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Calendir can still not make his mind about this Usurer's motivations... He keeps observing him closely, but is puzzled by the fact that the gnome's fisionomy has changed so much in such a short time.
He half laughs, half growls when the words are spoken about parlay without any kind of violence, then he adds to Macavity's words: "Or even better, outdoors..."
Macavity nods in easy acknowledgement, "I could speak for our party, but there are others who enjoy it more than me. Where and when would you like to have our parlay? While my sleep schedule is closer to yours, they need some time this morning to sleep off this evening's events and breakfast. Maybe midday somewhere that can accommodate us indoors?"
"That would be fine. No need to serve up lunch for me. As you have figured out, I don't eat much." With that, the Usurer turns to deal with the corpse and the other standing bodies.
Macavity shrugs again and nods at Calendir. He turns toward the inn and says over his shoulder, "see you here at midday, then."
Elen will go over the spellbook with Azaraunt, accepting his gracious offer to share, after brewing them both a strong cuppa of black tea with some maté mixed in. She marks out several spells she thinks will be valuable to her.
"These would be very helpful. Please let me know how much your cost in parchment and magical ink would be to scribe these so that I can repay you."
The spells she has marked are:
- Hypnotism
- Alter Self
- Scare
- Deep Slumber
- Arcane Eye
- Phantasmal Killer
Macavity will enter the inn briefing everyone on the tunnel adventure and Usurer meeting.
A little after midday, there is a knock at the door. Opening it, you see the Usurer standing on the step, his blacksmith's apron replaced with well-worn pants and a simple cotton long sleeve. Despite the cold air and light breeze, the Usurer seems completely unfazed.
"Is now a good time to talk about the boarding house?"
"Thank you." He does in fact step inside, trying not to brush against Numair as he does so. He then takes a seat on the couch in the main area.
"It would appear that there has been a change in management here. We need to discuss that, and how the change impacts the camp as a whole." He pauses for a moment, then goes on. "Quite honestly, no one really cared what the gnomes did here. Oh sure, there were some suspicions, but to their credit, the gnomes took great pains to hide their victims. That being said, the boarding house must continue to function going forward."
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"The gnomes may have been clever enough to keep their activities hidden, but they made the serious mistake of underestimating us. However, we did not come here, to the Desolation, to play innkeepers. I can understand how it would be in the best interests of the Camp to have an operating flophouse where travelers could rest in safety. As a concerned citizen, I support the continued operation of this boarding house for the health of the community. Under our management, I expect the rate of lethal 'accidents' to fall off dramatically. As such, we are going to need to expand the premises to accomodate guests who stay longer than a single night. Is your goodwill and neighborly concern sufficient to consider offering us a more favorable currency exchange rate so that we might develop this place properly? Also, as the de-facto legal authority in this town, we would need assurances of your support in safeguarding the manager we will instill to run the operations. Can you provide such?"
"The gnomes may have been clever enough to keep their activities hidden, but they made the serious mistake of underestimating us. However, we did not come here, to the Desolation, to play innkeepers. I can understand how it would be in the best interests of the Camp to have an operating flophouse where travelers could rest in safety. As a concerned citizen, I support the continued operation of this boarding house for the health of the community. Under our management, I expect the rate of lethal 'accidents' to fall off dramatically. As such, we are going to need to expand the premises to accomodate guests who stay longer than a single night. Is your goodwill and neighborly concern sufficient to consider offering us a more favorable currency exchange rate so that we might develop this place properly? Also, as the de-facto legal authority in this town, we would need assurances of your support in safeguarding the manager we will instill to run the operations. Can you provide such?"
"I somehow suspect that you would not run this as a flophouse, but as an actual establishment. I believe that it is good for the Camp because it gives this place an air of permanency, which was not around before I came to be here. If you don't want to kill anyone that stays here, that is no skin off of my bones, and I daresay that the old management style would not likely to be missed.
"As to your former request, that in part is up to you. Anyone that actually stays here, and by that, I mean you keep the bulk of your belongings here, whether you go out into that mess or not, for at least a month does receive more favorable exchanges in currency. I might even be able to get you some basic building materials. There are still some stone blocks from my old tower and that I could have brought over here, if that's what you wish to use for your expansion. Otherwise, you have to get the rest on your own. The currency exchange is the same offer that I make to all who stay on for some time.
"As to your latter request, I make no more assurances for him than I would make for you, or even Lucky at the tavern, and he has been here almost as long as I have. That being said, locals are rarely bothered by other locals. The temporary guests on the other hand can be nuisances, but if you put the right person in here to run the place while you are out exploring the wastelands, he'll be fine. Do you have someone in mind to run this place, or would you rather I select someone?"
