Finding the Cult

[Fenner Bates]

"Maybe they ran off?"

[Arlette Craven]

Arlette creeps up to the door, gripping her crossbow tightly

Listen check
1d20+6

[NeomerArcana]

Some time passes. No one hears any sound.

The party stands ready, looking toward each other questioningly. Time passes, still no sound from outside. After what seems like hours, but was likely only minutes, a commotion of armor clanging and the thudding of running feet can be heard out in the hall. It comes to a halt on the other side of the door and barricade, you can only guess, but it sounds like more than a few armored men.

The door shakes from a fist pounding on the outside. "This is Grenvalt of the Guard! Is anyone in there!"

You hear a few orders shouted, only Kull and Arlette can make the voices out. "You, get water! You six, form a chain, bring buckets. No telling how hot it is inside, you, you and you, fetch heavy blankets."

[NeomerArcana]

Everyone in the interests of time, I'm going to assume that you figure out these guys are in fact the guard, and you let them in to try and work out what's happened.

Grenvalt turns out to be a half-elf captain of the castle guard. He appears to be a highly intelligent individual, someone that you can't help but feel a little intimidated by. He shows no aggression or anything like that, but his mind is like a force. It quickly becomes apparent that those who attacked you didn't hang around for long, but they were definitely there to kill you. The door is charred and blackened around the bottom, and there's more than a few chips taken out by blades as they tried to hack and smash their way in.

You learn that Father Klavin was attacked at roughly the same time, but the old priest is not to be taken lightly, he somehow fought off his attackers and alerted the guard. It took Grenvalt some time to amass enough men before coming down to this remote section of the castle.

As Grenvalt discusses this, a look of alarm crosses his face. Very quickly he sends three runners off, one to the royal quarters, one to the gatehouse, and another to the tower. Grenvalt is concerned that he has brought many men down here, and that this could have been a distraction.

It appears that The Sword being reformed is a concern to some group. Who they are, and how they escaped, is unknown.

If you guys want to try and uncover anything, look for clues, ask questions etc, let me know, otherwise we will proceed with the new day.

[Arlette Craven]

Arlette runs her fingers over the scars in the door, looking around the remains of a fight they thankfully didn't have to get involved in.

She looks for any clues from the scene.
Search check
1d20+6

Arlette will also ask the guards if they have noticed any unusual behaviours of any particular priests or if they are aware of the activity in the forest.

[Grigori Steelbrow]

Grigori asks the guards,"Where could I get ahold of a floor plan of this area?" Turning to Grenvalt he continues, "In case we're here again, are there and backdoors we could sneak out of?"

[NeomerArcana]

[b[Grigory[/b], I'll try to draw up a floorplan/map tonight. Grenvalt tells you that there aren't any "backdoors" so to speak, but some parts of the castle are a little labyrinthine. He points them out on the map.

Arlette it doesn't take much searching for you to find a small brass pendant. It consists of six muscled arms emerging from a central point, each bent at the elbow so as to form what you could describe as insect legs pointing upward (or downward, it's hard to tell which way the pendant should be oriented). Everyone can roll a Knowledge (Religion/History/Arcana/Nobility and Royalty) check (just one of them, whichever is your highest).

There's no other clues or tracks that you can discern, Arlette (which isn't surprising as the floor is worked stone and cobblestone).

[Grigori Steelbrow]

Knowledge(untrained)
1d20

[Arlette Craven]

Knowledge (untrained) check
1d20+3

[Kull]

Knowledge check1d20-2