Storm King's Thunder

"... so, yes, he's going on a sojourn in the Spine of the World. Hopefully, he doesn't do anything too crazy, like, oh, I don't know - face a dragon on his own," Ink tells the half-elf. 

The name is Ink by the way - didn't introduce myself properly - apologies," Ink states, extending his hand in greeting as he does so.

He then continues, "Sorry I went off on ghat weird tangent - so, where were we? Yes, Kolbaz, hobgoblins, an unfinished task, and a staff. So what task did he want performed and how did these hobgoblins play into it? He just didn't give you enough information? Out of curiosity - what would it cost to get that staff back into Kolbaz hands and bring him a golden smile?"

The half elf woman smiles at Ink again. “I really shouldn’t tell a man’s secrets...suffice to say that the hobgoblins are in possession of an artifact, which has certain magical powers, and Kolbaz wants it. The staff was to be a deposit, but we went in there without proper intelligence. Misinformation. I might even call it disinformation.

“Bottom line...Kolbaz is lucky that the staff is the only thing we took from him,” she says darkly. “If you’re interested in following that line of inquiry with the hobgoblins, there’s a bounty hunter I can introduce you to, by the name of Matrix.”

“By the way, the name is Arene. And if you want the staff, then I suppose we could talk price. I’ll have to get the go-ahead. Meet me here, same time, next week?”

"Well, now, you can't go on about artifacts and not clue me in on it, but I understand - professional courtesy and what not. Although - it's not like he can hear us, right? And where are these hobgoblins holed up anyway?"

After noticing the look Arene gave him, Ink says, "Right - ask Matrix."

"Well, I appreciate your patience with him. In the long run, it's good business."

"Pleasure to meet you, Arene. What price are we talking about here? Do you think it's feasible to have the staff back within half a week instead? I'll wait the tenday if I must, but I have business that'll occupy me for only three or four days before I get some downtime for myself. Been looking forward to it - maybe crack open a good tome or two."

“I’ll see what I can do—I’ll send word if I can get it earlier. And the price, that I’ll have to get from my superiors. Don’t even have a rough figure for you.”

Arene stands. “Matrix is in town, and he frequents the Wink and Kiss. Shouldn’t be too hard to find!”

"All right, we'll leave it at a tenday for them. You have been very amicable. I hope we get to talk more business soon. Not sure if you have caught word from travelers, but there's been a lot of strange going ons out and about."

"How would I find this Matrix? What does she or he look like?" 

“You’ll know him when you see him!” Arene laughs, as she starts towards the back door of the Wink and Kiss. “If I see him first, I’ll let him know you’re looking for him. No charge.” She winks at Ink before disappearing through the doorway.

Ink smiles completely charmed by the woman. 

He follows her back into the room and surveys it  while waiting to see if she points anyone out. 

The Arene the waitress sees Ink looking and, after glancing around the place for a few moments, shrugs. Maybe later, she mouths to him from across the room.

Ink smiles, nods and leaves to catch up with Rip. He'll ask for the whereabouts of the halfing Sara, he gives a description if needed.

Investigation 18

Whenever he finds them, he'll speak privately to Rip asking that they return to Mirabar the following morning so that they can take the airship straight to Calling Horns to collect Jib and the twins.

The rest of the evening, Ink will hit up the taverns and try to see what the local gossip and news is on about. 

Investigation 11

He'll secure a room for the evening at Sara's place of employment after exploring the city most of the evening.... Quill will keep an eye on him from above. 

// a voice in your head says "git'em a better place ta stay while yer gone. Oh an' did Marav go ta Yartar with ye? Ain't seen 'im since ye left..." //

RIP leaves his wife with 250 golds worth of gems to find a new place, preferably over a shop so they can make a bakery and bookstore the "Bake'n Book" promising to return promptly with his father and the twins.

"So Ink, I'm wanting to buy some sending stones and I feel like the hand of yartar might be able to help. Did you make contact with any of them?"

Rip will spend this week (when he gets back to Yartar with papi and co) looking for that store/home thing I mentioned as well as searching for some sending stones. His nights are spend looking for that thing we talked about Mr. DM, for a few hours then sleeping with the fam. All his daytime activities he is accompanied by a member of his family.

1 workweek, +100 gp= a +2 bonus

persuasion check 30

Ink stands pensively, before finally responding, "Sending stones? I'm not familiar enough with Yartar to know whether or not the local shopkeepers or collectors may have something like that, but I have some friends that may be able to help you.  I don't think the Hand of Yartar is your best bet - I suspect that they take a "profit above all else" mindset and I don't think either of us should owe them any favors.  I'll introduce you to the local sect of Harpers.  They're always interested in speaking to a bard.  Some of their most famous members are bards.  In any case, I'll introduce you to them once your family has been re-united."

Rip responds, "Fair point. I'm not used to having the coin to buy magi items, so I'll defer to your judgement on the issue."

---

After a heartfelt good bye, full of "too soons" and "be carefuls" Rip leaves his family to join Ink at the teleportation circle maintained by the Harpers.  Ink was already there making preparations with Kolbaz.  As Rip arrives, Ink can be overheard saying, "...I'm working on getting your staff back. I'm supposed to meet with someone in a ten day. I'll make sure that I do."

The two step into the circle and are whisked away to MIrabar, popping in at a familiar barn. Ink nods at the Harper agent keeping watch, "Good morning, Zazspar." Zazspar nods back.

