Cele's Jade Regent

Game Master Celestine8

Gutwad has a Dex penalty, it's not the same as being flat-footed.

Dangit! I was hoping.

So did we hit and damage him at all? I think it is Kravo/Licktoads now isn't it?

Right, Balathazar is stable and unconscious. Moving right along.And yes, yes you did hit

The goblin chieftan shrieks in pain from the missiles, the arrow buried deep in his chest and the rock slamming into his head hard. The wretched thing tries frantically to escape from his predicament. The razor sharp thorns slice deeper into his flesh. The creature rasps out in

1d20 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5

I believe it is Hijiro's turn right now. Celes seemed to say it takes a 15 to hit the Chief now. In which case I will once my turn comes around. I think he has less than 5 hit points left, depending on whether Hijiro hits him or not. If Hijiro hits, that may actually take him out. I certainly hope so considering he has managed to almost halve us by himself, if anybody else shows up we may well be done for.

Kravo is staying out of combat for now, as he's staggered, as far as I can remember. I'm not sure whether to just axe him or basically pull a 'my home planet needs me' with him. Gutwad has less than five hp left and is going down!

looking for the link to a copy of the map - will post shortly

Hijiro maneuvers for position, but really can't get any closer without stepping into the entangle field himself... he pulls out his last dagger and contemplates throwing it... pauses a moment then aims and throws anyway. He whispers softly as he throws "I absolutely need a missile weapon of some kind... maybe I'll buy a sling or a shortbow before I wander off into the wilderness again."

to hit 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18 damage if hits 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Boo Yah! Fox face gets the kill shot! We have a chance of surviving this!

For some reason I never spotted your second to last post before now Cele. I suspect we posted close enough to simultaneously I just didn't see yours.

At Gutwad's words Irnk's expression becomes even harsher as he spits a retort.

Goblin

"Please."

Sienna holds back a sudden outburst.

"What?! Why would you need to...?" She sighs, looks down at Balthazar, then returns her gaze to Irnk.

"Alright Pintsize, ask away, though if he tries to hurt any of us we will lash back at him. Though I'm not letting him loose from those vines."

Nicely done, 800 XP for all!

The goblin crumples against the brambles and thorns, unconscious and bleeding from his wounds.

to stabilize
1d20 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Quickly, making best use of what little time Sienna's acquiescence might give him, Irnk barks again at Gutwad.

Goblin

is that 800 xp EACH or to be divided among us all?

Hijiro leans against the nearest wall and looks down at his own wounds with a shake of his head. He speaks softly to those around him."That was a nasty fight. Now we know what kind of fireworks they are wielding. I don't think I want to run into another like him. Are all goblins this tough?"

"No, The Licktoad tribe is considered one of the lesser tribes in the area. Why do you think 'Points' & I were so surprised by the attacks?"
Does that include the XP bonus for Irnk's relationship with Shalelu?

Each, after adding it all up. No, Irnk, it isn't including that bonus. How much XP did you get? Also, Gutwad is unable to respond as Hijiro's kmife has dropped him into the negatives.

Friendship/Competition: You are a good friend or a known competitor of the NPC. The first time you reach this Relationship Level with an NPC, you gain 400 XP. Whenever you gain this Relationship Level with another NPC for the first time, you gain 200 XP.

So I guess 400 XP to be split between all of us. Which should put us each at a bit over half way to 2nd level, yay!

Catching his breath, Irnk looks from Gutwad's fallen form to each of you. "He's an evil, self-serving bastard, but if it were just me, I'd be trying to keep Gutwad from dying now & 'Point's can go hang. We." Gesturing at both the fallen Goblin Chief & himself. "Are both Goblins, after all."
Shoulders slumping with something akin to exhaustion, Irnk continues. "It's not just me though. I'm pretty sure we," Now indicating all of you, himself as well. "Can ONLY survive together out here right now. I don't know how many more Licktoads are left. Saving Gutwad might put us in better with them, it might not. If we don't we'll never know."

