Kingmaker: The Stolen Lands [Gestalt]

Game Master Æroden

Some of you may have been traveling for longer than that. Please post that as well. How long you have been traveling with who?

Feel free to connect each others stories to allow merges.

In those last three days you finally got to Oleg's Outpost, only to find out that all but Sajan and Lucky Bob, the merc, have already left. Using Xan's survival you did not get lost, but honestly you relied on individuals perception checks to keep track of the trail the horses left behind. Now you think you took a right where you should have stayed going straight.

A little yellow green lizard zips up to near the group, then up a tree, it stops and waves, "Hello, are you bandits? You don't look like mismatch bandits, but I dunno."

Sadly, her tracking 'skill' (which had mostly been born of trying to find Master Larek after some of his more... 'festive' celebrations) failed her not long after Oleg's and now had no bloody clue where the expedition had gone.

The little green thing surprised her enough to drop her backpack and reach for her sword, she'd been about to start drawing it when the lizard spoke.

"The hell?" she remarked quietly out of curiosity, looking at the strange airborne reptile. "We're not bandits - we're part of an expedition from Brevoy but we were... delayed." She doubted the little reptile would care or understand the mix-up that had happened and even if it did, Xan realised she'd probably end up going into a full-blown rant.

Please put your vital info in the race line; and skills in the class line. All new players please do the same, if you need an example here it is:

{spoiler=vital}HP: 28/28, AC: 20_ T: 13_ FF: 17, Perception +0, Initiative: +2, F: +5_/ R: +3_/ W: +3 (+4 vs. fear), CMB: +7, CMD: 19, Speed: 30{/spoiler}

{spoiler=Other Skills} Acrobatics +6, Bluff -1, Climb +7, Escape Artist +0, Handle Animal +3, Intimidate +3, Arcana +3, Nature +3, Ride +4, Sense Motive +0, Stealth +0, Survival +4, Swim +6 {/spoiler}

For the Knowledges pick the ones you are proficient in, so for example:
Arcana +3, Nature +3, Planes +3

CS is the +3 for Class Skill

Could also be that she didn't leave from whatever office in the city's handling the expeditions, hence why she left on her own.

"From Restov? Where my other big friends come from?" the little lizard says with curiosity.

She wanted to let the lizard get a bit of distance on them so that they could keep an eye out for a potential ambush.

Sense Motive1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
EDIT: I knew those great stat-rolls would come back to bite me.

Having lived a fairly sheltered life as a Noble, the boy had little to no knowledge of the surrounding land of the River Kingdoms, and as such, was given a map that showed a fairly detailed route on how to get to his location.

Aside from the brief animal encounters, Lelouch came across very little trouble, seeking shelter when he could. On his second day of travel however, the world around him froze as a well dressed and wealthy man approached him.

Confused by the situation, Lelouch commanded the man to go away, but he would not leave. He didn't seem to be of bad nature from what Lelouch could tell though, and he told the boy that his abilities would not work on him.

Lelouch asked what the man wanted and all he got in response was "support". Support for what? Lelouch asked.

"I am a God. My name is Bearik and I stand in front of you, baring the form I once took, when I walked within this world as a mortal like you."

Hesitantly, Lelouch asked what a god wanted with a mere boy of noble origins, and questioned that if he was so almighty, why did Bearik need his help?

Bearik replied; "Because my boy, I'm fully aware of your abilities, and with someone as talented as yourself, I feel I can get my presence known within Golarion once more."

Bearik pauses for a second before continuing.

"You have the ability to manipulate those around you, and can command people to do your bidding just by looking at them. However, I'm not asking you do that for me. Instead, I wish for you to use your intellect and charisma to spread word of who I am. Be it to clergy, paladins or even the general populace surrounding you, any who believe in me is enough. I don't expect you to follow me as I can tell from looking at you, you have no interest in such matters, but I am a dying God. One who has so few believers, I am almost powerless, unseen by most."

Weighing up the situation, Lelouch responds quickly, seeing this as an opportunity to twist to his advantage; "and if I agree to this, and help you, what would I get out of this?"

Bearik responds truthfully; "Well, for starters your abilities aren't as strong as they should be. It's as though you have the ability to command possibly even a god such as myself, but for some reason there's a limitation to your power. Consider that removed."

As he says this, Lelouch can feel a rush of power, pulsing through his left eye.

"If you do this for me, as my power grows, so will yours. I wish to regain my power once more, and will help to increase yours if you simply spread awareness of my existence. I know you have your own goals, as most beings do, but I'm sure you'll find a way."

