Kiven strides in and stands at the far end of the table from the goblins, the chest and the girl with his hands and his bow behind his back. Making sure some combination of their new dragonkin behemoth, Grumblejack, Blau, etc. are with him, he announces "enough!" "It is clear that it will take more than poking and prodding to circumvent the magical defenses of this prize. Meanwhile others are pillaging and claiming riches for their own while you garner nothing. It would be wise you seek your bounty elsewhere."
If successful he looks at the girl and says "you, sit!" Approaching he says "you will not fair long amidst this hoard." "I advise you to be quiet, resist the urge to flee just into yet another pack of beasts and otherwise stay close to me."
" Knot? Cardinal? My warband joined in with this bugbear horde. It seemed like a good opportunity. " He studies Kiven and Respar curiously. Eyeing Kiven he rumbles, " Interesting. " His wings begin flapping as he rises. " Eya, I will look for the paladin's body below. It would be a shame for anything valuable to be left behind. " He has a very regretful look on his face. Abraxxus will search out the fallen paladin's body and look for anything of value. He then flies back up and rejoins his new acquantainces.
The biggest of the goblins puffs out his chest and looks like he's about to object, but trails off as Abraxxus enters the room. He gets nudged by a few of the others and then the pack breaks, abandoning their prize and the woman alike as they hug the far wall from you on their way out of the chamber.
The serving girl for her part scrambles into the corner and sits with her arms wrapped around her knees, shaking. She's an elf, and quite pretty.
Grumblejack looks to Eya and whispers loudly enough that everyone can hear him anyway, "She looks yummy, can I eat her?"
As the goblins scramble out of the chamber, Blau remarks "Pity. I would have thrown a couple more against the chest to see if we can drain the magic, first. Ah, well. Where's our resident lock-obsessed opportunist?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“Can you tell me the difference between a witch and a wizard?" "Sure, a wizard is what they call you when they want to hire you, and a witch is what they call you when they're getting ready to run you out of town.” SunWolf replied ― Barbara Hambly, The Witches of Wenshar
Respar looks to Blau and says, "I'll unlock it when the magical trap is no longer working." From a few feet away he begins looking over the chest, hoping to see a way to circumvent the trap.
Disable Device 19
Respar finds a small stud on the back of the chest, and holds it down, and attempts to open the chest.
Kiven quickly replies "perhaps later" dismissively to Grumblejack's request to eat the girl.
Kiven then walks over to the elven girls and studies her briefly, looking for magic or any deception hiding that she is somehow a threat. Otherwise he will kneel and look her in the eye. "You will not survive this without help, unless you think you can outpace the various hunters and beasts this rabid army employs. I, however, shall never hurt you, lest you bring a dagger to my throat. Do you understand?"
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Eya places a hand on Grumblejack's thigh and shakes her head. She whispers to him, "Not this one okay? Don't worry, there are plenty of freshly slain ones for you around here."
After, she walks up near Kiven to the girl and simply says, "He's right you know. We may be evil, but we aren't senseless butchers unless you give us reason to be. You should consider carefully his offer. This contract could save your life."
The chest's lock opens with a soft click, and the lid opens to reveal multiple compartments. Abraxxus' nostrils fill with the heady scent of gold. On the right is a hefty ledger which on quick perusal proves to be an expenses record. It seems that you've found the keep's payroll and operating funds.
The largest compartment holds a collection of heavy purses, 47 of them. Each purse contains 100 standard gold coins. the compartment to the left holds a pair of ornate looking boxes. One contains a dozen Tallingarde commendation medals, made with silver and tiny sapphires. The other contains a collection of "double eagles" extra large coins made from a full one pound of gold, with the image of princess Bellinda featured. Some of you would know that these are often given as awards to citizens who go above and beyond what is expected of them. Tossed in a corner is a sack that appears to be for petty cash expenses. Its almost exclusively silver and copper coins, but it looks to be worth a few hundred in gold at least.
Opening the door to the next room reveals a tastefully furnished bedchamber, and a goblin wearing a man's silk tunic like a dress and preening in front of a mirror. He does not seem to have noticed you yet, possibly thanks to his lack of ears, which looks like they might have been burned off given the scar tissue. Other than the large bed, the focus of the room is a shrine, and not to Mitra. Candles frame an oil picture of a very beautiful woman. You suspect that this shows Lady Bronwyn of Havelyn, the lord's wife, who has been dead for quite some time. At least at first glance, the most obvious item of wealth is a gilded tome, set in its own place of honor on a small table apparently built for it.
