Session 1 Summary and Homework

Session 1 Recap – September 25, 973

At dawn, the party set out from Edicaria to escort a caravan bound for Manchester. The drovers they met were a colorful lot: Thatch the practical leader, Nella the cherry-chewing knife-hand, Bray the human mule-bray, Hobble the limping pessimist, Gorse the mushroom encyclopedist with a foul mouth, and Mim, who was convinced her wagon wheels responded to gentle conversation. It was, in short, a caravan destined either for legend or disaster. With everyone in the party at first level, the smart money was on disaster.

The Goblin Ambush That Should Have Worked

Along the forest road, twelve goblins and their hobgoblin commander astride a warg lay in wait. It was a clever ambush, perfectly positioned to rake the caravan with arrows. Unfortunately for them, Ironbark the ranger had the gall to roll a natural 20. Spotting the trap, he sounded the alarm and darted into the trees before the arrows flew.

In the desperate battle that followed, Shamus and Lavleen came within a whisker of death, several drovers discovered how sharp goblin steel really is, and the party demonstrated an almost theological respect for the concept of “cover.” And yet, through sheer stubbornness and the hastily arranged death of the hobgoblin leader, the ambushers fled.

The tally: five goblins, one hobgoblin, and one warg dead. Seven goblins escaped to tell of the arrival of a new bunch of adventurers, one much tougher than those who had escorted prior caravans.

Arrival in Manchester

The city of Manchester proved nothing like the muddy frontier the snooty folks in Edicaria described. It was large, bustling, and thriving, with an adventuring economy so robust it merited an inn specifically designed for their kind: the Hero’s Respite, where paupers snore in the taproom and successful adventurers luxuriate in enchanted linens.

The Curious Case of Captain Nelson

Captain Nelson, whose letters had already hinted at fraying sanity, was reported to have slit his own throat. His effects had been shipped home, his grave neatly dug, and the matter briskly closed by the army.

The party, naturally distrustful of tidy explanations, began poking at loose threads. A cooperative clerk and Captain Billings bought Pfinder’s cover story with alarming ease and provided access to Nelson’s grave and death report. Sergeant Yamamoto, one of Nelson’s senior NCOs, confirmed the captain had grown increasingly paranoid — demanding crosses and “holy water” be carried on a stepped-up regimen of patrols — and spoke of a wraith encountered on the northern logging road. Nelson’s roommate and second-in-command were conveniently absent, while officer gossip proved impenetrable in the city’s taverns.

What Comes Next

The party now intends to obtain Nelson’s death report, interrogate his absent companions upon their return, and map his final days. Both side quests and investigation of the leads provided by Nelson’s letters beckon and the party leans toward taking a job clearing giant rats out of the sewers, investigating the blacksmith at Dolven’s Hollow, and checking out the orchish ruins near Iron Pines.

Homework

Yes, this is that sort of campaign; the kind that assigns homework!

For Everyone
- Write some notes about today’s session and what you learned for when I get those online forums up and running.
- Create a text chain if that suits you. I’d love to be part of it!
- The fifth letter from Nelson remains uncracked.
- The Internet Maze needs investigation.
- Have a conversation with Etienne and Aurelise Monpierre by following the link in the Pregame section of the website and let me know what you think next week. I’m thinking about creating a similar setup to be the bartender of the inn you’re staying in – he or she would be a place that you can go when away from the table and learn more about Manchester/Cambria (that way you don’t have to slog through as many info dumps!).
- I’m interested in seeing how many conspiracy theories you can come up with about Captain Nelson’s “suicide”. Was it the grassy knoll? Multiple shooters? The CIA? A body double? How were the Babushka Lady and the Umbrella Man involved? Let your imagination go wild!
- Let me know what level of luxury you’re paying for at the inn. Food and board charges come from the Player’s Manual and are,
  - Wretched (ie homelessness) – free (but you’re living on the streets and not the inn!)
  - Squalid – 1 sp/day (not available at the inn, a respectable sort of establishment)
  - Poor – 2 sp/day
  - Modest – 1 gp/day
  - Comfortable – 2 gp/day
  - Wealthy – 4 gp/day
- The level of luxury you’re living in will play a role in how often your stuff gets stolen, how likely you are to be assaulted by your roommates, and what class of adventurers you’re likely to come into contact with.
For B #1, for those moments when all of the patients have intact airways and are breathing quietly…
- A narration of how the sales of warg meat go in Manchester. The GM suspects you won’t get very much money from this because,
  - Warg meat is stinky and chewy and leave an aftertaste of Cruel Evil.
  - You haven’t got your usual kitchen and condiments and spices (the folks at the inn would be willing to let you use theirs for a cut of the profits but that’ll cut into how much money you make).
  - You’re an excellent chef in ordinary circumstances but are just level 1 when it comes to “dungeoneering chefing”
  - Manchester is actually kind of a cosmopolitan place with sophisticated folk (except for The Gutter’s End which is where all the dreg and filth of humanity live).
- Do lean into this, however, for comedy or pathos as you see fit. Perhaps some wry commentary about the sorts of people who are willing to buy this deeply suspicious meat you’re selling on the sidewalk?
- There’s a character in Manchester by the name of CMOT Dibbler (Cut Me Own Throat Dibbler) who is patterned exactly after the character by the same name in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels. You might consider whether he’s a part of your narrative or not… perhaps an ally? Perhaps a competitor? The Internet can give you all the details about him.
- Feel free to make use of Pfinder’s silver tongue in your selling but be careful of using magic to disguise the nature of the meat. Illusion with intent to deceive IS punishable under the Arcane Laws and, again, this city is pretty sophisticated and has both the Army and the Civil Guard available in large numbers.
For B #2 – would you mind making up a character sheet for Vren the fighter? If you have a backstory in mind, feel free to put it in; otherwise we’ll fill it in as needed.
For B #3 – would you mind making up a character sheet for Ironbark the ranger? Again, feel free to apply a backstory or leave it blank for us to fill in as desired.