PbP GameDay 3: PFS #5-99 Paths we Choose (3-4) (Inactive)

Game Master -Karma-

"What? *hic*! Was there a problem? We had plenty of beer, great songs from our bard friend... and the Venture-Captain even gave us a smile! Great barleywine! What more could one ask for? *hic*!"

Gunari refills a tankard, looks over to Lort. "Lort! You still awake, or are you 'sharpening your sword'?"

Miro snickers at the warpriest's comment. "Glad I got to practice some of those...I've been thinking about becoming a stage singer when I get this adventurous streak out of me, and I want to make sure I have a vast repertoire that can appeal to anybody!"

Lort claps Cyrus and Gunari on their backs simultaneously, "I was expecting days! Did you notice the Venture Captain was getting a little round in the belly? All that paperwork is not good for you. I was hoping to have more time to restore him to peak condition. Ah well, another day perhaps. He didn't seem too keen on the idea.

"Anyway, I think we should probably turn in for the night. Enough excitement for today, eh?" Lort grins a hearty grin as he helps himself to one more of Gunari's blessings, belches and then heads back to his accommodations in the Lodge.

It's only afternoon, and there's free drinks out in town, so... (sorry for railroading over Lort's plan)
Happy to be out of the quarantine, the party heads out to the streets. The festival is still going on, so it is time celebrate. The Pathfinders hear the Preinaugural Feast is about to start in Wise Quarter, so that sounds a good direction to head in.

Wise Quarter, the home of learning and education in Absalom, doesn’t look like the place for a good party, but in the promise of free food and drink, the party keeps on going. Arriving to a square in the shadow of The Arcanamirium -Absalom’s largest and oldest school- the party sees a building with an open door and many people going in and leaving. This must be the place…

Once inside, Finarin notices two familiar ladies engaged in conversation. Lady Darchana is sipping wine and talking with Venture Captain Gloriana Morilla. As the party approaches, Lady Darchana notices them and invites them to join her and Morilla. ”The Pathfinders who helped me my little eavesdropper... Good day to you! So your Society can spare such skilled agents to enjoy some time off? That is nice, I trust you are enjoying yourselves?” the woman says smiling.

"Ah, Lady Darchana. It is so nice to see you again. I do believe that we are ... enjoying ourselves, but we like to remain ... alert." Barely turning his eyes on Lort and Gunari, he resumes his flowery greeting, "One never knows when this .... society will have need for us" Sweeping his hat off, Finarin gives Lady Darchana an ever-so-slight head bow before turning to his Venture Captain. "My Lady, it always warms my ... elven heart to see you again. I trust you have received my letter pertaining to ... the suburbs? Thanks to Valsin I had plenty of time to ... elaborate"

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Darchana," says Lort only a little too loudly as he dips into a bow, "I heard much about my friends' efforts to keep eavesdropping to a minimum. It warms my heart to see that their descriptions of your beauty were not exaggerated.

"As for time off, we had only just this morning had a little adventure in Absalom. Oh, nothing I'd bore you with, but fun and excitement for us at least! Not to mention yesterday evening's excursion! Actually, I'm hoping tonight has some more adventure in mind for us. I'm afraid these kinds of affairs always see me bored or overly inebriated!"

With a wink and a grin, Lort indicates for Gunari to refill his glass.

"Lady Darchana, it is a true pleasure to get the chance to meet you once again. Hopefully our next adventure will be as profitable, and enlightening, as the last one we worked with you on."
Snubbing Lort, he asks, "Might I interest you in a pint of Cayden's finest?"

"So nice to see you, Lady Darchana! And Venture Captain, you as well. I trust you are in fine spirits and enjoying yourselves, as well?" Miro dips a little bow while taking a seat. He chuckles, "We keep getting offered time off, and things always seem to come up. Not that we mind, of course."

"La-d-d-d-y *Ahem*" For crying out loud... why do attractive women do this to me...

"Lady Darchana, it is a pleasure to see you again."

I'll just keep my mouth shut....

Cyrus dips into a polite bow, and elects to not say anything else, the more eloquent of his friends doing a fantastic job.

