Kingmaker+Session+1

 ** Defending Oleg's Trading Post Against Haps and his Filthy Bandits! **

Lorwynelle Thaldain, a female elven arcanist, and Naahir of the Soft Foot Clan, a male catfolk slayer, traveled from the west from The Grey Cloak Hills. Aeonill Moonflower, an elven female swashbuckler, traveled from the far northern elven city of The Sun's Heart. Senathliel Iman Au'Aire, a female aasimar oracle, traveled from the south from the forest of Earthwood. The four joined together in the major city of Bloodstone in Damara with charters...

// Be it so known that the bearer of this charter has been charged by the Swordlords of Damara, acting upon the greater good and authority vested within them by the office of the Regent of the Throne of Bloodstone, has granted the right of exploration and travel within the wilderness region known as the Greenbelt. Exploration should be limited to an area no more than 36 miles east and west, and 60 miles south of Oleg's Trading Post. The carrier of this charter should strive against banditry and other unlawful behavior which is encountered. The punishment for unrepentant banditry remains, as always, extinction by sword or rope. So witnessed on this 24th day of Flamerule, under the watchful eye of the Lordship of Bloodstone and authority granted by King Gareth II, current King and Regent of Damara. //

History information...

For a long time, the horrible witch king of Vaasa had conquered Damara by force and magic. He ruled from Castle Perilous in Vaasa and installed some puppet rulers in Damara. He worshiped a horrible demon prince named Orcus.

50 years ago a group of adventurers came to Damara, overthrowing it's puppet rulers and taking over Damara. They marched into Vaasa to kill the witch king. They even traveled to the plane of the demon prince himself to break his wand, denying him and his servant power. From the wand came a pure crystal which they planted in Bloodstone to grow into a large silvery tree. This tree protects at least a good portion of Damara from demons.

Over the past 50 years, Bloodstone has been built up from a village to a city... now the seat of the throne of Damara. It guards the pass to Vaasa.

One of the adventurers was a mighty human paladin named Gareth Dragonbane became the king of Bloodstone. He set up the Swordlords... a group of paladins he gave noble titles to and dispensed around Damara as barons and such. He retired some years later, passing the rule to his son, Gareth Dragonbane II.

Of the other adventurers, one became the King's advisor and set up a school of magic in Bloodstone. A powerful wizard rumored to be still alive, but has since turned over running the school to others... He is rumored now to be more interested in taking very young beautiful women as apprentices.

The other adventurers faded away from public life, vanishing into legend and going on with much more private lives.

There have been rumors that the witch king did not really die being a lich... and his castle which was a nest of many dragons is still a haunted and horrible place even now.

In recent years there have been several attempts to colonize the southern part of Vaasa, the more temperate area. One of the areas is called The Green Belt. A road runs northwest from Bloodstone into Vaasa up to Castle Perilous. Along that road is Oleg's Trading Post. Charters were given to adventurers to explore and tame various areas of The Green Belt ... the Dunsward, the Hooktongue Slough, and the Kamlands. The swamp area and the mountains were judged to be more dangerous and so the more experienced adventurers were sent there. Our group was sent to the areas surrounding Oleg's Trading Post in the Kamlands.

 Bloodstone, a large and new city designed by a paladin, had well lit and orderly streets that were well patrolled. While the city was protected from the mountains close by, the climate was a bit cool even in mid-summer. There was a large lake that surely must be deep because the water appeared almost black. In the middle of the lake were a few buildings and a magic school.

Passing through the Bloodstone gates into Vaasa... the walls were 100 feet high and 60 feet thick, full of defensive fortifications. The gates were still well manned by dozens of men. It was the most impressive thing our young group had ever seen. So big, it took minutes to walk from one side through the gates to the other. Enormous statues were on the other side looking down into the long valley. The valley was large, and it took a half day to walk through it before the land flattened out.

It took a week or two of traveling through windswept plains. Trees were sparse and the roads were unpaved. Very little civilization. There was rumored to be a village of half-orcs and on rare occasion we passed a hunter or trapper on the path. No city guards or patrols were out here... it was quiet... and a bit unsettling to those who came from cities. Alone and weeks from help.

