Giantslayer: Battle of Bloodmarch Hill [IC]

[lostsole31]

https://pathfinderwiki.com/mediawiki/images/c/cd/Battle_of_Bloodmarch_Hill.jpg




Enemy at the Gates!

"The Giantslayer Adventure Path begins! In the human town of Trunau (https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Trunau), a beleaguered settlement surrounded by the brutal orcs (https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Orc) of the Hold of Belkzen (https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Hold_of_Belkzen), the heroes must investigate a mysterious death. Before they uncover the truth, however, Trunau comes under attack by an orc army, and the heroes must help defend it—only to discover that the situation is worse than anyone realizes. For even the fearsome orc raid is just a distraction allowing a giant chieftain to recover the relics of an ancient giant (https://pathfinderwiki.com/wiki/Giant) hero from a tomb long forgotten beneath the town."




DRAMATIS PERSONAE


Name
[Player]

Color

Race [Ethnicity]
(Gender ID)

AL

Side 1

Side 2



Aasgar Axewielder
[Buck Godot]

Saddle Brown

Dwarf [Vizier Creature]
(M)
LG
Fighter 4
[Two-Handed Warrior]
LA 1/
Epilektoi 3


Abenor Quentrias
[Old Glory NPC]

Purple

Elf [Ilverani; Barbarian-Ranger]
(M)
CG
Warder 4
[Dervish Defender]
LA 2/
Fighter 1
[Two-Weapon Warrior]/
Stalker 1


[B]Bariswort Littlewanderer
[NPC]

Indigo

Halfling [Wanderer]
(M)
CG (CN)
Bard 3
[Dirge Bard]
Oracle (Heavens) 3
[Aethurgist]


Clemency (Cici) Larosière
[NPC]

Dark Green

Human [Kellid-Taldan]
(F)
LG
Monk (Erastil) 3
[Disciple of Wholeness]
Witch 3
[Herb Witch]


Gharmez al'Demirah, Shkear Tla
[admyral]

Golden Rod

Human [Keleshyte]
(F)
LN
Cleric (Abadar) 4
Ranger 4


Imrijka
[NPC]

Teal

Half-Orc [Varisian]
(F)
NG
Fighter 4
[Archer]
Inquisitor 4


Shay'akhar
[NPC]

Gray

Human [Kele****e], but now
"accursed and no longer quite human"
(M)
L?

Something Smart +/or Sciency?
Something Stabby?

[lostsole31]

Aasgar Axewielder


https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/790478947375775755/921273030754324480/Aasgar_Axewielder_Full.png


Description 4' 5", 213 lbs.; Sapphire Blue Eyes; Blonde Hair

Aasgar strikes quite the imposing figure as he steps across a threshold. He is attractive by dwarven standards and his 4'5" frame holds a stocky and well-muscled appearance. Though slightly tall, he is clearly a Dwarf's Dwarf. The spark of intellect shines behind his sparkling blue eyes and under them, a face that holds wisdom beyond his young age. This Dwarf is going places and will do great things. He wears his blonde hair down but braided in places and his beard is mighty, also bearing braids in Dwarven fashion. His stride is confident but not cocky and his array of weaponry appears skillfully worn and tactically placed for quick retrieval. This is a Dwarf you want at your back, not facing you across the battlefield.

Personality

Gruff and seemingly dour, Aasgar will surprise you with his kind side. He will stand up for what is right and lawful and defend his beliefs just as quickly as he will sit and talk a young girl out of a lifetime of slavery... He has on occasion, had a good laugh but will turn back to the task at hand in short order. Loyal to a fault, he will always come to the defense of his companions and not hesitate to strike down those with evil motivations.

Home of Record

Janderhoff, Mindspin Mountains, Varisia


https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/059d8089-764a-4034-a2e4-4fe08cf89b83/dewk3yc-69796903-9316-4523-9167-c89196df4192.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJ IUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQz NzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZT BkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6 W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzA1OWQ4MDg5LTc2NGEtNDAzNC1hMm U0LTRmZTA4Y2Y4OWI4M1wvZGV3azN5Yy02OTc5NjkwMy05MzE2 LTQ1MjMtOTE2Ny1jODkxOTZkZjQxOTIucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIj pbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0._Ko3NA9i j8m3jF06fkfz2Ldnn9TBsfwBpXXKdJNq19A

[lostsole31]

Abenor Quentrias


https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/059d8089-764a-4034-a2e4-4fe08cf89b83/devitj2-bb7aa3e3-57ad-498b-854d-8d5ebd9c0ade.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJ IUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQz NzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZT BkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6 W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzA1OWQ4MDg5LTc2NGEtNDAzNC1hMm U0LTRmZTA4Y2Y4OWI4M1wvZGV2aXRqMi1iYjdhYTNlMy01N2Fk LTQ5OGItODU0ZC04ZDVlYmQ5YzBhZGUucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIj pbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.Rei03K7z tkMMa-wsBlVQff2x3INNxx-CpUFKsARUXyA


Description 6' 0", 143 lbs.; Violet Eyes; White Hair

Abenor is not quite as tall as most elves, but his whole body is made of tight, corded muscles from a life of hardship as a slave, in slave pits, and trying to survive on his own in a truly inhospitable land. With furs and waterproofed leathers wrapping about him, he is finding some discomfort in these temperate southern lands, but habit keeps him from dressing down. Of particular note are the very non-elven weapons he carries - his unmatched daisho. Most people are unfamiliar with these weapons, and those that are are surprised to see them on the belt of an elf.

His hair is pure white, his eyes are a striking violet, and his skin is almost snow-white with a bluish undercast, the tell-tale of his ethnicity as an Ilverani (snowcaster elf).

Personality

Having lived as a slave, then a gladiator, and finally a refugee in a harsh land, one should not be surprised that he is rather shy in social situations. Still, he was a favored slave, with some level of authority and overcoming his trials has given him a mettle of steel hidden by a soft voice. Considering he is nearly middle-age ... and for an elf at that ... he has spent over a century-and-a-half with which to gain perspective.

Home of Record

Icestair, Realm of the Mammoth Lords


https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/059d8089-764a-4034-a2e4-4fe08cf89b83/dewk43y-2a649618-565a-4379-9c44-9944c4982138.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJ IUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQz NzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZT BkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6 W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzA1OWQ4MDg5LTc2NGEtNDAzNC1hMm U0LTRmZTA4Y2Y4OWI4M1wvZGV3azQzeS0yYTY0OTYxOC01NjVh LTQzNzktOWM0NC05OTQ0YzQ5ODIxMzgucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIj pbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.25lDi0lD 4QTJpNT5KaQ2iUgFoAG22_DnYTiwHD4n4fE

[lostsole31]

Under Construction 3 ...

[lostsole31]

Under Construction 4 ...

[lostsole31]

Under Construction 5 ...

[lostsole31]

Under Construction 6 ...

[lostsole31]

https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/059d8089-764a-4034-a2e4-4fe08cf89b83/dewk7in-b8212916-e846-4521-99f5-63c2459bf1e7.png/v1/fill/w_1024,h_75,q_80,strp/part_1__mysteries_in_trunau_by_lostsole31_dewk7in-fullview.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI 1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNh NWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMT g4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7 ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NzUiLCJwYXRoIjoiXC9mXC8wNTlkODA4OS 03NjRhLTQwMzQtYTJlNC00ZmUwOGNmODliODNcL2Rld2s3aW4t YjgyMTI5MTYtZTg0Ni00NTIxLTk5ZjUtNjNjMjQ1OWJmMWU3Ln BuZyIsIndpZHRoIjoiPD0xMDI0In1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpz ZXJ2aWNlOmltYWdlLm9wZXJhdGlvbnMiXX0.UhNLdGEF3LnmCp NKEwgfiaSOymaJWx_xCNgcYGZwvag


Jubilation fills the evening air in the normally staid town of Trunau, for it is the twelfth birthday of the Chief Defender’s youngest daughter, Ruby, and the townsfolk have been preparing all day for the ceremony and festivities to follow. A throng of spectators (which include Aasgar Axewielder and Abenor Quentrias) has amassed at the town Commons (area A); the buzz of the crowd subsides as the weathered town leader, Halgra of the Blackened Blades, takes the stage and begins to speak.

“Thank you all for joining us this night. I take immense pride in my responsibility as Chief Defender, especially when it comes to the honor of the hopeknife ceremony. It is always a great privilege to bequeath Trunauan youths their hopeknives as they come of age.” Halgra stops speaking long enough to open an ornamental case and retrieve a slender, ornately decorated dagger hanging from a silver chain. “But tonight is a special occasion, for the recipient of this hopeknife is none other than my youngest daughter.”

Once again, Halgra pauses, but this time she turns to talk to the child beside her. “Ruby, by the traditions of our town, you have come of age. This hopeknife represents your responsibilities as an adult and defender of Trunau. You must be willing to use it on yourself, your fellow Trunauans, and your family—even me, should it come to that. It will be a far quicker death than that which the orcs will offer, and providing it is your duty. Do you swear to guard Trunau from all comers, and to use your hopeknife only for its intended purpose?”

Ruby—dusky skinned, black haired, and painfully shy—nods her head in response to her mother’s question.

“If the orcs come, and there is no other option, this is where you cut—here, here, and here.” Halgra demonstrates which arteries to sever while Ruby watches. When she is finished, Halgra sheathes the hopeknife and places the necklace around Ruby’s neck before turning back to address the crowd.

“Tonight, Ruby becomes a full member of our community! Let us welcome her, and celebrate her passage into adulthood! Trunau forever!”

The crowd echoes Halgra’s last words in unison, signaling the end of the ceremony!

Once Halgra finishes her speech, the townsfolk waste no time transitioning to the ceremony’s more light-hearted festivities, including a number of games in which Ruby is the key player. The first such game is tug-of-war, which traditionally pits the hopeknife receiver against Trunau’s best defenders. For the past several years, Kurst and Rodrik Grath have taken on this role alongside several other members of Trunau’s militia.

When Kurst and Rodrik announce the game of tug-of-war, Ruby is allowed to choose a number of spectators from the crowd to participate in the game on her side. An awkward child, Ruby takes a hard look at the crowd before making her choice: and her gaze and pointing finger fall upon Aasgar Axewielder and Abenor Quentrias both!

Aasgar, do you politely decline, or do you go up there and help Ruby defend her honor against the brawn of Trunau's patrol leaders?

[BuckGodot]

Never one to shirk from helping others, Aasgar steps forward to aid the young lass, bowing and saying "It would be my honour."

[lostsole31]

Everyone laughs when Aasgar says "honour."

People guide Aasgar up to the rope. She stays behind and sees that the elf Aasgar was near seems broad enough at the shoulders and points to him as well. Abenor seems a little out of sorts, not expecting to be chosen, but he nods and goes up to the rope to join Aasgar. He points to the blue cast on his white skin. "I guess she liked my colour?"

People laugh when Abenor says "colour."

Ruby then picks a half-orc woman who has a floppy red hat. That woman comes up and holds onto the rope. "I hope the rope doesn't catch on the links of my armour."

Everyone laughs when the half-orc woman says "armour."

Finally, a hooded Kellid woman is chosen, and she comes up. It turns out that everyone naturally grabbed the robe successively in front of Aasgar, making him the anchor.

The Kellid woman asks, "Does anybody know the hour?"

Crickets. You hear nothing but crickets.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar wraps the end of the rope around himself and then grabs hold.

[lostsole31]

With so many on-the-ball people on Ruby's team (she is the very front, holding onto the rope), the "challengers" (that's you, Ruby's team) goes first.

Roll a modified STR check of +7 [this is the modifier you use, not +4]!

[lostsole31]

For the first round, though the challengers get the first pull, the "Champions" (Patrol Leaders Grath & a couple militia) pull the rope a total of 5' in their direction.

Round 2...

