Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Synopsis of Chapter One: The Plate

I put it into more of a bullet form this week because there was a lot to cover.
FYI each Palladium month has 28 days, or four weeks. at the end of the year they have a special "half-week" to keep the calendar aligned.

Þriðjudagur (thrĭth-yĭ-da-ger) Maí 25, 3839 A.P.
Silus left to meet with Ankar about what kind of deal could be offered to you.
Grant, a friend of Oki's, stopped by to let you know that you were all in danger and being watched constantly. Oki and Grant work out travel arrangements the group to ride the Veloz out of town. He'll take his payment later and tells you keep your money for now. Grant plans to bring friends by for a party to create cover for your escape.

The plan of escape to leave through the root cellar, which leads into the catacombs under Ricmorn.
Silus returns with an offer from Ankar which includes loads of money, protection, and the right to have the plate back after his research is done. The offer for free passage, or passage of any kind, to the Eastern Territories (Gevril, to be exact), has been withdrawn as you are being followed by too many interests at this time.

The guests start arriving, and so do the wolfen, knocking at your back door. You tell them that you are not going to take their deal and they tell you that this is most regrettable. Shortly afterward, city guards come knocking at the door. This is your cue to leave.

You all escape into the catacombs and are happily making your way now into the sewers when pfft! Agar disappears!

Agar was summoned using the hair and blood by someone who is most likely Churokand a lady friend named Asuka. Asuka blows Churok's head off using a Skedic pistol and demands that Agar tell her who he is and where the plate is. Fortunately Agar was not transported too far away as he is somewhere near Zog's lair. Zog the za. Asuka escorts Agar back out towards the rest of the group.

The rest of the party backtracks and meets up in Zog's lair. There they meet the za, a demonic winged doglike creature. The fight many expected never comes and it seems as though powerful (demonic?) force has possessed poor old Zog. The entity warns the group that it is in way over its head and that it knows what they have and who they are. Oh well, time to leave as the great vaulted room begins to collapse.. Oki provides a convenient dimensional teleport that gets you all to the docks and on board the Veloz.

miðvikudagur Maí 26, 3839 A.P.– You spend Wednesday on board the Veloz, screaming along the open sea at 30kts. During this time you get to know a little about Asuka (aka Songia) Hasder's daughter, although she is not the most talkative of people. She dresses as though she were from the East and wears a little choker with a small “X” pendant. She is pissed at you all and expects you to repay your debt to her father for your complete idiocy, but at least she understands that you were duped by “that @#$! Elf” as she calls Silus. Right now she is interested in getting the plate to a safe haven.

fimmtudagur Maí 27, 3839 A.P.– You arrive in Wertouth. Nobody wants to stay in Wertouth, a small city in the very south of the elven territory of Ellendel. The captain, Bhurgen, will take you to Elgretisland for 1200 apiece. Since you have Hasder's money you agree.

föstudagur Maí 28, 3839 A.P.– Elgretisland welcomes you like a swarm of angry bees as the Misarlon ambush you in the busy main street market. One of the seven, a dwarve, steals the backpack from Landros and hell breaks loose. People running, screaming. A horse that the dwarve tries to use to get away is first knocked down by the sekai, then pulverized into ground meat by a Riga. But, somehow you manage to get the backpack with the plate in it and jump through another rift, courtesy of Oki, and land outside of Bathfells. There you split up and try a safe way to Aja, a place where you hope you will find some relief from this chase. Oh, yes! And Oki got a brief view of the mind of a Misarlon and may have some useful gold nuggets of information. Of course, the member of the seven also saw everything that Oki knows.

Outlook – You have found a smugglers path that runs down to Slódaulur, although you will have to watch out for dragons and drug runners. The path is 300 miles to Aja from here, or given the slow nature of mountain trails, 20 days. Ah, the classic fortnight trek, right? In that amount of time the Misarlon will certainly have reached Bathfells and be back on your trail. Obviously they have informants everywhere, so maybe they'll know you have been here sooner than later.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

News in Ricmorn

Time scale: You all left for Hasder's Föstudagur morning. On Laugurdagur morning, before sunrise, you split ways, some going to Ricmorn, others to the estate. Sunnudagur evening Hasder passed away. Manudagur morning (Chris) returned to Ricmorn to join the rest of the party. Today is Þriðjudagur.

The Farlax has delayed leaving port; reports are that they are waiting for some cargo on the road from Niverhall to arrive. A second Uarnesian ship, the Veloz, has arrived in harbor.

News of Lord Hasder's death is circulating around the city and some wonder whether his daughter, Songia, from his most recent marriage will return to manage the estate. The rumor is that they were estranged and she was living as a missionary in some remote corner of the world.

