DM The party decided to move forward. Chandan leads them and as he approaches the end of the corridor, he finds that it opens into a large cavern. The light from your torches begins to spill into it before you enter. From his lead position, the monk can see that there are escarpments in the cavern.
OOC: Any actions before you all move forward? And if anything you are doing requires a roll, you might as well get it out of the way
A large open space, an elevated ledge, not what Chandan is expecting. He's lived in the mountains for most of his life and though he knows of many caves, he hasn't made a habit of exploring them.
But one thing he's always found reassuring about caves, is that small, enclosed spaces can only contain small, compact creatures, even if they have some very nasty magical qualities.
The same does not apply to large caverns, though a wiseman would say any large creature sat in large cavern must have an equally large passageway to get out of it.
Chandan tip-toes forward. He's not so worried about alerting anyone else; the party's torch is a dead giveaway. But the less noise he makes, the more likely he is to hear the enemy, like any more patrols of bugbears lurking in the darkness.
She will continue to move forward trusting in her acrobatics to get her out of trouble if there is a trap or ambush ahead. Her current intention is to sneak off to the left if she gains the cavern entrance.
DM Steep escarpments divide this large cavern into three sections-high ledges at either end, and a lower section in the middle. Carved stone stairs climb up to the ledges. Two large tables stand in the middle section, along with a pair of old braziers. A smaller table stands on the eastern ledge. The skeletal remains of dozens of dead warriors- dwarves, gnomes, orcs, and ogres- attest to the fierceness of the fighting that took place here long ago.
OOC: I moved the rest of the party to the edge of the room. Please let me know what you are doing ... one thing only. One skill. One action.
Too far away at the rear of the marching order to see exactly what was in the room up ahead, Ryssa concentrated on understanding what she could see, peering closely at the items and bodies scattered ahead.
As much as prudence might dictate moving along a wall, that would interfere with giving the group light. So the dragonborn steps further into the room looking around. He expected to be caught in an ambush, the question was how to respond when they did get attacked.
OOC: I might have waited for everyone, but Ryssa's EXCELLENT roll deserves this response. Translated it means that if Ryssa quickly warns everyone, they won't be surprised...
DM
As difficult as it is to see beyond the torch light into the large chamber, Ryssa saw the bodies on the ground and was focused intently on them and what might have happened. Out of the corner of her eyes she sees something move. And then noticed more movement and she quickly concluded that this room was occupied by hostile creatures. She perceived them from within the darkness in the west (to her left) and she knew, that if she didn't warn everyone immediately, they would be unprepared for the imminent attack.
Remembering his (admittedly hazy, some might say 'drunken') discussions with Alzok, Borim and Carmil in the Stonehill Inn, Chandan clears his throat and says aloud.
"Don't mind us! We Mining Guild, just a routine safety inspection!"
The assailants are not influenced at all by Chandan's attempted ruse. When he finally sees his attackers, he understands why. The creatures that emerge from the darkness are emaciated humanoid creatures with putrid grey skin. These are ghouls and they are far more interested in eating than negotiating.
OK. Here is the initiative order, sorted out. Chandan, Bern, Kriv and Davroar will go before the ghouls.
It's a common misconception that going first is "best" because it isn't always. This might be one of those cases. In 5e there's no "delay" action where you can shift your spot in the initiative turn order. The only attacking option that you have when you can't target an enemy (you need sight for that) is the "ready" action. You state the trigger and then, as a reaction, you get to do something. The negative is that you can't use a bonus action on top of the reaction.
So those of you who go first get to act without a target or use that ready action. (Gypsy, I consider your stealth roll as part of last round so you're hidden. It's a standard action for Jaliera). The ghouls will be visible when they move forward to attack, or, if suddenly, before they go, they are made visible somehow.
Chandan Init nemarsde rolled 1d20 and got 14 Bern init MikeD rolled d20+3 and got 10 Kriv Initiative AJ rolled 1d20+1 and got 9 Davroar Initiative Dugan rolled 1d20 and got 8 Ghouls initiative Neptune rolled 1d20+2 and got 7 Jaliera Initiative, Hide Gypsy rolled 1d20+3,1d20+9 and got 5, 27 Ryssa Initiative Roll Exeter rolled 1d20+2 and got 4 Lumi Init Pandemonium rolled 1d20-1 and got 4
ooc: Correct. They're attacking and don't need light. You smell tasty. They just don't have initiative.
From the module: "Ghouls lurk in the shadows on the western ledge. They notice any light or noise elsewhere in the cave and quickly bound down to attack. The undead are hungry and fight until destroyed."
That should clear that up.
Note that a trigger can be as simple as, "when I see one, I shoot it". In fact, any "ready" action should be stated as "When _____, I _____". I can't think of a a ready action that would not fit into that syntax,
[[ OK so wheb the 'readied action' triggers, does that change the initiative order ... of does Bern go on his regular init next round? Not that it matters ... he will fire when he has a target <g> ]]
[Thanks Zeim, Nep. I thought we'd be waiting a while for the undead to arrive, but ghouls aren't slow like zombies.]
Chandan
Undead? An evil if ever there was one, and totally abhorrent to the old monk. He makes the sign of the Five Flaming Tails with his hands, attuning to the elements, the fuels within the braziers that might be brought to flaming life.
[Elemental attunement on one of the braziers. Shed some light.]
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