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"Strength it is then."
Juhnavi separates nine cards of the 54-card deck from the rest, and shuffles them, then allows Syllyn to draw one of them.
"Ah, the Bear," she says. "Strength in its purest form. People often make the mistake of thinking the Bear can be tamed or trained. When someone believes they have the Bear under control, that person eventually learns the error of their ways. This is your role card. Interesting."
She shuffles the Bear back into the rest of the cards, and has Syllyn select them at random to lay into a 3x3 square. "Past, present, future. Also, Law, Neutrality, and Chaos," Juhnavi explains, indicating the three columns from right to left. "And the rows are Good, Neutrality, and Evil," she adds. She begins by turning over the three cards in the right-hand column.
From top to bottom, these are once again the Bear, the Uprising, and the Keep.
"We keep your role card of course, and the Uprising is in the alignment diametrically opposed to its own." She discards the Keep. "You are Strength personified, and in the past you have been a force for both order and righteousness. You have overcome forces much more powerful than yourself," she says, indicating the Uprising.
Next she turns over the middle column, revealing the Beating, the Fiend, and the Forge. "One opposite alignment," she notes, discarding the Fiend and the Forge. "Hmm. The Beating represents being under assault from all sides, but it can also indicate the dissolution of the self. Misaligned, as in this case, it indicates that during the assault, unexpected strength is found. I'm not sure what this means, so I'll return to it after we reveal the Future."
Juhnavi turns over the final column, representing what is to come. The three cards are the Paladin, the Cyclone, and the Big Sky. "Hmph. Two partial alignments and one misalignment. This means the future is in flux. I mean, it always is, but having three relevant cards, none of which is properly aligned, means even more so than usual. Chaos is approaching, caused by intelligent beings, not just random chance. The Paladin suggests standing strong in the face of adversity, but a partial alignment means that this isn't necessarily always the best course. Sometimes our instincts will tell us to do something that will lead to disaster, but other times we should follow them. And a misaligned Big Sky means that casting off shackles might lead to them being replaced by worse ones. Tagad!" she swears in her native vudran. "Sometimes the Harrow is so confused I don't know what to make of it. The present card means that the chaos that is coming is already being created by those who will bring it, I think. Someone is planning this disruption already. And the future -- the harrows of the future are confused and contradictory. Only warnings, no firm guidance." She sighs deeply. "I'm sorry, sometimes one's future is so changeable that it's hard to get a clear reading."
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"No matter, no matter. It was not to see the future that I had you do the reading, it was for the experience. The future... well, that's for another day."
The bear was a likely role card, since I doubt the rex is in that deck. A raging bear. I like that, but I don't know that I like all that talk about chaos. The aligned and misaligned things made no sense though. I wonder if the others understood? Even the reader seemed confused. The cards, though. I liked the cards...
"The cards are very attractive. I can imagine that great art could be put into their forming, yes?"
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His dog sighs and rolls over, exposing his furry belly to Sune, hoping for a rub.
Sune looks down at the dog skeptically, and reaches out a foot and lightly brushes the dog's underbelly, but quickly loses interest.
Looking over at the card-reading, she says "I do hope everyone is ready to leave immediately after we receive our instructions. We don't have time to sit around playing cards or petting dogs," she admonishes.
The invitation delivered last night was remarkably simple, especially given the importance of the occasion: “Start where it all began. Meet us at the Pig’s Paunch one hour before dawn.”
The Pig’s Paunch is a run-down building with a faded sign of a large pig standing on its hind legs, arms folded above a corpulent belly. Inside, the air is thick with the scents of human sweat, stale tobacco, and leftover food. In the center of the room, surrounded by inebriates sleeping off their revelries, a familiar elven man stands high upon top of a large round table.
“Welcome! Welcome, my students! Please, have a seat!” With that, Kreighton Shaine, the Pathfinder Society’s Master of Scrolls, nimbly drops down to sit cross-legged on the table before looking about the tavern with a sense of reverent wonder. “Can you believe it? It all started here years ago—well, over four hundred of them at least. Under this very roof the Pathfinder Society was born.
“But today! Today you will begin your Confirmation! Master Farabellus, Master Zey, and I all agree you each have shown your worth and dedication to the Society, so there’s no better time to see if you can handle becoming full field operatives. Allow me to introduce you to Janira Gavix,” he says as he motions for an excitable halfling woman to approach. She wears a large backpack and carries all manner of tools, pouches, and scroll cases around her waist. Shaine continues, saying, “Janira here will be going with you on your Confirmation. She was one of my brightest pupils and will no doubt be an invaluable resource on your journey, for she discovered the caves you are about to explore during her own Confirmation.”
