(Previously: When Drax, asked if he could go somewhere to clean up, Aaris waved one hand about almost flippantly and spoke a couple arcane words, and Drax's outfit was instantly cleaned of all blood, vomit and mud. In addition the dragonborn caught the sweet sent of lavender wafting from his magically cleaned clothes. "There, all better." The innkeep said, and then turned to other matters.)
After the groups libations, meals, and discussions, as if in answer to Zanoth's final statements Aaris and Bercha come strolling in the bar. Aaris heads behind the bar and reaches underneath it for something. When his hands come up into vision he's holding a dark-green, opaque, corked, glass bottle with no label. The cork is sealed by with purple wax. He nods at the group and then waves, bottle in hand for them to follow him out of the common room, down the hall to his private parlor. Since this was what the group was waiting for, they all get up from the table, some grabbing their food trays and mugs to bring with, and follow along down the hall. Mayor Bercha does a bit of mingling, patting shoulders, shaking hands, and telling everyone that "the skeleton problem is all handled, no more need to worry." Some nod their heads and smile in agreement, but a few don't seem so easily convinced. Regardless, Bercha ends his mayorly duties and follows the group into Aaris spacious parlor room. A long, oval oak table sanded and polished, with ten chairs whose turns and angles match the table's decorative style, are the only furniture in the room. Opposite the door there is a cross-hatched window mostly covered by some tan curtains wrapped in rope sashes on each side.
Aaris heads straight to the end of the table, to the seat closest to the window, and bids everybody sit. Bercha sits at the head of the table opposite him. After everyone sits, it is Bercha who speaks first, his voice thick with an old Highland accent. "Obviously all of Hyssop Ridge owes you all a great debt of gratitude. One that I hope you'll consider paid in kind by Aaris' generous offer of his Eorl suite for the length of your stay, as well as free food and drink. To my mind 'tis a fair price in payment. Our town treasury isn't overflowing with expendable coin, so, free food and lodging are about the best we can offer for now." It's obvious by the lilting tone in those last two words, "for now," that Bercha has future dealings on his mind.
Aaris picks up where Bercha leaves off. "Some of you no doubt realized that the magical energy required to summon such a host of skeletons is not trivial, nor was it done just to sully our lonely town's Winter's Feast day. It was a targeted attack meant as a diversion for one reason only. To allow someone to steal something from the house of one our longest dwelling families. What was stolen was an amulet, an heirloom of the Dagrest clan. It's been handed down as nothing more than a keepsake through generations of the Dagrest clan, and, as far as anyone knew, was of little value other than sentimental. Feroac's ancester took it as a trophy from a Ogrillon he slayed centuries ago." Aaris looks about from man to man gauging reactions to everything that has been said so far. Then he continues. "It is obvious that whatever we thought about that amulet is clearly wrong. The person or people capable of raising such a vast amount of skeletons and sending them in to do their bidding, just as a distraction, speaks to the truth of the amulet's actual worth. To us," Aaris nods at Bercha, who nods right back, "that seems like motivation enough to have it brought back, at all costs." All the while he talked Aaris unsealed, uncorked, and began pouring some strong dark liquor out of the dark green bottle he'd swiped from under the bar. Pouring just over a mouthful of the stuff into seven long-stemmed pewter goblets that had been sitting on the table all along.
Bercha watches Lucky rub his little halfling hands together with a not very subtle greedy smile on his face, and immediately interjects himself back into the conversation. "You'll remember I said our town coffers aren't overflowing with expendable coin." Mayor Bercha looks directly at the halfling as he speaks. "If it's gold coins in plentiful supply you're looking for as payment, then you'll end up disappointed. Our town does have other things to offer, though, in fact two houses that have stood up to every storm Aldellion has thrown at us for the duration just came up for sale, and I think we could get them into your hands for coppers on the crown. I've already discussed with our Smithy, Maldrin, and the owner of our General Store, Gorthendac, equipping you with just about anything you'd want to bring along for the adventure, within reason of course. Likewise Rivu, the High Priestess of our local Temple of Light will offer whatever aid she can as well." Mayor Bercha pauses for a moment and looks each man at the table in the eye for a brief second as he exhales a heavy sigh. "I know we're asking you to risk your lives, and that's worth something, worth a lot, I can offer 250 gold crowns if you bring the amulet back, 500 if you bring it back with good information about who wanted it and why. I'm hoping that's enough. Right now I can't spare any more of our soldiers to go looking for it, and you lot have proven you're damn good in a scrap." Bercha pauses again, then leans back in his chair and drains his pewter goblet of its contents, smirking wide. "Light! Aaris, no wonder you reserve that for special occasions."
