lostsole31
  
 
 
   
    THE END IS NIGH!  
       
        The city of Celwynvian hides a terrible sin. For countless centuries the elves of the Mierani Forest  have barred outsiders from the fabled City of Emerald Rains, in a  desperate attempt to contain an ancient shame. But as a new power rises  in the depths, the elves' secret threatens not only to escape, but to  rain down devastation upon the entire world. In desperation, elven eyes  fall to a band of outsiders for aid. Tread the forsaken ground of  Celwynvian, once one of the greatest capitals of elven culture, now a  graveyard haunted by the spirits of the past, foul dragons, demons, and  worse. Discover the darkest secret of the Mierani Forest and the truth  of the cataclysm known as Earthfall.  And dare to shed the bonds of eternity and pay witness to an apocalypse  that has borne out a thousand times and threatens to devastate Golarion once more!  
  
    
       DRAMATIS PERSONAE     
     Character
[Player]
  
  Speech
Color  
  AL
  
  Faith  
  Race [Ethnicity]
(Gender ID)
  
  Side #1
  
  Side #2
  
  Campaign Trait  
 
    Aira'Ruathar
[NPC]
   
   Blue
   
 ?? 
 Ketephys 
 Winged Elf? (f) 
 ??? 
 ???? 
 Into Enemy Territory [Fort] 
 
    Arryx
[rypt] 
  
   Golden Rod
   
 LG 
 Irori 
 Maenad (m) 
 Monk 7
[Monk of the Raging Sea + Qinggong Monk 
 Psychic Warrior 2/
Stalker 3
[Brutal Slayer]/
Awakened Bllade 2 
 Scholar of the Great Beyond 
 
    Barry Boppins
[PaddyWagonMan]
   
   Saddle Brown 
  
 N 
 Brigh 
 "Gnome" (m) 
 Fighter 2
[Eldritch Guardian]/
Gunslinger 5
[Musket Master] 
 Inquisitor 3
[Sacred Huntsman]/
Summoner 4
[Twinned Summoner] 
 Optimistic Gambler 
 
    Black Shuck
[Chromascope3D]
   
   Gray 
  
 CG 
 Findeladlara 
 Elf (m)
[Ilverani] 
 Investigator 7 
 Warder 7
[Dervish Defender] 
 Looking for Work 
 
    Dawn
[meemaas] 
  
   Green 
  
 NG 
 Gozreh 
 Spring Child (f) 
 Malefex 7 
 Soulknife 5
[Psychic Armory]/
Marvel 2 
 Portentous Perception 
 
    Tamás Hartseygow
[NPC] 
  
   Violet 
  
 ?? 
 Soralyon 
 Human (m)
[Varisian] 
 Evoker 7 
 ??? 
 Researching the Blot 
 
    Bloris Beans
[NPC]
   
   Brown
   
 N 
 Brigh 
 Eidolon (m) 
 Eidolon 4 
 ---- 
 --- 
 
    Vindaloo
   
   Dark Orange
   
 N 
 Brigh 
 Dust Mephit (m) 
 Improved Familiar 7 
 --- 
 --- 
 
  
lostsole31
  
 
 Riddleport  is the third-largest city in Varisia and its most northern port. The city is a haven for pirates and sea-faring brigands, who find themselves far to the north of the Arch of Aroden.  Teeming with criminals and rogues of all kinds, Riddleport is full of  potential danger and hard-to-avoid intrigue. Also known as the  City of Cyphers , Riddleport takes its name from the Cyphergate, a giant stone arch spanning the natural cove around which the city is built. It is covered on both sides with ancient Thassilonian symbols, although their exact meaning is unknown.

The  Gold Goblin Gambling Hall  is a gaming hall and casino. Located in the bustling Wharf District, it hosts a number of games of chance and skill, including bounder, ghoulette, golems, and skiffs. One of the first and finest gambling establishments in Riddleport, the Gold Goblin attracted attention with its brass-plated dome atop the casino and the eight-foot-tall statue of a goblin at the front entrance. Although finely constructed, the building shows significant signs of decline which in turn show recent capable efforts at renovation.   
 
  
 
Today, however, is the one day a week that the Goblin closes for maintenance, administration, and rest for the management, namely the proprietor ... one Sol Flood, who recently returned a broken man from Devil's Island - where a meteor had struck in the Varisian Gulf outside Riddleport Harbor. But he is not here at this time. Instead, greeting each of you is the author of the letter that was sent to you, requesting the pleasure of your company.

That author is a whiite-haired, deeply tanned elf with a falcon that introduces himself as Kwava (and the falcon as Ganmeed). He is extremely tall at 6' 7", tall even for an elf, and yet for that his arms are far longer than normal while his legs are significantly shorter with a longer torso - neither his coloring nor his form are typical for an elf. His eyes are a striking violet, and his clothes are foreign-made, and only Barry has personally seen clothes of this make before.

Food and drink are brought out to the party during the meeting, a skeleton staff (not literally, mind you) on hand to cater.

Sol Flood begins his tale, that he and his companions boarded Captain Creesy's ship the  Flying Cloud  to attempt to strike it rich mining star metal from the meteorite, but the entire trip was doomed. From fighting strange, blue alien dog-lions to being in a building that subsided off of a cliff and killed one of their party then .... to fighting elves with deep purple skin and demons and such .... all of his friends were lost. Overcome with grief, Sol retires and is not to be seen again for the remainder of the meeting.

Kwava pauses for a moment to gather his thoughts, a deep furrow worn into his brow.   “These are grave tidings. When Sol's friends discovered Vancaskerkin was working with one of the dark elves, I could hardly believe it. Now I realize there are far more terrible events in motion. If the drow - the elven word for a 'dark elf' - have learned how to pull stars from the sky, none of us are safe, for it was they who engineered the meteor strike on Devil's Isle.

“I must ask a great favor of you, all experienced adventurers from a variety of walks and fields - well-seasoned from various parts of the world - to pick up where the last group left off. My employers, the Shin’Rakorath, have only recently revealed to me the full extent of the drow menace in Celwynvian. As much as I would dearly love to see the city, they have ordered me to remain in the Riddleport hinterlands to keep watch for any further drow influence. Yet they have also expressed interest in hearing the reports I have enclosed from the failed mission. This journal they found some time ago from Vancaskerkin’s drow accomplice would be of great use to my kin in the Mierani Forest. The Shin’Rakorath and I ask you to carry this journal and my written, sealed report to Crying Leaf, a small camp in the eastern reaches of the wood. Take it to Eviana, the leader of Crying Leaf. She will know what to do. I have no means of negotiation nor money, but Eviana will appreciate my sealed report and that of the drow journal, and I have no doubt that she will reward you accordingly."  
meemaas
First to speak up is a young-appearing elf woman. At least, you'd think she was an elf, if not for her light-green skin color and darker green hair. Despite sitting, it is clear that she's at least six foot tall, probably 6'1. While she's dressed reasonably nice, the most obvious part of her clothing is the armor, made of leaves, yet still clearly sturdy enough to deflect a blow nonetheless.   "There's really a thing called a Dark Elf? Never would have imagined something like that being an actual thing. Although I guess I've seen weirder things."   The woman brushes her hand through her hair, stopping at the violet she keeps tucked into it to make sure it's still in place, before continuing on.   "I'm on board. I've never had the opportunity to go near Celwynvian before. It'll be a new adventure for me."   She goes to take a drink, only for the handle of the mug to snap as soon as she grabs it, sighs for a second, and lifts the drink up by the mug itself to take her drink.   "I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Dawn."  
lostsole31
A rather short old (5' 4") man takes the floor, though his years and glowing mauve lantern staff are quite commanding nevertheless. He dresses in purple violet and purple wizard's clothing, complete with a classic wizard's cone hat, and as he stands it seems apparent despite his advanced years, there is some meat on his bones, even if some of that meat is lacking form. He has eaten well in his life, to be sure, but not quite obese, and still dangerously shy of 200 pounds (prodigious for a man of his height).

  "I am Tamás Hartseygow,"   he says powerfully, without the squeaking or wheezing redolent of the voices of old men, though some quavering,   "Varisian evoker and fey-friend. I have made an exhaustive study of the people's and creatures above and below the earth, and I have never seen or heard proof or verifiable account of these 'drow.'"    And at the last word he says it in a dialect that shows mastery of the Elven inflection and tongue.    "I have even studied the trade tongue 1  of Nar-Voth 2 . Yes, there are all manner of boogeyman in the deep, and even those of dark-skinned elves that in morality and form are the perversion of our Castrovellian 3  brethren.

"But the contents of this journal worry me, and should we be bound for Celwynvian, I would like to peruse its contents, though of course I respect the nature of sealed communiques and shall not engineer their opening, yet I might like to prise the information from Eviana should we gain her trust. You see, I came to Riddleport last year to study the Blot - the great darkness that hung in the sky for months - and everything about the Blot's disappearance coinciding with the meteor that struck Devil's Isle 18 miles away ... with a minor tsunami that caused damage and some injury and loss of life here, especially in Riddleport Harbor and among the poor and those unprotected from such elements ... tells me that for so non-strategic a location, it surely was chosen as some sort of test site.

"A means of trying out a super-weapon, if you will.  For those that weren't around a thousand centuries ago or don't know their history, it was just such a meteor 4  - but vastly larger, that blotted out the sun and ushered in the Age of Darkness 5 .

"Just imagine, if you will, what an advantage it would be for a race of super-beings under us to remove our sun that they may rise above to dominance over all? The serpentfolk 6  were rumored to have been trying to engineer the same thing until Savith 7  struck Ydersius' 8  head clean and ended the rule of the scales ones on this world in the Age of Legend 9 .

"Yes, those with the means to save this world are bound to save it, lest we see all fall to ruin. For those that go on this mission - perhaps the mission of all missions, the very saving of our world - you have my spells and knowledge, such as they are."  

He now gestures to the rafters above, where guards normally prowl to keep watch over the casino during business hours, but for now are eerily dark and quiet. As if mentally bidden, the tall figure flies down and alights several feet away from the group to try to minimize the alarm they still feel when a giant of a winged elf shows herself.

Standing at a staggering 7'4", and yet having an extremely light step, is Tamás' reverse. For where he is short and plump, she is unbearably tall and staggeringly thin. Her hair shaved but for a mahogany topknot and her like eyebrows. Her very nature is practically feral, if not completely wild, and her tan-and-white wings - strangely colored to be light at the leading edge and darker at the trailing edge (atypical of raptors) - gather together at her back.

Her massive leafy composite longbow looks as if it were strung with the guts of a great beast, and only Arryx among you is arrogant enough to think he could pull it in extremis. She is dressed in light, simple clothing of gold and green, and wears a painted or dyed piece of wood around her neck with figures reminiscent of a raptor and the sun and moon.

She gazes at each of you with yellow-green eyes even as Tamás seats himself out of respect. Her voice possesses no less power than her friend's, but where his is urbane, hers are as if a great predator was given speech.   "I am Aira'Ruathar 9 , champion of the Hunter. My body protects him,"   she points to Tamás,   "his magic protects me. Together, we protect all of you. I go."  

That is all she says, and she says it with such promise of threat that one or two of those among you swallow hard in imagining what might happen should you cross her. There are several uncomfortable seconds of silence after her words before the next person introduces themselves.

 
 Footnotes 
 
 Spoiler: 1 = "tongue...": Black Shuck 
He refers to the language Undercommon, a mix of Aklo, Abyssal, Dwarven, Gnome, Orc, and other more exotic languages that is a sort of polyglot trade language for Darklands races.
 

 
 Spoiler: 2 -= Nar-Voth: Black Shuck 
Nar-Voth is the first layer of the Darklands, the one most closest to and most accessible from the surface of Golarion.
 

 
 Spoiler: 3 = Castrovellian: Black Shuck, Dawn 
Castrovellian is an adjective for one or that which comes from Castrovel, the second planet from the sun in your solar system. Though it is strange he would claim that about elves. 
 Spoiler: Black Shuck only 
The elves originally came from Castrovel, not being native to Golarion.
 

 

4 = the meteor:  Nobody is quite sure what he refers to here, but possibly...
 
