Farnakees surveys the tavern assessing its defensibility. "At least it's not out in the open and in the rain," he thinks, uncomfortable about how rain destroys gear and bogs down movement.
He's not used to these lower climes. In fact, he was among the first of his tribe's warriors to venture this far. He even got his cognomen after venturing far below the mountain heights in pursuit of some human raiders. He eventually caught up to them. They were holed up around a smelly, noisy, humid pool of water that they called a pond. He dispatched the raiders. Then, famished from the long pursuit, he feasted on the bountiful, noisy, slimy, little animals that the fugitives called frogs.
He reported back to his squad, and amid boisterous laughter (are rare thing for the mountain-folk), exacerbated by incessant heckling, the name stuck. "Froggy Pond my back-side," he would think each time the memory of that fateful frog-feast resurfaced.
He almost ignores the inn keep, categorizing him "not a threat - not a warrior" with a disdain he sought to conceal beneath his humorless demeanor. He does notice that his companions, the mythical rocking dwarf ("threat"), and Rastaris, the wizard ("subtley dangerous") seem to have their attention drawn to the inn keep anyway. What the hell?
Cold, wet, and dining on a tasteless stew in a rundown inn was hardly a situation that a young Alianna would ever have imagined herself in.It was a far cry from the comfortable home her uncle, a respected wizard had provided. But that was a lifetime ago. “Oh, the sacrifices one must make in the quest for knowledge and the gold one needs to attain it,” she mutters to herself.
She watches as Rastaris and Mitrokk talk to the innkeeper.Staying in the background was a habit she learned from decades of trying to go unnoticed.It was a survival skill necessary for growing up with bullying cousins who resented that she was her uncle’s favorite.It wasn’t her fault that she was born with more intelligence and curiosity than the four of them put together. Seriously, when they collected a tax on brainpower, her cousins got refunds.
She pulls her attention back to the mage huddled in the corner.His studied calm seems at odds with the Innkeeper’s agitation.
Mithrokk isn’t quite sure what it is but something seems amiss with the innkeeper. Rastaris senses it too and is right to have started asking after this.
Turning to the innkeep, Mithrokk joins the conversation and says, “Rast is right; ye shouldn't need to worry too much. Me mam used to say, 'What’s for ye’s not like to get past ye,' so if it’s something dark ye’re dealing with, ye may as well get some help for it. And no help’s ever come to those that hold their tongue."
The dam bursts at the encouraging words from Rastaris and Mithrokk, and the innkeeper's calm demeanor is replaced by pathetic pleading.
"We've got rats at the Peryton, masters! Rats!
"They've driven away all the guests and all the servants have fled as well. It's just me and the boy running the inn now," he says, pointing to the kitchen.
"The problem started over a month ago, when my son went into the cellar where we keep the ale, food, and other sundries. He came running back up, shouting that the cellar was filled with rats. I paid some roustabouts from Phandalin to go into the cellar with clubs and kill the rats, and they did. They came back up with sacks filled with dead rats, so I thought the problem solved.
"But about a week later, Ani, one of the serving girls, ran up from the cellar, shouting that the rats had returned. I told Harbin Wester about it, and he allowed me to hire some of the town guards to go in and kill the rats. They did, but they came out scratched and bitten for their troubles. I had to send an offering to Umbrage Hill, so that Adara would heal the guards of any diseases they might catch. This was getting expensive, but I thought the problem solved at last.
"Except the rats returned ... again! I was at the end of my wits, so I gathered my life's savings, a hundred gold pieces, and gave them to a fire wizard who promised to rid the Peryton of the rats. There were flames coming from the man's very fingers, so I figured he would be able to burn the rats out. It was a dangerous plan, but my foundations are made of stone, so I was willing to risk it.
"The wizard descended into the cellar, but did not return. When it became clear he was not coming back, the servants fled, and spread the word throughout Phandalin that my inn is cursed!
