Secret Lair

[AngelOmnipotent]

Lorryn keeps his distance although not too far away and uses his 'hat' to change his disguise into something more pleasing to the eye - even if people didn't know his background, white skin and purple eyes was enough to put most people off.

He'll keep on guard just in case anything suspicious happens.

[Parlity]

"I'm no bandit either," Ady says with a smile. "Are they common around these parts?"

[BlueWizard]

The scene with the farmer and his small wagon plays out on the road. Another grain farmer is coming up about a half mile away.
The farmer is a friendly fellow and looks at Ady as if she is crazy, but contains himself. "I pay my way!" He reaches into his pocket and flashes a copper badge.

The rest of you see the coppery glint from afar.
"I'm no trouble-maker. I pay the taxes. Now no games. You best be getting along now..." Talk of bandits now is making him uncomfortable.

[Ezeze]

Carla runs almost playfully after Andy, a trickier feat than it sounds since the halfling is shorter and slower than the woman. "No, no, you've misunderstood us. This place has more than its fair share of odd occurrences, and we only wondered if perhaps the bandits had anything to do with it."

[Parlity]

(ooc: Carla is a halfling?!, I was hustling not running so Carla should be able to keep up. My move is at 20' from encumbrance.)

Ady nods her head. "Just trust my halfling friend over there."

[BlueWizard]

OOC- From what I see Carla is huiman.

The old man looks at Carla a little uneasy as she approaches playfully. "Are you part of the imperial patrol?"
He askes both Ady and Carla.
"Look I pay my taxes, and it is supposed to protect me from bandits out here. I pay to the local guild-man of my village. If you want any more than that talk to him." He is getting scared now and wants to go, you can tell by his body language.

[AngelOmnipotent]

Lorryn will slowly walk up behind the others and using his beguiling ways will cast Charm Person without any hand gestures and mumbling the words under his breath.

"Just to calm you down, my friend. That's all."

OOC: Lorryn is currently disguised like what a local would look like, clothes and all. Maybe dressed like a minor baron of the area or something.

The DC from the Charm Person with Cloaked Casting and Spell Focus and Heighten to 2nd level is 17. He will also add Still Spell class feature to it. Just want to make sure it lands, even though the guy being Charmed wouldn't know any difference if it failed anyway

[Ezeze]

(ooc: Carla is human. I thought Andy was a halfling? )

[Parlity]

(ooc: I'm human and she's named Ady, though Andy is a nice name.)

[BlueWizard]

Lorryn wanders toward the distracted and nervous farmer calming the old fellow with his subtle charm.

The farmer is immediately calm, and looks to Lorryn. "Well, you can't be too careful out here."
The man squints his eyes at Ady, and opens them again as if seeing her for the first time. "Oh!! Hello? I thought you were a hobbit. My eyes are getting old."



{OOC- For some reason I too thought Ady was a hobbit.}

[dariathalon]

Tylo rests in the grass, watching from afar what proceeds near the farmers. He sighs and says to Vogel, "I think there must have been some trick of the light. For a moment there, I could have sworn Ady and Carla had shrunken to half their height. Oh well, all seems to be right now."

[Parlity]

(ooc - what gave you the impression that Ady is a halfling?)

Ady smiles, "I hope your old eyes have seen a lot around here. What do you know of any odd occurrences?"

[BlueWizard]

The farmer is relaxed with Lorryn's charm cast upon him. He sighs in answer to Ady. "Well, I heard once of an old trapper tell of seeing a great silver flying ship hovering above that there woods over there... and the haunted castle. Told us it had colorful lights. It spun around, and then headed off into the stars. He drinks though and partakes of Ergot tea, so we don't believe him much.

However, occasionally those people who don't pay taxes to the Guild will end up missing. So... I don't know what to believe. Either way, I don't hang around this area too much."


OOC- Parlity, I don't know. I even went back and looked on both recruitment threads. I could've sworn you were a hobbit. Oh well, the old guy can't see too well.