As the pair walks outside, Rip points at the tavern catty-corner to the barn and says, "That's the Retcon Tavern, remember? Where we told everyone we'd meet back up in two tenday? Didn't realize it was so close to the barn."  Ink and Rip head out to the outside of the city back to the airship.  After a quick discussion and plans with the captain and the crew, the airship makes its way to Calling Horns.

It is late in autumn as the airship flies down from the mountains of the Spine of the World, crossing over the plains and the forests of northern Faerun as it makes its way to Calling Horns.  The wind is at their tale blowing down from the north... (Temp 7 Wind 7 Precipitation 17).... Despite the wind coming from the north, the temperature is unseasonably warm making the ride down to Calling Horns more comfortable than expected.  Given the steady weather, Ink takes time to copy a few spells into his spell book: fly, sending and water breathing. (six hours of work required for all three)

About halfway through their second day of travel, the airship nears the crossroads that has become Calling Horns landing a mile out of town.  Rip and Ink disembark and head into town.  While Rip attends to Jib and the twins, Ink takes a moment to speak with Tamilin Zoar and provides here a quick update of what they've seen.  Ink reunites with Rip and his family. He keeps the children entertained while Rip talks to Jib and, between tears and hugs of consolations, Rip gently lets Jib know of Martha's fate. The ride back to Yartar is bittersweet, but, blessedly, fast, taking but a few hours.

With Rip reunited with his family, Ink says his goodbyes. He purchases some needed supplies for the airship and flies with its crew back to Mirabar. The headwind they face this time around slows progress some...  (Temp 17 Wind 1 Precipitation 2).... Ink spends his time on the way to Mirabar re-reading "An Elyclopedia of Important Transfiguration" - making sure that each time he sits to read from the book, he casts comprehend languages as a ritual.

They eventually land near where the airship was when it arrived to Mirabar not even five days prior.  Ink parts ways with the crew and notifies them that they'll be back in about 15 or so days to continue their mission.  He swings by Tyrek Smithhamer's shop to pick up the adamantine and silvered scimitars he had ordered previously.

Noticing that he still has four days before having to meet up with Arene in Yartar, Ink wasting no time, returns to the Barn.

"Well," Bronzefire says, "that was quick."

"No rest for the wicked," responds Ink with a chuckle.

"So - where to?" asks Bronzefire.

Ink responds, "Waterdeep."

// Is Ink going alone to Waterdeep? Let me know if anyone’s going with him for week 2 of downtime. //

Quote from Awaypturwpn >>

// Is Ink going alone to Waterdeep? Let me know if anyone’s going with him for week 2 of downtime. //

 Ink is going with Quill.... and that's it.

These last four days of the first tenday, in Waterdeep, he'll seek out books related to the enchantment of objects with magical abilities and properties. He's also going early to set up the Iymrith research that will start enforce during the second tenday of downtime.

He'll then popover to Yartar for his meeting with the Hand. 

Assuming tragedy doesn't befall him, he'll return to Waterdeep to assist in the Iymrith research that should be starting when he arrives. 

Once the research is done, he'll go to Yartar to pick up Rip and then return to Mirabar with him to meet the others. 

Waterdeep

The shimmering field of the teleportation circle spell gives way to magically-lit stone chamber. There is a stone staircase that leads up out of this chamber, which also includes a small study alcove and a cot for its attending mage, a pale wisp of a girl with a delicate-looking jade amulet. The young woman, chondothan by the looks of her, rises from her alcove. Her dark hair is tied back, but much of it has fallen out of the loose ponytail. She sweeps it out of her face and says, “You’re new. Can I help you?”

It turns out that her name is Thestryl Mellardin, and her study is a secret room under a raised crypt in the City of The Dead, Waterdeep’s walled necropolis. 

(No need to RP here, just wanted to give you some context)

After a week of searching and scrounging, Rip manages to find a pair of sending stones. A collector with connections to the Harpers is willing to part with the stones for 400 gold pieces, explaining that they had been in his family for generations, but seeing as he had no intentions of his children becoming adventurers, he was glad to be rid of them. 

In Mirabar, Crownsguard finds work with the miners he had befriended earlier. The manual labor is tough, but Crownsguard has much higher levels of endurance than any of the other mine workers. The pay is good, and the only negative point is the extensive searching that is done on the mine workers every day when they leave the mines. Security is extremely tight, but the pay makes up for it. Crownsguard earns 25 gold pieces for his work and has managed to smooth over any hard feelings that then miners had against him for taking all their money. 

Flint, meanwhile, has taken some time to serve and mediate in the great temple of Moradin, in Mirabar. At the end of the week, he seems to have found some added resolve and a renewed sense of purpose. 

(Flint can now exchange his Fighter 1 level for another level in the Cleric class)

On Ink’s trip into the Wink and Kiss in Yartar, on Uktar 14, Arene the waitress meets him and pours him a drink. As she does so, she slips a piece of paper into his hand. “If you wish to retain our services,” she whispers into Ink’s ear. 

The paper reads,

For the price of the staff, we will accept 11,000 gold, delivered in gems or high-value currency. If in agreement, leave a silver piece as a tip. 

Ink chuckles.

He casts sending targeting Kolbaz.

"Hand wants eleven-thousand for staff. Worth that much? What did you ask them for that is so expensive?!? Please respond to this message."

Ink waits for a response. 

Ink hears Kolbaz’ response in his mind, They know it’s valuable to me. If you can obtain it, I’ll give you the spell scroll, straight trade.