GM OfAnything's Darkest Abduction (Inactive)

Game Master KingOfAnything

"I am not sure that is a good idea. If she is behind it, alerting her that we suspect her directly would doom all those that have been taken. We should investgate the lodge without her knowledge, if possible. If we find nothing, then we should speak to her. Who knows what sorts or traps or magical deceptions she might have access to, but she is not the first Pathfinder official I've investigated, and an organization so rife with corruption, doubtful the last."

"If it is not her, perhaps one of the agents or other leaders, and speaking to her might tip them off. It's unlikely that these Dark Folk enter and leave the lodge itself, not without being noticed. They probably have a hidden passage somewhere close. Unless the Society is in on it."

Just to be clear, the Lodge and the Dark Folk underground chamber are two seperate places, connected through a cave in the basement. Im not suggesting going to that cave, only looking into the Lodge and grounds first, and ruling out the VC.

-Posted with Wayfinder

"You are our native guide. Ve vill follow you and trust your experience here, Garinol." Zahra sighs. "This is not the first time ve have sought creatures hiding in a Pathfinder Lodge. Did anyvun else think it was strange that our Venture Captain did not vant us to stay there?"

Vrald bows himself out of the room. "Yes, please accept our apologies. Have an enjoyable evening."

He leaves. I hope he won't come after us for damages for those golems

22:40: slide 1, map 1

let me know if this is incorrect/changes

Lesiege watches you go with wry contempt, "Do be sure to see no harm comes to Olivina. Talented artists are so difficult to find."

The party, puzzled retraces their steps out the sewer and makes its way to Miregold Manor. Even at this hour, the city is alive. Irregular music drifts from open windows above balconies, and a few small groups play by ear on poorly-lit street corners. Miregrold Manor is perched on a hillside estate that overlooks Karcau proper. An unruly garden and a copse of trees, through which a cobblestone path runs, isolates the manor from the general public. The manor is designed in a classic Ustalavic style, with a steep roof, arched window frames, and a pair of slender turrets flanking the front door. Miregrold Manor’s iron front door is adorned with bronze filigree and a lion’s-head knocker. The door is unlocked.

Inside the front door, a compass-rose inlay decorates the wooden floor. A massive stuffed elk head hangs on the wall opposite the door. A pair of hallways exits the foyer on either side of a curio-covered mantle.

"Should we not knock? Then again, as pathfinders, are we not entitled to enter the lodge?" asks Vrald, slightly unsure of protocol in this situation.

One of you opened the front door, in case that was not clear

The interior of the lodge is dark, save for the light of your torches. Even the curtains are drawn shut.

"May I suggest, before even proceeding, that we search the grounds outside first. I don't want to believe that the Society is at fault, but it would not be prudent to ignore all possibilities. Not when lives might be at stake."

Even if we don't want to spend too much time, Pumpkin and I could quickly walk a circle a few hundred feet out to see if we catch any Dark Folk scents. With the items left in the sack, I would think both of us should have an idea of what to look for.

Garinol takes Pumpkin around the grounds, looking (and smelling) for signs of the dark folk. In the rear of the building is an open-air porch surrounded by an iron trellis.

Perception: 1d20 + 22 ⇒ (20) + 22 = 42

On one of the rose thorns near the entrance to the garden, you discover a scrap of coarse fabric, blackened with grime and smelling of sewer and body odor.

"Well, let us enter and see what we can find. That sewer scrap certainly is a concern."

Vrald edges to the front and cautiously enters the building, pointedly not announcing his presence.

"It could be that the dark folk have returned to hurt, not help the captain. Did you not say there was some bad blood between them and the VC's family."

Zahra nods. "There could be a number of reasons for the Darkfolk sneaking about. I vould like our lodge to be innocent in this manner, but Omar and I have seen a couple of instances vhere good Pathfinders have lost their vay. If somevun in our lodge is causing problems, ve should find it now so that ve can get them back to the right path. And if another group is trying to implicate us, then ve must clear our name."

Returning to the other Pathfinders, "We managed to find this. Looks like the implication that they where here is correct."

Survival to Track by Smell, looking for a trail: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (15) + 20 = 35

I'm specifically trying to find a trail from the Lodge to a sewer, as this might help us to discover if the Society itself was maybe in on it (the trail goes into the Lodge), or less likely, if the trail goes somewhere else instead.