[Parlity]

"Where can we find the old trapper?" Ady asks, and follows up with more questions.

"What's the Guild? Please tell us all you know about the bandits."

(ooc-Okay, no harm done now we're retro.)

[Steward]

Ibis clasps his hands together and quietly ponders the information that the others are mining. I wonder if this Guild who is so fond of abduction and the mysterious flying ship are both connected to our current problem. Their client's words had led him to believe that they were clearing up some minor infestation of goblins and other mean-spirited things. If this is connected to some wider evil alliance, he knows now that they will need Thoth's blessed guidance more than ever.

[BlueWizard]

"THE Guild." The man says. "You must be kidding? There's only one, and they got their fingers in every pot around the world. Any assassin, thief, even baker is part of the world-wide business organization that is the Guild."

"As far as that old trapper, he lives about a day or two away... depending if he's home or not. He often goes out with his grandsons to trap."

[Parlity]

"Huh," Ady grimaces for a moment and looks thoughtful.

Bardic Knowledge check (1d20+5)[19]
Profession(City Guard) check (1d20+7)[23]

"How does the Guild work around here?"

"What do you know about the bandits?"

If the farmer doesn't mention undead or goblins, Ady asks, "Have you heard of any trouble with goblins or undead?"

"Would you tell us about the local area, who lives where and what goes on? Where are you heading with your grain?"

"Is there anyone who will know more about the castle and the woods?"

"Two of us are hurt, who can we go to for help?"

[BlueWizard]

Ady would know of the world guild as basically the mob behind the veil. But, actually it is more of a mysterious entity, that was like the moral tales that parents tell their children to tell them what not to do.

This farmer knows nothing more of the guild or bandits other than that he pays taxes for this copper badge.

He doesn't mention goblins or undead, but will pause when Ady brings it up. The magic charm making him not scared.
"I do hear that the bandits employ goblins... that trapper said that." He doesn't seem to like that idea. "I hate them... I fought in a goblin war back in the day... you can tell where they live by the stench of their ****e." {World Histroy Note: There are many so he could be referring to one of a hundred 'goblin wars".}

"Just local folks around here. Mostly grain farmers. There's a village up the way here with an imperial trade station. We help feed the empire through them." He tries his best to answer Ady's questions.

When asked for a more knowledgeable person he thinks for a moment, "You know... there's an old lady up the way. She was old when I was a kid. Anyway, I can take you there if you want." He seems ready to go with Lorryn's charm cast upon him, and abandon his cart to help you all. "Yeah.. that's right.! She is said to have aided in the Hunter Wars when this was a city. Now she just lives in her hut. I pass her garden every time I go to trade station. As for wounded, I recommend a temple. They got them all over the plains if you can afford those costs, but you look like rich adventurers to me. I remember my day and seeing the famous elf Kramens. He had two pretty girls on his arms. One was the captain's daughter and some pretty elf...." The old man will begin to wax poetic about his war days and this famous elf charming the pants off all the lady soldiers.

[Parlity]

Ady listens to the old farmer ramble on. When he pauses, she says, "Thank you. It would be great if you took us to the old lady's hut. Would you give us directions to the old trapper's place and the nearest temple too?"

"When do you show your copper badge and who do you pay your Guild taxes to?" Ady interjects.

When he's done, Ady says, "Let me go get my friend before we head off. He's resting over there." She looks at Baron Lorryn and the old farmer.

Ady waves at Tylo and starts walking back to where he is resting.

[dariathalon]

Seeing Ady approaching, Tylo stands and walks toward her meeting her halfway. "Did you find out anything?" he asks. He brushes dirt and bits of grass off himself as he stands there.

[AngelOmnipotent]

"He'll be willing to tell us anything should we ask him nicely. My charm seems to have that effect on people."

Lorryn smirks, he'd always been able to get people to say exactly what he wanted them to tell him. It was just the pleasure he got from manipulating them that worried him.

