The party sets out to help Arus complete his task which is to deliver to Amrath Mulnobar, castellan of Noanar's Hold, five horse harnesses made by Triboar's finest harness-maker, Othovir. Narth Tezrin, the owner of the Lionshield Coster in Tribor, had asked Arus to deliver the exquisite custom harnesses there but had never been to Noanar's Hold and was worried about the delivery because of the dangers on the road there.
The trek takes the party into low-lying, wooded hills and will get the party to their destination by nightfall.
ooc: I believe that you have a single horse-drawn wagon which you use to carry the harnesses, which are bulky and heavy. Please describe all tactical considerations including a marching order.
I won't be back home for a few days still. We'll step the pace up then.
He is happy to ride on the wagon or his horse somewhere in the middle to front of the pack of adventurers. Mostly he wants a good vantage point to observe around them and keep an eye out.
He is used to walking during most of his travels. Davroar will simply tie his horse to the back of the wagon, and occasionally will sit at the back of the wagon for short rests. If they need to pick up the pace or if anything comes up, he will quickly get back onto his horse.
OOC: This is what I think I'm hearing about marching order and horse usage.
Let's start with the wagon. That was given to Arus who uses it to transport the bulky harnesses. Without going into the details of why, with the addition to provisions and the harneses, the wagon can handle two people at a time. And Arus does not have to drive it. Should I assume this from a long-ago post?
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Arus is geared up for the surface world and when he summons his celestial steed before setting out on the road, he doesn't employ the form of some weird amphibious creature like a giant salamander, he employs the form of a warhorse. Dark bay coloured with a white blaze and white socks. Classic. This is the steed he's riding when the caravan is attacked, steering it into the thickest of the fighting.
Otherwise Bern, Aubric and Kriv did not mention a horse. I never saw anything that suggested Bern was on the wagon I'll put Sindar up there with Arus...
That's fine by me, Nep. Kriv can ride Arus's summoned steed. It works well for an outrider since it can communicate telepathically back to Arus on the wagon within 1 mile.
OOC: No worries. How's this. I think you all had horses unless you specifically say you don't. Arus doesn't need one. He has his summoned steed. Some of yours have names. We just need to deal with them and mounted combat, etc.
Another note. Roll20 no longer works with DnDBeyond. You can no longer move your characters into Roll20. So bye-bye Roll20. I moved everything into Foundry VTT/Forge. Sorry Aqua, another learning curve ... but you have time now.
But yeah, aside from the (much higher) DM learning curve, you guys will move your pieces on a different chess board when the time comes. Instructions will be provided.
Let's take further discussion of this to the OOC: thread.
DM The party began it’s trek towards Noanar’s Hold and some had heard a warning of sorts from an elf named Berris that was traveling west, towards Yartar.
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"Noanar's Hold? You must be jesting. I guess you are unaware of the stories about the place?" he had said. “The village is on the very edge of the High Forest. It grew up around a famous hunting lodge built over two hundred years ago. Back in those days it was quite popular. It was famous for the wild hunts that it hosted. These attracted some of the wealthiest nobles and merchants in the North!" "But Some who ventured to Noanar's Hold never returned. There were dark rumors that the Hunt Lords who ruled Noanar's Hold were arranging wanton slaughters to amuse their guests and even allowing their guests to hunt one another. Once the rumors started to spread, the place was shunned and the village fell on hard times." "The good news is that it is nary a day away and an easy trip. I understand that your group is splitting up but, if you are headed to Noanar's Hold, it wouldn't hurt to have friends along."
Zindra, who was quite familiar with the area led them south on the road leading towards Jundar’s Pass. The clouds above darkened and a steady, cold rain began. The slight uphill climb became more difficult as the path became muddy.
It was already early afternoon when they reached the Dessarin River. “This is Dead Horse Ford,” Zindra said. “Fortunately we do not need to cross. Noanar’s Hold is that way,” she says pointing east. “We take the Dead Horse Path”. They moved east along it’s north bank, the river to their right and a large lightly wooded hill to their left. It wasn’t a marked path and it was good to have a guide to lead them. Navigation via up the river would be nearly impossible. These were rapids and the frothy water churns quickly and turbulently, over rocks and steep inclines down the hill. To make matters more challenging, there was a large, tree lined hill to their left and water was flowing towards the water to the right.
The wood elf raises an eyebrow and smirks, his sarcasm evident in his tone. "Dead Horse Path? Well, I guess we can't beat traveling this way."
As they find themselves between a hill and a river, his expression then turns more serious as he scans the surroundings, asking "should we slow down to be more stealthy here?" to the party in general. It seems a suggestion, open to debate. "Given our friend Berris's warning, and this terrain, we should be on guard."
He rides forward a bit near Zindra, asking, "Since you're familiar with these parts, do you happen to know anything more about Noanar's Hold than what Berris shared? Any recent news or, I don't know, tips on how not to end up as someone's hunting trophy?"
"I've not been down this way but yes, there were rumors. Noanar's Hold hosted wild hunts that attracted the wealthiest nobles and merchants of the North. I do not know much more than that."
With a sidewise glance of the cleric she says, "Berris? Is that the elf you were speaking to? I guess, perhaps he might have had more information?"
"As for the pace, I would say that nightfall approaches and it will be doubly dangerous for most without light. The path is not much more than a pebble beach and I am worried about the mud and those streams that are cutting across our path into the river. The horses cannot move quickly here in any case."
ooc: The pace is through difficult terrain. The party gets to choose pace. See this: Travel Pace
Last edited by Neptune; Tue 26/11/202418:25 UTC. Reason: more about the pace of movement
She nods at the conversation. "We should accept your guidance on travel then. You know this area better than we do. I am curious, though. Why is it called 'Dead Horse Trail' and 'Dead Horse Ford'?"
Zindra "I would only be guessing if I said that someone's horse died on this trail or in the ford. It is quite a challenging ford to traverse and in the wrong weather, like in this driving rain, quite deadly."
The horses were certainly not doing well, moving slowly on the now very slippery river rocks. ooc: the attached graphic shows the party's marching order. And let me know of anything (aside from moving at a pace slowed by both difficult terrain and caution as Aquadyne described above) that you are doing.
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I'll put Sindar up there with Arus...
