A dwarven discovery! Riches await!

[Ed Chivers]

The dwarves have discovered something, deep within their mine tunnels!

Dworic, the leader of the dwarven miners in the mountains west of the Dwarven Forges rushes into the Lakeside Inn, flinging the doors open and breathing hard. "We've found something incredible in the mines!" he gasps, catching his breath. "It's some sort of map, and best of all it shows TREASURE!"

Set into the stone wall of the mine tunnel is a curious map showing what seems to be the central lake of the home valley at the top, with its two rivers flowing in from the west, and one river flowing out towards the Falls of Ardun. What's below the falls is far more interesting, though - it shows the river flowing out into the plains below the steep cliffs to the south of your home valley, and several locations marked with golden hexagonal ingots and softly twinkling jewels, embedded into the rock wall itself. Next to the jewels are five glyphs in a script nobody has ever seen before.

Early the next morning a crowd of people have gathered at the edge of the cliffs and are peering down into the wide plain below the cliffs and the Falls of Ardun, excitedly chattering to themselves.

"Aye, that's never our river, that rock map has it all in straight lines - look at it, it's bending and weaving all over the place!"

"Where's the gold then? All I can see is forests!"

"Look where the river forks in the distance, do you see that sandy bluff? That's where those jewels are, I know it!"

Shown on the map are:

• One large group of ingots immediately below the falls and west of the river, perhaps a day's travel away. Although they are clearly marked on the map, this part of the plains is covered in thick forest.
• At a bend in the river, one large ingot surrounded by four smaller ones. Looking out into the plain where the ingots are shown, you can see the river running through a set of low hills two days travel away.
  
• At a fork in the river in the far distance, four days walk away is a sandy-coloured bluff. This is the part of the map where the jewels and the strange glyphs were, though it's impossible to make out anything clearly at this distance.

[Ed Chivers]

This is it folks, use this thread to form yourselves into adventuring parties and decide what you want to explore. I will be hosting two games the weekend after next - one on Saturday 16th and one on Sunday 17th. Both will be afternoon / evening sessions.

Some ground rules.

• No character sheet, no playing. You've got a week to figure out who you're playing and get a character sheet together. Ask if you need help.
  
• Each party can choose one of the three sites on the tunnel map. No getting clever and searching all three, leave some exploring for the others!
• You organise yourselves into groups, and groups have to be going to different places.
• Each group can have a minimum of 2 or a maximum of 5 player characters in it. Please keep any party arrangements on this thread so that everyone (including me) can see what's being arranged and we don't end up with two parties going to the same place by accident.
  
• Once an adventuring party has nominated somewhere they want to explore and agreed it with me, no takesy-backsies. That's where you're going. I don't want to hear "I know we said we wanted to explore the closest bits but we've got jewel fever now, can we go to the bluff?"
• If a party wants to map the territory they're exploring that's up to them (and it's strongly encouraged). When the party return back to the valley, the group should make a post on the forum describing what they found, so that other parties know what to expect if they go wandering over the same territory later. You'll not be getting any handouts from me unless it's stuff acquired in-game.
  
• You're responsible for your own packing. If you don't tell me you're bringing it, you don't have it out in the plains. This includes food and water, unless you're planning on foraging.

I think that's it... let the chaos begin!

[Adam Spragg]

Ed,

A few out-of-character of questions:

How high are the cliffs?

How steep/featureful are the cliffs? Vertical smooth slabs? 80° craggy
rocks?

Has anyone ever proposed going down the cliffs and wandering the valley
below before? What was the response from everyone else in the town?

Has anyone actually gone down the cliffs before? In living memory? In
town legend?

Did they make it to the bottom alive?

Did they return?

Adam

On March 08 2019 at 06:22, Ed Chivers wrote:
> [image: dwarven-tunnel-map.png] <about:invalid#zClosurez>
>
> *The dwarves have discovered something, deep within their mine
> tunnels!*

>
>
> Dworic, the leader of the dwarven miners in the mountains west of the
> Dwarven Forges rushes into the Lakeside Inn, flinging the doors open
> and breathing hard. "We've found something incredible in the mines!"
> he gasps, catching his breath. "It's some sort of map, and best of

> all it shows *TREASURE!*"
>
> Set into the stone wall of the mine tunnel is a curious map, showing
> what seems to be the central lake at the top with its two rivers

