GM Ladile's TL;DR: A Pathfinder Society Campaign

Game Master Lady Ladile

"Where evil gathers"? Could you be more specific? What could we face?

"Deep within Tianjing’s Kaimuko Wood, just to the south of Kwanlai, foul beings that despise all life once tore a hole from their blighted realm through to your world," Zepha replies, a hint of steel creeping into his voice as he speaks. "The forces of Heaven joined efforts with warriors from the other good planes, even the flighty azatas, to bring an end to their invasion. Yet the scars upon your world proved too difficult to heal, and so eternal vigil must be kept to ensure that such a catastrophe never again comes to pass."

Is anything we do good enough for this Archon? Oof. "An' tha mountains? What sorta creature likes tah lair up there?" Rumble asks. "Do these Tengu speak Common, or are we gonna have tah figure sumthin' out?"

Zithembe nods as the archon explains their task. "Do you mean demons or devils?" he asks for clarification. "Or some other source of planar evil?"

Parison sat back and glanced at each of his fellow agents as they queried Zepha over the nature of the evil beings that had invaded Golarian from another reality. To be forewarned is to be forearmed,, he thought to himself. As the topic of conversation centered on the area of the shrine and the evil forces at hand, the acoylte of the Dawnflower suddenly realized something.

"Excuse me," he interjected. He struggled, trying to convey a proper title for his host, but failing to come up with anything appropriate. How do you formally address an archon? Well, let's go this route and hope that I don't make a huge faux pas.

"Master Zepha," he says hesitantly. "You spoke of speaking with the town mayor once we reached Yiangma. Who is he and how do you think he might aid us once we tell him why we're there?"

"Excellent questions," Zepha nods, sounding pleased. "While I do believe that many of the residents of Yiangma are at least familiar with the Common tongue, fluency on your part in either Tengu or Tien would surely be looked upon favorably."

The archon turns to Zithembe and pauses for a moment, as though trying to choose his words carefully. "No, in many ways they can be said to be even worse than the demons of the Abyss or the devils of Hell," Zepha finally responds. "They were qlippoth, foul outsiders who once controlled the Abyss. While they seek revenge against the daemons and long for the destruction of all demonic life...their primary goal is the destruction of all mortal life."

"As I said, hopefully the reason for Yiangma's silence is purely bureaucratic...but every possible cause should be considered. And the return of the qlippoth is one such cause," Zepha admits.

"Regarding Yiangma's mayor, I am told that his name is Tenmya Kanbayo," he continues. "It is my hope that he will be able to provide you with more information on the situation in Yiangma and whatever assistance you might need, if you need."
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Another post to follow, please stand by~

While you consider your mission and the information that Zepha has provided, you can't help but wonder about Kwanlai itself. What sort of a land is it? And what of its history?

Know Local, Breath of experience: 1d20 + 6 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 6 + 2 = 26

You know, I think I've already been there some times ago. Or maybe I read a book about it. Or talked with someone, somewhere, about it. Doesn't really matter, I think. Kwanlai is on the eastern coast of Tian Xia, people hanging there are Tengu, for the most part- and no, they arent called "Coast Hangers". They lived there for a long time, the Tengu, even if they suffered hardships Under the rule of the empire of Lung Wa. Death by taxes, high poverty, Tengu seen as inferior Citizens, stuff like that. Oh,by the way, an individual Tengu isn't called a "One-Gu". I made that mistake once, and that ruffled some feathers. So the Tengu of Kwanlai Don't trust much outsiders easily. It's been a few years now that the Kwanlai territorry is independent, maybe a hundred years, more or less. There's a Tengu girl, known as Lady Suratai-Gongen, who is currently trying to unite the many clans Under her wings, from her mighty town, Hisuikarasov. Not "karasov", "karasu", Hisuikarasu. I should really learn the native langage. Sounds interesting. Maybe next year. And a final trivia fact: do you know which god is followed in Yiangma?

