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Silence pecks at Red, who crumples. Silence moves on to Orange. Meadow brings down Orange.
Hopper sends an arc at Green and Blue, hitting both, but Green dodges part. He throws a vial at Blue, but forgets to put in the fuse, and the chemicals splash harmlessly onto the ground.
Poffis puts away her longspear and kicks some dirt onto the fire, extinguishing a 5' square.
Valdris also sends an arc at Yellow, which drops it.
Grogggg tries to throw up on the fire to put it out. He can't throw up, and ends up kicking some dirt on the fire to extinguish it.
Moko distracts Yellow with some fancy staff work, while Kairuku pecks at all the leshy's connective stems. Yellow falls.
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Green focuses on fighting the firefighters. Throwing plums at ...
... Poffis
plus DC 15 Fortitude
... then Grogggg ...
plus DC 15 Fortitude
... and then back at Poffis.
plus DC 15 Fortitude
Blue throws at ... Hopper
plus DC 15 Fortitude
... then Grogggg ...
plus DC 15 Fortitude
... and then Poffis.
plus DC 15 Fortitude
The wind shifts, blowing the fire to the northeast. But Jaldan uses create water to put out the square closest to the group (southwest).
Round 3/4! Pathfinders are up!
Moko (-2 hp) / Kairuku
Meadow / Silence (-1 hp)
Poffis (-2 hp, DC 15 Fortitude)
Hopper (-12 hp)
Red Leshy (-16 hp)
Orange Leshy (-15 hp)
Yellow Leshy (-14 hp)
Green Leshy (-6 hp)
Blue Leshy (-4 hp)
Purple Leshy (-16 hp)
Fire
Grogggg (-14 hp, sickened 1)
Valdris
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Silence pecks at Red, who crumples. Silence moves on to Orange. [ooc]Meadow, Orange is outside your shortbow's first range increment, so each of your shots takes a -2 to hit. They still both hit, though. Meadow brings down Orange.
You designate a single creature as your prey and focus your attacks against that creature. You must be able to see or hear the prey, or you must be tracking the prey during exploration.
You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Perception checks when you Seek your prey and a +2 circumstance bonus to Survival checks when you Track your prey. You also ignore the penalty for making ranged attacks within your second range increment against the prey you’re hunting.
You can have only one creature designated as your prey at a time. If you use Hunt Prey against a creature when you already have a creature designated, the prior creature loses the designation and the new prey gains the designation. Your designation lasts until your next daily preparations.
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Moko darts out of the thick undergrowth and runs northward to a corrupted leshy .
Kai! Get behind this one! Attack! He shouts to the osprey, pointing with his wahaika as he hurries towards the creature then stops adjacent to it.
Phweet, phweet!
Kairuku whistles sharply as he swoops in, then snaps at the creature with his beak, flanking with Moko.
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Blue dodges Valdris's arc entirely.
Grogggg puts out a fire with his vomit.
Moko and Kairuku team up on Blue, defeating the leshy.
Meadow picks off Green with a crit.
Final damage report:
Moko (-2 hp) / Kairuku
Meadow / Silence (-1 hp)
Poffis (-2 hp)
Hopper (-12 hp)
Grogggg (-14 hp)
Valdris
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Jaldan is absolutely ecstatic, hugging anyone who comes within reach and promising to make them honorary Redpines.
After everyone is done healing, Jaldan sets a hard pace for the camp, determined to get home before anything else goes wrong. The Pathfinders shamble into the encampment just as the Redpines are setting up for the night.
Jaldan hails a sentry as they arrive, her demeanor upbeat and bubbly.
The Pathfinders are promptly welcomed into the camp, allotted a patch of ground, and given roast rabbit and wild greens. Jaldan steals a rabbit leg from the Pathfinders, then trots off to report to the camp’s leaders.
About an hour later, the Pathfinders are approached by a golden-eyed lizardfolk with coppery scales.
“Stars move more easily than minds.” The lizardfolk observes to no one in particular, sitting down on a log. “I am Urwal.”
“Jaldan spoke to us. You have seen Finadar’s problem in flower and flesh. Tell me what you have seen."
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"Ugh...this stench is enough t' gag a maggot," Poffis grimaces after the leshys are defeated and the raging fire is finally put out. "Still, could've been worse..." she adds as she looks at Groggg and Hopper, who look the worst for the wear. "Least I can help with th' injuries a bit. C'mon folks, gather in close!"
