Gypsy Smugglers Wanted

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Summary

Adventure:   Gypsy Smugglers Wanted — On Purple
GM: Michael Parkinson
Session: Summer 816
Night: Wednesday
Location: Smith's Forge, Mangere Bridge
Level: Top end of medium, after an artificially low start

Party: Party must be genuinely human since illusions/disguises will not always work; 6 or 7 strong, although one or two hobbits may substitute for human. You will be infiltrating a treacherous smuggling conspiracy in the new Human empire (the one with the aerium aerships) — thus subject to DA, Telepathy, and other forms of high-level professional scrutiny, etc.
At the start of the mission, you will be in disguise as unsuspiciously low-level smugglers -- high ranks in skills/spells/weapons, weird high stuff, also (to an extent) memories, knowledge or attitudes/emotions you don’t want falling into the wrong hands or showing up on telepathy ... all will be safely packed away in almost indestructible "lockets" to be delivered to you later, a bit like soul-jars but not so On/Off.
It only takes seconds to reintegrate yourselves when you open your locket (and it only happens when you do it); although, obviously, it may take the Dwarves a few hours to get the lockets and your normal equipment to you depending on the circumstances.

Don't Panic: you will be given cover equipment and skills, including your native languages, and even a few fallacious memories, etc. Furthermore you may retain some of your personal, highly suspect, bizarre "talents" -- that is an expected tradition among the Gypsy-folk, not just guild-members.

No necromancers (It's Purple, duh!); no demon-worshippers, etc. Being a [pacted?] follower of Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, or Uriel might even sell your cover: If you can't even hid that shameful fact, what other secrets could you possibly possess?


Characters & Players -- Expressions of interest only at this stage.

The Job

Employer: Alfred of HyBrasil & flunkeys thereof

THE MISSION:
Quote: Thanks for helping us save the world. The Temple of Hyperion is getting a little less fussy on cultural pollution, allowing Dwarven Syndicates to trade more openly with other cultures on Purple (but probably still not the two Human empires). We have won the main share of the Dragon-folk's Spice monopoly — unfortunately in our Due Diligence Checks, i.e. spying on our honest trade partners-to-be, we have discovered that they are haemorrhaging valuable stock to smugglers. The stream to the Drow is an acceptable loss, not worth staunching; but the quantity entering the Human requires, um, "correction" ... and we don't yet know enough information. You are being paid to get all relevant information

Pay

For the Attempt: Guarantee of a top-up, should your private acquisitions not already exceed 30,000 Seagate sp

And if you succeed:

  • 15 Arcane Points
  • Bonuses & gifts commensurate with good to better-than-expected information.

Scribe Notes

I hadn't been on a Guild mission in some time, what with helping out King Kierl in Pasifika and keeping him company, at least until Princess Ariel got back, as well as keeping an eye on the situation in the Southern areas - most of which had to be abandoned because of the Horrors that were still roaming about. As far as we could figure out, they were coming from the Deep, the chasm between the plateaus of Pasifika and Zeylandia. Anyway, I digress.

As a change from being in a watery environment as a mermaid, I decided to join an adventure that involved gypsies and smuggling on the plane of Purple. Maybe a chance to stretch my entertaining skills. As far as I could tell the job involved finding out who was smuggling spices and interfering with the trade the local dwarves had set up. Part of it involved going undercover with a band of gypsies and, to avoid suspicion, our true personalities would be sealed away in lockets as to avoid detection, a Chameleon Arch I think they called them. The dwarves would hang on to most of our stuff and deliver them to us when we needed them. I guess I'd better get this mermaid belt off.

My fellow adventurers turned out to be:

  • Mayhem - a rather obnoxious male hobbit who's a shadow-weaver and very sneaky. Very good with dagger, climbing and traps. And likely to be receiving a new orifice if he keeps up with the sexual innuendos - besides, he's not my type.
  • Rodrego - another not so obnoxious male hobbit who was dressed rather richly. This resulted in the suggestion that he should be our pimp. He told us he had a lot of business interests. He's an E&E with Rank 11 Greater Enchantments.\
  • Thorn - A Warrior Healer woman with a touch of Mind Magics.
  • Veor - Nordic blonde ice mage. Also a spirit shaman, Trollkin and Shapeshifter. Was male but turned female after something Sir Christopher was responsible for.
  • Brigetta - redhaired female sharmanistic bard from Caledonia
  • And me, Aqualina, dark skinned water mage from Pasifika, specialising in underwater magics and skills.

