Alysha will put on the glasses if no one else in the party wants to.
Might come in useful for someone of my age she says.
Beryl checks on Scarlet, Are ye alright, lass? Ye got a few rat bites back there.
After getting confirmation, Beryl will give her a nod of approval and proceed to checking the body.
First Lord's Court, eh? Ye got yerself a victim here. Either this man's got his face stolen, or he stumbled across yer drow spies, Beryl spits then peers up into the dark above, He fell a good ways, dumped or dropped to his death. Ye know what's up there, lady? Streets or buildings? Rich district or poor?
EDIT: Noting the glasses, Man was a reader, ta be sure. Any signet on that ring?
Ragnar's face scrunched up at the unpleasantness of the smell, he does a quick look over on the body.
"His arms and legs are dislocated. Something big was using this man as a toy if I had to guess."
He backs away from the body and wipes his hand's on his breeches, still showing obvious disgust at the scent.
"You may be right Beryl. Isthana, have others of the First Lord's Court been disappearing?"
No, there is no one missing or harmed from the First Lord's court. It's easy to tell, there are only five members:
Chancellor Garos the Just, Malkyn Grenefeld, Torgrave Needlebaum, Davon Malaeda, and Davon's sister Thessaly Malaeda. Rumor has is that she has become particularly close to Nomerthal.
Looking around, it seems as if it is coming from the hole in the ceiling.
Ragnar looks confused and angry, more angry than confused.
"So one of the court's underlings go missing, and not one of those nobles notices? Typical. Unless..."
His expression changes.
"How long exactly have you suspected drow spies among the court?"
With that, Ragnar goes about cutting the patch off of the dead man's tunic.
I do not know how long they've been there, I only know that we've recently suspected it. And it may not be true; it's part of why I'm sending you lot in.
Tonight, in fact.
The First Lord has a great Midsummer Masquerade planed. All the nobles and guild leaders of the city have been invited. All are to wear masks and not reveal their identity throughout the entire celebration. So this is a perfect opportunity to send in our own spies.
Torgrave Needlebaum is conducting interviews today to hire on more servers for the party. This is likely to be our only way to gain access to the Tower. And since even the servers are wearing disguises, it'll be perfect.
Otherwise, only those with an invitation may gain access to the party. The invitations are unique items - no two of which are alike - that even the members of the Rogue’s Guild have had problems forging. It is a single raven’s feather delicately painted with the First Lord's personal heraldry. They are hand delivered by Red Plumes.
Now if you're done with that corpse, I suggest we move on. We've got a lot to do before we sneak you into the city proper.
”Well, if there hasn’t been a stink raised, I’d say we probably know who the spies re posing as. In my experience, you big folk get all up in arms whenever one of your kind is killed, right? We deal harshly with a trespasser, and then you wipe out an entire tribe of my kind. So someone would notice this one missing, right?”
Now if you're done with that corpse, I suggest we move on. We've got a lot to do before we sneak you into the city proper.
Jiro agrees, ”Let’s go.”
Ragnar stands firm.
"Hold on a second, this is the corpse of someone in the First Lord's court, and you don't want to take some time to identify the body? Wouldn't that narrow down our search for the Drow spies?"
Scarlet glares at Beryl "I am fine."
"Unless anyone has the ability to speak with the dead, I suggest we will find little more here."
I suppose I might be useful in the kitchen... though not sure if the guests will be keen on toad soup and mushroom gruel, Alysha says.
Well, very well then. This poor soul doesn't even get a proper burial... Alysha says.
She'll cast a detect magic on the ring and spectacles at some point in time.
"Before we proceed, do any of you need the blessings of the spirits?"
"I could use a rest, or the blessings of the spirits in a pinch, but Jiro is looking quite poorly." Ember says with a smile at the Kobold bard
.
"Wait!" Ember exclaims sniffing the air. "Can anyone else smell that? Ammonia. Seems like it's coming from up there. " she points again at the hole in the roof, "How frustrating that we can't reach it, those walls look impossible to climb... "
"Wait!" she exclaims again. She waves a hand and a blue banded hawk appears on her arm, "Gareth, could you fly up there and take a look? I'm sorry it could be dangerous... " she raises her arm and the hawk takes flight, resting a hand in the wall, Ember closes her eyes and suddenly opens her senses to see the world through her familiar's eyes.
