Play Report: The Black Wyrm of Brandonsford, Using The Forgotten Lands GLOG and an Open Table, Session 1
Introduction, And A Warning
MY PLAYERS DO NOT READ IT OR A HORRIBLE CURSE WILL BEFALL YOU(r characters).
Obviously, his contains spoilers for The Black Wyrm of Brandonsford.
Now that the protective wards are out of the way, the proper introduction is to be expected.
Introduction, Again
The following session was made using the Forgotten Lands GLOGhack, my own game. Feel free to check it out. I have also used The Black Wyrm of Brandonsford module as the basis for the world, but will be adding more stuff around it when the players will go into other places than the village.
I have placed it in a location technologically and culturally similiar to 1560 England, named Albion. It has suffered from a great catastrophe of war, then hunger, then magic, after a war for the crown. The magical catastrophe has made weather stranger and caused the half-forgotten creatures of myth to return, placing it at The Interstice.
Brandonsford was a backwater town even before the catastrophe 25 years ago, now it is only remembered by the few traders who go up and down the river, as well as by its residents. It has 497 residents, and once you go past the fields, some overtaken by the new woods already taking back their land, you find an almost virgin forest surrounding it from all sides.
The session has started on 4th of December in year 87 of the Wolf's Century. It was a wednesday.
Dramatis Personae
Lyra, The Mithraditist
A poisoner from the far-away land of Grease, seeking enlightenment and a way to become more than human. She knows the secrets of using poisons to hurt and make one stronger, as well as Bosk, the secret language of plants, which uses scents and slow touches to tell things to others. A single sentence in Bosk takes up ~1 hour.
Racoor, The Trapper
A hunter who seeks to find enough money to retire in comfort and peace. An absolute unit of a man (17 STR, other stats are all really good) who wields a two-pipe "shotgun" and speaks Clacktrack, the clicking and dancing language of bugs. A person speaking in Clacktrack could be mistaken for having a seizure.
Neith, The Spirit-Talker
A witch who seeks to open up her own store, wielding a set of ivory chopsticks that she can use to draw spirits out of all things, and a jar of paint she can use to paint protective circles.
Wilhelm, The Spirit-Talker
A shaman with a magnificent sling and an owl-spirit, clad in the pelt of a wolf that has tasted the flesh of Man.
The Misadventure Itself
The Forgotten Town
The party have spent the last night in the Golden Egg tavern, as the owner beds them and feeds them for only 6 Pences per night. The straw is not exactly comfortable, but it beats sleeping under the sky, even if the weather is currently quite warm for the season. The party have asked the owner of the Tavern about the current circumstances of the Town, and he told them about the iron shipments from the dwarves, as well as the caravans stopping, blaming the dragon for it. He also told them how the village headman is offering a 200 Golden Crown reward for getting rid of the dragon. When asked about any details, he said that Farmer Gill last saw the beast. He also mentioned a potential lucrative opportunity to the party, but they have decided to go to the Headman first.
Eric, the Village Headman is an ancient man who prefers to sit in front of his stone cottage and cut animals and useful items out of wood. He rarely sleeps and has magnificent (if unkempt) mutton chops. He speaks in a tired tone - that was the tone with which he greeted the party. Racoor asked him about if the dragon killed anyone, and Eric claimed that it killed a hunter from the other village, as well as eating the arm of George (their local hunter) and the cow of Farmer Gill. Then he talked about how "It was surely that wicked witch who brought the dragon and The Lords And The Ladies to our forest". He also told them to beware her sight, as she can turn people into bushes with just a glance. He also told them about the second group of adventurers, staying in the Clumsy Fox Tavern. The party have decided to go to Gill later, as he saw the dragon most recently.
Gill is a relatively wealthy peasant, younger than Eric but older than most, cocky and gregarious. Tends to embellish the truth, especially when telling his stories. He has 3 daughters and 5 sons, 2 of whom are currently wandering the forest in search of the dragon.
