The next room is a comfortable lounge, decorated in plush reds and browns, with wooden bookcases lining the walls, and chairs and sofas arranged around the room in an artfully disorganised way, but all facing a single corner where it seems a performer will stand. About eight people, including Doteya herself, are standing around, drinking and chatting. Doteya waves as you enter, but continues her conversation with a rather richly-dressed human. A servant approaches, a half-elf carrying a tray of clear wine glasses, and offers them to you.
You are rather under-dressed compared to most guests - but not all. Near the back is an elven woman wearing rather battered leather armour, lounging on a sofa and looking completely at ease as she chats amiably with a richly-dressed young human male who might be sixteen or seventeen.
No, sir, only on special occasions. I am employed by a friend who lends me to Mistress Arrac when she has an event. He gives a stiff bow, slightly embarrassed that you are talking to him, and dodges away to one of the other groups.
Hmmm...Silent scratches the back of his head nervously. Magnum, you ever been to events like this? Reckon I need to act cooler - am I cool? I feel hot, that's the opposite of cool...
Ah... good, that's good.Silent will sip his wine as slowly as possible while scanning the room. The armoured elven woman seems the least intimidating to him so he'll wait for a lull in her conversation before walking over and saying You folks here for the music as well?
My friend, the elf replies, opening her arms wide dramatically. I am the music. The teenage human rolls his eyes and grins, and the elf laughs. You must be Doteya's surprise guest. I am Elspa Corinnian, bringer of joy at a reasonable fee. The smirking maypole is Lord Ferin Hasser, a devoted fan of my greatness, and also a student of the mistress of the house. Thank goodness you've come, I think the poor boy was trying to flirt with me.
Ferin gives a polished and polite bow. I'm looking forward to hearing your performance, sir.
Silent attempts to return Ferin's bow. Much obliged, milord.
He turns to the elf. Glad to meet you, Elspa. I'm Silent, this is Magnum. We've actually met some minstrels singing your praises in a village back west, wouldn't you know it. Word has it that you're quite the bard - I'm guessing that armor ain't just for show, eh?
Elspa's famous, Ferin replies. Or should it be 'notorious'?
Same thing, mydear, the elf responds. Sit, sit. Both of you. She waves at the nearby chairs. I have my skills, and have fought my way out of a few tricky situations. I doubt there'll be any trouble tonight, of course, but my fans do like to see me dressed for action, so to speak. And you. Goodness, that's a large sword. Quite a plain one too, which means it's meant to be used, not admired. she says approvingly. And of course, your... friend? Do you speak?
Silent sits down, unbuckling his sword and baldric to stand them up against the chair. To tell you the truth, I've been hearing a lot more clanging blades than pretty music. Miss Arrac's been kind enough to lend me a lute for the night - not too sure I'll measure up, though. Out of practice and all that.
Actually... there was another name gettin' bandied around in that village, now that I think about it. Koren... Honntor Koren, yeah. Supposed to be a real lute master. You know him?
I suppose, she say,s, raising her voice slightly, if all you care about is technical precision, he's a decent enough tutor. But passion, and adventure, and life - you have to go out into the world and experience it before the music will come to you in truth. Honntor Koren is a shriveled prune who has never left the city and rarely leaves his home, and wouldn't know true talent and flair if it bit him on the posterior.
You were flat, Elspa. An elderly gnome has just entered the room, and is regarding Elspa with amusement. The review stands. I suggest you get your instrument checked. Gentlemen, he nods to Silent and Magnum and wanders over to another group of new arrivals.
She knows him, Ferin adds helpfully.
The room is now much fuller, and Doteya taps her glass for silence and begins the recital. The guests sit at the various chairs, and while there's discussion between each performance, everyone is silent in appreciation for each performance, some on lute, some purely vocal, others vocal with one or more instrument accompanying. It's a friendlier get-together than you might have imagined; the participants and audience seem to know each other well and get along, and the applause after each performance seems genuine. Elspa's turn comes, and she sings a traditional Empire song but in a style more associated with Brokenbank, an unusual combination that goes down well. It then comes Silent's turn to perform, and Doteya introduces you:
Master Silent happened past my shop yesterday, and gave a most delightful performance, so I invited him to join us. Please welcome him. Perhaps you'd like to say a few words about what you will perform, young man?
