Team Mefight:The Trouble in Draglet

• The Thane in the West [from Draglet] has offered a reward of gold pieces to the characters if they can solve the Kobold problem. He also has offered up any treasures the party finds that have no clear owner.
• The party possesses some gold carried by the brothers Grill and Gred, of which they have spent 350 for supplies, which will presumably be paid back once funds have somehow been acquired (which they have, and currently possess).
• Draglet has recently suffered from Kobold attacks and a deadly plague.
• A journal found in a farmhouse five days march from Kred reveals that the plague seems to turn those who succumb to it into mindless monsters (zombies) with a penchant for violence. The encounter that procured the journal corroborates all too well the existence of said monsters.
  • Variants so far include all the ones in the first Left for Dead, save one: Boomers (Belchers), Smokers (Coughers) and Hunters (Screechers).
• Neven has indicated that study of samples from the zombies, or their bile, may give clues as to how the plague is spread, and how it can be cured.
  • UPDATE: He has collected as many samples as he feels are needed, and hastens to his Circle to complete his study.
• Draglet is in the same situation as the surrounding area. A band of well-equipped and trained "looters" was found--a note on their bodies indicates Fresian involvement (language of the note), with the message "SI STRIKE CNFRM NW OF DRAG RCVD TO FORT"
  • Speculation: This is very likely indicative of a link with Diamon Pegg's organization.
• A large (village-sized) crater was found Northwest of Draglet. Near its center was a cleared-out path, on which something heavy was dragged straight to Draglet Fortress. That this was the object that created the crater, there can be no doubt, and it is similarly likely that it was the source of the Plague. When it is found, it must be treated with utmost care.
• The suicidal Gnome insisted that he be given two scrolls, of which the refusal to provide seems to have been part of the deciding factor in his fatal decision. Later revelations from the Head Priestess's Diary and other research confirm their importance, and further confirm the duplicity of the looters.
  • This puts a Fresian squarely in line as the source of the suspected aggressor, although the exact identity is anyone's guess (indications from the Gnome indicate a Prince, but anything from his mouth is worth less than nothing)
• The Priestess's diary confirms that proximity to the Cube is the source of the plague
• The diary also outlines a method for cleansing the Cube: Cast Dispel Magic, Remove Curse, then Remove Disease, in that order. The diary also indicates that this can be performed on someone who is succumbing to the disease, although the Priestess's own state leaves the validity of that in doubt.