Supernatural Society of Cedrana (Inactive)

Game Master GamerAim

"I don't know," says the woman, her thoughts and tone indicating frustrated, "But I'm sure someone else in town can help you. Maybe try the archives building in the morning, if you're really desperate. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like you to leave."

Stands up and nods to the woman.

"Thank you for your time."

Turns looking at the others,

"Shall we"

Indecating the door.

Once outside the hospital she will say.

"She was telling the truth, she sore nothing. Or can't remember anything either way we are back to seeing what the town folk know"

Felix masks his disappointment and makes his way out the door.

"You may have tipped our hand there."

As they are going back to town.

"Not a lot I could do, nether where being cooperative. But as a cover it will stand for now. I made clear, we don't believe any of this. Also I was reading her mind, she know nothing but thought we where mad cranks following ghosts. At best we will be seen as crazy's of she talks."

She looks out from the buggy.

"Something feels all off here, an old story of a red mad horse. That and what Green felt, one big creature that just up and left not tracks. Huffs could account for the odd shapes marks. So it fits in a way."

She looks back in.

"But why if this thing has been around a while, so long its gone into folk law, why is this thing acting up now. We need to hear the tails of this thing. If we could find someone who has seen it, even better."

Harkell navigates away from the hospital down the dimly-lit streets of Edrev, when he sees an 8+-foot-tall red-pelted camel seemingly fade into existence at the end of the street, forcing the spooked horse to veer to the side of the road to a stop - clearly, the Owl-Masked Lady provided you with a well-trained horse. You are now no more than 60 feet away from the creature, which seems poised to attack you. Initiative: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15 I'm not going to worry about surprise right now.

init: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12

Init 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12

"Look to, we'er being attacked"

She says, in case anyone missed it.

Initiative: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

Leon heads out with the others, mulling over what little they've learned and wondering what's to be done now. The second question gets an unexpected answer when a beast materializes and the horse jolts to a stop. "The hell?" he asks, peering outside, and as he sees the monster, he kicks open the door. His hands fetch his pistols in a flash, and as he comes out of the carriage in a short roll, he fires a shot at the creature. That is a move and an attack, against flat-footed touch AC since it hasn't acted and I'm within five range increments.

Attack: 1d20 + 9 - 6 ⇒ (4) + 9 - 6 = 7 (Penalty for range)
Damage: 2d4 + 4 ⇒ (1, 2) + 4 = 7

Initiative (Thomas): 1d20 ⇒ 17Initiative (Felix): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21 From now on, I'll roll Initiative for everyone at the start of combat. Thomas and Felix act simultaneous with Leon, then the camel attacks, then Harkell and Alyln.

Thomas is unusually ready, and grabs at his pendant around his neck, muttering to himself, then splashes the nearest available liquid on his thumb and his hand starts to glow.

If you get hit you'll thank me later.

Casting Celestial Healing, holding the charge.

As his companions readied for battle, Felix's expression turned sour. Crane could typically make quick of the magical creatures he found, but without the anonymity of his mask, the well-mannered gentleman couldn't bear to be caught practicing witchcraft. He gave a quick scan of the area to be certain there weren't any uninitiated folk around, then spoke quickly.

"If it proves too dangerous, take cover and delay until my return."

With that said, he focused his magic into a shimmering field around him, and vanished completely from sight. He had roughly thirty seconds to find a new hiding spot before the magic wore off, at which point, if anyone saw, his cover would be blown entirely and none of this would have any point.

Felix is casting Vanish and finding a secure hiding place. After however long it takes to get to his hiding place, it takes one minute (ten rounds) to change identities, which puts him squarely out of the fight.

