The Wicker Goat Meetup

This is the 1st session of the **Ghosts of Saltmarsh** campaign and overall 8th session for The Albatross Pirates.

Having fully acquired his crew, Captain Bilji headed out with his new found companions down to a town by the name of Saltmarsh recommended to him by Vision. It was quite a long journey to this town, about a week or so, so they decided that begrudgingly the best way to travel would be by night as they had Raven with them and she would not be able to travel in daylight. Although this slowed the party down to a fairly high degree, they managed their best to make way to the small town.

Once arriving in the region housing the town, the Mere of Dead Men, the party instantly realized the change in climate as they had entered the realm of a massive swamp. Their boots slugged through the mud and they could feel the weight of every step they took. This was not a place that many would tend to travel by foot, especially at night. Many beasts and foreign races would roam these lands to prey on the weak, including the infamous Druids of the Mere and the Circle of Erdilane. Luckily for them, their small trip towards safety was uneventful and they managed to reach the walls of Saltmarsh with relative ease.

Upon arrival at the town, they were instantly met with a large stone wall that surrounded the eastern side of Saltmarsh, with gate protected by two singular guards at night. Upon closing distance they found the guards to be older gentlemen who seemed to have been doing this job for many years prior to their meeting. While seemingly fragile due to being aged, the party could easily tell that their wits were about them and that they were very meticulously keeping an eye on their movements to see whether they were friend or foe. After a brief discussion with the guards with questions on the surrounding area and what to expect withing Saltmarsh, they let them pass due to their affiliations with the major guild which relieved some suspicion.

After crossing the boundary the group was instantly met with open fields just beyond, and a large trek down a path further into the town. Bilji spoke up the the rest of the party and told them that they were here to firstly meet up with his friend named Finch who would be waiting for them inside an Inn called the Wicker Goat. After explaining the description, they set out along the path to find the building. After 20 minutes or so of walking, they finally came to find the Wicker Goat which was stationed right next to the barracks of the town. After settling their things, they all went inside to find their contact.

The place was barren on the inside with little to no patrons to be found. However, the captain instantly met his quarry and spotted a scholarly looking Half-drow who was currently fast asleep underneath a pile of various books. Bilji rushed over to the booth and the group followed eager to meet this man. After a brief and startling awakening, Finch introduced himself as First Mate of the Albatross Pirates and as a diviner of fates for the crew. The group explained their travels thus far to Finch, and he shared what information he had gathered in Saltmarsh during the Captain's departure. It seemed that there were a few jobs that could potentially make some quick gold here along with some internal scuffling of the government factions that could be taken advantage of.

Information gathering was cut short by the ramblings between various members of the crew over which one was the strongest, and the scuffle resulted in an arm wrestling competition. While there weren't many patrons around to come watch, what there was all came and spectated, along with some of the guards from across the street at the barracks and the staff of the Wicker Goat itself. The ensuing arm wrestling tournament was trilling and everyone inside was cheering for different people to win. Bilji, Toof, Felix, and Vasnyl were all at each other's throats hurling grunts of intimidation and conviction in winning the competition. After back and forth between various members, Toof Smasha came victorious to the rest of the crew, and he held his head high for but a brief moment before another challenger would arrive.

The Captain of the guard, Eliander Fireborn, stepped forward towards the table where the matches were happening and sat down near Toof Smasha. This excited everyone as one of the strongest people in town were going to go neck and neck with a newcomer to town that also had the strength of a behemoth. They both grinned at one another knowing instantly that it was going to be a great battle between them, and they then began their bout. A close back and forth continued on as shouting of the pirates for their crew mate, and the guards for their captain to encourage their strength to be the greater of the two. After a few moments of heated battling, Eliander would be recognized as the victor of the match, crushing Toof's spirits in the moment. Eliander congratulated Toof on his excellence in his strength and conviction to win the match. He hoped that they would be able to fight again one day, maybe in a real battle even to see who really was stronger. With hearing this, Toof had a new goal in mind, to defeat this man in the most glorious and bloody of battles.

None the less, although the arm wrestling was invigorating, the captain suggested that the group head to rest for the night as they would need their energy for jobs come morning. The rest of the crew agreed and got rooms for the night, and looked forward to what adventures this new town would have for them.