[PFS]GM Dennis - #7-10 The Consortium Compact (Inactive)

Game Master Dennis Muldoon

Pasha, please roll to confirm the crit

My bad, didn't realize XD;
Confirm?: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13

Pasha's bomb impacts squarely on Laszo, nearly knocking him off his feet. Distracted by the blast, Meletus' bolt flies wide of the beetle.

With fear creeping into his eyes, Laszo draws and drinks an extract, causing some of his wounds to close. He yells, verging on a whining "Get out of here! Just go!"

The beetle once again lashes out at Sinaryn with its mandibles, but is unable to connect:
attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

Botting for Suna:

Suna swings her naginata at the beetle, but is unable to connect:
attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
damage: 1d8 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

"Oh, we're not going anywhere - if you don't stop with your whining and own up to your responsibilities, you'll be in for something of an unfortunate end," Pasha nearly growls, anchoring her feet to throw a third bomb.

Bomb: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 2 = 14 Just realized these are supposed to be against touch ac, orz. You might've already been doin' that, but a friend pointed it out. ;A;
Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

No worries, I've been resolving them against touch.

Pasha's bomb impacts right at Laszo's feet, sending him flying to the floor in a heap from which he does not rise. Laszo is down, the beetle remains.

Meletus, annoyed, loads and shoots at the beetle once again. "We may want to keep him on this side of the Boneyard, for the sake of a trial and whatnot. Can't say that's the most pressing issue right now, though." She now sounds almost conversational.

Crossbow, PBS: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24
Damage, PBS: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

"Aw I wanted to be the one to put him in the depths. I'll just do it to his pet." Sinaryn scoffs and turns to the beetle.

Stepping back onto the solid ground she reloads and fires at the beetle.

Pistol vs. Touch: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9
Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 2

He made his choices.

Seidr moves over to Sinaryn and begins to tend the wounded Undine's wounds.

Healer's Way: 1d6 ⇒ 5

Meletus and Sinaryn both fire at the beetle while Seidr tends to Sinaryn's wounds. As the smoke from Sinaryn's powder clears, the beetle lies dead with a bolt lodged between the eyes.

Out of combat

Pasha grimaces, her injuries not exactly the worst, but not exactly pleasant either. "Bah," she all but spits on Laszo's fallen form. "What shall we do with him? I assume we can dismantle this space for any notes and the like, but what of this foul creature? Bound and gagged and brought before the authorities?"

It's perhaps the most she's spoken thus far, but the simple stupidity with which the man had gone into his experiments, effectively impugning all things alchemical -- it, quite frankly, pissed her off.

"Seems the best option, if he's still alive," Meletus replies to Pasha, replacing her crossbow at her side and stooping down to tend to the fallen Leper. "Was that an Alkenstar firearm, Sinaryn? It's been some time since I've heard one of those."

Will try to stabilize him if he's alive, and no one else wishes to/can.

Heal (untrained): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

That won't quite do it, but he's far enough from bleeding out that I will assume one of you eventually stabilizes him (no need to roll), and that you search him to find his notes. Let me know if there's anything else you want to do before leaving the sewers.

To decipher his notes (anyone with at least 1 rank in Craft(Alchemy) gets a +4 bonus on this check):

Is this a trained only use of the skill?

*shamefully doesn't have linguistics

Craft (alchemy???): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (15) + 7 = 22

Yes, trained only.

I'm afraid Craft(Alchemy) won't work. What you're trying to decode is more of a journal, written in code, rather than a formula book or something alchemical.

Is it... arcane? "An alchemist does not need to decipher arcane writings before copying them." *attempts to skate by on a technicality*

Sadly lacking the linguistics skill as well.

