Pathfinder Society—Scenario #4-01: Rise of the Goblin Guild

Game Master Christopher Rowe

The goblin, now bleeding from several significant wounds, throws down her curiously notched and drilled blade, drops to her knees, and hugs what appears to be a polish goblin skull tight to her chest.

"Oh hayır!" she cries. "Onlar Plarg, beni yemeye gidiyoruz!"

The heroes have no trouble gathering outside the wall, surrounding the wailing goblin. Several passersby look on, half-curious, half-fearful. You see the half-elven guardsman, Ebrylis, approaching, beckoning you frantically.

"I take it you dont speak common" Alys says to the goblin then he turns to the crowd

does anyone speaks Goblin?

The goblin draws herself up to her full, if not particularly impressive, height.

"Ekkie talks longshanks talk perfectly good! And Ekkie is poison! If you eat me you will die!"

Ebrylis arrives. "We need to get this creature off the street," he says. "The Venture-Captain wants to find out how it came to be in the manor and if the Guard takes it, we'll never get a chance to ask it any questions."

Snapping to attention at the orders

Yes sir. Come this way Ekkie was it. Quickly now. Make it easier on yourself by coming with us.

Manzcar wipes the blood off his sword and sheaths the weapon. He then holds the goblin under the arm and walks her to thr front gate quickly.

The goblin, still bleeding freely from her wounds, wriggles against Manzcar's grasp, but more or less stumbles along willingly. Her aroma is unpleasant to say the least. As you pass back onto the Heidmarch Manor grounds, she leans forward and whispers loudly to the skull she clutches beneath one arm, "Plarg! They are taking us to the big house to kill us!"

Note that her weapon lay on the street where she left it unless somebody picks it up.

Alys sheaths his daggers and follows Manzcar to the manor and on his way in tries do grab and conceal Ekkie's sword unnoticed.

Sleight of hands: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9

dont worry little green man, we wont kill you... maybe

he says to Ekkie with a sarcastic smile

Still feeling a bit confused with sudden turn of events, Rutilus tries to make a quick recap of "what the hell has just happened"?

Seeing that goblin is brought into custody, he hurries to obey orders of Ebrylis and the Venture-Captain. While walking inside, he would use the opportunity to cast one of his orisons and try to detect if there are any magical emanations coming from goblin (or his weapon).

After they enter the complex, he turns to Manzcar: "Hold him still, I would like to fix him up. Since the Lady of Graves did not want to claim his soul, it would be a shame to let him bleed to death."

Heal check on goblin: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 8 = 22

When did we start taking goblins into custody? The laws where I am from are not so kind on such prolific, monsterous races. I will have to learn more about this regions culture. Maybe that is how they managed to build such a large city in such a short period of time?

Khain follows in behind his new companions, eager to see how this plays out.

Hearing the clerics words Manzcar holds the goblin still.

Feeling an odd sense of compasion for the goblin seeing her talk to the skull Manzcar uses a soft tone.

Well I give you my word I will not kill you nor your friend there. I want to get you healed up and then you can answer some questions for us. Are you hungry?

Manzcar tries to give a reassuring smile to the little goblin.

He broke the law and invaded our home! Should we invite him for high tea as well? He damned well better answer some questions!

Khain tries to rub the exasperation from his temples. All muscles and no common sense. Crazy, chaotic monsters break into your home, in the city of all places, and we cater to thier needs? This will take some getting used to.

Hearing a suggestion to feed the goblin, Jory looks around, but cannot find the friendly female sandwich vendors from earlier.

He follows the goblin back to the manor. "Some dwarves have a natural hatred for goblins. I guess I lack that prejudice."

Looking at Khain with a stern and inflamed look.

And what do you really know of this situation! isn't it better to have an ability gather useful information? If we did it your way she would be tried, convicted, killed and we wouldn't know why she came and did what she did. What is more foolish doing without understanding or first finding understanding.

Looking to the goblin and obviously. ignoring any response feom Khain.

I think it best to tell us everything truthfully or people like this one will take over. And that's not a good thing.

Manzcar points his head at Khain.

Hrmph... understanding a goblin. If they are not thieving something, they are burning something. I have no problem speaking to a creature that can be reasoned with, but these things a little more than rabid dogs that WILL bite you as soon as they can.

Manage your dog Manzcar, or the Venture-Captain surely will.

The goblin lets out a howl, and positively vibrates with rage.

"Ekkie is not a... not a... not the filthy thing that you said!"

Tucked under Manzcar's arm, and now weaponless, she can do little but curse and kick at first, but then a gleam lights in her crimson eye, and she struggles to reach one of the two globes hanging from the exquisitely crafted, and ridiculously oversized, necklace hanging around her neck.

Out of nowhere, an enormous Kellid man in leathers rushes in and bats Ekkie's hand away. "Gods above, Pathfinders, didn't you search the monster! It has my necklace of fireballs!

