Moving with lightning speed Ezekial intercepts the chief and delivers a crippling blow.
Raff then moves in behind Ezekial and attempts to grapple chief Sootscale. Sootscale lances out at Raff with a bone carved short sword as the investigator attempts the grapple - but the blade doesn't penetrate Raff's armor. Sootscale is locked in a grapple.
Seres begins casting a sleep spell.
Chief Sootscale howls in fury and manages to break Raff's grapple.
Kobold soldiers swarm in from all directions and begin attacking with spears. Two kobolds stick Seres with their spears . Veronica is also wounded by two attackers . Raff is stabbed by a flanker .
Mikmek pleads for both sides to stand down. "Friends, brothers, chief - we allies! Allies no kill each other!"
; Raff
; Raff
; Seres
; Seres
; Larisa
; Veronica
; Veronica
; Seres Crit check
Raff reaches for his falchion with one hand and for his mutagen flask with the other. Downing the contents his upper body bulks up considerably in an instant, he bares his tusks and raises his falchion to the chiefs face. He then shouts in broken draconic "We're the dragons of this land, little lizard! We won't be disrespected by a coward like you!"
Stuck in the midst of the kobolds and unable to cast spells safely, Veronica draws her morningstar and takes a swing at the kobold southwest of her, trying to help clear a space for herself and Seres so that they can use magic.
Stabbed by two spears, Seres loses control of his magic. The gathering power fizzles with an audible pop and stink of burning feathers.
He backs up, moving between Veronica and Connor, and conjures a magical field around himself.
"We really don't want to turn this into a bloodbath!" he calls over the din, trying to aid Mikmek.
As the kobolds swarm her Larisa curses, casting a spell. "Really wish I had a sword to swing right now." She says, weaving the magic of her god around her.
Connor moves in to box in the king, pointing his axe at Mikmek as he moves through, "Don't let the chief by you, Mikmek ... decide now which side you want to be on. The winning side, or his side."
The cavalier accentuates his point with a vicious over hand chop at the once chief of the kobolds, taking on the aspect of the bull as he does so.
Chief Sootscale goes down in bloody heap under the combined assault of Ezekial and Connor.
The kobold soldiers pause their attacks when the chief falls. They look nervously at each other and then at Mikmek.
Mikmek looks aghast at Sootscale and then back up at you. "Mikmek stands with you! All hail our new lords!"
As the body drops Larisa releases the magic and looks over at Connor. "What now oh mighty conqueror?" She says, scanning the mass of kobolds around them.
Connor walks over to Chief Sootscale and takes his crown/headress off of him and places it on Mikmek's head, "You are the reason we have peace and the mites are gone. Go get us Tartuk's body and we can hammer out a treaty. We will trade and treat you as a favored ally. In return, we will allow a bubble around your home to call your tribe's lands. Call upon us when you need aid and we will answer ... like we've done before. Congratulations, Chief Mikmek."
Veronica cautiously stows her morningstar.
"Really should learn Draconic," she mumbles.
Mikmek bows his head and responds in broken common to Connor. "Aye, you no regret this my lord. The Sootscale kobolds shall be faithful allies. We will honor the border."
The kobolds provide you Tartuk's bones in a burlap sack.
+1 level of cavalier
Favored class bonus=HPs
+1 challenge per day
Normal Skills (+4 ranks)
+1 Diplomacy
+1 Ride
+1 Perception
+1 Intimidate
Backgrouns Skills (+2 ranks)
+1 Knowledge Noble
+1 Handle Animal
Cinder
Skills:
Perception+1
Gain +4 will save vs enchantments
Gain Deliver Trick
"Let us go appease the gnomes, then hunt the trolls... then clear that evil wisp from the Erastil shrine, and track down the Stag Lord and Nugrah. I'm sure I missed something." Seres laughs and looks to the sky. "We need to charter a second band of adventurers to cover our requirements!"
"Knocking out jobs left and right we are!" Turning swiftly to Veronica he grabs Ezekial with one arm and booms. "Well I'd wager mine could use some brushing up too! Mayhaps Zeke could tutor us? Eh, Zeke?" Raff squeezes Zeke with his alchemicaly enhanced arm and gives him a sly wink.
Veronica furrows her brows, but agrees with Raff, saying, "As long as we can keep our settlement on a safe, even keel, I won't complain much. Though it will be nice to get a break once we've polished off the whole list!"
Connor nods his head at that, "There will be no rest for us until this kingdom is secure and prosperous."
Larisa nods her head in agreement with Zek. "There's always trouble lurking somewhere." She says, looking around the cave. "Mark me down for those lessons in Draconic Zek."
Mikmek bids you farewell and promises to abide by the terms of your alliance. As you leave, Mikmek is consolidating his power and selecting his lieutenants. You note that the kobold soldiers are not all happy with the new alliance, nor Mikmek's ascension to the throne.
