The Bladestone Foundation

[xEmeraldx]

*Late one night a convoy of dark armored soldiers were seen traveling down south along Trade Way. Upon reaching their destination of a well known establishment, a couple of shadowy figure's had silently hid along the outer walls, for they been tailing the convoy since Wyrm's Crossing. Intrigue compelled the couple of knaves listen closely to what the soldiers were saying..*

*Voice one* - "Where do you want us to unload it all?"
*Voice two* - "Around the back, please I'll show you and I'll get the oilcloths out of storage."

*Voice one* - "That should be everything."
*Voice three* - "We do also have Stew inside, if any of you lot need a warmup before the way back when you are done."
*Voice four* - "Mmh! Northern Lamb Stew in fact"
*Voice three* - "After you lot!"

*After a few moments all the people went inside to enjoy stew and fire, except a few guards who posted themselves at the front of the establishment. However the rear gate probably used for cargo wagons didn't have any guards...the knaves made there way to the rear gate after hearing the last man leave the cargo that was unloaded. A lock was picked in seconds the gate slowly and quietly opened soon after, and the knaves creeped over to see the goods. After the inspection of their find, they quickly grabbed what heir hands could carry..all had seemed fine til the gate closed on its own right before their escape and forcing them to pick the lock again and flee in a hurried desperate fashion, for one of the guard had thought something didn't sound right...*

*knave one*- "Quickly now, lets move!"
*knave two*- *Gasps as the gate began to close right before them* *In union* "oh shite"
*He whispers under his own breath* "Blimey"!

*Guard one*- *looks to the other guard* - "Oi! I think I heard sumthin'"
*Guard two*- *Ya lazy bastard, yer aint heard nuthin, stop trying to find an excuse to get out of this piss storm"
*Guard one*- "Bah this damn rain and I aint lookin for an excuse, gon'a do a round just in case, aint tryina lose my pay."

*knave two*- "Bloody hells you think they heard that? We need to hurry"
*knave one*- "Dammit" *picks the lock on the gate*.."Go go go!"
*knave one*- "Move! move! move! down the path to the old church, we can teleport away from that area just in case"

*Moments after*

"Find a merchant that knows how to keep their mouths shut and sale the silks and furs you managed to carry."

[artemitavik]

*Derik looks at the shortage of supplies that had been delivered. He knew that they had all be there when they were unloaded, he had counted and covered them himself. He glances at the guard*

"And you think you heard something in the rain?" *The guard nodded*

"Well... lesson learned then. Get the rest of this stuff moved to the cellar. We'll just have to move it from side to side when the dwarves start their work or something. I guess this is what we get with changing the lock on the gate back here in prep for the Caravan Stop setup and not moving the guard posting." The man sighs heavily. "Alright, I've got a boat to catch. At least it was only a few things and not the whole shipment of silver and ornaments. I'll let Ronja know if she doesn't know by the time I see her."

*With that, the Headmaster heads towards the north."

[artemitavik]

A posting is put up

Bladestone Foundation Winter Tournament

7th Day of the Second Month ((02/07/21)) at 10:30 in the morning. ((10:30 GMT-8))

Contest is open to all. Entry Fee is 10 bags of gold. Winning purse is 1/2 of all entry fees collected.

Rules for this Tournament:
No Etherialness.
No Summoning.
No Dispells.
No Offensive Magic. (including Requiem)
No Healing Magic. (other than the regen on your gear)
No casting Enlarge Person while Shapeshifted (I mean, we only have so much space)
Melee fighting only.
No Healing via kits or potions while stealthed or invisible.

All other warding will be allowed. When the bouts start, the Reeve will call "Ward" and each person will have 20 Seconds to ward as they like free of harassment.
After that time, the Reeve will call "Fight" and each participant can continue to ward or engage the opponent. The choice and the strategy is yours!

You must have ALL wards dropped (including bardic inspirations) at the beginning of each bout.

Fearing your opponent so that they leave the ring does not disqualify your opponent. Otherwise, leaving the ring will disqualify you and count as a loss.

