[PFS2] 2-15 A Dirge for Sarkoris (GM Watery Soup) (Inactive)

Game Master Watery Soup

Oscre's alchemist fire lands right on the dryad, and Parnes winces again as he takes half of the pain.

The Red leshy throws a spore pod at Hopper.

Spore: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (7) + 11 = 18
Bludgeoning: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9 plus Fort save

Unimpressed with itself, it moves in to Strike at melee.

Fist: 1d20 + 11 - 4 ⇒ (4) + 11 - 4 = 11
Bludgeoning: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

Blue also throws a spore, but at Parnes.

Spore: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (5) + 11 = 16
Bludgeoning: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5 plus Fort save

Likewise, it moves in ... and triggers Parnes's attack of opportunity, which kills it.

The dryad, annoyed, casts a spell. Green burst. Everyone but Hopper needs to make a Fortitude save vs

Negative: 3d10 ⇒ (1, 6, 9) = 16

She then throws another thorn at Parnes.

Thorn: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (15) + 17 = 32
Piercing: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 6) = 11 plus Poison: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 1) = 3

She continues to burn, but Parnes feels half the flames.

Flat Check: 1d20 ⇒ 13

Round 2!

Dryad (-20 hp, 2 persistent fire)
Parnes (-46 hp; -16 hp, Fort save; maggoty)
Kang (-16 hp, Fort save)
Namza (-16 hp, Fort save)
Hopppper
Oscre (-16 hp, Fort save)
Teja (-16 hp, Fort save)
Red Leshy (-34 hp -weakness x4)
Green Leshy (-50 hp -weakness x3)
Blue Leshy (-45 hp -weakness x4)

fort: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15

Teja shivvers, but seems to think her brilliant new scales are proof against whatever the dryad is doing.
I don't think there is a save bonus in there,

Striding forward Double move she engages the dryad with a vengence.

I act after Parnes, if he moves to a position that engages the dray, TEja's move will be adjusted to give her flanking. She does give up an AOO if it has the ability to make them.

attack vs dryad (hopefully FF): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (4) + 10 = 14

However the rush seems to have left her off balance and the blow goes very wide of the mark.

"Where was I???" she muses. "Oh yes.."
Her voice drops into the tone of a skald as she continues the song.

"The men we once called brother,
Children of a common mother,
Brothers far and brothers near,
Are you overcome with fear?
Soon comes your time now to be brave
For your own lives you must save."

Then breaking the meter of the song she interjects into her own performance "What about the women and sisters eh? Who sings their song?"

Fort Save: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (4) + 12 = 16

"This witch has cursed me! Every wound we give her is inflicted upon me too!"

Realizing that a lucky blow may result in his own demise, Parnes fishes out one of the potions that his Venture Lieutenant gave to him. Parnes pours the potion down the hole in his visor then tosses the vial to the side.

Lesser Healing Potion: 2d8 + 5 ⇒ (7, 7) + 5 = 19

Feeling rather refreshed, the little knight spurs his mount forward, shouting "Gloria, ho!"

The war pony stomps forward, pounding at the corrupted dryad with its iron shod hooves.

Hooves: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (5) + 13 = 18
Bludgeoning: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (4, 5) + 4 = 13

Drawing potion and quaffing it for two actions, then Commanding his animal companion for his last action.

BTW, with how death works in this system, it will be really bad for Parnes if he goes down while this parasitic curse is effecting him. Just keep that in mind.

And Hopper got his fourth p ;)

The goblin ignores the foe that missed him and listens to what Parnes is saying.

He looks at the dryad and tries to recognize what she has done.
Nature +7 if he can recognize the curse or whatever she did, otherwise he would simply recall knowledge about her.

Hopper grabs an alchemist fire and throws it at the dryad

Alchemist fire@dryad: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (2) + 13 = 15
Damage, fire, burn it!: 2d8 + 1 ⇒ (5, 6) + 1 = 12 +2 splash restricted only to dryad, +3 persistent fire damage.

