HO1 - Forgotton Cellar (Knight Otu Judging)
HugeOgre
First Post
A lot of the story so far...
Talbin's face changes into a broad grin as he read the words on the parchment.
It may not be the troupe of adventureres i set out to look for, but it sure sounds like a fun job to start with! It does sound rather strange with all this secrecy, but i guess it won't hurt to find out what that is all about. Maybe i'll even meet some new people along the way, and earn some shinies of course! I better not go straight ahead but make a small detour to make sure i'm not being followed or watched.
Just before Talbin leaves the privy, he hides the document on himself and smoothed his face into the gentle smile he usually showed. Back in the commonroom, he slowly finished the Ale he had ordered from Joe before he left. While doing to, he makes a mental note of all the people he sees in the commonroom, mostly ignoring the strange person who gave him the note.
When his ale is finished and Talbin has a general picture of the people present here, he pays Joe for the drinks and the meal, gathers his things and leaves the Inn.
Outside he sets off in a random direction, looking for another busier part of town where he can settle in another tavern.
When he arrives in such a tavern, he settles himself in a calm corner and monitors the door while drinks another drink. He watches for anybody entering through the door that heh also noticed in the Dragon.
While a few people do come and go as Talbin sits in the new tavern on his way out of town, he doesnt recognize any of the faces as being familiar. The inn is obviously not one frequented by adventurers, as the majority of those in the establishment wear the clothes of commoners and, if armed, are armed only with staves, daggers, or the occasional sickle.
When Talbin feels his isn't being followed or watched, he leaves the inn and sets out to go to the south gate. On the streets he takes some odd turns and bends with the occasional backtrack and dead-end street. After a good hour of criss-crossing town he finally arrives near the south gate. Once arrived there he casually strolls the street, walking like he is just passing by and not having any particular business there.
It doesnt take very long before Talbin is approached by the same young man (old boy?) who had so surreptiously delivered the letter to him in the Red Dragon Inn.
With pleasantries exchanged and after a careful look about to ensure there were no hanger ons the two set off to the south. Within 15 minutes they had managed to cross a stream, climb a hill, and arrive at a fairly modest looking mansion perched high among the surrounding hills.
With little flair Talbin is escorted inside the house, through a series of waiting rooms and corridors, and finally to a dining hall. There, a largish man dressed in a gaudy shade of red and purple clothing stands as you enter.
"Welcome, I can tell already my boy picked the right man for the job."
An ackward silence fell over the group and the man, after rocking back and forth a bit, cleared his throat and continued. "We just inherited this home and well, we've discovered something a little unusual. Can we count on you to be discreet about what Im about to tell you?"
Talbin does his best to keep up with the man while they cross the countryside on route to the mansion. Although his effort is a good one, the man does have to hold his pace once in a while to allow Talbin to catch up.
When the mansion comes in sight, Talbin can't help but wear a small smile on his face. This changes in a bit of awe as they enter the building and he is escorted through some of the many well furnished rooms and halls.
Talbin feels a bit small against the background of the mansion. Though he is used to city life, he never really set foot in halls of grand places such as mansions.
As they enter the dining room Talbin spots the man sitting there and takes a slight bow "Talbin Longstrider, at your service"
He can't help but smile with a hint of pride as the man points Talbin out the right man for the job "I shall not dissapoint you, good sir", he manages to reply before the man continues his sentence."
These guys are the noble kind, i best put up my noble-like tone.
In reply of the question of discretion Talbin confirms "I do have to make clear that I can't have any business with illegal practice, so if you can guarantee me such is not the case i will gladly give you my word that none shall gain any knowledge of this business from my person."
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"Oh Sela, no, nothing illegal I assure you good man. Just something we wanted investigated without a lot of loose lips." the man rubbed his hands together and looked expectantly at the younger boy, who seemingly got whatever was trying to be conveyed.
"If it pleases you father, I would take my leave." William indicated. With a dismissive gesture and a polite nod the elder gentleman gave his permission and William left out of the room.
"We found a trap door that we had here to fore not known. We'd like you to investigate it, at least preliminarily. Make sure there arent any proverbial skeletons in the closet so to speak..."
The elder man chuckled a bit then continued. "Now, if you will just follow me back into the kitchen area and down into the cellar, I'll let you have a look at it."
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Talbin nods as he hears out the man's story. When the man is finished and suggests to take a look, Talbin replies "Yes, well, sounds like a fine job to me! Let's have a look then indeed."
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With Talbin in agreement the two turned and headed out a door in the far wall, entered the kitchen and were soon descending a set of stairs down into the cellar. Talbin's new employer stops halfway down on the landing and strike a flint and steel, igniting a torch and handing it to Talbin.
With light in hand the two descend the rest of the way, and are soon looking at a trap door in the floor. The elder Greaves nods at a man standing in the poor light of another torch with sword and shield near the door, and that man turns to make his way out of the cellar.
The light of Talbin's torch finds its way through the once-hidden opening and into the darkness below. From this vantage point at the top of the stairs your torch illuminates only a small portion of the room below. A wooden stairwell, gray with age, leads from your position here in the cellar to the floor some 10 ft. below.
"Once we found it we thought it better to have someone investigate. We havent been down at all."
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Talbin frown and looks down the trapdoor. After some Hmmm's and uhmmm's he replies:
"Hmm, yes, well, have you seen anything down there? Heared anything? Couse, you know, i'm just wondering why you are so worried about it."
