030 - Rebooting Annuminas

Getting fancy with the adventuring gears.

This encounter covers three small bits. A playtest of the probabilistic rules on learning and researching. Some roleplaying around the dining table and a rather abstracted travel overland back to Annuminas. The meat of Session 9 is in the next encounter.

Two weeks in the Shire...

The last two weeks had been fun for the company. Shirefolks still raved about Irina and her friends slaying the wargs in Westfarthing. Arnadil and Sir Galdor were sorry to have missed the encounter with the winter drake. Irina sent the best of her day straining her upper body with a borrowed bow a little too heavy for herself. She religiously practiced for days on end on strength training in hope to be able to shoot well with a more powerful bow [Playtest report #1]. Arnadil looked for a mentor in Bywater to teach him about the North. He found a great storyteller called Tom Herder, but poor old Tom turned out to be a better storyteller than an actual teacher [Playtest report #2]. Finbert begged the grumpy Halin to spar with him at wrestling. Halin, unenthusiastic eventually obliged [Playtest report #3].  Sir Galdor spent the best of his time at the Green Dragon, playing dice and making a bit of silver (10 celebins). Kasper dissapeared in his room at the Green Dragon for most of the time. Spending some time with Araliniel on the Treatise, and reading. 

029 - The proverbial lost sheep(s).

November 16th, FA 15

The following morning, the company woke up in the Slapfoot Inn to a small gathering of hobbits in he dining area. Most noticeably, the Mayor of Michel Delving was present. Samwise Gamgee, one of the most famous living hobbits was surrounded by half a dozen of nosy geesers. They were waiting for the company to rise from their slumber. 

A breakfast was served. Sam was concerned that these wargs were bad news for the Shire. The company asked to talk to him in private. Sam dismissed the other hobbits. 

Finbert proceeded to explain to Sam that there was much more to yesterday than a bad snow storm and a trio of wargs. They told the story plainly to him. Sam was visibly disturbed. He expressed concerns for the Shire and its denizens. The company discussed on possible ways to find more about the drake (possibly named Farathu). Ideas of baiting him with treasure were proposed. But to what end?  Where to? ... and what IF the drake bit the bait?

028 - The last word of a warg.

November 15 FA 15 (1:30PM)

In the previous encounter, the company ran into a skirmish between three wargs and a winter drake hatchling. The company decided to evacuate the farm stead before taking on the pursuits of the dark creatures. Unfortunately, this delay in tracking the beasts meant that the snow slowly started to accumulate along the path. Luckily, the wargs left deep grooves into the snow, and the drake left in his wake countless splintered trees. The going was difficult for the hobbits and the dwarf, but simple for Nimrodel as elves are unencumbered by frost and snow. By the time that they reached a clearing and found the bruised carcass of one of the wargs, the three small folks were starting to bleed Fatigue points due to the strain of walking, and exposure to the cold. 

027 - You mean, dragons are for real?

November 15th, FA 15

Only Halin, Irina and Finbert were sitting at a table of the Slapfoot, the premier inn in Michel Delving. The company was celebrating Finbert's and Arnadil's recovery from the foray in Annuminas with a trip to the capital of the Shire. As the snow storm worsten, Galdor and Arnadil decided to return to Bywater so as not to miss the dice contest. The three remaining company members were promised to sample Wesfarthing Honey Ale on the following day. They met Nimrodel, a Noldor elf from Rivendell on his way home from Grey haven. The mounting storm convinced him to stop by the Slapfoot Inn and sample the rustic charms of the Shire. Nimrodel and the company got acquainted and engaged in small talk. 

026 - Down time at the Green Dragon

...you can drink 'em by the flagon...

October 30th to November 15th FA 15

Once that Linluile returned to Lake Evendim, the company hurried back to the Shire while daylight still held. They arrived in Longcleeve by nightfall where they spent the night at the farmer's stead where they left their cart. Two days later, they arrived at Bywater where they spent a few night at Finbert's family hole in the ground. Over the next few days, they sampled the pleasures of the Green Dragon Inn. 