"Eat this."

Then he looks at the fey and says "Try to keep up!" as he orders Wolfie to run

Wolfie opens its jaws and tries to break the fey in half

Attack@red, map: 1d20 + 11 - 5 ⇒ (1) + 11 - 5 = 7
Damage, piercing: 2d8 + 3 ⇒ (6, 6) + 3 = 15

But misses completely. Wolfie growls in anger and begins to run leaving the enemy behind. The paws are moving swiftly on the rocks and stream.

Attack and move 40ft.

Fort: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (4) + 11 = 15

Buffeted by the unholy spell, Kang grits his teeth and pushes forward, bringing himself closer to the battle and the range of some of his spells.

Gesticulating into the air again, he brings a massive spark of electricity arcing between the two foes.

vs both: electric arc: 3d4 + 4 ⇒ (4, 1, 2) + 4 = 11 Basic Ref DC21

"Apologies Barnes! We'll have to take her down as quickly as possible!"

Fort: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21

Namza winces at the dryad's spell.

Automatic Knowledge: Nature 19 get me anything about the leshies?

The half-orc draws closer and and applies a bit of his own lightning to the two remaining foes.

electric arc: 3d4 + 4 ⇒ (2, 1, 2) + 4 = 9 Basic Reflex DC 21

Teja, did you drink a drakeheart mutagen? I assumed you did, but some of the language in your last post is unclear and I wanted to make 100% sure what you drank.

Parnes drinks a potion. His maggots seems to vanish. It's unrelated to the potion - the curse only lasted until the end of the dryad's turn and I forgot to mention it on her action. His war pony charges forward, but cannot hit the dryad.

Teja then springs to action, moving up and stabbing. But the dryad is well prepared for the strike.

Hopppper throws some fire at the dryad, but she dodges everything except the splash. Wolfie's bite goes wide.

Kang calls forth lightning.

Dryad Reflex: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (10) + 15 = 25
Leshy Reflex: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (18) + 11 = 29

Both the dryad and the leshy are spry enough to dodge some of it.

Namza also calls lightning.

Dryad Reflex: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (10) + 15 = 25
Leshy Reflex: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (11) + 11 = 22

The remaining leshy looks in very bad shape.

Namza Recalls that the blighted leshys have a special attack in which they create a giant spore cloud - it would deal persistent poison damage and possibly reduce vision. He also Recalls that the blighted leshys are supposed to explode on death, but the first two didn't because ... the GM forgot. :(

Round 2!

Dryad (-31 hp, 2 persistent fire)
Parnes (-35 hp)
Kang (-16 hp)
Namza (-8 hp)
Hopppper
Oscre (-16 hp, Fort save)
Teja (-16 hp)
Red Leshy (-43 hp -weakness x4)
Green Leshy (-50 hp -weakness x3)
Blue Leshy (-45 hp -weakness x4)

@GM Hoppppper wanted to recall knowledge as well ;)Nature +7 dubious knowledge

Yes, Drakeheart mutagen.

Fortitude: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (3) + 13 = 16

Oscre grits his teeth against the blast of negative energy, stepping closer and hucking two more firebombs at the nasty plants.

◆ Step, ◆ Strike dryad with bomb, ◆ Strike leshy with bomb.

Strike #1 vs Dryad (moderate bomb): 1d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 11 + 1 = 20
Damage (fire, splash): 2d8 + 4 ⇒ (1, 2) + 4 = 7 plus 2 persistent fire on a direct hit. Splash restricted to dryad.

Strike #2 vs Leshy (moderate bomb): 1d20 + 11 + 1 - 5 ⇒ (8) + 11 + 1 - 5 = 15
Damage (fire, splash): 2d8 + 4 ⇒ (5, 4) + 4 = 13 plus 2 persistent fire on a direct hit. Splash restricted to leshy.

6 alchie fires left.

Oscre's bombs miss both the dryad and leshy, but even the splash proves too much for the leshy, and it explodes.

