Welcome To Morgan Vale!

[badams30]

Marcus edges up to the opening and peers inside. The graveyard is roughly 125'x125' and is mostly unremarkable. As mentioned before, there are no breaches in the walls, but some areas where the walls are starting to give away.
A casual glance about the yard reveals roughly 200 graves, about half of which have broken or toppled headstones. In the corner you see what appears to be a large hole, probably 20ft in diameter from the look of the dirt pile ringing it. However, you can't see inside it from where you are.
It takes you a few seconds, but you begin to realize that most all of the graves appear to have been disturbed. The earth over the graves are messy, as though they have been excavated and shabbily recovered. The dirt over the graves and the large hole has short, scruffy weeds growing from it, clearly illustrating that the excavations have occurred within the last year, perhaps.
As you peer about, Grinkle taps you (Marcus) on the shoulder and says "Do you hear that?"
Dak looks about, but clearly hears nothing. After a few seconds of careful listening, you hear a faint noise that appears to be coming from the pit. It sounds like faint moaning. "Uhhhhhhhhh.... uhhhhhhhhh.... uuuuuhhhhuuuuhhhhhhhh...

You stand still and listen for a minute, still hearing the noise, but seeing nothing. The only movement you see within the yard is a couple of crows perched on the wall next to the pit. They eyeball you with curiosity.

Actions?

[greyarea]

Marcus, paladin

Let's head back to the camp, he says to Grinkle and Dak. We need to be extra cautious on our watches tonight. We can tackle this in daylight tomorrow.

He returns to the others to report what they've discovered.

[Atomic Ray]

Han Overfist, augur of Tymora

"Graveyards...it seems that people are always dieing to get in them, right? (half smile)...hopefully whoever is buried there will choose to stay in the ground"

(Han goes through the offal and tough bits to prep another dish along with the roasted meat, and makes a series of meat bits on sticks with salt and some seasonings to dry over the fire for the road later)

"The tower is a great idea for observation but we can not take the horses up with us...perhaps put a pair up there to share the watch and the others stay down on the ground or maybe up the first level of the tower"

[tumblingdice]

Rory will investigate the manor as much as daylight allows.

[Spanningtree]

Nahin - Elf

Nahin will keep down and follow Buck in search of prey. If he sees any disturbed graves or anything he will give them a wide berth. Bow out arrow nocked.

[badams30]

Rory will investigate the manor as much as daylight allows.

Skirting the main trail leading up to the Manor, but staying the bushes (secret roll) you move forward, being mindful of the approaching darkness. In your advance, you see and hear nothing except for a pair of rabbits who dart out of the bushes and scurry away. As you near the manor, you come near a foundation (marked "Stables" on the map) that is basically intact, with walls standing about 8 feet tall, but no roof or doors. It is obvous this used to be a stable, and was recently used, as you see two dead horses within. Both tied to posts inside, and looking to have been in this condition for about a month or slightly more. The structure is totally open and empty except or the horse corpses. You note this and continue on, and about 100 feet down the trail, you come across three wagons, two of which are almost totally destroyed, and a third is damaged, and missing two wheels. There are numerous burn marks, scratch or claw marks and some weapon marks on the wagons. It appears that an axe or similar instrument was used to render these inoperative. No vegetation grows over these, and you can tell by the marks that these wagons have been destroyed fairly recently.
Not having stopped to closely examine any of these sites, but rather observing from cover at a distance, you move closer to the manor for a quick look. Daylight is fading, so you estimate you have a few minutes to look about the manor from your vantage point, and then you probably need to return to make camp prior to nightfall.

Stopping as close as you can to the manor while still in suitable cover (secret roll) you pause to observe. Other than being overgrown with vegetation and slightly dirty from the passage of time, the Manor appears to be pretty sturdy and holding up well to the elements. You spend about 5-10 minutes studying the manor and the windows, and you observe no movement.

[tumblingdice]

Rory heads back to the camp to report his findings. "Whoever was here," he says, "killed even the horses."

[kjc]

"Whoever was here," he says, "killed even the horses."

Jayce - Fighter
"Did the horses die of starvation...or were they killed by whatever horrors are lurking IN THE HUGE 'MOANING' HOLE IN THE GRAVEYARD?!! Jayce yells, clearly unhinged by the revoltin' development.

[tumblingdice]

Rory takes a step back from Jayce. "I'm glad I didn't tell him about the rabbits," he says to himself.

DM: did the horses look to have been murdered, or starved? I assumed they were killed, but on re-reading the post I'm not sure.

[badams30]

Rory, it appears that the horses died of starvation, but the remains have been nibbled at by small creatures, but not enough to have stripped the carcasses.

As you all regroup at the campsite, Buck and Nahin dragging back two freshly dressed deer, and Han eagerly getting them cooking on the now roaring fire, you share what you've found and seen. Buck especially listens with interest. It's clear the "moaning pit" has rattled him. "There is evil afoot here, I know it. I just don't know where." He shakes his head and wearily settles down on one of several logs on the ground, constantly scanning from the manor to the graveyard. "Normally I'd say let's check out this sound, but we've had a long day, and it might be best to rest up and get a fresh start in the morning."

As dinner cooks, you all keep watchful eyes on the valley, which rapidly becomes dark. As usual, Han's cooking proves to warm your bellies and lift your spirits, and once that's finished, Buck breaks out a small cask of brandy and offers a small amount to everyone. As he hands out the brandy, he thoughtfully looks you all over and says "We've got alot of ground to cover in here, and I don't think we should split up again. What is our plan? We need to be thorough, but we don't want to linger needlessly in this valley, or we could be trapped by snow. I dont think that will happen, but stranger things have happened."

Buck takes a big slug of brandy then looks at you in anticipation.

Standard watch is listed in the status thread. Any special precautions?
What's the plan for tomorrow. What you can see in the valley is on the map.
Will you take any special precautions for your mounts and gear?
You could take your mounts and wagon through the valley, although the road is overgrown, it is still relatively easy to follow, and from what you've seen there are no major obstructions other than a random small stone or log across the path...