The half-elf grimaces. "Iarno. The one from the Lords' Alliance. He asked be about the Redbrands a few times, but I haven't seen him around in a while. If he's missing, well, he may have found more than he was looking for," he ends grimly.
"I guess all the more reason to go after them Redbrands..." Tomora says glumly. Changing the subject, she asks "You mentioned something about troubles at Old Owl Well. What sort of trouble? Is there somethin' else going on that we might be able to help with?"
Daran nods to Tomora. "It's a bit of a different sort, but still troubling. There's an old ruin up in the hills off the Triboar Trail. Someone's been digging around there, and a few prospectors with claims up there have claimed they were chased off by zombies. Old Owl Well was a Netherese watchtower. There may be some dormant magic there that needs to stay dormant." He looks off towards the east for a moment then returns his gaze to Tomora. "I need someone to go up there and see who's doing what. If you would do that for me, I'd appreciate it greatly." He gives each of party a searching look. "I don't really have anything to offer as reward, but you don't seem to be the type who needs a reward to do the right thing." He looks at Serwa. "Especially you, paladin of Kelemvor, when it comes to the undead."
Daran nods to Tomora. "It's a bit of a different sort, but still troubling. There's an old ruin up in the hills off the Triboar Trail. Someone's been digging around there, and a few prospectors with claims up there have claimed they were chased off by zombies. Old Owl Well was a Netherese watchtower. There may be some dormant magic there that needs to stay dormant." He looks off towards the east for a moment then returns his gaze to Tomora. "I need someone to go up there and see who's doing what. If you would do that for me, I'd appreciate it greatly." He gives each of party a searching look. "I don't really have anything to offer as reward, but you don't seem to be the type who needs a reward to do the right thing." He looks at Serwa. "Especially you, paladin of Kelemvor, when it comes to the undead."
Serwa responds as if reciting a litany that was taught to her, not putting a great deal of passion behind the words, but that is the norm for her, with her monotone presentation. "The dead belong to Kelemvor's domain. Death is a natural part of life. We hold the undead and the practice of Necromancy in contempt. I will absolutely do what I can to put these restless dead down, for good this time."
The wood elf responds with uncharacteristic antipathy. "We cannot ignore this," he agrees. "I understand that the living need protection, but whatever our priority is, we cannot suffer these undead to exist."
A look of disgust crosses Tomora's face as if smelling something foul "Well that is troubling...I think the only question really is which do we take care of first? protect the living or put the dead to rest? I'm for helping the living, but I'll let y'all make the call."
„We seem to get more and more problems on our hand and we dont really have time to solve the first. But even to me, who is not one of kelemvor, wants those undead to „find their way back home“.“
"We all agree these are problems, the undead at Old Owl Well, the Redbrand gang, and the matter of finding and rescuing Gundren," Serwa says. "They all matter to us, and they all pose a threat to people in this region. There's no point in in getting bogged down in arguing about greater good, or urgency. These are all important and they all need to be handled. It's just a matter of where we decide to start. None of these are things I'm willing to let slide. My faith does compel me to put down the undead, yes. My personal ethics also tells me we need to at least try to rescue Gundren, and we need to crush this gang."
"So, where do we start? If we knew what to expect I'd suggest we go from easiest to hardest, that way if we die at least we did some good for the region before we went. It's grim, but hey, that's on brand for me, isn't it? Besides, it's practical. If we don't have any way to gauge the strength of these forces, then I guess we could just go with whatever's closest."
OOC: Can we somewhat gauge the tactical strength of the expected forces at each threat location based on Daran's intel? I know there's no way to just guess CR rating for encounters, but we do have some experienced adventurers including a couple of ex-military types, are there are checks we could make to infer what our characters might believe is the "low hanging fruit"?
"I suppose that is a practical way of looking at it..." Tomora muses, amused with Serwa's logic. "Whatever we do we should get about it as quick as possible, without too much debate about priorities. You know, what we need is a leader...someone to make the decision! Someone practical and level headed and not prone to let their emotions get the best of them..." Tomora says with a grin and sideways look at Serwa "I vote Serwa!"
