[IC] Overpowered

[Irish Musician]

Rianna Thunderhammer, High Cleric of Moradin

Rianna raises an eyebrow at Ivan's words and actions. Hmm, quite the charismatic half-elf. I'll have to keep an eye on him, she thinks to herself. When the waitress came back with their drinks, Rianna openly gave her a gold piece, "Here you go for your troubles, dear. I don't eat or drink for free. I always pay my own way." She finishes off her ale and takes the drink the girl hands her and starts sipping on it.

[UrsusArctos]

Pasier could tell that this Ian fellow was using magic to charm the waitress, and he didn't not like that.

"Listen here, Mr. Ian. I am truly fine with theft from those who do not truly need their wealth. But this tavern is not a wealthy one. Waitress, don't get him anything unless he pays for it. I'll have some miruvor."

Pasier took out three gold coins and place them on the counter of the bar, far more than the drink actually cost. Pasier was a generous fellow, and didn't keep money on him for long, always giving it away. As he waited for his elvish drink, he turned to Retnas.

"So about this Tiamat. We should be setting off soon. I look forward to giving her copious hoard away."

[Zman]

Ian

Ian responds quickly, kind of perplexed by their offense, "The way I see it, we are about to save them from a dire threat, a decent drink is cheap compensation, but if you insist."

Ian abruptly gets up and makes his way to the proprietor.

A short time passes buy, money is exchanged, and Ian walks back, "Miss, I'll take that drink now, and for them and it's on the house as well. In fact, everyone's drink is on the house!

When the rest give him further dirty looks he proclaims, "Settle down, I just bought this establishment and as its current proprietor I say everyone's drinks are on the house this night."
Ian has a 20 Charisma an all of his starting gold, let me know what a small taver cost, I imagine a few hundred gold.

Spoiler

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[Irish Musician]

Rianna Thunderhammer, High Cleric of Moradin

At the announcement that the charismatic half-elf has bought the establishment, Rianna rolls her eyes. She gets up, takes the drink in her hand, and places it in front of Ian. She then goes back to sit down, "I meant what I said about paying my own way." She then goes to the bar, orders a drink, and then pays for it and comes to sit back down. She turns her attention to the dragonborn who must be regretting his decision by now of inviting them, "Now, the Dragon Queen is tryin' to escape. How can we stop her.

[GanonBoar]

'Wait!' The dwarvish proprietor looks worried as he rushes to Ian. 'Sorry, sir, but I can't allow you to buy this esatblishment.' He puffs up with pride. 'This tavern has been in the possession of my family for two centuries. It would be an insult to them for me to sell the tavern. I'm afraid I will have to refuse your offer.'

Spoiler: However...

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I didn't intend for this to happen, not at all, but I'll be (moderately) nice. Make either a Persuasion check (DC 20) or a Deception Check (DC 30). If you succeed on the Persuasion check, you can buy the tavern for 1000gp. If you fail the Persuasion check, the proprietor remains civil to you and politely declines your offer. If you succeed at the Deception check, you get the tavern for free. If you fail the Deception check, the proprietor takes offence and refuses to let anyone serve you.

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'Um, guys. Can you stop squabbling over drinks?' Retnas seems mildly annoyed, but also fairly amused. 'So, where were we? Oh yes-TIAMAT. CAVE. DESTRUCTION OF THE WORLD.'

He sighs as he begins his story.

'Basically, four weeks ago, a strange cave appeared near my village. And I mean it just appeared, out of nowhere. I asked the village elders, and they did some wizard mojo. Basically, they sensed an evil presence emanating from the cavern. I took one of them into the cavern with me as protection, and he went crazy. He felt a fiendish power, one so big it could only be Tiamat. It felt strange to me too. Now, I'd rather we not die, along with the rest of the world of course. Which is why I called you here.'

[Zman]

Ian

Ian is extremely cordial with the Dwarf, "I understand, but to be fair, everything is always for sale."

Spoiler

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Persuasion (d20+5)[20]

[GanonBoar]

The proprietor just couldn't resist Ian's charms.
'I suppose I can't say no. I hope my ancestors would be happy that their property has come into the possession of such a noble man.'

Spoiler: OOC

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Well, that's that over with. Remember to take 1000gp away from your wealth.

[Zman]

Ian

Ian smiles at the man and shakes his hand, "I'm sure they will because I can't think of anyone better to mange and look after the place than you. You'll be able to watch over your family's legacy and live comfortable till the end of your days. I am owner in name only, you are still its heart and soul."

[Irish Musician]

Rianna Thunderhammer, High Cleric of Moradin

Rianna's eyebrow raised as this dragonborn told his story. "So you're telling me that the goddess of evil dragons just randomly started springing up from the ground near you. And these powerful elders, who you being powerful in your own right, took for protection, had no idea that a god was starting to poke into the material plane?" Rianna studied the draonborn as he responds, and as he was talking before, to find signs of him being not upfront with them.

Spoiler

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Insight check on his story and response (1d20+11)[16] to see if he is being truthful or if he is trying to trick us.

