*** Session 6 - Scene 7 (of 9) ***

Later that evening, they are guests at a large banquet at the palace, with the other nobles of the town in attendance. They primarily speak to M'Balz, given his family connections.

One of the men, named Akil, explains his cousin once knew a member of the mysterious Al-Kamari family of Huzaz. M'Balz is surprised, as the Al-Kamaris have not been seen in many years. According to Akil, before their disappearance, the family discovered a lucrative gold mine somewhere in the Al-Sayaj Mountains. Unfortunately, the man explains, everyone who knew of the mine's location is now dead.

M'Balz immediately perks up at the news, as Butrus sneers at the noble's greed. He shows Akil the maps they found in the manticore cave. The man is surprised, asking M'Balz if he really thinks one of them could be the map to the Al-Kamari family gold mine.

Saying he believes so, M'Balz encourages Akil to examine the maps and see if either is familiar; giving the explanation that his family wishes to restore the honor of the great Al-Kamari family. The man does not recognize the locations, but says the closer location would not be it. He does believe the further location could be a possibility.

Akil asks M'Balz what the writing on the map means; in particular, the riddle about INDO RAGI. M'Balz changes the subject and quickly takes the map back.

After dinner, Nazmi hints around to M'Balz about his daughter being attractive. He asks the noble if his father, the great Badassi, has arranged his marriage yet. When M'Balz says he has not, Nazmi hints a union between their families could be beneficial, but M'Balz isn't so sure his father would approve given Asami's family is still several stations below his, though he says nothing to discourage the man.

When they are alone, M'Balz looks at the clue on the map again, still puzzled. He consults an atlas in Asami's library, looking at a larger map of the region for any words that could scramble to INDO RAGI.

Gra'bir begins sketching out some options on his own, using one of Adanband's spare pieces of paper while the sorcerer studies the scroll spell. Adanband is delighted to find out the scroll is of the powerful spell, acid arrow.

Butrus is less interested in the riddle and would rather plan their next trip, but no one is in a hurry since they have another couple of days.

Taking out the "I"s, Gra'bir unscrambles the clue. He yells out "Dragon!" to the others, saying that is what the name of the beast is in the clue. Though true dragons are extremely rare in Zakhara, all are familiar with the tales of the great wyrms of the outlands.

M'Balz wants to head to the cave before going back to Huzaz, but everyone else disagrees. The next day is spent with discussion about the best course of action, with several sardonic barbs traded.

The group has still not decided by the dinner that night. The choice is forgotten as they once again talk to the townspeople.

This night, a different man named Muzakkir asks M'Balz about their adventure in Salazar's Tower. He says he's heard tales of the tower, and how Salazar himself has returned from the dead as a lich, allying the yuan-ti and the yikaria together.

M'Balz plays along, saying he does not know but did not see Salazar. The nobleman tells Muzakkir that he was told by a deceptive goblin that Salazar was dead. The man notes that Salazar dying does not mean he couldn't now be a lich. He also points out that Nazmi did say the tower was under the control of one of the yikaria.

Agreeing there was a yak-man at the tower, M'Balz still isn't so sure though Muzakkir is convinced this means the rumor is true. He asks if M'Balz and his band of adventurers will go hunt down the lich, praising their bravery for fighting all of the yikaria and yuan-ti themselves. M'Balz explains that is how the Al-Badassi family handles things.

Once dinner is over, the group finally comes to an agreement to head back to Huzaz the next day.

That day, they have a fine going-away lunch before heading out on the fishing boat.

One of the women, named Sandeejah, hears they are heading back to Huzaz. She tells them to be careful, for the news is that Prince Tannous is plotting against his childless nephew, the Grand Caliph, in order to take the throne for himself. She claims he is plotting with the Efreet.

This story reminds M'Balz of the message they found on the elf in the desert. He takes it out and shows it to the woman. She does not recognize it, but says it certainly sounds like an evil plot against the Grand Caliph. She wonders who the elf was, where he was coming from, where he was going, and who the "C D" is who signed the note. M'Balz laments he has no answer to those questions.

Butrus, overhearing the conversation, believes they should warn the caliph when they return to Huzaz. M'Balz agrees, mentioning he wished that had occurred to him earlier. He says he will speak to his father when they get back to see how they can contact the Grand Caliph.

*** Session 6 - Scene 8 (of 9) ***

After a little over a week at sea, the group's ship finally docks at Huzaz. During the trip, the rest of the group tire quickly of M'Balz's various musings and conspiracy theories about what is going on.

As they pull in, M'Balz realizes he recognizes one of the ships as the one belonging to the lizardwoman, Daria. Once they land, he immediately leads the others over to the ship in a fit of anger.