(OOC: I'm all for having a leader to pick what the party should do. Should save us from having to discuss everything and I think most of the time everyone is good with whatever.)
Turning back to Daran, Tomora asks "Daran, Sir, one last question if you don't mind...Have you heard of an older dwarf by the name Tomodin passing through town recently?"
Serwa stares blankly, per her tendency, without any visible emotional reaction to the suggestion. "Go military style, with a chain of command? I'm a paladin of a death god who has a list of dead comrades and loved ones, who is probably cursed and literally has the last name 'Omen,' and I tend to opt to kill our enemies first and ask questions never. Not the most conventional figurehead or leader type for a group. But if we just need someone to make calls on what order to take on challenges, I suppose I can do that, if that's what everyone decides on. Just know my luck with having people I care about survive has been consistent. Consistently terrible."
"If it's my call, I would say we head to the Old Owl Well and take care of the undead first, and hit the Redbrands second. In part because we actually know where those threats are, where the other issue sounds like it needs more recon. Careful with granting me this whole leader mandate authority. I'll force everyone to learn Dragon Chess and other weird games, and make everyone learn instruments to back up my cheerful singing and dancing. You've been warned."
The wood elf's sour expression disappears, replaced by a broad grin and an impish twinkle in his eye. "Serwa? Oh, dear. I'll have to find something black to wear," he quips. "But as for doing the Well first, we may as well. No pun intended. Maybe by the time we get back Sildar will have turned something up about the location of Cragmaw Castle. We don't seem to be having any luck."
The wood elf's sour expression disappears, replaced by a broad grin and an impish twinkle in his eye. "Serwa? Oh, dear. I'll have to find something black to wear," he quips. "But as for doing the Well first, we may as well. No pun intended. Maybe by the time we get back Sildar will have turned something up about the location of Cragmaw Castle. We don't seem to be having any luck."
“Black would obviously be mandatory,” Serwa quips back without missing a beat. “Let’s not leave the well alone, then. How far is it from here, Daran?”
Daran grabs his hoe again and gestures. "Just take the Triboar Trail eastward. Once you get to the ruins of Conyberry, head straight southeast into the hill country." His eyes narrow as he calculates the distance. "It's about forty miles along the Triboar to Conyberry, and then eighteen miles from there to Old Owl Well. As the crow flies, that is, but you'll likely walk a lot farther weaving among the hills." He looks up at the feathery clouds. "You'll have a couple good nights, but I'd expect rain the third day, so you may want to plan for that."
He turns his attention to Tomora. "As for a dwarf named Tomodin...well, there have been a few dwarfs who have come through in the last couple of months, but they've kept to themselves, for the most part. They've not come into town hardly at all. I'm not really sure how many or how few there are, or their names. I wish I could help you more."
“How far is it to the manor where the Redbrands’ leader, Glasstick, hangs out?” Serwa asks, intentionally getting the name wrong and pronouncing it as if she is insulting his manhood. “If that’s closer let’s just start with that one.”
"Thank you Sir, you have done more than enough." Tomora says looking a little disappointed. "Is the Rebrand manor that old one up on the hill that you can see from town? If so, it ain't far at all. Less than a mile I'd wager. As Daran mentioned, we might be able to get a good look at it from the Alderleaf's farm first."
"tis indeed the old manor. it was already abandoned when i still lived here as a child. Was the scene of many ghoststories. I have helped the alderleaf's when i was doing farmwork. Im sure he will return the favour and help us."
"Lets head over to speak with the Alderleaf's about this, then, and see what we can learn," Serwa says. "Thank for your help, Daran. Maybe we'll play a round of Dragon Chess some time. Unless we get ourselves killed."
Tomora laughs halfheartedly at Serwa's comment, never sure if the Paladin is joking or not "Oh, we have nothing to worry about, I'm sure! Come on then lets see what we can learn from the Alderleafs."
The wood elf shakes his head, chuckling softly. "Is Kelemvor himself this impatient, or is it just our young paladin?" he asks rhetorically. "Come, let us see what the Alderleafs my tell us. Alderleaves?" he corrects himself...sort of.