> flowing in from the west, and one river flowing out towards the Falls
> of Ardun. What's below the falls is far more interesting, though - it
> shows the river flowing out into the plains below the steep cliffs to
> the south of your home valley, and several locations marked with
> golden hexagonal ingots and softly twinkling jewels, embedded into
> the rock wall itself. Next to the jewels are five glyphs in a script
> nobody has ever seen before.
>
> Early the next morning a crowd of people have gathered at the edge of
> the cliffs and are peering down into the wide plain below the cliffs
> and the Falls of Ardun, excitedly chattering to themselves.
>

> *"Aye, that's never our river, that rock map has it all in straight
> lines - look at it, it's bending and weaving all over the place!"*
>
> *"Where's the gold then? All I can see is forests!"*
>
> *"Look where the river forks in the distance, do you see that sandy
> bluff? That's where those jewels are, I know it!"*

> Shown on the map are:
>
>

> - One large group of ingots immediately below the falls and west

> of the river, perhaps a day's travel away. Although they are clearly

> marked on the map, this part of the plains are covered in thick
> forest.
> - At a bend in the river, one large ingot surrounded by four

> smaller ones. Looking out into the plain where the ingots are shown,
> you can see the river running through a set of low hills two days
> travel away.

> - At a fork in the river in the far distance, four days walk away
> is a sandy bluff. This is the part of the map where the jewels and

[Ed Chivers]

A few out-of-character of questions:

How high are the cliffs?

How steep/featureful are the cliffs? Vertical smooth slabs? 80° craggy
rocks?

Has anyone ever proposed going down the cliffs and wandering the valley
below before? What was the response from everyone else in the town?

Has anyone actually gone down the cliffs before? In living memory? In
town legend?

Did they make it to the bottom alive?

Did they return?

Adam

See, I'm not sure there's any right answers to these.

If I make it easy to get down from the cliffs then that begs the questions:

- why hasn't anyone done it before? Is it insanely dangerous on the plains below?

- if travel between the home plateau (where the home valley and surrounding mountains are) at the top of the cliffs and the plains is easy, why haven't wandering beasties come a-visiting?

If I make it difficult to get down from the cliffs, then we have to make it a difficult challenge every time a party goes adventuring.

I think a way out of that little paradox would be to suggest that there is a way to get down from the home plateau, but it's almost impossible to see from the bottom. The cliffs are tall (perhaps five hundred metres) and steep. A few people have journeyed down to the plains and not all of them have come back. Those that did come back told tales of wild foreboding forests and very few ventured out again, preferring the comforts of home.

[Evie]

I am quite interested in the runes, so I might go for those (or I might not, if I seem to know where I'm going, I will end up going there even if I change my mind).

[Richard Jackson]

Surely the answer to "Why hasn't anyone done this before?" is that the cliffs were THOUGHT to be impassable, until the map was discovered, showing a hidden (yet treacherous) path through...

[Ed Chivers]

Yes, that works, let's go with that.

[Rico]

Whisper is up for exploring site #2, the hills along the river:

Its far enough to a 'proper' adventure, not so far that more than a weeks food should be needed, its along the river for easy navigation (we shouldn't get lost!).  Also the symbols make a pleasing pattern, it speaks to me.

Amenable to Saturday or Sunday session.

Who's in?

[Kathryn Karnage]

Me me

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[Adam Spragg]

Heck yeah! If we're making a trip down the cliffs, we might as well
make it properly worthwhile. The runed jewels are definitely the most
interesting thing on the map. Go big or go home! Er, stay home.
Whatever. I'm up for that. Woo!

Bran.

[Rory Cullen]

Rico - I'll go with you.

R.

[jacqui...@googlemail.com]

Heya, following a conversation with Chris today, me, andy & Chris are available next weekend (Michelle very kindly supplying monster wrangling!). Saturday would be easiest from 1pm, Sunday is do-able if others have claimed Saturday!
How long would people be looking at playing for? 1 til 6 say or into the evening? Asking so we can arrange childcare with Shell :-)

Non of us have a particular preference for location, Bee kind of likes the midway cluster but she’ll go along with the majority vote.

[Ed Chivers]

Hi Jacquie - if you, Andy and Chris are all playing together I would suggest joining Adam and Evie on the longer trip to the sandy bluff marked with the strange glyphs on the map. That would make a party of five adventurers.

