1. The Adventure Begins

[Starbeard]

Antharia: Island of Comforts, Island of Excitement. Island with a land mass of 959 square bloits. Her lofty tropical peaks vanished from the horizon weeks ago, and she is now but a distant memory of a life no longer worth living. Ahead looms a new vision: peaks strange and alien, beaches wild and untamed. The Eastlands.

The H.B.M.S. Doubledeal* skirts along the water, cutting through wave upon wave as though forcing its way through to a continent that does not wish its company. Crew and passenger alike stare out expectantly at the coastline of the approaching continent, eager to depart and strike it filthy rich. It has been three days since Sir Harlidoone Sprunkle, the ship’s captain, has muttered a single phrase other than, “…Just think of all that granola we’ll sell!” or, “I wonder if there’s a market for mosquito repellent…”

Having anchored the Doubledeal in a small harbour, rowboats propel the adventuring party ashore. Captain Sprunkle addresses the motley team upon the soft sands of the beach. “Well, here we are,” he says as he unfurls a scroll and begins to read from it perfunctorily. “The Frobozz Magic Construction Company and the Frobozz Granola Company have commissioned you to explore the Eastlands in search of tunnels suitable for colonization, as well as to investigate the market for granola in the region. You may take what you find, and payment for services rendered can be collected at Frobozz Headquarters in Quendor.”

Sprunkle deposits the map into his pouch and studies the party with a new expression. “Now be careful out there; this place can be dangerous and we can’t afford any more adventurers,” he says. Puffing his chest out and heaving out a melancholic sigh, the Captain can’t help but pull everyone into a big, teary-eyed group hug. “I do envy you land-lubbing rapscallions. Imagine, delving into magic tunnels, the likes of which no civilized person has ever seen, just like that! What freewheeling lives you must lead! Well, I should be back to the ship now. Try to make it back in one piece, and if you can't then at least find a way to send your reports back!”

*"His Bellicosity's Merchant Ship"



The party hikes for a day, first along the river that feeds into the harbour, then turning down a convenient little track that cuts across some hills toward a dense forest of impressionable appearance. That night they camp fitfully, ever wary of strange eyes watching them gleefully from beyond the firelight.

The next morning they follow the track for several hours around the outskirts of the forest. Around midday the path disappears and they find themselves in an open field, with the forest to the north and some unusually shaped hills far off to the southwest. All are startled to discover a comfortable house of whitewashed brick and wood sitting in plain view. It stands two stories tall, plus a gabled attic and widow’s walk.

[Starbeard]

The sky is crisp and bright, and a dainty rainbow plunges below the eastern horizon, where the keenest among you can hear the distant sound of roaring waters. Not very far to the north lies a great forest that stretches in both directions as far as the eye can see, and far off to the southwest lies a tumble of low hills pocked with great boulders. Soon, the ship's initial party of exploratory surveyors come to the edge of the dirt path, onto the western edge of a grassy meadow.

You are standing in an open field west of a white house, facing its front door.
There is a small mailbox here.




Biddle Spratt, Hypnotist Extraordinaire (ST 12 LK 14 DEX 10 — Adds: +1/+1) CON: 11
Digsby Mudfoot, Halfling Gardener (ST 7 LK 12 DEX 15 — Adds: +1/+2) CON: 20
Skinklob Nurl, Dwarven Dealer in Back Alley Hexes (ST 12 LK 7 DEX 13 — Adds: -1/+0) CON: 23
Weeba Zortz, Warrior in Triplet (ST 13 LK 10 DEX 17 — Adds: +6/+11) CON: 10

NOTE: If these are not the characters you'd like to start with, just let me know and I'll switch them out.
Your backups are otherwise sitting on the ship, playing Double Fanucci and swapping stories about how much more successful they'd be if they were the ones exploring. At any time you may have them arrive at the white house to join the party. This will probably be to replace a lost or wounded character who is in need of rest, but it can also simply be to bolster the party's ranks if a chosen objective is deemed too difficult with your current numbers.

[Pulpatoon]

Skinklob Nurl, not the most savory of dwarves, cranes his bearded neck to see if there any signs of watchers's in the windows of the house. If he sees none, he'll inspect the mailbox, opening it if it looks safe to do so. "Who d'ya think delivers, out here?"

[Starbeard]

Skinklob sees no movement through the windows of the house. It looks pretty though, in a rustic sort of way.

