Eberron One

[OOC]
Hey, wait a second... Lord Vom? Didn't we just come from Vom? Sorry, folks, a little slow here today. I suspect that is an old rumor regarding our most recent endeavors.

Hmmm... I recall something about the mayor of Vom not living there anymore, maybe being down here? Maybe we should try to track him down and talk to him, anyway, just to confirm. Maybe we can get him to give us something in return if we agree to go up there and, um... clear out the old Claw Pit.

Adolf sets strong hot tea down for all of you. "Well, I'll tell you. You see, his manor house out on his lands vas taken over by elfs during de var. Dey used it as a base to attack here in town, and up and down the Orien road, and to raid de trains too, you see. Vell, de army, dey finally take it back, but dey destroy de big house doing it, you see, and a lot of de grounds too. Vell, he leafes his warden out dere, living in one of de peasant houses, watching over de serfs and to be steward for de village, and he comes to live here in Vulyar. So he comes here til his house is rebuilt or repaired, or what they can do, and he lives in de top floor of The Swan, downtown, you see, the whole top floor with his family and his secretary, and all the other peoples. The burghermeister didn't like dis too much, between you and me, it vas a big headache, but Lord Vom, he had little choice. Und he is tinking, well it won't be long and de Countess, she will repair de house, you see? But de Countess, she is still building the war, so the building of the house, it must wait. So then she has Lord Vom take part of his peoples, but not all of dem, and move out into Castle Bors vitt her, so dat is where Lord Vom is now, you see."

He smiles broadly, his tale complete, but waits to see if you have any questions or other talk.

ehiker133 wrote:

Caby stares blankly as she tries to keep up with Adolf's monologue.

"So... Lord Vom is staying in Castle Bors? Where is Castle Bors?"

"You take the main road north from Kurtplatz fountain, and you'll see it in de hills north of town."

ehiker133 wrote:

"Yes, you're right, Jaral, we should secure some room and board here for a slightly extended period of time before going to the castle. And then hopefully tomorrow I can pick up my new armour and we should have a better idea of a course of action by then."

Caby talks to the proprietor about a week's stay in the same private room she had the previous night.

"How far is it to the castle, then? And how safe are the roads that way?"

DM wrote:

Up at the bar is a sign with the following information:

DM wrote:

Ale, per pint 8cp
Beer, per pint 4cp
Wine, per glass 12cp
Wine, per bottle 4-8sp
Liquor, per glass 8-10cp
Brandy, per glass 16-32cp
Tea, per cup 4cp
Breakfast 1-2sp
Dinner 2-6sp
Supper 2-6sp
Dormitory, one night 2sp
Dormitory, one week 12sp
Dormitory, one month 40sp
Private Room, one night 8-10sp
Per additional person +2sp
Private Room, one week 48-60sp
Per additional person +12sp
Private Room, one month 180-250sp
Per additional person +50sp

Adolf says Castle Bors is about a mile north of town. "Just stay on the road. You can't miss it. As far as I know it should be safe. I surely hope so at least."

[OOC]
I knew the prices; I was just reserving the room. Or letting you know I was thinking we should get board for a week, Mike.

ehiker133 wrote:

[OOC]
I knew the prices; I was just reserving the room. Or letting you know I was thinking we should get board for a week, Mike.

Cool You can all retain your current rooms for further week, if desired. Caby's room is on the 2nd floor, roughly over the area of the kitchen. Ducats' room is on the 2nd floor, over the archway leading into the courtyard, with a window looking out over the Orien Trade Road (Wynarn Street.) Jaral's room is in a corner-ish part of the 2nd floor, between the two. Tagor is on the 3rd floor near one of the back corners of the building. Sections of the inn have been added, or in some cases perhaps taken over from neighboring buildings, over the years. Therefore, there are steps up and down here and there in odd places in the hallways, and the halls make little jogs and take odd corners in places. In general though, taken from a larger perspective the inn conforms the basic idea of a square around the courtyard, with the unexplored but guessed at possibility of a few 'wings' going off here and there.

