Rats (Again)
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Mostly for posterity.
Given that the first of Elsa's ideas was imminently dangerous to human life and the second was both immoral and dangerous by way of disease, I have gone to the Precept Arcanum and talked a few ideas over with one of their representatives.
- Restrict the rats' access to food.
- Create a 'new' food source.
- Ambush the rats.
The idea that we were discussing involves making the sewers either inhospitable to the rats, or manufacturing some crisis for them down there such as the rumor of poisoned food being left for them en masse. Something to make it so they can no longer trust the food left there for them.
Then, we were considering something like a rumor that there was a food caravan - say, to Tilverton - that they could not pass up given their food crisis. They would have a lot of cause to attack that wagon and we could load it down with adventurers.
I am still thinking on how this is to be accomplished but in the meantime I will start hiring for it. We need to develop a pool of adventurers we can call upon for this or for whatever other operation so I'll get started on that.
//Jasda al Tyr//
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Another idea would be to conjure them.
Most monsters can be conjured. Summoning a specific one requires its true name, or a piece of it. I have a book that details the summoning of rats in specific and I have been having the adventuring populace collect the mess they have been leaving all over the city. I also have a couple of their ritual symbols.
It is a long shot but we could simply summon them for judgement. Or I could try to channel offensive spells into the sympathetic link between all this shit, and the rats that left it, to attempt to destroy them in bulk.
For the latter I would require a sorcerer or a wizard, however.
//Jasda al Tyr//
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I encountered the rats in the historic district in the middle of leaving one of their filthy messages.
The following is my statement.
Jasda yr Mirai al Tyr
Were-Rat Encounter, HistoricLeaving the Faceless, I noted that there were rat feces in the process of being painted onto the ground. Approaching, I realized that these feces were coming from seemingly nowhere. Assuming the rats must be invisible, I used my helmet to try to see them, but as I could not, I summoned a monsterous scorpion, hoping it might be able to find them.
They persisted in continuing their incomplete message but began to leave their droppings in paths towards the sewer or out of the city. I therefore cleaned up the area and posted one of my scorpions at the entrance to the sewer, while I watched the gate.
The Scorpion eventually discovered a rat, and went to attack it, whereupon I summoned another and pursued.
Impeding the rat with magic, I slowed it down so that the scorpions could catch up with it, and then the three of us proceeded to lay into the rat. Despite doing what I feel to be a healthy amount of damage to the roughly twelve-pound creature, it kept itself alive by drinking far more than its own body weight in potions until a second were-rat - this one in its true form - appeared to engage me in defending what I presume is its mate.
It knocked me off my feet, but as the scorpions continued to defend me, it made off with its mate out the southern gate of the historic district.
As a side notation, I have kept the feces I witnessed this rat dropping set aside in case they are of use in the future as a connection to this particular rat.
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The plan as it stands;
Adventurers
- Skull Loheir Darstan
- William Webber
- Robin
After some conference, Skull Loheir Darstan suggested we mix Belladonna - of which he seems to have quite a lot - with cornmeal. After some discussion we decided spreading it around the sewers would accomplish several things;
- It's something to do beyond patrols to motivate the adventuring populace again.
- The were-rats will likely avoid belladonna - and it is poisonous to normal creatures.
- If the rats are not poisoned, they will have consumed an edible part of belladonna, and therefore become uncomfortable for the were-rats.
This plan is meant to drive them out of the city without their realizing it, and to cut them off from their regular food sources.
William, a Tempan, doesn't enjoy the idea of using a poison so I've tasked him with killing rats the regular old fashioned way. He does not seem exceptionally bright.
Robin I've put on helping the Skull.
I'll have some contracts for him drawn up later. Presently apparently he is operating on Sir Everduke's word on recompense.
//Jasda al Tyr//
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Another notation.
The rats have been writing the word 'Rot', with arrows pointing towards the Palace.
I believe I now have enough of their droppings to attempt to conjure them. It has been wisely pointed out to me that the droppings are probably from the multitude of rats, so picking out two specific ones would be too difficult without something directly linked to them - but it occurs to me that we have a volcano nearby.
If no one objects, I will pull a few adventurers and head up to the volcano or some other natural danger, and attempt to summon as many of the little critters out of the city and into harm's way as possible.
//Jasda al Tyr//
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[It seems a report was submitted, then later withdrawn, the original probably tossed in favor of some other one to come, later.]
