CARRION CROWN CAMPAIGN (CLOSED) - GAMEPLAY (Inactive)

Game Master Daniel Penfold 351

You are eventually introduced to the village elder, Lazne, the man who led the mob that drove the Beast away. He is a grizzly middle-aged man with dirty gray hair and skin the colour of swamp mud. He chews on a foul smelling swamp weed.

...Ah-hem. We are investigating the deaths at the hands of the Beast?

Ortensia was glad she wore a veil to mask her disgusted expression.

Make a Diplomacy check

Timona will get to work being impressionable and gathers information around the village. She asks about the strange occurances of late, the best and the elder Lazne.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (5) + 12 = 17

Then she will consider paying elder Lazne a visit.

Timona, the villagers are wary of you, they suggest it is only appropriate that you talk to Lazne

Unless anyone else is able to gather info, we should head over to Lazne.

Timona feels a little down about not being likeable enough and plays a slow sad song on her banjo.

You will need a separate Diplomacy check to get Lazne to open up

Zephra tags along behind Timona and Ortensia, feeling slightly out of place. She asks the elder about the fight the village had with the Beast, curious to hear how he would describe it. She watches him carefully while he talks, to see if she can sense anything about his motives.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (8) + 8 = 16

Still need a diplomacy check to get him to talk

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (9) + 12 = 21

Timona attempts to speak with Lazne.

The Beast, what a piece of scum (he spits). At first it only took lone villagers who were outside at night, but soon it became bolder and it began to attack houses. The attacks only ended when I organised the villagers and set a trap for the creature.

Hearing that the Beast survived was all I needed to be prepared to tell my story to the authorities, I want to see that thing burn.

"Ok so you're saying you found a 7 ft tall creature go into this water. Can you show me this location? I would like to investigate it. Thank you for your information, I don't really have any further questions for you unless my friends here do." Timona looks over at the others.

Whom exactly were the victims? asked Ortensia.

I can take you to close by the Boneyard, I won't go in there, it's forbidden ground for us.

He gives you a list of names, all of them essentially commoners

Curious. I'm not exactly an expert on alchemical creations such as flesh golems but they are stitched together from cadaver parts. Do they even bleed like living creatures or ichor? the half orc mused as she followed their guide.

"Well that depends, magic is a fickle thing. I wonder if everyone's even talking about the same beast, perhaps there are other creatures involved." Timona suggests we visit the forbidden grounds first to get more insight of our own before questioning anyone else.

"Excuse me, but did you say the creature swore? Do you mean it screamed like it was in pain, or that it actually cursed out loud?"

Yeah, it swore worse than I heard in my life, cursed out loud

Ortensia, flesh golems do not normally bleed normal blood

You arrive at the Boneyard. Its a tiny miserable island rising from the swamp,a tangle of trees covering its dour, reed-choked surface. Hundreds of fetishes hang from the trees-simple,roughly humanoid figures made of sticks and bound with twine. Larger fetishes are planted in the ground on various parts of the island, leaning drunkenly in the soft mud. A large nest built of sodden swamp wood sits high in the boughs of a trio of tangled trees on the northwest side of the isle.

Clearly, this is an entirely different sort of beast. The sooner we deal with it, the sooner we can prove the Beast wasn't responsible for this village's woes and merely a scapegoat. Ortensia paused by the area,casting a mental net to search for any psychic significance.

Cast Psychic Significance.

1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28Perception

Ortensia you get a psychic impression to the north (brown mark in strand of trees) and to the south (island just below last strand of trees)

Zephra shudders, thinking that this must be a terrible beast indeed to curse so, and briefly appears puzzled when Ortensia explains that she believes a different sort of creature is responsible.

Ortensia started northward, intent on a copse of trees where she found a brownish mark. She jotted down notes as she inspected the area, outlining her own theories according to the case.

I also wish to check an area south from here. Its an tiny isle at the last stand of trees.

Ortensia touched the brown marking with a gloved hand and sat in intense concentration.

Use Psychometry (Appraise)

1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21Appraise

You find a kind of nest on the ground which contains the corpse of a dwarf, it looks like he died a few weeks ago. There are marks similar to javelins in his body. The corpse wears a colourful patchwork coat which contains an oil of keen edge, a pack of bodybalm, a silver hip flask containing brandy worth 30gp, and a crimson felt purse containing 31pp and 22gp. A masterwork shortsword a wand of ghost sound (22 charges) lie on the ground nearby.

