This particular run is called “The Hunt”. It transports special tradesmen and craftsmen to the supporting cities and towns of the Capital Region. The Hunt’s secondary purpose is a yearly survey of the road to ensure there is nothing to inhibit the normal caravan runs. The Hunt contains 14 wagons, 64 men-at-arms, and 6 cavalrymen to protect the wagons. This includes Mercy, Tilly, Misha, Garven, and Kayleb. Tilly and Mercy are assigned to the cavalry while Misha and Garven are assigned the first and last wagons.
There are 6 mighty 24-foot-long wagons for passengers. Each wagon has an awning and carries tents for camping. There are 4 16-foot wagons, heavily loaded with various goods and cargo for the trip. The caravan has a pair of small kitchen wagons that are little more than rolling ovens. A 12-foot larder wagon carries food. There is a massive war wagon that is the core of the defense. The war wagon is 3 levels high and is covered in metal plates and leather hides (AC 4).
The war wagon has 6 crossbowmen stationed inside at all times. Each of the other wagons has 1 or two archers or crossbowmen, except the larder and kitchen wagons which have no defenders. The vanguard is made up of 3 mounted men and 6 unmounted men-at-arms. There is a matching group of defenders at the tail of the caravan. The caravan doesn’t have enough men to completely rotate the guards and passengers are encouraged to act as an ad-hoc watch. Mostly, they tend to fire and drink late into the night, which is better than nothing.
Much of “The Hunt” is high pageantry. The road is well-maintained, well-mapped, and largely free of bandits or raiders. The local bandits avoid all caravans. There is a slight risk of pirate ships as even the pirates avoid the area.
The main concern is that the road crosses the equator, in the shadow of the Butter-Ripple Needle.
What the hell is the Butter-Ripple Needle?
The Butter-Ripple Needle marks the East Pole and was the last Space Elevator built by the High Men and the Iron Men. The four Space Elevators ring the equator. They are ancient. They are commonly known as the Chocolate, Strawberry, Vanilla, and Butter-Ripple Needles in the vulgar language. They were built during the Great Silence when the High Men stopped writing, so the original names are unknown. (Actually, the internet decided and these are their real names.)
The route will cover 25 six-mile hexes or 150 miles. As mentioned before the area along the road is well mapped, so there is no hex crawling on the road. Off the road is a different story.
The first town on the road is Iron Tree, 18 miles from the Canvasary. The next stop is the port of Western Gate, two more hexes away. Before the mid-point of the journey is a farming community named Bounty. It is hardly a town, merely a hex-sized collection of farms.
This a milk run that the party will turn into an adventure.
POP-001 is meant for OSE. You can pick up a copy of Old-School Essentials Advanced Fantasy Player's Tome and Advanced Fantasy Referee's Tome at DriveThruRPG.
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