Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is LIVE! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Of Sound Mind the Halfling Way
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 3583286" data-attributes="member: 1210"><p>Dinner. Sumptuous. More courses than even a halfling can finish. From pigeon pie to braised chicken hearts, from grilled trout in lemon sauce to wild mushroom salad, from chilled fruit ice to roasted peppercorn ham. Platters of pastries and fruits are everywhere. Drinks, too, of course: wines (white, red, blush, yellow), juices (orange, apple, blackberry, tart raspberry), teas (spearmint, peppermint, licorice, cinnamon and cardamom, black, green, white), ales, meads, the milk of cows, goats and rothe, even simple water. Candles light the place. The serving pieces are extraordinarily ornate.</p><p></p><p>Our heroes and the Peachtree representative, Madriel, stare at each other as they chew on sausages and munch pastries. Finally, the negotiations begin.</p><p></p><p>Really, can’t you just lay off? is pretty much our heroes’ position and goal.</p><p></p><p>You started this, is the Peachtree reply.</p><p></p><p>“It wasn’t even one of us!” whines Federico. “It was Airhead Ed!”</p><p></p><p>Madriel’s shrug is quite eloquent. “You took Benjy’s eye and paralyzed Heather. Whether the individual who did so is still with you or not, you are <em>all</em> responsible.”</p><p></p><p>“Most of us weren’t even there for those events,” protests Ari.</p><p></p><p>Another eloquent shrug. “Anyway, it is up to the wronged parties- Benjy and Heather- to decide when their honor has been satisfied.”</p><p></p><p>The party attempts to press their case, and as they do so, halflings keep filtering in. The word is out: there’s a fat dinner to be had! This seems to disconcert the Peachtree, but as our heroes were the ones to put the word out, they are unsurprised. They keep asking every halfling that arrives to pull up a chair and join the dinner, the better to have witnesses against any unfortunate events that the presence of a witness might prevent from happening. Madriel frowns at first, but is soon chuckling at the audacity and creativity that our heroes have thereby shown. </p><p></p><p>Jawbreaker snorts disdainfully at Madriel. “Maybe we can solve feud with marriage,” he suggests.</p><p></p><p>Madriel cocks an eyebrow. “An interesting proposal,” he admits, “one that I will carry back to my clan.” He glances around at the witnesses. “It seems that this shan’t be resolved tonight, in any event.” He chuckles again. Pushing his chair back from the table, he folds his hands across his engorged belly. “Aahhhhhhh,” he sighs contentedly. “What a fine meal!” He pulls out and lights his pipe, mellowly puffing on it and sending out sweet clouds of pungent smoke. After a few minutes, he struggles to his feet. “Well, gentlemen, ladies,” he announces, “I’ll be going now. I’m sure that we shall meet again.”</p><p></p><p>With that, Madriel Peachtree and the bodyguards he has with him depart. The party watches him as he leaves. </p><p></p><p>“No point in letting good food go to waste,” belches Naomi, shoveling some more down.</p><p></p><p>One of the halfling strangers who has joined the party leans over to Jawbreaker. “Some kind of subtext there that I didn’t quite get,” he remarks. “But regardless, you folks are clearly a group of adventurers of some kind, right?”</p><p></p><p>Chief Jawbreaker gives him a bushy-browed look and a grunt.</p><p></p><p>”What do you say you guys meet me for lunch tomorrow?” he suggests. “I’m Finndo- Finndo Hodiddly. I might have a proposal for you.” He looks around. “I can’t take you somewhere fancy like this, but if you want to meet me at the Sea Lion around midday, I can treat you to some fine crab stew!”</p><p></p><p>Jawbreaker grunts again. This time he nods as well.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p><em><strong>9/15/372 O.L.G., 2 p.m.</strong></em></p><p></p><p>Nara whispers her invocation to Coila and issues a <em>sending</em> to Heather Peachtree. If she can forgive them, that’s half the battle, right?</p><p></p><p><em>On behalf of the Flapjacks we seek resolution with the Peachtrees. We seek peace, we seek the Promised Land. In order to find the Promised</em></p><p></p><p>Nara curses. <em>Out of words,</em> she realizes.</p><p></p><p>A moment later, Heather’s reply comes: <em>There will be peace when I have my revenge.</em></p><p></p><p>“Damn,” Nara swears. “Well, it was worth a try.”</p><p></p><p>The party mills about the docks, waiting for their ship, <em>the Promised Land</em>, to arrive. An earlier <em>sending,</em> cast to summon Captain Tarth, should bear fruit within the hour, assuming that the ship ran into no trouble on the way. </p><p></p><p>Federico turns to Finndo. Since lunch, the Hodiddly has accompanied our heroes’ every move- and with good reason, since they will be traveling together, at least for a while. Our heroes have a call to answer: the call of Auntie Flapjacks, from whom Federico recently received a <em>sending</em> begging him to come home. “Are you sure that a sea vessel can travel up the river?” the kobold asks, not for the first time.