Prymptown Courier - v. 4 no. 1

[Vol. 3 only had 8 issues.]

PRYMPTOWN COURIER

Vol. 4, No. 1 (April 2001)

EDITORIAL

After a two-month hiatus, the Courier is back!  And a new volume has been started in order to solve numbering problems with volume 3 (all evidence seems to indicate that there was no vol. 3, no. 4!).  Similar to last issue, the campaign write-up will be somewhat different this time too.  Sessions 27 through 30 of the campaign were plagued by low attendance (including one solo session for Hristo!).  So, since the write-ups for each session would be so short, they've been combined into one.  All the details are still there -- as best as I can remember them -- but the presentation is a little looser; the story is perhaps a little sketchier.  I have, for this write-up at least, switched to present tense.  I think the writing went a little faster that way, but we'll see if people prefer it (myself included), before making a permanent tense transistion. 

I've eliminated PCs from the PC cast list who were NPCs for all four sessions.  Some of them are retired PCs, like Barada and Gabriel, but others may return to the campaign as PCs later, like Andel.  The new PC, Godrum, is unique in being the first NPC to become a Player Character.  Godrum did not have a player until the 30th session.    

There is some ...adult material that was unavoidable in this issue's write-up.  The joke name "Pimpegilliam Brown" has long floated around the gaming table, but the 30th session made it fact. 

And last of all, the conclusion that no one asked for to Dunold's Story!

27th-30th PLAYING SESSIONS
Continuing Chapter 3:  SEPARATE JOURNEYS
PC Role Call:
Perpegilliam Brown, Chaotic Neutral Hobniz male robber (4th lvl thief; 5,637 xp). 
Maldrik Moonharvest, Neutral Oerdian male aspirant of Beory (1st lvl druid; 869 xp).
Vladamir Kostitov, Lawful Good Oerdian male minor trickster (2nd lvl illusionist; 6,486 xp).
Enlock Nightshade, Neutral Good Oerdian male prestidigitator (1st lvl magic-user; 3,750 xp).
Hristo Goldmund, Neutral Good Wesevud ("Central") Noniz male veteran/rogue (1st lvl fighter/1st lvl thief; 1,264/1,578 xp).
Alexander Petrok, Lawful Neutral Oerdian male protector (2nd lvl templar - variant paladin - 6,195 xp).
and introducing, Godrum, Lawful Good Mentherim ("Common")-Dwur male
veteran (1st lvl fighter; 71 xp).

Growfest 3rd.  Moonday.  A windy day.

Perpegilliam Brown asks the last priest of Fharlanghn in Prymp, Elijah Dawnriser, to accompany him to Porton, but Dawnriser refused, prefering instead to remain and rebuild the ruined shrine. 

Growfest 4th.  Godsday.  A foggy, cloudy day.

Peri visits the shop of Geminov, pawnbroker and fence, and finds his post-invasion business booming.  Peri buys a skeleton key.  He then visits the Goldmund family, looking for Hristo.  
Hristo's sister, Ilyana, serves him a gnomish delicacy, oregano cookies.  Peri talks to Hristo's father, Stojko, about financing the Grinning Gargoyle Guild, bad talks Vladamir, and proposes 10% shares in the guild.  Maldrik Moonharvest meets Peri, and decides to go with him to Porton.  Maldrik meets a watchman named Velin, and bribes him 1 gp to keep him informed about local happenings.

Peri sells his crystal shards to Nemis Coraz, advisor to the laird, for 12 gp.  Peri goes to the Chapel of Zilchus looking for Alexander Petrok, but is stopped by Alex's fellow templar,
Aaron.  Aaron is gruff with the Hobniz, and Peri flips him.  Peri becomes further convinced that his magic gauntlets make him invincible.

Maldrik and Peri both sign up for some of the first room's available in the newly-refurbished Inn of the Grinning Gargoyle.

Enlock Nightshade reaches an agreement with Herhsel the Innkeeper to co-sponsor the Grinning Gargoyle Guild.  Enlock goes to Town Hall to have the contracts drawn up for it.

Vladamir Kostitov is trying to recruit non-party members to go with him to Hexpools, since his companions have all abandoned the expedition he's planned.  Godrum, the Dwur who fought
beside the Band of the Grinning Gargoyle in the caves under Prymp, is willing to go.  So does a scout named Marta, who responds to Vlad's advertising at the town's taverns and inns.

