Iron Gods: Forged into Legends

Game Master polyfrequencies

Thawm's Lore touch reveals to her that his woman is addicted to the strange Numerian Fluid. There are some mental issues that accompany it. She was out and about trying to find more. She is simultaneously very intelligent, but addicted and has her wisdom drained.

"I don't want to go do that junkyard. There is no fluid there. Wait.. you have some available to you? Can I have it? Where?"

You all notice she is wearing some impressive gear. It looks like she might have once been a much more put together person. She is wearing robes befit a scolar, though torn and dirty. She has a cloak that seems to be magical. She has a impressive longspear she never pulled out. Her Armor also seems to be magical. She also seems to have at least 1 vial of the fluid on her person still.

"Look.. if you can give me some fluid, I will do whatever you want." She seems somewhat oblivious to the talk of overcoming her addiction.

Heal: 10 + 9 = 19 I assume thats what you mean with Medicine?

"First of all, as long as you are in your current state, you remain a danger. We will take temporary possession of your gear so that you are less likely to pose a threat to us."

Basil turns to Thawm: "I understand there are way for Clerics to help people overcome such situations. Do you think you could cover her for a sufficient time? Maybe also something to help with her symptoms?"

Then she turns back to the woman:"Lady, I know where to get more fluid. Therefore, I have the theoretical capacity to give you more fluid if I so desire. As per your statement, that means you will do what I want. And first, we try my way. If that won't work, I'll arrange for you to be supplied. I remind you that your life was and is in my hands - you are not in a position to negotiate this and proved to be a significant threat previously. Do not waste this opportunity."

Knowledge (Religion): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21
Thawm nods knowingly.
"Yes, I know of what you speak. I'm not sure if my magic is powerful enough for her symptoms yet, but I can pray to Nethys for something to keep her from acting out. Think we can leave her tied up until dawn?"
I hope our new spy is worth the trouble...

Thawm casts Less Restoration over the next few moments.
if she was fatigued, it's gone now
if she was exhausted, she's now just fatigued
if she had ability damage not drain, then I remove...
Restore wisdom damage: 1d4 ⇒ 4 points of wisdom damage.
(No effect on wisdom drain)

Sorry changing systems a lot. Heal check :)

She looks eager when you mention you have the ability to give more "Yes yes. You bested me. I can do what you need if you can provide some more fluid. Just tell me what you want"

Turning toward Thawm, "Thank you. That does feel a bit better.."

Her eyes go between all of you, almost always avoiding direct eye contact, but she looks to you, your bags, the horse. All over the place. She does seem like she will listen to you, for now, since you have a way to give her more. You are not sure exactly how long that will last.

We can go into a bigger time scale. You ready to continue sleep? Head out in the morning? You will likely need another night somewhere closer.

After sleeping in a bit to recover from their prisoner's interruption 1 extra hour, by raw, Thawm casts Purify Food and Drink on the morning's rations, as usual.
Do we want to risk untying her? Thawm has Mage Hand for feeding her...
Also: 14->10 lbs of bonus rations

Getting ready in the morning. The woman is passed out while tied up. She seems like she is just staying quiet. A weird patience of an addict.

Edit: Also her Formula book. I can list formulas in there if you want, but you can't really use it for anything since none of you are alchemist types

Keldor will carry/borrow the Masterwork Longspear for now. Not that he needs it, but on such an open area it could come in handy against certain opponents. Also, since he really didn't use any abilities (yeah ret-cons!) is OK to continue without going back to sleep, but allows Thawm her rest of course. Once everyone is rested and fed, he will be eager to get moving.

"Let's get going."

Using he new cloak, Keldor uses it's magic to clean the area and remove signs the group was there. (Prestidigitation)

Then helps the sick woman into the wagon.

