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Adventures in the Eastern Provinces
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<blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 5179734" data-attributes="member: 1210"><p>Back at the Governor's Tower- which is still in quite the state of disrepair- our heroes take stock of their wealth (considerable, for a group of peasants, but less so for a government) and the magic items that they have. This list is actually more impressive:</p><p></p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Shar has an <em>amulet of health +2</em> and a <em>potion of healing</em>.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Cavemouth has a <em>+1 poisoned longspear</em> and an <em>amulet of defense +1</em>, as well as a longspear made of glass as hard as steel that the group picked up from one of the duergar rooms they explored.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Shifty has a <em>fire beetle potion</em>, a <em>+1 subtle shortsword</em> and a suit of leather armor that the group has been as yet unable to identify.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Karlinden has the party's <em>bag of holding</em>.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Kane has a <em>+1 quick greataxe</em>, a <em>potion of healing</em> and <em>bracers of the blinding strike.</em></li> </ul><p></p><p>Poor Sepia, it appears, has been shorted on magic items so far. The party resolves to fix this at the first available opportunity, further noting that Karl's only magic item is really a party item. </p><p></p><p>The afternoon is pleasant. Though not quite summer yet (it is early May), the weather is getting warm and muggy. As the shadows grow long some clouds roll in, making the evening cool and pleasant.</p><p></p><p>Until the messenger arrives.</p><p></p><p>He is tired and haggard from a hard day and a half on the road. He has come from Woodcut with word of an invasion.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>“A band of mercenaries,” the man says after our heroes have given him water and refreshments. “I don't know why they came, but they rode in and took over Woodcut. They...” He hesitates briefly, swallowing through a throat suddenly thick. “They made examples out of a couple of people who spoke up.”</p><p></p><p>“Who are they?” demands Shifty. “What do they want? How many of them are there?”</p><p></p><p>The messenger shrugs helplessly. “I- I am sorry, my lord, but I really don't know. I'm no military man- there were many of them, too many for us to fight. Several dozen, at least, armed with a variety of weapons- swords, javelins, spears...”</p><p></p><p>“Did they have a banner or sign?” Kane asks. </p><p></p><p>“They did, sir. They rode under the sign of two crossed javelins.”</p><p></p><p>Kane rubs his chin. Shar coughs. </p><p></p><p>“It's the Double Javelins,” she sighs. “Not good.”</p><p></p><p>“The Double Javelins?” asks Cavemouth.</p><p></p><p>Kane grimaces. Shar says, “I wonder what he's after.”</p><p></p><p>“He who?” asks Shifty.</p><p></p><p>“Thannix,” she answers.</p><p></p><p>“He's the leader of the Double Javelins,” Kane explains. “A fierce fighter. He's got orcish blood. I wouldn't want to fight him one on one.”</p><p></p><p>If <em>Kane</em> wouldn't want to cross swords with this man... Shifty frowns in thought. </p><p></p><p>“We can't let this stand,” Cavemouth says. “We can take a couple of dozen mercenaries...”</p><p></p><p>“If it's the Double Javelins,” Kane states, “there are probably more like a hundred of them.”</p><p></p><p>“Why would they make a move like this?” wonders Cavemouth. “What is in Woodcut?”</p><p></p><p>“Not much,” Karl replies. “Lots of lumberjacks and foresters. A few trappers. No sites of real interest, no real wealth...”</p><p></p><p>“I don't get it,” mutters Kane. </p><p></p><p>“It could be a staging area,” Sepia suggests.</p><p></p><p>“If he's not after Woodcut,” Kane says slowly, “then he's after something else. Something <em>bigger.</em> But what?”</p><p></p><p>“Whatever it is, I just realized something else,” says Shar. “Bishop Ulric is supposed to be taking a census of our towns.”</p><p></p><p>“That might complicate things,” admits Sepia. “Especially if he gets captured.”</p><p></p><p>“Or,” adds Karl, “decides that we're too weak to hold onto the governorship.”</p><p></p><p>“Well,” Shifty sighs, “we aren't going to get answers out here in the middle of nowhere. In the morning, we should head back towards Overland. We'll be closer to Woodcut and we can establish some defenses there, in case this Thannix is crazy enough to take us on.”</p><p></p><p>“Yeah,” Kane says, “he would have to be crazy to take the six of us on with a trained mercenary army.”</p><p></p><p>“I wish you hadn't put it that way,” grumbles Sepia.