"I've been an innkeeper for many years, and I know the look of heroes and adventurers. You have that look; do not be modest and deny it. I have locked up the cellar to keep the rats in, but my son says he hears scratching at the door. I fear the rats might burst through some night and devour us!
"I have no coin left, but if you find the wizard, who I presume has perished, you may keep the coin I gave him as a reward.
OOC: What mage? The elf or half-elf in the corner?
"I haven't had guests since these troubles happened," the innkeeper laments.
"The only ones who come through my doors are madmen like that one," he says, pointing to the figure writing in the corner.
"He's been here the whole day, sitting at that table and writing in his book. He hasn't ordered a thing, but I don't have the heart to throw him out into this storm."
"Don't eat where you sleep. Sound advice," Farnakees mutters, unlike the elf, relishing the thought of rats. Hmmm... or did she mean, she'd rather they left her bed before she woke up? Can't tell with these lowlanders.. They sleep in beds. Haha.
He pricks his ears now, and readies his sword-hand and unslings his shield. "Let's see where this goes."
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Rastaris thought over the innkeeper's story.
While it was not uncommon to have an infestation of vermin, the fact that the rats seem to always return seems at the very least unusual. Even more intriguing is the fact a wizard was taken down supposedly by the very same rats.
Seeing that the more physically inclined members of the group are already chomping at the bit to kill some rats, Rastaris could not shake the feeling that there is more to this than meets the eye.
What is so special about this place that the rats seem to keep on returning?
Rastaris speaks to the innkeeper - "It looks that you have gotten the interest of some of my companions. This may be the perfect time to see how good this set of individuals are at what they do."
"Where is the cellar where these rats may be found and could you possibly draw us its layout?
"And, by the way, you said that this problem started a month ago. Do you remember anything strange or unusual happening before this started? Any strange or peculiar individuals coming to the inn with maybe a unusual request or demand?"
Insight Check: 15
Would Rastaris sense if the innkeeper is not telling the full story?
Rastaris addresses the rest of the group: "So who is up for a little expedition to this inn's cellar?"
He then reaches for his light crossbow and loads it.
"They're just regular rats, miss," he tells Alliana. "There just seems to be a lot of them."
OOC: Rastaris gets the sense that the innkeeper isn't holding any information back; though he also seems resigned to the idea that your group won't be able to solve the problem either.
"If you'll do it, I can provide you a key to the cellar," he says. "If not, I still have empty rooms for you to use."
"Boy," he shouts to the kitchen, "ready six rooms for our guests."
Rastaris readies his gear for exploration of the Peryton's Rat Infested Cellar. Since he doesn't know if this will end just in the cellar, he brings his usual adventuring gear.
Speaking to no one in particular: "I can't force any of you to come. But since the next time we'll be paid would be when we deliver the scroll, I will not say no for a chance to earn some extra coin."
"Master innkeeper, have the rats ventured beyond the cellar to the inn itself? The rooms? Do you constantly hear them in the cellar or are there times when perhaps they are not there?"
"I've locked the door of the stairwell that leads to the cellar. If my boy was right about the scratching, it could be the rats are trying to get out."
OOC: Did you ask for a layout? Since Rastaris looks willing to risk going into the cellar, the innkeeper hands him the key. Anyone else joining him? Tell what your characters are doing; you have to pass through the kitchen to get to the cellar.
Farnakees surveys the tavern assessing its defensibility. "At least it's not out in the open and in the rain," he thinks, uncomfortable about how rain destroys gear and bogs down movement.
He's not used to these lower climes. In fact, he was among the first of his tribe's warriors to venture this far. He even got his cognomen after venturing far below the mountain heights in pursuit of some human raiders. He eventually caught up to them. They were holed up around a smelly, noisy, humid pool of water that they called a pond. He dispatched the raiders. Then, famished from the long pursuit, he feasted on the bountiful, noisy, slimy, little animals that the fugitives called frogs.
He reported back to his squad, and amid boisterous laughter (are rare thing for the mountain-folk), exacerbated by incessant heckling, the name stuck. "Froggy Pond my back-side," he would think each time the memory of that fateful frog-feast resurfaced.
