F+9, R+5, W+10 (+5 v. spells and SLAs)(+3 v. poison) | Init. +9 | Perc. +13 | SenMot +15 | Move 20' Inquisitor (Gorum) 7 | AC 20/12/19 | CMD 20 (24 v. Bull rush or trips) | HP 59/59 |
Perception 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (15) + 12 = 27
"Look, crushed jade dust in the grooves there. And there's a trap, too. Those naginatas are rigged to crash down. But the hare is sort of a safety mechanism for it. Be careful as we explore it."
|AC 17, T 17, FF 14|HP: 50/50|F +3, R +6, W +5 (+2 vs shadow/death)|Init +3, Perc 0|CMB +3 CMD 16|11/11 Blinding Rays, 8/8 Invisibility Field, 10/10 Veil, 1/1 Arcane Bond, 1/1 Jewel
Knowledge (Arcana):1d20 + 16 ⇒ (12) + 16 = 28
Sihir paces the perimeter of the arcane circle.
"This is a portal," He explains. "A simple one-minute, one-person ritual will open it...it does have a bit of a flaw, though: It's like a stubborn door that has to be opened with such force that whoever takes point in opening it will be forced through to the other side by their own sheer momentum."
|AC 17, T 17, FF 14|HP: 50/50|F +3, R +6, W +5 (+2 vs shadow/death)|Init +3, Perc 0|CMB +3 CMD 16|11/11 Blinding Rays, 8/8 Invisibility Field, 10/10 Veil, 1/1 Arcane Bond, 1/1 Jewel
"Oh, but how thoughtless of me! For the benefit of my Avistani collegues, it says, 'only by destroying my brother could I walk safely into the grave, and emerge before the undead who worship me.' No prizes for guessing the speaker."
Sorry I missed yesterday; I had a big final this morning and I was busily prepping for it while also putting together a lesson to teach yesterday afternoon.
As Deaglan guessed, smashing the hare would have prevented the naginatas from swinging down but luckily Nixkamich is able to disable the trap without destroying the interesting trinket.
Sharaheen steps forward. "Whoever opens the portal, fear not: I will be right behind you. This is my journey, after all, and I feel that it all somehow comes back to me. I should go and investigate. No doubt it is Jujanil and I must confront them."
F+9, R+5, W+10 (+5 v. spells and SLAs)(+3 v. poison) | Init. +9 | Perc. +13 | SenMot +15 | Move 20' Inquisitor (Gorum) 7 | AC 20/12/19 | CMD 20 (24 v. Bull rush or trips) | HP 59/59 |
Hagrym nods. "We are with you Sharaheen. If we get this thing open, we are all going in to get to be bottom of all of this.". The inquisitor pulled his great sword and stood until the others were prepared.
As the portal is activated, Sharaheen is whisked away and everyone leaps in after her.
A veneer of regality struggles to mask the decaying features of this once-opulent court. A fraying carpet leads from the chamber’s arched entrance to a raised marble dais featuring two worn leather chairs. Flanking the dais, a pair of marble statues each depict an imperious samsaran woman. Porcelain jars and ornate boxes adorn alcoves in the north and south walls. In the eastern portion of the room, hundreds of small mirrors are carefully arrayed in a circle on the wall. Together, the mirrors reveal a raging snowstorm.
What appears to be a beautiful samsaran woman in a flowing silk robe stands before the northern chair, attended by monks. Jujanil welcomes you warmly with, "Oh, I have looked forward to meeting you all. I've been watching, you know." Then she rises into the air and sheds her robe, revealing that her body is but a floating head trailing a mass of slick viscera—she is the penanggalen you suspected. Jujanil laughs and says, “So kind of you to bring me a new wardrobe.”
As a reminder, you know that penanggalen have DR/silver and slashing, are resistant to cold and fire, and sensitive to light.
F+9, R+5, W+10 (+5 v. spells and SLAs)(+3 v. poison) | Init. +9 | Perc. +13 | SenMot +15 | Move 20' Inquisitor (Gorum) 7 | AC 20/12/19 | CMD 20 (24 v. Bull rush or trips) | HP 59/59 |
Hagrym moves forward 20', casts Divine Favor on himself, and activates his Destruction judgement, knowing he needs to do a great deal of damage, not holding the perfect weapon for the job.
|AC 17, T 17, FF 14|HP: 50/50|F +3, R +6, W +5 (+2 vs shadow/death)|Init +3, Perc 0|CMB +3 CMD 16|11/11 Blinding Rays, 8/8 Invisibility Field, 10/10 Veil, 1/1 Arcane Bond, 1/1 Jewel
"It's been our pleasure! Hold still so we can take your measure!" Sihir waves his hands with arcane precision before flicking a bit of pungent dust in Jujanil's direction.
