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Hi folks! This game will begin once the scenario is released at the end of February. Recruitment will be done through the Outpost IV Sign-Up Sheet once that is open for signups. You can find the schedule and more information about Outpost IV here.
This thread will be used for in-character gameplay. Once you have signed up for this game, please dot-and-delete, then say hello in the Discussion tab.
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A cacophony of drumming noises echoes throughout the forest as Emdi's drum circle passes the time.
"HI! HOW YA DOING?!" Emdi screams, at the top of his lungs as people arrive. "GRAB A DRUM! OR WHATEVER! IT'S ALL GOOD!"
There's a small pile of sticks and stone bowls to bang together, and a group of onlookers staring disapprovingly.
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Fangor is obviously a cleric of Razmir, the Living God. A silver mask hides his feature as heavy gray robes masks his frame, this make difficult to clearly distinguish his height or frame. Nevertheless, his voice seems to be quite aged, almost a murmur, but very melodious and entertaining. Only his pointy ears that appears from time to time betray his elven heritage.
His immaculate white gloved hands are clearly delicate and manipulate with ease the wayfinder he have in hand, engraved with an intricate F.
With his smooth and melodious voice he says Greetings, I'm Fangor. Have you heard of Razmir, the Living God? Be rejoice He will listen to you! Listening is the First Step to Heaven. and he gives you some pamphlet
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Packet greets everyone with a tip of his pith hat and a hearty handshake.
The curious halfling has dark hair, muttonchops, and a crooked smile. He carries a dog-eared notebook in one hand and well carved pipe in the other.
He introduces himself to all as the founder of the Sleepy Detective Agency, no occult mystery too small or too dangerous.
, revealing a keen-eyed short-statured humanoid smiling through happy teeth, sweaty, comng from the other direction, having spent some time following the noise through the forest to the drum circle.
Seeing Emdi pound away, and not having any skill herself with percussion, instead she just , walking around the group, and arriving in front of Packet.
She sticks a single hand out to shake with the halfling at first - but stowing her blade now at his firm grip, adds her second hand to reciprocate with equal gusto
Behind her now, an elder dwarf, somewhat disheveled, emerges from the same clearing she had cut away, panting heavily, and walks awkwardly to stand nearby Fangor without speaking, and taking the pamphlet, sticks it into his pocket, awkwardly, without looking at it, nor making eye contact in receipt. Ruebella joins the two of them now, breaking the ice, and introduces him unsure whether or not to extend her hand to greet the "priest" in a similar fashion, obviously struggling to gauge an appropriate interaction with him.
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Emerging from the woods beyond the camp comes a tall, thin elf dressed in green leathers. Long blonde hair, going silver at the temples, spills down his back over an emerald green quiver. A powerful looking bow is slung over one shoulder. At his side a small bear ambles along, occasionally stopping to sniff at flowers, insects and peoples packs. Behind him trundles an overweight, puffing goblin, dragging a variety of equipment.
The elf quietly joins the circle and raises an eyebrow at the unusual noise the human is making. He shakes Ruebella's hand, Pleased to meet you, I am Ithuriel. Are all of you quite so noisy? he asks with a smile.
The bear takes the moment of distraction to sneak up behind the halfling and try to poke his snout into her pack. Stop that he chides, Don't mind him, he is quite nosy and probably smells some sort of food. I must admit to having trepidations about returning to this place, our last expedition did not fare so well...
Meanwhile, behind the little circle the goblin has dragged his gear up into the camp and is starting to set up a tent.
Oh no, too much to hope that he will bloody well help set up the tent isn't it. Bloody elves, why did I ever agree to take on this job. I'm a city goblin! Sure it was fine at first, a nice few jobs for the big wigs around Absalom but since then, total nightmare! Giant goblin eating cats, Tien ghosts, crazed cultists, the horrors of this bloody ancient city and then he tries to drown me! I should demand danger pay, that is if he was paying me anything! Apparently the "experience" will be invaluable in getting me accepted into the Society.
