Journal Entry:
My journey once again brings me together with Therbis and Vralino. This time I get to meet one of Therbis's rock brothers: Oria. A hunter named Hawza rounded out our group.
We received a cryptic missive requesting our presence in Clear Creek for a “confidential issue of great import to Strorbrout Cragbringer.”
Clear Creek was an uneventful three day journey. Upon arrival, we were informed that Strorbrout was not around. We instead met with Darrelon Highpeaks. She seemed rather busy with her work rebuilding the shrine to Chorrolis and was rather short with us. From my vantage point at the door, I recognized the parchment on her desk to be blueprints. Unfortunately I could not see what they blueprints were for from my location.
Upon Strorbrout’s return, he informed us of a tribe led by an ogre of the name of Gvarn. This tribe had found a mine of True Earth. From the samples Gvarn’s tribe brought, Strorbrout discovered that veins of silver also ran through the mine. Strorbrout’s interest piqued, he inquired to the location of the mine but was rejected. Attempts made to track the tribe to the location of the mine have likewise failed.
The status has remained the same until now. Gvarn has offered to divulge the location of the mine for help retrieving an item he requires. It seems the item is in a treacherous location that necessitates a group of adventurers to protect his tribesman.
Gvarn tasked us with helping a young dwarf by the name of Sharim “gather wood.” It can’t be this easy.
We trek for four days, avoiding settlements along the way. On the fourth day we enter a forest and are ambushed by Troajin. I must say they are quite the nimble little creatures. Our party repelled the ambush, but not before taking significant damage.
Five more days in the woods. We were ambushed by large wooden mantises. Any fellow adventurers who would venture into these woods would do well to carry antidotes to poison. Sharim disappeared during the fight only to return carrying some glowing wood… and some wooden mantises as large as myself in tow. These “mantis” seemed fearful to cross the river, thankfully.
Our trip back was thankfully uneventful. Gvarn practically beamed upon our return. We shortly took our leave of Gvarn, in part due to our dwindling food reserves. We may have starved to death without our Elementalist’s woodland knowledge.
Strorbrout wished to celebrate our return. His mirth doubled after Gvarn paid a visit. I assume Strorbrout received the information he so desperately wanted.
With our adventure out of the way, I set to a new interest that had planted itself in my brain. I wished to know more about Darrelon’s blueprints. A glance at the shrine told me Darrelon was a master engineer. I hoped to learn some metalworking techniques to further my own abilities. This of course came at the cost of helping in the construction myself, a task I found surprisingly engaging. Her vision was not just of a building. She wished to build a community.
Upon the third day of helping Darrelon, I noticed her wearing the symbol of Upandal. His ideals have always struck a chord with me. Perhaps this is fate. I must enquire furth with Darrelon.
AAR: [2M] School's in for Summer (6/23/2020 at 23:00 GMT)
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Sharkforce
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Re: LFG: [2M] School's in for Summer (6/23/2020 at 23:00 GMT)
From the Journal of Hawza the Swift: School's In for Summer
I received word that a messenger had arrived with potential employment from one Strorbout Cragdigger, a merchant who was restoring a trading post and shrine to Chorollis to the south of Throal, with a promise of a great reward for some unspecified service. This seemed like a good opportunity to get myself better equipped, and even more so once I discovered that I would be accompanied by a weaponsmith who would offer a discount to fellow adventurers.
Joining me were Thorkell Gulbrandsen (Troll Weaponsmith), Vralino Hammershield (Ork Swordmaster), and Therbis and Oria Stone-Singer, (both Obsidimen; Troubadour and Elementalist, respectively). We headed south along the road and came to the small trading post. Met with a sharp-tongued Dwarf named Darellon Highpeaks, the engineer who was in charge of construction on the shrine. She seemed annoyed to have to waste her time on us. Sent us to meet with an ogre who they had been trading with. A deal had been brokered; we were to escort one of the ogre's tribe on some sort of quest, and the ogre would divulge the location of a mine filled with True Earth. Seemed odd to me, but I'm not here to judge, as long as their coin's good.
We met with the ogre, off to the west of Clear Creek Crossing about a day's journey. Met a young Dwarf who we would be escorting. I'm not sure how the lad came to be in the ogre's tribe, but I wasn't being paid to ask questions. The ogre, Gvarn, indicated we would be journeying to the Servos Jungle to help the boy obtain some special wood. The boy's name is Sharim, and he can barely speak Throalic. Thankfully we have a troubadour along for entertainment, and had brought rations from the crossing, since the journey turned out to be quite long.
