"Thank you, good bard" Hunter accepted the sword with a bow. "I used to hate the martial training my father made me do, especially as guns are far superior to any knife. But it appears that when a wolf sized rat is snapping at your baby makers then swords have considerable value."

Down the hole, Jenkins scampered on ahead, eyes gleaming red, leaving the pitiful clumsy humans behind. Hunter began making a makeshift ladder up to make escape after, but gave up when curiosity overtook him and he followed on behind, walking towards the flickering torchlight up ahead.

OOC: Are there any ropes or clothes down here? Or anything else of value?  Jenkins is looting.
10:44, Today: Hunter Gallagher rolled 3,5 using d6,d6, rerolling max.  Jenkins notice. Loot! Loot! Loot!
This message was last edited by the player at 21:45, Mon 30 Oct 2023.

Aeress did a sweep, keeping her spear ready.  It seemed a sensible division of labor to her, one to keep watch, one to search.

"Are we done?"   She asked.

Piper kept herself perched on Aeress as the group made their way through the uncollapsed part of the cultists subteranian hideout.  Her eyes could see well in the darkness but they detected nothing dangerous as they went.

Upon finding the oddly shaped room and its grisly contents she wiggled her nose in disgust.  "Needed for the rat monster maybe?  Or, perhaps just unfortunate to have gotten within its reach."  She pondered aloud.


She cast her gaze about for any potential doors or other features that may have been hiding in the darkness, but saw nothing of note.


Piper rolled 1,2.  perception

"I'm thinking..." Hunter said slowly, when he finally arrived, "That we should take as many weapons as we can and sell them, and destroy the rest if possible. Those clubs and maces will burn, as will the weapon racks, and maybe a door or two. If we made a pile with wood on the bottom and semi wooden weapons and then swords on top, the fire should burn the handles off and ruin the temper of the metal."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:45, Tue 31 Oct 2023.

Aeress considered the proposal.

"I quite frankly am not sure where we are exactly or the situation we're about to be in."  Aeress replied.  "So while I appreciate the thought of taking these for funds, that's a lot of weight of something we can neither eat nor drink, and bear in mind it all has to be hoisted up a rope.  Not that we couldn't do it, but that's a lot of sweat and effort in a situation where we might need to conserve our energy for another fight, or careful movement.  I'm not adverse to anyone taking something useful from this assortment, I may do so myself.  But I don't think I'm going to try to haul a large quantity of it either.

"Likewise I appreciate wanting to deprive an enemy of a stockpile, but I think the collapse already did that.  If they want to retrieve these, they're going to have to go through an awful lot of trouble that's probably not worth it.  I also am not eager to try to build such a relatively large scale fire in here, I don't think the ventilation or air flow will make it a pleasant experience.  I like the initiative I just think it's not practical."

“Well, I trust better my staff, but having some short swords can be good in some instances, though not worth taking too much weight” Lirian said, agreeing with Aeress. She seemed disappointed with what they had found.

“But I don’t see anything that can help us to heal the plague, unless what’s in this syringe does, and Orin has little time” she continued.

“Burning this place could be good, and would probably provoke a collapse of it, as a mine does on the besieged city walls, but I’d like to return to the city before dark, as night is dangerous there…” she answered to Hunter. “And we still have to decide if we return to the tavern, where we will probably be detected again, or we better try to camp out of the city in hope not be detected by the Covenant… But that’’s a decision others must opine too about.”

She made a last search for any paper or document that could have skipped her first look. She turned to Jerkins, seeing she was pillaging the room. “I don’t mind if you want to take what you find, except for anything written and alchemical products that Quentin might identify. If you find any, you better hand them to us” she said in threatening tone.

17:38, Today: Secret Roll: Lirian rolled 1,2 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,2.  Notice, just in case it may help with the search. I guess she does not find anything hidden, even if not too so...

[Private to GM: If she finds anything like pepper or similar (irritant that can fool dogs smelling the track), Lirian takes it too]

Hunter looked at the syringe curiously, but made no effort to touch it. "That right there has more value than anything else we might find, if only we can access it.

"You are both quite right, it might be worth doing but it would take a lot of time, time that could be be better spent elsewhere. It's not worth that much, and it could even cost us, should we be caught down here. Best we just tell the guards and they can do it.

"Let's get out of here."

"Well let's check it first, anyone take anything that might be useful."  Aeress took her own advice, and searched the pile for daggers or long knives, arrows, longbows and possibly shields.

Hunter grabs as many short swords as he can carry, and if there's a rapier he will grab that too.

Piper, having no use for any of the potential arsenal or other items, kept a lookout while the others gathered.

You search the room looking for anything of value and find the weapons cache but there isn't much else in the rooms besides what you find. As you leave you are able to get back out in a quick manner with no real signs of anything else living in this hide away place. When you get back up from the ropes you are greeted by the cultist once again and whoever stayed top side.

Night is coming quickly and it will be a matter of time before you are in the dark pretty far out from town. Good news is you aren't far from the road.

What do you want to do?