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"We've not seen or heard anything at all, but if you stand there for a moment I think you will agree there IS a bit of a stench..." The elder Greaves voice trailed off as he turned to look back toward the stairs that led up to the kitchen.
"One of the house guards DID lay down and take a peak, but it was far too dark to make out much of anything. The whole place is quite dry and musty, and stinks. Oh, and he thinks there is a hallway leading north out of the room. What concerns us most was the unusual degree of workmanship that went into making the trap door there hidden. I guess you could say we just wanted to be safe than sorry."
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Talbin nods when the man explains thier findings of the cellar: "Doesn't sound like a big problem indeed. I suppose there isn't any good reason why i can't help you out with this. What kind of agreement do you have in mind? Do you want me to map the area below? Or just look around to see if there is anything dangerous in there?"
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"Yes, indeed, a map and a good examination - make sure its clear of pests. As for our agreement, I am a merchant and as you can tell a good one. I wont try to raven you down or pretend like I dont have the money. I've never agreed with that kind of tactic when one deals in specialized services." The elder Greaves inflection leaves no doubt in your mind that he has used such services before.
"I'm willing to offer you a flat fee of 100 gold coins, with you keeping nothing recovered from below, or no fee, and you get your keep of anything non magical you find below, to a value of 500 gold coins in total. Best of all, I see no reason for EITHER of us to report this job to the guild. Its not like THEY'RE the ones out here, right?"
"Oh, and one more thing. I'll throw in this healing draught regardless of which one you choose, just in case something down there DOES get the jump on you. So young Master Talbin, do we have a deal?"
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"Yes, with a place like this a story depicting you as a poor man would be hard to beleive. Even if you inherited it. Anyhow, so you wish me to make a map and clear it of any 'pests' there may be down there. I think that should be feasable. But if the pests down there turn out to be more than this halfling can handle i'll be out of there faster than you can say 'binding contract'. I am not a coward, but i do value my ability to breathe. As for the payment. I think i'll take my chances with anything i may find down there. A fixed price does take the fun out of it! I will need some exta equipment and i rather think it shouldn't be on my tab. So if you would be so kind to supply with a few things, none which can't be bought at the local general store, i'd say we have outselves a deal!"
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"Oh, Im sure we can come to SOME arrangement. What were you looking for?"
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"Oh i just need some basic supplies, like a good lantern, a length of rope. I'd be happy to go by the store myself, maybe along with one of your... assistants, and pick it up. Maybe you have some of those things here already, which would save me, us, the trip."
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"Caldor" Greaves yelled back up the stairs. "Fetch a lantern, 3 pints of oil and a coil of rope from the barn."
An anonymous voice from the kitchen above barked an acknowledgement, and the sound of footfalls on the floor above was quickly evident. Greaves, left alone in the silence with Talbin found himself nervously looking down into the hole. After a few minutes the same man who had been standing at the entrance earlier appeared, toting a small sack. "It is all here sir." he replied. It was obvious that he had hurried.
"Very good" Greaves responded, taking the sack in one hand and passing it over to Talbin. "Now, if there is nothing else."
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"Ah, well, i think we about have it all, yes. I'll start with a investigation to make sure nothing is down there. After i'm sure it's empty, i'll be mapping it." Talbin starts checking straps on his equipment, shifting some things between pockts and discarding other things alltogether. "I have some things with me which i don's expect to be using down there. Could you keep them somewhere untill i'm finished?"
After Talbin sorted out his things he adresses Greaves with a big smile "Okay! all ready to go! You might want to keep some folk posted here in case anything decides to take a run out of the place".
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"Well, you can place it there. It is a good a place as any. No one else will be here while you are gone. If you are not finished within the day though you should come back and let us know what you have found and that you are still alright." Greaves replies, his voice growing in obvious excitement to see you on your way.
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After shifting some more gear Talbin straps is backpack on his back, sets his spear aside and adresses Greaves one more time "Well, i'll be off then! I'll be back up within the day, probably even sooner. Maybe to have lunch."With that said he fills the lantern, lights it and sets off to the trapdoor. He inspects it for anything out of the ordinary. If he finds nothing suspicious he descends into it.
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As the light shines down into the hole Talbin gets his first REALLY good look at the room (or at least part of it) below. The floor is level and obviously carved from the same stone that is visible here in the cellar. The floor appears to be dry and dusty, with no obvious signs of recent movement. An inky blackness just visible because of your shorter height suggests a tunnel heading off to the north from the room. The stairs, grey with age, look far more deteriorated than they did when just the torch light was flickering. You doubt with the equipment you have on that they would withstand your weight.
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"Hmmm, yes, well, time seem to have gotten the best of these stairs. Do you think you could muster another piece of rope? It doen's have to be as long as this one. A good 20 feet will do. I want to tie it to something up here so i can climb down, and back up offcourse. You can put -replace these stairs- on top of you list"
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"Oh you think so" Greaves replied, leaning his sizeable girth out over the trap door in an attempt to examine the stairs. "Well, certainly a good thing that the boy and I didnt take to investigating this ourselves. I can tell already this is going to be a good decision."
Once again he called to the top of the stairs, and once again the footfalls above could be heard. In short order another section of rope was recovered from the barn, and tied to a beam there in the basement. Greaves, not waiting for any insight from the rogue, tossed the rope down the hole. It landed on the stairs, cascading down and kicking up dust as it went, before finally coming to a rest on the floor.
"Im so excited."
