IC IX

[frobozz]

Lanny the elf

Lanny likes the idea of offering to sell the potion to Oleg. Oleg provides a valuable service both to the party and to the town with his lost cost herbal potions. It would be nice to have him around and in our corner for another ten years.

That said, if he is not yet ready to buy it, we can hold on to it for now. The Beast is restless and currently looking for more victims!

[thirdkingdom]

Okay, for the sake of keeping things together I am going to make one post at the apothecary, let y'all respond, then move onto the forge.

Highstreet's Apothecary
The adventurers bid Varis goodbye, promising to rid the Barony of the foul Beast that is terrorizing its northern borders, and make their way to see Oleg, the herbalist and apothecary. He and two of his daughters are in the store when the companions enter; it is immediately obvious that he has had a busy day or two. The fragrant, dried herbs that normally hang from the rafters are mostly gone, the various bottles of salves and unguents that line the walls have been reduced by half, at least.

He appears to be haggard and overworked, as do his daughters, but his eyes light up upon being told that the potion of longevity is for sale and a greedy look washes over his face. "I will give you 1,250 gold coins for that potion!" he exclaims, "I am pleased that you finally changed your mind! And I have also completed your order, as well, just in time for your return. Let us see . . . you requested nine potions of healing and nine antidotes, correct? How about we exchange your potion for the ones I have created and call it a day?"

I am going to be generous and rule that, if you decide to accept his deal, you guys will still get the XP for the potion of longevity as if it had been sold for the price of 1250 gp (as opposed to ruling that it didn't count as a sale, or something). Therefore, regardless of what you want to do, each PC gains 172 XP -- before modifiers -- and Semele gains 43. This includes Aquar.

[zebediah]

Drudsa the dabbler

"That would be acceptable as far as I am concerned master Oleg. What do you say fellas?"

Seems like a win-win.

If no one objects Drudsa hands over the potion to Oleg and distributes the new acquisitions among the party members. There will be one spare healing and one antidote, Drudsa will keep those with him (until a replacement for Tratiln is found).

[frobozz]

Lanny the elf

Lanny smiles as Oleg makes his offer for the Potion of Longevity.

"If Master Drudsa thinks it's a good deal, I am certainly not one to argue, for his mind is sharper than mine in the area of mathematics. Although, Master Oleg, selling this potion to you is not just about obtaining more gold for ourselves, for we have already acquired a good sum of that... I believe it is also a matter of good stewardship of magic... for while we might have found a more lucrative offer if we searched long enough, we would not want to entrust such a potent item to just anyone. It was you that got us started in our adventuring careers with your affordable herbal concoctions, and if we can return the favor in kind with a potion to your liking, we are all the better for it. In truth, I hope that our potion exchange is but the beginning of a beautiful friendship and business partnership that will continue to flourish with time..."

Lanny nods at Drudsa indicating that he is ok with the offer and then begins to carefully examine the potions being offered by the master herbalist.

We were previously given Oleg's (3) in-stock Potions of Health and (1) Potion of Fire Resistance, which we were to pay in full once our full order was completed. I'll assume that those (3) are part of the (9) that we just received. As for the (1) Potion of Fire Resistance, Lanny will use his +1 Charisma and the moving speech he just gave about the beginning of a beautiful friendship to try to get that potion thrown into the bundle as well. (If he fails, he will pay the full 200gp for that potion to complete the transaction.)

FYI, here are the details on these potions:

Potion of Health (200 gp): When consumed (and yes, they can be force-fed) the potion will heal 1d4+1 points of damage.

Antidote (175 gp): If taken within two rounds of coming into contact with non-magical poison the target is allowed a second saving throw with a +2 bonus.

The Resist Poison spell that Semele currently has prepared works in a similar fashion to the antidote (in that it allows a second saving throw vs. poison) and should probably be cast first before using up the antidote. It is probably best to save these two potions for a real emergency situation.

[Innana]

Innana the Fighter:

Looks back as Traitiln as he explains his need to leave the group. Innana looks at the group, and then back at Traitiln. Innana never saw the signs that Traitiln was feeling a need to depart and sort things out. Innana sashays back towards Traitiln, and closes the space with a hug. "I am sorry to see you go my friend. Innana takes a necklace from around her neck, and places it in Traitilns hands. It is a silver swirl imprint in stone. I am giving you this necklace to remind you that life has some twists and turns, and hopefully to give you the inner strength to find your way through it. Perhaps you will find your way back to join us at some future point?"

Innana rejoins the group, and looks back in a moment to see Traitiln was already gone.

Innana stands in the back when the group talks to Father Varis. After the meeting Innana walks out with the rest f the group. "Semele, and I can ask around to see if there are any new rumors that may help us at our tasks at hand. I do need to go shopping for a new cape."

If it is determined that Innana and Semele will meet up later, Innana will be checking on the order made at the Silversmith, and then will talk to some of the women in the village of any new rumors

.

Could I get a hit point roll please?

[Grognardsw]

Aquar / window shopping

As the others barter with Oleg, Aquar pokes about the shop. The good cleric has done some business with Oleg in his time at Threshold. The priest of Procan picks up a vial – “Viagra’s Everlasting Lust.” He shakes his head… doubtless an arcane concoction for wizened wizards.

“I defer to your wisdom Lanny on the sale of potions,” says Aquar. His mind turns to what the menu may be at the inn.