Late in the afternoon as the road bent back toward the north, in the distance rose the sight of Oleg's Trading Post. A large wooden walled structure a couple of hundred feet across. Ten foot tall wooden palisades with a wooden tower at each corner. A large wooden gate stood open on the slightly worn path branching off from the main path. A few small buildings and fire pits were inside near a stable and large inn.

A gruff faced man looked up at our arrival and called out toward the inn, "Sventlanna, we have travelers!" He glanced back toward us, motioning to the left, "Stables are there if you need to stable your horses." He went back to work hammering some wood together. He glanced up again to notice that no one in the group seemed to have a horse and nodded toward the large building, "Main house is up there." Aeonill nodded thanks and guided the others toward the inn.

A slightly older, weathered looking woman of once told beauty walked out from the inn smoothing back her grey hair, "Welcome! You look to be adventurers. That's good! We've been waiting for adventurers. I have stew on the stove and fresh mead or ail." "Very gracious of you, m'lady," Sen nodded to her. "Oh, no no, no trouble at all," the kindly innkeeper woman invited everyone up to the larger house where the smell of something savory wafted from the door. She brought a wash basin for everyone to wash their hands and faces from travel and invited them to sit in the dining room, "My husband, Oleg, is out fixing the roof. The spring weather has been awful this year... so much rain... but please, help yourselves." She set a large pot of venison stew on the table along with fine bread. "It smells wonderful," Aeonill nodded her appreciation as everyone sat down. The innkeeper smiled, "I am Oleg's wife, Sventlanna. I do the cooking and the cleaning. Welcome to our little trading post. You don't look like merchants, so you must be adventurers. Oh thank the gods!" Aeon tilted her head, "Has there been a lot of trouble out here?" "Yes, with the bandits! You're here to kill them, right? The crown sent you to help us?" She looked around at the four sitting at the table with hope in her eyes. "Yes," Aeonill assured her as Lorwynelle nodded in agreement, "Indeed." The charter had said to explore the territory... and if there was banditry, to stomp it out... but from this woman's tone of voice, she surely thought that the group was here to deal with the bandits and had probably sent word for help. Oleg walked into the house, dusting off his hat, "I can't believe they actually sent someone. We've sent two messages. It's been weeks." "I believe they were seeking... outside workers.. to deal with the problem," Aeon nodded. Oleg grumbled about the city wanting it's coin and not caring for the uncivilized folk, giving the impression that he was someone who thought too much civilization was sinful and had moved out here to get away from it. "About three months ago, a group of bandits forced their way into the trading post. There was about a dozen of them... lead by this..." he glanced at his wife for a moment, "Pardon my language, but... cruel bitch of a woman. She had a couple of axes. She and her boys threatened some rather... unpleasant things to my wife and made some unwelcome advances." Sventlanna paled behind him, turning away slightly. "Of course I didn't take it lightly," Oleg shook his head, continuing, "but there were a dozen of them and she was going to cut off my hands for raising them up to protect my wife... instead she took my wife's wedding ring, a rather valuable piece of jewelry in recompense for my 'boldness'." Sventlanna moved closer to him, rubbing his shoulder to try and comfort him. Lorwyn frowned, "It sounds like quite the group." He nodded to her, "Ever since then, a group of bandits returns at the first of the month to collect their "protection" money." Aeonill thought for a moment, "What 'is' today?" "Tomorrow is the first of the month," Oleg answered. "Well then it seems we've arrived just in time," Lorwyn nodded, "You've both survived unharmed since that first encounter?" Oleg nodded, "They usually come in, make some threats... sometimes rough me up. The first time was the only time I seen that woman with the axes. After that fewer and fewer men have been sent... but there are a dozen of them and I know they're out there somewhere." He sat at the table with everyone, dipping a large piece of bread into his bowl of stew. "Do you know where they call home?" Aeon asked. Oleg shook his head, "I know they're from the southwest, but I'm not sure exactly where... and I think that they are part of a larger group. I heard some of them talking about some great leader... not the woman with the axes. She's more like a lieutenant or something... if thugs could give ranks." "Do you know this thug's name?" Lorwyn tilted her head. "Her name is Kressle. Her right hand man comes with the bandits every month... a man named Haps," Oleg nodded, "I appreciate any help that you can give. I'll do anything that you ask me." "When tomorrow comes... do no more than normal," Aeonill nodded to him. "I usually leave the gate open," he nodded, "And we meet in the center there." "What do they take from you?" Aeon asked. "Depends on what I have," Oleg nodded, "Usually furs or whatever I can get. We don't get a lot of visitors here to trade with... usually what the trappers and hunters bring when they stop by and trade for a bed and food. Certainly whatever goods you pick up on your travels, I'd be glad to buy them from you." The stew and fresh baked bread was delicious and very welcome after weeks of trail rations.

