Tarton steps forward and says, "Indeed. Though he did not mention the detail and craftmanship we would find here. Did you create this pedestal? What a wonderful work of art. And the natural shape of the blade you are working on, just wonderful. It reminds me of..." Tarton's bubbling happiness fades, replaced by a deep sadness shown mostly in his eyes. After a pause he finishes in a soft voice, "better days in my youth."

After a briefer pause he continues in a brighter voice, "Anyway, I am Tarton Fleetfoot. As you have heard, we seek gear for a trip north, and Mr. Leewamba mentioned a discount if we were to purchase our gear here. I would like to see what wonderful light armor you have available for someone my size."

For those who know Tarton likes to test himself, roll Perception check (I hope this is OK for me to do out of the blue)
DC 17: you notice Tarton getting a little restless as he listens to Glynogan.
DC 22: Slight of Hand in log: you notice Tarton getting restless and while he is passing Artifex to look at the display...

The smith's mouth quirks up into a wide grin when you mention your mission and employer.  "Oh my stars and fish, so Lee's got you  poking around looking for old Whispering Bones's cast-off piss pots too?  Lovely!  Lovely!  And good taste in craftsmanship, to boot, I should be able to squeeze plenty out of you before we shake farewell,  Just look around inside and let me know what suits.  There's display pieces of all my standard line there."  

You think  he's kidding about squeezing as much out of you as possible.

"Thanks, I'll head right over. Can't wait to see what else you have." Tarton says as he walks over to the display passing Artifex on the way.

Tarton returns with Studded Leather armor and asks "How much is this?"

In the meantime, The Black Rose, who is not looking for any gear, is noting something regarding Tarton...

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Log: 22 

Does that mean I see it?

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My understanding of stealth and slight of hand rolls is that matching the roll of the one trying to be stealthy or use slight of hand means you notice what they are doing, which means you see what Tarton is trying to do.

"I figure it's best for me to stick up on crossbow bolts. When I do resort to weapons I tend to favor range.  How much would you charge for... Say 40?"

"I can let you have forty bolts for the trifling sum of one gold cyfreith, and the armor is a steal at only forty five.  The previous owner always said so.  Too bad she ran into that basilisk, but hey ... she makes the perfect display mannequin for it!  Absolutely perfect fit, lets you see exactly how it would hang on you!"  The display mannequin, you distinctly remember, was made of wood.

As Tarton walks by Artifex to the counter he tries to get his coin pouch back without Artifex noticing. Slight of Hand check in log: 29 (nat 20)

"You're quite the story teller. Having armor with that kind of history does make it more interesting. I'll take it, if the 45 cyfreith is not the discounted price. If that is the discount price then I'm afraid I can't afford it." Tarton asks Glynogan while smiling as he puts the armor on the counter. "Also, would you be willing to buy my current leather armor?"

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Perhaps DragonHunters as a player doesn't like what I had Tarton do, so to respect that I'll not do that again to Artifex. I apologize if I have offended anyone. As you can tell, Tarton has a compulsion to steal and test himself, but he also doesn't want to actually take things from those he knows or is working with/for, so he came up with the idea of hiding his own things on others that he could then steal back.

"Not a problem at all. I'm afraid I don't have any... Local currency on me. This is gold though, will it do?" Artifex reaches into their pocket, pulling out a large, gold coin with the words -Gringotts bank- printed on it.

It pauses for a moment, giving the mannequin another glance. "Quite a story indeed... How did you manage to retrieve  the figure? Defeat the basilisk yourself?

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No worries! I've got no issue with what you had Tarton do, I just didn't respond mostly because Artifex tends to not be very observant. Intelligent sure, but a little oblivious to their surroundings, particularly when they're focused.

While they stood at the counter, listening to the conversation between Artifex and the shopkeeper, The Black Rose leaned toward Tarton and whispered, "Are you still training? I saw you take it from Artifex this time. Shouldn't you give it back, as you did to me?"

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He could only see him take the gold; he couldn't see him giving it back since the second roll was too high to beat.

Erolith waits patiently by the doorway scanning the shop and the street beyond.