Aaris takes a sip out of his own pewter goblet and then looks around the table before saying: "I'm sure you've got questions. So, fire away."
Interesting story you have their gentlemen. Rewards come in many shapes and sizes, and you offer much of value, however, I think there is room for fair and honest negotiation.
The offer of gold crowns is appealing, however, what if we expend our effort, and defeat your enemies yet for some reason beyond us, fail to return the amulet? I must insist upon a… retainer to pay for our incidental needs whilst here beyond free bags of flour and our blades sharpening. Let’s say 60 each now, 60 each more if we return the amulet and a final 60 each for information, only paying those who return. I am sure you can understand our position, and this is not much more for you, especially if some do not return, and my friend Lucky here does have his… costs.
And we also get to keep all other items and gold from our “work”, except for the Amulet of course. Smithy, Store and Priestly help are also welcome.
The two houses may be of interest to some (Zanoth raises an eyebrow at the others), but I suspect most of us are not ones to stay somewhere long… unless there may be a compelling reason for doing so. But it’s interesting, I’ve never “owned” a house before, and I suspect neither has any of the rest here.
The Eorl suite whilst most welcome, being as you said is your only room left means sharing for five, and to be honest I am into different companions for my evening’s ”rest”. And speaking of such… (Zanoth looks around, and gently says); I don’t suppose there are any single, willing and welcoming “companions” for the night? My wounds are deep and it would go a long way to help heal for the upcoming battle.
Now... If you accept these terms, we can get onto the finer details of these attacks, the amulet and your local lore and history so that we are ready for the morrow.
Usually relaying on Zanoth for these type of interactions. Lucky's gets tunnel vision on the liquor. Tommy takes a swig and falls in love.
Wow that's good. Having a safe house has its usefulness friend don't be so quick to write the offer off, but the rest I agree with sounds like good terms for something as valuable as this amulet.
Lucky goes back to eating tring to make the most of the free food deal.
Gor has been quietly listening and taking notes on each party member's mannerisms, questions and motivations. He shows no emotion at the mention of houses or gold but instead watches. He appreciates Mills' right to the point questioning and demeanor. He questions the halflings intentions and wonders how trustworthy he would be on a mission. He writes down questions about halflings in his journal wondering if they are all so greedy. Zanoth dismisses the house which Gor finds interesting. Was Zanoth a mercenary who moved from town to town or something else.....He sits and waits for the mayor's answers.
Drax sits and listens, interjecting in some places with his own commentary.
After the mayor mentions the smithy- "So you are saying that we would be given a sharpened blade, and maybe even some new armor, for free if we take this quest?"
After Zanoth comments about the houses- "I am one who does not stay in one place long, as Zanoth speaks of. Though, renting them may be a good source of income." He looks at the others after saying this.
After Zanoth speaks of keeping the loot, and sharing the room- "I agree with Zanoth that we should be able to keep the rewards of our hard work. Who knows what kind of danger we may encounter?" On the room- "While it may be a larger room than others, we five have just met.... Who knows what shenanigans they get up to at night." He says this particularly while looking at lucky.
After lucky speaks of the houses again- "A safehouse is pleasant, yes, but who knows where we may go after this, if we stay banded together."
After mills ignores all other comments, and cuts straight to the chase- "Ha, you have your priorities straight, don't you mills!" He says this with a smile in his voice.
Listening to the groups' questions, Bercha and Aaris look at each other and seem to have a conversation using only their facial expressions. Aaris seems to ask a question, without words, and Mayor Bercha answers with a nod. It is then Aaris who speaks in answer.
