[SFS/Shifty] Veskarium (B) (Inactive)

Game Master Nik B.

Seeing that battle is inevitable, Speaker for the Dead squeezes off two quick shots from his pulsecaster.

Shooting at White; he'll have soft cover, so I'm essentially crit fishing.

attack # 1 (full attack): 1d20 + 2 - 4 ⇒ (7) + 2 - 4 = 5
damage (electricity, nonlethal): 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3
attack # 2 (full attack): 1d20 + 2 - 4 ⇒ (9) + 2 - 4 = 7
damage (electricity, nonlethal): 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

Photon attuned 2

Gulkyn focuses all his efforts on the vesk. Full attack

Solar Weapon vs KAC: 1d20 + 8 - 4 ⇒ (1) + 8 - 4 = 5 Again?!
Damage (B + 1E): 1d6 + 9 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 9 + 1 = 15

Solar Weapon vs KAC: 1d20 + 8 - 4 ⇒ (9) + 8 - 4 = 13
Damage (B + 1E): 1d6 + 9 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 9 + 1 = 14

Benacu follows up on Strax's mental assault with an admittedly tamer one.

Mind Thrust vs. White, DC 15 Will halves: 2d10 ⇒ (1, 2) = 3

Will save: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 3 + 2 = 15

Murgatroyd just dazes about!

S - Will 1d20 ⇒ 19
B - Will 1d20 ⇒ 15
This time the Itjikri is paying attention, partially warding off the attempted mental incursion.

Murg stands dazed.

Gulk and SFTD have no luck nailing down their foes.

***

The two remain trying to push Gulkyn back.

Attack 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22 vs EAC
Damage 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

Attack 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (13) + 10 = 23 vs EAC
Damage 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

One continues to attack Murg.

Attack 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (13) + 10 = 23 vs EAC
Damage 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

The Itjikri steps in next to Murg and casts another spell.

R3
Benacu
Gulkyn
Strax
Speaker
Murg - Dazed.
ENEMY

R 33

"This one suggests these ones fall back to the corridor and an improved tactical position!"

Taking one shot (against White, who'll still get soft cover) and then a move action.

pulsecaster: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 2 = 21
damage (electricity, nonlethal): 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

Fully photon attuned

Looking around to see where his team is, Gulkyn steps away from Benacu and Strax. He then releases the solar energy he has been gathering.

Guarded step. Supernova

Supernova 10' radius (F): 5d6 ⇒ (1, 6, 2, 2, 6) = 17 Reflex DC 14 for half

Murgatroyd is dazed for round 3 as well?

Murg is good to go again now
Holdover tracking from me looking at AOOs etc when I was working on actions :)

SFTD lands a shot,

Gulkyn explodes!
B 1d20 ⇒ 1
B 1d20 ⇒ 8
Neither saw it coming!

R3
Benacu
Gulkyn - acted
Strax
Speaker - acted
Murg
ENEMY

R 33
W 19
G 17

Murgatroyd full attacks the ever-popular ijtikri next to him!

Hammer Fist vs. KAC: 1d20 + 9 - 4 ⇒ (13) + 9 - 4 = 18
Bludgeoning damage: 1d4 + 12 ⇒ (1) + 12 = 13

Hammer Fist vs. KAC: 1d20 + 9 - 4 ⇒ (20) + 9 - 4 = 25
Bludgeoning damage: 1d4 + 12 ⇒ (3) + 12 = 15
Critical bludgeoning damage: 1d4 + 12 ⇒ (1) + 12 = 13

Who is this Murgatroyd?!

GM reaction

Coming out from his daze, Murg strikes with an unbelievable 'left, right, goodnight' combination, destroying the Cultist leader.

R3
Benacu
Gulkyn - acted
Strax
Speaker - acted
Murg - acted
ENEMY

R Wrecked.
W 19
G 17

Benacu would rarely mind following SFTD's plan, but even he feels like the team is in a good position. He takes another shot to reinforce it.

