Each weekend, the players assembled to play what has been designated as an episode. Each week, a recap of the most recent episode’s happenings was posted to allow those who have been missing for many or few episodes to get a feel for what they have missed.
Date: September 5, 2009
Attendance: Cindy, James B, Jerry, Leigh
Summary: The adventure started out in Gardiren Castle, the principal settlement of Nephshire on the northern frontier of Kaldor. It lies on the eastern bank of the fast-moving River Shem, twenty leagues north of Tashal. Vast forests claimed by the Taelda barbarians extend north and east to the Sorkin Mountains. These rich forests and centuries of trade with Azadmere have been sources of great wealth for Clan Curo, a wealthy and ancient clan led by the proud Earls of Neph. As with many epic adventures, the PCs came together at the Jug Inn as it sits in a prime location just south of Gardiren's wharf and offers a magnificent view over the Shem River. Trivin of Jasath, the proprietor, caters mainly to wealthy guildsmen and nobles. He discourages riffraff by keeping the room rates high and by serving only fine food and expensive wines and brandies. This day, Leilani (Leigh’s beggar), Marcus (James’s gladiator), Daria (Cindy’s tracker), and Adiron (Jerry’s soldier) are the only ones in the establishment. Annoyed by Adiron pestering, the PCs are sent to visit Velgrid of Kressen to help deal with an issue, which might lead to silver in each other pockets. Velgrid suggests that they visit his older half-brother, who is the beadle in Falkath. Leilani’s connections uncover Velgrid hopes that Narus has made some coin fining the peasants so that Velgrid can get a loan to buy a horse. With a horse, Velgrid could again join the mercenary company he left. While attempting to acquire mounts for travel, Daria heard rumors that something is amiss in Falkath. Leilani visited the marketplace and was successful at pocketing several items due to proclivity for kleptomania. However, she elicited the attention of a group of onlookers, and decided to move along. Marcus inquired with some of his old gladiator contacts about any happenings in Falkath but could not find any definitive information with the exception that Sir Mayald Vobenor is the bailiff of the hamlet of Falkath. Sir Mayald is a bitter and hot-tempered man with a pronounced limp from a combat with a gargun raiding party several years ago. With as much information in hand, the PCs left Gardiren Castle heading north, but bypassing the chance to stop in Tonot, (Leilani’s home) fearing some of the local citizenry would slow the party down and impede their objective of Falkath. As the party traveled through the kingdom of Kaldor, the PCs noticed the signs of Taelda raids, but chose to avoid the combats due to being outnumbered.
Combat: None.
Date: December 5, 2009
Attendance: Cindy, James B, Jerry, Julie, Leigh, Patrick
Summary: Leilani, Marcus, and Daria crested the hill seeing the village of Falkath in the distance. The trio also met another pair of travelers on the same way: Brunis (Jerry), Herras (Patrick) and Cella (Julie). The newcomers were given the task of delivering a letter from the earl’s steward in Gardiren to the bailiff of Tomalla. Once in Tomalla, the three heard rumors that something was amiss in Falkath, and Tomalla’s bailiff sent them to investigate. Upon arriving at Falkath, the PCs interacted with the manor house residents and the villagers. Everyone was concerned that Seld of Wylsen’s eldest son, Kial, has been missing for more than two days. Legally, Kial cannot just leave, since he is the son of a serf and is bound to the fief. After discussing the matter with Leilani, Sir Mayald (Falkath’s baliff) asked the PCs to help with the search. Brunis found that Seld’s two mean-spirited boys were not liked by the other villagers, but Seld’s worry and his wife’s hysterical grief for them caused most of them to believe this is more than a practical joke or a case of a runaway serf. Questioning the serfs and Narus the beadle revealed that, in the past several days, most of Falkath’s lands have been searched. When the party asked about the nearby caves, it was revealed the Moaning Mouth Cave is often avoided because restless spirits watch over the place. Wanting to be doubly sure, the party briefly searched out the small village again for any clues to Kial’s disappearance, learning a traveling laborer/peddler named Tarwal was seen bathing in Falka’s Pond, but he seemed to disappear soon after he was noticed. Some of the PCs wondered if there was a connection to Kial’s disappearance, and the area in and around the pond was explored, though neither person was found. Cella happened to find two recently emptied wineskins along with tracks leading to the nearby caves, confirming that Tarwal might be involved in Kial’s disappearance. Reporting back to the Sir Mayald, Narus convinced the baliff to help outfit the party with several items (to keep if the boy is found) and allowed them to leave their unneeded equipment in the manor house barn. Access to the cave was difficult since then entrance lay on a steep hillside, but the PCs climbed down to the limestone cave entrance. Moving into the dark cave with torches, Herras stumbled upon some fungi which interested him, spewing green acidic pus into the area causing a quick retreat. However, skittering noises were heard ahead.
