The Caravan - Chronological order of Events
A quick and dirty summary of everything the party encountered.
One for the money
Angerone Godfroy, Eldron Gnackle, Jhalril Glannyth, Richar Moerin, and Teresa Liliidae meet for the first time at the Dig and get to know "Red".
In the night after the events at The Dig, Angy suddenly has a voice in her head, offering her magical powers; she becomes a warlock, maybe the first ever seen.
The trek through the wilderness back to civilisation turns out to be relatively easy due to Teresa being an outlander druid. A partially destroyed building turns out to hold quite a few useful supplies and a Flawless Hand Mirror. The party comes across a burial mound which they leave be and then across a former Companions fort which turns out to be filled with "restless" (undead). When they eventually find safety in a fortified farmstead a travelling merchant shows up with equipment for all of them, paid for by someone in Korint.
Returned to Korint. Learned about a new god that has appeared; Istus. Debriefed by House Ditta.
Bought treasure map of Vresto Mansion from Velkor Oberlee. When leaving the city they were captured by a party unknown and tortured for information on The Dig before being let go.
Two for the show
Encountered Myconids when gathering Sprite members, 'gifted' Blemmigan.
Came across Julian Jaconti on the way to Drendeven village.
Back in Korint, do some research into Istus and the Caluth Widows. Jhalril Glannyth is asked by the leader of the Whitemantles to rob correspondence from a House Ditta caravan.
Off to Vessa village to search for missing villagers. Next, following Mysterious Letter to Kobold Cave, meeting Julian along the way again.
On the way back to Korint met a House Ditta caravan containing captured Whitemantles members.
Took on a job at Thessaly Hall involving a stolen necklace and missing daughter.
Learned that Bruised But Not Broken company (one hundred men and women strong) sent by House Ditta did not return from The Dig.
Some tussles with glow ice (a very addictive narcotic) smugglers/dealers from Sormark. Jhalril Glannyth decides this kind of adventuring isn't for him.
Sent by Vardan Brekker to what turns out to be the Fallen Star, meeting Ranna Amethystall along the way. Other interested parties show up; Abjura Dolana and Velkor Oberlee. Meet Kasarians and Marinda Winterwies when coming back outside. The party leaves with a magical orb, a new amulet for Eldron, and a magical stone for Teresa.
Back in Korint, Angerone gets the idea to steal the Tome of Ammon from the Kasarian Embassy in Korint. Which leads to the party having the leave the city, and country, post haste as pissing off the Kasarians is close to suicide.
Marinda is asked to join the party, and before she leaves, Vardan gives her a spindle and a way to keep in touch. Richar is given the Straps of Beoga by his mentor.
Three to make ready
At Aslu, the border town between Loveria and Sormark they are recognised by bounty hunters and run for their lives into the interior of the country.
The town of Bjarnheim is almost out of food but luckily Teresa has a magical stone. Then they encounter a camp with people who speak rather archaically, the next morning the camp is gone.
In the hills they came across the wreck of the Brazen Coke Remit and fought with its restless (undead) crew.
Arriving in Jurva, they learn more about a new god called Ancev and help a baker find his beloved Scoby, which has now transformed into Usnea.
The party arrives in Hollenvik, the town they have the deed to, and it turns out things aren't in great shape here. They fix what they can and leave Richar Moerin there to help out, for now.
Next they go to the Udvjor Gardyl (spotting Julian on the way, making sure not to wake him) and meet a strange clockwork creature before they trigger a trap and are transported to Ipanema. The short visit has a very positive effect on their physical and mental fortitude.
Via the Portal Hub they end up in Stjordvik, in the baron's throne room, no less.
The party members take rooms at the Placeholder Inn look for training around town and find different opportunities.
Teresa is incredibly lucky and loses but still kinda wins "The Wheel of Death" at a local drinkery.
Angerone takes dance lessons at The Pearl. There's a few jobs to do in payment, starting with removing Nander Yarryn, a newly minted member of the Order of Saint Rabban, from the premises.
Marinda finds her training at Relatus Playhouse and managed to lower the fee to 100 gp by offering her weaving skills.
Eldron arranges for training at Abjura Dolana and in payment he has to use a wand on a job the baron has for them as a 'fine' for 'invading' his fort.
Fab Four
The party is lowered into the Fort Gunnlaeif Dungeon and meets Tizoc who is bound to an altar, powering certain magical defenses.
On return they learn that the harbor master, Trygve Nesheim, was assassinated and then replaced with Lena Hjelle.
Angy is offered a job by the cultural attaché from the Ogren embassy but declines.
At the Pearl Angy and Marinda meet two old friends from their past; Jaqcues d’Ogren and Margreet Ploeg.
Another job for The Pearl; escorting Mairuu Thiodor to a hunting lodge, The Jackalope, owned by Thal Lithel boss Respen Faerondyl, outside of town. Turns out she's meeting the baron.
Marinda goes to the Ancev temple to introduce herself and get to know them.