Gunari turns to Lort, and quietly asks, "do you think Lady Darchana would like to see my monkey? I'll bet my little buddy would love to see her, too!"

by quiet, it is that he thinks he is quiet. Whether he is or not....

”You are too kind,” Lady Darchana smiles at Lort’s commentary. ”But please go on, a woman in my age cannot have too many compliments on her looks”, she continues, laughing. To Finarin’s question, she supplies no answer, just a nod and an enigmatic smile.

Captain Morilla seems amused of the Pathfinders’ eagerness. ”I am glad to hear that we eager agents in our employ. As it happens, could I steal a bit of your time this evening. I have matters to discuss, privately…” Lady Darchana raises her eyebrows on Morilla’s request, the smile never leaving her lips. ”Oh, Morilla… I hope your not going to send these nice gentlemen on a mission, and take away their well-earned free time?” she asks in feigned disapproval.

You can continue RP from here if you'd like,. I'll just push the game onwards a bit. Wall of text incoming...
————————

Later that evening, the group meets Lady Morilla at a teahouse in the Petals District, where she has secured a private dining room. After a team of servers has brought in an array of snacks and drinks, Morilla checks to ensure that nobody is eavesdropping and then addresses the Pathfinders.

”Nearly a year ago, I and several of my best agents began assembling a grand Army of Exploration to do battle in the Worldwound and inspire others to do the same. Admittedly, we also aimed to restore some of Taldor’s lost glory, if its leaders would show initiative by funding their own crusaders. Most of my peers continued to sit idly and mock our efforts, yet now that the army has proven victorious, these critics are racing to claim that they were key contributors.

“I have made arrangements to sabotage the portraits, which Lord Minovitas is keeping covered until they are unveiled to the public. If you can get to the paintings first, you might secretly deface or alter them to embarrass Lord Minovitas and send a so message to other Taldan nobles who would do the same. At present, the art waits in a warehouse in the Wise Quarter. Find a way in, do what you must, and try to avoid hurting innocents or being caught in the act; we’re trying to help Taldor, not start a civil war.”

You might know something about Lord Minovitas already with Knowledge (nobility). Read all the spoilers where you beat the DC

""Not exactly the kind of noble mission I usually like to sink my teeth into," says Lort glumly before brightening up once more, his lower canines showing clearly above his upper lip as he smiles, "But a bit of graffiti will remind me of my youth and the group of street kids I spent it with. Happy times! Of course, I am also happy to be assisting you, Lady Morilla. I don't believe I've ever had the opportunity before."

This lack of booze seems to be helping with my diplomatic efforts, Lort glares at Gunari, I like it not.

* * *

On the way to the mission, Lort will procure the following supplies.

• Heavy wooden shield (7gp)
  
• Sap (1gp)
  
• Bottle of strong, poor quality whisky (2sp)
  
• Cheap painting supplies, so bad that they are very difficult to wash out (??)

I'll mark it all off my ITS and please feel free to put it on the chronicle also.

"Ahhhh Com'on Lort! Where is the spirit?! Just because we aren't bashing in someone's skull... " Cyrus claps the big half orc on the back with gusto, though the man likely barely feels it.

"This sounds like so much FUN! *ahem* Ahhh... Pardon me and my exuberance, Captain Morilla. We would be happy to take on this task for you and your faction. Had I heard of you and your beauty when I signed up, perhaps I might not have been in the service of Osirion." He says with a sly smile and a bow.

Hey! That didn't come out awkward! Forced maybe... yea... probably forced. Definitely. Oh well... progress I suppose...

"You couldn't hand pick a group more capable, m'lady. Finarin, I already have some ideas of some very 'fashionable' attire we can help his foppishness with, that will be sure to impress all the ladies at the banquet. Have you ever heard the story of the emperor's new clothes? It was a popular one back in my orphanage. Ohhh.. I can't wait for this one."

This already reminds me of the time that orphan mother had me sneaking in to that warehouse to steal some statue for her. Those guards were chasing that rat for an hour thinking it was me! Ha!

