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The morning of 1 Culling, the party readies to accompany some dignitaries from Alleborg to the Sambord fort. It's a miserable day. Just above freezing with some drizzle. But at least there's no wind.

Use this to go ahead and set your course. So far I have:
Angus
Arnulf
Hellebore
Dandelion
Hyde
Yenny

"We got two options," says Angus, sizing up his charges.* "We can follow the road south then go west at the crossing. Shouldn't get lost but it'll take a while and we'd probably get ambushed at least once. Or we go southwest across the farms and into the woods. Quicker, maybe safer, but we could get lost again—though I reckon Hellebore's birds ought to be able to keep us pointing the right way. Traipsing through the forest ain't exactly opulent, but neither is getting attacked."

He gives the diplomats a steady look, waiting to see what they think of the possibility of trudging through a forest full of melting snow and mud.

*How many dignitaries are there? Are they on foot? Horse? Divan? Any notable characteristics?

Yenny seems chipper despite the gloom. "So many days of practicing and training. It is good to be out walking again." She pulls her cloak around herself, "Chilly, though." Looking at the assembled dignitaries, "Greetings to you all. Picked a lovely day for a romp through orc-land." At this last she keeps a keen eye on them to see who might flinch and who seems solid.

Dandelion appears, taking advantage of a boring course on proper prop practices to slip out, half way through her training. She meets up with the gang, seeing they havent learned any fashion sense in the week she was training, despite the money they had to spend.

Greetings my friends, so we are are escorting a few patrons are we. Before we go, do we need anything? I have a few days fresh and dried rations. What else might I need for this junket?

Arnulf appears, rubbing his hands together and blowing on them despite being warmly dressed. His horse digs at his armpit and Arnulf produces an apple for her to chew on.

"I dunno, Angus. It's rough either way. Do you think these shiny folks want to get their hems dirty tramping overland? You might make more enemies that way. Is any one of them in charge?" His last two words are accompanied by a dramatic set of air quotes.

Yeah, he could make someone invisible. Perhaps combine that with Silence from one of the others and you've got a good scout. Might keep us from getting ambushed.

Zhym wrote:I don't think Silence helps us much for scouting. Isn't the duration 2 rounds/level?

Maybe I'm thinking of the wrong thing? I often do.

The screech of the huge eagle overhead is the first herald of Hellebore's arrival. She and Qatkir the wolf stand a few paces off, shoulder to shoulder, impassively surveying the delegation. "You. You who go to the Sambords. Remember this - your job is to be humble before those who stand between you and death." She flips up the grey furred hood of her cloak and turns to regard the path ahead.

Hellebore routinely scouts, anyway. If you want her invisible to boot, she's game. In which case, ignore the above.
I always vote for having the invisible mage. Makes it easier to protect him from harm.

"Now y'all know why the Alleborg mucketies sent you to talk to the Sambords instead of us," Angus laughingly tells the delegation. "Sweet-talkin' ain't really our thing."

He gets a thoughtful look, then adds, "But maybe y'all could teach me a mite on the way there? Silver tongue might come in handy. Y'know, just in case..."

Caught once again in reverie, Angus doesn't even finish his sentence.

Why they gotta have so many diaper-changers, hah? Hyde hisses quietly at Angus. Ain't a way to go romping thru this territory, no, too many people in all this finery and shinery. We gonna get set upon, yeahh, you and me both know it.

Dandelion asks,

Do we need horses, ourselves? or are we expected to walk beside them?

So, we are six adventurers escorting 12-16 people with four horses (and exact numbers don't matter because they are all worthless gits). Right?

"I prefer the forest," opines Hellebore.

Dandelion adds,

"The woods allows for more ambushes and harder to guard, I would think. In the open, we are easier targets, but harder to surprise.