D&D: The Warlock's Boots (NOW RECRUITING!)

[Quirk]

Cheezus gives Gregor first aid before we rest.

Curse the vile scum that did this to you. As a servant of Melora, whenever evil-doers halt my progress they impede her will.

[slowreactor]

I'll take 1 of the daggers just so I have more than 1 just in case, and, if no one else is handy with the other hand crossbow, I'll take that as well.

[CreepersWiener]

Cheezus gives Gregor first aid before we rest.

Curse the vile scum that did this to you. As a servant of Melora, whenever evil-doers halt my progress they impede her will.

As Gregor the Half-Orc lies beaten on the ground, Cheezus runs to his side. The Elven Cleric pulls up some nearby moss and forest herbs and quickly ties them to the Gregor's wounds. When he is finished, he holds a silver holy symbol that looks like an Oak Leaf and begins to say a prayer in Elven.

Firnam speaks to Alastair,"You know I understand some Elven, I am not perfect at it, but I learned it on the streets. I had a Half-Elf friend just like you and we used to steal bread from the market. He taught me to speak Elven so that we could speak openly and not worry about anyone to over hear us."

"What ever happened to your friend?"Alastair asks.

"We were stealing some food from the market, as usual, and he was caught. I ran away, but my friend was still trying to break free of the merchant's grasp. When my friend stomped on the Merchant's foot to get away, the Merchant clubbed him in the back of the head as he was trying to flee to safety...that was the end of my friend,"Firnam fights to hold back tears,"and that will be the end of that Merchant someday!"

In the background the party can hear the haunting voice of Gorlan the Bard as he sings of the company's exploits of the day. A sense of calm falls over the party and they begin to have their spirits lifted to carry on to Baskin's Bay.

Mr.Urlag has now hooked the horses back up to the wagon and Maximus has lifted the wagon out of the Kobold's ambush pit.

"Well, she's ready to go."Mr.Urlag tells the crew.

Then everyone is interrupted by the sound of a moan. Gregor is beginning to sit up, it seems he is recouping from his wounds.

"What happened to Gregor?"Gregor asks in his familiar Half-Orc accent.

"You have been down awhile, friend. You killed many of the little lizard thingies, but your friends were unable to get to you in time before you were brought down."Alastair replies to Gregor's question.

[Any characters that are spending healing surges during this rest can also add +4 HP for Gorlan's Song Of Rest. Gregor is restored fully by taking a few healing surges and Cheezus' first aid has stabilized him from slipping any further towards Death's Door. Your party has taken a short rest and can use any encounter powers again if needed, however, any Daily Powers that have been used can't be used again until you rest at least six hours.

Your journey picks up again and you head towards Baskin's Bay to find Sheyla's father.

I will roll three times to see if you will have anymore encounters:Nope, Nope, and Nope.]

The party travels the rest of the day without incident.

"We must have scared off all the Kobolds in Nyördand today!"Gorlan jests to his mates.

"Well, scaring off Kobolds is easier than scaring off the King's Guard!"Mr.Urlag turns his head back towards the company sitting in the back of the wagon. Mr.Urlag points ahead at some figures riding horse towards them and says,"Look!"

Each guard is well armored in chain mail and carry Halberds with Herald Banners marked white and gold with the symbol of a silver gauntlet in the center field. It is the crest of King Fyrsdane.



"Halt! What is your business here,"the lead guard says as he inspects each individual closely.

"On our way to Baskin's, a friend of ours was kidnapped by Githarian bounty hunters and we believe they are leaving the bay back to Githar as we speak."Mr.Urlag tells the guard.

"I see, and what happened to this....Half-Orc?"the guard asks with a visible sneer of disdain.

"He fought bravely trying to save me an his friends form a band of Kobold bandits, you snide dog! He has done much more for your so-called kingdom than what you have done this day! Isn't it YOUR job to keep the highways safe?"Sheyla scolds the guard.