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A half-elf, his Mualijae heritage visible, walks down the path clad in full plate armor. Strangely a great helm or similar device does not adorn his head. It is graced by a fancy hat embroidered with gold thread and set with beads. He carries a shield strapped to his arm. A pick and a machete hang from his belt and a quiver of javelins is strapped to his back. A young Mwangi woman dressed in traditional garb accompanies him.
"Greetings everyone I am Toanthel. I hail from Nantambu as does Mbali. She is a candidate for the Magaambya and I am helping to evaluate her suitability for the academy. She is a prodigy when it comes to the study of engineering. Quite a valued skill she possesses to those of us who follow the Mystic Angel."
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Several dozen Pathfinders, yourselves among them, stand in a clearing near a pavilion tent in a large Pathfinder encampment on the outskirts of the Finadar Forest. Gorm Greathammer and Eando Kline stand before you atop large supply crates pushed together to form a makeshift dais.
“Thank you for joining us, fellow Pathfinders,” Eando Kline begins. “As you may know, our mission here in Iobaria has changed. Shortly after we began our exploration of the region, a member of the Decemvirate was abducted. Pathfinders exploring the nearby cyclops ruins found evidence of demonic rituals tied to the demon lord Urxehl, and we have reason to believe these rituals are connected to the abduction.”
“Given the dramatic effects we witnessed,” adds Greathammer, “we believe there may be further sites in the region powering this demonic ritual. That’s where you come in! We’ve organized you into teams, assigning each a section of the Finadar Forest. Your mission is to explore your assigned section, locate any further ritual sites, and disable them if possible. Eando or I will provide you with details of your assigned area in an individual briefing to follow.”
“Remember,” Eando Kline adds, “your mission is to find and disrupt any ritual sites in your assigned region. There will be plenty of time for a thorough cartographic mission after we have dealt with the current threat. Move quickly, but be careful, and don’t put yourselves in more danger than is necessary.”
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Teams are quickly organized and called one by one to meet with one of the expedition leaders. After a few moments, your turn arrives as you are summoned into the nearby pavilion to meet with Gorm Greathammer.
“As I mentioned before, we’ve assigned each team a section of the surrounding forest to explore. Your team has been assigned to the northeastern portion,” he says, pointing to the map, “between our current location and the hills on the eastern edge of the forest. It should be about two week’s journey to the far side, though I expect it might take you longer as you explore the area.
“Unfortunately, we don’t know how many sites might be in your section of the forest, let alone where they would be. Our contact in the local centaur tribe, however, mentioned a strange campsite along the river to the east of here. We have no way to know if it’s related, but we don’t have much else to go on.
”We loaded your pack mules with 40 days of provisions. If you can do so without slowing your progress, you may want to supplement that with foraged food. Either way, make sure you leave yourself enough supplies for the return trip.
“Your primary mission is to find and disrupt any ritual sites in your sector of the forest. That said, if you find anything related to our mysterious assailant, be sure to document that as well. We need all the information we can get our hands on!
“Oh, and at the risk of sounding like Eando: take care of yourselves out there,” Greathammer adds. “We still know very little about this forest, and even less about the hills beyond, so be prepared for anything!”
Ruebella gasps at the mention of an abducted Decemvirate member.
She turns to Knab "Is this why you hired me?"
Ruebella listens to Gorm Greathammer words closely, and pulling out a slip of paper and a quill pen with a purple feather, writes the following notes:
-NE Finadar Forest
-40 days provisions (20 in, 20 out)
-Two weeks Journey in (if good time)
-Foraging if possible without slowing
-Find, Document, Disrupt Ritual Sites
-Track down leads to Urxehl (Demon Lord)
She does not add any questions to Packet's, Emdi's, and Fangor's at this time, but does wonder what kinds of creatures they are likely to encounter.
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Knab nods to Ruebella.
Wide as he is tall, with thin wisps of hair, he sticks his thick pinky finger into his ear and rotates his wrist clockwise and counterclockwise - - listening to the Venture Captain's briefing.
