The morning dawns bright and sunny, and the party meets Allustan at his home ready for the day's travel. They leave and begin walking along the shores of the lake for which Diamond Lake was named, though it looks nothing like the gem. The pollutants of the mines, smelting, and other activities of the area have utterly ruined much of the water, and even on a beautiful day like this one it is not a pretty sight.
Walking along the path one can expect a variety of other travelers, but no one crosses the party's way all morning.
For an older man, Allustan sets a steady pace and the party is past the borders of the lake by lunch. Afterwards they begin walking again and the scenery changes to a mix of lowlands and farms, with the aptly named Mistmarsh becoming visible in late afternoon. Sometime afterwards the party sees a small group of halfling farmers dutifully wheeling their cart towards Diamond Lake. When Allustan asks if they have anything for sale they decline, saying they have a long way to go and prefer not to sell on the road.
As the little people make their way past the party can see that the produce is not of high quality. It appears to have been plagued with pests, with the tubers, bulbs, and roots appearing to have taken the brunt of the infestations. Looking closely at the farmers, their clothing appears somewhat ragged too, as if it has been a particularly difficult year.
The party finally makes it to the roadside home Allustan mentioned the previous night. The single-story farmhouse lies around fields that have lain fallow for some time, though the house seems to be in decent shape. A well stands behind the house with a rope and bucket, and inside the place is largely clean and dry. "
Well, I am tired. Shall we go inside?" Allustan asks as he begins to do so.
Spoiler: OoC
Show
This is an opportunity to either get to know Allustan better or get some clues as to how pervasive the subtle influences of the approaching Age of Worms are. Feel free to ask Allustan questions, discuss the halfling farmers, explore the fields, etc...Every paragraph above is intended to be a potential conversation starter/topic. Respond to whatever moves you.