(IC) Quickleaf's Rime of the Frostmaiden

[happylace]

Alma takes the mage hand and pulls herself free from the snow pile. She steps aside, out of the way, and dusts herself off. Prestidigitating away what she can't shake free and drying out her clothes. She looks up the ridge, towards where the avalanche had come from. Unable to make out any signs of what had caused it.

''It might have been what we're tracking. I agree, we should stay alert. But trekking up the rest of the way will be more difficult now. We should reconnect our lines before proceeding.''

There's a pause. And then she turns to Jack and to Lumrolur. ''It's polite to express gratitude and approval in this situation. Thank you for your assistance. And well done everyone else.''

 

[Aethmud]

Jack chuckles, a sound reminiscent of tinkling icicles, as he smiles at Alma’s compliment. "My dear Alma, ever the beacon of courtesy and care," he cooes, a playful cadence in his voice. "You certainly have a knack for charming us all! You're most welcome, dear." He executes a dainty bow in mid-air, wings fluttering lightly.

With a flick of his wrist, Jack conjures up a pair of bright spectral ropes in his hands. "Knotty predicaments call for a pinch of style, and a lot of patience," he states as his fingers dance nimbly, causing the magical ropes first to mesh themselves into the exposed fibers of the broken rope, and then to tie themselves into a series of ever more complicated knots. "I can show you how to tie knots like no other," he says, grinning proudly.

With a playful gleam in his eyes, he gives the rope a tug and they fall apart, melting into the snow pack and leaving the severed lines just as they were. As the illusion fades, Jack confesses with a sigh, "Alas," the sparkle in his eyes betraying his jest, "my illusions are more cooperative than the real thing. But fret not, I am always eager to learn!" Turning from Alma to the group, his playful demeanor now replaced with a curious gaze, "Who among us has the firmest grip on sled-ropes and mountaineering knots? Teach us the ropes of this frosty travel business."

 

[Quickleaf]

Garret and the Crag Cats

GM POST

Shaking off the snow, you re-secure your lines, testing crampons before renewing your ascent along a thin strip of trail rising above a steep slope down the mountain. You're not quite halfway to the peak of Kelvin's Cairn, and already the sound of the winds beating the far side of the mountain are a bit louder. Snow crunches underfoot and the familiar sound of Corse hammering pitons follows you up the Cairn.

Soon you reach a steep, snow-covered incline dotted with jagged rocks. Boy begins sniffing about frantically, snow huffing from his nose before he barks toward the rocks. Was that a moan? Or just the sound of the winds. Squinting your eyes, you can make out a shape pressed among the rocks. Lying facedown in the snow, barely conscious, is a humanoid in bloodstained cold weather clothing.

Boy bolts towards the figure who strains to look up from the snow, revealing the bearded face of a mountaineer. A shivering hand extends toward your party. It must be Garret!

GM: a hidden danger: 1D20+7 = [9]+7 = 16 This exceeds Lumrolur's active Perception check 14 and passive Perception scores of PCs watching for danger (Zeth 15, Alma 13, Jack 12). But the Steel Defender will not be surprised due to its special trait.

 

[happylace]

GM POST

Shaking off the snow, you re-secure your lines, testing crampons before renewing your ascent along a thin strip of trail rising above a steep slope down the mountain. You're not quite halfway to the peak of Kelvin's Cairn, and already the sound of the winds beating the far side of the mountain are a bit louder. Snow crunches underfoot and the familiar sound of Corse hammering pitons follows you up the Cairn.

Soon you reach a steep, snow-covered incline dotted with jagged rocks. Boy begins sniffing about frantically, snow huffing from his nose before he barks toward the rocks. Was that a moan? Or just the sound of the winds. Squinting your eyes, you can make out a shape pressed among the rocks. Lying facedown in the snow, barely conscious, is a humanoid in bloodstained cold weather clothing.

Boy bolts towards the figure who strains to look up from the snow, revealing the bearded face of a mountaineer. A shivering hand extends toward your party. It must be Garret!

GM: a hidden danger: 1D20+7 = [9]+7 = 16 This exceeds Lumrolur's active Perception check 14 and passive Perception scores of PCs watching for danger (Zeth 15, Alma 13, Jack 12). But the Steel Defender will not be surprised due to its special trait.

Alma's brows furrow in confusion at Jack's praise. Unsure if this is an attempt to poke fun at her or if it's sincere. Maybe she's better at socializing than she thought...