Our party employer was a dwarf with close cropped hair and beard, and introduced himself as Alfred of Hy-Brazil (a Dwarvwish Stronghold on the Plane of Purple). He told us, as part of our assignment, he's be teaching us Rom (the local gypsy language) and Lalange. We'd be meeting up with a bunch of gypsies in Dowland. The job was to find out who was smuggling spices and we just had to merge in and not draw attention to ourselves - hence the lockets.

So, after getting Greaters and Lessers, as well as making six packs of Waters of Healing and Strength we were discretely taken to Purple ....

Hi, I'm Hinemoana, or in the elvish, Aqualina. I'm a wandering gypsy who is a performer of exotic dances as well as specialising in contortions and escaping from restraints (a rare act in these parts), hence my stage name of the "Amazing Aqualina". My companions and myself, some fellow performers, others of more mundane skills recently arrived in Dowland and managed to meet up with a gypsy caravan that was heading across the land on a rather large, lizard drawn cart. I'm also usually our group's record keeper which is why I'm maintaining this diary. Dunno who wrote the stuff in the top though, I can't read it, but, if it's in this book, I guess it's important. Anyway, we met up with Nan, whose militia camp was maybe 25 miles outside Dowland (the City). Dancaire and his valiant and merry band also turned up there. On the way here, they were attacked by lizards when they went through the forest, which is why they're a bit short handed. Excluding the wounded there are nine men, fourteen women and two boys.

Once we had integrated ourselves with the gypsies. we set off across the plains, pulled by the two lizards, Dorothy and Prosper. Tyrannosaurs I was told. Certainly they were rather large and rather fearsome. I spent most of the trip inside, getting to know people, helping with the cooking, and practicing my act. I did notice that some of the plants, like the bluebells, seemed a bit out of place but, apparently that's normal around here.

About a day or so later. we reached the swamp which, according to the stories I was collecting, had appeared recently - something to do with the hand of a sea monkey. For some reason, that caused Mayhem some alarm. Here, we had to meet up with a sea captain who could turn up anywhere in the swamp he could get his rather stealthy boat to and would be doing so sometime in the next four days. Talk about looking for a needle in a haystack, especially if one doesn't even know if the needle has appeared yet or even if the needle wants to be found. There were quite a few spots that he could appear so the gypsies split up into four groups, of which we were one.

We decided to check out the centre of the swamp which was marked by a small hill. The story was that something had been lobbed into the area and the swamp had spread from there. Even now, cliffs on both sides were still rapidly crumbling away into the swamp. Forest trees were still surviving in there, but maybe not for too much longer, so the whole area was shrouded in a leafy canopy.

So, we decided to build a raft and float downstream. On the way, we encountered a rather large 'floating log' that was actually heading upstream towards us. Veor shot at it a couple of times, then, Rodrigo attempted to put it to sleep. I'm not sure he succeeded completely but it did seem rather lethargic in it's attacked as we hacked at it with our daggers and stuff. Mayhem and I even went in the water to attack it from below. We then had to evacuate the water in a hurry when the little flesh eating fish with the big sharp teeth and voracious appetites turned up. Piranha I think they're called. Mayhem managed to get a bit more interesting when he said he was a very skilled swimmer. Anyway, once they had devoured the insides, we hauled what was left on board the raft. Thorn identified it as a Platycarpus (she's smart like that) and, even though it was 30 ft long, she said it was 'small'. And here I was wondering if I could get a five foot long one and wrestle it underwater but I'd need some sort of display tank to do that in and I rather doubt it would be easy to get one. She then told us about the flying lizards, which had a membrane spreading along their bodies that they glided on, not to be confused with Chiroptera, commonly known as bats, some of which are nearly as large.

