[PFS - PbP Gameday 5] GM Skipper's Wonders in the Weave, Part 1 & 2 (tier 5-9) (Inactive)

Game Master SkipperD

Being far away, Jhon rushes foward, rapier in hand. Attack the half-elf, why? Just for being near?

Willing to use charmed life if a save must be made and it can be used

On the chance the source of the voice is invisible, Lore casts invisibility purge...

Jal does not run into any invisible creatures.

@Lore: Spoilsport :P. I moved you closer to the action prior to the combat, but nothing within 45 ft becomes visible. You could move further in as your move action, though...

Combat Round 2
Bold may act
_________________________________________
Jal, Myrdon (Aegis: grappling), Eladrian
Cobras (red: 43 damage, blind, grappled), ???
Jhon, Lore, Shamak

I moved Lore a little further in... she's small and doesn't move very fast

As Lore moves closer, her spell reveals a woman wearing a breastplate and wielding a guisarme.

Combat Round 2
Bold may act
_________________________________________
Jal, Myrdon (Aegis: grappling), Eladrian
Cobras (red: 43 damage, blind, grappled), ???
Jhon, Lore, Shamak

Naughty, naughty. So she's been hiding at that corner. Just wondering, does she look like she's singed from the fireballs earlier? Can't remember where we placed them. :)

I am sorry for my delay. We had to travel on tues and wed for dr appointments with the wife, and did not receive the news we wanted. Wifey took priority, and its been hell catching up with everything. I should be back to normal posting now.

Eladrian sees the woman pop into view, but decides to end the closer threat first. He does however note her position and keep an eye on her. Studied target

Attack: 1d20 + 13 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 13 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 37
Attack: 1d20 + 8 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 8 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 26

Damage: 1d8 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 + 2d6 ⇒ (5) + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 + (6, 5) = 23
Damage: 1d8 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 + 2d6 ⇒ (5) + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 + (3, 2) = 17

She does not look singed at all.

Eladrian takes out the second snake.

The woman attacks Jhon with her guisarme.

Attack: 1d20 + 37 ⇒ (6) + 37 = 43
Damage: 2d4 + 9 ⇒ (1, 2) + 9 = 12

Attack: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (8) + 12 = 20

The first attack hits with unnatural accuracy, and Jhon tries to parry it in vain.

Combat Round 2/3
Bold may act
_________________________________________
Jal, Myrdon, Eladrian
Woman
Jhon (12 damage), Lore, Shamak

Eladrian gives a shout of victory as the last snake falls, then turns his sights upon the woman.
Attack: 1d20 + 13 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 13 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 32
Attack: 1d20 + 8 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 8 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 22

Damage: 1d8 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 11
Damage: 1d8 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 12

Shamak, growling, charges into battle! Not really, there's people on the way, but that's the spirit ^^

+1 Shock and Cruel Cold Iron Falchion, PA, Swarm Bane Clasp, IC: 1d20 + 14 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 14 + 2 = 26
for Slashing+Electricity+Swarm Bane+IC: 2d4 + 18 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (1, 4) + 18 + 2 + (1) = 26

If it hits: Shamak roars to demoralize his target! Intimidate (Cornugon Smash): 1d20 + 24 ⇒ (13) + 24 = 37

Myrdon shouts out to Jal, "Get closer!, as he himself also moves closer, pulling out some licorice root from his pouch along. Once Jal gets within 30 ft, Myrdon tosses the roots into the air and shouts out, "වහා!" He then commands Aegis to attack the woman.

Cast haste on everyone. You need to be within 30 ft of each other. Assuming Shamak and Eladrian don't move, since they've posted their actions, I've placed the spell where it would get both of them. Whoever wants to be hasted, get yourself within the red circle as part of your movement.

Haste: +1 attack, 1 dodge AC, +1 Reflex saves, additional attack

Aegis takes a flying hop to the other side of the woman, and bites down on her.

Power Attack, Haste
bite: 1d20 + 10 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 10 - 2 + 1 = 29 for dmg: 1d8 + 7 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 7 + 4 = 18
confirm?: 1d20 + 10 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 10 - 2 + 1 = 20 for dmg: 1d8 + 7 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 7 + 4 = 18

Lore double moves in a little closer...

I’ll not sweat getting the buff, Myrdon. Thanks for being mindful, but hitting everyone else is likely enough to get good value from the spell. :)

”Snakes in the garden, snakes in the grass,” Jal quips grimly as he darts in again, ducking low under her guard. As he slashes at her belly, he finishes the rhyme, ”find the little biters and step on their @ss!”

Swift to make her my Studied Target, then Spring attack, ending in the square top-left of her (map updated).
Mods: Studied Target, Inspire, Power attack (Furious Focus)
attack: 1d20 + 12 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 12 + 2 + 2 = 33 <— crit?
damage: 1d8 + 7 + 2 + 2 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 7 + 2 + 2 + 6 = 20
— confirm: 1d20 + 12 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 12 + 2 + 2 = 23
— add’l damage: 1d8 + 7 + 2 + 2 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 7 + 2 + 2 + 6 = 25

The woman weathers the myriad assaults on her, but she is clearly worse for wear.