Lelouch looks to the man, unsure on what to think.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (14) + 10 = 24

If the God has evil intentions, Lelouch will do what he does best and calculate the situation, along with any future possibilities of arising issues. So, let me know GM!

"Very well. We have an agreement." says Lelouch, regardless of whether he trusts this god or not.

With that, Bearik clicks his fingers and disappears, and as he does, a surge of energy sweeps over Lelouch's entire body, time flowing as normal once more, almost as if nothing had ever happened.

A day passes and the boy eventually reaches his destination, although in need of a good wash and of some food and water.

As he approaches Oleg's Fort, he walks in with a smile and politely asks the closest person; "Excuse me. I'm here to see Oleg and have been sent by the Swordlord's to help aid with the Bandit issue. Do you know where I can find the man?"

Forgot spoiler tags.

"Wait; there's other people from Restov around here?" Xantria was about to thank Desna before caution set in. "Could you take us to them?" she asked, retrieving her backpack, but keeping one hand near her sword just in-case.
She wanted to let the lizard get a bit of distance on them so that they could keep an eye out for a potential ambush.

Sense Motive1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
EDIT: I knew those great stat-rolls would come back to bite me.

First question do you have a mount, if nothing else everyone has a horse, a riding horse. You believe the little lizard but can still be skeptical considering it is a talking lizard. You let him get that distance looked away for a moment and he was gone... Later about 10 minutes he returns.

You guys can say otherwise but I think Troq and Klass are with Xantria.

Those who arrived at dawn, however, find that they are too late, with much of the convoy gone and the belligerent wizard with them. A stableboy was tasked with giving those who remained word from Klaus Mandrake: "M'lords and ladies, he said, uhm, he said rightly, ah, 'Only them's with the ambition to race the sun deserve to earn what's done been stolen.' Am paraphrasing here, but twas something alike it!"

Thus by the time Xantria, Lelouch and company arrive in Oleg's, the lizard can lead them to the nearest uplander, now trudging wearily towards the outpost from the south. Even a little bit of conversation with the locals reveals that the weary wizard has been struggling for days to track down a company of adventurers who left Oleg's recently with no success.

Mostly because he doesn't know the first thing about tracking.

"He didn't even have a map when he first came," a local may comment. "I suppose he just expected the wind itself to whisper the direction to him. Who knows? At least he's persistent."

Swaddled in a loose-fitting fur robe, Klaus dismounts from a horse and grimaces when his feet hit the ground. Apparently, he has done quite a bit of walking, as well. He stares bleary-eyed at the celestial in the company of that loquacious lizard, rubs at his eyes with a grimy hand, and then squints. Either he is very suspicious of what he sees, terribly near-sighted, or just tired of staring at countryside with no idea what to look for.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" he asks them. As if he had the right to ask.

You would be the only one with another charter, considering your stubbornness about it. The convoy would be made up of a squad of guards, and about 5 more individuals. At least those were the ones ready before dawn. I am sure you left quite a few others behind.

Or all three of those things... he he he.

Is your question to the lizard the first time or the second time around?

Lucky Bob? Yea..... I'm looking for Oleg. I've been sent to aid the people of this Fort against the Bandit troubles I hear you've been having. My name is Lelouch. I was expecting a party of people to already be here.

Lelouch frowns.

Sense Motive: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (8) + 10 = 18

Can I trouble you for some accurate directions? If you have a horse I could use, I'd also be very grateful. Oh, and you might want to stop lying to me.....Bob. I'm here to help, not to be taken for a fool.

Do you wait for the night, a few hours, or go out immediately?

Oleg will let you borrow a horse for 40 gp. You get back 10 gp if there is nothing wrong with the horse when you return it.

Honestly I don't know how long it takes to get from Restov to Oleg's Outpost but that really doesn't matter right now.

Lelouch left Restov walking...
Klaus, convoy, Xantria, and Torq left Restov.

Lelouch gets to Oleg's Outpost.

Xantria in her posts is 2 days past Oleg's Outpost.

She got the hint of catching up everyone quickly, but I do like to see how people got from point A to B to C to D to G. Oh wait! LOL :P

It's a pleasure to meet you Svetlana. I would definitely appreciate some food and water before I head off to find the rest of the group sent here. However, I must rush off as soon as I'm finished, as I've been sent here to aid you with your Bandit troubles and wouldn't want to risk any further attacks on your Outpost.

