DM Name: Scathien (GalenDM)
Participants:
Seren Arc, 3, Sorcerer, Human (Dragon-Blooded)
Rhine Camerlango, 6th Level Human Crusader
Voss, 4, Beguiler, Duergar
Neysa Conri, level 5 sheepfolk druid
Challenges:
1 Half-Orc Lieutennant (CR 5)
2 Elite Guardsmen (CR 3 Each)
1 Elite Door Guardsman (CR3)
Experience:
Rhine: 1050 (750+200 for taking on the fully empowered orc and both of his guards by himself + 100 for fully donating his share as well as his own personal gold to ensure the safety of both families of the hostage/guards)
Neysa: 938
Voss: 1000
Seren Arc: 1125
Treasure:
Rhine: -832 gp
Neysa: 1,168 gp
Voss: 1,168 gp
Seren Arc: 1,168 gp
Quest Summary:
Seren and Voss receive a letter from the same old man who asked them for their help on a prior quest (A Supply Line Broken!) asking them to travel to a town roughly a day's journey from Avalon to stop one of Daylan's Lieutenants who has set up a tax collection center in the area to provide additional funds for his operations in the region. Seren and Voss, along with Rhine and Neysa arrive in the town and find rooms at the local inn already paid for.
Gathering at the bar, the four discuss strategy for all of a minute before Rhine decided that people needed saving and out he went to confront it, quickly followed by Neysa. Upon arrival Rhine immediately started a fight with the half orc lieutenant and both of his guards. Neysa, Seren, and Voss on the other hand decided to use the commotion to sneak into a back door entrance covered by only a single guard.
The guard at the back door was taken out while Rhine kept the attention of the lieutenant and his guards, and thanks to a single carefully applied spell to Rhine by Seren, the moment the three infiltrators entered the warehouse Rhine was able to kill the half-orc, allowing the two "hostages" inside to recover almost instantly.
The remaining guards scattered, and it was learned that the men inside worked for Daylan himself. It turns out that as punishement for the events of (The Sum of All Men) these two men (who were guards at the castle) were punished by being forced to "donate" to the half orc and go collect taxes from the village. If they did not return with 100 platinum each, their families (which lived inside the castle as payment for the "donation") would be killed, along with the two of them, as they were to rise up and fight should the half-orc be slain (which they failed to do, already surrounded by the adventurers as they recovered).
Once they received their share of the money from the village mayor by returning the taxes stored in the warehouse, Rhine chose to sacrifice not only his share of the payment, but money from his own personal store to ensure the safety of both families, allowing the remaining party members to keep their full share. As the guards escaped the town, taking their bribe money with them, they promised to try and find some way to repay this generous gift, but warned that should they cross Daylan, they will die in the process.
It also seems that after the guards left, Neysa had harsh words with the town mayor, denying him access to the forest for food and goods in response to how they treated the plight of the two hostage's families. While the mayor was unimpressed with the threat or the discussion with Rhine and Neysa, the townspeople that overheard the little exchange started planting more things either near, or just within Neysa's domain, hoping to sate the druid's anger before a time came where they would truly need the resources the forest had to offer.
Sadly, little knowledge was gained as to how Daylan was performing this strange magic, but what is now known is that the death of someone empowered by it returns the power to anyone who donated to that person.
