Vris looks a little doubtful. We only just got hired and now we have to find more staff? I know nothing about running a casino! Speaking to the dwarven floor manager and the others present, she says "I'm guessing you'll need to interview any potential new staff we can convince to come here to find out what jobs they're best suited for. Or do you know of somewhere in Riddleport with a bunch of experienced, trustworthy croupiers and cashiers just hanging around, waiting to be offered a job?" Standing and stretching, the priestess adds "Of course if you do know of such a place, I am good at talking people into doing things, usually..."
Larur looks at Vris and shrugs. "The labor is not very skilled; I hired you lot for instance. We just post we are looking and they will come in. IN the meantime, we will need your help to work the floor, games, etc. You get to reprise your role before you were heroes. Shouldn't be busy, but you never know."
Blossom looks between Saul & Larur before turning to Vris. "Shall we a wager then?" She asks, smirking mischievously.
Well what he says is true, I've no skill at all in running games of chance. Vris simply nods in response to Larur's statement and says "So you want Reva and Saphren to keep being guards, Bu to provide entertainment, Trig to keep the alcoholic beverages flowing and Magnus to keep the kitchens going. That leaves me. Somehow I doubt you need a cooler out there at the moment, so what do you want me to be doing?"
When Bu whispers to her about a wager, the priestess looks momentarily confused. "Um... a wager on what, precisely, Bu? Did I miss something?"
I am happy ta talk to the candidates. Saphren offers. I been in town a while and recon I'll know of a few of um and know of a good deal more.
"Good thing I cleaned and brought this along," says Trig, gesturing with the (very small) folded up succubus outfit.
Reva looks over the group.
"Any business needs someone to meet and greet customers, make them feel at home, and answer questions. We've all got a role here. I bet Saphren can vet potential employees here too. Also Trig, I'm delighted to see you've put some clothes on."
"You and me both." growls the Dwarf, folding his arms. "I vill go with you if you are expecting trouble. Otherwise I can try to recruit my kinsmen, but I do not think zey will take to... zis kind of work."
"Ár gcairde Vancaskerkin & Larur bhfuil gá acu fostaithe." Blossom whispers back to Vris, just loud enough for Reva to hear. Her smirk shifts to an almost lascivious leer as she continues. "Tá mé cinnte go d'fhéadfaí tú & I a dhéanamh i bhfad chun é seo a réiteach riachtanas. B'fhéidir d'fhéadfadh muid cé ní mar sin níos fearr a fheiceáil?"
"Tar éis an tsaoil, ní mór dúinn an lá ar fad..."
I'm sure you & I could do much to rectify this need. Perhaps we might see who does so better?
After all, we have the entire day..."
"Well, you don't have to act like I'm unpleasant to the eyes or something! Hmph! As far as recruiting, just like Magnus, most of the people I know in Riddleport are dwarves. Aren't quite as many gnomes here as I would like."
Her face set into her typical neutral expression, Reva looks at Trig for a moment before responding. "I doubt you were wearing that handkerchief for my benefit. I suppose whatever's best for business thoug.."
She trails off as Bu speaks quietly in Elvish.
A bet? Ugh. Might as well be a team player and play her game, provided I don't have to do anything obscene.
Reva nods once in return. "Comhaontaithe. Cad é do geall? Mo bríste fanacht ar."
Vris looks at both Reva and Bu, smiling a bit warily, but still tries to enter into the spirit of the discussion. "Sula n-aontaíonn liom a geall ar bith is mian liom freisin go mbeadh a fhios cad é do mhol fhorghéilleadh é. Agus ós rud é go bhfuil an ban-ab Máthair ag iarraidh cheana féin a fháil amach dom mo bríste, b'fhéidir go bhfuil tú ag tairiscint níos mó bunaidh?" She then looks over towards Trig, and adds, "And we may want to invite our gnome friend here to join in the wager too?"
"What? What wager?"
Trig will try to recruit pretty ladies of all sizes and shapes to work as servers, and find a costumer who will make uniforms that are sexy but don't make Magnus and her other friends so uncomfortable. (She still keeps her succubus outfit and wears it under her robe when she wants to feel sexy.)
