"I don't see why not?"
and how many of your kind are we talking about?
Some are Evil Oscar.
Since Xara is translating, "We are a large tribe but our numbers dwindle due to the mites."
"Mites? What do you mean Mites?"
"Mites, tunneling insectoid things that are a bit smaller than one of us. You know mites." The kobold thinks he is being clear.
Koldur looks to the rest of his companions for help, not understanding the manner of creature the kobold is describing. Incomprehension written on his face.
Some of these Kobold's are inherently evil says oscar pointing at one of them
"I'm afraid we are unfamiliar with these creatures," Xara says to the kobolds (translating the gist of what she says for the benefit of the others), "But if they are plaguing your settlements, perhaps we could assist your people."
he turns toward Xara Didn't you here me? these and he points at specific kobolds are completely Evil creature. I will not, I can Not associate with any of them. And if there are more evil kobolds in this camp of theirs... well he doesn't finish the sentence
"Well lad. They're not attacking. Even if they ermm smell evil? They're not hostile to us at all. Why you could always try to convert them if possible. THat should be a greater challenge isn't it?" Koldur tries to pacify Oscar.
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In common Sable blandly says, "Kobolds are beneath most people in really understanding them, it sounds like these 'mites' are even more of a hinderance."
Then to Oscar, "I understand that you will not associate with them, but until we get to their camp to ascertain if most are evil or not. Should we make a note of Kobolds to the South and investigate as we continue exploring? Koldur has a point." Sable smiles at the challenge put before Oscar.
"I am sure chief would be happy for the help!" The kobold says cheerfuly and does a small bow after a jump.
I don't do Conversion that is someone else's job. Evil is Evil. he simply says.
So lets get to that camp of theirs.
"That is your view then but even evil has to have some sense and besides they aren't atacking us yet and not all of them are evil." Koldur sheathes his axe and follows along.
Oscar just smiles.
"I vote for information. Any information would be good."
We can travel with them it would be faster getting there. and the faster what needs to be done is done and the earlier we go back to our original mission
"Are they all evil?" Xara coldly asks Oscar. "You said some of them are."
Koldur throws up his hands.
"Can you ask them if they can keep up with us or if not would they consent to ride with us. Just maybe not with Oscar." He poses the question to Xara.
Xara translates the question to the kobolds.
No not all of them are. just a few. he simply says
"If you go into any human village, you'll find good guys and evil guys. If ogres attack the village, you aren't walking away because some of the villagers are evil."
The kobolds readily accept a ride since they don't look to be in any shape to walk with their bloated stomachs.
The group collects their mounts and find that the kobolds have three small sacks full of the onions as well.
Once that is settled you set out to get to the kobold settlement quickly. With the mounts you should be there tomorrow at 3pm. This will require everyone to eat a ration each, otherwise it might take two or three days to get there. Your choice.
The ones that are so Evil that they can by Detected by Divination Magic simply get to die.
"Well, which ones aren't that evil?" she asks at a whisper.
Xara selects the seemingly highest "ranked" of the kobolds who didn't ping Oscar's morality compass to ride with her.
As they travel along, Xara, a mischievous grin on her face, leans over to the kobold and asks, "Want to do something fun?"
Assuming he does, she commands Reafan to take to the air.
Diplomacy:
"What's your name?" she asks him once they're airborne.
Koldur takes a sack of onions and a kobold or two as he rides off with them.
"Wel then It be a bumpy ride but we'll make haste so hang on and ware the axes."
Oscar will nod in the direction of the kobolds that do detect evil
The kobold nods his head to Xara's comment of having fun and is a bit surprised with flying. After steeling itself the kobold takes a few moments to speek, "Zarlex is my name. Forager for the tribe."
If you want to try to gain knowledge from them diplomacy Checks are needed.
The kobolds enjoy being in company with your group. The night passes quickly with traveling mounts then a hasty camp. The next day the kobolds are a bit mischievous and poke around your stuff as they ride with you again. As you travel they point out the 100 foot dying sycamore tree, being the home of their enemies the mites.
Soon enough 3 pm rolls around for you to come to the lair of the Sootscale kobolds. Not before seeing what would be the after images of a miniature war between the mites and the kobolds. Bodies of both tribes lie uncharacteristically common between the sycamore and the large boulders representing the opening to the Sootscale tribe's lair.
An outcropping of large boulders emerges from the weathered face of a nearby hillock. A narrow opening in the rock leads into darkness below. A fallen sign leans against the side of the cave entrance, and a cage made of branches and sticks sits on the other side.
The fallen sign is weathered and bears a few faded words: “Oaktop Silver Mine.”
The stick cage contains a single, sobbing mite his eyes squinted tightly shut against the light of the day.
An alcove to the west contains a locked iron gate.
A lone kobold stands constant watch here, crouched behind one of the big rocks at the cave entrance. He chirps loudly in surprise in seeing his kinsmen with your group and speaks in his native tongue rather energetically.
he proudly escorts the fully
armed PCs into the cave
Even for kobolds, these tight tunnel openings are cramped.
