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Voting closed: November 04, 2022, 09:24:51 am

[Maloy]

Grugni assumed that the horn was to get others to gather mainly because of the reactions of the people around him who began to find their places. He's really only spoken to Glorg and not knowing what was going on the conversation was mostly one-sided

When the commander stared him down for a moment he really just scowled back at him.

Grugni is modestly disturbed by the report of the dead soldiers, but also similar horrifying tales come from the deep caverns all the time. He listens quietly to the report, but is confused since this clearly isn't a trial and when the commander invites people to go ahead and leave he raises his hand
"Hey! Hey!"
The commander turns to look at him "Yes, dwarf?"
"Does that mean I can leave too?"
"Certainly, although you will be returning to your own people for judgement, but if you complete your work for us you will be pardoned"
Grugni only considers for a brief moment before "Well, creature can't be that much worse than a giant cave spider, let's go!"



Grugni was really pleased to see a large amount of people leave. Most of them would likely die anyway and it also means less competition for his pardon.
He will immediately grab Glorg's attention and say "Hey partner! Let's do this!"

Not knowing how the rest of the team joins up, but when we do so Grugni would remark on

"I don't really know anything about this place or anything near here, but all I need is my own gear and some booze and I'm good to go!"



If you wanna talk to NPC's I can respond as one's like Grugni and the Commander spoke. We can make plans for routes! If you got questions on each route you can certainly ask the commander, scouts or any other staffing on what to expect on different paths

[TeaKing]

I almost instantly went into the keep after hearing the horn, my excitement for this whole thing was through the roof! But before that I definitely talked to some interesting fellows! Including an intriguing kiwi man! I think they are the only other bird person around besides me. I also met a bizarre spear-obsessed guy, who despite their strangeness, was actually quite fun talking to!

I only stared back when the commander looked at me. This did get me to start wondering about the places a man such as him mightve been and fought in, though...

The reports of the dead soldiers don't surprise me much, that is just nature, and as a hunter, i've seen the carcasses left to rot by many monste-
Suddenly, a strange voice inside Egem's head interrupted his thoughts.
"These descriptions... Oh, so Appetising!... They make me Hunger for FLESH..." It said. "Egem, do me a favour, would you? Tear your target APART. Let's see what you're capable of, my chosen little critter..."
W-What was that?! Was some kind of god talking to me? Either that or I'm hallucinating, but it looks like I might have to just do as they say, i guess...

In regards to the time limit, it sure sounds challenging, but considering that i can fly, and that i basically travelled from home all the way here in just about a day or two, it does sound manageable, especially if we do out best to be quick, as such i'll suggest the shortest path to my group, and that seems to be through the elven lands. And speaking of my group, which hasn't formed yet, I'm gonna try to team up with that kiwi man and spear guy, They seem like great teammates!

Anyway, so far we know nothing about our target lol, what is he? Zombie? Troll? A Creature of the night? Thats definitely something we could ask about


Also dont mind the orange dialogue, its just some soft lore for my character that isnt super important in the grand scheme of things

[King Zultan]

He hears the horn just like everyone else and assumes that's the signal to go into the building for the meeting, he thought about talking to some people but everyone was ether constantly moving or already talking to someone so he missed out on talking to anyone before the meeting.

When the commander looked at Burt he didn't do much more than look back.

Nothing to surprising in that report, as when it comes to fighting like this people die and sometimes they die horribly, so there's nothing new here.

No need to say anything, his group will ether get there in two weeks or they won't he doesn't really care as long as he gets to fight something. Speaking of his group he hasn't really picked one yet, he should probably do that pretty quick.

As for things to do before he leaves, all Burt can think of is to find a new sword so he doesn't have to fight with a glorified board.

[Maloy]

Also dont mind the orange dialogue, its just some soft lore for my character that isnt super important in the grand scheme of things

I love character flavor stuff like that!