"My job is of no concern to a cart full of rabble from Winterhaven. We are here to make sure that there will be no trouble in Baskin's Bay. If what your driver says is true, then it is the duty of the Fyrsdane Guard to investigate and bring such perpetrators to justice. And if indeed these are Githarian's as you claim, then that would bring Fyrsdane closer to war with that Wytch Emperor---Kannith! Now, what weapons do you all have? We must make sure Baskin's Bay is kept safe...you each will have to pay the King one silver piece for each dagger, knife, or small blade; and you must pay one gold for each sword or larger blade, plus any bows or crossbows will also cost you one gold to carry into the Bay. After payment is made to us, you will each get a letter of permittance. If you fail to pay each and every copper that we ask, your weapons will remain forfeit and you may either turn them over to us now, or turn around and head back to Winterhaven. Now what will it be?"

[CreepersWiener]

I'll take 1 of the daggers just so I have more than 1 just in case, and, if no one else is handy with the other hand crossbow, I'll take that as well.

Firnam picks up a dagger from a Kobold and sticks it in his boot, he then picks up the hand crossbow and inspects it. He puts the extra crossbow and bolts into his pack and regroups with the party.

[Make sure to read the post above this one, your party is now being asked to pay entrance fees into the city of Baskin's Bay.]

[Jace22]

Maximus will pay the 1 gp fee for his greatsword, just to avoid unneeded conflict

[safariguy5]

I'll take 1 clay pot of the stinky stuff and 1 of the sticky goo. I also will pay the toll for my weapons.

[Quirk]

Cheezus collects arrows before we leave.
He will pay the fee.

[slowreactor]

If any of Firnam's weapons can he well-hidden (esp. daggers) then he will hide them to avoid paying the fee. Any weapons that can't be well-hidden, he will pay for.

[CreepersWiener]

If any of Firnam's weapons can he well-hidden (esp. daggers) then he will hide them to avoid paying the fee. Any weapons that can't be well-hidden, he will pay for.

[Firnam uses his Bluff Skill Check +8 vs Guard Perception:Roll 15 vs Roll 10...Success]

Firnam pays for his crossbows, but he is able to hide his other smaller weapons. The King's Guard is completely oblivious to Firnam's schemes.

[slowreactor]

so who are we waiting for at this point?

[jonesthecurl]

ME? I pay.

[jrl332005]

I am now playing as Gregor. I just need some more info from CreepersWiener about my character's stats and abilities.

[CreepersWiener]

I am now playing as Gregor. I just need some more info from CreepersWiener about my character's stats and abilities.

Sorry for the delay, my brother was leaving for Hawaii last week. Needed to spend time with him. Anyway, here is Gregor's Character Sheet. He is a Half-Orc Fighter/Barbarian. Once per day he can use his Barbarian Fury to cause +2 damage until the end of the encounter (I had to hand write the power on your character sheet, it didn't print out for some reason).

Click image to enlarge.

Click image to enlarge.

Click image to enlarge.

[CreepersWiener]

ME? I pay.

As Gorlan the Bard puffs a little too loudly under his breath, the sergeant of the guard pulls his horse close to Gorlan's side of the wagon. He looks Gorlan squarely in the eye with a visage of determination and with a downward, stern-looking, furled brow proceeds to speak in a calm tone.

"Yes, pay. You may do so and enter the Bay or you may turn around and head back the way you have come. Is there a problem with that?"

It is now that Gorlan flashes a friendly smile and begins to spin a tale of his exploits and how it is his friends came to be here at the gates of Baskin's Bay. The bard's tongue is quick and the entire guard listens with complete intrigue, Gorlan even throws in a few compliments to the guards for doing their duty and brags about his noble lineage, of which a few of the guards now begin to recognize him from the tall tales that have been spun through out the kingdom of Fyrsdane. Gorlan's tongue is long as well as quick and the captain notices the noble sword at the bard's side.

[Gorlan Bluff Check +9 vs Sergeant of the Guard's Perception Check +0=Roll 11 vs 1 SUCCESS]

"Yes, I did not know it was the company of Gorlan the Dragon Smiter. I have heard of you for a few years now, it has been said you have killed a red dragon in the hills of Norule and kept its pestilence from the northern borders of Fyrsdane. I recognize you from your sword, that is the sword of a noble and you need no more harassment from the Fyrsdane guard. Welcome to Baskin's Bay, Gorlan. And may I recommend that you go straight away to the Inn of the Host. Give them this token and all will be paid tonight for your evenings rest."

