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Leconair manages to leap clear of the cart as it crashes alarmingly close to him, and he rolls to his feet unharmed. On the other side, unfortunately, your employer is not so lucky. Being somewhat less dextrous, he simply tumbles off his seat, and lands with a sickening thump in the bushes.
The sudden movement spooks the horse which breaks free of its traces, and starts to canter off...
Rath waves his thanks to Johan, then swears and starts to chase the runaway horse.
Meanwhile, Johan is about to check on Jellardo when he notices that something appears to be crawling out of one of the broken crates. Several small lizards start scuttling in different directions, making for the undergrowth beside the track.
And as for your poor employer? Johan shouts to Leconair who moves round the cart to check and sees him lying, unmoving, a trickle of blood running down his scalp.
Leconair's encyclopedic knowledge of a variety of topics helps him recognise that these nimble little creatures are some sort of chameleon, noted for their quickness and ability to blend into the surroundings. Quite desirable as familiars too!
Even as he watches one of them seems to melt into a patch of undergrowth and disappear.
Noooo! Leconair cried as the lizards threatened to escape. Before more could scatter, Leconair positions himself so as to avoid Jellardo and his comrads with the spell, and utters a few arcane words, causing a spray of color to burst forth and envelop the lizards.
(7, +2 for alertness with bat near him)
Range 15 ft.
Area cone-shaped burst
Saving Throw Will negates; Spell Resistance yes
2 HD or less: The creature is unconscious, blinded, and stunned for 2d4 rounds, then blinded and stunned for 1d4 rounds, and then stunned for 1 round. (Only living creatures are knocked unconscious.)
3 or 4 HD: The creature is blinded and stunned for 1d4 rounds, then stunned for 1 round.
5 or more HD: The creature is stunned for 1 round.
Like a well-oiled team, the heroes spring into action!
Having disabled 3 of the pesky lizards, Leconair deftly scoops them up and into a bag, tying the top with a flourish.
Johan concentrates for a moment before allowing healing energies to surge into the injured merchant; Jellardo's eyes flicker open and he rubs the lump on his head. With a few encouraging words, Johan tells him everything is under control, before pointing out the last lizard to Leconair - a few seconds later it's in the bag with its fellows.
And at that moment, looking slightly flushed, Rath appears leading the horse.
While Jellardo rests, the three of you spend some time re-attaching the wheel - very securely this time! - getting the horse back into harness, and loading up the boxes which had been spilled.
With a look of gratitude, Jellardo remounts, and you resume your journey. About an hour later, as you crest another small rise in the rolling countryside, you find yourself at the mouth of a small vale. Looking down from your elevated vantage point, you see a small settlement, a number of tents, and people beginning to arrive from the local area. It looks like you have arrived at your destination.
As you make your way into the gnome vale, you see that several tracks converge just in front of a sign which says 'Welcome friends old and new'. Beyond that, the road splits into 3.
To the right it goes through a pair of stone pillars, atop each of which is a ferocious beast carved out of stone. The gnomes' small settlement is of typical rustic design, largely single storey dwellings, apart from the building at its centre which is larger and has a considerably different architectural style.
To the left you can see a field has been set out as a campground, and there are already a number of tents pitched.
And straight ahead is the festival ground itself, nestling beside a small lake. Currently bustling with activity as the gnomes put the final touches on things, there are a number of marquees set up, areas have been marked off for events, and some merchants are already beginning to set up their wares for display.
Jellardo, who is feeling much better after Johan's ministrations, says he intends to drive down to the festival ground and start setting things up. He would appreciate some assistance, but suggests you arrange space in the campsite for yourselves, and perhaps get some food and drink first.
At the entrance to the campsite there is a small registration desk manned by a smiling gnome. A couple of travellers - villagers from another settlement you imagine judging by their clothing - are just finishing up when you arrive.
'Greeting to you, and welcome to the High Vale' says the gnome. 'You may pitch your tents over there' he says, pointing. He then gives you each a small red stone.
'No weapons or armour are allowed at the festival site' he continues, 'but the campground is warded against theft. Place this stone at your tent whenever you leave to safeguard your belongings'.
Rath splutters at the mention of no armour or weapons, but grudgingly accepts the stone.
'I hope you enjoy yourselves' concludes the gnome with another friendly smile, and waves you on your way.
Jellardo claps Leconair on the shoulder and says that although he doesn't have one, he knows a man who does. He offers Leconair the tent in payment for his services rather than the agreed upon fee of 5 gold.
Johan finishes pitching his tent, and happens to notice that what he originally thought were just wooden stakes marking out the edge of the campground appear to be finely crafted pegs, each topped with a small carving of a gnome's head. They are spaced about every 30 feet.
Lacking a tent, Aelden attaches a square piece of canvas to the side of his hand cart to act as a lean-to. He sits in front of the cart, sharpening a knife, watching people as they enter the camp area and begin pitching tents.
Aelden is lean, with a wiry frame, that belies his strength. It is obvious that he has seen his share of winters. His hair is a dark blonde, his eyes a deep sea-grey.
