GM Valen's 2nd ed Pathfinder Society Quest #10: The Broken Scales (Low Subtier)(Table 2) (Inactive)

Game Master Lysle

Absalom’s boulevards and alleyways run thick with intrigue—with rival powers jockeying for influence, wealth, and control, and all too often ignorant of anything below their feet. Just below the great city’s flagstones run a vast network of sewers, ancient tunnels, and places unmapped and unknown to those above.

Each of you, while among the more recent additions to the ranks of the Pathfinder Society, have been asked to assemble upon one such flagstone; one that lies not far outside of the Pathfinder Society’s Grand Lodge.

Thrass is an iruxi wearing not much more than a loincloth for modesty and a backpack on his back. He has a row of freshly-caught fish at his side and he occasionally unhooks one and eats it raw. He stares at the other Pathfinders unblinkingly and way longer than is polite, without any sense of shame. At some point, he remembers his place and introduces himself.

"Ah, sorry about that My name's Thrass, and I've trained in the monasteries of Jalmeray. By the way, please tell me if my clothing makes you uncomfortable, and I will change. I don't fully understand your need for clothing and modesty. This loincloth is mostly decorative anyway, I have this retractable-" he moves to lift up his loincloth, but a nearby passerby starts yelling in protest and Thrass stops. "Ah yeah, like I said, modesty isn't my forte, though I respect your need for it."

A willowy woman stands by the flagstone, her blond hair done in a ponytail down her back. She wears the simple robes of a monk. At her feet is a backpack with adventuring gear that appear to have been freshly purchased. She notices the Iruxi and recognizes the gait of a fellow practitioner of the unarmed arts. She steps forward in greeting.

"Greetings, fellow traveler," she greets him, her voice sligthly musical, betraying her elven heritage. "Were you asked to assemble here as well? I am called Kaitlyn Deathsbane. You may call me Kat for short, as my brothers and sisters in the monastary do, although, " she winces, "it took some getting used to. My monastary sent me as their representative for this undertaking, as I can speak the language of the kobolds."

A catfolk smiles at Thrash lack of modesty. Unlike the iruxi, Sarava has full clothing, except on the paws, mainly green, including a black leather armor and a light brown cape. His main weapon is a rapier at his side. He’s got his wayfinder clearly visible on his chest. His features are those of a common cat rather than those of a tiger as seen on his avatar, with fur a mix of brown and white. He’s flipping a coin in one of his hand.

He’s eying a bit the fish, but stop as soon as he realize they are raw and unprepared.

With a nice smile, he greets the other. His accent in Common is a bit less pronounced than most catfolks “Nice to meet you. I’m Sarava, but most people call me Chance.” He bows while presenting himself.

Thrass eyes Kat like a predator would size up his prey. "Yes, I haven't gotten any specific instructions, but if we're to meet the sewer kobolds, I guess I'm selected for my lack of clothes. Less to get filth stuck in. Fish?" He unhooks a fish and offers it to Kat.

If Kat refuses, he bites the head off the fish and starts eating it. He then notices Chance. With his mouth full, he points the decapitated fish at him and says, "Fssh?" spraying fish bits everywhere.

I'm going for the "cold, alien mind" kind of lizardfolk style, but that mostly means he comes across as rude.

Kaitlyn eyes the fish warily, though she notices that it was freshly caught. She politely declines his offer.

"No thank you. I just ate," she answers with a smile.

The image in my mind is just hilarious, especially after the "Fssh?" comment

Kaitlyn turns to Chance and can't help admire his fur.

"Well met, Chance. I am Kaitlyn Deathsbane, or simply Kat. I think my brother and sister monks called me Kat as I practice the Tiger style of the unarmed arts."

Another young woman, human, tallish and athletic, with twin blond braids joins the group. She wears leathers and a short bow of elven manufacture and a rapier at her side. She looks well equipped and eager for adventure.

'Hi, I'm Cate. You look like my fellow Pathfinders. This is going to be exciting.'

