Dragoknighte

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: Outside Avonshire Township Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Well it was nice that their task was something that wouldn't detract from their mission. If anything, being able to tour the town and see how things were would only help hasten their ability to pick out where to investigate. However, it was somewhat surprising that everyone agreed to it without any sort of bickering. Kosara and Kathryn she expected to go along with helping people. Victoria seemed to have made some sort of emotional connection with Lizbeth, but she could see her not wanting to automatically agree to some unknown task before hearing it out. Hugh she expected to protest due to the time limit they had on their investigation (the more she thought about it, the more she was vexed at how pressed by the time crunch they were when it probably wouldn't have even existed had Hugh not asked about it in the first place). But everyone was on the same page so she'd take the unity in stride while she could.

The real question was who should get shorted wine that was consumed by the goblins. Firstly she didn't want to completely deny anyone wine, it simply was too unfair to couple a delayed delivery with an absence of product. That narrowed down the choices to the Municipal Building and Honey Barn. From Cecily's tone and the name it wasn't difficult to intuit what the establishment was. Personally she found such places quite tasteless, and shortchanging them a barrel would be the smallest loss proportional to what they had ordered. However, they likely needed it more than anyone else. The business likely made most of its profit from drink sales, and a festival like this was probably peak season. Meanwhile, while she didn't enjoy the prospect of earning more ire from the local government, chances were that they merely were to use their wine for parties.

"I think it would be the most fair to choose the Municipal Building." It would hurt them personally the most, but would be better off for the greatest number of people. She didn't explain her whole line of reasoning like she tended to for her previous decisions, but she would if prompted to by someone else. Unlike most decisions before now, she would rather have the decision be made quickly so she was somewhat open to changing the vote so they didn't get bogged down trying to choose.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: Outside Avonshire Township Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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The Constable definitely knows what's going on with the disappearances. That was Marita's immediate reaction. There was no evidence towards this conclusion, but the way he spoke along with what little they had been told of him before made her 80% certain this was the case. Of course, it was entirely possible for him to merely be oafish and territorial over what little domain he had power over, but that would merely change him from malicious to boorishly incompetent. Regardless, even as someone who wasn't an active participant in that exchange, it left a bad taste in her mouth for law enforcement to act in such an unbecoming way.

They were now clear to enter Avonshire and begin their investigation in earnest, but it had been made painfully clear now more than ever that they'd need to maintain a low profile. Perhaps if she were here by herself she'd have more leeway on how she conducts an inquisition, but with a crew as conspicuous as they were, they'd need to walk on eggshells.

"We do need a place to stay while we're here, so that inn would be more than appreciated, and we'd be honored to visit your vineyard. What do you need help with?" The inn would certainly not be to Marita's standards, but there were very few places in the entire region that would be. More to the point, an innkeeper was a good, if perhaps cliché way to try to get information on the settlement and potential leads on this mystery. And normally accepting this kind of visit wholesale was something Marita wouldn't be too inclined to do, but she would feel awful to say no to a grieving family like that. The death of family was hard enough without them being dismembered and partially consumed. Lastly, although they had time restricted business to take care of, it wouldn't hurt to hear out the lady.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: Avonshire (region) Action: Investigation Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Marita listened to Hugh's assessment of the situation and couldn't really believe what she was hearing. Yeah technically if Victoria hadn't moved onto the frontlines she would have been less likely to have been targeted by the hidden archers, but it was pretty obvious to her that she'd done it to cover up the hole in their positioning left by Kathryn. She couldn't understand why he'd assert that it wasn't the fighter's fault unless he was being willfully daft or contrarian just to argue against her. Either way it wouldn't be worth responding to that statement, especially since Victoria herself did a fine job of stating the obvious to him.

"And as I said you needn't apologize to me; nothing that happened to me was likely to change with your presence." Although her words were reassuring, her tone was anything but. It was stern as iron and sharp as flint. It was then that something Victoria said struck a chord in her. They deserve a proper burial.

"Wait," Marita spoke aloud to herself, but she couldn't stop the words from flowing out. "What exactly is a filled coffin doing in a wagon with that much wine?" Marita knelt down to the ground and pored over the coffin.