Cyrus follows with Lort, keen to pick up a few things himself.

-Sap (1gp)
-Mineral Spirits (??)
-Paint and Brush - Primarily skin tone colors(??)

"Before you go, I have something to help you in your task", Lady Morilla says, handing three scrolls of erase to Finarin. "These can destroy the paintings if need be, but altering them would be much more desirable solution. So use them only if you must. This one, on the other hand..." the Venture Captain gives a scroll of fabricate, "...is a more efficient way to change the portraits into our liking, albeit much harder to use."

"I'll give you an address where you can pick up paints and brushes. I also had enough warning to commision two paintings, which you use to replace Minovitas' gaudy art." This time, Morilla hands two unframed paintings; one is a fairly realistic depiction of Lady Morilla mustering soldiers, and the other shows Finarin Moonstep battling a demon.

Finally, she gives the group a tiny silver figure of a raven. "Once your sabotage is complete, please use this to contact me for further instructions. Minovitas is planning to unveil these paintings tomorrow evening, so your task must be done before that"

If you want to, you can spend couple of hours scouting the warehouse, to gather information. Diplmomacy (Gather Information) or Knowledge (local)

so, plan your heist...

Kn (nobility): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24

"My lady. You can rest assured that we will do our ... Utmost to deface this egrious art work. It is people like you that have ... swayed me to join this so called society.". Turning to Cyrus , "I do believe that we will be ... entering a warehouse and not attending a ball. You seem to be dressed just fine. Stealth is the modus operandi for the time being.".

feel free to check spoilers to DC 20. On my mobile and tought to quote. Wish I got the 25

"Good work, Finarin!" bellows Lort when the elf returns with the information, "Looks like we'll be able to disguise ourselves as Taldan guards to get things running a bit more smoothly. We can then switch out the paintings at our leisure in transit. Who's best at lying?"

Lort casts his gaze over to Cyrus and winks.

Diplomacy (gather information): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (9) + 6 = 15

"As long as we have some time, it would be best if we all took a bit to get a feel for the place. When I was on the street they used to call this method.... aah... something about 11 oceans or something like that. We need to get a good idea of who is coming and going and what time. We don't have a whole lot of time, but we should be able to get an idea of when our chances are best to sneak in unnoticed. I like the idea of posing as Taldan guards Lort. I do hope to get this deed done before the paintings are even in transit... leaves less up to chance and last minute changes that we can't control. A very nice lady I just spoke to mentioned that the warehouse likes to give tours to prospective clients, potential shop-owners who might want to store their goods there. Why doesn't Finarin and Miro, our new business folk, bring their employees and hired guards along for a little tour, and they can ask all sorts of questions about security?"

Sorry for wall of text... just had to spew out an idea or two... There are still two more spoilers in the diplomacy/know:local chain, and one more in the know:nobility... Ibid? ;)

Gather Information: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21
If Permissible, can this be an Aid Another to Finarin?

"Posing as guards and laborers? We're pretty well equipped for that... I mean, who'd want to pick a fight with us?" He claps Lort on the back. "So, for the paintings... whose good at that sort of work? Cyrus? Miro? I say we paint the fine lord in his altogether, as Cyrus said... make sure his... unit... it embarrassingly small. And let's do something with the demon. Could someone make it look like... say... Lord Gyr of House Gyxx? Oh, I am sure that having the Lord Minovitas look like he is conquering Absalom would cause quite the stir. We could even let him stay the way he is, but give him an evil look and all... oh, this could be fun... oh, wait we're not trying to cause a civil war.

"Maybe have the naked Lord on the ground... and the demon all ready to give it to him... if you know what I mean! Yeah, that'd be great."

Miro laughs at the suggestions, nodding. "Indeed, I was thinking a loincloth, with his enormous belly covering whatever manhood he might be hiding underneath. Perhaps turn the demon into a leg of lamb!"

The halfling nods to Cyrus. "I think we're up to the task of gathering security information, although if we perform poorly we might tip them off." He shrugs as is this is inconsequential.

