GM Kate's Ruins of Azlant (closed) (Inactive)

Game Master Kate Baker

And yes, the party and the echeneises start at 0, all in the same plane.

Good call, Kate! And Doug'tchaak, the only pertinent buff I can do is giving others' weapons a +1 enhancement bonus for a minute—I don't know if's necessary here, but can do it if you'd like!

Purpose Creche kicks up from the seafloor and begins swimming upwards. His slight appendages have difficult generating enough push given the weight of his gear, and he's clearly unaccustomed to this manner of movement, but he awkwardly makes his way towards the others.

"Best to keep our distance. Cedar, maybe you could call a friend to engage them? Then we could deal with them before they turn their attentions to us."

Toby will position himself 30' away, just at the edge of his blast range.

Silt will take that +1 on the spear if it’s not too much trouble.

Hakkuho swims closer, within range to summon.

I have no way to communicate with my summoned creatures at this level. They simply attack the nearest opponent. So I don't think I can use them to initiate a fight yet. Next level!

Silt draws his spear, accepts the enhancement bonus from Purpose, and moves +5', so he can attempt a partial charge in the surprise round, if there os one.

Ready!

Ah, so maybe Toby opens with a blast and then you summon something in? Does that work for folks?

Before they act, Purpose Creche lays a hand on Sil'tchaak shoulder to steady himself. He then reaches towards the Locathah's spear; when his hand makes contact, the spear and the band around his waist flicker, and his mind fills with the image of a red-wrapped mahogany figure standing before a looming shadow.

"There."

When Sil'tchaak moves the spear, it seems the water's pull on it is lessened. Purpose Creche then awkwardly paddles up and to the side. He holds his splinter and dagger at the ready.

Or Silt opens with a charge?

I think we can all just go on initiative order, and it'll all work out :)

It seems like they are happy to sit there sucking on the boat until we do something. If it's a surprise round, I think we can decide what order we want to do it in. There are two of them, right? Maybe I blast one and Silt charges the other?

I hink we should focus fire. I don't want them stealing our time!

Silt feels like time is running out and activates destructive smite, and charges!

spear +5+1 enhancement +2 charge: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (6) + 8 = 14

Enlarged, Piercing +1 enhancement +1 smite: 2d6 + 9 ⇒ (6, 4) + 9 = 19

As Silt charges, Toby fires at the same target, before it has cover from Silt.

kinetic blast, pbs: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 4 + 1 = 18
damage, pbs: 1d6 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 4 + 1 = 11

Remember, Silt is 5' "in front" of the creatures and attacking with reach. I don't think cover's an issue if you are on their plane.

Got it, I had missed that you changed planes. If you only shifted 5' out, though, I think you're still in an ajacent square to them (diagonally). You could shift back 5' or another 5' out of the plane and still be within reach distance.

You're right. I moved a step back to compensate.

Silt and Toby coordinate their attacks, and the combined damage easily fells the small fish.

Initiative!

Toby
Fishy fishy fishy
Silt
Purpose
Cedar

Toby kicks up toward the boat and toward the fish just enough that he can see it clearly around the curve of the hull before unleashing another hard, sudden current at the fish. It's not really in a full square which makes it harder to judge, but I don't think it has cover from here.

kinetic blast, pbs: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 4 + 1 = 16
damage, pbs: 1d6 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 4 + 1 = 9

You're good; no cover.

Toby blast of bubbles strikes the fish, who disengages and heads straight for the nearest target: Silt.

5 foot step and full attack

tail slap: 1d20 ⇒ 2
bite: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 17

ouch!: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3

The creature automatically latches on with the bite! Silt starts to feel time slowly slipping away from him.

Silt has a -1 penalty to Dexterity and must succeed at a DC 12 Will save or suffer the effects of a slow spell. This is a grapple.

Toby
Fishy fishy fishy -9 hp
Silt
Purpose
Cedar

"Ah! Silt, look out!" Toby scrambles to maintain a good firing angle, his mind filling with dread as the fish latches on to Silt and causes him to move in an odd, stilted way.

kinetic blast, pbs: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 4 + 1 = 16
damage, pbs: 1d6 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 4 + 1 = 11

It’s so sad when creatures die before they get to do their cool things.

Toby sends another blast of bubbles that kills the remaining fish. Out of combat.

Will: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17

Silt begins to feel time slipping away, but decides to enjoy the moment. His companions see the spear fall away, shrinking to normal size as it floats to the bottom, and draws his dagger to stab the thing.

Dagger+5-2: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

He flails at the little fish, not realizing it's unconscious.

Silt will Stabilze the fish if possible. He likes creatures with cool things! He will then retrieve his spear.

How full of blood is the water? Is there danger of attracting sharks here?