[GanonBoar]

Spoiler: OOC

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Everything he says seems to be true, at least as far as you can tell.

Retnas shrugs. 'I guess it does sound hard to believe. But you need to trust me. The world has no other hope. And would it be that hard for a god to mask her presence? To be honest, it makes me feel like she wants us to come. But we don't really have a choice, unless we want her to destroy the world.'

[Irish Musician]

Rianna Thunderhammer, High Cleric of Moradin

Rianna chuckled, "I may be good-natured, but I am no fool. My years have taught me not to trust people immediately. And I do not trust you, red. But I trust my Moradin, and he has told me to come here. Whether that is to defeat Tiamat herself, or some other unknown enemy...." Rianna lets that trail off for a moment before continuing "....time will have to tell. But I am here as he has commanded me." She gives the dragon a wry smile, and in Draconic, <"I will be watching you, red.">

She then takes a sip of her ale and continues, "So, assuming Tiamat is trying to break into this world and, I assume, take it over.....what is our plan of action. We may all be powerful, but a god is still a god. What other information do you have for us, Retnas?"

Spoiler: OOC

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I always use "<" and ">" in my speech when I am talking in a different language, and I will reference what language it is (like I did) in my writing around that sentence/s.

[GanonBoar]

Retnas laughs. Also in Draconic, he replies, 'Watch all you like, I have nothing to hide.'

In Common, he addresses the whole group.

'As for Tiamat, nothing immedtiately springs to mind. Raiding the cavern is a start I suppose, but there's a lot more to take into account. I had heard that there was an old tower nearby, however. Apparently, it's full of undead. But it's rumoured that it holds great treasure-not just gold, but magic weapons and the like. We seem pretty well equipped already, but some extra gear couldn't hurt. Or we could just storm the cavern. It's your call.'

[Zman]

Ian

Ian chuckles, a sly smile crossing his face, "A tower of the undead or a dangerous cavern, how exciting. As much as I'd like to skip to the good stuff, a vile tower undead can't be allowed to exist, wouldn't you agree Lady of Moradin?"

[daze413]

Helm Danravan

Helm raises his eyebrows in disbelief as the strange transaction takes place. In his mind, there was no doubt that magic was involved. Why else would the tavern-owner sell his family heritage for only 1000 gold pieces without so much as a sentence of intent from the buyer? That's not even enough to buy full plate-armor, he thinks to himself as he shakes his head and grabs a drink from out of a passing tavern wench's tray and gulps it down, consigning himself to understand the situation.

He looks around the tavern then suddenly realizes why. Its walls were in bad shape. There was a broken window where a cold night breeze would penetrate, and stains on the floor near it indicated the rain and, quite possibly, snow would enter unwelcome. The hearth was layered with grease from overflowing soup cauldrons, an obvious fire hazard. On the floor, a stain of what looked like hardened vomit plagued a large portion, looking like someone with a large stomach emptied its contents on the wood.

And the terms?! he kept to himself as Helm drank, what does he mean by owner in name only? What exactly are the boundaries for that? No papers and deeds were exchanged, at that! shaking his head, Helm dismisses this madness. To each his own.

"What does the tower have to do with the cavern? Why do you think they are connected?" he finally joins in the conversation. Cluing in on the cleric's mistrust, Helm adds: "And why is it that only you have contacted us in such a grave matter? Why haven't the Order or the Harpers said anything? This is all highly suspect."

[UrsusArctos]

"And I am not a trustworthy sort of fellow. I steal from anyone I feel is too rich. That said, if the fate of the world is at stake... Let's not delay to save it? I vote for the cave now."

Pasier was already a strong fighter, and it's not like he would get any better by killing some zombies. He was already well equipped, and stopping the rise of an evil god was not a waiting matter.

[daze413]

Helm Danravan

"Do not be so quick to dismiss the tower, friend. Perhaps there's more than just gold there." Helm says patiently. In his years, he has learned that gold was of little value compared to information. "If there is a link to the tower and Tiamat's Cavern, it may be worth exploring. Perhaps we can find a way to defeat her in it."

[GanonBoar]

In response to Helm's question, Retnas smiles. 'I tend to distrust large organisations you see, and our village is quite remote, so I doubt anyone outside the village-apart from you four, of course-even knows about this. If you wish to contact the Order or another large faction, then go ahead, but I refuse to work with them directly.'

'As for the tower, nothing seems to explicitly link it to Tiamat, but the equipment there should definitely help, and who knows? We may find something there after all. And in any case, a tower of the undead is nothing to leave lying around.'

[daze413]

Helm Danravan

Helm waves his hands in a dismissive motion, "The Factions would have sent their strongest men to deal with the problem. I think you've already succeeded in that, so there is largely no need for them save for contacts." Helm says. The fewer lives at risk, the better he thought to himself.

On the choice of the tower or the cavern, Helm simply states: "We must weigh the choices, Retnas. In one hand, we have an evil, five-headed dragon goddess who has been purposefully banished in the nine hells of Baator trying to get herself in the prime material plane." he emphasizes the point by holding his palm up. "And in the other, a tower of undead." he holds the other hand up, this one lower.

