Topic: Shadows over Bogenhafen: game thread [players only please!]

[rufus sparkfire]

[everyone]

Admund, Heinrich and Hans return to the Salted Salmon, where they meet up with Julian and the others. Max tells them about the meeting with Neralon.

"He promised to deal with the ogre somehow," Max says, "and to make sure there are no patrol boats in the area when we make the raid. Oh, and apparently there are elemental spirits in the water around Elftown, but he's going to give us a talisman that will keep them away. In return, we agreed to take the evidence to him first."

[Karl Voss of Averland]

"Good to hear you had success." Admund says flatly, sitting heavily on the bench at the long table. "I'm pretty sure I confirmed Etelka's journal. Goenewould must be a cannibal. He's not foolish enough to leave evidence out, but he is certainly up to something. When this is all done, I might ask Graveland to lend me a couple men to "inspect" his establishment.

 "I'm suspicious of Neralon, to be honest. But we have to take the chance. If we move quickly, and his help is true as his word, then we search the boat and get out quickly. This at least gives me hope there is one righteous elf in Elftown."

"Master Dwarf, if you're going to stay behind, how should we do this? I'm not much of a climber or rower with my arm in this sling."

[Sig]

"I wonder if anyone can check what those sausages are made of" muses Hans. "I wonder if they're human meat, if the temple of Morr can sense anything about it. Bah, probably too much of a long shot."

"I don't know about this elf. Sounds like a trap. What about you dwarfs? Do YOU trust this Neru.. Neral.. Neralon?"

[Finlay]

Julian nods his head "yes, for an elf, I trusted him. As much as you can trust someone you met for ten minutes anyway. He wasn't all high and mighty like they usually are and was drinking dwarven beer. I don't know why he wants to see the evidence first, presumably some internal elvish powerplay. We can meet in a position of strength just in case he isn't trustworthy.
But I didn't tell him about our little problem in the star temple, or the item that he had. If need be we can present that as our evidence, although it's a risky move."

[rufus sparkfire]

"About the sausages... um... I don't know of any way to test if they're pork or... um... not." Max says. "But it might be possible through some sort of magical or spiritual divination."

"Easier to break into that cellar Admund saw," Ragni says. "Probably full of bodies! Maybe me and the boss can do that, if we're not going to the shipyard."

"The butcher- shop thing is horrible," Max says, "but the elftown problem is more urgent. We've got to get that evidence!"

[Karl Voss of Averland]

"Right, Max." Admund says, placing the wax-paper package of sausage on the table in disgust. "We've got to get this evidence before things get worse between Middenheim and Marienburg. Who's coming?"

"Does Trancas have the boat for us to use or should we use Billy?"

[rufus sparkfire]

"Um, well, I'd be happy to go to the shipyard," Max says, "unless it's a bad idea, after I went to Elftown with Mr Julian... still, they're less likely to recognise me than they are Mr Julian or Ragni." He smiles. "And it's not as if we're planning to get caught!

"Trancas suggested we dress up like fishermen, and use our own boat. He thought we should set off from the area called The Flats, where there are some fishermen's huts, and row across to Elftown. Now, Neralon has promised that he can keep the elf patrol boats away from the area for a while, if he knows the time we're going. We're supposed to tell the person he's sending with the talisman against the elementals.

"So, we need to decide what time we're going, and who should go."

[commandant]

' I should go on the raid,' Mortus says.

[rufus sparkfire]

"Aye, your magicking will come in handy," Ragni says. "Wish I could go!"

[Sig]

"The butcher can wait" says Hans, frowning. "He will still be there in the morning. I have a bad feeling though, if he's a cannibal. I've heard rumours of ghouls creating a nest here in Marienburg, though he doesn't look like any I've seen. I'm sure there's more to this. The ghouls are why I came here in the first place. Disgusting things that should not be."

[rufus sparkfire]

"Ghouls, really?" Max says. "Um, when we were at Castle Wittgenstein, we encountered some people who'd been eating corpses and had started to turn into ghouls. But that was in a place that had been corrupted by weirdstone."

"Aye, all sorts of nasty stuff went on there," Ragni says.

[Karl Voss of Averland]

Admund flexes his fingers on his broken sword arm, anger boiling within at the mention of ghouls. "Aye, he shouldn't be, Hans. He'll have to wait, but you and I will go after him."

"So, is everyone going, save for our dwarf friends here and Max? I'd be willing to stay behind, but I'll come if you need me. Not sure if my bloody arm here makes me much use climbing aboard a boat stealthily..." Admund says glumly. He slumps back in his chair.

"If we're going, let's get a move on then."

[rufus sparkfire]

Ragni waves aside Admund's comment about his broken arm. "Bah, you're a better fighter with one arm than most humans are with two!"


Soon after, one of the inn's staff comes in to tell Julian that someone is here to see him. It proves to be a female elf, wearing a dark, hooded cloak. She holds out a gloved hand: resting on her palm is a small, oval-shaped coin of silvery metal. An elvish symbol is etched onto it. "From Neralon," she says. "This should be carried when crossing the waters around Elftown, to close the eyes of the Watchers. Now: I must know the hour of your planned visit, so that preparation can be made."

