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Okay, so the battle in A2 sets up the whole, "Who will I support" tension.
If the PCs clearly seem to favor attacking one side’s minions over the other, the respective apprentice admits temporary defeat and withdraws from the fight. The “winning” apprentice cautiously parleys with the PCs and invites them to speak further where the rival apprentice cannot eavesdrop. There, the apprentice introduces himself or herself, inquires about the PCs’ motives, and makes further plans.
What if they attacked both sets, not wanting either to be damaging the goods?
I've currently had both of the apprentices withdraw to their own areas - but is that really what was intended?
Okay, glad this got pointed out to me. Here's what I presently need help with:
The party's just gotten through the "mummies VS elementals" skirmish, but now I don't understand what to do. The writing is very confusing. They are now in the Chapel of Thoth with Saruna (I ruled that since the two apprentices can bypass the effects of the guards and wards spell, their minions could too)...but apparently, Badru is ALSO supposed to be there, or something. Really, parts of this almost make it seem like it was written by a committee. How could he be when he's supposed to be all the way on the next floor down? It also says that "if the PCs clearly seem to favor attacking one side’s minions over the other, the respective apprentice admits temporary defeat and withdraws from the fight," and the other apprentice is the "winner" who gets dibs on an audience with the PCs, "and invites them to speak further where the rival apprentice cannot eavesdrop" - what if the PCs did their best to attack BOTH sides (and probably would have attacked Saruna if I hadn't fed them an opportunity to make a Sense Motive check to see she wasn't necessarily hostile, to say nothing of "handwaving" her mummy aura, which I don't know if she even has any voluntary control over)? What about the scrolls in the hallway, for that matter? Isn't that hallway filled with fog that limits vision to adjacent squares and won't go away short of dispel magic or better?
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Same as my issue above. I had both pull back. The party met Saruna first. She didn't outright attack them, and they made a good diplomacy check to get her onside.
Bardu is not present in the temple to Thoth though.
As for the scrolls, I assume that the perception check required to find them takes into account the mist around.
RPG Superstar 2013 Top 4
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Badru's mummies come from the north into A2 and come into conflict with Saruna's elementals there. Saruna observes from A3 while Badru watches from just beyond the door from A2-A5. The mist and wall illusions will usually keep them hidden from the PCs, but able to observe since they ignore the effects.
If the PCs attack both sets of minions with equal abandon, then it's a judgment call. If the apprentices think a bunch of marauding looters have entered the area, they'll likely both withdraw to prepare their defenses and be suspicious when the party arrives but still willing to talk.
Excerpted from the universal monster rules:
"Frightful Presence (Ex) ... Activating this ability is a free action that is usually part of an attack or charge. ..." So Saruna has to choose to frighten them.
The Perception DC is what they need to make to locate the hidden scroll in A2 and accounts for the obstacles in place.
Hope that helps!
If the PCs attack both sets of minions with equal abandon, then it's a judgment call.
How do I make it?
In our case, they're presently in Saruna's room...which would make it awkward for Badru to call dibs on them...but they went after her minions sooner than Badru's...but only because they were greater in number, sooner to show up, and easier to reach.
Unless Badru just didn't show up at all and I just tilted them all Saruna's way, it feels like it would almost have to be a chat with one immediately after the other...and then what?
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RPG Superstar 2013 Top 4
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The other apprentice is going to retreat and engage in some paranoia while the PCs are talking with the first apprentice they speak with.
If they're already talking with Saruna, Badru's gone back to his workshop to reassess the situation and prepare his defenses in case these newcomers ally with his enemy.
As far as making a judgment call in general, I'd try to factor in everything I could about how the PCs present themselves when deciding which apprentice calls out to them after the fight in A2. Badru's going to be the less suspicious one since he wants the Sages to come back and wants to believe the PCs are them or their proxies. Saruna fears further betrayal, so if it's a coin flip I'd err toward Badru.
Hmmm. Thank you for the assistance.
Okay, I need more help now:
Having made them confront both of them at once, the party is now hoping they can get Saruna and Badru to make nice and work together - after all, don't they all have the same primary objectives (even if a couple of their secondary objectives may be at odds)? Is this even doable?
Also, Saruna wants revenge on the Amethyst Sage who betrayed her; how, if at all, can she get that? It has been sensibly pointed out to her that the Sage she knew ought to have died thousands of years ago...
[spoiler="Salvation of the Sages" spoilers]"Ought to have" being a key phrase there; if the Amethyst Sage who exploited Saruna is the same Amethyst Sage as the one met elsewhere, that might explain a lot.[/spoiler]
...on the other hand, might the person who betrayed her (who might not be THE Amethyst Sage, but AN Amethyst Sage) somehow show up later in this adventure?
Plus, they both want the PCs to get into the archive. Saruna to stop whatever's causing items to disappear, and Badru to get Amethyst back. The problem is, this requires a sage jewel, and the only alternative available in a reasonable amount of time requires the death of an apprentice. They both know this. Even if they somehow worked together for a time... eventually, one must die.
Wait, so they both have Sage Jewels inside them? Saruna just exposed her "heart" to the party, and one of the PCs did indeed just wonder if that's what it really is.
Can you point me to where in the PDF it says one needs to die, and why (or just explain it up-front here if you don't mind)? There's just too much of this PDF that's obstructively non-linear. I need to better understand that so I can figure out how to break it to the party that it will have to be one apprentice or the other.
She studied with him (page 9), so she should have known that he was looking for the life-extending secrets of a famous pharaoh (pages 5 and 3). He came back with a ritual he found in approximately the right area (page 9), ripped her heart out, and reanimated her as an undead. It seems reasonable to conclude that Amethyst would still be animate (and probably undead.) And if he isn't... well, she wants "vengeance" on the Sage, whatever form that might take. If all she can do is tell the rest of the order of his betrayal, tarnish whatever good name he had left, and make his peers curse his memory, that'll have to be good...
If the party sides with Saruna, will she get an opportunity to escape the complex? Is that even something she wants, or am I confused about that somehow?
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Both have a process to create a flawed sage jewel, but the ingredients include a vital part of the opposite apprentice, which can only be used by destroying the apprentice. The sidebar on page 13 explains it in detail. Page 11 explains Saruna's escape, mentioning "The sphinx knows that a geas effect prevents her from leaving, but she suspects that a true Jeweled Sage could remove the enchantment."
Venture-Lieutenant, Netherlands—Leiden
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So it looks like I may be running this with a paladin at the table. As Saruna and Badru are both evil, am I right in thinking that allying with either is a code violation? (Ducks and runs from paladin code thread, then cautiously peaks back in case a good answer appears.)
Well I don't think we should exaggerate the restrictions;
Associates: While she may adventure with good or neutral allies, a paladin avoids working with evil characters or with anyone who consistently offends her moral code. Under exceptional circumstances, a paladin can ally with evil associates, but only to defeat what she believes to be a greater evil. A paladin should seek an atonement spell periodically during such an unusual alliance, and should end the alliance immediately should she feel it is doing more harm than good. A paladin may accept only henchmen, followers, or cohorts who are lawful good.
The paladin shouldn't like it, and should keep hanging out with them, especially after the end of the adventure. But the adventure itself doesn't take long enough for a lot of consistent violation. And perhaps the paladin should have a talk with a spiritual counselor now and then. But it's not a Falling violation.
Put differently: paladins can play the adventure without being massively hosed.
The sequel, that's another story...