Sharzak arrived in Port of Rosillac three days ago and finds it to be a charming city, not the den of thieves he had been warned.  He has enough gold to enable him to stay for a week or two before he really has to find work.  He wonders if there was a university or just a scholar's retreat where his oratory would be appreciated enough to earn him a living, but meanwhile, he wants to continue his research. 

He is browsing a small museum called "Nautical Oddities" when he spots a small, bronze statue that is clearly, to his eyes at least, a Maerean.  The shape of the head and the webbed fingers are clear signs of a Maerean and not one of those species that has to change shape to be able to swim.  He asks the proprietor, an old man with a white shaggy beard, about it.  "Oh, the merman?  It's a nice piece -- I just got that a month or so ago.  It really isn't for sale, but I supposed I could part with it for the right price.  It won't be cheap, though.  What did you have in mind?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:34, Mon 10 May 2021.

I would like to appraise it to see what it is truly worth

You can go ahead and make that sort of roll using the Die Roller.  (See the link on the right.)  However, this time, I rolled for you.
19:05, Today: Zag, on behalf of Sharzak, rolled 14 using 1d20+1.  Appraise on statue.
19:37, Today: Zag, on behalf of Sharzak, rolled 26 using 1d20+6.  Knowledge Local to recognize mark  -- Oh!  I wasn't expecting that!

Sharzak reaches to pick up the statue and the proprietor makes a 'be careful' gesture but doesn't stop him.  The piece is about 14 inches tall with a round base that is about 4 inches in diameter.  It is cast in bronze, and the bard can see cast lines, poorly filed off -- usually an indicator of a low quality mass-produced item that is fairly new.  However, surprisingly, the quality of the actual carving is quite good, providing enough detail to be able to tell that this is clearly a Merean.  Sharzak feels that if he met the model who sat for this sculpture, he'd recognize him.

There is no artist's signature, but there is a foundry mark in the base, discreetly placed behind the subject's webbed feet.  The bard feels sure he has seen this somewhere before, but can't place it.  Finally it comes to him -- except for the letter in the center, the mark is identical to one he has seen on the large statues of Thaliador and Krum, the city's founders; those marks had a K instead of an R in the center.  Those statues sit outside the city Hall of Records, which Sharzak was just visiting the previous day looking for information about any Merean's that might still be living here in the city.  (This is the effect of your natural 20 on the knowledge roll.  I hadn't expected you to know it at all.)

Sharzak makes his best guess as to the value: maybe 10 or 15gp, but he really has no idea.  If it had gotten the proper post-casting filing and polishing, that might have doubled the value.  Since there is no artist's signature, there will be no reputation adding to its value, even though the artist seems quite skilled.

If you don't see the image of the foundry mark above, then go to https://zag.net, choose advanced and say that you are willing to risk it.  When you refresh this page, the image should appear.  The problem is that I don't have an https security certificate, and the modern version of Chrome prevents you from displaying such untrusted images inside a secure page.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:16, Fri 14 May 2021.

12 diplomacy roll associated with this.

"my friend, while this is an interesting piece it is clearly one of many that was mass produced" I indicate the clear cast lines. "However it has withstood the test of time well, how would you feel about 8 gold for the figurine and a further 2 for whatever information you have about where it was found? If you have no information on the location it was found, I would be willing to take the name of the person who sold it to you for the same price."

The proprietor looks offended.  "10 gold for this fine piece?!?  Look at the detail -- the hand of a master was at work here.  Those cast lines, those are nothing.  The master will usually leave the finishing to his apprentice, and this one time he failed to oversee the youth's incompetent work; but 15 minutes with a file and those will be gone.  I could not accept less than 40 gold, and it is a bargain at that price."

We don't have to haggle this out.  You'll get him down to 25, if you want to buy it, but you don't really need to have the piece in order to track down the foundry mark, as long as you can draw or rub a copy of it.  He won't be happy with you making a rubbing of this piece, but he won't stop you.  He will acknowledge that he doesn't know what foundry the mark indicates, and it was sold to him by just a passing adventurer.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:21, Fri 14 May 2021.

Ok, yeah sharzak will buy the piece for 25 gold. Then I would like to head over to the city hall of records to see if I can find out any information about the master or masters that created the statues out front.

Sharzak heads over to the hall of records and studies the large statues outside of it.  As he had remembered, they each bear a mark similar to the one on the small statue currently in his backpack.  The only difference is the letter in the middle.

The bard heads into the building, checking the location of the sun just before he does so.  Mid-afternoon, so I have a couple of hours before they close.  A grandmotherly woman sits behind a reception desk just inside the door -- not the person who was here the other day when Sharzak visited.  She smiles and says, sweetly, "Good afternoon.  Is there anything I can help you with?"  However, as she speaks, she puts some glasses on her face, and suddenly her face turns sour and her voice harsh.  "We don't have work for your kind here, so do not bother to ask.  This is the official Hall of Records.  Employment is the next door down."
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:50, Sun 16 May 2021.

