Hmm's PF2 #1-07 Flooded King's Court and Other Tales (Inactive)

Game Master Hmm

Used the new map link; I was able to move and attack with Sudden Charge, so first action will have been to Interact to draw my shield.

@Sandstone: Add another die to your crit. Also, add your Strength bonus to your damage (twice for the crit). Also, also, you are adjacent to the Red pine (and flanking with Tess), not the Blue pine.

Thanks for the catches, and thanks for your patience with me learning the Pathfinder mechanics! Okay, so here's the 1 that I previously rolled, plus the strength bonus, plus the new damage dice, plus 1 more strength bonus.

crit damage (slashing): 1 + 1 + 1d6 + 1 ⇒ 1 + 1 + (4) + 1 = 7

So as Loola pointed out this should be 7 slashing to Red Pine.

Loola shoots an electric arc at the trees, which darts between both the red and the blue spruce!

Red Pine Reflex: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13
Green Pine Reflex: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15

Tess moves into position, drawing a weapon and providing a flank to Sandstone! Iqu draws a weapon and charges Red, doing 2 damage as the tree’s bark resists her bludgeoning damage. Then Grams comes in with her axe on the Blue spruce, slashing 7 damage into the tree! Then Sandstone makes an attack on Red, slashing with his claws!

Unfortunately, the trees are sticky, and Iqu, Grams and Sandstone all need to make DC 17 reflex saves to avoid getting entangled!

The red tree, already heavily damaged by Scratch’s powerful cross bow bolt, flees for the forest! Only Blue is left! It moves away from Gram’s axe, pulling the stuck girl with it, to snap at Iqu!

Pine Branch: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21
Piercing Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

And another DC 17 Reflex to avoid being entangled!

Okay, getting my head back in the game. Thanks for summary, Loola. It was helpful.

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

Round 2 / 3
Active conditions:

Loola (-1)
Sandstone
Grams

================================

Angsty Pines
Blue (-7)
Green (-21, fled)
Red (-21, fled)

================================

Scratch
Iqu
Tess

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MAP ON SLIDE ONE
Alternate Map Link

Reflex (expert): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20

"No you don't!" Grams calls, rushing around the tree to try to cut it off. She grins as she moves despite the seriousness of the situation, certain that sort of pun is exactly the type adventurers like to make.

Then she brings her axe to bear (or tree, as it were)!

Battleaxe Strike: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11
1d8 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
Battleaxe Strike (iterative): 1d20 + 8 - 5 ⇒ (17) + 8 - 5 = 20
1d8 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5

Reflex (expert): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17
Reflex (expert): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23

Map link in the header worked fine for me today.

Grams is not getting stuck with some tree! Although she misses with her first slash, her second hits beautifully, doing another seven damage to the Blue Spruce!

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

Round 2 / 3
Active conditions:

Loola (-1)
Sandstone
Grams

================================

Angsty Pines
Blue (-14)
Green (-21, fled)
Red (-21, fled)

================================

Scratch
Iqu
Tess

================================

When it's Tess's turn, is there a way she can try to help free the stuck child? What would I roll for that?

Reflex: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12
Reflex: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7

Entangled in the tree's sticky sap, Iqusteps forward and swings her club as hard as she can.

Power Attack: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (1) + 9 = 10
B Damage: 2d10 + 4 ⇒ (6, 4) + 4 = 14

I'm back!

Reflex: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 = 23

Sandstone's strike is quick enough that he manages not to be enstickened by Red's sap! He steps forward, bares his fangs, and takes two more swipes at the Blue Spruce.

claw attack: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 4 + 2 = 23
slashing damage: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2
claw attack: 1d20 + 4 + 2 - 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 + 2 - 4 = 14
slashing damage: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

◈ Stride
◈ Strike
◈ Strike

When it's Tess's turn, is there a way she can try to help free the stuck child? What would I roll for that?

It is Tess's turn. Why don't you try a Thievery Roll?

Scratch reloads his crossbow, takes aim and fires at the blue spruce. "Unleash the FURY!" He hollers. Beads of sweat forming on his brow, then reloads.

Crossbow: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22
Damage (P), Precision: 1d10 + 2 + 1d8 ⇒ (5) + 2 + (4) = 11

Tess darts in and attempts to free the child!

Thievery: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14

Just as the last tree decides to run away, Tess attempts to free the child! The first attempt snags too hard on the hair!

Successive Thievery Attempt: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22

She succeeds on the second try!

COMBAT OVER!