But by the time he reaches the ship, his anger has cooled and he realizes it would be better to put the situation more to his advantage. He greets the familiar orc on the ship and exchanges barbs.

As before, ultimately Daria calls out for the brute to let them see her. She greets M'Balz and his companions, asking what she can do for them.

When M'Balz reminds her she still owes him money, she explains something came up suddenly and they had to leave quickly. M'Balz makes veiled threats about his family's control of the ports and how bad things can happen.

Daria is unimpressed by his empty threats, saying he is overstating his family's power. Still, she agrees she owes him a small sum of money and offers to settle accounts for a reasonable offer.

Butrus offers to make things good by her providing some armor and a weapon to Nazmi. She does so, though the dwarf is disappointed she doesn't have any magical goods. But, Daria explains, that is not her business.

As they are equipping Nazmi, Daria asks if everything went OK. She asks if they ran into trouble with Geer at all, noting they were asking about him last time.

When they say they did not, Daria relates a humorous story she heard about a goblin around town who owed Geer money and got some foolish people to protect him and take him out of town. She comments about how happy she is not to be those people, as Geer will certainly be looking for them.

*** Session 6 - Scene 9 (of 9) ***

From there, the band of companions heads back to M'Balz area of town. Deciding they need to sell off the furs, he stops to sell them first before making his way home. Feeling he is the most charming of the group, M'Balz chooses to personally act as the peddler.

M'Balz has good fortune, making maximum profit off of the furs. They divide the money up, with Nazmi getting a half share of 133 gold and the others getting a full share of 266 gold. Not trusting M'Balz to store their money in his family vault, the others seek out money lenders to hold the majority of their treasure.

With the money dealt with, M'Balz leads the group back to his family estate. As he is putting his gold in the family treasury, one of the servants spots him and tells him his father wishes to see him.

M'Balz heads in to see his father with the others. His father asks why his son treats him so, complaining about him dishonoring them by hocking furs in the market like a common merchant. M'Balz claims it was an act of kindness for his poor friends, who were unwilling and unable to sell the furs themselves.

Mabad is unimpressed, wondering about the great treasure his son set out to get. M'Balz explains the furs were a profitable venture but his father isn't so sure.

M'Balz then explains about the note and the plot against the Grand Caliph. Mabad laughs him off, saying there are always plots against the caliph but nothing ever comes of them.

Asking his father for his advice on what to do with the letter, M'Balz is disappointed when his father suggests he see if the servants are running low on bath paper.

M'Balz then tells his father about the map that could be the location of the lost gold mine of the Al-Kamari family. He says the venture could be profitable, but Mabad says anyone who believes the legend of the gold mine is a fool.

When asked why he believes it is the lost mine, M'Balz explains about freeing the slaves from Salazar's Tower. He goes on to talk about how the rescue has spread the good name of Al-Badassi.

Mabad, however, is less proud of his son when he learns they did not succeed in actually taking control of Salazar's tower. He refers to his son as sneaking in like a thief in the middle of the night, stealing slaves. Though his demeanor warms a bit when he learns Nazmi, the father of a qadi, has joined his son's group.

But harsher questioning continues when M'Balz is unable to explain what their plan is next. Mabad is also critical of their previous wine-based scheme, and notes the servants are gossiping about some underworld figure they have upset.

M'Balz starts to tell his father about the problems with Geer, but Mabad wants to know what exactly they did. Not wanting to admit to what happened with Snarg, M'Balz makes up a vague and stumbling story about Geer extorting a local temple. Mabad sarcastically remarks how his son's story rings of truth and has him stop in the middle rather than listen to more lies.

Mabad also complains his "intended's" mother, a woman named Lorelei, came by looking for M'Balz to follow through with marrying her daughter. Mabad mentions dealing with the woman by having the servants over serve her wine then dumping her off in a bad part of town.

After confirming his father doesn't need him to do anything (with Mabad telling his son he has done enough already), M'Balz pledges to go do more good in the name of the Al-Badassi family. Mabad begs him to leave the family name (and honor) out of his schemes.

With the discussion with his father complete, M'Balz focuses on planning their next move. He realizes that adding the map from the old sailor, they have three possible treasure maps to follow up on and will need to decide where to start.

*** Session 6 - Session Notes ***

This session occurred over a week ago, I just forgot to post these notes until today (I've had a busy last couple of weeks).

Getting a session in with everyone in attendance made a world of difference; my enthusiasm for the campaign has been recharged and I feel things are moving again. We have another session this Friday that will hopefully continue things along with everyone as well.