"300 gold crowns now, and 300 upon successful return of the amulet are acceptable, as to another 300 crowns for information about those who stole it? Well, that will all depend on the nature and strength of the information. As to your question Mills, no, no resident of town is missing. Two are dead, and several wounded, but none missing. Feorac Dagrest was in the streets helping to fight off the skeletal invasion, leaving his house unprotected, as I'm sure was our perpetrator's design. Now, it should go without saying, considering present company, that there are many and more visitors in town due to Winter's Feast. I say that not as an accusation, as there are several witnesses who saw you lot do everything you could to aid us, but to indicate that it could very well be that our culprit is still here among us at the moment. You will, of course, be given leave by Feorac to examine his house for any clues, but that will have to wait for the morrow. As to your lodging for the night, if staying together in my Eorl's Suite does not suit, it is possible that the now empty houses of our two dead residents, could be used for your stay. The goodwives who lived there will both be staying with other family in town tonight, so they will be unoccupied." Aaris pulls a piece of parchment from a hidden vest pocket and a bit a charcoal writing nib. He draws a rough sketch map of the town and marks the two houses, blocks apart from each other, on the map, then hands the map to Mills. Zanoth notices that Aaris completely ignores his question about female companions, which is to be expected, towns this small rarely have brothels, and even if they did, it would not be smart to discuss them in conversation with the Mayor present.
Aaris then looks at the red-scaled dragonborn Drax, and says, "As to your question about free blades and armor, the answer is 'no.' I'm sure Maldrin our smithy, Gorthendac our general goods merchant, and Rivu our priestess will be as generous as they can be, but their work and goods still require payment." Aaris takes another sip of his dark, strong brandy before asking, "are there any other questions?"
Any place with a hot bath and a warm bed is good for me. But before I retire I would like to walk the town scout most likely escape routes from the residence. If this fella want in a hurry e might of left a trail. Back when I...... worked security, oft times the escape route was were the mistakes are made. Waiting till tomorrow with the town so crowded would distroy any clues me thinks.
Aaris pours Lucky another cup full of his expensive brandy, smiling. He says, "you are all, of course, welcome to go about town wherever you please. Just make sure to stay out of Feorac's place for now. He's a man with a strong temper, and asked that he be left alone for the evening. You'll be pleased to know, Lucky, that there is in fact a nice deep wooden tub in the Eorl's Suite, and I'd be happy to get it filled with steaming hot water for you, or anyone else that wants to wash off the dust of the road. If there are no more questions, I believe Mayor Bercha and I will leave you here for the time being." Aaris and Bercha get up to leave, and Lucky notices that Aaris leaves the bottle of brandy on the table.
"If you need anything," Mayor Bercha speaks up just as he's about to cross the threshold out of the parlor, "Aaris or his wife are probably your best bet for sound information and guidance. I'll go see about getting your gold released from the town treasury. Most likely I'll have that ready to go for you first thing in the morning. Light bless your sleep."
Zanoth chugs the brandy put in-front of him, snorts and asks for an Ale. Fancy sips for fancy people, it was a waste on him. Disappointed that he wouldn’t get his shoulders massaged that evening, and having no interest in this “hot bath” concept (didn't your skin go all wrinkly from the water ?), he decided that Lucky would be safe for now doing his own thing, and retired to the warm fire in the corner to to nurse his wounds and wait for the morrow.
As Lucky hops up and out of the private parlor back into the hallway of The Silver Feather to see if the Mayor will guide him to Feorac's house, he is greeted with a rather stern look indeed. Mayor Bercha looks down at the halfling and says, "I thought I was pretty clear that Feorac doesn't want his house disturbed tonight. I asked him to leave things as he found them as much as possible. You and your companions can look for clues tomorrow by daylight. For now, go and have a restful evening." Lucky got the very clear hint from Mayor Bercha's tone that "go and have a restful evening" wasn't an invitation, it was more like a direct order, if such a thing could exist. Lucky was only unhappy about being turned down until he joined the others in the lavish luxury of Aaris's Eorl's Suite. The four-post canopy bed that was the predominant furniture feature of the room was big enough to fit no less than six full grown adult humans in it. Lucky was having trouble trying to imagine just how many halflings it could hold. Behind a tri-folding room divider Lucky heard Goraqull scrubbing and splashing in the room's round wooden tub and saw the steam rising up from it. Lucky initially imagined a wooden tub as something like a barrel cut in half, but when he peaked through the cracks in the divider's canvas he saw it was actually a large, carefully and skillfully crafted bathtub made out of carved and polished wood held together with brass fixtures and sealed with pitch to make it water proof.