He turns to the others gathered, "I can't speak for everyone here, but I think it's pretty obvious where we will direct our attentions. And if you'd like, I can call in the Order to deal with the tower while we go to the cavern ourselves."

Helm pauses for a brief moment, eyeing the warlock intently, "Unless... There's something you're not telling us."

Spoiler: if you'd like

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I can spend my gold on a pot money to send a bunch of mini-adventurers to dig up this tower.

OOC: I don't understand, I thought this was a one-shot dungeon crawl, why are there now two dungeons?

[GanonBoar]

'Of course, of course. The tower is simply an opportunity to get some new equipment, if what you have seems lacking-though I doubt it will. I fully agree with your stance. However-and be warned that I cannot vouch for the validity of this statement-there have been rumours that the owner of the tower, now a crazed undead overlord, was a massive Tiamat worshipper. We could discover something there of use.'

Spoiler: OOC

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I like to have options, if you guys wanna take the tower then you could potentially(not gonna give anything away) discover some new plot points and get some new cool magic items, if not, you'll do just as well. Ultimately, the choice is yours.

[UrsusArctos]

"I for one am already well equipped, and have too many magical items attuned to myself to accept anymore. I do not feel any need for any money that will come of raiding the tower, and I say we go directly to the cave. More direct that way, no?"

Pasier sipped his drink, and looked at his apparent allies.

[GanonBoar]

'I suppose it's settled then. We'll go straight to the cavern.' Retnas gets up and makes to leave motioning to the others to follow him.

[daze413]

Helm Danravan

Helm finished his drink in a single gulp, the weak beverage did little to quelch the uneasiness in him at following this mysterious Dragonborn around. Perhaps I should remedy that, he thought.

"So, Retnas." he says as they make their way out of now Ian the Bard's tavern, "tell me about your past. How does a red dragonborn get to a point where their remote village sprouts Tiamat-caverns"

[Zman]

Ian

Ian finishes up his dealing in his tavern, assuring the former proprietor that he'll stop back when his task at hand was done and that the man better hold up his end of the agreement.

Ian follows Retnas out of the Tavern as h is talking to everyone and no one, "I always wanted a bar. Thinking about changing the name to Puzzles..."

[Irish Musician]

Rianna Thunderhammer, High Cleric of Moradin

Rianna walks with the others, not really caring in which direction they go, just doing Moradin's bidding. Havin' a tower of undead is a bad thing, Moradin might not like that much. But I go where the Red goes, she thought to herself. "I don't much care where we go, but I do know that a tower full of undead isn't a thing I'd like to leave lying around. Whether we go there or we go kill a god, makes no difference to me. Moradin's Fist will lay down enemies no matter what."

She then hears what Ian is talking about, his bar, and the name. She stops for a moment and looks at him quizzically, "Why would you name a bar puzzles? Unless....." She trails off and starts walking again, "......unless that's the puzzle.... Rianna had never been good at puzzles, she was always more of a "smash it and move along" type of girl.

[UrsusArctos]

Pasier finished off his drink, and followed the rest of the adventurers out of the bar, pulling up his hood over his shoulders. He turned to Retnas.

"What is in this cave that we should be aware other than the murderous dragon-demon goddess? I don't think those types of creatures are lacking in guards."

[GanonBoar]

'Alright, we'll hire the adventurers. After the money Ian and Helm are giving, I'll donate an extra 8500 gold. That should cover the cost of getting the best possible adventurers. In the meanwhile, let's head to the cavern.'

In response to Helm, Retnas seems mildly offended.
'Yes, my scales are red. Do you have a problem with that? Of course my Dragon Ancestor was evil, does that make me evil?' He looks at him with a challenging gaze.

In response to Pasier, Retnas says, 'Of course. When I went in, nothing gave me much trouble. There were some skeletons, undead, monsters, fairly standard for something like this. Although if we head in deeper I'm sure the power of the sentries will increase.'

Spoiler: Insight DC 18 (Helm Only)

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If you succeed on the check, you get the feeling that he's deliberately trying to avoid the question.

[UrsusArctos]

"Hmm... Well, that seems like typical fair for the most part. How far away is the cave?"

For show, Pasier pulled out the hilt of his sword and activated it. A beam of streamed out and he aimlessly tossed it around.

[Irish Musician]

Rianna Thunderhammer, High Cleric of Moradin

Rianna smiles and fires back, "My ancestors drank a lot, does that mean I do? Not necessarily, but past evidence....not to mention a few run ins with reds of all shapes and sizes, tend to leave a person wondering if the very generous benefactor is leading them into some sort of trap. It is not to say you are evil.....but everything about reds is against you. Hence our concern." Rianna gives him a smile, "Do not fret, Retnas, we only would like to know more about you and your people. If you are not evil, as you say, what's the harm in telling us? We are trusting you a bit at this point, why not show us the same courtesy." By the tone of her voice, he can tell Rianna means what she says and isn't trying to insult the red. Merely find out more about him.