Welcome to the next post in a series where I describe the adventures during a 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons campaign I ran a little while ago.
Last time, the party explored a small but ancient and rather hazardous burial mound. Having dealt with the living statues and fire resistant mummy within, they looted the place very thoroughly and returned to Tuadun, the town they were based at.
A Night in the Tavern
On returning to Tuadun, the players immediately adopted their usual routine. They went to their lodgings at the Fuller's Barrel Inn, spent some time divvying up their loot, and then went downstairs to the bar to celebrate coming out of their most recent adventure still alive.
Unusually, when they went down to the bar, there was a table set up in one corner being used as a recruiting stand.
It was manned by two warriors. One was a diminutive half elf, the other was a giant of a man who lived up to the name he introduced himself with - Gilbert Hamhand. His comrade was Rickard Milberry, and the two of them were senior lieutenants in the mercenary company of Sir Walter Garley. The emblem of the company is a silver hart on a green field, which was prominently displayed on the two shields the officers had placed beside their table.
I actually wrote a detailed post about the company and it's key people a while ago, which also included the detailed brief for the mission the players were recruited for. Rather than repeat it here, if you are interested you can find it at An RPG Mercenary Company
The Mission
Sir Walter's company is recruiting for their next contract, and it doesn't take the players long to realise that they've been scouted out as just the kind of people being sought out, although of course the two lieutenants don't come out and say it out loud.
The lieutenants imply that the contract is for a policing mission in the Sarassid Lands, with travel being on a ship chartered for the company. The employer and more details of the mission will be revealed once the company are underway, but the pay offered is good.
Actually, the pay is a bit too good for a simple policing job, but the party let greed overcome common sense, so they didn't think to question that. They would soon come to discover that the only accurate parts of the brief were the rate of pay and that they were being sent to the Sarassid Lands far to the southwest. Everything else was what might charitably be called "marketing fluff".
Getting Underway
Our heroes grabbed this obvious adventure hook with both hands, and duly presented themselves at the mustering location in Tarak a fortnight later. There, they met the rest of the company as well as it's charismatic commander, Sir Walter Garley.
Photo by Gio Bartlett on Unsplash - it's always nice to find a public domain image that's the exact image of how I picture an NPC !
After a swift march of around three weeks, the company reached the port city of Enrieme, where they boarded the large caravel "The Pierced Wave" and set off for the Sarassid Lands. It was a good ship, but with both men and horses onboard, it was a crowded voyage !
Once aboard, they learned the reality of the contract. They were being employed by King Gortig of Jakta (a somewhat controversial figure to some), joining an expedition to throw back a tide of undead rolling up from the south.
The ship's destination was the great port city of Tiraz, where the army was assembling. I did the journey as a quick montage; the players had done a number of sea adventures around that coast as part of a different party, so I saw no need to bog things down in more of something we'd done before.
The only event of note on the journey was a rendezvous with the rest of the squadron – six other large caravels, two carracks, three heavy galleys and a heavy dromon. The dromon was the Fierceflame from the Royal Jaktan Navy. On the approach to Tiraz, they were greeted and waved through by a strong Ciudad Nuevan squadron which was watching the coast to the south, anxiously following the progress of the undead foe.
Map created in Wonderdraft
Next time... Tiraz and a march to war.
Previous posts in this series;
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Setting Part 1
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Setting Part 2
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Setting Part 3
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Player Creation and Briefing
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Arrival At Tuadun
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Mayor Gerd's Problems
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Saving Shepherd Mirag
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Mother White and Sister Raben
The Tarak D&D Campaign - The First Venture Into the Heimial Forest
The Tarak D&D Campaign - An Unpleasant Encounter
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Back to the Woods, and an Important Discovery
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Back Into The Bad Woods
The Tarak D&D Campaign - The Hags' Lair
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Tuadun Attacked !
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Finishing off the Brigands
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Trading and Partying In Filrath
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Enthor of the Woods
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Choices
The Tarak D&D Campaign - A Choice Is Made
The Tarak D&D Campaign - Into The Burial Mound