She smiles happily at those already assembled.

With a look of horror, Chance says “Sewers? I’m fine with water, but not dirty water.”

He seems interested in the fish, and while trying to dodge most of the bits flying, he tells the iruxi. “I usually eat it prepared, but that seems good. If you could cut me a piece…” as he’s saying that, he’s hoping the lizardfolk cuts away from the part he’s eating.

As Kaitlyn mentions her nickname, he can’t help but smile. “I’ve been trained in hand to hand combat, but I prefer steel.” He’s pointing to his rapier, then to his shortbow “Or even wood when you really want to avoid getting closer. Or can’t.”

Thrass shrugs and pats his body as if looking for an imaginary knife, but he clearly doesn't have one. While his claws look pretty sharp, he instead rips off the back half of the fish and offers Chance either side, then offers the other side to Caitlin.

An Half-Elf young, or so it seems, female approaches, she has pale skin, dark raven hairs, darker even eyes, red warpaint on her face and a crown of antler horns. A pure white ape accompanies her, as well as a flying white fox.

She approaches the group.

"Hi troop, I'm Elstar, I usually bring chaos to the battlefield. I've overheard sewers ? I hope we won't have to go down there, they are full of kobold traps and strange monsters"

"in any case, nice to meet you all. Anyone has any idea when we'll have instructions on what to do ?"

She leans back against a nearby wall and wait, playing with her companions.

Kaitlyn's hand moves to one of her daggers, meaning to offer it to Thrass, but stops as Thrass simply rips the fish in half. She then trots over to the two other women and introduces herself.

"Well met. I am Kaitlyn, or Kat, as my monastery brethren refer to me. The Iruxi with the fish is Thrass and the Catfolk is Chance. I know not what our instructions are as of yet, other than we will be meeting with kobolds in the sewers. I am somewhat anxious, as this will be my first mission for the Society. One of my brother monks has returned with tales from his travels so I am also looking forward to this."

'I've never been into the sewers before. I've also never really spoken to Kobolds. They don't tend to come into the forests. Absolom has been a real eye opener too. I'd like to hear of your adventures already.

As soon as Thrass hears the word 'forest,' a shudder runs down his spine. "I've adventured with a kobold before. Fierce warriors, don't underestimate them. I'm glad most of my adventures have been indoors lately. Much fewer rabid squirrels and the like."

He pauses for a moment.

"Are there sewer squirrels?"

"I have never been in the sewers myself, though, " she says wryly, "I do not know if I'm looking forward to it. Still, it is the task we were assigned, so it is our duty to perform it."

Turning to Cate, "My brother monk told us a tale of defeating strange forest creatures in the north. It was fascinating. I hope to travel to other regions in the future."

Cate looks intrigued.

'That sounds like a story worth hearing.' she says, moving closer to Thrass.

Sent a PM to Graham Silverlock, who may yet join us. However, I think we've waited long enough to get started...(thanks for your patience!)...

Your introductions and discussions of the sewer fauna join with the ambient sounds of sounds of bustling conversation and commerce outside of the Pathfinder Society’s Grand Lodge. The busy nature of the city makes it feel as it it were a living, breathing creature--unlike the fishy subject of Thrass' unrequited generosity.

Suddenly, you each notice the presence of an older, human man just off of the street. With a shock of white hair and a slight paunch, Drandle Dreng, stands smiling and with perception indicative of a Pathfinder, he waves a beckoning hand.

“Pathfinders!” He says, motioning to follow. “Your timing is perfect, but let me get straight on to the matter at hand, and also add that I certainly hope that you’re all wearing a good set of boots.”He swiftly walks off, leading you into the city’s back alleys.

“As you may well be aware, the Pathfinder Society has many allies hailing from across Avistan, Garund, and beyond. Some of our allies are much closer, and indeed right below our feet.” He comes to a stop and motions down at a thick bronze plate in the road covering an entry into Absalom’s sewers.

