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C3 Episode 24 Bright Moons Rising Chapter Three
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The party arrives in Ashdown Hollow and begins their investigation.
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Eberron Renewed'
00:00:02
Speaker
um correctly with the coach boy twenty radio at your gamers role radio Hello, and welcome to Eberron Renewed, an actual play podcast set in the Eberron campaign setting. I am your Game Master, Eric.
00:00:28
Speaker
I'm Mia. I'm Philip. I'm Madison. I'm Jeff. And welcome to another episode.
Mission Brief: Animal Attacks in Ashdown Hollow
00:00:33
Speaker
What happened last time, everyone? Come on. i You guys got to knock this of the park. I just reviewed the whole last session with you.
00:00:40
Speaker
So we're on our way to Ashdown Hollow, where some local tanners have been beset upon by extra wild animals in the woods. We saw some wolves on patrol. They seemed strange.
00:00:52
Speaker
It's true. So yeah, you all are approaching Ashdown Hollow via the road. As I described last time, some small, modest buildings. This is a much smaller village than Kearnsville. And there is no wall erected or barricade or anything. They're just a very simple town.
00:01:08
Speaker
And... ah You all see a tent that has recently erected near the back of the town, and you do see lantern light coming out of the flaps of that tent. You see lantern lights coming out of most of the buildings as well.
00:01:21
Speaker
I think we said that it was maybe like you all were trying to get there before dark, and I think it was like evening-ish time that you all were finally arriving at the town. So that's what you see. You were told David Kelleth is the head of the Woodwrights Guild, and he's kind of the biggest mover and shaker in the town. The Woodwrights Guild holds a lot of power, but you also have Cyrus Softstep, who is involved with the Tanners Collective. And then you were told of Silversap Tavern and a elf druid named Alondra that tends a garden called the Whispering Vale on the outskirts of town, where the contacts that Javier was able to give you.
00:01:56
Speaker
ah that he got from the Kyran government who hired you for this job. What's the name of the woman at the Whispering Veil? Sorry. Alondra Velos. Great. Well, what are we going to do? You tell me. Yeah, no, I was talking to them. Yeah, was asking them. He's just the kid after all. Oh, you don't get to use that now. but I feel like the best place to start is the guild.
00:02:16
Speaker
Try
Strategizing: Splitting the Party for Information Gathering
00:02:17
Speaker
to just get some base level information from a guild perspective as an upcoming guild. Great question mark. but We didn't really talk about that.
00:02:28
Speaker
We left before we even had at the inkling of that discussion. So I think Valk would want to go to... What's his name? Davin?
00:02:39
Speaker
Davin. Davin. had his name wrong twice. Valk is going to go to the guild. Do we want to split up two and two and two of us can go talk to the Tanner's Collective and two of us can go talk to the guild?
00:02:50
Speaker
That's fine, yeah. Works for me. Gaz will go to the Tanner's collective because he has a history in in fabrics and materials. His dad is weaver.
00:03:00
Speaker
Okay. Sorry. Valk and who else are going to the Woodwright Guild? Who's actually been being attacked by creatures in the wood? So there are loggers and hunters to venture out into the wood. Obviously the loggers serve the wood rights more.
00:03:14
Speaker
The hunters serve the tanners more, but the hunters also serve like the general town more as well. So yeah, I guess I'll go see the head of the wood right skill. Okay. So Val can Nick's headed to the wood right skilled Kaz and Selena headed to Tanner's collective.
00:03:31
Speaker
Was that right? Sounds good. As
Encounter at the Woodwrights Guild: Wildlife Aggression
00:03:35
Speaker
you all enter the town and walk down the main road slash town square, you all can see into the tent.
00:03:43
Speaker
You see that there is a largest table ah with a map splayed on it. And you see a older man with graying black hair and a graying black beard sitting at the table examining the map.
00:03:56
Speaker
But you don't see anyone else in there. And it is neither the Woodwright's Guild nor the Tanner's Collective Association. So Valk and Nix, you spot a crest that you all can tell pretty easily.
00:04:11
Speaker
It's got like a log with an ax and it yeah. So you walk into this building. It's the largest building in town ah and the most well-constructed. And as you walk in, you see numerous um artisans working in a large workshop on various projects.
00:04:29
Speaker
The overwhelming majority of them you can see initially are bows, arrows, shafts, weapon halves. Instruments of war seem to be the primary elements number of projects that are being worked on.
00:04:42
Speaker
You see a man of modest build. He's like few inches shy of six foot, pretty round belly, auburn hair, clean shaven.
00:04:55
Speaker
See you all enter. And he kind of cocks his head and walks over and um says, hi, what can I do you for? we were sent for regarding the trouble in the woods.
00:05:07
Speaker
Oh, excellent. Good to know that somebody ah is looking out there. My name is Davin and he like wipes his hand and extends it to offer to shake. Nix's hand since Nix was the one that spoke. Nix shakes his hand.
00:05:19
Speaker
Then he offers his hand to Valc. He's just going to stand there. Okay. Yeah. Well, that's, that's great to hear. because We were desperate. Need us to help. We, uh, We're making a lot of good progress and now the materials that we need have started to dry up with the loggers.
00:05:34
Speaker
Some of them coming back hurt and whatnot and other ones not wanting to go out in the woods anymore. So how can I... How can help? Well, any information you can give us about the attacks would be yeah be good. you know it it's People out there report wolves, bears, things you would typically expect to be out there, but they're far more aggressive.
00:05:55
Speaker
and they are We've been doing this long enough to where we kind of knew where their hunting grounds were and their territories were in the woods. And so we avoided those best we could and would would go to collect wood away from them.
00:06:09
Speaker
but But they seem to have spread out more into the woods. it's It's harder to avoid them. And yeah, that's kind of the the crux the problem is as soon as one of these creatures sees one of our loggers or one of the hunters, they they just go straight into attack mode.
00:06:24
Speaker
Generally speaking, at least in experience that I've heard from them, ah if you don't antagonize these creatures, you don't got much to worry about unless they're hungry. But that's that's kind of what I know.
00:06:35
Speaker
i I mean, i know that I'm just pretty simple woodworker, but I know that just I'm just a so simple southern woodworker. I know that there's magic out there that can cause animals to get more aggressive and raise their iron and whatnot.
00:06:51
Speaker
So, you know, maybe there's some druid or other nature lover that's around the animals up and trying to keep us out of the woods. That seems oddly pointed.
00:07:02
Speaker
Well, I mean, it's just we've been, this town has been here for centuries at this point doing this, and all of a sudden we've got a problem in our hands that doesn't really have much of an explanation, so.
00:07:13
Speaker
Is this before or after ah druid or any magical person, particularly a druid, as you mentioned, has appeared in town?
00:07:25
Speaker
Oh, Alondra, she's been here for a while. now she She's from the town. i don't know why she she wasn't happy about the increased production and harvesting more wood and leathers from the woods, but she doesn't seem like the type to want to get people hurt.
