KC's Age of Worms

Game Master Kobold Catgirl

1d20 + 10 ⇒ (6) + 10 = 16

"You sure?" Farrukh gives her a long look.

"Yep. Looks like it. Damn, here I was hoping I'd get to use a line one of the guys who taught me tracking said one time. Something about playing twenty questions and each wrong answer makes it harder to count."

"And we know knocking some sense into her won't work. I've never hit a skull that made that KLANG sound before. She's got a thick one."

Rodrigo takes a full minute to summon his friend before they go into the interrogation. He finds somewhere relatively unobtrusive and clean, then he sits on the ground cross legged. He pulls a construction of twisted paper and herbs from a pouch at his belt and sets it in his left palm. After a deep breath, he starts chanting over it. The bundle begins to smoke and slowly turns to ash as he chants, inhaling the smoke with each breath he takes. His eyes grow heavy and lidded, and Rodrigo enters some kind of trance. He continues to chant, and his right hand moves mechanically to daub the ash from his left palm onto the ground in front of him. He draws a circle with a seven pointed star inside it. Then he writes many strange magical glyphs around the star, his eyes half shut and mumbling arcana the whole time. As soon as the circle is completed, a dark misty shape begins to take form within the circle. A moment later, a slimy, black eel-like creature appears inside the circle, swimming through the air as easily as if it were water. A purple squiggly rune reminiscent of a caduceus with no rod appears on its forehead, and a matching rune appears on Rodrigo's cheek under his right eye.

The thing looks at Eben and Farrukh, and then slithers silently up the leg of Rodrigo's trousers.

Who are they master?

Our new companions.

Do I have to talk to them?

Of course not. They are terribly violent imbeciles from the look of things so far. I'm sure they're quite mad, but they also seem to attract treasure like magnets. They're easy on the eyes too.

Why have you summoned me?

We're to interrogate a drow, and then you will probably need to tail her, and not be seen.

Yes, master.

Rodrigo snaps out of his trance and stands up, smiling at the pair. "That was Sombra. She doesn't like being seen," he explains, gesturing to his pant leg. He stands up and brushes himself off. "Anyway, let's go."

Inside the Stables

"I have a dweomer that could potentially suppress the effects of any mind control on her for a short time...about seven minutes? There is no guarantee it will work, but I will cast the spell," Rodrigo informs Eben and Farrukh. He steps up to the drow and raises his hand. He chants again in his arcane tongue, and his hand begins to glow purple. He reaches out and grabs the drow's face, where his hand leaves a glowing purple print.

Casting Protection From Evil on her. She gets another will save versus the domination with a +2 morale bonus. If successful, the effects are suppressed for the duration of this spell. The effects resume when the duration of this spell expires. While under the effects of this spell, she is immune to any new attempts to possess or exercise mental control over her.

...Rodrigo has an actual trouser snake.

Nope, not even going to go there.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16

Carina shakes Nordan's hand. "Charmed, sir."

She listens to his account of the fire at the shrine, but notices something off about his demeanour. Is that... guilt? About what--not being able to save him? Or does he know who did it?

"And... is there anything else?" She asks, leaning forward and folding her arms. "I'm getting the impression that there's something more to it than that."

She rests one hand on his, her blue eyes looking into his. "Please, we're trying to keep people safe here. If you're feeling... guilt... over not being able to save Varda, believe me when I say that's a feeling that I know well enough." She winces, the memory of the bomb that led to Astraden's death stinging her. "But if you know whoever it is that had something to do with the fire, then we need to know in order to put things right."

Diplomacy?: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (20) + 14 = 34

Jelani, could you add the relevant information to Rodrigo's hotbar? AC, HP, Perception, saving throws, Initiative, and general class/level stuff.

Rodrigo SR: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28
Will Save (versus Rodrigo's spell): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14
Will save (versus domination): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15

The drow shakes her head, looking momentarily confused, but shows no other change.

...Rodrigo has an actual trouser snake.

Nope, not even going to go there.

[dice=Sense Motive]1d20+1

Carina shakes Nordan's hand. "Charmed, sir."

She listens to his account of the fire at the shrine, but notices something off about his demeanour. Is that... guilt? About what--not being able to save him? Or does he know who did it?

