Aubrey's Rise of the Runelords campaign (Inactive)

Game Master Aubrey the Malformed

As soon as the others are ready to wake the goblin, Illes approaches Tsuto's cell with a wry grin and pulls out the flute he swiped from the half elf. "Tsuto... my friend! I really have to thank you for this flute! It's an amazing piece of work. Let me show you what I mean..."

Illes leans against the wall near Tsuto's cell and begins to play a light and carefree traveling song while the others find out what they need to know.

I'm going to use Fascinate on Tsuto to prevent him from interrupting, threatening, or coaching the goblin. Perform: 18+14 = 32 vs DC of his will save. If he has levels in bard, he could try a countersong each round, which will be fun battle of the bards style. And I'm pretty confident I'll smoke him every round. :) But I can't do it for all that long. All 7 of my music uses for the day will only get 2 minutes, but it's worth it. Illes just wants to prove he can play with Tsuto's brain. If we need more time after that I'll get into some ghost sound shenanigans.

If it turns out we need it to get whatever we want to know, I'll run over and buy a scroll of charm person. Otherwise I think Hudak or Dravite can probably scare it out of the little goblin.

Scarzi...Scarnetti... coincidence?

Elisile shivers slightly as they enter the cell block. She hates prisons … enough so that she even feels a momentary twinge of sorrow for Tsuto being locked up in here.

“Let us just ask the goblin how to get over to their island, then be on our way.” She murmurs to her companions on the way in. “I doubt it will have much more of use to tell us.”

...I am charm person...

In the interim 3 days, I gathered what I could of the remaing levy and militia, as well as any volunteers, and built as many crude mangonels as possible, and showed the crew to put the rocks and where not to stand... (yay profession siege engineer)

In the council meeting, I remain silent, making musing eye contact with my cousin, or subconciously scratching the unit tattoo on my arm.

I stand back, listening patiently as the group asks the goblin questions...

Dravite sits down on a bench in front of the cell and begins cleaning and sharpening his massive hook. "Ye guys can be asking all de questions o' dis one ye be needin' an' he be answerin' or I will be needin' ta clean me hook again...."

"Does anybody have a hammer and some nails?"

Dravite pulls out his warhammer from it's holster across his back and hands it to Hudak. "Tis a bit big but solong as ye be usin' somethin' big fer nails ye won be hittin' yer hands. I be suggestin' daggers instead o' nails. Helps ya get yer "point" across. Heh-hee....

Hudak pulls out the drawing book, and starts perusing it a bit in front of Tsuto. Then, he puts it away.
Then, he pulls out the little quasit's nightgown, and will douse it with harpy musk. This he will wrap around the sleeping goblin's head, with some grapple assistance.
"Wakey, wakey!!!"

If rolls are appropriate here, maybe Lo'j should handle it with diplomacy. We could go the intimidate route with one of the toughs, but I bet Lo'j's supermaxed score smokes them.

That being said, Hudak holds off from his immediately prior suggestion; let Loj do his thing.

Nah, go for it. A little good cop, bad cop. You'll soften him up for Lo'j.

giggle, giggle giggle...

"Little goblin, tell me your name. We men, we are a forgiving breed. We would like you to have the chance to redeem yourself, to atone for the damage your fellows have done here. You cannot be fairly blamed for everything, but you will be. That is unless you help us, help us find the real cancorous creature manipulating your people. Using you to attack sandpoint. Throwing away goblin lives. Help us, and you can go home to you kin. You can bring a message of peace, and understanding between our peoples. Or, would you rather see all your kin fed to the long toothed whore-mother of monsters for some outsiders gain?"

diplomacy = 20(nat)+20=40 (giggle, giggle...)

Scarzi...Scarnetti... coincidence?

Completely.

Without wanting to be difficult, Diplomacy is language-dependent. I don't know what languages Lo'j speaks as it isn't written down, and the Goblin doesn't speak Common (which = Chelaxian, in case you wondered, as an aside - it's mentioned by JJ in another thread somewhere, but I digress). So if Lo'j doesn't actually speak Goblin, he can drip all the honeyed words he likes with his natural 20, the goblin will remain unimpressed. So - want to note on your character sheet your languages? And no - no one else can benefit from his roll either if he doesn't speak it but someone else does. Before you ask.

We must all be able to understand Goblin - we understood the goblin song ...

Yep, I'm being difficult. Actually I think that goblins (and various other races) NOT speaking Common makes a lot of sense, despite what it might say in the MM.

We must all be able to understand Goblin - we understood the goblin song ...

Er, um, yeah.... <scratches head>

After a quick check it looks like, other than possibly Lo'j, only Elisile and Illes speak goblin. Elisile will have a +0 on all social skills. Illes will have Diplomacy +3, Bluff +9.

