The Wanderer's Tap

[Seconey]

A lonely but well-lit tavern in the middle of the forested highlands in the Frostfell, frequented (if you can call it that) by adventuring parties in dire need of a place to stay, especially arctic barbarians, and two races I invented, Jotuns (which is old norse for Trolls, but they're more like hairy half-orcs without the suckiness) and Erls (faeries, leprechauns, christmas elves, strongly resemble halflings, except REALLY long ears, and slightly shorter). Run by Avatuk Kampachooni, a portly frostfell native who keeps a loaded crossbow under the bar. There is one upper floor, with 8 rooms and 2 bathrooms, all of mediocre quality, but that sounds just great after a storm in the Frostfell. Serves Dwarven ale, good beer, an Erliang drink called Bottled Fire, and a full menu, with albeit limited supply. There's also an enormous fireplace that takes up much of one wall, kept stocked with pine wood, needles and all. There are no candles, but there are torches in every room. In addition, the Tap is located directly below a point in the Aurora that looks exactly like a crosshairs, which helps travelers find it. It lies 3 day's dogsled ride from the nearest town, and 15 day's walk.
--foolery(i'd like to change my name)

[Fishies]

What's this?

[Sneak]

I think he thought that the Tavern contest was still going on...or something...

What? He's fashionably late!

[Amotis]

Um, welcome to the boards? ;D

[Kord]

This...is...odd...

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Aghhh, our brain! It PAINS us, precious...

[Mephibosheth]

Is it really necessary to be so critical and snide? I mean, sure the tavern contest is over, but this is his first post and it is germane to the majority of the other threads in this forum. Cut the guy some slack! Maybe help him out and give some input along with your comments.

To the OP:

I like the idea of a tavern catering to wanderers in the middle of nowhere, and your draft hints at some pretty interesting concepts (or at least, features that could become interesting concepts), but I think that the current version is a little dry. Why did the owner/founder establish the Wanderer’s Tap? Is it located all by itself or in a small outpost? How does it afford supplies with limited revenues, and how do the supplies arrive? How well-known is the tavern? Are there any mysterious secrets associated with the tavern or its owner? Why does Kampachooni keep a loaded crossbow under the bar? Why doesn’t the tavern have any candles?

I’d suggest reading some of the other tavern entries (I especially like Lysander's Center) and looking at some of the things they included. I think you have a decent idea here, but it needs to be fleshed out more. Adventure hooks, history, surroundings, and other details can really bring a place to life and make what otherwise seems like your run-of-the-mill tavern into an interesting place and possibly the center of an entire campaign. So, I guess my main point is good start, but more detail please!

Also, for future reference (as I’m sure you’ve surmised from the other posts), it is usually considered bad form to post content in this forum unrelated to a current contest. Try the Gaming (d20 and General RPG) Forum for this kind of stuff in the future. No worries on my end, though ;).

Hope that’s helpful,

Mephibosheth

Aftertale - I know this is inappropriate in the Contests Forum without a contest to back it up, so could we possibly get this moved to Gaming or something? Any mods out there want to help?

After-Aftertale - You can change your name by clicking on the "profile" like at the top of the screen and changing the name displayed (there's a box to enter text about 2 or 3 down from the top). You can't change your log-on name however.

[artfuldodger]

boo for post limits

[Seconey]

as i stand humbly corrected, my previous comments have been, well, eaten.

Meph, thanks for the tips. i didn't have a whole lot of time to work on this. Avatuk put the restaurant there when there was a larger town around it, but almost every building except the Tap was razed to the ground by erl raiders on Running Leaves (a hallucinogenic popular among elves in the Northern Islands). It was spared because it was deemed a "building of no significance whatsoever" (Raider Chief Brie Gummos). In fact, the Tap is located exactly on magnetic North, naturally a huge attraction to magic animals, users, etc., which explains both why the erls raided the town in the first place and why Avatuk himself was drawn there, as well as how it gets its customers. It is not very well-known, but travelers headed North are drawn there, whether by compass or by an inexplicable urge to head toward where all the aurora seems to be gathering. The nearest town actually isn't that far away, Avatuk goes there every two weeks or so to pick up food and ale. He could move to the town with the profit, but he actually gets more customers where he is (and there's less competition). It's probably the place to go to look for dark secrets, as long as you don't ask Kampachooni. the crossbow is for over-curious customers. the Tap has no candles in it because the fire on the south wall. also, the wood that the Tap is made out of is very dry, and burned to the ground some years ago when a few drunk Jotuns knocked over some candles on the floor. also the fireplace is cheaper, since the Tap is in the middle of a forest.
If i can think of anything else i'll post it.
Thanx!

[Seconey]

actually, i'm glad i posted late. look how much press i got!

[The Vorpal Tribble]

first things first: what in the h311 is a vorpal tribble Huh? and another thing, Captain Punctual: are you such an elitist that anyone who is not yourself is subpar and should be denounced as a n00b and an affront to gaming, or are you just an ordinary munchkin who likes to step in dying people's faces for the power rush and the extra xp?

A Vorpal Tribble is a harmless ball of fluff that can take your head off ;)

anyways, my comment was more directed at that your entry was two things:

#1. Submitted a month or two after not only the deadline for submissiong, but the actual judging and finishing of the contest itself.

#2. Your nick doesn't seem to have anything to do with the contest.

I have no qualms about the content, its the fact that I was wondering if you'd read any of the rules or anything.

As for my entry, its on the first page of the thread. 'Vorpal's Gaping Maw'. You might actually like it as it sounds very similiar to your concept.

[Seconey]

actually i just had no idea when the contest ended (somehow, i'd thought the forums would be more...up-to-date) and I just had this idea when i saw the contest and i thought "hey, might as well."
no, i didn't actually check the rules , although i think the Tap would qualify as a tavern.
out of curiosity, did you actually read my (ahem :-/) entry? you could've just said what you thought of the description, rather than the timing (or at least have said something that sounded like it was about the timing) instead of that tripe

also, i read (some) of your tavern, and you have far too much time on your hands

[The Vorpal Tribble]

::)