The Marches Campaign

Scott

A week has passed since the arrival of Valcerdies, and life in Tegel Village has returned to virtual normalcy. The deaths of three well-known and -liked Tegelmen have served as demonstrative evidence that gnoll-fighting and treasure-hunting are not matters for flighty holiday jaunts, and most of the village's erstwhile crusaders have returned to their crops, leaving butchery and looting to its customary purveyors. This shift on the part of the simple Tegelfolk is reinforced in many cases by the quietly and discreetly rendered advice of Mayor Ternelmor who, if not opposed in any practical sense to the Curate's goals, seems to have a somewhat different perspective on the idea of farmers and millers taking to the wilderness.

For his part, Curate Valcerdies has calmed since the furor of his arrival, and seems to have settled into a quiet, but no less fervid, intensity. He does rise into a formidable pique when the subject of the Temple on the Hill is raised, particularly as it concerns the small but troubling contingent of villagers who have converted to the worship of Nivatopredi.

As it stands now, your band and Kinfird's are the primary contenders for the acquisition of the piles of wealth no doubt waiting to explode forth from every aperture of the ruins and caves of the wilds. Kinfird's band sortied into the wilderness several days ago and have not been seen since; however, as they are inveterate tramps and roustabouts, it is assumed that they are holed up in some dark thicket.
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The penalty for success is to be bored by the people who used to snub you.

WyzardWhately · (Lars) Joined: 24 Mar 2008 Posts: 260

[Scott: While Lars is indeed touched by the Angels, as it were, I figure he's also a trained fighter. I have this assumption that one of the elderly veteran militia types, some sergeant or another, took him under his wing and drilled him at great length (and with no few beatings) until he could perform the typical tasks of his profession. That is, I assume that he knows how to sharpen and care for weapons, keep his armor polished, oil things appropriately, etc. In fact, his armor is probably the only clean thing he owns, as he loves it more than his own skin. If he lives to second level, I may even feel inclined to detail this mentor, who is responsible for pretty much everything he knows how to do. Except being able to handle the dynamic complexities of the flail, a field in which it pleases me to think of him as an idiot savant, displaying a completely inexplicable ability which could be no more predicted than it could be explained. To the point: I'm going to assume he's got the axes sharpened, oiled, etc., because that sort of thing is part of a Fighter's job.

I'd also like for him to have a personal interview with the bloody-footed itinerant at some point, but we can handle that later since you want to hurry. Perhaps in a flashback, even, since I think he might have tried to do it during the past week.]

A week or so has gone by, via Lars' rough reckoning, or at least the cycle of minor religious ceremonies has come around in a circular way since the day after the great feast. The ringing of bells and calls to prayer seem to be the same as the ones endured or celebrated on that dimly-remembered occasion, and so he imagines one morning that he should contact the others. Hints have been dropped that there are stables in need of mucking out and other sundries that want schlepping, and he's damned if he'll do any of it if he can go out and get in another fight instead. After spending much of the morning tracing his way through this process of reasoning to determine its absolute soundness, he descends the ladder from his loft and goes off in search of the others, Sinlocah especially.

"Hey. Hey. Sinlocah." Lars holds up a double-handful of polished and now razor-sharp battle-axes, framing his unevenly-shaven somewhat beastial grin. It's tough to say which part of that scene is the more frightening. "I cleaned up the axes. All good now. We should sell them. And the little yellow metal man that Bhartec got. Split it all up. I don't like to count to high numbers. So, I thought you could do that, and I could carry stuff."

Bhartec Redhands · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 11:37 pm Post subject:

Bhartec is skulking the morning hours horseless, rutting around in his usual travelers cloths and antique dagger. Tired of the Tegel children pestering him for tales of adventure and strife, he robbed a few of them of their morning bread before chasing them off. He is currently eating an apple while sitting atop of a 12 year old stable boy trapping the boy�s arms under his legs. Bits of apple and spittle occasionally burst from Bhartec's mouth in a mostly indecipherable beratement of the boy. When the boy struggles, Bhartec begins to slap him relentless with a pair of Gnoll ears.

Upon seeing the congregating members he nods and says with amouth full of apple, "Aref we readfy?"

[We need a loot thread by the way, I forget most of what we found. Think I still have that tablet. And half of a copper statue somewhere. Dunno whatelse. Anyhow, I will look more into the tablet on my week off, detect magic, read magic, etc..]

