CoD 1: Session 14: A new tent in town

 Pre-scene Notes

-

Scene setup/conflict: 

Returning after Cave dive, party finds they haven’t actually gained much fame from doing it so have to think of another way

No altered/interrupted scene

Scene:

“Who would’ve guessed a week could have gone by when it had been just half a day in the cave?” Filli asked Yankovic incredulously as the party stepped out of the Governor’s Office. 

“Indeed, I got the same message too.” Zar came up to reconvene with Yankovic and Filli. He had taken a short rest as well as went to the Trades House to sell some of the items they had gathered, while Filli and Yankovic went to return Baldie’s wedding ring. Filli said they should take the poison sack, mushrooms, and spider silks directly to the Trade’s Hub to see if someone could make something useful out of them instead. The loose gold from the cultist they agreed would go towards replenishing Zar’s knick-knacks list. Zar asked, “So what did Baldie say?”

Baldie was of course eternally grateful for the party they were able to salvage his dead wife’s memory, and said he would be in their debts. He said again there really was no treasures he could afford them, but please do ask for him when they come to the Governor’s Office and he would try to give them every convenience possible as a lowly Official’s Aide. He also clarified that although the party did complete a dungeon that another adventuring party was unable to complete, in the eyes of some, that might count against them as others might think the dungeon had already been partially cleared, even if Baldie knew that was not the case. 

At this point I still did not think of much of a loot that was not money. So the otherwise go-to I guess is to progress the story, make something more apparent, or shorten the time for the party to reach something.

In chagrin that he really had nothing to offer for the party’s troubles, he managed to finally think of something just as a gesture of appreciation before they left. Baldie handed Filli a voucher to see a Lady Flocra, who had apparently set up shop just this week, and it had been a gift his old party members gave Baldie when he had no clue what to do with his life after he lost his leg. He said the party could not miss it as it was at the South West of the Town Square, and there had been a big commotion with the stall owners previously there that had to move.

“And those reeds?” Yankovic asked Zar. 

“They weren’t valuable unfortunately. Sold for exactly three silvers and four coppers,” Zar responded in dismay. “After replenishing some gear, we should have made a few silvers.”

“Sounds like carrying out request are the way to go, eh? Just finding a noble’s daughter’s necklace bagged as a lot more than risking our lives,” Yankovic sighed.

“We were nearly killed by monster crabs and the rest of the Blue Horizon crew, so that cultist camp seemed a lot less scary,” Filli said. “Maybe it is worth checking out this Lady Flocra Baldie gave us a ticket to? Seems like she’s a kind of big deal in the week we’d been gone.”

The party could not miss the new colourful tent at the corner of the Town Square even if they tried. The conspicuous tent looked like it was from a travelling circus, with a massive queue spanning round the other stalls. Who knew how the owner managed to get the two factions to agree on the tent being pitched at such a prime location of the town. The party decided to go and have a look, and with Baldie’s ticket, the linesman allowed them to skip the line. 

Within the tent, it was more spacious inside than it looked outside, with actually enough room for a secondary queue inside, like a waiting room. The party still waited for about half an hour before linesmen led them through the final veil and into the back room. The decorations were as typical as any fortune teller’s tent one would imagine from a book or a play, as if the familiar figure sitting in front of her crystal ball had decorated the place right from those clichés. 

“Ah, I’m glad to see you three are in good health,” Stella Flocra said. “I’d heard you were worried about me Filli, thank you for that. Weird Elf, I hope your joints ain’t seizing up as bad as mines. And Zar…you look a lot greener than I last remembered you.”

Realising they did not know of Stella’s surname until now, Filli just smiled and said, “I just glad you’re alright Stella. So what happened?”

Stella gestured for them to sit on the purple pillows across from her and told them relatively briefly what happened. She woke up first on the life boat and thought to explore the island to verify whether it was indeed Cavesmuth, but had set off in another direction so arrived in town only that evening. She had not initially thought she was so highly in demand until the day after, when both the Governor and the Rose’s spread the word they were looking for the last survivor of the Blue Horizon to corroborate the chain of events. She leaked her whereabouts and just waited at the tavern until both factions turned up, and basically started a bidding war to get on their side to put their own spin on the events. That was how by playing both sides, she was able to get a tent set up so quickly in such a prime location. Of course, it was her raw fortune telling powers that led to her popularity and legitimacy in keeping her residency at the Town Square. Adventurers could be a superstitious bunch after all.

“That’s great Stella! Was this what you’d wanted to do here?” Filli asked.

“You can say I came to Cavesmuth for a retirement of sorts,” the mystical woman indulged him with a half response. Filli did not roll well, especially as he was not trying too hard so rolled at disadvantage.

“You know, I can do with some tips on how to set up a church considering how easy it seemed for you to set this establishment up so successfully!” Yankovic still thought she was purposefully being mysterious, but did not question her skills at getting what she wanted. 

“Well, you three are customers after all with the ticket.” Just as Zar was scared she was going to look into her crystal ball again, Stella went on to provide some practical advice. 

