GM Lamplighter: PFS #4-07 "Severing Ties" (Inactive)

Game Master Scott Young

"Lady Heidmarch will be with you shortly," the portly man remarks, just before closing the door behind you. The sitting room is beautifully furnished, with an antique Taldane desk near the window and comfortable sofas lining the walls. The room smells faintly of a floral scent that you can't quite place, almost completely masking the smell of the old books and tomes lining the many bookshelves.

Near the center of the room, a large meeting table and several chairs are set out, with pitchers of ice water and a tray of various crackers and cheeses. A large, exquisitely carved clock standing across from the doorway suddenly chimes, marking the hour of your appointment with Venture-Captain Sheila Heidmarch, the Mistress of the Magnimar Lodge of the Pathfinder Society.

Go ahead and introduce yourselves; it is likely these characters have never met.

"Idk about you guys, but im going to take advantage of the FREE buffet."
*i make my way over to the food, i turn around with a mouthful of food and say*: "oh im ranvar by the way" *i say as i mumble over the food i have stuffed in each cheek*

I just need to know what you want me to do before I start posting. :)

A tall stern looking elf paces the room. He peers intently at the titles in all the tomes and books. He turns to Ranvar. Well met Ranvar, I am Leastrie Oakenleaf. He nods and goes back to looking at the books.

A tall stern looking elf paces the room. He peers intently at the titles in all the times and books. He turns to Ranvar. Well met Ranvar, I am Leastrie Oakenleaf. He nods and goes back to looking at the books.

"yeah sure whatever" *i cram more food into my mouth and drink some of the water as well*

I removed some posts. Not sure what that was, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't wanted here.

Thanks, Ross... and on a Saturday night, too! That's service! :)

A small gnome like halfling steps forward, carefully grabbing a couple crackers before Ranvar can devour them all, "Pleased to meet you all, I am Hadassah, though I prefer Dassah. Easier to say. . . Any of you have any idea where we are headed? I suppose I should warn you all, I am a little cursed, but not too bad!"

Taking a seat at one of the large table, Hadassah carefully sets down her glass of water. As she sets down the crackers, on slips from her grip. Instead of falling straight to the ground, like a good cracker should, it drifts towards the ground, then flies across the room, landing some ten feet away.

"Bad ghost!" Looking somewhat embarrassed, Haddassah explains, "That is my ghost. I don't know what to call her, but she follows me around to cause mischief. Never bothers anyone else though. I call it a she, but I honestly never get answers from her. Maybe it is a he, and that is why it is so mad at me. Did I mention I am slightly cursed?"

Looking around, and pulling her grey wool gloves back up past her elbows, Hadassah walks across the room, picks up her cracker, and returns to her seat, blushing slightly.

A small gnome like halfling steps forward, carefully grabbing a couple crackers before Ranvar can devour them all, "Pleased to meet you all, I am Hadassah, though I prefer Dassah. Easier to say. . . Any of you have any idea where we are headed? I suppose I should warn you all, I am a little cursed, but not too bad!"

Taking a seat at one of the large table, Hadassah carefully sets down her glass of water. As she sets down the crackers, on slips from her grip. Instead of falling straight to the ground, like a good cracker should, it drifts towards the ground, then flies across the room, landing some ten feet away.

"Bad ghost!" Looking somewhat embarrassed, Haddassah explains, "That is my ghost. I don't know what to call her, but she follows me around to cause mischief. Never bothers anyone else though. I call it a she, but I honestly never get answers from her. Maybe it is a he, and that is why it is so mad at me. Did I mention I am slightly cursed?"

Looking around, and pulling her grey wool gloves back up past her elbows, Hadassah walks across the room, picks up her cracker, and returns to her seat, blushing slightly.

"ummmm.... riiiiight....." *continues eating*

"So, as the small creepy one asked, why are we here? I mean they must need us for something big right? why else would we be here?" *i saw still eating and food in my hands as i walk towards the rest of the group*

Andrazi makes his entrance, a bit later than usual. He sees the trio already there getting their fill. He makes a plate for himself and starts snacking while putting his feet up on the table. "Name's Andrazi. I'm guessing it's something important that they need us for. Or they couldn't get anyone better. That happens too. Good spread this time."