Eya assists the others in removing the valuables from the chest before the magic reactivates. Then, she walks into the next room with Grumblejack and Abraxxus behind her and blinks a couple of times at the goblin's display. "Hey shitstain, take those prissy clothes off right now and get out or I swear I will feed half of you to each of them," she demands of the goblin as she points back to Grumblejack and Abraxxus.
Eya does a quick detect magic in the new room in case anything in particular lights up her magic radar. She then asks Respar, "Can you take a look around for anything else valuable in this fancy room? That book at the very least looks valuable."
Eya pulls out a stone disk and sends a message to the Cardinal, "Balentyne has fallen. Praise Asmodeus. Selena is dead but potential new Knot member spotted. Powerful half dragon named Abraxxus who craves wealth. How to proceed? Contract signing?"
Eya goes to find a private, quiet area of the room and opens the sealed scroll given to the Knot by the Cardinal. She examines what happens next carefully.
Detect magic in the room, in particular on the gilded tome. Will leave the searching to Respar while Eya talks to Cardinal Thorn. Will make a follow-up post soon to try and formally recruit Abraxxus to the Nessian Knot.
Unable to judge the total value of the contents, Blau merely helps empty it into neat piles. After that has been finished, he stays near it, certain of the larcenous nature of soft beings.
“Can you tell me the difference between a witch and a wizard?" "Sure, a wizard is what they call you when they want to hire you, and a witch is what they call you when they're getting ready to run you out of town.” SunWolf replied ― Barbara Hambly, The Witches of Wenshar
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Respar smiles and nods in appreciation as he views all the coin, and the valuable medals. "I suspect we'll need a fair bit of this to fund further operations for our patron." As they go into the bedroom he nods at Eya's request and performs a search of the room.
The elven woman's shaking slows, and she nods to Kiven in apparent understanding. But she doesn't move from her corner for now, keeping a particularly wary eye on the two ogres and the half dragon.
The goblin jumps back when he finally turns and spots you, almost knocking the tall mirror over on top of himself. In short order, he's thrown off the tunic. With the door to the room filled and him apparently being unwilling to go near the group, he literally dives for the bed, disappearing underneath.
The book proves to be an heirloom bible. Most of its pages are dedicated to the various written works of the Mitran faith. But the back few pages detail Lord Thomas' family tree. Its largely uninteresting fare, but there is one unusual detail. A name has been rather aggressively crossed out. Its difficult to make out the name, but based on its position, the person in question must have been a sibling to the paladin you just killed. The book itself is an exquisite work. It could likely be sold for a high price in a major Tallingarde city, but only after removing any trace of who it belongs to.
Magical auras betray a stash of scrolls and potions in the bottom of the wardrobe. No immediate reply is heard when Eya uses the stone to send to Thorne. When she breaks the seal, the scroll within simply states "Make your way to Ghastenhall. Have a few of your number check into the Inn at the docks called the Drowning Cat. The rest should wait hidden to the east of the city. Do be discrete. You'll meet your next contact at the Inn."
DC 16 perception check to read the name.
Natives of Tallingarde know Ghastenhall as the third largest city in the nation. It is also somewhat unique for being one of the few places that remain relatively free of the most overbearing aspects of Mitran worship in these lands, with a considerably more relaxed approach to enforcing the laws demanded by the church. Ghastenhall is also probably the oldest city in Tallingarde, and its oldest citizens still remember when the current duke's grandfather fought in the civil war against the rise of the ever so pious house Darius. The city itself lies roughly in the center of the Island, on the north shore of the large body of water splitting its southern half.
It is perhaps five days to Ghastenhall by horse, or three if you can find a boat to take you down the river.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Respar peers closely at the scratched out na,e, trying to decipher. He holds the page up to whatever light the candles give off...
Perception 26
"Hm," says the rogue. "Lord Havelynn's brother was named Samuel, and was a Mitran bishop. But if his name's been removed, he must have done something rather beyond society's standards. Perhaps that information should be passed to our patron."
