Motteditor's PFS 5-11: Library of the Lion PBP (Inactive)

Game Master motteditor

"History and languages are sort of my specialty, so I'll help Alessio while the rest of you start on the main archives," Kat nods.

"Now, let's see...

Kn. History: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (13) + 6 = 19

"Guess I'll help you guys in the main archives," Ashton shrugs. "Most of this stuff is beyond me though so I don't know how much use I'll be," he adds as he begins scanning shelves for anything that might be of use.

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 = 22

Hakak follows Katarina and the strange phantom into their room. I'm a reasonably educated Orc, but these tomes are beyond my understanding he says. Nonetheless, he looks around for anything useful

Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 20

Gosh. How to compete with those rolls?

Fenric enters the main archives and begins to search for references to holy relics while looking for information on the Mendevian Crusade.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

Alessio and Katarina searching the first room you entered, while Hakak, Fenric, Gaeldrung and Ashton enter the larger room and begin looking around -- though the latter is somewhat limited as he can't venture too far from his host.

As you search, Fenric and Gaeldrung notes out of the corner of their eye that the lion has turned slightly to watch them. It tries to snap back to its original position without being noticed, but apparently not quick enough to avoid your attention.

Note that this happens early in your searching, after just a minute or two. We'll still resolve the search based on your rolls above if you want to continue (it will take 30 minutes total, which would put you at 34 minutes elapsed).

After 10 minutes (14 minutes total elapsed)

After 15 minutes (19 minutes total elapsed)
Alessio and Katerina finish searching their room. One book looks like it could be of interest, but unfortunately it turns out to be a testament to why libraries should prohibit food and drink; someone spilled a beverage on it and sheepishly put it back on the shelf, where it has sat for several months at least...

Alessio finds another one that turns out to be potentially more useful: According to that text, a common Taldan cipher involves changing each consonant into the letter that comes three places after it in the alphabet and changing each vowel into the letter that comes two places before. For example, D would become G, U would become S, and Z would become C. (Since the vowels rotate backward and the consonants rotate forward, it’s a particularly puzzling cipher to break).

Note that you're slightly later chronologically than everyone else at this point, so you can't react to what's going on in the other room unless you stop what you're doing and would have to resume it later.

2d13 ⇒ (12, 9) = 21

"You all keep searching," Fenric says as he goes to examine the lion.

He begins, inexplicably to some of you, talking to the lion. "Do you speak? Are you a librarian or a security measure? We're here in service to the royal line of Taldor."

Perform (Untrained): 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

"Huh? Oh, sure, sure," Ashton responds distractedly as he continues trying to peruse the shelves.

Perform (Untrained): 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

"Huh...that's a good find!" Kat comments, peering over Alessio's shoulder at the book he'd found. "I don't know that we've found anything that it'd apply to yet but it's good information to have if we do."

perform, untrained: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19

Alessio has been bopping along to the music while he does his research and documents the cypher he discovered. The Kitsune's ears perk and he looks to the group. The music is about to crescendo if we think we need sound cover. We have 3 minutes or so, if I'm figuring correctly.
And we won't have long, maybe a minute and a half.

The lion's eyes snap open as Fenric addresses it.

"Oho! Is that so? Well, come closer then, that I may get a good look at you..."

Hakak's attention snaps to the talking Lion...

As does Gaeldrungs. His hand drifts to his ax.

Fenric steps into view of the lion. "You're not going to breathe fire all over me, are you? No, that would be terrible in a library of ancient records."

I'm in the other room still, yes?

I think this is happening during the period of time that Katarina and Alessio are studying in the other room, as best as I understand it :)

Katarina's correct. You're in that room from about Minutes 4-19; this is around Minute 5, shortly after everyone else went into the other room.

"Pfah, do I look like a dragon to you, boy? Pathetic beasts they are. No, I am a Lion!" it says. "And you? Are you too a lion? A Lion Blade, that is?"

As it asks its question, it adds a few words in an arcane tongue.

