Email2020-09-19 20:51

Q: Biggest question of all: How much time do we have? Research can take years (lifetimes even) - so we need to know how long we have before it becomes too late for any information that we do find to be of use: So what is Gohde's impression of how long the 'truce' with the Elves will last. Do we have weeks, months, longer?

(The party will have to decide the maximum time that it should spend on research in Northlake before following up on whatever leads it has, or going on to Far Haven or wherever.)

DP: Gohdes impression is that the truce will last months at best - unless there are factors of which he is not aware. Bazin knows his way round the library, and Gode would suggest that you folks are not really suited to doing research - better to leverage the people that are still in the library.

Q: On a purely practical note, how long can we afford to live in Northlake for? Assuming we manage to stay at the Falling Star, how much will that cost even at 'mate's rates'?  And what are the living costs in Northlake going to be like generally? (The blurb suggests that the war hasn't inflated prices much - even reduced them somewhat for inns. Should we generally assume Players Guide standard prices?)

DP: Assuming you stay at the Falling Star or similar, you can get away with two bunk rooms at 1 silver per night each, add on 10 coppers per person per day for food and you will be spending 8 silvers per day minimum for the party. (1 Gold = 20 Silvers, 1 Silver = 20 Copper)

Q: What are the prospects/pitfalls of (legal!) short-term employment within the city? (Most of us have a crafting or practical trade - so some of us may need to work to fund the research)

DP: Prospects unlikely to be fantastic, but you could get lucky. Gohde cannot see any risks that he is aware of.

Q: Is there a Barosan temple, monastery or enclave in Northlake? (What about Perceval and Universal temples?)

DP: There are minor shrines to Barosa, Perceval and Universal, it is just that Shanah is reasonably dominant and Wyldwood second most common as city religions.

Q: Northlake College: "a few die-hard self-funding students". How much does it cost to maintain the life of a 'self-funding' student? Do they live/sleep in the college or outside? What are the requirements? (ie Could one of us sign-on as a student?). Are we likely to be able to find some hard up students that we can afford to pay to assist in our research?

DP: Assuming the students don't have to pay for accommodation, at this time it would be food, plus writing materials. But they are unlikely to have any source of income so would be relying on savings. As Bazin will tell you, the college used to have a lot of volunteer researchers - and used to run field out to suspected Elven sites in the vicinity.

Q: The Sprawl: "conscription and rounding up any deserters." So how do we stop being conscripted or taken as deserters? ie some token or other to prove that we are 'official irregulars' or whatever the term would be?  (And do we get to keep our pretty tabards? - or are they just for the march along the road.) Also, you mentioned 'Box' as head of the criminal fraternity - is there just one main thieves guild there or a collection of several disparate gangs that he/she dominates?

DP : Godhe letters of introduction will suffice to keep you from being conscripted.

DP: You can keep the tabards

DP: No real thieves guild in this city, but as with any city there is an underworld - and in this case "Box" tends to figure as head honcho.

Q: A general question: The re-appearing mythical beasts: Gohde said there were many reports of these creatures coming in from all over. From the location and timings of the reports of these creatures, do they seem to have appeared uniformly over the North Island - or could they be radiating out from specific source or sources?

DP: The scattered reports so far would seem to indicate one or multiple sources - but this may simply be random circumstance.

Q: And please can we have a scale for our main map - unreliable as it may be. A single straight-line distance between two cities would be enough for us to calibrate the map.

DP: The "Island" is approximately 1250 miles E/W, 800 miles N/S, assuming you stay on the highway, your current trip is about 160 miles.