The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
[pbp] Dungeon World: The Unsetting Sapphire Sun
Delzhand
Agrias Fucking OaksRegistered User, Transition Team regular
Agrias Fucking OaksRegistered User, Transition Team regular
It's peculiar to be thankful that your fate is the guillotine instead of the gallows, but you are. Those going to the gallows have their heads covered, but you - you are able to look up and see a sky that, to your mind, is the primitive ideal of how a sky should look. A bold, solid cerulean. Round, white, isolated clouds. A sun that shines brightly and warms your skin without sweltering. The master artists of the kingdom could not produce a work so brilliant.
If this is how it ends, at least you'll feel the sun on your neck until the steel halves it.
With great reluctance, you pull your gaze from the azure expanse and scan the line of unfortunate souls ahead of you. Ten people share your sentence today. Five of them are ahead of you, the rest behind. Chained at the feet, garbed in the minimum to preserve modesty for the watching public. Your hands are clasped in iron that, from the irritation on your skin, you suspect contains more slag that it ought.
You wonder who the others are, what their crimes were. Or if any were here unjustly. It's not as if the Al'Gramond senate is above quietly disposing of political rivals. As the chancellor drones on to the throng about the need for civil obedience in the lead-up to war, you close your eyes and reflect on how you ended up here. Things you'd have done differently. People you're leaving behind. The sum total of your life, and how you thought you'd have so much longer to add to it.
The hair on your arms begins to tingle, snapping you from your reminiscence. Murmurs from the crowd turn to gasps, then screams. They're looking at you - no, not quite, you surmise. They're looking above you, and you follow their gaze. Between you and the blue sky is a glowing circle, and from it is flowing a light that seems to turn from one bright hue to another. The person in front of you is looking at the floor. The same circle is projected onto the floor. You're a foot or so inside the circumference, alongside three other prisoners and two guards.
What follows is darkness and silence, broken only by a single quiet voice that echoes, ebbs, and fades away.
"...cast the net too wide, I cannot pull it in..."
"...using what strength remains..."
"...deliver the key to..."
And then there is nothing.
====================
Recruitment
Who wants to play Dungeon World? This campaign is focused on dungeoneering, unraveling the mysteries of a secret world, and working for or against the political forces that are always in play when power is found. And, of course, a good deal of fighting for your life. I'm pretty new to Dungeon World, so let's stick with the core classes.
Setting
Al'Gramond is, like all great nations, morally gray. It's expansionist, but it protects its annexed territories. It's democratic (or at least it purports to be), but a coin in the right palm will get you what you want. The government is bureaucratic, hopelessly complex, but at least it isn't terribly oppressive. The capital is beautiful and rich, except for the parts that are filthy and crime-ridden. Rich or poor, though, it's home. For some of you, at least. Maybe you hail from Treycardos, to the north, with its vast agrarian fields. That would explain why, until a moment ago, you were facing the prospect of a life measured in minutes. The border between Treycardos and Al'Gramond is the cartographer's bane, and it changes with the hour. Think Ivalice. From FFT, not FFTA or FFXII.
Particulars
Races in this world are races, not separate species. All players are human, but you might hail from a far flung nation. This is purely a product of the setting - mechanically you may choose a non-human racial bonus, but be prepared for certain racial prejudices from the common folk. If that makes you wary, just give me an idea what kind of character you're wanting to play and I'll give you an idea what you might expect.
Magic exists, but it is rare. When cast, it must be directed with force, or it tends towards the destructive. This has placed it firmly outside the reach of the common folk, and it's unheard of for magic to be used for trivialities like lighting campfires. The tendency towards the destructive, however, means that you're more likely to find a wizard in a barracks than a tower. You're certainly not going to find magic rods, scrolls, or trinkets at the market.
Clerics and paladins are holy warriors who worship the Old Gods. Those who believe in the Old Gods are declining in number, and it has become fashionable to reject gods altogether, meaning that clerics and paladins are typically viewed as well-meaning but old fashioned at best, and cultish zealots at worst. But those who become clerics or paladins are not the kind of people to be swayed by the religious trends of the masses. When faith is at its rarest, is that not when the their task is most clear? Divine spellcasting comes from his or her faith, not necessarily from their Deity, meaning it's possible to encounter those in divine service of gods unknown.
We'll use the Bond system of DW, but I'd like you to hash out with the other players what those bonds are and look for ways to establish them over the initial "getting to know your team" phase of the campaign. As you've probably deduced from the setup above, your characters don't know each other at the start.
