.
Elena. The Pukwudgie is all that's left to deal with. Are you doing anything?
.
The Pukwudge casts a spell on the front three Elathras, Bharack & Mike.
.
Back to the party can act! Except if you're effected by the spell.
For a brief moment fear filled Bharak’s mind. With a surge of effort he forced it aside and advanced. While he was still in the fight, the spell stole his momentum, leaving him unable to attack just yet.
Bharak just misses .
The rest of the party can act!
As the victim of his Challenge falls, Elathras Seeing the glitter dust cover the 'invisible' pukwudgie, turns his attention to it. Moving forwards he calls out his challenge, "Have at thee foul creature!" As the thrusts the Guisarm at the thing.
Not feeling the effects of the porcupine-man's spell, Mike growls and moves towards the creature to attack.
With a howl of triumph, Mike the Hound Archon, a very good boy, fades away back to Heaven.
Axton, feeling the others can handle the glittering outline of the Pukdwugie, decides to preserve his spells. He moves out of the way of the doorway and puts his wand of monster summoning back into his haversack.
Vhane casually makes his way into the room, points his crossbow at the creature, and fires!
As the bolt buries itself within the head of the Pukwudgie, Vhane watches its eyes go wide - as if it just realized it's dead - before toppling over.
Resting his crossbow upon his shoulder, he looks over at the others and asks, "Where to now?"
You quickly put an end the the loathsome thing.
Treasure:
The books in this room are a completely random assortment generated by the keep, and highly disorganized, ranging from Varisian fairy tales to
cookbooks to ancient primers on field tactics and stories of the Taldan Armies of Exploration.
If anyone removes a book from the keep, its covers begin to softly weep
blood.
One item of actual worth can be found here-a Manual of bodily health +l, left undisturbed and forgotten on a bottom shelf.
Where to now?
Seeing the pukwudgie fall, Elathras realizes they have found a room full of books. He'd always enjoyed reading as a child, though his aunt had insisted most of it pertain to battles and such. Leaning his Guisarm against a shelf he begins to rummage through some of the books. Picking up a primer on field tactics of the Taldan Armies of Exploration he turns to Elena asking, "The paintings your future self left didn't say anything about books did they?"
Removing his pack long enough to tuck the 'primer' inside he see's another book on the bottom shelf. Pulling it out he reads the cover, "Manual of Bodily Health. Can't hurt to keep that one as well." Tucking both books in his pack, he reshoulders pack and picks up his Guisarm.
Once the Pathfinders were done looking through the books he gestures towards the eastern door "Shall we continue?" Opening the door as he asks.
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"Aye, we should." Looking through the bookshelf, he found one entitled 'the lusty argonian maid.' Frowning at the impertinence of the title he turned to leave.
C11. BONE SAGE'S QUARTERS
This tidy chamber is a combination workshop and living space. A workbench containing alembics, retorts, and other vessels filled with a variety of unknown substances decorates the room. Along the north eastern wall runs a triptych of paintings showing an intimidating vessel that's all flames and dark barbed spines sailing through the star-studded void of space.
When you enter, a skeletal, withered corpse with an oversized, bulging forehead is seated in the armchair reading a book. He wears a long blue
cape and flattering, tailored black clothes with silver embellishments and a three-eyed bird skull hanging from a chain around his neck.
The corpse seems to have died while reading the book, and is covered in a thick layer of dust-yet as the "corpse" notices you, the dust flakes away as it looks up, smiles, and gestures to the cushions at his feet as it addresses you in Thassilonian:"So you're the intruders. Well. Come, come-sit down. I suspect we have much to discuss. You may call me Maligast of Eox."
Maligast is one of the legendary bone sages of the dead planet Eox. With a successful DC 30 Knowledge (arcana or history) check, a PC can recall the ancient stories of Eox's doom. When Eox's environment was destroyed
millennia ago in a great cataclysm, its few surviving residents took to undeath as a way of saving their race.
Today, the bone sages are ageless and peerless scholars and
also dangerously paranoid.
What are you doing now?
Looking through the bookshelf, he found one entitled 'the lusty argonian maid.' Frowning at the impertinence of the title he turned to leave.