Janira speaks up in an enthusiastic and cheerful voice, “Greetings, aspiring Pathfinders! Six months ago, while I was mapping cave entrances in the foothills of the Kortos Mounts, I witnessed a lone gillman entering a concealed cave. I thought little of it at the time, but I saw another one enter the cave again a month later as my Confirmation stretched on. A few days later, after I completed my assigned task, I entered the cave system, but was unable to find the gillmen.”
Master Shaine hops to his feet. “Initiates, for your Confirmation, you will travel to these caves to explore and document its many passages. Additionally, and most importantly, you are to learn what the gillmen are up to in there. Oh, and you need to come back alive as well.” With these parting words, the Master of Scrolls jumps off the table and strolls out of the building while humming to himself.
Knowledge (Geography)
Knowledge (History)
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Juhnavi, not familiar with this part of the world, asks most of the logical questions. When she hears there is a settlement of gillmen nearby, she wonders, "Why not just ask them?"
"How soon do we leave? Is there time for a Harrow reading? What timeframe do we need to be there by? Hmm... Isn't the full moon in a few days? Does that have something to do with this, do you think, since the two times you saw the gillman were separated by a month?"
Janira smiles and giggles a little as the corgi sidles up next to her. She pets and scratches the pooches head and behind his ear. "Well now, let's not too hasty to get off and run!" She looks up from the dog and smiles at Sune, then turns her attention to Juhnavi. "That would take all the excitement out of being a Pathfinder, my dear! It's not just the destination that's important! It is the journey and the path taken that tells just as much of the story! Plus, we don't even know that they would tell us. I think there would be time for a Harrow reading... in fact, I think that would be really interesting to have my Harrow read! As far as the timeline goes, as long as we reach it by the full moon we are okay. I do believe that has something to do with the gillmen."
Suddenly Janira pulls out a large leather-bound journal and opens it on the table. “Before we set out, we should all get to know each other and review our plan. After all, the most important factors that determine whether an expedition will be a success are cooperation and preparation! I’ll go first!”
She looks around to make sure she has everyone's attention, but takes note of Sune's very obvious impatience. "My name is Janira Gavix, I joined the the Society within just weeks of coming of age! I am the oldest of seven children, which as you can imagine taught me quite a bit about responsibility and taking care of those that depend upon me. We all grew up in Eastgate, which just happens to be the very same place my father works at as a porter! Perhaps you saw him during your mission yesterday? Well, I suppose you probably wouldn't really remember him if you did see him. He likes to keep a low profile..." She takes a deep breath and continues her rapid-fire introduction, barely leaving anyone a chance to get any words in. "I joined the Society to see the world, and to sample all the fine food one could find.... but the more I remained with the Pathfinders, the more I realized how much I enjoyed learning about everything I didn't already know! There is nothing more exciting to me than finding a bit of rare lore. In fact, I hope to one day join the ranks of the elite and be published in the Pathfinder Chronicles. That would hopefully quality my to train a Chronicler! Can you imagine? Me? Janira Gavix as a Chronicler?! My ma and pa would be so proud...." She trails off and suddenly realizes she had been rambling. "Oh dear me, I'm so sorry!" She blushes a little. "What about the rest of you? What's your stories?"
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"I too joined the Pathfinders to enrich my life. So many different people and cultures to discover. A pity some of them are gone. These gillmen are a dying race, right? We may be the very last peoples to record their culture."
Hmmm. Food seems to be a large part of human motivation if she travels largely to try new foods. How odd.
As usual, as he talks he taps out an intricate rhythm on whatever is available, mixing and trying new sounds.
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"Name's Uslad. Bloody dwarf with bloody dwarven longaxe and blasted bloody crossbow! What else do ya need, groundling? It's just how I live and how before that my father lived until he was kicked out... But doesn't matter. Aaargh, сan we go finally?"
He moves to the side and starts to grumble quietly to himself while spitting in his beard: "...Damn haflings. As dwarfs but only live in the middle of nowhere, don't wear beards and naive as children. Damn defect..."
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Sune looks exasperated by all the talking.
"Are we really doing this? How could there be any time? Well, I'll make this quick. I'm Sune, I'm a planes-walker, and I had a--mishap. Now I'm searching for something I've lost, and think that exploring the world with Pathfinders is the best way to go. Now, can we get on with things already?"
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"Wait, I'm your Mathter? I thought you just called everyone Mathter. Is this something my mother arranged?"
"Well, my name is Juhnavi, daughter of Maharani Ahliwylia of Vudra. I left when I could no longer stand being stifled by the restrictions of a noble upbringing and began a life of adventure. I found my way to Ustalav through a series of karmic events, and there found magic in the Harrow deck and this ancient starknife. A recommendation from Professor Quolorum of the Sincomakti School of Sciences brought me here, to join the Pathfinder Society."
