Gameplay
You are allmin Trunau to witness the hopeknife ceremony
Hmm, I have never seen this before. Interesting coming of age ritual. I approve.
Kohl tries not to be too intrusive. He's an outsider here. It's nice to get to see something like this though. He sort of hangs around the edge of the crowd, asking questions from some of the spectators from time to time.
Sid muses to himself, the way the locals can facedown death every day is amazing. To carry with you a reminder of mortality everywhere you go is so normal for them. It still seems foreign to me.
Sid smiles, he is comfortable here in the commons, the place where people train to become the future heroes of Trunau and at other times study to become wise leaders. Though neither of those propositions appeals to him. He just wants to, in some small way, help this little town thrive.
The dwarf had never attended one of these particular ceremonies before. He was quite interested to observe however. His leather armor was well worn, and his staff had grooves that weren’t quite carved, but were there from years of usage.
The other noticeable thing about the dwarf was his sidekick, a solidly build dinosaur of some random descent. He kept Basher on a leash, which was an argument in and of itself, but to keep him in more ‘civilized’ lands required some sacrifices from the both of them.
Derrick remembered getting his hopeknife, it had been such a big deal then for him. He had felt proud to get it, but now, that memory was muddied with disgust at the thought of the knifes intend function. Perhaps, it was his father in him, the elvish blood, or perhaps it was merely a deep distaste for giving up. Either way, he was torn between tradition, and his personal distaste of the practice. Especially since that practice had taken his mother from him, by her own hand. Still, he had come to attend the girls ceremony, He had many friends in the town, particularly he was close to the Graths, who had more or less looked after Rydell after his parents death or disappearance.
Whether or not the hopeknife is good, will be something the girl has to decide one day on her own. At least, for today, we can enjoy the festivities and companionship.
Derrick's face is cast in a minor glower as he ponders to himself, however he is quickly distracted by the frivolities.
Jubilation fills the evening air in the normally staid town of Trunau, for it is the twelfth birthday of the Chief Defender's youngest daughter Ruby, and the townsfolk have been preparing all day for the ceremony and festivities to follow. A throng of spectators has amassed at the town Commons; the buzz of the crowd subsides as the weathered town leader, Halgra of the Blackened Blades, takes the stage and begins to speak
"Thank you all for joining us this night. I take immense pride in my responsiblity as Chief Defender, especially when it comes to the honour of the Hopeknife ceremony. It is always a great privilege to bequeath Trunuan youths their Hopeknife as they come of age
Halgra stops speaking long enough to open an ornamental case and retrieve a slender, ornately decorated dagger hanging from a silver chain.
But tonight is a special occasion, for the recipient of this Hopeknife is none other than my youngest daughter. Ruby, by the traditions of our town, you have come of age. This Hopeknife represents your responsiblities as an adult and defender of Trunau. You must be willing to use it on yourself, your fellow Trunuans, and your family-even me, should it come to that. It will be a far quicker death than that which the orcs will offer, and providing it is your duty
Do you swear to guard Trunau from all comers, and to use your Hopeknife only for its intended purpose? If the orcs come and there is no other option this is where you cut. Tonight, Ruby becomes a full member of our community! Let us welcome her, and celebrate her passage into adulthood. Trunau forever!
*claps*
Brave folks in Trunau. Guess they have to be to keep their town against the orcs.
As the crowd cheers for young Ruby, Dolgrym joins in as well. He was proud of the young children brought up to know their duties.
He didn’t have extensive experience with the orcs in the area, but he knew enough. His instincts told him the best way to deal with those beasts, as his ancestors had down before him. The giants in the area, now that was more personal. Eventually, he’d show all of them the strong end of his staff.
Sid walks around and looks for friendly faces, food, drink and activities associated with the ceremony.
You all enjoy fine food, drink and music for the rest of the evening and then retire to the ramblehouse.
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When you wake in the morning the majority of Trunaus residents appear to be in dismay, it appears that Patrol Captain Rodrik Grath has been found dead!
You are approached by the deceased's brother Just Grath who says,
"I'm sure you've heard by now that my brother Rodrik was found dead this morning, and I've had my hands full since. Right now, the official cause of death is suicide, but I just can't believe that. Something else has to be going on. Unfortunately Rodrik was the best investigator in Trunau; if he were on the case, solving the mystery of his death wouldn't take long, but with just me left, we might never know what really happened."
"I simply can't handle the investigation and tend to my family duties at the same time. I may be a patrol captain, but right now, I feel my responsibilities as a brother outweigh my other duties. Still, I can't just let this lie. I'm afraid I've exhausted all my other options- the members of Trunau's militia are competent defenders during siege times, but they're not sleuths by any means. I need your help. Will you investigate my brothers death?"
The dwarf readily agrees to help the town. He had nothing pressing at the current time, so solving a mystery sounded great to him. ”Is it possible we could examine the body and the scene where the body was found? If what you say is right, we need to investigate quickly or any clues might be lost to time!”
"Ummm...I will do my best to make sure the paperwork is in order. Otherwise, I will try not to interfere with your more capable choices."
Kohl is truly shocked. "Possible suicide or murder, eh?" He nods in agreement with the dwarf. "While not a specialty of mine, I would be remiss not to repay the town's hospitality in anyway I can."
Inwardly he wonders, Is THIS why the spirits have led me here?
"There are three leads that might help you unravel the mystery of Rodrik's death: the crime scene at the Ramblehouse, where you can also question the inn's proprietor, Cham Larringfass. Secondly, Brinya Kelver, a half-orc weaver whom I recently learned has been conducting a clandestine love affair with Rodrik for some time; and Omast Frum, a patrol sergeant in the militia, long time friend of Rodrik and frequent patrol partner.
