Rumors of the Northern Sword Coast

[Steve]

Rumor has it, that in Soubar, a shadow rumor network has begun. Some add to the rumor that this grapevine of darker sorts, may well extend all the way to Roaringshore, maybe further still.

But what the rumor does not say is how one accesses this shadow rumor network. But then again, no one seems to openly make any effort to gain entry, either from ignorance, or from hesitancy in fear, or because of lack of faith in its existence amounting to anything but a short lived venture....

Nonetheless, with the recent change in occupancy of darker souls in the North, and Soubar in particular, it would almost be impossible for such a shadowy grapevine to not exist....

[MedalOfValor]

Ebon Blade Daily - Training, meeting and patrol - Part One

The Ebon Blade headquarters came to life with mercs showing up for a scheduled meeting and training session. The company members and recruits discussed politics and situation on the Coast while waiting for everyone to arrive.


Lieutenant had quite a training session in mind. Well aware of the fact that military training should be varied for the participants to be truly challenged she ordered the new, warlock recruit to use his gifts against company members.


Mercs were bid against not only hellfire powers but Xelious' contracted help.

(((OOC: More screens in spoilers.

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Using succubi as a proper distraction against male opponents seemed to be quite efficient.


Moral of the story: Do not let a few unusually flirtatious girls distract you from your real target!

Ebon Blade met with a visitor, Lord Cold Circle Ae'bel, a high-ranking aurilite priest, who had the pleasure observing some of the training. After the guest had left mercs discussed some of their open contracts and a route of the incoming patrol was chosen.


Fully geared mercs met outside Soubar ready to roll.


Ebon Blade spent some time patrolling the Northern Tradeway before turning towards the border of Forest of Wyrms.


Not far from the Forest, the company encountered an elven mage. Whatever transpired caused a part of the group, consisting of Lieutenant, Blackwolf, and Xelious, to split from the rest and head for the line of trees.

[MedalOfValor]

Ebon Blade Daily - Training, meeting and patrol - Part Two

Captain, Drogo, and Frigo joined Lieutenant, Blackwolf and Xelious. In full squad they debated the details of today's patrol route.


For some reason, mercs paid especially close attention to the west border of the forest. Almost as if they were trying to see if a perimeter could be established. Why and what for, remains to be seen.


As usual a combat training in the field took place. Mercs fought against various creatures native to the Forest of Wyrms.

(((OOC: More screens in spoilers.

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The company made contact with undead and the threat was swiftly eliminated.

To raise the challenge level, Captain led the company to the hideout of an Earth Elemental.

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This encounter took longer and required not only brutal strength but also forced the mercs to utilize a tactical approach.

Good teamwork and proper coordination was worth it. The elemental was slain.


The capstone of this training session was the battle with a local green wyrm.

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This time not only force and tactics were used but also a familiar "whatever means necessary" approach was needed.

The skirmish with the wyrm was long but successful. Mercs took some time collecting scales and other components from the carcass.


Worn but in good spirits, the company reached Corm Orp where they were lucky enough to find some room in Bert's wagon. Upon arrival in Soubar, Lieutenant handsomely tipped the wagon-man.

(((OOC Disclaimer: All the information here can be considered IC-obtainable.

[MedalOfValor]

Ebon Blade Daily - Training, meeting and patrol - Part Three

After arriving back at Soubar, and generously tipping Bert, Lieutenant took a moment to check on the archers and Militia atop of the Ebon Blade tower.


Next on the agenda was Blackwolf's promotion to raid captain. The man did not expect such but welcomed it gratefully nonetheless.


The company shared drinks at the Winging Way Inn later. Lieutenant and recruit Xelious left shortly after to tend to another business.

══════════════ ⚔ ⚔ ⚔ ══════════════

Ebon Blade Daily - Visiting Darkhold

El and Xelious could have been seen hopping off a wagon at Darkhold's courtyard. They were processed by the guards rather quickly given that it wasn't Mercs first visit regarding the negotiations of Guard Contract which had started two tendays ago. The two continued onwards to meet with Herald of Darkhold, Captain Wren Di'Corvi.


Lieutenant and Recruit were politely received by Captain Di'Corvi and negotiations commenced in a pleasant atmosphere over coffee. Fortunately, this time there was nothing more that needed to be reworded in the contract and both parties signed it.