Edit: She will also look for sexy men to attract gamblers who go for that kind of thing.
Cocking an eye a all the elven being spoken the half orc looks less than pleased to be left out. Gonna have ta pick up some elf speak I guess, since it appears simple good manners ain't gonna stop um from speaking it in front of me.
Saphren tries to contribute using his knowledge of the seedier side of town to find good people and to avoid bad seeds. He will also interview candidates to discern their trustworthyness and work ethic.
Not getting much response from the group, Reva looks over to Bu.
"Five gold. We'll see how this goes." With that, Reva heads off into the streets.
With her acerbic personality and lack of local knowledge Reva defaults to what she does best; scaring the hell out of people. Her tactics are relatively simple - find customers and employees of other gambling establishments and make the Gold Goblin the most attractive place to be.
Her first step is to locate other gambling establishments (on the assumption Vancaskerkin knows a few) and start attending and playing a few games with no real mind for keeping the gold. The goal is to locate nervous high rollers and demoralized staff.
Afterwards, contact is made in secluded areas at night as they walk home. The message is the same. Wherever they're gambling is no longer safe with more spectacular and dangerous heists in everyone's future. The Gold Goblin is the only safe place - those new guards they have protected everyone. It's the safest place to gamble right now.
To the people she may have misread who resist, she will simply browbeat.
As the newest owners of the Gold Goblin go out in force to blanket the city looking for likely staff for their casino, they varying degrees of luck and various approaches.
Trig's plan of looking for attractive ladies bears a little fruit, she is able to corral one fine looking waitress from a seaside tavern where her assets had been pinched a few times too many, to leave and join the new casino.
Saphren, being a local with some inside knowledge, looks for a security detail by visiting the usual suspects in the usual places. He strikes out with one prospective employer who has issues working with/for orc-kind, but ends up with 2 other enforcer types, both of whom have proven to be loyal and hard-working.
Finding competing casinos is not hard work for Reva; they seem to flourish in this den of iniquity called Riddleport. After watching the manners and mannerisms of several croupiers, she accosts a few after hours, but her rough approach is met with indignation by all but one fellow, a balding man, who like his girls tough. With a wink and a smile, he agrees to come to work over at the Goblin in the morning.
Vris will likewise try recruiting likely individuals for work at the casino, but unlike Reva, Trig and Saphren she will start her search by taking a ferry across the harbour to The Publican's House - the tavern which doubles as the local shrine to Cayden Cailean in Riddleport. She's hoping that her odds of finding honest individuals willing to work in a gambling hall will be greater amongst the followers of the Accidental God.
Once there, she will begin by asking the publican or other staff who among their clientele might be seeking honest work for a wage, then start approaching their nominated patrons with her offer of employment. She will converse with the men and women - of any race - whom seem interested, and of course will stand her round of drinks like everyone else in a tavern dedicated to the Lucky Drunk. Vris will fully explain the situation to any prospective recruits, including her doubts about Vancaskerkin, but she at least can promise that the jobs she is offering are genuine and that she herself will be keeping an eye on their treatment.
Spotted and now possibly in danger. And I only got one person, and he's a pervert. Next time I'm teaming up with someone people like.
Vris successfully charms 3 new staff members, who could easily be cooks, bus staff, dishwashers etc from the Publican House to come over to the Goblin tonight. Likely, all of them are hoping for a little more face time with the fair cleric, but the promise of a job doesn't hurt either.
Later in the evening, as you all have started to put your staff people to work and the night time crowd has started to drift into the Goblin, (not heavy, but not light either) and you are all hard at work at your tasks, Saul Vancaskerkin returns.
With him are 6-8 of the roughest sea dogs you have ever seen. Nearly every square inch is covered with scars, tattoos, or pock marks. The scurvy crew is apparently already well into their carousing, and Saul has brought them here to cap off their fun. The one-handed owner buys the men all a round from the bar, then heads off to his upstairs office.
"Da crew o' da Vesicant, fairest clog to sail them waters, is 'ere an' now da real fun begins," shouts on of the men, grabbing a mug of ale and chugging it rapidly. The riff-raff continue to cause a scene, pinching the new waitress, spilling their drinks, cursing out the croupier etc until Larur Feldin comes over.