00:07:40
Speaker
but anyone in town related Anyone in town missing recently No, everybody, everybody's come back. Nobody. We, we have people that, you know, we're not on a main road, but we are a, a place to stop and grab a bed for the night. So we've had a couple of people just come through town, but nobody that's been a main fixture of here. That's gone missing.
00:08:00
Speaker
Any survivors of the attacks? ah Thankfully, we we don't have any reports of deaths yet. all the All the attacks, people been able to get away with life. What about bites? Yeah, they've been bitten, tore up.
00:08:12
Speaker
Some of them won't be able to work again, but they they walked out of there with their life at the very least. I'd like to speak to someone in that condition. Yeah, there's, i mean, we turned one of the houses into a matriarch infirmary with the situation going on. So
Insights from the Tanners Collective
00:08:29
Speaker
we don't really have a healer.
00:08:31
Speaker
So it's not not great. Alondra has helped as best she could. But yeah, there is one person, Marcus Leaf. He's a Goliath logger that has been in the town for decades.
00:08:44
Speaker
couple of years now, but he's kind of made it his mission to deal with the problem. So he hasn't gotten missing. We know where he's camped up out in the woods, but he's kind of determined to take care of the problem on his own. I think that's kind of a foolish idea, but whatever helps. So if you got a map or something, I can give you rough directions to his camp, kind of the area he's in.
00:09:09
Speaker
Do we have a map? Yeah, I mean, you you all have a rough map of the area. That would have been provided by Javier as you all navigated to the town. I will hand over a magical map that you need to know.
00:09:20
Speaker
Devin takes it and, or Devin takes it and marks ah an area. It's nowhere near the center of the woods. It's probably, you would guess, like, take you about an hour to get to trekking into the the woods, but...
00:09:33
Speaker
Yeah. The only other thing is there's a ah woman that lives out in the woods. Her name is Angelina. She's not one of us. She's not a member of the town, but we know about her. Maybe she's finally cracked. I don't know. She might be a person of interest to go check out.
00:09:49
Speaker
Secluded lady living in the woods. Got a lot of prejudices. Boy, small provincial town, man. All right. We're going to cut to real quick. The Tanner's Collective. What was the Goliath's name?
00:10:01
Speaker
Marcus Leif. Marcus. L-I-E-S. Yeah. Slayda and Kaz, you all walk down a small path and then find a collection of small buildings kind of facing each other around a central courtyard where there are a handful of leather workers sitting at stations working on leather armor,
00:10:23
Speaker
and quivers, other like obviously things for ah the army. Near the back, there's actually a large kind of outdoor fireplace.
00:10:34
Speaker
You get the sense based on the configuration stuff, this might have been a building at one time that got destroyed or burned down. And so the stone fireplace and chimney was left behind. And they just kept it and continued to use it despite it not having a ah structure around it.
00:10:50
Speaker
And over the fireplace, you see a large wolfskin cloak displayed prominently. Like, large as in would have been worn by a considerably large person or just, like...
00:11:04
Speaker
No, just like it's not. It's like a full length cloak. It's not like a hat cloak or anything. And in fact, where you can see where the hood would be for this cloak, the wolf's head sits atop it. And it's it's displayed intentionally as kind of a centerpiece of the area. As you all approach, a halfling woman with blonde hair ah looks up and sees you all. And she walks over and says,
00:11:28
Speaker
Well, there. My name's Syrah. We don't get new faces around here often. Who are you? Hi, I'm Selina. Say hi, Selina. My name's Kazimir. Hi, Kazimir. And we were sent here to try to help you figure out what's happening to your hunters when they're in the woods.
00:11:45
Speaker
Oh, okay. Yeah. the Great. don we Do we talk here? or has Kaz expects that to be the sort of line that makes her like look around then grab him by the cuff and lead him off somewhere isolated to talk.
00:11:57
Speaker
but She like looks at Kaz like, yeah, we can we can talk here. i mean Technically speaking, the head of the effort to like take care of this situation is in the tent. so His name's Harland.
00:12:09
Speaker
He's been appointed by the town to like take care of the problem. But I'm more than happy to give you you information of what I know and and help. Yeah, we we got an animal problem. and That's they're attacking our our folks.
00:12:21
Speaker
So what questions did you have? And that's where this is where Kaz bows out because he doesn't have questions. He doesn't know what to I mean. Sorry. I got to look like Kaz doesn't bow out here. So no, I think he just says, you know, he first wants to know if they've lost people or if they've just been a attacks. Like, thankfully, everyone is with Nix, but.
00:12:40
Speaker
Everyone survived the attacks. Thankfully, i would say the attacks have probably gotten a little bit worse recently. Like it it initially started that the hunters just talked about like getting chased out of the woods and then, you know, scratches and and the last couple have been, I wouldn't say maulings, but.
00:12:58
Speaker
Some might say maulings. So, but they survived at least. And something that you both would note just first blush. Javier obviously told you all that they have become a significant part of the war effort.
00:13:12
Speaker
Hence why the Kyron government wants this problem dealt with. There are very few leather workers here. Like... Like, Nix and Valk, your estimation, like, when you walked in, there was probably an appropriate number of woodworkers to, like, be dealing with, like, producing what we're talking about.
00:13:26
Speaker
Kaz and Slayna, we're talking, like, you you see six people working on armor, and they're not doing it in a an urgent fashion. Like, they they are just being meticulous and taking time.
00:13:38
Speaker
Does the production qua quantity look like it more than that? Or is it, like, you so like are there six people with a huge pile of quivers back here that they've been knocking? out No, it looks like they are they are producing what you kind of expect this group.
00:13:51
Speaker
the The quality seems really good, but they they are working intentionally and methodically, and but slowly, ultimately. I think Kaz might ask where the where this stuff goes next. like If they're not making it fast, they're not making a lot of it, but they're extremely important part of the war effort...
00:14:08
Speaker
and this The next place this goes to some enchanter or something. yeah the Just to make sure I'm clear, Jeff, it is that the is that the verbiage that you use?
00:14:19
Speaker
I don't know. I think I just asked... I'm not setting a trap. I'm just trying to gauge how she reacts. like No, I think I just asked, like, so... We were told that you guys have become a pretty important part of of supporting the troops.
00:14:34
Speaker
And so I was just wondering, like, all this armor that you're making, all these quivers, like, where do they go next? the The phrase supporting the troops, you can tell, like, Cyra kind of, like, fidgets slightly. I would take a check to kind of get a bit greater sense of her emotional state. But, yeah, I'll tell you what she says first before we make a check on it.
00:14:51
Speaker
yes No, I mean, we we send it off to the army. I mean, somebody comes every couple weeks to collect what we made and take it with them.
