Shian Reloaded Campaign Log

[Zyraen]

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[Zyraen]

1.1 Night Shifts
16-Mar-16 (Wed)

While drinking in the tavern, the heroes notice two men enter and engage in intense discussion, one of which appeared to be a relatively well dressed and somewhat rotund merchant, and the other a rather weasely dark clad sort. The heroes headed over to hear what the merchant seemed to want achieved, and the man called Ronel shared his area of concern - it seems that the crop harvest for the past few years or so has been good, and this year was no different. The ongoing surplus of grain has depressed prices even for an importer of fine grains like him, but that could be resolved if there were some way for the local grain from this year's harvest, that was stored in a nearby granary, to be removed from the market. At this point, Darius seemed to bristle about him wanting to burn some grain, but Ronel countered by saying he meant no such thing and meant nothing that would harm anyone, especially since the depressed prices affected the local farmers too. In any case, if the heroes choose to aid him, he would be pleased to reward them handsomely, and if they need materials for whatever they wished to get done, perhaps his friend here - gesturing to the other man - might help supply them with what they needed.

The heroes were debating about whether to accept the job, when in came a sergeant and five of his men, who were drinking with a little too much abandon. The heroes enquired and understood that the last few supply caravans from Zeychand to the West Garrison have been waylaid by goblins, with notably few survivors, and so the men were understandably apprehensive that they have been assigned to the next shipment that would depart tomorrow afternoon. The heroes offered to approach the captain to see if their services were required.

In meantime, they decided to try and get the merchant's task done and approached his associate Nedrin after Ronel had retired. The man was initially very closed up, especially after being freaked out by two of the heroes, but the others got him back on track to talk about business, and without mentioning at all what he or Ronel wanted, offered to take two of them to look at his goods. He took them out back and eventually showed them some goods, any of which might assist them in their task - a bottle of very tenacious weevils, some flammable acid substance, and some potent poison that would give a stain. Each of them decided to take 1 item, and Nedrin wished them well.

It was past midnight as the heroes staked out the granary silos near the waterway diverted from a river, within a guarded and fenced up compound. They were considering how to deal with the matter without raising the alarm when they decided they would rather find out who was the owner of the goods and see if they could deal with them in some way, perhaps get the military to buy up the goods at a discount. They also learnt from the guards - who were charmed by the affable warlock, not withstanding the time of the night - that the owners were the local farmers, as represented collectively by the Guild of Farmers. The next morning, they went to the guild of farmers and found the person in charge, getting the man to set a price that they would offer to the military. Thereafter they went to Captain Gysward, head of the military in Zeychand, and got him to agree to buy the grain at a 70% discount and take it off the market.

The heroes then told the captain their intention to accompany the caravan, hopefully for a reward, and the initially slightly embarrassed captain agreed and told them they could try to find the caches from past caravans the goblins had stolen and help themselves, before recovering the rest. He also gave them some potions and arranged for them to take the place of the sergeant's guard, although the nervous man had to accompany them to ensure there was some official military presence on the caravan. Before departing, they stopped by to visit Ronel who was still at the inn, and congratulated them on their excellent disposal and rewarded their endeavours.

The heroes set out with the caravan, on what proved an uneventful journey even until nightfall. The heroes decided to set up a semi ambush of sorts for the expected attackers, and the two elves among their number were alert to raise the alarm when goblins were detected. The goblins were led by a hobgoblin with a great spear, and with their vision advantage in the darkness they managed to gravely injure some the heroes before they were all dispatched, save one who was scared off by the warlock, and they hoped to follow the tracks the panicking goblin had left in its wake.

Total XP Gained : 1/X L1
200 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 1/X L1
300 Darius Black (Clement): 1/X L1
300 Gwan Wyn^ (Omar): 1/X L1
300 Lunastar (Lance): 1/X L1
200 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 1/X L1
300 Warlock^ (Wesley): 1/X L1
Total Sessions : 1
^ - AP used

Transactions
+100 Gp : Starting Gold
+200 Gp : Reward from Ronel
-100 gp : Purchase of 2 Healing potions by Arvellon, Zaylor
+2 Healing potions for whole party, provided by Captain Gysward
-1 Healing potion consumed by Gwan Wyn
Acidic Flammable Vial obtained by Lance
Bottle of tenacious Weevils obtained by Warlock

Rep: Merchants* 1 / People* 1

[Zyraen]

1.2 Undercurrents
21-Mar-16 (Mon)

The heroes deliberated whether to follow the trail left by the fleeing goblin or deliver the caravan to the West Garrison. Gwan Wyn the druid decided to leave some marks so they could find the trail with ease later, and they accompanied the grateful sergeant to the West Garrison, arriving about nightfall the following day. There they met the garrison Quartermaster Lt Bowen, who informed them that they had been searching the area for goblin hideout with little success, and that the attacks started about 2 weeks ago. He invited them to stay the night in the garrison, before making their way on the trail. Darius got a signal from Lt Bowen that he wanted to say more, but was reluctant in the presence of the 2 elves, Arvellon and Gwan Wyn.