"This amount of wine is something that you would expect for a commercial shipment. I can't see even a noble house purchasing so much for their own consumption or a single occasion. So why is a cadaver here along with it? Even for a major ball I doubt they would go through more than one of these casks. Who was this?" The cleric found the coffin, although dirty and a bit scuffed from its poor treatment at the hands of goblins was in good condition, as if only made weeks ago at the latest. It was clearly made not as a mass produced commodity but for this particular individual. Frustratingly there was nothing else she could find that would illuminate the owner's identity, even after she cast a Guidance spell to reveal its secrets.

"Why is it that the more we learn or discover about this place, the less sense it makes?" This question's lack of an answer was cut off by the return of Kathryn with a pair of oxen, presumably the beasts that were pulling this cart before it was attacked. Marita ran her fingers through her hair before she stood once more and addressed her companions.

"Alright, it's probably about time we decide what we're to do from here. If there's nothing else anybody has noticed for us to discover here, we should probably start making preparations to depart again. Now we can continue to Avonshire as planned, or we could try heading West to see if indeed that's where the goblins' base of operations is. This new wagon situation demands that we split up a bit, if only to have a driver on each vehicle. However, we can also choose to investigate both at the same time by having one group go West and the other North. If we do decide to do simultaneous inquisitions I'd suggest that Victoria drive the cart with the wine and cadaver since she possesses proof that the goods were attacked by goblins rather than it looking like we stole the cargo ourselves. Any thoughts?"

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: Avonshire (region) Action: History, Investigation Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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There was a lot to process in the span of not much time. First there was a sudden shove against her and the shield, this much she expected. If anything it was a lot less severe than she had anticipated. A push from a creature of small stature whereas she expected an out and out attack. She was off-balance for a bit but kept her eyes trained on the goblin as it fled the scene. That was cut short by the sound of arrow fire from above and behind, immediately followed by sudden impact on her back. In the back of her mind she was thankful for Pholtus' protection, which saved her from a potentially debilitating attack; however, her immediate attention turned towards the source of the ambush, a couple of goblins who had remained hidden in the treetop, and then Victoria who Marita noticed had also been struck in her peripheral vision. Unfortunately the bard did not have the armor Marita had to deflect the blow and her injury seemed rather severe, although a bit shy of incapacitating.

From there however, anything she would have set her mind towards doing was dealt with before she had a chance to do anything as far as handling the remains of battle went. Even if it was nice to have someone who was both able and willing to heal others so that she was not chained to the task the way the mule was expected to pull the wagon, in that moment Marita couldn't help but feel a tad powerless, that there was nothing for her to do that would be helpful to others. That unwelcome feeling was pushed aside when Kathryn spoke up.

"You should be apologizing to Victoria. Because you were behind, she's the one who had to take your position and ended up getting wounded. Even trashed armor like yours does much better at handling arrows than leather." The cleric's next words were addressed to the party as a whole, "Don't loosen your guard too much yet. There might still be more goblins that we haven't found." Marita's eyes scanned the area for any more potential foes, and in doing so saw the caskets of wine that Kathryn was unloading.

She recognized Rose River from better days, and she never would have thought the vineyard would be in a backwater like this. In fact, if she had wanted an additional reward from Sheriff Gregory, she likely would have requested a couple bottles of Rose River wine. If she was a woman of fewer scruples and a profit-driven mind, she would have thought to keep the caskets of wine as spoils and resell it for a great profit.

Looking elsewhere, Marita gave the goblins a real good look for the first time since the encounter began. They certainly didn't have the gear of small time bandits and raiders. She looked to see if there was anything on them that would tie them to something or someone else that they could use for the investigation. Fate decided that things would not be so easy, the only identification she could see was a simple pack mark, no different than a gang sign one would run into in the cities.

"Before we try to return anything we need to anyone we'd need to determine who actually owns this shipment. Regardless, I think there's more we can learn from this site that would aid us in our mission before we clean up and leave. Furthermore, it might do good to not go directly to Avonshire just yet. When that coffin goblin tried to run from us, it went West. When one flees they attempt to head towards safety. So there's a pretty good chance that their home base is Westwards."

