GM Endless Forms' PFS 07-11 Ancients' Anguish (Inactive)

Game Master Mike Tuholski

You are awaiting your mission briefing with your fellow agents.

Please introduce yourselves!

Haha! Another mission! So exciting, isn't it? Oh, I'm the first one here...

"And I the second," a grandly dressed elf says in a matter-of-fact tone, with just a hint of pomp. A bone-white bow is slung across his back, pale in comparison to his gleaming elven breastplate. A gold-trimmed scarlet cloak hangs from his shoulders to his well-worn leather boots. "Pasha Halbarad of the Arbor," he bows, "Trade Prince, Slayer of Aralantryx, Captor of the Spider, Savior of Azlant Ridge, Defender of Nesting Swallow, Bane of Tyruwat, Shield of Sothis, Smuggler of Stones. At your service."

Smuggler of Stones, huh? I approve. :-)

As is evidently Society custom, says a human seated near the fire, we await our Venture-Captain. Again. The human, clearly of Shoanti blood based on his ruddy skin and bronze-colored hair, is clad in simple leather- and fur-edged clothing. With a sigh of exasperation, he rises to his feet to greet the gnome and elf. Bruxo Machi, at your service, he says with a slight nod of his head. He is uncommonly thin for those of his heritage, and the traditional Shoanti braid is barely shoulder-length instead of falling down his back. Equally odd is the tiny lizard-like creature, about the size of a cat, sleeping lazily just inside his collar, its tail wrapped about much of Bruxo's neck.

"Greetings fellow Pathfinders!" A small halfling stands before you, clad in a tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows, curls of smoke rising from his pipe. "I am Professor Cosmo Berrythwaite, D.Ph., A.O.A.S., adjunct lecturer of Ancient Ossirion Studies and part-time docent of Ossiriani Artifacts and Archives at the Library of Absalom, with an emphasis on histories of ancient civilizations."

He bows grandly.

"This is indeed exciting. I cannot wait to find out what ancient arena we shall be thrust into next!"

It looks like we have a pretty good group so far. Well-rounded, which is nice. :)

Cosmo is a support character. He is a knowledge-monkey. If we need to know something, he's probably the guy. Cosmo has other abilities that he can use in a pinch, but he isn't a super strong combat character.

Oh my! So much service at my disposal, haha! Bizzle approaches the one more of his height. What's with all of the letters again? And who said anything about an arena! I'm no fighter, oh no, no sir! I'll leave that to these tall folk here!

Bizzle then peers up at the elf. Umm, you have a lot of titles. You got papers for all of them? Haha! Just a joke, keep you hands where we can see them!

A tall, for a dwarf, burly, bearded man walks into the room. He carries a well-oiled musket cradled in his right arm, while bandoliers crisscross his chest filled to near bursting with ammunition, flasks, bottles, pouches, and other geegaws. A set of goggles are perched on his forehead and oily rag pokes out from a pocket.

Entering the room, he pauses, taking in the other occupants. As his gaze falls on Bizzle, he huff loudly, rolls his eyes, then smiles broadly, clapping the gnome roughly on the back. "How ya's doin' Biz? Staying out of trouble since we was up lookin' fer the Sky Citadel?"

Turning to the room, he gives a curt nod. "Name's Ryster."

"No, little one, no papers," Hal replies to Bizzle. "I have deeds." This time the pomp is front and center.

Hal introduces himself again (of course) for the newer arrivals. His bow is an inch deeper and a barely perceptible smirk has found its way into his expression.

Deeds? Ho-ha! Ryster! This fella doesn't seem to understand that deeds are written on paper! Haha! Bizzle leans in closer to the elf. What kind of deeds? Quit Claim? Bargain and Sale? You do look the real estate type once I take a good look at you.

"You know...most people mistakenly believe that the concept of deeds and ownership was given to mortals by Abadar or maybe even Asmodeus. But that isn't true. It is a little known fact that the word 'deed' comes from the Osiriani word 'daed', which means 'with', as in 'with Horus', for it was Horus who gave mortals the concept of ownership."
Bluff: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26

Cosmo does know quite a lot, and everything he doesn't know he makes up.

Hal frowns. "No, not 'real estate.' Deeds of death and daring. My deeds are written in action, and in blood. Not paper." An expression halfway between nonplussed and irritable flashes across his face before he turns and finds a seat. Gnomes. He gives Professor Cosmo a blank look. "Hm."

