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Dot.
For the past several years, the Pathfinder Society has maintained something of a covert and transient presence in the city of Kaer Maga. The interest taken by the near-legendary Pathfinder Eando Kline in the city has drawn the eyes of the Ten (to coin a phrase). Though no Venture-Captain has been assigned to the Asylum Stone, junior agents are sometimes encouraged to spend time there. Thus it is that the party has recently arrived, a few months after the last group moved on. You have been making a living as best you can when you learn of an immensely interesting opportunity....
Valanthe Nerissia, of the Church of Pharasma, is looking to hire adventurers without significant local ties for a mission into the catacombs beneath the Godsmouth Ossuary, catacombs supposedly sealed for centuries. The unsealed parts of the Ossuary are normally off-limits to all but the Pharasmin clergy. This is exactly the sort of thing you're here to do, so of course you accept. At her invitation you have come to the Godsmouth Cathedral, where she tells you this tale:
"There is, as you may know, an entrance to Kaer Maga's Undercity through the mouth of one of the giant faces carved into the cliffs outside the city. It leads to the Godsmouth Ossuary, still the most prestigious place in the city to be interred. We who maintain it, though, have recently noticed that bodies have been disappearing from the ossuary. It was only a few at first, several months ago, but in the past few weeks the number has increased dramatically. There is no sign of how the body thief has accessed the crypts. I believe, however, that the thief must be coming from the sealed levels of the crypts
"If you are willing, I will pay you handsomely for entering the sealed levels, determining if the body thief is there, solving the problem of the thief if possible, and exploring and clearing the topmost of the sealed levels. Any valuables you find are yours to keep, unless they are obviously Pharasmin relics or treasure.
"I must impress on you in any case the need to keep this secret. It is now noon; I would like to have you enter the Ossuary at dusk, if you are willing. You have that time to obtain any supplies you might need.
"Thank you, and may the blessings of Pharasma be with you."
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The gnome known to you as Keno speaks up excitedly. The Godsmouth Ossuary? Us? This is wonderful! Keno stands up out of his seat at the news. What an opportunity for one such as myself, one who admires Pharasma as much as I do, to be able to venture into such a place! Of course, we'll do what we must to stop the thief and to ensure that any of the treasures of Pharasma are left undisturbed as much as possible.
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"I too revere the great goddess of fate, and I have long believed my own was favored by her." A half orc, who introduced himself earlier as Raavan Shiv, says to Kino. His words come out slowly, and sometimes slurred, around large sharpened tusks in a face that looks like it was used as a carving board at some point in his past. He leans heavily upon a flagstaff and moved with a limp when he arrived. Turning his scarred features to Valanthe, he gives a stiff and awkward bow. "You can trust us with this task."
Valanthe doesn't really smile at your enthusiasm (you get the idea that she doesn't smile very often). Her expression is more one of satisfaction.
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Were it not for the snout like facial structure, Valt would look like any regular Kellid man (albeit a hairy one.) His hair reaches past his shoulders, and is strewn about in a state of lethargy He has a pack of adventuring gear and armaments, and carries heavier armors than the mobile of the north carry. When he speaks, he tends to linger too long on the "ooh" sounds (and thusly tries to avoid them.
Valt looks to the other wolf-faced person, "Really, boss? We're playing rat catcher? We're dogs of war, not lazy cats."
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Stop complaining! You are your war talk. This is a great opportunity to visit a sacred place! We must use care while passing through, not barge in with blades flailing about. Keno then tries to calm himself and speaks a little quieter. Your friend seems to understand the nature of our mission. There is nothing "lazy" about catching a thief. Or at least I think there isn't. I've never caught one.
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"What big talk for a small man! You don't think I can handle this? Well, I'll show yoooooou!" After howling out the last bit, he'll excitedly leave once questions are done.
1 set of Marbles
3 glue papers (2 take up 2 slots on my bandoliers
7 powders (2 are on bandolier slots)
1 perfume (on bandolier)
1 oil (on bandolier)
Caltrops (on bandolier)
Earplugs
Wire
Total: 12.6 gp, with 4.4 remaining in my pockets. Let the Dirty Tricks begin.
