Of Men and Machines Session 7
General Summary
Keep Your Noses Clean
The dragonborn known as Eshshann the Pocket left the Castleport chapter of the Fighter's Guild enthusiastically with his new coin in pocket. Now he need somewhere to spend it, so he zipped across the street that Ecius morning. People were still starting to set up their market stalls in the area. Eshshann took note of the strange human monk atop the roof of the Aggressive Goblin tavern - his destination. He entered the normally raucous establishment, finding it to be quiet and sparsely populated given the fact that it was still early in the day. The hafling barkeeper, Baldo Galbolg, looked up from his cleaning and gave a familiar smile to the middle-aged dragonborn. Eshshann ordered his "usual" and took in the surroundings. He was proud of his recent achievement and felt like celebrating. Keck stepped out of his room a few moments later and ordered breakfast from Baldo at the bar. As the halfling went about preparing his meal, Keck struck up a conversation with him. He asked Baldo about the murders that had occurred across town. Unfortunately, Baldo didn't have anything new information to share and suggested alternate venues, all of which the party had covered the day before. Malark and Tim the Not-so-Tiny eventually trickled out as well and they each picked up their own orders of food. As the party discussed their next moves to secure funding, Eshshann interjected that he would pay for the group's food and beverage. He was still excited about his recent success. The wizard then described some rather remarkable (and implausible) recent feats of strength and accomplishments following a run-in with some ne'er-do-wells. They quickly struck up a rapport and the party was more than happy to have someone else pay for their meals. Outside, Fel'Shu had just woken up and was busy munching on an apple. The arrival of the dragonborn Eshshann did not go unnoticed to him. Nevertheless, he surveyed the area and sauntered across the roof the tavern and jumped across to the next building. He took another look around and jumped down, starling a nearby pedestrian. He walked over to the corner of the building and stood there watching the traffic. He noticed that Alyce Dorgonn approached and entered the tavern, likely in search of the party. Alyce stepped into the well-lit tavern and saw the party chatting each other up and eating breakfast. She wore a slightly subdued countenance from her usual warm but professional demeanor. She informed the group that their office had heard that some of the members of the South Wind Trading Company had been accosted the night before by a bald human monk in the area. She asked if the group knew anything about this and they all denied it; Fel'shu was not in the room and he had gone unnoticed by Alyce on her way in. She warned the group that the South Wind was extremely well connected in the area and that they had a stranglehold on the community, as she was sure that they'd noticed. The party introduced their newest member, Eshshann the Pocket, who introduced himself with a flurry of titles. Alyce looked on curiously as the dragonborn rambled on somewhat excitedly. The deputy just smiled, nodded, and reiterated to try not to cross paths with the South Wind again. The group acknowledged Alyce's warning and she informed them that the city was going to increase their vigilance and their patrols today and tomorrow in light of some of the information that the party had been able to uncover and also given that they anticipated another murder. She advised them that, regardless of whatever other errands they have, that they be back in town by tomorrow evening to assist with a potential apprehension. The group, feeling hopeful about the status of the investigation, agreed to be back by then.The Fighter's Guild
The group had a couple of things they needed to do: 1) visit Halodreth Emberwhite at his farm outside of town; 2) run down the ingredients requested by Qi'faren Elesh; and 3) earn some more money. So they decided pop over to the Fighter's Guild which sat in a large, two storey stone building across the street from the tavern. The metal gate swung open easily as did the heavy but well-oiled oaken door revealing a well-lit room inside. At the center stood a Githyanki and an Elf warrior pummeling each other in a no-holds barred sparring match atop a pile of blood-stained hay. They paid the party no mind as fist after fist landed on one another. A few moments of intense beating and grappling ultimately culminated in the Githyanki warrior emerging victorious. The warrior looked up and grinned at the party, blood in his teeth. He helped up his defeated opponent and asked what brought the party here. Eshshan replied that they were looking for the Battlemaster. The Githyanki pointed upstairs and continued to clean himself off. Tim positively beamed