Whispers at the Fire
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The south gates stand, bravely intact despite numerous attacks in recent months. But the benches seem made of flimsier stuff, as all of them have been reduced to ashes now. First the fire of many a goblin grenade took two benches out, then a veritable barrage of lightning appears to have hit the remaining ones. The grass is blackened around the ever-lasting cookpot, the mysterious contents of which is likewise scorched by lightning, the hard crust cracked in places for the stewy, ooey inside to seep out. A curious rumour has it that an animation attempt took place, yet so far, the stew remains seem reassuringly placid. For now…
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Maria's horse has been spotted in the Grapevine. The equine visitor entertaining patrons by drinking copious amounts of ale at the bar.
(will trash gold for horse's tab)
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Thurlow Pennypicker, gold hoarder extraordinaire, drinks at the Norwick tavern and tells a baffling tale.
"Yeah, I'm pretty much a hero. I think she even knighted me. Only paid me eighty gold though!"
He explains that he found a Kelemvorite paladin out in the howling woods strapped to an explosive device by a mad man.
"Basically I effortlessly disarmed them no sweat. Then she kissed me on the cheek."
Thurlow further explains that she had a contract on her head and was abducted by the mad man from the local Norwick haunted graveyard area.
"Probably could have turned her in for a pretty penny to some sleezeballs. Never did find out who wanted the contract done. So yeah, then she knighted me in honour of the church of Kelemvore. Guess you can all call me Sir Pennypicker from now on."
It's hard to tell what is and isn't true, but some tell of him and a woman limping into town one afternoon with a corpse over his shoulder.
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Undead assaulted the South Gate a few nights ago, though it was hard to tell if it really was night or just more unnatural darkness. They came in waves from the direction of the Cemetary. Many were the usual zombies and undead clerics and mages; but others were much stronger: skeletal dervishes, fire bows, and even a big ogre skeleton.
Corporal Troff from the Legion led the defenders. They included Salin, Jason, Vega, Kessmiah, Hen, Kristovar, and Shesarai. Jason fell in the first assult but was later raised with the help of his daughter Vega and rejoined the fray. Yana came down from Peltarch and joined the later battles. To the delight (and surprise) of the defenders, a couple of Norwick guards actually came down the hill and helped defend the gate (once) before retreating back to their posts.
The mage Salin detected the presence of a sorcerer or necromancer summoning the undead and traced him to the Family Crypts in the old Norwick Graveyard. The entire party journeyed there to find and eliminate the threat. Fierce undead, including a giant shadow fiend, were encountered and destroyed without loss. But the summoner was never found. Be ware!
Login: AubreyMaturin
Characters; Romulus Grey, Bard the bowman
Trotter, Spooky halfling ranger
Shesarai Foutopolis, Red-haired cleric of Mystra
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Though the South Gates a dwarven company of five came… Haggered, tired, bloody and angry. None of this seems unusual however other then the taint of sadness that followed them. After a trip to the hold one Dwarf comes back to norwick and posts up a sign...
"Seeking assistance for the search and rescue of possible missing kin. Locations is the old elven camp, all of good heart and intention welcome all assistance welcomed."
-Signed
Bert.
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Travelers entering and exiting Norwick's south gate report an unusual darkness filling the sky all during the afternoon. The darkness was not complete, the ground was actually clearer than normal without fog, but the sky remained almost pitch black. The darkness did not extend into the Graveyard Path, the Norwick Ruins, or the Misty Pond area. "What's this all about?" folks asked.
Login: AubreyMaturin
Characters: Romulus Grey, Bard the bowman
Trotter, Spooky halfling ranger
Shesarai Foutopolis, Red-haired cleric of Mystra
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_Wanderers, woodcutters and adventurers would notice what seems to be a little garden of goblin statues just west of Norwick's south gates, near a clearing with a campfire that has a ladder leading up to the treehouse that is rumoured to be owned by the Elder Druid Jerrick and a pack of female werecats.
It's hard to tell why someone would have such a deviated taste as to ornate the entrance to their home with goblin statues. Though on a closer look, either the sculptor is a master of masters, or those statues look very lively, holding very natural poses with very detailed and intricate facial expressions._
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_Hundreds of goblin bodies litter the field past the south gate, the grass scorched black by fire. Anyone tending to or even passing the bodies will likely note there is something a bit off about them - eyes a little too red, strange horn protrusions or tails, as though their particular breed was mixed with something more than just goblin.
