RED OAK: Return to the Pass of the Hounds

[Woe]

Why does everyone need to sleep in their own building?! Sheesh... it's like everyone wants to be landed gentry!


"Abigall, what'd you say?" whispers Freya. "The dogmen haven't been a problem before. Are we in danger?"

She (and hopefully Abigall) spend 2? 6? rounds waking everyone up. If Abigall doesn't open up about her concerns, the party will wait until the Cusheen get in sight.

I copied the wrong watch order. I had corrected it in a later post so Freya was with Anna and more importantly, Tiana was with Abigall. Otherwise, the other watcher wouldn't know what Abigall was saying (like what just happened). We can make the swap on tomorrow's watch since I screwed that up.

[Longman]

Seeing as they are still a few minutes away, it hardly matters.

Your characters are wherever they would like to be - name a square for each one, if it comes down to that.

Tiana is now awake after a few rounds and can hear what the mousegirl is saying.

"The legend is, the CuSheen guard the pass against evil. Since forever, since the beginning of time. Maybe we will be all right. But your friend....I am not so sure about her. In fact, I do not know why you brought her along. I always said she would be trouble."

In fact Abigall did not say this. She has been giving poor Jane a lot of dirty looks, though.

The dog men are still about 8 rounds away and you are all up and moving about. You can make out a large group of them - (4+men, plus their dogs) coming down the mountain along the old track. They are still at walking pace.

What are you going to do?

[Woe]

Let's take our chances with the dogmen. The party was unharmed the last time, and this will be a great test whether Jane wishes to repent the evil ways of her youth and be delivered by the righteousness of the Divine, or be cast asunder unto a lake of everlasting torment and hell fire!

Or, um, a great test whether the Cusheen don't like Jane.

[Longman]

Unfortunately it soon starts looking very much like the latter...

"What is going on?" says Jane, getting the vibe that Tiana and others seem to know something is up. "You said they were ghosts! Are they harmless? Are they?"

The dog men approach, and then their group stops about 180 feet away from you. They grow very quiet and the animals stop making noise. Then you can hear some of them (maybe two men and two dogs) advancing from that position, quite slowly. They have never paid you much heed, before. This time, they seem to know you are there.

What do you say to Jane while all this is happening? Kilian and Freya both sense she is thinking about making a run for it, down the mountain to the north.

[Woe]

"Stay here, woman. I told ye what 'appened to James. 'e ran out in the open and 'e got killt. Ye stay here. Safer than taking all of these on ye own." says Kilian.

Do the two advancing Cusheen look to be willing to converse? If so, Talin, Fido, and Tiana will go out as well.

[Longman]

Kilian successfully manages to calm Jane down and she does not run away.
Abigall retreats behind a wall, to be with the dwarves, as soon as the elves stand forward.

The approaching CuSheen - when they get close enough for those of you with darkvision to see - are not the CuSheen you have seen before.

They are fully fledged dog men, with humanoid bodies (still wearing skins and carrying spears), covered in hair, with large canine heads. They look a bit like this except without the metal armor. They also look really tough.



Two of them stand forward, with some more men and dogs behind. They are completely solid. They approach Talin, Frey and Tiana. They can obviously see you.

Talin again feels a strange sense of belonging in this place, now mixed with an even stronger sense of kinship with these weird creatures.

One of them starts talking to you, and pointing his spear at the place where Jane is now with Kilian and Bruce. He is not threatening you but clearly wants something.

You can't understand the language at all. It is not dog like grunts, just not a speech you recognise at all.

[Woe]

Tiana will try elven then sylvan then common. "Friend, I do not understand your language. Do you speak ___?"

[Longman]

The lead dogman (1) listens to you for a few moments and then talks over the top of you in its own language again. It might be getting angry. It keeps pointing at Jane and the dwarves and Abigall.

In the meantime dogman 2 has called out, and you can hear one or two others advancing from the group 180 feet away (drawn on map as 3,4,5 but actually further south than shown).

Then, number2 starts trying to move past your group.

You are 60 feet from the place where Jane and the dwarves are at. Are you going to let it past or block its path?

Map updated.

[Woe]

Two can play this game.

Tiana answers calmly, in a mix of sylvan and elven. "I really wish you would calm down. There's no need to be excited. If you want us to leave, we'll leave." (etc) She'll also point at others, then the moon, and finally the nearby lake. If #1 looks less agitated and more confused, she'll draw a picture of Lone Island and eagles, then point at the picture. The main thing she's trying to impart is calmness and a willingness to communicate.

No idea what she's trying to communicate, but pointing at either the castle and the nisha tower can be construed badly. I figure the lake is a fairly neutral if confusing message.

"I 'onder if 'e're standing on 'is 'ouse." Kilian says unconvincingly. "Let's scoot a bit left and see wot 'e tinks."

How long (rounds) would it take to pack up and leave?

[Longman]

You are already packed - backpacks readily to hand. The dwarf Kilian is not in armor. That's all. Abigall is already starting to move a little northward.

Tiana's words have an unknown effect on dogman 1. He isn't attacking, or moving past you. He can't follow what you are saying, but he is smiling at you - - especially at Talin.

Fido has gone extremely quiet and his tail is quivering the way it does when he is very impressed by someone.

Meanwhile 2 more dogmen have advanced - rapidly - from up the track, now moving at 80'. They are now 100 feet to the north of Talin and company, behind dogman 1.

Dogman number 2 has his spear out and is growling. Even though you have moved to the left, he is following you. He is now 30 feet from you. Kilian and Bruce can both see that the target is very obviously Jane. He looks very menacing.

Jane can't really see what is happening but Kilian still has a hold on her, and she still isn't trying to run.

It's clear the dog-man is going to attack Jane. At this point, we're in rounds and it is your go.