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>In Overland, our heroes set to building what defensive force they can. They hire a veteran soldier named Lentor as their recruiter and leave him with a bag of 240 copper pieces to use as bait. </p><p></p><p>“I'll get you your recruits, my lord, my lady,” he assures the governors. </p><p></p><p>“Tell them we'll pay triple the standard rate,” Shifty proclaims grandiosely.</p><p></p><p>Leaving Overland in the care of Cavemouth's dwarven deputy, Dugan, our heroes set out towards Woodcut to scout out the situation and, hopefully, gain some more solid information. Nothing against the farmer that brought them word of the invasion, but they definitely need to know what kind of numbers they are up against in order to plan their defense. “We should go to the ruins of Thrushton afterwards,” Shifty says. “We don't really have the money to pay an army yet, but we need to get it together quickly. And thanks to your negotiations, we aren't supposed to go back into the duergar area.”</p><p></p><p>“Sounds fine,” Shar says, pointedly ignoring her husband's pointed statements.</p><p></p><p>The afternoon presses its moist heat on them like a wet washcloth. Not summer yet? Well, it's starting to feel like summer. Sepia hums cheerfully as the group moves along; of them all, only her tiefling heritage allows her to be undisturbed by the heat. Before long they elect to leave the road at Kane's urging, sticking to the concealment of the undergrowth nearby. As he points out, the Double Javelins are bound to have scouts and watchers out.</p><p></p><p>And then, suddenly, elves are all around them, bows at the ready, faces grim and silent.</p><p></p><p>Our heroes come to a rather sudden halt. </p><p></p><p>A voice calls out from somewhere in the brush. “Halt! Go no further!”</p><p></p><p>“Who are you?” calls Shar.</p><p></p><p>“You see?” Shifty says. “<em>This</em> is when we negotiate- when elves come out to attack us. Not devil-worshiping dwarves.”</p><p></p><p>“Where are the crystals?” the voice calls back.</p><p></p><p>Our heroes heave a collective groan.</p><p></p><p>“We've already told you people,” Shar yells, “we gave it to a dwarf that claimed to be a druid named Nom.”</p><p></p><p>After a moment of silence, “We know no Nom.”</p><p></p><p>“Of course not!” exclaims Cavemouth. “That might not be his name, and he might not be a druid- he might have lied to us all along. We don't know. We didn't know who he was, we just knew that the crystals were bad news getting worse and he offered to take them off of our hands.”</p><p></p><p>“We may have been deceived,” Shar says.</p><p></p><p>After another hesitation, the hidden speaker replies, “You have cost the lives of several of my friends.”</p><p></p><p>“Unfortunately, your friends attacked us,” snaps Shifty. “We haven't picked any fights with any of you. First that guy Novak tricked us into helping him retrieve the crystals, then he turned on us and tried to kill us. After we took him out, it's been one thing after another. But the main thing is this: we were tricked all along. We're sorry if we killed your good fairy friends or whatever, but we were just defending ourselves.”</p><p></p><p>For a dozen heartbeats the only sound is the singing of the birds and the rustling of the leaves. Finally, the voice speaks again. “I believe you. Very well. We shall attempt to find this Nom. I shall bother you no more.” The elves begin to fade back into the woods. </p><p></p><p>“Wait,” Shar urges. “Before you go, tell us- who was Novak?”</p><p></p><p>“Seek your answers in Dasserc,” the voice says, as the branches close behind the last of the elves.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Dasserc is a tiny village on neither a road nor a river. It is isolated and backwards- even moreso than everything else in the area. It is also somewhere around 30 miles out of the way from Woodcut.</p><p></p><p>“There's probably no money there anyway,” Shifty opines. “I say we stick to the plan. We need some loot to pay troops with. We need to go to the ruins of Thrushton.”</p><p></p><p>Karl nods. “I agree that the odds of getting meaningful treasure are much higher in Thrushton.”</p><p></p><p>“But we're still scouting out the situation in Woodcut first, right?” asks Cavemouth.</p><p></p><p>“Definitely,” replies Shifty.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Shifty is sneaky enough that he manages to creep up close enough to the outlying farms to observe the situation, which amounts to 'the Double Javelins have seized Woodcut and are forcing the peasants to work the fields'. He pretty much already knew that, though. </p><p></p><p>Shifty observes carefully, picking both the right place- a series of bushes and trees adjacent to the farm furthest from town that is still being directly overseen- and the right moment- when the overseer in question in at his most helpless, squatting to answer nature's call with his pants around his ankles. A quick draw of a knife across the throat and he isn't calling a warning to anyone. Swiftly, Shifty gestures to the farmer in the fields.