TheMyth · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 1:09 am Post subject:

Kexy walks confidently across the village green toward her adventuring companions. Her face is grave and her often haphazard hair is swathed in a dark green scarf. She is dressed in huntsman's clothes, tan and green, with her sword within easy reach at her side and her bow clenched tightly in her right hand.

She appears behind Bhartec, catching the wizardling unawares.

"Bhartec!" Kexy barks, "let young Master Billim run away home." Without even looking at him, she easily lifts Bhartec off the struggling boy with her left hand while at the same time giving the boy a stern glance ensuring he makes himself scarce.

"Are we ready to depart for our next sortie against the Great Enemy in the ruins?" she queries as she surveys her companions. "I have prepared a charm of slumber to use against them, and my bow and arrows hunger for their blood." Her eyes sparkle as she speaks of battle.

Bhartec Redhands · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 2:04 am Post subject:

Bhartec does not resist but becomes rather flaccid in Kexy's grasp. As he is being lifted he licks her hand leaving a trail of mostly chewed apple bits behind.

"Not that I have anything against you groping me Kexy, but you let our torch-bearer/trap-finder scamper off. Ah well, perhaps we can find a leper or midget on the way."

Nick · (Sinlocah) Joined: 24 Mar 2008 Posts: 121

WyzardWhately · (Lars) Joined: 24 Mar 2008 Posts: 260

"I had a dream." Lars is picking his teeth with one filthy fingernail, and it's anyone's guess whether his teeth are cleaned or dirtied by the process. "One time me and Bhartec ran off. When we were little. We were staying out in the woods, and we found some rabbits. In their house. A rabbits house is like a hole in the ground, and there's different doors in places." Lars cogitates, dredging the rest of the story up from memory, and trying to communicate it. "We were hungry. Bhartec's really smart, though," Lars grins, they had always got into the BEST trouble when Bhartec thought it up, "we lit fires in the rabbit's door, and they didn't like the smoke. Not at all. And we ate them all up." He scrunches his brow. He doesn't usually talk this much, and it takes him a minute to remember why he's deviating from his habit.

"Anyway, last night I dreamed about it. And you were all there, not just me and Bhartec. And we lit the fires in the doorway of the underground house, and all the rabbits came out crying, and we ate them all up. They weren't rabbits though. They were little tiny gnolls, not even up to Kexy's knee. Gnolls have big ears, just like a rabbit. They all yelled and screamed just like rabbits. We ate them all up, too, and they tasted like rabbit."

"That was a good dream. I think we should kill all the gnolls."

Bhartec Redhands · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 7:34 pm Post subject:

Bhartec blinks a few times staring at Lars.

After a few moments he says,"Unfortunately Gnolls, other than being non-rabbits, are likely to group up, organize and slay the lot of us for smoking them out. My personal preference is one of sneaking in, murdering those we find alone and hopefully prevent any alarm from being raised."

Bhartec pulls out the clay tablet from this trousers, "The tablet says a hidden entrance is in a squat dark building of black stone amongst the ruins. I suggest a careful look about the area, likely this building is hidden by the encroaching trees."

TheMyth · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 7:41 pm Post subject:

'There were a set of stairs going down," Kexy notes. "Perhaps the building fell and what remains was the foundation we found. The tablet is rather old and broken..."

Bhartec Redhands · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 7:59 pm Post subject:

While thumbing the tablet, "True perhaps, but worth a look around never-the-less? Perhaps Gnolls themselves do not know anything about it, thus making our coming and going undetectable."

Scott · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 9:17 pm Post subject:

[What time of day do y'all want to go?

Also, if anyone wants to have talked to any NPCs etc in the town, let me know by PM and we'll handle it while all the "adventure" stuff is going on.]
_________________
The penalty for success is to be bored by the people who used to snub you.

Nick · (Sinlocah) Joined: 24 Mar 2008 Posts: 121

[I suggest going in the morning, giving us plenty of time to look around the ruins why we can still see.]

"I like Bhartecs idea best. We should probably scout around the ruins first and see if we can't get a lay of the land. If we go down one of these rabbit holes and find another way up it would be good to have an idea where we are."

Bhartec Redhands · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 10:04 pm Post subject:

[Sure, morning daylight would be best]

WyzardWhately · (Lars) Joined: 24 Mar 2008 Posts: 260

Lars nods. "Yeah. Bhartec starts all the best trouble. Let's look for the building."

TheMyth · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 10:57 pm Post subject:

"Then let us away!" Kexy exhorts.