"We can make those restraints slightly more comfortable, but it seems undesirable to remove them entirely. The journey today will likely be inconvenient for you, and you may suffer from withdrawal symptoms. However, you did have means to make this easier on you in your own equipment. You had 2 doses of Oil of Taggit on you. If you want, we can use that to allow you to...sleep, until we arrive, and to skip the worst symptoms until there is more supply of fluid. You were our prisoner for the night, and I assure you we will take good care of you. If we had malevolent intentions, we could as well knock you out rather than OFFER this course of action.", Basil suggests to the Woman.
5% self-poisoning chance if accepted: 1d20 ⇒ 3

If she accepts, that will make the journey ahead easier on her, and may allow her to skip the worst withdrawal symptoms. Full bed rest with long-term care, and Thawm has 2 instances of the addiction lessening spell prepared...ideally we could get her more coherent and willing to try "therapy" when she wakes again.

d3 hours of being asleep per oil, and my spell will only last 4 hours...

Thawm chimes in "Yeah, a nap sounds like a good plan. After you wake up, let me know when you start feeling like you can't wait for another dose of... fluid."
Then Thawm goes back to hooking the horse back up to the wagon.

My mistake, I had to look up the exact effects and landed on a D&D 5th edition page, where it's 24 hours per dose...which would have been most of our travel time and some time to recover. 1d3 hours is a lot less, of course.

Thinking it through, "If my choices are to sleep or walk along.. I would rather sleep. But remember, you still said you might be able to get me more fluid. "

She takes the Taggit and passes out in the cart. She chooses to fail it, and using her own alchemical know how to maximize its potency in herself, controlling its flow in her system. Getting 6 hours of sleep without issue. She can be woken if needed.

As you start to travel this next day, you make your way through the rough terrain of this new area of the country.

There are more paths and roads here than to the south. In early afternoon you notice ahead of you on the path is a group of individuals with their own cart. They are still decently far away, but its likely they have spotted you, as the landscape does not allow for hiding as easily as moving swiftly.

Anything you want to do before getting closer to this group? It seems like the group consists of maybe 8 to 10 individuals. Though 2 seem larger and walk with a strange stinted movement.

Thawm turns to Keldor.
"Do you think it would be wise to git a bit closer and see if they're friendly? I can conjure a horse for you. You can even ride it to death returning to the cart, if you feel the need.
Maybe we can ask them about Scrapwall?"
She suggests.

"Or... should we just get the ballista ready and say hi all together?"

Keldor shrugs.

"I can summon Gauntlet easily with this much notice too I might add. I would say a scouting mission can't hurt, although my horsemanship skills are lacking. Basil? Do we crank up and arm the Ballista...or be friendly? I'm inclined to give people the benefit of the doubt, even in this almost lawless land. Most people are just plain folk. But...those big guys and the way they walk give me pause. Could they be hurt?"

Thawm pulls on the reigns to stop the forward movement of the cart, buying a little more time to discuss how friendly they want to appear.
"It feels early in the day to cast Abundant Ammunition, but we could definitely prepare with extreme prejudice."

Keldor whistles a simple-but-jaunty three notes and laughs.

"My great-grandfather Elstero Whisthawk was a sea captain. He would say something like this right now:I like the cut of your 'jib' M'lady Thawm! Heck, 'Prepare with Extreme Prejudice' is pretty much my family motto!"

Keldor throws a blanket over the sleeping alchemist, and points to the siege engine.

"No use in giving her too much of a fright if we can avoid it. If the ballista goes off, it will make plenty of noise to wake her anyway. Basil? Crank her up and load. Thawm? Horse me."

He then waits patiently, using the magic of his cloak to make him look spotless and shaven, hair neat and well groomed.

Thawm smirks.
"Free ammo first." Thawm asserts before casting Abundant Ammunition on the very large sack/quiver that contains the ballista bolts.

"Then horsing around." she adds after casting Mount to obtain a spare horse.

"Please do hurry on ahead full speed, I'll get the wagon moving once you're off."

