DM Dialectic's Events

[DM Dialectic]

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((EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA emphasis: If you were not in an event described below IC, you do not IC know any of the below information for such an event beyond what may be in rumors posts IC or what the characters involved tell you IC.))

[DM Dialectic]

The Pantaloons Thief (September 14, 2014)

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An Amnian merchant caravan of the Medino Pantaloons Company, camping the night off the Trade Way between Beregost and Nashkel on the way to Athkatla, was attacked by brigands and two of its members murdered and a crate of the merchant's most valuable and prized pantaloons stolen. A few adventurers approached the moaning and hysterical group of merchants and after realizing that the matriarch of the merchant group, Roberta Medino, cared more about her stolen prized pantaloons than the two dead men of her company, which included Roberta's son by her husband Roberto, Gregory, the adventurers set off to find her stolen fine pantaloons. They tracked a trail to a cave near the Nashkel Mines where they met the bandit Peter "Cut" Jeffords, who apparently earned his nickname from cutting the pants off innocent victims, then sending the victims on their way or killing them with their pants still on if they resisted, adding to his collection of leg wear. The adventurers defeated Cut and his pant obsessed lackeys after he offered to take the adventurers' pants in exchange for them making it out alive. The adventurers then returned to the victimized caravan off the Trade Way and returned much of the stolen pantaloons and received a reward of fine pantaloons themselves from the Medinos, after of course promising to promote the Medino Pantaloons Company label to their friends. Afterward, one of the cooks of the merchant band, William, broke down over the loss of his cooking partner Alfonzo in the merchant organization and Roberta's indifference toward Alfonzo's death and threatened to quit, but Roberta quickly put William back in his place and sent him crying back into the merchant caravan tent. Soon after, the bodies of those fallen in the caravan were buried and the caravan packed up and headed south to Athkatla.

Participants:
-Mara Stormwind
-Diana RedSteel
-Herran Hymn
-Lillian Asby (Left Early, No XP Reward)

Rewards: 1000 XP each and some fine pantaloons for the road.

((Thanks to DM Eminence and these players for their participation and help with my first DM event!))

[DM Dialectic]

Spying for Gullykin (September 15, 2014)

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A group of adventurers run into a drunken dwarf man leaving a tavern in Beregost, heading back to his home in the mostly hin town of Gullykin. In a drunken, somewhat understandable rant, he mentioned that the Mayor of Gullykin was seeking adventurers for help with some local issues. After parting ways, the adventurers took the drunk dwarf's word to mean something material and so decided to have an audience with the Mayor.

Upon the meeting, the Mayor, the halfling Gandolar Luckyfoot, mentions to the adventurers that Gullykin has been doing overall very well since the end of the Amn-Gate war, with wine production at an all time high, the town never more seemingly secure, and local trade and commerce prosperous with all of the adventurers passing through Gullykin on the way to Firewine Bridge, Durlag's Tower, or the Gullykin crypts and being sold goods and services by Gullykin locals. Despite these positives, the Mayor does say that he could use some help, although he clarifies that he does not necessarily need it or feel desperate for it, to gather information on some odd recent noises and sightings at Durlag's Tower and the Gullykin Crypts. He also mentions that the town could use help to sell a large surplus of wine production from the town's wine producers. All of these tasks, the Mayor claims, might incur a large or moderate reward depending on the help provided.

The adventurers agree to aid the town in all matters proposed by the Mayor and decide to head off to Durlag's Tower first. Before leaving Gullykin, the adventurers spend a hefty sum on potions at a local Gullykin merchant that makes a healthy profit selling off adventure gear to folks headed to nearby danger sites. The merchant claims to the adventurers that this is so because his stock is in such high demand from frequenting adventurers headed to the Tower, the Bridge, or the Crypts nearby.

After heading to Durlag's Tower after a brief break to gather additional supplies from some nearby vendors in High Hedge and Beregost that had supplies the merchants in Gullykin did not, the adventurers head to the Tower entrance and happen upon a frequenting historian and tour guide of the Tower, a halfling named Geral, also from Gullykin. Geral offers the adventurers a history lesson about the Tower and a tour of it as well for a total sum of 2,500 gold pieces. The adventurers agree and are wowed by Geral's knowledge of the Tower's origins and its tragedy struck builder and incredibly wealthy original owner, the great hero of the dwarves Durlag Trollkiller, son of Bolhur "Thunderaxe" the Clanless. Geral told the adventurers that long ago Durlag Trollkiller was assaulted by illithids and dopplegangers in the Tower and that gradually their assaults built up his paranoia, for anyone could be a shapeshifted doppleganger he reasoned, so he fortified, defended, warded, and trapped his citadel against all. Driven into madness in the process, Durlag died a lonely and tragic figure somewhere in his keep. Geral added rumors saying that Durlag's body is possibly buried somewhere in the lower depths of the Tower, perhaps his former vast treasure horde along with him.