016 - The road to and through the Shire

Walking in the wake of a winter drake

October 15th to 28th (map)

The company resumed their long journey to Annuminas on the morning of October 15th. Provisions were purchased for the coming 10 days. With the early light of Fall, they set out across the Gwathlo river, heading north to Sarnford: a fording point into the Shire.

The road was reasonable, and the weather cool. Finbert expressed his concerns that it was unusual and worrisome to see this much frost and snow on the ground south of the Shire at this time of year. His concern kept on growing as the accumulation on the ground began to increase. His chief concern was that the apple season may have been shortened, but to each its own fears.

015 - Sniffing the air for a winter drake.

This encounter reports on a solo session with the campaign's new addition: Irina Took. It was meant to be both a send-off and a playtest. It worked out great: we used the invention rules (see last part), had some role play and lots of exploration of what can be done with a ST 6 hobbit without an ounce of aggression in her (and a 25lb bow).

October 20th FA 15

It snowed in and around the Shire since early-September. Folks in the Shire are worried: there is something queer about this weather, but no one can imagine the real reason for all that snow. Irina knows, and she'd rather not spread the word.

She met in Bree with the Shire's bounders and Dunadain rangers in early September. The rangers are pretty sure that the hatchling of a winter drake has descended from the Blue Mountains. Since then, it has been prowling in the low-lands for food and a hoard. There are reports in the Northfarthing of missing livestock coinciding with snow squalls and general bad weather. The colleagues agreed to be on the look out for white-outs and any other traces of a prowler. This is the reason why Irina was on the road to Tharbad on that quiet morning. The plan was simple: if a drake shows up, she will melt in the woodlands and shadow the beast, if possible. 

There was, however, no snow squalls to be seen all around. Rather, a deafening silence. Irina could hear the snow flakes falling in the ground with an almost audible tinkling sound. Amid the creaking of her own footsteps, she first heard the sound of voices beyond the crest of the next hill. Irina scanned the surroundings and found a path through fallen trees and tall grass to scoot out of sight without leaving an obvious dotted trail of footsteps in the snow [She succeeded with a wide margin a hard Survival check].  She snuck under an evergreen where she could observe the road, unseen. 

Three northmen walked by her, discussing enthusiastically about the sheeps that they were to steal from the Shire's outlying herds. Irina knew that this chance encounter had to be dealt with. When the men noticed the footsteps on the road, they began to look for the trail that would take them to Irina. However, their tracking skills were no match against Irina's master work at sneaking out [their margin of success was less than Irina's, which was a bit lucky to begin with]. The oldest of the northmen explained to what looked like his sons that such a strange disappearance of footsteps could only be the work of the Shire's Bounders. All seemed to get nervous, searching around for the outline of a shadow menace, ready to duck oncoming arrows. After much discussions, they decided to leave the road and enter the woodlands. 

Irina decided to shadow the sheep rustlers. She could follow the men very closely without arousing suspicions [quick contest Per vs Stealth, which Irina won with a critical success!]. Irina followed them for an hour, waiting for an occasion to do something. Being a Hobbit, she had no intention to really hurt them. She considered harassing them with pot-shots with her bow until they turned around. In the end, she chose an unexpected solution. She figured out that, having cultural familiarity with "The North", and being herself a very charismatics person, she would attempt to befriend the men and divert them from their original goal. She began to sing a song that she knew was widely known among the northmen, and approached them from behind [singing check success with +3 margin] in the least threatening manner. The men were initially worried, but soon took down their guards when they saw a jolly middle-age hobbit female singing one of their favorite song [the reaction roll was done at +6, +2 for voice, +1 for fashion sense, +3 for the song... and got a Very Good reaction level]. Disarmed by a smile and a song!

