The Tribute Between Two Shores
The Tribute Between Two Shores
“Two towns, one island, and a tribute demand that could spark a war or reveal a lost map.”
— Hook · diplomatic
“When your ship puts in at the island’s only harbor, you find one town starving quietly while the other arrives with armed wagons to collect its due. The mayor asks for help before a tribute dispute becomes a siege. Somewhere between the two settlements lies the next piece of the map you seek.”
— Hook · diplomatic
Brinewatch’s harbor smells of kelp, wet rope, and panic. A line of Alderhold wagons waits under armed guard while the town’s own people stare at empty fish racks and nearly bare grain bins. Mayor Lysa Venn meets you at the quay and says, in a low voice, that if you can keep the peace until sunset, she can bring both sides to the table.
Mayor Lysa Venn
Urgent appeal with practical rewards, framed as a peace mission with a hidden need for leverage.
Rumours
d4 · table- 01Alderhold’s wagons never leave empty, even when the roads are closed.
- 02The old cairns on the boundary were built before either town existed.
- 03Someone has been changing the grain counts in the council records.
- 04At low tide, a black stone can be seen near the cliff path, but only for a few minutes.
If the party fails, the island’s only two settlements may slide into open conflict, leaving no safe harbor, no fresh supplies, and no one willing to share the map fragment hidden beneath the old boundary stones.
Background Lore
On a lonely island, two settlements survived the wreck of an older civilization: Brinewatch on the coast and Alderhold inland. After the last hard winter, Alderhold began sending armed caravans to Brinewatch with a simple demand: tribute in grain, fish oil, rope, and salt, or the coast would be cut off from trade and shelter. The island is rich in old roads, half-buried shrines, and weather-worn survey stones, but both towns have learned to fear one another more than the sea.
Brinewatch is being squeezed by Alderhold, an inland town that demands regular tribute in food, rope, and salt. The party is hired to calm the feud, negotiate terms, and keep either side from starting a fight that the island cannot survive.
