Random Banter D&D 3.5e Campaign IC, Thread II

[Amidus Drexel]

River Village

You settle in for the night near some of the displaced villagers. Layla graciously takes Tass's bedroll; Dame Felicia climbs into a nearby tree for the night.

Spoiler: Niro, Tass

Show

An hour or two after the humans go to sleep and the elves start trancing, Layla stirs. She nods at you, then turns around and draws a small circle in the snow. She sits in the center, cross-legged, and puts her hands on the ground on the edges of the circle.

Some time passes, but when the moonlight has shifted to fully illuminate her face, she gets back up, wipes away the circle in the snow, and goes back to sleep without a word.

--

Morning comes slowly, and the high mountains make winter sun seem even slower to reach the horizon than usual. Just before dawn, Dame Felicia walks into your camp, with tired, bloodshot eyes and a canvas sack slung over her shoulder.

"Thought you folk might want something more than gruel for breakfast. How does some fresh meat sound, eh?" She nods towards the tavern. "Come on in; I'll have them cook it up for you. Let me know if you're going up to Rook's Peak today - I can save you a hike in the snow."

Spoiler: Spot DC 20

Show

The snow near Layla's bedroll has been disturbed - maybe she got up in the middle of the night and... walked a few feet away, then walked back?

[LaZodiac]

"Fresh meat sounds lovely." Alphonse says, looking around to see if Layle has woken up.

[AtlanteanTroll]

Save us a hike, can you? Niro asked, rising from the ground and another sleepless night that felt like a year.

[Teddy]

I believe we are heading that way, yes. Victor had promised us some reward for destroying Jonathan's lab in the woods, and I guess he would be back by now if he used the same teleportation as he sent us here with. Lucas, do you have the means of contacting him?

Otherwise we should probably head over the mountains to the Fryngaer mines, which we were hired to clear out. I also really want to know what Cassandra is up to.

[Amidus Drexel]

River Village Tavern

You all follow Dame Felicia into the tavern, and breakfast ensues. A few days of trail rations make the fresh pheasant all the more enticing.

Once everyone has eaten, you're led outside and told to link arms. Felicia raises a bracelet of stone flies and utters a quick incantation. You all feel a familiar lurching sensation as the ground falls out from under you...

--

08:00, Friday, January 7th, CI 201
Lower Courtyard, Rook's Peak, Black River Vale, Cymru, Hindrun, Prime Material Plane

The steady chime of ringing bells permeates the air as the world glides back into place around you. The flies on Dame Felicia's bracelet disperse, leaving her holding only thread.

You find yourself standing in a shadowy courtyard, shielded from the morning sun by high stone walls on all sides. A thick layer of snow obscures the paving stones on the ground, building up to miniature drifts in the corners that see the least sunlight. Dying grass and potting soil poke through here and there, accompanied by the occasional dried and frozen leaf or stem.

To the north there is a large opening in the walls, beyond which you can see a thin, winding road over open mountainside. Dame Felicia directs your attention southward, however, to a pair of reinforced wooden doors. "I'll send for my uncle Victor. You folk are certainly welcome to wait inside, if you like -" She grimaces. "- but I won't blame you for staying out here either. We have extended family visiting... and in residence..." Without another word, Felicia bolts inside, leaving you alone in the courtyard.

Within seconds, however, your solitude is disturbed by a small line of children that burst out of the door behind her. You recognize the eldest - it's Samuel Wren, Lord Victor's son! He looks at you curiously, clearly trying to remember you who are, just long enough for him to be hit by a flurry of snowballs. He spins around to fire back, and a few careless (or perhaps exploratory) missiles get thrown in your direction. You suspect if you stay out here, it'll only be a matter of time before you're involved in this snowball fight, by choice or otherwise...

OOC: You have a little time to do things (about a minute) before the kids get brave enough to start throwing things at you. If anybody decides to stay outside long enough for that to happen, I'll roll for initiative and draw up a map.

[AtlanteanTroll]

Niro sighs as he raises his shield to cover any incoming snowballs, clearly disinterested in engaging. Children.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse turns to Layla "I know we have some business to discuss, but permit me this quick indulgence- I do so love inspiring children."