The gnome beckons everyone to within a 30 ft. radius of her and borrows a little power from the spirits of life and the forest around her to heal some of the group's wounds.
"S'not much but it's better'n nothin'!"
______________
Poffis scratches her head for a moment, seemingly a bit puzzled.
"If Jaldan told you what happened I'm not sure why you wanna hear it from us too, but sure. These crazy-lookin' leshys attacked us an' tried t' start another fire t' burn th' forest down," she remarks. "They were corrupted leshys though, nothin' like my little Sunny. It's...like th' very spirits themselves are corrupted, y'see. Or maybe somethin's poisoned th' vessels they usually use, maybe th' land itself's gone sour somehow."
She frowns and looks over at Urwal. "But th' why of it's th' big question. No one's seen or noticed anythin' else strange leadin' up t' all this an' there's not been any major changes t' th' area that anyone's aware of. So I'm pretty dang puzzled as t' why th' spirits are in such a sad state! That sorta thing just don't happen overnight, right?"
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As Hopper notice the rotten fruit being thrown at him he yells
"Don't throw rotten plums at me you weed bucket!" just to see that his allies were not wasting their time.
He aided with putting down the fire, and then gathering some branches from the trees.
He smelled them, licked then, and even chewed them
"Most interesting, I need to study them for a bit after we are back."
He appreciates the healing and turns to Sunny
"Sunny you asked what mutagen is, let me answer it now." he takes out some flask with dark silver fluid in it.
"Smell it?" he uncorks the bottle to let Sunny smell the potion. It is a mix of fungus a bit of rosemary, vinegar and cloves.
"Normally it is tasteless but I add some spices for the flavor. Usually drinking one can be painful as it causes temporal transformation. It might make your skin thick, or your body lean and agile. Each one has drawbacks that should be taken under consideration, but none of the side-effects are permanent. The testing is hard, however..." he continous his ramble.
Hopper nods to what Poffis is saying. Throwing in some details about the fire. He even gets ahead of himself by describing how the burning of the forest should look like. But he gets quiet after seeing that no one shares his enthusiasm on that matter.
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“I am Urwal.”“Jaldan spoke to us. You have seen Finadar’s problem in flower and flesh. Tell me what you have seen."
"There were some awful creatures that came out of the forest. A moss-covered human skull that scuttled along six branches like a spider an icky dead raccoon with a bunch of bleeding eyes, a bunch of weeds with with gross pulsing flowers. Ugh! They were awful. They started a fire but Jaldan, Grog and Poffis and everyone managed to put it out and we killed the monsters."
"Oh I just remembered. They sounded like they were talking at first. One of them said something that sounded like 'នៅទីនោះ!'"
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After receiving a little magic and some practical assistance Grog thanks Poffis and Meadow.
Thank you. Grog feel much better now. Only hurt when Grog not drinking." He gives them both a big smile.
After hurrying to the camp and getting settled, "Ooh! Roast rabbit with seasoned greens! Grog love that! Oh! Not bad, greens need a little more pepper" After seeing a surprised look or two, "What, Grog enjoy cooking and brewing! Oh yeah, Grog have some decent white wine, go good with rabbit!" He pulls a few small and well packed glasses from deep in a pack and offers a drink to any who want it.
When Urwal walks in Grog lets everyone else speak, knowing this group has some good story tellers in it. He finally adds in,"They throw bad fruit too, make Grog sick!"
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"I can say, without a doubt, that Meadow has the summary of what happened. Let us just be glad that the group took to take quickly and got things settled fast."
Finding a spot, the wizard puts down his backpack, and takes out a ration, gnawing on it absent minded as he rummages further into the back before finding his spellbook.
"Let me tell you a story,” Urwal says, changing the subject abruptly. “North of here, there is a valley. Dragons died there, and their bones linger. For centuries, goblins dwelled among the bones. They made rituals of fire and worship. Such a life is not for me, but the goblins were happy.”
“Beneath the dragons’ graves lay a monolith. I have heard tale of it. Carven rock, six handspans tall, covered in the markings of the one-eyed shapers. For years past number, the stone slumbered, until even the stars changed above it."
“Then, as the Sun blessed the Newlyweds, the goblins’ rituals awoke the stone. It remembered its shapers. It remembered its purpose. And it remembered its powers. It called living fire into the dragons’ bones. Finadar burned. Pathfinders came to help. The stone was found, broken. All seemed well."
