Delta Blues

Scribe Notes

Summary

Adventure: Delta Blues
GM: Rosemary
Season: Spring 795 WK

Party

• Aqualina, Water Female Human (Scribe)
• Kryan, Illusionist Male Human
• Kismet, E&E Male Human
• Kin, E&E Female Erelheine (Leader)
• Slasher, Non-mage Male Human (Mil Sci)
• Hagan, Non-mage Male Human Leader
• Drover, Earth Male Human

Time on adventure

01/01/795 to 26/01/795 WK

Employer

Dario DelaVelani

Mission

To investigate strange happenings in the Delta with the aim of establishing a permanent safe passage.

Plane

Kazuni

Places Visited

Polgase on the Perrin Islands

Villany - city at the foot of the delta

Various points in the Delta

Major NPCs encountered

Count Kinley and Lady Persia Kinley of Polgase

Captain Francois of the 'Blue Dolphin'

Tonio - Deltan guide

Antonio Del'Zaccaria - our host in Villany

Luka - a young boy and city guide

Tiadata - a friend of Dario

Gatea - from the Namers Guild in Villany

Andreus Pairola - Tonio's cousin

Original Scribe Notes

Media:Snsp9503.zip

Scribe Notes

The adventure that Kryan and I decided to go on was one introduced by one Dario DelaVillainy, a young nobleman from a place called Cassani. They had a river port at the head of a delta and something was affecting the delta causing the channels to shift unpredictably. Some ships weren't getting through. He offered 7000sp each + 500each per week as well as salvage. Basically they wanted a permanent safe passage. So we filed into a meeting room. Our employer was a very elegant young man, tall and slim with dark curly hair and wearing well cut clothing that was dark in colour. He told us about the City of Villainy, which was the one at the foot of the delta. Both city and plane were recovering from the devastation of the Demon Wars. Now the city is one of the major trading powers on the continent. Ever since the war there had been unusual events in the delta. Now the delta itself was changing and the channels through it were no longer permanent. During the last four years the guides had become unable to predict the changes. So since there was no guarantee of passage the city was now virtually cut off. If this continued it was feared that they would have to evacuate by the next spring. Villainy consisted of 6-7000 households. The delta itself is 50-70 miles long and about the same distance across. It resembles a bayou with several small islands and mangrove swamps. The major dangers are alligators and poisonous snakes. Located 100 miles up the river from Villainy is a place called Yagasaki where foreign elves are not welcome. The Demon Wars started with demonic political infighting which escalated turning the entire plane into a battleground. It started 1000 years ago and lasted another 400 although it continued on and off for another 300 after that. Magic is distrusted because it is too closely associated with the demons. Only Namers had continued to be respected. Recently they became 'personae non gratis'. Our employer refused to say why. Then it was decided to ask DelaVillainy to leave us alone to decide who was doing what and to introduce each other. So my fellow adventurers were: Kryan - male human illusionist. Kismet - male human E&E. Kynn - female erelain E&E. Slasher - male orc warrior. Hargan - male human warrior. Drover - male human geomancer. Slasher became the Military Scientist, I was the Scribe and both Kynn and Hargan were joint leaders. Once our party leader returned, he restated our pay then admitted that his father, who is the head of the City Council, doesn't actually know that he is here. Residents of both the city and the delta are on the council. There used to be a representative of the Namers Guild as well, but no longer. It turned out that DelaVelani's sister, Celeste, was a trainee Namer and had been on an affected ship. She had survived, but had been badly affected. So her father was blaming the Namers for not protecting her. The Head of the Namer's Guild, Lady Selinia, had also been on that ship. Her body was still alive but the mind inside had gone. DelaVelani also suggested that Slasher should be disguised otherwise people would think he was demoncursed. Kynn would also need to have her skin lightened to match the colour of the local elves. Fortunately my skin tone matched a society in one of their island groups. That evening there was a party on the Seagate Harbour. Someone had arranged for it to be iced over. Ice skating turned out to be not as difficult as I first thought. 01/01/95 Went for a early morning swim and explored under the ice in the harbour. Neat fun. Meanwhile Kryan had disguised Slasher as a fat human merchant. We gave him the name 'Price'. DelaVelani arrived at that point and told us that we were going by portal to Kazuni (the name of the plane) reaching the Perin Islands then there would be a week or so sailing to Villainy. We would bypass the delta and cover the last part overland. We portalled to an upstairs room in an inn up a mountain then made our way by horse drawn sleigh down the mountain to Polgase arriving just after sunset. .2. Soon we had arrived at the residence of Count Kinley and Lady Persia Kinley. After being shown our rooms we were fed dinner. After dinner we adjourned to the study to discuss the situation with Count Kinley. There had been stories of ships arriving at Villainy with half the crew dead and the other half insane. Other ships never arrived and on some that did some of the people on board had suffered physical mutations such as extra limbs and different coloured hair. It wasn't just the people either. A cargo of hemp had been transformed into tobacco. One ship had even been transformed into a type that hadn't been seen before. This led to speculation on the possibility of alternate, parallel realities and whether or not there was shifting between them. Another possibility was something like warpstone which transmutes everything it touches. Count Kinley mentioned that the City of Frigwhite was frantically rebuilding its docks in order to attract the trade away from Villainy. This prompted the idea that Villainy should finance the construction of a large canal to bypass the delta. 