Azimuth Laser vs. Grey: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21
Fire: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

I would recommend you surrender Strax says to the cultists

He then takes a shot with his needler pistol on Grey

v KAC: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14 piercing: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Ha, yeah--Speaker for the Dead makes a better diplomat than a tactician. I thought the situation was really dire in there, but it turns out Murgatroyd is a beast!

At this point it becomes clear that there is no reason to continue the fight with the advancing Starfinders and they take Strax up on the opportunity to surrender.

"You shouldn't take such pride in your misplaced belief in history and the Starfinder Society, the past is nothing but a lie and that the Keepers have uncovered a greater truth!" but they remain silent on what that 'truth' is.

The monitors in the room show security feeds of outside, where Paxel gleefully throws grenades into packs of Keepers. Through the containment door to the south, the silhouette of a heavily modified cyborg can be seen floating in a glass tank, hooked up to multiple diodes and monitoring devices.

You also locate your datapad, surrounded by objects that have apparently been used in an attempt to destroy it - but it appears unmarked.

Wheeling your prisoners out and returning to base?

Yes

Indeed. Unless we think there is more to uncover here?

Murgatroyd would like to explore the base, just in case there are any hostages/prisoners being kept by the gang - but that might trigger another combat... lots of fog war left

Two for leave, one for stay

Nevermind, Murgatroyd will just ask Paxel to search the base for hostages/prisoners and he's ok to leave - he finally feels like he redeemed himself after the Frozen Ambitions fiasco!

"Let's get out of here before the hitch makes itself evident, I say."

With the artifact in hand, you exit the research facility as Paxel’s troops finish up with the main bulk of the Keeper forces.

After the dust settles (and you hand off your prisoners) the security forces conduct their clean-up sweep of the facility. Paxel returns with you all to Command Prime, delighted at the results "That is one less group of Cultists we have running around causing trouble, seems the Society sent the right team for the job who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty"

The return ride back to Command Prime is swift and uneventful, and Paxel happily sends you on your way back to the Pact Worlds.

Upon tarrival back on Absalom Station, Venture-Captain Naiaj immediately calls for a full debriefing. "So you met with Paxel, and clearly retrieved the object, tell me more about what happened on your Veskarium adventure"

"This one found it exhilarating! This one chased an informant, survived an ambush, and charged a Keeper fortress! Those ones did not surrender peacefully, alas, and most of their stories are now lost."

"And Paxel was satisifed with the outcomes?"

Indeed yes Venture Captain. He was certainly enjoying himself during the assault. I believe there was much honour to be gained.

"We completed the mission without a hitch, venture-captain! Iomedae guided us through a tortuous path into the lair of the Keepers of the Lie, where my fists, as if imbued with divine energy, fell their puny leader with ease. Justice has been accomplished." Murgatroyd smiles with his usual naive expression.

"Paxel seemed pleased, yes. Definitely glad to be rid of a that collection of cultists."

"A delightful outcome then. Thank you for not causing any intergalactic incidents. While the semiclandestine mission didn’t necessarily improve Veskarium–Pact Worlds relations, I feel that everyone involved understands each other a little better now" Naiaj takes the artifact from you for further study - "If there proves to be any actionable information from the relic, the results should appear in a future issue of the Starfinder Chronicles"

After your adventures you are rewarded with being assigned a 'relaxed mission', informed to take your best formal wear, as well as holiday attire - your taskings to be sent to you enroute back to the Veskarium.

***INCOMING TRANSMISSION***
START MESSAGE

Starfinders,
I have personally recommended your team for this mission due to your previous spectacular work and dedication to our organization. You’ll be representing the Starfinder Society at the Vesk-6 Victory Gala. While I personally find the basis of this particular gala to be distasteful, I feel that it’s important for you to enjoy yourselves at a luxurious event once in a while.

