Cityscape. 3.5

[daungli]

Welcome to Kor Phalos!

you have found yourselves in the low quater. here it is that things can be found and people lost- for the right price of course.

the sun has only begun to set, turning the sky a medley of colors, and casting long shadows upon everything.

the main street is a mess, reeking as much of filth as it is the unwashed masses that live their lives upon it.

ahead of you is a tavern, marked as such by nothing more than a badly weather worn sign that sits upon it displaying a picture of a tankard. of more interest however is the commotion going on just in front of the tavern.

two men and tangled up with each other, fighting viciously and cursing quite loudly.
its just another fight right? you're about to make your way onwards when you catch something from the corner of your eye. it happens so fast that you cant quite tell what happened.

The two men that were fighting are gone, there was no sound, just a sudden flash of smoke and the only thing that is left is a charred patch on the ground.

just as suddenly as it happened everyone else has begun running, screaming in fear and calling for the Watch.

[Mr. X]

As the crowds flee, one man limps awkwardly the wrong way, and nearly onto the stoop of the tavern, shouting,

"OY!! AYE!! THE WATCH!! SORCERY!! WITCHES!! DEMON SWINE!! CALL THE WATCH! I SAW IT! I SAW IT ALL!!"

The man is a filthy ruffian, his clothes muddy rags, his hair long, frazzled, and greasy, his beard wirey and unkempt. A torn rag is tied about his head, covering one eye, and bent metal hook protrudes from his left sleeve where his hand should be.

But he leans heavily upon an uncharacteristically ornate cane, it's haft fine oak crowned by a silver handle wrought in the shape of a floating swan. Uncaring, he sticks it heedless into the mud and filth as he staggers forward.

[MrE]

Vella Hayes

A short girl with a mass of curly brown hair sticking out of her hood stops at the commotion. She'd been too focussed on her own concerns, working through the facts of her most recent investigation, but she had seen the men fighting and the flash of, what? Had it been a bomb? Magic?

"OY!! AYE!! THE WATCH!! SORCERY!! WITCHES!! DEMON SWINE!! CALL THE WATCH! I SAW IT! I SAW IT ALL!!"

Shouts and cries exploded in the street, and Vella stepped into a nearby porch to avoid the stampede. Timothy would no doubt be here soon, she suspected, they'd have to call someone in beyond the normal guardsmen. With the time it would take the nearest patrol, which now should be at Mill Street, and then for them to report to the headquarters and then reach here... That would give her a solid twenty minutes, though more like five if the guard came straight here. Or they could be random patrolling tonight... "Better chance it." Vella muttered to herself and darted over to the spot where the men had vanished, examining the floor for marks left by the explosion, and for any alchemical remains.

Spoiler

Show

Search: (1d20+8)[20]
Knowledge Local to see if she knows of anything similar happening or being used: (1d20+8)[25]

[astro-orium]

Yanis wrinkled her nose at the smell that assaulted her as she left the tavern. People were running and screaming amidst calls for the watch. What had happened here she wondered, and nearly walked right into a crouching figure whose feature were hidden by a hood from which stuck protruded wisps of curly hair.

Caught off guard she stepped back and apologized; "I'm terribly sorry. Excuse me"

She started to walk away, but realized that the person she had nearly walked over was the only other one not running away.

With a flourish of her traveling coat she spun around, her hand resting on the hilt of her partially concealed short sword in what she hoped was a non threatening manner.

"what scared everyone away?"

[MrE]

"Can't you guess?" she replies, not unkindly, nodding her head to the filthy man who was still crying out about sorcery and witches. "Two men were fighting, then there was some sort of blast, and they were gone."

[Mr. X]

The ruffian whirls around, and hobbles over,

"Aye, saw it all I did. Witchcraft of the worst kind it was."

He proffers a trembling hand,

"Tell ye all for a copper, I will."

[MrE]

Vella rises an eyebrow: she'd dealt with plenty such as these, and knew their desperation for coin of any shade made them unreliable as witnesses. Nonetheless, one copper was hardly a great loss.

Taking a coin from her pouch inside her jacket she pretended to offer the coin before trying to make it disappear up her sleeve. Unfortunately she fumbled and dropped it to the floor. Trying to make this look natural she kept a blank face and addressed the man over the coin on the floor between them.

Spoiler: Sleight of Hand

Show

(1d20+8)[9]

"If you just tell me you saw the same flash I did, this is going somewhere you won't like. Understand? What exactly did you see? And did you see anyone acting suspicious?"

[Aron Times]

Nurzhan was minding his own business, trying hard not to step on something that would soil his favorite pair of boots, when he saw the bright flash and heard the loud bang. Despite the painful ringing in his ears, he stayed calm, falling back to his combat training, as he leapt into action. He would have little luck keeping track of potential hostiles at ground level; he needed to go up onto an elevated area so he could observe the situation and perhaps rain down arrows should there be any violence needed.

