Rolled 10, 3, 6 = 19 (3d20)
>>5323176Paeris is there, and the North-Merchant and South-Merchants. Paeris looks much the same as always, a half-Silkscale half-surface elf; his only necessary measure to blend in with the surfacers is a bit of make-up and oils applied to smooth out and hide the scalier patches of his skin. Merchants North and South, two full-blooded Silkscales, both still wear their Amulets of Disguise, appearing as a pinkish and brownish human respectively.
“Report,” you command. “What have you learned of the realms of the forests?”
Paeris and the Merchants largely confirm what your own interrogations already told you, though their particular skills as tradesmen and Reptilian Infiltrators glean greater insight into the actual workings of the local politics and economy.
“The local territories are run by barons,” the North-Merchant tells you. “Most of their realms are depleted of any great culture, or of any imported wealth. The lower-class is self-sufficient, mostly woodsmen, subsistence farmers, or pastoralists. Their major exports are raw resources—iron and copper, lumber, wool, and belts of the beasts they slay. They have small garrisons, except Redwell, which seems to have a more stable population base, a greater size, and has a favourable position in relation to trade routes and river; this one dominates its neighbours when there is disagreement, and is subsequently relied upon AND resented by the humans in other such baronies.”
“Redwell and the lands beyond are home to mostly humans,” the South-Merchant continues. “They are connected politically—not as formal subjects, but as allies-by-default, to the Paladin King’s realms. Paladins are permitted to march these roads and explore these woods but, in practice, do not ever seem to have done so. The people prefer it this way, it seems, even as they lament being so ignored. The majority of demihumans—other such mammals—are elves and halflings, though we saw many dwarf traders also; these were negotiators and diplomats for the dwarven merchant-states, which they call ‘corporations’, which were exchanging a strange black ore for food and fabrics primarily…”
