1) I am based in Shrewsbury, UK (GMT currently) so my posting hours may be unusual for some of you. I usually update at least one or twice per day. Just to keep the game moving, please post at least once every day and at least once during the weekend. If you disappear for more than 24 hours, especially during combat, I will simply place your character on infinite delay just to keep things moving.
2) Please label all three of your actions. Even if you think what you are doing is obvious.
3) If I am unavailable for longer than 24 hours, I will let you know in the Discussion Tab. Out of respect for your fellow players and myself, I ask that you do the same. Real life happens, and real life will always take priority over the game, but out of fairness for your fellow players, please let us know if you will be unavailable for an extended period of time.
4) Please complete the Macros and the Slides linked at the top of the page.
5) Questions, concerns? Feel free to share them in the Discussion tab.
6) Let's have some fun and tell a great story together! After all, that's what we are here for.
(Blurb stolen from GM Tiger )
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A half-elf with gray skin and white hair looks around. He has an athletic, muscular, wiry figure, which can be seen well, since he prefers not to wear any shirts (not to mention armor). Connoisseurs of the half-blood subspecies can understand that this half-elf is a relative of the dark elves and most likely came from the Darklands. A special feature is his eyes, which seem to be filled with gold. Some kind of divine blessing or curse comes to mind, but these are just guesses.
Within the past week, you have all been picked up by the Kingfisher, the ship of Venture-Captain Muesello.
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The half-drow appears quite casually - he is picked up at the port of Absalom. He has a backpack with things with him. During the journey, you can see that he is not lazy to perform various physical exercises, but does it at different times, as if waiting for inspiration or mood. During the day, he mostly takes a nap, preferring evening and night activity.
Name's Zizarc - he will introduce himself. It seems that talkativeness is not among his shortcomings.
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Zoresk was picked up from one of the many port cities of Cheliax. He carries a simple crossbow on a sling that hangs down by his side. On his back is a katana he picked up while in Tien Xia.
He approaches the dark-tinged elf and offers a hand. "I am Zoresk. Used to be a scout for Mendev, but have since moved on. I assume you are with The Society. So, what do you bring to the table? Don't see many Drow kin around here."
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My house, the house of Misraria... You probably haven't heard about Zirnakaynin, right? Not so important. In general, the patron of my house was Nocticula. Technically, she still is, but she is no longer a Demon Lord, which slightly violates the traditions of my people, heh. At the moment of her ascension, there was a violent split in our house. I chose a New Path, and here I am. What did I bring to the table? The skills I was taught BEFORE the ascension of Nocticula are still with me. Stealth. Murder with bare hands... And so on. They say that only good guys are accepted into the Society. I wonder why there are so many professional killers here then... - it seems that Zoresk has aroused a certain sympathy in this half-drow. Where did you get this outlandish sword? Is there a story connected with it?
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As the Kingfisher pulls away from the Docks and prepares to depart the city of Absalom, a young half elf woman wearing leather armor with a shortbow strapped to her back can be seen running towards it. "Wait, wait!" She runs to the edge of the pier and leaps, just managing to land on deck and avoid falling into the harbor.
She collapses onto the deck, breathing heavily. "Whew...just barely...made it."
A snowy owl flies onto the ship and lands by the archer. "Screech!"
The owl ignores her and begins to preen his feathers.
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"Nothing to say huh? Well, anyway the jokes on you. Because of that little 'detour' of yours we didn't have time to go to Xiao Feng's noodle cart and get some of that Tien barbeque that you like for the trip."
She notices the other pathfinders for the first time and introduces herself. "Hi everyone. Sorry we're late. I'm Meadow. I'm an archer. That's my best friend Silence over there. He's an owl."
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Zoresk draws the cold iron blade etched with runes, "Ah, this thing I picked up on an earlier mission. We were tasked with finding a missing caravan which ended up as a recovery mission when a kami-possessed item was stolen by a thief. We were able to find the thief, but the item drew the attention of an undead warrior. After felling the undead, the thief gifted us this weapon."
Zoresk then puts the blade back in its sheath.
As the half-elf jumps on board, a smile of amusement crosses the mercenary's face. "Cutting it close, eh." He then helps her to her feet. "Nice to have you along."
Looking around the boat, he is curious, "Just the three, uh, four of us then?"
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A handsome and brash halfling fellow comes rushing up, huffing and puffing. "Sorry to be late - I had some, uh, difficulties back in Absalom that needed... resolving." He glances over his shoulder as he says this, then hurriedly slings his lute on his back, checks his purse to see if it's still empty - it is - and grins at the others. "Oskar I am, and it won't be long before all Golarion is humming one of my ditties. Just gotta write it first. Hope this adventure provides some inspiration, otherwise what's it good for? Less'n ye got rent t' pay, which I does, in which case I'll take inspiration, or at least a nice pay day, mehopes. I don't suppose there's any possibility of getting paid in advance...?" he trails off not very hopefully.
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"Seven"
A ysoki of medium proportions emerges from behind a cluster of barrels, munching on some dried salted cheese, and feeding little bits to a rat upon his shoulder, who snatches the pieces and crawls back into one pocket or another.
