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Half a dozen sheets if paper should do the trick please.
The merchant district sounds fitting for the bard's ambitions but he is going to have to figure out a way of making some serious steel to afford that place and the upkeep.
Gregeddin would like to spend some time looking at his identity papers in the morning, before heading down to the grinning goat with his zither to play some tunes and lend an ear to passing conversation. He is happy to speak to both shady characters and the army to find out what's bugging them these days. Has there been any word of miriam or Ismene, for Haahqae benefit that Gregeddin could relay to him? Or have they vanished in the chaos?

Okay, I've added six sheets of paper, one vial of ink with a quill and one pound of sealing wax to his inventory and subtracted the amount of coin.

I've also removed 500 STP from his inventory. He is now the owner of a nice house in the merchant district, 300 Market Street. It's a nice place that contains a master bedroom, a guest room (which could be converted into a study or library or whatever if you don't expect a lot of visitors), a living room, and a kitchen. Considering that time moves fairly slowly, or has so far, anyway, he shouldn't have too much trouble raising 100 STP soon.

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Here are the events of Autumn Harvest 26, Day 6 of the occupation.

Haahqae regains 1 HP. He spends another 5 silver on his room. Under Arulia's care, Kendra regains 2 HP.

Gregeddin buys a house--a nice one on market street. His parents are proud to see him moving up in the world. He spends more time at the Grinning Goat, trying to get a feel for things. The morale of the army seems pretty high. The goblins and hobgoblins are happy that they get to kill humans and elves and dwarves. The draconians, at least the baaz, seem like simple soldiers. They do what they are told and don't question their orders. They seem perfectly content with drinking and fighting, really.

The local criminal element, on the other hand, is quite unhappy with the occupation. It's become increasingly impossible to commit any crime on one's own. The army always seems to be at hand. Whenever they bring someone in for questioning, they always seem to get a full confession, no matter how skilled a liar the suspect is. However, word on the street is that Necolai, the leader of the old thieves guild, evaded capture and is planning a comeback. Nobody seems sure where he is hiding, but the news brings them hope.

Gregeddin also attempts to track down Miriam and Ismene. The two don't exactly blend into a crowd, after all--if they are still in the city, it shouldn't be too hard to find them. After awhile, he manages to find out they both got rooms at the Masked Dragon Inn. Although refugees, they avoided the purge because of all of the coin they acquired from the hill giant's lair. Both are uncertain what to do next. Miriam wants to overthrow the army, but realizes they need an army for that. She has sent word via carrier pigeon to her homeland, hoping to contact her father, but no reply has come yet. Ismene isn't sure if she should remain here or return to Wayreth or go somewhere else entirely.

Thank you Jaded. Gregeddin moves his stuff out as best as possible, doing his best to conceal his bulky weapons in bedding and sheets. Realising crime on the street is gone he doesn't need to wear his leather armour. He also decided to change the spells he memorises message and hypnotism.
He will suggest Ismene go see Haahqae for advice and to keep his company for a while as he recovers. He doesn't know how to help miriam at the point but asks to be kept updated On her progress.
Seeing Magnus as the most reliable source of arcane magic, Gregeddin would like to see if Magnus would consider teaching him a particular spell. But this requires the bard to figure out what the mage wants in return fifor such an education. Money, information, errands, or anything else anything the bard can do to earn the spell.

Finally in the evening, Gregeddin will return to the grinning goat tavern and quietly spread a few whispers to the unsavoury citizens that he can offer a discrete conferencing service in plain sight. The news that necolai will return is a promising rumour, but life and more importantly trade and communication must go on...

I went ahead and updated the blank section for the Holy Order of the Stars in the War of the Lance Basic Info thread. Other than just adding the names of the 21 gods, I only included information on the three gods that have been formally introduced so far--Zivilyn, Paladine and Takhisis. I'll add more information as more gods are introduced in the game.

I also updated the Places and People thread, as I'm sure you all noticed. I was originally going to just delete the old information and replace it with the new information. But I decided to leave up the old information just for comparison to how Haven used to be, to how it is now (note the difference in population and the race ratios). I also added new stuff to the map, including the homes of the PCs.

Now I need to update the calendar and we'll be more or less ready to go, beyond waiting for some feedback from a couple of players.