The adventures and Geral then began their tour of the Tower. Geral took the adventurers below to show them some of the interesting sights. In a corridor in the lower part of the Tower, Geral suddenly screamed in pain about someone in his head and mumbled gibberish as he passed out and his ears bled. Shortly thereafter, a different adventurer group returning from the lower depths of Durlag's Tower showed up at the scene unsure of what was happening. It was then that a good number of all present suddenly fell ill with incredible debilitating mental pain, many of them passing out. As the group's combat-ready numbers thinned substantially, a door then opened to the corridor and out stepped three illithids. They spoke psionically to those present and aware in a fashion that they all could understand clearly. They mentioned that they were after something and that no barbaric, weak surfacers would get in their way. They said that all present needed to leave immediately or that they would suck the brains, knowledge, and memories out of all before them. Only one adventurer, Toric, was foolish enough to stay behind after this threat and attacked the illithids as others went to safety. This reckless adventurer was almost killed in the process from what were clearly extremely powerful mind flayers. Toric was barely able to withdraw from the battle alive and with his mind still intact, with the illithids voluntarily not pursuing.

Both groups of victimized adventurers then made their way back outside of the Tower, losing no one and carrying all debilitated by the mind flayers psionic assault. All were restored to health and in doing so Geral shouted out that he was quitting his guide job and would never return to the cursed Tower of Durlag that had almost just seen him killed and his mind lost. The entire group then went back to the Mayor of Gullykin to report what had happened.

The Mayor took the information about the illithids and the item that they were allegedly after to be very troubling and asked the adventurers, including those the Mayor had not met earlier, to report back to him with more detail when possible, but to tread with extreme caution upon their return to the Tower. With that, he gave them each a moderate monetary reward and each present went their separate way.

Participants:

-Serindil
-Nefali Drakenbarrow
-Diana RedSteel
-Catam D'Argente
-Ivan
-Nathaniel Collins
-Toric
-Delia

Rewards: Those present the whole event were given 1000 gold and 2000 XP. Those present half of the event that were present at the end of the event were given 500 gold and 1000 XP. Otherwise, no XP or gold was offered.

[DM Dialectic]

Trade with Darkhold (September 17, 2014)

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A trade caravan from the east belonging to a merchant company in Zhentil Keep arrived in Darkhold and sold various goods within the fortress. Before it left, kegs of wine, military rations, and metals were unloaded from it in the Darkhold courtyard. Trade discussions were left with the possibility of the merchant company returning periodically in the future.

Participants:

Telia Navra
Others undisclosed

Reward:

The joy of RP, no gold or XP

[DM Dialectic]

A Merchant's Advice (September 18, 2014)

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Elad, a member and merchant of the Merchant's League in Baldur's Gate, advised two aspiring merchants in the Merchant's League House in Baldur's Gate based on his own life experiences.

Participants:

Undisclosed

Reward:

The joy of RP.

[DM Dialectic]

Gullykin Tombstones (September 21, 2014)

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After answering rumored calls for aid by the Mayor of Gullykin, Gandolar Luckyfoot, a group adventurers made its way to Gullykin. They spoke briefly with the Mayor and then the Mayor's assistant, who spoke both of recent odd events in Durlag's Tower and the Gullykin Crypts below the town. Durlag's Tower having already been investigated by adventurers earlier in the week, the Mayor's Assistant offered the adventurers a reward if they were to gather information on the recent odd happenings in the Gullykin Crypts. The adventurers agreed and set off to below the town to the Crypts' entrance. Upon entering, some sort of force dropped rubble that blocked the entrance to the Crypts, as they battled skeletons and phantom magi between and over the initial chasm into the tombs beyond.

After safely landing on the other side of the chasm, only after a skeleton made fun of one of the adventurers that fell down multiple times trying to cross in heavy armor, the adventurers encountered surprisingly high volumes of powerful and lesser undead, empowered and brought forth by some unknown sinister force present. Many of these undead spoke of serving or protecting a master. The group also kept encountering dead human or hin corpses with a hole in their skull, as if their minds had been sucked out in full.

After working their way through many potent ghost wizards, a demi-lich, a death knight, and more lesser undead, and losing many an adventurer to near or total death in the process, the adventurers deeper in the Crypts encountered mind flayers searching for something, near the final tomb chamber in the Crypts, and smote their ruin upon the floor of the Crypts, perhaps ending the toll of victims with holes in their skulls. Thereafter, they finally made their way to the final tomb chamber and confronted the mastermind of all of the unusual undead activity, an ancient lich of tremendous magical power. The lich taunted the party that he would destroy them before they could after stop him from finding something he was after. Immediately after, the adventurers and the lich then came to arms.

After losing most of their party, the adventurers finally defeated the ancient lich and one of them, Deacon, recovered a partial map of Durlag's Tower from the disintegrated lich's body. A map unrelated to the one currently being sold for auction by Gullykin. The adventurers then raised and healed the wounded and dead and returned to the Mayor in Gullykin for a debriefing. The Mayor asked them what they had learned and found and the topic of the map came up. Most of the adventurers seemed to be unwilling to give Gullykin the map, instead for some unintelligible reason preferring to give it to the arcanists of Candlekeep that the Mayor pointed out had little care for Gullykin. As many adventurers spoke in a very rude tone to the Mayor, especially an arcanist named Lillian Ashby, the Mayor grew more upset and inpatient with the adventurers' conduct. Despite the map perhaps holding key information of concern to Gullykin about places of interest to the village and multiple halflings previously dying in attempts to find purpose in the undead surge, the adventurers in majority continued to refuse the Mayor the item. A hin Gullykin woman then spoke out against the adventurers in the presence of the Mayor about her family member's death being in vain if the map was not returned. This was just about the final straw for the Mayor, despite a past positive relationship with some of the Order of the Silver Rose members present in the adventure group and others before him. Finally, the Mayor implied that the map either must be handed over for the good of the village or that the adventurers would be banned until it was turned over. Deacon then abruptly teleported away with the map without the permission of any Gullykin authority, taking matters into his own hands, forcing the Mayor to decide to ban all present until the map was returned.

