28th day of Tarsakh

We set out once again for Cragmaw Castle, but this time we have a plan to try and sneak in disguised as hobgoblins, using the equipment from the ones we killed at the caves.

29th day of Tarsakh

We reach Cragmaw Castle again and approach the back door in the dark wearing our disguises, and pretending that Garrett is a captive.  We are not as silent as hoped in advancing and are challenged by a goblin sentry.  I attempt to bluff us in in goblin, but he insists that we must go in by the main gate.  In frustration I rip aside the curtain and attack him with my blades.  Unfortunately there is a second goblin who rushes out of the far door before we can stop him.  We kill the goblin and beat a hasty retreat, but are pursued from the castle.  We retreat through the forest westawards, but they are tracking us and we are not gaining on them.  Finally in desperation, we set up an ambush on the far side of a glade in the dark forest, climbing some trees.  Our pursuers enter the glade cautiously, obviously having sensed that we are no longer fleeing from us, as they never could have kept up with us if they had been this cautious crossing every glade.  They send in ten goblins to check the glade, and when they are half across, four hobgoblins and a bugbear also enter the glade.  Garrett casts faerie fire upon the bugbear, but it only affects two of the goblins and one of the hobgoblins.  Still the light from that is enough for us to start shooting as the goblins and bugbear race across the glade.  The hobgoblins stay back and start a surprisingly effective counter-fire against us.  I am somewhat wounded but we kill the bugbear and two of the hobgoblins with arrows, while Garrett’s spell casts most of the goblins into slumber.  The remaining two hobgoblins flee back to the castle.

We return to the castle, hoping that they will think that we have continued to flee, and investigate the postern gate.  I try to sneak up to it, but am obviously spotted and shot upon.  Even then, I am able to see that it is a stout iron door, and probably not an easy means in ingress for us.  We return around to the western side of the castle, and try to work out how to re-enter through the back door again.  As I sneak up again, I can hear deep grunts from inside, and quite commands and sounds of struggle.  As I try to work out what these are, the curtain is whipped open, and a great creature bounds forth, like a bear but with the head of an owl.  I sprint for the forest, but it is gaining on me, so I turn at the edge of the forest and engage it in combat with my blades.  The others join in as well, and we make relatively quick work of it, expending several spells to defeat it before it can disembowel one of us.

We drag its corpse into the forest and return to considering our options again.