@ Chris , good journal. I copied the Book pictures into the game-table. (Not the Poetry gal, but the others, haha). I'll go ahead and post Airen's reward. You're already Level 2, right? The XP for Journals rises up a little bit at 2nd, 3rd, and 4th level. Add this on your character sheet bio tab, +380 XP (Airen for journal of April 7 session including pictures of 4 books he found) @ Hans , (Question for Gold: is this body of water isolated? Or is it possible for ships to reach it? Is the water affected by the tides?) Good questions. The Bay is not isolated. It is affected strongly by tides (but traditionally shielded from the worst weather patterns, hurricanes and tsunami). It is very possible for ships to reach this area. Many ships come to Portlandio docks: cargo, trade, merchants, diplomatic, immigrants, adventurers, and sometimes pirates, ruffians, invaders. There are also fishing boats, coastal travel, and water-creatures / water-mounts going around the Bay. Islands dot the mouth of the Bay. Sea cliffs line the sides in many places, along with a river delta, swamp lands, and a few beaches. Portlandio & Cold Marsh & Deep Marsh & abandoned mansion are all locations along a protected harbor on an inlet ("Portlandio Bay" 30 miles x 10 miles), that juts off a large bay ("The Bay" is about 75 miles x 40 miles), which connects directly to a big ocean ("Atlantic Ocean"). The Bay, the entire larger Bay fits under the "e" in the word are , in the phrase "You are here" on this global graphic. That's all the "Atlantic" Ocean above-and-below the word You . I made the entire world map. The homebrew world is approximately the same size as Earth. The continent that you're on, housing The Bay, is about the land size and climate of Canada (except with Atlantic ocean all along it's southern border in place of the Great Lakes and the States). We can meet up one day this week, or at the start of game session time next week. I am always happy to show more of the regional, continental, and world maps in the game. There can be clues and adventures gleaned from simply gazing at the maps.They're particularly relevant to the migrations of elves over generations, epochs, the locations of the orc armies, dwarf doors that they are not answering lately, lizardman colonies, sea elves in the water, and human migrants criss-crossing the globe. Sandoval feels that ... a) we question Ned, and b) we check the situation outside with the guards that we've posted there. Outside Report Kryikh quickly goes upstairs and calls out the patio door to Fergal Leprechaun and Mitel Elf, the NPC guards posted outside. They saw Jade go outside, but no one else has come or gone in the hours they've been guarding. Night has fallen. Scary sounds are outside. Fergel is frightened. They heard howling (of a ghost? Or a wolf? Or the ocean wind?). They heard the creaking of wood and metal from the gate. The only clue Mitel the Elf was able to identify before sunset: some old footprints outside the abandoned mansion. There are tracks of a horse & cart & men with boots leading from the back door of the house, around and out to the driveway. The prints and tracks could be several weeks old, and are indistinct and inconclusive. In The Cellar Q&A with Ned Inside Jaxon continues to pray to Zeus over the death of his fellow cleric (and recovering from Airen burning the parasitic worms called "rot grubs" off his arm). Torvald and Sandoval question Ned (PICTURED) , while Airen looks on as supervisor. Here are some questions that Sandoval would like to ask Ned: How is it possible there's a bunch of pirates who've set up shop in the mansion without Ned knowing of it? He must've known.. He is either with them, or has been paid to protect the secret. If Ned does not confess to this, we should search his body. Either way it's probably a good idea to search him. You search Ned, and find a hidden dagger, and 22 GP. No special clues. Ned denies knowing anything about the pirates or their trap-door from inside the house. He says he is the gardener, like a grounds-keeper who works in the yard outside the house, and his employer is the absentee property owner who lives in-town in Portlandio. Ned never goes inside, and for that matter the property owner (Ned's boss) rarely comes to the old house. "We shouldn't be in here", Ned repeats. The house is in disrepair and he's been told that people shouldn't be there. Most people who come to the house-area are vandals, robbers, or thrill-seekers (due to the haunted reputation). Ned typically tells anyone he meets in the yard that they should leave the property. "You shouldn't be here". He says he has never been inside like this, and didn't recognize those pirates. He seems to be telling the truth. There might be more to the mystery, but Ned is a low-level pawn, so he does not know much. Did Ned notice Jaxon's friend enter the mansion? If so, why did he let him enter? If not, how could he have entered without Ned knowing? What could've killed him and was Ned involved? Ned says he did not see the cleric enter the house. Ned isn't always on the grounds. He travels to the town, for days at a time. When pressed Ned will say he saw "lights going through the house at night" and he didn't know what caused the lights. Now he thinks it was the cleric exploring, rather than a haunting. It was raining and a thunderstorm that night, and it may have been lightning reflecting in the windows. What could have killed this cleric? Ned suggests it may have been fright (from the rumored hauntings), or a fall on the rotten wooden floorboards, that killed the lone cleric. "The house is in disrepair. It could be dangerous to be in here. We shouldn't be in here." Ned repeats. Why did Ned, who has only been urging us to leave the mansion so far, want us to go through the hidden door, only to attack us right afterwards and try to get us out again? He probably thought it would mean our death if we went through that door. What did he think was there? What danger was supposed to be awaiting us? Did he know of the dead cleric? The reason Ned says --- He thought it would lead to a way out. He could encourage the party to leave the mansion, and go outside. The real reason you figured out (Successful Perception check) --- Ned figured he could mug someone if he got you alone. He could hit you, possibly take your treasure, and run away. If Ned confesses to having ties to the pirates, we should question him on what that magical, commanding voice was. Although we were initially convinced it was a living creature, it might've just been some sort of alarm/trap that was set up. We should also find out if there are more pirates here, and if they might return soon. It seems the magical commanding voice frightened Ned too. You decide it may have been a magical trap voice, or it may have been a powerful pirate bellowing from below. Ned says more pirates aren't the only worry. He reminds you of flesh-eating worms, broken glass, rotten floorboards that can fall through, fire hazards, lightning strikes, haunted sounds, and simply the fact we don't own this house (his boss owns it). "We should just go back outside, sleep it off and talk about it tomorrow" said Ned in conclusion. Hans I'll award your Journal XP later, in case you still want to edit or add another response this week.
