[Game #1] Hempel's and Stanilus' Thread

[PyroArrow]

Stanilus' roll: 2 i can't seem to paste the roll on a nook! I forgot my ipad for the trip!

[Landifarne]

Stanilus and Hempel scour the floor, looking for anything that would indicate that a trapdoor exists- but came up with nothing.

Shifting the carpet around, Stanilus held it across the doorframe in order to shield the light of Loryn's hooded lamp. Hempel then lit the lamp from an ember that he kept smouldering in a tiny clay pot. Several years of experience had shown the thief that one couldn't use a flint and steel in the dark and stay hidden.

Getting the lamp lit, Hempel inspected the simple lock once more and chose a new lockpick from a set of tools that had. Pulling a chair over, he set the lamp upon its seat and set to work...

Throw a d100 for your OL attempt. You get +25% for the simplicity of the door lock.

Both of you let me know what you afterwards (success or failure).

[Ythgar]

Arkthren

Arkthren takes a glance around the Hoof at the patrons who are throwing dark looks at the newcomer. He reflects for a moment on the superstitious behavior and closed mindedness of the people of Rifford and the treatment that he might receive for mixing with the marsh-dweller. Making up his mind he stands up and walks over the the table where the newcomer sat.

Reaching the table he asks the woman, "Do you mind if I join you?" If either consent or no reply is given, Arkthren will sit himself down in the chair opposite the woman.

"Hello, my name is Arkthren."

[Pulpatoon]

Hempel's open lock skill=25%+25%. [1d100] = 71

"Bellash's blood, toes, and bones," Hempel swears as he packs his picks back up. He moves over to the sideboard to inspect it with the aid of lamplight.

[Landifarne]

Swearing to himself, Hempel asks Stanilus what he thinks they should do. The larger man shakes his head and posits that they could either attempt the second window (the one that appeared to be nearly broken), or possibly break the door down. "You think it would be too loud?"

While he thinks things over, Hempel checks the sideboard and sees that there's nothing amiss there. Resigned to the fact that they need to get into the back room the thief gives a third option-

"My nerves must be gettin' the best of me," Hempel responds, twitching his fingers and cracking his knuckles. "If I wait a while I can probably give it a another shot."

If you two decide to wait a turn then your characters will likely chance the guard making his cicuit (with Honey in tow).

[Pulpatoon]

Pyro, what do you think? My opinion is that our only other option is making a run for the house, which is much more likely to get us spotted.

Hempel begins tugging on his fingers and flexing his hands. "I should have remembered to stretch the ol' buttonhooks before a delicate bit of sewing."

[FreebirdFootbagging]

Perhaps the slightest bit suprised, unsettled by this mans blatant willingness to set himself apart from the majority, she graciously accepts his request "Yes, please take a seat. This table is lonely, and I'm growing bored of observing the crowd. It's very nice to meet you, I am called Aurora."

[PyroArrow]

"Try the other window first then make for front door as a last resort"

[Pulpatoon]

"I'm not sure I follow you, Stanilus. Try what with the window?"

[Landifarne]

I think Pulp is confused. There are two windows on the eastern side of the garden retreat: one that the characters came in, and the other farther south- and obviously enters the room you're attempting to get into. I'll give you another attempt to pick the lock on the door (once Hempel has calmed his nerves). If you don't want to do that, you can force the door (and obviously make noise) or attempt the rear window.

All would lkely be preferable to making a dash for the manor

[Landifarne]

Freebird, Ythgar, please role-play just a couple posts to introduce a bit of your characters' motivations. I'm going to make things interesting for you pretty soon.

[PyroArrow]

Yes, let's try the rear window now. If that don't work, either dash back over the wall or towards the manor.

[Ythgar]

Arkthren

Addressing Aurora, Arkthren says,"You have my apologies for the gestures directed your way when you first came in; the average person, and most of the nobility for that matter, can be a terribly illogical lot. Not to mention greedy," he adds with a snort.

"So what brings you to this wonderful utopia that is Rifford?" he asks Aurora.

