Hello all, this is a game being run for the online PbP convention Outpost IV, #4-02: In Wrath's Shadow (Core).
It is recruited via spreadsheet, so head over here FIRST, sign up on the line for this game (it was line 13 as of the time of this post) and then come on back to dot into gameplay.
One further note, the earliest you can sign up is January 26th if you are GM'ing something for the convention or January 29th if you are a general player.
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The port is bustling and all you know is the name of the sloop where your mission will start. After asking for directions (the scamp charged a dang silver) you make your way to the proper dock. The ship is being loaded and the quartermaster eyes your approach, "Pathfinder Passenger?"
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"What?! I gotta pay you for the information?! UGH! Dude, I just died. I'm a bit strapped on...oh fine! Whatever...I'll be right back."
'Freaking death is expensive...I always thought it'd be cheaper than life.'
Making his way to a nearby tavern, he dances outside for a few minutes. Receiving some coin for his efforts, he smiles. "Well, that's a little better anyway."
Scurrying back to the highway robber, he chucks the silver round at his feet. "NOW, where is the freakin place? Thanks, dick."
Stopping short, he eyes the quartermaster a moment. *Sigh* "Yep. I'm a passenger today."
'At least I'm not riding in a box, I suppose or...a magical back...'
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Sitting across from the tavern, a small (and adorably cute) gnome sits on a crate. With her chin cupped in her palms, she watches dreamily as the half-elf dances. Well, being dead didn't seem to hurt his coordination any. Most importantly, they didn't hit him in the face!
She follows behind the warrior along the bustling dock, eyes distractedly drawn toward his well-toned... Behind,now that's a funny word. She looks up, suddenly realizing she has no idea where she is. "But at least I know how I got here." She giggles to herself as her cheeks blush slightly.
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Two birds fly high above the crowded docks, looking for their target. Once found they keep a close eye until it picks a ship and boards. Diving down towards the main sail, it appears they are in some sort of race. Screeching to a halt, both land and perch on the crossbeam. The bigger one eyes the crewman in the crows nest as if daring him to do something.
He doesn't and the bird hops off, floats down to the deck, morphs into a very lovely gnome (I'm kidding, she looks peeved) and ends up standing next to the half-orc, "Albis cheated. I had him until then."
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Stormy is headed to the docks when she pauses to watch an attractive half elf dance about. Not bad. she thinks to herself. Could use a few more pounds and a few more muscles, but he would do.... She tosses a silver onto the ground at the man's feet and moves on. Too bad she has to ship out today. He might have been a nice distraction. A black, cat, a panther, detaches itself from a nearby shadow and pads after the woman.
Despite her familiarity with such things, he docks here are arranged all wrong and in he end she has to stoop to asking a dock worker for directions.
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Frowning as he turns to Arboreal, he nods. "I did find something out though...the afterlife is...well..."
Trailing off, his frown deepens. "The gods are jerks. There you are thinking you've died and gone onward...then they decide it's not your time. Really? I mean...what else does one need to do? I ensured the lovely Dimpl...I mean ensured the team survived the beast. Yet, they chose to play tricks on me, interview me in regards to my intentions and virtue towards the gnomes in my life and...send me back?!"
Catching the sight of Dimple out of the corner of his eye, he beams involuntarily...as his cheeks go scarlet. "I mean, you know. Gnomes in general...They wanted to ensure I was treating you're kind fairly and...well..."
"Anyway, I am glad to see my sacrifice wasn't in vain and all of you faired well. Even the bird one...OH! Hey Niza, didn't see you there."
"It's not that you're short and I overlooked you or anything...really. Albis, you shouldn't cheat. It's not right. If you're going to cheat though, don't get caught!"
'PHEW! Good save. Almost put your size 9 in your mouth there...'
His eyes staying on Dimple, he mumbles to the half-orc. "Seems they certainly have a fondness for these dingys of theirs."
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He talked to GODS...about ME?!?! I'm gonna plotz! "Well, I don't want you breaking your word to gods n' stuff." She steps closer to the man and offers a wry little smile, "Maybe you later you can explain what treating me 'well' looks like. I think we might both enjoy that." She offers a wink. Then unable to help herself, she gives him a hug. "I'm glad you're back."
