Escape from Shadowclink

LOCATION: Galgenbeck

Galt’s friend, Merkari was imprisoned in the infamous Shadowclink by corrupt guards for the terrible crime of loitering.
Galt’s ghost friend Vresi (who only the superstitious can see) has been imprisoned there before, years ago.
With his assistance, Galt is able to steal a ring of keys and sneak up to Merkari’s cell.
However, they alert the guards, and the chase is on!
Merkari and Galt are able to find Merkari’s old equipment, which Merkari hastily dons.
They sneak past the prison torturer, and bar the door behind them with Galt’s spare sword.
Finally, they make it to the entrance, where the Lord High Executioner is waiting for them with a grim smile.
With some luck, they are able to dispatch him, and find on him a Tenebrous Relic - the Cursed Tongue of the Naga!
They make their escape before the guards bust down the door, and flee into the night.

Pulsating Frogs

LOCATION: Galgenbeck

Galt has a criminal contact, Quill, whom he uses to orchestrate a distraction to let them get out of Galgenbeck.
The plan is, the guards will be tipped off that Galt and Merkari were found in a certain location, while they escape to Schleswig. They pay 50 silver for this to be arranged.
Galt and Merkari sell their Cursed Tongue of the Naga and stock up on goods from the black market (at 150% markup, no less).
Little do they know - Quill has been working both sides, and has tipped off the guards!
They are ambushed as they leave town. Merkari gets immediately accosted and Galt gets seriously injured trying to escape, to the point of bleeding eardrums and permanent deafness.
They are taken in and offered a deal by the militia (supposedly) coming from the Arch-Priestess Josilfa Migol - they can resume their journey to Schleswig, but they must attract the attention of the Schleswig militia. Galt cannot hear, so Merkari has to transcribe the dialogue for him.
The truth is, accosted crooks from all over Galgenbeck are being used as decoys, so that Josilfa can snatch control of Schleswig away from King Fathmu IX. Galt and Merkari suspect this, but are not explicitly informed.
Galt and Merkari are forced to swallow pulsating orange frogs - if they do not follow instructions and bring back proof of their success in 3 weeks, the frog will explode violently. Only the Galgenbeck militia has the antidote, or so they claim.
And with that, they’re forced out of the city, and told not to return until they complete their mission.

Lobbin’ Gobs

Location: Galgenbeck Outskirts

Galt and Merkari don’t trust the Galgenbeck militia to keep their end of the bargain, but they need to get rid of the exploding frogs in their bellies somehow.
They find a Gutterborn Scvm on the outskirts and pay him to lob a gob at them and cause them to vomit violently.
The Scvm is weirded out but takes the 3 silver and spits phlegm at both of them, causing them to successfully vomit out the exploding frogs.
The frogs start pulsating violently, and Galt and Merkari immediately start running. The Scvm leans in, curious, and the frogs explode. Blood and guts rain from the sky.
Galt and Merkari look back, then look around. No one. They leg it.

Riots in the Streets!

Location: On the road near Galgenbeck

Galt and Merkari decide to head to Schleswig to warn them of Josilfa’s plans, and possibly get a reward.
However, as they are walking down the road, they spot 16 Schleswig soldiers headed straight for Galgenbeck.
They hide, but Galt is spotted.
The sergeant, Eldar, is surprisingly friendly. Galt says that he’s from Galgenbeck and indicates that he is deaf, then tells them what Josilfa has been planning.
The sergeant nods and indicates that he already knows.
Suddenly, from behind Galt, there comes a scream. A peasant from Galgenbeck, covered in blood, runs down the street.
He collapses, and the sergeant interrogates him. “What happened?!”
“Chaos in the streets… Rioting… Josilfa’s gone mad! She claims it to be Nechrubel’s will!”
Galt looks, and sees a whirlwind of ghosts escaping the city. The rest see nothing.
Merkari comes out with his hands up, and Galt indicates that they’re allies.
Eldar, now wary, decides to head back to Schleswig with the information. He offers the two a ride, as well, and perhaps… a job.

