Rathunt [Knight Otu judging]

Krug · Sep 21, 2005

Short vignette-adventure for Tumna, Eddy the Tough andBorkel Hardknuckles

You can roll various rolls at invisiblecastle.com

Gogsmol leads you to the merchant's quarter, and his warehouse, which is located in the shabbiest part, all run down and vermin infested. Meeting you at the door are two men dressed clumsily in studded leather armor, who hold their spears most unconvincingly.

"All right. This is my warehouse. May I remind you not to be pilfering anything from within. Everything inside is mine!" He waves to the two sorry specimens you presume are guards. "This is Bru and Lul, the two regular guards. They'll be accompanying you inside. There's been what... three, four--"

"Actually it was five or six.." says Bru.

"All right, maybe five or six rats. Just find their rathole and kill 'em," says Gogsmol.

"But... there weren't just rats! There were--" Lul interjects.

Bru knocks Lul on the head. "Quiet Lul... else Gogs will think you've been drinking too much again."

The merchant sighs. "Why I hire the two of you, I don't know..." Gogsmol turns back to Borkel and Eddy. "Well any questions?"

ChefOrc · Sep 21, 2005

Borkel Hardknuckles, dwarven monk

"Ohhh... this place is REALLY in need of repair. I don't understand why a perfectly good neighborhood like this one was allowed to become such a mess. Especially in the merchant's quarter, that can't be good for business. This would never happen where I come from. Well, you have met the right dwarf, my good Gogsmol, it will be my pleasure to help you rebuild and clean. A community is build on unity, as we say at home!"

"As for these rats ... I am confused. You need all of us here to get rid of 5 or 6 rats? I though you meant there were litterally hundreds of them. Maybe I am not familiar with the animals of the region. Are we talking about rats here? (Borkel brings his two hands close together to indicate the length of a normal rat). Lul, what else did you see in there?"

Dalamar · Sep 21, 2005

"So we were hired to find who had stolen this one gem. Pricey, used to be some kinda heirloom. We track the guy for weeks, and what do we find?
He's already gotten himself caught by some other bounty hunter! Sheesh, the nerve of some thieves..."
Tumna vents off his anger to Borkel and anybody who happens to be listening while they travel to Gogsmol's warehouse.

"Even orc tents look sturdier than that..." she mutters to herself when they first set eyes on their destination.

Gray Shade · Sep 21, 2005

(before reaching the warehouse, Eddy will introduce himself to Tumna and make small talk: "So, you work hunting bounty, eh? I've encountered men in that line of work before. Like anyone else in my experience: some wise, some not; some honest, some not. When one has traveled greatly, as all of us here seem to have, one learns not to prejudge, eh?" Once at the warehouse . . . )

Eddy turns to Gogsmol. "I agree with Borkel. Far be it from me to question easy money, but something must be amiss if you need clientel from the Red Dragon to clear your warehouse of five, or even six, rats. How would simple exterminators not suffice? Your man, Lul, seems panicked. Perhaps he is willing to explain." Eddy then turns his attention to Lul, but suddenly turns back to Gogsmol. "OH! And before we set out to find and exterminate these rats, we should, simply for fairness, decide on a reward. Since their number is unsure, I would suggest that you pay us per head. In order to keep things fair."

Krug · Sep 21, 2005

"Well apparently they're BIG rats. Length of your arm.Those are the ones I want taken care of," says Gogsmol.

"Simple extermination in this city is hard to find, especially with the caravans coming into town the morrow, bringing a delivery of fresh mushrooms for me. The ratcatchers have raised their prices! Exorbitant and ridiculoous! Anyway, 10 gp for each of you, except Borkel who has said he would work for free. Should that not suffice?" He whispers to you so that the guards will not hear. You sense that amount is probably hurting the merchant quite a bit.

Lul, when prodded, interjects. "There's... big...rats. B-Bigger... than the half-naked dwarfie here!" he says, pointing to Borkel. Bru rolls his eyes at this.

"Oh look... I haven't had much stock to use this warehouse in a while. Some goblins raided my last delivery, and a group of pirates helped themselves to my cargo before that. I just want to make sure my warehouse is as safe as possible, or at least convince these two oafs I have as guards that I'm not harboring a house-sized rodent until I can hire proper mercenaries. Seriously, I don't think there's that many large-sized rats in there, if any. There's been very little to eat in there. So what d'ya say?" says Gogsmol, growing impatient.

ChefOrc · Sep 21, 2005

Borkel Hardknuckles, dwarven monk

Borkel slowly shakes his head in disbelief and mutters to himself "cattle-sized vermin in the merchant's quarter ... what kind of community is this?".

But his enthusiasm quickly overcomes this negative feeling. "Alright, partners, we are here to help Gogsmol, so let's go and exterminate this vermin. I suggest we enter the warehouse and see what the situation is, and then we can decide on our course of action. Let's do this as a team!" says Borkel as he looks at Tumma and Eddy with a hopefull smile.

Dalamar · Sep 21, 2005

"You gentlemen'll give me a moment to focus, won't you? It's just a little trick I've practiced," Tumna says. She puts her fore- and middlefingers to her temples and closes her eyes, staying in that posture for almost two minutes.
Then she lets out a long sigh and relaxes again.
"Okay, now I can keep my calm if need be."
She shows his two companions a dazzling smile. "You two handsomes won't mind protecting poor me, will you?"

OoC: Take 20 on Concentration to gain Psionic Focus.

ChefOrc · Sep 21, 2005

Borkel Hardknuckles, dwarven monk

Borkel waits patiently while Tumna concentrates, not wanting to disturb what he thinks is a short meditation. After she re-opens her eyes, he tells her "I meditate every morning myself. It really is the best way to become attuned to one's body and nourish the soul at the same time. I am glad to see that others share this view"

"And of course we protect each other. We are a team, right?" says Borkel looking at Eddy, hoping for a similarly positive answer.

Gray Shade · Sep 21, 2005

Eddy is obviously disapointed. "Ten gold per rat? *sigh* Well, all right." He is then lost in thought for a moment: That'll keep a roof over my head and food in my gut for a while anyway, not bad for just killing rats, really. Back on the ship we got a copper each, so I suppose I should be happy to get this.

Coming back to himself he turns to Borkel and says, "what? Team? Oh, sure we are. We're all on the same job, right?" He then offers the dwarf his dagger. "You'll at least want this, won't you?"

To Tumna he says, "Right. They're just rats. I'm sure you won't need much protecting." He then readies and loads his sling and looks inside the building. "Come on. I'll take the point."

(OOC: If it is dark in the warehouse, he'll light a torch and hand it to Tumna before going in; if not, he'll just go on in)

ChefOrc · Sep 21, 2005

Borkel Hardknuckles, dwarven monk

Borkel, looks at the dagger offered to him and decides to accept it, so as to not offend Eddy. He then mentally recites one of the primary principles taught to him since his younger days at the monastery "The most powerful weapon is one's body. It is as hard as rock and as maleable as water."

Borkel closely follows Eddy into the warehouse, ready for anything.

(OoC: Borkel has darkvision)