OOC:
Hey gang, so, normally, I might take the opportunity to expand a Journey Event or two into a Skill Challenge or very mini-sidequest.
But as we have a player waiting on us, I'm going to keep this a pretty straightforward thing.
As the party embarks upon the ancient Harad Road, the sun-drenched expanse of Harondor unfolds before you like a tapestry of contrasts.
A surprising touch of spring-like coolness continues to fill the usually arid air, carrying the subtle scent of blooming desert flora. The transition to a desert's harshness still seems a long way off, and it grants the beginning of your journey a feeling of leisurely respite.
The sandy soils, which you might have expected to be parched and unforgiving, are currently bearing traces of new life along the roadside, as delicate wildflowers dot the landscape with bursts of color, harmonizing with the earthy tones of rugged escarpment.
On either side of the road, the northern reaches of the Harad lay before you on the horizon. Rolling dunes barely discernable in the distance, kissed by golden sunlight. Towering sandstone mesas stand as silent sentinels watching your approach, their rugged beauty defying the relentless passage of time.
The first few days at least pass easily as you progress along the Harad Road, the merging of this spring-like vitality with the stark beauty of the approaching desert leaves an indelible impression. This unexpected harmony in nature's rhythms seems to mirror the journey of you all as you travel this ancient path, a reminder that even in the harshest of landscapes, the promise of renewal and growth can persevere.
You do see many travelers at this stage on the road with you, some going south - most of them peeling off in the first day or two to return to local settlements, but many are heading north. And of those, most appear to be fairly small groups of simple folk - traveling workers, craftsmen, merchants - but it is on the third day of your journey when you spot a larger contingent heading your way from the south. Perhaps a dozen people, a few of them on horseback, and from this distance you think they may be armed.
They could be nothing - perhaps just a wealthy caravan under armed guard - or, the Corsair Ship-Lords are in control here, they could be hostile Haradrim looking for Northerners worth shaking down...
OOC:
So, two things:
1. because of your well-rolled Embarkation, you each may ignore the first level of Exhaustion that you may or may not get during the course of the Journey.
2. would you like to try to avoid this large contingent on the road, or just continue on your course and pass them by (and hope that they just pass you by)?
