Waterdeep: Dragon Heist - Session XXII

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Basics & Rundown
Out of Game Date played: 2020-05-12

Session Title:  A Bad Time to be a Zhent

Location: Waterdeep

Player Characters: (Alphabetical order)
 * Choo-Cha (Cory)
 * Gooz (Aaron)

Meeting with Istrid (Tarsakh 23)
Gooz & Choo-Cha wake up early to get a good start on the day. Over breakfast they discuss the future of Spooky's & whether or not it should re-open. While eating, they receive a message via flying snake from a Zhentarim contact named Istird Horn. They know her by name only; she was someone Davil suggested, since she was his Master of Coin, that they get a loan from if they wished to renovate Trollskull Mansion. She wishes to meet at the statue of  Ahghairon in the City of the Dead.

The City of the Dead doubles as the only green space within the city and is a bustling park filled with a juxtaposition of the families of mourners & the families of wealthy merchants & nobles enjoying a day trip. They meet with Istirdat high noon. She asks what happened at Gralhund Villa as Davil was arrested and she narrowly escaped the city guard as they raided her home. She needs a to know what happened and pays them with 5 PP each for just meeting with her. Gooz warns about Skeemo and that he was possibly untrustworthy as he testified at Sowron's trial against Sowron. Istirdrebuttals that Sowron was also working with the Harpers and that Skeemo thought that the Doom Raiders needed shielding from him. Luckily he got that shielding when Sowron told Skeemo that he found several dead bodies during the Grand opening of Spooky's.

When they move onto the subject of Gralhund Villa about the how he (Gooz) and Julian were there and that the Zhentarim seemed to be betrayed by the Gralhunds and that the Gralhunds also do not know when the Stone of Golor is. Luckily this lie went unnoticed. Istirdasks if she can go to Spooky's to lay low for the next tenday and will pay with bar-tending at the bar & another 30 PP (15 PP each). She promises she will disguise herself and re-open the bar. Gooz& Choo-Cha agree.

Her last agenda item is a mission that Davilwas going to give to them soon, but he was arrested and no the details are not ironed out but the job still needs to be done. One of the  Snobeedle  children is missing and the Doom Raiders have been hired to bring him back no matter what. The price is 500 GP raw, so that means some of tat will have to be kicked back to the faction, unfortunately Davilknows and will request it once he is out of custody. Istirdgives it a day, maybe two (2).

Return to Stoutfellow Farm
Gooz & Choo-Cha decide to go to the Snobeedle's main competitor to determine if there was nay foul play at work. As they arrive the spring season has made the predominately Stoutfellow Farm super busy.

As they approach many halfling children clamor around Choo-Cha cheering her name as she helped the farm months earlier getting rid of the 'scary scarecrows'. Choo-Cha does a back-flip flawlessly for halfling children as they all erupt in ecstasy cheering & jumping for Choo-Cha.

Jack Stoutfellow greets them as they approach, warmly welcoming Choo-Cha. They ask about the missing Snobeedle child and if he or his wife, Mary, know anything about it. Jack says that he doesn't know much other than the child is not so much a child but an adult named Dasher Snobeedle & he is heir to the Orchard. The rumour is that he ran away from his overbearing mother.

They thank him talk about Spooky's and the fact they couldn't take supply from them this coming season but Choo-Cha suggests a music festival at Stoutfellow Farm that Juliancould play at this coming summer. They could make a big thing of it.

They leave deciding they will go to Undercliff Village & ask the locals about any rumours concerning

Undercliff Village
Along the way Choo-Cha & Gooz talk about forming a paramilitary group called Greenwater and buying land outside the city of Waterdeep.

As they approach Undercliff Village is quiet due to many labourers in the surrounding farms & meaderies.

They go to a tavern named Nobody's Inn. Entering this tavern, they find that there doesn't seem to be an owner, although there are many patrons, pouring their own drinks and leaving coins in collection trays.