Feldin has some sharp words for the men, and as he turns on his heel...
As the altercation happens, Trig is in the bar, getting a trayful of shots to pass out to the happy gamblers. Magnus is dutifully making dwarf delicacies in the kitchen, Saphren is talking with one of the new staff at the front counter, Reva is working the floor, slightly concerned about the ruckus from the sailors. Vris is talking a a new dealer about how to manipulate luck, and Bu is on the center platform dancing as distraction.
good guys
bad guys
The First Night - Round 1
20 Orange Sailor
19 Blossom/Bu
16 Blue Sailor
15 Red Sailor
14 Purpl Sailor
14 Vris
11 Reva
10 Saphren
8 Magnus
8 Green Sailor
7 White Sailor
7 Trig Glittergold
The Orange Sailor leaps to his feet shouting seaman's epithets and the card table goes flying, it's coins, bills, chips and cards shattering in a hail of frenzy.
"Feldin, look out behind you!" calls Vris to the dwarf, an instant before the sailor swings the sap at the back of the manager's head.
Trig doesn't notice a thing, she's a little too busy trying to smooth things over with the waitress who the sailor pinched, promising to make sure he knows that's not acceptable. She looks pretty mollified, until the trouble starts, anyway.
On Trig's turn, she will see the fight starting, and move within 30 feet of one of the sailors, if she can, and use Tremor to knock him down.
Quickly ?skipping? to close the distance between herself & the offending ruffians, Blossom allows her hair free reign to lash at the miscreant's legs.
"FELDIN BEHIND YOU!" shouts Reva, shortly after Vris. Her eyes blaze as the orange sailor leaps onto the table. "Let's calm this down before I have to hurt someone!"
Saphren calls out as he moves from behind the bar while twirling his great scimitar. I fight one kind of fight boys, and its deadly. Looks like you brought a sap to a sword fight. You got one chance to get out before I start cutting you down.
The First Night - Round 1 - continued
Seeing a fight brewing, Blossom lithely jumps down from center stage and rushes to the action, trying to lash the nearest sailor with her unruly hair, but to no effect.
Blue Sailor (the one turned the other way) brings his sap down at Feldin's unaware noggin, but the shouts from Reva and Vris are enough for the dwarf to get his arm up to ward the blow, which strikes him with a bone-crunching impact anyway, driving him to the floor, conscious, but hurt.
In true, bar fight fashion, Red Sailor begins throwing this glass and earthenware all over the floor laughing uproariously.
Purple Sailor begins sauntering towards the bar, teetering slightly from too much drink, meaning to get his hands on that lusty waitress again during the confusion.
"Stay here and behind cover." Vris tells the new employee with whom she was conversing a moment ago. Dashing forwards, past the other gaming tables and the smattering of other patrons, the priestess points her finger at the green garbed sailor standing in front of Bu and intones a prayer to Shelyn - "Get down on your belly and stay there, you unwashed oaf!"
The First Night - Round 1 - continued
Getting her new charge to safety, sprints across the gaming floor and, using the commanding tone of Shelyn, she orders the Green Sailor to the floor. Immediately, the sailor's eyes glaze a bit, and he drops to the floor prone, leaving his shank half-cocked for a swing at the elfin witch.
This is going to get out of control, fast.
Spotting the blue sailor right beside her, Reva whips out her sword and moves up to him, swinging out hard with the flat as a warning.
"You're done! Stand down!"
Saphren smiles devilishly, and you are not sure if he is pleased or not that his warning was ignored. Moving with his falchion in hand he closes on the white sailor and attacks.
If he is inclined to call for the fight to end now, he does not show it.
The First Night - round 1 - continued
Reva leaps at the sailor trying to smack him with the flat of her blade, but the crafty tar dodges her laughing. "Aye, yer a feisty one, eh? Come o'er here and give us a kiss, lass.'
Saphren's attack, however, is no joking matter. Bounding from behind the counter, he gives a mighty blow to the nearest rowdy, and slices the man's head from his shoulders in a quick stroke.