He'll then leap into the "fray" and strike a heroic pose, shouting in a most bombastic fashion, "I am the great Sir Alphonse The Jade Dragon! Slayer of Demons and Defender of Justice! I challenge the lot of you- strike me down with ice and snow, and I shall tell you of my adventures!"

He'll then ready an action to strike any snowball that nears him out of the air, slicing it in half.

[Teddy]

Tass snickers beneath her breath and dismisses Lingon to the side, so the good wolf won't mistake her for being in danger. She then packs a snowball and throws it point blank at Alphonse from behind.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Ranged attack: (1d20+7)[17]

[LaZodiac]

Momentarily taken by aback by Tass's deadly blow, Alphonse yelps and leaps in surprise, using Sudden Leap on reflexes to jump a fairly impressive distance in the process, landing on the other side of the children, facing the lot of them. He strikes another heroic (if slightly shaken) pose, as though it was all intentional.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Lucas enters the building to wait inside, as suggested. He smirks at the fray that begins as he enters.

[Amidus Drexel]

Courtyard

Samuel steps away from the other children and starts making snowballs.

OOC: Everyone is up! We'll be doing group initiative this time, so just post in whatever order and I'll sort things out. Let me know if you're waiting to post for something in particular to happen.

Map is up.

[AtlanteanTroll]

Niro dives for cover behind the tree at H10.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse strikes a pose, giving Tass a soft, simple smile that none the less feels like a direct challenge. He'll actually act once he knows how Tass responds.

Spoiler: Probably needless rule explanation

Show

Duel of Wills lets me make an intimidate, Concentrate due to a feat I took, check to challenge someone in combat to a duel. If Tass submits defeat, she takes -2 on her initiative check and -1 to attack rolls against me during the first round of combat. If she ignores my challenge, I make a Concentration 15 check and get a +2 morale bonus to attacks against her for a round. If she accepts the duel of wills, we both roll intimidate (Concentration for me) and whoever rolls lowest gets a -1 to attack and damage against the other for the combat. Also I get a +4 on those Concenration rolls, and I will roll one now just in case.

Spoiler: Dare you challenge me???

Show

Duel of Wills Concentration check: (1d20+16)[25]

[Teddy]

Tass skips backwards to H8 and packs two snowballs, ignoring Alphonse's challenge.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Lucas looks around the interior of the building while he waits.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse strikes a pose, rolling up one ball of snow to prepare himself. It's unlikely he can strike out at Lady Tass in revenge, so instead he readies himself to strike any snowballs sent his way out of the air.

[Cuthalion]

Béla hunches over and runs inside to join Lucas, his arm held protectively in front of his face in case anyone tries to hit him with a projectile on the way.

Once indoors, he nods to the cleric. Don't fancy a bit of youthful exuberance? All the same, glad they're able to have some fun for now.

[Amidus Drexel]

Courtyard

The children all act at once, some with more coordination than others:

1. A younger boy with short, black hair hits Niro square in the face!
2. Behind him, a slightly older girl hits one of the other children in the back.
3. The youngest boy, who had run ahead of the group, grazes Tass' leg with a well-aimed snowball.
4. The boy who'd just been hit circles around behind Alphonse, and prepares to volley back.
5. A girl with long, blonde hair and a bright blue coat hits Sameul's shoulder, then backs towards the wall.
6. The red-headed girl in an ugly green sweater lobs a snowball at Niro, which only hits his shield.
7. A lanky, bespectacled girl takes a potshot at Bela as he rushes inside, and barely misses him.
8. A red-headed boy standing next to the girl that hit Niro throws his snowball wide, which harmlessly hits the tree in front of Tass.

Samuel finishes making his pile of snowballs, then hurls one at Alphonse before dashing over to the line of shrubs opposite Niro.

OOC: Alphonse, go ahead and take your readied action. Samuel's shot was short-range, accurate, and fast, so you need to hit AC 25 to deflect the missile. (21 (his roll) + 4 (size diminutive)) Everyone is up!