Found a good path through the jungle; was very helpful, as none of us were skilled navigators to my knowledge. Fortunate that we didn't encounter whatever made the trail, I think. Got ambushed by some troajin; we drove them off, none were killed, though one was unconscious. The others were hurt quite badly in their initial assault, but I was able to strike hard enough to drive a pair of them off by myself. This is a good axe; it's blade bit deep. They would not be back to bother us again, we were too difficult of a meal.
Arrived in an area with a creek running through it a few days in. Sharim says we are almost there. Humming up ahead turns out to be a group of large preying mantis, about the size of a large dog. When I examine them, I find that they are infused with wood (and not good to eat), and that their claws are poisonous. Very dangerous. They jump a lot, like to hang on the trees. We try to group together, and they avoid us. Oria takes one down out of the tree with a spell. Vralino stands in the open, and is immediately attacked by several of them. She is hurt badly, but we come to help as quickly as possible. Again my axe bites deep. One down, 3 to go. Oria strikes another, almost dead, and Therbis finishes it off as I strike down a second. The last one goes down to a flurry of attacks from all of us, but Vralino is poisoned and slowly loses consciousness. She is barely alive.
Sharim comes running along shouting something, probably in ogre language; must've crossed the stream and gathered some wood while we kept the bugs busy. Two very large mantis things follow behind him, tall enough to look Thorkell in the eye. Must be some sort of construct or spirit or something; I can't analyze them at all. Glad they stop at the water. Would be a very difficult fight even if all of us were fresh and our group at full strength, and we are neither. Perhaps bound to the location. Perhaps they fear water. They look wooden. Possible source of True Wood here, they may need it to survive. Perhaps Cragdigger will pay for another expedition once he figures out there is wealth to be had. Wish I knew how to make maps, could've made a fortune.
We are fortunate to face no further dangers on the way out of the Servos. I am able to stretch my supplies further by living off the land. So is Oria. We should have brought more supplies, but what we have lasts long enough... barely. Gvarn is pleased, Sharim is safe, and we return to our employer. This time we meet with Cragdigger himself. He is not in a state of perpetual anger like his engineer. Thorkell makes the mistake of describing Darellon as a secretary, and I am thankful she was not near to hear him. She has the lungs of a drill sergeant and the temperament of a dyre. Seems he is interested in some blueprints on her desk. I am interested in getting back to Throal. I have things to do.
I use my pay for training to raise my circle. I am getting stronger. I learn how to track, how to live off the land, and get better at dodging. Thorkell eventually comes back to Throal and forges my axe as he promised. I also pick up some medical supplies. I'm no expert, but I don't want to run out of supplies at a bad time. Perhaps next time someone gets poisoned they will need it. Perhaps that someone will be me.
The mantis are dangerous and vile, but I am inspired by their mobility. I will need a mount soon, and that kind of ability to move around would be very useful to attack from unexpected angles. Perhaps I should hire someone to research where such a mount could be found. But not insects.
I received word that a messenger had arrived with potential employment from one Strorbout Cragdigger, a merchant who was restoring a trading post and shrine to Chorollis to the south of Throal, with a promise of a great reward for some unspecified service. This seemed like a good opportunity to get myself better equipped, and even more so once I discovered that I would be accompanied by a weaponsmith who would offer a discount to fellow adventurers.
Joining me were Thorkell Gulbrandsen (Troll Weaponsmith), Vralino Hammershield (Ork Swordmaster), and Therbis and Oria Stone-Singer, (both Obsidimen; Troubadour and Elementalist, respectively). We headed south along the road and came to the small trading post. Met with a sharp-tongued Dwarf named Darellon Highpeaks, the engineer who was in charge of construction on the shrine. She seemed annoyed to have to waste her time on us. Sent us to meet with an ogre who they had been trading with. A deal had been brokered; we were to escort one of the ogre's tribe on some sort of quest, and the ogre would divulge the location of a mine filled with True Earth. Seemed odd to me, but I'm not here to judge, as long as their coin's good.
We met with the ogre, off to the west of Clear Creek Crossing about a day's journey. Met a young Dwarf who we would be escorting. I'm not sure how the lad came to be in the ogre's tribe, but I wasn't being paid to ask questions. The ogre, Gvarn, indicated we would be journeying to the Servos Jungle to help the boy obtain some special wood. The boy's name is Sharim, and he can barely speak Throalic. Thankfully we have a troubadour along for entertainment, and had brought rations from the crossing, since the journey turned out to be quite long.