Please remember that you are our representatives, and other attendees will be looking to you to understand who the Starfinder Society counts as their best and brightest, and what we as an organization stand for. I have included your formal invitations, and I’ve arranged for all of you to stay at a resort in Starlance on Vesk-6 following the event.

MORE TO FOLLOW

Signed,
Venture-Captain Arvin

END MESSAGE

Speaker for the Dead undulates with excitement as he speaks with his colleagues, even though his masked face reveals no emotion. "A resort! A gala! This one is very pleased to be an emissary among the Starfinder Society!"

Do we know anything about Vesk-6 and what the victory celebration is for?

"What an honor, representing the society at a celebration on the lands of the Vesk!" Murgatroyd is very satisfied with the assignment/reward.

He purchases formal clothing for the occasion.

"Ooh, these are always good! I went to one on our behalf for the formians a while ago. But if it's vesk, there'll probably be fighting incorporated in - which at least saves us from some outside party being the one to inevitably start it."

Glad I'm not working with any Pahtra on this trip, Gulkyn thinks to himself.

Do we know anything about Vesk-6 and what the victory celebration is for?

You remember Vesk 6, you did a mission there earlier - tall trees, old Pathra artifacts, and the Shriek raining terror due to the magnetosphere

***

The comms light up again as your next transmission arrives.

New slides up!

It is not Strax who answers the call but Kyra-IO is back.

Vesk-6? she says. I have been there .... not the most hospitable of planets. Surely they could not have put it on .... say ... Vesk-2

She has another look at the invite. Ah

Culture or Prof (Historian or Politician)

Murgatroyd remains a culture-less zealot.

culture: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (13) + 11 = 24

She ponders the information she knows, having been on Vesk 6 not that long ago.

We may need to watch out for Pahtra dissidents .... or freedom fighters she comments. It depends on which side of the equation you sit on.

She starts looking up to see what she can find out about Vesk-6 before and after the conquest i.e. what advances did the Vesk bring with them much like the Roman Empire did

The transformation was significant; from a relatively low-tech jungle dwelling species dwelling in scattered disparate tribes being conquered by a high-tech space-faring interplanetary empire.

GEOGRAPHY
Vesk-6 is a small, humid world, with uniformly high temperatures across all latitudes.

Its landmass is concentrated in a supercontinent, covered in lush jungles with the exception southern hemisphere which remains battle damaged since the vesk arrival. Adapted to the low gravity, Vesk-6's towering trees can be as tall as mountains on other planets. Vesk-6's own mountains are even taller.

Cartographers often split Vesk-6's superocean into three smaller bodies of water: the Ketemare Ocean, which is relatively calm due to its distance from shore, and the Tereltos Sea and Tideflight Ocean, which are subject to extreme tides caused by the gravity of Vesk-6's two moons, Vesk-6.1 and Vesk-6.2. These tides can reach for miles inland every day.

Vesk-6 is covered in a very powerful magnetosphere that allows it to keep its atmosphere and generates magnetic winds which quickly destroys technology. Without proper shielding, even simple tools can become unreliable, while more advanced technology is useless or even deadly. Its core was apparently altered some time in prehistory, which explains its unusually warm temperature; however, there are no proof or ruins on Vesk-6 of any ancient aliens who might have been responsible.

GOVERNMENT
The Veskarium maintains a garrison in Command 6, Vesk-6's planetary capital, under the leadership of the relatively liberal High Despot Kavadroz. The Veskarium only directly rules over Command 6; elsewhere, they appoint consuls, both vesk and pahtra, to cooperate with local pahtra nations, whose treaties with the empire granted them unusual autonomy. Nevertheless, some groups remain hostile to vesk rule, seek to reclaim Pulonis for the pahtras, and have come into conflict with vesk peacekeepers.

INHABITANTS
The feline pahtras are the dominant intelligent species on Vesk-6, as well as one of the smallest. Due to its low gravity, many wild creatures on Vesk-6 are truly colossal While vesk patrols and pahtra warriors protect most major settlements from dangerous wildlife, they risk being overcome during population surges or disruptions. As its magnetic fields intefere with technology, most of Vesk-6's surface is wilderness, untouched by both pahtra governments and Veskarium colonisers.

