Crescent Moons Trading Company

To the casual observer, there is nothing special about the Crescent Moons Trading Company. It is one of a half-dozen small, struggling trading houses, a member of the Dirt City Merchants' Guild, trying to make an honest living in a city of thieves. Only a few people know its secret: Crescent Moons is actually a front organization, created to cover the activities of brave do-gooders, heroes dedicated to helping the common folk of Dirt City to the best of their ability.

The Game

Here you can find the latest posts in this game.

Game Background

The election of Liam Kent, the former head of the Woldian League of Adventurers, as the Prince of Dirt City ushered in a two-year period of relative stability and prosperity. That all changed when Kent was either assassinated or died of natural causes, depending on who you ask. A new Prince was chosen, backed mainly by the Teeth and Keys. He lasted all of two weeks before a feud broke out between the Teeth and the Darts. The new Prince failed to act, leading to accusations of favoritism toward those who had gotten him the job. The Prince fled during the night, leaving the position open again. A new man was chosen, thanks largely to the backing of the Dirt City Merchants’ Guild, but he was murdered by his own guards. Since the guards had been taken largely from the ranks of the Knives, this led to accusations of behind-the-scenes manipulation. The next Prince was forced to abdicate when the Keys withdrew their support after a disagreement. And so on. Finally, in exasperation, the House of Knives and the House of Wolves collaborated to elect their man, Argus Fexel.

As Prince of the City, Fexel has succeeded in keeping order, using draconian laws and harsh punishments to discourage anyone from stepping out of line. After months of infighting and instability, the city now knows peace of a kind, but at a very high price. And nobody is suffering more than the common folk, who have no powerful allies to shield them.

Characters

These are the characters, past and present, that have been featured in this game.

Current Roster

Asteria Amarante - A human barbarian played by Genevieve

Dušan - A human blood witch played by Erik

Hmerrin - A human fighter played by Mike

Lornak - A surface drow twilight ranger played by Frank

Toston Lotor - A gnome monk/sorcerer played by Hugh

Var Tuegh - A half-orc ranger played by Tom

Wilford Grimly - A human rogue/cleric played by Matt

Past Characters

Gilmek - a gnome bard played by Briton

Roy "The Red" Thandor - an elf ranger played by Justin

Broom - a dwarf monk played by William

Ashley Steward - a human fighter played by Nicholas

Avin Fellows - a human wizard played by Thomas

Alizar Alegari - A elf cleric played by Rocky

Talanthrel - A half elf fighter/rogue played by Paul

NPCs

Abel Boggs is the PCs' primary contact in the organization. He is a very average-looking human man in his forties, with thinning sandy hair and a very forgettable face.

Madri Brightside is the company's receptionist, a halfling woman who is unfailingly kind and cheerful. She can usually be found in the reception area, where she has a smile and a friendly greeting for everyone.

Tombo (Tom) Greenhand is one of the group's tenants, owner of Tavern. Tom is a young man, tall and thin, with sandy red hair and blue eyes. He is dressed in halfling-style clothes: fine shirt, waistcoat, shortened trousers, and bare feet. Of course, his feet lack the thick soles and curly hair of regular halfling feet; they are narrow, and pale, and a little dirty.

Mazea Ironthane is another of the group's tenants, owner of the leatherworking shop. Mazea is a middle-aged dwarven woman, with a long braid composed of roughly equal parts red and gray hair.

Brother Elthorn is a drunk acolyte of Ffloy and tender of a small shrine / graveyard dedicated to Ffloy. In his own words he has a 'posisshen' and complains that no one appreciates either Ffloy or him.

Three-Bits is a small-time information broker in the city. Twice now she's helped the group with useful knowledge on what's happening in the criminal underworld of Dirt City, but always for a price.

Geography

This game takes place in Dirt City.

The Crescent Moons Trading Company is located in an uneasy no-man's land between Moontown and the Backstab Quarter. It's a rather shabby, single-story building whose front door and shutters have been painted a hopeful shade of blue. Next door is a sprawling rooming-house; down the alley is a tiny shop that sells the best meat pies in the City Above. Across the street is a rather sleepy neighborhood brothel.

