UT01: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
General Summary
A small young woman dressed in a simple tunic is walking through a field. She pulls her hood over her long dark auburn hair as the cold winter wind picks up. A weary Tonks Nïhlson has been traveling around the Cocker mountains for several weeks. She’s found nothing new to aid her quest, and is feeling depression set in.
Traveling west, she comes across a large field with several sets of beehives in the far corner. Past the hives, she spies what looks like a small town, the shops spread out far apart and few people milling around. Walking past the building near the hives she spots a sign post outside a larger building that reads "The Dancing Donkey". Assuming it to be an establishment of food and drink, she steps inside.
As it is early afternoon, the place is almost empty save for a teenager manning the bar and a bard tuning his lute. The boy bartender offers her a drink and lets her know that food is about an hour away. She accepts the ale and takes a seat at the bar, letting out a long, frustrated sigh.
A young halfling lays down his hammer after putting the final touches on the set of cutlery he’s been working on. Rhol Colbrood (Red to his friends) appreciates having work to do, but he’s getting bored of the basic blacksmith jobs that come his way. It’s important work he knows, but he longs for something more exciting to work on. The head blacksmith Binfurr pokes his head in and tells him to finish up and deliver the cutlery. He picks up his things and walks his wares over to the Dancing Donkey where he’s warmly greeted by the young barman Arnold. They exchange pleasantries and Red delivers the freshly sharpened cutlery as Arnold pours him a drink in thanks. He sits himself down at the center of the bar, chatting with Arnold who asks if Red has seen his father.
The roommate of young Juliana
Is studying herbs and Arcana
Hiding her face
She exits their place
She’s hungry and wants a lasagna Entering the Dancing Donkey, Shannon Roxley pulls her cloak around her, trying not to draw attention to herself. Although wearing a simple peasant’s dress, she carries the air of having been born into a higher station. She spots a few regulars and sees the local bard Thallon taking the stage, too obviously trying to woo a young girl in the front. An affable and familiar halfling sits at the bar chatting with Arnold as she approaches and asks for a drink.
Uriel Astra is bone tired from cleaning all day. Fixing up that old church was proving to be a formidable task even for an accomplished Aasimar such as himself. What kind of godless vandals had wrecked that beautiful building? “What jerks,” he thinks to himself. He enters the Dancing Donkey, orders a goat's milk from Arnold and takes his usual seat at the end of the bar. He was only assigned to this parish recently and has been in town less than a week. The locals were taking some time to warm up to this 6’8” 350 lb behemoth of a cleric with red skin, black eyes, and long blonde hair. So he enjoys sitting with them at the end of the day and listening to their conversations in an effort to ingratiate himself. He also spots a few regulars, but his attention is quickly drawn to the young woman sitting at the bar near the halfling blacksmith. She looks familiar, but he can’t place where he knows her from.
It was getting late and Ozan Redberry had been traveling most of the day. Tracking this girl hadn’t been easy, the information Yaldra had given him was spotty at best. He’d spent a week aboard the Horizon Reacher listening to Captain Rondak grumble the whole trip about taking on passengers and some jerks who’d caused a boatload of trouble on several of his voyages. Upon reaching Aveton, he made his way down to Herthe as this was where a girl matching the description of his quarry had been spotted. Feeling both hungry and lucky, he stopped in at the Dancing Donkey for a bite to eat and to get the lay of the land. As soon as he enters the tavern, he smiles.
