PlanetADnD.com

Dale advises with a hint of humor. "We should leave when done." He looks around and tells the group. "Stalling for time only benefits the bandits."

"Well. I'm coming with you." Eloise says finishing her soup, "Tell me when you are finished with your soup." She stands and goes to the kitchen.

"Of course, what weapons do you have if I may ask?" Dale inquires of the young lady.

After morning prayers, Christopher asks the priest: "Do you know the castle, Father? I do not ask you to go with us, but can you tell us the layout? Draw a map, maybe?" The lessons of the Holy Land, of men rushing into battle without knowledge of local conditions, or local terrain, with disastrous results, are still fresh in his mind.

"I have a dagger." She admits, "Although I expect you fighters will be doing the fighting."

In Otto (the priest)'s house

"I don't have parchment here to draw you a map, and I don't know the castle well either" the old priest tells Christopher. "Count Valckenburg had his own priest up in the castle. What I can tell you is that there is an outer courtyard at the valley side, well maintained because the Stoney Barn is still used to store the Abbey's grain reserve and the part of the harvest set aside for planting next year. The barn is at the far end of the courtyard as seen from the entrance. The gates to the inner courtyard are close to the Stoney Barn, but I can't tell you if anyone has been in there in the past years.
The innner courtyard is dominated by the central keep - which is round - but of course you have all the various houses needed for a big household, the palas of course, but also secondary buildings such as a smithy, barracks, storehouses and such. I have no idea what condition they are in.
What is interesting is the water supply, there must be cisterns but there is also a water duct that comes from the higher part of the mountain, so that there is even some running water."

In the Inn
Yolanda comes to survey the group and to collect the 2sp from Dale and Matthias, registering with some annoyance that Christopher is not there. "Will you be here for lunch or dinner?" she asks the group.

"Well...?" Eloise asks, noting that the young warrior was also absent.

"It should be fine. The short blade is effective in close combat." Turning from Eloise, Dale says. "I suspect dinner will be out there, but lunch is most likely. I am ready, now. The others might need a few hours to get ready, however."

Christopher will not find anyone else ready to talk to him, everybody is busy with the harvest or with keeping the village going with so many people at work outside. So all he has is Otto's description. The old priest even asks him to bring a spare shingle from the stack kept near the stable. While Christopher is readying his horse, he draws him a crude map, dropping wax from a candle on the shingle. "Mind you, I only really know the outer court" he says as he hands it to Christopher. "For the inner court, I've put in the stone buildings I remember. There are probably more wooden buildings.
And I'd like to get this back, the wax can be melted again to make candles, and who knows how many shingles I'll need after the next storm."

"Bless you, Father, and thank you." Christopher says. "I shall see this returned to you if I can."

Christopher leaves the chapel, then heads off to the stables to check his horses and don his armor and look for the others.