If you haven't already guessed, attempting to redeem others is going to be a fairly common tendency on Irnk's part.

Hijiro limps over and looks for the dagger that missed it's mark... then walks over to the fallen goblin leader and looks down at the dagger protruding from him. "If I take it out of him, that alone might kill him. Best if he gets SOME healing first, even if it's just bandaging him up if you want him alive. But I would like my dagger back at some point."

Sienna mutters something under her breath, then says.

"This had better be worth it, anyone have a set of ropes to tie this Goblin up for when he wakes up?" Sienna let's the thorns go from the unconscious goblin then goes to stabilise him and tend to removing the dagger.

Taking 10 on heal check, so 20 heal.

Afterwards she let's someone tie him down and let whomever wants to talk to him do so. She then walks over to Hijiro. "Mind if I tend to your wounds Jiro? I'll need to do the same for Balthazar."

If Hijiro accepts, 20 heal check for both Balthazar and Hijiro to recover one hit point/lvl. It's something for now.

Success! He's stable and Hijiro get his dagger back

"Thanks for the bandages... and the dagger too. Guess I oughta get some rope before we venture out again after this. Does anyone else have rope?" Hijiro looks around the area a little - maybe the goblins had something that would suffice as rope if no one in the party does.

CMB check to bind Gutwad with his own clothes 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6, well that is almost as bad as a wet bag...
Irnk strips Gutwad & uses his own rags to bind him for the moment, calling out in goblin as he does so.

Goblin

Unless time winds up being a factor, Irnk is going to take 20 (for a grand total of 19) on his search attempt, which means it will take about an hour or so I guess.

Everything's in plain sight, so you see this before any extensive searching goes one

A strangled cry comes from the swamp where the goblins retreated from and the sound of frantic movement follows. Irnk notices a beautiful chest made from deep red stained laquered wood, coated in mud, sitting against the wall next to the Chieftain's filthy bed and a rickety chair on stilts that must have been Gutwad's throne. It's decorated by long-legged, graceful cranes playing along a sandy beach with frogs. It's definitely not goblin in design.

"Hee-Jee-Rho, whatever your name is, take a look at that." Irnk calls out, pointing at the obviously not-from-around-here chest as he strides in the direction of the sounds, picking up & readying his Dogslicer along the way.
Perception 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (12) - 1 = 11, to get an idea what is out there.

edit: Just realised I didn't indicate where Irnk stopped.

Once Irnk is between Gutwad's unconscious form & the sounds, he stops, calling out in Goblin.

To tie up an unconscious target is free, the DC to break it is 20+CMB (CMB of the guy doing the tying up of course.)

Sienna picks up Balthazar slowly with a bedroll from her underneath him so he isn't touching her and lays him inside the house. Sienna then looks to the doors, windows and the like to figure out how to turn this into a slight defensible position to rest in. Fearing the worst and possibly having to stay here overnight.

Survival: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (2) + 10 = 12

Hijiro examines the chest searching for traps or other dangers...

perception 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11

If there are none, he opens the chest very cautiously and looks inside. If there are traps, he attempts to disarm it/them.

disable if nec 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (4) + 8 = 12

Oops, the rickety chair is in the throne room, just one room over and the Chief has stuff on him

A goblin scrambles out of the undergrowth, on the other side of the palasad wall and sees Irnk through the window, an arrow protruding from his arm. He climbs into a bush just under the window and whispers

Sienna notices a secret door leading out of this room, into a small room that connects to another area and the outside. It would be easy to sneak out of here and outside, if needed, but the goblins would probably know about it. A ladder is propped up against the door that leads out of this building and down to the floor.

There appear to be no traps on this chest. Hijiro opens the Tian chest and peers inside. The chest is velvet lined and a work of art, in and of itself and definitely of Tian-Min design. Six masterfully designed shuriken lie atop a pile of silver and gold coins, along with a long hairpin with a red pearl at one end, and a folded fan, the outside made from gold and ivory.

