We pick up with our group as they continue their investigations into the mysterious hunting lodge staff. Hired by the new lord of the lodge to find proof about what is afflicting the staff, they had just about finished interviewing the guards and the burgher and performer go search the gardens some more, but only find signs that it was not kept well for some time. Looking back at the manor, the burgher happens to notice the steward watching them from a second storey room. They quickly race up into the building to find him. He evades their questions and escapes as quickly as he can from their relentless interrogation.
Meanwhile, the soldier and dilettante seek some lunch in the kitchen and find it bustling with activity as the cook readies the dinner for the feast tonight. The room is also filled with the smell of the strange herb they’ve discovered in the gardens and on the doctor’s clothes. They suspect it’s some kind of soporific, which might explain why so many of the servants and guards are drowsy and appear drugged.
The chef is in no mood for questioning though. She offers a stew for lunch, which both readily accept. While the (drunk) chef fends off any questioning, the soldier and one of the servants get into a bit of a shoving match – apparently he is involved somehow romantically with the servant the soldier had hooked up with in the previous session. The chef orders everyone out of her kitchen just as the other two PCs return. They remain hungry while the well-fed soldier and dilettante begin feeling a little tired, but he soldier is able to shake it off.
The group turns their attention to the library and finds a lazy librarian doodling in the book there. They also find a couple banned works in amongst the various books. They arrange a distraction and get ahold of the book he was doodling in and find a strange reference to an eye. The dilettante remembers hearing a witch hunter speaking once in a tavern of having just wiped out a cult called something like the Eldritch Eye of something or other.
While they are busy in the library, the soldier slips off to a nearby closet on his own for another liaison with a different servant.
Meanwhile, the librarian discovers they have found his doodle and becomes incensed at their violation of his privacy and allegations that he has defaced the book. He huffs off to find the steward of the house. As that happens, shouts are heard nearby and they all arrive to find the male servant attacking the soldier who is caught with his pants down, the servant from the previous liaison screaming at him and his current amour also in a state of undress. The fight is broken up and everyone is sent off.
The PCs head upstairs to the hospice and the soldier receives treatment for his wounds. They again question the doctor, but find little more information of use. The bells sound and it is time for the dinner. Everyone is gathering for the feast.
The notables of the house are all there, including of course the master of the house, Lord Aschaffenberg. The performer puts on a bit of a performance before dinner begins and weaves into his story references to the “eye” and the rest of the group notices that the doctor, gardener and librarian have all caught the references. Our heroes begin to suspect they know who is part of the “trouble-makers”, having already identified the steward as some kind of leader of a possible cult off-shoot.
As dinner is served, the group declines the venison, preferring the goose as they’ve found a note reading “goose is good”, starving as they are. But they’re troubled to see that the Lord has ordered the venison and the burgher picks this moment to present an antique two-handed sword as a gift to Aschaffenberg, “accidentally” knocking Aschaffenberg’s meal off the table. Aschaffenberg orders a new plate of venison, so the burgher tries to convince him to have the goose instead. Aschaffenberg agrees and orders the venison instead for the burgher. The burgher declines it, at which the lord takes offence and the High Elf performer tries to explain that eating meat is not good, but that goes over poorly with the hunting lodge staff. Instead, the burgher eats his vegetables to the great affront of those gathered there, already muttering about “funny, odd elves”.
The kennel master, hearing his dogs barking loudly, is about to excuse himself when the group decides they’re going all in and the burgher stands up and announces, “There is something foul afoot!” With all eyes on him, he accuses the steward, doctor, librarian and gardener of being part of a cult and that that the venison has been poisoned. The doctor stands up loudly protesting, the steward watches on aghast and the librarian stutters and titters denials. The gardener continues stuffing his face watching on like this is the best thing he’s seen all year.
Lord Aschaffenberg demands for proof of their accusations. At this, the heroes look at each other and an uncomfortable silence sits over the room. Aschaffenberg, now in a rage, berates them for having made such vile allegations without any proof and the session ends.
Justin Schmid
Justin started tabletop gaming in 1983 with Basic D&D (red box) and never looked back. He runs and plays in a wide variety of games, including Savage Worlds, Dungeon World, Trail of Cthulhu and many, many more.
He also writes professionally for role-playing games, including writing and creating Night's Edge an Alternate Reality Universe for Cyberpunk 2020. He went on to write eight more adventures and sourcebooks in the Night's Edge line, adding vampires and other supernatural perils to the already dangerous world of Cyberpunk.
As a freelance writer, he wrote The Bermuda Triangle for Call of Cthulhu, Shadows of the Mind, and Psi Wars for Conspiracy X and contributed to Last Unicorn's Star Trek RPG, as well as to Cybergeneration sourcebooks, and many other games.
When he's not creating imaginary worlds for his daughter, he's running games for his friends and writing new adventures or designing new game systems. He currently lives in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.