GM Endless Forms' Core PFS The Life and History of Grandmaster Torch (Inactive)

Game Master Mike Tuholski

welcome back Huzzah!

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Brak stumbles out of the Hall of the Drunken God, "I gotsta get to the Grand Lodge fer a mission." He looks about into the crowd for his old friends and starts the sobering walk back.

And so begins The City of Strangers!

It’s been nearly a month since Venture-Captain Drandle Dreng, a decrepit yet well-respected Pathfinder, instructed you to meet him dockside in Absalom. On arrival, Dreng herded you on to a Korvosa-bound merchant vessel and gave you a series of quick, stern instructions.

“One of my good friends, a merchant in the Varisian outcast’s haven known as Kaer Maga, sent me a very strange letter, which I need you to investigate. The merchant—his name is Horis Collgardie—tells me that the residents of Kaer Maga are very upset about the Society’s plan to build a lodge in their city and even further upset that the agents we sent are making trouble, stirring up the delicate balance of power that exists in the so-called City of Strangers. The trouble is, not the Decemvirate or any venture-captain I can find gave the okay to build a lodge there. We know it would be folly to do so—at least right now—and so this idea that Collgardie has that the Society is there and doing just that is worrisome. In a few weeks time, you’ll be in Korvosa. From there, book passage on a river ship for Harse, then travel overland to the road’s end at the cliffs below Kaer Maga—the so-called Twisted Door. There you must pay the Duskwardens to escort you through the Halflight Path to reach Kaer Maga. Once inside the city, find Collgardie and find out what he’s talking about. If there are Pathfinders in the city founding a lodge, tell them I order them to stop at once. If this is some kind of ruse, get to the bottom of it and do what you can to keep our Society’s good name in Kaer Maga—we may not be completely welcome there, but neither are we unwelcome. Let’s keep it that way. Any questions?”

Let's see who's still here and who checks in over the next day or two.

"hmmmmm... not sure if I've ALWAYS wanted to go to Kaer Maga, or if I've NEVER wanted to go.... moot point now."

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"The weather should be better than the dreary rain of my homeland." remarks Pierre.

Ooh! exclaims a voice from below the railing in the hold. The excitable gnome peeks over the wood at the group. Never been to Kaer Maga! How exciting! Now this Collgardie...how should we find him? And what can you tell us about the city? And the Duskwardens? And what about sights we should see while we're there? Or people?

Whatever questions Umaga might of had, was covered by his small gnomish ally.

Nothin' I can think of. Let me grab a few last supplies, the I will be ready to go.

Now this Collgardie...how should we find him?

“You’re adventurous Pathfinders—I’m sure with his name and a few loose coins, you’ll find him in no time.”

"And what can you tell us about the city?"

“It’s a city of outcasts in Varisia atop the Storval Rise, built inside the shadows of enormous walls that are said to have been built before even Thassilon existed. Keep your head down and be smart. The balance of power in that city is fragile—upset it and you’re likely to die. Don’t go stomping about the place like it was a pharaoh’s tomb."

"And the Duskwardens? And what about sights we should see while we're there? Or people?

"The Duskwardens are some of the more trustworthy people in the city. They keep a watch on the ways in and out of the city and will help you climb the rise. Be cautious, be careful, and be courteous—even if the locals make fun of you for doing so. Oh, and the locals are likely not what you expect—you’ll see when you get there."

---

From the moment the sun rose this morning and the dizzying Twisted Door opened at the bottom of the Storval Rise, you, your companions, and a handful of traveling merchants have trudged slowly up the myriad stairs, tunnels, cliffside paths, and underground ruins that make up the famous Halflight Path. On either side of you march several gruff-looking men and women wearing brown-and-gray uniforms, the right breast bearing a badge with their symbol: a golden arch on a midnight blue background. These are the Duskwardens, and it’s their duty to see you safely up the Path to Kaer Maga, hours and hours of climbing above you.

About halfway up, Brak and Pierre suddenly hear something behind from behind the west side of the passage!

Surprise Round:

1. Brak and Pierre
2. Gobbos

Initiative:

1. Hingle, Brak, and Pierre
2. Gobbos
3. Umaga and Zax

Brak and Pierre are up with surprise round actions! Note you heard something behind the wall but can't see them yet.