(Light) horses have the run feat, so even if encumbered down to 35'/MA speed, it can run 140' per round.
It also has 17 CON and the Endurance feat, so it can run for 17 rounds without saves and then keep running with a +4 bonus to its CON check to keep running
If they're less than 1400 feet away (over a quarter mile), I can tell that you definitely don't even need a check to run all the way there and back, even without checking the math too carefully xD

"I'll try not to fall off."

Keldor mounts the magical horse, enjoying the conjured creature's easy to control temperament.

Ride(Unskilled): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10

Well, I didn't fall off I hope.

Perception: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (13) + 10 = 23
"The Ballista is always ready, as am I.", Basil comments standing behind the siege weapon - which is half-drawn and unloaded, so not to put persistent stress on the mechanism. "I can be ready to fire in a matter of seconds. That said - Thawm, wait a bit with your spell - I can start loading after Keldor gets closer - and maybe we'll see if it's necessary at all."
She turns to Keldor as he mounts up:"I think the general consensus of such parley is to approach to within about 500 feet, then wait if someone comes forth to meet you. If they do not follow this universal pattern, I will load the ballista and prepare for combat. If they do, I will stand down for the moment. Do not approach too closely, alone, for whatever reason."

"Sound thinking. Agreed. Wish me luck?"

Keldor then rides off at a ground eating canter, following Basil's instructions.

You don't need a Ride check unless you're doing something like guiding the horse with your knees and keeping both hands free to fight :P

Thawm looks annoyed at the request for luck.
"Magic is all you'll need." She replies curtly.

That was just so Keldor wasn't going to embarrass himself in front of two pretty girls. He's a Paladin now! He'll have to learn to ride better eventually anyway. Better to practice his gallantry now...than on the battlefield later IMHO.

As Keldor rides forward and stops about 500 feet ahead. This close he can see the group much more clearly.

He first sees 2 robotic humanoids, large and metal. They flank the outside of the group. They are the ones walking strangly.
There seems to be 5 people in nicer dress. Battle ready, but with some wealth.
A single individual seems to be in front of the group. He looks human, and is in the best gear of the group. Loose fitting garb, but carries what looks like could be a staff of some kind.

Approaching Keldor, on foot, is another humanoid creature. This looks to be a female presenting individual. As it steps forward, you notice slight differences. She has markings on her body, but unlike Basil, these markings seem to be joints and rotational areas. Basil has the android glow markings. This creature's skin seems human, but something seems a bit off.

As she approaches she calls out in a somewhat stilted voice "I have been requested to ask your name, purpose on this road for my master Telend. If your answer is acceptable he would like to speak with you"

Keldor smiles at the odd woman.

"My name is Keldor and I hail from Kyonin. We are merely travelers here, seeking to pass in the opposite direction. We recently left Torch behind us. So far the trail behind us has been...eventful...but not deadly. I will speak with your Master Telend if he agrees to come alone with only one bodyguard. I will not harm either if no harm is attempted upon me or my friends. I am a Paladin of Erastil, so my word is my bond here. If I break it, Erastil will punish me for it. Does that suffice for 'acceptable'?"

Before she leaves, Keldor will smile again.

"You seem to fit into this semi-desolate land better than I do. Your body mechanics are fascinating! I would love to get a closer look upon the details. So what should I call you M'lady...? "

Diplomacy(Unskilled): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19

Basil stands at the Ballista, aimed slightly to the side, still unloaded, and watches what was going on.
"He seems to be interested in the female. Did he ever show interest in your body functions, Thawm? I am trying to see if there is a pattern in his behaviour."

Yeah, she can't really make that out from far away, but it's too good to pass up.

"Not that I'm aware of, thankfully..." Thawm replies while slowly approaching.
"And you?"

"We did talk about it, briefly. He expressed interest in my body excretions then. For some reason, I now wondered if his interest is limited to my kind, or if he also has a purely humanoid control group for comparison. Maybe we should surprise him by gifting him some of our waste material, together, as a way to further his research?"