Felix sights no civilians as he moves towards a nearby alley, hiding out of sight in a tucked-away darkness-shrouded alcove. Leon's shots barely miss the beast, which then hovers at 10 feet per second towards the party, ending its turn within touch range of Leon. Now for Alyln and Harkell

Harkell draws his strange-looking staff, and looks (perhaps foolishly) ready to strike.

readied action to strike with Manticore's tail as part of an energy blade attack. +1 is there because he is presumably on higher ground (on the cart)

ranged attack (30ft): 1d20 + 8 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 8 + 1 = 23
dmg: 3d6 ⇒ (4, 4, 2) = 10 half piercing, half acid. If i hit, DC 16 reflex or it is Entangled and unable to move. On its turn, it takes 3 bleed damage.

for the visual, Harkell swings a staff and the end of the staff flings off and flies at the enemy, the head flinging at the end of a cord.

got so excited for the first combat, i forgot my weapon's base damage
piercing: 1d2 ⇒ 2

also the save is DC 17, not 16

Seeing the thing move she keeps her eye on it but dose not move but dose.

The creature is large-sized, so I don't think being in the cart would constitute higher ground. Also: Alyln's dispel has been retconned.

Harkell's aim is true and the head of the staff seems to fly through the strange beast, projecting its full 30 foot distance. But while the physical body continues to travel through, the camel neighs in pain from the acid (Or acidic metal?) soaring through its incorporeal body; however, the adhesive effect collapses as it simply passes through the figure of the beast.

Alyln examines the creature, noting everything she's learned so far and sees now, and deduces that it is likely some sort of incorporeal undead. Based on the evidence suggesting it is a camel spirit, it is probably a ghost or similar undead. And yet, it is unusually violent for an animal spirit, suggesting that something is influencing its behavior, albeit something unknown as of yet.

I guess that's the end of round one. I think Felix is 9 rounds away from being changed, so Thomas and Leon go now.

"Abadar's golden balls!" Leon shouts, thrown off by the camel's rush--and the way it appears to be hovering straight at him. Divine profanities aside, he kicks backward a step, firing with his other pistol, aimed for what he's pretty sure is a weak spot.
Five-foot stepping back, move action to make the camel my studied target, and then another attack, with +1 from studied target and +1 from point-blank shot.

Attack: 1d20 + 9 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 9 + 1 + 1 = 25
Damage: 2d4 + 4 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (2, 3) + 4 + 1 + 1 = 11

Take a hard look at it, while trying to keep under cover in the buggy.
She seems to be assessing what it could be.

Edit

::"It's some kind of incorporeal... undead... camel spirit, Necromancy!... but its being so unusually violent even for a spirit. Something has angered or set this beast on this course. Magic will harm it, holy things and blessings"::

She sends her mind out to those that are listening.

Thomas continues to hold his healing on reserve, while Leon fires on the camel, his bullet simply passing through the camel unfazed. It's all non-magical damage, right? I checked your character sheet and that appears to be the case.

The camel makes a groaning camel sound and moves in front of the cart, then kicks its front feet up at Harkell, its limbs passing through the cart and Harkell's nonmagical protections alike! Corrupting Touch (incorporeal touch attack, bypasses DR and nonmagical armor): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17 Damage: 3d6 ⇒ (3, 5, 3) = 11 DC 11 Fort save for half if hits: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9

I don't know all what bonuses contribute to Harkell's AC, so I trust you to tell me if you're hit. Next up is Alyln and Harkell.

just missed, 18 is my touch AC. I'll try to clean things up and add a tagline when i get some spare time

With the beast up in his face, Harkell attempts to give the beast a taste of its own medicine: a powerful kick.

Amulet of Mighty Fists +1 so his unarmed strike is a magical weapon.

atk: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19
dmg: 1d6 + 1 + 3d6 ⇒ (5) + 1 + (4, 2, 2) = 14

1d6+1 is bludgeoning from the kick, the 3d6 is acid from the Adhesive Blast (blast type) with the Energy Blade (blast shape). I guess the entangle wont work (i think it is a 50% chance though "Corporeal spells and effects that do not cause damage only have a 50% chance of affecting an incorporeal creature.")

It's been 3 days since my post, so Alyln is being skipped. Also sorry about the delay: been kinda busy, but it's handled now. Especially since this update doesn't have much.