Hepsubia waits a few seconds. Three, in fact.

And the answer was of course: Hei Feng, who sees over the race of Tengu. Twas easy… What do I win?

"...when did ya start knowin' things?" Rumble inquires, looking Hepsubia over like he has never seen this Elf before. Crafty creature this one is. And now its between me and the new guy on who knows the least about pretty much everything. Stones.

"Qlippoth soun' jus' as bad as ah demon or a devil, buh Sledge an' aye are up fur the task!" the Dwarf declares proudly. "Are we ready? Aye know aye am."

I Don't remember honestly. It didn't looked important at the time.

"When did she start talking so much?" Zithembe say quietly, leaning toward Rumble.

"I should stop by the market before we set out," he says in answer to the dwarf's question.

Maria asks quickly, "how long of a travel is it so we know how much food to take?"

Nicely rolled Hep! Maria doesn't have a ton to add and I'm out of time to post, probably for the whole day so I don't want to hold things up. Maria will purchase enough food for the trip to and back if it is a longer bit of travel.

"When we travel to Yiangma, perhaps you should be the one to speak for us, Hepsubia," Parison says with a measure of respect in his voice. "You seem to be well versed on the customs and the history of Kwanlei."

"And I'm with you, Rumble. I'm ready to depart, but like Zithembe, I would like to visit the market before we begin our journey. I need to purchase some stouter armor. Perhaps," he adds as he looks at the dwarf, "you could advise me on getting the most protection for my money."

I know what armor upgrades Parison's going to get, but if Rumble helps, it'll be the best quality of those pieces that Parison buys.

"Yiangma is roughly four or five days' travel south from here, into the mountains," Zepha replies, making no comment on the dynamics and personalities of your team beyond a flicker of amusement in his glowing eyes. "You should have little trouble procuring what you seek here in the city."
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Go ahead and make any purchases that you'd like to make and I'll nudge things along either later this afternoon or tonight. As far as rations are concerned I generally don't bother tracking them unless a scenario makes it relevant in some manner. Otherwise, I just operate on the assumption that you resupply as needed whenever you're in a spot of civilization.

Faster than Rumble has ever moved in front of the group before, he springs up from his seat and grabs Parison by the arm. "Ya found tha righ' Dwarf for thah!" he shouts in excitement. "Thanks fur tha tea and the words Zepha, buh we goh armur tah find!" With or without the cleric, Rumble barrels out of the teahouse and heads straight for the local smithing quarter.

"Now listen here, there're all sortas a armors, buh the firs step tah buyin' armor thah ya did nah make is tah..." he begins to lecture, doing his best to share his knowledge and passion for arms and armor with his new best friend over the entirety of their shopping trip. Needless to say, the trip is incredibly successful, but the standards to which Rumble holds his craft makes it juuuust a little bit longer, perhaps, than Parison anticipated. "It's ah shame, if we 'ad tha time, I'd make ya sum mahself!"

"Do we return here with our report?" Zithembe asks as the table quakes in the wake of Rumble's enthusiasm. "Or do you have alternate means of receiving our findings?"

I don't have too much money... maybe I'll buy just a few alchmical trinkets.

Will buy a flask of alchemical fire for 25 Gp

"Thank you for the tea," Parison manages to blurt out while giving a wave of his hand before he is hurriedly escorted out of the room by an overly enthusiastic Rumble.

The cleric listens as Rumble shares his experience and wisdom of arms and smithing. When Parison mentions his notions of buying a buckler and breastplate with the money he can afford to spend, Rumble gives him a look that conveys a mixture of 'the kid means well, but he doesn't have a clue about armor'.

Listening to Rumble's 'you get what you pay for' approach that what he needs in upgrading his armor, Parison opts to purchase a breastplate that allows for more climbing and leaping mobility and a wooden shield that looks as if it were covered with shellac that seemed more lightweight than in actually looked. Though lighter in pocket, he didn't feel as burdened by his new purchases as he originally thought he'd be.

