Several of you head to the Job Board, which fortunately is only five minutes' walk from the flophouse as well. It is stuck in front of a tall stone building with a belltower. As might be expected at this time of night, nobody is around. You can only really navigate because of the reflected light from the white snow everywhere. Still, it's enough to read the board.
Successful completion of these missions will reduce your sentence by 1 year.
Dispute Resolution Required: Wanted, 4-6 negotiators to end labour disputes at Teping Mine. All necessary measures accepted. Pay is 120 ducats. Contact Tan-chieng Chan at House Chan.
Pest Control: Wanted, 4-6 exterminators to deal with infestation. Pay is 100 ducats. Contact Arelle d'Avistral at the Confederate Trading Company.
Cartographer Needed: Wanted, cartographer and 3-5 escorts to map difficult valley. Pay is 100 ducats. Contact Raja Mukesh at House Ival.
On the other side of the street is a welcoming- (and perhaps expensive-) looking tavern with a sign of a snow-covered fence post. If you were to listen to the gossip within, you might pick up a couple of interesting tidbits as well.
Trade Escort: Reliable men wanted as an escort for some goods going up into the hills. Pay is 160 ducats. Talk to John Briggs.
Cargo Transport: Reliable men needed to move some goods from a warehouse to another location. Pay is 200 ducats. Talk to the Rat.
It's late and they aren't open, but you take note of the available shops in town as well.
Goods and ServicesMcGee's Flophouse - 5 ducats / Mission food and board. A mat by the hearth and all the fleas you can eat!
The Last Post - 10 ducats / Mission food and board. Clean, dry rooms and simple food.
The Velvet Prince - 20 ducats / Mission food and board. A fine stay for fine guests.
Equipment
Toolkit - 10 ducats - The necessary tools of a trade for a craftsman. Provide a +1 bonus to checks made to craft things or perform related tasks.
Surgical Kit - 10 ducats - All the tools required for a field surgeon. Provides a +1 to Surgery checks.
(Other equipment can be purchased in town.)
Climbing Pitons and rope - 5 ducats
Other gear - Negotiable
Weapons
Dagger/Throwing Axe/Belt Knife - 1 ducat - 1d6 melee damage. Concealable. Can be thrown at short range.
Obsidian Dagger - 4 ducats - As dagger, but useful for ceremonial purposes.
Mace/Handaxe/Shortsword/Club - 2 ducats - 2d4 melee damage. Concealable.
Spear - 2 ducats - 1d6 melee damage, but if you are prepared you get a free attack against a foe who charges to meet you. You can attack opponents at short range as well as melee range with this weapon.
Battleaxe/Longsword - 5 ducats - 2d6 damage.
Rapier - 8 ducats - 1d12 damage, but +1 to Parry checks.
Pike - 8 ducats - 2d6 damage, and if you are prepared you get a free attack against a foe who charges to meet you. You can attack opponents at short range as well as melee range with this weapon. Two handed weapon.
Claymore - 10 ducats - 2d8 damage. Two handed weapon.
Buckler - 5 ducats - A small metal shield that requires active blocking. -1 to Parry, but takes up to 15 points of damage before breaking.
Shield - 2 ducats - A cheap wooden shield. Takes up to 3 points of damage before breaking.
Metal Shield - 10 ducats - A large shield of sheet metal. Takes up to 15 points of damage before breaking.
Armour
Light Chain - 15 ducats - A chain shirt over leather leggings and a jerkin. AV 4, EN 1.
Chainmail - 25 ducats - A full chain shirt and leggings. AV 5, EN 2.
Splint Mail - 40 ducats - An armour composed of several layered plates. AV 6, EN 3.
Platemail - 80 ducats - An armour consisting of plates shaped to the contours of the body. AV 8, EN 2. (You can't buy this at creation, it's just here for comparison.)
Backpack - 2 ducats
Wine/waterskin - 1 ducat
Carafe of cheap wine or beer - 2 ducats
Trail rations, 5 days - 1 ducat (Delicious cured meat and pemmican. Fat, flesh and nuts, the true arctic survivor's diet.)
Rope, 50ft - 3 ducats
Lantern - 4 ducats
Pint of Oil - 1 ducat
Torch - 1 ducat
Tinderbox - 2 ducats
Sling - 1 ducat - 1d6 ranged damage, up to medium range. Concealable. Bullets are free (just find stones). Comes with a leather pouch to put stones in.
Longbow - 15 ducats - 2d6 ranged damage, up to long range. Ignores 4 points of armour. Comes with a quiver.
Arrows - 1 ducat per 10.
Crossbow - 12 ducats - 1d8+2 ranged damage, up to medium range. Ignores 3 points of armour. Comes with a case.
Musket - 10 ducats - 1d10 ranged damage, up to medium range. Ignores 3 points of armour.
Bolts - 1 ducat per 5.
Cartridges & Bullets - 1 ducat per 10.
Leather - 5 ducats - Leather body armour. AV 2, EN 0.
Studded Leather - 8 ducats - Leather armour with metal studs to reinforce it. AV 3, EN 1.
Cold Weather Clothes - 2 ducats (+1 to Survival checks vs cold, can be worn over armour but increases Encumbrance by 1.)
Thug - 10 ducats/3d per - No skills, comes with a club, 2 HP. If he survives past missions he may gain skills. Expects pay of 3 ducats per Mission. You can usually find out of work dockworkers willing to do dangerous work for good pay.
All this information is now available in the first post to review. I have also adjusted the cost of sleeping places to reflect the increased value of a ducat and the longer timescales as well.Exhausted from your trip, you all eventually head to McGee's. It is a gods-forsaken hole with little to no light, no privacy and flea-infested blankets, but it has a fire that burns the whole night through and you are too exhausted to care. You show the fat old woman who runs the places your papers and she begrudgingly lets you have blankets near the edges of the room - apparently McGee operates a 'first come first served' policy when it comes to places by the fire. The following morning you wake to dark skies and a merciful lack of snow - apparently you can only look forward to a pittance of light this time of year.
Sonja: You ask around, and apparently House Ival has an unofficial monopoly on ironworking in town. There isn't a law against other smiths, but apparently the successful independents either get bought out, earn enough to get a ticket home or just... disappear. Still, they are always in need of skilled smiths at the ironworks and they will hire you on and let you use their facilities in exchange for half of what you make - so you'd end up earning about five ducats this season, you reckon.
Nevertheless, regardless of whether you take that position in the ensuing days your injury recovers with rest and food. Where you can find time, you practice getting a bit more adept at the use of your claymore, and Egil has some very welcome pointers to help you out.
Egil: Still hurts like a bugger, but rest and the thin slop at McGees are welcome after that prison ship. During the following days, while you try to get a little more used to the stupidly cold climes of the Iron Coast you give Sonja some pointers on using her sword. In return, she teaches you a few Eldanian tricks about surviving in cold weather. It's the start of a friendship, and you are short on friends.