Shannon had just placed an order for food when she saw the man enter. He looked familiar but she couldn’t quite place him. A short man with brown hair and a bushy beard wearing white armor and a cape, he reminded her of a hero from her childhood stories. She was rather alarmed when he walked right up to her with a huge grin on his face. “Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?” Oz asked. Startled and wanting to keep the conversation quiet, Shannon pulled in closer to the man to reduce the likelihood of anyone overhearing. As she did, she looked into his eyes and recognition flashed in her mind. This was her old au pair, Oz Redberry. He had looked after her and her brother when they were children. She quickly surmised that this could mean trouble and asked what he was doing. He told her he had been looking for her ever since her mother and brother were taken. He didn’t know who took them, but had been hired by Yaldra to find her. He informed her that Yaldra had been arrested by Dax Ironfist and Lord Shield. She asks where his loyalty lies, to her or to her father Lord Mangdaor-Roth. He replies he is loyal to her, but she remains suspicious. The nature of their conversation drew the attention of Uriel, who after a few moments of watching suddenly recognized Shannon from the posters he’d seen about a missing princess. Realizing she may be in trouble, he approaches the two and offers his services and support. Arnold calls Shannon over as her food is ready. Oz raises an eyebrow when he sees her respond to the name “Shannon”, but he says nothing. A worried Arnold asks her if she’s seen his father Wolfgang. She inquires how long he’s been gone and Arnold says that he and Marcus left yesterday morning to track some animals in the woods, but he hadn’t yet returned. He was growing increasingly worried about him. Tonks had been moving over to Arnold to ask for another ale, but had become intrigued by his story. It had also perked the ears of Red who had been sitting at the bar the whole time. Tonks asked Arnold to explain further and he did. A few months ago, the town had been destroyed by a series of unnatural events that centered around the church. The townspeople were decimated, sorrowsworn and ghouls roamed the streets and there was even a large dinosaur that was seen roaming about. Since then, the remaining townsfolk had been gradually trying to rebuild and get Herthe back to its former glory. Unfortunately they still didn’t have a miller and that was making it hard to draw people in. His father Wolfgang had been acting as a de-facto mayor of the town. Since there were less people, the wildlife had become emboldened, often stealing supplies and killing livestock. When it was reported that some wolves had been seen sneaking around the old game trails behind the meadery, Wolfgang and the young butcher Marcus had decided to head off into the woods and to try to trap them. Arnold is almost in tears as he tells them his story. The group around the bar decide to take action. As Oz accompanies Shannon back to her house to get changed and drop off supplies to her librarian roomate, the rest of the group chat more with Arnold and others in the tavern. Rabbard Crancher, his wife Lily and their nephew Samuel are eating dinner at a nearby table. Rabbard tells them he’s seen at least 2 wolves himself behind the meadery and rumor has it that there are creatures even bigger than a wolf around also. Oz and Shannon return and the group head out. Tonks leads the way as they head north of the meadery, tracking up to the base of a hill with a clearing ahead. The animal tracks are abundant but no human prints are on the ground. At the edge of the clearing she can make out drag marks that look recent. They notice movement to the left. Fearing what may lie ahead she reaches into a small rust-colored pouch from her hip, pulls out a furry little ball and throws it onto the ground. The entire group goes wide-eyed as the tiny fur ball grows into a large brown bear. She commands the bear to scout out to the movement on the left, and it reports back that there are two wolves near a cave. Oz quickly sends a fireball their way. It misses them but scares them to run back into the cave. The group quickly dispatch the wolves, but then hear a cry from deeper inside the cave “Help us! There’s two more!” Entering the cave further, they are set upon by a large Warg and a Dire Wolf. Another missed fireball lights up the back of the cave where they see Wolfgang and Marcus hiding out on a rock platform, high enough to be out of reach, but looking pretty weak and hungry. They clear out the cave and rescue Wolfgang and Marcus who tell them they had discovered the cave and were already inside when the wolves came back and trapped them there. They notice in the far side of the cave is a simple cave drawing on the wall of a family, a boy, and a bear. Underneath the bear is written a single word: “Honeybear”.
A young halfling lays down his hammer after putting the final touches on the set of cutlery he’s been working on. Rhol Colbrood (Red to his friends) appreciates having work to do, but he’s getting bored of the basic blacksmith jobs that come his way. It’s important work he knows, but he longs for something more exciting to work on. The head blacksmith Binfurr pokes his head in and tells him to finish up and deliver the cutlery. He picks up his things and walks his wares over to the Dancing Donkey where he’s warmly greeted by the young barman Arnold. They exchange pleasantries and Red delivers the freshly sharpened cutlery as Arnold pours him a drink in thanks. He sits himself down at the center of the bar, chatting with Arnold who asks if Red has seen his father.
The roommate of young Juliana
Is studying herbs and Arcana
Hiding her face
She exits their place
She’s hungry and wants a lasagna Entering the Dancing Donkey, Shannon Roxley pulls her cloak around her, trying not to draw attention to herself. Although wearing a simple peasant’s dress, she carries the air of having been born into a higher station. She spots a few regulars and sees the local bard Thallon taking the stage, too obviously trying to woo a young girl in the front. An affable and familiar halfling sits at the bar chatting with Arnold as she approaches and asks for a drink.
Uriel Astra is bone tired from cleaning all day. Fixing up that old church was proving to be a formidable task even for an accomplished Aasimar such as himself. What kind of godless vandals had wrecked that beautiful building? “What jerks,” he thinks to himself. He enters the Dancing Donkey, orders a goat's milk from Arnold and takes his usual seat at the end of the bar. He was only assigned to this parish recently and has been in town less than a week. The locals were taking some time to warm up to this 6’8” 350 lb behemoth of a cleric with red skin, black eyes, and long blonde hair. So he enjoys sitting with them at the end of the day and listening to their conversations in an effort to ingratiate himself. He also spots a few regulars, but his attention is quickly drawn to the young woman sitting at the bar near the halfling blacksmith. She looks familiar, but he can’t place where he knows her from.