The party has approached him in the fields, where he was removing roots of various weeds, so that in the spring his own plants will flourish - Racoor joined him in the fieldwork, so Gill found his company most amicable. And so he started talking about how he was getting his cows to eat some grass a few weeks back "As I want to get them fat so that they can survive the winter, you know how it is with cows, you can feed them grain and hay but I don't have enough grain and hay to feed them through the early spring, before there's grass again, so I always get them as fat as I can before winter, as any farmer should". Later, he felt the horrible stench of sulfur and found that one of his cows was missing, as well as a bunch of horrible gunk. He described the smell in lurid detail. He hasn't seen the dragon, however his boys tried to follow the trail it left for a while and found more damage to trees and piles of gunk. It was long ago, however, and the rain washed everything away.
He later went on about his sons, and how they are hunting the dragon, but if the party is also hunting the dragon he'll gladly give one of his daughter's hand to the dragon-slayer (if he's male) or one of his son's hands to the dragon-slayeress (if she's female). Rancoor showed some interest. He also bought some salted meat. After getting all the information they could out of Gill (including the names of his sons who are in the forest), however, the party has decided to move on to George, The Hunter.
They followed a small path out of the fortified town, into a small shack outside the walls, with hides on racks still drying out in the sun. As they opened the door, they saw a one-armed man swirling a slingshot in their direction, asking them who they are. He had a wild red beard and hair, and looked straight at them the same way one looks at prey. After the party told him that they are looking to kill the dragon, he shot his slingshot up and caught the bouncing bullet in his single hand.
Going inside, the party saw his longbow, arrows and fletchering equipment gather dust, now useless for a man with a single arm. He talked to them about how he saw the beast, and it killed his friend and how he only survived because the beast was too focused on eating his friend to finish him off. He gave them a trade offer - they could buy his bow and the information about the location of the lair for 12 Golden Crowns; enough to last him half a year, so that he can get his life together. The party didn't have such money, so instead they have agreed to pay him 5 Crowns now and 14 after they kill the dragon. He agreed and he told them that he found it in its lair - up in the northern mountains, a whole day of travel away. He also told them that his arrows that went straight into the beast's armour just bounced away, and gave them 4 arrows for the bow. "I don't want you to get yourself killed, now that you owe me money".
Before going out of town, the party went to the alchemist. They decided that if the dragon is invulnerable, they will need some magical assistance. Thus, they have entered her small house, where she laboured over her Alembic. The entire place was full of various tools and implements of her trade, as well as books. In the back was Ingrid, a thin and ankward girl who took the business over after her father died. She wears a black robe (so that you can not see the burn-marks) and carries a long staff with a citrine at the end that glows whenever moved.
Lyra asked her about the things she has to offer, and she told them about her curative teas, the witch powder (that glows when it touches magical things) made from local mushrooms, or a wolfsbane essence that scares away wolves. Lyra inquired about poisons, which Ingrid refused to sell due to being afraid of the consequences from the church "That priest already thinks that I'm a wicked witch" as well as a moral duty "I don't want blood on my hands and I don't know you well enough to trust you with it". She told the party, however, that she gets her herbs from the witch; when asked about her, she described Vivian as "Eccentric, but she is a good woman". When asked about turning people into bushes, she described it as nonsense. She offered to lead them to the witch if they want to meet her "And dispell this humbug once and for all", as she will be going to the witch in 3 days to refill her herbs. The party thanked her, but said that they need to meet her now Thus, the party went forwards.
The party departed around noon, going east towards where the witch lives. They turned right at the Tall Oak described by Ingrid, a great old tree that was probably older than the fallen kingdom.
The party finally approached the Witch's Domain around 4 hours before dusk. The first thing they noticed was the shrubbery, shaped like people and mythical creatures. That made them worried, until Lyra, who is a botanist, investigated it and found that it is carefully cut. Thus, they have concluded that it is safe to approach the witch's house.
Then, out of the pond, a shrill voice sounded "Give us your weapons if you want to approach the Witch's abode! Otherwise, she will turn you into branches"! Thus, the party have given up their weapons except for Racoor, who didn't want to get his Shotgun wet, so he has decided to wait outside. While putting her dagger in the pond, Neith has noticed something shiny in the pond. She made a protective magical circle, then tried to fish it out with Racoor's spear. The spirits inside the pond, however, have decided to grab onto the spear and pull it into the water. The spirits laughed and insulted the pair, mooning them and showing them the English archer's gesture. Thus, Racoor aimed at the pond with his two-pipe shotgun, threatening the pixies and ordering them to give everything back. Instead, the pixies hid as deep as they could under the water.