"And... is there anything else?" She asks, leaning forward and folding her arms. "I'm getting the impression that there's something more to it than that."

She rests one hand on his, her blue eyes looking into his. "Please, we're trying to keep people safe here. If you're feeling... guilt... over not being able to save Varda, believe me when I say that's a feeling that I know well enough." She winces, the memory of the bomb that led to Astraden's death stinging her. "But if you know whoever it is that had something to do with the fire, then we need to know in order to put things right."

[dice=Diplomacy?]1d20+14

Doran flinches at Carina's touch, frowning. "What? I don't know who did it. I'd have told the guard immediately! But...alright, the window wasn't sealed. We tried to get the door open, and focused all our energy on that, like idiots. By the time we realized it was magicked, we went for the windows, but Father pulled us back. Father knows the look of a fire when it's gone too far." He bows his head. "We could have taken the window if we'd changed tactics sooner. Unfortunately for Varda, we...well, we didn't."

"It doesn't look like it worked, Rodrigo. You sure you can cast spells?"

Eben sees the woman's eyes begin to clear, then glaze over again, and throws a word of encouragement her way. A magically laden word of encouragement.

Casting timely inspiration on her. If it gets through her SR, she'll get a retroactive +2 competence bonus on her saving throw.

caster level check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21

Eben sees the woman's eyes begin to clear, then glaze over again, and throws a word of encouragement her way. A magically laden word of encouragement.

Casting timely inspiration on her. If it gets through her SR, she'll get a retroactive +2 competence bonus on her saving throw.

[dice=caster level check]1d20+7

Actually, nevermind, I keep forgetting that timely inspiration doesn't do saving throws. Bah.

"Huh. Any other ideas, guys?"

"Oh, actually... I have an idea. Not sure if it will work even if I can pull it off, but..." He looks over at the purple glow on the drow's face. "Can you dismiss that, Rodrigo? I don't know if it would interfere with what I'm about to do, but better to be safe than sorry." Assuming Rodrigo complies, Eben takes a simple wooden juggling ball out of his pack. He places the ball on the back of his hand, held palm-down. And then, slowly, gently, he begins to move his hand back and forth, up and down, sliding from side to side. The angle he holds it at changes constantly, and yet the ball seems to stay in place, the hand moving around it. Smiling, he nods at the drow. "I apologize. I know we seem like the enemy here. But, really, we do have your best interests at heart, especially now that we know what you're under. Just watch the ball..."

Starting a fascinate bardic performance. Supernatural ability, so no SR for her, DC 16 Will save to resist.

While Fascinat won't help here anyway, leaving Proection From Evil on her would do not harm, and possibly some good. PoE only blocks stuff liek Dominate and Charm, not all Compulsion effects.

There's a FAQ on it.

Well, good to know, but I was planning to use suggestion if i fascinated her, which I assume would fall into that category. It's all a moo point, though, since it wouldn't block me in any case because Eben's non-evil, but that kind of abstraction is hard to actually use in-character. Still, if Rodrigo wants to point out the finer points of PFE and not dismiss it, that's fine. The real question is, would suggestion as a compulsion provide a way to work around the compulsion effect of domination? If KC just wants to declare it won't work we can skip to a frustrated Eben a few rounds later.

Hm, that's an interesting idea. I think it's doomed to failure without PFE (since it's a telepathic connection; she can be given orders from anywhere) but if that's blocked (or with a successful opposed Cha check?) it could work. The RAW is sketchy on the subject but that's how I'd run it.

"The spell I cast on her is called Protection From Evil. She needs to be a willing recipient, and then the spell will allow her own mind a second chance to resist the mindflayer's will. Apparently she was too weak minded for it to succeed. I am sorry. I will dismiss the spell if you desire," Rodrigo replies haughtily. A wave of his hand later and the glowing palm-print on the drow's face disappears.

