DM Carbide's From Shore to Sea (Inactive)

Game Master John Woodford

"The attacks on the village started a few weeks ago." Lira is interrupted at that moment by one of the villagers having a phlegmatic coughing fit; after the coughing abates, she continues. "All indications are that they come from Nal-Kashel, an island not far from here. Dangerous creatures are known to lurk in the Azlanti ruins there.

"But that didn't stop Gerlach. He is a gillman, born with a bond to the sea. He is also a sorcerer and alchemist--perhaps you saw his house, near the edge of the village? He visited Nal-Kashel often." Seth coughs a bit, then interrupts. "Should've left the place alone. He told anyone who'd listen that there was something not right about the wedding rock. I don't know what he was talking about...my firstborn got his start there, and I daresay most all the couples here can say the same." There are nods and murmurs of agreement all around, interspersed with a few chuckles.

Lira picks up the tale again. "The sons of the rock carry the sea's blessing, but in time she calls them back to her bosom. But that is not important now. Gerlach--I do not know what he found on Nal-Kashel, but I fear it drove him mad. The last time I saw him was the day of the first attack--he babbled of 'setting things right with his people,' and had barricaded himself in his house while he worked. That night, things came from the sea. Crabs, like the one that tried to take Seth. Something no one saw that tore down houses and took the people inside. I heard the explosion from Gerlach's house...." She composes herself. In the silence you can hear a few more wet coughs. "No one has seen Gerlach since. We didn't dare go into his house, lest some danger be left within."

The constable, who was apparently below sealing the door on the first floor, joins the conversation. "We're still losing people to the attacks, dragged out to sea. All of us, we took up a collection, and if you folks can stop the attacks we'll give you a chest of Azlanti gold from Nal-Kashel."

You spoke about debt. What does the sea give you and what does it demand in return? What is the blessing that she gives the sons of the rock? (Again, not the brightest guy. Suggestions, implications, and hints are insufficient for him. He needs direct statements.)

The archer draws and hefts his morningstar. (Hey, it worked for him the last time he was in the lighthouse!) He continues, We'll protect you. More crabs just means more lunch for everyone.

"The sons of the rock are better swimmers than the rest of us--except for the gillmen like Gerlach, of course. When they fish, their catches are larger. As they grow older, though, they start to show certain changes in appearance. We all have them, a little, but not as much. Then, if they survive to old age, one day the sea calls to them. They simply walk into the water, and are not seen again."

Spellcraft: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (19) + 15 = 34

As they villagers tell their tale Rah looks around, rubbing her neck with a curious look on her face. Stepping away she casts a spell to detect magic.

If any knowledge check is needed I'll take 10 for a roll of 25 on arcana (or 20 on all others).

Rah, you're able to tell that you're in the area of effect of a diffuse yet powerful field of transmutation magic centered a number of miles away at sea, in the direction (as you recall) of the island of Nal-Kashel. You're not sure what it's supposed to do.

If the "price" is that the sea calls them, what's up with the crabs and such?

Lira looks a little abashed. "Until I knew you could be trusted, I thought it best to dissemble, and minimize our plight. Though perhaps this is also the paying of a debt...the sea can be a jealous mother. I would think that I would know if it was, though."

"We will certainly help you investigate Nal-Kashel and try to calm the sea creatures. Thank you for being forthright with us." Maddie says with an amiable smile, "We will need use of one of your boats and perhaps some guidance to the island unless it's easy to find. I take it the sea creatures are more aggressive at night?"

"I take it the sea creatures are more aggressive at night?"

Oh! Hey, what time of day is it now? :-)

Early evening. As it happens ;-).

-Posted with Wayfinder

Superstitiously, Bogenschützen looks around the lighthouse as he clutches his morningstar tightly with both hands. "Things always got worse in prison after dark," he thinks to himself.

Quiven grabs a banana out of his sack and just sits and listens as if they were telling ghost stories around a campfire. Eventually he says, So, maybe we should get some rest and go take a look in the morning. I just hope the sea doesn't turn me into a crab or a fish or something. I don't care much for seafood.

Lira shakes her head. "They can come at any time. Most of us stay here all the time, but during the day some of us go out to fish, or gather mussels. They haven't yet been attacked on the open sea." The constable adds, "That thing you saw on the dock--that was likely one of the sea creatures." He shudders. "Some go on two legs...."

As if to punctuate his words, there is a flash from outside, and a crack of thunder moments after. The storm has arrived.