Lo'j's language line currently reads: Common, Cheliax, Varisian, Dwarven, but isn't showing in his profile. If Celiaxan is common, then I have a language coming. Claiming it was gobliln now would be a bit hinky. If goblin is a common military enemy of Magnimar, I would have it, otherwise I would have something else. Doesn't cover the singing though...

Lo'j's language line currently reads: Common, Cheliax, Varisian, Dwarven, but isn't showing in his profile. If Celiaxan is common, then I have a language coming. Claiming it was gobliln now would be a bit hinky. If goblin is a common military enemy of Magnimar, I would have it, otherwise I would have something else. Doesn't cover the singing though...

You would probably know 1 enemy language....maybe Orc, Goblinoid, or giant. Make a list of likely candidates and roll on Invisible castle to see what you get. That's my suggestion.

Sounds fair to me, if aubmeister wants to set the odds... (since for all i know there are no goblins within 9 score leagues of magnimar)

When it becomes clear that the goblin does not understand Lo’j (or is pretending not to understand Lo’j), Elisile sighs in exasperation and pushes forward towards the cell. “Listen to me goblin,” she says in that language. “Tell us how to get to Thistletop. It is an island, how do you get across to it? If you are helpful, these humans might not kill you.”

Untrained Intimidate: 12

Sounds fair to me, if aubmeister wants to set the odds... (since for all i know there are no goblins within 9 score leagues of magnimar)

(Goblins are common north of Magnimar and Sandpoint. It is perfectly conceivable you would know it from defending the borders of the realm. It would be a shame to waste a 20.)

As interrogations go, it is a strange one. While Illes plays a haunting melody on Tsuto's flute, who watches with a glazed expression, Lo'j chirrups and gurgles in the goblin's language, while engaging in the bizarre pantomime that passes for goblin body language. It is a masterly performance from both party members, and Lo'j extracts the necessary information.

Thistletop is approached through low, narrow tunnels through the brambles that surround it on the shore in a sort of maze. This is guarded by a contingent of goblin troops. A short bridge leads from the mainland to the island itself. On top is a wooden palisade and hall, and underneath are old tunnels. The goblins use the top level of tunnels, and the tall ones have explored deeper than the goblins dared to. It is rumoured that a sleeping god dwells within the deepest layers, and the tall ones seek to release it to destroy Sandpoint.

"Good little goblin. Now we don't hurt you."

"Good little goblin. Now we don't hurt you."

Does killin' it count fer hurtin' it? *Dravite asks with an innocent look on his face.* I willnae be makin' it painful, by me honor. *Dravite grips the handle of his hook in a mean-looking fashion, letting the point rotate slightly.*

"Thanks again Tsuto. Glad you enjoyed my song. By the way- I should tell you we loved your sketches. That was some choice work." Illes pinches his thumb and first two fingers together and kisses them. "Can't wait to meet her in person. Maybe she'll have two mutant crawdad pincers by the time we get there... maybe a third witches tit! I'm getting hot just thinking about it."

"Tsuto, who are these tall ones the goblin talks about? What is this sleeping god?"

Whoops. Maybe I shoulda taunted him after the follow up questions. Oh well.

Naah, it's cool. I've got...an angle.

Tsuto blinks at Illes sudden change of tack. He then sneers, "Laugh while you can. You are all doomed. Run off to Thistletop and die.". He then just stares up at the ceiling and smirks.

"You know who's laughing, Tsuto? Nualia's laughing. You get to dance-the-rope, and she gets to replace you with supple fresh meat. Can you hear her, Tsuto? She's laughing and other things...hmmm....I wonder if she'll cry out your name."

Hudak looks at his comrades, with a big s*!% eating grin on his face.

"You've been had,......little child."

Larken has looked uncomfortable since the party first stepped into to jail, and as the interrogations, threats, taunts, and near-outright lies fly, he becomes obviously less and less comfortable. After Hudak's last rant, Larken wordlessly slips from the room, and heads back to the inn.
Once in his room, he starts throwing his things into a backpack.

"Hey, Tsuto! I think you scared him!"

Elisile is also feeling uncomfortable with the environs and the threats, and slips out after Larken. “They do like to pose and posture, don’t they?” she comments softly.

eat your heart out, Radik!!! Hudak has a goofy laugh, I've decided, like Ted Knight in Caddyshack...
"Oh, man. You really are a frightening individual, Tsuto."

Heh-Heee! Hudak, I be thinkin' ye hit that thar nail right to the head! Tsuto here knows that de claw-handed slut ain't awaitin' his arse to return. She be findin' another Jack to dance de line fer her.
Dere be no purpose served wit' us stayin' 'ere! Dis one be too stoopid to be seein' de way thing be.
Let's roll. Dere be Gobbos to be killin'.

