DF Novices, Session 13 - A Delivery for the Wizard

     The second session of 2023 was last week. With the player of Fenn having recently left the group*, I am running him as an NPC for now. At least until the party returns to Bridgegate. If the party decides they still need a scout then I may keep him around. Eleanor's player was also absent for this session. Borgergorg's player returned after an absence of a few sessions, so we agreed that he had been wandering along a ways behind the group and finally caught up. One player opined that he thought Borgergorg had been carrying the group's gear all this time, however I replied that he is not the party's Half-ogre of Holding.

Session Date:    Tuesday 17 January 2023

Party roster:

Agis Keylar, wood elf cleric, 94 points (PC)
Borgergorg, half-ogre barbarian, 91 points (PC)

Doran Longbeard, dwarf warrior (knight), 86 points (PC)

Eleanor Bayley, human thief, 92 points (PC)

Erizax Ofaris, human wizard, 90 points (PC)

Fenn Shepard, human scout, 88 points (NPC)

    This session was all talking and roleplaying, with minimal dice-rolling and no combat. It has been difficult to write out this report and make it short enough, but give a coherent sense of what happened. I am done trying to rewrite it, so will summarise as follows:

    [Edit - I forgot to mention this before, so will insert it here: The longsword which the party recovered from the skeleton on the previous day (an old but serviceable blade, good quality but otherwise unremarkable and not apparently magical) - that sword vanished during the hike to Mere, at some point after the fight with the bandit-farmers. There was no-one else with the group to have taken it, and presumably if it had fallen off Agis's pack they'd have noticed. It just seems to have... disappeared.]

    Having arrived late to the village of Mere, the group spent the night in the tavern. They met the halfling tavernkeeper Wilma, and a male halfling patron of the tavern named Groak. Both were friendly and Groak was especially talkative. Not being an inn, there were no rooms, but Wilma was happy for them to sleep on the floor by the fire. They had breakfast the next morning before going to find the wizard.

    The party told Groak and Wilma that they were there to see the wizard, to make a delivery he was expecting. They also told that they had been attacked by farmers-turned-bandit, on the trail some miles west of the village. They learnt the following, mostly from Groak**:

- The bandits haven't bothered Mere.

- There is a Baron Mylark who lives in a castle about 10 miles north of the village.

- Mere pays its taxes to Mylark, rather than to Bridgegate.

- In return the village is protected by the Baron.

- Mere hasn't seen any elves in a long time, and they asked Agis whether he was a Mist Elf (he told them he is a Wood Elf).

- East of the hills lies the vast Misty Marsh.

- The Misty Marsh is dangerous, and the party should go around it rather than into it (the party has heard this in Bridgegate also).

- South of the hills is the Greywash River, which runs west-east (and is a tributary to the great Goldblood River).

- On the other side of the Greywash river is the Borderwood (the same forest through which the PCs came in their initial job as caravan guards).

    The party made the delivery to the wizard Turmion the next morning. He read the letter and grumbled about the increased delivery charge of 200 coppers; however Turmion signed the letter and returned it to Erizax, and gave him a purse of coins. Fenn opened his mouth as if to speak, but instead said nothing, and just gave Erizax a look. 

    Erizax told Turmion that his apprentice Perioni had been reported missing, having disappeared from Bridgegate several days ago without notice. Turmion said he himself had not seen Perioni for a few weeks, but this was not unusual, so he had not been concerned until now. He asked the party to go and speak to a isolated farmer named Kuipos, who lived about halfway between Mere and Bridgegate, and might have seen Perioni more recently. Turmion asked them to report back once they knew more on Perioni's whereabouts.

    After the visit to the wizard, the party headed back to the tavern. The PCs were approached by an old man, the only other human they have seen in this village. He introduced himself as Squire Marlen, a representative of the Duke of Bridgegate. Erizax told him of the attack by farmers-turned-bandits. Marlen had several questions for the PCs about what they were doing in the area. 

    Erizax decided that he didn't trust the squire, and back in the tavern he asked Groak his opinion on Marlen. Groak informed them that the villagers avoid the squire, as he is not well liked. Erizax asked whether Marlen worked for the Duke or the Baron, to which Groak advised him that Squire Marlen "will tell you that he works for the Duke". Erizax asked Groak if he knew of Kuipos, and the halfling told him that the rumour was that the farmer used to be one of the King's Rangers.

    The party stocked up on extra food at the tavern, before heading out west to look for the farm as advised by Turmion. After about half a day of hiking through the hills, the land was starting to look like it might level out more, when Fenn spotted a group of half a dozen humans. They were a few hundred yards away and heading in the group's general direction. They looked like either soldiers or bandits, rather than famers.

    There was a lack of consensus in the group as to whether they should hide from these men, or go and meet them. Borgergorg is friendly and trusting. Agis was in favour of the PCs indentifying themselves to these human authority figures***. Doran never wants to be left behind, and went along. Fenn, Erizax, and Eleanor stayed behind and remained in hiding.

    The half-ogre, wood elf, and dwarf approached the six and greeted them. A brief discussion between the two parties as to each other's purpose. The men advised that they were soldiers of Baron Mylark on patrol. However upon hearing that Agis was a cleric, the men then drew their swords... 

We will resolve the combat next session, as one of the players had to finish early and we agreed that was a good point to pause it. The three other PCs are about 200 yards away, so this could be an interesting fight.

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* I am currently advertising for a replacement. See previous blog post.

** Groak was talkative and the party might have learned more, had they asked more questions. I think they were focused on making their delivery more than gaining information.

*** Mebs!