Anyway, Magnus will find the revelation that Gregeddin can cast spells to be interesting. He'll agree to charge the standard rate for a spell, which is 100 STP per spell level (so 100 for a 1st level spell, 200 for a 2nd level spell, etc.) for each attempt (meaning if he fails his roll, he still has to pay). Unfortunately, Gregeddin's account is a little low after buying that house. He can wait and hold off until he has the funds, then come back and give it a try. Or...there is a task Magnus needs doing that he would be willing to trade a spell for. It's dangerous, so Gregeddin might want to round up some of his friends--and he suggests taking Tulbas, who could use more field experience. He won't give any details until he accepts, though.

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Here are the events of Autumn Harvest 27, Day 7 of the occupation.

Haahqae regains 1 HP. He spends another 5 silver on his room. Under Arulia's care, Kendra regains 2 HP.

Gregeddin finishes moving into his house and visits Magnus about learning a new spell. Later, he goes to the Grinning Goat to offer conferencing services. There are no takers so far.

Well Magnus seems to have a vested interest in Tulbas, so his mission can't be suicidally dangerous unless he's attached some sort of failsafe to Tulbas.

If he approaches Haahqae, he would be willing to go and would encourage Ismene to go as well, although for the first time ever Haahqae may be a little inquisitive on if there will be pay for the mission.

As it become obvious the old gods are here Tulbas willb inquire Magnus as a side talk during practice or research if he knew for long time about the old gods intervention in life. Then he tries to get information if he knows about other god. which are active and how was it that no one in Haven knew about it. And Raetmal also.

When Magnus will offer Tulbas to go on a mission with Gregeddin he will express his happiness to be few days out of the shop. Leaving it on the edge just before its a complete rudeness against Magnus.

If Tulbas hears of the potions he will check what they sell there and probably acquire some magical item if he can afford it.

Did Magnus managed to disarm all Raetmals traps? Tulbas will enlist everything Raetmal had in the shop as best as he can and will also write what Magnus used.

Tulbas will give Kendra a polite visit. Asking how is she doing and if she need something. He will ask about Darga and assuming bevtold his story will go to visit the place where Fisban vanishedvwith him and express his sorrow for the dwarf He will also ask the details of what happened with the giant from Gregeddin or Haaque.

I'm not near the books and going to have very stressful week. Also I'm having ng internet issues so I'll adds few spells as we go with the adventure if that OK with you jadeddm.

Yes, Gregeddin needs to earn some extra funds with his ambitious / extravagant lifestyle. The job from Magnus seems to be the way forward, however Gregeddin will take some time to consider it / stall for his allies to regain their health and strength. I think Tulbas Haahqae and Ismene would be a fun wizards outing but we could use some toughness and it would be good to connect with Kendra and Arulia, assuming their characters are interested in the mission. Regarding that point, I doubt miriam would want to help a bard run an errand for a black robe wizard...
Given how Gregeddin was turned away by norris, perhaps Tulbas will have better reconnecting with Kendra.

In the mean time, Gregeddin actions are to chill in the grinning goat with his zither, passing the time with food, drink and tinkling tunes in the corner somewhere. Waiting discretely. He probably uses up some of the plentiful coppers he has. (This is me projecting my real life dislike of having too much loose change in my wallet.)

Okay, I updated the calendar. Looks like everything is set then. I'll start the new chapter tomorrow.

BishGada wrote:As it become obvious the old gods are here Tulbas willb inquire Magnus as a side talk during practice or research if he knew for long time about the old gods intervention in life. Then he tries to get information if he knows about other god. which are active and how was it that no one in Haven knew about it. And Raetmal also.

Magnus would reveal that Takhisis actually returned to this world a long time ago, around a century, and she has been slowly building her forces since then. He can also state with certainty that the three gods of magic--Solinari, Nuitari and Lunitari--are real and active. He claims Nuitari, the son of Takhisis, is siding with her in the war. Magnus knows little to nothing about any other gods.

BishGada wrote:If Tulbas hears of the potions he will check what they sell there and probably acquire some magical item if he can afford it.

At the moment, they are only selling Potions of Healing for 400 STP a piece. All proceeds to go the temple, of course. The potions are brewed by the high cleric there, and it takes time and energy, but hopefully they will expand their inventory to other potions. They can also scribe scrolls, but that is of little use to any non-clerics.

The clerics there can also just heal you with a regular spell casting, but they will only do this for worshipers of Takhisis--and even then, you might find the asking price fairly steep (and I don't mean in terms of coin)!

