Silbeg's Slayers: #3-21: The Temple of Empyreal Enlightenment (Inactive)

Game Master Silbeg

In order to learn about the esoteric faith of the Empyreal Lord Korada, the PCs are sent by the Pathfinder Society to explore an abandoned aasimar temple to the benevolent deity. But what they find there is anything but an opportunity for peaceful reflection and enlightenment.

Victory in the Ruby Phoenix Tournament earned the Pathfinder Society a pick of the legendary treasures of the Tian sorceress Hao Jin, and the Decemvirate knew just what item to select: a frayed and dirty tapestry hidden deep in Hao Jin’s vault. This unassuming tapestry acts as a doorway to another dimension in which Hao Jin stored her most massive items, including entire buildings, battlefields, and the ruins of ancient civilizations. The Pathfinder Society is now methodically exploring and cataloging the diverse locales tucked within this extradimensional space.

“You will enter the tapestry within the hour. Any questions?”

"When you say 'enter the tapestry' you mean that we are going into that rug hanging on the wall? That is fantastic. I would love to learn the secret of how a rug can hold a temple. Think of the possibilities. A house in a comb, a village in a mirror." Ophiuchus glances down at his tabard, a smile spreading on his lips.

"So to go to the temple, we 'enter the tapestry', how do we return?"

"Aye, I was wondering the same thing," the youth speaks up in agreement with Ophiuchus. "The mission seems so different from any other we've been assigned. We're going so far and yet, at the same time, nowhere at all."

"What happens if the tapestry unravels while we are inside?" Vox asks the question, eying the textile art. He is not joking, though his question might seem like such, but the youth is perplexed by such an odd mission and he cannot seem to wrap his mind around the implications of delving a pocket dimension such as this.

"There's a temple in there? It must be tiny! Are there tiny people moving the rug, too?" Roudantaimi says, excited, pressing his face close to the tapestry. "Do they now see giant nostrils appearing from the sky above now? This is going to be awesome mission!"

Jaendar chuckles at the thought of looking up and seeing gigantic nostrils above him. He hoists his pack on his shoulders as he looks at the tapestry , wondering even more about the wondrous magical power contained within.

Aram Zey sighs audibly at the musing of the Slayers. Yes, the 'rug' on the wall. The Hao Jin Tapestry is a powerful artifact... a gateway into a pocket dimension. No, they cannot see you. There is no chance that that the Tapestry will unravel while you are inside. The people will be full size, if you see any. No, they won't be seeing giant nostrils.

“A creature entering the tapestry leaves a planar eddy in its wake. It looks like a ball of light about two feet across. The planar eddy is visible and usable only by that creature as long as it remains alive. Enter your planar eddy to return here.”

Looking annoyed (a normal thing for the Master of Spells), he sighs again, and asks, "So, do you have any more questions. And I am not answering any more questions about huge nostrils or tiny people.

"In any case, we have no reason to think the temple is occupied. The temple is likely uninhabited except by ancient guardians or traps, although I suppose some scavengers may have found their way into the structure."

Jaender purses his lips for a moment before speaking up.

"Do you know if the site may have some sort of consecration, or magical augmentation to it that would be common to aasimar temples? I'm just curious how it might effect our spells. You know, for academic reasons." Jaender smiles disarmingly as he taps a pen on a conspicuously empty page in his journal.

-Posted with Wayfinder

"That is an interesting question, Jaender. It is good to know that at least one person wasn't sleeping through my classes. Unfortunately, we don't know the answer to that. I would expect that you would take the time to observe such phenomenon. Of course, I don't expect that someone who merely inherits his spell-casting ability due to a dalliance in his ancestor's past would be able to differentiate such variances in the magical aura nor ascertain their root cause.

"But, please, give it your best shot," he finishes, rolling his eyes.

