Your adventure begins in the Vaults of the Grand Lodge in Absalom.
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Three goblins stand around numerous piles of burning items munching on pickles and relaying their observations:
"Of course the wooden chairs burn, but notice how slowly full combustion takes with increased thickness and moisture content. Split those legs in half and we're getting to full combustion in almost half the time with the same output of HEAT... ei: lots of little things burn so much faster and hotter." He tosses another bottle on the flames, a geyser of fire builds to triple the height.
"And, its always fun to add more fuel to the fire.. no matter what the others say." Crunch crunch crunch As he resumes pickle mastication and consumption.
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Toasty! munches on a pickle and leans on their rather ashen staff as Flikk excitedly tosses items into his cauldron.
"Toasty! know chairs will burn, cucumbers vs pickles might be interesting, but also tasty."
Eventually Toasty! looks up from the fire to see who else has joined them. Excitidly he bounces up and down and introduces himself.
"Toasty! here."
Before looking for some nice pointy sticks to put the veggies on.
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A third goblin stands and watches gleefully as the fire crackles and dances. He too eats a large green pickle, chewing absently and enjoying the merging flavors from the brine he soaked them in. With brine dripping down his chin, he reaches into his pickle jar for another large cucumber.
His beady red eyes seem to glitter in the firelight and his face takes on a dreamy expression as the strong flavor of the cucumber hits him.
"This good. I's Lokoloko. Nothing better than fire and pickles. So yous two Paffinders too?"
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Coming out of the shadows, appears a slender elf in black leather and wearing a black hat. He's clearly very old, and his smirking face is marked by numerous scars.
Looking around, he seems not sure to be at the right place, but hearing that the goblins are pathfinders too he says with a hoarse voice.
Greetings, name's Dolmandir.
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Flikk waves the newcomers closer to the blaze "Come gather 'round students, today we're going to learn about combustion and explosions!" Flikk grins, pulling a flyer off the side of a building and tossing it into the churning barrel of flaming fun.
"Please bring your own burnables, anything and everything!"
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Lokoloko pulls out a red vial from a pocket.
"This old alchemist fire. Past use by date."
He casually tosses it into the flames and watches with glee as the flames shoot upwards for a half second before returning to their pre-alchemist fire levels. He also watches the glee in his fellow goblins as they gape at the flames.
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Flikk observes excitedly as now nearly everyone has joined in on the demonstration "Yes Chupko, very nice!" He rips a couple loose shingles off the side of the building, lights them over the produced flame and gleefully shows them off to the others before tossing them in the barrel.
"Now you try Dolmandir! Anything you wish to test the flammability of on hand?" He looks around, seeing a mangy dog run past "Perhaps that horrid little creature there? I can't think of a much more deserving test subject!" He gives an eager glance to the audience to hear their thoughts.
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Lokoloko crunches down on the end of his pickle. He tastes something off and stares at it for an instant. He makes a face and throws the last bit into the flames. He either timed it so that Chupko's Produce Flame struck the bottom of the refuse pile or something flammable was in the brine. In any case, the fire flares high momentarily before returning to its usual level. Lokoloko nods appreciatively and reaches for another pickle.
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It has been said, "Upon every fire, a little rain must fall." A sprinkling of water from the sky would be unusual here within the vaults beneath the Grand Lodge. And yet, there is Rain to be found here afterall.
The fungus leshy, Rain in Cloudy Day, at the request of Grand Archivist Zarta Dralneen heads through the various Vaults of the Grand Lodge in Absalom looking for those agents he was asked to assemble.
"Zarta had asked me to acquire a list of available Pathfinders who happened to be within the Grand Lodge, between assignments." The leshy ponders aloud, noting as he reads the list. "Curious, it is, that so many such 'available' agents just happen to be goblins. Quite the coincidence, it would seem."
"The summons had requested that they assemble as a group within the vault most-recently filled with newly acquired treasures." Rain continues. "The Vault of Boundless Wonder. I had a big wooden sign made up for the Vault and everything, but it seems to have gone missing. Along with the wooden chair that it was sitting on. I wonder--?"
Rain pauses for a moment, noticing a distinct odor in the air. "Could it be--?"
Quickening his pace, Rain soon finds a cloud of smoke and an explanation for the missing sign... and chairs...and more...
"Scroll with directions on how to cook mushrooms... Wonder how it burns"
Did I just hear--? The fungus leshy checks his ears, then decides he needs to put a stop to this.
"*Ahem*" Rain tries to clear his throat amidst the ever-increasing smoke, but does not seem to be noticed.
Should we try if you have one with you?
"Try?"
"*Ahem!*" Rain repeats, trying to overcome the sounds of crackling embers even as smoke fully envelopes his cap.
Flikk raises an eyebrow "Let me see that recipe. I'd say we soak mushrooms in pickle brine, then apply direct flames until golden brown, then eat said mushroom and drink the brine afterwards."