Continuing up the side of the Cairn, Alma comes to a stop at the sound of Boy barking. She moves with the group, inching closer to the mass buried in snow. She isn't sure what to make it of right away. Maybe another pile of supplies from the sled. Maybe a dead goat. But then the shape of a human body forms. And then an arm reaches out for them.

Her brows shoot up. ''There's a body. I believe it's still alive. If anyone has healing capabilities, you should use them now.'' She stays back, knowing she won't be any use in that regard. But she takes a sweeping looking around the area, searching for other bodies.

Spoiler: perception check

Perception check: 1D20+3 = [11]+3 = 14, -1 exhaustion = 13

 

[Necropolitan]

Zeth is considering just turning back, there's no way anyone could survive out here as long as Garret's been. There's no shame in giving up on a task like this, especially considering the danger they've already faced.

That's when Zeth hears Boy barking. Well, looks like Garret's reaping the rewards of treating the dog so well, his rescue's here at last.

"Good idea bringing the dog, we'd have never found him otherwise."

Zeth hangs back from Garret. The Warlock possesses no skills or spells that could help the frozen man and he's wary of whatever creature they previously saw. Even with the cold freezing the blood any predator that could survive out here might still be able to smell it.

Zeth takes a bit of glee in saving an 'unworthy' mortal from Auril's clutches. Other than using up a single use of his more powerful magic he'd spent nothing on this, but stood to gain both tangible and intangible benefits from rescuing Garret.

Now the question was getting the man back to town as quickly as possible.

"We should go back to town as soon as possible, even if one of you can heal him. There's no telling what else has happened to him out here and I've no desire to encounter whatever lives in these wastes. Can we get him on a sled safely?"

 

[Aethmud]

"Zeth, you’ve charted just the course in this blizzard of uncertainty," Jack chimes as he nods in agreement, "A quick retreat does seem the wisest choice. Our good friend Garret here is too frostbitten for any further adventures out in this icy wilderness. And, between us, I wouldn't mind getting back to a cozy tavern."

Jack flutters to Garret as he lands gracefully beside his prone body, half-buried in the snow. "Garret, my good man," Jack calls, "this isn't exactly the time for an impromptu snow angel contest. So if you could, please refrain from moving." Rummaging through a minuscule pouch at his waist, Jack produces a few sprigs of fairy herbs. He knows them to have potent healing properties among his kind and, while he can’t be sure of their efficacy on humans, at least it’s a start. "Now, now, don't get up on my account, friend. I do enjoy a good captive audience," Jack chirps with a wide grin.

Spoiler: Medicine skill check

Jack rolls a 16 for a Medicine skill check.

Boy stands close by, whining with concern and nuzzling his owner's frostbitten hand. Jack examines Garret closely for injuries and assesses his condition. Boy, sensing Jack's intention to help, paces back and forth, occasionally nudging an arm or a piece of cloth toward Jack with his snout. "Ah, Boy, you're an excellent nurse," and then to Garret, "A bit of cold can be invigorating, refreshing even, but too much will have you frozen stiff. And that’s no fun for any of us!"

As Jack steps back, his tiny chest heaving, he crosses his fingers in hope, giving Boy a small pat on his head. "Well done, Boy," he whispers, and then to the group, "Does anyone know any healing magic?"

 

[Quickleaf]

"Zeth, you’ve charted just the course in this blizzard of uncertainty," Jack chimes as he nods in agreement, "A quick retreat does seem the wisest choice. Our good friend Garret here is too frostbitten for any further adventures out in this icy wilderness. And, between us, I wouldn't mind getting back to a cozy tavern."

Jack flutters to Garret as he lands gracefully beside his prone body, half-buried in the snow. "Garret, my good man," Jack calls, "this isn't exactly the time for an impromptu snow angel contest. So if you could, please refrain from moving." Rummaging through a minuscule pouch at his waist, Jack produces a few sprigs of fairy herbs. He knows them to have potent healing properties among his kind and, while he can’t be sure of their efficacy on humans, at least it’s a start. "Now, now, don't get up on my account, friend. I do enjoy a good captive audience," Jack chirps with a wide grin.

Spoiler: Medicine skill check

Jack rolls a 16 for a Medicine skill check.

Boy stands close by, whining with concern and nuzzling his owner's frostbitten hand. Jack examines Garret closely for injuries and assesses his condition. Boy, sensing Jack's intention to help, paces back and forth, occasionally nudging an arm or a piece of cloth toward Jack with his snout. "Ah, Boy, you're an excellent nurse," and then to Garret, "A bit of cold can be invigorating, refreshing even, but too much will have you frozen stiff. And that’s no fun for any of us!"