Hristo Goldmund has returned to Prymp from his aborted trip east to Benkend.  He had received approximately 50 gp as his share of party treasure, which was surprisingly less than he had
hoped.  He hears criers announcing the siege of Porton and the Grinning Gargoyle Band's need to hire men-at-arms for the trip to Hexpools.  He decides to go to Prymp Keep and see what
opportunities for salaried employment there are.  Sure enough, Vicarus Philip Petrok is looking for someone with Hristo's experience to head a team exploring the abandoned Provincial
encampment south of town.  Hristo signs back on with the watch, and is directed towards Sgt. Fikri to suggest men from his unit for the task.  Hristo is given a group of 12 men, whom
Hristo quickly learns are novices.  The brightest of the bunch seems to be a man named Zhikov, whom Hristo names as his second. 

At the camp, Hristo scouts around one building at a time, then
sending in teams of four to flush out any remaining Provincial
troops.  Instead, Hristo and his men discover that the whole
camp was heavily trapped after the troops left, and Hristo's men
are being wounded left and right.  After a hasty retreat and
regroup, Hristo and his remaining men go back in and
concentrate on finding and disarming traps.  Hristo himself is
caught in a magical fire trap, which renders him unconscious.  

Growfest 5th.  Waterday.  A warmer, foggy, cloudy day.

Peri and Maldrik start walking along the beach west towards
Porton. 

Vlad arrives at dawn at the defender's camp outside Prymp to
find it has become a haven for those renderered homeless by
the fighting.  Vlad asks for volunteers to accompany him to
Hexpools and gets a small group of couples to agree.  Vlad leads
his "troops" to the stables to get his horse, and finds Pilf, the
green-hued Noniz from the dreamlands, waiting for him.  Vlad's
new party heads south right away, but the homeless people --
led by a whiney man named Barvo -- decide to turn around and
go back. 

Enlock is waiting for Alexander to get ready for their trip to Rel
Deven, and is surprised at mid-day when Alex announces his
affairs are in order early and he is ready to go.  The two of them
set out on horseback on the road to the east.  By suppertime,
they reach the neighboring village of Balay where they sup and
lodge at the The Red Duck Inn.

Hristo wakes up to find he is back at Prymp Keep.  The fire trap
had burned down the entire camp.  He is informed that, while he
and most of his men were seriously injured, no one was killed. 
Hristo considers that a success.  After resting through the day,
he is excused from service due to medical considerations.  He
adjourns to the Grinning Gargoyle Inn, where he is approached
by a black-bearded man in a wizard's cap and robes.  The man
identifies himself as Eneever Zig, and says he is looking for the
Band of the Grinning Gargoyle because he wants their help in
searching Skull Keep.  Hristo says he will tell them if he sees
them.

Growfest 6th.  Earthday.  A warmer day.

Peri and Maldrik pass Skull Keep.  Peri investigates and finds
Provincial troops hold the ruined tower, if not the dungeons
underneath.  The evening they reach Porton and find it under
seige by the very army which Prymp had repelled.  Peri and
Maldrik sneak around the part of town by the docks but find
nothing like an inn.  The main, walled part of town is locked up
tight, so Peri and Maldrik go over the wall.  Peri slips by, but
Maldrik is caught by guards and questioned at length in a
guardhouse.  Peri finds a chapel to Olidammara and kindred
spirits inside.  Peri is introduced to Moral, local fishmonger,
smuggler, and allegedly the most important man behind the
scenes in Porton.  Moral in turn hooks Peri up with Sly Peter, a
thief trainer who is said to be the finest on the coast.

Vlad and his reduced company of Godrum, Marta, and Pilf
continue south.  They avoid traveling directly on the trails, with
Marta scouting on ahead.  Vlad & Co. are surprised by golden-
furred dogs who have the ability to appear and disappear
around them.  The travelers are wary, if not hostile, but the
encounter ends without serious violence.  They reach Vecheld
Gesto, the village from which Graf Lopozos Cranden rules the
region, but Vlad insists on camping well away from the village
since the Provincial Army had been here just before attacking
Prymp. 

Enlock and Alex attempt to see Ritter Taulis, who rules the
village of Balay, but they are told at his manor that he is not
available.  Feeling slighted, Enlock and Alex ride on.  They ride
right through the next village, Awad, that afternoon, but are
distracted when they see a large, one-story stone building on a
rise along the coast just a few miles east of the village. 
Investigating, they enter an open doorway and find a long
hallway lined with arrow slits.  Undeterred, they make their way
to the first bend in the hallway, where they are attacked by thin
spears being poked out through the arrow slits from short
attackers.  Although uninjured by the initial attack, Enlock and
Alex choose to retreat and continue on their way. 

Hristo sets out of foot, alone, once more bound for the
neighboring village of Balay.

Growfest 7th.  Freeday.

