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Deep beneath the Pathfinder Society’s headquarters in Absalom’s Grand Lodge, an otherwise austere stone chamber now teems with activity, as Pathfinder scholars scamper across several levels of wooden scaffolding surrounding a large tapestry laid out in the center of the floor. Some examine the five-by-seven foot tapestry with magnifying glasses or magical lenses, while others work diligently at small work desks, consulting ancient tomes and performing complex arcane mathematics. From the crowd steps the Master of Spells, Aram Zey, who motions to a relatively clear and quiet corner of the room. Arriving in the corner, he speaks in a hushed voice.
"I am very busy, Pathfinders, so I’ll keep this short. Before you lies the mythical Hao Jin Tapestry, the result of all our efforts to win the Ruby Phoenix Tournament in Goka this year. I know it looks like a ragged piece of abstractly woven cloth, but Pathfinders of your experience should know that looks can be deceiving. Within that rag lies an entire world, a demiplane created by the sorceress Hao Jin to hold the most massive and dangerous exhibits in her world-renowned collection of wonders. In addition to housing the extraplanar museum, the tapestry also acts as the sole portal into that wondrous world. And now it is ours to explore and research as much as we want with no risk of interference. My scholars have been hard at work analyzing the tapestry itself, and the Society’s diviners have located a number of treasures within the demiplane that we want investigated firsthand. Among them is the long-lost Dog Pharaoh’s Tomb, for which we’ve been searching for decades. It turns out the deserts of Osirion were the wrong place to look. Hao Jin moved it into the tapestry a thousand years ago! Your mission is to explore the tomb and recover any treasures you might find particularly valuable from the Dog Pharaoh’s doubtlessly substantial horde. Along the way, keep an eye out for any information on the Dog Pharaoh’s life, as details on him beyond his name are scarce. If you are successful, this could be among the most significant finds in recent Pathfinder history, so don’t disappoint me."
"Any questions before you go into the tapestry?" Aram Zey asks.
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Razmand is a middle-aged man with a good physique. He's strong, a bit bulky, with wide shoulders and a bushy moustache accompanying his receding hairline. His hair is sleek and sports stylish gray patches covering his previously black hair. His chelish descendancy is evident from his facial features. He gives out an intimidating glare at each pathfinder in the room.
"Given that the Dog Pharaoh's Tomb," Razmand begins, speaking in a clear and formal tone, directing his words towards his comrades rather than Aram Zey, "is related to ancient Osirion, wouldn't the state of Osirion be keen to reobtain the treasures if they become known? I believe this mission requires additional subtlety."
The chelish gentleman then turns back to Aram Zey and addresses him. "Have any other gone through the tapestry to search the Dog Pharaoh's Tomb? In fact, what is known about the tomb itself?"
His tone changes slightly towards hostile when Aram Zey implies the pathfinders are to enter the tapestry within the next 15 minutes. "And I must voice my discontent with the Society's neglect for proper preparation protocol, given this is not the first—and doubtly the last—time a field team is sent in to unknown territories with little to no time to purchase necessities for making such a trip. This Dog Pharaoh's Tomb is of Osiriani origin, and most likely is held in a desert-like environment, meaning we might need equipment to protect us from heat. I do not mean to be disrespectful, but it is the benefit of all parties to plan properly and operate on strict schedule. We survive possible encounters and obstacles with minimal losses, and we return with greater prizes. Of course, all this is moot in case we are free to return whenever deemed necessary."
After his preach Razmand takes a closer look at other other agents in the room, and shakes his head ever so slightly. "I fear I am on chronicle duty this time, again."
Baldwyn mutters at the tapestry shenanigans but his resolve does not waver. "How're we gonna get back once we find it?"
“Yes, Mr. Zorro, that's basically correct. Our analysis indicates that a creature entering the tapestry leaves a planar eddy in its wake, which should be visible and usable only by that creature as long as it remains alive. So return to the location of your arrival and you should know what to do.”