When Lucky burst into the room, Zanoth snortled a little bit, but then fell almost immediately back to snoring, his huge body taking up entirely too much of the room's massive bed. Mills was looking at himself in a vanity mirror as big as a door, and using a set of silver barber's tools to neatly trim his hair. Lucky almost didn't recognize that it was Mills because he'd already shaved his full, bushy beard. The Order of the Wild Ranger looked positively gentile, and fit for high society. Lucky did a little pirouette and said, "Well, la ti da! Are you going to a ball?" Mills looked at him through the reflection in the mirror and just rolled his eyes. Looking around Lucky didn't immediately notice their new Dragonborn companion. Mills noticed it, and nodded in the direction of the door to the privy, which was open. Curious, Lucky walked over to see that Drax wasn't using the privy, he was staring down the hole of it. "Find anything interesting?" The sarcastic halfling asked. Drax suddenly picked up his head and looked over, seemingly coming out of a daze.
"Where does ... it ... go?" Drax asked.
Mills answered before Lucky could say something smart. "Most likely down some pipes and out into a pit somewhere in the back of the building. Either that or a barrel, some enterprising people who aren't afraid of the smell will use it to fertilize their gardens and crops."
At that, Drax just shook his head, walked back out into the room and started opening and closing all the doors and drawers on all of the various furnishings in the room. It's clear by the Dragonborn's behavior that he never really spent a lot of time indoors, let alone in such lavishly furnished rooms.
*****
Later that evening as the group sat around listening to Zanoth snore and swapped tales about their previous lives, Eeneri showed up at the door with a massive tray full of food and beverages. Seems Aaris had spit roasted a boar, basting and glazing it in some rich sauce that was a mixture of honey, the zest and juice of several oranges, and a powerful mixture of some teeth-punching spices. The tray Eeneri brought had huge hunks of the delicious meat on a platter next to some garlic roasted potatoes and leeks. Also on the tray was a pitcher of ale, a carafe of red wine, a carafe of white wine, a bottle of rum and five wooden cups. As Aaris's wife left the room after dropping the tray on a small table near the door, she said, "We're about to close the kitchen for the night, but if you're one for a midnight snack, there'll be some stuff left on the counter in the kitchen for picking at. Elsewise, have yourselves a good night, there's extra pillows and blankets in the wardrobe if you need 'em."
"Yeah, we know," Lucky remarked, "Drax has opened every container in this place." Everyone but Eeneri, whose brows crinkled in bewilderment, laughed.
*****
In the morning, while the group was eating breakfast in The Silver Feather's common room, true to his word, Mayor Bercha showed up and out of a leather satchel worn over his shoulder, he pulled out and counted sixty gold crowns for each man. After handing out the coin, he said, "Feorac is waiting for you, and has promised to cooperate with your investigation as much as possible. I don't know if you'll find much in the way of clues at his place. Whether you do or not, I'd still make stopping at the battlefield grave site from the old Goblin Wars a top priority as well. Judging by the gear, such as it was, that those skeletons were wearing, there's little doubt that's where they were raised up. Might be there's some tracks or clues left there that could lead you at least in the right general direction. While you slept I had one of the locals with a little artistic talent draw a sketch of the pendant on the amulet according to Feorac's description."
Having had a good Long Rest overnight, Zanoth stretches, yawns and rises, putting his (rather smelly) armour back on, noting whilst doing so that for some strange reason every draw, cupboard and door In the room appears to have been opened. Maybe someone lost something? Later on greeting Mayor Bercha over breakfast, Zanoth thanks him for the commission and looks at the others for guidance and agreement.
“So, after breakfast what we up for ? First stop Feorac’s place, then pop into the general store, smithy and temple to place a few orders for supplies, and then onto the Goblin Wars Graveyard ?”
Gor finishes eating some cheese and fruit and nods his head to Zanoth "That seems like a satisfactory plan. The crime scene and if the crime scene leads somewhere, following the lead. Shopping is not high on my list of priorities but I understand that some may feel differently." Gor pauses and looks at the others and stops before finishing "Your plan is satisfactory"
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Mills nods to Zanoth - somehow, it's harder to tell now that his beard's gone. This chinless wonder should stick to having a beard.