00:15:03
Speaker
So, yeah. What check am I making? This would be a wisdom-based check. You're trying to notice something about her... emotional state or if she's holding anything back from what she's saying. So, paying any backgrounds that you think might be relevant. i don't I don't know that anything would be... I mean, I have one point in that precocious kind of wisdom thing, but I don't know if that would be... I'm just going to make a wisdom check flat with my plus. Okay. Selina, you can also make this check if you want, since you're observing.
00:15:35
Speaker
I wrote a natural two, so and don't see anything. Nice. That's a 19th.
00:15:42
Speaker
19. Okay. So, Selena, with your natural 19, or not natural 19, your 19, you, you can tell that the notion of supporting the troops and supporting the war effort, for some reason, stings when it's brought up to Syrah.
00:16:03
Speaker
Additionally, Kaz kind of, like, Even if he's not vocalizing it, making note of their low production also kind of is a sore spot for Saira.
00:16:16
Speaker
So those are the two things that you ping with your check. that She says, yeah, so we send out leather armor, quivers, other requested items from the army to To help. So the two things Kaz wants to know.
00:16:29
Speaker
i hate. I don't want to do it this way, but I don't want to rehash all of the same questions. Does she have a different perspective on some of the stuff that we need to ask about than what Nixon found out from the Woodwright? Like there are some things. Yeah, she has a very different perspective on everything going on. Okay. Okay.
00:16:45
Speaker
di I think Selena would ask if if she had noticed anything that had changed recently before the attacks, any new people, just anything different before the increased attacks.
00:16:57
Speaker
I mean, the only thing that's changed around here is the the volume, at least the the request for it. We're taking a lot more from the woods, take a lot more from nature,
00:17:11
Speaker
And I, that might have an impact. I, and she kind of, she explicitly says, I, I think that maybe there is some kind of balance Balinor's eyes when it comes to the relationship between civilization and nature. And maybe once we become too ambitious, nature will naturally rise up to Stymie our efforts.
00:17:34
Speaker
Well, and that kind of leads to a question Kaz was wondering. so forgive me if if I'm wrong on both counts. Is it that there are more creatures in the woods or are the creatures in the woods acting more uncharacteristically aggressive towards people going out to do things?
00:17:51
Speaker
I know what a wolf is going to attack anybody who shoots an arrow at it if it survives the arrow shot, right? But, I mean, are they are they instigating more, or others is the number larger? Like, they're maybe getting forced into this area from too much, like you said, taking them forest.
00:18:05
Speaker
are Our hunters go through a pretty rigorous, like, apprenticeship before they're allowed to go out into the woods just due to it being, you know, a dangerous profession. And us being a small town, we don't want to lose people and unnecessarily.
00:18:17
Speaker
And so anybody that is a hunter here knows their stuff when it comes to animals. And they've said that they're getting ambushed. Like the animals are coming out of nowhere.
00:18:27
Speaker
And these people know how to track. They know how to spot signs of wildlife nearby. It's never been in problem before getting ambushed by by wolves or bears, certainly. But they're saying that the attacks come out of nowhere.
00:18:41
Speaker
Is there anything physically different about the animals or just behaviorally? mean, these guys have seen them, so I'm sure they've seen all sorts of animals up close. so Nothing they've said. The the only thing, and once again, i have talked to some of them fairly recently after they've come back, and couple of them...
00:18:59
Speaker
have mentioned seeing some kind of humanoid beast stalking them in the woods shortly before being attacked. These people were in a lot of pain. They had lost blood. So take it with a grain of salt.
00:19:11
Speaker
But that's the only notable thing that I've heard any of the survivors say. The animals seem to be pretty standard wildlife for these parts. And nothing.
00:19:23
Speaker
Some of the hunters have been able to kill animals that have been trying to attack them, but the numbers game is not on their side. I don't know if there are more animals than there were. We don't have a pretty extensive log of of the population. we don't really have a good sense of that. We knew where to avoid and that's changed now.
00:19:39
Speaker
So, yeah. Is there anyone who has reported that that we'd be able to speak to? Yeah, I mean, there there are survivors that you can find at the tavern, or there's a small house that's been set up as an infirmary for the injured that some of them are still recovering.
00:19:54
Speaker
But if you're if you're looking for survivors that are probably in a better headspace than the tavern, none of them are going to be in a great headspace because a lot of them... aren't going to be able to provide for the town anymore. This is a very labor based town. Like everyone here kind of is a part of one of these groups, loggers, hunters, tanners, woodwrights.
00:20:16
Speaker
ah We have very few people that are just having a good time. So for these people to be injured and not be able to do their work anymore, it's it's hitting them hard. Selina, one other thing that you noticed from your wisdom check that you made as she's talking and kind of gesticulating in front of you, you note that on the ring finger of her left hand, you see a line where a wedding band was, but has been taken off.
00:20:44
Speaker
Okay. Kaz definitely asks the name of the person in the tent spearheading the effort. Harland Velmar. Harland. That's right. Thank you. Yeah. he Kaz wants to be involved, but knows that if he's going to talk to that guy, he should probably do it with somebody who looks a little bit more like they can fight a wolf.
00:21:00
Speaker
So he's going to Nyx to be with him. Or that. you Here. This is the next next next one down. The only other person that might be of help is Angelina. She lives in the Ashwood, or Ashdown Woods. She's nice.
00:21:16
Speaker
She's helpful. She's helpful. She just kind of likes being left alone. And I'm kind of worried with the increased attacks, how safe she is. She's a little bit older. So but she might have a unique perspective given fact that she lives in the woods. So if you have a map or something, I can show you the general area where her hut is out there.
00:21:37
Speaker
But yeah. Yeah, that would be great. And Selina will hand over her map. Nick says the map. Should we not each have a map? I don't know. ah You all can have two copies of the map in case you want to. She marks. It'd probably take you like two hours navigating the woods to get to the area where this hut is.
00:21:54
Speaker
So, yeah. But, yeah. Any other questions for Syrah? I don't think so. i Yeah, because Kaz, he points up to the giant cloak and he says, whose was that? ah She looks over and shows like, oh, that's that's a reminder of our our past. A former member, we don't really have ah name anymore, but a former member of the collector Collective had a wolf companion from their time as an adventurer. They kind of retired here.
00:22:18
Speaker
to settle down and the wolf settled down with them lived a long full life and eventually passed and the adventurer wanted the wolf to continue to protect her so she made a cloak so that she could keep the companion with her also weird yeah so weird i think this now kaz kaz looks at syra looks at the clothes place let's take it like walking it away with Silly. It's like, it it takes all kinds, man.
00:22:51
Speaker
Some people do the whole taxidermy thing. I guess well it's... yeah This is stranger than that. Yeah, no, for sure. yeah I kept my dog's collar. them yeah yeah Yeah, no, I don't think I have anything more for Saira right now. i do I do let her know that we'll probably be coming back as a group to talk to Harland eventually.
