Make a post introducing your character here.
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A dwarf wearing fedora hat and glasses wanders around while recording with his communication device. With flick of wrist he makes a web-like fibers appear nearby for brief moment. "That's last magic trick in today's video. Soon I will meet my new colleagues at the Starfinder society, until next time my viewers, See ya!" he finishes his video feed.
Seeing people he assumes to be on the same crew he greets them heartily "Hello wonderful people! This is Karpo Lavarock speaking. Will you accompany me on my next Starfinder mission?"
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The android in front of Karpo stands rigidly straight, as if trying to stretch her height to five and a half feet. Her straight black hair contrasts with her pale complexion, white eyes, and the pale blue tracery of circuits just under her skin. Mildly feminine features are offset by a broad mannish jaw and a compact body composed of wide shoulders, flat chest and narrow hips.
She wears tight fitting blue armor. A pistol and knife hang low from her belt and the holster and sheath are strapped down to her thighs. A long rifle is slung over one shoulder beside the strap of her back pack.
."Agent Tofana. In my experience mission crews are subject to the whims of the venture captains."
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A Ysoki wearing a deep red cloak comes cautiously walking up with hands clasped in front of him. On the back of the cloak, the familiar sword of Iomedae stands out. While the rest of the cloak appears worn from time, the sword is perfectly clean and bright.
"Seska at your service my friends. May Iomedae bless us on our journeys together."
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A short time later another android arrives. It's clearly an android from the tracery of circuits along the surface of a plastically clear complexion.
It has a shock of wavy black hair running straight back from its high forehead. It's tall and lanky; its expression, blankly serene. It's high-collared form-fitting armor is reminiscent of work overalls, with pockets on the chest and thighs. Various gear hangs off its belt and pokes from the pack on its back.
"Got a last minute call to come here. Anybody know what's up?"
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About the time everyone in the room starts to get settled a very large figure waddles into the room. A Morlemaw, a large aquatic species with very large tusks. He ambles surprisingly nimbly into the room, flashes a smile and speaks in a booming voice.
"Greetings fellow Starfinders! I am called Boris. Easier to say than my birth name in your language! Very nice to meet you all! You all look new to me! This is why I left Arniselle after a group of you came to fix a problem we had there. Lots of interesting beings to meet. Lots of interesting places to see and things to do! Very nice to meet you all!"
He wears light armor but somehow still manages to look well dressed and fashionable. He appears to be happy to talk to anyone willing to talk to him..
YOU BEGIN this adventure on a Starfinder starship already underway toward Near Space. Just before entering the drift, you receive the following pre-recorded message from First Seeker Ehu Hadif:
“Thank you for accepting this mission
post-haste. I hope to cover everything
you need to know in this briefing.” Ehu
gestures, and the image of a gas giant
with broad rings appears hovering
over his hand. “Chart a course to Xys,
a planetoid orbiting the gas giant
Preluria. The Xystrian Brotherhood
has invited you to explore their planet.
The Brotherhood is known to have
ulterior motives, however, and I suspect
they are likely to ask you for a favor in
exchange for the privilege of visiting
their world. Playing nice with them could
be the key to valuable future alliances,
as they curate a collection of artifacts
from different civilizations and have a
reputation as information brokers.
Timely communication with the Society will be impossible, so
if they do ask you for a favor, please agree to it, so long as it’s
not something incredibly dangerous—or unethical. I trust your
discretion. Please record anything the Xystrians tell you or allow
you to see, as this is a rare opportunity to gather information
about an otherwise inaccessible world and its culture.”
After traveling for days, the your ship exits the Drift. An intensely green gas giant recognizable as Preluria dominates the viewport. Its rings sparkle against the darkness of space, massive compared to those of the Pact Worlds’ own gas giants, Liavara and Bretheda. Xys itself is but a tiny speck within those rings, a planetoid caught in Preluria’s orbit.
As you enter Xys’ atmosphere, several ships appear to
guide the visitors toward the appropriate landing pad where a
group of humanoids stand ready to welcome them. Their leader is
Makao and he wears a dark gray tunic with
silver trim. He appears human with smooth, pliant
gray skin. The six others in his entourage wear light gray robes
without any adornment and have their hoods drawn to obscure
their faces. Makao smiles and bows.
“Welcome to Xys, travelers. I hope you had a pleasant trip. My
name is Makao, and I will be your guide during your stay here.
Your interest in Xys and the ways of the Brotherhood honors us.”
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A Maraquoi in gear that marks him as a field medic comes hustling down to the group. "My apologies for the late arrival. I had to see to a few of the creatures in the infirmary. They get cranky if not fed on time, much like myself. Dr. Plonxx, hopefully my expertise won't be required, but I look forward to the coming cultural exchange." He gives a wide but closed mouthed smile.
"Than you, Makao. Our trip was quite smooth. The ship performed adequately with minimal maintenance. I am HFG-5-309, mechanical specialist. Will it violate any rules if I let my drone fly free?"
HFG produces her controller in expectation that she can launch the drone.
"Common sense use of drones, flying or otherwise, is well within what we allow here. You may launch your drone."
