Adventure Path Reign of Winter

Game Master Almonihah

Bulvi's explanation is enough to startle Maka in to the bushes, dragging Hace along with her. "But why would it want my soul!?"

"Even if we hide from the cabin, what does that accomplish? We either have to press forward, move to the cabin, or sit here for an unknown period of time." Hace says as he ducks into cover with the rest of the party.

"Nadia, any idea who this cabin could belong to? We desperately need food and I doubt many people would say no to some gold. Regardless, only one or two of us should approach. A large group could indicate that we mean trouble or could get us recognized." he says as he looks around the group. "Maybe just myself and Maka since we are the newest and the least likely to be recognized?"

Quasit will wear the rimepelt for now, if no one objects. She kinda needs that Fort save bump right now. :P

"Makes sense to me. We really do need to find some food. You two go on ahead and check it out. Fin and I can try and hide close by in case there's trouble."

"Oh, and since we're trying to be friendly, maybe don't take the crocodile up there right away?"

Rimepelt - This snow-white fur pelt of a winter wolf can be worn over the shoulders as a cloak. The pelt functions as furs, granting its wearer a +2 bonus on Fortitude saves to resist cold weather. The wearer can, as a standard action, transform into a Large winter wolf as if using beast shape IV. In certain special locations where winter wolves have the ability to take human form, such as the Howlings district of Whitethrone or the town of Redtooth, the wearer of a rimepelt in wolf form can take human form as winter wolves do, appearing as a whitehaired, blue-eyed human. In either wolf or human form, the wearer of a rimepelt smells like a winter wolf to other winter wolves and creatures with the scent ability. When the wearer returns to his normal form, or after 2 hours have elapsed, the rimepelt becomes a mundane winter wolf pelt.

So, I just want to be clear. (A) the Beast Shape into a big wolf thing is a one-shot use, and then the pelt becomes unmagical, including losing the +2 Fort vs cold? (Is unmagical a word? Screw it, it is now!) and (B) the white-haired blue-eyed thing is only an option at certain winter wolf hang-outs, and not, for instance, here. Correct?

Fin nods to Quasit. "Let me try to scout it out first...I may be able to get close unseen...you can watch my back from here..."

Fin will draw his bow and stealthily head towards the cabin, taking what cover he can and keeping alert for any danger...and checking for tracks as well. If he detects no one outside, he'll try to get close to a window and peek inside...

Stealth: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (19) + 12 = 31

Perception: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (18) + 10 = 28

Survival: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (6) + 8 = 14

Maka wrinkled her nose at the thought of approaching the cabin of soul eating dolls. However, the loud rumblings of her stomach made a strong counterpoint. "Okay fine yeah, but any dolls make a move on me and I'm burning the whole place down."

"Hey anyone home!?" She called out as she approached the cabin.

"Hey anyone home!?" She called out as she approached the cabin.

Quasit smirks and looks over at Bulvi. "Subtle. I like it." she quips quietly.

"Subtly isn't really her thing." he whispers to Quasit. While Fin sneaks around, Hace walks with Maka up to the front door.

Sakitu stares aghast at Maka. "Shhh! They will see or hear you!" She tries to pull Maka back into the bushes. She glares at Quasit. "It's not funny. Remember the last house we found. Actually, the last two. With the zombies and the doll." Her eyes are wide with fear and she remembers their harrowing encounters.

She glares at Quasit. "It's not funny. Remember the last house we found. Actually, the last two. With the zombies and the doll." Her eyes are wide with fear and she remembers their harrowing encounters.

"Saki, it might just be a house, hon." says Quasit gently. She looks back toward the house."I mean, it's not a gingerbread house, or an ice palace, or a creepy hut with chicken legs. I don't really get a witch vibe off this place. Sure I could be wrong, it might be dangerous, but I think it might be worth the risk. And we need food. Like, bad."

She looks back at Sakitu and gives her a cocky grin. "Trust me, I spot traps for a living. It'll be fine. And if it isn't we'll deal with it."

Quasit A) that is how it reads and what I found from others, an B) yes it is only certain locations, as its the same locations that allow the wolf to transform to a human

a strikingly beautiful, red-haired woman in a hooded coat comes out
of the cabin and hails them, asking for their help. She introduces herself as Sylgja, and explains that she believes her husband Finngarth was taken by a moss troll that lairs in a nearby cave.

Quasit exhales heavily and looks down at the ground. "Oh you're kidding me. Another person who needs our help? Am I cursed?" she grouses quietly to the people around her. Then she lifts her head again to watch how Maka and Hace handle things.

"That's not good, but not as bad as a soul stealing doll. Don't worry though, we'll save your husband!" Maka wastes no time in volunteering the group's aid. "Just point the way to that cave."

"I'd love to save your husband, but something cursed our food and some of us are absolutely starving. Is there any chance we could buy some food from you? I'm not sure all of us could even make it to the cave on our empty stomachs." Hace asks the red-haired woman.

