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Yep, as well as any windows of opportunity when they might be relatively vulnerable. I'm not counting on finding a single well-meaning benefactor who'd hand me all the answers on a silver platter, obviously, but having a direction to follow so that I can talk to a few specific people instead of rolling multiple consecutive d4s would save me a lot of time.
(replying here instead of main, cause ooc discussion) Well, it is as I've said. I want to minimize the odds of us being scried or spied on, then establish whether Helva is a foe or neutral in this (potentially acquiring her aid if the latter), and finally establish our odds of ambushing and taking out Goti and Helva (if needed) without getting dogpiled by city watch or Rimerunners' troops. Right now I don't see a reliable way of blitzing Asvig without undue consequence, so starting by eliminating powerful assets from his side is as good a move as any. Plus, spellcasters tend to have shinies and be in the know.
"We need to learn more about Helva and Goti before we can do anything about either of them. We also need to make sure neither of them can spy on us by means of scrying or familiar use," Irissa clarified. "Other than that, what we can and can't do really depends on whether we can find anyone able and willing to mess with Rimerunners or at least Asvig. Or, bar that, find some way to sow discord between the two."
"Master Snaevald, would you happen to know any knowledgeable magic users that are definitely not affiliated with the Rimerunners? Or well-connected ones?" Irissa asked, thoughtful. "I'm also curious if there are other reasonably influential people in need of outside help. We may need to earn a few serious favours if we want to discourage the Rimerunners - otherwise I wouldn't risk heading north, because they of all people should have guides and trackers aplenty."
"If we're going to deal with this Asvig, we'll need to either make sure Rimerunners won't intervene on his behalf or secure royal backing first," Irissa warns them. "As it turns out, they are the single most powerful merchant guild in the kingdom, and it's not unheard of for their would-be competitors to disappear. That aside, I also tried to look into Asvig's wife, Helva, but not much is known other than that she's a witch of moderate ability who mostly uses magic for her personal convenience." She takes a sip of her wine. "As for the guide, I was actually thinking of us joining another caravan heading over to Tian Xia, so I'll probably look into merchants that plan to use that route this season."
I'd rather not mess up the post continuity, especially since I can't write fully IC due to lacking feedback about how the evening actually went. As in, details of when, how and whom I asked actually depend on when I had time to, whom I met and how well we got along. So, if you don't mind, I'll post here. Topics that interest me are local powers that be (in particular Rimerunners and their most immediate rivals), local magic users of note (in particular, Helva) and people or groups in Kalsgard that plan to cross the Crown this season. If possible, with parts in the brackets being brought up by steering conversation there instead of asking outright. Gather info
Not sure about time - 1d4 includes going between places and looking for people to talk to which isn't the case here. If something doesn't fit timewise, just ignore it.
Then we have a misunderstanding, it seems. I did not include anything on information gathering because it's in poor taste to post conditional actions without knowing for sure whether the prerequisite will happen as planned. So the idea was to secure lodgings, then make a separate post about talking to the staff, which, depending on available information, would've included either 'gather info' from all of them or 'improve attitude' of someone specific. Since you cut it off with end of the day post, I assumed there was nothing whatsoever to be learned no matter how well I do, making further posts about it moot. Hence my surprise.
You did, however, say that you were going there expressly for the purpose of finding a free place to spend the night. Not only that, but relevant information had already been found inside the Hall. Specifically, that Asvig is cheating on his wife and that she is a witch. And information gathering, which I did mention. In fact, that Belende was able to immediately tell something relevant off the top of her head once questioned was a major reason why I chose to approach her - if she shares that much outright, surely she has more interesting stuff to tell to people she likes and knows better?
Plus, i mean. The Hall is actually the fanciest, ritziest place in town. The kinds of people who work there aren't exactly criminals/rogues/underground types. They're wealthy, fancy, refined ladies. I did not expect them to be underground types themselves, but I did expect them to be well-informed, given that their business runs on having the best possible relationship with the clientele, which in turn likely includes many wealthy and/or powerful people with all kinds of backgrounds. It's a bit hard to imagine something that sensitive being run on impersonal basis.
The idea was to get overview and directions to pursue. Powerful factions like those Rimerunners, important people, latest scandals, etc. Stuff that particularly interests me is people that plan to cross the Crown (those guys that booked all the guides), Asvig's (or Rimerunners') enemies or rivals, and anything on Fynn and the blade theft. Oh well, suppose I'll have to do all the legwork from the ground up.
Huh. That was briefer than expected. Going by the fact that I didn't even get to roll any 'gather info' or 'improve attitude', the Hall is a dead end? That's rather surprising - I didn't expect it to be completely disconnected from city authorities, city underground and street rumour mill all at once. Figured at the very least I'll be able to get a list of Kalsgard's powers that be, both official and not, as well as latest news of note. Also, how much GP have I earned? It's not much, but every bit towards those resistance and charisma items counts
"The witch part would explain the raven and the enchantment on that raider, I suppose," Irissa nods thoughtfully. "I'll see if I can find out anything interesting about them. That said, if you come along, you'll want to actually indulge yourself, lest we stand out even more. I should be fine by myself though" *** The proprietor of the Hall, Belende the Showy, requests that the Varisian girl attends to a number of guests as her part of the deal, but otherwise agrees easily enough. After negotiating the exact terms, Irissa ducks away to change into the most skimpy and provocative variant of the establishment's "uniform" she can find and heads out to the common room. She'll start by making friends with some local girls - she used to get along quite well with the staff of the Pixie's Kitten, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem. Besides, gossip is major reason she's here in the first place. Dancing on the stage every now and then won't go amiss either, especially if one of her new acquantances is willing to join in her performance for extra effect.