“But now the spirits grow strange and furious. Cenenviel and Kaana seek to guard their peoples’ lives. This is well. But I think it wise that someone seek out that stone. The stars agree.”
Urwal is quiet for a long moment, and then nods briskly.
“This is an auspicious night. The Dreamer is bright. Walk the camp, see where you may be of aid. Brighten the name of the Pathfinders. You will leave in the morning. For the valley. For the stone.”
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Thank you for the healing, Poffis. Good battle, everyone. All us Pathfinders still alive. That is very good.
------------------------------------
Upon reaching the Redpine encampment...
Moko listens to the others tell their stories of the corrupted creatures they had fought. He feels they told their stories well and decides he doesn't have anything more to add. He just nods approvingly as they speak.
Greetings, Urwal. It is I, Moko. The one you welcomed into the Pathfinder tribe. Moko gives a slight bow of his head.
These "one-eyed shapers" that created the monolith you speak of. Do you speak of the Cyclops? Also, the goblins you speak of that lived there long ago. Do their descendants inhabit that area now?
I can assist the Redpine tribe with my knowledge of medicine and survival. I will do whatever I can.
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Hearing the word medicine, Valdris perks up a bit.
"I can try to help with medicine as well, but you might be better at it than I Moko. Perhaps we can talk to these descendents of the tribe if they are still tbere, and maybe ask about the cyclopian builders? Also, if any knowledge of the arcane or warefare is needed, I am studied on the subjects."
These "one-eyed shapers" that created the monolith you speak of. Do you speak of the Cyclops?
"Yes, yes, you call them 'cyclops.'"
Also, the goblins you speak of that lived there long ago. Do their descendants inhabit that area now?
"Perhaps we can talk to these descendents of the tribe if they are still tbere, and maybe ask about the cyclopian builders?"
"The descendants of the builders are as fleeting as a meteor from the sky. Only the stone remains, now. And evil."
"What are the Newlyweds? And what do you mean by 'the Sun blessed the Newlyweds? What is the Dreamer? Is that a star or something? It kind of sounds like a nickname for Desna. What was it that the bad leshys said when they attacked us?"
“When the constellation of the Newlyweds lay behind the sun. Late Calistril.”
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Moko looks around for someone who could use his skills in Survival. He finds Kaana Korag, the centaur chieftain, overseeing the return of a patrol. The chieftain is politely skeptical of the Pathfinders, and scoffs at the idea that "city dwellers" would survive in the forest here. She may be impressed by a demonstration of their knowledge of nature or the wilderness. Alternatively, if you could demonstrate your skills with a weapon, she may be similarly impressed.
Valdris looks around for someone who could use his skills in Arcana. He finds the elven druid Cenenviel in one of the tents, poring over a motley and rather fire-damaged collection of old books, scouts’ reports, and scribbled notes. Cenenviel explains that he is trying to see if the spirits’ current anger has any historical precedent, which would be simpler if his own records hadn’t been damaged in the fire. A large wolverine enthusiastically plays with a leather cord in a corner of the tent and presents the cord to PCs, hopeful for a rousing game of tug-the-cord. Cenenviel tells the PCs that her name is Berry-Eater, and warns them that she will follow them all around camp if they play with her.
Grogggg looks around for some booze. He finds Jaldan with a small group of young centaurs. The apprentice shaman is cheerfully telling her friends about her trip with the PCs, embellishing the leshy attack a bit. When the PCs arrive, she includes them in the story, lauding their valor and inviting them to participate in the storytelling.
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Grog smiles when he sees Jaldan with the younglings. He happily joins in, perhaps embellishing the facts a tiny bit, mostly to make Jaldan's part in it more heroic and making light of his fruity burns in an attempt to get the kids to laugh.
He does NOT offer any booze to them. Too young. There are rules to proper drinking...
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Burned books is where Hopper goes, he loves fire and studied months the secrets of arcana and occultism for that matter. He burned his books a number of times and is good at deciphering what was left of them
"Come Lizzy, take a look. That could be the Dreamer... yes ... yes and this..." speaks goblin looking at a couple of books at the time putting Lizzy at the table.
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"Huh. So th' goblins that lived in th' valley managed t' wake up somethin' that'd been sleepin', somethin' that belong to th' cyclops," Poffis repeats for her own clarity. Then, she rolls her eyes. "Of course they did."
Then, she blinks and shoots a nervous glance at Grogggg and Hopper. "Uh, no offense, I mean. Could've happened t' anyone."
