Obar said very little merely riding with the group and occasionally looking back in the general direction of the ruin.

Krackors usual constanance wasn't evident, even his ever present smile was lacking in appearance as they moved on up the road.

His thoughts were of his god, he prayed and asked if there was anything else he should have or could have done. He wasn't angry, nor was he upset, he was solid in his belief that this was the designed outcome but felt there should have been 'more'.

So the guardian priest thought as he rode, calculating the posibilities and occasionally calling his Gods names out in reverence. After a while, a few miles, his smile would return, gradually.

"You sound like Aduin," Keya says with a snort. "Only he was interested in how much they could be sold for, and how impressive they would be sitting in his parlor.

We are interested in eating. And finding enough books to further Lorsan's studies. Where we go and what we do doesn't much matter. If we can't find a group to hire on with at the Way Inn, there's sure to be someone in Waterdeep. The Adventurer's Quarter is always jumping in the summer."

“If one of us enters ruins for the betterment of the people and the other of us enters the ruins to better demonstrate our mastery over the people, I would say that’s a very large difference indeed. Only a dangerous generalization would cast we two in the same company.

So you are originally from  Waterdeep? You seem very familiar with how the passing seasons affect the wards there."
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:58, Wed 25 July 2018.

Keya shrugs. "Words. Ruin chasers, both of you. Poking amongst the dead and hoping the dead don't poke back. Or the carrion that watch over them don't peck out your eyes.

"My brother and I are from Baldur's Gate. But that's a little too close to the magic-fearing south, so we came north. Hasn't done us much good yet."

In reply to Lexanna Riggin (msg # 43):

Karilla thought carefully before answering.

"I've never had a familiar because I am terrible with pets of any kind, magical or not. In regards to Vesna's bird, from what I know, it should be slightly smarter than the average one you'll find in the wild and should be fairly easy to train. If you are looking for in depth conversations with the thing then you will be sorely disappointed. Other than that, its a bird, you know more about them then I do."

The conversations going on around him reminded the Guardian Priest of his role, the role given him by the Lord of the Bronze Mask. Calculated where in his daily routines he had got up to and started fresh; knowing he had only recently bestowed a Sacred Guardian on Corym and Obar, he searched and reregimented his thoughts.

Karilla, it is you who are to receive Gorms Blessings next. Krackor casts Sacred Guardian on Karilla.

Corym, in cast we get surprised on this day before camp, please take the Blessed Watchfulness of Gorm. Casts Blessed Watchfulness on Corym.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:48, Wed 25 July 2018.

i think i know now what i need to know--lets roll

“So a familiar is just a slightly smarter-than-average pet?  Why do so many wizards keep them then?”
This message was last updated by the player at 13:06, Wed 25 July 2018.

Harun broke into Lexanna's conversation, "Didn't mean to be eavesdropping. Vesna seemed to have far more of a connection to the bird than a simple pet.  It's as if she could feel what the bird was doing and maybe even see what it was seeing.  I'm not a magi so I don't know the details but there was a bit more to the relationship than just owner and pet."

Karilla nodded to Harun's comment.

"You are right, from what I know at least. I've never had one. I've been told that if the familiar dies, there are some terrible side effects. They are, in a way, an extension of yourself and if killed, a part of you is also lost forever. That scared me enough to never try the spell. They can be useful if you know what you are doing with them. Sadly, besides for giving you basic information about them I can't do much more than that. If I ever end up being the stereotypical mage in a tower, then I might get a familiar to make sure I don't go completely insane."

That makes more sense. So if wizards suffer at the loss of a familiar, wouldn’t a familiar suffer at the loss of an owner?  Adam seems fine, so we could take this as a sign that Vesna still lives. ... and might be watching us through his eyes. That’s odd.

nithing of substance here--feel free to advance us down the road

Elient 15-23

The clouds roll in and the weather cools as you ride north. It would normally be a pleasant journey of just under a tenday, but the ghosts of Dragonspear Castle and the bandit ambush are riding just behind your shoulders, causing you to jump at every time the wind rustles the grass or small animals are startled from your path. The jumpiness fades slowly.

Lorsan and Keya make for quiet travel companions. They continue to ride doubled on Vesna's horse, and while they occasionally exchange a quiet word with each other, they try to avoid speaking with the rest of you.

It quickly becomes clear that the area around Dragonspear Castle is a dead zone for caravans. It takes you more than a day to overtake the caravan you had previously traveled with, and once you pass them it's another two days before you encounter anyone else.

That caravan is a massive affair: more than two dozen wagons and a heavy escort, including several outriders who intercept you well before you reach them. Corym is able to convince them that you're simple adventurers and not interested in banditry, and they allow you to ride around outside of bowshot.

