Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

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OGRE MAGE
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Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#1 Post by OGRE MAGE »

Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"
Sunday, 21st of Reaping, 1389
Early Morning, Hot and Sandy



Waestafarian speaks with Saracen and Ferris about joining him on his latest expedition. He is still dead set on following along with the morning water gatherers on their daily journey to the river. Once he sees them organizing, collecting their pails and other vessels, he rushes his group over to meet up with them. There are more sets of pails hanging from wooden yokes laying around the big storage casks. The sorry townsfolk look back and forth from the pails to the adventurers, wondering if they are here to help carry their share.

Alordon goes along too but seems confused about when he arrived at the island. Although he tells the others that he arrived at night and they he couldn't see the island on his approach, he really arrived in broad daylight at the same time as all the others. After asking around a little more about it, he learns that the island has yet to be circumnavigated because the ships captains don't yet know if there are dangers or hidden reefs to worry about. He also learns that it is well known that the island rises in elevation towards the center and that there are high black cliffs that line the shore to the east.

Wes is also rather curious about these black cliffs and hopes to get a better look at them from the vantage of the river.

I need to know if Saracen, Ferris, and Alordan intend to follow along or not before proceeding. J35 says hi. He also told me to let everyone know that he is doing well but might still need to be away for a time. I will NPC Wes until he returns.

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#2 Post by ravenn4544 »

Alordan is ready to move out with the townsfolk. He'll plan on carrying some pails and do his part. "Wes - those cliffs could offer a vantage point to view the island better. Perhaps even provide another opportunity for the islanders one day..."

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#3 Post by OGRE MAGE »

Wes also picks up a yoke and set of pails to carry.

"That is exactly what I was thinking, Alordan. We may only be helping with the water for now, but we just might find something else of considerable interest out there too. I am glad to have you along either way."

The druid nods at the townsfolk as if to indicate that he is ready to get going.

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#4 Post by Storm11 »

Saracen agrees to go along to help the water gatherers, and picks up a pair of buckets. He slings his shield over his back where his two handed sword usually rests and moves out with the villagers.

"I am not intending to go far today without my full alottment of light magic. This seems like a good way to assist the town however. You know what would make this an easier task. A beast of burnden of some kind. Perhaps if we come across one of those giant lizards or something similar you could ensorcel one for the township to befriend maybe. I think your druidry should be very handy out here good elfkin, no?" the holy champion says making small talk as they move.

"Between us we should be able to purify a fair bit of seawater which would be more swift don't you think?"
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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#5 Post by OGRE MAGE »

Wes gives the ginger half-orc a strange look after he refers to him as "elfkin", but definitely agrees with everything the warrior priest suggests.

"Your trepidation is wise, Saracen, as are your thoughts. I too pondered the idea of using a local jungle creature as a pack animal to ease the people's water gathering burden. I heard Ferris and Brufrig ran into such a creature on the beach to the west. Perhaps another scouting mission will be in order after we check out this river."

One stout middle aged woman from the group pipes in after hearing of pack animals.
"We had two oxen when we arrived. They usta make this job a lot easier. One of em got plucked right off the sand by a giant flying lizard bird thing right in front of us one morning. The other one got dragged off inta the jungle one night by something.......something BIG! They only lasted about a week or so out here. I suppose that will be what happens to all of us......eventually. This island life is shite!"

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#6 Post by OGRE MAGE »

Storm11 wrote:Saracen
"Between us we should be able to purify a fair bit of seawater which would be more swift don't you think?"
Wes addresses this question out of the earshot of the townsfolk.

"I guessed that I would be able to purify around one full cask of sea water per day, which would prevent these people from having to make this trip at all. But I think that, even though it might be dangerous at times, these people need to have something like this to do periodically. I think it helps them to maintain a feeling of being needed. A sense of belonging, if you will."

"I don't know if any of the other clerics on the island suggested this before, it seemed a fairly obvious and easy solution. Maybe the adventurers that came here before us weren't all that smart either? Or maybe Mr. Nehru really does have a problem with people of the faith and doesn't want to rely on blessings to support the people?"

"It's all hard to tell at this point, but I want to see this river anyway, so I'm not going to complain about making one trip with these fine folks out here. Hard work does the body good, after all."

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#7 Post by Storm11 »

"Indeed, it is good for everyone to have a purpose. It seems strange that they would build a place so far from potable water however. The whole thing seems poorly thought out don't you think? The orc tribes would never be so foolish. I wonder what keeps these people here if they loathe it so and find it so dangerous. I am surprised they all haven't been eaten by now to be frank. I think it would be good for us to build and maintain our own supply of water as well as helping the township. Something here just doesn't smell right to me. We need a way to scout out the island somehow. The town needs some kind of spiked permimeter and some plan to defend the place and another place they can hide in and defend in an emergency. If it's as dangerous as they say and we have seen then these basic precautions should have been put into motion. They made time to build a treehouse to see overpriced swill after all. It's all very strange!" Saracen whispers back to the Druid.
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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#8 Post by ravenn4544 »

"You speak wisely, friend. Let's take a look at this river and see what we see - and not get too far ahead of ourselves into the jungle just yet. It speaks ill of this place what we heard of those others that may have been lost... I like the idea of organizing a group of folks to cut some trees down and build a palisade of sorts. Something to keep at bay those that make seek violence....."