Over the bawdy mining chanty Magnus is teaching the kitchen staff, he hears the din of what sounds like a fight, either that or diners retching on his cooking...He decides to go investigate, opens the door and sees a full-scale riot in place.
As the drunken sailor leers at Reva the sickening sound of metal cutting through flesh sounds out, and a head rolls near her feet. Her jaw drops and she turns to stare at Saphren.
He killed a man. There's blood everywhere. Oh Goddess his eyes keep staring...
For a moment the colour drains from Reva's face as she stares stupidly at the head.
Pull it together Reva! You can't get that life back. Work as a team. Deal with Saphren later.
Reva stops stammering and she raises her sword menacingly at the drunk sailor, shouting over the din of the casino.
"See that? That's what your lot gets for causing trouble here! You make any move that isn't getting the hell out of this casino and I'm going to rip your skin off and use it for a drum to beat out a warning to all the other sodden wretches! GET OUT!"
The First Night - Round 1 - concluded
Magnus hears the sounds of struggle in the game room, and rolling his eyes heavenward, he draws one of his throwing axes, and pushes open the kitchen door. Seeing the fight in progress, he steps up just behind and beside Reva and throws his axe at the sailor she is locked in a fight with, the same one who struck Feldin, but his throw lacks the finesse required to hit the cagey sailor and the axe sails past harmlessly.
Green Sailor remains on the floor prone from the Command of Vris and White Sailor lost his head and his only action is to fall in a heap.
Finally, Trig turns to the sound and see's one of the offending sailors coming into the bar. With a flick of her wrist, she causes a Tremor to shake the floor under the unstable salt's feet, but somehow the man regains his footing; must be all those years on the sea?
End of Round 1
The First Night - Round 2
20 Orange Sailor
19 Blossom/Bu
16 Blue Sailor
15 Red Sailor
14 Purple Sailor
14 Vris
11 Reva
10 Saphren
8 Magnus
8 Green Sailor (prone}
7 Trig Glittergold
Seeing his mate struck down by the fearsome half-orc, Orange Sailor draws his billyclub and moves to engage Saphren but his first stroke is parried easily by the large falchion.
Though not more than a half-skip brings her closer to the next-closest sailor & her hair lashes out most alarmingly it fails utterly at anything other than fanning the sweat from his brow...
The First Night - Round 2 - continued
Blossom and her wild (and woolly?) hair attempt to strike the nearby sailor but the dangerous tresses fail to hit the man.
Blue Sailor, after whacking Feldin, turns his sap on nearby Reva,missing badly, then steps back away from her and Magnus.
Red Sailor narrowly avoiding the elf's hair, makes a cut at her with his dagger, slicing her on the upper arm and causing blood to well from the wound.
Trig is bemused by Saphren's bloody attack. Hope that doesn't get people pissed off at us, she thinks, Maybe that fellow's a scurvy pirate, or maybe he's an honest sailor, but I don't think he deserved to die just for starting a bar brawl.
Focusing on the fight, she sends another ripple of earth towards a brawler.
Edit: hit post instead of preview.
She then steps forward to stand over the ruffian she tripped earlier, and draws her dagger from her waistband, holding it out ready to strike him if he rises.
Reva nimbly steps back from the sap, her face contorted with fury.
"That man is -dead-, and you think you have a chance? Fool! Gaha oiad olpirt ol oiad nazpsad balzizras!"
With that her eyes blaze with white light and she steps to the side before cutting down hard for the sailor's collar, this time with lethal force.
The First Night - Round 2 -continued
Purple Sailor rises to his feet, looking about sheepishly. He then draws out a little dagger and begins threatening Trig with it.
Shocked by the sudden eruption of blood as Saphren decapitates one of the rowdy sailors, the priestess yells to the half-orc. "For heaven's sake, Saphren! Reva! No more killing, unless it's you or them." Vris readies her light mace and advances to stand over the green garbed sailor. "Stay down if you know what's good for you. Several of your mates are already shark chum..."
Magnus, apparently missing Vris' outburst, draws his warhammer and charges at the blue thug.