"Given that the Dog Pharaoh's Tomb," Razmand begins, speaking in a clear and formal tone, directing his words towards his comrades rather than Aram Zey, "is related to ancient Osirion, wouldn't the state of Osirion be keen to reobtain the treasures if they become known? I believe this mission requires additional subtlety."
The chelish gentleman then turns back to Aram Zey and addresses him. "Have any other gone through the tapestry to search the Dog Pharaoh's Tomb? In fact, what is known about the tomb itself?"
Aram Zey stoically waits for Razmand to finish his very Chelaxian tirade.
"Let me put it this way," He finally replies. “Little is known of the Dog Pharaoh, aside from his epithet and rumors of a tomb complex in the Sahure Waste. We now know that tomb wasn’t lost to the sands, but taken whole cloth by Hao Jin to add to her collection. The Dog Pharaoh was involved in a power struggle with a rival pharaoh, who eventually prevailed, and erased all records of his foe from the annals of history, replacing his chosen name with that of the 'Dog Pharaoh.' Given that this is what we're looking at, and depending on how, if at all, the politics of Ancient Osirion might have trickled down to the present, they might not be as keen as usual to reclaim the tomb's contents, who knows? At any rate, hopefully the 'Dog Pharaoh's' tomb will present you more information about him than his victor’s slander.”
"Well, if that's all, I believe there isn't much more I can do to help you." Zey steps back, motions toward the Tapestry, and smiles encouragingly. "Your adventure awaits, Pathfinders!"
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Razmand is relatively pleased with Aram Zey's answer, giving him an approving nod before looking at the tapestry with squinted eyes. He checks he has everything worthwhile packed in his backpack, every bit of equipment secured, filling the pack to the brim. Evidently his container seems to hold more items than physically possible, indicating it's not a regular backpack.
"Now, I've done my background checks and it appears I'm blessed with dueling types of pathfinders," Razmand says, facing his colleagues once again, "so I trust you to deal with violent encounters to the best of your abilities while I'll tackle with research, documentation, and other intellectual work. Furthermore, knowing this to be an ancient tomb of a long lost Dog Pharaoh, the locale is surely trapped. Do not run along and get pierced by lethal traps, let me handle those. And lastly, never split the group."
After his preach, Razmand is ready to move through the tapestry.
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Suddenly an elven woman appears behind the group. "Am I late? I'm sorry, the last mission took a bit longer than expected. I'm not too late as it seems." the woman says.
You can see a longbow on her back and an elven blade on her side. With her is a white-grey wolf. "Elenial is my name. And this is Barry."
One by one, you enter the Tapestry. Although some of you might have expected a windswept desert (or perhaps a colossal labyrinth of silk fibers), you find yourselves instead in a swampy lowland. Your destination is easy to spot, however - the Dog Pharaoh's Tomb can be seen a quarter-mile to your north.
It is a grimy sandstone building rising out of the swampy water, hemmed in by mossy, drooping trees whose roots look to have been grinding away at its foundations for centuries. What must have once been an impressive wooden door has rotted away to the point of nonexistence. Only giant rusted hinges show that it once covered the dark entrance to the tomb. Mere hints of intricately carved pillars and false arcades are barely visible underneath the moss, creepers, and mildew that now
cover the structure. Two fetishes flank the tomb’s entrance, each the skin of a fox or small wolf stretched over the flayed fork of lashed bones and painted in strange pigments, topped off with reptilian skulls carved with illegible writing.
The tomb is built in the distinctive Ancient Osirian style but falls far short of a great pyramid in terms of size - about 40 feet tall, 100 feet wide, and 200 feet long.
