Kingmaker

Game Master Galahad0430

"What is this relic and where is the Sacred Hall?" Ekun shakes his head back and forth trying to keep up with the fighting pair.

Pyros almost unconsciously moves his hand toward his blade, but his hand starts itching and he pauses. Yes, my lady. You are correct. Thre is no need for violence here. Please forgive my error. He moves his hand away from his sword's hilt. At the mention of their new shaman, he glances knowingly at the others who would remember Tartuccio.

Catching Pyros' glance, Faerieth nods. It seemed that the traitorous bastard had more in the way of disguises...if not much originality in names.

Linzi stands back, admiring her handiwork. She'll let this play out as she feels the conflict has subsided and they are getting information.

She can't help herself with a little bit of extra words, maybe a soft touch complimenting the kobolds.

With the facial expression of awe and wonder (she's sellin it!)
Wow! *YOU* are Chief Sootscale? Like how dragons have scales, and awe inspiring ones breath fire, so the reason for soot. Wow. Now that's a dragon clan with a leader that has strong dragon blood heritage.

Substantive questions, please

Sorry all, but the others will have to ask substantive questions. I think Ekun asked a couple good ones... like what and where. Linzi is fluff and pomp. Others can step up and take charge of fixing this "two tribes" mess.

already answered Ekun's questions, well, at least the what. I doubt they will tell you where the Sacred Hall is though.

Sighing to herself, Faerin draws the attention of the kobold Chief.

"Chief Soostscale, have you heard of a kobold with purple scales? One ruling over another tribe not too far from here?" the druidess asks the irate chieftain.

"Yes, the great Tartuk, new shaman! He came after we called. He was one who showed us that the thief Mites stole sacred artifact!"

"And where is your great shaman Tartuk now?" Faerin asks with a glance over at the mites.

Shayn makes an effort to avoid the kobolds and mites to see her chuckling. Intrigue..., she thought. After Faerin followed with a question, she complemented.

... And how has Tartuk showed you that? What did he do to prove the mites took your artifact?

Pyros nods sagely, attempting to add weight to Faerin and Shayn's questions. "We should speak with Tartuk. Surely he could explain the situation to us as well."

You can also notice that the queen of the Mites is beginning to fume over being ignored.

"Tartuk is in the caves, below tree. He is too busy to talk to meddlesome strangers!"

Linzi certainly didn't intend to ignore the MiteQueen. She might be their allies in this now that Tartuk has taken over the kobolds.
Mite queen! You have a legit beef in this disagreement, for YOU had a relic taken. Please discribe the relic so that it can be found and identified on sight!

"We will bring it back to you and set this nonsense all straight." Ekun looks to both groups. "Could one of you lead us to speak with Tartuk?'

The Mite queen speaks quickly.
"Long ago Chief Kobold make alliance with our old King. Two branches Old Sycamore we take, charm and give to each other. This be Relics. Mites have one, Kobolds have one. A few days ago, Kobold come, yell we thief, take our relic! Silly Kobold!"

Ekun raises his hands. "We will get to the bottom of it. Take us to see this Tartuk as he is likely to blame."

Yeah! But we don't really need them to lead us there. See that tree?
Linzi points to it.
That's where the two relics are.

@gm. Have I heard of any stories like this? Any idea how it might be "charmed"? Linzi is assuming the branches were made into magic wands? If so, can I press the mite for how the branch "make boom-boom"?

"That's quite the assumption." Faerin says looking at Linzi. "Even if it is true, being led there is likely to go better than just barging in, with the majority of kobold having no idea who we are and thinking us enemies or invaders."

To Faerin's point, maybe we could convince each of the... Wise... Leaders to provide us with a liaison. - says Shayn, getting closer to Linzi and Faerin - This way, we'd have a way to prevent needless misunderstandings and bloodshed.

No! You must decide who is right! Who do you side with." The Mite Queen yells.

"Punisssh the thievesss! You mussst!" Chief Sootscale hisses in reply.

Ekun turns to Linzi. "Can you make them hold off from killing each other until we find Tartuk?"