Peri begins the first day of his training, mostly in a hidden room
under the Frothy Mug Hostel.  Peri is asked to produce the
hostelkeeper, Plamen's, shoe and has difficulty performing the
task unnoticed.

Vlad & Co. continue to travel slowly off the trails, camping when
night falls.  Vlad begins to suspect that Marta, their scout, is
really a woman.

Enlock and Alex break camp and ride on.  They are stopped on
the road by an armed party of halflings, who tell the two of them
to veer off the road and bypass their village.  Enlock and Alex
comply, and sweet talk the halflings into escorting them back to
the road.  They continue on and reach the town of Benkend that
afternoon.  Enlock looks around town for a magic shop, but
instead they are stopped by the town guard.  When questioned,
Enlock lets slip that they have come from Prymp, and they are
both arrested.  They are stripped down to their underclothes
and locked in a cell.

Planting 1st.  Starday.

Peri continues his training under Sly Peter.  That evening, as part
of the training, they go to the docks and sabotage the Provincial
Navy's ships in port.  Peri burns one down and damages a
second one.

Maldrik is awakened for more interrogation, this time with Sgt.
Hristo Ivanova.  Ivanova wants useful information in exchange
for Maldrik's freedom, but Maldrik doesn't provide any. 
Ivanova decides to have Maldrik killed, but Maldrik seizes an
opportunity to escape while being transported away from the
guardhouse.

Vlad & Co. discover signs of a recent battle which suggest that
Marta, who had still been scouting ahead, was either killed or
captured.  Without Marta, none of the remaining three have any
tracking or even navigational skills, so they have no alternative
but to keep going in the same direction and hope to find Marta. 
They don't, and camp for the night.  During Pilf's watch, nine
scaly humanoids the size of halflings attack their camp.  Pilf
produces an iron rod from his bag, speaks a magic command
word, and charms everyone present -- the monsters, Godrum,
and Vlad.
 
Alex fumes at Enlock over their situation, as they continue to sit
in their cell.  They are questioned further, particularly about the
Holy symbol of Zilchus found in Alex's possession.  The
inquisitor reveals that the church of Zilchus is aligned with the
royal house of Cranden, and Alex is accused of being a spy
against the royal house of Torquann.

Planting 2nd.  Sunday.

Peri continues his training.

Vlad & Co., now under Pilf's command and including his
charmed monsters, continue on and reach the walled town of
Arogaz Avon.  Pilf and Vlad enter town with some of the
monsters in tow.  The town guard identifies the monsters as
kobolds and says they are allowed in town as long as they are
escorted, but when Pilf wanders off, Vlad can't keep them under
control and the kobolds run off too.  Vlad soon sees Pilf being
chased out of the moneylender's shop. 

Vlad wanders town alone, and meets Ludmil, the self-proclaimed
hero of Ovokelh.  Ludmil has come to Arogaz Avon because it
is closest to the steading of the ogre chief, and Ludmil is trying
to mount an expedition to attack the raiding ogres in their lair. 
Vlad and Ludmil discuss this in the Green Tree Inn, and are later
joined by Pilf who loves the plan and tells Vlad they will join.

Meanwhile, outside, Godrum is camped as close to the town's
wall as the guards will let him.  He soon discovers that the
kobolds he was left to supervise are eyeing him hungrily.  The
kobolds try numerous subterfuges to try and trick Godrum into
going to sleep, cooking himself, etc.  When that fails they try a
direct assault, but Godrum kills three of them and the remainder
withdraw.  Godrum seeks safety in town, but finds the guards
are prejudiced and hostile against dwarves.  When the guards
threaten to fire arrows at Godrum, he runs away and waits in a
nearby field for any signs of Vlad and Pilf.

Alex and Enlock have some of their clothes returned to them,
but they are still kept in their cell.

Planting 3rd.  Moonday.

Peri continues his training.

Alex and Enlock are told that someday soon they will be tried.

Planting 4th.  Godsday.

Peri wraps up his training with a marathon session.  Outside,
Porton has fallen to the siege.  The hostel is searched by the
Provincial soldiers for dissidents, but the secret room is missed. 
Peri ventures out to find that the chapel of Olidammara is being
closed and its occupants arrested.

Alex and Enlock continue to wait for the slow wheels of justice
to turn.

Planting 5th.  Waterday.

Peri leaves Porton and heads back to Skull Keep.  He intends to
explore the mysterious pit south of the lone tower, but chickens
out.  He then decides to see if Provincial troops are still inside
the dungeon, and when he finds them, he chickens out of that
too.

Alex and Enlock continue to rot in jail.

Planting 6th.  Earthday.

Alex and Enlock continue to rot in jail.

