You all make it through the brambles with... well, not too much pain.  Certainly less than what the goblins would have inflicted if they had caught any of you.  Sure enough, they turn away the moment you cross into the thorny terrain.  It almost seems like they are frightened of it.  More frightened than you would expect, come to think of it.  They're just thorns after all; it's not like they move.

Judging from the position of the sun you have probably three hours of daylight left, which should be just enough time to get back to Vorbrud before dark.  Alora, the one prisoner who came with you, flinches suddenly and holds a hand up to her head.  She then looks around at the rest of you and says We can't stay here.  I'm not sure why, we just, we just can't.

So what do you do instead?

After running through the brambles with only a few scratches, Lucius turns to watch the goblin's run away, catching a glimpse of the terror painted on their faces. Along with the oracle's words of warning, the young paladin questions aloud: "Just what is wrong with this place?"

With his hand on the blazing sun depicted on his tabard, he turns towards the sun, gazing directly at it through the trees. He spends a few moments in this stance, his eyes not flinching even a bit from the sunlight.

GM, what here is evil?

Auberyn looked up from patching herself up when Alora spoke, nodding along. "As much as I'd love to take a breather, the woman's right. I don't know the local flavor, but I've never known barrowlands I wanted to stay in after dusk."

Heaving a sigh, the ranger climbed to her feet and looked around. Her companion, a lanky coyote, slunk through the trees at the edge of the clearing, looking somehow abashed to have made it through the thicket unharmed. "Besides, maybe there's an inn in Vorbrud with a bath and enough ale to forget about goblins and thorns and the unquiet dead at least until tomorrow."

The brambles themselves.  Not the rough ground underneath, that's just earth, more or less.  But the thorns seek blood, and without the sun holding them at bay they may do so more actively.

"We must make our way to Vornham quickly." The Paladin says after the short ceremony, startled. "These brambles, they are no normal plants. Their thirst for blood is held back only by the setting sun. We cannot spend the night here!"

Otto rested his body against a nearby tree while taking a few more heated quick breaths. Nodding his head in agreement he then responded in a dry raspy voice. "Vorbrud huh? I'm definitely not voting to stick around here with the goblins and uh," he raises an eyebrow slightly towards Lucius before letting out a short cough, "blood thirsty plants. Ready to go when you lot are." Standing back onto his feet the man gripped his equipment tightly before slowly examining the nearby surrounding thicket for anymore threats.

"I thought they would give us more of a fight," Sin-Singha muses, almost a complaint as he looks back at the retreating figures. "All that chase and then not even a single blow." He shrugs, and turns to their next task.

Lucius's warning makes Singha wary, and he takes his large sword in hand, ready to do some trimming if it comes to that. He looks to the others quickly, but noting that no one seems too much the worse for wear he nods his readiness to leave.

"Jon, when you sing this song, do not forget to sing about the goblins turning in fear from me. Too fearsome to fight, and too pretty to shoot," Singha says in a deadpan, but there's a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth.

Once you make it out of the thicket you are able to find your way to the main trade road that passes through the area.  The road will get you back to Vorbrud, but not in a straight line.  Rather, it runs roughly parallel to the winding river, and the nearest bridge is the one that brings you right up to the town.

And so you walk, maybe chatting with each other, maybe maintaining an uncomfortable silence, whichever suits you better.  Though Alora does speak quietly to Lucius at one point when the two of you are slightly apart from the rest of the group.  So you saw it too?, she asks.  How long have you had the Sight?

Eventually, as the final orange glow is fading from the horizon, you cross the bridge and come up to the wooden wall that surrounds the town of Vorbrud.

Auberyn - what is it about Vorbrud that reminds you why you prefer to be out in the wild?

Istvan - how has Vorbrud responded so far to your efforts to spread the good word of Noric?

Jon - after your latest misadventure in town, how did you redeem yourself?

Lucius - we've established that you are not a big fan of being out in the wild.  As you return to civilization, what are you looking forward to the most?

Otto - the Guild isn't based here, but they can reach pretty far.  Do they have anyone else in Vorbrud, or is it just you here?

Sin-Singha - compared to your homeland, the people here are of course quaint and backwards for the most part, but what is one thing they get right?

Sin-Singha spends most of the journey at the back of the group, not entirely convinced they won't have goblins come chasing them until he sees the walls of Vorbrud over the bridge. Crossing the bridge, he inhales deeply, looking for a promising scent. Unfortunately the many and various smells of a somewhat less than civilized settlement drown out what he was looking for, but he remains optimistic.

"Be happy friends, I recall the people around here having a real flair for good foods! I can almost smell it from here... eww, wait, that's something else... But in any event, we should eat well tonight!" Singha approaches the gates to the town with long, confident strides, looking for any watch that might around.


The one thing they get right is the food. It's not like home, but it's really quite good. They put a lot of attention into their quality of ingredients and take their gastronomy seriously.

(Kind of indifferently, so far, honestly. They're more Gray Mother folks, from what Istvan could tell. Although he did spot a (small) fresh offering at the nearest shrine last time he was there (that he didn't put there), so that was nice... Someone cares...)
This message was last edited by the player at 16:29, Mon 08 Apr 2019.