Realizing that one of the replacement paintings is of Finarin battling a demon, he blushes as deep a red as his favorite Chelish wine. "My lady does me a ... great honor. In truth it was Gunari and my companions that are the true demon slayers. "

"Friends, it seems that Lord Minoviats is not one to ... cross lightly. Methinks we will make quite the enemy. I say this not to .... dissuade you, but rather so you understand the .... consequences for a successful mission. The laws of Taldor are more .... forgiving for those of wealth and power. The society will not offer us unlimited protection when we accomplish this mission. You have all come up with well thought out suggestions. I would ... recommend that we scout during the day, and .... enter by night. We must also be wary of the city guard. We are still bound by Absalom law. "

"I take you to mean that we are bound by Absalom law... If we get caught." Cyrus says after an appropriate pause, and finishes with a wry smile.

"besides, I don't believe a man can reach legendary status without making a few enemies on the way. And what do I have to fear from an obese fop who's only deeds are those imagined in the mind of those he tells his tales to? I appreciate the warning my friend, and it only makes me want to succeed even more."

Cyrus moves towards the warehouse, and begins his irregular pattern of circling the building to understand the surroundings, and escape points.

-Posted with Wayfinder

"Cyrus and I have no small skill in remaining unseen when we choose to. Let us do the scouting, and we'll report back and plan from there!"

At that, he chases after Cyrus, adding another set of eyes to the reconnaissance.

rpg rule #1 never split the party. Lets just say we all travel to the warehouse to 'scout' it out picking up supplies on the way. We can figure out the logistics of how to scout when we get there. I am too lazy to backtrack - how long were we in quarantine? Did I have enough time to memorize my spells?

Agreed on the scouting it out together, Finarin. I still want Miro for Gather Information (diplomacy) and Miro and Ibid Ibid for Knowledge (local) on those spoilers first, though! ;-)

You were only 1 hour in the quarantine. You met Captain Morilla at evening of day 2. Gathering information takes 1-4 hours, so it'll be close to midnight by then. But you still have ~20 hours before the paintings are unveiled. So you can rest and prepare spells if you so wish.

@Gunari: You cannot Aid Finarin's Knowledge roll with gather information. But you can do a separate gather information for the first set of spoilers as well. I believe Miro can roll for Kn (nobility) with bardic knowledge, and thus aid Finarin's roll. And I have a hunch Ibid might roll high result, too.

Kn Local: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14
Kn Nobility Aid another: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8

Swing and a whiff.

"I think everything proposed thus far is a great plan," Ibid says, tapping his jaw with a long, knobby index finger. "And I sincerely apologize for not bringing this up sooner, but I've only just remembered two things which may be of use to us..."

"The first may be quite useful in setting up an adequate mockery as the new focus of these paintings, if we choose to alter the images to represent the deplorable conduct for which Lord Minovita's chooses to engage....but may be known of little by those over which he holds sway," the old man says, proceed to explain in further detail about Lord Minovita's ignoble conduct.

knowledge(nobility): 1d20 + 7 + 1d6 ⇒ (12) + 7 + (6) = 25

Lord Minovitas’s superiors have formally censured him on at least two occasions for “ignoble conduct,” which would qualify as felonies if performed by a commoner.

"Additioanlly, a few pieces of gold may go a long way with the warehouse workers, and I've heard their payments may be lacking, as of late," Ibid says, proceeding to explain further.

knowledge(local): 1d20 + 7 + 1d6 ⇒ (20) + 7 + (2) = 29

Business has been slow for the warehouse, and the owner is late in paying his employees’ wages—much to the workers’ chagrin.

edit! Removed the word tableau when referring to updating the focus of the paining. I tried to be all fancy and whatnot, but am too uncultured to use such a sophisticated word correctly :)

"Good to know!" says Lort, constantly impressed at Ibid's seemingly limitless knowledge, "So, we can pay them off if we need to, and no-one will shed any tears about Minovitas losing face. Great. Now, how about we 'find' some Taldan guard uniforms and get to it? Finarin, you've likely got the best insight as to where we could find some of those!"

