Difference between revisions of "Into the Viper's Den"

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About the Saga

A contingent of Obsidian Bay's adventurers -- including a handful of Blackrazors -- is charged with a mission of intrigue and espionage within the occupied provinces of the Principality of Ulek.

Timeframe

• Greyhawk Date: Wealsun 18, CY 591
• Real World Date: January 1, 2004
• Read other Blackrazor Guild Sagas

Cast of Characters

• Vasar, the Summoner, of the Blackrazor Guild
• Hogarth, of the Blackrazor Guild
• Mugwort, follower of Greggor
• Ellandrian, follower of Gaiseric the Mundane
• Tyndall, out of place gentleman
• Heydrich, the shifty-eyed

Notable Quotes

"Oh Little Mouse! I'm ready for you Little Mouse!" -- Bertha, a lady of ill-repute at the Blood Run Inn, on her way to the room of Ellandrian.

What Has Come Before

During the Greyhawk Wars, the eastern reaches of the Principality of Ulek were over run by the humanoid forces of Turrosh Mak. Since that time, the dwarves have fought in vain to drive back the orcs, goblins and other scum that infest their land. Now though, the Principality has managed to secure treaties with its neighboring Ulek states, the Kingdom of Keoland, and the Domain of Obsidian Bay to launch a full-blown offensive against Mak.

Obsidian Bay has sent over a thousand men to fight on behalf of the Prince of Ulek, with most of their number having been drawn from the ranks of the city's various adventuring guilds. Now a contingent of those adventurers is being sent into the viper's den to learn what they can about the orcish occupation … and to prepare the way for liberation!

The Saga

Wealsun 18, CY 591

Meeting with General Calywyn

They met in the Palace of the Platinum Throne, the royal fortress in the Ulek city of Haven Hill on 18 Wealsun, CY 591.

Most weren't exactly friends, but were at least brothers in arms -- the human males Vasar the Summoner and Hogarth were both members of the Blackrazor Guild. They were familiar with Mugwort, the half-orc follower of the Blackrazor Guild's bard, Greggor. The half-elf male Ellandrian was a follower of the Gaiseric the Mundane, another of the Blackrazor Guild's notable members. The other two, however, were new faces. The human male Tyndall was a well-spoken gentleman who clearly appeared out of place amongst the rough-looking Blackrazors. In contrast, Heydrich looked like he was ready-made for the guild, with shifty eyes that instinctively tracked the trajectory of everything around him.

Field General Lord Tanevir Calywyn, recently named commander of the Obsidian Bay forces fighting in the Principality of Ulek, had called them to the Palace. They were escorted to an underground chamber guarded by two dwarves in full-plate mail and another wearing the grey robes of Durathain. In this chamber they found an find an elf wearing fine mithral chain. A black, silver-rune encrusted scabbard hung from his belt, and a forest green cloak -- held in place by a golden griffin's clasp signifying his rank as field general -- cover his shoulders.

The door closes behind you, and you can hear the distant sound of chanting behind it. "Greetings. Please be seated," the elf said, pointing at chairs along the walls as he did so. As the adventurers took their seats, he said "I am Tanevir Calwyn, field general of the Allied Armies of the Ulek."

"You have come to me highly recommended by your respective sponsors. All of you, with a few exceptions, are unknown to me personally, and this is a good. For I am asking you to understand a gravely serious mission on behalf of the Allied Armies of Ulek, one in which familiarity with myself could prove to be lethal."

"As you know, we are at war with the Empire of Mak and we are planning an invasion of the occupied provinces. However, before we can do so, we need to gather intelligence about the forces in those lands and make contact with any organized resistance."

"We are following several different paths to gather this information. In your case, you will be smuggling yourselves into the occupied provinces under the guise of mercenaries eager to serve Turrosh Mak. You will do this by boarding a ship called the Storm Hydra in the city of Scant, the outskirts of which you will be teleported to after this meeting has been concluded." He tossed a bag to Ellandrin. "Here's the payment you'll need to get onboard the Hydra."

"This ship will be traveling to Orc Harbor, one of the occupied Ulek towns, though I warn you that it may also stop in some of the orcish coastal cities to pick up supplies and others like yourself."

"Once in Orc Harbor, you must get yourselves hired as mercenaries, a position which will hopefully allow you to travel around the occupied provinces somewhat easily. After being hired, you must make contact with Gork Bladaven, the owner of the …" the general pauses for a moment in obvious disgust and then continues "the 'Bloody Elf'".