Elen will suggest to Lavinia and Ruul that the three of them, plus Ally, go around the camp to seek out people who were drinking heavily the night before, offering them doses of Alchemist's kindness and Ally's fatigue-relieving songs to ameliorate their hangovers and brighten their days. They will also take the opportunity to gather information about anything that they can find out about in the camp.
Elen seems a little tongue-tied.
Imbukar, back in raven form, and invisible as usual sits on some fixture above the wizard watching. He will cast Deathwatch before the meeting starts and maintain it for the duration of the meeting, likely confirming that the Usurer is indeed undead.
Imbukar, back in raven form, and invisible as usual sits on some fixture above the wizard watching. He will cast Deathwatch before the meeting starts and maintain it for the duration of the meeting, likely confirming that the Usurer is indeed undead.
Ruul will track down the stablemaster, deliver a dose of Kindness, and see what he can learn from him.
[dice=Diplomacy]1d20+19
You find the elf in one of the empty stables, snoring loudly. Even the other horses are impressed.
Elen and Ally try a different tactic first. Ally will play a melody that starts soft and slow and over the course of a minute or two rises to a faster beat, the sleeping elf's fatigue fading as he hears it. When he opens his eyes, Elen is nearby, and whispers, "Take this and drink it, it will help your hangover, mellon." ('Friend' in elven.) She offers him the little vial of Kindness.
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"I somehow suspect that you would not run this as a flophouse, but as an actual establishment. I believe that it is good for the Camp because it gives this place an air of permanency, which was not around before I came to be here. If you don't want to kill anyone that stays here, that is no skin off of my bones, and I daresay that the old management style would not likely to be missed.
"As to your former request, that in part is up to you. Anyone that actually stays here, and by that, I mean you keep the bulk of your belongings here, whether you go out into that mess or not, for at least a month does receive more favorable exchanges in currency. I might even be able to get you some basic building materials. There are still some stone blocks from my old tower and that I could have brought over here, if that's what you wish to use for your expansion. Otherwise, you have to get the rest on your own. The currency exchange is the same offer that I make to all who stay on for some time."
"As to your latter request, I make no more assurances for him than I would make for you, or even Lucky at the tavern, and he has been here almost as long as I have. That being said, locals are rarely bothered by other locals. The temporary guests on the other hand can be nuisances, but if you put the right person in here to run the place while you are out exploring the wastelands, he'll be fine. Do you have someone in mind to run this place, or would you rather I select someone?"
"You are correct: this would become an actual inn, not a murder-hotel. While this place promotes an 'every man for himself' attitude, our establishment would be reputable. We would charge fair prices for safe accomodations. If your interests lie in establishing this place as a settlement, and not just a loose collection of vagrants and mercenaries, our inn would help provide that legitimacy."
"I wonder, however, if you intend to levy 'taxes' upon us, or expect a cut of the profits. Not knowing the agreement between you and the former owners, I can assure you we would not submit to extortion in any form. I'm not implying that you would stoop to such tactics, but I figured it was best to make our position clear from the start."
"The building materials would be very useful indeed. Such transactions would need to be delayed, or at least the payments therof, until our more favorable exchange rate kicks in. Our expedition will likely take some time - years, perhaps - so we will be at that rate soon enough."
"We will reserve the right to place a competent, dependable manager on premises. Should we return and find our property in disarray, we would be inclined to seek renumeration from the appropriate parties. Thats something I'd ask you to pass on to any troublemakers that try to stir things up here - in your capacity as an impartial advisor, of course."
"I think we understand eachother. What other concerns did you wish to raise?"
Elen and Ally try a different tactic first. Ally will play a melody that starts soft and slow and over the course of a minute or two rises to a faster beat, the sleeping elf's fatigue fading as he hears it. When he opens his eyes, Elen is nearby, and whispers, "Take this and drink it, it will help your hangover, mellon." ('Friend' in elven.) She offers him the little vial of Kindness.
Finnelaus slowly rouses and before he can do anything, is drinking down the potent brew. Within seconds, the potion does its magic, but it leaves Finnelaus in a foul mood. "Oh hell, why did you have to go and sober me up for, woman?"
"You are correct: this would become an actual inn, not a murder-hotel. While this place promotes an 'every man for himself' attitude, our establishment would be reputable. We would charge fair prices for safe accomodations. If your interests lie in establishing this place as a settlement, and not just a loose collection of vagrants and mercenaries, our inn would help provide that legitimacy."