Aasgar, roll a STR check .... here in the IC ... with a total of +9 (Abenor had a poor grip last round)!

[BuckGodot]

A contest of strength!

[roll0]

[lostsole31]

Uh-oh! The Challengers are now pulled a total of 10' over the line. Another 5', and the Challengers lose. Poor Ruby will lose!

This time, the half-orc seems to be having trouble. It seems the rope is rubbing wrong against the clothes and her armour. If only her chain shirt didn't come with an extra letter!

Aasgar, roll a STR check, but this time only +7.

[lostsole31]

It's a terrible effort by the challengers, but wait!

The opposition lost control of the rope, and Ruby's group pulls the rope in for a win!

Aasgar's natural competitiveness might not be feeling great at what he is sure was being handed a win rather than a "catastrophic failure" on the part of the opposition, but this wasn't for him, and Ruby gets to feel good.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar congratulates Ruby on her coming of age ceremony and thanks her for giving him the opportunity to participate before stepping away to where he had been standing in the crowd.

[lostsole31]

Other than enjoying the festivities, do you have any pointed actions to take, or let things happen as they happen?

[BuckGodot]

Nothing specific. Just partake of the events.

[lostsole31]

Aasgar might enjoy socializing, but is not much of a gossip. (Just because you can do a thing....)

Abenor is curious, but instead of interaction, he just listens to interesting tidbits, being sure to pass along any such things to Aasgar as they mingle with Trunauans during the hopeknife festival. Of course, Aasgar knows how to keep his fat dwarven finger on the pulse of a society, and does a good job aiding Abenor.

LOCAL LORE

“The hopeknife is more than a weapon—it’s a symbol. To Trunauans, earning your hopeknife is a mark of your place in the community. When you earn your hopeknife, it means you are wise enough to make adult decisions, old enough to know what it means to fear, and strong enough to protect your neighbors, even if it costs you your own life.”

“Even though she’s the Chief Defender’s daughter, Ruby has to pledge to uphold the Standing Vow in order to receive her hopeknife, just like the rest of us. She must agree to hold Trunau against all comers and to never forfeit her homeland willingly. That is the Vow.”

“Rumor has it that Rodrik Grath is next in line for the position of patrol leader after his old man Jagrin retires. Jagrin’s a good commander, but he’s getting old, and it might be time for some new blood in the militia’s leadership.”

“Shame about the graffiti all over town. The militia’s got better things to do than clean up youngsters’ messes, but even stranger is how long it lasts. Try as one might, soap and water don’t do a thing to those marks!”

“Have you read Rodrik Grath’s latest work, ‘The Other Side of Contempt’? He’s our own home-grown writer. It’s a controversial poem, but that’s what makes Rodrik’s writing so strong—he’s not afraid to push limits.”

[BuckGodot]

"Maybe we should look into the graffiti issue. Something to help so the local militia doesn't have to deal with it?" Aasgar suggests at some point during their conversation.

[lostsole31]

Abenor looks at Aasgar dubiously. "Graffiti? Really? That's a bit beyond our paygrade, don't you think? Because, let's face it, last you bellyached, your wallet was growing thin. I'm more interested in seeing if the militia wants any military scouts or something much more to our talents than .... dirty walls."

[BuckGodot]

"Look... Not everything needs to be about filling our coffers... That being said... You're right... Fine..."

And he heads off to find the lead of the militia.

[lostsole31]

Aasgar goes trundling off, but Abenor still follows along. As you are moving along, others are moving towards you. It turns out that Kurst and Rodrik Grath were looking for the two of you.

"Hey, Big Fella! Good showing today at the tug-o'-war," says the likable, confident elder brother. "I'm Rodrik Grath, and this is my younger brother, Kurst. We're both Patrol Leaders with Trunau's militia. What's your name?"

[BuckGodot]

"Greetings. Thank you. I'm Aasgar Axewielder and my friend here is Abenor Quentrias." he says and nods to both.

[lostsole31]

The Graths go in for a lot of pleasantries and small talk with exotic strangers such as yourselves. They’ve taken a measure of the PCs’ strength during the tug-of-war match, and in the interest of securing future defenders for Trunau, the brothers now make an honest effort to learn about the PCs. Throughout the conversation, the PCs likely learn a bit about the Graths as well; Rodrik and Kurst answer any questions about themselves and rarely waste the chance for a friendly jab at each other.

Rodrik is a confident man with a hearty laugh and an honest smile. He is self-assured, an excellent swordsman, and a locally respected writer as well. Kurst is more reserved, and while just as capable as his brother, he seems content to remain in Rodrik’s shadow. It is clear throughout the PCs’ exchanges with the brothers that Rodrik is the older brother (even if only by a few minutes) and the dominant one in the relationship, and while shy Kurst makes a modest effort to engage the PCs, it is ultimately Rodrik who comes off as the more likable, talented, and forthcoming of the two siblings. At any rate, the conversation should be lighthearted and entertaining. Aasgar feels like he will have built a connection with two important people in town. After the conversation has run its course, the brothers politely excuse themselves to check on the other celebrants.

Once you and Abenor are alone again, and as the celebrations wind down for the night, the PCs will likely need to a place to stay.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will inquire of the brothers, before they go, who they should seek out to ask if they can assist the militia in any way as well as where would be the best place to find lodging for the night?

[lostsole31]

They wanted to get in touch with the two PCs, but they don't have any jobs right now. As far as where to go, Rodrik himself stays at the Ramblehouse, and that is what is recommended.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will thank them and if Abenor is ready, head to the lodging establishment.

[lostsole31]

Actually, it is/ will be assumed you and Abenor have been at the Ramblehouse for a few days ... long enough to set up a monthly account and to explore Trunau.

The two of you return to the Ramblehouse, a halfling-run boarding house that is also the only in in town. Cham Larringfass, the establishment's eccentric proprieter, mentions that Rodrik Grath is staying at the Ramblehouse, as she notes that you'll be in safe hands tonight especially.

Do you do anything else before heading off to bed?

[BuckGodot]

Nothing springs to mind. So no.

[lostsole31]

https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/059d8089-764a-4034-a2e4-4fe08cf89b83/dewzl2g-f49b993d-5dc8-4a44-8cd8-331c9108cb5d.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJ IUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQz NzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZT BkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6 W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzA1OWQ4MDg5LTc2NGEtNDAzNC1hMm U0LTRmZTA4Y2Y4OWI4M1wvZGV3emwyZy1mNDliOTkzZC01ZGM4 LTRhNDQtOGNkOC0zMzFjOTEwOGNiNWQucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIj pbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.Jx1PxfXY 7wr4u2u8NozPdCyR0mgW17uYmQJeLJDP7bI

Fireday, 26 Calistril 4715 AR
(Somal: First Quarter-Moon; 18/10 F; Winds E 10 mph; Dry. Wind Chill: 13/ 5 F.)

It is absolutely freezing the next morning, but you Cham Larringfass had gone around last night to make sure all residents knew as much.

Aasgar and Abenor, who not long ago realized it is best to have a roommate, hydrate to deal with the sweat lost from a cold night under many blankets, and get right to morning routine.

During Aasgar's meditations, and likely spurred by his feeling the bite of cold, he follows the line of intuition to the power of the four seasons, and a sash forms around his waist, perfectly woven to show those very four seasons, and the transitions between each. Given his desire to not feel the bite of this last month of winter, Aasgar's focus is on cold - or more properly - the absence of heat, or the drawing heat away to leave behind what is commonly referred to as "cold." That said, he has the intuition to realize that he could at a moment's notice shift the focus of the sash to protect him from different types of seasonal energies.

Now protected from the cold, he is undoubtedly curious, meditating on the nature of whatever this sash may be. In doing so, small spectacles of bronzed and crystalline akasha form. He is soon able to detect magical emanations. The only downside is that he has no training in understanding how to read what he sees, but it still might be useful since Abenor has no "elven magic" of any kind, just elven martial arts.
Today, Aasgar unlocked Sash of Four Seasons (https://libraryofmetzofitz.fandom.com/wiki/Sash_of_Four_Seasons) and the Eyeglasses of Magic Sight (https://libraryofmetzofitz.fandom.com/wiki/Eyeglasses_of_Magic_Sight).

Aasgar would need to learn Knowledge (arcana) to be able to even begin to make heads or tails of the magical emanations he might see. These spectacles just help him to binarily detect magic yes/no.

[BuckGodot]

After morning ablations, Aasgar will go down for breakfast and see what might be seen, inviting Abenor to come along of course.

[lostsole31]

Abenor looks at the sash and spectacles. "When did you get those?"

Aasgar and Abenor otherwise cheerily go downstairs...

... where they find many of Trunau’s residents in a state of dismay. A large crowd has gathered outside the Ramblehouse, and the news spreads quickly: Patrol Captain Rodrik Grath has been found dead! The inn’s owner, Cham Larringfass, discovered Rodrik’s body in his room, his wrists fatally lacerated and his bloody hopeknife in his limp hand. The town militia arrived soon after and roped off the entire building to investigate the scene, but all signs point to a suicide, a fact that saddens many of the town’s citizens.

Kurst approaches the PCs. The extent of his social anxiety are now clear without the aegis of his older brother. He looks to Aasgar, though a little taken aback by the dwarf now wearing spectacles. “I’m sure you’ve heard by now that my brother, Rodrik—you met him last night—was found dead this morning, and I’ve had my hands full since. Right now, the official cause of death is suicide, but I just can’t believe that. Something else has to be going on. Unfortunately, Rodrik was the best investigator in Trunau; if he were on the case, solving the mystery of his death wouldn’t take long, but with just me left, we might never know what really happened.” Kurst sighs heavily.

“I simply can’t handle the investigation and tend to my family duties at the same time. I may be a patrol captain, but right now, I feel my responsibilities as a brother outweigh my other duties. Still, I can’t just let this lie. I’m afraid I’ve exhausted all my other options—the members of Trunau’s militia are competent defenders during siege times, but they’re not sleuths by any means. I need your help. Will you investigate my brother’s death?”

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks at Abenor and says, "It's just something I'm trying...


Then upon meeting up with Krusty he says, "Please accept my deepest condolences. I would be hono... Proud to try to help. Do you mind if my friend here is also involved? He would be an invaluable resource."

[lostsole31]

Kurst looks at you oddly, and awkwardly says, "I had hoped ... half-expected ... I mean ... I sought you both out for help?"

Abenor asks him, "Shouldn't your father - the patrol leader - or the militia take charge of the investigation? I understand having outside consultants, but doesn't it undermine confidence in the militia that outsiders like us are actually in charge?"

Kurst answers, “Unsurprisingly, my father isn’t doing too well right at the moment, and I don’t think he’ll be willing to spare any officers from the outskirts of town. Even if he was, our militia is trained to fight orcs, not investigate mysterious deaths—especially one that’s officially a suicide. And my father has forbidden me from talking with ‘that half-orc temptress’ who he thinks seduced Rodrik. I need you.”

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks at Abenor and then back at Kursk. It's understandable... I'm sure he's upset as well. We'll gladly look into it. May I ask, do you suspect anyone, or know of any that would have wished your brother harm?"

[lostsole31]

Kurst looks taken aback, but then collects himself and answers, “Not that I can think of, but you might ask around town. My brother touched many lives in Trunau, so I wouldn’t discount anyone as a possible lead. Anything out of the ordinary could be a potential clue.”

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods his head in understanding… “As you said, anyone could be a possible lead. So, please understand I mean no disrespect by asking… I’m merely trying to act quickly to eliminate as many people from that list as possible but, could you tell us where you were last night?“

[lostsole31]

Kurst thinks about that for a second, "I stay with our father. Rodrick wanted some distance from him. I know of three leads that might help?" he says questioningly with raised shoulders and hands and a confused look. "The crime scene at the Ramblehouse, where they can also question the inn’s proprietor, Cham Larringfass; Brinya Kelver, a half-orc weaver whom I recently learned had been conducting a clandestine love affair with Rodrik for some time; and Omast Frum, a patrol sergeant in the militia, long-time friend of the Graths and one of Rodrik’s frequent patrol partners. Perhaps these people might be able to shed some light on the events leading up to Rodrik’s death? Maybe?"

