Masks of the Living God 5e conversion

Game Master Koldoon

Venssa frowns at the description of how Rankev "slept" the fish so the fishermen could scoop them up.

"Such unorthodox methods of capturing fish is against nature Rankev. I am glad you have made it back to us, but I feel we should have a little talk about this, hmmm?"

The gnome tries to keep a sombre face, but cannot help but smile at the return of their friend.

Rankev stares nonplussed at his stained shirt. Without rancor or malice he says, "Hansyn, perhaps, in time, you will learn a simple universal truth that everyone else in this room already knows. And that is, There are few problems indeed that can not be solved..."

Captain Aterro comes by and hands his master a fresh glass, taking the empty one.

Rankev finally looks up at Hansyn. "...by Power." He snaps his fingers...and the stain disappears.

He turns to Venssa and an honest smile lights across his face. He salutes her and drinks to her health. "It's good to see too, my dear. Shall we have this talk in your quarters or mine?"

He laughs.

Do we just wanna hand-wave to tonight at the Temple, or...?

And When is the best point to rejoin?

Lodric has been wandering sort of starry eyed, paying attention to the angelic voices in his head, but he is still with the party.

The party loosely secured rooms at Gar's Last Meal, near the docks.

Reginar looks at the table. "It's not an easy path, but perhaps it will be easier for you to see for yourselves." He finishes his ale. "Seek into the center of the city, into the places of wealth and power. You'll soon find the temple. It can hardly be missed."

"So, you suggest we try and infiltrate the good graces and personal confidence of some of the city's wealthy and powerful..." Aldelenna says, looking around the table at the rough and ready group of companions she travels with. Then, locking eyes with Rankev, she says, "It seems you have returned to us at the pinnacle of perfect timing. We'll need your airs to get inside some of this town's derrieres." She winks at the sorcerer. Then she looks at Reginar and says, "You don't happen to know names or titles for any such citizens?"

Lodric blinked, slowly. He hadn’t spoken in some time. He had been moving as if though in a daze. Ever since returning from the woods. It felt like so long ago.

He had been listening to the voices. They had promised him so much. Even the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. It was 42. It had made complete sense when listening, but now? With Aldelenna talkinf? It was so dream like.

Quietly he said, with a soar throat that screamed for water (he hadn’t realized how thirsty he was), ”A good question.”

Reginar raises an eyebrow. "You almost look like you belong in the city." He takes a moment to drink. Somehow you think that he is not drinking as much as it appears.

"Even the wealthy parts of the city will be getting dangerous. Scout in the morning, and we can discuss what you find." He smiles at Aldelenna, and stands, bellowing to the barmaid. "Another round for my friends."

Then he is gone... swifter than you would expect, especially given that you aren't entirely sure how he paid for the ale that is promptly delivered to the table. The barmaids scowl at Aldelenna, and giggle as they deliver the mugs of pale city swill to the table. This is not something the Seven Silvers would even dare to charge for.

friendly prod

Cole chugs his drink.

Well, I suppose our group has grown again. See all of ya in the mornin' to investigate the temple.

Thanks for the prod

"Investigate the temple? Well, they probably want more converts." Fin agrees with Cole. He finishes his drink too and looks to everyone signaling his readiness to leave.

Power looks down disdainfully at the tavern swill placed in front of him and maintains a hold on his brandy. He looks at Captain Aterro, silently asking him if he wants it, but the old man shakes his head. He's swilled enough Mad Hobo in his days in the field and has no wish to return to such a habit.

"Hm? Yes, well, I'll see the rest of you in the morning. Good night, good luck, I hope you see the dawn."

Rankev stands and makes his way to his own sumptuous quarters so he can get an early start on the morrow.

As soon as Ranvek leaves, Hansyn visibly relaxes. ”He is such a tool. I didn’t miss him at all.”

I think we had procured rooms, so sticking with the plan for tomorrow, Hansyn is ready to head up to the room and maybe study his “bookwork” though he’s never admit it.

