Tests and Trials

[spiderwrangler]

"Not looking to fight a storm. Just looking to shelter those that don't have a roof of their own. The boy you convinced to do the right thing... his little sister... their parents. They've no shelter from something like owlbears... or bandits like that Fancy Lad either. Just wanting to give them a chance, if taking a few hours to track down and deal with some owlbears does that, then that's what I'm doing."

Kroshav walks out, a bit sad that someone who smells so nice seems so jaded.

---

"Number's a bit iffy at the moment. Hoping more than just me. This here's Cap'n Joe, she's my employer at the moment, so... Anyway, I've a bit of experience, another with us is a guide and knows her way around the woods. Another guy wants to try talking to them to ask them go away, I thought he was kidding, but he seems serious. I don't think any of us have a use for the hides and the like, you and anyone you bring could probably get an even share, and buy out anyone who doesn't have interest in keeping them."

[thinkslogically]

"Yeah, I know", Ves replies quietly, turning her lucky pebble over and over in her palm.

"You ever met an owlbear before last night?"

((What does Ves know about them...?))
Nature: 1D20 = [5] = 5

[spiderwrangler]

"Not since I was a helpless boy without shelter.", Kroshav calls over his shoulder as he departs.

((Think we were the two to recognize the call?))

[thinkslogically]

((I think so too, I was just wondering if Ves had actually learned anything about them before or just run into their extra-sharp, extra-floofy claws))

[Dlover]

Lurn shrugs when asked whether Kroshav had gone to meet Bralsa, "Doubt he's had time to go and be back yet, but I imagine he will speak to them."

[NotStickFigures]

Jaq listens to the talk of owl-bear hunting and doesn't seem overly talkative at first. If anything, he looks a bit worried. But after a while of thinking he speaks up. To Ves, but within earshot of the others, he says, "I understand what you are feeling. These are big, fast creatures. From what I saw, it would just take one precise hit from their claws and either of us would be dead. However, I do understand what the others are saying, too. Doing the right thing." Jaq sighs. "I guess i should have known leaving town and striking out to, well....do things, wouldn't be a cakewalk." He looks over at Kroshav, "I will do my best to help, but I'm no match in hand to hand with these creatures. I'll be useful on horseback, striking from afar with my bow. We will need to have a plan to be able to deal with these creatures without any of us getting gutted. Plans also will depend if we are fighting them separately. I think we will only have a chance if we end up dealing with them one at a time. In a group, I think they will definitely outmatch us."

[Arch Lich Burns]

"I'm sure we can work out somthin'. Thar be a reward ta kill tha owlbear, no? If so we can split it. We can prob'ly sell tha hides n carcass aft'r.

As fer me, Ah be knowin' mag'c. I can shoot fire at em from a safe dist'ce. Ah also not'd that tha owlbears be slow'r than a horse, so we can constly put arrows in em without gettin' hurt ourselves. Dinnae engage em in melle, thay'd rip ye up ta shred."


----
To Jaq "Ah think if we keep our distance n bows constly load'd we maybeh able to take em down. Tha probl'm is if we run inta anoth'r ambush from em."

[thinkslogically]

"I understand all of that. I truly do. But I can't fight an owlbear with my fists, like you seem to be asking. There must be other ways to deal with this that don't involve such a dangerous hunt. The roadsmen for a start! Have the guard send a patrol out, with enough strength to handle this."

[Arch Lich Burns]

"Ye can have a bow, so ye dinnae get maul'd as well. Ah know ye'd pref'r ye fist but sometimes ye gotta get out of yer comf'rt zone. But if ye'd want ta stay, Ah dinnae blame ye. Ye can keep n eye out fer Jolly."

[thinkslogically]

"I didn't say I was staying behind, or that any of you are wrong. ...Just, we shouldn't underestimate these things. We need to be smart and that might mean dealing with this in a less direct way... I've run into these things once or twice before on hunts and honestly, they scare the shit out of me. They're mean things, and powerful as hell."

[Rodgeir]

((@Burns There is no stated reward for killing the owlbears.))

Ves knows owlbears are nocturnal, territorial and vicious. They certainly wouldn't back down from a fight without taking significant damage.

((Would you like to ask about the road patrols?))
----
Bralsa chuckles dryly,

"Ya want me to go out with four of ya looking for three owlbears? If there was double that many MAYBE we'd be talking but ya gonna get killed. Could probably talk a couple fellas into coming out but they ain't idiots. Well one is but I like'm."