Kn: Religion: Roudantaimi: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24
Kn: History: Ophiuchus: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (17) + 4 = 21
Kn: Religion: Ophiuchus: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (3) + 5 = 8

"Hey I heard of the devotees of Korada meditate by spinning small glass spheres in their palms! Best ones do three spheres in each hand. That sounds really awesome. I want to try, so we can impress any devotees we meet. Ooh, there's a couple of glass balls. Can I borrow them, Mr. A? Thanks, I'll help myself.

Eh, I hope they weren't too expensive? But you can magic them back together, right?" Roudantaimi coughs bit embarrassed, while shoving the broken glass under the table with his foot. To direct the attention away from his sphere-spinning mishap, he retrieves a small note from his pocket. The title of the note is scribbled with the gnomes handwriting, and is titled "What the Society High-ups like to be asked".

"Umm.. So what kind of dangers we should prepare?" That's sounds like a solid question. Not very interesting, but they usually like such. Oh, but did he already answer this?
"I mean, what kind of creatures live there, who might have found their way to the structure."

Jaender smirks as his obvious intentions for his question are easily realized by the master of scrolls.

"Ahhh, I imagine we should be off... Or in... Once everyone had asked their questions? I think I am ready."

hoping to finish my purchases from my chronicle sheet today, if I can break away from the unpacking long enough to update my sheet...

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"Wait a minute, I remember this story. It was a story that my mother would tell me whenever I dropped my milk on the rug. She would say things like, 'Opie, be careful. You just might have drowned a village.' or 'Careful Opie, your turnip that you dropped might have just crushed a temple.'. Well we are all adults and know that those are stories told to frighten children. The real story is:"

Tianjing is a nation of aasimars in the Dragon Empires. The empire of Lung Wa protected, rather than conquered, Tianjing, allowing philosophy and arts to flourish in the aasimar nation.

Several centuries ago, Hao Jin performed a great service for Tianjing’s custodian council. In gratitude, the council presented the sorceress with a temple of Korada, the Temple of Empyreal Enlightenment, to add to her collection.

Oh man, even just the sight of this guy makes me want to go to sleep! Thank Desna I got a field commission and didn't have to sit through any of his lectures... 'blah blah, tapestry'... 'doo dah, lost temple'... 'dum duh, enlightenment'. Boring! Now, those sultry waitresses we saw in the coins district were another matter...

"Zzzzz.... huh?!" Arturo is broken from his sleepy reverie by the sound of his own snoring, "Hum, ho... erm... yeah, ready to go!"

"Arturo, pay attention to the briefing! I realize that my classes were far beyond your capabilities, but this mission should be something that you can handle. An empty temple to explore, some rubbings to make. Yes, you just make sure to stay out of the way of your literate teammates when they are trying to fulfill the mission.

"What were your mission goals, again, Pathfinder Arturo?"

He turns back to Roudantaimi, shaking his head, and says, "The temple is likely uninhabited except by ancient guardians or traps, although I suppose some scavengers may have found their way into the structure.

Clean up your mess... there is a broom and dustpan in the closet over there. Try not to break anything else, Pathfinder Roundantaimi."

He looks at the assembled group, and asks, "Has anyone seen the 'Strong Brute'? He is late, though I expect that he'd only break whatever he finds, Master Farabellus thought that he would be of use on this mission."

Wow, and here I thought Valsin was the one with a big pole stuck up his arse...

"Mission goals?" Arturo says aloud, "Go to the place where people think, read about how they went about it, then sit down in silence and think ourselves... then tell you what we thought about thinking in that way. Then we go and read some books... and then write about it so you can read what we wrote. Last, find some carvings and copy those down for you, too. Was that all? I'm afraid my mind started wandering after you said 'rubbing'. That exotic masseuse on Pink Street looked very welcoming..."

Rather than be insulted or put off, Jaender is quietly amused at the patience level of the master of scrolls. He snickers both at the rebuke of Arturo and the rebuttal.