Combat: None.
Date: December 18, 2009
Attendance: Brett, Cindy, James B, Jason, Jerry, Julie, Leigh, Patrick
Summary: Patching themselves up from the acid spewing mushrooms, Brunis listened earnestly into the cavern, hearing noises but only seeing a very narrow (2 feet across) passage ahead. Fearful with only a 6-foot overhead, the PCs were overly cautious of moving through this area, worried about more mushrooms or even the skittering noises heard previously. Finally making it through, the next area provided a sinkhole which Herras nearly fell into the 25-foot drop. As the party continued, Daria spied a set of worn runes carved about 4 feet off the ground. Cella recognized the script as Khuzdul (dwarvish), and though she could not read the script, she felt it was nothing sinister nor foreboding. Crawling on their hands and knees through other parts of the cave, Marcus and Brunis struggled to move their larger frames thought this area, slowing the PCs were paranoid of the unnatural noises echoing through the complex. As the party traveled further into the complex, Leilani recognized slivers of copper along the way, and combined with the timbers found, concluded the Moaning Mouth Cave was an ancient Khuzdul copper mine. Stopping to catch their collective breathes, the party was set upon by two chittering Vlasta (a.k.a. Eaters of Eyes). Both creatures were only 18 inches tall, but Brunis became concerned when both creatures leapt forward 20 feet to engage the party. Vlasta attack large victims by leaping at the face and eyes, trying to blind them. Despite their dangerous ferocity, they were fragile creatures and their hollow bones broke easily when hit, and both creatures died quickly. Herras did not miss a beat, moving farther down the cave complex, but coming to the end rather quickly. The rest of the party joined him and decided to search the area with Daria and Leilani finding a very well crafted (but hidden) Khuzdul stone door. Marcus and Brunis chose to force the door, finding it not barred but impeded by a yelping human on the other side. Upon entering the room, the party found Tarwal flashing a sinister looking dagger, alternating between the party and a bound Kial. The two warriors rushed Tarwal who quickly capitulated, claiming the dagger forced him to kidnap Kial. Not wanting anyone to touch a questionable dagger, Cella recognized the weapon as Gashrul’s Blade, a cursed dagger when held causes the compulsion to kill other humans. With Tarwal in tow, the PCs left the cavern to turn the peddler over to Sir Mayald.
Combat: Two Vlasta were killed, but Tarwal was taken alive after a brief show of force.
