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Rogar is burly and very ugly dwarf. He spends a ridiculous amount of time training and working out to compensate for his "worship" of Cayden Cailean. He works hard and he plays hard.
In combat he goes early and most of the time he will just rush to grab and pin the enemy. He is strength based since Agile doesn't exist in Core. And for reasons that may be related to the aforementioned "worship" he bought a Ghost Touch AoMF instead of a regular one.
The hills ringing Almas, capital of Andoran, slope gently toward the harbor cradling the Hornet’s Nest, the red sun rising behind them. This morning the ship’s activity rivals its namesake as Pathfinders and their agents bustle here and there inside the ship’s hastily constructed command post.
After a short wait, Venture-Captain Dennel Hamshanks rolls into the ship’s galley, his face scowling and dark eyes bloodshot. "You lot again? The Decemvirate promised better, but I suppose we have no time to waste. You have likely heard the rumors - which, unfortunately, underestimate our danger."
"The Society’s lodge in the former Cathedral of Aroden here has thrived of late - they say thanks to Venture-Captain Brackett’s grand parties, which seduce the weak-willed leaders of this so-called ‘democracy’ into permitting the Pathfinder Society unfettered access to the resources in the nation’s interior. Not likely you lot were ever invited, though. Needed to be of the presentable sort, after all."
"Last night, Brackett threw one of his most extravagant fetes yet to celebrate the recent return of a team of Pathfinders up near Falcon’s Hollow on a diplomatic mission to the region’s fey. Fillian over there claims that all the sparkling light made the Cathedral’s windows a stunning sight. Everyone was having a grand time until the trouble started. At the stroke of midnight, a dozen guests drew their swords and methodically massacred the others - poor, drunk fools. A moment later the lights went out. Fillian had been admiring the windows from the dome’s walkway and ran upward, to the belfry. Says he hid there until daylight and then crawled out to my ship here. He heard many others flee underground, followed by screams of agony."
"Shortly before dawn, several bands of what looked to be hulking, cloaked hobgoblins left the Cathedral, taking off in different directions into the city. Not only do we need to retake our lodge and rescue any survivors, but whatever those monsters plan to do in Almas, it’s got something to do with the Cathedral. I imagine even you understand how that might look for the Society if something bad were to happen to the city at large, centered on our local headquarters."
"You can probably guess who’s behind this - the Shadow Lodge, source of endless trouble this past year. We need that Lodge back, and we need Brackett alive. Time is not on our side here, and I fear it may already be too late for whatever those monstrous brutes left the Cathedral to do."
"According to Fillian’s tale, the best way in is the belfry. So your job is to get in there, kick the Shadow Lodge out, and keep Brackett alive. And put a stop to whatever ongoing plot you manage to uncover."
"Good luck. You’ll need it."
Both Venture-Captain Hamshanks and the-boy-who-escaped-the-party Fillian are here to answer questions.
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A mysterious thin man with dark skin, sharp cheekbones, broad shoulders and bald head enters the place. He has many tattoos spread throughout the body, and a face painted in the eyes line. Under a black robe, he wears a long and colorful robe, ornated with sashes at the waist. "Good evening", he greets those who are there.
"Is there a way to the belfry besides scaling the wall to the cathedral? Some of my colleagues may not be adept climbers."
"Fillian told me that is the best way to get in. I believe they may have other areas of entry boarded up, if they're smart." Hamshanks starts looking on the ship for something.
"There’s lots of ways to approach without being seen from any of those narrow grimy windows. I’d scurry across the plaza from the northwest. It’s easy to climb up to the roof, and there’s a loose grate partway up the belfry - should be easy to slip inside there, even for big folks like yourselves"
Hamshanks comes back with several hundred feet of rope and climbing spikes. He throws it on the ground in front of him. "This should help."
to Fillian "Did you see Brackett survive the slaughter?"
"I'm not even sure what he looks like, so don't know. I’m just an apprentice."
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Garn is a young human man, with distinctive features of a Kellid. Although he is quite short, standing about 5' 5", he is quite compact and well-built. His short black hair is quite untidily cut, and he deeply tanned brown skin is faintly covered with scars. Standing next to him is what you would recognise is a snow leopard.
