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Brevos thanks both Ingrid and Bo.

it is to late to turn back now, we would not retrace out steps before night fall. Even in this muck it is possible to find a trail, a misplaced branch, moss rubbed form the trunk of a tree. Allow me to see if I can find a distinct trail

brevos will search the area to try and find any hint of movement through the swamp.

"If your bird knows the way, why don't we just follow it?" asks Grothnak.

"The bird was mistaken, or has betrayed us," says Urdur. "More of us will die the longer we trudge about this forsaken swamp. We must head west to Hochoch if we wish to survive long enough to defeat the evil that infests this place."

Urdur continues to do his best to dry out his torches.

Hoom Feethos:

"Maybe Bo is the spy? Wasn't he who first separated himself from the group and conversed in secret with the constable and magistrate? Both individuals who hold great power in the town and are known cultist. How do we know Bo hasn't wasn't corrupted then? Or what about the time in the basement of the Golden Grain Inn. Mouser and I volunteered to stand guard with Bo when the others ventured forth into the blasphemous tunnels. Only to change his mind at the last minute taking our only light source with him and thus hampering our ability to hold off the onslaught of cultist that would then break through the heavy wooden door with their great axes. And what of the time in the temple? Where was Bo when we fought our way out? Only showing up at the end to save us from the villagers? Was he saving us or them? Did he know that we could easily defeat them in open battle and that it would require us to a have a great disadvantage to lose? A disadvantage like deep in swamp, where the water is waist high and higher for others? Where it impends our movement and surrounds us by undead monstrosities so no one man or elf could escape on his own?

Pip sighs. "We are deep in the swamp. Your fear will not get us through it any faster. If there is no dry land, maybe we can at least make a platform to rest on, or climb trees. It's that or walk all night, I guess."

"We'll need rest before confronting... whatever it is we are to confront," says Telkis. "One way or another. If we haven't found the dry land Sephus spoke of before dusk, we must make other provisions." He looks sideways at Hoom's odd outbursts, but doesn't comment, preferring to wait and see how things play out.

Pelias waits patiently as Brevos looks for a path forward. His jaw sets as he listens to Hoom's monologue.

DadsAngry wrote:Hoom Feethos:

"Maybe Bo is the spy? Wasn't he who first separated himself from the group and conversed in secret with the constable and magistrate? Both individuals who hold great power in the town and are known cultist. How do we know Bo hasn't wasn't corrupted then? Or what about the time in the basement of the Golden Grain Inn. Mouser and I volunteered to stand guard with Bo when the others ventured forth into the blasphemous tunnels. Only to change his mind at the last minute taking our only light source with him and thus hampering our ability to hold off the onslaught of cultist that would then break through the heavy wooden door with their great axes. And what of the time in the temple? Where was Bo when we fought our way out? Only showing up at the end to save us from the villagers? Was he saving us or them? Did he know that we could easily defeat them in open battle and that it would require us to a have a great disadvantage to lose? A disadvantage like deep in swamp, where the water is waist high and higher for others? Where it impends our movement and surrounds us by undead monstrosities so no one man or elf could escape on his own?

"One of you fought by our side against the enemy. The other cowered in the shadows. It is obvious who I favor in this argument."

Ingrid Esthof

Ingrid smiles at the druid as he heals her. Thank you, friend. Magic is precious in these environs, and I am thankful you feel I am deserving of such generosity.

Hearing the outburst from the back of the procession, the cleric rolls her eyes before turning. Hoom, at this point, we must rely on everyone in order to get through the swamp. Right now, I don't believe any one of us is working counter to the rest of the group. I defended you back in the village- please do not make me regret that decision. Although, I am a bit concerned that we may have been given...inaccurate...information as to whatever land there may be in this swamp. Unfortunately, we are deep enough in that I don't see any option other than pressing on and hope we find something to make our slog a bit easier.

The Rushmoors, Gran March, Greyhawk
Day Nine. Late Morning. Monday, October 24th, 576 CY
Cloudy, damp, cold, foggy





The Rushmoors Swamp. For centuries, this twisted labyrinth of listless rivers, stagnant pools, and festering bogs has protected Gran March's southwestern border. Armies and expeditions have disappeared altogether inside its dread, unknowable, claustrophobic pathways. Was the dire marsh about to claim more souls?



Lost in the quagmire of the unnaturally silent fen, the heroes' tempers fray. Fear eclipses the bonds of friendship and accusations fly over which of them is secretly working on behalf of the enemy to enslave their minds to the sinister powers that afflict beleagured Briarsgate.

The grey druid deftly spins another lie to cover his previous one. Then he summons arcane, holy magicks to heal Brevos and Ingrid that they may continue deeper into the swamp. (+8hp and +5hp respectively)

Reinvigorated, keen-eyed Brevos finds outbreaks of moss on twisted trunks and leads the party south. Soon the canny ranger spies a path disturbing the fetid muck atop the bog water, and he picks up the cultists' trail again.



The heroes trudge on.

Hours crawl by in arduous exertion.



At last, in late afternoon, they find land.

A small, thickly overgrown, mud island surrounded by stagnant black water.



There is no sign of Sephus the druid's crow.

The weary adventurers believe their final destination is still three or four hours away. But daylight will not endure for half that long.


