To Judge a Soul Series (Inactive)

Game Master DebugAMP

Survival: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (19) + 13 = 32

"Well by the beard of Emperors past. Looks like we aren't the only ones on our way to this wonderful Tian ziggurat of pain or whathaveyou. Black Grave Tower, pah" exclaims Aldebert as he takes a knee to study the tracks left by parties unknown. "Hmmm. Three sets of tracks. Looks humanoid. Large sized too. Excellent! I'm going to assume the worst and ready myself for a bit of sport" he finally quips with that same worrisome smile he's shown many a time now. Reaching back, he pulls out Mathilda the heavy crossbow and loads it up. "Now come at me you large dirty indigenous locals! The pride of the 3rd cohort awaits! BWAHAHAHAHA!"

Chaul smiles, glad to see the spirit of the Taldanian.

If only it could be directed to more socially worthwhile endeavours

"Let us proceed with caution. But remember, not all creatures here may be our enemies. Though once Mathilda has started a conversation, it may well turn out that way."

Wyrgan just chuckles over the exclamations of the Taldan crossbowman...

You follow the footsteps but a sudden drop signals the end of one range and the beginning of another. Far below, the cracking squawk of shifting ice answers the thunder in the sky above. A rope bridge extends across the gap, flapping like a flag in the relentless winds. The far end is shrouded in spirals of snow.

This rope bridge crosses a river 30 feet below. Teardropshaped floes of ice normally drift downstream, although a recent avalanche deposited a huge pile of packed snow directly beneath the bridge. Apart from this snow-jammed area, the river is 10 feet deep.

How do you want to get across? The strong winds in this area make crossing the bridge an ordeal.

"Aha! A bridge! The traditional ideal chokepoint. I have a story about bridges in the phalanx, but in spite of that elixir we ingested, I still feel a mite chilly. Allow me to inspect it and the area."

Perception (Any traps, any beats with a hungry look on their faces, any detachment of local farmers intent on destroying their own shrines?): 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (13) + 13 = 26

perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (16) + 9 = 25

Chaul also looks at the bridge with caution.

"Are any of you skilled in engineering. That doesn't look too solid to me..." he says cautiously.

The cold however doesn't seem to be bothering him much at all.

"Unfortunately, the story I will not retell has to do with the admirable way the Phalanx sometimes dispenses with engineering formalities out in the field. And usually in the most crucial moments. Or the Zimar Rebellions."

It's assumed we all drank the previous scenario's boon elixir right?

I'm assuming so, as it kind of makes sense, no downsides.

"We have rope to tie in to each other to help mitigate falling. Maybe we send someone over by himself tied in to the others to anchor the far side, then send over the others?"

Chaul volunteers to cross the bride first to anchor the far side while he's protected from falling with a rope tied to the others. On the half way across the bridge you suddenly see a yeti rushing out of its hideout and grabbing the far end of the bridge. The yeti begins to shake it.
Shaking Str.: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5

Chaul: please make a strength check.

Chaul holds tight to the bridge...
STR: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 1 = 15

"You will not sway me. I carry the light of the Dawn with me." he shouts at the monster as he tries to continue crossing.

"CONGRATULATIONS!!!" trills Aldebert. "YOU ARE THE FIRST RECIPIENT OF THE PRIDE OF THE THIRD COHORT, CREATURE! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA"

Aldebert would like to shoot at the creature repeatedly. Let me know when that is possible.

Chaul easily holds to the bridge. The yeti gets furious and attempts to cross the bridge to reach Chaul. He seems to be very agressive.

Round 1
Aldebert
-----
Rose
-----
Wyrgan
Chaul
Opal

If you want to move faster than 5ft. per round you have to make a DC12 Reflex save or drop into the chasm. This can't be bypassed by the yeti statue, because this hazard has nothing to do with altitude or cold ;) And please don't ask me why they call a male yeti 'Rose'.

And with a mad caclke to put a madman to shame, Aldebert unloads.

Mathilda, strike #1, RS, DA: 1d20 + 13 - 2 - 2 ⇒ (10) + 13 - 2 - 2 = 19
Damage: 1d10 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11
Mathilda, strike #2, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 13 - 2 - 2 ⇒ (2) + 13 - 2 - 2 = 11
Damage: 1d10 + 6 ⇒ (4) + 6 = 10
Mathilda, strike #3, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 8 - 2 - 2 ⇒ (5) + 8 - 2 - 2 = 9
Damage: 1d10 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13

Here we go again. Good thing I restocked on arrows.

back in the states now and should post more frequently. apologies.

Aldebert shoots three crossbow bolts at the mad yeti, one of them finds the target.

The yeti continues to shake the bridge with Chaul in the middle to shake him off into the chasm. opposed str. check from Chaul, please
Str: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20

Round 1 & 2
Aldebert
-----
Rose -11HP
-----
Wyrgan
Chaul
Opal

Chaul holds on as well as he can, but the Yeti has got a good start on the shaking.