The grateful villagers tumble out of the houses, and the girl clings to Tess, sobbing. "Something is wrong with the guardians," one of the villagers mutters. "They've never attacked us like this before."

One of the villagers offers up a pair of alchemist's fires from a storage box. "We are so grateful to you for protecting us. Will you be able to spend the night, or must you leave on the road right away?"

You get the village's charm, hospitality. The villagers provide comfort and care to travelers, improving their stamina. This charm allows a PC to reroll a single saving throw once per encounter. Alas this comes with a drawback, as the snow from this village will follow you, giving you a -2 to all perception checks.

"We can prolly stay one night, can't we Grams?" Loola turns her big eyes to the dwarf matron.

@GM: Can we buy, beg, borrow, or steal some winter clothing while in the village? Also, are we planning to come back through this village on our return trip?

"Yes, I think so, dear," Grams says, checking on the sobbing girl to make sure she's not actually hurt. "There, there, it's scary, but nothing to cry over!"

Once she's sure the girl is OK, she turns to the villager.

"What could be wrong with them, do you think?" she asks.

It's strange that trees are their guardians. You would think good stone would be better, but I don't know of that ever happening back in the mountains.

"The guardians have been strange of late. Restless. Upset." An old woman with fox ears and a tail says. "It's almost like they were children, hyped up on honey and almond cookies!"

The woman who talked to you first says, "You know... that caravan you were looking for. There was one that was supposed to come through, maybe four weeks ago? But it never arrived. Maybe you'll find your lost folk further down the road!"

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

You spend a nice warm night, and get a breakfast of congee, each bowl with plenty of rice and vegetables and a real fried egg in it. The villagers happily lend you furs. "You can bring them back to us on the way back, if you southern folk need them." They start to hug and wave to you. "Remember Basuru!"

The weather looks good, if still snowy. There's only a light briskness to the air, and the snow continues to drift down. Even for the few minutes you've spent outside, you all are starting to resemble the village's snowmen.

Iqu turns down the villager's offer of clothing, pulling out her own thick furs instead. Hood up and mitts on, she sets off with the others down the road the villagers suggested.

"This way," she says, beckoning her companions on through the snow. "Stay close. It's easy to get lost in heavy snow."

Loola giggles and frolics in the freshly fallen snow, pelting Sandstone and Tess with snowballs, and rolling in the snow making snow angels, before hustling to catch up with the group again.

The going is slow and tough for the goblin lass in the deep drifts, but she does not whine like she is oft known to do, such as when standing on boring sandbars or walking up steep mountain paths. The novelty of this wintery wonderland keeps her juvenile complaints at bay. Besides, it is much easier going where Iqu has expertly broken the trail.

"Ain't it beautiful, Scratch? This snow stuff is EVERYWHERE!" To emphasize her point, she scoops up an armful with both arms and throws it into the air above her.

omg now i'm fully craving congee and it's all ur fault

To approximate his native warmth, Sandstone swaddles himself in furs until he is fully round. Tramping gamely through the snow, he remarks to his companions, "What the villagers said makes sense. When I touched one of the trees here, there was too much energy. Maybe it is the relics?"

You travel the Spirit Road to the east. Along the journey, the road branches off several times, typically only for a short distance before rejoining the main road or reaching a dead end. The seemingly endless rows of conifer trees create a serene yet monotonous backdrop.

The path is choked with snow drifts, but for Iqu, it's familiar territory. While weather has obscured the trail, you soon see obvious signs that there were caravans along this route, and that they ran into difficulties where the snow made wagon travel difficult. You come across abandoned wheels along the side of the path and damaged branches.

Then a transparent humanoid appears, outlined only by the snow, as if the forest itself were clinging to an invisible person. The spirit looks at the party for a moment, then moves slowly toward you in a nonthreatening fashion, hovering just above the ground.

The spirit comes before you, turning to look at each of you, and waits.

Nature: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15

Sandstone gasps as he sees the spirit, and a smile of wonder spreads across his face. Filled with anticipation and reverence, he walks closer to the spirit, bows deeply, straightens, and holds out his upturned hand.

Loola giggles at Sandstone's strange behavior, but she follows suit, imitating her half-orc friend.

I didn't open the spoiler, so I legit don't know why we are doing this, but ok... :)

Tess shares Loola's appreciation of the snow, enjoying the peaceful silence of the snow-covered terrain.

She is startled but awed when the snow-limned spirit appears, following Sandstone's lead and bowing respectfully. She waits with the same tentative, deliberate care as if she'd found an elusive woodland creature she didn't want to startle, almost holding her breath and avoiding any sudden moves.