"Bah! I've got a Desnan worshiping cousin, I'm not worried about locals making fun of me. I'll be respectful, don't ye doubt it."

------
Surprise Round:
"Oi! Bogeys ahead!" Dorvhan rushes forward.

Zax is completely surprised about everything, even the fact that he has a trip planned to Kaer Maga.

I'm here!

Pierre tumbles over to an area on the side, hoping to get the drop on whatever is coming, drawing his sickles in the process.

Stealth: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19

Sorry, at a conference this weekend and of course the wifi is spotty and terrible. I can't connect at all in conference area. Updates will likely be slow for a few days.

Brak rushes up to the wall and Pierre leaps to the side just as the wall collapses in on itself to reveal three goblins! They leap at Brak and stab!

short sword: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7
damage: 1d4 ⇒ 1

short sword: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
damage: 1d4 ⇒ 1

short sword: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
damage: 1d4 ⇒ 4

Meanwhile three more rush out of the small tunnel to the north!

Initiative:

1. Hingle, Brak, and Pierre
2. Gobbos
3. Umaga and Zax

Hingle, Brak, and Pierre are up!

"You're going to have to try harder than that ye stupid little beasts!"

Targeting the red goblin. Brak spits into his palms before swinging for the goblin with a powerful side swing: ATK: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 7 + 1 = 20 for DMG: 1d12 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13

Oh! Oh, my, that gave me quite a start! the gnome says, his eyes wide. Hingle moves up past Umaga and a rainbow of color emerges from his outstretched palm past Brak and into the onrushing goblins!

color spray, DC 15 Will negates

Can't edit map atm.

Will: 2d20 ⇒ (6, 12) = 18

Brak amd Hingle quickly clean up the western group with blade and spell!

Initiative:

1. Hingle, Brak, and Pierre
2. Gobbos
3. Umaga and Zax

Pierre is up!

Oops, sorry team. Could have sworn I posted for this.

Pierre bides his time as he hides behind a rock, waiting for hte goblin to approach so that he can get the drop on them.

Ok, back from traveling!

Pierre takes cover as the other goblins move up and fire their bows at Zax and Umaga!

short bow on Zax: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11
damage: 1d4 ⇒ 3

short bow on Umaga: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
damage: 1d4 ⇒ 4

The other goblin stays behind them and starts chanting....

Initiative:

1. Hingle, Brak, and Pierre
2. Gobbos
3. Umaga and Zax

You guys are up!

With a shout Brak rushes towards the chanting goblin. The warcry is foolhardy, and the charge even moreso, but the dwarf seems bent on bringing the fight to them.

Drawing 2 AoOs if they want to use those bows as clubs...

Zax will charge the pink? goblin and flank the enemy as well!

Longsword: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (9) + 8 = 17 for Slash!: 1d8 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

Anybody else see something weird with Brak's post. The text is all in the same font/color/size as the header. Doesn't look like there are any dice in there though. Strange.

Brak and Zax move across the room, Zax taking down one of the goblin archers!

Initiative:

1. Hingle, Brak, and Pierre
2. Gobbos
3. Umaga and Zax

Umaga, Hingle, and Pierre are up!

actually, yes I see it too, but I didn't use any weird formatting...

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PA shortspear: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12 for damage: 1d6 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6

Images moves next to the goblin harassing Brak and jabs his spear towards him, twisting his hips as he does to try and get maximum effect with the thrust.

Okay, so now all of my posts are weird like that?

Testing

Testing

Hingle fumbles in his backpack, at last drawing forth a wand! Aha! Found you! Please stop hiding just when I need you most!

magic missile: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

@Brak: yeah, they're all like that now. I'm not sure what's going on, I've never seen that before in all my years on the boards.

Umaga moves across the room but slips and misses the goblin. Hingle provides support and sends a missile at the goblin though!

Initiative:

1. Hingle, Brak, and Pierre
2. Gobbos (purp 4 dmg)
3. Umaga and Zax

Pierre is up!

Pierre erupts from his hiding spot and moves to cut down the purplish goblin. "Your time ends on the Material Plane, orcblood." he says as he swings his sickle.

Sickle @ Purple | Flanking: 1d20 + 5 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 5 + 2 = 21
Damage: 1d6 + 2d6 ⇒ (5) + (4, 4) = 13

Sorry for the delay. Very busy day today.