Soth-Loren enters, nodding his head in greetings as he does. Heaing the last thing as he does, "It is always "something of import" with the Society." he says with a smirk, though in truth it usually is. "Greetings to thee, friends. I am Soth-Loren, missionary of the Five Wing-ed host of Heaven's mighty armies, and I, too, was summoned here. It is my hope that we can aid whomever is in troubleth, and do some small bit of righteousness in a dark world".

Soth-Loren bears a strange mark, perhaps from birth or some old injury, wears well designed and reliable Chain Shirt, while holding a very fine Heavy Shield. At his side is a a Bastard Sword. He also wears a golden Crown, proudly, and has a simple backpack.

He has both the trappins and the bearing of a noble warrior, prhaps royalty of some small country, but not the snobbery nor arrogance of an aristocrat. His smile is genuine, his voice soft, slow, but confident, and his eyes, a dark green, seem patient. His accent is strange, though not so strange in a organization like the Pathfinder Society, perhaps Ustalavian, though there is a hint of the Celestial tongue being very influential.

Since I do not have an actual Holy Symbol of Ragathiel, I am going ot say my Birthmark is a Bastard Sword, with th tip of the blade just above a flaming anvil, set upon a Heraldic Crest

"Riiiight.... Well now that the wanna be royalty has finished making there grand entrance, does anyone know any actual details about this mission? Let me see if i hear anything." *i sneak up and press my ear to the door that the portly man left out of, trying to be quite*

"Nope, just relax and enjoy the food. We'll get the mission briefing eventually."

"Greetings, your majesty." Andrazi tosses him a piece of cheese. "Sit, have a bite. We're still waiting for the Venture Captain to show up."

"So, no one is has yet recieved word of the why we are summoned? A pity, though I am pleased that I did not arriveth late.", he says as he takes a seat, after making sure all the women have already sit.

I'm running a game with Mistress Heidmarch too, so I keep needing to remind myself this is a different character.

Edit I'm going out to the field again in a few. I'm going to switch my extra language (just picked up) from Tian to the native Varisian if that's ok. I picked Tian because my other character kept getting missions for it, but I keep forgetting I'm not playing that one.

"Well this should be interesting to say the least" *ranvar continues to stand and crosses his arms"
Ranvar btw looks like this(copied from my appearance under my profile): You see a short human with his hands in his pockets, draped in a dark green wool cloak with boots breeches and a vest over a shirt look up from under his hood and you see his bald head and shaven face look at you and his bright greens eyes seem to shimmer in the light... He seems to have a slight grin on his face.... I wonder why? He is carrying many odd things on his back of which are a apparent is a backack with a bedroll on top of it a water skin on the side loop of the backpack and a protruding, what seems like maybe a dart gun and a regular emptpy sack hanging out of one of the holes to the backpack.

The door opens and Sheila Heidmarch sweeps into the room. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting. So many tasks in a new Lodge, they never end." She motions you to join her at the table, and pours herself a glass of water.

"Andrazi, good to see you again. Thank you again for your aid with our recent goblin troubles." She nods, a faint smile plying her lips. "Hadassah, I'm sorry to inform you that your services are required elsewhere at this time. Please report to Master Farabellus in his office immediately." Sheila watches the halfling collect her gear and head out the door, waiting for it to close before she continues.

"The rest of you: I thank you for making Magnimar Lodge your home Lodge for the present. And I have need of your talents immediately." She takes a sip of water and continues.

"You are of course familiar with the Society's rival organization, the Aspis Consortium?" she asks, gazing at each of you. "The Aspis seek knowledge, as we do, but only because they can sell it at a profit. They are thieves, grave robbers, and charlatans... everything the common folk think Pathfinders are." Sheila shakes her head angrily.

"But to the point: the Aspis Consortium will likely be a pain in your sides for most of your careers. Luckily, you have a chance to perhaps influence that. Recently, the Aspis have upset the cult of Lissala, and given us an opening. Lissala is the Thassilonian goddess of runes, fate, and obedience. Her followers are wicked and secretive, but like most men they can be bought, for the right price. The Aspis Consortium offered that price."

