Adventure 16 - Stealing Lives

9th Month (Ancestors) 34th Day - 37th Day

On their way towards Shawsburgh, the party came across a man who was exhausted, malnourished, and beaten. He was barely capable of clawing his way onto the road ahead of him. This man, named Alfus, had just escaped from a slaver's caravan and was still being chased by a couple of guards. The PCs hid Alfus in the forest and awaited the guards.

When confronted, two of the guards (warriors), attempted to defeat the PCs in combat. The third one (a rogue), elected to run away immediately. This was not because he was afraid to fight, it was because he wanted to warn the slavers back at their camp. Mordin and Ryoma stayed behind to take on the guards while Pannan, Cain, and Melir chased after the rogue.

The two fighters in the party were able to take down the guards in short order before giving chase themselves. The rogue didn't make it far before Pannan caught him, and they entered melee. As the others caught up, the rogue went down.

The PCs decided to scout out the slaver's camp to see if they could rescue the others held in slavery. They found the camp occupied by more than a dozen guards and the merchant who oversaw the operation. Instead of sneaking in further, the PCs elected that a straight-forward attack was the best option.

The PCs didn't have numbers on their side, but their skills were greater than that of their enemy. Although the rogues in camp were able to inflict some damage, the PCs were able to overcome this. The fighters were both enlarged and moved in while Melir stayed invisible to assist the fighters. Cain was invisible and healing Pannan who found himself surrounded by guards, rogues, and attack dogs.

The merchant posed the most serious threat, being an accomplished alchemist. However, even he wasn't able to bring down either of the fighters. When he saw the battle going poorly, he called for the remaining guards (some of whom did not enter the combat) to eliminate the slaves. Although the PCs were able to save some of them, the guards were able to kill three.

The rest of the guards were either defeated or driven off, and some of the slaves were freed. The PCs continued their journey to Shawsburgh.

Upon hearing of the PCs' bravery, they gained reputation with the Hall of Winter. However, they lost reputation with Tail of the Scorpion, who were behind the slave trade. The PCs missed a chance to gain reputation with the Revolution, but the first slave killed was the only member of that faction.