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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ry" data-source="post: 3680123" data-attributes="member: 8314">Problem:  As they attempt to enter the city of Casta, the PCs are reminded that carried weapons are not allowed inside the city without an expensive permit that requires a noble house's sponsorship.  Guards offer to place the PCs' weapons in a lockup.  If the silver sword is placed in lockup it is promptly stolen, but the guards are blameless - a sewer-dwelling wererat has secretly found a way into the lockup, and carefully replaces and mends the mortar between the stones he must remove to enter the lockup at night.  He has been stealing items very slowly so as to make trouble for the city guards, who have chased him on several occasions.Threat:  Yagka's brother, Yupz, is a necromancer gnoll who killed Rorgen Unsbrad, owner of the sword.  Yupz used the sword to keep track of where his brother was, and retrieves his brother's bones as soon as possible.  Yupz, after reanimating his brother's corpse as a gnollish ghoul (advance a ghoul slightly) he swears a blood oath of vengeance against the PCs.  Yupz is accompanied at all times by two undead dire wolves, a few ghouls of various original races, and Yagka revived as a ghoul (up a ghoul's armor and raise all stats by 4).  When he ambushes the PCs he uses scrolls  and especially darkness effects liberally; these scrolls take the form of chiseled wood panels embedded in his undead brother's flesh.Resource:  If the players manage to return the sword to a member of the Unsbrad family, they are unable to provide any monetary reward but the family is happy to furnish the players with letters of introduction.  Although they are not powerful, the Unsbrad family is well respected and prolific - they have many cousins and friends throughout several lands who could be basic friendly contacts for the PCs as they travel.  If the players demand monetary reward the family can scrape together 200 gold but will not provide the letters of introduction.  The Unsbrad's network of contacts eventually hears of the PCs, and considers them scavengers not to be trusted.Reward:  In a tavern sometime later, a large, burly man with an unsavory look and a scarred face bellows "I KNOW THAT SWORD!"  He proceeds to menace the PCs, and asks "Hey, where'd you get that sword?"  If the PCs answer truthfully (that they killed a gnoll), the man's eyes water up, his mouth quivers for a moment, then he bursts into tears and hugs the nearest PC.  He then buys the entire party several rounds.  The man is Wappander, a former companion of Sir Rorgan Unsbrad, killed in a gnoll raid.  Wappander despaired that the sword would ever be found, and had searched far and wide for it before giving up the chase.  Wappander is a 5th-level fighter with an 18 Strength, and he can introduce the PCs to Inargrid Unsbrad, Rorgan's widow, who is coming to Casta to retrieve her husband's remains.</blockquote>

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