@dm the drawing makes me think of like... Something druidic, phases of the moon kind of stuff. Can Mills make some sort of check about its purpose or history based just on the drawing?
Arcana-Natue-History 18
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Paladin - warforged - orange
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(Previously: When Drax, asked if he could go somewhere to clean up, Aaris waved one hand about almost flippantly and spoke a couple arcane words, and Drax's outfit was instantly cleaned of all blood, vomit and mud. In addition the dragonborn caught the sweet sent of lavender wafting from his magically cleaned clothes. "There, all better." The innkeep said, and then turned to other matters.)
After the groups libations, meals, and discussions, as if in answer to Zanoth's final statements Aaris and Bercha come strolling in the bar. Aaris heads behind the bar and reaches underneath it for something. When his hands come up into vision he's holding a dark-green, opaque, corked, glass bottle with no label. The cork is sealed by with purple wax. He nods at the group and then waves, bottle in hand for them to follow him out of the common room, down the hall to his private parlor. Since this was what the group was waiting for, they all get up from the table, some grabbing their food trays and mugs to bring with, and follow along down the hall. Mayor Bercha does a bit of mingling, patting shoulders, shaking hands, and telling everyone that "the skeleton problem is all handled, no more need to worry." Some nod their heads and smile in agreement, but a few don't seem so easily convinced. Regardless, Bercha ends his mayorly duties and follows the group into Aaris spacious parlor room. A long, oval oak table sanded and polished, with ten chairs whose turns and angles match the table's decorative style, are the only furniture in the room. Opposite the door there is a cross-hatched window mostly covered by some tan curtains wrapped in rope sashes on each side.
Aaris heads straight to the end of the table, to the seat closest to the window, and bids everybody sit. Bercha sits at the head of the table opposite him. After everyone sits, it is Bercha who speaks first, his voice thick with an old Highland accent. "Obviously all of Hyssop Ridge owes you all a great debt of gratitude. One that I hope you'll consider paid in kind by Aaris' generous offer of his Eorl suite for the length of your stay, as well as free food and drink. To my mind 'tis a fair price in payment. Our town treasury isn't overflowing with expendable coin, so, free food and lodging are about the best we can offer for now." It's obvious by the lilting tone in those last two words, "for now," that Bercha has future dealings on his mind.
Aaris picks up where Bercha leaves off. "Some of you no doubt realized that the magical energy required to summon such a host of skeletons is not trivial, nor was it done just to sully our lonely town's Winter's Feast day. It was a targeted attack meant as a diversion for one reason only. To allow someone to steal something from the house of one our longest dwelling families. What was stolen was an amulet, an heirloom of the Dagrest clan. It's been handed down as nothing more than a keepsake through generations of the Dagrest clan, and, as far as anyone knew, was of little value other than sentimental. Feroac's ancester took it as a trophy from a Ogrillon he slayed centuries ago." Aaris looks about from man to man gauging reactions to everything that has been said so far. Then he continues. "It is obvious that whatever we thought about that amulet is clearly wrong. The person or people capable of raising such a vast amount of skeletons and sending them in to do their bidding, just as a distraction, speaks to the truth of the amulet's actual worth. To us," Aaris nods at Bercha, who nods right back, "that seems like motivation enough to have it brought back, at all costs." All the while he talked Aaris unsealed, uncorked, and began pouring some strong dark liquor out of the dark green bottle he'd swiped from under the bar. Pouring just over a mouthful of the stuff into seven long-stemmed pewter goblets that had been sitting on the table all along.