Gareth flies up to the ceiling and through the hole!
The body cannot be identified through natural means - it's too bloated and damaged from the water and rats. The only thing to identify is the clothing, grooming, and other finery. The body is male.
As you go up, you can see a hint of light above, surrounding a silhouette of a human. You hear someone say, barely audible, G++ d*&n sewer rats, living down there making all that racket. Disgusting that anyone would live in the sewers.
But before you reach the top, the sound of a small door closing accompanies the removal of the light.
It goes up about fifteen feet and ends in a hatch which is locked from the other side. It cannot be unlocked from this side, but it could be forced open with a bout of strength. (DC 15 Strength with disadvantage).
Skyreaver casts a Cure Wounds spell on Jira and again, tiny motes of light stream into his body.
Skyreaver casts a Cure Wounds spell on Jira and again, tiny motes of light stream into his body.
1d8+3
The talkative kobold is left speechless. ”I.... uh.... wow... uh, thank you! Huh, so that’s what magical healing feels like. Wow, it’s... tingly. Back home only the bosses get healed like this. The rest of us are told to walk it off.”
Beryl takes the ring, I'm bettin' that someone might recognize the ring and help us identify at least one of the spies...
He also takes the glasses and hands the pair to Alysha.
Ember, what have ye got?
"Nothing much" Ember says as her eyes flutter open. " There's a trap door up there, someone closed it as Gareth was flying up. Ammonia, maybe a workshop or factory with a waste shoot into the sewer. That's my best guess."
Gareth flies back down and lands on Embers arm as she absentmindedly stretches it out. Then the familiar winks out of existence.
"Let's get going."
Oh the stink! It's like we're in a hag's nightsoil bag! Let's get out of here ere I faint, or more rats come by Alysha says.
We'll definitely have to wash up before this Masquerade. And remember to wash behind your ears! Alysha says.
At this revelation, Beryl almost burst out in a full guffaw! His attempt to stifle it merely turns it into a loud snort!
Aye, grammers, we'll be a-washin'!
"All beings are worthy of respect, regardless of the place that they came from." says Skyreaver at Jiro's statement.
Yes, let's get going, Isthana says, as she walks away.
Now, discretion is the most vital part of this mission. Get in, get the information, get out. Upon successful completion, I'll give you 50 gold. However, due to the secret required in the mission, there will be no advanced pay. You botch this up, and no pay at all. If we lose the secrecy, the information is worthless.
After about a half hour of moving through the underground maze of tunnels, Isthana stops at a rather nondescript stone wall. She again runs her hands along the wall; her fingers dancing along a series of hidden catches that eventually causes a large section of the wall to slide away. The room beyond the door is brightly lit with several torches.
Isthana enters the room and sits down on a nearby bench. She kicks off her boots with a disgusted grimace and dons a pair of soft leather shoes. A knotted rope hangs from a hook secured to the ceiling, next
to a trap door. Isthana pulls on the rope making sure it is secure and climbs up. Once at the top she opens the trap door and climbs through. Come on up, she says.
Once up, your find yourself in a room full of mirrors. Six of them, each a full size mirror suited for viewing an entire person from multiple angles.
Also in the room are three large bins of hot clean water.
And finally, there is a bookshelf with nothing but rolled up scrolls.
Welcome to the Rogues Guild, she says. Please bathe yourselves. Once you're done, grab a scroll. Each one has a modified Disguise Person designed to last 10 hours. When you're all ready, you'll all cast the spell at once to minimize time variance, and then we'll send you out into the city to meet with Torgrave Needlebaum for the interviews. If you do not pass that interview, you'll have to find another way in - and I don't know if such a way exists. It might with the masquerade ball, but it would be much easier for you to become a member of the staff for tonight.
Interviews start in about two hours, so let's get you cleaned up and looking like a human quickly.
Scarlet eagerly climbs away from the filth and smells of the sewer, and equally eagerly cleans herself up.
Upon her transformation, she looks similar, but her pale skin has a swarthiness to it and her hair black. Her clothing becomes more simple, but in the same style.
Her eyes tighten as she looks in the mirrors. "I look like my mother, or at least how she looked when I was small."