Arvellon, Gwan Wyn and Zaylor headed to the tavern in the Garrison, where in a clientele of exclusively men, there were many aspiring ladies looking to make a living. Notably, there were 2 elven maids who caught the eye of the party, and while flirting Arvellon noticed that one of the two named Merelda, seemed more interested in the ongoing affairs of the human empire than what would be normal. He managed to procure some alone time with her and learnt she came from the southern part of the forest of Murr, and used to be a ranger in the elven military who decided she had gotten too up close and personal with one too many orcs. Separately, Zaylor got some information from the barkeep about how orc attacks were becoming more frequent and how the raids have been affecting supplies for the tavern. Meanwhile, Darius and Lunastar went to visit Lt Bowen privately, and learnt more - Bowen believed that the goblins were in collaboration with another power, and believed the elves to be involved one way or another, since the territory of the Empire had been checked by he and his men. He gave a list of the inventory on the caravans lost so far, and asked that the heroes check the list against whatever cache the goblins find, so that even if they could not bring it all back, they would have some idea as to the agenda or identities of the mastermind.

The next morning the heroes set out to find the goblin hideout. After following the tracks northwest from where they had first encountered the goblins, they steathily entered the forest and found the goblins' lair appears to have an entrance at the side of a 10-15' deep long ravine in the forest. They realised the ravine was probably formed from a passage of water that had since been dried up, and managed to find a stream nearby with obstacles preventing the water's flow into the ravine. With the water starting to flood the goblins' lair, they laid an ambush that started promising well but turned with a few bad criticals landed on Darius who was in the van, and he let himself be slid into the ravine to get out of harm's way. Things looked tense for a moment but turned just as suddenly with a well placed spell from Lunastar, deadly shots from Arvellon and a debilitating blast of thorns from Gwan Wyn.

As the rest were catching their breath, the heroes were warned by some elves from distant treetops to leave their territory, and Gwan Wyn realised they were condoning the presence of the goblins. The elves did not take exceptionally well to Arvellon nor Gwan Wyn, who were both brought up in Zeychand, asked that the heroes leave immediately after dealing with the goblins, and also that the elves get to look through the goblin caches and items of interest before the heroes got the rest. The heroes were in no shape to argue after a battle, and agreed, also deciding to take a breather. The next band of goblins came up unexpectedly quickly, led by two longspear wielding hobgoblins, but the heroes managed to lay low enough to escape notice until they had time to fully recover.

Total XP Gained : 2/X L1
180 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 2/X L1
300 Darius Black (Clement): 2/X L1
250 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 2/X L1
300 Lunastar (Lance): 2/X L1
189 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 2/X L1
AFK - 300 Warlock (Wesley): 1.5/X L1
Total Sessions : 2
^ - AP used

Transactions
+2 Healing potions for whole party, provided by the QM Lt Bowen, currently 3 in all.
-10 gp : Arvellon's quality time with lady
-1 gp : Zaylor tip to West Garrison Tavern Barkeep
-50 gp : Purchase of 1 Healing potion by Gwan Wyn
-10 gp : 10 flammable crossbolts/arrows purchased by Zaylor/Arvellon. minor action to light, 1d6 extra fire damage.

Rep: Merchants 1 / Military* 1 / People 1

[Zyraen]

1.3 Honorable Discharge
28-Mar-16 (Mon)

The heroes attempted to spring a surprise attack on the patrol that was out hunting for them, and learnt painful lessons, for the battle was difficult with terrain proving a double-edged sword thanks to the threatening reach of the long spears. They attempted to stealthily approach the main force of goblins, but were spotted at a distance, yet this proved to be to their advantage. Even as Zaylor used a flammable bolt to hamper the hexcaster and his crossbow-wielding underlings, the rest of the enemy had to close the intervening distance, and the heroes continually benefitted from cover. Coupled with the astute use of some special powers, the battle was won with relative ease.

As the last goblin fell, the heroes noticed there was an elf dousing the fire that Zaylor had started, since that was most of the caches and loot that the goblins had shifted out of their rapidly waterlogging den. The elves did not allow them to recover uniforms, crossbows, pikes and longspears, but let them take most of the rest, such as shields and longswords, even money and items of value. Arvellon literally pissed off the elves, but Zaylor's more tactful quiet whisperings made a friend out of the lone elf sent to deal with them in person. From the elf he learnt the overall leader of the elves in this area was one captain Varasdien, who ranked above the elf's own patrol leader Marconius. They also gathered that while the elves were following orders, they were not privy to the plans regarding the retained equipment, nor were the elves themselves entirely comfortable with their own suspicions.

The heroes then left the forest under the watchful unseen eyes of the elven patrol, to report the outcome of their mission and also to return those supplies they had recovered to the West Garrison.