[Innana]

Innana the Fighter:

Before the group splits off, Innana approaches Thordin, "if you could spare a couple of your morning hours while we are in town, I could use some pointers in wielding the sword. If you could teach me that offensive strike that you used on the Giant Worm". Innana duplicates the swing in midair, looking very out of place in her green silk dress.

[riftstone]

Thordin the dwarf looks the warrioress up and down.

"Well, there be a difference in balance and leverage, but I'll show you a thing or two. It's my honor." He finishes with a bow.

[Alethan]

Rhys the Traveler

Rhys agrees with the potion exchange, as well.

Once everything is settled with Oleg, Rhys is anxious to make their way to the Scarlet Pheasant to find this Jaceo bloke.

[zebediah]

Drudsa the dabbler

Since everyone is happy with the deal Drudsa will urge the group to go to the Scarlet Pheasant as suggested by Rhys.

"Jaceo's insight might be valuable for our preparations, let us speak with him before we check on our weapons."

[frobozz]

Lanny the Elf

Lanny pays Oleg 200gp for the Potion of Fire Resistance to complete all transactions, and stores the potion in his backpack on behalf of the group. He thanks Oleg again and includes a 50gp tip for completing their order two days ahead of schedule. He is now ready to visit Jaceo at the Scarlet Pheasant.

[thirdkingdom]

The Scarlet Pheasant
10:00 am

The tavern in question is by the gates, and appears to cater to caravan guards, wanderers and those who drift through life with little hope of advancing one's station. After asking a few disinterested patrons Jaceo is soon located. He is a thin, laconic man with drooping eyebrows and weathered skin.

"So yer the ones sent to slay the Beast, I guess," he states, "what's yer plan and when were you thinking of leaving?"

[Alethan]

Rhys the Traveler

Rhys shrugs at the thin man's question and replies, "What do you know of the beast, Jaceo? Everything we've heard so far is far removed from the source; I'd like to hear from someone with first- or second-hand experience with the beast. Maybe this will give us some clues as to what it is and what we can do to stop it."

[thirdkingdom]

Jaceo

"By the tracks I'd say some kind of giant cat, but at least twice the size of any I've ever heard of. It's carried off men -- full-sized men, at that -- while leaping o'er walls and ravines. Has some kind of bloodlust, you ask me. Some times it eats those its killed, sometimes it just rips 'em apart and spreads the bits around. 'Tis smart, though. We've laid traps, dug pits baited with sheep, nothing. Prints all around, didn't go for it; bastard killed three loggers the day after we dug the pit."

[Grognardsw]

Aquar / inn

The sailor-priest of Procan sips his mid-morning ale, crunching on some assorted nuts as he listens to Jaceo.

"Any luck in tracking this prodigious pussycat?" inquires Aquar, munching a macadamia. "A feline of such size would seem to leave large prints."

"Is such a creature native to this area?" wonders the cleric, savoring a hazelnut. "Certainly its mother and father and litter-kin would have been seen prior. Jaceo, do you think this perversity of nature is native, or was transported by some means? If so, why?"

Recalling the were-beast rumor, Aquar says: "Is there a pattern in the killings - at night, under a certain moon? Have there been survivors and if so have they turned into cats?" He clears a chestnut from between teeth.

"I'm not for poison, but in this case perhaps our sponsor could provide a sedative poison to be applied to our arrows and weapons, and bring the beast down quickly," finishes Aquar, crunching a cashew.

[Alethan]

"If this be an island..."

Not an island...

Map of Threshold and the surrounding area: viewtopic.php?p=27938#p27938

[thirdkingdom]

"If this be an island..."

Not an island...

Map of Threshold and the surrounding area: viewtopic.php?p=27938#p27938

Sorry, GSW, I had assumed you were more familiar with the setting. This campaign is taking place in the Known World of Mystara (the default setting for Basic D&D), in the Grand Duchy of Karameikos. There are a number of maps you can refer to in the Maps thread, that show both the city of Threshold, a rough sketch of Karameikos and the surrounding lands as well as the territory the adventurers have explored.

[thirdkingdom]

Jaceo

The outdoorsman sucks air through his teeth. "Can't say that I've noticed a certain pattern to the killings, to tell the truth. It strikes about once a week, perhaps a little less seldom, but whether that be due to astrological influence or simply hunger I could not say."

[Grognardsw]

"If this be an island..."

Not an island...

Map of Threshold and the surrounding area: viewtopic.php?p=27938#p27938

Edited my post. I was confusing it for Fogor Isle, mentioned in IC 1, post 1. I vaguely remember Karameikos from the Cook Expert set. I'll check out some maps.

Jaceo say anthing about tracking it back to lair, or general area?

These nuts are tasty.

[frobozz]

Lanny the elf

Lanny nods in agreement with Aquar's line of questioning.

"Tracking the Beast to its lair seems the right approach. We might even have to make ourselves the bait to try to lure it to us, and then track it if it chooses to flee rather than to fight. Aquar, your idea of using poison is sound. Although with a beast that size, it will likely require a lot of it... perhaps even more than we can reasonably procure. To be safe, we should inventory our silver weapons as well, just in case the rumors of a were-creature turn out to be true. In any case, we should be prepared to camp there for a few days, bringing sufficient supplies to do so..."

Lanny pauses for a moment before addressing Jaceo.

"I do believe we should be ready to leave for the logging camps today."