The adventurers were then escorted by hin Stalwarts outside of the village and their descriptions were posted on the front gates of the village as to not be allowed to enter without the map in possession and the intent to return it to Gullykin control. The descriptions of the banned persons posted matched those of the following adventurers:

Seth Siger
Thorinwolf Warfare
Lillian Ashby
Vudish
Penny Quickfeet
Erza Scarlet
Ta'nu
Deacon
Aindon Gaendion
Elvina Aira-S'efarro
Daeva Diablerie

Participants: See above.

Rewards: 2500 XP each and for Deacon the Partial Map of Durlag's Tower plot item.

[DM Dialectic]

A Dwarven Climb 1 (September-October 2014)

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Two famous mountaineers are rumored by a gossipy and excited dwarf to have passed through Beregost heading south to climb one of the unnamed and unclimbed peaks in the Cloud Peak range. The dwarf mentions that the climbers are looking to hire porters and guards for their expedition into the mountains. The dwarf man is said to poach travelers with this gossip near the smith in Beregost, talking long beyond the passerby's interest in the to pic.

A few days later...

The famous Dwarven mountaineer duo of the Faerunian Mountaineering Society, Dorbur Overmountain and Aselil Strongspike‏, together climbing over a hundred of some of the highest peaks in Toril, were spotted by many passer by in Nashkel the other day, recruiting local aide for their next summit and readying equipment and supplies for the trek and climb ahead. Denizens of the local town as well as passing adventurers are rumored to have come to see what the commotion was about and soon a crowd accumulated around the mountaineers.

Some may have heard that the mountaineers then engaged the crowd in a thorough question and answer session about their past climbing history, their religious beliefs, their philosophy of climbing, their needs for a local knowledgeable mountain guide, religious blessings, and permits, their needs for the current climb to be, and their motivation to climb the highest unnamed and untamed peak in the Cloud Peak Mountains. After a while, many a question was answered and it is rumored that the mountaineers may have gained some leads to recruit local adventurers as porters and guards for their journey ahead, with prestige, immense natural beauty, spiritual fulfillment, and honorary membership in the Faerunian Mountaineering Society as possible rewards. The mountaineers are then said to go back to preparing their equipment and later are possibly seen by some heading back to their room at the Northern Lights Inn.

[DM Dialectic]

Master Spelunking (September 28, 2014)

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Adventurers recently discovered a map of a not frequented part of Durlag's Tower watermarked by the Amnian Spelunking Society from an ancient lich in the Gullykin Crypts, which after some political conflict they offered to the Mayor of Gullykin. The map was not nearly as ancient as the lich that had it and the cartographer that made the map was in fact still alive, as found by the Mayor. The Mayor contracted a Master Spelunker of the Amnian Spelunking Society, the same man that in fact made the map in question, to guide adventurers in checking out the location mapped on the map document, to see why this lich even cared for it.

The Mayor, calling on adventurers to aid him as such, then surprised the Master Spelunker, by telling him that he needed to accompany the adventurers, to the seeming disgust of the Master Spelunker. The Master Spelunker in the meantime made fun of the adventurers for claiming that a previous expedition to Durlag's Tower had succumb to mental assaults by illithids, even joking that the adventurers had instead been attacked by math problems or algebraic formulas. The Spelunker claimed that when he had previously mapped the location to be explored that it was an ancient empty tomb, with only rats and small vermin about. He had also claimed that the map in question was stolen from the Amnian Spelunking Society in Athkatla years earlier, with a guard on duty found dead nearby with a hole in his skull. The Mayor also mentioned that he hoped there would be no repeat of the confrontation days earlier, eying a member of the Order of the Silver Rose when he said as much. The Mayor additionally clarified again that the map in question was not at all related to the map recently up for auction by the village.

The adventurers and the Master Spelunker then set off to Durlag's Tower, braving basilisks and shadow creatures in and around the Tower of the famous now-dead dwarf lord. The Spelunker in the process revealed that he was proficient in magic enough to cast a stone to flesh spell on an adventurer turned to stone by a basilisk. The Master Spelunker was very insolent and rude to the adventurers in the process, calling them fools and idiots many times over, although some of the questionable tactics of the adventurers even had some adventurers agreeing with some of the insults of the Spelunker. Eventually, the Master Spelunker lead the group to a secret door behind a fireplace and after long a search the levers to open the door were found and a dark long hallway was revealed. The group heard quivering noises and quiet footsteps ahead, which the Spelunker speculated were probably just large rats.

The group went forward through the hallway and on the other side was revealed a large and ancient tomb chamber. Foolishly, a few of the adventurers ran ahead of the group and were promptly annihilated by powerful beholders and illithids. At this point, the Master Spelunker cowardly ran back in the hallway behind the group and closed his eyes claiming that if he cannot see the illithids, then they cannot see him. After the illithids were dispatched at great cost, a more powerful illithid ventured forth to the group and exclaimed that they were too late and that their minds would soon be taken. Its mental attacks avoided, the illithid was then quickly dispatched by the group. The fallen were raised and the adventurers prepared to move on as the Spelunker regained his composure.