Slashing: 3d6 ⇒ (1, 6, 2) = 9 plus Poison: 1d6 ⇒ 2 to everyone in the green area. This includes the dryad.

The dryad does not mourn for her comrades. Unaware that Parnes can strike her while she casts, she smiles at Teja and makes a gesture. "Your orc friend over there looks hurt, why don't you go heal him?" DC 25 Will save.

She then steps back to watch her handiwork (hopefully).

Flat Check: 1d20 ⇒ 10

Round 3!

Dryad (-46 hp, 2 persistent fire)
Parnes (-35 hp, AoO)
Kang (-16 hp)
Namza (-8 hp)
Hopppper
Oscre (-16 hp)
Teja (-16 hp, Will save)
Red Leshy (-45 hp -weakness x5)
Green Leshy (-50 hp -weakness x3)
Blue Leshy (-45 hp -weakness x4)

Down to the last, but toughest target, Kang swirls his staff in the air and flings a ball of fire to fly straight at the dryad.

produce flame: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (12) + 11 = 23 fire damage: 3d4 + 4 ⇒ (1, 3, 4) + 4 = 12

He then concentrates, calling upon Huli, his fox familiar safely hidden in his pouch, to restore some of his arcane energy.

Command familiar to use Familiar Focus, i.e. +1 focus point

Oscre runs out into the blast area from the exploding leshy and chucks another firebomb at the dryad.

◆ Stride, ◆ Strike dryad with bomb, ◆ Draw lesser elixir of life.

Strike #1 vs Dryad (moderate bomb): 1d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 11 + 1 = 18
Damage (fire, splash): 2d8 + 4 ⇒ (1, 3) + 4 = 8 plus 2 persistent fire on a direct hit. Splash restricted to dryad.

Lesser elixir of life in hand. 5 alchie fires remaining.

Hopper yells when the exploding leshy cut his skin.

He moves with Wolfie forwards to provide some flanking needed. Move + support from Wolfie

He reaches for a bottled lighting and tosses it at dryad
Alchemist Fire: 1d20 + 12 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 12 + 1 = 33
Damage, lightning: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 6) = 8 +2 splash lightning restrained only to targer, flat footed if hit

And then the alchemist fire

Alchemist Fire, map: 1d20 + 12 + 1 - 5 ⇒ (20) + 12 + 1 - 5 = 28
Damage, fire, burn it!: 2d8 + 1 ⇒ (6, 5) + 1 = 12 +2 splash fire restrained only to targer, +3 persistent fire damage if hit

Ouch! Two crits in one round.
1st: COmmand animal (move&support from Wolfie):
Support: Your wolf tears tendons with each opening. Until the start of your next turn, your Strikes that damage creatures your wolf threatens to give the target a –5-foot status penalty to its Speeds for 1 minute (–10 on a critical success).
2nd: Throw bottled lightning (Quick Bomber and restrict splash to target)
3rd: throw Alchemist Fire (Quick Bomber and restrict splash to target)

will: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11
"You know... that is actually a good idea." says Teja, wondering why she hadn't thought of it herself.

medicine: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23

"Hold still Parnas, let me get a bandage around you."

Actually this looks like a good time for a glyph reroll
will#2: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (6) + 8 = 14
And still a crit fail

Parnes lunges at the fey spell caster as she begins to make arcane gestures.

"Away with you and your vile sorcery!" he spits through his visor.

+1 Striking Lance, vs. Flat footed: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (16) + 16 = 32
Piercing, Magic: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (1, 6) + 4 = 11

The spear's critical specialization trait makes the target Clumsy 1 until the start of Parnes next turn. And lance's also have the deadly trait.

Deadly Damage: 1d8 ⇒ 2

Parnes spurs his mount to rear up and attack the corrupted dryad, then switches to a two handed grip with his lance and attempts to spear the evil fey creature in the heart.