[spoiler = Knowledge (Engineering) DC 20]Judging from the external carvings, which remain ornate despite being horribly worn, you'd place its construction around -2800 AR.[/spoiler]
[spoiler = Knowledge (Local) DC 15]The bone fetishes are of lizardfolk design, meant to warn intruders and as a ward to keep evil restrained within - however, they are the product of superstition, and possess no actual magic.[/spoiler]
Centuries in the swamp have not been kind to the tomb. Most of the external carvings have been worn away or covered in plant life. The interior is in significantly better shape, however - the stonework is still as sharp as the day it was carved, although although mildew and water-stains plague the decorations, and the once brightly-colored friezes and frescoes have faded to the point where you have to stand right next to them to make out their contents.
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"This tomb is approximately 7500 years old," Razmand explains, "and those bone fetishes are of lizardfolk origin. They warn intruders and act as a superstitious ward to keep evil restrained within."
"Admittedly I had not expected to find this building in such a state; either Hao Jin was ludicrous and didn't understand how material corrode and erode over time in an environment not suited for the type of architecture. Of course, even this demiplane can have its own cycles, and has shifted to a moist climate."
Razmand looks around the surrounding to get a larger picture of the climate here, trying to identify what sort of fauna and flora live in this extraplanar place.
Razmand and Elenial have a lovely time picking swamp flowers, and even get to watch a Venus flytrap eat a bug.
That out of the way, you enter the entry hall of the tomb. This cubic chamber is full of stagnant swamp water to a height of a foot and a half. The walls are shallowly carved with a complex Osirian motif, with hundreds of ancient pictograms overlapping in an intricate pattern, the outlines of which can barely be made out under the grime. A door in the north wall is decorated with a scene in bas-relief: a jackal-headed man holding two matching kukris, around whom a throng of bestial warriors bow. There is no obvious mechanism to open the door, but there is a gap between it and the wall as if it is being held partially open. Water sluggishly trickles through the gap, flowing deeper into the tomb. Empty doorways open into two rooms to the east and west.
Standing water and algae make the stone floor of this room very slippery.
The trained senses of Elenial and Razmand have little difficulty noticing the tiles in the center of the room appear to be made from a much more brittle grade of stone, and the faint sounds of water dripping through empty air coming from directly beneath them indicate pretty strongly that those tiles are NOT safe to walk on.
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Baldwyn comes in with the group and looks about.
Something catches his eye and moves to a portion of the wall. "I ain't no genius with art and the like, but I'm thinkin' this depression here," he points to a portion of the bas-relief, "Don't think it fully fits with the rest."
Without (much) hesitation, he uses the butt of his favoured bardiche to see if he can't press it. As he does so, a muted voice can be heard. "You're gonna need help on this one. I got your back."
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"Very astute, Baldwyn," Razmand says rather nonchalantly, although his tone is doesn't indicated belittlement, "the indent might require some certain object, functioning as a key."
"And no one cross the room, the center is structurally unstable. It might collapse under the slightest weight."
Razmand is in the process of taking out his notebook when Baldwyn already proceeds to get over to the door. He only manages to yelp hastily when Baldwyn begins to press the depression.
You soon notice that the front door has a very strange feature for an Osirian tomb: A doorstop. A search of the water where the door is held open reveals a small statue of a humanoid resembling the jackal-headed man on the bas-relief, in the same pose and holding two similar kukris.
As an experienced trapspringer, Razmand also recognizes that, were he of a mind, he might be able to "disarm" the trap in the floor if he can adjust the tiles just right so as to make them support each other more firmly and thereby make them safe to cross.
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"No no no," Razmand hastily says, shaking his hand, "this place is an invaluable archaeological location, which we must try to preserve in its original state. Better that I try to disable and secure this trap. Besides, once we've done with the threats and returned what valuable artefacts we find, some other pathfinder researchers might come study the site. They would not be equipped to deal with traps."
Razmand proceeds to kneel down and springs many tools from his intricate gloves.
Razmand not only manages to secure the trap, but to do so by arranging the edges of the tiles into a pretty good facsimile of an Asmodean pentagram while he's at it.
