Suspicious Voices

Scribe Notes

Summary

GM: Bernard
Season: Summer 825 WK
Night: Tue
Location: Online
Level: Med/High

Party

Sabastian
Eugene
Aurora
Vargr
Minerva
Lizette

Employer

Mission

Pay

To Be Discussed

Scribe Notes

Session 1

It’s been a while since I was on a mission and this one seemed extremely suitable for my talents, involving diplomacy, and sneaking around trying to be subtle. We were visited by a merchant called Sir Andrij Petruk who was suspicious of his business rival, a person called Akekchu Running. Recently this rival had been swimming in money and Andrij couldn’t figure out how this rival was doing it. I didn’t seem to be accounted for by just normal trading. Both of them trade between South Riding and the cities east of the Sea of Grass. This rival only uses horses for transport and also has warehouses in Upper and Lower Seagate. We were being paid in a rather heavy bag of silver, so heavy that I couldn’t even lift it. It tipped over and lots and lots of silver coins spilled onto the floor. There were so many coins that I was sure it would take over an hour to pick them all up, let alone count them.

There wasn’t much else he could tell us so we organised ourselves. For some reason, it was decided that I should be the party leader. So I planned to do what all good leaders do, delegate to the underlings. I was also appointed the scribe and Minerva being the Military Scientist.

Next thing we did was to get Greaters. Minerva and I already had one but I decided to accompany the others as they went to get Greaters from Aaron, mainly because I hadn’t seen Aaron and his mother for a while. Meanwhile Minerva set off to visit her merchant uncle and, after being stopped by the guards for wearing an illusion. She then discovers that her uncle isn’t home, nor at the Sulis warehouses. She was rather concerned about this as this was rather unusual.

Sabastian also checked with his contacts which confirmed that the person is making a huge profit but the numbers don't add up - such as the turnover don't account for it. So Sabastian and I went to have a look around the warehouses. It turned out he had two. One was a stand alone building by the docks which had a barndoor entrance that was securely padlocked and chained shut as well as having few visible windows. The other turned out to be a complex of three buildings surrounded by fences and gates.

We all met up afterwards in a nearby tavern, and after a bit of a wait, we managed to obtain a private room. Once we had settled in, we attempted to scry the warehouses with Crystals of Vision. To be honest, I wasn’t too surprised when we discovered they were all scry shielded. We then enquired about places where merchants usually go to conduct business and were given two locations, the Wagoneer and the Velvet Lounge.

Session 2

At the Wagoneer after enquiries, we discovered, they had heard of him there, describing him as a short thin man with dark skin, black hair, dark eyes and a thin face. He wears strange armour from the east called Hatanga. He was last seen in Spring and it was thought he was heading back east. It was also speculated that he carried his goods in several bags of holding.

Day 2.
It was 2am by the time we reached the Velvet Lounge and it was closed. So we headed back to the Guild and slept for most of the morning in the barracks. After that, we headed back into Seagate to look over the warehouses. There were signs of invisible or unseen people on one of the roofs., plus there were magical defences scattered about such as wards on the gates that were triggered by unauthorised entry. We figured that an item was required plus something else, probably a pass phrase. The walls were warded with Necrosis.

Next stop was the Velvet Lounge. The place was very upper class but not quite up to royal court standard in my opinion. Sabastian ended up talking silver mines with the Dell family of halflings from Ranke who passed him on to a human called Brigit whom the Dells sell to. She also knew Aketchu. Meanwhile I was wondering if the nearby elves were from Alfheim and whether they were wine merchants. Maybe they could obtain the rather expensive fey wine I like.

Session 3

As it turned out it could have gone a lot better. For some reason my enquiry about fairy wine was met with 'You don't really want to do that". Seems that they deal in bulk. Basically the conversation didn't go well, they didn't seem welcoming and I really got the impression that they wanted me to go away. So I politely excused myself and left.

After that fiasco we headed out of the city before wildfiring back to the Guild, arriving there a couple of hours after dark. Sabastian tried to read the night sky but all he got was

  Sugar and spice and all things nice
  Chilli, lime, and all things mine 
  Upon the shoaly shores 

Just like any astrology reading, they never make sense until after the event.

Day 3.
First thing the next morning, I’m checking maps and I get suspicious of an area of land east of the Five Sisters, that has no references to it in the Guild Library – no details whatsoever. I suspect no one has been there.

Meanwhile Sabastian does more astrology readings with varying results.

