Pass on what you have learned IC

[Daryk]

Atan

Atan shrugged at all the spell planning going on around him. He hadn't cast any spells in days, and still had his original set in memory, just in case.

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That set being:
Endure Elements (not cast because the weather has been agreeable so far),
True Strike (no combat),
Detect Magic (someone else took care of it),
Mage Hand (no mischief requiring it has come to mind)
Prestidigitation (ditto)

[Daryk]

Atan

Seeing the conversation die, Atan spoke up: "Well, now that that's settled, let's get breakfast and get moving, eh?"

[Wiz]

Liam Ravenquill

Liam nods, "Indeed, lets see what we can find. I think following the stream offers the best opportunity of finding a nest of the creatures, although... if we find a colony, that could be bad. They're much worse in numbers."

[The_Snark]

Nuale

"We can always stay away if there's a lot of them," Nuale points out. "Are they aggressive enough that they would chase us?"

[Daryk]

Atan

"Even if they are, I bet we can outrun 'em," Atan said, grinning.

[The_Snark]

Nuale

"Well, you probably could," Nuale says with a bit of a smile. "Lirt and Emmis might have a bit more trouble, though."

[Wiz]

Liam Ravenquill

Liam looks thoughtful, "As long as we work as a group it should be fine."

[Daryk]

Atan

"Yeah, Liam's right. I think I could carry at least Lirt, and maybe Emmis with some help. Are we ready yet? I'm itching to go hunt some lizards!" Atan replied enthusiastically.

[AngelForm]

Azurous

Azurous stays quiet during the discussion, partly as he trusts the decisions of his friends but also because he can come up with nothing better. While the others talk he recalls the earlier conversation and his knowledge of their weapons, wondering how many lizards they could take down with their current resources.

[TwoCents]

Minya Istaya, Waterdeep Elf

"The old gentleman I spoke to told me a tale of woodsmen dropping dried fish behind and the lizards stopping to snack, so the villagers escaped. He was probably pulling my leg, but..." With a sheepish smile, Minya revealed a package of dried fish. "Of course, if they really like this stuff, I've turned myself into a lizard treat," she added, ruefully.

"In all seriousness, though, I don't know how we should hunt the beasts. I'm just along to provide arrows and force magic at the appropriate moments; someone else," she said, looking pointedly at her brother, "has to find them."

"I think Liam is right, and we should move camp when we travel, at least until we find an area that looks like it might be a shocker lizard habitat. Then we can set up a base camp if we want to."

[harmonictempest]

Epsun

I agree as well; they'd be more likely to have nests further from the village, right? At mention of outrunning them, Epsun casts a glance down at his somewhat cumbersome breastplate. Hmm, did anyone find out how they tend to attack? This armor's great against claws, but it'd turn me into a lightning rod against their electricity. And it'd sure slow me down if we have to run.

[Daryk]

Atan

Looking back at his sister, Atan replied, "Well, if you want to do it that way, then just tell me, sheesh. We'd need a place to meet back up, though. Not that finding a herd of mages in the woods would be hard, but it would vastly simplify things." He made a bit of a face, but didn't actually stick his tongue out at her.

[TwoCents]

Minya Istaya, Waterdeep Elf

Minya looked at Atan and shook her head in mock despair. "No, baby brother, I did not mean 'why don't you go wander around alone in the forest again since that worked so well last night,' I meant someone who knows more about the habits and behaviour of our prey should be the one who decides how to go about finding them. 'Sheesh', yourself."

[Wiz]

Liam Ravenquill

Liam nods, "So are we all for following the river some more?"

[Irrealist]

You pack up camp and fall into the same marching order as the day before, with Atan scounting ahead. The sun is already high in the sky, but the forest gives you enough shadow that you can march easily without exhausing yourself too much. You follow the river until the sun sets again, making only a short rest to eat something in the early afternoon.

When the sun touches the horizon, you stop and set up camp as the day before.

[harmonictempest]

Epsun

Thankfully doffing his heavy armor, Espun sighs. So, how long do we plan on searching before changing our tactics?

