In your first mission as a Pathfinder agent, the head of the Grand Lodge sends you on a number of missions throughout the metropolis of Absalom, pitting you against traps, thieves, and even an unruly devil, all in the pursuit of knowledge.
If you think I am undead, then go fetch someone from the temple. They can show you I am not!
The woman dives back into the window and there comes a noise of someone rummaging around looking for something.
"The temple of Lamashtu no doubt! I know your kind! You die and come back! If that's not being undead I don't know what is! Where's that crossbow at! Come peepin' in windows trying to see me in my unmentionables! I'll show you, you coffin-renter you!"
Outside, the crowd around the property begins to grow.
Male Human Unchained Summoner 2 | hp 18 | AC 15 T 12 FF 13 | CMD 12 | F +2 R +2 W +3 | Spd 30' | Init +2 | KnNat +3, KnPla +3, Perc +0, SensM +0 | Spells 1st-3/3 | summon I 7/7 | | ♪♫ Theme ♪♫
Perrine Ravella wrote:
”It’s nice to meet the two of you. When the children here get sick, does auntie give them medicine? We are here to make sure you are being properly cared for. Does she drink her ‘adult’ tea pretty often? Does she punish any of the kids too harshly? Is she nice to Katachu ?”
"Oh sure! She gets a lot of sick of kids here and Auntie takes care of 'em alright. She tells a lot a funny stories while she does it too.... What's a boudoir anyway? And Katachu only hangs around with me when I'm out cleaning chimneys, and weeding gardens, and stuff for the neighbors. Oh geez, We gotta get going. We have to dig that new privy hole for Mrs. Devos, Katachu."
Male Medium Eidolon 2 HD | hp 17 | AC 18 T 12 FF 16 | CMD 16 (20 v trip) | F +4 R +5 W +0 +4 v poison/petrification | Spd 40' climb 20' | Init +2 | Acro +6 (+10 jump), Climb +15, Perc +4 (darkvision), SensM +0, Swim +6 |
Female Gnome Warpriest 4 | AC 17/12/16 | HP 35/35 | F+6, R+2,W+7 | CMD 15 | Speed 20’ | Init+7, Perception+5, Sense Motive+8 | Lowlight vision.
Perrine decided it was time to meet back up with the others. She wasn’t sure what to think about the situation. Auntie had flaws, a ton of flaws, but the children were generally alright. She needed to talk to the others to find out their impressions.
CG Male half-elf rogue 8 | HP 67/67 | AC: 21 T:17 FF:15 | F +4 R +12 W +2 (+2 vs. enchantments) | Init +12 | Perc +13 | Low-light vision | Trapfinding +4
Tathane gets around the side of the building in time to see a bucket of who knows what spill onto Ramachandra. He stifles a laugh and then runs up to him. "What's going on?"
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
If folks want to discuss their findings out of character feel free to confer on the discussion thread.
Female Gnome Warpriest 4 | AC 17/12/16 | HP 35/35 | F+6, R+2,W+7 | CMD 15 | Speed 20’ | Init+7, Perception+5, Sense Motive+8 | Lowlight vision.
”I’m not sure what all I learned. Auntie is obviously terrible. She drinks and the kids are all generally kind of hungry. It on the other hand, the kids are orphans and they have a roof over their heads. They are in a better place than they would be without her, I think. I’m not sure what to put in my report. Maybe we just lay out the facts and let the superiors decide?”
"Did we bring that medicine from the temple of Lamashtu? No, it came from the Temple of the Shining Star. You are not making sense. Are you just old and senile or are you taking something that is not making you think clearly. Maybe it could just be both. Or maybe it is just that you are a woman with a nasty disposition who does not like anyone who is not like herself. Are you a racist?"
Anything anyone wants to try before we move on? This is probably the most difficult mission amid all the missions presented.