[i]"Brine!?!"[i]
"" Rain shouts in a huff, his tiny arms flapping hurriedly in an effort both to gather attention and disperse accumulating smoke.
"" declares Rain through the thick smoke. The leshy cannot help but choke a few times, though whether it is due to the smoke or the topic of conversation he just overhead, is not entirely clear.
""
"Please extinguish all possible ignitions sources, remove any residual ash and unburnt materials, and follow me."
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Flikk looks up from the recipe, eyes going wide at their good fortune A giant talking mushroom!?! Oh, we shouldn't brine a fellow Pathfinder, drat. He holds the scroll in front of his face "Oh, excellent, we've been busying ourselves doing SCIENCE! We'll be right behind you." He says with a hidden grin.
He looks longingly at the flames I don't have the heart to douse such beautiful creatures. He thinks in a huff, skipping off after the talking fungus and away from the still burning chair and signage.
"Quickly now students before the vault's treasures are all gone!"
As the smoke is left behind, one can now see that Rain has a bright green body and a purple mushroom “cap” atop his head, and he wears a white scarf and brown vest emblazoned with the Glyph of the Open Road.
After a moment’s pause, Rain excitedly recognizes you from reading the reports about the mission and asks you for a firsthand account of your adventure.
The fungus leshy gets excited. "I read your reports about the mission, but I would love to hear a firsthand account of your adventure! Do tell!"
As you approach another vault, you see Zarta Dralneen waiting at the door, recognizable by her long dark hair and black nail polish She is wearing a vibrant blue dress.
Zarta Dralneen watches the conversation between you and Rain with amusement, before clearing her throat to remind Rain of his current mission.
“The Archives get more exciting every day,” Rain states then adds, “And who better to manage the excitement than Zarta! Oh, have you all met Grand Archivist Zarta Dralneen?”
Rain prompts you to introduce themselves. Zarta smiles and thanks you for coming. Rain and Zarta then lead the group to a table covered in
interesting objects.
Rain in Cloudy Day waves exuberantly to indicate the piles of treasure in the vaulted chamber. “Wow! Just look at all these magic items! And enchanted weapons! And a skull that always looks at me funny! Big magic books about even bigger magic books! Well, I’m not sure about that last one. I haven’t read them. Cataloging all this treasure is bound to be exciting! It sure beats sorting the mail.”
Zarta runs her fingertips along the table, lifts a strange hourglass, and inspects it with dubious curiosity. “Exciting, yes, and possibly
quite dangerous.”
Rain frowns. “Well, yes, but… at least we’re in the safety of the Lodge? Can’t be that bad! You said these items are harmless.”
He picks up a skull from the table. Its eyes glow with pink fire, and it speaks, “Unhand me, you hideous rotten mushroom! Harmless?! How dare you!”
Rain replaces the skull and covers it with a cloth, muffling the voice. “Well… mostly harmless?”
Zarta fails to stifle a grin. She tilts the hourglass this way and that, shrugs, and sets it back on the table. “Yes, mostly harmless. We believe these items present no major threat to us, and we’ve secured those we believe to be cursed. The true danger comes from an old enemy of the Pathfinder Society, the night hag Aslynn. She nearly claimed these treasures for herself before they were entrusted to us. We don’t know why she needs the items, or which ones are most central to her wicked plans. "
“I’m off to a meeting to discuss the situation with Eliza, Ambrus, and the faction leaders. You’ll stay here with Rain and continue cataloging these objects. We need to learn where the items come from and understand what they do. Then we can decide what to do with them. Any questions?”
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"Flikk here." The pudgy goblin with a deep voice introduces himself with confidence. "I bet I can help with some cataloging, let's start with the more dangerous, and exciting ones first?" He lifts the cloth up off the skull and peeks underneath "Hello, just want to see what sort of skull we're dealing with here.."
"Hello, just want to see what sort of skull we're dealing with here.."
When the cloth lifts up, the skull seems to come alive. chitters the skull. "And just what sort of creature am I dealing with here!?" The lights glowing from the eye sockets within the skull seem to flare up for a moment before it mutters, "For once, I'm glad I don't have a nose."
Zarta walks over and neatly slides the cloth back under it again covers the skull. “At least one of the ‘objects’ seems to be alive, in a sense, yes. So far, the skull just insults everyone. Maybe you can talk to it and learn more. We haven’t found any other creatures in the vault—yet! It’s not our business to keep creatures captive, so we’d like to help get them home if we can, and to keep them safe from Aslynn.”
"Toasty! got lots of good notes from that mission on what will burn! Ready to help out with cataloging mission, burning tests for later."
"Yes, 'later' is preferrable," Zarta agrees.
Who is Aslynn? Do you know what do we need to expect about the items?
"A night hag who caused trouble for the Society a few years back, even tried to capture and sell the soul of our former Master of Spells," Zarta explains. "We thought we’d seen the last of her after we helped stop her from raiding a magical demiplane known as the Hao Jin Tapestry. Apparently, she’s still hunting for treasures, and she has something horrible planned for the Pathfinder Society.”
