TRILEMMA GAME

Apr 7, 2025 2:39 pm
@Drgwen,@Rumo

We begin in a fishing village near the south end of Halfnight Lake (SW corner of map above). We've been traveling through the land called "Once Martol", seeking rumors and lore of the Martoi for our purpose. In the village tavern, we heard it said:
Quote:
Beware those cliffs (southwest of the village). A multicolored lynx up that way demands travelers give up their wine!
What more urging do we need to explore?

Let's note a few things about Once Martol:
• The entire land is as black (at all times) as Darkvale on a cloudy night; no guides will take travelers into it willingly.
• Animals seem unaffected by the darkness. They are also enormous and territorial (as is common in wild places).
• Lamps and torches seem to shine only feebly here.

Halfnight Lake is on the border of Once Martol, and as the name suggests, the western half the lake is all times black as night while the eastern half experiences night and day. People who live on the shores and fish the waters do so out of desperation; the water and the fish are bad.
Apr 9, 2025 12:13 am
Dahlia recalls that the ancient Martoi mined brilliant pigments that stick very well. The pigments were a 🌈 of colors. Some say they could be used in magic to make paintings that summon what is painted.
Apr 9, 2025 1:41 am
Myrven looks around the village, one hand resting on the hilt of his beaten sword, the other picking his nose.

"I suppose, Dahlia, we better get some bearings round er'. Could start by lookin for a place to fill a wineskin?"
Last edited April 9, 2025 9:45 pm
Apr 9, 2025 3:55 am
Dahlia nods and says, ""Oh, you be wanting wine, do ye? Well I'm not sure it's late 'nuff in the day for that. But a watering hole of some sort might be a good place to talk to the locals, get a few pointers. I wanna ask about this lynx I heard tell of, and mayhap find a line on some pigments..."
Apr 9, 2025 12:15 pm
"ate t' be obtuse but I believe these objectives might align. You lead the way ofcourse D. I'll follow ye."
Last edited April 9, 2025 9:45 pm
Apr 9, 2025 2:42 pm
You gather with locals in the tavern. There's a variety of talk about how bad the fish taste lately, how Erwin wants to move away from here, but Kadya won't let him leave because her mother (whom he hates) is sick. Almost everyone here is sick … something about the water, or the fish. The imported wine soothes their stomachs. It's not clear what they trade for the wine, though someone mentions sending a kid off to a "better life" in the eastern lands.

Then someone lets slip that they're having a hard time getting pigment off their hands! Listening closer, you hear that Birevia pays gold for the tiniest scrap of that pigment, and these hills supposedly have lots. Maybe, the gigantic lynx guards a mother lode. But no-one has the guts to challenge it.
Apr 9, 2025 4:18 pm
Dahlia listens in, deciding not to help herself to any of the fine local food or drink. She turns to Myrven and says, "So, we got the lynx to go visit, or we could...I dunno, go figure out what got the water so bad? Maybe there's something out there...maybe on the dark side, that's spoiling the water." She shrugs. "Either way could be a good earner."
Apr 9, 2025 9:49 pm
"By the sounds of it, the fish problem might bit a tricky one. I vote we get some wine and see about that Lynx. If it turns out to be profitable, we can use the earnings to sort us a boat perhaps"
Myrven turns out an empty pocket.
"Ah..."
Apr 9, 2025 10:09 pm
Dahlia frown and says, "We can use your earnings, you mean."

She plops down a silver for some cheap wine to fill his skin.
Apr 10, 2025 11:06 am
"You'll need torches for the dark place," volunteers one of the locals — a shifty looking young man with a patchy blond beard, whose eyes don't match. "Just one coin." He has a whiny voice.
Apr 10, 2025 3:09 pm
Dahlia narrows her eyes when looking at the young man. She snarls, "I got torches. Flint and steel, too. But, uh, tell ya what. Anybody know what's out there in the dark? Like, anybody mapped the shoreline? Are there islands? Beasties? Gimme something good and maybe I'll buy yer overpriced torches.""
Apr 10, 2025 3:53 pm
Ingvar enters the tavern looking for familiar faces. The trip had been rough most of his few possession lost.
Only remained his weathered cloak and his trusted sword.

Finally finding what he was looking for, he approaches the group as they were dealing with a boy.

Good to see you Dahlia. What were you thinking calling me to this place? I almost didn't make it here. It's better be worth it
Apr 10, 2025 3:58 pm
Dahlia nods her head upwards as Ingvar arrives. "Hey, you know me, no promises. Right, Myrven? Heheh. Anyway, so there's this ...waht is it, a lynx? That's like a big cat or a small leopard or something right? So it might be guarding some pigment which is worth a pretty penny. And also can be magical or some such. And then there's that lake out there, how half is always dark. Well, the water and fish have gone bad and I'm thinking we could score a good sized reward if we row out there into the dark and see about that. Want in? Equal parts."
Apr 13, 2025 4:42 am
Myrven smirks at Dahlia's jest.
"It sounds like a easy up n down job friend. Far as I'm aware, we give wine, we get pigment, we give pigment, we get boat. Now how bout we head off then?"
Apr 13, 2025 11:39 am
Drgwen says:
Dahlia narrows her eyes when looking at the young man. She snarls, "I got torches. Flint and steel, too. But, uh, tell ya what. Anybody know what's out there in the dark? Like, anybody mapped the shoreline? Are there islands? Beasties? Gimme something good and maybe I'll buy yer overpriced torches.""
The young man gets an anxious look on his face and scratches his scraggly beard. "I don't know. People stay out of the dark around here, for the most part. I don't think even anybody has been up the hill to where the lynx was in a while. We're not real adventurers, round here. Just tryna get by, right?"
Apr 13, 2025 1:58 pm
Dahlia looks into her pouch at her quickly dwindling coin. "With his drinking and your extortion, kid, I'm gonna go broke soon. And then I might have to be not so nice, you get me? But for now, yeah, sure, gimme as many torches as you can."

She plops a coin into his hand.
Last edited April 13, 2025 10:18 pm
Apr 13, 2025 2:39 pm
OOC:
add as many torches as you want to inventory, +1 Strain per torch.
Apr 13, 2025 10:19 pm
Dahlia looks at Myrven and Ingvar and asks, "So whaddaya think? Lynx on the bluff or poison in the water? I'm leaning toward the water, myself, seeing as how it is actively poisoning the folks here...might make 'em awful grateful to us..."
Apr 14, 2025 2:24 am
As he speaks, Ingvar turns an empty pocket. "Do you have an hint about the water? Seeing how we fare on coin, I would take the quickest job available. And if that is worth something... Well it might just help us get something started here."
Apr 14, 2025 2:43 am
"I get ye Dahlia, I'm happy t' go fer the poison first if you have any ideas on where t' go, especially considering it looks like your the money of this outfit fer now. Otherwise, I reckon it's up the bluff we go".
load next

You do not have permission to post in this thread.