SESSION 1 - CARAVAN DUTY

The party meets with Constable Dreng, Anton and Magda Vyrlich and Dame Astrid at the Black Kraken.  They explain that they are recruiting a party of adventurers to accompany a lone covered wagon to Dark Oaks.  Someone or something has been attacking the supply caravans as they travel through the forest.  They are charged with eliminating any threats, and once they arrive in Dark Oaks, Sir Rollin will pay them 10 gp each.

The next morning the adventurers set out with the one wagon caravan.  Shortly before making camp after the first day, they are ambushed by goblinoid skeletons, which they are able to overcome.  After searching, they find some tracks leading off to the north, but rather than try to follow them right away, they decide to escort the caravan to the campsite before following.  Once there, they fortify the camp and head back to follow the tracks north and eventually come across an old battlefield that had been converted into a makeshift graveyard.  It appears that several of the graves have recently been dug up.  As they are looking around, they spot a mangy old worg watching them from the overgrowth.  After talking to her and giving her some food, she tells them it's hobgoblins raising the dead, and she leads them to the lair.

They move on, continuing north along a game trail and soon find the hidden entrance to a small cavern complex under a fallen great oak.  They decide to go in, and they defeat the exploding skeletons guarding the entrance, then move deeper into the tunnels.  They spot two doors, and in a room behind the first door are several hobgoblins.  Battle is quickly joined.

After the hobgoblins are overcome after a long battle, they move on to the next room and encounter the oracle leader of the hobgoblin band.  She battles the entire group, and after a long struggle, she is beaten.

As they examine her quarters, they conclude she has been raising the dead to attack the supply wagons as they travel back and forth.  They also see a defaced stone altar that once was dedicated to St. Cambrace, but has now been used for some fouler version of worship.  Across the top of the altar is a single rune carved into its stone face:

The adventurers finish cleaning out the lair and make their way back to the caravan wagon.  When they reach Dark Oaks, they check into the inn, then go to meet Sir Rollin, who pays them and suggests they show the rune they discovered to Brother Markus when they get back to Hannsport.  He also suggests that Magda Vyrlich should be able to help them identify the loot they recovered.

They had back to the inn, only to discover a goblin already in their room, rifling through their stuff!

The Kingdom of Viborg at a Glance

The Kingdom of Viborg sits on the northernmost coasts of Northern Primordia.  Those lands that lay beyond this last outpost of civilization are considered untamed wilderness, and are populated by savage northmen and various goblinoid races.

Viborg's capital is the city of Yorvik, which sits at the mouth of the Isunda River.  Yorvik is a surprisingly large city, despite its remoteness.  The city benefits from its status as a trade hub, however, as many goods make their way to market either downriver or through the sheltered Bay of Nittsjo.

Seasonal agriculture thrives in the heartland, which in turn supports many small towns and villages along the length of the Isunda and Viskja Rivers.

Sigfrid IV is the current monarch of Viborg.  He is a relatively young king, not yet in his forties, and much of his reign has been peaceful and prosperous.  Even though the farther one goes north, and the more independent the lords tend to become, the kingdom is politically stable.  The major earls are either related to the royal family, occupied by potential external threats, or both, which makes rebellion or cessation nearly unthinkable within the kingdom.

Of some note are the Lovari, who are often referred to as "gypsies" by other natives of the kingdom.  Originally having migrated from the southern lands some time in the distant past, the Lovari have been in Viborg for as long as anyone can remember.  They are found travelling throughout the breadth of the kingdom in their caravans or river barges, trading, entertaining, and - some would say - smuggling, grifting or pick-pocketing.  There are no known permanent Lovari settlement in Viborg,  although they don maintain semi-permanent markets in Yorvik and Logash.