"This man is a retired half-orc mercenary, and one the orcs believe despises the Ulek's rightful rulers. In reality, he is loyal to the prince, and has served us since the occupation. He should be able to help you get a feel for the mood in Orc Harbor and possibly offer you assistance in gathering information. He may also be able to put you in contact with a rebel in Bridgeford. I should warn you however, that I have not heard from Gork in nearly two weeks -- indeed, I have no heard from any of my operatives in that time."

"After Orc Harbor, you should endeavourer to make your way north to Bridgeford, and then west to Appledown. It would be best if you could accomplish this last by no later than the end of Reaping."

"You may wonder how you shall communicate with us." He reaches into a pouch on his belt, and draws out a small chain decorated with small obsidian figurines of birds. "There are six charms on this bracelet. Remove the charm, and a raven will appear. Speak your message, and then utter the words 'I command you to seek your lord'. The bird will then travel to me truer and faster than any mundane raven. I should have your message within 12 hours time. If I need to reply, I will do so in a manner that will readily apparent to you."

"Do you have any questions?"

The adventurers handful of questions revolved almost entirely around the dangers they could expect to find in the Ulek, questions which Tanevir had few answers for. After a few minutes conversation, they took their leave of the general, who instructed them to travel to the Room of Debarkation at sundown that night for transport to Scant.

On their way to their quarters, the adventurers decided to divide up the gold they had been given by Tanevir, and were shocked to find a smaller bag inside filled with what appeared to be ears. Elf ears. Shocked, they immediately ran back to Tanevir, demanding to know why he had given them such gory currency.

The elf scowled. "Payment. You did not think that you would be able to prove your loyalty to the orcish regime simply by waving your swords in the air did you? The ears are … unfortunate … but they are also false, crafted by mages to appear real. Like your papers, they should hold up under routine inspection."

Unsettled but resigned, the adventurers left.

The Blood Run Inn

As dusk arrived, the adventurers made their way to the Room of Debarkation, where they were greeted by an ancient looking mage wearing blue robes. He failed to introduce himself, instead urging them closer. "We must be quick. No time for pleasantries." As soon as the adventurers were assembled, the room disappeared in a flash of blue light. Instantaneously they found themselves in a darkened space whose sole illumination was the rapidly dissipating blue light of teleportation.

"We are in an basement of Blood Run Inn, a working class establishment in Scant's "Gutter District". It is exceptionally busy at this time of night, so you should be able to sneak out to the latrine which lies that way -- " he points toward a door to the left -- "and from there into the inn. It would be unwise for too many of you to enter the inn at the same time. You should be able to purchase rooms here using these Brotherhood coins." He hands you a small leather pouch.

"You will also need these" he says, fanning out several leather-bound books about three inches in diameter, each embossed with a red flame. "They are Scarlet Brotherhood identification passes and you will need them to clear the various check points. These are not true passes, but they should hold up to cursory examination. I advise you to exercise extreme caution -- Brother Dralth is far more ruthless than his predecessor and his predatory 'Karuth' enforces, led by the archmage Tural, still prowl the city.

"Finally, your ship leaves at daybreak tomorrow." And with that, he disappeared with a second flash of light.

The adventurers quickly struck a light and looked around. The room was obviously a storage room for the inn and was filled with all manner of poor quality food stuffs and leaking kegs of ale. Upon hearing voices coming from outside the room, they quickly doused the light and hid amid the room's supplies.

Mugwort was the first one out, leaving the room when no one was in the hall beyond. He headed up into the inn's common room, and found it filled with workers from the surrounding district. Lined along the north and east walls were several tables, while a bar covered the southern wall, and a rough stage rose in the northeast corner, the bard on it playing a mandolin badly. A quick look around revealed that he wasn't the only sellsword in the place -- three men in grey tunics sat at one of the tables on the eastern wall. He recognized them instantly. "Grey Renders" he growled softly in disgust. As he watched, one of them pick up his crude ceramic mug and threw it at the bard playing on the stage. The musician was able to duck out of the way, saving himself what would have been the third blow to the head that night. The mug hit the wall instead, exploding in a shower of pottery and beer.