You also don't start with anything but the clothes on your back. However, still determine your starting gear on your character sheet post, and I'll see to it that it ends up in your hands as events provide.
If you want to play a Druid, please let me know - your shapeshifting ability won't be usable right off the bat, but will be worked in as soon as conveniently possible.
If this is how it ends, at least you'll feel the sun on your neck until the steel halves it.
With great reluctance, you pull your gaze from the azure expanse and scan the line of unfortunate souls ahead of you. Ten people share your sentence today. Five of them are ahead of you, the rest behind. Chained at the feet, garbed in the minimum to preserve modesty for the watching public. Your hands are clasped in iron that, from the irritation on your skin, you suspect contains more slag that it ought.
You wonder who the others are, what their crimes were. Or if any were here unjustly. It's not as if the Al'Gramond senate is above quietly disposing of political rivals. As the chancellor drones on to the throng about the need for civil obedience in the lead-up to war, you close your eyes and reflect on how you ended up here. Things you'd have done differently. People you're leaving behind. The sum total of your life, and how you thought you'd have so much longer to add to it.
The hair on your arms begins to tingle, snapping you from your reminiscence. Murmurs from the crowd turn to gasps, then screams. They're looking at you - no, not quite, you surmise. They're looking above you, and you follow their gaze. Between you and the blue sky is a glowing circle, and from it is flowing a light that seems to turn from one bright hue to another. The person in front of you is looking at the floor. The same circle is projected onto the floor. You're a foot or so inside the circumference, alongside three other prisoners and two guards.
What follows is darkness and silence, broken only by a single quiet voice that echoes, ebbs, and fades away.
"...cast the net too wide, I cannot pull it in..."
"...using what strength remains..."
"...deliver the key to..."
And then there is nothing.
====================
Recruitment
Who wants to play Dungeon World? This campaign is focused on dungeoneering, unraveling the mysteries of a secret world, and working for or against the political forces that are always in play when power is found. And, of course, a good deal of fighting for your life. I'm pretty new to Dungeon World, so let's stick with the core classes.
Setting
Al'Gramond is, like all great nations, morally gray. It's expansionist, but it protects its annexed territories. It's democratic (or at least it purports to be), but a coin in the right palm will get you what you want. The government is bureaucratic, hopelessly complex, but at least it isn't terribly oppressive. The capital is beautiful and rich, except for the parts that are filthy and crime-ridden. Rich or poor, though, it's home. For some of you, at least. Maybe you hail from Treycardos, to the north, with its vast agrarian fields. That would explain why, until a moment ago, you were facing the prospect of a life measured in minutes. The border between Treycardos and Al'Gramond is the cartographer's bane, and it changes with the hour. Think Ivalice. From FFT, not FFTA or FFXII.
Particulars
Races in this world are races, not separate species. All players are human, but you might hail from a far flung nation. This is purely a product of the setting - mechanically you may choose a non-human racial bonus, but be prepared for certain racial prejudices from the common folk. If that makes you wary, just give me an idea what kind of character you're wanting to play and I'll give you an idea what you might expect.
Magic exists, but it is rare. When cast, it must be directed with force, or it tends towards the destructive. This has placed it firmly outside the reach of the common folk, and it's unheard of for magic to be used for trivialities like lighting campfires. The tendency towards the destructive, however, means that you're more likely to find a wizard in a barracks than a tower. You're certainly not going to find magic rods, scrolls, or trinkets at the market.
Clerics and paladins are holy warriors who worship the Old Gods. Those who believe in the Old Gods are declining in number, and it has become fashionable to reject gods altogether, meaning that clerics and paladins are typically viewed as well-meaning but old fashioned at best, and cultish zealots at worst. But those who become clerics or paladins are not the kind of people to be swayed by the religious trends of the masses. When faith is at its rarest, is that not when the their task is most clear? Divine spellcasting comes from his or her faith, not necessarily from their Deity, meaning it's possible to encounter those in divine service of gods unknown.
We'll use the Bond system of DW, but I'd like you to hash out with the other players what those bonds are and look for ways to establish them over the initial "getting to know your team" phase of the campaign. As you've probably deduced from the setup above, your characters don't know each other at the start.
You also don't start with anything but the clothes on your back. However, still determine your starting gear on your character sheet post, and I'll see to it that it ends up in your hands as events provide.
