Curse of the Crimson Throne (Inactive)

Game Master DireMerc

A tall man in his early twenties, lean, fair, and very proud approaches and puts a gentle hand on Trina's shoulder in a way that said this one's taken lads, walk away. The young man keeps his eyes on the others, in particular the bigger one clad in armour and says: "You know these people Tri?"

As she explains who they are, his defiance fades away considerably and his other hand slips from the pommel of his sword. With a smile to melt adamantine, he says: "What an immense pleasure to meet you. Your exploits have preceded you and I can only hope that the Fates keep you from harm while you endeavour to return peace to our beloved city! I am Corso, of the Gaczi, and my sword and heart, are at your service." and ends with a deep formal bow.

You can discern in his slanted grey-black eyes the tell-tale signs of Varisian blood. His skin is tanned and shows the subtle signs of numerous fights and long days in the sun. He, however, keeps the top of his skull free of hair and wears a pony tail and beard in the style of the Chelish bravos.

Jasan a burly man and the owner of the ranch is extremely happy to see Vencarlo and greets him as if they were long-lost family members.

Although the meeting is good-natured, and Jasan’s booming voice and ready grin are infectious, it remains apparent to you that Vencarlo and Neolandus remain nervous and are still on the lookout for trouble.

Jasan invites everyone to join his family for dinner. After the pleasant and filling dinner, Jasan leads all of you, Neolandus, Vencarlo, and Trinia down into his basement, a place he uses to brew his own beer. His home-grown hooch is a bit rough, but the true reason he relocates down here is so he and the others can talk frankly without worrying his family.

When Vencarlo introduces Neolandus by name, Jasan’s eyes widen and he whistles in admiration at the audacity of his home becoming the hideout of Korvosa’s seneschal.

Blackbird Ranch is a large place, but not large enough to comfortably accommodate an entire party of adventurers for long. Worse is the unspoken worry on Vencarlo’s and Neolandus’s minds—that they are known fugitives, and that Queen Ileosa will spare little expense in tracking them down. Her Red Mantis agents were close to discovering Neolandus in Old Korvosa, and it shouldn’t take them long to sift through the recent events there and to piece together what happened.

Vencarlo requests the amulet of proof against detection and location that was among the blackjack gear (assuming you told him you had it), intending to have Neolandus wear it to help hide him, but even then it is only a matter of time before the Red Mantis tracks them all down if they stay in one spot for too long.

Jasan takes the news pretty well, and is the first to suggest that it’s about time for a move. By next morning, he has his worried but trusting family packing up all of their belongings for a move west to Magnimar, while Vencarlo and Neolandus decide to seek asylum at the dwarven city of Janderhoff were Vencarlo is good friends with the dwarves of that city who owe him a debt from his adventuring days. Before then, though, there is much to discuss. During the late-night meeting in Jasan’s basement, Neolandus outlines everything he knows about the crown of fangs to you all, Vencarlo, and Jasan. If Queen Ileosa is to be defeated, someone has to travel into the Cinderlands and contact the Shoanti to find out what they know of the Fangs of Kazavon, and how best to defeat the ancient evil. Jasan says that he knows of a nearby Shoanti shaman that might be able to help with this problem and that he will try to contact her and see if she will help.

You have a day to rest and prepare. I think cuan will be ready shortly.

Crain shoots his crooked eye at the Varisian. "Trina, your new friend is quite something. Is he trustworthy? Doesn't look that trustworthy to me," Crain grumbles. He takes another pull from his jug of ale as he walks away.

He was super happy to try some of Jason's home brew. "Now this is what I'm talking about! That'll put hair on your chest, all right. This is better than that dwarves mash, right Donager?"

Drakus takes his time fixing the dings and dents of his (and anyone elses) armor, fixing straps, etc. He'll join Donagar and Crain in drinking the home brew.
"Yeah, that hit the spot."
"Shoanti hunh? Will we need to be riding horses? 'Cause I gotta tell you, I aint so good at that."

Corso blinks as he is utterly ignored by the companions. He wonders if it simply means he's on board, though, as the hulking Half-elf made clear, not trusted, not proven. I can live with that...

The sight of beer turns his stomach as old memories of overdrinking float in his head and he asks Jasan: "This beer looks wonderful, but I'd rather have coffee at this hour. I'll just make myself a pot, ok?"