 Spoiler: 5 = Age of Darkness: Black Shuck 
In Golarion history, or really at this point more mythology, the Age of Darkness followed the fall of Ancient Azlant as the great calamity that ended that ancient race of super-men devastated the rest of the world as well.
 

 
 Spoiler: 6 = serpentfolk: Black Shuck, Dawn 
The serpentfolk were a mythical race of snake people, said to hold dominion over most of Golarion before man's rise, and against whom most Azlanti heroes and trials were pitted against.
 

 
 Spoiler: 7 = Savith: Dawn 
A mythological heroine from ancient Azlant.
 

8 = Ydersius:  This name is unknown to everyone.
 
 Spoiler: 9 = Aira'Ruathar:  Everyone EXCEPT Barry 
"Aira'Ruathar" is an elven name that translates roughly to "Friend of the Star's Home" in Taldane.
 
Paddywagon Man
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Barry will give the clothes a cursory glance to see if he can place them from memory.
 


A grizzled-looking and slightly... smelly halfling man speaks up next - at around 3'3 he's very tall, at least by the standards of a race so short as to have been named for it in most human languages, and quite skinny. His skin is well-tanned and shows wrinkles and lines from years of old sunburn, and he has tangled, curly black hair and a beard of similar quality that might both benefit from a thorough combing. He's not alone, either. The coating of sediment on his oily leather coat can most likely be traced to a small, long-nosed brown humanoid hovering just above him in the midst of a thin, drifting flurry of dust seemingly coming from nowhere, and at least... some of the odor might trace to the silvery-grey baboon perched on the chair next to him, sharing a small swig of beer from the halfling's mug.
  
"Nice goblin out front yon! 'Minds me of a classmate a mine. Old Gnidley would've loved being eight foot and all gold, you'd think he was to hear him boast, eh? Statue didn't have his ear grubs, mind."

   He takes a swig of his own, looking over to Dawn's broken mug with sympathetic chagrin.

   "    The Man won't even let us drink in peace now, aye? But it's n    ice to meet your 'quaintance, Dawn! Same to the pair of you, Tamas, Arath...Rutherer. I'm Barry, the flyboy is Vindaloo, and yon monkey goblin goes by Pip. My brotherfolk Bloris is resting his self, but he'll be with us soon as he's needed. Magic's great Tamas boy, got lots myself, but I trust a proper ear-cracking thunderstick to protect us all before any else! And don't worry, we lot brought plenty!"

   If his rustic lilt is hard to follow, the translation for the last bit is at least hinted at by a worryingly large musket propped up nearby that looks built for an ogre, utterly dwarfing the halfling or any of his pint sized posse.    

"Happy to pick minds over the old leathern journal there too, on the way to sunny Elfland, if you curious sorts fancy it. Goblinfolk knew all about Dark Elves and all sorts of things so you're in good hands, not a worry to be had."  
rypt
Next to speak up is an exceptionally tall man, equal in height to Kwava.  With a lean face, a full beard, and a mane of black hair, his features are seemingly those of a human, save for a multitude of pale crystalline shards embedded in his tanned skin.  Competing for space with the shards are countless scars, many of which are only partly visible beneath the man's dark-colored attire.

There is an odd quality to the man's demeanor.  With his hands placed one atop the other on the table before him, he sits rigidly in his chair, never fidgeting, making eye contact with no one.  Subtle movements of his eyes and the occasional nod make it apparent he is listening closely to what is being discussed, but otherwise, he stares directly into the center of the table, even as he introduces himself.

  "I am Arryx, and I am pleased to meet you all,"    his voice is deep and steady.    "I have never known an enemy such as these drow, but the threat you speak of -- the power to wield the stars as a weapon -- is a grave one indeed.  I will aid your cause in every way I am able."  
Chromascope3D
  "Hear, hear,"   replies the final stranger at the table: another elf with long white hair, although his is tied back partially into a half-ponytail, and is one whose skin is far more pale than that of their host's. He lifts up the ivory pipe that he had been packing with tobacco in a gesture of toasting, before resuming his work, fixating his pale blue eyes in the task before him so as to avoid dropping any leaves onto his fine, black satin waistcoat, sparing only a few sidelong glances at the halfling's menagerie. He sticks the stem between his teeth and inhales as he strikes the bowl a few times with a knife and flintrock. The cast sparks catch, and he begins to exhale clouds of smoke. Satisfied, he leans back in his chair, setting his long-booted feet upon the table, demonstrating that despite his elfishly willowy frame, he is the second shortest of those gathered (discounting the halfling and his companions).

  "I thank you for the invite, cousin,"   He nods to Kwava, and then to the rest of the group as he continues in a deadpan trot,   "Call me Black Shuck. I'm between jobs myself at the moment so I'm downright giddy at the thought of my next one to be getting back among kin. Of course, if what Mr. Flood said about so-called 'dark elves' holds true, perhaps I'll come to regret that..."  
lostsole31
Kwava nods simply.   "Then this meeting is adjourned. I cannot tarry, and the staff will see you out. I understand if you need a day or two to get your bearings or equip yourselves if not already done, but please be on your way as soon as possible. Ketephys aid you in your hunt."  

He leaves with Ganmeed, and the meal being finished, the staff politely ushers the group out of the Gold Goblin Gambling Hall to get back to cleanup before the next day's business.

Does anyone need to purchase anything while in Riddleport, or are you ready to go?
rypt
Arryx will purchase a poncho and a week's worth of trail rations.
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck will buy three vials of Holy Water.
Paddywagon Man
Barry will get 50 feet of rope (to be carried by Vindaloo) and 150 gp worth of supplies for crafting gunpowder and cartridges.
lostsole31
 
 Originally Posted by rypt 
 Arryx will purchase a poncho and a week's worth of trail rations. 
 

It cost you a gold and two silver. Done/ updated.

 
 Originally Posted by Chromascope3D 
 Black Shuck will buy three vials of Holy Water. 
 

It cost you all of your remaining platinum coins and five gold. Done/ updated.

 
 Originally Posted by Paddywagon Man 
 Barry will get 50 feet of rope (to be carried by Vindaloo) and 150 gp worth of supplies for crafting gunpowder and cartridges. 
 

151 gold coins counted out. Done/ updated.
lostsole31
    Toilday, 12 Desnus 4708 AR (First Quarter) 
85 / 70 F. Hot &amp; dry, with no wind.   

It's the first day out of Riddleport, and it promises to be a hot one, but at least a dry heat. The lands north of Riddleport are sparsely populated, with a few struggling farms near the city and the occasional hunter’s lodge further afield. A winding dirt road that quickly becomes a Varisian caravan path leads north from Riddleport, a route only infrequently used by travelers making their way between Varisia and the Lands of the Linnorm Kings.

Travel is slower than expected, as the halfling and the gnome slow the group down.

The party begins to set up camp, and while there are enough trees around, the trees that are extant aren't close enough for Barry to set up his hammock, but he does set up his tent with his mini-army.  Small cookfires are made with what can be scrounged, and everyone gets to task heating up their meals.

Arryx holds his first combat training/ partnership session with the group that night to get a measure of everyone's overall combat experience, adaptability, combat psychology, &amp; improivsiation. 
 Spoiler: ALCON 
It is a very combat-knowledgeable group, and while not the same thing as putting weapon on target, it seems that Arryx, Barry, Black Shuck, Dawn, and even Vindaloo are all evenly matched in this regard. Tamás and Aira'Ruathar seem to be behind in combat experience compared to the aforementioned combat leaders as Aira' is a hunter, not killer .... and the wizard is an old man not given to martial pursuits.
 

The camp retires for the evening with Vindaloo taking the watch all night.

 

    Wealday, 13 Desnus 4708 AR (First Quarter) 
80 / 65 F. Winds N 10 mph.   

A cool mountain breeze promises a better day than before.

Since this is everyone's first morning as a group, please give a description of what a morning routine is like for your PC. Remember that it take 30 min. per class (not one hour) to do meditations, prayers, physical exercises, etc. (not to exceed a max of two hours).

In addition to the above, does anyone change their daily lineup for travel? The assumption will be that is the lineup you keep until Crying Leaf.
Chromascope3D
The Black Shuck is an early riser; he wakes with a start as he sees the dust mephit perched over their camp, but shakes his head and chuckles as he remembers their circumstances. Scrounging together what he can, re setarts the previous night's fre,  fills a metal kettle with water, and sets it up to boil, before grabbing his swords and straying a bit away from the camp. Finding a particularly open patch of ground, he begins by raising his sword directly overhead, point facing skyward as he whispers a prayer to Findeladlara. The elf then begins cycling through his forms, stabbing, slashing, and parrying the air as the sun slowly breaks the horizon. He continues on until the sun has fully emerged, ending his regimen with the same upward sword motion, sheathing his swords and returning to camp as the kettle finally begins to boil.

The pale elf sets out a number of vials, and begins filling each one with differing ingredients in different amounts, some straight from their own pouches, others chopped fresh. He fills each with boiling water, reciting an incantation from a small leatherbound book as he does so. He corks each vial, breaks down his setup, and gets dressed, having traded his affluent citywear for more moderate traveling garb. He finishes his morning routine with a smoke from his pipe, awaiting the order to pack camp and continue on the road.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
No changes to his morning prep
 
meemaas
Dawn sleeps in until the noise of everyone else awake brings her too. Rubbing her eyes, she does a regular morning routine, before finding a tree to meditate under. As she closes her eyes and starts to focus, drawing out her psychic powers. A light green glow begins to envelop her, as though showing the nature of her power. After a while of this, a trio of weapons spawn into the ground, the three of them, along with the tree, creating a square around her that she is sitting inside. She continues her meditation, as though unaware of this fact, but the weapons do occasionally pulse with Psionic power. After over an hour of meditation, she finally gets up, the weapons fading as she opens her eyes, and proceeds to do some light exercises while waiting for the others to be ready.
rypt
Arryx too rises early, and after rolling and tying his bedroll, moves to the edge of the river.   After a minute or so walking along the riverbank, he selects a suitable spot and clear it of a number of small rocks and branches.  He then sits down, facing the water, for an hour of silent meditation.  Afterwards, the maenad returns to his feet and begins to work through a series stretches and basic exercises, starting with his his upper body and gradually working his way down, increasing in intensity over time.  Finally, he transitions into a rehearsed sequence of martial arts movements, dance-like in their fluidity.  Some of these movements are slow and deliberate, emphasizing precision of form, while others are clearly focused on speed or strength.  All told, the routine showcases an almost extreme level of fitness.  Once finished, Arryx disrobes, neatly folding and stacking his clothes, and washes himself in the river.
Paddywagon Man
Barry and his squad's morning preparations are noisier than most. He starts with a morning offering of toil to Brigh - the cleaning and fine-tuning of the group's assorted firearms doubles as a moment of noisy prayer for Barry's god of tinkering and craft, interspersed with the sound of his little bronze hammer fixing dents.

Then it's on to squad exercises. At the end of Barry's "meditation", a near-identical halfling materializes as if from the ether, with much rejoicing and back slapping from both Barry and the newcomer, with anybody listening in - and able to follow the conversation as it jumps back and forth from Halfling to Goblin mid-sentence - will gather this is Barry's "brother" Bloris, mentioned at the inn prior. All four together then take turns handling the big musket in pairs, with commands of a few words in Goblin from Barry enough for all of them (baboon included) to quickly and seamlessly trade positions or move in sync to aim at a new target.

There is an awful lot of vocalized "BANG" from the group to signal readiness to fire without wasting gunpowder, to the possible irritation of anybody having a quiet meditation session.
lostsole31
Aira'Ruathar begins slowly by taking off her elven chain shirt - which looks more woven than forged - and cleaning it and her bow by the river. Curiously, she appears to have no apparent melee weapon, but as what must be an aerial shooter she might think she needs none. That lasts only about 15 minutes before she then meditates at water's edge for another quarter of an hour. She gets up, stretches out, and then Barry's not the only loud one as she makes these screaming exhortations to The Hunter while in a battle trance. It soon becomes apparent why she needs no manufactured weapon, for as she prays and shouts and does a shadow attack, claws form and teeth elongate as necessary before returning to their normal size.

