Menace of the Icy Spire (Ozymandias79 judging)

[balth]

Balth kept himself bundled in his furs, pulling one up over his nose and mouth while another one was wrapped around his neck. He seemed to be having trouble adjusting to the gloves they had given him. There were no fingers! He was still cold, but not as cold as the night before. He was out and moving. Although the cold was threatening to seep into his bones, being out and moving was helping ward it off.

MMsnofwaiimgoato... he paused for a moment and pulled down the fur over his mouth. There's no way I'm going to be able to fire my bow with these things, he said as he held up the fur glove that looked like a pouch with a thumb. I doubt I'm strong enough to haul one of the sleds, and someone needs to scout ahead for a safe path. I'll volunteer, and I'll take some of those shoes. They look harder to walk in, but maybe the difficulty will help keep me warm, he said with a challenged grin as he pulled the fur back up over his nose and mouth.

He started towards the ship, ahead of the sleds, looking for solid paths across the ice.

[sblock=ooc actions] I'm not sure which you would prefer, so I've used both, and I have a passive perception of 21 if it matters.

Nature (1d20 11 1)
Perception (1d20 11 1) (1d20 12=17, 1d20 12=16)

[/sblock]

 

[Moon_Goddess]

Larinza hardly looks like herself, so many layers of furs piled up over her.

"Fire your bow? I'm afraid to even touch my sword... "

 

[changer]

Janus clambers clumsily of the launch almost tipping it over. He looks sheepishly at the sailors and shrugs. "Sorry lads, just thank the stars I was not caring that blasted staff." He points to his scythe staff strapped to one of the sleds. "Well I suppose now is as good a time as any to get used to the thing." He warily unties it and slips it out of the sled, fumbling it several times. "Besides, if I have to walk that far I will need it as a walking stick!" Janus adds jokingly.

Not hearing any laughter he sighs and takes a pair of snow shoes and tries them on before taking his spot at the front of a sled.

[sblock=ooc]
I suggest Larinza and Murphy take a sled and Shorrin and I take the other sled while Balth scouts ahead.
[/sblock]

 

[OnlytheStrong]

Shorrin says nothing, but silently grabs the reigns to one of the sleds and begins to pull it through the snow. He stops quickly, looking back and waiting for the rest of the group. The quicker they started, the quicker they were out of the cold.

 

[renau1g]

Murphy will grudgingly grab the reins for one of the sleds, waiting for Larinza, and for once is left speechless by the sheer cold of this place. The only sound to be heard from the normally gregarious swashbuckler is ihs teeth chattering as he pulls his cloak a little tighter.

 

[Moon_Goddess]

Larinza grabs the reins and begins to mush with Murphy,

"Alright, best to be on about it, the work will keep us warm. How about a song? Anyone Yodel?"

 

[JoeNotCharles]

[sblock="OOC"]
Thanks for the Nature roll - I was just about to ask for that. Where are the +1's coming from, though? (Doesn't matter, you'd still succeed without them in this case.
[/sblock]

The "snowshoes" - two-inch thick pieces of planking lashed roughly to a boot - prove to be heavy and incredibly awkward, and Janus finds that Shorrin is constantly pulling ahead of him and getting held back. He's tiring quickly, too, from the sheer awkwardness of pulling each plank along with each step.

The other sled does much better, flying over the smooth ice easily. You do have to be a bit careful of your footing, but it looks like without Janus holding you back you'd make good time.

Meanwhile, Balth moves on ahead, scanning the ground. Without having to juggle both a sled and the snowshoes, he does a bit better, but they aren't exactly "helpful". Fortunately, he's crossed enough iced-over rivers during his time travelling to recognize rotten ice when he sees it, and he's able to steer the party around obstacles to find a safe course.

Slowly you draw closer to the cliff. The wind has dropped, except for the occasional gust that sends snow skittering across your path. Off in the distance you can hear waves lapping at the edge of the ice flow, and the distant creak of the Kraken's spars carries across the ice, but despite that the ice around you feels eerily silent, until a flock of seabirds explodes from atop the cliff and wheels in a huge circle, piping a high, eerie cry: "TEKELI-LI! TEKELI-LI!"

 

[renau1g]

Murphy's not quite sure what to make of the strange birds, but if something disturbed them, it mustn't be good. He'll draw his dagger and look to Balth for some direction on what's out there, if anything.

 

[balth]

Where are the +1's coming from, though?

[sblock=OOC] From the posting within 1 day of you posting? I thought that was in the original post? Or am I horribly confused? [/sblock]

Balth freezes in his tracks, and puts up his hand, hoping the others stop.

[sblock=OOC internal monologue and actions]
OOC: I lump this stuff as OOC so folks can get a 'feel' for the character, but obviously cannot act ICly on the information herein.

He's sure they saw and heard the birds. He's hoping the birds haven't seen them. In some places, birds were the eyes and ears of the dark things that lived in the night. These were sea birds; he wasn't sure if it worked the same way here, but rather to be safe than sorry.

He waits to see what the birds do; whether they circle towards him, whether they land and watch...

If they fly away from them, he will wait until they are far, and then resume the trek towards the ship after attempting to discern what disturbed them or exactly where they came from. If they sit and watch, he will slowly; *very* slowly move back to the sleds to consult the others and express his concern after trying to observe the things mentioned above. If they fly towards the group, he will wait and watch and try to move as little as possible, track the birds until they are out of sight, and then resume trekking, after attempting to discern where they came from.

Perception 1 (1d20 12=22)[/sblock]

 

[JoeNotCharles]

[sblock=OOC] From the posting within 1 day of you posting? I thought that was in the original post? Or am I horribly confused? [/sblock]

[sblock=oops]
Yay! I forgot my own rules! Sorry, you're quite right.
[/sblock]

The birds circle the area once and then scatter. Several swoop low over the waves, diving for fish, and a few alight on the ice in various places, pecking at things you can't make out.