Family Game - City of Strangers

Game Master Jessica Catalan

Bunny Paras keeps trying at the Lantern's Glow.

Diplomacy (afternoon): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22

Diplomacy (evening): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

Diplomacy (afternoon): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
Diplomacy (evening): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 3 = 12

Bunny Paras and Enzo both have spectacular luck! Bunny Paras finds another Ardoc -- a woman this time -- who scoffs at the sound of Besel's name!

"Besel has no taste! He left just this morning to drink at that nasty pub in Downmarket! The one by that disgusting troll augur's temple..." She thinks for a moment then snaps her fingers. "The Augur's Entrails! That's it! There's a troll on the sign pulling his own insides out. That's how they 'discern' the future, you know." She crosses her arms and rolls her eyes. "It's all a bunch of hogwash if you ask me! You won't catch me going anywhere near that place! The temple or the bar!"

Looking rather disgruntled, the woman orders dessert and begins to mutter to herself. It's clear that she doesn't like Besel.

Meanwhile, the pianist for the evening overhears the conversation. Noting his reaction, Enzo approaches him later. The man smiles. "A tip for the performance and I'll tell you what I know," After being paid the man bows to Enzo. "I was in the Augur’s Entrails over in Downmarket this morning and heard Besel say he’d be back there again tomorrow morning for something. That’s probably your best bet for finding him, friend.” The man waves and leaves the Lantern's Glow. "Best of luck."

With a solid lead on Besel the group turns in for the night and sets out early for Downmarket.

Anyone have anything they want to do before setting out?

After a day in the dark of the Halflight Path and two day among the glowing balconies of Bis, stepping out into the open-air neighbourhood of Downmarket is a drastic change! Built in the Ring in the centre of Kaer Maga this district is open to the sun! There's a slight breeze and the dim sunlight flickering down through the tangled maze of buildings and bridges is blinding to your eyes!

The neighbourhood is crowded and confusing, with stores and restaurants built from local stone filling up all the space at ground level. Atop these buildings are more buildings on top of even more buildings! Ladders, ropes, and wooden stairwells lead up to the higher levels, with bridges and nets acting as sidewalks on the higher levels. It's a busy mess that's packed with people of all kinds, including strange races like centaurs, nagaji, and even trolls! Luckily Enzo takes out his guidebook and manages to find his way to the Troll Augur's Temple. From there its easy to find a nearby, rundown little bar called 'Augur's Entrails.' There's a gross looking sign over the door. Even this early in the morning it looks busy.

You've found the place!

"What's the plan?" Amiri asks.

Mr. Icewalks into the bar and looks around. He finds an empty table and sits down. He orders some food.

Enzo joins Mr. Ice at the table. He orders the most expensive item on the menu, a fine cup of wine, and makes pleasant conversation with the staff.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Bunny Paras and Paras have a dance party in the restaurant. She has lots of fun.

The next morning they have breakfast and another dance party.

Paras and Bunny Paras heads inside and sits with her friends. "I'm hungry!" she complains. She looks at the waiter. "Do you have any vegetarian meals?"

The group enters and sees the only human in the bar surrounded by three iron golems, talking to a troll in ornate robes with a crusty red spot around the abdomen. They speak too softly for you to hear.

A different troll behind the bar points at the empty tables. "Have a seat anywhere! What'll ye have?"

As the group places their order the troll starts to pour drinks. When Bunny Paras asks for something vegetarian the troll laughs. "Ha! Yer in the wrong place, fox! And I don't even need to check my guts to tell ya' that." he shakes his head, finishes pouring drinks and stomps over to your table, placing the drinks down with a THUMP! His breath stinks horribly. "Anything else?"

Amiri sits with the others and orders a cheap drink. Then she nods at the guy at the back with the golems. "That him?" she asks her companions. "Want me to beat him 'til he talks?"

Bunny Paras turns up her nose. "How about we just be nice and not beat him? Being nice is much nicer."

Even though she says that she doesn't move to go speak to him.

"I'll take anything hot on your menu." Mr. Ice tells the troll. Then he looks at Amiri. "That's the w-w-worst plan ever. You'll never beat those g-g-golems. Well, maybe if we had an a-a-army of you. But we don't." He thinks. "We'll talk to him. Let's wait until he's done speaking to the troll."

Enzo sips on his drink. "I agree. Let us watch and observe. We'll approach him after the troll leaves." As he drinks his beverage he looks around the bar.

