[PFS] Dawn of the Scarlet Sun (Inactive)

Game Master Codanous

Opened for dotting.

Al is here. I have updated my icon to better represent the character.

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Late to the gathering, a hooded figure in a black cloak steps out of the shadows. You can tell that he is humanoid, but bears the talons of a bird of prey instead of feet, and has several exotic blades on belts.

With a deep eastern bow, he addresses the group with a cackle.

"Caw...Waki...Waki Huro am I. Great honor it is to serve with you hairy, I mean non-feathered humanoids."

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Welcome.

Tankish Paladin/Oracle here. Looking over my sheet I see it's not 100% done being leveled from 3. I'll get it finished here in the next 24 hours or so.

Now this looks like a party!!! Welcome indeed!

Resting between missions, the lot of you have found yourselves sharing respite in the Grand Lodge of Absalom, forced together as no other lounge was available. A diverse group such as yourselves, with several successful missions under your belts, find the hours winding past as you recount tales of glory, and unfortunate mistakes.

A clockwork timepiece shows well after midnight before you finally bed down, with the chattiest of the group pressed into silence by those who need their beauty rest. As you begin to dream, falling at last into restful sleep, a thunderous bang and brilliant flash of light startles you out of your slumber; Venture-Captain Drandle Dreng has thrown open the door, shining a lantern directly onto your sleeping faces.

"Pathfinders! We've just received word from the Heidmarchs in Magnimar; there's trouble brewing, and she requires the aid of an "experienced" lot such as yourselves. Get dressed, and equip yourselves; meet me in the Great Hall at dawn."

And with that, he walks out, ignoring any questions.

You'll have a chance to shop once you get to Magnimar, but I would prefer any major items (that require Fame levels or PP) to be bought now. As a reminder, any items you receive in the course of play can be used during the module, but must be purchased (if listed) from the Chronicle Sheet in order to carry over into your next game. Likewise, any gold you receive in-game can be spent, but the same limits apply; you neither keep the excess gold nor any items paid for after this game ends.

Arion makes a stop to get his greatsword enchanted before they leave.

ready

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good to go

Gromsk grumbles groggily, and prepares to depart.

Deaf and unable to hear the ruckus when Dreng throws the door upon, Necress nevertheless rouses with the light in her face.

She looks around at the other Pathfinders, the begins packing her belongings sullenly.

Ezren packs his possessions, eager to get on the road.

The undine's large eyes flutter open catching the light of the lantern. He blinks behind ocular coverings that keep his eyes from drying and protect his sight. Oh my. Magnimar. Such a long way. He begins to take inventory and scribes a list of necessary traveling supplies. Most he seems to have but a few he circles to be purchased before departure.

Purchase Scroll with Comprehend Language, Detect Undead, Entangle, and Obscuring Mist. 100 gp cost.

Jrelle slings her small pack over her shoulder.

We're burning daylight...let's go she says enthusiastically.

all set to step off

To go, ready am I..."

Waki ensures his blades are sheathed and secure as he double-checks his pack for supplies.

"Have you ever died, Waki?"

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Waki shakes his head at the question

"Died I have not. Best is it to alive stay ."

Arion nods. "I can't argue with that."

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Morning arrives, with the intrepid group of Pathfinder journeymen gathering in the Great Hall. A gathering of powerful Venture-Captains is a rare site, indeed, and the lot before you make up some of the most well-known figures around Absalom.

Aram Zey stands tall, addressing the party as, behind, a glowing ring of magical energy sits waiting.

"Pathfinders, Sheila Heidmarch has done many great things for our organization, and several of us owe her favors. We have gone to great expense to send you on your way; her call was urgent, and we do not take such things lightly. You have been selected as some of the...best...the Society has to offer, and we are all counting on you to solve whatever problems are plaguing our colleague to this great extent. This spell will take you directly to the Magnimarian Lodge, Heidmarch Manor; Sheila is waiting to explain the mission to you. It is your duty to succeed, and indeed, your future in the Society hinges on your success. Go forth, and quickly."

