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So last night our group made their way to Esgaroth. The year is 2956 in DoM. The plan was to arrive early and participate in Dragontide prior to the council Bard calls in that year. As things would have it, they arrived around the first of September. Being adventurous, they have decided they would look for something to do to occupy themselves over the next couple of months.

So, as the LM, I set about trying to come up with an adventure off the cuff. Someone suggested, "Let's do a Wild Adventure". So, that's what we did. I got out James Brown's Wild Adventures rules and we rolled out an adventure outline.

Here's what was rolled:
Attribute: Wits
Skill Group: Perception
Difficulty: Daunting
Purpose: Investigate

Journey: Grainery
Encounter: Gloin
Combat: Burglars

The company headed to a popular inn in the Market Quarter. After securing a flagon of ale apiece, our young Beorning, a newcomer to the party, stood up on the table and asked the good people of Lake-Town if there were any good adventures to be had.

Had they not heard about the stolen dragon? Everyone in town was talking about it? Dwarves brought it down from Erebor as a gift in honor of the 15th anniversary of the death of the dragon. Clever thing it was. A golden clockwork dragon made in the likeness of old Smaug himself. When wound up it flapped its golden wings and shot steam from it's mouth. It was supposed to be on display over at the town hall from now until the end of the festival but yesterday when the case was opened, the dragon was gone. Gloin is rumored to be beside himself over the whole ordeal. He has offered a reward for the return of the dwarven toy, unharmed if possible.

Well, that seemed like a worthy adventure and so the company first secured rooms for themselves in town and headed to seek out Gloin. For one adventurer, this seemed very reminiscent of his first adventure in this very place with the same dwarf 10 years earlier. They made their way to Gloin's mansion near the town hall and petitioned for an audience with the dwarf which they were soon granted. For the most part the company impressed the dwarf, although he was a little uncertain about a couple members of the company, nevertheless, he trusted the elf who had returned his brother and cousin to him a decade ago and if he would vouch for those two, then that would be sufficient to reassure him that the group could be trusted with this important task.

And that's where the session ended.

So, where to go from here... I have some ideas, but thought I'd see if anyone has any thoughts.

I think some asking around in the seedier parts of town might reveal clues to the identity of the thief.
There is a grainery in Esgaroth, but the journey across town isn't really much of an adventure. Perhaps the thief works at the grainery but has already sold the dragon to a band of outlaws operating out of a camp north near the Lonely Mountain or south in the marshes.

I was toying with the idea of the dwarf who made the dragon being behind the burglary, perhaps feeling like he was underpaid for the task or just deciding he was not willing to give up his creation. Not sure how I would run with that.

Anyway, I have a week to mull things over. I don't want to rehash the Marsh Bell or Theft of the Moon, but this adventure has similarities to both, so I want to come up with something surprising and unique. Any ideas would be appreciated.

I like the idea of the creator behind the theft, another nice thing to get involved with would be Ironthorpe (or the seedier parts of Dale, if you want to stay closer to Lake-town).

Yeah, I need to reread the Dale section in the Erebor book.

Maybe the creator has gotten in over his head. Hired some thugs from Dale to steal it back for him, but they have betrayed him and have taken the Dragon for themselves and kidnapped the dwarf to see how much money they can get out of him, or in exchange for him.

Hi Bill

Hope you're well. I read your synopsis and the thing that came to mind was "The Maltese Falcon" where the gimmick wasn't that the statue was important...it was what was hidden within it.

If we run with this idea then Gloin could have hidden any number of things in the dragon, which would explain why he's so upset. Maybe the picture of his son shown in the films ("Who is this disgusting creature"..."That's mah boy Gimli"). Like the Maltese Falcon it could be an expensive jewel that Gloin salted away for a rainy day. Or it could have been something altogether more important and darker; maybe the last of the Seven that Thrain entrusted to him to keep secret and safe knowing the madness it causes. Or it could be a weapon of the ancient world such as a jewel from Morgoth's crown that allows one to control the earth (i.e. cause earthquakes) or create plagues etc.

Having decided what the hidden item is, you can then decide how the grain store fits in. The owners of the grainstore heard Gloin discuss the item with Gandalf which was why they stole it. The adventurers could start at the location of the theft where they find an ear of grain, which of course means that they have to investigate and search a number of places. If the hidden item is comedic such as the picture or merely the jewel, then the owners of the grainery can be any old bunch of bandits. If it's the last of the Seven then they are Easterlings who aim to give it to a Nazgul in a stand of Pines just outside the city under a gibbous moon. If its another weapon then maybe the adventurers find that the grainery is being used to store weapons in preparation for a rising of Easterlings in the city...or perhaps a dark temple to Morgoth. You could have fun investigations and chases in the catacombs sorta thang.