"Why do you think Rodrik's death wasn't a suicide?" asks a half-orc female listening in.

Kurst turns his head to look at the half-orc, and the woman she stands next to. “I know my brother, and I know he wouldn’t kill himself. By his own account, he was in love with Brinya and was planning to marry her, even if our father disapproved. There’s something fishy about all of this, and I won’t dishonor Rodrik’s memory by accepting his ‘suicide’ without ruling out that something else happened.”

There are two extra people talking, or at listening intently to the conversation now in addition to Abenor and Aasgar .... and they are both of the ladies that were on your losing winning team of tug-of-war yesterday at Ruby's Hopeknife festival.

There's an awkwardness. The woman nod to you and Abenor, and then look expectantly at Kurst, who seems to not know what they are hinting at, though it seems they are hinting at something.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar turns to the women and says, ”Ummmm. Aasgar Axewielder and Abenor Quentrias at your service. And you are?”

[lostsole31]

"Imrijka, Inquisitor of Pharasma," says the female half-orc. "While I am used to looking into matters of faith or investigating threats to the church, that - and my love for Alison Kindler ghost-detective novels - have given me some skill as an actual investigator."

Imrijka speaks with a medium-strength Ustalav-Varisian dialect, placing her background in that country of gothic horrors. She isn't necessarily tall for a half-orc female (5'7"), but is no less sturdily built. Though wearing a high-quality chain shirt for protection, she wears the normal red, wide-brimmed hat and red stole and vestments of a Pharasmin inquisitor. Though inquisitors of most faiths tend to work on missions in low-key garb, most Pharasmin inquisitors - especially those from Ustalav, where they have had a long history of fighting undead - is meant to engender trust among the citizenry and let them know that they are here for the folks' anti-undead needs. She is armed with - at the least - a masterwork composite longbow, handaxe, and short sword, and carries her full pack of gear, making her seem like she should be stressing under the weight, and yet she seems nonplussed by it.

Though not speaking sonorously or anything of the like, she seems to be at least moderately capable of expressing herself urbanely with others, a refreshing change from most half-orcs Aasgar as met.

"You can call me Cici," Imrijka's friend says.

Cici is a simple girl in her early 20s with a coloring that is often desired - red hair, green eyes, and pale skin - but possesses otherwise unremarkable features. She was heavier when she was younger, and teased for that, so while not particularly vain she does like to wear makeup in town as a form of "armor" for herself. Though she is obviously of Kellid blood, enough Taldan exists within her with forehead, cheekbones, and jawline to give away mixed ethnicity. She is of slightly shorter height and has some curve to her still, but nothing particularly voluptuous. Still, she possesses a vibrancy of youth that is attractive to some, which is offset by her extreme shyness.

While many Kellids do have blue tattoos they wear for inscrutable reasons, her facial tattoos are particular striking, as they seem to be a thick, dark line of blue going from the inner corner of her eye and tracing in a straight line down the side of each nose, and finally to each corner of her mouth. She also possesses a series of horizontal, circular tattoos at he neck and upper chest. She startles you when she looks at you with two heads from under her cloak, until you some type of animal is perched on her shoulder. A sturdy leather lead hangs down and disappears into her decolletage. She has a short blade at her side, and doesn't appear to wear any armor.

[BuckGodot]

"Well met... You participated in the ceremony yesterday, I recall. Well, your skills in observation and perception are definitely top-notch as you picked up that Kurst has asked us to investigate the strange and untimely death of his brother. May I ask your whereabouts last night?" Aasgar asks while giving a glance to Abenor.

[lostsole31]

Imrijka is taken aback before looking down at Aasgar. "You may ask," she says in a steely voice while staring at Aasgar.

Aasgar, do you give her a stare back?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will not back down, however, he will diplomatically remain stern and focused while replying, "I mean no disrespect, but surely as Inquisitor and fan of detective writings, you know it's best to eliminate all the possibilities as quickly as possible. So, if you would answer, we can move directly on to the more likely suspects."

[lostsole31]

To her credit, she does well ... but not well enough and her gaze relents first. Of course, she is a poor loser as she snarls, "No, you silly pebble-kisser. That's the opposite of what you do. You run down your leads first, and when that doesn't work you widen your circle. What? Are you going to walk up and down the street and canvass everyone in Trunau just to 'eliminate all the possibilities?'"

While that drama is going on, Cici asks Kurst, "Can we examine the body?"

He answers her, though eyeing the situation between the dwarf and the half-orc nervously, “If you think it will help. We’re keeping it in the Sanctuary until the funeral.”

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar chuckles... "Fine. I see we have differing methods. But that's fine, we can cover twice as much ground that way... That is if you want to help..."

[lostsole31]

Abenor looks at the place you just came out of, and then at Kurst. "We are guests here, but we don't know the ins-and-outs. What can you tell us about he Ramblehouse and Cham Larringfass that might be helpful?"

“The Ramblehouse is the only inn in town," replies Kurst, "and a boardinghouse as well. I’ve already searched Rodrik’s room, but perhaps you can find something I overlooked. Cham discovered Rodrik’s body this morning. She’s originally from Molthune, I think, but she’s lived in Trunau since before I was born. She shows some favoritism to small folk like herself, but she’s a nice enough sort.”

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods to Imrijka and turns, leaving her to consider his offer, and focuses back on the other conversation.

[lostsole31]

Kurst says, "I had already contacted them first to investigate. You and Abenor were second because you were here at the Ramblehouse."

Imrijka gets a weird, toothy grin. "In that case, you may join me and my investigation."

Aasgar, do you have any questions?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar face goes a bit red in anger… ”You could have led with that… but fine… let’s just get on with it.”

[lostsole31]

Imrijka gives a follow-up question. "What can you tell us about Brinya Kelver?"

Kurst answers, “She and Rodrik were engaged to be married, but only a few people, myself included, knew about their relationship. Brinya’s a half-orc, like yourself. Her heritage doesn’t matter to me, but it does to my father, which is why Rodrik kept it secret. That’s why Rodrik was staying at the Ramblehouse. My father somehow found about the two of them, and he and Rodrik had a falling out over it. Since my father has forbidden me to visit her, could you check up on her and make sure she’s okay? You can also ask her whether anything seemed strange about Rodrik the last couple of nights.”

[BuckGodot]

Turning back to Imrijka, Aasgar says "Might I suggest that you let Abenor and I handle the innkeep and you speak to Brinya? You share a connection that we do not that might make it easier for you to talk to her and I may be able to connect with with the innkeeper, being a "small folk" of sorts."

[lostsole31]

"Uh, counter-offer," offers Abenor. "I know a little bit about forbidden love, and one of the things I never got to discuss with Rodrik was his work The Other Side of Contempt, which is a work which I've read and resonated with me. She might respond to me - an elf, but an outsider among elves and humans both - and knowing her beloved's work might also connect with her. That will give Imrijka and I a chance to know each other ... and Cici and Aasgar a chance to know each other ... and maybe when we meet again, we won't be so cliquish?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks at Cici... And back at Abenor...

"Ermm... I suppose. Okay. Let's do it that way then."

He turns back to Cici, "Does that work for you?"

[lostsole31]

Cici shrugs, "Sure."

Before Imrijka and Abenor walk away, Abenor turns around and says, "Kurst, you mentioned 'Omast Frum.' What can you tell us about them?"

Kurst points and nods emphatically with an "Oh, yeah, I did" sort of gesture. “Omast is a long-time friend of my family, and he’s always been like an uncle to Rodrik and me. He has a long history in Trunau, and most people think of him fondly as a local eccentric and a well-meaning lush. As a patrol sergeant, he accompanied Rodrik on many patrols. Maybe the two of them discovered something on one of those patrols.”

Imrijka follows that up. "Any other possible suspects?"

“Not that I can think of, but you might ask around town. My brother touched many lives in Trunau, so I wouldn’t discount anyone as a possible lead. Anything out of the ordinary could be a potential clue.”

And with that, Abenor and Imrijka move off.

Cici is lost in thought, and absent-mindedly asks, "Are there any other clues?"

Kurst nods sullenly. “The only thing I have is Rodrik’s hopeknife, which he supposedly used to kill himself. I’ll need it back for his funeral, but if you think it might help, you can have it until then.”

"How can we get in touch with you?" asks Cici.

“Ask for me at the Longhouse," answers Kurst, handing the hopeknife to Cici. "I need to plan Rodrik’s funeral and manage his affairs, but if I’m not there, leave word and I’ll get in contact with you as soon as possible.”

Kurst heads off.

"So, shall we talk to Cham?" asks Cici, and the two of you walk inside, and it doesn't take long at all to find the Ramblehouse's proprieter, Cham Larringfass.

[BuckGodot]

On the stroll over, Aasgar will attempt to get the young woman to open up a bit more about herself.

"So what brings you two here? If I may ask?"

[lostsole31]

"The womb that bore me here," says Cici, pulling up on the chain around her neck to show you her hopeknife, identifying her as a Trunau native.

The little creature jealously in Cici's hood tugs on the chain to hide the knife from Aasgar's eyes.

And now you're in front of Cham.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will approach the innkeeper and ask, ”Excuse me, Miss Larringfass? Aasgar Axewielder. Do you have a few minutes spare that we could speak? I’ve been asked to look into the unfortunate circumstances of last night and was hoping I could start by getting the facts straight away. “

[lostsole31]

"I'm sorry, sir," says Cham. "I don't remember anything out of the ordinary about last night."

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods and says,"I appreciate that. What we're trying to do is put everything in order from start to finish so we can get an idea of his actions prior to the incident and everything after. Do you recall seeing him come in and go to his room?"

[lostsole31]

She shakes her head. "No, sir, sorry."

Aasgar, you get a sense that she's hiding something, but obviously you don't know what.

[BuckGodot]

Gesturing to Cici to step away for a second, Aasgar says in a low voice, "She knows more than she's letting on. That much is clear. Do you know her well?"

[lostsole31]

"Not really," says Cici. "I inherited a small cottage, and never had need of coming to the Ramblehouse. Perhaps if you can convince her to let us look at the ledger for any guests whose names I don't recognize or she mentions seemed strange?"

[BuckGodot]

”Good idea.” and he turns back to Cham. “Excuse me again, but do you mind if we look at the ledger to see who was here last night?”

[lostsole31]

You convince her to let you look at the guest registry. The only entry of note in the register is a single human man who rented the Ramblehouse’s last room after Rodrik had reserved his room, but before the patrol captain had checked in for the night. This entry stands out because the guest’s name has not been recorded in the register.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar turns the ledger around and points out the line to Cham…

”Can you tell me about this? Why is there no name?”

[lostsole31]

Cham breaks down into fearful sobs and quickly explains herself. “He refused to give me his name,” she manages between gulps of air, “and he paid me a fistful of gold. He said he’d be gone before sunrise. I didn’t ask any more questions. I had no idea that something like this would happen!”

If asked, the halfling can give a general description of the man, but she doesn’t remember any specific features that would help identify him.

[BuckGodot]

If there is anyone else in the inn, Aasgar will ask if we can step into a back room to discuss this further... If there is no one else around at the moment, he will ask for the description and also, what room the man stayed in and if we can see it.

[lostsole31]

She gave you "a description" (see above), but it wasn't much of anything, and nothing worth building a picture of. Just like a halfling to think that all longshanks look the same.

When asked about any other guests, she reveals her prejudice against non-halflings, claiming that “a bunch of half-orcs and other thuggish tall-folk” came in about a week ago and reserved practically every free room in the Ramblehouse. She didn’t recognize any of them from around town, but by the time Rodrik’s body was discovered, the travelers had already checked out. Cham has no idea where the travelers might be now. The Ramblehouse’s register confirms Cham’s statement.

