The Levetons look at each other, then back at Katya. Oleg replies, "It was a couple of weeks before you lot (not you, Katya) showed up from Restov and gave Happs what for. Funny, he'd usually be back by now. He usually doesn't spend more than three weeks in the field."
At some point after the party has handed over the moon radishes, Svetlana surreptitiously passes over a pouch containing a half-dozen small opals, worth 50 gp each.
Oleg gorges himself on moon radish soup, while everyone else feasts on the bear meat. Garess' mercenaries (and trainees) have set two-hour watches during the night, split up so that no more than one of the ex-bandits is on watch at a time.
Simn nodded thoughtfully, "It's very possible someone took exception to him. There were a few fey following us about."
Oleg snorts. "No one will shed any tears for him, if he's really gone."
The next morning, the stocky trader is in a rare good mood. He parades the horse he got at Havrin's request, and it is indeed a fine mount for the ranger. In the ensuing discussion (with Jacyn called in as an expert on horseflesh), he mentions offhandedly that with the bandit suppression in the immediate area he's been getting more trappers and hunters coming through and trading. "But you know--this may sound silly, but I'd like to have something unique here--something that people will talk about besides just 'that place out in the Stolen Lands.' There was an old bear head mounted over the stable door when we got here, but it was moldering and besides, bears are nothing special. Now, there are these big lizards hereabouts, called tatzlwyrms. If you could get me a couple of tatzlwyrm heads in good condition, good enough to mount, I'd pay you well for them."
"Any idea whereabouts these tattleworms live?"
"I'd like to find this temple too."
If there is a week in downtime, Adam will spend some time gambling with the traders.
And a performance toward the end of each day.
6 gp earned from gambling.
Three routine performances cp
One enjoyable performance sp
One great performance sp
Two memorable performances gp
Bea looks at Oleg curiously. "I've never heard of such a thing before. Just...how big of lizards are we talking about?"
"I've never seen one myself, but if you believe some of the trappers they're thirty feet long and at the same time able to hide in a tree. Old Vekkel Benzen, though, is a little more trustworthy than most; he says fifteen feet, and about half that is tail. They're supposed to be good at hiding, too, and they like living where there's lots of cover. Don't expect to see them out in the Kamelands."
"Well, we need to head back into the forest anyways - we still haven't found the temple we set out to locate. Maybe we'll run into one...that reminds me. Can I buy a bottle of mead from you?"
Jacyn waits til Oleg and Bea are done bartering over the mead before approaching the shopkeep again, "Are you interested in buying these traps we found? I dont think we have much use of them, and as their previous owner seems to have gone missing, he'll likely not be needing them. Also, while I have you, I wonder if you have a particularly well made lance or longsword among your wares? Mine are fine for now, but if we are going to be fighting fifteen foot lizards, I might need something with a little better craftsmanship."
Simn considered, "I think tracking down that temple and investigating the Stag Lord should take priority. Still, there's no reason we can't keep an eye out for Tatzlwyrms as we go. We could perhaps take a wider circuit through the forest this time. I doubt we'll find either the temple or the wyrms on the outskirts."
The next morning, the stocky trader is in a rare good mood. He parades the horse he got at Havrin's request, and it is indeed a fine mount for the ranger.
Havrin thanks Oleg for procuring such a fine steed, and names the horse 'Stepper'. "Hopefully he'll have better luck stepping over any snares we come across, if we find any more of Orlivanch's handiwork, Havrin comments to Jacyn as the two evaluate the ranger's new mount.
Havrin spends the rest of the day training with Stepper, giving horse and rider an opportunity to become used to each other. At the end of the day, he approaches Oleg and Svetlana with a question. "As Adam mentioned, we encountered at least two fey creatures during our recent exploration. I was wondering, do you have any non-perishable sweets or shiny trinkets for sale? They might be useful for placating the fey creatures if we encounter them again. Also, do you have any curative potions for sale?"
At hearing Jacyn's request for new weapons, Beatrix adds a request of her own, "That's a good idea - I'd also like a new sword. I can pay up front if you need to have one sent from Brevoy."
Bea: "Assuming you don't want the cheap stuff, ten gold for a bottle."
