Chapter 2, in my book, is a collection of several dozen landmarks, points of interest, and other individual encounters, plus several one-scene exploration areas. These will be interspersed into the storyline whenever you happen to trip over them. The plot continues in Chapter 3: The Stolen Lands.

You leave the Aldori manor on a new day; the storm last night has washed away any bad karma, curses, or ill fortune that previously troubled you, and you have a new mission: subdue the bandits of the Greenbelt. You prepare carefully before leaving, buying any additional supplies or equipment you think you may need for this first chapter in your legend.

Lady Aldori has given you a map showing nearby landmarks on your way to Oleg's, but most of the Greenbelt is not really well explored or mapped at all.

If you all buy horses, you'll have time to explore a bit on your way west to the trading post. If you're on foot, you'll just barely make it in time if you head straight there, and push into the night on the last day. Missing the deadline will have serious consequences. I recommend mounting up.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:38, Sat 10 Dec 2022.

Wilkezag trusts Dubh to buy horses and tack for him  They're kind of big and scary; he is not looking forward to riding one and intends to put off meeting them until the last minute.  Instead, he has a more important purchase in mind.  With his newfound wealth Will heads to the music shop to pick up the lyre he has been drooling over for weeks, now.

It is a beautifully crafted rosewood lyre harp.  It is slightly asymmetrical to be able to hang comfortably on a strap, in which position it is even playable one-handed.  It has a lovely knotted decoration which holds the ability to cast a charm spell once per day and Will can feel the magic singing through him.  He hands to the storekeeper the bag of gold he got from Lady Aldori, plus a bit more, without even a moment's regret, and is almost surprised to learn that the strap and a leather case are included in the price.

Will straps on the instrument and plucks out a tune.  All the concern, all the worry, all the angst over the deaths of so many good men, some he even knew, all the problems leave his mind for a moment as he sinks himself into this beautiful instrument.

https://i.etsystatic.com/32186....4266554731_iste.jpg

Will meets up with Dubh and the others.  He manages to keep his fear in check by humming a quiet tune as he faces the huge horsey monster.  With a little instruction from the druid, he manages to mount up.  It's not so bad!  She seems very friendly.  The bard strums his new lyre, and the horse looks back at him as if in appreciation.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:23, Sat 10 Dec 2022.

Sophia was not a horse woman, that was obvious, as she hung on for dear life for the first portion of the journey. She'd never been rich enough to afford one, her banditry days were strictly on foot.

She'd picked up a new sword on the way out of town. The pick was nice, but it was just too awkward for anyone who hadn't been born a kobold to use.

"With the horses we can get there in decent time. I'd rather go straight to Oleg's, get a lay of the place, see what's nearby and then explore out from there as a hub with spokes. It's always good to have a base camp before you go out and get yourself in over your head."
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:16, Mon 12 Dec 2022.

Lena stowed her new shortbow so it poked out of one of the rear saddlebags, so it could be taken out quickly.

"A reasonable plan. I need to offload my laboratory materials somewhere. Glass and horses do not tend to mix."

Both due to fragile materials and her own inexperience, she was only a little better off than Sophia, who'd apparently never ridden before at all.

After getting his horse and supplies, Booker looked into getting some magical clothing options. He managed to find a belt, simple yet tasteful. Truth be told, unless one wanted to send out the message 'look at my expensive magical gear you can steal', the wise buyer makes sure the item in question blends in.

After riding after the others, a bit shaky as he was more used to carriages than horses. "Maybe we should invest in a cart?" He suggests, hanging on for dear life.

(OOC-Buying a Belt of Good Health. Increasing my max and current HP by 4.)

You guys. You guys. Riding horses is a fundamental adventuring skill. You're going to spend the next nineteen levels riding hither and yon all over the countryside (unless someone learns teleport). You're not ALL allowed to be useless at it!

You can continue buying stuff in Restov but we should get this scene moving.