He glances briefly at Snowball, his snow leopard companion, wondering if he might have to take up Jarlaxle's suggestion. He trusts in Snowballs climbing abilities, though, and hope it would work out later.
Garn stays silent for now, paying attention to the discussion.
Fillian looks bashful at Rogar's words. "Uh, well, you see, I wasn’t exactly invited myself. One of the door guards was pretty drunk and was letting lots of people in, so I followed."
"After all the light, it seemed so dark - I couldn’t see much. There was a lot of noise at first. I think they were barricading the main entrance, and then it got real quiet once the invaders dragged the captives off upstairs, yelling in a coarse, monster language the entire time. All I heard after that was wind blowing all around the main chamber, and sometimes cackling - Master Telfyr’s homunculi, I’ll wager; they’re always laughing and jesting."
"Who is Master Telfyr?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm his apprentice. He creates homunculi there and manages the library."
"Alright I think we are ready. You coming with us Fillian?"
Hamshanks responds to Rogar. "I have told him that he should not be joining you. He can give you what information you require now, but I will not allow an untrained child to come with you."
Fillian tugs on Hamshanks's shirt. "Oh come on! I wanna go!"
Hamshacks looks visibly frustrated. "No means no! The Shadow Lodge is dangerous and these Pathfinders don't need another body to slow them down."
The Cathedral of Aroden is a massive stone structure overlooking central Almas. Two solid towers flanking a pair of enormous bronze doors dominate the facade. The doors, with their glittering bronze carvings of Aroden’s ascension to godhood, welcomed the faithful in times past. Above the doors stands a roughly circular stained-glass window with delicate looping stonework, a style known as a rose window.
As Fillian suggested, the Northwestern side of the building is strangely devoid of windows. The building has numerous carvings on all sides, actually making it not too difficult of a climb.
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Garn passes a wand to Malakiah. In a rather gruff voice, he makes a request. "A Pathfinder gifted me this wand. Said it would provide magical protection, but needed an arcane spellcaster to activate. Could you use it on Snowball and myself?" He pauses for a while when he realises Malakiah glancing at the dragonhide breastplate he's wearing. "Yes, he did tell me the protection is weaker than my armor. But should I need to change, it would protect my new form."
Looking up at building, Garn states simply, "I'll go first. While I climb, someone can listen in the front door." With that, he carries the rope, gestures to Snowball to stay, and starts ascending the building.
Many wands are used, and Garn climbs up to let others climb up with ease.
A flat gray stone ledge runs along the edge of the cathedral’s roof, crisscrossed with rain gutters feeding the leering grotesques that ring the building. Toward the south side, the ledge surrounds a gently peaked roof above the long rectangular nave. Two solid towers jut upward at the south end, their severe stone sides broken only occasionally by narrow, barred stainedglass windows.
At the north end a lofty dome covered with deep red copper shingles dominates the structure. The graceful edifice peaks in a twisting stone tower with a golden turret, from which the Pathfinder Society’s Glyph of the Open Road banner hangs limply in the still air. The tower has four large windows arranged vertically on each side, all protected by corroded iron grates. Through the grates hang several bells, ranging in size from large to gigantic.
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"Is there a way to the belfry besides scaling the wall to the cathedral? Some of my colleagues may not be adept climbers.""Fillian told me that is the best way to get in. I believe they may have other areas of entry boarded up, if they're smart." Hamshanks starts looking on the ship for something.
"There’s lots of ways to approach without being seen from any of those narrow grimy windows. I’d scurry across the plaza from the northwest. It’s easy to climb up to the roof, and there’s a loose grate partway up the belfry - should be easy to slip inside there, even for big folks like yourselves"
Hamshanks comes back with several hundred feet of rope and climbing spikes. He throws it on the ground in front of him. "This should help."
Malakiah tries to find this "loose grate" that Fillian had commented about.
You actually find the loose grate. It's to the east of the Belfry.
Rogar climbs up the east tower using the grappling hook.
The tower’s roof is edged by a low crenellated wall and contains several pieces of meteorological equipment: a brass wind vane shaped like a bird in flight, a water-filled glass chamber containing a number of colorful glass bulbs (three of which float on top, one on the bottom), a rainwater gauge, and a spyglass mounted on a tripod.
There is a wooden trap door on the floor, and it is locked.