Friday, January 24, 2020

Goats of Saltmarsh - Ghosts of Saltmarsh, Chapter 21


Annor decided to spend the day watching his goats. He gave the shepherd boys the day off. He took the crook and led his goats up the hill overlooking the Kingfisher river and the shallow expanse of marsh beyond. It was a warm sunny day and a cool breeze blew in from the ocean.  He took off his shirt and looked around. Saltmarsh was his home town. It had its problems, it could use some improvement, but it was a good town all told. The sound of the wind in the tall grass and the gentle bleating of his goats pleased him. This was a good day. 





CHAPTER 21
"GOATS OF SALTMARSH"
The A-Team:
  • Avastana "Aella" Kádár - Neutral, Half-Elf  Outlander and Sorceress from Ket. 
  • Annor Whalerson - Lawful Good, Human Marine and Fighter from Saltmarsh. 
  • Auric Ravenson - Neutral Good, Aasimar Shipwright and Cleric of the Raven King.
Suffering the Brain Jellies this Week:
  • Alot Aname - Neutral Warforged Fighter.
  • Marlin Whalerson - Chaotic Good,  Human Seeker and Rogue.

Idylls
It was an idyllic time in Saltmarsh. For five weeks, the A-Team had nothing to do but attend to their personal priorities. 

Aella spent the first week learning the language of the sea elves. Annor purchased some additional land for his goats and hired some workers to build a barn. Auric conducted rituals for the remembrance of the dead at his temple near the graveyard.

By the end of the second week, Aella felt she had a good grasp of the sea elf language. Annor learned the skill of goat herding from the young men in his employ. Auric hired a sculptor from Seaton to create a statue of Saint Ogden, keeper of the Book of the Dead.

During the third week, Eliander Fireborn, captain of the guard of Saltmarsh, led an expedition northeast to the Dreadwood. A werewolf was harassing loggers in the area. Aella spent the week carousing and getting to know the local merchants at the Wicker Goat. Annor continued to learn the ins and outs of goat farming, herding, and breeding. Auric studied herbalism under the tutelage of Ferrin Kastilar, the halfling druid who dwelled within the forest grove near the marsh behind the town.

The fourth week brought news that the Duke of Seaton had recalled all the ships of the king's navy. As a result, piracy and smuggling in the region had increased sharply. Aella spent the week in her home, nesting. She adopted a cat. Annor continued learning goat herding and Auric continued his studies in herbalism.

The fifth week saw the arrival of refugees from farther down the coast. The pirates had begun to raid coastal settlements. The survivors abandoned their burned out villages and came to Saltmarsh. Aella spent the week carousing and making friends at the Wicker Goat. Annor continued to herd his goats. Auric continued to study herbalism.

DM Notes-
We spent five weeks of downtime using the various downtime rules in the DMG and Xanathar's Guide. 

Some house rules we apply to down time include:
1. Every week I would roll a random event for the town from the Ghosts of Saltmarsh book. I'd give the players some narrative control by giving them the choice of: Traditionalist Events, Loyalist Event, or Wildcard event. 

2. According tot he Player's Handbook, learning a new language or tool proficiency requires 255 days. That's untenable. So I figured that's assuming one hour of study every day while adventuring. If you divide 255 hours of study over eight hour days, you get 32 days, which fits nicely in about a month. A week of downtime learning a new language or tool proficiency counts as 40 hours of study towards your 255 hours requirement. So a character can learn a new language or tool proficiency in about 6 weeks - assuming two days off per week. That's much more workable given the constraints of adventuring and the typical time frames of our campaigns. 

3. During this time, Annor was running a business making goat cheese. At first I adapted the business rules from the 3.5 DMG2 but this soon became unrealistic. So we switched to the business rules in the Dungeon Master's Guide, Fifth Edition, on page 129. However, I gave Annor's player some modifications from the 3.5 DMG2 table. If he spent 1000 gp on improvements, it gave him a permanent +1d4 on the weekly roll. He also rolled a weekly event for his business which might modify that week's roll up or down. 