It's a bit wonky; this wasn't written specifically for PFS play, and it's assumed the PCs are already near Magnimar; with a varied group like this, I couldn't justify that, so forgive the impractical and likely un-Society-like way of getting you there.
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Stepping through the Teleportation Circle, you find yourselves in a pleasant estate, and are greeted by a tall, beautiful woman, clad in the garb of the wealthy; though she smiles and greets you warmly, the concern is obvious on her face.

"Greetings Pathfinders. Welcome to Magnimar, and my home. As you've undoubtedly been informed, I am Sheila Heidmarch, retired Pathfinder along with my husband, and operator of this lodge."

"It is with heavy heart that I have brought you here today; a dearest friend, Kasadei, esteemed member of the Magnimarian guard, has informed me of a gruesome series of murders that has taken place in the last week. The victims were stabbed, and their hearts were removed..."

With a slight shiver, she continues. "Murder is not uncommon in a city of this size, but the ghastly circumstances suggest something far more deadly than your typical violent offender. The guard is at a loss, and Kasadei came to me, knowing that I would contact someone of proper skill to handle this situation. It would seem my friends in Absalom saw you fit to deal with this, and I pray it to be true. Be at your best; it is of the utmost import that this be solved, and quickly. Please, make yourselves at home; the resources of Heidmarch Manor are at your disposal. Do not dally, however; this is not a vacation."

Ask her any questions you might have; in the interest of expedition, anything related directly to the murders or the particulars of the case would be best sought through Kasadei; Sheila will inform you of the location of her barracks, and where you might find her any particular time of the day. Questions about Magnimar, or the Lodge in general, are more appropriate for Sheila. If you don't have questions for her, feel free to decide to head out and investigate.

Gromsk finds a chair, pulls out a whetstone and proceeds to sharpen his falchion with a determined look on his face. After a short while, he looks and scowls.

"Murders you say? Let's find this guardsman and hear what she has to say."

With that, he re-sheathes his weapon and turns toward the door.

"You say resources are available--might you have any magic or mundane items we might find useful"

after this question, Arion is ready to go meet the other contact

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Teleportation circle seems fine to me. I'd think the Pathfinders would have set up something more permanent by now between the two cities.

Allanen's large eyes regard the retired venture captain. Good lady, rest assured that we will indeed investigate these murders and act to both stop further occurrences and to bring those responsible to justice. We will begin our investigation immediately. Could Kasadei be sent for? It might be easier to question the her (?) here where she might be more free to speak her mind. And you have my thanks for both your offer of hospitality and resources. I suspect we will need both while we are in Magnamar.

All my questions relate the the murders, the victim's, and the locations of these murders, so no questions for Sheila right now.

Necress remains silent, reading the lips of the woman. However, her articulate speech makes it easier to follow than it sometimes can be.

She nods, seeming to understand that they will obtain more details from the guard.

As she turns to leave, she looks at no one in particular and whispers "Silence! You are not the only one seeking my help! But you are certainly the most annoying!"

Ezreen nodded, ensuring his possessions were all in order.
"We shall see if this guard has more information for us!"

That is a rather barbaric way of dying....I wonder if it might be religious in some way?

Waki nods in agreement with the female swashbuckler, Jirelle.
Edited with name, thanks

The tengu considers a few more questions for their hostess.

Ripped hearts caused by animals likely not.
Cruel ritual or ruthless fiend more likely to be.
Any other connections victims had? Any new cults in the city formed?

May I attempt a Knowledge Local roll?

yeah...i'm running pregen Jirelle...i figured the pic might help...guess not...lol

know. local: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

Aredhel, make any such rolls you want; if you get anything, I'll let you know when I get on to post.

Arion, make a Diplomacy check; she might.