They both pour themselves a mug of Ale and toss a coin into the collection tray following suit for the patrons in the bar & chat up one of the older patrons. He says that Blossom Snobeedle is definitely not a nice woman and he wouldn't trust her as far as he could throw her, he then backtracks since halfling tossing is frowned upon & that he just doesn't trust her. He confirms that the rumour is that Dasher ran away from his mother a few mothers ago to join some gang in the city.

Deciding they had enough background information they decided to talk to Blossom at her Orchard & Meadery.

Blossom's Son
They talk to Blossom about her son ''Dasher. Not trusting Choo-Cha as she did nearly land Blossom in Jail last year she coldly says she does not know what they are talking about until Gooz ''says they were sent by the Zhentarim to help get him back.

She brings them to the patio & divulges more say that it is understandable they do not want to be Zhents right now with everything that went on at Gralhund Villa & the round up the City Guard & City Watch are doing. She tells them that she has tracked down Dasher to a hostel that caters to primarily Halflings named The Hole in the Wall & is the base for a wererat gang named the Shard Shunners which is allied with Xanathar Guild.

They take their leave & proceed to the Hole in the Wall.

Hole in the Wall Hostel
Before they go they disguise self themselves as halflings. As they enter they are greeted by a halfling named Vaniel Shortwick. He offers them some beer while Choo-Cha & Gooz as if they can hang a notice for work on their compound outside the city on their noticeboard. Vaniel agrees. Choo-Cha scrawls a notice for anyone who wants to work setting up a compound sanctuary for monstrous creatures.

A halfling Miner who obviously just got off shift is staring at the noticeboard. Gooz, the "halfling", approaches & discusses the job about digging holes and if he & some others would be interested. He says he might be & will come to Spooky's once he has gathered up a bunch of his friends.

As they search around they decide to ask Vaniel where Dasher is. He plainly says "Oh, just go through that hole in the Wall." & points to a rough hole in the wall on the other side of the tavern's taproom.

As they enter they see two (2) halflings who become startled when they enter. One of the Halflings turns into a wererat. Choo-Cha & Gooz diffuse the situation & talk to Dasher about going back to his mother. He offers 200 GP to leave him alone & tell his mother that they could not find him. Gooz says that his mother offered 500 GP so if he can't sweeten the pot he will have to bring him back. Dasher offers 300 GP, his signet ring for proof of his demise & the location of her treasure stash within the house. They accept & leave.

Choo-Cha steps out of the tavern & ask 5 random people about mastiffs & one of them says that the basement of Muleskull Tavern hosts fights with '''Mastiffs. '''

Muleskull Tavern & the Dock Ward Distraction
 Richard  asks where his crush, Sowron is. Choo-Cha & Gooz break the bad news that he is in jail  Richard , saddened, tells the party that he saw an older version of Sowron recently, he came in asking a bunch of questions. When asks about the mastiff fighting ring, Richard says he knows nothing about that but mastiffs are bred in the North Ward.

They decided to click the Nimblewright Detector & it whirs out of nowhere getting louder when they get closer to two (2) ships close by. They see several nimblewrights on two (2) ships named Heartbreaker & the ''Hellraiser. They report about the nimblewrights to the City Watch & they dismissively say that, Zardoz Zord'' already had his ships searched.

Snobeedle Scorn
Headed to Snobeedle Farm gave the signet ring to Blossom, she determined they were lying and sent the City Guards telling them that she lured in a few Zhentarim agents to her estate. After Blossom left Gooz& Choo-Cha killed all eight (8) of the City Guard & proceeded into the cellar to find the cache Dasher told them about. For the next twelve (12) days Gooz cant be intoxicated because of a wild magic side effect during the fight.

The Snobeedle Cache (Tarsakh 24)
They find an empty barrel, open it and find it empty. Gooz finds the false back & finds two (2) gold ingots Gooz appraised as 1000 GP each. They went upstairs to attempt to set fire to the estate but Blossom came back to prevent them from doing so. She knocked Gooz unconsciousness only to be saved by a nearly dead Choo-Cha who carried Gooz, jumped off the patio & running through the orchard during the night.

They proceeded into the forested to the Southeast of the city for the night & doubled-back to Spooky's to find a dwarf working bar & Julian sitting by himself during the breakfast rush.