After a hot bath, Beryl Ironjoy walks out with just a towel wrapped around his waist, Ahh, the pleasure of a hot bath... well then, what shall I become?
After getting dressed, not shy about doing it in front of everyone, Beryl holds up his chainmail, Are we going in without armor, or will yer magicks hide that as well?
As Ragnar gets cleaned up, he voices a concern.
"I don't think I'd do well as a server, don't suppose they're hiring guards?"
As a human, he's about two feet shorter, but otherwise looks about the same. He seems frowns as he tries to adjust to his new form.
"How do you folk deal with being so close to the ground? I don't like this."
Alysha washes up and decides to use the scroll to make herself look like a server that looks like a younger version of her. The clothes are much the same, just in case something happens and it gets dispelled.
These scrolls are useful things, she says. "Could make a killing serving them."
She looks at herself in the mirror. "Ah treasured youth. Not pretty enough to garner too much attention. Never did, never will," she sighs.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Even with adding a foot to his height, Jiro would still be well shy of 4 feet. Thankfully, this isn't the first time he has had to pretend to be something he isn't, so he opts to go with his 'eager teenage lad' look. He thoroughly enjoys the new look, especially since he doesn't need to include 'horribly scarred and needing to hide under a hood' in his disguise this time. Although, he will have to be mindful of his snout still sticking out, just hidden from vision.
He does make himself look rather strapping for his age - both to help cover his armor as well as to make him more employable. Even if he was short for his age, he hoped to pass himself off as a late bloomer with some growing left to do.
"Ragnar, being lower the ground keeps you better balanced - not to mention it's quicker to drop down to grovel. Besides, I'm surprised you big folk don't fall over in a stiff wind! I have no idea how you can stay balanced that high up on only two legs. At least our giant kinfolk... you know, dragons, are smart enough to walk on four legs being that big."
Jiro then gets a little nervous and asks, "Umm... I know this is awkward, but I want to make sure I get this right and not risk things for us. But... uh... I do look like a boy, right? Sometimes it's hard to tell with you soft skinned mammals. No offense, but you do tend to look alike."
When Alysha sees Jiro, she is surprised. "Oh my.. what a handsome little boy you are. Reminds me of a boy that I once knew. Swallowed a frog and died, I think. Or was it mumps? But you do clean up nicely. Yes, you do look like a boy, though that is a BIG nose you have," she says. She gives his hair a good rub only to be reminded there's scales underneath, pulling her hand away.
Beryl nods as he reads the scroll, shifting slightly, his sun-lightened hair turning a dark brown. He still keeps much of his look, but the armor shifts to become a thick servant's coat, and servingwear. Beryl looks up and grins, The upper class rarely looks upon the serving staff.
"Ha, you're still plenty tall!" she replies to Ragnar, reaching up to touch his arm, "I like your normal look better but it's a good disguise..."
Ember cleans off her cloths with prestidigitation, but she can't resist the offer of hot bath... once she's dressed again, she quickly reads over the scroll This would be a handy Spell for my Spellbook... shame there's no time for scribing. she thinks before casting the spell.
Her skin lightens a little to a sun baked brown, and her hair darkens to black, it takes her a while to get the right balance of white-pupil for her eyes and she finishes up by changing her leather breeches and top into something akin to what the others have chosen. She leaves her favourite black and gold robe out of the spell, folding it lovingly and putting it at the bottom of her pack.
"What do you think? I feel so plain but I guess that's the point..." she says, turning her back to the mirror and looking over her shoulder.
Skyreaver will ritually and fastidiously clean herself, then use the scroll to make herself appear to be a tall human woman with a scar under her left eye and long, flowing red hair. Her club will appear to be a scroll tube, and her armor will appear to be robes made of homespun cloth.
"Will this suffice?"
After you're cleaned up and have a new look, Isthana says to you, Well it's time to put these disguises to the test, then? She extinguishes the brazier, and opens the door slightly; poking her head out into the hallway beyond. Looks like it's safe to leave the room, she says, Come now, quickly.
Shockingly, you step through the door into a well-used privy. Looking back, you see that the door you exited from is cleverly disguised to blend with the walls of the privy. From there, the privy opens up into a hallway decorated with the portraits of very sly looking individuals, complete with name plates - former prominent members of the guild, no doubt.
