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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Isklexi" data-source="post: 6092043" data-attributes="member: 6684948">A new adventure and the wheels of progress grind ever onward. The news in Flint is abound with scintillating tidbits. Benedict Pemberton, owner of the Pemberton Industries manufacturing company, is whipping up hawkish sentiments and criticisms in his book "Behold! Science!". Climate researchers at Pardwight University are warning about the possible effects of increased air pollution on local and global climates; the local eschatology groups have commended the researchers on their diligent support of the end of the world. Scholars at the university are also excited about a recent loan to the Miller Memorial Library; Lord Caliphray Nachtwald, the newest addition to Flint's nobility, has loaned several Elfaivaren manuscripts for copying (many of the books and scrolls are hundreds or even a thousand years old). Lord Nachtwald has also appeared in the news in relation to the resent influx of cheap Beran labor in the city's factorys; Lord Nachtwald has publicly decried the poor treatment of factory workers and the poisons being dumped into Parity Lake, and he has called on district mayor Rosa Gohins to serve all the people of Parity Lake not just the factory owners ("Your actual job"). Lord Nachtwald's public statements have won him few friends among other factory owners but many traditionalists, conservatives and dockers have flocked to the fey lord's cause.The constables have quite a task ahead of them; they must crash a secret meeting of conspirators when they don't even know who any of the attendees will be. Their sole lead is the travel plans of the deceased conspirator Caius Bergeron. The constables have plenty of time to prepare for their covert mission (50 days) before they must leave by boat for Danor. First things first though, the constables want to help clean up the mess they made of the Nettles.The constables spent the entire first week preparing to lure out and assassinate Lorcan Kell. Irony had already submitted a request earlier in the month to have a Raise Dead ritual performed on Kaja Stewart (the party was planning this for some time). Kaja was none too pleased with the Ob for killing her (who would be?) and readily agreed to contact Kell and lure him out into the open. Irony also called in aid from her Vekeshi contacts, securing the aid of two Eladrin arcane archers. Bellicose requisitioned materials to make a tricked out sniper rifle and a Vendetta Bullet. The rest of the team prepped the ambush location and planned out the attack.On the planned day, Kaja met Kell in a square near Parity Lake. The thuggish crime lord was suspicious (He'd been told Kaja was dead) and had brought several of his minions with him. The crime lord barely had time to confirm that it really was Kaja before Bellicose's bullet caught him in the chest and knocked him to the ground. Kirk and Irony emerged from nearby alleyways while Rai and Doran jumped down from nearby rooftops. Irony quickly used the power of her newly acquired Icon of Apet to wisk Kaja safely to the rooftops where she joined Bellicose and the two Eladrin snipers. The square quickly turned into a kill-box with arrows and bullets raining from the rooftops. Lorcan could tell things were going badly and injected himself with a syringe he pulled from his coat; whatever was in the syringe acted quickly causing Lorcan to grow prodigiously in size and strength. The constables were still able to keep the crime lord off balance and wiped out his entourage. Kell knew he would need more power if he was going to live through this ambush and produced a second black syringe; this time the changes were more dramatic as he sprouted claws, fangs, horns and his skin started to split open and ooze fiery blood. Even with Kell's infernally enhanced powers, the constables never let up from their early advantage and quickly finished him off.Kell's guild of thugs won't disappear without its former master, but it will certainly be diminished as Kell's lieutenants fight amongst each other for dominance; the constables have bought Flint's police force time to regroup and reclaim sections of the city that have been awash in violent crime for months. When questioned by the constables, Calaphax said his contract to supply Kell's guild with drugs and potions expired with the crime lord, and he assured them that the black syringes were one-of-a-kind prototypes that would not be made again since they failed their field test ("I had complete faith in your ability to handle Lorcan whenever you were ready"). Bellicose proposed Kaja join the RHC (he's taken quite a shine to the researcher's dazzling gun-play), but she turned him down since she already had a better offer (her criminal record would have looked bad on her application anyway); Cal quickly snapped up the talented arcanoscientist by offering to put her in charge of a manufacturing plant in the city as well as plenty of research funding with limited oversight and freedom to pursue whatever research interested her (research deals don't get any better than that). Bellicose warned Kaja of what Cal really was only to learn she already knew; she had suspicions of who was supplying Kell's drugs and had confronted Cal shortly after the ambush where he revealed the truth to her and made the job offer. Bellicose is worried about Kaja, but she thinks she handle the risks by relying on her wits (plus the offer Cal made was worth the risk).[gm]The actual fight only lasted about 2.5 rounds. The players had been so well prepared that Kell and his thugs barely got to do anything (they were dazed or stunned the whole fight). They also burned through Kell's 400 hit points with blinding speed. I was a bit disappointed how quickly my custom Kell encounter went down, but it's hard to deny the players when they've put that much planning into killing one guy. I also gave each player one success in the Secrecy part of the preparation skill challenge. I counted it as doing unrelated investigations; while Kell was allied with the Ob, his death isn't related to the train ride at all.[/gm]The rest of the preparations weren't quite as adventurous. Irony focused on helping everyone assume a false identity, Kirk worked continuously on the forged documents they would need to "prove" who they were, and the rest of the constables worked on planting false trails and back-up plans. The party has secured aid at the docks of Vendricce, Trekhome, and Sid Minos as well as the Beaumont train enclave. The constables purchased teleportation visas and arranged for an accomplice mage at Nalaam (in case they were stranded in the mountains). The last contingency is an additional RHC agent riding in coach. The constables will be boarding the train in two groups; Kirk will be a Yearosal veteran named Sebastian Ariel who is accompanying a Tiefling weapons technology investor named Nathan Sarcozy (Bellicose). Irony will be an Eladrin noblewoman named Grace Nachtwald (Irony had trouble thinking of a convincing surname, so she borrowed from Cal which totally won't come up later in the adventure <img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/ponder.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":hmm:" title="Hmmm    :hmm:" data-shortname=":hmm:" />) accompanied by an Eladrin bodyguard named Marth Royal (Rai using a hat of disguises; he's probably got the best disguise seeing as he is normally a smoldering demi-elemental) and an Elf servant named Sharm Farmer (Doran rounding out our imagination challenged names). The constables are all ready to embark on their latest mission, and only time will tell how well their preparations will play out.[gm]The players managed to get a full success on the skill challenge which will help them get a head start on the bad guys. I'm pleased Irony bummed a surname off Cal; it'll give me something to play with during the adventure. Some of their pseudonyms are a little cringe worthy but at least no one went with McLovin <img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/erm.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":erm:" title="Erm    :erm:" data-shortname=":erm:" />. That's the whole update phew; I thought just one combat and one skill challenge wouldn't take that long to type up, silly me.[/gm]</blockquote>

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