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Your adventuring band begins with a grand total of... two. The first is Jonathon of Blackwater. Skilled with a lockpick and quick on his feet- he is a capable man, though with no wealth or weapons to his name. The second is Elly, the milkmaid. While not a lady of high breeding, she is trained in woman's work- the art of magic of the home. She has delivered babies and bound up wounds of soldiers- though she has seen scant action herself.

The two arrived in the small mountain town of Shovestone. Once a huge town, it has shrunk down since the olden days. The abandoned houses no longer stand at least, for fear of creating knockers and other creatures of the night, but even so it feels strangely lonesome even at the market or within the dimly lit tavern.

The first night, Jonathon awakens to a haunting sound. From far away, sounding as though just over the nearest hill, was the sound of a quiet and painful moaning- the voice was impossible to gauge, but it sounded like a human being in pain or loss. While he felt the urge to flee this place as soon as he was able, he suppressed it. There was rumor of beneath that mountain- and it would be the only way for him to pay his debt.

“Elly, did you hear that noise last night!?”
“No Jon, I stuffed my ears with cotton!”
“...You are much more clever then me. I should have known- with a name like the “Moaning Mountain”- that I'd have trouble sleeping...”
“Hehe, the locals say you get used to it.”
“Get used to that!? I think not!”
“Well, tomorrow night, I'll boil you some lavender tea. It always does well for the frights...”

While your small adventuring team has promise- there was an element missing. The villagers warn against traveling to the mountain, as most who go do not return. Even worse, they claim a tribe of orcs live up there now, making travel even more dangerous. The simple truth was- you did not have the means to defend yourself. Jonathon was a strong enough man, but had no skill with a sword.

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“Hail, barkeeper! I heard there was one here who sought fortune and glory in the mines above!”
“Pfft- You mean actually going up there, to the Mountain? Surely you jest.”
”No, I do not.”
“Well, I suppose you aren't the first to go up there...and the few that have returned have brought me treasures and riches. But remember this; only few return. If you're sure, there is a sellsword here. He's just over on that side of the tavern- right there.”

With a point, the barkeeper directed Jonathon to the mysterious stranger, but getting closer he found nobody. Curiously, he was a great sword unattended by a very large shell- like the one a snail would wear. Suddenly, it unfurled and up came a big, slimy mass beneath.

”Woah! You're not a human!”

The creature nodded its head. Then, it made a motion with its fingers, slowly but surely, conveying some kind of message. Elly had joined Jonathon at this point, and he looked to her with a silent plea. She shook her head; she did not understand this finger language.

“I suppose slugs can't talk.”

Suddenly, the large snail looked taken aback. It put its hands on its hips, looking down at Jonathon with an intense expression, filling up his view with its size. Elly put her hand on Jonathon's side.

“Jon... I do not know much about the 'pode people, but calling one a slug is a grave insult. It means one without a shell to them; which is a great mark of shame. It is the same as calling a human an outcast or a beggar. You should apologize and we should hire it to come with us!"

>Apologize and attempt to hire the Snailman
>Save the money and use it to buy better equipment

>>5517239
>>Save the money and use it to buy better equipment
Elly should whore herself out to buy better equipment

>>5517243
I am against having our dear friend prostitute herself, but also have misgiving about hiring a fellow we can't really communicate with. An expedition of this sort requires teamwork and coordination!

>Save the money and use it to buy better equipment
>But DO apologize to slugzilla

>>5517239
>Save the money and use it to buy better equipment

>>5517249
>+1

>>5517239
>Apologize about the cultural misunderstanding
>Save money for equipament

>>5517243
Support the write in
>Attempt to hire the Snailman
I refuse to apologize.

>>5517239
>Apologize to the Snailman
>Save the money and use it to buy better equipment

Attempting to hire him right after an insult is too fast a mod whiplash. Just say for now that we're sorry for the unintended insult; perhaps buy him an apology beer with a few spare coins? But save most of the money for team equipment.

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Jonathon decides not to hire the snail man- but he will apologize for the misunderstanding. The snail man makes a wiping motion with his hand and seems to brighten up, as if to clear away the bad air between them.

“Jonathon... why didn't you hire him?”
”Because we can't communicate with him anyway. Too dangerous to take along. Besides, the man is a cutthroat. Once we find any treasure in the dungeon, he may just overpower you and I and take whatever we found and leave us for dead.”
“The same could be said of anyone else we bring along!”
”Yeah, but with this money we can equip ourselves better. I like our chances.”

Jonathon and Elly take the last of the coin they had left and used to it purchase some much needed equipment. The local smith isn't exactly an armorer or weapon-master by trade, but can still sell Jonathon a sword and a coat-of-plates; a decent enough piece of armor. For Elly, she buys a new pack and visits the local herbalist to buy a collection of rarer herbs, including some smelling salts. Along with this, the pair bring a decent amount of food, torches, and sacks to carry their ill-gotten gains.

Then, in the morning, they begin their climb up the mountain.

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About halfway up the mountain, Jonathon and Elly stop to break their fast and talk.

“Jonathon, aren't you curious at all as why I wanted to come with you?”
”Hmm, not especially. I figured you were going to be arranged to wed a man you did not care for, so you ran away at first opportunity. The “treasure hunting” was just a good excuse.”
“...Nothing was arranged for me, but is that the real reason you weren't curious? Or was there another?”
”You women always do this. I'm not gonna be led into a trap, like a lamb to the slaughter!”
“Aww, come on! It's not like that.”
”I'm onto you! You're trying to bait me into saying something bad. You made it very clear from our first meeting that you weren't interested in me, and just wanted to be traveling companions because you wouldn't feel safe on the road alone. So no, if you will make me answer, I did not take you for a whore. A whore would be much more forward. Besides, I've never seen a whore as pretty as you.”
“Gaah! You weasel You're going to get away with it! You're as quick with your words as you are with your hands around a sack of coins!”
”...We'd better get moving. I don't want to be up here after it gets dark. Before sundown would be the best, I know orcs don't like sunlight so they'll probably come out at dusk...”

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Soon after, the pair encounter someone unexpected on the road. Ahead of them is a dark young boy, who is calling out in an almost sing-song voice.

“Brother~? Brother! Where are you~!”
”Ho! Young lad, what are you doing up on the mountain, this far from the village!?”

The youth turns and falls silent as he encounters the strange adults. Elly leans in to Jon's ear and whispers to him.

“Look at that outfit! I've never seen something like that before. Plus it's so dark! Black-dyed cloth is really expensive...”
”Young lad, are you alright? It's not safe on this cursed mountain, especially alone.”
”I'm not alone! My brother is... around here somewhere. He'll come back to guide me to the village. I know he will.”

Jonathon looks at Elly with a worried expression. She seems worried too.

”Do you know which way to the village, lad?”
”Yes, this way!” The young man points towards the mountain's peak; clear opposite direction from Shovestone. That's the only village for days worth of travel. You shake your head.
”No son, it's this way.”

The kid shrugs, and in a carefree voice- ”Guess I'm lost then!”

>Point the kid back to the village
>Offer to guide the child back, hopefully for a reward
>Rob him and leave

>>5518050
>>Rob him and leave

>>5518050
>>Offer to guide the child back, hopefully for a reward

>>5518050
>Offer to guide the child back, hopefully for a reward

>>5518050
>>Offer to guide the child back, hopefully for a reward

>>5518050
>Point the kid back to the village

>>5518050
>>Rob him and leave

>>5518050
>Offer to guide the child back, hopefully for a reward

>>5518050
>Check what village he calls home.
Just because Shovestone is the most likely place doesn't mean he hasn't wandered from farther afield, or from somewhere our travellers don't know about.

>Ask what his brother is called, what he looks like
>Offer to guide the child back, hopefully for a reward

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You can't leave this kid out here. You may be a bunch of get-rich-quick scheming adventurers now instead of proper members of society, but you still won't cross the line of abandoning a child somewhere. You can tell Elly wants to help him a lot more then you do though. At least she can convince him to come with you back to the village.

”Come on now, little one. It's not safe here.”
“But- But what about my brother? He was supposed to come get me.”
“Don't worry, we'll come back and find him once you're safe with your mommy. What is your brother's name?”
”...I'm not supposed to talk to outsiders. Nobody is supposed to know our names of anyone in my village.”
“Okay, what is the name of your village then?”
”...It's the only village here. The Elders get really mad if you say its name too. It's bad luck.”
“...Well, can you at least tell me what your brother looks like?”
”...He's like me, but, uhh, taller.”
“Ahh, so he's the big brother?”
”....Mhmm.”

The child nods. After that, he doesn't talk much. He's really quiet. You don't like this long detour that burns daylight- plus you'll have to make the hike back up the mountain again, but still, you feel like this kid's parents are probably the headman of the village and his wife. You're pretty sure that necklace around his neck is made of gold. You're expecting a reward for helping their boy back!

But when you return to the village, the boy slips away from Elly for a second and then is gone. He disappears among the straw huts and vanishes. You spend another hour asking residents of the small village, someone HAS to know whose kid this is, but none say anything.

”Dammit! They probably knew we'd expect a reward and are keeping the kid inside and pretending like we didn't help at all. We're just “outsiders” to them...”
“...Jonathon, you shouldn't say such bad things. That will make your breath go bad and your teeth rot out of your mouth.”
”Psch. Sorry, Elly, I'm just frustrated. I hate to leave something like this unresolved...”

But as you are about to make your way back up the mountain to salvage this so-far disastrous trip to the dungeon; you are stopped by another strange character. He's a man, perhaps a bit older then Jonathon, wearing patchy clothes and a cloth cap. He also has a spear in hand.

“Ho! I hear you're the ones going up the mountain. I will come with you!”
”...Who are you exactly?”
“Well, my real name is Richard. But people in the town just call me Patches.”
”Well, “Patches”, why exactly would you want to join us? You do know how dangerous it is up in the mountains, right? After all, you live here.”
“...Ahh, come on! I've lived here my whole life. Nobody has ever been brave enough to go into the mines in generations; it closed so many years ago. But there is treasure down there, people can come back rich! I won't be a burden on you. I've got my daddy's boar-spear and my own homemade armor, plus I can carry a lot of stuff!”

Jonathon is skeptical. More people means more ways to split the loot; but as a gentle country yokel, he seems trustworthy enough. Plus Elly puts a hand on your shoulder and gently whispers,

“...you always did say you wanted someone slower then you just in case we have to run for our lives. He looks a bit fat, don't you think?” She giggles.

You're pretty sure Elly doesn't really mean that...but given your rather sparse party at the moment another set of eyes and a hand to hold a weapon would be really useful. Plus, he probably knows the local area pretty well. You decide to bring him along.