Also didn't open the spoiler! No nature/religion.

Sandstone's outstretched hand attracts the Kami, who stretches out its own outstretched hand, pauses and then finally touches. Sandstone feels the touch for a moment, and then feels the spirit slip inside him.

May I?

The question inside his head is light, seeking permission. Sandstone realizes that the voice is female, and suddenly a flood of memories hits him. A girl, playing the woods, speaking to kami, and watching the animals. The same girl, older, bringing home birds with broken wings and other injured creatures and nursing them back to health. Then later still, a grown woman awkward around people and shy, but growing in knowledge and wisdom. The same woman, making an error in judgment when watching a tiger and her cubs, taking notes, when suddenly the mother tiger caught her scent in the wind... A flash of color, sharp teeth, her hot blood seeping in the snow.

A mistake. A moment's foolishness.

Then, fear turns to joy and surprise as the kami gather near her, keeping her company, and letting her spirit join theirs. A feeling of satisfaction as she guards the forest through many seasons... Then concern.

A picture flashes to Sandstone, one of his own memories this time. The half-orc touching the rough bark of the pine, and feeling the wild primal energy. So much that his fingers tingle from it.

You know? the spirit asks.

Iqu watches the scene unfold in curiosity....

Religion (trained): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

"It's a Kami," Grams breathes to the others as she anxiously watches Sandstone's interaction with the spirit. [b]"They need hosts to interact with the living world, and it's possessing him to share its experience!. They can't control him, but can probably influence his thoughts and behaviors!"

She waits to see what her fellow Pathfinder does, ready to reach out and grab Loola back if she has to.

Sandstone nods to the spirit inside. It's not right, is it? he thinks. He tries to picture the energy of spring, but sped up, jerky, too much.

He imagines a small creek, and he imagines himself walking upstream, tracing the flow back and back as the creek shrinks until he comes upon the spring. Sending this picture to the kami, he asks, Do you know where the source is?

Come.

For a moment, Sandstone sees the translucent tien woman's features clearly in front of him as she takes his hand. The scenery flies forward at an impossible pace, and then Sandstone is with his spirit guide, hovering near a caravan under attack. He sees various guards, a slightly chubby tien man and a more athletic tien woman dodging under the wagons of the caravan as stone statues of dogs roll in, battering the caravan left and right. The rocky statues roll in like little boulders, pummeling the wagons and any guards unlucky enough to be in their way.

Then, in the midst of all the chaos, a familiar-looking young man with a fox face sneaks to the back of the caravan, snatching a bag away, then fleeing into the forest.

There. THERE. She points to the bag. You feel it, yes?

And Sandstone does feel it. All the rambunctious power of an angry enraged and stormy spring, pouring from that bag, carried by the fleeing kitsune.

Then the world spins around him, faster and faster, as the landscape blurs again at impossible speed, this time backwards. It's like being a kite caught in a desert sandstorm, out of control, wild and yet... exhilarating.

Sandstone's head is still spinning as he falls back into the snow. Heart pounding, breathing ragged, and yet he's solidly back in his body, with his friends again. He can feel the spirit with him, waiting, and the path ahead to the caravan is crystal clear, lit up in his mind.

"Sandstone," Grams cries, rushing forward through the snow to help the half-orc and make sure he's OK. "What happened?"

Sandstone lies on his back, panting, staring wide-eyed into the clouds. "That was amazing," he says, "and I know where the relic is."

He explains the spirit's tale to the rest of the party, then frowns thoughtfully. "I wonder if the fox boy animated those dogs like he animated the snowmen."

As Sandstone leads the way, your group finds itself beginning to make excellent time, as spirits sweep snow out of your path in advance of your footsteps. It's like the whole forest is helping you right now. Branches shift slightly out of your way, and the wind is at your back, hurrying you along.

After a few hours of this rapid travel, a second spirit hovers hesitantly in front of the group, the translucent figure outlined in snow, looking from person to person as if waiting for an invitation.

Grams looks at the others and then shrugs. The first one seemed helpful enough, and if this one isn't, well, she'd rather be the one to deal with it than let the others.

She steps forward and holds out her hands, as she saw Sandstone do earlier.

As the spirit slips in, Grams gets the impression of a solid male presence. This kami was a hunter, a savvy traveler in the forest. He lets Grams see a few flashes of his life. The young boy who with pride brought home some snared rabbits for his hungry family, the gawky adolescent who still walked through the woods with a quiet grace, the older man taking care to carefully butcher a deer, and then drop the food off to elders and widows in his village. Finally an old man's death, taking himself out to the forest one night, and then rising as a kami, leaving his useless body behind.