Quentin helps haul up the heaps of shortswords, which is a simple metter if they all have scabbards with leather loops to hang from the belt - you just put each dozen of them on the rope, make a knot, and then haul them up. It would be less than overly convenient to carry the long way, but surely worth it.

Since it's going to get dark, Quentin proposes we end up at the tavern, to head to the kingsguard with the first light tomorrow. Quentin does have extensive plans of what to do in the tavern, but the first thing is to get there.

So, how many shortswords people have been able to haul? I guess a reasonable minimum is 2*6 and a easonable maximum is 4*12, counting between two people hauling half a dozen each and four people carrying a dozen each. That would total 24..96 lbs and $120..480, which is quite a noticiable difference.

Also, we might have to kill some incapacitated rats or people, I'd like to know how many. Quentin would like to keep at least one rat and is willing to drag the thing by himself by the tail, but if we can bring some more without unacceptably slowing us down, that would be good too. Quentin insists we don't leave unattended survivors.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:09, Thu 02 Nov 2023.

OOC:

Weapons found (4) Short Swords, (2) Clubs, and a dagger.

Rats are all dead. All the people are dead that are on the ground. 2 people currently waiting for their judgement. One is wounded.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:01, Thu 02 Nov 2023.

Lirian put one of the short swords in her belt just in case, though she preferred to use her staff should combat arise again.

As she reached the top and joined those there, she looked at the sky. Her face showed some concern. “I’m afraid we took too much time here. I see no way to reach the city before dusk, and afterwards we’ve been told rats make it too dangerous. Should we try to find some place to sleep, taking watches?” she asked the rest. “I’d like to put some distance with this place, though, as I’m afraid more cultists might come by night… And the prisoners would be a hindrance if we camp… We better gag them so that they cannot call for help.”

Aeress scooped up the dagger, always a handy thing to have.  She might not keep it but it was useful for now.

"I think you speak the truth of it.  We must go as far as we can until two hours before dusk, then make the best camp we can."

"Liriam, Quentin. Did you come across any houses or buildings on the way here? It might be a good place to make a stand."

"If not, maybe it would be best to push on through dark and make it to the Tavern. The rats aren't supposed to get bad until around midnight. How long did it take to get here?"

OOC: this post assumes there's time to reach the Tavern. I will change it if they are not true. Was there any otehr posible refuge they saw on the way to the city?

“I’d like not to put some distance from here just in case anyone comes, and I guess we can reach the Tavern before midnight, if we hurry a little” Lirian said. “But we should first turn those cultists to the Guards, and then I’m not sure returning to the tavern is a good idea. I’m pretty sure the Covenant has it under surveillance…”

Then she turned to Quentin, handing his the syringe. “We found this in the room where they seemed to have the base. I have no idea about what it might be, but I’m quite sure you’re better than myself to take any information from it…”

On the way to wherever they go (the tavern or any other place) she explained the rest everything Ezekiel and Elysia had told her (OOC: from now on, other players may use this information, unless the GM says otherwise).

OOC: I missed this from Quentin:

quote:

Well, did we?

As for the plans, I am a bit at a loss about what time it is, how long before sunset and how much we can walk in that time. Quentin tried to estimate some of that in #144i, that is, after the fight before going down the hole, but had no conclusive results at that time, so probably it should still be a fair (but so far unspecified) amount of time before dark, depending on how long people have been down the hole.

No houses with the exception of right outside of town. It's dusk right now so if you start back to town you will make it before midnight and before the rats come out. There will be nothing to spot you.

If that is the case we are going to start a new scene if you choose to move back to town I just want to make sure everyone is going the same way.

Daremo & S'Sikaar will finally depart.

Aeress is all about getting back to civilization, however we go about it!

"Let's hurry up to the tavern and sort the things later. I think we should be able to reach it in time if we are not delayed and the other side works by the clock..."

Quentin is not sure if this would be perfectly safe, but at least way more convenient than camping in the open.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:30, Sun 05 Nov 2023.

"I for one would not like to be caught in the open by a horde of rats. Let's get going."

“OK, let’s go then. We better hurry if we want to be there before midnight.” Lirian agreed. “I hope you have equipment at the Tavern to analyze what’s in the syringe ” she whispered to Quentin, trying to be out of hearing of the prisoners. “I hope it would help to find a cure for Orin and the other people infected…”

She checked the prisoners were gaged (mostly those able to use magic) and readied to go, pushing them if necessary to keep them moving at quick step.

“Should someone go a little ahead just to be sure we don’t cross any possible hostiles?” she asked. “I’d suggest the mooseling or the goblin if so, as they are probably the most stealthy…”

"Hurry Master!" Jenkins called from a hundred yards down the track.  "These woods are dangerous after dark! Ratses! Cultists! Stupid fat Hobbitses! Hurry up!"

OOC: Jenkins is scouting a hundred metres in from of the slow, blind, noisy biggun party.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:44, Sun 05 Nov 2023.

Happy to be going back to town, and in the company of people who know which direction that was, Piper hitched a ride on the next person in line behind Jenkins.

She couldn't see in absolute darkness, but in the waning hours of dusk and first hours of night they would be traveling through she'd have a better than normal chance of spotting trouble from her vantage point, hopefully before it spotted them.