She commented the party, although having done a successful Cave dive, was basically playing the lottery every time, and hoping to find treasures that matched what Cavesmuth was needing at the moment. The chances of getting something extremely rare were also slim, if not accompanied by heavy dangers. The party could just run errands for Cavesmuth, but collecting crab meat would not make them famous, and might have the opposite effect. The party already knew there was a chance bringing items from another plane with them gave better chances of reaching that particular plane, like Baldie, so that might be the most effectively way to go. It just happened Baldie was not someone who could reward them handsomely, but if they were to do a Cave dive for a specific purpose for the Governor for example, their fame and relationship with the Empire would definitely increase more than running errands.

Stella also cautioned them that if they focused on one faction, then the other would instinctively feel animosity towards them. Stella knew very well being at the Town Square the Governor’s Office’s officials and the Trades House clerks could argue even over lunch. At a certain point, the opposing faction might even go out of their way to hinder the party. Saying that, if they had just wanted fame, playing both sides were fine, as long as the party did not leave it too long between Cave dives, considering the denizens of Cavesmuth still put ventures into the Cave above all other feats. 

Map updated from https://inkarnate.com/ then added some tent tokens from Roll20 to make it look more how I'd wanted it.

“Just as a last clue as well, although the Rose family and the Governor are the two biggest factions, they are not the only two that can help you achieve what you want to do in this town.”

It’s a bit shoe-horned, but it did resolve the scene’s conflict, eg not getting a reward/fame to further the party’s fame - but Stella’s s advice kind of covered that. It also closed a long outstanding thread of finding her, and I have her right where I’d wanted her on the map now as a stationery NPC. All the key NPCs have some sort of backstory, and this conversation gave way for the party to dig into them as they quest, as well as open up a sort of faction reputation system that if I was DM’ing a long campaign for a particular group for this setting, it would open up a lot of plot points. 

#

After the interesting advice from Stella, the party decided it was time to call it a day considering they had not actually had a good rest since before their Cave dive. The party went to the Cliff’s Edge and the unimpressed face of Soke Buclym greeted, or rather, tolerated their request for a room.

The half-orc lady gestured towards an empty wooden board where the keys to the rooms would have been and sighed. “Listen here, the tavern is still getting expanded, and you guys surprisingly didn’t do me the favour of dying during your first Cave dive.” Ignoring Zar’s incredulousness at her customer service, she fished about under the bar and produced a rather dirty looking key. “There is the cellar I use to put some spare beds and the likes - it isn’t even that dusty. It is definitely big enough for you three to all fit, and that’s the only room going right now. Of course, you can see if you can convince others to give up their room for you. Again I warn you guys in advance, if there’s a bar fight, the loser pays for everything the fight break.”

The party was already beaten up enough from the cultists and thought it better than to try their luck against more experienced adventurers in the town. Zar tried to persuade Soke with logic that it was only fair they did not have to pay the usual staying fee, and she grudgingly agreed.

Zar rolled a 22 for Persuasion and considering the party did not get anything too material for the Cave dive, I’d thought the stroke of luck and less bookkeeping of living expenses were justifiable. I needed them to stay in the same room for a story reason in the future, so formed the excuse, but it could play itself out later elsewhere depending on story flow.

The party actually had to go up some stairs first into a twisted maze of stone corridors, with rooms being clearly just cut out of the cliff with some crude pickaxes. It did give a particularly rustic feel, but the second set of stairs going down to the cellar made them feel like they were entering an abandoned mine. At least when they opened the cellar door, the other side was not dripping with underground water or cobwebs. There were even wooden flooring and a wide choice of beds, with linens peeking out of half ajar cupboards. There were desks, shelves, and even a separate room where they could isolate and store chamber pots.

The party however did not have much time after doing some basic tidying and clearing out to set up their new dorm room. They each took a corner and both Zar and Filli crawled into their respective beds and fell asleep almost instantly.

I didn’t find a good enough map to post in earnest, so just described it from an amalgamation of elements I’d seen in some maps that were close to what I had in mind. As a DM, I guess just stringing some words together and looking at pictures on google image search can help give some ad hoc location description at a bind.

Yankovic would not miss his daily prayers to Xanthia of course. He laid out his shield and weapons on a couch near his bed, and kneeled in front of them. The proper ritual required him to paint the blood of the enemies he had defeated in battle on his shield, or a trophy as the victor, but whilst travelling he could be brief. He recollected the battle he had with the cultists, especially the dark blessing the Head Cultist had called upon from his master. He savoured each battle, as it was a learning experience from each of his enemies, and he compared it with how his Bless spell with Xanthia worked, understanding they were different, but had similar strands. This was the way of Xanthia, where they did not pray for victory, but spent their prayers replaying the glorious battles in their heads to seek inspiration from the God of War to further their crafts with battle.

After his prayer and feeling like he had came up with some new ideas for future battles, Yankovic also joined his allies in their long rest. Although elves did not sleep, he let himself remain motionless and into a trance for the night.

Yes this is level up time.

