The Golden Tooth Tavern

[Zhym]

I'd really like it if Piers could answer Pendleton's questions and offer for himself IC, not the DM OOC.

[Jernau35]

Piers

"I do believe it would be very interesting to travel with a companion such as yourself". admits Piers "And I do understand your concerns about "paying extra", as it were, for Baudh's blessings, when you yourself will also contribute your own time and skills".

"However, as I have explained, the decision is not mine, but Baudh's and he must have his due acknowledgement of his power and glory. You are free of course to submit your own bill for services rendered. But surely a man as intelligent as yourself does not think that a divine power will be fooled by moving money from one column to another? The key is the sacrifice, not the amount. The amount is not specified in any of our scriptures, only that it should be paid in gold. We do not "name our price"; the amount should be what the person deems to be just, in their heart".

"As a token of friendship and sincerity, I too shall sacrifice the same amount as you to receive Baudh's blessings if you decide to accompany us".

[Zhym]

Pendleton smiles somewhat sardonically. "I should hope that as a follower of Baudh you would donate more than I, who am not! And if what I believe to be just, in my heart, is that Baudh should take his gold from the share of treasure allocated to his cleric? I assume that would not be satisfactory?"

He shakes his head and sighs. "I regretfully apprehend that our differences are irreconcilable," he says sadly. "I seek an arrangement akin to a partnership. Your god, it seems, demands that such can never be the case. I offer my services and your god says that my services are not enough—he must also have my acknowledgement of his power and glory. I'm sorry, but that is a higher price than gold, and I do not make a custom of paying for the privilege of assisting those who ask for my help—unless their need is great, and yours is not. I wish you best of luck on your mission. May your god go with you."

"Cause I'm sick of him hanging around here," he adds under his breath when the cleric is gone. The mage returns to his books. In his notebook, he writes in a meticulous script: Gods save us from religious fanatics.

[Fearghus]

Dabney enters the tavern a bit road-weary, but ready to get back at it after a drink and a meal. He eases the heavy pack off of his sore shoulders and rests it next to the door. He takes a seat and drops a gold coin onto the table for a pint of Trombley's and a good meal.

"So, what's a fellow got to do to make his fortune in these parts?"

[Marullus]

Dawn, 07 July 2021

Piers, Meneldor, and Dabney depart with two men-at-arms from Baudh's church via the south gate, heading out to find what happened to the Tyrrell the Priest of Baudh and his companions as they went to investigate within the tower of a goblin chieftainess.

Expedition - Piers: the Fate of Tyrrell - 07 July 2021

[sirravd]

Into the tavern there strides an old dwarf, with skin the color of apples and a grey beard. He says, to no one in particular, in a heavy Dwarven accent and an archaic dialect:

"Wottest thou of adventure, for a stout-livered dwarf?"

[Marullus]

Evening, 09 July 2021

Piers, Meneldor, and Dabney return with two men-at-arms from Baudh's church via the south gate, reporting to the Arch Duke the confirmed location of Guhra's Tower.

Expedition - Piers: the Fate of Tyrrell - 07 July 2021

[sirravd]

Grimble Gromble, the stout dwarf, stumbles upon Piers et al. in town, after having heard a rumor about the tower of Guhra. "An thou wilt," he says, "tell me of this gobliness and her tribe; it likens me not that a she-goblin has taken to herself a tower built by mine own race; and haply I shall join thee in wresting back from her the tower, and mayhap gleaning treasure into the bargain. What thinkest thou?"

[Fearghus]

Dabney responds to the dwarf, "Hello there friend".

He steps aside from main road and drops the heavy pack from his shoulders, letting it settle into the dirt. "There is not much for me to share, as we had to end the expedition early. As you say, there is a chieftain in the tower and her followers are many. An expedition could be reformed, but it would take a few strong arms to make the effort feasible".

[Dram]

Neegan enters the Tavern. Barkeep your largest mug of Ale. I need to knock the dust off my lips.



Accounting for time in town:
Good meals: 5sp/day, 21 days: 10g, 5s
Room: 21sp

[sirravd]

Dabney responds to the dwarf, "Hello there friend".

He steps aside from main road and drops the heavy pack from his shoulders, letting it settle into the dirt. "There is not much for me to share, as we had to end the expedition early. As you say, there is a chieftain in the tower and her followers are many. An expedition could be reformed, but it would take a few strong arms to make the effort feasible".