Total XP Gained : 0/X Level 2
Level Up! 530 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 0/X L2
Level Up! 750 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 0/X L2
Level Up! 800 Lunastar (Lance): 0/X L2
Level Up! 169 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 0/X L2
AFK - 550 Darius Black (Clement): 2.5/3 L1
AFK - 300 Warlock (Wesley): 2/3 L1
Total Sessions : 3

Transactions
+500 gp: remaining loot from caravan cache plus items sold back to the West Garrison. (Quest reward). 250 (half) for Darius for 1.2
L4 Claw Gloves found by Gwan Wyn
-520 gp: L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking by Zaylor (off table)
-150 gp: 5/10 Firestorm Arrows by Arvellon (off table)

Fixed Gear
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 5 Firestorm arrows
Gwan Wyn : L4 Claw Gloves
Lunastar : Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*

* - custom items, not in compendium

Rep: Merchants 1 / Military* 2 / People 1 / Elves* -1

[Zyraen]

2.1 Hooked
04-Apr-16 (Mon)

The heroes reported back to the quartermaster Lt Bowen at the West Garrison, who bought over the retrieved items at a reasonable price (settled in 1.3). The findings worried him, since it seemed clear that the elves were up to no good, but he had no idea who was behind this and where the leak was. The heroes also learnt that shortly after the ascension of the current emperor Celdon Shianis, the West Garrison had all its elven personnel gradually transferred out of the garrison. Regardless, Bowen was in a good mood, and Arvellon asked him if they would like to go for a drink together, but he declined saying he had an evening appointment to keep.

The heroes decided to spy on him and found that there was a woman being brought to him from the tavern, who turned out to be no other than the elf Merelda. Arvellon scaled the roof and listened in on their interaction, and realised that after their mutual association, Merelda was asking the sleeping Bowen questions, which he answered as if hypnotized or under an effect of a drug. Informing the rest, they placed Gwan Wyn on the look out for her return, while Darius, Lance and Zaylor learnt which was her room from the innkeeper by using the panpipes as a reason to return them. They later returned on their own to ambush her, and combined with Gwan Wyn who trailed her back, they managed to surprise and subdue her, but not before causing a terrible ruckus over four men beating on a helpless seeming elven girl, and they were brought to a livid Lt Bowen in the deep of the night. Once they showed him the evidence they had gathered though, he quickly dismissed the other men and took Merelda into custody, while paying a fair amount for their silence and suggesting they visit Flotsam where he heard there had lately been reports of missing people.

The heroes arrived in Flotsam and met the village elder called Caldwick. He seemed to be an ex-military man who now ran the place, who believed the missing people - mostly able-bodied men from 15-30 - were due to a kidnapping operation by slavers. Although he seemed to be putting in effort to find the slavers, he seemed to be more concerned that his guards did not get into too much trouble, and also told the heroes the slavers were previously driven out by adventurers from his father's time, just a few years ago. On further insight and questioning, the heroes learnt that he believes the mastermind behind this group of slavers was responsible for his father's death, and therefore is more anxious about finding this person and getting his revenge than quickly driving out the slaver operations. He impressed this key concern on the heroes before they left to visit the areas where people had gone missing.

The heroes decided to put a bait for them by getting a lad from the tavern drunk and setting up an ambush nearby while he was vulnerable in the dangerous area. Their caution proved well warranted, for the underlings sent out by the slavers were by no means inexperienced thugs simply operating like a regular pressgang. Fortunately, they managed to spring a surprise, and combined with a few mistakes by the enemy, managed to press the advantage from the ambush to defeat their enemies, and even stopped a sniping rogue from making a rooftop escape.

Total XP Gained : 1/X Level 2
50 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 1/X L2
Level Up! 750 Darius Black (Clement): 0.5/X L2
950 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 1/X L2
1000 Lunastar (Lance): 1/X L2
370 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 1/X L2
Total Sessions : 3+1

Transactions
1 Gp returned to Zaylor by Barkeep
200 Gp for your silence by Lt Bowen
L5 Resplendent Gloves given to Lunastar by Lt Bowen
-680 gp: Spidersilk Mantle +1 by Arvellon

Fixed Gear
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 5 Firestorm arrows, Spidersilk Mantle +1
Gwan Wyn : L4 Claw Gloves
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*

Rep: Merchants 1 / Military* 3 / People 1 / Elves -1

[Zyraen]

2.2 Closed Door Meeting
20-Apr-16 (Wed)

The heroes manage to extricate details about the slavers' hide out at the warehouse before putting the last one out of his misery. They disguise themselves as those they killed, using hoods to hide their faces and altering their voices, while the wizard pretended to be a captured person. They managed to bluff their way past the main door guards and then bar the door from inside, but there were many ruffians within the two floor factory set up, and got into the office on the second floor.