The wood elf shakes his head, chuckling softly. "Is Kelemvor himself this impatient, or is it just our young paladin?" he asks rhetorically. "Come, let us see what the Alderleafs my tell us. Alderleaves?" he corrects himself...sort of.
“Kelemvor is impatient sounds a lot like a death threat,” Serwa says. “Actually, I’ll have to use that one. Let’s go to talk those people.”She verbally sidesteps the issue of how to correct pluralize the family name.
The half-elf grimaces. "Iarno. The one from the Lords' Alliance. He asked be about the Redbrands a few times, but I haven't seen him around in a while. If he's missing, well, he may have found more than he was looking for," he ends grimly.
"I guess all the more reason to go after them Redbrands..." Tomora says glumly. Changing the subject, she asks "You mentioned something about troubles at Old Owl Well. What sort of trouble? Is there somethin' else going on that we might be able to help with?"
Daran nods to Tomora. "It's a bit of a different sort, but still troubling. There's an old ruin up in the hills off the Triboar Trail. Someone's been digging around there, and a few prospectors with claims up there have claimed they were chased off by zombies. Old Owl Well was a Netherese watchtower. There may be some dormant magic there that needs to stay dormant." He looks off towards the east for a moment then returns his gaze to Tomora. "I need someone to go up there and see who's doing what. If you would do that for me, I'd appreciate it greatly." He gives each of party a searching look. "I don't really have anything to offer as reward, but you don't seem to be the type who needs a reward to do the right thing." He looks at Serwa. "Especially you, paladin of Kelemvor, when it comes to the undead."
Serwa responds as if reciting a litany that was taught to her, not putting a great deal of passion behind the words, but that is the norm for her, with her monotone presentation. "The dead belong to Kelemvor's domain. Death is a natural part of life. We hold the undead and the practice of Necromancy in contempt. I will absolutely do what I can to put these restless dead down, for good this time."
Xianon Lathalas
The wood elf responds with uncharacteristic antipathy. "We cannot ignore this," he agrees. "I understand that the living need protection, but whatever our priority is, we cannot suffer these undead to exist."
A look of disgust crosses Tomora's face as if smelling something foul "Well that is troubling...I think the only question really is which do we take care of first? protect the living or put the dead to rest? I'm for helping the living, but I'll let y'all make the call."
„We seem to get more and more problems on our hand and we dont really have time to solve the first. But even to me, who is not one of kelemvor, wants those undead to „find their way back home“.“
Olloray Dim - Limbo's Pit
Gunther Korroden - Nightmares in the Mist
"We all agree these are problems, the undead at Old Owl Well, the Redbrand gang, and the matter of finding and rescuing Gundren," Serwa says. "They all matter to us, and they all pose a threat to people in this region. There's no point in in getting bogged down in arguing about greater good, or urgency. These are all important and they all need to be handled. It's just a matter of where we decide to start. None of these are things I'm willing to let slide. My faith does compel me to put down the undead, yes. My personal ethics also tells me we need to at least try to rescue Gundren, and we need to crush this gang."
"So, where do we start? If we knew what to expect I'd suggest we go from easiest to hardest, that way if we die at least we did some good for the region before we went. It's grim, but hey, that's on brand for me, isn't it? Besides, it's practical. If we don't have any way to gauge the strength of these forces, then I guess we could just go with whatever's closest."
OOC: Can we somewhat gauge the tactical strength of the expected forces at each threat location based on Daran's intel? I know there's no way to just guess CR rating for encounters, but we do have some experienced adventurers including a couple of ex-military types, are there are checks we could make to infer what our characters might believe is the "low hanging fruit"?
"I suppose that is a practical way of looking at it..." Tomora muses, amused with Serwa's logic. "Whatever we do we should get about it as quick as possible, without too much debate about priorities. You know, what we need is a leader...someone to make the decision! Someone practical and level headed and not prone to let their emotions get the best of them..." Tomora says with a grin and sideways look at Serwa "I vote Serwa!"