So, some random notes about the session:

* All of the encounters this session were random encounters. To make sure the game keeps moving, I plot out all the different things the party is likely to do between sessions and roll for random monster encounters and their treasures ahead of time.

* I had Snarg disappear because the PCs gave me a good opportunity and I want to keep the NPC around to cause more trouble later. The players, naturally, knew this would happen. Should the PCs have gone to one of the caves instead, the encounters would have been different.

* Nazmi abu Qadi is an attempt to give the PCs a henchman. Note that his last name literally means, "Father of the Qadi" (while Asami's name translates to "Daughter of Nazmi").

* Strictly speaking, Gra'bir shouldn't have been able to throw a lance very effectively (as they are too long), but I let the player claim dramatic license.

* Unlike most DMs I know, I like tracking encumbrance. This session had a couple of decision points on how to divide treasure because you can only carry so much. That said, I'm using the 50 coins = 1 pound that 5e uses along with 5e carrying capacities; the old D&D rules are brutal (with 10 coins = 1 pound).

* The nightmare probably should have killed everyone, but I figured taking off a slave would do.

* The scorpion encounter was to originally occur at night, but the PC's preparations made sense that they would be protected. So instead, it happened the next morning.

The PCs were wise to run from the scorpions, but the creatures did have a nice cache of treasure nearby they missed.

* Adanband's overuse of his wall of fog spell has become a joke even among the players. I definitely need to get him more opportunities to get more spells.

* I wanted Zayir to be somewhat of a rest and relax period, but I kept to the rule of "guests stay 3 days" in the Land of Fate setting.

* There were no armor or weapons in Zayir because I want to enforce the difference between a town and a city.

* The rumors the PCs hear are all from a list of random rumors I created. I roll each time before telling them what they heard. Naturally, some are true, some only half-true, and some completely false.

* The Gra'bir player missed last session so he only saw the INDO RAGI clue that night. The fact he solved it right away was hilarious after the M'Balz player spent two weeks thinking about it.

* Anyone with a map of Zakhara can see that the Al-Sayaj Mountains are far to the south, so the second treasure map can't possibly be the location of the Al-Kimari's rumored gold mine. But whether or not the PCs figure that out before they head there remains to be seen...

* I was very pleasantly surprised they decided to negotiate with Daria for cheating them instead of trying something more physical. I have a feeling she will come up again (as will her "joke" warning them about Geer).

* The reference to Lorelei is another name drop for Gilmore Girls. But it is also foreshadowing for later.

* Mabad is still my favorite NPC - the weary and disapproving father towards M'Balz's "Better Call Saul" style shenanigans.

*** Session 7 - Cast of Characters ***

M'Balz Al-Badassi: A human rogue from the city. M'Balz is the member of a noble family with political connections, but is bored with his wealthy lifestyle and instead performs as a masked scoundrel for hire know as Al-Caliph.

Gra'bir Boubi: A human warrior from the desert tribe of the Wah'na Poq-yah tribe of the Haunted Lands. A superb hunter, Gra'bir has come to the city of Huzaz to look for a quest to prove himself a great warrior.

Adanband: An elf scholar and sorcerer from the city of Huzaz.

Butrus: A dwarf priest with a fervent faith and damaged memory.

*** Session 7 - Scene 1 (of ***

After several days of rest in Huzaz, the party still cannot agree on what to do next. While M'Balz sees the larger treasure being from one of the maps, Gra'bir would prefer to look into the rumor about the treasure at the palace gardens they heard from the man on the boat when they set out with Snarg. Butrus is skeptical the rumor will prove true.

M'Balz eventually sees things Gra'bir's way, and Butrus agrees to go along with it. They decide that since the original man they heard it from was no doubt eaten by hippos, they will need to do some more research. They also elect to keep Nazmi out of it, as he is the father of a qadis and would no doubt find this particular mission to be too immoral to participate in.

Butrus begins by heading back to the Mosque of Zann the Wise, and speaking with Imam Renn. He asks the priest if he knows anything about treasure hidden in the public gardens at the palace. The imam says the gardens themselves are a treasure, with the singing tree and the talking bird as the prized treasures of the Grand Caliph, but nothing about monetary treasure hidden there.

The dwarf explains he is not after treasure himself, but is trying to assist his friends. Imam Renn cautions against despoiling the gardens in any way, for they are loved in Huzaz and attempting to loot them could lead to being stoned to death by the populace. Butrus says he will try to find the wisdom to talk the men out of it.

Meanwhile, M'Balz wants to go looking for the Silent Starlings. He begins by going to a local winery, and asks around about the gang. One old man, too fond of his wine, has heard of them and mentions they like to steal from pilgrims in the temple district but he hasn't seen them for a couple of weeks. He says something about them being led by "that creepy looking elf boy" Ihab.