What rooms do you wish to see? Please note the order you wish to proceed in, as well.

[BuckGodot]

First, the unknown strangers room, followed by Rodericks.

[lostsole31]

The room of the nameless man is checked first. A quick search doesn't turn up anything, when Cici then recommends a more thorough (time-consuming examination).

It is this that bears forth fruit, for there is a "trick drawer" in the writing desk. Inside the secret compartment is a slip of dirty old parchment containing an unfinished letter to a person named Melira.See Handout #2, Message to Melira, in the Discord Handouts channel.
Cici sighs after reading it and handing it to Aasgar. "At first, one would hope that this was a long-forgotten missive to a lover from a random lodger of time gone by. But the mention of a 'meddling patrol captain' is too close to our purposes, and might be the first piece of evidence to point to a larger conspiracy. But to what advantage?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods and tugs gently at his beard, thinking...

"It seems rather sloppy for a would-be assassin to leave a note like this. So I suspect that Melira may yet make an appearance to collect said missive. Does the name mean anything to you? I wonder if the 'we' mentioned are the others that checked in?"

After concluding this search, move on to the room of the deceased.

[lostsole31]

"Well, you said yourself," muses Cici, "a 'would-be' assassin ... who is likely not an assassin by trade. If this is the killer's note, very possibly he killed by way of opportunity rather than solid planning, and left hurriedly. Not being 'trained' in this sort of thing, this was left behind.

"Melira didn't get this, so it's not like it's missing. And it was written informally, so it doesn't strike me as regularized correspondence. I don't think we are the 'we.' If anything, 'we' are the unexpected fly in the ointment. An 'x' factor they didn't expect."

You step out into the hallway where Cham is nervously waiting, but Cici doesn't offer any information to the halfling gossip.

Per request, she then takes you to upstairs to the room Rodrik spent his last night. She stays outside while the two of you enter.

This sparse room contains only a single cot and a writing desk. The cot is a cheap affair with a straw-stuffed mattress, now stained red with blood and stripped of its linens, while the desk is a slightly nicer piece of furniture that has nonetheless been chipped and worn by time. A cracked window in the southern wall is the only exit other than the room’s door.

The militia has already removed Rodrik’s body, leaving only the bloodstained mattress behind.

Given the similarity in desks, both of you go to the writing desk and do find a false bottom in the desk drawer, but the compartment underneath is empty.

You then do a quick search of the room and under the bed you find a scrap of paper stuck between the headboard and the wall.See Handout #1 in Discord.

[BuckGodot]

"Cici, let's have a look at the Hopeknife. I'm curious if it's the same as listed on this receipt." he holds out his hand to examine the knife if she proffers it.

[lostsole31]

Cici shows Aasgar the Hopeknife. There is no engraving upon it.

[BuckGodot]

"Well, this bears further investigation. Do you think we should look at the other rooms? I don't feel the others may be connected to this." Aasgar muses.

[lostsole31]

"While I agree with your assessment," offers Cici, "I would still want to look at those rooms for completeness. We gain nothing through haste."

[BuckGodot]

"I suggest we do a top to bottom of this room and then move on to the next room. Repeat, and so on."

[lostsole31]

A top-to-bottom of Rodrik's former room reveals nothing else of importance.

In searching the rooms rented to the party of foreign half-orcs, it seems they have been seriously vandalized. While most of the damage is reparable, the walls of some of the rooms are marked with graffiti that won’t come clean even after hours of scrubbing. Nothing else is of interest there.

All-in-all, it has taken a solid four hours of searching top to bottom of all of the various rooms.

[BuckGodot]

"Right. That's that. Let's take what we have and meet back up with the other two to see what they've found." says Aasgar, stretching a bit from all the crouching, bending, and hunching that deep searches require.

[lostsole31]

Once the four meet up together, here is what Abenor and Imrijka were able to find out in interviewing Brinya Kelver, Rodrik's beloved.

Rodrik’s fiancee, Brinya Kelver, occupies humble rooms in a boarding house just northwest of the Commons (area D). They caught her in an unenviable state, her face wracked with grief and stained by hours of tears. She composed herself as best she could during the interview, but broke into sobs periodically throughout the conversation.

Brinya was able to fill in the details of her relationship with Rodrik. The couple had been seeing each other for months, and Rodrik finally proposed to her using his mother’s ring. Even once they were engaged, Rodrik was careful to keep the relationship hidden from his father, who wouldn’t approve of the match.

Brinya grudgingly respected her beloved’s wishes for privacy, though his cowardice inspired no shortage of annoyance as well, and was a source of contention between them. It didn’t help that Rodrik soon became preoccupied with some sort of investigation, what he called “his greatest work”—the details of which he refused to share with Brinya. To make matters even worse, Rodrik’s father, Jagrin, did finally find out about the couple’s relationship, and repudiated his son for betrothing himself to a “filthy half-orc.”

Abenor knows that engaged or married couples exchanging hopeknives is a common tradition in Trunau. He asked if they had done so.

Brinya goes on to reveal that Rodrik lost the hopeknife she had given him in the course of his investigation. When she learned of the loss on the night of Ruby’s hopeknife ceremony, Brinya was furious, and she told Rodrik she didn’t want to see him again until he found it or otherwise made things right. If she had known that night would be the last time she would see her beloved, Brinya lamented, she would have acted much differently. With Rodrik’s death, Brinya’s anger at him quickly transformed into overwhelming grief, and she unfairly blames herself for his death.

When asked about Rodrik himself, Brinya talks at length about his beautiful poems (which initially attracted her to him), and about how Rodrik was always writing something. She confided that Rodrik kept a journal as well, and suggested the entries he wrote up to his final night might provide insight into his murder. Unfortunately, she has no idea where the journal might be. Obviously, there’s his room in the Ramblehouse, but Rodrik also frequently went to Trunau’s Sanctuary with his writing. According to Brinya, Rodrik said he had a “thoughtful muse” there, but he never elaborated. Brinya had always just assumed her lover was finding solace in devotion to Iomedae, but now she wonders if there really was someone at the church—someone who might know more about what happened to Rodrik, or worse, betrayed him.

[BuckGodot]

"Looks like a visit to Trunau’s Sanctuary might be in order. Shall we all go?"

[lostsole31]

The party arrives at the sanctuary (area F), Trunau's church of Iomedae, in search of Rodrik's journal (or at least his "muse"). The Sanctuary's high priestess, Tyari Varvatos (female human cleric of Iomedae), is happy to talk to the PCs.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will render proper respects.

"Greetings, Ma'am. Thank you for taking the time to see us. As you have been informed, we have been asked to conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Rodrik Grath. The path of our investigation so far has led us here. We're told he would often spend time here? Did he have a room he used frequently or anyone he may have spoken to on a regular basis?"

[lostsole31]

"He did, he did," she says, nodding soberly now that she her attention is brought to bear on the recently deceased man. "I noticed the Patrol Captain meeting with Katreza, a long-time half-orc resident of the Sanctuary, frequently in recent weeks. I occasionally overheard the two muttering about ghosts, half-orcs, hopeknives, and white swords, but I wasn’t able to parse any of the information into more meaningful details. Katrezra claims to have visions, and though I can’t vouch for their prophetic accuracy, I do believe they are more than just hallucinations."

[BuckGodot]

"Thank you. When was the last time he was here? Did he seem in an unusual mood? Anxious, for example?" Aasgar asks, subconsciously tugging at his beard.

[lostsole31]

"I'm sorry," she demurs, "but I really didn't deal enough with Rodrik to note his comings and goings. He mainly dealt with Katreza and Brantos."

[lostsole31]

Abenor asks, "May we speak to Katreza?"

Tyari frowns, answering, "He disappeared a few nights ago without telling anyone. The half-orc left his bed neatly made, so I didn't suspect any foul play, though I do admit it was odd of Katrezra to leave on the same day that Rodrik’s body was discovered. However, I reason that the half-orc seer can’t have gone far, since his crippling condition causes him considerable physical pain and drastically limits his mobility. In addition, I believe he would be unlikely to leave Trunau (to return to his orc tribe, for example), since he sought sanctuary in the church long ago, and has become a devout follower of the Inheritor.

"Unfortunately," she says, standing up, "My duties call me on, and I have no more insight into your investigation. Iomedae’s light shines on those who seek the truth, however, and you are always welcome at this Sanctuary should you need healing or other assistance from the church.”

[BuckGodot]

"One last quick question before you go... Does the name Melira mean anything to you?" Aasgar asks.

[lostsole31]

Tyari shakes her head. "No, sorry."

[BuckGodot]

"Well, I guess we should try to find this... Brantos... Maybe he can tell us something. I also think we should look at Katreza's room." Aasgar suggests, looking around the area a bit.

[lostsole31]

She opens the door, motioning to an acolyte. "Please show our guests to Brantos Calderon."

She then turns to Aasgar and adds, "And no, you will not be searching any rooms." She turns to the acolyte as if to make sure the acolyte understands that as holy writ, and then says, "Good day, everyone," before leaving to whatever temple business she has.

"This way, please," says the young man, who will take you to Brantos' cell. The acolyte knocks on the door to the cell. After a minute or two, for which the acolyte is patient, though a minute or two might throw the rest of you off, a strapping man opens his cell door. The acolyte speaks up, "Priestess Tyari asked that I show these folk to you, but they are not to search any cells."

And with that, the acolyte is gone, leaving the group and Brantos.

"How may I be of service?" he asks.

[BuckGodot]

"Greetings Brantos. Our apologies for disturbing you today but we were hoping you could help us. We have been asked to look into the unfortunate events surrounding Rodrick Grath. We understand you were in contact with him often? Could you say when was the last time you saw him?" Aasgar asks with a gentle smile.

[lostsole31]

Brantos looks down at Aasgar curiously. "Yesterday, at Ruby's festival, of course!"

Cici pipes up, "More generally, what was your relationship with Rodrik?"

Brantos mentions that he had some dealings with Rodrik Grath, but he can’t provide the PCs with any useful information about Rodrik beyond an impression that the patrol captain was investigating something. Brantos has no idea what the focus of Rodrik’s investigation might have been, but he seemed to enjoy his work. When asked by Abenor, he knows nothing about any journal that Rodrik may have kept.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods and says, "Did he ever mention the name Melira?"

[lostsole31]

He shakes his head. "Can't say as I've ever even heard the name."

[BuckGodot]

"Can you tell us anything about Katreza? The High Priestess said Rodrik had been meeting with him of late?" asks Aasgar.

[lostsole31]

"Of course," he readily agrees. "I've dealt a lot with Katreza, since I was largely responsible for taking care of the half-orc invalid when the chapel's acolytes were occupied elsewhere. I know his past was painful, and that while the half-orc has no love for his full-blooded kin, the seer is a benevolent man who has a soft spot for fellow half-orcs."

Here he gives a deferential nod to Imrijka, who returns the nod.

"Katreza has proven himself a loyal defender of Trunau on multiple occasions and has many friends in town. He vanished just recently, I am told, as I have not cared for him the past few days, but I have no idea where the seer has vanished to."

"I'm told Rodrik's body is here," says Abenor. "May we examine it?"

"I can't imagine why not," says Brantos.

He takes you to the Sanctuary's basement where his body is being stored until the funeral. Rodrik appears to have died of blood loss after slitting his own wrists.

Cici casts a spell. "There is poison in the body."

She seems to continue to look at him as if under a partial trance. "The poison is oil of taggit. This hints at foul play, though is not decisive evidence, as oil of taggit results only in unconsciousness, not death."

[BuckGodot]

"So it would appear that someone drugged him and then slit his wrists, making it look like a suicide... Not conclusively, I understand. This poison... How would it be administered? This might indicate if he was taken by surprise, or perhaps knew his assailant. If it can be ingested, we might go back and ask if any food was delivered to Rodriks room that night."

