Thresher accepts the ale with an appreciative grunt before downing the whole thing. Wiping the froth from her mouth, she turns to the group.
"Well, now that we're here, any of you know anything else we can do? Hopefully something that pays well. I'm not really one for ghosts, but I know how to deal with a bandit or two."
Make sure to update your currency. I'm just going to assume that Dorno has joined the rest of the group in the tavern. Now that you know your options for rumors etc., where will you go? Your current options you know about are the supposed bandit campsite, and the haunted tomb. Neither are terribly far away from town, although the bandit site is further away. The haunted tomb is probably about a 30 minute walk away. It is currently late afternoon.
A few things I forgot to mention:
You also hear about a delegation from Mirabar that left quite a long time ago and still hasn't reached its delegation. There aren't too many details known, but enough so that you understand almost every main faction in Faerún has an agent in the delegation (excepting the Zhentarim). For Alexana only (unless anyone else is a Harper):
You are aware of the Harper agent in this town, a retired merchant named Endrith Vallivoe. In addition, you know that the Harper part of the delegation was a shield dwarf historian named Bruldenthar, who was transporting his collection of manuscripts to Waterdeep.
For anyone who doesn't have a faction, feel free to let me know and I can set up some info for you. Being in a faction isn't necessary, but it can lead to some cool adventure hooks and roleplaying opportunities, especially among characters who are from rival factions. (The main factions, are of course the Zhentarim, Harpers, Lords' Alliance, Order of the Gauntlet and the Emerald Enclave. I believe you can find descriptions of these in the Basic Rules. If not, I can post a description from my DMG/PH.)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
(Thresher, that spoiler actually doesn't apply. Alexana rolled a 1 on her Charisma check . . . It will come into play later, but you currently haven't heard about it.)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Aria stretch in her chair, sipping at her wooden jack of Circe's Pleasure ale and the thick, strong Waterdhavian ale flowed down Aria's throat like syrup as she thought. "Well the tomb is only a short march away but ewww, ghosts and zombies. At least bandits are just dirty."
Alexana was apparently deeper in her drinks than in the rumor mill this afternoon. Nevertheless, she weighed her fellow adventurers' opinions, and added her own.
"Why don't we tackle the local bandit problem first? We have a possible location of the camp already. It can be as easy as gathering information on the bandits, or as thorough as disbanding the criminals and recovering whatever valuables that we can. Either way, I think that our efforts against the bandits could win us favors with Red Larch's Constable.
Once we've established our welcome here, we can chase down other rumors. I, myself, am partial to finding our more information about the long-overdue delegation from Mirabar. It was an important delegation, rumored to comprise of agents from powerful factions. For such a prominent group's mission to go awry is worrisome."
(I'll have to be offline for a while, but I should update this sometime tomorrow afternoon. For time reference, it's about 9:21 where I am when I'm posting this.)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
"Sounds good to me. Once we get back I've got some one I need to talk to myself, or I can go do it now if you want to wait til morning to deal with them."
(I'm making the assumption that you're planning on going to that site)
You start off towards your destination. Luckily, their camp is only a short distance away from the road, so you can follow it most of the way. Along the way: 15 nothing happens. How would you like to approach the place marked on your map?
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Dorno was busy chatting with a talkative little sparrow in the bushes along the side of the road as several newcomers to town came by in a relatively short amount of time. The large firbolg, standing over seven feet tall, had been exploring the forests in recent days trying to find out more about all of the strange occurrences in the region, and was about to visit this new town for the first time himself. As the others entered one of the two inns, Dorno approached as well but instead bent down a bit and peered in one of the large windows. By chance, no one seemed to notice the large face peering in innocently, his pale skin contrasted by a reddish nose and framed with bushy brown hair and a beard. The large druid was wearing a dingy brown tunic that had a bit of a musty smell and was adorned in just a few simple bobbles around his neck and wrists. Armed with only a gnarled staff and a shield on his back made of half inch thick strips of wood woven together with vines, the firbolg often caught people's attention due to his size but was rarely seen as a threat. His large, friendly eyes and big smile usually came with a curious expression more than a threatening one, after all.
Struggling thus far to find out what has been going on in the region, Dorno decided to follow these new adventurers and see what it is they are up to. Perhaps they know things he does not and they could lead him down the right path. As they left town, he followed along a similar path, snooping on them from behind bushes and trees. Not particularly stealthy himself, Dorno is doing this more for his own fear of the unknown and self preservation rather than an attempt to deceive the others for malicious purposes. Surely they will take notice of him soon, however.
OOC If it works for everyone, I'll roll a few stealth rolls just to see how long it takes for the party to notice him. Doesn't really matter, just curious on when exactly he'd make his intro. Also going to roll, hmmm, Animal Handling perhaps to see if the DM has any info Dorno may have learned via Speak with Animals in recent days. No big deal either way, just curious as part of his recent backstory.