"it's probably best that we get going now... There is strong brute, there, in the back of the room. He hardly ever says anything anyways, even when spoken to. It may be intentional, it may not, but I have never seen anyone live up to the wisdom "speak softly, and carry a big stick" quite so much as him. You of all people, master, should know not to judge a scroll by its casing. "

Jaender smiles, and his tone holds no malice. "shall we be off?"

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"Ooh, I am ready to go into the rug to the temple with no one praying, and record what is not written and then come back by the hovering bright light. Do we need to get anything first? Maybe some paper and something to rub."

Turning to Arturo, who is just opening his mouth, "Don't say it. Don't even say it."

That's Master of Spells... Aram Zey is not the flayleaf using Master of Scrolls Kreighton Shaine! ;)

"You Pathfinders should really learn to listen! Did I now say we'll be giving you a cache of supplies? That includes paper and charcoal for the rubbings... everything you'll need to catalog the the temple.

"And if you know what's good for you, Arturo... and you like being as human as you are... don't... say... it..."

That's Master of Spells... Aram Zey is not the flayleaf using Master of Scrolls Kreighton Shaine! ;)

This is exactly the reason why I get annoyed at the Wayfinder app, for all its usefulness. It is such a pain to scroll back up the posts to verify little tidbits of information as I am typing my post. Oops!

"Well guys," says Arturo, able to take the suspense no longer, "Let's go to this temple and rub one out."

Vox looks up toward the towering figure of Strong Brute, his face mixing a look of quizzicalness with a toothy smirk. "Are you ready to catalog some statues, my big handed, big hearted friend?" the youth finishes with a laugh.

Turning to Venture-Captain Ambrus Valsin, Vox adds in a more serious tone with the smirk having left his face. "We will examine and catalog the statues. And we will help the others, as well, if they have any special tasks of their own... such as counting silverware or the like."

When the others are ready, the youth takes his leave of the Venture-Captain, to collect his gear and prepare for an odd mission, that he questions in the back of his mind if it could possibly be a joke against him and his friends.

Vox is ready

"This one has no questions."

He looked down to Vox and smiled, nodding. "Indeed. Though this one fears that we may end up only cataloguing dust, the way our escapades usually turn out."

The Pathfinder Society gives the Slayers plenty of food, water, ink, charcoal, parchment, rice paper, and measuring twine to complete their mission. The Master of Spells gives Vox a funny look when it is apparent that he is planning on bringing his wolf along, but decides to let it be. "Just so that you know, since you didn't bother to ask, a creature entering the tapestry leaves a planar eddy in its wake. It looks like a ball of light about two feet across. The planar eddy is visible and usable only by that creature as long as it remains alive. Enter your planar eddy to return here. Vox, you will have to command your pet to do the same, which will be complicated by the fact that you won't be able to see it. Good luck with that.

"Oh, and the same goes for you, as well, Roudantaimi."

Aram Zey escorts you one by one onto the scaffold and instructs you to place your fingers upon a symbol of three linked circles the tapestry’s weave. The Master of Spells utters a trigger word and the Slayer touching the tapestry disappears from the Material Plane, whisked into Hao Jin’s demiplane. He repeats the process with each Slayer.

The PCs arrive in the Hao Jin Tapestry instantaneously, finding themselves standing atop a forested hill in front of a large, wide building of burnished white stone. The sky above is bright and the air smells clean and fresh. Behind each arriving creature floats a 2-foot-diameter sphere of pulsing blue light, each visible only to the creature whose journey to the tapestry created it.

The Temple of Empyreal Enlightenment is a wide structure atop a forested hill. The graceful building has no sharp corners; the white marble walls are carved with soft, round edges. The edifice appears well-scrubbed, but despite this obvious care black flecks of mold cover its surface. A gravel path leads into an airy courtyard and up to a pair of large wooden double doors. The doors are carved with an image of four spheres resting inside an open lotus flower.

I am assuming that Einhardt made it through, but Roudi's gecko did not.

Tactical Map is ready, you are through. Unless otherwise noted, the temple rooms and halls are 20 feet high and uniformly lit with hanging lanterns containing everburning torches. Walls are smooth, rounded white stone.