</p><p></p><p>Finndo nods again, grinning. “Yes, I’ve sailed up into the Lofta myself back in better days.” He seems quite cheerful. “Although, really, it’s more of a canal until we reach the city of Diey.” </p><p></p><p>“And that’s where you’re going?”</p><p></p><p>Finndo nods yet again. “Yes. There is a stolen family heirloom that I need to recover.” He turns very serious; his smile hides behind a stern mien. “I <em>will</em> have it back.” Like the sun emerging from behind clouds, his smile pokes itself back out into view. “And if you could help me, I’d really appreciate it!”</p><p></p><p>“Look!” cries Nara suddenly, pointing out across the harbor. Though their short stature prevents them from seeing over much cover, by moving about and craning their necks, our heroes can make out the form of their approaching ship. Collectively, they smile. </p><p></p><p>“Well, we told you over lunch that we’d help you,” Naomi reminds Finndo. “We’re all halflings, after all.”</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Soon they are back aboard their vessel. Captain Tarth nods at their new acquaintance; one can almost hear the mental sigh she heaves at having yet another halfling mouth to feed. When she hears their plan, though, she does not sigh; she just nods. “Aye, we can sail up the canal,” she confirms Finndo’s words. “I’ve seen bigger vessels do so before- albeit, not much bigger.”</p><p></p><p>So, for the next few days, our heroes cut into Strogass, the Dark Continent. As they head up the river, they move through mile after mile of flat land with only a few struggling scrubs and weeds living on it. The soil is infertile; some would say cursed. The canal- and a road that cuts rudely through what little vegetation does live here- is straight, as unbending as a brick. Here and there, they pass a small cluster of homes of stone and wood. Now and then, they see another boat, either gradually overtaking them or passing them in the opposite direction. At several points they seem the burnt remains of a ship beached on the edge of the canal. At one point, a trampled area holds broken spears and arrows and several dozen corpses wearing the remains of Imperial Strogassian uniforms. </p><p></p><p>“I wonder how Laodegan is doing,” comments Federico.*</p><p></p><p>There is, of course, no answer forthcoming. </p><p></p><p>The days are clear; the nights show a light dusting of clouds over the glitter of the stars. Up the canal they go, <em>the Promised Land</em> gliding through the slick green waters. </p><p></p><p>Soon enough, they reach Diey. Run down, full of beggars, a ramshackle city, Diey is the capitol of Stempa Province, although Lox Pentor is certainly a bigger and better city. “It has to do with their location,” Captain Tarth explains. “They’re right on the edge of the Lofta Forest. This means they have elves here. Elves who want to accumulate power have a lot more time to do it in than humans do. Thus, Diey is the capitol.”</p><p></p><p>“Interesting,” Federico says.</p><p></p><p>The party and Finndo disembark. </p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>On the way to finish Finndo’s quest, our heroes make a single concerted push to finish off a group of rampaging goblins. The goblins, for the most part, cannot stand up to our heroes, though their dire lion pets do a fair job of both surprising and mauling our heroes. Their leader is a whip-wielding druid, who pulls a number of dirty druidic tricks (such as casting <em>animal growth</em> on the dire lions and using multiple summons), but try as he might, he cannot defeat our heroes. Finally, Nara finishes him off with a mighty blow of her mace. The party loots, frees the goblins’ prisoners, and heads back to town to escort the prisoners back to relative safety. Then they set out again the next morning, hoping to find Finndo’s lost heirloom. As their ship pulls away from the canal and into a real river, Captain Tarth squints back at Diey and shakes her head. “Waste of a place,” she grunts. </p><p></p><p>South they travel, moving days into the forest along the river. Nobody wants to get lost in there! Even so, they encounter a variety of creatures as they make their way along the river. A great plant tries to eat their succulent, tasty bodies; they manage to defeat it. They cross paths with a rather deranged halfling calling himself Strangelove, who joins them for a brief time. They encounter wasps far bigger than themselves; <em>flame strikes</em> from Ari and Rush’s powerful psychic blade turn the tide. Strangelove proves quite adept at the healing arts in this encounter, while the wasps prove tenacious and vicious. Our heroes, however, prove triumphant, and soon they are tying off to the shore to rest for the night. Many of them are fairly wounded, and Rush is in extremely poor shape. The group rests all day the next day, then leaves the following morning. The crew have to use poles to avoid some of the river’s obstacles; but nevertheless, the journey continues.</p><p></p><p>That night, while they are sleeping, the group is <em>fireballed.