The two tengu trade trapdoor talk.
The ladder is covered in slippery grease and would require skillful effort to avoid slipping and falling 10 feet onto the jagged rocks below.
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Rogarch falls out of rage and takes a breather. She sheathes her long sword and retrieves her Lucerne Hammer securing it on her back. The Bloodrager then loads her wand of Shield back into her spring-loaded wrist sheath.
"Watch out for that ladder. It is covered in Grease!"
(Rogarch's Take 10 on Perception is 15).
She asks To-to-obika to help her with her wand of healing.
"We should heal up before going any further. Also checking the bodies carefully would not hurt."
Helping Hand takes the opportunity to check out the bodies for any items of interest while his mistress is resting. He might not be able to talk to anyone but he sure can wave or smile if he finds anything of interest.
He searches the bodies and scans the room for any hidden doors.
Perception check of 21 with a Take 10 and Guidance.
Among the dead, not-a-teen woman's belongings are a quarterstaff, dagger, spell component pouch, and spell components. The remains of the four others yield four potion of cure moderate wounds, four potions of darkvision, four suits of blood-soaked, studded leather armor, a quartette of bucklers, four longswords, four composite shortbows, four quivers, 78 arrows, four backpacks, four grappling hooks, 200 ft. of silk rope, four signal whistles, a cache of silver earrings and 8 gold pieces.
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Rogarch snags one of the potions of cure moderate wounds for latter use. She grabs a composite short bow, a quiver and 10 arrows.
"We can use their rope to get down. I will even knot it for the less experienced climbers in the group."
After knotting a section of the rope Rogarch attempts to activate her wand of Heightened Awareness with a little help from her familiar. After an attempt with a few sparks, the wand works properly.
Helping Hand climbs back into Rogarch's front breast pocket.
Hunter was about to climb over there, but then Ebonfeather saves the day by doing so and then presumably lowering down a rope. Yeah, thanks buddy.
The party descends where they find Yaiho and Ebonfeather waiting on the docks below.
You enter into a gloomy, greenish twilight where scattered beams of light filter down between weathered dock planks, bouncing off seaweed covered stones that jut from the dark harbor waters.
A forest of pylons suspends the docks above where the scurrying feet of merchants, sailors, and longshoremen hammer like a muffled thunderstorm. Between the pylons, you spot small stone bunkers, ruins of older siege forts now crumbling and weathered from centuries of angry waves. A narrow set of docks traverses the rocks, connecting various locations. Eventually, all lead out to the shallow bay at the mouth of the maze.
Nearby, you notice a fresh trail of muck-limned, wet footprints.
Please place your tokens in a Marching Order on this Slide.
You spot a nearby dock and two rowboats. A trio of guards watch over the boats.
Hunter also reloaded his gun.
[dice=perception]1d20+8
Hunter also reloaded his gun.
The little scorpion takes a moment to examine their potential opponents.
Helping Hand's excitement spikes as he notices something unusual in the water. Helping Hand jumps around in Rogarch's pocket with enthusiasm and a good deal of fear as he points in the direction of the hidden danger.
The tracks leading to a small bunker with its own short dock where three guards now stand watch, along with the shape the familiar spotted in the water.
Map of Underdocks with PCs placed in Marching Order, now on Slides.
As you approach, one of the guards glances your way as she and her companions keep watch over a small bunker with its own short dock.
"We have company," she declares, alerting the others.
Pictures of the guards now on Slides.
The Kortos Consortium ruthlessly persecutes nonaffiliates, and those caught smuggling are righteously handed over to Absalom’s officials. Capital gained from dues and their own smuggling operations funds a hierarchy of minions used to maintain the group’s political infrastructure and protect its extensive property holdings.
Still, most Kortos Consortium officials are not beyond accepting bribes, though the amounts of such are often quite hefty.
"Greetings, strangers. May we see your harbormaster's pass, please?" asks the most senior among them .
We should talk to them
"Sure, we can speak about that in a bit. However are you aware of the creature swimming around your dock?"
Smiles form on the faces of the two older guards. The senior most continues, "Creature swimming around the dock? Oh, you must mean Rowdy?"
"I raised her from a cub," he continues, "That ole sea cat won't hurt anyone, unless she's got good reason to. Like someone getting between her and her meal--or else some uppity strangers deciding to cause trouble. That sort of thing."
"Now," he says, looking Rogarch directly in the eyes. "May we see your harbormaster's pass, Stranger?"
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Rogarch chimes in helping to support the Cleric's excellent argument. She shifts the focus of the argument from doing what is right to doing what is in the guards' self-interest.
"This is true. If we catch him we can always turn him over to you. I am sure that your higher ups would be happy that you were catching smugglers."
I guess Hunter will aid My men are wise, you should take the offer.
"It is true that we recently allowed a captain and his men to return to their ship," mentions the senior-most official, "But, we were not told of any theft."
"You had better come with me," says another guard, directing the party to the nearby bunker.
