Session XVI

General Summary

As Will works his trade, he overhears various rumours - from a mysterious disease in the countryside and the persecution of a heretical mayor that made his cat drink blood to talk of an Ostlander army officer returning from the Borderlands, surely heralding the defeat of the Greenskins there, a strange atmosphere in Altdorf and the Emperor's gryphon furiously striking out at zookeepers, and the rumour of the Emperor himself having a secret sister, mad, whisked away and locked into a hospice of Shallya outside of the capital. Everyone uses the week to prepare their costume for the party, with Skeldon getting an additional mask to give to Loretta.
Raaf, meanwhile, acquires his Physician's license at the guild, and the group celebrates this by a night of drinking, eating, and partying at their favorite spot in town - the Red Moon Inn.
As Morathric notices that the local wizard, Christoph, has seemingly returned to Ubersreik, Skeldon notices the arrival of a familiar river barge and with it the Gravin Maria-Ulrike and her assorted collection of guards and servants.
Meeting with the Gravin, they are given permission to bring another person with them, Maria-Ulrike penning an invitation for Loretta, and they learn that despite the court ruling in her favor, the von Dammenblatz family is still rather angered at her and may still be coming after her. Thus, their invitation to the party is not only a reward and a friendly gesture, but also a job - they are asked to keep an eye out for any trouble directed towards her, especially, but she assures them that everything will likely be fine and that they can simply enjoy the night. It is a highly political event - all of the local people of power are there, and will likely try to impress the General von Dabernick in the hopes of being awarded rule over Ubersreik now that the von Jungfreud family has been deposed.
The party, and Loretta, arrive at Niederstadt Haus, where Lord Erich's masquerade is hosted, at roughly the same time as the Gravin and her servants. Watch and army captains Pfeffer and Blucher arrive at around the same time, as does the Burgomeister Ernst Maler and the Dwarven brewer Borgun Foambeard, as does the Baron Heinrich von Falkenhayn. A few moments before they enter the building, the General Jendrick von Dabernick arrives as well, in full military regalia, together with a fully armored and helmeted knight of the Knights Panther order.
As they enter and the herald announces the Gravin, they get accustomed to their surroundings, Morathric spotting the wizard Christoph in a rather obvious Grey Wizard-y costume speaking with one Lord Florian Pfeifraucher, who is wearing a bush, dressed as "a fertility spirit".
Lord Heinrich von Bruner is announced together with notorious philanthropist Lady Galina of House Hohengolfrid. Heinrich von Bruner soon gets in an argument with Lord Maximmilian Aschaffenberg, who arrives but a minute later, as the two wear the exact same colours - Lord Rickard Aschaffenberg, at the least, manages to avoid Heinrich von Bruner.
The Lord Siegfried von Saponatheim arrives with a large stag mask with magnificent antlers. After some time, the characters spot him slipping something into the drink of Baron Rickard Aschaffenberg. However, Morathric and Raaf manage to switch the drinks around, and a few moments later, Lord Siegfried violently vomits all over Baron Rickard before collapsing, pale, shivering, and very ill - he is carried off by servants who assure the crowd not to worry, as it is simply likely that he has drank too much. The Baron Aschaffenberg goes to clean himself up. Otto Krupp, guildmaster of the Physician's Guild, meanwhile, is seen talking with a barmaid, boastful.
Father Gunther Emming of the High Temple of Sigmar is announced by the herald, arriving together with the petite Sister Celestine Hoch of the Temple of Shallya - the former is dressed in his regular robes and without a mask, a bulky, scarred man who sees disguise as deception, and deception as the tool of the Dark Gods. Celestine is dressed in flowing white robes, with a fake white dove perched on her shoulder, as if she were Shallya herself. Laughter erupts some time later as the two cry out in dismay, their clothes somehow switched around all of a sudden - petite Celestine clad in old, formal Sigmarite robes several sizes too big for her, while Gunther finds himself in far too small a white, flowing dress. The crowd points and laughs at their expense, and Morathric spots the wizard Christoph laughing together with Lord Pfeifraucher. The crowd stops laughing only as the two excuse themselves and scurry off to get dressed properly again in a powder room.
Further commotion erupts as the Lord Maximilian Aschaffenberg gets into a fight with Heinrich von Bruner, the two coming to blows, and, worse, their servants joining in as a crowd gathers around the commotion, all the while Doktor Krupp appears to be sneaking off upstairs...

Report Date

08 Oct 2021