"I wonder, however, if you intend to levy 'taxes' upon us, or expect a cut of the profits. Not knowing the agreement between you and the former owners, I can assure you we would not submit to extortion in any form. I'm not implying that you would stoop to such tactics, but I figured it was best to make our position clear from the start."
"The building materials would be very useful indeed. Such transactions would need to be delayed, or at least the payments therof, until our more favorable exchange rate kicks in. Our expedition will likely take some time - years, perhaps - so we will be at that rate soon enough."
"We will reserve the right to place a competent, dependable manager on premises. Should we return and find our property in disarray, we would be inclined to seek renumeration from the appropriate parties. Thats something I'd ask you to pass on to any troublemakers that try to stir things up here - in your capacity as an impartial advisor, of course."
"I think we understand each other. What other concerns did you wish to raise?"
"To your points," says the Usurer, holding up a bony finger for each point. "I have no problems with how you run the house here, so long as it is run as an inn of some kind. I will not levy taxes on you, nor did I levy any on the gnomes. I make plenty of money off of those who pass through. If you're not in a rush to build or expand, then neither am I. If you don't wish me to enter your premises again after this, then I won't. As I said, how you run this place is up to you." After that, the Usurer turns his head slightly towards Azaraunt. "Would you please tell your damned imp to stop staring at me? Yes, I am of the 'undead,' just leave it at that."
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"To your points," says the Usurer, holding up a bony finger for each point. "I have no problems with how you run the house here, so long as it is run as an inn of some kind. I will not levy taxes on you, nor did I levy any on the gnomes. I make plenty of money off of those who pass through. If you're not in a rush to build or expand, then neither am I. If you don't wish me to enter your premises again after this, then I won't. As I said, how you run this place is up to you." After that, the Usurer turns his head slightly towards Azaraunt. "Would you please tell your damned imp to stop staring at me? Yes, I am of the 'undead,' just leave it at that."
"The building will be closed for renovations a short time, but will re-open sometime soon, as an inn. I expect the disruption of service to take between a few days and a few weeks, but not longer than a month. As long as you don't hinder our operations, you can always come by if you feel there is something we need to discuss. I'd ask that you provide notification in advance of your visit, unless its an emergency."
"While I'm not under any illusion that we will ever be friends, I am willing to co-exist with civility. No doubt, you are familiar with the tenets of my faith - you need not fear that I will attack you out of some sort of zealous indignance, at least not while there are greater evils out in the Desolation. When you hear that the Tsar and its environs has been cleansed, I would think about packing your bags. Until then, I will not fight with you unless provoked. Also, do not ever mistake my pragmatism for cowardice. As the gnomes discovered, if we are attacked, we *will* defend ourselves, and we *will* win."
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Lavinia sighs in response to the elfs unhappy reaction. "Why do I get the feeling that any attempts at being helpful will not be appreciated around this place."
Having a hard time hiding her distaste for any manner of undead, Lavinia chooses to keep quiet for now and not speak directly to the Usurer.
Elen nods in understanding, thinking, If I were stuck in the arse-end of Golarion like he is, I'd want to be drunk all the time too. She says, "We have only a few questions we must ask you, friend, and then we will happily give you a supply of drink to replace what my potion burned out of your bloodstream. We have ale, dwarven stout, luglurch, linnorm mead, and caydenbrew available. Before we will give it to you, though, we need a few answers. Um... Ruul, what were the questions you needed to ask again?"
Elen casts message before the meeting, and uses it to whisper to Azaurant and Lavinia, far from the Usurer at the other end of the room. She studies the strange being, whom Imbrukar reports to be undead, but who exhibits none of the usual characteristics of an undead beast.
Edit: Sorry that sounded much meaner than I meant for it to.
"To your points," says the Usurer, holding up a bony finger for each point. "I have no problems with how you run the house here, so long as it is run as an inn of some kind. I will not levy taxes on you, nor did I levy any on the gnomes. I make plenty of money off of those who pass through. If you're not in a rush to build or expand, then neither am I. If you don't wish me to enter your premises again after this, then I won't. As I said, how you run this place is up to you." After that, the Usurer turns his head slightly towards Azaraunt. "Would you please tell your damned imp to stop staring at me? Yes, I am of the 'undead,' just leave it at that.""The building will be closed for renovations a short time, but will re-open sometime soon, as an inn. I expect the disruption of service to take between a few days and a few weeks, but not longer than a month. As long as you don't hinder our operations, you can always come by if you feel there is something we need to discuss. I'd ask that you provide notification in advance of your visit, unless its an emergency."