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"Ah, just what i needed indeed!" Talbin says when the rope returns. After it has been knotted to the beam he walks to the beam to inspect the knot. Then he sees the man throw down the rope and he quickly grabs the rope and pulls it up again "Easy does it sir! I'd like to tie some knots in it to make for a more easy climb" After Talbin inspected the knot at the beam, he ties some simple knots in the rope to make climbing it easier. "Well that's all for preperations! I'll be really going down now! Fingers crossed!" He adds to join the man in his excitement.
After that all said and done, Talbin starts descending down the rope. When he reaches the bottom he takes a good look around.
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Your lantern fills this small entry chamber with light from corner to corner. The room is perhaps 15 feet square and at first glance doesn’t appear to have anything of value. A rotting stench emanates from a pile of holey sacks in the far right corner. Other than the stairs where you descended, a single 5 ft wide corridor leading away to the north appears to be the only exit.
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Talbin, with sword in one hand and lantern in the other crosses the short distance to where the mouldering sacks lie waiting, his feet kicking up dust as he goes. With the flick of his wrist he pokes at the old sacks, and instantly dust and powder explode into the air.
(erm, dramatic pause.
)
After a few moments of holding his breath though Talbin decides the powder is nothing but dust and harmless trapped gases, and sets about giving the sacks a more thorough search. His roguish instinct is soon rewarded when he discovers a small metal key.
From this vantage point the hall leading north is much more visible in the light of the lantern. It seems to extend about 10 feet before coming to a door. Of much more interest though is the gleaming metal statue (or armor) standing in a small alcove just before the door. His curiousity peaked, a quick glance around the nearest corner gives Talbin a much better view of the hall, and of a second statue (it is indeed a statue of a woman), also sitting in an alcove. Though they are in slightly different poses, both wields a bladed weapon made of the same material as the rest of the statue.
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"Interresting.. this one calls trap if anything ever did! Now just to find the trigger.."
Talbin picks up some remains from the sacks and trhows it in front of the two statues.
"I need some more equipment." Talbin quicly climbs back up, fetches his longspear and climbs back down. He sets the longspear against a wall in the first room, together with the coil of rope. (i'll be doing this more often, as to reduce the encumbrance while investigating).
If nothing happened when he threw in the piece of sack, he slowly advances towards the statues. Just before he arrives on the clearing before the statues he stops. Taking his time to investigate for any possible triggers (take 20 search).
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The rotted remains that Talbin had wanted to use proved to be TOO rotten to make throwing easy, let alone conclusive. In fact as he tried to find something in the pile he found the entire thing disintegrating in his hands, releasing more pollen and dust into the air.
Talbin couldnt help but sneeze.
His climb back to the top for a longspear revealed the merchant Greaves had already taken his leave, and in short order Talbin found a small enough sack of wheat for the task. Back down in the hidden room he tossed the wheat down the hallway, hoping to activate the trap, but it came skidding to a stop uneventfully just short of the wooden door. Nothing happened.
Talbin, being the cautious rogue, proceeded slowly, stopping as he had intended all along just short of the space in front of the two opposing statues. Holding his lantern high he spent the next two minutes scouring the walls, floor and (as best he could) the ceiling, which was about 7 feet high in the narrow hallway. In the end, he found no evidence of a trigger, tripwire, or plate anywhere in the hallway.
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Oh well, here goes nothing. Bet it won't be the last time while i'm down here.
Talbin cautiouslly takes a step forward. Eying the statues for any signs of movement.
If nothing happens, he'll ease his weight down and start giving the statues a more thorough search.
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Talbin takes a few more furtive steps forward but the two statues remain perfectly frozen in place. Over the next couple of minutes Talbin examines the statues, which appear to be made of hardened bronze. While both are obviously of the same woman in flowing robes over chainmail, they have dramatically different poses. Both wield "swords" and seem to be engaged in combat.
There is some indication that the statues might be articulated, or it could just be the result of the way the pieces were fashioned and put together. In any event, neither statue appears to be particularly valuable (unless you somehow managed to break them apart and sell them for the raw metal) or trapped, though if they do articulate the blades could be quite deadly.
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Talbin, being fairly intelligent, follows the logical arc of each of the statue's blades and sees that while one would swing high over his head (if indeed it DID move) the other is low enough to cut him cleanly in half. IF they are part of a trap and Talbin sets them off, he'd better be ready for some fancy footwork...
The door is a fairly simple one. The wood is much better preserved than that of the stairs. While there are a couple of obvious knot holes, the wood looks to have been of good quality when it was first put into place, and the planks still remain fairly straight and unwarped. The hinges are clearly on the other side, as the door opens inward away from you, leaving only a keyhole and a tarnished bronze handle for you to examine...
A couple of minutes of thorough examination of the door reveals that it does indeed appear to be trapped, though the exact mechanism isn't immediately obvious yet. There is something a bit odd about the keyhole, suggesting that perhaps either the key or the door knob, or perhaps both, should be turned a proper direction to avoid setting off the trap.
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As Talbin continues to give the door lock and knob (which is on the right side) a thorough lookover his eye is drawn to a small knot hole very near the keyhole itself. Clearly out of place and artificial, Talbin can not resist the urge to press it in. As he does the small mechanism in the lock slides away, obviously preventing the trap from being activated. Pushing and releasing the knot hole several more times as he places his head near the door Talbin also hears <http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=423505> another mechanism, closer to the door knob, also sliding away...
