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Incidentally, for immersion purposes, you can imagine a good number of the people of Sandpoint have accents similar to the English Norfolk dialect, which makes them a bit quaint and rural-sounding. I cannot promise to get the idioms right, but it is more the spirit of the concept of a rural form of Common with a heavy emphasis on Varisian pronunciation. In fact, were I running this as a more realistic game, Common would only be a trade tongue or lingua franca used by traders, merchants, and diplomats; all the commoners would speak Varisian alone. But for story purposes we are assuming everyone can speak Common and that Varisian is more a dialect than distinct language.
You will see by the end of this post that it would be handy if your characters decide to join together for a meal for one reason or another. Try to find a natural way to roleplay it and designate a leader if possible; by default the leader would be Jamir if you neglect to designate a leader. If your characters do not associate now, there will be time to handle it later, but the sooner your characters become friends or at least decide to associate with each other, the easier it will be for me and everyone involved since I will not have to track four separate character actions.
No problem at all with your assumptions, [MENTION=29558]Mowgli[/MENTION]. You played it perfectly for a game with more of a narrative focus. Since I'm not sure which item you were rolling Knowledge: local on, I divided up your roll into bits of info on several things. On the opposite side of the spectrum is [MENTION=88649]perrinmiller[/MENTION]. There is nothing wrong with rolling for each and every check if you really want to, but I am likely to merely summarize results in such a case as I did below.
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[MENTION=29558]Mowgli[/MENTION]
Kelvyn recalls Larz Rovanky's reputation as a workaholic and a truly unbearable employer, although he does make quality goods. Of Sheriff Hemlock, he knows the man is appreciated by the town for his commitment to law, order, and justice, but is blamed for not solving an unusual string of murders related to what locals call "The Late Unpleasantness." Apparently, over 20 people were killed in the incident before the matter was solved (
Knowledge: history for Kelvyn and anyone with whom he shares the information). On another note, he has heard stories of Cyrdrak being involved in a scandalous affair with another townsperson, although he doesn't know whom. Finally, he has heard that Ameiko Kaijitsu is a young retired adventurer and the daughter of the venerable Longjiku Kaijistu, one the town nobles, although she does not seem to be much in her father's favor. She purchased the Rusty Dragon with the money from her adventures a few years back and has been there ever since.
[MENTION=88649]perrinmiller[/MENTION]
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I rolled Jamir's Diplomacy check to see if Ameiko's attitude changed and got a 7: no change.
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Information being Jamir's stock and trade, he has gathered bits and pieces of virtually everything the others have learned. He is particularly familiar with Sheriff Hemlock and unlike Thrindar has learned that several years ago, the "Old Church" as the locals call it was burned down in a terrible accident that wholly consumed the church itself as well as several nearby buildings before being brought under control by the town's fire fighters (mostly volunteers). The church's head priest and his daughter were killed in the accident and Father Zantus, an acolyte at the time, barely survived; apparently he bears burn scars all over his back. As a result the relatively young priest of Desna became the leading religious figure in town. To honor the deceased, the erection of a new, grander cathedral of stone was authorized by the mayor and town nobles, funded largely by the nobles themselves. It has been several years in the making, with additional masons from Magnimar being hired to help speed along its construction.
Miss Kaijitsu is pleasant with Jamir and thanks him for the compliment, but excuses herself politely, saying she must get back to attending her kitchen.
[MENTION=24234]kinem[/MENTION]
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As with perrinmiller, I rolled Nuko's Diplomacy with Anca and got a 6: no change.
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Anca seems to find Nuko's stumbling words a little cute, and she giggles at him. She mentions not having to worry much about bandits, although sometimes folks say there are goblins on the outskirts of town, but she has never seen one. But she soon looses interest in the conversation. She declines to join him in the sack race and wanders over to talk with a young dandy.
