Maclan looks a little bit surprised at the question but then says, "Sure. He is a nasty brute and will try to take a bite of you any chance he gets."

"Very well. If anyone questions your account, send them to me, Handleader Wallus. Barne was concerned for you. Friend of yours?"

Maclan nods and then, in response to Dora's question, he just shrugs and says, "He is a decent enough sort, but we do not drink together, if that is what you are asking."

 "Maclan, do you want to rest here a while or are you alright to go?"

Grudgingly, Maclan says, "I should find Barne and do something about the cart. The sheriff will be wanting it gone as soon as possible because of the smell... Do you know what happened to the brats that were with us? If they have run off, I will need to inform the Watch—service on the carts is their punishment."

"They are children Maclan, not brats! What would little Maclan have done, when a horse was kicking the cart and the driver to pieces, when two members of the watch were yelling out blue murder about assassins and kidnappers. He would have run of course. The children were scared, not skiving."

"Maclan you have been blessed with healing tonight, and not just of your recent injury but of old niggling aches and pains. Now I expect you to go back to your job and treat all those under your hand a little more kindly. The children, and Kurra and Barne, for that matter. Barne stood by you tonight."

And whenever you are coming past my Guardpost, you and the crew come in for a warm cuppa We are all working for the city after all."

 [OOC: Please make a Persuasion check with a +2 bonus for Dora to see if her words can persuade Maclan to change his cynical viewpoint. The DC for this roll is 11.]

8

[OOC Shouldn't Dora get an extra advantage because

a)she is a woman talking to a probably single man (who would marry a night soil collector?), and

b) she is in a position of authority, and

c) she has just saved the chap's life.)

[OOC well obviously the dice agreed with me.]

Quote from che_ja_pa >>

22

[OOC Shouldn't Dora get an extra advantage because

a)she is a woman talking to a probably single man (who would marry a night soil collector?), and

b) she is in a position of authority, and

c) she has just saved the chap's life.)

[OOC: Sorry, I should have been clearer. The +2 was in addition to any of her normal ability bonuses or proficiency bonuses. I didn't give Advantage in this case because of factors pertaining to Maclan.

Having said that, Dora does not have proficiency with Persuasion and only gets a +1 for her Charisma-based checks, which this is. So the roll would have only had a +3 total bonus anyway.

Still, a critical success is a critical success.]

Maclan sits quietly as Dora speaks and is silent a moment longer once she finishes.

"You would drink char with me?" he then asks haltingly.

Dora gets the impression that the crews of the night soil carts normally don't get such offers.

At Dora's nod, Maclan then smiles—it is the first smile she has seen on him—and sits up straighter. "You are right, Handleader. Things could have ended up a lot worse and I should be more grateful."

He then gets to his feet and then hesitantly asks, "Is this your normal post? Perhaps the sheriff would not like the night soil cart to tarry too long outside its doors."

[OOC: Just to be clear, like there are two Watchposts for the Scholars Ward, there is also more than one night soil cart.]

"I am normally in the Scholars' Ward. Yes, come by, and if we are not busy, have a cuppa and a chat. The whole crew, mind you, children too."

" ... and yes I am sure the sheriff would appreciate the cart being moved on. Do you want to use the back door; it may save you some time."

"Oh, and we were pursuing a servant lad called Samel, we wanted to talk to him. An annoying young man who does not know when he is being offered a helping hand. If you see him, let us know, thanks."

Quote from che_ja_pa >>

"I am normally in the Scholars' Ward. Yes, come by, and if we are not busy, have a cuppa and a chat. The whole crew, mind you, children too."

" ... and yes I am sure the sheriff would appreciate the cart being moved on. Do you want to use the back door; it may save you some time."

[OOC: The first sentence above doesn't answer Maclan's question. Both the watch and the night soil collectors are employed by the administrator of the district they are responsible for, so just saying "Scholars' Ward" tells him nothing as that is a given. Dora would need to tell him whether she works at the Sheriff's Office or the Northern Watchpost.

Therefore, could you please let me know if Dora is being deliberately vague about where she works or whether she actually tells Maclan that her normal watchpost is the Northern Watchpost.

Also, the apostrophe should go before the 's' in the name of the ward as the word 'scholar' is being used here in the general sense (i.e., the ward is devoted to the scholar. It is not owned by a number of scholars).]

In answer to Dora's request about Samel, Maclan asks, "What does the boy look like? There are many servant boys about in the streets these days."

[OOC Dora is genuinely telling Maclan her post - the Northern Watchpost. For the life of me I can't remember what Samel looks like, did I ever know?]

Quote from che_ja_pa >>

[OOC Dora is genuinely telling Maclan her post - the Northern Watchpost. For the life of me I can't remember what Samel looks like, did I ever know?]

[OOC: Thanks for clarifying what Dora said.

Also, Dora has proficiencies in both Perception and Insight and so she wouldn't have any problems describing Samel for Maclan; relying on your character's ability is always a good fall back in roleplaying and you can always just say 'Dora describes Samel as well as she can'.]

Dora describes Samel as best she can.

"Not someone I know," says Maclan, after listening careful to Dora's description. "Is he from around this area?"

"We found him at the Shepherd's."

I stand and tidy the cups, we used earlier, and stoke the fire.

"Are you sure you are feeling alright, Healer Wattson said you would be sore and sorry afterwards?"

Maclan gets to his feet slowly and straightens up. "Yes, I am a little muscle sore, but there is nothing a little rest will not fix."

He then looks around the room before asking, "Is there a candle or torch I can use? I should see what sort of mess there is waiting for me outside."

[OOC: There are candles in one of the drawers; Maclan only needs to light his way to the wagon, which has its own lantern. Dora should see him out so that she can then secure the back entrance after he is gone.]