The Sergeant gives Gorlan a square wooden token with a carved figure of a dragon on it.

"Also, your friends may proceed with you, each may keep their weapons; but their actions in the Bay will be your responsibility, and the King's Guard will deal harshly for any insolence."

[Nobody has to pay for their weapons as Gorlan has bluffed his way into the city. You may all thank Gorlan for saving you a gold piece or two.]

As you all enter the city, you are stunned by the vastness of its sprawl. The Bay accentuates the horizon line as every flock of every vessel in the world sits at port as merchants, sailors, and pirates mingle and restock their wares for their journeys to unknown lands. Their are small children running around and are begging for a little money. The sight of the little ones brings back orphaned memories to Firnam, as he recollects his times growing up in the streets of Winterhaven with no roof over his head and scrounging for small morsels of food from the gutters. He was helped out by a Half-Elven friend who showed him not only the art of stealing, but the art of being unseen in the shadows. Unfortunately, his friend was killed by a merchant in the food courts of Winterhaven, all for stealing a loaf of bread. Firnam still is angered over that incident, and wishes he could find that merchant and exact a little revenge.

"Well, I wonder if we should start asking anyone if they have seen my father or that Wytch Runner that has stolen my father's book?" Sheyla asks the company.

At that moment, Firnam feels a small hand reaching into the wagon. It seems one of the children of the street is trying to steal his purse...

[CreepersWiener]

As Mr.Urlag's wagon makes its way through the city streets, a man dressed in the clothes of nobility trots by through the crowds. He is wearing red and yellow clothing and sports a well groomed brownish beard. He sports a longsword on his side and is wearing a number of rings with gemstones of every color. He also has a satchel on the side of his horse, what it has in it is left to a thief's imagination. Of course, Cackle can imagine quite a lot and gives in to the temptation.

As the Noble Gentleman passes close by to the wagon, Cackle quickly uses his short sword to open the man's satchel and try to pick out whatever is inside without being noticed. The man seems oblivious to his surroundings and nobody (including the members of his party) is paying any attention to his actions.

With ease Cackle unstraps the satchel bag and quickly dips his sword in. He feels something hard and metallic and gets the flat of his blade under it and begins to whisk the object out of the bag...

[Cackles Thievery Skill +13 vs Difficulty Class 25: Roll 11+13=24 FAIL but Target does not notice]

As Cackle begins to fish out a beautiful gold and ruby necklace, Mr.Urlag's wagon hits a bump in the road and the necklace falls to the street. Immediately a little street kid scoops it up and runs away through the crowd.

"Well, I see that a tiger is true to his stripes."Sheyla says as she just happened to catch a glimpse of Cackle's actions. "You are lucky that man didn't notice what you were doing, or you could have landed us all into a jail cell instead of enjoying the comforts of an inn this evening."

Cackle smiles incredulously and wiggles his head side to side in taunting disapproval towards Sheyla's comment.

Meanwhile, Firnam has grasped the little hand that has just about stolen his life savings.

The child is wearing peasant clothes and a peasant style hat. His face and hands are dirty from living in the streets and he smells like he hasn't bathed...ever.

[jonesthecurl]

I ask the child's name, in a reassuring manner.
I state mine.
I add: Yes, that Gorlan.
I tell the child (while looking hard at Cackle) a tale about the dreadful consequences of thievery, not only if you get caught. But how it scars your very soul.And how it can really get your best friends into trouble, so much trouble that sometimes they might even have to tell on you rather than cover for your crimes. Just not this time.

[CreepersWiener]

I ask the child's name, in a reassuring manner.
I state mine.
I add: Yes, that Gorlan.
I tell the child (while looking hard at Cackle) a tale about the dreadful consequences of thievery, not only if you get caught. But how it scars your very soul.And how it can really get your best friends into trouble, so much trouble that sometimes they might even have to tell on you rather than cover for your crimes. Just not this time.

