Recruiting for Adventure in the Vastermarch

[Patlin]

"You know, if we can hire on with a caravan the way we are heading, we could help out the sad state of our finances a bit. Let's check into that and see if it is a possibility."

Unless Beamer objects, Banion will make some inquiries. He'll leave any actual negotiations to Beamer, since folks seem to listen to his friend when they won't to him.

 

[SlagMortar]

Beamer agrees and will negotiate from a position of sometimes it is good to have some who are not obviously guards. That way if there is an ambush, the enemy won't realize the threat the little guys pose until it is too late.

 

[Manzanita]

OK. At this point, this thread will become a travel thread for Banion & Beamer. Bront & Boddynock should stop reading. El Jefe, if you can think of a reason Boog would want to accompany the two halflings north from Rivensblight, then feel free to post. Otherwise, he'll have to wait for juliana and Eusebius to come his way.

The two halflings are able to find work as caravan guards as far as Rivensblight. Although it takes a certain amount of time and energy to find caravans, and negotiate a place, overall, they move faster than they would if they had to depend on their short legs. They also earn enough to pay for their food and some carousing. They're lucky enough not to encounter any trouble either.

In Rivensblight, their caravan ends. They are paid and spend an enjoyable evening taking in the sights and lagers. Numerous wagons seem to be heading north from here to various places in Vastermarch, but none seem to be going as far North as Braeholl. They are about to give up and try to hitch a ride to Beth Hannon, the largest Northern town, when a friendly teamster mentions the following. "Actually, I was just talking to some folks about conditions around Braeholl. There's a military-looking caravan at Bog's store just around the corner. I suspect they must be going there, as there's no other town north of that. They've got three sturdy wagon, with walls and roofs. Might have some room - especially for little ones like youselves."

 

[SlagMortar]

"Thank you. We will inquire with them. By the way, what did you hear about the conditions in Braeholl? It seems there are not many merchants headed that way, and if a military convoy is going, perhaps there's trouble?" Trouble seems to follow me, but it also might supply an opportunity.

 

[El Jefe]

El Jefe, if you can think of a reason Boog would want to accompany the two halflings north from Rivensblight, then feel free to post. Otherwise, he'll have to wait for juliana and Eusebius to come his way.

OoC: Boog is trying to master a trick taught to him by a mentor. Since he won't be able to perfect it until he levels, he's bound to fail. Boog could realize that there's something missing in his technique, and recall that he had to seek out new experiences...sometimes stressful experiences...to learn each of the powers that he now has. It wouldn't be too far-fetched for him to realize that the pebble is never going to fall unless he leaves Rivenblight, and if the haflings come along just at the time he realizes that, then they might convince him to go with them.

 

[Manzanita]

OOC: What the heck. We'll assume Boog has become frusterated with his meditations & has decided he must have some action. Taking a walk in the north of town, he heads for the warehouse district, where caravans load & gather before heading north. He notices a couple halflings speaking with an old man.

"Braeholl is one of the most northern settlements. Go any further, and you're in the foot hills of the Northern Mountains. Those mountains are dangerous. There are certain passes, to Earling, which are guarded and fairly safe. But otherwise, those mountains are teeming with orcs and god knows what else."

"That's not to say it's dangerous in Braeholl. There are soldiers and a fort nearby. The orcs come raiding now and then, and other odd creatures come down. It's not a spot for the timid, surely, but many a stout farmer and trader makes a good living in the area. It's been some thousand years since a real invasion came."

 

[El Jefe]

OOC: We'll assume Boog has become frusterated with his meditations & has decided he must have some action...He notices a couple halflings speaking with an old man.

Boog was as overconfident in his skills as he was curious to know why the old man was giving the haflings a geography lesson, so he closed his eyes for just a moment and let his consciousness brush that of the man. This was risky. He'd nearly gotten thrown out of a monastery in disgrace for pulling a similar stunt, but since then he'd learned to put up a false front that might throw off a casual investigation. Indeed, he wasn't even facing the man now, and to a casual observer, he was looking down a nearby alley.

To a not so casual observer, he was reading the man's mind without the man's permission.[sblock=OoC: ]Manifesting Read Thoughts on the man. The halfings are not yet within the cone of the power, although he could sweep them on a subsequent turn. DC15 Will save to negate the power; success will reveal that someone is Up To Something although he'll probably have to make a Spot check or use some similar means to figure out that the someone is Boog. Failure means Boog can monitor his surface thoughts. If the Will save succeeds, Boog will try to Bluff (at +2) his way out of this..."Who me? Using Magic? Oh, I'm sorry, you must be mistaken..." 31/34 PP remaining no matter how this goes.[/sblock]

 

[Manzanita]

In tournement of flowers, didn't we decide the use of a psionic power is noticible in those affected - like hearing a bell go off? This guy has failed his save. Does he know something is going on?

 

[corcio]

Do you happen to have room or perhaps ANY spots available for a 1st level character.
i just want something to do. if not then ill go away. I have a barbarian a druid and a rouge. though my rogue is currently away. i was also thinking of endind one of my characters and going with a wizard instead of a druid. BUT whatever works. please let me know

 

[El Jefe]

In tournement of flowers, didn't we decide the use of a psionic power is noticible in those affected - like hearing a bell go off? This guy has failed his save. Does he know something is going on?

OoC: That's two different things, and a good catch. First, many Powers have a display, similar to the displays of spells (trails of magical sparks zipping through the air, a low humming noise, whatever). In this case, the display for Read Thoughts is mental, meaning that anyone affected would hear a chime inside their heads. Boog will generally attempt to suppress the display of his powers, save in situations where it makes no difference if he is detected or not. It's a DC15+level of spell Concentration check to suppress a spell, or DC17 in this case. Did I say Boog was good at making Concentration checks?

Well, let's see how good. d20+9=12, not quite good enough. The effect is an area effect, and works in a 15' radius that is centered on Boog (this is Boog's choice). So Boog and anyone standing within 15' of him will hear a chime inside their head. Read Thoughts works as a 60' cone, so I'll let you decide whether Boog is within 15' of the man, and/or Banion and Beamer.

Now, the other part of this is, display notwithstanding, anyone who is the target of a spell or psionic Power and who makes their save vs. that spell or power knows that they've been the target of some kind of magic or psionics. They do not automatically know who is responsible for the magic, although if there is some guy nearby in robes chanting words of power and making strange gestures, they can pretty much figure it out. That's where the Bluff comes in...if Boog is trying to get away with something and comes under suspicion, he goes into the "Who? Me?" routine. That doesn't apply here yet.

Oh, and since Read Thoughts affects a 60' cone, sometimes several people get caught up in the area of effect. They all get will saves to avoid the scrying, and if they make them, then they know magic/psionics is in use, even if they're too far away to be affected by the mental display. At this time Boog is not trying to scry on a large number of people, but that might be unavoidable depending on the layout of the warehouse district and how crowded things are right at the moment.