Gloria's Hooves, Agile: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (19) + 13 = 32
Bludgeoning: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (2, 3) + 4 = 9

Gloria's Hooves, Agile: 1d20 + 13 - 4 ⇒ (3) + 13 - 4 = 12
Bludgeoning: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (6, 6) + 4 = 16

Lance attack: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (17) + 16 = 33
Piercing, Magic: 2d8 + 4 ⇒ (5, 3) + 4 = 12

Just in case
Deadly Damage: 1d8 ⇒ 7

Parnes's attack of opportunity hits, but doesn't crit, the dryad.

Kang calls down flame, which hits.

Oscre's bomb splashes the dryad a little.

Hoppppper's bombs both land on vital spots -- but don't down the dryad!

Parnes's mount kicks the dryad, and that ends her reign of terror.

End of Combat, but not quite the end of Initiative.

Round 3!

Dryad (-124 hp)
Parnes (-35 hp) 2 actions
Kang (-16 hp)
Namza (-8 hp)
Hoppppper
Oscre (-16 hp)
Teja (-16 hp)
Red Leshy (-45 hp -weakness x5)
Green Leshy (-50 hp -weakness x3)
Blue Leshy (-45 hp -weakness x4)

As soon as the dryad falls, the woman on the cliff yells. "Thank the gods! Please! Please help me!"

The woman is about 20' off the ground and appears to be injured.

"Hold on... I'm busy fixing up Parnes here." calls out the scholar.

Assuming the suggestion or whatever it was still holds?

Hopper smiles when the dryad falls, and looks at Parnes

"I told you that we will meet in the center."

Teja, I was all set to tell you that spells usually dissipate on caster death ... and when I started poking around, I believe that's just a home rule that I played with when I first played Pathfinder and just erroneously propagated. Most people think that anything that doesn't require concentration will continue after the caster's death. You're still suggested and you're Treating Wounds on Namza (or attempting to, if he decides to move around.

Namza will move up to the slope and climb up to aid the woman.

He has Assurance: Athletics, if a 17 gets up there.

As the adrenaline from the battle fades, Kang gradually comes down from his high, and in fact, starts trembling a little.

"Whew, that was something, wasn't it?"

He recovers sufficiently then strides to the bass of the cliff. "I'm not sure what help I could be. I could levitate a rope up to her? But not much use if it's not anchored on anything."

Are there any large rocks that are stable at the top of the cliff? One way is that a big knot could be tied on one end that Kang could then loop around the rock. Then she could use that to climb down. If the range is too far, I have a scroll of unseen servant. (Unfortunately, I didn't memorise feather fall, and it would take me 10 min to change the spell, by which time she would have splat.)

Parnes leaps off his horse and begins to climb up the tree. "Do not fear, m'lady! I will save you!"

Athletics: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (10) + 13 = 23

Once up the tree, he knots a rope and ties it to a branch so that they can climb down easily.

if anyone happens to have Medicine, Parnes could use one healing

"Wait, wait, you'll break open that wound again!" cries Teja as she follows him to the base of the cliff.

"MEN!"

Namza tries to climb up the cliff, but fails. Training alone won't be enough.

Kang makes a loop and lifts it up with mage hand; Parnes climbs up and carries her down to safety.

End of Initiative!

---

"My name is Evaika," she says as the group rests and (presumably) heals her and themselves.

Evaika explains herself: she is a devout adherent of the Green Faith who has been exploring the region and cleansing natural sites of the demonic blight. She’s grateful for the rescue, and warns of legends of “strange mists” around the area.

"I may need to rest for a few more days to fully recover. You may need this more than I do." She offers the team a primeval mistletoe.

Any questions for Evaika?

"What do these strange mists do, if anything? Any demon sightings besides this unfriendly fey?"

Oscre would also take a Medicine check if available; if not he'll down an elixir of life.

Don't use consumables, you have the night to rest.

AFter settling Parnes and finishing on him, Teja offers to try and help Oscre as well.

"I read this fantastic surgery manual a couple of years ago.."
medicine: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (18) + 6 = 24

She happily chats with Evaika as she does so. "And what makes the mists strange? How might be recognise them?"