[lostsole31]

"Ingested only," answers Cici. "Like most poisons, it isn't absorbed through the skin. It is completely useless injected directly into the bloodstream as it is diluted in the circulatory system before getting to any important organs."

[BuckGodot]

"I suggest then that we return to the boarding facility and ask about whether any food was delivered to his room that night and reiterate there were no visitors. If there was no food delivered, we can see where he might have dined last and go there. Cici, is this a fast-acting poison or would it have taken time to work?" asks Aasgar.

"Unless someone has a better suggestion?"

[lostsole31]

"Very fast acting for an ingested poison," Cici informs you. "Its effects can be felt after a minute."

There is no dissent against heading back to the Ramblehouse. Do you take your leave of Brantos?

[BuckGodot]

Turning back to Brantos, Aasgar nods to him and says, "Thank you for your help in this matter. Please if you think of anything else that might assist us, let us know."

And he will turn and head outside.

Presuming everyone follows, once they are out, he says, "Let us return to the Ramblehouse and ask after the food."

[lostsole31]

At the Ramblehouse, you ask about the food, and the halfling proprieter says that yesterday was a town celebration and he must have had plenty to eat during Ruby's Hopeknife Festival, because he only wanted a nightcap, which she poured and took up herself. Rodrik received it at the door, thanked her, and that was the last she saw of him.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks at Cici... "Are you able to detect residual poison?"


If yes, then he will ask to see the container from which the drink was poured so Cici can examine it.

If no, he will suggest that they then need to try to create a timeline of Rodriks whereabouts as he traveled through the evening.

[lostsole31]

The proprieter will tell you that the dishes have already been washed.

Cici looks to Aasgar and shakes her head. "No. And why would we do that? Someone would have noticed if he was dragged to his room unconscious. So, it makes sense that he was poisoned in his room, and he fell in this room, and he was murdered in the room. Trying to talk with every Tom, Richard, and Harry in Trunau will just tell you that he was a popular guy that got around. I mean, not like 'got around, got around,' but very social."

[BuckGodot]

Okay! Okay! Jeez... Don't have an attack... I simply forgot you said that the poison would act in less than a minute... What's your suggestion, then?" Aasgar responds.

[lostsole31]

Abenor puts a calming hand on Aasgar's shoulder. "Okay, what do we know? What are our pieces of gold that will give us the treasure that is a solved investigation?"

Cici breathes to calm herself as well (redhead). "Rodrik was likely poisoned unwittingly with something that was in his room that he drank. My guess is someone was actually hiding in the room, but there is no way to verify that, and it actually doesn't help our investigation, only possible post-action. He was poisoned by using a fast-acting ingested toxin that causes unconscious - the oil of taggit. Once unconscious, the assassin had the means to work at their leisure to create a scene by slitting his wrists with a sharp, finesseable blade. A hopeknife was present.

"Somebody checked into the Ramblehouse the night before, but his features are unremembered. Suspicious activity because Cham Larringfass was bribed not to write a name. Other previous half-orc tenants that proprieter found suspicious, likely because of racism, left well before the assassination. Rodrik's room produced a receipt for a new hopeknife from Morninghawk's Fine Steel. Contacted smith's name is Urnsul.

"Found note in secret drawer of room of nameless man. Definitely seems to implicate author as likely assassin. Written for a Melina, but never sent."

"He was in a hurry, or something unexpected happened," offers Imrijka.

"Why do you say that?" asks Abenor.

"Because you are not likely to just leave a love note behind as an accident," she answers. "Also, it is likely for someone distant, because of the effort in the letter, so assume there is no Melina local to Trunau."

She continues, "Brinya definitely sincere in shock and grief. The hopeknife used to kill Rodrik was not his, and was supposed to be Brinya's but Rodrik lost the hopeknife he gave her. That makes sense with that receipt you have. Actual murder hopeknife has no inscription, as was expected with Brinya's own. She mentioned a helpful muse at the Sanctuary, where we all went. It seems that the muse might be Katreza, whose whereabouts are currently unknown, but no sign of foul play in his quarters, as if he expected to leave. Also, Rodrik kept a journal, whereabouts unknown."

Abenor looks to Aasgar. "Okay, let's assume we aren't going to find a Melina. Let's not waste time asking. So, the currently unexplored leads at current is, mainly checking in with Morninghawk's Fine Steel, showing the hopeknife, and talking to .... what was the name on the receipit?"

"Urnsul," offers Cici.

"Honestly, Katreza would be the next to find after that," says Abenor, "but his location is unknown, so the smith seems the best choice."

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar breathes out a sigh... "Sorry for overreacting... This is requiring a lot more thinking than I'm used to... I'd rather be hacking at stuff with my axe... Right. To the smith then. Thank you, all." and he turns to head towards the smithy.

[lostsole31]

Only a block or two after the PCs leave the Ramblehouse, there is a chorus of higher-pitched, growling voices. Three smaller wolves with signs of obvious physical distress stand, blocking the street as other people carefully back off and away. They stand and snarl at the PCs in front of them.

Begin Round One ...

R1T22: Cici, who was in the front with Aasgar because she knows where to go, says, "These wolves are young, about as powerful as a companion dog. But they seem to be suffering from disease. Go defensive. Don't let them bite you, if you can. But there's no saving them. They need to be put down."

She casts a spell of magical armor about herself that is only seen as a brief bluish-white shimmer before disappearing. She then steps behind Imrijka and Abenor while taking out a strange blade that Aasgar has never seen before.

R1T21: Too diseased for the normal show of dominance and aggression, one of the wolves in the back just closes into the mass of heroes standing together. Aasgar is completely surprised, but his armor holds firm against the attack of the small wolf.

R1T20: Aasgar, you have no weapons in hand (all stowed, walking carefully and nonthreateningly down a town street). What do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar takes on a defensive stance before shouting out instructions of warning to the others.





SwA: Enter Circular Stance: Cannot be flanked, unless foe level 4+ higher

SwA: Enact Defending the Pride: Grant all allies w/in 60' a +4 morale bonus to AC for 1 rd.

[lostsole31]

R1T20: Aasgar takes on a defensive stance before shouting out instructions of warning to the others. Now that the flow of battle is upon him, Aasgar gets an insight of how to try to read where a wolf reacts to pain to strike a merciful killing blow there.

R1T15-12: The two other wolves close on Aasgar, one of them charging, but his stance and armor keep them at bay.

R1T11: Imrijka steps back and away, taking out her finely crafted composite longbow, and casts a spell upon herself. That done, she looks upon the wolves. "May Pharasma allow me deadly accuracy to end your misery quickly, wolves."

R1T10: Abenor steps into the middle of the street, getting into a lunging stance as he quick draws Ileor in a smooth strike that drops the first wolf (22 on crit) to then continue past to the wolf beyond for 18, dropping that one as well.

End Round One, Begin Round 2 ...

R2T22: Cici casts a spell on her hand, electricity arcing all around it. She steps forward over the first fallen wolf and reaches at the last one. Her touch does 21 electricity, dropping the wolf.

Given that these wolves cannot be saved, the party performs CDGs on the wolves.

Combat Ends ...

[BuckGodot]

"Well done all... That was odd... How did they get inside the city? Everyone okay? No bites?" Aasgar asks as he looks around.

"Who will dispose of the carcasses? They should be burned."

[lostsole31]

Imrijka will call for the town militia, and Cici will take samples from each of the wolves while Abenor keeps everyone from getting too close.

The guard will come with some specialists that will wheelbarrow limed corpses away to be burned, and with Cici's offer to the militia, she will promise to send along a report of her findings once she has had a chance to look at the blood.

That done, do you continue to the smith's?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar watches Cici with interest but steps back when the people with the wheelbarrows arrive. He turns and looks around the village, taking in the sights and sounds. Stretching his shoulders and neck a bit he turns back to the group and watches them all working together as a team. Smiling to himself, he says, "Alright. To the Smiths! Let's get on with this!"



Didn't want to just post "Go to smiths."

[lostsole31]

Cici fills the group in on some information regarding Clamor.

Clamor is a squat, cramped building in the western corner of lower Trunau. The clang of metal on metal rings out of the building most hours of the day, and the heat from the forge fills the stifling smithy. Sara Morninghawk (female half-orc), the town’s half-orc/ half-Shoanti smith, diligently plies her trade during daylight hours, retiring to her home in the inner quarter to spend the evenings with her wife Agrit Staginsdar.

There are a bunch of smiths working here, and Cici asks to see Sara Morninghawk.

Sara Morninghawk comes out, and introduces herself to the others in the group she does not know (i.e., everyone other than Cici). Cici tells her that the four of you are working to investigate the peculiarities of Rodrik Grath's death. She is handed the receipt that you found in the Ramblehouse.

Looking it over, Sara says, "I keep a detailed registry of customers and their orders. It will be a simple thing to match this receipt with those records."

Sara also confirms, when asked, that Rodrik commissioned a new blade a week ago. She did the preliminary work on the knife, and then handed it off to one of her apprentices, whom she assumed finished the blade.

“I guess it doesn’t matter so much anymore,” she says, “but I wonder where it went—it must be around here somewhere.” After a few minutes searching for the knife, Sara comes up empty-handed. “I’ll bet that clumsy oaf Urnsul put it somewhere before she up and quit the other day; it’s hard to get good help. I’ll let you know if I find the blade.”

Cici asks Aasgar to show her the hopeknife that was found on Rodrik's body.

Sara looks it over and is quite surprised. "This is the knife I was working on for Rodrik, but I have no idea how it came into his possession."

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods to her in thanks, taking the blade back when she's done examining it. Turning back to the group he says, "We have an annoyingly large amount of disappearing people as this mystery widens. Could they all have been collaborating?"

Turning back to Ms. Smith, he asks, "How long had Urnsul worked for you and what do you know of her?"

[lostsole31]

Sara explains that Urnsul was a new apprentice she took on several weeks ago, but the woman didn't show up to work today. Urnsul was a recent arrival to Trunau, and Sara took pity on her when the young half-orc explained her tragic story in broken Taldane.

[BuckGodot]

"Thank you for your help. Where was she staying? Anyone else think of anything?" Aasgar asks Sara before turning back to the group.

[lostsole31]

"I'm sorry, I have no idea," answers Sara.

Cici says, "Well, we could go to my cottage while I try to find out what is going on with the blood."

[BuckGodot]

"I guess I'm fine with that... Seems a bit like a waste of resources but maybe you'll find something that will be able to put us on a new track." Aasgar says.

[lostsole31]

"Tell you what, then," she offers. "I will go to my cottage and do this, and how about we all try to meet together at The Killin' Ground at sunset? I should have an answer by then."

[BuckGodot]

"I'm agreeable to that. I could use a bite to eat anyway. Let's break up until then. And be careful everyone..." Aasgar says.

[lostsole31]

Cici departs for now.

Where do you want to go now?

[BuckGodot]

"Well, lets see... We know that he was most likely poisoned... Would there be someone in town that could provide that sort of... service?"Aasgar reasons...

[lostsole31]

"Well," Abenor smiles, "the one who would know just walked off."

"But," cuts in Imrijka, "in a place as honorable as Trunau? I doubt it, at least not openly. I think looking for the possible source of poison is a dead end since anyone could bring it in from outside."

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks at her and smiles... "I'll try not to be skeptical... But every place has its dark underbelly... And speaking of bellies, I was serious about eating... I feel like I'm missing something. Maybe if I distract my mind, it will occur to me." and he looks around hoping to find a plethora of food establishments before remembering where he is and turns towards the Ramblehouse.

[lostsole31]

Okay, what do you do back at the Ramblehouse?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar enters the Ramblehouse and takes a seat after requesting the special of the day. When it's served he digs in and looks thoughtful...

