Post by Dead Greyhawk on Sept 21, 2004 20:57:18 GMT -5
The country of Keoland has always had a strong citizen ethic. Communities are built and maintained through the joint efforts of their inhabitants. While lands are ruled by lords and overseen by their representatives, by and large the Keoish support each other and fend for themselves. All those who are fit and willing serve in the militia, learning how to fight, march, and take orders in the case of a levy. For some, this training ignites an urge to wander, see new places, experience new things, which is greater than can be met in the limits of town and country. This story is about a group of people filled with such a drive. Over their two years training in the militia, they have planned their future: A life of adventure, money, and intrigue. Agreeing that their combined skills would lead to greater success and security, they banded together to travel and expand their horizons. Their group consisted of four hearty souls: Winthrop, a mage, Serrin, a monk, Raven, a warrior, and Ross, a half-elven warrior priest of Pelor.
At the completion of their stint in the militia, they left home and signed on as guards to a local merchant, Kithazdian, in the port town of Seaton. They were tasked to guard his factor, Johannes Loschen, as he wended his way along the coast through a number of towns, culminating in crossing the Javan river to the border city of Longspear. Their fee was ten gold eagles a day each for protection from bandits and other creatures.
The trip from Seaton towards Saltmarsh, the first town on the way to Longspear, is largely uneventful, with the group staying at a farmhouse on the first evening. During their travels on the second day, it becomes apparent that a branch of the Dreadwood, a forest rapidly becoming untamed, had grown close to the road. After rounding a bend in the road, the travelers are surprised by a group of humanoids who spring from hiding on both sides of the road and attack the cart. The humanoids consist of eight man-sized, armored creatures and a shorter, more naturally armored, creature with sharp, long fangs.
The party defends the cart well, suffering little damage, except to the beasts of burden hauling the cart. By the grace of Pelor, Ross aids the stricken oxen, and the group escapes the area of the ambush. Some of the humanoids flee, and one ensorcelled by Winthrop is allowed to depart unharmed. To identify the creatures at a later date, heads are taken, but they are eventually discarded as potentially too gruesome. The party camps in another farmhouse courtyard that night, and speaks the next day with the Constable of Saltmarsh and one of his men, who come out from Saltmarsh to take a statement regarding the attack.
The party arrives on the border of Saltmarsh the next day. During this, their last day of travel, they pass a large, abandoned manor house on the cliff edge, several hours outside of town. The town of Saltmarsh is protected on the landward side by a shallow ditch, and is another, smaller, port town. A guard station, where taxes are collected, is located on the pathway into town. Johannes pays the tax on his goods, a load of iron, and drives down towards the docks, where he says he warehouses his goods.
Johannes was to sell his iron here and then purchase a load of cloth with the proceeds. Unfortunately, neither the iron purchaser, nor the cloth seller, hold up their end of the deal. Johannes tells the party that he will wait five days for the others to get their financing in order before he heads up to the next town of Burle. Rather than pay the full rate for their services as guards, he offers each of the party a two eagle daily retainer for the next five days.
The party accepts the offer and chooses to visit the town. Saltmarsh possesses a large market square, which has a weekly market and contains a sizeable freshwater well. There is a church dedicated to Cuthbert within the town, and reportedly a grove dedicated to Ehlonna outside of it. There is one inn, The Welcoming Home, run by Sarah Little, and two taverns, Axe and Shield and Drunken Parrot. The Axe and Shield, run by Elliot Longshanks, is the more upscale of the two. The Drunken Parrot, run by a surly gentleman named Grover, is a fisherman's bar and is more rowdy. Both taverns allow patrons to sleep in the common room after hours, for a small fee, while the inn rents rooms by the day and provides cooked meals. A blacksmith, Sean, also doubles as a weaponsmith and is available near the docks to do custom work. Serrin engages him to make a hooked net. Raven speaks with David, an apprentice to the local armorer, a Dwarf named Morin, about the resale of armor.
The party dines at the inn, and while there, hears of some event occurring at the Drunken Parrot that evening. Without knowing exactly what might be occurring, they travel there. Upon arrival, they hear that two itinerant adventurers had come to town and, in the Parrot itself, belittled the local men about their fears of a reputed haunted manor house located up the sea road. The adventurers had claimed to be unafraid of spooks, ghosts, and goblins, and bet one hundred eagles that they could go to the haunted manor house and return with proof of their time there. They were to have returned this night to collect their money, and to tell the tale of their adventure, but they have not yet been seen. Questioning by the party unearths that the manor house was occupied by an eccentric fellow, an alchemist or a necromancer, about fifty years ago, but that the house is now clearly haunted, and no one goes there. Strange sounds and lights come from the house, so the locals avoid it.