Ah, right yes - thanks, Miss Arrac. There are beads of sweat forming on Silent's forehead and nose. He clears his throat.
The Dusk March. It's a folk song that was real popular in my old military regiment. The man who taught me to play always emphasized breaking the rules... so I took the bones of the tune and twisted 'em up. Never really played it the same way twice so I never figured to name it.It'll be a right gamble but I hope you enjoy.
The same servant from before offers you the same lute you played on before, and you are invited to start your performance. You see Elspa at the back of the room wink and give you a thumbs up. You can make a lute performance check - a d20 roll, +1 for his Charisma modifier, and +2 proficiency modifier, and add a d8 bardic inspiration from Elspa, and advantage from Magnum. :)
It's different from the previous night. You find yourself less caught up in the music, more aware of your audience as you play. But the effect is similar, and the magical inspiration and support from others helps, but you know that you have this talent within you, this skill you have learned, and once again you give a truly captivating performance.
How similar is the tune to what you played the previous night, and to what extent is it the original traditional folk song, and to what extent your own creation?
He'll start off by playing the same mournful folk tune as the previous night. Once warmed up after a few stanzas, he'll once again launch into a livelier improvisational composition.
The majority of the tune morphs into this stream of consciousness, switching between minor and major motifs. He makes a conscious effort to avoid speeding up out of nerves (as he did in the Lyrical Star).
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I can generate sparks, lights and sounds using Prestidigitation. Would that help?
Sounds good to me - whatever you think will, uh, complement the music? Think that's the word the minstrels back home used to throw around.
The next room is a comfortable lounge, decorated in plush reds and browns, with wooden bookcases lining the walls, and chairs and sofas arranged around the room in an artfully disorganised way, but all facing a single corner where it seems a performer will stand. About eight people, including Doteya herself, are standing around, drinking and chatting. Doteya waves as you enter, but continues her conversation with a rather richly-dressed human. A servant approaches, a half-elf carrying a tray of clear wine glasses, and offers them to you.
You are rather under-dressed compared to most guests - but not all. Near the back is an elven woman wearing rather battered leather armour, lounging on a sofa and looking completely at ease as she chats amiably with a richly-dressed young human male who might be sixteen or seventeen.
Silent is immediately intimidated by the high-society atmosphere. He'll introduce himself to the servant and try to strike up a conversation.
Well, hehe, nice to have a drink. M'name's Silent, this is Magnum. You, uh, you work for Miss Arrac?
No, sir, only on special occasions. I am employed by a friend who lends me to Mistress Arrac when she has an event. He gives a stiff bow, slightly embarrassed that you are talking to him, and dodges away to one of the other groups.
Hmmm... Silent scratches the back of his head nervously. Magnum, you ever been to events like this? Reckon I need to act cooler - am I cool? I feel hot, that's the opposite of cool...
I’m not really an expert on manners or bearing, but I have been to a few parties. Father was...not cool? By that metric you’re doing fairly well.
Ah... good, that's good. Silent will sip his wine as slowly as possible while scanning the room. The armoured elven woman seems the least intimidating to him so he'll wait for a lull in her conversation before walking over and saying You folks here for the music as well?
My friend, the elf replies, opening her arms wide dramatically. I am the music. The teenage human rolls his eyes and grins, and the elf laughs. You must be Doteya's surprise guest. I am Elspa Corinnian, bringer of joy at a reasonable fee. The smirking maypole is Lord Ferin Hasser, a devoted fan of my greatness, and also a student of the mistress of the house. Thank goodness you've come, I think the poor boy was trying to flirt with me.
Ferin gives a polished and polite bow. I'm looking forward to hearing your performance, sir.