Back at New Hope, you are pleasantly surprised to see signs that your tiny hamlet is growing into a proper city. A new inn, trade shop and brewery can now be found on main street. Rangers of a newly formed army patrol the south lands and protect the city from the horrors of the forest.
You are met by Cvetka Zámožný as you enter the city. "Greetings my lords. We have received a new charter from Rostland. The Swordlords of Restov have grown concerned with the increasing troll attacks in the northern Greenbelt. The trolls are based somewhere in the southern Narlmarches. We have been instructed to destroy the troll menace immediately before the trolls can cause further damage to the lucrative trade routes between Restov and the River Kingdoms. Specifically, the troll leader, a brute named Hargulka, must be slain. The Swordlords promise to send aid to New Hope in the form of additional colonists, merchants, craftsmen and construction materials if we are successful in completion of the charter."
She rolls the charter and hands it to you. "One more thing. The gnomish company under Jubilost has failed to return from their expedition. The rangers fear they have been captured by Hargulka."
Veronica looks somewhat bemused as she says, "I suppose it's two tasks with one sweep, then? Trolls it is."
Raff stare's at the newly erected brewery for a moment, licking his chops before turning his attention back to the group. Responding too Veronica."Yep, can't wait to show those bastards who's the real big, green and ugly around these parts."
Seres nods, dismayed at the plight of the gnomes. "Always seems trouble is one and a half steps ahead of us."
"Trolls... I am not a blasting barbeque kind of magic user, but I can make do with wizardy items. Might be a good idea to get a fireball scroll or two, maybe a wand of scorching ray before we go. I'm a little skosh on coin, however. Do we have a community pool to take advantage of?"
"What about fire arrows and alchemical fire?" suggests Veronica. "Less expensive. I don't have that much coin lying around."
Larisa keeps to the side of the party as they talk to Cvetka, avoiding her direct attention, about the troll problem. With a weary glance at her pair of guard chaperones she strolls off to the brewery. "Find me when you're ready to leave, my lords."
That night, while drinking at the tavern of your new inn, you have the opportunity to meet many of New Hope's residents. Jax, Svetlana, Akiros and your other lieutenants join you in buying rounds for the locals. Over the evening, after many pints of ale, you learn the following:
There are rumors of a forest drake haunting the southern Narlmarches. The drake has been killing trappers and needs to be put down. Find the forest drake, kill it, and return to town with its head as proof. The kingdom, under Jax's authority, has approved a reward of 1200 gp to the first group to successfully slay a forest drake in the Narlmarches.
A local alchemist has a theory that trolls’ blood can serve as a catalyst during the creation of healing potions. But until he gets a supply of the blood, he won’t be able to prove his theory. Deliver a waterskin filled with troll blood to the alchemist. He doesn’t need more than one waterskin, so one troll donor should do the trick. The alchemist promises a reward of 1,200 gp in potions (hunter’s choice), deliverable about a week after the blood is brought to him.
Stas, a local lumberjack, claims to have seen an elusive hodag and to have stuck it with his magic spear. His friends think that he lost his spear in the river and made up the hodag sighting to cover up his clumsiness. The poor lumberjack’s honor is at stake! Kill the hodag and bring its head to Stas so he can show it to his friends. That’ll learn ’em! In gratitude, Stas promises his +1 keen spear as a reward. The only problem? It’s probably still stuck in the hodag’s back.
Stories from fishermen, explorers, bandits, and tradesmen alike recount legends of eerie, strange lights dancing upon the waters of Candlemere Lake (south of the Tuskwater), as well as blood-curdling cries from what could be lost souls, and mysterious sightings of shapes rippling in the lake’s dark waters. With the influx of fisherman into New Hope, the Lake Candlemere haunting must be exorcised to allow the lake's fish to be harvested in order to feed the burgeoning population. The kingdom has approved a reward of 1,200 gp to make Lake Candlemere safe for fishing again.
Shambling mounds aren’t as common in the Greenbelt as they are in Hooktongue Slough, but they’re not unheard of. A local herbalist has found that the sap of a shambling mound works wonders for cultivating certain medicinal herbs, and asks for one shambling mound’s worth of sap. Deliver the sap to the herbalist. The herbalist can pay 600 gp for the sap, along with 3 potions of cure moderate wounds.
Young Tig Tannersen has always been a handful. His hobby of collecting “pets” from the wilds along the riverbanks of the southern Greenbelt has placed him in danger many times, but now it appears he’s really in trouble. Tig has been missing for several days, and his parents are distraught with worry. Finding him will increase the kingdom’s morale. Find Tig and deliver him safely home.
Arven the fisherman has a secret fishing hole on the east bank of the Tuskwater, but now an ill-tempered beast has claimed the spot. The beast in question is a semi-legendary hookjaw turtle named Old Crackjaw. Kill him! Watch out for his chompers!