"Yer a quick learner, haha! Can't say tha same fur mahself, buh ya got a good head on ya shoulders," Rumble declares to Parison with a hefty slap on the shoulder. "Ya nevah know when tha need to climb or jump 'ill strike, so ya prepare fur anythin' all tha same! Buh not aht tha cost o' bein' more exposed, jus' like ya did!"

Clearly over the moon with his fellow armor enthusiast, the Dwarf waits proudly for the others to conclude with their shopping. Torag, if you're watching this boy, give me the wisdom to keep him on the right path. The armor is a good start, and I know that with a little more time together I can build him into a right and proper battle-buddy.

Maria simply follows along and looks to buy a nice hat if she can find one. When the group seems to be finished with their purchases she follows them out of town in the direction they were told.

Spend a gold to get a hat that matches her profile picture. It is very important that it does not cover her ears, that would be uncomfortable!

As Rumble drags Parison out of the meeting room and the rest of you rise to depart as well Zepha rises with you and offers a bow of respect. "Please, report back here to me when you judge your mission to be complete," he replies to Zithembe. "Please, take care on your journey."
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After some time spent shopping among the markets and shops of Hisuikarasu you set out for Yiangma. You all have much to ponder after your unusual meeting and briefing with Zepha but three of you - Zithembe, Hepsubia, and Parison - continue feeling a warm, pleasant sensation that lingers long after the taste of the tea is gone.

After a relatively uneventful journey across Kwanlai’s hilly countryside that takes several days you finally arrive at the base of the Kimu Mountains. Here, open terrain gives way to narrow and winding paths interspersed with flatter areas where forests flourish. However, the rather peaceful and relaxed atmosphere that accompanies your journey quickly fades once you reach the village of Yiangma.

It becomes immediately clear that this isn’t quite the quaint town that Zepha described. Though the weather is quite nice and warm doors and windows on every street are shut tight, and though people bustle about, there are no children in sight, nor farmers marketing goods in the square. As you stride into the village the faces of the tengu locals regard all of you with cold suspicion, whispers rippling through the crowds.

Clearly you've got your work cut out for you...

"This is spooky," Parison says in a low whisper. "To not see a child or children out playing...Zepha did say the villagers were wary of non-tengu, but I feel we're one step away from being on the wrong end of a lynch mob. Let's not waste any time in finding Mayor Kambayo."

Zithembe smiles cordially despite the cold reception and raises a hand in greeting to the nearest tengu. He scans the town for a headman's building or, barring an obvious mayor's residence, a well or other focal gathering place.

Maria makes a few notes as they enter the town, Tengu village seems to have major animosity towards outsiders, is this due to recent issues or a standard reaction?

She flips back a page and speaks to one of the villagers, "Hello, we are here to speak with and assist Mayor Tenmya Kanbayo. Could you help us find him?"

Although the tengu that Zithembe waves to offers little more than an unfriendly scowl in return, he does watch for a moment as the strange-looking jade man scans about and finally deigns to speak when Maria hails him.

"Market at the center," the tengu grunts, speaking in an awkward and rusty Common. "Beds at the Willow, that way," he continues, gesturing towards the south, "and Mayor...over there," he finishes, pointing towards the eastern edge of town. As your gaze follows you see a large building - one of the largest in town, actually - that sits surrounded by a wall inset with cutouts in the shape of cherry blossoms. A small, well-kept garden and koi pond decorate the path leading from the open gate to the front of the house. It would be considered modest by the standards of Hisuikarasu but here in Yiangma it's clearly the nicest home to be found.

His 'good deed' for the day done, the tengu then huffs with irritation and continues down the street.

Thank you for your assistance!

Maybe I should have bought some bird seeds, or get a few big, fat worms…

Hepsubia waves at the departing Oneg..Tengu, and turns towards the mayor's house

Nice place. Really. Let's introduce ourselves to the mayor

And no joke about being the biggest fish into the smallest pond.