I cast halt undead on her (and up to two of her allies if any of them happen to be undead); she must make a DC 20 Will save or be paralyzed for up to 7 rounds.
Nixkamich is quick to put two arrows into the undead abomination! Hagrym, Deaglan, and Insidion prepare for the fight ahead and Sihir tries to us magic to ward off the penanggalen; however, Jujanil's force of will is too strong for such magics!
Jujanil laughs sickly. "Those arrows would be better spent on someone else, dear!" Jujanil's words are laced with arcane energy as she taunts Nixkamich.
DC 17 Will save or you affected by murderous command!
Two of her initiates move quickly down the side of the hall while the other two remain defensive in front of their undead master.
F+9, R+5, W+10 (+5 v. spells and SLAs)(+3 v. poison) | Init. +9 | Perc. +13 | SenMot +15 | Move 20' Inquisitor (Gorum) 7 | AC 20/12/19 | CMD 20 (24 v. Bull rush or trips) | HP 59/59 |
Hagrym will take a double move and enter melee with the opponent trying to engage the group on the southern side of the room. "Gorum will reward you for a brave death!"
|AC 17, T 17, FF 14|HP: 50/50|F +3, R +6, W +5 (+2 vs shadow/death)|Init +3, Perc 0|CMB +3 CMD 16|11/11 Blinding Rays, 8/8 Invisibility Field, 10/10 Veil, 1/1 Arcane Bond, 1/1 Jewel
Sihir waves his hands frantically, and suddenly the entire room is dotted with huge, menacing explosives, their lit fuses slowly descending...
"Behold, the 11th Hour spell, mighty secret weapon of the Pathfinder Society's finest wizards and alchemists! It will bring no harm to us Pathfinders, of course, but I would hurry and try to disarm as many as you can before this entire palace explodes - after all, it seems there's more than enough to go 'round for you!"
HP 69/69 AC 21, 13, 20(18 T 12 FF 17); bab 7, (scimitar) +9/+4, (lt xbow) +11; F +10 R +7 W +11; INIT +3; Perc +22; CMB +6 CMD 19; channel 8/8 | gnome cleric(theologian)/5; exalted/6 | -01 *
HP 69/69 AC 21, 13, 20(18 T 12 FF 17); bab 7, (scimitar) +9/+4, (lt xbow) +11; F +10 R +7 W +11; INIT +3; Perc +22; CMB +6 CMD 19; channel 8/8 | gnome cleric(theologian)/5; exalted/6 | -01 *
sorry - not a will save dc 19 to cast on the following turn, disruptive is dc 19 CONCENTRATION check to cast on the following turn. my bad... sorry for any confusion
@Nix: you are correct! I've never noticed that that was close-ranged before, I'll have to remember that in the future when players try to use it. I know I've let people get away with long-range murderous commands before. Let's just say it was a hold person instead, but you passed anyways even with the higher DC for hold person.
1d20 ⇒ 20 Ref:3d20 ⇒ (14, 12, 2) = 28
Insidion sinks tooth and claw into the devotee blocking his path to the penanggalen. Nixkamich resists Jujanil's magic and continues to sink arrows into the undead! Sihir seemingly rigs the room with explosives but Juganil recognizes the spell and calls out to her minions, "Ignore them! They are nothing but tricks!"
Lore's fireball, however, is very real. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to do much damage to Juganil and one of her supporters completely avoids it. Deaglan then once again grows to Megadwarf size.
Two of the initiates fight against Hagrym and Insidion:
The others remain near Juganil, who again tries to cast something despite the burning in her internal organs.
concentration:1d20 + 14 ⇒ (16) + 14 = 30
A cloud of glitter descends on Deaglan, Nixkamich, Lore, and Sihir! DC 17 Will save or be blinded! If you fail, you get another save at the end of your turn to get rid of the blindness.
HP 69/69 AC 21, 13, 20(18 T 12 FF 17); bab 7, (scimitar) +9/+4, (lt xbow) +11; F +10 R +7 W +11; INIT +3; Perc +22; CMB +6 CMD 19; channel 8/8 | gnome cleric(theologian)/5; exalted/6 | -01 *
HP 69/69 AC 21, 13, 20(18 T 12 FF 17); bab 7, (scimitar) +9/+4, (lt xbow) +11; F +10 R +7 W +11; INIT +3; Perc +22; CMB +6 CMD 19; channel 8/8 | gnome cleric(theologian)/5; exalted/6 | -01 *
|AC 17, T 17, FF 14|HP: 50/50|F +3, R +6, W +5 (+2 vs shadow/death)|Init +3, Perc 0|CMB +3 CMD 16|11/11 Blinding Rays, 8/8 Invisibility Field, 10/10 Veil, 1/1 Arcane Bond, 1/1 Jewel
Her minions get a bonus for her telling them it's a trick, but they still have to make their own saving throws or believe it. The DC is 22.