Bogenschützen looks at Quiven. "They didn't have bananas in prison either. Looks delicious." He thinks quietly to himself. Just when the archer is ready to ask if he can try a bite, the thunder roars, spurring him to grip his morningstar more tightly with both hands while looking back and forth like a nervous dog.
The poor, simple fellow doesn't know what to do when there's nothing obvious happening. He's completely creeped out by the "ghost stories" and the storm sends his fight-or-flight instinct into overdrive! :-D

Patience...there should be something to hit soon :-).

Oh, as a player I'm having a blast! Nice job with the creepiness, GM! I'd be perfectly happy if you built it up even more. :-) My character, on the other hand, is about to have a conniption.

Thanks! One of the downsides of PbP is that it's hard to get feedback, and I'm glad the creepiness of the module is coming through.

Quiven sees the nervous fighter stealing a glance at his treat and digs into his bag for another banana. I'm sorry, my manners have been horrible! I was so interested in all the stories that I forgot to make an offer. Anyone want a banana? They're terrific, really.

Yeah, I'm digging the atmosphere as well.

"Well, in any case, Quiven is right, we should stay the night here in the lighthouse and set out in the morning, assuming the storm is over by then. Only, of course, if it would be all right with you good people?" Maddie's asks in a polite tone, "I would be happy to help you with any healing you may need, or spiritual concerns, but I must confess I could not place which gods you hold in reverence when we visited the shrine."

There's a bit of murmuring at Maddie's last comment, and Lira steps in. "Why, we revere the sea herself. She gives us life, but she's a fickle one. Any of the gods who claim some share of her we also turn to, to ask their favor or forbearance."

One of the villagers who's by the stairs shouts an interruption. "The tide! It's rising too fast!" The announcement throws the upper room into chaos, and we are now on combat time.

Round 1:

Initiative order
Bogenschützen
Rah
Quiven
Maddie
Villagers

The tide? What's happening? Being short, Quiven starts to look for higher ground.

I'm not sure what's really happening yet, do we need a map for this?

Not really. It's a round room that's currently filled with a milling crowd, so it's hard to get from place to place, but other than that there isn't much to attack. Yet.

"Oh dear..." Maddie says with ominous concern as she makes her way down the stairs to see what all the fuss is about.

Bogenschützen sort of turns around in place a couple of times--looking this way and that. What happens when the tide rises too fast?

Maddie, the water level on the first floor is rapidly approaching nine feet deep. As you watch, it passes a mark and covers the words next to it--"High Water, 7 Abadius, 4683."

Quiven, the best chance for immediately higher ground is in one of the window ledges. You pick the one on the south, through which (in the stroboscopic lightning flashes outside) you can see that the waves have completely covered the walkway to the lighthouse. Past that, you can see the crazy man in the keelboat, desperately clinging to its shattered mast.

That's when a giant tentacle comes up out of the sea and grabs him, dragging him under.

Assuming that Quiven shares this observation with the group, Bogenschützen thinks to himself: "Oh."

Rah casts a spell of flying and rises above the water and the villagers.

"My friends, I sense a magic that I believe originates from the island of Nal-Kashel. I do not know if it is responsible for this storm, the monsters, or something else, but wary of strange effects!"

Quiven shares the information told above, though with a slighty hysterical pitch to his voice. What do we do? I can't fly!

BTW, you can try to use Diplomacy or Intimidate to calm the crowd.

ETA: It might take more than that to calm Quiven, at this point....

Returning from the lower part of the tower, Maddie looks concerned at the burgeoning panic in the tower. To try to calm things, she addresses the citizens in the loud, but placid voice she reserves for teaching lessons in her temple, "Please everyone, it would be best to remain calm. We are four well-trained professional Pathfinders, we will help you get through this."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22

Upon heaing Maddie's words Bogenschützen thinks to himself, "Get a grip."

The archer screws up his courage, inhales through gritted teeth, settles both hands on his weapon, and prepares to follow any course of action set by the wiser, smarter Pathfinder Field Agents.

"Women and children first, please! If you need assistance, please raise your hand!" Rah attempts to help Maddie coordinate and get the villagers to safety.

Diplomacy Aid: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

Since we're on initiative, Maddie's diplomacy attempt will be resolved near the bottom of the round.