The Master Spelunker lead the group further into the tomb and they were attacked by magi illithid thralls, beholders, and illithids more. These enemies were eventually destroyed, with some injury, but no deaths to the group. Finally, the adventurers heard louder quivering noises up a staircase nearby, which the Master Spelunker insisted they climb anyways.

Climbing the staircase to prominent tomb pavilion, a group of illithids and a larger Paragon Illithid were spotted, as the Master Spelunker continued to approach them and then pass them and stand with them. The Paragon Illithid then spoke to the adventurers psionically, telling them that his thrall, the Spelunker, had done his duty well to bring the illithids fresh new minds to turn into thralls or to consume, and that the illithid plan was well into motion and that it was too late to stop it. The Paragon Illithid then offered the adventurers to willingly become his thralls or to have their minds consumed, but the adventurers boldly refused. Upon this, the powerful Paragon Illithid brutally attacked the minds of the adventurers, forcing three of them, Vudish, Zelphar, and Artorius, to pass out instantly that were of weaker will and not protected against mental attacks. The adventurers then attacked the illithids and many of them fell in the ensuing fierce combat, but the adventurers ultimately proved victorious of the tentacled evils, afterward raising and restoring any dead adventurers from the battle.

After the battle, Missy and Penny discovered an ancient novel off the dead Paragon Illithid and an ancient ring in the tomb on the pavilion where the battle took place. They took both items, examined them, and then the adventurers left to speak to the Mayor of Gullykin about the ordeal. Before leaving, they noticed the dead Master Spelunker's body, with a thrall collar now clearly visible around his neck. Pitying him, they took his corpse back to Gullykin to be raised or buried, removing the thrall collar before carrying him off.

Speaking with the Mayor of Gullykin, the adventurers gained the Mayor's permission to hold onto the items discovered, after ensuring that no new maps of areas nearby Gullykin were found, seemingly caring more about intelligence about areas nearby Gullykin than treasures found. The Mayor then ordered the corpse of the Spelunker buried or raised and hin guards carried the corpse off. The Mayor then rewarded the adventurers with the contract share of the dead man and said otherwise their reward was the treasure found in the tomb. The adventurers then went off their separate ways.

Participants:

Artorius Drakarr
Toric
Zelphar
Vudish
Missy
Diana RedSteel
Quinath Nar
Ashe Hawthorne
Nefali Drakenbarrow
Serindil
Kahanak
Penny

Rewards: 1500 XP per participant present at the end of the quest and 500 gold each as well.

[DM Dialectic]

Politics of Trade (October 9, 2014)

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Elad, a member and merchant of the Merchant's League in Baldur's Gate, spoke with an aspiring merchant of the region about the complicated political arrangement of some powerful merchant groups in the south and how to possibly take advantage of it for profit. This was after Elad approached the merchant concerned about someone that had met with the merchant earlier and then stormed out furious looking.

Participants:

Undisclosed

Reward:

The joy of RP.

[DM Dialectic]

Corruption and Intrigue in Northern Amn, Ongoing Beregost 1350 Campaign (October 2014-Ongoing)

http://bgtscc.net/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=43376

Reluctant Cooperation (October 19, 2014)

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Rumor spreads that three individuals, two of Lathander and one of Tyr, met with The Most Radiant of Lathander Kelddath Ormlyr in Beregost yesterday in The Song of the Morning and then soon after went to meet with Sheriff de Oca of Beregost. Some may have overheard that Sheriff de Oca asked the three to volunteer to assist him with a local corruption investigation. The three then returned to the local temple of Lathander and after possibly deliberating for a while, returned to the Sheriff's office, allegedly agreeing to assist him in a private capacity as volunteer investigators, with no independent authority and with no formal cooperation of the church of Lathander.

Participants:

Eldarian Al'maire
Tolan Faeglin
Cecilia Lafayette

Rewards: 1500 XP each.

[DM Dialectic]

A Dwarven Climb 2 (September-October 2014)


A tenday or so later from A Dwarven Climb 1...

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Dorbur Overmountain and Aselil Strongspike called for the porters and guards willing to aid them to assemble at their camp in the eastern part of Nashkel, preparing to climb the unnamed and untamed peak of the Cloud Peak Mountains, partially in honor of a comrade they lost while climbing a high range between Kara-Tur and Zakhara. The adventurers offering services as such did assemble at which point Dorbur and Aselil made them sign a contract of employment for 1000 gold each waiving all liability of the journey and forcing them to listen to all of Dorbur and Aselil's commands in the expedition. The two dwarves then told the company assembled to pickup their climbing permits from a local Nashkel militiaman and to recruit a local guide for the climb ahead.

The party did find two local guides, one, a gnome named Clonifop Dippledop, a relative of the famed gnome treasure hunter of the same last name, and another a female human named Jasha Istor, a priestess of Auril. While the gnome clearly seemed incompetent, but cheap, claiming only a third of his expeditions had not all been killed, that he had night terrors that caused avalanches, and that he had horrible "climbing incidents" in 1348 and 1349", the Aurilite seemed rather nefarious, but reliable if listened to, although much more expensive, claiming that any who would not please or who would insult her goddess would be frozen to death in any climbing attempt. After much bickering, the adventurers could not clearly decide which guide to pick, so the dwarven climbers recommended taking both guides, which the adventurers finally agreed. The summit group then set out for the west, following the two guides, well, mostly the Aurilite guide, with the gnome following her.