GENERAL SERVICE AGREEMENT

THIS GENERAL SERVICE AGREEMENT (“The Agreement”) dated this 29 of Hammer, 1353

BETWEEN:

Herald of Darkhold, Captain Wren Di’Corvi (“The Client”)

AND:

Ebon Blade Mercenary Company (“The Contractor”)

BACKGROUNG

A: The Client is of the opinion that the Contractor has the necessary qualifications, experience, and abilities to provide services to the Client.
B: The Contractor is agreeable to providing such services to the Client on the terms and conditions set out in this Agreement.

IN CONSIDERATION OF the matters described above and of the mutual benefits and obligations set forth in this Agreement, the receipt and sufficiency of which consideration is hereby acknowledged, the Client and the Contractor agree as follow:


Service provided

1. The Contractor hereby agrees to provide the Client’s with the services of a Personal Guard, consisting of:
A. Accompany the Client whenever required by the Client, under the condition that no priorities related to the Contractor’s business would take precedence.
B. Should the chosen representative of the Contractor party be unavailable, the Client may choose, under the Captain’s supervision, another agent to fulfill the duty.
C. Attend meetings with the Client as needed.
D. Provide the Client with an escort.

*The position of Personal Guard entitles the Contractor to take any actions required to ensure the protection and well-being of the Client's "Life and Goods". The Contractor may bear arms to prevent any form of threats to the Client, including and not limited to putting the life of the Client before his, and must do so, as per the terms of the Agreement.*


Terms of agreement

2. It has been the common understanding that a chosen representative of the Contractor party is to act as the Prime Agent for the agreement. In the present case, El, Lieutenant of the Ebon Blade, is appointed as such representative.
3. The terms of this Agreement (“The Terms”) will begin on the date of this Agreement and will remain in full force and effect until it is requested otherwise, either by the Client’s will, or the Contractor’s request, following understanding.
4. In the event that either Party wishes to terminate this Agreement, that Party will be required to provide 10 days’ written notice to the other Party.


Compensation

For the services rendered by the Contractor as required by this Agreement, the Client will provide compensation (“The Compensation”) to the Contractor of a fixed amount of one thousand five hundred (1,500) gold coins, per request of services. Of this sum, thirty (30) percent (450 gold coins) belongs to the Ebon Blade company, while seventy (70) percent (1050 gold coins) belongs to the dispatched representative. Additional fees will be applied according to overtime and extra duties.


Confidentiality

5. The Contractor agrees that they will not disclose, divulge, reveal, report or use, for any purpose, any Information which the Contractor has obtained, except otherwise authorized by the Client.


Modification of Agreement

6. Any Amendments or modifications of this Agreement or additional obligation assumed by either Party in connection with this Agreement will be notified and agreed upon by both Party.



IN WITNESS WHEREOF the Parties have duly affixed their signatures under hand and seal on this 29 of Hammer, 1353

____________Wren Di'Corvi____________
(Client)

____________Lieutenant El____________
(Contractor)

(((OOC Disclaimer: All the information here can be considered IC-obtainable except for word-for-word contents of the contract (unless you think your PC would have access to such). I just wanted to show off Litoff's dedication to this RP. Wax seal provided by Herisheft.

[matelener]

In the last tenday a man garbed in fur and leathers, and with a distinctive bone mask covering his face, has been a frequent visitor to Soubar. In the opinion of some, he spends his time eighter sitting idly by the bonfire or indulging in slow-paced strolls throughout the village. To those more perceptive, it's clear that man's purpose is to observe, and the recipients of his attention could be suspected to be the werecreatures.

By the time the night comes, the man is nowhere to be seen. A crow follows where a man cannot.

[Facade]

Someone visits the Ebon Blades fort in Soubar.
It is a half-elf in fancy clothes. The mercenary Captain then walks in, and after a while the half-elf leaves. He seems pleased.
He is then seen speaking to Bart the wagonman about getting a ride somewhere.

[kleomenes]

A patrol along the Chionthar - 26 Alturiak 1353

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A group of adventurers, led by Eldarian Al'maire and Aaron Lyonaler, patrolled along the River Chionthar before heading north to the Hellrider outpost at Triel. There, a Lathanderite priest blessed the Hellriders and some words were exchanged as to local threats.