M'Balz heads over to the Pilgrim's District. He sees little of interest, though does spot Butrus coming out of the mosque. He also notices the beggar on the rolling cart, Tarik, is still active in the area.

The rogue approaches Tarik, who asks him for "spare change for a former soldier". M'Balz greets Tarik by name, who clearly does not remember him. M'Balz accosts Tarik for not delivering his message, and the two argue over whether or not M'Balz paid the man to deliver it (with M'Balz blatantly lying that he already paid him).

Tarik tires of the argument and starts rolling himself away. M'Balz follows him, allowing him to beg a pilgrim for more money and then continuing his harangue. The rogue finally offers to allow Tarik to "make it up to him" by giving him some information about Ihab, offering a small monetary award in the process.

The two haggle over money, with Tarik wanting 10 dinar and M'Balz only wanting to pay one. They eventually agree to one dinar and two silver. Tarik says that Ihab and his gang used to frequent this area, but were ran off by a dwarf (who he believes is the man standing nearby).

M'Balz has Tarik get to the point, at which he explains the Starlings moved over to the Northwest District and are now working for Geer. M'Balz wants more information about Geer, but Tarik says only that knowing things about Geer is trouble, so he'll keep his mouth shut.

Before leaving, M'Balz mentions still wanting his message delivered, and Tarik still responds that he'll get to it later. Butrus also comes over to accompany M'Balz back to his family palace. He gives Tarik a warning about needing to donate to the temple, threatening the man (whom he believes to be a liar and thief).

While the other two browbeat a pathetic beggar, Adanband stays at the great house of Al-Badassi to meditate, while Gra'bir seeks to recon the gardens themselves. Entering the public gardens, he pays a dirham to get a guided tour of the garden. They visit the golden pool, the reflecting pool, the singing tree, the talking bird, the crematorium, and all of the other popular sites of the garden along with a discussion about the various flora there.

Gra'bir is most interested in the singing tree and the talking bird. The singing tree sings songs with a beautiful cacophony of voices. The talking bird, however, remains perched up high in the trees. The guide explains the Grand Caliph found the bird years ago during his travels, and it will only come down and speak with the most pious of individuals.

Saying his tribe has a legend about buried treasure in the garden, Gra'bir asks about the history. The guide explains the public gardens were established back in the days of the First Caliph, as a place of beauty and relaxation for the people. He says he has never heard anything about a treasure, but such legends may be found catalogued at the university.

After his tour, Gra'bir attempts to get a better view of the Caliph's private gardens. He sees nothing else except more bushes, trees, and many more flowers – in particular the Grand Caliph's orchid collection. With nothing else to do, he heads back to the Al-Badassi house.

*** Session 7 - Scene 2 (of ***

Later that afternoon, the group all gets together to discuss what they've learned. Butrus mentions that the talking bird and the singing tree could be treasures themselves. He does wonder if the songs of the singing tree could be any kind of clues, or perhaps use a special type of bird food to lure the bird down.

Gra'bir explains about his tour of the garden. He wonders if the treasure is inside the private gardens of the Caliph. He mentions the university may have more information about lore related to the garden. Adanband notes he studied at the university but has no knowledge of any legends about the gardens; however, he offers to go research the archives there.

M'Balz is more intrigued by the crematorium. He believes the treasure may not be buried so much as underground, accessible by some tunnel from the building.

Butrus wonders how they would get any treasure out, since it would be stealing. Gra'bir is confused, believing the public gardens would make the treasure available to the public. Butrus tries to shame M'Balz by asking how his father would feel about his stealing from the Caliph, but M'Balz is adamant he doesn't see things that way.

Adanband spends the evening searching through the archives, but finds nothing of interest.

*** Session 7 - Scene 3 (of ***

The next day, Adanband goes off to do more research while the others decide what to do in the meantime. M'Balz believes it would be worth tracking down the Silent Starlings to see if they have any information. Butrus scoffs at the idea, saying the Starlings would have taken the treasure for themselves if they had any knowledge (and that even bringing up the thought with thieves, they will likely create trouble for themselves).

M'Balz says they could use them to find more information about Geer. He reasons that if Geer is out for blood because of the situation with Snarg, it would help them stay alive if they get more information.

On the advice of Butrus, the trio decide to go to the Northwest District disguised as well-dressed pilgrims. After wandering around a while, giving the appearance of naïve tourists, they notice they are being followed by a pair of boys. Up ahead in the alley, they also spot another pair of figures getting into position.

Gra'bir whispers to the others to ready themselves. Before they have a chance to do anything else, the boys step out – two in front of them and two behind, all brandishing their knives. They tell the group to hand over their money.