</p><p></p><p>“Psst!” he calls. The farmer looks up, surprised. </p><p></p><p>“My lord!” he exclaims in surprise. Shifty realizes that the fellow is one of the representatives that Woodcut had appointed to talk to the party previously, and after a moment, he comes up with a name.</p><p></p><p>“Bradford,” the gnome says gravely, “come with me. I've slain the overseer here- you need to get out of there, and we need information.”</p><p></p><p>Bradford gives a fierce grin. “Yes, my lord!” he cries.</p><p></p><p><em><strong>Next Time:</strong></em> What will happen to poor Bradford when our heroes (and he) are ambushed in the night?</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="the Jester, post: 5179734, member: 1210"] Back at the Governor's Tower- which is still in quite the state of disrepair- our heroes take stock of their wealth (considerable, for a group of peasants, but less so for a government) and the magic items that they have. This list is actually more impressive: [list] [*]Shar has an [i]amulet of health +2[/i] and a [i]potion of healing[/i]. [*]Cavemouth has a [i]+1 poisoned longspear[/i] and an [i]amulet of defense +1[/i], as well as a longspear made of glass as hard as steel that the group picked up from one of the duergar rooms they explored. [*]Shifty has a [i]fire beetle potion[/i], a [i]+1 subtle shortsword[/i] and a suit of leather armor that the group has been as yet unable to identify. [*]Karlinden has the party's [i]bag of holding[/i]. [*]Kane has a [i]+1 quick greataxe[/i], a [i]potion of healing[/i] and [i]bracers of the blinding strike.[/i][/list] Poor Sepia, it appears, has been shorted on magic items so far. The party resolves to fix this at the first available opportunity, further noting that Karl's only magic item is really a party item. The afternoon is pleasant. Though not quite summer yet (it is early May), the weather is getting warm and muggy. As the shadows grow long some clouds roll in, making the evening cool and pleasant. Until the messenger arrives. He is tired and haggard from a hard day and a half on the road. He has come from Woodcut with word of an invasion. *** “A band of mercenaries,” the man says after our heroes have given him water and refreshments. “I don't know why they came, but they rode in and took over Woodcut. They...” He hesitates briefly, swallowing through a throat suddenly thick. “They made examples out of a couple of people who spoke up.” “Who are they?” demands Shifty. “What do they want? How many of them are there?” The messenger shrugs helplessly. “I- I am sorry, my lord, but I really don't know. I'm no military man- there were many of them, too many for us to fight. Several dozen, at least, armed with a variety of weapons- swords, javelins, spears...” “Did they have a banner or sign?” Kane asks. “They did, sir. They rode under the sign of two crossed javelins.” Kane rubs his chin. Shar coughs. “It's the Double Javelins,” she sighs. “Not good.” “The Double Javelins?” asks Cavemouth. Kane grimaces. Shar says, “I wonder what he's after.” “He who?” asks Shifty. “Thannix,” she answers. “He's the leader of the Double Javelins,” Kane explains. “A fierce fighter. He's got orcish blood. I wouldn't want to fight him one on one.” If [i]Kane[/i] wouldn't want to cross swords with this man... Shifty frowns in thought. “We can't let this stand,” Cavemouth says. “We can take a couple of dozen mercenaries...” “If it's the Double Javelins,” Kane states, “there are probably more like a hundred of them.” “Why would they make a move like this?” wonders Cavemouth. “What is in Woodcut?” “Not much,” Karl replies. “Lots of lumberjacks and foresters. A few trappers. No sites of real interest, no real wealth...” “I don't get it,” mutters Kane. “It could be a staging area,” Sepia suggests. “If he's not after Woodcut,” Kane says slowly, “then he's after something else. Something [i]bigger.[/i] But what?” “Whatever it is, I just realized something else,” says Shar. “Bishop Ulric is supposed to be taking a census of our towns.” “That might complicate things,” admits Sepia. “Especially if he gets captured.” “Or,” adds Karl, “decides that we're too weak to hold onto the governorship.” “Well,” Shifty sighs, “we aren't going to get answers out here in the middle of nowhere. In the morning, we should head back towards Overland. We'll be closer to Woodcut and we can establish some defenses there, in case this Thannix is crazy enough to take us on.” “Yeah,” Kane says, “he would have to be crazy to take the six of us on with a trained mercenary army.” “I wish you hadn't put it that way,” grumbles Sepia. *** In Overland, our heroes set to building what defensive force they can. They hire a veteran soldier named Lentor as their recruiter and leave him with a bag of 240 copper pieces to use as bait. “I'll get you your recruits, my lord, my lady,” he assures the governors. “Tell them we'll pay triple the