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Finally, you arrive at the main entrance to the mines. The mines have been abandoned for a long time- so long that even the boards that once held it shut have fallen away. Or perhaps been torn off by other things.

This is your first time being in a dark place beneath the earth like this- a dungeon. True darkness and danger. You have torches and a stick of charcoal to help mark your way; but it is still a frightful thing to enter a place like this on your own volition. Just one more thing needs to be determined...

Who should go first?

>Jon
>Patches

And who should hold the torch?

>The one going first
>Person in the rear
>Give everyone a torch

>>5518458
>Jon
>Person in the rear

>>5518458
>Patches
>Person in the rear

>>5518458
>Patches
The spear is more helpful than a sword in the cave.
>Man in the middle
Spearman will need both hands.

>>5518458
>Patches
>Person in the rear

>>5518535
Supporting this.

>>5518458
>Patches
>Person in the middle
I propose Elly be in the middle, so we can guard fore and rear.

>>5518458
>Jon
>Give everyone a torch

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You've decided to put Patches up in front with his spear, with Jon behind him. Naturally, Elly will come up last- as she is an unarmed woman. She can also hold the torch.

"Be careful not to drop it either. If that goes out while we're in darkness, we'll all be lost."
"Stop making me so nervous! I might just drop it out of nerves at this rate!"

Finally, your adventuring band has entered the dungeon for the first time. The dark maw swallows you as you enter seeking fortune.

Level 1 - The Mines

As your group walks on- the sound of the outside world, the birds, and the wind fades as the sound of silence fills your ears. The mines are dusty and very dark- but at least set in straight corridors mined out by human hands. Here and there, the ceiling buckles under the weight of the mountain above, and the passages curve as they seek the richest veins in the body of the mountain.

Then, you begin to hear noises. Small taps that sound like scratching on the window. The sound of a rock falling, and then footsteps. Scratching on wood, and a animal shuffling.

"Eep! Jon, I'm scared!"
"Shhh! It's only noise. Richard, ready your spear in case we meet the one responsible..."

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The noise gets louder until you turn a corner and finally see the culprits- Knockers!

Just as you suspected. These creatures appear in old houses and abandoned mills, in dark attics, and in caves and holes beneath the sides of roads, and under rickety old bridges. They make noises at night to scare people away- as they feed off dust and cobwebs and would starve if someone cleaned up the places where they live. They are basically a grown up kind of gremlin- so weak even a child could scare one away.

”Haha- merely a few knockers! They'll be of no threat to us. Just wave your stick at them, they'll run.”
”Err... Jon... I don't think these ones are going to scare off....”

Your confidence evaporates as the monsters advance towards you. You can honestly say you've never seen this before; but then again, in the most darkest and abandoned of places Knockers can become more aggressive. You've never heard of one killing a person but... sometimes people come back with scratches they can't explain from a dark room or place, or trip and fall and hurt themselves. You guess Knockers can be aggressive some times. But there's no more time for speculation as the Knockers attack!

COMBAT RULES
Roll a d20 in one category for one character. Each character can attack and defend in combat. Characters without an attack roll don't attack, and characters without a defend roll have no defense and are considered surprised or frozen in place. Characters inflict damage and take damage based on their physical ability, equipment, and positioning as arbitrated by the QM. For example, in this combat, Elly is in the back position and has no weapon except for a torch, so attack rolls may be largely unnecessary for her. Jon has decent armor and these enemies lack dangerous weapons, so a defense roll may not be necessary for him either, and so on.

With this system, it may be best to keep a mid or low roll for a character and focus on attempting a higher roll for a more important character who can either have a greater impact or is in more danger.

You can roll a d20 by typing “dice+1d20” in the options field. The highest roll in each category for each character will be used.

>Jon (Attack / Defend)
>Patches (Attack / Defend)
>Elly (Attack / Defend)

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5519309
>Jon (Attack)

Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>5519309
>Patches
>Attack

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5519309
>Elly, Defend

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>5519315
NICE
>>5519674
WELP ill re roll this one for elly

Rolled 7 (1d100)

>>5519309
>Patches (Defend)

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>5519309
>>5519960
Wrong dice

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>5519309
>Elly, attack with torch!

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>5519309
>Patches
>Attack

>>5519309
QM, not to steal your thunder, but what are you using to draw your updates?

>>5520060
I use a shitty and generic Huion tablet + use Krita which is a free Photoshop alternative. It's alright. I'm not an artist. Working on update now btw

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With Patches in the front, the Knockers are held back at the point of the spear. But he isn't exactly doing much on the offense.

”Get out of the damn way! I can't hit them with my sword from back here- you should be behind me!”
”I don't want these things to get any closer!”

Jon waits for an opportunity to strike. Suddenly rushing in, he strikes down hard, splitting the head of a knocker, and then moving to the next for yet another killing blow. Elly is too far back and without a strong weapon that can reach- but her flaming torch still manages to seer one of the creatures that tries to go around the two men ahead.

”You both are country folk- I come from the big city. You have no idea how much I hate these things! They're in every old attic and basement, every little haunted shack- die you fuckers! This is what you get for not letting me sleep soundly as a boy!”

Jonathon hews through the opponents with a Critical Strike. This means, for sure, his prey cannot escape or survive the attack on their own- no quarter for these inhuman monsters. As Jon finishes off the last one with a decapitating blow; a spray of dead bugs comes out of the creatures neck instead of blood- not a wholesome creature of flesh and blood, but a creature of the night.

Patches has a defensive bonus from his armor and spear! Patches is in the front and is most at risk!
Jon gets a critical strike! Jon's weapon can't reach. Jon's armor gives him some protection. Jon had no defensive rolls!
Elly is in the back and at the least risk! Elly is not well armed for offense.

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After the fighting is over, the adventurers take a short rest.

“Jon... you have to be more careful. You didn't even try to defend yourself!”
”Guess I got a little carried away. The knockers are too weak to harm me.”
“Maybe- but you're lucky you had armor too. Only superficial injuries. Still, I don't like that attitude in case we run into something actually dangerous...”

Jon took some superficial wounds. No healing resources were expended.

The Knockers had nothing of value and carried no useful equipment to scavenge. Not even their bodies- examining the places where they fell, Jon and company can only find a few scraps of what appear to be loose shed skin or bits of very old and frayed cloth, dead insect shells, and stains of dust marred into the floor. More fearsome creatures will certainly safeguard treasure- but taking it from them will be the challenge...

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As they continue on, the group continues to explore the Mines level. Eventually, they find a shaft at the end of a tunnel; leading straight down into darkness.

”Hey, this could be a way forward. Though I can't see the bottom.”
”Maybe we could climb down?”
”Perhaps, though I'd feel better if we had some rope.”
“What? You didn't bring any rope?!”

Elly looks shocked. Jon shrugs. ”Didn't think we'd need any.”

Elly snickers. ”Oh Jon- I thought you were supposed to be the one to look after our practical needs- our masculine, practical, down to earth leader- ehehee.”

Jon blusters, but doesn't say anything. In the meantime, Richard readies a stone to toss down, but is stopped.

”Hold. It could make enough noise to alert something dangerous below...”

This could be a shortcut to lower places in the dungeon- and you know the treasure will be greater the deeper you go. What should they do?

>Toss a stone to see how deep it goes (chance for Random Encounter)
>Attempt to climb down
>Just leave it for now

Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>5520189
>Toss a stone to see how deep it goes (chance for Random Encounter)
Knocker knockabout's got me feeling confident!

>>5520192
You do not roll for Random Encounters.

hey QM, how fantasy is this fantasy world?
I'm asking because while it's mostly been grounded with swords and armor and bandages, there was talk of curses and magic, but that can be blocked off from a majority of the population in fantasy settings, only for the most powerful creatures.

>>5520204
We're getting to it. Give it some time.

>>5520063
By "steal your thunder" I meant distract you from the quest. Not that your art is shit (it isn't).

So like, you draw on the tablet, then save and directly upload the picture here? I was going to be given some kind of low/mid-range tablet from someone but we stopped talking so I gotta do my own digging on what to go with here.

>>5520290
Yes. Of course when you draw a picture in a drawing program it's going to be very high res, so I size it down before uploading it so it doesn't go over the filesize limits and because I'm a bit anal about it I don't want the thread to be too tough on the archive servers for /qst/. My current tablet is a Huion H610 Pro, but it's really basic and there are a lot of cheap drawing tablets (I don't recommend buying one of those ones with a build in display screen unless you're an actual artist who works professionally in some capacity.) For me this is just a hobby so that tablet + stylus is plenty for me. The only thing I would recommend is checking how large the tablet is so you actually have space to draw on because there are even cheaper ones but they're too small imo.

>>5520206
okay, thanks
I'm going to go with
>Toss a stone to see how deep it goes (chance for Random Encounter)

>>5520201
Woops! My mobile app just retains the options field between posts.

>>5520189
>Just leave it for now

'A quick way down' that we can't easily get back up through is more a potential death sentence then a useful passage, in the case that we might need to retreat from something strong down below without knowing a usable way back. Let's just keep going and explore the tunnels without leaping headfirst into unknown peril.

>>5520189
>Toss a stone to see how deep it goes (chance for Random Encounter)

>>5520189
>Just leave it for now

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Rolled 4 (1d6)

You decide to drop a stone down to test the hole's depth. It may be shallow enough to climb down, or perhaps it could be an bottomless well that leads all the way into the depths of the underworld... no way to know for sure.

Patches drops the rock. It falls down into the dark pit and for several seconds there is no sound. You count the time it takes to land, until eventually you hear a clatter deep below.

"Wow! That is deep."
"You're right. I figure we could reach it with enough rope, especially if we tie the end off to one of the support beams in the mines; it should hold. But the depth is deeper then any part of the mines dug here... by humans."
"What does that mean, Jonathon? Is it a way into the underworld?"
"I don't think so, but wherever it leads its much deeper then where we are now. It's at least one, maybe two levels of the dungeon below. The legends of the mountain say the locals dug too deep and unearthed something that made them abandon the mines; that could be what they run into. But it can't be this hole in particular."
"Hmm? Why wouldn't this be the hole?"
"It's too straight. Nobody is going to dig straight down; it's impossible to get the excess material out of the pit easily, not to mention the miners. No, I think something made this hole coming up. Let's keep track of this and move on..."

With the pit being way too deep to climb down, the adventurers move on- the pit could become a useful shortcut at the very least...

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While you are worried at first that something may hear the noise of your stone drop- nothing comes of it. If anything was attracted to the noise, it probably would be many levels deep in the dungeon, without the ability or intelligence to come investigate the rock's origin. However, this little experiment does give you a taste of wandering encounters. Spending a long time in a single place or making a lot of noise has a chance to attract trouble.