"Just a house? You really think so?" Sakitu eyes the house again, just as the redheaded lady appears and introduces herself to Maka. Sakitu is still skeptical but the hunger in her belly is gnawing. She moves out of the bushes but stays cautious.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (3) + 0 = 3 Is she telling the truth?

"Well she's not a zombie... she could still be a witch though!"

Sense motive is something Hace can do pretty well. Going to put a lot more ranks in it next level though.

sense motive, take the better of 2d20: 2d20 ⇒ (20, 8) = 28
inspiration, take the best of 4d6: 4d6 ⇒ (2, 2, 3, 6) = 13
end result for sense motive: 20 + 4 + 6 = 30

"if you want I can offer you a play to stay for the night, you won't be harmed by any while here, as for food, I can prepare something for tonight, though I might be able to offer some of what in our storage room"

from Sylgjas tone, words, and attitude, you don't believe she is misleading you at all, and she speaks truthfully. she is mention the cave is about 1/2 a mile from the cabin (everyone has at least eaten and is no longer fatigued)

"Well she's not a zombie... she could still be a witch though!"

"Maybe..." says Quasit slowly. "There's something not quite right about this. But whoever or whatever she is, I think she might actually want our help. That part doesn't feel like a trick. And at least I don't see any birds around."

She sighs and hoists her pack onto her back, getting ready to stand up. "I swear though, if she offers me tea..." She purses her lips and shakes her head, leaving the rest mercifully unsaid.

"I wouldn't mind resting before going up against some trolls! What's so special about moss trolls anyway."

Fin emerges from the bushes by the house once everything looks kosher...

"What's so special about moss trolls? After what we've been through, my friend, you should expect these to be Bulvi-blinding, Q-maiming, Saki-knocking, Fin-slashing moss trolls...I'll have to wait a few more encounters to see if Hace and Maka have our 'luck' in battle..."

After eating, the Elf feels a bit refreshed, looking to his companions. "Let's go hunt some moss troll..."

When his friends are ready to go rescue the dude, Fin will draw his bow and stealthily scout ahead...

Stealth: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (6) + 12 = 18
Perception: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (15) + 10 = 25
Survival: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11

Sakitu scarfs down the food as quickly as she can without making herself sick. "Mmm. This is so good." The food and drink settles into her stomach and she begins to feel much better. She finds a spot near the hearth and folds her legs into a sitting position on the floor where she can soak in the warmth from the fire. With her eyes closed and a content smile on her face, she lets out a sigh, finally feeling relaxed. Until Fin mentions the moss troll. Her eyes shoot open.

"What? We have to go out there again?"

"Before we go anywhere, we need to get Bulvi fully healed." says Quasit. "Hace, would you like to do the honors, or shall I?"

"Nothing has gone wrong yet, but that doesn't mean it won't. Why doesn't someone more reliable heal him up until I can figure out my abilities." Hace says as he shakes his hands towards Quasit.

Sakitu scarfs down the food as quickly as she can without making herself sick. "Mmm. This is so good."

https://youtu.be/h8qUzPDFZys

3 healing charges to Bulvi, 1 charge to Quasit.

Just for the benefit of the new folks, we use the common PFS convention of 5 HP per charge from the CLW wand out of combat, by GM permission.

Maka joined Sakitu in scarfing down food. "Thank you...I was starving!" She mumbled through fist fulls of food. "I'm really glad you are a nice lady instead of a soul stealing doll." When finally full, Maka patted her belly in satisfaction before belching a small spurt of flames. "Main pooree tarah se taiyaar hai!" she exclaimed in Vudrani before rising and stretching.

"What? We have to go out there again?"

"Of course we have to go out there again, we have to save Sylgjas' husband. Plus I want to fight this moss troll." Maka replied to Sakitu.

"You want to find a troll?" Sakitu sputters. Sylgjas is over by the table in the kitchen area of the small house cleaning up after making the meal for everyone. Her body movements are slow and Sakitu can see sadness and anxiety on her face. "Yeah, I think we should. Rescue her husband that is. But I'd rather not fight a troll."

"Don't worry, I think Issalissk is a good match for a troll. Plus I'd really like to save this woman's husband. Losing the person you love most in the world has to be hard." Hace says as he looks down.

Looking back up with a serious expression, "The important question we need to think about is weather or not we are killing the troll. The troll is just surviving like everyone else out here, and I don't think it has much concept of good or evil. If we let it live and save her husband, whats to stop it from returning and kidnapping someone else? Sparing one life that could take many others is a hard choice to make."

