Brother Dave
First Post
[OOC: Yes for me]
Hoard of the Dragon Queen - Prologue
industrygothica
Adventurer
I'm ready to go.
Jimmy Disco T
First Post
Mirtul 3, DR 1373, Mid Morning
You all follow the trail upriver. There are obvious gnoll tracks and signs of something being dragged - perhaps one of the animals the beasts caught in their traps. The trees get thicker and denser as you travel deeper into the woods. The river begins to narrow, and gets shallower and rockier - you might be nearing the river's source.
After perhaps a half hour, the path slopes upwards, and you see up ahead a large hill or mound of some sort. You can just make out the tops of what look like three large standing stones on the summit.
It would be safe to assume that Henric's directions have led you to the area that the gnolls are supposedly camped at.
The river runs down the hill, and there are a few rocky outcrops that may allow one or two of you to make a stealthy approach. The trail runs around to the right side of the mound and provides little cover, and this seems to have been the route used by the gnolls.
Other than the quiet trickle of the river and the occasional birdsong, there is no sound whatsoever coming from the hill or the stones.
You all follow the trail upriver. There are obvious gnoll tracks and signs of something being dragged - perhaps one of the animals the beasts caught in their traps. The trees get thicker and denser as you travel deeper into the woods. The river begins to narrow, and gets shallower and rockier - you might be nearing the river's source.
After perhaps a half hour, the path slopes upwards, and you see up ahead a large hill or mound of some sort. You can just make out the tops of what look like three large standing stones on the summit.
It would be safe to assume that Henric's directions have led you to the area that the gnolls are supposedly camped at.
The river runs down the hill, and there are a few rocky outcrops that may allow one or two of you to make a stealthy approach. The trail runs around to the right side of the mound and provides little cover, and this seems to have been the route used by the gnolls.
Other than the quiet trickle of the river and the occasional birdsong, there is no sound whatsoever coming from the hill or the stones.
industrygothica
Adventurer
Renestrae follows the other elf, matching his steps on the rocky outcroppings.
OOC: Stealth +5, Perception +6. And, in case a hasty dismount is needed, Acrobatics +5
OOC: Stealth +5, Perception +6. And, in case a hasty dismount is needed, Acrobatics +5
Brother Dave
First Post
Rolen sees the other elves moving forward stealthily, so he hunkers down to wait for some sort of signal to proceed. Despite being an elf himself, he knows that stealth is not really in his bailiwick. Best to leave that to the experts. "Sehanine protect them." he murmurs quietly to himself, forming his fingers into the shape of a crescent.
While he waits he pulls out his bow and checks the bowstring, then adjusts the quiver on his back for ready access. If there are still gnolls in the area, he wants to be prepared.
While he waits he pulls out his bow and checks the bowstring, then adjusts the quiver on his back for ready access. If there are still gnolls in the area, he wants to be prepared.
Jimmy Disco T
First Post
[OOC: Erevan stealth = 22, Renestrae stealth = 13 / Erevan perception = 16, Renestrae perception = 9]
Erevan and Renestrae quickly and quietly clamber up between the rocks - their movement is muffled by the sounds of the river and they remain out of sight. You reach the top of the mound and cautiously take a closer look.
You can see that the top of the hill is home to a group of three large standing stones, arranged in a roughly triangular formation. There is a large outcrop of rocky ground at the base of the nearest stone, and there appears to be some sort of natural spring, as water is bubbling up vigorously from underneath the rocks - presumably this is the source of the river. The stones themselves show signs of some worn runic script, but they have all been crudely defaced with dark red paint (blood?) - crude pictograms of gnolls and letters in a language you don't recognise.
There is indeed a gnoll campsite here - or rather, there was. The corpses of perhaps a dozen or so gnolls lie scattered amongst the embers of a large campfire, upturned logs, and smashed barrels and crates. Much like before, there are a few kobold corpses as well, and discarded axes, daggers, and javelins litter the ground.
An overhanging tree branch near the edge of the camp supports a crude and rusty iron cage, which has been suspended from the branch by a chain. The corpse of an animal of some kind is within, and it sways gently in the breeze.
Two things catch Everan's attention - there seems to be a body in the midst of the camp, neither gnoll nor kobold, who appears to be clad in leather armour of some kind. The other thing that he notices is that is appears there was at one point two cages suspended form the tree - one of the other branches has a length of chain, and the final link is broken.
Neither of you see or hear any signs of life from the campsite.
Erevan and Renestrae quickly and quietly clamber up between the rocks - their movement is muffled by the sounds of the river and they remain out of sight. You reach the top of the mound and cautiously take a closer look.
You can see that the top of the hill is home to a group of three large standing stones, arranged in a roughly triangular formation. There is a large outcrop of rocky ground at the base of the nearest stone, and there appears to be some sort of natural spring, as water is bubbling up vigorously from underneath the rocks - presumably this is the source of the river. The stones themselves show signs of some worn runic script, but they have all been crudely defaced with dark red paint (blood?) - crude pictograms of gnolls and letters in a language you don't recognise.
There is indeed a gnoll campsite here - or rather, there was. The corpses of perhaps a dozen or so gnolls lie scattered amongst the embers of a large campfire, upturned logs, and smashed barrels and crates. Much like before, there are a few kobold corpses as well, and discarded axes, daggers, and javelins litter the ground.
An overhanging tree branch near the edge of the camp supports a crude and rusty iron cage, which has been suspended from the branch by a chain. The corpse of an animal of some kind is within, and it sways gently in the breeze.
Two things catch Everan's attention - there seems to be a body in the midst of the camp, neither gnoll nor kobold, who appears to be clad in leather armour of some kind. The other thing that he notices is that is appears there was at one point two cages suspended form the tree - one of the other branches has a length of chain, and the final link is broken.
Neither of you see or hear any signs of life from the campsite.
mips42
Adventurer
Erevan will move back to where the group is gathered.
'The Gnolls are, were, camped here but, much like the site downstream, all of them appear to be dead. There are also several Kobolds that appear to be dead, as well as what looks like a pet cage hanging from a tree and a chain likely for another cage. There was also another body in the midst of the others that I could not get a good look at.
'To deal with a force of Gnolls and Kobolds like this, normally I would think of possibly a owlbear, but an owlbear wouldn't have left all this potential food behind. Whatever did this, something big is in this area and I think the town and its' people might be in real trouble if whatever it is finds them.
'We can either tell the town now or try to locate whatever killed these creatures to gather more information. I would vote for the second but, to be honest, whatever killed these monsters would likely have little trouble with us, as well.'
'The Gnolls are, were, camped here but, much like the site downstream, all of them appear to be dead. There are also several Kobolds that appear to be dead, as well as what looks like a pet cage hanging from a tree and a chain likely for another cage. There was also another body in the midst of the others that I could not get a good look at.
'To deal with a force of Gnolls and Kobolds like this, normally I would think of possibly a owlbear, but an owlbear wouldn't have left all this potential food behind. Whatever did this, something big is in this area and I think the town and its' people might be in real trouble if whatever it is finds them.
'We can either tell the town now or try to locate whatever killed these creatures to gather more information. I would vote for the second but, to be honest, whatever killed these monsters would likely have little trouble with us, as well.'
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