Moving on, the mine becomes more confusing as the simple, almost straight entrance shaft with a few forks have now began to grow into a larger network as miners had to search every direction for veins of precious metals. You make sure to put Elly to the task of marking every direction you go and keeping track, leaving clues or signs. You don't want to get lost down here!

Eventually, in the shadowy darkness, you come across a small pocket of opened up earth that has an unusual sight.

"Look! It's a treasure chest!"

It's true, in the shadow of a small corner of the mines, a treasure chest stands alone. You can clearly see it, but something about this seems off.

"...Hmm, I don't like this. Who would store valuables here, in the mines? People dig mines to take valuables out of the earth, not put them there."
"Jonathon, are you being paranoid again?"
"No, I'm being smart. The chest would have to be dragged here from somewhere else- no no. I smell something fishy."
"Whaaat? It's just a chest! Maybe someone in the village used it as a safe place to store valuables from the neighbors!"
"...If you had any valuable treasure, would you haul it all the up here in a chest among the monsters and dangers, or would just bury it on your farm? Or under the floorboards? Come now, Richard."
"Hmm, I guess that's true... But what's the issue here? Let's just go check to make sure it doesn't have any treasure in it first. Why not?"

>What is the danger here? (Write in)

>>5520942
>The chest is rigged with a gas trap that leaves those who breathe it in a suggestible and docile state for some time.

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>>5520942
>The Danger here are the TRIPWIRES that you can see wound between the posts close to the base.

>>5520942
Always check for tripwire, that's probably the trap.

>>5520942
The mentioned tripwires, and it could also be a mimic

>>5521049
This

>>5520300
Built-in display screen? Sounds redundant, desu.

Do I need a second tablet for the drawpad tablet at all, or can I just USB to my PC, open up Paint, and send it?

>>5521080
Seems too obvious.

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The danger? It's a trap. You look closer and find nearly invisible tripwires around the base of the pillars on all sides of the chest.

"I found the way around this devilment. Hark! Look skyward."

Above the chest and the pillars is a collection of stones held up by loose netting. It appears as though triggering the tripwire would cause the tightness of this netting to loose, thus dropping the stones on any unfortunate's head. Beyond being stoned from above, anyone who triggered the trip would cause a great deal of noise- drawing monsters or the trap-maker towards it.

"Move with care. As long as we don't step on the tripwires, we will be safe."
"But who would do such a thing? It seems very cruel."
"Perhaps a human jealously guarding the dungeon for themselves. You mentioned other treasure hunters have been there, it's not unthinkable they may have set a trap. But then again, the orcs may have set it as a way to alert themselves to activity in this level of the dungeon. Or maybe it could be a creature- a goblin could inhabit this level. They do like setting traps. This is much too complicated for a knocker, and too deadly for a gremlin..."

Jonathon checks the chest after making sure to keep his friends safe from the tripwires. Thankfully, it doesn't appear as though anything is hooked up to the chest itself. He shakes it and pushes it, checking its weight.

"Blast, it feels empty. And it's locked."
"But how will we know what is inside?"
"It's likely the chest was just here as bait..."
"Can you open the lock?"

Jonathon could pick the lock, but it would take some time. This would give a chance for anything wandering this floor of the dungeon to sneak up and attack the adventurers. Or he could just leave the chest here- after all, he doesn't feel like anything is inside.

>Open the chest (chance of wandering encounter)
>Leave it for now

>>5521677
>>Leave it for now
Easy way to die is to check the chests before clearing the floor.
Just come back to it later.

>>5521677
>Leave it for now

>>5521677
>Open the chest (chance of wandering encounter)
Mystery box. Also, we should’ve brought the snail with us.

>>5521677
>Open the chest (chance of wandering encounter)

>>5521677
>Open the chest (chance of wandering encounter)

>>5521677
>>Open the chest (chance of wandering encounter)

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Rolled 6 (1d6)

Jonathon decides to squat by the chest for a few minutes to pick the lock.

"Guard my back while I pop this..."

It's not a difficult lock, but he isn't exactly the most skilled locksmith and he's certainly out of practice. By the time you've burned through another half of a torch he's finally finished it. Looking inside, the group finds an empty chest with a loose scattering of what appears to be pieces of paper in the bottom of the chest, thrown away and disheveled.

"Papers, but no book..."
"That is useless to us. None of us can read."
"Actually, I think Jon can read."
"Just a few things. Just my name, the name of a few shops, things like that. This is way too complicated for me."
"A bit disappointing to spend all that time to just find some paper. Maybe we could burn it for more light?"
"No! You idiot. These papers could be extremely valuable- to the right person. The question is, why aren't they in a full book? They'd be much more useful as a complete set. Maybe even a spellbook..."
"Maybe they were in a book before- which was shook loose? This chest could have already been stolen but a few pages slipped out and were forgot about."
"Good idea, Elly. Lets store these in your bag- keep it away from the wet as to not ruin them..."

With that, you have found some mysterious pages. With nothing else for you here, you leave the chest and gingerly avoid the trap to continue on through your adventure. While the papers were an interesting find, you still haven't quite found any treasure that would make this expedition and the risks worth it. You've got a good feeling you may be getting close however...

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...And now you're lost.

"Dammit!"

As both your first expedition into the dungeon, and without a set map or experienced enough guide, you find navigation difficult. You end up getting turned around in a complex cross section of tunnel. Now you aren't sure if you've been here yet. You check the wood supports for charcoal marks and find none- so this is either a new area, or you've gotten really turned around.

"...This is all your fault, Richard. I never should have brought you along."
"Jon... come on, he just wanted to help."
"No, he wanted a cut of the loot without offering anything in return."
"Err, please Master Jonathon! I am your guide. I've spent my whole life around this mountain!"
"Oh, you grew up in the mountain? I just thought you grew up in a barn."
"Jon- shhh!"
"Listen to your woman friend! I will find the way back to the path!"
"You'd better!"

>Roll a d20 for Patches to lead everyone back to the dungeon proper
>Try to ditch Patches in the dungeon and leaving him to his fate- after all, more treasure for you.

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>5522164
>Roll a d20 for Patches to lead everyone back to the dungeon proper
Come on, Patches, you can do it!

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5522164
>Roll a d20 for Patches to lead everyone back to the dungeon proper
c'mon.

>>5522164
>Roll a d20 for Patches to lead everyone back to the dungeon proper

...And since Patches already got this: >>5522202

I'm not going to tempt fate by rolling any further. Don't want to undo the 20 with the possibility of a 1.

>>5522164
>>Try to ditch Patches in the dungeon and leaving him to his fate- after all, more treasure for you.

>>5522202
+1 for this eh

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Patches gets his bearings again. He tries to think about the mountain from his vantage beneath it, which side the rises within would be on, but quickly abandons that notion. It's not quite so easy when you're underneath the mountain- but then he remembers the direction they've walked, and back again, puts it together. Eventually, he finds a single charcoal mark on a pillar- and instantly knows where they need to go.

”Right this way- lady and gentleman.”

Jonathon's a bit flustered that this bumpkin has shown him up, but it is better for everyone in the group. The party of three move on to the next room- an it turns out to be a very important one.

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The next room is a slightly more “lived in chamber”, with a few decayed articles of furniture and clothing along the farthest walls. In the center of the room lies a table with two knocked over and broken chairs. The floor is a tomb- two skeletons long since dead splayed out beyond the table, one with a pickaxe embedded in the skull. But on the center of the table something gleams. Bringing the torch closer- you can see what it is.

Gold!

Shimmering nuggets of gold, pulled from the walls and soil of deep in the mountain. These are big nuggets- the smallest is as long and thick as a man's finger. The rest are hefty, with the dirt and crud already mostly picked clean off of them. Gold from the Earth! Of course, an equal collection of gold coins would probably be worth a bit more- higher purity- but this what you were looking for. Treasure!

”Alright, let's quit gawking! Stuff your bags and pockets full!” Jonathon commands, and the other two step to it. Soon, their hands are full of nuggets of gold- finally having found a treasure hoard worthy of adventuring.

That was until a strange, ghastly sound seemed to emit from behind them. The moment they touched the gold, something in the chamber was disturbed...

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“My gold... Why are you stealing my gold~?” There was a loud whispery voice- only for Jon to draw his sword and turn, before falling to the ground in fear.

”G-Ghosts!”

Two spirits, no doubt belonging to the dead bodies in the chamber, rise up from the corpses in all their ghastly radiance. They emit their own light, and appear as they had when they died- with all the trauma of their deaths. They have no physical forms; only these apparitions. Your weapons are useless against them. These spirits don't seem especially wrathful, but angering any spirit is not good. You could end up cursed, or worse.

”Your gold? No- it's my gold. I dug it up.”
”Noooooo- I found the gold, it's mine. Give it back...”

While nobody in the party was an expert on spirits or exorcisms; everybody knew the basics. When people died traumatically, and when their bodies were not properly buried, their spirits can become trapped in the mortal realm and become ghosts- haunting the place where they died or sometimes the item most involved in their life or death. These spirits seem to be feuding over the gold- it could be the gold itself is haunted, or maybe just this part of the mines...

“Jon, I'm frightened.”
”Shh- I know.”
”W-what do we d-d-do!?”

>Flee!
>Grab the gold and run! (Chance to become Cursed)
>Try to Exorcise the spirits with spiritual authority
>Attempt to resolve the spirit's trauma (Write in)

>>5522855
>Attempt to resolve the spirit's trauma (Write in)

'Look down there, at the floor. Those are your skeletons! The Pick in your head, the slit in your throat! You killed each other over this gold in your life, and now you are letting it dominate your deaths!

>>5522855
We gotta grab the god

There's probably a puzzle, a way to settle the trama

>>5522865
How do you slit a throat after having a pick in the head though?

My guess - dude tried to slit the man's throat to get his gold, the other miner managed to cave his head in but bled out. That would make him right...and therefore pass on.

>>5522870
More specifically, it would have been impossible for someone to slice a throat like that after being attacked, it'd have to be from the back, given the curvature means you couldn't do it with a frontal swing. Even more so, a swing to the brain would destroy any motor functions.

Ergo, Pickhead attacked first.

>>5522865
+1, great write in

>>5522866
>>5522870
>>5522873
The survivor probably got ganged up on by some Knockers- assuming they didn’t get killed together by Knockers after getting caught in an argument over the gold.

>>5522865
+1

>>5522865
Supporting. If this fails...

>Grab the gold and run! (Chance to become Cursed)

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None of the group are sages- none are religious enough to know incantations to banish spirits, and none have ever tried to appease angry spirits before. Jon speaks first-

”Look! Both of you? You're dead! It's not your gold anymore. You killed each other over the gold- that's why you are both here!”
The spirits looked confused, sad, but unchanged. They hovered ominously towards Jon and Patches- any over the gold to protect it.