Rumours speak of a brutal wave of attacks during the night, but also of an unexpected ally - a Frost Giant maiden with a very large sword, fighting on the side of the defenders. No wonder Beorn looked particularily grumpy…_
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A weary yet victorious procession made its way back to Norwick, including an emotionally exhausted Raryldor and a physically exhausted Sirion, made its way back to Norwick. Sirion, his cheeks normally. Pale and pallored, the two of them, the settled in once inside the gates, and Sirion, in unelven fashion, slipped into unconsciousness with one final "I told you so."
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Near the Rawlinswood lake, a couple of big heaps of vegetation can be observed, scorched and smouldering from recent fires. A light snowfall seems to have put the remaining flames out, one of the larger stones in the area still coated with white.
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- Jason approaches Salin quietly and smiles to him * We should speak soon lad, I think I may be able to help you if your willing to accept the help.
(( To be continued online upon my return, hopefully within the next few days!!!))
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Folks gathered by the fire must have felt surprised when usually upbeat mage Salin Ashald was seen darting off in his horse, his head lowered, toward the temple of Lathander… And falling backwards by the door?
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The Vicious Dog Tribe poking around Norwick's south gate has become skittish lately. On one occasion, when they saw a mustached guard from the wall, one screamed "IS SALISHALD!!! FLEEE!!! FLEE FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!!"
It seems unlikely they will be prodding Norwick for much longer.
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_::Some commoners describe a strange scene in which suddenly, a bear was seen sprinting northwards with a skinny woman on top of it rodeo style, stomping past the north gates into the Nars Pass.
Meanwhile, a large cat was seen parting from the same point, but running southwards instead. A startled hin took a swing at it out of instinct in self defence, but seems like assaulting the hin was far from the cougar's interest, that instead took a leap above the hin's reach and kept running south down the hills to avoid the guards, to then get lost into the forest.
What manner of animal madness was witnessed in Norwick is anyone's guess::_
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"Duergar!"
Willow exclaims, her hands fluttering like wild birds as she dramatizes the fight.
"There we were, in the Goblin Hold, thinking it was business as usual, but ahead there's these weird piggy grunts.. deep, bass-tone grunts.. from actual hogs of war! They're duergar steeds or something like that, 'cause next thing we know, there are grey dwarves popping out of thin air to wail on us!
The squealing and the flailing, the slashing, poking and fizzling! It was chaos, almost as bad as when we stumbled into those Cloakers in the underdark.. almost!
But this time, we won AND snatched all their ale and ore, haha! If this doesn't motivate Beorn to work on my armor, I dunno what will…"
With that, she hefts a clinking, heavy pack and trudges off towards the crafter's hall with wobbling legs.
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Willow, Elaine and Jonni come bounding back from the Rawlins, seeming giddy with victory over a number of hobgoblin brutes and spreading out a vast and curious array of treasure items recovered, including such oddities as a hobgoblin berserker loincloth and silk restraints.. err.. what sort of party did the three crash, really?
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Eilonna is seen cleaning the Norwick barracks from top to bottom, remaking the beds, dusting the couches and beating the rugs, sweeping and mopping and restitching the dummies, shes either really bored, or trying to impress someone.
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_Hess, the red-bearded tree-hugger, picks up a handful of snow and stares at it.
For a long time. He even sniffs it before smiling.
Eventually he makes a snowball, throws it as far as he can, and starts chuckling._
Someone is bored, I think!
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Some snow is collected upon the ground at the south gate, and the Rawlins near the town are lightly dusted, as it snows lightly for a couple days, seeming perfectly natural except to those with an affinity for nature magic, who can detect a subtle tracery of intent from the North.
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_The bugbears seem on edge lately, a recent attack by their hands seeing the longevity of the most recent south gates turn to nothing but a memory and splinters galore. A keg will do that…
Are the bugbears aggressive behavior why the more nature-aligned of Norwick's adventurers seem so concerned? Rangers, druids, various friends of the Rawlins seem to gather in small groups for discussion, and if the townsfolk didn't know better, some might be convinced even the trees were listening in._
