GM Endless Forms' PFS 03-07 Echoes of the Overwatched (Inactive)

Game Master Mike Tuholski

Once again one of Drandle Dreng's servants has awoken you in the middle of the night to summon you to an early-morning meeting with the Venture Captain. You are waiting in his office.

Dotting...

Natrium. Saltpeter. Bluestone. Resin. Sulfur. Fulminating silver. Cinnabar...

Arriving to the office early, Arovandeon took stock of the reagents in his leather-bound book of formulas. Running low on Alkenstar quicklime and pale phosphate again. He made a note to purchase more from his contact, then turned to a different second of the book containing his latest theories on the transmutation potential of paraffin when combined with other additives.

eager for his first assignment Raz enters the office with a bounce in his step, quickly assessing the situation he offers a warm greeting to his follow attendees "Hi, i take it you too were also summoned here by some ass kicking your door at the wolfing hour last night?" with a simpatico grin plastered on his face.

By the time of the meeting, Kumari has been up for hours. Her hair, her makeup, her fine clothing, calls back to the classic styles of great Kelish beauties, but also has a modern element from the fashion houses of Oppara. It all had to be made just so before she met her beloved.
Gazing out her eastern facing window as the light broke over the horizon, she whispered prayers to the Dawnflower in the silence of her heart.
She enters the room with a smile on her face and what can only be a dancer's grace. "Blessed morning gentlemen. I do not believe we have met. My name is Kumari Azar." She offers her hand as a lady would.

"greetings Ku-mari, why i was just introducing myself to the folks as you graced us" "i'm raz, pleased to met you?" Offering a welcoming hand shake to the new arrival.

Closing his book on a finger to hold the spot, Arovandeon stands as others enter the room. Neither seemed prone to academia, but he has spent enough time traveling during his studies to hold a conversation about other things.

"Salutations, I am Arovandeon." He offers a thin, pale hand in greeting. "At this hour even a night owl would find a summons odd. We should assume the need must be urgent."

Arriving at the office following early morning prayers Karazan nods in greeting to the others. Some of them seem to have been here for some time, having already got half way through a book...

"My apologies if I am the last to arrive. Is there any sign of the good captain yet?"

Karazan's voice was calm but inside his heart was racing at the thought of his first assignment, an assignment he was desperately hoping he hadn't arrived too late to hear why the captain had requested such an urgent meeting.

Mella enters waiting for the Venture-Captain, at first you mistake her for a Mwangi woman but soon after observing her movements and a closer look at her you realize the woman before you has some celestial heritage.

Smiling sheepishly she confesses, "I have only just passed my Confirmation test, this is my first true Pathfinder field assignment. I am Mella Gbadu, Sixth Sword Knight of Iomedae."

Drandle Dreng’s entrance is as understated as always at the meeting with him this morning. He carries stacks of papers and tomes, and shedding stray pages as he makes his way toward a large, cushioned chair; once seated, he greets you warmly.

“Welcome, welcome, glad to see you’ve made yourself at home. No point in beating around the bush, since I’m sure you’re all very curious why I called you here today, hm?

“As you may or may not know, the Society has been bolstering its influence with the esteemed Blakros family for some time now, and have assisted them and their famous museum with various incidents over the past few years—discovering several new levels of catacombs in the process.

“Just recently, the Blakros Museum’s curator, Nigel Aldain, informed us that he’d discovered a mysterious portal within the building’s vast catacombs, and sought information regarding how to open it. We sent one of our agents, a man by the name of Anumet Akrostera, to help research the matter further, which involved delving into the various attics and crawlspaces of the Blakros Museum in search of clues that might lead to the whereabouts of the portal’s key.

“Earlier today, Nigel showed up here, claiming that something was wrong with Anumet. It seems that the Pathfinder set off some sort of curse or trap while poking around in the place’s attics and was acting strangely, and now he can’t be found at all. I need you to head to Blakros Museum and get to the bottom of this. Find Anumet, and if he has gotten himself into irreparable trouble, you’ll also need to take up where he left off and find that key.”

