Orphans & Organizations: session 17

Holiday shopping

After Vivi won the contest against Mirt, he asked why we were looking for Renaer out of curiosity. Vivi told him that we were looking for a fourth for the Gladitorial Games and wanted Renaer's advice.

We wandered the streets looking for interesting booths. I found one that looked like an untidy wizard's most back room. A goblin named Kripit is running this booth. He has a set of 6 tomes bound together in leather straps - An Anatomical Study of Magical Creatures. It contains encyclopedic information about extradimensional beings - mostly nearby planes but growing more esoteric.

Vivi bought a Collar of Common Speaking (which allows a dog or a cat to speak, but not necessarily understand Common) and a Pan of Safety (whose handle does not get hot).

I found an astrologer who was selling telescopes and spyglasses. Her telescope was impressive and impressively priced at 1000 gold. A spyglass was much more economically priced for 100 gold and I bought one.

After shopping, we went to sign up for the gladitorial games under the name Trollskull Travellers.

We spent some time looking for Gwen the Red; Vivi found another member of Force Grey and asked about Gwen. She had been deployed outside the city so we didn't ask any further.

Next, we found Fala's booth for Corellin's Crown. Fala had a lot of impressive potions with a variety of effects. I had spent almost all of my coin on the entrance fee and the spyglass, so I didn't buy anything.

Talking to Fala, I had the idea that if she has antidotes for drunkenness or hangovers, we could direct patrons of the Tavern to Corellin's Crown to buy one if they get too deep in their cups. She also told us that Rishal is a little sick and won't be staffing a booth for the festival.

We decided to go check on him and I wanted to drop off the collection of tomes anyway, so we went back to Trollskull Alley. While there, Rishal asked Vivi if she would bring him an apple muffin from Glavert's Punctual Pastries.

On the way back from the tavern, Zephyr noticed several members of the guard following and keeping an eye on herslef and me. We didn't know what we did to draw their attention but we didn't like it, so we agreed to split up and try to lose them. I put on a Mask, mimicing someone nearby and changed the mask every few steps until I was sure I lost them. Zephyr also got lost in the crowds. Meanwhile, Vivi went shopping for trinkets to tease her siblings with.

After some more games, we met up with Renaer at the gates to the Fields. Renaer and Vivi spent some time looking for a physical combatant who we would trust to share in a prize that seems too valuable not to be related to the Grand Game. During the search, Vivi heard someone rumormongering about Renaer's father raising an army to take Waterdeep.

Renaer points out an older man with dark skin and white hair, wearing armor and holding a shield with a book strapped to his hip. His name was Aldwin - his shield bore a symbol of two hands bound together at the wrists by red ribbon: this was the sign of Ilmater, the god of endurance.

The schedule is announced, and we were slated to be fourth. Ahead of us were a solo competitor (defeated), a group of three (defeated) and a group of four (victorious). We were called into the stadium next and were announced to be fighting...