He walks over to Fangor, and pulling out the pamphlet from earlier, borrows Ruebella's pen and make some arcane marking upon it "Here are 4 different ways to disrupt 4 different kinds of rituals" opening his mouth for the first (and likely only!) time this adventure, demonstrating his literacy in the Four Traditions despite not being an actual practitioner of them.
He gives the "cleric" a knowing wink!
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Ithuriel glances over to Toanthel, Urehxl is the demon lord of destruction and devastation. I think we can be sure any ritual dedicated to him is in the cause of evil...
He turns to Gorm, Can you tell us anything more about the nature of the forest or its more dangerous inhabitants that might cross our paths?
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Packet looks up from his note taking to ask, "Could you elaborate more on the strange camp the centaurs have found?"
"I'm afraid details are pretty thin on that. All I know is that it's not far from the river, to the East."
"Are there any non-evil ritual sites that we should spare, or can we safely attack rituals on sight?"
"Nothing that I know of, though as I mentioned this Forest is largely unknown to us. I trust you to use your judgement as Pathfinders in determining the best course of action."
"Yes, but we have to make sure it is actually a site dedicated to him and not to some less malign power. Does Urehxl have some sort of mark or symbol?"
"We have found in multiple places a symbol resembling a storm cloud pierced by a lightning bolt, which we believe to be connected. Many of the artifacts we’ve found thus far have been carved from stone and covered in Abyssal and Cyclops runes; perhaps you’ll find something similar. We’ve also seen odd, unnatural effects on the environment surrounding some previous ancient sites in the forest, so keep an eye out for anything strange. It could be a clue that you’re getting close!”
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With his smooth voice, Fangor asks How can we disrupt a ritual? Can you describe the one used to abduct the Decemvirat member?
What do we know about the people behind these ritual?
"I'm afraid I don't know what you can do to disrupt the ritual, because I don't know what you'll find. Still, you have a diverse array of skills between you, I'm sure you'll figure it out. As for who abducted Sapphire (the missing Decemvirate member)...it was a strange, shadowy figure. They had a short, intense battle, then both disappeared, leaving only Sapphire's mask behind. I'm afraid that's all we know."
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He turns to Gorm, Can you tell us anything more about the nature of the forest or its more dangerous inhabitants that might cross our paths?
“Unfortunately, we know little about the deeper reaches of the Finadar Forest. We know that the bruorsivi pines are extremely flammable, and that you’re not likely to find much in the way of settlements. You’ll be traveling through untamed wilderness, so keep your wits about you. Keep an eye out for anything strange, as well. Based on what we’ve seen of this forest so far, anything particularly unusual might be a sign that you’re getting close!”
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As you prepare to leave, Ithuriel and Knab think back on their previous missions in this part of the world, and some of the things they learned. They know, for instance, about the blood pines, the highly flammable tries that make up the bulk of the forest. They know that these tries are prone to brief, intense firest that burn out normally or are contained by local druids and sages that live within the forest. They heard about the massive forest fire that swept through the Finadar in 4719AR (just a couple years ago now), inadvertently sparked by a local goblin tribe. More disturbingly, they also heard legends hinting that the blood pines of Finadar were cultivated by cyclops conjurers for use as fuel in rituals to summon powerful beings.
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As you prepare to set out, a member of the Society Logistics Corps leads a pack horse over to you, laden with the following supplies, well packed in saddle bags:
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Emdi's fishing guide Russ nudges him, and Emdi buys a fishing tackle (-0.8 gp). "It's about time you stopped bumming off of my equipment and bought your own."
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Emdi is hesitant to buy a horse. "I've never ridden one before ... what would I do with it after this mission? I don't want to be responsible for a horse for the rest of its life. Or my life. How long do horses live, anyway? And what do they eat? People always say 'hay is for horses' but I don't even know how to grow hay."
1 > Pure White
2 > White with Brown specks
3 > Brown with white specks
4 > Pure Brown
5 > Brown with Black specks
6 > Black with Brown specks
7 > Pure Black
8 > Black with White specks
9 > White with Black specks
"Two or three decades" Ruebella answers Emdi's question "Majestic creatures - can carry a whole drum set!" she pets the creature here, stroking it's brown mane.