Animal Handling: 9
Stealth: 11,20,9,11,14
I don't think Dorno would be a member of a faction currently, but as things progress I could picture him joining, or at least becoming an ally of, the Emerald Enclave.
Ha, based on that first stealth roll I'd imagine the party would sense Dorno behind them immediately!
The animals have told you about the usual disturbances in the Force nature, but they also mention something unnatural about a landmark called Lance Rock. I would assume the party has a passive Perception over 4 :)
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
(OOC: Assuming this is only a few feet out of town before we notice him.)
Thresher hears the loud footsteps behind them. She pauses and turns, hand flying to her axe as see scans the area. Its more than easy to spot the the large frame of someone in the bushes. She can see that whoever it is, they're larger then her. She grits her teeth, hand not leaving her weapon. Her voice seems to drop an octave, and a deep echo, previously barely heard in her speech, becomes more prominent as it underlays itself with her words.
"You! In the bushes! What are you doing? Why are you following us?"
Dorno leans his staff on the bush and puts both of his hands up next to his head, palms facing Thresher and the group. He sheepishly pokes his head out and says in a low, slow voice "ah, hi there." "What am I doing? Ah, well I'm following you. Oh, but, but you already said that... Oh, WHY I'm following you, right, right..." He pauses, and his tone becomes a bit more upbeat and curious, his eyes growing hopeful. "Where are you going?" It is unlikely that the firbolg's mannerisms come across as threatening, regardless of what one might think of his size and appearance.
Trying to think of a comparison for a movie or cartoon character that Dorno might speak like. He's not as depressed as Eeyore or as dim whitted as Forest Gump, but that might be some indication of how I'm picturing his speech. I'll think of a better comp.
"Bandits?" Dorno looks a bit contemplative and a bit disappointed. "Oh right, why I was following you. I was hoping you were here to look into all of the... odd things... that have been happening. Somethin's.... not right, with the crops and the trees and the animals, OH, and the weather too!" Dorno takes a few steps out of the bushes, grabbing his staff but simply leaning on it and looking up at the sky for a second as he mentions the weather, still showing no aggression. "I'm told," he says more quietly as if telling a secret as he leans a bit towards Thresher, "that somethin's not right at a place that the people here call 'Lance Rock', I think anyways."
"And, after we signal 'all clear' -" Alexana was saying before the sudden appearance of a Firbolg stole her train of thought. . . . "Lance Rock? I believe it's a little ways down the road the other way. We, as Thresher pointed out, are heading over to investigating a bandit's camp. We're hoping to help the town handle the bandit problem - one way or another." Alexana mentioned meaningfully. Unsure of how to handle the newcomer, she continued, "Well, there is safety in numbers... would you want to join us to investigate the bandit camp, and then we can assist you with Lance Rock, Mr... um.. what was your name again?"
"Hmmm, bandits? I hope no one gets hurt. Don't usually get involved in that type of thing." The firbolg pauses his slow speech. "Maybe I can keep people from getting hurt, and then you'll go to Lance Rock with me?! Hmmm, oooo-k, that sounds good. Maybe if the bandits are mean I'll just hit 'em with a rock and they'll run away!"
"Name? Oh, right. People here call me 'Dorno', so you can call me that, too, if you like. What's your name?" Dorno seems to relax a bit, stands up straighter, and walks over to them using his staff like a walking stick. Once they get going again, Dorno seems to be thinking. "So, are the bandits mean?" He stops for a second and pulls his wooden shield from his back and gets it ready in his right hand.
Thresher accepts the ale with an appreciative grunt before downing the whole thing. Wiping the froth from her mouth, she turns to the group.
"Well, now that we're here, any of you know anything else we can do? Hopefully something that pays well. I'm not really one for ghosts, but I know how to deal with a bandit or two."
Avery Highdale-Halfling Rogue(Thief) Lv.3
Penelope Skyshatter-Dragonborn Sorcerer(Draconic Bloodline) Lv.2
Red Skies in Mourning: DM
Volqelli Ryxu- Drow Wizard(Conjuration School)/Rogue Lv. 13
(Curse the dice gods)
Make sure to update your currency. I'm just going to assume that Dorno has joined the rest of the group in the tavern. Now that you know your options for rumors etc., where will you go? Your current options you know about are the supposed bandit campsite, and the haunted tomb. Neither are terribly far away from town, although the bandit site is further away. The haunted tomb is probably about a 30 minute walk away. It is currently late afternoon.
A few things I forgot to mention:
You also hear about a delegation from Mirabar that left quite a long time ago and still hasn't reached its delegation. There aren't too many details known, but enough so that you understand almost every main faction in Faerún has an agent in the delegation (excepting the Zhentarim). For Alexana only (unless anyone else is a Harper):
You are aware of the Harper agent in this town, a retired merchant named Endrith Vallivoe. In addition, you know that the Harper part of the delegation was a shield dwarf historian named Bruldenthar, who was transporting his collection of manuscripts to Waterdeep.