Peri reaches Prymp again, and returns to the Green Grove Hostel
run by grouchy ol' Garvin.  He is surprised to learn that the three
prostitutes he last hired are still there, and many other men and
women are hanging around the hostel now.  Peri questions one
of the trollops and learns what transpired after he left for Porton
-- the prostitutes needed a new whorehouse after the one in the
dock district burned down, and decided to adopt the Green
Grove Hostel as their new home.  Then, it occured to them to use
Peri's reputation as an adventurer and began telling people he
was their pimp.  Other girls were soon drawn to this new
business, and now business was booming.

Peri could not have been more happy.  He talked to Garvin
about becoming business partners, but Garvin was perfectly
aware of the situation and knew how profitable it had become. 
Peri needed assistance in persuading him, and went to find his
teammate, Barada.  With Barada's help in intimidating him,
Garvin gave in to selling Peri 10% of the business, accepting
Peri's managing suggestions, and renaming the whorehouse,
Peri's Palace.  Barada agreed to become the business' bouncer/
enforcer.

Planting 7th.  Freeday.

Alex and Enlock are removed from their cell.  As they pass
through the prison complex towards the courtyard, a man calls out to them from a neighboring cell.  He asks if they are from the Grinning Gargoyle Band, chastises himself for being late, and says he needs to tell them "the magic word."  The guards pull them out of range before they can hear what it is. 

In the courtyard, they find guards all along the perimeter and a man in plate armor with an arquebus over his back.  This man identifies himself as Langraf Quaansheek Torquann, and he will personally handle their trials.  They have a choice of trial by combat or trial by question, and Alex choses combat.  A wild boar is produced for Alex to fight to the death, and after a pitched battle, Alex wins.  Enlock choses trial by question, but both Alex and Enlock are surprised when they are led back inside to a torture chamber!  They plead with Torquann for leniency, and are surprised when it is granted.  But on their way to freedom, Alex noticed that his magic sword, just returned to him, has been replaced with a near-duplicate.  Although sorely vexed, Alex accepts that there is nothing he can do for now.  The two of them are escorted to the edge of town and told never to return.  Alex and Enlock stop at a farmhouse nearby and speak with the locals, who like the Landgraf little better than they do.  Alex offers them some money in exchange for keeping tabs on local events until Alex returns. 

Alex and Enlock did have their horses returned to them, and they ride on to the village of Razivon.  They find Razivon is in ruins, and only a few buildings remain along the road.  One of them is the Tavern of the Goblin's Quarterstaff, where they go to soothe their parched throats.  There, they learn from the locals of how the Provincial army had destroyed the village just last year, supposedly for not paying enough in taxes.  Enlock, on a delayed hunch, checks his spellbook and finds it too had been replaced with a blank book with a similar spine.

Pressing hard, Alex and Enlock ride on from Razivon towards the Thelly River, and are accosted by bandits.  They kill four and the rest flee.  Undeterred, they continue and reach the river, where they are ferried across to the town of Ilahzdruk.  Alahzdruk is an unwalled town, a little larger than Benkend, the last stop on the river before it disappears into the Thelwood, and home to not a few halfings.  They find the Inn of the Alchemist's Cantrip not far from the ferry docks and spend the night there.  Enlock meets an old alchemist there named Dragomil who plans on leaving for Rel Deven in the morning.

DUNOLD'S STORY (pt. 3)

"It was not uncommon in those days for Phillip Petrok to sleep at Prymp Keep when garrison duty kept him there late.  The conspirators whom I had joined gave me the key to his room.  Petrok slept through the drawing of my blade, but snapped awake when it brushed against his beard.

"'What is the meaning of this?' he demanded.  Even with my long sword an inch from his throat his was still the voice of authority. 

"'No harm will come to you, sir,' I had been instructed to tell him.  'I must only hold you here while my compatriots do their deeds.'

"'Do you think you could defeat me in a fair fight, Dunold?'  Even in a dark room he had recognized me by voice.

"'No sir, but I do not need to.  Only to delay you until it is too late.'

"It was then that we both heard voices raised in alarm -- but ONLY voices.  Petrok was one of the few officers with an alarm horn, and the others had traitors like me at their bedsides.  But the cries had distracted me from watching Petrok for a second, and he was a fast and nimble man.  He pivoted on his bed and kicked me hard in the stomach before rolling off the other end of the bed.  The room was illuminated only by the torchlight visible from under the room's door, so once he was more than a few inches from me he was rendered invisible.  I didn't hear him, but I thought he would flee for the door and moved to intercept him.  I had failed to reckon on his cunning, though, for he had laid close to the floor and watched for my feet in the dim light.  He threw a stool between my legs and sent me tumbling to the ground. 

