Okay, XP is up. No level ups this time, but you guys all came rather close.
Here are my notes on the last chapter:
Raetmal's Departure and Return
I hadn't considered the possibility of Tulbas insisting so strongly that Kynaston and Daxia not leave until Raetmal returns. The whole scenario with Raetmal was me constantly plugging up leaks on a ship that kept sinking. It's actually kind of funny, in retrospect.
I'll explain. This all started when Tulbas decided to return to his uncle's shop to borrow magic items for the Ergothian battle. I realized right away this was not a great scenario for me. I couldn't reasonably come up with a justification for why Raetmal would turn him down; he is his nephew, after all. On the other hand, I saw this as the beginning of a troubling trend. If the party can just load up on magical items before every fight, there's no real challenge.
So I decided a quick and easy fix would be to just not have Raetmal be there. He was called away on urgent business and will return the following day. And all of the magic items are locked away in the back, where Tulbas can't get to them. There, problem solved. Or so I thought!
Then Tulbas insisted that Kynaston and Daxia wait for his uncle's return, so he can just whisk Daxia away to the Tower. This was even more of a problem! The whole point of Daxia leaving the city was to take Kynaston with her. He was an abandoned PC, and I wanted to get rid of him. Thus, escorting Daxia to the Tower of Wayreth was a perfect excuse. But if Raetmal could just take her there in a snap, there was no reason for Kynaston to go along (indeed, he could not go, as a non-mage would not be allowed in the Tower). Okay, so I decided they would just be very insistent on leaving before Raetmal came back. No problem, right?
However, Tulbas would not back down. I wasn't worried at first, because it's not like he could physically restrain them or anything. But then I was thrown another unexpected punch. Tulbas decided to go with them! Now, understand, this is a sandbox game and the players can do whatever they want. If one of you wants to leave the party on a solo quest, you absolutely can. That was not the problem. The problem was Kynaston. I was trying to get rid of him. If Tulbas went with him...then I'd have to continue playing him.
I realized I needed to think of a way to make Tulbas stay behind in a way that would fit his character. In other words, I didn't want to just say, "No, you can't roleplay your character like that, he stays home." I wanted it to be HIS choice, not mine. So I had Raetmal reappear nearby, severly wounded, hoping that Tulbas would be too distracted to continue following them. It worked. Tulbas' attention was redirected and Kynaston and Daxia were able to leave the city.
The tricky part was tying it all together. Why was Raetmal wounded? Who wounded him? What did he mean when he said 'they' were coming? What's the deal with that spooky Black Robe who keeps poking his nose around? I managed to tie it altogether, and hopefully it will be revealed soon.
Just a little peek of the behind the scenes string pulling that goes on in a typical game.
Thief vs. Thief
I think when Darga saw the woman who stole from him, I figured he'd try and tail her or something. I didn't expect him to confront her. I reasoned she would think that anyone who carries that much money probably isn't a completely upright citizen and so she called his bluff by calling for the guards herself. I'm curious to see what he does next to deal with this situation and get his coin back, assuming it hasn't all been spent yet!
Masked Dragon Inn
When Gregeddin visited the Masked Dragon Inn, there were several people (or groups of people) sitting at various tables at the inn. Each one was a potential plot hook, except the robed monks which were more for flavor of the metaplot of the setting (the titular War of the Lance). Gregeddin only discovered the quest of the fake potion sellers. I won't yet reveal what the other quests were, in case I can bring them up again at a later date--save one. The shady looking people in leather armor who came in toward the end were part of Necolai's gang. It was possible Gregeddin could have activated that quest instead of Kendra, had he engaged them.
References
At one point Darga overhears a kender talking about how his uncle was turned into a squirrel by a wizard and a girl squirrel fell in love with him. This was a reference to Disney's Sword in the Stone. When another kender asked if the uncle was still a squirrel, he was told, no, he 'got better.' This was a reference to Monty Python's Holy Grail.
Kendra and Norris
Geez, reading over it again, the conversation Kendra and Norris have about rioters and protesters seems very strangely reminiscent of what is happening in the US right now. One might think I was directly referencing Ferguson, but the whole conversation actually started a month prior to the Grand Jury's decision. A really weird coincidence, actually.
Their discussion about the wedding and the honeymoon is actually pretty sad, if you pay attention to Norris' reactions. He starts out quite happy, but the more Kendra craps on the whole thing, the more she brings him down. She claims she doesn't care where the honeymoon is, wonders if the wedding will be time-consuming, and then claims she had no part of the planning process at all (which wasn't true). So when Norris tries to give her more control, hoping to see her the least bit enthusiastic about their wedding, she shrugs it off as if she doesn't care anyway.
Darewind's Back!
Everybody sort of forgot about Darewind. I had decided that he would escape prison five days after his arrest. If you recall, Kendra had volunteered to take guard duty so she could keep an eye on him, but she never followed through on it. I had planned several scenes between the two while he was in prison, where he would reveal parts of his grand plan and foreshadow his eventual escape, but alas, they never came to be. Ironically, Kendra is still unaware that he's escaped at this point.
The Cult Grows Stronger
I can't help but appreciate the irony that the party has continued to help the Cult of the Master become more influential and powerful. First Tulbas helps them capture Daxia, who they turn over to the Ergothians for a huge cash reward which helps finance their operations considerably. Granted, he only did so to 'infiltrate' them and earn their trust and he helped rescue her after the fact. But despite this, he actually did a huge favor to the cultists. And now that he has their trust, he has yet to actually do anything with it.
Then he decides to include the cultists with the giant job. Now when the giant is slain, the cultists will get the credit which will swell their influence and earn them new members, causing them to grow even more powerful. Indeed, Tulbas actually wanted to organize an army for the cultists to take down the giant, an army that they could then turn upon the Seekers.
I guess at this point I'm unclear if Tulbas is actually a true believer or not. He's done more to help the cult than anyone else so far.
Necolai and his Men
I've been wanting to introduce the thief's guild for some time now. They are going to play a big role later on in the game. Although I have to admit, of everyone in the party, I would have never guessed Kendra would be the one to make contact with them.
I hope to have Chapter 5 up tomorrow after work. In the meantime, if anyone has any questions, comments or feedback of any kind, please let me know. I hope everyone is still enjoying themselves. I have some big things in store for the upcoming Summer's End (the autumnal equinox and the beginning of the harvest season, i.e., Autumn Harvest the 21st).