You may make Knowledge (history) checks. You may also make Knowledge (local) or Diplomacy (gather information) checks.

"Ah, let me give you these as well." the aged Venture-Captain says as he hands you several envelopes.

Razamoph, you'll have to pick a faction. Most people just do the Grand Lodge faction mission when they play a pregen or haven't decided yet because it's sort of the default "non-political" faction. You can change factions of your character until you hit 2nd level without penalty, so you just need to decide on a temporary faction to do that mission during this scenario.

Mella nods at Venture-Captain Dreng, "Of course sir, we will find Anumet at once!"

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (6) + 9 = 15

Diplomacy:1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15

Mella, it is very nice to meet you. I was so nervous that I was the only new agent here!

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13

"I too am new good lady, I shall do my best to not let my new found comrades or the good captain down."

Knowledge (local): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7

diplomacy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (7) + 10 = 17

well met captain and companions, this is also my first assignment and hopefully not our last together. i do so enjoy my body's current configuration he muses to himself and i'm sure that if you are in this room with me today you posses at least a modicum of survive instinct in... awkward situations. tell me dear captain do you have any extra intel on our task?

Nigel Aldain and the Blakros Museum in trouble again. Arovandeon muses as Dreng explains their task. It must be Thursday.

At the name of the missing agent, he raises an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued. Anumet Akrostera? That sounds Osirian. Is he another loyal servant of The Sapphire Sage?

"Is there anything more you could tell us about Anumet Akrostera?" He asks Dreng.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18

Dex steps forward and retorts, "Another Blakros fire drill eh? At least their constant fumbling and requests for assistance give the Scoiety a way in."

Dex bows slightly in the direction of Drandle Dreng, his way of softening the bite of his words and showing some respect for his elder.

"Sir, I suspect that there is some urgency here, but would you afford us some time to prepare and gather needed equipment before we go in? That place has a reputation."

He glances over at Kumi and smiles.

'We need to run a quick errand, I hope that there is time.'

Kumari gives a wink to Dex.

He certainly isn't the most subtle of instruments. That is not how I was going to play this, but I think we can make this work.

We can still approach Muln for arcane assistance on our endeavor to find Anumet. Hopefully once inside we can find what we need..

Another? This happens regularly does it?

Despite the wink, Dex detects a slight sense that his words may have shocked the very properly presented Kumari.

"My lady, I apologize if I came off as brash. I can assure you that I will handle myself with care when we are on mission. Here in the protection of the venture captain's offices I offer that a more candid approach was in order."

Again he bows slightly in deference.

"As far as that family and the Museum go, their exploits are somewhat legendary. There was an issue with a daughter of the family who bit off more than she could chew with some Osirion demons or something and she too got lost in there. Several men went missing, it was a bit of an affair."

"Demons you say, do you think that we shall find their foul kind behind the troubles at the museum?"

"I sincerely hope not, I'd rather face something of this world if we must."

"Get used to disappointment." Arovandeon says with a chuckle. "When it comes to the Blakros Museum, encounters of the normal world are unusual."

His hand gives an involuntary twitch as memories of spiders crawling on his skin jump to the forefront of his thoughts.

It seems as though going into this museum is something like a right of passage so I suppose it must be done. Though Arovandeon appears to not have come through unscathed...

"Well, this sounds like it will be quite an adventure. Will we be making a day of it, or do you think we shall be wandering there for days?"

"Your brashness is understood. The Blakros Museum is. . . a ficklesome asset, to say the least. I can not tell you how long the mission will take or really much more about it, I'm afraid. You should talk to the curator himself. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some work to do." The Venture Captain shuffles from his office, dropping papers and scrolls as he goes, coughing into a handkerchief every so often.