00:23:09
Speaker
Oh, well, I mean, yeah. you can that He's in the tent over there. so and She gestures back towards the large tent at the back of the town. Is it weird that they're doing this in open air? like i assume, I mean, that the chemical and the noxious parts of tanning probably make sense that they would be doing it in an open-sided building anyway, so it's not too weird, right? that Yeah.
00:23:29
Speaker
Like, kind of would know a little bit about that. Yeah, nothing too particularly strange. Nyx and Valk, anything else that you want to talk to Devin about? Nyx wants to find the infirmary.
00:23:41
Speaker
Okay. So you all walk not too long of a distance but to a small infirmary. You see some cots set up. There are currently... Two people are actually three people laying on them, recovering. There's no one there attending to them, but it seems they don't seem to be in dire condition. So that's what you see.
00:23:59
Speaker
Nick's is looking for somebody with a severe looking bite. You see a human man laying on the cot closest to the door who has significant bandaging around his thigh.
00:24:13
Speaker
But the way the bandaging is laying Nix, you can tell that that there's a big portion of his thigh gone. Okay. about right. Has anybody come, like, towards us looking in charge? Like, we just sort of walked into their infirmary. I mean, Devin pointed you in that direction. Sure. Yeah, nobody nobody's really... Yeah.
00:24:32
Speaker
Okay. They're just bleeding out, kind of. What? Don't worry about it. Nyx walks towards the severely injured person with the bandaged leg.
Investigation at the Infirmary: Bear Attack
00:24:41
Speaker
The person kind of, like...
00:24:44
Speaker
Not in and of consciousness, but clearly, like, was asleep. And Nyx approaches, like, starts and looks up at you like and, like, am I dead? Not yet. Nyx sort of looks around.
00:24:55
Speaker
don't think so. Oh, small mercies. Who are you? I am cold Nyx. Garen. I'm going to have a look at your leg. Oh. Poundra already got it managed up for me. Great. Because I am not going to try to heal it.
00:25:08
Speaker
And Nyx crouches down and starts to unwind the bandage so that she can take a look at it. Still, still. That's probably a good sign, right? That's pain.
00:25:20
Speaker
Means you're alive? I don't know. are you Who are you? called Nyx. Why are you here? ah Because a big animal bit you. We're trying to help the attacks. What was it? It was a bear. ah Basically, i don't know, but I feel like it's... If you go into training for the to be a paladin of the Silver Flame, you probably get... ah There's probably a course on how to identify...
00:25:48
Speaker
a lycanthrope bite. Yeah. And so that Nyx would like to apply those lessons to this guy's. Totally. like To this guy's leg. Give me a check. Wisdom or intelligence I would take.
00:26:01
Speaker
Okay. Nyx has negative opinions. of lot of the things that she learned. She is terrified of lycanthropes. That stuck. Okay, so that's 13 plus intelligence for this relic or runaway plus level, right?
00:26:17
Speaker
So that's 18. 18. eighteen Nix, you are very confident that this is a mundane bear bite. ah None of the kind of telltale signs of a lot of lycanthropy has regenerative properties, and this wound seems to, in fact, be holding steady, which is the best that could be hoped for at this stage. So...
00:26:40
Speaker
How long since this happened? Three days. Nix does a quick thought process of how many moons are full right now. Well, it's a good news, bad news sort of situation. what so Which would you like first?
00:26:50
Speaker
I'll take the bad news first. There's a large part of your thigh missing, as Nix is wrapping the bandage back and Wow. What revelation. What's the good news? I don't think you're aware, Bear.
00:27:02
Speaker
Wonderful. haven't even considered that up to this point. yeah Really? That wasn't your... Alright. Never had lycanthropes around these parts. Apparently it's not normal that animals start attacking all of the loggers and tanners either, so... Whatever's happening in ing is not what you've usually had around these parts.
00:27:21
Speaker
Aye. Alright. but Any strange behavior in the bear, other than that it attacked you? I mean, once it had me... it It didn't kill me. That seemed weird. Notice that.
00:27:31
Speaker
Once it was pretty certain that my leg was mangled up, it took off. Yeah, that sounds right. All right. Thank you very much for your time. And I rest well.
00:27:44
Speaker
Thanks. Thanks. Turns and walks out of the infirmary. Val's just going to chime up to next to saying, you can't, you can't do that. which Which part? You can't go into an infirmary and then pick a guy and then undress his wound and then vaguely question him.
00:28:02
Speaker
Wrap him back up and then leave. you You have to, you can't do that. What step did I miss? yeah Introducing yourself before... He asked me who I am. Resulting. I told him who I was.
00:28:15
Speaker
As you were already undoing. i told... Step one, hello. My name is Nyx. I would like to love you at your bite. Didn't even shake. Neither of us told the woodworker our names.
00:28:30
Speaker
You didn't even shake his hand. I didn't have good vibes from him. But the man on the bed? that he was injured. And you just stayed in handage. was very concerned that if we're here for a couple of days, it's possible that everyone in that infirmary turned into lycanthrope and killed everyone else.
00:28:51
Speaker
I'm now very relieved that that doesn't seem like it's going to happen. You still can't just grab a man's leg. That's the part that's a little jarring. I think he's going to be a little upset about that for a while. And we might be banned from the infirmary.
00:29:03
Speaker
I don't need to go back to the infirmary. Okay, just next time, with let's reorder the steps. All right, fine. I don't know why I'm giving the how I'm the person saying it was awkward and uncomfortable. to It was urgent.
00:29:20
Speaker
I needed to know if the people in that infirmary were going to try and kill us. Understood. Quick hello first. Then undo the bandage. That's all I'm saying.
00:29:31
Speaker
Got it. I think. literally it's so Also, Mia, just because the last bad guy was a friendly dude with a southern accent doesn't mean all the bad guys are going to be friendly with southern accents. What? It doesn't mean they're not, though. It doesn't mean they're not, but don't take my fun away. shift This campaign is going to be, oops, all Ted Lassos.
00:29:48
Speaker
Kaz and Selena, you are leaving the Tanners Collective. Where are at a two? This is a tiny place, right? What are the odds that we see each other? I I feel like we would probably cross. We're certainly not going to talk to Jordan. What? ah Go back to the tent that we ignore. I think we want to come find you guys before we go to the tent, though. Yeah, we didn't ignore it. I very specifically said I would not feel comfortable talking to Harlan without Nix there. Yeah.
00:30:14
Speaker
i Yeah, it is a small place. We're certainly not going to Angelina by ourselves. No. Nor should you guys. So I think we try to catch up with them. And I mentioned Harlan's. I'm like, I kind of want to show a solidarity of force before we go talk to the person that's supposed to be in chart.
00:30:30
Speaker
Essentially, the person I believe we're taking over the job from is or, you we're kind of like, you know, those plays where they send in the Kingsguard to take over the local town watch and the local town watch gets all upset about it.