"Zhara, can Pumpkin track where that creature went next? Or how old the trail is?"

Faeranduil is lost in thoughts for a moment "It seems that that would prevent us from groping around in the dark."

"It could be that the dark folk have returned to hurt, not help the captain. Did you not say there was some bad blood between them and the VC's family."

"Not that I know of, but to be honest, I'm not too sure just what the issue was. From what we discovered, Miregrold had been working with the Dark Folk to study some strange element from the Dark Lands, and in exchange for their help, was going to do something. Apparently he had not repaid the favor in time, so they planned to take it out of his hide."

Garinol and Pumpkin do not find any scent or trail to or from the Lodge. The dark folk must have some other means of entering the building.

"Time to find out what the situation is with this Lodge."

Omar moves towards the next room, stopping to observe just before entering.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (13) + 9 = 22

Zahra and Pumpkin follow. "Then let us go. Vill ve be sneaking into our own lodge?"

Garinol will attempt to slip into the shadows and follow the others in, keeping an eye out as they move through.

Stealth: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (8) + 14 = 22
Perception: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (19) + 16 = 35

Vrald continues through the lodge. While he tries to be quiet... he is not too successful.

Stealth take ten: 10 - 4 = 6

Seeing the others trying to be quiet, Lurgh follows.

Stealth: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26

22:41

Omar, Garinol, Vrald, and Lurgh enter the main foyer of Miregrold Manor. Inside the front door, a compass-rose inlay decorates the wooden floor. A massive stuffed elk head hangs on the wall opposite the door.

A large scrap of paper sits beneath a squat granite statuette of a reclining person with a dog face. A pair of coat racks stands to either side of the door.

Omar notices the note and picks it up. He just barely manages to read the words before they disappear before his eyes.

Garinol moves forward by the dim light left by Omar's torch. This cozy sun porch harbors several pieces of light rattan furniture. On the low central table are half-finished drinks. Upon inspection he finds them filled with watered-down, room-temperature liquor. There is no condensation on the glasses. Several playbills from the Cloisoi Theater lie strewn around the lounge. The cover of each playbill features a portrait of the Olivina Sharnau wearing a beggar costume. The play advertised is called “Orphan of Okeno.”

single actions as you move through the manor, please.

Vrald checks out the coat rack.

"These appear to be the missing costumers from the theatre.. notes Vrald. "I wonder how they came to be here?"

I thought I indicated that Zahra and Pumpkin were following the rest?

Zahra frowns unhappily to see the Closoi costumes there. "It is starting to look like Lesiege vas right about this. No vonder she didn't want us staying in the lodge."

Lurgh on the other hand stubbornly clings to the idea of a frame-up.

And where is the Venture-Captain, or anyone else for that matter? Even for a lodge in decline, there is too little activity here. And now we happen to find what looks like a note that was placed with some conveniently hung costumes. Do you think Basia is an idiot? Would she hire us to track down the kidnappers and then put the evidence in plain view? No, I think it more likely that they too were lured away and this "evidence" was planted.

Lurgh follows behind Omar.

There are stairs to the cellar in the pantry. I remember that much the last time I was here. It is just beyond the kitchen.

Omar frowns, then recites "To whom did this belong before it wound up in your vault."

Shaking his head, he then comments "Cryptic, and now the ink has disappeared!"

He then peeks in both directions around the corners.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (8) + 9 = 17

Lurgh can go in front of him if he wishes.

Faeranduil casts detect magic while the others are speaking.

"I would council that if we think the eventual way is down, we first check upstairs. Let us make sure there are no surprises waiting for us."

"I agree. I do not recall any barracks here, so I'm not sure that any other Pathfinders actually live here."

But, before heading back up, he will first take out his journal, and make sure to copy a very basic map of this area, this time, and secondarily, under the effects of his "god-sight", (Detect Magic), do a small circle around the first floor.

@Zahra, your token hadn't moved. I assumed you were following slowly.

Garinol walks around the sun porch and spots a piece of parchment underneath a playbill.

Around the corner are two doors, one appears to lead outside, the other to the kitchens.

@Garinol, going further will leave you in full darkness.

