Makara IC

Steam sort of slow turns to the guard eyeing the key, makes eye contact, and tilts her head a little before addressing her. "Is this...do you have one of these?"

There's just this long pause as the guard meets Steam's eyes and doesn't say anything before finally responding, "No. I do not. That might be a conversation to have with the Lesser Councilor."

"Okay!" Steam smiles pleasantly at the guard for an appropriate amount of time, and then resumes looking through the various goods, investigating the cloaks this time to find a cape so she can match DB's art.

Long and thick cloak options:

Red velvet with a symbol on the back and on the top of the cuffs and on the inside of the hood (The symbol is a circle that has the bottom half filled in. So like the outline of the circle and it's divided in half top and bottom and the bottom half is silver and the top half is the red velvet.)

Suede with white stitching of various animal shapes as a sort of pattern

White and black cashmere in a checkered pattern

Fox fur with the hood being the fox's head type thing (complete with the teeth, though the eyes have been replaced with glass eyes)

Crow feathers

Steam especially checks out the velvet and cashmere cloaks, before casually wrapping the cashmere cloak around herself and sort of swishing about with it, testing out how it feels. She holds up the velvet cloak towards the shopkeep, baring the symbol on it and inquires, "Is this a reference to a group or something, or just a cool stylistic thing? Don't wanna accidentally be showing off like I'm somebody I'm not. If it's not, I think I'm good to determine value."

Things from the shop Steam is carrying/wearing/interested in purchasing:

Arcana:

"I'm certain it did belong to a group of some kind at one time dearie. But given how old the item is, they're probably long long gone." the shopkeeper replies in a way that conveys he's more confident about that than you would be if you didn't know the origin of the item. Maybe. As with everything he says it's all a little mysterious and odd.

Steam nods appreciatively, and decides against the velvet cloak, folding it up and setting it back near where she found it. Char might appreciate the gift, but she definitely has better cloaks, and magic robes don't run cheap. Rather, she goes for the ice bracelets, as they seem interesting and potentially fashionable without really seeming to have an effect beyond "is ice that doesn't melt," so probably not going to break bank.

Steam counts on her fingers as she tallies up what she'd like. "So, coral bracelet, ivy bracelet, ice bracelets, checkerboard cloak. I'm afraid I don't really have much to trade, sort of lost a lot of my effects recently." She gives a vaguely apologetic shrug. "Something in the range of eight-fifty gold? And then maybe the egg?" Steam looks over to Ketha, both interested if she's going to get the egg and silently asking for her part of the money.

Seems like a lot of gold?:

[edit] She notices the shopkeep sort of grimace at her offer, thinks for a moment as that's the amount of money she's actually allowed, before the jewelry she looted off the ghast earlier springs to mind. "Oh! If that's not enough, I could add in this!" Steam tugs gently at her pearl necklace to pull attention to it. "I'd need to keep one of the beads for spellcasting, but I think it should still look pretty nice. Not cursed or anything, kind of unfortunately, but still pearls." She smiles hopefully at the shopkeep.

Some necklaces
A bone necklace with a teardrop shaped garnet

A silver necklace with a square sapphire

An iron necklace with a small circular mirror

A gold necklace with a hollow heart

An unadorned copper necklace

A necklace of black pearls

A heavier gold necklace of lapis lazuli ovals and teardrops in two layers (like the necklace is made of gold with lapis lazuli ovals below the neck and then more gold necklace attached to that and another layer of lapis lazuli teardrops with a circular lapis lazuli in the middle of the bottom layer)

Some rings
A wooden ring studded with small rubies

A glass ring with a rose shaped "gem" that's also glass and part of the ring.

A brass ring with various runes etched in black on it

A ring that appears to be make of a yellow and black serpent entwined around itself

A platinum ring with a gold sphere as a "gem"

A moonstone ring with a triangular "gem" (note: triangle, not pyramid)

At some point, Ketha directs the group towards bookstore which sells magical scrolls...

You enter the bookstore and are certain just by the smell you are in the right place. It very much has that book and scroll smell to it. And of course there are all the shelves full of books and scrolls in plain sight.
A pair of drow a younger female and an older male notice you as you enter. The younger one asks if she can help you find anything in particular.

If you ask you find that they have many spell scrolls available as well as new spellbooks. They also offer to transcribe any spells they have on hand into a spellbook or ritual book for the same cost of a scroll.
They also have other books. Though mostly the books are about magical topics from theoretical to accounts of spellcasters to ingredients, but also stuff like information on magical items and other similar subjects. There are also completely regular books available as well.

((So yeah, if you want any scrolls of stuff/spells added to a book if you happen to be the kind of person who can have a spellbook or ritual book just give me a list of what spells you'd be interested in.
For Paper's information what purchasing a spellbook would grant her is that Ketha would now have access to both the Eldritch Knight and Wizard spell lists and be able to cast wizard ritual spells. In addition she would now prepare spells like a wizard does. This wouldn't change the amount of spell slots she gets or add any cantrips or by itself add known spells without purchasing them/learning them at level up.

Prices: Spellbook is 50gp. Spell scrolls/adding them to a book costs 50gp per level of the spell. So a scroll of a level 3 spell would cost 150gp.