After most of the keep has emptied itself with groups finding one another. Grugni had originally only connected with Glorg, thanks to Glorg himself really, but he sees a few stray warriors standing around the room doing various things.
An eagle man, kiwi man chef, and a deer man! The eagle man was already leading the kiwi over to Glorg and Grugni. Although the group will be a strange menagerie to him he certainly won't say no to increasing his odds of coming back alive!
"Hey you guys!" He bellows "You're with us!"
I wouldn't describe his tone as friendly as much as he is a loud person to cover up his social awkwardness. He will offer a hand to each one of you and give the tightest squeeze of a handshake he can while simply stating "Grugni"



Grugni finds himself shocked to say this, but upon considering how his people currently feel about him he actually would prefer to go through the elven lands "I agree with the eagle, but don't tell anyone I said so"


There are still staff around the castle. The scout from earlier is outside catching her breath and trying to calm down and their is an archivist with a small library above. Any of these people might be useful sources of information.

Do you wish to attempt to trade here at the castle or in town for a better weapon or do you wanna try to find a ruin on the way?
If you tell me who you wanna talk to and how you wanna phrase your questions about Ciba I'll respond in-character
Any particular way you introduce yourself that really says a bit about your personality?

[TeaKing]

Ill ask the commander himself if we have any information about ciba's looks, what type of creature he is, etc...
I'll use my usual friendly tone, but try to make things quick and brief to not annoy the dude too much

[King Zultan]

I'm sure we can find a sword along the way no need to waste time finding one here.
He'll be as friendly as he can be towards the people in the group he's been pulled into, he won't go out to find out more information on Ciba since he's sure someone else in the group will probably know something useful about it.

[Salmeuk]

Glorg glorgs in the background, spears at the ready. Glorg has no currency to share with his fellow party members and feels some shame at this fact. Glorg considers the road ahead and asks that we purchase some food and bedrolls for the upcoming bivouacking. Glorg thinks talking to birds is stupid but doesn't say anything out loud. Grungi appears like a good tribesmate but, in this foreign land, Glorg trusts no one too deeply.

[Maloy]

Egem approaches the commander who is speaking to a couple of guards. Seeing you out of the corner of his eye he raises a hand at the guards and says "We will continue this later" he turns to you "May I help you, mercenary?"

You ask for information on Ciba

"It speaks well of you to seek to know more of your target first rather than rush off as the others did at the first sign of pressure" he says taking account of the eagle man before him

"We don't know much outside of old legends. In ancient days there was a similar necromancer invasion coming from those lands and seemed similarly unstoppable. In the legend Ciba is a vastly large humanoid who served the swamp titan. He was able to pass through the entire army of the dead and steal the "heart" of the tower, whatever that is, and leave with it. This weakened the necromancer for the combined assault of elves, dwarves and mercenaries such as yourself."
He scowls knowing how little that helps
"One traveler to the region swears he almost encountered the creature. He says he never saw more than the monster's back, but described the creature as "double-minded" and arguing with itself. I can also say for certain that he is a living creature and larger than any in our lands. Possessing the intelligence of a creature with a soul, but wholly hostile to all civilized life. He is likely a cave dweller as well. Good luck, Mercenary."


As Egem returns Glorg suggests the purchasing of food and bedrolls. Grugni nods his head in agreement "and booze if they got it. Only got enough for a two days at most." The party looks around seeing a lack of regular stores in the castle "There a hillocks nearby we could peruse? Or what do humans call theirs- a- hmm... a halmet?"
There is one in visible distance down the hill from the castle you all can stop at

I'm trying to visualize glorging around lol I wonder if it would make the guards uncomfortable?
If Avolition doesn't pick a specific way to intro his character to the group I might just pretend that we kidnapped the castle chef for the extra help lol

[TeaKing]

Didnt i talk to him and drag him with me to glorg's group lol?

[Salmeuk]

kidnapping or an encouraging series of pushes in the right direction? You decide.