00:30:43
Speaker
Where is the Kingsguard? but He's the town argument and someone throws their sword on the desk. Yeah, like that. Storms out. Yeah. they They turn in their papers and their sword, right? Yeah, right. yeah You're broaching your sword now. yeah And so I want this to be one of those ones where it turns out that the King's Guard is good guys after all. And so I thought maybe we look as with it and together and all four of us as possible when we go talk to him.
00:31:11
Speaker
That's all. Well, Buck and I have definitely made an excellent impression so I can't imagine that's true. I... we One, I don't think we have a lycanthropic infection here. Great. It really is.
00:31:23
Speaker
move Yeah. yeah I can't tell you how great. But... I've heard there's been some really fine lycanthropes out there. I know. i know one. he That's pretty cool. Nyx goes...
00:31:34
Speaker
What? I don't know if this has been the impression from anyone else, but I have a theory about what's happening here, just based on the way everyone keeps talking.
00:31:47
Speaker
Shoot. Please share. None of the attacks are deadly. That seems strange. and i Sorry, i it wasn't my conversation where I learned that the attacks had very incrementally escalated over time, right? That was the other conversation. Yeah, was Syrah, yeah. None of the attacks are deadly.
00:32:05
Speaker
There's a man in there who is missing quite a large part of his thigh muscle, but isn't dead. Like, a bear picked him up, shook him around like a ragdoll,
00:32:16
Speaker
mangled his leg and then left the rest of him fine. Like he's not, there's no other injuries. The bear didn't even like bat him around with claws. It bit him hard on the leg.
00:32:28
Speaker
Probably he'll have a hard time walking for the rest of his life. Yeah. That's it. I think it did. Like that's, I was ramping up. Kaz is going to say, well, I'm afraid that that maybe that's next.
00:32:42
Speaker
So we were talking to Saira over any kind of gestures at the, where you can see people tanning leather because it's so true. yeah And I say, so they started out just kind of scaring everyone away. And then they did kind of nipping and then kind of small injuries.
00:32:56
Speaker
And now you say this man has a chunk of leg missing. We're definitely dealing with escalation here. And I fear that death is kind of the next step up from severe mangling.
00:33:08
Speaker
hobbling, winkling. But if aling if it was some sort of force of nature or some new foe that had moved into the woods and was trying to claim it, wouldn't the quickest way to do that be to kill a handful of these people?
00:33:24
Speaker
There's not enough of them to make this place, like, to make this place the sort of place you fight for. It's a half dozen woodcutters or tanners were dead, people would just leave, I think.
00:33:36
Speaker
Which means someone wants this place, I think, means someone wants this place to survive, but to stop working in the woods?
00:33:48
Speaker
Or something? Sire's theory was that they had ramped up production so much, and that as they were taking more, basically, is kind of when the attacks started.
00:33:59
Speaker
And so some sort of like imbalance, basically. Do you think another way to interpret that might be the expectations placed on this town by their government have increased, and if they can demonstrate that it's dangerous...
00:34:19
Speaker
then maybe the government backs off. Like, I heard of this thing that used to happen where kings would progress through their cities and through their towns, and the towns would always be subject to new taxes when the king came through, and so some towns would pretend there was a plague so that the king would detour around them.
00:34:38
Speaker
I was actually thinking something not entirely dissimilar. And what if there is just a small contingent that doesn't want to be outfitting the war effort?
00:34:52
Speaker
Right. And so less that the town doesn't want the extra labor and more that some idealists, so same to the same end. Right. Unless I misunderstood you. And that's what you were getting No, I think we're coming at it from different.
00:35:08
Speaker
No, understand what you're saying. Saira did appear really uncomfortable when speaking about the war effort and supporting the troops. And I wonder if she's not the only one that's uncomfortable with that.
00:35:19
Speaker
Did she? I
Town Politics and Guild Involvement
00:35:20
Speaker
rolled a two. I believe you. Yeah. but So I tell them about Harlan, who he is, and his role here, and I ask if we might get... a Do you think we might find more enlightenment in that tent or in those woods?
00:35:32
Speaker
ah The tent's right here. There's no reason to avoid him. I think we should speak to him. All right. we I hustle over and I open the tent for the other three to walk. We don't really announce ourselves or anything. We were told we could go in to talk to Harlan. And so we do.
00:35:46
Speaker
So we do. As you all enter, Harlan looks up from his seat at the table. Yes. Knock. No, you see, as I described before, a man probably in his late 40s, early 50s, graying black hair, streaks of gray in his beard.
00:36:04
Speaker
Now that you're closer, you can see that he has three very prominent claw scars over his left eye. And he is in... fairly simple leathers.
00:36:15
Speaker
You see a large map of the woods in front of him with various markings on it. And you also see a bottle of whiskey that only has a couple of pulls left in it and a small cup next to you the bottle. And he looks up at you all and says, Oh, I assume that you all are the help that's been requested.
00:36:38
Speaker
Yes, we are here to help. Good. Welcome. Feel free to take a seat. And there are plenty of chairs around the large table. So, obviously the government told you all what was going on in terms of the attacks on the town.
00:36:54
Speaker
The wildlife seem to be riled up and we need to figure out what's causing it. ah We obviously can't wipe out the wildlife or take the fight to them because that ecosystem is vital to this town's survival.
00:37:09
Speaker
But we also need to be able to Go to the woods safely to continue harvesting wildlife and wood. I assume that was all in the brief that you got. The attacks have gotten more severe recently ah since we said word to the government for assistance.
00:37:25
Speaker
And that's, that's what I have for you. Any questions? Are you seeing the severity of attacks get worse specifically whenever the government is involved?
00:37:40
Speaker
Whenever you've asked for help, maybe when they're coming to pick up the supplies? No, I wouldn't say. I mean, perhaps the timing is a bit of a coincidence, but...
00:37:52
Speaker
You know, once we stopped and took a look at our situation, it becomes clear that what was what was at the time considered close calls with the wildlife was probably ah precursor to where we are now, which would have happened four or five months ago ah is when it was noted that, you know,
00:38:14
Speaker
The wildlife was maybe a little bit more aggressive, but that was chalked up to, you you know, wildlife changes their territories all the time. They move to a different part of the woods where the the prey is a bit more vibrant. And so we naturally have to alter our patterns to accommodate them.
00:38:30
Speaker
So we just thought it was that initially. And then small skirmishes of attacks started happening. And then it continued to grow in severity over time.
00:38:41
Speaker
It was only in the past couple of weeks that the attacks became something that was very clearly not the norm and not explainable by just accidents and happenstance, which is when we reached out.
00:38:52
Speaker
But no, I think it's it's fairly clear that shortly after The Woodwrights Guild decided to ramp up production of the town's output is when all of this business started.
00:39:05
Speaker
But too much gold to be had to stop now. So interesting. It is pretty clear. As Fet Nix, you can tell this just with your background with warfare and stuff. but You can tell that Harland is very much a military...