Jacyn:
Svetlana says, "We don't have anything like that on hand right now, but I thought you might eventually be wanting better weapons and armor. So while you were out putting paid to Kressle, I lined up a supplier in Restov--give me a week or two, and I can get masterwork for you." She pauses and looks a bit guilty before continuing, "No offense, but I'll need half the price up front--the Gods forbid, if something were to happen to you, I'd rather not have so much of our stock tied up in one item."
Havrin: Oleg replies, "Bokken was just here a couple of days ago, and we got a half-dozen cure light wounds potions from him. I think we've got four left--for you, standard price, no markup." Svetlana adds, "I can probably find some honey candy and a couple of little bells; call it a gold?"
Adam pocketed his little opal discretely.
Bea smiles at Svetlana. "Half? I'll give you the full value for a finely crafted greatsword now, so you don't have to worry, and the smith won't skimp." She hands her a pouch with 360 gold pieces. "That should cover the sword, plus some extra for getting it here and your trouble."
Jacyn digs out the full 315 for the longsword, in gold and platinum, handing the pile to Svetlana. " I agree with Bea. We wouldn't want to leave a burden on you and Oleg should anything happen to us."
"The traps...sure. I normally charge 3 gold each, or ten for twenty-five, but we already got our money's worth...hmm...how about fifteen gold for the nine of them?"
Oleg replies, "Bokken was just here a couple of days ago, and we got a half-dozen cure light wounds potions from him. I think we've got four left--for you, standard price, no markup." Svetlana adds, "I can probably find some honey candy and a couple of little bells; call it a gold?"
"That's a very fair deal. I'll take all four potions," Havrin responds, paying Oleg 200 of his remaining gold coins. "And I'll take the honey candy and little bells, too," he adds, handing another gold coin to Svetlana.
Not needing anything in particular at the moment, Katya leaves the rest of the group to resupply themselves and walks towards one of the more unused areas of the fort and pulls out her spellbook. For anybody who might have been expecting a light show, Katya unfortunately disappoints, as she spends almost the entire time with her nose inside the book. Though she does have a pair of small lights twirling in figure eights through her fingers, a concentration trick she learned back in the academy. Towards the end of her studying she suddenly jumps up and flips her book closed.
Walking with purpose towards Svetlana, she waits until the woman has a moment to ask, "I don't suppose you get much by way of the arcane arts around here. Still, I must ask if you have any scrolls or wands available here, and if not, I would like to request a couple if you could put in an order for them. I can tell you who to write to get the items I require."
"Sure, fifteen gold it is. Let me help you get those inside." Jacyn says, picking up the rope with five traps hanging from it, and follows Oleg into the shop.
Jacyn exits the building after a few minutes with a pile of coins in his hand, passing out a pair of gold and five silver to the others.
Katya, Svetlana shakes her head apologetically. "There's been no call for it until you and Retsiji showed up. The only one around here who does that sort of thing is Bokken, and he's not one for book-learning. Brews a fine potion, though. Now, I sent a request up to Restov at the same time as I tried to line up a weaponsmith, but with weapons it's easier to tell who's good and who isn't--I still haven't gotten an answer, so any names you have would be much appreciated."
The updated hex map is HERE.
I also updated the experience totals on my profile page--you all have 2750 xp out of 5000 needed for level 3.
As night begins to fall, Beatrix gathers the group together to discuss their plans. "I think we should head due west in the morning, spend a day mapping out the plains between here and the edge of the woods in that direction, and then move back into the forest. I'd like to try and make contact with the fey we met there, then continue mapping the woodland areas to try and find the abandoned temple. What do you think?"
"The temple has definitely perked my interest, not because I am a devout person, but merely because I am interested in seeing if the locale can be used strategically by our group."
"Sounds fine to me. Do we leave in the morning?"
"Let's. Get some good rest tonight - we'll be roughing it for awhile."
Simn nodded. He doubted the temple would be the simple base of operations Adam was hoping for. Any temple, no matter how long abandoned, retained a touch of the divine about it. Still, best to let Adam learn such things for himself. For now, he absorbed himself in his preparations for another foray into the wilds, making sure he had plenty of provisions laid in.
Katya shows slight distaste at the mention of the fey. "Must we really try to contact them again? I'd rather not have to check my packs for mouse traps every morning if I could help it. I say leave them to their home if we can help it. Seeking out the fey has not ended well in any story I have heard.