Bercha watches Lucky rub his little halfling hands together with a not very subtle greedy smile on his face, and immediately interjects himself back into the conversation. "You'll remember I said our town coffers aren't overflowing with expendable coin." Mayor Bercha looks directly at the halfling as he speaks. "If it's gold coins in plentiful supply you're looking for as payment, then you'll end up disappointed. Our town does have other things to offer, though, in fact two houses that have stood up to every storm Aldellion has thrown at us for the duration just came up for sale, and I think we could get them into your hands for coppers on the crown. I've already discussed with our Smithy, Maldrin, and the owner of our General Store, Gorthendac, equipping you with just about anything you'd want to bring along for the adventure, within reason of course. Likewise Rivu, the High Priestess of our local Temple of Light will offer whatever aid she can as well." Mayor Bercha pauses for a moment and looks each man at the table in the eye for a brief second as he exhales a heavy sigh. "I know we're asking you to risk your lives, and that's worth something, worth a lot, I can offer 250 gold crowns if you bring the amulet back, 500 if you bring it back with good information about who wanted it and why. I'm hoping that's enough. Right now I can't spare any more of our soldiers to go looking for it, and you lot have proven you're damn good in a scrap." Bercha pauses again, then leans back in his chair and drains his pewter goblet of its contents, smirking wide. "Light! Aaris, no wonder you reserve that for special occasions."
Aaris takes a sip out of his own pewter goblet and then looks around the table before saying: "I'm sure you've got questions. So, fire away."
Usually relaying on Zanoth for these type of interactions. Lucky's gets tunnel vision on the liquor. Tommy takes a swig and falls in love.
Wow that's good. Having a safe house has its usefulness friend don't be so quick to write the offer off, but the rest I agree with sounds like good terms for something as valuable as this amulet.
Lucky goes back to eating tring to make the most of the free food deal.
Mills holds up his hand to be called on before asking:
"First: is anyone missing? Easiest suspect is the one who's missing, afterall."
"Second: I'd like to see the break-in. Might be important clues left behind to identifying our target."
Paladin - warforged - orange
Gor has been quietly listening and taking notes on each party member's mannerisms, questions and motivations. He shows no emotion at the mention of houses or gold but instead watches. He appreciates Mills' right to the point questioning and demeanor. He questions the halflings intentions and wonders how trustworthy he would be on a mission. He writes down questions about halflings in his journal wondering if they are all so greedy. Zanoth dismisses the house which Gor finds interesting. Was Zanoth a mercenary who moved from town to town or something else.....He sits and waits for the mayor's answers.
Drax sits and listens, interjecting in some places with his own commentary.
After the mayor mentions the smithy- "So you are saying that we would be given a sharpened blade, and maybe even some new armor, for free if we take this quest?"
After Zanoth comments about the houses- "I am one who does not stay in one place long, as Zanoth speaks of. Though, renting them may be a good source of income." He looks at the others after saying this.
After Zanoth speaks of keeping the loot, and sharing the room- "I agree with Zanoth that we should be able to keep the rewards of our hard work. Who knows what kind of danger we may encounter?" On the room- "While it may be a larger room than others, we five have just met.... Who knows what shenanigans they get up to at night." He says this particularly while looking at lucky.
After lucky speaks of the houses again- "A safehouse is pleasant, yes, but who knows where we may go after this, if we stay banded together."
After mills ignores all other comments, and cuts straight to the chase- "Ha, you have your priorities straight, don't you mills!" He says this with a smile in his voice.
Ooc: hope this makes sense :D
Hi.
Lucky looks around at the others. Then look at his face in a spoon.
Something on my face why yall keep glancing at me.
Listening to the groups' questions, Bercha and Aaris look at each other and seem to have a conversation using only their facial expressions. Aaris seems to ask a question, without words, and Mayor Bercha answers with a nod. It is then Aaris who speaks in answer.
"300 gold crowns now, and 300 upon successful return of the amulet are acceptable, as to another 300 crowns for information about those who stole it? Well, that will all depend on the nature and strength of the information. As to your question Mills, no, no resident of town is missing. Two are dead, and several wounded, but none missing. Feorac Dagrest was in the streets helping to fight off the skeletal invasion, leaving his house unprotected, as I'm sure was our perpetrator's design. Now, it should go without saying, considering present company, that there are many and more visitors in town due to Winter's Feast. I say that not as an accusation, as there are several witnesses who saw you lot do everything you could to aid us, but to indicate that it could very well be that our culprit is still here among us at the moment. You will, of course, be given leave by Feorac to examine his house for any clues, but that will have to wait for the morrow. As to your lodging for the night, if staying together in my Eorl's Suite does not suit, it is possible that the now empty houses of our two dead residents, could be used for your stay. The goodwives who lived there will both be staying with other family in town tonight, so they will be unoccupied." Aaris pulls a piece of parchment from a hidden vest pocket and a bit a charcoal writing nib. He draws a rough sketch map of the town and marks the two houses, blocks apart from each other, on the map, then hands the map to Mills. Zanoth notices that Aaris completely ignores his question about female companions, which is to be expected, towns this small rarely have brothels, and even if they did, it would not be smart to discuss them in conversation with the Mayor present.
