"I believe I shall now visit the eel eating contest," Erevan says to no one in particular (apparently). He then heads in that general direction, keeping an eye on the sun to gauge the time so that he won't be late in meeting with Petunia.
The eel-eating contest appears to be just what you’d expect: buckets of eels, and people trying to swallow them down. Apparently to satisfy the contest, you must grab an eel (no easy task) and swallow it, then repeat that two more times, and the final trick is to keep from vomiting up the wriggling live things. The eels appear to be small and harmless, but quite lively, and there’s plenty of vomiting. Those eels are plopped back in the barrels of water for someone else to have a go at them later. Many bystanders are enjoying the spectacle, laughing and pointing.
Erevan feels more than a little queasy at the sights, sounds, and smells of the eel-eating contest. He looks for a nearby fairgoer, curious about one thing. "So," he asks, "what's the prize?"
Erevan shakes his head after hearing Olwer's voice. "No, I'm not that hungry by a long shot." He looks to gauge the time to see if it is time to meet up with Petunia yet.
It’s getting close to 3 PM. However, you’ve just noticed a foolish young halfling who has managed to wrangle three eels together and is working the crowd a bit, apparently intending to swallow all three at once. After garnering a lot of attention, he does shove all three into his mouth and attempt to swallow them. But predictably it goes wrong. A look of distress develops on his face and he brings his hands to his throat, the universal sign for choking. At first the crowd laughs, thinking he’s still playing the clown, but it quickly becomes evident that this is no joke. He can’t breathe!
Olwer, seeing that nobody else is taking the appropriate action, steps close, squats as low as he can behind the choking Halfling, and seizes him around the gut. He lifts and squeezes hard at the same time, hoping to force the eel-eater to vomit.
(OOC: I'm not sure about what to roll, if a roll is needed. STR? medicine skill?)
((Heheh, pick whatever skill you want with that roll. I’d probably ask for medicine))
The crowd, apparently stunned into inaction, sees the halfling suddenly hoisted into the air as if by magic. In midair he gives a great lurch and the eels are expelled. He then plops onto the ground, gasping for breath.
The crowd murmurs and exclaims in surprise. Some people rush to the young lad to check on him, at last. You can hear people around you saying, “It’s a miracle!” “Urdlen imprisoned again!” “Did you see that? A miracle!” “Urdlen be banished!”
The halfling lad struggles to his feet and casts about, saying “Who saved me?” His voice is hoarse and froggy. People are clapping him on the back saying, “It was a miracle! May Urdlen stay banished forever!”
Olwer, with your lingering amazing medicine check, you can tell that the boy’s voice box is probably permanently damaged.
Erevan looks on in surprise as the halfling is hoisted in the air. It only takes him a moment before he knows his invisible friend must be saving the day! He gives a big grin and looks and listens for any signs of Olwer after the incident.
At the same time, he can't help but notice the references to "Urdlen." He runs the name through his mind, seeing if he's ever heard it before. If he turns up nothing, he then looks to a nearby halfling or gnome fair-goer. "That was really something amazing, wasn't it?" he says. "Some great and good magic is at work here for certain! But let me ask you - who or what is this Urdlen that several people spoke of?"
History is +1, Religion is +3 (so either 17 or 19 if those help at all)
Your knowledge of religion serves you well in this case. Urdlen is the miscreant gnome god of greed, murder, and envy. Urdlen exists to lure his people toward evil deeds. You recall what the gnome said a few minutes ago, that the eel-eating contest is about tradition, and you realize the eating of these small, harmless velduun eels symbolizes Urdlen's banishment to the underworld, and participating is considered good luck.
Olwer will be marked with inspiration for his heroic deed which, perhaps unintendedly, also set off a new wave of religious fervor.
"Good work in saving that lad," Erevan says quietly to Olwer. "You weren't interested in wrestling were you? Perhaps we should head to the archery contest next eh?"
"Good work in saving that lad," Erevan says quietly to Olwer. "You weren't interested in wrestling were you? Perhaps we should head to the archery contest next eh?"
The archery contest is being run by a gnome named Saziver Gearclick, and the range is interesting in that some of the targets move back and forth by means of a belt mechanism that is being cranked by an assistant. The contest is also attracting a lot of attention because of the grand prize it is flaunting this year: a beautifully carved cherry wood shortbow with a red stained leather quiver. It doesn't take you long to ascertain the rules: entry is 5 GP, use a bow of your choice (Saziver offers a variety of longbows, shortbows, crossbows, even hand crossbows for contestants to use), and you get 20 shots. 10 shots must be at long-range targets (80+ feet) and 10 shots must be at short range targets (30 feet). Contestants earn 0-3 points per shot based on accuracy. A slate next to Saziver indicates the current high score of 24, held by Saziver's son Yupoz.