Following this the party moved off further north, heading into the eaves of the Forest of Wyrms. Its said they encountered something worrying there.

[artemitavik]

It is said that some days ago, a group of heavily armed adventurers left the Temple of Tempus and went north into the lands beyond the territories of Baldur's Gate to a hamlet called Ravensvale. The group apparently included instructors from the Bladestone Foundation, members of the Halls of Inner Light, and even Candlekeep.

The rumors go that the nine was tasked to stop a horde of hundreds that wished to take Ravensvale for its own, likely using it as a base of operations as well as doing unpleasant and unspeakable things to the populace thereof.

Nine went out, and nine came back. It is said by the caravans that the field and road directly in front of the gates of Ravensvale is so littered with the dead of the horde, men, orcs, giants, goblins, and others as well as wreckage of siege engines, it took days to clean up.

It is also said the group returned from Ravensvale with prisoners, the leaders of the horde that threatened the hamlet. These were turned over to the Fist and other proper authorities. The captain that was leading the horde is supposedly a Sembian, a deserter from the forces brought up by the rogue Duke Di'cardi who had laid siege to the Friendly Arm Inn some time back.

While the horde itself was decimated, a large portion of it retreated back into the wilderness and travelers are warned to beware.

[chad878262]

Scrolls are scribed and posted from Soubar all the way to Nashkel directing adventuring companies to seek out Tarent Nefzen at the Friendly Arm Inn. Anyone reading a message board in Soubar, Baldur's Gate, the Friendly Arm, Beregost, Gullykin or Nashkel is likely to see the following notice:

Greetings Adventurer!

Tarent Nefzen, Scribe, Wand Crafter and Master Alchemist has need of your skills!
There are many ingredients needed in order to meet the demand for his Arcane Wonders and stock is running low. So if you seek paying work in acquiring the items he needs, rare or mundane find him at the Friendly Arm!

Adventuring is dangerous work, Tarent Nefzen takes no responsibility for any death, dismemberment, or other deformity or hardship brought on while in his employ to acquire components of any kind. Each man or woman is responsible for themselves and should only undertake quests for which they are qualified. By entering in to agreement with Tarent Nefzen the adventurer waives any right, perceived or actual to recompense for hardship, injury or death.

///OOC Information:

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This is a player initiative to help out any players interested in low-mid level adventuring. Feel free to reply to this post, send me a PM or find me in game if interested. My goal is to give new or old players an in character reason to explore the server. If you don't have a group, that's ok, I will do some of the legwork to group up characters of similar levels and play times. Whenever I get a group of 3 or more characters together I will provide a level appropriate quest for you to go on in order to obtain some ingredient. It might be as simple as bringing me 10 fire beetle carapaces or some other item you can get on the server either by killing monsters or using skills. However, in some cases it may also be sending you out to get me components such as eyestocks of a Gauth, hair from the beards of Frost Giants or any number of things. The idea is to help out any new or old players that are interested in a little help in meeting others, grouping up and exploring the server with an RP purpose. So, even if you aren't interested, maybe you run into someone in game that could benefit! if so please direct them to this post!

In order to make things as smooth as possible, if posting to the forum or sending me a PM, please include the following details:
1. Do you have a group? (if not I will make every attempt to get at least 2 other players to group with you)
2. What arch-type is your character? (you can provide build if you prefer or just the general type)
3. What level is your character? (low-mid levels only please. I may expand to Epics later, though I doubt epics would be interested in anything I can offer!)
4. What days and times do you usually play? (Please either state XXXX-YYYY GMT or advise + or - your timezone is in relation to GMT, for instance, I play in Eastern time so I might say I play Mondays from 12:00 - 4:00 PM, Eastern (GMT -5) )
5. OPTIONAL: What areas have you been to? (This is so that I can send you somewhere new, if possible!)

- Any other details are fine, but these 5 will allow me the best potential to party you up (if you aren't already) and come up with a quest for you.

- Please allow me a day or two as it might take me a little time to come up with a quest that challenges the party without sending you somewhere that you have no chance to survive.