Sheila pauses and looks at each of you. "As new agents, you may be unfamiliar with the efforts of the Society last year to obtain the Hin Jao Tapestry, a portal to a museum demiplane that we thought we had all to ourselves. It turns out that the Aspis Consortium contracted the cult of Lissala to create a "back door" into our demiplane, and it took us months to drive the bastards out. Because we interrupted their plans, the Aspis Consortium couldn't make the promised payments to the cult of Lissala. As you might expect from followers of a goddess of duty, the Lissalans are irate at the Aspis Consortium for defaulting. Tensions between the two groups are strained to their breaking point."

She leans forward and eyes you coldly. "I need you to finish the job. Turn the Aspis and the Lissalans against each other."

“Vidrin Jenk is a silver agent in the Aspis Consortium, newly arrived in Riddleport and anxious to prove his worth to the organization. The Aspis Consortium recently purchased the Barracuda Cartage company in Riddleport, and Jenk operates out of the offices there. Jenk plans to patch up relations with the cult of Lissala, which is well hidden somewhere in Riddleport. To help him, Jenk requisitioned a group of Aspis Consortium specialists—all bronze agents led by a mysterious troubleshooter named Thestil Shadowtongue.”

At this point, Venture-Captain Heidmarch slides several bronze badges across the desk, some flecked with blood. “Those specialists aren’t going to make it to Riddleport. You are. I want you to pretend to be the Aspis Consortium agents Jenk requested. Do as he asks, but only to keep suspicion off of you until you find out where the cult of Lissala is hiding. Once you know that, I need you to do two things. First, sabotage the Lissalan safe house as completely as possible. Second, throw the blame for the sabotage onto the Aspis Consortium."

"How you complete these tasks I leave to your discretion, but I want you to keep murder to a minimum. One of the Lissalan cultists is feeding us information, and I don’t want to risk you killing this valuable source. Furthermore, we want the Lissalans to remain alive so they can turn their full ire against the Aspis Consortium. Once you’ve accomplished these two mission objectives, return here.”

Heidmarch smiles broadly. "Of course, it goes without saying that you must keep your identity as Pathfinders completely secret. No wayfinders," she chuckles.

The Venture-Captain stands and gestures to the badges laying on the table. “Welcome to the Aspis Consortium. Any questions before you leave for Riddleport?”

You can ask questions, and/or make Knowledge (Local), Knowledge (Religion) , or Knowledge (History) rolls.

Leastrie turns the bronze badge slowly over in his hand, inspecting it.Are there any leads as to where the Lissalan hideout is located or local contacts that may hold that information?

"Hey, no problem. It's what I do. I can do some cloak and dagger work. And one in a city proper too. Would be a nice change of pace from trekking through some killer forests or the sewers. When do we leave?"

Andrazi picks up a badge and tosses it in his hand.

Knowledge(Local): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13

*ranvar remains standing.... He is always at attention when business is at hand and doesnt feel the need to sit* "Sounds like a perfect mission for me, I will start on a disguise as soon as i leave this room *he picks up a badge and hides it away is pouch pocket "however if you want to keep murder to a minimum that costs extra, mainly because i don't see the difference in killing a few or killing more than a few, as long as I do not caught... Which i won't be. So either we kill what needs to be killed or we don't kill at all. And as i said... The latter costs extra

"Leastrie, the Lissalan safe house is unknown, but it is likely your Aspis contact, Vidrin Jenk, has a way to contact them. " She turns to Andrazi. "You sail for Riddleport tonight, aboard the barque Harpy's Wing."

She then spins toward Ranvar, leaning closer and lowering her voice to a surprisingly menacing low growl. "And perhaps you misunderstand the command and compensation structure of the Society, Ranvar. Do it my way, and you get paid. Do it another way, and you'll be spending the rest of your career counting trees in Irrisen. Are we clear?" She straightns up, and her face instantly changes back to the pleasant, smiling woman she had been moments before.

"We are still missing Esmerelda, I see. We shall wait for her arrival before I send you all on your way. "

"Leastrie, the Lissalan safe house is unknown, but it is likely your Aspis contact, Vidrin Jenk, has a way to contact them. " She turns to Andrazi. "You sail for Riddleport tonight, aboard the barque Harpy's Wing."