</em></p><p></p><p><em><strong>Next Time:</strong></em> Night time attack!</p><p></p><p></p><p>*Laodegan had been a human companion of the party’s briefly, long ago. He had been the son of some sort of noble or official or something (I don’t think the party ever figured out exactly who he was related to), and when the party encountered him subsequently, he seemed to be doing well, as he was in command of a ship.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="the Jester, post: 3583286, member: 1210"] Dinner. Sumptuous. More courses than even a halfling can finish. From pigeon pie to braised chicken hearts, from grilled trout in lemon sauce to wild mushroom salad, from chilled fruit ice to roasted peppercorn ham. Platters of pastries and fruits are everywhere. Drinks, too, of course: wines (white, red, blush, yellow), juices (orange, apple, blackberry, tart raspberry), teas (spearmint, peppermint, licorice, cinnamon and cardamom, black, green, white), ales, meads, the milk of cows, goats and rothe, even simple water. Candles light the place. The serving pieces are extraordinarily ornate. Our heroes and the Peachtree representative, Madriel, stare at each other as they chew on sausages and munch pastries. Finally, the negotiations begin. Really, can’t you just lay off? is pretty much our heroes’ position and goal. You started this, is the Peachtree reply. “It wasn’t even one of us!” whines Federico. “It was Airhead Ed!” Madriel’s shrug is quite eloquent. “You took Benjy’s eye and paralyzed Heather. Whether the individual who did so is still with you or not, you are [i]all[/i] responsible.” “Most of us weren’t even there for those events,” protests Ari. Another eloquent shrug. “Anyway, it is up to the wronged parties- Benjy and Heather- to decide when their honor has been satisfied.” The party attempts to press their case, and as they do so, halflings keep filtering in. The word is out: there’s a fat dinner to be had! This seems to disconcert the Peachtree, but as our heroes were the ones to put the word out, they are unsurprised. They keep asking every halfling that arrives to pull up a chair and join the dinner, the better to have witnesses against any unfortunate events that the presence of a witness might prevent from happening. Madriel frowns at first, but is soon chuckling at the audacity and creativity that our heroes have thereby shown. Jawbreaker snorts disdainfully at Madriel. “Maybe we can solve feud with marriage,” he suggests. Madriel cocks an eyebrow. “An interesting proposal,” he admits, “one that I will carry back to my clan.” He glances around at the witnesses. “It seems that this shan’t be resolved tonight, in any event.” He chuckles again. Pushing his chair back from the table, he folds his hands across his engorged belly. “Aahhhhhhh,” he sighs contentedly. “What a fine meal!” He pulls out and lights his pipe, mellowly puffing on it and sending out sweet clouds of pungent smoke. After a few minutes, he struggles to his feet. “Well, gentlemen, ladies,” he announces, “I’ll be going now. I’m sure that we shall meet again.” With that, Madriel Peachtree and the bodyguards he has with him depart. The party watches him as he leaves. “No point in letting good food go to waste,” belches Naomi, shoveling some more down. One of the halfling strangers who has joined the party leans over to Jawbreaker. “Some kind of subtext there that I didn’t quite get,” he remarks. “But regardless, you folks are clearly a group of adventurers of some kind, right?” Chief Jawbreaker gives him a bushy-browed look and a grunt. ”What do you say you guys meet me for lunch tomorrow?” he suggests. “I’m Finndo- Finndo Hodiddly. I might have a proposal for you.” He looks around. “I can’t take you somewhere fancy like this, but if you want to meet me at the Sea Lion around midday, I can treat you to some fine crab stew!” Jawbreaker grunts again. This time he nods as well. *** [i][b]9/15/372 O.L.G., 2 p.m.[/b][/i][b][/b] Nara whispers her invocation to Coila and issues a [i]sending[/i] to Heather Peachtree. If she can forgive them, that’s half the battle, right? [i]On behalf of the Flapjacks we seek resolution with the Peachtrees. We seek peace, we seek the Promised Land. In order to find the Promised[/i] Nara curses. [i]Out of words,[/i] she realizes. A moment later, Heather’s reply comes: [i]There will be peace when I have my revenge.[/i] “Damn,” Nara swears. “Well, it was worth a try.” The party mills about the docks, waiting for their ship, [i]the Promised Land[/i], to arrive. An earlier [i]sending,[/i] cast to summon Captain Tarth, should bear fruit within the hour, assuming that the ship ran into no trouble on the way. Federico turns to Finndo. Since lunch, the Hodiddly has accompanied our heroes’ every move- and with good reason, since they will be traveling together, at least for a while. Our heroes have a call to answer: the call of Auntie Flapjacks, from whom Federico recently received a [i]sending[/i] begging him to come home. “Are you sure that a sea vessel can travel up the river?” the kobold asks, not for the first time. Finndo nods again, grinning. “Yes, I’ve sailed up into the Lofta myself back in better