You also find in this area 6 graves that appear to have been tampered with, sagging into the ground as though they had collapsed from below, and leaving wide depressions in the muddy earth. These six graves seem empty

"Oh dear, we must be careful! Someone or something killed this dwarf at range, it looks like." She looks around warily.

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12

Hm. Odd. It looks like a...nest?There are--or were, six graves here. Now they're empty.

Ortensia collected the vial of oil and bodybalm and crimson felt purse. She took the shortsword ,wand, and silver hip flask and handed them off to Timona.

1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20Heal

What besides javelins could make these marks...?

"Maybe there are tracks we can follow."

Timona begins to play her banjo lightly to inspire competence. +3
Perception to find tracks: 1d20 + 7 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 7 + 3 = 24
Survival to follow: 1d20 + 1 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 1 + 3 = 13

Ortensia you think that the marks could have been made by some kind of animal, possibly a manticore.

Hidden in the tress is a coracle at the bottom of which appears to be some dried blood. The coracle contains an oar, a mouldy leather travel bag with a damp artisan's outfit and what appears to be a detached human face. A length of rope stretches from the boat into the water below, it looks as if a sack may be attached to it, although it is stuck in the mud.

...These may have been made by a manticore. Ortensia swallowed hard, gripping her flail.

Following Timona, she frowned at the scene. Either our culprit's disguise or its victim.

She seized the rope attached to the moldering satchel and pulled to see what iy was attached to.

Make a strength check

Timona will inspire your competence with a performance +3

Once Ortensia explains that she thinks the tracks were made by a manticore (and they explain to Zephra what a manticore is), she stays close and begins watching the sky warily.

The sack is very large and has dried blood soaked into its fabric. The sack contains some rope, a a gag, a rusted lantern, a trio of heavy knives, and a rusted shovel. There is also a leather-bound case filled with fine tools, made of silver with amethyst handles (worth 300gp).

Ugh! Dreadful. Ortensia shuddered at the sack's contents and what they implied.

She appraised the leather bound case and its fine tools. She stashed it into her backpack.

...We may have a serial killer operating out here,using the Beast to cover their crimes. Or cultists. Or any number of awful motivations.

In the distance you can hear a low growling noise

1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11Perception

Hearing the growling, Ortensia went very still.

Zephra draws and loads her sling in case there is indeed a manticore out there.

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19

Timona waits carefully for any sign of danger.

In the distance you can see a heavily pregnant manticore, it appears to be nesting in the trees

The manticore does not appear to have noticed you at present. Oh the face that you found in the bag looks as if it was surgically removed to make a mask, probably by using the tools you found in the case.

Ortensia felt cold sweat beading upon her brow. Not only a manticore, but a pregnant soon-to-be mother.

...Oh dear.

Ortensia slowly slid free her flail from her belt, mind working a way to extract herself and her companions from this situation relatively intact. A pregnant mother was already dangerous.

A pregnant nesting monster horrifically so. Especially in its hunting grounds.

She had no qualms about killing a monster, even a pregnant one. It meant removing one threat before it multiplied tenfold. Necessary.

The growling starts to get louder

Do we need to do initiative at this point?

Is there any way we can flee? Ortensia is right; we don’t need to fight it if we can leave it to its nest.

Ortensia motioned to her fellows to follow before ducking down and hurrying away as fast and as quietly as she could manage.

Timona follows quietly, agreeing we should take our leave and figure out what to do about this creature.

You manage to get back to the road leading out of Morast without incident.

What do you want to do next?

Well,it's clear that the Beast wasn't the culprit. Most likely the manticore was picking off villagers. Then while this was happening, some depraved individual wearing some unfortunate soul's face as a mask was robbing graves for whatever reason. Possibly they were run off by the angry villagers and left behind their...tools. Which we should take a closer look at.

1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22Appraisal

Ortensia you realise that surgical tool makers of this quality are rare. The raven symbol identifies the makers as one of a group of artisans in Anatomist's Alley in Lepidtstadt known as Zbraslav Hora and Sons

...Hm. These are tools used by vivesectionists. We can find the makers in Anatomist's Alley in Lepidtstadt known as Zbraslav Hora & Sons. We should pay them a visit along with the Beast's representative barrister.

"We should tell the villagers about what is really over there and they are right not to go there. Keep it that way." She looks over her shoulder back in the direction. "We should deal with the Manticore at some point."