Come.

The Grams is spinning down the paths with this quiet hunter, flying with him like a hawk in flight. A moment later, Grams and the Hunter are both perched on the high branch of a tree, looking down on a young kitsune. They watch as he pulls out of a bag a jade bonsai statue. When the kitsune sets the statue down, the snow melts around it and flowers sprout out of the ground. The kitsune's eyes widen, and he opens his book and starts saying incantations while behind him, some of the tree branches behind him twitch agitatedly.

Grams can feel the hunter's irritation as he watches the young man. Then the hunter nods to Grams, and the two fly back, swift and sure. When they reach her own body, she sways a moment, but the hunter catches her before she falls.

Steady. Breathe. We have a quarry to track down.

Grams gasps as she comes back to her senses, telling the others what she saw.

"I don't know if it's the jade statue or the kitsune that's the real problem," she says, "but I think we need to find them.

"We'll set this right," she announces, looking up, toward where the spirit might be.

The snow continues to blow out in advance of you, branches moving out of your way. Pretty soon, you hear shouting and thumping and the unmistakable sounds of battle through the constant snowfall. You rush forward and finally see a set of wagons, people huddled under them, screaming and yelling as stone dog statues roll towards the caravan, battering the wagons again and again as they roll back and forth.

THUMP-THUMP. THUMP!

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

Round 1
Active conditions:

Sandstone
Grams
Tess
Iqu
Scratch
Loola

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Statues
Red
Blue
Purple
Green

================================

MAP ON SLIDE ONE

"Hey! Stop it! Shoo!" Grams cries, rushing toward the nearest dog. She brings her axe down on it, hoping it won't leave a notch. "Bad dog!"

Action 1: ◈ Stride
Action 2: ◈ Strike
Action 3: ◈ Raise Shield (+2 AC)

Battleaxe Strike: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (10) + 8 = 18
1d8 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10

I'm making a couple assumptions: That we had weapons/shields out since we heard the sound of battle; and that it's not difficult terrain so I can reach with a single Stride. If it is, I'll sudden charge, which would give me two Strides and a Strike with my first two actions, so same net result.

"Grams! There more of them!" Loola shouts. "Scary rock dogs!"

The small goblin waves a hand and speaks a few words of draconic, "මැජික් මිසයිලය". Three arcane bolts of magical energy fly from her hand toward one of the other stone dogs. (BLUE.)
◈◈◈ magic missile
magic missile: 3d4 + 3 ⇒ (2, 1, 3) + 3 = 9

"Bad dog! You mean rock dog!"

Tess has never seen anything like this before! Her glance darts around as she looks for any advantages the terrain might offer — high ground, rocks or branches to impede the rolling statues, etc.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (20) + 5 = 25

I'm hoping I can use some stealth/thievery or acrobatics/athletics skills to try to derail, confuse, or vex the statues. If there's nothing to be found, Tess will Stride twice to flank with Grams and will attack Green Dog with her rapier, though she's not very optimistic about her damage chances.

omg grams "shoo bad dog" looolllll

Sandstone grows claws and runs toward the nearest stone dog. While running, he calls on the memories granted to him by the kami to see if he can learn anything about the natural forces that might be animating the stone dogs.

Nature: 1d20 + 7 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 7 + 2 = 18

◈ wild morph
◈ Stride
◈ Nature check

I should have noted the replenishment of my focus point when we slept at the village but forgot, so now I'm just back down to 0/1.

Iqu hustles up to the stone dog and brings her club down on its head.

Power Attack: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (9) + 9 = 18
B Damage: 2d10 + 4 ⇒ (4, 3) + 4 = 11

Stride, Power Attack

Click. Whirr.

BOTTING SCRATCH

Scratch reloads his crossbow, takes aim and fires at one of the dogs. "ROCK ON!" He hollers. Beads of sweat forming on his brow, then reloads.

Crossbow: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17
Damage (P), Precision: 1d10 + 2 + 1d8 ⇒ (3) + 2 + (5) = 10

Grams manages to crack the green stone dog's hardness, stopping its crazed rolling! Then Loola's magic missiles stop on of the other scary rock dogs completely!

Tess immediately notices that these statues, though somewhat armored, are fragile and easier to break than the trees. She realizes she might be able to damage them!

Did you want to spend the rest of your turn striding forward with Iqu?

Iqu, you have no nearby foes. How about this. I move you forward, and we'll apply that next round?