The sack race is good fun by all. Everyone lines up on west side of the Cathedreal with the top of the steps being the starting line and the eastern nave being the finishing line. About 20 participants have gathered. Mayor Deverin "judges" the race by lining herself up at the finishing line, and local fisher monger, Turch Sterglus volunteers to bang extra bells in the Cathedral when the town clock strikes Twelve so as to give everyone plenty of notice to start. When the bell rings, everyone takes off! Nuko is one of the first to fall behind, accidentally punching a hole in his sack with his leg and getting it a bit stuck. He stumbles next to a pair of young girls who have fallen over, chortling to themselves, which becomes all the merrier when Nuko falls next to them. A halfling, a grocer by the look of him, suffers a similar fate not far from them. Kelvyn manages to finish in 8th place, crossing the line after several have already done so. Thrindar however, puts up a marvelous performance, racing neck-and-neck with a quite nimble woman who bears the tattoo of a dark-skinned woman (clearly not Varisian) with a tattoo of an open-palmed hand surrounded by a circle on her back (tattoo -
Knowledge: religion, nationality of woman -
Knowledge: geography). At the last moment, she pulls a few inches ahead of Thrindar, who takes second place. Mayor Deverin cries out,
"And our winner is... Sabyl Sorn! Congratulations!" The crowd gathered to watch the race cheers and many rush up to congratulate Sabyl on her victory. She seems a gracious and humble winner, thanking the mayor for hosting the event, Father Zantus for allowing use of the cathedral, and congratulating Thrindar on providing a good challenge.
"And who is this runner up?" Mayor Deverin asks Thrindar as he catches his breath with the others.
"It seems a welcome visitor to our town has proved himself a match for even our agile Sabyl. Tell us your name and profession, friend dwarf," she says loudly, as much to Thrindar as to the crowd.
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Thrindar receives a +1 circumstance bonus on all social interaction checks with the people of Sandpoint for the next 24 hours due to his performance in the sack race.
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After introducing Thrindar to the crowd (assuming he identifies himself), Mayor Deverin says the next game will be in one hour, a test of strength for the mightiest of Sandpoint's people. In the meantime she recommends everyone mingle and try out the local cuisine. There are several taverns, inns, and shops that are giving away free food:
- The White Deer is a recently rebuilt inn with a tavern and dining room across the way from the Cathedral. The new White Deer is a grand affair, three stories tall with a stone first floor and wooden upper floors.
- A particular favorite of patrons of the Sandpoint Theater, Cracktooth's Tavern is always full after the latest show at the nearby playhouse lets out. A large stage gives actors, singers, and anyone else the opportunity to show their stuff.
- The smells issuing from the bakery known as Sandpoint Savories fight against the salty tang of the sea every morning except on Sunday.
- Olmur, the halfling who fell halfway across the sack race, is giving away free blackberries, red grapes, and red wine at the Grocer's Hall.
- One of Sandpoint's most popular taverns, especially among fishermen and gamblers, the Hagfish is also Sandpoint's best bet for a good old-fashioned seafood meal.
- Turch is giving away seared lamprey and ale at Valdemar's Fishmarket.
- The Sandpoint Market is filled with local farmers and fishers giving away samples of wine, beer, raw fruits and vegetables, seafood, and even a few local delicacies such as sushi (made by a family of Tien farmers who claim it is a local favorite in their homeland).
- The Rusty Dragon, a large structure, is notable for the impressive (and quite rusty) iron dragon that looms on the building's roof doubling as a lightning rod and decoration. Owned and operated by the lovely and popular Ameiko Kaijitsu, the Rusty Dragon is not only one of the town's most popular eateries (made so, in large part, by the spicy and exotic Tienese-style food served here), but also a great place to meet visitors from out of town, since most newcomers to Sandpoint come upon this southside inn first.
- While Sandpoint's taverns offer a wide variety of spirits, they all proudly serve the mead, ale, and rum brewed at the Two Knight Brewery, which is giving away samples of its wares directly today.
- If the Hagfish is Sandpoint's most popular tavern, Fatman's Feedbag is its most notorious.