Lucius' brow furrows in thought. "Sight? I mean, yeah, the Sight! I've mastered it by the time I was twelve, the youngest among my peers." he boasts with confidence. "Whenever I pray to the Blazing Sun, I always get the answer." he adds more somberly.

His attention snaps to the walled city, you could swear saliva was dripping off the corner of his mouth as he quickened his pace.

I can take food and ale into the wilderness, but the humidity is killing me. I long for a dry and warm tavern, where a busty barmaid serves cold beer.

Auberyn walks alongside Sin-Singha for most of the journey without talking. As much as Auberyn longs to bathe and wash away the blood and dirt from her wounds, the simple act of walking calms her, and she watches Vex range along the fields and hedges and small tracks that branch into the hills around them. She's always felt that the Mother is a god of roads more than anything else, the front lines between civilization and the wild.

Even a smaller town like Vorbrud has walls to hide behind. If roads are the boarders, cities are civilization (even thoroughly uncivilized ones like Vorbrud). And civilization can mean warm water and clean clothes and soft beds-- but it also means noise, seething and boiling over the city walls and drifting down the road to where they are. Auberyn fights the urge to pull up her hood as they pass under the gates into the chaos.

OOC: Auberyn finds the noise of a city overwhelming.

Otto braced the length of the spear onto his shoulder to help deal with the weight of the weapon once the group began the trek back to town. Now that it seemed they were out of danger he even let his shield hang over his back, with the strap tightened over his body.  His eyes absently observed the road as he largely walked in silence, more focused on reaching the destination and a bed rather than idle chatter. A few cursory glances were occasionally shot towards the woman they had picked up but any thoughts he may have held were not shared openly.

Vorbrud always seemed like a decent place to him, even reminded him a little bit of where he grew up. Once they had finally reached the walls Otto was ready to get inside and relax as he shifted from side to side.

I'd say Vorbrud probably has someone from the Guild, maybe a single individual to help facilitate any business the Guild has that reaches out near the area.

Alora seems quite impressed by this response.  Twelve?  Mine only started within the last few months!  Although, she adds, with a sheepish grin, my visions come without me having to ask first.  I suppose the Mother has something different in mind for me than your Sun does for you.

Eventually you reach the bridge, and then the gate, where the guards impatiently wave you through just before they shut it for the night.  In the town, people mill about in the crowded streets, as the day's shops close down and the inns and other nighttime businesses get going.  You don't have to fight as hard as you would expect to make your way through though - with Auberyn's coyote walking alongside your group, strangers make sure to leave some space (by the way, Auberyn, why didn't the guards hassle you about bringing an animal like that into their town?).

Trying to find the balance between smallest crowds and best smells eventually brings you to the Fool's Gold Tavern.  Alora joins you as you seat yourselves at one of the larger tables and look around for a barmaid to take your orders.

When you post, describe something about the tavern or the other people currently in it.

Singha barely clears the solid timbers of the unusually low ceiling, and has to blink a few times through the heady smoke that hangs at the top of the room. There are as many people smoking pipes as drinking, which gives Singha a cautious optimism. There may be more sophisticated offerings than he'd assumed. He inspects his chair briefly before sitting, giving it a good brush off with his hand and a wipe with the corner of his sleeve, just to be sure.

"I have not had a good pipe in far too long," he comments to everyone and no one in particular. He sniffs at the air, testing the smoke, but the results seem to leave him still undecided. "Maybe we will need to try whatever leaf they have, hey? I smell good foods, so we will be in good standing there, but the drink... Well, one way to find out!"

When they manage to get someone's attention, he'll start ordering food, sample some drink, and ask after pipe and leaf.


OOC: Soooo, some playbooks do start with coin... But the Barbarian sure doesn't. I think many don't. This could be interesting.

"Gods' ways are mysterious indeed." Lucius nods to Alora, having exhausted his knowledge of the subject. The weary Paladin sits at the broad table, running a hand through his hair.

The bartender, a plump dwarf with an impressive red beard, notices the group, sending one of the barmaids their way.

Lucius also has no coin... But he is a Paladin. Something something hospitality, or perhaps invoking his divine authority?

Istvan notices a wooden tree symbol of Noric, much like the one he himself carries, hanging quietly behind the bar. Someone who works here honors Noric... maybe the same person who placed the offering that Istvan noticed previously...?

Otto relaxes into one of the wooden seats around the table, placing his equipment out of the way as he sets his helmet beside him. Eager to order some ale his eyes wander around the room to take in the tavern atmosphere, visibly enjoying the quaint surroundings. He could see a group of town watchmen sitting in a corner, perhaps just getting off of their shift. They were heavily engrossed in some kind of game as the group threw dice, bet coin, and downed drink after drink in what seemed to be friendly competition for the time being.

One of the barmaids comes over to your table.  She gives your party a wary look and says Been on the road long then? before taking your orders.  Alora shrinks back a bit in her seat and does not answer this.  When it is her turn to order she timidly asks for a rabbit pie and a mead.

