.

Maury asked, "Can anyone think of a way to remove all the sigils?"

"An axe?" Leto tosses out cursorily.

Maury doesn't have an axe so he mentally rummages in his pack as he considers what he has that might do the job.  In the end, he takes a piton and tries using that to cut the sigil off of onne of the scarecrows.

Leto watches Maury fiddle with his pack "So, another wild thought. You don't put magic scarecrows up for no reason. If they wanted to hurt people they wouldn't put them at the side of the road. Maybe we should just find who puts them up and ask what's going on before we start tearing down their work."

Maury blinks.  "You have a fair point, although when writing the chronicle I shall pretend it was me... that's how much I like it.  Very well.  Let's find someone to ask."  He returns his piton to its proper place in his pack.

Leto looks around for any paths leading into the forest or anything of the sort. "Could be they come and build them from the forest. Or maybe they are from town and ride in. Lets look around for a path. If we don't find one then we might just have to knock one over and stake out the place to see if someone comes and repairs it."

19:06, Today: Leto Hyperion rolled 16 using 1d20.  Perception.

Maury agrees with Leto and so he too begins looking for tracks.

Rolled 18 on d20+5

 The sound of a flute playing suddenly rings out from somewhere close, but it is unclear where without careful listening. The Scarecrows came to life and got to work. They worked to block the road with their bodies, the pitchforks in hand, or both with at least one of them holding a "hand" out. Are they seriously enforcing a Toll Road?

OOC: Perception check if you want to pinpoint the flute playing.

First of all, Maury tries to work out where the flute playing is coming from and also taking careful note of the notes so to speak, so that he can steal the tune later when he learns to play an instrument.  With no clear idea though, he wonders whether this is a trick of the Wizards to protect their intellectual property, although he'd not heard of any of the 'Wizards' being bards.

14:13, Today: Maury R Tea rolled 6 using 1d20+5.  Listening. Perception.

"Well I think our guy just showed up. Lets find him" Leto looks around for the wayward flautist.

09:34, Today: Leto Hyperion rolled 16 using 1d20.  Perception.