Also in the Drunken Parrot to hear the story of the missing adventurers is Ross's old colleague from the militia, a man named Rook. Rook, being a priest of Cuthbert, regularly debated the merits of their different religions with Ross, much to their pleasure and annoyance. Ross introduces Rook to the group, and he is welcomed to join them. The party discusses the current situation and decides to go to the reportedly haunted manor house to determine what has happened to the pair of adventurers.
After leaving a note for Johannes saying they'd be back and setting a meeting place and time, Ross collects a new shield and the party heads out to the haunted manor. Though they had been told that the manor house was five or more hours away, they arrive in slightly more than three hours. They investigate the exterior of the building, looking for entrances and windows and assessing the generally poor state of the house. After pacing around the house, the party determines that the house is T-shaped, has a small patio, many chimneys, and two entrances: a front door and a side door in the back. They attempt to locate any tracks through the grass and brush outside, but do not find any. They investigate the depth of the well also. Being unable to easily peer through the windows themselves, they enter through the front door.
The party roams the house, checking room after room for any signs of inhabitants. They discover a library with a small stack of still-intact books. Under these books, a scrap of paper is found, with the words "beyond skeletons" still legible on it. Stepping into the living room, they are startled by an unearthly cackling announcing their doom, but do not locate the source. In a different room, they find a desk which has a locked central drawer. With the monk unwilling to try to open the desk drawer lock, Rook bashes open the desk with many blows from his trusty mace. In the desk drawer is a bundle of papers detailing the purchase of alchemical equipment and reagents. Behind the back of the drawer is a hidden space. Feeling inside this space uncovers a rag bundled around a now-broken small flask. The flask is half full of rose-colored water, and the party debates how best to store the liquid. Eventually a beer bottle is emptied and the water is poured into it. Poking through one of the piles of plaster found on the floor, Serrin finds a large, gold hoop earring. In a different room, loose bricks are located in the fireplace, and a box with an iron ring is found behind the loose bricks. Also, Rook collects some red-capped mushrooms from where they are growing on the floor in a room.
When the party enters the kitchen, they are startled by a large, basketball-sized spider on the ceiling of the room. A fierce combat ensues, with the wounded spider eventually escaping up the oven flue. More giant bugs, centipedes this time, are dislodged from the cupboard under the sink. All five are mashed successfully, but not before Raven is bitten by them. Raven stoically neglects to mention this fact to his colleagues.
#nosmileys
At the completion of their stint in the militia, they left home and signed on as guards to a local merchant, Kithazdian, in the port town of Seaton. They were tasked to guard his factor, Johannes Loschen, as he wended his way along the coast through a number of towns, culminating in crossing the Javan river to the border city of Longspear. Their fee was ten gold eagles a day each for protection from bandits and other creatures.
The trip from Seaton towards Saltmarsh, the first town on the way to Longspear, is largely uneventful, with the group staying at a farmhouse on the first evening. During their travels on the second day, it becomes apparent that a branch of the Dreadwood, a forest rapidly becoming untamed, had grown close to the road. After rounding a bend in the road, the travelers are surprised by a group of humanoids who spring from hiding on both sides of the road and attack the cart. The humanoids consist of eight man-sized, armored creatures and a shorter, more naturally armored, creature with sharp, long fangs.
The party defends the cart well, suffering little damage, except to the beasts of burden hauling the cart. By the grace of Pelor, Ross aids the stricken oxen, and the group escapes the area of the ambush. Some of the humanoids flee, and one ensorcelled by Winthrop is allowed to depart unharmed. To identify the creatures at a later date, heads are taken, but they are eventually discarded as potentially too gruesome. The party camps in another farmhouse courtyard that night, and speaks the next day with the Constable of Saltmarsh and one of his men, who come out from Saltmarsh to take a statement regarding the attack.
The party arrives on the border of Saltmarsh the next day. During this, their last day of travel, they pass a large, abandoned manor house on the cliff edge, several hours outside of town. The town of Saltmarsh is protected on the landward side by a shallow ditch, and is another, smaller, port town. A guard station, where taxes are collected, is located on the pathway into town. Johannes pays the tax on his goods, a load of iron, and drives down towards the docks, where he says he warehouses his goods.
