Run Date: November 15th, 2022
PCs
Arken: Lv2 Artificer
Willow: Lv2 Cultist of Laurenia
TAG: Lv1 Rogue
Return to Area 51: Babysitter's Club
We opened the session as normal; with the players going over their downtime and figuring out what to do. Rebel was still training and would be out for another week so Arken suggested they go check out Area 51: the unlisted hamlet they happened across a few weeks back. Willow hopped in, figuring she had nothing better to do, and Rebel's player brought her rogue TAG (I forgot what it stood for).
The PCs meet up to discuss their plans and goals. Arken, due to a result of the Carousing table, has a two year old boy in tow. He does a quick introduction and explains that he wants to hit up Area 51 and see if he can't gain some "insight" into the experiments they were running. When the party happened upon it last time, a pillar of black smoke was filling the air and they discovered an experimental warship running on a black, flammable substance. They'd help the foreman rescue some of the workers, and were rewarded with some hush money.
I've mentioned before that I've been using 1:1 time. Well, I've also been using our weather patterns. Today was dark, cold, and miserable. It seemed that the players didn't quite remember that, however, as Willow and Arken gathered the old cart Arken had in his backyard and headed out. Meanwhile, TAG was on babysitting duty. Her role while they were gone was to do a bit of information gathering and try to find any rumours of Area 51; be it supply caravans or movements.
Day 1
TAG started her mission dragging around Jonny, Arken's two year old, to some less shady taverns. She spent some time teaching him how to play up his position and look sad to garner sympathy, then worked her way to a hangout where college students hang out. Riversmeet doesn't have a university proper, but their community college isn't terrible. While snacking with Jonny, she listened in on some students rambling about life, papers, and parental expectations. She found an opening to step into the conversation with a freshman named Arthur. He rambled for about an hour about how he didn't mind trading and was great with the ledgers, but he wanted to travel and build his own company. He didn't prove overly useful in regards to Area 51, but TAG did have an opportunity to explore her own background a bit. Who knows, maybe this kid will be useful later?
Meanwhile, Arken and Willow had a rough time of things. They realized too late that they left in the middle of frozen, albeit dry, weather. Worse yet, they nearly fell into a pit trap. Arken managed to steer the horses just fast enough to avoid a sharp fall, but not quick enough to stop the encroaching ambush. To their luck, these bandits were on the friendly side (Reaction Rolls win again). Arken and Willow took a quick head count and realized they were outnumbered no less than 10 to 1 and at least 10 of those were cavalry. Crossroads Cavalry, as it turns out.
The Cavalry captain stepped forward and gave the pair a wave and friendly greeting. He told the PCs that the roads had been dangerous of late and the weather rather unhelpful. He also asked what brought them to the area and Arken, in his infinite wisdom, told them they were traveling merchants (TAG's facepalm was heard across Riversmeet). Just before the robbing commenced, however, Willow used her connection to Laurenia to charm the captain. The conversation continued as normal, and the captain rode toward the wagon. Arken held his fire, hoping that whatever Willow did would work, and sure enough, "Ah, a faithful of the Saint. It's bad luck to rob a lady on pilgrimage." Two sighs of relief went out as the captain waved his cohorts off. "You know, things have been rough at camp for us and we could use a priest to tend our wounded and offer last rites to the lost. We could offer something for your time, just swing back by if you're interested and I'll take you to the camp." Willow thanked the captain for his offer and said she'd keep it in mind. After that, he wished the pair a safe journey.
That night, they slept outside in a frozen drizzle.
Day 2
TAG's adventures in babysitting continued. This time, she hit up Mortimer (the local mortician) and a Bob the Beggar. For Mortimer, her line of questioning focused on the recently interred, specifically those that have burned. At some point, she tipped her hand a bit too far; but Mortimer seemed to ignore it. He explained that bodies wouldn't normally come from far off without need of a proper autopsy, and even then it would be faster for the mortician to travel than potentially move rotting flesh. With that, TAG bid farewell and headed over to BB. Their conversation was profitable, for BB at least. Turns out he had actually heard a few things in regards to Area 51, or so TAG assumed. He told her that there was some hiring going on for mercs and infiltrators, but it was being kept on the down low. "Whoever is doing the hiring doesn't want the competition to know." TAG also learned that the Crossroad Cavalry was the target of this private crew.