During the night, two giant ice snakes suddenly appear in the room shared by Angy and Eldron, they attack but are swiftly killed and then skinned.
Abjura Dolana offers a job in lieu of payment for licenses; go to the village of Drømmen and take care of a monster that has been plaguing them, likely an Ethereal Filcher. The monster steals a few of their items but is eventually defeated.
On the way back the party happens upon a caravan of Vergu orcs accompanied by a handful of elves (Thal Sivale employees, including some family of Tasmia Ealoeth) just as it is attacked by gnolls and manticores. 42 is part of the caravan.
Eldron is approached by Shymra Hykoshold, a former colleague of his son Brandon. She tells him there were things going on at the Companions that could not be countenanced; a number of people were transferred and fired over it. Party talks with the city watch captain about this and talks to a few of the fired people to see what happened.
At Angy and Eldron's room at the inn a note has been slipped under the door, telling them to meet at the docks at night. Once there Angy is pushed into the river by a spell and a number of crocodiles attack.
Angerone is asked by her patron to compete in the Regatta. Eldron runs across his old friend Merric Glenoak.
It turns out the Companions of Elric were smuggling books into town for the Ogren embassy. These were then shipped to Ogren by Strebor's Corsairs.
Eldron's son Brandon boarded the ship the Honeysuckle which sailed to GICOM and then Avale. The ship sank years later with all hands lost.
The 15th Stjordvik Regatta takes place and is eventually (and surprisingly) won by the party and their ship.
Maybe it was because of what happened during the Regatta, maybe there's a different reason, but Angerone and Marinda decide to follow their own path and make their goodbyes with Eldron and Teresa.
Some time later Margreet Ploeg sends a message; Jazzomyn, still hasn't returned and The Pearl would like the party to go look for her.
Take Five
Knowing that a two-people party might be a little underpowered, the two look for new members and are lucky to come across two other adventurers;
Maybell Tuberosum and Tiny Tim Cratchett.
The party have been told that Jazzomyn went looking for something along the old Imperial Way that used to run south from Resoborg so that's their first stop. Here they meet Lars Gerhardt and everything is fine.
The next day the party sets off down the now overgrown Imperial Way. They spend the next nights in the Imperial Wayhouses built along the road, most are still in pretty good repair. At the third Imperial Wayhouse strange things happen and they are suddenly shrunk down to 1/50th of their normal size.
On their way back from Resoborg to Stjordvik the party has set up for the night when suddenly Sprinkles and two dogs run into camp. They follow them to find three small kittens being fussed over by two geese. Maybell notices a wing shaped pattern on their fur that only she can see. Using a speak with animal spells she learns that the kittens (Henri, Christina, and Hector) live in a large mansion in a town but woke up near this farm this morning.
They take these faeristocats with them to Stjordvik and try and find out which of the rich, old, single ladies in town might be their owner. There are some unexplained encounters with tiny stealing hands coming out of nowhere and suddenly greasy surfaces but eventually they are reunited with their owner; Hertiginna, a once famous singer. The butler who kidnapped the kittens makes a quick exit. The party is rewared with small silver mask shaped charms in the style of the one worn in the famous opera The Hertiginna’s Sacrifice. And Sprinkles can now cast a one-use spell.
Some time later the party runs across Velkor Oberlee who hires them for a job.
Six Silver Strings
Teresa decides to remain in town to deal with what happend at the Wayhouse and meditate on her life. Fortunately the party come across Bruneor Argent at Silverwick Ward and when he hears about their plans he offers his services. Velkor has arranged for a boat to transport them to Nolla Isle and pick them up again in seven days or in later weeks, if necessary. When the captain of the boat finds out where he is supposed to sail he balks but some surreptitious spellcasting and intimidation by Velkor, not to mention the expensive gem he is offering persuade the captain to take them.
Magnificent Seven
After a successful exploration on Nolla Isle the party returns to Stjordvik. The island collapsed and sunk under the sea as they sailed away, so there's that... After dividing the loot, Velkor donates the Keoghtom's Ointment to Silverwick Ward and give the Kammi to the party; he doesn't want to go weak.
Back in town they learned of a few things that happened in their absence. A warehouse belonging to Thal Sivale was broken into but they were unwilling to comment what, if anything, had been stolen. A Battle of the Bards turned into a brawl that caused more than severe property damage; two of the culprits are now being sought by Abjura Dolana. Someone killed five people in five days but thanks to the work of a brilliant investigator of the city watch she was caught and hanged the same day. Now the rumor is her corpse has gone missing.
Teresa is nowhere to be found though they learn that she apparently spends her afternoons outside the city, after helping out at Silverwick Ward in the morning. She doesn't come back that night so the next morning the others start looking for her. They learned she is publishing a book of poetry and after first visiting a really seedy publisher at the docks they eventually find the the right place; Pressing Matters. Back at Silverwick Ward they learn that Teresa spoke of going to Koss Field.