"Have we accounted for Rodriks whereabouts between the Hopeknofe ceremony and his demise? I feel like I'm still missing part of it." he says to no one in particular.

[lostsole31]

"No," says Imrijka. "But would it matter? Cici laid out a good rationale for why the whole 'scene d'affaire' wouldn't have made any sense originating outside his room."

[BuckGodot]

"I agree. We know the location of the finale, but what were the scenes leading up to it? Maybe he met with someone beforehand that may lend some hint as to what happened and who caused his death. We know he was investigating something. Was that motive? To stop his investigation? The note kind of throws a wrench into that. Maybe the two aren't related and we're trying to force them to be? Perhaps we should try to find out what he was investigating. His journal would surely be helpful in that sense..." Aasgar relpies.

[lostsole31]

"And where is Rodrik's journal now?" asks Abenor.

[BuckGodot]

"Exactly!" nods Aasgar. "I feel like that is the best avenue for solving this... But we've searched his room... I don't know where else we could begin looking..."

[lostsole31]

"My friend, you misunderstand me," says Abenor, more coolly than Aasgar likely seems to be. "Where is Rodrik's journal now?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks back at Abenor."Well, we don't know... Absconded or destroyed?"

[lostsole31]

Abenor does a sort of shrugging and shake of the head. "The point is, there is a journal somewhere, but we don't know where it is. And wide-open searches won't avail us. So, for our purposes right now, there is no journal. It is not a clue, but noise until or if it shows.

"Okay, what else do we have that seems unpursued or open-ended?"

[BuckGodot]

Looking down, Aasgar thinks..."Well, the missing people. If located, they could offer clues. It was out of character for the half-orc to just disappear. The woman who worked at the smithy might be harder because she appears to have been new to the area. This person, Melira, the note was meant for as well. No one seems to recognise the name."

[lostsole31]

"It was out of character for which half-orc to disappear?" asks Imrijka.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks at her and responds "Katreza... Tyari also said she didn't believe he could have gone far due to his condition. We need to find him. Perhaps we should head back to the sanctuary and see if we can get an idea about where he disappeared..."

[lostsole31]

"How would we do that?" asks Imrijka. "I think they were sincere when they said they didn't know. And I am pretty sure we won't be allowed to go snooping around inside the Sanctuary because we think we are entitled to."

[BuckGodot]

"I never suggested we do that. However, I sensed that she was reasonable, and if we explained that we were trying to resolve this and in the process ensure Katrezas well being we might be allowed to at least ask questions that could potentially help. Are you or Cici any good at tracking? It seems with a crippling condition, he may have left distinctive footprints." suggests Aasgar.

[lostsole31]

Imrijka and Abenor (who you know to be a good tracker) both drop their jaws, and luckily it is not your bestie that asks the question of common sense.

"Track .... him," Imrijka asks slowly. "A couple days after he left the Sanctuary .... in a well-trod town. That kind of tracking?"

Abenor drops his head so Aasgar can't see that he is totally on the half-orc's side with this, but Aasgar still knows Abenor enough to sense that his friend is trying not to provoke him.

[BuckGodot]

"Okay look... I already said I'd rather be smashing things with my axe than doing this... I'm out of my league, okay? Is that what you want to hear? No one here has offered any alternative suggestions... So... What have you got?" says Aasgar jumping up and pounding the table with his fist.

[lostsole31]

"What are out hot leads right now. Not just things which give us information, but nothing useful to work on at this time?" asks Abenor.

[BuckGodot]

"Well, we haven't spoken to Omast Frum. And it might be worth speaking to Rodriks father. I think we should pay Frum a visit." says Aasgar as he remembers the overlooked suggestion.

[lostsole31]

As it turns out, Abenor and Imrijka look at each other, surprised. They both totally forgot about the name Omast Frum.

The trio head out, asking around for Omast Frum. It is not out of clannishness - for Aasgar does a great job engaging with the locals - but just with a guy that is not at his home it takes four hours to find him! Enough time is going by, that Imrijka peels off politely to go meet with Cici so the latter doesn't feel stood up and knows what is happening.

Finally, Aasgar and Abenor track down Patrol Sergeant Omast Frum. You find him at the South Tower of Trunau’s inner wall (area E), dangling from the tower’s battlements by a rope tied to his belt. His futile attempts to wash away the graffiti that recently appeared there are creating quite the spectacle.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar approaches and yells up to the man, "Excuse me! Patrol Sergeant? I see you're at the end of your rope at the moment... Is there a convenient time we could have a word with you?"

Aasgar will also try to see if the graffiti on the wall is similar to the markings left in the rooms at the Ramblehouse.

[lostsole31]

Omast looks down at Aasgar with tear-streaked, puffy eyes and a red nose and slurs horrifically to the point of being hard to understand. "Enna ma rope? I gotsh ... I gotsh more right here," he says while shaking the ropes that are connected to a pulley for lifting him up and down.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar notes the similarities of the graffiti and the white sword, which pings a memory of something said at the sanctuary, then looks at the others... "Great... Well... Let's help him down and see if we can sober him up..."

He then looks for a way to get the man down.

[lostsole31]

Aasgar says this last part looking up and then to the side to find out that he's been Batmanned by Abenor. Abenor appears a minute later on the top of the wall, and lowers Omast down to the ground. Omast doesn't even try to fight it. He's a drunken wreck.

He’s deeply drunk and can barely manage a coherent thought. Because he is so intoxicated, Omast does not respond well to traditional logic or reasoning. Omast takes even the minutest turns of phrase at face value, too stupefied to decipher nuances or suggestions. When he’s not talking about getting another drink, he’s lamenting the loss of “poor, young Rodrik, that magnificent bastard,” with genuine sorrow.

Aasgar (and to a lesser extent, Abenor) are both masters of dealing with fellow carousers, and steering the conversation in their favor. While drunk, Omast freely shares his feelings on many matters, though such information is only tangentially related to your investigation and is mostly useless in that regard. Omast has an intense dislike for half-orcs, whom he considers reminders of the greatest threat to Trunau. According to Omast, more and more half-orcs have been showing up in town recently, threatening the livelihoods and well-being of “worthy Trunauans.” He knows Rodrik shared a friendship with the half-orc Katrezra, and his jealousy is palpable (he describes the oracle as “a crippled oaf who lounges in the Sanctuary’s beds spouting curses and lies of prophetic dreams”), but Omast seems unaware of Rodrik’s relationship with the half-orc Brinya Kelver.

Beyond lamenting Rodrik’s death and moaning about half-orcs, the only other information a drunk Omast imparts is about the graffiti of “white swords” that has appeared all over town, which he has dedicated himself to eradicating, so far without success. That the graffiti he’s been trying to erase for days has not yet come clean doesn’t seem to faze Omast, who mumbles something about “a sign from Rodrik” or some other supernatural phenomenon.

What do you do with poor Omast now?

[BuckGodot]

I think, take him back to his quarters and see if he'll sleep it off...


"I doubt we'll get much more out of him... In this state or sober but it may be worth coming back to see him." says Aasgar.

"I say we pay a visit to Rodriks father next and then report back our findings. What are your thoughts on the graffiti now?" Aasgar says to Abenor.

[lostsole31]

Abenor says, "I am worried about this man's inebriation. If we leave him to his devices, he may hurt himself. I will take care of him. I might miss the meetup with Cici later. But I will see to this man's health."

[BuckGodot]

"Okay. I'll head on to Rodriks father's and you can let me know your thoughts on the graffiti later, I guess. Watch your back." and Aasgar will turn and see if he can track down Rodriks father.

[lostsole31]

Aasgar is NOT going to find Rodrik's father before he needs to meet Cici and Imrijka (and doubtfully Abenor). What does he do?

[BuckGodot]

In that case, he will head to Cici's....

[lostsole31]

To Cici's? To her home? Wasn't she going to her home to do her thing and then to meet you ... somewhere?

[BuckGodot]

Actually, he recalls that they were to meet at The Killin Ground at sunset. So he will head there now and just wait.

[lostsole31]

The group as a whole .... with the exception of Abenor ... will meet at The Killin' Ground.

As you have dinner, Cici shares with you that the three wolves were all young. Not pups, but smaller adolescents. Also, they all were diseased and partly malnourished. Such wolves would have been stopped at the palisade and put out of their misery, so somebody must have smuggled them into town. And somebody must have sicced them on the four of you, because it is way to convenient that the first people attacked were those most ready for violence. This was a warning of some sort. It took time to get the wolves to this state, so they might originally have been meant as a failsafe assassination secondary attempt if Rodrik had survived the first.

[BuckGodot]

As Cici complete's her report, and the realisation that they have been targeted sets in, Aasgar rises to his feet and says, "Abenor..." and rushes out the door axe in hand back to where he left the elf with Omast.

[lostsole31]

They [Abenor and Omast] aren't there, but Cici and Imrijka, sensing alarum, followed close behind Aasgar.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks the scene over. Does anything seem amiss? Looking for signs of a struggle or otherwise….

[lostsole31]

Not at all. I mean, there's the graffiti. But the rope scaffold is still down, and the rope was even coiled properly.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will turn to Imrijka and ask if she knows where Omart would be quartered?

[lostsole31]

Imrijka looks at him curiously, "Wait, Trunau has capital punishment?"

Cici shakes her head. "No, not quartered as in drawn-and-quartered, but where he lives. And it is Omast, not Omart. And no, I don't know where he lives. And it is getting late now to be asking around."

[BuckGodot]

"Abenor needs to be warned that we're targets... He took Omast somewhere to sober up. Where would be a good place for that?" Aasgar says lightly pacing back and forth.

[lostsole31]

"His home, probably, if Omast told him," says Cici. "But I don't know where that is. And it is getting late to be knocking door-to-door."

[BuckGodot]

"Where might we find the night watch captain? He would know..." asks Aasgar with a level of insistence.

[lostsole31]

"Out patrolling," says Cici, "but there's always a soldier on guard at the Longhouse for the night patrol to check in with."

[BuckGodot]

"Okay.... Then let's go there." says Aasgar and waits for her to lead.

[lostsole31]

The three of you get to the Longhouse (see #trunau-gazeteer channel on Discord).

You will find Abenor quite safe and whole, talking with a couple of the night guards casually.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar heaves a sigh of relief and then approaches Abenor, waiting for a break in the conversation before asking him to one side and bringing him up to speed on what Cici said, followed up with a question about Omasts status.

[lostsole31]

Abenor listens, concerned, but doesn't add anything. Regarding Omast, "I brought Omast here to sober him up some, but then to have him put to bed in the barracks here."

[BuckGodot]

"Okay, good. Let's all call it a night then and head to our respective places. Shall we meet in the morning and report our results?" Aasgar asks.

[lostsole31]

All agree, except Abenor. "Actually, I want to get up early and get here and cut Omast off from getting more to drink before I've had a chance to question him while sober, if that's alright?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods his head. ”Just watch your back, my friend. I could stay as well?”

[lostsole31]

Abenor gives him a funny look. "Dude, I'm not staying."

[BuckGodot]

”Misunderstood. Gotcha.” and starts to head to th Ramblehouse.

[lostsole31]

Everyone peels off to their homes or the Ramblehouse, as appropriate.

Cham Larringfass will be around with extra blankets and coals that night, as it is going from freezing to well below freezing tonight.
27 Calistril 4715 AR (Waxing Gibbous)
Weather: 10/0F. Winds N 20 mph. Dry. Wind Chill = -15/ -25F.

Note the weather above. It is winter's last gasp on Golarion, and it is not to be ignored.