Date: August 28, 2010
Attendance: Brett, James B, Jerry, Leigh
Summary: As character sheets were dusted off, the party found themselves with their prisoner, Tarwal the peddler, in hand in front of Sir Mayald. Although the PCs had completed the previous adventure, the party had some decisions to make regarding the aftermath: dealing with Tarwal. The easy solution was to have Sir Mayald execute him and be done with it, but the PCs did bring up the fact he was under a sinister influence (Gashrul’s Blade) and was not in control of his faculties. The issue boiled down to there was no place for Sir Mayald to hold him as prisoner, if execution was to be declined. After most of the party was able to share their wisdom on the matter, Sir Mayald charged the party to take Tarwal to Tonot so Baron Uthris Pierstel could pass judgment on the matter; Leilani thought this was a cop-out. Sir Mayald allowed the active party members to keep the items which they borrowed from the village stores as payment for escorting Tarwal. Cella and Herras (now NPCs) volunteered to take Gashrul’s Blade to a nearby Peoni religious site, where Cella felt the holy men would be able to destroy the cursed blade. Brunis, Marcus, and Leilani took Tarwal with them, along with Lemmywinks the toy maker (Brett’s PC) who had been staying in Falkath with family. Tarwal made no struggle while travelling (except for constantly begging to be released), and the travel was smooth, until Marcus spied an overturned wagon in the road with a child’s cry heard in the distance. As the party moved up, the PCs found two gargun throwing rocks at a child attempting to hide in the upper boughs of a large tree. Reacting quickly, the party slew the gargun without issue, then coaxed the boy down and out of the tree. A quick interview of the child informed the party that Colrin (age 12) took shelter in the tree after a band of gargun had ambushed the wagon holding Colrin and his sister, Cayle (age 14). Brunis found easy tracks and the party followed the trail to a nearby gargun camp where the PCs found the wagon supplies along with a bound Cayle. Using more guile than in their last encounter, the PCs outflanked the unawares seven gargun, with Brunis and Marcus initiating the combat. The combat did not end as swiftly as when dealing with the two gargun tormenting Colrin, but the gargun were defeated with minimal wounding to the party. The siblings were reunited, their wagon and good restored to them, and the party accompanied the youths to Tonot.
Combat: Two Gargu-hyeka were killed with an additional seven killed while saving Cayle.
Date: September 4, 2010
Attendance: Brett, James B, Jerry, Leigh, Patrick
Summary: With the party arriving in Tonot, the two children thanked the remaining PCs and went their separate ways with the party leading a complaining Tarwal to Baron Pierstel. After hearing a brief synopsis from the PCs, Pierstel’s seneschal promised that the peddler would be dealt with. Later, Marcus found him hanged from a tree outside of town. Not actually meeting with the baron, but hearing of his hobby of boar hunting, Brunis looked to get in his good graces by hunting down a large boar on the other side of the Shem River. Before he returned with his prize, he noticed signs of gargun and Taelda barbarians in the area, along with the feeling he was being watched. Although the boar was well received, Brunis was never given access to the baron; family connections (or the lack thereof) are powerful in Harn. Lemmywinks spent most of the day crafting more toys, but found his salesmanship was lacking. Leilani spent time picking up different items that found their way into her hands, but she knew she needed to make sure she contributed to her “patch” and pay tribute to the chief beggar in Tonot. Marcus did run into Herras who asked him if he wanted to accompany him to Gardiren to deliver some holy books for Cella. As the party reconnected, they set off south the next day with gray clouds gathering overhead. The rest of the day went with problems, but during evening watches, Brunis suspected several smaller gargun were spying on the party from the trees. Using his spear, he did strike one, causing him to fall from his perch, but when Brunis went to recover the spear, a body was not found. The next day, snow hampered travel and the party relied upon a kindly famer and his wife to provide shelter for the group in their barn. Gratitude did not stop Leilani from stealing 8 quality candles from the farmer’s wife, later blaming Lemmywinks when he overslept. The party continued south, but their trip was halted by a raiding gargun party. While the gargun were dispatched, one of the creatures was able to deal Leilani a vicious wound. Failed rolls led to condition to worsen over the evening. Deciding it was better to back track instead of running into additional raiding parties, the party pushed through to return to Tonot for the town doctor to use his skills to save a near-death Leilani, costing Marcus quite a bit of personal coin as she did not have the money to pay for herself (or so she said). The party stayed in town for the evening and planned to leave the next day for Gardiren.
Combat: Brunis allegedly killed a Gargu-araki scout, but no remains were found .