As M'Balz attempts to stumble drunkenly over to one of the boys, the boy shoves at him hard. M'Balz manages to avoid being knocked over and grabs the youth, throwing him over his shoulder to the ground and bringing his blade to the young thief's throat.

M'Balz tells the others to stay still, with the thief repeating for them to back off. He tries telling M'Balz they are merely children and to keep his knife away. M'Balz laughs while Gra'bir and Butrus cast off their disguises and ready their weapons.

Butrus tells the boy they are only there for information. When asked what information, M'Balz explains they want to know about the boys' employer, Geer, and his activties.

The boy explains they don't know anything about Geer or what he's up to, they just pay a cut of their earnings to him as a tribute so they can operate in the area. M'Balz questions further, discovering the boys are ignorant of anything about a goblin or Geer looking for anyone. The boy does mention that Ihab may know more, since he's the one who deals with Geer.

M'Balz wants the boys to take them to Ihab, but the boy wants money first, saying Ihab does not want visitors. The two argue and trade threats, with M'Balz threatening to kill the boy and the boy reminding him they are still outnumbered.

The boy is not so easily intimidated. Gra'bir decides to escalate the situation by throwing his dagger at one of the other boys.

Seeing Gra'bir's intending attack, the boy on the ground knocks M'Balz's dagger away with his arm and scrambles away on the ground. The others stab at the three of them, with only Gra'bir getting injured. He does manage to hurl his dagger into the leg of one of the boys.

M'Balz attempts to grapple the lead boy on the ground and yelling out for everyone to stop. Butrus attempts to stun the boy that attacked him with his mace, but gets only a glancing hit.

As the situation descends into chaos, a man's voice yells out, "Stop in the name of the law!" Everyone stops fighting and turns to see that Sargon and a troop of mamluks has been attracted by the fighting.

M'Balz calls out to Sargon to help, as they are being mugged. Sargon looks the situation over, seeing the dagger sticking out of the boy's leg. He says that both sides seem to be holding their own in the fight.

Sargon tells the boys to leave and detains the group for further questioning. He recognizes M'Balz as the man with the coffin and wine. He wants to know why M'Balz is there, as it is a bad part of town.

M'Balz says his business often takes him into this part of town. Sargon says he saved the three from trouble, which M'Balz acknowledges. Gra'bir, having lost his knife in the leg of the boy, notes he is unarmed while M'Balz points out his wound to the patrol captain.

Butrus worries the situation with Sargon is delicate, and tells the man a tale about his mosque asking them to go talk to the boys about staying away from pilgrims, but the boys tried to attack and rob them. Sargon is skeptical that the dwarf is telling the whole truth of the situation, but is mollified for now. He tells them to leave the matter of law and order to him and the mamluks and tells them to leave.

They return back to the great house, Gra'bir stopping to buy a new dagger on the way. When Adanband returns later that evening, he confesses he has not found any information yet. He notices Gra'bir's wound and asks about it, but the nomad says only that he was just trying to make a warrior out of one of the boys in the city, saying he left the lad with a battle scar he won't forget.

*** Session 7 - Scene 4 (of ***

The following day, M'Balz is discouraged by their lack of progress and wonders if the treasure of the garden may need to stay hidden. Butrus suggests they all go to the university and help Adanband in his research.

They all agree to give it one more day. They head across town and across the river to the Al-Bidir Sallah University, paying a bit to take the ferry pushed by the two dao servitors.

Everyone pours through the old scrolls, but find nothing on any legends about the gardens. One of the scholars there recognizes Adanband as having been there for the past three days and asks him what he has been looking for.

When Adanband explains they are there for information about the public gardens, the librarian offers to get a research assistant to assist him for an honorarium of 10 dinar for the "library fund". The elf inwardly winces at the amount, wondering how much he will be asked to pay for the university's "annual fund" later.

Adanband agrees to pay the fee, getting a student assistant for the day along with a scroll certifying his membership in the "friends of the library" group at the bronze membership level.

After some time they do manage to find information about the gardens – including both the history of the gardens as well as a legend about the singing tree.

According to the legend, there is a specific incantation (which is written in the notes about the legend) that must be said in front of the singing tree. The speaker must then fire an arrow into the air, which will summon the invisible swordsman who will take him to where the treasure is hidden.

Butrus is highly skeptical of the legend, but M'Balz and Gra'bir believe that it sounds reasonable. They decide to head back across town, discussing how to accomplish his goal. Gra'bir wants to be the one to fire the arrow; Butrus warns him not to hit the bird.