General note: the way I run things anyone who can read the language a scroll is written in can cast the spell on that scroll, regardless of whether or not they are a spellcaster of any sort.))

Parveth is interested in the Mushwoods bows and requests the guards lead to there.

Entering the cavern of the Mushwoods, you see that it certainly lives up to it's name. The cavern is large and the gigantic mushrooms inside are the size of trees. If you touch them, you note that they're about as hard as trees too, though they still clearly feel different. You can tell that if you were here without guides you could easily wind up getting lost in here. From time to time you hear the movements of small animals and insects, but you don't get more than a glimpse of movement.

After a little while you reach a fairly large cabin in a clearing. There is a male drow outside working on some kind of lumber setup, but they're not directly in your path to the door that seems more like it might go to a store than the other. When the door opens there's the chime of a bell. You enter a room with various kinds of bows lined up against the walls. There are also a big table with quivers and containers for arrows in the middle of the room. In one corner of the room there are a few crates. In the back of the room there is a door and you can hear that someone was back there.
You hear a call of "Just a moment!" muffled by the door.

Examining the bows you can see that all of them are finely crafted, though none are made of wood on close inspection. Most are made from what is probably the giant mushrooms. Others are made of chitin of various colors and patterns. There is about one steel bow of each kind. A few are made from There are more longbows and shortbows than there are crossbows, but they are present.
The quivers all look fairly normal. The arrows however come in all kinds of variety and many of them are probably magical.

After two minutes the door in the back open and a female drow with a few scars on her face and arms comes out and greets you with a surprised them pleased look on her face. Her eyes linger a bit on Parveth's longbow and Adelinde's crossbow as she says, "Sorry to keep you waiting since I imagine you came out all this way just for me. What can I interest you in? Though if you say anything other than bows and arrows I can't really help you." She gives a laugh. "If you're not too attached to those bows of yours I would love to add actual wooden bows to my inventory. I'm sure I could find an interested buyer who'd pay a good price just for the novelty. I'd trade you any bow here for each and I'll throw in some special arrows on top."

---

So all the bows here are mechanically the same as the ones in the PHB, though on the surface they'd sell for more since they're unusual and they're probably of better craftsmanship than yours.
The arrows come in a lot of variety. Of course the materials range all over the place.

Mundane
-Mushwood and chitin arrows and bolts are mechanically the same as those in the PHB. They cost 1 gp per 20.
-Glass ammunition have a 19-20 crit range, will break after being fired 100% of the time, and cost 15 gp per 20. There are only 40 arrows and 40 bolts available.
-Iron ammunition generally don't break when they hit things, though they have the regular chance of breaking when they strike something especially hard like say a stone golem or wall or such. They cost 3 gp per 20.
-Serrated ammunition, which are made of mushwood and just have serrated heads or are made from chitin claws or such, have a -1 penalty to hit and a +1 bonus to damage. They break as normal. They cost 5 gp per 20.
-Delivery ammunition are regular ammunition with special heads designed to contain liquids or powders that get expelled onto/into what they strike. They allow you to store substances inside indefinitely (I mean several years might not work but...) rather than needing to apply to substance right before or in the midst of combat. They break 100% of the time. They cost 15 gp per 20. There are only 20 arrows and 20 bolts available.
(Basically they allow you to add the contents of poison, holy water, acid vials, alchemists' fire, whatever to the damage and range of the weapon.)
-Silvered ammunition. 100 gp per 10.

Magical
The prices for these are for singular pieces of ammunition. Unless noted as Reusable, the item always breaks after being fired as opposed to 50% chance.

-An adamantine arrow. Won't break. Does +1 damage. Costs 50 gp. There is only 1.
-Elemental ammunition. Comes in acid, cold, fire, lightning, thunder, and necrotic. Simply deals the given type of damage instead of piercing. Costs 10 gp.
-Entangling ammunition. Casts Entangle DC 15 where it hits. Costs 70 gp.
-Web ammunition. Casts Web DC 15 where it hits. Costs 120 gp.
-Longshot ammunition. Has double range. Reusable. Costs 25 gp.
-Seeker ammunition. Ignores covers and concealment as long as you can see the target and there is a path to it. Costs 50 gp.
-Blinding ammunition. Casts Blindness/Deafness (only Blindness) DC 15 on target whether or not it hits. Costs 120 gp.
-Flare ammunition. Upon firing is lit with the Daylight spell. Does radiant damage. Costs 170 gp.
-Barrage ammunition. Casts Conjure Barrage DC 15 where it hits. Costs 170 gp.
-Darkness ammunition. Casts Darkness where it hits. Does necrotic damage. Costs 120 gp.
-Gust ammunition. Casts Gust of Wind DC 15 where it hits. Costs 120 gp.
-Animate ammunition. After firing casts Spiritual Weapon spellcasting modifier +5 on itself. Costs 120 gp.
-Gas ammunition. Casts Stinking Cloud DC 15 where it hits. Costs 170 gp.
-Scorching ammunition. Casts Aganazzar’s Scorcher DC 15 where it hits instead of weapon damage. Costs 120 gp.
-Earthbind ammunition. Casts Earthbind DC 15 on target whether or not it hits. Costs 120 gp.
-Wind Wall ammunition. Casts Wind Wall DC 15, but the line starts at the attacker, travels the path the ammunition does, and has a length equal to the normal range of the weapon. Costs 200 gp.
-Water Wall ammunition. Casts Wall of Water DC 15, but the line starts at the attacker, travels the path the ammunition does, and has a length equal to the normal range of the weapon. Costs 200 gp.
-Booming ammunition. Casts Thunderwave DC 15 where it hits. Costs 70 gp.

