OOC: This thread represents the common room at tavern in Gamma called The Honking Swan. If your character might have passed through there at any time then perchance they may have bumped into another PC. It can be a central place for downtime/flashback conversations. If you'd prefer private threads for such conversations, just let the DM know and the thread will be created.

The Honking Swan sign

One of several pubs located near the central offices of The Heroes Guild, the Honking Swan has a reputation for being a place for serendipity. If you want to meet someone, luck favors the space within these walls. The staff are welcoming, the drinks aren't watered down, and the walls are decorated with memorabilia gathered from past Heroes. The owner, Madame Rhubarb, is herself a retired Hero and she tolerates no shenanigans.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:44, Thu 13 Apr 2023.

Leyna prefers a small corner table at The Honking Swan, something quieter and out-of-the-way. If it's dark then so much the better, as it will not disturb her elven eyes. She seems to enjoy having her back to the wall and the room in front of her.

On the table in front of her are usually pages of paper, on which she regularly writes her thoughts and observations. Whatever she's drinking looks like tea steeped out of local herbs. Her vice appears to be smoking, as there is often a smoldering pipe close at hand. The pipe is handsome, rather masculine, and finely engraved. The smoke itself is sweet, not harsh, and smells more like warm cooking spices. Whatever is in the pipe, it's not from around here.

Alonder's presence at the Honking Swan wasn't a complete coincidence, but rather the name stood out to him as he passed by it. He couldn't remember exactly who, but he was certain that someone had mentioned it to him some years back. If it was a good or bad establishment to stop by on your way to the Heroes Guild was also lost to his memory, so he decided after some hesitation to find a nook to the side of the road, leave his cart in it and go inside to check it out for himself.

With only a couple of silver and copper pieces in his pockets, Alonder walked towards the bar and ordered the cheapest drink available to alleviate his parched throat. While sipping on it, he took a look around the place and the people within it.

The man who walked down the street towards the Honking Swan had a generally grim look about him. His eyes were hard and his mouth a thin line, his corn silk hair dirty and lank, his beard untrimmed. He wore a parka that fell to his thighs, with a voluminous fur lined hood thrown back to frame his head. That garment, his loose woolen trousers and his shaggy foot wraps were all speckled with mud, dried blood droplets and who knew what else, and the whole had not been scrubbed in some time.

He wore a weather stained backpack, a bearded hand axe tucked into his belt and a quiver with the top folded over tied at his hip.

Behind him, following on a short thick rope hooked into a crude harness, was a massive, ugly, stinking woolly rhinoceros. Hanks of loose hair were matted into the coat and a few flies buzzed lazily in its passage. It plodded reluctantly after the man before it suddenly stopped short, sprayed a copious amount of urine messily into the street, and made a low grumbling sound for about a minute before it decided that it wanted to be led again. All the while the man looked back impatiently, almost like he wanted to shove the creature, before they were once again moving towards the Honking Swan.

Outside the Swan, the man tied the rhino to a hitching post, not that it would deter the animal if it wanted to roam, and stomped off the caked mud from his feet before he walked inside and stared about pointedly, as if looking for something in particular.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:34, Thu 13 Apr 2023.

With hair the color of flames that while don't burn the hottest, burn the longest and eyes the color of the sea on a cloudy day, Rebecca “Harm” Prowers stands maybe an inch or two taller than your average human female. (5'10”) She has a tight fit body with a bit of definition to her muscles which adds a few pounds to her slender frame.

She wears a durable chest piece and various different pieces of armor on her limbs. It is mismatched and a bit unprofessional looking, but it was the best she could afford at the time. Under her armor she has poor looking clothing as well. It helps with her modesty but looks pretty shabby and almost to be falling apart. Across her back is a large shield on top of what appears to be a a short sword. On her left hip is a dagger, so being armed she walks into the Honking Swan.

Heading straight to the bar itself, she takes a seat on one of the barstools and waits for the bartender to come by so she can order a drink. Becca's day hadn't been the worst day she's ever had, but it hadn't been the best one either. Shaking her head at the way her day had been going so far, she scanned the other occupants of the tavern, looking for threats or potential allies. Whichever revealed itself to her first.

Valgard stepped into the tavern with a look that sat somewhere between taciturn and hopeful; or perhaps that was just normal for a dwarven face. After briefly taking a moment to glance around the bar and noting the customers inside, he found his way to the bar and took a seat next to a red-haired human sitting there. "It seems fire has touched your family as well," he said in a gruff voice to the woman, indicating his hair as he motioned to the bartender.

Noticing the two red-haired warriors, and particularly the modest equipment of the woman, Alonder approached them politely.

"Sorry to interrupt, do you happen to be Probationary Novices at the Heroes Guild? My name is Alonder, I joined earlier today and I was hinted to look here for others in my same situation."

Rebecca was about to reply to the Dwarf that had sat down next to her. But just as she was opening her mouth to do so, she was interrupted by some other human and she turned to regard the man and nodded her head. "Yes, well I am. I don't know about this gentleman next to me. We were just beginning a conversation when you interrupted us. I take it you are looking for some help with a quest from the Heroes Guild?" Hmm, looks like I might have found a couple allies instead of threats. At least I hope they'll be allies.

One of the servers swings by with a smile and interjects during a break in the conversation. "I couldn't help but overhear," he apologizes politely, "but if you lot are looking to prove yourselves to the guild, you could do far worse than joining up with Iceman the Frugal. He has a reputation for being tough on novices, but his word carries weight with the veterans. Iceman himself had lunch here yesterday and he said that he'd be heading out again tomorrow with or without any novices from the guild. Said I should send anyone that looked promising to meet him at dawn tomorrow morning at Spirit River Ranch, just outside of the south gate."

His message delivered, the young man deftly wipes up a spill on the table and inquires if he should fetch any food or drink.

OOC: Consider this your bait to start the We Are Hirelings quest. I'll create a new thread for it called IC: We Are Hirelings.