diCarpoli’s Shoes

City Guide I diCarpoli’s Shoes

diCarpoli’s Shoes

1) Storefront

You see before you a small wooden building with what looks to be a newer expansion built onto the back. A flat wooden board painted in reds and greens reading “Dicarpoli’s Shoes” is propped up against the structure next to an open door.

The door to the front room of Dicarpoli’s is old and flimsy. It is chained shut at night, leaving no locks to pick, but the ragged wood is easily breakable. Two curtained windows let light in during the day, but wooden crossbeams make egress difficult for those not willing to cut through them. There are two similar windows in the back room, but the only door is inside.

Wooden Door: Hardness 5, Hit Points: 12, Break DC 10, Open Lock DC 35.

Barred Windows: Hardness 5, Hit Points: 20, Break DC 20.

2)Front Room GOODS

The front room of diCarpoli’s is a dark, wooden room with a workbench to the left of the door and shelves of shoes, boots, and tools on the right. As you look around, your curiosity is piqued by an assortment of masks that stare down at you from the walls of the establishment. A man sits behind a semi-circular desk at the back of the room, and behind him is another wooden door. When you enter, he kicks his boots off the desk and stands to greet you. Antonio is nervous as usual, thanks to the pranks of the faeries that run his shop. A successful Sense Motive (DC 10) will pick up on this fact. Observant customers (Spot DC 25) may note that the place does not seem to have been used for work in quite some time.

The workbench is covered with a fine layer of dust and the tools sit idly by on their shelves. The collection of masks ranges from primitive orcish tribal masks to finely crafted porcelain from the largest cities in the world. A character may make a Knowledge (art or culture) check (DC 15) to identify any single mask’s origin. The masks were the senior diCarpoli’s only obsession outside of cobbling, and his collection is one of the most impressive for hundreds of leagues around. Jib and Jab love to torment Antonio by making them come to life and talk to him or his customers. Antonio can almost always be found sitting behind his desk at the back of the room, and to his left is a door that leads to the workroom. This door is locked at night, though Jib and Jab flit off to the forest after their work is done.

Wooden Door: Hardness 5, Hit Points: 18, Break DC 18, Open Lock DC 35.

All manner of travelling and work boots and shoes can be found here, and Jib and Jab have even created somewhat of a fashion trend with their new gossamer dress moccasins (35 gp).

Somewhere amidst the detritus of the workroom can be found a pair of boots of speed, slippers of spider climbing, and a packet of dust of disappearance.

31

City Guide I diCarpoli’s Shoes

Shoppers looking for special items will have to first win over the mischievous faeries, either by joining in on a prank against Antonio or weathering the faeries’ torments in a lighthearted manner. 2) Workroom

Piles of buttons, laces, leather and stitching cover the floor of this small room. There doesn’t seem to be any order to the place. You think you catch a bit of movement under a pile of ribbon, but you can’t be sure.

This back room is truly the faeries’ domain. Piles of buttons, laces, leather and stitching cover the floor of this small room. This is where Jib and Jab do the fine work that sustains the shop. They flutter around constantly, gibing each other and playing pranks on Antonio. Somehow they also manage to get their work done in a timely manner, with a high degree of quality evident in all of their boots and shoes.

If anyone enters this room, Jib and Jab will go invisible immediately, most likely sensing the intrusion before it happens.

Antonio diCarpoli: Human Male, Exp2/Com4; CR3, Medium -sized humanoir; HD: 4d4+2d6; hp: 17; Init: +3; Spd: 30 ft.; AC: 15 (touch 13, flat-footed 12) Atk: +3 (1d6, short sword); AL: CG ; SV: Fort +1, Ref +4, Will +3; Str 11, Dex 16, Con 11, Int 12, Wis 8, Cha 13.

Skills: Bluff +5, Climb +4, Craft + 5, Listen +1, Perform +8, Profession +3, Use Rope +7

Feats: Armor Proficiency (Light), Run, Skill Focus (Perform)

Possessions: leather armor, short sword, bone flute with gold trimmings, masterwork cobbler’s tools

Description: Antonio wears the plain clothes of a craftsman, practical cotton chemise and pants with a thin leather belt. His shoes are the only fine clothing he wears, made by his father several years ago and enduring to this day. His brown, stringy hair falls in his face constantly, and sweat clings to his furrowed brow. He smiles and greets his customers nervously, glancing around in anticipation of flying nails and bootstraps.

Personality : Antonio was once a calm and carefree boy, playing his flute in the forest and dreaming of lands far away. All that changed on the day he met Jib and Jab. Now he is a nervous, paranoid shopkeeper. He stays indoors most of the time for fear that the faeries and their pranks will follow him out of the shop, and customers are generally hurried out the door with a receipt and a nervous wave. Word of his behavior has gotten back to his father, but the old man just attributes it to Antonio’s quick lesson in real life. So far, no one has guessed Antonio’s secret, and time will only tell if the façade will outlive his sanity.

Barred Windows: Hardness 5, Hit Points: 20, Break DC 20.

Jib and Jab, pixies Exp3: Size: S; HD: 1d6+3d6; hp: 14; Init: +4; Spd: 20 ft., fly 60 ft. (good); AC: 16 (touch 15, flatfooted 12) Atk: +7 (1d4-2, dagger), +8 (1d6, composite shortbow); AL: NG ; SV: Fort +1, Ref +7, Will +7; Str 7, Dex 18, Con 11, Int 16, Wis 15, Cha 16.