Responding to Karpo, he replies "Of course you may take recordings. We will be sure to let you know if we are in an area where that may be against the rules."
At this point, you all enjoy five days of absolute pampering.
There are luxury spas and hotels, guided expeditions to farms and meditation circles, and whatever meals your heart might desire.
Makao accompanies you anytime you step out of your arranged accommodations. You are free to ask any questions and take notes about anything you see, but there are things that some of you show interest in that are brushed off as "not important," "not open to visitors," or some other vague or roundabout answer.
Bottomline: it's obvious you are receiving a heavily sanitiazed version of the Brotherhood's beliefs and practices. You do get to see some of their sustainable farms that source to hungry populations throughout the systems. You do get a brief look into their pacifist beliefs and meditations practices. But any look inside the Brotherhood's information vaults is HEAVILY curated and limited.
You're only being shown a tiny fraction of the Brotherhood's resources and knowledge.
As this enjoyable but uneventful tour comes to an end, Makao leads the PCs to a conference room at the spaceport. As they settle in, Makao’s demeanor shifts from friendly and servile to direct and businesslike.
“We hope your stay was much to your liking, and that you send
glowing reports back to your Society, but I would be lying if I
said inviting you here was just part of a cultural exchange. We
hope you can help us discreetly solve a disappearance. One of
our agents has gone missing on the nearby Vault of Vorlath,
and we’re concerned for his health. We have his last known
coordinates, and of course a detailed description of him. Your
organization’s increased presence in Near Space, combined
with your outsider status, makes you the perfect candidates to
investigate this matter.” Makao slides over a datapad. “In return for your cooperation, my organization will provide monetary
compensation as well as inroads to a future alliance. We
understand if you are hesitant about this mission. I can assure
you that our agent wasn’t initially involved in anything illegal
or dangerous, though I can make no such guarantees about
his current situation. Ultimately, we need a neutral party to
investigate the situation on Vorlath, and if you accept, we will
owe your organization a debt.”
The datapad contains a full description and image of the agent.
He’s a human of average height with brown hair and eyes, going
by the name Firiz for this mission. His last known coordinates,
taken from a tracking device built into his comm unit, are a
location close to one of the Vault of Vorlath’s spaceports. The
datapad also lists some of Firiz’s security codes, allowing you to
possibly decrypt any potential messages he left behind.
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"Monetary compensation is always nice, though I think our organization is more interested in learning even more about your organization and the information in your archives. Speaking of information, can you tell us more about the nature of the mission "Firiz" was on, Knowing his objectives might help us to uncover what went wrong."
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"In addition to Firiz mission, can you tell us anything about the Vault of Vorlath? And how much interaction will we have with the Brotherhood once we start the mission?"
I understand the Brotherhood being protective of their vaults to strangers. Given their secrecy, however, I am curious about Makaos actual motives here.
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"Than you, Makao. Our trip was quite smooth. The ship performed adequately with minimal maintenance. I am HFG-5-309, mechanical specialist. Will it violate any rules if I let my drone fly free?"
HFG produces her controller in expectation that she can launch the drone.
"Common sense use of drones, flying or otherwise, is well within what we allow here. You may launch your drone."
Responding to Karpo, he replies "Of course you may take recordings. We will be sure to let you know if we are in an area where that may be against the rules."
"Thank you." An obviously pleased HFG draws a small aerial drone from its backpack. Three blue-glowing grav-reaction thrusters push the drone skyward. About twenty feet up it begins a circular pattern around the group. The android follows the party silently, splitting her attention between walking, the conversation, and the drone's controller.
HFG seems confused by the pampering. This falls outside the expected mission parameters. The android tries to fill the gap with questions about how the steam is generated in the sauna, how massage rocks are chosen and what the ideal rock temperature should be, etc.
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After his new freinds ask a few questions Boris looks at Makao, smiles and says "Well. My friends do ask good questions. Best to know as much as we can before heading out. Obviously we would be happy to assist you with this situation as impartial outsiders. Not only to further our friendship and hopeful future partnership but to also get to know your people and society better. Now, if we have any issues with authorization or similar, will we be able to have people contact you or maybe have some token that we are working for you? If that is permissible, of course. I wouldn't want to step over any boundaries we are unaware of."
"Monetary compensation is always nice, though I think our organization is more interested in learning even more about your organization and the information in your archives. Speaking of information, can you tell us more about the nature of the mission "Firiz" was on, Knowing his objectives might help us to uncover what went wrong."
"Checking in on one of the Brotherhood's many interests," Makao says enigmatically. He declines to elaborate further.
"In addition to Firiz mission, can you tell us anything about the Vault of Vorlath? And how much interaction will we have with the Brotherhood once we start the mission?"
I understand the Brotherhood being protective of their vaults to strangers. Given their secrecy, however, I am curious about Makaos actual motives here.
[dice=Sense Motive]1d20+7
"Vorlath is another planetoid within Preluria's rings. It is governed by the Vorlath Mercenaries, a cutthroat company that hires themselves out to the highest bidder. They're...less hospitable than we are here on Xys. The planetoid is nothing much--mostly deserts, rocks, hovels, and terrible bars."
