Essel, Malarous 11th, 868 ID
After awakening, the PCs gather some supplies and prepare to hit the road once more for Tarair. Outside, Odd Jon questions the faith of Luz, who then proceeds to begin preaching in town, near the mad, babbling vagrant they encountered the day previous. Since he has very little idea of even his own religion, the babbling beggar maintains the attention of the crowd, who pity him and shower him with copper coins. Enraged, Luz makes as if to smash in the beggar's skull, but Langston and Odd Jon stop him in the act. Meanwhile, Betrys is mistaken for an armored harlot by Mudgol's 'roommate' the night before, a cloth-swathed two-hand sword wielding warrior who introduces himself as 'Baxter'. Betrys turns down the offer of coin for a gauntleted handjob...
After stopping in at Hosspotch Holdings for supplies, Langston pulls his troop together and they travel ever East. As the DM could not locate his random encounter tables, the journey went smoothly through the remainder of the Blue Barrens, with the PCs camping a few miles off from the Eastern Toll of the Fogspan.
Ivric, Malarous 12th, 868 ID
In the morning, they arrived and met with the Taxmaster Niffleguff, who lectures them on the rules of their crossing. Then the PCs travel for several hours until they find a dead, beheaded body and various signs of struggle and damage to the bridge. Char marks in the wooden surface. Searching the body, they find that the dead man carried a writ of the Gorgers' Guild, inspectors and carpenters who patrol and repair the Fogspan. They decide to take his body.
A mile or so later, the PCs are ambushed by a pair of small black dragons, who instantly use their acid breath in conjunction to wreak havoc in the ranks. Darkahn's animal companion Bloodwing and Betrys Othen are both slain in the encounter, but they manage to kill the sister dragon and then drive off the younger brother in defeat. Slab searches around and discovers a nest and treasure cache suspended below the Fogspan in that general vicinity, made of ivy, plants from the Gorge below, tattered rags and corpses. Bones, coins, and several valuable items lie about, including a scroll, a bone wand, and a buckler. They take the goods with them, including a strange leathery sphere, and then decide not to light the nest ablaze, as it might damage the bridge and attract the young dragon's mama. Sad at the loss of the priestess, they trek on several more hours to Wattlewinch.
When they arrive, Slab instantly pounds a bottle of Braulish whiskey he purchased at the House on the Barrens in Traeger. He becomes roaring drunk in short order, pissing off just about everyone. Langston returns the body of the dead Gorger, 'Mildrix' to the Guild, who offer him a reward and take the news of the dragons. They also speak with Lt. Despon, the local Fourth Eidolorn leader. He takes Betrys' remains to be interred at a graveyard down in the Gorge. Then they head to Cuffer's Cup, a run down, rotting alehouse and inn from which Slab is very quickly dejected for excess rowdiness. Slab the Inebriated, Luz and Langston all stay at the Fourth Eidolorn barracks while Mudgol and Darkahn take rooms at the cup, as does Odd Jon, after unsuccessfully trying to hunt rats for a new stew...
Evalais (Saint's Day), Malarous 13th, 868 ID
The PCs awaken, Slab severely hung over, to discover that the warrior Baxter the Mighty has arrived, the cloth-armored man Betrys and Mudgol encountered in Traeger. He has a flock of followers, who are excited to meet him, mostly children but some adults. Turns out Baxter will be competing in a friendly fighting competition at the city of Tarair, hosted by Commander Vhelok of the Fourth Eidolorn. Several slots are always held for skilled warriors outside of the Eidolorn, so Vhelok can test his troops' abilities against versatile fighting forms. The PCs attempt to hire Vhelok but he is too costly, and humbly declines. They then head over to Slute the Lender in order to try and pawn the treasures they've found, and he offers a lump sum, plus a pearl and 7500 gold (a veritable fortune) for the 'leathery sphere', i.e. black dragon egg. After Slab goes to Cuffer's Cup to apologize to the barkeep, he meets up with Langston and the PCs who have already left. After clearing the Gorge at last, they enter the Grazelands of Toul Tabor, stopping briefly to take tea and purchase potions off a traveling gnome apothecary, D'Loss Tarr of the Bederoon.
