01 - 12/13 : Spiderbait
(The following campaign is DM'ed by one of the others in my gaming group. He has played various memorable characters in the past such as Zelem and Star, and is DMing a homebrewed game set in the town of Fortunes Crossing. This town was founded during the Saltmarsh game by Zelem himself, and is now ran by the infamous tiefling.)
Two years after its founding, Fortune’s Crossing was in need of a team of adventurers to handle some of the more dangerous problems in and around the city. Using his growing name and influence, Zelem put out a call for adventurers to meet with him in the Seven Stars Inn. The first to arrive was Chesterfield Davenport, a Harrengon traveler. After being told that Zelem would be with the adventurers shortly, he took the offer of a drink on the house and settled in. Draltha Frostbrand arrived next, a dwarf whose clan had taken residence in Fortune’s Crossing and had just returned from her travels. She ordered a keg of ale for herself, which the bartender was snidely happy to oblige on Zelem’s behalf. Yunaleth Zanarkand, a noblewoman from Revelmoore, arrived next, ordering a glass of wine and trying not to draw attention from the more rowdy looking patrons. The final arrival was the large half-orc warrior, Lady Emberfanged, who ordered a large serving of steak and tequila. As the party became acquainted and continued waiting for their new patron, a flashy performer by the name of Rosie the Riveting came out to perform. She displayed a new knife juggling show she had been working on, which, while impressive, was only the first act, as she then set up a tightrope using an immovable rod and proceeded to combine the juggling with tightrope walking. The party joined in the fun by adding things for Rosie to juggle before she finished the show by throwing her knives into a dartboard in the shape of a heart. As the show ended, the party was called into another room, where they were met by Zelem Corvo and his assistant, Sendra Vanor. Zelem asked each of the party members why they answered his call to arms. Yuna was drawn to the stable work promised, Draltha wished to support the city that helped her clan and opposed Bard’s Gate, Lady was a mercenary familiar with Zelem’s reputation, and Chesterfield was looking to make a name for himself in a town with less competition. After this introduction, Zelem explained their role as Fortune Crossing’s primary adventuring party, helping to clear out some threats that Zelem was unable to assist with while working. The first of these tasks would be to look into some recent disappearances within the city. He explained that people who weren’t well known or new to town had gone missing, making these disappearances hard to notice for some time. The last known disappearance was an apothecary who would bring her wares to the market day in the town square, but she didn’t show up last time. Zelem suggested checking the town square or possibly her home. Before the group left, Zelem had Yuna sign her name in his Book of Shadows, allowing him to contact her as needed. The party arrived at the apothecary’s house and found it mostly abandoned with the doors unlocked. Inside the house seemed orderly, with no signs of a struggle or forced entry, but they did find a few potions and antitoxins within the hut. They also found one locked door that Lady smashed apart with her greataxe. Inside was a trap door leading to a cave system underneath her home. The party proceeded with caution until Draltha noticed a small mushroom creature exploring the caves that darted into a small hole once it noticed the party. The most direct path to their adorable quarry was too small for the party to proceed through, but Yuna’s familiar, the fiendish tressym, Diz, was able to slip in and find several myconid sprouts huddled around a large myconid who used his spores to communicate with Diz. The party learned that these myconids had a symbiotic relationship with the apothecary but didn’t know why she suddenly disappeared. They mentioned not being able to visit her home recently because an infestation of spiders were blocking the path. Without being asked, the party rushed to the assistance of the myconids, finding the pathway infested by a Phase Spider and her spiderlings. Despite their hit and run tactics, the party was able to resist the spiders’ poison and defeat them, with Chesterfield unfortunately running into several of the spiderlings without realizing it. With the myconids free, the elder myconid explained that the apothecary had a stronger tie to their fungal network and that they might be able to detect her if they got close to her, so one of the sprouts was given to the party to assist in their investigation, immediately dubbed Button by Draltha. With their new companion safely kept away from the sun in Draltha’s backpack, the party traveled to the town square, where they familiarized themselves with the local stores while investigating the disappearance. The local bakery mentioned that she often picked up stale bread from the bakery, which the party surmised was for the myconids, and was able to give the party her name, Vilya. The square’s main guard was able to give a little more details about Vilya, describing her as a half-elf with baggy clothes, a big hat and pink hair covering her face.
