I choose to rescue him anyways. We've planned this out for nearly six months! I'm not about to let it all go down the drain.

I should have an opportunity to post for Leosin tomorrow.

I have an idea. If I use the spell Command on the guard from 60 feet away, hidden, does it work even if he might not hear me? Kyra will still be using common so I assume he'll understand that. If that doesn't work, could Kyra sneak up on him close enough that he can hear Kyra without her shouting, but without him seeing her as long as Kyra has eyes on the guard?

@Hekazu

@Norschtalen
By the wording "you speak a word of command to a creature you can see" I would suppose they need to hear it. To sneak close enough would take a Stealth check, but I would like to remind all of you that the tent of the slaves has been guarded by multiple people whenever inhabited.

@Hekazu

I thought there was just one guard right now? Or is it just one guard we can see?

@Norschtalen
Last time Judgement checked, there were two guards at the front of the slave tent. Krets was never taking up that duty, instead hanging off to the side providing... whatever it was he was doing.

Bear time? Or too noticeable?

I would say being a bear might be too noticeable and there is certainly no way Brannor can fight off two guards alone, even if they were as feeble as some of the lesser cultists we battled the last time; the odds to strike one down with a single hit is poor enough that it is not likely to succeed. That said, an alternative is in mind to provide for a distraction, though it will put the people at risk. Our resident ranger-knight has no other option but to consider it, so the question becomes, is there a lantern anywhere near the back of the slave tent, @Hekazu? Something that could be knocked over from afar, in an "accident", whilst say from somewhere hidden? Or perhaps picked up and thrown from a distance?

I am reasoning that will certainly cause a disturbance and if an alarm is raised, I imagine the focus will be on that side of the camp, putting out the fires, and accounting for prisoners. By the time all of that is settled, we should be long gone into the wilderness in the dead of night.

-is there a lantern anywhere near the back of the slave tent? Something that could be knocked over from afar, in an "accident", whilst say from somewhere hidden? Or perhaps picked up and thrown from a distance?

I am reasoning that will certainly cause a disturbance and if an alarm is raised, I imagine the focus will be on that side of the camp, putting out the fires, and accounting for prisoners. By the time all of that is settled, we should be long gone into the wilderness in the dead of night.

There are torches all around the camp, given they are their main source of illumination. The occasional lantern can be seen in the more "prestigious" parts of it, but a torch might serve this purpose better in any case.

So I assume there is a torch planted nearby the tent? One that could conceivably fall over and set a fire then? I am assuming they are intelligent enough to recognize if a torch nowhere near the side of the tent ended up there, that something more strange is afoot than just an accident. The goal is only to keep them busy at this point, if at all. Brannor simply cannot fight and kill two guards without raising an alarm or having the prisoners panic, @Hekazu.

So I assume there is a torch planted nearby the tent? One that could conceivably fall over and set a fire then? I am assuming they are intelligent enough to recognize if a torch nowhere near the side of the tent ended up there, that something more strange is afoot than just an accident. The goal is only to keep them busy at this point, if at all. Brannor simply cannot fight and kill two guards without raising an alarm or having the prisoners panic, @Hekazu.

Since Brannor is looking for something specific like that, I believe that would be an Investigation roll to find if the cult has left such things unattended.

I am assuming with a 17 that a lit torch beside the tent can be found, @Hekazu. It would be a real tragedy for the camp if it were to say, be something that could fall over without too much interference and land on the material.

I am assuming with a 17 that a lit torch beside the tent can be found, @Hekazu. It would be a real tragedy for the camp if it were to say, be something that could fall over without too much interference and land on the material.

While reality itself cannot be altered by high rolls, a seventeen lets Brannor note two potential ways to cause generally disruptive shenanigans in the camp. There is a small pile of unlit torches prepared on a piece of leather covering a wooden box, with a tinderbox nearby to boot. If a new torch is not something he would desire, he does note a more carelessly placed torch a few tent over yonder, closer to the "lowest class" dwellings of the camp, occupied mostly by Kobolds. It would truly be a sad event for a fire to break out in the dwellings of the scaly beings, no? Certainly the high pitched shrieks would drive just anyone up the wall...

That seems to be the best opportunity we have then, the kobolds' dwelling and carelessly lit torches, @Hekazu. The real question is, does there appear to be any danger, as with guards? Given this is a secondary objective and Brannor is outnumbered by a lot, staying out of sight and mind is more important.

If not, could Brannor reasonably fire a lit arrow at the unattended stack, since he had all of his equipment back? If all else fails?

That seems to be the best opportunity we have then, the kobolds' dwelling and carelessly lit torches, @Hekazu. The real question is, does there appear to be any danger, as with guards? Given this is a secondary objective and Brannor is outnumbered by a lot, staying out of sight and mind is more important.

If not, could Brannor reasonably fire a lit arrow at the unattended stack, since he had all of his equipment back? If all else fails?

The trouble with the kobold dwellings is the kobolds themselves. The more humanoid cultists seem to steer clear of the little folk though, so it could also prove to be an advantage. Kobolds seem to mostly move in groups instead of steady streams, but while that makes breaks in their presence longer, it also means getting found out would be a bigger risk. As for the unattended torches, there is a tinderbox nearby even without Brannor providing his own. He should be able to pick one from there without too much of an issue, though since both potential acts do hold the risk of getting found out case Stealth should be rolled in the case of either choice being pursued.

Sorry for no reply so far, been busy with summer work. I’ll have a post up later today, though it’ll mostly be about Kyra on standby in case something happens.

Given the unattended stack would be far, far more suspicious than a seemingly accidental fire in the most likely of places, Brannor will do as he did the last time and attempt to negate his disadvantage by sticking to the various forms of cover, out of the light, and seeking to only knock one of the torches over. His Stealth check to go undetected is a 13, which is uncomfortably ambiguous, but do let me know the result so I can go ahead with a post, @Hekazu. For better or worse this seems like the one chance he has.

@The Harbinger of Ferocity

Don’t forget the bardic inspiration! Pretty sure Parum gave Brannor one.

That is true, though I am hoping to save it for the actual escape itself. I am assuming worst case scenario there, @Lucius Cypher. I suspect I might well need have our paladin sneak back to the group, which is very questionable in success. Fleeing from a pack of kobolds while alone versus evading an entire camp? Unfortunately I have to assume the worst.

@The Harbinger of Ferocity
With the confirmation of Bardic Inspiration not being added, 13 is confirmed as the final result. You will (likely) be pleased to know that you have successfully avoided Kobold detection.