"Petrok must have then gone for the horn in case I had not already moved it -- which I had -- giving me time to get up.  I was trying to get a sense of his location when I heard steel leaving its scabbard, and saw a dazzling blaze of magical light.  Petrok had drawn a magic sword against me, and my advantage was gone.  I would have died right then on the spot if Petrok had not had other priorities.  He faked a lunge at me, and while I backed up to raise my defense, he turned for the door and kicked it open.  I gave chase and found him heading down the corridor with his sword in one hand and a lit torch in the other.  He pounded on his neighbor's door with the pommel of his sword and shouted 'Terko!' at the top of his lungs.  I was on him by then, so he had to turn to parry my sword.  There was no response from the room, because Terko had been one of the Watch Masters slated for assassination.

"Due to the narrowness of the corridor, we stood apart with swords fully extended at arm's length.  Our blades would touch, or clang as they swatted against each other, but neither of us touched for several minutes.  Petrok was clearly distracted, though I fought with all my might, knowing that it was in his best interests to drop me quickly.  I slipped long enough to take a cut to my sword arm and recoiled.  Petrok sprang back from me, turned, and fled to the stairwell.  Clad in just his nightshirt, he bounded down the stairs three at a time to the lower floor.  As I followed, I could more clearly hear the sounds of combat below.  Revolution was in full swing now, and half the barracks were turned against the other. 

"I lost track of Petrok for a minute, but caught sight of him again in the main hall making for the courtyard.  There was battling out there too, and Petrok was right in guessing the most important fighting had moved outside.  There were no more than a dozen fighters in the courtyard, but each was an officer of some importance.  One such officer was Garvo, reputed to be the best fighter in the watch, if not Prymp itself.  Nearly seven feet tall and a darkly-tanned mass of sinew, Garvo was easily holding his own against two lesser officers.  Petrok began to rally officers loyal to the Herzog to his side, while I stood against him.  But the fighting did not last long.  A horn sounded, and the blue boar's head flag of the Province began to lower from the ramparts above.  Slowly, one combatant at a time, everyone in the courtyard stopped fighting.  Cheering could be heard in scattered sections of the keep.  

"The Watch Masters all died that night, some stabbed with
their own scimitars of Hextor while they slept, to spite the evil god of such evil men.  But our business did not end with their deaths, for the next most senior officers -- including Petrok -- were evenly split over whether to accept the new independence of the watch or to punish the rebels.  The following hours were spent in grim negotiation.  Garvo had been one of the rebels, and in the negotiations served as our leader.  Petrok now led those who still stood against us, and seconding him was an obnoxious sergeant named Vooten.  Time passed, and the negotiations seemed deadlocked.  I wandered about the courtyard through much of it, eyeing my fellow watchmen.  Everyone was eyeing each other suspiciously, expecting further acts of treason.  Perhaps, they realized, the situation yet called for more betrayals.  More blood.

"'The vote is a tie,' Petrok was announcing when I returned. 

"'The keep is our's!' Garvo shouted.  'Why do you test our resolve when we have already shown what we will risk for freedom?'

"'Your freedom is a fool's dream!' Petrok countered.  'When the Herzog learns of this rebellion, he shall send his armies and crush you into the dirt!  No law will defend your actions.  You have turned your backs on both the laws of the province, and the laws of Zilchus!  You do not even have the law of the majority on your side...'

"With that, Vooten gurgled and bled.  I pulled my sword out of his back, and he fell to the ground..."

Dunold, still staring at the ceiling of his bedroom, lost the clarity of vision in his eyes.  He lied there, staring at nothing, with his mouth open, for several minutes.  Kentol Ahkpov waited quietly by his side to see if more of this confession was forthcoming.  Finally, he decided to speak.

"Dunold..." Ahkpov began, "Pholtus approves of neither rebellion nor murder.  You have strayed far from the One True Path."

Dunold's head rolled to one side and he spoke, "For years, I convinced myself that I had done some good...made Prymp a better place than it might have been.  You know, Petrok has defended the new law with the same fervor as he opposed the rebellion..."

"Yes, such is the way of Zilchus -- mutable ethics.  But you know what we must do to before you can enter Pholtus' Heaven?"

"Yes..." and Dunold rolled over in his bed. 

Kentol Ahkpov stood, and said a short prayer over the head of his staff.  Then he lifted the staff and swung the head of it down onto the dying man's back.  "Pholtus, forgive him!" he shouted.

Dunold spasmed and groaned.  "Pholtus forgive me..." he wheezed as the flagellation continued.