"Ah, but that's what I would want you to think, isn't it?"
Will save:1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20
Being quite accustomed to strange magical lights, Sihir barely notices the glitterdust, and presses the attack with his own entirely real (and geomantically empowered) fireball.
fireball vs Juganil and her two nearby henchmen, Reflex DC 20:7d6 ⇒ (4, 1, 2, 2, 3, 6, 3) = 21
Nixkamich puts another arrow into Juganil, although his others fly errant this time. "Well done, everyone! We're so close!" Sharaheen shouts in encouragement. Lore takes this to heart and summons a searing light which sends Juganil's incomplete body crumbling and withering to the ground! A foul black miasma erupts from Juganil's mouth. The spirits of Sharaheen’s many former lives manifest, coalesce around the inky stain, and ultimately absorb it into their brilliance. Then the bright cloud surges into Sharaheen’s mouth. The girl staggers back for a moment and then looks up at you all with bright eyes as she smiles and says, "I am healed. I can now achieve enlightenment."
Sihir and the rest work together to take out the remaining goons!
Out of combat!
Before you have time to consider what has occurred in this dark and dangerous place, cracks begin to appear on the walls and ceiling. "Quick, back through the portal!" Sharaheen shouts. "Grab those boxes there! Hurry now!"
Back safely in the tower, now again guarded by the yeti who built it ages ago, you can examine the boxes Sharaheen ordered you to save. The ornate boxes are filled with relics of Jujanil’s past lives. Several of these items are infused with psychic significance; you can attune yourselves to these items to make them more powerful. These will appear in various forms on your chronicle sheet.
Calysses of Bachuan (Pirate): Darkwood ship’s figurehead depicting a kraken.
Marakutis of Zi Ha (Royal Assassin): Masterwork dagger inlaid with jade.
Elris of Tianjing (Missionary of Irori): Specialized strand of prayer beads, one of which functions as a bead of blessing.
Krenek of Dtang Ma (Dragonslayer): +1 earth breaker made from the head of an adult underworld dragon.
Qith of Zi Ha (Undead-Hunting Alchemist): Confluence of the Five Elements, Qith’s personal formula book.
Rianon of Minkai (Plague Healer): Fine set of robes and gloves lined with snow leopard fur.
Ilgafor of Zi Ha (General): Red silk battle standard embroidered with golden wings.
Malash of Hongal (Peacemaker): Scroll of illuminated prayers to Shelyn wrapped around a wand of holy shield.
The largest and most intricately ornamented box is inlaid with black onyx, and contains dozens of journals. The earliest volumes, written in precise and methodical script, detail Jujanil’s plans to erase records of her existence. They speak dispassionately about “obtaining necessary sacrifices for my ascension to lichdom,” and describe how she planned to harness the combined power of relics of her past lives and a convergence of ley lines to fuel her apotheosis. The volume directly below those is covered in dried blood and pieces of viscera. The text below it is scrawled in large and messy letters, like a child’s first attempt at writing, and filled with profanities, confused rambling, and the often-repeated question “Where are my hands?” A second pile of volumes details Jujanil’s process of making sense of what happened to her when she awoke from her failed ritual. They include her bafflement that Ryuu stayed by her side after she lost her body and much of her mind, and her awe at the power she must have once had to enthrall him so thoroughly. The penanggalen’s words express a kind of twisted affection that she developed for the elf over the last 3 centuries. In the last few entries, Jujanil fearfully mentions a group of Pathfinders working with her latest incarnation, Bakten, and later smugly describes invading his mind and killing him from within in a psychic duel.
With Jujanil’s destruction, you have stemmed a rising tide of evil in Tian Xia. As you descend from the pinnacle, you see the storm clouds parting, and hear the triumphant hooting of yetis from the nearby peaks. Sharaheen accompanies you to Amanandar, vowing to help you organize Bakten’s biographies for delivery to the Lantern Lodge. She apologizes again for Bakten’s manipulations, and reassures you that she intends to spend this lifetime repairing the damage in Ayajinbo and Dallo. Finally, she bequeaths Bakten’s former home, the Sanctuary of the Unbound Knot, to the Pathfinder Society, recommending that they consider it as a potential site for a future Pathfinder Lodge.
And that concludes the To Judge a Soul two-part arc! I hope you all enjoyed it. I will get chronicles sent out tonight. Thanks for playing!
HP 69/69 AC 21, 13, 20(18 T 12 FF 17); bab 7, (scimitar) +9/+4, (lt xbow) +11; F +10 R +7 W +11; INIT +3; Perc +22; CMB +6 CMD 19; channel 8/8 | gnome cleric(theologian)/5; exalted/6 | -01 *