”Noooo- It's my gold. Only I had the strength to dig it up. He slit my throat to steal it.”
”No! The gooold is mine! I found it through my own cleverness- but that left my vulnerable to you who would overpower me and take it...”

It seemed the spirits can tell they are both dead, in some capacity, but it hasn't resolved them. It seems their fetter that binds them to this realm is over the ownership of the gold. The spirit moves a bit closer to Jon- Then, Elly speaks up.

“Wait! You both owned it equally! You were supposed to share it! Without you, neither of you would have found the gold, but without you, the gold would have never been dug free. Neither of you found it alone; much like us, we work together. Don't you see?”

The spirits don't move or speak- but they do seem to stop. There is a sense of realization as the two spirits look at each other, almost as if reconciling their differences. After a moment, the two ghosts begin to fade away, their appropriations disappearing into the darkness and quiet.

”Elly... You did it! You calmed the spirits emotions- good work for a woman.”
“Thank you, Jon. Can we leave this creepy mine now?”
”Ohh- I want to do that too!”
”Pack up the gold in your sack- we'll split it, like those old ghosts should have!”
“Shhhh!... Don't tempt their ire. Let's give them a proper burial and put them at peace...”

Of course, it's bad luck to speak ill of the dead, and it's also more likely that disturbed and disrespected spirits will become vengeful spirits. The two miners have had their spirits quieted for now- but a proper burial will end their haunting for good.

”It is surprising that a simple murder could result in two vengeful spirits like that. Not unheard of, but that must be because of the curse of the mountain...”
”I've heard such tales. Do the villagers speak of it often?”
”No, we consider it a small taboo. But know this- the mountain tends to hold the souls of those slayed there in some manner- there are more ghosts in those halls then there will be for fifty leagues in every direction.”
”That is true. Dungeons attract restless spirits like flies to honey...”

With the ghosts defeated, the party take the gold in their possession as well as the remains of the two ill-fated miners. They bury their remains on the mountainside as the sun goes down- their first delve into the dungeon beneath the mountain a success. The adventurers split the gold evenly, three ways, and find themselves each with a small fortune...

Elly hires a group of villagers to build a new house in the village. In it, she keeps enough room for Jon, as he has no other accommodations in the village- and he needs to save all of his money yet still. Richard returns to his farm with his own family- this little trip has quickly made him the richest man in the village. It was a good thing he returned too- he seemed to have left house without permission, and as the direct male descendant of the oldest family in the village he has a certain ceremonial role to play- losing him would have been a tragedy for this small, isolated community.

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But soon the winter comes- the snow and cold making travel to the mountainous dungeon impossible- and ill-advised, as the nights which hide the monsters and creatures get longer and darker. The three adventurers remain in the village despite their recent influx of wealth- over the next part of the year, the three remain in the safety of the village as the Moaning Mountain continues to cry out in the night. Sated for their need for treasure and adventurer for one day- but for how long?

The group of treasure-hunters have some time off. What do they each do?

Jon
>Get into a relationship with Elly (if both pick this option, it moves to love)
>Improve literacy and read those mysterious pages
>Ask around the village and learn more about the Mountain's Curse

Elly
>Get into a relationship with Jon (if both pick this option, it moves to love)
>Develop new herbal remedies
>Study archery

Patches
>Inspire the locals with tales of treasure and adventure
>Get some lockpicks & have Jon teach you how to use them
>Become more involved in your town's traditions and mystery cult

>>5524069
>Get into a relationship with Elly (if both pick this option, it moves to love)
>Get into a relationship with Jon (if both pick this option, it moves to love)
Seems like a good way to have complete loyalty, and because i think they're a funny couple.

Fun fact, i don't know why, but i picture Elly to have that 'fancy southern accent'. As for patches,
>Become more involved in your town's traditions and mystery cult
Seems more interesting than the other ones, innit?

>>5524069
>Improve literacy and read those mysterious pages
Could be useful in lots of ways

>Develop new herbal remedies
A handy field to specialize in as an adventurer OR a normie.

>Become more involved in your town's traditions and mystery cult
Secret knowledge to make sense of this peculiar realm!

>>5524076
That stuff seems like it could be improved easier with more professional people, don't it? Seems like a waste of time to try to read the pages instead of just finding someone completely literate.

>>5524069
>Improve literacy and read those mysterious pages
I’m curious damnit!
>Get into a relationship with Jon (if both pick this option, it moves to love)
Seems to be her main motivation, and if it goes well we’ll reciprocate with Jon on the next time off.
>Become more involved in your town's traditions and mystery cult
Woooo, mysterybox box!

Sorta interested in getting the slug now desu.

>>5524083
Can’t trust someone literate, better to learn now and avoid future reading problems.

>>5524103
And how's he gonna learn by himself? By reading a book? Either he's learning at 1% efficiency, or he's learning with someone literate.

And we're probably going to want someone like an historian anyway to further study this mountain, and Jon sure as hell ain't an scholar.

I think it'd be more efficient to just get Jon and Elly together on the first winter, and then go find a scholar later.

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Jon and Elly are pretty cute.

>>5524175
Based. I didn't picture Jon as being a thicc boy tho. Still cute pic.

>>5524069
>Improve literacy and read those mysterious pages
>Develop new herbal remedies
>Become more involved in your town's traditions and mystery cult

>>5524069
>Improve literacy and read those mysterious pages
>Get into a relationship with Jon (if both pick this option, it moves to love)
>Become more involved in your town's traditions and mystery cult

>>5524069
>Relationship with Elly
And
>Relationship with Jon

Are the best options because they make a cute couple, Elly being pretty good at cooling Jon down from what we saw and Jon being more of a hothead.

>>5524559
And, i guess, for patches, he can
>join the mystery cult

Because he's not gonna be able to help us too much directly, right? Since he has those obligations. So better that he become more able to help us in other ways.

>>5524182
I think that's more of an artsyle thing

I picture jon being more...wiry? He's apparently a former cutpurse or something, being good at lockpicking, right?

>>5524175
Snailman when?

okay so we have a rouge, a priest, and a soldier
we've seen a warrior
when do we see the knight and the magician?

>>5525160
We could get him later, i believe

>>5525160
Where are you pulling these classes from?

>>5525180
Jon is a rogue, i suppose, patches is kind of a soldier, and he's saying that elly is a priest i guess? I wouldn't really call her that but eh...

I am disappoint that Jon and Elly isn't winning

It is the best option, they are both spending the winter in a single house, alone, together

>>5525182
This was my vote btw, i don't care about what happens to patches

(I'm >>5522866)

I wonder if the snailman will still be around by next summer

We could probably actually hire him, now that we have better equipment

>>5524069
>Improve literacy and read those mysterious page
>Get into a relationship with Jon (if both pick this option, it moves to love)

>>5525182
Personally I don’t want to rush things, I think it’d be neat to see a progression. Also, we need some increase in utility, not just loyalty between two members

>>5525182
>>5524069

If we can pick two options, I'm down fro Jon and Elly to get in a relationship, but not INSTEAD of progressing their personal skills.

>>5525193
We can get utility later, this is way more fitting storywise. She even went so far as to share a house with him. Better now than leaving it for later and accidentally having one of the two killed.

>>5525205
That would definitely be nicr

>>5525205
I'd be up for it, if nosewise allowed it

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>>5525213
>Nosewise
I JUST got that reference.

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Over the winter; Jon learns how to read better and studies the pages. Elly, who is letting him stay with her, gets closer to Jon as well. Her interest in him that led to her following him eventually lead to more- though Jon is too focused on his current problems to really reciprocate his feeling. She knows he'll come around soon.

”Thank you for letting me stay here Elly. It means a lot to me to have a person I can trust to stash my gold and valuables to pay off my debt.”
“You still never told me who exactly you owe this debt too. There's no way they'd chase you to this tiny village, right? Blackwater is so far away!”
”Ehh, I don't want to bother you with it. Maybe another time.”
“...Well, did you figure out those pages yet, Jon?”
”I can read them, yes, it's just the word choices and language. It's very old and archaic- and it just uses big words. A lot of it just seems like nonsense- like listen to this bit- “...And so Eno begat the one named Apsu, who layeth in the waters beneath the earth, and so from him do all creeping things come. And the one named Abazuzu came to rest beneath the food of this mountain, who only came when the world was no longer under the gaze of the North and South stars. And the one named Abazuzu fears no weapon, except the point that lays in the fire that never stops burning, and the one named Abazuzu can rend through any armor, except-” And then it cuts off there, because we don't have all the pages. And no, sadly, no spells.”
“...Well, instead of being cooped up in here all day, why not come outside with me? I hear the first wildflowers are going to bloom soon. The first person in the village to see one is said to be lucky for the rest of the year.”
”...Ok. Sure.”

In the meantime, Richard has not been hoard his wealth. Spreading it around the village, a sense of prosperity has overcome the people. At the same time, Richard's newfound charity and his position as an inheritor of the oldest family in the village means people are beginning to look up to him. The villagers take Richard to a secret place nearby the village and give him the chance to lead the secret procession around the mountain- carrying a symbol of warding. It is a great honor- and the experience of walking around the mountain in the deepest part of the night while it wails, pacing the very path that will keep that curse trapped within, has given Richard a certain spiritual authority.

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But as the snow melts and the next year begins, the money begins to run low. One trip to a dungeon cannot make one fabulously wealthy- nor solve all their problems. The village is now richer and happier, but still mostly unknown to outsiders. The successful expedition has also encouraged several locals to join the party on their next delve into the dungeon.

The first is the Snail from last year. He never left the village- apparently he curled up in his shell and stayed asleep all winter- which is way he was working for the tavern owner for a safe place to hibernate. It appears that he, like the rest of his race, cannot speak- but is large and strong and carries his own armor with him on his back. He has a large sword and will be a powerful warrior to join your cause.

The second is a trapper. This man is one of the best local guides and has actually hunted and trapped game on the cursed mountain a few times- but he says the animals there are of poor quality and he tries to avoid it. He carries a bow and is older, more experienced and patient, and seems to know wild animals and monsters well.

The third and final person who asked to join you is an archivist- who also seems to be from Blackwater, the largest city in the region, just like Jon. He's been studying all nearby local legends and lore, and is both literate and knowledgeable about history. He may even know a little bit about magic- but he mainly claims that he will earn his keep as a healer.

RULES
You may hire as many or as few people as you like. Remember, each person you hire brings new skills and more bodies to bring into the dungeon, but will also split the loot more evenly. When voting, please specify Yes or No to each person who asked to join you. If the number of "Yes" votes outweighes the number of "No" votes, the person will be hired.