Meanwhile, Tamás Hartseygow begins by taking out a heavy tome and studying it for a full hour, with the latter half of that time including a change in the manner of his study as he handles a pendant that looks like a tall, thin tower with many arcane markings on it. The relative stillness of his study is a marked contrast to his companion's loud, animalistic display.

Finally, Aira' and Tamás sit together in quiet meditation for just a few minutes before they quietly get up and strike their part of camp.

ALCON, understanding that people actually move around when traveling together, depending on who they're talking to, what is your recommendation for a "marching order" at this time?
rypt
  "I am keen-eyed,"   Arryx says,   "but no so foolish as to presume my senses sharper than those of a daughter of the First World or a chosen of Ketephys.  I defer to your preferences.  If you are each more comfortable elsewhere, I am willing and able to take the lead position myself."  
Chromascope3D
  "I'll take point as vanguard,"   the Black Shuck proffers, nursing the last of the embers in his pipe,   "My eyes and ears are keen and my legs are silent and quick. I can walk a ways ahead of the caravan, and call out should I run into trouble; I doubt any ambush could overtake me before I returned to the group proper, and any that could? Well, I would congratulate them from the other side as I'm carried off to Pharasma's waiting arms, for finally doing what so many have failed to for the past century!"  
lostsole31
Aira'Ruathar thinks for a few seconds. More quietly than her loud, forthright manner she admits,   "I was hurt in battle against Unseelie cousins by a dark sidhe's knobkerrie to the side of the head. My hearing, not good; and my magic won't heal it. It is me know. It make me less hunter, scout, and point than used to be. I regard mortals like you to be more aware than I. I am middle to protect mage-friend Tamás. We are bonded, he and I, and our bond of friendship is unlimited, but the power we can use over bond isn't."  

And Hartseygow shrugs and says,   "And I am an old man with what is very likely the beginning of cataracts and none too great with ears, but mine is a different monster - age - that hit me upside my head."  
Paddywagon Man
 Barry and Bloris share a glance before Barry answers.  
 "I'm not the, eh, quickest of runners and I prefers fighting with a comfortizable buffering zone. So even though the Boppins peepers still peep with the best I'm reckonoitering we should stay about the middle yon. Mayaps in front of Tamas but not right front up on pointaways." 
 
He then turns to Aira-Ruatha and taps an ear long blackened by repeated gunpowder explosions.

  "And my sympathies for your ears. Even odds my hearing's taking the same leave of abscess, or else all the world's a library and gunpowder just doesn't light like it used to."  
lostsole31
  "If I may be so bold to suggest, then,"   offers Tamás,   "I recommend the following. Of course, it is ridiculous on a longer journey to be so hidebound, as we may move up or back as conversation drives us - one of the joys of traveling, no? But in tighter, more tactical situations, I suggest the following.

"Black Shuck appears to have a very light step, whereas your tread is heavy, Arryx.  He should be in front.

"But, if you senses are as you claim, Arryx, you should actually be rear guard .... good sentinel, heavy step.

"Next, I recommend Dawn. Like our elven friend, the scions of spring are usually well-regarded for being all but unknown, and that should put her behind our ilverani master as his second.

"Some space afforded, and we have Barry and his boys.

"Myself and Aira'Ruathar.

"Then, as mentioned, Arryx in the rear."  

He looks at his companions,   "Does that seem reasonable?"  
meemaas
Dawn nods.   "This kind of conversation is new to me, but I think that's a great idea. And when Bandits come upon us, like they always do, I guess I should tell you guys what I can do. I am primarily a ranged fighter, launching psionic weapons at enemies that come upon me, but I can hold my own in close combat too. Also, I have horribly bad luck, but I've learned how to force it upon my enemies."   She smiles, thinking for a second before adding one last bit.   "Also, I can carry a LOT more than you would think."   She finishes, emphasizing the word lot.
rypt
Arryx is in the midst of adjusting a length of cloth around one of his ankles.    "Your reasoning is sound,"   he answers Tamás without looking up.    "I will take up the rear."
  
He stands a moment later and focuses inward.  His eyes fill with light, and when the light fades, his eyes resemble those of an elf.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Arryx will manifest  elfsight , which lasts for 5 hours.  He will maintain its effect throughout the day's travels, manifesting it again as needed.
 
lostsole31
The party travels along in their new "relative" order, and spaced out ... definitely not close-ranked dungeon-style. In the afternoon, they see a group of goblins by the rivers edge, seemingly fishing. They see you, and you see them. They are paralyzed in fear at the large party of monstrous creatures and two-leggers, and make no move to grab weapons, and more likely to run.

Do you leave them be?
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck narrows his eyes as he gazes out upon the goblin mob, instinctively loosening his sword belts and rotating them to sit more forward on his waist, letting both hands rest on the rapier's pommel. He mutters to himself,   "An interesting conundrum. Those goblins seem to pose no threat to us now, and our employers certainly aren't paying us to go on crusade against every monster we pass, but who's to say they won't pose a threat to less suspecting travelers later? Which ethical duty is greater, the one we owe to our employers, or the one we can give to future wayfarers?"  
Paddywagon Man
Barry approaches eagerly and without fear.
 
  
 Spoiler: Speaking in Goblin 
  "Hello, fellows! Glad to see some handsome faces so far out from home! I'm fresh out of the Muckbumbler gang myself, and happy to meet the new neighbors!

How's the catching today? Ever fished with gunpowder?"  
 
lostsole31
The goblins scatter to the four winds in various warrens and caves all about the riverside.
Paddywagon Man
Barry scratches his head, looking a little disappointed.

  "Huh... maybe they speak in a different dialectics here... I feel a bit bullyfolkish. Eh, well. Might as well be neighbourlous even if the neighbours aren't."

  Spitting out orders in his normal commandant's fashion, Barry directs his troops for fishing, preparing a gunpowder charge with Bloris while Vindaloo is directed to hover a little ways down river and net stunned fish in the trusty and ever-versatile hammock.

He turns back to the rest of the group as he does.

  "Any of yon tall folks feel like helping fish? Willn't take more than a moment. Feel I should leave a few behind in apology for frightering the locals, unless you all reckonnoiter we should be leaving right sharpishly."  
lostsole31
  "Barry Bulleyfolk,"   calls out Aira'Ruathar.   "Hurry. We travel not for fishing, but helping elves."  
Paddywagon Man
  "Elves keep! Shelf life of six regular folk, no reason to be inna hurry. Chock full of pre... preservagives."  
 
He doesn't seem to be seriously arguing though, just grumbling in lonely disappointment as he swiftly packs up the aborted fishing expedition and falls back into line, looking back at the teeming warrens and caves of people who do not want to invite him in for beer and fireworks. 
  "First impassions means a lot. Gammit, Barry Bullyfolk, that's my local label now aint'ent it? A fine muckle. Eh, on to Elfland then."  
Chromascope3D
The Black Shuck chuckles as he bemusedly watches the happenings. He stands up from the log he had found a seat for himself on, and dusts himself off, musing,   "Ah, we indeed might have a longer shelf life, but I cannot say the same for the fish. Surely any we take would turn rotten by the time we made camp, ja?"  
meemaas
  "Besides which, we really shouldn't tarry anymore than we have to. Knowing my luck, we're going to arrive as they get attacked by Drow."   Dawn muses, hoping to keep things moving.
Paddywagon Man
Barry smiles and follows along with the group, mollified.   "Awright, when all is done and we're jankling with elf-gold, I'll all yon for fishing."  
lostsole31
The party finishes their first day of travel, following the Velashu River northwards.

Does the party do anything special besides setting up camp? They have a "permanent watch" in that Barry's dusty pal Vindaloo needs no sleep.
Chromascope3D
The Black Shuck stands on the bank of the river after they pitch camp, and calls to Barry,   "Now, I think, would be a good time for fishing!"  
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I don't have any special changes to make to his routine, so I'm fine for continuing on.
 
meemaas
  "If you have any fishing gear, I'll join you. I don't do that very often."   Dawn says, while laying out her bedroll.

 
 Spoiler 
Dawn has no changes that need to be made to her daily setups for the near future.
 
Paddywagon Man
 Barry nods appreciatively to the Black Shuck and happily hands Dawn his black leather executioner's hood.   

"Fishing gear, yes I do miss! I appreciate the eagertude to help! Just use mine heisting hood to scoop them while they're stunned and floitering atop the river."   
 
Barry and Bloris have proudly assembled a messy-looking gunpowder charge sporting a very short fuse waterproofed to the best of their skill. With a chummy wave goodbye exchanged, Bloris disappears, and is moments later replaced by a conjured giant frog which Barry greets with a sergeant's solemn salute.
 
 
 Spoiler: Fishing and OOC 
With Vindaloo's animal-coaxing aid Barry will, like any educated fisherman, try to spur the summoned Resolute Giant Frog to carry the lit blast fishing charge safely underwater in its cavernous tight-closed mouth to detonate while the gang (and Dawn?) wait just downstream to collect stunned or dead fish.

Regardless of the fishing's success or predictable failure, Barry has no changed to make in his lineup.
 
rypt
Arryx moves to stand beside Black Shuck and anyone else who might be observing Barry's efforts.    "I come from a long line of fishermen.  This...this is a first,"   he says dryly.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
No changes for Arryx.
 
Paddywagon Man
Barry waits hopefully and expectantly for the explosion.

  "But not a last! When it catches on you'll be thankferous to me for showing you first. Saw a fellow in Alkenstar do it with his powder inna glass bottle, but The Man muckles up the price of glass to keep honest fisherfolk hungry. Frog is a dry containder for the rest of us."
  
He will sit by the riverbank for either explosive vindication or chilly disappointment.
lostsole31
Barry's expectations are met. Well, 50% of them .. as he gets nothing but chilly disappointment.
Paddywagon Man
  "Frog, eh, took the powder with him, I'm thinkling..."

   Barry scratches his head a moment trying to think of a way to salvage an awkward moment.   

"Call it, er... arms dealing, to the outest planes... expect I'm owed a few favours out yon by now."
   
Face thus saved he retires quickly and embarrassedly to bed. 
Chromascope3D
Disappointed, the Black Shuck stands up, noting,   "I wouldn't say the inside of a frog is all too dry. Perhaps the powder was too wet, or the wick burned out first..."  

The elf pulls a round device on a chain out of his pocket, and looks at it for a moment before declaring,   "Well, it is indeed getting late, and we have a lot more walking ahead of us! I say we retire and set out at first light."  
lostsole31
Having a much better understanding of how to fish and get along in the wild, but enjoying the cool evening and company by the riverside, Dawn will give pointers about the best way to fish a river like this to Barry, Aira'Ruathar, and Arryx. Unfortunately, this is all academic as none of them having any actual fishing gear. Besides, she would point out, fishing - or even hunting foraging, for that matter - is a matter of patience and time, things which are tough to get when pushing hard miles along the road. 
 Spoiler: ALCON: "Getting Along in the Wild" 
Either you know me by now, or you know enough about me, to know that I am very by-the-book. A lot of players want to get food and provisions - hunting, fishing, foraging - as a matter of an afterthought. If the group makes the decision to move at only half speed (exactly per RAW), THEN the party can make food gathering efforts. You cannot expect to get "whatever's available" by not impacting travel distance/ time.

And that really goes with anything else. Your travel time - assuming a full 8 hours - is pretty much your creative/ productive energy. There is no at-camp activity that solves any other game function except activities of daily living. Even if a creature doesn't sleep, they need rest. So no crafting, copying, transcribing, building, or otherwise productively doing "on the road."
 

While that is happening, Tamás hits up Black Shuck and they discuss arcane lore and traditions. The evoker is amazed to find so fertile a mind as the elf's, and where Black Shuck was originally going to go to bed early, they each endanger their rest for how riveting the conversation is. For Black Shuck's part, Tamás is not too far from his own mastery, and he can either act a rival, or be a more giving tutor.

The party finally settles down, and Vindaloo - a creature from the Inner Planes who doesn't need sleep - takes the watch.

 
  
  Oathday, 14 Desnus 4708 AR (Waxing Gibbous)
 75 / 55 F. Winds N 20 mph. Dry.    
 
Vindaloo wakes everyone up, just as dawn is creeping over the horizon, having everyone wake up early.

   "From the north! Large band of horses coming this way!"   