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That should settle that one! Lets see if the thing is safe now.
Talbin uses his rigged speara spear with a rope loop ties to it, the loop tightly fastened to the knob. In this fashion he might be able to turn the knob by pushing the spear down. (Think the pullcord like the such to start a lawnmower motor). If that doesn't work he just take his chances and turn the knob by hand.
I'm pretty sure that disabled he whole thing. I mean one click sounds like succes. But two! that has to be right on the money!
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It had seemed like a good idea, but no matter how many times he twisted and turned to get the silk rope tighter Talbin was unable to get the knob to turn. The bronze knob was smooth enough that the rope just slid around the outside, never getting tight enough to provide enough force to get the knob to turn.
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Talbin, forced to give up on the idea of opening the door remotely gives in and does it the old fashioned way. From its vantage point on the ground near his feat the lantern illuminates the room beyond. Several tapestries, now rent and unrecognizable hang in tatters from the walls on both the right and left, mixing with the thick white silk of age old spider webs. A long wooden table squats to the right of the doorway you are standing in. The steady light of the lantern reflects against the glass of three flasks that squat amidst a few sheets of extremely yellowed parchment that litter the top of the table. A thick layer of dust coats everything.
Ahead, in the shadows, three large round shapes loom in the near dark. To the left and ahead, a void of darkness hints the room continues to the west.
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Something tells me those three things aren't pleased to see me, then gain, they might be pleased to have me as a snack. Am i glad i brought down my spear! I'll use the doorway as a chokepoint, so i wont have to fend of all three at the sam time. I wonder what they are.. spiders maybe?
Talbin backs up a few steps, sets his lantern down and points his longspear in front of him to catch anything that might charge his on the tip.
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Moments pass, and Talbin hears what could be the soft skitterings of spider legs (or perhaps just his imagination) nothing emerges from the darkness. The three shapes, which dissintegrated into the dark as Talbin retreated back through the door, are but the vaguest of shapes to the halfling's keen eyes. They do not appear to have moved, but it is far away, and you might very well be mistaken...
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Talbin waits a few seconds (1 round) to see if anything happens. If not, he'll graduatly move forward towards the "shapes" ready to poke his spear into anything which moves or looks threatening.
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Talbin ackwardly carried his lantern and tried to keep a firm grip on his longspear as he made his way into the room. Dust kicked up with every step, and after moving 10 feet inside the room the far wall was finally visible. The large round shapes visible earlier become more clear - large casks - placed against the far wall. The room does indeed continue to the west, where from this vantage point Talbin can see the faint glow of a reddish light.
Just as Talbin starts to turn and peek in that direction the chittering of spiders catches his ear from somewhere to the right of him. He has just enough time to turn before the spiders scurry out from somewhere close to the wooden door in the eastern wall...
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Eeek! I hate Spiders!
Talbin tries to poke the spiders with the sharp end of his spear
ooc: initiative: 15 <http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=427908>
attack and damage: 16, 7 <http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=427911>
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Talbin's long spear finds its mark, stabbing one of the tiny vermin and skewering it so badly that it slides all the way up on the shaft. Three other spiders continue to clammer across the floor toward the halfling though...
ooc: each of the three has invoked an AoO from you because of their size. I notice you have combat reflexes, so attack away. When you are done, I'll do their turn.
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Talbin quickly follows up with another stab of his spear, ending the life of another of the tiny black spiders now crossing the floor. Even though his quick reflexes give him a chance to stab at the other two, their fast movements and the jerky motion of his spear keep him from connecting. The two hungry spiders close the rest of the distance with surprising speed, leaping the last few feet to land on Talbin. Fortunately for him, he dodges out of the way, leaving one careening onto the floor opposite of where they were just moments ago. The other, despite landing on Talbin, finds its bite completely ineffective against the leather armor Talbin is wearing.
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Get off me! Get off me!
Panicked by the spider that is now on him, Talbin drops his spear, draws his sword and tries to strike it off him.
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Talbin's spear clattered to the stone floor beneath him as he quickly drew his sword. In his haste though he took little time to aim for the spider now on him, and swung at it wildly. Whether it jumped to another part of him or whether he had hit it Talbin couldnt say, but it looked to still be on him. Meanwhile, the spider behind him had managed to scurry up Talbin's boot but its bite was wasted when its tiny fangs struck out at his well protected leg.
Talbin's face changes into a broad grin as he read the words on the parchment.
It may not be the troupe of adventureres i set out to look for, but it sure sounds like a fun job to start with! It does sound rather strange with all this secrecy, but i guess it won't hurt to find out what that is all about. Maybe i'll even meet some new people along the way, and earn some shinies of course! I better not go straight ahead but make a small detour to make sure i'm not being followed or watched.
Just before Talbin leaves the privy, he hides the document on himself and smoothed his face into the gentle smile he usually showed. Back in the commonroom, he slowly finished the Ale he had ordered from Joe before he left. While doing to, he makes a mental note of all the people he sees in the commonroom, mostly ignoring the strange person who gave him the note.
When his ale is finished and Talbin has a general picture of the people present here, he pays Joe for the drinks and the meal, gathers his things and leaves the Inn.
Outside he sets off in a random direction, looking for another busier part of town where he can settle in another tavern.
When he arrives in such a tavern, he settles himself in a calm corner and monitors the door while drinks another drink. He watches for anybody entering through the door that heh also noticed in the Dragon.
