"Well to be quite honest sir we really don't know how we got here. Two days ago we were in a keep near the town of Breden, a strange mist came, and now we are here but we don't know where here is. We just want to get our bearings so that we can figure out how to get home. That and perhaps some food as we are getting low on supplies. You are the first people we have seen since we arrived. Any assistance you can provide is much appreciated."
Diplomacy:
Res’s polite manner seems to help the constable’s disposition. “I’ll be honest with you. People round here don’t take kindly to strange folk.” He studiously avoids eye-contact with the non-humans as he says this. “These are dangerous times, and we don’t want no trouble in our village, understand? I don’t know where you all are coming from, and I’ve never heard of no village called Breden, but you seem decent enough folk to me. But sometimes well-meaning folk can still bring trouble with them.”
“Feel free to replenish your supplies as you need. We don’t have much, but the catch has been good, and you should be able to find some for sale over at the fish market.”
“But I don’t want to find you’ve been making any trouble, and I think it’s best if you moved on before nightfall. There’s nowhere to lodge round here anyhow.” Renot still looks leery of the strangers in town.
Erfan overhears the conversation and widens his eyes at the thought that they are nowhere near the village they'd left from. He toddles forth awkwardly and smiles up at the man.
"We thank you, sir, and will be sure to leave as quickly as able... but if I may ask, in which direction might the nearest major settlement be found? A city of some kind, perhaps? And how distant?"
Angalia's eyes widen and she abruptly stops laughing.
"Never heard of Bredon? Where are we? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. This is a bit of a shock. We definitely don't want to make any kind of trouble. The opposite, in fact. We'd like to help if you think there's anything we can help with."
"You're in Tamoire, of course. I don't know what else you're looking for. I don't know what kind of work you could find - maybe with one of the farmers if they'd have you."
He turns to Erfan: "If you're looking for a bigger town, about half a day's travel north along the coast you'll hit Sainte Luciennes. If you're looking for a city, you'll want Port-a-Lucine, about a day from Sainte Luciennes along the road. Ain't been there myself, but it's the biggest city around." Then he pauses for a moment, seeming to size up the gnome. "Is that a nightshirt you're wearing? The rest of you are well-equipped for travel over these hills, dangerous as they are, but you look like you just got out of bed."
Nathaniel is troubled that they appear to be so far from home, but he has other concerns. “Have any other strangers passed through here in the last two days?” he asks. “A girl of eighteen summers with long dark hair – she may have been injured – or a cruel, haughty looking man?”
He also asks, “Have you had any trouble with bandits or with … monsters that look like men but eat flesh, here of late? We encountered and defeated some not far from here. Are there any other dangers on the road to the towns you mentioned that you could share knowledge with us? Also, do you know who lived in that old farm house up on the hill,” he points the direction to the house they stayed in last night.
Throughout the short journey into town, and during the discussion Tiff remains close to Res's side, two steps behind on his left. She does her best to appear peaceful and calm in her clerical vestments.
Constable Renot considers Nathaniel’s inquiries. “Ain’t been any strangers through town that I remember. Wish I could help. As for the ghouls,” (he apparently knows what they’re called), “there’s always more where they came from. Unarmed folk don’t do well in the hills.” It may dawn on you that, up to this point, he has seemed uninterested in your weapons and armor. In fact, he considers it a given that anyone who shows up in his village would have to be well-equipped for the journey.
“If it ain’t the ghouls, it’s the other undead or the wolves or… what have you. Even the living can be dangerous – there’s been highwaymen along the roads.”
“I know that old farmhouse. Nobody’s lived there in at least two or three generations. It ain’t wise to live too far from town.”
In addition to his lack of concern about your weapons, it may also seem conspicuous, especially given Tiffana’s concern for her disguise, that neither he nor anybody else in this town has commented one way or the other about the clerical vestments worn by some in your group. Looking around the town square and recalling your walk in, none of you recall seeing any religious iconography of any kind, nor anything marked as a temple.
"Might we be able to sell items we don't needs that might be useful to people here at the fish market?" Eliva asked. "Or would you prefer we not?" She smiled as ingratiatingly as possible. "It would be nice to pick up some fishing equipment if anyone has some to spare."
"There's folks around that will buy and sell," the constable says. He goes on to tell you about Granton's general store/pawnbroker and the aged hedge-witch Margot who deals in alchemical items. The fish vendors are probably not the best place for anything other than buying fish.
“Thanks for your time constable,” says Nathaniel. “We won’t be causing trouble here and we’ll likely move on by nightfall.”
If the others are done talking to the constable, Nathaniel moves a little distance away. “What do you think? We can see if there’s any supplies we need from the market, or just move straight on to this Saint Luciennes place. I’ve never heard of it, but maybe in a bigger town we can find some maps or someone who knows where in the world we are. Either way we should reach the town before nightfall, so long as we don’t linger here too long.”