The Faithful Quartermasters of Iuz
Marlin walked through the doors of the Faithful Quartermasters of Iuz. He wished to speak to Captain Xendros about possibly obtaining a set of magical goggles that would allow him to see in the dark.

Captain Xendros greeted Marlin warily. She obviously still remembered his insult from a few weeks ago. She politely listened to his request. There was a moment of awkward silence before she smiled and requested to speak with Marlin privately. She pulled the curtains and closed the door to her office.

She peeked through the curtain and checks outside the window to ensure they weren't being watched.  Her tone becomes hushed, conspiratorial.

She smiled warmly, "Meester Whalerson. I have a special proposition for you. I will seek and obtain the item you seek - I will forego the finders fee - I will even forego the sale price and provide it free of charge - in exchange for... the egg of Aulicus. Give to me the dragon's egg and I will give you the goggles you seek for free. Do we have an arrangement? "



Marlin responded, "IF I had something so precious…so valuable in my possession,  it would be worth more than the single item I request.  FAR more, if I had such a thing."

"I have ways of knowing that you are in possession of this thing. Many mysteries are revealed to me by my lord and master Iuz." She paused and considered his insinuation, "I have seen red dragon eggs sold for 2000 gold pieces. Perhaps a black dragon egg is worth 1000 gold pieces? "

Marlin looked uncertain. How could she know he had the dragon egg? Did she have a way to track it?

She continued, "If you are uncertain about my offer of two thousand gold pieces, you should be aware that the wizard Keledek might be interested in learning who was actually responsible for the theft of his property. You have perhaps already witnessed the extent of his tolerance towards those he believes to have crossed him? Or perhaps Captain Fireborn may have an interest? By comparison, two thousand gold pieces and an uncommon magic item at no price seems a desirable alternative, no?"

Marlin's face became grim, "Don’t threaten me!" He stepped toward her and smiled. "After all, your threats are meaningless as you would lose the prize you seek, no?"

"You will pay me what I want or you don’t get it at all, understood devils-daughter.  And If I would take some time to consider your offer, you will wait with all-do patience."

Captain Xendros stared at him in cold silence.

"Okay, listen.  We got off on a wrong foot for a misspoken comment on my part.  I’m sorry.  But there’s no reason we should remain at loggerheads.  We could actually help each other.  I am a treasure hunter and sometimes come across many interesting items in my travels.  I could sell what I or the team don’t want to you for resale.  Win-win."  Marlin made direct eye-to-eye contact with the tiefling.  "We are both professionals, and I was not treating you with the respect you deserve.  I can admit that."

Marlin turned away and picked at a fuzz on his sleeve.

"Now, truth be told, I don’t want to sell the egg at this point and time.  But if it ever does come up for sale, you’ll be one of the very first people I contact.  I believe that would be fair enough."

Marlin turned back towards her.  "All I really want are the Sungoggles of Cory the Hart or The Eyeglass of Lord Otto VonBloodtruth, Conquistador of Torm who believed himself hunted by the Invisible Stalkers after he massacred the entire Katoti plains people."

"So?  Can we come to some kind of working accord?  We don’t have to be friends, but we don’t have to be enemies."  He offered her a handshake.

She smiled again, "Yes. I have heard of your so-called reputation as a treasure hunter, though you and your friends have yet to offer me a single treasure for sale." She pouts, sullenly and theatrically. She held that look for a beat then abruptly switched to a big toothy grin.

"I may have need of your services soon. Perhaps in a few months. In the meantime, given current circumstances, I am unable to provide you with the items you request. I will give you a month to change your mind regarding my offer. I look forward to doing further business with you. "

Marlin smiled politely through his disappointment. He performed a short bow and took his leave.

Recruited for the Town Council
On the fifth week, Annor was summoned to a meeting of the town council. Gellan Primewater had been missing for over a month. He had not been seen since his house burned down. His seat on the town council was declared vacant. Eliander Fireborn nominated Annor to the council. Annor was selected on a vote of three to one.



A Meeting with the Merchant's Guild
On the very next day after his election to the city council, Annor was asked to attend a special meeting with the Brotherhood of Merchants - a small guild that represented the overland merchant caravans that brought goods to Saltmarsh from inland.