For anyone who doesn't have a faction, feel free to let me know and I can set up some info for you. Being in a faction isn't necessary, but it can lead to some cool adventure hooks and roleplaying opportunities, especially among characters who are from rival factions. (The main factions, are of course the Zhentarim, Harpers, Lords' Alliance, Order of the Gauntlet and the Emerald Enclave. I believe you can find descriptions of these in the Basic Rules. If not, I can post a description from my DMG/PH.)
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
(Thresher, that spoiler actually doesn't apply. Alexana rolled a 1 on her Charisma check . . . It will come into play later, but you currently haven't heard about it.)
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
(Sorry thought that was what Alexana told us. Fixed the post.)
Avery Highdale-Halfling Rogue(Thief) Lv.3
Penelope Skyshatter-Dragonborn Sorcerer(Draconic Bloodline) Lv.2
Red Skies in Mourning: DM
Volqelli Ryxu- Drow Wizard(Conjuration School)/Rogue Lv. 13
Yup, another Harper here!
Aria stretch in her chair, sipping at her wooden jack of Circe's Pleasure ale and the thick, strong Waterdhavian ale flowed down Aria's throat like syrup as she thought. "Well the tomb is only a short march away but ewww, ghosts and zombies. At least bandits are just dirty."
Alexana was apparently deeper in her drinks than in the rumor mill this afternoon. Nevertheless, she weighed her fellow adventurers' opinions, and added her own.
"Why don't we tackle the local bandit problem first? We have a possible location of the camp already. It can be as easy as gathering information on the bandits, or as thorough as disbanding the criminals and recovering whatever valuables that we can. Either way, I think that our efforts against the bandits could win us favors with Red Larch's Constable.
Once we've established our welcome here, we can chase down other rumors. I, myself, am partial to finding our more information about the long-overdue delegation from Mirabar. It was an important delegation, rumored to comprise of agents from powerful factions. For such a prominent group's mission to go awry is worrisome."
(I'll have to be offline for a while, but I should update this sometime tomorrow afternoon. For time reference, it's about 9:21 where I am when I'm posting this.)
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
"Sounds good to me. Once we get back I've got some one I need to talk to myself, or I can go do it now if you want to wait til morning to deal with them."
Avery Highdale-Halfling Rogue(Thief) Lv.3
Penelope Skyshatter-Dragonborn Sorcerer(Draconic Bloodline) Lv.2
Red Skies in Mourning: DM
Volqelli Ryxu- Drow Wizard(Conjuration School)/Rogue Lv. 13
(I'm making the assumption that you're planning on going to that site)
You start off towards your destination. Luckily, their camp is only a short distance away from the road, so you can follow it most of the way. Along the way: 15 nothing happens. How would you like to approach the place marked on your map?
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
[ooc: approximately where on the map? And, is this the right map?]
(This is the right map. You're somewhere along the Cairn Road, near Red Larch)
Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
Dorno was busy chatting with a talkative little sparrow in the bushes along the side of the road as several newcomers to town came by in a relatively short amount of time. The large firbolg, standing over seven feet tall, had been exploring the forests in recent days trying to find out more about all of the strange occurrences in the region, and was about to visit this new town for the first time himself. As the others entered one of the two inns, Dorno approached as well but instead bent down a bit and peered in one of the large windows. By chance, no one seemed to notice the large face peering in innocently, his pale skin contrasted by a reddish nose and framed with bushy brown hair and a beard. The large druid was wearing a dingy brown tunic that had a bit of a musty smell and was adorned in just a few simple bobbles around his neck and wrists. Armed with only a gnarled staff and a shield on his back made of half inch thick strips of wood woven together with vines, the firbolg often caught people's attention due to his size but was rarely seen as a threat. His large, friendly eyes and big smile usually came with a curious expression more than a threatening one, after all.
Struggling thus far to find out what has been going on in the region, Dorno decided to follow these new adventurers and see what it is they are up to. Perhaps they know things he does not and they could lead him down the right path. As they left town, he followed along a similar path, snooping on them from behind bushes and trees. Not particularly stealthy himself, Dorno is doing this more for his own fear of the unknown and self preservation rather than an attempt to deceive the others for malicious purposes. Surely they will take notice of him soon, however.
OOC If it works for everyone, I'll roll a few stealth rolls just to see how long it takes for the party to notice him. Doesn't really matter, just curious on when exactly he'd make his intro. Also going to roll, hmmm, Animal Handling perhaps to see if the DM has any info Dorno may have learned via Speak with Animals in recent days. No big deal either way, just curious as part of his recent backstory.