Pierre takes down the goblin guard but the goblin leader is able to finish his spell!

Pierre and Umaga: DC 12 Will save or fall asleep! Since Umaga is level 3 it can't affect both of you and will affect Pierre first if both of you fail. (Although it's not going to matter much other than hilarity and RP.)

The goblin then steps back and sends a blast of fire at Brak!

fire: 1d4 ⇒ 3
DC 12 Ref for half

The goblin's defenses are abysmal and, surrounded, it quickly falls!

Out of combat!

Once you defeat the goblins, the Duskwardens clear the rubble from the collapses and help you rejoin the rest of the travelers on the Halflight Path. One of the Duskwardens kicks at the goblin bodies, flips a few of them over, and then grunts. “Haven’t seen these here in a long time,” he says, then turns to to you and apologizes. “Our duty is to keep our charges safe—we failed. We’ll have to shut down the Path for a while we plug these holes again and figure out where these goblins came from.”

Four hours after the fight, you reach a bunker-like complex just outside the entrance to Kaer Maga. The city is enormous. In all directions, you can see that every inch of it is covered in buildings: cliff side buildings, buildings built on the atop thin balconies around the interior of the walls themselves, and buildings crammed together on the floor of the ancient ruin. Except for the lake at the center of the city (even then, only at midday), the entire city is drowned in permanent twilight.

You'll need to ask around in order to find the location of Collgardie’s house in Bis.

Perception: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21

I'm not the smartest guy but the goblins who collapsed the wall were likely camping behind that wall the previous night, and they’d been working at bringing the masonry down for a while.

Zax isn't shy about asking someone about the location of Collgardie’s house in Bis, preferring to get there as quickly as possible.

Diplo: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (19) + 8 = 27

"Eh, these buggers are like the common cold. It happens. I can appreciate the desire for total victory though."

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

"Now I know. I never wanted to see a place like this. Well, okay, I'm still not sure."

Gather Information: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (9) - 1 = 8 "Yeah this city is too much, someone else needs to take the lead."

I've contacted Paizo about the weird text formatting.

will: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20

Umaga, feels a little drowsy, but quickly recovers and laughs at the spell.

Ha, I won't sleep until I have drank to much at the bar, not at the likes of a puny spell.

per: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12
K dungeon: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (20) + 5 = 25

If that is the case, this trap is highly complicated trap. I wonder if it was taught to them by someone?

Umaga marvels at the sight as he looks at Kaer Maga.

Wow, it is amazing to see the homes built into the walls. So, where do we find this Collgardie guy anyways?

Umaga goes into the city, and stops at the first place that seems will talk to him.

You know where I can find Collgardie's house?

diplo aid: 1d20 ⇒ 17

Will Save: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Pierre collapses onto the ground, asleep, shortly after slitting the throat of the goblin. His lanky form crumples with a gangly awkwardness, but luckily his doesn't impale his own ribs on his sharpened blades.

"zzzzzzzzz..... *snore*"

Umaga cannot help but chuckle when Pierre slumps to the ground. After Umaga hears a couple snorts as he sleep, he picks him up, and shakes him until he wakes up.

Hey, quit your snoring, you'll wake the dead

Hingle can't help but giggle as the rough-and-tumble Pierre collapses into a pile of snores.

Later, he tries to help the Bureau of Half-Orc Diplomacy on the streets of the City of Strangers.
Diplo aid: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (16) + 8 = 24

Luckily you are a very friendly bunch and a local merchant points you in the right direction.

Horis Collgardie’s house is small but in good repair; judging by the decrepit state of the other homes in the neighborhood, this merchant friend of Drandle Dreng must be relatively well off. His home is made of a hodgepodge of brick and stone matching the city’s walls. Several windows look out onto the thin balcony walkway some 60 feet above the city streets that serves as the access for this neighborhood, but all are heavily barred with the shades pulled. The house appears dark and quiet.

However, as soon as you enter the front door you discover that it is not empty: there are four thugs waiting inside to assault you! "Payback time!" one of them shouts as they lift their cestuses (cesti) menacingly.

Initiative:

1. Pierre and Hingle
2. Goons
3. Umaga, Zax, and Brak

Pierre and Hingle are up!

"The ol' Galtan shakedown? Not today, fools!" bellows Pierre as he whips out his sickle and mace, choosing to move and strike before they can react, aiming for the man's knee with his mace.