Double or Single elimination will be decided at the time of the tournament depending on number of participants.

Meet in the Arena at the Bladestone Foundation for final briefings, questions, and other last minute things at the appointed time.

OOC: If possible, we will need a DM there to force-rest folk, otherwise, it may take a SUPER long time.

[artemitavik]

The Bladestone announces the winner of the Tournament to be Dral!

Other participants included Amos Thistle and Derik Ranloss as sadly, turn out was low this time around.

All the fights were quite good and taken with good cheer.

[artemitavik]

As he traveled to the Bladestone Foundation, Derik Ranloss happened upon a gnoll raiding party that had hit a caravan near the school.

Needless to say, he was... unhappy.

And the raiding party was shortly very dead...

[artemitavik]

The Bladestone and the Warrior's Rest played host to representatives of the village of South Pine and a Merchant Lord Thaulgaunt, apparently over some sort of dispute over land ownership and mining rights of silver. While it is stated by the staff that the Foundation had some stake in investment in the situation, they had offered themselves as a neutral party to settle disagreements that seemed to be stemming from conflicting contracts and documents, leading to a great amount of bloodshed, and non-combatants caught in the middle.

The two groups arrived, tense and hostile, but after some talks up in the conference room of the Foundation and Rest, it seemed to be coming along. At least until the guards of the representatives attacked their own. The attackers were swiftly put down but now before the South Pine representative was killed. Lord Thaulgaunt was escorted away to the Gate and it is rumored that he intends to hold in honor the agreement he had made with the Village Representative by the name of Redbeard just before the attack took place.

If pressed, staff will let out that the guards that attacked their own leaders were said to have been bewitched in some fashion, the prime suspect being an Amnian mercenary leader called "Mal", who may have been playing both sides of the conflict and wanted it to continue. The staff further offers that it's probably a good idea if "Mal' hears such rumors that he not show his face anywhere near here, as it is easily confirmed that Derik Ranloss was absolutely furious that such a thing took place in his school, and it also appeared that Ronja and Talio were "none too pleased" as the barkeep puts it.

It may be if they get wind of his location, they would be out for blood... and that's generally unhealthy, so... yeah... laying low would be a good idea.

OOC: Many Thanks to DM Grinning Death for running all the shenanigans!

[Milluw]

[artemitavik]

Derik is seen in the arena for several days seemingly interviewing some of the locals who have studied at the School on and off the last several months and testing them for... Something. But he doesn't volunteer why.

[artemitavik]

Sooner than some may have anticipated, the reason for the organization of some ofntje trained locals becomes clear.

Uniformed, newly minted employees of the Bladestone Foundation begin to patrol the Lions Way and have an increased presence in the Foundation campus itself.

This is at least partial fulfilment of the Foundation's commitment to several local small communities to aid the area in safer roads and travel as well as trade with one another.

All the guards are locals hired from small villages in No Mans Land if asked, and when not in guard rotation return to their homes. This way their family life is not fully disrupted and they can continue at least some sort of profession there while still drawing a salary from the Rest and the Foundation.

Further, the cart trade stop at the Foundation seems to be now in full swing, including a Rocky Creek representative to help negotiate deals between locals and the merchants that stop there.

The guards clearly state to anyone with concerns that they are not there to hamper movement of any sort through the area. They will not stop anyone on the way to Candlekeep for instance, or someone coming up from the south. Their job is to assist putting down active banditry and hostile wildlife such as the aggressive beetles, gnolls, goblins, hill giants, and highwaymen.

There also seem to be some minor internal changes finally completed inside the Founation building itself.

((So many thanks to Planeshopper and lux for helping get everything defined and prioritized, and big shout out to Rhifox for hashing out the stuff and sneaking it in just before the update. Thank you so much!

initial Uniform design credits go to insomniacanis and zhazz. Possible updates pending once additional input RP can be involved. Originally unaware they were going in literally less than 10 hours after design.))