It was getting late and Ozan Redberry had been traveling most of the day. Tracking this girl hadn’t been easy, the information Yaldra had given him was spotty at best. He’d spent a week aboard the Horizon Reacher listening to Captain Rondak grumble the whole trip about taking on passengers and some jerks who’d caused a boatload of trouble on several of his voyages. Upon reaching Aveton, he made his way down to Herthe as this was where a girl matching the description of his quarry had been spotted. Feeling both hungry and lucky, he stopped in at the Dancing Donkey for a bite to eat and to get the lay of the land. As soon as he enters the tavern, he smiles.
Shannon had just placed an order for food when she saw the man enter. He looked familiar but she couldn’t quite place him. A short man with brown hair and a bushy beard wearing white armor and a cape, he reminded her of a hero from her childhood stories. She was rather alarmed when he walked right up to her with a huge grin on his face. “Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?” Oz asked. Startled and wanting to keep the conversation quiet, Shannon pulled in closer to the man to reduce the likelihood of anyone overhearing. As she did, she looked into his eyes and recognition flashed in her mind. This was her old au pair, Oz Redberry. He had looked after her and her brother when they were children. She quickly surmised that this could mean trouble and asked what he was doing. He told her he had been looking for her ever since her mother and brother were taken. He didn’t know who took them, but had been hired by Yaldra to find her. He informed her that Yaldra had been arrested by Dax Ironfist and Lord Shield. She asks where his loyalty lies, to her or to her father Lord Mangdaor-Roth. He replies he is loyal to her, but she remains suspicious. The nature of their conversation drew the attention of Uriel, who after a few moments of watching suddenly recognized Shannon from the posters he’d seen about a missing princess. Realizing she may be in trouble, he approaches the two and offers his services and support. Arnold calls Shannon over as her food is ready. Oz raises an eyebrow when he sees her respond to the name “Shannon”, but he says nothing. A worried Arnold asks her if she’s seen his father Wolfgang. She inquires how long he’s been gone and Arnold says that he and Marcus left yesterday morning to track some animals in the woods, but he hadn’t yet returned. He was growing increasingly worried about him. Tonks had been moving over to Arnold to ask for another ale, but had become intrigued by his story. It had also perked the ears of Red who had been sitting at the bar the whole time. Tonks asked Arnold to explain further and he did. A few months ago, the town had been destroyed by a series of unnatural events that centered around the church. The townspeople were decimated, sorrowsworn and ghouls roamed the streets and there was even a large dinosaur that was seen roaming about. Since then, the remaining townsfolk had been gradually trying to rebuild and get Herthe back to its former glory. Unfortunately they still didn’t have a miller and that was making it hard to draw people in. His father Wolfgang had been acting as a de-facto mayor of the town. Since there were less people, the wildlife had become emboldened, often stealing supplies and killing livestock. When it was reported that some wolves had been seen sneaking around the old game trails behind the meadery, Wolfgang and the young butcher Marcus had decided to head off into the woods and to try to trap them. Arnold is almost in tears as he tells them his story. The group around the bar decide to take action. As Oz accompanies Shannon back to her house to get changed and drop off supplies to her librarian roomate, the rest of the group chat more with Arnold and others in the tavern. Rabbard Crancher, his wife Lily and their nephew Samuel are eating dinner at a nearby table. Rabbard tells them he’s seen at least 2 wolves himself behind the meadery and rumor has it that there are creatures even bigger than a wolf around also. Oz and Shannon return and the group head out. Tonks leads the way as they head north of the meadery, tracking up to the base of a hill with a clearing ahead. The animal tracks are abundant but no human prints are on the ground. At the edge of the clearing she can make out drag marks that look recent. They notice movement to the left. Fearing what may lie ahead she reaches into a small rust-colored pouch from her hip, pulls out a furry little ball and throws it onto the ground. The entire group goes wide-eyed as the tiny fur ball grows into a large brown bear. She commands the bear to scout out to the movement on the left, and it reports back that there are two wolves near a cave. Oz quickly sends a fireball their way. It misses them but scares them to run back into the cave. The group quickly dispatch the wolves, but then hear a cry from deeper inside the cave “Help us! There’s two more!” Entering the cave further, they are set upon by a large Warg and a Dire Wolf. Another missed fireball lights up the back of the cave where they see Wolfgang and Marcus hiding out on a rock platform, high enough to be out of reach, but looking pretty weak and hungry. They clear out the cave and rescue Wolfgang and Marcus who tell them they had discovered the cave and were already inside when the wolves came back and trapped them there. They notice in the far side of the cave is a simple cave drawing on the wall of a family, a boy, and a bear. Underneath the bear is written a single word: “Honeybear”.
Shannon Roxley
Ozan Redberry
Tonks Nïhlson
Rhol Colbrood
Uriel Astra
Report Date
25 Jan 2024
Primary Location