GM Batpony's PBP [Special] Race for the Runecarved Key (Inactive)

Game Master Batpony

"Of course not, of course not! Frankly, I long ago accepted that truth is a mutable thing. Especially when it needs to be applied to ones interests. Honestly, it's the same for any merchant, lord or lady. We tell what we need to. And you, I'm sure, are smart enough to know that we're reasonable and well-informed people, keenly aware of the directions the winds blow. So let's step inside and discuss the Duchesses... out of earshot, ideally."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 25 ⇒ (4) + 25 = 29

"Oh..." He considers Rathen's words for a moment,"Uh... I suppose." He responds, allowing them into the confines of his home.

The lower floor is a giant hall, flooring made of finely cut marble, and a marble staircase leads up into the bedrooms. He looks wary at the lot of you.

Bishop follows, awaiting treachery Perception: 1d20 + 25 ⇒ (11) + 25 = 36

It's a beautiful house, with nothing looking out of the ordinary, no other people at the moment, no traps, no weapons, no ghost, a few nice vases.

He awaits the Pathfinders to say something.

Rathen claps his hands, broad smile on his face as he steps inside. "A lovely place you have here! Thank you for being such a gracious host. I promise to be frugal with your time."

"As I stated outside, were a group of individuals who know of a connection to the Duchesses. It seems appropriate to see a clever man such as yourself to learn more about their... ability to finance a large-scale purchase. Frankly, we've be happy to speak with them directly if that makes things easier. A small thing, no?"

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 25 ⇒ (14) + 25 = 39

"Relax, we don't mean any harm to anyone involved," Valrar attempts to help the situation by soothing the man.

Auto-aid Diplomacy.

"I don't know anything about them..." He seems to become much more visibly nervous every time of the mention of the Duchesses, and has seem to clam up further. He has almost refused the talk now.

Talking nice or mean isn't The Dove's thing. Sorry :(

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 3 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 3 + 6 = 24 "I get it. I promise though, we're worse. Just point us to where we want to go." Bishop again looks to someone else to take the lead, frustration clearly written upon his face.

Ursus cracks the knuckles on his huge paws and stares the squirming man down. ”Do not make us ask again”, he growls.

Intimidate: 10 + 22 = 32

Add +4 if he could be sexually attracted to Ursus.

"Okay, okay, you don't know them," Valrar calmly chips in, after picking up on Bishop's cue. "By that vein, we don't know that they were recently seen here. Maybe they're still here, but of course all of that didn't happen. And were they still here, we wouldn't go to the authorities about it, to get both you and them jailed over the illegal activities they weren't taking part in."

Intimidate: 1d20 + 21 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 21 + 2 = 30

Just at the right moment, he shakes his head, to indicate they are not here at the moment.

Bear with me here, this part is a little bit tricky on PBP.

"See, now you're making my big friend here mad. That just won't do." Rathen rests a hand on Ursus, using his smaller frame to accentuate just how big the Ulfen man is.
Intimidate (Aid Roll): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13

"Spread out and search the place", Ursus explains, satisfied with the man's silence if nothing else. "We're not here for them anyway."

He maintains his silence, but does not attempt to hinder the party from searching the place. Clearly he feels intimidated by the strength and prowess of the group.

If you do decide to wander the house.

There are three bedrooms on the top floor in equal sizes, backed to the east side of the house.

"What we're looking for should be here." Daxter sends his pet raven to search a room while Daxter searches another.

Daxter Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22

Galio Perception: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (17) + 16 = 33

Daxter is unable to find anything, but Galio spots a cleverly hidden iron strongbox stashed underneath one of the beds.

Daxter's raven comes back to communicate what it has found. The wizard will retrieve it and let one of the more perceptive party members examine it. "This may be of use to us."

Rathen is quick to react when word of a strongbox reaches his ears. He moves through a long-practiced routine. He uses a cantrip to see if there are any magical auras, checks for anything that could trigger a trap and, once safe, goes about opening the strongbox.
Perception vs Traps: 1d20 + 35 ⇒ (11) + 35 = 46
Disable Device if Trapped: 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (1) + 31 = 32
Disable Device if Trapped (if a second check is required): 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (13) + 31 = 44
Disable Device if Locked: 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (15) + 31 = 46

The Dove sighs to himself I hope we are not robbing this poor man

"We're not here to take anything", the huge man reminds his peers. "We're just looking for information."