After a long journey to the west and then a path south, the group came across the glacial drift of the peaks in that part of the Cloud Peaks range. Trekking into it, the group saw many gold coins about on the glacial surface, which the gnome guide foolishly picked up. An Aurilite force then promptly froze the gnome, from feet to neck, and the Aurilite guide chided him for taking away gold coin offerings to Auril from previous travelers. The gnome was thawed with fire, but the Auril priest demanded that fire not be used the rest of the way for the journey otherwise Auril be gravely insulted. Restoring the gnome, the dwarven climbers there warned their porters and guards that crevices could be abound ahead and to watch where they step. Immediately after, Dippledop fell into a small crevice and had to be extracted out with some effort and was left unconscious by the cold and remained so for some time.

Walking further up the glacial slope as a chilling blizzard and white set in, a group of Frost Giants approached the climbing team, giants that seemed to know the Aurilite, and which the Aurilite could speak with in Jotun. The Aurilite spoke with the giants parlaying about accommodations for the team in their camp nearby for the night. After a long back and forth, the Aurilite advised the group to offer at least five bags to the giants to secure safe camp with them. The adventurers did so, but the giants felt insulted, one of them throwing its backpack at Za'Than, knocking him over. Another guard present, a half-orc named Vudish then foolishly attacked the Frost Giants and was promptly killed. The giants, now furious, demanded that the adventurers either offer ample amounts of wealth or perish with no camp. As this offer was made, Dippledop, unconcious beforehand, woke, and in terror cried out and went hysterical at the sight of the giants. The giants then fell into laughter and demanded also, in addition to payment now of 5 bags of gold and valuable gems that the gnome must entertain them with an embarrassing dance. The gnome guide refused and had to be forced into entertaining the giants and when he did so, he instead gave them an awfully rude gesture, drank an invisibility potion, and ran away, leaving the giants and the adventurers to their fate. The giants now livid, and growing from an original three in number to roughly forty, demanded a final offering absent the gnome, which many bags of gold the porters and guards offered to them and a truce was made, the climbing team being allowed to camp at the Frost Giant camp nearby for the night.

The team camped that evening, while the ice priestess conversed with the giants and went to sleep late and woke early, upon which the Aurilite raised the dead orc Vudish. The climbing group then broke camp and trekked a bit further with the Aurilite, at which point she said they must go the rest of the way alone. The team did, after some time reaching the steep slopes of the Nameless and Unclimbed Peak. Through Yeti ambushes, deep and wide crevices, howling and chilling winds, thin air, and steep and slippery slopes did the mountaineers and their guards and porters climb, eventually reaching close to the summit. There, the dwarf climbers and others present said a final prayer to Auril, Grumbar, and other gods represented by those present in preparation for the final summit. A moment was also given to remember and honor the dwarve's lost climbing comrade. The team then did summit on the 18th of Leaffall in the year 1350 and celebrated the beauty of the high unnamed, now tamed, peak, where Athkatla was visible many miles south, divine Speartop many miles east, and the Sea of Swords many miles west. The group then named the peak Auril's Crown, in honor of the ice goddess enabling their ascent.

While they lauded themselves, however, a large winged creature approached and roared, which only one present detected. An enormous white dragon then landed before the group buffeted and terrifying most into submission, landing near and then stepping on and killing the two famous dwarf mountaineers. The dragon then spoke in common to those present in an extremely condescending and hostile tone. The ancient wyrm told the adventurers to leave its peak at once or be buffeted off the cliffs of the peak. It told them that its security measures to keep the peak unclimbed and unnoticed had failed as the climbing team had made it alive. It then explained to the group that if their climb became known, or the dragon's presence became known, that adventurers, tourists, explorers, and other miscreants would come bother it and its babies, which the adventurers learned to their surprise also lived on the peak, as they exited a summit cave nearby and cuddled up to their mother wyrm. The mother dragon then said that the adventurers must swear to never tell anyone of their climb or the dragon's presence and to offer it large donations for its hoard and it would let them escape with their lives.

The remaining alive climbers agreed and scurried off after picking up the two dead dwarf mountaineers, eventually reaching the Aurilite priestess on the lower slopes, who guided them back to Nashkel. There, the Aurilite priestess raised the two dwarves, and then left to return to her home on the slopes south of Nashkel. A raised, but still hurt, Dorbur then went to an inn to fully recover, while Aselil stayed behind with the team to give them payment and Faerunian Mountaineering Society membership badgers, after which she left to the inn to tend to Dorbur's recovery. As the adventurers prepared to part ways, however, the gnome, Dippledop, then again appeared before them, laughing that they had returned. The gnome guide, hearing from the team that Auril's Crown had been named and possibly ascended, said that he he had failed, as he had promised someone for many years never to let an expedition to the peak succeed, an oath he could not explain. Before he could be inquired further on the topic, the gnome guide teleported away, the Helmite Sveta Asperan failing to detain him. The smarter ones present may have inferred that the gnome on purpose or by nature, was in cahoots with the dragon of Auril's Crown for many years past, to purposely see that no climb ever succeeded. No one will know for sure unless the gnome is again spoken to.

Participants:

Elril
Anglo
Moon
Elvaene De'lindessa
Za'than Za'amal
Sarah
Ta'nu
Vudish
Endelyon
Sveta Asperan

Rewards:

1000 gold each, 2000 XP to all characters not of level 30, the honor of being the first to climb a high peak in Faerun, and the Faerunian Mountaineering Society membership badge.