Late that afternoon, you return to the Cathedral. Valanthe and a silent acolyte lead you down the narrow, twisting cliffside path to the Ossuary entrance. The level of detail in the craftsmanship of the unknown sculptors who carved the Unnamed King even extends to teeth inside the mouth cavity; the keepers of the Ossuary have elected to build a walkway over them instead of breaking through them. Past the teeth, you enter the ossuary proper. Here there are more Pharasmin priests, some clad in formal robes and tending to the deceased, others clearly assigned to cleaning duties; all are silent in their service, and all defer to your guide, bowing and standing aside for the Cryptmistress. The acolyte hands Valanthe a pack and remains near the entrance while she leads you through luxuriously appointed catacombs filled with bodies, down several stairways, and into an area that has clearly seen little recent use--there is dust on the floor, most of the burial niches are empty, the air is musty and close, and even the sounds of the priests moving has died away in the distance.
Here, Valanthe stops in front of an ornate door. "This is the only known entrance to the sealed levels, and I have the only key. Once you enter I will lock it behind you. Here, though, is something you can use to open it from the other side." She hands you a hollow mithral tube about a foot long. "This is a chime of opening--you are familiar with such things, I trust--with five charges remaining. With it you can unlock the door from the other side once you've completed your task, as long as you have left a charge for that purpose. Since you will be cut off from any other assistance we can give, here are some other items you may find useful." She hands you the pack she carries; inside, you can hear muffled clinking. "There are six bottles of blessed water inside, and six minor curative potions . Good luck, and may Pharasma guide you and protect you." She sketches a sign of blessing in the air over your heads before producing a large iron key and unlocking the door. It opens with a creak, revealing the top of a spiral staircase.
(Those of you who are closest to the Cryptmistress can hear her mutter to herself...something about the inconvenience of spiral stairs when carrying coffins, and imprecations on her predecessors for using so many of them.)
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Remarkable. Just remarkable! That and other comments are generally all that has been heard from the gnome during the trek down to the door they are now about to pass through. Let's hope we do not before residents of the place, at least not anytime soon! Receiving a bottle of each from the bag and stowing them away, Keno announces, Well, no time like the present! Assuming that Arnthoth is taking the lead Keno will follow him inside.
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"Yes. We are fortunate to be given this task." Raavan agrees, taking up a position behind Arnthoth. As the group prepares to move forward he unties and lets fly the flag on his staff. Bearing the symbol of the Open Road, something about the way he presents it spreads a feeling of pride and courage among those that see it.
The Kelishite woman adorned in the robes of Sarenrae suddenly breaks her silence, "Apologies my dear fellows... but the desecration of the dead has just left me speechless. This thief simply must be caught."
After sizing up her fellow Pathfinders, Kyra decides to keep near the front.
"I am here to serve, and will serve wherever you feel I may be most effective, Dawnflower willing." Kyra nods her head slightly as takes her place in the march.
As all will be able to see from the MAP, there is a rather cramped spiral staircase descending into the darkness. There are no railings on it, but the gap between the edge of the steps and the wall is too narrow for anyone but Keno to worry about falling through.
The light from Arnthoth's ioun torch casts eerie shadows up the shaft as he reaches the bottom of the staircase. So far things have been quiet; Kyra and Chochok's first warning that anything is amiss comes when the light level around them drops precipitously. Before the cleric can react, something in the darkness grabs onto her with a myriad of ropy arms edged with sharp barbs.
Round 1:
Initiative order
Monster-acted
Keno
Chochok
Kyra
Valt
Arnthoth/Wolf
Raavan
At this point, only Kyra and Chochok can reach the creature, unless Raavan has a reach weapon.
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Valt, unsure entirely on how spells work, tries to recast Light (to no avail.) "What's going on here?!?"
Misfortune (Ex): At 1st level, as an immediate action, you can force a creature within 30 feet to reroll any one d20 roll that it has just made before the results of the roll are revealed. The creature must take the result of the reroll, even if it’s worse than the original roll. Once a creature has suffered from your misfortune, it cannot be the target of this revelation again for 1 day.
Kyra feels a warmth wash over her as Keno provides her with some much-needed guidance. "Thank you kindly," she calls back as she draws her scimitar. She takes a careful step to the side of the creature, if possible to allow others to join the melee.
Arnthoth, there doesn't appear to be anything menacing you in the room. The woolf, er, wolf has gotten a noseful of dust and is sneezing at the moment. Your quick scan of the room reveals ancient carvings on the walls, and what looks like something more recent scrawled on the north wall.