”I vote for the crime scene first. If there is a clue, we need to find it before the public makes it impossible to find. Talking to the others can wait,” the Druid makes his preference known to the group.
"Good idea. Let's go to the crime scene, it may be safer than talking to people that may be caught up in this. It may also give us details to help when we talk to the interested parties."
"Agreed. We also need to ask the proprietor who found the body and make sure nobody has cleaned anything up."
You head to Rodrik's room in the Ramblehouse. This sparse room contains only a single cot and a writing desk. The cot is a cheap affair with a straw stuffed mattress, now stained red with blood and stripped of its linens, while the desk is a slightly nicer piece of furniture that has nonetheless been chipped and worn with time. A cracked window in the southern wall is the only exit other than the room's door
Kohl steps carefully into the room. "I expected the body to be removed, but there may have been some sort of clue with the sheets. The weapon used was his own hopeknife? Are hopeknives unique to each person?" he asks the local members of the group. He moves over to and inspects the desk.
Dolgrym begins a systematic search of the room, first the sheet/bed, then the desk, and finally the window.
Perception
Perception
Perception
Sid is looking for anything that has been stolen, defaced, as well as signs of entry and exit.
Dolgrym and Sid you find under the bed a scrap of paper stuck between the headboard and the wall. The paper is a receipt for a hopeknife which should read "For Rodrik my love" and it comes from Morninghawk's Fine Steel
Those of you who are local know that each person's hopeknife is unique
Kohl you find a secret compartment in the desk that is empty
"Hmm, a secret compartment. Empty now." Kohl scratches his chin. Presumably, the half-orc girlfriend bought Rodrik a hopeknife and that's the receipt. "Question for the locals. If hopeknives are given as a marker of adulthood, why would someone need to buy a new one? I'm assuming you wouldn't lose something like that, unless by accident in some sort of melee. Hey, are there circumstances where someone would GIVE one away, like to a child or something?"
Do I know of a custom of giving a hope knife?
"Let's add the blacksmith to the list of people we should talk to they may have overheard something."
You know that sometimes couples exchange hopeknives as part of an engagement. That's the only circumstance where someone would give their hopeknife away
”How about talking to the purported girlfriend next? Maybe she was the one who send him this hope knife? Or know something more about it?”
"Let's go talk to Brinya Kelver. Let's try to be sensitive, she is likely suffering greatly."
You head to Brinya's house, she is clearly deeply upset by her lover's death. She explains that she had been seeing Rodrik for months and he had finally proposed. Even once they were engaged Rodrik was careful to keep the relationship hidden from his father who wouldn't approve of the match. Rodrik had recently become preoccupied with some kind of investigation, what he called "his greatest work"
Giving her time to compose herself and answer each question Sid asks,
"Were you two engaged?"
"Do you know about this investigation?"
"Did Rodrik write anything down about it?"
Brinya replies:
In our eyes we were, he gave me my mother's ring and I gave him my hopeknife. I do not know about the investigation he spoke of, he never told me what it was about. He may have written down what it was about in his journal but I don't know where he kept it. Apart from his room in the Ramblehouse Rodrik spent a lot of time at Trunau's sanctuary with his writing as he said he had a thoughtful muse there
Hmm, his greatest work? What does that mean? "The desk was empty. Someone could have taken his journal. Although it would help if they knew what they were looking for, and possibly where."
"We will certainly check out the sanctuary. Again, our sympathies for your loss."
”Truneau’s Sanctuary? I’ve not been in town long. Could you tell me what that is? Is that a business or a nickname for a getaway sort of place?”
@Kohl - it was Rodrik's hopeknife that was found in his hand. Brinya seems totally sincere. Rodrik's father is Jagrin Grath the Patrol Leader.
Brinya says, Trunau's Sanctuary is the temple to Iomedae. It was built within the city walls after the old temple now known as the Plague House burned down about 50 years ago
”Well, we will do our best to solve this murder and try to give you some peace. You have helped immensely. We have a new clue to explore. We need to add the temple to our list of places to follow up.”
The Druid is in favor of interviewing Frum next, before heading to the temple.
"One more set of questions if you will, when did you have your hope knife engraved or was a new one made and who Morninghawk's Fine Steel did the work?"
"They were aware of your relationship, surely. Did you trust them?"
When we got engaged, we traded hopeknives to symbolise our union, and had Sara Morninghawk engrave them with our love notes. She shows you her hopeknife which is inscribed, For Brinya my love." Rodrik lost his hopeknife I gave him in the course of his investigation. I think he went back to Sara to get a new one made
What next?
As they leave the bereaved woman, Kohl says, "Unless the blacksmith is closer, let us have a look at this sanctuary, shall we?"
Sanctuary is closer. You are met by the high priestess Tyari Varvatos
Yes, how may I help you?
"Good day. Blessing of Iomedae be upon you. There has been an unfortunate incident involving Rodrik, a young man who spends time here. We would like to look around a bit and speak to his regular contacts."
Ah yes Rodrik. I remember him, he came here often to talk with Katreza a long term resident of the Sanctuary in recent weeks. I occasionally heard them muttering about ghosts, half-orcs, hopeknives and white swords.
”Is Katresa around? We wouldn’t be here wasting your time unless it was very important. It could literally be a matter of life or death...”
He disappeared a few nights ago, leaving his bed neatly made so I don't suspect foul play. He can't have gone far.
"I don't believe in coincidences. Priestess, would it be permissible to take a quick look at Katreza's room? Perhaps there's a clue to his whereabouts."