Scoreboard:
Player: hits landed, hits taken
Niro: 0, 1
Alphonse: 0, 1?
Tass: 1, 1
Samuel: 1?, 1
Child 1 (Boris): 1, 0
Child 2 (Sarah): 1, 0
Child 3 (Eoin): 1, 0
Child 4 (Goddard): 0, 1
Child 5 (Agnes): 1, 0
Child 6 (Rose): 1, 0
Child 7 (Nora): 0, 0
Child 8 (Elric): 0,0


--
Grand Hall

Lucas and Bela

You've stepped into a large hallway, broken up by a large spiral staircase halfway down. A flicker of motion at the top of the stairs catches your attention, but when you look more closely, there isn't anything there. Perhaps someone ascending out of sight?

Returning to the rest of the room, you see an ornate, red and gold rug covers the polished pine floor, which reaches from your feet all the way to the staircase. Upon closer inspection, you see that it's unevenly worn - some parts look much newer than others, but there aren't any signs of obvious repair work or patching. It's certainly been kept clean, though - there's not a speck of dust to be found on the carpet (or indeed, elsewhere in the room).

Lit torches line the stone walls, but instead of the familiar smell of burning oil, your nose is assaulted with smells of cinnamon, cooked fruit, and fresh bread. There are a few doors leading off to either side of the hallway, though you're not sure which one the smells are coming from. Distant, unintelligible voices emanate from all around, and even your footsteps echo loudly as you shuffle in.

You also hear some less distant sounds behind you, and turn around to see Layla kicking snow from her shoes in the doorway. She gives you a nod of acknowledgement, then steps inside and looks around alongside you.

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse deftly swipes his glaive's back end at the snowball as it approaches him, posing triumphantly. He makes a big show of it, exaggerated motions and using Jade Razor to make it all glowy and stuff.

Spoiler

Show

Attack the Bullet: (1d20+12)[30] vs the snowball's AC.

[AtlanteanTroll]

Niro peeks his head out behind the shrub, to see Bela safely make it inside. Thinking he can make it inside, he starts to stand but is hit squre in the face. Niro uses his hat of disguise to change his form to that of Victor, the Marquess, Wren.

INSOLENT CHILDREN! STOP THIS TOOMFOOLERY!

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Diguise: (1d20+10)[19]
Intimidate: (1d20+13)[24]

[Teddy]

Hey! If you're going to be a spoilsport, you can go inside!

Tass casually steps into the shrub between her and pelts him with her two snowballs, intentionally aiming to try and knock the hat off his head.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Tass 5 foot steps into H9 and attempts an unsanctioned ranged disarm against Niro's hat.

First attack: (1d20+7)[13]
Second attack: (1d20+2)[5]

[LaZodiac]

Alphonse considers his actions for a moment, and builds another snowball. He'll then strike another ready-pose, preparing to strike whatever fell missiles come his way.

[Amidus Drexel]

Courtyard

Most of the kids giggle nervously at Niro's shouting, but Boris doesn't take it so well - he bursts into tears and runs back inside.

Tass's snowballs miss spectacularly, but her rebellious enthusiasm directs some of the kids' aim at Niro...

2. Sarah Wren runs up to the shrub Boris was hiding behind, and makes some more snowballs.
3. The youngest boy (the one who just hit Tass), moves forward and throws a snowball at Niro that splashes harmlessly on his shield.
4. The boy hiding behind Alphonse rushes forward to throw a snowball at Niro, but trips and lands flat on his face.
5. Agnes throws another snowball at Samuel, but misses.
6. The red-headed girl throws a snowball at Niro, but misses.
7. The tall girl in glasses just barely misses the youngest boy.
8. The red-headed boy throws a snowball under Niro's shield, hitting his hip.

Samuel sneaks through the shrubbery, and nails Tass in the back with a well-placed snowball.

OOC: Everyone is up!

Scoreboard:
Player: hits landed, hits taken
Niro: 0, 2
Alphonse: 0, 1
Tass: 1, 2
Samuel: 0, 1
Child 1 (Boris): 1, 0
Child 2 (Sarah): 1, 0
Child 3 (Eoin): 1, 0
Child 4 (Goddard): 0, 1
Child 5 (Agnes): 1, 0
Child 6 (Rose): 1, 0
Child 7 (Nora): 0, 0
Child 8 (Elric): 1, 0


--
Grand Hall

Bela and Lucas

The door behind you flies open, and one of the younger boys runs in crying. He attaches himself to Bela's leg, getting snow and tears all over your coat.