00:39:19
Speaker
person like he has served, but whatever like ambition and drive that existed in him is just completely drained from him. He, he seems like the shell of who he may have been when he was serving. Okay. But all that being said, I i have no power in the town.
00:39:40
Speaker
I've been put here as a farce of neutrality. So. If you want anything actually done, Devin is the person to go talk to. Saira is the voice of opposition to Devin's whims. So they're the two that actually run this town.
00:39:56
Speaker
The person who's knowledgeable about the woods would be Alondra. If you haven't talked to her and lodging has already been arranged for you all at the Silver Sap. So you don't have to worry about that.
00:40:09
Speaker
Hmm. Interesting. For as long as you all need to be here until the problem is solved. I take a second. i yeah I mean, if no one else, more questions for Harley. Sorry. I think as we leave the tent, I kind of take a second and run back over what Cyrus said. like This is the first time someone explicitly said these two are at odds with each other. and Yeah.
00:40:31
Speaker
I kind of take a second. We run back over everything Cyrus told us. Yeah. try to point out indiscrepancies between or indiscrepancies i try to point out words don't exist between the two accounts are you doing this in front of harland like no so as we as we're leaving as we walk out of the tent i just i'm i'm fast forwarding i'm sorry if you had more for harland to say i apologize no just making sure that nobody had any further questions for harland but if not feel free to take off I decided no one had further questions from Harleton. So, but like the fact that obviously, so I guess I asked part of it is how did Devin, Devin feel about the war effort? Like if, could you tell if he was gung-ho about it all? Cause clearly we,
00:41:10
Speaker
picked up on the two of us both noticed that syra was not equally noticed that i told her about how it seemed like well he had a lot more people working to make the weaponry so i would safely assume that he's doing pretty well for himself yeah over there
00:41:37
Speaker
I mean, he didn't say anything that would sound like he opposed it. Okay. But the way that he spoke also didn't seem like he was super pro about it, but he's definitely, he's got people working pretty good over there. Okay.
00:41:54
Speaker
the The clinic you guys went to was was where Alondra is or not? I'm sorry, I missed that bit. It was a separate. No. yeah he like The Whispering Veil outside. Just outside. Yeah. Yeah.
00:42:06
Speaker
It seems the two places we have left to get intel are the place just outside of town and someplace deep in the woods. So what do you guys want? Two places deep in the woods. We have Angelina.
00:42:17
Speaker
i thought we both were just told about Angelina. We have Marcus. Marcus. Okay. Also, I mean, Harlan would have insinuated it'd probably be a good idea to like... They don't have check-in, obviously, at medieval-esque taverns, but to go let let the Silver Sap know that you've arrived and they can have your rooms ready for you whenever you're ready to crash out.
00:42:36
Speaker
But you don't have to do that. but i I could certainly stand to put down my things. Shall we go through the inn before we move forward? I suppose that makes sense, yes.
00:42:47
Speaker
Sure. To the inn. And I start walking in the direction I think the inn is. And I roll for it. You see a sign over the door of a building that has a tree trunk that has been cut. And there's like a drop of silver coming out of it that you can deduce is the Silver Sap Tavern.
00:43:04
Speaker
The tavern is moderately sized. it It has a moderately sized communal space. The rooms are obviously upstairs. ah The downstairs space is fairly busy. It's now fully like past evening time into night.
00:43:16
Speaker
The overall vibe inside is very rustic. lot of like, you know, just untreated wood, like a lot, like even tree bark incorporating different parts from an aesthetic standpoint.
00:43:27
Speaker
There's a large antler chandelier in the center of the room. The atmosphere is somewhat heavy. Like it's obvious everyone knows about the attacks. but they're trying not to let it affect the mood. Like if you like, it's not melancholy, but it's definitely a bit dampened on the normal.
00:43:46
Speaker
Hey, we're having drinks at the end of the day. Tavern vibe. You see the bartender is you a male half elf with a shaved head and a long brown beard.
00:43:58
Speaker
Behind the bar, talking to customers. No one moves, so Nyx walks over to the bar. I'm sorry. The half-elf seeing Nyx and the rest of you approach, she looks and goes, Oh, hi there.
00:44:09
Speaker
Oh, I bet you are the people from out of town coming to fix the animal problem. Yeah. In a town this size, I would think that would be good guess. Yeah. Well, we have four rooms for you all upstairs.
00:44:23
Speaker
I can get you all the keys for them. And he turns around and opens a drawer and pulls out four keys with little tags on them and sets them on the bar. And can I get you all anything to eat?
00:44:35
Speaker
Drink? How long was the travel here? Like, were we hungry? just Like... I think it was like day and a half. Yeah. No, it was longer because you didn't want to go through the woods. Two days around.
00:44:46
Speaker
Two days around, yeah. Yep. Kaz orders food then. He's definitely hungry enough and food was awesome. can get for you? we We have a really good game pie, stew, and then our seasonal option is a winter veg casserole.
00:45:02
Speaker
Stew, thank you. Stew? Okay. Anything to drink with that? Water, thank you. I've never heard him say thank you. Okay. You've never watered this. Can I get anything for anyone else? Pulls your body away from the giant spider, but you know Oh, right. right up Yeah. I was like cautious.
00:45:17
Speaker
Our ash sap ale is really good. Stew and a water. Okay. I will take the ale and the casserole. Ale and casserole. What about for you, ma'am?
00:45:30
Speaker
Stew is fine. Drink. Everybody got the stew. It's okay, Valkyro. You're allowed to order what you want. Water. just Three stews and water and a casserole and an ale. All right.
00:45:43
Speaker
Feel free to grab a table and I'll bring it out to you. And he gets to work behind the bar. Are you all discussing anything while you wait for your... I do want to bring how Davin was very focused on the druid as to being the source of something wrong, not directly saying that she was involved, but definitely saying that perhaps there was a druid that was upset. That did seem very nice to assume. Yes.
00:46:10
Speaker
Yeah, he just sort of brought it up out of nothing. Yeah. So i don't know if it's tonight, probably tomorrow we need to go see Alondra. Yeah. I'd like to go speak with her as well.
00:46:21
Speaker
Corin approaches with the tray and starts sitting stews and waters around the table and then one casserole and one ale. He says, that'll be a 42 copper. Next takes out some money. All right. Thank you.
00:46:31
Speaker
My name's Corin. Assume we have money. I don't think we've received any money. You didn't have a treasurer, so I... V's still cooking the books for you all back home. Ms. Corwin, if you need anything, just feel free to holler. Otherwise, I'll leave you all to it.
00:46:44
Speaker
Thank you. You're most welcome. Is this Tav's roll, does it look appealing? Oh, yeah. It looks really Yeah, it's mushrooms, wild rice, other veg in there, and a breadcrumb crust on top.
00:46:59
Speaker
I think Selena looks over at Valk and says, i should have gotten the casserole. you want the casserole? Do you want the stew? Yes. That's so funny.