If you want one other idea from the Maltese Falcon, you could make the leader of the baddies a classic femme fatale in tribute to the wonderful Mary Astor. You could have a lot of fun where she comes onto the one of the Adventurers big time, whilst leading him 'up the garden path' all the time.

Hope that gives you some ideas

FF

Perhaps the connection to the grainery is that the outlaws have recruited a person employed there who has a connection (through some relative) to where the clockwork dragon was kept. The heroes might discover the connection and that the thief has disappeared--either quit from the grainery or even killed to keep his silence. Investigate known associates.

It should be the miller: it's always the miller who cheat everybody.

Wbweather wrote:I was toying with the idea of the dwarf who made the dragon being behind the burglary, perhaps feeling like he was underpaid for the task or just deciding he was not willing to give up his creation. Not sure how I would run with that.

I like how you were 'toying' with an idea

I'm thinking about the plot...

If the toy-maker is behind the theft, maybe he hired someone to steal it? Maybe he also hired someone else to recover it again in order to double-cross the thief and split the reward. Or maybe the maker recovered the toy himself by murdering the thief and collected the entire reward.

Maybe one of the workers in the grainery slipped it into a sack filled with grains. And maybe it can be discovered that there is an unusual trail of grain, leading in a certain direction. A dead body might be found, but no trace of the toy.

Different idea: Perhaps the toy-maker isn't a Dwarf as assumed, but a vengeful Barding, raised by cruel Dwarven masters in Dale who always take credit for the Barding's creations and collect the profit (think about the movie "Big Eyes"). The Dwarves of Erebor may have told Gloin that they created the toy, but it was really the Barding's work. To get revenge on his masters, the Barding paid someone to have the toy stolen and then planted in a sack of grain and placed in their possession. On their way out of Lake-town, their items are searched and the toy is found by the town guards (think of the story of Joseph and his brothers in the book of Genesis). They are locked up and accused of the crime. In the meantime, the Barding continues to plot revenge and they get news of their homes and workshops being burned down in Dale. It is only when they hear the news that their apprentice has survived and gotten away with all their treasure and goods that they tell the player-heroes about him and he becomes a suspect. The latter part of the adventure could be a series of confrontations with the Barding (who has now become a criminal in his revenge). The Dwarves may also be released or buy their way out of the gaol. Everything will end violently, as the Dwarves are now consumed with rage and returning the favour (think "The Count of Monte Cristo"). The player-heroes are caught in the middle as meddling investigators and possibly counsellors to the abused Barding who would be lost to corruption. Maybe they can save him in a final scene where he attempts to kill the most wicked of his masters. He'll either lose his life by death or be redeemed and share his wondrous gifts with the world.

This reminds me of an adventure idea myself and Marco put together...

The Prince, the Toymaker and the Music Box
[*A homage to 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' by CS Lewis]

When: Any year where Bard's son, Bain, is still a young child so that a music box may be considered an appropriate gift; so ideally during the years coming immediately after Queen Una's assassination and before the young prince has reached the age of 9 (before December 2959).

Where: The city of Dale, its Royal Court, ancient underground ruins of Old Dale and the lands beyond.

What: Since the death of his beloved queen, King Bard has fallen into a fey mood and his chancellor <insert_name> needs the support and help of allies of Dale in order to run the city and protect its lands. Recommended by others, he has called upon the services of the player companions to investigate a delicate matter. The young Prince Bain is plagued by night terrors and paralysing dreams and his nurse fears for his very life. Unable to cure him and desperate the royal court seeks the aid of the player-heroes; in the past they have demonstrated their skill and, where the court's herb master has failed, they may be able to discover the cause of the young boy's malady and find a cure for him.

Why: The courtier of Dorwinion commissioned the famed Dwarven jeweller, <insert_name>, to fashion a beautiful music box as a gift for Prince Bain. The music box depicts the defeat of Smaug at the hands of Bard. The gold and Mithril used in the construction of this wondrous gift bears the taint of the Shadow and carries a terrible spell within the music that is played when the box is opened. It is this mournful lullaby that is eating at the very soul of the young Prince of Dale. Should the spell run its course, the son of Bard will be forever stricken by dragon-sickness and will surely die thereby shattering the king and, tragically, his line.

Who: The villain Astabor, in one of his many guises, is the agent of these ill events. Using his powers, he persuaded the courtier of Dorwinion to commission the music box and then ensured that the toymaker would acquire and use the tainted gold and Mithril in his creation. With these many layers of deceit, the player-heroes will need all their wits and talents to discover the true nature of what is taking place and who is to blame or, more importantly, who is not to blame. For if events are allowed to continue unchecked then blame will be laid at the Dorwinion emissary and the most famous and respected of all the Dwarven toymakers in Erebor; forever wounding the friendship between the men of Dale and the Dwarves of Erebor.

We really should try and write it up into a full adventure.

Rich H wrote:We really should try and write it up into a full adventure.

It might be time to get the band back together.