The stone stairs suddenly give way to wrought iron stairs that open into a vast cave. The air in this vast grotto is cool. An iron-framed flight of spiral stairs winds up through a hole in the ceiling in the northwest section of the room from the top of a semicircular ledge. The ledge winds down along the cavern’s inner wall to a series of rope bridges that descend even lower from ledge to ledge. The upper ledge, before it reaches the ropes, is a strangely breathtaking beauty—a garden of all manner of strangely colored fungi, lichens, and molds. The fungi have been cultivated, shaped into all manner of symmetrical patterns normally not seen in nature, transforming the ledge into a sort of underground fungal garden. Here and there, flickering torches burn in sconces above the fungi, while from somewhere in the darkness below comes the soft splash of water against an unseen shore.
You pass down the rope bridges, which despite appearances, are quite stable. Three rope ladders descend even deeper into the cave, connecting three progressively lower ledges on the wall until finally reaching a stony protrusion at ground level. This protrusion rises from a rocky beach overlooking the sloshing waters of a sea cave. There are two doors you can see: one a smaller single door and the others are two great stone doors, decorated with images of beasts and Chamidu. In addition there is a stone wall with a mosaic of Chamidu on it.
Slumper looks at the group for reassurance before placing his hand on the middle left palm hand of the mosaic.
When Slumper's hand touches the mosaic, there is a subtle grinding noise, then the entire wall swings inward like a door, revealing a long tunnel ahead that tilts slightly downward. The tunnel curves sharply to the north
here, ending at a pair of large bronze double doors, each carved with images of tigers chasing other tigers in four adjacent circles. At the center of each circle of tigers, a snarling tiger head looks out.
Pai casts Detect Magic and inspects the tiger images.
Corbyn draws his shortswords and readies himself for the door's opening.
"Be careful of traps, I don't like those forward facing tiger heads. Corbyn, Can you check them? "
She casts guidance on Corbyn.
Pai was actually planning on just looking at the tiger head type things on the door. "I agree, Rueprta. Those things just look weird."
The door radiates no magic, and as Corbyn moves to examine the door, he discovers it opens silently and lightly as a feather, despite its size and obvious weight. The room beyond is small, barely more than an entryway into the room beyond that. Two statues, each depicting a tiger-headed man, stand in alcoves to either side of the doors. Their arms are wide, as if to usher visitors forward into the room beyond.
Two alcoves adorn either side of this otherwise empty room. In one alcove, a long lever with an ebony handle protrudes from the wall. Otherwise, this seems to be a dead end.
Perception
Pai points out the strange gap to the others.
Detect Magic on the statues as well.
Corbyn will also move to a constant state of searching for traps.
The statues do not radiate any magic. Corbyn's searching reveals no traps, but after studying the lever and the gap, he can surmise that the room on this side of the gap is able to move, possibly to shift in response to the lever.
Suddenly, as you look around, you can faintly hear Vencarlo Orsini's voice calling out, "Help! Anyone, please! Help!" It seems to be coming from the gap in the wall.
Slumper steps forward motioning everyone into the arc of the gap before pulling the lever.
Pai follows Slumper's lead, going where directed.
With a sudden grinding noise echoing through the dungeon, the room begins to rotate. Suddenly the passage behind is gone, blank wall in its place, but just as suddenly a room appears in front of you! The room is small, with two wings. In one wing a similar lever sits; in the other a door sits. Directly in front of you, huddled on the ground and looking somewhat befuddled, is Vencarlo Orsini. He wears no armor, but has a kukri and several javelins in a sling on his back.
"Thank the gods! I've been hoping someone would find me in this accursed place!"
Corbyn whispers to himself, "Too easy," and begins scanning the area.
"Orsini, this sounds strange, but please tell me something only you would know about us. We have been told you are unable to be released from this labyrinth but you are directly at the entrance, something does not add up here. There are things you know about us, like when we first helped you....please tell me about that scene, and we'll be sure it is indeed you."
"You helped me on the Ambassador incident. Please, we have to get out of here! You've been set up! There is a dangerous monster down here and that Arkona bastard, Glorio, he sent you down here to be killed!"
"You are not Orsini. He would remember exactly how we met, and you've not got the story right. Take your true form and let's discuss this like adults."
The next morning you are escorted into Field Marshall Kroft's offices, where the Marshall herself waits, along with a dashing looking older man with white hair and a rakish manner, a young human woman still dusty from the road and a pretty young female gnome, her green hair in a bun. The field Marshall bids you sit and nods to the older man. He introduces himself as Vencarlo Orsini, a Korvosan 'patriot' as he says.
"I am a simple man, but I happen to have connections in the city, which brings me here." He smiles and begins to launch into a speech on the virtues of your service to Korvosa, which is both charming and funny, in a very self deprecating manner, until the Field Marshall cuts him off.
"As much as I would enjoy continuing the conversation, I fear we just don’t have time. Vencarlo has often come to me with news of important changes on the streets, and this is no different—indeed, what he’s learned could degrade into sanctions, embargos, or even war against Cheliax if we don’t act now. This problem is a man named Darvayne Gios Amprei. You might have heard of him—he’s an ambassador from Cheliax whose disdain for Korvosa is well documented, and yet he’s taken great pleasure in what our city has to offer. Even before this recent unrest, this man was ready to recommend to his government a sanction on trade, or perhaps even an embargo. Vencarlo has learned through his own considerable sources that Ambassador Amprei’s actual goals are to undermine Korvosa’s economy to the point where he can buy up large portions of the city from desperate landholders and establish himself in a position of power here. Whatever the ambassador’s reasons, we can’t let his bias or personal plans hurt Korvosa. Yet neither can we take drastic action—not only would killing him be wrong, but it’d simply martyr him in Cheliax’s eyes.
“Fortunately, Darvayne has his foibles. Again, Vencarlo has learned that Ambassador Amprei has been making fairly regular visits to a place in Old Korvosa called Eel’s End. This den of vice is run by a dangerous man named Devargo Barvasi, better known in Korvosa’s alleys as the King of Spiders. I’d love to put Barvasi out of business, but he pays his vice taxes regularly and never causes any problems—in fact, since he keeps his business constrained entirely within the five ships moored at Eel’s End, he’s actually one of the least of my worries. Truth be told, I can’t decide whether Devargo is a stirge or a kraken. He seems like a bloodsucking pest most days, but sometimes I fear just how far his tentacles have wormed their way into our great city. In this case though, his insidious web stretching across Korvosa’s underworld might prove to our advantage.
“Devargo would never let someone he recognizes as an ally of the Guard into Eel’s End, but your group’s a different case. I’d like you to pay a visit to Eel’s End and secure an audience with Devargo. Find out what he knows about Amprei, get proof of any illicit goings-on the ambassador might be involved with, and bring that proof to me to use to undermine any forthcoming attempts by him to get Cheliax to cut us off.
Devargo might not be willing to part with his information easily. I’ll supply you with some gold to bribe him, and whatever’s left over you can keep for yourself. Remember: the man is dangerous, but so are you—if things get violent, I wouldn’t mourn his passing.”Kroft hands you a pouch with 1,000 gp in it. She then introduces Pai Kromnite, the gnome and Ruperta of Hetzau, the human. "I thought you could use some aid, and these two came highly recommended." Orsini smiles at this and offers to escort you as far as his academy near Old Korvosa, and to answer any questions you might have for him.
Slumper always frustated about being underground glares around before scruntizing Orsini.
"Alright...I forgot the first meeting, apparently. Are you ready to get out of here? Do you know why The Master of the house said he couldn't locate you in this dungeon? He said you showed up here complaining of assassins following you. What do you know about them? Where is your gear?"
Orsini frowns. "The master of this house is a monster, a killer! He took my gear and cast me in here! I found these weapons and fought off monsters. Assassins are not my worry now! Getting out of here and stopping the monster Arkona is!"
"If he is such a monster, then why did you come here at the time you thought you were being chased by assassins? Perhaps we should take you to him and we can clear everything up."
"Haven't you heard me?!? He's a monster, Glorio Arkona is! A terrible monster! He must die! You must help me stop him!" Orsini is standing and grabs your arm, roughly. His grip is like iron, even though he appears to be frail from his experience.
Suddenly the room begins to turn, even though none of you have touched the lever! There is a grinding noise and then a blank wall, then you are facing a new room! The walls of this oddly shaped hallway are decorated in a complex mural depicting a jungle brimming with hungry life. Predators of every sort stalk and maim and feed on dozens of hapless men and women. In the canopy above, monkeys, snakes, and birds seem to chatter and mock the victims below. There is a door at the far end of the room.
Pai casts Detect Magic on Vencarlo to see if he is under some sort of compulsion spell.
INITIATIVE!
Corbyn
Paxs
Pai
Ruperta
Slumper
Orsini
ROUND ONE:
23 Orsini
19 Corbyn
17 Pai and Slumper
14 Ruperta
10 Paxs and Thrak
Orsini presses his attack, screaming, "The gnome is an impostor! Sent by Glorio to kill us all!"
for damage!
for damage!
for damage!
for damage!
Pai is now bleeding out on the ground after taking the slicing and dicing of Vencarlo's blade.
Stabilization roll
Ruperta quickly gets in the way between Vencarlo and Pai...
"Stop! She is my friend! She is not an impostor!"
She touches Vencarlo gently, using her Elyseum Call power.
Elysium's Call (Su): The creatures touched can immediately reroll any failed saving throws against spells and spell-like abilities of the enchantment (charm or compulsion). Targets receive a +2 sacred bonus on such saving throws and a +2 sacred bonus on CMB checks to escape a grapple. Targets can ignore up to 5 ft of difficult terrain each round, as if they had the Nimble Moves feat. These bonuses last for 4 rounds. You can use this ability for 6 times per day. [PFAPG 87]
Slumper a little less forgiving goes straight to the offensive.
rapier
rapier
shield
shield
extra dmg if human attack 1
extra dmg if human attack 2
Pai goes down beneath Orsini's vicious and quick attack! Ruperta gently touches Orsini but it doesn't seem to have any effect on the man.
Slumper attacks, but the duelist seems to easily deflect every attack! Strangely enough the human bane rapier, which usually glows red when attacking humans, is not glowing at all.
"He's not Orsini this one has all his fingers, and he's a tough one."
Paxs casts haste on the entire party as Thrak attacks.
Corbyn will tumble through the crowd and then attack the flanked pretender.
and one point of Dex damage
As Paxs casts and Thraks leaps forward to attack, Corbyn flips through the air. Unfortunately his nimbleness is in vain, as Orsini suddenly twists and cuts at him as he passes! for damage!
Still, Thrak manages to get one mouthful of Orsini's leg, though he finds the flesh tough and unyielding. Corbyn also hits, but his sword is barely able to penetrate the duellist's flesh.
ROUND TWO:
23 Orsini
19 Corbyn
17 Pai and Slumper
14 Ruperta
10 Paxs and Thrak
Orsini snarls, an almost animal sound, "Cursed fools! Pawns! Curs! Better to let Bahor kill you himself!" He spits out several arcane words and makes quick gestures! But something seems to go wrong, for the spell does not activate!
Stabilization roll
Pai is stable at minus three hit points.
Paxs rushes to Pai's side while Thrak attacks.
Paxs begins to riffle through Pai's pockets, finding two potions labelled as healing.
Thrak's teeth and claws find better purchase this time, tearing into Orsini, but still not causing as much damage as they normally would! For all the attacks, Orsini still looks feisty!
Ruperta will Channel positive energy to heal all her friends, especially Pai, but keeping the fake Ossining from being healed.
HP
Pai is now at 9 hit points.