Perception roll = 11

Tarton whispers back to The Black Rose, "What you must have seen is me getting my coin pouch back from Artifex that I hid in its pocket earlier. See?" He holds up his own black coin pouch still in his hand. "Once I have tested myself against everyone I'm working with once, I'll be good for a week or two. Hopefully. From everyone's reaction on the night of our meeting, I've decided to try and hide something of mine on the person I'm testing myself against and then stealing it back. That way I'm never really taking something that doesn't belong to me. But we'll see if that really satisfies..." there is a long pause as he thinks of how to finish that sentence, "my compulsion."

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What The Black Rose saw was Tarton put a black pouch in Artifex's pocket, but to keep with the narrative as Tarton doesn't know what The Black Rose saw, this is his response.

Quote from badfishingdad75 >>

As Tarton walks by Artifex to the counter he tries to get his coin pouch back without Artifex noticing. Slight of Hand check in log: 29 (nat 20)

"You're quite the story teller. Having armor with that kind of history does make it more interesting. I'll take it, if the 45 cyfreith is not the discounted price. If that is the discount price then I'm afraid I can't afford it." Tarton asks Glynogan while smiling as he puts the armor on the counter. "Also, would you be willing to buy my current leather armor?"

 "Yes to both!," Glynogan chuckles  "With your discount the price would be twenty-two cyfreith  and five ceiniog ; and for the leather armor we could knock off another six cyfreith  and five ceiniog for a grand total of fifteen cyfreith  all told."

Quote from DragonHunters >>

"Not a problem at all. I'm afraid I don't have any... Local currency on me. This is gold though, will it do?" Artifex reaches into their pocket, pulling out a large, gold coin with the words -Gringotts bank- printed on it.

It pauses for a moment, giving the mannequin another glance. "Quite a story indeed... How did you manage to retrieve  the figure? Defeat the basilisk yourself?

 Glynogan gives the coin a peculiar look; then reaches out to take it.  Resting it on his palm, he pulls out what appears to be a metal toothpick and presses it to the surface.  The pick immediately lets out a low and melodious hum, and the tip where it touches the coin glows emerald green.  Then he raises his head.  "Interesting.  A very pure refinement of gold.  You're lucky I've done a bit of ... traveling ... in my time.  Not nearly as far as this coin's home, but far enough to recognize it as being worth a bit more than the usual sorts of gold coins circulating in this area -- or on this world, for that matter."   He whispers this last part into Artifex' ear, seeming uncertain whether or not this might be a fact they would prefer to keep to themselves.  "In any case, I'd say this coin is worth the equivalent of two cyfreith;  and so I owe you one  in change"  He hands the coin over with a slight bow of the head as he speaks.

"Thank you kindly. It's always nice to meet another Faernos Ath Tel' / Niefendil" Artifex says, returning his bow. "I find going  wherever the wind blows me to be by far the most entertaining way to pass the decades. How fortunate that it would blow me somewhere with such a gracious and well traveled host"

"I look forward to doing business with you again." Tarton says as he pays the fifteen cyfreith and hands over the leather armor.

Erolith inquires of the shopkeeper, “Do you have any daggers?”

"Do I have daggers?", Glynogan grins.  "I've got daggers here that will cut the wind!  And some others that might cut butter at a pinch; but most of those are from my predecessor.  Nice fellow, but getting on a bit, really couldn't see the flaws any more.  Sad case.  Anyway, if you want one of those  I couldn't in good conscience charge you more than one cyfreith;  whereas my usual line costs two, blood groove thrown in for free.  A quality one will be four.  Not quite as good as a sword, but definitely sharp enough to pierce a bit deeper than your foes expect.  Or supple enough in your hand to strike quicker, but I haven't yet gotten the techniques quite right to get a dagger that will do both."

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(OOC: cheap daggers will be -1 to hit and damage; quality will be either +1 to hit OR +1 to damage, your choice)

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(OOC: I just want to take a moment to check with everyone to see if you're all comfortable with the pace the story is developing at.  If you want to do anything more in town (research, more shopping, finding hirelings or guides, or what have you) and are having fun with the roleplaying I'd be delighted to continue; but if you want to get on to the more active parts of the adventure I didn't have anything else specifically planned for the Llandovion scenes beyond this gearing up)

“I’ll have one of your quality daggers,” Erolith says as he slides 4gp across the counter.

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+1 to hit 

Ready for action