Bluff: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13

As Lelouch finishes his food, he speaks to Svetlana once more.

If possible may I borrow one of your horses for my journey? Oleg said that I could for 40gp, but I'm here to help and I always take good care of others property. It would mean a lot to me.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (9) + 12 = 21

Lelouch smiles at Svetlana before thanking her for the meal. I'd like to thank you very much for your hospitality and if there's anything more I can do for you, please ask now.

Your company has been wonderful, please hurry back.

Sajan calls you over once Svetlana goes into her house.Leluch is it? Well I feel a coming, a choice is set before you, set out now and you may find some great treasure, though at the risk of your life. The other choice is to wait for those who search for what you search for now. As he continues to talk he grips your arm, his eyes roll back in his head, the grip becomes stronger. It seems that he just had a vision or something.

Hmmm, Leluch was it? Why do I feel so tired? weird. He seems bewildered and confused.

Thank you. You're very kind hearted and this will save me a lot of time!

Lelouch smiles sincerely and leaves her house, before being abruptly called over by Sajan.

As Sajan speaks to him, the boy stands there with an absent expression on his face, suggesting his disdain for the actions of the man in front of him.

As Sajan comes to, Lelouch perks up slightly and responds.

Yes. My name is Lelouch as you would have overheard during my conversation with Svetlana. Were you not aware of your actions just then?

Lelouch thinks to himself. Possession? Those fantasy books I used to read spoke of such things in the past, but they're just derived from someone's imagination. For a minute there it was almost as if he could see into the future. Unlikely.

Looking back to the man, Lelouch finishes up his conversation.

You grabbed my arm and spoke of two options. You proclaimed that if I left now, I'd likely find treasure but be at risk of losing my life, where as if I wait for a while, I'll find those who search for the same thing as I. Your eyes then rolled back with your grip tightening and now we're having this conversation. Is everything okay?

The boy seems unimpressed but tries to keep up a cheery front.

Perhaps I will stay here to see if there's any truth behind what I've just witnessed.

I was going to, but your episode has me curious. I'll wait for the possibility of others to arrive. Tell me, do your claims often have any truth to them?

Recovering her composure, she adjusted her backpack before addressing the lizard. "I don't have any intention of harming you or anyone else, but with all the stories about fae and bandits out in the Stolen Lands can you blame me for being a little cautious?"

It was at that point that a rather dishevelled man arrived and addressed them as though they were trespassing on his land. She'd asked around about the arrogant git who'd taken off before waiting for the rest of them and gotten a description and this guy seemed to fit the bill. Easy way to find out.

"'Only those with the ambition to race the sun deserve to earn what's been stolen.' I presume it was you that left that message before taking off on your own?" If this was the guy she thought he was, she would probably have to keep a close eye on him. She didn't like ordering people around any more than she liked being ordered around, but if this guy kept going off to do his own thing it could cause serious trouble for the expedition.

He approaches Xantria and the lizard, and then moves past them and a little to the left, stabling his horse and practically cramming its face in a feedbag. "I've seen nothing. Yet. But with a fresh set of eyes, there may yet be hope. If you are ready to enter the field, then so am I. If you've no mount you can rent one from Oleg here for the unreasonable price of forty gold, with a twenty-five percent return on safe delivery. Not like there's any other choice if you need one. In the meantime, my burdensome beast I'm paying for needs to eat before it has the strength to go on."

The wizard is clearly peckish, and his nose draws him towards any smell of cooking. Maybe Svetlana has something prepared. "In the meantime, I suppose I could take the time for a hot meal. Join me and we can break bread before we depart."

Torq will introduce himself to Xann and Klaus along the way. "Names Torq Sharptooth, exciting times these are eh? A new beginning! I can't wait!

He seems almost ecstatic at the opportunity for a fresh start..

As the convoy arrives at Oleg's Torc will gather his things attempt to find himself a beer..

He seems alittle bumed he hasnt the cash to ride, but cheers up as he does have enough for beer!

"If amongst our company, you will not be walking, Sharptooth. There is much ground to cover and to have you on foot would be to waste our own investments in horses. They're for speed, not comfort, of that I can assure you," the wizard grunts, putting the palm of his hand flat against his lower back and leaning backwards until there is an audible pop. "I will cover the cost for your horse, and you will repay the debt in beer of equal amount over a reasonable period of time." He waves a hand, dismissively. "No interest."

Unless there are objects from Xantria or the talkative lizard, he heads towards Svetlana's kitchen to inquire about a hot meal before returning to the field. With reinforcements!