"Racist! Racist! I bet you like anyone with brains you can eat! As the post-dead you probably think you're beyond that sort of thing! Probably have some sniggering gnoll friends. I'll have you know I have a friend who's from Varisia! Where do you get off talkin' about racism! Next thing you know they'll be inviting goblins to join that silly explorer's club the Pathfinder Society! Mark my words!"
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Very quickly the party rushes outside and away from the ever growing crowd to compare notes and plan their next move.
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Right, the party is away from the orphanage. What's the plan?
CG Male half-elf rogue 8 | HP 67/67 | AC: 21 T:17 FF:15 | F +4 R +12 W +2 (+2 vs. enchantments) | Init +12 | Perc +13 | Low-light vision | Trapfinding +4
"Wow. I have no idea what happened back there. But I guess we did what we needed to do. We delivered the medicine and that lady, wow, what a character. So that means we still have those rare books to deal with."
Tathane spins in a circle, looking around the streets, and he eventually settles pointing to the west. "I think it's that way to the Docks."
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Doughlas realizes even as the party turns to their last labor that they still have to return to the Temple of the Shining Star in the Ascendant Court and report their findings once collected into a cogent argument for or against to Sister Ollysta Zadrian.
Note You don't have to go now, but you do need to make your report to Sister Zadrian to complete the mission.
NG Ranger 3 (divine tracker, trapper, wild stalker) (HP:31/31)(AC:17(19 w Shield) T:12 FF:15)(F:+6 R:+6 W:+3)(Init:+3)(Per:+8)(CMD: 18)
"That place gave me the creeps... the old woman was mean and spiteful... but the tea was good." Einarr chats with the others as they walk to the last spot.
Female Gnome Warpriest 4 | AC 17/12/16 | HP 35/35 | F+6, R+2,W+7 | CMD 15 | Speed 20’ | Init+7, Perception+5, Sense Motive+8 | Lowlight vision.
Perrine will tell everyon what she found out and also share that she was torn about Auntie. She hoped one of the others had a stronger feeling either way.
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Forty minutes later, the party finds itself outside the Pickled Imp. Situated in a trash-strewn dockside alleyway, squeezed between a tannery and a flophouse. The area seems to be filled with furtive, unsavory characters. Fortunately, it is still the afternoon so you can still see them all. Unfortunately, you can see them all.
This creepy shop contains myriad odds and ends, most bereft of any discernible use. A number of malformed creatures and creature parts bob in jars on a long, prominent shelf, a tiny fetal devil centered in this macabre lineup. The shopkeeper, a greasy-haired Varisian with a thin mustache, shouts from behind the cluttered counter: “Ah yes, I see the Pathfinders have arrived. I’m glad Ambrus was able to lend a few of his new recruits to help me. Please come in and let me tell you what I need.”
Looking around as if to be absolutely certain no customers are browsing the aisles of knock-off Thuvian burial urns or supposed Azlanti porcelain, he begins again.
“Well met. I am Guaril Karela. A friend of mine has a warehouse near here and he received a parcel on behalf of me and some of my associates, but there’s a problem. See, Master Gelbane had to leave town in a hurry and our shipment is still waiting at his warehouse. Rumor is he ended up in trouble with the law and the place was seized. I heard tell from someone down at the docks that some creep was snooping around his warehouse just the other night, so I want to make sure nothing of mine was taken. He keeps all kinds of things, from beer to nails, in that old pelican, but every now and then he stores something really special."
"This is one of those cases."
“There’s a big crate marked with three crows arranged in a triangle. Inside that crate is a smaller container with a few books and papers in it. That’s the only parcel I’m interested in, and as far as I’m concerned, you can help yourself to the rest of the crate. Honestly, anything else you want in the place too. I’m sure the once things get sorted out, the city will seize most everything else anyway."
“My associates and I often work with the Pathfinders when it comes to special relics and documents, getting them in and out of ports and across borders where the authorities ask too many questions. Most people don’t realize what they have and frankly many don’t deserve to have it, so sometimes we help take the goods off their hands. If things work out well and you get this done, I’d be glad to talk with you more and help you out with any future endeavors, as long as you help me out too. I’m good at returning favors, trust me.”
