PFS: #6-12: Scions of the Sky Key, Part 1: On Sharrowsmith's Trail (Inactive)

Game Master R D

Before Hotspur can act, another "salad" moves out from the undergrowth, releasing a cloud of pollen:

Ethendril: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11, Ethendril falls asleep.
Hotspur: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (20) + 0 = 20
Olga: 1d20 ⇒ 6, Olga falls asleep.

The only one still awake is Hotspur!

The unsettled one truly feels unsettled as her friends drop one after the other. She desperately shoots at one of the salads...

BANG!

The human's gun proves itself to be an effective salad shooter.

The flying salad attacks: 1d20 ⇒ 4

The ground salad attacks: 1d20 ⇒ 3

The mysterious stranger ducks and dodges!

Hotspur, you're up!

Ahh! You may want to spend an action waking someone up! You go down and we have wiped!

Hotspur decides that she will save her tears for later. She is torn between waking her friends and removing the second-pollen threat. Hotspur thinks, If the plant could pollinate constantly, then it wouldn't have stopped while one enemy was still awake. Therefore, there must be some reset time between pollen-blasts. If I wake up a friend, there would be two of us -- but history has shown that putting two people to sleep is not an obstacle. The safest route seems to be to try to use the plant's pollen-gathering downtime as a window to kill it with one big shot -- and if that fails to wake someone before it germinates all over us again!
"Easier said than done!

She does a backward somersault to try and give herself some more space...
Five foot step back (hoping they don't have Step Up) with an Acrobatics check in case she is still in range to provoke an AoO by either loading or firing -- she hopes to dodge at least one attack. Then move action to load the empty chamber on the double-barreled musket.
Acrobatics: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28

Hotspur spins in slow motion, the few motes of pollen still lazily drifting through the air circle 'round her like a tiny constellation of stars. In that instant, she realizes she has performed the greatest and most showy acrobatics move of her entire life at a time when all non-vegetable witnesses were asleep. This would kill me, were I a bard!

Ignoring the flying foliage, she focuses on the remaining vile crop-duster! She squeezes the trigger and fires both barrels ( -4 penalty for both barrels, +1 for point blank).
1st double-barreled shot at second pollinator: 1d20 + 7 - 4 ⇒ (3) + 7 - 4 = 6
2nd double-barreled shot at second pollinator: 1d20 + 7 - 4 ⇒ (1) + 7 - 4 = 4
damage barrel 1: 1d12 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 1 = 13
damage barrel 2: 1d12 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

The gun jams with a single misfire in each barrel and she says a very rude word.

"At least nobody saw that either!"

STRATEGY FOR THE NEXT FEW ROUNDS...
To speed things up, provided she is neither killed nor put to sleep, she will wake Ethendril next round and then Olga in the following round. Here are two more Acrobatics checks for possible AoOs.
Acrobatics when waking Ethendril: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (4) + 8 = 12
Acrobatics when waking Olga: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19

She will also instruct her companions to attack the pollen-blaster plant first.

Ammo remaining: 22 shots

The flying salad attacks: 1d20 ⇒ 5

The ground salad attacks: 1d20 ⇒ 18, 1d3 - 1 ⇒ (2) - 1 = 1, 1d2 ⇒ 2

Hotspur suffers 2 HP of acid damage!

The gunslinger awakens Ethendril.

The flying salad attacks: 1d20 ⇒ 12

The ground salad attacks: 1d20 ⇒ 16, 1d3 - 1 ⇒ (3) - 1 = 2, 1d2 ⇒ 2

Hotspur takes another 2 HP of acid damage.

Ethendril, you're up! Hotspur, you're on deck.

Jarred awake by the shotgun blast and Hostpur shaking him, Ethendril's eyes go wide, he grabs his sword next to him, and swings it from a prone position at the pollen plant.

Greatsword Attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21 for damage: 2d6 + 6 ⇒ (3, 3) + 6 = 12

Smash! Another salad bites the dust.

Hotspur, it's all you!

Hotspur disengages and attaches the bayonet to her jammed musket. Attaching bayonet is a move action

"Never tried this before!"

She tries to impale the flying plant on the tip of her blade.

Bayonet attack: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 1 = 18
damage: 1d6 ⇒ 2

Hostpur damages the flying salad.

The flying salad tries to strike back: 1d20 ⇒ 7

It fails and runs away.

You may make attacks of opportunity if you wish. Either way, combat is over!

Realizing that she now has no greens with which to garnish her standard rations, Hotspur sits down and weeps.

After she is all cried-out, she works on clearing her musket barrels.