"That sounds like a good idea," Parison replies as he turns to study the building. His gaze lingers on the koi pond before drifting up to the cherry blossom cutouts. An image of a solitary rosebush floats into his mind unbidden. "Where have all the flowers children gone?' he muses to no one in particular.

A sheepish look crosses the cleric's face. "We can talk to the mayor and tell him why we're here. Maybe he'll be more hospitable and that will help to break the ice with his people."

"Many thanks," Zithembe says with a smile to the reluctantly helpful citizen.

He surveys the horizon to judge the time. "Maybe we should arrange for rooms at the Willow before continuing on with our task, lest we become distracted and find ourselves sleeping in an alley," he suggests.

Taking Rule of Two since both Hep & Parison indicated checking out the Mayor's place first.

Already curious to get to the bottom of whatever is going on, you decide to go pay the Mayor a visit first before seeing about lodgings. As the five of you pass through the gate into the garden area a servant quickly comes out to greet you.

"My master has been expecting that the travelers the people are talking about would be visiting him. Please, follow me," he explains, speaking Common much more fluently than the civilian did. The servant leads you into a spacious, empty room and directs you to be seated on floor mats before backing out of the room. After a short time, two other servants enter, announcing in unison:

"Tenmya Kanbayo, Mayor of Yiangma, will see you now."

A rotund tengu wearing white robes enters the room, his feathers immaculately groomed and shining. The servants prepare a small seat for the mayor, placing his gaze above that of your own. Then they move to serve you tea and a soft sweet made from rice flour. After a few moments of tense silence, the mayor speaks.

"I’m sure you’ve noticed the mood in our village, and I apologize if you have been treated rudely, but after I’ve explained the situation, I’m sure you’ll see why we are distrustful of strangers," Kanbayo explains. "But first, introductions, if I may be so bold. Who are you and why have you come to Yiangma?"

Why is it always fancy places we go to? Not a good table to stand on in sight... Rumble clears his throat and speaks up. "Aye am Rumble, an' aye serve tha all-mighty TORAG! We're here tah help with some sorta Qlippoth thing an' are from tha Pathfinder Society."

Maria nods as Rumble jumps in to share, "Well put Rumble, short and to the point. I am Maria Kuerlara of Kyonin. We are here to investigate the Shrine nearby and provide any assistance if necessary. We were sent by Zepha as she... he... they have lost contact with the shrine keepers."

"A pleasure to meet you, Mayor Kanbayo," Parison says, giving a slight bow. "I'm Parison, adept of Sarenrae. According to Master Zepha, the shrine is a place where evil manifests and he's grown concerned since contact from the keepers has suddenly ceased. So he has sent us to check up on them."

"Not rudely and no different than I would expect any town to react to such an eclectic band of strangers as we," Zithembe reassures the mayor. "I am Zithembe of the Six Paths. My companions have explained our reason for coming to Yiangma, and I suspect that your situation may be linked to the interruption in the reports. If so, we are at your service."

Mayor Kanbayo's mood brightens noticeably when he puts together that you've traveled from Hisuikarasu, though a frown flickers across his face when Rumble mentions qlippoth.

"Qlippoth? In our shrine? Nonsense," he remarks, waving away Rumble's concern. "Everything is as it should be. Well, again, at any rate."

The Mayor takes a sip of tea, slurping perhaps a bit more loudly than is necessary - or maybe it is, none of you have beaks - and then continues. "You see, a messenger of the gods themselves recently visited Yiangma. A divine figure who calls himself the Storm Prophet came here several months ago, descending from the mountain. He worked great miracles, calling the fury of the storm and guiding it by his will, and he gave us all a dire warning."

"It seems that one of the bandit clans raiding Tianjing to the south has made a pact with dark forces and gained great strength, and is even now preparing to launch an assault on Kwanlai! The prophet brought his warning first to the keepers of the shrine, but their bravery failed, and they fled." Here, Mayor Kanbayo pauses and snorts derisively. "Cowards, the lot of them."