>Snail (Yes/No)
>Hunter (Yes/No)
>Archivist (Yes/No)

>>5525659
>Snail (Yes)
>Hunter (Yes)
>Archivist (No)
Frankly I would’ve stuck with the snail if the Hunter didn’t interest me so. Unfortunately, the Archivist couldn’t make the cut- the loot divide is already too large.

>>5525659
>Snail (Yes)
>Hunter (No)
>Archivist (Yes)

>>5525673
Seconding

>>5525673
+1

While it does split the loot, more people means we can plan deeper, more dangerous trips.

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>>5525659
>Snail (Yes)
>Hunter (No)
>Archivist (Yes)

>>5525659
>Snail (Yes)
A Solid Front-Line fighter is always useful
>Hunter (Yes)
As is someone with a Bow who know about the monsters we might face.
>Archivist (No)
Elly is already a Healer, Richard 'Patches' already knows local lore and holds spiritual authority. If we knew there was something specific down in the mountain that this guy might hold knowledge about it'd be a different matter, but right now we're just exploring/treasure-delving, and his potential roles in the team already seem to be covered.

>>5525930
Jon is very poorly knowledgeable, it took him a winter to decipher some basic pages. We're gonna want someone who can help decipher stuff in the dungeons.

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Of the three asking to join your party; you accept two on your next treasure-hunting expedition. The first is the Snail which you knew from last year; the local strongman who acted as a bit of muscle to intimidate any petty thieves and do work around the village. Strangely, he never seem to have told you a name- everyone just calls him "You" or "the Snail" and he doesn't seem to mind at all. While a bit mysterious, the snail-man seems to be a gentle giant. He does have a big sword, but no armor besides his shell, which gives you some pause.

The second newcomer is the Archivist. You later learn his name as Nasir. He's a bit of a small man, also unarmed, but seemingly skilled with his mind. Also being from the city, like Jon, means he seems more streetwise and less gullible then the other party members. You hope he can earn his keep despite his stature and overlap with Elly's ability as a healer...

The party readies for their next expedition. Patches says his armor has since rotted away since last year, and he has no means to replace it at the moment; but he has replaced his trust in the physical with a trust in the spiritual. Jon makes sure to buy some strong rope along with torches, food, bags, and other useful supplies. Elly has a nice larder to stock up her own medicinal herbs from living right here in the village; so soon enough everyone is ready.

"We've already made out safely once, but that was only on the first level. We will have to go deeper this time to find our next treasure-trove. Onwards!"

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The climb up the mountain is uneventful. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Archivist is in the highest spirits, chatting idly with Elly or Richard. He doesn't seem to understand the danger; though to be fair, your entire group has relaxed quite a bit since the first time you came up the mountain; experience will do that for you. While you are not as scared as you once were, you know that getting treasure from within this place will be harder now; the more times you enter the harder it will be find new valuables as they're stolen away one by one. Plus you have to consider any new threats that may have arrived in response to your intrusion last time...

As you reach the mines again, you have to make your way and retrace your steps. After an entire year out of this place, you have forgotten most of it, but the charcoal marks are still there, smudged only a bit by time. Thankfully, the first level is made up of mostly long tunnels, so it isn't too hard to navigate. You come to the great hole in the ground you found the first year- now equipped to take the plunge.

Suddenly, Nasir interrupts you before you tie off the rope. He speaks;

"Excuse me, Jon of Blackwater, was it? You are the leader of this group, yes?"
"Erm, not exactly but... what is it? I need to get this rope secured so we can repel down deeper."
"Not to put a damper on your plans here but... I think there's something your not considering here. It may be unnecessarily dangerous to go down that pit."
"Hmm? We already found a great pile of gold on this floor, last year, I doubt we'll be lucky enough to find another. Going deeper is our only chance to find a fresh treasure hoard."
"Oh I agree, but it is this pit that concerns me. You see, I studied a bit of natural and supernatural ecology- and dungeons are a bit like ecosystems in the normal world. The top of the dungeon is the least dangerous, where as supernatural effects and monsters become more dangerous the deeper one goes."
"Do you see another choice here, little man?"
"Yes. The miners mentioned digging something up that interrupted them before the mines closed- that's what all the local hearsay of that time period says. This pit was obviously not dug by human hands. That means that there is likely another way down, one both safer and less deep, then this one. Given how deep this pit is according to your notes from last year's delve; it is likely this pit bypasses both the entire mine-tunnel system AND anything immediately under it. In other words, I think this pit could skip an entire safer and potentially lucrative floor of the dungeon. It would be unwise to jump in the middle of an ocean before testing the shallows first, if you catch my meaning..."

>Explore the mines for another way down
>Ignore the Archivist and drop down the pit

>>5526694
>Explore the mines for another way down
It's too early to use the 'deep level' shortcuts

>>5526694
>Explore the mines for another way down
Fortune favors the bold and laughs at the foolish.

>>5526694
>Explore the mines for another way down

Don't climb heedlessly down the death-pit if there might be a safer way.

>>5526694
>Explore the mines for another way down
I missed the vote, or else I would have said not to bring this guy... But if we're bringing him, why ignore his counsel? It's his main use!

>>5526694
>Explore the mines for another way down
Eh, still think we should’ve went with the Ranger if anyone (we need that gold damnit!), having two non-combatants in our party soaking up the loot is a poor decision methinks.

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Rolled 3 (1d6)

You decide to search the first level of the dungeon, the mines, a bit more thoroughly. This is still closest to the surface and you aren't in much danger- especially not with your growth in numbers. The Knockers weren't a big threat before- this time? They probably won't even approach with the Snail in tow!

You decide to trace around the mines and look for another way to proceed forward. While the hole is tempting and you brought enough rope for the excursion, you have to consider the possible injuries and dangers of dropping down; plus you don't even know where it leads. While the stone that fell last year didn't sound like it splashed into water or anything like that- there's no telling if the hole drops directly into a monster's lair or some kind of trap. Besides, even if you did take the hole route, you'd have to climb back up it while trying to carry loot in tow with potentially injured party members? Bad plan.

You decide to hold off using that shortcut until you know the layout of the dungeon better. This time, you search the mines and go to the narrowest and longest tunnels, trying to find the last places where the miners dug before they finally uncovered something they shouldn't have. It takes quite a long time to recover your old steps and follow your old charcoal marks; but your party eventually finds what you're looking for.

"Hark! There is a break in the wall that leads to a different chamber!"
"Wow- The chamber ahead is made of smooth stone. The walls are also squared; not this crudely carved mess of the mines. That chamber must have been made by human hands many, many years ago and the miners dug it back up on accident."
"Well, let's go investigate it..."

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"Oh no... Jon, I don't like this..."

Elly has gone forward with the torch to check out the next area; and it is indeed a totally unique and different place buried deep underground; only by chance or perhaps inexorable fate of the cursed mountain did they come across it. It is the second layer of the dungeon- and it is a crypt.

Ahead you see smooth stone; simple and primitive but not crude. It was clearly made with love and devotion in mind; a good and respectful place for the people of long ago to bury their dead. Richard, the most informed on local matters, is the most surprised.

"People from the village... were buried here? I did not know anyone was buried in the mountain. The graveyard is nearer to the village. Can you read the names on the tombs, Jon?"
"They seem to be names. Pen-EL-O-Pee. Yes, people from the village."
"That is very curious..."

Nasir makes a quick point about the likelihood and tradition in many parts of the world for people to bury their dead with valuables, and Richard confirms that that tradition has been practiced locally for a long time. Though he is remorse to do so; the fact this tomb is so old and forgotten nobody in the village knows about it means these dead are no longer being sanctified and cared for; these are forgotten dead. Cruel, but perhaps any treasure could be better served in the hands of the living.

"...Fair warning, Jonathon. There is no faster or more surefire way to anger the dead then to steal from their graves..."

Going forward; what is the party's policy on robbing the tombs and coffins of these ancient deceased?

>Loot everything!
>Only open the richest and most ornate looking resting places
>Refrain from disturbing the dead

Looting everything seems like an real easy way to get cursed. Maybe get Patches to try to use his Spiritual Authority to calm down the dead so we can loot?

>>5527194
>Refrain from disturbing the dead

>>5527194
>Go with Richard's gut on this
When all's said and done, he's the one who's possibly related to some of these former people. His call to make.

>>5527194
>Only open the richest and most ornate looking resting places
>Go with Richard's gut on this
If he wants to open up the smaller ones, I’m fine with it. I think if we don’t loot them now, someone else will later, and we’ll be left to clean up the ghost mess anyway.

>>5527194
>Only open the richest and most ornate looking resting places
>Go with Richard's gut on this

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You've decided not to stop and break open every tomb- but you will still dig through the rich and ornate ones; the ones with the best chance of treasure left behind. Of course, you should ask Richard what he thinks...

"Richard, aren't these the symbol of your... belief on these very tombs? Is this not a sacred place?"
"...I don't know, Jon. This place isn't exactly consecrated in faith. This whole mountain is cursed. I would never bury the dead here; perhaps it was more wholesome of a place many years ago, but now these tombs are not of my own people. Nobody remembers these dead; they are of the second death."
"Aren't you afraid of retribution from the spirits?"
"Maybe. The spirits of the recently dead are more active and sensitive, but the spirits of the long dead fade away. Eventually, they go to the second death, where their spirit passes on and their body and possession become simple things and minerals; no more an anchor to this world. The second death may sound a terrible thing but without it, this world would be a prison for all souls until they can finally pass on into the hands of the ones above and beyond us. If we do find restless dead here, perhaps banishing them to the second death is a preferred outcome to being cursed to wander these halls for all eternity."
"Hmph. But this place is old, and you said old spirits fade away."
"Most do. But if spirits of old do remain, then they must be very powerful to stay anchored to this mortal realm. The older the spirit, the more powerful they must be..."

With that, the party move forward and ignore the smaller tombs and sarcophagi. It seems in this time, the dead were entombed in stone instead of in soil- as if their bodies were merely being stored instead of fed back into the sacred earth. The stone sarcophagi are so ubiquitous here that there is no chance all of these are noble or wealthy burials- even peasants and beggars must have been given one to fill up these halls. This is a good sign little wealth would be found in these.

"Can anyone literate tell me what this inscription says?"
"It says; "Family o' the Hills Resting Place."
"That's all I needed to know, Nasir. This is a wealthy burial chamber- the hill families always are. Let's check here first."

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As the tomb draws closer, the party notices strange markings on the floor and walls, including what appear to be monstrous tracks. The way ahead is very dark and dead silent; but an unusual presence gives pause. If by choice or instinct, the conversations fall to a whisper.

