>>9622,
>>9652
Deciding that discretion is the better part of valor, at least until you know more, your intrepid duo skirts around the blight and continues north. The thicker foliage and the varied birdsongs from the canopy above speak to the forest's health here. It seems so natural that you almost don't notice the trap carefully obscured by fallen palm fronds.
[Handyana Jones], [Struggle Snuggler] But notice it you do, Johann prodding the cover to reveal a deadfall! Matreo's heard of this from a fellow adventurer, natives know it leaves the victim most vulnerable--"from above!" you shout, alerting your companion as three shadows drop in on vines.
The initial melee is over in seconds. Johann blocks a diving dagger strike with his rifle barrel, kicking his assailant towards the pit. She twists in the air to land clear on the other side, growling and extending her claws. Her sisters-in-arms are no less skilled, the larger one grabbing the rifle the instant after Johann's kick, wrenching it from his grasp. Luckily his training enables him to draw his cutlass before she can use it, knocking it into the brush with a slash so it's recoverable and then pressing the attack. Matreo is less fortunate, facing only one girl, but seemingly the most skilled of them all, who narrowly misses with a spear but uses her momentum to land on him, face so close that her feline features are abundantly clear. She has a faint scent of spice on her, a tantalizing distraction, but one thankfully cut short by surprise as your gaze drifts lower. The tattoo below her left collarbone, it's the same as one of the unknown markings from the ruins!
>"Wait, we saw the writings of your people!"
"And we yours, but they were like the pale hide they were written on, flimsy and worthless." She attempts to pin Matreo, but in a flash of inspiration he rolls toward the pit, forcing her to shift so she doesn't fall first.
>"Then perhaps our deeds can speak better of us."
You grin, mustering every bit of your charm. To your relief she smiles back. "Yes, better than the cowards before. In more ways than one." She shouts a command in an unknown tongue and her sister jaguar-girls move back, though still keeping a combat stance. Rising, she then leaps back so you have no avenue of escape. But her eyes shine with amusement as she makes her offer. "You have proven you're not mere prey, which leaves two options."
<Either you are kindred warriors, and will prove as much in the Circle of Judgment...
<Or you are like the raven, merchants-of-bond, in which case I will welcome your trade offer!
She licks her lips. You both recognize the Circle of Judgment as a tradition common to many islands, in which you as challenger can set conditions for single combat or a skill trial which a tribe member will agree to, victory marking you as a tribesman. The default is hand-to-hand, which Johann is fairly confident in, but Matreo less so seeing the surprising strength of the lead jaguar. For either choice you can set conditions, like see what other info you can get (
[Silver Tongue] will help a lot with that).
To
>>9652 mechanics questions, the hills are still 1 square a turn, a square being big enough that it's not all sheer ascent up a cliff or the like. Woods and hills can both have events that slow you, you got one turn 1 but had the skills to bypass the delay. Water squares are another story, you can't cross without the boat except under three circumstances. You can either find a bridge or ford (initially hidden, as with the ruins), or see if you can get help from the natives.
To
>>9629, I referenced the map in your post, it's the one here.