Glorg wonders aloud, "I've never eaten a dragon before. You would need a big pan, and a lot of cooking oil. . ."

[Maloy]

It is now canon that we took a chef hostage for well prepped meals lol

Grugni looked questioningly at the chef that seemed both jovial yet possibly distressed at being forced into the party. "Perhaps....we shouldn't take someone against their will-" Grugni recalls months of eating raw or salted meats and dirty mushrooms in the caverns with his cheap wine "no no, nevermind. Welcome aboard, Hal!"

Grugni's trade being part monster hunter part prospector hearing Glorg's thought he voiced aloud turns to the barbarian "I think we are gonna get along great, human! Marinate the lizard in some nice wine..."


The nearest village is an hour's walk north and so it isn't a detour for us to drop in and it won't delay our mission north. No matter what, Cor willing, I'll move us to the next part of the adventure by tuesday so I think we can comfortably explore side stuff as we go!


Ashiala Village in the Hill of Years
Translation of the local human language leaves us with the name Wonderyell

Source: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/q338D

On the way in we found a blueberry bush and so Grugni took the time to gather many berries while Hal made a very dark joke



As we enter the village the first place we pass is a shrine to the human god of death: Uja

"Odd to plant a garden around a statue to a death god." Grugni gives it a wide berth out of fear "Can't even imagine why anyone would worship something like this when the world almost got destroyed by the undead"
How do you feel about it? Does your character have any familiarity for this god or perhaps any others that he might wish to share? Do you wish to roll the dice of fate?


From there we make our way to the mead hall to announce our presence.
The village is ruled by a wren-man warrior covered in armor with a beak shaped helm fitted for his head. He greets us in the name of  Uja the god of death and tells us other adventurers have already come and scoured the town of most tradeable goods
How do we react?


There is a chest with gear in the hall "Not for sale, wanderers" a guard says seeing us staring
Contents of chest(all human sized) :


Perhaps we could attempt to haggle? We mainly needed to greet the ruler before entering, but can easily return to engage services here

From there we would head into the village proper, but on the way are stopped by a strange sight.

A dwarven warrior held prisoner by a goblin animal trapper
The dwarf is missing his nose and wears not one, but three iron chainmail shirts. Each fitted with the sigil of the Elder Hell, a now endangered but once overwhelmingly powerful civilization. He also wears a crown made of elven teeth.


This is strange? How do you react to this sight?
The dwarf calls out "Help! Save me! I'm being held prisoner!" His voice is distorted with the strange airflow from lacking a nose.
Our well armed group approaches talking distance "What happened?" one of us asks
The prisoner looks around nervously "I don't remember very clearly... Just please help!"

The goblin punches the dwarf to silence him and she turns to Glorg specifically
"Hello, Human. I am Ngokang Sinkscourges"
"Where are you taking him" Glorg asks
"Back to my home in Riddledhates"
A well known goblin pits and still inhabited too.
The situation is unclear on who is the villain here. The goblin has no weapon or armor though and her money pouch seems especially full and made of rare material

What is the party thinking?


Here is a reminder of conversation pieces if you wanna ask an npc anything

Also if we wanna try stealing stuff df has a broken stealth system so instead I'd roll a D20 with your ambushing skill as modifier. Just to prevent us from hard exploiting. Won't count in combat situations because monsters are pretty well balanced in that regard.

[TeaKing]

For some reason i find it quite strange and nonsensical that a god of death is capable of making creatures undying and immortal...

After that thought, Egem "heard" something familiar...

"Of course you'd feel that way, little one... After all, you're my vessel in this world... The vessel for a being that is the true definition of Death and Destruction... I'd love it if you broke the statue of this sorry excuse of a god, but that would carry the risk of your own demise, and i can't have that happening so soon after our manifestation into this universe..."

That voice again! I heard it Quite clearly, so maybe I'm not hallucinating...
But I can't have the others know about this yet, Don't want them to treat me like an insane lunatic...