"But then that left us in a tricky predicament. What would we do with no guardians? And so the Storm Prophet bid us take matters into our own hands and strengthen ourselves, promising that any who answered the call would become Hei Feng’s chosen soldiers in the coming conflict. He then left us, instructing us to bring his word to the other villages nearby," the roly poly tengu concludes with a smile. "So you see, that would be why your Master Zepha had lost contact with the shrine. I admit I'm a little surprised that the Storm Prophet didn't reestablish contact himself, but...well, the gods and their prophets move in mysterious ways, do they not?"

Rumble looks a little put out at the talk of the Qlippoth problem being solved. "Oh. Well wha if we took ah look? If tha shrine is doin' fine an' all, shouldn' be a problem, righ'? An' wha o' tha Storm Prophet? Can we speak tah 'im?" he asks.
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Sense Motive: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (10) + 8 = 18

OUt of her daydreaming, the slender elf adds

As for me, my name is Hepsubia Althein

"Has the Storm Prophet taken... residence in the shrine?" Zithembe asks. "And do you know where the previous guardians fled to?"

Hmm... my allies are thinking the exact same thing as I, better follow their lead and keep our suspicions on the uh... what did that halfling call it 'low-down'? Yes, that is it.

Maria adds, "I would love to speak with the storm prophet, could you introduce us to him? And how exactly did he bid you all strengthen yourselves? I'm intrigued as to all forms of power."

"Would you be able to point us in the direction of the shrine, Mayor Kanbayo?" Parison inquires. "We also need to find out what happened to the guardians and perhaps a visit there would give us insight as to why they've broken off contact."

Mayor Kanbayo's manner becomes stern when Rumble and Parison inquire about visiting the shrine. "That is a sacred place only the Chosen may enter," he responds flatly. "If you wish to see it, you must give yourself wholly to Hei Feng and prove yourselves worthy of becoming one of his Chosen Host."

"As far as whether the Storm Prophet has taken up residence in the shrine, I do not know," Kanbayo continues, waving his hand once more in a dismissive manner, "but I would assume that he has - or somewhere close to it. Given the looming threat he would not have abandoned this land. The former shrine guardians I am not concerned with since they willfully abandoned their posts."

"That said, if you are curious about the Storm Prophet and the Choosing ritual, you are in luck - the next Choosing will take place here in Yiangma later tonight. It will be the first time that the public has been allowed to view the ritual so I do hope all of you will come to see it," he continues. "I believe it would be very enlightening on your report to the magistrates of Hisuikarasu, when you return there."

The mayor waves to one of his attendants, who brings him a scroll adorned with a red tassel along with a stamp block and ink. He applies his stamp onto the scroll, then rolls it up and hands it to the attendant, who presents it to you. "In the meantime, please feel free to have a look about our fair village. If you present this to the townsfolk they should agree to speak with you. And if you are curious to learn more of the Storm Prophet's wisdom or the growing bandit threat to the south, you should seek out Chosen Megari, the hunter Yakuri, and Laiping."

"Yakuri hunts these lands and sells the meats and furs of her kills in a shop just off the market square," Mayor Kanbayo explains. "Perhaps she has seen something on one of her hunts. As for Megari and Laiping, both are likely to be on the western edge of town, near the great stone steps that lead out of Yiangma and up into the mountains. True believers, both of them, and eager to spread the word of Hei Feng to all that are willing to listen."

"Thank you, Mayor Kanbayo," Zithembe says. "And we are certain the previous guardians ran away rather than being killed... by bandits?"

Maria accepts the scroll, "Thank you Mayor Kanbayo, we will certainly seek more information as to whether this is to be our path as well as investigating the growing threats of bandits."

She waits to see what answer he has to Zithembe's question and racks her brain to see if she can remember anything about Qlippoths.