There, faced with the half-orc second in command, the heroes jumped him while locking the door behind them. The Hood joined in the fight, as well as a halfling and his underling firing from the third floor of the warehouse that opened into the second level of the office, while those outside battered on the main door of the office. Fortunately the door held, and the heroes managed to knock out the Hood and the half-orc, causing the halfling to make a getaway via the roof access. The heroes then sprang blasts and firestorm arrows on the many who attempted to enter, and managed to bring down half of them, before intimidating the rest to surrender.

Fortunately, someone smelled burning and they found a secret trapdoor under the large table in the office. There they found a secret holding area was smoked out and burning, but managed to rescue all 5 slaves before any were killed.

Total XP Gained : 2/X Level 2
100 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 2/X L2
800 Darius Black (Clement): 1.5/X L2
1000 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 2/X L2
1050 Lunastar (Lance): 2/X L2
420 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 2/X L2
New Char: 2.5/3 L1
Total Sessions : 3+2

Transactions
2 Firestorm Arrows used by Arvellon
50 gp looted from Warehouse
L4 Gauntlets of Blood found by Arvellon

Fixed Gear
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 3/8 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Gwan Wyn : L4 Claw Gloves
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People* 2 / Slavers -1

[Zyraen]

2.3 In Transit
05-May-16 (Thu)

The heroes brought the Hood and half-orc back to the village Elder Caldwick, and they took turns to interrogate them. They learnt the slavers here often delivered goods via boat to a dragonborn named Daerok in the Red Mansions inn in the West district of Berklin. They also learnt that the escaped halfling was one of the Kray brothers, and the Elder seemed sure that they were involved with the death of his father, giving them an initial reward for busting the local slaver operations, and offering the heroes a handsome reward for their deaths.

The heroes managed to find the location of the slaver boats, though they soon realized some had been sabotaged and at least 1 was missing. They managed to repair the boats and made their way across the Bay of Mists towards Berklin, hugging the southern coast of Shian. Along the way they encountered some tiefling pirate ship, but managed to turn their attention away, then some time later had to beach their boats due to a storm. One of the boats was damaged as they beached, and they took shelter from the rain, only to see a large hunting party of the Sahuagin emerge from the sea.

The heroes hid from the Sahuagin successfully and followed them inland, where they saw they were about to raid a village, and that was when the heroes stepped in to stop them. Gwan Wyn had a rough time with the brutish leader of the Sahuagin, but his heroics gave the rest time to thin the Sahuagin numbers and drop their leader as well, even as the local militia came rushing up in the stormy weather to offer help that was no longer needed.

Total XP Gained : 0/X Level 3 [/b]
Level Up! 300 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 0/X L3
1000 Darius Black (Clement): 2.5/X L2
Level Up! 1200 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 0/X L3
Level Up! 1250 Lunastar (Lance): 0/X L3
Level Up! 620 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 0/X L3
Off Record - Alagos (Windson)
Total Sessions : 3+3

Transactions
200 gp from Caldwick
L5 Debilitating Gloves for Darius

Fixed Gear
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 3/8 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Gwan Wyn : L4 Claw Gloves
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People* 3 / Slavers -1

[Zyraen]

3.1 Backalley Business
09-May-16 (Mon)

The heroes were welcomed by the villagers of Shylo and were brought to their best inn, which turned out to be a truly ramshackle affair. The fare the people specially cooked for them turned out to be meager, and the militia head Peter apologised for this. The heroes spoke to him and learnt he used to be a sergeant in the military, but this place effectively fell under the control of the Red Scorn, and they regularly took the best of village's supplies, leaving only bare necessities for the people to carry on their lives.

After some debate, the heroes carried on their way to Berklin, and they arrived in the evening, where the customs official and two guards milked them for some tips. They then proceeded to the Red Mansion, and decided to disguise again as slavers with Lunastar being the helpless victim once more. They met the dragonborn Daerok in the backalley, and he had Lunastar do some tricks for him before the heroes decided to engage them. Gwan Wyn decided to put himself between two ruffians to block them from leaving the backdoor of the inn, providing a literal meatshield for the rest.

After the scuffle, they interrogated the dragonborn and got him to write a letter to his boss, an Eladrin called Telchannar that tends to go to the Ivory House library in the North district could refer them to where they could find the Kray brothers provided they had a job for them. Then they all but chopped off his head. Zaylor also obtained a Silver Badge showing Justice department of the West district with the name Ragnar on it.

Total XP Gained : 1/X L3 Level 3
300 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 1/X L3
Level Up! 1000 Darius Black (Clement): 0.5/X L2
1200 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 1/X L3
1250 Lunastar (Lance): 1/X L3
620 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 1/X L3
Off Record - Alagos (Windson)
Total Sessions : 3+3+1

Transactions
Silver Badge for Zaylor Vinci (Quest Item)

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 3/8 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves
Gwan Wyn : L4 Claw Gloves
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : Silver Badge*, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People* 4 / Slavers* -2

[Zyraen]

3.2 Guild Affairs
27-May-16 (Fri)

The heroes went to the North district and met Telchannar at the Ivory House library. He turned out to be a rather foppish and overdressed elf with a "I'm too rich for you" sort of look, but Lunastar noticed he was probably quite a potent spellcaster. They showed him the letter from Daerok, pretending to be associates of the dragonborn looking for professional services, and then paid Telchannar some gold to learn the location of the Assassins' guild in Berklin. The location given turned out to be a backalley near where the West and South districts met. They did also pique the elf's interest and he sent a servant to secretly tail them, but the heroes detected the attempt and shook it off.

