The Journal of 'Red' Rackham

[baronR]

All Ashore who's going Ashore

*Red stands under Sunderer Gate looking up at the massive stone structure, he turns and looks back down the path leading down the mountain, taking out a quill and a small leather book he sits in the shade of the gate. Opening a small ink bottle he makes a few quick notes in the book*

I'm a long way from home for sure now.

Jumping ship in Westgate I think is probably the best thing I've ever done, old Greybeard won’t miss me, he never liked me much anyway, and my heart just isn't fit for piracy. I don’t suppose I had much choice in the matter; it’s about the only way one gets off the Pirate Isle. The Sea Ray wasn’t all that bad, we certainly had enough to drink and enough to do and they certainly trained me well enough in the rapier and longbow to be of use elsewhere.

After leaving the Sea Ray I heard about this Valley called Sundren, it took me awhile to get directions, and I got lost at least three times, but there is no mistaking this gigantic wall of polished stone, its visible for miles. I don’t know what Sundren holds for me, hopefully I can find some folks that I can join up with, I'm told this place can be quite dangerous....

Ah some guy is calling me, I think I have to answer some questions before they let me in, and loitering is apparently bad juju. I still have to get someone sent back to the caravan to help fix their broken wheel. I won’t be heading back to them though, I'm done with them.


*he sets a small sheet of vellum over the fresh writing and closes the book gently before speaking to the gatekeeper*

[baronR]

*Red stands up at the top of the path from the Gate of the Sunderer, looking back down at the massive stone structure, he opens up his journal to make a few notes*

Just spoke to a magician just up the road from the gate, he didn’t have much to say but I really found him interesting, I guess I've always found magic and the arcane really fascinating.

*a large splotch of ink as if the quill rested for a length of time allowing ink to soak in*

I wish I could change some things...that boatload of young mages and their cargo of books, Greybeard was crazy mad that there wasn't any REAL loot to be had on that boat, the mages were young and weak, and after their few magics were used up they really didn’t put up much of a fight. I tried to convince Greybeard to let them go, but he wasn’t having any of it. He set fire to the cargo of books, heedless that it would burn the ship to the waterline.

Fortunately the mages had dinghies and were able to get off; Greybeard wasn’t in the mood for murder thankfully. I was able to rescue a few books and I secreted them in my bunk, reading by the dim candlelight in the hold allowed me to see, with little comprehension into the life of these magi. I hope they made landfall all right.

I feel like I could grasp this stuff, only time may tell. In the meantime I need to see if I can find a shipment of goods for this mage, he might be a good friend or even mentor.

[baronR]

An encounter in Red

*sitting next to a campfire at a Exigo Expedition post Red pulls out his leather book and begins writing*

Managed to get the mages shipment for him, also ran into a decent group of folk I think, they are polite enough to be sure, a couple of warriors and a priest, though of what church I don’t know.

Nuvaris is from Chult, and seems quite familiar with the outdoors. I don’t know where the gnome Cervesa is from but he seems good in a fight. Maximillian is the priest.

We also managed to recover some rings a Gnome was looking for in the camp, however I sold them to the mage I spoke with earlier, far better I think that I work with him, he's already granted me a discount at his shop for finding his shipment. A good sign I hope.

Bandits seem to be a real issue up here near the gate, so far they haven’t been too hard to handle for our group. The undead in that crypt, a bit more of an issue, I've never had to fight those things before and its clear my rapier is all but worthless against them. The priest tells me a blunt weapon is more suitable, so I will have to keep my eyes open.

Had a very interesting encounter here at the camp, just before we set down to eat and relax after that run through the crypt we were hailed by bald man in red robes, he Identified himself as a Thayan mage and he had a proposal for us. He would give us considerable sums of gold if we would simply let him copy our memories. He claimed it was quite safe and he was fairly persuasive and not a little charming.

Following some distance behind was another in darker robes; he played counterpoint to the Thayan without pressuring us to decide either way. It was fairly clear that there was little love lost between the two of them.

For my part, I was near to accepting, to be part of an arcane experiment would be fascinating. I must admit at the same time though there was something unsettling about the offer, nothing one could put their finger on and it’s difficult to imagine my meager life’s experience to be of any value to someone so learned. Like my new compatriots I declined. The Thayan expressed no real disappointment and left.

The dark robed stranger stuck around and chatted for a few minutes, turns out he is a Hand of Mundus called Raist. He confirmed my guess that he wasn’t particularly fond of Thayans. I suppose he would know better than I about them. Still he said if we had accepted the Thayans offer, the price would have been death, so given that I'm feeling pretty good about that decision.

