The Romance of the River Kingdoms

[Neurotic]

[sblock=party numbers]I don't like NPC PCs in the party, but that is just me. If you think we may need another maybe it would be better to get us NPC healer. The reasons are usual, you need to get 'in character' for him, need to react to those that know him and change to story that he needs to go.

Get us eternal wand of cure wounds or some such (maybe Healing Belt from MIC. It costs only 750gp)
[/sblock]

 

[Dr Simon]

[SBLOCK=OOC]
I'll leave it, re: NPC PC. Perhaps a Cleric on a Stick would be the way to go but, as I said, the Grace/Health mechanism removes the need for a healer somewhat.

As for buying magic items, anything other than potions and scrolls (or, rather, single-use and spell-completion items) are rare. A wand or similar charged item might be possible, though.
[/SBLOCK]

Three Flowers, Annika, Shakou and Mystal Mar travel together to the southern edge of Cormondal, about 20 minutes walk. The streets and canals give way to ruins interspersed with weed and rubbish clogged trenches. Old buildings have been shored up and converted to shelters for livestock, or been stripped of their stone entirely and rebuilt as new buildings and outhouses. The road south turns to a muddy track and peters out entirely - travel further south is conducted by river.

Here, there is the last farmhouse. A couple of small rice paddies are watered by irrigation ditches, and biting insects are already beginning to hatch, even this early in the year. Beyond the paddies, a dark forest of thickly-growing bamboo climbs up into the hills.

You are met by the tenant of this farm and his family. He is the same man that dumped a dead goose on the Vashti's floor.

"Thank you for coming, your honours," he says. "That's where I lost the geese." He points to the eaves of the forest. "Come and see."

He shows you, in the muddy levee surrounding the paddy, on the forest side, a strange set of tracks, smeared pretty much out of recognition, but made by something with large claws by the looks of it.

 

[Shayuri]

Annika leans over, clutching her poncho to herself, and gets a closer look. After a second she shakes her head.

"I'm not the expert for this...but those claw marks look awfully big for wolf claws to me."

 

[Theroc]

Shakou snorted derisively as she looked at the marks.

"Wolves don't claw. Leopards and Tigers claw... if it's a trick, whoever did it doesn't know animals very well, or they didn't intend it to be mistaken for a wolf. If it isn't a trick... it still isn't a wolf..."

The woman looked at the others, before answering a question perhaps thought but unspoken.

"Wolves aren't my specialty... but big cats... I know about them... and this is closer to them than to a wolf..."

 

[Theroc]

OOC: Bump

 

[Dr Simon]

OOC: Sorry, been away, and ENWorld was down before that.

At the farm:

The farmer taps his nose and grins at Annika.

"Ah, I remember what you said last time, Your Ladyship, about recognising the animal what did this. And I realised no-one had ever seen it. So I stayed up and watched. It weren't a wolf, nor a big cat neither, not least one I ever saw. I was over there, mind," he points to an out-building about 300 feet away, "so didn't see it clearly, but it were more like some kind of... I dunno, ape, I guess, but really hairy, walked on all fours but looked like it was kind of hunched up. But the one thing I do remember, it was all white, and small." He glances at Mystal Mar for a moment and continues. "I thought it might have been some kind of ghost. But ghosts don't leave tracks, do they?"


Meanwhile, back at the Narvinda:

Growling Ape finds himself stood at the entrance to the Vashti's temple, with no knowledge of how he got there. Suddenly, Jar'Thol dashes up.

"I knew you wouldn't have gone far!" says the little salsham'ai. "Annika and Three Flowers have gone to investigate the attacks on livestock. They've just headed out for the south side of town, if you hurry you'll catch them. They're with a cousin of mine, Mystal Mar, and this other woman called Shakou. They'll be glad to see you."

[SBLOCK=Walking Dad]
Welcome back, you can jump right into the thick of things again. I've got some comments on Ape's missing hours that I'll fill in you in by PM.
[/sblock]

 

[Walking Dad]

AC 15 (T15, FF13), HP 39/39, F +5,R+3,W+6 (Spells: 0:5/5, 1:4/4, 2:3/3)

Growling Ape hustles to the others, waving his arms. "Wait for me, I will accompany you. There is might in number."
[sblock=ooc]
Spells
5/Day Level 0: Cure Minor Wounds, Detect Magic, Light, Purify Food and Drink, Read Magic
4/Day Level 1: Produce Lightning, Shillelagh, Summon Nature's Ally I.
3/Day Level 2: Summon Nature's Ally II
[/sblock]

 

[Neurotic]

As the farmer glances his way little swordsage inwardly thinks:
"Of course, blame me, I'm pale like. The fact that you couldn't see me from 300 feet even if I were in plain sight never crosses your mud addled brain."

Aloud he says after farmer finishes speaking:
"I'll hide much closer then you did. Whenever the beast appears, we will at least know what it is if not solve the problem."

Mystal eyes unknown man suspiciously though he relaxes as others show that they know him.

 

[Walking Dad]

ooc: Ape is currently in human shape. Nearly indistinguishable from a normal human. Sorry to not mentioning it, but it is the default.

 

[Theroc]

Shakou smirks. "I'll hide with you. After all, you might need some immediate backup, should the beast decide to attack you... if he does, he'll be in for a very, very unpleasant surprise..."

The woman smiles, looking for a place to lay her pack.

"I'll need to dispose of my pack... and find a solitary place to change my clothes..."