We had a short session this week as one player was away and a couple more had to leave early. But here is episode two.
We left our heroes surrounded in the street by corrupt watchmen with Sergeant Hill demanding they hand over the Cryxian Cortex. Needless to say the team didn’t want to cooperate and when Hill’s men moved forward a fight broke out.
Dib gets things started by throwing a knockout grenade at Sergeant Hill’s feet, which manages to knock out one of his bodyguards. Captain O’Hare and Sergeant Hill immediately square off and spend most of the fight ducking and dodging each other’s attacks. Pal decides to stick with the wounded Golden Crucible Guard, so they can both benefit from their Defensive Line tactics He also uses his stone magic to crush a rifle-armed watchman under a pile of stone roof tiles. In a side alley Alexis holds her ground against another assailant but her ranged attacks are largely shut down in the close quarters. Lalrii covers the party’s back, cutting down a pair of watchmen with his Nyss Claymore and then moving to help Alexis.
The party proves too strong for Hill and his watchmen and it isn’t long until all their attention is focussed on the Sergeant who falls in turn.
In the early morning light the party decides to flee the scene before any more witnesses arrive. After the events of last night they are no doubt being sought by the authorities. They arrive at the Order of the Golden Crucible headquarters and lay low for a while.
As the morning drags on they are joined by the Order’s Chapter Leader Zerek Farlane who thanks the party for rescuing the guard and retrieving the Cortex. He assures them that the cryxian tech will be safely disassembled. He also proposes an investigation into Lieutenant Rourke’s Thamarite connections and promises to use his connections with the cities authorities to get their mercenary charter signed.
The party decides that a good place to start their investigation would be Rourke’s home as he should be out on patrol at this time of day. Dib (with an excellent streetwise roll) reveals that he has already scoped out Rourke’s house and leads the others straight there. He sneaks in the back door and gestures to the others that it is clear. Most of the party stands watch while O’Hare decides to join Dib inside. As he enters Cap’n (narrowly failing a sneak roll) knocks over a vase, which both he and Dib manage to catch (with agility rolls) before it crashes to the floor.
On the second floor the pair finds Rourke’s study which they quickly toss over. The only objects of interest they find are a pistol and ammo in a desk draw and a book of matches with a tavern’s logo printed on the back.
In the master bedroom the pair decide there must be a hidden safe. But the one they find (after very narrowly passing a detection roll) is trapped and begins to spew gas into the room.
O’Hare and Dib agree to get out as quickly as possible, but not before the Cap’n ducks into Rourke’s bathroom to do something unspeakable with his toothbrush.
With the matchbook and it’s logo for ‘the Lord’s Fall Tavern’ as their only lead the gang heads out once again.
The Lord’s Fall sits at the base of a waterfall which plunges down from Oldtown into a river which runs through Lowtown, out to the bay. As the party approaches they can see that it is a wide two-storied building with a veranda running along the top floor and shading the entrance. The clientele inside is mostly city watch and it’s hard to tell whether they’re off-duty or not. A small stage hosts a beautiful Trollkin exotic dancer and an all-Gobber three-piece band that is currently playing a traditional Trollkin song about family. Pal is quietly furious about the appropriation of the song for such a venue.
O’Hare bribes some information out of the barkeep, learning that Rourke is a regular at the Lord’s Fall and that he likes to spend evenings with the dancer on stage, who’s name is revealed as Selene Stonerose. Before the group can arrange a meeting with Selene she is ‘booked’ by a hooded figure who leaves with her out a back doorway. The path is blocked by a pair of Trollkin bouncers, one built like a mountain, the other wirey and scarred.
Once again Dib’s talents are needed and he works his way up to the veranda. Once there he sees Selene and the now-unhooded man, a bald Iosan with strange tattoos, speaking in one of the bedrooms. Through the window Dib cannot hear what they’re saying but witnesses a secret hallway being opened behind an armoire.
With this news repeated back to the group it is decided that Dib will cause a distraction upstairs to draw out the bouncers so the rest of the party can follow Selene down the secret hallway.
Dib climbs up onto the veranda once again and finds an empty room. Pulling the pin on one of his explosive grenades he tosses it inside and ducks for cover.