Once inside the bunker, a two pairs of oars can be seen leaning against the wall behind the bunker's door door. The woman approaches a wooden box, which opens to reveal that it holds keys and a wooden and brass coin about the diameter of an apple and inscribed with the insignia of the Kortos Consortium. She hands the keys over to you along with the keys, "This coin serves as a harbormaster’s pass, which allows you to freely exit the maze. The keys unlock the two rowboats at the dock."
On the wall of the bunker is a chalkboard with a chart labeled with 20 numbers, each followed by a set of initials. One side of the chart reads mooring, the other side reads ship. Pinned to the adjacent wall hangs a map of the outer harbor marking the locations of the numbered moorings. The initials next to #14 read “HF”. Below the chalkboard sits open a leather bound manifest, which logs details the comings and goings of hundreds of ships over the past few months in a similar simplified code of numerals and letters.
"The map shows mooring 14 located in the northwestern part of the outer harbor," explains the guard. "That is where the captain and his men indicated they were going."
"If you catch your thief, be sure to let them know that it was Coadra Kolchak that came to your aid." she adds.
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"We will ensure that your aid is expressed when we file our report. Reasonable and powerful allies are always worth their weight in gold." Rook says appreciatively to the assistance before turning to the others.
"Time is also a valuable commodity and one our thief has a bit on us still. Shall we make haste?"
We will, thanks.
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Rogarch enters the row boat with a look of concern. While she is not exactly afraid of the water she knows that the party is out of their element. She is sure to plug her familiar's satchel with the provided cork stoppers to ensure that it remains waterproof should it become submerged. She then places her Blood Boiling Pill within the now air tight container. She also inserts her wand of Shield back into her spring loaded wrist sheath.
"Hopefully we will not have to fight in these boats."
@GM Valen - I am tracking time for the Heightened Awareness spell. How much time has passed since we climbed down the rope?
Helping Hand remains in his mistress' breast pocket enjoying the change of scenery.
Exiting the Underdocks by rowboat, you enter the Shallows, a wide rocky bay only a few feet deep and closed off by immense seawalls that funnel all traffic into the maze. Strung between them, a host of steep maze walls crusted with seaweed, barnacles, and small shellfish create narrow passages just wide enough for rowboats or rafts. Lashed along the sides are free-floating docks which allow longshoremen to help pull boats through or to the side for quick inspections.
Every so often, a series of rusted spikes forms a crude ladder leading to the upper maze, where guards keep watch amidst strange shadows cast by weathered devices such as giant winches and claw-like crane arms. Water splashes softly throughout, creating an eerie echo, and the entire structure groans with ominous creaks and strains as if you were traveling through the belly of a great beast.
Thankfully, navigating out of the maze is far easier than navigating in, and the ever-watchful eyes of Enforcers on the walls fall almost entirely on the cargos of incoming merchants. As you draw closer to the end, the sounds of angry waves slam against the outer walls and echo like hordes of chanting goblins.
As you reach the outer locks, a grizzled longshoreman calls down to you from above, telling you to hold tight. The first gate opens with a lazy moan, and he ushers you to move your craft into the small chamber ahead. Once inside, he lowers the gate behind you, then he bids you good luck as he slowly cranks apart the front doors to the open harbor where dozens of galleons and merchant ships bounce softly on their moorings in the water.
You row in the pair of small boats for about a few hundred yards outside the maze.
@GM Valen - I am tracking time for the Heightened Awareness spell. How much time has passed since we climbed down the rope?
The sharp-eyed and aptly-named Helping Hand spots five shapes quickly approaching the rowboats through the murky waters from beneath the rolling waves, alerting Rogarch. The eyes of Ebonfeather, too, focus in on the shadowy forms.
The forms are humanoid with piscine heads. Each has a long, fish-like tail. Its arms and legs end in webbed claws.
BATTLE THROUGH THE MAZE! - Surprise Round Begins!
Rogarch
Ebonfeather
Red
Hunter
Black
Green
Yellow
Yaiho
Blue
Mhazruk
To-to-obika
"We have company, and they do not look happy!" Ebonfeather said as he quickly grabbed his bow and knocked an arrow.
The tengu's arrow finds its mark.
BATTLE THROUGH THE MAZE! - Surprise Round !
Rogarch
Ebonfeather
Red
Hunter
Black -5 HP
Green
Yellow
Yaiho
Blue
Mhazruk
To-to-obika
@GM Valen - I am going to assume that my character had tried to renew her spell of Heightened Awareness when it expired after 10 minutes.
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@GM Valen - Right. I had her expend another charge when the spell expired after ten minutes. I had her roll UMD to activate it again. Of course the system ate my post but the wand did activate on the second attempt. So you can keep the same Perception checks and Initiative modifiers for this combat.
Rogarch reacts quickly. Her wand of Shield comes sliding out of her spring loaded wrist sheath and she speaks a word of power to activate her wand.
Shield spell is up.
Helping Hand taps Rogarch for luck (Guidance).
The group of fast swimming creatures continues heading straight for the rowboats! One leaves a crimson trail in his wake.
BATTLE THROUGH THE MAZE! - Surprise Round Cont'd!
Rogarch
Ebonfeather
Red
Hunter
Black -5 HP
Green
Yellow
Yaiho
Blue
Mhazruk
To-to-obika