A servant of Uja? Hmm... I'd expect that the 'voice' would want me to murder him... But that would only hinder our situation, so we probably should just avoid this wren man

These items don't include what I'd like to get eventually, and that would be a bow, so I'll pass on haggling

When i saw the dwarf, I thought he was some kind of criminal or slave at first, but then i noticed the Elder Hell Sigils and the Goblin lady, and I almost immediately recoiled in disgust... This dwarf is being kidnapped! We even got confirmation of what is happening when the goblin mentioned Riddlehates! I have to act, Now


And then the voice came back...

"HEHEHAHAHAHAA... You're in the mood to fight, Egem? KILL THEM... TEAR THEIR FLESH APART... Make them suffer worse than that dwarf!"

And with it, Egem's eyes turned Orange and started glowing... He now has an unparalleled thirst for violence.

I shall tell the others that i am intervening, then immediately jump to the sky. Floating above the goblin, i'll pull out my crossbow and demand that they yield, if they do, we free the dwarf and move on with our day. If they resist, I shoot them until they get hit by at least one bolt, and then fly down to them until i am directly above them and try to scratch their eyes out with my talons

[Salmeuk]

Glorg avoids the strange monument to a god of death. Strange how much these "inlanders" worship the process of death and resurrection.

No need for theiving or purchasing of goods. Glorg is satisfied.

This goblin is suspcious. Glorg has no inspired questions, and will merely watch the scene. Should the goblin make one wrong move Egem will descend and likely finish the job.

[King Zultan]

Burt doesn't feel much of anything after seeing the statue as it was just a statue and was unable to do anything on it's own.

There wasn't much need to try and haggle since they didn't have anything Burt needed.

That goblin is obviously doing something untoward and the dwarf was in need of help and Burt felt the need to go after the goblin even if he couldn't be very effective with his wooden sword at least he could do something.

[Maloy]

On the bright side King Zultan you are the only arguable tank of the group! Everyone else is light armored or partially armored and will have to rely on dodging and parrying. You're covered head to hoof and bigger than a human!

As Egem flies high into the air he points his crossbow at the goblin "Yield!"
The goblin shields her eyes from the sun as she looks up and pulls out her tiger iron knife "You first, coward"
Do you notice his eyes change?

Egem fires and the bolt strikes true into her leg tearing a tendon and forcing the goblin onto the ground squealing in pain. The prisoner pulls out his own crossbow and shoots the goblin in the shoulder

"Yield." Egem says again descending to the ground.
"Okay okay I yield" The she-goblin says.
"Drop the coin pouch"
She does so

Egem turns to the prisoner:

Do we wish to take him? Or perhaps bring him with us as part of the party, but take him later? Or perhaps just leave him somewhere safe? He is asking to be taken to a goblin pit in the far arctic north.

Hearing this talk the goblin brandishes her knife and the other rush forward to stop her



Afterword we head into the village proper. There are no proper stores here, but there is a garden with ripe fruits for the plucking. Some homes also have stockpiles of harvest we could trade for.
One bowman reclines peacefully in his hovel. Perhaps he would trade his bow? No swordsmen are present unfortunately




Egem got the money pouch and Grugni got the knife made of jewels, but we can contest how the loot is divied if we wish. I just did so based on Grugni getting the kill and the goblin giving the money pouch to Egem.



Grugni saw Egem's eyes change and made a mental note to ask the eagle man about it when they stopped for the day.

Jewels are the primary interest of Grugni when he is digging and so the knife made of tiger iron is a strong interest of him once brandished. Not a fighting weapon either so he hoped the little goblin wouldn't damage it.

When the goblin made to attack and stop the escape of the prisoner he and the others jumped on the goblin. His pickaxe slid easily between the ribs and punctured a lung. "Pest control" he thought to himself.
Grugni would like to pick some fruit for the journey as that seems easier than negotiating for a sack of food.