Changed based on your message so diplomacy roll of 14 with this

Thank you for your concern madame, but I am actually here to look at the historical records of the artisans who created the marvelous statues outside. I am a historian as well as a teller of tales and would like to know anything recorded about such marvelous professionals and those that worked with them.

(I am specifically looking for if there is a record of coworkers whose name may have started with R, and will also try to gather information on them if there is any. Made a gather info check if needed)

Realized we both forgot to account for versatile performance, the diplo check should have been a 17

Good call on the diplomacy.  I had a feeling there was a reason you hadn't put points in it, but I had forgotten what it was.

I have to acknowledge, here, that I completely don't understand prejudices, so I have no idea how to role-play a person with strong, vile ones.  This woman is as obnoxious to you as she thinks she can get away with. 

"Hmmpf," snorts the woman as she looks at Sharzak as one might look at animal droppings in their kitchen.  Her human skin is turning red in her face, and Sharzak can see that she is gritting her teeth.  "You want to know about the statues ... What?  ... So you can ruin them?"  She stares at the Merean with unexplained, intense hatred.  Finally she waves her hand dismissively to a large, brass plaque on the wall of the entrance hall.  Sharzak had just walked right past them.  "That plaque there tells all about the statues."  She gets up from her desk and turns away, heading back into the private room behind it.



It is now early summer of 996 A.L.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 03:54, Mon 17 May 2021.

I will head to the kleeb foundry in order to find out who might have had the mark with the R. I would guess it's still in business since that wasnt too long ago, I would also like to find out if Harlimgien is still alive and consult with him on if he recognizes the artists work.

In a live game, that would be a great turn and next I would, no doubt, prompt you to make a Diplomacy roll.  In online, you might anticipate the need and make that roll preemptively.  In my game (though probably not in every GM's), you'd be more than welcome to go ahead and invent a person that you run into at the foundry and describe the conversation.  Something like the first paragraph, which I would be fine if you had written yourself (with the possible exception of the location.  However, in this sort of non-combat mini-adventure, you could safely assume that it's walking distance and the worst that would happen is I'd have to edit how, exactly you got there.)  I'm not trying to criticize, here, just to make you aware of how far you're welcome to go in role-playing.  With the slow turn-around of responses, you are expected -- encouraged, even -- to take some liberties in this way.

12:58, Today: Zag, on behalf of Sharzak, rolled 15 using 1d20+11.  Diplomacy at the Kleeb foundry.

Sharzak walks to East Patcham, which is only a couple hours walk from Port of Rosillac, and has no trouble locating the foundry due to the heavy smoke coming from its furnaces.  Entering the main office, he meets a bright-eyed three-foot-tall female who chirps a polite greeting.  "Yes, are your par...", he halts himself, realizing that he had assumed this was a child but that in fact it is an adult gnomish woman.  (This is just to explain the mediocre diplomacy roll.)  He continues, now awkwardly, "I mean, I'm looking for information about a foundry, I suspect that is related to your establishment.  Perhaps if I could speak with Harlimgien, if he is still with us, he might have the information."

After a bit of discussion with the gnome, who politely overlooks Sharzak's near slight, he shows her the statue with the foundry mark.  She says that Harlimgien has retired, but he is welcome to talk with Master Zeiner Froo, who was Harlimgien's apprentice.  After an hour's wait, just as the sun is setting, a tall, bald-headed human man enters the office.  His voice is harsh, raspy, and he wastes no time on pleasantries, "I heard you wanted to ask me about Harlimgien?"

Sharzak shows the man the small statue, with its foundry mark that is so similar to the Kleeb mark.  "Not Harlimgien's work, clearly -- two lumpy, and who finished this?  It's terrible."  He ponders a bit more.  "Well, the old man retired a decade -- no, almost two decades ago.  By Shelyn, I'm getting old.  He retired back to the islands, where he grew up.  This might even be from the foundry where he first apprenticed.  I don't remember the name, but I'm sure he told me.  R ... R ... Ra-a-a-a...  Re-e-e-e... Ri-i-i-i...  No, I don't remember.  But it was in the islands, the Reamu Islands -- oh, maybe it was just Reamu Foundry -- could be.  Anyway, that's where Harlimgien is now, if he's still alive.  He would be on the largest of the islands, where his family lives.  If you do have reason to look him up, please give him my best wishes.  Ornery old coot -- I didn't know what a good teacher he was until I was the one doing the teaching."

By the time the bard is done with talking with the man, night has fallen.  The two-hour walk back to Port of Rosillac is a pleasant one, with a comfortable breeze and stars twinkling overhead.  In the morning he learns that the Reamu islands are to the southwest, 6 day's sail away.  There are a couple of merchants who make the islands a regular trade stop, so booking passage should not be overly difficult.

I was trying to get these mini-adventures to line up such that you and Faru'ash have booked passage on the same ship and Azora and Liadain arrive at the place it goes down all together.  You seem to be ahead, however, given that Leah and especially Kayla are pretty much AWOL.