- I will grant in game rewards including gold and low all the way up to greater items, depending on the difficulty, length of time and effort (including how much time the player puts in to the RP, screenshots and story telling)... Don't expect anything earth shattering, but I certainly have some items that are better than what a low-mid level character can buy that I'll be willing to part with!

- This is a player run initiative that I am doing to simply help bring some RP, adventure and assistance to new players. If there are any seasoned veterans out there that would like to get involved as a guide, feel free to PM me with what you can support (ie level ranges, what PC's you have in low to mid level ranges, when you play, etc.) This will be a great way to meet some new players and have the chance to show them around in character.

[Sputnik]

Pairs of dark armored warriors can be seen all over the Coast searching message boards and anywhere else posters might be found. For those paying attention, they seem to be taking down old bounty posters.

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The men all wear black cloaks clasped with Ebon Blade brooches.

[Heretic]

Pairs of dark armored warriors can be seen all over the Coast searching message boards and anywhere else posters might be found. For those paying attention, they seem to be taking down old bounty posters.

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The men all wear black cloaks clasped with Ebon Blade brooches.

These armored warriors would also happen upon the following posters still proudly displayed in many quarters:

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[Sputnik]

Rumors quickly spread of an execution in Soubar.

During the evening hours of the 24th of Tarsakh, Everett Blackwolf was seen dragging a prisoner from within the Ebon Blade fort. The captive was a drow woman, clothed in a strange restrictive leather garment with her wrists bound by manacles.

A small crowd gathered as the mercenary Lieutenant dragged her through the muddy thoroughfare. He was accompanied by his fellow company man Shekels, a powerful arcanist and reknowned merchant.
They stopped at a large elm on the North side of town, hereafter dubbed 'The Gallow-Tree'...

The crowd began to grow restless as Everett silently slung the length of rope he'd brought around a large limb of the newly-named elm tree. He then passed the rope to Shekels to place around the drowess' neck as murmurs demanded answers from the spectators. Shekels was forced to use weakening magics on the captive to ease her compliance. The drow's pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears as Everett turned to address those gathered..

"This drow has been sentenced to hang by the neck until dead." The veteran warrior glanced about the crowd with a look that brooked no disagreement.
"She is guilty of Attempted Bribery of an Ebon Blade officer and Assault on Ebon Blade members. Such is the price for those who would attack us!" he bellowed, rousing a few cheers from the Soubarians and adventurers.

He recruited a stout volunteeer from among the spectators to help him hoist the drow into the air, and unceremoniously began. The drowess was soon dancing the hempen jig, and before very long was still, swinging from side to side....

The crowd soon dispersed and her body was brought back to the Ebon Blade fort by Shekels and the stout volunteer, a tall armored blonde woman.

The rumors would later name the executed criminal as a 'Mitheera' from S'shamath.

[Israe]

-Deleted-

[Israe]

On the border of Baldur's Gate and Thundars Ride territory, fifteen human heads would appear on pikes. Each head is a male, and has a Spider Web carved into the skull. On one side of each of their cheeks is "Dev" and on the other side "Lin." Each human head has a single crossbow bolt in the skull of drow-make, showing that no mercy was spared to any of the fallen.

Rumors say that while she was lit on fire, a blue ray was seen going into the nights sky as a beacon to attract any nearby to happen upon the scene.

-DM_Creo approved NPC's-

[Calodan]

On the border of Baldur's Gate and Thundars Ride territory, fifteen human heads would appear on pikes. Each head is a male, and has a Spider Web carved into the skull. On one side of each of their cheeks is "Dev" and on the other side "Lin." Each human head has a single crossbow bolt in the skull of drow-make, showing that no mercy was spared to any of the fallen.

Rumors say that while she was lit on fire, a blue ray was seen going into the nights sky as a beacon to attract any nearby to happen upon the scene.

-DM_Creo approved NPC's-

During his usual rounds between Soubar and Baldur's gate Kory would notice the grim totems. Taking particular note of the webs and name carving upon them. After noting them he would leave a small coin of his faith and a bag of crushed Larelis gems at each totem. 12 lives that needed avenging. By his count that meant 12 Devlin's...if that was indeed a name. Judging by the webs he presumes it to be a Drow name and supposes his best bet is in the Underdark.