Silent attempts to return Ferin's bow. Much obliged, milord.
He turns to the elf. Glad to meet you, Elspa. I'm Silent, this is Magnum. We've actually met some minstrels singing your praises in a village back west, wouldn't you know it. Word has it that you're quite the bard - I'm guessing that armor ain't just for show, eh?
Elspa's famous, Ferin replies. Or should it be 'notorious'?
Same thing, my dear, the elf responds. Sit, sit. Both of you. She waves at the nearby chairs. I have my skills, and have fought my way out of a few tricky situations. I doubt there'll be any trouble tonight, of course, but my fans do like to see me dressed for action, so to speak. And you. Goodness, that's a large sword. Quite a plain one too, which means it's meant to be used, not admired. she says approvingly. And of course, your... friend? Do you speak?
Yes, milady. Magnum bows.
Silent sits down, unbuckling his sword and baldric to stand them up against the chair. To tell you the truth, I've been hearing a lot more clanging blades than pretty music. Miss Arrac's been kind enough to lend me a lute for the night - not too sure I'll measure up, though. Out of practice and all that.
Actually... there was another name gettin' bandied around in that village, now that I think about it. Koren... Honntor Koren, yeah. Supposed to be a real lute master. You know him?
I suppose, she say,s, raising her voice slightly, if all you care about is technical precision, he's a decent enough tutor. But passion, and adventure, and life - you have to go out into the world and experience it before the music will come to you in truth. Honntor Koren is a shriveled prune who has never left the city and rarely leaves his home, and wouldn't know true talent and flair if it bit him on the posterior.
You were flat, Elspa. An elderly gnome has just entered the room, and is regarding Elspa with amusement. The review stands. I suggest you get your instrument checked. Gentlemen, he nods to Silent and Magnum and wanders over to another group of new arrivals.
She knows him, Ferin adds helpfully.
The room is now much fuller, and Doteya taps her glass for silence and begins the recital. The guests sit at the various chairs, and while there's discussion between each performance, everyone is silent in appreciation for each performance, some on lute, some purely vocal, others vocal with one or more instrument accompanying. It's a friendlier get-together than you might have imagined; the participants and audience seem to know each other well and get along, and the applause after each performance seems genuine. Elspa's turn comes, and she sings a traditional Empire song but in a style more associated with Brokenbank, an unusual combination that goes down well. It then comes Silent's turn to perform, and Doteya introduces you:
Master Silent happened past my shop yesterday, and gave a most delightful performance, so I invited him to join us. Please welcome him. Perhaps you'd like to say a few words about what you will perform, young man?
Ah, right yes - thanks, Miss Arrac. There are beads of sweat forming on Silent's forehead and nose. He clears his throat.
The Dusk March. It's a folk song that was real popular in my old military regiment. The man who taught me to play always emphasized breaking the rules... so I took the bones of the tune and twisted 'em up. Never really played it the same way twice so I never figured to name it. It'll be a right gamble but I hope you enjoy.
Magnum will assist with the performance by adding light effects with prestidigitation.
The same servant from before offers you the same lute you played on before, and you are invited to start your performance. You see Elspa at the back of the room wink and give you a thumbs up. You can make a lute performance check - a d20 roll, +1 for his Charisma modifier, and +2 proficiency modifier, and add a d8 bardic inspiration from Elspa, and advantage from Magnum. :)
Performance: 9 3
It's different from the previous night. You find yourself less caught up in the music, more aware of your audience as you play. But the effect is similar, and the magical inspiration and support from others helps, but you know that you have this talent within you, this skill you have learned, and once again you give a truly captivating performance.
How similar is the tune to what you played the previous night, and to what extent is it the original traditional folk song, and to what extent your own creation?
He'll start off by playing the same mournful folk tune as the previous night. Once warmed up after a few stanzas, he'll once again launch into a livelier improvisational composition.
The majority of the tune morphs into this stream of consciousness, switching between minor and major motifs. He makes a conscious effort to avoid speeding up out of nerves (as he did in the Lyrical Star).