If you want to play a Druid, please let me know - your shapeshifting ability won't be usable right off the bat, but will be worked in as soon as conveniently possible.
Delzhand on
0
Posts
I'd be interested. Fighter would be ideal.
But Thief,Ranger or Paladin would be alright
(I have to think a bit on a concept..)
Revemeurs Oubliette
In 1303, King Feldan Perringrad accepted as his queen Adelle Lefriess, daughter of the king of Galliand. A marriage of convenience, Perringrad quickly set about planning a castle in a lesser province where he could stow his bride out of the way of his affairs. The castle Cerelada was to be grand, as with all of Perringrad's endeavors. Two labyrinthine floors, an interior atrium, and at the center of the atrium, a tower.
Less than a year into its construction, an explosion rocked the nascent palace, destroying half the foundation and sinking the remainder along with the half complete central tower. Originally attributed to the work of wizards, it was later discovered that vast reserves of flammable gas were present in the area.
Distracted by a war on another front, the king ordered that construction continue, but with a less ambitious plan. The builders, rather than haul away the collapsed foundation, decided to simply build a support structure, pave over the ruin, and start with a new foundation. Construction finished nine years later.
It was King Feldan's grandson, Riest Perringrad, who rediscovered the original foundation. Devoid of light and with no exits, he ascertained that it would make an excellent prison. The famously cruel Riest was fond of dropping criminals down the central shaft of the fallen tower, and within the span of his life it was transformed into a nightmarish dungeon peopled by crazed cannibals.
Riest often advised his victims not to scream as they fell. Screams were, to the residents of the dungeons, a dinner bell.
I'm expecting to be a neutral human, rules-wise, fwiw.
Paladin, Ranger, or Druid sound most interesting to me.
Everyman, you're definitely welcome. The great thing about pbp is there's nothing stopping you from doing more than one!
Alternatively the house has turned to "insert heretical lovecraftian religion" and branded as heretics, despite this my character remained loyal. And when the boogie men came- he held them off , so the younglings could make an escape. So he did a "NOT TODAY , DARTH VADER!" , but probably much less exciting.
*I'll note the House attempting to cleanse Al'Gramond and turning to a "heretical" new belief aren't mutually exclusive.
----
Not sure if this fits a "fighter", per se . But another idea was someone who would help merchants navigate between Treycardos and Al'Gramond - since it sounds rather mysterious/potentially dangerous. He has been mostly successful, but that never lasts. And eventually a powerful merchant or some such vanishes during the voyage and my character takes the blame.
Simpler if preferred.
(I'll try and think of something more interesting.. Just letting you know that I am thinking of something )
If you want to tweak that first one a bit but are worried that it makes you sound too important, why not be a follower / sidekick for one who gets caught up in the events that destroy his boss?
Stuff I'm thinking of:
I'm thinking that Alyssa is basically a poor farm wench from a territory that was recently conquered. Her beauty caught the eye of some page, who offered to find her a job in the palace of his Lord Veldemar in an effort to earn her favour. She accepted his offer, with dreams of living in luxury and comfort (fed by his massively overstated lies). In the end, she ended up in the palace laundry working hard and making a pittance, while the page moved on to bigger and brighter things.
While there, she noted the plight of the Lord's hunting dogs, who were kept in small cages and rarely allowed out- the Lord hadn't hunted in a decade and the dogs were just a status symbol, really. In fact, amid their howls she could almost discern words... More ideas, really... Dismay, misery...a yearning for the hunt. For freedom. It almost broke her heart.
Alyssa had decided to drug the Houndmaster (who was a horrible man and unlikely to listen to rational pleas to treat the animals better), and free the animals under cover of darkness... but was caught in the act by some patrolling guards, apparently stealing from the King.
This has led to her current predicament. Given your note on druids we can say that her druidic powers have just manifested themselves through her empathy with the hunting dogs, or are about to be triggered... for now she doesn't know even know that she can shapeshift, though her mark is likely there already- let me know what you think!
Tonight I'll embellish these with some appropriate proper nouns and places and send them back out via PMs for approval.
So for sure we've got:
Egos - Fighter - Knight in service to a noble house
Auralynx - Thief - Foreign agent
El Skid - Druid - Farm lass with nascent druidic powers
Tox and Everyman, we've definitely got room for one or both of you. I do think I'd like to cap at five, though.