Found a good path through the jungle; was very helpful, as none of us were skilled navigators to my knowledge. Fortunate that we didn't encounter whatever made the trail, I think. Got ambushed by some troajin; we drove them off, none were killed, though one was unconscious. The others were hurt quite badly in their initial assault, but I was able to strike hard enough to drive a pair of them off by myself. This is a good axe; it's blade bit deep. They would not be back to bother us again, we were too difficult of a meal.
Arrived in an area with a creek running through it a few days in. Sharim says we are almost there. Humming up ahead turns out to be a group of large preying mantis, about the size of a large dog. When I examine them, I find that they are infused with wood (and not good to eat), and that their claws are poisonous. Very dangerous. They jump a lot, like to hang on the trees. We try to group together, and they avoid us. Oria takes one down out of the tree with a spell. Vralino stands in the open, and is immediately attacked by several of them. She is hurt badly, but we come to help as quickly as possible. Again my axe bites deep. One down, 3 to go. Oria strikes another, almost dead, and Therbis finishes it off as I strike down a second. The last one goes down to a flurry of attacks from all of us, but Vralino is poisoned and slowly loses consciousness. She is barely alive.
Sharim comes running along shouting something, probably in ogre language; must've crossed the stream and gathered some wood while we kept the bugs busy. Two very large mantis things follow behind him, tall enough to look Thorkell in the eye. Must be some sort of construct or spirit or something; I can't analyze them at all. Glad they stop at the water. Would be a very difficult fight even if all of us were fresh and our group at full strength, and we are neither. Perhaps bound to the location. Perhaps they fear water. They look wooden. Possible source of True Wood here, they may need it to survive. Perhaps Cragdigger will pay for another expedition once he figures out there is wealth to be had. Wish I knew how to make maps, could've made a fortune.
We are fortunate to face no further dangers on the way out of the Servos. I am able to stretch my supplies further by living off the land. So is Oria. We should have brought more supplies, but what we have lasts long enough... barely. Gvarn is pleased, Sharim is safe, and we return to our employer. This time we meet with Cragdigger himself. He is not in a state of perpetual anger like his engineer. Thorkell makes the mistake of describing Darellon as a secretary, and I am thankful she was not near to hear him. She has the lungs of a drill sergeant and the temperament of a dyre. Seems he is interested in some blueprints on her desk. I am interested in getting back to Throal. I have things to do.
I use my pay for training to raise my circle. I am getting stronger. I learn how to track, how to live off the land, and get better at dodging. Thorkell eventually comes back to Throal and forges my axe as he promised. I also pick up some medical supplies. I'm no expert, but I don't want to run out of supplies at a bad time. Perhaps next time someone gets poisoned they will need it. Perhaps that someone will be me.
The mantis are dangerous and vile, but I am inspired by their mobility. I will need a mount soon, and that kind of ability to move around would be very useful to attack from unexpected angles. Perhaps I should hire someone to research where such a mount could be found. But not insects.
Re: AAR: [2M] School's in for Summer (6/23/2020 at 23:00 GMT)
The following is a recollection from Vralino Hammer-Shield, a 15 year old Ork girl with limited exposure to society. The text remains unaltered to maintain its authenticity (Certain terms and names written wrong to keep in character). It is written in Or'zet.
It's my second job, and I get to see Thorkell and Therbis again! The job takes us to Clear Creek. Some sort of building was made, led by a very rude dwarf named Darrelon. She seemed happy to hear that I was a bodyguard. She gave me a map, but I didn't really think it'd be much help in my hands, so I passed it on the Therbis. He's got a lot of stories, so he's probably been to a lot of places and probably better at reading it. We were able to grab some stew at the build site. It was pretty cheap, so I helped myself. I also got myself an extra week of rations, but Therbis and another of the stone giants, Oria, didn't have enough to buy themselves any more rations, so I gave them the money for that. The price was haggled down a few coppers, so it wasn't a bad deal.
Therbis led us to a small camp led by an ogre named Gavarn? One of his followers needed an escort into the woods to retrieve some wood. It kind of seemed like a waste of time, but a job is a job. I doubt we'll come across anything challenging, but we can always be hopeful.
Halfway through our journey and we got ambushed by some Trojans. They were adorable little lizard like kitties! I wish I could have kept one as a pet, but they would have probably been more trouble than they were worth. Besides, I've never had a pet before. It was probably better that most of them ran off. The rations are dwindling, but Oria and Therbis don't seem to be going through them too quickly. They must have some survival type talents that didn't need rations. I should look into learning that.
