GM Badblood's Tyranny of the Winds Series (PFS) (Inactive)

Game Master Lance K

The spellcaster waves one arm and a thin line vertical appears in the air next to him. Chalissier, the slyph mage, grabs the fissure and pulls it open before smoothly stepping backwards into it. The mage has vanished into the seem as if stepping through a door. Perhaps a door to another dimension even. Then there is another flash of light and a crack of thunder as a second bolt of lightning passes through the heroes on the flying carpet.

Is Javon out of the fight, or is he riding on Grax's shoulder? If he's with Grax, he's also subject to making a saving throw.

Lightning Bolt, DC 17 for half: 6d6 ⇒ (6, 4, 1, 6, 3, 1) = 21

Round 4
Grax -10 ft., reflex needed
Rhu -10 ft. -11
Slyph -10 ft?; total concealment, -1
Therin -0 ft., -10
Hskoro -10 ft., -28, reflex needed

Round 5
Grax -10 ft., reflex needed
Rhu -10 ft. -11
Slyph -10 ft?; total concealment, -1
Therin -0 ft., -10
Hskoro -10 ft., -28, reflex needed

Javon went to a bookshelf even before the fight broke out per this post. He's hiding on the shelves during the fight as his normal MO.

Reflex Save: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10

Grax screams as the lightning shocks his whole body. He snarls and whirls with his greatsword, looking for the mage. "Where did he go?" He wills the carpet forward looking for the Slyph.

Grax will pilot the carpet forward and back through the mists. I'm going to say we'll stay at the same elevation. I'm not sure Grax would think about moving in 3D.

Following the direction the lightning bolt came from, Grax pursues the mage into the mists. He finds him not far from where he was a few seconds ago.

He remained level at 10 ft so he could be sure his bolt hit both targets. Grax can still attack.

Grax attacks with his two-handed greatsword at the Slyph. "Ah! Found you!"

Attack (PA, FF): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22
Miss Chance (low=good): 1d100 ⇒ 39
Damage (PA): 2d6 + 13 ⇒ (3, 4) + 13 = 20

Reflex DC17: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 = 23

Somehow Hskoro seems to avoid some of the lightning bolt, but still feels numb from the electricity flowing through him.

With Grax piloting the carpet to get close to the sylph again, he swings his axe down at the slippery form, hoping to finally put an end to him.

Cold Iron Battle Axe: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13
Damage: 1d8 + 5 ⇒ (3) + 5 = 8

If the sylph doesn't fall out of the mist:

Rhu pulls out the fly potion and drinks it down, rising slowly into the air.

Despite the swirling mists obscuring his vision, Grax manages to strike the mage with his heavy sword and the blade bites into his leg. The slyph leaps to the side as Hskoro's axe flies by him.

From the ground, Rhu drinks one of the confiscated fly potions.

Round 4
Grax -10 ft., -21
Rhu -10 ft. -11
Slyph -10 ft?; total concealment, -21
Therin -0 ft., -10
Hskoro -10 ft., -38

Round 5
Grax -10 ft., -21
Rhu -10 ft. -11
Slyph -10 ft?; total concealment, -21
Therin -0 ft., -10
Hskoro -10 ft., -38

Blast it! I hate being stuck on the ground! Come to me if you're hurt...I can't see you...

will ready a heal spell for one of the party if they come down

Therin gets ready to cast his most powerful healing spell the moment any ally gets within harms reach. Meanwhile Chalissier pulls the same trick as before and grabs of handful of air and pulls it down in front of himself as if he drawing a curtain closed. From somewhere higher up in the cloud he can be heard chanting some kind of spell.

Also, how high in the air did Rhu rise? Rising is double movement and fly has a 60 ft. speed, so he could be as high as 30 feet in the air. And remember, hovering, flying straight up, and moving less than half speed in a round normally require a Fly check. Luckily the potion also grants a +5 bonus to Fly checks.

Round 5
Grax -10 ft., -21
Rhu -10 ft. -11
Slyph -?? ft; total concealment, -21
Therin -0 ft., -10
Hskoro -10 ft., -38

Round 6
Grax -10 ft., -21
Rhu -10 ft. -11
Slyph -?? ft; total concealment, -21
[b]Therin -0 ft., -10
Hskoro -10 ft., -38

Hskoro, do you need to get to the ground for healing? Otherwise, the only way I see is to keep trying to pursue the mage in the mist. I just hope there's not more lightning bolts coming.