Of course that wouldn't preclude me from just giving a raucous shout every once in a while, and the character would probably be well traveled enough to still play up the bardic lore component.
Thoughts? @Delzhand
Also @Everyman if you have something specific you want to play I'm not married to that.
I only had a vague idea about handling of races, but since there's a player interested in playing an Elf, let's have some racial lore:
El-Phaedorn
Al'Gramond lies central on the continent of Tuvalban, the largest landmass on the planet. But across the Terminal Ocean to the west of Al'Gramond is the continent of similar size named El-Phaedorn. Native to El-Phaedorn is the Cuacua plant, a fast growing edible grain that is as tenacious as it is versatile. With a variety of culinary and industrial uses, the need for agriculture was delayed several hundred years past its rise in Tuvalban.
It was, perhaps, this delay in societal development that is at the root of modern prejudice against the El-Phaedorn people, or Phaeds. Phaeds are typically viewed as ignorant, lazy, flighty, and aloof by the natives of Tuvalban. The truth is that Phaeds are as capable of hard work and intelligence as any other race, but Phaed culture values freedom, life experiences, and balance between work and pleasure. The more industrial Tuvalban people have long denied basic rights to Phaeds, and systemic oppression keeps them out of positions of influence. El-Phaedorn is commonly shortened to "elf" and its people "elfish" or "elves", both derogatory terms. In the past hundred years, the word "elf" has lost it's bite as an invective due to the growing ubiquity of Phaeds. However, there is still a strong racial prejudice against the slender, fair skinned people, and even today Al'Gramond parents admonish their children against spending too much time with Phaed youngsters, lest they fail to develop an appropriate work ethic.
For a quick concept, I think my character will have been a former squire. He was previously in service to one of the paladins belonging to the Order of the Endless Road, a loose fellowship of itenerant monk-knights that wander Al'Gramond and its neighboring lands in a selfless search of to aid poor folk in need. They travel from village to city to farmstead in an effort to heal the sick, give alms to the needy, provide labor for the weak, and most importantly root out corruption, greed, and evil where it might fester.
The squire will have served an aged paladin of the Order, eagerly awaiting the day he had taken enough steps on the Endless Road to earn his knighthood. Unfortunately, his master passed away in his sleep before could bestow that honor. The squire, at a loss, took up his master's blade, donned his armor, and assumed his place as knight. Down the Road he went, serving others, helping the needy... and perhaps putting a stop to a handful tax collectors skimming off the top and city watchmen collecting protection coin.
Only a matter of time until the squire stepped on the wrong toes. The husband of a cousin of someone with some real political sway. He was captured, arrested on charges of falsifying a writ of knighthood and impersonating a man beyond his station. The sentence, of course, was the guillotine.
Yeah that. Guess I could always pick it up with multiclassing :twisted:
I will whip up a character tonight as I'm presently at work and won't be able to get to most stuff.
Class: Druid
Look: Haunting eyes, Braided hair, Practical leathers
Race: Human
Tell: Pointed teeth
Stats:
Str: 15 (+1)
Dex: 13 (+1)
Con: 12 (0)
Int: 8 (-1)
Wis: 16 (+2)
Cha: 9 (0)
HP: 18
Dam: d6
Load: 8
Abilities:
Born of the soil: Whispering Plains (can shapeshift into any plains animal- also any domesticated animal[Human])
By Nature Sustained (No need to eat/drink)
Spirit tongue (understand language of any animal studied or native to your land)
Shapeshifter (Roll +wis[+3]. 10+ = 3 hold, 7-9=2 hold, fail = 1 hold in addition to what GM says. Use 1 hold to use a move associated with the form)
Studied essence (learn to shapeshift into an animal by studying the animal's spirit)
Alignment: Chaotic (Destroy a symbol of civilization = 1 xp)
Gear (4 weight):
Token of the land: Quartz necklace
Shield (1 def, 1 weight)
Shillelagh (close, 2 weight)
Poultices and herbs (2 uses, 1 weight)
Bonds:
TBD
Kind Eyes, Styled Hair, Worn Holy Symbol, Thin Body
Stats
13 STR (+1)
09 DEX (+0)
15 CON (+1)
08 INT (-1)
12 WIS (+0)
16 CHA (+2)
Damage d10 | Armor 3 | HP 25/25
Level 1 [4/8 XP]
Alignment: Good - Endanger yourself to protect someone weaker than you
Race: Human - When you pray for guidance, even for a moment, and ask, “What here is evil?” the GM will tell you, honestly.