For ease of manuevering around, I have left the corridors pretty much uncovered. However, I'd like you to state how you are going through doors, etc. Just for safety's sake. Not that anything will be happening here.

Standard for going through doors will be as follows... unless there are objections.

Arturo examines the doors for traps. If he finds none, he listens at the door for sounds beyond. Assuming all is well, he checks to see if the door is locked. If it is, he'll pull out his lock picks and see what he can do.

Disable device: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (13) + 14 = 27

Once the doors are unlocked, Arturo steps back to allow the Strong Brute to give them a shove and open them. Everyone in standard marching order from here.

Looks good to me!

Jaender nods as Arturo goes about his work, methodically and practiced. This was not the first under-explored area they had gone through, and the last time the rogue and sorcerer went galavanting off in front of the group they both nearly were cut down by goblins. Goblins of all things! No, they would be careful all the time now, even if there wasn't supposed to be anything here but carvings and other artwork.

-Posted with Wayfinder

Please confirm standard marching order on the information page...

"Oh, poo... Looks like I have to leave you home again, Tahmatassu. Be a nice gecko and don't chew Valsin's slippers anymore. The Venture captain was quite angry with you the last time. Bye now!" Roudantaimi waves his pet goodbye, and hops into the tapestry.

On Marching order, assuming down is front, Roudi would swap places with Poochie.

A suggestion for B&E procedure: First Arturo looks for traps in the door, then Roudantaimi uses his Gloves of Reconnaissance to check for enemies on the other side. And last Arturo opens the lock. sound good?

Marching order is fine, and love the idea with the gloves! Didn't know you had 'em. ;-)

So, please move yourselves to the ready positions.
From their position, the Slayers can see three sets of doors. The most obvious doors are at the end of the walking stones that they are currently on. There is also a door to the north, facing east, and double doors to the south, also facing east.

Which do you want to try? Move yourselves, likely with Arturo and Roudantaimi in front for the investigation.

"Might as well try these big welcoming doors first," suggests Arturo, moving up to them. He inspects the exterior for any obvious (and non-obvious) traps that might be present (token moved, perception +10 for traps).

Standing in front of the tapestry, the youth takes hold of the wolf gently by the scruff of her neck, and is continually surprised by hold much fur, fluff, and skin the lean and muscular creature can collect in this one, local area. After minutes spent pleading, begging, pushing, and pulling upon the wolf, Einhardt eventually enters through the portal, not due to any of Vox's effort but seemingly because she had stood reluctant long enough and was good and ready, or her own accord, to pass through the tapestry.

Once on the other side, Vox gathers with the others and watches as they scan the door for threats. The youth prepares for his and Strong Brute's specific mission by producing an implement perfectly designed and crafted for examining, categorizing, and documenting the various statues they may find in their path... his lucerne hammer.

"Let's go find some statues to document," he says to Strong Brute, jostling his hammer in a sarcastic fashion.

Arturo does not find any traps on the doors, and following procedure, Roudi moves up and uses a charge on his gloves of reconnaissance. He is surprised to see a pair of halfling boys playing on the other side of the door.

"Children playing?" asks Artutro, incredulous, "Well, I guess there's nothing to fear then!" With that, the rogue opens the door and steps inside. Somehow the prospect of playing games with halfling children seems to cheer the man up and he enters with a spring in his step.

I just hope I can keep up with these little kids - it's been a while since I've played 'giant in the middle', and I've never been the 'giant' before!

Arturo swings the door open (which was not locked). The two halflings look up in surprise and wonder... and then immediately start taking in common.

"Hello! My name is Xifen!" says one, very exitedly.
"I am Pulao! Who are you?" asks the other.
"Are you here to learn about Korada?", asks Xifen.
"You must be! Korada is wonderful! You must learn about Korada!" says Pulao.
"Do you know our father, Wei? He is a very devout follower of Korada. You must know him!" asks Xifen.