Date: August 22, 2015
Attendance: James B, Jerry, Kelli, Leigh, Tommy,
Summary: The episode opened in the town of Tonot, a keep of 300 Kaldorian citizens in the Kingdom of Nurelia with a growing village outside of its walls. Charlie (Jerry’s new PC) and Mary (Kelli’s PC) were assigned winter quarters at Tonot by the Kaldor Legion, before moving out in the spring, but also to provide protection from raids from the Taelda. Both party members were contacted by Commander Aries Blackwell and offered an opportunity to earn some extra coin from a wealthy lord who wished to have his family members removed from a questionable situation. Sir Joslyn Marberry was a representative of Lord Rosby Stonewind, who desired his teenage son and daughter, Daryl and Aurielle, to be retrieved from an escapade at a hunting lodge outside of Bekel, as guests of young Desmond Kettlegold. Desmond the Sweet, as he is often called, enjoys the company young brothers and sisters for weekends of enjoyment, in which the families of the lesser lords can gain favor with the Kettlegold clan. Robb (Tommy’s PC) was hired as a scout because of his experience with falconry, as Sir Joslyn indicated the area might be filled with gargun and could be dangerous. After purchasing a cart and horse for the journey, the three PCs moved traveled toward Bekel later finding two additional traveling companions Leilani (Leigh’s beggar) and Marcus (James’s gladiator). Both also had business with Desmond Kettlegold, in reference to returning a “borrowed” gold broach from the daughter of Lord Merrimack. Arriving at Bekel, the party was accosted by the local Beadle (named Bailey) into spending the night, then moving along quickly. Evening watches heard screams in the night, but a moonless night and snowy conditions precluded travel in the dark. In the morning, the party made their way to the hunting lodge only to find several half eaten bodies decomposing in the snow. Upon arrival to the lodge, access was limited only through the root cellar door, where the PCs found a female grave-wight eating its prey. After the creature mentally coerced Charlie to douse his torch and move forward, senses were regained as Charlie and Mary both engaged the creature and killed it quickly. Marcus was able to skewer its mate as it dropped from the roof, after the wing of Robb’s hunting falcon nearly torn out. The party searched the lodge to find Aurielle alive, but the rest of the guests dead. Leilani was able to find the broach, along with other pocketable items.
Combat: The PCs dispatched a male and female gravewright prowling around the hunting lodge.
Date: January 25, 2020
Attendance: Brad, Carol, James D., Kelli, Tommy
Summary: It was a pleasant winter day as Sir Harcourt and Sir Americarse awoke in the guest house of Baron Uthris Pierstel. The former from Gardiren and the latter from Jedes had both arrived the previous afternoon, not acquainted with each other, but both set to meet with the lord of Tonot, looking to begin making names for themselves in the northern area of the kingdom of Kaldor. With the baron busy the previous day, the duo met with him after breaking their fast, and were tasked with the banal duty of recruiting a local farmer to the Harpers Guild, to demonstrate their competency at negotiating with the local free farmers. Simple enough, both knights rode out to the homestead north of town looking to do just that. At the homestead of Fil the Fluther, Celene of Serdica continued to work around the farm, as was her upbringing, along with Ingrid Moldable (a former spear-maiden, slave, and arranged marriage bride) who served as family cook while Fil’s wife, Fran, struggled with stomach issues. As Fil was one to welcome in all sorts of outsiders, Satia-Mavari Ondarn stayed at the farm, using his magics to prognosticate the future harvests. Both knights were successful at convincing Fil of the benefits of the Harpers Guild, but the farmer noted the only way for him to commit was to be in agreeance with his wifeless brother, Fairfax, who had left for the village of Frendel months ago and was to have returned before winter set in. While negotiating Fairfax’s return, the entire farmstead heard the militia bells ringing from the manor, and the knights quickly returned to Tonot. Both became quickly aware of the unprovoked attack on Sir Reynia, head of the local Lady of Paladins chapter house, supposedly by a mercenary named Dafyd Stahlman. Beside himself with grief, Pierstel ordered the garrison to search the area for Dafyd, while the knights chose to investigate the cause behind the attack. Fil returned to the farmstead to implore Celene and Ingrid to travel to the keep area to help as Celene was a “skilled?” tracker. Ondarn was also entreated by riders from the baron, to use his magics to track down a still missing Dafyd. Ondarn put aside his friction with Sir Harcourt and determined Dafyd was due east of Tonot, which put him across the Shem river in gargun and Taelda territory. At the same time, Celene and Ingrid erratically searched the same area, as Celene’s addiction to mushrooms led to a circular holding pattern of following the same tracks.
