After training with Dobry for a week, we are ready to do something. We have 2 weeks to fill before we need to escort Rosalind to Itea. We figure it’s time to visit our new territories to see how wrecked and dilapidated they are.

We kit up with food and sundry kit and head south, squelching through the marsh. Ashwell is the first manor that we will reach – 10 miles which will take us most of the day. We expect to find a small tower and a village. What we will really find remains to be seen.

We stop for lunch, but nothing happens. We continue on and eventually reach a section of causeway that is damaged, possibly on purpose! We’ll need to wade through the swamp to continue. Mahan checks for tracks and Olsen helps. Between them they pick out some small three-toed footprints. Probably lizardmen!

As we wade through, Nailen feels something slide past his foot and then something emerges from the water to attack Olsen. It appears to be a snake, which prompts a short discussion between Nailen and Olsen on the differences between a snake and a slow worm.

Mahan and Olsen seem to have got the measure of their new weapons and manage to get several hits onto the snake. Nailen however is struggling to hit anything! The snake then loops a coil round Mahan’s chest and starts to constrict… Mahan is unconscious. Finally Olsen kills the snake. Rufus uses his newly improved First Aid skill to revive Mahan.

We finish wading through the water and make it to dry land, carrying the injured Mahan. Nailen suspects that this is Lizardman territory, but we can’t see any of the totems that we saw last time.