While a few people do come and go as Talbin sits in the new tavern on his way out of town, he doesnt recognize any of the faces as being familiar. The inn is obviously not one frequented by adventurers, as the majority of those in the establishment wear the clothes of commoners and, if armed, are armed only with staves, daggers, or the occasional sickle.
When Talbin feels his isn't being followed or watched, he leaves the inn and sets out to go to the south gate. On the streets he takes some odd turns and bends with the occasional backtrack and dead-end street. After a good hour of criss-crossing town he finally arrives near the south gate. Once arrived there he casually strolls the street, walking like he is just passing by and not having any particular business there.
It doesnt take very long before Talbin is approached by the same young man (old boy?) who had so surreptiously delivered the letter to him in the Red Dragon Inn.
With pleasantries exchanged and after a careful look about to ensure there were no hanger ons the two set off to the south. Within 15 minutes they had managed to cross a stream, climb a hill, and arrive at a fairly modest looking mansion perched high among the surrounding hills.
With little flair Talbin is escorted inside the house, through a series of waiting rooms and corridors, and finally to a dining hall. There, a largish man dressed in a gaudy shade of red and purple clothing stands as you enter.
"Welcome, I can tell already my boy picked the right man for the job."
An ackward silence fell over the group and the man, after rocking back and forth a bit, cleared his throat and continued. "We just inherited this home and well, we've discovered something a little unusual. Can we count on you to be discreet about what Im about to tell you?"
Talbin does his best to keep up with the man while they cross the countryside on route to the mansion. Although his effort is a good one, the man does have to hold his pace once in a while to allow Talbin to catch up.
When the mansion comes in sight, Talbin can't help but wear a small smile on his face. This changes in a bit of awe as they enter the building and he is escorted through some of the many well furnished rooms and halls.
Talbin feels a bit small against the background of the mansion. Though he is used to city life, he never really set foot in halls of grand places such as mansions.
As they enter the dining room Talbin spots the man sitting there and takes a slight bow "Talbin Longstrider, at your service"
He can't help but smile with a hint of pride as the man points Talbin out the right man for the job "I shall not dissapoint you, good sir", he manages to reply before the man continues his sentence."
These guys are the noble kind, i best put up my noble-like tone.
In reply of the question of discretion Talbin confirms "I do have to make clear that I can't have any business with illegal practice, so if you can guarantee me such is not the case i will gladly give you my word that none shall gain any knowledge of this business from my person."
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"Oh Sela, no, nothing illegal I assure you good man. Just something we wanted investigated without a lot of loose lips." the man rubbed his hands together and looked expectantly at the younger boy, who seemingly got whatever was trying to be conveyed.
"If it pleases you father, I would take my leave." William indicated. With a dismissive gesture and a polite nod the elder gentleman gave his permission and William left out of the room.
"We found a trap door that we had here to fore not known. We'd like you to investigate it, at least preliminarily. Make sure there arent any proverbial skeletons in the closet so to speak..."
The elder man chuckled a bit then continued. "Now, if you will just follow me back into the kitchen area and down into the cellar, I'll let you have a look at it."
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Talbin nods as he hears out the man's story. When the man is finished and suggests to take a look, Talbin replies "Yes, well, sounds like a fine job to me! Let's have a look then indeed."
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With Talbin in agreement the two turned and headed out a door in the far wall, entered the kitchen and were soon descending a set of stairs down into the cellar. Talbin's new employer stops halfway down on the landing and strike a flint and steel, igniting a torch and handing it to Talbin.
With light in hand the two descend the rest of the way, and are soon looking at a trap door in the floor. The elder Greaves nods at a man standing in the poor light of another torch with sword and shield near the door, and that man turns to make his way out of the cellar.
The light of Talbin's torch finds its way through the once-hidden opening and into the darkness below. From this vantage point at the top of the stairs your torch illuminates only a small portion of the room below. A wooden stairwell, gray with age, leads from your position here in the cellar to the floor some 10 ft. below.
"Once we found it we thought it better to have someone investigate. We havent been down at all."
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Talbin frown and looks down the trapdoor. After some Hmmm's and uhmmm's he replies:
"Hmm, yes, well, have you seen anything down there? Heared anything? Couse, you know, i'm just wondering why you are so worried about it."
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"We've not seen or heard anything at all, but if you stand there for a moment I think you will agree there IS a bit of a stench..." The elder Greaves voice trailed off as he turned to look back toward the stairs that led up to the kitchen.
"One of the house guards DID lay down and take a peak, but it was far too dark to make out much of anything. The whole place is quite dry and musty, and stinks. Oh, and he thinks there is a hallway leading north out of the room. What concerns us most was the unusual degree of workmanship that went into making the trap door there hidden. I guess you could say we just wanted to be safe than sorry."
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Talbin nods when the man explains thier findings of the cellar: "Doesn't sound like a big problem indeed. I suppose there isn't any good reason why i can't help you out with this. What kind of agreement do you have in mind? Do you want me to map the area below? Or just look around to see if there is anything dangerous in there?"
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"Yes, indeed, a map and a good examination - make sure its clear of pests. As for our agreement, I am a merchant and as you can tell a good one. I wont try to raven you down or pretend like I dont have the money. I've never agreed with that kind of tactic when one deals in specialized services." The elder Greaves inflection leaves no doubt in your mind that he has used such services before.
