THE PARTY
Washed-out boxer Barnaby Barrachus
Witch sidekick Agatha
Golden lotus addict/sharpshooter Trimalchio Sterne
His washed-up opera diva companion Violetta
In the Iron Conch Inn, a tired establishment of ill repute on the west edge of Houndport, the party approached Geoffrey, a shady gentleman who deals in “sundry goods”. His business partner out in the swamp had failed to send a shipment of goods some time ago, and everyone who had searched for him turned back before the reached his outpost. The party agreed to look for the unshipped goods and the business partner, and Geoffrey agreed to give them enough money for an airboat and rations up front.
They acquired the services of Gator, a one-eyed airboat operator. On the way to the outpost, the party encountered a giant swamp bear, which Agatha blinded by placing an angry beehive on its head. Trimalchio dispatched it with several revolver shots, breaking the beehive and releasing some of the bees in the process. They spent a day hauling its body out of the water, and with the help of Gator, skinned it. Agatha now wears its preserved head and shoulders as a hood-and-cowl, in true swamp witch fashion. The rest of the journey was uneventful. They passed by an island with a Mosquito Tribe village, but elected to pass it by, for, as Trimalchio said, “I like my blood where it is.”
His lotus-fueled shamanistic senses revealed that an angry spirit was in the vicinity. They gave it a wide berth, and reached the outpost easily, only to find that something had smashed its way through the back wall, and that thousands of geckos swarmed the interior. It also contained a mauled corpse and several crates of golden lotus powder, one of which had been opened and sampled. Trimalchio used some of the powder to speak with the ghost of the mauled man, but when he tried to bind the spirit to an empty chamber of his revolver, the wrathful giant gecko spirit that killed him in the first place took notice and attacked. The party hauled the crates of lotus back to the airboat (luckily, since Gator was starting to leave just as they arrived). The gecko spirit, not well equipped to travel through water, pursued but did not catch them.
Back in Houndport, they sold off the now-putrid swamp bear for sausage meat, along with some of the fur and collected their pay. Barnaby bought himself and Agatha drinks at the Iron Conch and called it a day.
I realized that the party now has a ton of money and nothing to spend it on, so here’s some placed to use your coin in Flowerland.
Homeless characters camp somewhere past the outskirts of Houndport. The Constabulary does not tolerate vagrants sleeping in the streets. When they rest at their camp, they may reroll their HD. They may spend a full day of foraging to find food for 2d6-6 (minimum 0) people, unless they have the Bushcraft skill, in which case it is 1d6 people. There is a 1 in 6 chance per night spent homeless that a character encounters a disease, and must roll Physique in order to not catch it.
Iron Conch Inn characters pay 15 sp/person/week for mediocre food and board. When they rest, they may set one of their HD to 6 and reroll the rest.
At the Conch Room at the Iron Conch Inn, characters pay 30 sp/person/per week for mediocre room, board, bath, and laundry (which as the party discovered upon returning to Houndport, caked in filth and bear blood, is actually pretty useful when dealing with other human beings)
Grand Willowaithe Hotel residents pay 60 sp/person/week for excellent room, board, laundry, and baths. It is mechanically identical to the Conch Room except that Houndport’s wealthy and powerful will deal with you directly.
The Governor Suite renters pay 100 sp/person/week. It works as normal rooms at the Grand Willowaithe Hotel except that lodgers may set two HD to 6 when they rest there.
A character with the Charm skill can spend a day collecting rumors in the bars at the Iron Conch Inn or the Grand Willowaithe hotel. A day of socializing costs 1d6x10 pieces of silver in food and drink for yourself and others, and yields 1d6 rumors about treasure, jobs, and wilderness locations.
Those desperate for new weapons or more ammunition can approach Quartermaster Enley, who will sell contraband for outrageous prices:
- small weapons for 50 sp
- martial weapons for 100 sp
- great weapons for 150 sp
- small ammunition (12 pc) for 10 sp
- martial ammunition (12 pc) for 20 sp
- great ammunition for (12 pc) for 30 sp
There are rumors of midnight auctions in the basement of the Grand Willowaithe, though for what the rumormongers don’t know.
Geoffrey will sell golden lotus powder for 20 sp a dose. Addicts need to take at least a dose a day or roll Physique to resist withdrawal. They also need to roll Physique to resist side effects once the dose wears off.
