Chapter I: Damring Fortress, Part 1

[sulldawga]

Agrom will whisper to Raiz and Harlan, "I gotta admit, I'm not too sure we should be trusting this kobold to help us. Remind me what we're getting out of this deal?"

[Keehnelf]

Agrom will whisper to Raiz and Harlan, "I gotta admit, I'm not too sure we should be trusting this kobold to help us. Remind me what we're getting out of this deal?"

I think it's a trust borne of the fact that roleplaying gamers are used to two types of NPCs/monsters: helpful ones and those who try to kill you. Since the kobold was not initially hostile, it seems he got dumped into the first category without a whole lot of conversation about what his goals or motivations might be. For a refresher on him, he appears here: viewtopic.php?f=142&t=3048&start=100#p117741.

[Simon]

Harlan Wax

Whispering back to Agrom: He promised us safe passage to the temple, and I had perhaps lazily assumed that that might lead us to the orb...seems a bit silly in retrospect doesn't it.

Do we want to interrupt him and give him the birds? If we can avoid ghosts that'd be great.

[Keehnelf]

In the midst of the party's whispering, the kobold looks up from his preparations.

"Did hyoo bring hamulet?" He makes semi-unconscious grasping motions with his left claw.

[Simon]

Harlan Wax

Unfortunately we got...distracted by the circle here. If you've got a minute we can continue our search in the crows nest.

[Keehnelf]

He looks back down at his book and continues his preparations, muttering or mumbling under his breath.

[Simon]

Do you guys think we can all get on the same page long enough to do a search of the crow's nest? If we can get the amulet, maybe we have a bargaining chip and can negotiate for a clue about the orb.

[sulldawga]

Are we on the same page in that we all think the Red-Faced One is the Pilgrim? If so, I think it's worth it to deal with the kobold. If it's not the Pilgrim, we could be in trouble.

EDIT - Although that begs the questions of why a kobold is the priest of a long dead god and why a god that's essentially good needs blood sacrifices...

[Simon]

I think it's pretty hard to tell from what we know now exactly who the red-faced one is. Though I suspect the ghost that just scared the bejeezus out of Raize was probably the Pilgrim.

Keehnelf: Did the apparition match the description of the Pilgrim we saw in the woodcuttting earlier?

Either way, I think the best way to find out exactly what's going on here is to get the amulet so that we can maybe force some answers out of the Kobold in a conflict of some kind.

Sulldawga: I think you're right that we should be a little more aggressive in pursuing our own agenda here and that we probably shouldn't have been so eager to help him out in the first place...

[Keehnelf]

All of the images of the Pilgrim that you've seen here and before (Agrom in the temple as a child) have him as a tall human wearing robes, usually with his face obscured somehow. The apparition you saw was an older gentleman with a square beard wearing armor.

[sulldawga]

All of the images of the Pilgrim that you've seen here and before (Agrom in the temple as a child) have him as a tall human wearing robes, usually with his face obscured somehow. The apparition you saw was an older gentleman with a square beard wearing armor.

Ok, good news, bad news. The bad news is that the armored bearded fellow doesn't sound like the Pilgrim. The good news is that he's human, at least.

Does Agrom have any idea who the armored guy is? How about Raiz or Harlan?

[sulldawga]

Agrom

C'mon, Harlan, let's get back in the rookery and get that loot before all the crows come back.

Agrom will head back into the other room and throw a rock at the one crow sitting there watching.

[Keehnelf]

A very good question. Now that you consider his salient features, Harlan recalls a strikingly similar figure in one of the last panels of the icon that was holding aloft the priestly staff that was mentioned earlier among the relics of this place. The icon's engravings are (of course) iconic rather than directly representational, but it ticks the boxes of human, square beard, and armor.

[Keehnelf]

Agrom

C'mon, Harlan, let's get back in the rookery and get that loot before all the crows come back.

Agrom will head back into the other room and throw a rock at the one crow sitting there watching.

Are you looking to initiate a conflict (i.e. actually strike and knock down/kill the crow) or just tossing it to see if the crow flies away?

[sulldawga]

Are you looking to initiate a conflict (i.e. actually strike and knock down/kill the crow) or just tossing it to see if the crow flies away?

The latter. No conflict, as of yet.

[Keehnelf]

Agrom tosses a well-aimed stone toward the crow, which flutters its wings and caws dryly but angrily at the disruption, flapping up off the wall and then slowly settling back into place with an irritated shake of its head. It seems like it may be a sentry.

[sulldawga]

Agrom

So be it, bird. Stay if you like. You will be a witness to our plucking of valuables from your little treasure horde.

[Keehnelf]

The bird is perched roughly where you topped the wall earlier to look at the room beyond.

[Simon]

Harlan Wax

I'm with you Ag. Raize, you feeling up to this? Look's like these crows might be ready for round two.

Alright then, looks like we might be in for a drive off or kill conflict with these crows. Probably wont get out as good as we did last time around. Is there any other way up to the rookery than the one we took initially?

[Keehnelf]

You saw a door leading into the room from what looked like the east--there's probably another route you could take to come in through that.