[artemitavik]

*The patrols and uniforms that started the other day having good initial success, they seem to be ready to continue. However, due to limited quantity and some redesigning, most patrols are still without uniforms*

*The guards on patrol indicate that any questions regarding the purpose of the patrols to be please directed to Derik Ranloss for the time being.*

*They assure anyone who asks that they are not there to 'regulate" or hamper legitimate travel on the roads, and only there for openly hostile wildlife and raiders to help make transit safe for travelers and tradesmen*

[artemitavik]

Posted both in the Inn and the Arena/School

Based on current actions in the war between the Zhentarim of Darkhold and the Lord's Alliance, the Bladestone Foundation and the Warrior's Rest hereby ban the presence in their facilities of any Zhentarim and their Allies, including but not limited to: The Black Abby, The Blackroses, as well as the Drow and Orc already banned by policy.

This is based on the willful and intentional perpetuation of war crimes against unarmed civilians and non-combatants by the Zhentarim and their allies including but not limited to:
-Scorched Earth attacks that are intentionally damaging to the lands and livelihoods of non-combatants such as the assassin vines and seeding of shambling mounds.
-Poisoning of well.
-Mind control to perpetuate self-harming actions.

The Foundation finds these actions dishonorable and unworthy of warriors of stature. While no delusion is held by the Foundation that this will in any way impact the Zhentarim war efforts and actions, the leadership of the Foundation felt this statement needed to be made.

This ban is to take place immediately and will persist until the war crimes mentioned are halted in entirety.

[artemitavik]

Hello Everyone

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I am putting ink to parchment to address a few issues I have heard of lately and want to put to rest. These issues are brought to me by my staff and members of the Bladestone Foundation and Warrior's Rest on multiple occasions of late but never has anyone simply come to me to ask for clarification directly as the Headmaster.

1) The Bladestone Foundation is NOT part of, a subsidiary of, owned by, ruled by, controlled by, or influenced by the Whitewood Vanguard.

Yes, a member of the Vanguard currently owns part of the shares of the Bladestone Foundation and Warrior's Rest and the Vanguard members are often there.
They are there as paying patrons as is a lot of people. We see traffic ((NPC, DM vetted)) from multiple places and people such as the Merchant League and the local farmers and villages as well as Beregost. However, that does not make the Foundation part of, owned by, ruled by, or controlled by those individuals or groups. This is the same silliness that has been rotating through for years in regards to the Foundation for whatever reason. Last year we were supposedly owned or controlled by the Blackroses because some of them stayed in the inn. Before that, because we didn't immediately throw them out, it was the Black Abby or the Zhentarim. Before that, we were supposed to be an extension of Candlekeep and an expanding militant arm of the Library. Prior to that we were a Ducal Military Outpost there to impose Baldurian rule upon the surrounding land.

None of this has been true, clearly, as they are all rather mutually exclusive. Neither is this nonsense true. The Bladestone is controlled by exactly one thing:
The Bladestone.

If another group wishes to pay to use our facilities as are publicly advertised, that is there prerogative. It does not make us "owned" by them simply because another faction visits regularly or has shared membership. That would be like saying because members of the Radiant Heart and Darkhold have had many non-violent conversations and co-habitations of the campfire on the road by Baldur's Gate, they are clearly one in the same. Further, how common is it for people to be members of more than one organization? This does not put one organization under the thumb of the other simply because someone participates in both. The Radiant Heart and Doron Amar have like members in leadership positions. Does this mean the Heart controls Doron Amar or visa versa? Of course not. Neither is this the case here.

2) We are not a militia or a mercenary company. We are a school and an inn and a trade post.

Do we have guards? Yes. We live and exist quite a ((ICly anyways, not map wise)) ways away from anywhere in a dangerous part of the Coast. Do we have patrols in the area? Yes. Part of our goal since establishment has been betterment of local community. To that end we have had several outreaches to local farms and towns such as Blueglade and South Pine ((npc towns, DM vetted and evented)). Our patrols through "no man's land" are to discourage bandit activity and make the area safer for travel for people coming to or from the area. Recently, some of our guards are taking part in helping guard caravans of refugees from the war in the North's hotter combat areas to further south away from the fighting. Are they in our "sphere of influence"? Not typically, but they are innocent people who are caught in a dangerous situation, and our people helping a community at large an in need. In the same way we also brought food into Baldur's Gate during the last year's winter famine, and the city is clearly not in our sphere of influence either.