"Verily, meseemeth that a goblin chieftainess would be a terrible foe, and withal wholly lacking in the honor that tempereth even the most savage wars of dwarf-kind. But this Guhra hath seized upon a tower of mine own race; an I be a dwarf of honor, I cannot suffer her folk to abide therein. Surely there are stout folk and strong-livered in Gaul, who would accompany thee in the expedition? I am one such, stout and strong-livered as any old dwarf-man, and ready to risk my neck in the venture."

[Zhym]

09 July 2021

Nobody notices Fingers enter the tavern. He appears next to the wall by the bar, flipping his cloak aside with a flourish. The cloak seems to match the color of the tavern wall, and the bar, and anything else nearby.

"Neat, huh?" Fingers brags to Hyde. He wipes his nose and sniffles. "Found it on a dead body at a kobold tower. I'll take my free dark brown if you don't mind!"

Accounting for time in town:
Good meals: 5sp/day, 21 days: 10g, 5s
Room: 21sp

[Marullus]

"Hah? HAH!" exclaims Hyde as Fingers appears before him. "That's a good trick, yeah! Jus' don't go scaring my barmaids, lad," he winks. He slides a mug of imported southern stout beer to Fingers and a large mug of ale to Neegan, grateful to Fingers for his weeks of payment for good eating in the establishment as well.

"Kobolds a menace - glad you cleaned them out. Strange tales, your stories of hedge-apes, heffalumps, and woozles," he says. "You update the maps over there on the adventurer's table? What you goin' back to next?" the mishappenly ugly proprietor asks.

[Zhym]

"Gee, that's a good question," answers Fingers. "I wanna go back to that tower sometime, but maybe after I've gotten a bit better at hiding and stuff. There's some big bad things out there. Dragons and bees and massive spiders and, and…chicken-lizards!" He shudders and quaffs his beer. "I think Able and Idriss have some sort of thing they want to do for their god. Maybe I'll help with that. Gotta find out more, though. Able's all right, but sometimes people get to meet their gods early 'cause their gods sent them on some dumb suicide mission. If that doesn't work out, maybe I'll try to get another group to go exploring."

[Dram]

Neegan- Says to Fingers. I'll join ya. I don't want to meet my gods though lets make sure we bring plenty of blades and sorcerers.

[Alethan]

Rhybek enters the tavern and rolls his eyes as the cloaked human sneaks about without being seen.

He carries a large feathered headdress under his arm, somewhat embarrassed about possessing it, but manages to order the dark stout beer and drink it with some dignity, only splashing a bit of it down his beard in his desire to wash the dust of travel out of his throat.

"Ah, that's good..." he mutters quietly to himself. After running up to his room to deposit the headdress and his adventuring gear, he heads back down to relax and have another stout.

When Hyde wanders by, picking up empty glasses, Rhybek asks, "Hey, I think that feathered headdress I came in with earlier might be something special. You know anyone around here who might be able to look it over for me?"

Accounting for time in town:
Extra drinks (stout beer) on first day: 2sp
Good meals (5sp/day) (21 days): 10g, 5s
Room (21 days): 21sp
Stabling for Craige (21 days): 21sp

[Marullus]

When Hyde wanders by, picking up empty glasses, Rhybek asks, "Hey, I think that feathered headdress I came in with earlier might be something special. You know anyone around here who might be able to look it over for me?"

Hyde scratches his cheek as he responds, "There's that wizard, yeah, over at Frogmorton Ford. Pierpont? Yeah, that's him. Pierpont. He's a friend of the Frogmortons, they be my good pals, yeah. If he's a good neighbor to them, I figure he's a pal, too. Anyway, he's keen on seeing the items found up here, yeah."

[Alethan]

Rhybek nods and heads out the next day to visit Pierpont the wizard to see what he thinks about the headdress...

[Rusty Tincanne]

Able walks into the tavern purposefully - to share drinks with the men he has traveled with. 6 mugs of Finger's brown ale later finds Able standing atop a table. Lissen up, all. Sssshhhh! I sez lissen! The table groans under his massive frame, but he manages to avoid tipping the thing over.

