Hot, Partially cloudy, Moderate wind
The sun dawns on a new year in Brindol, and the festival of Alcar is in full swing. Bjerg and Bragi barter for bed and board at The Open Road. Skadi, Daren purchase rooms, and Sturla cons a place to sleep out of Dagamar, the innkeep. Bragi performs a comedic poem which is well received, and earns 3sp.
Bjerg inquires about work and he recommends we ask House Gaarn about caravan escorts, and told about The Bear Pit.
Bear pit: great timbered ring, sunken pit. banked seats. Seats 500. There is a sub level that has gates into the pit.
Bjerg, Skadi and Sturla head to the Bear Pit and look for the pit master. We find him and he introduces himself as The Bear of Brindol and he tells us there are no fights he can get us in today, but if we hang around we'll see quite the show. We agree to pay for cheap seats and file up to the nosebleeds. The pit master makes a poor joke and introduces the first fight: A 9 foot tall bear on a chain vs a pack of dogs. The bear is given 2:1 odds. Bjerg bets 1GP and loses it as the dogs are torn to pieces. The floor is open to any fighter who wants to go against the bear for a prize pool of 100GP and they are given 1:5 odds against the bear. Broke Bjerg and Sturla ask to fight the bear together and are granted the opportunity. They charge forward and Bjerg slay it with one expert thrust of a halbard.
50GP ea for Bjerg and Sturla
100XP ea for Bjerg and Sturla
After getting back to The Open Road, Bragi privately scolds Bjerg and then publicly praises Bjerg and Sturla for their feat. Bragi is approached by a prostitute and he kicks Bjerg out so he can sleep her.
Warm, Drizzly, Moderate Wind
In the morning, we ask where we can find the House of Gaarn and sign on to a caravan.
(some stuff happened, i don't remember what)
We bump into Berto, an underclassman fellow of Bragi, and he gives us three rumors. In payment, Bragi agrees to hook him up with the prostitute who he slept with last night. Bragi tells him to meet him at The Open Road in the evening and then heads there and asks Dagamar where he might find a hooker. He points him to The Siren. Bragi heads to The Siren and finds the cheapest prostitute he can and hires her to come to Berto. He arrives with the prostitute and it is still morning, so he runs back to Berto berates and browbeats him for not being there yet.
Warm, Overcast, Moderate Wind
We head out with the caravan and travel 6 miles uneventfully.
Warm, Drizzly, Gentle Winds
We are slowed by the rain and only make it 2 miles.
Balmy, Partially Cloudy, Moderate Wind
We make good time and travel 6 miles.
Hot, Mostly Cloudy, Moderate Wind
We make good time and travel 6 miles. As the day is closing, we see a large herd of 70 wild horses. Daren tries to befriend them but is unsuccessful
Sweltering, Mostly Cloudy, Gentle.
The day passes uneventfully, but is quite slow and we only make it 2 miles. We make camp near some farmers and Bragi entertains them. 19 of them show up and are treated to a recitation of a poem about a popular hero.
Warm, Overcast, Moderate Wind
Late in the morning we pass a caravan traveling the opposite direction. We make 6 miles.
Balmy, Rainy, Still
The rain slows our progress and we make 2 miles. We come across an ancient fountain still functioning.
Hot, Cloudy, Moderate
We encounter some patrols based out of Highfold. We make it 6 miles.
Hot, Mostly Cloudy, Gentle Winds
6 miles. We end the day at the base of the mountains
Warm, Drizzly, Strong Winds
We make it to Highfold late in the evening, and there is a sigh of relief from the caravan at large.
The Thane is short, stocky, has red hair and has skin a bit darker than Northman - Bragi suspects he is Gallffolk (mixed). He greets everyone and introduces himself as Thane Eadric of Highfold. We inquire about lodging and are pointed to The Cross-eyed Ogre, where we meet Bjern who sets us up with rooms for 1sp/night. Bjern makes a comment about apples not owned by the Thane.
Bragi and Bjerg recognize Geshla from their old company and invite him to drink with them. Bragi approaches the Thane and offers to recite a poem. The Thane requests a "farty song" which Bragi fails to produce. After providing him with an example, the Thane asks again for a farty song but is refused. Instead, Bragi offers to write a poem about his great flatulence, and the Thane and his advisors agree.
Well into the night of drinking, a man comes in and says "There are fires in the distance". We look and see fires in the distance - miles away, like a prairie fire. The town seems to gather behind the palisade of Highfold and one speculates that it's bandits. Lando, one of the Thane's advisors starts ineffectually telling people to prepare.