Oleg and Sventlanna rented out the smaller rooms to the group of four. Everyone walked around the trading post, taking in the grounds and making plans for the bandits arrival. There were catapults in disrepair in each of the towers. They looked like they hadn't been used in 20 years. He showed his stockroom of some armor, a longbow, some arrows, some coin - mostly copper, a suit of armor, a couple of barrels, and lanterns. "You're welcome to hide wherever you'd like to hide... stables, the rooms, the house... wherever. They usually come in up to there, by the firepits."

"What's your plan?" Lorwyn turned to Aeon. "I think we should let them come in. Naahir can wait up in one of the closer towers to make sure no one is outside to back them up, and I'll wait back here to seal up the exit so they can't get out," the elven woman nodded, "And we'll hit them here. You can hide here or there. Either spot will be good. Once we're cleared that there are no more coming, we'll move in. This is assuming that 6 or less show up... if more than that come, I think we should just quietly track them back to where they come from." Lorwyn nodded her agreement. "You there, furry feet, can you track them?" Aeon turned to Naahir. "Aye," he nodded, "Like the wind." Lorwyn gestured toward the stables, "I'll be waiting there." "Then I'll wait in the inn with Sventlanna," Sen nodded.

Oleg closed the gate at night to prevent bears and whatnot from coming in. Cool air blew in the open windows and woodland noises could be heard outside coming from the Narlmarches.

The night was quiet. There were no trees directly around the trading post, just miles of the plains. There were no lights... no flickering campfires in the distance. The sky was bright with millions of stars. Raw nature, it was vast and a little empty feeling to both Aeon and Lorwyn who were used to busier elven city lives.

In the morning, everyone got into their positions and waited. Nahiir was stealthy, comfortable up in the tower where he had a good view. He signaled back that there were 4 men coming. There were four humans, lightly armored and riding horses. The leader, Haps, carried a composite bow. The others carried longswords and long bows.

The four strolled in through the gate to see Oleg standing in the middle of town with furs bundled on a table next to him. Haps nodded to him, "Nice to see that you're ready for us, old man. I appreciate that, but where's your pretty little wife?" Oleg nodded back without falter, "She's inside making breakfast for you kindhearted individuals." "I like the way you talk," Haps grinned, "Why don't you send her out here with some bacon and eggs. Maybe I can get a little peek at that feminine flesh." The other three chuckled and grinned next to him, nodding, "Yeah, bring her out!" The four dismounted from their horses and started loading the furs into the bags on their horses. Oleg managed to keep his calm, despite his great inner anger. Aeon stumbled out from the back wall with her hand over her face, "Oleg! What the hell is that smell?" A smirk played across her lips as she took another sauntering step, "Oh... it must be these guys." Haps turned around to see the elven woman approaching, "Well look at what we have here... a real hero. She's a lot prettier than Sventlanna. Why don't you come over here a little closer? Introduce yourself. We're all eager to meet you." "For the record... my name is Aeon Moonflower," She nodded, placing her hand on the hilt of her sword, "And I'm much happier to meet you than you are me."

