Part 14

Before we get to Llorkh we're going to have to pass through the city of Loudwater. Loudwater is an ancient city build by elves and still mostly inhabited by half elves according to the background materials. It's also the only fully functional town we're going to be visiting in this update, since Llorkh is a bit… odd.



"Maybe they all took their day off at the same time?"

"We should only be so lucky."



"Those guys look kind of like Zhentarim, just around the edges… funny coincidence that they're here just when we are."

"Not really, if they're after the same things we are."



"Looks like they weren't paying attention, though… I'm pretty sure this tavern's back door comes out on the other side of the river. We can probably get around them and see if we can't get some kind of advantage."



"Man, I wish they'd just have put some wanted posters up. I've always wanted to get one with my face on it for a souvenir."



"I'm glad to see that even the Zhents obey leash laws when they're in the city."

"What is it with people around here and tame manticores, anyway? It's not like they're exactly cuddly."



So this is the first of a series of encounters in this town, all pretty much driven by the Zhentarim. The gimmick here is that each encounter we defeat makes the combat at the bridge easier. In the meantime, they're a ready source of gems and gold. Each encounter is identical to this one, so I'll just comment on the pre-encounter text.



"He's giving nobility a bad name… even the Water Baron at least tried to do SOMETHING to help us, not just hiding in his mansion."



"This is what happens when your guards take the day off… you think it's a minor thing, but next thing you know it's gnolls in the kitchen."

"Well that's speciesist, isn't it? They could be perfectly ordinary citizens… no, no I do believe they're about to attack us."



"Hey, not cool! Sit, Fluffy, Sit!"

"I'll bet they probably don't pick up his poop, either."



"I'd feel worse about this if it were anybody else, and if manticores weren't unnatural murder-beasts."



"So… they're actually splitting off forces from their main blockade in order to send out patrols? They're taking all the fun out of this."



"Well, I guess this is as good a place to keep looking for Zhents as anywhere else…"

"Hopefully they appreciate the poetry as much as the dead do."



"From the looks of things, there's a few literary critics buried here."



"It's nice that they put the sign there in case people were confused about the room full of dead people."



"I'm a bit more concerned about all the undead wandering around in city cemeteries. How do you make a corpse stay down?"

"Well, you could try putting a stone slab on top of the coffins or burying the dead face down, but other than that…"



"You probably shouldn't be relieved… you'd be a lot better off if we were just zombies and ghouls."



"They've got to be running low on troops by now. I think we've run them out of most of the town."

"They're also very slow learners, but I won't complain about that."



"We weren't even looking for y… okay, there's just no talking to some people."



"Oh gods, are the rest of them in the jakes or something?"

"If they're are, they're going to get one heck of a surprise when they come out."




"He's really, really good at running away isn't he?"

"And making speeches about boots and crushing. Do you think Percy's got some kind of foot fetish?"

"I guess we could ask the two guys he left behind to deal with us while he makes his escape."



Seriously, there's all of two of them. At this point, I almost wonder if I couldn't have just went straight through the bridge and not bothered hunting down all of the patrols.



"You're not wrong, but you're also not coming with us. You're just a bit too quick to change your allegiances."

"You're also still calling him Lord Vaalgamon even after he just left you to die. His name's Percy, by the way."



With that we've run clear out of things to do here in Loudwater, so it's on to Llorkh. It's a straight shot east, but the whole thing is set up so that you pretty much have to go this way.



"Impressive… is Llorkh famous for its fine statuary?"

"Not that I'd heard… and that's a very strange choice of subject for a statue anyway."





"Well, that poetry isn't at all threatening."

"Dwarf lover? Why I never! Not even that night I had three pitchers of beer!"



"That coat of arms definitely looks like a recent addition. What would you call that, a jackass rampant in somebody else's fortress?"



"If that's what it says, his guards have definitely taken the message to heart."



"I'm really hoping that a wandering statue artist came through town a little while back..."



"Maybe he was a Zhent guard with a strange hobby, since they're here too?"



"Checking in here will tell us if it's the Zhent or the new guys who are actually controlling the city."



"Well, that settles that. I guess the new guy only cares about controlling the palace."

"In that case, he can stay there and wait for the dwarves to make good on their poetry."



This battle introduces Griffons, which are kind of beefier and harder to damage versions of owlbears. They tend to give a LOT of experience, mainly because they technically have a decent number of Hit Dice and each drop a piece of jewelry.



"I think I shall call this one "The Wrathful Codger."



"I think we've entered the Olde Dystrict, where spelling is optional."

"Either that or they've got some kind of mysterious creature here called a harse, which I'd pay small change to see."



"No guards on this entrance? Now that's just sloppy."



"That may be because this entrance apparently leads directly into the kennels."



Despite what you'd expect, Hellhounds are perfectly vulnerable to ordinary weapons. They also breath fire, and are vulnerable to the Sword of Icewind Dale. They're actually only minor threats, and they drop gems when you defeat them.



"I don't know why I'm so good at finding these things, but this place is full of them!"

"You should be a professional ruin explorer guy or something."



"Umm… sorry to intrude? We come in peace?"






"Food to make friends… they're just like puppies!"

"A medusa… we'll be right back."

"I'm actually disappointed that those statues weren't done by a really great stone carver. I was thinking of tracking him down to decorate my new manor."




"Not today, lass. And considering the way that dwarves spell, they might actually have been trying to help."



"Well, this is the place… I'm just glad we did't have to go all the way back to Yartar to get mirrors."

"Pricy, but I'm sure it'll be worth it when we're not getting stoned."

"That doesn't sound bad to me, but I don't think I would make a very good statue."

Character Snapshot





Our party is nearly at its apex for the game, so not much change in character levels and the like. Any changes in armor class are probably due to our party using mirrors, which take the place of shields. It's not a big issue for our wizards, but everybody else has to sacrifice some armor class. At this point we're starting to get weighed down by our platinum, so I'm hoping for levels in the near future just for the sake of lowering our encumbrance.