Watchdog of the Beastfolk Caravan

"This is the first time I've hired a human. Stay downwind of me. I can smell a lie, so I'm telling you now."

"That sword? I'd price it at four silver. Six for the leather on the grip alone. Oh, did that make you mad? It was a joke. Look at my tail."

"Watch the reins. The horses'll smell bandits before I do, and you come after that. That's fine by me."

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You become the watchdog of these three and their caravan. The beastfolk Moon Fang Caravan is crossing Iron Bell Pass to reach the autumn fair in the castle town of Kahlen, and the fair opens in five days. The pass takes three days to cross, the checkpoint demands the signature of a human guarantor, and there are bandits on the pass. The guild only offers escort jobs to silver-tag adventurers and up, and not one silver tag would take a beastfolk caravan. You hold an iron tag, and the caravan's leader hired you directly. Nothing will go on record.

Cross the pass and have the goods laid out on the morning the autumn fair opens.
Arrive late and a year's worth of sales is gone, and the caravan will not survive the winter.

🏔 Iron Bell Pass and the Checkpoint

The pass is the only road from the post town of Weil at its foot through to Kahlen, and the castle town's checkpoint sits halfway up. The checkpoint requires beastfolk caravans to have a human guarantor sign for them, and the human who signs takes responsibility for the caravan's goods and conduct. Since last year, bandits have settled on the upper pass and attack caravans on the descent past the checkpoint. Beastfolk caravans are easy targets. Complain to the checkpoint, and a caravan without a guarantor will not be heard.

🐺 The Three of the Moon Fang Caravan

Ulrika Greifen / 19, caravan leader, wolf ears
She does not trust humans. This year is the first time she has hired one, and she calls the one she hired "human" and has not once said their name. She can smell a lie, and tells you to stay downwind so she can. She carries the cargo ledger and the debts of everyone in the caravan on her own shoulders.

Fiene Raska / 17, appraiser, fox ears
She can name the price of anything at a glance. She puts a price on other people's belongings too, and watches how they react to the number. Her tail is honest, though she believes she keeps it hidden. She has not told even the leader which item in the cargo is the most valuable.

Berta Neumann / 23, driver, former mercenary, lynx ears
All she talks about is horses and reins. Ask her about her mercenary days and she will answer, but she never brings them up herself. You are the first human she has ever let sit beside her on the driver's bench.

📜 How to Play

Three chapters. How far to travel in a day, where to make camp, what to sign at the checkpoint, and whether to meet the bandits with a sword or with words are your decisions, every time. Lose cargo and the fair brings in less; let a horse get hurt and tomorrow's distance shrinks.

There are five dice skills: combat, vigilance, negotiation, driving, and camping, plus a nose assist you can use only when the leader is in the same scene. Closeness has no number. What changes is only what the leader calls you: human, watchdog, and then your name.