Anthr4xus Posted November 11, 2023 Clone Share Posted November 11, 2023 (edited) Harin circled the hut, fully ensorcelled by the magical song of his newest and best friend. Standing, if such a grand word could be applied to the deep stoop of the figure before him, just inside the door and out of the rain was an ancient and wizened old woman. The smell of simmering seasoned meat, something gamy and wild, and baking bread wafting out of the door into his face was intoxicating. Harin could tell that she was at least as tall as him at some point, but her back was so curved from age and possibly low roofs that she was bent nearly double, her chin almost in line with her waist. She was dressed in fine, well tanned and sewn hides decorated with intricate and symbol heavy bead work and patterns done in feathers and animal teeth. Her wispy white hair formed a halo of wafting strands around her oval-shaped face. Smalls twigs, leaves and scraps of moss were caught up in it, drawing unfavorable comparisons to a poorly crafted bird nest. Two deep blue curled horns grew through it as well, small and delicate runes that Harin did not recognize painted in gold and silver along them. Her face was heavily creased and wrinkled, a massive map of crows feet and smile lines, exaggerated even further by the broad smile she bore. Her teeth were few and far between, yellow stained, small and sharp. Other than the horns she appeared human, although the lines of her cheekbones and edges of her ears gave Harin reason to think that she had some non-human mixing of blood somewhere in the last few generations. "My, my, friend Harin, you are a lovely thing aren't you?" She said, ending in a cackle that trailed off to a cough. "Come in, come in, you'll catch your death of cold in that rain." The ceiling of the hut was festooned with bundles of dried herbs, flowers and other planets. The hovel door was so low Harin had to crouch or crawl to get through it. The inside was a single room, barely 10 feet on a side and roughly circular. The back wall was dominated by a wide fireplace, mostly filled with a black iron cauldron hanging over a low fire. Harin could hear simmering and bubbling from within and smell the stew A baking oven was built into the wall with the fireplace, allowing it to share the indirect heat. A large wooden tub, half filled with murky water, sits on the dirt floor to the left of the fireplace. The right wall was mostly covered in stone shelves covered in jars, pouches, and more bundles of dried herbs and plants. A long heavily used butcher block sits beneath the shelves. The left wall is festooned with fetishes and shaped bundles of feather, stone, stick and bone, hanging over a nest of hides and thick, detailed quilts. A small, low table with a single chair sits in the middle of the room, the chair facing the door. Oma stepped back and walked with just a few steps to the tub, pushing the chair towards Harin. "I will fix you some food if you will sing me a song of your homeland, Harin." She pulled a wooden bowl from the tub, and begins to dry it on a small scrap of fur. OOC I don't expect this thread to go on very long, but wanted to give some space for a back and forth between Harin and Oma without discouraging people from posting in the in main Group 2 thread. Edited November 11, 2023 by Anthr4xus (see edit history) Name xDiceName xDiceResult xDiceString xDiceRolls Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaffo Posted November 12, 2023 Clone Share Posted November 12, 2023 (edited) Harin Avosi Half-elf Sage, College of Lore Bard AC: 14 (Leather) | HP: 10/10 (1d8+2) | Speed: 30 ft. (unencumbered) Senses: passive Perception 14, Insight 14, Investigation 11 Str:Save: +3 Athletics: +3 Carrying Capacity: 240 lb. Lift/Push/Drag: 480 lb. 7 (-2) | Dex:Initiative: −1 Save: −1 Acrobatics: −1 Slight-of-Hand: −1 Stealth: −1☆ ☆ disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks from Chainmail Armor. 16 (+3) | Con:Save: +2 14 (+2) | Int:Save: +0 Arcana: +0 History: +0 Investigation: +0 Nature: +0 Religion: +0 12 (+1) | Wis:Save: +2 Animal Handling: +2 Insight: +2 Medicine: +2 Perception: +2 Survival: +2 14 (+2) | Cha:Save: +1 Deception: +1 Intimidation: +1 Performance: +1 Persuasion: +1 18 (+4) Languages: You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish, Dwarvish, Gnomish, and Halfling Although a bit disgusted by the bowl, it's true Harin hadn't had any breakfast yet, and he debated whether he should decline it or not. He thought he might wait and see what sort of stew filled it before deciding. 