This morning, Aasgar shapes his sash of the four seasons as appropriate to ward off the cold weather. As his meditations explore, it is not energy at his eyes, but at his brow that he feels a buzzing. He shapes the magic as it will, and when he concentrates on it too much it sort of clouds his mind. But when he thinks about it, the energy of the diadem now sitting on his brow could be used externally ... to cloud the mind of another.Congratulations, you have unlocked Diadem of Dazing (https://libraryofmetzofitz.fandom.com/wiki/Diadem_of_Dazing), a minor veil.
Aasgar and Imrijka meet to eat at the Ramblehouse's board, and then are shortly followed by Cici. You are told that Abenor left early with some bread and cheese to go to the Longhouse. The girls look at Aasgar's brow, obviously noticing his new diadem.

"It's cold today," says Imrijka as she eats without expression. "Are you sure you want to be wearing bare metal on your head like that?"

Cici tries to hold it in, but giggles, but then Imrijka snickers, after which Cici chortles, and which makes Imrijka lose it, and then both girls are laughing.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar rolls his eyes, tempted to try it out on one of them... but thinks better of it. Instead, he wonders if there has to be a visible component to this or if he can make it vanish?

"I thought it would bring out my eyes.... he grumbles, hiding a slight smile.

He eats breakfast before heading out to find Aasgar and Omast.

[lostsole31]

"To be fair, it does look nice," says Cici. "It's not really gaudy, kinda simple, and your hair covers most of it."

"Matches your hair," says Imrijka.

The three of you finish your tarring at the Ramblehouse before heading to the Longhouse. There you will find Abenor chatting it up with a lot of the guards, including Omast.

"Morning, friend," Abenor says, nodding with approval at your forehead. "About time you wear something of elven style for a change. I don't know what those glasses yesterday were all about. I didn't think you needed corrective lenses."

Abenor already quelled Omast's self-recrimination, being made aware now that there was nothing he could have done to prevent Rodrik's death.

Omast doesn't have any special insight to share. He doesn't trust the half-orc Katreza, whom he claims Rodrik met with shortly before his death. He had told Abenor to find him and question him at the Sanctuary, but Abenor had let him know that Katreza is no longer there. He also advised talking to Cham Larringfass at the Ramblehouse, when assured the group has done so already as well.

Omast asks to see the hopeknife that was on Rodrik's body. He frowns and mutters, "This blade isn't up to Sara's normal craftsmanship." Of course, he is told that you already did so, and found out that while Sara began the working in making the "blank" the finishing was left to the now-absent half-orc Urnsul.

Omast is impressed with how much the party learned in the first day, and the group is sure to tell the patrol sergeant of the nuances of the case as he is "officially" the one who would/ should have conducted the investigation were it not for grief having him "fall off the wagon." He thanks Abenor profusely for having helped him sober up.

Patrol Sergeant Omast Frum then begins with his own deposition. "I been busy been busy attempting to clean up strange graffiti all over Trunau. This graffiti takes the form of white crosses or swords, and thus far has resisted all efforts to clean or remove it. We currently have these 'White Swords' graffiit marks at Barterstones, The Commons, Hopespring, the Sanctuary, and South Tower. I'd be happy to show you, if you've got time to follow me today."

[BuckGodot]

"I'd like to report our findings to Kurst, however... I feel like this graffiti is somehow related. Let's go along for a look." says Aasgar.

[lostsole31]

So, it is way too frigid for the girls, and neither one of them have cold weather clothing, so they will let the A-Team (Abenor and Aasgar) go off with Omast (who is garbed appropriately) while they stay behind at the Longhouse.

Omast takes you to the following locations...


Barterstones (area N): A large white sword has been painted on the eastern face of the largest rock in this area, visible above the roofs of the market stalls set up in the stones’ shadow.
Commons (area A): Someone has used a broad brush to paint a wide white cross or sword on the stone floor of the Commons amphitheater. There are no other clues to be found here.
Hopespring (area O): Even the continual shower of mist from the Hopespring’s waterfall (magically enchanted to not freeze during the winter) doesn’t erase the marker dye forming a white sword on the rock wall behind the town reservoir.
Sanctuary (area F): Besides the sizeable white sword representing Iomedae’s own holy sword that juts from the roof of the temple, a thick white cross or sword has been painted on the rock face behind the Sanctuary.
South Tower (area E): The large white sword dominating the side of this guard tower is much larger than any of the other graffiti marks in town, and is visible from even beyond Trunau’s walls. It’s a mystery how somebody managed to paint a mark 30' tall and 10' wide on a garrisoned tower.


Abenor surmises that while the white sword could be interpreted as relating to Iomedae, most Iomadaeans would be too respectful of civic structures - especially of their own church building - to vandalize it.

Abenor asks you to help him look at the dye or paint used to make the graffiti. "Even though Cici would have been better here. I am pretty sure that an alchemical marker dye was used for the graffiti. That's why it is resisting attempts to clean it, as dye - not a paint - has bonded with the surfaces to which it has been applied. Pretty fancy stuff for just 'vandals.'"

Even with his cold weather clothing, Omast has taken 10 lethal cold and now has hypothermia/ frostbite/ fatigue. "I-I'm sor-sory," Omast says, his teeth chattering. "I-I d-didn't wan-want t-to s-seem w-w-weak."

"We need to get him back to the Longhouse quickly. It really is cold here. It reminds me of home," says the Ilverani.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar bundles the man back to the Longhouse as quickly as they can.

[lostsole31]

Abenor has some scrapings that he shows to Cici, who congratulates the elf's eye and keen knowledge for it is alchemical marker dye.

Cici puts her hand on Omrast's head as he is undressed, blanketed, and placed by the fire. Her touch provides him with 9 healing. Omast still is fatigued with a slight bit of hypothermia, but he is otherwise fine and his frostbite is gone.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods to Cici in thanks. Then asks, "Is there more we can learn from these scrapings? I don't see it worth endangering anyone else's life by going back out today, so anything we can do to be productive from inside would be worthwhile investigating."

[lostsole31]

She shakes her head. "Either it may point to something that we have yet to see, or it is a white herring, but I did see Kurst Grath come in a little while ago."

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods his thanks to Cici and looks at Abenor… ”I know it’s not our job but, I feel like we should make the rounds of the town to make sure everyone is okay with this cold snap. Just in case any elders fires have got out, or the like. What do you think? We can report to Rodrik after?”

[lostsole31]

"You are more than welcome, tough guy," says Cici. "It's Calistril in Belkzen. There's always a last gasp from winter to freeze the world. These are my people. They should be fine."

Abenor shrugs. "I come from the land of ice and snow, and I don't know how well humans fare when it isn't common. But if our local guide says folks should be fine, they should be fine. Omast just seemed over-eager to please us, at his own detriment."

[BuckGodot]

”Ive noticed the folk here are hardy. Boys and girls alike. They deserve a laurel and hearty handshake. Anyway. Let us track down Rodrik and bring him up to date.” Aasgar says.

[lostsole31]

"Up to date on what?" asks a morose voice behind you. "Have you found any evidence that my brother was murdered? that it wasn't suicide?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will gesture for Kurst to sit and join them and then he will do his best to recount all that they have found so far, stressing the evidence is mostly circumstantial and asking the others to chime in where he may have left something out or if they have additional thoughts.

[lostsole31]

A fresh wave of grief washes over Kurst, threatening to carry him away. He collects himself after a minute. "Thank you for this much. I will tell my father what you've uncovered, and he will contact Chief-Defender Halgra.

"Tell me, is there anything else to check, or have all leads become as cold as the weather?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar waits patiently for the man to collect himself before responding, "Well, we have yet to speak to your father and then there is the issue of the missing journal and the odd disappearances of many of the half-orc folk with apparent connections to Rodrik." Aasgar looks at the others for confirmation he's covered everything.

[lostsole31]

Kurst looks at Aasgar, "Like I said, I can fill my father in on the details, and there's nothing you mentioned that requires you to question him."

[BuckGodot]

"That's it then. Nothing else. Would you like us to do anything else?"

[lostsole31]

"I guess we wait for providence to give us something, or we accept that we know as much as we're going to know," Kurst says. "Thank you for this much."

Do you say goodbye for the day to him?

What's the plan now?

[BuckGodot]

"With your permission, I think I'd like to keep looking into it... And if the others wish to join in that would be helpful. Although, it may be a case of waiting for more to develop at the moment." Aasgar asks.

[lostsole31]

Having warmed up and regarbed for the weather, he heads out for his errands.

What now?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar half raises his hand in a wave as the man leaves... "Okay. Bye?' and kind of trails off...


He then turns back and looks at the others.

"Sooooo.... Anyone have any dice? Deck of cards? Pai Gow tiles? I guess... Cici, I'm guessing the removal of the graffiti would have to be done by sanding off the surface of whatever it was applied to... Is it easy to come by this kind of paint?"

[lostsole31]

"Not really easy to come by, but not impossible," she answers. "It's just that it takes special training to make, meaning an alchemist, or you are likely paying as much as 15 gp just for a single vial. Washing has no effect for the first 72 hours, and alchemical marker dye completely fades after two weeks."

[BuckGodot]

"So not something that could be done around here then. I was thinking we could follow that path."

[lostsole31]

The four of you part ways .... Imrijka and Cici are going to go clothes shopping!

You and Abenor head back to the Ramblehouse, and spend the evening relaxing by the common room fire, chatting, and otherwise taking it easy for once.

Without any further plans, you will head to bed soon, unless you have any burning questions for your icy friend.

[lostsole31]

Aasgar, it is nightime in the Ramblehouse and you were sleeping, but you hear something that woke you. It isn't loud at all. When you get to concentrate on it, someone is trying to pick your room's lock.

You look over in the dark of the room, and Abenor's eyes are now open as well.

What do you do? and how loudly do you try to do it?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will make eye-contact with Abenor whilst as quietly as possible leaning down the edge of his bed to grab his dagger from the pile of gear on the floor and gesturing for him to hide behind the door.



SwA: Activate Diadem of Dazing

[lostsole31]

Aasgar makes eye-contact with Abenor whilst as quietly as possible leaning down the edge of his bed to grab his dagger from the pile of gear on the floor and gesturing for him to hide behind the door.

Abenor, for his part, seems to not really pay attention to Aasgar's desires, but reaches down and grabs his katana Ileor from its scabbard and stands ups carefully next to his bed. Ileor casts a radiant sapphire glow, that is when that Abenor looks to Aasgar and sees what he is doing and nods. He points to himself and behind the door, and looks for some input from Aasgar.

See, sometimes it sucks having darkvision like yourself, when in the dark Abenor completely was unable to have seen that it was originally your suggestion. :smallcool:

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar rolls his eyes and nods his agreement to Abenor. Then waits for what happens next.

[lostsole31]

Thirty-six seconds (6 rounds) go by as someone fiddles at the lock. There is a pause, and the sound of someone very faintly cursing on the other side.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar gestures to Abenor to get his attention. Shrugging his shoulders he mimes that Abenor should open the door.

[lostsole31]

Abenor mimics what you're doing, looking at you curiously, and shrugs his shoulders, mouthing, "What?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar mouths "Open the door."

[lostsole31]

As the sounds of someone trying to pick the lock renew, Abenor mouths, with the slightest bit of noise coming out, "What?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar waves his hand negating everything since they have started to pick the lock again and holds his hand out indicating to wait.

[lostsole31]

"Ohhhhh, wait!" he says in revelation. "You want me to open the door! Yeah, we snow elves aren't used to talking with our hands like you humans and dwarves and gnomes. You lose too much body heat taking your arms away from your body like that."

There is a sudden halt just as Abenor cups a hand to his mouth.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar rolls his eyes and jumps over to the door, throwing it open…

[lostsole31]

Aasgar moved to the door, but unlocked it from this side (not yet open).

Begin Round One ...

R1T28: Abenor looks at Aasgar and smiles, shrugging to show the two daggers in his hand, meaning a) Aasgar is the only one with an open hand, and b) he would have had to drop a dagger to open the door previously, anyway. He steps behind Aasgar while getting into his reaching blade stance and readies an action to stab past Aasgar if needed when the door opens.