Johannes was to sell his iron here and then purchase a load of cloth with the proceeds. Unfortunately, neither the iron purchaser, nor the cloth seller, hold up their end of the deal. Johannes tells the party that he will wait five days for the others to get their financing in order before he heads up to the next town of Burle. Rather than pay the full rate for their services as guards, he offers each of the party a two eagle daily retainer for the next five days.
The party accepts the offer and chooses to visit the town. Saltmarsh possesses a large market square, which has a weekly market and contains a sizeable freshwater well. There is a church dedicated to Cuthbert within the town, and reportedly a grove dedicated to Ehlonna outside of it. There is one inn, The Welcoming Home, run by Sarah Little, and two taverns, Axe and Shield and Drunken Parrot. The Axe and Shield, run by Elliot Longshanks, is the more upscale of the two. The Drunken Parrot, run by a surly gentleman named Grover, is a fisherman's bar and is more rowdy. Both taverns allow patrons to sleep in the common room after hours, for a small fee, while the inn rents rooms by the day and provides cooked meals. A blacksmith, Sean, also doubles as a weaponsmith and is available near the docks to do custom work. Serrin engages him to make a hooked net. Raven speaks with David, an apprentice to the local armorer, a Dwarf named Morin, about the resale of armor.
The party dines at the inn, and while there, hears of some event occurring at the Drunken Parrot that evening. Without knowing exactly what might be occurring, they travel there. Upon arrival, they hear that two itinerant adventurers had come to town and, in the Parrot itself, belittled the local men about their fears of a reputed haunted manor house located up the sea road. The adventurers had claimed to be unafraid of spooks, ghosts, and goblins, and bet one hundred eagles that they could go to the haunted manor house and return with proof of their time there. They were to have returned this night to collect their money, and to tell the tale of their adventure, but they have not yet been seen. Questioning by the party unearths that the manor house was occupied by an eccentric fellow, an alchemist or a necromancer, about fifty years ago, but that the house is now clearly haunted, and no one goes there. Strange sounds and lights come from the house, so the locals avoid it.
Also in the Drunken Parrot to hear the story of the missing adventurers is Ross's old colleague from the militia, a man named Rook. Rook, being a priest of Cuthbert, regularly debated the merits of their different religions with Ross, much to their pleasure and annoyance. Ross introduces Rook to the group, and he is welcomed to join them. The party discusses the current situation and decides to go to the reportedly haunted manor house to determine what has happened to the pair of adventurers.
After leaving a note for Johannes saying they'd be back and setting a meeting place and time, Ross collects a new shield and the party heads out to the haunted manor. Though they had been told that the manor house was five or more hours away, they arrive in slightly more than three hours. They investigate the exterior of the building, looking for entrances and windows and assessing the generally poor state of the house. After pacing around the house, the party determines that the house is T-shaped, has a small patio, many chimneys, and two entrances: a front door and a side door in the back. They attempt to locate any tracks through the grass and brush outside, but do not find any. They investigate the depth of the well also. Being unable to easily peer through the windows themselves, they enter through the front door.
The party roams the house, checking room after room for any signs of inhabitants. They discover a library with a small stack of still-intact books. Under these books, a scrap of paper is found, with the words "beyond skeletons" still legible on it. Stepping into the living room, they are startled by an unearthly cackling announcing their doom, but do not locate the source. In a different room, they find a desk which has a locked central drawer. With the monk unwilling to try to open the desk drawer lock, Rook bashes open the desk with many blows from his trusty mace. In the desk drawer is a bundle of papers detailing the purchase of alchemical equipment and reagents. Behind the back of the drawer is a hidden space. Feeling inside this space uncovers a rag bundled around a now-broken small flask. The flask is half full of rose-colored water, and the party debates how best to store the liquid. Eventually a beer bottle is emptied and the water is poured into it. Poking through one of the piles of plaster found on the floor, Serrin finds a large, gold hoop earring. In a different room, loose bricks are located in the fireplace, and a box with an iron ring is found behind the loose bricks. Also, Rook collects some red-capped mushrooms from where they are growing on the floor in a room.
When the party enters the kitchen, they are startled by a large, basketball-sized spider on the ceiling of the room. A fierce combat ensues, with the wounded spider eventually escaping up the oven flue. More giant bugs, centipedes this time, are dislodged from the cupboard under the sink. All five are mashed successfully, but not before Raven is bitten by them. Raven stoically neglects to mention this fact to his colleagues.
#nosmileys