"I'm willing to offer you a flat fee of 100 gold coins, with you keeping nothing recovered from below, or no fee, and you get your keep of anything non magical you find below, to a value of 500 gold coins in total. Best of all, I see no reason for EITHER of us to report this job to the guild. Its not like THEY'RE the ones out here, right?"
"Oh, and one more thing. I'll throw in this healing draught regardless of which one you choose, just in case something down there DOES get the jump on you. So young Master Talbin, do we have a deal?"
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"Yes, with a place like this a story depicting you as a poor man would be hard to beleive. Even if you inherited it. Anyhow, so you wish me to make a map and clear it of any 'pests' there may be down there. I think that should be feasable. But if the pests down there turn out to be more than this halfling can handle i'll be out of there faster than you can say 'binding contract'. I am not a coward, but i do value my ability to breathe. As for the payment. I think i'll take my chances with anything i may find down there. A fixed price does take the fun out of it! I will need some exta equipment and i rather think it shouldn't be on my tab. So if you would be so kind to supply with a few things, none which can't be bought at the local general store, i'd say we have outselves a deal!"
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"Oh, Im sure we can come to SOME arrangement. What were you looking for?"
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"Oh i just need some basic supplies, like a good lantern, a length of rope. I'd be happy to go by the store myself, maybe along with one of your... assistants, and pick it up. Maybe you have some of those things here already, which would save me, us, the trip."
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"Caldor" Greaves yelled back up the stairs. "Fetch a lantern, 3 pints of oil and a coil of rope from the barn."
An anonymous voice from the kitchen above barked an acknowledgement, and the sound of footfalls on the floor above was quickly evident. Greaves, left alone in the silence with Talbin found himself nervously looking down into the hole. After a few minutes the same man who had been standing at the entrance earlier appeared, toting a small sack. "It is all here sir." he replied. It was obvious that he had hurried.
"Very good" Greaves responded, taking the sack in one hand and passing it over to Talbin. "Now, if there is nothing else."
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"Ah, well, i think we about have it all, yes. I'll start with a investigation to make sure nothing is down there. After i'm sure it's empty, i'll be mapping it." Talbin starts checking straps on his equipment, shifting some things between pockts and discarding other things alltogether. "I have some things with me which i don's expect to be using down there. Could you keep them somewhere untill i'm finished?"
After Talbin sorted out his things he adresses Greaves with a big smile "Okay! all ready to go! You might want to keep some folk posted here in case anything decides to take a run out of the place".
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"Well, you can place it there. It is a good a place as any. No one else will be here while you are gone. If you are not finished within the day though you should come back and let us know what you have found and that you are still alright." Greaves replies, his voice growing in obvious excitement to see you on your way.
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After shifting some more gear Talbin straps is backpack on his back, sets his spear aside and adresses Greaves one more time "Well, i'll be off then! I'll be back up within the day, probably even sooner. Maybe to have lunch."With that said he fills the lantern, lights it and sets off to the trapdoor. He inspects it for anything out of the ordinary. If he finds nothing suspicious he descends into it.
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As the light shines down into the hole Talbin gets his first REALLY good look at the room (or at least part of it) below. The floor is level and obviously carved from the same stone that is visible here in the cellar. The floor appears to be dry and dusty, with no obvious signs of recent movement. An inky blackness just visible because of your shorter height suggests a tunnel heading off to the north from the room. The stairs, grey with age, look far more deteriorated than they did when just the torch light was flickering. You doubt with the equipment you have on that they would withstand your weight.
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"Hmmm, yes, well, time seem to have gotten the best of these stairs. Do you think you could muster another piece of rope? It doen's have to be as long as this one. A good 20 feet will do. I want to tie it to something up here so i can climb down, and back up offcourse. You can put -replace these stairs- on top of you list"
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"Oh you think so" Greaves replied, leaning his sizeable girth out over the trap door in an attempt to examine the stairs. "Well, certainly a good thing that the boy and I didnt take to investigating this ourselves. I can tell already this is going to be a good decision."
Once again he called to the top of the stairs, and once again the footfalls above could be heard. In short order another section of rope was recovered from the barn, and tied to a beam there in the basement. Greaves, not waiting for any insight from the rogue, tossed the rope down the hole. It landed on the stairs, cascading down and kicking up dust as it went, before finally coming to a rest on the floor.
"Im so excited."
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"Ah, just what i needed indeed!" Talbin says when the rope returns. After it has been knotted to the beam he walks to the beam to inspect the knot. Then he sees the man throw down the rope and he quickly grabs the rope and pulls it up again "Easy does it sir! I'd like to tie some knots in it to make for a more easy climb" After Talbin inspected the knot at the beam, he ties some simple knots in the rope to make climbing it easier. "Well that's all for preperations! I'll be really going down now! Fingers crossed!" He adds to join the man in his excitement.
After that all said and done, Talbin starts descending down the rope. When he reaches the bottom he takes a good look around.
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Your lantern fills this small entry chamber with light from corner to corner. The room is perhaps 15 feet square and at first glance doesn’t appear to have anything of value. A rotting stench emanates from a pile of holey sacks in the far right corner. Other than the stairs where you descended, a single 5 ft wide corridor leading away to the north appears to be the only exit.
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Talbin, with sword in one hand and lantern in the other crosses the short distance to where the mouldering sacks lie waiting, his feet kicking up dust as he goes. With the flick of his wrist he pokes at the old sacks, and instantly dust and powder explode into the air.
(erm, dramatic pause.