Female Gnome Warpriest 4 | AC 17/12/16 | HP 35/35 | F+6, R+2,W+7 | CMD 15 | Speed 20’ | Init+7, Perception+5, Sense Motive+8 | Lowlight vision.
”Why it sounds like that might be illegal! How do we know the property is actually yours? I want the Society to like me, but this seems a bit shady,” Perrine grumbles to the others.
"I'm sure Ambrus knew before hand of how Guaril's business transactions work. Wonder how many other beginner pathfinders have disappeared in similar cases? I just know I can't get this chamber pot splatter off me till our list is done..."
Perrine will tell everyon what she found out and also share that she was torn about Auntie. She hoped one of the others had a stronger feeling either way.
"She had them digging latrines?" Esper remarks in surprise. "That sounds more like child labour than it does chores... And what was she doing with the children in her boudoir??" Esper curls up her lip in distaste. "What a foul woman."
---
Esper considers the Varisians request. "I could always use a favour..." she replies with a smile. "Which warehouse is Gelbane's?"
”Why it sounds like that might be illegal! How do we know the property is actually yours? I want the Society to like me, but this seems a bit shady,” Perrine grumbles to the others.
"Shady? Me?" says Guaril, the most shocked, and hurt person ever.
Einarr Bjornson wrote:
Einarr scratches his head...
"Seems like an odd request..."
"Ahahah. My friend. You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Has anyone spoken to you about Mother Rumple's Country Dandruff Suppressor? It is the all-natural dandruff cure-all. Pick up two boxes today as part of our Two-For-Onish-Toilsday Special"
Doughlas wrote:
"I'm sure Ambrus knew before hand of how Guaril's business transactions work. Wonder how many other beginner pathfinders have disappeared in similar cases? I just know I can't get this chamber pot splatter off me till our list is done..."
"And perhaps for the effluent man-about-town, I might interest you in some eau de toilette all the way from exotic Qadira. These aromatic waters can tame the most odious odor guaranteed. Ugh. Buy two! It is Two-For-Onish-Toilsday!"
Esper Zevral wrote:
Esper considers the Varisians request. "I could always use a favour..." she replies with a smile. "Which warehouse is Gelbane's?"
"I am glad you asked! Such a bright one. This will go far you all mark me. But for now my brilliant persimmon snip you just have to go here."
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
"Did your friend have any other ways into the warehouse? Have you done any scouting to see what the town guard is like over there? Did he have any traps set up and brag about?"
CG Male half-elf rogue 8 | HP 67/67 | AC: 21 T:17 FF:15 | F +4 R +12 W +2 (+2 vs. enchantments) | Init +12 | Perc +13 | Low-light vision | Trapfinding +4
Sense motive:1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16Do I sense that he's hiding something?
Tathane watches Guaril with a skeptical eye but he likes Doughals' reasoning. If the Society was sending them here, it must be ok. Or, if not entirely on the up and up, at least halfway up and halfway up.
He looks over the map to find where the warehouse is. "Hmm. Looks like a nice part of town."
[dice=Sense motive]1d20+4 Do I sense that he's hiding something?
Ramachandra Mishra wrote:
Ramachandra considers the offer. If the authorities were involved, it gave him cause for concern as it did the others.
Sense Motive
Have you guys ever used detect magic or detect evil in the presence of an overwhelming aura? Yeah. It's like that. If this were done in rounds you would both be stunned for a round.
Guaril smiles in a way he thinks seems winning.
Doughlas wrote:
"Did your friend have any other ways into the warehouse? Have you done any scouting to see what the town guard is like over there? Did he have any traps set up and brag about?"
"Other ways in? Plane shift I believe he called it. There's these planes that block the entryways that you have to shift aside if you want to get in. 'Doors', I think they're called."
"Oh, I've seen the city guard over there, and it is ugly. Have you ever seen Corporal Nobs up close? He's the one with the boils. He's does tricks with them."