Omar and Lurgh look in the other direction. The hall ends in a staircase leading upwards, on the left is a service door leading to the kitchens presumably, and on the right is a small dining room.

A solid oak dining table sits in the center of the room, surrounded by high-backed chairs. Two cabinets display full sets of delicate Tian porcelain.

No magic radiates to either Garinol or Faeranduil.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21

Looks like someone dropped some of their food and drink beneath the table.

Lurgh grabs a piece of the food and feels it to try to determine how long it has been there.

perception: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
Vrald goes into the dining room and look into the area in shadow.

The blocked out area in the map next to his figure

Vrald finds himself in a small lounge. The lounge features a trio of velvet-upholstered settees, each with an accompanying wooden end table. A long mantle displays several artifacts from across Garund and Casmaron, including a collection of antique blades. A nearby wet bar holds dozens of bottles from across Golarion. A decanter of expensive brandy sits open on the bar, slowly evaporating; a scrap of paper lies next to the bottle. An elaborate Keleshite rug stained with muddy footprints sprawls across the floor.

The dining room is to the north. I've moved Lurgh a little closer to get a look

survival: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13

"Someone was here, and not too long ago." says Vrald sniffing at the brandy.

"Another vanishing paper too. This one says "He spoke to..""

Omar moves towards the dining area, looking at the scrap of food that Lurgh holds. "Can anyone detect if the food has been poisoned or drugged?"

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26

Basically doing a move plus search each time.

Does this perception roll go against this spoiler or a different one?

Zahra stares at the muddy footprints. "Who vould do this to a Keleshite rug?"

Pulling out her wand of Residual Tracking, she casts the spell on the footprint and grins. "Let's find out, shall ve?"

Omar, you can open the DC 22 spoiler in the dining room

Zahra begins casting her spell on the footprints as her friends continue to explore this area.

Hiding around the corner, a dark figure shoots an arrow toward Omar.

Attack: 1d20 + 17 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 17 + 2 = 25
Damage: 1d6 + 3 + 2 + 3d6 ⇒ (2) + 3 + 2 + (5, 6, 2) = 20

Darkness seems to spill from the creature, but Omar's heightened flame raises the light level to dim in the dining room and hall. A stream of daylight from Faeranduil's ioun stone pierces the darkness to shine on Lurgh. Another creature materializes in the shadowy dining room before the first descends the stairs. He draws a pair of swords and stabs at Omar.

Attack: 1d20 + 17 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 17 + 2 = 32
Damage: 1d6 + 4 + 2 + 3d6 ⇒ (3) + 4 + 2 + (3, 1, 5) = 18
DC 17 Fort v poison or take 1d2 ⇒ 2 Str damage

20% concealment in dim light
Initiative(round 1):
Elite 1
Garinol
Faeranduil
Companion
Pumpkin
Omar (AoO only)
Zahra
Elite 2
Vrald
Lurgh

Glaive attack: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (16) + 11 = 27
Glaive damage: 1d10 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14
Miss chance: 1d100 ⇒ 98

Fort save vs Poison: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22

"Ouch!"

Omar then loudly calls out "Found someone!"

Edit to add:
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (2) + 9 = 11 Guess he was a little distracted...

Perception: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (1) + 16 = 17
Survivel: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (9) + 12 = 21
Know Arcana (aid): 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (9) + 8 = 17
Know Local (aid): 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (8) + 8 = 16

Garinol suddenly becomes invisible, and begins to move in closer to the party.

"Just hold out for a moment longer, Omar, I'm coming. . ." he tries to whisper to his friend.

Knowledge Local: 1d20 + 21 ⇒ (9) + 21 = 30

"Best not set our own lodge on fire..."

Faeranduil casts haste on Omar, Vrald and Lurgh.

sorry Garinol, can not see you

"Take care! They will explode when killed! Try to keep them in my area of daylight, they are hindered by it!"

sorry Garinol, can not see you

No worries. :p

I moved Faeranduil on the map to be able to see Omar, and to spread the daylight down the hallway. The hallway is now normal light due to Omar's torch.

From the doorway beside Omar, a shadowy hand emerges and swipes at Omar.

Attack(inorporeal touch): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9
Concealment(miss <51): 1d100 ⇒ 86

Omar deftly dodges the attack.