Don't forget resistance chain

"Hello boys! I'm Roudantaimi!" Roudantaimi greets the kids with a smile, delighted to find friendly faces behind a door for once. "And yes, we are here to learn about Korada. Is this his temple? Could you show us around?"

Not really comfortable with the excited rambling going on, the brute just moves up next to Arturo to provide assistance should it be needed. Halfling children didn't seem like a big deal...but they had been lulled into security before...

Jaender smiles at the playing children. Thus certainly was a nice change from what they usually find on the other side of doors.

"We are here to learn! Can you show us where your dad is?"

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Xifen says, "We'd love to show you around! Right here is the entry way1 You can see the Spiral of Korada! Isn't it beautiful?"

Pulao interrupts, "What is even neater is that ever hour a beautiful light is created in the center, which floats up to the heavens, rejoining Korada! It should happen any time now!"

Xifen talks again, "Wei is around somewhere. He is a very busy man, you know. Very important around here. I am sure we will see him!"

"You want to learn about Korada? Well, you have come to the right place!" exclaims Pulao.

"Maybe you should see Master Zhuang! He is very wise, and teaches how we should meditate to become closer to Korada! He is in the meditation room! I could show you the way!" says Xifen.

"And when you are done there, you should come to join uus in our devotions, led by our great spiritual leader, Dakang! He gives his service three times per day in the chapel! Everyone will be there!" says Pulao.

Xifen takes Roudantaimi's hand, and starts pulling him to the north. Just then, a weak mote of light appears at the center of the spiral, and drifts gentle upwards. Xifen stops, and says, "See, didn't Pulao say that would happen?"

"I would love to join you in your devotions," says Arturo, trying hard to hide the sarcasm in his voice, I thought these children would be fun, "And we should definitely see Master Zhuang. I'm sure he'd like to greet us before we start marching around in here."

Arturo looks confused at the mote of light, "Erm, who's Pulao?"

The boy, Pulao, says, "That's me!"

Jaender sticks his elbow in Arturo's thigh, being unable to reach his rib cage due to his short stature.

"This is Pulao. And this is Xifen," he says, indicating the two very talkative boys in front of them.

"one thing at a time. First, maybe take us to meet your father? And what exactly is that little light?" Jaender asks, oblivious to the fact that he just asked two questions, after saying they should take it one step at a time.

-Posted with Wayfinder

Pulao says, "Don't know where Wei is. Always busy! But I will go try and find him for you!" With that, he scampers away.

Xifen says (at the same time), "The clock-light. Weren't you listening, funny little shadow man?"

"That's a pretty clock-light. You were right boys, it was pretty cool. We'd like to learn more about meditation! Does it involve rolling glass spheres one-handed? I need practice in that!" Roudantaimi says, nodding happily to Arturo, oblivious to the sarcasm in the rogues voice. A guided tour, how nice.

"Sorry Xifen, I was. I didn't ask a very good question though. I was more curious how it worked." he smiles at the boy apologetically for asking such a confusing question.

"As Arturo asked, should we meet with Master Zhuang first? Could you show us to where he is?"

"Actually, boys," the youth says, trying to keep the two from scattering, especially Paulo. "You seem like two resourceful and eager gents, and you certainly know your way around better than we do.."

"Perhaps you could tell me where we might find various statues secreted around this place, or in plain sight even," Vox tried to speak enthusiastically to young boys, but can in no way keep up with the chipper tone and demeanor exuded by the children.

"Xifen, do you have a ball? I've been longing to play 'giant in the middle' ever since I heard you two playing," says Arturo hopefully, "Jaender and Roudantaimi can pretend to be little humans and I'll be the giant!"

"Ah, little children. I am Opiuchus the Duck Warrior. It is so nice to meet you. Do you often see strangers and act so kindly to them? It speaks highly of your upbringing to be such good hosts. Are there others about?"

Moving a bit closer to Xifen "What is the clock light?"