The child looks up at Gorlan as Firnam pulls him into the cart.

"My name is Jet, I'm just looking for some food. Please don't turn me into the guard..." he begs Gorlan.

"Well, Jet," Sheyla speaks softly,"perhaps you can help us?"

"Help you? How can I help you?"

Sheyla pulls out a silver piece and holds it up with two fingers and twirls it back and forth making it gleam in the sunlight. The boys brown eyes become as large as saucers as his jaw begins to drop.

"How many friends you got?" Sheyla asks Jet.

Jet puts his thumb and forefinger in his mouth and let's out a whistle. From every alleyway and from behind every barrel, street children gather around Mr.Urlag's cart. Gorlan counts and there are eleven orphans that have approached. Mostly are boys, but there are a few little girls...one is even holding a dirty beat up doll.

"Are these enough for ya, lady?"Jet asks Sheyla.

"Why, yes...I think that will do,"Sheyla begins to ask all the children if they have seen her father or the Wytch Runner. The children all huddle together and whisper, there is a long pause.

Then Jet comes out of the huddle of street kids and says to Sheyla,"We think we've seen your Pops. They came into the Bay yesterday and made straight away for a ship. The ship has already left port, but that is all we know for sure. As for the Dark Dragon man...none of us have seen him. We would know if we did. Sorry 'bout your Pops, lady...can we have our money now?"

Sheyla hands each child a silver piece and each child disappears back into the crowds of the street, but as Jet turns to leave with his silver piece, Sheyla grabs him by the shoulder and says,"And this is for you, Jet...thank you very much." Sheyla gives Jet a gold piece and then kisses him on the cheek. "Now, go find something to eat with your friends, and for the sake of the Stars, get yourself a hot bath!" Sheyla pats Jet on the behind as he leaves Mr.Urlag's wagon.

Mr.Urlag speaks up,"Well, if the bounty hunters have a full days start at sea, we will have a tough time catching up. It all depends on what type of ship he is on. If it is a Luskan Slaver Ship, they are not very fast, there is a good chance we may catch up with it; but first we would have to find ourselves a captain and a ship to undergo the task. Any thoughts?"

Sheyla says,"I know my father is important to me, but that book was so important to him. He always told me that if anything should happen to him to go after the artifact no matter what. The sake of the people of both Githar and Tabor depend on it. The people must be FREED!" Sheyla begins to tear up, but holds herself resolute with pride.

"Very well, Sheyla,"Mr.Urlag says. "The best thing for us to do is to split up the party. Tonight we will rest at the Inn Of The Host, and in the morning half of us will go to the Harbor and requisition a small ship. If we can find one with a good captain, we may still have a chance, even though we would be two days behind. Githar is about a weeks journey from Baskin's Bay."

Gorlan's eyes light up as he remembers an old Sea Dwarf named Rothryn Anvil Heart. In Gorlan's youth, he used to help out on the deck of the old dwarf's ship--SeaAxe. Rothryn only gave commands in his native Dwarven tongue, so Gorlan needed to pick up a bit of the language, as did the rest of the crew. Gorlan relates this information to the rest of the company and they decide to head to the Inn for the evening and decide on who is going where.

[Alright, you guys are retiring for the evening. You need to decide who is going where. The company will be split as one part of the company keeps searching for the artifact that will free the magic users of Githar, while the other half will chase after the ship that is carrying Sheyla's father, Givran Darkwatcher.

Mr.Urlag has decided to go after Sheyla's father, while Sheyla has decided to retrieve the artifact.

Who wants to go where? As much as Sheyla hates it, Cackle has to go with her, because he has a photographic memory and has most of her father's book inside his head.]

[jonesthecurl]

Ok Gorlan fancies a boat trip.
He asks his friend the half-orc if he'd like to come along. There will likely be skulls to break.

[jrl332005]

Gregor want to take boat with Gorlan. Me get to hurt slave-catchers.

[safariguy5]

I'll go hunt the Artifact.