Axton spies the title of the book in Bharak's hand over the dwarf's low shoulders.
"I've read that one! It's short on plot, but it engenders a lot of tumescence!"
*********
it addresses you in Thassilonian:"So you're the intruders. Well. Come, come-sit down. I suspect we have much to discuss. You may call me Maligast of Eox."
"He's inviting us to sit and talk with him," Axton explains for anyone who doesn't speak Thassilonian.
"Eox... I swear I've heard that before," he mentions to Elena before taking a step forward to address Maligast in Thassilonian.
"Greetings, Maligast of Eox! I am Axton Vendian, of Magnimar! This is my familiar, Intrepid, and these others are our friends.
"Forgive us our caution, but since you've labelled us as intruders (guilty!) and since everything else since we've arrived has tried to immediately kill us, can I ask you to state your intentions before we approach? You seem like someone very worthy of talking to, but a healthy dose of skepticism on our part is warranted. I hope you understand!"
Opening the door Elathras hears the creatures voice and realizes it is looking up at them. As the thing smiles and gestures towards the pillows, he looks from the creature to his friends. Clearly, if this thing had been a danger Elena would have drawn a picture of it on a rooftop for them to see. Lifting his Guisarme to an 'at rest' position, he nods as Axton explains the creatures request and answers it in the same tongue. Making a mental note to ask Axton to teach him ancient thassolonian, he quickly looks at the cushions, considering how difficult it would be to sit on one of them in full armor. Frowning slightly, he asks Axton. "Axton, please make apologies for me, I would be more comfortable if I stay standing." He nods towards the corner, "If it would help, I'd gladly lean my guisarme someplace so as not to look as threatening."
Bharak nodded knowingly to Axton, despite having no idea what tumescence meant. He figured that it was better to keep his mouth shut and possibly be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.
Likewise, his learned and eloquent companion spoke his mind. Well, with several more words, and a vocabulary that was filled with more erudite language and less vulgar phrases. But the meaning would have been the same. He stood next to the sorcerer, hammer resting on his shoulder. If words failed, he was ready.
Maligast is an odd conversationalist-enthusiastic, but a little insane, often stopping short in the middle of sentences or shifting focus suddenly.
He nods agreeably at Axton's questions. "Understandable. The majority of the residents here are set as guardians. And so do as they are placed to do. Attack intruders."
He shrugs. "I myself am not a guardian. Karzoug himself summoned me here thousands of years ago to study the Shard of Greed. It has been thousands of years though. I have studied the shard, and what ever else I can find, but it does get boring. Karzough is long dead I know and the chance at some conversation and news of the outside world is welcome."
His glowing eyes burn into Axtons, "In addition I believe you and I have the chance to make an extraordinary agreement!"
He wants to talk. He's very bored. He also has a very strange offer for Axton. What are you doing?
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"Oh, he's just bored!" Axton enthuses. "He just wants to know what's been going on beyond the black menhir!
Axton turns to his companions. "Now listen: I know that the research-blob didn't work out very well, but I've got a good feeling about the undead slave of a tyrant Runelord!"
Axton has a seat on one of the cushions, but he keeps thoughts of his emergency force sphere spell in the front of his mind.
In Thassilonian: "We have heard of the Shard of Greed? What have you managed to learn?"
Axton answers any questions he can about the historical events of Golarion, but he evades any questions related to why the party is here in this keep. Eventually, he brings back up the agreement Maligast mentioned earlier.
Maligast can't really tell you much you don't already know about the Shard of greed. It has been more than a thousand years and many scholars have devoted their lives to researching the shards since Maligast was summoned here.
What he can tell you is a lot of information about the history of this place and its relation to Karzoug.
Already inhabited when Xin first founded the empire of Thassilon, the wall-city of Kaer Maga-sometimes called the Asylum Stone or the City of Strangers-has been many things to many people. For Karzoug, the last Runelord of Greed, it was the perfect site for a prison colony.
Karzoug was fascinated by the series of ancient labyrinths and catacombs winding their way down beneath the cliff-top city, and added to the warrens by building several facilities of his own, including workshops where he could conduct some of his stranger experiments.