Bruxo nods to the halfling and dwarf in turn. Well met, to be sure, he says. Hope this assignment's a fair sight better than the last trip I took. Not fond of the cold, so the Realm of the Mammoth Lords was...unpleasant. He thinks quietly a moment, then continues with a smirk. Of course putting a dinosaur to sleep — twice — well, not everyone can say that, I suppose.

Just realized I need to level Bruxo up on here; he's 10th level, not 8th.

Oooh! A swashbuckler! I should've known. Yep, taking another better look at you and I can see it!

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15

Umm, what? Oh, yes! Of course! Horus was known for all sorts of things like that, you know. Bizzle looks at the halfling as if he knew it the whole time. Bluff: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (12) + 12 = 24

Errr, something in your throat? Bizzle then shrugs his shoulders and looks at the dwarf. So, why are you here?

Ryster looks up sharply as Hal and Cosmo begin speaking in another language.

Hal nods at Ryster.

Here, the elf switches to modern Osiriani.

He shrugs.

Ryster shrugs, then grins, switching to modern Osiriani as well.

Switching to Common, he says. "Any of ya know what we've been called up fer?"

A tall man with fine, aquiline features, pale skin, and a finely trimmed, upward-curled mustache, dressed in a finely-tailored three-piece suit, walks regally into the room.

"Ah! I zought I heard ze sounds of a familiar tongue in zis room. It would appear zat I have come to ze right place. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Poirot, Hercule Poirot, at your service. If zere is an investigation zat needs to be done, I am your man. I also have some skill at finding hidden zings, and I have - how do you say? - somezing of a way wiz words."

Basically, a high level arcanist, good at Diplomacy, Perception, Spellcraft, UMD, most Knowledge skills, and Linguistics. I also have the ability to cast Summon Monster spells as a standard action, and have a fondness for summoning electrified, flying, dire kitties ;-)

A small scorpion, its scales a vibrant shade of iridescent green briefly crawls out of Poirot's sleeve, and he fondly gives it a rub at the base of its stinger, before it crawls back into the warmth and darkness of his suit pocket.

"By ze way, Zis is Suchet. Not much good in a fight, of course, but I do like - how do you say? - bouncing ideas off him. He is a good listener!"

Suchet, very good. I've seen every one of them, by the way. And no, I'm not British (or Belgian), but I do have an Acorn account.

Ho! A scorpion? What a pet! Does it fetch? Err, where are you from, anyway? You sound like a foreigner.

"Ah! Zat is true - I come from Karcau in Ustalav. A nice little town with a most excellent opera scene. I suppose zat Suchet could play fetch, but he tends to get nervous when zere are so many 'giants' around - he is worried about stepped on."

Ustalav, eh? Now that's one place in the North I've never been, Bruxo muses.

Besides Absalom and Varisia, of course, I've been to Nirmathas, the River Kingdoms, Mendev, Cheliax, the Worldwound, and to the Realm of the Mammoth Lords, with side trips to Garund to visit Rahadoum, Qadira, and the Sodden Lands. All *around* Ustalav, it seems, but never *there*.

"Nor have I been to the realms of Ustalav." Cosmo puffs his pipe, grinning.
Knowledge (geography): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10
Knowledge (history): 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (19) + 18 = 37

Professor Berrythwaite begins a long-winded lecture on Ustalav history, "The modern history of Ustalav began around 2361 AR, when numerous Varisian families settled the unclaimed land north of Lake Encarthan in the shadows of the Hungry Mountains. Ustalav did not become a true nation, however, until the ancient hero Soividia Ustav united the disparate Varisian settlements, creating the land that would bear his name. ..."

"In other words," Hal adds when the Professor finishes, "You haven't missed much." After a moment he stands and introduces himself, again, to Poirot. "...a pleasure..."

Fantastic! And who knew restorative linguistics was so advanced on Golarion?

You each receive a letter from Venture-Captain Roderus, asking you to meet with Tahonikepsu the Diamond Sage at the Winding Road Lodge just outside Katapesh. He has secured you passage aboard a ship from Absalom, and a teenage errand-runner is waiting by the docks to lead you to the combination inn and chapterhouse on the city’s outskirts.

There, the aging Venture-Captain Roderus welcomes you and secures you a footbath and meal of lamb and honeyed bread before escorting you to the lodge’s secret basement. There, Tahonikepsu awaits your arrival. She bids you welcome, greeting Hal, Cosmo, Hercule, and Hyster by name before explaining the task ahead.

“Pathfinders, you have my thanks for agreeing to aid us. As most of you already know, I am Tahonikepsu, the bearer of the diamond sage jewel. I am also the leader of the Jeweled Sages, an ancient order of scholars. Together with my colleague Amenopheus, I strive to restore lost secrets of the past for the benefit of the present.