Two years after its founding, Fortune’s Crossing was in need of a team of adventurers to handle some of the more dangerous problems in and around the city. Using his growing name and influence, Zelem put out a call for adventurers to meet with him in the Seven Stars Inn. The first to arrive was Chesterfield Davenport, a Harrengon traveler. After being told that Zelem would be with the adventurers shortly, he took the offer of a drink on the house and settled in. Draltha Frostbrand arrived next, a dwarf whose clan had taken residence in Fortune’s Crossing and had just returned from her travels. She ordered a keg of ale for herself, which the bartender was snidely happy to oblige on Zelem’s behalf. Yunaleth Zanarkand, a noblewoman from Revelmoore, arrived next, ordering a glass of wine and trying not to draw attention from the more rowdy looking patrons. The final arrival was the large half-orc warrior, Lady Emberfanged, who ordered a large serving of steak and tequila. As the party became acquainted and continued waiting for their new patron, a flashy performer by the name of Rosie the Riveting came out to perform. She displayed a new knife juggling show she had been working on, which, while impressive, was only the first act, as she then set up a tightrope using an immovable rod and proceeded to combine the juggling with tightrope walking. The party joined in the fun by adding things for Rosie to juggle before she finished the show by throwing her knives into a dartboard in the shape of a heart. As the show ended, the party was called into another room, where they were met by Zelem Corvo and his assistant, Sendra Vanor. Zelem asked each of the party members why they answered his call to arms. Yuna was drawn to the stable work promised, Draltha wished to support the city that helped her clan and opposed Bard’s Gate, Lady was a mercenary familiar with Zelem’s reputation, and Chesterfield was looking to make a name for himself in a town with less competition. After this introduction, Zelem explained their role as Fortune Crossing’s primary adventuring party, helping to clear out some threats that Zelem was unable to assist with while working. The first of these tasks would be to look into some recent disappearances within the city. He explained that people who weren’t well known or new to town had gone missing, making these disappearances hard to notice for some time. The last known disappearance was an apothecary who would bring her wares to the market day in the town square, but she didn’t show up last time. Zelem suggested checking the town square or possibly her home. Before the group left, Zelem had Yuna sign her name in his Book of Shadows, allowing him to contact her as needed. The party arrived at the apothecary’s house and found it mostly abandoned with the doors unlocked. Inside the house seemed orderly, with no signs of a struggle or forced entry, but they did find a few potions and antitoxins within the hut. They also found one locked door that Lady smashed apart with her greataxe. Inside was a trap door leading to a cave system underneath her home. The party proceeded with caution until Draltha noticed a small mushroom creature exploring the caves that darted into a small hole once it noticed the party. The most direct path to their adorable quarry was too small for the party to proceed through, but Yuna’s familiar, the fiendish tressym, Diz, was able to slip in and find several myconid sprouts huddled around a large myconid who used his spores to communicate with Diz. The party learned that these myconids had a symbiotic relationship with the apothecary but didn’t know why she suddenly disappeared. They mentioned not being able to visit her home recently because an infestation of spiders were blocking the path. Without being asked, the party rushed to the assistance of the myconids, finding the pathway infested by a Phase Spider and her spiderlings. Despite their hit and run tactics, the party was able to resist the spiders’ poison and defeat them, with Chesterfield unfortunately running into several of the spiderlings without realizing it. With the myconids free, the elder myconid explained that the apothecary had a stronger tie to their fungal network and that they might be able to detect her if they got close to her, so one of the sprouts was given to the party to assist in their investigation, immediately dubbed Button by Draltha. With their new companion safely kept away from the sun in Draltha’s backpack, the party traveled to the town square, where they familiarized themselves with the local stores while investigating the disappearance. The local bakery mentioned that she often picked up stale bread from the bakery, which the party surmised was for the myconids, and was able to give the party her name, Vilya. The square’s main guard was able to give a little more details about Vilya, describing her as a half-elf with baggy clothes, a big hat and pink hair covering her face.
Portraits
Comments