The party finished up the partial liberation of a minor farming village on the outskirts of Cyril’s Rest, gets mangled in the process, and meets an old pal.
Archive for the ‘Adventure Logs’ Category
The party delivers a wayward message, is reunited with Andreas Jameson, Jonn Sterling and Gilikan Plough, and leaves one of them behind with the enemy as the Jameson household is rescued.
Paused after part 1 of what could be a long hunt and kill session in a peaceful suburb of Cyril’s Rest.
Much belated. I was going to do a full writeup because it was just so absurd it probably deserved one, but something is better than nothing. Also, I don’t have 16 hours to do it justice in recap form.
This is late, and it’s not a chronicle. I’ve been way too busy actually writing the campaign materials and working on MapTool to do long summaries. Oh well.
Lord Andreas Jameson spoke in hushed tones to Lord Spaulding, Reed and Nan, a short distance away from the rest of their group. “The current power structure in Cago and its territories is based, as you are probably all-too aware, on the cultural hegemony established by the first Nats to settle the area, and even today a relatively small population of the descendants of those noble houses, including mine and Lord Spaulding’s. To be fair, it has been beneficial for the indigenous humans and moragi, who have received better organization, technology, irrigation, and of course the repulsion of the Cromen shortly after the Nat settlement. Still, there remains some tension about the sovereignty of the noble houses.
“In my travels, I came to learn some things which would be disturbing to the Council. Firstly, that the Cromen are in all likelihood returning to Cago, and soon.”
“Aha!” exclaimed Spaulding, no doubt seeing an invasion of barbarous cannibals as an excellent opportunity for swashbuckling adventure. Nan and Reed looked a bit less thrilled about such a prospect for some strange reason.
The party had two days in Cyril’s Rest in order to prepare for their journey with the younger Lord Jameson, and spent it predictably wisely: Lord Spaulding proceeded to chat up the local townsfolk, asking them ever so politely whether or not they expected to be devoured when this rumored Cromen invasion came to their lands; Nan found a card game where she was able to cheat her hosts out of money; and Reed, desiring to learn more about this strange game of placards, lost his entire stake from Nan in about an hour, negating her winnings, primarily since he had not yet properly internalized the concept of “folding.” In the meantime, Andreas Jameson had been unsuccessful in recruiting men at arms for his trip, owing largely to the fact that much of his father’s garrison had been deployed to the north, but Bailiff Gilikan Plough and his grunty manservant Bird were able to accompany him. Finally, after two days of this nonsense, they set out.
A couple day’s travel brought them to the crossroads town of Wooton, where Jameson was able to hire three men at arms for their trip, and Spaulding was able to find one Coz Runner, a seasoned scout. After his usual light banter about cannibalistic savages, Spaulding finally remembered to mention that he and Jameson were looking to hire a scout, and before long Coz had also joined the group, which was of course a terrific boon to Spaulding, as he now had a professional tracker who might be able to teach him the meaning of those giant wagon wheel ruts in the roadway.
“I find it hardly fair,” said Torias, “that one so financially secure as yourself should feel free to deprive an honest workingman such as myself of his living.”
“Hardly an honest workingman,” replied Lord Spaudling, dismounting from his horse as his companions did. “You preyed upon the naivete of the villagers of Middenton, teaching them nothing of value in exchange for all they had remaining, even after being victimized by thugs before you!”
Torias blinked, stifled a chuckle, and replied. “‘Twas of some value, surely; I gave them confidence and surety in their ability to defend themselves. And, though I lack evidence, I would wager that the incidence of robberies declined sharply in the weeks after my classes.” Some dark laughter was heard coming from the tree lines north and south of the road, where some rustling was heard and seen as well; Reed and Nan both started searching for ambushers.
Having successfully secured the valuable services of a ten year old village boy who happened to know something about tracking, the party set out for the former campsite of the presumed con man, led by Dupree Carpenter, and including Lord Spaulding, Nan, Reed, Sam, Tookie, and several disgruntled-looking villagers carrying moderately threatening-looking farm tools. As they trudged through the woods and up a hill, Spaulding engaged the lad in conversation. “So, young man, er… how exactly does one do this, tracking thing?”
The boy, not having internalized the normal village peasant’s respect/fear of the nobility, looked at Spaulding oddly. “Really? Idunno, you just… track. Broken blades of grass, moss rubbed off, broken branches, stuff like that I guess.”
“Ah…” mused the nobleman thoughtfully. “Also, you find clearly-defined bootprints a lot?”
The boy’s expression became more incredulous. “If you’re tracking someone across a mud flat I guess.”
“I see I see… so, this finding of bootprints, it happens quite frequently?”
“Not so much, no.”
“I see…” Spaulding pondered this latest plateau of understanding as they came upon the campsite.
Nursing a bruised hand and pride, Lord Spaulding met up with Reed and Nan (who had come down just in time to witness her patron’s ignominious pratfall) as Torias engaged with several of the impressed villagers. Wanting to get a closer look at the platform where Spaulding fell through, Reed offered to help the poor beleaguered Dupree Carpenter in taking down the platform. Reed had some suspicion that the platform may have been rigged to allow Torias to win the match. Astonishingly, he could not see anything that really looked weakened or trapped, despite the fact that he was at least as good a woodworker as he was a physician.
Torias had a few quick exchanges with the villagers and then made his way off into the woods with his two other companions as Dupree and Reed were still taking down the platform. Nan only got a chance to “hear” *… really don’t like that Ess, better get moving I think…* as he moved off, and as this was what a lot of people thought when they were moving quickly away from Nan, she didn’t think much of it.