at the facility while the rest of the group took in the sights and smells. The scent of sweat, steel, and a bit of blood was heavy on the air. At one end of the facility sat an armory, while at the other fighters were busy practicing on wooden dummies. The group headed upstairs where they walked past a locked door on one side and a small library on the other. At the end of the hall was an office, where Seraphina Stormblade, the Battlemaster of the Fighter's Guild. Coming in at 6'1" and 172lbs of solid muscle, the gun-metal grey hair of the positively radiant Battlemaster flowing down her shoulders, Seraphina was a legend not to be trifled with. Regardless of her martial prowess, she was one of the warmest and most charming and loyal friends a person could have. They exchanged greetings and got down to business. The party asked about the murders and if Seraphina had heard anything about it, but she hadn't. Tim inquired about the Guild and what their membership process was like. She gave a rundown on the admittance and some of the benefits, and then asked what tribe he was with in his native Orciukh. Tim's heart could almost be seen fluttering for a moment, and Keck also looked up after recognizing his own language spoken by a human. They exchanged some more information regarding the guild and how one might become a member, and they agreed to return to the Guild hall in a week's time for admittance trials.The Farm
The party had learned of bandits in the area to the northeast of Castleport, but their investigation would take them west. They debated quickly what their next course of action should be, ultimately agreeing to head west to interview Halodreth Emberwhite at his farm. Fel'Shu, growing frustrated with the interest in criminals outside of the city when there were perfectly good (bad) criminals inside the city to deal with it. He decided to head to the closest lawful temple and seek the help of the gods. It wasn't long before the monk found the Temple of Tyr. A small congregation sat on the pews in the temple, while a red-haired dwarf stood at the altar giving a fiery sermon. About an hour passed before all was said and done. As the congregation paraded out, Fel'shu approached the priest, whom he learned was named Maghdar Marblefist. Fel'shu inquired about the local situation, and complained about his friends seeking to bring justice afar when there was injustice here. Maghdar did his best to comfort the adventurer, and told him that justice could be found in many ways. Fel'shu then asked about the South Wind Trading Company and what Maghdar's thoughts on the group were. The priest cringed, and said that they exploit the poor and the weak, and that the rumor was that they had dealings with pirates. That hook was all it took to steel Fel'shu's resolve. He would take matters into his own hands. And while Maghdar recommended not engaging with the South Wind, he did slyly offer healing should it be needed in the near future. Meanwhile, the party headed west from Castleport for several miles, crossing the Arching bridge and eventually finding the farm owned by the retired sheriff of Castleport, Halodreth Emberwhite. The farm had clearly fallen into disrepair, and last season's crops were still sitting in the field unharvested and rotting. A few rats could be seen scurrying about the field and the small farm house. The group knocked on the door; an older man opened the door a few moments later. His silver hair and matching mustache glinted the sunlight off them as he welcomed them in. They introduced themselves and Halodreth inquired about how Alyce was doing; they had worked together in the past. They informed him that they were investigating some murders possibly being committed by The Brotherhood of the Machine. Halodreth seemed concerned, saying that he had investigated the group years earlier, but unfortunately his memory had been failing him. Lucky for the group though, he had written it all down in a journal. Which... was... around... somewhere... Halodreth noted that the rat problem was becoming untenable, and that multiple objects had gone missing recently. He asked the party for the help, and they were willing to provide it for the retired lawman. They headed outside and followed a rat into the barn. It didn't take long before the party's investigations turned up the path that the rats were using to get into the barn and thus onto the farm. They plowed through the floor, exposing a large underground cave network. Tim the Not-so-Tiny, Eshshann the Pocket, and Malark headed down, while Keck stayed and held the rope for their descent. Fel'shu, seeking to exact some justice but needing the assistance of his comrades, headed off in the last known direction he knew to be heading..Rewards Granted
- 200xp per player for advancing the plot
Report Date
02 Jun 2023
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