Aaris then looks at the red-scaled dragonborn Drax, and says, "As to your question about free blades and armor, the answer is 'no.' I'm sure Maldrin our smithy, Gorthendac our general goods merchant, and Rivu our priestess will be as generous as they can be, but their work and goods still require payment." Aaris takes another sip of his dark, strong brandy before asking, "are there any other questions?"
Gor nods and speaks only for himself "Those terms are acceptable to me and I have no qualms staying in the Eorl's Suite."
Mills follows Gor's answer with a nod of his own.
Paladin - warforged - orange
Any place with a hot bath and a warm bed is good for me. But before I retire I would like to walk the town scout most likely escape routes from the residence. If this fella want in a hurry e might of left a trail. Back when I...... worked security, oft times the escape route was were the mistakes are made. Waiting till tomorrow with the town so crowded would distroy any clues me thinks.
Lucky holds his cup to inn keep.
Got any more to share?
Aaris pours Lucky another cup full of his expensive brandy, smiling. He says, "you are all, of course, welcome to go about town wherever you please. Just make sure to stay out of Feorac's place for now. He's a man with a strong temper, and asked that he be left alone for the evening. You'll be pleased to know, Lucky, that there is in fact a nice deep wooden tub in the Eorl's Suite, and I'd be happy to get it filled with steaming hot water for you, or anyone else that wants to wash off the dust of the road. If there are no more questions, I believe Mayor Bercha and I will leave you here for the time being." Aaris and Bercha get up to leave, and Lucky notices that Aaris leaves the bottle of brandy on the table.
"If you need anything," Mayor Bercha speaks up just as he's about to cross the threshold out of the parlor, "Aaris or his wife are probably your best bet for sound information and guidance. I'll go see about getting your gold released from the town treasury. Most likely I'll have that ready to go for you first thing in the morning. Light bless your sleep."
Wis save to control himself after hearing town treasury 12 on game log
Slight of hand to pocket the brandy: Nat 20 on game log.
Investigation looking for clues/tracks in town: 13 on game log.
Lucky's ears perk up at the mention of treasure but he convinced himself that it's not worth ruining a good thing.
Lucky tosses back the brandy.
Sir Mayor wait up. Mind walking me to the scene of the crime.
As Lucky gets up he can't help himself and swipes the bottle left behind.
My friends I'll meet you at the inn later and report my findings.
Following the Mayor Lucky will look for clues.
All rolls under the spoiler
Gor gets a key for the suite they were promised and goes to take a hot bath bidding the rest a good night.
Mills follows suit with Gor, taking time to cut his hair and shave off his beard, if there's a kit included.
Paladin - warforged - orange
As Lucky hops up and out of the private parlor back into the hallway of The Silver Feather to see if the Mayor will guide him to Feorac's house, he is greeted with a rather stern look indeed. Mayor Bercha looks down at the halfling and says, "I thought I was pretty clear that Feorac doesn't want his house disturbed tonight. I asked him to leave things as he found them as much as possible. You and your companions can look for clues tomorrow by daylight. For now, go and have a restful evening." Lucky got the very clear hint from Mayor Bercha's tone that "go and have a restful evening" wasn't an invitation, it was more like a direct order, if such a thing could exist. Lucky was only unhappy about being turned down until he joined the others in the lavish luxury of Aaris's Eorl's Suite. The four-post canopy bed that was the predominant furniture feature of the room was big enough to fit no less than six full grown adult humans in it. Lucky was having trouble trying to imagine just how many halflings it could hold. Behind a tri-folding room divider Lucky heard Goraqull scrubbing and splashing in the room's round wooden tub and saw the steam rising up from it. Lucky initially imagined a wooden tub as something like a barrel cut in half, but when he peaked through the cracks in the divider's canvas he saw it was actually a large, carefully and skillfully crafted bathtub made out of carved and polished wood held together with brass fixtures and sealed with pitch to make it water proof.
