010 - Meet the Yocals

On the bank of the Isen River

October 4th, FA 15

Most of the company was arrayed in the eat-in tent to have breakfast. Araliniel was one of the last to get in. She scraped the bottom of the pot and sat at the end of the table. "I've had a powerful vision in a dream last night", she said. Galdor turned his sight away, uninterested. Finbert prompted for more information.

"I have seen a sword, under a few inches of dirt. It was in the cellar of a tower, in a ruined fort. Built somewhere on a wide river." She proceeded to describe the fort in as much details as she could. It became clear to Finbert that he had seen this fort in the ruined city of Tharbad. Further descriptions seemed to corroborate with descriptions of Tharbad that many other company member had ran into in their research. The company, satisfied that their path was leading directly into Tharbad, made a note to drop by the fort and check the tower out. "Did you say a Gondolin sword?", asked Galdor.

The company broke camp, which attracted the attention of the other craftsmen camping near the ford. They were most intrigued that the company was not going to wait for the Red Company to escort them through Dunland, but Arnadil failed to sway anyone to join them in the possibly dangerous crossing.

The company lined up by the ford, bid the Rohirim guards goodbye and entered the Isen. Arnadil, Halin and Galdor were on their horses, leading the cart which was driven by Kasper. Finbert and Araliniel were sitting on the cart's bench, beside Kasper. Quickly their attempt to cross the river was detected by a watch of Dunlendings. One of them left and came back with about a dozen other wildmen. They menacingly arrayed, arms in hand, across the road as it crept out of the ford.  The company was resolute that the wildmen would be swayed by a strong show of resolve, and simply plowed ahead. The wildmen, used to deal with cowed tradesmen got taken aback and let the leading horsemen go through by opening their ranks. However, the rank closed by by the time that the cart was pulling out of the water. Some grabbed the horses' harnesses, some inserted the butt of their spears through the spokes of the cart's wheels.

The leading riders realized that the assertive stance's success did not extend to the lumbering baggage. The largest and greasiest wildmen declared in a broken Westron: "Us no sign treaty. This is my home. You pay 12 small silver coins." Sir Galdor, in disbelief, smiled and declared that he would pay the toll and get on their way.

"No, we're not paying. We are the representative of the King of Gondor, and we are on the road, we are not paying any fare.", declared Arnadil in his best mission leader voice.

A lithany of confusion then erupted around the cart as most company members began to argue against Arnadil with varying conviction. Arnadil's opinion essentially was that the Dunlendings were in no right to charge a toll at the gates of their land, and that some 20 wildmen could be dissipated by a small contingent of  cavalery. The problem mainly is that there is no such cavalry, and that any delay would set the company back further into winter. The wildmen could not understand the argument, but were satisfied by the donation of the silver by Galdor and simply walked away. The agument was cut short when Arnadil fell like he was about to faint. He had to get off his mount and catch his breath. After about one minutes, the fog in his mind lifted up and all was back to normal.

Arnadil and Galdor prolonged the heated argument well into the riding day, and relented only by lunchtime.

008 - The fords over the Isen

There shall be no separate stories for the stop-over at Glittering Halls. Lord Gimli welcomed the company and his dear friend Halin. Much role playing happened as the characters tried to established whether good quality wine could be found in a dwarven mountainehome. Arnadil also attempted to snatch magic weapons from Gimli: which didn't worked. 

The company has reached the Isen River.

October 3rd FA 15 - The Edge of civilization

After a stop in the Glittering halls over the holiday of Yaviere, the company resumed their journey to the fords of the Isen. To their left, the peaks of the white mountains while to their left they could see the spire of Orthanc and the extreme south-end of the misty mountains. The journey happened without incident, although at a slower pace since they now had a covered cart that was to limit their overland speed. They were also escorted by four Rohirims who much enjoyed the opportunities to see the inside of the Glittering caves.

The arrived on the banks of the Isen on the third day of October. The temperature was cool and dry. A wind is blowing from the East. What was once a wild area has changed substantially. Since King Elessar has pledged to rebuild Tharbad, more overland traffic is coming through Rohan. The crossing of the Dunland is complicated by the tumultuous history between the Rohirims and the Dunlendings. King Lessar brokered a peace agreement with the Chieftains of the south, but this peace is very fragile. According to the treaty, the Chieftains agree to leave all travellers unmolested for as long as they remain on the road that runs from the fords to the town of Tharbad. It is not unheard, however, that some tribes have collected tolls for the passage of caravans through their lands. This toll is not legal according to the treaty, but there is not a lot that can be done without starting a war with the wildmen.

Because of the tenuous situation through Dunland, a company of mercenaries called the "The red hand" is operating in the area. They are offering an armed escort to the tradesmen willing to travel to Tharbad, and back to Rohan. Much of the transport of goods is done by the sea lane up the Gwathlo river, however. The company is large enough that it deters the wildmen from approaching travelers. The trip to Tharbad is a 100 leagues journey, or some 25 days of slow slug with carts. The company leaves the fords of the Isen approximatively every 50 days.

Because the departure to Tharbad is rare, the Rohan side of the fords has transformed into a small village of temporary dwellers and opportunistic merchants. There is also a small contingent of soldiers of Gondor (Rohirim are not allowed there as part of the treaty). It is thought that there will be another departure overland in something like 20 days or so, and this should be the last for the year.

Across the fords, a small tribe of wildmen has setup camp across the road. They claim that they do not belong to any of the signatory clans and thus are in their right to demand a toll. These wildmen have been deterring travelers from entering Dunland without an escort since the last spring. The rumour in the village is that they may be paid by "The red hand" to convince travelers to pay for their services.

The company considered the options: winter is coming, they have food for about 30 days and they should be making haste if they want to get to Annuminas within a reasonable timeline. They plan to cross the Isen on their own on the following day, talk (or sneer) their way through the wildmen opposite from them, and make for Tharbad on their own.