"That was part of the bet, actually. I think the owner expected me to run away in outrage or something, so I just couldn't resist poking them instead," Irissa grins, putting the dress back on. "Fun game, too. Shall we?" She moves to leave, bidding farewell to the patrons that cheered for her. "I'm going to the Hall of Splendid Valor now, that's supposed to be the snazziest place around. Wanna come along?"
"Hell yeah!!!" Irissa jumps from her seat in excitement and bounces around, throwing her arms in the air, flushed red from the tense game and her risque stunt in equal measure. Grabbing her possessions and her winnings, she bows to the audience and heads over to where she sees Tallak, thoughs of slinking away forgotten for the moment.
Ahahaha, how awkward, Irissa smiles weakly. The original idea was to mess with the champion a bit, hopefully distracting them from the game, but she suddenly feels rather disinclined to do that, uncertain what consequences that could bring. In hindsight, she probably should've asked about the champion first. In any case, she could but do what she can and rely on luck from there at this point. And after the game, regardless of outcome, she'll thank the audience graciously and quietly excuse herself. "I'll do my best," she nods and focuses on the game.
The Fox requires a bit more dedication to classics than she can muster, and the Harvest is really too gloom. The bet she's offered at the House of the Deep-Minded, on the other hand, is fairly amusing. Irissa's curious about the unfamiliar game to begin with, and the idea of causing some chaos in this prim establishment appeals to her. She has no issue with showing off, and relying on her charms is the only thing that may give her a chance to begin with. "I'll take your ante in coin, I think, but it sounds fun," the girl agrees, grinning at the proprietor, then proceeding to do her best to get him bet genrously - it's not like he's expecting her to win after all (neither does Irissa, to be honest, but it's all about the road, not the destination). While things are being arranged, she observes a couple ongoing games, getting some of the more enthusiastic spectators to explain the rules. Finally it's time, and she walks to the board before turning to the crowd, removing her dress in a smooth, sensual move and waving cheerfully, now clad in nothing but a pair of elegant boots and some jewelry.
With that in mind, I'm getting an impression that the proprietor offered me 'stripping vs lodging' bet, so the question is whether I can turn it into 'stripping vs money' (rolling dip or perform to determine sum). Granted, sum doesn't matter much, I just don't need their room, so might as well get something else.
As for the Hall of Splendid Valor, it's a gorgeous pillored common room designed to look like Heaven. It's got gorgeous Ulfen women lounging around on couches or dancing up on stages, and men come in and say "yeah i want that one". Got it. What about pay? I mean, I'm pretty sure their prices are orders of magnitude more than inn room price, so quarters alone shouldn't take up all of my cut unless it's outrageously low.
Can I get hnefatafl prize in coin if I happen to win it? Also, what's my cut of the pay in the Hall of Splendind Valor and does it look like I can haggle? Also, what does the Hall look like? As in, is there place to perform, or is Irissa supposed to just hang around and look nice or head out elsewhere?
Heeding Sandru's advice, Irissa heads out to seek lodgings in the city. After asking around a bit to learn more about Kalsgard, she chooses to head over to the Fire District and see if any of the more upscale brothels are interested in hiring a performer for a few days with quality food and lodgings as part of the deal. From her limited experience, senior staff at such establishments tends to be remarkably well-informed about their city's ongoings and often well-connected. Besides, the idea of getting paid for essentially partying around strongly appealed to her, especially if she lands at one of those stupidly luxurious places.
Gah, should've checked in yesterday evening, too, the travel post was up early enough. @leinathan, how safe is the city? Would Irissa need armed escort to go pub and brothel crawling? Also, what are the housing options if we're settling separately? Calder seems to have reputable sources mostly handled, so I'm thinking of landing somewhere in the grey area of dubious legality and making friends to fish for shadier rumours. We're still hauling those drugs, are we not? Maybe I'll find us a buyer. Or find means to earn some money to spend on magic items.
Whoops! I guess I forgot. Then again, Irissa didn't say anything to the raider in-character before he ran away to indicate that she wanted him to stay, so... maybe I don't feel so bad. Errr. I had no reason or grounds to tell him to stay until they actually began to withdraw. It would've looked very bizarre if I started talking to the charmed guy instead of focusing on the fight with Calder and Kolung being as screwed as they were. Didn't need to, either, since it's possible to speak out briefly outside of one's turn as far as I remeber. It mostly burns down to whether getting him to stick around required a charisma check and how high.
Ugh. I wish you guys held the line instead of charging forward. I'd have been able to use Entangle to pin them down and split them into smaller groups. As it is, I'd be preventing Calder (and possibly Kolung, unsure what his movement features are) from retreating should he need to, so that's out for now. It's not too vital now, but as we accumulate more (and nastier) aoe (cloud spells, fireball, etc), stopping enemy melee attackers from entering our ranks will get increasingly important.
Guys, come on, someone with decent Local needs to roll Riddleport. I highly doubt there will be demand for that stuff in Crying Leaf, and hauling it any further becomes a hassle. I'd do it, but my Local is untrained, as Irissa isn't too versed in such things. That's the check I'm waiting for, since, bar utter failure, the results should be relevant for making the decision.
Well, time to make them knowledge checks. In general Riddleport sounds like a fitting place to sell that sort of goods, but it never hurts to check. @leinathan, what knowledge skills would apply? Presumably, we'd want to identify the substance, establish degre of (il)legality and our risks if we go along with it, as well as estimate our prospects of selling it in Riddleport. Nature, Geography and Local?
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