INTRO
My 7th level party wanted to run a true campaign without giving up their existing characters, so we just started Crimson Throne, with a few tweaks. Here’s the Party:
Jack Oneryx: a male, half-elf sorcerer with a draconic bloodline, Jack specializes in fire magic. The suave leader and diplomat of the Party, he tries to romance anything and everything he encounters.
Clarke: a female, half-elf druid, very chaotic and with serious anti-social issues. She first met Jack when he unwittingly burned down a portion of the forest she lived in as a hermit for much of her life. Despite this, they’ve become best friends.
Baron von Snuggles (aka “Beeves”): Clarke’s loyal wolf companion and Party mascot. Has a penchant for getting in over his head in combat, frequently needing rescue.
Violet Faringray: a female, human monk, she serves as the stern, no-nonsense, “straight arrow” of the Party. Born into the monastery, she joined the Party when they agreed to help search for her missing twin sister, who was kidnapped from the monastery at the age of 2.
Birch: a female, human slayer, and Violet’s twin sister. Kidnapped from the monastery as part of a Red Mantis scheme to train promising children as future master assassins. She learned of her kidnapping after 16 years, but not the reasons behind it, and fled her alleged “parents.” After being found by Violet, she has resisted her sister’s entreaties to return to the monastery.
‘A ‘Ohe Mea: a female, half-orc bloodrager, she was enslaved in orcish fighting pits, where she encountered the Party in a pre-game adventure. They helped free her from the fighting pit and she joined the Party. A little simple, and believes most issues can be solved with her sword.
Yorhm: a male, half-orc cleric of Desna, the fun-loving and ever-cheerful Yorhm focuses mostly on his magic, and loves a good drinking competition.
Background and Transition to CotCR
After finishing the grim “Bleeding Hollow” adventure (which is highly recommended), I had several hooks to lure the Party to Korvosa. First, their most recent contract to find a missing dwarven diplomat came from the Janderhoff embassy in Korvosa. Second, the Party was to encounter a Korvosan scouting mission to Bertram’s End, which I placed east of Korvosa. The Korvosan scouts were investigating the disrupted trade route to Bertram’s End, and encounter the Party after they’ve defeated the gnoll invasion and their evil druid ally. Third, once they reach Korvosa, I tweaked Gaedran by making him part of the Red Mantis human trafficking network that kidnapped Birch, who identify and train promising youth that can be molded into spies and assassins. Fourth, always eager to impress any attractive woman, Jack would be lured in by both Ileosa and Cressida.
PROLOGUE
Escorting a group of roughly 50 survivors from Bertram’s End to the closest town, the Party encounters a squad from the 15th Korvosan Scouts, led by Captain Jenkins. The Captain, dutifully impressed by the Party’s tales of liberating Bertram’s End and its mines from gnoll invaders and thwarting the plans of an evil druid, invites them back to Korvosa to report on events, as Bertram’s End has become critically important to Korvosa. Since the Party also needs to escort the rescued dwarven diplomat back to Korvosa, they accept the Captain’s help.
While most of the Party has only a little familiarity with Korvosa, Jack has spent many nights in the city’s taverns, bathhouses, and whorehouses, and, during the journey, asks the Captain for the latest news. Captain Jenkins describes how the King’s health has been deteriorating for the past 6 months, which Korvosa’s rivals have taken advantage of by cutting off important trade routes, hence Korvosa’s interest in Bertram’s End and its mines. The news that Bertram’s End has effectively been wiped out will not be welcome, but at least the gnoll army was put down, eliminating any threat to Korvosa’s holdings.
Two days from Korvosa, the Party and the Korvosan scouts are intercepted by a flight of 3 hippogriff riders from Sable Company, who have been watching for the scouts’ return. The flight leader directs the Captain to report to Field Marshall Cressida as soon as possible for a full debriefing.
DAY 1
The Party arrives at Korvosa and is introduced to the Field Marshall by Captain Jenkins, and they recount their adventures in Bertram’s End. Cressida indicates that the King’s health is failing, but the Queen will surely want to recognize the Party’s bravery, and offers the Party several rooms in the junior officers’ quarters. She also issues a writ securing free passage for Beeves so long as he is in Clarke’s company, but also provides space for Beeves in a vacant part of the stables and encourages them to keep Beeves out of sight as much as possible. Both Jack and Clarke are quite taken with Cressida and are eager to impress her, offering the Party’s assistance with any future needs.
The remains of the day are spent exploring Korvosa. Jack heads to the whorehouses of Old Korvosa to reacquaint himself and gather the latest rumors, Violet, Birch, and Yorhm investigate some shops and the Pantheon of Many, while Clarke simply disappears, as is her habit. A Ohe Mea, searching for some sort of fight club, ends up at Eel’s End, but somehow manages to avoid trouble. Most of the Party ends up at the Creaky Anchor, where Yorhm engages them in a drinking contest. Birch loses and falls unconscious, and the Party carries her back to their quarters at Citadel Volshyenek.
