Session 1:
Present: Ozmondo the Enlightened (Chelish Wizard [generalist]); Dagra Wesh (Varisian Scout); Malax Osborne (Human Cleric of Gorum); Teri Olander (Half-Elf Bard)
Players' View:
Our intrepid heros enter the the bustling town of Sandpoint lured by the anticipated Swallowtail Festival, held in celebration of the town's newly finished temple only to encounter some rather rude party-crashers.
A festive mood pervades the atmosphere of the town of Sandpoint. Everyone is either busy preparing for the festival or celebrating early, as was the case in The Rusty Dragon Inn. Teri was eager to join in with the locals' story telling while everyone else was eager to wet their dusty throats. The rest of the evening was spent taking in the sights of the town and gossip with the towns people.
We learned that the town had faced some discouraging hardships the in the past few years including the loss of their old church and priest in a terrible fire. The celebration, it would seem, would be a good moment of closure for many.
Bright and early the next morning our heros make for the town square to begin feasting and drinking and to make sure they get a good spot for the event. The Mayor, Sheriff, and Priest get their opportunities to make longwinded and boring speeches all capped off with the release of several swallowtail butterflies as a symbolic gesture to the goddess Desna.
Suddenly, a scream at the rear of the crowd arouses the attention of our heros. A hideous, wreched creature stands over a dying dog, its throat ripped open by a crude blade. A goblin! Everyone springs into action... except the brave Malax who is still trying to figure out what is going on. More goblins appear... they begin to pillage, loot and set fires. They, along with a whip wielding, War Chanter are soon slain... one escapes. But there are still more goblins about the town. After the battle a priest from the new catheral offers his healing magic to the party. Not far away more goblins threaten a member of the village. They are lead by a brute riding atop a foul goblin-dog. After a close fight our heros stand triumphant over the corpses of their slain enemies. They are greatfully thanked by the man, a local noble, who is none worse for the wear, save for having his hunting dog gutted by a goblin dogslicer. After being pressed by Malax he reluctantly agrees that he will mention something about a shrine to Gorum; the noble also mentions something about a reward before heading off... but the sounds of chaos can still be heard... our heroes' work is not yet done this day.
GM's view:
The goblin dog nearly took down the cleric, which would have been bad, as Malax is also the only melee fighter. Had Father Zentus not found and healed them before they encountered the commando . . . Foxglove attached himself to the hugely-muscled Malax.