R1: Hired Hands (nimisgod judging)

[Dungannon]

Simone turns to Tor and hands him a piece of parchment (see below). "The red spots indicate where the caravans were found. As I said they were small shipments. One carried spice, one furs, and the last carried various material components for spellcraft. None of the shipments originated in Ravensdale. The furs and spell components passed through from Gotian, and the spice came into our dockworks only a few days before it was pillaged. Information detailing size, makeup, and location of the bandit group will be considered a successful fulfillment of your duties. For such information you will be paid an additional 500 gold, plus a percentage of the wholesale value of any goods recovered. If you do manage to eliminate them, the bonus will be increased to 700 gold. As for proof of elimination, dead bodies always suffice." Simone flashes the same winning smile she displayed at the beginning of the meeting as she makes the last statement.

 

[LogicsFate]

"Interesting, is there any obvious reason none of them have started from Rivensdale? Like, perhaps Rivendale guards there caravans better or anything else?

 

[Roger]

"Is there another caravan scheduled to leave in the near future, or could one be arranged? The most reliable course of action may be to hide within the wagons, and ambush the ambushers."

 

[Kerrz]

Kerrz looks blearily around the room, then centers on Ragnikyr, who had just spoken. He says, slowly, "I'm all for ambushing the ambushers... but it is fairly difficult to set up a moving ambush... and we could not guarantee that we could act swiftly enough to ensure the safety of the caravan itself. After all... we are all but guaranteeing ourselves that we will be outnumbered."

With a slight grunt and a cough Kerrz continues, "I'm no coward, but sometimes the element of surprise is just not enough. Perhaps we should think up some more options before we go stuffing ourselves in crates and stuffy wagons that might never even be attacked."

A few moments later, after some careful consideration, Kerrz pipes up again, "You know... we could try scouting the surrounding area and catching them while they sleep. From my experience, bandits camp out near their target area and, even if they are moving around, they should be easy enough to track down after a few days of searching. Less if we get lucky."

"It's just... I'm as fond as the next guy of bashing some heads, but I'm not eager to run out and put my own head out to be bashed unless there's a good reason."

 

[Dungannon]

Simone continues, "Since the lost caravans were small ones, the Council has recommended that, until further notice, all future caravans heading East should contain no fewer than five wagons with the corresponding number of guards. So far, all of them have complied, although you might be able to convince one to leave town shorthanded somehow, if they're experiencing time constraints or something along those lines. The guards, incidentaly, are professionals hired by the caravan owners, not provided by Ravensdale."

 

[Roger]

OOC: I've started a "weblog" of sorts for Ragnikyr. The link is in my signature. --Roger

 

[Roger]

"Your words are not without their wisdom, Kerrz. Perhaps we should, as you say, investigate the area and try to track down the bandits to their camp. If that should fail, setting up an ambush of our own may be a Plan B."

 

[Patlin]

"I agree, simply joining a caravan and hoping to be attacked wouldn't be our best course. After all, for each caravan that is attacked how many make it through safely? Three? Five? A dozen? We could spend a lot of time hoping to be attacked without doing anything to solve the problem."

 

[LogicsFate]

"True, true but that's alot of woods to search, How many caravans will be attacked while we're runnin about looking for them"

 

[Kerrz]

Kerrz reaches over and glances at the map provided. After a few moments, he says, "I admit I come from the North, and I saw alot of forests on the way, but from the looks of this map the road to the west travels across plains. It does not even appear that there are many hills of note in the area. A search should be easy. Though maybe someone else has more to say about that."