As you reach the west gate with your new equipment and your noble steeds, you see Lord Maegar Varn and his personal squad just mounting up. "Hey, well met! Off to begin our grand adventure! At least for you; I've got rather a lot of tricky diplomacy ahead of me. No amount of direct force is going to pacify the Nomen for long, and even if I lost my mind and tried to slaughter them all, it's impossible. They know their highlands a lot better than we ever could. But they're proud, not unreasonable; we ought to be able to find common ground somehow.

"But for today, a long afternoon's ride to Nivakta's Crossing. At least the weather is nice, after that miserable storm last night."

No one is going to hassle your party, Lord Maegar, and his four hardened veteran bodyguards on this perfectly safe road to Nivakta's Crossing. Any prospective road agent foolish enough to try that is clearly tired of life.

Each of you may make one last attempt to Observe or Influence Maegar during the journey; he'll be turning south at the Crossing while you're headed farther west.

We're level one! It's a journey :-P

"Maegar," she nodded then clasped hands with the noble who seemed slightly less useless than many of the others from that night. She was thinking of course about a particular gnome.

"Am I allowed to call you Maegar now? I mean since we're peers in building a kingdom in the stolen lands?" she asked with a cheeky wink. She was of course happy to stick with the more formal 'Lord Varn' if he insisted.

She didn't have much more to say, leaving the diplomacy to more adept hands, but she watched. And tried to learn what seemed to work on Varn, so she could tell the others.


Just trying to discover as after her rebuild Sophia is probably more likely to crit. fail on diplomacy as succeed. And probably a good choice too, with that roll. Guessing I don't learn too much.

16:20, Today: Sophia Akhova rolled 13 using 1d20+5 with rolls of 8.  perception to discover varn influence skills?

Lord Maegar would be the proper formal style. His father is Androth Lord Varn, but Maegar is the third son, out to make a name for himself because he's not going to get much other than pride from House Varn.

Lord Maegar is a noble like any other noble, as far as you can tell. He's a blooded swordlord, so he's probably interested in fighting and warfare (and probably quite good at it too!), but other than that, you really only have his conversation to go by.

Lena pulls up alongside Sophia and Maegar.

"Diplomacy is war by other means. While you may not be able to use your expertise to surround and rout them, you can still leverage weakness to your advantage. With your ability to maintain composure, you'll do better than you think."

19:48, Today: Lena Sellenski rolled 21 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 14.  Warfare Lore vs. Maegar.

Wilkezag tries to remember what he learned about centaurs and their approach to the law, hoping to be able to provide help for Lord Maegar in his mission.  When he overhears Lena's suggestion, he recklessly taps his horse with his heels to speed up and join them.  (He's a little surprised that it works!)

"Lord Maegar, if I could be so bold, Lena is correct about Diplomacy being akin to warfare.  Not only does it take courage and composure, but you also need to understand your weapons and those of your opponent.  The centaurs approach a legal contract differently from the way we do.  They view personal honor as being more important than legal precedent or any sort of jurisprudence.  You can use this as a weapon, as well.

"If they disagree with a point that is important to you, and you can credibly make it a point of honor rather than a point of law, then you are more likely to succeed.  They will be willing to accept that what you consider to be a point of honor is different from what they would consider to be one, and they will respect it.

"My father once drew on this when he refused to concede a point because it would interfere with an existing contract he had with a different client.  He said it would besmirch his own honor to go against the other contract.  In reality, the point was a minor one which he easily could have renegotiated with the other client, but he knew they would respect him for holding to his own code of honor, and they let him have the point.

"You can not, however, go to this well too often, or they will see it as a ploy and it will backfire."

I don't know if this makes more sense as its own attempt, or as an 'aid another' for Lena's attempt.

18:12, Today: Wilkezag rolled 17 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 11.  Lore (Legal) re centaurs.

This message was last edited by the player at 00:32, Tue 13 Dec 2022.

Can I find a way to give you one extra +1 bonus? I really can't. Pursuing a Lead clearly isn't meant to apply to Making an Impression (although it clearly would for Observation), except maybe with the Interrogation methodology; and I can't think of anything else I could give you. Sorry! This is quite low-stakes anyway; Lord Maegar's influence gift is for your nation, not you.