Kiven offers the elven girl an extended hand, helping her up and to a chair if she accepts. Not one to come across as warm or comforting, he at least speaks plainly and mostly honestly to her. "There are few of our kind here, and even less love for us, but I will make sure we are unharmed. What is your name, what is your station, and where are you from? I am Lord Kiven Aloro of Daveryn."
Abraxxus snorts at the goblins and shakes his head. " Little jackals trying to get meat earned by lions. " He throws his head back and chortle as they flee.
When the chest is open the smell of gold is overwhelming. He sniffs and his yellow eyes glow. All irritation about the goblins and the elf female still being alive fade in the background. He takes out some of the gold coins and holds them up to the light admiringly. " By Dahak's claw..... so much gold. I love the smell, the feel of gold....."
"Dragon warrior, every step we take towards the elimination of the Mitran Folly leads us to their treasures. Our goal is to take every one of their fortresses and towns and release them from the ugly bondage of the Sun-Lord's domination. Come with us and you'll see more of the yellow metal than you can imagine!" Blau extorts as he piles up the shares.
“Can you tell me the difference between a witch and a wizard?" "Sure, a wizard is what they call you when they want to hire you, and a witch is what they call you when they're getting ready to run you out of town.” SunWolf replied ― Barbara Hambly, The Witches of Wenshar
The young woman allows herself to be seated at a chair, moving stiffly. "Calarel my lord, I'm Father Donaggan's ward, he took me in after my family was killed. Is... is the Father okay?"
Abraxxus' survey finds that there is 5,052 in straight coinage, the ten "double eagles" are worth around fifty normal gold coins each, the commendation medals perhaps 75 gold. The book itself is likely valued at around 400 to an ordinary merchant, perhaps twice that for someone hoping to display his piety. That is of course if you can remove all evidence that this book belongs to the Havelyns without damaging it.
Total value, assuming the sellables are sold at the default of 50% market value (and you don't find a motivated buyer for the book), 5,952 gp.
"He is decidedly not ok. You will be my ward for now, if you wish to remain safe. Alternatively you may attempt to leave, but it would not be prudent."
Kiven strides in and stands at the far end of the table from the goblins, the chest and the girl with his hands and his bow behind his back. Making sure some combination of their new dragonkin behemoth, Grumblejack, Blau, etc. are with him, he announces "enough!" "It is clear that it will take more than poking and prodding to circumvent the magical defenses of this prize. Meanwhile others are pillaging and claiming riches for their own while you garner nothing. It would be wise you seek your bounty elsewhere."
If successful he looks at the girl and says "you, sit!" Approaching he says "you will not fair long amidst this hoard." "I advise you to be quiet, resist the urge to flee just into yet another pack of beasts and otherwise stay close to me."
" Knot? Cardinal? My warband joined in with this bugbear horde. It seemed like a good opportunity. " He studies Kiven and Respar curiously. Eyeing Kiven he rumbles, " Interesting. " His wings begin flapping as he rises. " Eya, I will look for the paladin's body below. It would be a shame for anything valuable to be left behind. " He has a very regretful look on his face. Abraxxus will search out the fallen paladin's body and look for anything of value. He then flies back up and rejoins his new acquantainces.
The biggest of the goblins puffs out his chest and looks like he's about to object, but trails off as Abraxxus enters the room. He gets nudged by a few of the others and then the pack breaks, abandoning their prize and the woman alike as they hug the far wall from you on their way out of the chamber.
The serving girl for her part scrambles into the corner and sits with her arms wrapped around her knees, shaking. She's an elf, and quite pretty.
Grumblejack looks to Eya and whispers loudly enough that everyone can hear him anyway, "She looks yummy, can I eat her?"
As the goblins scramble out of the chamber, Blau remarks "Pity. I would have thrown a couple more against the chest to see if we can drain the magic, first. Ah, well. Where's our resident lock-obsessed opportunist?"
“Can you tell me the difference between a witch and a wizard?"
"Sure, a wizard is what they call you when they want to hire you, and a witch is what they call you when they're getting ready to run you out of town.” SunWolf replied
― Barbara Hambly, The Witches of Wenshar
Respar looks to Blau and says, "I'll unlock it when the magical trap is no longer working." From a few feet away he begins looking over the chest, hoping to see a way to circumvent the trap.
Disable Device 19
Respar finds a small stud on the back of the chest, and holds it down, and attempts to open the chest.