When the Shard of Gluttony fell into Karzoug's hands (one of several triumphant strikes against Runelord Zutha), he knew he needed a safe and secure place to keep the artifact. Unwilling to trust his primary
servitor race in the city-the eerie, thought-consuming sages known as the caulborn-Karzoug ventured into one of the least-accessible regions beneath Kaer Maga, an ancient extraplanar cavern called the Dark Forest.
There he bargained with the realm's undying master, a strange dullahan called the Dark Rider. He charged the headless horseman with guarding the relic until Karzoug himself came to retrieve it, and in return linked the shard's own magic to that of the cavern itself When Earthfall shattered Thassilon and sent Karzoug fleeing into stasis in Xin-Shalast, there was no time for him to recover any of the shards he controlled, including the Shard of Gluttony.
The Dark Rider remains loyal and keeps his bargain to this day, guarding the shard against all others-including the caulborn, who covet its mysteries .
As well Maligast can give you a lot of information about Golarion's solar system. He may also be able to offer the you interesting tidbits about the Dark Forest, ancient Thassilon, the Dark
Rider and his Naming pool.
Any questions? Or shall we get to the Dark bargain he is hinting at?
Casually standing as Maligmast and Axton speak, Elathras tries to pick up a word here and there, occasionally asking questions so the others get a bit of the gist of the conversation. When there is a gap in the talking Elathras asks, "What can our new friend tell us about the Dark Rider?" He furrows his brow, worried about his fellow Pathfinder's soul, "And what was the 'dark bargain' he offered you? Should we be concerned?"
"He hasn't offered it yet! But certainly there's no harm in merely hearing what the bargain may be."
But first, Axton passes on Elathras' question about the Dark Rider. He then thinks it prudent to ask Magilast about the other topics he's offered information on: the Dark Forest, the Naming Pool, and ancient Thassilon.
Then he immediately says yes to asks about Magilast's bargain.
Trusting that Axton would glean any useful information, Bharak took the book they had found and began reading. It was fascinating, as it was filled with valuable information regarding preventative medicine, basic first aid, and proper muscle toning. Once he started he couldn’t stop. As he reached the last page, he closed the cover and was about to tell Elathras that he had to read it…when the tome suddenly vanished. He looked around for it, wondering how he could have misplaced it, only to decide that it must have been the magic of the Keep.
Magilast can tell you about the dark forest.
.
The naming pool. Before the coming of the Shard of Gluttony, this chamber was the heart and focus of the Black Keep, an old mechanism by which the Dark Rider gets the names of those he specifically searches out on his hunts each year, for reasons known only to the long-gone original architects of the Dark Forest.
This is where the Dark rider spends most of his time.
In Varisia, he's known as the Dark Rider. In Ustalav, he's the Black Huntsman. To the orcs of Belkzen, he's the Houndmaster. Yet wherever he appears, the lord of the Dark Forest is recognized as a bearer of ill fortune. While few know of the Dark Rider's lair, many have heard his legends.
Roughly once each year on a cold, moonless night, the dullahan goes riding through the forests of northwest Avistan with his baying pack of shadowy hounds. No one knows by what criteria the dullahan chooses his
victims, but the hunt never ceases until the rider reaches his quarry and calls the mortal's name, after which he slays his prey, sometimes adding the victims to his hunting pack.
To nearly everyone, how the rider knows these names or manages to track his quarry remains completely mysterious, but as the fable of "The Orphan and the Rider" attests, even those without proper names are subject to
his powers.
When the Runelord of Greed first discovered Kaer Maga, he found the Dark Rider already in residence in a strange subterranean realm. Unlike the caulborn, the Dark Rider was never pressed into service, yet neither did he object to the runelord's presence.
Many years later, however, a change began to overtake his realm. The glowing fungus on the ceiling grew dimmer, and the portal stones ceased to operate reliably. Bound to the demiplane, the Dark Rider swallowed
his pride and approached the Runelord Karzoug for assistance. Karzoug agreed, shoring up the Dark Forest's magic with the power of the Shard of Gluttony and turning the Black Keep into a palace of undeath.
In return, he asked that the Dark Rider protect the shard from those who seek it.