But Wilkezag managed to come up with something! I don't know how Dubh and Booker are going to come up with a 4th Influence point, but with Wil's Aid, this is enough for your 3rd. Lord Maegar is 8th level, and he's written that way even for his social encounter, which is why his DCs are all so high!

Lord Maegar shakes his head. "It's a good thought, but I'm not worried about surrounding the Nomen or even conquering them at all; quite the reverse, really! Chasing centaurs around the steppe; I can't imagine a more pointless endeavor. They'd just swoop in behind you and make off with your whole town before you figure out what happened. My main plan is to convince them that Varnhold is too tough a nut to crack, just long enough that they see the benefits of peaceful trade instead. The trick is making sure Varnhold really is that tough. The Nomen are unstoppable in the open field, and my job is to make sure that doesn't become relevant.

"But you're right that they're very concerned with honor and their touchy pride. Even the least of them might as well be a stuffy Issian noble, that way! They've lived in those lands for millennia, since before the Founding, even. Hopefully, taking time to respect their ways and avoid their ancestral lands will calm them. I know we've already cleared our planned site for the Hold itself with their chieftains, but I'll have to make sure the hunters and farmers among my Varnlings stay inside the lines. Thank you for the reminder."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:30, Tue 13 Dec 2022.

Dubh had made sure that Wilkezag got a docile gelding rather than a mare that could go into heat around Maegar's stallion. When he Wilk started tentatively speaking to the horse as a she, he started to correct him and then figured it wasn't worth it. Besides, it made Dubh smile behind his mask.
While Dubh wasn't an expert horseman, the areas he frequented were not the greatest for the larger animals, he was no stranger to them either. He was competent enough to give the basic commands and his link with animals was clearly seen in his interactions with the large beasts. While the others probably assumed that it was some sort of mystical bond to the natural world, they were partly right, he had used the Tame cantrip on all of the beasts when he sought them out for the group. What the others didn't know is that he had also dropped a bit of coin on a couple sacks of apples and sugar lumps that he knew the horses would be eager to have doled out to them for good behavior.

Along the way he has ridden ahead and then checked behind them. He would leave the diplomacy to the others in his party. In his mind he will probably make a better impression on the Lord by being proactive about their security than anything he could say anyway.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:49, Tue 13 Dec 2022.

Feeling she had little to offer in a conversation about formal warfare, Sophia kept mostly silent and too herself on the ride.

She was getting the hang of this horse riding thing. She wasn't about to try jousting or riding it into combat. And she was pretty sure the horse wouldn't like that any more than she would. But she was getting a feel for the swaying back and forth, even though she was sure her backside was going to be sore at the end of their first day.

GM: I don't know what happened to Booker but he has an obvious play here, so I'm going to go ahead and make it for him.

As the augmented party rides along, Booker finds himself next to Lord Maegar for a time. "Do you have any other plans once Varnhold is established, my lord? I see you carry the Aldori blade, as our illustrious benefactor and I do. I am personally drawn to a more defensive style than Lord Sirian developed, but the blade itself served my father well and I hope to add to its honors. And it seems to serve me just as well beside my tome and within my magic as it does the duelists in the ring. Would you have any advice for me?"

17:17, Today: GM, on behalf of Booker Magestos, rolled 23 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 17.  Warfare Lore vs. Maegar. Hey, you got it!

Lord Maegar grins and absently checks his sword's draw; you've noticed this is a habit for him. "Oh yes. I'll be opening an Aldori school once we get established properly, as well as training for infantry styles like yours. Even if it's only my own people at first, no settlement has ever perished for having too many people who can wield a blade at need. But I plan to build an academy that draws students from across the world. Advice for you, lad? Remember that your honor still rests on your sword's point. Never drag it in the mud. Never wield it in a way that would damage your sword or your honor. Guard your honor as your blade guards you. Sirian created the blade for more than mere hacking and slashing in the dirt: it is an art, a performance, a way of life. Even if you stick with your soldier's style and never take up the duelist's true path, your sword is still half of your legend, and you would do well not to forget that. I'll be watching all of you. When you're ready, I'll give that legend a little boost."

