Band of Foxes - Harmonious Wisdom of Foxes (Inactive)

Game Master Ietsuna

Hiiragi nods. "If you want to try, I will not stop you. But I will keep an arrow trained on it, in case you are not as successful as you hope."

With that, she nocks a normal-sized arrow.

She'll ready an action to fire if someone on our side takes damage.

Combat Round 1 - Bold May Act

Ikari
Kenta
Itami
Juzo
Hiiragi
Sionnach
Takabe
Bear

Ikari advances, taking position at a potential choke point between hedges and pit/pool. He readies his spear against the bear and snarls.

Move action, brace spear against charge, free action controlled rage to STR.

Juzo moves up with the others to get a view of the bear.

Double-Move.

Onna also moves in to the courtyard. She peeks into the stables to check for any cubs. If this is a mamma bear, we are definately in for a fight!

Perception: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18

Double move

Takabe bounds over to keep up with the party and make sure he can help knock out the bear.

Hiiragi draws back the arrow, anchoring it at her cheek.

How do they plan on sticking the damn thing from so far away? Oh, that's right. They don't. Literal piles of corpses aren't enough. "Suppose I'll do the honors," Itami says dryly as he launches a bolt at the bear.
________
Magic Missile vs Red: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4
GM, any knowledge checks for the bear?

Kenta moves up next to the restrained raging fox and gives a simple plea to the beast, "Please Mr. Bear, we do not wish to harm you. You might be sick, this is not your home. Let us help you."

But knowing combat is likely imminent, he does not refuse to prepare. He readies his blade for a flat strike at the beast's head if it comes in range and attacks.

Move 30 ft, Ready to Attack the bear if it moves into range and attacks himself or Ikari.

Sionnach does not see any cubs, or any other living creatures even in the stables.

A magic missile flies from Itami's hand and straight for the bear. It strikes with a sizzle and the smell of singing fur and ozone.

With a roar the bear bursts through the overgrown garden and toward Kenta and Ikari. As the bear closes on the pair Ikari jabs at it with a spear burying the point deep into its chest. Kenta also tries to attack, but cannot land on the bear as it moves in quickly.

Combat Round 1 - Bold May Act

Ikari
Kenta
Itami
Juzo
Hiiragi (Keeping Readied Attack?)
Sionnach
Takabe
Bear -14

Kenta sidesteps and unleashes a swing and a bite, trying to target non-vital points on the bear to knock it unconscious.

5-ft step, full attack.

Greatsword - Power Attack - NL: 1d20 + 3 - 1 - 4 ⇒ (2) + 3 - 1 - 4 = 0 for NL/Slashing + PA: 2d6 + 3 + 3 ⇒ (4, 3) + 3 + 3 = 13

Bite - Power Attack - Natural-NL: 1d20 + 3 - 1 - 5 - 4 ⇒ (1) + 3 - 1 - 5 - 4 = -6 for NL/BPS + PA: 1d4 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 + 1 = 4

Hiiragi considers a moment. If something here is scaring the bear into attacking, then all they needed to do was be _more_ scary.

Simple enough.

Hiiragi’s height doubles in a moment, and she roars—or comes as close to a roar as a Kitsune might.

Intimidate to demoralize: 1d20 + 3 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 3 + 4 = 26

Kenta swings and misses. He takes the opportunity to try to bite the bear, but somehow manages to bite his own tongue.

Hiiragi roars at the bear and it seems to give the bear some pause.

Combat Round 1 - Bold May Act

Ikari
Kenta
Itami
Juzo
Hiiragi
Sionnach
Takabe
Bear -14 (Shaken 3 rounds)

Juzo moves into a better position to being his mesmerist routine.

With a sharp whistle the bear turned for just a moment and that is all it takes as a cloud starts to waft over it.

Hypnotic Stare @ Bear: -2 Will Saves & Susceptible to Painful Stare.

He then raises his crossbow to attempt taking a shot.

Hand Crossbow: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

"Cheap junk." he mutters under his breath as the shot doesn't hit the target.

First person doing damage this turn can add 1 damage. Other rounds as well if I wiff like that.

Onna moves up to support her allies. "Okay pack, we can do this...oh, sorry Itami, you can do this too!"

Beginning Inspire Courage. MORALE BONUS to the following:+1 to Hit, +1 to Damage & +1 to saves vs Fear

1 of 8 rounds; 7 remaining

I assume it's not possible to safely step into the 'pool'.