New House

As yet unnamed, this three story building was formerly the property of the House of Silver, until the PCs won it when they defeated that group in the Arena. Currently, the building is being refurbished, and the group plans to move into the second and third floors once those rooms are completed.

The PCs have rented the first floor to three storefronts:

1) Tavern run by Tombo Greenhand, a human who prefers halfling ways and foods.

2) Leatherworking shop operated by Mazea Ironthane.

3) Sewing school operated by Sunny Culpepper.

Marsh House

At present, the PCs are renting a large house, called Marsh House, for 40 gp per month. The house has plenty of room for everyone, but its architecture is odd to say the least. Complete descriptions can be found in the game's archives, specifically the DM posts of March 25, 26, and 17, 2015.

Safe Houses

Part of the cover that the Crescent Moons Trading Company provides is a network of safe houses for emergencies. The PCs were given safe houses and recognition codes, which they had to memorize since none of this information is safe to write down and carry around. There are several safe houses in Dirt City; the following is only a partial list:

• There is a certain bookstore in The Burn. Go in and ask for the autobiography of Liam Kent. The clerk will ask "the abridged or unabridged version?" The reply: "I hear they're both the same."
• There is a certain house in Wardd's Ward. Go to the back door and ask about the mule they have for sale.
• There is a certain inn near the Crescent Moon Market in the City Below. Ask for the Liam Kent special.
• There is a certain flat near the Dock Sewer of the City Below. The key is behind a loose brick in the wall, 20 paces north of the flat. Leave the brick in the center of the walkway, so watchers can report that the safe house is in use.

History

Here you'll find links to all the events and history relevant to this game.

The road so far

Part 1: Undead in Grubbertown

Our story begins with eight separate heroes (Wilford, Avin, Toston, Var, Talanthrel, Broom, Ashley and Gilmek) getting recruited by Abel Boggs. They meet at the Crescent Moons Trading Company main office where Boggs informs the group that there have a rash of undead attacks in Grubbertown and he wants the group to investigate. The group ends up splitting up with Talanthrel, Gilmek, Toston and Wil looking for witnesses and Ashley, Avin, Var and Broom looking for a sight of a known attack. The latter group does not find anything useful but the former group finds a cemetery with evidence of disturbed graves and a shrine. Toston uses his gnome magic to send a signal for the other group. They find it and trace it back to its source as the party reunites at the cemetery. The group investigates the chapel finding a drunk passed out in it, but is interrupted by 4 zombies. The group destroys the zombies but some of its members are injured. The drunk turns out to be Brother Elthorn, an acolyte of Ffloy in charge of the cemetery and the graveyard. Through diplomacy and intimidation the group is able to convince Elthorn to help and heal their wounds. It turns out he needs to renew a ritual to prevent the dead from rising from his cemetery, but there is a hitch. Elthorn requires a measure of powdered silver to complete the ritual. The group sets out to check in with Boggs at the Scrum and then find the required silver but are detoured by cries for help. Our heroes investigate and find a mixed group of skeletons and undead that at first glance appeared to be zombies but actually aren't. An elf ranger named Roy also joins in the battle against the undead. With Roy's aid, the group procures the needed powdered silver, and returns to Brother Elthorn. together, they re-consecrate the graveyard, ensuring no additional zombies will be raised. That night the group took to the streets to hunt the undead, and they tracked down the leader, a Wight. After a daring battle wherein Toston was hit by an Energy Drain spell, the monster is destroyed. With the threat of the undead ended, Roy the Red moves on, as swiftly as he arrived.

Interlude: Marsh House

The next day, Avin assists Toston in shaking off the lingering effects of the Energy Drain spell. At the CMTC offices, the adventurers mention to Boggs and Madri that they are in need of housing, and they are directed to a Mr. Cother, who shows them the Marsh House.

The original, modest, home has had additions built onto it with no regard for asthetics or floor plan, creating an odd, jumbled together mess of a building. A crude floor plan can be found here The adventurers take to it immediately, and rental agreements are agreed upon.