"...I have a bad feeling about what is ahead, Jon. Something is there." Elly says.
"But we have the element of surprise..."
"Your hunches are always good, Elly. Perhaps we should try to sneak up on it?"
"Jon, you're the only one who is suited to such a thing, even in your armor. I've always dragged my feet, and I think our snail friend drips too often onto the stone floor- a sure giveaway."
"Don't look at me; my sandals are too loud!"
"Grrr... Perhaps I could steal away some treasure without alarm, or get the jump on whatever beast lies ahead?"
"Oh no, Jon, please don't go off alone!"

Now they have to decide how to tackle what lies in the darkness. Unfortunately, without a monster hunter or tracker, there is no way to know exactly what is up there; but with stealth you can approach the encounter with a small advantage...

>Have Jon sneak ahead alone (small chance of serious consequences)
>Try to have the whole party sneak up on them (big chance of minor setback)
>Charge in as a group and fight on!

>>5527851
Is there any reason not to sneak as a group? The other options are to either risk Jon severely, or to just charge in anyways

>>5527851
>Have Jon sneak ahead alone (small chance of serious consequences)

>>5527856
Valor! And better odds of success, albeit with steeper consequences in the event of failure. Let's go!

>>5527851
>Try to have the whole party sneak up on them (big chance of minor setback)
Safer than sorry

>>5527863
"Small consequence of severe failure" is just a fancy word for "Jon will die". I don't want to make Elly a widow before she even got the chance to marry.

Do you even dungeon crawl? If there is a chance hance of something really bad happening, it will ALWAYS happen.

>>5527851
>Try to have the whole party sneak up on them (big chance of minor setback)

>>5527873
Those who fear danger overmuch need not enter dungeons in the first place.

>>5527851
How small or big are the chances? Like, 1/50 and 2/7?

>>5528296
1/6 and 1/2

>5527851
>Have Jon sneak ahead alone (small chance of serious consequences)

Since we're tied, I'll give it another hour and then determine randomly the result.

Rolled 2 (1d2)

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Rolled 2 (1d2)

You've decided to have the entire party move together- but as quietly as possible.

"We can't see without the torch, but we can't exactly sneak up on any monsters either."
"Perhaps we could try to smother it without dosing it fully? Cover it up in one of these offering bowels- keeps the embers warm enough to start another. Or same thing- use a torch almost dead with a fresh one ready to spring in when needed."
"That's a big risk. Maybe we could just move together with Elly at the back- holding the torch around the corner so we get just a little light?"
"I don't like this plan in general..."
"Creatures of the darkness tend to be less sensitive to light then you may think; they may even be slumbering or with their backs turned to the entrance to their lairs..."
"Alright, we'll go on ahead. Keep the torch nearer to the floor to cast less light, and stay quiet. We'll rise it up at my signal..."

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As the party draws into the dark and dreary tomb, Jon hears the slightest sound of something shuffling in the darkness. He doesn't feel the "warmth" of a living creature, nor hear the sound the shallow breathing, but moreso a "presence"- like the feeling of being watched all over. He knows they are not alone.

"Now!"

With a spring, Elly's arm shoots up, a new torch touching the old. The pitch quickly ignites and casts off a bright light that illuminates the tomb with a flaring start. Like revealing a criminal caught in an act, several creatures look back at the explorers with not a sound- but the look of startled cats. Their eyes glint back the firelight menacingly.

"G-Ghouls! Corpse eaters!" Richard cries. He has heard tales of one picking through the village's own graveyard; but that was just one small, stunted ghoul- nowhere near as bold and horrible as this pack.

Thankfully, your ambush went well. With your surprise attack- you managed to avoid being surrounded by an ambush. With the snail friend in the front along with Jon and Richard, your two unarmed noncombatants in Nasir and Elly are both safe from the fighting, and do not require any defense rolls to avoid injury, though extra attack rolls can be made for them.

"Jon! Stay near the torchlight! They fear it!"
"Watch out for those claws! And whatever you do, don't look one in the eyes!" Nasir shouts from the back, enthusiastically.

(Roll for combat actions- The same rules as >>5519309 apply)
>Snail Friend (Attack / Defend)
>Jon (Attack / Defend)
>Patches (Attack / Defend)

Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>5528515
>Jon (Defend)

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5528515
>Snail Friend (Attack)

Uh...anyone else going to roll?

>>5528657
Quest seems strangely unpopular, but it is also pretty early for no life 4channers and a weekday so give it some time.

>>5528661
>Quest seems strangely unpopular
Not really? The voter count seems to fluctuate a lot. Some votes get a fuckton of players. I think people are just scared of rolling a 1.

>>5528664
A 1 is still better than not rolling at all in this system

>>5528684
People don't like wanting to be the ones that rolled 1, however

I'd roll again, but i don't think that's allowed.

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>5528657
>>5528661
>>5528664
Anons, it's only been a few hours. People are un dufferent timezones or work. Space Monke was an anomaly. Most quests aren't THAT active.

>>5528515
>Jon, attack

Rolled 16 (1d20)

>Patches (Attack)

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>5528515
>Jon (Attack)

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5528515
Since everyone's attack rolls are looking okay in the front line..

>Snail Friend (Defend)

Only Patches needs a defend roll now, and then we can either try to improve Jon's or roll attacks for Nasir and Elly.

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>5528515
>Patches (Defend)
G A M I N G

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Striding towards the hateful light, the ghouls close in to attack. However, you had the advantage, and got to dig into them with Richard's spear and your other blades.

The ghouls are fierce opponents. Stronger then the Knockers by a great margin- their skin is weak and sickly and their claws are brittle- but they are still filled with a sort of unnatural vigor and speed towards killing and feasting on the flesh of the living. While Nasir and Elly didn't contribute to the fight- they didn't get hurt either, which is good. Just holding the torch and giving advice was helpful enough.

Snail Friend's attack roll was good! Snail Friend has a powerful weapon and muscles!
Jon's attack roll was good!
Richard's attack roll was powerful!

Your offense was enough to end all of the ghouls- enough to keep them from running away or coming back again. The dead creatures begin to fester on the floor, a disgusting smell- but they are at least dead and will haunt this crypt no longer.

"Huzzah! Take that!"

However, you also took some damage in return. While you were worried about Snail Friend due to the fact he wears no armor- not even clothing barely- his shell and mucus-coated body was more then enough to protect himself from the bites and claws of the ghouls. No wonder his race are such fierce warriors.

However, not everyone else in the group was quite so lucky.

Jon's defense roll wasn't great. Jon has taken superficial injuries. Jon's armor protected him from serious harm!
Snail Friend's defense roll was good. Snail Friend is too tough to get hurt by such pitiful attacks!
Richard's defense roll was poor. Richard has no armor. Richard took a serious injury!

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"Ouch..."

Richard is sitting down. While his spear met the flesh of many enemies, and should give him a good advantage of reach, the ghouls were feisty and one managed to get some deep scratches on his body- plus a small bite out of his leg. That looks pretty bad.

"...Why is his blood that odd color?"
"My blood isn't... like this normally. I swear! I'm not sick, am I?"

Elly looks worried.

"No, it was probably the ghouls that did this to you. Wounds from such a creature can become infected and end up making you sick..."
"She's right." Nasir added. "Ghouls do not have venom, but are so unclean it often doesn't matter."
"Oh Jeez... I thought my ancestors would protect me from such things..."
"Trust your ancestors for matters of the spirit, and iron for matters of the real world."
"... Nassir, help me here, I need to bandage this up. I hope you have some purifying powder."
"Of course, I wouldn't have come into such a filthy place without it..."

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At the same time, Jon inspects the spoils. Along with the Snail, the two look at the rich tomb they intended to plunder.

"This sarcophagus is sealed and carved finely- look along the base. I can barely read it. "Here lies a mother and father of many brave and noble children- something else here- and their riches go with them unto the next life. I think we found it. But how will we get the lid off?"

Cursing his shortsightedness, Jon hadn't thought to bring an appropriate tool to pry open such weighty stone lids from their coffers. But then again, nobody knew what the party was going to find this trip anyway. However, among the members of the group a small plan goes around. The lid could be opened by using a long straight piece of metal- and since you don't have a plybar, you would have to use a sword. Snail Friend reaches for his own immediately, shaking his head. That's a no go.

As for Jon, his sword would suffice. With Snail-Friend's strength, they could open the coffin. But by doing so, there is a good chance that the sword could become bent, dulled, and useless- thus meaning Jon would be unarmed for any further combat encounters until he could get it repaired.

"Hmm... Risk and reward..."

Rules
For this vote, roll a d20 to see how well Nasir and Elly can heal Richard's injuries. Only a 14 or higher will prevent him from becoming infected by the ghoul wounds. In addition, vote on the following choice-

>Use Jon's Sword to open the casket (chance to ruin it)
>Leave it be (no treasure)

Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>5529895
>Use Jon's Sword to open the casket (chance to ruin it)
We're probably gonna have to drag him out anyway...

>>5529926
very nice

>>5529895
>Leave it be (no treasure)

>>5530000
Why?

There is no reason to do it, we're not gonna be able to go around adventuring with Patches all fucked, we need to drag him back. We can't go back without any loot.

>>5530008
To avoid disturbing the ghosts and getting cursed. Also, we could probably get him into a decent shape with our two healers.

>>5530068
>To avoid disturbing the ghosts and getting cursed.
We have spiritual authority.

>Also, we could probably get him into a decent shape with our two healers.
We don't have magical healing spells, just normal healers, he's not gonna be able to walk right now with a literal chunk bitten out of his leg.

So either we don't loot this and go home with fuck all, or we loot this and get the treasure

>>5530072
You got a 19 on the roll. He'll be able to walk fine, just having a negative to future rolls on this delve.

>>5529895
>Use Richard's Spear to open the casket (chance to ruin it)

Wouldn't the haft of Richard's Spear be a better casket-opening tool then Jon's sword is? It's longer, so better as a lever; it's a Boar-spear so it should certainly be sturdy enough; and Richard's going to be in less 'fighting shape' then Jon is throughout this delve anyway.

>>5530222
Good point, +1

>>5529895
>Use Richard's Spear to open the casket (chance to ruin it)
Richard is investing in proper armor/spear next turn, as well as getting in deeper with the cult.

>>5529895
>Use Richard's Spear to open the casket (chance to ruin it)
If this write in isn't allowed
>Use Jon's sword to open the casket

>>5529895
>Use Richard's Spear to open the casket (chance to ruin it)
If possible, use the haft.