Combat Round 2/3
Bold may act
_________________________________________
Jal, Myrdon, Eladrian
Woman (75 damage, shaken)
Jhon (12 damage), Lore, Shamak

Botting Jhon.

Jhon steps closer and takes a stab at the woman.

Attack, IC, haste: 1d20 + 13 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 13 + 2 + 1 = 20
Damage, IC: 1d6 + 5 + 5 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 5 + 5 + 2 + 2 = 17

Attack, IC, haste: 1d20 + 13 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 13 + 2 + 1 = 29
Damage, IC: 1d6 + 5 + 5 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 5 + 5 + 2 + 2 = 16

His first attack misses, but the second one takes the woman down.

-----Combat Over-----

There are no more combat encounters, so I won't bother posting her gear, but we're not done yet, as there are still several loose ends.
So, what's the plan?

Jal stoops to check the woman's pulse. "Someone see if they can stabilize her," he mutters as he quickly searches her.

Taking 10 on Perception to search her for a 28.

Then Jal moves to the door, listening at it and searching it for traps before he quietly peeks beyond.

Perception, for traps: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (17) + 18 = 35
Perception, ear to door: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (4) + 18 = 22
Stealth (to crack open door quietly): 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (3) + 12 = 15

Lore will cast stabilize on her... and wait for someone more competent to tie her up before trying to heal her back to consciousness if the party wants to question her...

"Now that she's secured, are we waking her up for a little chat?"

Jal finds a half-composed letter. Addressed to Aglorn Desimire, it promises riches beyond imagining to pay off the Consortium’s debt for the portal and offers wry well-wishes for setting up “a lasting base of operations in the middle of a glacier.” Ooh... Foreshadowing...

The door, however, confounds him. It is a massive iron door pocked with evenly spaced holes in a roughly square pattern. Mithral rods are placed in a strange pattern in the door, with five other rods lying on the ground in a small stack directly in front of the door.

Lore stabilizes the woman and glances briefly at the door. The Azlanti artifact circling her head tells her that the rods are supposed to spell out the letter "K" in Aklo.

Assuming you place the rods as Lore suggests:

The room beyond is a tomb of sorts, it original occupant long forgotten. At the far end of the room lies an un-trapped, platinum coffer containing four scrolls of remove curse, a treatise on the worship of Ydersius written on a series of serpentskin scrolls and 2,000 gp of an ancient design.

Jal—finding himself useless at the door—helps bind the woman as he watches Lore do her thing. "You're a seriously useful gnome, Short Stuff."

He takes a few more minutes to look over the letter. "Snakes are definitely up to something, huh?" He looks over at Shamak, "Ready to wake the sleeping snake? Give her some new nightmares?"

"We promised to save the eggs of the lizardfolk. Some of us should look to see if they're safe."

With that, Myrdon starts hunting down the eggs, hoping that none were damaged.

Ah! The eggs! I had completely forgotten about them... Oh, well, that's in your favor.

Myrdon finds a tarp covering something lumpy. Peeking under it, he sees 30 eggs with leathery shells.

"WELL DONE MYRDON! LET'S RETURN THE EGGS AS SOON AS WE CAN, AS WE PROMISED THE LIZARDS." suggests Shamak, still screaming.

"AFTER THAT, LET'S SEE IF WE CAN SNEAK AROUND SOME MORE AND DISCOVER OTHER ROOMS! DISCREETLY, I MEAN HARHARHAR!" he shouts, chuckling at the idea of a sneaky approach.

As you exit the mosaic room with the eggs, you are met by what must be the entire Muckmouth tribe. They eye the eggs nervously.

Thanks for botting

Put the legs on the ground and walk back a little. so they can understand we're giving them the eggs, suggest Jhon. And keep your weapons seathed

Eladrian helps Jal bind the lady, then follows Lore's instructions on placing the Mithral bars into the slots. "Hot damn...." he breaths, looking over the riches of the tomb and runnin his fingers through the mounds of coins. He quickly tosses what he can into his pack, then returns to the main room where Myrdon rightly chastises the party for loosing sight of their promises. Eladrian picks up the tarp, and helps to gently place the eggs into the center, before taking two corners and directing Shamak to help him out. "Hey big guy.. catch those two, and we will carry these back to the Lizards. I am sure they will appreciate it!"

Out in front of the tribe, Eladrian gently eases down his side under Jhon's direction, then turns to the lizard people and giving them a bow. Eladrian steps back with his companions, hoping things would go better now.

The lizardfolk step tentatively forward and collect the eggs, then turn to each other and speak among themselves in hushed tones. After a short while, the lizardfolk you spoke to in the loading bay steps forward to address you.

"Tribe want to know if we work with you. You killed snakes and saved eggs, so maybe good for tribe."