The Dark Rider is a cold, alien entity. Some believe he was once a servant of Pharasma-a reaper who became far too fond of his profession
and was cursed. Others think the Dark Forest is a relic of the Vault Builders of Orv, and the Dark Rider a tool by which they culled inferior workers.
Still others believe that the Dark Rider and his realm were sent from some distant future, and that the Naming Pool is the work of a vast intelligence that, like Norgorber's Skinsaw Men, steers the world toward
a particular future through assassination.
On Thassilon Maligast can tell you little you don't already know. He was from another world and stuffed into this library thousands of years ago. You probably know more that he does. :)
Lastly Maligast explains the he is a Simulacrum of the true Maligast and has been here for thousands of years. He is supposed to fight you to prevent you leaving. However should he do so he would most likely die, and as a Simulacrum that would be the end of him. He would cease to exist completely.
He doesn't like that option and so wants to make a bargin with Axton. He transfers all his knowledge and magic to Axton. Effectively living on as a soul passenger.
What are you all doing?
Raising an eyebrow as Maligast and Axton come to their dark arrangement, Elathras resists the idea of asking for details. Instead, he gestures towards the other door. "Shall we continue?"
Stepping through the northwestern door from Maligast's chambers, he approaches the double doors facing the east. Checking the doors carefully, he nods towards the others, finally flinging the double doors open wide.
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Maligast, the Simulacrum Bonesage from the alien planet asks of Axton Vendian, Pathfinder sorcerer of Magnimar.
"Thousands of years of arcane knowledge?!"
"With no untoward consequences whatsoever?!"
"I'm sure it will be fine! Commence!!!"
The Bonesage leans forward and gazes into Axton's eyes, the glow of undeath in those eyeless sockets becoming piercingly bright. Unseeable outside of this mental exchange, Axton's eager mind scrambles to collect whatever he can from thousands of years of knowledge and experience and retain it in a brain that processes magic in a completely contrary manner.
After a brief moment, the glow in Maligast's eyes winks out and the corpse collapses into the armchair it sits in.
Axton looks haggard and confused for a few brief moments as he looks blankly around. Finally, he stands and takes a deep breath, the exhale sending his mustache flaring out. He looks at the others.
"Hello, friends! It's me, Axton. I have absorbed Maligast's knowledge and magical aptitude and none of his personality! We're certain of that!"
Axton walks over to Maligast's corpse and retrieves his new prized possession: a spellbook.
"We definitely want to bring that with us! But also..."
Axton also retrieves any magic items or other items of value that the Bonesage carried.
The dwarf stopped and stared. He looked helplessly at his companions with a look on his face that beckoned them to tell him that they had just seen what he had. ”Is he going to be alright?” With absolutely no arcane knowledge of his own, all he could do was voice his concern.
.
Mailgast collapses into a shapeless heap of ice and snow.
As first Axton feels things are blurry, as if he's looking through two sets of eyes. This fades as the new knowledge fits itself into his mind like a complex mosaic being completed piece by piece.
The feeling of another mind in his head slowly vanishes as Maligast is absorbed, leaving only a faint sense of spiteful satisfaction from Maligast at getting one over the original caster.
Loot:
Amulet of natural armor +2,
Spy eyes .
Spellbook: (contains only spells prepared, since as a simulacrum, Maligast can not learn more spells than that)
5th-dismissal, Summon monster V, Waves of fatigue.
4th-Detect scrying, Dimension door, Enervation, Scrying.
3rd-Dispel magic, Fireball, Lightning bolt, Vampiric touch.
2nd-Command undead, Scorching ray, See invisibility.
1st-Identify, Magic missile, Ray of enfeeblement, Shield.
0-Acid splash, Arcane mark, Detect magic, Read magic, Prestidigitation.
What now for everyone? Obviously Axton is possessed and must be put to the question!
The dwarf stopped and stared. He looked helplessly at his companions with a look on his face that beckoned them to tell him that they had just seen what he had. ”Is he going to be alright?” With absolutely no arcane knowledge of his own, all he could do was voice his concern.
"He should be fine," Axton declares as he picks up a three-eyed bird skull necklace from out of the pile of Simulacrum ash.
He looks up as Elathras approaches the next door. "Wait! Let me tell you what's on the other side of that door so we can prepare."