By the time you get to the museum, Nigel Aldain is standing outside waiting to meet you. Nigel Aldain has a disturbed expression, but looks slightly relieved now that help is at hand.

“Thank the gods you’re finally here. It would appear something quite bizarre has happened to my new Pathfinder-turned-assistant, Anumet Akrostera, while we were researching the key to the newly discovered portal beneath the museum. I had warned Anumet that many corners of the museum hold mysteries that, as of yet, have never been looked into, but I’m afraid something got to him all the same, as the last time yesterday I saw him he was acting quite strangely, and he failed to return today. I fear something evil in the attics of the museum may have cursed him.”

Pulling aside Dex on the way to the museum: "I am of the thought that we should use any excuse we can to call on Maren Fuln for arcane assistance. Once we are in his office, apartments, or whatever he has, we can hopefully find what we need there. I must tell you though that despite my being quite adroit, I do not have very nimble fingers. Could you handle something along those lines?"

Arriving at the museum, Kumari thinks, Quite an imposing structure to be sure. Sarenrae protect us.

To Nigel: "Thank you for alerting us so quickly. We are all very sorry that we could not arrive sooner than we did. Could you have us in and show us what Anumet was working on? Perhaps you could tell us a little about it and what exactly you fear happened?"

Any chance to use prestige and purchase additional supplies on route? I have a list of things I'd like to get.

Karazan stands close to Kumari, his hand close to his longsword, his grip tightening on his shield, half expecting all manner of evil doers to erupt from the four corners of the museum.

Any chance to use prestige and purchase additional supplies on route? I have a list of things I'd like to get.

Yep. But take care of it in the Discussion thread to keep the gameplay thread moving.

Nodding at Kumari, "I have done a few trick in the past to entertain the children, we'll see what I can do ..."

* * *
At the Museum ...

"Sir must we make haste at this instant or, by chance can we provision for the assignment - it would be helpful if we could make a quick stop to seek assistance in this matter?"

Listening to everything Mella looks at Nigel and says, "Acting strangely in what way? That could be a useful clue."

Responding to your questions, Nigel launches into the account of what has happened.

“Anumet was exploring the museum’s attics and towers looking for clues about the key to a newly discovered portal in the museum’s catacombs. This morning, he went up to the attic for a long time, and when he came down, he acted strangely, as if he didn’t recognize anyone. His voice was hoarse and the words he used were bizarre and archaic. He kept rambling about Ralzeros the Overwatched, but nothing he said made sense.

“He made for the catacombs and stared at the portal we’ve been trying to unlock for some time. I don’t think he realized I was still there, and I followed him around the other areas in the catacombs, where he seemed to be desperately searching for something. When he couldn’t find it, he was furious. Anumet avoided me after that, but I saw him look something up in our copy of Jackdaw’s History of the True Art, a book about famous wizards and astrologers. He took the book with him and ran out of the museum. I didn’t dare follow him, and haven’t seen him since.”

Sorry for the delay, I'm home helping on the farm and it's planting season.

"Hmmm ... should we be looking for him first or go into the museum itself. Do you have any idea where he may have gone, does he have a house nearby or frequent a tavern regularly?"

Arovandeon listened to Nigel's explanation with interest, making mental notes as topics of importance were divulged. A portal. Ralzeros the Overwatched. Jackdaw's History of the True Art. He searched his memory for information and wondered at strange things that happened so often at the Museum. Truly, this place must have some deep curse upon it to afflict so many visitors within it's halls.

"Perhaps something in Jackdaw's History of the True Art directed him elsewhere. What do you know of it?"

Diplomacy if needed: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 = 23
knowledge arcana for information about Jackdaw's History of the True Art: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (18) + 10 = 28

Ralzeros... Jackdaw... True Art? I have no idea what they are talking about. I suppose the Arcanamirium would have a copy of this book. If we had some inkling of what Anumet was looking for, that could be useful for a couple of reasons.