Please, tell us your name so we can get to know each other better; I'm sure there's a lot in that mind of yours that could help us along." Lorryn slings his arm around the shoulder of the farmer and pops a gold piece in the farmer's top pocket. "Don't worry, you're safe with us now!"

[BlueWizard]

The charmed grain farmer is happy to take Ady anywhere.
"Gladly take you to the old lady's place. She's not too friendly I hear, but I think she'll like you guys. You guys are swell. I think she can even give you better directions around here than I can. She'd love to help you kids. Can't imagine why not, bunch a good people like you looking out for trouble.

As far as the badge goes, usually I flash it at city gates, and if anyone robs me. If they do rob me and I have the badge, then I can seek guild protection, and possibly retribution."

He seems very relaxed and patient and ready to wait all day for you guys.

With Ady wandering off, and Lorryn joining him on his small wagon, he smiles. "You know. I needed to meet kind kids like yourselves. Makes me smile. My name's Golthar. Golthar Scythmaker."

[Parlity]

"We did once Lorryn put a charm on him. There's an old trapper who saw a great silver flying ship with colorful lights hovering over the woods and the haunted castle, that headed off into the stars. The trapped also says that the bandits hire goblins. He lives a day away and often goes out trapping with his grandsons.

The farmer pays taxes to the Guild, the world-wide crime syndicate, for a copper badge that he shows at the city gates or if he gets robbed. People who don't pay go missing sometimes." Ady shakes her head, and starts heading back to the old farmer. "I don't like the sound of that.

There's a village up the way with an imperial trade station. An unfriendly old lady who was in the Hunter Wars lives there and the farmer will take us to her. She might know more. There's temples around here, but he said that the old lady would give better directions to the nearest one, same for directions to the old trapper's place.

He doesn't like talking about the bandits. Even with Lorryn's charm I couldn't get much out of him. I'm sure he knows who's involved with the Guild around here, at least to pay for his badge and to complain about being robbed, but he wouldn't say."

[BlueWizard]

The farmer patiently waits for the party, and will nod kindly to another grain merchant who passes. The other farmer will look oddly at the folks stopped here, and gathered by the old ruined city. He will whip his reins to get his wagon moving faster by this strange scene.

[Steward]

"Perhaps the lady will be more forthcoming," Ibis remarks. "We shouldn't leave our guide waiting." The man seems quite taken with Ady, but that doesn't mean that he will wait forever.

[Parlity]

(ooc: Lorryn is the one who Charmed the farmer, so the farmer is taken with Lorryn not Ady.)

Ady looks a little worried. "I wonder about that. The farmer looked friendly but he was about to turn hostile before Lorryn charmed him and I thought I was acting friendly to him. The farmer described the old lady as unfriendly."

(ooc: BlueWizard how do you handle Diplomacy rolls? My 14 should not have changed the farmer's attitude from friendly to unfriendly by SRD.)

[AngelOmnipotent]

"If the worst comes to the worst I can always work my ways on the old lady."

He stops slightly to consider what he just said.

"Uh... I mean... oh lord. I mean charm her." He looks around with shifty eyes. "With spells."

[dariathalon]

Tylo follows Ady back toward the cart. "Sounds like a good place to try to get some information anyway. Maybe she'll know something that will give us a chance against those spirits." As Tylo walks, he looks for a large sturdy stick that could serve him as a walking stick.

"Talking to the inhabitants of that flying ship could be useful too, but much more difficult. They could probably be anywhere by now."

[Ezeze]

Carla stiffles a giggle, then nods towards the old man. "Lets get going then." She will follow him to see this 'old woman.'

[Steward]

(ooc: How am I supposed to know that? Ady was the one talking...)

"I am quite confident your... er... magic shall be most effective, my lord." Ibis says to Lorryn. He turns and heads towards the old man as well, hoping to find some more information that will help them piece the elements of this mystery together.