#

“You’ve done… well Zar,” the voice came to him again in his dreams. “You’d felt it. That rush. When the Head Cultist died… It… invigorates.”

Zar was surrounded in green smog, and although he could not see nor run through it, he could feel the smog clinging onto his limbs as if they were screeching banshees. They were not physical, but emotional, restraints. It was the emotion of hate. Hate that drove him to hex and curse and swear the worst for his foes. Or indeed anyone and anything around him.

“The power… of hate. If fuels…us.” 

Zar was back in the closet again. He was locked up. Waiting for his death. Had he been alive? The rusty sword floated up in front of him. All he had to do was grab it, and let his hate for his captors guide his slashes. 

“Let hate…guide you…”

#

Zar woke up in cold sweat in the silent cellar. No, he did not wake up with birds chirping outside or the sun shining in. All around him were just cold stone walls. Zar rubbed his face with both hands, feeling as if his nails had grown far too long and looked even more orc-like than he would have liked, although that was half his bloodline. 

“The voice is getting more… talkative,” Zar growled, eyeing the rusty sword that seemingly had not moved from where he had left it under his backpack. 

This was when he remembered he was sharing the cellar with others, but both Yankovic and Filli were nowhere to be seen. Yankovic’s stuff were gone, but next to Filli’s desk sat a suite of armour. No, it was not armour, but more like a metallic doll between three to four feet tall. A doll with gauntlets and other parts that Zar had seen sticking out of Filli’s massive backpack previously. 

Bow’s shamanised form art from Capcom’s SNES game Breath of Fire II. This is Filli’s Steel Defender for his artificer sub class, but imagine the canon arm as a normal arm. https://lparchive.org/Breath-of-Fire-II/Update%2097/

At this moment, the door to the cellar was opened and Filli walked in with what appeared to be two long lances. “Hey you sleepyhead, you sure slept in! But you woke up just in time, I’d brought you some lunch. Yankovic’s already headed out and had been giving out some flyers to see if he can recruit anyone for his future church since this morning.”

Zar shook his head and joined Filli at one of the tables, “And the lances? And what’s that metallic thing?”

“I’d just done some shopping this morning. And that’s Fido,” Filli matter-of-factly revealed his inadequacy in naming pets. I had no interesting name, and was supposed to be a placeholder, but just went with it as time went on. On Zar’s confused look, Filli went on to explain, “My dad was a Battle Smith, and they are known to fight with a Steel Defender they create uniquely for themselves in battle. You can see them as a type of arcane golem or puppet if you will. It’d taken me quit a few years to get this far with design and building my own Steel Defender, and I had been stuck on several technical problems back at my hamlet. When I started travelling though, it’s certainly given me much more inspiration and I’m close to completing it. It moves now, but definitely at beta testing stage. Well you know I aren’t as strong as you or Yankovic, so I need to become a knight one way or another.”

“And the lances?” Zar repeated. 

“I’d made a visit to the Trades Quarter this morning as well to see if I can make something of the spider silk and poison sack. I happened into one of the gadgeteers shop and we’d got talking. I’d never had a chance to talk shop with others before on artificing apart from my dad, one thing led to another and we managed to make this Poison Sling. But more importantly, it’d given me a great idea to complete my Steel Defender that involves these lances. I just need a bit time to put it in practice, but lances would be a big part of it. In the mean time…”

Filli made a motioning gesture, and Zar jumped when Fido the Steel Defender gingerly moved towards the table. The Steel Defender picked up Filli’s lances from the ground, and went back to start packing tools into Filli’s backpack. 

“It certainly moves and holds itself in battle, but not dexterous enough for what I want to do yet. But hey, maybe Yankovic don’t have to carry my stuff anymore.” Filli’s eyes sparkled with such ambition and enthusiasm Zar could only congratulate him. 

Filli, having the affirmation, spent the rest of lunch talking about the Poison Sling he and his new gadgeteer friend cooked up. It could only fire three shots before turning trash, but would have a high chance of poisoning enemies and some considerable damage before then. Zar had never missed Yankovic so much as his ears grew mushroom at the endless techno mumbo jumbo. 

Again instead of selling for gold, as a GM, I’d tried to give them an item that was useful but not overpowered. Having the sling weapon as a consumable helps, and I basically see it as a favoured Catapult spell slinger. 

Scene close-out:

• Chaos factor down to 5. 
• - party thread: returned Baldie’s wedding ring.
• - party thread: found Stella.

Post-scene Notes

This is the reason why Filli is a small race. As the Steel Defender can look like anything, and the subclass lets Filli use INT as his attack modifier, I imagine the Steel Defender as the thing holding the lance as Filli controls it. It takes another level before I have Filli’s basic load out online for his character concept, so would still have him flinging Fire Bolts and the Steel Defender as an auxiliary for now per standard DND rules. However, when Filli eventually gets mounted, you can think of it akin to Cait Sith on his mog (below) from Final Fantasy 7. 

So for those who don’t know, the cat would be Filli and the mog would be Fido.