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Session 14, parts 1 and 2: Incommunicado

Started by Phineas, October 15, 2006, 10:34:40 AM

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Phineas

Session #14, part 2   Sat 14 Oct 06   "Incommunicado"

May 24, continued

- Spend the day puttering and resting from the previous evening.
   - Kit keeps to herself in the Thornhedge
   - Jarmok hunts for provisions for our journey
   - Laren spends the day resting
   - Sayer jots notes for his report before sleeping
      - Sayer writes a report for Julius detailing the events of the previous day
      - Sayer includes the fact that correspondence between Sayer and the Arch-Duke were discovered in the cavern

[Afternoon]
- Sayer meets Julius at the Counsel room with Counsellors
   - Julius speaks of Sayer's request to take a few Protrctorate to Kurr
   - Counsel is receptive to this idea, but wish to hear from Sayer
   - Sayer, sensing that the Counsel is going to permit the request, adds very little additional information, but speaks intelligently and engagingly, emphasizing that the cost of loaning the Protrctorates may yield great benefits to Threshold
   - Sayer waits outside of the Hall as the Counsel discusses; they agree to the proposal
   - Sayer presents his report to Julius
   - Julius lowers his voice and requests that Sayer write a duplicate report -- but to exclude the part about the intercepted letters
      - Julius states that the Council members may review these reports, and he is distrustful of some of the members (the ones that we rescued?)
      - On the topic of the letters, Julius also mentions that there is one courier service in Threshold (they handle only outgoing mail)

- Sayer speaks with the Stable Master
   - There is one courier that delivers the mail: his name is Nodgren, who hangs around at Dubec's Fest Hall
   - Sayer tries to casually (and subtly) extract information from the Stable Master about Nodgren, which he manages to do
      - Nodgren goes out and comes back (he is not kidnapped/robbed of the letters: he is delivering these letters to someone!)
      [Sayer wishes to keep this information secret : perhaps set a trap and Sayer sends a report, and have Jarmok/Laren follow?  Where are these letters going?]

- Sayer returns to the Thornhedge and rewrites the report for Julius, and writes one for the Arch-Duke
   - Sayer delivers the rewritten report to Julius

- Laren speaks Garret at the Stump
   - Laren spills about the intercepted letters

[Evening]
- Kit visits Jarmok
   - Discuss short spear use and buckler -- Jarmok teaches Kit some moves
   - They talk and have a grand time

- Sayer wishes to talk to Laren, Kit, and Jarmok
   - Stops by Kit's room -- she is not there
   - Heads to the Stump and finds Laren
      - Sayer invites Laren to accompany him to Kurr; Laren accepts
   - Head to Jarmok's lodge
   - Sayer explains; ask for accompaniment -- they agree
   - How are we going to to get there?  Ride horses?  Sayer doesn't ride!  Take a wagon/carriage?  Too slow...
   - Sayer will consult with the Stable Master in the morning about available modes of transportation

May 25, morning

- Meet at the Stable Master's place: Squire's Mounts (the Stable Master's name is Suath Mythcinderton); settle on three riding horses
   - Jaren and Laren ride together; Sayer and Kit ride a second, and the third horse is a spare, carrying some bags   
   - Gear up and leave
   - [Spot check!] As we cross the Anglehawk bridge north, Sayer notices a single still person taking notice of the riders leaving the town
      - Sayer does not acknowledge him, but instead asks Laren
      - Laren does not recognize the man (he has red hair), but notices that the man is taking great interest in the group's departure

- Ride the entire day; it is without event
   - There is distant howling at sundown
   - Arrive at the village of Xuad'tarn; head to the Screaming Eagle Inn
   - Get rooms (on the tab of the Arch-Duke!)
   - Eat dinner, keeping a low profile; the locals do the same
   - Sayer sits on a pillow -- he is sore!

May 26, morning

-Make ready to leave
-[Spot checks!]  Out of the corner of his eye, Jarmok notices movement on the top of a church
   - We all see a smoggy cloud on the western horizon; it is cloudy/overcast
   - Jarmok predicts rain today (he makes no mention of the movement on the church building)
   - [GM note!]  Laren has a general bad feeling, but dismisses it; this is the town where his father died, and he convinces himself that this is troubling him
   - Jarmok remains vigilant and tries to catch a glance to see if we are being watched; he sees something dropping off from the church
      - We continue, and Jarmok makes no mention of what he witnessed

- Outside of town, Jarmok describes what he saw
- Continue for six miles
   - Laren spots something in the sky behind us
   - It is a winged creature, and it appears to be far behind us
      - We are on open ground
   - We continue on, watchful of the object behind us