He looks from ranger to ranger, from owl to monk to bard - his companion, upon seeing the winged creature, vanishes into a pocket, dropping it's cheese scrap on the way, and remains "hidden" for the near future, although a noticeable shaking reverberates from within the fabric! His master speaks again "Bangy Piper of Senghor, that's me" then "Zoresk of Mendev" he bows to the man, then "Zizarc of House Misraria" he bows again, next "Oskar of Absalom" and again before finally "Meadow the Archer" adding "I too have skill with a bow, although" he looks back towards the monk "I wouldn't say I'm a professional killer - I am however prepared to defend myself" finally he looks back towards Snowy's master and asks "Is it friendly? It seems Freerat is spooked!"
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...pokes his head up one last time, sees the Owl again, and dips back into a pocket...
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"Seven"
..."Meadow the Archer" adding "I too have skill with a bow, although"... finally he looks back towards Silence's's master and asks "Is it friendly? It seems Freerat is spooked!"
Meadow seems to bristle a bit at the ysoki's words. is friendly enough to people that treat him properly and don't refer to him as 'it.' Ever since 'the incident' at the library he's been pretty good about not eating pets and familiars, although we haven't yet run across a rabbit familiar. That might end poorly." The young archer makes finger quotes in the air when she mentions 'the incident.'
"He should be fine for this trip. I don't have any fancy barbeque for him but we can catch probably some fish for him."
She pats a belt pouch. "If all else fails I have a couple of dead ra.." Her eyes go wide as she stares at Bangy and pauses, "ra...lemmings in this pouch for him."
On the top deck of the Kingfisher, Venture-Captain Muesello wipes the grease off his hands onto a rag. The pockmarked mechanist spent the early morning running a chain through a twelve-foot tall clockwork contraption mounted on the deck. Stuffing the dirty rag into his smock, he turns to address the group.
“I’m sure you’ve guessed this isn’t just a fishing trip. I would have filled you in sooner, but I was asked to keep everything confidential until we arrived. An expedition of Pathfinder initiates recently discovered this uncharted island, Burozi. The recruits found some Azlanti ruins, and we have a special assignment for your team.”
Muesello turns to the shore just five hundred feet from the moored ship, the peak of the island barely visible against the orange glow of the morning sun behind it. He clicks open an intricate compass, and its needle snaps to the direction of the island.
“Open your wayfinder, and you’ll see the same thing. This close to Burozi, all wayfinders point toward the island. As for the one in my hand here, this was found on Burozi—I’ve never seen one quite like it. The expedition team found it near a sealed hatch made out of reinforced skymetal. They couldn’t get in, which might have been for the best. The recruits were inexperienced, and Azlanti devices can be incredibly dangerous! But you’ve got more experience under your belts, so I need you to find a way through that sealed door and investigate whatever is on the other side.”
With a reassuring nod, Muesello returns to his work, meticulously checking each bolt as crew members emerge from below and begin preparing a sailboat for passage to the island.
He chuckles. "The previous group couldn't get in. They didn't face any dangers! And the Azlanti? The Azlanti Empire was an ancient empire that existed on what is now the lost and shattered continent of Azlant in the Arcadian Ocean. It was the first centre of human culture on Golarion. It was destroyed in the events of Earthfall. And I'll be waiting with the Kingfisher until you come out."
"There are three but I think they all go to the same place."
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Oskar listens to the explanations of the owl's habits a bit uneasily and then does his best to puff himself up a bit, trying to look as large as possible. For a halfling.
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The Venture-Captain's briefing causes his ears to perk up considerably. "An unknown Azlanti outpost, you say? Yes, yes, that could work quite nicely - the perfect setting for my new opera!" He begins to contemplatively strum some chords on his lute, while eyeing his comrades - even the owl - with a new interest, as if deciding how best to cast them in the performance. "It's sure to be a hit - I have no doubt - and all of you will be STARS!"
Turning his attention back to Muesello, Oskar inquires, "So that odd wayfinder was just sitting there by itself? Unguarded? Did the previous team have to do anything to ahem acquire it? And how were you able to determine how it functions? Is it quite similar to our wayfinders?" Oskar holds out his own wayfinder, which anyone can see has been somewhat modified from the standard and has a fancy lid with his name engraved on it.
"Why do you believe that all three doors lead to the same location? And did the other team try all three doors? What obstacles did they face? I'm afraid, though I have many talents, lockpicking is not among them, though I will happily play an encouraging song if we have any thieves I mean lock engineers among us."
Oskar notices that his wayfinder is indeed pointing towards the island!
...a mad dash across the deck, up, and into a pocket of Oskar Z...
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The Venture-Captain's briefing causes his ears to perk up considerably. "An unknown Azlanti outpost, you say? Yes, yes, that could work quite nicely - the perfect setting for my new opera!" He begins to contemplatively strum some chords on his lute, while eyeing his comrades - even the owl - with a new interest, as if deciding how best to cast them in the performance. "It's sure to be a hit - I have no doubt - and all of you will be STARS!"