Sir Dydimus continues to sleep peacefully, curled up with Ambrosius.

Ethendril places a hand on Hotspur's shoulder.

"You saved all of us with your mental fortitude," the paladin says sincerely. "We all owe our lives to you; we would have shared the same fate as this one," the paladin adds with a gesture to the corpse.

Ethendril wakes the others, then examines the corpse.

No way for you to find out in character, since we've established that the party doesn't have the requisite knowledge skills. But, the kobolds have developed a symbiotic relationship with the plants. They offer fresh meals; in exchange they enjoy border defense and safe passage.

Among the skeletal corpses scattered through the clearing, some are outfitted with serviceable adventuring gear: +1 studded leather armor, a masterwork scimitar, and two potions of cure light wounds.

Further along you find a miner--still alive, but fallen victim to the sleep spores. Now that you've defeated the plants, you can safely tend to the miner. She indicates that the kobolds only recently came through with a dozen of her fellow laborers. She doesn’t know what the kobolds want with them, only that her captors were endeavoring to keep as many alive as possible. She refuses to brave the journey back to the Bandu Hills alone, yet she’s unwilling to venture on to fight the kobolds. She slowly walks to the top of the valley ridge, where she says she’ll await the party's return--after you've rescued the others.
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Continuing onto the kobolds...

A deep ravine divides the valley here, bridged only by an ancient and crumbling span of stone reinforced by haphazard wooden reinforcements. A pair of ancient dwarven statues flanks either side of the bridge, each in considerable disrepair. An ancient stone building partly consumed by the jungle is visible across the ravine.

This 300-foot-deep ravine spans the entire width of the valley. You cannot simply find another route around it.

Ethendril places a hand on Hotspur's shoulder.

"You saved all of us with your mental fortitude," the paladin says sincerely. "We all owe our lives to you; we would have shared the same fate as this one," the paladin adds with a gesture to the corpse.

Ethendril wakes the others, then examines the corpse.

Hotspur blushes happily and salutes. "Happy to be of service!

Question #1 for team: Hotspur is down 4hp, I believe, and I was going to see if I could get a hit of a cure wand, but does the party feel it would be better to use a potion rather than a wand charge?

Question #2 for team: Also, if everyone else has better gear than the +1 studded leather, Hotspur will be happy to wear it for the duration of the adventure. If anyone else can use it, please do so.

Hotspur looks uneasily at the bridge across the chasm. "Those guardian-like statues worry me, as does the condition of the bridge. Maybe we should use Sir Dydimus's rope to form a life-line or chain between us. That way if someone gets knocked off the bridge then the rest of us can pull them up... She doesn't think she needs to point out the possibility that they might also all be pulled down together if things went really wrong.

"Cordelia, as you are well-educated, can you see anything trappy about the bridge or the statues?"

Cornelia shakes the slumber from her head and looks around for a moment before she remembers her last moments. "What happened?" After someone fills her in, she hugs Hotspur and thanks her genuinely.

Once they reach the bridge, she eyes is warily. "I am with Hotspur. I do not like the look of this bridge, nor that building across the way. I am no warrior, but I enjoy reading about tactics and this would be a perfect choke-point for the kobolds. We should be very cautious in the crossing." She then smiles and nods to Hotspur as she moves to examine the statues and the condition of the bridge near the statues...

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29

Cornelia has a mithral chainshirt and is not proficient with the scimitar. She will pass on all the gear. I say use one of the potions, that way we can save our charges for later if needed. Just my two cents though.

From this side of the ravine, Cornelia cannot make out much on the other side. (Too much jungle. All you see are trees, the ravine and the bridge.) You spot a flicker of motion. But, really, it could be anything... Really... Nothing ominous here...

(The GM starts to whistle a random tune nonchalantly...)

Take a potion...I have a wand if you need more later. Also have no interest in the armor.

Ethendril looks across the chasm dubiously.

"There has got to be a better way across...or at least a way to spring an ambush before heading out. Unfortunately...I can't think of anything right now."

How far is it across? If less than 60', I'll detect evil

"What if we used Sir Dydimus rope to tie ourselves in a long chain and Sir Dydimus and Ethendril might take the lead and try to look friendly and like the sort of people you wouldn't toss off a bridge midway over a chasm (maybe give some sort of Display of friendliness using Diplomacy). Because while I don't doubt that we are not going to cross the bridge undetected, and that the kobolds have been killing people, we can't be sure they cannot be appeased in some way. If we want to undo the damage attributed to Sharrowsmith, then we will either need to find a way to make peace with the kobolds or to wipe them out -- and I'm not sure I brought enough ammo for the latter.