This twenty-foot-square room is home to a foot and a half of stagnant water that covers everything but a wide shelf on the east wall. That shelf contains a score of fifteen-inch-tall statues carved of shiny white stone, each of jackal-headed humanoids in different poses and holding different accoutrements. Ancient Osiriani hieroglyphs and jagged sigils cover the walls, in jarring contrast to each other.
historical accounting.
of the Jackal Pharaoh’s armies of gnolls, jackalweres and yaenit demons.
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After writing down some essential facts he had uncovered, Razmand clears his throat and begins a speech to explain the hieroglyphs to other agents.
"As you can clearly see," Razmand begins, pointing at various glyphs that seem unintelligible to the common eye, "these pictograms recount the rise to power of the Dog Pharaoh, referring to him as the Jackal Pharaoh, and a conflict between himself and a rival pharaoh named as the Illumined Pharaoh. At the time of the engraving, it appears their conflict had not been resolved."
"This Illumined Pharaoh rose to power after defeating a rival cur. The choise of word to describe the enemy proves the habit of having history witten by the victors."
"Furthermore, it seems this Illumined Pharaoh was a worshipper of Sarenrae. These descriptions on the walls are rather... slanderous and vulgar. Regardless, the fact gives room to the thought this Dog Pharaoh was a worshipper of a deity belonging to an opposite pantheon."
"And finally, this Dog Pharaoh must have had armies of gnolls, jackalweres, and yaenit demons. The last bit must be the reason why these pictograms were of Abyssian origin."
By now Razmand likely has lost most of his comrades with his wealth of knowledge. He breathes in deeply, shaking his head a little. "In short, Dog Pharaoh fought another pharaoh, was evil, and lost."
One of the vilest acts committed by the demon goddess Lamashtu, the Mother of Monsters, was the corruption of a legion of holy hound archons when the forces of Heaven sent them to avenge her murder of Curchanus, the god of beasts. The archons profoundly underestimated Lamashtu’s newfound power, and were devoured by the newly ascended goddess one and all. Lamashtu took their souls into herself and let them gestate for a year and a day, after which time she birthed them again as the first yaenits, demons with the heads of jackals or hyenas and consumed with lust and hatred.
Yaenits serve Lamashtu alone. They feel no purpose in life but to fight, breed, and spread fear, and are commonly conjured by Lamashtu’s priests for those purposes. A great many half-fiend gnolls and fiendish hyenas owe their existence to these mockeries. Female yaenits are usually more powerful than the males; they often possess a third eye in reflection of their creator, and appear pregnant even when not; many train as clerics or antipaladins. Yaenits may be mistaken for gnolls at first glance, but the prevalence of random mutations and palpable aura of wrongness that hangs over them quickly dispels that illusion.
You think you saw something moving....
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"I'm not quite sure, it was just a momentary glance, but what ever it was I bet it isn't friendly" he says quietly and will an uneasy tone in his voice
-Posted with Wayfinder
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Keen to know what Zorro saw, Razmand too begins to look about the room proper. His mind is still processing the yaenit demons, though.
"It just occurred to me. This description of gnolls, jackalweres, and yaenit demons all point to one particular deity, the jackal-headed god of monsters, Lamashtu," Razmand points out while looking for whatever Zorro saw.
"...must I elaborate who Lamashtu is, in detail?"
Baldwyn doesn't notice anything, but Razmand sees what Zorro saw: something.
The alabaster statues of the Dog Pharaoh are highly valuable as both historical artifacts and art objects. As a set, the lot of them would sell for 1,500 gold pieces.
Elenial works a bit of an elven miracle as she manages to sneak into the room and remain unnoticed by its occupants: no fewer than six dog-sized lizards whose scales emit intermittent sparks, and a massive, slimy vegetable monstrosity. The smell of rot, loam, and ozone in the room is rather intense.