Lord Maegar has no gift to give you for now, but he will remember this.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:40, Wed 14 Dec 2022.

Nivakta's Crossing is a small village, with only a few hundred inhabitants, if that. Its main purpose is to be a day's ride away from Restov, and to guard the bridge over the Shrike River leading south into the Nomen highlands. Given these facts, it boasts a much larger and nicer inn than you would expect in such a small town. Lord Maegar covers lodgings for you as well as his own people, collects a huge bundle of dispatches from the innkeeper (sent from his settlers somewhere on the south road over the last week), and immediately sequesters himself upstairs to go through them.

You take your ease in the common room. Most of the chatter you overhear is about the huge Varnling host that marched through the village last week on their way south. It seems this was the most excitement anyone can remember, at least since the last time the settlement was attacked by goblins some years ago.

You may roll Diplomacy to Gather Information if you wish. No one here is likely to lie to you deliberately, especially since you walked in with Lord Maegar, but not all rumors you hear are true. We'll continue this scene tomorrow with you leaving town to the west, whether or not you learn anything.

Wilkezag is eager to try out his new lyre.  (If there is already a performer at the inn, he will wait until that performer is ready for a break, and then ask permission to 'keep the crowd warm.')  The bard explains to the crowd the boon that was granted the group by Milani when the group of heroes did their part in defending Lady Aldori.  He then launches straight into The Everbloom, his hymn to the goddess.  As his first public performance of the song, it wasn't terrible, but he immediately realizes some points at which it can be improved.

While Will is performing, he keeps an eye on the crowd, looking for the center of information, the person who frequently has brief visitors bringing them news and paying respects.  In this inn, he sees, it is a woman; she looks young, but he notices the slight point to the ears that indicates a bit of elven blood.  She could be any age, centuries, even.  He sings a few more songs, then takes a break for a drink.

After learning her name from the bartender, Wilkezag approaches the half-elven woman.  "Greetings, Madam Lavallis.  Might I have a moment?"  At her gesture, he takes the chair opposite.  After pleasantries, he dives right in, "We have been chartered by the swordlords of Restov and by Jamandi Lady Aldori to help tame Restov's Hinterlands and the Greenbelt.  We are specifically sent to an area west and south of Oleg's Trading Post, as far as the Shrike and Skunk Rivers.  We are headed to Oleg's first, but after that we know very little of what is ahead of us.  I would consider it a great personal favor if you could share any information that you think might prepare us."

22:24, Today: Wilkezag rolled 17 using 1d20+8 with rolls of 9.  Performance.
22:24, Today: Wilkezag rolled 22 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 15.  Diplomacy.

Of course, feel free to edit the details if I've overstepped.

This message was last edited by the player at 05:12, Thu 15 Dec 2022.

Kyonin is only a few hundred miles south of here, so there are plenty of half-elves and humans with a few drops of elven ancestry in the area. Heck, Lady Aldori is a half-elf!

Lavallis smiles cheerily at you and tips her flagon. "Ooh, such a polite young man! Miss Mabel in the church says youth have no manners these days, but she's such a bitter old crone, of course people are rude to her! It's about time those nose-in-the-air nobles in Restov started paying attention out here. The Lady Aldori, she's a sensible Rostlander, not surprised that she understands. And that huge bunch of Varn people last week was really something! Paraded through the town, they did, all steel armor and swords and axes. So lovely!" She sighs in remembered appreciation, then leans in closer to you, blushing slightly. "Well, my Charlie heard from his brother that there's gremlins and kobolds and all sorts of monsters out in the hills. Michal's a hunter, see; he hasn't seen them himself, but he usually goes north. Some of the others that like to go west towards the forest have seen the little rascals. No one's done that for a while though, with the bandits getting so uppity. If you're here to tame the Kamelands, you could start by getting rid of those monsters! Nasty little things. Almost as bad as the bandits! At least kobolds don't kill people usually, just steal our sheep. Gremlins, though, yuck. Nana always put out a bowl of milk for the little folk, but... that's for pixies. I don't think gremlins care about milk quite so much. At least they never come too close to town, anyway."
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:14, Thu 15 Dec 2022.