Bonds
Kire has shown great restraint in the face of danger, and has my respect.
Moves
When you touch someone, skin to skin, and pray for their well-being , roll+CHA.
✴On a 10+ you heal 1d8 damage or remove one disease.
✴On a 7–9, they are healed, but the damage or disease is transferred to you.
Armored
You ignore the clumsy tag on armor you wear.
I Am the Law
When you give an NPC an order based on your divine authority, roll+CHA.
✴On a 7+, they choose one:
• Do what you say
• Back away cautiously, then flee
• Attack you
✴On a 10+, you also take +1 forward against them.
✴On a miss, they do as they please and you take -1 forward against them.
Quest
When you dedicate yourself to a mission through prayer and ritual cleansing, state what you
set out to do:
• Slay _______, a great blight on the land
• Defend _______ from the iniquities that beset them
• Discover the truth of _______
Then choose up to two boons:
• An unwavering sense of direction to _______.
• Invulnerability to _______ (e.g., edged weapons, fire, enchantment, etc.)
• A mark of divine authority
• Senses that pierce lies
• A voice that transcends language
• A freedom from hunger, thirst, and sleep
The GM will then tell you what vow or vows is required of you to maintain your blessing:
• Honor (forbidden: cowardly tactics and tricks)
• Temperance (forbidden: gluttony in food, drink, and pleasure of the flesh)
• Piety (required: observance of daily holy services)
• Valor (forbidden: suffering an evil creature to live)
• Truth (forbidden: lies)
• Hospitality (required: comfort to those in need, no matter who they are)
Road Scholar [GM Custom Move]
When you travel any road or path created by people for more than an hour or so, you may roll+WIS.
✴On a 10+, choose 2, ✴On a 7-9, choose 1:
• You intuit the distance to the nearest town or crossing
• You discern how many people, pack animals, and carts have traveled the road in the past day
• You locate and are inspired by a sign of your order left by a previous paladin, gain +1 forward to your next move
Gear [Load 10/14]
mark of faith (0 weight) [a small cobblestone carved with the image of a road winding towards the setting sun]
long sword (close, +1 damage, 1 weight)
shield (+1 armor, 2 weight)
scale armor (2 armor, 3 weight)
dungeon rations (5 uses, 1 weight)
adventuring gear x2 (10 uses, 2 weight)
bag of books (4 uses, 1 weight)
Since the law is hazy, vicious, corrupt, or zealous magisters might occasionally sentence a person to service until a debt is cleared, which is probably more like what you're talking about. But as far as institutional slavery as found in US history, not so much.
Hooded eyes, cropped hair, common clothes, flabby body
Stats
9 STR (+0)
15 DEX (+1)
8 CON (-1)
16 INT (+2)
12 WIS (+0)
13 CHA (+1)
Damage d8 | Armor 1 | HP 14
Level 1 [0/8 XP]
Alignment: Neutral - avoid detection or infiltrate a location.
Race: Human - Get +1 to Spout Lore or Discern Realities rolls involving criminal activity
Bonds
TBD
Moves
- Is there a trap here and what activates it?
- What does it do if activated?
- What else is hidden here?
Tricks of the Trade: When picking locks or pockets, or disabling traps, roll +Dex. 10+, you're good. 7+, done, but the GM offers you two of suspicion, danger, or cost; pick one.
Backstab: When attacking a helpless or unaware target with a melee weapon, deal your damage automatically or roll +Dex. 10+ choose 2, 7+ choose 1:
- Don't enter melee with them.
- Deal damage +d6
- Create an advantage, giving an ally or yourself +1 forward.
- Reduce the target's armor by 1 until they repair it.
Flexible Morals: Garivald can tell people who try to detect his alignment anything he likes.
Poisoner: You know how to use a poison (Goldenroot) safely. When you can gather materials and have a safe place, make 3 doses of said poison. Goldenroot makes victims believe the next creature they see is a trusted ally upon successful application.
Secret Agent Man:
When you spend a few hours apart from the party in a large city, you may roll +Int. On a 10+, choose 2. On a 7-9, choose 1.
- You make contact with an allied spy.
- You learn a political secret.
- You "commandeer" an object from a common shop or public place. It won't be missed.