After bidding adieu to Reginar, and as soon as Fin, Cole, and Venssa are ready, Aldelenna will join them in heading back to The Gar's Last Meal, and their awaiting quarters. Before heading to bed she'll give Fin a lingering good night kiss. "Sleep tight Finlogan." She says, and then enters the room she shares with Venssa to rest away the day's weariness. Contemplating all that has been revealed to them. she hashes several schemes for infiltrating the trust of the city's wealthy elite, as she drifts off to the world of her dreams.

Cole smiles and heads into his room with Fin.

G'night, friend. See ya bright and early
We can put our skills to work scouting the temple.

Quietly Lodric went to his room. He didn’t look forward to sleeping. There would be dreams, and if was sometimes hard to tell whether they were real or not. But misgivings aside, rest was needed. He resolved to be a more useful member of the group. Come the morning, of course.

Morning comes and with it a fresh day, and the overwhelming stink of fish on the pier. Kassen was on the river, and most of you appreciate the taste and smell of fresh fish, but this close to the harbor in the city, the stink of fish and city and the devastating poor all blend together, and even the relatively savory smell of properly cooked fish at the Gar's Last Meal doesn't overwhelm the smell coming out over the lake.

The temple of Razmir takes up an entire city block, near the center of town and is surrounded by prosperous businesses--coopers, cobblers, distillers. An imposing structure built of solid stone walls, the temple is two stories tall, and has stone towers every thirty feet around the circumference. The towers rise even higher, each topped with a statue of the Living God. Aside from a tall stained glass window on the east end, depicting the ubiquitous mask of Razmir, there are few windows, and those few are narrow slits. Masked priests patrol the wall tops, watching the streets below with disdain.

Well do we walk right in under some guise, or do we just watch for awhile?

"I could probably walk in as myself, poke my nose around and ask questions. These types seem used to see the wealthy come calling, and I'd just be another mark for them to pluck. I could come back out, tell you what I see,"

Finlogan suffers awful visions that night of coming disasters that he'll do anything to prevent. He awakes soaked in sweat.

Later in front of the temple, he rhetorically asks, "Well, don't churches look to recruit? Let's go see if we can join the flock." Finlogan strides toward the temple looking around like a tourist.

”Sounds good. Uhm...remind me what we are looking for in there again?”

Venssa retires to the room she is sharing with Aldelenna. The gnome is both physically and mentally exhausted. The unnatural feel of the city has weighed heavily on her, and sleep allows her a chance to come to grips with the city and its strange ways.

She awakens early and goes outside. The sun is just a glow on the horizon, and the streets are quiet and glistening with dew. In the quiet, she can hear the birds waking and calling out to each other. Down the street a raccoon scuttles into the nearby alleyway, the rind of some fruit clutched firmly in its mouth. Closer to her, a group of rats slink from the side of the inn and swiftly cross the road and disappear under the door of a stable. While it is not her home, nature has made itself at home here in the city. With that thought in her mind, she reenters the Inn and awaits the others to break their fast.

Hansyn slips out of bed that evening, not being able to sleep much due to the excitement. Donning his gear, he head out into night time streets, sticking to the shadows to stay out of site. He skulls around for a while trying to get a read on the nighttime denizens of this crazy place. He was used to being one of the few, besides guards and the like, that would wander in the night at home. This place seemed to turn into another world when the goes down.

No need to go crazy unless you want to lead us a different direction. Just another chance for some liberation

Lodric - I've addressed your question about the overall task in the discussion thread. I get it, the story has dragged a bit, but we are getting to the juicy bits if we can get back going

For all of you - I want to move this along, but you've got several different proposed courses of action. Cole suggested scouting or watching, Fin trying to join the flock, Lodric trying to infiltrate as an interested merchant who might want to "invest" in the church. With that many directions I need some clarity on what you want to try.

With nobody doing anything, Lodric strode forward. He was dressed like a wealthy merchant. Or the son thereof. His hair was impeccable, of that he was sure. His outfit completely clean, one would never have guessed that he had been on the road. His fingernails? Not a hint of dirt. Just as he liked it.

"Come on then. Time to become initiates to a cult. If anyone doesn't want to join, the cue that I need help will be me screaming."

