Farraginous Cogitations

The Black Wyrm of Brandonsford Session 2 Recap

Spoilers for "The Black Wyrm of Brandonsford" are included in this recap...

Our Heroes:

Missing:

Warden Note: In the spirit of this and using GM fiat, I declared that while Gump was talking to Ingrid, she disclosed that she knew the Witch of the Woods, Vivian and that Vivian might be able to help get rid of the dragon and the encroaching fairies. Due to Gump's supportive efforts, Ingrid is already self-confident enough to suggest that the group tell Vivian they know Ingrid and know of Ingrid's romantic interests in Warwick. This 'secret' will prove they are friendly with Ingrid and thus earn Vivian's trust.

The party visit Eric the Reeve's estate. They are greeted by an ancient butler and inquire about speaking to Eric the Reeve about the dragon. Overhearing from his office, the harried man throws open his door and expresses relief at the arrival of potential aid. He recounts the difficulties of dealing with the dragon, (George the Hunter's wounds) and that missives to the nearest militia outpost seem to have gone astray. He lays the blame for that and all other recent troubles on Vivian the Witch of the Woods. He offers them 1000g if they kill the dragon. When he suggests they talk to George the Hunter, the party admits they've already talked to George and have heard his tale about the hunting party being unable to do any harm to the dragon. They also mention having spoken with Father William and Farmer Gill. From Farmer Gill, they are aware of the story of Sir Brandon, for whom the town is named, who slew a dragon with a magical sword and from Father William they have learned that he has dispatched another member of the local clergy, Brother Dirk, to retrieve the holy relic from where Sir Brandon is interred in hopes it will again aid in removing the threat of the dragon. Brother Dirk has not returned from his mission.

Akshara and Gunther, along with their hireling "Drop Dead" Ned, briefly consider supplies and mounts (also learning horses are poorly suited for such heavy forests as surround Brandonsford, they should acquire the use of mules from Farmer Gill if so desired) before electing to walk. Heading east out of town in the direction they were told the Witch of the Woods could be found, they travel a couple miles when Akshara suddenly sees a dryad amongst the trees, beckoning to him. Successfully ensnared by the dryad's charm spell he attempts to follow her. Gunther, uncharmed, grabs hold of Akshara with such force that the charm spell is broken and the dryad quickly disappears into the thicker woods.

The forest eventually gives way to a clearing. In the clearing is a small pond and a garden of topiary animals centered around a wattle hut. Circling just atop the water are 10 nixies who immediately demand the visitors throw their weapons into the pond as the witch doesn't like weapons. The party refuses and the nixies express their outrage in piping voices. They knock on the door of the hut. A querulous voice demands to know what they want. The door is opened by a hunched, wrinkled old woman with gray frizzy hair, one bulging eye and purple dress. They are polite and kind to the woman. After mentioning Ingrid, her secret and their mission, they learn from Vivian that there are magical trees in the western woods that drip wine like sap. The wine is magically potent, enough to knock a mortal unconscious with the slightest sip. But be warned, the place is frequented by fauns who would not take kindly to someone stealing their drink. They mention the clurichaun who was stealing the swill from Quinn at the Golden Egg tavern. Vivian explains that fairies taste run opposite to mortals. What tastes bad to mortals tastes delicious to fairies and vice versa. She cautions them again about both stealing and consuming the wine from the faun's grove.

Inquiring if there is anything they can do for her, she asks if the dwarfs have visited Brandonsford. The party answers that they have not and that Warwick the Smith is running out of iron Vivan says she and the eldest of the dwarf brothers, Grimni, are fond of each other but she has not seen him in some time. She is troubled by the fact that during his has visit, he was alone. Normally, he visits with his brothers. Also during the visit, he mentioned they had stumbled upon a vast amount of gold in the mines. Vivian responds to the party's kindness by shooing away the nixies from the pond and says they can have anything thing they retrieve from the bottom of the pond. Gunther disrobes, dives in and brings several precious items to the surface:

Thanking Vivian, the party heads west to find the grove she spoke of. They travel several miles and cross a stream before uneventfully reaching the faun's grove. A heavy, sickly-sweet aroma has settled in this part of the forest, where the trees bleed red wine in place of sap. Sounds of mirth and music echo from an unknown source. From behind a tree, two fauns appear, playing pipes and dancing. Their dance quickly encircles the party. The fauns stop playing and offer wine in ornate gold chalices to Akshara and Gunther, who politely decline and ask instead if they can take some with them. The fauns answer that for the right price, they can have as much wine as they can carry. The fauns are only willing to trade their wine for sentimental items, not gold. It must mean something to someone to be of value to the fauns. When Akshara rummages in his pack for an old compass that has special meaning to him, the faun's notice the gilded and jeweled scabbard and name it as the price for their wine to which Akshara agrees. Gunther and "Drop Dead" Ned empty their water flasks and refill them with the offered wine.

Parting on good terms with the fauns, the group returns to town. They check in on Ingrid who, emboldened after a day speaking with Gump, asks the group to speak on her behalf to Warwick, to which the party agrees. When they later do, Warwick relays he's had his first real night of restful sleep in months. They suggest he pay a visit to Ingrid and speak with her about her restorative teas. They then retire to their lodgings at the Clumsy Fox, having a hearty dinner before retiring for the night.

Warden Note: Akshara chooses to spend time after dinner reading from The Wild Tongue. A bundle of leather-bound scrolls. A seminal work, cataloging the hidden languages of beasts and how to understand them. This will be a Growth Trigger. If Akshara spends time studying this text during downtime, Kevin can opt to make a WIL save. If Akshara repeats this WIL save successfully 4 times, he can choose a non-magic species of creature and be able to understand and speak to this type of creature.

This ends Session 2. More to come next week...