When Lucky burst into the room, Zanoth snortled a little bit, but then fell almost immediately back to snoring, his huge body taking up entirely too much of the room's massive bed. Mills was looking at himself in a vanity mirror as big as a door, and using a set of silver barber's tools to neatly trim his hair. Lucky almost didn't recognize that it was Mills because he'd already shaved his full, bushy beard. The Order of the Wild Ranger looked positively gentile, and fit for high society. Lucky did a little pirouette and said, "Well, la ti da! Are you going to a ball?" Mills looked at him through the reflection in the mirror and just rolled his eyes. Looking around Lucky didn't immediately notice their new Dragonborn companion. Mills noticed it, and nodded in the direction of the door to the privy, which was open. Curious, Lucky walked over to see that Drax wasn't using the privy, he was staring down the hole of it. "Find anything interesting?" The sarcastic halfling asked. Drax suddenly picked up his head and looked over, seemingly coming out of a daze.
"Where does ... it ... go?" Drax asked.
Mills answered before Lucky could say something smart. "Most likely down some pipes and out into a pit somewhere in the back of the building. Either that or a barrel, some enterprising people who aren't afraid of the smell will use it to fertilize their gardens and crops."
At that, Drax just shook his head, walked back out into the room and started opening and closing all the doors and drawers on all of the various furnishings in the room. It's clear by the Dragonborn's behavior that he never really spent a lot of time indoors, let alone in such lavishly furnished rooms.
*****
Later that evening as the group sat around listening to Zanoth snore and swapped tales about their previous lives, Eeneri showed up at the door with a massive tray full of food and beverages. Seems Aaris had spit roasted a boar, basting and glazing it in some rich sauce that was a mixture of honey, the zest and juice of several oranges, and a powerful mixture of some teeth-punching spices. The tray Eeneri brought had huge hunks of the delicious meat on a platter next to some garlic roasted potatoes and leeks. Also on the tray was a pitcher of ale, a carafe of red wine, a carafe of white wine, a bottle of rum and five wooden cups. As Aaris's wife left the room after dropping the tray on a small table near the door, she said, "We're about to close the kitchen for the night, but if you're one for a midnight snack, there'll be some stuff left on the counter in the kitchen for picking at. Elsewise, have yourselves a good night, there's extra pillows and blankets in the wardrobe if you need 'em."
"Yeah, we know," Lucky remarked, "Drax has opened every container in this place." Everyone but Eeneri, whose brows crinkled in bewilderment, laughed.
*****
In the morning, while the group was eating breakfast in The Silver Feather's common room, true to his word, Mayor Bercha showed up and out of a leather satchel worn over his shoulder, he pulled out and counted sixty gold crowns for each man. After handing out the coin, he said, "Feorac is waiting for you, and has promised to cooperate with your investigation as much as possible. I don't know if you'll find much in the way of clues at his place. Whether you do or not, I'd still make stopping at the battlefield grave site from the old Goblin Wars a top priority as well. Judging by the gear, such as it was, that those skeletons were wearing, there's little doubt that's where they were raised up. Might be there's some tracks or clues left there that could lead you at least in the right general direction. While you slept I had one of the locals with a little artistic talent draw a sketch of the pendant on the amulet according to Feorac's description."
The Mayor hands the color sketch to Zanoth.
[img]https://i.imgur.com/5c1WFZD.png?1[/img][img]https://i.imgur.com/5c1WFZD.png?1[/img][img]https://i.imgur.com/5c1WFZD.png?1[/img]
Gor finishes eating some cheese and fruit and nods his head to Zanoth "That seems like a satisfactory plan. The crime scene and if the crime scene leads somewhere, following the lead. Shopping is not high on my list of priorities but I understand that some may feel differently." Gor pauses and looks at the others and stops before finishing "Your plan is satisfactory"
Mills nods to Zanoth - somehow, it's harder to tell now that his beard's gone. This chinless wonder should stick to having a beard.
@dm the drawing makes me think of like... Something druidic, phases of the moon kind of stuff. Can Mills make some sort of check about its purpose or history based just on the drawing?
Arcana-Natue-History 18
Paladin - warforged - orange