Job Details

Location: Schlewswig Inn

They arrive at Schleswig.
Galt and Merkari are sent to the nearest inn and told to rest.
The next day, Eldar meets them.
As Galt is deaf, Merkari transcribes for him. Eldar is patient and doesn’t seem to mind.
He asks if either are familiar with the trade routes of Galgenbeck. They are not.
He explains he got a tip-off on a delivery of scrolls to Galgenbeck. If they arrive, it could be disastrous.
Being Galgenbeckians, if they are caught or killed, he adds, it wouldn’t be traced back to Schleswig.
If they are able to hijack the carriage, he will have one of the royal doctors cure Galt’s deafness. In addition (after some haggling), he will also allow them to keep one scroll from the carriage.
Eldar shakes hands with both of them, and wishes them the best of luck. Surprisingly friendly for a ruthless sergeant… Galt is suspicious.

The Heist

Location: Roadside

Galt and Merkari complete the heist successfully with smart use of stealth and a bomb. 2 of the guards surrender.
The caravan was filled with scrolls for use for interrogation!
On the dead guards, they find a map to a place that cannot possibly exist and the flayed head of a known and liked witch hunter.

I can hear!

Schleswig

Galt and Merkari bring back the scrolls, the head and the guards to Eldar, who introduces them to the fickle doctor “Lirk”, who primarily works as a plastic surgeon of sorts, but can also heal wounds.
Lirk heals Galt’s hearing through use of arcane magic.
Galt and Merkari are also given their pick of a scroll - they pick “Whispers pass the Gate”, which allows them to ask 3 questions to a deceased creature.
Eldar tells them that the guards they brought back were interrogated, and it appears that Josilfa has a secret weapon - a powerful insane witch trapped in the dank dungeons of Galgenbeck.
The witch hunter that was killed was apparently snooping around too much…
Eldar sends Galt and Merkari on a mission to investigate, but tells them they can hire only one more person - too many would be suspicious.

Journey Back

On the Road

Fortuitously, Galt and Merkari find the corpse of a Galgenbeck soldier on the way to Galgenbeck, having been mauled by some wild creature. On him they find a key to the back gates of the city.
They also find a procession of cultists of the Cult of the Accursed Decay. They attempt to stop Galt and Merkari, who slaughter the leader, scaring the rest into surrendering.
They offer a scroll in exchange for their lives - Nine Violet Signs Unknot the Storm. (d2 lightning, d6 damage each)

Back Gates

Back gates of Galgenbeck

Galt and Merkari sneak in the back gates of Galgenbeck.
The city is in the aftermath of the riots - corpses hang from posts, and the streets are covered in dried blood.
They make it to the dungeon, and take out the 3 guards, getting some loot. Then, they enter the dungeon.

Delving Insanity

Dungeon of the Insane Witch

Galt and Merkari go through a very large dungeon, much larger than they expected.
Galt loses his backpack while trying to save himself from falling into a pit. It had their medicine boxes and valuable loot.
Galt and Merkari slay a bizarre creature - dragging one limb, a broad sewer-reeking maw, radiating a dizzying magnetism. On it, they find one of the most powerful Sacred Scrolls - the Enochian Syntax, which allows the caster to make a creature do one command.
Finally, they make it to the lair of the witch. The witch turns out to be a lich! Scrolls are useless - in fact, she uses them against Merkari, killing him.
Galt throws black poison at the Lich, which barely damages her, but does blind her. He barely escapes the dungeon with his life.
Galt vows vengeance upon the Lich, but realizes she now has the Enochian Syntax, making her even more powerful. He swears to avenge Merkari.
On the plus side, Galt levels up, losing his “Likeable” trait, and instead gets a replacement and additional trait:
- Immortal Memories: When Galt encounters a place of great suffering, he may relive the tragedy through a memory that lingers. 1/20 chance that it becomes too real and Galt suffers the same fate in reality.
- Bloodthirsty Rage: When landing an attack that kills a creature Galt must move and attack another (this may include allies), adding d6 damage for every creature slain. His onslaught stops when he fails to kill and falls to the ground exhausted, losing his next turn.