“To this end, I seek the missing sage jewels, each of which contains the memories of the sages who bore that gem before and the lost lore of the ancients. Last year—thanks to the efforts of brave Pathfinder Society agents—we secured a way to track these jewels, and I have since used that beacon to find the missing amethyst sage jewel. The gem lies in Nex’s northern desert, where magical interference has obstructed my attempts to divine the sage jewel’s location more accurately. Remote divination can do no more, and the Pathfinder Society has offered its assistance.

“While I can point you in the right direction, you must find the exact location of the gem yourself. To aid you in this task, I will give you a magical crystal that is infused with the beacon’s power. I ask that you explore the area and, most importantly, retrieve the gem. Anything you can learn of what befell Amethyst Sage would also assist my order. Take care while searching the desert, though; while using the beacon, I could feel a strange resonance, as if something was not right with the sage jewel.”

Tahonikepsu looks toward the ceiling as if watching something beyond. “This coincides with the appearance of a strange visitor in our skies, and I must attend to it and confirm its intentions. I wish you fortune in your travels and offer my thanks for your contributions.”

Depending on whether more of you have the Recruiter of Badru or the Recruiter of Saruna boons earned #6–04: Beacon Below, either Badru or Saruna enters and greets you to answer any questions. If no one has either boon or it is a tie, you can choose whether you want to discuss the sage with someone devoted to him (Badru) or someone who loathes him (Saruna).

You also might know more about the dangers in Katapesh’s southern desert.

@GM: Well, on reviewing the chronicle sheet, for 'Beacon Below', those boons were specific to the Dark Archive. That said, when I played it, we destroyed Saruna (undead sphinx), and allied with Badru (intelligent construct).

Diplomacy(Gather Information): 1d20 + 25 ⇒ (12) + 25 = 37.

Poirot waxes lyrical about what he knows about the region.

"Common desert dangers include gnoll raiders, basilisks, jackals, jackalweres, sand eels, and scorpions of all sizes. Because the climate is arid and sand is much more prevalent zan dirt or rock, sandstorms are common in ze region.

Travelers also fear creatures commonly known as ze scorpionfolk. Half human, half scorpion, zey are peerless trackers and hunters, capable of killing caravan guards and porters in ze night wizout anyone noticing until ze morning.

Less well known is zat ze scorpionfolk—also known as girtablilus—are noble guardians of ancient secrets. Zey take zeir role very seriously, and despite zeir violent reputation, zey rarely strike out of malice. If we encounter any of zem, it might be worth talking, before attacking, yes?

Lastly, some sandstorms occurring in ze region are not quite natural. According to legend, zese sandstorms are far fiercer zan any mundane storm and carry ze taint of some evil curse. If we run across one of zose, I suggest running."

Cosmo enters a trance which lasts 1d6 ⇒ 5 rounds. During the trance, he focuses on the knowledge he has gained over the years.

Knowledge (geography), focused trance: 1d20 + 7 + 20 ⇒ (5) + 7 + 20 = 32 Not quite as much as what Mr. Poirot learns by asking around.

I will use Adaptable Luck and timely inspiration to add a +2 luck bonus and a +1 competence bonus to that roll, making it a 35.

I do not have the Beacon Below chronicle.

Hal listens intently as Hercule details his findings. "Hmm. I have prepared a spell that will protect all of us from the elements. I will continue to prepare it each day. I may also be able to spot sandstorms at a distance." He ponders for a moment. "Perhaps we can convince these girtablili to aid us in our search."

Hal has communal endure elements prepared and can cover eight creatures, including the whole party, Hal's mount, and the giant gecko.

GM: Hal will make regular survival checks to spot natural sandstorms. Dunno about cursed ones, of course.

Hal turns to Badru? and inquires, "What is known of the history of the Amethyst Sage?"

Did not play Beacon Below with this PC.

Unnatural sandstorms? This bodes ill.
Bruxo will listen to the answers that (presumably) Badru gives.

Ryster nods to Tahonikepsu as he enters. "Good seein' ya 'gain, ma'am." The dwarf says. Listening to the briefing, he frowns. "What sort o' visitor has you been seein' in the sky?"

Ryster was in Beacon Below (run by EF), but I need to check which way we sided. I think it was Badru?

Listening to Hercule and the Professor, Ryster scowls even deeper. "Sounds like a pleasant place. Anything we can do to protect ourselves from these sandstorms?" He asks the group at large.

