GM Tyranius (PF2) The Pathfinder Trials (Inactive)

Game Master Tyranius

Arcurious moves forward and calls out "Approach!" Hoping to spare the fighters, currently stranded at the other end, some leg work.

*stride
*cast DC 17 Command

Norbwald circles around the pillar and swings at the dragon with his yo-yo.

inspired whack: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 6 + 1 = 25
bludgeoning damage: 1d8 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 5 + 1 = 13
Weakness 3 vs my strikes

Indeed Basic saving throw, so Crit Fail: double damage, Fail: Full damage, Success: Half damage, and Crit Success: No damage.

Shayna's missiles smash into the drake, nearly knocking it from the sky. Fisnette opens her psychic gate as all of the broken broom pieces lift into the air, crashing into the beast, taking it down for good.

Achurius save your spell, combat is over.

With the defeat of the river drake, the Sewer Dragons (of which there are now a couple of dozen) boo and hiss! However, Marcos Farabellus stands and claps, "Good job! Good job! I knew you could do it!"

Everyone is given time to heal up as you walk back to the Grand Lodge. Marcos offers the team dinner and drinks at the Grand Lodge tomorrow.

When you arrive at the Grand Lodge, he excuses himself stating that he sees another team of rookie Pathfinders in need of some practice!

Hero Point to Shayna!

You then make your way to the well-kept office of Sorrina Westyr, the Master of Spells. After greeting you, she escorts you through Skyreach to a nearby training hall.

An odd array of magical fixtures fill this spacious chamber: a wooden platform floats in the air halfway down the hall, a fountain spewing violet water sits in one corner, a wooden scaffolding holding fake walls in place creates a miniature room within the larger chamber, and several doors leading out the sides of the hall have glowing runes upon their surfaces.

“What I have here for you is essentially an obstacle course,” says Sorrina, sounding rather proud. “Each part of the course represents a different sort of challenge you’d possibly encounter in an actual mission. I’ll only award your final scoring for this trial when everyone has overcome the challenges. So, think of this as a group assignment.”

Sorrina gestures to a long table holding several closed satchels. “You aren’t expected to take on all the tasks we have available here. I’ll be assigning you three of them. Your group can also pick one of the supply satchels. Each satchel contains a different set of tools, including some magical items you would otherwise be unable to access from our storerooms. There should be an item or two in each that can help overcome all of the possible challenges. Your task is to decide which of these tools suits your group in besting the challenges you’ve been given. Some tools might be more appropriate in certain challenges than others, and some might seem useless for your particular tasks, but there’s no ‘correct’ answer here. I’m observing and grading your creativity and success, not seeing if you’d do something the same way that I might in the same circumstances. Any questions?”

Satchel contents: 1d6 ⇒ 4

Opening the Satchel you find:

Is the room set up in a way that we could use the decanter of endless water to fill up the room, and float to the top of the platform?

It certainly could be, though I would likely need some swim checks to stay afloat and not sink to the floor and drown. If you chose to do that, that is.

How wide is the platform? Are we allowed to use our own equipment?

Norbwald notes "Wouldn't it be easier to just throw the rope around one of those support pillars, it's only 15 feet or so, should be easy for somebody like you, right Ronnie?"

Ronnie looks slightly uncomfortable. "Um. I have some natural skill at climbing. Big strong guy. But I'm not trained in it or anything. I can climb up and help pull everyone else up. Sure would be faster than floating up, ha ha "

The platform is wide enough to hold all of you.

"Can't we just chop the legs down and bring the platform to us?"

The platform is wide enough to hold all of you.

I was more looking to see if we could toss the rope over the entire platform and have lengths dangling from both sides. Otherwise we need a way to anchor the rope to something on the platform.

"Can't we just chop the legs down and bring the platform to us?"

The platform was described as floating. I'm not sure there are legs or pillars or anything to chop down or anchor a rope to.

there are floor pillars holding it up, but I don't believe that any of us have a saw. I don't even have an ax.

Gotcha

"Why don't we just throw a rope over the platform and just climb up? Seems a bit obvious, but we should at least try."

I think the pillars are attached to the ceiling and the platform is "hanging" from them, so there's nothing to climb to get up there.

Correct, it is floating so nothing to climb unless someone has a way of getting up on the platform with the rope.

Couldn't you just throw the rope over, like you would over a limb of a tree? If the platform is attached to the roof at the corners, then there would not be all that much width to clear. I know from experience that throwing a rope over something is difficult, but eventually, after enough tries, it usually works.