"Of course I want to fight a troll, I hear they are tough. It's important to challenge yourself. Plus we get to help someone. As for killing it..." Maka's voice trailed off as she considered Hace's moral proposal. The calculations of her mind were visible on her face as she struggled with the situation. "Mmm lets just beat it up and we'll go from there."

the small cave isn't too hard to locate, the creature with doesn't look like any troll, but more of a man, covered in mold, that Sylgja mistook for a moss troll

Knowledge Nature for the mold

knowledge nature + spend 1 inspiration: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (16) + 9 = 25
inspiration, best of 2d6: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 4) = 9 Total of 30 knowledge nature.

"I've got a hunch that the woman's husband is the 'moss troll'. Could be a curse, disease, or something else. I wonder if we...or maybe I could heal him?" Hace says as he looks from the moss man to his hands.

"If it really is her husband, then burning him probably isn't a good idea. But I don't know if touching him is either." Maka said as she took up a defensive posture. She hated when fire wasn't a good option.

"He got cursed into being turned into a troll... could be worse... but it could also be a lot better. What makes you think he is the troll anyway?"

Hace turns to Bulvi and you get the feeling you're in for a long explanation, "Before I wound up here with Maka, I was an independent detective for the local guard. Call it intuition or critical thinking, but here's the facts. A woman thinks her husband was kidnapped by a troll. Turns out there is no troll, but a man that looks like the troll. It would be odd if someone just wore a moss troll disguise all the time and kidnapped people, or even more peculiar, only one person. Since I havent seen the husband and the troll in the same place at the same time, the possibility that they are one and the same exists.

Now for motive, if you began turning into a strange monster-like creature, would you stay at home with your wife? Will you have control over this form? Will other humans come to kill you, almost like we did, believing you to be a monster? Is it worth the risk? There is still the chance that none of this is the case, but it's the hunch I have based on the facts we have." Hace finishes his long-winded thought process explanation by trying to will some form of restorative magic into his hands.

"Before I wound up here with Maka, I was an independent detective for the local guard..."

Quasit turns and gives Hace an odd look.

"...Call it intuition or critical thinking, but here's the facts. A woman thinks her husband was kidnapped by a troll ... but it's the hunch I have based on the facts we have."[/b]

"Well I've fought enough trolls *this week* to know that's not a troll. It's too small to be a troll for one thing. It looks to me like a guy covered in mold. So unless anyone's got a better plan, lets try and kill the mold on him and then heal up the guy afterward. Maka, I think we should see if it burns. And I think the rest of us should try and keep our distance in case that junk is contagious."

Hace notices Quasit's look, "What, you dont like detectives? I wanted the real criminals to be punished for their crimes. Too many rich people like to buy a different 'truth'."

Fin will draw his bow while he tries to identify the mold...

Knowledge (Nature): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13

"I'm pretty sure thw current head of state in this place would have our heads on stakes if they knew what we had done. Taldor aint exactly Last Wall either... lines can get blurry. That said if the Grand Prince of Taldor knew what we had done peerage and a castle!" Bulvi snorts. "Fat chance of that."

Hace notices Quasit's look, "What, you dont like detectives? I wanted the real criminals to be punished for their crimes. Too many rich people like to buy a different 'truth'."

Quasit quickly looks away and shrugs. "I didn't say anything." she says nonchalantly.

so Hace, you can recognize the mold on the being, as Mindslaver Mold, it is from the first world

you'll have one action before being put into initiative

Just Hace, or all of us get one action?

Unless my one action can be an attack, I don't have any I want to take. If I have any questions about mindslaver molds the most important one would be, how do we free a creature from a mindslaver mold?

sorry would be just Hace, You can attempt to find it a new suitable host one willing or helpless, attempt to kill the mold, and could kill the host then kill the mold as it searches a new host

"It's mindslaver mold. Unless we give it a new host body, were going to have to kill it. Be careful with your attacks so as not to kill the husband." Hace says as he orders Issalisk to attack the mold.

Not sure if I get a free attack for my action, but I'll roll one for now in case we are waiting on it.

bite the mold: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (4) + 8 = 12
damage: 1d8 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10
free grab on hit?: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (6) + 12 = 18

Interesting question. If we grappled (or grabbed in this case) the mold, can we just rip it off the person?

As they approach the cave Sakitu cocks her head at a curious angle. "Uh. That doesn't look like any other trolls we've seen," she says about the same time the others come to the same conclusion. As they discuss how to save the man she looks more and more puzzled.

"If the mold is covering that guy, how do we attack it without harming the man too?"

"Can we find a rabbit or something for it to uhm migrate into?"

"You're suggesting we willingly enslave another living creature? Just aim for the mold and I'll see if I can keep the man underneath alive. Issy might be able to rip the mold off doing that death roll thing anyway." Hace says to Bulvi and Sakitu.

"You're suggesting we willingly enslave another living creature? Just aim for the mold and I'll see if I can keep the man underneath alive. Issy might be able to rip the mold off doing that death roll thing anyway." Hace says to Bulvi and Sakitu.

Quasit nods at this.