Once there they find no sign of her but do help out a halfling farmer recovering a who bull crashed through the fence and escaped. Beyond the field is Moll Woods and they find tracks on the small trail that goes into the forest. Following them they are ambushed by the restless; an undead lady and a number of zombie forest creatures. The woman is quite likely the hanged murderer, considering the purple bruise all around her neck.
The party wins and then decide to burn the corpses. Unfortunately the fire gets out of hand real quick and they run deeper into the woods. With about a third of the forest ablaze they eventually slow down in a wetter part of the woods. There they spot a really strange looking small frog and decide to follow it. It leads them to a small clearing with a large, old tree. From an opening under the tree a badger darts out and then turns into Teresa.
Back in town Tiny goes to tell the watch about their encounter and Eldron visits Abjura Dolana to let them see the notes he found on Nolla Isle. Then the party starts making plans to go to Haza to deliver Red's box to his sister.
The party is offered free passage on the HMS Karnak and after a few days one of the passengers is murdered. The characters eventually manage to solve the crime and from then on they have a very relaxing journey to Beljovac in Haza.
When leaving the ship it turns out that arcane spellcasters entering Haza must either pay 5 gp and swear fealty to the royal house meaning they can be ordered to help out by guardsmen or other government officials, or pay 500 gp and not have to. Eldron and Maybell pay 5 gp each.
Once in Beljovac Eldron goes to the local lodge of Abjura Dolana to deliver a letter from Leandro Minardi; it turns out he is actually Zelgos Gossyl; second in command at Kasarian Embassy in Stjordvik. He fled when he learned of a ship with a dead magic zone and now he hopes Abjura Dolana can help him.
The party takes rooms at the Guzanic Bull. Food in town is really good and they have this thing called coffee that is quite the acquired taste.
The next day during some shopping there is a loud ‘thoomp’ sound and the ground shakes. Right around the corner you see flames shooting up at the sky for a second. As you round the corner you can see that past the building on the corner stands a large warehouse, one of the open doors is in flames and the roof is sagging in multiple places. Just outside the doors lays what looks like a warehouse worker entangled with a creature you recognize as a cockatrice, neither is moving. An expensive carriage is moving away from the building, coming to a stop a little further down the street.
In front of the building stands a man in expensive clothes, he keeps looking at the warehouse, wringing his hands, setting a step in its direction before turning back again and then repeating the process, crying out “please, no, please, no!” As you get closer you can tell he is probably in his fifties and gnashing his teeth. He sees you and calls out; “please, help me, my wife and daughter are in there, save them! I’ll pay you a thousand gold crowns!”
“Be careful, the merchandise is drugged but at least some have woken up.” He points to the cockatrice. “Any physical pain or loud noises will wake the rest. They are property of the crown, try not to damage them if possible.” Our friends rush inside after getting any useful information from the man.
A cart lays overturned just a little inside the building, a number of crates have spilled from it. A span of two horses is still attached to the cart, one of the horses neighs softly and its hind leg moves a little every few seconds. Behind them a large fog cloud obscures most of the warehouse. Crates stand stacked to the ceiling all around. Just in front of the cloud, on the third floor, to your right, you see a man hanging with his head and arms over the ledge, he isn’t moving.
It's a mess inside; parts are on fire, other parts are collapsing. Crates stand and lay all over, numerous monsters are waking up from their drugged stupor. The adventurers do the best they can but the waking monsters certainly complicate things, especially when a wicked looking primate stuns Tiny with one withering look.
Time is short and the party makes it out with seconds to spare before the entire place collapses. They have been able to save a number of warehouse workers and the man's wife, but not his daughter. The Green Guard then takes our friends to their local headquarters and arrange for a priest to heal their wounds. Things are very friendly until gos (sir) Kreten of the Kurbak (the secret police) arrives.
He questions everyone separately and tells them they are suspects in the destruction of the warehouse, in spite of clear evidence to the contrary. The guard lieutenant tells them once he is gone not to worry too much, "just ignore it, they usually find something else to occupy their time soon enough."
The party then goes to Dobrodruh Guild Hall to find some work. As they walk up to the place they are met by a woman who introduces herself as Temna and tells them her employers have a job they might be interested in; bringing a 'package' to the town of Maruzla. It turns out that the town is sort of in the direction of Ide Volcar and the job pays 25 gp per person.
They accept and Tiny makes sure the contract is up to snuff. It turns out the package is a large leaden box, about coffin-sized. It comes with a cart and horses. Temna tells them to leave tomorrow morning at the latest or it won't arrive on time.
Back at the inn they are visited by the nobleman from the warehouse, Fessel Katar, and his wife Orgula. He pays them a 1,000 gp and thanks them for all their help. When asked Orgula explains that the warehouse was owned by Tepanic Expediting and that her company rented storage there for shipping out their merchandise.
The next morning, before day and dew (:p), the party gets up to leave for Maruzla. The inn keeper hands them a small box that contains a note and four gems worth 100 gp each.