I think I'm going to have to learn something about these factions, will be keeping my eye open for a library.

Still.....

[baronR]

A decision made

*sitting next to that same campfire Red opens his book*

Visited some new places today. Sundren City for the first time, pretty good sized place and I must admit it was good to see the sea again. The sounds and smell of the docks were reassuring in a way I didn’t expect. None of the ships were familiar of course, no reason they should be, and there is a distinct difference between this port and the ones I'm mostly familiar with. I didn't see any press gangs for one. Found a very comfortable tavern right on the Docks. I'll have to come back when I have some extra gold to spend.

Nuvaris and I set out alone to explore some goblin ridden hills, got ambushed a few times but it wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle, though we got a few cuts for our trouble to be sure.

Found that Library I was looking for, stopped and read some of the tomes on magic, I've decided after that encounter with the Thayan that I am going to study the arcane arts.

[baronR]

Momma always said, Stupid is as Stupid does

*Red plops down in the Menacing Mariner, orders an Ale, and grumbling pulls out his journal*

Greybeard would have us up in the rigging during a thunderstorm for what happened tonight. I'm just a deck hand but I can recognise a rudderless party when I see one.

*Red takes a deep gulp of ale and watches as dock wallopers come and go from the tavern*

Nuvaris took off for some reason I'm not quite clear on near the Viridale Forest, but a big iron clad fella called Alphinor showed up after awhile. Well Cerveza and Max knew him and he sure looked capable so he joined up with us and we went to the Viridale.

So we reach the camp there at the edge of the forest, talk to a Legionairre captain who needs some help, go and recover a dagger he needs to get the local druids on his side or something. Also chatted with a nice enough fellow who warned us of what we would see, and asked that we take care to not harm the forest or its animals.

Well okay Ive never really given animals more than a passing thought unless theyre good to eat but he was earnest enough, even told us that we might see some wolves and that so long as we were careful in the forest they would mean no harm. Well that werent the half of it as those wolves more or less followed us around and helped us out. Which were nothing like Ive ever heard wolves doing before, tales Ive always heard were wolves were ferocious beasts, but I'm an old sea hand what do I know from wolves.

*Red orders up another ale and rests his head in his hands before he starts writing*

Greybeard used to say "One man alone can be pretty dumb sometimes, but for real bona fide stupidity there ain't nothing can beat teamwork" and we proved that right. Nuvaris was a leader, or at least we never looked like this when he was around, without him we looked like a bunch of partly drunk dock wallopers right after the press gang got finished with us.

So off we go into the forest, careful of the trees and followed by a pair of wolves. We encounter some gnolls and goblins, no real problem, we find a fort. Protected by an Ogre no less..ugly things...and a fistfull of gnolls.

This really wasnt too much of a problem for our group. Cerveza and Alph up front poundin' em good and Dargo and me in the back with Bows...Max was a floater, healing and fighting as needed. The wolves doing wolfy things. So far we're sailing along with a good tailwind.

So we take the fort...now talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time... not long after that, moments really, we hear a commotion in the forest, soundling like one heck of a lot of gnolls headed our way, and this was when our brains leaked out like rum out of a barrels bung hole.

We coulda stayed at the fort we took, it was defensable enough, or we could have gone back to the main fort. But our warriors ran off eager to put steel to any gnoll they could see, Dargo and I on the trail wondering if we are supposed to be heading back or forward, in either case standing in the middle of the forest wasnt the proper plan.

*the writing in the journal becomes messier as it rambles on*

Then all of a sudden there is a forester there and we stop to chat? Cerveza had a lucid moment and said we should warn the garrison, and then there were more gnolls to fight and more brains drained from bungholes.

Now I coulda swore someone went back to warn the garrison, I swear it on my mothers grave. But we got back and the garrison was pretty badly beat, they were still there but they took a lashing to be sure. The captain wasnt happy, understandably, saying with some warning they could have put up a much better defense, and he said some things that my compatriots didnt want to hear. But I think the captain was more right than wrong. Dargo didnt help things when he implied the Captains men were incompetant.

The legionaires popped him square in the mouth for it, served him right, damn lucky Dargo wasnt on the Searay, something like that would be a quick way towards becoming fish food.

I dont know, theyre nice enough folk and capable in a fight, but by the gods they need a leader.

The only good note of the night, I actually was able to cast a spell, my first foray into the arcane worked. When I get up in the morning I'm heading back to the Library... much to read... much to consider.

[[ooc: thanks for the DM lovin and thanks to our wolfy escort--you know who you are ]]