Things could have gone bad, but they didn't. The northmen were unwilling to confront the jolly hobbit standing in their way, and lied about their motives by telling her that they were hunting. Irina, smilling at the inadequate "hunting" equipment of the sheep rustlers, offered to take them to a deer feeding ground and help them find meat. She knew of a spot [Area Knowledge success], and lead them to a place teeming with deers. On site, she found some the deers feeding trails [Naturalist check]. The northmen were not hunters by any stretch: they were loud, smelled too much and probably couldn't hit a deer with their spears. She instructed them to stay in place while she scouted ahead. 

Irina sneaked into position, but the deer bolted just before she could get a fully aimed shot [Per vs stealth failed by 1]. The shot was a 20 yd, with a Move 6 target. Irina managed a hit on the leg as the deer disappeared in the thick evergreen underbrush. The deer was weaker, but still fast. Irina patiently tracked the animal [Easy tracking check in the snow], moving silently until she found the wounded beast again. The deer was still, and she slipped quietly at 15 yd without being noticed. She took her time, aimed for the vitals and got a clean hit on the unsuspecting target. The deer fell to the ground [unconscious and stunned, not dead]. Irina, reluctantly, finished the beast with a swift slip of her hunting knife. 

The northmen were brought in, picked up the deer. The new friends walked back to the road. The northmen are unlikely to come back to steal sheeps now. It is more difficult after making a personal contact with a local. Beside, they know that they are no match to her hunting and shadowing skills. The older northmen offered her a beaded necklace as token of thanks. The harvest was not as big as planned, but should be as tasty. 

Irina headed for Sarnford, back to the shire. On the road, she could see a number of horse footsteps and a the tracks of a heavy cart. It looks like a group of human just snuck by while she was hunting. 

Other Notes: Before the encounter. We worked out why a hobbit would ever want to leave the Shire and travel with the Palantir Commission. We established that she nearly died of a fever in the spring. This near death experience triggered the Took's itch, a malady that flips the desire of hobbits to stay home on its head. She had a series of disagreements with her husband on the topic, and they decided to amicably go their own way. Irina is older (45), and there are lots of Bounders around to take over. She needs to see new places. 

Herb lore and GURPS' invention rules

We also gamed the preparation of two herbal brews from earlier on in the summer: Irina's brain explosion and Irina's Sniffle buster. The brain explosion gives the highest of 2 d6 FP for an hour, but cause a crash 1 hours later by the highest of three d6. She found out about the right plant: the root of a pond rush [herb lore], which she knew where to find [Area Knowledge], and harvest [naturalist]. She brew a few doses [herb lore, again]. Her attempt to dry the roots so that she could prepare the herbal mixture off season, however, failed [Hard check -4]. We use the invention rules for her to create the Sniffle buster tincture. She followed a similar process as for the brain explosion infusion, but then had to make a prototype and test it for a few weeks. She found a major bug (drowsiness), and a minor bug (tastes like dung, so she is adding honey...). She found only a small patch of source material, unfortunately, well outside the Shire.  When the first snow arrived, the live plant died and she ran out of fresh material. 

Irina Took , Bounder of Southfarthing

Biography

Birthday: May 23rd

The early years ( age 0 to 12 , TA 2091 - 3003)

Irina was born a Took through and through. She grew up in Tookbourough in the Eastfarthing amid the Shire's most eccentric clan. Irina was the daughter of a leatherworker and part time sherriff. Her mother, who was a Proudfoot by birth, was the daughter of one of the postmasters in Michel Delving. Irina traveled quite a bit in her early years with her father as he hiked the White and the Red Downs in the Southfarthing. She also inherited from her father a fondness for making up songs, which made her a local celebrity at an early age. By the end of her childhood, her widowed father had moved to Hardbottle, in the heartland of the South Farthing where she and her father were widely acknowledged to be of the queer kind of folks.