Part 2: The Ghost of Clover Way

Adventure finds our heroes soon after putting the Wight to rest; Abel Boggs tasks the party with investigating reports of the undead, again, but this time in the City Below. Upon entering Clover way, Broom is summoned by his prior masters, and parts ways. The group begins speaking with the merchants to find out more information, starting with a young woman named Wendy at the Alchemist shop. Wendy tells the group that she's been hearing disembodied voices as of late, and saw a glowing figure in an alley one night, but doesn't know much else than that. Next the group decides to speak with Fletch, a Gnome tinkerer that frequents Clover Way, he reports similar sightings of strange glowing lights & disembodied voices. Before the group can investigate the Tailor's shop, they are approached by Three-Bits, the shady information dealer. She tells the group that she has some evidence regarding the haunting, but will only share it if the adventurers help her with a bug problem. Billy, the tailor, and 'old man' Jenkins appear, and are quickly questioned by the party. Billy reports strange vibrations felt in the floorboards of his shop, and 'Old Man' Jenkins tells a bunch of lies.

With the key witnesses questioned, the party decides they should go check out this bug problem that Three-Bits spoke of, taking them out of the City Below, and to a non-descript warehouse. They find that the Half-Orc guard, Clovis, has a giant scorpion locked up in the basement, and is too scared to deal with it himself. Var and Clovis nearly come to blows, but the group gets on with the extermination. The group makes quick work out of the scorpion, with an Enlarged Ashley pinning the creature while the rest of the team whittles away at it. Afterwards, Var does his best to butcher the beast, as to not let it's death go to waste. Making a quick detour back to the Docks to pick up some salt for Scorpion Jerky, the group is ambushed! The attackers identify themselves as "The House of Silver", and warns them to stop poking around in the City Below. The party makes quick work of the attackers, but a were-rat named Anner manages to run away, shouting threats. One of the attackers, a Drow, is knocked out & taken prisoner by the adventurers. Taking him back to the warehouse, the group wakes him up and interrogates him. Rundi, the Drow, knows little about the House of Silver, being just a hired thug. A decision is made to exile Rundi, rather than let him get murdered by someone taking offence to snitching. The drow is escorted to the docks, where Rundi is pressed into service on an outgoing ship. The group also meets up with Boggs, who introduces them to Alizar, an elven Cleric who joins the group.

Returning to the City Below, Three-Bits produces her evidence: a strip of cheap gauze with some kind of glow-in-the-dark paint. Alizar tries to inquire at the tailor as to where someone might get something like glowing paint, and Var attempts to confront 'Old Man' Jenkins on his lies. The party is at an impasse, they are unable to convince the shopkeeps to let them set up a stakeout overnight, so they decide to head back to Marsh House & continue the investigation tomorrow. The next morning the group agrees to check in with the merchants of Clover Way, and are met at the entrance to the City Below by a frantic Wendy. She says that all the merchants on Clover way have been robbed, no sign of forced entry, and only the most valuable items were taken. Checking the scene of the crime, the party manages to spot a spot on the wall that was hastily replaced, and on the other side, a tunnel carved behind the shops by thieves. It seems the 'Ghost' of Clover Way was just to cover up the operation. Investigating the tunnel, the group stumbles into a trap, and are ambushed by the House of Silver! Toston and Var, who avoided the cage, are forced to climb up a wall in order to reach their comrades. The fight is long and brutal, taking Ashely & Avin out of the fight. Luckily, Dusan, Lornak and Hmerrin are nearby and hear the commotion, and aid the party. In the end, the adventurers previal, and the were-rat Anner is taken prisoner.

Interlude: The House of Silver

Anner, unconcious, is taken back to the Marsh House and locked in a secure room for interrogation. He caves into threats quickly, and tells the adventurers the story of the House of Silver. A woman by the name of Selene who organized what used to be a simple street gang, into an aspiring ruling House. Selene, and most of the gang, were lycanthropes, and they named themselves the House of Silver as a sort of ironic joke. After some discussion within the group, it's decided that Anner should be exiled as well, an idea the were-rat is keen to in order to avoid reprocussions from failing Selene.

The group returns the loot that was recovered, unfortunately, Selene had already taken her cut of the goods before the adventurers showed up. The merchants are thankful all the same for having their goods returned, and Billy the tailor offers to make them all custom outfits as way of thanks for aiding them.

