Random Encounters

[Lacco]

28? Raubritter (Robber Baron)

A figure on a horse, with whole entourage is seen in the distance. Men on horses, men on foot, and even a banner. If they notice you, a single rider, with a banner, will split from the group, riding towards the party, while the rest of the group slowly moves towards them at slower pace.

A character that has the knowledge of heraldry will be at best perplexed by the banner, as it makes little sense (e.g. two pelicans crossed over a field of... fish?) and is of crude making.

The rider stops within shouting distance and proceeds to greet the adventurers and ask them why are they crossing the area and what are their names. His reasoning will be, that they are passing through the lands of local baron (with relatively outlandish name for the area, e.g. Baron Rolf of the venerable and puissant house of Rolf) who invites them to his abode but will require them to pay a small fee for safe passage.

IF the party is visibly armed or seems powerful, the robber baron will invite them to a dinner and will even ignore the fee - but they will witness his "work". Peasants robbed of their possessions, few dead bodies hung on the tree, a wagon turned over... and if they pass through the area multiple times, they may even catch him in action.

He will try to get them to work for him or at least do some smaller quests.

The robber baron himself will be quite charismatic, although there should be something villanious lurking beyond the appearance of a friendly chubby walrus-like-mustache-wielding knight.

Important: while the baron's entourage should be appropriate to the locale, it should not be "level appropriate encounter"; the baron's forces have numerical advantage but should be really weak.