Skills: Bluff +8, Concentration +8, Craft (Cobbling) + 11, Escape Artist +11, Heal +9, Hide +18, Listen +14, Move Silently +14, Ride +11, Search +12, Sense Motive +12, Spot +14

32

City Guide I diCarpoli’s Shoes

Feats: Dodge, Flyby Attack, Mobility, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Weapon Finesse (dagger), Weapon Focus (shortbow)

SA: Spell-like abilities, special arrows

SQ: SR 16, natural invisibility

Possessions: composite short bow, masterwork dagger, pixie arrows, masterwork cobbler’s tools, 37 gp

Shop History: Anja diCarpoli was the greatest craftsman of his day, fixing and creating boots and shoes that would last years under even the roughest conditions. His skills were legend among local merchants, and all vied to carry his goods across the lands. All was not well with Anja, however. As age descended upon him, he felt fire in his hands whenever he gripped a vise or hammered a nail. Finally, he was unable to move his hands enough to work. It was time to pass the family business on to his son, Antonio.

Unfortunately, Antonio had spent more time whiling away the hours dreaming in the forest and playing his flute than he had practicing the art of cobbling under his father. Such a wasteful childhood saddened Anja, but he could do nothing but watch as his son took over the shop. One day the frivolous young man was out in the woods composing a tune when his flute was snatched from his hands. He could see nothing carrying it, but the flute continued to fly deeper in to the forest. He seemed to have lost it after several minutes of chasing and he stopped to catch his breath. As he was bent over he felt something hit him in the back of his head. He turned just in time to see his flute flying toward him for another blow. He fell to the ground and looked up as his flute dropped to the ground at his feet. Out of thin air appeared two flying creatures, with wings thin and gossamer.

They appeared angry and babbled in a high-pitched language that Antonio could not understand. Seeing his confusion, one of the creatures slapped the other on the back, causing it to cough out a colorful burst of light. After that Antonio could clearly understand the creature as it berated him for being a “lazy, good-for-nothing son” and other piercing epithets. Finally the creatures got to the point. They were very big fans of his father’s work and were very angry to see such disrespect done to his legacy. Antonio expressed his surprise that a cobbler had fans, but the creatures would have none of it. They told him in no uncertain terms that they would be doing the cobbling from now on, and Antonio’s only role would be to hide their presence and run the business.

Figuring that this just meant less work for him, Antonio shrugged and agreed to the arrangement. Since then, the faeries, named Jib and Jab, have proven to be expert craftsmen, but Antonio’s life has not been made easier. Living with faeries is not easy, and Jib and Jab have made his life an endless stream of pranks and nerve-wracking situations. They enjoy turning invisible and flying things around the room while Antonio nervously stammers an explanation to a startled customer, or causing him to misplay a note while he tries to impress his newest love. Business has not suffered, however, and Antonio is resolved to put up with the faeries’ pranks until his father passes into the next world.

Plot Hooks

Bored one day, Antonio decided to try on some of his father’s masks in an attempt to scare the faeries.

Unfortunately for him he soon tried on the mask of the jester, and when he tried to scare them he ended up on the floor laughing at his own boredom. Jib and

Jab thought this was hilarious and joined in the fun. It wasn’t until a few days (and incidences with customers) later that the three realized something was wrong. The PCs come wandering into the shop just as the realization has hit the three cobblers and they see before them a scene of hysteria and panic. The party’s appearance throws more chaos into the scene as Jib a n d J a b try to hide and Antonio attempts to explain things, all the while laughing in the party’s faces.

33

City Guide I diCarpoli’s Shoes

Antonio paid a sage good money to find a substance that acts as an allergen to sprites. Now that he has the information, he needs someone to obtain some of the substance without Jib and Jab finding out about it.

Unfortunately, the nosy pixies listen in on the cobbler’s plan and set out to harry the PCs all the way to their destination.

Traveler Knowledge: diCarpoli’s Shoes is the finest cobbler for a dozen leagues. They do very high quality work at fair prices, and the elder diCarpoli is a good citizen who is well liked within the community.

Resident Knowledge: The diCarpoli legacy seemed doomed when Antonio first took over the shop for his ailing father. The quality of the work diminished and several affluent clients were lost to cobblers in other cities. Then recently, probably spurred by the shame of his father and business’ struggling account book, Antonio began producing excellent quality products once more. Business is slowly returning, although some fear that the stress of running the shop and living up to his father’s legacy is taking its toll on Antonio. He has seemed sick and distant lately, and rarely leaves the shop to pursue his interests like he used to.

Hidden Knowledge: Unknown to both faeries and diCarpolis alike, one of these masks is in reality a mask of the jester. Should Jib and Jab ever find out they will not hesitate to place the mask on Antonio while he sleeps as a prank. Caster Level: 7t h; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item, bestow curse, tasha’s hideous laughter; Market Price: 1200gp; Weight: ½ lb.

Item: Mask of the Jester

Mask of the Jester This beautiful white porcelain mask is painted with bright colors to appear like a jester or woman wearing heavy makeup. When placed upon the face, the wearer feels a shudder in his abdomen and begins to giggle. This giggling subsides over the next minute, during which time the mask appears to blend with the wearer’s face. No other effect is apparent. The next time the wearer attempts to use a Charisma-based skill, she must succeed at a Will save (DC 15) or suffer a –6 penalty as she laughs for no apparent reason. This occurs each time that she attempts to use any Charisma-based skill.