STR: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 1 = 11

He clings gamely but ultimately the Yeti is far too strong, and his grip fails..

"AGENT GOODHEART, I TRUST YOU HAVE THE MATTER IN HAND!" roars Aldebert with delight, as he unleashes another waves of bolts.

Mathilda, strike #1, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 = 18
Damage: 1d10 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 1 = 17
Mathilda, strike #2, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 = 28
Damage: 1d10 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 6 + 1 = 16
Mathilda, strike #3, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 8 - 2 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 8 - 2 - 2 + 1 = 10
Damage: 1d10 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 1 = 17

"Chaul! Come back to this side while I still have you secured with the rope!" Wyrgan says to the cleric. "Let Mathilda sing Aldebert!" Wyrgan says to the Taldan as he holds onto the rope securing Chaul.

At a guess..

Chaul appears to take Wyrgan's word a little too literally as he loses his grip and swings back towards Wyrgan...

Chaul looses grip and slides down the bridge, but Wyrgan holds the rope firmly. Chaul hangs down from the bride on the other end of the rope.

Aldebert shoots three more bolts at the yeti shaking the bridge. Two of them find the target. Opal moves up to Chaul.

The yeti steps on the bridge and gazes at Chaul and Opal.
DC13 Will vs. fear

Round 2 & 3
Aldebert
-----
Rose -44HP
-----
Wyrgan
Chaul
Opal

will: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19
Chaul looks into the horrid beasts eyes and knows fear. However he also knows the redeeming power of Saeraen. Compared to that there is little to fear in the Yeti's glare.

Not sure what Chaul can do... climb up the rope? Ready a blow against the yeti if it comes closer?

"Well now, a dirty look? We Taldanes have been masters of the dirty look for 14 and a half centuries! Back then, we just called it "The Emperor's caress"" taunts Aldebert with another volley.

Mathilda, strike #1, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (16) + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 = 26
Damage: 1d10 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 1 = 17
Mathilda, strike #2, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 13 - 2 - 2 + 1 = 19
Damage: 1d10 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 6 + 1 = 13
Mathilda, strike #3, RS, DA, PBS: 1d20 + 8 - 2 - 2 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 8 - 2 - 2 + 1 = 18
Damage: 1d10 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 6 + 1 = 10

do we retreat and find an alternate route? Or do we fight on our side mostly with Matilda?

I say we let the yeti come and fight us on our terms. Also, anyone heard from Opal?

"Chaul! Come back here with my help! Aldebert! Make the yeti a pincushion!"

Chaul struggles backwards towards safety...

Not sure what skill is needed here. Cahul will try to avoid generating an AOO. Have a dice roll.random: 1d20 ⇒ 4

"Quite, agent Goodheart! Another fine Taldane tradition!"

No need to think about an alternate route ;)

While Chaul hands down into the icy chasm Aldebert shoots three bolts at the yeti. All three hit and the furry beast finally drops into the snow.

combat over

Slowly you help Chaul to get back to safer grounds. Suddenly, you hear a roaring echo from the west, as five yetis approach menacingly around a nearby mountain. As the yetis draw close, you notice a thin, blue-skinned humanoid sitting atop the shoulders of the lead yeti. It is an samsaran girl, she appears to be 4 or 5 years old. She wears fur-lined rags, and bears a statuette of a yeti that protects her from the cold.

The girl shouts something to the yetis and the group stops. She adresses you. "One of me knows you. You are they who swayed karma to grant me this breath. Well met, friends, in the shadow of my darkest self."

"The Phalanx has a long storied history of swaying Karma. but I am sorry, I do not believe we have met. Aldebert Dunitee, of the Highland Dunitees, formerly of the Taldane Phalanx, 7th Legion, 3rd Cohort. And you are? Apart from a yeti whisperer of course" greets Aldebert with aplomb, before whispering rather loudly to Wyrgan "Why is she talking in metaphors????"

Chaul looks hard at the girl.

"Are you a thirteenth incarnation of Bakten?" he asks, curiosity high.

"But you look far too old... He only died a few days ago..."

"Perhaps they are born fully formed agent Drammarson. In that they would simply follow the example of the great Emperor Doniollo, who was born with a beard so majestic and fluffy, it was cut and enshrined within the imperial palace in 3125!"

"That would be a pretty big egg..." notes Chaul.

"An astute observation Chaul."

She nods. “Yes, I am Sharaheen, once called Bakten. I thought to end my karmic cycle as that self, but I saw the need to persevere. Had I died as Bakten, my dark self would have risen.”

"But Bakten died only a few days ago... and you look much older than that.." says Chaul, confused by the whole reincarnation process.

"How may we stop your dark self from rising?"

I believe this scenario starts a few weeks after the previous one.

