World Post
After the lines of applicants ended, the crowds of people watched those that had signed up and the court officials. The officials took a few moments and began to group together individuals, writing down the teams on a list. This list was then passed to the crier, who read it thus:
"The first team, who's destination will be the
Western Gate, is that of Cecilia of Bamburgh, Elisha of Otonoki,Louis of Tristania, and Lenna of Underwood."
He cleared his throat before continuing,
"The next team will exit Maplestead from the
Southern Gate. They are: Adrial of Carnan, Brennen of Warrington, and Alyssa of... yes, Alyssa the spellsword." The crier looked annoyed at the unspecified hometown information.
Once again he cleared his throat, however this time it seemed for to calm himself,
"The third group, who will make their way out by the
Eastern Gate, are as follows: Veltis of Byron, Tanzin of..." the crier adjusted his collar, as if it were strangling him,"Dun Gadar.. and Jere of Garrowtree."
"The fourth group will exit by the
Northern gate. They are Miercoles of..." he siiiiighed as if to say 'what is up with spellswords and not filling out their information'," Miercoles the spellsword. Vance of Masa and Elle of Asterith."
Near the assembled fighters a young girl and her father stood. She was so tiny that she barely came above his knee. This girl reached up and tugged one of her fathers fingers, so thick that her whole hand could barely wrap itself about it,
"Papa? Why do they list the hometowns of the heroes?" To this girl they were already heroes- for this was the bravest thing she had ever seen anyone do.
Her father, his complexion dark and stoic as he towered over her, looked on at one of the gates leading out of the city,
"They list the hometowns so it is known where to send their bodies- if they die."
The girl fell silent at this information.
And the crier continued like this, listing several other groups before closing the scroll altogether.
The crowds around the players began to cheer, clapping and hollering their thanks. A woman began to cry and pray. A priest walked through the crowd followed by his entourage and blessed them with his prayers.
As the groups headed toward their destinations the town square began to clear. The crier and the court officials returned to the safety of the palace. The towns people to their homes.
~~~~~
All four gates were set to open just as the appointed heroes arrived- promptly at 11 am. They were met by the doormen- whom traded looks of pity mingled with respect.
North Gate
At the northern gate of Maplestead sat two portly guards- old men with long beards and drink fogged eyes. They stumbled to their feet at the approach of the heroes, checking the placement of the sun in the sky, as if to say 'yep, bout time'. They pulled the heavy doors open and then shut them quickly as the heroes stepped out.
Outside roamed about a dozen scare crow demons, hacking away with their blades at horse carts and other property. Accompanying them was a Tiger bear- eyes glazed over with an unnatural color, a tell-tale sign that the beast was being controlled somehow by the evil aura of the demons.
(Keep in mind that it is not only your group alone there- other people have signed up and are fighting alongside you- these townsfolk will most likely die)
[Kill all of the demons= full reward. Kill all of the demons+bring back the pelt of the Tiger Bear= +bragging rights and admiration by townsfolk (however there are some groups in the city that will react negatively)]
South Gate
Once the heroes arrived at the Southern Gate they were met by a female soldier, a jagged scar ruining a lovely face. Her companion was a massive War dog- which helped her open the southern gate with a rope tied o one of the door handles. They opened for the heroes,
"May the gods watch over you all." She said before closing the gates behind them.
Prowling about these gates were a handful (5) of scare crow demons and a screecher, which was tearing into the corpse of a horse. It lifted its head and, spotting the heroes, wailed- long and high.
(Keep in mind that it is not only your group alone there- other people have signed up and are fighting alongside you- these townsfolk will most likely die)
[Destroy all scare crow demons= full reward. Due to the difficulty of having a screecher at this gate, if your team manages to kill it= +admiration by townsfolk + recognition by clergy)
East Gate
By the eastern gate were grouped a handful of young soldiers, all seemingly eager to peek outside,
"We just heard an explosion- must be lava demons." Said one of the soldiers excitedly, his eyes glinting with the desire to see something completely destroyed.
The heroes progressed through the gates and were met with the sight of, indeed, three lava demons. They were accompanied by a Basilisk, which stomped about and shook the earth.
(Keep in mind that it is not only your group alone there- other people have signed up and are fighting alongside you- these townsfolk will most likely die)
[Kill all demons= full reward. Check the Bestiary in the Character sheets section to see how to kill a Basilisk, its rather simple.)
West Gate
Standing by the Western gate was a tall elf, accompanied by an ogre. They had been chatting jovially before the heroes had arrived- all conversation ceased when they approached. The elf rubbed his nose as he advised the seemingly weak individuals before him, pity clear in his look and tone,
"We peaked outside. A few demons are out there- but mainly there's a bunch of crazed voraptus. Watch out for those vermin birds- they're voracious."
Indeed once the heroes were outside of the safety of the city they were faced with small group of scare crow demons (4) and a group of voraptus birds (3). The scare crows were armed and hacking away at the crops of the local farmers. The birds, noticing people exiting the town, began to chase after them
(Keep in mind that it is not only your group alone there- other people have signed up and are fighting alongside you- these townsfolk will most likely die)
(Kill all of the demons= receive full reward. Kill the bird while they are "crazed", meaning before the demons die= +townsfolk recognition. Kill birds after demons are dead= -recognition. Capture a bird and perhaps you can sell it to a voraptus fighter/enter it into a fight (however keep in mind this is both dangerous and illegal)]