"Green faith? I am green, do you believe in me?" chuckles at his poor joke.

Hopper sits on his mat and helps others to look at their wounds.

Any recall knowledge about the strange mists? Nature +7, Arcana Occult +11 and Dubious Knowledge

"We will be traveling through those regions for a bit, maybe you want to join us? If my 10-year long life thought me something is that if there are blighted sites I will stumble upon them. Whether I want it or not..."

Ditto for Kang on recall knowledge: Arcana +14, Occultism +11, Nature / Religion +10

"You have been wandering here a while? By yourself?" Kang asks incredulously.

"Yes, please join us. What other monsters have you encountered?"

"I'm not well-armed. I prefer fleeing over fighting, so if something doesn't seem right, I just move on. The dryad caught me on the cliff face only because I hurt my leg."

Those who have interacted with Evaika so far, please make a Diplomacy check.

As she offers to treat Evaika's leg she chats with the devotee of the green faith. "Why are you here by yourself? Surely demon haunted wastes would... encourage groups. Like ours." she mentions.

diplomacy: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23

With the worst of the wounded treated, she tries to remember some more of the song she was singing.

"But these words, our last to say
As we face our final day,
Ponder deeply, ponder well,
It matters not, Abyss or Hell,
When you face an open grave
Who among you shall be brave?
When hope is dead and hope is gone"

Parnes raises the visor of his helmet so that he may address the woman that they rescued.

"It was good fortune that we arrived when we did. Fair maiden, may I ask how your leg was injured? Perhaps one of our medics can assist you."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (5) + 10 = 15

"Many thanks for the gift. We'll make good use of it. We are here to recover some remains from a tomb, and sanctify the site, if we can manage it."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (15) + 9 = 24

"Large groups are better for defense, but small groups are better for stealth. I prefer the latter. I injured my leg when I climbed up the rock face too fast and cut my ankle."

Evaika will be fine with any amount of healing; she will not join the group and is solely here to give you information.

---

The Pathfinders clasp hands with Evaika in the morning and part ways.
The Pathfinders reach the barrows they seek after another day’s journey. Unnatural mist blankets the entire area.

Barely visible through the roiling mists ahead are long earthen mounds, shored up with stone ribbing and heaped as tall as the withered tree trunks surrounding them. The further silhouettes fade in and out of the gloom, but the wind’s occasional dispersal and shifting of the mists gives the uncanny impression that the mounds are moving. Every so often, the mist seems to coalesce into the shapes of faces, which vanish as quickly as they appear.

Ahead, a narrow trail paved in stone winds further into the barrow-mounds, disappearing into the mist. A weathered signpost stands beside it, the words once carved upon it faded to illegibility.

As the Pathfinders begin to explore the barrows, the mists suddenly thicken around them. Each member of the group loses sight of their companions.

A voice echoes through the mist: "WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST STRENGTH?"

Each of you should answer independently. You don't need to spoiler your response, but I will wait for everyone to respond before posting the results.

Teja shivers in the sudden cold. Nothing like as cold as the north though.. Still, losing her companions so suddenly caused the hairs on the back of her neck to stand on end... and then the creepy voice.

"My strength is in knowledge." she states firmly.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (16) + 13 = 29

New day means fresh batch of alchemy, right?

The gnome pauses in response to the prompt. ”...uh, my...work ethic?” He shrugs sheepishly to his comrades before noticing they’ve disappeared in the mist.

Before Evaika leaves, she gives you some tips on the cleansing ritual that she's been performing. This will give a bonus later.

---

New day means new infused reagents, you can prepare them however you want.

Hopper sits on the Wolfie and says

"We need to be careful to not get lost in this mist! Stay close fellows. Ehh ... Teja? Oscre?" begins saying Hopper

When he hears the voice

"Odd, voices in my head usually sound differently. My greatest strength is my charm." the goblin smile broadly

Deception, charming liar: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (17) + 10 = 27 So Hopper would lie (and I think it is a secret check), the real answer is his bombs and Wolfie but he would not say it to a mysterious voice unless he needs to answer truthfully.