As Jack steps back, his tiny chest heaving, he crosses his fingers in hope, giving Boy a small pat on his head. "Well done, Boy," he whispers, and then to the group, "Does anyone know any healing magic?"

With a raspy grunt, Garret manages to slump his body against a rock as Boy licks at his face. Releasing his death grip on his shortsword, the bearded man tries to speak to Jack, but his parched voice is barely audible, "Thank you... Can't go... not without others..." Wincing, he braces his forearm over the bloodied cold weather clothes, clearly suffering a wound along his torso. "Y-yeti..." is about as much as he can manage in his present state. Though his eyes, full of despair when you found him, have the spark of light behind them again. Jack can tell this man is in bad shape – wounded, dehydrated, exhausted, with early signs of frostbite.

Th

en you all hear a sound that makes the blood curdle. It is a yowl that mingles in the space between a mortal scream, a snarling panther, and winter's gale – a sound you thought you'd imagined while at the base of Kelvin's Cairn, now terrifyingly close. Two tiger-sized shaggy white-haired mountain cats leap down upon your party from the ledge above, one launching itself at Jack and the other pouncing toward the vanguard (Aric, Corse, and Russet)!

GM: Your party is surprised! I'm going to post the initiative sequence, then I'll put in spoilers below how my PbP initiative system works. "Surprise Round" @VLAD the Destroyer "Ludo" your steel defender goes first, thanks to its magical vigilance! Then the crag cats will go next. If I'm reading Ludo's speed right as 20 ft (for some reason i thought it was faster, my mistake), then it could move + attack the cat pouncing on the Vanguard OR it could move + dash to get close to the cat pouncing on Jack. INITIATIVE ORDER Fast Group (+3 initiative) Aric Lumrolur Russet Zeth Middle Group (+2 initiative) Alma Corse Logrim (and steel defender) Crag Cats (+2 initiative) AC 13 Slow Group (+0 initiative) Jack

Spoiler: My PbP Initiative System

Here’s how my initiative system for PbP works: PCs have fixed initiative scores = whatever your initiative bonus is. Thus, you’re clustered into groups with +3 init, +2 init, and +0 init (just Jack). I’ll let a cluster of players know when it’s their turns & players in that cluster can act in any order they want (i.e. “popcorn” first to post).

For monsters, I take their Dexterity mod/save & adjust that with a d8 roll interpreted thus: 1=-3, 2=-2, 3=-1, 4/5=+0, 6=+1, 7=+2, 8=+3. Ties go to PCs.

For example, for the crag cats: initiative for a hidden danger: 1D8 = [3] = 3 This indicates I subtract 1 from the crag cat's base initiative modifier +3, which gives me +2. This ties with Logrim's steel defender (which for simplicity will always act on Logrim's turn) – since ties always go to the players, the steel defender gets to act first.

If a PC ever gets Advantage on initiative, that would just be a flat +4 bonus for them.

Thus, you won’t usually need to roll initiative. IME, this really speeds up combat in PbP. Exceptions might be boss fights, silencing a guard, etc. (I’ll ask if a situation might make sense to roll init, but you’re welcome to ask too)

 

[VLAD the Destroyer]

Logrim runs up to the injured man with Jack. As jack checks the man Logrim pulls a alchemists kit from his pack and begins mixing something. Making a strange paste he speaks some mumbled words and the substance in his hands turns from a muted brown to a vibrant red. Logrim smears the salve on Garret's wounds and they begin to close.

Ludo raises it's head as Logrim is tending to Garret. Suddenly the construct begins to move to intercept a threat that the others have not yet perceived. Ludo leaps and slams into the cat that was leaping towards Jack. Ludo claws at the creature and then interposes itself between the cat and Jack.

OOC: Cure Wounds on Garret: 1d8+3 10 Ludo: Moves to intercept cat on Jack. Ludo Attack: Ludo attak on Cat.: 1d20+5 17 1d8+2 10 Ludo also has a movement speed of 40 ft. My sheet in the RG had the wrong info.

 

[VLAD the Destroyer]

OOC: Also Ludo will use it's deflect attack reaction on the cat. Deflect attack imposes disadvantage on any attack not made against Ludo.

 

[Steve Gorak]

Aric-bear was staying back when the others approached Garrett. He didn’t want to scare the man with the presence of a beast.

Hearing the cats, Aric has no time to position himself, and scrambles to reposition himself.

OOC: so I’m assuming that Aric didn’t shapechange back to his normal form, and that he isn’t tied to the rope.