Lily Teskertin, a local art trader and an attractive socialite, always loved the workmanship of fine elven crafting but has never owned an example of such superb work. She’s heard rumors of an old elven ruin in the southern Narlmarches; if anyone could find the ruins and salvage from them an example of elven workmanship, she would be ever so grateful. Find a statuette of fine elven craftmanship. Lily’s willing to trade her dead father’s old cloak of protection +1 and a kiss (or perhaps a bit more) for such a statue.
Raff, on his fifth round of whatever the pub has too offer, approaches Conner and asks to steer towards the elven ruins near the Narlmarches.
"Hey, Mylord!" Do you think that we could stop off at thoshe ruins near the Narlmarches before we come on back? I'd like too try courting a lady now that I've shettled down an that'sh an opportunity if I ever saw one."
For the evening Larisa has been sitting in the corner of the inn, on the other side of the inn as the party under the watch of her guards. As she nurses her cup Lairsa overhears the sobering news of a child lost in the woods. Standing up she gives one of her chaperones a hard look. "Go collect my weapons and have them ready for me at the main gate." She says, walking past the guards as she begins questioning the people about the missing boy and where he was last seen.
Larisa has trouble finding any information about the boy at this late hour. The guards are able to give you directions to the farm where the boy lives.
Not getting anywhere at the Inn Larisa slips out the front door, mounts her horse and makes a quick headway to the farm.
Larisa finds the farm of Tig's family. The sleepy parents are at first hesitant to open the door but they then recognize Larisa as one of their lords and they welcome her in.
The parents tell a story of a carefree child whom disappeared one day while playing in the woods to the south. The army rangers found tracks where the boy was playing and were able to follow the humanoid tracks to the swamps on the western edge of the Tuskwater before losing them. No sign of the boy has been found since.
Seres is intrigued by the news of elven ruins in the Stolen Lands. He asks Lily what she knows from the rumors she has heard.
"Well, that should be easily manageable since we're off to hunt trolls in the morning," he quips, making light of the task ahead.
Thanking the parents for their help Larisa asks them for something of the boy's that might carry his scent and exits the building, wrapping her cloak around her as she takes in the night air. "Tell Lord Connor that I've left to look for the boy." She says, adjusting her gear for long distance travel as she takes her weapons and briefly stops at the shrine of Erastil to pray for the boy and sets course for where the boy was last seen.
Veronica, meanwhile, does a little shopping to procure some fire arrows in case of the eventual encounter with the trolls. She takes note of the request for troll blood, then, later in the day, discovers the note about the lost boy, and immediately sets off to find more information - though only time will tell if she crosses paths with Larisa before her friend is already off and away!
Seres, Lily can only tell you that passing hunters talk of ancient elven ruins in the Narlmarches south of the Murque River. Legends hold that the ruins are from before the fall of Starstone and the Age of Darkness, when the Verduran Forest stretched from the World’s Edge Mountains to the Lake of Mists and Veils.
You travel out of town and cross the skunk river. You quickly find yourself in the pitch black darkness of the swamp. You realize you are close to where you encountered Seres' aunt, the Old Beldame - the swamp witch.
Cracking a Moonrod Larisa holds the softly glowing silver rod above her head to get a look at her surroundings. As she takes in the surroundings Larisa realizes where she has ended up, muttering a curse under her breath. "Sere's crone of an Aunt lives nearby. Doubt she would have anything to do with the boy's disappearance but she might know something about what took him." She says to herself, dismounting as she kneels in the muck to get a better look.
With a few gestures she casts some spells, channeling the blessing's of Erastil as she opens herself to the insights of the wild. With a quick flick she pulls the item with the boy's scent out and gives it a sniff, examining the terrain with her heightened senses before mounting her horse.
Seres nods, intrigued. He marks the general location of the ruins on our map for future exploration. "After we kill the trolls and whatever other beasts people keep stumbling onto..." He muses and looks around, wondering where everyone else went.
After spending time searching the area, you come upon the faint tracks of a band of humanoids. Several food prints in the mud indicate the creatures have human sized feet with long talons. The tracks head south.
Larisa examines the tracks in the pale silver glow of the Moonrod. With a practiced eye she tries to identify what made them.
The tracks appear to be from lizardfolk.
"We will help if we can along the way or when we return, Raff, but we must make to the south and search for the gnomes and find what they know of the trolls. In the morning, we depart."
Connor stands up wearily and bids everyone a good night.
Raff burbs and follows Connor out the door. "A fair *Burp* and kind assessment as always my friend." With that Raff stumbles to his quarters.
After traveling most of the night the tracks lead you to the shores of what could only be Lake Candlemere before the tracks turn west . As the eastern horizon begins to lighten, you note ghostly lights floating far over the water. You also note a dark mass in the distance that must be an island.
As you turn to continue your tracking you hear the heavy approach of large creatures. Seven trolls are moving through the swamp towards you.