You make your way downtown to the fountain, and turn north up Borutau Street. The shops give way after several blocks to relatively fancy and large townhouses, and Borutau Street begins to slope gently upward. Looking down side streets you can see the lingering destruction of the Last War. Buildings and streets still undergoing repairs are seen, but you also see much untended damage.

As you reach the edge of the town the buildings have grown smaller and a bit more distant from one another. You've passed various townspeople, a few soldiers, though no formations, and even a couple warforged laborers. A few of these showed the handiwork of the war as well, in the form of burn scars and missing limbs.

Sparse bare trees and a few pines accompany the road as it goes north, climbing a bit higher here and there, but never becoming steep, with dirt side roads and wagon trails heading off toward outlying farms. Soon after entering what could really be called hills and sparse forest, you see an edifice up ahead. It sits a ways off the road to the west.

ehiker133 wrote:

If there is a road to the main entrance, we'll approach the castle by that way.

Yes, there is a turn off of the north road which goes through some trees over to the direction of the castle. It looks like the cobblestones give over to plain dirt on the north road just a ways past this turn. The castle lane goes a couple hundred yards from where it leaves the north road to where it leads onto the built-up stone causeway on the right of the picture above.

After traveling about 50 yards along the lane, you are challenged by 3 soldiers standing guard. Each has sword and shield, and bows lean against a small guard shack off the edge of the lane. One of the soldiers is a 'forged.

Ducats grins and doffs his hat.

One of the men bows slightly and asks "are you expected? If not, I'll take you up to de castle." He then leads you along the lane. It's very quiet, and the air is filled with the clean smell of the pines. The towering trees on either side of the lane leave a narrow strip of cloudy sky overhead.

You arrive at another guard post, this one with 3 men and 2 'forged. About 50 yards ahead, you can see the first evidence of stone slab paving, stone balustrades and the widening out of the trees which tower over the wide lane. The man from the first post hands you off to these, and two of the men here walk you on toward the castle.

Passing out from between the pines, you walk out onto a wide stone causeway. A small dry gully passes underneath, descending from the higher hills to the right. Although Castle Bors isn't what you'd think of as a truly fortified castle, it's certainly more than a simple manor house.

Ducats having been around the Deneith stronghold at Karrlakton during the war, you can see that despite having carved stone balustrades instead of crenelations, it's actually very defensible, particularly from downhill.

You are now within the area shown in the right-hand side of the photo above. You are impressed with a wide array of formidable looking statues, ornate stone tables and benches, and intricately carved stone chairs in this open area before a large entry. There are more soldiers here, some taking hot drinks at one of the tables. You are shown up a few steps to a large set of double doors, constructed of heavy, ornately decorated wood. A multi-sectioned coat of arms featuring black ravens, halberds, pine trees, and skulls among its heraldic forms hangs prominently above the doors.

The two guards accompany you inside, where they inform a well-dressed man in black that representatives from Jurasco and Deneith are here to see Lord Vom. They wait next to the doors while the man goes off through the dark and richly appointed entry hall.

The only obvious exits are the double doors to outside and a set of double doors at the far end of this room, about 30 feet away and to the right side of the far wall. There is a 2nd floor gallery around the top, but apparently no way to get up there from within this hall.

DM wrote:

The only obvious exits are the double doors to outside and a set of double doors at the far end of this room, about 30 feet away and to the right side of the far wall. There is a 2nd floor gallery around the top, but apparently no way to get up there from within this hall.

How high up is the gallery/how far over the central area does it overhang?

Cole wrote:

DM wrote:

The only obvious exits are the double doors to outside and a set of double doors at the far end of this room, about 30 feet away and to the right side of the far wall. There is a 2nd floor gallery around the top, but apparently no way to get up there from within this hall.

How high up is the gallery/how far over the central area does it overhang?

It's about 12 feet up. It overhangs about 5 feet, except above the doors through which you came in, where it's flush with the wall. At the opposite end of the room, and along the back half of the left side, the total width is more than the overhang, probably a total of 10 feet. There are several doors up there in various places, at least 5 you can see from here.