[Finlay]

Julian invites the elf to their table.
"I believe my friends will be going tonight; what time do you think is best? I wish I was going with you, i'll feel useless waiting here for you to return."

[rufus sparkfire]

"It would be best to make the attempt no earlier than two o'clock in the morning," the elf tells them, "and no later than four. Those are the quietest hours, and thus the safest."

[Karl Voss of Averland]

Admund smirks and clasps Ragni at the shoulder with his good arm, "And you're twice the stout hearted dwarf than the best I've met."

Admund scoots down the bench to make room for the elf. He takes the elvish coin and inspects it in the light of the candle flame in the middle of the table then hands it to Julian.

"Tell me what you known of this ship?" Admund asks the elf. "If we are to secure peace between our peoples, we must find this evidence. Anything you can tell us would be of great service."

[rufus sparkfire]

The coin's surface shimmers in the candlelight.

The elf stares at Admund for a moment, her expression blank. "You carry an elven blade," she says, though she doesn't appear to have looked directly at the sword, and her tone carries no judgement. It's simply a statement of fact. She continues, "I have not seen the ship. It is one of three that came together from the Silver Isles four months ago. Humans refer to these vessels as clippers." She raises one eyebrow slightly. "The term is not meaningful, as all elven ships are unique. I am told it is a vessel of medium size, narrow in the beam and sleek of hull. It is not a ship of war. Its name, in your language, is approximately Hopeful Light of the Morning." She also gives the name in elvish.

"The Race the Winds shipyard has six drydocks. The ship you seek is in one of those. It may be that the evidence is aboard the ship. Alternately, it may be in Imraholen's office." She shrugs. "This you must discover for yourself."

[Karl Voss of Averland]

Admund stares back, meeting her gaze. His face blank and his eyes icy in their usual way. "Yes, I do."

"Thank you for your help." Admund says rising. "Best pray we do discover this evidence ourselves. Otherwise there might be war between our peoples, and the empire will tear itself apart from within."

Admund will go to his room and change into plain clothes and his hooded cloak.

[Cannonofdoom]

Heinrich will also get ready, having skulked about without having much to contribute to the conversation. He knew he would be going, whatever the rest decided. Julian is a good leader, and Heinrich trusts him more than he's trusted many others in his life. Leaving the plans to him just seems natural at this point.

[rufus sparkfire]

The elf says a curt farewell, then leaves.

Heinrich, Mortus, Admund and Hans leave the inn and join Freddie at the boat. Freddie has procured a few fishing rods to complete the disguise. Once aboard, they set off along the Noordmuur Canal towards Elftown.



As they travel, the city's ancient wall, called the Vloedmuur, lies to their right. Once they have passed the fortified gatehouse of Oostenpoort (through which they entered the city some days ago) the wall is more of an earthen dike, occasionally reinforced with stone or brick. With only deep swampland on the other side, the wall is primarily a barrier to floodwater rather than to hostile forces.

In time, they clear the prosperous district of Noordmuur. To their left are the high, white walls of Elftown, pale and ghostly in the moonlight. Ahead is their first destination: the Vlakland. The mudflats stretch out before them, wide and treacherous. Near the deeper channels and the wall are clusters of fishing huts, built on wooden stilts to stay above the tides. Freddie takes the boat close to one of these areas of huts.



"Right," Freddie says, after arranging the fishing rods around the boat so that they can be clearly seen, "now we're fishermen! You can see there's other boats out there, so no one's likely to bother us until we get too close to Elftown. That's where we'll have to hope your elf friends have really kept the patrols away."

They set off again, first heading out towards the fishing grounds. But Freddie edges the boat closer and closer to Elftown waters. "Can't see any patrol boats," he says, "and they're big, white craft - can't miss them. Let's go for it."

They cross the invisible boundary. The water here looks much clearer than the mud-choked waters they've just left. Mortus can hear faint, distant voices coming from below the waves, though she cannot make out any words. Even so, nothing happens to prevent the group's journey.

Before them, flanked by tall and elaborate mansions, is a dockyard, surrounded on its land-side with a high wooden fence. This is the Race the Winds shipyard.

[Karl Voss of Averland]

"Remember, whispers only. Voices carry far over the water." Admund says as they set off.

Admund, wrapped in his cloak with his hood up, takes a rod and hangs it over the side to mimic fishing. He sits quietly. Scanning the horizon. As they cross the invisible barrier, he notices the water change. Admund turns and glances at Mortus, curious if anything magical is occurring.

[rufus sparkfire]

The Race the Winds shipyard


1 to 7 are buildings.
There are six drydocks, A to F, each containing a vessel.
The fence surrounding the yard is about seven feet high. The gate is shut.
A yacht is tied up at a dock in front of building 1.

[commandant]

"We should check the yacht first," Mortus says.   She will head that way.

[Sig]

"Isn't what we're looking for supposed to be in a cargo hold?" whispers Hans. He glances about, trying to spot evidence of the ogre's whereabouts. "Also, where the fuck is that stinking ogre. I hope that elf was telling the truth."

[commandant]

"It is," Mortus says, "But the yacht is outside the walls."