He stays within earshot and listens to the conversation, finally commenting: "The Queen is probably under some spell, as you've mentioned. We need to break that spell so that she can resume her lawful reign..."

"Corso is a little full of himself but I do believe we can trust him." replies Trinia

"I am not convinced she was possessed before she murdered the king and not after." says the seneschal "For now we must find a way to take away the powers that the crown grants her and for that we need to know more about the fangs"

"Corso is a little full of himself but I do believe we can trust him." replies Trinia.

To which Corso sends her a kiss through the air and adds: "I love you too Trinia!"

"I am not convinced she was possessed before she murdered the king and not after." says the seneschal "For now we must find a way to take away the powers that the crown grants her and for that we need to know more about the fangs"

"Of course she was! Now, you say we need to meet some old Shoanti. Just keep in mind their reputation. Shoantis are no friends of Korvosa. Their history and ours are seeping with blood!" he adds.

"I can ride within the hour. I have spent the last few years on the road. I was looking forward to rejoining with my family, but martial law and the plague makes entering the city a great risk not just for me, but also my family, who I hear has fallen on the bad side of the law. For now..."

"Everything I hear about those Shoanti is that they slate the going to be happy to deal with city folk like us. It's hard to ask questions if they are firing arrows at us..."

"Then we should meet Jasan's friend first. He said he was some kind of holy man. He might be able to have the Shoantis hold their arrows... Or he might sell us to his brothers. Ahahah! We'll just have to see, I guess."

"I don't care if your witch-queen was possessed before or after she desecrated what little remains of our holy grounds in the cesspit you call Korvosa." The deep, booming voice enters the room before anyone appears in the door opening.

When he did appear he almost entirely blocked out the sunlight coming in through the doorway. He looked quite a bit like your stereotypical Shoanti: tall, broad shoulders, bald head and tribal tattoos covering almost every visible piece of bare skin. His outfit was a different thing though. The bright blue, scaly breastplate he wore clearly wasn't Shoanti in design and while the feathers and bird skulls attached to his robe looked like something tribal the deep amber color and dark violet trimmings seemed out of place.

"I am Intihar Stormborn, son of both the Sklar-Quah and the Tamiir-Quah. Are you the ones seeking to end of the despoiler?"

Drakus looked with surprise at the newcomer.
"Yes we are!" He replied, a little inebriated. He looked at the keg, then the new guy.
"Care for a drink?" He asked, waiving a mug in his general direction.

"And where did you come from, big'un?". Crain reaches the jug of ale toward him. "And can you get us through your kind safely? I hear some Shoanti aren't fond of us from the city. They use words like cesspool..."

Donagar laughs his fair share with the others, agreeing the time's well past due due for libations, even as they discuss the grave state of affairs- and what they plan to do to fix them.

"That said, you look like a different sort o' Shoanti, don't ya... Donagar chimes in after Crain replies, having immediately noticed the man's armor.

"And that's some quality work you're wearing there. See many dragons out your way, do ya?" he asks with a gruff laugh.

As a note the group had one previous encounter with the shoanti. A shaman called thousand eyes asked your group to retrieve the body of a young shoanti warrior that had been taken by the necromancer rolf so he could administer proper funeral rites for him. A task that you succeeded earning the respect of the shaman in the process. This was at the beginning of part 2

Intihar held up his hand to indicate his rejection of the alcohol when it was offered, "I do not partake. I prefer contact with real spirits."

The question about his origin visibly surprised him. Most city folk didn't care about such things. "I was born in lands west of here, the terrain of the Tamiir-Quah." The smile that appears on his face at the mention of his ancestral home quickly fades as moves on, "As long as we walk in the same direction I will guide through these lands. The people of the Sklar-Quah, my father's people, can be fickle though. Do not expect my word to prove your worth."

The smile returns once more as he responds to Donager, "You have keen eyes brother Dwarf. I am indeed not typical for a Shoanti. I travel. Between my time as a child with my mother and now I have travelled. The armor has been a gift to me by my other kindred far south and east of here, where other burn riders cross their desert."

Corso studies the Shoanti carefully. They were said to be cunning and devious, but this one's heart seemed true enough...