As Parnes rides into the mists, he leans over and coos softly into his steed's ear. "There, there Gloria. We shall pass through this safely ". He grips his magic lance in both hands, expertly steering his mount with his knees. "Be brave friends!" he shouts into the mists, hoping that his allies can hear him.

When Parnes hears the voice call out to him, he briefly thinks back on everything he has had to go through to reach this point. He thinks back on the suffering and mockery he had endured growing up among humans who saw him as a either a monster or an fool. He remembers the terror he first felt climbing on top of a horse for the first time. Then he recalls the first time he faced a human knight on the lists and the moment before they had to charge at each other. And then finally he remembers the day he finally left the castle he had known most of his life; not knowing what he would find in the great wide world but only that once he left he could never return.

And into the dark mists the goblin knight shouts, "Courage! Courage has always been my greatest strength!"

How odd. I would not expect such mists here in the Sarkoris Scar.

"My greatest strength is my variety of experience. I have traveled far and studied many things."

A wave of panic threatens to sweep over Kang once he realises that he has somehow been cut off from the rest of the party. He takes a few quick breaths to push it down, and almost immediately, calm takes over.

"Interesting. A voice from the mists. I can only pray that you mean us no harm, or I would be mush by now. Well, to the question at hand, I've dedicated my life, with Daikitsu's guidance of course, to understanding how the world works. I dabble in the arcane arts and alchemy precisely because of that." After a short pause, he adds sardonically. "Although if you asked my father, his answer would be shirking my responsibilities, so there. Different perspective from different folks."

You can make your rolls openly, but the results won't be immediately obvious. For PbP expediency, I'm posting the second question which will follow the same format.

"WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST FEAR?"

Recall Knowledge, Arcana: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (10) + 14 = 24

Even as he shares, Kang's mind flits back to the very first arcane spell that figured out on his own. Of course, he lost much of his eyebrows after that, but he also learnt from the experience that they grow back.

---

The next question takes Kang aback. He is the first to admit to himself that his has many fears. Monsters. Dragons. Demons. Drowning. The cold. The heat. Insects. Mud. Bleeding. But one image keeps floating up in his mind, and eventually, he blurts out in an unusually low voice, "My father."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (11) + 9 = 20

"My greatest fear? Oblivion, I suppose. I've never really considered it." Namza whispers thoughtfully.

"So.. oh great voice in the mist... who are you anyway?" asks Teja. "OR perhaps... what are you? And what is your greatest strength?"

recall knowledge(occultism): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (17) + 11 = 28

"I mean separating everyone from their friends is kind of a useful ability and all, but only if it leads up to something else.."

She sighs as she considers the follow-up question. "I don't really fear much. Maybe rejection. Yes.. that when I finally do catch up with my father.. that he won't acknowledge me.. or worse finds me.. I don't know... unworthy?"

Diplomacy (expert): 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (19) + 13 = 32

I'll keep the same alchemy as last time.

"My greatest fear? Not being able to pay off my student loans. I don't think even death would let me escape that."

This is real. Paying off his loans from his alchemy academy training is why Oscre became a Pathfinder.

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (14) + 10 = 24

When the voice in the mists asks Parnes about his greatest fear, the goblin knight's mind immediately recalls another goblin who grew up in the same castle as him. Little Raggy Muffins, dressed in motley, he capered and japed for the amusement of the nobles. He prattled and sang nonsense rhymes in broken Common and never even made the effort to read. Parnes shudders as he remembers the goblin jester.

"There is only one thing that I fear, and that is dishonor!" he shouts back bravely, hoping that the quiver of fear in his voice went unnoticed by whatever is lurking in the fog. He spurs his mount to a quick trot.

I will keep my previous roll. With Diplomacy that will make it 18 ;)

"My biggest fear?" asks Hopper thinking

"Quicksands, swamps. I fear being caught and held in one place. To not be able to move..."