"Where do you come from, Aurora?
"What is it like living there?"

[Pulpatoon]

Landi, Thanks for the clarification.

Actually did worse on my second roll:[1d100] = 90

Hempel huffs angrily and forcefully shoves his tools back in his pack. "The blasted lock isn't budging.

"What was that you were saying? Something about another window?"

Hempel peers out the window through which they entered, and if the coast is clear, slides out and makes his way to the other window, knife at the ready.

[Landifarne]

Seeing Hempel literally bend one of his picks in the lock, Stanilus snorted in derision and was out the window before the thief could come up with an irreverent curse. Sliding up to the rear window (after glancing about for the guard and his dog), the fighter examined the thing.

Canted at an angle, the shutter's top hinge had given away, allowing the thing to rest against its sill. Moving it would certainly be a squeaky-squealy proposition. Perhaps they had something that could remedy the situation...

Scratching his head a few times, the fighter leaned back through the window of the front parlour and asked Hempel (who was about to put a leg out) to hand him the partially-filled lamp that had been on the table. Embarassed at his performance just a minute before, Hempel was quick to oblige.

Returning to the back window, Stanilus daubed a great deal of oil over the bottom hinge and tried to open it-

And it worked! [Actually, the entire shutter came off in his hands- the wood where the hinge had been nailed being competely rotted away.]

Lowering the shutter to the ground [What else could he do with it?], Stanilus then peered through the crack- but all was blackness.

[FreebirdFootbagging]

Replying to Arkthren, she tells himI hail from The Lormarsh, where I lived with and learned from my parents. Not long ago, I became submerged in wanderlust, and when I reached womanhood and had tapped the reservoir of my parents knowledge I decided to leave in search of adventure and additional knowledge. I was inclined to travel here, as it's one of the few towns faintly familiar to me, to seek a warm bed and nourishment. after sharing her past she pauses briefly, then says What of you? What is your story?

[Pulpatoon]

Hempel passes the hooded lamp, crouches down near the base of the house, cloak and floppy hat pulled tight, and waits to see what Stanilus reports.

[Ythgar]

Arkthren

"Well," Arkthren says as he begins his reply to Aurora. "I've lived my entire life in Rifford and never been farther from it than Highwold, when my master sent me there to obtain some particularly rare herbs for the apothecary. I was apprenticed to my master at the age of 11, and shortly after began to learn some of the arcane arts from him. Other than that my life has been pretty dreary, and I've decided to move on from this town."

[Landifarne]

Arkthren and Aurora exchanged pleasantries and small talk over a bell's period, trying to hide their obvious attempts to divine (or poach) a bit of the other's knowledge of the magical arts. Neither could hide the fact that he/she was a practitioner of magic, and they both enjoyed the repartee that developed. And, as the two spoke, the rest of the taproom's occupants occupied themselves with creating slanderous gossip sure to circulate throughout the village for weeks to come:

"Tha' Ar'thren be a witch, by th' blood!"
"Shush...she'll cas' a hex o' ye."
"Nay, I don' like th' smell o' thing!"
"Argh, she be a ee-vul one. I tell ye."
"Le' th' thrawn ta' me, 'olcome's 'prentice i' a witch."

Engrossed in their conversation, and Arkthren having spent the last of his funds on a couple mugs of mulled wine, the spellcasters failed to notice when Loryn escorted a diminutive figure through the door. Catching sight of the newcomer, the great room immediately went silent. But, continuing with their exchange (the spellcasters were enjoying themselves immensely), Aurora and Arkthren took no notice and were only interrupted when the stablehand brought the traveler directly to their shared table.


"Beg pard', mas'ser Ar'thren, bu' th' dwur nee' speak wi' ye," Loryn insisted, tugging on the apprentice's sleeve. Halted in mid-sentence, Arthren was taken aback, and jumped in his seat when he turned to see a red haired member of the stoutfolk standing before him. The night had become extremely strange...