An hour and a half later, we were in roughly the right area. We landed the raft and walked in the direction of the hillock making sure to stand on firm footing. Some of the insects we saw were rather large, especially the dragonflies with the thirty inch wingspan. I was wondering how big the butterflies would get but I didn't see any.

Finally reached the grassy knoll which was strangely barren, forming a clearing in the canopy. On top was a small fort and one of the walls had been damaged by a high speed impact. Near the wall lay a brass shell. Had it been fired from the river by a cannon? And had it contained some sort of magical curse or spell within it? A spirit could be detected within the brass container so, while Veor turned into a gargoyle to see if he could find the Captain, Brigetta attempted to find out more. What she got was the Ballad of Drevan the Misfortunate, being the story of a dwarf who was separated from his clan and set upon by Unspeakable Evil. He managed to survive that and cursed the area he had been evicted from to be 'dragged into the depths'. Hmm .. I thought the water had been a bit salty. Probably explains the rapidly crumbling cliffs as well. I wondered how much more this land was going to sink.

By the time Veor got back, without sighting the Captain, we had come to the conclusion that this may be the box containing the 'sea monkey hand'. Veor then did some sort of strange plant effect which also may have the consequence of convincing the Captain NOT to come this way. Apparently this swamp is weird enough as it is.

There was no aura on the box and it was not locked. The top unscrewed, being a cylindrical box, and when someone finally decided to open it, we discovered a shrivelled up hand inside. Thorn identified it as dwarven and it was barely living. A Soul was trapped inside it which was seeking revenge. It had evoked the curse which was dragging the land downwards. The Hand (and Soul) was obviously Drevan's and we were also able to discover that he was a priest of Oceanus - the local equivalent of Tangaroa. Since a Conspiracy of Evil had been mentioned, Mayhem was openly speculating if there was a Conspiracy of Good. Maybe there is, in order to deal with and counteract the Evil.

There was quite a bit of discussion of whether or not we should take the box with us. I didn't think it was a good idea but Veor was insisting otherwise. Anyway, with, or without, the Hand of Drevan, (I wasn't sure) we left the swamp and reported back. None of the other groups had seen the Captain either, so we planned to go down the northern most branch of the river to check out a 'pool' that Veor had spotted from the air, theorising that may be another likely spot for the Captain to go.

That night there was a storm at sea, so we were wondering if the Captain was using that to disguise his approach.

Next morning there was delicious fresh bread for breakfast but I wasn't feeling in the mood. I had been rebuked for saying something I shouldn't of .. seriously, I knew what I meant but somehow it didn't come out right. So, after one serious bollocking from both Veor and Mayhem, I was feeling a bit 'out of sorts'. Plus it looks like I'm not going to be doing any performing at all. After breakfast, we headed out of camp and Veor went for a fly. When she came back she reported she saw a boat that should arrive at the swamp late this afternoon or early evening. So we spent the rest of the day back in the swamp collecting herbs. It was near dusk by the time we returned to the gypsy camp.

That evening, we all went in to meet the Captain. I was staying close to Veor and was determined to keep my mouth shut, eyes and ears open and stay out of trouble. According to the scouts he was located at that pool that I had been interested in. Not sure I'm going to get any chance to check it out though. The ship looked like a pleasure yacht and there were orange ape like creatures dancing in the rigging. We were told they were called 'Horangutans' and they were intelligent enough to serve as crew. Apparently they get paid in bananas. The Captain turned out to be a man wearing a lot of 'bling', a turban thing on his head and a 'beaky' nose. Another guy with him was a man wearing a stove type hat a belt with a lot of tools dangling from it, presumably a mechanician, who was introduced as "Mr Cabbage".