"Throw a grappling hook over and let it fall down to the other side. Someone grab the hook, and the rest pull that person up. Once more people are on top, they can just pull the person straight up."

"Does someone have a grappling hook? My adventurer's pack came with rope but no hook."

Ronnie frowns. "No. I was given the same kit." His face then lights up a bit. "But I could tie the rope to my bedroll or shield and give it a toss!"

"That is what I was thinking myself. Attach something heavy enough and toss it over. I've already knotted my rope for climbing if we want to use that instead of the rope they gave us."

Fisette concentrates and begins to move the rope with a helping hand.

Fisette will mage hand the rope into position.

Fisette slowly crawls the rope into the air and slowly over the other end of the platform where the rest of the group. With the remainder of the party holding onto one end of the rope you are able to get one to the top of the platform enough to tie it off, strong enough to hoist you all to the top.

Moving on as it is a no brainer at that point and this portion isn't a skill check for unnecessary damage.

"Very good. That is probably exactly how I would have solved the problem, but any solution that would have gotten you all to the top of the platform would have been acceptable!" says the Master of Spells. "So, what should your next challenge be? I wonder..." She reaches her hand into a small pouch at her waist.

Random: 1d4 ⇒ 3

She pulls out a small slip of paper. She reads, “It seems like there’s always an underwater area to deal with, even in ruins that are in the middle of the desert. Find your way to the end of the aquatic corridor.”

Sorrina opens the door, revealing a well-lit corridor completely filled with water, top to bottom. The water forms a wall at the doorway, as though an invisible barrier prevents it from spilling out, but creatures can pass in without any resistance. Sorrina tells you that your challenge is to travel down the corridor and through the doorway on the opposite end, 100 feet away. succeed at this challenge when the entire group makes it through the far door. Anyone drowning fails the test for the entire group. She quickly adds that magical monitors are ready to pull out anyone in actual danger of drowning, but should those prove necessary, you will fail the test. Sorrina points out that a current is pushing from the far door to this end, so it isn’t just a still pool.

DC 15 Athletics checks to Swim. Anyone failing a check drifts backwards 5 feet. Of course you can use any other better thought means to get past this.

Rubbing his chin. "Hmm. Of course we could use the rope again. Tie off each person. Let me go first and help pull everyone along. Could we, instead, use that scroll of dispel magic to make this water barrier stop working? Make the room empty out?"

A friendly grin stretches its way across Achurious as he nods at Ronnie.

"My thoughts exactly, let us dispel the barrier."

Ronnie gives Achurious a friendly punch in the arm.

"Who can read this hocus pocus?"

"Hand it to me and let me try.

[ooc]Not sure how PF2 does reading scrolls when you are below the level required"[/b]

If they're on your list you can read em!

Norbwald notes "Can't that decanter be used for propulsion underwater?"

Shayna just looks at the water in abject horror.

"Umm.. I've never learned to swim. I don't know what to do here..."

If they're on your list you can read em!

Norbwald notes "Can't that decanter be used for propulsion underwater?"

"Maybe for a tiny person?" Ronnie replies with a shrug of his big shoulders. "Let's just get rid of the water. Make way for a big splash. Hopefully."

Agreeing with Nobwald, Fisette adds, "that magic decanter can create a pretty powerful flow. Perhaps it could be used as a water jet to propel someone forward. As for that scroll, I think anyone capable of magic can use it."

There is no level requirement for using scrolls in PF2. You just have to have the spell on your tradition's list (either normally or through some other unlock). A 1st level arcane caster could read a 10th level wish scroll if they could get their hands on one, but any effect will use their spell attack modifier/spell DC.

While some of the group fiddles around with the physics and mechanics of the decanter Achurius flips the scroll around to read the runes right side up. As the spell completes.

The spell shimmers as it lowers the barrier, draining the water from the room.

One at a time, the rest of the novice Pathfinders make their way through the corridor quite safely!

"Well done, Pathfinders! Always be ready to use all of the tools you brought with you!"

“For your third challenge, remember that you don’t always have to fight your enemies. Sometimes it’s much, much wiser to sneak past them. Just be quiet as you cross the chamber of the slumbering dragon.”

A smiling Sorrina leads you to an antechamber off the main hall. Lying on the floor and occupying most of the hallway is a large, plush, stuffed dragon. Sorrina, speaking in a stage whisper, lets the party know that they need to cross the hallway without waking the dragon. If he does wake, they must appease him, lest he devour them all with his stuffed, satin, pillow-like teeth. She delivers her ominous threats quite deadpan, though she clearly enjoys describing this particular challenge. Then, quite seriously, she drops the pretenses and lets you know that if the stuffed dragon attacks them, they fail the trail. She also tells them that she will direct the plush creature’s actions to mimic those of a real dragon, so they should choose their tactics accordingly.