[CreepersWiener]

We have Firnam, Cheezus, and Maximus left to decide. So far the Ship Party has a Bard (who has some healing powers and magical abilities, a jack-of-all-trades), Gregor (who is a strong fighter), Mr.Urlag (an average fighter)

While the party looking for the artifact has Sheyla (a warlock that can't use her magical powers yet but has a few thieving abilities), Cackle (an excellent Rogue and thief), Alastair (who is a wizard and an expert at arcane knowledge)

You can't split exactly in half, so you will have to decide of who gets the more power...the Artifact Adventure or the Ship Journey.

If this thread is not responded to by tomorrow evening, then I will decide who goes where so we can continue.

[Quirk]

Cheezus will join the search for the artifact.
He prays for a safe voyage for the others. Melora’s power is strong at sea.

[CreepersWiener]

Cheezus will join the search for the artifact.
He prays for a safe voyage for the others. Melora’s power is strong at sea.

Very well, this is how the group will be split:

The party going to find a ship to rescue Givran will be Mr.Urlag, Gorlan, Gregor, and Firnam.

The party going to find the artifact will be Sheyla, Cackle, Alastair, Cheezus, and Maximus.

As the party rests at the Inn, they are met at the bar by a familiar face.

"Welcome! Come and sit with me, heroes of Winterhaven!"

It is the sergeant of the guard of Fyrsdane, and he is having some ale.

"Please, give these folks whatever they want! They are my guests here in Baskin's Bay!" as the sergeant speaks waitresses appear immediately and begin to wait on the company of travelers.

"Well, it seems you have found your way here, let me ask you...what is really your business here?"the sergeant speaks quite pompously with an arrogant smirk, and it is quite clear that the man has been sitting at the inn drinking ale for quite some time before your arrival here.

"If you must pry...forgive me, sir, but what was your name by the way?"Sheyla asks.

"Kurt Vellhoff, Sergeant of the King's Guard of Fyrsdane!"he answers and slams his drink and waves for yet another tankard to be brought to him. "But, it seems your party has more interest here than normal."

"Yes, we have been following Githarian Bounty Hunters who have kidnapped my father to bring back to Githar for trial."

"I see, nothing that the king's guard can really do about that, as long as the Githarian's are not causing any trouble with the city. It seems your father is a wanted man in Githar, Fyrsdane does not want to risk war with Githar and therefore holds no interest in the whereabouts of your father."Kurt tells Sheyla and the rest of her party as he sips on his new tankard of ale.

"My father has been wrongly accused and was without hope of a fair trial in the empire of Githar. The Dreadlord Kannith will see to my father's disposal just to show his strength to the Githarian people. Surely, you do not hold any love for the Githarian Empire?"

"No...that I do not, my lady. But, when dealing with such matters, we must think of the best benefit to the kingdom of Fyrsdane. The best benefit to Fyrsdane that I can judge, is for the King not to become involved in such localized squabbles. I would reckon that Kannith would do the same for my lord if their were a wanted fugitive wandering the lands of Githar, don't you?"

Sheyla falls silent for a moment and then speaks,"You call yourself a GUARD when you guard nothing? How dare you call yourself a protector of the people? The fate of my father may determine the fate of your very nation, for if Kannith wins now, what will stop him from seizing you? From seizing your children? Ours is a mission to FREE the people of Githar!"Sheyla holds up her shackles,"These Shackles can be removed only by the artifact found in Norule Keep! With that artifact, there is HOPE for all people!"

The sergeant's eyes seem intrigued at the mention of a magical artifact. He finishes his drink and says,"Hmm? What you have said is true. Githar would stop at nothing to make all the people of Nyördand slaves. You are in luck, my lady. I will accompany you to Norule and help you find this artifact of power. You will all be deputized under the seal of Fyrsdane and we will head out at first light! In our company, you will not fear. See you in the morning then."

The sergeant leaves and the party seems dumbfounded at what just occurred.

"Do you suppose this means that that moron will be OUR leader now?"Sheyla asks the rest of her party.

[safariguy5]

Point of Order, what happened to that big muscled thug that worked for Cackle? Will he be accompanying Cackle?

[slowreactor]

sorry for the late post, my internet was down last week, I'm all good now.