4th Watch (1/23/16)

Here is the transcript for the fourth session of Stealers of Dawn Online, which we played on Roll20.



PC: Nahar
Experience rewarded:350
Inspiration rewarded: --
Renown:

7th Fire (1/22/16)

Tarok, Second-Week, Fourth-day, the Now-Year

In order to examine the hidden boats on the shore of the Bone Lake, Kaarl transforms into a rat while the rest of the PCs hang out inconspicuously. While fishing, SlakeThirst dregs up a bloated human torso, and at that, the horns sound off from the Dregroot sentries. Huntress Byle emerges to confront the dragonborn about his catch, and doesn't seem to recognize Cynjak. The PCs decide to inquire with her about Toli Bulberry and his party, but she thinks they must be with Zlazash and that the Wives must stay out of their business. She urges the group to go back inside the village and stop acting suspiciously. They do so, first plodding through the Dreg Market in the belowground ditch. There they meet Tigg the Tavern Man, who offers them some cups and appetizers, though K'gug manages to offend him greatly.

Tigg does tell them to track down Dobbil the gnome, who peddles both information and relics from the Old Briarwood. They approach his overstuffed baubles shop, and are met by a personal henchmen named 'Prince Slagmoor', who vets them before allowing them in to speak with his employer. After trading the gnome a magic scythe they found, he reveals a connection between Toli and an exiled Wife named Skrii'la, who supposedly lives out in the wilds. As a bonus, Dobbil even offers the PCs his henchman, but that may also be to keep an eye out on their exploits. They decide to make haste to find this witch Skrii’la, but night is falling, so Slagmoor leads them to a relatively sheltered campsite. There, they come across an odd armored fellow who does not have some kind words for them. They move along to another spot and set watches, which are uneventful save for a strange trail of spines or thorns that appears as a path through the campsite by the following morning. 

Tarok, Second-Week, Fifth-day, the Now-Year

Kaarl tracks the trail of spines to a thorny bush where it simply ends. The group moves on through the Old Briarwood, alert for dangers, Slagmoor checking landmarks, and eventually comes to their goal, a tree fort with several layers placed at the 40’ level and above on a massive dark pine. Nobro and Kaarl scope out the situation, and discover that one of the lower terraced levels is heavily guarded by strange face-painted goblins and their mosquito-like avian pets. SlakeThirst tries to distract the sentries by communicating in Common (which they understand) and firing off eldritch blasts at the terraces. After a long, painful process of climbing the tree and securing harnesses for the PCs that follow them, the barbarian brothers and Nobro swing over and confront the goblins directly, with support from Kaarl who has snuck into the building through a latrine chute and explored a few of the lower levels chambers already.

The battle is fairly heated, since the pesty bird-things can latch onto their enemies and draw blood, while the goblins are proving more competent fighters than might have been expected.  The other PCs who climbed in the barbarians’ wake are finally getting caught up, but will it be too late?

PCs: Cynjak, Kaarl, K'gug, Nobro, Slagmoor, Slakethirst, Un'Krug, Yukkbutt
XP rewarded: 450 each

Inpiration rewarded:
Renown: --

NPCs

Diedeath the Mad (??? male): The figure beneath this walking suit of wooden-plated, spiked and thorny armor seems rather slender, but that’s about all you can tell about it besides the one bulging, bloodshot eye that peers at you from the left side of its wooden helmet which has been carved to resemble some dragon’s jaw. It has a bastard sword slung across its back, but wrapped up in a fur, and an additional bone battle axe in its wooden gauntleted fists. He seems to have a strange obsessive compulsion where walks in murmured, counted steps, and occasionally stops to wipe himself off frantically of something that isn’t there…

Dobbil (gnome male): A decrepit gnome of bent stature, whose nose is so bulbous and twisted that you can barely make out his right eye. Dobbil’s cheeks and chin bristle with gray and brown hairs, and his head is completely bald with the exception of a few stray copses of greased hair. In a stark contrast, his blue and violet robes and breeches are amongst the fanciest finery you’ve seen in all the Cleft Plateau, lined with fluffy white fur, and his fingers are aglitter with bone rings of varied gems dug from the Slipstones.

Huntress Byle (human female): Having carved off her own breasts as a sign of both devotion to Duthar and proof against weakness, this swarthy, six foot tall woman’s chest is heavily scarred where you can spot her flesh protruding from patches of oiled, thick leather armor. Her hair is likewise oiled back in a thick, dark braid, the sides of her head shaven, and her eyes mismatched in color and penetrating. Each side of her scalp is tattooed with a ring of spears pointed inwards at a drop of blood. Her chin and right shoulder appear to have been broken on several occasions, and over her left is slung a great hornbow fit for an ogre. Several hand axes are slung around her ample waistline.

Tigg the Tavern Man (human male): A scrawny man covered in harnesses that holster small casks and boxes of wine and finger foods. He wears a silly looking leather cap with flaps that hang over his ears, and a small wooden placard attached to the forehead into which is carved the symbol of a flagon. Most of his teeth are missing from where ‘clients’ beat him up for his wares, but he’s learned from his mistakes and now carries a small hand club on his waist, if he can manage to reach it…