(OOC: I'm all for having a leader to pick what the party should do. Should save us from having to discuss everything and I think most of the time everyone is good with whatever.)
Turning back to Daran, Tomora asks "Daran, Sir, one last question if you don't mind...Have you heard of an older dwarf by the name Tomodin passing through town recently?"
Serwa stares blankly, per her tendency, without any visible emotional reaction to the suggestion. "Go military style, with a chain of command? I'm a paladin of a death god who has a list of dead comrades and loved ones, who is probably cursed and literally has the last name 'Omen,' and I tend to opt to kill our enemies first and ask questions never. Not the most conventional figurehead or leader type for a group. But if we just need someone to make calls on what order to take on challenges, I suppose I can do that, if that's what everyone decides on. Just know my luck with having people I care about survive has been consistent. Consistently terrible."
"If it's my call, I would say we head to the Old Owl Well and take care of the undead first, and hit the Redbrands second. In part because we actually know where those threats are, where the other issue sounds like it needs more recon. Careful with granting me this whole leader mandate authority. I'll force everyone to learn Dragon Chess and other weird games, and make everyone learn instruments to back up my cheerful singing and dancing. You've been warned."
Xianon Lathalas
The wood elf's sour expression disappears, replaced by a broad grin and an impish twinkle in his eye. "Serwa? Oh, dear. I'll have to find something black to wear," he quips. "But as for doing the Well first, we may as well. No pun intended. Maybe by the time we get back Sildar will have turned something up about the location of Cragmaw Castle. We don't seem to be having any luck."
“Black would obviously be mandatory,” Serwa quips back without missing a beat. “Let’s not leave the well alone, then. How far is it from here, Daran?”
Daran grabs his hoe again and gestures. "Just take the Triboar Trail eastward. Once you get to the ruins of Conyberry, head straight southeast into the hill country." His eyes narrow as he calculates the distance. "It's about forty miles along the Triboar to Conyberry, and then eighteen miles from there to Old Owl Well. As the crow flies, that is, but you'll likely walk a lot farther weaving among the hills." He looks up at the feathery clouds. "You'll have a couple good nights, but I'd expect rain the third day, so you may want to plan for that."
He turns his attention to Tomora. "As for a dwarf named Tomodin...well, there have been a few dwarfs who have come through in the last couple of months, but they've kept to themselves, for the most part. They've not come into town hardly at all. I'm not really sure how many or how few there are, or their names. I wish I could help you more."
“How far is it to the manor where the Redbrands’ leader, Glasstick, hangs out?” Serwa asks, intentionally getting the name wrong and pronouncing it as if she is insulting his manhood. “If that’s closer let’s just start with that one.”
"Thank you Sir, you have done more than enough." Tomora says looking a little disappointed. "Is the Rebrand manor that old one up on the hill that you can see from town? If so, it ain't far at all. Less than a mile I'd wager. As Daran mentioned, we might be able to get a good look at it from the Alderleaf's farm first."
"tis indeed the old manor. it was already abandoned when i still lived here as a child. Was the scene of many ghoststories. I have helped the alderleaf's when i was doing farmwork. Im sure he will return the favour and help us."
Olloray Dim - Limbo's Pit
Gunther Korroden - Nightmares in the Mist
"Lets head over to speak with the Alderleaf's about this, then, and see what we can learn," Serwa says. "Thank for your help, Daran. Maybe we'll play a round of Dragon Chess some time. Unless we get ourselves killed."
Tomora laughs halfheartedly at Serwa's comment, never sure if the Paladin is joking or not "Oh, we have nothing to worry about, I'm sure! Come on then lets see what we can learn from the Alderleafs."
Xianon Lathalas
The wood elf shakes his head, chuckling softly. "Is Kelemvor himself this impatient, or is it just our young paladin?" he asks rhetorically. "Come, let us see what the Alderleafs my tell us. Alderleaves?" he corrects himself...sort of.
“Kelemvor is impatient sounds a lot like a death threat,” Serwa says. “Actually, I’ll have to use that one. Let’s go to talk those people.” She verbally sidesteps the issue of how to correct pluralize the family name.