Eberron - Rising from the Last War

STARTING THE ADVENTURE

Once the players are ready to begin, read or paraphrase

the following boxed text to them:

An orange glow covers the top of Lyrandar Tower as the

sun sinks in the sky. Above, the great airships of House

Lyrandar float like leviathans surrounded by brilliant

rings of elemental energy. Below, bridges crisscross at all

levels of the city, connecting Sharn's great towers. The

sounds of crying children, barking vendors, cursing sky­

coach drivers, and braying hippogriffs rise up to become

a unique din that can only be heard in the City of Towers.

Each of you carries a letter from your acquaintance

Sergeant Germaine Vilroy of the Sharn Watch that reads,

"I'm calling on you for a job. I can't write the details, but

it pays well and requires your skills. Meet me at the air­

ship dock on top of Lyrandar Tower. Come armed."

Have the players introduce their characters to each

other, if they aren't already acquainted. Ask characters

who aren't from Sham how they arrived, perhaps on an

airship (likely paid for by Germaine whose Kundarak ac­

count is flush with Boromar gold) or a lightning rail. For

characters who are Sham natives, provide a brief de­

scription of various districts that fit the characters' back­

grounds if needed using the information in chapter 3.

This is also a good time for characters to make per­

sonal connections that might link them, such as having

the same birthplace, fighting for the same side in the

Last War, or having common backgrounds or interests.

Once the characters' relationships to one another have

been established, read or paraphrase the following

boxed text to the players:

As darkness descends on the city, you see windows light

up the towers around you from bottom to top. A cool

wind whisks between you, drowning out the other noises

of the city. A nea rby lift rises, carrying a human in her

mid-thirties with close cropped black hair and a glowing

pipe in her mouth. Germaine gives a wry smile as she

nods to you all, saying, "Thanks for coming."

Sergeant Germaine Vilroy (neutral female Brelish
human veteran) greets the characters then gets down
to business.

ROLEPLAYING SERGEANT VILROY

Germaine is gruff and doesn't like wasting time. She
gives the characters the information she has and tries
to send them on their way before they can ask questions
about her involvement in the case. The sooner the char­
acters solve her problem, the sooner she can get back to
collecting extra money from the Boromar Clan for doing
nothing other than ignoring their crimes.

--THE--

SMA�� ��QU�S�l�W�

AT THE

MERCY OF

MERCENARIES

It seems the Sham Watch is outsourcing more and more

of their jobs to contractors, also known as adventurers,

also known as mercenaries, which is what these blood­

soaked hirelings are. While many of these second-rate

thugs act like they have the absolute authority of the

Sham Watch, know your rights! These sellswords can

get away with atrocities, including murder, but only

if such crimes are committed in the pursuit of their

contracts. Should one of these ruffians steal from or

harm you or your loved ones for no reason other than

their barbaric attitudes, report them to the Watch and

this publication immediately. The Sham Watch is bound

by law to arrest these hooligans when they show their

criminal natures.

Germaine gives the characters the following

information:

Germaine has an appointment to meet with a war­

forged named Coal, who claims to have knowledge

of a crime being committed in Old Sham. Germaine

wants the party to meet with Coal first and see if what

she says adds up. Germaine is worried that, with her

status as a Watch sergeant, her presence will call un­

due attention and endanger Coal.

• Germaine can give the characters 25 gp each now and
  another 50 gp each if they bring in Coal.


• If the characters consent to meet with Coal, Germaine
  provides the location of the Cog Carnival, a bar in
  High Walls frequented by warforged, and the ap­
  pointed meeting time.


• Germaine also provides a Sham Watch writ of en­
  forcement. The writ authorizes the bearers to conduct
  official duties of the Watch under Sergeant Vilroy's au­
  thority. City workers and other members of the Watch
  respect the writ, sometimes grudgingly, as long as the
  characters don't engage in flagrantly illegal activity.
  Germaine tries to play up her concern for Coal as her
  reason for hiring the characters, but a character who
  succeeds on a Wisdom (Insight) check contested by the
  Germaine's Charisma (Deception) check can sense that
  she's holding something back. A character who talks to
  Germaine privately and succeeds on a DC 13 Charisma
  (Persuasion) check gets her to reveal that she some­
  times takes money from the Boromar Clan to look into
  crimes, and the family is interested in Coal's informa­
  tion (though Germaine also points out that the charac­
  ters really are Coal's best shot at surviving this ordeal,

CHAPTER 4 I BUILDING EBERRON ADVENTURES

26I