Mattiverse Next - Session 8

Seat of the Ubrekt

• Beldon gambles away some of their money (5gp)
• Find out about some good halfling establishments.
• The city is, notably, one of the very few (or only) places where _uncommon_ magic items can be bought and sold with relatively minimal hassle.

University

• Boys take a masted ship down the coast to University City.
  • While halflings dominate the roads, rivers, and ancient canals of the mainland, humans dominate "blue water" maritime activity.
  • Before the devolution of Sidhe-Praxen, the Sidhe controlled the oceans with a mighty navy backed up by powerful magic.
• Wand points them to a building, but like before, is not any more precise once they get to it.
• Young student-age humans come and go from the building wearing purple and black robes and stoles.
• A sign outside identifies the building as "PORPHYRY HOUSE". (shown as the red X on map above)
  • It is a fraternity, one of the oldest, part of an organization that is and resides with a building that predates Alexandria.
    • It is the 3rd oldest active such organization in University City. The #1 and #2 organizations - the Agate and the Onyx - look down upon it.
  • It's well-known for it's open practice necromancy, rather than doing it clandestinely through the secret societies of the Ubrekti elites.
• A quick search finds a nearby bar, the "Purple and Black", that caters to brothers. The Boys start ingratiating themselves.
  • Apart from college hangout tropes, it is also notable for hosting zombie-fighting tournaments (typically between small animals).
  • Hints of more compromising stuff, but that's "frat business" that outsiders aren't privy to.
  • The Boys spin a story about being tasked for a delivery, with some time to kill while they wait for a return.
  • They are otherwise just social and friendly. A wizard named Klavin, in particular, becomes their accidental best friend.
• The next day, Beldon and Four do some labor while Banner and Bobwhite stock up on drugs.
  • Beldon does skilled carpentry work and tries to make some contacts in case they need to book a quick escape. He doesn't really pin anything down among the highly transient laborers, but he does make some money (3gp).
  • Four makes some money as a dockworker (3sp).
  • Banner and Bobwhite find a potion shop and secure ~10gp worth of ditchweed.
    • Bobwhite whips up a logo for the baggies. "Halfling Boys Pinch" is born:

• That night, they go to a different bar, the hangout for a rival frat, with the goal of starting a fight and getting kicked out.
  • They do so with zero effort.
  • Armed with superficial bruises, they go back to the Purple and Black to tell their tale.
  • They also mark up the ditch weed and start selling.
  • Klavin opens up significantly. He starts talking about bigger fights that happen inside Porphyry House, and particularly, about recent run-ins with spider-dog things called Kakkuu
  • Someone figured out how to summon them several years ago and then passed the secret off to the graduate school class before graduating. That tradition continues.
  • The little ones are good little fighters (dog sized). But the last time a much larger one jumped out (bear sized). It tore apart a minotaur that someone had shipped in from home that had been a fan favorite.
    • Oh, it can go invisible at will and assume the forms of humanoids it has encountered.
    • The frat house went into lockdown for several days until a small team finally uncovered the creature and killed it. They took care of it "in house" so as to avoid the scrutiny of the Deans.
    • They don't summon spider things anymore. Now, without Minotaurs *or* weird spider things, the secret arena has become boring and so the house is throwing a rager.
  • Beldon mentions that the group saw a statue. Klavin perks right up at this.
    • Says that Manderly's really going to want to chat.
    • Reports back to the House and returns the next day. Manderly is, indeed, interested in a chat. So much so that . . . .
    • Klavin mentions that there's a party tomorrow night and the Halfling Bois should come. (And bring more Pinch.)
    • Session ends.

Awards

• 575 exp to all for Access to Porphry House