Ryster has quite a bit of gold he can spend, but I was waiting for the briefing to make any final purchases.

"I have a spell prepared that will provide livable breathing conditions, as well," Hal states to Ryster, "and could choose to prepare a wall of wind or a shelter made of spider-webbing that could house all of us." After a moment, he adds, "I have seen masters of the arcane arts cast more potent spells, some conjuring whole houses and yet others developing extra-dimensional spaces..."

GM, your call on whether life bubble would offer protection from the sand. I can prep web shelter as a more effective solution if we just need to hunker down.

"It sounds like we are quite fortunate to have Halbarad along in case we are faced with one of the desert's unnatural and accursed sandstorms. Likewise, we are lucky to have our esteemed Mr. Poirot with us should we encounter the girtablili, to open diplomatic relations." Cosmo smiles, satisfied, and draws a long puff of his pipe and exhales a perfect ring of smoke.

@Hal: any of those sounds reasonable to me!

Tahonikepsu pretends not to hear Ryster's inquiry about a visitor from the sky as she exits the chamber to be replaced by Badru.

Sounds so far like we are leaning towards Badru so let's go with him:

Badru is a soulbound construct with an amethyst soul focus embedded in his chest and a funerary mask for a face. Though his voice sounds flat, Badru eagerly answers your questions.

"What is known of the history of the Amethyst Sage?"

"I, Badru Ibidau, am a loyal servant of the great Jeweled Sages, and I served the Amethyst Sage as Master of the Archives. The Amethyst Sage—his name was Sinuhotep—was a most noble soul and peerless scholar! His quest was one for the greater good—to preserve the secrets of the old. He granted me the honor to become something greater. I dearly hope he has survived to this day."

Haha, ho! You are full of the knowledge, yes? The little grey cells are formidable. Haha! Bizzle suddenly starts to imitate the voice of his new friend, Poirot, however he can't eliminate his trademark giggles.

Bruxo listens as Badru speaks. You say he granted you the honor to become something greater. Do you mean...this? He indicates the construct from which the voice comes.

@GM: cool, thanks!

"A fine note on his character, no doubt," Hal intones when Bruxo is answered. "But what can you tell me of your last days in his presence?"

Poirot nods to Badru.

"Hello again, Badru. Refresh my memory; what can you tell us about ze Amethyst Sage, where he may have gone, and what he may be trying to do...?"

Ryster raise a finger as Tahonikepsu starts to leave. "Er..ma'am.. about the...." His voice trails off as she exits without looking back. Did she not hear me?

Seeing the construct enter, Ryster turns his attention to Baadru while trying to think of some pertinent questions.

Cosmo stands and bows to the construct.

"Badru Ibidau, servant of the Jeweled Sages and Master of Archives, I am Professor Cosmo Berrythwaite, D.Ph. A.O.A.S., adjunct lecturer of Ancient Ossirion Studies and part-time docent of Ossiriani Artifacts and Archives at the Library of Absalom, with an emphasis on histories of ancient civilizations. I too am a servant of the Jeweled Sages, and share your concern for the noble Sinuhotep.

"The Pathfinder Society is happy to help in this, our common cause. My colleagues here," Cosmo gestures to the rest of the Pathfinders in the room, and takes a draw of his pipe, "and I will do all that we can to aid you.

"Before we start, we have some more questions you might be able to answer for us. First, what is the 'strange visitor in our skies' that Tahonikepsu spoke of?"

Cosmo then returns to his seat, and begins repacking his pipe.

@Bruxo: don't forget to check in to the Discussion thread. I still need your PFS number.
@Hercule: what is your level? I don't see your stats in your profile or a level listed. We're at 9.4 APL right now so Hercule could push the tier one way or another.

Bruxo listens as Badru speaks. You say he granted you the honor to become something greater. Do you mean...this? He indicates the construct from which the voice comes.

The dull voice responds, "I volunteered to help him in his pursuit of immortality. He transferred my soul from my weak mortal body into this strong new one. A blessing, truly, for it has allowed me to continue my master’s great work. I hope one day all humanity can live eternally like me."

"But what can you tell me of your last days in his presence?"

"Hello again, Badru. Refresh my memory; what can you tell us about ze Amethyst Sage, where he may have gone, and what he may be trying to do...?"

"My master studied the acts and accomplishments of the Osirian pharaohs. After the Keleshites invaded Osirion, he focused his research on the immortality rites once used by those great pharaohs."