*** Session 7 - Scene 5 (of ***

Later that afternoon, the group decides to put their plan into action. Instructing that the mamluks will not let anyone near the palace with a bow, Gra'bir decides to take only a bow string and will make a makeshift bow from a tree branch in the garden, figuring he does not need to have a very good bow for the magic to work.

The four head into the gardens shortly before closing. When the magic mouth spell activates on the garden columns, announcing it is time for all visitors to leave, they each attempt to hide in the bushes.

Unfortunately, M'Balz does not hide very well and is quickly spotted by one of the mamluks. The guard calls out to him, asking what he is doing. M'Balz attempts to act intoxicated, saying he got lost.

The guard calls out for others. They come quickly and take M'Balz into their custody. The head guard says M'Balz is drunk and should be taken to the holding cell.

Trying to buy his way out of trouble, M'Balz offers the guards money to forget the incident ever happened, giving them a sob story about one of his wives leaving him. The guard tells him he will be held for the evening and will see the qadis in the morning, to answer charges of public drunkenness and attempted bribery.

Meanwhile, back at the garden, Gra'bir emerges from hiding as soon as the men step away. He takes a branch to make a bow, but the first one breaks when he attempts it. His second attempt produces a much nicer bow. But just as Gra'bir is finishing it up, another mamluk guard happens by.

The guard calls out for Gra'bir to halt, but the warrior attempts to make a run for it. He attempts to head towards the private gardens, but is unable to scale the wall quickly. A short time later, M'Balz gets a new cellmate.

Adanband and Butrus elect to leave the garden without attempting to do anything else. Luckily, they manage to escape without being seen by the mamluks.

Seeing if they can bail their companions out of jail, they head over to talk to the peacekeepers. After some discussion, Adanband is able to identify which of the many people arrested that night he is talking about.

Because Gra'bir was arrested for desecrating the garden and M'Balz for attempted bribery, the two must be held until they can be judged by a qadis. The mamluk suggests hiring a lawyer for them. Adanband tries to get the men released into his custody, and after some discussion the man agrees to see if a qadis can be called in that night.

After waiting around another couple of hours, the qadis passes judgment on the two. Because of M'Balz's family status, they will only need to pay a fine of 300 dinar instead of having their hands chopped off. Along with a lifetime ban from the public gardens.

M'Balz and Gra'bir agree to split the cost of their fine. Because Gra'bir stored his money with a moneylender instead of at the Al-Badassi treasury, Adanband is forced to wait until the next morning until he can collect the money for them and pay their fine.

*** Session 7 - Scene 6 (of ***

Once they are out, Gra'bir wants to plan how to try another tactic. M'Balz, however, has reconsidered and suggests they abandon the pursuit of the garden treasure as they have many other options.

Gra'bir reminds M'Balz they still need to warn the Grand Caliph about the note they found on the elf from the mysterious "C D". M'Balz suggests they want to let some time pass before they approach the caliph.

While Gra'bir worries about not getting the chance once they leave town, Butrus offers a compromise that he and Adanband can deliver the message so as not to get the two arrested again.

Butrus and Adanband head up to the central palace to meet with the Grand Caliph. Gra'bir tails them at a distance.

A guard stops the two at the main gate, asking their business. When Butrus says they need to speak to the Grand Caliph, he asks they have an appointment.

Butrus explains they have an important message for the caliph. He asks if there is someone of high importance in the palace they could speak to instead.

Four hours of waiting at the gate passes before a man comes out. He gives his name as Thindrus, the Secondary Assistant to the Junior Deputy Vizier of Community Relations.
Butrus tells Thindrus the story of how they found the dead elf with the scroll and how they brought it there to warn the Grand Caliph. Thindrus is unsure what to make of the scroll, finding much of it to be gibberish. But, he does agree to take the scroll and send it up through the proper channels.

Meanwhile, Gra'bir looks on for an opportunity to sneak into the gardens, but does not find a good moment. Butrus, however, notices him.

The dwarf approaches Gra'bir and exclaims that clearly he is not ready to give up the quest. Butrus suggests they get as close as they can to the tree while still outside the gardens and fire the arrow later that night. He believes this will be as effective as the interpretation that Gra'bir has made.

Gra'bir, however, does not wish to wait for the dark. Instead, he fires the arrow into the air near the palace in broad daylight. The invisible swordsman does not appear, but some guards do.

This time, Gra'bir elects to speak in his own defense to the qadis. He tells the judge that his people in his tribe have a different customs. In order to honor the dead, Gra'bir explains, he must fashion a bow from their bushes, give a prayer, and fire a ceremonial arrow into the air.

Hearing the warrior's impassioned speech, the qadis decides against his better judgment and does not increase the fine, keeping it at 200 dinar.