Kravo heals Balthazar and Hijiro.

For Balthazar

1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6

For Hijiro

1d8 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9

Balthazar sits up seeming a little lost. He sees Kravo and Hijiro close to him, and looks around as he stands up. He puts his hands over the tears and blood stains in his clothes and notices his wounds are mostly healed. "Is everyone ok?"

I thought Shalelu was going up to Thistletop with her friends?

At the Goblin's words Irnk responds in kind, sheathing his Dogslicer as he does so.

Goblin

Balthazar approaches Hijiro and, standing next to him, looks at the contents of the chest. As he spots the shurikens, he smiles and says "I never imagined goblins using these. We had some at the temple, but from what I've heard they are not common in Varisia." He bends down and picks them up. "May I keep them? I think they are safer out of goblin's hands." He seems impressed by the amount of gold and silver inside the chest.

Balthazar leans over and whispers to Hijiro "Do you understand Irnk and the other goblins?"

Hijiro shrugs and whispers back, "Not a word" He examines the rest of the items in the chest and nods to Balthazar taking the shuriken. "I think we'll need to split the rest of these items up to carry them back with us."

Sienna looks at Balthazar a little worried.

"Are we okay? You were knocked out and you are asking..." She sighs.

"I think most of us are alright, a little bruised but not dead. Anyway there's a secret door out of this place, wouldn't be surprised if some Goblins already left through that way. I wonder if there is anything else around here other than that chest. They have been stealing from caravans recently after all, I'd like to get at least some of their valuables back to the owners of those caravans." She looks down at the ground and sighs again. "If any of them are alive that is. I know what it's like to be robbed on the highway... not fun to say the least."

Hijiro empties the chest careful of any breakable items and makes sure there are no hidden compartments or items under the coinage. He wraps the coins and the hairpin in scraps of cloth and divides them among the party to carry back with them.

Before packing it up, he examines the fan more closely to see if it is of Minkaian make like the chest. What an odd thing to find out here in the marsh in Varisia. Perhaps Ameiko would like it. Wonder if the others would let me have it to give to her. After examining the fan, he tucks it into his belt rather than packing it in with coins.

Did you open the fan, Hijiro? Also, Shalelu mentioned to Wanwa'lasse that she would be out, making a sweep of the area around the goblin village, to ensure that you weren't attacked by reinforcements. I'm sure she would have mentioned this to Irnk, as well.

Most of the coins that spill out of the chest are odd shaped, round with square shaped holes. Hijiro recognizes them from his homeland, as well. The pin is the type that's stuck through the various topknots and coifs that Minkain women wear. It might have been imported, but it's not what a regular caravan would carry. Whatever spoils that had been gotten from the caravans might have already been consumed or, more likely, spent by the Chief to make some of the expensive and new-looking equipment he's got on him.

The goblin nods, burying himself further in the bush.

Balthazar looks at Gutwad laying tied up and unconscious. "Have you searched him for hidden weapons and such? If we are to take him back to the sheriff, we'd better not take chances."

Hijiro probably would have opened the fan to examine it, to confirm whether it is Minkaian or not. Is there something special about the fan when it's opened?

Yes!

When Hijiro opens the fan, the soft silk on the inside is painted with a colourful gecko walking among cherry blossoms. Showing through, from the other side is a crude drawing painted in ink. Closer examination reveals a map, with multiple landmarks indicated on it, some of which are familiar. The Licktoad Village, Walthus' home and the road to Sandpoint, others are not.

"Hey, look everyone, I found a map... this village is on it, Walthus' home and the road. There are other things marked I don't know, but someone obviously did to make this map. I wonder what they are."

Hijiro shows the map to the others.

"Hmm. It is a shame that someone would spoil such an exquisite object with these rough drawings... unless it was supposed to remain hidden inside the closed fan. I wonder if the map was drawn by its original owners or by one of the Licktoads..."