"Will you guide us to the elders of your tribe? Will you act as our ambassador? The city is at risk, and I believe the city will not be the end, should it come to fall, for the thirst of a mad and powerful spirit knows no bound." he pleads, his eyes filled with hope.

"I do not care for your city. It's very existence is an offence. I do agree with you though that your queen has to be stopped there before her corruption spreads to our lands."

He sighs, "I should be able to get you an audience with the local leaders. I can not guarantee you they will help you for they might not see the danger your queen poses. They might not trust you either. I myself only talk to you because Jasan vowed you can be trusted."

Your reasons vary but you are agreed to at least go see the shoanti elders.

Of all the Shoanti tribes, it has been the Skoan-Quah who have been most open to talk of peace between Korvosa and the tribes.

Until recently, a large number of SkoanQuah ambassadors dwelt near Korvosa, and peace talks between the two factions were slowly but surely heading in the right direction. Neolandus recalls one old shaman in particular as being level-headed and friendly, a man named Thousand Bones. One of the last things Neolandus tried before the Arkonas got hold of him was to arrange a meeting with the old shaman, but unfortunately, shortly after an event involving one of the Shoanti braves during the riots, the Shoanti abandoned Korvosa.

Thousand Bones and his people have returned to a place east of Kaer Maga in the Cinderlands known as the Kallow Mounds, and their reports on the tumult and chaos in Korvosa very likely fueled the neighboring tribe’s sudden need to strike while the enemy was wounded.

Yet Neolandus doubts that Thousand Bones has abandoned hopes for peace. You all encountered Thousand Bones themselves and you returned Gaekhen’s body (Gaekhen had been killed in the riots and his body taken by the necromancer rolf and used to make a flesh golem) to the Shoanti shaman so he likely would be willing to talk to you, you remember of how the old shaman remained calm and composed even in the face of such atrocities against one of his own should support Neolandus’s belief. Neolandus knows that Thousand Bones’s tribe dwells in the southeastern portion of the Cinderlands; he believes the best course of action now is for someone to travel to this tribe, find Thousand Bones, and learn from him any information about what Midnight’s Teeth actually were.

Inthihar knows the place and while he never met thousand Bones himself he has heard that he highly respected among the shoanti and is quite possibly the oldest shoanti alive (he is over a hundred years old)

The easiest way to navigate the towering cliffs that separate Varisia from the Cinderlands is to pass through the anarchic city of Kaer Maga. Kaer Maga is perched on the edge of the Storval Rise, and the majority of the traffic across the cliffs winds through it. There’s no official toll for passing through the city, but the sheer number of beggars and cutpurses you brush shoulders with could easily take an unofficial toll of several gold.

Flight and teleportation, of course, allow for much swifter routes up and over the cliff to the lands above, but apart from Kaer Maga, there aren’t many easy land routes available. Climbing up the cliffs is a formidable task, as the cliff averages 1,000 feet in height. Hand- and footholds are plentiful, making it a DC 15 Climb check, but the sheer number of checks required should make this option a poor one. It’s also possible to navigate the numerous cave systems that riddle the cliffs, but these areas are home to trolls, ettins, wyverns, gargoyles, harpies, and other dangerous monsters.

Of course, once the PCs surmount the Storval Rise and enter the Cinderlands themselves, the peril increases. The article on the Cinderlands that begins on page 58 gives full details on this rugged, hostile region. To the uninitiated, the Cinderlands are arid, barren, and silent. It is not a true desert, however—weed-like grasses grow in abundance wherever they can, as the great Yondabakari River and its tributaries feed any soil they can reach.

The journey will be long and difficult. Taking at the very least two weeks on foot.

Jasan is willing to let you take some of his horses which will help you make the journey faster.

Corso straightens, looking quite the dashing noble, yet not overly arrogant, at least to most of you. When he speaks, his voice has the special quality of Korvosa's highest nobility.

Using Pageant of the Peacock to learn about the lay of the land and find a safe(r) route to the Cinderland and beyond.

"The Storval Plateau has been the focus of many scholarly endeavours over the years. Most fools would assume that there are but a handful of ways to meander safely through this blasted land. However, a savvy student of ancient geography can pull from the very dust of the land the ancient trackers that even the Shoanti sage have forgotten..."