Seska senses that Makao may enjoy another serving of dessert from the buffet.
"Did Firiz have any known enemies or perhaps suicidal tendencies? As for the debt you mentioned, I must admit access to your restricted archives would be most valuable to our society. As your contacts with Pact worlds increase, more interest and scrutiny will be drawn to this secrecy."
[Dice=Diplomacy]1d20+9
"We are aware that there may be further interest in our knowledge. We're hoping that an arrangement can be made." It's clear Makao must have some sort of quid pro quo situation in mind.
He continues with information about Firiz. "We are not aware of any specific known enemies, and I certainly don't believe he would harm himself."
VC Zigvigix did mention a favor.
HFG pays careful attention to request and the others questions. Finally it asks, "Your statement implies that your organization is other than the Xystrian Brotherhood as a whole. Please clarify the relationship of your organization to the brotherhood."
"I'm not sure I understand your question. In this matter I do indeed represent the Xystrian Brotherhood."
After his new freinds ask a few questions Boris looks at Makao, smiles and says "Well. My friends do ask good questions. Best to know as much as we can before heading out. Obviously we would be happy to assist you with this situation as impartial outsiders. Not only to further our friendship and hopeful future partnership but to also get to know your people and society better. Now, if we have any issues with authorization or similar, will we be able to have people contact you or maybe have some token that we are working for you? If that is permissible, of course. I wouldn't want to step over any boundaries we are unaware of."
No, it would not be wise for you to connect yourselves to us. The Vorlath Mercenaries are not our allies. They won't object to neutral parties visiting their world, but if they discover your connection to us, it could endanger your lives."
Makao goes on to add, "It would probably be good if you created a cover story explaining why you are looking for Firiz. Perhaps he owes you money, or stole something from you. I'll leave those details to you."
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HFG rephrases, " 'In return for your cooperation, my organization will provide monetary compensation as well as inroads to a future alliance.' I inferred that you are not truly offering alliance, that you are offering an attempt to bring about an alliance. If you can only offer an attempt, then there are factions opposed to an alliance, and your offer of such is not on behalf of the brotherhood as a whole. If I am in error, please better define inroads to a future alliance."
Makao responds to HFG. "I appreciate your candor. All I can say is that this is a complicated issue. I can tell you that virtually all of the upper echelons of the Brotherhood believe that an arrangement with the Starfinder Society is desirable. Should you provide this service to us, I can assure you that in the very least we will provide you with the opportunity dig more deeply into our archives."
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The last agent arrives late, waving all four hands to gain attention
”By the cosmos, my path was diverted to alternate incorrect addresses and discussions. But I am here now. Kaath is my name. “
He catches his breath.
”The request by the Xystrian Brotherhood to explore their planet, on the surface seems straightforward. So if they have other motives, we must uncover those to be certain .“
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Makao responds to HFG. "I appreciate your candor. All I can say is that this is a complicated issue. I can tell you that virtually all of the upper echelons of the Brotherhood believe that an arrangement with the Starfinder Society is desirable. Should you provide this service to us, I can assure you that in the very least we will provide you with the opportunity dig more deeply into our archives."
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"I am sure that will satisfy First Seeker Hadif. I will help locate your agent. "
The Brotherhood graciously provides an unmarked shuttle so you can travel anonymously to the Vault of Vorlath. The shuttle’s
journey takes several hours, charting a roundabout route to make
it harder to determine its exact origin point.
The Vorlath spaceport incorporates an amalgam of technologies from different eras and worlds in various stages of disrepair.
Firiz’s last known coordinates point to a rowdy dive bar close to the spaceport. It's name: The Crooked Doshko.
on the building’s windowless outer walls as tags associated with
local mercenary companies.
A bored worlanisi bouncer stands outside the bar Since there’s a show tonight, he lets you all know that there is a cover charge of 20 credits each to get in.
The bouncer looks at Karpo side-eyed for a moment, then says "Sure, whatever, go on in..."
The sounds of blaring music, throaty singing, cheering, and
jeering erupt from inside the bar, and the odor of smoke and
stale alcohol spills out into the street. A large bar top divides
the room into two sections, with private booths on one side
and open tables on the other. The floors are sticky with spilled
drinks, and the air is hot and stifling in the windowless building.
Most of the patrons gather around a stage in the back watching
a performance. A vesk dressed in a sparkling, skintight bodysuit
with vibrantly painted scales belts out a popular song. He
performs a dance routine as he sings, and his choreographed
moves are reminiscent of combat. Occasionally a patron throws
an empty can or bottle onto the stage that the dancer crushes
with his tail, showing off bulging muscles in the process. A few
scattered patrons hunch over the bar or relax in the booths.
The bartender, a scarred female hobgoblin, offers a gruff
greeting: “Buy a drink if you wanna stick around. We don’t do
charity here.”
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"Tech crew for Karpo." HFG gestures at the dwarf, her pack her drone.
Caught out, HFG hands over the 20 credits.
The bartender, a scarred female hobgoblin, offers a gruff greeting: “Buy a drink if you wanna stick around. We don’t do
charity here.”
"I noticed that at the door. Do you have a '57 Vin Biolab?"