"Traps? No, I think the premises is dangerously rundown enough."
"So you'll do it." it's not quite a question the way Guaril says it.
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Perched on the end of a 100-foot-long pier fifteen feet above the water, the warehouse appears to struggle against its own roof, threatening to sag into the bay below. No light shines from the building’s dirty windows and only the movement of gulls and pelicans stirs the scene.
The planks on the pier are sturdy but weathered. A few local fishermen and some kids sit scattered along the pier casting nets or bobbing lines into the waters below.
Map updated. It is late afternoon. What do you do?
Roll one knowledge (local) or profession (sailor) check and open all the spoilers below that apply to the result. Characters can make the knowledge (local) check untrained, but their maximum result is 10.
knowledge (local) or profession (sailor) DC 10+:
Called pelican warehouses, these buildings perch at the end of piers, allowing a ship to load and unload farther out from the busier docks. Many of them either accommodate smaller vessels that are in a hurry or larger ships unable to find an open dock. Rare these days, most pelican warehouses lie in disrepair, withered from storms and salt, and every year it seems another one falls into the harbor.
knowledge (local) or profession (sailor) DC 15+:
An increased tax on this type of property keeps many of the owners from rebuilding and some have even relinquished the titles to their small warehouses, allowing them to fall into the hands of squatters and smugglers—or into the bay itself.
knowledge (local) or profession (sailor) DC 20+:
Thieves and smugglers will sometimes gain access to such structures by using a small boat to slip beneath the pelican and either cut their way in or access a preexisting trapdoor.
Female Gnome Warpriest 4 | AC 17/12/16 | HP 35/35 | F+6, R+2,W+7 | CMD 15 | Speed 20’ | Init+7, Perception+5, Sense Motive+8 | Lowlight vision.
Know. Local 1d20 ⇒ 15
”These are called pelican houses. They allow loading and unloading of ships farther away than the docks. They can accommodate both large and small ships. They aren’t usually in good shape, though and fall into the ocean all the time.”
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Amid what to modern eyes might appear to be the brick-a-brak of the inside of a Joe's Crab Shack hung along the outside of the building Doughlas finds a door nob.
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
CG Male half-elf rogue 8 | HP 67/67 | AC: 21 T:17 FF:15 | F +4 R +12 W +2 (+2 vs. enchantments) | Init +12 | Perc +13 | Low-light vision | Trapfinding +4
Knowledge(local):1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18
"I've heard of how bad these places are but this is much worse than I imagined. We'll have to be careful." Tathane notices Doughals try the door knob. "Locked? Maybe I can do something about that." He squats down in front of the door and pulls out his tools and begins working on the lock.
He doesn't believe in 'game balance'. Gandalf always lets him pass. As a feat, he has Exotic Weapon Proficiency (beard). The city guard often question him, just because they find him so interesting. His dice bag is woven from tarrasque leather. His TPKs end game lines. His blood cures moderate wounds. He once punched a flumph. Yes, you heard me. He belongs to a prestige class whose sole requirement for entry is just being him. ♬ He is indeed, the most interesting GM in the world. ♬
Tathane Halfbarrel wrote:
"I've heard of how bad these places are but this is much worse than I imagined. We'll have to be careful." Tathane notices Doughals try the door knob. "Locked? Maybe I can do something about that." He squats down in front of the door and pulls out his tools and begins working on the lock.
As he works Tathane can hear the sound of dice rolling in his head. They seem to come to a natural rest, and then suddenly rattle once more as if someone jostled the table they were on.
The door stubbornly asserts its fundamental doorness and remains in the way.
Female Gnome Warpriest 4 | AC 17/12/16 | HP 35/35 | F+6, R+2,W+7 | CMD 15 | Speed 20’ | Init+7, Perception+5, Sense Motive+8 | Lowlight vision.
Perrine knew it best for the group to all not be congregated around a guy picking a lock in broad daylight. She walked around the building as far as she could, hoping there might be another entrance off to the side perhaps.