Mugwort headed to the northern wall, where he found a table occupied by huge, hulking fishmongers. "Move," he said. One of the fishmongers looked at him and laughed, then stood up to his full 6'2" height. The half-orc wasn't impressed -- he lashed out with a fist, knocking the men out cold in an instant, and then dropping second fishmonger who'd leapt to his friend's side. The remainder quickly picked up their drinks, grabbed hold of their friends, and fled the room. Mugwort sat down at the table.

Next out of the storage room was Hogarth, who exited just as a drunk was coming down the stairs from the crowded room. "HHHHHey!" the man said, slurring his words badly. "Whys youse n theres?"

Hogarth didn't miss a step. "Oh that? That's the new latrine. Much less crowded."

The man smiled happily. "Gggreat!" he said, and headed into the supply room, where the others had mere moments to duck out of sight. Hogarth headed to the real latrine, and struck up a conversation with the men there and learned that there were Grey Renders in the Common Room. He also learned that while the Renders been working for the Scarlet Brotherhood in Scant, a contingent of them were now heading out to the Pomarj.

Hogarth headed upstairs, bought a round of drinks for his friends, and then staggered his way drunkenly over toward Mugwort's newly-acquired table. On the way there he was hit by the mug-throwing Grey Render. He barely managed to stay upright with the beer, and resisted the urge to kill the mercenary.

Tyndell went up next, followed by Vasar. But where as the summoner headed over toward his friend's table, Tyndell went right out the front door. Vasar stopped, shocked, and was promptly hit by yet another hurled mug. Heydrich, who'd followed the two Obsidian Bay adventurers out of the store room, grabbed Vasar by the shoulder, and whispered fiercely "Drop you fool!" Vasar did so, immediately, but fooled no one. He and Heydrich then made their way over to Mugwort.

Shortly afterwards, Tyndell returned to the tavern, disguised as a common worker, and so well disguised that even his friends didn't recognize him. He walked across the room to the Grey renders, where he struck up a conversation with their burly leader, a human male named Taurthun. In the course of their conversation Tyndell learned that the Grey Renders planned to travel aboard the Storm Hydra as well. Tyndell made mention that he and his comrades were going as well, which prompted the warrior to advise them not to go ashore when the ship docked in Orc Harbor. "No penalty for an orc killing a man there you know -- your life'd be forfeit." So advised, Tyndell left for Mugwort's table, where he was forced to re-introduce himself because of his extremely effective disguise.

Ellandrin finally comes upstairs and saunters over to the bar, where he announces they he has good gold to pay for rooms at the inn for himself and his friends. This immediately piques the interest of everyone around him, and causes the barkeep's eyes to grow wide. The barkeep informs him that he can get a private room and two rooms for his collegues if he likes for two gold, as well as the services of Nanda, one off the inn's better whores. For 1 gp, he could get the same, but he'd have to make do with the overly-large whore named Bertha. At this point Bertha -- who'd been washing dishes behind the bar -- raised her head and smiled at the rouge. Ellandrin winced at the woman's lack of teeth, but that didn't deter her. "Oh what a cute little mouse!" she said. "Just wait until I get you alone Little Mouse!" Ellandrin purchase the night's lodging, but waved off "Bertha" and joined his friends.

That night Ellandrin wisely set-up a fake body in his private room and decided to sleep with his friends. Around 11 p.m., the adventurers heard the tell-tale sounds of straining wooden boards that gave away Bertha's presence as she headed down the hall. Reaching the end, she knocked on Ellandrin's door, muttering seductively "Oh Little Mouse, I'm ready for you Little Mouse!" When he didn't respond, she banged on the door for several minutes before walking away, sobbing.

In the middle of the night Ellandrin's room had two more visitors -- footpads who snuck into his room and plunged daggers into the form on his bed, shouting out curses when they realized they'd been foiled.

Flocktime 19, CY 591

Confusion at the Docks

On the morning of the 19 Flocktime the adventurers rose early and headed downstairs. They found Bertha waiting at the top of the stairs, asleep and apparently waiting for Ellandrin. On their way down to the common room, Mugwort kicked the woman awake. She came to with a startle, saw Little Mouse and proceeded to chase him downstairs and in to the street where she shouted and sobbed after him. The rouge was able to ditch her eventually, and met up with his collegues as they headed down to the South Docks, where they knew their ship to be tied up.