Small creatures can move through the tunnels in single
file, while Medium creatures must squeeze through.
picking up 1d6 curious kobolds along the way who follow
in their wake, eager to see what happens.
Tartuk takes
care to show the PCs around the pits to the south as he
escorts them.
to area Y6 to speak to Tartuk,
The air in this large cave feels warm and close, thick with a
reptilian stink mixed with smoke and burnt meat. Numerous
beds of furs lie scattered throughout the room amid
smoldering cookfires, while to the south, a ten-foot-wide alcove
contains a large mound of furs framed by dozens of sticks on
which are mounted the skulls of many birds and small animals,
all smeared with ash.
Creatures: Tartuk’s work has already reduced the size of
the Sootscale tribe by half. In all, the tribe currently numbers
only 20 kobolds, but many of them are out patrolling the hills
at this time—when the PCs arrive, this room contains only
six kobolds and their worried chieftain, Sootscale himself.
Sootscale knows that tall folk mean trouble, and if he
sees them here, he immediately orders an attack. Only if
the PCs are escorted by a kobold does he pause long enough
for the PCs or their escort to explain themselves. If the
PCs have not yet retrieved the statue of Old Sharptooth,
Sootscale realizes that sending the PCs to get it might be his
tribe’s best hope—he escorts the PCs to meet with Tartuk
personally in this case. A DC 20 Sense Motive check made
after the PCs spend a few rounds speaking to Sootscale is
enough to realize that something seems to be oppressing
and haunting the kobold—if pressured to reveal what’s
bothering him, Sootscale glumly admits that if the statue
of Old Sharptooth isn’t returned soon, Sharptooth’s curse
will cause all of the kobolds to turn yellow and die.
If the PCs have the statue, his eyes shine with excitement
and he demands the PCs hand it to him. If they do,
Sootscale holds the statue in his hands with a fierce look
of concentration, as if he were making a particularly
difficult decision. Finally, he shrieks in triumph, holds
the statue over his head, and then smashes it down onto
the ground, shattering it. The other kobolds in the room
freeze in shock while Sootscale, a frantic grin on his snout,
thanks the PCs for “freeing us from this curse” and then
encourages them to come with him to “kill the usurper.”
Although there is, in fact, no real curse, Sootscale
believes that by breaking the statue he has freed himself
from its reach. Emboldened and infused with a rush of
self-confidence for the first time since Tartuk displayed
the effects of the “curse” many months ago, Sootscale
leads his kobolds in a coup against the shaman
and, with or without the PCs’ aid, kills the
sorcerer and reclaims control of his tribe.
Y5. Tartuk's Quarters (CR 4) 'Darker' with the dark ones
The walls of this cavern are decorated by a rickety wooden
frame formed from clean-cut branches lashed together with
gut and twine. Banners cut from two-foot-wide strips of old
blankets and horsehides hang from floor to ceiling, covering
much of the walls. The sloppily painted banners bear dozens
of primitive icons and mystic symbols. A large cauldron filled
with bubbling red liquid boils in the center of the room.
Creature: Once the private cavern of Chief Sootscale,
Tartuk took over this chamber and redecorated it to make
it look more “mystical.” Although Tartuk is not an actual
divine spellcaster, the unusual coloration of his scales and
his habit of adding unnecessary hand gestures, chants,
and strange spell components to his spellcasting has been
more than enough to trick the rest of the kobolds in the
tribe. The false shaman further keeps the kobolds in line
by weekly sacrifices before the (currently stolen) statue of
Old Sharptooth, using Still Spell illusions to enhance his
sermons and the sacrifice of “bad kobolds” (chosen by him
from any kobold who seems to be about to question his
right to rule) with shrieking ghosts and smoky spirits. He
even convinced Chief Sootscale that the tribe had been
cursed by surreptitiously casting prestidigitation on a dead
kobold to make it look like his scales had turned yellow.
As a result of all of this trickery, Tartuk has the Sootscales
convinced that, now that they’ve taken to worshiping Old
Sharptooth, their tribe will wither and die out if the statue
of the “god” is stolen or lost. He periodically enforces
these beliefs by having his “talking bird” Tickbiter deliver
ominous messages, creating illusions of eerie omens, or
simply by using Bluff to explain everyday bits of luck as
signs of Old Sharptooth’s pleasure or anger.
Tartuk has things planned out, and the introduction of
the PCs throws him for a loop. If one of the kobolds brings
the PCs to him with the expectation that Tartuk will want
them to go retrieve the stolen statue, the kobold sorcerer
plays along (even though he’d been intending to use the
stolen statuette to fuel the war with the mites for many
more weeks). Soon after the party leaves, he has the other
kobolds sacrifice poor Nakpik for good luck, then begins
brainstorming ideas on how to use the PCs to cause the
kobolds further trouble. He finally decides on a simple
plan—if the PCs successfully return the statue, he’ll
order the Sootscale kobolds to attack the PCs at once for
daring to defile Old Sharptooth with their soft, scaleless
fingers. The kobolds follow this order, fighting to the last
as long as Tartuk lives—but if the PCs defeat the sorcerer,
the remaining kobolds (Chief Sootscale included) flee the
region. Tartuk, of course, hopes the PCs simply kill off
the rest of the tribe and spends the battle not helping but
trying to sneak away, leaving the tribe to its fate. If Tartuk
escapes, he can remain in the region and become a thorn
in the PCs’ sides for some time to come.
