Tilton's Big Cat Petting Zoo

> "Seriously? You’d think we’d call adventurers to take care of some tabby cats?"
>
>

Tilton's Home for Big Cats is a petting zoo located in Ferrenport. It is owned by Tilton Febreenn, an experienced wild-life trainer and confident manor entirely unaware of the goings-on while he's not looking at his zoo.

### Description:

Tilton takes you into the petting zoo. Petting zoo is probably a strong word for this otherwise very dull looking building: the stone outside looks to have seen a lot of scratch marks and interactions with the wild, but it still holds strong, wearing its scars with pride.

The first thing you notice is the layout of the zoo. There’s only one main section of animals. There’s a raised platform that you’re currently standing on, and there’s a fence with metal spikes between you and the lower section where the animals are. And what a display! The place looks very well designed for animals. There’s a makeshift river flowing through the centre of the display, and grass on either side. There are rocks for animals to hide behind, and wide open sections of plains for them to run through. You see towards the back corner of the enclosure there is a plinth surrounded and covered by a tarpaulin, made out to be a shelter for the animals.

### Important NPCS:

Tilton Febreenn - Owner and operator of Tilton's Home for Big Cats.

Dimm - The slow but well-meaning other worker at Tilton's. A purple tiefling that's always one step behind the play.

Bellington - Self-Proclaimed Tiger King in Tilton's.

Rarc - The tiger partner of the Jessie and father to a new-born Timon, an old war-torn soul that still has some fight in them for those they care about.

### Quests:

#### The Tiger King:

Dov, Variyas, Gabriel, Felix and Elis were enlisted by Tilton to watch over the tigers after 3 of their previous keepers had quit abruptly with no notice. The party agreed, only to be transformed by Bellington into tigers, who after introducing them to the other tigers: Cheez, Illiad, Lang and the pregnant Jessie, were taken through trials designed to test their skills with situations common to tigers, such as situations requiring Courage, Perfection, Gluttony, Endurance, Patience and Caring. Despite failing the latter of those challenges, the party cleared enough challenges to appease Bellington, and they were only asked to direct an unknowing Dimm to the centre of the room to free themselves. They took their gold from a Tilton and abruptly quit, leaving Tilton confused, and Bellington approving of the parties' escapades.

#### Tooth and Claw:

Ithanor, Wes, Biggs, Levi and Krommek, following the direction of Tilton's sign on the board, went to check on the so-called 'restless tigers'. After getting Dimm's head out from being stuck in the gate doors, the party quickly deduced that the tigers were merely playing up being restless, and after being subtlety directed to the shelter by Illiad, were introduced to Bellington and Jessie. Bellington informed the party that Jessie's partner, Rarc, was taken by slavers as the group headed for Ferrenport recently, and asked the party to find and rescue them. After Wes agreed to receive a minor blessing in order to be able to find Rarc, the party encountered a member of the hunting lodge that had imprisioned Rarc after Cheez recognised the figure that Tilton was directing away. The party hunted down and murdered the figure, who went by Don Ghille, then continued onwards towards the camp, defeating a pretender to the throne (the King of the Hyenas) along the way. Getting to the hunting camp, they proceeded to murder nearly 2 dozen hunters, and freed most of the animals in their captivity, including a critically but not mortally injured Rarc who, while initially confused and cautious, was thankful to the party for rescuing them, and even more thankful when they were reunited with their partner. Bellington, indebted to the party, agreed to offer them rewards based on the abilities of the tiger, including one that Rarc bestowed on Biggs themselves.

#### Yup, He's Completely Lost It:

Bellington, being concerned at the attacks on the party having taken place during Tooth and Claw, and wanting to ensure the safety of Rarc and Jessie's new baby Timon, asked Biggs, Bova, Marley, Kregrus and Torrance to make a deal with the new King of the Hyenas, Allos, to ensure they would be left alone. Bellington gave the party directions to where the previous party had been attacked during Tooth and Claw, where they found a small number of lone hyena's. The party successfully threatened them into leading them to Allos, who told the party they were in the middle of preparing an offering to their god. While confused, the party agreed to help assist the offering if they would receive a good word from Allos. The party successfully located a crystal on the other hyenas, then killed a monster in the swamp to earn a golden compass (with Bova dying in the process), before retriving salmon in the ocean to earn the last part of the ritual. They were almost fooled by a number of sirens at the shore in cages which they accidentally let out, but successfully defeated them before returning to Allos...only to realise that the god they had been helping worship was actually Atlas (as a consequence of griffons falling out of the sky during Quest: Kingdom of Bogmor). Before they left, Allos gave Biggs a letter for Atlas (which was eventually revealed to be a summons). On their return, Bellington rewarded the party well for their efforts.

#### The Rats and Ladybugs have Teamed Up:

As soon as Maya, Kregrus, Sylvia, Levi and Marley entered the abandoned and quiet Tilton's Zoo, Rarc jumped on top of Levi, begging Levi to tell him the location of Timon. Bellington, after getting Rarc off him, explained that Rarc's son had been kidnapped, as well as both Tilton and Dimm, hence his and Rarc's tense nature, as well as the quiet and sad nature of the building. Bellington informed the party that the kidnappings were as a result of the rats and ladybugs teaming up against him, and told the party to take each group on seperately. They informed the party that while they did not know where the ladybugs were, they knew that the rats were located behind a restaurant in the slums known as La Fourchette De Anga. Bellington also asked the party to make sure they brought him along to face down whoever had kidnapped their son, which the party agreed to. Following the directions of Bellington, they got to the restaurant and were introduced to the Maitre'D, Folkestone Mars. Folkestone indulged the party in a woeful meal, before under duress leading them to the back alley. The party then encountered the rats, who asked for them to have a dignitary assisted before they were told any locations. After helping the dignitary Gordon Ratsey, as well as their two assistants Ho-rat-io and Do-rat-hy, Gordon informed the party that both groups would get a chance to prepare before fighting. When the rats lost, Gordon shouted at them for them to own up, and told the party that the ladybugs could be found at Ferrenport Gardens. Heading there with Rarc in tow, they found Tilton, Dimm and Timon being held captive, along with Stanley and the other gardeners. In anger, the ladybugs challenged them to defeat their strongest champion, a ladybulk named Confodere. After battling and defeating Confodere, the party rescued all of the captives and were rewarded for their efforts.

#### One of Us, One of Us

After the events of Thunder and Lightning are Very, Very Frightening, the numerous closures of Tilton's Zoo as a result of his absence have resulted in a lack of customers, which has lead to a foreclosure on his home and on his zoo, leaving him very unhappy. Bellington reports to the party that they plan on leaving the town on that night, but in the state Tilton is in, they do not want to leave him be. They want to make sure to repay the man that has protected them all this time, and they plan to do this by performing a ceremony that will transform Tilton into a tiger. However, the party needed to assist Bellington in ensuring that Tilton was prepared for that responsibility. They asked the party for 3 trials: one of Courage, one of Intellect and one of Strength. The party tackled the strength task first, battling a number of rogue bugs that were attacking the Ferrenport Garden workers once more. The intellect test was next, and the party managed to corral 3 groups of animals back to their owners. After that, the party followed along towards the cave of nightmares, and faced down 5 creatures that blended into the darkness. The party succeeded, and when they returned home, Bellington finally revealed their ability to communicate to Tilton, and transformed them. Tilton thanked the party, and the group of tigers left Ferrenport.