Disable Device 26
Kiven quickly replies "perhaps later" dismissively to Grumblejack's request to eat the girl.
Kiven then walks over to the elven girls and studies her briefly, looking for magic or any deception hiding that she is somehow a threat. Otherwise he will kneel and look her in the eye. "You will not survive this without help, unless you think you can outpace the various hunters and beasts this rabid army employs. I, however, shall never hurt you, lest you bring a dagger to my throat. Do you understand?"
Respar curses softly. "Let's try that again." He once again pushes in the stud on the back of the chest...
Disable device 29
Eya places a hand on Grumblejack's thigh and shakes her head. She whispers to him, "Not this one okay? Don't worry, there are plenty of freshly slain ones for you around here."
After, she walks up near Kiven to the girl and simply says, "He's right you know. We may be evil, but we aren't senseless butchers unless you give us reason to be. You should consider carefully his offer. This contract could save your life."
Eya Aid Another Diplomacy for Kiven: 23
The chest's lock opens with a soft click, and the lid opens to reveal multiple compartments. Abraxxus' nostrils fill with the heady scent of gold. On the right is a hefty ledger which on quick perusal proves to be an expenses record. It seems that you've found the keep's payroll and operating funds.
The largest compartment holds a collection of heavy purses, 47 of them. Each purse contains 100 standard gold coins. the compartment to the left holds a pair of ornate looking boxes. One contains a dozen Tallingarde commendation medals, made with silver and tiny sapphires. The other contains a collection of "double eagles" extra large coins made from a full one pound of gold, with the image of princess Bellinda featured. Some of you would know that these are often given as awards to citizens who go above and beyond what is expected of them. Tossed in a corner is a sack that appears to be for petty cash expenses. Its almost exclusively silver and copper coins, but it looks to be worth a few hundred in gold at least.
Opening the door to the next room reveals a tastefully furnished bedchamber, and a goblin wearing a man's silk tunic like a dress and preening in front of a mirror. He does not seem to have noticed you yet, possibly thanks to his lack of ears, which looks like they might have been burned off given the scar tissue. Other than the large bed, the focus of the room is a shrine, and not to Mitra. Candles frame an oil picture of a very beautiful woman. You suspect that this shows Lady Bronwyn of Havelyn, the lord's wife, who has been dead for quite some time. At least at first glance, the most obvious item of wealth is a gilded tome, set in its own place of honor on a small table apparently built for it.
Eya assists the others in removing the valuables from the chest before the magic reactivates. Then, she walks into the next room with Grumblejack and Abraxxus behind her and blinks a couple of times at the goblin's display. "Hey shitstain, take those prissy clothes off right now and get out or I swear I will feed half of you to each of them," she demands of the goblin as she points back to Grumblejack and Abraxxus.
Eya does a quick detect magic in the new room in case anything in particular lights up her magic radar. She then asks Respar, "Can you take a look around for anything else valuable in this fancy room? That book at the very least looks valuable."
Eya pulls out a stone disk and sends a message to the Cardinal, "Balentyne has fallen. Praise Asmodeus. Selena is dead but potential new Knot member spotted. Powerful half dragon named Abraxxus who craves wealth. How to proceed? Contract signing?"
Eya goes to find a private, quiet area of the room and opens the sealed scroll given to the Knot by the Cardinal. She examines what happens next carefully.
Detect magic in the room, in particular on the gilded tome. Will leave the searching to Respar while Eya talks to Cardinal Thorn. Will make a follow-up post soon to try and formally recruit Abraxxus to the Nessian Knot.
Unable to judge the total value of the contents, Blau merely helps empty it into neat piles. After that has been finished, he stays near it, certain of the larcenous nature of soft beings.
Appraisal 4
“Can you tell me the difference between a witch and a wizard?"
"Sure, a wizard is what they call you when they want to hire you, and a witch is what they call you when they're getting ready to run you out of town.” SunWolf replied
― Barbara Hambly, The Witches of Wenshar
Respar smiles and nods in appreciation as he views all the coin, and the valuable medals. "I suspect we'll need a fair bit of this to fund further operations for our patron." As they go into the bedroom he nods at Eya's request and performs a search of the room.
Perception 31
The elven woman's shaking slows, and she nods to Kiven in apparent understanding. But she doesn't move from her corner for now, keeping a particularly wary eye on the two ogres and the half dragon.