'In the meantime, a song for good 'ol Oma! Let's see...' staring at the cauldron, 'ah! "The Moonshiner!" There's a classic.' Harin puts his flute away and brings out his ocarina again. He starts playing an upbeat opening riff for one of his favorite songs before singing: I am a moonshiner / For 17 long years / And I spent all me money / On whiskey and beers And I go to some hollow / And set up me still / If the whiskey don't kill me / Gods, I don't know what will And I go to some barroom / To drink with me friends / Where the bailiff can't follow / To see what I spend Gods bless all pretty women / I wish they was mine / With breath as sweet as / The dew on the vine I'll eat when I'm hungry / I'll drink when I'm dry / A gold piece when I'm hard up / A good cleric when I die The whole world is a bottle / And life is but a dram / When the bottle is empty / It ain't worth a damn He finishes with a long lively solo on his ocarina. OOC Movement: — Action: — Bonus Action: — Reaction: — Edited November 12, 2023 by zaffo (see edit history) Name xDiceName xDiceResult xDiceString xDiceRolls Performance check if needed 9 1d20+6 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthr4xus Posted November 13, 2023 Author Clone Share Posted November 13, 2023 (edited) While Harin sings, Oma shuffles and sways, the movement particularly odd given her half-bent over posture. She scoops a couple of large spoonfuls from the cauldron into the bowl, and grabbed a couple of the bundles of herbs hanging from the ceiling. Smiling her mostly-toothless smile and humming along to snatches of the tune, she pulled leaves and small stems from the bundles, crushes them in her boney and twisted fingers and sprinkles them over the stew. From somewhere within her furs, she produces a clean looking wooden spoon and stirred the herbs through the stew. It shifts the smell of the stew, adding a note of sweetness and mint to the homey smell of whatever the meat was and the mix of wild forest vegetables. She sets it on the table in front of Harin as he finishes his song. "Lovely, friend Harin, so lovely. Eat. Enjoy." She turns back and opens the door of the baking oven, and pulls out a loaf of thick, dark bread. She tears a sizeable chunk from the loaf and Harin could see and smell the steam erupt from it. She set it on the table next to the bowl. Stepping back a the step or two allowed in the cramped space, she blinked at Harin and asked, "Shall I sing you something while you eat?" She almost immediately bursts into song as Harin looks down at the bowl. He can immediately recognize the chunks of tomato, peppers and onions and could easily pick up the scents of cinnamon, paprika, salt and pepper as well as many other notes that he did not recognize. The meat looked to be some kind of venison or similarly kind of lean meat, although there were small chunks of other meats that he reasoned were probably organs or other odd cuts. How this bent and ancient, yet so friendly, woman could have brought down a deer or something similar was an interesting question, but the entirety of the meal looked and smelled wonderful and welcoming. Oma sang, "In the home's dim-lit glow, shadows dance upon the wall, A world of danger all around, where the brave and weary fall. But here we sit, in this refuge in the wood, A feast before us, safe and warm, wholesome and good. Raise your spoon, have a bite, In this dark world, the time is right. For here and now, danger takes a rest, We share a meal, talking and laughing in jest. Tasty stew in wooden bowl, songs shared in the dark, Kick up your heels, slurp the broth, our time is but a lark. Yet here we are, together now, a fellowship of chance, In this haven under the earth, where seasonings and taste entwine in dance. Raise your spoon, have a bite, In this dark world, the time is right. For here and now, danger takes a rest, We share a meal, talking and laughing in jest. The stew is warm, the bread is crusty, Here in my home, you can trust me. For the road ahead may be unkind, But at this table, solace find. So let the world play its games, beyond the homey door, Today we dine, we laugh, we sing, as comrades evermore. In the dark