Harkell kicks the camel and it lets out a ghostly howl and dissipates quickly.

Sorry was it me,: I thought others needed to still go round 1 humm me bad

Lady Alyln is still in the buggy, she showed no fear during the attack, no emotion other than intense study. She was confident the others would deal with the best. What she wanted was to study it in action.

Harkell looks in the area the camel was just in, searching for any ectoplasm, or traces of where it came from metaphysically.

If she fails a Kn roll will retake with a +4 1pp :P

Harkell finds residual traces of red ectoplasm. The coloration of it and the ghost itself suggests some sort of angry spirit - but animals rarely create angry spirits. Something must have happened to turn this camel red with rage in its life after death, but nothing in its ectoplasm shows you exactly what that could be.

Thomas releases his spell, letting his arcane energy subside back to normal levels.

Anybody know whether camels are indigenous to the area?

Blinks then jumps down and walks over to Greenbeard.

"I have nothing, it was a angry red... spirit.. undead.. camel?. No idea, no idea why, where it's from or why it attacked is. Ranked my mind to find anything remotely like it. Nothing. So what you got Greenbeard, more than me I hope."

She looks over at Thomas, and shrugs. Then furrows her brow,

"Where did Tipper go?"

"Nothing of import, as far as I can tell at this juncture. Its spirit was red with rage, and it is atypical for creatures to make ghosts, much less angry ghosts. It suggests an intelligence above that of a normal creature and either an extreme drive or a horrific death, perhaps."

"Well lets keep heading back into the town. We best be on guard just in case"

She checks to see if the buggy is fine to use for getting back.

If it's not a native species then maybe whom ever brought a camel along with them has been near the source of the animals... suffering.

The buggy and horse are still serviceable. Where're you going?

Back to town they head.

You are already in town. You went to the hospital in town, then left the hospital when you were attacked. Unless there was some other town to which you are heading?

I thought we ought to look for a zoo or a traveling circus?

"Well we have tangible proof now something is going on here that should not be, we best get to our hotel"

@others who will hear
::"If that thing went at us here, close to the hospital and in town. Questions then, was it a directed, provoked or a chance attack?"::

She looks around.

@others who will hear
::"There are a number of possibility's. Someone or her maybe behind this and wants us to stop looking, it could have been blind chance but that is very unlikely, we could have picked up something we got from her and its now with us, something that angry spirit was after. It could be the woman did something she dose not know she has angered it. Or.... If she had been to look at the attack site, It could have jumped to her and now us. That is a possibility as well. We need to ask around about who she is a what she dose where. She may be an unwitting link."::

"That seems like a fruitful avenue. Mistreatment of animals, perhaps."

The rest of the journey to your hotel is uneventful and you arrive at the Wayfaring Stranger. The clerk greets you and directs you to your rooms and hands you some complimentary leaflets advertising local industries, including The World's Largest Ball of Twine 10 miles outside of town, the historic Edrev County records house, Tom's Bistro eatery in downtown Edrev, and a petting zoo just outside of Edrev boasting the only camels in Cedrana.

Once the group's checked in and settled in, Leon sets his things in his room and wanders into whatever area the others are gathered at. "Well, I don't know about you folks, but I for one think we oughta check out this ball of twine. World's largest, there's gotta be somethin' fishy going on there, I reckon." He glances up from the pamphlet with a crooked grin. "And then maybe these camels, too."

One at the hotel, she orders a sweet for her and Lord Tipper, paying the extra, some food, light supper and a bottle of good wine, two classes.

To the others she says.

"I'll see you on the morrow Sir's."

Once Mr and Mrs Tipper get to the room she says.

"I need a bath, you have the spear bed."

She says heading to the bath room, undressing and getting into a nice hot bath. She sits and thinks on the day, playing back in her mind what happened.

After she places her Psicryatal where it can't be spotted to keep watch over them while they sleep, and goes to bed.