"During the years I served him, he made great progress. As you can see, he made me immortal. But his great work was not finished—the ritual still needed more research to be perfect."

"However, my master fled three thousand years ago when servants of the Padishah invaded the Sanctum. Logic dictates that he went looking for the missing piece in his puzzle of immortality."

"Before we start, we have some more questions you might be able to answer for us. First, what is the 'strange visitor in our skies' that Tahonikepsu spoke of?"

"I do not know about this. Something that Tahonikepsu wishes to keep to herself, no doubt, and it is wise not to push her too far."

Into the desert?

Though I have no inside knowledge to impart and can thus only speculate, I suspect we'll find out about said "strange visitor" late this season/early next season. John Compton looooves his foreshadowing. :-)

Bruxo regards Bandu's words. Looking for the missing piece in his puzzle... The Shoanti frowns, but says no more.

To From desert plains...!

Haha, you might think I want to end up as a tin can, but... hmmm, on second thought, maybe I do! To live forever, that would be something, indeed! Right, Ryster? Imagine a dwarf like you being granted immortality! Oh, hmm, on third thought, can we eliminate dwarves? I can't imagine them living longer than they already do! And elves! Good heavens...

Bizzle would agree to head for the desert plains.

Hal gives Bizzle a look of mild contempt before nodding to Badru. "Let us be on our way, then." He reaches into his pack and pulls out a scroll. "Professor, would you mind holding on to this? For emergencies only, of course..." Scroll of Remove Paralysis. Comes in handy.

Hal will stop in a market to pick a potion of lesser restoration because he forgot to do that earlier.

Cosmo takes the scroll from Halbarad, casts read magic, and looks it over. "Yep. I can carry that for you. Hope we don't need it, though."

Into the desert! Cosmo will spend 2 prestige to get a scroll of invisibility purge with two castings on it.

I will also check my chronicles when I get a chance. I might be able to pick up a wand of lesser restoration with relatively few charges on it.

Edit: Found it. wand of lesser restoration (17 charges, 1530 gp). Cosmo will purchase that too.

I already have that same wand, so if you want to save the money on all of the lesser restoration stuff, you can.

I already have that same wand, so if you want to save the money on all of the lesser restoration stuff, you can.

Thanks. I will hold off then for now. :)

Sorry, I realised that I hadn't updated my stat line. Hercule is level 10.2

Poirot nods in satisfaction.

"Zank-you for ze reminder, Badru."

He then turns to the others.

"Let us be on our way, zen!"

Ryster squints one eye at the construct as he chews on a strand of his beard. "I'm sure ya been asked already by the Madam Sage, but do you have any idears where your master went? Why did he not take you along?"

Badru shakes his construct head. "He fled without time for planning or telling me what he was doing. I do not know where he went but hopefully you will be able to locate him."

As you travel through the desert, the wind begins to pick up, sending dust flying in the air, and oppressive clouds gather in the sky. The sun darkens as if a heavy veil had been pulled in front of it; only a gleaming crescent remains visible. The wind grows into a howling gale, and soon after, a massive wall of sand starts rising in the distance and approaching at a high speed.

Luckily Halbarad is prepared and quickly covers the party in a life bubble so that you can breathe effectively through the storm and then creates a shelter out of webbing to protect everyone from the roaring sands.

There were some chase mechanics to make it to some caves but I don't see why you can't just hunker down for a while and let it pass.

Having survived the sandstorm, you continue tracking the sage jewel and descend into a canyon. The soil type and rock formations suggest this geographical feature was a riverbed thousands of years ago. Now only barren, rocky terrain remains.

In the canyon you come upon a path which descends deeper down. As you approach, two scorpion-humanoids step out from behind two pillars. The male one hurls a javelin which sticks in the sand directly in front of you. "Turn back! Weaklings like you find nothing but death here!" The female one adds, "And you have no right to enter this ancient place!"

Kn Nature: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21

Seated serenely atop his armored axe beak, Hal keeps his hand still upon the reins and his lips a taut prim line. He calmly gives a sidelong glance to Poirot...

GM: for the purposes of spell slots, is this the same day as the sandstorm or did we officially camp?

Gamin the misforged casts guidance on Cosmo.

Knowledge (nature): 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 6 + 1 = 15 I will use Adaptable Luck and timely inspiration to make that an 18.

"Ah, girtalili, we come from far away Absalom seeking a lost colleague and mentor. We intend no trouble. Please, listen to my friend, the esteemed Mr. Hercule Poirot here" Cosmo gestures, "and we might come to amicable terms."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (17) + 13 = 30 Not bad...