[b]"If Tartuk showed you what happened, then should he not show us also, if we are to settle this? How could we settle it, without being shown his wisdom? Please take us to him."[/i] Pyros says, though he's fairly certain that if this "Tartuk" is who Pyros thinks, he's almost certainly just manipulating the other kobolds for his own gain.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

"Purple Kobold is somewhere in caves beneath tree. We have no time to look for him." The Mite queen says.

"That because thief Mites captured the great Tartuk!" replies Chief Sootscale.

"That be a lie!" the queen snaps back.
"We no care about stupid Kobold shaman!"

"Well then. We will find Tartuk and help you both get to the bottom of this. If he's been captured we will free him, if he isn't, then we will have him settle the matter of the Relics." Faerin says looking to both leaders. "Please wait for us to resolve this, while we enter the caves...give us 3 days, and we will exit with your answers."

Diplomacy (Mediator’s Ear): 1d20 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 3 + 1 = 14

Yes! Yes! Exactly what Granola said. She convinced *Me* that a 3 day expedition is what is needed, and so *you* should be convinced too.

Announcing in fine and formal status.
It's decided. 3 days. We -Get- Everyone- Answers.
So, let's walk this way to the tree of relics.

And Linzi gives a well defined head nod for the party to start moving toward the Sycamore tree.
@ Gm please advise if you want another diplomacy check. As I made one earlier and I'm not certain I can keep rolling. Also @gm, what about my thoughts on the tree twigs being wands?

You have essentially three choices. Side with the Mites, side with the Kobolds, or don't side with either. There is no way they will wait for you to look for Tartuk. In fact, they are at the point of coming to blows any second. The fact you showed up just delayed the fight for a moment.

Seeing both the kobold and mite leaders still at the point of violence, Faerin kneels down beside Linzi, pulling the bard aside to whisper her plan.

Linzi listens to Faerin and takes charge!
Alright Listen Up! Pay Attention. The great and powerful Faerin has more power than the Purple Shaman. She will prove her power with an awe-inspiring blessing.
But you need to agree to not attack each other for three full days. Dusk to Dawn. Mites stay away from Kobolds.
Now, if anyone betrays this oath...... bad juju goes your way. Punishment Galore!

diplomacy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (8) + 10 = 18 Hopefully we have a couple aid other bonuses from the prior conversations.
sense motive: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26
Linzi looks to see the reaction and fascinates either chief that wants to war . I can only target one, but if one wants to continue to fight, I should be able to fascinate them long enough for Faerin to do her ploy. Fascinate DC 15 will.

Faerin stands up, gazing imperiously at the assembled hostile armies. "But if you do as we say, you will find us to be powerful allies, and both your people will benefit."

Diplomacy (Mediator’s Ear): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22

As she looks at the two groups, she walks into the middle of them, her thumb passing over the ring on her finger, feeling its warmth as it glows softly. Calling upon its divine power, drawing on the blessing of nature itself, she makes a grandiose gesture as she sends a wave of beneficial energy washing over all present.

Cast Bless (treating everyone within range as allies) "Bless fills your allies with courage. Each ally gains a +1 morale bonus on attack rolls and on saving throws against fear effects." With a 50ft radius and both mites and kobolds being small, that should hit most if not all of them.

Ekun smiles. "Don't attack each other or us for that matter and we will make sure to get your relic back and set things right."

Linzi slides slightly to the right, getting into the protective shadow of Ekun. Her musical instrument strumming a faint back-beat.

Faerin Know(Nature) (Kobolds) 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (18) + 9 = 27
Faerin Know(Nature) (Mites) 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (4) + 9 = 13

Well that's pretty funny.

Faerin casts her spell and the Kobolds are filled with valor. Unfortunately, Faerin did not know that Mites are immune to Enchantments, thus her spell does not affect them.

"Ah! Alliesss of Tartuk! Look the big onesss have come to our aid againssst the thievesss! CHARGE!" Yells Chief Sootscale.

"Foul Humans! We shall kill you all!" Shouts the Mite Queen.

"Defend the Queen! Kill the traitors!" Cry several of the Mites.

Bolstered by Faerins enchantment the Kobolds charge into the midst of the Mites. A small contingent of Mites, screened by the large melee, make off to the tree with the Queen.