Lena had never been a "people person." Luckily for her, there was more than one way to take the measure of a settlement without just asking for it. Small villages like this one were often distrustful of anyone who they didn't see every day, but for those who knew where to look and how to listen, they would share all sorts of information with each other heedless of the traveler standing some distance away.

Gathering Information with Society, as per Streetwise
04:27, Today: Lena Sellenski rolled 25 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 18.  Gather Info.

I thought I'd remembered someone had Streetwise!

You seem to fade away into the shadows of the common room, but your attention never falters. Although most of what you hear is just more burbling about the Varnlings' passage, an old fisherman tells a spine-chilling tale. "A bridge old Davik once had made, down south on the Shrike below the cascade. He charged the toll for shepherd or knave, but the bandits said they wouldn't pay. They burned his house and killed his hounds, they cut the bridge and left Davik to drown. But no thief could build the bridge once more: for in the dark of night, old Davik crawls back on the shore. From the bandits that him they slew, old Davik now demands his due. Of old Davik's bridge, just one rope yet stands. But the toll is no coin struck by mortal hands. Heed my tale and listen well, or Davik's spear shall be your knell." As the fisherman finishes his story, the shadows that have gathered around him fall back, and the torches seem to light him properly once more.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:03, Thu 15 Dec 2022.

Sophia sat back, drank and watched Wilkezag work the crowd, impressed. She wasn't much at working the crowd like he was, but inevitably sooner or later a drunk worked up the courage to come over and talk to her. She indulged him for a while, asking questions, but it was really quite hard to figure out much of what he was saying. Even harder to get rid of him when she realized he was kind of useless.


13:08, Today: Sophia Akhova rolled 6 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 4.  diplomacy (untrained).

Apparently this guy can talk endlessly and indefatigably about the problems of herding sheep. You had no idea it was so complicated!

In the morning you awaken, refreshed and ready to face the Stolen Lands. The landscape wobbles up and down in this region like a child's bathtub: you can rarely see more than half a mile ahead of you, except at the crest of each hill. As you ride west, you see gradually less traffic on the road, until in the late afternoon, you realize that you haven't seen so much as a farm cart for hours. If Oleg's trading post really is another two days' ride away, it's no wonder he's struggling, unless the other end of the road leading north into Brevoy is a lot busier than this.

You reach Fort Serenko just as the sun is setting. Although you've been looking forward to requisitioning a hot meal and a comfortable bed from the garrison, neither meal nor bed nor even garrison are to be found. The fort stands empty and silent. As you ride up, you expect to be challenged by a sentry as soon as you're clearly visible, but there's nothing: no pennants, no animal noises, not even a Brevic flag. Both the main gate and the wicket are closed, but not obviously broken; if you go around the back, the postern seems intact from a distance as well. You call out to the garrison: "Hello the fort! Anyone home?" But only wind answers you.

Roll Society, Brevoy Lore, or Warfare Lore to remember something you noticed in Restov last week.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:46, Fri 16 Dec 2022.

"Well, this can't be safe," she mutters as she dismounts her horse, happy to be off the beast, but not thrilled about the circumstances.

"Perfect spot for a bandit ambush, if the forces of Brevoy have abandoned the fort. Probably safer to check it out on our terms than to ride past and wait for them to ambush us."

She had her pick out and moves to the front of the group waiting for all to be ready before moving into the fort to explore.

"If we're lucky it's actually deserted and we can find a roof for the night. Even if there might not be beds and meals."

How did we discover that it is empty?  Is the gate open, closed, or torn off?  If the gate is closed, we would have hailed the guard and then waited a while, perhaps calling a few times, before deciding no answer is coming.  If it is open, we would have wandered in before realizing that there's no one guarding, or around at all.  If the gate is broken, we'd be wary from a good way off.

GM edit: Good point, didn't think of that. I've updated the description: it's apparently closed and in good repair, but no one answers your hails.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:36, Fri 16 Dec 2022.