2/01/95 We had a hot bath and breakfast before being called to the study. Count Kinley had prepared a map for us and we studied it eagerly. We had been told that there was a ship in the local harbour that was heading in the general direction of Villainy in the next few days, but we needed to find out what Prince Dario's plans were. So while Kryan and Kynn studied the contents of the library, the rest of us decided to go for a walk. Drover ended up buying boots. Once back at the house we quickly packed. Dario had decided it was time to leave. Shortly we were in a coach heading down the alpine road. By 4pm we had reached the port town. There was a stiff wind and it was looking rough out to sea. While the others arranged for rooms at the Sea Breeze Inn, DelaVelani, Kryan, and I went to arrange for our passage. DelaVelani checked with the harbourmaster and discovered that the 'Blue Dolphin' under the command of Captain Francois, was heading either to Villainy or to nearby Bright's Hope. So we went to discuss the matter with the Captain and found him on board his ship, supervising sailing preparations. He told us that he refused to go through the delta to Villainy but would drop us off at Bright's Hope. He wanted to leave on the tide so we would need to be on board by 5am. Accommodations consisted of 4 cabins surrounding a saloon. The others were just finishing dinner, fish stew, by the time we got back. Afterwards Hargan was fiddling with his harp so I got mine and, together with Kryan, we made a trio. By the time we realised what the time was it was very late. But it was rather enjoyable. 03/01/95 Early morning we made our way to the boat. Once on board we sorted out who was sharing with who. Each cabin held two bunks each. Kryan and I remained together. Kynn and Slasher would be in a cabin next door so Slasher could knock on the adjourning wall when the disguise needed refreshing. Hargan bunked with Drover which left Kismet sharing with DelaVelani. We stayed out of the way while preparations were made to leave, but as we cast off I went on deck to watch. Soon we were out to sea, and it was rough! .3. 09/01/95 This has definitely been the WORST boat trip I have ever been on. It has been stormy the whole trip and the seas have been very turbulent. 10/01/95 Morning and we could see the land. At mid morning we were informed that the ship would be standing off the shore near Brights Hope and we would be rowed ashore. So we packed our gear and made ready to depart. Two trips in the longboat got us and all our gear ashore. Once ashore, DelaVelani led the way inland. Soon we were travelling over dry grasslands. As we walked DelaVelani told us about some of the animals in the delta, like the pike, alligators, and catfish. I found the catfish intriguing. Apparently they leap out of the water and catch birds on the wing. I wanted to know if they purred when they were stroked, but he didn't say. We had been following a creek and at dusk, we stopped to camp. The creek wasn't deep enough for a decent swim but I thought it might have something in it that we could use for dinner. Slasher had a similar idea and managed to sneak up on four ducks and neatly decapitated four of them with the Air Sword. Drover sat down and began a ritual to summon a rabbit. I went eel fishing and ended up wrestling with it on the bank before dispatching it with my dagger. By now Drover's rabbit had arrived so Hargan drew his crossbow and shot it. The impact sent the rabbit hurtling backwards. What was left of it ended up in the stew with the ducks. The eel was smoked for later. Kryan had also been involved in a ritual. When he had finished the camp was covered in a camouflage. From outside it looked like the campsite was not there. The night passed without incident. 11/01/95 Next morning, I sat in the creek and purified. We then proceeded onwards inland until we reached a larger creek then followed it south. Around midmorning we reached a rise and saw smoke in the delta ahead of us. Soon we reached a small village; ten households on the banks of the river. A few canoes were pulled up on the bank. When we arrived Dario was given a very warm welcome. A guide was also assigned to us, a gentleman called Tonio. While we waited for him to organise a large boat, I watched three kids building a raft. Soon Tonio arrived with a punt. I was asked to go up the front and keep an eye open for alligators, once Tonio had shown me what they looked like (a couple of small ones were sunning themselves on the bank.) Half an hour downstream we entered a hardwood forest then continued on through scrub, working our way through a maze of channels. Suddenly Kismet heard screaming ahead. .4. In order to increase our speed, Tonio suggested using the paddles under the seat so Kryan, Drover and I grabbed one each and soon we were speeding down one branch. Just then Kismet called for us to stop as we were going the wrong way. So Tonio slammed the punt pole into the water and we rapidly spun around. I didn't think that was possible for this sort of boat. Just then the screaming stopped. Kismet was looking ahead down the channel through a Wizard's Eye. It opened up into a large open area of water with a small island in the middle. A boat was hidden in a patch of reeds on the near end and a group of rough-looking men were gathered around one who was curled up on the ground. Kismet, Drover, & Hargan went invisible. Cautiously we sailed down the indicated channel and soon we could see what Kismet had described. We came right up to the shore by the reeds and beached the boat. Slasher stepped