The heroes took a break at the Ivory Mead nearby, a relatively good eating house. There while discussing what to do, Darius met an old friend called Allister, who commented on the state of the company he was keeping.

The heroes then located the Assassin's Guild and attempted to break into it in mid afternoon. The first attempt did not go so well, and after raising the alarm and Zaylor getting poisoned, the heroes decided to get him healed and return with Thieves' Tools. They noticed 2 men staking out the place, and some excellent acting by Darius and Arvellon got them to imbibe the sleep-inducing herb, leaving them out for the count. They then got past the door again, only to be attacked by two others who seemed to be expecting trouble. Apart from some very nasty hits though, they were easily dispatched without the back up they were expecting, ie the other two unconscious persons.

The heroes then had time to explore and plunder the relatively empty guild at this time. They found a prison where Zaylor picked up yet another Silver Badge from the Justice department of the West District with a name, and they freed a prisoner who informed them that the dead body in the adjacent cell belonged to that person. The heroes extracted 5 poison darts from the trap on the guild's door and planted them in the special quarters presumably occupied by the Kray brothers, splitting 3 and 2 in each bed.

Total XP Gained : 2/X L3 Level 3
697 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 2/X L3
1277 Darius Black (Clement): 1.5/X L3
1477 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 2/X L3
1627 Lunastar (Lance): 2/X L3
947 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 2/X L3
Total Sessions : 3+3+2

Transactions
20 Gp to Arvellon due to 25 for doses and -5 for entertainment
-100 Gp to Gwan Wyn and Darius (2 Healing Potions each)
-50 Gp to Zaylor for healing Poison
377 Gp Loot to All, after -8 to Telchannar and -6 for Thieves Tools for Zaylor
L6 Horned Helm for Zaylor Vinci (& extra Silver Badge)
2 Healing Potions to Gwan Wyn, 1 Healing Potion to Darius, 1 Healing Potion to Zaylor

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 3/8 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Gwan Wyn : L4 Claw Gloves, 2 Healing Potions
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), Silver Badge*, L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers -2

[Zyraen]

3.3 Spring Comes Early
06-Jun-16 (Fri)

The heroes stuck to their plan of ambushing the Kray brothers when they came by staking out a building near the alleyway leading to the guild, where they had managed to drug two others earlier. After some time, closer to evening, they noticed a band of roguish characters sneaking into the alley. And later two of them emerged from the alleyway on the rooftops, as if looking for trouble.

Arvellon decided to let fly a shot and the battle was joined, with the others emerging from the alleyway to join the fray. Fortunately not all of them were that good at scaling the building to reach where the heroes were, but the situation looked tense at times, yet the heroes eventually prevailed with not even one of their enemies escaping. However, during the interrogation, the ruckus raised attracted the attention of the constables in the district. The heroes decided to hand the sole traumatized survivor over and follow them back to the constables' buildings.

There they met the Chief Constable Joien Merenthis, to whom they recounted of how they had been taking on slavers and then assassins. Zaylor also showed him the Silver Badges, to which he grimly informed them these were of Head Constables in the West district, who were his direct subordinates. He was saddened to hear one had since died, and mentioned that the other - Ragnar - had only just gone missing two days ago. Given the heroes' current situation, he felt sure that they would be hunted by the assassins led by the Krays, and they could decide on their own how to meet them, but for himself, his main priority would be to try to find and rescue Ragnar.

From what the heroes told him, the Chief Constable decided to join them for an incognito visit to the Red Mansion that night, where he seemed remarkably adroit at playing the part of a low-life. Arvellon decided to ask the man seemingly in charge of entertainment at the Red Mansion inn for good girls, in order to buy them one way or another, and was directed to a guest room above. There, amidst a bevy of elven girls, he was surprised to see Telchannar, the elf from earlier who might be a potent spellcaster. Arvellon decided to leave without being recognized, and headed back down to discuss with the rest what to do.

Total XP Gained : 3/X L3 Level 3
897 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 3/X L3
1477 Darius Black (Clement): 2.5/X L3
1827 Lunastar (Lance): 3/X L3
1147 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 3/X L3
AFK - 1477 Gwan Wyn (Omar): 2.5/X L3
Total Sessions : 3+3+3

Transactions
200 Gp Loot to All, from Chief Constable

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 3/8 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), Silver Badge*, L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers -2 / Justice* 1 / Assassins* -1

[Zyraen]

3.4 Formidable Foe
27-Jun-16 (Mon)

The party planned what to do and opted to send the Chief Constable back to the HQ to bring a force of his men to investigate the inn. When he arrived back and the people below were busy dealing with the authorities, the heroes jumped Telchannar to try and subdue him. Arvellon also took up a sniping position on the opposite roof.