"Also Master Oleg, I was wondering if you had any wandermeal? If so I'd like to purchase 10 days-worth."
Havrin is about to leave when he pauses, struck by a new thought. "Master Oleg, would it be possible to obtain some fireworks? Some paper candles or even some Desnan candles?"
As night begins to fall, Beatrix gathers the group together to discuss their plans. "I think we should head due west in the morning, spend a day mapping out the plains between here and the edge of the woods in that direction, and then move back into the forest. I'd like to try and make contact with the fey we met there, then continue mapping the woodland areas to try and find the abandoned temple. What do you think?"
"West sounds good to me. I'd definitely like to find that abandoned temple."
"Yea, the arrows sound like a good idea." At the mention of wandermeal, Jacyn appears dumbfounded, and waits to hear Oleg's response about having some in stock before asking what it is.
"Should we try to purchase ponies, or will those only slow us down? I've been mostly comfortable with our traveling arrangements so far."
Bea considers Key's comments. "That's precisely why I'd like to talk to them. We're here to stay, and unless they're planning on leaving I'd rather know if they're ally or enemy. If at all possible, I'd rather we make friends with those who lived here first than drive them out - you weren't with us at the time but that's how we dealt with the kobald tribe to the south, which looks like it will turn into a most profitable arrangement."
Havrin, Oleg replies, "Wandermeal? I've got a few weeks' worth on hand, but it may be a little stale--it doesn't move real fast until winter. No fireworks, though."
Adam nods in agreement with Bea.
"Yes, diplomacy if at all possible. Please. In politics, it's not always what you know (or what you can prove), its who you know."
In response to Bea's comment, Jacyn offers, "Right now we are barely able to see them, let alone be able to do anything about them, should they decide to attack us for some insult we might inadvertently cause. We could simply try to avoid them for now, until we could find some way of leveling the playing field. I'm not suggesting starting anything with them, but isn't it better to be overprepared than underprepared?"
Havrin, Oleg replies, "Wandermeal? I've got a few weeks' worth on hand, but it may be a little stale--it doesn't move real fast until winter. No fireworks, though."
"I'll take 10 days-worth of wandermeal then. Do you think I could order some fireworks?"
Oleg serves out Havrin's wandermeal. "I'll see what I can do about the fireworks. No guarantees, though."
The weather is again excellent as you set out the next morning. You spend the day roving around the grassy plain where you met the bear, marking the positions of ponds and the sites of streams, and end the day at the edge of the forest in a small hollow.
The weather isn't anywhere near as nice as you're passing through the forest; it's a bit cooler, with intermittent rain. You're riding along a winding path through the forest, keeping an eye out for traps, when you come upon a small family of wild pigs. Havrin is taking out his bow to collect one or two for dinner when something happens.
Day 2:
The pigs have noticed you, but you're about fifty feet away and they aren't really starting to panic yet (particularly as you're not coming any closer). Havrin, you're lining up your shot when two of the pigs suddenly look off to one side of the path...as a wave of vegetation surges out of the forest and smashes those two into the forest floor. The rest of the pigs are starting to scatter when the great mound of greenery lashes out again; one pig manages to dodge the blow, but the other is laid low.
What do you do?
"Carnivorous vegetation. I suggest dispatching it."
Adam's droll tone might be humorous in the right circumstances.
Bea's heard starts beating rapidly as she tries to understand what she just saw. Adam's suggestion brings her into focus, and she jumps off her horse and helps Adam down before it spooks. Drawing her bow, she tries her best to line up a shot at the plant creature.
Adam wonders if the shot should have been made before negotiations had begun, but just because vegetation is carnivorous, doesn't make it intelligent enough to communicate.
Round 1:
Initiative order:
Havrin
Jacyn
Katya
Simn
Adam
Bea/Monster
My poor hapless carnivorous plant is slower than everyone else except Bea (though not flatfooted, at least). It's fifty feet from Havrin. Map is HERE; note that everyone on horseback is taking up four 5' squares. The green is forest. It's treated as difficult terrain, and more than four squares constitutes cover against missile fire. Let me know if there are any issues with placement, and have at.