In the meantime, walking between herbs, Lyra and Wilhelm have approached the witch's cottage, made out of living wood with green leaves, and knocked on her door. She told them to open - Vivian is an old woman, dressed in a colorful robe, dyed in a pattern of green, yellow and orange using plant dyes. She is wrinkled and lost most of her hair, her eyes are bulging, but her voice is still kind, if a bit shaky. She told them to come in, still sitting on her armchair made out of living wood, made comfortable with flowers.
Lyra told her both about the path that she walks towards enlightenment, as well as asking her about poisons that could work against the dragon. She said that she knows of one - a day of walking west, through the river-crossing could get someone to the Faun's Grove, where the trees themselves bleed a horribly strong wine that puts those who drink it in a stupor, or even sends them to sleep. She also warned them of the Faerie who tend to congregate there; they decided to bribe them with similarly strong liquor. Lyra also asked her about the poisons she knows, and Vivian replied by describing a way of preparing Tojad Mordownik so that it acts almost instantly, using sulphur to penetrate the blood. Lyra plans on making it and using it on herself, of course. The witch offered Lyra an apprenticeship, in which she is interested.
Then, they heard the shouting and the witch stood up and walked up to the pond, together with the two other heroes. She told the pixies from the pond to give the taken items back, together with the shiny thing "For your troubles. I have no need for these baubles". The pixies gave them a beautiful gilded scabbard, which the party has concluded belonged to Sir Brandon before; the witch said that her grandmother remembered Brandon and that he was a good ruler. So, armed with the knowledge and some epic swag, they started to walk back towards Brandonsford.
The sun was close to going under the horizon when the party saw the lights lit in brandonsford, the people preparing to go to sleep with a few serving as guards. Before they could walk up to the town, however, they heard the barking of Dogs and saw three white stags, on which three Strange Riders appeared. They were dressed in the finest furs, smelling like beautiful flowers. One's head was that of a wolf, another that of a fox, with the final one having the head of a crow. At the feet of their stags were 5 white dogs - Borzois, their long snouts covered in blood.
The Crowhead ordered the party to kneel in front of Lord [Sounds that resemble the cracking of ice on the windows], and so they kneeled. They felt cold, incredibly cold, as the Elves looked upon them and decided that they are no prey, but neither are they hunters. The Elves found them unworthy of interest, and so they went away. It was night when the party managed to regain their composure and go back to town, getting into the Tavern and falling down onto their beds.
In the middle of the night, however, they heard some strange noises; while most of the party has decided to go back to sleep, Rancoor decided to go and find out what happened - he found Quinn holding a pike, screaming in front of his cellar "That Bastard struck again! He stole my fucking beer again"! Rancoor asked him what happened, and Quinn told him that he'll pay 50 Florins if the adventurers manage to stop Bentley (the proprietor of the other inn in the town) from stealing his beer. Rancoor investigated the Cellar, finding two sets of tracks left by tiny feet (the ones going in being straight, the ones going out being drunk and disorderly), like those of a baby. He also found that it was opened using a great deal of strength in two tiny hands. Then, when he entered, he found an emptied barrel. Rancoor woke the team up and told them that it's time to make some money by hunting down a gnome. Quinn decided that it was his business rival who hired the gnome to steal his beer; the rest of the party didn't mind this belief, as long as they'll get paid.
The Trapper had no issues following the tracks, quickly finding a small grove in the middle of which he found a strange shape lying on a bush; rather, it was an indentation in the bush where there should be none. He decided to kick the air just above it, pushing the gnome off the bush, its red cap falling down revealing him, at just a foot tall. The trapper aimed his shotgun at the gnome, who raised his hands. The gnome begged for his life, asking the Trapper to lower his gun. Rancoor replied that the gnome is a thief who stole from an innocent man; the gnome replied by talking about how he knows of a location of a hidden pot of gold as he is a Clurichaun. He was too drunk to pronounce it properly, however. Rancoor lowered his shotgun, to which the gnome reacted by jumping to the cap and turning invisible. Rancoor shot both pipes of his shotgun in the general direction of the Leprechaun, but the gnome already flew into the air.