Meadow's eyes go wide and her jaw drops. She moves closer to Oskar and whispers into his ear. "Please don't do that." She glances back at Silence. "Silence has a high enough opinion of himself as it is. If you make him a star he'll be truly insufferable."
Silence ignores everyone and continues to preen.
"It's the positioning really." Muesello responds.
”Take this with you. I still can’t get it to do more than this.” Muesello speaks the command word and the wayfinder emits a small red light. “Feel free to use it. You might need it.”
”I kept this mission confidential because it was best for you all to go in clean, without any preconceptions of what you might find. But let’s just say the Decemvirate are very interested in this site.” All of the you know that the Decemvirate are the 10 enigmatic leaders of the Pathfinder Society.
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The excavated ruins of a tower rise from halfway up the island’s sloping peak. All that remains of the tower is a semi-circle of white wall holding back centuries of dirt and debris. The skymetal hatch lies dead center in the tower’s foundation. The 5-foot-wide hatch is decorated in thin silver filigree resembling gears in the shape of an eye.
At the center of the eye is a socket that is obviously the same size and shape as the wayfinder the you received from Muesello.
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Bangy Piper easily grabs Muesello's wayfinder, sniffs it, and flips it all over which sorts of ways, looking with random meticulousness at each any every surface, seal, and screw, trying to analyze it's function. He walks back and forth, goes below deck, even climbs some riggings with it in his mouth, to continue to verify that it points towards Burozi from multiple vantage points without fail.
When he finally speaks "Persnickety Wickets - I believe you are right!"
Keeping the device in his clutch for the time being.
Crafting (**`) +13 w/ Improvise Tool, Magical Crafting, Quick Repair, and Crafter's Eyepiece
Medicine (*) +8 w/ Battle Medicine
Sailing Lore (*) +10
Scouting Lore (*) +10
Society (*) +10
Survival (*) +8
Thievery (**) +14 w/ Partner in Crime
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The excavated ruins of a tower rise from halfway up the island’s sloping peak. All that remains of the tower is a semi-circle of white wall holding back centuries of dirt and debris. The skymetal hatch lies dead center in the tower’s foundation. The 5-foot-wide hatch is decorated in thin silver filigree resembling gears in the shape of an eye.
At the center of the eye is a socket that is obviously the same size and shape as the wayfinder the you received from Muesello.
"Oooh look at that eye. This must have been built by cyclops. Cyclopses? Cyclopi?" She shakes her head. "That doesn't matter. Put the wayfinder in there, Zoresk."
Zoresk hesitantly touches the symbol, "Seems like some sort of religious iconography. Not sure what it is though"He pulls out the Wayfinder Muesello provided and enters it into the socket. "Here goes nothing"
Meadow jumps up and down excitedly.
On approaching the socket, the wayfinder glows with colourful light. A woman’s voice emits from the direction of the door, speaking
Glowing numbers appear on the door. They are counting down!
When the wayfinder is slotted into the hatch the coloured light in the wayfinder activates and spreads down silver circuits 100 feet in each cardinal direction before reaching panels built along the perimeter of the ruined structure.
The hatch lock appears to be controlled by four actuators built into the tower’s foundation. Each contains one aeon stone and several electro-thaumaturgic fuses.
North Actuator: The magical energy flowing off this actuator is traveling in the wrong direction. Arcana or Occultism checks to reroute the energy.
South Actuator: Access to this actuator is blocked. Acrobatics to squeeze through narrow gaps in the rubble or Athletics to clear it and reach the actuator.
East Actuator: A fuse on this actuator is broken. Crafting or Azlant Lore or Engineering Lore checks to repair the fuse.
West Actuator: The fuses on this actuator have become dislodged and putting them back in place is a delicate operation. Azlant Lore or Engineering Lore checks to put the fuses back in the proper place.
The owl cranes his neck and turns his head almost upside-down as he examines the strange device.
The north and east actuators hum contentedly, but west and south seem to need more work!
To the truly astonishing sound of Oskar's voice, the countdown stops, the system hums gently and the hatch pops slightly open.
Looking inside, you see a spiral staircase made of metal.
As you descend a spiral staircase into a sparkling clean underground workshop. The complex is well-lit by bright recessed lights.
As soon as you reach the bottom of the staircase, a door swings open.
Through the door, you see two creatures of wood, metal and magic. They stand just under 4 feet tall. Through a further door is a glowing blue orb, with many things swirling around it.
"Please come in, We will show you how to use the power." says the one on the left.
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Looking inside, you see a spiral staircase made of metal.
As you descend a spiral staircase into a sparkling clean underground workshop. The complex is well-lit by bright recessed lights.
As soon as you reach the bottom of the staircase, a door swings open.
Through the door, you see two creatures of wood, metal and magic. They stand just under 4 feet tall. Through a further door is a glowing blue orb, with many things swirling around it.
"Please come in, We will show you how to use the power." says the one on the left.
"Oh." Meadow is surprised to find friendly creatures down here. "Thank you very much. That is very kind of you. My name is Meadow. Who might you be? You don't look like cyclops. Cyclopses. Cyclopi? Seriously, what's the plural of cyclops?"