PCs: Betrys, Darkahn, Langston, Luz, Mudgol, Slab
NPCs
Baxter the Mighty (male human): A large human with impressive jowls, he wears only black cloth armor padded about his figure, and wields a two-handed sword. Baxter is something of a celebrity in Toul Tabor, at least in villages surrounding the city of Tarair. He is known for his competitive fighting, and is often present at Commander Vhelok's fighting tournament in the city, where he is headed when the PCs encounter him twice...
Brackenmaw (male black dragon): A young black dragon 'defending' its nest from passersby on the Fogspan, he and his sister Ebonrood laid an ambush for the PCs during their crossing to Wattlewinch. Brackenmaw escaped the battle, flying down to the cover of Foggy Gorge, though heavily wounded.
Cuffer (human male): The barkeep and proprietor of Cuffer's Cup in Wattlewinch, the run down, rotting local inn and tavern. Looks to be in his 50s or later, with a massive underbite and fading crop of messy white hair. Cuffer knows local rumors and doesn't take any crap, as Slab discovers on a drunken stampede after the loss of Betrys.
D'Loss Tarr (gnome male): A tiny man with a frilly crimson shirt over black silk breeches and a leather top hand adorned in brass belts drives a large pair of burly, baying hounds along the road, from the front of a gaudy miniature wagon. Bells, lanterns and other accessories jangle and shine from the cart, and the balding gnome grins a lot from between wispy white mutton chops. An incredibly polite traveling apothecary from Melethesz who encounters the PCs en route to Tarair on the Great Westermarch road in the Grazelands. After sharing lemon tea, he sells the PCs some curative potions.
Ebonrood (female black dragon): A young black dragon 'defending' its nest from passersby on the Fogspan, she and her brother Brackenmaw laid an ambush for the PCs during their crossing to Wattlewinch. Ebonrood was slain during the fight, hurled off the bridge by a volley of magic missiles from Mudgol, but not before slaying Betrys and Darkahn's hawk Bloodwing in the encounter.
Jordyn Hosspotch (halfling male): An incredibly fat halfling adorned in fine garments of the merchant class, he has beady eyes and incredibly rare, sandy blond hair for his race. Jordyn runs the Hosspotch Holdings trade post in the mining town of Traeger in Toul Tabor.
Lt. Despon (human male): A stoic, middle-aged, droopy eyed soldier in the Fourth Eidolorn, he commands the detachment at Wattlewinch.
Mildrix (human male): An inspector for the Gorgers' Guild in Wattlewinch, he was slain while performing a routine sweep of the Fogspan for defects and damages. An earlier victim of the black dragons who later fell upon the PCs. Lt. Langston returned his corpse to the Guild and earned a small reward for his troubles.
Slute the Lender (human male): An almost skeletal looking human with numerous sores and false teeth, he is also bald and wears a fancy cap. The PCs question whether he's even alive, but Slute deals a lucrative business in buying, trading and pawning both legal and illicit items out of Wattlewinch. He purchases the black dragon egg the PCs found, reaping them a small fortune.
Taxmaster Niffleguff (halfling male): He's the toll-taker on at the East side of the Fogspan in Foggy Gorge, Toul Tabor. A robust halfling male of 50 summers, he wears a wide mantle and flowing gold-spun cape along with his glittery, white and gold robes, giving himself a broader sense of authority. Too-small, green tinted spectacles are perched on his upturned nose, and wisps of white hair adorn a neatly trimmed goatee. A pair of jewel hilted daggers are tucked into his belt, and a few scars grace his chin and fingers, the left pinky of which has been removed, though the half-dozen rings on each hand draw the eyes away.
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