The owner of the village forge is a Dwarf. There aren't many items available, as he mainly repairs tools, but he does pride himself on a few quality pieces he's crafted in his spare time. He is also willing to buy your inferior weapons and melt them down.

As you browse his wares, a young Dwarf (likely under a hundred years old) calls out to you. He's the blacksmith's apprentice and, having completed his training, wishes to join a party of adventurers. You can recruit him as a companion for30 Coins(unless you're a male Dwarfthief(codesA2,B3, andAA), because “No beard, no honor!”).

YOUNG DWARF BLACKSMITH (Role:Assistant) [Special Ability:Resourceful; when present, increases all your Coin and Copper finds by 1 Coin (but not for Gold), repairs broken weapons after combat, and reduces the cost of items outside this forge by 1 Coin (cannot reach 0).]

Once you have finished shopping, return to paragraph328.

Items(Max for Sale)

Purchase Price of Goods

Selling Price to the Store

Mediocre Weapons(0)

-

1

Weapons (Normal)(0)

-

5

Master Axe [+1 Power](1)

200

-

Finely Chiseled Axe [+1 Dexterity](1)

200

-

Dwarven Iron Armor [+2 Armor](2)

200

-

Masterwork Shield [+2 Armor](1)

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

200

-

Mechanical Bow[Ranged Weapon; Power 3](1)

300

-

*

Hanging on the forge's mantelpiece, a peculiar shield catches your eye. With a strange black color tending towards red, this shield appears bristling with spikes and is particularly bulky. You have no idea what it's made of, and the blacksmith refuses to reveal its nature.

“She's Fire-Eater,” he tells you, “my masterpiece. I imbued th’material wi’ Elven Gas, bou’ from the Airfolk. She l’terally d’vours flames!”

You raise an eyebrow at the word “she”: some blacksmiths and warriors speak of their swords as a Lady, sailors of their ships as well, but you've never heard anyone speak of a shield like that. This craftsman seems truly proud of his work... But he can sell it to you for100 Gold Piecesand the promise to slay the dragon, and even that's an exaggeratedly low price, according to him. (Note that if you made this promise and don't kill the dragon at the end of the adventure, you will lose 1 Honor point…)

Shield“Fire-Eater”[+2 Armor;Fire-Eater: All fire damage is halved (rounded down) while wielding this shield, and the shield's armor bonus further reduces this damage;Cumbersome: All tests requiring a certain amount of balance (jumping, running, balancing…) or strength (climbing, swimming…) are increased by 1 point while this shield is equipped.]

*

This shield could be essential when facing a fire-breathing creature like the dragon. You can try to convince the blacksmith that you are a great hero on your way to destroy the beast and become a legend: the shield could become one too if you carry it…

Make aCharm Testwith adifficulty of 14. On afailure, he refuses to lower his price. Amoderate successleads him to agree to reduce the price to10 Gold Coins. Acomplete successconvinces him entirely that you are the great hero of this era and that the name Fire-Eater will be known throughout the ages thanks to your exploits, leading him to give it to you (but it will only truly be yours once you have slain the dragon).

In any case, you cannot repeat this test.

BUT…

You could also steal it (this option is not available if you have recruited the young dwarven blacksmith) … If you make this choice and you are NOT aThiefor aBarbarian(codes A2 and A5), thenlose 1 Honor point. If you are a Knight (code A4), this penalty becomes aloss of 2 Honor points.

InALL cases, you must leave the village immediately after the attempt and NEVER return (as you will almost certainly be suspected). Then go to162. You will also getcode P5, UNLESS you wait for a suitable moment and add1d6 divided by 2(rounded up) to theTimebefore making the Check; to avoid this penalty.

Make aDexterity Checkwith adifficulty of 14AND anEvasion Checkwith adifficulty of 14. [Reduce the difficulty of these tests by 1 if you are aThief(code A2)]

If eitherfails, you are surprised and the Dwarves of the village surround you, weapons drawn. Although rather pathetic compared to the average of their people, they manage to overpower you, beat you severely, and throw you out of the village after taking ALL your money as moral compensation (and causing you to lose half of your current Endurance). Furthermore, any Dwarf companions you may have are shocked to discover your misdeeds and abandon you (but continue to occupy an available slot).

Otherwise, if one of the two is only amoderate success, you'll be spotted during your theft: flee the village,lose 1 Endurancepointto lose your pursuers, and obtain theP5 code… but at least you have the shield. (Here too, any Dwarf companions you might have will abandon you).

Otherwise, if both aregreat successes, simply leave with the shield.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com