What do you do?
Chromascope3D
  "Bah,"   Black Shuck mutters as he throws on a padded shirt, buttoning it and reaching for the second layer of chainmail. He continues to mutter,   "Let an old elf rest for a bit before you come try taking his head."  

He calls to their fiendish watchman,   "Oi, what heraldry are they bearing and how far off are they?"  
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
If they are more than a few minutes out, Shuck will don his armor normally and attempt to make a couple extracts in this order (Clay Skin, Blur, Shield). If they are only a minute or less out, then he will don his armor hastily and not bother with the extracts.
 
lostsole31
  "Too far to see, but easy to hear,"   answers Vindaloo.
rypt
Arryx exhales a low grumble of displeasure, but does not immediately stand.  He remains seated on his bedroll for a few moments, his eyes closed, his rapid breathing gradually slowing.  When he finally rises, he dryly remarks,   "Perhaps their horses are thirsty."  
Paddywagon Man
 Barry snaps... rather sleepily to attention, hauling the oversized musket and its ammunition into position with Pip while beginning to summon Bloris.   

"Too early to exhume they're hostile. The boys and I are pretty stealtherlous, so we could load up the guns inna tree or a bush, and you folk meet them for a polite tetter-tat, and if they draws swords on you all I'll blast 'em Hadeswards."

    
 Spoiler: OOC 
Barry will take a quick look for any nearby vantage point that offers a place to hide with a view of the camp.
 
   
  
Chromascope3D
  "Better to expect winter early and get it late, than to expect it late and get it early,"   Black Shuck says nonchalantly as he wraps his swordbelt around his chainmail and cinches it closed.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I'll continue with the first option I presented: donning his armor normally and attempting to quickly brew as many of those extracts listed as he can.
 
rypt
Arryx sighs.    "Prepare as you must, but Barry is right.  I do not wish to see this escalate unnecessarily."  
meemaas
Dawn gets dressed and spends the time to carefully put her armor on while the others are talking. Once done, she rejoins the others and finally takes the time to talk.   "I wanna go back to bed. It's probably nothing."  
lostsole31
Everyone has time to get their armor on, and the sun breaks to reveals a very large group on horses ... definitely nothing that you want to tangle with in a fight.

But that is when the cloud seems to take a drift in direction to the west. Before long, the cloud of dust disappears to the northwest.

Quiet on the plains again.
Chromascope3D
  "Grand! Looks like winter came late..."   Black Shuck smiles, and carries on with his morning preparations. He adds an additional stretching and meditation routine.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Just realized that none of his maneuvers are prepped, so he'll prepare Clockwatcher, Stopwatch, Time Skitter, Vicious Swipe, and Dragon Assault.
 
lostsole31
The party heads out for the day of travel.  It is during this day, about 2/3 of the way through, that the party reaches the "bump" in the Velashu River that then turns sharply to the northeast, from which the party then turns away from the river to the northwest, now skirting the great curve of the Calphiak Mountains.

The party camps that night now along the point where the mountains bound one side, and the Velashu plains the rest.

That night, Barry (with Bloris) gives stealth training to LT Pip, Tamás, &amp; Black Shuck, while the remainder work on private projects.

 

    Fireday, 15 Desnus 4708 AR (Waxing Gibbous)
 85 / 65 F. Moderate rain (up to 3/4"). Winds S 10 mph. Dry.    
 
Today is a gray and rainy morning that quickly burns off, including any remaining humidity. At noon, most of the party easily note a cloud of dust that seems to be approaching the PCs track - a host of mounted men riding in front of the cloud, and that they'll cross the PCs' path in about 10 minutes.

What do you do?
Paddywagon Man
Barry scratches his head.

  "All yon squadroons of horsemen is making me mighty scurrilous of what their business could be. Bloris and I has a telekipathic mind link. And he can always pop back home for shut-eye if he gets roughened up, good as new come morning, won't be in any danger.

If you'se alright with it Bloris, I think you should head up and be our impassador, and we'll keep quiet a few kilomeagers off, and if they're the rough sorts that'll mug a lone halfling we'll know that through my telekipathy before they find us."
  
meemaas
Dawn scratches her head.   "I understood about half of that. Why are we automatically assuming they're enemies? I've found that the real nasty ones tend to come at you from cover. Or when you've fallen into a pitfall. Or when your house burned down. Basically, not from the front."   She casually says, as though it were a regular occurrence for her.   "Lets just let them pass. If they wanna stop and talk, so be it, but just like the last group, they probably just want to go their way."  
Paddywagon Man
 Barry looks a little guilty and sheepish, and speaks slowly for the next sentence.  
 "Er... might be I'm more, eh, speakeasy to follow in the old mother tongue, if you speaks Goblin..." 
  He takes a moment to think and formulate his next words, but by the time it comes out it's back to being as quick and archaic as ever.  
 "Either way! I'm not exhuming anything about yon equestrious friends of ours. If they're not enemies, they can tell Bloris their business in some polite chatsmanship, and I can ferry questions back and forth since we can read each other's minds. Could be they're hunting some dangerous beast or maraudsmen we'd be happy to learn of, or could be they're on their way to Elfland themselves with extra mounts for the borrow. Bloris can help us learn all that, without all being crustled up together in their crossbowsight, just in case they are hostile after all."

   He looks to Dawn with a hopeful smile. 
Chromascope3D
  "I agree with Mr. Boppins."   Black Shuck interjects,   "Whether they are enemies or not doesn't truly matter; by the time they're close enough to discern, it may be too late. We're miles from civilization, and on foot, while they are horseback, so not only do they have the combat advantage, they can outrun us, and..."  

He gestures out to the treeless expanse,   "...There's nowhere to hide. Now, you are right, Ms. Dawn, in that we should not pick a fight we do not need to, but we should also make it clear that we won't be easy marks, or at least, that attacking us could be as devastating for them as it would be for we."

  The elf takes out a vial from his belt pouch and downs the contents, his skin turning from pale pink to a blueish-grey.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Black Shuck is going to consume his Clay Skin and Heightened Awareness extracts. He's also going to brew an extract of Expeditious Retreat.
 
lostsole31
Barry is all talk as he only talked about sending Bloris out, but never quite did.

The cloud of dust dissipates as the riders at its head slow to a canter. They are barbarians by their dress, bearing distinctive patterns of war paint on their faces and shoulders, marks repeated in the same dark color on the necks of their equine mounts. They are twelve in number, although they are followed by a train of two dozen additional horses. As they pull to a stop, they hold up their right hands, showing that they brandish no weapons. The leader of the group, a tall, sun-tanned man with dusty black hair, urges his mount forward a few steps before speaking.   “Strange days these are when stars fall from the sky and the walled-folk wander the plains of the Velashan. I am Windbraid. What brings you here?”  
meemaas
Dawn is first to speak up, addressing the leader politely and promptly.   "We are just on a journey and passing through. Got a delivery to make, and I'm hoping to find my old man. But mostly the delivery. You can call me Dawn"   She smiles at Windbraid before continuing.   "What about you and your group?"  
lostsole31
Windbraid and his fellow riders look very suspiciously at the strange, green-skinned woman that stepped forth, but answer nonetheless.   "We are of the Velashu Horse Lords. You are on your lands. Where are you heading? Who is this old man you seek?"  
meemaas
Dawn laughs a little.   "I guess you haven't heard that turn of phrase before. I mean my father. He moved back to Celwynvian some years back. Our delivery is in the same area, although I'm not sure exactly where we're going. I'm sorry for trespassing on your land, we didn't know we weren't welcome."  
lostsole31
Windbraid looks past Dawn at the others assembled as a group.   "The elves control the great woodland and do not take kindly to intruders. I and my people have wandered these plains for generations, and although the elves have never been overly friendly to my people, they have recently become almost hostile and have barred the outlying areas of the Mierani to hunters. We Horse Lords have also heard rumors of pitched battles occurring deep within the woods, but little else is known, as the elves do not speak of it."  
rypt
Arryx steps forward to stand beside Dawn. He meets the horse lord's eyes only briefly before bowing his head slightly and focusing his gaze on the empty space between them.    "Greetings, Windbraid.  I understand that these recent developments may be troubling.  I wish I could provide you a more complete explanation of what is happening, but I owe much to the kindness the elves have shown me in the past, and I feel I am honor-bound to respect their desire for secrecy.  What I can say is that they are working to put an end to the falling stars, and it is in all of our interests that they succeed.  Our task is to deliver them information at Crying Leaf.  If this camp is known to you, we would very much appreciate it if you could show us the quickest way to get there."  
lostsole31
Windbraid points in a direction your party orienteers have been leading you.
rypt
Arryx opens his mouth to say something, closes it, then clears his throat.    "Right.  Well...thank you."  
lostsole31
Windbraid says to the group,   "You are from Riddleport, where they have the large markets. My band is heading to the city to sell or trade a number of horses, but I'd rather turn back now if Riddleport’s in one of its semi-traditional uprisings or street wars between crime lords. Have you interest in our horses? I will sell them to you."  
Paddywagon Man
  "Sounds like a fine plan! But my bags are bulgersome with more gunpowder than coins at present moment. We're on a pay-on-arrivalry deal here so I'm not at my richest. How much will yon horsies set us back?"  
lostsole31
Windbraid snorts in derision at Barry.   "Our fine horses set you forward, not back."  
meemaas
Dawn laughs again.   "That one there speaks half gibberish most of the time. He wants to know how much you want for them. We can't agree to buy horses if we aren't sure we can pay you for them, after all."  
lostsole31
  "Life on the uplands is hard, and these horses know battle. I have two varieties. The lighter steeds will run 400 gold coins; the heavier for 1000 gold coins. We will take currency, but prefer trade-in-kind with things we can use." 
 
meemaas
  "I'm not particularly knowledgeable about horses, having never ridden one in my life. Can you tell me the difference between the two? I'm sure my friends will want to know before we can agree to spend a large amount of gold, especially since we'll all have to agree or else it won't work out."   Dawn asks, while digging in her backpack to try and determine how much she can spend right now.
lostsole31
  "Our horses are valuable, and we will only trade them to those knowledgeable in horseflesh,"   says Windbraid.   "You might have the material to trade, but not the heart."  

He looks to the rest of the party.
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck shrugs,   "We could pick up our pace if we had a horse for the smallfolk to ride, but I haven't the animal experience nor means to pay."  
lostsole31
  "With my gear and old bones,"   says Tamás,   "a fast horse would be a blessing. Alas, not only do I not have the coin, but it would not matter appreciably to our group's speed."  
rypt
Arryx shakes his head.    "Never was much of a rider myself.  I'll pass, thanks."  
lostsole31
Windbraid wishes the party luck and “swift manes” in their journey  before he and his band depart. They ride to the southeast, leaving the  characters alone on the plain once more. The party continues their trek  to the northwest, skirting the border between the Velashu Uplands and  the Calphiak Mountains.

That evening at camp, Tamás and Black  Shuck strike up a conversation. Black Shuck - foreign to all human lands  - begins his tutelage under Tamás regarding political science, power  structures, and recognizing and interpreting heraldic devices.  Meanwhile, Barry runs combat training for everyone.

Even with  everyone else doing combat training, Tamás will ask for Black Shuck's  assistance to do some celestial navigation. The elf assists the senior  human astronomer and make calculations. They figure at the party's  current rate of speed, the group will reach Crying Leaf and the edge of  the forest in a little over three days.

Taking stock of how much  food people have, the party can make a full day of travel tomorrow.  After that, however, the party will need to slow down to conduct hunting  and foraging on the way.

Does anyone have any comment on this, or ready to move forward with following days?
Paddywagon Man
As the pace is calculated and his own short legs are accounted for as a factor, Barry seems a little embarrassed, looking back in the direction the horse traders left as he polishes his musket.

  "Maybe we'se a tad sluggarder in pace mountless. But wise goblins taught me never to trust a horse. Countless degenerations of goblinfolk locked in struggle. Legends stritchering back into yon misty depths of goblin rememoration. Mayhaps a hunred... hunred and fifty years. Or more. Legends."  

Over the next morning, to hurry his pace up a little and hold up the group less, he'll use his summoning talents to ride up ahead of the group periodically on summoned Goblin Dogs with Vindaloo alongside, before letting the group catch up once he slows on foot - taking an impromptu role of scout. His talents allow him four such stints - with one summon left over for a quick retreat if necessary!
lostsole31
    Starday, 16 Desnus 4708 AR 
80 / 60 F. Heavy rain (1-1/2"). Winds N 20 mph. Medium humidity.  
 