If you wish, you can try to convince the Muckmouth tribe to ally with the Society, or at least break their ties to the Aspis. It's a Diplomacy check and aiding is allowed. The primary roller(s) gain a net +1 on their rolls due to your interactions with the tribe.

"We... and the Society would very much like to work with you. I think we could forge strong ties... and such would be good for both sides. You and your tribe would gain much from friendship with the Society. Let me be the first to welcome you."

[/dice=diplomacy]1d20+11[/dice]

Jal shrugs, "It can't be worse than those snakes, right?"

Diplomacy, Aid Another: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (10) - 1 = 9

"We kept to our promise and rescued your eggs without harm. We did not hurt any of your tribe. Well, not too permanent anyway. You can trust us."

diplomacy, aid: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13

We don't want you to work forced to anyone, not the serpents neither our patrons.

But as my friends had said we want to cooperate with you; your knowledge of this area could be useful for us, and our patrons will gladly help you to be better protected against the people who took your eggs.

And I really want to know the story of how you end inside a magic tapestry

diplomacy aid: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15

"We... and the Society would very much like to work with you. I think we could forge strong ties... and such would be good for both sides. You and your tribe would gain much from friendship with the Society. Let me be the first to welcome you."

diplomacy: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (11) + 11 = 22

Now with a functional roll :P

The lizardfolk return to their hushed deliberation, but what little Lore can hear, it's going in your favor. Their spokeslizard adresses you once more.

"Tribe agrees. Is better to work with good smoothskins than no smoothskins at all."

The Muckmouth invite you to a celebratory feast to cement the new alliance.

Is there anything else you want to do here? You haven't searched the Aspis barracks for example.

As the rest of the companions convince the tribe to break ties with the Consortium and join with the Pathfinders, Eladrian keeps to the rear of the group. Once formalities are concluded, he nudges Jal and says "Shall we search the rest of the place?"

I am good either way. Whatever the team wishes.

Myrdon bows to the lizardfolk, uncertain what their customs are, and replies, "I am glad. You have my word that this partnership would be to your tribe's benefit."

He then turns to Eladrian. "Yes, let's clear out whatever else the Aspis left here, and return the caves to the lizardfolk."

It may be worth the effort.

Jal nods, "It may be worth the effort." Then he accompanies his fellow elf-blood to do just that.

Perception (if necessary): 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (18) + 18 = 36

@Jal: Worth the effort? It's just your primary succes condition that hinges on it, hence me hinting at it.

Apart from assorted personal belongings, the only interesting thing in the barracks is a discarded letter. See the slides.

With the Aspis operation thwarted and the Muckmouth tribe turned to the Society's cause, you trudge back to your planar eddies near the Dog Pharaoh's tomb. Stepping through the glowing spheres of light, you are transported back to the Material plane. Your lengthy absence and sudden reemergence causes quite the stir in the vaults under the Skyreach, and Master of Spells Aram Zey is immediately sent for. Mere moments later, the Master appears in a puff of arcane energy.

"You're back, and all in one piece, I see. What took you so long? Was the tomb more extensive than expected?"

Myrdon grins cheekily. "Yes, I guess you could say that. It seems that along with her collection of wonders, the sorceress Hao Jin transplanted whole cultures there. We found a tribe of peaceful lizardfolk living there for generations. Well, they would likely have been peaceful if not for being enslaved by the Aspis Consortium. Who by the way created a backdoor into the tapestry as well." At this point, he passes over to Aram the letter they found.

Jal gives a wide, crooked grin, "And we cleaned up that whole Aspis infestation, too." He considers that, then finishes, "... well, cleaned up what we found. The snake den could go deeper than what we ran across, now that I think on it."

Shamak nods energetically. "YEAH AND WE BECAME FRIENDS WITH THEM. GOOD FOLKS THOSE LIZARDS!"

Aram Zey snatches the offered letters incredulously, but his harsh demeanor softens to one of concern as he reads them.

"This is grave news indeed... The Hao Jin tapestry is supposed to be ours alone, but it seems that the snakes can get in everywhere. I commend you for your initiative and commitment to the cause. I dare not think how many priceless relics this Durra person could have whisked away if it were not for your interference. Good job, agents! Now, you'll have to excuse me, as I obviously have pressing matters to discuss with the Decemvirate."

Zey turns on his heels and marches out the room, his daily allotment of teleportation seemingly spent. The handful of scribes and agents present in the vault stare at you in slack-jawed wonderment, never having heard that amount of praise from Aram Zey for anyone.

"I guess we did good!" Lore smiles and her eyes sparkle with delight.

Eladrian claps his companions on the shoulders, grinning from ear to ear. "That we did, Lore! Amazing job, everyone. I look forward to seeing you around!"

Has been a pleasure to work with you! answers Jhon. What don you think of having a beer or two to celebrate our success?

"A beer or two? You jest, surely... you are all invited to my place... I will cook you a meal never to be missed... and all the beer or other drink you can handle... how does that sound?"