Actions?


Map:

Red is cultist trail. White X is approximate location of the heroes.





PC Status:

• Brevos, Half-Elf Ranger 2: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 22/27
  Grey Mouser, Half-Elf Magic-User/Thief 2/3: Move: 9", AC 5, HP 15/15, Spells: 2/2 1st lvl
  Grothnak Uthglukh, Half-Orc Fighter 3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 16/28
  Ingrid Esthof, Human Cleric 3: Move: 6", AC: 3(1), HP: 10/16, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl and 3/3 2nd lvl
  Hoom Feethos, Elven Magic-User/Thief 2/3: Move: 9", AC 3, HP 10/12, Spells: 2/2 1st lvl
  Long Bo, Human Druid 3: Move: 9", AC: 6, HP: 17/22, Spells: 2/5 1st lvl, 0/3 2nd lvl and 1/1 3rd lvl
  Pelias Blanchflower, Human Paladin 3: Move: 9", AC: 2(0), HP: 28/30, Laying Hands: 0/1
  Pip, Human Monk 2: Move: 16", AC: 9, HP: 10/12
  Telkis Brassfang, Gnome Fighter 3: Move: 9", AC: 0, HP: 21/28
  Urdur Shimmerstone, Gnome Illusionist 2: Move: 12", AC 6, HP 6/6, Spells: 2/2 1st lvl

PC Magic:

• Protection from Evil (Pelias): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Pelias.

PC Resources:

• The Story So Far (in words)
  The Story So Far (in pictures)
  NPC List for Briarsgate
  Map of Briarsgate

Brevos sludges to the fetid ground.

Hold let me look to see if I can tell if anything has been using this as it's home.

he looks for signs of a nest or movement across the small isle that could be concerning.

Bo ignores the damning words of the suspiciously talkative thief, glad to hear that his true friends still have his back. After hearing their replies, he doesn't feel the need for a clever retort.

Seeing the mud island finally appear before the group, his relief is almost palpable. Even though he is exhausted from the trudge, and totally soaked from his knees down, he still knows there is much work to do before the party is truly safe.

He holds his hands out when Brevos starts to check the nearby mud for tracks, hoping that there is no sign of life in this area either. He starts to walk around the outside of the island, looking carefully at the banks to check for burrows or other signs of habitation.

"We have made some decent progress, but I don't think we should go any further today. With my magic, I should be able to create a fairly comfortable area for us to rest, once Brevos has determined that nothing else lives here, that is."

The lack of insects and wildlife is somewhat disturbing, but i guess it beats getting chewed up on and possibly eaten during the night."

The druid pokes his spear into the mucky banks periodically as he investigates the area, hoping that the island itself isn't alive and about to eat them.

Telkis trudges up and plops down on the mud bank, exhausted. "Trudging through that all day almost makes me wish I were a big folk. But not quite," he says, winking at Urdur. "I'd miss the stimulating conversation of the mice and the ferrets too much. Moles, too, I suppose." He's acutely aware of the absence of the little burrowers out here.

Ingrid Esthof

Happy to see land at last, the cleric waits for the all-clear before slumping to the ground in exhaustion.

Hoom Feethos:

Hoom waits to see if the small island is what it seems before venturing upon it.

DM:

The ranger and the druid scout the island. They find no signs of recent animal activity.

However, Brevos finds tracks. Man-sized footprints: shod, bare and skeletal. There are many, overlapping with recent atop old. They move north and south, the length of the small islet. There are child-sized tracks among them.

The freshest tracks occurred within the last few days, heading north, made by fleshless feet.

Whatever made the tracks is not here now. The 50 foot wide, 120 foot long overgrown peninsula is clear.

Brevos relays the information to the group pointing out the different tracks.

It may be best to build platforms in the trees and avoid sleeping on the ground with the dead walking.

Bo is actually glad that the mud hump isn't any bigger than it is. Once his round trip is complete, he rests for a bit with the others before getting back to work.

"It is possible that the undead we faced earlier made these most recent tracks. The smaller ones are a might disturbing to me, though."

"I have an idea for a zombie proof fort that should eliminate us having to build any elevated platforms, though it will take a bit more work from those of us with chopping weapons. I can create a patch of growth that will cover an area about 30' by 90'. Once the magic is cast, the plants, trees, and shrubs here should grow exponentially. We can chop out a little crawl-in entranceway, and enough room in the center of the patch for all of us to sleep inside. We lay the freshly cut foliage down on the ground to keep us up off the wet mud, and presto, a natural fortress that should keep us relatively safe from any late night shambling monstrosities. Or, at the very least, it will create some resistance for them and give us enough warning if something does try to get at us."

"Hey, it has to be better than trying to sleep up in the trees or on a wet pile of mud."

If there are no objections to this plan, the druid begins casting.

Pip is relieved by Bo's suggestion. Feeling reinvigorated, he offers to help cut the opening while the more injured rest.

"Maybe the island could be blessed, or sanctified, in some way, as well? That might encourage the darker forces to steer around it...?"

Ingrid Esthof

I like the sound of that idea, Bo. Much better than sleeping in a tree or on the muddy ground.

With minimal groaning, Telkis gets up from where he plopped down to rest and pulls out his hand-axe to help.

"Beats building a tree fort," he says.