The next day of travel, Barry doesn't actually save any time. His mounted summons are limited, and his skill at riding unsaddled summoned creatures is only surpassed by his complete lack of horsemanship even if he were on a pony that could walk upright and carry him in his arms.  Add to that, the old man is weighed down by his gear such that Tamás is just as much an issue of slowing the party down as Barry was.

At camp that evening, Black Shuck, Tamás and Dawn finish off their rations.

The others (not Barry) have the rations to share with the three of them if you want to have everyone finish off all rations in the party for another full day of travel ... OR maintain one's own rations and use the following day to hunt and forage, slowing down pace.

What do you wish to do?
rypt
Arryx offers his trail rations to the others.    "I've had some  hard  tack in my day, but these mean business.  Do your teeth the favor of dipping them in water first."  
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck chuckles, but doesn't take the bread, saying,   "Ach, this is rather embarrassing. I've had my fill for tonight though. I think we should hold on to those for a lean day; we can slow our pace and begin hunting and gathering in the meantime."  
rypt
If the others agree with Black Shuck (or don't otherwise object), Arryx will shrug and put the rations away.    "Your choice."  
Paddywagon Man
Barry has little stake in the ration business.

  "My victurals are a bit meagest for yon hungry largefolk. But if it comes to hunting, I can devaporize some deer and hareabbits, if you don't mind a bit of sulphur garnish."  
lostsole31
Barry does a variety of hand-eye coordination drills, which draws the eye of Black Shuck who ends up partnering the skills with him, and in turn act as tutors of the same for Arryx and Dawn while Aira'Ruathar and Tamás work together privately.

 

    Sunday, 17 Desnus 4708 AR (Waxing Gibbous) 
75 / 55 F. Light rain (1/2"). Winds WNW 20 mph. Low humidity.   

Aira'Ruathar gives a makeshift service for those that want it, especially for good hunting today. On this day's travels, Arryx is the main assistant to Dawn as she organizes the party to best collect edibles on route, but it is slim pickings on the warm grasslands in the shadow of the mountains, getting only food for three rations, but that is enough to make sure that everyone eats without sharing what meager rations remain.

That evening at camp, Aira' gives training in elven wilderness medicine to Tamás, Black Shuck, Arryx, &amp; Dawn. Meanwhile, Arryx drills with his coterie.


 

    Moonday, 18 Desnus 4708 AR (Full Moon) 
80 / 65 F. Heavy rain (1-1/2"). Winds S 20 mph. Low humidity.   

Today is as much different day as some game is caught with edible berries for a total of 15 rations. Since it is fresh and perishable, nobody needs hard tack that night, reducing to 9 fresh rations after everyone eats. The group is expected to get to Crying Leaf tomorrow.

Nobody does any deep conversations or training, just enjoying the full bellies and peaceful campfire for the last night before getting into the thick of things tomorrow.


 

    Toilday, 19 Desnus 4708 AR (Full Moon) 
80 / 65 F. No rain. Winds WNW 20 mph. Dry.   

On the final day of travel, the faint hunter’s trail dips under the dense canopy of the Mierani. The forest itself is a place of ancient life, with immense fir trees, pines, and redwoods making up the majority of the flora.

As narrow as the trail is, it constitutes the main route into the woodlands and the settlement of Crying Leaf. The route skirts the forest edge, never going further than a half-mile into the depths as it winds its way for 5 miles. Yet despite the fact that no elves step out of the woods to bar their entrance, the warnings the Horse Lords gave them are feels accurate—as if the PCs are being watched from the moment they set foot in the woods, and not only by elven eyes.

Do you do anything special, or continue on your way?
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck glances towards the canopy overhead every so often, and runs his hand along various trees that they pass, but otherwise says nothing.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
No changes from me.
 
rypt
Wary of potential danger, Arryx manifests a power to heighten his senses.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Arryx will manifest  elfsight .
 
Paddywagon Man
Barry shivers and sweats a bit as they continue, occasionally looking furtively upwards or behind for pursuers, whether out of alertness or paranoia. Soon he halts abruptly and gets his squad together in formation for orders.

  "Uncharitous country, this. Feels like The Man's eyes gorin' downswards on us... line up horizfrontal, boys, let's get youse precious brainswaves proterected."  

Barry puts on what looks like a homemade ring of thin metal foil, rubs his hands together, and ruffles the heads of each member of his squad in turn to imbue them (and himself) with magical protection.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

Mage Armor on Barry, Pip, Bloris and Vindaloo from Summoner spell slots
 
lostsole31
The entire party hears not three bestial shriek coming from high and to  the north! 
 Spoiler: Dawn 
Dawn's greensight cuts through the foliage  enough to see three winged creatures leave the roost of a massive  redwood tree, some 100' off the ground.
 

 Begin Round One ...

R1T29:   Barry , the screeching threats are not readily visible to the eyes. What do you do?
Paddywagon Man
 Barry takes a moment to look, and sees no target available yet - and his squad is still not fully at attention to the new threat to assist him with proper coordinated fire.  
 "Sounds right horsebeastish - Brigh boss on highswards, hear this gunfolk's tricker-entreatments!" 
 He takes the moment of temporary peace to cast a simple spell of blessing on himself and his allies before returning to scanning the sky, eye to his musket's simple sights.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

Bless spell as standard action. If Bloris or Vindaloo land a successful firearm attack this round he'll use Target of Opporunity to shoot as an immediate action.
 
lostsole31
 R1T29:   Barry takes a moment to look, and  sees no target  available yet - and his squad is still not fully at  attention to the new  threat to assist him with proper coordinated fire.    "Sounds right horsebeastish - Brigh boss on highswards, hear this gunfolk's tricker-entreatments!" 
 He takes the moment of temporary peace to cast a simple spell of   blessing on himself and his allies before returning to scanning the  sky,  eye to his musket's simple sights.

 R1T27:   Arryx , what do you do?
rypt
Arryx grimaces at the monstrous cacophony.  Instinctively, he shifts his footing, his hands moving through a practiced and fluid form, not unlike those of his morning kata.  He briefly presses his eyes shut, and when they open, odd sounds can be heard from beneath his clothes -- those of the groaning and creaking of wood.  A moment later, tree bark begins to spread upward from his collarbone, encircling his neck, covering his face, and then continuing unseen beneath his hair.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Swift action: Adopt  stance of the inner eye .

Standard action: Spend 1 monk ki point to cast  barkskin .
 
lostsole31
 R1T27:  Arryx grimaces at the monstrous cacophony.  Instinctively, he shifts his  footing, his hands moving through a practiced and fluid form, not  unlike those of his morning kata.  He briefly presses his eyes shut, and  when they open, odd sounds can be heard from beneath his clothes --  those of the groaning and creaking of wood.  A moment later, tree bark  begins to spread upward from his collarbone, encircling his neck,  covering his face, and then continuing unseen beneath his hair.

 R1T26:  A large flying beast with scalloped wings comes flying in fast from the north, now at a 40' altitude.

 R1T24:   Black Shuck , what do you do?
Chromascope3D
  "Bah, damn trees..."   Black Shuck mutters to himself before he downs a potion. The elf's skin, again, turns a shade of pale blue, as he draws his two blades in a single motion and falls into a threatening stance. He stares down the creature

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Standard: Drink Clay Skin extract
Move: Draw both weapons
Swift: Enter Thrashing Dragon Style and Battle Dragon's Stance.

Other notes:
Aegis: Allies within 20 ft of Black Shuck gain a +2 morale bonus to AC and Will saves.
 
lostsole31
 R1T24:     "Bah, damn trees,"     Black Shuck  mutters to himself before he downs a potion. The elf's skin, again,  turns a shade of pale blue, as he draws his two blades in a single  motion and falls into a threatening stance. He stares down the creature  ... well, at least in its direction ... with various forest foliage ...  over a sizeable distance ... possibly it notices his stare. Elves are  supposed to be intense, after all.

 R1T23:  Dawn  sees a second one of the monsters flying down to the same altitude, but  offset and more NNE of the party, a little farther away.

 R1T21:   Dawn , what do you do?
meemaas
Dawn takes up a battle stance, summoning a series of translucent weapons that circle her, each one a different shape and size. She points first towards one, then the other creature, calling them out to her allies.   "There's at least three of them. I see one there, and another over there, but I've lost track of the third."   She also shares what she knows about the creature, if anything, before launching one of her smaller weapons, shaped like an oversized needle, toward the closer creature.

 
 Spoiler 
Swift action: Summon Panolpy
I think it's a move action to attempt a knowledge check, but if not, whatever action it takes to check and share.
Standard action: Attempt to launch a light weapon at Red.

Attack roll  (1d20+13)[ 18 ] 
Damage  (1d6+1)[ 5 ]  +  (1d6)[ 6 ]  Electricity

If the knowledge check and talking takes up my Standard action, so be it.
 
lostsole31
 R1T21:  Dawn takes up a battle stance, summoning a series of translucent weapons  that circle her, each one a different shape and size. She points first  towards one, then the other creature, calling them out to her allies,   "There's at least three of them. I see one there, and another over there, but I've lost track of the third."  

She gives a quick look and adds,   "Forest drakes! Poor cousins to green dragons and bullies. I am sure they are not here to make friends."  
 She launches one of her smaller weapons, shaped like an oversized needle,  toward the closer creature, striking it mid-wing for  5 +  6 electricity  .

 R1T22:  The third now comes into view.

 R1T13:   Bloris is now ready, and delays ...

 R1T12:  Aira'Ruathar takes to the air while drawing her bow, and is now at a 15' altitude.

  "Yes! I agree about forest drakes. Now let's see if they are evil!"   she calls down while sending a mote of holy hadouken right in between the two drakes that erupts with holy power to do   15 holy + blinded   to Red and   6 holy   to Green.    "They  are  evil!"  
 R1T9:   Tamás takes off his backpack, dropping it, and then takes a square of  leather out of a pouch while casting a spell on himself. A tight  boundary of light forms around him briefly before fading from view as he  returns the leather to his pouch. He steps forward to be closer to the  two physical warriors.

 R1T8:  Vindaloo readies the musket for the team and shouts,    "Load!"   
 R1T7:  Bloris loads the massive musket, taking powder bullet from LT Pip.

 R1T6:   LT Pip then fires the massive weapon at the lead drake with a deafening  roar that is heard at the same time as Red gets grazed in the head by  something unseen for  3 . Barry tenses, but the target is too high and far away to take advantage of the hit.

 End Round One, Begin Round 2 ...

R2T29:   Barry , what do you do?

Arryx on deck, Red (Forest Drake) in the hole ...
Paddywagon Man
Barry, a mental tally of gunpowder costs to wages ever ticking in his head and now going sharply into red, cringes slightly at the missed shot.
  
"That's enspensive munitionries Pip! Let the scalerous galoofs get nice and near before you blastercate!"
  
He sights a shot carefully and fires his smaller musket at the drake on the left, reloading a new cartridge with lightning speed.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

Move Action: Bullseye Shot for +4 on attack roll
Standard: Vital Strike, with "Deadly Aim" applied (reckless?)
 (1d20+18)[ 26 ] 
 (2d8+11)[ 14 ] 
As usual, immediate action will be used with Target of Opportunity if one arises
 
lostsole31
 R2T29:  Barry, a mental tally of gunpowder costs to wages ever ticking in his  head and now going sharply into red, cringes slightly at the grazing shot.   "That's enspensive munitionries Pip! Let the scalerous galoofs get nice and near before you blastercate!"
  
He sights a shot carefully and fires his smaller musket at the drake on  the left, reloading a new cartridge with lightning speed, striking the left wing for  14 .

 R2T27:   Arryx , what do you do?

Red on deck, Black Shuck in the hole ...
rypt
  "The third one might try to circle around behind us,"   Arryx warns.  He shifts to his right, and after taking a moment to scan the nearby trees, he asks of the others,   "Are drakes able to attack from a distance?"  
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Swift action: Enter Sleeping Goddess Style.

Free action: 5-foot step to the northeast.

