The Bleeding Eye, Part 1

From The Griffin's Crier
Jump to: navigation, search

About the Saga

Not content to rest on their laurels after having saved the Mudsitters District from a foul poison, the Dark City heroes seek out new challenges (and paying jobs) at Obsidian Bay's Bounty Office.

Timeframe

Cast of Characters

Notable Quotes

None.

What Has Come Before

The Mudsitter heroes have returned from their expedition to the Southern Arc with the naga tongue needed to cure inhabitants of one of its wards of a foul poison. Each has gone about his own task in the city, checking in with leaders, contacts and others to see what has passed in their absence. Reading a copy of The Griffin's Crier, they learned that a band of particularly vicious and capable orcs has broken through the front lines at the Cathedral of Justice, and are now ravaging villages once thought to be safe.

The Saga

Patchwall 10

The Bounty Office

Fawkes, Korash and Thom head to the Bounty Office (at Thom's urging, who doesn't want to follow Fawkes' suggestion and join the city guard), where they find the riffraff gathered about, including the traveling priest Gerran.

They meet with Duner, Master of the Bounty office, in the Wharf District, offering 500 gp for the head of the leader of a warband of orcs known as the Bleeding Eye Clan who have broken through the frontier and are raiding their way through the interior. There is a further bounding of 30 gp per orc heads for other members of the tribe.

The adventurers encounter two would-be adventurers, Broden the Quick and Kosen the Fat, who are instantly impressed by Sir Fawkes and beg to be made his squires. He refuses, sensing their inexperience.

While they're still at the office, a bounty hunter known as Joric shows up, delivers an assortment of orc heads, and leaves.

A Horse By Any Other Name

Needing transport, the heroes leave the office and head to the business of Acrak the Horse Dealer, a trader recommended by Thom. He sells them a brown and white riding horse to Thom and a light gray riding horse to Corash for 55 gp. THey then proceed to buy tact and barding.

They then ask around the city, trying to learn more about the Bleeding Eyes. They learn they've committed a number of terrible crimes, and have an affinity for magic stealth. They learn that several towns were hit, seemingly in a straight line: Welcoming Pegasus Farm, Rendinn and Elkton with the next target's being Twoham and Wardare Tower.

Patchwall 11

Would-Be Squires

On the way there, two would-be squires -- Broden and Kosen -- catch up with the party and ask to join. Fawkes browbeats them for being stupid for following him, orders them to listen to him.

Patchwall 12, CY 592

Twoham

Travel to Twoham, on the way to Wardare Tower, meet with the master there and talk with his wife who treated Wardare, who had an injured eye filled with pus and blood. Created a poltice, but the light blue eye was strange … in no small part because Wardare's eyes were always black.

Stay the night, only to be awakened by Kosen looting through a cabinet for a fork to eat leftovers with (or so he claimed). His dressing down by Sir Fawkes, who awakens to find him, is interrupted by a flame arrow shot through the closed shutter. Party is rosed, hears evil, primal chant coming from outside. Sir Fawkes charges out, finds two orcs wielding dual-waraxes and an ogre. A black shafted arrow punctures his side, which is followed by one of the orcs landing a terrible blog.

Korash fireballs the ogre, badly wounding the creature. That doesn't stop it from charging Fawkes, and clubbing him badly. THe paladin responds by smiting him with divine energy, killing the giant.

Meanwhile, inside Thom countersongs the orc wardrummer.

One of the orc hunters twirls his double-bladed axe and steps into the house, slashing at Korash, but missing. The wizard responds by stepping back, throwing down his figurine lions, and activating them, filling the room with their roars.

Sir Fawkes charges the war drummer, driving his lance through him but failing to killing the orc. The creature staggers forward, raging filling his eyes and slashes at the war horse with his short sword, wounding the celestial war horse mightly.

The orc hunter falls back from inside to help his ally team up on the traveling cleric, and together the whittle down his resistance. Thom, the war drummer no longer trying to perform, sings his own war song, inspiring the competence of his fellows.

The heroes are finally able to defeat the orcs, driving the survivors off into the night.