She leads you out of the building and into the bright sunlight and the streets of Hillsfar. The Rogue’s Guild is part of the Hillsfar Castle complex. To the west is the Tower of the First Lord; the tallest structure in the city that can be seen no matter where in the city you are. With a flourish and a bow, she announces that this is as far as she will take you as the you would likely not get jobs if you're seen by Torgrave in the presence of such a prominent member of the Rogue’s Guild.
She informs you that that Needlebaum is set up in a tent outside of the Tower. He is the key to getting into the tower.
For some of you, Hillsfar is a new experience. For others, you may be familiar with the conservative culture and the reluctance to art and decoration. Regardless of your experience in the past, Hillsfar this day is a very unique experience.
The city has exploded in color and construction.
New rooms are being added to already cramped houses, new buildings are popping up where they can barely fit, walls are no longer in their uniform drab colors, but are blue and yellow and pink and every color you can imagine with no consideration for taste.
All of that aside, all the new construction has been a boom for trade.
Even the citizens of the city seem less orderly than memory (or rumor) would dictate. As you walk through the streets to the tent set up outside the First Lord's building, you see various instances of this.
On that corner, there is a troop if entertainers, clearly drunk, giving a poor performance. Since when were troubadours allowed street side acts, especially one this bad? The crowd is obviously annoyed, and some people are starting to throw rotten vegetables at them.
On this street, two well dressed lads race on horseback, nearly colliding with you! DC 11 Dexterity save or take a hoof attack from the horse.
And over there, you see three Red Plume guards threatening to beat and arrest a young woman for being a half elf.
Saving Space:
"Ragnar, being lower the ground keeps you better balanced - not to mention it's quicker to drop down to grovel. Besides, I'm surprised you big folk don't fall over in a stiff wind! I have no idea how you can stay balanced that high up on only two legs. At least our giant kinfolk... you know, dragons, are smart enough to walk on four legs being that big."
Ragnar cocks his head to the side and furrows his brow. "Grovel?" The word is known to him, but the concept is unfamiliar. "My kind is competitive, always trying to outdo themselves and each other. To grovel would bring great shame to ourselves." A thoughtful expression now comes to his face. "But then, my kind never had to deal with dragons on a regular basis."
"I like your normal look better but it's a good disguise..."
"Likewise," he says with a smile and a pat on Ember's head.
Ragnar takes a hoof from the horse that nearly knocks him off his feet, and he bellows out. "Watch where you're going, whelps!"
Once coming across the guards harassing an obviously human woman for being a half elf, Ragnar just shows confusion, and speaks quietly to his companions.
"Is the racism so bad here that the humans suspect their own kind? This may be harder than we thought."
Scarlet near growls in reaction to the guards threatening the woman. "We cannot get involved and risk our cover" she utters quietly more to herself than her companions.
Using Fortune/luck
Alysha almost gets knocked by the horse but she gives it a stare and it turns aside.
Upon seeing the half-elf she whispers to the others. "That's what'll happen if they see through your disguise. She is a half-elf. Be careful and don't stare." she says.
"Shame doesn't necessarily have anything to do with it. Grovelling can be a very useful tool to get those more powerful than you to do what you want. It's all in the perspective," Jiro says with a wink.
"Yikes!!"
Ember jumps back as the horsemen go flying past, "Ooh, boy. They weren't taking any prisoners, are you lot ok? "
"Oh, but I think she actually isn't human... see the slightly slanted eyes and the thin nose, I think she's half elf... poor thing. Why would you come to this place... are you sure we couldn't... you know. Ah I guess you're right Scarlet, we'd jepadise our mission... but what will become of the poor girl... "
As the horses go sprinting past, Skyreaver will begin to follow them, drawing her "scroll case" as she does, but will stop once she reminds herself where she is.
Ragnar stops and takes a look around.
Hoof Attacks for those who failed Dex save:
Hit? If so, 6 bludgeoning damage.
Miss.
Hit. 5 bludgeoning damage.
Miss.
"I'd advise against fighting the Plumes. One blow and your disguises might disappear, if not your life," she says.
Stumbling out of the way, grimacing in a little pain, Beryl makes his way to the alley. Heedless of Alysha's warning, the warrior steps up to the Red Plumes, Hey! What do ye think ye're doing?!