We arrive at another encounter, this time with a few large wooden mantises. These things could jump forever! They would have been great mounts, if I were able to train one of them. Oria is pretty ballsy. He stood maybe ten yards from the group of Mantises and blasted one of them with earth darts. It died as it impacted the ground. I stood between him and the rest of the mantises. The damn things swarmed me, but luckily Howza was there. I thought Thorkell was a good fighter, but he had a hard time hitting them. Howza didn't seem to have much issue though, and he hit almost as hard as Thorkell. Between Howza and Oria, those things didn't stand a chance. I don't remember much of what happened after we killed them. I think I got sick or something, because shortly after the fight I passed out. I woke up when we were on our way back to Gavarn. I think I hit my chin on something, because that hurt almost as much as the new scarring on my back. The rest of the team didn't seem to take any injuries, so they must be really tough. I'll have to step my game up. It was so embarrassing to pass out after fighting a few bugs.
Returning to Clear Creek, there was a massive celebration lined up. I didn't feel like celebrating. I just kind of sat in the corner trying to figure out what made me so sick. Whatever it was seemed to be done. I felt no further effects. Thorkell seemed fascinated with the construction going on. It was a shrine to Chorrolis, and there was some mention about a Passion named Upandall. I wonder if I could feel that connected to a Passion. Maybe someday, I'll come across one that'll inspire me the way he was. We stuck around a few days, and I focused on my training as Thorkell assisted in the construction. Hopefully on the next job I won't be so disappointing. I wonder if Jarock ever had days like this.
It's my second job, and I get to see Thorkell and Therbis again! The job takes us to Clear Creek. Some sort of building was made, led by a very rude dwarf named Darrelon. She seemed happy to hear that I was a bodyguard. She gave me a map, but I didn't really think it'd be much help in my hands, so I passed it on the Therbis. He's got a lot of stories, so he's probably been to a lot of places and probably better at reading it. We were able to grab some stew at the build site. It was pretty cheap, so I helped myself. I also got myself an extra week of rations, but Therbis and another of the stone giants, Oria, didn't have enough to buy themselves any more rations, so I gave them the money for that. The price was haggled down a few coppers, so it wasn't a bad deal.
Therbis led us to a small camp led by an ogre named Gavarn? One of his followers needed an escort into the woods to retrieve some wood. It kind of seemed like a waste of time, but a job is a job. I doubt we'll come across anything challenging, but we can always be hopeful.
Halfway through our journey and we got ambushed by some Trojans. They were adorable little lizard like kitties! I wish I could have kept one as a pet, but they would have probably been more trouble than they were worth. Besides, I've never had a pet before. It was probably better that most of them ran off. The rations are dwindling, but Oria and Therbis don't seem to be going through them too quickly. They must have some survival type talents that didn't need rations. I should look into learning that.
We arrive at another encounter, this time with a few large wooden mantises. These things could jump forever! They would have been great mounts, if I were able to train one of them. Oria is pretty ballsy. He stood maybe ten yards from the group of Mantises and blasted one of them with earth darts. It died as it impacted the ground. I stood between him and the rest of the mantises. The damn things swarmed me, but luckily Howza was there. I thought Thorkell was a good fighter, but he had a hard time hitting them. Howza didn't seem to have much issue though, and he hit almost as hard as Thorkell. Between Howza and Oria, those things didn't stand a chance. I don't remember much of what happened after we killed them. I think I got sick or something, because shortly after the fight I passed out. I woke up when we were on our way back to Gavarn. I think I hit my chin on something, because that hurt almost as much as the new scarring on my back. The rest of the team didn't seem to take any injuries, so they must be really tough. I'll have to step my game up. It was so embarrassing to pass out after fighting a few bugs.
Returning to Clear Creek, there was a massive celebration lined up. I didn't feel like celebrating. I just kind of sat in the corner trying to figure out what made me so sick. Whatever it was seemed to be done. I felt no further effects. Thorkell seemed fascinated with the construction going on. It was a shrine to Chorrolis, and there was some mention about a Passion named Upandall. I wonder if I could feel that connected to a Passion. Maybe someday, I'll come across one that'll inspire me the way he was. We stuck around a few days, and I focused on my training as Thorkell assisted in the construction. Hopefully on the next job I won't be so disappointing. I wonder if Jarock ever had days like this.