"We beat him handily and as much as I want to tie him to a rock before dumping him in the bay its best we take him with us along with whatever belongs to him. Once he comes to we can beat the information out of him if it gives us any trouble." Sinaryn says coming down off her adrenaline rush. She then turns to Meletus while reloading her pistol in case they meet anymore trouble. "This old thing was a gift from my..." she pauses briefly with a disappointed look she quickly corrects, "...father. Gave it to me when I took command of The Squall's Purchase. First and last time I saw him. Anyways that is about all I know of it other than it serves me well just like how it did pumping that damned creep with bullets."

@Pasha: You can freely copy his formulas from the formula book (which contains cure light wounds, disguise self, and stone fist) for just the material cost. Deciphering his journal is a little tricker

Before heading back to the sewers, Seidr would like to find a local temple that is charitable towards the indigent and afflicted. Sarenrae'd be good, but she's not picky

You're able to easily relocate Laszo's victims to a nearby Sarenrite temple, where they will receive care, and can bring Laszo to the authorities (or whatever else you want to do with him). The barge is waiting at the docks to take you back to the Sixwing Drake, where you can spend a quiet evening resting and healing.

Around noon the following day (Fireday), Captain Zendrani calls a meeting on the deck. “An urchin boy delivered this note just a few minutes ago. I tried to keep him here so we could talk to him, but he slipped away without a word and ran off into the city. I haven’t looked at the note—but it seems to be from Delroya.” The captain hands over the note.

See the note in the Maps & Handouts slide deck

A large warehouse looms into view as you approach the end of Gull Street. Its main level sits at the edge of the street above a ten-foot drop to the harbor’s waters below. A door in the western wall of the warehouse opens, and a woman clad in simple leather armor steps out. Her features display a blend of Taldan and Mwangi heritages, and her crisp accent is difficult to place. “I am Magali Delroya. You must come quickly, Pathfinders. We do not wish to be seen.” Delroya moves briskly, waving off protests or interruptions, and speaks with the rhythm of her steps. “Questions later. Much is at stake. First you must listen.” Her outward display of authority does not entirely mask her fear. The small room through the warehouse’s western door features a round table and several chairs. “This room is for the guards. They are all too busy dealing with our disruptions, so no one is here for now. That door leads to the docks below,” she says, indicating a door in the southern wall. “Come this way. I will show you the warehouse.”

She opens a door in the northern wall, revealing a cavernous storage room. Haphazard stacks of barrels and crates almost reach the ceiling twenty feet above. Two large skylights in the ceiling provide ample light during the day, and a dozen unlit lanterns are spaced around the room. To the east, a wide opening in the southern wall looks out over the loading bay ten feet below. A freight elevator platform rigged to a complex set of pulleys and ropes and a staircase both lead down to the loading bay. “As you can see, the Aspis Consortium maintains a sizable operation out of this warehouse, which they rent from the Kortos Consortium’s Locosta family in exchange for alchemical goods. After tonight, I hope that the relationship between Aspis and Kortos will be irreparably damaged.

“Because the agents are on high alert, you should stay at the warehouse until they arrive. We wouldn’t want anyone spotted or attacked out in the city before we’re ready. That gives you several hours to prepare. Most of the items in the warehouse are simple trade goods designed to make this outfit look legitimate. You may want to take some time to look around, though—you never know what the Aspis Consortium might have stowed away here. I can stay here briefly, if you have questions or need assistance.”

"If you are going to get boarded you make damn sure you get boarded on one side only. This isn't a ship and that is to our advantage. There are only so many ways for them to come at us and we need to choose which one they get. We can block them easily with all the boxes in here and if you wanna search them while you do it feel free!" Sinaryn kicks into a captain mode and starts barking out orders not even sure if anyone is listening.

While talking she circles the room looking for anything out of the ordinary.

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18

Remembering Delroya was there she turned to her and exclaimed "Well, anything you can tell us about this place while we shore it up? All the doors? Point us to them so we can block them!"

"Hm. There's the double doors on the Western wall. That's sort of the main entrance. There's also the doors leading into the breakroom, and the double doors in the loading dock." As shown on the map. "On top of those, I was able to do a little snooping when I got here and found two more concealed entrances." Marked with "S" on the map

"Oh, and I found these. They could help." as she hands you a bag containing 6 thunderstones.