When Singha asks about pipes and leaf, the barmaid says 1 coin'll get you the simple tobacco, and if you ain't got your own pipe that'll cost another.  The good stuff costs extra.

"The good stuff? Woman, you are a demon temptress of the most magnificent kind. You should know my standards are not low, though. Hmm, do you have any we might test? You can tell everything you need to know about good leaf by the smell." Singha lounges back in his chair, but turned to give the barmaid his full attention. He doesn't mention coin, and he especially doesn't mention that he hasn't got any.


OOC: Anyone who's been traveling with Sin-Singha (i.e.--presumably the rest of the PCs) would certainly know he doesn't have any coin. Up to you if you feel like calling him on it!

I don't know if this is a Parley roll here? Thought I'd just ask to check.
17:36, Today: Sin-Singha rolled 4 using 2d6.  Parley w barmaid (CHA).
This message was last edited by the player at 21:37, Sat 20 Apr 2019.

Lazarus had been standing in a far corner of the Fool's Gold Tavern, doing a little slight of hand for the patrons in an effort to earn a bit of coin for supper. Sure, he had a bit of dried food in his pack for emergencies, but there was nothing quite like a nice hot meal.

Lazarus stopped his performance mid-trick, however, when a familiar voice caught his ear. Was that... the orc-man? Had his group actually made it back to town? "Sorry ladies and gentlemen," he said hurriedly to the two people who had actually been watching him. "Something has come up." He palmed his dagger in dramatic stage-magic fashion, then excused himself.

It only took a moment to spot the large man when he scanned the tavern. Sing-Singy was it? He was sitting with his group, asking the barmaid about smoking supplies or somesuch. He sidled up to their table and smiled to those gathered. "It seems you made it back to town! I admit I had my doubts when I saw your group leave, but you seem no worse for the wear. Better than when you left, actually," he said, indicating Alora.

"Pardon my interruption, but I have actually been looking for capable individuals to help me move about the countryside safely. Doesn't really matter where. I just don't want to be stuck here. I would be willing to lend my magical services in exchange for a bit of protection, if you're interested."

"Ah, the magic man! You have learned better than to doubt me now, Lazarus? I think we had some coin riding on it, did we not?" Sin-Singha bluffed. He looked about for the nearest unoccupied chair and pulled it over for Lazarus to sit, although the seating was already a little tight.

"'Sin-Singha, he who always wins!' Or at least, he who always makes it back. Ha. That is not as good a song, though. Looking to get out of Vorbrud? We have only just arrived. Who knows how long we will be staying... Although that might depend on how good this 'good stuff' really is." Singha liked to make the conversation about his appetites, but purposefully stopped short of committing the man to their company without his companions weighing in.

The barmaid rolls her eyes and says Right, hang on, let me see what I can do.  She then walks over to the innkeeper and tells him... well, you can't hear what, but it involves both of them looking in the direction of your table now and then.  She then gets the drinks and brings then back over to you, but seems to have forgotten Singha's order.

As she walks back to the bar, with the promise that she'll have that last drink out in a moment, the barman comes over to you and squeezes in to address the whole table (including Lazarus, since he has inadvertently made himself part of the group now).  In a low, gruff voice he says Ladies, gents, thank you for your patronage and all that, but here's the deal.  I understand you're asking to sample some merchandise what we don't normally give out for samples, so I need to see some money up front and make sure this is going somewhere.  I got a business to run, right, and you lot seem like the sort who understand how business runs.

OOC: The guards didn't hassle Auberyn because they recognized the Mother's Lantern on her broach. The Gray Mother garners enough respect in these frontier communities for her servants to get away with a few oddities.

A gaggle of city folk sit in one corner of the tavern. Not like, Vorbrud city folk-- not even the sort of merchants who dress fancy but know what it means to travel in the dust all day. These are the true sort of city folks with silks and sneers and perfume thick enough that you can smell it across the room.

---

Sorry for the entirely OOC post-- life has been lifey and I've fallen a bit behind. I'll try to get an IC post up soon-- and answer your question, Lazarus. Welcome aboard!

"Good day to you." The paladin nods curtly at the wizard, though he barely recognizes him. Instead, he clears his throat awkwardly, and makes his plea to the bar owner. He was interested in the leaf... but he was more interested in not starving and having a place to sleep.

"Good sir, I am a paladin of the Order of the Sun. I have no wealth of my own."

It was technically true. He did not have any wealth - the money given out by the Order for travel expenses was promptly spent at first opportunity on food and alcohol and women. In hindsight, that was a terrible move.

With utmost confidence, he continues, loudly for everyone to hear. "I invoke the laws of hospitality to ask for food and shelter for me and my weary companions. The gods will surely repay you with great fortune for this gesture of goodwill."

Having no idea about the actual laws of hospitality (or existence of them), Lucius REALLY hoped this would work. The young man kept smiling warmly, and the sweat on his brow would be easily atribbuted to weariness.

13:37, Today: Lucius rolled 8 using 2d6+2.  Parley using divine authority as leverage.

Bit of a hiatus for Easter, now I'm back in action. Hope I didn't take too long.