** spoiler omitted **

"Oh, actually... I have an idea. Not sure if it will work even if I can pull it off, but..." He looks over at the purple glow on the drow's face. "Can you dismiss that, Rodrigo? I don't know if it would interfere with what I'm about to do, but better to be safe than sorry." Assuming Rodrigo complies, Eben takes a simple wooden juggling ball out of his pack. He places the ball on the back of his hand, held palm-down. And then, slowly, gently, he begins to move his hand back and forth, up and down, sliding from side to side. The angle he holds it at changes constantly, and yet the ball seems to stay in place, the hand moving around it. Smiling, he nods at the drow. "I apologize. I know we seem like the enemy here. But, really, we do have your best interests at heart, especially now that we know what you're under. Just watch the ball..."

Starting a fascinate bardic performance. Supernatural ability, so no SR for her, DC 16 Will save to resist.

Will Save: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16 Okay, this RNG is just toying with you at this point.

The drow's eyes start to cloud over, but her stubborn, self-defeating will manages to fight off Eben's hypnosis after a moment.

Carina/Tanith:

Still looking troubled, Doran finishes his wine. "Is that all, Miss?"

"Would it be easier to cast on her if I knocked her out again?"

Eben grits his teeth as his second gambit fails. "Okay, this is getting annoying. One more try. I have my own 'give you a second chance to shrug off an effect' bit of magic too. So, Rodrigo, give your spell another go and I'll throw my bit in if I need to. And if that doesn't work, we can go get Carina and have her chuck bombs at her."

Eben will continue the performance, even if it's not having any effect, so that he can end it to cast saving finale on the drow if she fails to save against the next iteration of PFE.

Ugh, just looked at it and I think we'll still need Carina in the end. For this to work:
Rodrigo overcomes her SR.
She fails her save vs. PFE.
She succeeds at throwing off the mind flayer's domination on her reroll.
Or she fails at throwing it off, in which case:
Eben has to overcome her SR.
She fails her save vs. timely inspiration.
She succeeds at throwing off the mind flayers domination on her rerolled reroll.
That's a LOT of rolls that need to line up.

Carina glances over at Tanith and waves him over. "Tanith, is there anything you'd like to ask him?"

"I'd rather not waste my spells if Carina can do this with a....bomb? Did I hear you right?" Rodrigo replies to Eben. He quirks one eyebrow up. They grow stranger by the moment. Fascinating!

Rodr/Eben/Farr:
The drow seems to lose her composure, just for a second, as the discussion turns to Carina's "enhanced liberation techniques".

Carina shrugs and turns back to Nordan.

She blinks. "Wait--you said the door was magically sealed? So... that implies that whoever did it is either a mage of some sort or otherwise has access to that sort of magic. Did you see anyone suspicious around the Kordite shrine before the incident?"

Tanith, who had been trying to subtly listen to the conversation, turns at the sound of Carina's voice.

"Oh? Did you happen to see if Varda hurt? I can't imagine a priest of the Brawler just laying down to die when he could have smashed a window or something."

Carina/Tanith:
"No and no. It was late at night when the fire started." Doran frowns at Tanith. "All we saw was Varda, in there, on his knees. Didn't see any injuries, though we didn't see behind him, so maybe his ankles were hurt?" He shrugs.

"Alright, I suppose we can just wait for her and Tanith to get back," Eben says, a trifle dispirited. He flips the juggling ball up in the air, catches it, and breathes a puff of air on his closed fist. When he opens it, the ball is gone. "So much for having things all wrapped up by evening..." he mumbles, his other hand adjusting his cloak (and tucking the ball into a pocket). He shrugs at the drow. "Sorry, hoped this would get done the easy way. You can finish eating, at least. What's your name, anyhow, or does the 'Master' not want us to even know that?"

Tanith frowns but decides he's heard enough. He drops a handful of coins off with the orc brothers for the drinks (including Doran's) and then picks up his things to go. "Come on Red. Let's see how the others are doing."

Eben/Farrukh/Rodrigo:
"Johysis," the drow says warily, continuing to scoop up food with her hands. "And you are? Unless your name is some great secret."

So, does everyone still have goals left for today, or is it time for a timeskip to evening?

Go ahead and pop forward, I think we're just waiting for Carina.

Farrukh looks puzzled.

"Don't you guys know? The doppelgangers had pretty detailed info on us, and they worked for you and squidhead, didn't they?"

Carina gets up and follows Tanith out of the tavern.

"Thank you for your time, sir." She nods at Nordan before leaving for the Crooked House.