Sandstone reaches for Nature... and suddenly finds himself pulling on his guest's Arcana lore! He realizes that these simple forest guardians were originally statues placed to honor the kami. They have some minor hardness, but are a bit more fragile than he expected!

Sandstone, of course you replenished focus when you rested. You may have that focus point back!

Scratch shoots at the Purple guardian, and cracks it!

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

The remaining red guardian rolls toward Iqu, and then Iqu's club attack stops it in its tracks!

COMBAT OVER!

★ --- ★ --- ★ --- ★

When you reduce the remaining statues to rubble, the battered people crawl out from under the wagons. You realize now that there are shattered statues everywhere... They must have been fighting off waves of these things before exhaustion set in and they resorted to hiding beneath the wagons.

One, a stocky tien man, crawls out to greet you. He's limping, exhausted and clearly injured. "Thank you for the help. My name is Lin Po. My partner is Ti Lan, and these are the drivers Yoshi, Keiko, and Hitomi. What are your names, travelers, and how can we thank you?"

Scratch wipes the sweat from his brow as his heart races slows and his mind clears back up. He jams another bolt into his well worn crossbow and cranks the mechanism with decades of familiarity. Calm down old man, the battle is over! He thinks to himself, over and over as the people crawl out from under the wagons.

"Scratch. Scratch Steeltoe. We've been trackin' you guys down fer days now." He leaves a more thorough introduction to the others as he looks around for any signs of that foxy guy with the satchel and the relic.

Hunt Prey: The relic thief!, then seek/tracking.
Survival:Track, Prey: 1d20 + 6 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 2 = 18 +1 if this is a 'seek' action instead.

"I'm Sandstone," the half-orc bows. He reaches for his satchels of herbs and asks, "Can I assist with your wounds?"

Do I do a medicine check for healing npcs? If so, and if they accept:

Scratch looks around, but sees no current signs of the foxy gentleman nearby. Too much fresh snow, and too much recent churning of it from the rolling statues. Sandstone is able to assist with the wounds of the caravaners. "We've been fighting these things on and off for days now," Ti Lan says, wincing as Sandstone resets a broken bone. "One of them got me in my weapon arm."

The grateful drivers hand you some of their weapons: a composite shortbow with 10 arrows, a greataxe, and a greatclub. "It's been bad, no mistake," Lin Po says. "But you say that you've been tracking us down for days? Did Venture Captain Li send you all?"

Loola replies to Lin Po, "Yes. She really nice."

Lin Po and Ti Lan look at each other, and then nod. "Alright. We must tell you some things. After the first time that the stone dogs attacked us, we realized that one of the relics we were transporting was missing, and not just any relic," Ti Lan says, the tall athletic woman pausing to purse her lips. "Um... this is going to sound odd. But it was a jade tree, and it... well, it talked to us."

"Not aloud," Lin Po hastens to explain. "But we both got dreams where were trapped inside a jade cell, and then there were these feelings of foreboding where in the dream we were kidnapped and hauled away, and then images of a rioting forest."

"We know you came here after us, but what do you know of Kami?" Ti Lan asks.

"We've heard stories," Grams says, after introducing herself and expressing relief at their survival.

She explains what they've heard -- and encountered -- as she helps Sandstone treat their injuries.

"A bonsai jade!" she exclaims. "I think that's what's happening. I -- spoke -- with one of the kami, and it showed me a kitsune with that statue, and the trees started to move when he put it on the ground!"

Sandstone nods thoughtfully. "This explains a lot," he says. "The trees around here have too much life force -- maybe arcane, maybe natural. A powerful relic linked to the trees makes sense."

Tess aids in putting the camp back together and keeps a wary eye on the forest in case anything else wants to take advantage of the group's exhausted state.

"Grams or Sandstone, were there any clues from the kami's visions that suggest where the thief might have gone? Lin Po, Ti Lan, are you hoping to track down this artifact, or would you prefer to regroup while we carry on the search?"

"Ah fiddle faddle!" Breaths an annoyed Scratch as he heads back to the caravan "No sign of that foxy thief out there. Too much damn new snow and too many trampled tracks." He shoulders his crossbow and gives the crew a crooked, yellow smile "Sorry we didn't get here sooner but its a LONG trip from Absalom n my wings are still at the cleaners."

He sets his old rump down on the nearest wagon wheel and starts picking his teeth with a broken dog shard. "We were attacked by some ornery trees back at the last village, now these rollin' rocks. What next, a trio of salty snowmen?" He flicks away the remnants of rock and nibbles on a fresh piece of jerky as the others debrief the pair.