20% concealment in dim light
Initiative(round 1):
Elite 1 (14)
Garinol
Faeranduil
Shadow Companion
Pumpkin
Omar (38)
Zahra
Elite 2
Vrald
Lurgh

Knowledge Religion: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (9) + 15 = 24

"Careful! An undead shadow! It is incorporeal and steals your strength!"

Now that I get to react, time to catch up on all those knowledge checks.
Kn: Arcana: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18
No Kn: Local trained on this character.
Kn: Religion: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (18) + 13 = 31

Where is the shadow on the map? To have known what square to attack wouldn't it have had to expose itself or had someone tell it?

I'm asking because I need to decide tactically if I go for the shadow or the dark folk.

The shadow struck from behind the door to the south of Omar. As an incorporeal creature, it can sense the presence of living creatures in adjacent squares. It suffers a miss chance for being unable to see you, though.

"Yes, it is just through the door and can sense anyone near adjacent to that wall!" Omar replies. "The archer in the corner is also a problem."

Stepping away 5', he checks that the dark folk doesn't immediately follow. Cause well, Step Up is a thing...

If the dark folk swordsman follows, Omar attempts to spontaneously convert his Trail of the Rose spell to a Cure Moderate Wounds while maintaining a defensive posture. If no one is threatening him, he doesn't need to worry about casting defensively.

Cast defensive, if needed: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (5) + 16 = 21 Target 15 + 4 = 19
CMW: 2d8 + 10 ⇒ (3, 4) + 10 = 17

Sorry, can't seem to move the light circle. I would like to bring the archer into the light.

Zahra approaches where she can see, and readies a burst of radiance for when that Shadow comes out again. She wants to catch both the Shadow and the Darkfolk in the same burst.

Zahra moves into position and readies her spell as Omar steps back. Pumpkin follows close behind his mistress, ready to defend her.

The dark folk in the dining room lets loose another arrow, then drops his bow and advances on Omar, drawing twin short swords as he does.

Attack(Omar): 1d20 + 17 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 17 + 2 = 31
Damage: 1d6 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 3 + 2 = 11
DC 15 Fort v poison or 1d2 ⇒ 2 Str damage

haste on Omar, Vrald, Lurgh
Initiative(round 1):
Elite Blue (14)
Garinol
Faeranduil
(Zahra readied)
Shadow Companion
Pumpkin
Omar (28) Fort Save, AoO
Zahra
Elite Red
Vrald
Lurgh

With a few arcane incantations, Lurgh fired two rays of fire at the dark folk in front of him (blue).

Touch Attack: 1d20 + 8 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 8 + 1 = 23
Fire Damage: 4d6 + 11 ⇒ (4, 1, 5, 5) + 11 = 26

Touch Attack: 1d20 + 8 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 8 + 1 = 22
Fire Damage: 4d6 + 11 ⇒ (2, 1, 1, 2) + 11 = 17

He then moves back around the corner to let others in.

Fort: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22 Success

AoO, Haste: 1d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 11 + 1 = 13
Damage: 1d10 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15

Omar is not affected by the poison on the blade, but does not manage to bring his glaive around fast enough to hit the dark folk before it gets to him.

Lurgh's fiery rays strike the dark folk squarely, and it hisses in displeasure.

haste on Omar, Vrald, Lurgh
Initiative(round 1):
Elite Blue (57)
Garinol
Faeranduil
(Zahra readied)
Shadow Companion
Pumpkin
Omar (28)
Zahra
Elite Red
Vrald
Lurgh

Vrald steps forward and swipes at the shadow with his sword.

"Stay dead, damn you!"
first attack,PA,haste: 1d20 + 21 - 3 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 21 - 3 + 1 = 26
second attack,PA,haste: 1d20 + 21 - 3 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 21 - 3 + 1 = 38
hasted attack,PA,haste: 1d20 + 21 - 3 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 21 - 3 + 1 = 22
I don't think we can crit incorporeal criters, sadly
damage(magic),PA: 1d8 + 13 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 13 + 6 = 20
damage(magic),PA: 1d8 + 13 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 13 + 6 = 22
damage(magic),PA: 1d8 + 13 + 6 ⇒ (4) + 13 + 6 = 23

At half damage, that would be 10,11,11 for a total of 32; touch AC is currently 16 due to haste