Personal Traits: Reputation (Songstress, Shire, +1) [1], voice [10] ,  

Hobbit : ST -5, DX +1, HT +2 [-10], fond of food and drink [-1], Hard to kill 4 [8], overweight [-1], SM -2, Will +2 [10], silence 4[10], talent (Green thumb) [5]

Skills : Area Knowledge (Shire) [6], writing [2], leatherworking [2], Hiking [4], Observation [3], Naturalist [2], Survival (woodlands) [2], Weather Sense [2], singing [4]

The Bounder years ( age 12 to 22, TA 3003 - 3013 ) 

In her teenage years, Irina soon became an independent traveler. She scoured the South Farthing, running messages and occasionally the mail. She quickly learned about the wild life in the Shire, and faced the occasional undesired beasts. Her father made sure that she was trained in archery, in hope that she could fend off any trouble if cornered. She became a local expert in natural lore. Her advice to farmers on controlling pests helped to straighten her name (She is a Took, after all). She became de facto a shire bounder, or border patrol, as she busied from pastures to villages, helping people for a pot pie or a sack full of pipe weed. She also became relatively famous for entertaining villages with old and original songs. 

Skills: Stealth [4], bow [4], Naturalist [4], Performance [2], singing [4], Hiking [4], Survival (woodland) [4], Area Knowledge (The Shire) [12]

The Dark years ( age 22 to 27, TA 3013 - 3018 )

As the war of the ring drew near, the occurrence of strangers, beasts, blights and elves crossing into the shire began to increase. The bounders of the Shire formed a more organized body: with a structure and a systematic way to coordinate patrols to cover all borders at most time. Irina was an important component of the bounder system. She could travel everywhere without rousing suspicion (she was, after all, a agricultural consultant and performer). She, however, specialized in the wild borders of the South Farthing. Irina also made contact with rangers and exchanged information with them. She learned a lot from them about the North and its dangers. Most valuable is the secret of Herb lore, which gave her the ability to make a variety of simple herbal brews.

Skills : Herb Lore [2], Naturalist [2], Stealth [2], bow [4], hiking [2], Survival (woodland) [2], Area Knowledge (The North) [4]

The scouring of the Shire ( age 27 to 30, TA 3018 - 3021)

When Lotho Sackville-Bagins began his land grab, a wave of discontent started to spread and a lot of the hobbits turned to the bounders for help. Irina became at the same time a defender of the old ways, and a suspect in the eyes of the new Mayor of the Shire. Irina had to vanish from the public eye and blend into the wilderness. She was helped by a large number of friends, and spent most of her time in Buckland and along the Brandywine river at the southern edge of the Shire. Due to the herb lore learnt from the rangers, she could prepare a number of tinctures with antiseptic and analgesic properties. She soon started to act as a traveling nurse: going wherever ailing hobbits needed them. Under Saruman, and with the arrivals of Uruks and goblins, she acquired much experience in field medicine. She was part of the underground resistance, which remained powerless until the Meriadoc and Pippin came back to the Shire.

She was part of the battle of Bywater as a nurse: she did not shoot a single arrow in anger during the entire battle.

Skills: First-aid [8], Herb Lore [2], hiking[1], Survival (woodlands) [2], observation [3], bow [1], Stealth [4]

After the war of the ring (age 30 to 45, FA 0 - 15)

As the fourth age dawned, King Elessar banned all men from entering the Shire, and extended the Shire to include Buckland and Westmarch. Irina settled down and married Herman Longbottom. They acquired a small plot of land near Sarnford. There they began growing their own crop of pipe-weed with in hope to establish a regular trade with the humans rebuilding Tharbad. 

Irina's dedication to farming was, however, short lived. The southern edge of the Shire, the banks of the Brandywine, began to teem with beasts and intruders. Irina took upon herself to patrol the riverbank from Sarnford to the Southern marshes. She made a number of business contact with Tharbad and Bree in the last few years, and worked at fending off the various and still lingering blights left behind by agents of Angmar.  

