Shortly after arriving we met with a group of farmhands who seemed to think very highly of the City Watch. Though they did appear to think they had more to do with telling them time than anything else though, in short, they seemed like a bunch of complete morons. They did, however, apparently have information on the gang we were looking for and insisted we come back to their house for super before they would share said information.
They were cooking their 'famous Hogwallop Stew' and insisted we all try some, I was dubious but after being made incredibly uncomfortable by them all surrounding and insisting, I tasted their Stew... It was a mistake, but one that all members of the watch apparently made. The stew was drugged, and it was not long before we were all unconscious.
We awoke, tied up in some kind of barn and were dragged out one by one and chained to a fence where we were made to watch chosen watch men participated in their 'games', I think this was the Hogwallop brother’s idea of fun.
Honestly, I'm not really sure what went on, my head was spinning and my vision blurry, side-effect from being drugged, I think. What I do know is if I was Captain Walden I would be quite embarrassed to have my whole unit captured by complete idiots such as these.
The Captain did however redeem himself, managing to escape his bindings, free the others and after a brief struggle managed to subdue our attackers, finally getting the information we had been looking for. Fords whereabouts. Though by now the day had been entirely wasted and it was too late too go after him. Honestly not a great start but perhaps tomorrow will go better.
As we move on to the second day, I would like to note that one of the watchmen Corporal Fezziwig, left with us on the mission but disappeared shortly after our arrival in Lakeshire. As we gathered the next day, he was present to brief the men. He first congratulated them on a successful mission so far, giving them much praise that quite frankly I am not sure they deserved, the mission was a mess. Thought I guess all is well that ends well, and they did get the information they required in the end.
What infuriated me is learning that the Corporal had in fact been following and watching, from a safe distance as we were captured, dragged about like cattle, and held prisoner. And at no point did he think that maybe he should intervene or call for help. He insisted he was flanking, ready to step in if required. I personally think it was cowardice that led to his inaction.
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The Corporal gave the men a rousing speech on how dangerous the mission ahead would be and how they would all likely end up dead in a ditch somewhere before waving them off and heading into the tavern. Apparently once again he would not be joining them.
Finishing the job:
We were joined by two locals, apparently fearless militia men, though seemingly to them 'fearlessness' meant drunken stupidity. As we arrived at the broken-down old fort where Ford was holed up and they charged right in, shouting their arrival for all to hear and almost got themselves killed by the kobolds that were guarding the fort.
The Watch men briefly considered letting them die, but they thought better of it and although a little late, eventually charged in and saved the two idiots by easily dispatching of the kodbold guards, albeit not before the kobolds tried to get rid of us by telling us 'the boss' wasn't home and that he had 'Gone fishin', this despite the fact that we could all clearly hear Ford yelling. “Tell them I am not here” . Someone clearly taken their candles, because they were not very bright.
I continued to follow, watching from a safe distance as Captain Walden and his men fought their way through the fort. Fords company did not get much better, his 'gang' consisted of kodbolds, ogres and gnolls. assumedly the only creatures he could find stupid enough to follow his leadership.
Though the City Watch is not exactly highly trained or disciplined and lacks the protective armour of the city guards, they showed no fear and proved to at least have some fighting skill as they had no problem clearing the fort and making their way upstairs to a large room where Ford was cowering behind a table. The room itself was quite disgusting. I will not describe it in detail, let us just say it was the lair of a self-obsessed megalomaniac with absolutely no care for hygiene.
Ford it seems was quite full of himself, that is after he had crawled out of his hiding spot. Seeming to think him superior to the Captain and challenged him to a fight to the death. I am pretty sure the Captain was just humouring him when he accepted and continued to talk calmly to Ford as the old man flailed wildly, desperately trying to take the Captain down with a flurry of punches. It was quite a pathetic sight, the old man clearly not having the strength or skill to be a threat to the Captain and was eventually taken down by a single punch, rendering him unconscious.
Although I do not always agree with the City Watches methods, they did at least catch their man, eventually. Ford was cuffed and taken back to the city, where he currently sits in the Stockades awaiting trial for his crimes. I am hoping Captain Walden will allow me to cover the trial or at the very least inform me when a decision has been made.