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The World of Georic 1989-Present

Tuesday, February 18, 2020

Lost Dispatches of Feraso #64 - Into the Heart of Darkness

19th of HepDec - Town of Dunzig, Gran Duchy of Markovia
My plan to refill my soul and my body with food and rest succeeded.  If I come back here a revisit to the Rose and Gauntlet is in order.  It was a beacon of light in a seedy port town.

Alas, before lunch was even a thought, the warm reception of the Rose and Gauntlet switched to swordfighting in the streets.

The Duke of Markovia, Jakob von Manhoffen, had recently passed away under mysterious circumstances.  His son, Hartwig was the uncontested heir, but had earlier gone off to remote Dwarven country to find some fabled stash of jewels.  A search party  had found evidence of his demise at the hands of orcs.  This search party wasn't the trio of adventurers I was seeking, but a few questions about a suit of armor that ate human flesh confirmed they had been another search party in the area.

But before I could prep for my journey, I was accosted by not one, but two bands of street thugs.  Street toughs, neighborhood militias, and even lesser nobles were pledging their allegiance to the various power brokers in the Duchy.  These two gangs were working for various mining companies that Duke Jakob had given free reign in parts of the country.  If by the mettle of theses street grunts, the Afgrund Mines and the Grand Metallic Mining Consortium were very late in assembling power along the coasts.  Despite being outnumbered twelve to one, I managed to slay five of the hoodlums before the town guard came and chased the others away. Then in a act of treachery I reserve for the lands of the elves, the town guard attempted to shake me down for coins to pay for their services.   I discovered later that the town guard was under the payroll of Duke Jakob's sister, Gretchen von Manhoffen, who was vying for her late brother's throne.  I've never tolerated bandits and thieves working under the aura of authority, and a quick sword strike thrust into a guardsman's heart scattered the rest.

Apparently, actively brandishing a sword nets you some tranquility into what has turned out to be a lawless town.

24th of HepDec - Village of Greenfalls, Gran Duchy of Markovia
Following up on my leads about the trio, I've reached Greenfalls, a small human village that's a trading outpost for the nearby Dwarves of Ironkeep.  Most remember an obnoxious noblemen, followed by an almost obnoxious search party of a mage, a dwarf, and a creepy guy with moving armor.  No one remembers the search party that found Hartwig afterwards.  Peculiar.

I ran into a Dwarven foot patrol as I continue to push into the mountains.  Brandishing a sword in this land makes others provide a wide berth. They would certainly be a challenge compared to those gangs in Dunzig, but the lands need the patrols to deter the orcs festering in the shadows.

This is the part of the lifestyle I couldn't quite capture as a young scribe.  As an old man, it vacillates between liberating and annoying...

GM Notes:
Into the Heart of Darkness was published in White Wolf Magazine #19 as a generic fantasy adventure with the TSR serial numbers filed off.


The group botched this adventure as well, and with a time element, things fell off the wheels early.  We'll see the results next week.


Next: #65 - The Birth of a Kingdom

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