We completed out latest session of Cairn this past Friday, and it was perhaps the most interesting session we have played to date. There were no dice rolls at all during this session. It was all role-play. Some players definitely enjoyed this, but I could tell that some others did not care for the session as much.
As I reported in my previous blog post, our players have retreated from the Olde Island Fortress and from Morgansfort . They made their way north to the town of Firston (a town I made up) to sell some of their treasure, and to bring in the two new party members whom they lost.
Our session consisted of the group splitting up to follow up on the three rumors and interests they initiated last session. I'll admit that I did zero planning for this session, so I am actually quite proud of myself for developing these quest lines on the fly.
Aces and Tails
The first visit in the evening was the return to the Aces and Tails gambling house and to visit with Graves Tailsman. Boroth, Gruid and Can met Mr. Tailsman, the "big time" gangster in town. His request of the party was straight forward. He wanted the party to "off" Breylor Shunderman, the famous big game hunter who lives outside of town, and he wanted it done in three days.
His reward was "a favor".
Since the night was young our party very eagerly took this contract. What they didn't know is that this simple hit job was going to become a bit more complicated.
The Church of Tah
Arjune, Ysln, Cwingwald, and Canon visited the Church of Tah to get more information from Brother Oldeman on the relic that the party was to acquire. The church presented a very detailed and lengthy contract indicating that "any and all items identified as possible relics or magical items would become the property of the church". My players impressed me and were able to catch on that this contract would have identified items such as "stamped gold coins" as relics.
They turned the table by changing the date of commencement so they had time to complete their "hit" before heading out of the town to find the relic.
The Two Headed Bear
Now here is where the story gets a bit interesting. The next morning the party went out of town to visit Breylor Shunderman, the famous hunter. They discussed that previous evening that they would try to convince Mr. Shunderman to leave Firston, with the hope that they did not have to kill him. When they arrived at The Shunderman manor, they did not find what they were expecting.
Mr. Shunderman proved himself to be an excellent marksman, shooting a plum out of Ysln's hand from 100 meters away after she picked the fruit from his orchard. Breylor Shunderman is a large man, very well build and muscular. Now in his sixties, he is retired from the big game hunt due to a leg injury which now has him walking with a cane.
Breylor invited the party into his very large manor, which featured taxidermied animals from around the world, including a Mammoth in the front hall.
Breylor informed the party that he setup this manor outside the town of Firston with the intent of hunting the rumored two headed bear. Unfortunately, he is unable to complete that hunt due to his leg. He is extending the offer to Gruid to hunt and kill the two headed bear and as a reward he would offer a silvered break-loading pistol of his own design as a reward. The pistol would come with six bullets totaling 12 + 1d6 damage per round.
The party also noticed some paperwork on Breylor's table which mentioned the name of Brother Oldeman and they were able to convince him to give some more details on this paperwork.
Breylor explained to the party that the Church of Tah was working with Graves Tailsman to control the trade and market inside Firston. Tailsman was using his muscle to influence goods and services and Brother Oldeman was using the church to launder the money.
This information drastically changed the party's approach and Breylor informed the party that he could utilize his influence in the town to get information or access to various locations.
The party now has a decision to make on their next steps.