Thanks for the reminder.

"Let me give you this as well." she says, handing you a scrap of paper. "By now you should know that the Aspis Consortium is breaking Diobel’s laws. What we’re doing here is not exactly legal, either, in the views of the Kortos Consortium. I am hoping that we can get through this without drawing their ire, but as a last resort, you can use this document. It should eliminate any questions as to the legality of your actions. If you can avoid having to use it, I would be grateful, but do not hesitate to present it if necessary.”

Lord Avid's writ is in the Maps & Handouts deck

I'll pay the 10gp for disguise self! c: I already had the other two, orz. Thank you!

Pasha scowls at Laszo the entire way, but their delivery of him is without any further incidents.

She nods to the captain before catching a glimpse of the note as it passes amongst them.

Once they make it to the warehouse, she leaves the majority of the talking to those who are better suited and only nods a greeting to the woman. She follows with the others, as bid. The less likely they were to be noticed, the better.

She takes some of the time to copy one of the formulae she'd found in Laszo's book. It looked... potentially interesting. As for the rest of the time they lay in wait? She helps push and pull boxes to block off entrances or to otherwise aid the party in their efforts to better control the coming battlefield.

linguistics: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10 oh well, worth a try since it seems I'm the only one with ranks in it, lol

Gneau searches the warehouse carefully, looking for anything that would help limit pathways through or into the warehouse.

perc: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21

"They certainly get the job done, no doubt about it," Meletus smiles and, for whatever reason, rubs her shoulders as if cold. "Can't say I ever thought I'd see one again, though. Not since I was ran out of Alkenstar. That's ancient history, though, at least to me. You long-lived gnomes and elementally-inclined would remember it like yesterday if you were there."

The human doesn't say much beyond that, all the way to the briefing, where she nods and expresses general understanding. It is only when the team meets Magali Delroya that she expresses herself in true sentences once more.

"Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Delroya," she says. Even as she speaks, her eyes rove the warehouse for anything of use. "Do you know the specific location of anything that could help us out here? Also, which Consortium should we expect first?"

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12

"I expect you have about six hours before you have company. Do you have any last questions for me? Otherwise, I must go attend to my own part in all of this."

You can ask any questions you'd like. There are roughly six regions to search through for useful stuff, and six of you, so I will assume you split up and spend the first hour looking around.

I don't want to put too lethal a trap in front of an entrance the Kortos Consortium might use. Would your former colleagues with the Aspis know of these secret entrances?

If so, Seidr will set up a bear trap in front of one of them

"Aye, that is the exact kind of help we were looking for. If they aren't expecting anything the front door is an obvious choice for them. That leaves us with only a few places to block or even try to lock them for double measure." Sinaryn point out the obvious choices to the group if they agree.

With the lift broken we could block the stairs, door to the office, and for extra measure one of the choke points leading to the back so they will funnel through one if they get in.

I don't want to put too lethal a trap in front of an entrance the Kortos Consortium might use. Would your former colleagues with the Aspis know of these secret entrances?

If so, Seidr will set up a bear trap in front of one of them

"I would expect that both groups know the ins and outs of this place pretty well."

"Then seeing as they're trying to be discreet, those secret entrances are the ones we ought to target?"

Also, is it possible to set the angry dog cage in front of the other secret door, possible with one side missing so that when whoever it is tries to come in, they just... get an angry dog?

Suna scratches her head. "This ssstrategy is beyond me, but I am happy to move the crates around to wherever they are needed to block off entrances."

Also, is it possible to set the angry dog cage in front of the other secret door, possible with one side missing so that when whoever it is tries to come in, they just... get an angry dog?

I think it would be hard to do it with just the cage, but you could probably rig up an enclosure with some crates.