Gra'bir asks the others to help him out with paying half of the fine. Butrus tells the others he thought the plan has always been foolhardy, but has been trying to help them with the compassion of the Loregiver. However, he is beginning to rethink the wisdom of this approach.

In the end, Butrus agrees to help if Gra'bir promises not to go back to the gardens. In the end, they each agree to pay a share of the fine.

*** Session 7 - Scene 7 (of ***

Hoping to end the foolishness, Butrus and Adanband volunteer to go to the gardens instead and pray to the Loregiver in front of the tree for guidance.

M'Balz attempts to convince Butrus to take a "miniature bow and arrow" to use, but the dwarf rejects their plan as foolhardy.

The two head into the gardens, where Butrus makes his way to the singing tree. He listens to the singing and says the incantation, then communes with the Loregiver and tries to talk to the bird.

The bird flies down a little closer. It calls out to the dwarf to ask his name. He gives his name as Butrus Al-Chub, though notes his last name is not his true name. He explains about his memory loss and how he came to be with his companions.

Butrus also explains about his companions' interest in the gardens, and how they believe a treasure or other good is kept there. The bird says the dwarf is truly a shepherd of fools, and Butrus somewhat agrees saying the Loregiver has put him with the others to provide them guidance.

The bird tells Butrus to pray to the Loregiver while honoring the dead and he will find what he seeks. Butrus asks the bird if he means the crematorium, but it simply flies back up to its high perch.

Butrus realizes others have noticed the bird having honored him. He exchanges blessings with each of them, and he and Adanband wander around the gardens for quite some time before cautiously making their way back to the crematorium.

Butrus prays there, but no divine intervention is made. Butrus then elects to wander around the area for a short time.

He then wanders back to the singing tree, listening to the songs for a while. He detects nothing in the wording of the songs that will help them.

Convinced the bird speaking to him was a sign, Butrus makes his way back to the crematorium. Adanband, however, finds peace from meditating and spots something as they leave; one of the bushes next to the building seems to be concealing something.

Adanband wanders over to get a better look. He can see that it is a heavy door in the ground. He motions over to Butrus to show him the door. Because the area is crowded, the two decide to walk away and perhaps come back later at night.

Against his better judgment, Butrus decides they should tell the others about what they found.

*** Session 7 - Scene 8 (of ***

When Adanband tells the others about the door (which Butrus explains came to him because of his prayer to the Loregiver), they are anxious to go investigate.

M'Balz wonders why Adanband didn't use his magic to gain access to it, while Gra'bir suggests tying up the guards first this time. Adanband recommends they go back at night and sneak in.

Butrus suggest M'Balz and Gra'bir disguise themselves as women to get inside. Then, they can pay someone to make a distraction to draw the attention of the guards while they go down into the secret tunnel.

They discuss the specifics of the plan for some time. M'Balz wonders about using Tarik, while Gra'bir wants to use Adanband's wall of fog spell. Butrus tries to talk them into a more reasonable plan, all the while reminding them that if they are caught a third time, they will likely be executed.

Finally, they decide to just have Butrus and Adanband head in. As they meet poor peasants, Butrus hands out some money and convinces them that someone is handing out money on the other side of the garden.

With the guards busy dealing with the rush of people, Butrus signals M'Balz and Gra'bir. Adanband quickly moves in and tries to open the door. He doesn't have much luck, even with Butrus' help.

M'Balz and Gra'bir rush in just as they get the door open. They see it opens to a narrow tunnel down with iron rungs built into the sides.

The four lower themselves into the darkness and close the door behind them. Butrus lights his lamp in the dark, revealing they are in a smoothly-crafted sewers. An inch or so of water flows towards them at a slow pace, then drains down into the ground to lower drains.

Blocking their way forward is a large metal grate. After spending ten minutes or more, they do manage to force it open. The creaking noise echoes throughout the sewers.
 
Moving forward, they see the passage continues but also goes to the right. In the intersection, there are metal rungs leading up to the top with another door.

After doing some estimated measurements, they determine the passageway up leads aboveground. They move around the sewers for a brief time, finding it has a very square layout in their immediate area. The direction of the sewers appears to be leading away from the palace, which they find confusing.

As they continue along, Gra'bir notices a very rank smell in the area. He does not recognize it.

Suddenly, some tentacles come down from the ceiling. Butrus and Adanband are hit by them while Gra'bir moves out of the way. The sorcerer shrugs off the effect of the tentacles while Butrus is paralyzed.

Looking up, they see they are under attack by a trio of carrion crawlers on the ceiling. Gra'bir quickly strikes at one, hitting it with his lance. M'Balz follows up with his dagger, getting in a solid hit.

