As it turned out, those Orcs were only the first wave, come to soften the manor's defenses and to create a point of entry. Two waves followed, each bigger than the one before. Fortunately, the Druids were able to enact Escella's earlier plan by causing the trees to grow and twist themselves across the road, creating a difficult gauntlet of dangerous foliage.
With that in place, the defenders were able to pick-off their attackers at range without any further casualties. Better still, they were able to take turns at the front, or resting, as suited them. As the third wave of orcs routed (over half their number killed) it began to be clear that things were well in hand at the gatehouse. As free-agents, it was decided that the Daggerfordians would be best suited to turn to the other side of the manor, to see how things fared there.
No word had arrived from that side since the start of the siege, which could have been a good sign. Unfortunately there was every reason to believe that it could just as easily mean that things were not going well at all...