Combat: None.
Date: February 1, 2020
Attendance: Brad, Carol, James B., James D., Kelli, Leigh, Mike, Tommy
Summary: Although it did take them quite a bit of time to realize it, Celene and Ingrid had soundly lost the possible tracks of Dafyd the mercenary; maybe from poor tracking conditions, maybe from the patch of mushrooms which Celene encountered earlier. Being on the outskirts of gargun and Taelda barbarian territories, the two eventually decided to return to the other side of the Shem River to the safety of Tonot, but as the cold evening was upon them, they stayed the night with a local fisherwoman, Lilibeth of Xendume, who was finding a great success at pulling in the daily catch with most of the men (her direct competition) in town called up for militia duty. Sir Americarse (going now by Arse) found a childhood hero in town: Atilius Merek the gladiator. These two wanted to give a follow-up visit to Addisen, a town weapon crafter, but found nil. A good word to the seneschal allowed Atilius to get a hot meal and a place to stay. In the morning, both warriors left to find Satia-Mavari Ondarn, whom they believed had returned to the Fil & Fran’s farm. Sir Harcourt decided to look at the mystery of Dafyd in a different light, seeking out Jack Ravensworth of Temwalve, a local pimp, whose girl Cinnamon related she had an encounter with Dafyd after he broke off a relationship with Carla of Janed, a helper of the local fishmonger. Ondarn continued to search for Dafyd (and sling rocks) using magic and math, moving down south down the river’s edge. Behind him on horseback, Sir Arse and Atilius caught up with him, and the three decided to find Celene to work with Ondarn’s magic to track Dafyd in the wilderness. Sir Harcourt and Jack found Carla, who was tightlipped with them, but the knight pulled in Lilibeth to speak with a more familiar face about Dafyd. Carla spoke of how she was smitten by the mercenary at first, but their encounters became darker as the relationship went on. She stopped seeing him after their last encounter, when he became too physical while chanting to an unknown entity. She also mentioned when pulling back his shirt, she spied extensive dark tattooing of an unknown nature. Together, the group standing by the riverbank decided to pool their resources to find Dafyd across the river. Starting at high noon, the group moved quickly to the area where Ingrid sensed she might have been previously watched. Ondarn’s location spell finally did ping Dafyd’s location, but deeper into dangerous territory. With darkness falling, the PCs voted to camp for the evening.
Combat: None.
Date: February 8, 2020
Attendance: James B., James D., Leigh, Mike
Summary: With the party settling down for the evening, several PCs quickly nodded off to sleep with four active members making plans for nighttime guard duty on a cold evening with an overcast sky. Sir Harcourt and Atilius chose to split the watches evenly with everyone getting six hours of rest while standing two hours of guard duty. Even with the cold camp, it did not take long for a gargun scout (investigating whom had entered their territory) to happen upon on the camp, stealthily moving in to reconnoiter the smell of fresh fruit from Jack’s backpack, while an oblivious Atilius took no notice. Sir Harcourt and Lilibeth were both stirred by the gargun rifling through party belongings and acted independently: the knight drawing his sword for a quick strike while the fisherwoman tossed a stone into the brush to startle the goblinfolk. Lilibeth’s stone did alarm the gargun (and distract Atilius) enough for Sir Harcourt to make a quick swing, missing barely. Lilibeth’s arrow pegged the scout in the cheek forcing it to flee into the night. Not feeling it sporting, she chose not to finish the creature off as it bolted from the area, but later it brought back four more scouts peppering the PCs with arrows. Full-ready, the party moved to engage the archers and made quick work of them in hand-to-hand combat, although Lilibeth took a wound and Jack nearly bled out. The bodies were disposed of, and Jack’s wound looked worse in the morning light, but he pushed forward as the rest of the party reported they had tracked Dafyd and another man into a cave area. NPC party members were able to connect with the Taelda local barbarian tribe, revealing the Taelda saw both men as evil in the land, and the cave was part of a gargun burial site; prompting the party to move closer to avoid any further gargun harassment. Near the cave mouth, Dafyd tried to warn the party away, regardless of the PCs trying to use decrees from the baron for his return. Realizing the opening to the cave proposed a tactical issue in Dafyd’s favor, Sir Harcourt proposed using small bonfires make just outside the cave opening to smoke the two men out. Working collaboratively, the PCs gathered enough wood, setting two fires ablaze with their stores of oil. Realizing their situation was bleak, both Dafyd and his ally burst from the cage and engaged the PCs. While Sir Harcourt and Atilius held their ground, it was Lilibeth’s arrows finding weakness in the enemies’ armor which brought both mercenaries down.