There was an incredibly wide range of fruits to try and I was getting engrossed in doing that. I still felt though that there was something 'off' about the Captain, especially when I discovered that his highest ranked spell was 'Dehydration'. That made be feel a bit ... icky. There was also some consternation when an airship came overhead, with a rather large lump of ice suspended underneath it, but it was soon apparent anyone on board hadn't seen anything odd down here. The Captain was also carrying a rather interesting sword which seemed to be attracting Rodrigo's attention like a lodestone would pick up a nail. He discovered that there was a spell of innocence on it, which made the sword register as "mostly harmless" and it had a barely living aura, as if a spirit was bound within. The blade was rainbow hued and seemed to be some sort of gold alloy and the hilt was made of silver. Rodrigo was trying to handle the weapon when one of the crew basically "horangued" him off the boat with physical force. We figured we had overstayed our welcome and followed him off.

Several barrels of "fruit juice" were brought back to camp and the plan was to head off first thing in the morning, to contunue our northward journey.

A bit later on, there were rumours of charcoal burners in the forest ahead and they seemed to be 'misplaced'. Spies perhaps? Or undercover guards watching for illicit goods coming into Glieve? So we went in to check. Rodrigo and Mayhem snuck ahead with the rest of us hanging back. What they saw were carts but no animals. They then saw six people lounging about with longbows roughly half a mile from where the kiln was. So, the two hobbits went in on the offensive, followed by one of Veor's arrows, followed by Veor and the rest of us. I'm not sure why we had decided to fight but the conflict itself was short and basically we beat them up before the alarm was raised for reinforcements.

All but one were dead, that one had been slept so he was propped up against a tree and made comfortable. The dead were then checked to see if any of them had been pacted (if they had been, I think we would have found out by now). No other archers were found so we went to have a look at the charcoal burners. There were six of them and they certainly looked genuine so we left them alone.

Back to the 'prisoner' and Rodrigo woke him up and 'charmed' him. His name was Gavin but we didn't get much more out of him as Rodrigo was convinced his honour had been stained and coup-de-grased him. Definitely that makes Rodrigo … or “Rod the Ego” as Brigetta was now calling him … the ultimate conversation killer. Could they have been from Glieve? There was some mention of his boss being called 'Bob' but that was about it. Basically we had nothing so Rodrigo decided to try another way of speaking to the corpse. We decided to leave him to it as it seemed to be … rather nasty. Certainly Mayhem didn't want anything to do with it.

As we left the area – just in case - Rodrigo changed his mind so we reported back to the gypsies. Dancaire wasn't very happy with this result and I was really glad it wasn't me that was his target this time. He sent out a 'clean-up' squad and hopefully there wouldn't be any major fallout for the gypsies from this incident, although I got the feeling this wasn't the first time this sort of thing had happened. We did discover the Bob (locally known as Bob the Bastard – cause he was, in every meaning of the word) was Glieve's guard commander, and there could be great cheering if he was to 'mysteriously disappear'. The mayor was a man called Sir Jean Herdman and the local spymaster was some nasty foreigner. Walls were being built around Glieve to keep out the local velocaraptors. The caravan then stopped for a bit do the gypsies could do a deal with the charcoal burners.

Two days later, we arrived in the vicinity of Glieve. Some of the gypsies decided to go in for some performing and Brigetta and I went to join them. Mayhem's objective was to find a 'patsy' to take the blame (or credit) for killing Bob and Rodrigo went to help. I don't think they got far as I heard they were seen climbing on the guard building and their excuse of wanting a close look at the rather interesting local architecture was taken with a rather large amount of scepticism.

Meanwhile the rest of us were doing rather well. I was trying to do some of my 'rope tricks' but, for some reason, the act wasn't going down well. Maybe they didn't go for that sort of stuff. So, Brigetta and I started doing a song and dance act which was rather more appreciated.

Next morning, it was raining. Brigetta and I went to check out the local markets in order to spend some of our last night's takings. I spent most of mine on local clothes and souvenir 'knick-nacks'. Afternoon, we stayed with the caravan. That evening, I found a 'friend' and ended up taking part in one of Mayhem's entrepreneur enterprises. I hope he gave me a decent cut – but I'm not complaining.

The weather delayed us for a couple of days and at one point we sighted the foreign spymaster. What we were able to learn was that he was a 'long lived human', highest ranked magic was Curse and his primary defensive magic was 'Dance of Swords'.