"While I'm not under any illusion that we will ever be friends, I am willing to co-exist with civility. No doubt, you are familiar with the tenets of my faith - you need not fear that I will attack you out of some sort of zealous indignance, at least not while there are greater evils out in the Desolation. When you hear that the Tsar and its environs has been cleansed, I would think about packing your bags. Until then, I will not fight with you unless provoked. Also, do not ever mistake my pragmatism for cowardice. As the gnomes discovered, if we are attacked, we *will* defend ourselves, and we *will* win."
"I understand that we'll never truly get along, and that my presence bothers the crap out of you. But I'm not going to kick you to the street just because you don't like undead folk trying to make an honest living." The Usurer tries not to laugh, but he does. The last bit was just too ironic to be anything but funny. "That being said, you're not the first person to have told me that they're going to clean up around here. You won't be the last. Let's just say, I know what the odds are. It's more likely that you and your group are going to join the ranks of the dead out there in the Desolation. I'm not saying that as a threat, but as a simple fact. Few ever walk out of here alive after having visited the Desolation. You might be stronger than most, but that doesn't make it any more likely that you'll survive in the long run. The longer you stay here, the less likely you'll leave here."
I am sure he is fascinate with you good sir, but I will have a word with him. I do hope he is not contemplating a change of management. Azaraunt says with a silver tongue and smile.
Smiling at you after answering Numair, the Usurer says to you, "You don't seem to be afraid of dark forces. Ever thought about becoming a lich? It certainly makes life more exciting, I can tell you."
Elen nods in understanding, thinking, If I were stuck in the arse-end of Golarion like he is, I'd want to be drunk all the time too. She says, "We have only a few questions we must ask you, friend, and then we will happily give you a supply of drink to replace what my potion burned out of your bloodstream. We have ale, dwarven stout, luglurch, linnorm mead, and caydenbrew available. Before we will give it to you, though, we need a few answers. Um... Ruul, what were the questions you needed to ask again?"
Having a bit of a disgusted look, the stablemaster says to you, "You could have just asked, but since you offered, luglurch for a start." He sighs, then says "Go on and ask your questions."
As for the Knowledge check, he is a Lich, yes with a capital L. Liches tend to be high-powered spellcasters (mostly arcane, but there are exceptions, just ask Tiamat) who chose the 'perks' living a near immortal life and continuing to grow their power. A lich by itself is typically a match for most parties seeking to kill one. They tend to being friends to the party, however, and their spells usually comprises of a who's who list of ways to die spectacularly. By your training, why the Usurer hasn't killed you yet is quite the mystery.
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Azaraunt seems to be pondering the possibilities of Lichdom for a moment before responding. No, dark forces are only one type of force that may be manipulated, if you have the skill. I see little to fear except extending oneself beyond one's skill level, would you not agree? And I am quite interested in the process of becoming a lich itself, academically of course. So many rumor and false information out there on the topic. Perhaps you could one day enlighten me? I am an elf, as I am sure you have noted, and quite young for my kind. If your wastes do not cut it short as you predict, I should have many years of "life" before I might consider your, er, path.
Azaraunt seems to be pondering the possibilities of Lichdom for a moment before responding. No, dark forces are only one type of force that may be manipulated, if you have the skill. I see little to fear except extending oneself beyond one's skill level, would you not agree? And I am quite interested in the process of becoming a lich itself, academically of course. So many rumor and false information out there on the topic. Perhaps you could one day enlighten me? I am an elf, as I am sure you have noted, and quite young for my kind. If your wastes do not cut it short as you predict, I should have many years of "life" before I might consider your, er, path.
"I'd be happy to have a scribe make a copy of my notes for you, if you wish, for academics, of course." It's the Usurer's turn to turn a silvery tongue.
- How long has the Usurer been in charge around here?
- Are there rumors about what he actually is?
- Did anyone know that the gnomes were robbing visitors and had stolen the Inn from the actual Bender Bros?
- Any information about the lost caravan?
- We've heard rumors of wolves or worse than wolves attacking, is that true?
After they're done, Elen will give him a couple servings of luglurch and promise to buy him a drink at the tavern in the indeterminate future.
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Calendir has been shuffling uncomfortably in his place, even though surprisingly Lagash seems to be much calmer than his orc brother.
Those more familiar with the orc's lack of patience for long winded debates, and his more pragmatic facet, are not totally taken by surprise by his comments - "So... the deal is exactly what?"