He almost ignores the inn keep, categorizing him "not a threat - not a warrior" with a disdain he sought to conceal beneath his humorless demeanor. He does notice that his companions, the mythical rocking dwarf ("threat"), and Rastaris, the wizard ("subtley dangerous") seem to have their attention drawn to the inn keep anyway. What the hell?
Cold, wet, and dining on a tasteless stew in a rundown inn was hardly a situation that a young Alianna would ever have imagined herself in. It was a far cry from the comfortable home her uncle, a respected wizard had provided. But that was a lifetime ago. “Oh, the sacrifices one must make in the quest for knowledge and the gold one needs to attain it,” she mutters to herself.
She watches as Rastaris and Mitrokk talk to the innkeeper. Staying in the background was a habit she learned from decades of trying to go unnoticed. It was a survival skill necessary for growing up with bullying cousins who resented that she was her uncle’s favorite. It wasn’t her fault that she was born with more intelligence and curiosity than the four of them put together. Seriously, when they collected a tax on brainpower, her cousins got refunds.
She pulls her attention back to the mage huddled in the corner. His studied calm seems at odds with the Innkeeper’s agitation.
OOC: Cool video, Mike!
OOC: I have a question- How do I figure out if there’s anything interesting about the mage or if I should just ignore him?
Mithrokk isn’t quite sure what it is but something seems amiss with the innkeeper. Rastaris senses it too and is right to have started asking after this.
Turning to the innkeep, Mithrokk joins the conversation and says, “Rast is right; ye shouldn't need to worry too much. Me mam used to say, 'What’s for ye’s not like to get past ye,' so if it’s something dark ye’re dealing with, ye may as well get some help for it. And no help’s ever come to those that hold their tongue."
The dam bursts at the encouraging words from Rastaris and Mithrokk, and the innkeeper's calm demeanor is replaced by pathetic pleading.
"We've got rats at the Peryton, masters! Rats!
"They've driven away all the guests and all the servants have fled as well. It's just me and the boy running the inn now," he says, pointing to the kitchen.
"The problem started over a month ago, when my son went into the cellar where we keep the ale, food, and other sundries. He came running back up, shouting that the cellar was filled with rats. I paid some roustabouts from Phandalin to go into the cellar with clubs and kill the rats, and they did. They came back up with sacks filled with dead rats, so I thought the problem solved.
"But about a week later, Ani, one of the serving girls, ran up from the cellar, shouting that the rats had returned. I told Harbin Wester about it, and he allowed me to hire some of the town guards to go in and kill the rats. They did, but they came out scratched and bitten for their troubles. I had to send an offering to Umbrage Hill, so that Adara would heal the guards of any diseases they might catch. This was getting expensive, but I thought the problem solved at last.
"Except the rats returned ... again! I was at the end of my wits, so I gathered my life's savings, a hundred gold pieces, and gave them to a fire wizard who promised to rid the Peryton of the rats. There were flames coming from the man's very fingers, so I figured he would be able to burn the rats out. It was a dangerous plan, but my foundations are made of stone, so I was willing to risk it.
"The wizard descended into the cellar, but did not return. When it became clear he was not coming back, the servants fled, and spread the word throughout Phandalin that my inn is cursed!
"I've been an innkeeper for many years, and I know the look of heroes and adventurers. You have that look; do not be modest and deny it. I have locked up the cellar to keep the rats in, but my son says he hears scratching at the door. I fear the rats might burst through some night and devour us!
"I have no coin left, but if you find the wizard, who I presume has perished, you may keep the coin I gave him as a reward.
"Will you help me," he asks.
OOC: What mage? The elf or half-elf in the corner?
"I haven't had guests since these troubles happened," the innkeeper laments.
"The only ones who come through my doors are madmen like that one," he says, pointing to the figure writing in the corner.
"He's been here the whole day, sitting at that table and writing in his book. He hasn't ordered a thing, but I don't have the heart to throw him out into this storm."