We decide to go investigate and help the potential wounded. We inform Landolf, the caravan master that we will not be going on with him and request to be paid. (12.5GP ea, except Geshla). After Bragi gives a speech disparaging the Thane to the town, he tells them that we are going to help. We pack our gear on our horses and head out with haste.
It takes several hours, but we make it to the source of the fire and we find a single caravan wagon which has been ransacked and two dozen caravaneers tortured, beheaded and stacked on the ground. There are handprints left behind - made with the blood of the slain. Bragi cuts out one of the prints from the caravan canvas. There are footprints of at least a dozen of individuals and tracks leading from a hiding place by the road, and tracks away towards the Witchwood forest.
We head back to Highfold, arriving early in the morning. Bragi again address the town, describing the scene and dramatically throwing down the cutout red hand before again disparaging the Thane. We head to the inn and get rooms and sleep.
Sweltering, Overcast, Still
We decide to head out to Drelin's Ferry and at the end of the day catch up with the caravan. We talk to Landolf and convince him to let us rejoin (and)
6 miles
Hot, Overcast, Moderate
4.5 miles (24) - We make it to Irongard Motte, and rest the rest of the day
Sweltering, ?, ?
Bjerg finds Ironwrought Goods, owned by the smith Garmund Ironwrought, and inquires about a masterwork weapon. He says he cannot make a better - he is a master smith, but there is a great smith out in Drelin's Ferry named Borvald Coalhands whom he apprenticed under. He says Borvald would be able to make something superior to my halbard.
Meanwhile, Bragi rumormongers - spreading rumors about Eadric farting and carousing with sheep. He does not get a rumor in return. Most of the party decides to go tell the Thane of Irongard Motte about the caravan attack, and as the approach the gate of the motte, they hear an argument. A priestess named Adaheld seems to be trying to warn them about something. Bragi intercedes on her behalf and gains them both an audience with the Thane.
Geshla describes the attack and the Thane Hunfrid seems to take this seriously and plans some measure to increase security. The priestess jumps in at some point and is laughed off by the Thane. Bragi rebukes the Hunfrid for his blasphemous treatment of the priestess
Grateful for his defense, the priestess take Bragi back to her shrine and shares a rumor: Hjalmar the moneychanger calls himself and his family the Geltlings. The only reason Hunfrid puts up with him is because of how indebted the Thane is to Hjalmar.
Hot, Overcast, Gentle
3 miles (18) We make it to Drellin's Ferry. Before we arrive we witness a gargoyle fly over the caravan, circle, then fly towards the Wyrmsmoke Mountains. Drellin's ferry is primarily populated by Ffolk who look at us with some disdain. We ask where we might find a good inn, and go to the one they said was bad (it was clearly the better one). It is called The Old Boar. It is expensive, but extravagant. At diner, Bragi performs an epic poem in the Ffolk native tongue. For this he is given a rumor:
Sturla and Bjerg head over to the Bent Tankard to look for Borvald. Borla - Borvald's daughter bangs Sturla. Bjerg drinks Borvald's beer till he blacks out.
Bjerg is woken by Sturla who seems horrified by Bjerg's account of his drinking with Borvald. Back at The Old Boar a man introduces himself: Owen - works for Gwenllian, matriarch of Maddyn house. Her daughter has gone missing. Grand-Daughter and Grand-Son went adventuring in the witchwoods and have been missing for a few weeks. Kadfel and Elend. They were seeking some powerful ruin. He explains: "Before the coming of the rothari, the Ffolk worshiped the power of the earth. A group of druids built a temple but it fell to the dark powers of the earth and they were swallowed by it." Their friend Gethen instigated this and went with them. Owen offers a reward of 125GP ea for proof of death and 250 GP ea for bringing them back alive. They are young adults.
Skadi leads a group to go talk to the abbot about the children. It is met with some hostility, and Bragi antagonizes the abbot at length about the shitty old gods. Thankfully he is bewitched by Skadi and cannot help but talk about what he told
There is a childrens story abotu a druid cult out in the woods dedicated to the dragon below. This is a story. Really, there were druids that built a keep but they discovered blasphemous secrets. The gods opened the earth and swallowed them. It is in Skull Gorge. There is a fallen druid of the same order that is dwelling there. He stole a clipping of the sacred tree and it caused the Abbot's tree to die. The abbot wants the tree back. Maelgyn sought forbidden knowledge and for this he was cast out. The night he left he went out back and put a sword in the sacred tree. This happened 13 years ago. The dungeon is around skull bridge. The gorge was created by dark magic. He gives directions to where he assumes it is.