2.1: Preliminary Planning

Session 2 (July 31st, 2015) 

Day 1 in New Sarnath  (Evening)

Thanus

During his pleasant if rather simple dinner with Hadrian, ranking scholar of the University of Mount Doyle's New Sarnath branch, and the university's help, Thanus brings the conversation around to expedition funding. He explains that his group plans on exploring the ruins of the lower city but are low on capital and permits can be expensive.

Would the university be interested in backing such an endeavor?

Hadrian thinks it over and is on board with the idea as the university has not had an active "archaeological" team in sometime, not since (his face darkening) those bastards at the Imperial University started waving their pocketbook around.

Such funding is certainly within Mt. Doyle's budget of course, he continues, and there is also a small budget to pay for the acquisition of historical relics.

The deal is this: 10 percent of all proceeds from each expedition will be tithed to the university (in addition to the 10 percent that must be paid to the city as taxes) and the university has first claim on buying any recovered items at their appraised value.

If things go well and continue to do so, then perhaps later they could discuss terms about the university paying the party's way into scavenging rights for the hill.

Thanus agrees and a toast is made: The University of Mt. Doyle's New Sarnath branch is back in the relic hunting game and let those bastards from the Imperial University try to stop it!

Braggor

After learning about the Miner's Guild Braggor decides to scout out some potential locations for his own forge before making any acquaintances there.

He wanders the ramshackle streets of lower New Sarnath, past recently erected buildings and the patched  stone structures that had withstood the Doom, if barely. The past is in the past here and the buildings bustle with commerce and their owners thrive even if their poorer clientele do not.

Braggor continues on. As he continues south and west, closer to the barricade that divides the Doomed from the New, that feeling of prosperity and growth diminishes and here many buildings are still little more than decrepit stone and the new structures are shanties.  

Here the working poor live, those that are forced to live in squalor yet still find a way to pay their taxes so they can have the privilege to live within the barricade. There are rather fewer businesses here Braggor notes, but the city is growing. Eventually this area will join the rest of the prosperous city; the barricade will be moved further west, and the poor with it.

This are could be a good long term investment, thinks Braggor, as he sees the mostly intact remains of a moderately sized two story house. Perhaps it had once been the home of a moderately successful merchant, but now it is the den of  a group of squatters.

It certainly has a big enough down stairs area for a shop and display area, and the enclosed courtyard in back would be good for an actual forge. Braggor has found the location for his future business endeavors!

Vlad

Since his arrival in New Sarnath Vlad has been drinking. Heavily. His last bit of gold has gone to the owner of a dockside tavern called the Healthy Page as credit for food, shelter, and, of course, alcohol.

And so he sits and drinks and drinks and it is getting dark again. Another day successfully spent plotting his revenge and drowning coherent thought.

Around this time the bar is still fairly empty but the crowd is surely on its way. Now it is only Vlad and a few of the career alcoholics. Perhaps soon Vlad can count himself in their numbers.

Also around this time a dwarf walks in (Vlad thinks he recognizes him from in here yesterday) and talks to Lucky, the owner. Something about can't find his squire and if Lucky sees him he should tell him he's looking for him.

There seems to be a few slightly tense words between the two, but then the dwarf settles down and Lucky takes his money and pushes a bottle toward him before moving to the other end of the bar.

Vlad sees this, but really doesn't care. He is getting a brief moment of lucidity and he realizes that he can't go on the way he's going. It would dishonor the memory of his men, plus he also has no idea how much money he actually has left on credit in this joint.

He stumbles up to Lucky and inquires about work for a man of his caliber. The guns at his side clearly show what kind of work he means.

Lucky says he's glad Vlad is looking to get off his ass and do something besides act tough and then get his ass kicked while shitfaced drunk (he pours Vlad a drink as he says this as a show of good faith); he goes on to explain about the Free Companies taking on contractors, places needing guards, scavenging work outside the wall if you had a crew, and such things.

Vlad inquires about "other" work. Perhaps the less-than-legal kind. Lucky tells him that such talk isn't suitable for a respectable establishment like his (here he pours Vlad another drink to keep him calm), but maybe he knows of a place where men of a certain character met to discuss such matters.

Supposedly there is an establishment that sets up shop outside the barricade sometimes, though it's never in the same place each time. Supposedly the owner has some connections to certain people and the city guard would just love to know all about it.

Lucky doesn't know any more than that, but he does know the place is marked by a blue lantern. If you ever see one shining in the darkness beyond the barricade then you found the right place.

Figuring now is as good a time as any, he gets up with the intention of going beyond the barricade. Alone. At night. With no real idea where he is going. Vlad is drunk enough to consider this a good plan.

As he heads toward the door, the dwarf at the bar (seems he had been listening in) stops Vlad. He says his name is Braggor and that he is forming a scavenging crew.

As Vlad looks like he could be handy in a fight (if sober), he should consider joining (if not an idiot). They could use another man as one of theirs (Jake) seems to have run off. Be here in the morning if interested.

Vlad says he will think about it, and off into the night he goes. In his drunken state he never actually gets close to finding his way to the barricade, but he wanders the city and sees its inhabitants, at least those that also wander the darkened streets.

He sees some of the more disreputable folk about and the honest ones on their way home late, but the area seems to be fairly safe for a city after dark, especially around the docks. Very little obvious crime. Vlad is a little surprised by this, but as he rounds a corner, the reason becomes clear.

"Law and Order" in New Sarnath's Lower City

In an alley he sees a drunk on the ground getting savagely kicked by several laughing, joking men. The beating continues until the man on the ground stops moving.

They wear the bloody eagle, sigil of House Amathy, the Free Company contracted and legally empowered to supplement the New Sarnath city guard.

The ringleader spits on the body and tells not moving drunk that he was warned about being caught on this side of the barricade; if you are going to have the nerve to disobey your betters, at least be more discrete.

"I decided to let you off with a warning this time," the leader continues, "but one more infraction and into the mines you go. Have a safe and pleasant evening, citizen."

That gets some laughs from his soldiers. One of the men checks the "warned" man's pockets, finds nothing, and kicks him once more. With their first round of entertainment finished for the evening, the "guards" continue on their patrol.

Vlad watches the encounter impassively from the shadows and once the Amathy men leave, he approaches their victim. He himself doesn't really care about the man's fate, but he is broke. He does a more thorough check of the man for anything of value, but alas, nothing.

By now Vlad is sobering up and decides it would be best to return to the Healthy Page and get some sleep.

To be continued...