The Business of Emotion: Lanidor
As the adventurers enter town, read or paraphrase the following.
You pass run-down farmhouses and enter the rustic town square. The otherwise drab village is dotted with bright spots of color, which on closer inspection, are huge bouquets of vibrantly colored flowers packed along every windowsill. Fliers are posted every few feet bearing a winking gnomish face and the message, “Two-Lips’ Flowers, The Perfect Gift for Your Sweetheart!”
To the East, a building marked as the “Polished Plate” is a din of activity and sound. A building across the square is labeled the “Glossy Bedpost” by a large carved sign that also advertises nightly rates. Hastily scrawled beside the nightly rates, in a fresh coat of paint, is an added message that states, “Hourly – 2 coppers.”
The Polished Plate
You open the door and find a simple, rustic tavern that is filled almost to capacity. A lone barmaid hustles around serving drinks and food to her many patrons.
The people inside snuggle each other closely, lit by low-burning candles as a bard in the corner croons out ballads about mythic romances. A stand by the bar is filled with fresh-cut flowers and a friendly, winking gnome. The barmaid notices new customers and ushers you inside towards the bar.
Emilia Fulton is present, and begins speaking with the adventurers. Read or paraphrase the following if any of the PCs have attract Markus Dunwit's’ ire by returning Emilia's advances (see The People of Lanidor).
Markus Dunwit stands abruptly, his bar stool scraping noisily across the floor before falling to the ground. With the tavern brought to immediate silence and with every eye resting on him, Markus raises a call to the locals, “Men! These strangers think they can come in here and steal our women with their charms? Let’s teach them a lesson!”
Markus pulls a heavy mason’s hammer from his belt and charges at the party. Four townsmen jump to their feet to join him.
Markus Dunwit is a thug and his four friends are guards who abandoned their posts once the potion took hold. No one in the bar seems upset that their significant others are totally enamored of other people unless their current lover is disturbed. If confronted about this fact, a NPC will nonchalantly dismiss it with a statement akin to, “The heart wants what the heart wants,” or, “I’m just glad that everyone has been able to find true love.”
Through conversation it can be discovered that the new romances all began a few months ago. Hostility, either overt or through Intimidation, is met poorly. “Whoa there, that’s not a very loving attitude, is it? We’re all here to have a good time… Can I buy you a flower?”
If asked about Two-lips, Francine will openly provide:
- “He’s just a simple farmer like everyone else.”
- He lives up north along the River Trom—it’s a colorful place, can’t miss it!
- “He brought his whole family to grow flowers with him, bless his soul. And ain’t it lucky? People started buying his flowers left and right after he showed up!”
Because the brewery in town draws from the Trom, consuming a drink from the Polished Plate should count as a minor exposure as described in the Odds and Ends section.
The Glossy Bedpost
A heavy oak door swings open, revealing an interior as plainly decorated as the exterior. A simple desk sits across from the door, manned by an old, gloomy-looking dwarf.
Not looking up from shuffling a stack of receipts around, he greets you emotionlessly, “Welcome to the Glossy Bedpost, finest inn in Lanidor. How many hours do you need?”
If the adventurers request rooms:
“Ah well… you see, most rooms are, er, “occupied” at the moment… But 7 and 9 should be, um, opening up…” he pauses to consult a stack of papers, “within the, er, hour. Shouldn’t be takin’ more than a few minutes to get the rooms tidied up and with fresh linens…”
Graben Turnbull is a private and tight-lipped sort of dwarf and is not quick to provide the PCs with information. Business has been very good recently, so he only relents under pressure.
If asked about Two-lips specifically, Graben complains about the fact that, “his face is all over the dern’d place!” He also figures that Two-lips could be making a pretty coin or two off of the amorous attitude in town.
Graben is reluctant to give more information on Two-lips, but will guide the party to him if forced by a successful DC 18 Charisma (Intimidation) check. If the intimidation fails, or the party attempts to persuade him, he requests a deed be done to “help me out some, ya see?” To provide more information, he requests that the party clear out room number 3, which should have been emptied 23 minutes ago.
You walk a short distance down the plain hallway and find a standard wooden door with a brass “3” nailed on its face. From inside you hear two voices making very content noises.
If the PCs knock, a muffled ruckus occurs inside and a voice meekly calls out, “Uh… what is it?”
Whoever is inside refuses to open the door and insists that they paid for 2 hours and they still have time left. This is a lie; Graben provides a receipt confirming that they only paid for an hour.
The players can force the tenants out through roleplaying or a DC 16 Charisma (Intimidation or Persuasion) check. On a failure, the occupants ignore the PCs unless force is used.
Should they fail, Graben will authorize forcefully evicting them. Brandishing weapons or knocking down the door grants advantage on their next Charisma check against the occupants.
The door is sturdy and locked tight. A DC 15 Strength check is required to knock it down, or a DC 15 Dexterity check to pick the lock. Graben will request that the PCs pay 10 gp to replace the door, should they knock it down.
Inside the room are two [priest|priests]], one of a good god and one of an evil god, who avoid the characters’ gaze and quickly vacate the inn, their forbidden romance revealed. If the PCs evict the priests, Graben reveals everything he knows about Two-lips, if he has not done so already, and offers to guide the party to the gnome’s farm.