Correct me if Im wrong, I dont know much about magic, but... isnt that dangerous?

Alys says and get a few steps back more playfull than fearfull

So Ekkie, your not like every goblin I have ever heard of? Interesting. If you are not a filthy thing like the others, then put down the globe and we will talk. I would love to believe you are different, in fact it would fascinate me terribly, but I am going to need you to show me your something different.

Sorry sir we were trying to bring in the goblin as soon as possible. Seems like we were more worried about whether we should be bringing the goblin in or not.

Manzcar scowls at Khain.

It's my fault sir.

Alys tres to calm the goblin a bit, So he puts his best smile and says at him
Come on, stop that and be calm, you can't win we are too many just calm down and we wont hurt you

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19

as he says this he secretly tries to palm a dagger
Sleight of hands: 1d20 + 8 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 8 + 2 = 28

So what are we going to do Ekkie? Do you want to show me how different you are, or are we going to make this go bad? You already have shown you have better taste than most goblins... I am willing to give you the benefit of the doubt and talk this out.

Tell me about the skull Ekkie. I am not going to eat you, and if we talk, then I promise not to feed you to a dog. I can be quite reasonable you see. If I wanted you dead, then you would be dead. You are smarter than that Ekkie. I can see it in your shiny little eyes. You have something else to gain here Ekkie. Let's talk about this and we can see what we can do that is mutually beneficial for you and us "longshanks" as you called us. As long as we are not breaking any laws, I am fine with a little tête-à-tête.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (7) + 10 = 17

Well, I am not going to have much chance to make a hostile creature happy with me (DC=25+), but maybe he will believe I am serious and genuine.

If nobody picked up the weapon, he will have done so. Little kids could find it and maybe hurt themselves, and fore all we know it will be poisoned.

Travis uses his piercing gaze on the little creature, when she is not looking. Maybe when Manczar is dragging her off.

When everyone else is done talking, he gives Ekkie a strong hard look, trying to focus his attention solely on him. Like a dog that has too much energy, I hope Ekkie will figure out that keeping his eyes on him is for the best, lest other things happen.

"Why are you here Ekkie? Tell me the truth and I promiss I will do what I can to make sure you are not hurt."

On the necklace he has in his hands: "Ekkie, if you want to hurt us with those shiny things around your neck, you will also die. They make a very big fire and kaboom, you know that right? And then who will look after your litte friend here?" *points at the skull under his arm*
"Does it have a name?"

If Travis can, he will take something sweet and/or meaty out of his backpack to give to him, so he has his hands full.

Jory jumps to pin the goblins hands and gives Khain a pointed look.
CMB: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (9) + 3 = 12
"Nooooo!"

Escorting she-goblin inside Rutilus draws on his divine power. Sensing familiar tingling at his fingertips he lets the sacred energy from his goddess to overwhelm all his senses for a briefest of moments, before focusing it to the task at hand. He focuses on detecting potential magical emanations from the goblin, but not expecting anything really.

Ooooh, there is magic, mine, mine, she's a crafty one. Let us see...what, a moderate...no, maybe even strong aura...an evocation??!

"Uhm, guys..." - Rutilus tries to warns his compatriots without raising too much "noise", but he is cut-off mid-sentence by an enormous Kellid man, batting the magical necklace from goblins hands.

Damn, that was close...too close for comfort. I have to be faster, much faster next time, or we may not live another day...

There's quite a scrum with Ekkie squirming, Jory and the newly arrived stranger wrestling at her arms, and Manzcar struggling to hold the little goblin still, all while everyone is talking at once, trying to calm the goblin and determine what to do with her.

In the end, the goblin is still firmly held by Manzcar and Jory, and Travis finds himself holding the necklace as he addresses her.

Once things calm down, the big Kellid man heaves a sigh of relief. "I'm no 'sir,' by the way, just a fellow Pathfinder. I'm Joadric Heimurl, staying in Shalast House while I plan an expedition northwest. Thank you all for capturing this little sewer rat—if you've recovered my wayfinder with her I'll let you keep that necklace. It only has two spheres left on it anyway."

Ekkie, meantime, has lost all interest in the necklace and in everything else except the rations in Travis's hands. She sniffs at them speculatively, then looks at the paladin, then at the skull awkwardly wedged between her body and Mancar's chest. "This is my cage-brother, Plarg. Plarg says that the food we already have in our pouches is tastier than that dried up stuff."

Travis looks at the necklace in his hands, and decides to stuff it in his pouch, out of reach for the goblin. He gives the others a look that says "Calm down, we can do this."

"So it's Plarg and Ekkie, is it?
Quite peculiar names, but I like them. They have a certain... ring to them. But if you don't want this, I guess I'll keep it. I'm hungry as a horse!"