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: Bless, Bardic Inspirartion Location: E14 Action: Open the Coffin Bonus Action: Spiritual weapon attack Reaction: N/A

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While it was annoying that nobody had actually really followed the plan they had agreed upon, their surprise attack had gone over well. Too well. For her to disarm the goblins they first needed to have armed themselves, and now that they had, the flow of battle was so against them that doing so was more counter-productive than simply pressing the offensive.

She caught wind of Kosara's theatrics and the noise coming from within the coffin; you'd have to be completely daft not to, but she didn't let it distract her from the current goal, wipe out the last goblin she could see. They had the momentum with them and letting it slip away now could provide the enemy a chance to escape and return with reinforcements.

As if still thirsty for blood, the spiritual dagger flew around the tree and embedded itself in the final goblin's throat. Its face was frozen in horror as it died, the only one with enough time to truly process how dire its situation was. Marita felt a twinge of pity, but it passed as soon as she looked away. Now that all the present threats were taken care of, she could turn her focus to the unknown. Although it was a bit rash, it would be better to see what was inside directly, rather than waiting for it to make the first move. Since she was right next to it, she would take the risk. The cleric made sure to keep her shield up and ready as she put away her weapon and flipped open the lid of the coffin.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: G12->E14 Action: Melee Weapon Attack Bonus Action: Cast: Spiritual Weapon Reaction: N/A

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Marita waited for everyone else to move into position, doing her best to remain hidden pressed up against the tree trunk. Even with the element of surprise, it was the peak of foolishness to charge in alone outnumbered 8 to 1. That said, it was rather irksome that the person she thought would take point ended up hanging back almost as far as the ambush party. Well whatever, they didn't have the time to bicker over every point. She would have to take the lead and hope that the others would follow through to back her up.

There was a tense moment, and then Kathryn made her move, followed almost instantaneously by Hugh. Her eyes tracked the flight of the axes towards the goblins and began to move herself. As she ran, she turned towards the separate patch of goblins by the coffin and pointed at them with her mace.

"STRIKE."

Her spellcasting up to this point always sounded as if she were commanding reality itself to produce the outcome she desired, and she had been. But this utterance more than any other carried the impression of her barking an order at the cosmos and the cosmos answering. From the tip of her weapon flew out a spectral dagger, long and wicked, certainly not befitting any of the imagery one would associate with Pholtus or the way that Marita carried herself 99% of the time. The blade flew directly into the gut of one of the goblins and split open its bowels before it could even react. Having tasted blood, the spiritual weapon pointed menacingly at the other two, as if trying to determine which it would slay next.

Not breaking stride, Marita stepped over one of the tomahawked bodies to strike at the last goblin around the campfire. The mace found its mark directly in the chest of the goblin. There was no audible crack of bones breaking, but the feedback in her hand told her that it had done quite a bit of damage. Unfortunately her foe was still standing, but expecting every attack to be a one-shot kill was too hopefully naive. There were still quite a few left, but she hoped that they would be dealt with or distracted so that she wouldn't end up getting surrounded.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: O15->G12 Action: Cast: Bless Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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To her surprise, Hugh volunteered to have Kosara be his partner for the ambush. As far as her physical abilities and skills went, she would agree completely that she would be one of the best people in the group to move in the shadows. The logic behind her suggestion was tied to something else entirely, that she would have thought Hugh would have picked up immediately. Well, it didn't matter to her personally which of them went where as long as everyone could do what they needed to without half-assing it. As far as Kathryn's well-intentioned suggestion went, well she felt like there was more to be said in addition to Hugh's objection.

"In a different situation I might have agreed with you, Kathryn. Vigilantism often works in contradiction to the law and often causing more problems. But even if they were to surrender or we were to arrest them, a power which we do not possess mind you, how would we transport them? We don't have manacles nor enough rope with which to bind them, and our rental wagon wouldn't be able to hold them all. Given that we are in an area where local law enforcement is able to act effectively and we lack the authority or manpower to do so ourselves, the best thing we can do is remove this threat from the road entirely. If during the battle they surrender, then maybe we'll see about arrest. If nothing else we could interrogate any goblins about what they happen to be doing so close to the center of the region."

When Hugh cast his spell, she could see why he wasn't so concerned with how inherently noisy Kosara was. A spell like this forcibly muzzled her. Well, since they were about to move out, now would be the perfect time to Bless those who would stand beside her. Marita grabbed her water pouch and poured a small puddle of it in her palm, just enough so it wouldn't spill out. She placed her other hand over it and locked her hands closed.