I assumed it was a move action to draw the potion and a standard action to drink it, so all he could do was the equivalent of a 5' step. Even if he can draw it as part of the move action, he'll still only get 20 feet up.

You are correct sir! And regarding the lightning bolts, you know he is capable of generating 6d6 bolts, which tells you a little bit about what his casting capacity is. Golarion is a magic rich setting, so I don't think it is metagaming for a character to understand the basics of how magic works, like that there is a limit to how many spells a caster has per day, more experienced casters cast more powerful spells and that there are both prepared and spontaneous types of casters. So yes, your characters would know that it's entirely possible for this guy to have more lightning bolts up his sleeve. I would also allow In:Arcana or Kn:Local to figure out details about what class he might be.

Continue to chase after him. Hskoro can probably take one more hit before needing healing.

You don't know exactly where the mage is at right now, but you can tell that he is higher up because you can hear his chanting. A Perception check can let you pinpoint his exact square. Of course while the rule book says you can use Perception to pinpoint a target it very unhelpfully does not give a DC. I'm going to say a DC 20 check will pinpoint his exact location (letting you target him with missile weapons!), while a DC 10 should give you enough information to navigate to his location.

Time to make some decisions!

Generally I go with a Stealth check on the part of the target, modified by concealment and actions, and have the PCs make an opposed Perception check against that (including range penalties).

Perception check to locate the sylph: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (20) + 10 = 30

Rhu spirals up twenty feet at a 45° angle, listening for the enemy caster, and if he gets within reach will try to put an arrow into them.

Therin tries to find the spellcaster.

perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15

Rhu follows the sound of the caster's voice and finds the sylph 30 feet off the ground and startled that Rhu managed to find him so quickly.

Rhu can fire at him. There is a 20% miss chance from the mists and while he appears unarmed, if he does threaten, it would provoke. Although I forget what level zen archers get PB Master.

Perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21

"There he is!" Grax spots the spellcaster tangling with Rhu above them. He navigates the carpet toward them. Then he swings at the Slyph with his greatsword.

Attack (PA, FF): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (7) + 10 = 17
Damage (PA): 2d6 + 13 ⇒ (6, 1) + 13 = 20

don't forget Bless is active...

don't forget Bless is active...

+1 to Grax's attack!

Miss: 1d100 ⇒ 78

Grax swings his hefty blade and feels the end of the blade slice into the mist shrouded figure.

Glad Grax was able to locate the Sylph, Hskoro tries to correct his last miss by connecting with the Sylph this time.

Cold Iron Battle Axe +Bless: 1d20 + 10 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 10 + 1 = 14
Miss Chance 20% (Low Bad): 1d100 ⇒ 10
Damage: 1d8 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6

The mage is severely injured from the last blow by Grax and stumbles about awkwardly, clutching at his wounds. At this point he withdraws from the fight, flying straight backwards away from his foes. As Chalissier exits the cloud, Therin can see that his cheeks are puffed up as if he has inhaled a deep breath and is holding it.

Chalissier is disabled at this point. He did withdraw as a standard action, which is all he can do on his turn without losing consciousness. Anyone with ranged weapons can pursue and make a ranged attack before he slips away, if they so chose.

Rhu sends two arrows at the fleeing sylph.

Flurry arrow, including bless: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (19) + 7 + 1 = 27
Flurry arrow, including bless: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 7 + 1 = 26

Arrow damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9
Arrow damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

If the first arrow drops him, Rhu will not attack again.

if the slyph falls to the ground, i'll stabilize him. i'm a healer after all...waiting for confirmation before taking an action

Still in the mist, not realize the Sylph has fled and his bracing himself for another lightning strike.

Rhu flies after the slyph and fires an arrow at the retreating mage. His arrow arcs up in the air and right through Chalissier's chest. Flying twenty feet in the air, the dying arcanist has a rough fall to the hard tiled floor down below. Landing head first, it is clear that the mage is dead when he hits the ground.

2d6 ⇒ (4, 2) = 6

Fairuza returns shortly afterwards with a suli in dark robes. Accompanying him is an air elemental in the shape of a sailing ship that dances in the air around his head. "Greetings Pathfinders. I am Ashasar, the Liaison of the Seat of Balance." Then he looks up at the ship bobbing around his head. and says with a smile, “We must focus on the task at hand. Please, be still for the moment.” The ship stops weaving about in the air, remaining stationary a few feet above the suli's head.