"Are these, perhaps, Rodents of Unusual Size?"
"No, master," he tells the elven monk. "They're just regular sized rats ... but there seems to be a lot of them."
"Vermin of all kind make for nasty bedfellows," says Mithrokk with grimace. "Where does your cellar lead to? What lays beneath or beyond its walls?"
Farnakees turns to the companion next him, Alianna Gala-something or other - (another one probably more capable than she appears),
"He did say rats? Not frogs?"
Alianna shifts her gaze to Farnakees and says, “Yes. He said rats, Froggy-boy."
"I don't know about you,” she says while flexing her fingers. “But I don’t relish the thought of waking up with a rat in my bed.”
Still looking at Farnakees, she cocks her head toward the innkeeper and makes her way toward him and the other companions.
“Is there anything unusual you’ve noticed about the rats?,” she asks.
"Don't eat where you sleep. Sound advice," Farnakees mutters, unlike the elf, relishing the thought of rats. Hmmm... or did she mean, she'd rather they left her bed before she woke up? Can't tell with these lowlanders.. They sleep in beds. Haha.
He pricks his ears now, and readies his sword-hand and unslings his shield. "Let's see where this goes."
Rastaris thought over the innkeeper's story.
While it was not uncommon to have an infestation of vermin, the fact that the rats seem to always return seems at the very least unusual. Even more intriguing is the fact a wizard was taken down supposedly by the very same rats.
Seeing that the more physically inclined members of the group are already chomping at the bit to kill some rats, Rastaris could not shake the feeling that there is more to this than meets the eye.
What is so special about this place that the rats seem to keep on returning?
Rastaris speaks to the innkeeper - "It looks that you have gotten the interest of some of my companions. This may be the perfect time to see how good this set of individuals are at what they do."
"Where is the cellar where these rats may be found and could you possibly draw us its layout?
"And, by the way, you said that this problem started a month ago. Do you remember anything strange or unusual happening before this started? Any strange or peculiar individuals coming to the inn with maybe a unusual request or demand?"
Insight Check: 15
Would Rastaris sense if the innkeeper is not telling the full story?
Rastaris addresses the rest of the group: "So who is up for a little expedition to this inn's cellar?"
He then reaches for his light crossbow and loads it.
"They're just regular rats, miss," he tells Alliana. "There just seems to be a lot of them."
OOC: Rastaris gets the sense that the innkeeper isn't holding any information back; though he also seems resigned to the idea that your group won't be able to solve the problem either.
"If you'll do it, I can provide you a key to the cellar," he says. "If not, I still have empty rooms for you to use."
"Boy," he shouts to the kitchen, "ready six rooms for our guests."
Rastaris readies his gear for exploration of the Peryton's Rat Infested Cellar. Since he doesn't know if this will end just in the cellar, he brings his usual adventuring gear.
Speaking to no one in particular: "I can't force any of you to come. But since the next time we'll be paid would be when we deliver the scroll, I will not say no for a chance to earn some extra coin."
OOC: Does the innkeeper provide a layout?
OOC: Mike, will you allow this? https://www.sageadvice.eu/2015/12/10/can-goliaths-use-a-two-handed-weapon-with-one-hand/ i.e., can i replace scimitar with a great sword used as a 1-handed weapon?
OOC - Nah, sorry, I don't think I can allow that. It does look way too unbalancing. Just stick to 1-handed weapons.
"Master innkeeper, have the rats ventured beyond the cellar to the inn itself? The rooms? Do you constantly hear them in the cellar or are there times when perhaps they are not there?"
Alrighty then =)
"I've locked the door of the stairwell that leads to the cellar. If my boy was right about the scratching, it could be the rats are trying to get out."
OOC: Did you ask for a layout? Since Rastaris looks willing to risk going into the cellar, the innkeeper hands him the key. Anyone else joining him? Tell what your characters are doing; you have to pass through the kitchen to get to the cellar.