Sects in the City

Thowin Four Fingers, a fighter, and his torchbearer, Boarface

Imorfin the elf

Durik the cleric

Fretta the Dark, a thief

Balork the Medium, a magic-user and Bursus, his man-at-arms

 

Sunday, 23 Harvester

We rejoin the party as they sit around a table at the Bone House, the tavern/inn that they call home for the time being. It is their first time together after a couple days of individual exploration of the city. They recount their experiences of the previous two days and discuss the next course of action….

For the remaining characters I will limit the story-telling and focus on the 'behind-the-scenes' action.

Fretta the Dark and Boarface, a torchbearer

After determining that Fretta and Boarface were carousing together I had to figure out what amount of gold they blew in their carousing. The normal house rule is to roll d6 x 100 to determine how much gold is spent (whether they have that much or not). This is what I did for Fretta and rolled a 1. So the thief spent 100 gold and earned as much in experience.

Boarface, being a torchbearer, had much less gold on him. During the treasure division, Thowin did give him a 15 gold bonus on top of his daily rate, but still it wasn't much. So I ruled that he would spend all his remaining gold while carousing, boozing it up with the cheap stuff!


Art by Steve Zieser

 

So now time for the saving throws versus Poison! I roll a 17 for Fretta which is a success but poor Boarface fails his roll with a 12. I have different Carousing Mishap tables for PCs and retainers, so I roll another d20 and consult the appropriate table….

Boarface enters an oiled pig catching contest  sponsored by the Rose and Skull Tavern in the Redlight District of Enharza….and takes first place! The torchbearer wins 10 gold and a trained, pet rat! Fretta and Boarface celebrate the victory, whooping it up in the taverns along Tavern Alley.

Question: Does romance occur between Fretta and Boarface? (50/50)

Mythic: 73, No

 

Nothing happens on this night, but I think the two outcasts have formed a special bond as a result of the joint carousing, and I will role play it accordingly going forward.

Durik

Durik the faithful servant to Laex, goddess of wind decided to visit the temple in Enharza. New to the city he hadn't yet met the brothers and sisters of the local order. When he arrived he found a small shrine, clean and orderly, but definitely in need of repairs.

Using an ad hoc table I determine that the order is small (2d12), and come up with 14 current members. I decide that Durik will contribute at least half of his gold and then developed the below possible additional actions:

What happens at the temple?

1 - Durik makes a very large donation (80% of his gold) and is warmly received by the rest of the order

2 - He learns of a crisis facing the Order of Laex

3 - He is invited to join the Order in a formal position, after a test

4 - He is asked to help the Order in some regard

I roll a 2 and then use the below table to figure out more about the crisis.

1 - There is a conflict with another temple

2 - A brother/sister is very sick

3 - The Order is in dire straits financially

4 - There are undead in the sewers below the temple!

5 - Strife within the temple (factions)!

6 - There is a conflict with another temple (same as 1)

I roll a 1.

The Order of Laex warmly received their brother, Durik. And his generous donation would go a long way towards much needed repairs to their modest temple and to filling the larder. But he also learned of a crisis facing the temple. Their most treasured possession, a minor artifact of Laex known as the Cloud Gem had been stolen by a group of cultists worshipping Nag-Roop, a minor demi-God of the Underdark.

After discussing the matter in more detail, Durik left the temple with a heavy heart. As he walked back to the Bone House, he began to think how he could convince his new comrades to aid his church in their hour of need.

Balork the Medium

During the party's last visit to the city Balork had made his way to the Mages' Guild and was informed that all magic-users in Enharza were required to seek membership. The fee was 200 gold. At the time the Mage didn't have that amount of coin, but thanks to the sack of platinum found in Stonehell, he now had more than enough to cover his membership dues. In fact he had so much more that he also wanted to research a new spell.

What spell does Balork seek?

1 - Charm

2 - Spider Climb

3 - Detect Magic

4 - Random 1st level

I roll a 3, Detect Magic.

Q: Does he find the spell? (Near Sure Thing)

Mythic: 48, Yes

How much will it cost in materials? (170 gold)

Q: Does he pay? (Very likely)

Mythic: 02, Exceptional Yes

Since the result comes back as an exceptional yes, I decide to use some Story Cubes (4) to see what additional happens. I come up with Reading/Books, Fighting, Stealing/Thief, and Surprise/Fear.

Art by Tsabo6

As Balork poured over a table full of books in the middle of his spell research, something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. Looking up he spied a man wearing a dark cloak, hovering by a nearby bookshelf. The man surreptitiously pocketed a small book, unaware that he was being observed. The thief began to leave, walking towards a still unobserved Balork. The mage took it upon himself to intervene. "Thief! Stop!"

 

A scuffle broke out between the two and the thief was able to escape Balork's grasp. As the man ran for the exit, Balork cast a Sleep spell. The thief made his save (17)!

Q: Does the thief escape? (50-50)

Mythic: 55, No and a Random Event occurs as a result of the doubles.

Random Event: NPC Negative (I then roll 'Disrupt Wishes')

As the thief tried to make his escape, he tripped and fell. Before he could even rise several guardsmen were atop him.

So what happens?

1 - Balork is brought before the Guild's Council Members

2 - The thief vows revenge against Balork

3 - Balork makes a key contact in the Guild as a result

4 - Balork picks up something of note/value dropped by the thief

I roll a 2…

As the thief was being dragged away, he looked up at Balork with rage in his eyes. "You! I'll find you! I'll find you and make you pay for this!" A flustered Balork went back to his books but was unable to concentrate on his work.

(To be continued...)