Lort sits back after that, perfectly prepared to wait it out and then just step in and hit something when the time comes.

Miro nods along with Lort's suggestion. "Or something close, even. I've picked up a bit of skill in making things appear genuine...I can make a good approximation of a Taldan uniform, I think. And I'm pretty sure I can convince the guards to leave their posts. I just need a bit of time and material."

So, disguise kit for 50 gp, at least one aid another +2 bonus and then Miro's base + 8, take 10 for a result of 25 on the disguise check for the uniforms.

"I don't mean to make you nervous, my friend," begins Ibid, turning to Miro. As he speaks, his words are warm and apologetic. "Or, unduly put the burden of our mission's success or failure on your shoulders. I can only speak for myself, but I fear most of us may not be of much help to you, so far as talking our way past the watchmen, creating disguises, or feigning to be a guards ourselves. These are simply areas in which I am, and maybe the others, are less than an amateur."

"During the task ahead and when preparing for it, I will defer to your lead and ask that you direct me however you may need. Whether that be spending my gold, trying my best to aid you, being a mere distraction, or keeping my big mouth shut."

Kicking this onwards, based on what you planned. I'm assuming you're trying to bluff your way in...
Their preparations and disguises complete, the party heads to the Wise Quarter. After a short stroll, they reach quieter parts of the Quarter. Soon, notice a large warehouse that matches the description. There's a business entrance by the street, and loading doors in the backyard. Giving a knock on the door, Miro can hear approaching footsteps behind the door, and then the door opens. A middle-aged man stands in the doorway, looking at the party over his spectacles. Behind the man the Pathfinders can see multitudes of shelves and crates and boxes, and some workers lazily carrying items around.

"Mmm, yes? How may I help you, gentlemen?", the man at the door mumbles.

Cyrus stands near the back of the group, doing his best to look bored, just another assignment moving someone's else's stuff around. Inside though, he is practically bursting with excitement.

now this is fun! I hope we don't get caught, at least out here... Inside maybe not so bad... As long as we can make them forget this ever happened...

He kicks a rock in more mock boredom, looking sidelong at ibid, and takes a deep breath, waiting for the silver tounged wordsmith to schmooze their way into the warehouse.

-Posted with Wayfinder

"All work and no pay makes Jack a dull boy, eh?" mutters Lort from the back, typically louder than intended.

If it is to be a bluff, may I suggest that Cyrus runs the bluff while Miro assists? Miro is better at diplomacy, from what I can recall when I GMed.

My bluff is +8, Miro blows us all out of the water on diplomacy. As long as our gm is ok with it, I like the idea of Miro and I both talking, maybe Miro taking the lead, in order to use my bluff when necessary, and his diplomacy when necessary... Is my bluff higher than Miro?

-Posted with Wayfinder

My diplomacy is +11, bluff is +10 (now that I have versatile performance)

Miro gives the man a crisp salute, keeping his face straight. "We're here to relieve the guards on duty, sir. M'lord wants his men working less hours, to make sure they're in peak condition and alert while they guard m'lord's treasures for tomorrow's events."

Take 10 on Diplomacy for a 21, take 10 on Bluff for a 20, before aiding.

Gunari would have been able to use enhanced diplomacy to give him a +2, and will help out with an aid for hopefully another +2

Gunari pulls out his hip flask, which is full of corn whiskey. "Care for a bit to warm the soul, my friends?" He offers the flask to the guards. "I know how thirsty one gets while standing guard, and the bosses ain't no good at slakin' it."

Aid Another w/ Diplomacy: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Aid Another w/ Bluff: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (14) + 0 = 14

Miro's checks are definitely better than mine... I'll aid another for him

Cyrus nods as Miro and Gunari speak with the guard.

"Sounds like the man in charge is going to be rotating these guard stations pretty regular. Something in there is pretty important to him. I just try not to ask too many questions, and make sure I do my job. It's about the only way to make sure you have a chance to get paid what you deserve, no? Of course, that doesn't always work either..." He trails off.

