Trouble on the Great Hunt

The party begins the Great Hunt, but they run into an Orc ambush and make a new friend. They are then tasked with investigating this encounter by the leaders of Kelethin.

August 27th

The party meet Maesyn Trueshot just before dawn that headquarters of the Faydark's Champions. He explains the simple rules: contestants have until dawn of the third day to bring back as many live small animals, ceremoniously referred to as "kills", as they can. Winners will be those who capture the most. Each of them offers up their entrance fee:

• Arya offers several pelts she received as payment for her performances.
• Carlos offers up a prized amulet he has had for quite some time.
• Ellie offers an "artifact" she found: an empty wine bottle with a pretty label that says "the wizard of wine's winery."
• Yarver offers three glowing pebbles and a couple gold, though the glow of the pebbles wears off shortly after.

  As they head out to begin the hunt, Carlos spots a lone Goliath who he magically persuades into aiding them. The Goliath is convinced to share some of his haul with the party at the end of the day.   While the majority of the contestants head south, the party makes their way into the Greater Faydark north of Kelethin, despite warnings of possible orcs from Crushbone.   After several successful traps to catch a number of kills for the hunt, the party chooses to return to Kelethin to drop off their kills. Upon arrival, they also receive a few kills from the Goliath that Carlos spoke with earlier. Their first day fairly successful, they retire for the evening and agree to meet at dawn.  

August 28th

The following morning, they venture north into the forest once more. However, this time they choose to press even further so as to have less competition. After several hours of travel along the Caravan Road, they head deep into the forest. After some time, they come to a clearing with a young Halfling woman gathering kills of her own. Across the clearing, Arya catches a glimpse of an Orc training an arrow on the Halfling and darts out toward to save her. The rest of the party immediately leaps to her aid and a brief but fierce battle ensues.   The party easily overwhelms the small Orc ambush party, killing the majority of them but leaving the war chief alive. They decide to take him back to Kelethin for questioning figuring Maesyn would be interested. The rescued Halfling, Roswyn Weatherbee, thanks the party for their help and provides a set of manacles for the party to restrain the war chief. Yarver wild shapes to a pack horse and drags the Orc behind him on as they make their way back to Kelethin.   On the journey back, Carlos casts Charm Person on the Orc and they begin to question him using Ellie as a translator. He doesn't seem to know much, but they find out that there are several dozen Orcs in the Greater Faydark looking for slaves and supplies. They also hear some tall tales of the Orc leader, Emperor Crush; he's 20 feet tall, he wields a great axe in each hand, he wears the bodies of fallen orcs as armor, etc.  

September 1st

The party arrives back in Kelethin just after midnight. The moment they show up and the guards notice the Orc, they train their bows on it and order the party to halt. One of the guards fetches Maesyn to speak with the party. The party relay their questioning of the orc to Maesyn, who seems a little agitated.   The party is let back in the city, but the Orc is executed just outside of it. In gratitude, Maesyn gifts the party a yellow elemental gem and 100 gold to split. Fearing that they're going to also lose the Great Hunt, Carlos pleads with Maesyn to return his amulet entrance fee as it hold sentimental value. A bit disappointed, Maesyn warns him that actions have consequences as he returns the amulet.   Not ready for bed, the party spends some time at Myrissa's Tavern. Yarver asks for his cultural Jum Jum Juice, which he knows Myrisa carries in limited quantities, and shares it with Ellie. The rest enjoy the finest elven mead in Kelethin. Ellie has a bit too much and becomes a little obnoxious, and Roswyn drinks until her exhaustion catches up with her. Myrisa warns them to be careful on their travels, the Faydarks are dangerous even for experienced adventurers.   The party eventually gets some rest and rises early to catch the festivities of the Great Hunt's final day. The whole city gathers near the ranger platform and Maesyn steps out to greet them. It turns out, the winner is the Goliath that Carlos charmed two days ago. They look to the forest floor where all of the animals have been placed. Maesyn releases the rabbits first, then the foxes sometime later. That signifies to the crowd that the time for celebration has arrived. The city erupts in festivities and the shops are filled with people.   The party takes this time to do some local shopping. Yarver, specifically, looks for a potion shop. He is sent to a shop named "Potions by Ueass." Ueaas knows his name is difficult to say for foreigners, so he refers to himself simply as "U." A true hater of Orcs and having heard of the party's exploits, he offers Yarver a decent discount on several potions and gives him a couple vials of acid. He also adds that if they can bring him proof of several Orcs slain, he may have other rewards for them.   While the others shop, Arya and Carlos put on a show in the shopping center of the city. He tells an elaborate and exaggerated story of their encounter with Emperor Crush. Rumors start to spread of Crush being sighted near the city.   Later in the afternoon, Yarver is summoned to see his mentor, Belgo Crancake, at the druid guild hall. He leads the party there, and on arrival they see Maesyn, Belgo, and the druid guild master Kelolan Heartwood discussing something. It turns out that the two guild masters are worried at the thought of Orcs this close to the city. They ask the party to assist them and perform some reconnaissance of the forest north of Kelethin. The party agrees and is outfitted with initial funds and a couple magic items to aid in their endeavor. They spend the day purchasing provisions and preparing for the task ahead.