K: Planes?: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18

Geez a little touchy, this guy! Not wanting to ruffle the Mayor's feathers any further Tee hee!, Rumble remains silent while the others ask any final questions. Came all of this way, there better be a Qlippoth or two! This ritual might also just be our way into that shrine. He can't say no to divine will!

Parison stands up and gives a slight bow to their host. "Thank you, Mayor Kanbayo. I hope I'm not acting out of turn for speaking on behalf of the group, but we would be honored to attend tonight's ritual," he adds, casting a glance around at his fellow agents. "I would like to know more about both topics," he says to them. "Learning of the Storm Prophet would possibly help us learn more about the shrine. And if we can find out how serious a problem these bandits pose to the area, maybe we can come up with a plan to stop them. Neutralizing them would go a long way toward building good will between us and the villagers."

That would be great! Thank you for the opportunity

The Mayor frowns in response to Zithembe's question but it seems less out of anger and more out of puzzlement. "I suppose the bandits could have killed the shrine guardians but surely the Storm Prophet would have simply said so if that were the case."

"Then again...the Storm Prophet is wise. Perhaps if the shrine guardians were killed, he wished to spare Yiangma the fear that would have come with such a revelation?" He strokes his beak thoughtfully. "The thought of bandits is bad enough but if they were already making strikes against this region...well, it's downright terrifying," he shudders.

"And not to mention, if they had attacked the shrine then why not the village as well? The shrine isn't far from here; it would have been easy enough to regroup from there and launch a strike on Yiangma itself," the mayor points out.

As Parison rises, drawing the meeting to a close, Mayor Kanbayo rises as well. "Ah, you are very welcome," he replies, inclining his head in return as a gesture of respect. "Thank you for being understanding of our little home and our biases as I know they likely seem strange to you. I will see you later this evening, in about 6 hour's time, at the Choosing - remember, it'll be in the plaza near the western edge of the town. Until then, I do hope you enjoy your visit to Yiangma and that it proves to be an enlightening experience for all of you."

With that, providing there are no further questions, the mayor's servants escort you back outside and out the front gate. You've got the next several hours free to have a better look about Yiangma and, perhaps, to learn more about this mysterious Storm Prophet and the bandit threat to the south...
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Another small post to follow, please stand by~

As you stand just outside Mayor Kanbayo's home you ponder your next moves...and Maria recalls a little bit more about the nature of qlippoths. Namely that they are vile and chaotic outsiders from the deepest reaches of the Abyss. She also knows that not only do they possess resistances against acid, electricity, and fire, but they're also immune to magics that affect the mind as well as poison and cold effects. Lastly of all, all qlippoth have such horrific and mind-rending shapes that those who gaze upon them suffer all manner of ill effects.

All in all, they're really quite unpleasant and terrifying.
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You've got some options, now. You can:

(1) Ask around Yiangma for information, but you suspect that you'd make much better headway doing this if anyone can speak (or give themselves the capability to speak) either Tien or Tengu.

If you do the above, please give me a Diplomacy (Gather Information) check.

(2) Track down and speak to any or all of the people that the Mayor suggested you speak with - Hunter Yakuri, Chosen Megari, or Laiping. The Mayor told you where you'd likely find each of them.

(3) Something else entirely!

"Ahrigh' then. Wha' do we wanna do then? Aye say we follow up on tha leads tha Mayor gave us. Tha locals don't seem tah care fur us, so wha' sense does ih make tah ask them anythin' when we got some names tah go with?" Rumble wonders out loud.
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Rumble will add "Qlippoth" to the list of things not immune to Sledge. But only in pencil. He'll use a pen once he tests it out for himself ;)

One last question, that I don't think will change anything that's been posted.

"How might one present onself for the Choosing?" the shabti asks the mayor.

----------

"Why do we not secure lodging and then seek out the hunter, Yakuri," he suggests to his companions. "I feel as though I will need a moment before dealing with the fanatical."

Maria agrees with Zith and Rumble as to their next course of action, "Let's figure out this bandit threat first."