It seems that Lodric's plan and mine are more similar that different, so I'll throw in with him. Also, of the three plans, I like this one the best. Everyone is free to join us if they wish. =)

"You always were a fop, Lodric," Power quips as he joins in step next to man. "So I better go with you. Make sure you behave yourself and don't go spoiling our good name." Rankev marches up to the main steps, Captain Aterro trailing a respectable distance.

Axeman and Wolfhound observe back, in the crowd.

Cole nods, and waits back, entering behind the others.

Have at it, then.

Lodric smiled and gave Rankev an exaggerated bow. "Whatever would I do without you?"

With whomever would go with him, Lodric walked confidently into the temple and looked around for an acolyte or priest to speak with.

Venssa is torn as to what she should do. She does not think she could act like a possible acolyte, but she feels the need to somehow follow along. She keeps to the alleys and doorways as she follows the others. Once she knows where they are going she works her way behind the structure and starts to look for the tiny denizens who also call the temple home.

Will question the local wildlife as to the goings-on in the building and any access that she could use to gain entrance.

Finlogan looked back and smiled when they started following him into the temple.

Finally. Like it was their idea.

Hansyn falls in step behind his brother and Lodric. If anyone in the party looks at him weirdly he merely says ”The masked priests won’t know what to do with this lot. “

Aldelenna refuses to leave Venssa to fend for herself in the city. Waving a subtle fare thee well to her friends, she stays tight close by her side, alert for danger, but standing with casual confidence. "Any news from the church mice?" She asks Venssa after she's had time to converse with the little buggers.

Power looks behind him and gives Hansyn a mixed grin. "Aye. The tongue or the whip, they'll move before us!"

Bringing his back forward to see ahead, only now he sees Finlogan ahead of them. 'Gah. Is he really doing this too? He probably thinks it's his idea.'

The temple is in a wealthier part of the city, but walled from the masses. Every so often throughout the day small groups of the masked priests exit, but no one other than the priests dares even approach the door. As you scout the area, another group ventures forth, this one carrying a large crate, upon which one of the priests is hastily helped to mount. From here he begins to speak, while the other priests venture into the crowd. Most churches have some sort of collection for funds during services, but usually it is for the faithful... and not quite so forceful.

As the priest speaks of the glory (and wrath) of Razmir, the priests continue to spread through the crowd, prodding merchants and citizenry alike to donate to the cause of Razmir. More than once you can hear an admonition to a reluctant passerby that they would be best to donate and not attract the ire of the Living God.

Power leans close to the others. He whispers, "This seems more like a strongarm operation. Mayhap they are little more than well-connected thugs? Could we not assault them and have done? I'm no longer sure that we have sufficient coin to get in the front door."

”I hate to say it, but you are right. This isn’t a religion, it’s a shakedown. But if we attack them, they will certainly retaliate. They couldn’t scare these people so without enforcers watching.”

”Why don’t we follow a couple of priests and borrow their masks?” Fin suggests.

"Fin, much as I hate to admit it, I think you may have the better idea here. If we walk in and present ourselves as marks, there's no telling that that's exactly how they'll treat us, and we'll be no wiser. But if we can pantamine as the clergy themselves, we might at least get somewhere -interesting-.

If we can follow the bagmen, all the better that we begin liberating their ill-gotten gains!"

Rankev turns to Hansyn. "Go and tell the others the new plan, would you? Methinks consolidating our forces will be the better move here."

Anything happening around the back of the compound? Anything from my 'little' friends?

Eying Rankev shrewdly for a moment, Hansyn nods and heads back to engage the others in the new plan. Before he does however, he says ”Don’t let the fun start without me.”

Using his bonus actions for dash actions, Hansyn should be able to make good time.

Cole moves in with Fin, ready to aid when the group makes s move under the new approach.

Did this game die?

:(

”:(“ indeed.

If it is done, Koldion needs to remove it from the boards.

I am giving this one until the end of the day, and I am hiding it on my campaign tab.

How do you hide an active game?

I am also going to hide this game for now. If it does come back to like please PM me.

Thanks

Hiding. PM me if the game restarts

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