- Late afternoon:
   - The smoggy cloud is still to the east, but it is now receded (the cloud appears to be stationary)
   - There is a dark line marking the Western horizon -- there is some either a mountain range or water or a forest that we see
   - We continue to move until after dark
      - Set up camp in the darkness so that whatever it is that is in the sky can not see us
      - Set up watches: Jarmok, Laren, Kit, Sayer
      - Sayer does some readings before sleeping for the evening (All pick bonuses to Skill checks)

- Jarmok and Laren's watches pass without incident
   - Laren wakes Kit and pretends to sleep
   - During Kit's watch, she hears a swooping sound!
   - She shouts at us to wake, and fires her crossbow into the air
   - (It is night and overcast, having no moonlight to help with our vision)
   - Laren is grabbed by taloned claws on the shoulders and tries to grab him!  The creature bypassed Kit and went directly to Laren!  The talons slip off and Laren is free!
   - Jarmok awakens and sees the large, humanoid figure: 7 feet tall and 10 feet wingspan with bat-like wings
   - The sleepers awaken!  INIT: Kit (17), Laren (12), Jarmok (10), Sayer (5)

- Kit lights her lantern
   - Laren holds
   - Jarmok positions himself to set a spear at the diving creature
   - Sayer holds

- Kit lights the lantern, holding it high and mind thrusts the creature -- no effect!
   - Laren sees the creature diving and throws the bloodhook and hits (8)
   - Jarmok has his spear set to receive the creature's diving charge
      - It dives through the radius of the light : we see that it is a humanoid dragon creature!
      - It flies into the set spear (8) as it lands
   - The dragonoid lunges for Laren
      - Laren takes an attack of opportunity and throws the bloodhook at the dragonoid, hitting (8)
      - The dragonoid's attack is interrupted!
   - Sayer holds, wide-eyed and mouth agape

- Kit mind thrusts the dragonoid (24)
   - The dragonoid reels!
   - Laren attacks with the bloodhook (melee) and hots (5), spilling its intestines!  It collapses in a bloody heap!

- It carries a long spear of a notable quality which Jarmok takes
   - We move a mile or so up the road
   - As we settle down, it becomes Sayer's watch

May 27

- Continue on all day without event
- At the end of the day, we reach Kelvin's Bridge
   - By crossing the bridge, we are entering the state of Kurr, part of the Tri-state of Vychia
   - Roads are patrolled and are safe
   - Arch-Duke is proactive and protective

May 28

- Travel
   - As we continue north, we pass through denser populated thorpes/villages
   - Pass many garrison posts and patrols in groups of nine (one mount, eight footmen)
   - They wear blue and gold tabards
   - Sayer is more relaxed as we close in upon the city; Jarmok has the opposite reaction

- By the end of the day, we arrive upon cobbled-stone streets leading to the walled City of Kurr
   - The gates to the city have been open for over two hundred years, never having been closed
   - There are tax collectors at the gate and long lines to enter
      - Sayer knows the head tax collector; the group is allowed tax-free passage into the city

- Arrive at the stronghold where the Arch-Duke resides
   - Greet Herald Sabine
   - Explain that Sayer has been summoned by the Arch-Duke
   - Sayer also explains that Laren, Kit, and Jarmok are Protrctorates from Threshold and will need apartments
   - Sayer readies himself for audience with the Arch-Duke

- Sayer meets with the Arch-Duke in his private office
   - Corwynn Vallenson is a bear of a man, standing 6.5 feet with long braided auburn hair
   - He gives Sayer a bear hug and they greet each other warmly
   - They sit and talk
      - The Arch-Duke was worried about correspondence
      - Sayer summarizes the contents of his letters
      - Sayer also discusses the discovery of their undelivered correspondence; Sayer does not trust the courier service
      - The Arch-Duke asks about the priests that accompanied the counsellors
         - Sayer summarizes about the ambush and death of priests
         - The Arch-Duke is baffled: Sergeant Farkus, the person in charge of the escort, returned and reported that both the priests and counsel members were delivered safely to Threshold!
         - The Arch-Duke personally appointed Farkus to this duty
         - Sayer dryly observes "My Lord, there is a discrepancy"

      - Talk for a bit: the reason that the Arch-Duke has summoned Sayer is that there are three Priests that need to be escorted to Threshold : a priest of Grumbar, Akadi, and Kossuth
         - The Arch-Duke does not wish to spare any soldiers for this service, thus the need for a Threshold escort (the Arch-Duke is conservative with his usage of troops, and is responsive to any rumors of threats)

      - Chat for a while longer; the Arch-Duke wishes to learn about the events of the outside world
         - The Arch-Duke is a lonely political prisoner within his own home -- he can not leave, and wishes to know more about Threshold and current events

Wildfire

Wildfire

One should never underestimate the stimulation of eccentricity