00:47:09
Speaker
The stews do come with a big piece of like crusty bread stuck in the side of the bowl. So importantly. Nice. Take that. Yeah. And it's venison.
00:47:20
Speaker
Okay. Yeah, i'm go to why and I I took the casserole. Okay. What now, Gabe? Are we going to settle in for the night? It was a pretty long week. If you all want to talk to Alondra before calling it a day, it would not be an unreasonable hour go. It is wintertime.
00:47:38
Speaker
So just because it's dark, that means it's like seven. So it's not late yet. It's the ever unequivocal of December right now. I think we should go and speak to Alondra tonight.
00:47:49
Speaker
Okay. Okay. I'm fine with that. Okay. Stew. Okay. Then you all eat. You can sense people are not giving you a wide berth, but you all outsiders. Like, they they're a pretty insulated town, so... Ew.
00:48:05
Speaker
Had a whole menu of spec. Nobody even asked about the specials. I thought about asking about them, too. I thought the casserole was... Casserole was one of the specials. Oh. I didn't know there were more. That's why I felt bad. I ordered it because there was only one special.
00:48:20
Speaker
But once I got it described, I was like, man, Selena would have gotten that. In fact, because Valk ordered be one of the winter specials, her ale was half off. that was the best That's the deal going right now. But nobody ain't for it, but I took.
00:48:34
Speaker
It's true. What a good deal. ah that's fantastic. Was the ale yummy? Yeah. It's very good. It's what? What are the hints? The hints. it's got It's got a pretty earthy tone to it, given the fact that part of the sweetener is ash sap.
00:48:49
Speaker
Hints of dirt. Got it. But also it it is a a honeyed ale. So it's it's on the sweeter side, but it's very floral. Yeah. not Not the most wintry of drinks, but this is one of the year round offerings. This is like the the house special.
00:49:04
Speaker
Sounds yummy. Would they have had a spiced, like a hot spiced? They got a mulled wine? Yeah. o And a cider. Helena's going to get the vodka.
00:49:14
Speaker
We're going to come back. Valk and Slater are just going to be there every day. Valk and Slater just now seeing the menu board behind the bar and going, oh, crap. I know. We spent the whole dinner talking about what we should have gotten. Got a cheese platter? Dang it.
00:49:27
Speaker
Okay, so we're going to see Alondra. Yes. Yeah. All right. You all can also ask questions of Corrin about the situation if you want. to Like if if you have questions for him being that he works in the tavern, he hears a lot. But if you don't, that's totally fine. i you See anyone in the tavern that is like obviously recovering from injuries.
00:49:46
Speaker
and know we had talked earlier about how people might be in better shape. They're recovering. You see some people with with scarring on their necks and faces and arms, like people that have clearly been victims of the attacks. You see a couple people with canes or crutches.
00:50:01
Speaker
So yeah, there there are people in here that clearly were harmed. So yeah, that's you do spot them. Okay. Like I
Druid's Perspective: Alondra's Concerns
00:50:10
Speaker
said, they're they're all keeping in themselves though for the most part. Nobody's even really trying to like look your way. Okay. So yeah. um I think we should leave them alone now.
00:50:18
Speaker
Also, i I'm just going to give you this as like a freebie fill. Basically, anytime Nick sees someone like this, given the nature of the plane that she's touched with, you also tell Corrin carries himself like a former soldier. Also, he's sea war.
00:50:29
Speaker
Valk, I'll let you know if you see anybody that is ah mentally unwell. I think I think the FDs will just immediately avoid each other. So it's but I appreciate it. It's my stuff.
00:50:40
Speaker
Ridiculous. Selina can spot anybody that has evil shadowy machinations and Kaz can spot storytellers. It's all the cool guys. He's cool. He has his cool. Next to you, you clock Corwin is carrying himself like a soldier.
00:50:53
Speaker
All right. So I think going to Alondra. Where is she again? Just so i have the location issue. The Whispering Vale. It's a garden that she has on the outskirts of town near the woods.
00:51:04
Speaker
Thank you. Now, I mean, upon approach or just like at ah when when they say she has a garden, is this like a this helps sustain the people of the town? Like this is the agricultural like or she like just has her little garden kind of thing.
00:51:20
Speaker
You know what saying? I'm glad you asked, Jeff. So as you all approach... Yeah, great. no what do What do my eyes see? now You see, calling calling this a garden is factual, but subverts expectations. It is a very lush area on the outskirts of town that seems to be a self-sustaining ecosystem of...
00:51:41
Speaker
plant life. And also like you see a lot of insects buzzing about as well. This is not food though. Like she's not growing a lot of food plants. You probably get the sense that there are some medicinal plants in here, but this is not a, it is a curated garden, but it is not a, yeah, you know what I'm saying.
00:52:01
Speaker
And we know she's a druid, right? That was said to And so we, we, we, and being winter, like we know this is a magically sustained garden. Yes. Okay. As you all approach, it's it's nighttime at this point, but as you get closer to the garden, the light kind of shifts slightly to feel more twilight than dark.
00:52:21
Speaker
Like it's a little bit brighter than outside of it. And as you all approach, you see a fairly tall Elf woman walk around one of the plants and she has long silvery hair and dark skin and she is wearing green and brown robes and she sees you all approach. It's like, hi, it's nice to see new faces.
00:52:45
Speaker
I'm Alondra. What can I do for you? I'm Valk. in Hi, Valk. We're here to inquire about the attacks that are happening in the forest and maybe get your perspective on a couple of things we've been hearing about Temp.
00:53:06
Speaker
Of course. I'm glad that you all are here to help with the situation. I'm very concerned that there's a lack of stability right now with the woods and I would love to see it dealt with. The attacks have been growing in in frequency and severity for some time and they've even begun.
00:53:27
Speaker
i like to walk in the woods sometimes and I've begun getting the sense that the woods now even regard me as an outsider. Do you have any ideas on what might have caused this? I honestly don't know. I've tried you know commune. I've tried to meditate. I've tried to even speak with some of the animals and they they don't regard as an ally any longer, which is new.
00:53:52
Speaker
This is a new development, and it seems that it, based on my observations, it seems like a growing hostility rather than a rapid shift in demeanor. i This might just be my own mental state, but I have recently started having very vivid nightmares of Fauna and Flora attacking the town and in destroying it. i I try not to read too much into my dreams, but the vividness of these gives me concern.
00:54:19
Speaker
Do you have wards? to protect your garden or or do you just find that you are not menaced by them given your past relationship with the animals in the woods? Well, there are a fair number of plants amongst the the plant life here that are poisonous to residents of the woods so they can smell and detect that. They they avoid it.
00:54:42
Speaker
how What are your opinions on the town being enlisted to help with war efforts and how that production has impacted the town and the forest around?
00:54:56
Speaker
oh I was um very much against the war effort and the idea of ramping up production. And I said as much, but I'm just a gardener on the outside of town.