Just more likely to happen with goblins.
"Anyways, so we need t' go t' this valley an' see what we can find. So th' other Pathfinders just left th' stone they found in th' valley, then? Any idea what it looked like?"
______________
A bit later, after their meeting with Urwal, Poffis and Sunny meander around the Redpine camp in an attempt to see if they can lend a hand with anything before it's time to bed down for the night. When she overhears Kaana expressing her doubt about the group's wilderness skills, she can't help but speak up.
"Aw now come on Miss Korag, I know we ain't from around here but there're still some universal rules of survivin' out in th' elements that apply to any an' all forests, ya know?"
"Ya gotta make a shelter - easiest way is t' look for blowdowns or trees with low-hangin' canopies but buildin's an option too, like makin' a lean-to with some big ol' tree branches or logs. Ya gotta make a fire too an' it's best t' use deadwood if ya can find it. An' that's just th' beginnin'! Now obviously 'round here ya gotta be careful with th' fire right now but most of th' rest still applies."
After she's hopefully demonstrated to the centaur chieftain that the group isn't totally clueless about taking care of themselves out here, Poffis wanders across Cenenviel's pet wolverine. "Hey there, girl! Berry-Eater, huh? Y'got some pretty fur, y'know it? Been ages since I've seen a wolverine pretty as you! Cenenviel said you like playin' tug-th'-cord. Wanna play?"
"Rah! 'Course you do! Get it girl, get it!"
Playing tug-the-cord with a wolverine is a new experience for Poffis but it's surprisingly enjoyable, even if she does get pulled off of her feet and dragged around a bit - and more than once. Once the game is done and Berry-Eater seems ready for a break, Poffis gives her a pat and heads over to listen to storytime with Jaldan and the younger centaurs. Not being one for creative performances, the gnome takes a more straightforward approach as Jaldan encourages her to add her own viewpoint to the tale.
"They were leshys, see, even if they looked all warped an' twisted. Knowin' that, it was easier t' be brave an' do what we needed t' do t' put the fires out. It was still a sad sight t' see, though, those poor spirits all tormented an' twisted like they were...ain't how it's supposed t' be, y'know? Ain't how it's supposed t' be at all. They deserved better than that."
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Grogggg tries to impress the young centaurs with his stories, but they're all just eyeing his booze and not really listening until Poffis shows up. She talks while Grogggg finishes his beer, and the kids listen to the story undistracted.
Hopper pores through tomes with the druid, quickly categorizing them by magical schools. The wolverine keeps sniffing around, but then Poffis comes by to distract it. Cenenviel quickly finds references to some ancient cyclopean ruins in the area, including the stone in the valley, and an old cyclops grave surrounded by standing cairns. Cenenviel theorizes that the cyclopean relics were meant to gather evil energies and might be the cause of all the trouble; disabling or destroying the relics might cause the leshys to return to normal.
Poffis demonstrates her skill in the forest, teaching Kaava a few things she didn't even know.
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Valdris searches through the paperwork, organizing, piling, and cataloging as much useful information he could gather.
"Perhaps, there might be some interesting clues here. If not of as to what has happened to the tribe, maybe any happenings in the area."
After finishing and organizing what he could, Valdris attempts to play with the wolverine by casting Light on one end of the leather cord, and flopping it about.
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Moko, much to Kai's dismay, is intrigued by Berry-Eater's antics. He playfully teases the wolverine and amuses himself with some "tug-the-cord" with the animal.
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Moko joins in on the storytelling, but, instead of speaking, he pantomimes parts of the battle and makes the sound of weapons and squeals of the corrupted creatures. He flaps his arms like a bird as he mimes Kai and Silence making their attacks.
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Meadow speaks with the chieftan, Kaana Korag.
"Well I have been living in the city for three years now. Do you really think that I've lost all my skils from eighteen years of living in the forest? I mean I think that For example, wild berries tend to favor slightly acidic tracts of land, so you should look for conifers like pine and spruce to locate a nice section of tasty fruit. Wild apple trees produce edible but gritty fruit on the edges of forest boundaries. Also low-growing crops of blueberries tend to grow on ridge tops and weather-beaten corners of the forest. That's true isn't it?"
Valdris, Moko, and Meadow all show Kaana some humanoid ingenuity when it came to making shelters. Kaana is thoroughly impressed, and she opens up enough to share a few of her own tales, reminiscing about the time she had to kill a hill giant all on her own, which took two quivers’ worth of arrows. The giant looked like a porcupine afterward.
