In this session, …

Zoyana’s return

• Zoyana successfully returned to the party as their long rest was ending, earning herself a short rest in the process. (And luckily avoiding a level of exhaustion)
• She updated the others on both groups of cultists, who did not have prisoners.
• After a long discussion of intervention or stealth, the party discussed and agreed to skirt around both groups.
• The party left the cart and stolen horses with the horses they had brought from Greenest, proceeding on foot.

Cultists and mercenaries

• The party came across both groups that Zoyana had seen. In both cases, they discussed eliminating the groups, but skirted around instead.
  • The first was still in camp.
  • The second had begun the trek toward the raiders’ camp, but the party swung around unnoticed.

The Raider’s Camp

• The party approached the entrance to the raiders’ camp cautiously in the late morning, and had a brief discussion of their goals: regardless of what Governor Nighthill wanted, their priority was the prisoners over intel: “we are who we are”
• In a bout of cowardice, the party circled around the plateau that hid the raiders’ camp and scaled the plateau from the west. This took a bit of stealth on their part, but they topped the mesa without problems.
• Pliny, with a little Guidance from Zoyana, took Fang to scout the watchtower ahead.

Scouting Watchtower and Camp

• Pliny and Fang snuck through the tall grass and bushes and peered over the ledge to see the inside of the watchtower.
  • Its square roof was held up by four poles, and the half walls on the sides protected it from wind.
    
  • Six kobolds laid about, mostly being bored and shuffling around. There was a little table on toward the uphill side of the tower, where two of the kobolds were playing some kind of game.
  • More than anything, the kobolds looked bored. Pliny could tell that the kobolds were armed, with at least one bow in sight.
  • Fang spied a giant horn that could be used to alert the camp to danger, and communicated that to Pliny with a drawing in the dirt.
• Pliny cast Magic Mouth on a piece of grass and recorded a message for Zoyana and Aegar filling them in on the observations.
• Fang invisibly flew back to Zoyana and Aegar, and with a “Fukyoo”, Fang replayed the message to the pair.
• The party regrouped, and Pliny set out to circle around the top of the plateau, investigating the camp and looking for the location of prisoners.
  • Based on Zoyana’s prior description, most of the lower/outer tents had been disassembled and cleared/burned.
  • The command tent and most of the upper tents were still pitched.
  • Pliny spied cookfires being lit and the sounds of raucous laughter and celebrations of the successful raid.
  • Pliny also spied a group of prisoners being herded into a tent on the South East side of the camp.

Plannning

• Pliny returned and the party regrouped.
• Their plans included:
  • As soon as they took out the watchtower (if they chose to), things would start happening fast.
    • Zoyana was strongly in favor of taking out the watchtower
  • Zoyana suggested splitting off and check out the command tent alone
    • Aegar wanted her to stay at least through clearing the watchtower (three is alot stronger than two)
  • After some back-and-forth, the party settled on a plan to take out the watchtower first, then Zoyana sneak down and check out the command tent while Aegar and Pliny circled around and tried to free the prisoners.

Attack on the Watchtower

• The party approached from above.
• Fang, invisible, approached the watchtower.
• Pliny cast Hypnotic Pattern, catching 5 of the 6 kobolds inside.
• Fang tried and failed to use his Euphoria Breath on the last kobold.
• Zoyana missed the last kobold with her Thorn Whip
• Aegar dashed into the middle of the tent, blocking the way of the one charm-free kobold to the horn.
• Pliny missed with his crossbow, catching the bolt on the near side of the tent, and then moved closer.
• Fang flew over and bit the kobold (doing 1 point of damage)
• Zoyana Thorn Whipped the kobold and pulled it out of the tent, strangling it to death in the process.
• Aegar grabbed the horn and tossed it outside the watchtower
• Pliny stepped into the watchtower and stabbed one of the charmed kobolds through the heart.
• Fang disappeared
• Zoyana strangled another kobold with Thorn Whip
• Aegar killed one kobold and missed a second one.
• Pliny’s Viscious Mockery damages a kobold and breaks its charm
• Zoyana killed Pliny’s kobold with another Thorn Whip
• Aegar flattened the last kobold.
• Zoyana began to chew out Aegar for throwing the horn off the cliff… before realizing that the horn was sitting 10’ away on the ground.
• After the fight, the party reset the watchtower, Aegar bent the horn into uselessness and put the broken horn back in its spot, and pulled corpses out of sight.
• Pliny discovered some bone dice, 13 silver pieces, 6 daggers.

Splitting the party

• The session ended as the party split:
  • Zoyana wildshaped into a spider and descended toward the Command tent.
  • Pliny and Aegar circled around the plateau and descended to the camp at a spot along the south wall that was out of the line of sight of the remaining watchtower and near the suspected prisoners’ tent.