The fight is short and vicious, but the Kobolds prevail. Chief Sootscale turns to your group.
You are welcome in our hallss, friendss of Tartuk. Please, find him, he has been taken into the Mites area."

Pyros watch with something between bemusement and horror as the plan goes awry. Turning to the remaining kobolds, he says "We will find him, you may be assured of that." then motions for the others to follow and heads for the tree.

Faerin's jaw drops for a moment as the kobolds surge to quickly and violently overwhelm the mites.

Mites must be immune to emotional magic. Damn!

As the rout occurs she catches her bearings, turning as Chief Sootscales addresses the group. "Yes, we will find himand get to the bottom of everything."

Taking a breath she follows Pyros, heading for the monumental tree.

There are two entrances to the underground tunnels, the old mine entrance controlled by the Kobolds, or the vase of the Sycamore controlled by the Mites.

"If we're looking for that little purple menace, I would think the mine entrance is probably best...not to mention far safer at the moment." the druidess says gazing at the tunnel, then taking in the base of the massive tree.

Ekun sighs as the violence ensues and the mites are quickly taken care of. "Noone had to die here today." He looks grimly at the dead mites and their leader. Let's go find this Tartuk." He says as he leads the way down into the Mines.

I thought there was mention of Tartuk being taken to the Mite Tree, But "hey"- Mines mean gems and I could use some bling.

She follows Pyros and Ekun down the trail to the mines. Taking third place.

Ekun explains. "The mites may attack us the entire way if we go through their territory. To where the kobolds in the mines will likely leave us alone."

You head towards the mine entrance. Along the way you are delayed by a couple of skirmishes, but they aren't a real threat to you. When you arrive at the entrance, several kobold guards greet you enthusiastically.

"Friendsss!! Enter!"

Inside you are greeted by an older Kobold.

"I am the Gatekeeper. If you want to talk to Chief, follow me, but follow my stepsss closssely, tunnel is trapped."

With that he heads down a dark corridor (there is no light in here, so you need light). At the end of the corridor, he leaves you to go back to his post.

You can wander in this area free of danger (as long as you maintain your alliance with the Kobolds). Essentially there are two levels to the cave system. The top level is divided from the Mites area. Perhaps there is a way to cross below.

Eventually you make your way down to the second level. Your new Kobold allies tell you there are areas they don't go in (mostly the Eastern side of the caverns). They also tell you that the Northern caves are the territory of the Mites.

Well, let's go East!
Linzi makes her way to the East.

Ekun follows begins as he palms his bow, ready for the kobolds to change their minds.

"We will explore this area, thank you for all your hospitality." Faerin says as they leave the kobolds to explore the eastern caves.

With a whispered word, the druidess taps the crystal at the top of her staff, filling the area with soft glow of light.

Cast Light

The tunnels underneath are a twisting warren, interspersed with straight areas from the original mine. Without some magical means of determining direction (or a specific race or class ability) it is impossible to keep an accurate sense of where you are going. However, the areas are distinct enough to tell whether you have doubled back on your path. Marking the walls is enough to make sure you do not get lost. It is impossible to map your way barring taking an inordinate amount of time to measure and determine direction.

You get to the East end of the Kobold territory. Beyond a makeshift barricade, that seems to have been in place for a very long time, you see regular stone work that looks very ancient and heads off to your right in a straight corridor. There are four Kobold sentries here. They look at you in curiosity, but when you make your intention to head into the corridor known, they gasp in astonishment and warn you that the area is cursed and no one goes there.

After a few feet Faerin pauses for a moment, whispering something to herself in drudic and closing her eyes for a moment, then opening them once she has her bearings. She runs through the process occasionally to refresh her sense of direction in the subterranean environment.

Between her magic, her excellent memory, and an uncanny innate sense of direction, Faerin manages the seemingly impossible task of committing their entire trek through the caves to memory.

Intermittently casts Know Direction

Survival (Avoid Getting Lost): 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (15) + 17 = 32

"Don't worry, we can handle it, and perhaps even remove the curse. Has anyone ever been that way, and if they have, what happened to them?" she asks calmly of the sentries.

"We no go there for long time!" the Kobold sentry replies.
"Mites no go there too."

"Well, this will be interesting." Pyros says dryly.