"We'll open it, just leave whatever's inside," Valrar tries to soothe The Dove's worries. He blows it a few seconds later with a, "Probably. Depends."

"This troubles even me Dove, but I think we just need to count it."

The locked box contains 5,000 gp in Minkaian coins.

"A fair sum, but not enough, I don't think. The entrance fee was ten thousand, right?"

"It was. Put it back where Daxter found it and let's get out of here."

"Agreed. I feel unclean just being here."

Rathen gives one last look at the coins, then closes the box. "Let's get moving."

"Very kind of you," he says, making his way out. "I'm sure we'll remember this kindness. Take care!"

Back to the Venture-Captain to take another mission?

How much real-life time do we have until the next phase?

About an hour and 20 minutes perhaps.

Satisfied with your findings, you bid the worried man a farewell and return back to the captain to report your findings. She listens intently to your briefing, noting your findings. Eventually she praises you on an exemplary job following her instructions to the word, perhaps even with a little hint of sarcasm. "...And while there is still time, we cannot let ourselves fall complacent, this is a bid we cannot lose!" She adds

?: 1d3 ⇒ 1

Without hesitating, she runs her hand through the rest of the case files, and opens one with the name Vaor skimming through it for a moment. “It seems the Runecarved Key has attracted the attention of a small exporting company run by the dubious Vaor family of Underbridge. Why the Vaors are interested in the key, or even how they came up with the deposit, is beyond my imaginings. I doubt they have much in the way of finances, but one can never tell. Perhaps they represent someone else more powerful, perhaps not. In any event, I need someone to head down to Underbridge and find out. This map should get you to their warehouse quickly. Best of luck, Pathfinders.”

Given a explicitly drawn up map by Heidmarch's agent, you soon arrive at a warehouse whom you believe belongs to the Underbridge. The wooden warehouse is around 50 feet by 60 feet. Has no windows and only one double door entrance leading in and out of the place. The smell reeks of something rotten, and the warehouse looks terribly unpleasant from the outside. Trash lies all over the place, mold grows on the walls, and looks to be a dirty black and grey.

Upon arrival, Rathen cases the place. He looks for any secret points of entry, listens for sounds of activity, and is ever-vigilant for traps.
Perception (+5 vs traps): 1d20 + 30 ⇒ (9) + 30 = 39
If a trap is found, he makes sure to deal with it.
Disable Device: 1d20 + 31 ⇒ (18) + 31 = 49

They warehouse is not trapped in any way, and there are lots of noises coming from the inside. A knock is met with a clear voice shouting. "Leeave thiis plaace, iit's priivate propeerrty!"

"I'm sorry, this will take but a moment of your time. We're contracted by the city for a routine inspection. Some complaints have been made about the smell and... Look, is there any way we can do this without shouting through a door?" Rathen looks to the group for a bit of help.
Bluff: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (13) + 10 = 23

"It won't take more than a few moments for you, and we take pride in a job quickly done," Valrar chips in, now a halfling ready to slip past wary eyes if needed.

Auto-aid.

A seemingly similar voice shouts back out. "No! Get out of here! No INSPECTIONS!"

Perhaps they called the bluff, but they remain adamant that no one should enter into their property.

Timber growls a bit, and Bishop shakes his head at the wolf. No violence until it's the last resort

Rathen looks over to the group and shrugs. To Ursus he says, "Think you can scare them into opening the door? Or..." he pauses and turns his gaze to Daxter. "Do you have a way for us to see inside or get inside without notice?"

Ursus puts his weight behind it and gives the door a few good thumps. "Listen up you sod: You open this door now or I'm going to take it out on your hide when I break it down."

Intimidate: 10 + 22 = 32

Add +4 if he could be sexually attracted to Ursus.

"They won't be able to recognize your pieces," Valrar chimes in, likely overstepping the situation a bit. Granted, if those on the other side could see him saying this in his halfling guise, it would be much more laughable. "Although if we could sneak in it'd probably be better," he whispers as an afterthought.

As Ursus speaks, the Ambassador emerges from its protective pouch and lets forth a wave of pure emotion and logic. This provides the team with unique insight into the dilemma at hand. It then withdraws back to safety.