"As for what to expect," Zarta continues, “That depends. We’ll return some to wherever they belong. Some might be dangerous, some should be destroyed, some might hold valuable knowledge. Some might be all those things. That’s why your work, and my meeting with the Society’s leaders, is so important. We need to make a plan!”
"Cataloging?" Raj sighs.
"I was expecting something more... exciting."
"What could be more exciting than..." Rain quickly interjects, then slows down before adding with a grand gesture of his limbs, "Exploring the [bigger]Vault of Boundless Wonder?"
"Yes, what could?" Zarta smiles. "I, however, have a meeting that I must attend. I advise that you all be ready for anything. Feel free to make a quick trip to purchase supplies, if necessary, before you begin your work." She then departs.
After the briefing concludes, you are free to spread throughout the vault to begin the process of cataloging items;
"So, what would you like to help with first!" Rain asks cheerfully. He then produces a piece of paper with a series of marks vaguely resembling handwriting. He hands you a page from his overstuffed journal. "This page holds a list of what I believe are some of the most interesting or most important items to analyze and areas to search."
"I suggest you split up," encourages Rain in Cloudy Day, "lest you step on each other’s toes."
The various tasks are numbered on the list on slides (as well as below):
This vault is one of many such chambers in the Archives beneath the Grand Lodge. Located several floors below the surface, this area quite secure from intruders. The surrounding walls are several feet thick, and the new head of security placed powerful wards to prevent anyone from teleporting in or out. The only way to enter or exit the vault is through the arched passage in the northwest corner, which leads to a reinforced door about 10 feet off the edge of the map. There are no windows or skylights.
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Dolmandir nodes when The Grand Archivist explains who is Aslynn and wonder how the Society have made such a creature an enemy. If an organisation's power is measured through the enemy, then the Society is particularly strong!
The elf starts looking around before choosing a place and searches for useful items in one of the pile of assorted items.
"I'm going to go talk to the skull."
Don't ask if its flammable... don't ask if its flammable... don't ask if its flammable
Thinks Toasty! to themselves as they move the almost certainly flammable sheet off of the skull and talk to it about cool magical stuff. Like fire.
The skull warms up to Toasty. " “Call me Zykyryz!" intones the skull. "No, it isn’t my name, but it’s shorter than ‘all powerful wizard.’ That’s right, I can do magic! Just wait. Keep me close, and I’ll prove it to you.”
Toasty ascertains that Zykyryz is neither flammable nor undead. It’s more likely that some supernatural aspect of her became trapped in this unusual vessel.
The elf starts looking around before choosing a place and searches for useful items in one of the pile of assorted items.
The elf gets a rock.
Without straying far from his fellow goblin, Lokoloko has a look in the pile of treasure. He looks at Rain almost hungrily, perhaps recalling the recipe he found earlier.
Lokoloko locococates a brooch of shielding.
The archaeologist moves to some shelves containing many scrolls.
Chupko finds a flammable scroll of glitterdust.
Raj shrugs and moves to one of the piles of assorted items. Maybe there would be something of interest among them.
Lesser Acid Flask (3)
Lesser Blight Bomb (2)
Minor Elixir of Life (2)
2 reagents left over
Flikk frowns as he's too slow to interview the skull, instead he strides off to a fresh area for treasure hunting. "Lots of stuff here, must be something useful right?"
Flikk finds a wolf fang.
As you complete your initial exploration within the Vault of Boundless Wonder, your efforts are disrupted by an unpleasant sound (Though, Lokoloko, perhaps, finds the noise rather... appetizing?).
“They’re not real! They can’t be real!” The panicked voice of Rain in Cloudy Day precedes his rapid footsteps as he races back into the vault, having tried to exit just a few moments before.
“I can’t… I don’t… help! Please, help! They’re after me!” Rain collapses just inside the vault, clutching the sides of his head and whimpering in fear. A hideous snarl from just past the entryway causes Rain to go completely still with sheer terror.
Sharp-eyed Chupko notices instantly that the source of the snarl is not alone as the tengu spies three more humanoid-shaped shadowy forms emerging from around corners and a bookcase .
RAIN'S NIGHTMARES, YOUR FOES! - Round One Begins!
Chupko
? (red)
Lokololo
? (black)
Flikk
? (yellow)
Raj
Dolmandir
Toasty
? (blue)
The archaeologist is used to see things moving in the darkness that0s the reason why the rogue noticed the forms around. He moves quickly to cast a spell throwing a sharp stone towards the blue one.
The stone strikes the shadowy creature , causing injury to the strange, unnerving brute.
One of its shady kin approaches Toasty and tries to grab ahold of the goblin.
Grabbing Toasty with one hand, the creature repeatedly jabs with a dark, sharp spear.
RAIN'S NIGHTMARES, YOUR FOES! - Round One Cont'd!
Chupko
? (red)
Lokololo
? (black)
Flikk
? (yellow)
Raj
Dolmandir
Toasty
? (blue) -10 HP