“Protecting the balance among the elemental planes has been the most sacred task of the Concordance of Elements since its founding. When we learned that the Pathfinder Society came into possession of the Untouchable Opal, your organization loomed as a threat to everything we have dedicated our lives to defending. Tampering with the Opal could create a devastating imbalance in the fabric of the planes. I believed that the Pathfinder Society sought to create this imbalance without consideration for the consequences or, at the very least, was poised to bring about calamity through ignorance. However, I have come to understand another perspective. There are some within the Concordance that have been making the case that the only way to achieve true balance would be to liberate all four of the imprisoned elemental lords. I acted rashly, without consulting the Seat of Balance for approval."

“I am truly sorry for the trouble I have caused you by sending my agents against the Society. I allowed fear to blind my judgment, and I take full responsibility for the harm I have caused, both directly and indirectly. I understand that, under these circumstances, your instinct may be to retaliate, and I would not hold it against you if you were to do so."

However, we face a more immediate threat—the forces of Hshurha have labeled the Concordance and the Pathfinder Society as conspirators and traitors. In light of both the nuances of the decision regarding the Untouchable Opal and our common threat, it would be in both of our best interests to share information and resources, so that we may come to the most informed decision and protect each other from what may otherwise be an insurmountable opposition.”

Rhu shrugs. "Today's enemy is tomorrow's ally. If our superiors in the Society allow it, we'll do as you suggest."

Therin looks on in amazement as Fairuza and the elemental hover above. He ponders his words carefully.

It is easy to be lead astray by those you thought were your allies. A schism such as that could lead to catastrophic consequences should it remain unaddressed. I think our leadership will agree to the alliance.

Javon flies down from his safe perch where he had watched the whole fight with wings covering his eyes. Now, however, the Pathfinder seems more confident. "Perhaps this is for the best. If the Concordance has concerns about the Society's actions, we can bring you for an audience. Helping us in the face of a threat only would provide a greater reason to take your counsel too."

He flies up to be at the same level with Ashasar. "What exactly is this Seat of Balance? A guide or leader for the Concordance?"

Hskoro nods his head, "Yes. I think the our superiors in the Society would seek to ally ourselves against a common threat."

With an amused smile, the suli answers Grax's familiar. "Ah yes, I am the liaison to the Seat of Balance. As you must already know, there are five Seats who are the leaders of the Concordance. One for each element and then a fifth Seat of Balance who moderates discussions and oversees the decisions made by the Council."

Then clapping his hands he says, "Well then, let's let bygone be gone by! It sounds like you are all in agreement with our respective organizations meeting for talks."

Ashasar makes arrangements with the Pathfinders, giving them a sealed letter to give to their Venture Captain. After departing ways, the party finds themselves back at the home of Jairo. The genie insists on hosting them for the next few days and spares no expense on feasting and entertainment.

During this time he enthusiastically tries to sell the magic carpets to the Pathfinders, extolling their speed and ease of use. It is clear that a major part of his fortune comes from the sale of such magical items.
He grins with embarrassment when he realizes that none of the agents have the level of wealth required to purchase such a powerful magic item.

"I apologize for mistaking your financial situation. But I am sure resourceful agents such as yourselves will quickly ascend the ranks of the Pathfinder Society and with it will acquire sizable fortunes. My promise to you is that when that blessed day comes and you are in the market for fine aerial conveyance, come to me and I will give you the discount that I give to all of my special friends!"

I should have chronicle sheets for you all shortly! Make sure to update the spreadsheet accordingly, because we can start part 3 here in a few days!

Therin takes the time to go back to the library during his time off...studying and such.

Jairo, you are a most excellent host. You should consider getting into the party planning business...you could make a fortune. And I will likely buy a carpet in the future...have to save for my training and such first...

Several days after the events of the last mission, a meeting has been arranged between the Pathfinder agents and Ashasar, the liaison to the Seat of Balance. The day before the meeting is scheduled two missives arrive at Jairo's palace. The first is a letter from Venture Captain Balentiir. The second is for those who belong to the Grand Lodge faction and are instructions from Venture Captain Ambrus Balsim himself.

