Session 1

Session 0

Session 1

It's midsummer in the Kingdom of Valinor. Be it for business, personal purposes or family matters, the a group of four adventurers of various pasts and disparate callings has found themselves in the capitol city of Stoneport, where they receive each an invitation to meet at a small tavern called the Red Pebble, in the city's docks district. The man who has called them there is none other than Icano Vos, known for his many and successful business endeavors.

The adventurers arrive separately and cautiously survey the Red Pebble. After a time, a rough-and-tumble swordsman arrives at the bar and orders all of the other patrons to leave before he sends the adventurers into the back room, where a spry but older looking fellow is seated at a table going over some documents. He introduces himself as Icano Vos and apologizes for the cliche way of bringing the party together. He offers them the chance to make a fine purse for themselves if they'll investigate the mine he owns an interest in, which lies several days away outside of Eastrock, a city on rugged peninsula called The Fang. The issue is that the mine's last shipment of adamantite was due two weeks prior and never appeared. Nor did the last men sent to investigate ever manage to report back. Icano wants to know what's happened to his mine and, if something is awry, for his company's ledgers to be retrieved and delivered to him.

The party is not particularly enthused about working for a man they know little about. Garret the halfling is suspicious and tries to fish out some more information from Icano, but before he can construct a careful inquiry the quick-tempered Angus leans forward and menaces their would-be patron. Icano, however, is no stranger to threats. While a lesser man would have cowered before him, Icano calmly promises the party that he is 'specifically not intimidated' and that if they should try anything approaching a threat ever again, they can expect to have their throats cut open.

Nonetheless, Icano respects their caution and takes it as a sign that he did in fact select the right hirelings for the job at hand. Icano admits that he doesn't 'strictly speaking, pay taxes'. Most of the party appreciates Icano's philosophy on taxation and eagerly agree to accept the mission for the offered payment of 4,000 gold pieces, to be distributed amongst themselves as they please. When the party returns to the tavern's main room, they find the scene set exactly as it had been when they first arrived earlier in the night - all of the patrons had been put right back to where they were. The dwarves get to taking advantage of Icano's promise to cover the night's tab and Aromil the elven ranger does some work educating himself about adamantite.

Something still doesn't set right with Garret, though, and he arranges to meet with an old friend, another Halfling thief named Alton Brushgather. Alton arrives at the docks, slinking out of the shadows, a pale, lean parody of what he used to be. He looks like he doesn't get much sun anymore, and he nervously scans the dark around them. Garret asks about Icano and Alton suggests that Garret should fall into line with him - Icano Vos is a good person to know. Nonetheless, Alton is willing to do Garret a favor and look into Icano to see if there's something particularly unusual going on. Alton is excited about getting access to Icano through Garret.

As they were instructed, the party (half hungover from their free booze) arrives at daybreak at the place along the road out of the city where the turnoff for the Old Quarry is. There they find Wolter Greffang and his dog George waiting to drive them to Eastrock. While the party is making their driver's acquaintance, Garret sneaks into the back of the wagon and checks the onboard storage, where he is disappointed to find only mundane traveling gear. He at least begins to loosen up - maybe for once things are just as they seem. Wolter invites the party to join him in a prayer to the goddess Essaly, who's protection is frequently invoked at the beginning of long travels.

The party's journey gets under way and a few hours pass as the wagon rolls over the plains beneath the soft skies and the warm summer sun. Briefly, Wolter and Garret have a conversation about Icano. Garret tells him that they've only just begun to work for Icano, which Wolter says is quite the compliment. After Garret asks, Wolter admits he doesn't know much about the rest of Icano's business - he just drives the wagon and that's enough for him. Their conversation is interrupted when Wolter notices a group of bandits riding after them - three horses with two men each.