The mailbox opens to reveal a folded leaflet, presumably once tied in an orange ribbon and sealed with indigo wax, but the ribbon lies discarded in the box and the wax seal is broken. Unfurled, it reads:

"CONGRATULATIONS ON THE PURCHASE OF YOUR FIRST RAT-ON-A-STICK BUSINESS LICENSE!

RAT-ON-A-STICK is a an exciting new franchise, changing the world of fast food one privately owned and operated stand at a time. RoaS has been voted Fastest Growing Enterprise in the Eastlands for four years running, and our locations can now be found in some of the most amazing territories ever seen by mortals.

We take great pride in our brand name here at Rat-on-a-Stick, and we don't just let any old chump open up a franchise. Owning a RoaS stand requires a healthy thirst for adventure, danger, and low cunning, and we think you have what it takes!

Inside the package accompanying this letter you will find your Magic Foodstand Construction Kit, as well as the business license that will allow you to stock and operate the stand. Instructions and license agreements can be found inside the box.

Rat On A Stick. No tunnel should be without one!"

Beneath the leaflet there lies another letter, this one scrawled in a large and unsteady hand:

"To the mailman. It is no use delivering post to this house. No one has lived here for some time, as I have eaten them all and I do not think they have relatives. In future, please forward all mail directly to my den at Trollstone Cavern. Otherwise I have to come all the way down here to steal it and carry it back, and that is a hassle as you can imagine. And please do not suggest that I can simply move into the house myself. I have tried that and I am afraid the master bedroom is too small for me, and would not fit my treasure hoard anyway. Thankyou."

Indeed, next to the mailbox there can be seen a large, box-shaped imprint in the dirt. The box appears to have been dragged away to the southwest by a creature with gigantic footprints, toward the rocky hills.



Biddle Spratt, Hypnotist Extraordinaire (Wiz, ST 12 LK 14 DEX 10 — Adds: +1/+1) CON: 11
Digsby Mudfoot, Halfling Gardener (War, ST 7 LK 12 DEX 15 — Adds: +1/+2) CON: 20
Doughty Doughball, Halfling Cook (Rog, ST 5 LK 7 DEX 15 — Adds: -3/+0) CON: 16
Skinklob Nurl, Dwarven Dealer in Back Alley Hexes (Wiz, ST 12 LK 7 DEX 13 — Adds: -1/+0) CON: 23
Weeba Zortz, Warrior in Triplet (War, ST 13 LK 10 DEX 17 — Adds: +6/+11) CON: 10

[coffee]

"Well, if a troll has eaten the inhabitants," Weeba Zortz says,"there probably isn't anybody living here. But there might be something of use to us left behind. I say we should check out the house."

[Pulpatoon]

Skinklob's stomach growls. "Geez, I could really go for a rat on a stick."

Closing up the mailbox, he looks around. "Arright. We case the house, an' then, if nuthin' better comes along, we follow this trail, check out this treasure horde."

[ClockworkPoltergeist]

Digsby looks up from the unusual flower that had distracted him, "I could eat. Is it elevenses yet?" He rubs his, for a halfling, surprisingly flat belly then eyes the apparently abandoned house, "Troll... well, best keep an eye out for traps. I want to eat my elevenses not become them." Digsby pulls on the handle sticking up over his right shoulder and swings a scary looking shovel up and around. "Let's find the kitchen." He slowly moves in the direction of the house keeping an eye out for indications of danger.

[Khaboom]

After examining the footprints to see how recently they were left there, Biddle saunters up towards the house.

"I wonder why the troll didn't eat the mailman, Digsby? Curious... Let's take no chances - manners should never be neglected."

He knocks loudly on the door and calls out a bright 'hello'.

[Rusty Tincanne]

Doughty Doughball pats his bulging pack. Not sure about recipes for mailmen, but my cookbook has several for rat on a stick. One was particularly delicious, basting the rodent in a maple-butter reduction. Goes very well with a dry red. Me mam's favorite. He licks his lips and offers to help search for the kitchen once inside.

You can add Doughty to the list.

[Khaboom]

"Are you a decent cook?" the hypnotist asks. "I'd be interested to try your signature dish. Doesn't look like anyone's going to answer..."

[Tries the door to see if it's locked ready to jump back if necessary]

[Starbeard]

You can add Doughty to the list.

Added. GM post coming in the morning.