P.S. Thank you DM Theophanies for playing a hilarious Dippledop gnome NPC and thank you DMogorgon for help with setup.

Credit to player PiaMango for sending me the dwarf picture above.

[DM Dialectic]

Lost Bacon (October 19, 2014 -- Level 1-5 Character Only Event)

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A group of adventurers answered a public call to assist Farmer Jan in the Eastern Farmlands of Baldur's Gate in finding her lost prized boar, Bacon. After her yelling "Bacon" many times over failed to find the pig, she told the adventurers that the pig ran off to the north after breaking out of its fenced pen at her farm. The adventurers tracked the boar north via its footprints. Finally, after finding the pig, the adventurers attempted to box it in, but the boar instead rammed through their blockade and ran to the security of a nearby druid that shapeshifted from the form of a deer. The druid said he was taking the "stolen from the forest" boar to safety and then attempted to tree travel away with the boar after the adventurers refused to convince the druid otherwise. Unfortunately for the druid, an adventurer shot the druid's hand holding on to the boar and the boar crashed to the earth as the druid traveled away. The boar fell with all of its weight on one leg, and so the boar's leg splintered into its stomach, rapidly causing it to mortally bleed out. The adventurers were able to stabilize the boar at near death, with quite a bloody mess at the site. It was so messy that it brought the attention of a nearby Flaming Fist guard, who ordered the adventurers to clean up the bloody mess and to disperse with the boar immediately. The adventurers grudgingly complied and carried the boar back to Farmer Jan's farm. There, Jan said that the boar was as good as dead and proceeded to slaughter it in front of the adventurers, to multiple cheers of "Yum, Bacon!" She then offered them to come by and pickup some of the bacon from the pig after she prepared the meat later in the week. At this point, everyone went on their way, all smacking their lips at the thought of tasty bacon.

Participants:

Ander Kendt
Norvin Trinor
Haruto Tanomitsu
Hoppy Young-glitter
Bob
Wenzel Crumb
Velarya Steele

Rewards: 400XP each and glorious bacon.

[DM Dialectic]

Banking on Profits (October 25, 2014)

((Extra emphasis: If you were not in this event IC, you do not IC know any of the below information beyond what may be in rumors posts IC or what the characters involved tell you IC.))

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Elad, a member and merchant of the Merchant's League in Baldur's Gate, spoke with a couple of merchants before they headed on a long journey to Athkatla by road to meet with Lord Orgost Vymmar, patriach of the Vymmar business empire, about setting up a Darkwood trade deal between two rival families that were on good terms with Lord Vymmar. Before leaving, the two sent notice to Lord Vymmar in Athkatla requesting a meeting upon arriving in the City of Coin, requesting that the letter be sent expedited on a fast courier ship from Baldur's Gate to Athkatla, paying a significant fee to do so. After leaving for the south by caravan, the two merchants met up with a third outside of the Friendly Arm Inn on their long journey south. They then traveled for many days further to Athkatla by land, finally reaching the city after much travel. Making their way past Waukeen's Promenade and the riches of all Toril on market there, they arrived at the vast Vymmar land owning and textile manufacturing-family estate late in the day. They announced themselves to the groundskeeper of the Vymmars on hand and the groundskeeper, and two estate guards present with him, recommended that they return the following day as the hour was late. The three merchants agreed and spent the night at the The Mithrest Inn, then returned the next morning to the Vymmar estate. The groundskeeper took them to the extravagant and beautiful Vymmar estate mansion and the merchants went inside, seeing luxury unparalleled inside the Lord's home, as they were greeted by a dwarf guard and a Vymmar family butler.

The butler said that the Lord had received their letter and request for audience and was now expecting them. The butler then told them to enter the office of Lord Orgost Vymmar, the human land baron himself, purposely as he was finishing up with a tenant of his. The merchants then witnessed the misogynist lord, wearing fine clothing worth enormous coin, humiliate both his secretary, Juanita, and one of his female tenant's present begging to be forgiven late rent, "for her [otherwise homeless] children's sake." Lord Vymmar eventually pretended to have sympathy for his tenant, when he reality, he used his feigned feelings for the tenant to get close to her to beat her to near death with a golden lantern in his office. He then ordered the tenant thrown into the gutter outside the estate and told Juanita to let all of his property managers know to up-charge all female head of household tenants and to make it clear how any future "enthusiastic" female tenant mothers would be treated. The merchants looked on in passive disapproval as this happened, with one of them slipping the poor limp tenant a potion as she was dragged out of the Lord's office by his guards.

The merchants then told Lord Vymmar why they had come, first saying they were seeking to purchase a large order of the rare Darkwood lumber. Lord Vymmar insulted and patronized them for doing so, calling them kobolds, ore miscreants, and northern barbarians, saying that he owned no lumber mills and to quickly explain why then they were wasting his time. The merchants then further explained that they wished for him to introduce the group to the Lurraxols family and the Bladesmiles family, major business owners in naval logistics and lumber mills, respectively. They reasoned that the Lurraxols could ship Darkwood that the Bladesmiles could potentially manufacture at yet to be setup mills in Chult, but that Elad in Baldur's Gate had informed them previously that these families hated each other, so that Vymmar, who was on good terms with both, needed to be peacekeeper to make a deal possible. Lord Vymmar then confirmed that he did indeed have good relations with both families, as well as the Amnian banking empire of the Copriths family, including the Lady patron of the Lurraxols, despite Lord Vymmars violent chauvinism. He said he could make an introduction to both the Bladesmiles and Lurraxols, but that it would cost them 100,000 Danters, after confirming as much with his secretary, Juanita. The merchants rubbed off on him well enough for the moment, so he decided to throw in the Copriths into his relationship brokering fee as well. He then briefly added the Copriths alone held most of the debt on the vast real estate holdings of the Vymmars and charged him "annoying" amounts of interest on these mortgages.