Everyone else, also feel free to make any checks. I'll transition from Sheila to Kasadei this afternoon, and her exposition might help you out a bit more.

Waki will try to assist Arion in convincing the woman to provide extra assistance.

diplo assist: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19 DC10

Extra assistance appreciated most would be.

dialogue is in previous post

diplomacy, aided: 10 + 8 + 2 = 20

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Necress nods as she sees the others asking for any extra aid.

diplomacy: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15

Gromsk reluctantly helps drive the point home.

Diplomacy assist: 1d20 ⇒ 13

Not sure how many can assist but Al tries to help too, though he does not succeed.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7

Knowledge Local: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (14) + 13 = 27

Are you using the right stats? I'm pretty sure the PFS pregens are at level 1, 4, and 7 only

This module, as with the other Free RPG Day modules, have the extra option of playing pregens specifically made for them. For example, in Risen from the Sands you can play as the iconic swashbuckler, warpriest, investigator or bloodrager. For this one you can play as a level 5 Ezren, Harsk, Kyra, Merisiel, Seelah or Valeros.

Sheila smiles at the group, nodding slightly as she is asked for supplies. "We keep little in stock here at Heidmarch Manor; anything one needs can be found within the city markets. The guards have, however, offered a 3,000 gold piece award for solving this mystery; I was going to pay you once you finished, but I supposed I could part with half of it as an advance."

Rifling through the contents of a nearby desk, the Venture-Captain returns with a sack of coins, handing it to Arion. "Spend it well. And if that is all, I would suggest seeking out Kasadei."

214 GP, 2 SP and 8 CP each. Remember, it doesn't last, so my personal suggestion would be to pool it, and snag a wand and some potions/splash weapons.

***********************************

You follow her "suggestion" and seek out your contact in the guards; Ezren's intimate knowledge of the city makes your journey swift, and you find her within barracks near the docks.

"Greetings; you must be the ones Sheila recruited to help with our problem. I am Kasadei, of the Magnimarian Guard. As you should be aware, a series of gruesome murders has recently taken place, and while my men have done the best we can, we find ourselves at our limits."

"We have a plan to set up an ambush, to catch the criminal, but we are ill-equipped for such a task. That's where the lot of you come in."

"All of these murders have taken place during the pre-dawn hours. We interrogated the victims; they were all traveling worshipers of the Dawnflower, but beyond that, seem to have little in common. All were killed during their daily sunwalk prayers, and were stabbed from behind. The most recent caught sight of the murder weapon; a dagger bearing a white feather dripping in blood, but alas, no sight of the murderer."

She presents the PCs with a map, marking the locations of the murder sites (Linked at the top, and under the Campaign Info tab), and gives a grim nod. "Come back here tonight, and I will relate to you our plans; in the meantime, do some snooping for yourselves. Perhaps an experienced lot of Pathfinders will see something my boys missed. Any other questions?"

Everyone make a Knowledge: Religion roll. Ezren, from your Local check before, you know that Magnimar sometimes comes under attack by the Skinsaw Cult. Feel free to ask her anything else, except about the plan; she won't discuss it until she converses with her superiors, and you all return in several hours.

Knowedge Religion: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28
My suggestion would be for a wand of Cure Light Wounds

Knowledge, religion: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13

Arion will pick up some Acid and 2xAlchemist's Fires... and probably 150 of other consumables once I can decide on something... FYI it would cost us 125gp each (assuming there are 6 of us) to buy a fully charged wand of CLW.

Arion furrows his brow, looking troubled. "This sounds like a religious war brewing. How did you interrogate the victims if they were killed?" He studies the map of the murders. "You say they were doing sunwalk prayers... under the bridge?"

"Has there been any activity from the Skinsaw Cult?"

Necress reads the guard's lips, and tries to think of anything that might prove helpful.

"Perhaps the murderer is at a central location common to these murders," she suggests. Though deaf, she does not speak with any kind of impediment, as if she were only recently deaf.

knowledge religion: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19