Castle Brackenwold

Monolithic's OSE game
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monolithic
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Castle Brackenwold

Post by monolithic »

Frisk, 19th day of Harchment (High Spring)

Castle Brackenwold

With a bellowing cry that rang over the din of creaking wheels, the sound of oxen and the sharp cracks of whips, so did the long snaking line of ponderous wagons come to a rolling halt. Finally! What started weeks ago that found your fortunes tied to a caravan west to a distant frontier of the kingdom that made its way over mountain passes and the plains of the great Sea of Grass has come to its end. It is the middle of the afternoon as the dust of the trek settles down and the four of you group together. Once strangers, you have all become friends during the long journey, hired out as guards for the caravan.

The caravan master, a thick chested plug of a man with a huge dropping moustache named Doggersea sits at a table erected by one of his clerks, a locked metal bound chest next to him. You get in line and when your turn comes, Doggersea growls in that deep voice of his as he counts out from stacks of coins. "Five silver a day's wages for twenty-three days, that's eleven gold an' five silver. Thank you for serving the Skegwit & Tumultide Trading Company. If Brackenwold and the Dolmenwood ain't to yer likin' I'll be taking a new caravan back in a fortnight's time. I'll be glad to take you on then. Just so you know, it's the Festival of St. Hoargrime today. A lot of fun to be had, but be wary of cutpurses. Och, 'fore I forget, plenty of places to eat and drink but you'd do well to stay away from the Poppy Cock. Just take me word fer it,eh? Next!"

Beyond the caravan, the road leads up to a what you hear later is called the Sunken Gate. The gate is somewhat beneath the wall and the wide path descends 20' on either side with a broad tunnel between with a portcullis in the middle.

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badams30
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

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Whispering Bill - Fighter

Bill collects his coin and stows it safely under his tunic, nodding in appreciation. He then steps aside, hefts his axe over his shoulder and takes in the sights as his colleagues collect their coin.

As he warily eyes the surroundings he says "Maybe time to find a decent place to lay our heads for the night and see if there's some work to be had. Maybe we kin' find someone to give us some suggestions." Always popular with curious children, Bill looks for any wandering youth who might want a coin for some information.

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merias
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by merias »

Agreed, Bill. Let's head into town and see what we can find.

Zoful too thanks the caravan master, stowing his belt pouch and newly found wealth inside his robes. He heads towards the gate.

Love the inspirational art!

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mythictom
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by mythictom »

"Cheers, mate," Corbain says as he stows his coins in his jerkin.

"Who's up for the Poppy Cock?" the elf asks with a smirk.

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greyarea
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by greyarea »

Dohram thanks the cavern master, Blessings upon you, my son. An honest wage for honest work. Work that I'd prefer not to repeat, but I raise all suffering to God. Thank you for the long nights listening to me teach you about the Lord.

He points towards the Sunken Gate and says, Shall we, my fellow travellers? I believe we may find work here.

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jcftao
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

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Jory "Sump" Feldspar tucks his beard into his belt and looks nervously at the open sky. He still can't understand how humans can walk leisurely about from here to there with no roof over their head. Jory wonders if some of them don't just float off into the sky. Give me a good hardrock tunnel, something I can bump me head against to remind me where I belong. Aye, that's the life for me.

Jory stops his ruminations to collect his gold. He tucks it into his boot and thinks instead of how parched his throat is.

"Let's leave this procession of ill smelling beasts and settle into some victuals and a good measure of ale!"

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monolithic
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by monolithic »

Once paid and with the weight of earned coin hanging from your belts (or tucked away about your person), the party makes their way to the Sunken Gate. Making your way down the slope, there are eight guards clad in mail with black, unicorn-emblazoned tabards standing within either side of the gate. They seem disinterested, resting against the walls or holding on to their halberds as people come and go. Once through you stroll up and now find yourselves within the walled city of Brackenwold. The streets are filled with people here for the festival. A troupe of performers pass by you in costumes of red and white diamond patterns and painted faces. One lurches by on stilts, another juggles torches of fire, while another showcases her skills in acrobatics. One troupe member blows fire from his lips as another stops and swallows a slender sword! Kids squeal with glee while older people clap and laugh.

There are stalls everywhere with merchants hawking and selling just about anything one can imagine. There are those clearly dressed as from outside the walls, those who look, smell and sound like those from the deep, dark woods just beyond. These sell herbs, spices, and all manner of mushrooms. You've never seen such a variety of mushrooms and if one can believe those selling them, they can cure all kinds of ailments, bring untroubled sleep, fabulous dreams, and much more.

Turning onto another main boulevard, the crowds are more quiet as a procession of friars makes their way chanting in the Liturgic tongue of the Church of The One True God (Of which Dohram can speak and read). A friar in front of the procession carries a rather large tome, the holy book of the Church while a gold gilt palanquin is being carried by a host of believers (Dohram would know that inside the palanquin is a holy relic, perhaps a finger bone or a tooth that supposedly once belonged to Saint Hoargrim's person). Here the smell of incense is quite noticeable.

Nearby is a huddle of youths and one detaches from them to approach Corbain acting as if on a dare. "Oi, you there...you look like a fairy but you don't look all posh and muckity muck like the faery are. You ain't got on airs an' such. So wot are ye?"

For the record, Common is replaced by Woldish and clerics like Dohram know Liturgic, a language not really spoken beyond church sermons.


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mythictom
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by mythictom »

"I'm an Elf, kid," Corbain snarks back.

"Now off with ya before I put a woogly-boogly on ya," he says while leaning forward and wiggling his fingers next to his face as a mock threat before laughing and waving the kid back to his pack.

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jcftao
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by jcftao »

Sump shakes his head sadly at the human children, '"You children lost? I think I hear your wet nurse calling...We've no time for your idle taunts!"

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badams30
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Re: Castle Brackenwold

Post by badams30 »

Whispering Bill - Fighter

Bill shakes his head at the noisy display, mumbling "peace and quiet... that's all I ask for." He motions for the kids to come over. He taps the handle of his large battle axe on the ground for emphasis and says "a couple coins for ya' if you can tell me a nice place to rest and eat at, or for men of our skills to be finding work. And don't be tellin' me the Poppy Cock, if ya' value some coins..."

Bill will pull out the 5 silver that he was just paid and rattle it around in his hand, giving it to the kids if their info pleases his ear and is accompanied by directions.

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