Turning as Axton spoke to him, Elathras nodded, watching as his friend put the simulacrum necklace around his own neck. As Elathras waited for the instructions he truly hoped his friend would be able to maintain control of whatever it was Axton had allowed into his body. It would be a pity to have to kill a fellow pathfinder even if he'd turned into monster.
.
Treasure: Painted by Maligast himself, the triptych is of a great Eoxian space vessel-the unique subject matter alone makes the paintings worth 300 gp.
The alchemical supplies on the various workbenches and shelves are for the use of repairing damage to simulacrums, and are worth 8,400gp in all.
Finally, three forked metal rods worth 100gp apiece sit amid the supplies; a successful DC 20 Spellcraft check identifies these as foci for plane shift spells: One is clearly marked for the material plane, another is set to the Dark forest. The third is unknown to all of you?
Axton finds it easy to separate his mind from that of Maligast's. The undead was intensely bored and had no emotional bond with anyone in the manor.
He can tell you that C12 is the dining hall, where the Dark riders hunting hounds lair.
While C9 contains the Dark riders 'girlfriend' a b~~$%*% crazy and very tough Nuckelavee.
What now?
Finally, three forked metal rods worth 100gp apiece sit amid the supplies; a successful DC 20 Spellcraft check identifies these as foci for plane shift spells: One is clearly marked for the material plane, another is set to the Dark forest. The third is unknown to all of you?
Axton finds it easy to separate his mind from that of Maligast's. The undead was intensely bored and had no emotional bond with anyone in the manor.
Bharak signed. Action had just been possessed! Possessed! Was nobody concerned about this? ”Alright.” He said with some hesitation, wincing as “Axton” informed them about what else was in the dungeon. He couldn’t help but wonder who truly was piloting the mustache. ”So, this nuckelavees. Do we need to kill it, or can we just bypass it?” He asked, glancing over at “Axton.”
"All the remaining rooms of the keep lie beyond those doors." Axton muses. "We could use a dimension door spell to perhaps jump to a room further in, but I wouldn't be able to bring everyone in one jump, and then we risk getting having enemies detect us from behind."
C10 - Secret closet.
C13 - A statue of the Dark rider, along with a nasty arrow trap and a magic item the Dark rider uses to control undead created by the pocket dimension. Something called a Skin harp
C14 - Bathing pool. Looks warm but the water is infused with negative energy. Maligast liked it :). 3 Mohrg hide in the water.
c15 - Overlook. Lets you scry distant planets, and the solar system. Maligast spent some time there looking at Eox.
C16 - Naming pool. The Dark rider is there, awaiting the names to let him hunt on Golarion again.
C17 - Engines. Maligast didn't understand what these machines were.
C18 Shard chamber. Maligast has never been here.
What now?
Watching as the light shifted in Axton's eyes, Elathras didn't worry to much about the change, he'd seen too many hell knights to similar things with devils for it to bother him. Not that he'd ever consider doing the same, but figuring Axton was his own man, if he wanted to share his head with an ancient undead that was up to him.
As the conversation turned to the rooms, Elathras nods his head in agreement with Bharak's question. When Axton explains about the dimension door spell, Elathras scratches his chin asking, "How many can you take at once?" He gestures towards Bharak, "Bharak and I can keep it occupied until the rest of you can arrive."
He pauses for a moment, "But will the other creatures come to its rescue? Also, will we be able to dimension door back here or will we have to fight them on our way out?"
Maligast, the Simulacrum Bonesage from the alien planet asks of Axton Vendian, Pathfinder sorcerer of Magnimar.
"Thousands of years of arcane knowledge?!"
"With no untoward consequences whatsoever?!"
"I'm sure it will be fine! Commence!!!"
The Bonesage leans forward and gazes into Axton's eyes, the glow of undeath in those eyeless sockets becoming piercingly bright. Unseeable outside of this mental exchange, Axton's eager mind scrambles to collect whatever he can from thousands of years of knowledge and experience and retain it in a brain that processes magic in a completely contrary manner.
After a brief moment, the glow in Maligast's eyes winks out and the corpse collapses into the armchair it sits in.