Meanwhile, Arken and Willow woke up from a terrible night. They were damp, nearly frozen, and absolutely miserable. They even considered heading back to town at one point, but Arken threw caution to the wind. Today's trip did have one bright side, however. About halfway through the day, Arken's navigation lead the wage into a bundle of trees and plants. The area was still thick enough to shield from the wind so the pair took a quick break to warm up. Arken noticed some white flowers growing up in the area, protected from the frost. He plucked one and gave it a look over before figuring out that it was hellebore. The good news is that he didn't hurt himself, and the better news is that he managed to gather up a good amount of samples (enough for about 12 doses if he doesn't mess it up). Though it delayed their trip an hour or so, at least the two wouldn't be going back empty handed.
Later that day, just before the sun set, Arken and Willow arrived in a burned down hamlet. They reasoned that it had to have happened a while ago since everything had gone cold and there were no signs of anything. While Willow set up camp for another night, Arken did a quick search of the area. His expertise as an artificer was a boon, as he managed to identify the residue as abnormal. Alas, it was getting dark and he'd have to pick up on the morrow.
It was frozen, but at least no drizzle this time.
Day 3-5
TAG's investigations continued apace. Today, she intended to hit up some Red Suns employees. Much like the first day, she chose a particular tavern and waited. Jonny had been well-behaved the last few days, overall a good kid. In the lulls in her questioning, she even took to teaching the kid some of her own tricks. It'd be some time before he could pick a pocket, but he could master the puppy dog eyes with a bit of practice.
Around lunch time, TAG spotted an opportunity. A floor salesman had come in to have a drink and relax. Customer service seems to work the same in fantasy worlds as real life. How convenient. TAG introduced herself, her "son," and joked with the lady about having done similar work to keep the boy fed. The lady eventually introduced herself as Dahlia, and the two got into a conversation regarding Red Suns policy. "Is it dangerous working where someone could just hold you up with one of your display pieces?" TAG asked. Dahlia chuckled and explained that all Red Suns employees go through their own training as part of the hiring process and most who've tried to pull a stunt like that were dead before the thought left their mind.
As the conversation moved forward, TAG discovered that the Red Suns had been receiving chunks of solid gold as payment for making larger, but still simple, lumberjacking gear. She pointed out the rumors from the Lumberjacks' first visit, and explained how their nickname came about. Though none of the information connected to Area 51, Dahlia and TAG parted pleasantly.
Over the next couple days, TAG would take a break and focus on Jonny's care and "lessons."
For Arken and Willow, things were looking up. Despite another frozen night of misery, Arken managed to find a secret trapdoor buried under a bunch of frozen soot. He was met with a strong, acrid scent and left his torch topside with Willow while he descended a set of solid wooden stairs. This sub-basement was hewn from the local rock and set up specifically for whatever was stored. To his surprise, and luck, there was still something here: 6 iron casks. He carefully began checking them, finding all but 2 to be empty. One still had remnants of black sludge sticking to the sides and the other had about a pint worth of strong-smelling liquid. Though it wasn't much, Arken was happy to not leave empty-handed. The two loaded up their wagon and started on their way back home.
Arken messed up his navigation on the way back, but besides returning a day late, nothing of major interest happened. TAG did start weighing how she was going to spend Jonny's inheritance should he not return, though.
Epilogue
Once the party regrouped, they shared their information and Arken did an experiment on the liquid. He dipped a pine cone and set it alight on some cobblestones. He didn't set anything on fire, thankfully, and immediately started setting up his basement lab to try and recreate and study this substance. (Gas? In my fantasy RPG? It's more likely than you think)
Rewards
An amount of XP I forgot to write down (4, maybe?)
Downtime
Arken: Studying the gas for the next couple months. Either we'll get a new substance added to the campaign, or a catastrophic fire.
TAG: Small risk heist, doubled her money
Willow: Shopping and rest
Baldur: Pit Fight: Champion Edition. Nearly killed by a hammer to the head from Raven the Ravager.
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