Clarence's Travel Log Aargh! This must be why the others refuse to leave our home. The outside world sucks! Upon arriving in Hope, I met up with a group of adventurers, not unlike some of the lot I used to guide through the swamp, that were about to head off to the South to look for missing subjects of a concerned Baron. Seeing as how I know my way around swamps and the like, I figured I would offer my services. How hard could it be? The leader of our adventuring party was a triton named Icarus. Don’t ask me what a triton is but it seemed like some sort of human with aquatic features; I would have asked but upon seeing the crown atop his head I didn’t want to come off as ignorant. Next up were two turtlefolk, i think Tortle is what they go by in these parts. Anyways there was Ala the massive barbarian with a massive shell that provided ample protection and Time whose shell itself was smaller, but you wouldn’t be able to tell for all the sacks and bags strapped all over. Then we have Krux the lizardfolk barbarian, a sailor by practice, and while a lot of the party had some form of aquatic capabilities, someone who can operate a seaworthy vessel would not be taken for granted. Next were two genasi, beings with some sort of connection to the elements, now this is why I wanted to get out of the swamp. Nothing like these two ever traveled into the swamp, how would I ever know about their existence! Darya seemed to be attuned to the element of water while Misty mingled with the air. Despite my initial shock at the existence of such beings, I did catch a mention of a “Captain Planet.” I do not know who that is but maybe he will be captaining our boats. Just as we were about to sail off one final adventurer joined the party, Wilmot Groot, a halfling. Apparently the job he was scheduled for this week was postponed so he decided to look for new a new gig in the meantime. The party of eight, now assembled, boarded our boats and began the journey South. Upon arriving at the manor of our employer, we were greeted by a feast and two tasks. The first task was familiar as it was what we expected to do upon arrival, find the missing humans. The second task though was new. Apparently a Prince was coming to the area to investigate rumors of drug smuggling. The Baron was not confident that his people were entirely not guilty of such accusations, and as such asked us to also report any findings of smuggling activity to him as well. We agreed to these two tasks and decided to call it a night. It was a rather uneventful day of travel, well until we found the body that is. It was bloated and just left on the beach to rot. Tim found a coinpurse on the body that identified him as someone not from around here. Before we could take out leave though, we were ambushed by a pack of crabs wearing the bones of the dead. You certainly won’t find those in my swamp! However before I could act, I was surprised by one such creature and fell unconscious. When I awoke, Tim was standing over me and all but two of the crabs lay slain at our feet. Standing up I noticed Krux was also down, so I made my way over and using to druidic powers granted to be by Sambi blank restored him to consciousness. Dragging the corpse on a bit of driftwood we continued to make our way towards Long Shore. Upon arriving, we were greeted by the one who led our ships South from Hope, not Captain Planet but instead a man of the name Sir Uso. He informed us of those missing from his area and suggested that even though some locals think the sea witch is to blame, we should probably look towards the Black Fen as most of the disappearances stem from that area. That sounded logical enough, so after a night’s rest we began to make out way further South to Mud Hallow. After calming an escaped circus elephant enough so that we may pass unheeded, we came across the site of some sort of attack on a cart. The cart was torn in half and all evidence pointed to some sort of burrowing creature that may still be in the area. With caution we began to cross the field when all of a sudden a huge insectoid burrowed out of the ground and spewed acid at Ala, Krux, Icarus, and myself. Unfortunately this was an acid that I was unfamiliar with and once again found myself unconscious. If it wasn’t for the mysterious sickness gripping my swamp I would be beginning to doubt my choice to leave. Some time later I am brought back into consciousness by Tim and pay forward the same favor to Ala. Unfortunately Krux was also unconscious, but being spent like I was I there was nothing we could do but carry him along to our destination. Upon arriving in Mud Hollow we were greeted by a rather rude head woman. She claimed that despite what we were told, nobody from Mud Hollow has gone missing. In fact, her town was doing alright and told us to simply leave her people alone. She directed us further South to Sandy Bottom, where she claims all the so called missing from her town were really from. After a night of rest and relaxation we awoke to find a fresh and rejuvenated Krux. Seems like a good night's rest was all he needed to get back on his feet. Besides a traveling group of peasants, the road to Sandy Bottom was a nice change of pace from the two previous road trips. Upon arriving the head man confirmed what we heard in Mud Hollow, most of the disappearances were indeed from here, and in fact while all the other towns seem to be doing worse for the wear, Mud Hollow is doing surprisingly great. Talking to the head man, provided us with several leads to follow up on going forward. First the Black Fen would have plenty of places for people to get lost in or for smugglers could hide; it is definitely worth a look. Maybe Mud Hollow and their head man might be hiding something. Secondly there are the trolls in the hills. While the head man has had simple communication with them in the past, we cannot rule out the possibility of them abducting a missing person. Finally there are a lot of local legends about two places in particular: the rock, a supposedly haunted lighthouse, and the Sea Witch’s cave. Both places were brought up by name and may be worth giving a quick look about. In the morning we will decide our path forward. I personally hope we investigate the swamp. Not that I’m homesick, it is just that it will be nice to be in familiar environs.