Parveth is pleased to find someone also moderately interested in bows, and carefully removes her longbow from her person. “Well met. I am afraid this is only middling quality, but if you would wish to inspect it you are free to.” She offers her longbow to the vendor for examination.
She paces about the store, inspecting the wares deeply before picking up a particular mushroom bow. Her hand runs down it, feeling the grain or its equivalent, before lifting the bow to a shooting posture and testing its weight. “Would you mind if I tested a few of these? I am interested in how these materials flex.”

((She wants to like, take a few test shots maybe at a preprepared target with a mushroom bow and a chitin bow, see if there’s any interesting nuances. You’ve already established they function mechanically the same but she wants to do this.))

"Of course. Take some of these if you want to try them out." she replies and hands over a quiver full of the iron arrows.

There isn't a target range but there are several nearby mushrooms that look like they've been used for target practice before.

The mushwood bow feels pretty similar to wooden bows you've used before but they're a bit more flexible and wobbly. The metal bows are kind of on the heavy side for Parveth. The chitin bows would probably feel the best and you might guess that they're more durable than wood too.

After Parveth tests the bows, she does the unthinkable...MAKE CONVERSATION.
As she hands the iron arrows and quiver back, she says, "These are of incredible quality. Do you fetch the materials for these yourself?"

Note for later:

"My husband and I cut the mushwood ourselves. I get metals from the better smithies and chitin from the best spider breeders mostly. In fact you could say most of my chitin bows have a pedigree." she gives a laugh. "I do from time to time go out with one of the adventuring groups if I need to gather rarer materials and to keep my skills sharp."

Parveth gives a small chuckle regarding the bows having pedigree, not especially one to laugh but feeling it impolite not to express some form of mirth. She attempts a casual lean against a sturdy counter. "Is there much call for...casual adventure here? That word does not feel right, but I intend it towards quests that are more explorative and generally...jovial as opposed to actions that you must undertake and survive so the city may continue to prosper. Does my question make sense?..I fear it may have lost its footing as it trod."

The bowyer laughs at that and says, "Oh no. This is the Underdark. It is no casual thing to just go out into the dark. It's not all about the city though. In fact it's largely for personal gain at great personal risk."

Parveth nods slightly in understanding, a slight grimace on her features. "I had sort of expected that, but one can hope. I...would not wish to impose, but what we know of this land comes from myths and legends. What sort of creatures and...things are actually here?" She leans in slightly, actually fairly interested in what the bowyer has to say.

The bowyer raises an eyebrow and says, "That sounds like a better question for a scholar or a professional adventurer than me. The short answer I guess would be 'monsters'? A lot of things that blend into the caves in some way or are otherwise hard to see and lots of stuff that tunnels. If you're unlucky you might run across something nasty like an Umber Hulk which is this big burly chitin covered kind of thing that scrambles your mind while it tries to tear your limbs off. If you luck has failed you entirely you might come across a Wurm, but not many people survive encounters like that so I don't know anyone who has."
As an afterthought she adds, "Oh. And also slimes."

"Mmm." More nods. She stands in thought for a moment before straightening up again. "Well, I would not wish to waste too much of your time. If your earlier offer still stands, an exchange of bows sounds excellent. Additionally, I am interested in your adamantine arrow, as well as a few of the flare and earthbind types. If the bow is not sufficient trade, we have gold pieces as well."

Trade:
-- Wooden longbow
-- an amount of wooden arrows?
Chitin Longbow
Adamantine arrow (+1 damage, can't break) 50 gp
Flare arrow (daylight after lit) x2 340 gp
Earthbind arrow (earthbind dc 15 on hit) 120 gp

For the wooden longbow she'd give the chitin longbow, 1 Earthbind arrow, 20 Serrated arrows, and 20 of either the Glass arrows or the Delivery arrows. Anything more needs to be paid for in gold.
Unless Adelinde is trading in her crossbow too in which case we'd have to wait and see if Adelinde wants any special ammunition for herself.

Parveth accepts that trade, opting for the delivery arrows, and begins fussing with sorting her acquisitions into her new quiver. She rediscovers her magical bludgeoning arrows and gently pulls one out, offering it to the bowyer.
"Would you be interested in continuing our trade? These are not of my own make, but they are definitely magical. As I understand, they do a sort of [FORCE DAMAGE] and push the target back on contact."

"I suppose. I'd have to examine them and I need to know how many you're willing to trade." she replies.

"Of course." She retrieves another two of the push arrows from the quiver, making the total offered three. "These I would be willing to part with."