“Perhaps you’ve heard of the Sewer Dragons?" he asks, yet provides no pause for any response. "They’re a resourceful kobold tribe claiming a major portion of Absalom’s underground. The Society has understanding with them, and I’ve regularly met with their representative, one Dragonspeaker Engashez, a blue-scaled bard with a penchant for drums. While she can occasionally be yappy, she is prompt, and earlier today she failed to appear at our scheduled meeting. I suspect that something has happened, and I want to find out what.”

Dreng leads the way below ground, into a subterranean chamber strewn with the carnage of a recent fight. Two ragged, giant holes are punched through the walls at the room’s opposite ends though both tunnels subsequently collapsed. More startling are the dozen kobold corpses dead and partially submerged in the room’s standing water.

“Oh no no…” Dreng mutters in disbelief before he raises his head at the echoing, distorted sounds of nearby fighting. “Trouble ahead. Whatever caused this must still be close by!” He points down one of the passageways out of the room and wades across the room towards the other exit.

“I’ll go this way and you go that way! Quickly now!” With this, Dreng dashes off down the western passage!

Although the PCs may shout out any last-minute questions.

You now have an opportunity to slot your boons for the adventure if you have not already done so.

Each PC receives 1 Hero Point and may receive another from another player with one or more GM Glyphs.

Please fill out the requested information, including your PC’s default Exploration Mode, on this slide noting any Hero Points distributed for GM glyphs.

Also, please provide a marching order for the party, which should be noted on this slide.

From the shadow of the tunnel, come out a man in his fifties with a grey hair and beard. dressed in a grey suit and long coat with the same color but hardier material.

“Well met Pathfinders, my name is Graham Silverlock, private investigator.” He takes his hat off and slightly bows.

“I’m here investigating the disappearance of one Dragonspeaker Engashez, I think we searching for the same thing. Let me join you and we can help each other. Sounds good?”

To Thrass, the catfolk replies “sewer squirrel? you mean rats?”

To Drandle Dreng, he’s about to say that he has no boots, as that is clearly visible on him. The human moves to fast before he has time to point the obvious.

The illustration for my character has bare foot, APG Catfolk all have bare paws too, an it is the same for Blood of the Beast. I guess catfolk do not use footwear as they do not have feet.

Once he hears fighting, Chance pocket the coin he was playing with while drawing his rapier and goes to the source of fighting, sword pointed down to avoid appearing too menacing. “Mr Silverlock, hurry this way, the kobold might be in danger! Or someone else!”

Thrass's eyes go wide. "So there ARE sewer squirrels? I'm liking this mission less and less." His posture drops from cocky confidence to moderate nervousness.

Thrass does not look like he's the brightest of the bunch. Luckily, Dreng appears to distract him. He follows him into the sewers and sniffs one of the kobold corpses, then prods it to see if it's still moving.

As my bar says, I'm a Cliffscale lizardfolk. Welcome to the no-shoes club!

'This looks like a massacre, and not too long ago '

Cate draws her shortbow and looks around warily. She is wearing boots unlike the others.

what is the light situation, please?

Kaitlyn pulls a throwing dart out from one of her bandoliers and follows her companions. Like her namesake, she too has a pair of sturdy footwear on. Her heart beats slightly faster as she starts to anticipate battle. She follows Thrass, all appearances of the previous playful banter gone.

Dreng rushes off down the western passage, leaving you to explore the eastern one.

The tunnels in which you now find yourselves make up a massive network of sewage drains, abandoned catacombs, and handmade tunnels.

There are no reliable light sources, making the entire area dark. The rank smell of sewage clings to the air.
Please indicate in your post how you intend to navigate through the darkness.

The rank smell of sewage imposes a –2 circumstance penalty on scent-based Perception checks.

Map of the sewer tunnel is now on Slides.