Around mid afternoon, we decide to fly to Southgate – no, not the one in Southern Ranke, the one in Carzala just south of Seagate. We land outside of the town and go to a tavern called the River Goat where I sample the local hooch. Woah, that stuff was potent. Still, when we described Keckchu the barkeep referred to him as a Sea of Grass barbarian. Most of the conversations I was able to listen in on involved cheese and how 'all good things take time'.

We spent the night under Minerva’s tent on the village green where Sabastian did a whole lot more night sky readings. I stayed up as well, keeping watch and recording the results.

Day 4.
Next morning, it was a short flight to Arns Ferry where we found the Sweet Apple Inn. I ended up sampling ciders from all over Carzala.

Session 4

Mid afternoon, we flew back to Seagate where Minerva’s tent was set up, inside which Minerva pulled out her huge gold bed. All the girls and Sebastian slept on it in the hope of getting some prophetic dreams. Unfortunately all we got was a very bad night’s sleep. Sebastian had also tried looking for a Master Astrologer for assistance in interpreting the readings we already had. Unfortunately there was none to be had.

Day 5
Next morning, it was decided to fly towards the other Southgate, the one in Ranke. Two hours later, we landed just south of the town and walked in on the South Road. This road runs from Carzala to Ranke City, now called Alcazar, and at this point, it goes around the fortified town.

We attempted to enter Southport but were stopped by two guards with the insignia of a Black Mailed Fist, holing a Golden Sword, most likely an order of Michaelines. They refused to let us in until we were ‘cleansed’ which involved reading a prayerbook. It was the most tedious and boring book I had ever read and took a total of eight hours to go though all it’s repetitious and turgid text. I was feeling a bit ill at the end and was really hoping this was all going to be worth it. But, even after that, we were still not cleansed because of association, presumably Vargr. At this point, they were wondering if they should fetch an Inquisitor. So we decided to leave. We later found out that Southgate was more of a military outpost than a town. Our merchant was involved in selling Carzalain weapons to them.

As we proceeded north, Minerva came up with a theory that this person was making his money by running illicit and illegal substances.

From the air, just before dusk, we spotted a small hamlet that was connected to the main road by a dirt track that was several miles long. So, being the adventurers we are, we decided to check it out. What we saw was fifteen houses surrounded by a ditch. One side faced the river. Just after we landed, in the hope of spending the night, we were spotted by someone with a handcard who ran into the village. Shortly after that, the defensive mound was manned and we were told in no uncertain terms ‘There is nothing for you here’.

We decided to leave and carry on. Twenty minutes later, the river forked and we saw a town on a rock outcrop between the rivers. This was Labragurie and was known for it’s apple and plum cider, which of course, I sampled. Sabastian was looking for a game of cards and found one at the Five Wheeled Wagon. He also discovered that no merchants operate out of here but several wagoners do. Meanwhile I was discussing music with a couple of fiddle players. Maybe I should learn to play one. We ended up spending a couple of days here.

At this point, the choice was to keep going north or start looking for the trade route east.

Information

Below is the information we have gained in AR and his operation.

Table Title (Optional)

Source	answer	Comment
Astrology: ask what the thing is that AR is trading	Sugar and spice and all things nice Chilli, lime, and all things mine Upon the shoaly shores	none
Sun - What place is best known as the shoaly shores –	no meaningful answer	See first astrology question. Not a specific location
Astrology- What geographical location AR her sourcing the things	no meaningful answer	Multiple locations?
Where is AR sourcing his goods –	no meaningful answer	Multiple locations?
Astrology- Who is the biggest buyer of the thing? –	fails. (not no answer)	The person is protected from Astrology?
Astrology- What is the largest city the trading route with Aekchu high profit good travel through -	Upon the sugar, there it comes.	It travels along the Sweet waters? (not according to the answer below) so maybe the Sweet Riding? Or make a city with a sweet name?
Night sky - What plane is the destination the largest volume of goods are handed over	No meaningful answer
Night sky- Are any of the good goods a living creatures?	does an octopus know how to juggle with eight cups and saucers and the fish watching him while the elephants swim
Night sky- When are the goods next passing through Arns ferry?	The sun was shining on the sea Shining with all his might He did his very best to make The billows smooth and bright
Night sky- Do the goods travel along the Sweet Water?	No meaningful answer.	Interesting this was no a yes or no. Not sure why.
Night sky- Do the goods travel through the Arns ferry via a barge?	No meaningful answer.
Night sky-• Do the goods travel through the Arns ferry via a horse?	No meaningful answer.
Dock workers in Seagate - what does AR trade in	He buys a lot of leatherworks (Seagate), weapon-work (Seagate, Brastor), precious metals (more from Rank).
Seagate investigation - looking at his warehouse	Protected by R20 Necrosis wards, Invisible guards, Permanent durability on the walls etc.

