5) Back to the House III: Third time's the charm?

[Urson]

Mai nods. I will find a suitable spot for archery. She hustles down to the cave.

[wolfpack]

shouldn't one of us meat them at the entrance disguised as a smuggler. I imagine they will be expecting someone. Perhaps our sailor friend


Jervcis will hide back against the wall on one side of the fork in the tunnels.

[ravenn4544]

Ben nods hesitantly"yes....... that does sound like a plausible action to take.... I will greet them. I can be seen moving cargo or something as they arrive. I can hail them as they approach i suppose. Will you be in position to watch me if I'm overwhelmed and need to flee?"

[Hotgoblin]

Longing for the feel of the cool sea water to envelop him, Jonas will swim out into the Azure Sea to the "mother ship". I will help the most from the water, so I'll swim out to the larger ship to view and listen to what orders are being given to the remaining crew and try to determine how many men are on board. Before heading out he places his spell book and any other valuables in a closet in one of the bedrooms, then goes down by everyone that's getting set-up for the "ambush"...Good luck to you all.... He wades into the refreshing water. Poseidon be with me now an to the end...He's feel so alive!

[Mant72]

Keilif nods at Jonas' wisdom, "Shileil will see you safe." He mutters a prayer to ensure the sea-elf is successful.

He then takes up his spot in the recesses of the tunnels.

We should probably strategize with our spells as well. Keilif has Light, which can be used to blind one of the smugglers...

[coil23]

Doubtful hurries down to the cave once no more signals seem to be coming. He will ready himself with the others for the ambush. He has a lit torch ready to light the fire lines if needed and his sling is in hand.

Doubtful can help attacks with faerie fire and his own attacks with shillelagh. Unfortunately, entangle won't do us any good in the caves.

[OGRE MAGE]

Ok! Just waiting on Scott then. Maybe you can post during halftime of the Michigan game?

[coil23]

I straddle the fence between apathy and antipathy for organized sports so I'm happy to ruin a game for you. Just give me a time!

[OGRE MAGE]

I actually like most games. Well......except for soccer. (Is that even a game?)

I know Scott a bit and I am aware that he is a huge fan of March Madness. (especially Big Blue)

I also know that he is going to be quite busy playing games from Wednesday night throughout the entire weekend. (as will I)

Since he hasn't posted here in a week, I am hoping there is a good reason for it. (especially since I see him posting elsewhere normally)

I will try to track him down and get a post out of him. If I cant, I will move this along with or without him.

Sorry for the long delay in this time of great suspense.

[Scott308]

Umrick Histix, Gnome Fighter

The gnome will wait, crossbow ready, for the smugglers to enter the caves and walk into the ambush.

Sorry, everyone. I wanted to try and strategize before this crucial battle, but didn't really have a chance. I didn't want to just post a quick, one or two line post, but unfortunately that's all I'm going to come up with. I'm going to be one of the admins for the D&D 5E Adventurers' League room at Gary Con this coming weekend, and as such I have to read 68 hours worth of two or four hour adventures in case I need to step in and run something. Combine that with watching 12-13 hours of basketball each day, and that pretty well covers my weekend. I've still got 4 four adventures left to read.

[OGRE MAGE]

Im sorry but that is just an insane amount of dedication.

Writing this up soon.

[OGRE MAGE]

Keilif, Umrick, Jervis, Doubtful and Mai get themselves into position to ambush the oncoming smugglers. Ben agrees to greet the boat as they arrive on shore, hoping to keep up the ruse of being one of the real criminals here at the house.

Jonas stows his gear and decides to try to swim out to the ship in order to do some spying. He looks out onto the surface of the ocean and can just barely make out the silhouette of the large vessel anchored about 700 yards off shore. It will be a long swim for the mutated elf, but a distance he has swam many times before. He says his good lucks and begins his long task.

After swimming about half of the way out, Jonas spots the smugglers small dingy, completely loaded with contraband, and on its way to the cave opening. Knowing the complications it might cause his friends, the sea-elf takes great care in not allowing the smugglers to see him as he continues on to the much larger ship out at sea.

Eventually the overloaded dingy and its pair of smuggling oarsmen begin closing in on the shoreline cave opening. The smugglers seem very suspicious and don’t actually row all the way up to the cave. They stop about 20 feet away from the outcropping of cliff that hides the cave from the sea and they stay right there. One of the men stands up in the boat and waves at Ben still standing on the shore. Afraid to call out in the darkness, the smuggler waves his arms over his head and shrugs his shoulders in an exaggerated fashion, hoping that the lone man on shore can actually see his silhouette against the black sea beyond him.

Ben is all alone out there. He begins to remember an ongoing theme that came up every time the smugglers tactics were discussed. He remembers again just recently hearing that the smugglers must use multiple boats that row to and from the ship simultaneously in order to get the cargo unloaded as quickly as possible. The lone sailor posing as one of the home based smugglers looks over wide eyed to the cave mouth. He sees the eager faces of his awaiting friends, beside the two beached boats. The smugglers boat that you previously scuttled, and also................Tortuga's boat.

The smuggler smacks his rowing buddy on the shoulder and points at the second boat tied up at the opening. A very unfamiliar looking boat to both of them.

Actions!

(Jonas, please see PM)

[ravenn4544]

Ben calmly stops his activity with the barrels and looks out at the water as if checking to see if any boat is coming close. Seeing the boat out there, he shrugs his shoulders like 'shit happens' and waves the boat in.

He'll wait a few breaths to see if they start coming in to shore before taking any immediate next steps.

[Urson]

Deeper in the cave, Mai has found a suitable spot to snipe at the smugglers from. She stands very still, an arrow nocked and held on the bow with one hand. She is breathing deeply, meditating and reaching for the Zen of Archery. (she has never actually learned such, but she knows of its existence.)

[coil23]

Doubtful waits with baited breath to see if the smugglers will overcome their skepticism. Ben looks to be doing a good job. An image flashes across his mind of a miniature catapult launching blobs of green slime onto the smugglers within the boat. Or Greek Fire. Mmmmmm...Greek Fire.

[wolfpack]

Jervis waits back at the ambush spot gripping his sword in anticipation

[Mant72]

Keilif recites an oration to Shiliel, asking her to assist with the party's ruse so that justice may be served. He grips his seahorse-headed mace with anticipation and waits.

[OGRE MAGE]

After seeing Bens reaction to them, the smugglers aboard the inbound dingy both stand up now, hoping to get a better look at Tortuga's small boat.

They both point at it as they talk quietly amongst themselves, still not certain what they should be doing about this suspicious situation. They are still too far away to get a good look at Ben.......but........orders are orders.

They steer the prow of their dingy back out to sea and begin rowing back towards their anchored ship. Before long, they are completely out of sight.

[ravenn4544]

Sighing deeply, Ben will go through the motions of arranging cargo (maybe they are watching him from a distance?) for a bit. He'll then head into the cave to break the news to the group.
"What do you think we should do now? shit. They know the small boat is there so probably should leave it? They should know we couldn't have a lot of people here with that boat but they may send extra guys now. Increase our defense plan so we can take a bunch of these guys out at once? What about a net or something to trap them? Can we make one? shit."

[OGRE MAGE]

Several long minutes go by and there is no sign of Jonas's return to the cave.