Currently a young halfling girl is competing, and appears to be doing very well. She takes her last shot at one of the moving targets, but the belt stops just as she releases, and she misses the target. Her score is tallied at 23, just shy of a new record. The crowd starts to mutter and boo Saziver, calling cheating to preserve his son's lead. The young halfling girl is trying her best not to cry.
"I'd like to investigate this. No obvious connection to our principal, but still, I'm interested. Hmmm...and that girl, could she be the one our innkeeper mentioned? Elsie Longrobin? No...Longbobbin."
If Erevan has no objections or conflicting plans, Olwer will (invisibly) position himself near the mechanism and the assistant so that he can watch for any signs of cheating. If he catches the helper up to something dishonest, he will interfere to help the shooter.
Olwer, you haven't yet identified a problem with the mechanism, but your stealth and invisibility have allowed you to easily position yourself for a hushed and urgent conversation between Saziver and his assistant while the crowd grows restless.
Saziver: "What happened to the machine?"
"I don't know boss, I was cranking it like you showed me."
"We've got to figure this out, they think we're cheating! I'm going to lose business!"
"It looks like the belt slipped off the wheel, look."
They indicate the belt, which is looped around a near and a far wheel, and should be taut between them, but has gone slack. The pair head over to the other wheel to investigate. Following them, you see that there's a mound of dirt under the far wheel which apparently pushed the belt off its wheel. The assistant says, "Huh, that wasn't there before..." Saziver quickly jumps up, waving his hands, and announces, "A moment, please. There has been a malfunction with the mechanism."
Olwer, you haven't yet identified a problem with the mechanism, but your stealth and invisibility have allowed you to easily position yourself for a hushed and urgent conversation between Saziver and his assistant while the crowd grows restless.
Saziver: "What happened to the machine?"
"I don't know boss, I was cranking it like you showed me."
"We've got to figure this out, they think we're cheating! I'm going to lose business!"
"It looks like the belt slipped off the wheel, look."
They indicate the belt, which is looped around a near and a far wheel, and should be taut between them, but has gone slack. The pair head over to the other wheel to investigate. Following them, you see that there's a mound of dirt under the far wheel which apparently pushed the belt off its wheel. The assistant says, "Huh, that wasn't there before..." Saziver quickly jumps up, waving his hands, and announces, "A moment, please. There has been a malfunction with the mechanism."
Intrigued, Olwer takes a closer look at the ground. Any sign of animal burrows?
"I believe I shall now visit the eel eating contest," Erevan says to no one in particular (apparently). He then heads in that general direction, keeping an eye on the sun to gauge the time so that he won't be late in meeting with Petunia.
The eel-eating contest appears to be just what you’d expect: buckets of eels, and people trying to swallow them down. Apparently to satisfy the contest, you must grab an eel (no easy task) and swallow it, then repeat that two more times, and the final trick is to keep from vomiting up the wriggling live things. The eels appear to be small and harmless, but quite lively, and there’s plenty of vomiting. Those eels are plopped back in the barrels of water for someone else to have a go at them later. Many bystanders are enjoying the spectacle, laughing and pointing.
Erevan feels more than a little queasy at the sights, sounds, and smells of the eel-eating contest. He looks for a nearby fairgoer, curious about one thing. "So," he asks, "what's the prize?"
A wrinkly old gnome explains, “1 gold to try, 5 gold if you succeed. But it’s not about the money. This is a tradition.”
Olwer watches, unseen, in silence for a minute and then whispers to Erevan,
''I'll pass on this challenge. But if you really are getting hungry..."
Erevan shakes his head after hearing Olwer's voice. "No, I'm not that hungry by a long shot." He looks to gauge the time to see if it is time to meet up with Petunia yet.
It’s getting close to 3 PM. However, you’ve just noticed a foolish young halfling who has managed to wrangle three eels together and is working the crowd a bit, apparently intending to swallow all three at once. After garnering a lot of attention, he does shove all three into his mouth and attempt to swallow them. But predictably it goes wrong. A look of distress develops on his face and he brings his hands to his throat, the universal sign for choking. At first the crowd laughs, thinking he’s still playing the clown, but it quickly becomes evident that this is no joke. He can’t breathe!
Olwer, seeing that nobody else is taking the appropriate action, steps close, squats as low as he can behind the choking Halfling, and seizes him around the gut. He lifts and squeezes hard at the same time, hoping to force the eel-eater to vomit.
(OOC: I'm not sure about what to roll, if a roll is needed. STR? medicine skill?)
unmodified roll
20
no STR bonus
+2medicine skill
Ha! Nat 20. :)
((Heheh, pick whatever skill you want with that roll. I’d probably ask for medicine))
The crowd, apparently stunned into inaction, sees the halfling suddenly hoisted into the air as if by magic. In midair he gives a great lurch and the eels are expelled. He then plops onto the ground, gasping for breath.