[LaZodiac]

Finding that he's been ignored, Alphonse takes up his two snowballs and leaps over to where "Victor" is. He strikes a heroic pose, pointing at him. "At last, a worthy foe! Take him down!"

He'll then throw a snowball at him.

Spoiler: mechanics

Show

Alphonse moves to H12 and then throws a snowball at Niro. I don't think he knows Niro is Niro, since he doesn't actually have the stats to beat that disguise check, but he also knows Niro and his hat and such.

Snowball! at Niro: (1d20+4)[21] vs touch AC.

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Lucas kneels down to speak to the child clinging to Bela. "My child, show me what's wrong. I'm a healer, let me take a look."

[Teddy]

Tass makes a comedic "Oof!" as Samuel's snowball hits her, but keeps her back to him as she crouches down to pack another snowball. When finished, though, she spins around, flashes him a playfully menacing grin and lobs it in his direction.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Attack: (1d20+7)[14]

[Amidus Drexel]

Rook's Peak

After a few more minutes of fooling around outside, the real Victor Wren arrives, causing the younger kids to scatter, and the older kids to settle down. He invites you inside for lunch, and once the meal is over, you get down to business.

About half an hour of signing paperwork later, the five of you are the proud new owners of a small castle outside the town of Elva. Lord Victor hands you a key ring and gives you a hearty handshake.

OOC: If you have any questions for Lord Victor (or any other Wrens, for that matter), feel free to ask them here or in the discord.

--
Elva Castle

The trip to your new property in the town of Elva is short and uneventful. When you arrive, you spend some time exploring the property and settling in.

The castle sits on the top of a small hill surrounding about a hundred acres of farmland, dotted with a handful of houses and barns. A stream runs along one side of the property, and a small water mill has been built alongside it.

You pull dust covers off the sparse furniture, revealing some simple, but high-quality chairs, tables, and beds. It looks like most of the smaller, more useful objects have gone missing, so to speak - the kitchen is nearly devoid of cutlery and cookware, save for the largest pots.

A few days after your arrival, you receive a letter from Enigma. It explains that he's finished his research on the ships entering and leaving port, and thinks he's identified the poison smugglers. He invites you to investigate more closely when the ship is docked (4 weeks from now), and encloses a scroll of teleport for your convenience.

OOC: Post your downtime activities! If you want to do any magical research (divinations, scrying, etc.), let me know exactly what you're doing. If you want to any manual legwork, let me know the general idea, and we can work out how all of that comes together. Let me know once you've done everything you want to do during your downtime, and we'll move forward to the smuggling.

[Teddy]

During the trip to Alphonse's new property, Tass takes Lingon and all her possessions and leaves the party for a solo hike into the magnificent forests of the Black River Valley. A few days later, she catches up with the party riding on the largest wolf most of you have probably ever seen. The telltale red tufts at the top of his ears makes it no question who it is, though.

Well at Elva Castle, Tass will offer Alphonse to bless his lands with magic of good harvest (although seeing how early it is in the season, only the fruit trees and the autumn sowing will be affected). After that, she'll work on crafting a Belt of Priestly (Druidic?) Might devoted toward Torethen, replacing her gauntlets. She will also take some time scrying on Cassandra, Morgan and the Banshrae.

[LaZodiac]

During his downtime, Alphonse will talk with Layla about becoming the steward of his land. He'll provide some books on learning how to properly farm and take care of the lands, and EXTREMELY take Tass's offer to help, and provides her with a starter of 400 gold, 100 of which is a discretionary fund for her to practice her own magics- with the caveat that she stays above the board, law wise. Her salary is negotiable, and would come from the profits turned by selling the produce our farms produce. Alphonse also brings up the possibility of a semi-official (he's not entire sure how much power he has as a person) pardon for whatever crimes she was accused of back when we first encountered her.

He'll also send out feelers to taverns and the such, to see if anyone is curious in forming a sort of expeditionary base camp around the Fryngaer mind that started our encounters with the mysterious time-wisp like creature, with the note of the draconic patron who would be footing much of the bill. This isn't a priority thing, just sending out interest checks of exploring a dangerous, monster ridden mine for money.