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Arboreal turns to the black panther and as he does the hawk on his shoulder flies off to a nearby perch Thats no way to greet our new friend Danny Calls Arboreal before turning back to the cat
The quartermaster steps up the gangplank, "What are you all doing waiting in the middle of my deck? I'm trying to get loaded. Go find some bunks and act like you've been on a ship before."
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Aye Q, I'll get my gear stowed and report to you to help secure the load out. I do know my way around a ship. Will be good to be afloat again.
Stormy picks a lower birth so that Shade can sleep beneath her and after stowing her rig she goes topside and puts her strength and profession sailor skill to work helping out.
The quartermaster sighs and points, "There's a pub just around the corner, but you throw up on my ship you scrub the deck, that's the rule. We leave in two hours with or without you."
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Dimple follows the warrior into the cramped area. She hops on a crate, letting her legs dangle. "So, you wanna go get something to eat. Do you just need to talk? I mean, going through ...THAT. I mean, how are you doing? Should we not talk about it? Do you need me to talk? Cuz, I can manage that." Her earnest affection and care cannot be clearer. She is very concerned for the half-elf.
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"Huh? Oh...I guess it wasn't too bad. I'm just..." recalling the whole ordeal, the half-elf's ears begin to turn red. His body reaching for the blade out of instinct instead of need.
"The gods are...are...jackholes! I mean, really. You...well...you die and they feel it's time to play pranks. Really?!"
"Then they interrogate you about what you'll do with the rest of your life and..."
Taking a few deep breaths, the redness begins to subside as he looks up to Dimple. "I'm just glad to be back."
Roused from sleep and herded aboard the Winking Wyvern, the party sails urgently for Rivenrake Island and the ruins of Xin-Bakrakhan, ancient capital of the Thassilonian Runelord of Wrath. A note from Venture-Captain Sheila Heidmarch informs the group that a Society-funded dig team has uncovered a totally intact temple that appears to be associated with the goddess Lissala, buried for 10,000 years. Given the fresh revelations that this long-thought-dead cult is thriving and allied with the Aspis Consortium, it’s a truly wonderful find, providing an unprecedented opportunity to gain knowledge of this forgotten faith. Even if the site turns out to not be dedicated to Lissala, learning more about the faiths and practices of ancient Thassilon always provides an abundance of knowledge. Often the items they use in their rituals lead to clues about the cults.
By now the work crew has finished clearing the site—the time to explore its secrets is at hand. The Society has no exclusive contract to the site, and Aspis Consortium agents scour the countryside seeking such ripe targets, so time is of the essence. Archaeologists Halla Beusophis and Kovo Murse can answer questions when the group arrives, and a fellow Pathfinder ranger, Riemme Batelle, is already on the island, ready to join in this exciting endeavor. Sheila Heidmarch has given the party a charge: eliminate the ancient temple’s dangers so that Society scholars can study the ruins safely, and bring back whatever knowledge lies within.
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Dimple's eyes perk up at the half-orc's words. "Wait. All I have to do is FEEL it? I can do that. I feel stuff all the time. No. For real. I totally do. I'm feeling things right now! Like kinda happy, and excited and...uh...a little hungry? Anyway, what spell does that sound like?"
She closes her eyes tight, balls up her tiny fists, and grunts in concentration. "I feel it. I feel it. I feel it." After a few moments, she peeks one eye open to see the results of her spell. She turns her head side to side, "Anything yet? I feel pretty close to something happening." Squinting her eyes even harder, she brings her closed hands closer to her face. She spreads her legs wide and crouches a bit. Her hands begin to tremble and her face turns red. "Giant butterfly....giant...butterfly...gi..ant...butter...fly" This is followed by an intense inhale of air as her eyes snap open.
The bard leans a bit as if slightly drunk. "Nothing yet? I dunno. I felt pretty close that time. Like my head is totally swimming right now. I saw colorful little dots at the edge of my vision. That was the magic, right? Oh man. I am totally gonna be a sorcerer. I have to watch out though, I still feel kinda woozy." She considers Kazvot with new understanding. "I get why you're always hungry now. I mean, eating people bones is still gross and all, but at least now we all know why you did it." She pats the half-orc on the shoulder before running off toward her beau. "Hey, Lizard-Char, did you hear? I'm gonna be a sorcerer! Didja see me? This is gonna be so cool!"
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Considering the religious connotations, LGZ completely misses Dimple's most recent tirade. As she runs over, catching him by surprise, he turns to here "Huh? What? You're a sorcerer? I thought you were god-lead...that god surely thought so"
"Well, good for you. I hope it works out well..."