Things went according to plan up until Telchannar started summoning magma beasts and using a mix of Eyebites and enlarged Freezing Bursts on the band while they were in an enclosed area, and his protective iron cohort also took blows for him. Zaylor was handicapped by being unable to see his target while Arvellon suffered so heavily from cover he decided to use his cloak to climb back over. Even so, they were in bad shape when Telchannar finally beat a hasty retreat by teleporting out of the room to the rooftop where Arvellon had started the fight. Unwilling to simply let him go, Zaylor charged out the window, leaped over the gap and struck him one last blow, grinning as he knocked Telchannar out before falling a considerable distance down.

Total XP Gained : 0/X L4 Level 4
Level Up! 1117 Arvellon Wildekin (Ufuk): 0/X L4
Level Up! 1697 Darius Black* (Clement): 0/X L4
Level Up! 2047 Lunastar (Lance): 0/X L4
Level Up! 1367 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 0/X L4
220 Secane* (Sean): 3/4 L3
Total Sessions : 3+3+4
* - extra catch-up XP

Transactions
220 Gp Loot to All, from Telchannar
L8 Ki Focus of Healing +2 for Darius

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon Wildekin : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 0/5 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), Silver Badge*, L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers* -3 / Justice* 2 / Assassins -1 / Merenthis* 1

[Zyraen]

4.1 Entrapment
04-Jul-16 (Mon)

The heroes decided to interrogate the captured Telchannar, and learnt that Chief Constable Joien's dismay at apprehending him was well-justified - he was the younger brother of the main adviser to Baron Ron Alfelios, mayor and effectively ruler of Berklin. Joien Merenthis decided to let the heroes extract what information they could out of him - in a suitably proper manner - and so it was that when he made Secane an offer in order to be released, she took it and was tipped by Telchannar for her troubles.

Subsequently, Arvellon left the party in disgust at the "justice" system, and the party had a new member sent by the local military. Apparently, Cassandra had some interest in seeing that they were dealt with.

Regardless, with his subordinate constable Ragnar rescued from the Red Mansion, Chief Constable Joien was pleased and offered to help the heroes set up to draw the Krays out to a place of their choosing. He rented an inn from a friend, declaring it to be a constables' dinner party, and had the heroes on standby to watch for violence. At the heroes' request, he agreed to keep his men out of the ruckus, but insisted on acting as a bartender in case they needed some support.

Rogues and assassins soon crashed the party, via the kitchen, holding kitchen staff hostage, but only Zaylor realised something was amiss, and that the "hostages" were also enemies in disguise. Due to already being at the front, he was not able to communicate this effectively, and the ensuing battle things looked grim, with Zaylor and Darius both getting knocked out, and Joien joined in to hold the front line and buy time for the party to recover.

The heroes also then realised that none of the enemy matched the profile of the Kray brothers. As it turns out, the halfling brothers were spying from second floor of the inn, having broken in after the fight had started, and as they were noticed they started to open fire on the party below while they were still engaged with their lackeys. Fortunately, Joien quickly moved to engage them as the rest of them took out the remainder of the rogues. The Krays were formidable but held at an impasse by the threatening Chief Constable and the shadowy Cassandra, while Lunastar and Secane slowed them with spells. They soon started to flee towards the one window they had broken through, and Cassandra tried to hold them back but was exposed and shot unconscious for her efforts. Fortunately, the time they took to get her out of the way was delay enough, and the heroes managed to knock both of them out before they could escape.

Total XP Gained : 1/X L4 Level 4
1517 Arvellon/Cassandra (Ufuk): 1/X L4
2097 Darius Black (Clement): 1/X L4
2447 Lunastar (Lance): 1/X L4
1767 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 1/X L4
Level Up! 1120 Secane (Sean): 0/X L4
Total Sessions : 3+3+5

Transactions
Silver Badges returned by Zaylor
500 Gp for favors, from Telchannar to Secane
400 Gp Reward to All, from Chief Constable Joien
Elven Chain Shirt for Lunastar

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon/Cassandra : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 0/5 Firestorm arrows, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L4 Gauntlets of Blood
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*, L9 Elven Chain Shirt
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers* -4 / Justice* 3 / Assassins* -2 / Merenthis* 2 / Alfelios* -1

[Zyraen]

4.2 Fishing for Ice Cream
11-Jul-16 (Mon)

The Chief Constable Joien Merenthis was very pleased at the turn of events and also agreed at Zaylor's request to teach him some spear techniques from his family when he was more capable with his weapon ( ie L8 or above ), and provided he was "honorable and upstanding" in his dealings. Meantime, the heroes interrogated the Krays and learnt while they were the "muscle" for slaver operations, they were not direct slave traders themselves. The heroes secured their cooperation to have one of the Krays show them one of the places where slaves might be around, and went undercover with the Chief's blessing.