Part 3: The Streets of Dirt City

Weeks pass; Winter gives way to spring, and the merchants of Dirt City are excited about an trade delegation from Aisildur. Five representatives arrive via ship, one of which is a Heartseeded woman in service of Ga'al. Everything seems to be going according to plan, when suddenly the market erupts into chaos as a group of assassins attack the Aisidlurian Delegates. Two Dragon Consortium adventurers, Jass of Downs and Ballatime "BeeBee" Brooks, appear from the chaos and begin to work crowd control while defending the trade delegates. The party chases down the three assassins and deals with them, and despite leaving one of the assassins alive, there isn't time to interrogate him. Returning to the scene of the attack, they find the two Dragon Consortium adventurers have the situation under control. After introductions, BeeBee presents the group with a single black & purple glove that was deliberately left on the body of the slain Aisildurian.

The party heads immediately to CMTC headquarters to confer with Boggs. He is able to identify the glove as the calling card of a famous, and dead, Dart named Dema Fahr. The group has little information, but plenty of leads. They split into groups and run down as many contacts as they can, but they don't turn up much. Three-Bits wants to trade information for information, the adventuring party is still an unknown in Dirt City, and all sorts of groups are asking around for them. After a Charm spell, she tells the group what she knows, that rumors the circulating that the Darts were behind the attack. Boggs has a possible lead, a contact within the House of Darts who's willing to meet with the adventurers. A public place is chosen, and the contact meets them while wearing a mask and using the name Nightblade. The conversation is civilized, however, and the Dart does his best to assure the party that his house was not behind the attack. He also confirms the fate of Dema Fahr, that she's been dead and buried for years now. The House of Silver is mentioned, and Nightblade thinks it might be a lead worth looking into.

Upon leaving the bar where they were meeting with Nightblade, the party runs right into an angry mob. Instigators among the mob quickly push things into a full on riot, swarming the adventuerers as well as the Nightblade. Fighting their way out of the melee, the party rescues Nightblade, and breaks away before the Knives come & forceably break the riot up. Some running & hiding in alleys later, the group checks in with Boggs, before heading to the Merchant's Guild to meet with Waverly. Among other things, the party learns that giant rats were spotted on the day of the attack in the marketplace. The group follows the tracks in the marketplace hoping that they'll lead them to the House of Silver; and they certainly do.

Reakos, an insane Were-Leopard wizard and his goons clash with the group, and just when the heroes have them on the ropes, the Knives show up and arrest everyone.

Crescent Moons Trading Company Official Bestiary as compiled by Toston Lotor and Var Tuegh

Z is for Zombie

Z is for Zombie, most rotted and foul; use slashing against them and you're wise like an owl

A Beastiary, As written by Var:

Zombies: Strong. Direct attack. Too soft for arrows, blades work better. Fire? Wizard says once we put them down they're too mangled for a necromancer to use again. Try: Burn bodies; holy water

Walking Skeletons - arrows'll go right thru, blades catch on the ribs. Best if use blunt weaponry. Probably harder to burn?

("Tough Zombies" is written here, and then scratched out) Ghouls - Like zombies, but tougher. more meat on their bones. (several attempts at "paralytic" that have been scratched out) Touch will freeze you up, dono if magic or poison, but will put you on the ground real quick. Very Dangerous.

Wight: kinda like a vampire? messed up the gnome pretty good, drained some of his life. Holy Water: hurts 'em, but not as much as you'd think; burned 'em good - won't be bothering anyone again.

(Gaint is crossed out here) Giant Scorpion - This was kinda fun, the Wizard cast an Enlarge spell on Ashley, who wrassled with the thing! Tough armor and nasty poison. I guess use caution if you don't have an Enlarge spell, or a guy like Ashley with you. Good eats.

Were-Rat - Dangerous little blighters. Use silver on 'em cuz normal weapons don't hurt 'em all that much. Don't let 'em surround you.

Dwarf-Bear-Druid - (There is quite a bit that Var has written here, however most of it is profanities.)

Were-Leopard - Dono if all of 'em are as crazy as Reakos, or if'n all of 'em are spellcasters like Reakos, but they seem mighty dangerous all the same. Same as the Rats, use silver.

DM Pages

Here are all the resources a DM will need to run this game.