A Path Made

"A Path Made" is the first episode of the Materia D&D Crass Menagerie campaign. The adventuring party is introduced at a chance encounter outside Vulpine and are thrust into working together, setting them on their path forward.

### Part 1

#### Meeting our party

Grant Frostmason is making camp at one of The Pathmaker's campgrounds when suddenly a medium-sized caravan (more than a dozen people) shows up.  Grant approaches the caravan as they pull into the campground and hails them.  Davis Cantrell hops down from his wagon and greets Grant in kind.  Allegretto follows suit and does so as well.  Grant inquires about their travel plans, whether or not they plan to head into the city.  Davis introduces his band of artists, the Rabble Rousers, and asks Grant about his travel plans as well and they shake hands.  Grant indicates that he is heading into Vulpine to look into the rumored strange creature that has been born there.  Davis indicates that he is interested in such things as well.  They then part and Davis and Al start unpacking to make camp.

Shortly thereafter, a large tortle (Roque) emerges from the nearby woods, looks around for a bit and then eventually sees the trio of adventurers and the accompanying caravan.  He greets the trio and approaches, notes that he is lost and asks for help.  Grant tells him about Vulpine, and he thinks he should go there.  After setting off in the wrong direction and being called back, Roque asks if he can tag along with the group.

After some time passes, two local Verdant Cause patrolmen (Bentley and Sam, both humans) come and make camp nearby.

5-10 minutes later, a last pair of individuals shows up:  Marb and Gustav show up to camp and settle in as well.

Marb climbs up a nearby tree to get a higher vantage point.  Davis discusses it with Gustav briefly and returns back to his spot at the fire.  Marb scans the group to suss them out.  He spots a hooded figure walking along the path approaching the camp and lets out a soft call to alert Gustav.  She approaches the campfire near Al and Davis, and gives a smile and a wave, while warming herself.  Davis waves back, and at this close distance he can see she has greenish skin and her hood is made of leaves that are held together by some unknown force.  Once she warmed herself, she waves at Marb on her way to go visit with the animals. Gustav asks Davis if he knows who the mysterious hooded figure is, which he confesses he does not. Davis checks with Al, who also has no idea who she is.

Grant, seeing Gustav being a little ill-at-ease, informs Gustav that these campsites are intended to keep travelers safe.  Gustav expresses skepticism.

The Verdant Cause patrolmen ask for volunteers to help keep watch for the night.  Grant volunteers and then Davis chimes in as a volunteer as well.  Sam and Davis agree to take first watch.

Shortly after everyone else turns in for the night, Marb, being in his sentinel perch and ever-watchful, and Davis notice that the hooded woman from earlier has a "blurry" appearance to her that somewhat camouflages her with her surroundings.  Davis is intrigued by this and approaches her to investigate.  She notices and puts her finger up to her lips to shush Davis and points off to the distance.  Davis, not seeing anything, bellows out "What?!"  She begins walking, and Davis follows, asking where they are going.  Sam, being the other guard on watch begins to follow as well.  Soon, Davis sees Orbis (the firebreather from the Rabble Rousers) face down and unconscious on the ground.  Davis quickly tends to him and asks the woman, "What happened?", as he does so.   Davis flips him over and doesn't see any obvious wounds, but his hands are wet and cold with an iron smell.

Marb hops down from his perch, but misjudges a branch on his way down so that it snaps, but he is able to recover and slide down the tree safely.  This startles Sam, who stops in his tracks and is immediately pelted by seven crossbow bolts.

#### Campgrounds Encounter

Many of the folks being assaulted by the unseen assailants are caught by surprise and are delayed into the fray. Davis readies his shield and spear and engages with the nearest bandit that he can see, narrowly missing. Marb takes aim at him and it sails wide.

The bandits take several more shots, largely missing but clipping Davis in the shoulder, and the bandit engaged with Davis swings wide. More bandits emerge from the woods and take cover behind what appears to be a pile of assorted collectibles but is in fact, Roque. They take aim at Grant, with one shot sailing wide and another nicking him. Marb returns fire at one of them and hits. One of the Rabble Rousers who has taken up arms to fight douses a bandit with oil. Roque awakens and quickly realizes what is going on and casts *Bless* on Grant, Davis, and Marb and then quietly tucks into his shell. Gustav absolutely skewers one of the bandits with his greatsword, knocking him unconscious. Grant rushes up to a foe with his warhammer and with a critical hit utterly crushes his skull, then follows up with a shield bash on another nearby foe. Allegretto gives his fellow bandmate Davis a *Bardic Inspiration* and unleashes a bolt with his hand crossbow against another bandit, piercing his off-hand.

Davis sidesteps the assault of two bandits. Grant is wounded slightly, and Marb has several bolts sent his way with one nearly knocking him down. Gustav gets nicked by the assaulting bandits as well. Davis finally lands a return blow on Marb's original target dealing a mortal blow. Marb, badly wounded, takes a retribution shot back at those who hit him and manages a hearty hit. Another one of the caravan folks runs up and takes out the bandit that Grant smacked with his shield. Bentley stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Gustav and strikes out at one of the bandits, leaving a deep gash with his short sword. Roque attempts to distract some of the attackers using *Thaumaturgy* to simulate nearby whispers, knocking prone the last remaining bandit who had been using him for cover as he stands up. Grant siezes the opportunity and with two swift strikes finishes the bandit off. Gustav takes another hefty swing at one of the untouched bandits and with a single blow takes him off the battlefield. Allegretto would normally have missed his next shot but thanks to his *Lucky* feat, he skewers his previous quarry in the other hand, knocking him out.