From then on caravans become more frequent. It rains for several days, a steady if not particularly hard precipitation that leeches all of the heat from your bodies and reminds you forcefully that it won't be much longer before it's snow and not rain coming down.

Lexanna sees signs of trolls more than once in the first few days; several packs of the creatures seem to have come down from the High Moor at various times. Tymora smiles on you, however; none of them find you. The troll sign disappears once the moor is replaced by the Misty Forest to your east.

Finally, as your ninth day of traveling begins to draw to a close the Way Inn comes into view in the distance. It is the first sign of civilization in almost a month. As you near, you start to make out features of the inn. It's surrounded by a wooden palisade, and while the wall blocks much of interior, you can see a fortified manor house, built of grey stone, peeking above the wall.

A wide field of grass, more used if not necessarily more tended, stretches out in front of the Inn's southern gate. Four caravans are camped out in the field, and you can see people on the wall and in the courtyard on the other side of the open gate. Some of the caravaneers look in your direction as you ride up, but you apparently don't make for a very interesting sight; no one approaches you.

((ooc: Everyone is back to full hp and spells.

Welcome to the Way Inn.))

I'm making an Ancient History: The North check to see what I know about the Way Inn and it's surrounding environs.  I was hoping I had Knowledge Local here, but I don't.

05:42, Today: Corym Ildroun rolled 2 using 1d20.  Ancient History: The North. Success!

Additionally--while we were passing by the forests, there was a spell component that you said would be easy to obtain that we talked about in private.  Was I able to acquire it?

Finally, I'd like to make an Architecture check first to see how recent the construction here is, and second to try to learn something of the design.  05:53, Today: Corym Ildroun rolled 2 using 1d20.  Architecture . Success!



Corym turns to Keya and Lorsan, "My friends, we are safely arrived, and so I bid you farewell.  I don't know how long we'll be here--long enough to find if there is whiff of a ruin to be 'poked' I imagine--but I've enjoyed your company, and should we meet again I hope that our company will be happily rejoined."

The road worn elf's eyes sparkle to be back in civilization.  It's truly odd for those that think elves creatures naturally inclined to wild lands. "Harun, I'll remind you that as a man of the Company your room and board is provided at our expense.  We've had little enough work yet, so let this provision help to ease your lack of earnings as yet."

Turning to the group more broadly, "For partners of the Company we need to make a decision--would you prefer that our stay here be provided at the Company expense or shall we see it paid privately?"

Harun stopped next to Lorsan and Keya.  He removed the saddle bags that contained Vesna's belonging and transferred them to his own horse.  However, he indicated that Lorsan should keep the reins to the animal.  "You two lost enough at Dragonspear. You shouldn't be without a decent horse as well.  Keep it if you need it.  Gallant is a fine animal but I can only put my arse on one saddle at a time."

He turned at Corym's words and smile, "Thanks. I appreciate it.  I think I'm going to go find me a room, a bath, and a meal... in that order."


DM - In my room I'm going to look through Vesna's belongings to see what I might send to any family she had.  Do I know where her family lived and whether they were on good terms?

Lexanna feels her dual nature at work once more within her.  According to her raising she would be quick to hand off the reins of her horse to the nearest stableman with a condescending word.  Now?  She felt the need to see to the horses herself, to make sure they were well cared for--in case they needed to leave in a hurry.  She also needed to have roosts for her Adam and Bones.  She had no cages yet, and preferred to leave them uncaged in any case.

The conflict played out across her fair face.  It deepened when she considered asking Kora to come with her to the stables.  She had changed, but Kora hasn't.  Except she seemed to want to change.

"I vote to let the company absorb the cost.  We'll move the faster knowing how small our joint coffers are.  I can see to our horses. Kora, would you like to come?"

Harun

Vesna didn't talk very much about her family or her past. She spoke with a strong Waterdhavian accent, so she was almost certainly from Waterdeep. There was tension between her and her family; from what little she let drop while you traveled, you suspect that they were also wizards and that there was some kind of accident. Possibly one of her spells went wild in a very wrong way.

Corym

The Way Inn is what you might consider a stereotypical Western Heartlands human fortified manor that has grown beyond the initial family's use. The central building is a three-story manor house, built of a mix of field stone and granite from a different source. Its roof is steeply sloped and clad in slate. It has clearly been built for defense, with narrow windows (narrowest on the ground floor) and pseudo-bastions at each corner to provide flanking arrow fire.

Nor were the original builders simply paranoid; the building has clearly been attacked more than once. Though well-maintained, you can see where the original stone was broken and has been replaced, and one upper floor room has an artful window that you're sure was originally made by a hurled boulder.