They approached an inn's second floor to an occupant, a rather old lady who seemed helpless, asking if it was the right place to purchase "ice-cream". The old lady asked them in and then directed them to climb up a rope on the left outside her window, before they traversed rooftops, laying a gangplank to another roof and eventually leading to the top of a multi-storeyed building. Before they went in, Cassandra was about to slit the throat of the Kray who had brought them there, but Alagos managed to dissuade her, albeit just barely.

After getting past the watchful guards, they went to view the slaves, and a fat slaver Borys welcomed them, but constantly testing them for authenticity. Alagos put up a remarkably convincing act as a captain looking for galley slaves, and Secane as his lovely accountant, though "first mate" might seem more likely. They were eventually led to a compound with close to 50 slaves, but shadowed by numerous windows from above. Alagos tactfully refrained from negotiating price in a bad situation like this, and later offered to buy 5 slaves. Perhaps they overquoted and Borys was delighted at the offer, leaving them with 5 slaves and having no evidence whatsoever with which to act or give leads as to who was financing the operation.

Fortunately, Secane took advantage of Borys being delighted at the deal to suggest a drink together, a "toast" to long term cooperation, to which Borys was only too pleased to agree to. During the drinking, he got more inebriated and was in no position to object when Secane offered to entertain him further privately, along with the reluctant Cassandra in a threesome. Once alone with him in his quarters, they got him knocked out and searched the place, turning a near wasted trip into a precious mine of evidence.

From what they gathered, one Nerinia Kystada had a stake in financing the operation, which she did so by buying overpriced goods to some extent, and some mention on how she dealt in arms and having to provide more humane treatment of his goods. There were also leads on competitors, an unnamed bastard elf competitor (possibly Telchannar) and on a Lt Allister and his "small but big guns", perhaps referring to the Krays.

Meantime, Alagos was alone with Raeji Kray, who as Cassandra predicted would try to slip away. He managed to notice the attempt and stop it though, threatening to kill the Kray if he tried to escape again.

Total XP Gained : 2/X L4 Level 4
1517 Cassandra (Ufuk): 2/X L4
1120 Secane (Sean): 1/X L4
Level Up! 600 Alagos (Windson) : 0/X L4 (for good RP and due to short game presence)
AFK - 2097 Darius Black (Clement): 1.5/X L4
AFK - 2447 Lunastar (Lance): 1.5/X L4
AFK - 1767 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 1.5/X L4
Total Sessions : 3+3+4+2

Transactions
Silver Badges passed to Cassandra and Alagos
-400 Gp for Slaves, from Alagos
Elven Chain Shirt for Secane
4 journal entries and 1 receipt about Borys' connections
(1 on Nerinia wanting to buy a stake, 1 on how he bought more after she joined, 1 on unnamed bastard elf competitor, 1 on Lt Allister and his small but big guns, 1 receipt for purchase of vegetables and very overpriced icecream)

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon/Cassandra : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 0/5 Firestorm arrows, L4 Gauntlets of Blood, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*, L9 Elven Chain Shirt
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion
Secane: L9 Elven Chain Shirt

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers -4 / Justice 3 / Assassins -2 / Merenthis 2 / Alfelios -1

[Zyraen]

4.3 Fish Tank Cleaning
18-Jul-16 (Mon)

The heroes rearranged his room and convinced Borys that he was knocked out by alcohol and various "exertions", and let him know they would be back the following night. They returned Raeji Kray to the prison, then informed Chief Constable Joien to arrange for a force to come and free the slaves while they distracted from within and ensure that Borys and his men would not be a problem, since the multi-storeyed building with many windows would be similar to a fortress in the case of a frontal assault.

At the second meeting, Borys was alarmed at the increase in the number of visitors, but they managed to calm him and all parties around a dining table before they sprang the trap. Though he was quickly subdued, he had many goons coming in via the stairs and halls, but their superior numbers were nullified by the narrow confines and corners in the hall, and the heroes made quick work of them with relative ease. By then also, the constables had arrived and secured the slaves, neutralizing the rest of the guards as well.

Having rescued the slaves, the heroes conferred with Chief Constable Joien what to do next, but found him reluctant and hesitant. They learnt from him that Nerinia Kystada is a favored niece of Mirian Kystada, Magistrate of the North and East districts of Berklin. Mirian Kystada is herself the sister of Marian Kystada, the Empress of the Shian Empire, which also makes Nerinia the niece of the Empress. Yet there was more to that, and when they probed further, it seemed Joien himself had once been romantically involved with Nerinia, but it had ended when Nerinia was betrothed to Captain Ardon of the West Garrison. Joien himself seemed especially eager to mention how although she has been betrothed for well over 6 years, she has yet to be married.