She then spins toward Ranvar, leaning closer and lowering her voice to a surprisingly menacing low growl. "And perhaps you misunderstand the command and compensation structure of the Society, Ranvar. Do it my way, and you get paid. Do it another way, and you'll be spending the rest of your career counting trees in Irrisen. Are we clear?" She straightns up, and her face instantly changes back to the pleasant, smiling woman she had been moments before.

"We are still missing Esmerelda, I see. We shall wait for her arrival before I send you all on your way. "

"Lady, I can do it whatever way you like, if the price is right. However, if not, in this case, if too many people get in our way expect some missing person reports. But don't worry, body hiding is free and discrete milady. So you have nothing to fear, the job will be done efficiently as always. Any abnormalities that will throw us for a loop may cost extra, but no worry, if anything like that happens i will be sure to bring you the bill appropriately. And who is Esmerelda and why are we waiting for her? I like to do get things done in a timely manner. I don't like waiting."

I had to go back and edit that response i few times, sorry if anyone read it before and saw my changes and got confused

Hopping up to the table, the small green haired Sorceress is sorely disappointed and it shows on her face. Looking at the crumbs all over the humans clothes, she mutters quietly under her breath. Crossing the room, she notices an empty chair, previously occupied by another small, like her, and looks relieved to have found some crackers and water.

Hopping up to the table, the small green haired Sorceress is sorely disappointed and it shows on her face. Looking at the crumbs all over the humans clothes, she mutters quietly under her breath. Crossing the room, she notices an empty chair, previously occupied by another small, like her, and looks relieved to have found some crackers and water.

"so nice of you to finally join the adults, while you were off playing games with your fellow child friends we were being briefed on our mission. I do hope that this sort of behavior isn't to be expected of you in the future? hmm??? I like things neat, efficient and most importantly on and task and on time, ok? ok. Good, glad to see we are on the same page"

"Knock it off, will ya? We need to get the Aspis and the Lissalans to fight, not each other. She's a little late, so whatever. But now that she's here, we can get going." Andrazi will fill Esmerelda in on the mission's parameters.

"well i really feel we need to know more so we can put together a plan, i have the disguise area covered"

"I don't think we need a disguise. The way these guys work, they don't even know each other until they work together. We just need to play the part they'll be none the wiser."

"I don't think we need a disguise. The way these guys work, they don't even know each other until they work together. We just need to play the part they'll be none the wiser."

"Andrazi... One thing you will learn from working with me is that there is ALWAYS a need for a disguises and espionage"

"If you say so. Whatever, we're wasting time." Andrazi will head out for the ship, the Harpy's Wing.

Yes, I believe I have to agree with Andrazi. This Jenk has probably never met any of the agents we are posing as. He turns to Heidmarch. Do we understand it correctly milady? As to this Barracuda Cartage, is it easily located?

"well i can tell you guys are going to be of fun on this mission"

Esmerelda picks up one of the Aspis Consortium badges, and pins it to her cloak. then hops op to check herself in the mirror. "Looks good on me."

"So what do we know about this mysterious troubleshooter named Thestil Shadowtongue? Are we pretending to be anyone in particular or just ourselves as Consortium mercenaries?"

"Just ourselves as Consortium mercenaries. Like I said, they don't know who they supposed to expect. Though one of us will have to pretend to be Thestil, the leader."

"And what do we know about our pretend leader? I want to know who to be calling Thestil. Shouldn't be too hard since I missed all your names, except Ranvar, but that is only because he has made such an impression on Lady Heidmarch," upon stating the woman's name, Esmirelda turns and curtsies the best she can. "The fact he gobbled up all my cookies also made an impression."

Turning her attention to Lady Heidmarch, she asks again, "Have we any specifics on Thestil?"

"Name's Andrazi for the record. And besides the fact that Thestil is their leader, we got nothing. So we just have to tell Jenk which one of us is the leader."

"it shouldn't be too hard to trash a safe house, i'm just worried about how many people will be guarding the area, i guess we will find out when we get there. I suggest we steal something of Aspis's and conveniently "drop it" at the safe house when we're done, sound good to everyone?"