days.” He seems quite cheerful. “Although, really, it’s more of a canal until we reach the city of Diey.” “And that’s where you’re going?” Finndo nods yet again. “Yes. There is a stolen family heirloom that I need to recover.” He turns very serious; his smile hides behind a stern mien. “I [i]will[/i] have it back.” Like the sun emerging from behind clouds, his smile pokes itself back out into view. “And if you could help me, I’d really appreciate it!” “Look!” cries Nara suddenly, pointing out across the harbor. Though their short stature prevents them from seeing over much cover, by moving about and craning their necks, our heroes can make out the form of their approaching ship. Collectively, they smile. “Well, we told you over lunch that we’d help you,” Naomi reminds Finndo. “We’re all halflings, after all.” *** Soon they are back aboard their vessel. Captain Tarth nods at their new acquaintance; one can almost hear the mental sigh she heaves at having yet another halfling mouth to feed. When she hears their plan, though, she does not sigh; she just nods. “Aye, we can sail up the canal,” she confirms Finndo’s words. “I’ve seen bigger vessels do so before- albeit, not much bigger.” So, for the next few days, our heroes cut into Strogass, the Dark Continent. As they head up the river, they move through mile after mile of flat land with only a few struggling scrubs and weeds living on it. The soil is infertile; some would say cursed. The canal- and a road that cuts rudely through what little vegetation does live here- is straight, as unbending as a brick. Here and there, they pass a small cluster of homes of stone and wood. Now and then, they see another boat, either gradually overtaking them or passing them in the opposite direction. At several points they seem the burnt remains of a ship beached on the edge of the canal. At one point, a trampled area holds broken spears and arrows and several dozen corpses wearing the remains of Imperial Strogassian uniforms. “I wonder how Laodegan is doing,” comments Federico.* There is, of course, no answer forthcoming. The days are clear; the nights show a light dusting of clouds over the glitter of the stars. Up the canal they go, [i]the Promised Land[/i] gliding through the slick green waters. Soon enough, they reach Diey. Run down, full of beggars, a ramshackle city, Diey is the capitol of Stempa Province, although Lox Pentor is certainly a bigger and better city. “It has to do with their location,” Captain Tarth explains. “They’re right on the edge of the Lofta Forest. This means they have elves here. Elves who want to accumulate power have a lot more time to do it in than humans do. Thus, Diey is the capitol.” “Interesting,” Federico says. The party and Finndo disembark. *** On the way to finish Finndo’s quest, our heroes make a single concerted push to finish off a group of rampaging goblins. The goblins, for the most part, cannot stand up to our heroes, though their dire lion pets do a fair job of both surprising and mauling our heroes. Their leader is a whip-wielding druid, who pulls a number of dirty druidic tricks (such as casting [i]animal growth[/i] on the dire lions and using multiple summons), but try as he might, he cannot defeat our heroes. Finally, Nara finishes him off with a mighty blow of her mace. The party loots, frees the goblins’ prisoners, and heads back to town to escort the prisoners back to relative safety. Then they set out again the next morning, hoping to find Finndo’s lost heirloom. As their ship pulls away from the canal and into a real river, Captain Tarth squints back at Diey and shakes her head. “Waste of a place,” she grunts. South they travel, moving days into the forest along the river. Nobody wants to get lost in there! Even so, they encounter a variety of creatures as they make their way along the river. A great plant tries to eat their succulent, tasty bodies; they manage to defeat it. They cross paths with a rather deranged halfling calling himself Strangelove, who joins them for a brief time. They encounter wasps far bigger than themselves; [i]flame strikes[/i] from Ari and Rush’s powerful psychic blade turn the tide. Strangelove proves quite adept at the healing arts in this encounter, while the wasps prove tenacious and vicious. Our heroes, however, prove triumphant, and soon they are tying off to the shore to rest for the night. Many of them are fairly wounded, and Rush is in extremely poor shape. The group rests all day the next day, then leaves the following morning. The crew have to use poles to avoid some of the river’s obstacles; but nevertheless, the journey continues. That night, while they are sleeping, the group is [i]fireballed.[/i] [i][b]Next Time:[/b][/i][b][/b] Night time attack! *Laodegan had been a human companion of the party’s briefly, long ago. He had been the son of some sort of noble or official or something (I don’t think the party ever figured out exactly who he was related to), and when the party encountered him subsequently, he seemed to be doing well, as he was in command of a ship. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Of Sound Mind the Halfling Way
Top