The gnome wanted to humiliate the party for trying to kill him; he was also really drunk, so he didn't fully grasp the results of his actions. Thus, he has created an illusion of himself preparing to kick the ankle of Rancoor from behind, visible to his friends. When Neith threw her dagger at him, however, the illusion disappeared, and the dagger nicked the ankle of Rancoor. Then, he laughed at them from above, which lead Lyra to start throwing mud towards the sounds to reveal him. The Gnome created an illusion in between Rancoor and Lyra - Rancoor already aimed his bow at the Clurichaun, before realising that if he missed he would hit his friend. Then, Lyra hit the actual gnome with mud, revealing his real location.
The gnome begged for mercy while slowly starting to fly away, saying that he'll never cause troubles to the poor Innkeeper. When quite far away, he said that his gold is hidden underneath a four-leaf clover patch in the old church up north. Neith suggested that he'll go with them, so that they have assurance that he is not lying. The gnome, however, replied "No, I don't want to go back there". Seeing something suspicious in it, and that the gnome was moving outside of his bow's range, Rancoor decided to shoot.
It was not an easy shot; at large distance and with bad lighting (even if the gnome's outline was visible among the stars). Even so, Rancoor's arrow pierced right through the Gnome's throax. It's like a human got hit with a ballista. The hunter, of course, searched his corpse. He found two silver coins (leaving one based on Lyra's suggestion, so that the gnome will have the payment for the Ferryman), the red cap (which he took as a trophy, as it gave no effects when worn by a human) and a letter written in a strange language. The only thing they could understand was the imprint of lips on the bottom - it was a love letter, now stained with blood. The party left the letter on the body, which they symbolically buried by throwing some earth on it(thus letting the soul move to the afterlife). Then, they went back to the town, noticing that the nearby trees had some weird claw-marks. They showed the cap to the tavern owner, who said that if tomorrow his beer isn't stolen, he'll pay them (some of the payment being in free food and bed).
They woke up around noon, trying to sleep-off the sleepless night. They then asked the tavern-owner about the possibility of getting some strong alcohol; after much finessing and questioning from the party he said that the gnome drank all of his strong liquors, and thus only his competitor may have any. And so, the party went to the Clumsy Fox Tavern.
Inside, they met another party of adventurers who were recuperating after their yesterday escapade, in which they met with the stirges that are in the nearby forest. They haven't told the players about that, instead pretending to just loaf around. That party was:
- Lady Hilda (A religious fighter who is the leader of the rival party, she is nice and patient if a bit braggadocious. Redhaired, wears a cuirass, wields a sword and shield, on which the symbol of her noble family is located).
- Malzazerick the Magnificent (A sarcastic magician who is quite whimsical, dressed in a pointy hat and starry robes)
- “Drop Dead” Ned (A thief with a silver dagger and a shortbow, as well as rotten teeth. Kleptomaniac, only Lady Hilda can stop him from fingering other people's pockets).
- Squints (A halfling with a powerful slingshot and a nasty habit of constantly playing five-finger fillet. His fingers are pristine, however. He never misses).
The party asked the proprietor for some alcohol "that would be good enough for the Fair Folk". He said that he has some good wine and that it would probably be fine, but the party decided to make it even better by taking it to the alchemist to make some brandy out of it. No rich bastard can resist the allure of good brandy. The talk of Fair Folk has interested the rival adventurers, who struck up a conversation with the party. Lady Hilda quickly gave an offer: that the rivals will play fair, without harming each other, setting up traps or abandoning the other party to die. The party accepted, swearing that they'll keep it. That was the end of the session.
Post Scriptum
The players generally had good reaction rolls - it's good for them, but sooner or later they'll meet the dragon - there will be bloodshed that day. For now, however, they are searching. Most players are new to the OSR, but they are quickly learning - they have expressed that they like the open table idea due to lower needed commitment (it is based around the idea that we'll do a session when the GM and at least 3 players are available, currently there are 7 players in the roster). They like the system, although they found the lowering AC a bit confusing at first.
Lyra's player has expressed that she likes the Faerie vibes. I can't wait for her to see the Goblin King, or to enter a mushroom circle in the forest. She will get her enlightenment soon enough, with the mushrooms she has prepared.
I have offered the players extra XP for writing up a report of their own, for later players, but as of the writing of this post none have taken up the task.