Wolter asks the party what they want him to do and they tell him to keep driving. As the bandits arrive within range, Aromil stands up, knocks his bow and aims at the riders behind the wagon to see how they'll react. In response, the second man on each horse draws a crossbow and aims back. A skirmish begins. Wolter continues to drive his horses on, but the bandits are lighter and faster and ever second get closer to overtaking the wagon. The party and their enemy crossbowmen trade volleys, but everyone finds it difficult to place a shot until Angus throws a javelin and knocks a crossbowman soundly from his horse. With the help of Keg's spells, the party's archers are able to bring down one of the horses. Keg casts Mage Hand and steals the scimitar from the scabbard of one of the bandits. Another crossbowman is killed and the party, having turned the tide of the battle distinctly in their favor, asks Wolter to bring the wagon to a stop.

The party jumps down from the back of the wagon, rushing to engage with the last two remaining bandits. They quickly dispatch one, but the last realizes he is outnumbered and flees from the fight. As the party takes a few minutes to catch their breath, they find a smart sum of money and an assortment of gemstones among the possessions of the slain bandits. They gift Wolter with a few coppers - he's just happy that they all made it out alive.

Wolter, however, informs the party that they have a decision to make. There's a fork in the road up ahead, one road veers closer to the coast and will take them to the little town of Mossgarden by the end of the day. The other road wouldn't get them to a town in time to spend the night. In addition, while both roads eventually lead to Eastrock, the latter adds a half a day's travel time to the journey. The party quickly agrees to take the road to Mossgarden and ask how it can even be a question when the right decision is so clearly evident. Wolter admits that he doesn't care to travel on the road closer to Mossgarden, as it leads nearer to the old sunken capitol of Sunsedge. Wolter, like many people, grew up hearing ghost stories about that dead old city, and would just rather prefer not to go by it.

The party and Wolter arrive in Mossgarden later in the afternoon. A small, pleasant town on the edge of the woods beside a tidy little lake, Mossgarden is arranged such that a small district of the town is set on one side of the lake for those traveling through to take quicker advantage of services and hospitality. In this little stand of buildings, the party and Wolter find Sharely's inn - a bright, cozy place to spend the night. Wolter offers to pay for the party's stay - a gesture of gratitude and the least he can do for them.

Garret earns Aromil's ire when he tries to sell his newly acquired horse to the local merchant brothers - Stanfield and Sinclair Tonney - who are taking their evening libations at the inn. Aromil strikes up a conversation with a half-Orc (in Orcish) in a fruitless attempt to find out more about their destination. The half-Orc doesn't have any info to offer; he just lives in town and makes what coin he can by working odd-jobs and camping out on the Tonney's farm. The dwarves drink themselves silly and lament the respective lost glories of their families' names.

The next day, the party gets back on the wagon and rides out of town. As the forest closes in on them again, Wolter pulls the wagon to a stop when a pair of wolves patter into his path. Aromil dismounts from his horse and approaches the wolves, considering that it would be a fine thing to tame one and take it with him. He fails to consider all the possibilities and receives a fierce bite from one of the wolves. Two more wolves appear at the sides of the wagon. Garret rushes forward to help defend Aromil, only to receive a viscious mauling. Keg jumps forward and launches a volley of Magic Missiles, utterly battering one of the wolf's along the wagonside into submission. Angus makes short work of another, but not before receiving a serious bite. Wolter produces a crossbow from under his seat and fires on the wolves engaging with Garret and Aromil, but misses dismally.

George the dog leaps down to the ground and charges into the fray, but the wolves turn on him and drag him down to the ground. Before they can deliver the killing blow, however, the party finishes off the pack. It looks like it might be too late, though. George is in bad shape. Wolter cuts some strips from one of his blankets and Keg does what he can to staunch the bleeding, but it doesn't help much. Fortunately, Angus is only a pace away and ready to part with one of the healing potions he found on the bandits yesterday. Angus and Keg administer the draught to George, whose tail begins to wag before he unsteadily lifts his head and nuzzles into an overjoyed, tearful Wolter.