Chapter 4.1: The New Dungeon Busters start their first mission

It is late in the afternoon of the twenty-sixth day since the first Dungeon Busters arrived in the town of Hochoch.

Having arranged for lodgings at the Inn of Eternal Rest as Olpert recommended, the six fledgling adventurers - Sora the dwarven brewer, Kazzak the dwarven miner, Dell the human investigator, Berthold the human-seeming knight, Antonius the human watchman, and Amnestria the elven librarian, gather back at the site of the Dungeon Busters guild hall. Berthold bids Guilbert, Olyena, and Reynald to await his return at the Inn.

On the way to the Inn of Eternal Rest, the jovial dwarf and the somewhat awkward human reply to Antonius' questions.

"Morgran's the name!" the dwarf laughs, "Aye: servant of Kord, imbiber o' drink, wooer o' ladies, an' negotiator fer the Dungeon Busters. A bunch o' us came east to Hochoch a few weeks ago, rescued the miller's family from bandits, an' caught that villain minstrel from stealing away the Jarl fambly. Dangers? Hmm. The bandits i' the mill were pretty bad, but I'd say the biggest danger I faced so far was tha' damned owlbear, what nearly killed Klak. Since Olpert arrived, he's had me lookin' fer a place to build our hall, an' talkin' w' the locals to buy it so's we can bilt it. Ye've seen how far we've come. Gettin' close to puttin' on the roof."

The human stops walking and bows deeply. "It is a pleasure for this one to make your acquaintance. This one hights Elderblade: that is what my family is called. Those who raised me gave me the name Durren. This one has been working for the Dungeon Busters since this one returned with the blackguard Jonbon, as his esteemed colleague Morgran has mentioned."

The evening meal is festive, with hearty welcomes from dwarf Klak and human Albertus, while Karliel demonstrates the elven side of his ancestry by playing delightful music. Rosemary has developed a close rapport with the Thornhills such that the halfling joins them in the kitchen to help bake some cakes for the newcomers. Little gnome Xana seems almost childlike, until she starts telling shockingly bawdy jokes. While friendly, Kragga and Thacogygax are less outgoing. This is because half-orc Kragga is most comfortable having in-depth conversations with a single person. Thacogygax, the enormously tall blue-skinned reptile man - something called a 'thraakon' - is aware how much he still stands out like a sore thumb and struggles with the language, so he chooses his words carefully.

The next day dawns; the adventurers emerge from their communal rooms (there are 4 beds in each of the private rooms), break their fast with the Thornhills and the other Dungeon Busters, and then bid them goodbye as Olpert escorts the six of you through the town's streets and the South Gate to the guild hall. The carpenters are already at work as you arrive, but they move to another part of the building that is coming together as Olpert enters a "room" to use as a meeting space.

If there are no questions, the party is ready to head out, east through town and across the Realstream Bridge onto Cecily's Road toward the Dim Forest.

With Olpert's instructions, the group continued to discuss their plans as they set out to Rufus' workshop. Rufus is happy to rent a wagon to adventurers affiliated with the Heroes of Hochoch, but times being as hard as they are (what with the food scarcity and the banditry driving up prices for everyone), he insists on charging the Dungeon Busters this time. You also get the sense from his veiled comments that he's a little concerned about loaning the wagon for free, given how long it took to return it last time (6 days longer than he'd expected to be without his wagon and team), and that his oxen were nearly slaughtered.

The group manages to talk Rufus into agreeing to a rate of 90 cubs a day. With that, he provides an open-bed wagon and the team of two oxen to draw it. The wagon's bed is just large enough for eight adventurers and their standard gear to ride, crammed in together. The buckboard is wide enough for two to sit side-by-side (or three if they stow their packs and larger implements/weapons in the bed).

This negotiation has taken about an hour; the party sets out for Hochoch's East Gate and the bridge across the Realstream river mid-morning. As they go, a few fellow Dungeon Busters and several citizens see them off, stopping what they're doing to walk alongside the wagon, wish them success, and wave farewell. Charming Lienne Vereel is particularly effusive, but everyone has already been warned by Olpert of her propensity for gossip. Getting no traction with the new adventurers, she is led away by Durren Elderblade, the stiffly formal adventurer who acts like an elf. Despite his stilted awkwardness, it is clear to most of you even after only knowing them a day that he has become smitten with the vivacious young woman, though she is baffled and a little irritated by him. They wave goodbye as the wagon crosses the bridge and onto Cecily's Road.

There is very little traffic here now; all the farmers left before dawn, and as the road turns northeast toward the distant woods, each of you notices that no one else seems to be heading to the Dim Forest.

Hours pass as the trip continues and the oxen plod along; there is plenty of time for the party to plan and discuss things. But I'm going to wrap up this thread soon, starting a new thread as the party leaves the civilized region of the Duchy for the wilds of the forest. So I encourage you to carry out in-character conversations/planning in the Side Conversations thread.