Session 1
Hjalti, Uruk, Chandani and Tethren find themselves in the small town of Pilgrim's Rest, following reports of strangulations.
The party first met during a midday sermon. Some had found themselves in Pilgrim's Rest as a pitstop on their own journeys while other were spurred into action by the rumour of murderer in town. Chandani and Tethren worked information out of a rather chatty local, learning that the victims had one person in common: the blacksmith. At the same time, Suspect number one. Meanwhile Hjalti was enraptured by the sermon and Uruk aura-farmed in the back.
Hjalti asked to join those two on their visit to the blacksmith. Uruk silently followed. At the blacksmith, Hjalti left the talking to Tethren and Uruk, while Chandani went snooping in the blacksmith's building. The conversation with the blacksmith struck him off the suspect list while Chandani's natural 20 Investigation check revealed a messy room and fudged bookkeeping. The party then headed to one of the victim's homes to investigate the crime scene. The party had an inkling that the giant rat problem and the strangulation murders may be related.
They found the house boarded up. Chandani took the time to ritually cast Detect Magic. Hjalti investigated the house's perimeter, finding a hole in the back door. When looking through a window, he spotted movement inside. Chandani's Detect Magic revealed a necromantic source of magic inside the house.
Before Hjalti could bash down the door, Uruk used his carpenter's tools to gently open the door. The party entered cautiously, where they were attacked by crawling undead hands. They were quickly dispatched and the party went about searching the home for clues. Uruk kept the hands on a loop on his belt as evidence. The party were convinced that the rat problem was actually a hand problem. The victim's diary seemed to point towards the cemetery, where the party vowed to visit in the evening. But first they needed a short rest.
They spent time at a tavern resting, where they agreed with the tavernkeeper to investigate their wine cellar for the rat (actually hand) problem.