[Rusty Tincanne]

I'm not great, but I ain't no hack, either. My cookbook is a real treasure, though. It'll tell what flavors pair with what. Seeing someone might have an actual interest, Doughty plows ahead. It's an older edition, too, so it has interesting recipes for things like gryphon, garthim, nebrie and the like. It has chapters dedicated to the culinary arts in the wilderness, too. Me mam always said you ain't a cook if you can't cook without a hearth! Getting ever more excited, Doughty starts pressing his nose to the windows to peer inside. Don't know if there's a recipe for troll though...

[Starbeard]

Day 1, Midday (turn 1)

The group eyes the house with caution. Biddle Spratt examines the footprints and concludes to the best of his knowledge that they were left not more than a week ago. Of course, one can never be certain about these things—the tracks of unusually large or magical creatures have a peculiar way of surviving the usual bouts of weather.

Doughty Doughball presses his nose into the window left of the door, and peers into a carpeted living room of some kind. His breath steams up the window and he has to wipe it off regularly as he relates to the others what he sees: a settee, couch and reading chair, all with unique upholstery and all having long outlived their glory days; a glass display case, broken open and empty; and a illustrious trophy plaque that looks like it once held a grand, curved sabre. After a moment he realizes that a small fox is sleeping curled up on the chair.

The others approach the patio landing. Biddle knocks loudly on the oak door and presents an introduction for the group. The noise causes a small kit of startled wood pigeons in the distance to fly up and away from the distant tree line, and everyone is a little surprised to find that the door swings freely open from the force of his knocking. Now that the door is ajar, they can see that the inside of the doorframe is a splintered and twisted wreck of wood and what used to be the bolt-lock, as though the door was battered open by terrific force.

Beyond lies a tiny vestibule with empty pegs for hanging coats and hats. The floor is covered in a layer of dirt and dried leaves that spill into the modest hallway beyond. The hall ends in a rotunda, where a spiral staircase climbs up to the next floor, wrapped majestically around the sailing mast taken from a great tallship. Behind the stairwell is an open doorway into a decently sized kitchen (Doughty can tell because he can see a beaten up old table with a great butcher's knife stuck into it from his position). Another large archway cut into the left wall of the hallway leads into the front living room.

Actions?



Biddle Spratt, Hypnotist Extraordinaire (Wiz, ST 12 LK 14 DEX 10 — Adds: +1/+1) CON: 11
Digsby Mudfoot, Halfling Gardener (War, ST 7 LK 12 DEX 15 — Adds: +1/+2) CON: 20
Doughty Doughball, Halfling Cook (Rog, ST 5 LK 7 DEX 15 — Adds: -3/+0) CON: 16
Skinklob Nurl, Dwarven Dealer in Back Alley Hexes (Wiz, ST 12 LK 7 DEX 13 — Adds: -1/+0) CON: 23
Weeba Zortz, Warrior in Triplet (War, ST 13 LK 10 DEX 17 — Adds: +6/+11) CON: 10

[Khaboom]

"You check the kitchen - I should think you'd like that," Biddle says to his hobbit friend.

"Anyone want to check out the upstairs with me?"

Biddle will go up carefully, checking the stairs and listening for anything above him too.

[Rusty Tincanne]

Doughty winks at Digsby and suggests they see if the larder contains anything suitable for elevensies. Omce in the kithen, he inspects the cupbords, larder, etc, careful of any critters that might have taken up residence.

On the way, he looks for signs of the fox, and if it remains where it was. (Are there paw prints in the dust.)

[coffee]

Weeba Zortz will have his bow out and cover Biddle as he checks the stairs and goes up.

"Stay low," he mutters. "If I have to shoot, it'll be right over you..."

[Pulpatoon]

Skinklob, eager for a bit of looting, follows Biddle up the stairs. He limbers up his fingers in case some quick magic is called for.

[ClockworkPoltergeist]

As the group enters the leaf strewn hall Digsby looks to his left and into the living room. He gives it a quick once over to make sure nothing dangerous lurks within before hurrying to catch-up with the others. Digsby nods to Biddle as they pass into the rotunda and split up, the taller human to take the stairs while the hobb follows along behind Doughty towards the kitchen. Entering the kitchen, Digsby hangs back a moment to run his eye over the environs as Doughty proceeds to examine the various cupboards. Curious, the hobb walks over to the large butcher knife sticking out of the table for a closer look, "I wonder what happened here?"