If necessary, here's a Climb roll: (1d20+3)[5]

Edit: OOC: Forgot -2 armor check penalty, this should only be 3.

[Illven]

Shannon saw a flash, and a pile of ashes. Men fighting were no concern to her, she had a trade to make.

Though she did see Vella. What was she doing here?

Vella, what's going on here? Shannon asked.

[Mr. X]

The ruffian replies,
"At your word, I swear by all the gods it be true. Aye, I saw ye puff o' smoke as took tha men, but did ye note the green-eyed hag as was watchin' 'em so close, an' broke a twig jes afore the vanished, eh?"

He looks furtively around, before leaning in and saying,

"... Ain't the first time it's happened neither. I wager the watch has a book full o' bits like this, not that they're doin' ought about it... As soon feed our souls to the hell spawn themselves, that lot would, on my life."

Spoiler

Show

Bluff:
(1d20+10)[30]

[daungli]

vella rubs her fingers carefully across the ground, having them both come away with some kind of soot. though its not quite the same, it reminds her of the sort that is left after a firework has been launched into the air.

Vella;

Spoiler

Show

you've heard of some other disappearances that might be more or less the same this, as far as circumstances go

[astro-orium]

"a hag you say?, tell me more, she can't have gone far!"

Yanis quickly searches the street, hoping to see some sign of the hag.

Spoiler

Show

(1d20+4)[17] {search}

[daungli]

nurzhan spies a low awning, made of wood that was once intended to cover a row of vendor stalls, but is now hanging mostly by itself, about ten feet off the ground. it is extremely difficult for him to pull himself up onto it, and it feels like it is unstable under him.
Nurzhan

Spoiler

Show

roll for balance, DC10, to avoid it collapsing under your struggles to climb it.

Yanis sees no one that would reasonably look like a hag in the immediate surroundings.

[Illven]

Shannon starts to cast Detect magic and scans the area.

Spoiler

Show

She has also cast persisted lesser vigor, with DMM today.

[MrE]

Vella listens intently to the beggar, and on hearing mention of the hag, and detecting no falsehood kicked the copper piece over to him. Keeping the knowledge to herself, she glanced around for a sight of the hag, but with the stampede she doubted that the woman had remained, or would be visible.

"Did anyone recognise either of the men?" Vella asked the group at large, before noticing Shannon had approached. "The usual," she replied nonchalantly, "sticking my hands where they don't belong, hanging out with beggars, solving crime."

"I'm Vella by the way," she says to the elf and the beggar.

[astro-orium]

"where are my manners." Yanis inclined her head and touched both her index and ring fingers to her heart.

"I am Yanis it is good to meet you"

[Mr. X]

The beggar covetously snatches up the coin, and then bows obsequiously to the group, poorly imitating Yanis' gesture.

"Oh, I assure the lot of you, that the pleasure is all mine."

He winks, and bears a blackened tooth.

"I hold the great honor of being called Calius Kane..."

He makes a sweeping gesture over the area,

"... King of the Beggars." he finishes proudly, pulling himself out of his hunch slightly, and tapping the ornate cane in the muck.

Spoiler

Show

This all is an obvious exaggeration... The name is probably fake too.

"But please, waste not yer efforts searching for the crone. No doubt she fled back to her hellish masters once her work was complete, gods protect us." He continues, making a superstitious sign against evil.

"We'd best wait for the Watch te arrive."

He licks his lips,

"Talkin' te the Watch can get ye an easy Beatin', but if'n they like what ye have te say, there's sometimes coin te be had fer it."

[Aron Times]

nurzhan spies a low awning, made of wood that was once intended to cover a row of vendor stalls, but is now hanging mostly by itself, about ten feet off the ground. it is extremely difficult for him to pull himself up onto it, and it feels like it is unstable under him.
Nurzhan

Spoiler

Show

roll for balance, DC10, to avoid it collapsing under your struggles to climb it.

Yanis sees no one that would reasonably look like a hag in the immediate surroundings.

Balance (1d20+2)[10]

Edit: OOC: Forgot to add armor check penalty (-2). This should be 8.

[NotScaryBats]

Emily Lance arrives late, drawn by the crowd of people running the opposite direction. She pushes her way through the rush of pedestrians until she finds the blackened area, with several suspicious-looking people lingering about.

A well-built, but otherwise average-looking woman in her twenties, with brown hair cut shoulder length and worn loose. Intelligent, brown eyes take in the scene. She wears worn leather armor and a backpack, with a rapier on her waist.

Content to watch for now, Emily tries to see what's going on.

[astro-orium]

"then what should we do now?"

She looked around the street once more, but there was nothing of immediate interest. Just the soot on the ground.