Those that come by his cart can tell he has wares for sale, but he never seems to push them on anyone, like a real merchant might. Still, he is quick with a smile when a child comes along, and often has small hand-carved tokens to give them when they do.
Having arranged your belongings, Leconair has a chance to examine the gnomes' stone a little more closely. A surreptitious Detect Magic indicates it radiates a mild aura of Abjuration, although its exact purpose eludes him.
As it is late afternoon by now, delicious smells of cooking food are emerging from the show ground as cooks begin to prepare for the evening feast - to which all visitors are warmly invited. A number of merchants have set up their stalls in preparation for the event, and the finishing touches are being put on what you assume are the locations of the events. Some rather oddly shaped items are being carried around - sometimes requiring teams of workers - but everything is securely wrapped up so it is impossible to see what hides beneath.
Johan, Leconair and Rath find Jellardo unloading his wagon and help him with several of the boxes. He tells them that some of the goods have been sold directly to the gnomes and he will transport them there once he is finished. Once everything is in place, he opens his pouch and counts out 10 gold pieces each for Johan and Rath.
'For services rendered' he says with a bow, 'our contract is fulfilled in full. I hope you will accept this small bonus by way of thanks'. He shakes everyone by the hand and says he would be delighted to do business again in future.
Johan et al return to the campground to wait for the evening festivities. When they arrive, they notice it has filled up a little since they left, and their eye is caught by one very large tent in the middle of the site - at least 3 times as big as any other, so comfortably housing half a dozen people.
'Bah!' says Rath, grumpily, 'I don't care if it's a troupe of performing dwarven acrobats, I'm staying here to make sure nobody steals my stuff, stone or no stone'.
Johan, not being renowned for being a shrinking violet, approaches the large tent, just as the leather thong holding the flap shut is loosened. Pulling open the tent is a hand; a *huge* hand, attached to an equally huge arm, and then the rest of a huge creature. 'Heaven's above' he thinks, 'a giant'!
The head is covered in a shock of red hair, with a large red beard - the creature sees Johan staring and starts to pulls itself out of the tent.
Meanwhile, Aelden has decided to take a stroll round the showground to see what his fellow merchants have to offer, and maybe check out some of the games venues. He wanders over to the small lake where a couple of gnomes appear to be marking out some sort of path round the perimeter, and a couple more are paddling a small boat out to the centre towing a raft behind them.
As he watches the idyllic scene in the late afternoon sunshine, his eye is caught by a sharp flash of light, as of the sun glinting off metal. Shading his eyes as he looks to where the sun is now beginning to sink close to the top of the hills to the north, he sees a group of figures heading at a brisk pace towards the show ground. Squinting a little, once they are within a hundred yards or so, he sees that they appear to be humanoids of some type - he's not sure what exactly, but they seem to be covered in fur. The one thing he is sure of, though, is that several of them are armoured, and positively bristling with weapons. And they appear to be closing fast.
Aelden observes as the humanoids get closer. They appear to be almost marching, certainly maintaining a disciplined pace. The group arrives at the ring of stakes which has surrounded not only the camping area but the festival ground itself; one of the creatures barks something to the rest, and the whole group stop. They begin to unship their armoury, laying the weapons in individual piles, before those who were wearing armour also remove it.
The one who gave the order appears satisfied, and motions them forward. They cross the line of stakes, and split into 2 groups. One group, including the 'leader' heads for one of the tents in the show ground, while the others make for the campsite.
---------------------------
The giant emerges fully from the tent. Standing up he towers over Johan and Leconair, being perhaps 15 feet tall. He looks down at the pair and grins. 'Hello there' he booms, 'first time here? My name is Ragnar, nice to meet you'.
He closes up his tent, and strides off towards the festival ground. As you watch his receding form you are aware of several figures who pass him on the road. As they draw closer, and make to pitch their own tents, Leconair turns to Johan and says 'do those look like gnolls to you?'
Despite their general tendency for mayhem and destruction, the humanoid visitors are indeed gnolls; and what's more, the gnomes don't seem to be paying any special attention to them (although some of the other first time visitors like yourselves are a little more surprised by their presence, and in some cases give them a wide berth). They certainly don't appear to be about to embark on a frenzy of mayhem, keeping a respectful distance from other people and generally acting in a civilised fashion.
As evening draws in, and the sun dips behind the hills, people start to make their way to the showground for the evening feast. The gnomes have laid on a great array of foods at long tables, and everyone forms an orderly queue, where they are handed wooden plates and invited to help themselves. People then gather in groups to talk, make friends or perhaps renew old acquaintances, and listen to the music a gnomish band is playing - the atmosphere is very congenial.
Notices have also been posted showing the events for the games tomorrow. They are: wrestling, marksmanship, drinking contest, storytelling, test of strength, round the grounds race, horsemanship, 'piglets', 'scare the witch', 10m yard dash, and 'give and take'. There are also a team tug of war contest, cookery competitions, animal obedience displays (a sidebar asks that familiars, animal companions and any other exceptional beasts NOT enter this contest!) and a number of events like traditional dancing and folk tale recitals.