"Could you please show us where Anumet was working when that strange mood came over him? Perhaps any work notes as well? If we can figure out what happened to him, what he was looking for, we may be better able to predict his movements. And who is this Ralzeros fellow?"

Meddling in the affairs of wizards never ends well...fortunately we have a few bookworms of our own here to hopefully shed some light on the situation thought Karazan.

The suggestion of putting off entering the strange museum for a few more hours while they looked for Anumet outside seemed like a good idea.

Responding to Dex, Nigel sighs. "I have no idea. Before he left, he was muttering something about Ralzeros’s duel, but he was hunched over and wouldn’t look at me when I tried to ask what he was talking about. I think it's better to worry about the museum first and try to hunt him down later. Let's just hope he's ok.”

At Arovandeon's inquiry, Nigel sighs again. “I don’t really know much about History of the True Art. It does discuss Ralzeros the Overwatched quite a bit. Forae Logos is the only other place I can think that would have a copy.”

"Anumet was working up in the attics. I wasn't with him so I'm not sure where exactly, although you may be able to follow his footprints in the dust. The attics are too rickety and awkward for any practical use these days, but they’ve been there since the Blakros family bought the place. Tales say that Ralzeros the Overwatched put machines there that he used to observe the stars and heavens above. Judging by how strangely everything up there is laid out, I suspect that the stories are right when they say he was insane.”

Karazans heart sank a little at the prospect of heading into the museum rather than into town. Any place that sent people mad was likely to need more than just someone who was handy with a sword.

"I guess we head into the museum then, how's your tracking of footprints in a dusty attic these days Dex?"

Mella shakes her head, "We need to track down Anumet immediately. Who knows what kind of demon-minded possession he may be under or vile plans he is helping to set into motion." Looking Nigel directly in the eyes she continues, "This forsaken structure has stood long years already, it will survive while we track down our companion and ensure his safety."

"I respectfully disagree." Arovandeon says to Mella. "Tracking down Anumet is essential, but as he is not acting as himself I doubt we will find him in any of his usual haunts. Without further information about his current state of mind, it would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. I believe we should begin our investigation by retracing his steps here in the museum, regardless of the dangers we might face while doing so."

"If there is another copy of History of the True Art in the Forae Logos we should try and learn what we can from it." Mella says, turning toward Arovandeon. "Perhaps it will guide us to whatever obsession of Ralzeros' consumes Anumet?"

Is doing research at the Forae Logos a possibility? Seems like that might take a long time.

Looking up from what looks like play with a small b/w zebra striped rat on his arm Raz offer's up a suggestion "Our 2 most important factors as i see it is time and information and we lack both. the quickest route i see to gaining information is to go up to that attic and examine what took our man. it's close, we know more about it's location and it's treat level than what the book offers. I don't know how the party feel about spitting it's resources but my thoughts on the matter are thus; we don't know the exact level of treat and we could need everyone"

"Makes sense Raza, that's a coherent plan. Lets check it out and determine where or what next with that information in hand."

Smiling to herself, Kumari thinks As nervous as *I* am about this place, our strapping warriors are far more reluctant to enter.

"I concur with Arovandeon. Mella, even if we had access to the tome, we will know much better what Anumet was researching if we take a look inside the museum. Since we cannot take the book out of the Forae Logos, we had best go there with what information we can."

Mella throws her hands up in frustration, "Yes, obviously. Let's let our brother-in-arms wander the streets in some confused, possessed state. Probably trying to complete the mad schemes of a long dead wizard. Rather, let us concern ourselves with things rather than people. We are Pathfinders after all."

She points at Arovandeon, "Anumet's life is on your head now. I hope you are right."

Drawing her sword she continues her rant, "Anyone who mistakes my compassion for the lives of our brothers as fear has much to learn in this world."

Stomping off, Mella heads for the attic.

"Our man is of paramount importance but i fear lacking his current location would only waste time on trying to find him. If the attic proves useless at least we'll exhaust the smallest faction of our time."