00:55:07
Speaker
Do you know if this was something that the town elected themselves to be a part of, or were they chosen by the government? The Woodwrights Guild is the reason the town can continue to grow and sustain itself.
00:55:24
Speaker
So... The leader of the Woodwrights Guild is effectively the decision maker here. It's been probably about a decade since that dynamic established itself, with the Woodwrights being willing to produce more and bring in more money for the town by selling their wares.
00:55:40
Speaker
The Tanners Collective have always prided themselves on their quality. And so Saira has outright refused to hire less skilled hands to assist in the creation of their goods, which has meant that the Woodwrights have attained more power in the town.
Power Dynamics and Warnings from the Woods
00:56:00
Speaker
and tore All of you can give me a wisdom check.
00:56:06
Speaker
hanging off of any backgrounds that you have that relate to magic or the planes that you are touched by. Okay. You can utilize what kind of check? I'm sorry. A wisdom. 25. Very good. Wow. 29.
00:56:19
Speaker
Wow. twenty nine wow
00:56:25
Speaker
24. No, wait. Plus two. 25. Wow. out All of you. You told us to be plain touched. And so we leaned in. Yeah. So plain touched. All of you, as you see Alondra speak and talk to her, you can tell that she powerful.
00:56:42
Speaker
Like she is a very powerful Druid. And so when she and you also based off of feeling this energy radiating off radiating off of her, you sense a level of playful mockery, like just the slightest hint that like because Devin runs the Woodwrights Guild, he thinks he's the most powerful person in the town.
00:57:05
Speaker
And so, yeah, that's Alondra seems. bitingly bemused at the small town machinations of these different guilds vying for power. So, yeah. And you also get, she obviously presents herself as a very, like, refined, somewhat stoic gardener on the outskirts of town.
00:57:26
Speaker
But you you also pick up that the the primal magic rating it off of her, there is a bit of untamedness about her that is underneath the surface. The full...
00:57:38
Speaker
um
00:57:42
Speaker
i There is someone who claims to be a steward of the woods who has reached out to me that might be beneficial for you all to meet with. yeah Yes.
00:57:52
Speaker
She came to me and i sat down with her and the only person in this town I honestly trust enough who is Corwin, if you met him, he owns the Silver Sap.
00:58:03
Speaker
But she pleaded with us to make the town stop before something terrible happens, saying that the woods demand that the town goes back to the previous arrangement that the town had with the woods.
00:58:14
Speaker
and arrangement arrangements An arrangement? An arrangement? I believe men have... One more. Come on, Selina. Thank you. An arrangement. Okay. what but That was one too many, Eric.
00:58:24
Speaker
yeah Forgive me. It's not a formal arrangement, just the symbiotic nature that the town had with the woods that has now been thrown out of balance due to the greed of certain people here in the town.
00:58:36
Speaker
Didn't, sorry, I wasn't there. it Didn't Cyrus say something about that there was imbalance in nature and it's going to fix itself? That was Cyrus.
00:58:47
Speaker
Yeah. Do you think that that could be what's happening? ah is this Valk asking Alondra? Yeah. Okay. i I don't think that would explain all of it. I think that, I think Saira is a bit too literal in her interpretation of how nature and civilization balances itself. That that is a ah process that happens over the course of centuries, not months.
00:59:11
Speaker
And who was this person that you want us to... yeah She was an an elf woman. She was clearly fearful stepping outside of the woods to speak with me, so she did not give me a name and She just told me that we must get the town to stop what it's doing.
00:59:27
Speaker
And if I could find allies, that she'd be willing to meet with them to help solve this situation in the woods if the people in town refused to stop what they were doing.
00:59:41
Speaker
I don't know if I need to say this, but... Devin has refused to stop what he is doing. Right. is Was Angelina described to me in any meaningful way other than being out in the woods by Syra? Yeah, Syra just described Angelina as being a woman that lives out there.
00:59:55
Speaker
If you would have, like, asked her more, Syra's never met her. Like, Angelina's kind of a a confirmable fable in the town. Like, people know that she lives out there, but very few people have actually met her.
01:00:07
Speaker
Wondra, I have known if this elf woman was Angelina, is what I'm kind of Oh, does Kaz ask that? Yeah, I think so. i think's yeah um I heard about a woman we might want to talk to that lives in the woods named Angelina. Is that possible that this is the same or at least different ladies?
01:00:21
Speaker
there's a wood That's pretty full. but You see a genuine good-natured smile go over Alondra's face and the mention of Angelina is like, no, Angelina is someone else. She she actually, in the past few weeks, has has helped some of the people get out of the woods who have been grievously injured. She's brought them to me. I...
01:00:37
Speaker
respect her privacy and have not told those in the town about it. But Angelina has been willing to help, even though she does not come to the town ever. Has anyone else seen this woman you were talking about, or is it only you?
01:00:52
Speaker
Me and Corwin are the only two that spoke with her. Have you ever seen her before? She came out of the woods one day and then walked back in, and I've not seen her since. I can't believe with the manifestation of the forest.
01:01:04
Speaker
Does it seem possible to you that this mysterious being that appeared to you and told you that the town must stop what it's doing might be the cause of what's happening?
01:01:18
Speaker
Perhaps I had considered that, and we we questioned her very thoroughly. I'd like to think that I... I'm a good judge of character and when people are lying to me, but obviously that can slip through the cracks. But she seemed genuinely concerned for the state of the woods.
01:01:36
Speaker
It did not seem like it was not a threat. It was a plea. Because I think that she knows if whatever force is causing the woods to become more aggressive, if if the wolves and bears of the woods attack this town, they will die too.
01:01:52
Speaker
And she does not want that. Has that been the case so far? Some of the animals have died in the attack attacks, yes.
01:02:03
Speaker
But it seems like we're going to have to go into the woods. Indeed. After all. Yes. mean, Kaz has nothing further for Elondra, because he's so confused about what's happening right now.
01:02:15
Speaker
Okay. So what's the plan, gang? Go back to the silver sap. We're getting our specialty drinks. Okay. we will call it an episode there.
01:02:27
Speaker
Thank you all so much for listening. If you want to be part of the conversation, sign this up to you episode, you can head over to our discord. The link to which is in the show notes, description, whatever of this podcast. We also have a YouTube channel, youtube.com slash the Pantheon. If you want to watch TTRPG videos made by me, Phillip's now going to plug something.
01:02:45
Speaker
Yes, there's also Tales from the Laughing Tree on YouTube and Spotify. There's a campaign going on. Eric's a player. It's called Blades and Banners. It's Pirates. That's true.
01:02:57
Speaker
We also have a Patreon, patreon.com slash the Geek Pantheon. If you want to financially support the show, you can do so over there. Yeah. Thank you all so much for listening. I've been your Game Master, Eric. I'm Mia. I'm Phillip. I'm Madeline.
01:03:08
Speaker
I'm Jeff. And we'll see you next time.