Game date: Friday, Sept 3, 4711 A.R, sunset.
After defeating the goblin riders and their henchmen, Charrone helped the villager hiding under the table to his feet. The young man was very well-dressed, albeit a bit dusty, and introduced himself as Aldern Foxglove, heir to the Foxglove Estate. "Thank you so much for coming to my aid! I believe I owe you a great debt of gratitude." He then invited the group to join him for dinner at the Rusty Dragon later that evening.
The woman that Declan rescued in the alleyway introduced herself as Katrine Vindler. Katrine appeared to be about 18 years old, and was very attractive. She mentioned that her father owned the General Store. She seemed to be taken with Halfred, who was a bit dumbfounded by the attention she lavished on him. "Nice axe," she said. "It's so big, and you sure know how to use it. I hope we'll be seeing more of each other."
About that time, a guardsman rode by, stopped, and marveled at the litter of goblin corpses at the group's feet. "You seem to know your way around a fight. Were you the ones who organized the firefighting brigade on Shell Street? That was fast thinking!" He asked the groups' names, thanked them, and rode off.
By this time, the tide of he street battle turned, and the goblins remaining in town began a chaotic retreat. By this time, town guardsmen on horseback mopped up remaining pockets of fighting, and streams of goblins fled back toward the gates and bridges. A dozen or so of the goblins, chased by mounted guardsmen, jumped off the 60-foot Sandpoint Cliffs onto the jagged watery rocks below rather than face capture. Townsfolk put out the many small fires set by the little menaces, and assessed the damage. The casualties were: three townsfolk were dead, scores injured, and a large amount of minor property damage.
The group retired to the nearby White Deer Inn for drinks to wind down after the fight. Well-apportioned but a bit cold (and snooty), the inn had a gorgeous view of the Gulf of Varisia, and the sunset was lovely. After a couple of rounds, they checked the North Gate, which was by then well-secured, and then walked across town to the Rusty Dragon to take up Aldern on his invitation.
When the group entered, Aldern stood up and said "And here they are!" in a loud voice. A round of applause went up, and a round of drinks was passed. Aldern had already ordered a small feast: roasted beef, roasted fowl, bread, cheese, and a Tian-spiced vegetable stew. Ameiko Kaijitsu, the proprietor, came over and introduced herself, and Bethany, the head server, brought out more food and drinks.
Aldern was very interested in the party's stories. Halfred told the tale of his family's exile from Kalsgaard. Charrone said that she had recently retired from the Chelaxian military due to a difference in philosophy, and she's still working on what was next. Ted told of his studies with the Cyphermages of Riddleport, and McGreggor compared notes on the ancient Thassalonians. Larissa spoke of her life in Magnimar, and Declan told of his personal tragedy at the hand of goblins. It turned out that Larissa and Halfred had once met in Magnimar, and both had crossed paths with Declan once or twice.
Aldern was a good conversationalist, and seemed to know quite a bit of what was going on in Magnimar and Riddleport, and was at least familiar with the situation in Korvosa. He said that his family estate was located about three miles to the south of Sandpoint, but had been unoccupied for many years and had fallen into disrepair before he inherited it. He said that had spent about half a year renovating his estate, and had been quite pleased with progress, but lost heart when his dear wife was lost at sea a few months ago, and renovations have stopped for the present time.
Mid-way through the meal, Aldern gave each member of the group a pouch with 50 gp, "as a token of my appreciation. Please don't think it crass." He then mentioned that he planned to leave Sandpoint on Tuesday, but thought that going on a boar hunt would be great fun, and invited the group to do so on Monday. The group agreed, and Aldern said that he'd make all arrangements.
Aldern also seemed to be very interested in Charrone. "May I ask why a lady of your grace and bearing took up the sword?" he asked once. Later, he said, "You have such a noble heart. Your spirit reminds me of my late wife Iesha, who was lost at sea." Aldern's demeanor was rather fawning, and it grew a bit tiresome as the night wore on. Eventually, he retired, as did the rest of the group.
The next day was spent exploring the town. Charrone went to visit Sheriff Hemlock at his office in the garrison. He thanked her for helping out, and said that the goblins they captured didn't have much information. He mentioned a few things about the raid:
- While the main force attacked the town, a smaller force of goblins sneaked into the graveyard and desecrated the grave and exhumed the body of Father Tobyn, the former town curate who had perished in the Sandpoint Fire of '06. He has no idea why, but he asked to keep this bit of info quiet, as he doesn't want to upset the townsfolk any more than they are.
- Goblins, while a menace, have never tried anything this big before. "Goblins are both notoriously poor planners and inherently lazy, which usually precludes then from doing anything that requires a group effort." He suspects that something or someone is organizing them.
- One thing he did get out of the goblins was mention of the "the chief and the 'longshanks.'" He's not sure what a "longshanks" is, but it's definitely non-goblin. Hemlock said that he knows a local ranger that usually keeps an eye on the goblins, and that he'd send word to her.
- The actions of the party had been noticed by the townsfolk, and their presence in town seems to be reassuring. Hemlock asked if they could stick around a few days, just to help keep things calm.
Meanwhile, Katrine approached Halfred over lunch, and asked if he could come back to the store with her to help her get rid of some rats in the cellar. Halfred went with her, and while he saw no rats in the basement, he did see a cot. When he turned to ask Katrine where the rats were, he was pleasantly surprised to see that she had removed her bodice. "I feel distressed. Are you a real hero?" Unfortunately for Halfred, before things with Katrine progressed too far, her father happened to walk into the room. Ven Vindler was not happy to see the new handsome stranger in town engaged in a half-naked embrace with his youngest daughter. "Um...we were hunting... for... rats..." stammered Halfred. "Oh, I'm looking at a big rat right now. GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER!!!" Before things got ugly, Halfred gathered his clothes and ran out of there.
The rest of the group explored the town. Several shopkeepers handed out free samples or offered discounts to them, and several people that they had never met already knew their names. The rest of the day passed uneventfully.
Next Week: The Boar Hunt!
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