Gear [Load 4/9]
Leather Armor (1 ar, 1 wt)
Dagger (hand, 1 wt)
Short sword (close, 1 wt)
3 throwing daggers (thrown, near, 0 wt)
Healing potion (0 wt)
Dungeon rations (5 uses, 1 wt)
10 coins
3 uses of Goldenroot poison (0 wt)
Sharp Eyes| Fancy Hair| Sharp Body
Stats
Damage d10|Armor 2|HP 25
Alignment:Neutral-Defeat a worthy opponent.
Racial Bonus:Once per battle you may reroll a single damage roll (yours or someone else’s).
Moves, Bonds and Equipment
Bonds
TBD
Gear: Weight ( 8)
Depending on when we start I may change...stats to
9 Dex
15 Con
8 Int
13 Wis
12 Cha
or something simnilar
From this point on, all OOC content should be in spoiler tags. Let's get ready to rock!
Audio: http://bit.ly/1766CVC
All Party
Within the roil of darkness, the sounds and smells of the city are replaced with fresh air, carried on a steady but not unpleasant breeze. As the darkness recedes like the tides, and you find yourself in the open air. Birds chirp, and the wind rushes through long grasses. Despite this, you're still in a room - of sorts.
It may have once been an antechamber in days long past. There is no longer a ceiling, but the chunks of broken masonry on the ground hint at a mural. The sun overhead is warm, but gentle. A path runs across the room lengthwise, lined on either side by the remains of columns long since overtaken by ivy. Wild grasses and flowers have forced their way up between cracks in the floor's uneven paving stones. A few yards to the east, the remains of a stone archway frame a pair of wooden doors whose stability is suspect, barely held together by aged metal fittings. In every other direction, you see only beautiful hills and copses.
You take stock of the situation. Your wrists are still clasped in irons, though free of supervision you could probably weaken the links or slip them off. There is still an iron ring around your right ankle, but it seems that only a single link dangles from it - you're no longer bound to the other prisoners. The guards are carrying shortswords and wearing military tunics.
"One of them must be an arcanist," one of the guards says to the other.
"Whichever of you it is, return us now!" the other shouts. "Or we'll carry out your sentence here and find our own way back!"
Alyssa
You only vaguely hear the guards' words - you're drowning in your senses. Your nose is filled with dozens of odors, from iron to flowers. You see a hawk dive for a mouse miles away, and the crude stitching on your own dirty shirt. You hear a fledgling cry out from its nest, and the scuttle of insects under the stones. You feel alive in a way that you have never experienced, and yet it fills you with peace in spite of your confusion.
"Still didn't do anything."
Alyssa, a young woman with rather flat brown hair and a pretty face, looked in wonder at the world as though seeing it for the first time as it truly was. For her, a veil she had worn since infancy had been ripped from her face, revealing brightness and colour she had never imagined existed.
She ignored the guards entirely, temporarily overwhelmed at the feeling of life emanating from all around her.
"You fucking fools..." he laughs to himself. The idea that the guards would be foolish enough to overlook a magic user brought him a slight degree of grim amusement. That he was to be executed by such inept individuals.
Manacles rattle together as Roylan raises a hand to push a few stray strands of straw-colored hair from his face. He gazes about and takes stock of their new surrounds with equal measure of awe and trepidation. His eyes gravitate towards the path running the length of the room... to where might it lead? And on that note, what had lead him here to begin with?
The young paladin -- still more a boy than a man grown -- glances between the guards and the two men who had spoken. Had it been the arcane?
"I will tell you truly that it wasn't my doing, although I would understand it if you choose not to believe any of us," Roylan finally speaks. "However... we're lost here just the same as you. Release me from these bonds, and on my honor I swear to help you in whatever way I can in returning home. The only crimes to my name were committed in the efforts to help the helpless, you must believe me. I wish the two of you no harm."
All Party
The first guard to have spoken turns away from you and looks out over the prairie. A few moments of silence pass.
"Garv, where in the world are we?"
The one called Garv turns as well. "I believe him, Haim. Look at these poor sods, Haim. Not a one of them has a tome or anything they can use as a focus."
"I've never heard of a spell that can magick a person from one place to another, either."
There is a long uncomfortable silence.
Haim pulls a scrip of paper from his belt. "You must by Roylan. ...Falsifying a writ of knighthood? Are we really putting people to death for that these days?"
Garv sighs. "This all sounds like the work of the divine. I'd just as soon wash my hands of all of them." He looks over the four of you. "I'm going to remove your shackles. Just remember who's armed and who isn't."
He produces a key and motions to Roylan.