Day Four
Village of Briarsgate
Late afternoon. Wednesday, October 19th, 576 CY
Chilly, misty, threatening rain
Your company advances down a trail that divides a meadow of healthy sheep (in the center of which, Telkis spies a mole hole) from the town graveyard.
You enter the human village of Briarsgate.
Map:
A Pleasant Farmhouse (
1) is the first building your party encounters. Adjacent to the sheep meadow, the wooden house is well kept, with attractive gardens around and a small barn behind. A barefoot young girl is churning butter on the porch...
...but when she sees your company approaching, she runs into the house and shuts the door. Shadowy forms are visible behind closed curtains.
The Constable’s Quarters (
2) is the next structure you encounter. This nondescript square stone building has heavy, closed window shutters. No people are visible, but the stout, thick door stands open.
A Long, Low Building (
3), also spartan in its design, is directly behind it.
A Small Dairy Farm (
4) is across from the Constables’. The house and barn are wooden buildings in need of a whitewashing. Several cows chew their cud just outside the barn. Long Bo observes that all is as it should be for a farm at harvest time.
"Ashes! Ashes! We all fall DOWN!"
"Look!"
"Where?"
"Shhhhhhh!"
Three little girls playing in the yard of the dairy barn have abruptly stopped to gawk at your group, especially at Grothnak, Hoom and Telkis.
Suddenly their mother, a careworn looking woman, rushes outside.
She hustles the little ones into the house, giving a brief, concerned glance in your direction.
The caravan track then becomes the main street of Briarsgate where merchant shops begin to line the muddy road.
A few townsfolk tentatively acknowledge you, politely nodding, or touching the brim of their hat. But most try to avert their eyes and their paths from your band of armed strangers.
Nearby are:
- The Weaver’s Shop. (5) A sign with a spinning wheel and loom hangs outside this newer building. Bales of dry wool are stacked on the wide porch.
The Golden Grain Inn. (6) A large wooden inn decorated with carvings of wheat sheaves along the eaves of the roof. A sign picturing wheat and a pitcher of ale hangs over the door. A corral and stable are off to the side.
Pausing near the Inn (
6), your party can see, further down the lane…
- The Moneychanger (7)
The Livery Stable (8)
The General Mercantile (12)
A small cottage (9)
…And that the road continues onward past a dozen or more buildings.
In the distance, you can also make out…
- A Millhouse (26) with a water wheel on a pond.
The Village Church (21), atop a hill across the pond on the northeast side of town (beyond your map, but visible due to its altitude).
Long Bo observes no mistreatment of man or beast here.
The contrast between this quiet hamlet and the bloodsoaked unholy abominations of the nearby wood couldn't be sharper.
A chill wind blows dead leaves across the muddy ground.
Actions regarding any and all* of the above?
Status:
Elden Vodarte, Human Ranger 2: AC 3, HP 20/20
The Grey Mouser, Half-Elf Magic-User/Thief 1/2: AC 4, HP 10/10, Spells: 1/1 1st lvl
Grothnak Uthglukh, Half-Orc Fighter 2: AC 4, HP 13/17
Hoom Feethos, Elven Magic-User/Thief 1/2: AC 3, HP 6/8, Spells: 1/1 1st lvl
Ingrid Esthof, Human Cleric 3: AC 3(1), HP 14/16, Spells: 3/4 1st lvl and 3/3 2nd lvl
Long Bo, Human Druid 2: AC 6, HP 15/15, Spells: 4/4 1st lvl and 1/2 2nd lvl
Pelias Blanchflower, Human Paladin 2: AC 2, HP 18/19
Telkis Brassfang, Gnome Fighter 2: AC 0, HP 15/19
Magic:
Protection from Evil (Pelias): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Pelias.
DM Notes:
