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Summoned once more to duty and the call of glory, you arrive at the Grand Lodge only to find a note awaiting you with fairly simple instructions.
Action and intent comprise the scales of karma. Join me in my final place of study, the Sanctuary of the Unbound Knot in New Oppara, to ascertain how past intent and future action may collude to raise the veil of ignorance. The lore and wisdom of two thousand years shall stand as your reward.
Venture-Captain Bakten Shengrah
It sees that arrangements have already been made, and when you are ready to depart, far off lands hold your next mission.
. . .
A flurry of cherry blossoms paints the air above the Sanctuary of the Unbound Knot. A chill wind brings the last gasps of winter down from the Zi Ha Mountains, which legends claim to be the cradle of samsaran civilization. Now, in New Oppara, one of their living legends lies dying within his sanctuary.
Soon, the sages say, Bakten Shengrah is to transcend to the Great Beyond, taking with him all the wisdom of twelve lifetimes and two millennia of lore beheld firsthand. For Pathfinders, an audience with the reclusive Bakten is a privilege indeed. As the gust of wind subsides, a gray rabbit quietly lopes down the sanctuary steps and across the courtyard.
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Andruss is a little more than 5' tall, his noble Taldan traces are clear for any common observant, specially by his well care beard, a symbol of nobility in his country. When meet the other agents, Andruss is very polite and serious, maintain an intellectual posture.
"Hello, agents. It will be a pleasure explore too far lands with you. I can't wait to meet Bakten Shengrah, I've heard a lot of tales of how wise he is, a man with many lives of experience, I would say".
"And maybe he can be useful for my plans", Andruss smiles after think it.
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Honorable Pathfinders,
Action and intent comprise the scales of karma. Join me in my final place of study, the Sanctuary of the Unbound Knot in New Oppara, to ascertain how past intent and future action may collude to raise the veil of ignorance. The lore and wisdom of two thousand years shall stand as your reward.
Venture-Captain Bakten Shengrah
A flurry of cherry blossoms paints the air above the Sanctuary of the Unbound Knot. A chill wind brings the last gasps of winter down from the Zi Ha Mountains, which legends claim to be the cradle of samsaran civilization. Now, in New Oppara, one of their living legends lies dying within his sanctuary. Soon, the sages say, Bakten Shengrah is to transcend to the Great Beyond, taking with him all the wisdom of twelve lifetimes and two millennia of lore beheld firsthand. For Pathfinders, an audience with the reclusive Bakten is a privilege indeed. As the gust of wind subsides, a gray rabbit quietly lopes down the sanctuary steps and across the courtyard.
When the rabbit reaches you, its face elongates to a human girl’s. She introduces herself as "Twig", a strange creature from these far-off lands known as a Pooka. Twig’s speech is choppy and illogical: “Walk-lookers! You! Now! Come! Bakten, friend, good news, dying soon. But woe! Worry and fear. A veiled life. Come!”
As she speaks in her hurried, difficult to follow speech, she also utilizes her innate telepathy to try to communicate with images and symbols, but the mental pictures she transmits are similarly oblique: Bakten bathed in light, or studying old scrolls, or levitating with his face half in shadow.
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A handsome man approaches the group, gliding towards them without a sound, his feet never touching the ground as he walks. He is of average height and has a slim build to him, yet is perfectly proportioned and in excellent physical shape. It's hard to judge his age as he appears much younger then he seems, having a youthful glow to him. His hair is a light blonde, almost platinum and with a particular sheen to it. Bright blue eyes that almost seem to sparkle like stars in the night sky look over the group gathered. His clothing is modest, similar to a clerics vestments, and impeccably clean, covered by a mithril breastplate. A gleaming morningstar hangs to one side of his belt and a dark wooden shield is strapped to his back, emblazoned with a blue and silver butterfly, the mark of Desna.
"My apologies for being tardy. I have been recovering from an unfortunate blow from a greataxe that felled me. Fortunately, Desna still had plans for me and allowed me to continue my life on this world. My name is Jorah and I will be happy to join your party. I look forward to meeting this Bakten Shengrah." His speech is quiet yet smooth, almost as if he is talking in a whisper, though he frequently mumbles to himself in Celestial when not speaking.
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"Andruss my friend! How good it is to see you again."
"The pleasure is mine, my old friend!", Andruss greets Seinaru.
The Taldan was only polite with the rabbit-woman, trying to disguise his thoughts about that weirdness.
As the other Pathfinders are arriving, Andruss greets them with all etiquette derived from his noble lineage, always with a friendly smile on his face and wondering to himself how useful each would be.
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This tranquil sanctuary’s architecture shows a strong influence of Minkaian styles. A prominent, gently curved, moss-covered roof soars over 30 feet into the sky above the single-story building. At the front of the sanctuary, wide stone steps ascend to the outer courtyard, which features a pristine copper bell decorated with intricate knotwork and several pieces of statuary. A pair of staircases on the east and west of the courtyard leads to the interior of the sanctuary, which is modestly furnished and does not contain any particular items of value or interest.
The earthen floor of this tranquil courtyard is perfectly flat and clear of debris. A 20-foot-diameter circle occupies the center of the courtyard, filled with a sand painting depicting intricate, endless knotwork. To the southeast, four fir trees grow in an orderly row, and to the southwest, a small rock garden peeks out from behind a layer of tall bushes.
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As you walk into the courtyard, suddenly a pair of darkly clad figures leap from the roof near Bakten, landing softly and rolling into a fighting stance. Both are covered head to toe in loose fitting cloth fit for stealth and mobility. On each has a oddly designed bladed longspear-like weapon (naginata) as well as a shuriken at the ready, and both also wear a light wooden armor.
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Only Seinaru noticed them quickly enough to react.
SURPRISE ROUND:
Seinaru ()
ROUND 1:
Eric (), Jorah (), & Victoria ()
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EVENT
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Rivani () & Andruss ()
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Bakten ()
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Seinaru ()
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Jorah moves towards the ninjas and says a prayer to Desna in Celestial. A stream of colors burst from the butterfly emblazoned on his shield toward his enemies.
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Seinaru calls on divine protection against his enemies, leaving room for Eric to spring forward, attempting to dive his blade deep, but at just the last moment the lightly armored ninja dodges to the side. Jorah, calling on soft words of power, unleashes a multicolored blast of pure light upon the pair.
Seeing both the ninja drop in a sort of stupor, Victoria calls on her own magical might, speeding up the party, or perhaps slowing down the rest of the world. Directly after the magic begins to flow, suddenly, from nowhere, a pair of shurikens fly
Looking up, you see another pair of ninja on the roof just above where you had just come from. Rivani begins to focus his will, unleashing a mental torrent upon the closest one.
ROUND 1:
Eric (), Jorah (), & Victoria (-12)
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Ninja 1 (-5) & Ninja 2 ()
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Rivani (-11) & Andruss ()
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Bakten ()
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Event. . .
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Seinaru ()
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Suddenly two more ninja's appear from hiding behind small bushes, likewise flinging a pair of shurikens, but targeting only Victoria, their closest target.
ROUND 1:
Seinaru (), Eric (), Jorah (), & Victoria (-33)
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Ninja 1 (-5, cursed) & Ninja 2 ()
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Rivani (-11) & Andruss ()
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Ninja 3 () & Ninja 4 ()
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Thanks to Victoria's magic, Jorah is able to reach the other group of thugs and unleash another burst of colors towards them.
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Seinaru moves closer to the ninja on the roof, while Eric attempts to climb on up, failing at first as he grabs a faulty handhold, but manages to make it up. Jorah moves away from the rest of the group and again unleashes a blast of harmless multicolored lights, knocking out one of the ninja hiding in the bushes, but not the other, and allowing for Victoria to vanish from sight.
Bakten mutters a few words, and then begins to float some ten feet off the ground, attempting to stay out of harms way, while the Pooka retreats closer to his position, albeit on the ground.
The two ninja on the roof draw another shuriken and launch it from higher ground, then both take a step back away from the edge.
ROUND 2:
Seinaru (), Eric (), Jorah (), & Victoria (-33)
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Ninja 1 (-5, cursed) & Ninja 2 ()
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Rivani (-11) & Andruss ()
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Ninja 3 ()