[Rise of the Runelords] - Session 2 - Local Heroes

Rise of the Runelords

Chapter 2 - Local Heroes

[PLACEHOLDER ART]

Bullet Points:

• Father Tobyn's remains have been stolen from the crypt in the Boneyard.
• Aldern Foxglove has left town and invited the group to his estate in Magnimar.
• Due to an unfortunate misunderstanding with Shayliss Vinder and Xandrah, the 'SS' no longer enjoys a discount at the General Store.
• Lonjiku Kaijitsu assaulted his daughter, Ameiko, in the Rusty Dragon while insisting that she leave with him. She did not.
• Shalelu Andosana, an elven ranger from the Hinterlands, has reported that goblins from the five tribes surrounding the area were involved in the attack on Sandpoint and that they are being organized.
• Sheriff Hemlock has left for Magnimar to obtain military assistance for the defense of Sandpoint against continuing attacks.
• Ameiko Kaijitsu has mysteriously disappeared and left a discarded note from her brother, Tsuto.

Events

1) Tales from the Crypt

Father Zantus noticed the 'Father's Crypt' open while tending the landscape in the Boneyard. He sought out Sheriff Hemlock to investigate, as it might have been opened during the raid during the Swallowtail Festival only days earlier.

The sheriff asked the newly named 'Sandpoint Strangers' if they wouldn't mind checking out the crypt with him.

The group found and fought off 2 undead skeletons within the crypt that had been summoned from a discarded Robe of Bones and left to guard the crypt. The remains of the last caretaker, Father Tobyn, had been stolen from the crypt.

2) No Moar Boar

Aldern Foxglove, the noble that was saved by the Sandpoint Strangers during the raid, has become infatuated with the heroes. So much so, that he's invited them on a boar hunt in the nearby Tickwood forest.

Along the journey to Tickwood, Aldern barrages the group with questions of their exploits as goblin killers and other adventures.

During the hunt, one of Aldern's menservants is gored to death, but the Strangers manage to dispatch the swine without further incident. The boar carcass is brought back to the Rusty Dragon and will be served during Foxglove's farewell feast.

3) Closet Case

A woman comes into the Rusty Dragon with two children. She is obviously distraught and the children have been crying. She reports that her husband was attacked by monsters in her son's closet.

The Sandpoint Strangers arrive on the scene to investigate. The husband lies dead on the floor halfway in the closet doorway. When his body is pulled out and investigated it reveals that his throat is cut and most of his face has been chewed off.

A goblin commando leaps from a hole in the closet and attacks Xenda. A battle ensues which the only casualties are the goblin commando and the roof of the house which has been severely damaged by a giant non-dwarf cleric.

Come Downtown and See Me Sometime, Daddy Issues, Ranger Danger & Where's Ameiko?

4) Come Downtown and See Me Sometime

Shayliss Vinder

Xandrah is approached by a red-headed woman in her early twenties who says she's interested in learning more about Xandrah's faith in Torag.  Her name is Shayliss Vinder.

She asks if Xandrah will accompany her back to her father's store where she's been feeling very uneasy.  Shayliss describes feelings of despair and loneliness that are sometimes overwhelming and she hopes that Xandrah can help.

After leading Xandrah to the basement of the General Store, her motivation became quite clear.  A bed and candles had been set up with sapphic intention.

As Xandrah tried to extricate herself from the situation, Shalyiss' father walked in on them and turned an awkward situation even more so.  He demanded to know what was going on and Xandrah explained that his daughter was delusional and that Xandrah couldn't be less interested in her.  Ven Vinder kicked Xandrah out of the General Store and withdrew the discount he originally offered to the Sandpoint Strangers.  Shayliss, being called delusional and obsessive, probably took it like the reasonable adult she is.

5) Daddy Issues

While enjoying themselves at the farewell feast for Aldern Foxglove being hosted at the Rusty Dragon, the Sandpoint Strangers are surprised when a drunken elderly man bursts through the front door and immediately begins yelling in an incoherent language.

Lonjiku Kaijitsu

The man is identified by Aldern as Lonjiku Kaijitsu, the head of the Kaijitsu family here in Sandpoint.  The Kaijitsus being one of the founding families has given Lonjiku an apparent sense of entitlement. 

Stumbling past the group, Longjiku makes his way to the back of the room and begins shouting fro his daughter.  Ameiko is in the kitchen preparing meals for the feast.

Dr. Aven Cull stops him while he makes his way to the kitchen and a not-so-polite argument ensues, wherein Lonjiku accuses the Sandpoint Strangers of bringing more trouble to Sandpoint because of their so-called heroics, as now the goblins will bolster their attack force.

Before the insults become violence, Ameiko emerges from the kitchen with a platter in hand.  Lonjiku approaches her quickly and slaps the food from the tray and attempts to grab her by the hair and drag her out of the tavern.  Ameiko deftly dodges the drunken attack and spins away from her father.  She quickly rounds and brains him with teh empty platter still in her hand.

Shamed and beaten, Lonjiku all but runs from the Rusty Dragon, but not before telling his daughter that she "is as dead to him as her mother."

6) Ranger Danger

Sheriff Hemlock approaches the group on the street and asks them if they would join him for a meeting at the Town Hall.

They are introduced to Shalelu Andosana, an elven ranger from the surrounding Hinterlands. She reports that there are five local goblin tribes in the vicinity, and they had all organized for the recent attack on Sandpoint, which is very odd behavior for goblins.

It's her belief that the goblins have been brought under the control of a force greater than themselves, and that force is directing the attacks towards Sandpoint and also raids of the local areas.

She also believes that Sandpoint has not seen the last of the goblin attacks. Upon hearing this, Sheriff Hemlock announces that he will be travelling to Magnimar to enlist the help of their soldiers. The trip should take about a week, and he asks the group if they wouldn't mind hanging around in town to increase morale and keep panic under control.

Shalelu agrees to continue monitoring the surrounding wilderness and will act as a warning if the goblins try anything in force.

7) Where's Ameiko? 

Ameiko Kaijitsu

The Strangers are woken early one morning by the elderly barmaid that works at the Rusty Dragon. Apparently Ameiko did not come down to open up the inn or start the morning chores, as she has done for the past year.

When the maid knocked on her door, there was no answer. She entered and noticed that Ameiko wasn't in her room and hadn't been there the entire night.

When the group investigated, they found a crumpled up piece of paper in a strange language. The barmaid said that she could translate it, and did.

Ameiko received a letter from her brother, Tsuto, that stated her father might have had something to do with the goblin raid and he needs to be confronted.

Tsuto asks Ameiko to meet him at the family Glassworks so they can come up with a plan to deal with their father. The Sandpoint Strangers decide that heading out to the Glassworks as soon as possible is a good idea.


To Be Continued...