The goblin jumps back when he finally turns and spots you, almost knocking the tall mirror over on top of himself. In short order, he's thrown off the tunic. With the door to the room filled and him apparently being unwilling to go near the group, he literally dives for the bed, disappearing underneath.
The book proves to be an heirloom bible. Most of its pages are dedicated to the various written works of the Mitran faith. But the back few pages detail Lord Thomas' family tree. Its largely uninteresting fare, but there is one unusual detail. A name has been rather aggressively crossed out. Its difficult to make out the name, but based on its position, the person in question must have been a sibling to the paladin you just killed. The book itself is an exquisite work. It could likely be sold for a high price in a major Tallingarde city, but only after removing any trace of who it belongs to.
Magical auras betray a stash of scrolls and potions in the bottom of the wardrobe. No immediate reply is heard when Eya uses the stone to send to Thorne. When she breaks the seal, the scroll within simply states "Make your way to Ghastenhall. Have a few of your number check into the Inn at the docks called the Drowning Cat. The rest should wait hidden to the east of the city. Do be discrete. You'll meet your next contact at the Inn."
DC 16 perception check to read the name.
Natives of Tallingarde know Ghastenhall as the third largest city in the nation. It is also somewhat unique for being one of the few places that remain relatively free of the most overbearing aspects of Mitran worship in these lands, with a considerably more relaxed approach to enforcing the laws demanded by the church. Ghastenhall is also probably the oldest city in Tallingarde, and its oldest citizens still remember when the current duke's grandfather fought in the civil war against the rise of the ever so pious house Darius. The city itself lies roughly in the center of the Island, on the north shore of the large body of water splitting its southern half.
It is perhaps five days to Ghastenhall by horse, or three if you can find a boat to take you down the river.
Respar peers closely at the scratched out na,e, trying to decipher. He holds the page up to whatever light the candles give off...
Perception 26
"Hm," says the rogue. "Lord Havelynn's brother was named Samuel, and was a Mitran bishop. But if his name's been removed, he must have done something rather beyond society's standards. Perhaps that information should be passed to our patron."
Level 5 HP 10
Kiven offers the elven girl an extended hand, helping her up and to a chair if she accepts. Not one to come across as warm or comforting, he at least speaks plainly and mostly honestly to her. "There are few of our kind here, and even less love for us, but I will make sure we are unharmed. What is your name, what is your station, and where are you from? I am Lord Kiven Aloro of Daveryn."
Abraxxus snorts at the goblins and shakes his head. " Little jackals trying to get meat earned by lions. " He throws his head back and chortle as they flee.
When the chest is open the smell of gold is overwhelming. He sniffs and his yellow eyes glow. All irritation about the goblins and the elf female still being alive fade in the background. He takes out some of the gold coins and holds them up to the light admiringly. " By Dahak's claw..... so much gold. I love the smell, the feel of gold....."
Appraise: @Kyrroeth game_die
Result: 1d20 (10) + 8
Total: 18
"Dragon warrior, every step we take towards the elimination of the Mitran Folly leads us to their treasures. Our goal is to take every one of their fortresses and towns and release them from the ugly bondage of the Sun-Lord's domination. Come with us and you'll see more of the yellow metal than you can imagine!" Blau extorts as he piles up the shares.
“Can you tell me the difference between a witch and a wizard?"
"Sure, a wizard is what they call you when they want to hire you, and a witch is what they call you when they're getting ready to run you out of town.” SunWolf replied
― Barbara Hambly, The Witches of Wenshar
The young woman allows herself to be seated at a chair, moving stiffly. "Calarel my lord, I'm Father Donaggan's ward, he took me in after my family was killed. Is... is the Father okay?"
Abraxxus' survey finds that there is 5,052 in straight coinage, the ten "double eagles" are worth around fifty normal gold coins each, the commendation medals perhaps 75 gold. The book itself is likely valued at around 400 to an ordinary merchant, perhaps twice that for someone hoping to display his piety. That is of course if you can remove all evidence that this book belongs to the Havelyns without damaging it.
Total value, assuming the sellables are sold at the default of 50% market value (and you don't find a motivated buyer for the book), 5,952 gp.
"He is decidedly not ok. You will be my ward for now, if you wish to remain safe. Alternatively you may attempt to leave, but it would not be prudent."
The young woman looks down at her hands and says nothing.