He then turns to Angalia and Erfan. “You noticed that hooded woman as well? Maybe we should try to find her, it’s like she was watching for us, or wanted to talk to us or something.”
"We should pick up some supplies I think, and keep an eye open for the hooded woman as well. If she wants to talk to us, she should be easy to find."
"It seems weapons are necessary here, if we could I'd like to see if we can trade some of the simple onesfrom the bandits for basic fishing gear. If this town can make a living off fishing, there might be enough to give me something useful to do during my watch. That and some fresh fish and maybe produce, and I'd rather be off toward someplace where we have a better chance of getting some answers. Or at least a modicum of welcome!"
"I am in favor of traveling to this Port-a-Lucine. A major settlement is our best chance of finding a map and perhaps some more knowledgeable folk that might know something about our mysterious journey... though of course, that could very well take us off Gilbraith's trail considerably. If we could even assume that we're on said trail to begin with. We have no idea where he's gone and, more importantly, we have no idea where WE are."
Nathaniel nods. “We need to find out where we are, the town or the city seem like the place to do that. You’re right Erfan, Gilbraith could have gone in any direction … but maybe he’d head for a city himself? Any so-called noble I’ve heard of would rather have the comforts of a city over roaming around the wilderness.”
He turns to Eliva. “We can head to the market if you like, but I’d not be dispirited if the locals don’t want to trade; if what the constable said is accurate, that larger town is less than a day’s journey away. We might be better off trading or buying there.”
"He'll want the luxuries he had, but they were based on money and power he won't have in a new place. If his arcane experiments paid off, he may try to gather money and power using his abilities."
"At this point, he may be more likely to try to take over a bandit gang than to head to the city. If we hear about missing people or murders in the next town, it may give us a direction to go to look for him."
"At this point, he may be more likely to try to take over a bandit gang than to head to the city. If we hear about missing people or murders in the next town, it may give us a direction to go to look for him."
"Well, the constable did mention a problem with highwaymen in these parts... it's possible that we could do a good deed for the town and maybe get a whiff of Gilbraith's trail all in one swoop if we hunt them down."
As you discuss amongst yourselves, you notice the hooded woman walk back into the town square. She moves hurriedly, not coming too close. The more perceptive among you, however, notice her drop something as she walks through. It appears to be a scrap of folded paper or parchment.
"At this point, he may be more likely to try to take over a bandit gang than to head to the city. If we hear about missing people or murders in the next town, it may give us a direction to go to look for him.""Well, the constable did mention a problem with highwaymen in these parts... it's possible that we could do a good deed for the town and maybe get a whiff of Gilbraith's trail all in one swoop if we hunt them down."
"I have a feeling we may have met the remains of the bandit gang on our way here. But you're right that Gilbraith will probably want to head for a town as soon as possible. He's a soft liver."
Angalia doesn't trouble to hide the distaste in her voice. She moves swiftly to where the woman passed and tries to pick up the scrap inconspicuously.
Angalia is quite nonchalant as she picks up the paper dropped by the mysterious woman. It is a scrap of rather inexpensive parchment folded into a square. It contains a note.
Returning casually to her friends, Angalia waits until the group move away from the Constable before showing them the note.
"It could be a trap of course, but it seems a bit elaborate."
"It would seem time is of the essence. Let's stop by the market and attempt to trade for some food and possible supplies - we've already asked about it, the people here would find it strange if we didn't try to buy anything - and then talk about going to that big town. We can maybe circle around to the windmill as soon as possible. I wouldn't want to get there late."
Nathaniel nods in agreement and leads the way to the market, the way clearly marked by the smell of fish and rotting seaweed. Maybe the hooded woman is setting some elaborate trap, but it doesn’t seem likely. Either way he hopes to get some answers.
Res listens intently as the others discuss the next course of action. Going to the market and buying provisions and then circling back to the windmill seems like a good plan. Based on the contents of the hooded woman's note, he keeps a closer eye out for anything that may be amiss. Res follows Nathaniel towards the market.
"I guess we can't expect any decent wines in a village like this. Maybe some drinkable beer?"
"I want only two things at the moment. A hot meal meal and some mulled wine, and to speak to this "hedge witch", she may know more than the rest of these rubes.", Tiff interjects, she seems to have a poor opinion of townsfolk in general from the way she says "rubes".
The “market” in Tamoire consists of a few stalls along the approach to the poorly maintained docks. About half of the stalls are selling seafood – according to the vendors, everything is fresh from the sea, but you have your doubts about some of it. A matronly woman sells smoked halibut, and it looks more promising than what many of the other vendors have on offer. Produce is scarce, but some of it is presentable.
The uncomfortable stares have not abated; even in the market, it is as if the villagers are going out of their way to make you feel unwelcome. When approached, most give little more than one word answers to direct questions. They’ll take your money, but they’re not the friendliest lot.
Res will follow along with Eliva as she shops in the market. He leans over to Eliva and whispers in her ear.