((Let me know if I missed answering something. If you want to continue to convince her you're going to need a persuasion roll.))

[spiderwrangler]

"You know as well as I do that if owlbears start using the road from here to Bend as their hunting ground, that's going to be a lot of dead travelers. That's bad for everyone. Best to form a hunting party and remove them NOW, before they start feeling at home. I'm offering my aid, and hopefully that of my traveling companions in helping your town be rid of them."

Persuasion: 1D20+4 = [15]+4 = 19

[Rodgeir]

Brasla stops sharpening and looks up at Kroshav and raises an thrice bisected eyebrow at him.

"Ya make a point there, ain't much business if everyone is in an owlbear belly...hmm. Tell ya what - ya get Enrud along in his tinny armor and ya got ourselves a hunting party. But the more the merrier, right?"

She goes back to her sharpening adding,

"Get back to ya job Hok. Nezza's gonna have a fit if she finds ya here."

[spiderwrangler]

"I'll speak with him. Thank you."

Kroshav will head back to the tavern to look for the dwarf.

[thinkslogically]

"Well I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this is a crazy idea. Personally, I say we post warnings on the road if you want to do something, and then leave this to the army. Why haven't the patrols taken care of this already anyway? Don't they come out this way?"

[Arch Lich Burns]

"I didnae say it wasn't crazy, but Ah saw how they ain't able ta keep up with horses that good. We can use it to our advantage. Maybe we can lay some traps n bait as well."

[Rodgeir]

((Ves would knoe patrols guard the entire road but they've be conspicuously absent during your trip. Normally you'd see at least one patrol a day. This absolutely falls under their responsibilities.))

[thinkslogically]

"If we're going to do this, then yes, we should be smart. ... Brasla, when was the last patrol you saw on the roads here? Where's the nearest garrison? We saw some bad stuff hit Stenrek before we left, but now I'm worried there isn't more going on."

[spiderwrangler]

((Oops, I missed that Ves joined in going to talk to Brasla! Some of Kroshav's dialogue was probably oddly phrased! I guess some of the stuff directed at Ves could have been on the walk over (with Joe?).))

[Arch Lich Burns]

(That works for me!)

[Rodgeir]

Enrud walks back upstairs carrying a wooden coffin over his shoulder. Huffing he drops it on the floor next to the body. He looks up at Lurn,

"Give me a hand putting him in the box would ya?" He takes the man by his shoulders and waits for Lurn to take the legs."

Nezza puts all the man's things back into his bag and places it by the coffin.
---
Brasla keeps sharpening and answers Ves,

"I spend most of my time in the woods, don't keep track of the patrols. Last I saw was a week ago. Garrison? Nearest is Grenmyr two days to the east. They got a place by Stenrek too I think."

((So pretty much 2 days either direction from where you are now.))
---
((Is Kroshav still going to boarding house before the conversation with Brasla is done?))

[Dlover]

Lurn nods, hefting the corpse from the legs and helping to move it over into the box. "I would have liked to provide a proper service, but it would take me the best part of the day to prepare the for the rituals."

[spiderwrangler]

((I guess? She said she's in if Enrud is, so Kroshav's going to get Enrud in. If we can retcon to pretend that some of his statements to Bralsa didn't seem quite so passive aggressive towards Ves? It's a different thing to say "well, hopefully more than just me" when she's standing right behind him.))

[thinkslogically]

((to be fair, she's not exactly raring to go! She wasn't going to take offence anyway. ))

[Rodgeir]

Kroshav comes back to the boarding house and hears Enrud's deep voice from upstairs along with Lurn. The common room is now empty except for Mena.

Proceeding up he sees Lurn and the dwarf laying the body into a rough hewn coffin. The medicine woman gives Lurn a pat on the back as she walks towards the stairs,

"We'll give'm some rites before we plant'm, don't worry about that."

Nezza puts the the man's bag on his legs and goes about stripping the cot and tossing it in a basket by the stairs before doing the same to the other used cots.

Enrud puts the top on the coffin back on and gives Lurn a look,

"Ye mind giving meh a hand?" Noticing Kroshav coming up the stairs, "Or ye? Ain't far. Put him in the outshed till we get a hole dug."