After Grogggg finishes his beer, his storytelling modifier increases dramatically. He engages the children while Moko mimes the whole story in the background. At the very end, Jaldan tells of the victory parade for the Pathfinders, and dashes into her tent to brings back a little wreath to hold over their heads. The wreath is a holly bush feather token, which she made herself and which she now gives to the PCs in thanks for a great adventure together.
The following morning, Urwal gathers the Pathfinders before they set out. The iruxi doesn't say it out loud, but he is clearly pleased with how they represented the Society.
“I have cast horoscopes for your mission,” Urwal says without preamble, setting a pair of satchels full of traveling supplies by your campsite. “The omens are favorable enough, although the stars carry warning. The spirits of Finadar Forest are sick. Perhaps this is an abscess in nature, and must be lanced with sword and flame. But such a cure is to be mourned, not celebrated,” the lizardfolk says, emphasizing each word. “Better for all if a safer salve is found. Yes?”
The satchels contain bread, foraged mushrooms, and smoked meat, along with 4 gp and 45 sp.
Urwal expresses his thanks for putting out the forest fire and offers the Pathfinders an arrow “representing the primeval forest’s gratitude” - a hunter’s bane arrow.
Cenenviel and Kaana Korag also present the Pathfinders a silver crescent moon pendant worth 8 gp.
---
As they travel over the course of the next day, the Pathfinders find the forest becoming gradually quieter. There are more burnt areas here, both old scars from earlier fires and the remnants of more recent blazes sparked by the corrupted leshys.
Eventually, the Pathfinders come across a small mountain stream, which matches Urwal’s directions—they’re on the right path.
As the Pathfinders are crossing the stream, they spot movement up ahead. An enormous scarecrow is busily clearing the collected growth of eons past from an ancient set of cyclopean menhirs that surround what
looks to be an altar or grave of some kind, decorated with a sinuous, flowing script. Several small animals have been freshly sacrificed atop the altar, their blood sliding into the grooves of the letters carved into the stone.
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Hopper in the morning brews a whole set of his bombs and mutagens. It takes him an hour of uninterrupted work.
At the end of the process he goes to Meadow and gives her one flask
"This is something to aid your shooting. After drinking it, you will feel pain and your limbs will feel weird, but you will be more accurate and agile."
Then to Groggg and Moko
"Hold those, after drinking scales will grow on your skin and you will be harder to harm. I haven't really tested this mutagen well, so some implications are not yet documented by me. Try to recall how you felt and any side-effects that you discover."
Hopper looks at the odd sight and takes out his dagger and applies poison to it. Then he reaches out for his shield and with both in hands begin to stealthily come closer.
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When he is gifted with the mutagen, "Ah! Thank you! Grog inform you of any interactions, especially with my kind of spirits!"
When they come upon the gruesome sight Grog frowns and whispers, "Even Grog know that wrong, very wrong. Must be stopped."
From this vantage point he will try to hide as best he can as to not draw notice while the more skilled members of the party try to figure out the best way to deal with that nasty looking scarecrow.. When he sees Hopper getting closer he will follow to watch his back...
Kai takes flight from Moko's shoulder. Something delicious catches his eye in the stream. He swoops down and grabs a small fish that was swimming near the surface then continues towards the circle of stones.
He lands on the furthest stone, whistles a warning to all forest creatures that the fish is his, and pecks at the tasty fish.
Occasionally, he looks up at the strange creature then at the dead animals, then back at the creature. He phweet-phweets a call that the dead animals are his next meal and continues acting like a normal osprey in the woods.
He waits for his master and his group as he continues eating the fish and glancing at the creature, staying alert.
Everyone tries to be sneaky, but as he's crossing the stream, Grogggg spills some of his beer and instinctively yells, "Aw, man!"
The scarecrow looks right at the group, although Poffis gets the jump.
Round 1! The bolded may act.
Poffis
Scarecrow
Hopper
Meadow / Silence
Moko / Kairuku
Valdris
GM
Grogggg
Poffis moves up, believing herself to be safe behind a wall of trees.
The scarecrow begins moving forward, and easily strides through the difficult terrain as if it weren't there. It reaches out with an eerily long arm to swing a claw at her.
plus 1 evil
Round 1! The bolded may act.
Poffis (-8 hp)
Scarecrow
Hopper
Meadow / Silence
Moko / Kairuku
Valdris
GM
Grogggg