Venture-Captain Heidmarch speaks to the group. "Thestil Shadowtongue is the leader of a group of Aspis Consortium bronze agents you will be impersonating; he is known for his anonymity and secrecy. No one really knows what he looks like, or even what race or gender "he" is.. I suggest you decide which one of you will be playing the part of Thestil now. The rest of you probably should choose aliases as well. Even though you are mostly new agents, it is possible that your names could be linked to the Society."

As you look at the badges, you see that one of them is a little more embellished around the edges; this clearly denotes the leader of a group of bronze agents.

Sheila walks to her desk and pulls out a folded map. "Here is a map of Riddleport," she offers, tossing it on the table. [b]"Barracuda Cartage should be easily found near the waterfront. It is a public business, so you should have no trouble tracking it down."

"As for payment, the terms are as usual for agents of the Society. Complete the mission, bring back whatever goodies you find, and you will be compensated for your efforts at the standard rates. You will also be given first access to any items which you recover, as usual."

[Payment in Pathfinder Society works a little differently than a home game - for those unfamiliar, read the Guide to Organized Play, a free download on paizo.com. Essentially, at the end, everything you find gets turned in and converted to a flat gold piece value, and then everyone gets a share. You can then choose to buy back any items that you want to keep. There is no way to exceed the Maximum GP for a scenario, so stuff you steal just "goes away".]

Andrazi looks over the map, trying to commit it to memory. "Since you're all rookies, I guess the smart thing is to let me lead then. Oh and let me pretend to be Thestil." He goes to exchange the embellished badge with the one he picked up.

Leastrie nods.. I agree that you should play the part of Thestil.

Soth-Loren stands and bows as Mistress Sheila enters, thanking her for hr hospitality, and then listens intently to her speech without comment, simply absorbing it. Odd, she is not usually so short with her new recruites. Something must ail her, he thinks, witnessing the outburst.

Sense motive: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23
Diplomacy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (5) + 7 = 12 (just general friendliness-mongering)

Taking his seat once more to finish his meal, he again stands as Esmerelda enters, again introduces himself, and offers t share what little he has left, mentioning that "These cheezes are, . . . interesting. I do suggest that thou at least try one. I beg thy forgivness, lady-mage. I would have gathered thee something to eat had I known earlier there was another yet to arrive.".

Know Religion: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10

"I am not familiar with this cult of Lissala, nor to be honest, the disciplines within the Aspis Consortium, I fear, milady. Again, I thanketh thee for thine hospitality. I am, . . . uncomfortable, with wanton deceptions, even if against the enemies of the Society. Just because they fail at their own honor doest not giveth us the right to do the same.", perhaps a little too much of a "preachy voice" than he had intended. "We might needeth to alter our tactics in this, so that said mission shalt be a victory. Please, milady, what other details are there? I assume that a "bronze agent" serves as a sort of underling, and a "silver agent", perhaps as a captain? How are we to know this agnt, Mr. Vidrin Jenk?".

"Thank you for your hospitality, and I do hope to see you again soon. For how though, looks like I have a boat to catch!" Esmerelda again bows, and heads out to find the ship.

"umm... I suggest i should play Thestil just saying... I doubt any of your tongues are as sharp as mine, nor do i think your used to pretending to be other people as much as I am. With all due respect Andrazi."

Its not that i care who leads, but i am the person who has the highest charisma, and my disguise and bluff are rather high.... I mean this whole character is based around disguises. Not that i care who does it, I just seem the most qualified as opposed to a fighter

Out of character, I agree. In character, I don't really know anything about you (or the other players), and would like to know more from the VC before I comment on that. Either way, everyone remember no PvP, and that includes social blackmail and otherwise ruining people's fun, so I'm not too worried.

Stepping up and placing himself in the middle of the two, just in case, Soth-Loren places a gentle hand on Ranvar's shoulder, but speaks in general to all. "Peace, my friends. Recalleth that we are guests in our honord host's house. Be at a calm. Let us findeth out more facts before we decide on anything. Ragathiel once told me that we all haveth a places in this world. There is no point in one rushing to meeteth it, nor to try to force what they beleive it to be, as in the end, it shalt always find thee at just where you needeth to be."