off the boat, and one of the men took a swipe at him. Kynn fired her bow and the man in front of Slasher suddenly sprouted an arrow - and a crossbow bolt. Must have been Hargan. Drover leapt off the boat and moved up the bank. At the same time Slasher grabbed the man's hand axe, stomped on his foot then threw the axe away. It just missed Drover. Back in the boat, I was clutching my quarterstaff rather nervously in case one of the opposition tried to board. DelaVelani, behind me in the boat, stood up and started waving his sword about. As Kynn went over the side DelaVelani attempted to leap over me to join the fight. Unfortunately he tripped on the staff and plummeted headfirst over the side and into the water. I dropped the staff into the boat and jumped in to pull him out. Then I had to go under again to get his sword. By now Kynn had managed to find their boat in the reeds. Another guy was in it standing by for a speedy getaway. Hargan had reloaded and fired again while Slasher was wrestling with another one. He must have been overenthusiastic as he ripped off an arm. That was the first casualty. Someone tried leaping into our boat into what was apparently was an empty spot, but was occupied by an invisible Hargan who knocked the intruder over the side. Back on the island the battle was definitely going our way - at least most of the time. Slasher hadn't succeeded in closing with his opponent, but it was just as well as Hargan shot the man with Slasher's double crossbow. Drover came up behind the man and knocked him out. Of course that rendered Drover visible as well. He then went to tend the person that had been originally been beaten up. The rest of the ruffians had decided it was best to leave as quickly as possible so they headed for their boat. Kynn dived into the water in order to prevent them from leaving. Underwater, Kynn managed to grasp the pole and jerk the punter off the boat and into the water. The boat capsized. I created a current to bring the boat and the people who were in it back towards us. Soon we had gathered up all the bandits. Two of them had been killed, while Kynn and I restrained the rest with whatever was available. Tonio recognised the person they had been ill- treating as a distant cousin. .5. It was decided to take the bandits with us to Villainy to face summary justice. So the six prisoners were herded onto the boats. Kynn made a litter for Tonio's cousin whom Drover had diagnosed as having slight concussion and broken ribs. The two dead ones were also put on board. Kryan and I took control of the second boat and were soon following Tonio. As we left, Slasher threw the detached arm into the water. Within seconds, something large rose from the water and took the arm in one gulp before disappearing below the deceptively tranquil surface. As the day was fading into twilight we passed our first building. Soon we were in a canal with buildings on either side. This was Villainy. Tonio led us through a maze of canals, many of which were barely wide enough for two boats side by side. The buildings, most of which were two or three stories high, lined the canals and, in many cases, composed the canal walls. In the grey twilight, the whole place looked dark, gloomy, and oppressive. Every so often we passed under an arch bridge. There weren't many walking paths along the sides of the canal and it was soon evident that the primary mode of transport was by boat. A couple of wider main canals ran through the city. They were also packed with boats going hither and thither. I just kept our boat close to Tonio hoping I didn't violate any local 'traffic' laws. It was soon evident that the town of Villainy was built on several small islands completely covered in buildings and criss-crossed with canals. Our destination was the headquarters of the Carbinerri, the local equivalent of the town guard. DelaVelani had already left us, once we had reached town as he wanted to speak to his father before news of our arrival reached him. Soon we were traversing down a narrow canal. At the end was a building with a stone archway containing a pair of open wooden double doors. We entered and pulled up alongside a crude stone wharf. Steps led up from the water level. Waiting on the wharf was a officious gentleman in a uniform. Tonio told him we had some captives and what had happened in the delta. We were escorted inside and conducted into a small room where an officer type was waiting behind a small desk. The bandits were taken somewhere else. As Tonio told the story the officer wrote it down, using some sort of shorthand. When he had finished, the officer took the scroll and told us to wait. The door was closed and locked behind him. Tonio's cousin had regained consciousness and told us that he had been hired by those men to hunt blowfish. But when they had reached the island he was set upon by them. They wanted to know where the 'Chasana' was - a missing boat - and they weren't taking no for an answer. All we could do was wait, so I followed Kynn's lead and took a nap. After quite a few hours the uniformed chap arrived back with a middle-aged weedy man who was the representative from the person we were supposed to be staying with. So we were escorted to the boats and paddled off, Tonio in the lead. After twenty-five minutes of negotiating the narrow canals in the dark we arrived at another, more ornate, building with an archway and doors. This one was lit. As we disembarked we were greeted by a flurry of servants who rushed around gathering up our belongings. DelaVelani and a solidly built gentleman in his mid forties arrived. He was introduced as our host, Antonio DelZaccaria. Even though the hour was late, dinner had been prepared, a collection of red meats, fish dishes and rice. After dinner we retired to our rooms. Four of them, opening to a lounge room, had been prepared for our use.