The letters are both now in the slides. The party still has time to make preparations and buy equipment before the meeting.

Rhu will purchase an efficient quiver (1800 gp), another 20 cold iron arrows (2 gp), and another silver weapon blanch (5 gp).

"Well, what they do say? 'Adversity makes for strange bedfellows' It would seem that we are now to treat the Concordance as allies. And we're still keen on releasing the Duke of Thunder! Excellent! Perhaps he will be able to help me as well!" Javon squawks as he reads the letter.

Review the handouts at your leisure if you have not yet. But right now we will begin the opening briefing.

Tyranny of Winds Part 3: Caught in the Eclipse

Ashasar, Liaison to the Seat of Balance of the Concordance of Elements, keeps a modest office atop the Four Winds, one of Armun Kelisk’s less conspicuous structures. He sits atop an expansive turquoise pillow, intently listening to a barely visible mass of cloud dancing near his ear. Before speaking, he stands and delicately removes a lantern from a nearby bookcase. Ashasar lights the lantern with a snap of his fingers. He gives a knowing smile as he walks a slow perimeter around the open rooftop. Seemingly satisfied, the janni takes a seat with a contented sigh.

“One can never be too careful when dealing with the Duchess Hshurha. With the winds themselves at her beck and call, who knows what kind of agents she has hiding about? It appears our organizations are not as at odds with one another as we once thought. While the Concordance was initially resistant to breaking open the Untouchable Opal and freeing the Duke of Thunder, the Duchess has grown too bold and forced our hand. We must work together to free Ranginori from his prison before Hshurha throws the Inner Planes into utter chaos. As a token of our mutual new goodwill, I ask for your help in a sensitive mission that could prove pivotal in our fight to maintain balance.”

“When the Concordance considered the Pathfinders Society to be a threat, I sent one of our agents to retrieve a powerful weapon we have hidden here on the Plane of Air. I believe you are familiar with her, no? Jamila’s task was to retrieve the Horn of the Hurricane, which allows its wielder to call forth tremendous elemental force. These energies are particularly devastating against creatures native to this plane. Since the accord between our organizations was cemented, I have been unable to reach Jamila, and I fear that she may be incapacitated. Worse yet, it’s possible she’s been killed and the horn is now in Hshurha’s hands. Since we cannot be sure, we must take every precaution to protect the horn and rescue Jamila, if she lives. I have already arranged for your transportation to her last known destination and ask that you leave at once.”

and buying 2 lesser talismans of beneficial winds...better safe than sorry...other than that good to go...

We will do our best, sir. I am ready to depart immediately...

Hskoro nods in agreement. "Ready to depart. I hope Jamila is okay."

"So we go from hunting Jamila to rescuing her! But if she hasn't been in contact with the Concordance, she won't know that. She might try to attack us or run from us, even trick us if she catches wind of our pursuit." Javon stands on the table, eating worms from a small bowl.

Rhu nods in appreciation of the bird's keen insight. "Do you have a way that we can prove to her that we are now her allies?"

"Since Jamilah hasn't reported in, it would be safe to assume that Hshurha's agents are behind her disappearance. She is trained to avoid being noticed and is careful not to make new enemies while she is in the field. If she is still alive, rescuing her would most likely be the best way to win her trust."

A mission to save a fair maiden? How can we say no to that? Therin jests. He then gets serious. All jokes aside, we should make sure we are fully prepared. And should we need to persuade her, just show your wayfinder...

"She does not yet know that the Concordance has allied with us. Remember, our mission started when she stole items from the Sothis lodge. Rescue her first, then talk."

Javon nods. "A symbol of the Concordance would be helpful to show her. Barring that, perhaps we can use Ashasar's name and knowledge of her position as the liaison to the Seat of Balance to help Jamila give pause."

"I'd consider giving you a sealed letter to give to Jamilah, but it would be too risky if Hshurha's agents catch you with it. You will just have to do your best to convince her to trust her, I'm afraid. But you can certainly drop my name if you think it would help."

Ashasar scratches his chin and then asks, "Do you have any other questions? If not, then you should head to the docks where your your ship awaits."

The monk shakes his head and prepares to leave with the rest of the party.

"Where was she last seen?" Hosser says, "Where do you plan on sending us?"

Yes sir...ready fellows? Therin asks the others.

"Ready." Hskoro hisses.