Combat: A surviving Gargu-araki scout brought back five additional scout to ambush the party, but all were slain. Dafyd (mercenary) and Drunnis (mercenary) were dealt with after being forced from their hiding area.
Date: February 15, 2020
Attendance: James B., James D., Joe, Leigh, Mike, Tommy
Summary: Lucian of Tonot had been around for a long time; some even say from the beginning. His life as a village weaponcrafter was a simple one and he had seen his fair share of comers and goers from the area around the fortified keep. It took the watch bell for the local militia to be called out to find a mercenary named Dafyd who attacked Lady Reynia then fled. With the only place left to search was across the Shem River into gargun territory, a local militia sergeant conscripted Lucian to be part of his squad, venturing east. However, things quickly went sour with the squad tracker leading the group into an ambush, separating Lucian from his team, leaving him to wander. As fate would have it, he wandered into a gargun burial area, after seeing smoke from a distance. The rest of party hailed the weaponcrafter as Sir Harcourt finished picketing the area for anything else that might be of interest. Ondarn noticed runes ascribed with chalk at the mouth of the cave where Dafyd and Drunnis hope to hold out. Questioning Dafyd got nowhere, but Sir Harcourt was able to find more Morgath items from a bag inside the fissure. Deciding to rest in the burial area to avoid gargun night attacks, the PCs were able to make it back to Tonot without incident the next day. Ondard turned over Dafyd’s sword to the Lady of Paladins chapter after noticing Agrick runes on the blade. Sir Harcourt and Atilius turned in Dafyd and Drunnis to Baron Pierstal, collecting favor from the baron, and forgiveness of the debt Atilius had previously accrued. The content baron also ensured Jack’s wounds were tended to by Dr. Kilpatient, whose surgery on the pimp fostered a speedy recovery. The PCs were doled out several items as a reward from the baron, and Lilibeth received that long sought-after boon to the fishermen guild. The next day Lucian and Addisen were summoned by the baron to investigate Dafyd’s sword to learn what they could about the oddness of the blade. Luician noticed a hollow hilt with a strange parchment inside. Also noting Addisen reticent behavior to the weapon, Lucian used ale to question Tonot’s other weaponcrafter about his connection with Dafyd. Satisfied the hilt was his work, Lucian let him go. Later, Lucian became violently ill and struggled surviving through the next day. Upon speaking to Dr. Kilpatient, it was suspected he was poisoned, but endured. Sir Harcourt moved to investigate Addisen, but he found him dead inside of his home.
Combat: None.
