I'm curious to see what is in the building, though, aren't you? Mundanes build castles to control an area. They can use it as a rallying location and and a place from which to sortie, and if an area is attacked, the castle is targeted because that's where the warriors are. I can take down the walls in a few minutes, and create a lot of smoke in the interim...we may be able to pass through the smoke and confusion and make our within. But I want to see what's inside those walls
[color=blue]"I would too, but I'm also rather fond of having all my body parts attached to each other." She thinks for a minute or two.
[color=blue]"A nice Rego Imaginem would be pretty handy. But if there were some way we could approach the building without drawing their attention..."
[color=blue]"Is there any way you can see through Wilhelm's eyes?"
((I'm not thinking of any safe way for us to approach the building that would work. AC LotH to Wilhelm, PeIm on everyone to have them sneak up invisible, have Fiona walk up naked to distract them while everyone else sneaks around...but nothing that seems like it would work. Otherwise, I'm inclined to say go down the ridgeline to bypass the building and continue on our way. I'm willing to entertain ideas from the peanut gallery, too.))
Peanut Gallery says: "Pretend to be shrubs, to make it easier to sneak through the forest valley side!"
((I thought of that, but I kept getting a visual of those anime ninjas holding a branch in front of their face and thinking they were all but invisible.))
It only works from in front. From behind, even The Tick can see them.
((Actually, I think that would work. MuIm base 1 changes one sensation of an object (so, from person to tree/shrub). R: Touch (+1), D: Sun (+2), T: Group (+2), and +1 magnitude for size? for a Spell Level of 15, it seems. Fiona's CT is Sta 3 + Mu 17 + Im 5 + Aura 10 = 35 + die roll. 40 if she gets to use her Focus (I doubt it, because she's part of the group). And since it's Imaginem, it doesn't have to penetrate their Resistance (the giants, not ours). And I think she knows enough about plants to make them look realistic, even if I did botch the skill selection on that.))
[color=blue]"Actually, I think I can pull off making us look like trees, shrubs, whatever, until sundown. If we move carefully, we might be able to go undetected."
Peanut Gallery: Base 2! Base 2 for sight AND sound!
Peanut gallery: Cast two spells, one on yourself and one on everyone else? The one on yourself saves three magnitudes for Range and Target, while the one on the others gains from your focus....
"How do we know what we want isn't inside that wall?" How many giants could you handle at a time? I'm thinking I can handle at least three. You don't really have an idea of my combat capabilities, just know that I won the last Normandy Dimicatio. IF this Silviatos is controlling giants, maybe he is within those walls? At some point combat will become necessary. I prefer to chose the timing, rather than be forced to respond at a time of my opponents choosing." Marcus speaks with the calm assurance of someone who is used to situations like this.
"Ultimately, we will fight. I'd rather have the fight mean something, that wall is protecting something."
nods I like this...don't know why I didn't think of splitting it up. Don't know that "making them looks like trees" falls under her Minor Magical Focus, though. I had always seen it as "turn one (or more) living thing into (an)other living thing(s)." The only two MuIm spells she has are one personal range and one that only affects food and drink, neither of which would have applied.
[color=blue]"And even if it's not, we'll at least know what's behind us. So, do you think my idea would work, then? And would give it a go?"
"I'm not clear how on how we can cross the cleared area. My preference is to burn down the palisade make it extra smokey and we saunter in under the cover of smoke, with some Imaginem to make us less visible perhaps?" ((I'm speaking as Marcus when he goes to the preference, it's not me as SG saying to do this. But he is also voicing my confusion on how you expect to cross the cleared area from the stream to the palisade when pretending to be shrubs.))
((Yeah, that's not one of my finer moments, since I'm not sure what I was going for aside from looking for a less destructive method; she's seen enough death and destruction for a while.))
[color=blue]"You think you can fire the palisade, so we can get in to see what's in the building under cover of smoke?"
She thinks for a couple of minutes. [color=blue]"I can't really come up with any other options, so let's go with that. What do you want me to do?"
"Help me make bacon and talk to the grogs to make sure that they cover us. When do you want to attack?"
Fiona takes a quick look at the lay of the land. ((Does their campsite and the structure lie on an east-west line, north-south, or an an odd angle? Basically, will they have the sun at their backs if they attack at either dawn or dusk?))
You can set that part of the scene... The time can be of your choosing, as well as the direction of the sunset/sunrise etc.
[color=blue]"Let's go for just after sunrise, when the sun crests the hill and will be in their eyes as we make our way down. We can try to destroy our visual species so they can't see us, and if they see our shadows they may will attribute them to a trick of the light."
((Basically, the ridge lies east of the camp, and by casting PeIm on themselves for just the visual aspect, they will still be able to hear each other and can, in a pinch, look for shadows (since, iirc, shadows aren't affected by PeIm unless you add magnitudes...although that might be 4e I'm thinking of).))
She will do her best to make bacon (Survival?). ((And, as a total aside, I really do need to review my grimoire more often...I forgot I had some potentially useful spells, such as Charge of the Angry Winds and Jupiter's Resounding Blow.))
Before she goes to the grogs (and Wilhelm), she casts Aura of Ennobled Presence on herself, and will speak to each of them in turn, or however she finds them.
[color=blue]"We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, lads. Just after sunrise, we'll be casting a spell on us all to render us invisible, although we should still be able to hear each other, and we will still be able to see our shadows. Just after dawn, we are going to go down to the fort, down there. Marcus will torch the palisades, and we will go in during the confusion. Unfortunately, this isn't a raiding party, so only grab things if you know you can carry them away unseen. And remember, our spell only affects you, not anything you pick up along the way. Likewise, attack them only if you believe you can do so cleanly. I don't want to have to turn around and rescue you.
"We will definitely have the element of surprise on our side, so I expect things to go smoothly. But don't push our luck. Get in, find out as much as we can, get back and meet just over the ridge on the far side. There are two trees that look to be taller than the others, fairly close together. Gather under one of those trees at sundown, when the spell wears off...and for God's sake, don't be out in the open at sundown, we don't want them getting a clean shot at ye!"
The next morning, both before and after sunrise, she casts Intuition of the Forest on herself, just in case she can sense anything while she passes through the woodlands. And before they charge off, she will give everyone a quick kiss for luck (even Marcus and Wilhelm).
((Trying to figure out how there's going to be any coordination if everyone is invisible...))
((does it look like we can get close enough to the palisade by ninjaing through the forest without going invisible?))
That's within the realm of what's possible.
Okay, let's go with that then, and avoid having to rely on sponts if we can. Stealthify through the forest, Marcus torches the palisade, we sneak in under cover of chaos and do some recon, then take off and meet on the other side. Sound good?