Pausing, he frowns. "You...you're not going to start eating the dead are you? I mean...I get it. We all have our own things, but I understand now why there aren't more sorcerers in the world. That's a line I wouldn't cross for power."
The group puts its head together and chatters back and forth about various things they have heard. Dimple seems to have the gist of it and lays out some of the information they all recollect.
Lissala was the goddess of fate, runes, and reward of service, and was especially prominent in Thassilon. While a much more disciplined faith in the early days of the empire, her worship grew more reckless and decadent in Thassilon’s waning years. Veneration of the deity was thought to have died with Thassilon itself.
Alaznist didn’t treat well with the worship of Lissala, instead preferring to pay homage to a number of fiendish patrons. Earlier in Bakrakhan’s history, Lissala was widely worshipped, but as Alaznist came to power, the popularity of the faith waned in the nation. During this time, many of the temples were repurposed to venerate various demon lords.
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The future sorceress seems to know quite a bit about history too.
Thassilon was the ancient empire that encompassed all of modern Varisia and beyond. It fell into ruin at the advent of Earthfall 10,000 years ago. It was ruled over by seven runelords, extremely powerful wizards who employed Thassilonian sin magic. Bakrakhan was the province of Alaznist, Runelord of Wrath, and Xin-Bakrakhan was her capital city.
Hollow Mountain, which broods over the ruins of Xin-Bakrakhan, is thought to hide endless subterranean spaces filled with wealth and danger. Some believe Alaznist herself is hidden within its unplumbed depths.
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Kasvot waits for the more studied Pathfinders to share what they might know about... well... about any of this.
"Hey, wizards study, sorcerer's feeeeel. I try not to spend time in libraries if I can help it."
The gnome scoffs, "Libraries are the best though. Like, all quiet and stuff and have tons of information about animals and spells and, did I mention they were quiet? Yeah, that's probably the best thing."
She glances at one of her allies while mumbling, "No constant chatter about a certain elf that keeps ignoring her..."
Dimple's eyes perk up at the half-orc's words. "Wait. All I have to do is FEEL it? I can do that. I feel stuff all the time. No. For real. I totally do. I'm feeling things right now! Like kinda happy, and excited and...uh...a little hungry? Anyway, what spell does that sound like?"
Niza raises her hand at Dimple's question, surprisingly very interested in what the other gnome has to say for once, "Oooh, I know this one. Beast shape! I definitely get excited an happy and hungry after. It's fun, it'll be nice to have another bird buddy!"
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The bard leans a bit as if slightly drunk. "Nothing yet? I dunno. I felt pretty close that time. Like my head is totally swimming right now. I saw colorful little dots at the edge of my vision. That was the magic, right? Oh man. I am totally gonna be a sorcerer. I have to watch out though, I still feel kinda woozy." She considers Kazvot with new understanding. "I get why you're always hungry now. I mean, eating people bones is still gross and all, but at least now we all know why you did it." She pats the half-orc on the shoulder before running off toward her beau. "Hey, Lizard-Char, did you hear? I'm gonna be a sorcerer! Didja see me? This is gonna be so cool!"
"..." Kasvot looks on as Dimple strains herself for sorcerous magic.
"It's a bit more than that. It helps if your grandparents regularly traveled to the First World for wicky-wicky-wah." An awkward gesture accompanies that sound effect, leaving little to the imagination. "I was just trying to point out why I don't keep all those facts in my head. But have at it! Be a sorcerer."
The night passes.
Several more do as well.
Eventually as Dimple is heaving her third meal of whatever the heck day it is now overboard, she hears the yell from above "LAND HO!"
Shortly after that, a small island is visible on the horizon. It grows to be a pretty big island and eventually the ship is moored in a small bay. Two launches are dropped into the water and the captain simply wishes the pathfinders 'good luck' and sends them on in.
Greeting them are a half-dozen bedraggled souls living in rugged tents sufficient for four times their number. They're led by a grim-looking woman in work clothes, with signs of emotional strain and fatigue lining her face.
"Thank goodness you’ve arrived," begins the careworn Pathfinder. “Two days ago workers at the dig site were attacked, by what or whom I don’t know. I was here at camp when it happened. Only a single worker escaped—Shadaq, who crawled back here, bleeding from a dozen terrible injuries. The wounds were mortal and none of us here possessed the skill to aid him. Before he died we got little information. He told us of the attack, said everyone had been, ‘gutted like game birds.’ His last words—as his eyes violently rolled back in his head—were ‘Lissala is angry, but so am I.’"