Can we put it in a pair of paper bags and light them on fire? :D

"I doubt he'd appreciate my waste, it'd be similar to his own."

Thawm chuckles.
"Although he might be surprised that human females produce waste, hmmm...."

She looks over Keldor, "Your religious leanings mean little to Telend, but your response is acceptable. Also, my details are not relevant to this discussion." She turns around and heads back to her group. You can see her speak with the forward human. He turns and one of the Larger robot like creatures walks forward with him.

He walks up to Keldor, with the large robot like creature near him. You can recognize this creature, as it looks very similar to one you fought in the cave system under torch. Though this one looks a lot cleaner, and in better repair.

Telend speaks "Greetings Keldor, I have to ask why you are here? I rarely see a group of individuals roaming these roads. At least ones who are not of the Barbarian tribes. For someone so clean and presentable, with a summoned horse... You must have some influence. Please, do tell."

Smiling, Keldor waves off the compliments.

"Influence? No. I am new to my Paladin-hood and this land still. Erastil has gifted me suddenly without much warning with these abilities I now have, but direct influence here I have not earned yet. Now...I may not lie, but I am under no obligation to reveal reasons of our journey, or the destination. However you wonder, I can say this journey is personal to us, and means nothing nefarious to be perpetrated in this country by me or my companions. Feel free to extrapolate or guess our destination and intentions as you wish from there. As I told your... scout?...I can safely say the journey from Torch thus far has been interesting, but less than a deadly problem. Nothing your Robot companions cannot handle I'm sure. Could you enjoin us with discourse of YOUR journey here in return? Any obstacles or monsters we should avoid in the direction you came from?"

Sense Motive (Unskilled): 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10
Diplomacy (Unskilled): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

Also...Detect Evil is active as soon as I get a moment to use it.

You have a hard time reading him, though as soon as it makes sense he reads as evil

"Yes, Influence. That is the greatest currency of the land, is it not? Oh, come now, you can tell me where you are heading. Though, if your destination is a mystery, your origin is Torch. Very interesting. As for me? I am just a humble person, on the search. Traveling these lands looking for history. On that note, do you mind if we take a look at your cart?" He gestures to his large companion next to him.

Sorry. The only Knowledge Skills I have are Arcana and Engineering.

Worried about the woman sleeping in the cart and what she might do if awakened suddenly, Keldor dissents honestly shaking his head sadly. The fact the man is evil does not make Keldor want to let the man or his servants anywhere near the group as a whole if he can help it either.

"I'm afraid that's not really possible at the moment. One of my traveling companions is currently afflicted with a mental disorder that we hope to cure her of sooner than later. She is sleeping in the cart and should not be disturbed if we can help it, or she might react violently. I assure you the cart is just a cart. The ballista is just a precaution in these troubled lands. Now about you: 'Wandering' looking for history? Are you an adventurer? A wizard? A historian? Come now. Your clothes and companions tell a much more interesting story. You must have access to money in order own such powerful technology."

Looking over Keldor for a second "Ah.. That is too bad. Sorry to hear about your companion. Yes, I am an expert at the Arcane arts."

With a snap of his finger, he points to Keldor, "Thats the thing, isn't it. Technology. Seems to be everywhere around these lands. People traveling here and there, looking for working equipment from whatever seemed to exist in our past. It can allow the simplest people to weald power, where it used to require study and effort to control that power. If we do our best to let your companion rest, I would very much like to look at your equpment. We are, on the search, for a certain type of item."

Just before any reply is possible, but after a brief pause, "It would benefit all of us if you comply. If we don't find what we are looking for we will send you on your way."