There they found a length line of people waiting at the gate to get into the docks, each being checked by a Scarlet Brotherhood guard before being allowed to enter. The adventurers decided to cut in line, paying a merchant to allow them to step ahead of him on the excuse that they were dock laborers who had to get in and unload his freight.

Soon afterward they heard the sounds of shouting as the Grey Renders -- who'd obviously overslept -- came running down to the docks. Their leader, Taurthun, tried to cut in front of the Obsidian Bay mercenaries, but they refused, saying that the Grey Renders would have to get in line behind them. Taurthun stared daggers at the adventurers, but grudgingly accepted a position behind them.

Once through the gate, the Blackrazors hired a young boy to guide them to the docks. As they headed to the Storm Hydra, Mugwort threw fistfuls of coppers onto the streets, instantly clogging them with passersby eager to snatch up the coins and further delaying the Grey Renders.

They arrived at the docks and found the Storm Hyrda, a light galley with a single mast and 20 oars. It's first mate, a heavily tattoed man named Kurkel, collected their 25 gp passage fee, as well as the elf ears certifying them as mercenaries eager to serve the orcs and introduced them to the well-dressed, well-spoken captain of the ship, a human named Vendra. As dawn broke fully over the harbor, the ship untied and pushed off into the harbor. One hundred yards out into the harbor the Grey Renders finally arrived. Taurthun screamed in frustration as he saw the ship sailing away, and threw two of his men into the harbor, ordering them to catch the ship. They failed and the Storm Hydra sailed out onto the Azure.

Flocktime 23, CY 591

The Yellow Sails

Three days later, as the sun set on 23 Flocktime and turn the Azure a brilliant gold, a cry of " Monster to port! Monster to port!" went up from a scout up on the mast. The adventurers ran up to the deck, where they saw the captain starring through a spyglass at a ship only a mile or so off. Even from this distance the adventurers could see the huge tentacles that writhed over its deck -- and the yellow cloth that made up its sails. Tyndall managed to stifle a grunt of disgust as he recognized the sails. "Slavers," he said flatly.

"Yes!" the captain replied enthusiastically. "That ship needs our help. And we're going to provide it. Are you in? The masters of that ship will pay quite well for preventing it from going to the bottom."

The adventurers, sensing a chance to get in well with the orcs, agreed.

The Storm Hydra rapidly came along side the larger heavy galley, and began firing bolts and arrows at the tentacles, which the captain identified as belonging to a giant squid. As the ship closed to within boarding distance though, they discovered that the squid was not the only enemy the ship faced -- fish men lept from behind the cover on the slave ship's deck and down onto the smaller deck of the Storm Hydra. In the melee that followed more fish men -- Heydrich identified them as sahaugin -- boarded the ship from the other side, knocking the mage Vasar overboard. The sahaugin put up a stiff fight, but could not stand against the adventurer's deft knife stabs -- which always seemed to find the exact opening they needed to kill -- and expertly aimed crossbow bolts. Vasar, clinging to the side of the ship, missed most of the fight, but was able to get back in it at the very end after summoning a fiendish girallon to carry him back on to the ship.

After the fight, the adventurers and the crew of the Storm Hydra helped the crew of the slave ship ready to set sail again. Together the two skips were able to limp to Fury Bay a day later.

Flocktime 24, CY 591

Fury Bay

The two ships arrived in Fury Bay on 24 Flocktime. Once docked, Tyndell accompanied the Storm Hydra's captain to the harbor master's office to report the attack on the slave ship and their efforts to drive off the squid. The harbormaster -- an old, one-eyed orc named Lortak -- listened to their story and then grunted his thanks. He drew a piece of slate from his desk and carved a glyph resembling a jagged shark into it with his dagger. He then tossed it and a small sack with 50 gold pieces to Tyndell. "Give that slate to the Master of Mercenaries in Orc Harbor" the old orc growled. "He'll know what it means."

That night, the adventurers took the advice of the Grey Renders and stayed on the ship. In the morning of 25 Flocktime, a half-dozen orcs arrived to bring supplies onto the ship and to join it on its journey to Orc Harbor. Mugwort attempted to strike up a conversation with one of the orcs, but finds that the laborers are only slightly smarter than rocks, and weren't interested in talking.

The passage to Orc Harbor was uneventful, and the Storm Hydra caught sight of the costal town's signature lighthouse on 27 Wealsun.

Experience

Not available.