"I'll take the middle, as I can clear 40' before us and behind us should we get ambushed on the bridge. Does anyone have a better option?"

Providing Dydimus and Olga do not object, Hotspur will drink 1 healing potion: 1d8 ⇒ 2 and will equip the +1 std. lthr, bringing her AC to 18.

Hotspur is now at 9 HP.

Between 25 and 30 feet across.

You detect no evil.

Whistle...

Any look to be trapped on the bridge/statue?

Cornelia thinks she spots something across the way, but with the thick vegetation she cannot be sure. "I think that is our best bet. Just to try to get across the bridge as quickly and safely as possible." She takes out her sling and loads a bullet. She eyes the rickety bridge warily... "I do not think we should all attempt the bridge together. Our combined weight might cause it to crash down." She looks around to find the nearest thick tree she can find.

How far away is the closest tree that looks to be at least 8" in diameter to the edge of the ravine?

@ Hotspur,
Potions heal 1d8+1. Sir Dydimus will use a wand charge so you're at full.

Sir Dydimus stops short at the start of bridges, as he was about to go charging across. Good idea! he says as he digs out his rope again.
I'll got fist! the halfling offers one he is secure. Moving up to the bridge he stands there for a moment and then calls out across the ravine, Greetings Koblod Friends! We come in piece to discuss the end of hostilities! Sir Dydimus the draws his sword, holds it up so everyone can see it, and the stabs it into the ground, leaving it there. He then walks forward slowly, arms out this his side, hands open, giant smile on his face.
Diplomacy: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (17) + 9 = 26

This is contingent on Cornelia not finding any traps.

From where she stands on this side of the ravine, Cornelia espies no traps. Though there's a small pile of leaves at the far end of the bridge...

Now humming nonchalantly... (Eating crackers makes it difficult to whistle, don'tcha know...)

Ethendril frowns.

"This looks wrong...almost like I feel a humming sensation...something looms here."

Ethendril tosses rocks at the pile of leaves from across the bridge until he manages to hit it.

So Dydimus is tied off if the bridge collapses, correct?

Yep! Anyone who wishes may be tied off.

1d20 ⇒ 17

Dydimus moves forward on the bridge, speaking diplomatically as he moves. Suddenly, he notices that the pile of leaves is attached to a vine. The vine is attached to a bent sapling. This is a snare trap! (It "blocks" the far side of the bridge. If you don't notice it, you step on it because it's the only place to go.) Out of "nowhere" a four-legged beast leaps forward! (It was hidden by the foliage.) It literally peels back the skin from it's face and it's bleeding, fleshy skull snarls at the halfling. (The beast is now between the party and the snare trap.)

1d20 ⇒ 1 (Whoops! Sorry, Dydimus!)

Dydimus is up first! Dydimus has the frightened condition and must run away. Olga, Hotspur, and Etherndril are next and may act!

The beast (knowledge arcana, if you have it) is 20 feet ahead of you on a rickety bridge...

Run Away!!!!!!

As Dydimus passes him to leave the bridge, Ethendril moves to the fore, his greatsword held before him.

"Make it come to us, if it will!" Ethendril orders. "Pelt it with missiles until attacks or retreats!"

Greatsword Power Attack: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21 for damage: 2d6 + 9 ⇒ (2, 2) + 9 = 13

This is all assuming Dydimus will use a double move to leave the bridge, which it seems he's compelled to do...

ROFL! :-) Not necessary. Ethendril's greatsword makes short work of the krenshar.

The halfling uncharacteristically runs away from combat. Alarmed, the paladin steps forward to meet the panther-like creature's forward movement. Greatsword meets skull.

Combat over!

Collectively, you guys are beasts! I think a fun, RP-heavy scenario would be to play the monsters awaiting an assault from Pathfinders. :-)

Collectively, you guys are beasts! I think a fun, RP-heavy scenario would be to play the monsters awaiting an assault from Pathfinders. :-)

I'm sure it will get interesting when something mindcontrols Ethendril and turns that greatsword against the party! We kill monsters fast, but I think we could kill ourselves faster!

@Sir Dydimus, thanks for the wand hit. Hotspur is at max HP now.

"I have never ever never ever ever heard of panthers tearing their faces off like that. Of course, everyone has heard that half the Taldor nobles are lizard-people with removable faces, but that's different. That's been going on for years!"

Hotspur tries to calm Sir Dydimus, and then would suggest finding a way to disarm or bypass the snare trap. "The sooner we are beyond the chasm, the better."