Diplomacy Aid: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21

Bluff Aid: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (17) + 8 = 25

"Uh, M'lord?" the man at the door looks puzzled.

"'e must mean th' Lord ... sumthin'" a bored-looking guard nearby helps out. "There's some crates for 'im, s'pposed t' be picked up today. So, Mr. supervisor, ye got fine fresh men 'ere," the guard continues, taking the offered flask. "Does that mean I'm free t' go? I've done 'nuf sitting 'ere already"

"But, but, but... there was no mention of this.." the supervisor goes through his papers. Then he looks at the guard who is already packing his gear, and then at the Pathfinders. "Aah, whatever! They don't pay enough for this s*it!" he shouts, throwing the papers around the floor. "Change of guard, you can leave..." the man sighs, giving up.

You're inside. So is the supervisor plus a number of warehouse workers

"So, what's the first order of business?" Lort asks the supervisor, looking around the warehouse for signs of the portraits.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (13) + 9 = 22 -- not sure if you want us to roll our own perception or not. I'm generally opposed to it as a PbP and IRL GM, so please do feel free to reroll for me.

"Me an' the big lout here," Gunari points at Lort, "We be the muscle of dis 'ere team. You want fer us to watch da door, or what? Dem others, dey is da brains, so dey can do the hard stuff. Right, Grug?" Gunari laughs.

'Don't get carried away. You aren't the brains of this group!'

The workers don't seem to pay too much attention to the disguised Pathfinders, so they are free to look around the warehouse. Soon, Lort is able to spot crates that could be used to store and transport large paintings.

"The crates are over there," Lort whispers, actually quiet for once, "Don't all look at once! Now do we need a distraction? I'd be happy to provide one."

From the grin on Lort's face, no-one is sure if he's talking about fighting everyone here, or just trying to get their attention for a while.

Miro looks for an empty office area, or, barring that, a secluded corner of the warehouse.

There are quieter, secluded corners in the warehouse. But as the workers walk around the warehouse, one cannot be sure they wouldn't stumble upon on-going shady paintwork. Unless the Pathfinder get rid of the workers or manage to capture their attention completely.

Warehouse map for reference.

"Lort, lets get these guy's attention, eh? I think it's time to rally the crowd for better pay and working conditions..." Cyrus says with a mischievous smile.

Going to try to post a bit of a speech as soon as I get some time to write it out, just wanted to let you all know my plan. If you would rather do something else, feel free to chime in! (as in, don't let me hog it all) I will preview before I post so I don't get cyrus'd in case someone else has an awesome idea.

Lort goes leaves the current group and goes over to help some of he other men with some very heavy lifting. The half-orc grunts in greeting and just gets to work.

His aim here is to be ready to be a dissenting voice in the "crowd" when Cyrus starts.

Ibid looks for a moment alone to bend the ears of Miro and Cyrus, without the surrounding and unsuspecting workers able to hear his words, "Perhaps there is a slightly different way to go about this..."

"It's seems to be true, based on the information we've cobbled together, that these workers are probably discontent with their situation and pay," the old man begins, stooping a little closer his friends. "Once we get them all riled up, what is the plan? As I see it, there are two possibilities if we succeed in agitating these workers... One, they let us alone and we proceed with our work, and then once Lord Minovitas sees what we've done to his precious painting it won't be too hard to figure out the alteration occurred while it was held at this warehouse. Then, I would expect Lord Minovitas to seek retribution in the form of having these workers fired for their ineptitude."

"Or possibility number two, we get them worked up and they quit here and now, leaving us to our devices. In either case, I'd expect them not have jobs once our fifth-column finishes this mission. And I can't speak for you, but I'd count that as our fault."

Taking a slight pause, Ibid waits a moment before continuing, "I've got a little bit of gold I could spare." The old man turns to scan the number of workers in their vacuity. "They'll never be able to stop us, even if they tried. So, perhaps a little gold will help them let us alone to complete our surreptitious task, in addition to playing off their discontent, and also bestow upon them a little scratch for when they inevitably are fired for failing to stop us."