Not one to refuse a friendly offer, Leconair picks up the drink, returns the tip with a slight tip of his own glass, and takes a nice big swig. "That was indeed something. I have many a tales of a giant, but not seen one this close. That's one person I would not want angry with me. That's for sure."
"So, is this your first time at the carnival, or are you a regular here?"
Pleasure to meet you, Aeldon. The name is Leconair, and thanks for the drink. With a second tip of the glass, Leconair takes another nice swig before continuing. I fear I am not comfortable with armor, unless you have mithril to work with. Of course, if you do, I fear I would not likely be able to afford it. Leconair looks woefully into his glass, remembering the relative lack of work recently, and empties his glass to drown the thought out.
The eating, drinking and talking goes on into the evening, until people start to drift away to their beds, ready for the big day...
...which dawns gloriously, the sun illuminating the valley as it climbs above the hills. People are soon up and about, and a crowd gathers to eat breakfast at the festival ground. At about 9 o'clock, you are politely asked to make your way to the largest of the marquees, outside of which is a raised platform. On it are several gnomes, one of whom has an air of some importance about him.
'Friends', he shouts once you have gathered, 'you are most welcome to our vale. Enjoy the festival, be lucky in the games, take pleasure in each others' company. Let the festival BEGIN'.
This elicits a great cheer, and the crowd disperses as people form queues to sign up for events, examine the merchants' stalls, or just wander round and enjoy more food and entertainment.
Leconair hangs with Johan, hoping to take in the sites of the competitions. As they pass Aelden, he notices Aelden isn't really doing any business of note. "Hey, Aelden, take a break and come join us. We're going to go see if Johan can drink some people into the ditch! Well, he wants to try some arrows, too, but I sure hope the arrows come before the drinking." Laughing, Leconair continues with Johan to the contests. As they move on, a bat peeks out the hood behind Leconair, and produces a barely audible "eek" before ducking back into the hood.
OOC
Lines are beginning to form, people of all ages, and drawn from locals and visitors alike. The list of events on the noticeboard is:
- wrestling
- marksmanship
- drinking contest
- storytelling
- test of strength
- round the grounds race
- horsemanship
- 'piglets'
- 'scare the witch'
- 10 yard dash
- 'give and take'
Leconair is told that rules for the events are explained at the start of each contest - when he tries to press one of the marshalls, the gnome simply says 'the round the grounds race is won by the first person to make it round the outside of the festival ground' he gestures round the line of carved stakes which mark the boundary, 'and the other events are similarly self-explanatory!'. He looks at Leconair as if to say 'isn't it obvious?' when plainly it is not, but he refuses to elaborate.
Johan makes his way to sign up for the drinking contest, and finds himself standing in the queue with several gnomes and humans (villagers mostly) plus the only dwarf you've seen so far. He gives Johan a friendly greeting, and announces his name is Boylan. From the size of his stomach and rosiness of his cheeks he obviously fancies his chances. Once Johan has entered, he is told that this contest is one of the last to take place; successful participation might hamper a contestant's chances later in the day so they like to leave it til near the end.
Meanwhile Aelden has no trouble signing up for the test of strength, and his fellow competitors include 2 of the gnoll contingent, and Johan's 'friend' Petus. As he is standing in the line he is passed by Ragnar the giant who has come from the queue for the 'give and take', and is musing over which other events to try out. Aelden wonders if he is proposing to sign up for the test of strength too (probably bad for the other competitors) but Ragnar shakes his head and with a slightly sheepish grin tells him that he tried it last year and didn't do very well!
They both meet up in time to get in line for marksmanship, and are somewhat amused to note that the line for his event is quite long, and includes a number of women and children!
First event of the day is the marksmanship contest. All those who have signed up - which includes all of you, one of the gnolls, Camlon, and a wide variety of others - are called to one of the event areas, where a gnome stands on a crate to explain the rules.
The event is quite simple. Each contestant lines up in a lane, and 5 feet in front of them is a stand consisting of a pole (of varying height according to the competitor) with a dish-like holder on top. In this dish sits a wooden ball about 4 inches in diameter. The object is to knock the ball out of the dish by hitting it with one of the balls (slightly smaller) which you will be given. Only clean hits score; knocking the pole to cause the ball to fall are disallowed. Each player is allowed 5 tries per round, with total number of successes counted. Players with the highest scores proceed to subsequent rounds.
Names are called, with a little 'fixing' of the draw obviously having occurred to allow the children and some of the gnomes to go first. One small child falls flat on her face as she tries to hurl one of her balls at the target, prompting her to burst into tears. Her mother hastily appears, and amid much cooing from the crowd, the child stops crying and is taken away for a treat instead.
Back to the serious business, first up is Aelden, who steps into his lane. A box of wooden balls lies beside him, and he reaches down to pick one up. As a craftsman of no small skill, his first thought is that the ball is not solid wood; indeed it must be hollow with some sort of weight inside it. Flipping one in the air a couple of times he realises from the erratic flight of it that it is totally unbalanced, and likely to nose-dive as he tosses it.