Each character attempting the crossing must roll a DC 16 Stealth check. Some spells or tactics will give you a bonus to your roll which I will calculate in on my end. of course you can always come up with a better plan of your own.

Before moving on to the "Dragon" Norbwald claps "Nice job on the scroll."

Looking at the Dragon and then at their equipment Norbwald muses,

"The cloak will let somebody sneak by with invisibility, the sleep scrolls might be more useful though."

"The sleep spell does not do much unless they are not asleep. Since it is already asleep it will not help much. We could burn it with the alchemist's fire."

Whispering so that 'parites that might be offended' will not hear, he adds "It is a plush toy after all."

"The cloak and boots are ideal for sneaking by but how would we use them for all of us?"

Ronnie smiles sheepishly. "Maybe the most clunky of us use the items? The sleep scroll could be used if he wakes up. Would it work on a stuffed dragon? Your know, since it's not living?"

"There will be no burning of the plushie," Fisette declares, apparently being one of the offended parties.

Fisette has the toymaker background and is currently working on creating a poppet familiar of her own.

How large is the room?

What color is the plushie dragon?

It doesn't say how big the room is, but should be big enough for you to move around. What are you thinking?

The picture of the red plushie dragon is in e Maps.

Whether I could mage hand the cloak and boots across the room, but the distance would have to be 30 feet or less as that is the range of the spell.

You could stealth to the middle of the room and then your effective mage hand distance would be 60'. It's a lot easier to be quiet when you are standing still, and I don't think you need to keep supplying somatic components once you have it active.

Guidance is available to any who need it. I'm going to assume that the room is 30' across at the most.

Shayna casts Guidance on herself and tiptoes across.

Stealth, Guidance: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 6 + 1 = 15
Stealth, Guidance, HP, Vestments: 1d20 + 6 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 6 + 1 + 1 = 28

Is there anything in this hallway to take "cover" from the plushie?

"I like the idea of mage handing the sneaky items back across the room to the next sneaker. Casting guidance on each person as they go through is also a great idea. Can one of the casters have the sleep scroll out and ready to try in case the dragon wakes? If that fails, we will need someone with honeyed words to try and calm the dragon. Shayna, maybe you can point out the best quiet path for us once you make it across?"

Can each person who successfully makes it across aid the next person by quietly pointing out the best path to take? Or to motion to pause if the dragon stirs? If so, we should go in order of most to least sneaky

Assuming we go the route of mage handing the gear back and forth...

stealth: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 1 = 15, plus bonuses from elven gear

He also stands ready to cast sleep on the fluff dragon.

Shayna can cast Guidance on everyone (+1 to your next die roll)

Stealth and Guidance: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 6 + 1 = 11 plus elven gear, if applicable

Hero Point reroll: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 6 + 1 = 21

Webny nods along at the plan, impressed by her teammates’ ingenuity. She makes her way carefully across the room. She almost stumbles at one point, but manages to catch herself before making any noise.

Ah, gotcha. Yes you should be able to do so as you only need to move 20 feet.

Shayna and Webny begin to tiptoe behind each other. The plush dragon begin to stir slightly but quickly falls back asleep with some disturbing snorts. Hero Point used from both of you.

Seeing them make it easily across Achurius follows next. Thanks to the guidance offered by Shayna he seems to make it across without disturbing the slumbering dragon. Guidance brought you to a success.

➤ Fisette (15/15 HP)
➤ Ronnie (21/21 HP)
➤ Norbwald (18/18 HP)

stealth: 1d20 + 1 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 + 1 + 1 = 10

+1 for guidance, +1 for gear

stealth hero point: 1d20 + 1 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 + 1 + 1 = 10

Uh oh. Any help from using cover or aids from team mates?

Or from using the elven gear?

Any help from using cover or aids from team mates?

Or from using the elven gear? Did you minimize your armor penalty by removing gear first? This is not a combat situation so your armor is not necessary.

I forgot to write it in, but yes, I intended to remove my armor. my rolls were just sub par with little natural talent for sneaking.

Half plate isn't noisy, so meeting the strength negates the check penalty, no need to remove armor.

With Guidance Norbwald does their best to sneak by, using the elven gear when it's their turn.

stealth: 1d20 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 + 1 = 3

heropoint: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 2 = 16