Janira listens intently to each of your introductions with equal attention, though she does frown at Uslad after being called a defect. "Well, it is a pleasure to meet each and every one of you! Though, I feel one of you could stand to work on his manners." She raises an eyebrow at Uslad before clearing her throat.
“On to the details of the mission at hand,” Janira says with an eager grin. “After reviewing my mission reports personally, Master Shaine believes it is no coincidence that each time they entered the caves it was during a full moon, so it is also no coincidence that you have been called here now, just a day before the moon is full again. We both believe that tomorrow night is our best chance to find out why these caves are important and what exactly the gillmen are doing in there.
“The caves we’ll be travelling to lie under the base of the Kortos Mounts. We’ll need to spend every minute of daylight possible to reach the caves by foot, crossing over the Cairnlands, taking the paths to Diobel, and finally making our way through the wilderness. With any luck we won’t run into any of the local inhabitants. Once in the caves, we’ll need to work together to explore and determine whether any gillman are present or have been recently. Keep an eye out for any other clues that might hint at the caves’ significance, too.”
“Now, before we head out, if there aren’t any more questions, we should take a moment to go through your gear and make sure nothing important gets left out.”
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Syllyn proudly displays his possessions first.
"This my NEWEST acquisition. A very popular item granted to those of some experience from the very vaults of the society"
With inordinate pride he flourishes a wand of cure light wounds with a FULL 50 charges!!!!
Unfortunately, other than a handful of scrolls, he carries nothing but the armor, shield, and clothing hanging from his scaled frame and the weapon at his hip and his inspection is quickly over. Obviously unprepared for any kind of wilderness trip! Rather surprising considering he hales from the Mwangi Expanse.
After she spends some time looking over everyone's gear she notices a distinct lack of certain something. "It seems only a few of you have picked up some alchemical items that work well against swarms of insects and creatures. If you have some gold to spare, you may want up one or two. I've found they are quite handy in most circumstances." She brightens. "Also, you all should really have a journal or some parchment that you can use to document everything you find upon your journeys! Documentation is the single most important aspect of being a Pathfinder, never forget that!" She then offers up parchment and charcoal sticks to any that take the offer!
Once the Pathfinders had equipped themselves properly and were prepared for their journey, Janira quickly led them through Absalom without incident and into the Cairnlands. The long journey covers most of the day, allowing Janira to chatter on constantly about Master Shane's classes on the history of Absalom. She also points out several of the fallen siege towers and the distant mountains looming far away. You all find a suitable campsite for the evening and bed down. The dawn comes cool without issue and after a breakfast of trail rations you all set out once more!
As the party progresses deeper into the forest, the trees towering overhead begin to shield most of what remains of the day’s sun and the vegetation beneath grows denser. Janira pauses a moment and pulls out an intricate silver compass emblazoned with the Pathfinder Society logo: the Glyph of the Open Road. “I received this wayfinder when I successfully completed my Confirmation. Should we be successful on our journey, you will get your own as well.” She flips open the device and holds it in front of her; the initials J. L. are engraved into the inside of the device’s lid. After studying the compass inside for a moment, she remarks, “We’re on the right path. We need to keep heading northwest past those large rocks up ahead.”
A large rock outcropping to the east rises nearly 20 feet above the forest floor, and a small sinkhole to the northwest drops off sharply, descending to the ground 10 feet below. Just as the party is about to continue moving forward, the sound of rustling leaves is heard before three giant fleas suddenly drop down out of the nearby trees all around!
Round 1, Group 1 Actions!
Round 1, Group 1 Recap!
Juhnavi moves forward, drawing her weapon and prepares to strike the first opponent that presents itself. One of the massive fleas moves forward towards the group, but stops short and crouches down as if preparing to make a jump!
Round 1, Group 2 Actions!
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Free Action: "" Padesát-Dva's eyes widen as he slowly realizes the implications of fleas of this size attacking his beloved corgi. "Not on my watch!!!"
Move Action: The barbarian moves 30 feet forward whilst drawing his falchion.
Free Action: "Run away, dog! They do not manufacture flea collars sufficient for this threat!"
The corgi yawns, and moves up behind the barbarian.
Free Action: "No!!! Away! I said run away! Away is in the other direct... Awww... I can't stay mad at you. Look at those eyes..." and then the big, scary barbarian makes a bunch of cooing noises at the dog.
Standard Action: With some difficulty, the barbarian re-focuses on the matter at hand. He readies an action to attack if/when any flea enters his reach.
Free Action: "Don't worry, little buddy. We'll take care of these critters!"