[Wiz]

Liam Ravenquill

Liam shrugs as he sets up his bedroll, "Well, we have only been looking for two days... reason says it may take a few more. I'm sure we will start changing our tacticts soon if these don't pan out. If the local lizards prefer swampy areas to riverbanks, then following the river is still our best bet of finding marshy conditions."

[TwoCents]

Minya Istaya, Waterdeep Elf

"Do we want to send out a group without the mules to look for the lizards? Maybe we've been scaring them off?" asked Minya, as she started peeling potatoes for the stew.

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Prestidigitation is your friend

[Daryk]

Atan

"Well, sister dear, that might be the case, but we haven't seen any marshland yet, so I don't think so. If we were creeping through reeds for two days and hadn't seen any, I'd agree," Atan said.

[harmonictempest]

Epsun

The gnome settles with a grunt of satisfaction on his laid-out bedroll and begins rearranging his pack so it'll sit better tomorrow. Makes sense to me - that map show at all how far we should expect to go before finding a swamp?

[Wiz]

Liam Ravenquill

Liam frowns, "They like swamps, and riverbanks... lets follow the river for at least a day more before we try setting a permanant camp. Perhaps we'll find lizard sign along the way... everyone keep an eye on the banks for tracks and such."

[TwoCents]

Minya Istaya, Waterdeep Elf

"So, we will keep moving through the woods by day, looking for signs of lizard nests, until we reach the swamp. Then, we set up a base camp and go on excursions? Are we agreed?"

If the others agreed, the group set up camp for the night, fulfilled their watch schedule rotations, and moved to a new site the next day, doing this every day until the terrain changed to a more swampy, lizard likely region.

[harmonictempest]

Epsun

Nods vigorously. Not that camping isn't romantic and all, but I'm in no great hurry to spend longer out here than we need to.

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Agreed. Fast forward as necessary.

[Irrealist]

Two days pass uneventfully, as you make your way through the forest. There is no trail that you can follow, and the undergrowth seems to get thicker, making your progress more tiresome. The canopy also allows less light to pass, making even the brightest days look like an eternal dusk. When you camp at night, you hear twigs cracking around the camp, but no source can be found when you go to check. At the end of the third day, the ground gets softer and muddier, and you turn back a little to set up camp on firm ground. Reddish light filters through the leaves above you when you finish putting up your tents.

[Daryk]

Atan

Once camp was set up, Atan headed out for his usual evening hunt. He was perhaps a bit more cautious than usual, given the marshy turn in the terrain. He kept an arrow nocked as he wandered under the trees, senses open to the likelihood of things that didn't recognize him as top of the food chain.

[Wiz]

Ravenquill

Liam looks around the camp, "I agree... sooner back is better. We just need to decide how we're sending out parties to look for the lizards and who's staying to guard the camp."

[harmonictempest]

Epsun

The gnome nods assent as he looks around the campsite. If there are lizards nearby, this shouldn't be too bad a place to stay for a day or two while we search. I'd be happy to team up with anyone - we covered shocker lizards in Fauna Arcana, so I'm sure I'll remember a useful thing or two if we have to fight them.

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Dark Tactics 3/day. :-)

[The_Snark]

Nuale

"We shouldn't split up too much," Nuale says, sitting leaning against a tree, her spear leaning against it next to her. The last two days, she's been glad she chose to bring a weapon that doubled as a walking-stick. "It might be dangerous to get lost in swampland."

[AngelForm]

Azurous

“I don’t see much reason to split up at all except between the hunting group and those guarding the camp.” Azurous readies his weapons and moves to the edge of the camp before settling down to keep watch. Scrya climbing a nearby tree to begin his own vigil.

[TwoCents]

Minya Istaya, Waterdeep Elf

"Yes, indeed. Two groups only. I am quite happy to wander the woods with my brother, my bow, and my spell components, but someone needs to guard the camp. Does anyone want that task?," asked Minya as she settled into the routine of setting up the camp again.