"do you know what that stuff is Vella? It just looks like soot?"

[daungli]

Nurzhan start to pull himself up onto the awning, hoping to get a good look around from the higher vantage point.

Unfortunately, as soon as most of his weight is on the wood there is an ominous crack and the whole thing collapses under him.

[Mr. X]

The begger seems about to respond, when he spies the half-Ork teeter, and come crashing to the ground...

He doubles over in a uncontrolled fit of hacking laughter, gasping and pointing, and choking for air.

Slowly regaining himself, he limps passed Vella, whispering "Ye might try speakin' wit the barkeep, if'n yer lookin' fer more." he says with a wink of his good eye.

Moving away from th cluster of ladies with a haggard limp, he makes his way to Emily.

"Ah! Another spectator, aye? Be grateful ye missed it. Work o' the foulest witch, this was. Saw it all, I did." he proffers his trembling hand, "An, I'd be happy te tell all, if'n ye could see fit te part wit a bit o' copper, an give a cripple a chance for a meal this eve."

He gestures his hooked arm pitiably at you.

[Aron Times]

Nurzhan came crashing down with an, "Aaah!" and a low thud. As he lied on the ground, he heard the beggar's laughter, and could not help but laugh out loud himself.

As Nurzhan pulled himself up, he looked at his armor, still intact, if a bit muddied by the fall, and his boots, not as pristine as before. He then said, to no one in particular, "Nothing to see here." And slowly walked towards the tavern to avoid curious onlookers' eyes.

[NotScaryBats]

Emily takes in the strange beggar, a scowl on her plain face. "I reckon you spun the same tale to those women o'er there? Witches don't execute people like this unless they want to make an example of 'em -- who got roasted?" The woman walks and talks, headed towards the tavern, expecting the beggar to keep up.

[Mr. X]

The begger shrugs, shuffling his feet,

"Well, m'lady, that might be so, but what value the truth if'n it's too bland to earn a way, eh?"

He hobbles after her as she strides away,

"The, ah, gentlemen who met their premature ends here, were both patrons o' the pub. They'd burst out locked in mortal combat, when poof..."

He makes a popping gesture with his good hand.

"I reckon one o' them cheated tha other at dice, or cards, or somesuch... But ye wouldn't go poppin' yerself off along wit the one who'd offended you, if'n ye could help it, would ye?"

[MrE]

"Some sort of soot, yes, from an explosive perhaps. Whatever happened to these men, someone wanted it to be hidden."

"With no way to find this hag, our next line of enquiry should be these men. What was special about them? Did they have any enemies, except each other clearly."

Vella led Yanis into the tavern ahead of the beggar and some new woman who seemed vaguely familiar, though Vella couldn't place her. Turning to the beggar she whispered: "There's another copper in it for you if you can find out something about those men from some of the customers. And, er Shannon, could you go with him?" She didn't trust the beggar not to fabricate or embellish the story for the hope of greater rewards.

She then looked for the owner of the tavern or a nearby waitress to quiz.

[NotScaryBats]

Spoiler

Show

Emily tries to recall a scrap of knowledge about 'the beggar king' and his distinctive cane
(1d20+7)[13] know local

"Fair enough. A magician skilled enough to do this wouldn't be stupid enough to melt hisself -- 'least I hope not. Let's see what they have to say inside," Emily glances at the other women entering the bar, especially the one who whispered to the beggar.

"You two investigating the 'Main Street Hag Roasting?'" the brown haired woman says blithely, as she lets them pass.

[Mr. X]

The beggar pauses outside the pub, shuffling his feet.

"Eh, I'd be happy to, miss, but the barkeep ne'er likes a one te walk inte 'is 'stablisment wit out buyin' a drink..."

He turns out his pocket, revealing only the copper you'd already given him.

"An... An ye know, blokes as be a lot friendlier, an more likely te flap their lips, if'n ye fill their glasses for 'em..."

He leans in conspiratorially,

"But ye wouldn't wanna be to obvious 'bout it, like buyin' the whole pub a round... That'll make 'em suspicious. Best ye get yerself a drink, an then get te chattin', an then fill theirs once it empties, an then start fishin'"

He proffers his hand again,

"But that'll take a mite more 'an jes the one copper ye so generously gave me..."

[Illven]

Shannon nods to Vella's request.

[MrE]

Sparing a disdainful look for the 'Beggar King' Vella strode into the pub answering: "This isn't the first time I've done this. I'm sure you'll find a way of getting people to talk. If you do, I have a reward for you that's much better than copper." Vella was neither beautiful nor sexual, but the words came to her easily, after all it was all in how the beggar chose to interpret it. She had silver pieces too.

Spoiler

Show

Not sure which this is, so I'll roll both

Diplomacy: (1d20+7)[17]
Bluff: (1d20+8)[28]