Fenric, you realize you're not sure you can tell a lie (if you want). You'll need to give me a DC 13 Will save to do you.

"No, I am a Dragon and a fisherman. Fenric Lodovka, at your service," he says with a bow to the guardian. "I am here in service to the Princess Eutropia, however. We are searching for a way to protect Taldor and the rest of Avistan from the incursion at the Worldwound. I admit the danger is closer to my home than the Princess', but I would not have thought to search here."

Brevoy's symbol is a dragon. House Lodovka makes their money through fishing.

Anything Alessio and Katarina can do more in that room or are we locked up for now. just want to push forward if I can.

"Hmph. Dragons. Sad little creatures, with none of the majesty of a lion and most certainly not of a lion like me, I'm sure you'll agree! As for the Worldwound, what of it? How does that threaten the princess, or Taldor? Last I heard, they had a few crusades to take care of that..."

You can give me a Diplomacy check with your answer, please. Others in the room are free to aid, if they want

"Brevoy has had its troubles, to be sure," Fenric admits to the librarian lion, "But the Worldwound grows and stretches ever closer to Taldor. The Shining Crusade failed--at least in as much as it failed to stop the incursion. I am thankful for whatever slowing it inflicted. However, Princess Eutropia has the foresight to prepare to defend her lands before the demons are at her doorstep. That is why she arranged for us to research here. No nation in the world is more of an expert on military campaigns than Taldor. Here, among your accumulated wisdom, we might find strategems forgotten to age. With the knowledge from your library, we can keep the incursion limited to Mendev and keep it from crossing into your beautiful country and endangering her Highness' people. Please, will you not help us to help her and your people?"

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13

Sadness. Please Aid.

"Well, I'll consider it. Tell me what else transpires above? You keep mentioning Princess Eutropia? What of her father, Grand Prince Stavian?"

"Stavian the Third? I'm not sure how long it's been since someone last visited you. He's old," Fenric says, "Not that old, but old enough that people are worried that he failed to produce a male heir. I get the sense that the nation is tense because of this."

"Tense? What do you mean? You don't foresee some sort of war for the crown, do you?"

Anyone else in this room going to aid in the Diplomacy check?

Please? :)

diplo aid: 1d20 ⇒ 12

That depends very much on the prince. If such a war did take place, this research would be even more vital as the demons would no doubt try to take advantage of Taldor's distraction.

Diplomacy (Aid Another): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6 Seriously? *sigh*

"Yeah, uh...you know how those demons are, they'll do their demon thing while Taldor's faffing about over silly crowns..." Ashton adds, feeling very much out of his depth on this one.

"Indeed," Hakak rumbles, nodding along as he tries to help persuade the lion. Unfortunately, his voice comes out as more threatening than reassuring, doing little to help the situation.

Despite that, the lion seems somewhat intrigued with you.

"Well, I suppose I could hardly be one to aid demons. That would certainly not be very noble at all now, and not what ones such as you would expect from one such as I, would it?

"So, to defeat the demons: Several of the doors beyond me are locked -- it wouldn't do to have Kitten Blades traipsing about where I can't keep an eye on them, after all -- and that of course is where the more carefully guarded books are. Oh, and Iliyana, the caretaker. She carries several keys, but I doubt she will give them to you. Still, she's blind, so hopefully you won't have to resort to unpleasantness. That wouldn't do at all!"

1d20 ⇒ 9

At this point, you're free to continue searching this room if you want, with the rolls from above. You can also collect the others if you want, though I'm assuming they're going to have the 15 minutes to search that first room...

"Thank you," he says to the lion with a bow.

Fenric will reconnoiter with the others, reset the hourglass, and update the others to formulate a plan to get the caretaker's keys.

Alessio looks up from his books for a moment to listen to Fenric. Interesting. Let's wrap this up and go get those keys. We're almost done. Fenric, can you hand me those books there?

Will an assist from Fenric help move us along?