Survival?): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11

Purpose Creche points his splinter at the echeneis, but underestimates the effort required to maintain his position in the water; he begins to rapidly sink, trying to keep level with hands not anywhere near substantial enough to easily generate lift. He impacts the seabed within moments, sending a cloud of silt and sand pluming into his surroundings.

His voice drifts out from the muck. "Well then. How did the rest of you fare?"

Swim: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (4) + 0 = 4
Swim: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (15) + 0 = 15

Silt swims down into the… silt… and extends a hand to Purpose. Grab on, climb onto my back. You can travel to the surface along with Llyu-Llyu.

She pokes her head our from Silt's hat and stares curiously at Purpose if he does so.

"Thank you. This sounds much more practical."

Purpose Creche takes Sil'tchaak's hand and pulls himself onto the locathah's shoulders. His appendages are rough on Sil'tchaak's skin, and the armored plates in his coat cause it to hang and bunch in awkward, stiff folds, but his position seems secure enough. He rearranges his scabbard to so that it doesn't dig into Sil'tchaak's back, and raises a hand to Llyu-Llyu in greeting.

"Interesting creatures. Two were enough to halt the entire ship. I would like to examine one, if you don't mind." He look up towards the floating, blast-buffeted fishbody.

If Sil'tchaak complies, Purpose Creche spends a little bit investigating the suction organ, trying to figure out how the eceneises' temporal powers work. I doubt he does!
He'll also examine the boat's hull for damage.
Heal: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 1 = 20
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29 +2 from heightened awareness.

”Such curious creature,” Hakkuho says, looking over Purpose Creche’s shoulder. ”The bane of sailors and pirates. Well done with the blast Toby.”

"Thanks! I didn't know there were things like this in the ocean." Toby gives a slight shudder then adds, quietly, "Maybe it's not as much fun as I thought."

The ship starts to move freely once again. As you surface, you hear applause from the top deck.

Well done, folks! Would you like to return to the shore, or board the ship?

Purpose Creche clutches at Sil'tchaak's head when they break the surface, the reasserted lack of buoyancy throwing him off balance and almost sending him sliding back into the sea. He narrowly avoids palming Llyu-Llyu.

I vote shore—most of our "clue" type stuff is back there in Purpose Creche's pack!

Ramona waits.

Silt swims rapidly to the beach, perfectly at home under the waves. Those in the boat see his colorful scales scintillating just below the surface. Purpose catches the farmer's hat when it's ripped off in the current, and its pale brim cuts across the surface like a ragged old shark's fin.

"Seems I'm not longer needed," Hakkuho says. "Until next time."

As he rises to the surface Hakkuho begins to dissolve away until only Cedar remains.

Cedar stumbles through the low waves, pulling off his bandanna and slicking back his wet hair.

He joins the others to find Ramona and shares with her the news about the echeneises.

"Our first mission as the troubleshooters was a success!"

Toby does one more lazy loop-de-loop in the water, before swimming ashore. He shakes the clinging water droplets from his head as he breaks the surface, sending a spray around the immediate vicinity. "There's some nasty things down there! We killed them, though."

"Oh, that's just wonderful! And look at the ship! It's moving again! I knew you were up to it. Perhaps you could do me just one more favor though? The crew and passengers have been getting quite nervous about the missing colonists and then the ship getting stuck. Perhaps you could smooth things over a bit? I've been doing my best, but I think some extra voices would help a lot with getting everyone comfortable with moving in to the settlement!"

Some earlier stuff I missed: Silt, you are able to stabilize it. Purpose, you come to some interesting conclusions about the nature of time. You also check out the bottom of the ship, and it seems to only have a few minor scratches.

Now purpose is learning about the nature of time?! Between that and sound and the metaphysics of summoning, his mind must be totally blown by now!

Silt turns to his friends. This island is full of parasitic undead, angry ghosts, drunk tentacle-creatures, singing monkey goblins, and — worst of all — raspberries. How can we convince them?

As the boat approaches, you see mandibles rise from the bush-tops: Karl seems quite ready to help convince the colonists.

Water runs down Purpose Creche's coat and slowly seeps from his body, creating a darker patch in the sand around him. He buzzes quietly while emptying water from his scabbard. "I was going to say that someone else should speak, as many can find me unnerving. Now I think that maybe Silt should join me in silence." He looks at the locatha. "A joke."

"Cedar, you know many of these people. A familiar face should deliver the news. Maybe focus on what we've done to secure the colony. On the resources we've safeguarded."

His eyeband gleams in the sun; the bright light and his blank face mask any expression of his racing mind, which reels with implications of the countless metaphysical details uncovered and considered in the past hour.

Cedar rings out his bandanna. "Sure thing. I can do this. Like you said, these people know me."

Freak. Crazy-eyes. Changeling.

He ties his bandanna back on, shakes out his arms, flexes his fingers.

