Post by hubertbartels on Dec 10, 2022 14:20:14 GMT -5
The Hunt for Sarah
While the drovers are loading their wagons and getting their teams hitched up, we had time to go over the material we recovered from the burrow. It appears that Rodna the Red liked to keep a journal, carefully detailing the gold he spent and received. The journal revealed the steady payment of bribes to Reyna, the King’s Ranger and her two cohorts. In addition, there was a note that Sarah had been sent back to Saltmarsh to run the “Jeb” scam again. “Jeb” was the old man who claimed he had been aged forty years by seeing a ghost in the Alchemist’s house.
With the wagons loaded and the drovers waiting for instructions, we set out on our return to Saltmarsh. The first leg of the journey was uneventful and we rested at the way station. Having collected our prisoners from the way station’s root cellar, we continued the next day.
Around midway through the trip, we were ambushed by a group of wolves led by a large worg. Rebus put a number of them to sleep while Einor went to work on their leader. After killing them, we tracked their trail back to their lair. Inside the wolves’ den, we found several remains of King’s Rangers, some enchanted arrows, and a Chameleon Cloak – a cloak that changes color and protects the wearer against the rain.
Close to evening, our wagons arrived in Saltmarsh. We left the wagons and drovers at a convenient caravansary near the South Gate, traveled around the town and quietly entered Saltmarsh at the North Gate, close to the guards’ barracks. There, we turn over the prisoners and the heads we had collected. It was time to start hunting down the last of Rodna’s gang of bandits – Sarah.
We started with the Empty Net. The Empty Net was the rundown tavern and inn where Rissa was staying and also where “Jeb” had been known to come drinking. Rissa entered first and took up a table where she could watch the common room and let the others know if “Jeb” came in.
At first, there was no sign of the old man. A tiefling came into the bar along with two toughs. She took up a table near the back and began inviting sailors to join her for a drink or two. Rissa signaled with the sending stone that everyone else should come in and take their places. The tiefling – who is a merchant in town – is collecting information about shipping and cargoes.
Somewhat later, “Jeb” came into the Empty Nest. Einar, thinking that “Jeb” is Sarah and wearing a Hat of Disguise like Rissa, walked up to him and drunkingly, knocked off his hat. “Jeb”’s appearance did not change. Then Einor grabbed him, hoping that he could detect a glamor by feeling Sarah’s smooth face under the grizzled look of the old man. It did not work.
As Einor provoked the old man into fighting him, Jeb lost his cool, pulled an assassin’s dagger from his shirt, stabbed the cleric of Kord and started to flee. Revandrous(?) hit the fleeing man with a spell as Einor collapsed. Connor saved our cleric by pouring a healing potion into him. Einor jumped up, ran to “Jeb” and grappled him. Connor then killed him.
As “Jeb” died, his form shifted and changed, leaving behind a alien creature. It was a doppelganger. Searching its pockets and clothes, we found a pouch which acted as a bag of holding. In the pouch, we found a sketchbook with pictures of faces – one of them was a woman, resembling Sarah. We decide to bring the corpse to the guard barracks.
The commander, Craddock, was interested in what we had to say. He wanted to know how many people had seen us take down the doppelganger and were aware of Jeb’s true form. It was fairly late so we answered the people in the Empty Nest but no one else. Commander Craddock took the corpse and paid us for the bounty on Rodna the Red and his bandits.
Back at the Empty Nest, while Einor was buying drinks for the crowd, we discussed what to do next. It was decided that Rebus would bring the spell materials we had recovered from the ghoul back to Keldric. Einor and Connor would talk to the druids about the worg. The druids still wanted us to enter deeper into the Dreadwood to learn about the aberrations coming from the forest. And we still had to decide what to do with the information that Reyna and the other King’s Rangers had been taking bribes.
While the drovers are loading their wagons and getting their teams hitched up, we had time to go over the material we recovered from the burrow. It appears that Rodna the Red liked to keep a journal, carefully detailing the gold he spent and received. The journal revealed the steady payment of bribes to Reyna, the King’s Ranger and her two cohorts. In addition, there was a note that Sarah had been sent back to Saltmarsh to run the “Jeb” scam again. “Jeb” was the old man who claimed he had been aged forty years by seeing a ghost in the Alchemist’s house.
With the wagons loaded and the drovers waiting for instructions, we set out on our return to Saltmarsh. The first leg of the journey was uneventful and we rested at the way station. Having collected our prisoners from the way station’s root cellar, we continued the next day.
Around midway through the trip, we were ambushed by a group of wolves led by a large worg. Rebus put a number of them to sleep while Einor went to work on their leader. After killing them, we tracked their trail back to their lair. Inside the wolves’ den, we found several remains of King’s Rangers, some enchanted arrows, and a Chameleon Cloak – a cloak that changes color and protects the wearer against the rain.
Close to evening, our wagons arrived in Saltmarsh. We left the wagons and drovers at a convenient caravansary near the South Gate, traveled around the town and quietly entered Saltmarsh at the North Gate, close to the guards’ barracks. There, we turn over the prisoners and the heads we had collected. It was time to start hunting down the last of Rodna’s gang of bandits – Sarah.
We started with the Empty Net. The Empty Net was the rundown tavern and inn where Rissa was staying and also where “Jeb” had been known to come drinking. Rissa entered first and took up a table where she could watch the common room and let the others know if “Jeb” came in.
At first, there was no sign of the old man. A tiefling came into the bar along with two toughs. She took up a table near the back and began inviting sailors to join her for a drink or two. Rissa signaled with the sending stone that everyone else should come in and take their places. The tiefling – who is a merchant in town – is collecting information about shipping and cargoes.
Somewhat later, “Jeb” came into the Empty Nest. Einar, thinking that “Jeb” is Sarah and wearing a Hat of Disguise like Rissa, walked up to him and drunkingly, knocked off his hat. “Jeb”’s appearance did not change. Then Einor grabbed him, hoping that he could detect a glamor by feeling Sarah’s smooth face under the grizzled look of the old man. It did not work.
As Einor provoked the old man into fighting him, Jeb lost his cool, pulled an assassin’s dagger from his shirt, stabbed the cleric of Kord and started to flee. Revandrous(?) hit the fleeing man with a spell as Einor collapsed. Connor saved our cleric by pouring a healing potion into him. Einor jumped up, ran to “Jeb” and grappled him. Connor then killed him.
As “Jeb” died, his form shifted and changed, leaving behind a alien creature. It was a doppelganger. Searching its pockets and clothes, we found a pouch which acted as a bag of holding. In the pouch, we found a sketchbook with pictures of faces – one of them was a woman, resembling Sarah. We decide to bring the corpse to the guard barracks.
The commander, Craddock, was interested in what we had to say. He wanted to know how many people had seen us take down the doppelganger and were aware of Jeb’s true form. It was fairly late so we answered the people in the Empty Nest but no one else. Commander Craddock took the corpse and paid us for the bounty on Rodna the Red and his bandits.
Back at the Empty Nest, while Einor was buying drinks for the crowd, we discussed what to do next. It was decided that Rebus would bring the spell materials we had recovered from the ghoul back to Keldric. Einor and Connor would talk to the druids about the worg. The druids still wanted us to enter deeper into the Dreadwood to learn about the aberrations coming from the forest. And we still had to decide what to do with the information that Reyna and the other King’s Rangers had been taking bribes.