It will speed up the room you're in, but slow down the search in the room with the lion. Basically, the conversation with the lion happened about 1 minute into everyone's searches even though I'd also give you the conclusion of the search in the smaller room (which took 15 minutes total). If you decide you don't want to search these rooms based on his information, you can choose to do that. You could have Fenric help search the smaller room, which would cut that time to 10 minutes and ignore the larger room; if you do that, you could have the other three people search the other small room, which would also take them 10 minutes...

OK, so I'm going to say we're at minute 20. The first room has been searched, everyone has been updated on the conversation with the lion, and the large room is half-searched. With six of you, it'll take another 10 minutes to finish searching the lion's room if you want. Alternatively, you could have two of you search the other small room and four remain to search here, finishing both in 15 minutes. Or you can just decide to move on to the interior rooms.

We need the librarian's keys to go to the interior rooms, right? Unless I picked the locks. If so, Fenric will advocate for finishing the two rooms in 15 minutes then go steal the keys.

The doors out of the lion room are also locked (before you get to the caretaker).

agree with fenric

Agreed

I agree too! Same skills or different ones for the other small room?

i agree

You can use Perform as well as Linguistic and Knowledge (history) in the smaller room.

As Alessio and Katerina search the other room, their four companions finish in the larger room with the lion, finding a couple texts of potential note.

The first, they're disappointed to learn when they exchange notes with their companions, contains the same cipher as the book Alessio and Katerina earlier found. The other appears to be a hidden gem. Right next to one great discovery, you make another incredible find! Clue: Use this clue when you or another PC discovers a clue or text to find one additional clue or text, if any remain in the room. (If attempting to use this in a room that doesn’t have any more clues, it doesn’t count; this clue can be used again.) You can use this now if you want or hold on to it.

It will be 34 minutes total once all this searching is finished. The doors out to the east are locked.

2d13 ⇒ (11, 5) = 16

Alessio nods to Fenric to take a look at the door. After you.

assist perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
assist disable: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17

Alessio, I also still need a roll for searching the second room.

linguistics: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20

That's good enough to find the two texts in this room regardless of Kat's roll.

You first realize this library uses a strange system for organizing its texts: it alphabetizes its texts based on the progression of major musical scales instead of using the Taldan alphabet. You may use this clue to grant a +2 bonus on all checks made to find texts in a single room for the rest of the scenario.

You also find a text that gives a detailed analysis of hundreds of proclaimed “ironclad” prophecies that have failed since the disappearance of Aroden. The author speculates that any prophecy made by Arodenites should be viewed with considerable skepticism.

1d13 ⇒ 13

Great. Let's take care of this door. Alessio packs the books away.

"Do me a favor, Alessio, and help me out of my breastplate," Fenric requests. Once free of the confining armor, he pulls out a set of tools and begins to work on the lock.

Removing the breastplate with help takes 5 rounds/30 seconds.

"Tricky, this."

Yeah this one has a pretty sensitive leaf spring, it looks like.

Kn. History: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9

"Well, I'm glad you were able to make sense of that second room," Kat comments to Alessio as they finish up and Fenric begins working on the locked door to the east. "With an cataloging system like that, it's no wonder I couldn't find anything useful," she grumbles.

We Half Orcs are not known for our musical knowledge but do let me know Fenric if you require a more...robust approach to opening that door

"Pftt," the lion scoffs at Fenric's attempts. Any Cub Blade could do better than that. I could do better than that and I don't even have hands! Of course, I do have a key, so that helps. If you'd like, I'll loan it to you. In exchange, you can make me a riddle. A clever one, mind you! Have the answer be 'a lion,' or maybe 'the Guardian.' Or 'Taldor.' Anything of that sort would be acceptable."

if I told you I was a big cat, but I'm not, what would I be?... I'd be lion (lying) Alessio chuckles and looks to the group for their uproarious laughter.

Fenric arches an eyebrow at the lion's criticism. "That was surprisingly hurtful."

He looks to Alessio as he makes his pun and holds his breath, waiting.