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#9 Post by OGRE MAGE »

The druid nods to his friends, still out of earshot of the townies.
"If there are a lot of dangerous creatures around that all used that same river mouth, I can see why they didn't put roots down too close. But I agree with you that something still seems very off about the whole place. I get the sense that this Nehru means well, but I'm not entirely sure that he knows exactly what he is doing. It is possible that he is in over his head and needs people like us to lend a hand and some smarts to make some vital improvements to the town. I feel like we should help out if we can, these people deserve a fighting chance at least."

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#10 Post by Bluetongue »

Ferris

Decides to leave the tent back at the shack, but coils a rope and grapnel onto his small backpack and armed with some dietary staples and a large carrot to munch on the way or share with one of those burrowing creatures he spoke with the druid about.

"It seemed that the lizard was just a hatchling, fresh from the yoke sac. Not anything like the giant size I have skewered in the mines. I mean this ones mother was a real mother-f%&*^%$ in size."Ferris stretches his short arms oh so wide. Then even in the safety of the settlement loads his crossbow as a precaution."I'm ready to go."

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#11 Post by OGRE MAGE »

Sunday, 21st of Reaping
Mid Morning


Wes breaths in the damp morning air deeply, glad to be helping out the commoners and also staying much closer to town this trip. Fully aware that the townsfolk know their own way quite well, Wes, Saracen, Ferris, and Alordan just fall into line with the group and are soon walking a good ways down the beach.

The trail through the sand is packed hard from all the constant traffic and is easily traversable. The druid and ranger can both see tracks along side the trail from the many natural creatures that inhabit this place. Everywhere you look around the soft beach sand there are paw prints, claw marks, hoof prints, and even some other strange tracks that you don't recognize that are likely insectoid in nature. The sky remains clear and bright on the seas horizon, but overhead, dark clouds continue to form up further inland.

The morning heat and humidity isn't exactly pleasant for menial labor, but at least the clouds are blocking the direct sunlight from cooking you as you walk. The insects are still pretty bad though, but not nearly as bad as they were inside the deep jungle. The pace is kept rather brisk with no breaks taken. The townsfolk tell you that they can usually make it back fully loaded by around noon if they don't dawdle. Every one of them keeps one eye on the jungle, one eye on the sky above, and any spare eyes kept on the shoreline, looking for any unexpected surprises.

You pass the first few "easy" hours of the trip with no unexpected incidents and you finally begin to see the sandy clearing up ahead where the beach meets the mouth of the river. All seems quiet where the two waters meet.

Would you each please link a hard Wisdom check in your next post for me. Thanks!

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#12 Post by Storm11 »

Saracen places his buckets upon the floor and takes out his bow and knocks an arrow, watching the surrounding forests as the others fill their pales. He then begins to fill his pales carefully after secureinggnbow and arrow, keeping as watchful an eye open as he can.

[4d6] = 18
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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#13 Post by ravenn4544 »

Alordan follows Saracen's lead with standing guard, bow and arrow at the ready, while the others toil about the water collection until his turn to lend a hand.

[3d6] = 10

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#14 Post by Bluetongue »

Ferris

trying to scurry along as fast as little legs can carry him. "It's hard work in the sand, much prefer scooting over solid rock, a bit of granite say or a shiny marble floor, go really fats on those!" he mimes a knee slide in the sand as if celebrating scoring a goal in skull ball.

Wise old Ferris still in his youth days, hard skill check [4d6] = 14 vs wisdom 9

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#15 Post by OGRE MAGE »

A little view of the area along your beach walk....
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After 3 hours of marching through the hard packed sand with the jungle forest on your left and the beautiful and bountiful Azure Sea softly lapping at the sandy shore on your right, you finally see your destination just up ahead.

The Dutty River, as the locals now affectionately call it, rolls powerfully into the sandy, brackish shoreline of the much larger sea. The entire area is mostly just rolling sand that swirls and recedes with the natural movements of both bodies of water, though there are a few green plants, shrubs, and trees growing around the river’s edge. The jungle forest has receded here, allowing a wide open area to get to the potable river water. Various animal tracks in the sand are rather abundant here. There is also an obvious dirt trail following the western shore of the river (your side) that disappears up into the dark jungle. The locals tell you that they have never been up that trail and have no idea where it leads to. They have always just assumed that it was nothing more than a large game trail.