None of the kobolds strewn about the room or floating in the sewage are still alive. The signs of battle are intense, though it’s clear that the kobolds were taken by surprise. Many still have their weapons sheathed at their sides, and an equal number of kobolds seem to have been crushed by debris or with bodies twisted as though smashed down by some powerful creature.

Kaitlyn pulls a torch out of her pack and lights it. Dropping to one knee, she examines the dead kobolds.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12

Finding nothing of note, she then tries to track their assailants.

Survival: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19

Graham pull out a gold-tipped vial and swirl it around until it turns bright yellow, brightening the area 20ft around him. He then hangs it on his belt and examine the dead kobolds.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (15) + 5 = 20

"I think one was crushed to death by whatever broke through the tunnel walls, the others have acid burns and bite wounds. Whatever it is it must be a large creature."

The catfolk uses his wayfinder to cast light on the item.

He’s about to try to track the creature, but starts following Kat as she seems to have found some hint to follow.

Elstar cringes as she arrives on the scene, all too familiar.

"Oh no, i have seen the same scene in other parts of the sewers a few days ago". There are some things that hunt kobolds terribly

Elstar checks to see if any Kobold is still alive or, at least, what killed them.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14

She then looks for tracks of whatever caused this

Survival: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21

"This looks like an othyug"

RK Occultism: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19

Sarava tries to remember what he knows about Othyug.

Recall Knowledge, Occultism (trained): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21

Cate bends down to look at what everyone else has been looking at.

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22

Survival: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

She lets the experienced Pathfinders take the lead.

'It's a beast attack but is it random or was it driven here?'

Cate will use the light sources others have, but if a fight breaks out, that will likely change.

Among themselves, the party recalls that otyughs are filthy creatures that often are accompanied by a wretched stench and carry disease--commonly fitth fever--which can be spread with a scratch or bite.

Stench (aura, olfactory) 40 feet. A creature entering the aura must succeed at a DC 20 Fortitude save or be sickened 1 (plus slowed 1 for the same duration on a critical failure). On a success, the creature is temporarily immune to the sickened and slowed effects of this stench for 1 hour. Regardless of the save, while within the aura, creatures take a –2 circumstance penalty to saves against diseases. An otyugh’s stench is due to the offal and refuse that it wallows in, so cleaning the creature thoroughly (with create water and sufficient scrubbing, for example) deactivates the aura, while a sufficiently plugged nose allows an individual to avoid exposure to the stench.

Filth Fever (disease) The sickened and unconscious conditions from filth fever don’t improve on their own until the disease is cured. Saving Throw DC 20 Fortitude; Stage 1 carrier with no ill effect (1d4 hours); Stage 2 sickened 1 (1 day); Stage 3 sickened 1 and slowed 1 as long as it remains sickened (1 day); Stage 4 unconscious (1 day); Stage 5 dead

Progressing down the passage, you quickly notice a pile of broken stones and glass in the tunnel’s center.

Tokens of party members now advanced on Map.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11

Elstar follows the group cautiously.

Should we follow closely ? He might be in trouble without us

Thrass quietly follows the others, still on his guard for the dreaded sewer squirrels. At the pile of broken stone and glass he pauses for a moment.

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (4) + 6 = 10

He doesn't find anything important, so he continues on.

"Caitlin makes sense. Why is that otyugh thing on a rampage? Did the kobolds anger it?"

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20

Seek is Cate's default action

'It's a trap! Or it was until someone triggered it There was a fight here and a large beast but I'm not sure how they are all connected.'

Elstar mmhs

"Probably the Otygh that triggered the kobolds traps. We should be wary of more traps"

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (11) + 5 = 16

"From my studies in the monastery, kobolds are adept trapmakers. It is why I wanted to learn more about them and study their language. I agree with Elstar, we must be cautious as there may be more traps."

Kaitlyn removes a length of cloth and ties it over her nose and mouth (like a bandanna) to ward off some of the smell. She carries her torch in one hand and a dart in the other.