Vesk-6's other intelligent species is the hymothoas, who are despised by pahtra and vesk alike. Their motives are largely unknown, though they seem even more hostile to vesk occupation than most pahtras are.

Most vesk see Vesk-6 as dangerous and inhospitable. All vesk facilities are protected by magnetic shielding, but are always one failure away from destruction. Some consider this situation precarious; others see it as thrilling. As a result, most vesk living on Vesk-6 are survivalists who seek to improve their strength and endurance, or those who were punished with an assignment there.

Culture: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (10) + 8 = 18

"I heard something similar. My news network must get less kickbacks from 'em than yours does - they got called insurgents. Let's try for neutrality if any posh vesk partygoers ask for opinions."

Image up

As your ship exits the Drift, you arrive near the Grand Mezzanine, a famous theater ship known for its opulent interior and fantastic acoustics. Floating near the Grand Mezzanine is an enormous dreadnought, the Talon’s Razor, captained by Tassada Kor.

A comm from Tassada appears on your viewscreen. "Aha! The exact Starfinder team I wanted, your group performed splendidly assisting us last time. Good to see you. I’m glad you could make it! It’s not every day that the Veskarium celebrates such a powerful victory!” Tassada seems genuinely pleased, but her face soon grows serious. “While this is a joyful celebration of vesk might, I have some concerns. I have reason to believe that the Pulonis Liberation Front has infiltrated this event and is planning some sort of attack to further their political goals. Why they can’t just accept the grace of the empire is beyond me. I’d have my military forces go in and put a stop to it, but I’m concerned that they’ll either set everything off early, or that the rebels will flee, and we won’t be able get any information about their next steps or leadership"

“That’s where I’m hoping I can depend on you. I know the Starfinder Society is interested in preventing a loss of life, so I want you to investigate and find evidence of the rebels’ plots. Prevent whatever disaster they’re planning and then report back to me. Will you help me? Do you have any questions?”

You know her and she knows you from Into the Veskarium, where your ship was delayed until you ended up shooting holes in the ship of a bunch of Pathra revolutionaries/arms smugglers

I prefer to get my history from ... more neutral parties Kyra replies. Besides. I have seen these patterns before

Upon arrival at Vesk-6 ....
And it it good to see you too Kyra replies. And I agree with you. History does tell me that in every conquest, there have been some that have objected to that conquest and act violently. So yes, investigation is logical.

"This one would prefer to mediate a peaceful resolution, yet agrees that a massacre aboard the vessel could harm many innocent lives. This one will assist."

"Justice shall prevail over all wrongdoers, Tassada Kor! Do you know where we should start to investigate those criminals?"

Culture: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14

"We'll sniff out these rebels and prevent them from interrupting the party", adds Gulkyn.

You are about to be let loose in a fancy ballroom on the Grand Mezzanine, any prep?

Murgatroyd has his formal clothing on - though party clothing might be more appropriate.

It looks kinda silly over his armor.

Speaker for the Dead dons his set of Ceremonial Clothing and uses token spell to make sure everyone's clothing is clean.

Gulkyn will continue to wear his red robes over his armor. He will spend a minute in meditation to use his sidreal influence (Diplomacy)

Benacu has retrieved his long-abandoned set of formal clothing from his storage beforehand only to find it ill-fitting. So he decides to go without his armor for now, as it wouldn't do much good anyway.

The ballroom of the Grand Mezzanine is expansive and elegant, with a black ceiling covered in twinkling lights and soaring arches designed to look like ornate wooden structures. The soft, maroon carpet gently muffles the noise of the conversations between the event’s attendees. In the center is a massive buffet line, serving delicacies from across the galaxy. Double doors lead into the auditorium where the final show will be held.