[Starbeard]

Day 1, Midday (turn 2)

The party moves down the hallway. Dried leaves crackle beneath their feet as they brush them to the side. Doughty the halfling observes small fox tracks running back and forth across the dirty floor, in and out of the various rooms, and points them out to his companions.

Pausing at the entrance to the front room, the halfling Digsby watches the red fox carefully. It stirs gently at the sound of the party shuffling through the detritus, but otherwise appears calmly half-asleep. Then, as they begin to move further down the hallway, the fox bolts upright, suddenly aware of intrusion. It hunches down and stares for a long moment, twitching its ears nervously, before leaping down onto the floor and skittering away through a side door in the back of the living room.



At the rotunda, the two halflings quite understandably split off from the party and make their way into the kitchen. It is a humble but spacious room, with floors, cupboards and tables all made of dense oak wood. Leaves and detritus once again litter much of the floor, thanks to several of the windows that look out onto the fields behind the house being shattered or drawn open.

Digsby takes in the scene and sees three very large sacks piled in one corner; two of them are torn open, spilling flour everywhere. The fox must have gotten into the flour, for powdery fox prints cover the whole of the kitchen. Intrigued by the preparation table, Digsby walks up to it and disturbs a few large houseflies scavenging on the tabletop. The cleaver that is stuck into one corner of the wood looks a little sticky, as though it once had some meat on it that has since been licked off. In fact, the table is quite grimy as well—it is quite obvious that neither the table nor the knife were cleaned after they last handled any oily food. Powdered fox prints also dot the tabletop.

Doughty moves to the cupboards and examines those, opening each in turn and coming up disappointed when all he finds are empty shelves, chewed up boxes of spoiled cooking ingredients, shattered china cups and several dead mice. All is not in vain, however: one broken cupboard houses half a dozen sealed jars of ground spices, none of which the halfling cook recognizes, and inside the brick fireplace is a robin's nest, complete with three beautiful little eggs. Mother Robin is apparently out.

Actions?



Meanwhile, Biddle Spratt leads the dwarf hexmonger Skinklob up the stairs. Biddle proceeds cautiously, checking each step lightly with the toe of his shoe, and craning his head upward to see what lies ahead. The stalwart Weeba prepares his bow and covers the pair from the bottom of the stairs.

The steps creak and bend under Biddle's weight, but they hold him well enough. He ascends to the upper floor to find a zigzagging series of hallways, all leading to compact rooms. It is much draftier and darker up here, and great strips of torn wallpaper hang down from the walls like jungle fronds. The whole effect is a little claustrophobic. From the landing he can peer into nearly all of the rooms without much trouble, and finds two bedrooms (one master and one smaller), a study and a washroom. Each looks much the same: a handful of family portraits hanging askew or dashed to the floor, random head-sized holes punched into the walls, beds and dressers left to rot. The stairs continue to spiral up to a small wooden door, which is closed.

Skinklob, upon seeing Biddle make his way safely up the spiral stairs, follows suit, his finger extended out of habit for any emergency magical needs. About two thirds of the way up he puts his foot down on the next creaky step and it snaps in two, plunging his leg straight through—the weight of the previous climber must have been its last straw! Skinklob grabs desperately at the handrail to steady himself, but the dried-out old piece of wood snaps right off of the balusters!

Skinklob Nurl needs to make a Luck Save to avoid falling through the stairs!

Actions?



Biddle Spratt, Hypnotist Extraordinaire (Wiz, ST 12 LK 14 DEX 10 — Adds: +1/+1) CON: 11
Digsby Mudfoot, Halfling Gardener (War, ST 7 LK 12 DEX 15 — Adds: +1/+2) CON: 20
Doughty Doughball, Halfling Cook (Rog, ST 5 LK 7 DEX 15 — Adds: -3/+0) CON: 16
Skinklob Nurl, Dwarven Dealer in Back Alley Hexes (Wiz, ST 12 LK 7 DEX 13 — Adds: -1/+0) CON: 23
Weeba Zortz, Warrior in Triplet (War, ST 13 LK 10 DEX 17 — Adds: +6/+11) CON: 10[/quote]

[Khaboom]

If Skinlob needs any help, Biddle will do his best to give it. ("Hey! Skinny! You ok? Need a hand?")

Then he wants to listen for any sound at the top door. If he hears anything 'sentient' he will order it to come out slowly with hands on head; if it's less obvious what it is, he'll wait for reinforcements; if all is quiet, he'll try to open it and step quickly back, Knock-Knock spell at the ready if necessary.