Going to be spending the evening after the drow interrogation starting work on a masterwork pepperbox pistol.

Go ahead and pop forward, I think we're just waiting for Carina.

Farrukh looks puzzled.

"Don't you guys know? The doppelgangers had pretty detailed info on us, and they worked for you and squidhead, didn't they?"

"The Master most likely did not expect that we would need to know anything detailed."

That Evening:

The group reunites at the Crooked House.

Carina steps into the common room and stretches.

*sigh* "Hey guys. How'd things go?" She asks the others.

"Quite poorly by my assessment," Rodrigo replies to Carina, a frustrated look on his face. "The drow woman was under the effects of some kind of powerful enchantment that we were unable to break. Eben was telling me you might be able to bomb it out of her..?" Rodrigo asks the undine alchemist curiously.

"Not well. She's dominated, so we got nowhere fast. We were hoping you could blow up the enchantment on her."

Carina arches an eyebrow in surprise. "Huh. I'll admit, this is the first time I've ever been asked to do that."

So is there anything more to say, or do you just immediately go and start throwing bombs?

If the latter, make a few CL checks.

Carina walks into the stables where the drow lady is being held.

"So, have they told you who I am?" She asks, leaning against the stable wall and watching the prisoner.

"No. I assume you're Carina."

Carina arches an eyebrow in surprise. "Huh. I'll admit, this is the first time I've ever been asked to do that."

"Well, we were just going to have Rodrigo take his snake out of his pants and chase her around town with it, but it turns out we'd be better off having you use your bombs to strip her."

Earlier

"Well, we were just going to have Rodrigo take his snake out of his pants and chase her around town with it, but it turns out we'd be better off having you use your bombs to strip her."

Carina just stands there in silence as she processes what Eben just said.

"...riiiiiight." She finally says, walking off to deal with their prisoner.
-----------------
"Correct." Carina moves off of the wall and steps closer to the drow. "May I ask what, exactly, they said about me?"

"They said you would be throwing bombs at me."

Carina shrugs. "I suppose..."

"Please, understand that I hoped I wouldn't have to resort to this." She unlimbers a vial from her belt and starts tossing it into the air. "Now, if I do this wrong, it'll hurt a little."

"If I do it right, you're in for a splitting headache." She flicks it at the drow...

Ranged Touch Attack? *Dispelling Bomb* (PBS, Precise): 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20
Dispel Check *Action Point!*: 1d20 + 6 + 1d6 ⇒ (13) + 6 + (5) = 24

Here's hoping this works...

Astraden wakes around nightfall with her sheets knitted in knots around her and a pounding headache. She changes into her old clothes, working up a cold sweat as she struggles with her trousers and shoes. After that, she sits on her bed to pray to Olidammara, focusing on the deepening violet hue of the sunset outside her window. She is finishing her preparations when she hears a bomb go off below.

About half a minute after Carina's first dispelling attempt, Astraden arrives outside the stables, unarmored and clutching only her holy symbol in one hand. Seeing a few of friends congregating outside, she strides forward fiercely. "What in hell was that? Is something attacking? Are we safe?" she asks, gripping her cloak around herself.

"It's okay, we're just interrogating the prisoner."

The bomb surges around the drow, and she screams in confusion. Unlike the normal bombs, the red energy that blasts out lingers. It collects around the drow's head and starts to suck something out.

Johysis clutches her head as greenish tendrils are pulled out from her ears, mouth, and eyes. The process takes seconds.

She collapses, spasming.

1d20 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 1 = 13

"Ah. From the Hold?" Astraden relaxes a bit and smooths her hair back. "By the way, any chance you were able to pick up diamond dust? Headache's still pretty bad . . ."

Carina's eyes widen and she immediately moves to the drow's side.

"Guys! Get in here--something's wrong!" She starts working to stabilize her while trying to determine if her bomb worked or not...

Heal (Stabilize): 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (11) + 14 = 25
Spellcraft: What The Hell Is Happening?: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (19) + 10 = 29

"Well then."

After a moment, Johysis's eyes open. She looks up at the party, eyes clear and wary. She doesn't say anything.

Carina exhales in relief before addressing the prisoner. "How are you feeling?" She asks, crouching before her with a genuine expression of concern.