Eliva: Root vegetables seem easy enough to find - potatoes and onions in particular. On a thorough enough search, you are able to find some fish that looks fresh. Fishing supplies are easy to come by. Use standard prices for that sort of thing.
What are you all doing after your shopping?
Angalia helps Eliva find anything edible among the vegetables.
Quietly to her friends:
"Something's really strange there. How about trying to find out a little more?"
Tiff gives Eliva 10gp to help purchase supplies, and shops for a small gift before settling on a sash she likes as a gift for the revered witch. Once this is done she sets off to find the old woman. "I'll catch up with you once I have spoken to the witch." she says to her friends before setting of to speak with the Elder.
Angalia: If you spend 15 minutes shopping, you could have 30 minutes to do what you want before needing to start for the windmill.
A crone is seated on a wooden chair in one corner. She sizes you up and says, "I don't need any trouble. Why don't you go back where you came from?"
Angalia leaves by the main road, but under cover of her companions, sneaks quietly back towards the market place to see if she can overhear anything helpful.
** spoiler omitted **
Eliva stows the food and fishhooks away and begins to make her way out of the town with the rest of the group, doing her best to keep an eye on everything at once.
But Angalia deftly slips beneath her notice as the other woman slips back into town.
Nathaniel pays for some of the smoked halibut to munch on on the trail. He’s not too worried about stocking up on supplies here, figuring that they will do better making their purchases at the larger town, but Eliva seems intent on re-provisioning here and he does not try to dissuade her.
After purchasing his fish he turns about to see that Angalia is gone. and that Tiffana is heading towards the hedge-witch’s house.
“Hold on,” he says urgently to the others. “We shouldn’t all just go wandering off on our own in a place like this. Something’s not right here.”
He exhales in exasperation. “Let’s wait here – pretend we’re still looking at the market stalls. So we’re nearby if either of them get into trouble.”
He exhales in exasperation. “Let’s wait here – pretend we’re still looking at the market stalls. So we’re nearby if either of them get into trouble.”
It wasn't until Nathaniel mentions it that Erfan even becomes aware of the others' absence. He looks around, seemingly confused a moment, and then nods in assent.
"I have no intention to go wandering about in such a place," Erfan adjusts the oversized shirt, rolling up the sleeves to allow use of his hands. "I'd probably trip over this robe you've given me if I tried..."
“I wouldn’t turn my back on them…”
“…said there was a bad omen of some kind…”
“…some of them even look like demons…”
“…wouldn’t be surprised if they were gypsies in disguise.”
“I don’t trust the little one.”
“They’ll move on if they know what’s…”
Not the friendliest lot.
The rest of you see a lot of not-so-subtle staring and exchanged whispers among the townsfolk. It’s as if they are waiting for you to do something to justify their suspicions.
The witch looks at you disdainfully. “Who did you steal that from? I don’t need any lessons from some gypsy tart.”
It’s apparent that Margot is a small-minded bigot who happens to know a few cantrips and has carved out a niche for herself selling bogus wares to an ignorant populace. Tiffana is surely disappointed at this discovery.
Angalia slips off her shawl and holds it casually in her hand as she makes her way back to the others. If anyone questions her, she will say she dropped the garment and went back to pick it up.
Angalia slips off her shawl and holds it casually in her hand as she makes her way back to the others. If anyone questions her, she will say she dropped the garment and went back to pick it up.
You are able to return to the party without incident.
As soon as she thinks the villagers are out of hearing, Angalia reports what she overheard.
"They think we're bad luck at least and I doubt they mean well by us," she concludes.
"Where's Tiff?"
"I agree with Nathaniel let's continue to shop until it's time to head to the windmill. Be very careful not to do anything that will bring undo attention to ourselves. As long as the villagers think we are going to stock up and leave I think they will be inclined to leave us alone. In the mean time, keep your eyes and ears open for Tiff."
Res begins to head back to the market and casually picks at various supplies as if he is trying to decide what to buy.
"Lets head over this way."
points upwind
"I've never enjoyed the smell of fish- fresh or not."
The old woman cowers in fear. "Please don't kill me or rob me," she says pitifully. "I'm just an old woman. Please forgive my rudeness." She is a pathetic sight.
For the rest: Unfortunately, the wind is coming from the west off the water, so moving directly upwind is not possible. Moving north or south may help, though.
Res continues to brows the goods, his eyes alert for trouble, but for now there are no overt concerns.
"I agree with Nathaniel let's continue to shop until it's time to head to the windmill. Be very careful not to do anything that will bring undo attention to ourselves. As long as the villagers think we are going to stock up and leave I think they will be inclined to leave us alone. In the mean time, keep your eyes and ears open for Tiff."
Nathaniel nods. “From what Angalia overheard, it sounds like they’re suspicious of us but don’t necessarily harbour any sinister agenda. If there’s a lot of bandits in the area, maybe they have good reason to be wary. Still, the sooner we get out of here the better ... where is Tiffana?”