Ikari drops his spear and closes in, to flank with Kenta. He draws his rapier and thrusts it at the bear.

rapier vs bear, rage, flank, bard: 1d20 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 12damage: 1d6 + 1 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 + 2 + 1 = 9

After this bear is put down, it will be time. If we are going to continue risking our lives together, they should know the truth. Itami fires another remorseless bolt at the bear.
________
Magic Missile (Juzo Juice) vs Red: 1d4 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 + 1 = 6

Takabe moves up to the bear and causes his fur to extend to grab the bear's fur.

white fur, inspire: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 4 + 1 = 13
damage, inspire: 1d4 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 4 + 1 = 7
grab: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 6 + 1 = 26 If the hair hits, free grab attempt. Also a DC 14 fort save vs touch of fatigue or be fatigued for 1 round.

If the bear would have gone down before my attack, Takabe will cast stabilize.

Itami's magic missile hits and the bear falls to the ground, bleeding and defeated. You can see the life leaving the creature as it lays there Couldn't help myself

A ghostly figure rises from the form of the downed bear. The figure is a scowling Tian- Shu man wearing ceremonial armor and holding a longbladed sword. He gestures at you with his sword waving you away, before dissipating.

Kenta reaches out towards the apparition, trying to sense the evil he knows to be there. "It was being possessed by a spirit, that explains everything!" As the spirit fades, he looks down at the poor animal and drops his sword, trying to stop the bleeding, "OH NO! WE NEED TO SAVE THE BEAR!!!"

Move to Detect Evil on the spirit, Free to drop sword, Standard to attempt a Heal check to Stabilize Heal DC 15: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6.

Hiiragi raises a foxy eyebrow as she returns to her usual size. ”I suppose we may have just laid a spirit to rest?” she ponders. ”Well, regardless, shall we take a look around? I hate seeing death this close (especially the messier ones) but it would be interesting to see if the humanoids have anything in common—armor colors or anything that would tell us more about them as a group.”

Realizing the bear is dying, Takabe quickly casts sta- Leave it. Your friends killed it...leave it for dead. You could save it, but you wont. I don't want you to. Takabe hears in his mind.

He hesitates on the spell, But why? I could save it! There is no reason for it to die here!

The voice responds, This is the cost of the power I gave you. You will listen or suffer the consequences.

Takabe responds, I don't understand. What do you gain from a dead bear!? but the voice remains silent to any of Takabe's objections.

Takabe gathers charge for the spell, but continues to hesitate, "I- can anyone bandage its wounds?" he says as he lets the spell go tries to heal it by hand. Fine, if I can't use your magic to help it, I'll just try myself.

heal: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (11) + 0 = 11

"Nobody bandages a bear. It's a predator. It's not your friend, possessed or otherwise. If it lived near civilisation it would be a threat. We did no wrong by killing it. Let it go."

Ikari recovers his spear and wipes the blood from the end as he recovers from his exertion.

"We came to search this place for relics. Let's do that."

"Ha! At least someone sees reason," Itami comments after Ikari's words. "I agree, let's look around the compound."
________
Perception: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10

Kenta just looks oddly at the two, "It never hurts to care for others, even animals." He turns back to the bear and Takabe, "thank you for helping, let us see if we can stop the bleeding."

Heal DC 15 to Stabilize: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 1 = 16

Hiiragi stands awkwardly to the side.

It’s not that she has malice toward the bear; rather, the bear is dangerous, apparently deadly, and in their path. She weighs the possibility that the bear has harmed Daikitsu’s children; at some point, it seems likely.

That said, far be it from her to stand between Kenta and something he feels called to defend.

”I pray that if nothing else, we have taught it to fear humanoids,” she states.

The courtyard is littered with bones and scraps of cloth and the leavings of the bear. There is no commonality to them. It seems that the bear simply attacked anyone and any thing that got too close to the estate. There is a door to the interior of the building to the south of the pool area.

"If it was truly possessed it likely learned nothing more than to kill with less hesitation. If it awakes it will come for us again..." Juzo says looking at the grim scene.

He then moves with the others who left the bear.

Onna pulls out her field guide, looking for answers. Is there some sort of protocol for possessed animals? I don't remember that in any of the classes I took. She looks out over the pages, "No druids huh? Rangers either?" She flips through the table of contents a few more times before finally giving up and sliding the guide back into her pack.

Not sure what to do, she stands between the two groups of Pathfinders.

"Farmers, Onna."

"Let's not get separated. There may be other dangers inside. I'll wait if you want to help the bear, even if I think you're making a mistake."

Ikari sharpens his blades with his whetstone. When everyone is ready, he heads to the door.

The bear appears to be stable now and its wounds have clotted. It lies, unconscious but out of mortal danger.

Kenta stands and takes a breath, watching the bear slowly inhale and exhale, blood no longer spurting out of it's wounds, "I don't think there is more we can do but to let nature take its course. We need to figure out why it was being possessed and complete our mission here, then the creature may have the opportunity to return to its life in the forest."