Bluff+4 instead of Knowledge (geography): 1d20 + 35 ⇒ (10) + 35 = 45

"Do YOU know of a better way?" Asked Drakus skeptically.

Corso figures that the fastest and likely safest route would be by ship. The town of Abken is only a day away and is built along a river that runs all the way to Kaer Maga. It shouldn't be difficult to hire a ship to take you the rest of the way. And from there it you need to travel about 20 miles across the cinderlands to reach your destination.

However an even faster route albeit a more dangerous one would be to go straight north to Jangerhoff and from there you can use a network of tunnels to climb up to the cinderlands. The tunnels are patrolled by orcs, gnolls and sometimes ogres and giants but this would cut the distance you need to travel in almost half.

Map of the area

Your destination is between Kaer Maga and Mundatei.

Corso ignores Drakus and continues his dissertation, ending with: "Henceforth, it is to Janderhoff that we must rush, and from there, draw from the dwarves and dive under the mountains. That way, we will be saving at least a week of travel, plus we'll get entertained on the way by Orcs and more!"

"I'll leaving the traveling arrangements up to you all. Just get me there, and I'll do what I do best. Until then, I'll lay back and enjoy a drink or three. Maybe that ship would be best, now that I think of it. The wind in my hair, and mead in my belly would make an ice combo."

"That... does not sound like a short cut." Said Drakus dubiously.

Corso nods at Drakus, thinking he is talking about Crain's suggestion: "I have to agree. The way through the caves is the only short cut."

You can have a vote and decide.

Drakus stood up and brushed his hands.
"Alright then. How say you Donagar? Crain? Mai?" He asked, pointing to each in turn.

Being greeted by blank stares and shrugs, Drakus gave up.
"Looks like we are all agreed. We have no other routes in mind except for Corso's."

Seems so.

You get your things ready load up some horses and head north.

You travel a whole covering about half the distance to the town of Janderhoff. The trip is uneventful.

Another day will get your there and another day will get you to the mountains. Then a few days in the tunnels will get you to the plateau and another day or two will get you to your destination.

Do you take any special precautions when you travel to hide your trail?

Crain isn't a good enough horseman to do any special tricks to hide his mount's tracks, so he doesn't bothering trying to do so.

Well hiding your tracks would be very difficult but if you have any spells that you think might be handy such as non-detection for obvious reasons or control weather to make it rain? or anything you can think off. This was mentioned but the red manthis are definitely looking for you guys.

I have no way to do that.

Same here.

Control Weather is a 7th level spell so beyond our reach. There are other options though. For starters, Intihar wouldn't leave tracks as he prefers to travel while wild shaped as an air elemental.
That said, if given a reason to he could also move behind the group as a large water elemental and wash away tracks. He'd need to know they were being hunted though and he doesn't so far.

Is there a place where we could buy some high level scrolls? My understanding is that we're not. Plus, we might not have so much gold available, though we could trade.

I have no big counter-measures against tracking..

"I have a good feeling about this. The Muses are smiling at us and the Fates signing with delight. Let us be on our way!"

You head north and reach the town of Janderhoff without any issues.

So you stop there to rest before going to the caves? Last chance to buy anything if you need it. This town is larger and has a decent market anything under 2000 gp worth is readily available.

Corso will get some extra potions.

Ready!

Drakus is ready.

This dwarf is ready for the caves!

Mai Ready

Corso can pick out the potions he wants no problem and you head out of Town going towards the mountain. Both in the village and outside the town you get the feeling that you are being followed. Once outside town you manage to get a few glimpses of men following you here and there. They aren't particularly stealthy and they look like thugs or mercenaries for now however they keep their distance.

Corso's disdain is clear on his face: "Lackeys... Not worth our attention, if you ask me. I believe the environment, as we make our journey, shall make short work of their futile efforts!"

Drakus narrowed his eyes at the sight of the mercenaries following them.
"Sure we can't... discourage them?" He growled.

"I wonder if they are following us in particular, or if they are just looking for stragglers to prey on? Part of me wants to take them out, just because...". He doesn't press the issue, however, and continues on with the group.

"Fine. I can always use a stretch before a long walk..." sighs Corso and waves whatver straggler he can spot over to them.

"Aye, let em come. And if they take up arms against us, it'll be the last thing they do. Let the Forge Father judge them for what they do with his tools."