Who steps first: 1 Chance or 2 Elstar: 1d2 ⇒ 1

Moving forward, "Chance" suddenly begins to fall!
Chance, Reflex Save to Grab an Edge (DC 15): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (2) + 10 = 12

It soon becomes apparent that near the center of this passage, underneath a foot-deep river of slow-moving sewage, is a carefully disguised trap--a wooden trapdoor covering a pit that’s 10 feet square and 20 feet deep!

"Chance" slips to the bottom of the pit, hitting its debris-covered floor with a thud.
"Chance" takes 10 bludgeoning damage plus piercing damage from sharp implements at the bottom of the pit: 1d4 ⇒ 1

Location of pit trap now indicated on Map with yellow outline.

Scaling the pit’s walls requires a successful DC 15 Athletics check to Climb.

"Chance!" Kaitlyn cries out, her voice slightly muffled by her bandanna. She tucks her dart back into her bandolier and pulls out her rope, preparing to pull her companion back up to safety.

Survival: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6

Preoccupied with trying to rescue Chance, Kaitlyn loses the trail completely.

Cate offers rope down to Chance, in order to help him get out quickly.

Graham wait patiently until Chance make it back out.

"I wonder why that big creature manage to avoid the drop to the pit."

As he’s about to drop, Chance hope his cat luck will allow him to grab the traps edge.

Reflex DC 15: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (15) + 10 = 25

Before climbing back, Chance waits to see if a companion can help him.

Unlike Halfling’s Luck, this is only for Reflex saves, so no reason not to use it.
If he falls, he would have taken half damage from the fall, thanks to Land on Your Feet.
If needed to climb the edge back up, probably easier if someone helps, or attach a rope somewhere: Athletics: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17

"Chance" slips to the bottom of the pit, hitting its debris-covered floor with a thud.

As he’s about to drop, Chance hope his cat luck will allow him to grab the traps edge.

The fortunate Pathfinder readily catches his balance and makes his way out of the pit!

The party readily makes its way forward, noting that this stretch of the sewers curves back toward the west.

Location of party updated on Map.

Here, you notice another sprung trap: a broken trip wire and a hanging scythe blade.

'There are a LOT of traps down here. Let's have a look at this one. Are the kobolds paranoid?'

Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (18) + 6 = 24

Cate spends a few moments checking out the blade to see if the beast was injured.

'Guys, I think there might be two of them.

Survival: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (3) + 5 = 8

She looks annoyed.
'I'm not sure which way they went though.

Thrass watches in amazement as Chance twists in the air to avoid the pit trap, and holds out a hand to pull him back up. "That's some good moves. Those must've saved you a lot of times in the past. Then again, you wouldn't be named 'Chance' if you weren't lucky." Thrass makes a strange inhaling hissing noise that after a moment you might interpret as a chuckle.

He completely ignores the sprung trap after having failed to glean anything from the earlier trap, instead focusing on the bloody tracks.

Survival: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26

"The stink-beast stuck to the walls for some reason," he states matter-of-factly.

Elstar looks at chance "are you ok Chance ? These traps are everywhere"

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11 Elstar seeks traps but doesn't notice anything.

Survival: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14 Elstar seeks for tracks and sees nothing either

Looks at Thrass and follows his advice, hugging the walls "alright, let's hug the walls and follow that beast"

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (13) + 5 = 18

Kaitlyn's eyes widen in admiration at Chance's reactions to the pit trap. She crosses over to the trap and confirms that there appear to be two otyughs. Grimly, she reaches for the sling at her belt and loads it with a bullet from a belt pouch.

I'm not used to playing a Ranger! I'm going to designate the Otyugh as Caitlin's prey!

Cate has her shortbow in one hand, ready to spring into action. Her eyes dart about, looking for their prey.

The catfolk smiles, saying ”Thanks Thrass! And yes, that has helped before. Even if amurrun tend to lend on our feet, those spike would have hurt.”

“Two otyughs? That’s going to be tough if they start attacking us. Unless they are already hurt by the traps?” wonders Chance.