Three people in particular seem to be centers of attention—a tall pahtra man who is clearly armed and wearing armor under his suit, a muscular vesk man in a suit with a prominent facial scar, and a pahtra woman dressed in the latest fashions accented with glimmering lights. Some of the attendees seem to be enjoying the complimentary beverages a little too exuberantly, stumbling and clutching at their respective partners for balance.

Images in slides

***

We are moving into an investigation challenge. There will be an unknown number of phases and in each phase you have three options:

IMPRESS THE VIPS
When a PC chooses to spend their phase interacting with one of the VIPs, they can either try to directly influence the VIP by attempting an influence check or try to learn more about the VIP with a discovery check. Instead of attempting their own check, PCs can spend their phase attempting to Aid another PC’s influence or discovery check.

Biases: The first time each PC interacts with a VIP, whether for an influence check or a discovery check, they can attempt a DC 20 Sense Motive check. On a success, they learn that VIP’s biases.

Influence Check: A PC can attempt a skill check to influence one of the VIPs. The approach and the skill used will have varying results based on that personalities biases.

INVESTIGATE AN AREA
On your turn you can investigate an area rather than interact with one of the personalities.

There are four areas you can investigate.
* Auditorium
* Back room
* Buffet line
* Security Office.

This is the discussion thread for the ongoing Frozen Ambitions scenario arc.
As the characters will (likely!) remain the same for the remaining two instalments, we will just remain in this thread til the end of the series.

Please provide the following for your PC:
Name:
Character Name:
SFS ID and character number:
Faction:
Day job Roll:
Boons (Happy for this to occur after the briefing)

SPOTS RESERVED:
Murgatroyd
Thidreks
Ysh
Zoey

Name: The Ragi
Character Name: Murgatroyd
SFS ID and character number: 291669-703
Faction: Exo-guardians
Day job Roll: Jobless!

Looks like there's still room. This mystic will hit level 3 right after the first scenario.

Name: Crunch
Character Name: Benacu
SFS ID and character number: 150618-709
Faction: Wayfinders
Day Job Roll: None!

Name: Wolffauer
Character Name: Thidreks
SFS ID and character number: 262720-711
Faction: Exo-Gaurdians
Day job Roll: Take 10 for 48 credits

Looks like there's still room. This mystic will hit level 3 right after the first scenario.

Welcome!

I'm here! Is this still a 1-4 scenario? Will add details later

Still 1-4

Ahoy Shifty - long time no play brother! I'd be keen to join if you'd have me?

Name: Black Dow
Character Name: Kultha Cleft-Tail
SFS ID and character number: 4669-702
Faction: Wayfinders
Day job Roll: Profession (Dock Worker): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (19) + 11 = 30 [60CR]

Name Kludde
Character Name Zoey Strawberry
SFS id108716-701
Day job roll:Artist: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22

Oh wow - Black Dow - long time no see.

OK looks like a full house again.

Here! Need to catch up after a crazy week at work...

Oh wow - Black Dow - long time no see.

OK looks like a full house again.

Is indeed mate :) Trust you're keeping well Nik.

only purchase for Kulha prior to arrival is a Sledge (as in hammer, rather than tobogganing variety :).

Want us to list slotted boons here (have done so on my profile regardless)...

Yeah keeping well - crazy times meant a couple of lengthy jaunts with work - first dealing with bushfires, then Covid, but the tempo seems ok again.

As long as you list boons somewhere easy to find all good mate.

Name Florent
Character Name Ysh'yaal
SFS id 754-711
Day job roll Profession Hacker: 1d20 + 9 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 9 + 4 + 1 = 18

On the road with work - so after this mornings posts I'll be offline til tomorrow night (~36 hours)

Friday afternoon here - heading into work and up into the mountains with a crew for a couple of days for some adventures with mud and chainsaws due to the 'rain bomb' that has hit the region. Back Sunday night my time (~48 hrs)

Will post if I can get comms up there but otherwise offline.

Enjoy, and stay safe chief.

