BellaOnline Forums Hobbies and Crafts Role Playing Games RPG: The Inn of the Broken Sword (Scene 1)

"Goblins?" Randol said with a start. He rushed over to the fallen man, pulled a large leather bound book from his pouch, opened it and then touched the gash on Connor's side. He then said " Oro talo healo" and instantly the wound disappeared.

Connor was awakened. Randol put the book back in his bag and then asked Connor if he saw the Goblin Chief during his hunt.

The burly Benedict then shoved Randol out of the way. He then grabbed Connor and lifted him to his feet. "I have questions for this man first, Stranger. You can have what is left."

"Give him air, you two," Varian said. "He'll tell it in his good time, and sooner if we get an ale or two in him."

Connor stumbles to a stool at the bar, glad to have something at his back after his rough awakening and questioning. He downs the first ale Varian sets in front of him, and then sips at the second.

Connor looks at Randol. "Aye, the Goblin Chief was there, and about a thousand of his subjects. It's the biggest conclave of 'em I've ever seen."

"We'd gone across for the usual things," he continues. "Some of us chasing treasure, others glory, and others, like the boy Caleb, for reasons they chose not to share."

"We ran smack dab into the goblin conclave, and spent the time between then and now as their prisoners. I managed to escape, and had to swim the channel wounded to get back here."

There are murmurs throughout the bar. The impression newcomers get is that this is the first time anyone has managed the channel, which is full of odd tidal currents and jagged rocks, let alone wounded.

"I am more interested in helping this man" benedict says with unconcealed irritation."Answers can wait, this man cannot"

Randol was getting excited. He was close to the goblin chief but knew it would be a dangerous mission to go there on his own and he may have enough magic to keep himself alive but wasn't sure if it was strong enough to battle the conclave of goblins yet. Some of the elder goblins possess magic as well.

This was going to take some careful planning. He knew that he was going to have to free the prisoners as well if they were not dead already.

Derissa glanced back to Merry as the men shuffled over to the poor, wounded man. "Men," was all she smirked out. She spoke further with Merry for a brief moment, smiled and nodded her excuse and walked over to the ruckus crew. She glanced around the room and out of the door as she listened to the tales of goblins.

This man swam the channel...wounded. He could prove to be an asset. Or a disadvantage. The idea that he was lying tugged at her thoughts. She glanced back at Merry, then looked at Varian before shifting her gaze back to Connor. "How long did it take you? To swim the channel, I mean..."

Connor sips more ale, touching the spot on his side where his wound had been.

"Thank you," he nods to Randol as Derissa comes up and asks her question about the channel swim.

"How long?" He thinks for a moment, then shakes his head. "I have no idea. I wasn't all there for most of it, I think. I'm surprised I made it across at all, but I knew that I needed to warn everyone about the threat."

Suddenly he seems to remember that he hasn't, actually, warned anyone about anything. He springs to his feet, his ale forgotten.

"The goblins are going to attack! I don't know how, but we overheard them talking about what they'd do once Artesia fell. One did say something about 'walking to the island' when we told them they'd never get across the channel."

"And that isn't the worst of it," he says, sitting back on his stool, shoulders slumping.

"The worst of it is who is really behind the goblins, who is organizing them to this end."

All eyes are on Connor as he pauses for breath, and then as he exclaims and slaps at his neck as if bitten by a bug. His eyes roll back in his head, and he slides off the stool back onto the floor.

"The Magic Bridge." Randol said out loud to no one in particular. Everyone looked at him.

"What did you say?" Varian asked the stranger.

Randol was deep in thought and Varian asked him again.

"What!?...Oh, the Magic Bridge. There is a legend that the goblins can create a bridge or a road out of thin air that can go for miles. If this is true, then coming across the channel will be no problem for them."

Everyone just looked at Randol as if he was crazy and a few moments later they began to laugh at him.

"Magic bridge, right." someone said as he continued to laugh.
"Why not fly their magical giant birds?" another person said.

Angered by their laughter, Randol pulled out his magic book, flipped a couple of pages and said the words: "ARTER LANS ORTER"

There was a rumbling and ground shaking outside. When it stopped, people from the bar walked outside and were amazed to see a huge wooden bridge lining the street.

"Now if I can do it, why can't the goblins?" Randol said as-a-matter-of-factly. He then waved his hand and said, "AWAY" and the bridge disappeared into the ground from whence it came.

One man came up to him and said, "All right, if they do have a magic bridge, can you destroy it?"

"No, their magic is more powerful than mine as I am not a full sorceror yet. I am only an apprentice. My magic is basically just to help me on my quest. That wasn't even a real bridge. It was only an illusion but I made my point. Now I can do something like create an illusion of a dragon on their bridge or something and hopefully will scare them back but other than that, my magic is useless against theirs." Randol replied glumly as he put his book back into his leather pouch.

Varian leaves the shelter of the bar and makes his way through the throng of people discussing goblins and magic bridges, and squats beside Connor, who is laying on the floor where he dropped off the stool.

Varian checks Connor over, and stands, his face grim.

"Connor's dead," he says flatly, holding up a small dart. "This was sticking out of his neck."

Varian shakes his head, then gestures toward one of the regulars near the door. "You'd best get the watch, Malik." Malik runs out the door, presumably to fetch the watch.

Randol wondered what Varian meant by the watch but quickly passed those thoughts off as he was more interested in the dart they found in Connor's neck.

"May I see that, Please?" Randol asked Varian. Varian slowly handed the dart to the stranger.
Randol looked it over carefully and even smelled it. He became incensed and grumbled, "Goblins."

"What did you say?" Varian asked him.
Randol pocketed the dart and said, "The dart came from the goblins. They have a special poison that they put on the tip and it usually works quicker than this. Almost instantly. They must have put a reduced strength on this one and let him escape so he could warn us about them."

"Warn us about what?" Varian asked curiously.
Randol looked at him and said ominously, "The goblins are coming and they mean business."

[The end of scene 1 is approaching, so if there are any last minute character interactions you want to have, do them now. The scene will end with the city watch arriving and questioning everyone in the tavern about the events leading up to Connor's death.

I've also started a thread for planning scene 2. Posts in that thread will not be in character, but just all the players discussing what to do next. Once we have mostly a consensus, we'll move to scene 2.]