After not much negotiating, the merchants agreed to his terms and signed a promissory note to pay Lord Vymmar 100,000 Danters within a tenday or face 30% annual compounding interest on any balance not yet paid. Lord Vymmar then said that Bladesmiles were at present at their residence in Keczulla and the Lurraxols at their estate in Murann, so they would need to be contacted and met with another day in the future, as Vymmar had agreed to initiate for the merchants. Vymmar added that the Copriths estate in Athkatla was close, so it would be easy for the merchants to meet with them before leaving Athkatla. The merchants agreed and Vymmar sent over a letter to Lady Aura Coprith, the matriach of the Coprith mega-banking family, saying to please expect the merchants shortly. One of the merchants left the group to go assist the tenant woman beaten near death and tossed in the gutter. The other two continued on to a meeting with Lady Coprith in her mega-estate nearby in Athkatla.

The two merchants reached the gates of the Coprith estate, after passing a small squad sized Amnian military patrol that greeted them both with "Good Business, For the Glory of Amn!" At the estate gates, a check post guard fetched the letter Lord Vymmar had sent on their behalf after the merchants stated their business, and the guard then flagged them through the estate gate. There, the merchants met a half-elf estate manager of the Copriths and many dozen servants working about the sprawling Coprith compound, bustling with lovely architecture and stunning masonry and decor buildings. The estate manager lead the merchants to a Copriths mansion and told them to go inside. The merchants entered and were welcomed by a Coprith family butler, among a vast corridor building filled with priceless artwork and decor and many servants. The butler told the two merchants that Lady Coprith was expecting them as per Lord Vymmar's letter and to enter her office.

The merchants entered and proceeded to small talk with the seemingly friendly, intelligent eyed, half-elf Lady Aura Coprith, who wore an inordinately expensive outfit, as well as Coprith's secretary, Roberta. Lady Coprith then revealed some of her divine powers, as she piously blessed their business meeting with Waukeen's grace. After the brief sermon, the Lady told the merchants that she does not always see referrals of Vymmar, perhaps because he is a misogynist pig with women, but that she still does not typically let such personal issues get in the way of good business. She also says that despite Vymmar being a pig, she still has good relations with him for the sake of profits and that she had him in a vice so to speak, as she could ruin his real estate empire in a night if she refused to refinance his properties going forward. She also asked them why they had come, cutting them off when they mentioned procuring Darkwood to her, of which she had no interest in.

She then asked them to confirm they were from the north as Vymmar had mentioned in his letter to her. They said, yes, they were from Baldur's Gate. Lady Coprith then tangentially said that she had no interest in politics, only profits, and to keep this in mind with what she was about to say. Lady Coprith then mentioned that she had been looking for opportunities to diversify the family banking empire out of Amn and out of commercial and governmental lending lines. She had explored doing so in other large cities throughout Faerun, including in Waterdeep, but had yet to come into contact with a potential operator in Baldur's Gate and the Sword Coast south of it. She then revealed that the merchants before her and their partners might be the operating partner she had been looking for in Baldur's Gate. Lady Coprith and her secretary, Roberta, then proceeded to offer a business proposal, non-negotiable in her opinion, that she would be willing to setup a 90/10 joint venture bank in Baldur's Gate, whereby the 10% portion of the bank, the retail banking operation segment, totaling a 250,000 Danters stake, would be run and operated by five partners of the merchants' choosing. The other 90% 2,250,000 Danters stake, which would relate to a separate banking segment enterprise that the Copriths would run simultaneously, without the merchants, would have nothing to do with the 10% stake of the merchants or its related retail banking segment operations. There were also to be monthly shareholder meetings held at a place of the Coprith's choosing.

The Copriths would pay for some joint overhead expenses such as rent, accounting, and license fees, and offer free advice and council as the consideration to the merchants in the 10% operator stake. Regardless, not one Danter would be paid by the Copriths to the coffers of the merchants, Roberta said, and there should be no commingling of funds between the 90/10 business segments. Roberta further explained that 250,000 Danters 10% stake would be necessary to cover all initial capital used for loans by the merchants' retail banking segment and all expenses unique to the retail banking segment. Lady Coprith emphasized that none of this was meant to be political, as it was in no way some Amnian scheme to get involved in Duchal politics. Far from it, the Lady again stated that she felt politics was best left up to politicians, as her sole interest was profit. Additionally, the Lady said, it was to be kept entirely secret that there was any Amnian involvement in these enterprises whatsoever to prevent any such political paranoia. The Lady mentioned that even not having "Baldur" in the title of the retail banking operation may prove to be a good idea, as otherwise it could be construed as having a political context.

The merchants asked some questions about how a liquidation event would affect the 10% retail banking segment stake and Lady Coprith said it would not as it could be conditionally spun off, not that a liquidation would ever happen, she reasoned. She added two other items to conclude the meeting: that the main aim of this was profit and that she would be quite upset *raising her voice in an angry tone* if the business was not profitable, by any means necessary, and that the merchant operators of the 10% retail banking stake would be entirely responsible for setting up branch banks if they wished as well as collecting retail deposits to invest or give out as retail loans. The merchants agreed to consider it and share the details with their associates and answer Lady Coprith soon. The merchants and the Lady and her secretary then said Good Business and the merchants left to make way to the docks of the Athkatla, then leaving by ship back for Baldur's Gate.