R1T19: Aasgar, you have a dagger in hand. Do you open the door? What else might you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar nods to Abenor and shifts his footing before looking back and swinging the door open focusing his mind on dazing the opponent on the other side.



Enter Circular Stance.

Open the door and utilise Diadem of Dazing.

[lostsole31]

R1T19: Aasgar nods to Abenor and shifts his footing before looking back and swinging the door open. There is nobody directly there, but two to each side of the doorway that he sees. Aasgar focuses on the one to his left (south), and there is a flash from the diadem. It doesn't look like it did anything, as most of the flash was caught by the wall.

R1T18-16: "Bollocks!" says one, but being careful not to shout. Though Aasgar doesn't see the ones around the corner too well, it seems that they do adopt a combat stance. One steps forward into view, but as soon as he does, Abenorthrows a dagger but it goes high so as not to reach his otherwise stubby friend. The one that moved in front of the doorway attacks Aasgar with what looks like a canister held as a hilt, and a short blade (like a short sword) sized, irregular patch of ice just forth from that canister. He stabs at Aasgar, who blocks it with his own dagger. The one around the corner that Aasgar tried to daze tries to stab at him with a similar weapon, but has a hard time of it because of the wall.

End Round One, Begin Round 2 ...

R2T21: There is a strange bubbling sound coming from around the corner and to the north.

R2T19: Aasgar, what do you do?

Abenor on deck, enemies in the hole ...

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar perceives the one wielding the ice weapon as the most dangerous so attacks that one with his dagger, hoping to open a space to step into so Abenor can join him in the hall.




Attack action: Using Risky Strike [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[lostsole31]

R2T19: Aasgar perceives the one wielding the ice weapon as the most dangerous so attacks that one with his dagger, hoping to open a space to step into so Abenor can join him in the hall. He stabs his dagger into his right upper arm, likely in the artery, for 8.

R2T18.5: Abenor normally prefers to unsheathe his Ileor in combination with an attack, but he needed the light and hadn't picked up his scabbard, so he does what he can, but misses wildly attacking over Aaasgar.

R2T18-16: Blue seemed to not take all of the damage Aasgar laid on him at first, but now the rest of the wound is felt (4). He stabs Aasgar in the left elbow, pain that he ignores for now. Aasgar feels a momentary sting of a poison that was delivered, but otherwise doesn't sense anything else. Blue then steps north out of the way. Green attacks Aasgar from around the corner, but the wall again fouls his attack.

R2T19: Aasgar, there is a gap there to step into, and you prepared for just this sort of fight with circular stance. What do you do?

Abenor on deck, Enemies in the hole ...

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar steps out into the open spot and strikes again at Blue.




MA: Step north into the gap

Attack: Risky Strike: [roll0]

Damage: [roll1]

[lostsole31]

R2T19: Aasgar steps out into the open spot and strikes again at Blue, stabbing him in the chest for 6.

R2T18.5: Abenor reaches out and past Aasgar to thwack Green in the nuts with his hand, causing Green to double over ... still fighting, but feeling it.

R2T18-16: Blue does something that you've seen Abenor do (though he no longer favors this attack), and that is to stab at you, but for a split-second step out-of-and-back-into reality so that when his weapon lands, Aasgar isn't ready for it. He hits Aasgar where he did earlier, in the right elbow, but the dwarf shrugs it off. Blue steps back, but the pain of his wounds catches up to him (4) and he is now disabled. Aasgar notes a woman to the south, waiting; she has one of these ice-blades. So does Green, in fact; he tries some fancy footwork (that doesn't avail him) and stabs at Aasgar, missing.

End Round 2, Begin Round 3 ...

R3T21: A different (man), also with ice-blade, moves south to engage Aasgar, but Aasgar blocks his attack.

R3T19: Aasgar, what do you do?

Abenor on deck, Enemies in the hole ...

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar mutters "Should have grabbed my axe. We'd be done by now..." and swings at blue again with his dagger in a stylized maneuver.

Attack action: Hunting Party (Success = dmg + 1 adj ally may make AOO against target.) Risky Strike: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[lostsole31]

R4T19: Aasgar mutters, "Should have grabbed my axe. We'd be done by now..." and swings at blue again with his dagger in a stylized maneuver, missing, but getting inspiration (strike of the infinite protector). His action done, he begins to feel the previously withheld pain (14).

R4T18.5: Abenor's anger at seeing his friend surrounded causes him to give over to the Hunter. He puts two hands on his katana and strikes at Green with a crit to the groin for 16, instantly disabling him. Abenor, takes advantage of Aasgar's temporarily lower profile from his dagger strike to swing through to Red to crit him as well with a weapon strike that does 19 and drops Red and completely shatters his ice blade. Abenor moves past Aasgar to stand over the now downed opponent.

R4T18: Green withdraws south and east, but a second later there is a tumbling noise and the sound of heavy ice shattering. Brown, who was chilling out this whole time, wants no part of this and heads south and east around the corner after Green. Blue feels previous wounds overcome him, and he falls as well, ending any active enemy combatant action.

End Round 4, Begin Round 5 ...

R5T19: Aasgar, what do you do? You know Abenor well enough that when the Hunter takes over, he will run a fleeing enemy down like a predator, tapping into a primal fury to give him speed and animal senses. On the other hand, you also have two dead or dying people in front of you.

Abenor's turn ...

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar bellows at the top of his lungs, "Cham!!! Send for the militia and a doctor!!! There's been an attack!!!" and goes to the closest downed person to attempt to stabilize them as best he can.


MA: Close to nearest wounded person.
Use Heal check to attempt to stabilise them.

[lostsole31]

R5T19: Aasgar bellows at the top of his lungs, "Cham!!! Send for the militia and a doctor!!! There's been an attack!!!" He goes to the closest downed person - the man that Abenor stands astride - to attempt to stabilize them as best he can. Even with his help, Red still seems to be bleeding out.

R5T18.5: Abenor changes into his Hunter's stance. He steps off of Aasgar's back as Aasgar is bent down to help the fallen and he races south, smashing through the window. Other than glass, Aasgar doesn't really hear the sound of bodily impact, so either he just didn't hear, or that is a good sign.

End Round 5, Begin Round 6 ...

R6T19: Aasgar, your patient isn't doing well. What do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Feeling at his head he mutters "Why can't these things heal! Damn!" and then dashes to his bandolier and grabs the two potions of curation.


MA: 2 squares south and 2 squares east to his gear

Grab potions of CMW

[lostsole31]

R6T19: Feeling at his head he mutters "Why can't these things heal! Damn!" He then forgets he is outside his own room - probably because he is still sleepy - and dashes south to a stairwell, down which he sees an unmoving assailant. He realizes he went the wrong way and heads back, finishing right back where he started, and looking east into his room.

End Round 6, Begin Round 7 ...

R7T19: Aasgar, what do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar will shake his head to clear the cobwebs and dash into his room to grab the potion.


MA: Enter room
MA: Get potion of CMW

[lostsole31]

R7T19: Aasgar shakes his head to clear the cobwebs and dashes into his room to grab a potion.

End Round 7, Begin Round 8...

R8T19: Aasgar, you have a dagger in one hand, and a potion in the other. What do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar returns to the downed man and attempts to administer the potion.

MA: step out of the room to fallen foe.

MA: administer the potion

[lostsole31]

R8T19: Aasgar returns to the downed man and attempts to administer the potion. He guides the potion down the throat, but nothing seems to happen. The wounds don't close or anything.

End Round 8, Begin Round 9....

R9T19: Aasgar, what now?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar moves to the next downed person and will check to see if they can be stabilized, doing so if possible.

[lostsole31]

R9T19: Aasgar moves to the next downed person and will check to see if they can be stabilized. As it turns out, this person (Blue) is already stabilized.

R9T15: Aasgar is pretty sure he hears a woman's voice casting a spell somewhere to the south, likely down the stairs.

End Round 9, Begin Round 10 ...

R10T19: Aasgar, you aren't really in circular stance anymore. It is hard to be in a martial pose while doing a health check on someone. Then there's the sound of casting to the south and likely towards or down the stairs. What do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar rises and enters Circular Stance dashing back into his room to grab his axe.

MA: move 3 squares to room
MA: Pick up axe and drop dagger.

[lostsole31]

R10T19: Aasgar re-enters his stance and heads back to his room, finding the bodies in the hall and his stumpy dwarven legs slow him down.A downed body creates difficult terrain so it took you a double move to get to your bed. I did not have him drop his dagger yet because that would be a whole round without protection before his next turn.
R10T15: Aasgar hears someone approaching in the south corridor.

End Round 10, Begin Round 11 ...

R11T19: Aasgar, your dagger is still in hand, and you are in stance. What do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar quietly moves to the south side of the doorway to the room and stands with his back to the wall, peering between the door and the frame, waiting to strike if an assailant enters.

MA: Move to the wall back against it on the south side behind the door, stealthily.
Holding dagger at the ready to strike.

[lostsole31]

A familiar half-orc female's voice calls out, "Aasgar? I can hear you breathing behind the door. Likely to knock the next unfortunate down with an axe ... no, wait, those guys dropped from something smaller, so ... a dagger? But if that isn't you? If you aren't Aasgar but a creepy person with an ice blade? I'm going to shoot you in the face before you ever have a chance to come out from behind that door."

Aasgar, what do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar breathes a sigh of relief and says"It's me. I'm stepping out now..." and steps out from behind the door towards his gear glancing in her direction to insure it is her.

[lostsole31]

It is Imrijka, with her bow trained on you, which she then relaxes. "I just stabilized someone at the bottom of the stairs, and there are these two. What happened? Where is Abenor?"

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar grabs his axe and stows his dagger then turns back to her, "He's gone after one that ran. I tried to help the two up here but one was already gone and apparently, you got to the other. We should try to find him, but someone needs to stay with the survivors. Where is Cici?"

[lostsole31]

Imrijka looks at Aasgar carefully. "She has her own home. Remember? She lives here. But you still didn't tell me what happened?"

[BuckGodot]

"Abenor and I were awakened by someone trying to pick the lock. I think we managed to surprise them slightly by opening the door. We were then attacked by these ice sword wielding people..." he says as he quickly begins to put on his armour.

[lostsole31]

Imrijka will assist Aasgar in helping him put on his armor. In the middle of that evolution, Abenor will return, putting away his dagger that he dropped in the hallway. "Cham is lighting lights downstairs to greet the guard." He looks to Imrijka and nods to acknowledge her.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar looks Abenor over... "Any luck with the last guy?"

[lostsole31]

Abenor answers by doing a "chiburi" to his sword before picking up his scabbard and putting Ileor away.

[BuckGodot]

Aasgar acknowledges with a nod... "Now... Let's find out what we can." and once he's in armour, he heads out into the hall to gather the wounded and bodies. He will help carry them downstairs and out to meet the militia.

[lostsole31]

The guard will appear after a couple minutes and with the "assassin's" gear collected. All of those ice blades (each had one) has since melted and evaporated. Each of them are outfitted with the following:

Potion of Cure Light Wounds
Antitoxin
An empty canister that was laying by their bodies (and looks like the hilt of the ice blade they were using)
Smokestick
Leather Armor
Light Crossbow w/ (10) bolts
Short Sword
Thieves' Tools
Pouch containing 4 gold and a beryl worth 50 gp

[BuckGodot]

"Who will handle the questioning of the survivors? I'd very much like to be present..." Aasgar asks.

[lostsole31]

Imrijka will handle interrogation (if you don't mind), as she is a formal inquisitor of the church of Pharasma.

This is what is learned .....

The would-be assassins reveal that their employer is a half-orc with significant facial tattoos, though they don't know his name. Beyond this, the erstaz-assassins know nothing -- they don't even know the reason why they were hired to kill the PCs in the first place. They were to kill Aasgar and Abenor first, then Imrijka, then go to a private residence and kill the red-haired witch that resides there.

This is all that can be gleaned from them.