misty embrace, where danger's always near, A feast of safety we partake, in this fleeting cheer. Raise your spoon, have a bite, In this dark world, the time is right. For here and now, danger takes a rest, We share a meal, talking and laughing in jest." OOC If Harin eats the stew, give me a Con Save. Edited November 13, 2023 by Anthr4xus (see edit history) Name xDiceName xDiceResult xDiceString xDiceRolls Nature check for Harin to identify stew components 11 1d20+1 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaffo Posted November 14, 2023 Clone Share Posted November 14, 2023 (edited) Harin Avosi Half-elf Sage, College of Lore Bard AC: 14 (Leather) | HP: 10/10 (1d8+2) | Speed: 30 ft. (unencumbered) Senses: passive Perception 14, Insight 14, Investigation 11 Str:Save: +3 Athletics: +3 Carrying Capacity: 240 lb. Lift/Push/Drag: 480 lb. 7 (-2) | Dex:Initiative: −1 Save: −1 Acrobatics: −1 Slight-of-Hand: −1 Stealth: −1☆ ☆ disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks from Chainmail Armor. 16 (+3) | Con:Save: +2 14 (+2) | Int:Save: +0 Arcana: +0 History: +0 Investigation: +0 Nature: +0 Religion: +0 12 (+1) | Wis:Save: +2 Animal Handling: +2 Insight: +2 Medicine: +2 Perception: +2 Survival: +2 14 (+2) | Cha:Save: +1 Deception: +1 Intimidation: +1 Performance: +1 Persuasion: +1 18 (+4) Languages: You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish, Dwarvish, Gnomish, and Halfling The stew looked and smelled so delicious, it was easy for Harin to overlook the cleanliness of the bowl. After all, he learned well on his travels that scruples are all fine and good until they get you hurt or worse. And right now he was lost in a hostile realm with no guarantee there would be a next meal. And what's more, although there was a faint suspicion in his guts of being played (that was a part of his chosen profession, after all), it was dear sweet ol' Oma that prepared this lovely, if rustic, meal for him! 'Good 'ol Oma!' he smiled at her song as he raised the spoon to her in a gesture of thanks, then joyfully took a bite. OOC Movement: — Action: — Bonus Action: — Reaction: — I think Harin's optimism + being charmed + music - experience conning and being conned = he eats! Unfortunately... Edited November 14, 2023 by zaffo (see edit history) Name xDiceName xDiceResult xDiceString xDiceRolls Con save 13 1d20+2 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthr4xus Posted November 14, 2023 Author Clone Share Posted November 14, 2023 The stew was soooo good. The best he could remember in recent times, for sure, maybe even since his own mother or grandmother's cooking. The only thing better than the first bite was the second. And then the third, and so on. Far too quickly the spoon scraped the bottom of the bowl. Harin barely even remembered eating the bread, yet it was gone, barely even any crumbs left behind. The warmth of the stew seemed to permeate from his stomach into his bones, driving out the chill of the constant rain. His eyes became heavy and as Oma finished her song he swayed and collapsed to the floor, snoring deeply. Oma hummed and patted his head. His consciousness hovered about his sleeping form, her words seeming to dance through the deep dream that was quickly overtaking him. "There, there, friend Harin. Rest well, plenty of time for the tendering. Perhaps another song to make the work quicker?" She moved away, her song starting as Harin slipped fully away into deep, drugged slumber. "In ancient valleys, where time did weep, In old mountain towns, secrets did keep, A kingdom once proud, now lost to the night, I sing you a lament, a mournful sight. The castle walls, once towering high, Now crumble beneath a desolate sky, The echoes of laughter, the whispers of lore, Gone with the wind, forevermore. In cobblestone streets, where shadows now play, The laughter of children has faded away, The marketplace bustled, with merchants so keen, Now silence prevails, in the ruins, it's seen.... Name xDiceName xDiceResult xDiceString xDiceRolls Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthr4xus Posted November 14, 2023 Author Clone Share Posted November 14, 2023 This thread is now closed and remerged with the main group 2 thread. Name xDiceName xDiceResult xDiceString xDiceRolls Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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