Participants:

Undisclosed

Reward: 2000 XP each. Profits?

[DM Dialectic]

A Good Deed Goes Unpunished? (October 25-November 2, 2014)

((Extra emphasis: If you were not in this event IC, you do not IC know any of the below information beyond what may be in rumors posts IC or what the characters involved tell you IC.))

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Some may have seen a man help an injured woman to the rosetinted, glassed dome The Dome of the Rose temple of Lathander in Athkatla. Afterward, others may have seen the same man walk to the fortress-like High Hall of the Order of the Radiant Heart in Athkatla, speak to a paladin guard outside of its large doored entrance upon arriving, and then enter the building with the said paladin guard. Some time later, the man is seen leaving the High Hall.

A few days later, rumor spreads in Athkatla that a charge of assault has been filed by an Amnian magistrate against the powerful and exorbitantly wealthy Amnian landowner Lord Orgost Vymmar, claiming that he brutally assaulted a tenant of his property that owed him late rent. At an initial hearing, the charge is not dismissed and a judgement for or against the guilt of Lord Vymmar may be forthcoming in the next tenday. Some say that those who saw Lord Vymmar appear at the initial court proceeding saw the face of a man utterly livid at the whole affair, although he did not speak beyond formalities, his lawyer otherwise speaking for him. Many gossip in Athkatla taverns in shock that the charge was even filed against such a powerful Amnian, let alone that it was not immediately dismissed after a well placed bribe of the magistrate by the Lord Vymmar or others under his patronage. There is chatter here and there in the city that the Lord "...kobold had it coming, the way it is rumored he treats folks he thinks are beneath him, even if they be of Silver or lesser rank," while others notion "why care, the Silver lady he beat deserved it, an Amnian should always pay their debts on time, especially to a noble businessman of Mithril standing!"

Participants:

Undisclosed

Reward: Alignment shift of 5 points to good.

[DM Dialectic]

True Netheril "Love" (October 29, 2014)

((Extra emphasis: If you were not in this event IC, you do not IC know any of the below information beyond what may be in rumors posts IC or what the characters involved tell you IC.))

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The dwarf Cyrus may have been seen speaking to the sage Gorion in Candlekeep in the past few days about a Netheril novel, apparently also conversing about Gorian's adventuring days involving a powerful red dragon that Gorion barely survived an encounter with named Firkraag to the south. On the topic of the novel, Gorion mentioned to the dwarf that there was a Netheril dialect expert that Gorian used to know in Athkatla that might be able to interpret the meaning of the tome in Cyrus' hands, given to him by a member of the Order of the Silver Rose, as it was written in a rare Netheril dialect. He mentioned that this Netheril linguist was associated with the Athkatla Spelunking Society, or at least used to be when he knew her.

Cyrus then may have been seen entering the library of Candlekeep to obtain directions to the location of the Amnian Spelunking Society in Athkatla, after doing so traveling south for many days to the capitol city of Amn. The dwarf days later may have been seen arriving in Athkatla, running into a beggar and then an older woman that give him more specific directions to the Amnian Spelunking Society. He is then perhaps seen entering the society building after escorting the older woman home, after first being denied entry due to the time of evening.

What transpired inside is known to none but those present. Cyrus was introduced to a society member by a woman named Alberta the Master Spelunker. She indeed was the linguistic expert that Gorion had postulated, but surprisingly she was not the only expert on Netheril dialects on hand. The woman, after translating and interpreting some of the work, then brought in an associate to assist them in the translations and interpretations, shockingly, an illithid member and scholar of the Amnian Spelunking Society. Cyrus, perhaps filled with skepticism and extreme caution, tried to understand what the illithid spoke of with Alberta. The illithid did not seem to be of immediate nefarious intent, speaking in a communication medium with Alberta, perhaps unknown to Cyrus, that the novel in hand held the key to where the Gem of Fidelity was hidden in the Cloud Peak Mountains. A gem of significant power, one that the illithid speculated others of its kind and of other foul intent sought out for their own ends and may have found the location of as well via other copies of the novel or other means.

With Alberta translating and interpreting all of this for Cyrus, they then elaborated that the gem was part of an ancient ring, a prop in the Netheril novel, involved in an ancient Netheril love story. A tale where a loyally and happily married Netheril princess was tricked by a powerful magician into wearing a magic engagement ring, containing the enchanted Gem of Fidelity, that then enthralled her into infatuation and an affair with the wizard. The wizard then whisked her off to a secret and secluded palace in the Cloud Peaks, where they lived "happily ever after", until her death. After dying, the woman was buried in a tomb that was below what would eventually become Durlag's Tower, with the ring, but not the gem, which was likely left at the palace for unknown reasons. The wizard then penned the aforementioned novel about the ordeal that was lost to time, for unknown reasons and with an unknown amount of copies. Alberta then implored Cyrus to find the gem and see it to a museum, not to darker hands, then bizarrely called the illithid with her "darling" and seemingly went off to bed with it. Cyrus then left the society and headed back north, with the novel in hand.

Participants: Cyrus.

Rewards: 1000 gold.