“The six of us are all that’s left—myself and these five hired excavators. They’ve refused to go back to the site and I didn’t dare go alone. We’ve been huddled in these damned tents since Wealday, waiting for your arrival. I’ll take you to the dig myself but I don’t know what we’ll find. If Shadaq’s words are true, it won’t be pretty. Only the gods know whether those same attackers lie in wait."
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Aboreal curses inwardly as he now remembers that question he keeps forgetting to ask at the briefing What do the contacts look like The names of the missing? That at least should tell me whether I am talking to Halla or Kovo or some poor supervisor. She doesn't look like a ranger so Riemme will have died trying to protect them no doubt
He picks up three pebbles from the beach still listening to her response
She frowns, "Oh I'm sorry, I'm Halla Beusophis, lead archeologist. It's been so stressful I forgot my manners. Honestly, the wounds just looked like big slashes, I don't really know what caused them. But uh... if you wanted to view the body, we buried him nearby." She points out the grave.
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'Once you are dead, you are just meat' echoes through LGZ's mind as he looks to the newcomer. 'By the gods! Does she eat people too?!'
Turning a bit green, he presses a bit "You're not a sorcerer are you Stormy?"
Letting the question hang in the are a moment, he shakes his head. "Um...how far from here is the dig site? Is that the only trouble you've encountered so far?"
Stormy very easily identifies three types of wounds on the body. Bladed weapons, claws, and teeth, the latter definitely not human.
The boss lady fills in Arboreal on who was at the dig site, "Okay, there was Peter, Paul and Mary. The brothers Simon and Gar, I think that was a nickname though. Of course Shadaq's buds, Meshack and Abednego. And Riemme Batelle and Kovo Murse. Any or all of them are either dead, holed up in the ruins or hiding out in the jungle unable to get back here, though that is doubtful."
Halla keeps her distance as the body is dug up and inspected. She offers to help rebury Shadaq when the group is done. "I don't know what you came prepared for, but we do have some basic excavation equipment here and rations. Just let me know when you are ready to go to the site. It's about a two mile trek. Which is probably why whatever did this hasn't come after us yet."
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Blissfully unaware of the conjecture around the meatiness of dead bodies, Kasvot was going to protest the need for exhumation, but holds that protest back when Stormy dives so eagerly into the work.
He nods appreciatively when she reveals what she learned, then returns his attention to Halla.
"I think most of us still get a good portion of Gunty's Hearty Breads; I hope we don't need more rations than that. You can give the excavation equipment to Liet-Gar; he'll be the one using it, anyway."
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Stormy regards Liet-Gar with some ire as she stands in front of him wearing a hide breastplate and carrying both a wooden shield and club. a few leaves and twigs sick randomly from her hair and her animal companion, shade, lays beside her washing himself. She looks both larger and stronger than the half elf, by some margin. Sorcerer? Really?
When food is offered she perks up. I'll just grab a quick bite before we head out. Never miss a chance to eat. she advises.
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So two miles you say. Thats about half an hour maybe a bit more. Are you sure you want to act as our guide? I am sure Stormy and I can track poor Shadraq's trail from the fighting He puts the three stones into his haversack and casts a spell of protection on himself He pulls out a wand and taps Danny Boy with it and then offers the same to Halla if she is determined to come. He then puts it away and pulls a long bow from his backpack and strings it. A little elven magic he smiles at any wondering at his pulling a longbow from his backpack
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"Well...so far I've seen undead eat people and sorcerers...perhaps eating the dead is more prevalent than I imagined?" he clarifies...eyeing the druid with concern.
"Dimple, don't let them eat me. You know if I die again."
"Two miles aint bad. Quick bite then and onward? I'd prefer to get started as soon as we're able."
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Niza pulls out a very similar wand to Arboreals. Her nostrils flare in a snort, "We must shop at the same place."
The little gnome... something, activates her wand, tapping herself and Albis with it, "Alright, good enough for me. I'll lead. Keep yourself back lady, just tell us where to go."
She moves off into the jungle/woods/whatever, hawk perched on her shoulder. As she moves, she speaks another arcane word and bolsters her health.