"The map is rather crude. Hard to say who did it, but it might have been done by the goblins, or perhaps by whoever they stole the fan from. The fan itself is Minkaian as are the coins and the hairpin, and probably the shuriken as well. It would be interesting to find out where these goblins got such items which are so far from their land of origin."

As Irnk used Gutwad's own clothes to bind him, you could say he 'searched' him in the process. Perception 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (4) - 1 = 3, to find anything when he did it.

During the other's conversation, Irnk makes his way up one of the walkways to the highest point of the village he can readily reach. At Balthazar's inquiry he responds. "There wasn't anything else on him when I bound him. His clothes are in as bad a shape as he is." Then he bellows to the Swamp surrounding the village.

"Damnit Shalelu! Did you have to SLAUGHTER this one too?!?! There is NO Licktoad Tribe! Are you HAPPY now?! Did THIS make you feel better?! Go back to Sandpoint, you're done here for now!"

With that, he hops down & walks over to the part of the wall the other Goblin was behind.

Goblin

Turning & walking back to the others, "We should go elsewhere to rest & recover. You won't want to do so here, this place is filthy." He then dismantles Gutwad's 'throne' to make a travois to bring him with them. If no-one stops him or interjects, once he is done, Irnk rolls Gutwad onto the travois & starts dragging it back in the direction of Walthus' place.

Gutwad has 5 very finely made arrows,2 vials labelled in

Before Irnk walks back the goblin whispers,

A few moments later, just outside of the village, the elf, Shalelu Andosana steps out near the palasade walls, looking unimpressed. [b]"Irnk, you're lucky I was out there. I doubt you could have handled the hunting parties those fireworks attracted. Maybe you don't understand why this is a problem, but they've been trying to kill and rob people and damned near succeeded far too many times for us to just let this go."

Sienna wanders around the camp to the dead goblins and taking off their ears as proof to the sheriff of their deeds. She figures they are also bringing back the chief though alive or dead is another matter. As Shalelu comes out of the woods she just raises her hand as greeting.

"If that was you shooting stragglers and other parties thank you for the support. Much appreciated, least this tribe won't be bothering anyone any more."

Shalelu nods, "No, they won't. How many did you get in that village? The numbers still seem so few for a whole tribe of them."

I don't actually remember how many we killed.

"We got a fair number of them, and what I presume is their chief. Though you are right, this is not enough for a full tribe. We weren't the first ones to get here. Someone got here before us and killed quite a few of them we presume." She points towards the pit with the skeletons in them.

"I'm not entirely sure but it looks like someone used something more sinister to dispose of the goblins. They also took away what I presume is a chest away from the goblins. I suspect Pintsize knows a little more as he has been talking to a few of them ... about.. something."

My count is seven. Lots retreated

Shalelu scowls and clambers over the wall,"Pintsize, huh?" a ghost of a smile flashes across her face," From what he said moments ago, I suspect that you're probably right. Sending undead after anyone, even goblins, is disgusting. I don't think I know anyone in town who would have done it." She looks around the village, pausing in front of the mud pit, bending down and picking up a splintered piece of... cage? And shakes her head."Did you fight any mounted ones? I see some tracks from their oversized rats around here."

So, obviously, Irnk doesn't get farther than to say the party shouldn't stay here. to rest. Also, rather than saying Gutwad didn't have anything on him, Irnk would have indicated the items, am I correct that the armor & weapons are all Small? Finally, Sense Motive 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15, to determine if the Goblin is genuine in his recommendation that another Goblin besides Gutwad should accompany us to Sandpoint to plea for peace.

At Shalelu's words Irnk bristles. "Tell them that 'Points'." He says, indicating the rest of you. "I UNDERSTAND why this is a problem. I understand better than anyone present. For the past several generations you lot have been practicing Genocide, badly , and you are somehow amazed that the Goblin Problem hasn't simply resolved itself. We breed like rats & we die like rats! The only thing your murders have ever done, is give us a focus for our rage."

This is why it's a bad idea for me to do this before work. I have to get ready for work now & I really want to continue this scene!