Red Moon Over Sartar Campaign

Summaries for February 11, 1996

To My Esteemed and Revered Uncle,

We're in a hell of a fix. To discuss what will matter to you most, the Prince has taken his personal forces {pretty much everyone in the Runegate fort garrison} and disappeared into the Upland Marsh in search of some Yelmi magic item apparently lost since the late EWF era. Don't know the details and he didn't consult me before doing it ... so I hope the item exists and he comes back alive with it.

This decision was partly responsible for the outbreak of a war between the Colymar and Lismelder tribes. Blackmoor, King of the Colymar, wanted to annex three Lismelder villages, and thought that it might be a good idea to attack while the Empire was in no position to stop him. This attack has, shall we say, not gone entirely as anticipated, though I don't know the details. It is probably not a good sign that the King is nominally besieged in the Colymar tribal fort, Tarkolor Keep. It is not the world's tightest siege, though, since we constables have been able to get into and out of the keep.

Anyway, we're now wandering around in a war zone, not my personal favorite activity, though it is highly unlikely that either side will have the gall to intentionally attack us. It is not, however, absolutely certain, since many of the locals seem to be short on foresight and long on alcohol.

As you will remember, when we came to Alda-Chur, Consulting Det. Severus and his scholarly friend were suffering from a certain spiritual affliction, and you lent us a shaman to protect them while we went off to cut a deal with the dryad. The dryad wanted her seeds back ... and Cons.Det. Severus flatly refuses to return the seeds he rode off with. So no progress has been made on that front. The shaman, quite reasonably, is tired of walking around protecting my companions, and wants to return to Alda-Chur, and eventually his village. My compatriots do not want to leave the protection the shaman offers, and not being in the army will probably soon be returning to Alda-Chur.

After failing to cut a deal with the dryad, we attempted to return to Swan. We were warned not to do so by an ignorant local, but disregarding his advice, pressed on. As sometimes happens, his was a remarkably well informed ignorance ... the way to Swan proved to be barred by large numbers of armed Lismelder tribesmen. As this tribe formerly owned the town we burned recently, and we constables had personally participated in a skirmish against them, it was deemed the better part of valor to retire. This retirement took us to Tarkolor Keep, where the rest of the constables were. Unfortunately, the commoner scholar's riding was not up to par, and he lost his horse and was forced to sneak into Takolor Keep on foot ... but he got there and the army can find him another horse.

Once inside Tarkolor Keep, the Colymar King proved reluctant to let us leave. A couple of days latter, though, a crime was discovered. Someone had made off with a chest of gems, an iron sword Inspector Ahmet had presented to the King of the Colymar, and a scroll. These had been stored in the Colymar King's treasury, a locked and barred room with two guards. The chief announced there would be a hanging at dusk ... and if we couldn't find the guilty, the purser who had the other key would be hung. The purser turned out to be well motivated and of much assistance.

Some investigation revealed a hole in the treasury, so designed as to block off the inside from normal magical detection. As best we can make out, the smith allowed his apprentice to talk him into a scheme where the smith let him into the treasury and he sneaked out with the gems and other loot. The apprentice appears to have been a non Colymar Trickster, who left his master behind as opposed to sharing the loot.

The mechanics of the scheme seem to have been pretty simple ... the apprentice hid in the hole, swiped the gems and scroll {apparently these were what he wanted} and the sword, which was nice and visible. When the Treasury was next opened, the disappearance of the sword was instantly noticed and one of the guards ran off to inform the king {with the purser}. The other guard was then distracted by some means best known to the Trickster, and the apprentice went straight out, dirching the sword, and over the wall. He then used a lie spell to dupe the besiegers {who kept us busy by trying to exchange the box and one gem for a sack of gold and silver} and skeddadled.

Anyway, the smith has been hung ... reasonably just because he did after all attempt to betray his king in a conspiracy with his apprentice, though he may also have been the victim of a lie spell. We're in hot pursuit of the Trickster, accompanied by five Lismelder warriors ... and have picked up one of the Lismelder who was tricked. The Warlord consented to his accompanying us, giving him to us to beat, torture and kill. I must confess we have so far disappointed the Lismelder warlord's expectations of us, and I'm even thinking of trying to recruit him.

I would feel happier, though, if I were sure the Trickster we're chasing is out of lie spells. My understanding of why even the Orlanthi are not enthusiastic about the Trickster is steadily increasing. Apparently the guy made off with serious loot, even if you assume that the claim of 40,000 silver worth is Orlanthi boasting, 20,000 or so silver is reasonably serious money.

May Our Glorious and Radiantly Conquering Moon Preserve Us,

Yr. Obedient Niece,

Yasna

Dear Scholar Lanak,

Having heard that you are the greatest living expert on the era of the Empire of the Wyrms Friends, though unworthy of you I humbly ask what you would wish to allow me to join you at Ironspike and study at your feet. We of the Empire seek to learn, and I am sure you do likewise, and though our deities are not in total agreement, we share a common purpose and a sharing of our knowledge may benefit us both.

Humbly and respectfully yours,

Lady Yasna of Carmania