)After a few moments of holding his breath though Talbin decides the powder is nothing but dust and harmless trapped gases, and sets about giving the sacks a more thorough search. His roguish instinct is soon rewarded when he discovers a small metal key.
From this vantage point the hall leading north is much more visible in the light of the lantern. It seems to extend about 10 feet before coming to a door. Of much more interest though is the gleaming metal statue (or armor) standing in a small alcove just before the door. His curiousity peaked, a quick glance around the nearest corner gives Talbin a much better view of the hall, and of a second statue (it is indeed a statue of a woman), also sitting in an alcove. Though they are in slightly different poses, both wields a bladed weapon made of the same material as the rest of the statue.
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"Interresting.. this one calls trap if anything ever did! Now just to find the trigger.."
Talbin picks up some remains from the sacks and trhows it in front of the two statues.
"I need some more equipment." Talbin quicly climbs back up, fetches his longspear and climbs back down. He sets the longspear against a wall in the first room, together with the coil of rope. (i'll be doing this more often, as to reduce the encumbrance while investigating).
If nothing happened when he threw in the piece of sack, he slowly advances towards the statues. Just before he arrives on the clearing before the statues he stops. Taking his time to investigate for any possible triggers (take 20 search).
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The rotted remains that Talbin had wanted to use proved to be TOO rotten to make throwing easy, let alone conclusive. In fact as he tried to find something in the pile he found the entire thing disintegrating in his hands, releasing more pollen and dust into the air.
Talbin couldnt help but sneeze.
His climb back to the top for a longspear revealed the merchant Greaves had already taken his leave, and in short order Talbin found a small enough sack of wheat for the task. Back down in the hidden room he tossed the wheat down the hallway, hoping to activate the trap, but it came skidding to a stop uneventfully just short of the wooden door. Nothing happened.
Talbin, being the cautious rogue, proceeded slowly, stopping as he had intended all along just short of the space in front of the two opposing statues. Holding his lantern high he spent the next two minutes scouring the walls, floor and (as best he could) the ceiling, which was about 7 feet high in the narrow hallway. In the end, he found no evidence of a trigger, tripwire, or plate anywhere in the hallway.
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Oh well, here goes nothing. Bet it won't be the last time while i'm down here.
Talbin cautiouslly takes a step forward. Eying the statues for any signs of movement.
If nothing happens, he'll ease his weight down and start giving the statues a more thorough search.
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Talbin takes a few more furtive steps forward but the two statues remain perfectly frozen in place. Over the next couple of minutes Talbin examines the statues, which appear to be made of hardened bronze. While both are obviously of the same woman in flowing robes over chainmail, they have dramatically different poses. Both wield "swords" and seem to be engaged in combat.
There is some indication that the statues might be articulated, or it could just be the result of the way the pieces were fashioned and put together. In any event, neither statue appears to be particularly valuable (unless you somehow managed to break them apart and sell them for the raw metal) or trapped, though if they do articulate the blades could be quite deadly.
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Talbin, being fairly intelligent, follows the logical arc of each of the statue's blades and sees that while one would swing high over his head (if indeed it DID move) the other is low enough to cut him cleanly in half. IF they are part of a trap and Talbin sets them off, he'd better be ready for some fancy footwork...
The door is a fairly simple one. The wood is much better preserved than that of the stairs. While there are a couple of obvious knot holes, the wood looks to have been of good quality when it was first put into place, and the planks still remain fairly straight and unwarped. The hinges are clearly on the other side, as the door opens inward away from you, leaving only a keyhole and a tarnished bronze handle for you to examine...
A couple of minutes of thorough examination of the door reveals that it does indeed appear to be trapped, though the exact mechanism isn't immediately obvious yet. There is something a bit odd about the keyhole, suggesting that perhaps either the key or the door knob, or perhaps both, should be turned a proper direction to avoid setting off the trap.
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As Talbin continues to give the door lock and knob (which is on the right side) a thorough lookover his eye is drawn to a small knot hole very near the keyhole itself. Clearly out of place and artificial, Talbin can not resist the urge to press it in. As he does the small mechanism in the lock slides away, obviously preventing the trap from being activated. Pushing and releasing the knot hole several more times as he places his head near the door Talbin also hears <http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=423505> another mechanism, closer to the door knob, also sliding away...
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That should settle that one! Lets see if the thing is safe now.
Talbin uses his rigged speara spear with a rope loop ties to it, the loop tightly fastened to the knob. In this fashion he might be able to turn the knob by pushing the spear down. (Think the pullcord like the such to start a lawnmower motor). If that doesn't work he just take his chances and turn the knob by hand.
I'm pretty sure that disabled he whole thing. I mean one click sounds like succes. But two! that has to be right on the money!
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It had seemed like a good idea, but no matter how many times he twisted and turned to get the silk rope tighter Talbin was unable to get the knob to turn. The bronze knob was smooth enough that the rope just slid around the outside, never getting tight enough to provide enough force to get the knob to turn.
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Talbin, forced to give up on the idea of opening the door remotely gives in and does it the old fashioned way. From its vantage point on the ground near his feat the lantern illuminates the room beyond. Several tapestries, now rent and unrecognizable hang in tatters from the walls on both the right and left, mixing with the thick white silk of age old spider webs. A long wooden table squats to the right of the doorway you are standing in. The steady light of the lantern reflects against the glass of three flasks that squat amidst a few sheets of extremely yellowed parchment that litter the top of the table. A thick layer of dust coats everything.