Larken glances at Elisile and replies, just as softly, "Pose, and poke sleeping dogs with sticks, and pull wings from flies. I'm a thief. You know that, right? I steal from people with more than, well, than me. I never considered myself a good guy. But to mock an enemy when he can do nothing but sit in his CAGE and wait for the hangman? How can anyone enjoy that? And they were. Enjoying it."
He shrugs, before continuing, "I wish the blasted sheriff would get back. I've made more money than I ever thought to see before someone cut off my hand, and you know what? It's not enough. Not nearly. Monsters... demons... armies of goblins... those I can deal with. I can handle them being awful. But people who want me to trust them? Who want to be my friends? It makes my stomach hurt."
He shakes his head, and says in elvish, "I never want to wake up and be... like that."
He smiles sadly, bows to Elisile, and takes his leave.

Aubrey, is there another inn in town?

There are several - the obvious one would be the Hagfish.

Assume that "interrogation day" is when Vethran is doing his spell scribing. He wouldn't really be very helpful in such a situation anyway. I made all the requisite checks and, once I catch up on how the loot got distributed, I will deduct the appropriate share from my funds. Ghoul Touch will be added to the spellbook.

OK, you have interrogated the goblin, freaked out Larken and taunted Tsuto. Anything else you want to do, or are we done?

"Looking forward to it" Illes nods to Tsuto. "If it turns out to be my time I'm willing to bet Desna offers a much more pleasant hereafter than Lamashtu. But that's not what I see in the stars."

Illes steps outside and stretches while thinking over things and putting them into place then heads out to grab a few last items in preparation for the raid. Eventually he meanders back to the tap room at Ameiko's place and asks around about the Scarnetti clan and their history in Sandpoint.
Bardic Knowledge: 12+5 = 17
Gather Information: 3+9 = 12

Poking fun at the monster mutant girlfriend of a guy who massacred an entire factory and encased his own father in molten glass made Larken not like us anymore?

Aubrey did you stick with a ruling of potions-whose-target-is-'personal' are not available?

Poking fun at the monster mutant girlfriend of a guy who massacred an entire factory and encased his own father in molten glass made Larken not like us anymore?

My thoughts exactly, not to mention was in on plans to overrun and destroy the entire town.....I'm sure they would've treated the survivors really well...

moving this discussion to... the discussion thread

Larken moves to the Hagfish.

Eventually he meanders back to the tap room at Ameiko's place and asks around about the Scarnetti clan and their history in Sandpoint.

Bardic Knowledge: 12+5 = 17
Gather Information: 3+9 = 12

No one much wants to talk about it, but Illes remembers that Sandpoint used to be a Varisian village of old, but in its modern form it was developed by Chelaxian immigrants from Magnimar. An ancestor of Scarnetti's tried to massacre the Varisian inhabitants to sieze total control in the early days of the Chelaxian settlement, which in fact precipitated the expuslsion of the Chelaxians by the surviving Varisians. In the end, the Chelaxians were allowed to return after an ancestor of the Mayor's brokered a deal, recognising the rights of the Varisians and guaranteeing their participation in the town's wealth, religion and affairs. That said, virtually the whole town council is Chelaxian, as is the wealth.

Aubrey did you stick with a ruling of potions-whose-target-is-'personal' are not available?

Yes - I think it is in the DMG under potions or the making thereof, but I am happy to be corrected.

That can't be right because prices for the potions of sanctuary and mage armor are listed in the dmg with the other potions. I'm not going to get the sanctuary anyway as the dc would be too low to be worthwhile, but it's good to know your options. I'll look it up in the morning.

(Both Sanctuary and Mage Armour are Range: Touch. Shield is an example of a Personal range spell - no potion for that listed, not that that is necessarily definitive.)

(Edit: see page 286 of the DMG - it is there in black and white.)

My mistake. I thought you had brought it up in reference to the sanctuary spell so I just misunderstood what you meant and hadn't looked it up yet.

"We need three days' worth of food and a couple of tents. We march tomorrow morning and camp an hour or so away from the goblins' lair, wipe them out the next day and then march back. How's that for a plan?"

"I'll kick for the camping gear, since I didn't need any equipment."

I'll look it over at home and do it up like Rodergo did.--tents, rope, lanterns, whatnot...I'm at work, scanning patients damn near all day today.
Everybody buy their own food though, if you would; it's a bicth to keep track of.

"We need three days' worth of food and a couple of tents. We march tomorrow morning and camp an hour or so away from the goblins' lair, wipe them out the next day and then march back. How's that for a plan?"

Should we be gittin' us a mule or somefin ta be haulin' dis gear?

"Urk!!! I have enough of your ornery mug, now I need a mule?"