The other side of the river bank is also bare and sandy as it too is constantly shifting and eroding. A few hundred feet beyond the opposite shore is a different story, however. There is a long flat patch of black rock that slowly rises into massive black volcanic cliffs that grow taller the farther east you look. The cliffs seem to slowly grow directly out of the blue water to an eventual height of about 100 feet from the seas surface. You can only see a few feet of the exposed shoreline cliffs as the dark green jungle reaches almost to the sea, swallowing most of them up. Large waves crash against the cliffs a few hundred yards past the rivers mouth to the east, making a loud yet soothing noise as they do so. Periodic dark oval openings in the cliffs at the very edge of your vision bring thoughts to your minds of the many possible cliff dwellers that could inhabit the gorgeously dangerous place.

The townies move north up the bank of the river, almost all the way into the recessed tree line. They start dipping their pails and filling their buckets. You of course follow their lead and soon everyone in the group has loaded themselves up with as much water as they can comfortably carry back to town. As the group is about to depart, Wes scans the trees again, keeping a sharp eye out for any danger. The half-elf gets wide eyes as he spots something that none of the rest of you could see. Just a little ways up the trail into the jungle, just at the edge of the natural sunlight, there stands a black skinned man watching the entire group intently. He looks to be human, but is dressed in nothing more than a loincloth of sorts. He has a bright white bone stuck through his nose and another piercing one ear. He just stands there leaning on a long spear, apparently content with only watching your group at the moment.

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#16 Post by Storm11 »

Saracen will nod at the fellow politely as he trudges his way along the sand back towards Beachtown.
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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#17 Post by ravenn4544 »

Alordan will raise a peaceful hand in greeting to the man watching them. To other in the group he'll ask, "that man we passed. Have you seen him or his like before?"

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#18 Post by Bluetongue »

Ferris

"Is he eyeing us to see which one he wants to eat?" the gnome asks. He looks around at the group and the resources we have,"Do you think we can maybe do a spot of trading instead?" trying to spot anything the native could be interested in? What does Ferris see? some settlement maidens and crones, ragged villagers with buckets and bags.

"ah shucks, in for a penny and all that. maybe one of you can come with me?" he says prodding the two characters.

Ferris walks to nearby the trail beginning, keeping a wary eye on the man, the trail and also any unsettled swept ground ahead. nearing the bone nosed native he will say in common, "Hi, me Chief LittleBigMan. Friendly? Do you like Firewater?" he says thumping his chest and stroking his beard. he reaches into his pouch to withdraw his confiscated bottle of ships rum, takes a mouthful and tosses the flask to the native for him to swig.

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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#19 Post by OGRE MAGE »

At The Dutty River
Late Morning


As the group of townies begins to depart the area with their buckets now full of fresh water, Wes lets his friends know that they are being watched. Saracen and Alordan think it best to just move along with the others back to Beachtown, the ranger gives a friendly wave to the jungle native as he departs. He asks the villagers if they have ever seen him or his kind before today. The large and in charge woman looks back and speaks up again as she quickens her pace just a bit.

“We have seen the natives before it is true, but we have never made contact with them. A few times we have come down here we would see many of them washing and splashing in the surf, whole families of them. They have always scattered into the jungle anytime we’ve come near to them though. I don’t think they trust us newcomers yet. There is a priest in town that likes to come here alone, I have heard that he has made contact and even befriended some of them, but I don’t know if that is actually true. Keilif, I think his name is, and a very nice young man he is from what I’ve been told. He used to come along with us on our water gathering trips when he first arrived several weeks ago, but he hasn’t helped us out in a while now.” The leader of the expedition does not slow the pace of the water train as they head back to town.

At the back of the line, Wes and Ferris actually stop to put down their yoke and buckets, hoping for some dialog with this newfound stranger. Ferris looks around for something to offer him but the only thing he can think of is his stashed half bottle of rum. He and Wes approach the man, the gnome takes a pull off of the bottle and tosses it to the native man. He in turn takes a few steps backwards, going deeper into the dark jungle trail.

After trying to communicate verbally with the black skinned jungle man, Ferris can tell that he is getting nowhere fast. The confused and exhausted looking man just stares back at the pair with saddened eyes. Now that they are a bit closer, they can see that he must have been in a fight recently. He has dried blood on his wrists and ankles and he looks to have been struck by something many times. He has small wounds all over his exposed chest, torso, and legs. The man just looks at the pair, finally letting out 2 words of the common language that they both understand quite well.

“Help we?"

"Help we."

"HELP WE!!!”


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Re: Quest #5 "Gathering River Water"

#20 Post by Bluetongue »

Ferris

looks like the wrist and ankles are injuries from manacles or chains. The torso and back, are they like scars from whip lashings?

"BigLittleMan, he come Help Ye." says Ferris tapping his chest., He looks behind at the other adventurers not sure if he should introduce them or not? How much common does the native understand. Better to keep things simple. Pointing at them he names them for the native to remember, "Him named Al, this one he is Beastmaster (pointing to Wes), the other is Beast in Orange. (Saracen)"

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