Move action: Attempt to locate the third drake.

Standard action: Ready action to make unarmed strike + risky strike attack if one of the drakes enters a space he threatens.
 Attack: (d20+11)[ 28 ] 
Damage:  (1d8+10)[ 17 ]  plus  (1d6)[ 5 ]  from  stance of inner eye  
 
lostsole31
 R2T27:    "The third one might try to circle around behind us,"   Arryx warns.  He shifts to his right, and after taking a moment to scan the nearby trees, he asks of the others,   "Are drakes able to attack from a distance?"  
 R2T26:   Still blinded, Red peels back to the north, stopping as its leaves hit  the tree branches of the redwood it originally came from.

 R2T24:   Black Shuck , what do you do?

Dawn in the hole ...
Chromascope3D
Tapping twice the hilts of his swords together, Black Shuck moves forward with an uncanny quickness, deftly weaving through to stand before the ad hoc front line.

  "Stay close together, then,"   the elf calls back to the wizard and firing squad,   "We don't want them picking us out from the underbrush!"  
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Swift: Activate Time Skitter (Personal Haste for 6 rounds)
Move: Move 20' N
Standard: Take Total Defense action

He'll also attempt to recall knowledge about the offensive abilities of Forest Drakes.
 
lostsole31
 R2T24:  Tapping twice the hilts of his swords together, Black Shuck moves  forward with an uncanny quickness, deftly weaving through to stand  before the ad hoc front line.

  "Stay close together, then,"   the elf calls back to the wizard and firing squad,   "We don't want them picking us out from the underbrush!"  
 R2T23:   Blue dives down from 40' to 20' in altitude while coming WSW over the  party, and spits a ball of fluid right at Bloris' feet, where the ball  then explodes into a caustic cloud. Bloris takes   5 acid  ; Barry ducks enough to only take   7 acid  ; Vindaloo uses Bloris as a body shield and is unharmed; but LT Pip gets hit hard not only for   11 acid  ,  but one of the full powder horns is destroyed, and denaturing the  gunpowder within it. On the north side of the eruption, Old Tam is just out of the way. His dropped backpack, on the other hand, was not trained from young  leather to dodge acid quickly, but was sturdily made ... it is not  destroyed, but damaged.

 R2T21:   Dawn , what do you do? Not that you can't see more than 5' into the green cloud.

Green on deck, Aira' in the hole ...
meemaas
Dawn looks over at the third one, calling out at it.   "Your life force is mine creature!!"   After her power attempts to take hold, she launches a pair of needles towards it, hoping to strike it down.

 
 Spoiler 
Swift action: Use Confiscate Vitality on Blue, DC 21 Fort save or Exhausted and Dawn gets 6 THP

Full Round Action: Full attack on Blue with light weapons

Attack 1  (1d20+13)[ 32 ]  (+2 if Malefaction lands)
Damage  (1d6+1)[ 4 ]  (+6 if Malefaction lands) +  (1d6)[ 1 ]  Electric

Attack 2  (1d20+8)[ 19 ]  (+2 if Malefaction lands)
Damage  (1d6+1)[ 3 ]  (+6 if Malefaction lands) +  (1d6)[ 5 ]  Electric
 
meemaas
 
 Spoiler: Severity roll 

Severity  (1d20)[ 10 ] 
Damage  (2d6)[ 7 ] 
 
lostsole31
 R2T22:  Dawn looks over at the third one, calling out at it,   "Your life force is mine creature!!"  

Her  power fails to take hold, and she launches a pair of needles towards  it, hoping to strike it down. The first is a brilliant strike to its  head for  23 +  1 electricity  , even as the other strikes one of its talons for  3 +  5 electricity  .

 R2T21:   Green cycles from the other direction and spits an acid ball at the  middle of the forward group to catch everyone from Old Tam to Black  Shuck. Black Shuck takes   11 acid  ; Dawn takes   4 acid  ; Aira' completely dodges; Old Tam takes   14 acid  ; and Arryx stands there as he is covered for   14 acid   and his   rope dart is destroyed  .

 R2T12:  Aira calls out something as she moves away and draws her bow:   "« Ancêtres, donnez-moi une grande magie pour vaincre nos ennemis ! »"   
 Spoiler: Sylvan (All except Barry) 
  "Ancestors, empower me with great magic to defeat our enemies!"  
 
Once there, she concentrates quickly, and a protective glow forms around her.

 R2T9:  Old Tam hustles north to a tree and casts a spell, fully healing himself of the caustic burns.

 R2T8-6:  Barry's entire fire team delays, waiting for orders as they are in a sight-concealing cloud.

 End Round 2, Begin Round 3 ...

R3T29:   Barry ,  your entire fire team needs guidance as you and they are all in a  sight-obscuring cloud, and another sight-obscuring cloud is north of  that. What do you do and command?

Arryx on deck, Red in the hole ...
Paddywagon Man
Coughing and rubbing his stinging eyes, Barry starts pushing and shouting to reposition his squad out of the blinding cloud.

  "Yisaways, boys! Stick close to me! Vindaloo, you'se on blambarding duty! Get up close and plump some lead through his victuals!"   

He'll move north-east, taking position directly beside Tamas to the wizard's direct east, and wait for his squad to move into their familiar square formation around him (and thus into point-blank range of the closest drake) before unloading another vital strike into it and quickly reloading to prepare for any shots of opportunity.

Or, if the closest drake dies before they do, he'll simply shoot at any in range.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
(Readied) Risky Vital Strike on nearest drake (including Point Blank Shot)
 (1d20+15)[ 19 ] 
 (2d8+12)[ 24 ] 
 
lostsole31
 R3T29-28.5:  Coughing and rubbing his stinging eyes, Barry starts pushing and shouting to reposition his squad out of the blinding cloud.   "Yisaways, boys! Stick close to me! Vindaloo,  you'se on blambarding duty! Get up close and plump some lead through his  victuals!"   

He'll move north-east, taking position directly beside Tamas to the  wizard's direct east, and wait for his squad to move into their familiar  square formation around him (and thus into point-blank range of the  closest drake) before unloading another shot into its chest for  23 , being just out of range of a close-range shot because of its 20' altitude. He quickly reloads.

Almost simultaneously, Vindaloo fires, hitting the drake in the wing for  15 + disabled .

 R3T27:   Arryx , your readied action did not occur. What do you do?

Red on deck, Black Shuck in the hole ...
rypt
Arryx exhales a frustrated breath as he looks down at his side, the dissolved remains of his rope dart providing a sufficiently clear answer to his question of the drakes' ranged capabilities.    "I wanted to use that..."   he growls.

Striding forward, he raises his arms towards the drakes and makes a beckoning gesture with both hands.    "Come!  Which one of you wants to die first?"  
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Move action: Move 2 squares north.

Standard action: Total defense.
 
lostsole31
 R3T27:  Arryx exhales a frustrated breath as he looks down at his side, the  dissolved remains of his rope dart providing a sufficiently clear answer  to his question of the drakes' ranged capabilities.    "I wanted to use that,"   he growls.

Striding forward, he raises his arms towards the drakes and makes a beckoning gesture with both hands.    "Come!  Which one of you wants to die first?"  
 R3T26:   Red returns to the fray, flying down to a 20' altitude before breathing  forth an acid ball to erupt among Black Shuck, Arryx, and Old Tam. All  three, knowing the threat, dodge well enough so that Arryx takes   10 acid  , Old Tam takes   8 acid  , &amp; Black Shuck dodges to take only   7 acid  .

 R3T24:   Black Shuck , what do you do?

Blue on deck, Dawn in the hole ...
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck glances about to find his fellows, but upon seeing none, turns back into the cloud, attempting to find his way back to the closer monster.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Black Shuck will move 5' NE. If a drake is within reach, he'll study it as a swift action and full attack. Otherwise, he'll take a total defense action.

Zenith Attack 1  (1d20+14)[ 31 ]  + 3 Studied Combat +1 Haste
Zenith Damage 1  (2d6)[ 1 ][ 5 ](6) + 6 INT + 3 Studied Combat

Zenith Attack Haste  (1d20+14)[ 33 ]  + 3 Studied Combat +1 Haste
Zenith Damage Haste  (2d6)[ 3 ][ 2 ](5) + 6 INT + 3 Studied Combat

Zenith Attack 2  (1d20+9)[ 15 ]  + 3 Studied Combat +1 Haste
Zenith Damage 2  (2d6)[ 4 ][ 4 ](8) + 6 INT + 3 Studied Combat

Off-Hand Attack  (1d20+14)[ 19 ]  + 3 Studied Combat +1 Haste
Off-Hand Damage  (1d4)[ 2 ] + (1d6)[ 5 ] + 6 INT + 3 Studied Combat
 
lostsole31
 R3T24:  Black Shuck glances about to find his fellows, but upon seeing none,  turns back into the cloud, attempting to find his way back to the closer  monster. He is no closer to the monster, but finds himself next to Old Tam.

 R3T23:  ....

 R3T22:   Dawn , what do you do? You only see Green at 20' altitude.

Green on deck, Aira' in the hole ...
meemaas
After a moment of thought, basing on where the attack originally landed, Dawn dashes to the West, hoping to get out of the cloud quickly. Once out, she focuses her attention on the nearest enemy that she can see from her position and attempts to curse it, before launching another needle at it in hopes of taking it down.

 
 Spoiler 
Move action: Move due West 20ft to get out of the cloud a little beyond its edge.
Swift action: Attempt Confiscate: Vitality again on Green, DC 21 Fort Save or be Exhausted and Dawn gains 6THP if so.
Standard action: Attack Green with a Light Mind Blade

Attack roll (Risky Strike)  (1d20+11)[ 21 ]  (+2 if Malefaction lands)
Damage  (1d6+5)[ 11 ]  (+6 if Malefaction lands) +  (1d6)[ 3 ]  Electricity
 
lostsole31
 R3T22:  After a moment of thought, basing on where the attack originally landed,  Dawn dashes to the west, hoping to get out of the cloud quickly. Once  out, she focuses her attention on the nearest enemy that she can see  from her position and curses it so that it is  exhausted  while Dawn gains  6 THP . She then launches another  needle at it in hopes of taking it down, striking for  11 +  3 electricity  .

 R3T21:  Now exhausted, Green glides north the the ground and continues to scramble north.

 R3T12:  Aira' hovers and shoots Blue in the side of the stomach and killing it outright, then shoots Red in the chest for  16 .

 R3T9:   Old Tam moves north while taking out a crystal and cloth. Once under  where Aira' flies, he rubs these items together while casting a spell  and a massive bolt of lightning crackles forth to lance through Red,  blowing it out of the sky and it crashes to the ground painfully.

With  these two sudden deaths, there is as ululating sound, as elves unseen  about and around the party and north - having been watching in the  foliage - fall upon and kill the third and final cursed and exhausted  forest drake.

 Combat Ends! 

Aira'Ruathar flies down to retrieve one arrow from the body of the first one she killed, but her other arrow was blasted to splinters in her friend's lightning bolt.
rypt
Arryx clicks his tongue and sighs once he realizes all the drakes are dead.     "Well that was quick,"    he mutters.  Stepping around a small puddle of acid, (and assuming their skin isn't purple) he gives the newcomers a friendly wave, addressing them in flawless Elven.   "« Greetings, protectors of the Mierani, and thank you for your help.  We appreciate your vigilance in more ways than one.  We are here on behalf of Kwava of the Shin’Rakorath.  We have a delivery for the leader of Crying Leaf. »"  
lostsole31
After the combat is over, the elves emerge from hiding and slowly approach the characters, holding their bows in a non-threatening manner but nonetheless at the ready.

  "I am Kaerishiel, leader of the scouts,"   one of them says, nodding to Arryx for his introduction.   "Kwava sent a note informing my people to expect your arrival. I will answer no questions. It would be best to allow Eviana to answer your questions. You should keep silent, there are many enemies in these woods.”  

Aira'Ruathar channels positive energy once, fully healing Old Tam, Barry, Dawn, Bloris.

Does anyone do anything before following Kaerishiel?
meemaas
Dawn nods to the leader and dismisses her weapons, then starts following the group silently.
Chromascope3D
  "Couldn't have stepped in to help before the drakes used us for target practice eh...?"   Black Shuck mutters to himself, before gesturing for the scouts to lead on.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
No action here.
 