Auto-aid again. Also, using the Ambassador's empathy emotion aura for a further +2 to Bluff/Diplomacy/Intimidate checks.

Rathen looks over to the group and shrugs. To Ursus he says, "Think you can scare them into opening the door? Or..." he pauses and turns his gaze to Daxter. "Do you have a way for us to see inside or get inside without notice?"

"I can send my familiar Galio to scout the inside. He is adept at reconnaissance." Daxter replies indicating the raven on his shoulder.

You are met with more hostility at any attempt for civil discussion. Perhaps breaking down the door is the best option here, as any other attempts seem futile.

There are no windows, and the primary entrance is the front door. If it wasn't clear yet, you should be forcing yourself into the warehouse, let me know if you would do anything else, if not we'll go straight to forced entry!

The Dove just shakes his head.

"I wish it weren't this way, but... Ursus, will you do the honours?"

Forced entry it is. Guess we're not the good guys in this one eh?

I think we stopped being the good guys a while ago. We robbed a shipment of gold just an hour ago.

Ursus roars with effort as he grabs a hold of the offending door and tears it from its hingers.

Strength (rage): 1d20 + 13 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 13 + 3 = 25
Strength (rage): 1d20 + 13 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 13 + 3 = 30
Strength (rage): 1d20 + 13 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 13 + 3 = 30

The wood of the door is so rotten it easily falls of it's hinges as Ursus attempts to break it apart.

If you weren't sure before why you were met with such an unfriendly demeanour, you realise it now. It would seem that Kresch Vaor, and her merry band of wererats run a small illegal business, not enough to make great money, but enough for them to make a living.

Inside the warehouse, members of the Vaor family, all in their wererat form, bustle around cases of supplies hauled in from their various business operations. Most of the crates contain salvaged junk, various items pilfered from homes in wealthier neighborhoods, currently set to be packed up and shipped off for sale in the black markets of other cities. The storeroom itself is poorly organized.

You entrance is met with perhaps two dozen pair of rat eyes, and the smell is overwhelming! As if you've walked right into a sewage with your head dipped in the sewage waters. They don't seem to look all that friendly.
"Kill them! No witnesses!"Kresh Vaor yells.

Kn. Nature DC10 for the Rats, and Kn. Local DC17 for the wererats.

Initiative in spoiler from previous post.

Combat Round 1
Status: NA

Rathen, Ursus, Dove
Daxter, Valrar, Bishop
Rats, Wererats

"Your words, not mine," Valrar calls back to Kresh as he darts into the warehouse. Words tumble from his mouth almost unintelligibly fast. "But while we're here, do you have anything that could cure my slowly mounting insanity and bloodlust?" Despite the truth of his latter statement, he looks to hit the nearest aggressor with the flat of his blade.

Not sure if we can reveal the map yet, but I'm taking a single move in and making an attack if possible.

Attack, Nonlethal: 1d20 + 26 - 4 ⇒ (10) + 26 - 4 = 32
Damage, Precision: 1d4 + 13 + 13 ⇒ (1) + 13 + 13 = 27

Daxter will cast a spell empowering all his allies!

Haste!! You should all know what that does by now.

Map can be revealed! Forgot to reveal it earlier. Should be updated now, but I'm on mobile so if it hasn't synced, just remove the grey box.

The Dove sneezes pretty loud, as he is allergic to vermin. Then casts Bless you.

Bishop is targeting the green wererat first with his opening shot, then clearing the way . He targets the dire rats left to right which have the green dots on them. If a rat survives an attack, he'll continue to target

Manyshot, silver arrows: 1d20 + 25 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 25 + 1 + 1 = 29 for DMG: 2d8 + 34 ⇒ (8, 1) + 34 = 43

and on to the rats
R: 1d20 + 25 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 25 + 1 + 1 = 44 for DMG: 1d8 + 17 ⇒ (2) + 17 = 19
2: 1d20 + 20 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 20 + 1 + 1 = 24 for DMG: 1d8 + 17 ⇒ (7) + 17 = 24
3: 1d20 + 15 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 15 + 1 + 1 = 29 for DMG: 1d8 + 17 ⇒ (5) + 17 = 22
Haste: 1d20 + 25 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 25 + 1 + 1 = 37 for DMG: 1d8 + 17 ⇒ (5) + 17 = 22

"Timber! Go!"