Crisis in Crockport
From AJS.COM
During the Dragon's Bargain mission, the party stopped in Crockport and became embroiled in a dispute between the Countess, the theives guild and another cult of Malhugh.
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Arrival
Reaching Crockport at the hight of Growfest, they sought an Inn, and only one with free space was found: Weeping Dragon. The proprietor tells them that he has only one room left, and he knows that everyone else is full up for the festival. The one remaining room is in the basement, and he'll gladly have a boy show them down there.
The theives
This was a set-up. The players were lead down to a wine cellar where there were several people waiting to ambush them. After being subdued by the vastly superior force, they were taken to a warehouse were they were told that these people are members of the local theives guild, and they have a problem. They used to be as well liked as a theives guild ever is; enjoying the right to semi-openly run the grey market import/export business in Crockport as a result of their resistance efforts during the Iuz occupation.
Howver, just after the party arrived in the city, a recent crisis reached a boiling point, and the gates were sealed. It seems that a gem was stolen, and the Countess Jelleneth Kalinstren has reacted out of all proportion to the theft. Sadly, the theives guild was not involved (or so they claim), and so they cannot simply return the gem. They also cannot show themselves, as they will be picked up and taken to the prison for questioning. Their only hope is to hire truly disinterested parties to represent them. To this end they have taken the adventurers by force in order to give them total deniability. To ensure this, one of them must stay as a hostage while the rest procede to the Countess to deliver a letter and a gem. The letter describes why the party is there and protests the theives guild's innocence. It also offers the gem as a token to demonstrate the lack of interest the theives guild has in such trinkets. Further, they wish to share in the effort to reclaim the gem and ask for any information available.
Delivery
The party split up, but did accomplish the delivery of the note, and met directly with the Countess who seemed very distraught. She claimed to have no information for the theives at all, and sent the party away.
Second mission
Later, the party was reunited with Joshua, who had been held, and delivered the Countesses reply. The next day, they were contacted again, this time to ask for their volunteer help in finishing the matter. The theives had discovered the location of several evil cults operating from the network of sewer tunnels under the city, and asked the party to handle the one which was not connected to Iuz (and thus least likely to have anything to do with the theft). That cult worshiped a little-known demigod of destruction known as Malhugh.
Intrigued, the party agreed to take on the cult, and was directed to their sewer hideout. There, they discovered that Lugai Cabbageleaf, the leader of the local cult is an old training-mate of Cheadle's. After the party defeated the cultists, who were in the middle of a strange ritual that summoned a woman from the stolen gem (an outcome that seems to have surprised the cultists as much as the party), Lugai escaped using a teleport ring. Barbara Goodsmith, the woman from the gem explained that she had been in her home when the encroaching hordes of Iuz were invating the city. She does not remember anything distinct after that, but it seems that she was trapped inside the gem.
Back to the thieves
The thieves were thrilled by the return of the gem and ask the party to hand it over for them.
The thieves report that the Iuz cult raids went well, though dissapointingly in the sense that none of the cults were very organized or powerful, and thus proved little challenge.
Barbara and the Countess
Returning to the keep, the Countess again grants them an audience. Once she realizes that Barbara is with the party, she's overjoyed, and greets her warmly. Barbara is an old friend and cousin, and the Countess was very greatful to the party for her return!
As a reward, she offers the party a writ, hailing them as friends of Crockport to ease their travels.
The next day the party left once again for Nukford.