Animal Handling: 9
Stealth: 11,20,9,11,14
I don't think Dorno would be a member of a faction currently, but as things progress I could picture him joining, or at least becoming an ally of, the Emerald Enclave.
Ha, based on that first stealth roll I'd imagine the party would sense Dorno behind them immediately!
The animals have told you about the usual disturbances in
the Forcenature, but they also mention something unnatural about a landmark called Lance Rock. I would assume the party has a passive Perception over 4 :)Check out my Extended signature here
Class Guides: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Bard General Guides: PvP
Currently playing in: Quest for the Shunned City, Coliseum of Conquest, DragonDenn's Dragonlords, Shipwrecked on Fugue, Tomb of Annihilation, Razor's Lost Mine of Phandelver, The Lost Kenku & One Grung Above
Currently DMing: Princes of the Apocalypse, Out of the Abyss, Coliseum of Conquest—The Arena (Sometimes)
(OOC: Assuming this is only a few feet out of town before we notice him.)
Thresher hears the loud footsteps behind them. She pauses and turns, hand flying to her axe as see scans the area. Its more than easy to spot the the large frame of someone in the bushes. She can see that whoever it is, they're larger then her. She grits her teeth, hand not leaving her weapon. Her voice seems to drop an octave, and a deep echo, previously barely heard in her speech, becomes more prominent as it underlays itself with her words.
"You! In the bushes! What are you doing? Why are you following us?"
Avery Highdale-Halfling Rogue(Thief) Lv.3
Penelope Skyshatter-Dragonborn Sorcerer(Draconic Bloodline) Lv.2
Red Skies in Mourning: DM
Volqelli Ryxu- Drow Wizard(Conjuration School)/Rogue Lv. 13
Dorno leans his staff on the bush and puts both of his hands up next to his head, palms facing Thresher and the group. He sheepishly pokes his head out and says in a low, slow voice "ah, hi there." "What am I doing? Ah, well I'm following you. Oh, but, but you already said that... Oh, WHY I'm following you, right, right..." He pauses, and his tone becomes a bit more upbeat and curious, his eyes growing hopeful. "Where are you going?" It is unlikely that the firbolg's mannerisms come across as threatening, regardless of what one might think of his size and appearance.
Trying to think of a comparison for a movie or cartoon character that Dorno might speak like. He's not as depressed as Eeyore or as dim whitted as Forest Gump, but that might be some indication of how I'm picturing his speech. I'll think of a better comp.
Thresher face shifts to a still guarded, more confused look. She glances back at her companions, before focusing back on the strange man.
"Bandit camp. Didn't answer my question though, why are you following us?"
Avery Highdale-Halfling Rogue(Thief) Lv.3
Penelope Skyshatter-Dragonborn Sorcerer(Draconic Bloodline) Lv.2
Red Skies in Mourning: DM
Volqelli Ryxu- Drow Wizard(Conjuration School)/Rogue Lv. 13
"Bandits?" Dorno looks a bit contemplative and a bit disappointed. "Oh right, why I was following you. I was hoping you were here to look into all of the... odd things... that have been happening. Somethin's.... not right, with the crops and the trees and the animals, OH, and the weather too!" Dorno takes a few steps out of the bushes, grabbing his staff but simply leaning on it and looking up at the sky for a second as he mentions the weather, still showing no aggression. "I'm told," he says more quietly as if telling a secret as he leans a bit towards Thresher, "that somethin's not right at a place that the people here call 'Lance Rock', I think anyways."
"And, after we signal 'all clear' - " Alexana was saying before the sudden appearance of a Firbolg stole her train of thought.
. . .
"Lance Rock? I believe it's a little ways down the road the other way. We, as Thresher pointed out, are heading over to investigating a bandit's camp. We're hoping to help the town handle the bandit problem - one way or another." Alexana mentioned meaningfully. Unsure of how to handle the newcomer, she continued, "Well, there is safety in numbers... would you want to join us to investigate the bandit camp, and then we can assist you with Lance Rock, Mr... um.. what was your name again?"
"Hmmm, bandits? I hope no one gets hurt. Don't usually get involved in that type of thing." The firbolg pauses his slow speech. "Maybe I can keep people from getting hurt, and then you'll go to Lance Rock with me?! Hmmm, oooo-k, that sounds good. Maybe if the bandits are mean I'll just hit 'em with a rock and they'll run away!"
"Name? Oh, right. People here call me 'Dorno', so you can call me that, too, if you like. What's your name?" Dorno seems to relax a bit, stands up straighter, and walks over to them using his staff like a walking stick. Once they get going again, Dorno seems to be thinking. "So, are the bandits mean?" He stops for a second and pulls his wooden shield from his back and gets it ready in his right hand.
Aria smiled wryly. "Bandits are almost by definition mean."