----------
If nothing happens
In the morning she will meet the others for breakfast.

"I plan to try the eatery, and the zoo. Camels..."

The hotel serves complementary breakfast from 6 AM to 10 AM, and this morning provides a choice between pancakes with local cactus syrup and fresh omelettes, served with either spring water or cactus flower tea. After breakfast, you make your way outside of town as per the directions in the pamphlet to find Frankfurt Presents Camelpalooza, a petting zoo with a variety of domestic animals like mountain lions, jackrabbits and bison, but its main attraction is the camels you came to see.

At the gated entrance behind a ticket booth is a man in a white stripped suit and tophat, presumably once white but now a sand-stained beige. The zoo has only recently opened for the day and few people are here as most of the traffic is on weekends, so as you approach, he introduces himself with a routine but genuine friendliness, "Howdy folks, I'm Kensworth Frankfurt, owner of this fine family-owned and family-friendly establishment. You certainly are an unusual group, aren't you? I take it you'd be interested in our discounted group pricing..." he trails off as he checks a lockbox on the counter for the precise quantity of tickets.

Harkell looks around from where he stands, letting the others do the talking.

Felix remained within earshot of the battle during his "transformation", and by the time he emerged in his persona as Mr. Crane, he suspected he wasn't needed. Instead, he spent the remainder of his evening fruitlessly prowling about the outskirts of the town.

He met up with the others in the morning as they left the hotel, still in his mask. In this persona, the man seemed to adopt a curt manner of speech, and seemed to stand with a slouch. The difference is stark, and few would readily suspect that this was the same man who had been here the other day.

While Felix often put himself in the front of the group, Crane had a tendency to move between the others, relying on those around him to make him seem less conspicuous. As the ticket-man speaks, he nudges Leon forward.

"Go on, pay the man."

"Of course." Leon's comment is a tad delayed, and whether directed at Crane, Frankfurt, or both isn't obvious. "I think group pricing would be for us, yes. But we're not here just for the tourism." He pulls a cigarillo from his case and lights it up. "We're here for an organization that's interested in making sure your animals are treated justly and aren't disrupting the environment. Now I'm sure it's nothing, but we need to substantiate--or disprove--some things we've heard to the effect of mistreated animals."

The man leans his head back and blows a ring of smoke high into the air. "I'm sure you can help us set things straight, and make sure your, ah, 'Camelpalooza' retains its good name." He smiles.

Bluff: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17

Bluff Aid Another: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (1) + 10 = 11

Just as the man says. We have seen evidence of impact by non-native species upon the local ecosystem.

She has, Internal Armor, Conceal Thoughts, Mind like to the party, and empathy running.

As they get to the zoo, she says nothing but lest others talk.
As they are greeted she feels the minds those that greet them.

As Mr Frankfurt is talked to, she pays heed to his thoughts.
O well

She thought to herself,

What are they thinking

Empathy

She smiles and waited to see what the results of thire words would be.

Frankfurt puts up a sign that says "Come Back Later" and exits the ticket booth to shake Leon's hand, "Well now, that there'd explain the way you all look, 'specially the one of the back with the mask," the man smiles and waves at Crane, "Well come in, come in. I'm more than happy to show you around and answer any questions you and your organization may have, but I can assure you that we've taken great care of these animals and their environment ever since my great-great-great-great-great-granddaddy opened this place up. Why, the first animals we ever got here was a pack of camels my great-great-great-great-great-granddaddy bought from the army back when so they wasn't killed when whatever cockamamie camel project they was up to was chopped. From there we just expanded and now boast over 10 species of domestic and foreign animals." he says as he leads you through the petting zoo, past mountain lions, goats, jackrabbits, pigs, boars, cows and other animals, all the up to the main attraction: the supposedly only eight camels in all of Cedrana.

Alyln sense exuberance and honesty in Frankfurt's words. If he's truly done anything wrong, he doesn't know about it.

She looks over Greenbeard, with a Do you know what hes talking about look.