It has disintegrated pretty bad - we've done the job but I am now gearing up to push a large group (300ish + trucks and plant) north into the flood affected areas for cleanup and sandbagging, the New South Wales coast is just getting flooded horribly... google NSW flood - its wild.

Bloody hell, that’s insane. Oz can’t catch a break, can it?

Doing good work out there. Stay safe...

Thanks for letting us know! Here's hoping you can be as safe as is possible.

I'm back home for the night to wash/clean/etc.

Looks like it will be a busy week but in a controlled and sensible manner, so will have communications etc.

I have to say a 'once in a century fire' ending with a 'once in a lifetime virus' transitioning to a 'once in a century flood' is kinda crazy.

George Miller's vision of future Oz looking more prophetic every day!

Glad you're safe and well chief.

Cheers - It is a lot of activity surge as the rains have subsided so we can all now go out in force and begin the recovery and restoration phase - at least it is now less risky and just looks like a lot of work, but work that can be done in safety and with a sensible rate of effort.

Morning gang - just a wee heads up that I'm in today for lockdown overdue surgery on my sinuses. Not a major procedure but means I'll likely be out of the loop for 24-72 depending on success, pain meds and all that fun stuff.

Apologies on the timing Shifty - Please bot Kultha as necessary until I'm fit for service again.

Sweet :) Good luck with things up your nose mate!

Floods done, flying to another state tomorrow morning for a fairly busy looking two weeks. Should still be able to maintain at least 1x daily posting.

The next scenario in this series is due at the end of this month #3-21: Frozen Ambitions: Renewal's Blight - Levels 3-6.

I'm tracking we will probably need to stick another scenario in to get people up a bit more xp. A quick and easy repeatable would probably be the go, but happy for thoughts and opinions.

Murgatroyd is finally hitting level 3 when this scenario is done!

I belive 1-32 is the quickest repeatable, especially with some good charisma skills.

Or maybe the players can switch to higher level PCs...

Benacu will also be 3 after this. Still, I wouldn't mind a repeatable either way. I only just now realized 1-32 was one, didn't get that impression when I played it.

I'm good wit it :)

I'm good either way.

So do we need that interim step, or does everyone have an L3 available?

Murgatroyd is ready to level up when we wrap this one.

Ysh' is already 3rd :)

Thidreks is level 3.

Unless it turns out we need an interim game we can crack into the finale in 48 hours

Leveling won't take me more than an hour tomorrow, so I'll be ready.

Kultha is still a further 1 XP off 3rd (even after the current XP is gained), but I'm cool with bowing out after this one, have plenty of games on plate to keep me going.

Enjoyed the game immensely and look forward to rolling some virtual bones with you all down the line. Special thanks to Nik for indulging an old sparring partner.

Where them chronicle sheets at? I might do some shopping before we dive in =D

I need some time on Sunday to level up Zoey, but she's got the XP. Just need to dig up the PCgen file. Is there any better tool at this point that people recommend?

Hephaistos is mostly there - the creator is also constantly improving it, so the content is also up to date.

Hmm must have eaten the post

CHRONICLES

Thanks!

Cheers Shifty :)

Need to tweak my chronicle. Thidreks was level three for this adventure.

Need to tweak my chronicle. Thidreks was level three for this adventure.

Tweaked

Yaya, all ready to go. Please anticipate the upgraded version of Zoey fondly…

(Will update sheet later)

Sorry guys, my son was sick and work was crazy!
I'm getting back to my usual posting rate.

I'm deeply sorry for my silence the past days. My wife hurt her back, my son is starting to have his first teeth and wakes up regularly twice a night and work is still crazy... So between work, doing the chores, taking care of my 7month old son, I wasn't able to connect and play.
I've tried my best but it just wasn't physically possible.

My wife is better, work still demanding and the teeth still not fully there, but trying my best to come back.

Again, I'm very sorry for my absence and sometime, even doing your best is not enough. I'm trying to catch up.

All good - life does that :)