The Wolfen legions are preparing to to cross to the northern shores of the Western Empire where they will board ships bound for their home.

Some socialites are talking about some sort of hubbub that occured in the middle of the evening at the Omunis party. Some blame a small group of Wolfen who were attending while others note that Omunis seemed peeved for a while that evening, not something you see often in that man.

The homeless population has dropped dramatically in recent months and the governor's pointing to a boom in trade from the south for the economic good fortune. The number of arrests for disorderly behavior have gone up, however, as has the murder rate, which is not something the authorities are talking much about.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Synopsis of Chapter One: The Plate

Here's is what has happened so far:

The gracious Lord Hasder invites you to his estate because he has a business proposal. The estate is indeed filled with artifacts and ancient relics from around the world, and this includes his staff and his pets, among them the stone statue of King Tiu-Tiu of some kingdom in the Yin-Sloth jungles.

The job was supposed to be simple (aren't they always?). Retrieve a stolen artifact from the store rooms beneath the Omunis estate and return to Hasder. Jiunko, Hasder's scholar/curator with his curious assortment of powders was to help you find the item in question, a simple earthenware plate. You leave immediately and hope that many of the servants are busy with the guests at one of Omunis' soirees. And indeed there are, as it turns out.

After a seven mile jaunt down an old service path, Jiunko lead you to a narrow cave that was supposed to gain entrance to the wine cellars beneath the Omunis estate house; it turns out that it lead into some deeper dungeon in which terrible human sacrifice was taking place. It is dangerous thing to drink too much at the Omunis party.

You sneak past a sleep ogre. You investigate some human screams and rescue a woman from two evil kobolds looking to have some fun. You see some strange sand pit filled with bones and souls. and then, the room with the plate. No sooner have you found the object than a loogaroo corners you. She is apparently a servant of Churok's, and, perhaps because of her distaste for her master, she agrees to let you "protect" the plate in exchange for a lock of hair and a few drops of blood.

The sekai volunteers and you make your way out, dropping the women just outside the cave. You are on the path only a short while before an attack comes from both sides. A poison dart fells Jiunko and a band of angry ogres comes crashing down through the woods at the party.

You all try to run or hide, but before the ogres can get to you Silus, a character you briefly passed when entering the Hasder Estate, comes to your rescue and leads you through a back way to return to the Hasder residence. Unfortunately, you all get caught in the Issian Fields outside of the Issia Monastery area and almost succumb to the sopporific powers of the nightflowering plant.

Ogres try to follow you into the fields, but they fall prey to the flower's power and you think you might just get out okay...but then the fog.mist rolls in and seven riders in grey cloaks on silver white horses stop you and demand that you hand over the artifact.

Oddly, they don't put up too much of a fight and leave, promising that they will get the artifact (plate) from you in the near future.

You split up: the riga goes to Hasder with a fake plate and the rest of you return to Oki's place in Ricmorn. Hasder dies of old age within 36 hours of the riga's return, and so he, too, returns to Ricmorn.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch... things are tense but not much happens. There are rumors that the Farlax, the Uarnesian ship, has decided to delay leaving port. Of course, this is the ship associated with Omunis' company; and the plate had been packed in a Nehranes Sea Co. Shipping crate. It seems, like...what?

Shortly after you are all reunited, a wolfen general comes knocking on the door of Oki's house, offering to take the plate back to the Northern Empire; his interest is in preventing the kingdoms in the Eastern Territories from having a fearsome artifact at their disposal. So he claims to know who the original buyers are, perhaps? Yes, as Silus tells you, it is Ankar who had been on of the two or three people to place a bid on Hasder's plate before it was stolen. And it is an interesting coincidence, at least, that Ankar is planning to travel back to the east on the Farlax. Silus says he can offer you safe passage on the Farlax, although not without its risks.

Some of you want to hold on to the plate for research. Others want to sell it for a hefty chunk of change.

And then there was Zog. Poor, forgotten Zog, the odd ruler of the Ricmorn underground and either a servant of Churok's or Omunis'. This plate might hold the key to long life, but it is certainly threatening to shorten yours. Who knows when Zog's minions might come calling...

Thursday, December 4, 2008

The Campaign Starts!

Tuesday, December 9 at 7:00pm the game starts! Our fabulous hosts will be Chris and Tamiko at their place (I'll do a private email about address because the rest of the world doesn't have to know where that is).

If you drink, bring your own favorite. If you have a favorite gaming snack or munchie, bring some to share. And, of course, bring your completed character!

For those of you who need to get me info on your character's background, email me when you can.