"Moon and Star, grant your blessings upon thee."

With the words spoken, Marita threw the water in the air, and the droplets turned to light as they fell, showering her, Kathryn and Victoria. They glowed for an instant before it faded away, leaving them looking normal but the magic could be felt. Even as her words dropped like lead and light flared from her eyes, at the same time Pass Without Trace fought to keep it concealed, like containing an explosion.

With everything set up as well as they could be, Marita was the first to move. She attempted to maintain silence as much as she could. Even though she had taken point, there was no reason to give up the element of surprise while she still had it. However, despite her best efforts she could still hear her mail jitter and jangle far more than it usually did. Were it not for the spell Hugh cast she doubted that she would have been able to sneak up on a deaf mole right then. And for an instant, when that goblin by the campfire stood, she thought her noisy armor had given her away. She stopped dead in her tracks and held her breath as she watched it sneeze and return to its business. In the end, she stopped next to the tree by the road, hidden enough to not be in plain sight, but close enough to be maybe 10-15 feet of any goblin by the campfire, well within striking distance.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: O15 Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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"Right, besides this isn't our wagon or mule. It would be untoward to bring it into circumstances where it could be damaged without good reason." On top of the previously stated disrespectful nature of damaging a loaned item like this, it would also make them look even worse than they probably came off already. Sheriff Gregory would also have to pay for repairs/replacements to the wagon and he was already spending quite a bit out of his own pocket up to this point. Even if he was potentially still a malefactor for the investigation, the fact that he was stretching himself thin financially to cover for the party was something that couldn't be denied.

"As far as tactics goes, I believe we should split into 2 groups. I don't think Hugh should be alone in case there's another group of goblins we can't see or some other unexpected occurrence springs on us, he'll have someone to back him up. Kathryn, one other person and I should travel up the road and attack from the West, while Hugh and his partner can travel from the South through the foliage to attack their flank." As far as who should go with him if not both Kosara and Victoria... Kosara could heal if something went wrong, but the prospect of her remaining silent enough to not break stealth even with the enemy wallowing in various levels of intoxication was in doubt.

"Victoria, you should probably accompany Hugh, Kosara you come along with us. I can cast Bless on the three of us before we move to give us an extra edge in the fight. It won't last more than a minute, but hopefully we can end it before that becomes a concern. As far as when for the flank to jump in, I could create an opening. I did mention that I was trained in using clerical magic, but it's a bit more specific than that. My training taught me how to use the Voice of Law. My words themselves are imbued with the power of Order itself. I can command these goblins to drop their weapons and even though they wouldn't understand my words, they would comply. Shortly after we engage, I have them drop their weapons, and then you strike while they're defenseless. Is that plan to everyone's satisfaction?"

She certainly hoped so, because their time for planning wouldn't last forever. As absorbed in their sordid merrymaking as they were, the goblins were bound to notice them in due time. As far as she could tell without thinking too hard on it, this plan seemed to suit their individual strengths while also not contradicting the personal sensibilities the party carried. Well except perhaps Victoria's flair for being as visibly striking as possible. It really said something about the rest of the crew that the woman in the massive purple hat was likely the best suited to stealth out of the lot of them. The only other objection that seemed likely was that attacking disarmed individuals was dishonorable, but considering these goblins had just attacked a wagon full of unarmed individuals and was eating them, she hoped that it was self evident that dealing with them in an honorable manner was more than they deserved.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: Avonshire (region) Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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"B- beautiful?" That wasn't the reaction that Marita had expected. Although she certainly hadn't remembered her home as being run-down or disgusting, beautiful definitely wasn't an adjective she'd ever associated with it. Perhaps these girls had a far more fantastical idea of what the place had looked like than how it actually was. Perhaps this was also a side effect of her leaving out key details that she didn't want to think about and/or were not suitable for light travel conversation with a group of relative strangers. Whatever, she determined that she wouldn't try to dissuade them of their fantasies and simply take the compliments without commenting on it further. As for telling more stories? While it felt good being able to talk about these things after years, she wasn't sure how good of an idea would be or even if she wanted to, even if Kosara was (unintentionally) putting on a great deal of social pressure to do so.