"No pressure, right?" He puts his gnarled hands in his pockets and smiles nervously up at the ship.

Kate is this where you were thinking of the influence rules, or not yet? Will we be addressing the passengers in general, or particular NPCs? Also, I'm little unsure of the staging. Are we going up to the ship or are people coming to us?

"You'll do very well. You care about this community. You put your actions and energy into improving it. Anyone can see."

Purpose Creche gingerly slides his fingers together in an attempt to press more water out of them, then retrieves his journal. "I'll speak up if I need. I have the list of Talmandor's Bounty's stores. Some evidence of security for anyone uncertain."

I'm picturing us all on the beach, waiting for the ship to set anchor and for folks to get rowed ashore. Once they do, we'd have a crowd to address?

You’ll get on the boat with Ramona to row back to the ship, then the ship will sail back to the colony. And yes, influence mechanics incoming! You’ll be trying to convince a few key NPCs.

Thanks Kate, sounds good! I’m actually getting nervous lol But I’m excited about trying out these influence mechanics.

"I...I guess we could help with that. Or try anyway."

I've never been very good at convincing anyone of anything, unless it's that I'm not a very good shepherd....

Silt prepares to spam Guidance.

Let's make sure to keep in mind any items we have to return or that might look stolen (e.g. "borrowed")?

Ramona still seems like she has a large weight on her shoulders, but also looks the most hopeful since you rejoined her. As the small boat moves to reconvene with the Peregrine, she gives you a rundown on key rabble-rousers in the group.

"To start with, Antona Sedgewick, one of the soldiers, has been undermining my authority. She hasn't said or done anything truly mutinous, but she's definitely sowing discontent. Faedwyr Trundlebrook is a farmer, and I think he's getting cold feet. One of my own employees, Perrell Beys, is scared of what's going on and keeps trying to convince people that we should head back. And then there's Harcourt Carrolby. You know, the noble, not that we recognize nobility in Andoran? He's also undermining me. If you could just talk to them, reassure them that it's safe at the colony. I'm worried too, but remember, we can't go back to Andoran. We have to make this work."

I am using the variation on Influence rules that appear in Part 3 of 8-99A The Solstice Scar. You know what skills you can use to make the influence checks. You can also attempt a discovery check to learn about a person's biases and know what particular line of reasoning might work well. Each NPC needs only one successful influence check to cooperate with you. You each get two actions total, for both discovery and influence, so use them well! And remember, there are definitely bonuses for good roleplaying.

On the way over…

Silt looks at Ramona. Do you know more about how this Harcourt undermining you?

Assuming we each get 1 shot with 1 person, (4 NPCs, 4 PCs…), is that correct??

You each get two actions total that you can use as you'd like. I also should have mentioned that I put a slide up with the four NPCs and their relevant checks.

"Well, it's nothing overt, you see. But he's used to having people work for him, and he keeps acting as though he's the one in charge. Some people are put off by is snootiness, but others look up to him."

Definitely gonna use mine on discovery, 'cause all my influence skills are real bad!

Knowledge (arcana): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (1) + 9 = 10—Perrell Beys, discovery
Sense Motive: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15—Antona Sedgewick, discovery
Ouch.

Going ahead and posting these to "call dibs," since it'll probably take me a while to write the posts. Especially in light of the above rolls...

I think Cedar's best option is to try to use diplomacy on NPCs. He has some bluff too. So, once we learn what we can through discoveries, he'll step in and try to speak with folks using whatever lines of reasoning we may discover. Does that sounds OK?

Toby will seek out Faedwyr Trundlebrook when they arrive on the ship, and try to strike up a conversation about farmer, to get a read on what's bothering him. "I hear you're going to be one of the farmers when we set up shop! What kinda farmer are you? I grew up on a farm, m'self, well a ranch, really, but we had a garden too. I don't know too much about farming, but it looked like things were growing really well over there. In fact, Silt said some of the crops were ready to be harvested!"

Toby, check 1
Knowledge (nature): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17

Can I guidance before I talk to her? If not please remove the +1.

Silt saunters up to the soldier. You may wish to hear what we found. We scouted, we found many dangers… dire fruit, land shrimp, talking ghosts, sour tentacles. And we found other things, unexpected things: new friends in new places. Houses ready to be homes. Barracks waiting to be filled with the talk of commrades. A harvest waiting for the sickle.

Silt stretches and yawns. His pointy teeth gleam dully in the sunshine. These things… friends, homes, barracks, harvests, you think they worth protecting in this place?

Sense Motive +2 +1 (Guidance): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

While Silt tries to gauge Antona's her response, Llyu-Llyu nips him on the fin; it seems it's time for her lunch. Duty first, Silt starts rummaging about in his sack for dried kelp instead of paying full attention to Antona.