Don't have local yet xD
Also, that trip probably takes like 4 rounds, so we had probably only gone ~210' when Keldor met "M'lady"
I suppose the conversation is taking long enough we're 100~200 feet away now xD

Thawm starts relaxing a bit as she watches the conversation continue peacefully. She keeps the cart moving at about half speed so she can just as easily slow down as speed up. 60'/round

Knowledge Local: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (15) + 7 = 22
"Technic League. I am reasonably certain considering his entourage. Keep your distance with the Cart, please. He may attempt to take possession of me by force if he takes note of my nature."

Thawm's eyes grow wide as she stops the cart over the next thirty feet.
Thinking out loud very quickly, she says "Think we could get away with pretending you're a statue? Maybe that's too unbelievable of a bluff.
Wait.
Oh-
We could pretend the crazy sleeping lady is our gunner.
What do you think, Basil? Drive by quickly? Or magic statue? I can say I conjured the statue for the day if they ask... it's even illusory magic!"

Oops, I said 'crazy'. Well she's asleep anyway, I suppose...

Keldor nods understanding.

They are on a research 'mission'...good to know. Now can I manipulate the man into telling me what he is looking for?

"Specific technology? You must be a technologist too! I can say I've seen a lot since I've arrived in this land. Can you describe what it is you are looking for or what it does? As you can see I own a few bits of technology myself, and am not ignorant of the arcane arts either. I might have seen what you are looking for specifically. I can certainly tell you about where I've seen it, if I have. You know I cannot lie about it either since it would break my code of ethics with my god."

Diplomacy (Unskilled): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10

Looking Keldor in the face "All Technology. I am looking for all of it. I have reason to believe that Torch might have some new technology. I decided to take it upon myself to find out, and if you are from there... I appreciated this little chat, but its time for the grownup to do his work."

With that he turns, as does the gearsman, and they start walking to the cart.

You can do something, or just let him get to the cart. If you wish to do something we should roll init. Not required though. You definitely get the impression he has substantial power.

"Hold still, pretend you're a statue." Thawm manages to sputter as the wizard starts approaching.
She casts Blend with Surroundings on Basil. you get +28 on stealth now ^^

Then Thawm shouts to Keldor, hoping to clue him in on her deception "Did you tell her about our friend under the blanket!? I hope you didn't invite him to inspect our fake siege gunner!"
I think the illusion magic will be convincing proof for the lie that our "statue" is a fake siege gunner, but I don't know if it's worth +0 or +10 or anything inbetween so I'll leave it off the roll:
Bluff: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17 + something?

Thawm waits somewhat nervously.
please don't look in my backpack, pleeeaaase don't care about my backpack...

Turning his fake horse casually to follow the man and pace him, Keldor begins dogging him with questions in order to distract him if he can, and tries to sound as interested as possible with his minor knowledge of technology.

"New technology? You mean new-tech artifacts? Have you heard something I have not? Do you have some sort of authority here in the middle of nowhere that I don't understand? I can't tell you about any new tech because I would have to say I knew something about every technology we have encountered, which I do not. Torch has gizmos and things hanging on signposts and walls for decoration. Any of those could be valuable tech and I would not know of it in most cases. Can you try and keep it down? Our companion is still sleeping remember? You robot's footsteps are quite loud, could you make them hang back a bit? They will still be within range of protecting you...which reminds me! There was this clunky robots...nothing like your shiny friends here...that went haywire in Torch several days ago..."

Keldor will attempt to keep this up for the entire walk to the cart, and see if he can provoke the man into admitting something incriminating, thus allowing Keldor to confront him, and try to let the others in the cart in on what the man is looking for as he approaches.

Knowledge (Engineering)w/Local Ties Trait bonus: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13

Is the other group still moving at all, or have they stopped? How far away will they be once the man reaches our cart?

we're stopped, 2~5 double moves for an unencumbered human away, I think

The other group has not moved, but they watch you.

The man shakes his head "You sure do talk. Lets just say someone I know, you may know him as well... Trent is his name. Has informed me Torch might have some artifacts. All I wish is to verify you are not smuggling them out. This wont take long."

