The Haunted Forests of Talir pt.1

While living off their fame in Glittermore, the party is joined by Ala the Sorceress who has come East in search of adventure more suited to her ability level. She, the Rangers Traven and Radolfo, and Fr. Brendan hear many rumors from the sailors and travelers through the Kingdom of Rath. They ignore most of them, but none are quite so intriguing as the rumors out of the Kingdom of Talir. These rumors indicate that the Sacred Forests are haunted by an unspeakable evil which has resulted in the loss of many woodsmen.

Intrigued by the rumors, the party sets out from Glittermore to investigate these claims. When they cross the border into Talir and begin making inquiries, they hear fewer and fewer reports, though the reports that they do hear take on a more definite tone. Finally, they recieve word that in a small town, a reward has been offered by the eldest daughter of a woodsman slain under mysterious circumstances.

The party arrives in Umfreville and inquires of the locals as to the whereabouts of the daughter. The townspeople seem reluctant to welcome the visitors and seem to resent the ignominy the rumors have brung. They are nonetheless cooperative and the party meets with their prospective employer, a young maiden named Hatfield.

She explains that her late father, Logger Hatfield, and his business partner, Logger McCoy jointly purchased a permit from the local baron to begin logging in the Sacred Forest. They subsequently divided their claim in half and began bringing wood to the sawmen and woodworkers of the town. Logger McCoy, however, soon decided that his portion of the claim contained inferior wood and pressured Logger Hatfield to reallocate their claims. Those many entreaties were all refused.

The girl Hatfield  maintains that one day, McCoy ran into town with a strange story of a one-in-a-million logging accident. He claimed that his partner Logger Hatfield had lopped off his own head while using the double-bladed axe favored by their profession. Logger McCoy said that the two men were working within bowshot of each other, but wholly within their own portion of the joint claim. Suddenly, Logger Hatfield cried out. When McCoy went to investigate, he found that the Hatfield's axe had rebounded from a stout trunk and decapitated the unfortunate man.

Logger McCoy has since offered to buy the daughter's half of the claim, but she has so far refused. She hasn't the ability to work the claim, nor the money to keep it, but before she loses it, she offers the party a sum of 200 silver bits to obtain vengeance for her father, the deceased Logger Hatfield. Instead of accepting her terms, the party offers to hire on as tenant loggers for a time. They mean to keep one third of the profits while attempting to investigate her father's death further. They do not promise vengeance, but justice. As the party is her only option, the Hatfield girl reluctantly agrees.