Ruebella will do her bast here to make the case for horses!
"I hear adventurers such as yourselves are motivated by treasure - think of the 8 gold here being a down payment on the prospect of finding even more!"
Emdi @ +0 (Untrained)
Fangor @ +8 (Trained)
Ithuriel @ +7 (Trained)
Packet @ +7 (Trained)
Ruebella/Knab @ +9 (Expert)
Toanthel @ +7 (Trained)
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Ruebella's boot clumsily steps on Knab's face as she hoists herself atop their horse with his help, and she smiles at Packet.
Knab loads 10 days worth of provisions (2 Bulk) onto the horse, and pockets one of the (bird) feather tokens. Then he then uses the saddle and bit for leverage and his strong arms to climb up the opposite side, settling in behind her, distributing most of the weight to it's hind legs, and reaches his arms around her body to brace himself.
With Ruebella smiling, Knab frowning, and the horse looking to be under the strain of their combined 9 Bulk - distributed unevenly to the back - it snorts a little bit, but otherwise looks ready to depart!
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Astride your mounts, you set out into the forest, a wary eye on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary. After a day's journey, you set up a temporary camp, waking the next morning to scout the surrounding area. Finding nothing of particular interest, you set out again the following day, continuing along your planned route to the southeast. You set up camp again, and once again spend a day exploring the surrounding area.
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You see no sign of anything resembling a ritual site in your firs three days of travel and exploration. Late afternoon on the third day, however, Rubella notices some strange gouges in the trees nearby. Toanthel and Knab immediately recognize these as the talon marks of an owlbear, marking their hunting territory!
You come to a small stream, relatively shallow and slow moving, spanned by a fallen log. On the far side, some large stones rise out of an area of deep undergrowth before the stream loops back around. On the far side, stalking through the bushes towards you are two large, feathered creatures!
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Knab sort of rolls back over the backside of his horse, crossing awkwardly on his belly, landing behind it and slightly to the left - just clear of kicking legs! - and then helps Ruebella down much the same way she came up. She points out the tracks to Knab, and together that decide that this creature is an Owlbear.
Knab draws his Clan Dagger and a Javelin before continuing on, while Ruebella draws her trusty machete and hacks away at the vegetation, leading their horse with her other hand. When she spots the creatures, she points ahead with her blade, and hides in the bushes with the horse.
To Toanthel "Aye" he nods in agreement.
Knab strains his one good eye to get a good look at the creature, and activating his arm band with a low grunt, hurls his javelin at it!
◆) Battle Assessment @ +11 vs Deception / Stealth DC
◆) Command @ Bracelet of Dashing
◆) Strike w/ Javelin (30-ft Rage Increment)
With careful observation during battle, you identify an enemy’s strengths and weaknesses. The GM rolls a secret Perception check for you against the Deception or Stealth DC (whichever is higher) of an enemy of your choice who is not concealed from you, hidden from you, or undetected by you, and who is engaged in combat. The GM might apply a penalty for the distance between you and the enemy. The enemy is then temporarily immune to your Battle Assessment for 1 day.
Critical Success > The GM chooses two of the following pieces of information about the enemy to tell you: which of the enemy’s weaknesses is highest, which of the enemy’s saving throws has the lowest modifier, one immunity the enemy has, or which of the enemy’s resistances is highest. If the event of a tie, the GM should pick one at random.
Success > The GM chooses one piece of information from the above list to tell you about the enemy.
Critical Failure > The GM gives you false information (the GM makes up the information).
piercing; Critical Specialization 1d6 bleed
From her hiding spot, Ruebella nearly cheers out loud, then remembers to cover her mouth and be quiet!
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The second owlbear is quicker to respond, charging forward and unleashing a bloodcurdling screech!
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Through his nearly deaf ears, the screech sends shivers into his old bones, unnerving him somewhat.
The dwarf continues to assess the movements of the Owlbear!