The panicked bandits fire into the woods at the whispers from Roque. Davis takes a hearty blow from one of the few remaining bandits, but remains steadfast. Gustav sidesteps one attacker but is hit with a critical hit by another, but his armor absorbs much of the blow. Davis shoves back his assailant, knocking him prone, and makes his way back to his ally Allegretto. The mysterious figure appears to have disappeared at this point. Matb lands yet another arrow on his target. Roque casts *Healing Word* on Davis and then tucks back into his shell, providing some cover for Marb in the process. Gustav gets retribution as he cleaves through the bandit that hit him. Grant lands another crushing skull blow and knocks yet another bandit unconscious and he implores the remaining foes to surrender. Allegretto takes a few swings with his rapier at the foe Davis knocked down and in spite of his *Lucky*, cannot seem to hit.

Grant's direct adversary panics and attempts to run, but Grant uses his *War Caster* feat to attempt to use *Command* to force him to 'sit", which succeeds. The prone bandit next to Al gets up and with a bruising swing from his club immediately knocks Allegretto unconscious, and then takes another swing at him while he's down. Davis strikes at him and goads him to back off of Al. Marb takes a potshot at the seated bandit who has been attempting to scoot away while seated. The caravan folks pursue him and finish him off. Bentley flanks Al's attacker with Davis and thanks to Davis's *Strike Like Iron* exposing his weakness ("hit him in the dick"), Bentley takes him out.

#### Encounter Aftermath

Roque tends to Allegretto, applying a field dressing to his wounds, which stabilizes him though he remains unconscious for the time being.  Davis takes stock of the rest of his companions.  Bentley rushes over to his patrol mate Sam, who he figures should be at death's door with the damage he sustained in the fray.  Much to his surprise, Sam is alive and well, and the foliage around him seems to have grown unnaturally fast in the meantime.  Marb and Gustav take stock of the attackers, taking off the minimal amount of valuables they have and investigating their possessions for information, but are unable to discern much other than the group was oddly large.  Roque is distracted by the flowers around Sam and picks one.  Sam wakes up, and he and Bentley agree that they need to report this ambush as he and Sam go to the fire to recover.

Davis approaches Sam and says, "Man you are one hearty dude, how are you still up man?"

Sam responds, "I don't know - maybe this place really is a place of protection in its own weird way," to which Gustav snorts loudly in response.

Davis points out that he was hurt pretty bad until Roque helped him out, whom he taps on the shell as he does so.  Seeing Roque still marveling over the flower, as an aside he says to him "That -- that's a flower man."  Roque eats the flower.

Bentley reports that they must return to Vulpine and ask if the group would return with them.  Everyone agrees to do so.  Marb doles out even portions of the coin found on the bandits to the party and loads up their gear on carts.  Then he and Gustav stack the remains of the bandits in the forest as a message to others.  Then the caravan sets off back to Vulpine.

#### Vulpine

*31 Schema 268 PBT, just before sunrise*

The group arrives back in town through the Old District.  Bentley and Sam direct the caravan to the barracks in the Sparkfields to meet up with Meeker.   The caravan is greeted by some of the Verdant Cause and Sam tells them about the ambush.

"We got ambushed on the road over at the first Pathmaker's Rest, three hours to the east", and then after hearing more details of the ambush they say they should report this to Meeker and Navori. The group are offered a place to rest here in the barracks. Roque gets a feeling that something abnormal is brewing.

Meeker arrives at the barracks and begins asking for details about the ambush. Sam relays what he recalls, including the shrine of bodies that Gustav and Marb set up near the rest stop. Shortly after, Navori arrives as well and begins asking for details as well, which she gets from Meeker and the Cause members. Meeker offers the group rooms at his Silverspur Saloon instead of the barracks, and Navori also offers lodging at the Fox Den owned by friends of hers. The group settles on the Silverspur Saloon.

The group learns that a few weeks prior a plainscow with multiple mutations was born and has been hailed as a sign by some.

The group retires to the Silverspur Saloon and sleeps for a large portion of the day, waking in the late afternoon.

### Part 2

#### The Afternoon

*31 Schema 268 PBT, afternoon*

Davis informs Al of what happened and how we're back in Vulpine, then we head down to the bar area. The rest of the group follows as well, with Gustav staying at the bar instead of joining the group. Meeker is spotted at a table with three other people. Davis interjects himself into the conversation and introduces himself, making small talk about the festival and the plainscow. Archie indicates that the plainscow came from his ranch, and that the money raised from the festival is being used to investigate livestock going missing. Davis drags Marb into the conversation claiming that he's an expert in finding things like this, and that they should be put on the case to track down the missing livestock. They begrudgingly agree and offer to take us out to their ranches when they head out of town this evening.

Marb, Roque, and Gustav head over to the barracks with Marb seeking out the spoils he took off the bandits. The barracks guard concedes about half to Marb, who is unhappy and lightly threatens Bentley.

Back at the Silverspur, the ranchers indicate they are ready to leave for the evening and to gather the missing group members. They are picked up at the barracks on the way out of town and the group heads out of Vulpine in a small caravan of carts out to their ranches.

## Featured Characters

### Adventuring Party

* Grant Frostmason
* Davis Cantrell
* Allegretto
* Roque
* Marb
* Gustav

### New

* Bentley
* Sam
* Hooded female figure
* Orbis
* Meeker
* Navori
* Alexandra
* Archie
* Kam

### Mentioned

* The Weatherbys

## Notes

* In this episode, the party agreed to follow the "Brutal Critical" house rule
* In this episode, the party agreed to follow the "Bonus Action Potions" house rule