PRD is so awesome, but I wish it gave images, too.

How would y'all like to get around the snare trap?

Does it look like something we can "set off" and then bypass? In other words, if we threw the dead creature in it, does it snare it and open the way for the rest of us?

Does it look like something we can "set off" and then bypass? In other words, if we threw the dead creature in it, does it snare it and open the way for the rest of us?

I can set it off! Calls Dydimus as he rushes back over the bridge towards the trap.

Rexlex: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23
He is still tied to the rope.

Ethendril, why weren't you holding on to him better?

The paladin looks back at Olga with a smile.
"Easier said than done!"

Whoosh! The snare snares the halfling. He's now hanging upside-down in the air. (Imaging if you hadn't seen this. He'd be easy meat for the panther-thingie!) The party cuts him down and proceeds.

Once on the other side you notice that the hold weapons that are actually serviceable, having weathered the centuries and subtropical weather well. One holds a masterwork longspear and the other a masterwork light hammer bearing a cut onyx on its pommel.

Continuing on the kobolds’ and miners’ trail...

What remains of the ruins’s heart may have once been a shrine. Demolished walls encircle an ancient dais, atop which a shattered anvil-shaped altar lies defaced with dried blood, chalk markings, and other detritus. The bones of dozens of humanoid creatures are scattered about the building, along with the larger skeletal remains of what may be wyverns or drakes that are marred with deep claw marks. Behind the altar, a large stairwell stained with the blood of countless creatures descends into some dark vault below.

Knowledge (religion) to identify the altar.

You also notice that most of the skeletal remains littering the ruin were slain by a creature with powerful claws, for marks from its savage attacks are etched deep into the bones.

Knowledge (religion): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23 Interesting altar. Wonder who it is set to worship.

Survival: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15 I wonder what left those claw marks.

HELLO! KOBOLDS! WHERE ARE YOU?!?!

He's lucky he's got those apple biscuits all the time, or I might have tried to throttle him just now.

Interesting altar. Wonder who it is set to worship.

I wonder what left those claw marks.

The defaced altar was once dedicated to Torag, chief deity of the dwarven pantheon.

You're not sure what left the marks because Dydimus' shouting initiates combat!

We're gonna go 1) bad guys then 2) good guys.

4 kobolds hop out and attack Dydimus:

Sling: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14, Miss!
Sling: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14, Miss!
Sling: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8, Miss!
Sling: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (8) + 3 = 11, Miss!

The party is up! Again, small map. Not really any obstructions between you and enemy.

Or, maybe I will throttle him after these kobolds are down.

Olga will swing at one near to her.
mwk cold iron greataxe: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20 and if she hits will deal 1d12 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8 points of damage.

Ethendril lets out a battle cry and charges the nearest kobold.

Greatsword Attack: 1d20 + 7 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 7 + 2 = 15 for damage: 2d6 + 6 ⇒ (2, 5) + 6 = 13

Olga and Ethendril each take out a kobold!

Cornelia, Dydimus, and Hotspur are up!

This is still round 1.

NOOOOOOO! WE COME IN PEACE! EVERYONE PUT DOWN YOUR WEAPONS! Sir Dydimuys throws his arms up and tries to step between the kobolds and his friends. Remember we're trying to show that Pathfinders are not a bunch of murderer and thieves! We need to try and solve this diplomatically! He says to the party. Turning to the remaining kobolds. ME FRIEND! NO ATTACK! he draws his sword and tosses it at the kobold's feet.
Move to draw, free to drop, Standard to talk:
Diplomacy: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (11) + 9 = 20

Hm. Didn't see that coming.

Cornelia and Hotspur...

This is still round one...

Hotspur readies to shoot if the Kobolds attack Sir Dydimus.

It already attacked Sir Dydimus. To you, it looks ready to attack him again.

"Sorry, Dydimus. Maybe we will have better luck with the next bunch."

Hotspur shoots a Kobold.

single-barrel at point-blank: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (15) + 7 = 22
damage: 1d12 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12

Remaining ammo: 21 shots

BLAM! Hotspur takes out a third kobold with a head shot! One kobold remains.

Cornelia is up!

This is the bottom of round 1...

Cornelia draws her cane sword, but doesn't attack yet. Instead she attempts to scare the poor creature into submission. "Lay down your weapon, wretch, and surrender. Or end up like your friends."

Intimidate: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10

"Sorry Dydimus! I only utilize my weapon for defense of my allies or myself. These gave us no chance!" Ethendril yells as he prepares to gut the last creature or accept its surrender.