3) We are not an exclusive club.

We welcome pretty much anyone outside of a few exclusions. All that is required or requested is follow the few very simple rules when in the property, which are clearly posted. All are welcome to come, train, enjoy a drink, whatever per the services listed at the school and inn.

4) We ARE a school, inn, and trade post.

The Foundation in the last few years has worked hard to become a community center for the "no man's land" area it is based on. We have partnered some with the Rocky Creek for a fully staffed trade station for the locals and any travelling merchant. We offer short term and long term classes in combat, combat theory, weaponry, and are working on adding some magics to that list as well. We have a fully staffed inn with couches, a hearth, plenty of seating, and a bardic stage. We have a variety of rooms for rent for long and short term, as well as other facilities that can be rented for events and meetings such as the arena and conference meeting room. We have an expansive menu of food and drink and very few rules.

I hope this puts to rest the majority of questions and rumors about what the Bladestone Foundation and the Warrior's Rest are and are not.

If you have any questions about these sorts of things, bring them to me, either in person or via letter dropped off at the Foundation ((PM)). Please stop accusing my people of being something they are not or telling them the Foundation is "clearly" doing something it isn't.

-Derik Ranloss, Headmaster, Bladestone Foundation

OOC: Honestly, yes, please if you have any ic or ooc questions about the BSF, please ping me on discord or send me a PM. This sort of thing has been going on and off for like 2 years now. I know some of it is IC driven and that's fine, but some of it isn't, and I'll be happy to clear it up either way.

[Kayle Walker]

Patrons of the Warrior's Rest would eventually notice a new face among the kitchen staff making the rounds. Always seen in dark or earthen robes and a veil covering the lower half of her face, the woman would make occasional appearances from the back to converse with Reinhard about the menu. Those curious enough would come to know that her name is Akasha, but other details about the woman is prone to speculation, tight-lipped as she is about her past even to fellow staff.

While curt and almost never one to initiate conversation, Akasha has nevertheless seemed to find a place for herself in the busy clockwork of the kitchen, mostly as an assistant to the more experienced cooks. One odd thing that stands out with the newcomer is in her choice of spices - ranging from fragrant, to spicy, to downright pungent - that she practices with in a makeshift pot she built just outside of the premises, seemingly conscious of the robust aroma of her culinary experiments.

[Kayle Walker]

Menu for the night:

Hidden: show

Hidden: show

A sudden group of eight customers - comprising of Dunn, personnel from Bladestone, as well as from the Captain's Vanguard, and a few guests - made their way to the Rest one late evening. The cook on hand at the time was Akasha, and the fledgling staff member opted to serve as main course a dish familiar to her from her days in the desert. Fortunately, both it and the starter were received positively.

[artemitavik]

An Announcement is posted:

It is with bittersweet feelings that I make these two announcements today.

The first announcement is that the Bladestone Foundation is expanding its curriculum! With the addition of new positions within the Foundation, we are happy to present now classes for magically enhanced combat. These will include, but are not limited to, defensive tactics and offensive tactics for casters, as well as use of items and how to combat magics for non-casters. While the Foundation is not becoming a "Mage Guild", it is felt that expansion of how to fight with and against magics in our lands was a long-overdue addition. Contact Niyressa Dawncrow for more information!

The second announcement is far sadder. Our most recent Proprietor of the Warrior's Rest, Michael Dunn, is no longer with the Foundation. In a decision to show solidarity and help quell continuing rumors that the Foundation is controlled by exterior parties, Mr. Dunn relinquished his partial ownership of the compound.
Sadly, he also decided his tenure with the Foundation and the Rest is at an end so he could more properly focus on his efforts with the Whitewood Vanguard and their expanding business opportunities. The Foundation wishes him and his well and success in their ventures, may Strength in Battle be yours.

-Derik Ranloss, Headmaster