I think that's what Pasha would like to do. c: What rolls does this require? o:

If you just want to have the angry dog in front of one door, then you don't need a check (provided it's near some crates), just show me on the map where and move some crates around it. If you want to have some sort of control over the dog, then I want a Handle Animal check

Also, who ever put the T (bear trap?) and C on the map, can you tell me what they stand for?

I've moved some of the crates and the dog - I don't know if what I'm looking for counts as 'control'. I'm trying to set it up so that when someone enters through the secret door, the angry dog is freed from the cage and attacks them.

If that's not possible (since Pasha doesn't have the handle animal skill), she'd ask for someone else to help or, failing that, just loose the angry dog in that area so it can crankily attack whoever comes in without a trigger or what have you. c:

T is for the bear trap, yeah

or, failing that, just loose the angry dog in that area so it can crankily attack whoever comes in without a trigger or what have you. c:

I think that's the best you're going to get w/o gaining control of the dog.

Forgot to post what I wanted the C to mean. It was what I wanted to tell the group was a good chokepoint incase they come from that direction so we wouldn't have to use too many boxes blocking everything.

Excellent, then that's what Pasha will attempt to communicate and do. Also, to whoever neatened that, thank you. I was operating on way too little sleep to be trying to brain. XD;

Suna happily moves the crates where Pasha directs. At least I can do one thing right.

Around dusk, you hear a rattling at the breakroom door as someone is stymied in the attempt to open the door by the stack of crates you relocated. At the same time, the front doors are opened, revealing two people: one wearing scale mail, armed with a short spear and bearing a holy symbol of a hand (purple on the map); the other wearing studded leather, his hand on the pommel of a short sword (orange).

”Who the hell are you? What are you doing in our warehouse?”

Saving lives and souls, friend. You have been ill-used by Serpents seeking to spread their poison to your people. Will you allow us to help?

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (9) + 12 = 21

"Explain"

The Aspis Consortium is using you as cover to spread a vicious drug called Whip throughout your city. You may already be familiar with some of the victims. I understand that in a city like this coin normally has no provenance, but these experiments, these abominations cannot be allowed. We will not damage your warehouse or your belongings, and all that we ask of you is forbearance. Please allow us to undo this evil.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (3) + 12 = 15 Urk
GM Star Reroll: 1d20 + 12 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 12 + 1 = 26

Sinaryn stays hiding against her box while Seidr handles it.

Well looks like I won't get to have fun with these thugs. That girl could talk someone into selling the shirt of their back.

She sighs but also keeps an eye on the office door that someone was trying to force their way through.

Pasha elects to stay hidden behind a pile of crates as well, the ingredients for a bomb in her hands. She was entirely prepared to toss it, but, well... Seidr seemed to have things under control.

If they advance on her, they'll regret it, she thinks grimly.

"The Aspis come into fine cities such as this one and, if they do not ruin them outright, wrack them from within with and for their diabolical agenda," Meletus adds, stepping out of her spot. "We will not allow this to last long. With the aforementioned evidence of their crimes and the defense of this warehouse from hostile takeover, they should lose any semblance of control by tomorrow."

Diplomacy Aid: 1d20 ⇒ 20

As you talk, another pair of visitors come running up behind their friends. "What's going on? Who is---"

The newcomer is silenced by their companion's upheld hand. "You took quite the risk assuming we are not Aspis agents ourselves. Still, your claims are serious, and fit rumors we have heard. We shall depart to investigate, but know that this is not Aspis property you stand in. We shall hold you and your organization responsible for any damage you cause." With that, they turn to leave.

------

About half an hour later, the front door is thrown open by a woman in chain mail bearing a morning star and a silver holy symbol in the shape of a key. Next to her is a heavily-armed man in a breastplate, leveling a crossbow at you.

”You shall pay for intruding upon the business of the Aspis consortium!” she shouts, moving to attack.

No time to chat, they’re attacking now! If you moved yourself for talking purposes, you can move your mini back to its hiding spot.

Initiative, Round 1:

Suna moves toward the Aspis with her naginata. How dare you call yourselves snakes.