DAY 2
Birch awakens in her bed to find a Harrow card resting on her chest, with the message, “I know who you are, child. If you wish to learn more, meet me at 3 Lancet Street in Midlands at sundown.” She doesn’t tell her companions of the mysterious invitation.
After seeking out Cressida, the Party is informed that they have an audience with the Queen at noon and to make themselves presentable. Clarke asks if the Field Marshall will meet them for dinner, and amused by the offer, she agrees to meet them at the Posh and Turtle 2 hours after sundown. They seek out the bathhouses and some new clothing, and report to Castle Korvosa at the appointed time.
Sabina makes quite an impression on Jack and Clarke, only to have their wandering eyes completely distracted by the Queen when they are finally introduced as “the Heroes of Bertram’s End.” Jack promptly prostrates himself, followed quickly by Clarke, much to Ileosa’s amusement. The Queen “apologizes that the King cannot reward them himself”, but in his stead, gives them each a small gold bar for their bravery, and “hopes the heroes will lend their strength to Korvosa’s cause as dark stormclouds gather over our beloved city.” Jack, completely taken by the young queen, pledges his undying fealty and assistance. (Note, at this point they don’t seem at all suspicious of Ileosa, not that they really have any reason to. It does help having two characters who let their lusts overrule their common sense!)
The Party splits up for the afternoon, shopping and selling their loot from prior adventures, agreeing to meet at the Posh and Turtle for their dinner with Cressida. Birch sneaks off, and after detecting nothing threatening at Zellara’s house, knocks on the door and is welcomed in. Zellara explains how her son and his wife were slain by the same organization that kidnapped Birch, the Red Mantis, and that they have a training house where they weed out promising candidates from Korvosa’s orphaned and kidnapped children. Through her divinations she knows where it is, but the Guard won’t do anything so Birch is her only hope for justice. Birch promises to think it over, and receives a reading from Zellara in thanks. It’s a weak but still prophetic reading, with only three partial matches, one each in past, present, and future. The first partial match is the Hidden Truth, representing the family and life that was stolen from her by the Red Mantis. The second is the Theater, representing those who seek to use Birch as a puppet for their schemes. The third is the Courtesan, representing the political intrigue that threatens Korvosa, involving powerful women. Birch takes her leave, and again keeps the information from her companions.
They all meet up with Cressida at the Posh and Turtle, where Clarke gifts the Field Marshall with a silver dagger in an ornamental sheath that she purchased. They spend a pleasant dinner with Cressida, and before she leaves she asks the Party to meet her an hour after sunrise as she has someone she wants them to meet.
After the meal wraps up, the Party finds another tavern back near the harbor. Another round of drinking games ends up with all but Violet seriously impaired and Jack passed out at their table. A fight erupts when a drunken lout accosts Violet and the Party leaps to her defense. Violet starts the fight with a solid punch but the lout takes it, swings back and misses. Clarke drunkenly Wild Shapes into a manta ray, only to be seized by Yorhm who beats the lout with her. As the barkeep leaps over the bar with a club, screaming, “No magic!”, Grau staggers up from the table where he was drinking, yells for the Party to stand down in the name of the law, and challenges them all to a duel. Yorhm counters with a challenge to a drinking duel, which Grau thinks is a fair offer. By now, Violet has the lout in an armlock, and with the barkeep screaming for the Guard, Grau hushes the Party and whispers that they should all escape before the Guard arrive. Somehow, they all stagger back to the Citadel, now the best of friends.
DAY 3
Most of the Party awakens with hangovers, but they freshen up and hasten to their meeting with Cressida. She introduces them to Vencarlo, who ingratiates himself to the female party members. Cressida cuts him short and explains the problem with Ambassador Amprei, asking the Party to obtain any incriminating information they can from Devargo Barvasi. Eager to impress Cressida, they agree.
The Party heads to Eel’s End where Jack speaks with Halvara at the House of Clouds. He’s a regular client, so with an impressive Diplomacy check and a handful of gold, he’s able to convince Halvara to put in a good word for them with Devargo. She indicates that Devargo has a weakness for knivsies matches, and that may be a way to impress him. She tells them to come back in the evening after she’s had a chance to speak with Devargo. It’s here we brought the first session to an end.
NEXT STEPS
I’ve allowed the crisis to develop at a slower pace so it doesn’t seem too forced, but the night of Day 3, presumably as they return from their next visit to Eel’s End, is when the King will die and chaos erupts. Birch will presumably investigate the Old Fishery at some point, hopefully after telling her companions, but she’s been very tight lipped so far. I’m going to skip All the World’s Meat, as it doesn’t seem like a terribly compelling encounter, and proceed with the rest of the encounters in the midst of Korvosa’s riots and anarchy. At this point, they seem quite enamored with both Cressida and the Queen. We’ll see how long that lasts.