Finally, he'll take some time to go visit the Dragon Monastery that he was raised at, to regale the old monks with tales of his adventures (both the good and ill, given his appearance), tell them about how he'd found his family and has now established himself as a good and proper lord of some renown. He'll also leave two hundred gold pieces as donation to assist with things. All that aside, he's also gonna train to at least try to make up for his magically aged body's deficiencies.

Alphonse will also pen a letter to his father, informing him of his current position and wishing him well.

[Amidus Drexel]

During the trip to Alphonse's new property, Tass takes Lingon and all her possessions and leaves the party for a solo hike into the magnificent forests of the Black River Valley. A few days later, she catches up with the party riding on the largest wolf most of you have probably ever seen. The telltale red tufts at the top of his ears makes it no question who it is, though.

Well at Elva Castle, Tass will offer Alphonse to bless his lands with magic of good harvest (although seeing how early it is in the season, only the fruit trees and the autumn sowing will be affected). After that, she'll work on crafting a Belt of Priestly (Druidic?) Might devoted toward Torethen, replacing her gauntlets. She will also take some time scrying on Cassandra, Morgan and the Banshrae.

Tass

Spoiler: Cassandra

Show

You see Cassandra in an unfamiliar place. She sits, head in hands, on a hearty stump by a pond surrounded by the charred remains of a forest. Beside her is a slate tablet and a few pieces of parchment. After a few minutes, she picks up a quill and begins to write down arcane formulae. Your scrying session ends before she gets far enough for you to identify what she's writing.

The next few times you scry on her fail, but you finally catch her again late at night, around the full moon. She's standing in a dark urban alley, stooped over a corpse with some disturbing lacerations. She pulls out a serrated knife and, with a few minutes of effort, hacks open the man's ribcage and cuts out his heart. She then drives iron spikes through his hands and pours what looks like salt into his mouth, before teleporting several times through more unfamiliar urban areas and disappearing into the night.

Spoiler: Morgan

Show

You see the young captain meeting with another government official on the docks in Capel Kerig. After a minute or two of whispered discussion, Morgan hands her a small binder of papers and an even smaller sack of rubies. The two nod, shake hands, then part ways.

The next time you scry on him, he's filing paperwork. He makes requests for a large quantity of stone and bricks, a modest quantity of wood, and some mason's tools.

Spoiler: Banshrae

Show

After several scrying attempts, you catch the banshrae you met in the Black Forest before a small council of figures that could only be fae elders. While you don't hear the banshrae's telepathic message, you do catch the responses:

"Fascinating. Not terribly useful, but fascinating."
"And what about the elf?"
<more telepathic silence from the banshrae>
"Glad to see that someone is staying busy. Urbereg may be winning this game after all."
"Your service is useful as ever, Faras. Thank you kindly."

--
Alphonse

<RE: Layla and stewardship>

<RE: expedition to clear out Fryngaer>

<RE: monastery visit>

Alphonse will also pen a letter to his father, informing him of his current position and wishing him well.

Layla is initially reluctant, but eventually accepts your offer. She mentions that it's probably best not to acknowledge her necromancy in an official capacity, and that they're almost certainly out of the Black River Vale jurisdiction anyway. She promises to keep things quiet in Elva regarding any dark magics.

A lot of people seem to recognize you as Lord Lennox. You get a mixture of initial reactions from the townsfolk, and quite a few cold shoulders from people who hold some bitterness towards the Lennoxes. As for your inquiry - you're not the first person to mention an expedition to Fryngaer, but no one really seems to be organizing anything to go yet. You do hear a few people ask how much it's going to pay.

The monastery accepts your donation graciously, and wishes you well. Your old friends and mentors listen to your stories, and pass along some gossip of their own - the Yates family seems to be organizing a military force of a few hundred men, mostly mercenaries from Samara, a faraway land. They're not sure where the men have set up camp (not near the town of Elva, as far as you can tell), but more and more seem to be trickling in from out of town.

The postman takes your letter with the next batch of mail leaving Elva. Layla promises to keep safe any mail from your father, should he write back when you're away.