The dino's got fed and it took us another week to get to Guildhall. All the rain had forced us to use a different route than normal. Crude roadways cut through the forest. When we finally got there it was obvious that this place had been 'swapped' in from somewhere. The town was circular and even had a bridge to nowhere.

We came to a very nice inn ran by a man called Lily. Apparently all male names are short, one or two syllables while female names are longer. The person receiving the spices that the gypsies had brought were going to a man who ran the cigar factory. There were a lot of wealthy merchants here but there was also a lot of poor and a lot of crime around the poor. Goods were rather expensive here too. Our two hobbits were very interested in a certain addictive tobacco, which Carmencita also smoked. It was more suited for fire aspected people.

Anyway, this was the top of the line and, after this, we will be heading back down to Dowland. Veor thinks we may have to come back here later.

The trip back was relatively uneventful. One thing I did notice that there were strange stars in the sky. Upon our arrival we met up with Nan again who had been talking to a person called Henry. We also noticed there was a lot of unseasonal cloud cover here.

People Met So far

Dwarves

Alfred of Hy-Brasil is of House Fain deLight, called Aethelbrecht, but known as Alfred (Elf-Rede), because he is so devious he could council the Elves. He is in charge of Miracle Holdings, a listed Association.

Honey of Hy-Brasil, who is a scholar and something at the Temple of Hyperion; has access to powerful magic (eg, planting ranks of skills & languages directly into your head.

Humans in the Old Human Empire

Generic Dowlanders: For the most part, Dowlanders are non-patriarchal non-hierarchical individuals united only in suspicion of the Imperial/Federal government and the rightness of their quasi-anarchic republic. These Pre-Raphealite look-alikes celebrate their aesthetic harmony with the land; have famous skills in poetry, paint, & the plastic arts: Wiccan is the college of choice. They are also excellent herbalists/alchemists. Apart from the capital, their dwellings are scattered and low-key. Technically the Head of state is "DD" (the designated Duchess) but, unofficially, a few level-headed individuals wearing sensible shoes take it upon themselves to do what ought to be done.

NAN for Short (Not Actual Name) of Dowland. Officially the "Keeper of the Garden"; has an arrangement to infiltrate dwarvish agents (the party) in amongst the gypsy smugglers, with whom she also has an arrangement. The Gypsies transport Knightshade leaves & other pipe-weed to the Principality, with export certificates and everything.

Gypsies

Mostly born on Alusia like you, the gypsies (like many other predator species on Purple) wear flamboyant colours. The band has common skills, but also specialists. Excluding the wounded, there are 9 men, 14 women, two boys; the other children are hostages safely under the care of the Dowlanders . BANDLEADER Dancaire is currently the only mage in the Gypsy band by the time the party arrive: (Purple Earth-mage) and not overly powerful. Over half of the rest do have a spell or two, some have useful Talents, but all are technically non-mages.

Patches Dancaire's #1/deputy/XO. An [E&]E & spymaster, currently on sick-leave in Dowland (with the broken pelvis & other bones, the result of a panicked stampede a few days before you arrived.

The working girls include:

  • Frasquita: The Prima Donna, widow of the former leader ("widowed at a very young age" she says, whenever the topic comes up): has a few Life (ie, witch) and * Enchanter (ie, Bardic) spells. She is still a good-looking bonne vivante with a suspiciously ageless beauty. The Star of the Show, a "triple threat" as they say in the Gypsy world: Singer, Dancer, Assassin.
  • Carmencita — a young widow, dancer and good-time girl: Seductively dangerous, tempestuous, with occasional burst of knife-related violence. Unprofessional, in that she falls in love too easily; probably cursed.
  • Mercédès — their plain, but much more accessible, friend.
  • Violetta — clearly a delicate flower ... more of a courtesan rather than a hardened piece-worker.
  • Taillessa (or some such name)?