Total XP Gained : 3/X L4 Level 4
1667 Cassandra (Ufuk): 3/X L4
1270 Secane (Sean): 2/X L4
750 Alagos (Windson) : 1/X L4
2597 Lunastar (Lance): 2.5/X L4
1917 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 2.5/X L4
AFK - 2097 Darius Black (Clement): 2/X L4
Total Sessions : 3+3+4+3

Transactions
150 Gp loot from Slaver's hideout
L8 Crystal Ball (Rare) for Alagos

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Arvellon/Cassandra : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 0/5 Firestorm arrows, L4 Gauntlets of Blood, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*, L9 Elven Chain Shirt
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion
Secane: L9 Elven Chain Shirt
Alagos : L8 Crystal Ball (Rare)

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers* -5 / Justice* 4 / Assassins -2 / Merenthis* 3 / Alfelios -1

[Zyraen]

4.4 Check Her Out
25-Jul-16 (Mon)

After some deliberation, Joien summed up that while the "evidence" may not be enough against an infuential noble like Nerinia, he was certain about the good character of Magistrate Mirian Kystada, and suggested arranging for her and his father - Magistrate Marlon Merenthis - to be present to see about the actions of Nerinia. Meantime, he would also pay Nerinia a visit himself, to see if he could find out more information.

The heroes decide to visit Magistrate Mirian Kystada to gauge her response to her niece being implicated as a slaver financier, and in so doing become aware that Darius "Black" is a member of the Kystada family, and that Nerinia is his cousin. Magistrate Mirian did not take kindly to the heroes' attitudes, but they just barely managed to convince her to look into the matter, something she agreed to only subject to the other Magistrate agreeing that this was not an absurd waste of time. She also asked them to visit Nerinia themselves if they so wished to see that she could not possibly be up to no good. The heroes then visited Nerinia, who welcomed them to her home where she was knitting and attended to by handmaidens. She seemed distant and thoughtful, and was meaningless pleasantries for most part.

The heroes returned to Chief Constable Joien Merenthis, who also had no leads from her. They decided to release Borys to set up a "regular" meeting with Nerinia and see what information they could find. Meantime, they would let Alagos' crystal ball scry on Borys, and Joien would get his father Magistrate Marlon to look into it. Once he agreed, Magistrate Mirian would be honor bound to "give face" and show up as well.

The heroes set up in the tavern in the night where Borys arranged to meet Nerinia as usual. She arrived with her handmaidens in tow, the girls dressed up to draw attention of the people there, while Nerinia discreetly went to meet Borys. There she was accosted by the drinking Borys, who gave her a pouch of money for her feminine favors, but she rebuffed him strongly and walked off, albeit with the pouch of money. The heroes managed to overhear two regulars remark this was a regular occurrence with remarks like "Geez, does he ever learn?", but failed to follow up or act on it as Borys hurried after her to stop her, probably to try and let her know he needed help. However, she shook him off and also calls for help, to which Borys simply gave up and she left the place, shortly followed by her dolled-up handmaidens after disengaging from the male attention.

The heroes decide to tale her as she waits for her servants to return, and together they seem to be heading back in the direction of her residence. With little else to work on, they head back, and end up accosted by bandits and assassins.

Total XP Gained : 4/X L4 Level 4
800 Alagos (Windson) : 2/X L4 <== Removed due to Player Travel
1717 Cassandra (Ufuk): 4/X L4
2147 Darius Black (Clement): 3/X L4
1807 Lunastar (Lance): 3.5/X L4
1320 Secane (Sean): 3/X L4
1967 Zaylor Vinci (Christopher) : 3.5/X L4
Total Sessions : 3+3+4+4

Transactions
L8 Crystal Ball (Rare) transferred from Alagos to Cassandra
-840 Gp : L4 Crimson Determination (Boon) bought by Lunastar
50 Gp : Loot from Assassins
L8 Shadow Master Ki Focus +2 found by Cassandra

Fixed Gear * - custom
Party: 3 Healing Potions
Cassandra : 10 flammable arrows* (1.2), 0/5 Firestorm arrows, L4 Gauntlets of Blood, L3 Spidersilk Mantle +1, L8 Shadow Master Ki Focus +2, L8 Crystal Ball (Rare)
Darius : L5 Debilitating Gloves, Slowing Poison* (3.2), 1 Healing Potion
Lunastar : L5 Resplendent Gloves, Vial of Flammable Acid*, L9 Elven Chain Shirt, L4 Crimson Determination (Boon)
Secane: L9 Elven Chain Shirt
Zaylor Vinci : (Thieves Tools), L6 Horned Helm, L2 Bracers of Mighty Striking, 9 flammable bolts* (1.2), Elven Panpipes*, 1 Healing Potion

Rep: Elves -1 / Merchants 1 / Military 3 / People 4 / Slavers -5 / Justice 4 / Assassins -2 / Merenthis 3 / Alfelios -1 / Kystada 0