Paddywagon Man
Barry nods in agreement, takes a moment to calm and reassure Lieutenant Pip after the acid bath, and moves to follow.   "Blank Shuck, you vocarize exactly what I'm thinking, yon grungerous beasts' exhalpitations itch and burn worse than the hungriest of ear-grubs all body over. I'll gladly follow any which way keeps us safe from more of these acrid-spitting bereavemoths."


  
lostsole31
In a low voice, Kaerishiel abruptly says,   “It would be best to allow Eviana to answer your questions. You should keep silent, there are many enemies in these woods.”  

The party is escorted by Kaerishiel and his band. Up ahead, the forest begins to thin somewhat, but a screen of plants prevents observation of what lies within. After a moment, several elf scouts approach the screen, which turns out to be a solid wall of thorny vines. One of the elves puts a small silver whistle to his lips and blows three times. As the last twittering note begins to fade, the wall of vines springs to life, pulling back to reveal a small settlement in a clearing on the other side.

The village of Crying Leaf is a modest one, with low structures made of gracefully shaped stone and wood that has been carefully decorated and carved. What is immediately apparent is that this settlement has seen battle recently. A number of the buildings bear burn marks and other damage, and most of the citizens are armed with bows and swords.

When the PCs arrive, Kaerishiel quickly leads them to a low stone building near the edge of town where they can refresh themselves from their hard journey. Many of the elves follow them and loiter around outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of the outsiders. Kaerishiel, meanwhile, goes to report to Eviana and prepare for the meeting.

The building to which the PCs are assigned contains three chambers: a central room, a simple bathroom, and a meditation room containing eight woven reed mats for resting. An oak table surrounded by gracefully carved chairs dominates the main chamber. Atop this table is a mound of fruits and vegetables, freshly harvested.

Does anyone do anything special while waiting?
lostsole31
After an hour has passed, Kaerishiel returns to escort the PCs to Eviana. He leads them to the center of the town to an ornate wooden long hall, roofed in broad, autumn-colored leaves. One end of the hall is open, revealing an immense table that runs the entire length of the hall. At the far end, seated upon a tall chair of polished white wood, is Eviana, the leader of Crying Leaf.

Seated in a high-backed chair of polished white birch, Eviana is a striking figure. Her high brow is set with a thin metal circlet, and small gemstones sparkle in her hair. Although richly dressed in a finely made gown, the hilt of a sword is clearly visible at her waist. Kaerishiel strides up to take a seat at the table to her right. As she indicates to the PCs that they should be seated at the table as well, she speaks.

   “Please, be seated,”    Eviana says in light and friendly voice.    “I received word from your friend Kwava that you were coming, bringing with you knowledge that might help us with our…situation, deeper in the Mierani. My people and I are grateful that you made this journey. As you can likely guess, we are in a delicate position. It would be best if what you learn here does not spread beyond the bows of the Mierani. Do we have an accord?”   
meemaas
Dawn takes a seat quickly, and answers Eviana as soon as she's sat down.   "I can't speak for the rest of them, but you've got my silence. Something that's gotta be secret sounds like it's going to be interesting, and I'm all for that."  
lostsole31
  "I am Aira'Ruathar, Warhunter of Ketephys, Ambassador of the People of the the First"   says Aira', speaking now in a voice and bearing that surprises everyone - still possessing her wild edge, and yet much more polished in speaking to a group,   "and I have been made to understand that we are cousins, and that our shared cousins who fled below instead of solace on Castrovel - like your people, or to the First World - like my forbears, have taken a dark turn, and are an embarrassment to the whole of elvenkind, wherever our cousins may be.

"This man is Tamás Hartseygow, my bonded human, and I speak for him in this matter ... that we both are pledged to secrecy in the matter of the  drow , the dark cousins of the Darklands, that the surface world may be little informed of them or their connection and remain in their ignorance."  
Chromascope3D
  "Black Shuck, of the northern Ilverani... by birth and upbringing more than association, that is, so don't go thinking I'm some kind of official envoy,"   Black Shuck introduces himself, chewing on a fruit that he had swiped from the waiting room, and continues,   "I can vow not to discuss anything them happens in this room outside of it, but, ehhh, I'm still gonna have trouble believing these boogeymen really exist until I see them for myself."  
rypt
Arryx nods in agreement.    "Yes, you have my word."    A brief moment later, he glances around the party's end of the table and adds,   "Name's Arryx, by the way."  
Paddywagon Man
Barry salutes, and gently nudges Pip and Bloris to mimic it.   "I'm Barry, speaking for the squad ahind me, and our gabs will remain embuttonized - we're not a gossipellating lot, really and trutherous. Specially Pip, Pip's not talkative people. Bloris and Vindaloo yon can be charteredboxes but I trusts them to keep an oath."  
 
lostsole31
Eviana nods.    “Thank you for this. You now know why we have had to close the borders of the Mierani, and indeed, why Crying Leaf was established. The drow have a strong presence in the old ruins of the once great city of Celwynvian. I tell you now that the situation is far worse than you might suspect. The drow control the ruins almost completely, and have for some time now. We here in Crying Leaf have been locked in what seems to be an unending struggle with them for many years, and until recently we believed we had them contained. Yet your forebears' conflicts under Riddleport and on Devil’s Elbow showed us all this was not the case at all. And in Celwynvian, the drow have been quite elusive. Whenever we prepare a major strike, the city seems empty, but our gains are quickly eroded within days as a renewed force pushes us back. We had thought that the drow were fleeing into the Darklands, but now we know the truth of it—they have been retreating instead into this pocket dimension they call the Armageddon Echo.

“I must confer with my contacts in Kyonin to determine what is to be done with the knowledge. Might I ask you to wait until we have decided? There may be a place for you among Crying Leaf’s forces in the battles to come. I assure you, if you are willing to join with us, you shall be paid handsomely, at rates equal to those we afford the Shin’Rakorath.”   

With that, Eviana leaves the hall, entrusting the PCs again to Kaerishiel’s care. Once she has gone, the leader of the Shin’Rakorath escorts them back to their lodge in silence, an angry look on his face. Once there, he suddenly turns on them.   “I suppose you are quite proud of your accomplishments of ... nothing? I have been urging Eviana to all-out war with the dark elves for months, but your presence has managed to push her to action almost by accident. I would not get comfortable; you will be leaving here soon.”  

The characters are left on their own in the guest lodge for rest of the day. They’re free to explore the small village if they wish, but with the majority of the citizens out in the field on missions in and around Celwynvian, there’s simply not much to see. Just before sundown, a group of elves bring them a dinner of fire-roasted vegetables, bread, and wine.
lostsole31
    Wealday, 20 Desnus 4708 AR (Full Moon) 
75 / 65 F. No rain. Winds WNW 20 mph. Dry.   

The next morning ... does anyone change anything on daily loadouts?
lostsole31
  
 
 

The fighting forces of Crying Leaf take another 4 hours to fully mobilize. During this time, all of the able-bodied combatants are busy preparing to depart for the final campaign. While the majority of the warriors are members of the Shin’Rakorath mercenary company, there is a sizable group of elves reporting directly to Eviana. This mobilization leaves only a small contingent of elves to defend and maintain Crying Leaf—the hope being that if the gathering forces are successful and drive the drow out of Celwynvian, Crying Leaf will face no further peril.

The PCs are left to their own devices during this time, allowing them to pack up for the journey with ease.

I already know what Barry wants to do, does anyone else have anything to do in the morning?
lostsole31
Barry instantly gets to work. Unfortunately, Bloris is too stupid to be left alone and is a non-starter, but he does have manual skill that is of great aid to Barry, easing the time it takes to perform his crafting by a factor of 20%.

He first thinks to make powder, but when does an inventory, he finds that the one of his powder horns is full, and the other one is half-full, limiting how much black powder he can make. He and Bloris quickly mix up four more doses of gunpowder to fill the second gunpowder (4 gp materials used). For another 2 gp of materials, the two of them quickly melt, cup, and clip out another 20 Small bullets, putting them into his own pouch. The two then make the hardest of the day - 10 size Large bullets for a total of 24 gp worth of crafting materials. The 10 large cartridges then go to Vindaloo.

Barry zoomed through all of his crafting, and only lacked for making for powder for want of a place to put it.

Enough time was left over that while the rest of the party is doing their thing that Barry - who has been thinking about CQB should guns fail them - starts his team on a new melee combat regimen.

During this time, Aira'Ruathar meditates on the powers of her ancestors and their famed feats of agility. Dawn gets the attention of a few of the non-combatant elves of Crying Leaf, collecting stories of their people that will not be treated as secrets in the retelling. Arryx and Black Shuck work together with their special brands of martial arts. Tamás meditates on unknown mysteries.

Just after noon, the elves are ready to depart. Travel through the tangled wilds of the Mierani precludes horseback riding. With the army of several hundred elves assembled, Kaerishiel blows a single note from his horn and the march begins. The army does not march in a classic column—rather, the elves break apart into small groups of four to six, both to make moving through the forest less onerous and to present the enemy, if they are encountered, with smaller groups to target. The PCs are expected to form their own such skirmish group, but Kaerishiel is never far off, his distrusting gaze lingering on the PCs if they fall behind or otherwise get distracted along the way, especially to Barry and his group and Old Tam for their slowness.

The journey to Celwynvian takes just over a day to complete, requiring  the group to camp in the forest roughly halfway to the ruined city.

That evening in camp, the PCs are left to their own, but always watched.

After hearing a little bit that drow are known for subtle and deceptive tricks, Dawn tutors the group on how to resist the very rare types of traps that attack the mind, rather than the body.

 

    Oathday, 21 Desnus 4708 AR (Blossom Moon) 
75 / 65 F. No rain. Winds WNW 20 mph. Dry.   

The journey is largely without event, as the natural predators of the forest are quick to hide or move aside against such a large mobilization of elves. As the second day of the march begins, the first sign of an abandoned civilization manifests in the form of an ancient road of overgrown marble stones that leads to Celwynvian. While tangled, this path still allows for much faster travel than any other route. The road leads to a clearing just half a mile from the ruins where many of the scouts and skirmishers currently watching over the city hold a temporary camp. The forest still blocks any view of Celwynvian, but half-crumbled pillars and eroded foundations testify to the site’s proximity.

The elves spend the rest of the day setting up camp and perimeter watches. Eviana’s pavilion is in the middle of the camp, with Kaerishiel’s closer to the edge. The PCs are given a spot not far from Eviana’s to make their camp, and they are supplied with simple green tents if they do not have any of their own. Just before dusk, one of Eviana’s guards comes to inform the characters that the lady has requested their presence at dinner to go over plans and their role in the struggle.

Arriving at dinner, the PCs find Eviana seated with Kaerishiel, a host of her personal guard, and a few important-looking elves wearing gleaming armor. These elves represent the leaders of the Celwynvian Watch, a group that has been patrolling the edge of the city for the past few years in an attempt to keep the drow inside. This group is led by an elven ranger named Solana Andosana, an attractive woman who seems strangely at ease despite the fact that she’s obviously just returned from scouting. A Crying Leaf native, Solana has only recently come home after spending many years in the area around Sandpoint on the central Varisian coast.

Dinner is a plain affair of steamed turnips, potatoes, and carrots, served in a light vegetable broth along with some simple bread. The wine is light and fruity, but it is served in moderation. Eviana refuses to speak of the conflict during dinner, asking Solana and the other scouts about the flora and fauna in the area. After dinner is cleared away, soldiers bring forth a large map of the ruined city, unfurling it out onto the table. The elves look over the map for a moment, and then Eviana turns to Solana and, for the PCs’ edification, asks her to explain what they’re looking at.

Solana nods, then speaks.   “This is a map of Celwynvian, based partially on old records from Kyonin and modified as appropriate to the current state of things. In some cases, we’ve had to make educated guesses as to the condition of streets and buildings from our observations, and much of the interior is not well known to us since venturing inside can be quite dangerous. The streets are patrolled by both drow and demons, making reconnaissance difficult. There are only a few unobstructed ways into the city, and we must secure them first if we are to have any chance of reclaiming the site.”  

