Chapter 1: Making Introductions

Wilfra doesn't seem to change her demeanor much, even though you can see Daphisany start to tense up next to her.

It was ten gold per orc you kill. Obviously you're entitled to anything that they may have on them or in their clan camp if you find it. If you'd rather take a contract with Baulder's Gate and their coffers, by all means that is an option for you. We don't have the bank that a city of that scope has, by any stretch. Or are you saying more that you lack the tactical skill to handle some orcs creatively? she says, quirking a smile knowing how well a challenge worked for many of the mercenary types.

The man in armor at the card game coughs and nods his chin a bit in the air. Aye, the kitty is right though. Orcs are a bigger risk and makes me wonder if you aren't just quoting some number that sounds good to yo- he starts to say, before the tiefling slaps him on the back of the head.

Oy Eddie, let her finish. Plus, if these are those damnable Shattered Blade types, I'd do it for the sight of their blood on my blade. she says, before turning her eyes back to Wilfra. Do you happen to know which clan standard they fly?

I don't know, not off hand. However, if you insist on more, we can possibly do fifteen gold per orc, though the extra bounty on their mages won't be going up any further. As for the thieves specifically, we won't be supportin' an open bounty on killing them. Prefer the normal thief types be brought in for proper justice. If you bring them in and we can recover some of what they stole, how about we pay you five percent the value of the recovered lot? Ten percent if you recover the stolen goods.

At the mention of the stolen goods recovery prize, you see the elf and her pair of men look at each other with obvious non-verbal communication happening.

Wilfra's brow furrows very slightly at the comment about the brigands, but after a moment it passes and a smile spreads on her face.

If the orcs are your target, any assistance there is greatly appreciated. I'll tell you what, if you can bring in a half dozen of them, I'll make sure you have quarters here in town, private for any of you that help, for the next month in addition to any gold rewards. Including fare here at the tavern. she offers, hoping the extra enticement helps soothe the lack of bounty rewards.

The elf and her duo lean back in their seats. We'll gladly go find some ruffians on the trail, once this rain stops. she says after taking a drag on her pipe, drawing a chuckle and nods of agreement from both the dwarf pair and the card-playing foursome.

Some of the townfolk head over to your table, you can hear the small clamour of voices start to rise up as Stephen raises his hands to quiet the crowd.

From what we've heard so far, they haven't exactly attacked the town directly, always outside on the road. It's not so long a ride between Triboar and the High Road, so within a two day ride either direction. Almost all of the attacks that we've heard about have been from the south, enough so that we're pretty confident they have some kind of camp in the foothills there that they can go back to. None of us are exactly mountaineers and tracking orcs was never my strong suit. We've heard that there are at least three of their spell-priests or whatever you call their wizardy types. For the actual orcs, there've been reports of everything from two working together to an entire army of hundreds of orcs. Don't exactly trust the drunkard that was convinced of the army, but no proper estimate of their counts unfortunately. he says in a bit of a rush.

The small gnomish woman perks up near the end. Why? Why do those oafs do anything? To ruin the good and light in the world clearly. They seem to take material goods, but not non-useful valuables. she says, nose wrinkling as she seems to be running over reports in her head.

You see some nods of understanding among several people in the crowd. You notice that the other three adventuring groups all seem to be moving on from the briefing, some kind of a plan already secured in their minds. The foursome at the card table collect their things and head towards the rooms, while the two dwarves go over to the bar and talk with Baerum in hushed tones, too low to make out what they are saying. The elf and her two associates pull packs out from the table and settle sailor's waterproof coats around their shoulders as they make their way for the door.

The Council is very interested in your analysis, however. We certainly appreciate your not wanting to have a head-on confrontation. If there are supplies you need to help, or even extra hands if you're wanting to try building traps and the like, we're more than happy to arrange things.