Adanband lets loose with his burning hands spell, flaming all three of them. Gra'bir follows up with his lance, killing one of them.

M'Balz stabs at another with his dagger, badly injuring it. Adanband attacks it himself with his staff, finishing it off.

The remaining crawler attacks at Gra'bir. He manages to avoid one of the tentacles but is hit by another and paralyzed.

M'Balz and Adanband trade attacks with the crawler for several minutes, with no one able to hit the other. Eventually, the creature hits M'Balz but he shrugs off the paralyzing touch. M'Balz stabs into the creature at the same time, killing it.

They have to wait a half hour for the others to come out of their paralyzation. While waiting, M'Balz notices the crawlers came out of a small tunnel in the side of one of the vertical shafts.

Once the others have recovered, he elects to go up the rungs and go inside the cavern, taking Butrus' lamp with him.

Inside he spots a pile of rodent and humanoid remains. He also sees something shiny inside the pile.

M'Balz has Adanband hand him his staff and uses the staff to move around the pile. Underneath, he spots some coins.

Readying his dagger, he moves in closer. He discovers a cache of several hundred coins of gold, silver, and copper. He decides to take the gold and silver but leave the copper.

Underneath the coins, he also discovers three sets of very fine studded leather armor. He hands them down to the others. He elects to take one of the sets, giving the others to Butrus and Gra'bir.

*** Session 7 - Session Notes ***

For most of this session, it had the feel of the "Cthulhubusters" campaign - essentially a caper plot where everything goes horribly, horribly wrong.

The funniest part was that most of the players, at various times, advocated dropping the whole scheme but there was always just enough encouragement that would keep one of them interested in continuing on.

Originally, the palace gardens treasure was a throwaway false rumor that they got through my random rumor table. It basically still is, but I decided that instead of amounting to nothing, it would be a way to get them into a dungeon-esque sewer area (which borrows heavily from the Day of Al'Akbar module for AD&D). I also have some more surprises in there that will help tie it back to another plot element.

Other random notes about the session:

* When the session began, they still hadn't decided on what they were going to do next. I had areas prepared for both map caves, the island, and the gardens depending on which direction they went.

* Butrus' player was certain the palace gardens treasure was a fool's errand, and kept making fun of the others the whole time.

* In the actual session, we forgot all about Nazmi until halfway through. I came up with the rationale that they wouldn't involve him in that particular plan.

* I'm not sure why the PCs went with the "let's talk to random NPCs we know" direction at first to try and find information about the gardens; it really made no sense so I didn't have it amount to much (though kept trying to hint they should focus on doing real research).

* Ihab is described as creepy-looking because I modeled him on Issac from the Children of the Corn movie. More on that later...

* I found it funny the PCs are pretty certain Tarik is faking his lack of legs, but have yet to reveal him as a fraud.

* The singing tree, the talking bird, and the layout of the gardens are all from the TSR setting.

* The plan to try and get information out of the Silent Starlings very nearly turned deadly. I had Sargon appear because the whole point is that he keeps things from devolving into chaos.

* The jokes about the "library fund" and so on are more of an in-joke; two of us, and one spouse, work for academic fundraising organizations.

* The legend about the singing tree and the invisible swordsman is a joke, playing off of the similar legend in the movie Three Amigos. I thought this would be obvious, but it turns out I'm the only one who's ever seen it (I must have watched in a hundred times in my youth and all my friends at the time loved it, so that was odd to me that it was considered obscure by others).

* It was both funny, and strange, how the PCs would try to mold the legend to be easier to fulfill; as if you can weasel word your way into making magic work (though, again, this was a false legend).

* I was having too much fun with the bad decisions (and rolls) that ended up getting the PCs thrown in jails. I made their fines heavy because if M'Balz wasn't nobility, they probably should have been maimed or killed.

* Thindrus' title is clearly a joke about the baroque system of civil service titles as well as a way to let the PCs know they didn't get to talk to anyone remotely important.

* I had the bird talk to Butrus because, if nothing else, he is fervently pious. Plus by this point, the whole effort needed some payoff (besides, I'd hate to draw up my dungeon plans for nothing).

* The time in the dungeon took a lot longer in game because the PCs spent forever trying to figure out where the sewers might lead, slopes, water sources, what the manhole covers were, etc.

Just noticed this thread here....



My Badass Balls?

Grab her Boobies?

Are your players 13 years old?!?



...I'm going to keep reading. Hopefully it gets better, my friend. :banghead:

EDIT:

THEY'VE NEVER SEEN THE THREE AMIGOS!!!

...are you sure they aren't pod people?