The crowd murmurs and exclaims in surprise. Some people rush to the young lad to check on him, at last. You can hear people around you saying, “It’s a miracle!” “Urdlen imprisoned again!” “Did you see that? A miracle!” “Urdlen be banished!”
The halfling lad struggles to his feet and casts about, saying “Who saved me?” His voice is hoarse and froggy. People are clapping him on the back saying, “It was a miracle! May Urdlen stay banished forever!”
Olwer, with your lingering amazing medicine check, you can tell that the boy’s voice box is probably permanently damaged.
Olwer whispers in the boy's ear,
"You, go see the herbalist about something for your throat, and don't delay!"
Then he moves away, headed for Erevan, checking to see if anyone notices him or if he remains invisible.
Still invisible!
Erevan looks on in surprise as the halfling is hoisted in the air. It only takes him a moment before he knows his invisible friend must be saving the day! He gives a big grin and looks and listens for any signs of Olwer after the incident.
At the same time, he can't help but notice the references to "Urdlen." He runs the name through his mind, seeing if he's ever heard it before. If he turns up nothing, he then looks to a nearby halfling or gnome fair-goer. "That was really something amazing, wasn't it?" he says. "Some great and good magic is at work here for certain! But let me ask you - who or what is this Urdlen that several people spoke of?"
History is +1, Religion is +3 (so either 17 or 19 if those help at all)
16
Your knowledge of religion serves you well in this case. Urdlen is the miscreant gnome god of greed, murder, and envy. Urdlen exists to lure his people toward evil deeds. You recall what the gnome said a few minutes ago, that the eel-eating contest is about tradition, and you realize the eating of these small, harmless velduun eels symbolizes Urdlen's banishment to the underworld, and participating is considered good luck.
Olwer will be marked with inspiration for his heroic deed which, perhaps unintendedly, also set off a new wave of religious fervor.
Once he comes very close to Erevan, Olwer whispers to his friend,
"I'm right here. Shall we stick around here awhile or investigate another fairground attraction before we meet with you-know-who?"
"Good work in saving that lad," Erevan says quietly to Olwer. "You weren't interested in wrestling were you? Perhaps we should head to the archery contest next eh?"
''Archery sounds good to me. Let's go."
The archery contest is being run by a gnome named Saziver Gearclick, and the range is interesting in that some of the targets move back and forth by means of a belt mechanism that is being cranked by an assistant. The contest is also attracting a lot of attention because of the grand prize it is flaunting this year: a beautifully carved cherry wood shortbow with a red stained leather quiver. It doesn't take you long to ascertain the rules: entry is 5 GP, use a bow of your choice (Saziver offers a variety of longbows, shortbows, crossbows, even hand crossbows for contestants to use), and you get 20 shots. 10 shots must be at long-range targets (80+ feet) and 10 shots must be at short range targets (30 feet). Contestants earn 0-3 points per shot based on accuracy. A slate next to Saziver indicates the current high score of 24, held by Saziver's son Yupoz.
Currently a young halfling girl is competing, and appears to be doing very well. She takes her last shot at one of the moving targets, but the belt stops just as she releases, and she misses the target. Her score is tallied at 23, just shy of a new record. The crowd starts to mutter and boo Saziver, calling cheating to preserve his son's lead. The young halfling girl is trying her best not to cry.
Olwer whispers to Erevan.
"I'd like to investigate this. No obvious connection to our principal, but still, I'm interested. Hmmm...and that girl, could she be the one our innkeeper mentioned? Elsie Longrobin? No...Longbobbin."
If Erevan has no objections or conflicting plans, Olwer will (invisibly) position himself near the mechanism and the assistant so that he can watch for any signs of cheating. If he catches the helper up to something dishonest, he will interfere to help the shooter.
stealth
15
sleight of hand
8
investigation
3
Olwer, you haven't yet identified a problem with the mechanism, but your stealth and invisibility have allowed you to easily position yourself for a hushed and urgent conversation between Saziver and his assistant while the crowd grows restless.
Saziver: "What happened to the machine?"
"I don't know boss, I was cranking it like you showed me."
"We've got to figure this out, they think we're cheating! I'm going to lose business!"
"It looks like the belt slipped off the wheel, look."
They indicate the belt, which is looped around a near and a far wheel, and should be taut between them, but has gone slack. The pair head over to the other wheel to investigate. Following them, you see that there's a mound of dirt under the far wheel which apparently pushed the belt off its wheel. The assistant says, "Huh, that wasn't there before..." Saziver quickly jumps up, waving his hands, and announces, "A moment, please. There has been a malfunction with the mechanism."
Intrigued, Olwer takes a closer look at the ground. Any sign of animal burrows?
survival
17