>>5529895
>Use Richard's spear

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Rolled 1 (1d2)

"Hold on. Instead of using your sword, why not use my spear? It's a cheap old thing anyway. The heft will give more leverage."
"Hmm. I suppose we could try it, but the slot under the lid is razor thin. We couldn't use the butt- so it's still a risk to the blade. Plus the crossbar might make things difficult unless we go sideways- thus being the biggest chance to bend it..."
"Still, go for it Jon. I'm not going to be very helpful in a fight right now anyway."

With that, Jon slides the tip of the spear under the heavy stone lid- and using Snail-Friend's powerful muscles, they begin to open the cask with their improvised lever...

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Rolled 1 (1d2)

CRACK!

"Dammit- what the hell!?"

The shaft of the spear snapped- even under the muscles of Snailfriend, it wasn't enough to open the lid. Even worse, it didn't even nudge the damn thing. The wood just wasn't strong enough for this task. A clever idea, but sadly, it wasn't as reliable as you thought.

"Dammit- I'm not leaving this place empty handed! Use my sword next."

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With much sweating and swearing- the party manages to open the casket finally. Jon's sword, unfortunately, didn't make it.

The stone lid pops off and slides to the side- nearly crushing Richard's poor bitten leg in the process. But within- treasure is found! The burial of the two nobles must have been a beautiful sight. Flowers and old fabrics line the inside of the stone sarcophagus, as well as offering bowls made of gold at their feet- with stains and cores of what looked like ancient fruits and foods. More importantly are the jewelry and adornments on their bodies- golden necklaces and braclets, belts, studded with precious stones and jewels- gold of a high purity and skill of ancient hands.

"Yes! Yes! Look at it!"
"Ho ho, look at the glitter! Such fine workmanship. Modern jewelers are skinflints- no passion in their work- not like these people."
"...I will say a prayer over the dead. They have certainly passed the second death given how extravagant and peaceful this burial was. Still, I hope they don't mind us making use of these treasures..."

Quickly stuffing the treasures away in Elly's bags- the party has found a nice bit of riches from the burial chambers here- though it is notably less in total weight then the golden nuggets they found on their first trip.

"Trust me, in the end, all this hardship will be worth it..."

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"Jon- what do you mean we're not going back yet? We've lost two weapons, my leg is wounded..."
"You're welcome to leave the way we came in, by yourself, Richard."

Richard doesn't say anything.

"Aren't we supposed to be cautious Jon? What's the harm in leaving now?"
"No no no! We can't leave yet. There's more here. I can sense it. This isn't enough. I barely managed to get all of you lot together for this trip- to get the courage to come back again. And there is the matter of the curse..."
"Jon- it's an ancient tomb. It's not going anywhere."
"You're a fool! Do you honestly think that this treasure is just going to sit here forever? The news of our discoveries have already been getting out. I've been trying... err... Elly and I have been trying to keep it under wraps, but it's impossible to keep such things a secret. Other treasure hunters will be coming here soon too- they own the mountain as much as we do. We've already opened the way and killed the monsters guarding the treasure. We can't stop now- else the treasure just laying there in the next spot will be taken by another."
"Surely we can just come back tomorrow?"

Jon eyes Nasir with disdain.

"No- don't you all get it?! I did my research. This mountain is cursed. What is the meaning of the curse? All who live upon this mountain are cursed. What does living on mean? Sleeping, camping, living. Are we inhabitant this mountain, visiting it few days, like a farmer's watering hole or dusty old study in a city mansion? Then we are living here. The only way to navigate the curse is to visit. Once a year, at most, never sleeping or staying over our welcome. We do not want the mountain's aura to stain its way into our souls. I do not want my spirit trapped here like the others among the ancient stones. This is the only way- we will march on!"

Jon's authority as the leader, despite his seeming greed, keeps the party here for now. Nobody wants to cross him- and Richard is naturally not going to try leaving alone- especially with no weapon and a bad leg. It'd be suicide. But until Jon is satisfied, the party must contend with their limited resources. Elly thinks there must be a way to help this situation; maybe she can talk Jon into something.

>Take a rest so everyone is fresh
>Scavenge weapons from the crypts

>>5530865
>Scavenge weapons from the crypts
Even a rusty hunk of scrap is better than our bare fists.

>>5530865
>Scavenge weapons from the crypts
I wouldn't wanna risk becoming an "inhabitant"

>>5530865
>Scavenge weapons from the crypts
We should’ve brought the fucking Ranger- if we’re only visiting once a year, we need the extra manpower to outcompete the competition.

Frankly, we should consider robbing the treasure hunters coming out of the mountain to make up for the opportunity-cost. That, or setting up a guild system to profit from others. Hell, even a tavern- thinking about it, we could recoup the mountains wealth by investing in the Adventure-tourism sector.

Maybe we’ve hit upon a business and networking opportunity if we leverage our wealth and knowledge right.

Also, on our way out, we should consider ransacking the remaining crypts, sponging up the wealth while riling up the ghost for other to deal with.

>>5530882
This ain't an cheap Isekai

Treasure hunters are glorified grave robbers, and the majority of them will be less like Elly or Patches and much, much more like Jon.

>>5530865
>Scavenge weapons from the crypts
Ah shit, Jon has dragon-sickness.

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Without much hestiation, the party goes to grabbing weapons from the crypts. Thankfully, warrior burials are common here- especially the swords belonging to the rich man and wife you just plundered. The weapons are old and rusted- but will be better then nothing. Everyone is eager to grab what they can and then get out of here.

"Now let's see... which way to go..."

Two paths diverge here. There is a more narrow path which seems to belong to individual and personal tombs- though less rich then the one you just looted, could be a place to grab some treasure. You aren't looting every peasant coffin, but hopefully these family crypts have more reward to offer.

The second path is a wider corridor with religious symbols carved into it- paupers and priests both seem entombed together ahead. While these tombs are something you'd pass over- it could lead to something big- a larger ritual chamber? Or the hidden treasure of an order of priests?

Jon will visit both before he is satisfied this trip, but you can do them in either order.

>Larger Corridor
>Smaller Tombs

>>5530945
>Smaller Tombs
Side route, then boss chamber.

Oh jeez, boss chamber...

>>5530945
>Smaller Tombs

>>5530945
>Smaller Tombs

>>5530945
>Smaller Tombs
The last thing we need is to fight some crazy ass undead cult in this shape.

>>5530898
Well, they're not exactly running a store here, it seems pretty reasonable that he'd want to get as rich as possible with as few trips as necessary

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You have decided to raid the smaller family tombs first- a good idea to work your way up. Perhaps you can find some new useful equipment- and it would be helpful to locate any problematic things before you turn your back on them...

The first few tombs yield a few treasures. Silver hair pins, a golden ring on the hand of a fat noble, the jeweled hilt of a sword long rusted to useless shards. Then, you turn a corner into a dark tomb and suddenly, literally out of nowhere, a spirit stands before you. It's quite startling; darkness and emptiness, and then a being just there- looking at you, quietly.

"Gah!"

The spirit isn't like the two miners. This one is of a woman, and she looks a bit afraid and alone. Spirits almost always appeared as they did at the end of their life- their wounds and bodies in the same state as they were just at the moment of their deaths. This woman looks ghastly- her entire body torn up in slashes, like from a sword or long knife, her hair torn as if grabbed by a brutish hand. She isn't accusing you of anything, nor moving towards you, but she takes a moment to scan the darkness, her motion sluggish and delayed, as if pantomime of a victim nervously checking for their attacker.

"...Jon, take care. No matter what emotion a ghost displays, they could snap at any moment, or reflect her death's pain back at you. Imagine if she was torn to death by the ghouls- she would share that pain with you."
"Those aren't ghoul scratches. Richard, could you banish this spirit?"
"I believe so."

Elly, having her confidence raised from her first encounter with the spirits from last year- speaks a little louder.

"H-Hello? Is there something you want?"

Jon didn't dare turn his back on the ghost, but he felt like chiding Elly for getting its attention. Damn, but the ghost is looking with an intense focus, as if trying to communicate something. I mean, the spirits you met from last year could speak and understand, this one just doesn't seem very talkative.

"...Jon, what should we do? This poor soul is trapped here like the rest- I could try to free her, or at least put her back to rest..."

>Have Richard banish the spirit
>Try to talk to the ghost
>Stay silent and see what it does

>>5531916
>Have Richard banish the spirit
He has spiritual authority, i don't want to risk getting cursed.

>>5531916
>Stay silent and see what it does
She’s probably a recent addition- as in, someone who came into the crypts alive and whose bones weren’t properly sanctified. I would be willing to put her bone at rest if she’d only show us the way.

>>5531916
>Stay silent and see what it does
Something's wrong here. Maybe she will reveal a hidden danger?

>>5531916
>Stay silent and see what it does

>>5531916
>Stay silent and see what it does

How are you all liking the quest so far? Is there anything that could be improved upon?

>>5532874
I'm quite happy with it! It's a neat take on a party-based dungeon-delve. I like the career system and time-skips, and the combat system is novel!

>>5532874
It's been pretty nice, i have to say. I can't complain much about it. The characters are nice too.

I'm, of course, hyped for when things go into the actual deep delving darkest dungeon areas. And for Elly and Jon getting together, still not letting that ship stay docked.

>>5532874
The curse timeframe. A year seems harsh, I’d like to take them aging a bit slower.

>>5532922
It's probably just there to make the downtime turns more realistic and avoid the "fifteen minute adventuring day" problem.

>>5532964
I don’t mind taking months off, but a full year of nothing is a stretch.

>>5533206
I don't mind the 'year between delves', but I think we should probably have the characters get to do two things between Delves, rather then just the one. Perhaps one 'work/training' choice and one 'social/leisure' choice for everyone, rather then just the one thing for a whole year?

>>5533219
That is still a whole year between adventures, which means that it takes very short time until suddenly the adventurers (the human ones, at least) are past their prime

>>5533260
This, and I would like to go on other adventures before we’re forced to retire.

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Jon puts up his hand; the entire group becomes silent. The nervous spirit looks around, as if looking for something, and in the quiet it finally moves. Floating along softly, the spirit fades in and out of being, fragile and barely-there, like the wingbeat of a butterfly, before it pulls into a tomb. Slowly, it points towards an engraving on a large stone coffin, looks forlornly at the living, and then disappears.

"...Something is written here. What does it say?" Elly asks the two literate people in the group.