At this point, Eviana begins talking strategy with the assembled crowd. Using the information retrieved by Solana and her scouts, she lays out a plan to strike at the center of Celwynvian, a place called the Academy of the Arts—it is here that the journals claim the drow refuge is located. Unfortunately, the Academy of the Arts is well behind enemy lines, and before the final assault on the core can be attempted, all of the major roads into the city must be secured so that the army of Crying Leaf can be brought against the drow with ease. This is where the PCs are brought into the planning. Eviana explains that the best road into the city crosses in front of the ancient library of Reenai, and Solana reports that the drow have been using this building to watch over the road and prevent intruders from gaining easy access. Eviana would like the PCs to infiltrate this structure and take out the drow hiding within while the rest of the forces attack other critical spots around the perimeter of the ruins. After this, the army will march inward, making its way toward the Academy. Since the interior is not well known, the plans get noticeably less organized from this point onward and most of the talk turns to contingencies. This is also a good time for Solana the intelligence she has with the assembled group.
 
 Spoiler: Solana's Intelligence 
Solana has gathered a great deal of information about the drow in Celwynvian during her scouting expeditions, some of which might be of use to the characters during their assault of the city.
 
 Drow patrol the streets quite regularly after dark, usually with more than one group in an area to aid others in case of an ambush. 
 Many of the drow use dangerous alchemical weapons delivered through specially designed crossbow bolts. 
 There are a good number of demons wandering the city. Although they do not attack the drow, some appear to have bucked their commanders and operate independently. 
 The number of drow in the city seems to vary wildly. Sometimes there appears to be hundreds, while at other times the city is almost deserted. 
 A building on the north side of the city is being used for some foul purpose as it constantly belches forth noxious smoke. 
 Although no one else has seen it, Solana is positive that the dragon she spotted is Razorhorn, the spawn of a more powerful dragon that once savaged Crying Leaf and was responsible for the death of her mother. 
 
 

As the meeting continues, Solana mentions that there are more than just  drow and demons in the city. Two days ago, she saw a green dragon  circling the skies above. This bit of news sends a ripple of murmurs  through the gathered elves and instigates at least one mention of the  name “Razorhorn.” If the drow have a dragon on their side, this battle  could be quite a bit more difficult than anticipated.

Kaerishiel is mostly quiet through dinner and the meeting that follows. He discusses the strength of his company where appropriate, but disagrees with both Solana and Eviana on a number of key points, the biggest of which remains the involvement of the PCs. He offers to send a group of his scouts in their place to secure the library, suggesting that the characters should be used to guard the base camp.

 ALCON , do you agree with Evianna in the mission she and Solana recommend, or do you agree with Kaerishiel in guarding base camp?
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck looks distant for most of the briefing, though at the mention of the drow's special crossbows, he asks,   "Alchemicals, you say? Of what sort; have we preserved any of their bolts?"  
lostsole31
Solana answers,   "We have studied their bolts, yes, but we don't have any collected drow alchemy, no."  
Paddywagon Man
 Barry's small size allows the moderate wine serving to go just a little more to his head, and he's having a fine old time following along with the war talk. He'll chime in on the talk of camp watches and missions, though with just a little hint of trepidation as talk turns to the dregs of the outer planes.   

"Let none call me craveredly, this squad'll carry yon mission out! Never blambasted any demons, though. Heard some wise philosphorus talking about innard demons, crawling all up inside folk's gutbox. One place I just don't feel comfortmentalized in pointing a musket, inwards-ways and all.

Any, eh, tips to putting down demonfolk? Or just powder and steel and a chunderous kabang like any other malenfactors?"  
Chromascope3D
Black Shuck nods, and responds.to Solana,   "Well, I am equally comfortable standing guard as I am at scouting, so wherever the Lady Eviana feels is best for us to go, I will go. In either case, I will try and recover some of these bolts as best I can so that we can learn better to prepare again at them "  
lostsole31
Eviana says,    "I respect your counsel, Kaerishiel, but it was also the report of you and your hunters that witnessed how quickly and deftly our new allies put down a rampage of forest drakes. No, I don't want them to throw their lives away against powerful monsters if they assess they cannot handle it, but from your report they have a better mix of experience, magic, and metal to minimize lives lost."   

Aira'Ruathar stands, and Eviana nods to her before Aira' says,   "Thank you for the chance to prove our service to your people. I will not make a decision for the others of my band, but it would please this servant of Ketephys to hunt drow and demons alike."  

As she sits down, Tamás stands.   "Where she goes, I follow."   Nodding to Barry and then the rest of the council he continues,   "While not my main focus of study - which is arcane traditions and philosophy - I am well versed in metaphysics. The Abyss - home of demons - cannot be relied upon for anything but unreliable, but over thousands of years, cosmologists have put noted common denominators for the race we call demons (not the only race of the Abyss, by the way). In addition to being creatures beyond our world, they usually are immune to electricity and poison; have a moderate resistance to temperature extremes and corrosives; can often summon others of their type, usually of the same relative power or less; read, write, and understand Abyssal, Celestial, and the common tongue of where they are sent to cause havoc, and yet can speak to the minds of intelligent creatures up to 100' distant; and as creatures of hateful sin made manifest can harm those of pure essence.  Some demons, but not all, also have a curious allergic reaction to the stability of cold iron that attacks their chaotic nature."  

His report complete, he sits down before he stands up quickly to add before sitting again,   "But, yes, 'chunderous kabang' can do the trick."  

The heroes, being either noncommittal or willing to go wherever tasked, with Aira'Ruathar and Old Tam's strong words and effort .... and Eviana's decision is final: the heroes are to infiltrate the Academy of the Arts. Not surprisingly, Kaerishiel fumes for the rest of the meeting, casting cold glares at the characters when no one else is watching.

Solana lets the heroes know,   "Mind you, we still have to fight our way over the next few days to your infil point, so you will still be with the elven army until that point."  

Does anyone have any final questions before the meeting is called and everyone turns in for the evening ... ready to move out tomorrow?
meemaas
  "Do we know anything about this Dragon, Razorhorn? I haven't been attacked by a real dragon yet, but I'm willing to bet that we'll see this one. Gotta be prepared for the worst, you know."   Dawn pipes up, while deep in thought about the entire thing.   Tamás, is it safe to say that using any form of elemental weaponry on Demons is a poor decision then? I'll probably have to refocus my weapons in preparation."  
rypt
Arryx listens intently to the report, shifting forward in his seat at the mention of demons.    "I have battled demon-kind for many decades.  They are cunning foes, and if they are within the city, then that is where I wish to be."    He appears contemplative for a moment before asking,   "Has there been any recent instance where the drow have launched a large-scale effort to defeat your containment of their forces within the city?"
  
If the answer is no, he follows up with,   "Then I must ask if any consideration has been given to the possibility that the drow want you to move against them?"  
lostsole31
 
 Originally Posted by meemaas 
   "Do we know anything about this Dragon, Razorhorn? I haven't been attacked by a real dragon yet, but I'm willing to bet that we'll see this one. Gotta be prepared for the worst, you know."   Dawn pipes up, while deep in thought about the entire thing.   Tamás, is it safe to say that using any form of elemental weaponry on Demons is a poor decision then? I'll probably have to refocus my weapons in preparation."   
 

The party puts its head together to determine what it might know about green dragons, for that is what Razorhorn is. This time, it is Old Tam who acquiesces to Black Shuck's years of studying monsters of magic and myth. After the elven camp gives the party descriptions of Razorhorn - large as it is - is most likely a juvenile green dragon. Of all the chromatic dragons, green dragons are the ones rumored to most be able to be dealt with diplomatically, though that is likely not the case as it is a member of an opposing armor.

Old Tam does nod and says,   "Unless your elemental attacks are overwhelming, they often are less than efficacious."  

 
 Originally Posted by rypt 
 Arryx listens intently to the report, shifting forward in his seat at the mention of demons.    "I have battled demon-kind for many decades.  They are cunning foes, and if they are within the city, then that is where I wish to be."    He appears contemplative for a moment before asking,   "Has there been any recent instance where the drow have launched a large-scale effort to defeat your containment of their forces within the city?"
  
If the answer is no, he follows up with,   "Then I must ask if any consideration has been given to the possibility that the drow want you to move against them?"   
 

The elves have nothing to add to the report already given.
meemaas
Dawn asks one last question before heading off to bed.   "When do we plan on leaving tomorrow? I can refocus my weapons, but I need several hours in order to do it, so I'd like to know if I'll have time in the morning."  
Paddywagon Man
  "And as for this Boppins and my companionfolk... if cold iron is as allergenous as Tam recountelates, we'll take some if you've got some to spare or to peddle. Who's to be talked to for bulleteering supplies in this camp? 'Sides that, we're ready for scouting high or low, for demons or dragons as it haps."  
lostsole31
 
 Originally Posted by meemaas 
 Dawn asks one last question before heading off to bed.   "When do we plan on leaving tomorrow? I can refocus my weapons, but I need several hours in order to do it, so I'd like to know if I'll have time in the morning."   
 

    "You'll be woken at dawn tomorrow."   

 
 Originally Posted by Paddywagon Man 
   "And as for this Boppins and my companionfolk... if cold iron is as allergenous as Tam recountelates, we'll take some if you've got some to spare or to peddle. Who's to be talked to for bulleteering supplies in this camp? 'Sides that, we're ready for scouting high or low, for demons or dragons as it haps."   
 

Solana answers,   "I'm sorry, but we don't have cold iron, and definitely not ... bulleteering? I don't know what else to tell you, because you're too small to use any weapons we might lend you, and the same for any weapons taken from dead enemies. If you can't out fit for war, I suggest you stay behind in camp. We can't try to focus on protecting tourists."  
lostsole31
  
 
 
    Fireday, 22 Desnus 4708 AR (Waning Gibbous) 
80 / 60 F. No rain. Winds WNW 5 mph. Dry.   

Just before dawn on the morning of the attack, the elven camp is a flurry of activity. The first groups leave well before dawn to reach their appointed battlefields, scattered around the outskirts of Celwynvian. Kaerishiel, who nudges their sleeping forms and shakes the tents, awakes the PCs. He says little to them aside from   “I hope you don’t plan on spending the entire battle unconscious,”   before wandering off to join his own soldiers.

As mentioned the previous night, the characters have been assigned the task of securing one of the main entries to the city, a road that leads in from the west, passing under the shadow of a building known to contain drow. The assault is scheduled to begin as soon as the sun’s rays touch the tallest remaining spire in the city.

Given that information, does anyone change anything about their daily setup or leave anything behind?
lostsole31
A mere shadow of the glory and beauty that was once the City of Emerald Rains, the ruins of Celwynvian hide dangers beyond mere beasts and drow invaders. The heroes travel east to the western edge of the untended landmarks still standing in Celwynvian.

The first thing you see that is pointed out is the  Path of Fallen Shadows  ( 1 ). This wide boulevard leads to an area of crumbled ruins and dense vegetation. Months ago, a band of drow set upon a patrol of Celwynvian defenders, and a fierce skirmish ensued. Elves traditionally carry home their fallen companions to give the dead a proper burial and ensure no dark magic inhabits the corpses. After the drow fled, however, the elves lifted the bodies of the fallen and were horrified to see shadows imprinted on the cobblestones where the bodies had lain.

Fearing powerful magic—either a corruption of an old Celwynvian defense or some new trick of the drow—the elves retreated and now refuse to enter this avenue. Elven runes warning of danger mark several of the fallen buildings that line the path. The shadows remain, inky-black, on the cobblestones, and a chill permeates the air. Explorers who accidentally wander down the Path of Fallen Shadows sometimes report hearing whispers too quiet and slurred to make out, and leaves that rustle and sway even when there is no breeze.

Of course, the Library of Dust lies due east beyond, but within the circle of, the Path of Fallen Shadows. So, it will be up to the PCs to figure out what they will about this creepy Path and safely crossing it to get to the Library of Dust, but remembering that they can't give their position away until the attack begins ... when the sun reaches the highest spire.

Kaerishiel tells the group that their best bet is to go just north to a copse of trees and to enter southeast under cover of the trees and wait there until it is time to attack. He offers no other help, advice, intelligence, or insight, and leaves with his elves to go to their assigned areas.

What do you do?