Mace @ Red-FFAC: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17
Damage: 3d6 ⇒ (1, 5, 4) = 10

"Oh, I'm so ready!"

Pierre easily takes down one of the thugs before he has a chance to react!

Initiative:

1. Pierre and Hingle
2. Goons
3. Umaga, Zax, and Brak

Hingle is up!

Really now! the gnome says. Such dreadful manners!
He points his finger at Pink and sends an acid splash at him!
ranged touch vs. flat-footed AC: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23
confirm crit vs. flat-footed AC: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8 Eh, prolly not.
acid splash: 1d3 ⇒ 3

Hingle's acid burns the man's already-ugly face, which only makes him grimace harder and approach the gnome with his cestus as the other kicks over a chair in trying to get to Pierre.

cestus on Hingle: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 = 23
damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

cestus on Pierre: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11
damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

The other keeps the bar between you and him and tosses a foul bag with a skull in it at Brak!

ranged touch: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19
damage: 1d6 ⇒ 4
The bag is full of vermin and nasties, forcing a DC 11 Fortitude save to avoid being nauseated for 1d3 rounds. Each round a you remain nauseated by a stingchuck, you take 1 additional point of damage from the biting vermin. Everyone within the splash effect (which is everyone but Pierre) take 1 point of damage from the vermin.

Initiative:

1. Pierre and Hingle
2. Goons
3. Umaga, Zax, and Brak

pink: 3 dmg

You guys are up!

Umaga barely feels the vermin bite his ankles. He then hefts his spear and throws it at the thug not engaging anyone.

ranged spear green: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17
dam: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7

After throwing the spear, Umaga grabs another spear hanging from his back.

Umaga's spear sticks in the man's chest and he topples to the floor!

Initiative:

1. Pierre and Hingle
2. Goons
3. Umaga, Zax, and Brak

pink: 3 dmg

Zax, Brak, Pierre, and Hingle are up!

Payback? We only just arrived! Zax takes a quick 5' step and slashes at the unknown enemy!

Attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22 for Damage: 1d8 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7

Pierre lashes out at the blue-cowled thug. "You think this is my first shakedown? I grew up on the streets of Galt, mother-!@#$!@!" he spits as he swings his hammer and sickle.

Mace @ Blue: 1d20 + 5 - 2 ⇒ (11) + 5 - 2 = 14
Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1

Sickle @ Blue: 1d20 + 5 - 2 ⇒ (8) + 5 - 2 = 11
Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 5

Brak looks left and right, deciding where his axe would best be put to use He decides to step between Hingle and Zax. ATK: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20 for DMG: 1d12 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14.

After bringing his axe down on the man, he flashes a set of pearly whites to both his fellow Pathfinders.

Hingle's eyes grow wide as the thug smacks him. Oof! the gnome exclaims, desperately looking for an avenue of escape.

Five foot, draw wand as Move action, let fly with a magic missile, at Purple if still standing after Brax's hatchet job, or at Blue if not.

The last two thugs are quickly taken down by the martial members of the party and you now have a better chance to breathe and look around. Most noticeably, there is a dead body lying on the far side of the room, surrounded by a pool of blood. A note on one of the thugs reads as follows:

Boys,

Someone killed my friend Horis ollgardie. They left his body to rot inside his own house. Go there and wait. Don't touch anything. If anyone comes back looking to toss the place or take the body and that person's not an Ardoc, it's most likely his killer. Kill anone who shows up there that isn't a member of my family-I mean anyone. You'll be paid well.

Besel Ardoc

Hmm, maybe we should find this Ardoc and see what he knows, if we can convince him we aren't the killers of course. Let's examine the body and take a look around.

Heal check on Collgardie: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22
Perception to look around the home: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

Pierre will look around the home as well.

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17

"We should meet this Ardoc bastard. Reckon he is on the same side as us if he is looking to exact revenge on Collgardie's killer." says Pierre as he tosses the place, throwing pillows and books on to the floor in search of anything interesting or valuable.

Whoever killed Ardoc did so violently and clearly didn't care much about stealing any of Ardoc's stuff, as everything is still tidy and in place.

You can make Diplomacy and Knowledge (local) checks to ask around about Ardoc and try to find him.

Once finished inside the home, Zax will ask around about the murdered man.

Diplo: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21