The cleric listened to Kathryn's story, but found herself somewhat distracted. She couldn't place what, but something in her subconscious told her that something was amiss. As it went on, she noticed that it was sound, through the wagon and the mule and the talking there was something else. Voices. But she couldn't get much more than that before Kosara brought up laughter. Laughter? While it was certainly possible that some of the travelers on the road would be having that sort of conversation, that wouldn't have put her on edge like this. Besides, nobody she had seen on the road today seemed in the jovial mood.

"Upturned cart and green skin? I think we might have run into those goblins that we've heard about, let me see if I can get a better look." Marita turned around to face the front of the wagon and made a quick gesture before touching the side of her face, right next to her eyes.

"Light reveal the correct path."

Her voice was as dense as iron and her eyes briefly shone with a bright, almost blinding white light and she could see ahead her sight was directed to right where they needed to be, only for that place to be blocked by Morty's hickory smoked rear end. Briefly, the urge to Turn Undead flashed through her mind. She shook her head and instead grabbed hold of her mace and shield. If they were to fight, making sure she was armed was the best thing she could do right now. And if it was a false alarm, well she could just put them down and no harm would be done.

"No good. If we're due for a fight, stick by me for the time being. I can provide you a blessing that will surely prove useful in the skirmish. If possible, Kosara and Kathryn should swap places. If not, then I'll go up front and she can go out the back." The most irksome detail about this entire ordeal, other than not being able to see what they were up against, was that if she were to cast a boon upon the others here, it would likely expire by the time they actually saw combat. At least she had a bit of time to plan a course of action.

"Nobody actually move until we can confirm that the commotion ahead is indeed malicious."

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Marita Bärbel Human, Cleric, Level 3 HP: 18/18 Armor Class: 18 Conditions: N/A Location: The Infamous Pear->Avonshire (region) Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Marita's expression didn't change as she looked out over the landscape. And she didn't respond to Victoria's question. After awhile had passed and it seemed as if the cleric would ignore the question outright, she began to speak.

"I grew up Northwest of here, in the Hasburn Mountains. However, I couldn't tell you where. The nest was difficult to find unless you knew exactly where it was located, and it's been so long since I've been there I don't think I would be able to return even if I wanted to. We lived in the mountains, but not in any manner I imagine any of you are familiar with. We lived underground. Deep, deep beneath the surface. Protected by the earth we never had to contend much with the weather aside from some fringe cases. The sun was far out of reach, the only light we had came from flame or magic. There was no day or night, we kept track of time through the use of a massive hourglass that would empty 24 hours after it was overturned."

"Without the sun's light, what we grew for food were mushrooms and other such crops that did well where nobody could see. Sometimes there would be hunting parties formed or summoned to procure some meat from the beasts that lived below. Water we drew from a great underground lake. When I asked my father about it as a child, he told me that pure snow collected on the mountain in the winter, and when spring came, it would melt and some of it would sink into the cracks and crevices of the rock, sinking down further and further until it ended up in the reservoir. I'm not sure how much I was told as a child was true, really. But I know that almost anything I've drank since coming up to the surface has never tasted as clean."

"I doubt that we would have been able to do as well as we had been able to, had we not been able to establish something of a good relationship with the Neighbors. They had existed down below far longer than anyone, and although they didn't have the same kinds of needs we did, I'm certain that by giving them what they wanted they were able to teach what would have required years of trial and error to discover unassisted."

Marita wondered how this would sound to the others. She had only told one other before about the kind of environment she was brought up in, and he thought it quite a miserable existence. While it was true that as she was now, she wouldn't want to return to such a lifestyle for any significant amount of time, especially since that would have her cut off from all her lord's manifestations in the natural world, she didn't see anything particularly wrong with life below the surface. The dwarves did just fine and nobody batted an eye there. Although her old home had nestled itself much deeper than the depths that she understood dwarven cities were usually situated.

While she definitely had the ability to speak at much greater length about her past and the way her family lived, the cleric decided this would be all that anyone here would get. At least for now. She had decided to trust them, but that would not change the fact that the people she was traveling with were strangers, and there was much of her past that she didn't feel comfortable with discussing with herself, let alone others. It was somewhat relieving however, being able to share even a little bit of where she came from.