I been out in the wilds with these 'ere fellers. Rhybek and Neegan - stout fighters, though being dwarfs, that should go without sayin'. Idriss, he's into his books now, but you should go find him. A heck of a guy. And Fingers. Wait. Where'd 'e go? Able cranes his neck searching for the cloaked padfoot, finally finding him where he had first looked. Harr! Good one, you sly devil! But not really a devil, or I'd need to cut 'im down. But not really cut 'im down, 'cause of my calling as a cleric. Able words lose their track as he explains clerics cannot use bladed weapons, which is why he uses a hammer to bludgeon creatures, ...but that doesn't really make no sense 'cause there was blood splattering all over the place with them dog-lizards... His eyes close a moment, but he remains upright, silent. When the room starts to grow louder, he snaps awake again, calling their attention back.

Like I sez, I was out there in the wilds to the west of here. The Wild West, if you'll pard'n the 'spression. Well, we was out there fer five days. But more'n that on account of us already having traveled eight days afore that. I think there's a song 'bout that trip already, right? Well. We was out there to go searching for a tower filled with dog-headed-lizard-mens. Idriss, Rhybek 'n Neegan sez them's kobolds. Tricky buggers.

Rhybek tried to approach a small group of 'em peacably, speakin' their own tongue. Hisses and yips, to an untrained ear like mine, but he was able to understand 'em. They looked to be farmers, mind you, growing 'taters and turnips, but that was just a first course. They said they wanted to eat us up! And then the fightin' done begun with hits being swapped and blood a'spatterin. Neegan was hurt bad, bleeding out on the ground, so I put a hex on a few to hold 'em still, then, as I said, I went to work with my maul, popping skulls, brains and gore spatterin' my boots. Nasty bizness, and I don't mind saying that I'd a rather been building a barn. But my friends-here was in danger, so we set to it. And Fingers... Where'd he go again!? Oh. There he is. Stay still, son. I'm gonna brag on you.

Fingers there, sent an arrow right through one of them, into another. Wicked, deadly aim, he's got. And while that was goin' on, Idriss make 'isself look like several of 'isself with magic, and Neegan manages to throw a kobold off him, protecting his mule, and Rhybek was a'cleaving another. The battle only took a few moments, in truth, but it was the end of any chance of peaceful dealings so we went to camp out and I was healing people with Eruanna's grace. Some moving confession, I promise you!

Well the next morning we found our only prisoner dead, but we don't know why. What? Yeah, we had a prisoner. I said that, didn't I? No? well we did. And he told us about the tower, 'n how it had four levels, with 10 or so on each level, with each level full of tougher kobolds than the last. But in the morning he was dead. And Fingers saw a red-spiny-squirrel-bird in the morning.

Hey. Maybe that's what done killed the kobold.

Anywhat, we headed into the compound with our knowings and found weirder and weirder critters in each outbuilding. Rat-lizards, moose-gooses, crazy spider-things, gorilla-faced-dog-hedgehogs-with-horns... Hard to believe my own words, but with Eruanna-as-my-witness, it's the truth! And that kobold said they come from the woods nearby...

And then we stormed the tower. We killed 'em all in the bottom with barely a scratch. Then I used my maul to knock out a few choice timbers to collapse part of the second floor, and while Fingers and the dwarfs were killing kobolds with their bows, I went up the ladder and almost got m'self killed when I smashed the ladder to the third level. But we managed to get them, and Idriss used the distraction to climb a wall and throw burning oil into a window on the third level, so when we got up there, they was mostly dead.

But the fourth level... Well the kobold chief said he'd surrender, but then dumped boiling oil onto me and I missed the rest, but when I come-to, these fellers had made short work of the chief and his body guards while protecting me. So we sepnt a day or two healing up and looking around a bit more, finding mostly trouble form them mutant-critters. So we come back here to Gaul. And we'll head back out to somewhere else, making this land safe for y'ins.

An' if anyone wants a tower and outbuildings with plenty of dangerous critters, we can tell you where to go lookin'.

Able takes a long draw from his tankard and jumps from the table with a loud thud.


Wow. That is long. And I need to write up the previous expedition still...

I hope he isn't' laughed out of the tavern.

[Marullus]

10 July 2021

I hope he isn't' laughed out of the tavern.

Reaction to the tale [1d20] = 10

The tavern appreciates the truthtelling of the drunken priest, accepting his slurred recitation as honest. They're impressed by the dangers faced by the group, and a round of drinks and some back-slapping follow as the group goes up in the townsfolk's prestige.

(100xp for Ablesforth, 50xp for Fingers, Neegan, Rhybek, and Idriss.)