Round 2:

Initiative order
Bogenschützen
? placeholder
Rah-acted
?-placeholder
Quiven
?-placeholder
Maddie-action declared
Villagers

Maddie can see the water rise rapidly, going up another three feet or so as she watches. Rah's piping voice doesn't carry over the crowd. Before Maddie can speak, there is a wet thud against one wall and the entire lighthouse shakes on its foundation.

DC 15 Reflex save or be knocked prone.

Reflex Save: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7

Reflex: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (6) + 11 = 17

Reflex, only a 1 fails: 1d20 ⇒ 7

And Rah doesn't need to save, since she's flying. Quiven, you can take an action.

Quiven will attempt to move to a window or something, trying to figure out what could have made that sound.

Quiven, you turn back towards the window you're next to and immediately notice something amiss. Your view of the outside is now completely blocked, by...well, at first you're not sure, and then it shifts slightly, bringing a pair of dinner-plate-sized suckers into view. As it shifts, the building creaks slightly, as if it's being squeezed.

Do you see that? We need to get out of here! Quiven points to what he has seen so everyone knows what is going on.

Maddie gets to her feet and manages to calm down the villagers...right up until the ones closest to Quiven get a look at what he's pointing at. A fresh wave of panic is beginning to build.

Round 3:

Initiative order
Bogenschützen
? placeholder
Rah-acted
?-placeholder
Quiven
?-placeholder
Maddie-action declared
Villagers

At the top of the round, the water rises another three feet and stops. Bogenschützen, you're up!

Going into the water with the very big tentacled sea creature could be a bad idea! ;-P

I'll ready an action to smack any enemy that tries to get into the lighthouse.

Morningstar: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (8) + 9 = 17

Round 3 (ongoing):

Initiative order
Bogenschützen-acted
Tentacle-acted
Rah-
?-placeholder
Quiven
?-placeholder
Maddie-
Villagers

The archer is thus quite prepared when the west window bursts in, followed by a giant tentacle. It darts into the crowd (now completely beyond Maddie's control, though she can try to calm them again) and grabs a screaming villager! Bogenschützen swings on it, but the press of the crowd foils his aim and his morningstar bounces off of the creature's rubbery and tough tissues.

Tentacle: AC 22, Touch AC 15

Rah hastes his companions and gestures at the villager with a liberating command.

Hasting our group plus any villager that looks to be combat capable.
Liberating command will give the villager an escape artist check with a +14 bonus to any bonuses they might already have.

How close am I to this tentacle? Can I "flank" it with someone?

Round 3 (ongoing):

Initiative order
Bogenschützen-acted
Tentacle-acted
Rah-acted
Tentacle-acted
Quiven
?-placeholder
Maddie-
Villagers

Rah, your best bet is to haste Lira and Nic Gavendi.

Before Quiven can act, there is a tearing noise from the lower level, and another tentacle rises from the water in the stairwell. In a flash it's in among the crowd of villagers, grabbing another one. The halfling figures he can barely reach it through the now-terrified crowd.

Quiven will do so and try to strike the tentacle!

Gladius: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (4) + 13 = 17 for Damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

Round 3 (ongoing):

Initiative order
Bogenschützen-acted
Tentacle-acted
Rah-acted
Tentacle-acted
Quiven-acted
Tentacle-acted
Maddie-
Villagers

Between the crowd and the tentacle's unexpected toughness, Quiven fails to damage it.

It is at that point that the eastern window is broken in by a third tentacle, which grabs yet another villager.

Maddie is up!

Maddie uses Haste to move up to the nearest tentacles and tries to touch it. Unfortunately, it's too quick for her.

Touch attack + Haste: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 6 + 1 = 10

Maddie, you're next to the stairs where the second tentacle came out, so it's easy for you to reach it. Between the crowd and the thing's unpredictable movements, though, you miss it.

The villagers try to flee in a massed panic. In the ensuing confusion, Maddie is knocked to the ground again. The constable draws his axe and lands a solid blow that severs the tentacle that came up through the first floor. The villager that Rah cast liberating command on manages to free herself from the creature's grasp! Lira tries to get the remaining villager loose, and with the benefit of Rah's haste spell succeeds!

As of the end of the round, one tentacle has been severed and both of the villagers who were grabbed by the other two have been freed. Bogenschützen, it occurs to you that you may be better off with a slashing weapon.

Round 4:

Initiative order
Bogenschützen
Tentacle
Rah-
Tentacle
Quiven
Tentacle
Maddie-
Villagers