[Adventure] Trouble in Moonwatch (Judge: THB) - Part II

"We are too exotic looking. Even disguised under their cloaks and some of their gear, we cannot just walk into the front gate. We'll need to scout around the perimeter and find a more indirect path in. The disguises are so that we can walk around unchallenged once inside, but they won't hold up to any real scrutiny. We'll need to quasi-sneak in and find a building to hide in or something." Sheeva replies to River.

The group moves closer and notes that there is no walls or fences around the area, only a token guard at the rough path leading into the center of camp.

Great sections of the rocky landscape are given over to gardens and orchards. Mule teams haul logs and deadfall from the nearby woods. Sheep and cattle are herded into rough stone corrals as dusk falls. At different sites, construction is evident, new living spaces being reclaimed from the ruins. Fires begin to spring up. The smells of roast meat and woodsmoke drift toward you on the breeze.

The group is fairly certain it would be quite easy to move into camp with little to no difficulty.

[sblock=ooc]
See attached for an artists rendition of the area [/sblock]

Pok takes Valahad by the hand, and falls a step behind the Paladin, slipping his other hand into his robes to take a firm grasp on his wand.

The little gnome puts on his best human accent, I want my mommy! he says with a minor sniffle.

*Meh, to much whine. What do you think Val?* he asks as the group enters the camp.

At the base of the large hill, an oversized avenue leads to a wide flight of immense stone steps. These rise to a portal open in the mountain’s face. Firelight flares from within a wide hall running into the mountain’s heart.

As the group moves up closer a few things become evident, especially to Valahad and River. Beneath the initial appearance of a communal village, this place has a hard and dangerous edge. A rigid sense of order and hierarchy permeates the labors of the people around you. Select cultists wearing a black sash appear to be wardens of some type, but no other signs of rank can be seen. The people of this place are uniformly whipcord lean. Where nine- and ten-year-old children roughhouse with sticks, they show off a ruthless precision in their relentless attacks.

Small groups are spelled off from their labors at intervals, training hard with sword and shield or chanting. At the fires, people take their meals with the same stoic intensity they apply to the labors of the day—the same intensity you saw in the killers you met on the long road that led you here.

For now, Sheeva is just walking with the group, not talking or drawing attention to herself.

[sblock=ooc]
Ok, so you've successfully "infiltrated" the cult. What ar eyour plans? Nobody seems particularly interested in teh group so far.[/sblock]

[sblock=OOC]
Sheeva's plan is to hole up for the night. She really doesn't want to get into a fight if she can help it.
[/sblock]

[sblock=OOC]Likewise Feall.[/sblock]

[sblock=OOC]
Pok thought the group had a full plan when he came upon them. No one has corrected him, so he's following along.
[/sblock]