We've already got three others (Rico, Rory and Kate) heading out to the site in the low hills, marked on the map by the cluster of ingots.

[Ed Chivers]

OK, I've heard back separately from Jacquie, the three in her group will be joining Adam and Evie's characters (Bran and Kallista) on the longer journey out to the sandy bluff at the fork in the river. Since that makes five players, I'm declaring that group full.

There are still two places left on the trip out to the low hills with Alagos, Whisper and Yllafiel (Rory, Rico and Kate) if anyone wants to claim them. Otherwise I'll just run a game for the three of you.

[Mark Lucas]

I'll Join the group heading out to the low hills. Is that the Saturday group? I'd be fine with that but would need to leave at 6 pm. 

Mk

[Ed Chivers]

Hi Mark - the low hills is the Sunday group, Rory has another game in the evening so I think a start in the late morning and an early-ish finish will probably work out best.

[Adam Spragg]

More out-of-character questions, I'm afraid.

What time of year is it? Summer?

How cold does it get at night, up here on the plateau, this time of
year?

Does it rain often?

Do people keep an eye out over the cliffs regularly? If so, do we know
if cloud forms over the plains below the cliffs, i.e. below the
height of the plateau we're on, regularly?

Adam

On March 08 2019 at 06:22, Ed Chivers wrote:
> [image: dwarven-tunnel-map.png] <about:invalid#zClosurez>
>

> *The dwarves have discovered something, deep within their mine
> tunnels!*

>
>
> Dworic, the leader of the dwarven miners in the mountains west of the
> Dwarven Forges rushes into the Lakeside Inn, flinging the doors open
> and breathing hard. "We've found something incredible in the mines!"
> he gasps, catching his breath. "It's some sort of map, and best of

> all it shows *TREASURE!*"
>
> Set into the stone wall of the mine tunnel is a curious map, showing
> what seems to be the central lake at the top with its two rivers

> flowing in from the west, and one river flowing out towards the Falls
> of Ardun. What's below the falls is far more interesting, though - it
> shows the river flowing out into the plains below the steep cliffs to
> the south of your home valley, and several locations marked with
> golden hexagonal ingots and softly twinkling jewels, embedded into
> the rock wall itself. Next to the jewels are five glyphs in a script
> nobody has ever seen before.
>
> Early the next morning a crowd of people have gathered at the edge of
> the cliffs and are peering down into the wide plain below the cliffs
> and the Falls of Ardun, excitedly chattering to themselves.
>

> *"Aye, that's never our river, that rock map has it all in straight
> lines - look at it, it's bending and weaving all over the place!"*
>
> *"Where's the gold then? All I can see is forests!"*
>
> *"Look where the river forks in the distance, do you see that sandy
> bluff? That's where those jewels are, I know it!"*

> Shown on the map are:
>
>

> - One large group of ingots immediately below the falls and west

> of the river, perhaps a day's travel away. Although they are clearly

> marked on the map, this part of the plains are covered in thick
> forest.

> - At a bend in the river, one large ingot surrounded by four

> smaller ones. Looking out into the plain where the ingots are shown,
> you can see the river running through a set of low hills two days
> travel away.

> - At a fork in the river in the far distance, four days walk away
> is a sandy bluff. This is the part of the map where the jewels and

[Ed Chivers]

These are all reasonable questions, and to be fair they are things your character would know, so here goes, answers inline:

On Sunday, March 10, 2019 at 9:01:46 PM UTC, Adam Spragg wrote:

More out-of-character questions, I'm afraid.

What time of year is it? Summer?

I am making this up, but as soon as I say it it will become officially canon. Oh, the responsibility! It is mid-Spring, the world is coming back to life after winter. Trees are in bud and flowers are beginning to poke up from the ground.

How cold does it get at night, up here on the plateau, this time of
year?

On the plateau? It's actually a fairly mild climate. Even in the coldest winters the valley remembers, the central lake has only frozen once or twice.

 

Does it rain often?

Probably about "British" levels of rain. It might rain perhaps one day in three, not usually for long, though occasionally it will set in for days at a time. There's not really any pattern to it.

 

Do people keep an eye out over the cliffs regularly? If so, do we know
if cloud forms over the plains below the cliffs, i.e. below the
height of the plateau we're on, regularly?

Nobody's really paid much attention to the plains below the cliffs in years, but the clouds are mostly above the plateau.

 

Adam