Axton looks haggard and confused for a few brief moments as he looks blankly around. Finally, he stands and takes a deep breath, the exhale sending his mustache flaring out. He looks at the others.
"Hello, friends! It's me, Axton. I have absorbed Maligast's knowledge and magical aptitude and none of his personality! We're certain of that!"
Axton walks over to Maligast's corpse and retrieves his new prized possession: a spellbook.
"We definitely want to bring that with us! But also..."
Axton also retrieves any magic items or other items of value that the Bonesage carried.
Vhane walks up to Axton, looking him dead in the eye rather plainly, and says, "Ya know, lad, you have officially gone mad."
With that being said, he returns to the task at hand. "Okay, what's next?"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
"I say we just kill 'em all as we go. But that's just me." He shrugs. "Whatever we choose, let's just make it happen and sort out whatever goes wrong later," he says matter-of-factly.
.
Vhane walks up to Axton, looking him dead in the eye rather plainly, and says, "Ya know, lad, you have officially gone mad."
Axton squints and looks him dead in the eyes and responds, "You're so Vhane."
"I say we just kill 'em all as we go. But that's just me." He shrugs. "Whatever we choose, let's just make it happen and sort out whatever goes wrong later," he says matter-of-factly.
"Agreed. Each casting can take us plus three others, so that's four castings to get in and back out. And we'd be skipping potentially only one room. If we jump ahead, we risk alerting the attention of those in rooms we skipped, who would come in behind us. It's not worth it."
Nodding, Elathras looks from Axton towards Bharak and then Lt. Vhane. Shifting his Guisarme, he turns back towards Axton, "Shall we get too it then?"
Axton suggests that Elena cast her daylight spell to offset the shadow mastiff's shadow blend ability. And also good hope, because the party is about to start making saving throws out the wazoo.
Next, he pulls out his wand of monster summoning IV and summons...
...lantern archons. He puts that wand away and pulls out his wand of lightning bolt.
Finally, Axton makes an inviting gesture for Elathras and Bharak to proceed.
Bharak nodded, telling himself that Axton was either in control, or was still in there, and as such he deserved some trust. With that in mind, he proceeded...
Double-checking his crossbow and making sure it's fully loaded, Vhane follows after the others.
Realizing they were clearing out the shadow mastiffs first, instead of dimensional dooring into the deeper rooms, Elathras nods. Placing his left hand back on the door latch as he holds his Guisarme in his right, he nods to the others, waiting the briefest of seconds to make sure they are ready, then opens the door.
|
Elena blinks as Axton merges with the Lich-like being. Her map had said that Malighast 'wouldn't let them leave' but apparently it was okay with fusing with the sorceror. She shares looks of concern with the others, taking hold of her Protection From Evil wand in case things went south. But, apparently, Axton was okay... -ish. Speaking of yourself in plural and third person both was completely normal, after all.
The cleric throws intrepid a look of sympathy. "I'm sorry. Looks like you'll have to share." Before adding to the man himself: "Be careful, Axton. It's your choice, of course. But I will pray for the sancity of your soul just the same."
With another fight imminent, Elena readies her magics as best as she could.
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New map for this fight up top. Dining hall. Please place yourselves and tell me your first actions. You know you are fighting Shadow Mastiff's and what they can do. You get a surprise round and then we go to initiatives.
Nodding at Elena's description, Elathras smiles, "Just dogs, don't let the howls get to me." Opening the door he steps into the room, dropping the tip of his Guisarme, ready to repel any attacks.
Standing beside Elathras, Bharak raised his weapon. Any hound that got past the man would have to face the dwarf.
.
Axton sends the Lantern Archon (whose name is the Fearless Redeemer Against Nefarious Knowledge) that he's summoned from the lofty plane of Heaven in to attack the first enemy they see.
F.R.A.N.K. enters the room and rises above melee range and positions himself in the center of the room.
"Get ready, Frank!"
Meanwhile, Axton has followed Elathras and Bharak to the door, and is right behind them when they throw it open. He thrusts his wand of lightning bolt between them in the hopes of getting two of the shadow creatures with one shot.
The targeted hounds are too quick and evade most of the damage.
Waiting for Vhane.