Mil-Sci

Daily pattern

‘’How much time does the party spend sleeping, eating, traveling, doing rituals, etc each day’’

Travel Magics

‘’What travel magic options does the party have, how far per cast/or per day if duration is longer than usual travel time.’’ ‘’Can the party eat/sleep/etc on the mode of transport.’’

Watch Order

Day Watch. ‘’Used when stationary, or on a larger transport such as a ship’’
First - ??
Second - ??
Third - ??

Night watch
First - ??
Second - ??
Third - ??

Vision

• Sabastian; R18 Nightvision (230ft), Hobbit infravision 100ft, Witchsight R6/R20
• Eugene
• Aurora
• Vargr
• Minerva
• Lizette

Marching Order

Skirmish Formations (Front)
Double File	Single File

Buffs

General Buff Notes

Buffs listed in the table don't need to be detailed, other buffs not on the table must be mentioned at the time they are cast.
Y means always on, N/- means never on, 'Sit.' means when the party has time for buffs before a fight.
Weapon Spells which weapon/s it is going on normally should be noted also

Long duration buffs

Magic	Rk	Effects	Dur	Sa	Eu	Au	Va	Mi	Li
Linking Lifeforce (Sa)	4	This ritual allows the Adept to bind an object to the life-force of an entity. The object will reflect the entity’s physical condition if they are within 500m	Permanent
Shadowform(Sa)	9/15	+20/32% defence melee/ranged and 10/16% in close	5/8 Hours
Witchsight (Sa)	20	see objects or entities which are invisible. see in the dark as a Human does on a cloudy day, with an effective range of vision of 150 feet under the open sky, and 75 feet elsewhere.	10.5 Hours
Strength of Stone (Va)	8	The target of this spell has their Physical Strength or Endurance	9 Hours
Shadow Wings (Sa)	14/20	The target of this spell receives wings comprising Dark and will carry the target, and anything that the target can carry, at a speed of 16-44mph/0-60mph. Can change speed with a magical pass action.	7.5/10.5 Hours
Coruscade (Mi)	17	Adds 36 defense	9 Hours
Resist Cold (Au)	6		7 Hours

Short duration buffs

Magic	Rk	Effects	Dur	Sa	Eu	Au	Va	Mi	Li
Blending (Sa)	11/17	While remaining still the target is not able to be seen by non-magical means (i.e. as for invisibility).	11/17h
Walk Unseen(Sa)	6/12	The target of this spell may move unnoticed, not invisible. This means that it will not transmit light.	7/13h
Witchsight (Sa)	20	see objects or entities which are invisible. see in the dark as a Human does on a cloudy day, with an effective range of vision of 150 feet under the open sky, and 75 feet elsewhere.	10.5 Hours
Creating Rune Weapon (Va)	9	The Adept may create a magically poisoned weapon by inscribing a Rune of Acid on a weapon and activating it with the Rune Weapon spell.	14 Mins
Durability (Sa)	10	One object weighing up to 22 pounds may be made more resilient and less susceptible to damage. Armour protected by this spell will have 3 extra Protection to a maximum of the equivalent Steel armour. Note that the added Protection replaces (rather than adds to) any other Protection bonuses due to a material’s strength (eg Armourer bonuses). If the item is broken, or armour suffers damage from a Specific Grievous, the magic is dispelled	110 Mins
Resistance to Light (Mi)	12		130 minutes
Light Sword (Mi)	8	Adds +9 Strike Chance +3 damage	13 minutes

Self only buffs

Magic	Rk	Effects	Dur	Sa	Eu	Au	Va	Mi	Li
Charismatic Aura (Sa)	20	+25% to reaction rolls (conditional)	105m
Heroism(Sa)	15	+15% to fear checks for friendlies in line of sight.	Permanent

Other

Wand(Sa) - can increase all aspects of a spell/talent, except BC, by 6 ranks. Prevents doubles, triples. Only for the colleges; Earth, Water, Celestial (star, light, dark), Solar, Air, Life (i.e., wiccan), Rune, Fire. Fiddly to use

Calendar

‘’Insert correct month here’’