[Child of the 7th Age]

I am finally back on line. My house and yard have been totally rewired after nine days of frustration. At one point they threatened to tear down a wall in my house, so I changed the location of my computer. I am now blocking a doorway! But we'll buy a stack table to resolve that.

I am way behind the eight-ball here. Everyone is doing so well. I have added two back posts--one on Candlestones and one on children in the graveyard. I will be adding others tonight. Where needed, I will ask Mith or one of you to paste it in.

I have several questions. At what point in the thread can Cami and her escorts start leading the first groups of children through to the river where the hobbrim wait? How much resistence, if any, could we expect?

I would assume these first trips could be made in silence with few guards there to threaten us. Later, after the alarm, there would be more problems. Is this correct?

Secondly, the hobbits have challenged the guards to a game of Candlestones as a last desperate measure to keep the guards from leaving. Again, at what point in the thread, can we end the game and have the hobbits knock out the 12 candles in the hall and slit the throats of the guards in the main cavern? My competitors are wearing daggers under their shirts.

BTW, I am reposting here the information that Helen left about what the various hobbits were doing. She did say if there were any conflicts with the story line, she'd adjust. But this at least gives us an idea where they would be fighting:

Phura will be commandeering the group from the Smithy. Loremaster will be masterminding the escape down to the river from the main cave, directing groups of children and the few remaining old folks. [me: This running down to the river is called "running the gauntlet". Cami will be getting all the children out.]

The sequence will go like this: Phura & co will go to the Smithy and bring out the visors and cheekpieces. (Mith's extra collection of Lonely Star daggers are a;lready available, perhaps?) Then they come back to the main cave, extinguish all the candles except the one in the Study and one in Azraph's fahter's annex, and do in all the guards in the main cave. Simlutaneously, the raids on the tool closets are happening, expecting the influx of guards from the outer doors and openings.

During all of this time, the children have been hopefully huddled in their alcoves, but a few are bound to get loose...

Meanwhile the assault on the locks is underway.

Phura is keeping the road clear from the Locks to the main cave. Tuka & co are keeping the graveyard entrance clear; Gamba was supposed to be keeping the entrance to the new tombs clear, up by the locks, but that's been delegated to... ah... how about Kima and Mika, the twins? Or Corby, the smith?

I do know that Gamba has the key to the Locks. Daisy passed it through the grate to him. There is no way Daisy could unlock her own cell. So it's good Gamba was freed. (Hope he didn't lose the keys in the Dragon ride!) Daisy has the weapons for the other prisoners inside her cell, buried in the dirt. Anee is the other hobbit in the communal cell who is very much into fighting once the folks in there are let out.

BTW, Mithadan, I am going to do an early post of Daisy worrying. She knows Gamba has the key, and then hears about what happened to him. The guards will be discussing it. This is early in the story line. Her worry will be specifically about Gamba and the key.

sharon

[ October 30, 2002: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]