"You definitely voice some of my concerns Ibid - though I had that thought in mind. We can certainly help with some coin in case they do get fired, though my intention was to help them out by showing their superiours just how important they are. We get them to organize and protest, even if just for a few hours. When their superiors realize what happens to their warehouse goods when the guards aren't doing their jobs, they will realize how important they are. Maybe shakey logic, but it works in my head."

"Besides, once Lord rotundness gets wind of this, he might just find a way to shut this warehouse down, regardless of the fate of the workers. Hopefully we can display his 'ignobleness' to the rest of the people whom he holds sway, and he will not only be disgraced, but lose his political pull as well."

Cyrus begins to make his way into the warehouse, summoning up the courage to begin his heartfelt speech to rile up the workers.

My plan was to get the workers riled up, and hopefully form a small 'protest'. I intend to try to get them all gathered in an area of the warehouse away from the paintings where I will speak to them about how they are underappreciated, underpaid, and being taken advantage of. Union type stuff really... Then our other party members can begin the sabatoge and painting swap while we have them distracted (Miro and Lort and me all working together I imagined). I am writing my speech post in word to copy paste as soon as I can... I hope to have it before lunch.

Warning! Wall of text - attempted inspirational speech below:

Cyrus ambles his way around the warehouse, appearing to be random, but purposefully moving away from the dock and location where the paintings are stored. As he moves, he grumbles, clearly frustrated. Once a safe distance away, and with Lort a few dozen yards away and within easy earshot, he finally snaps.

”I don’t know how much longer I can take this crap. All day! Every day! My son is practically an orphan I see him so little, and by the time I do bring home my pay, its short! They ask us to work more and more, and they pay us less and less.” His volume begins to increase as he starts walking from worker to worker, looking them in the eye. A hearty ”Here Here!” is heard from a particular large half-orc moving a stack of boxes just nearby.

Cyrus looks around to make sure he has some of the worker’s attention, and snaps a broom over his knee. Stepping up onto a larger crate so he can be seen by more people, he continues. ”Those greedy good for nothing bosses aren’t afraid to line their pockets every chance they get. And at who’s expense? OURS! I’m still using a cobbled up box jack that I swear was made before the last time Absalom was invaded! They can’t give us anything to work with…” Cyrus continues on unabated, volume increasing for several minutes, egging on the crowd and playing to their frustrations, particularly their lack of recent pay, the crowd no doubt being seeded to further inflammation by his companions playing their part in the crowd.

”When are they going to ever respect the work that we do? We started out as a necessity, important, nay CRITICAL I say to the success of this warehouse. WE are the ones who make it happen, who keep this place running. WE are the ones who makes sure the brigands and thieves don’t raid the merchant’s goods that are stored here. They used to know that, and now we are just a line item on an expense report! An unfortunate expense they must try to find a way to cut or eliminate so they can stick a few more gold coins in their pocket and a few more whores in their bed. This place would be nothing without us, without our diligence, effort, and work ethic! WE DESERVE BETTER!”

Cyrus pauses for effect, frozen in place with his clenched fist held high in the air, his face flushed red with the passion and excitement of the speech he just delivered.

”And now its time we show them. Together, we march as one guard, one team, and demand they finish paying us what we deserve, or we all walk out together, and THEN lets see them protect their precious goods. How long will it take the word to hit the street that this warehouse has no guards patrolling? How long can they wait before they meet our demands? They cannot I say! Now is the time! With me!”

And with that, Cyrus moves towards the main office, intent on grabbing the ear of the first fat-cat he sees.

For the story sake – Cyrus will continue this charade out, fully intent on making it happen. Ie – he won’t just leave once the party does what they need to do to the paintings, he will actually try to make good on what he promised he should. Now that I type that out, it pretty much reminds me of one of the oceans 37 movies where the guys get the Mexican workers that make the casino dice to strike… Same concept. If that makes sense. Also, I would totally lean on Miro and Lort for aids, or if it is a diplomacy if there is a way to give Miro the roll instead of Cyrus and have Cyrus aid… Whatever gives us the best chance and makes sense.