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25

The trolls stalks off and returns a minute later with a bowl of lukewarm stew that stinks of mushrooms and rat meat. It's barely steaming. He plops it down in front of Mr. Ice.

As Enzo looks around he notices that most of the other patrons in the bar are of strange races. There's a few trolls, a centaur, a nagaji, and even a harpy. There are no other doors in the common room, although it's likely there is one in the back room/kitchen. The big troll seems to be the only fellow working right now.

After a few moments the troll augur that Besel is speaking to exits the bar, leaving Besel alone at his table with a half-finished drink and his three iron golem protectors.

Mr. Ice eats his stew. "Mmm! Tasty. But not hot enough."

When Besel is alone Mr. Ice nods at Enzo. "You g-g-go. I ch-ch-chatter too much."

Bunny Paras is too afraid to speak with Besel. She sits in her chair silently. Eventually she raises a hand and calls over the troll. "Can I have a cup of hot chocolate?"

Paras nudges Bunny Paras! Then she toots loudly. She looks very curious why Bunny Paras isn't getting up to talk to Besel!

Enzo stands and approached Besel Ardoc, bringing his beverage with him. "Hello there. I'm Enzo Jeggare. I hail from Cheliax. I'm a member of the Pathfinder Society. I've been sent to meet with Horis Collgardie." Enzo sits down at Besel's table.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

As Enzo approaches, Besel's iron golems raise their swords. Besel chuckles. "That's close enough, pal. What do you want?"

After Enzo introduces himself Besel raises an eyebrow in surprise. He leans back in his chair and crosses his arms. "You were sent here to speak to him? Sure that's not code for 'kill him'?"

Besel scoffs. "Look, pal. When your Shadow Lodge started stirring up trouble I reached out to Collgardie. I knew he had friends in Absalom still, and I hoped his letter would force your superiors to see sense and get their agents out before they turned dead. But it didn't. The Pathfinders killed Collgardie instead, and the Shadow Lodge -- or the hidden lodge, whatever you guys are calling it -- is still around."

He leans forward then adds, "So hear this. Kaer Maga don't want no Pathfinders. We won't let your build your stupid lodge. So gather your pals that are in the city and get out."

Amiri slams her drink down on the table and stalks up beside Enzo. She crosses her arms, showing off her bulging muscles. "You listen here! We didn't kill Collgardie. We got his letter and we came. But he was dead already and your goons were there. THEM we killed." She lets out a growl. "I don't cheapen my skills by killing weaklings and merchants."

Hearing the commotion Mr. Ice goes to help. "What she s-s-said is true, but we did not kn-kn-know those thugs were yours! We thought THEY killed C-c-collgardie." He chatters. He thinks a moment. "What's this Shadow Lodge you're t-t-talking about? I don't know what that is."

Bunny Paras stays in her seat.

Besel lets out a cackling laugh. "HA! You didn't kill him AND you don't know of your own lodge?" He laughs again. "You really expect me to believe that?"

Besel looks at you for a moment then chuckles and shakes his head. "Fine. I'll bite. The Shadow Lodge is the name your Pathfinder friends have been using when they talk about themselves and their lodge. I figured it was just some stupid code word to keep the powerful people here in Kaer Maga unaware of their affiliations. Not that it worked. We know Pathfinders when we see them."

He looks at Amiri and scowls. "You're the ones that killed my workers? Returning to the scene of the crime, were ya'? To where you killed Collgardie?" He chuckles. "No skin off my back. I only hired those blokes cause Dakar asked me to. Collgardie was my friend, but around here folks die." He shrugs. "It's the way things go. But, Collgardie's death didn't sit right with Dakar, so he asked me to kill Collgardie's assassins. Them thugs were just the start of it. And now Dakar owes me a favour." He laughs as if this was awesome. "A favour from Dakar is worth more than all the gold in your vaults in Absalom!"

Mr Ice thinks. "I've never heard of this Shadow L-l-lodge, and other than us, there's n-n-not supposed to be any Pathfinders here at all. They don't have p-p-permission to make a Lodge here. Hmmm... Maybe they're imp-p-posters! Or trying to frame us! Or maybe they double agents. P-p-pathfinders who are working with our enemies! Like the Aspis Consortium! Man, I hate those g-g-guys..."

