Local Heroes, Part 2 (Saturday-Sunday, Rova 22nd-23rd 4707 AR)

As Sandpoint recovers from the attack and buries its (thankfully few) dead, the citizens do their best to get on with their lives. The cathedral is consecrated the next day during a much more subdued and indoor ceremony.

The heroes' names soon become house knowledge. Everywhere the heroes go in town, locals welcome them. Certainly not everyone in town wants to be the heroes' new best friend, but the locals make the heroes feel more than welcome.

The heroes followed Ameiko to the Rusty Dragon. This large structure is Sandpoint's oldest inn, notable for the impressive (and quite rusty) iron dragon that looms on the building's roof, doubling as a lightning rod and decoration. Owned and operated for the past 5 years by the lovely and popular Ameiko Kaijitsu, the Rusty Dragon is not only one of the town's most popular eateries (made so, in large part, by the spicy and exotic food served here), but also a great place to meet visitors from out of town, since most newcomers to Sandpoint come upon this inn first, as the northern stretch of the Lost Coast Road is less traveled. It certainly doesn't hurt that Ameiko's beauty is more than matched by her skill at music, and few are the evenings that pass without at least two or three songs being performed by the talented woman. Some bad blood exists between Ameiko and Cyrdak, and one never seems to miss a chance to badmouth the other, but no one in town really understands the reason behind their rivalry. When Ameiko retired from adventuring after only a year after a disastrous mission (the nature of which she never speaks of), she returned to Sandpoint and bought and renovated the Rusty Dragon. It is no secret that Ameiko and her father are not in good terms. Ameiko claims not to care about her father's opinions of her choices, but becomes evasive when anyone asks her why she gave up the adventuring life. Some believe she has a secret lover in town, while others theorize that something happened on her last adventure that took the bravery out of her. In any event, the Rusty Dragon is probably the most adventurer-friendly establishment in town, with its ubiquitous "Help Wanted" board near the bar and Ameiko's policy of discounting rooms for anyone who tell exciting adventure stories.

Entries on the "Help Wanted" board include Daviren Hosk of Goblin Squash Stables offering a bounty of 5 gp for every pair of goblin ears brought to him, an invitation by Cyrdak Drokkus of the Sandpoint Theater to audition for his next play, and an invitation to Niska Mvashti's house for a harrow deck reading to reveal the secrets of the future.

The heroes decided to take up Aldern Foxglove's invitation after they saved him from certain "goblining". Before he returns to his townhouse in Magnimar in a few more days, he is hoping to go on a boar hunt in nearby Tickwood Forest, and would like to invite along the heroes. True to his word, he gave the heroes a reward of 50 gp for saving his life.

While at the Rusty Dragon, the heroes also hear rumors of Sheriff Hemlock sharing a long-running, "secret" romance with Lady Kaye, madam of the town brothel.

The Desecrated Vault

In the aftermath of the raid, Father Zantus didn't immediately notice the desecration of Ezakien Tobyn's vault, but soon after (that evening), he realized that the stone door to the previous priest's burial vault hung ajar. Fearing the worst, Zantus quickly sought out Sheriff Hemlock, who in turn contacted the heroes and asked them to accompany him to the Sandpoint Boneyard. Belor Hemlock didn't expect much - in a worst-case scenario, maybe a goblin got trapped in the vault.

The heroes met the sheriff the following morning at the Sandpoint Garrison. This stone fortress serves double duty as Sandpoint's militia barracks and its jail. The jail is located in an underground wing, while the above ground portion houses the town's guard. Sandpoint's town guard consists of a dozen full-time guards; about twice this many servants and other experts (smiths, cooks, bookkeepers, couriers, and the like) dwell here as well. Guards patrol the city alone - there's generally not much trouble beyond the odd drunk for them to handle - so usually only three or four are on duty at any one time.

Sandpoint also maintains a militia of 62 able-bodied men and women who are expected to attend training and exercise here at least once a week.

The garrison is currently under the watchful eye of Sheriff Belor Hemlock, a Shoanti who inherited the post of sheriff when the previous holder, Casp Avertin, was murdered by Chopper. Belor saw the town through that last terrible night and is generally held to be the man who stopped Chopper's rampage. In the emergency election that followed a week later, the people of Sandpoint made his role official, and Belor became the first Shoanti sheriff of Sandpoint. Belor changed his last name from Viskalai to its Chelish translation, Hemlock - a choice that has endeared him to Sandpoint's mostly Chelish populace.

The jail below the garrison is generally empty save for a few drunks or Sczarni doing time for some minor crime. Murderers and other hardened criminals generally stay for only a few days before an escort from Magnimar arrives to bring them to trial in the big city. The garrison's jailor is a heavily scarred brute named Vachedi.

During the walk up to the Boneyard, Hemlock thanked the heroes again for their aid during the goblin assault, and asked many additional questions. He wanted to find out more about the heroes - like, what their plans for the future are. Having an allied group of adventurers is a significant resource.

Hemlock asked Zantus to wait in the Cathedral once they reached the Boneyard, but asked the heroes to aid him in investigating the scene. Set in the shadow of Sandpoint Cathedral and accessible via a gate to the north or from several doors leading into the cathedral itself, this expansive cemetery overlooks the Turandarok River. Stone vaults owned by affluent members of the town stand near the cemetery's edges or at its center, while dozens of humble plots, each marked with a simple gravestone, sit amid trees and shrubberies. The boneyard is well maintained and kept by a man named Naffer Vosk. Naffer has found redemption in Sarenrae, and despite a twisted spine that from birth has given him a sinister lurching gait, he's one of the town's most devout citizens. He keeps the boneyard meticulously clean and is also responsible for ringing the church bells every day at dawn, noon, and dusk.

The vault in question is a 20-foot-square stone structure that stands near the wall. Used to house the remains of previous caretakers, priests, and acolytes who served at the Cathedral, the stone door did indeed hang ajar. The ground around the place was churned up as well - the heroes noticed many of the footprints were goblin prints, but some of them appeared to have been left by a larger humanoid. The heroes determined that about six goblins and one Medium humanoid climbed the wall, then approached and entered the vault.

It was an easy enough task to open the vault door. Two skeletons immediately lurched out to attack the Sheriff, who opened the door, and fought until they were destroyed.

A search of the vault's interior turned up two things of interest. First, a discarded unremarkable robe lay in a corner. Second, and more disturbing, was the fact that the sarcophagus that contained Ezakien's body had been opened and his remains stolen. Sheriff Hemlock had little insight into why the bones had been taken, but he mused that, perhaps, the goblin raid was a distraction so that this unknown thief could steal the remains of the town's previous priest.

The live goblins that were caught prisoners proved useless when interrogated; none of these goblins knew much more than that they were given orders to kill everyone in town and burn down the place. None of the captured goblins could even remember their leader's name, apart from the fact that he was one of "you longshacks". Their leader was on a secret mission to the town's graveyard - that much most goblins could say, but none of them knew what that mission was. It was a secret, after all! The sheriff recommended that the heroes keep this information to themselves, in any event - the townsfolk have had enough distress this week, after all!