BishGada wrote:Did Magnus managed to disarm all Raetmals traps? Tulbas will enlist everything Raetmal had in the shop as best as he can and will also write what Magnus used.

Magnus did dispel the traps and then placed new ones himself to replace them. He has not allowed Tulbas back there at all so far.

Anyway, keep in mind that Miriam and Ismene are still higher level than the party, and so if taken on any quests they will take a bigger share of treasure and XP.

Oh, yeah. One more thing. I wanted to introduce a new mechanic to the game--faction alignment. There are lots of different factions in the city, and they will have a 'relationship meter' with the PCs, the same way NPCs do (Revered, Friendly, Indifferent, Cautious, Threatening, Hostile--a numerical scale from 1-20).

If you do things that benefit a faction or makes them happy, you will earn points with that faction. Likewise, if you piss them off or act against their goals, you will lose points. Most of the factions will begin indifferent toward you (10), but certain races and classes may adjust your beginning score (if you were playing a cleric of Takhisis, for instance, you would probably start with a higher score for the Church of Takhisis).

In order for an act to have an effect, however, the faction must know about it. Killing those Ergothians would have earned some big disapproval from the Holy Guard back in Arc 1...had they ever known it was the party who had done it.

Furthermore, the relationship you have with a faction is only applied to the group in general. Individuals might feel differently. For instance, while Tulbas' actions in Arc 1 might have pleased the Cultists of the Master as a whole--but Darewind himself would still be pissed at Tulbas for trying to show him up. Generally speaking, any named NPC will not necessarily be affected by the faction's relationship with the PC--it's just the nameless masses that are affected.

"Revered" means the faction views you as a hero. They adore and respect you, and you probably have immense pull with them. They will probably loan whatever resources they have to you and may even follow you over their own leader(s).

"Friendly" means the faction considers you an ally. They trust you, but probably won't risk their own necks for you without good reason.

"Indifferent" means that the faction has no strong feelings toward you, if they have even heard of you before.

"Cautious" means the faction is suspicious or distrustful of you. For whatever reason, they don't trust you at all.

"Threatening" means the faction views you as an enemy. At best, they want nothing to do with you. At worst, they may actively try and stymie you.

"Hostile" means the faction views you as a huge threat. They will devote large amounts of resources to hunting you down.

There are a lot of factions in the city and I can't really name them all (and new ones may be introduced later). But to name a few, there is the Church of Takhisis, the various brigades and companies of the Red Dragonarmy, the farmers of Haven, the merchants/craftsmen of Haven, the dockworkers of Haven, the aristocrats of Haven, the thieves guild (if/when it becomes active again), and so on. Each faction has a leader (or leaders) and a headquarters.

Sometimes factions may oppose each other in certain ways, and helping one means angering another. Not all of the factions will come into play, but as each one is introduced, I'll begin charting the PCs' relationship with them, just as I would with any new NPC introduced.

Anyway, new chapter tomorrow!

JadedDM wrote:Okay, I updated the calendar. Looks like everything is set then. I'll start the new chapter tomorrow.

Cool! I look forward to it.

Oh, yeah. One more thing. I wanted to introduce a new mechanic to the game--faction alignment. There are lots of different factions in the city, and they will have a 'relationship meter' with the PCs, the same way NPCs do (Revered, Friendly, Indifferent, Cautious, Threatening, Hostile--a numerical scale from 1-20).

Sounds like fun. I've wanted to try a mechanic like this in my own games. I look forward to seeing how it works!

Thanks. I've been wanting to develop a system for reputation for awhile now. But in most games, the party is constantly on the move--hopping between cities and nations and even worlds. However, as this party has--at least so far--remained in the same city this whole time, and most of you have shown an interest in building allies and wielding influence, this seems like the perfect game for reputation building. Hopefully it works out well.

And with the internet, reputation becomes international! Oh wait... no internet there yet...

The chapter title makes me smile each time.
I hope I get the chance to work in "It's only a flesh wound!" at some point

The Occupation's chief weapon is surprise. Surprise and fear. Fear and surprise. Their two weapons are fear and surprise...and ruthless efficiency. Their three weapons are fear, surprise and ruthless efficiency...and an almost fanatical devotion to Takhisis. Their four...no...Amongst their weapons...Amongst their weaponry...are such elements as fear, surprise...

I'll come in again.

djhyland, I suspected you drew your avatar yourself, so I went to the character description (only now) and saw wrote that you really did.
Nice work!