The Shaved Stag

In Waterdeep I found the group of adventurers I was seeking. Their half-orc bard extolled their virtues in a way that was frankly unbelievable, until I saw them in action. Actually, it was still unbelievable.

I was in the Shaved Stag tavern, trying to avoid interacting with a certain halfbreed pit fighter who was being singularly annoying when there was a loud bang. I knew immediately that magic was at work, though I did not recognise the spell from its sound alone. Two humans and two elves had teleported into the tavern, and one of the humans laid a hand on one of this party's number - she appeared to be an adolescent human female of no particular noteworthiness, but her abduction fired the group into immediate action.

I cast a Web around the girl to try and hinder her abductors while I observed the group in action. One, a lesser elf, used an enchanted bow and failed to miss even once. Their halfling was drunk, of course. One of their number appeared to be a clumsy human who both failed to tip the table, and when assisted by another tavern patron he awkwardly vaulted it only to be caught in my web. I had to dismiss the spell to release him.

I was interested to note that the abductors bore a symbol that I recognised, though for my life I couldn't say where I knew it from. It was definitely familiar though, and the abductors themselves bore enchanted items: maces that discharged lightning, gauntlets that paralysed, and magical shields which protected them from damage. It seemed that all this magic had its downside though - one of the abductors disintegrated into a glittering powder when killed. The others managed to escape with the girl. I collected a sample of the powder once the fight was over.

So I was presented with a number of small mysteries, which fired my enthusiasm. First: who were the abductors and why did I recognise the symbol that they bore? What enchantment did they carry that disintegrated the user upon death? What had the girl done to warrant their attention?

I was able to find the answers to at least one of these questions in the library of the Mages' Guild where I had been staying. The abductors were Abjurai from my homeland. I recognised the symbol because I had seen it during the attack on my parents' home, though at the time I didn't recognise what it represented. The Abjurai are representatives of the Government of Halruaa, tasked with tracking down and bringing to justice those who misused magic for evil ends - my parents and sisters, for example. The girl therefore must have been a practitioner of great evil for the Abjurai to have come so far from their homeland. When I mentioned this to the clumsy sailor he responded defensively, as though he bore a great loyalty to this girl, and my observation was an affront. In my experience necromancers do not tend to inspire loyalty in their minions. Certainly not that level of loyalty, anyway. And as a rule they do not associate with peers. There is more to this than meets the eye.

They were determined to find and rescue this girl, and so I offered my services as a spellcaster. They were, after all, headed for my homeland. My first impressions of my new party follow.

Heironymous Caine, human. Seems to be the leader of the group, and possibly the only one with a modicum of intelligence among them. A sailor, though currently shipless. He has organised with an old acquaintance for us to get passage to Calimshan, from which port we can make our way to Halruaa.

Berrian, elf. This is the one with the bow. An exceedingly good shot, but not very bright. Maybe just focused. It was hard to tell. He accompanied me to the Mages' Guild, but didn't say much apart from “are there dragons?”

Buff deBuff. This was the halfbreed pit fighter I mentioned earlier. Also not very bright. More manipulatable than Berrian though. I attempted to pull a prank on the captain of the ship, but he didn't see the humour and gave me ten days at the oars. Buff enthusiastically offered to take my place. I think I could probably get him to do anything if I phrased my request in the right way.

Two previous members of the group would not be travelling with us:

Thertranna, half-orc. The singer declined to accompany us to Calimshan, claiming that she was applying to the Bard's College. She seemed competent enough, but I think her tales of the party's exploits were exaggerated.

Seraphina, halfling. Drunk, like all halflings. Seemed moderately competent once sobered up, but left on some vitally important mission. I was a little disturbed by her claim that she would steal whatever she needed. Were these people travelling with a petty thief?

We're boarding the ship tomorrow. With any luck the trip to Calimshan will be uneventful and quick. If I have to spend too much more time interacting with Buff DeBuff, I may go slightly mad. Perhaps an elemental or two might help.