Age is difficult to determine; it's been well-weathered, but this is the north. Even stone weathers quickly. But you guess that it's at least a century old. A more precise guess would require closer inspection. Though now that you look at it, the manor has more than a passing resemblance to the ruined manor where your first quest took you. That manor had been made of softer stone, however, which might help explain why it had been broken down to the foundation, while the Way Inn still stands.

All of the outbuildings are much newer. They're made of wood likely cut from the nearby Misty Forest, and are anywhere from five to thirty years old. Also very human in construction, they're what you might call "Frontier Spartan." No real external decoration, simple design, and painted red; the cheapest and easiest paint to make that will still help ward off the weather. The wooden wall is of a similar age.

((ooc: I'll answer the Ancient History check once I get back to my books.))

"Sure!" Kora swings down from her horse with relief. "Anything to get blood flowing in my legs again."

Once you're in the stables cleaning the road dust from the horses, she leans over. "So what do you think of the half-elves? The girl's pretty cute, don't you think?"

In reply to Corym Ildroun (msg # 59):

He was glad of his magical cloak clasp, it made his cloak able to withstand the rain, he slept well, healed those he travelled with and kept he spells up to date, Kora being yesterdays recipient of Sacred Guardian, today it's Lexanna's turn.

Corym, if need be, I shall pay to a couple of days for us all, it's my debt to you all.

Krackor's smile flashed away momentarily then returned with spirit.

I'm sure I speak for everyone here when I say, a nice comfy bed and fancy hot meal would go down well

"Your constant care, watchfulness, and healing has saved more than a few of our lives.  No need to live in perpetual debt! But if you wouldn't mind negotiating the terms on our behalf, I should like to make some sketches to help us identify targets of interest.  When you speak to the inn keeper, see if there are any older folks around town, or else herdsman that range far and know the country well.  Additionally a map might be helpful--particularly older ones."

Assuming we're staying within canon on the ancient history check, we're entering areas formerly occupied by the southern stretches of elven state of Illefarn, and its successor kingdom Ardeep, as well as the southern reaches of the dwarf state of Amarindar and it's successor kingdom Hunnabar.  The former human Kingdom of Delimbyran would reach this far south, though its duchies now have almost completely devolved, and only Daggerford maintains any prominence.  Delimbyran, Hunnabar, and Ardeep combined with the gnomes from Dolblunde and the halflings from Mieritin in the twilight of their power as a failed last-stand again an orcish tide in a confederacy called Phalorm.

What I'd like to do is--using my Ancient History check and my architectural knowledge to create some sketches of building types and close ups of decorative motifs for each of these.  A sort of visual dossier for each.  That way we can have people we're questioning visually identify things that they've seen that they might not otherwise know the significance of.

Lexi smiled impishly, "My nurse told me that such notions were a phase to be forgotten after 'blossoming into womanhood.'  I guess we haven't blossomed yet!  Looking for a new 'wrestling' partner?"

The young woman let the jibe pass and continued, "Corym seemed very interested in them until he found out they came from the South rather than the North.  The quietness they kept makes me think that not all is forgiven.  I'd be wary. It might be best just to part ways."

In reply to Corym Ildroun (msg # 66):

Nodding appreciatively at Coryms kind words, Krackor moves to secure accommodation and sustenance for them all and the mounts, trying to negotiate as much as can be done, even offering his services if it helps.

"You always did get the dried prunes for nurses," Kora laughs. Then she sighs. "It's her arms. She has an archer's arms. Short sleeved against the heat and with those bracers..." She gave the horse she was working on several slow, sensuous strokes.

"Can you blame them? Karilla blew up Keya, and then made her look like an apprentice archer. I'd be holding a grudge as well." She shrugged. "That might make it more interesting."

Everyone except Lexi and Kora

Inside the Way Inn's wall the scope, and pace, of activity becomes clear. This is the last rush of the caravan season before snows begin, and it seems half the North is on the move and camped either outside the wall or inside it. The size of the place is larger than you expected as well; the wooden wall encompassing several acres of grassland, which is used both for crops and a sizable herd of goats.

Inside, the Inn is just as busy. Most of the initial manor house has been opened up into a single, huge, dining area. Long trestle tables fill the center, and more isolated nooks have been built around the edges. The far end is dominated by a long bar with massive kegs lined up behind it, and three men are busy filling mugs.

An attractive half-elven woman greets you as you step inside, and at your request finds you a table off to one side. It's enclosed on three sides, with the rear being solid field stone of the Inn's outer wall, and the other two solid wooden partitions. There is a drape that you can close across the entrance, if you wish.

Not long after two humans arrive with your food and drinks. There's stew and a flank of venison, and a variety of beer and ale that is tasty without being overly strong. Exactly the meal you've been wanting after your long trek north.

Keya and Lorsan with you, sitting next to each other at the edge of the table closest to the exit. They're quiet, but that has more to do with the speed that they're eating than any particular resentment.