Ahead, in the shadows, three large round shapes loom in the near dark. To the left and ahead, a void of darkness hints the room continues to the west.
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Something tells me those three things aren't pleased to see me, then gain, they might be pleased to have me as a snack. Am i glad i brought down my spear! I'll use the doorway as a chokepoint, so i wont have to fend of all three at the sam time. I wonder what they are.. spiders maybe?
Talbin backs up a few steps, sets his lantern down and points his longspear in front of him to catch anything that might charge his on the tip.
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Moments pass, and Talbin hears what could be the soft skitterings of spider legs (or perhaps just his imagination) nothing emerges from the darkness. The three shapes, which dissintegrated into the dark as Talbin retreated back through the door, are but the vaguest of shapes to the halfling's keen eyes. They do not appear to have moved, but it is far away, and you might very well be mistaken...
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Talbin waits a few seconds (1 round) to see if anything happens. If not, he'll graduatly move forward towards the "shapes" ready to poke his spear into anything which moves or looks threatening.
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Talbin ackwardly carried his lantern and tried to keep a firm grip on his longspear as he made his way into the room. Dust kicked up with every step, and after moving 10 feet inside the room the far wall was finally visible. The large round shapes visible earlier become more clear - large casks - placed against the far wall. The room does indeed continue to the west, where from this vantage point Talbin can see the faint glow of a reddish light.
Just as Talbin starts to turn and peek in that direction the chittering of spiders catches his ear from somewhere to the right of him. He has just enough time to turn before the spiders scurry out from somewhere close to the wooden door in the eastern wall...
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Eeek! I hate Spiders!
Talbin tries to poke the spiders with the sharp end of his spear
ooc: initiative: 15 <http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=427908>
attack and damage: 16, 7 <http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=427911>
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Talbin's long spear finds its mark, stabbing one of the tiny vermin and skewering it so badly that it slides all the way up on the shaft. Three other spiders continue to clammer across the floor toward the halfling though...
ooc: each of the three has invoked an AoO from you because of their size. I notice you have combat reflexes, so attack away. When you are done, I'll do their turn.
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Talbin quickly follows up with another stab of his spear, ending the life of another of the tiny black spiders now crossing the floor. Even though his quick reflexes give him a chance to stab at the other two, their fast movements and the jerky motion of his spear keep him from connecting. The two hungry spiders close the rest of the distance with surprising speed, leaping the last few feet to land on Talbin. Fortunately for him, he dodges out of the way, leaving one careening onto the floor opposite of where they were just moments ago. The other, despite landing on Talbin, finds its bite completely ineffective against the leather armor Talbin is wearing.
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Get off me! Get off me!
Panicked by the spider that is now on him, Talbin drops his spear, draws his sword and tries to strike it off him.
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Talbin's spear clattered to the stone floor beneath him as he quickly drew his sword. In his haste though he took little time to aim for the spider now on him, and swung at it wildly. Whether it jumped to another part of him or whether he had hit it Talbin couldnt say, but it looked to still be on him. Meanwhile, the spider behind him had managed to scurry up Talbin's boot but its bite was wasted when its tiny fangs struck out at his well protected leg.
Hi there!
great job so far reconstructing!
Can i assist in any way?
For starters i'll have to repost Talbin. I'm not sure i have his sheet 100% up to date, but i'll do my best.
-edit- ok, some bad news on my side. I can't find talbin's sheet on google and i don't have the definitive one anywhere on my pc (Murphy strikes hard! i just had a HD crash last monday).
So i'll wait to see if that 8may backup will be salvageble. If not, i'll rebuild and repost Talbin.
-edit-
I found Talbin, he's back in the character thread!
great job so far reconstructing!
Can i assist in any way?
For starters i'll have to repost Talbin. I'm not sure i have his sheet 100% up to date, but i'll do my best.
-edit- ok, some bad news on my side. I can't find talbin's sheet on google and i don't have the definitive one anywhere on my pc (Murphy strikes hard! i just had a HD crash last monday).
So i'll wait to see if that 8may backup will be salvageble. If not, i'll rebuild and repost Talbin.
-edit-
I found Talbin, he's back in the character thread!
Last edited:
HugeOgre
First Post
Talbin was standing at the eastern edge of the room where he had fought the spiders, the glow of his lantern throwing light down a narrow hallway (5') lined with alcoves. Pressing himself against the wall he went about carefully peering into the first set of alcoves, first one side, then the other, but saw nothing of interest but the glint of something shiny poking out of one of what looked to be a burial bag.
ooc: this is the last set of things I remember you doing. can we pick up here, or can you refresh my memory if we've done more?
ooc: this is the last set of things I remember you doing. can we pick up here, or can you refresh my memory if we've done more?
This was about it yes. Maybe one or two things after this which i don't remember as well. I do remember something about a bone and some metal disk attached to it, but we might as well start from here.
Talbin cautiously picks up te package and studies it for anything dangerous (especially hidden spiders!).
Talbin cautiously picks up te package and studies it for anything dangerous (especially hidden spiders!).
HugeOgre
First Post
The package itself is quite heavy, as it appears to contain the bones of a human-sized skeleton. The shiny object, half hanging out of the torn bag, is a medalion made of copper and silver, and encrusted with some green chips in the shape of a tree. The disk is as big as your hand. The alcove there has several other similar bags crammed into small niches surrounding the walls, but a quick check reveals none of them appear to have shinies in them like this one.