He does not even mention the robot. It follows close.

As the groups meet up, "What an interesting cart. Is this to scare off bandits and Barbarians? Make it look like you have more up your sleave than you might. Honestly, might just be better to learn to use that thing on your own. Do you mind if I look under your tarp?'

He doesn't wait and reaches out and pulls it back a little. "Hmm.. Looks you where right. And how do you know this woman? She looks like someone who accosted my group a few weeks back." With a flick of his wrist "Ba, you might be odd, but you are not that exciting. I had kinda wished for a more... interactive exchange."

He turns to walk way, not listening to any words or protests. Having seen Basil as a statue, and the sleeping woman. "How much for the statue of the android? It is supposed to be one of those strange slave creatures, is it not? I will give you... 100 platinum for it. It looks to be quite good."

Keldor shakes his head sadly at the man's assumption.

"That is up to the artist I think. Thawm? What do you say? Is your... prize here worth the coin? I think you should keep it for now. But I love realistic art. Subjective turns me off...artistically speaking of course."

He then turns back to the man, speaking conspiratorially.

"The Ballista is mainly a deterrent to rogue bandits or dragons that might fly by and find us an easy target. Otherwise, a single shot can be quite intimidating to those of lesser intelligence. At worst we can burn it for firewood later if we run out of ammo."

"Oh boy. That statue? Well, for 100 platinum, I wish I had a real statue to sell you.
I'm afraid that is illusory and won't be much of a statue in an hour." Thawm explains quickly, indicating the Basil-statue.

"We wouldn't want anyone to know that our gunner is ill and resting under the blanket. I figured something humanoid would be good enough from far away, and I don't know any better illusion magic to disguise our gunner's condition..." Thawm trails off, trying not to risk her cover story from earlier by adding any inconsistent details.
and with illusion magic not on her wizard list, she can't learn any either xD

Sounds like Keldor didn't say anything contradictory at least...
Thawm relaxes slightly.

"Hmm, you hired this individual? Well, it matters not. Sober up your gunner and get on your way."

He brushes you aside and starts heading back to his caravan.

Jerking her head to indicate to Keldor that they should return to the cart, Thawm prepares to resume their journey as soon as possible.

Basil remains motionless and untouched by the mans words. At some times, being utterly unemotional was a certain advantage. She slowed both her breathing and hardbeat to a barely noticeable frequency, and locked her joints in their current position.
There was too much at stake here to risk hostilities.
Perform(Act) to assist Thawm: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12
Well, just posting for postings sake, can't really contribute here :)

should probably be Stealth, minus the ACP, with 20 on top for like +28 rather than +1 :P

Its a Bluff check to pretend to be a statue. The Busker Bard is an expert at it. I'm playing one in another game. Same as pretending to be dead basically. Magic or makeup helps. We soooo need to get some charisma based skills among us. I promise to max out Diplomacy at next level if Thawm will take Bluff and Basil takes Intimidation? Make sense? We should all take Sense Motive to a certain level I believe.

Watching the man leave carefully, Keldor sighs quietly.

"That was an...interesting...conversation. I may become expert at speaking truth in ways that can be interpreted as the listener wants. I never considered that would be a useful skill until now. Erastil forgive my presumption of course! Although now that I think of it, I feel my family may have been using such tactics against me for years. That could explain how easily it comes to me. My great uncle Uurnso Whisthawk...that man...oh my. Yes. No? I must pray on this."

Keldor continues to ride the horse until it is about to disappear, and then dismounts carefully to ride in the cart.

Yeah I would have normally gone with Bluff and Sense Motive, but with a conditional bonus. Not going to be too tough on this one. Though the not great diplomacys are noted :)

As you quickly gather your group and pass the other group of people. You are given some looks by the others, quite a few humans giving the Basil Statue a good look.

Luckily you pass on without difficulty. An odd encounter, but no damage done. As there is more and more distance between both groups. You believe its safe to take a breath.