Seeing that the stables have been checked, he picks up his sword and moves up to the manor doors. He looks at his sword and with a shrug, slips it back into the sheath and pulls out his sap. Turning towards the human he asks, "can you do that invisible trick again to scout the manor?" Regardless of the answer, he checks over the doors for dangers, listens for anything inside and then opens the door when his allies are ready.

Perception: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Hiiragi shoulders her bow, taking the modified farming flail into her hands instead; as they plan to move inside, the bow seems less useful with more cramped conditions.

"I have limited invisibility, yet I can still remain unseen," Itami explains as he heads to the door with Kenta. "Which of the divine do you pledge yourself to again? Is caring for mortally wounded animals part of their purview?" he asks curiously, if a little skeptically. So many gods and demigods cropping up these days, nobody can know them all.
________
Stealth: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21
GM, how many rounds would my earlier jaunt have taken? I'll use it if I see danger and head straight back here!

Kenta turns to the human with a smile, "Thank you for asking! I seek most to break the bonds of those enslaved, like we discovered with this bear. Those who willingly follow evil must be punished, though through grace there may be an opportunity given for repentance. But when all is said and done, I simply try to do the right thing and live with the consequences. As for deities, I do pray to Lady Taramyth, though I have heard her called The Singing Flame. I know not if she blesses me, but sometimes it feels as though she is at least keeping an eye out for me. I was raised on stories of her watching over all fox-folk and it is easy to look at the things that have happened to me as more than just luck."

When Kenta stabilizes the bear, Takabe looks over to him, "Thanks Kenta, I wasn't allo- I couldn't stabilize it."

Responding to Itami, "No, no god here, it just felt like the right thing to do. If we hadn't come here, it wouldn't have attacked or been attacked, so I feel it is our responsibility to leave things as they were before our arrival as best we can."

Itami struggles just a tad to maintain focus as it becomes clear that Kenta intends on giving a very thorough response, but he visibly perks up when he mentions the opportunity for repentance. At least I know I won't be slain on the spot on our way back. "How interesting, I've never heard of this Lady Taramyth," he admits.

With an eyebrow raised, he looks over at Takabe and makes clear that he is appraising him. "You're an... odd fellow," he concludes. What is the source of his power, I wonder? For a moment there, I thought he said he wasn't allowed to help the bear. I would have pegged him as an arcane sort, but perhaps I was wrong.

Hiiragi considers. "If I recall correctly, Lady Taramyth isn't a goddess but rather an empyreal lord-- and a vulpinal, at that. My Lady's second cousin, one might say, and more prone to risking her tail for another's."

She offers a smile. "But of course, she makes perfect sense as the target of Sir Kenta's devotion."

"We can't complain too much at having more angels watch over us. Especially if they're associated with Lady Daikitsu."

Ikari joins the others at the main door.

Itami, the bear was quite conspicuous so we'll say 1 round in and 1 round out.

Kenta moves up and checks the door. There is no sound from beyond, but the door while old and weathered is still locked.

Survival: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12

Something catches the Holy Warrior's eye and he points it out to the group, "hey, that section over there doesn't seem to be bothered by the bear. Maybe the spirit possessing it didn't want it accidentally damaging something?" He points to an area in the Southeastern section of the estate and heads over to investigate. As he goes he adds, "oh yeah, the door is locked. I can bash it in but if anyone can open it easier we might not do as much property damage."

In reviewing the map I noticed I covered 2 entrances to the house with my big grey boxes. Sorry all. You would have seen on the way in that at least the eastern one (I have put a green arrow there) stands open.

Onna raises her hand, "I think I can do something with that. I mean, it seems like a pretty old lock." She rummages through her hip pouch and removes two small strips of metal. She kneels in front of the door and starts to work on the door. She offers a smile as she explains, "Fenlin said it was like tickling the door. When it laughs, you've opened it." Her eyes become distant as if recalling a better time. She suddenly becomes self conscious about her picks and slides them away.

Disable Device: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (19) + 10 = 29

Lol! :D Disregard a bunch of his last few posts then!

Kenta goes in and stands just outside the open door, looking and listening for dangers.

Perception: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12

Sionnach hears a click as the door opens. Meanwhile Kenta cannot hear anything from within the building.

When hearing all the talk of gods Juzu holds back the desire to scoff but joins in.

"No need for a god to meddle in my life on a whim. No surprises that way and I feel more than capable of handling myself." he says in the discussion.

When the group starts splitting up he stays by Sionnach.

"Can we lock that back once inside? In case that nasty thing wakes up?" he asks with a smile.

Hiiragi chuckles. ”You have it backwards, dear Juzo. The gods will meddle in mortal lives every day; having one on your side is indispensable,” she says.

Onna thinks a moment, "Yeah...I think so. I can at least give it a shot."

Onna manages to lock the door behind the group.

As nothing has yet developed, Itami follows Kenta.
________
Should we be in the middle room now? Still greyed out, so I just want to make sure I have it straight!