Annor, Auric, and Aella accompanied Anders Solmor to the meeting. Ander's servant Skerrin was also in attendance.

The Brotherhood of Merchants consisted of eight representatives. They were standing around a table within the Mariner's Guild Hall. Two young acolytes from the Temple of Procan stood in the corner reciting prayers - a typical sight in the Mariner's Guild Hall.  Anders and Annor were introduced.

The representatives of the Brotherhood were agitated. They explained for the past several weeks no trade caravans have arrived from Burle. They had all been hit by bandits crossing the Janustream river from the area of the Drowned forest.

Occasional banditry had been a minor problem in the past. Everyone knew bandits had hideouts in the Hool marsh. But they were small and disorganized. More often than not the caravans could simply pay these brigands either in coin or with a portion of the shipment.

These bandits, however, were organized. They fought like demons! They attacked and took everything! They gave no quarter and accepted no parley! Also, these bandits seemed to emerge from the region of the Drowned Forest, not the Hool Marsh.

After the first attacks, the merchants hired mercenaries, but these guards were ineffective! Most were easily defeated by the bandits or fled in fear! When the guards fled, the brigands chased them down and captured them! Only a few have managed to escape!

More strange, survivors report that each attack was preceded preceded by the appearance of a harmless-looking tittle old man who stops the head of the merchants' columns to ask for directions.

Annor noted that the attacks all took place northwest of Burle and asked if they had sought the aid of Burle. The merchants said they appealed to Burle, and Kiara Shadowbreaker, castellan of the fort, sent a force of 30 soldiers into the Drowned Forest. That was a month ago and none of them have returned!

With Eliander and most of the town guard away in the Dreadwood, the merchants asked the Town Council what they might be able to do!

Annor reassured the merchants that the A-Team would investigate and take care of this problem.



Auric thought he heard one of the hooded acolytes whisper the phrase, "Oh great power of evil, destroy now thine enemies..." Auric turned to approach the acolyte. Suddenly, a giant pillar of black flame erupted through the ceiling centered on Anders! The pillar exploded with both dark energy and unholy power, setting the room on fire and searing the souls of anyone near.

Annor was thrown backwards. Both acolytes in the back of the room ran towards the exit. Auric pointed at one of them, "Stop him!" Annor quickly ran and grabbed the acolyte by the arm.

The acolyte tried to break free but he was unable to slip from Annor's grasp.

Aella immediately cast a witch bolt spell at the acolyte. The acolyte screamed in pain. He produced an iron mace from within his long sleeve. The head of the mace resembled the head of a black dragon. The acolyte cried, "I give my soul to Aulicus! Sakatha will rise again and destroy you all!" He swung the mace at Annor ineffectually.

Auric, meanwhile, tended to Anders and the merchants who had all fallen underneath the pillar of black fire!

Having brought no armor or weapons to this meeting with the merchants, Annor began punching the acolyte in the face with his bare fists. Between the punches and the witch bolt, the acolyte was soon incapacitated.

Annor bound the prisoner while the others helped put out the fire and protect the survivors of the attack. Thanks to Auric's quick thinking Anders had survived the assassination attempt.

Later, the prisoner was taken to the temple of Procan. The prisoner was a male human. Wellgar Brinehanded, the priest of the temple, did not know the man. Though he was wearing the robes of an acolyte of Procan, Brinehanded noted that the robes were accessible and could have been easily stolen.

The prisoner was taken to the gaol and placed in the special magic-resistant cell. He was interrogated once he regained consciousness but offered no useful information, saying only that "the Descendants Four Founders of Saltmarsh will perish in flames! Their cities will be razed! Their people enslaved! They will know the vengeance of the Risen!". Soon after making this pronouncement, the prisoner began to emit a noxious froth from his mouth and fell dead.

Annor told the others, "Tomorrow, we head to Burle."

To Be Continued...

DM Note-
The four founders of Saltmarsh were:
  • The Great Great Grandfather of Anders Solmor
  • The Great Great Grandmother of Annor and Marlin Whalerson
  • The Great Grandfather of the Duke of Seaton
  • The Great Great Grandfather of Gellan Primewater

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