“It is true, I am but a few weeks old... but the body of my kind matures quickly as we begin life with the wisdom of ages. Our veiled life, our darkest self... She sought to break from the cycle of souls, to become undead and all-powerful. She is a fragment now, a cursed shard. She bides her time in a pocket dimension, awaiting my departure from this plane. So great was her stealth, it took me two lifetimes to find her. I am now too weak to confront her myself. I beseech you to help me end her misbegotten days. To that end I found these old friends of an old self." She motions towards the Yeti. "I, who was Rianon, once cured the yetis of a fearsome blight. Days past, they found me on the mountainside, and brought me here—but no further, dreading the same fate as their fallen kin.”

She nods towards the Yeti with thanks and reverence towards their kind, then walks towards you. "I must accompany you, but this form is frail. My power is in memory. Bear me to the pocket plane where my dark self's soul resides and my past shall strive to aid you."

"Thus these yetis shall form a rearguard? I suppose there have been less adequate auxiliary troops in the Phalanx fufilling similar functions" muses Aldebert, stroking his moustache pensively. "No offense. Your fur is just not regulation length" he adds for the creatures' benefit. He pauses, considering the small girl and rearming Mathilda, finally stating:"Well then, once-Venture Captain, are there any negative interactions we should be notified of when you come into contact with the soon-to-be remains of your past life? Are you able to provide some manner of support, or should we consider you a civilian and seek to have you as removed from the dangers of this frigid tower, haunted as it may be by it's occupants and its desire to matter?"

Chaul tries and fails to hide a smile at the comment about regulation length fur.

"It is a fair question... how vulnerable are you in your new incarnation? And what can you tell us of the challenges we may face within?"

"I do not believe she and I can directly harm each other, but I'll do my best to guide you. However any minions of hers certainly will have my death in mind. I have none of the experiences of my prior self that you would have known, and as such will be of little use as a warrior."

"Civilian then!" trills the Taldane. "Excellent. Stand behind us and be ready to run like the Qadiran infantry! And by that I mean quite fast. Ahem. No Dunitee has let a civilian die under his or her eyes in the past four decades and I do not aspire to be like Leonard Dunitee, who reset the counter in 4673. In his defense though, he had lost both his arms at that point of the skirmish."

A jagged tower stretches 50 feet into the sky before disappearing into the thick storm clouds and blinding snow flurries. Twin iron doors stretch ten feet up the jagged pagoda’s side. The doors are painted with a hideous crimson visage ringed by two sets of spiraling script. No handles, rungs, or keyholes are visible, only a small, dark depression that serves as the snarling facade’s mouth.

The spiraling script appears to be written in Tien.

know(religion): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11

"This is the symbol of Fumeiyoshi - undead god of Envy..."

He looks at the script. "Anyone able to read Tien?"

"Never occurred to me that I should learn it. I'm sure it's unimportant, else they would have written it in proper Taldane. Or something approximating that. Venture Captain Sharaheen the Reborn, can you make sense of this nonsense scrawled here? Or perhaps agent Quinn might have an inkling as to what in the blazes is being put forth here" practically shouts our crossbowman over the wind, his crossbow resting easily in his arms.

Sharaheen approaches and reads the script, translating it to common with a bit of a sing-song voice. "Give me gold, for I am want. Make it shine so I can flaunt. Place it in my hungry maw, so as to show my master awe. Do this as it pleases me, and I’ll unbar the door for thee."

"A toll gate?" muses the priest.

"Or a riddle designed to trap the unwary?"

He looks harder, trying to sense magic in the area.
Casts detect magic

"It hardly seems that someone who could build this would be interested in coin.."

"Indeed. It is more like a riddle. Or an exercise in show-and-tell. I do have some rather expensive Taldane jewelry. I suppose parting with it wouldn't be as bad as I once might have thought. It'll give me the opportunity to purchase an even better set of jewels! That'll show those Redherrings!!!"

The door radiates a few overlapping auras, predominately conjuration and abjuration.

Aldebert? Are you feeding it the jewelry?

Sure thing! Good bye "Fashionable" bonus!

The jewelry disappears immediately upon being placed into the sculpture's mouth, the the door opens.

Note: Sharaheen provides a +4 bonus to all knowledge checks as long as she is with you.

Broad steps descend into a large hall. Between two smoking braziers looms a red-veined marble statue of a humanoid with three eyes and jagged tusks, its twisted claws clutching a naginata. Beyond, two sets of stairs flank a tapestry depicting a titanic struggle between the same fiendish menace and a jade-clad warrior. Along the pagoda’s eastern arc, several burlap sacks slump haphazardly, while near the western curve squats a hefty, straw-lined cage.

Several headless automatons walk back and forth in the room, carrying large sacks of rice from the entryway to an area behind the tapestry, and then return for more. They appear to have no orders to prevent your exploration of the area, and continue their task blindly.