The Gypsies' acting Military Scientist, Deserter Joe, was a minor officer of gentle but impoverished birth. He was seduced and turned from Duty by Carmencita and an accidental murder, now somewhat morose, frequently drunk ... not ideal in a MilSci. Believes that Carmencita no longer cares (probably has reason).

Smugglers that work with the Gypsies

  • Cap'n D (DROSOFILIO DRAGOMANO) Captain of the "Alias", Water mage, small, beaky-nosed, Cloak trimmed with feathers (from water birds! not from around here); has an unimportant apprentice. Rk18 dehydrate; Rk12 Waters of Strength.
  • HENSON a.k.a. Mr Cabbage (with pet golem Stringfellow), collaborator & mil-sci/mechanician (specialties: Catapaults; siege engines; hydrofoils)
  • The Crew -- 2 Harangs called Abel, bodie, & Cimon.

Plants

Titanic Sunflowers: (Helianthus x Eliotropus) Allegedly exceptionally tall, looming, mysterious, possible a hidden force for good against evil (maybe even Necromancy and related wickedness). Veor & Mayhem have each been given a silk purse of 13 seeds by NAN.

Knightshade (Solanum) a pipeweed species, however the leaves are primarily turned in to cigars. This version is noticeable in the fact that local (copper-blooded) reptiles, find it repulsive; its berries can be converted in to a blade-venom that gives them chemical burns and is mildly poisonous to humans.

Worrywort (Bryophyta): a small, green, flowerless wetland herb that engenders anxiety on those that eat or tread on it. Its airborne spores are the active ingredients, which can panic most animals, especially the local dinosaurs and sometimes humans. It is found naturally in The Marais, and the Gypsies sometimes add powdered spores to the smudge-pot smoke. Coincidentally, your told it grows in the Garden.

Buffs

Buffs listed in the table don't need to be detailed, other buffs not on the table must be mentioned at the time they are cast.
Y means always on, N/- means never on, 'Sit.' means when the party has time for buffs before a fight.
Weapon Spells which weapon/s it is going on normally should be noted also.

Normal Buffs; Long Duration

Magic Rk Effects Dur Ro Ma Aq Br Th Ve
Witchsight (Ma) 6 See through darkness and Rk 6 or less invis etc 3½ hrs - Sit Sit - Sit Tal
Resist Cold (Ve) 20 +6 Gauge, 6 Pt Cold Resist. 21 hours. ? ? Tal
Greater Heart Rune (Ve) 7 Heal 7 EN when EN damage taken 8 days ? ?
Mind Shield (Th) 12 +34 vs Mental Attack, mind cannot be read 25 hrs ? ?
Waterbreathing (Aq) 20 Breath water, see through fog 21 hours - - - - -
Sacrifice (Rabbit) 8 +8 Agility 12 hrs ? Sit ? ? ? Sit
xxxx xx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x hrs x min - - - - - -


Normal Buffs; Short Duration

Magic Rk Effects Dur Ro Ma Aq Br Th Ve
Weapon of cold (Ve) 9 SC 10%, +3 DM 14 min - Sit - - Sit Staff
Force shield (Th) 12 +17 defence 2 hrs 10 min - - - - -
xxxx xx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x hrs x min - - - - - -
xxxx xx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x hrs x min - - - - - -
xxxx xx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x hrs x min - - - - - -
xxxx xx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x hrs x min - - - - - -

Map

Loot

Items

Gifts

Calendar

Summer: Meadow (1) 816wk
Moonday Duesday W'ansday Th'rsday Frysday Reapsday Sunday
Beltane Full Moon 1 Guild Meeting 2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 11 12 13
14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 Full Moon 29 30 1 2 3 4
Summer: Heat (2) 816wk
Moonday Duesday W'ansday Th'rsday Frysday Reapsday Sunday
5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12 13 14 Midsummer Eve (Faerie Day) 15 Solstice 16 17 18
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 Full Moon 27 28 29 30 1 2
Summer: Breeze (3) 816wk
Moonday Duesday W'ansday Th'rsday Frysday Reapsday Sunday
3 Day of Death 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 Full Moon 25 26 27 28 29 30
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