Travis gives the goblin an award-winning smile, and eats from the meat he was holding in his hands to show there was nothing wrong with it.

"Now, Ekkie, would you and Parg like to taste the best sausages EVER? Because I have recently discovered a secret place that has sausages so tasty you will never want to taste anything else.."

He looks around at the others, hoping they won't interfere too much.
He looks at Jori, and says in the Dwarven tongue, hoping Ekkie won't understand him: "Misschien kan iemand mevrouw Heidmarch gaan waarschuwen?"

He faces Ekkie again: What do you say? Care to help us find Joadric's wayfinder? Plarg certainly looks hungry enough.

Manzcar looks at the Paladin with a smile creeping upon his face as the Paladin talks camly and softly to the goblin.

Why now that you mention it I am quite hungry as well. But Ekkie we need to have back the things you took that are not yours first. If you have anything that is not yours you should hand it over and then we can talk about what brought you here.
If we wanted to harm you it would have already happened.

Ekkie squirms a bit more and somehow frees one hand long enough to reach into the ratskin pouch at her belt. She pulls forth a package of raw meat and shows it off to Travis, then greedily inhales the cut, cracking the bones with her filed teeth.

The greasy waxed paper it was wrapped in falls to the floor, some writing or symbols of some kind visible through the viscera Ekkie didn't lick off.

"What is a wayfinder?" she chirps between smacking her lips and swallowing noisily. "Is it Plarg's new round shiny?"

Manzcar watches the paper fall and then looks to Eekie

Well it might be can you show me the new shiny?

Manzcar will look to Rutilus and point to the paper

Rutilus can you have a look at the paper that just fell it seems to have writing on it of some kind.

Looking back to Eekie

Please show me the shiny and if it is the wayfinder we will have to give it back but I can give you both a few silver shiny coins for it as a finders fee.

Manzcar gives the little creature a warm and genuine smile.

may the gods help me but I think I like this little goblin.

Jory remembers to rush off to talk to their hostess. He runs to her and remembers to ask if the manor has Varisian sandwiches on the menu before telling her about the recent excitement and her new goblin guest.

Strange, but I think our mighty warrior, who just sliced open this goblin, really does like it. Fascinating

Looking at Manzcar with a mixture of awe, confusion and What the hell are you talking about?!, Rutilus approaches and retrieves greasy paper from the ground.

Please dear Lady, let it not be part of wayfinder, please...

He looks at the paper timidly, trying to decipher symbols hidden (or covered by) grease stains. What is it - is it readable by me?

Khain attempts to get a look at the paper as well to see if he can assist.

Knowledge Arcane, Knowledege Planes, or Linguistics?

Someoe should lock or tie that goblin, just as precaution, his hands seem pretty free to me as he seem to do whatever he wants with them. By the way cosider me Not volunteer

Except for Jory, who has entered the manor house, the party is gathered in front of the carp pond near the front of the grounds. The half-elf guard, Ebrylis, and the large Kellid Pathfinder, Joadric Heimurl, stand with them.

Rutilus carefully unfolds the waxed paper for all to see. Printed on it beneath the wax and grease is an outline of a horse with various dotted lines drawn through it, as a butcher's diagram.

Ekkie, meanwhile, jiggles her arm and a rattling sound comes from within the skull she still holds. A thick disc rolls out of the left ocular cavity of the skull and lands in the white sand of the path.

"Plarg's shiny!" shouts the goblin at the same time Joadric exclaims, "My wayfinder!

Jory: You find Venture-Captain Heidmarch just inside the front doors, clearly on her way out onto the grounds to see about all the commotion. When you ask her about the sandwich, color comes to her cheeks, and she says, "My good monk. Perhaps you would do better to go about the city in the company of some of your more...worldly...companions. And please don't ask the kitchen staff for any such...dish." With that, she takes your arm and listens to your explanation as the two of you walk out to the pond, where...

All: The big Pathfinder is quick to scoop up the wayfinder from the ground. He opens it, turns it over and closely examines it, and even sniffs it, at which point his eyes nearly cross and a stricken look comes to his face. But he gamely smiles and says, "Doesn't seem to be any worse the wear—nothing a good dunking in some soapy water won't fix, anyway. Thank you for recovering it comrades, it was a gift from Ambrus Valsin himself. Please, keep the necklace there as a token of my appreciation."

Sheila Heidmarch overhears this last and nods in approval, but her face is stern. "Ebrylis—" she begins, but the half-elf cuts her off.

"You'll have my letter of resignation within the hour, ma'am," he says. "As I have no idea how the goblin made it onto the grounds, or why we were targeted."

Ekkie, still tucked beneath Manzcar's arm, has finished her snack of horsemeat and watches the exchange in fascination. "Ekkie came up through the privy," she offers helpfully. "Because of the..." she hesitates, "başlatma. In-is-nation?"