"Is there anything else you can t-t-tell me about them?"

"What can you tell us about these so-called 'Pathfinders?' What makes you think they're Pathfinders? Where are they operating out of?"

Enzo strokes his moustache.

"And who is Dakar?"

Besel laughs. "What am I? A tour guide? I don't know where your friends are staying. As to how they're Pathfinders? They wear that stupid symbol all the time. And the compass. Just like you've got." He points at Enzo's wayfinder.

"As for Dakar..." he grins. “Dakar runs the Commerce League. That's the group that rules Downmarket. But don't bother looking for him. He's the most secretive man in Kaer Maga, and that’s saying something. If you want to talk to him, you might as well climb to the top of the walls and shout for him all day. You don’t find him, Pathfinders, he finds you.”

"y-y-y-yikes!" Mr. Ice chatters. "I'm afraid of heights! And those walls are super high."

He thinks for a while. Then he fishes out two gold and gives it to Besel. "H-h-here you go. Thanks!"

Mr. Ice goes back to sit down with Bunny Paras. "We n-n-need to find Dakar. He hired Besel to kill C-c-collgardie's assassins and I want to know why. Plus, if he's in ch-ch-charge of Downmarket, he might know something that can help us find the Shadow L-l-lodge."

Bunny Paras nods. "Good idea."

Enzo strokes his moustache in thought.

Bunny Paras drinks her hot chocolate.

Paras drinks her bowl of hot chocolate too!

Besel waves his hand at Enzo dismissively, clearing beckoning for him to get lost.

After finishing up the group has a new task and plenty of the day ahead of them.

How are you going to find Dakar? If you ask around for him, what kinds of place would you like to ask at?

Amiri scowls at Besel as the group leaves. She looks at Enzo. "You know lots of useless stuff. What do you know of this Dakar? Does your book speak of him?"

Mr. Ice thinks. "I am going to walk through D-d-downmarket and listen to people's c-c-conversations. Maybe I will learn something of Dakar or the C-c-commerce League that way."

Perception: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11

Knowledge Local: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (13) + 12 = 25

"Dakar is a successful businessman. I will visit some of the more profitable establishments in Downmarket and enquire after Dakar. He's likely to have a hand in such businesses."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 3 = 12

"I'll go help Enzo," Bunny Paras says.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

Despite everyone's best efforts they turn up no information! Most of the people they speak with either shrug their shoulders and say they've never heard of Dakar. The rest shake their heads in fear, look up and down the streets nervously, then hurriedly walk away. Clearly whoever this Dakar is he's both secretive and powerful -- or at least people believe him to be...

After a few hours the Pathfinders regroup to share their progress. They stand on a busy street on the ground level of Downmarket.

Suddenly, where a thick crowd of people once stood are now only six burly men carrying cudgels and a scaled nagaji with his hand in a pouch at his belt. All seven sets of eyes are on you, while in the distance, the crowds suddenly turn and find another way past this street.

“You’ve been assssking about Dakar,” the nagaji hisses. “He wantssss a word with you.” He glares at you for a long while, then tosses a set of black bags on the road at your feet. There's one for each of you (plus Paras). "Put them on and do asssssss I ssssssay."

He clearly means for each of you to put a bag over your heads.

Bunny Paras looks at the bags. "But then I won't be able to see! I might crash into things."

Mr. Ice chatters. "How warm is it?" He looks at the bags then picks one up. "Okay."

Mr. Ice puts the bag on his head. "It's cozy in here."

Enzo twirls his moustache. After a moment he sighs. "Well, if I must..."

Amiri crosses her arms an scoffs. "I'll not be your prisoner."

The sounds and sights of the world come rushing back to you all at once! It's too bright, and too loud, and everything seems to spin. After blinking and squinting for a while you can see well enough to look around.

You all stand side by side in a nice meeting room or private residence. The floors are carpeted in a lush purple. Golden pots nearby hold large green plants. Six human guards dressed in blue uniforms stand around you, clearly alert and ready to fight if necessary. Across the room there is a giant backlit screen that blocks the entire wall from view. A shape, decidedly vague in outline, can be seen behind the screen. It looks generally like a man.

One each end of the screen is an armoured nagaji. The first is a face you recognize -- the strong nagaji from before. The second is a female you've never seen before.

A voice coming from behind the screen speaks.

“You’ve asked for me and now you have me. What do you wish to know?”