Returning the Sacred Statue
If the PCs manage to reclaim the sacred statue of Old
Sharptooth from area R5, they have a choice. If they were
given the quest by Shaman Tartuk, he expects them to
return the statue to him. Likewise, if they get the quest
from Mikmek in area R3, the kobold initially suggests
that they should return it to the shaman.
Yet there’s another option—they can return the statue
to Chief Sootscale himself, thus “lifting” his curse and
restoring him to true power over his tribe. Doing so
enrages the shaman, of course, and the PCs will need to
defend themselves from Tartuk’s wrath in this case, but
in the long run returning the statue to Chief Sootscale is
the better option, as this gains the eternal gratitude of
the chieftain and a possible alliance with the tribe.
The PCs might already know about the unusual
political situation among the Sootscales, especially if
they encounter the kobolds before the mites. While none
of the kobolds openly admits his fear of Tartuk, this
dread should be obvious to the PCs.
If the PCs rescue Mikmek, the kobold initially suggests
they return the statue to Tartuk, but after they reclaim the
statue, Mikmek cheers and lets slip “Death to Tartuk!”
before clapping his hands over his snout. If the PCs
press him, he admits that no one likes Tartuk, and that
everyone, even the chief, is afraid of the scary shaman
and doesn’t want to be cursed, but as long as Tartuk has
control of the sacred statue, the other kobolds dare not
move against him. He timidly suggests returning the
statue to Chief Sootscale at this point if the PCs don’t
come up with the idea on their own.
Koldur finds it hard to communicate with the kobolds, instead trusting to the rest to speak.
Oscar will just stand idly waiting for those who understand the kobold to tell him what is going on.
Xara translates for the others.
"Greetings, Nakpik," Xara says in Draconic. "Your kinsmen have told us your troubles, and we would be happy to help. However," she eyes the cave dubiously, "I have some serious doubts that we would be able to fit into your caves, and our bulk would likely as not cause some instability. It would be best for your shaman to come speak with us out here. We will wait for him over there by that stump. I'm sure if he wants this magic statue back, he will be happy to come speak with us."
Nakpik frowns some, "I suppose... It would be tight."
The others happily shoo him off to collect the chief.
If nothing changes... The obvious chief comes to the group with six well armed kobolds at his back. The chief wears many bones including a skull of some kind of beast.
Oscar waits patiently to hear about what to kobolds wanted from the group
Koldur waits paitently.
Seeing the chief arrive, Xara bows respectfully, and says in Draconic: "Greetings, mighty chief. We found your citizens to the north, and they told us of your plight. We are new to the area, looking to establish peaceful relations with those living in this land."
Diplomacy:
oscar just cross his arms under his chest
Koldur waits for their reply knowing full well that without Xara's translation, he won't know what's going on.
Surprisingly the leader speaks in a rough common, enough for you all to understand, "Welcome to our home, yes peace be with us with you. We are at war with mites, be ware they may attack. If you bring back the demon statue we make..." He seems to be missing the last word and speaks it in Draconic, 'Alliance'.
There are 5 kobolds that follow their leader. They seem to be more curious than threatening. They all have a weapon in hand. Three appear to be wearing leather armor.
"Who's the twitchy one there? The one in the Hood and wands?" Koldur asks casually, his own hands crossed over his chest though in a way that allows him to swiftly draw his weapons.
Should i let the dwarf start this?
So where do these Mite live cause i bet you would like us to retrieve that statue of yours and put a stop to these attacks? Any idea what started that war between you?
"We share same terriory, we don't like each other, rather simple. The old sycamore is where they live. Some that come with you will escort you there." The kobold chief responds.
Very well chief. Would it be possible if these are the one that escort us there? oscar will point some kobolds out
The chieftain looks at the ones that Oscar points out and nods. "That will be fine, I have no preference who escorts you. Is there anything else that you require?"
The one with the cloak, pulls it back to show an assortment of likely magical items and potion bottles, when he speaks there is much hissing to his 's's, "I am their sssshaman, thossse will essscort you. I have more important businesssss with the spiritssss." He twirls his cape and smoke appears to cover him. Once it dissipates he is gone.
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He walks away from the congregation of kobolds and his party members not turning his back. He walks over to D, Razienel, and Brother Henric. "Since these mites are just as small if not smaller than their enemies, I would ask the three of you to watch and protect the mounts as the rest of us go in to clear out the rabble. Still be on your guard kobolds can be very crafty in their actions."