Date: February 29, 2020
Attendance: Brad, Carol, James B., James D., Jason, Joe, Kelli, Leigh, Tommy
Summary: There is nothing like an unscheduled merchant caravan arriving in town to throw things into a state of upheaval, and Tonot proved to be no different. Jonathan Hemlock of Bidow was the chief mercantyler of the caravan and wasted no time in coming into town and setting up shops in the place of the unguilded merchants of Tonot. Word even made it to Fil’s farmstead, where Celene and Ingrid were assigned to trek into town to see if sorghum seeds could be purchased at a cheaper rate. Fil’s plan was solid, but Ingrid had grown weary of Tonot, and she conspired with Celene to eventually take what they could and leave permanently. Sir Arse connected with Atilius to learn more about the art of lovecraft, also investigating Jonathan’s wares for any chivalric weapons which could be used for himself. Lilibeth enjoyed her status as a guilded fisherwoman, although the other men did not afford her the same respect, even with some men taking ill. Francis Todd Light, the town miller, was interested in selling some of his honey mead, as he was a craft brewer in the winter season. Francis and Jonathan were able to come to an accord, which would not impact his status with the innkeeper’s guild. While Sir Harcourt attempted to learn more about the death of Addissen, others were relieved to find the rest of Lucian’s search party finally returned. Lucian himself was feeling much better having survived an attempt on his life through poison, and several PCs chalked up Lucian’s sickness to another follower of Morgath trying to clear up loose ends. The seneschal tasked Atilius to go forth and investigate Addissen’s home, but nothing of note was found. Jonathan also nosed around, but it was Sirs Harcourt and Arse who dissuaded the merchant otherwise. Sir Harcourt felt it best to continue on the path of finding Fairfax as was promised to the Baron, and he collaborated with Jonathan to move the merchant caravan to the west after a short week’s time, so all parties could travel to Frendel; the supposed location of Fairfax. During the week, Jonathan used his physician skills to investigate Addissen’s body finding more Morgath marks but dropped the topics as it did not lead to greater wealth. On their trip, scouts noted a fallen tree in the road, halting the caravan. With the PCs volunteering to investigate further, several hungry brown gargun burst onto scene and attacked. Although half of the party was under-armored for combat, solid tactics allowed for the gargun to be routed.
Combat: Ten Gargu-hyeka set up a poorly constructed ambush, with the PCs killing nine and one fleeing. Only Ingrid received substantial wounds.
Date: March 14, 2020
Attendance: Jason, Kelli, Mike, Tommy
Summary: Miller Light had never travelled far from home before, but when he was convinced by Jonathan Hemlock that his delicious meads could be shared throughout Kaldor via the mercantyler’s wagon train, it seemed like a small excursion out of Tonot might reap a certain amount of monetary benefits. Outfitting one of the wagons as a mobile brewery, Francis Light did what Jack Ravensworth opted for, except the latter’s focus was on prostitution. Ravensworth had a more difficult time with Hemlock, having to make serious negotiations with the mercantyler in order to keep at least half of what his girl Cinnamon earned. Hemlock also negotiated to have Ingrid as his personal bodyguard in case of any disgruntled customers. Disposing of the gargun bodies, the wagon train continued west toward Frendel faced with sloppy weather on the rough road. Along the way, Cinnamon recognized an escaped slave prostitute named Marilyn of Tyne and took her in as the PCs learned she was fleeing from her pimp, a rough man named Earny of Smesel. When asked about her flight, she recounted her story of being falsely accused, jailed, then bought by Earny; all which the party felt she was wronged. Light agreed to take her on as an assistant brewer as she had some skills which he found useful; teaching him Lovecraft was only a bonus, then later proposing she he his wife. Arriving at the Laranian abbey of Yaltako, Hemlock started selling to the masses, as the unannounced caravan brought intrigue to the local population. Soon enough, the party learned Earny had arrived with a small group looking to retrieve Marilyn, whom Light hid in his wagon. Realizing that legally the party had no solid footing to keep Marilyn away from Earny, the PCs confronted the pimp and his men, with the situation escalating quickly into bottle smashing and challenges about a duel outside of town later in the evening. The Reblena of Yaltako, Lord Houla, summoned the PCs to give them a stern warning about bloodshed in and around the abbey, capitulating to at most, a duel to first blood. Not having armor, Earny refused to fight with weapons and the party agreed to a bareknuckle fight. Ingrid was defeated handily as the party vastly underestimated Earny’s previous life as a bouncer. Not wanting to lose his silver, Hemlock broke the bargain and stabbed the unarmed pimp, leading to a full melee. The party defeated Earny and his henchmen, tracking down and killing the last fleeing subordinate.
Combat: Earny defeated Ingrid in unarmed combat, but a follow-up combat eliminated Earny and his two guards.