1236, Winter
It is a new year in our Ars Magica saga of Druids’ Dale. At the end of the previous session, we got a number of rumours which we can follow up on. We start the session with making ageing checks for the characters – and nothing interesting happens (nobody dies).
Jack – Winter, 1236
Some information comes to me via my contacts about the whereabouts of the merchant Robert. He was identified as the person who provided the special material for burning down buildings, and now we know that he’s going to be in Dunbarton in the next week or two.
Before heading to Dunbarton to meet up with him, I dispatch some people to go and find out what Lord Goulis is up to. He seems to be building something, but nobody seems to know what.
Myself and Greysen head to Dumbarton to try and track down Robert the Merchant. We are informed when he arrives in the town, so we both head down to the market where he is setting up a stall. He seems pretty typical, though on closer inspection his clothes are high quality – though in a practical sense rather than being ostentatious.
His wagon is good quality and moderately large, with lots of sacks, boxes and other stuff in the cart. We make our way over to him, though we stop at the stalls of various other merchants to have chats before reaching him. I don’t want to make it look like we’re specifically here to see him.
His full name is Robert of Bonchester. I get talking to him, examining a rather nice dagger. I explain that I’m in the market for information, and mention some of the weird things that have happened, including the strange fires. Greysen notices that he gives a bit of a start at the mention of fires. Greysen chases him up about the fires, and he seems to know quite a bit about what happened afterwards. I tell him that he should try out the Library – our pub which now has a pretty good reputation.
I send a pigeon to the covenant to let them know that we’ve found the merchant responsible. I request that someone capable of peaking into his mind come and have a look.
That evening, he turns up at the Library, and is pleasantly surprised by the quality of our beer. I mention we’re also looking for alchemical materials, amongst other stuff. He does mention that he could get hold of some, but doesn’t appear to be surprised by the request.
We listen to Greysen and his singing, and once Robert is quite drunk, I get quite blunt in my questioning. It turns out he didn’t know what was in the box – he was just given it by an old women who gave off a weird vibe. She told him to give it to the young man that we encountered, along with a letter. He was also told not to shake the box. She had an odd accent as well and squinted at him. This is beginning to sound like he was set up by some wizard.
The following day, I head back towards the covenant, and meet Maedbh and Pisciculus on the way towards the library in response to my request. They don’t seem too upset about a wasted journey. I fill them in on what we have found out, and they have a discussion about which magi in the area could have been responsible. It could have been anyone capable of covering themselves with an illusion, though the suspicion is that it might be someone from Fire’s Heart covenant, which isn’t too far away from where the problems were happening.
Jack – Spring, 1236
Myself, Knox, Maedbh and Allistor head north to investigate the strange grooves in the ground. On the way, we stop off at Aberfeldy where the people are very happy to see us. They refuse to let us pay for anything, and even Alistor is welcomed due to us saving them from the Fey last year.
They inform us that they’d recently noticed fish being delivered to random houses. It had been going on for a while, but it wasn’t until people started mentioning to each other than they’d found a fresh fish on their doorstep, that they realised it was more than just a one-off.
A traveller to the village had noticed a wolf headed man carrying a fish walking in the hills, though the accuracy of this witness isn’t known. Maedbh though had heard stories of the Wulver, a friendly wolf-headed Fey who delivers fish to people. So maybe there is something to the story after wall.
That night, we are fed fish and given a place to stay. In the morning, the villagers tell us that six fish were delivered to various houses.
We decide to try and track down the mysterious fisherman. Maedbh and Alistor try to use magic, whilst myself and Knox head off to the Loch to see if we can find any sign of where someone may have been fishing.
The session ends with a hunting check from Knox to see if he can find the fishing site. It’s not that important a check, but Knox has +8 on it due to his high perception and hunting skills, along with a further +3 from his magical vision. He rolls a 1. Which in Ars Magica means roll again and double. He rolls another 1. He then rolls a 10. That’s a roll of 10 * 2 *2 = 40 + 11 = 51.
A pretty damn fine role. I guess we’ll find out next week what he’s found.