...which was too much for many of the Fordians in the taproom. Gesticulating frantically, the most superstitious of the yokels warded themselves from evil and fled the Hoof then and there. "Dwur' an' witch both! Bes' check o' th' flock, man!"

The dwarf introduced himself to Arkthren in halting common, just fluent enough to get his point across:

Named Vonnn Onsen, the dwarf explained that he had traveled to Rifford at the insistance of his clan chief, Lord Odovar of Horlenholt. Instructed to travel the breadth of Eastern Norlund, Vonnn related how he was to determine what kinds of trade goods the Norlunders had to offer the Immrick dwarves and, in turn, what dwarven goods the Norlunders' desired the most. [In reality, Lord Odovar had sent Vonnn on a mission to assess what kind of threat the Norlunders would pose to the dwarfrealm over the next few years].

Interested in this new visitor, but eager to get back to his conversation with the Lormarsh witch, Arkthren forestalled the rest of Vonnn's introduction and asked what he could do for the dwarf. Taking the interruption in stride, the dwarf smiled at Arkthren and nodded back to Loryn, who had been speaking with the stoutfolk traveler over the last hour and could hasten things along.

"Dwur mas'ser Vonnn wan' t' know i' e' ca speak wi' Mas'ser 'olcomb o' th' morrow," Loryn explained. " 'olcomb pr'vide th' dwur wi' 'lixer and physic las' winters-dar' an' saf'd many a' stou'folk. 'e wish t' pay i' r'spects t' th' mas'ser."

Catching the stablehand's gist, Arkthren agreed to introduce Vonn Onsen to Holcomb first thing the next day. Exchanging a few pleasantries with the dwarf, Arkthren then turned back to excuse himself from Aurora. The apprentice had so much on his mind that he completely forgot to ask Loryn about his cousin's whereabouts.

For his part, Vonnn headed over to Borlun Fahrlain who the dwarf had met once before. Perhaps the dwarf could get a bit of information from the fur dealer before heading to the stables to bed down. With the arrival of Aurora, Loryn had informed Vonnn that the only space available was in the stable's hay pile- sharing the priviledge of sleeping with a team of pack mules with some fellow named Tay-lor. Must be one of those Suevi barbarians, thought the dwarf...

And for her part, Sulara saw an opportunity to quit guarding piles of sheep dung down in Sou'for and take up her dreams of adventure once again. Things have a way of working out in the end, the barbarian head-basher considered...

Ythgar, Freebird, Sulara, imswayze...please post here once or twice and then switch to the new thread. Everyone please read the Housekeeping thread for an update.

[imswayze]

You'll have to imagine the dwarven accent. I don't have the fortitude to type a ton of broken dialogue, but I will try to keep it colorful!

Vonnn enthusiastically, however wearily, approaches the trapper/trader, not seeming to care or acknowledge the commotion he has helped fuel in the tavern:

Aha, well if it isn't the champion of the rustics? How does the vast wilderness treat you these days Borlun? Not sure you remember our encounter. You were trackin' a wolf two or three year back, and stumbled onto my father's farmland; as it be the very same wolf that be terrorizin' our livestock. My father won't believe I crossed your path again. You should return there once more, and do a sweep for pests. We will all have a great feast. Say man, I'm glad to run into such a veteran of the surroundins...have you trampled out norlund way of late? In my recent travels, I be spottin' a sprinklin' of Norlunder troop movements in the direction of Horlenholt where my brethren be entrenched. Can't help but wonder if those of Norlund be itchin' at expansion out Horlenholt way. Twould be a nuisance to me clan at least. What say you? Have you noticed any similar trends?

As he is chatting up the furrier, Vonnn motions to Emeril for another round for he and Borlun?

I suppose I have the Constitution to throw one down the hatch before hitting the hay...literally...ha ha ha! I hear the Fordian Slip is the pint to be drownin' in over here. Just one though, and then I need to be thinkin' 'bout me bedtime herbs and meditation.

So sir, if I were to meander my way toward the outskirts of Norlund, where might a scout set himself to catch a wide swath of information 'bout what they be thinkin' and plottin' in Norlund?