A short distance outside Bree you spot Jari the Dwarf waiting for the Company in a sheltered dell north of Bree-hill. He is apparently frying up a breakfast of bacon, sausage and egg. You can see Diarmoc and the young Thomas Pickthorn. Beside them four ponies crop the long grass. You see Jari getting up to greet Aldaron, Haldan and Nòr.

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As I see it you have two options, keep out of sight and follow their tracks or stay within sight but unseen. Either way it's going to be a Skill endeavour with Resistance 3 and you may roll 4 times each day. A failure on the roll doesn't mean anything but if you fail the endeavour you either lose the tracks (if tracking) or you might be noticed if you sneak behind. You can choose whatever skill you like as long as you can motivate why it's relevant to the endeavour.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:45, Wed 07 Feb.

Milton had been up early. Not by his own choice, but by his blankets having been jerked off his bed by Nor. The dwarf knew him well enough to know that mind over mattress was not the hobbit's particular strength. To be quite sure, Milton's heart was in the right place. He had the curiosity for the upcoming trek, and he certainly had the sense of duty to his companions... it was just that down-filled mattresses and heavy quilted blankets were so warm and comfortable, it was quite nearly beyond his power to leave them prematurely. And by premature, he reckoned anything before noon.

The hobbit's stomach growled loudly enough to nearly give him and Gert away as they hunkered down to watch the camp of Jari. "Well, it's not too late to change our minds is it?" he asked with a certain note of uncertainty. Bacon and eggs had that effect on him sometimes.

Gert gives Milton's shoulder an amused squeeze and passes him a strip of jerky. "They would hear your stomach growling, think it some horrid beast come upon them unaware, and pepper you with arrows ere they knew 'twas you," she says in a gently teasing voice. "You have cast your lot with Master Foxglow and I, no turning back now."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:21, Thu 08 Feb.

"Oh, I wouldn't think of it..." Milton replied, a little too quickly. He sighed and tried very hard not to smell the odors of delicious breakfast wafting their way. "What I meant was, we could change our minds about just joining up. But no bother now, we're committed and our plan is good... I just wish it involved a helping or two of those eggs."

He shifted a bit and adjusted the shortsword at his hip. He carried it as more of a decoration really. He wasn't very skilled with it any more than other young hobbits of Frogmorton who swashed and buckled about with make-believe swords pretending to be the great heroes they'd learned of when listening to a traveling minstrel at the Floating Log Inn. No, not much of a swordsman was Mister Mudbottom, not really. Now a bow, that was a different matter! He had a Keen eye and could place an arrow with a Dour Hand. He'd even won a prize or two in Eastfarthing competition. At the very least, he was quiet enough and aware enough to avoid the use of either except when absolutely necessary.

"What are we supposed to do? Just sit here and watch them eat?" Rumbling accentuated the question. Doing so would be the least adventuresome thing he could even fathom. He hoped Jari and company would strike camp and get along soon. At least if they were walking he might find a mushroom or wild onion here and about!

The sky is overcast and the sun show itself from time to time in in the pale spring sky. The terrain around Bree is gently sloped and covered with still yellow grass but most of the trees show some budding. A light breeze brings fresh and earthy fragrances as the lands prepare for another growing season.

Almost as if the main party heard Milton you see them start to break camp and head off north, along the edge of the Chetwood with Midgewater marches to the east.

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I'd like to keep it somewhat logical when it comes to rolls. Say if you keep out of sight it's fine if Gert (I assume) makes all the tracking rolls. If you tail them and there's a chance you might be spotted you could make 2 rolls each. Sounds fair?

Event target for this leg of the journey are LOOK-OUTS. You have entered into Dark Lands now so the journey event roll I make will be ill-favoured.

Go ahead and make your rolls.

Gert reassures Milton that the others have the worse of it. "The smell of bacon often attracts all manner of fell beast. Oliphaunts perhaps, or even heffalumps." Gert advances along the edge of the Chetwood, using the leafy shade and underbrush as cover. "Know what they say about heffalumps, yes? Better than no lump at all..."

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10:13, Today: Gert Wayward rolled a total of 19: a great success (same result if weary) using the The One Ring with a target of 13 with rolls of 9 (Feat Die), 4, 6. That counts as two of our three needed successes for the leg, yes?

Oops, meant that to be Stealth but it works for Hunting too..
This message was last edited by the player at 06:50, Sun 11 Feb.

"Heffa- ha! That's quite good Gert! I don't know that I've ever heard you jest before. Keep it up! But really, what IS a heffalump?" The joke notwithstanding, the hobbit's curiosity was piqued. To see an oliphaunt would indeed be a splendid thing to brag about back in Frogmorton, but that could be said of nearly anything not found munching lazily within the farthings of the Shire or regions roundabout.

"Careful, that log is barely being held. You wouldn't want it to fall on one of us," he pointed out a deadfall that hadn't quite. "Look! I bet we could cut along this outcropping. There's a bit of a swale here that'll grant us some cover, yet will still provide us with a view of our quarry. C'mon!"


Awareness (TN14): Milton Mudbottom of Frogmorton rolled a total of 20: a great success with the Gandalf Rune!

17:17, Today: Gert Wayward rolled a total of 16: a success (same result if weary) using the The One Ring with a target of 13 with rolls of 9 (Feat Die), 5, 2.  Lookout Event (Awareness).