Manzcar looks perplexed at the words of Eekie and wonders wht it could mean. He also thinks of how a goblin could come up into the privy.

know local on baslatma and in-is-nation 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22
Know engineering on privy construction to sewers 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20

Hmmm, I guess Linguistics would actually be the skill to figure out what she's trying to say. Might be be a better tact just to try to figure it out through conversation.

The privies in Magnimar are connected to an extensive sewer system.

Eekie what does blasmata in-is-nation mean is it a person or place?

The goblin blinks in confusion, then looks up at Manzcar with an expression that says she's not too sure of his intelligence. "Başlatma and in-is-nation are the same! One is cin talk, one is longshanks talk! It's the test Ekkie and Plarg have to take to join the Gecetoprak Akıncıları!

Sheila Heidmarch listens to this with great interest. "Başlatma means something like initation, or close enough. Gecetoprak Akıncıları... something marauders. Nightsoil Marauders?"

A look of adoration comes over Ekkie's mutable face. "Yes!" she squeals.

Khain attempts to make sense of the language

Lingusitics 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9

Ummm... nope

Initiation you say...what kind of strange thief's guild, if any, would employ gobbos?!?

"What about these...Nightsoil marauders, Ekkie? You were working on becoming a member, eh? Where did you get this paper?" - the priest is intrigued by the options presented to him. A goblin on an "initiation run", who came through the...privy?!

Rutilus stops for a second, trying to gather his thoughts, all the while listening closely to answers from she-goblin. Suddenly the skull she was still carrying attracts his attention.

Sense motive: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20

Perception on the skull: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20

Knowledge/local on Nightsoil marauders: 1d20 ⇒ 16 IIRC untrained Knowledge can be tried for DC 10

Listening Manzcar tries to think about this marauder group and if has heard of them.

know local on group 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (11) + 5 = 16

The name Nightsoil Marauders, in either Common or Goblin, is new to everyone here.

Ekkie looks at the paper and her eyes glaze over as she licks her lips. Drool would drip down onto her chin, if she had a chin.

"Ekkie got it at the most wonderfullest place..." She stops. Her face an open book, it is clear that an idea has just occurred to Ekkie. "Ekkie hurts! Ekkie doesn't like being carried around!"

Ignoring the goblin's plaintive wailing, Venture-Captain Heidmarch studies the paper for a moment. "It's a meat-wrapper from a knackery. The Mariska Knackery down near the river, I believe." Seeing your inquiring looks, she explains, "In addition to running the Lodge, my husband and I run the Lord-Mayor's zoo. Some of the creatures there thrive best on horse meat."

The skull is highly polished, but doesn't seem to be particularly old. It is clearly that of a goblin.

"Nightsoil Marauders, how intriguing. Are we going to go the knackery? Sounds like an adventure."

Ekkie what else can you tell us of these Nightsoil Marauders? I might be able to get you more of the wonderful meat.

Venture-Captain Heidmarch appears to come to a decision and nods at Jory. "The knackery might be a good place to start. Because listen up, Pathfinders, I want you to get to the bottom of this. Interrogate this goblin—preferably not on my front lawn—find out who she's working for, and why she was sent here in particular."

She gestures for Ebrylis and Joadric to join her as she turns to return to the manor house. You overhear her telling the half-elf that his resignation won't be accepted as they go.

Ekkie watches them go along with the group of you, then looks up at Manzcar with piteously wide eyes. "Put Ekkie down now?"

Alys seems a nice chance and starts talking in loud voice so the goblin dont miss anything

"What are you talking friends!? You are telling me you know nothing about the powerfull Nightsoil Marauders? I have the honor of being a close friend to the chief there. But unfortunatley I've lost contact with them"

Alys turns to his friends and wink, then he speaks with even more emphasis.

"If only there was someone who could lead me to them, Im shure the Chief would reward him, but aparently no one here knows about them..."

bluff: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (16) + 8 = 24

Looks like we need to find a quiet place to have a private conversation with Ekkie here.

Ekkie's Sense Motive: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (8) - 1 = 7

Ekkie's eyes bulge so dramatically as she stares at Alys that it almost seems they'll pop right out of her head.

"You know the big boss? I only met Versevosh with the big dangly hat! He said the big boss is much scarier then him, even!"

"Of course I know him, maybe you might see him... But no, You are our prisioner, you are not even initiated, I bet you would get loss getting to the base"

Alys turns to the goblin and shrug her shoulders

"But if you know the way there I might get Versevosh to Initiate you, If you are usefull Big Boss might even reward you personaly"

Alys seem to enjoy this, his words are fluid, his lies pour like it was only natural to him.

Ekkie squirms and spits and squeals.

"Ekkie does know the way to the Gecetoprak Akıncıları place! It's through the horse-killing place where you can see the insides of the horses and eat their meat!"