"It says... Anna-Maria, Aged Twenty Two years, life tragically cut short by... "The Shadow"?"
"Huh- THE shadow? Now that is curious."
"Do you know what that is, Nasir?"
"The Shadow is the name for a murderer. A serial killer who stalked this town."
"Nonsense. Such a thing would not happen here." Richard says.
"No no, not NOW it wouldn't. But this was back hundreds of years ago, when the mine was still open. Back then, Stoneshove had a different name and was much bigger, filled with fortune-seeking men and women of unscrupulous means and morals. There was a killer who attacked random women at night with a long knife, who they called "The Shadow". He killed four before he was caught. They broke him on the rack before they ended him."
"Good."
"...It is very sad the spirit told its story, but is that all it truly wants? Or is it still stuck on the grief of being killed, even after their killer was brought to justice?"
"...Well, in the meantime, let's skip this tomb to not disturb her, and move on."

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"...Hey, Elly, can I speak to you for a moment?"

While Jon, Patches, and the Snail were busy with moving through a larger patch of rubble and looking for a way into the next tomb- Nasir was speaking quietly to Elly.

"Hmm? What is it, Nasir?"
"It's about Jon. How well do you really know him? I'm curious- we're both from Blackwater you know."
"If I "know" him or not is none of your business."
"Oh no- I didn't mean anything like that! I was just curious. Blackwater is a complicated place."
"Well, he mostly keeps to himself. He's opened up to me a little bit- but he doesn't tell me much."
"He's mentioned he had a debt to pay. I wanted to know more about that."
"Why do you care? I thought people from the city keep to themselves."
"Wow, you're almost as paranoid as he is now! Haha. I swear I come to you with the most innocent of intentions. It's because of divination."
"Divination?"
"Yes. With tea leaves. I have tea every morning. On the day I met Jon, I saw a curious omen in my tea; the symbol for the dragon."

Elly didn't much like Nasir. He was a small, weaselly, bald, soft man from the city. But she was just too curious now- she wanted to know more about Jon, and any type of divination was like catnip to her feminine soul.

"...What does that omen mean? Do you think it came true?"
"The symbol for dragon means a great personal challenge, an obligation that cannot be broken, or a very powerful personality controlling the actions of another. While I wouldn't consider myself a soothsayer or anything- but my tea leaves are never wrong. So tell me, what do you know about Jon's debt? I'm so dreadfully curious. Don't you want to know? There are many ways a man could get into that situation where I come from..."

>Tell him about Jon's Tattoo
>Ask about Blackwater Politics

>>5533931
>Ask about Blackwater Politics
I want to know more about this before we decide whether to tell him or not about the tattoo

>>5533934
Also, jon has a tattoo?

It sure doesn't seem to be visible, not even on his chest as shown in >>5517238, so where could it be?

>>5533931
>Ask about Blackwater Politics

>>5533941
Dragon ass-tat.

>>5533931
>Ask about Blackwater Politics

>>5533931
>Ask about Blackwater Politics

>>5533931
>Ask about Blackwater Politics

>>5533946
Fair point, but we didn't pick the romance option for Jon.

>>5533931
>Tell him about Jon's Tattoo
We need to know how it relates to Jon.

>>5534281
Maybe that just means he didn't catch feelings. Or maybe she saw his but tattoo in a less lewd context, like like accident during their travels when he went to take a whiz or something?

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I'm gonna sleep but next update ~12 hours

>>5534541
Hmm, somehow i doubt that it's a literal dragon's hoard.

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>>5534541

>>5533931
>Ask about Blackwater Politics

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"Well, what is it like where you both come from then? Blackwater? What does Jon's debt have to do with it?"
"...Blackwater is a big city. It's not like here or the place you grew up in. It's different there. People can get into a lot of trouble there if they start burrowing money."
"Why would anyone need that much money for? Couldn't they just work to pay it back?"
"Heh. Your innocence is very cute. No, in Blackwater, almost all debt it issued by the Merchant's Guild. They're very rich and powerful. Their masters learned the secrets of numbers from Dragons. They learned about things like compound interest and percentages- these are advanced, math magics. It means someone who takes a loan from then and doesn't pay it back may be stuck paying it back forever; even higher then what they originally took back."
"Wha- That's horrible! Surely that goes against the law- the Law of the Golden Prince? Why would everyone agree to those terms?"
"The Golden Prince's law only prevents people from passing debt onto their children; but not for people's own lives. Sometimes they don't know any better, but most of the time its because they are manipulated. Who do you think owns all the gambling dens and bawdy houses in Blackwater? That's right- the merchant's guild does. Once they get their hooks in someone, they don't want to let them go. Especially someone with skills like Jon..."
"What about Jon? What could they possibly want with him? He doesn't have some special skills a bunch of criminals would want."
"Oh come on, Elly. Haven't you seen? Jon is so much more practical and down to earth then Richard or you or even the Slug. He's distrustful of people and doesn't view life as something precious. He's a big man, strong, but also stealthy. What kind of work could a bunch of godless plutocrats get out of a man like that?"
"...I don't like what you are implying Nasir."
"What was he carrying before he came here? Just a dagger, right? I wonder if, in order to pay off his debt, what the Merchant's guild were making him do in those shadowy streets of Blackwater..."
"Are you trying to turn me against him? I don't want to hear this anymore."
"Just don't give your heart too willingly to him. Maybe he's more like the Shadow then you think."
"Shut up, Nasir. Why do you foreigners with your weird dress and weird bald heads need to come and stir up trouble?"

Just then, Jon's voice echoed from the small crypt they had been investigating.

"Over here! We found something!"

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"Yep, that's cursed alright. Says right on it."
"-And you're seriously considering opening it?!"
"Of course- why wouldn't we?"
"But- But it's cursed!"
"I know- but not all curses are created equal. Besides, there are ways to combat such things- why do you think I hired Nasir for? He's a bit of a magician."
"You can't take a blade to a bit of magic!"
"...Men learn ways to fight against nature, to fight against each other, and the fight against sickness. Why not a curse as well?"
"... Of course, not all curses are created equal. This one has its own inscription."

To any and all who read these words know this;
Whoever shall take from the fruit of my labors of my life-long lived,
the richest man in Cantus, who refuses to give his treasure even in death-
I condemn the rats to eat you alive! Beware!

"...So we're sure this is a real curse, right? Put on by some two bit sorcerer?"
"Maybe. But it could also just be something apparent. If someone was truly so greedy and possessive that they didn't want anyone to steal their treasure even after they died, then it could be cursed simply from that greed as well. I mean, he paid money to have that engraved on his funerary box."
"Don't look at me. I deal with spirits of the dead. I don't have any authority over dark magic."
"...I'm certain it will be worth the risk. The only question is, who is going to open it up?"

>Jon
>Elly
>Patches
>Snail-Friend
>Nasir

>>5535243
>Nasir
If Nasir is indeed capable in this regard, it should be him.

>>5535243
>Nasir

>>5535243
>Nasir

>>5535243
>Nasir
That's his area, yo

>>5535243
>Nasir

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By both the group decision, as well as Nasir's own self confidence in his abilities, he is the one to open the cask.

Putting his hands around the lightweight stone top, he slides it across and waits a moment to peek inside- everyone waits with a held breath to hear a banshee cry or feel a rush of death come from the box- but nothing happens. Jon scoffs- ”Some curse.”. The treasure trove is a funeral box with decayed remains at the bottom- but most noticeably are the intricate treasures laid around the bones.

“Oh! Look at these- silver!”
”Didn't he say he was the richest man around? I was hoping for gold...”
“But look at how well they are crafted! Plus the gemstones- this is a great treasure indeed. Perhaps the lion's share of his wealth went to his children- but he kept this treasure just for himself. And now, it's for us!”

With giddiness, in almost flagrant disregard for the supposed “curse” put upon him, Nasir reaches into the box and takes out the silver treasures, putting the rings on his fingers. He shines in the torchlight- a welcome addition to your group's haul for this trip.

”Eeek! Look! Look!” Elly suddenly says. Jon whips around to see her pointing at something on the floor- a big fat rat.

”Look! It's staring at Nasir! It's the curse! It happened already!”
”Elly- it's just a rat. There are rats in every tomb and crypt in the whole wide world.”
”No, no! It's looking right at him! Why would a rat get this close!? Maybe you should put it back!?”
“Nonsense girl. This ain't a thing.”
”Elly, I knew you were scared of bugs, but rats now too? Haha.”
”That's not funny! - Grrr!”

Jon kicked a pebble to scare the rat away, and then the men in the group counted up their newfound fortune. Any thoughts of a curse were mostly put aside- after all, what harm could a rat do? Elly's fears and concerns were being written off and it burned her.

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Taking a few steps away into the half-light of the torch, the men quickly added the treasures to their hoard while Elly took stock of her own emotions. Truthfully, she saw the world in a very complete way- people were physical things with physical needs- food, healing, comfort, and sex. It was all very simple. All you needed to do was to learn how to provide those for the people you care about, and life was good. But when it came to matters of the spirit, of magic, and of scary things like curses and souls- it scared her badly. At least the spirits of the dead she understood, though she pitied the poor things.

It was just about then when, out of thin air, an apparition appeared before Elly with a soundless whisper. She looked at it with a start- she could see straight through it and it seemed an illusion, a figment of her imagination, but it was there. Much like the quiet ghost girl from before, she did not want to say anything at all, lest she break the spell from the tiny breeze created from her breath. The spirit seemed then to make a hollow noise as it spoke lowly- Elly frozen as she saw the stretch marks along each of the spirit's limbs and neck- its unnaturally long arms reaching outwards.

“Is it... someone new? You are not as the other four... No, she is new!”

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Rolled 1, 4, 5, 2 = 12 (4d6)

SLICE!

Out of nowhere, the spirit touched Elly with a part of its form, a dagger forming from its ecotoplasmic stuff- and despite this being a being of the soul, Elly felt a sharp fire as a deep cut appeared across her arm but a second later.

”Pretty girl! She bleeds pretty blood!”
”ACK- JON! HELP ME! PLEASE HELP!”
”Oh please, PLEASE die here. It's been the same girls over and over- maybe you could even become my favorite. DIE!”

The crazed, malevolent spirit begins to slash its weapon wildly at Elly's unprotected body- she raises her arms up and feels a rush of panic as she tries her best to do something- anything to defend herself.

”El-Elly! Richard! Banish that Phantom, quick!”

RULES
The resultant roll of this post is the number of times Elly is about to be slashed. Each vote will reduce this number by the amount you roll. In order to roll, type “dice+1d3” in the options field. The amount of slashes that get through will determine how much damage Elly takes. If too many are left in 12 hours from now- Elly will die.

>Roll (1d3) to weaken the Spirit's attack

Rolled 1 (1d3)

>>5535810

Rolled 3 (1d3)

>>5535810

Rolled 3 (1d3)

>>5535810
Are my posts getting through? They don't seem to be appearing to me

>>5535839
I can see them alright

>>5535839
No, I can’t see your post

Rolled 1 (1d3)

>>5535810