standard rate,” Shifty proclaims grandiosely. Leaving Overland in the care of Cavemouth's dwarven deputy, Dugan, our heroes set out towards Woodcut to scout out the situation and, hopefully, gain some more solid information. Nothing against the farmer that brought them word of the invasion, but they definitely need to know what kind of numbers they are up against in order to plan their defense. “We should go to the ruins of Thrushton afterwards,” Shifty says. “We don't really have the money to pay an army yet, but we need to get it together quickly. And thanks to your negotiations, we aren't supposed to go back into the duergar area.” “Sounds fine,” Shar says, pointedly ignoring her husband's pointed statements. The afternoon presses its moist heat on them like a wet washcloth. Not summer yet? Well, it's starting to feel like summer. Sepia hums cheerfully as the group moves along; of them all, only her tiefling heritage allows her to be undisturbed by the heat. Before long they elect to leave the road at Kane's urging, sticking to the concealment of the undergrowth nearby. As he points out, the Double Javelins are bound to have scouts and watchers out. And then, suddenly, elves are all around them, bows at the ready, faces grim and silent. Our heroes come to a rather sudden halt. A voice calls out from somewhere in the brush. “Halt! Go no further!” “Who are you?” calls Shar. “You see?” Shifty says. “[i]This[/i] is when we negotiate- when elves come out to attack us. Not devil-worshiping dwarves.” “Where are the crystals?” the voice calls back. Our heroes heave a collective groan. “We've already told you people,” Shar yells, “we gave it to a dwarf that claimed to be a druid named Nom.” After a moment of silence, “We know no Nom.” “Of course not!” exclaims Cavemouth. “That might not be his name, and he might not be a druid- he might have lied to us all along. We don't know. We didn't know who he was, we just knew that the crystals were bad news getting worse and he offered to take them off of our hands.” “We may have been deceived,” Shar says. After another hesitation, the hidden speaker replies, “You have cost the lives of several of my friends.” “Unfortunately, your friends attacked us,” snaps Shifty. “We haven't picked any fights with any of you. First that guy Novak tricked us into helping him retrieve the crystals, then he turned on us and tried to kill us. After we took him out, it's been one thing after another. But the main thing is this: we were tricked all along. We're sorry if we killed your good fairy friends or whatever, but we were just defending ourselves.” For a dozen heartbeats the only sound is the singing of the birds and the rustling of the leaves. Finally, the voice speaks again. “I believe you. Very well. We shall attempt to find this Nom. I shall bother you no more.” The elves begin to fade back into the woods. “Wait,” Shar urges. “Before you go, tell us- who was Novak?” “Seek your answers in Dasserc,” the voice says, as the branches close behind the last of the elves. *** Dasserc is a tiny village on neither a road nor a river. It is isolated and backwards- even moreso than everything else in the area. It is also somewhere around 30 miles out of the way from Woodcut. “There's probably no money there anyway,” Shifty opines. “I say we stick to the plan. We need some loot to pay troops with. We need to go to the ruins of Thrushton.” Karl nods. “I agree that the odds of getting meaningful treasure are much higher in Thrushton.” “But we're still scouting out the situation in Woodcut first, right?” asks Cavemouth. “Definitely,” replies Shifty. *** Shifty is sneaky enough that he manages to creep up close enough to the outlying farms to observe the situation, which amounts to 'the Double Javelins have seized Woodcut and are forcing the peasants to work the fields'. He pretty much already knew that, though. Shifty observes carefully, picking both the right place- a series of bushes and trees adjacent to the farm furthest from town that is still being directly overseen- and the right moment- when the overseer in question in at his most helpless, squatting to answer nature's call with his pants around his ankles. A quick draw of a knife across the throat and he isn't calling a warning to anyone. Swiftly, Shifty gestures to the farmer in the fields. “Psst!” he calls. The farmer looks up, surprised. “My lord!” he exclaims in surprise. Shifty realizes that the fellow is one of the representatives that Woodcut had appointed to talk to the party previously, and after a moment, he comes up with a name. “Bradford,” the gnome says gravely, “come with me. I've slain the overseer here- you need to get out of there, and we need information.” Bradford gives a fierce grin. “Yes, my lord!” he cries. [i][b]Next Time:[/b][/i][b][/b] What will happen to poor Bradford when our heroes (and he) are ambushed in the night? [/QUOTE]
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