"Looks like we're going to have to teach you your place, bitch," the other guys around him sneered at her, pulling their weapons. Aeonill pulled her blade from her hip, sauntering forward. Nahiir aimed his bow through the window of the tower, sinking an arrow into one of the thug's shoulders! The man cried out, "Ambush!" as his hand went to his shoulder. Aeon laughed smugly, "You've no idea..." Lorwyn stepped out of the stables, sending an arc of flame through Haps and glancing off of another thug next to him. Haps stumbled back surprised and burnt! Aeon pierced her sword through the fourth man's shoulder as he ran toward her. Two had run up, calling Aeon all sorts of unpleasant things. She brought her sword up to parry his attack and ran it back through into his chest, dropping him to the ground dead! "They killed Fred!" The other called back, glancing down in shock at his friend before wildly missing Aeon with his sword. Haps grabbed his composite bow and shot back into the tower at Nahiir, sinking an arrow into the catfolk who grunted out with pain. The thug who caught part of Lorwynelle's flame arc rushed over to her, swinging his short sword, but it splashed sparks as it struck against her protective spell armor. He screamed out, "Magic!" back over his shoulder. Sen slipped out of the main house, skirting the edge of the combat to move behind Aeon, heading toward the injured catfolk in the tower.

Nahiir shouldered his bow, drawing his blade, and moved down the tower to come out by the wall. Lorwyn threw out another arc of flame, scorching slightly both the thug on her and Haps behind him. The thug in front of her wiped his hand across his face, "Looks like your magic fire is getting weak, little missy... I'm going to have some 'fun' with you." His eyes gazed over her with dark intent. "Isn't Kressle calling your name about now?" Aeon shouted at him, as she swung her rapier to slice across the other's throat, dropping him bleeding to the ground, "It's all coming unraveled now, boys." Haps leapt onto his horse, and rode for the gate as hard as he could. Aeon whipped her rapier across the horse just enough to leave a trail of blood to track them. The last thug standing struck at Lorwyn again, but her mage armor deflected the damage much to his frustration. Sen made her way to Nahiir, laying her hands over his furred body and sending out a heal to close his wound. Haps continued past them at a gallop, leaving his man behind him without even a backward glance. Nahiir sprinted over the wagon, sliding across the ground near the mage and thug. Lorwyn sent out a magic missile into the thug's forehead, closing her eyes and wincing back as he took two more steps toward her with his sword before collapsing to the ground.

"Is everyone alright?" Aeon looked around the blood spattered yard at her new companions. Sen nodded quietly, stepping next to the elven woman. "I think this one is still breathing..." Lorwyn shook her head, moving her feet back and pulling a dagger to slit his throat... just in case he thought about getting up to make good on his threats. Nahiir nodded his approval to the young arcanist. Oleg nodded and spit on the corpses on the ground, "Good riddance! ...though I'm worried they'll be back with the rest of them now." "They will be," Aeon nodded to him. "Still... I can't thank you enough," he nodded to her, gesturing toward the horses, "Any stuff they left behind is yours for the taking. If you're in need of horses, it looks like they left three of them." Aeon nodded to him, "Can I purchase those three horses from you?" "No, no... those are all yours. If you're wanting to sell them though, I'd be glad to take them off of your hands," Oleg smiled, "You're welcome to stay here in the houses at no charge, and the little woman will provide meals to you for free."

Searching the corpses, there were 3 suits of leather armor, 3 long bows, and 3 longswords, and 30 gold in addition to their horses. Lorwynelle and Nahiir each took a long bow and the rest of the stuff was sold to Oleg and split up as gold to everyone. 25 gold each.

A wooden sign in the midst of the trading post held several public postings...

Bandits in the green belt need to be shown that their actions will not be tolerated. Capture or defeat at least 6 of them to send a message! Reward 400 gold!

Kobolds in the hills! The sootscale kobolds dwell in a cave somewhere in the Kamlands. Normally they are not a problem, but something has them all riled up lately. Find their lair and ensure that the kobolds will no longer be a threat. Reward 800 gold!

Wanted: Tatzelwurm! The way everyone talks about tatzelwurms, one might think they're swarming all over. This isn't true. Tatzelwurms are quite rare. A tatzelwurm head would make a great conversation piece at Oleg's. Deliver the head to Oleg's. Reward 600 gold!

Wanted: Tuskgutter! Everyone in Green Belt has a story about ol' Tuskgutter, each wilder than the last! Whoever manages to kill the beast will get a nice reward from old retired Vekkel Benzen, who lost his leg to the monster pig a year ago. Deliver his head to Oleg's. Reward a masterworked longbow and 6 +1 animal bane arrows... and headcheese? ...ew.