Skills :Merchant [2], observation [2], bow [3], Area Knowledge (The North) [4], farming [2], First-aid [2], 

GM Notes : Irina is joining as an excellent markswoman, but must used a severely underpowered bow due to her low strenght. A clever use of her bow, stealth, local knowledge, and healing skills will make her a valuable addition to the company.

Finbert Brandibuck

Birthday: 9 August

Finbert is a hobbit of his own time: walking in the footsteps of his Uncle Meriadoc. He spent an early life as a dissipated hobbit. He traveled more than the typical one because of his apprenticeship as an Apothecary which took him into the wild borders in search of herbs. To escape his family, her moved to Bree where he spend a good many years. Finbert finally was sent by his Uncle to Minas Tirith. Unsure of his path, he fancy himself as a "burglar" like good olde Bilbo Baggins. he develop a nasty poison that causes throbbing pain. He learned to deliver the poison using a large blowpipe that he can use very effectively. Even more than most hobbits, Finbert can slip into tight spots, unseen and unheard. Looking for Palantirs may just be what he was born for...

Childhood up to the battle of Bywater (age 0 to 10, year TA 3009 - TA 3019)

Finbert was the third and last child of Grema Sackville and Ernest Brandibuck in a hole near Bywater. Finbert was a mischievous kid who spent much of his childhood doing what hobbits are doing: roving the shire, sneaking into people's firlds and listening to tales. 

Skills: Filch [2], Survival, woodland [1], Signing [2], Area Knowledge, Shire [4], stealth [4]

Apprenticeship in Buckland (age 10 - 25, year TA 3019 - FA 12)

Finbert was sent to his uncle's home in Buckland to learn about medicinal herbs. Finbert's uncle held a dispensary for common medicine that he prepared from local herbs. Finbert has the chance to roam beyond the Hedge and on the skirt of the old forest. The old forest was a dangerous place, this is when Finbert took on the Blowpipe as a defensive weapon. He also started to develop his oily sting with a base of Emory's blade. These years did not make Finbert a settled man as hoped by his parent, but gave him the impulse to travel beyond the Shire. 

Skills: Survival, woodland [4], Area Knowledge, Shire [6], Cooking [6], Singing [2], Naturalist [3], Area Knowledge, old Arnor [1], herb lore [4], weather sense [3], stealth [2], First-aid [4], Blowpipe [4]

Years in Breeland (age 25 - 28, year FA 12 - 15)

Once that his apprenticeship was over, and when it became clear that he would not settle like a respectable hobbit, Finbert took off to Breeland to seek new stories and adventures. In Bree, he befriended a number of Bree's Hobbits and got aquainted with the tall folks of the North. He worked for a year at the Prancing Pony, then as a farm's hand. During his idle time, he refined his recipe for his oily sting. He finally opened a small dispensary in a friend's hole (euphemism for a basement). There, he prepared simple medicine and sold them to Breelanders (mainly hangover elixirs).

Skills: stealth [4], Area Knowledge, old Arnor [3], merchant [4], riding, horse [3], detect lies [2], shortsword [1], survival, woodland [1], Filch [2], Blowpipe [6], singing [2], survival, woodland [1], 

Minas Tirith (age 28, year FA 15)

In late FA 14, he got a letter from his uncle Meriadoc. Uncle Merry was asking him to travel to Minas Tirith and report to the King's court as a representative of the Shire. Finbert knew that his parents were behind the move somehow, but accepted the opportunity. He traveled with a small group of humans who were seeking employment in the South. 

In Minas Tirith, Finbert reported to the King and was admitted in the King's retinue. This is there that he met Galina, a fantastic signer and all-round well connected member of the court. She introduced him to the Lord Chancellor and convinced him to let Finbert join the Palantiri commission. Finbert is a bit out of his depth there, but Galina assured him that all good companies in Gondor ought to have the benefit of a hobbit in order to be successful. 

Skills: riding, horse [1], Blowpipe [2], Area knowledge, Minas Tirith [1]