The Dragon Horde
Summary
Adventure: The Dragon Horde
GM: Daryl Crosby
Season: Winter 799 WK
- Party
- Liessa - Female Human Mind Mage (Party Leader) - William D.
- Hagan, Male, non-mage spy, ’smith, mechanician (Scribe) - Michael P
- Eidelon, Male, Solar (Mil Sci) - Andrew W.
- Shemin-ah, Female Plains-Nomad, Ice - Rosemary M
- Tobias Tilbury, hobbit male, non-mage (1st Guild contract) - Michael G
- Employer
- Jake Sterling
- Agent
- Cuthbert Worzy, representative of Jake Sterling, says the Employer wants a party skilled in the wilderness. There’s lots of healing in the party, everyone but Tilbury, and the employer will boost Tilbury up to the level of the group (with a Greater Enchantment and, maybe, some items).
- Location
- Dragon Isles (Alusia)
- Mission
- To escort Jake Sterling on a diplomatic/trade mission to S’Garth City, a city in an area that has been in turmoil lately. His purpose is to re-confirm trade links, etc, with the new authorities and investigate conditions to the south of that city. We are bodyguards rather than diplomats. It is expected that there will be several weeks travel through unsettled forests and mountains, known to be bandit-infested. The pay will be 5000 sp. each, already deposited with the guild. We have been allowed to take some in advance, for expenses (up to 2000 sp.). The employer will pay all travelling and accommodation expenses (and probably ther stuff where needed).
- Original Astrological Reading
- Link to Full Reading
- (Ed. Omitted from scribe notes as reading is suspiciously similar to certain song lyrics)
- Original Scribe Notes
- Media:Snwi9902.zip
Scribe Notes
The Job
Jake Sterling is a representative of Nilreb, the capital of Dravogen, smallest of the 4 main islands. There are currently major problems trading into the southern half of Dragon Isle, but with little information as to why. Jake is to visit S’Garth City, the major town of the region, and then probably travel further south, which is a more unsettled area. There have been 4 previous Guild missions to the territory of the Dragon Isles (and/or the plane of Faeleph). ASIDE: See the web site has scribe notes from all previous adventures: Dog Bothering (Spring 798), Rabbit Adventure (Autumn 797), Where is Gammy? (Autumn 796), Dorvogel’s Dungeon (Spring 795).
The Real Mission
As it was eventually revealed to us: we were actually there to protect Jake (when he wanted it) while he was spying, and to ensure that at least one of Jake or Thornton made it back to Civilization.
On Alusia, the Dragon Isles are a group of islands some 2000 miles SE of Seagate. Dravogen seems to be a settled, well populated, magic rich, and prosperous island. Nilreb is near its centre and has a good canal/river access to both north and south coasts.
Dragon Isle is by far the largest of all the other islands. There is a good trade route to S’Garth City (the town which lies vaguely in the middle of that adjacent island), which is a small-to-medium walled-town with a castle. S’Garth City is the administrative capital of Dragon Isle. A couple of years ago its lord was changed from Gammy, a dwarf, to S’Garth Postlethwaite, a human. (See previous scribe notes). S’Garth has encouraged an influx of orcs to settle in the town, and discouraged the dwarves, who have been moving out in large numbers. The southern half of Dragon Isle is reputed to be lightly settled, with large uninhabited areas and bandits. We have little information.
The Dragon Isles on Alusia have close links with a set of similar islands on the plane of Faeleph. There is a close link between the two places. While events are not duplicated the geography, political regions, significant personalities etc seem to have equivalents in both places. There are reputed to be many portals between the two planes. Throughout the mission we were afraid we might stray onto the other plane, but it probably never happened (we D.A.ed regularly). The guild later advised that Persons of Significance reside in one plane or the other, but may travel between the planes in order to meddle in the affairs of both.
1st of Frost
We meet Cuthbert, collect scribe notes of previous parties, & go through portal to Nilreb late afternoon [Seagate time]. Those of us who have horses take them as well. The portal functions by “stepping into a room, turning right, stepping out again, and you’re at the destination.” When we arrive at Nilreb, it is about midnight; so we sleep in local inn.
2nd Frost
We go to the city’s castle to contact our employer; but he is staying at Therlighten’s Tower, a friend’s place, about an hour out of town, so we go there in the afternoon. Therlighten is a fire mage and his Tower is a fire mage community, with training, alchemists, etc. We muck around between town and the Tower while Tilbury is powered up. During this time, the dwarves contact us, asking us to plant an item under the castle in S’Garth City. It is a teleport item so that the dwarfs can go and beat up on the orcs. We lead them on, to find out more about it, and then tell our employer (Jake) everything. He isn’t really worried, but declines to get involved in what looks like a developing feud between the dwarves and orcs. Jake explains that Gammy lost lordship of S’Garth City after being accused of murder.
3rd Frost
Eidelon goes pub-crawling (in that costume!). Anancy, who runs the Tower for Therlighten, invites the party to Dinner. We go up the tower many steps — in fact we go higher than it physically exists (atlas from the outside). The elf in blue fowling flowing robes is Therlighten. The food is good, but Jake is not present.
CONFIDENTIAL
(These attached postscripts are NOT allowed out of the Guild Library)
One other guest at that dinner was a Bearded Dwarf in brown, female, who turned out to be Gammy. Our meeting was hush-hush & was not mentioned to the Employer.
Gammy said there was trouble ahead for Dravogen & Dargen, fermented by someone in Dragon Isle. Gammy revealed that she had apparently lost a Citadel. She & some mates (including Steal, Fenris, Thum, & Kaynom) beat up the giant, orc, & human baddies (who used to own it) according to the traditional dwarven methods — i.e. blood everywhere. Gammy then left a skeleton crew of about 10, but she hadn’t heard from them in a while.
The missing citadel was some 5-10 minutes down a side-canyon. Gammy gave us a ring that would alert the troops that we were in the vicinity (but if we took the ring off, they wouldn’t be alerted); and, to identify us as good-guys, she also gave us a circular amulet on a chain — the device looked like a triangle with a dot in each corner. She asked that we hide citadel’s existence from Jake.
One possible enemy was discretely mentioned: Rholf Ycart (never say his name aloud!) who was a superficially human baddy that had dogged Gammy’s party & had done them over.
