GM TOP #7-12: The Twisted Circle (Core, Outpost VI) (Inactive)

Game Master Pete H.

Oblivious to the discussion or decision, the incredibly magical sprout waves goodbye when the pathfinders take their leave and says (to Corba in plantspeak), ”Blessings be with you!”

And as that seems to be the worst of it, the pathfinders make their way back out of the cave, grabbing the body on the way.

Except as one could expect, that isn’t the worst of it. Climbing out of the moist warm cavern, the first breath of wasteland air sends everyone into a coughing fit!

Everyone please roll a Fort Save against a Disease effect. Good luck!

Fortitude: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21

"That's... *cough* ... some... *cough cough*...'Blessing'... *cough cough cough*..."

Fort: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16

Fort save vs disease: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18
"What the heck was that? You plant sneezed on me."

Three of the pathfinders seem* to recover from the coughing fit. They turn to their allies to see if anyone needs aid.

*:P

Need rolls from Dwalin, Markus and Barcher!

Dwalin tries to ward off illness.

Fort: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (11) + 5 = 16

Fortitude: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

Markus coughs twice, and then looks at the others with concern, Everyone okay? I hope we made the right call. I don't know about this.

The dwarves, half-orc and halfling all seem to stop coughing pretty quickly. They turn to look at the elf.

You need a Fort Save Barcher. I'll bot if no response in 24 hours.

Once all that unpleasantness is done, the group drags the body back to town. The sheriff unsurprisingly greets them at the gate.

He gasps at the sight of the body as it is pulled towards the gate, "OH NO! Did one of you die?"

"We're mostly fine. This is sadly Amenira. The cloaker killed her long before we could get there."

He looks genuinely sad, ”Damn. That really sucks. I had my concerns when she left and didn’t return on her usual schedule but… one hopes these things turn out better, you know. Let’s take her to the priestess. Did you get that shadowy bastard?”

Markus nods in agreement, Yes, we did. So there's no threat to your community from that thing ever again! Okay to the priestess we go.

"Yeah, we did obliterate that mean thing! But the doll was destroyed, unfortunately", Corba answers in a sad tone. Then she remembers something else. The bard quickly looks around for ears other than the sheriff's (and pathfinders' :P), then gets closer to him and tells him in a hushed voice:

"Right before we enter the temple, I'd like to show you something. The tree there is sick, affected by a blight and needs help. I am not sure the priestess will listen to us foreigners, so please have a look yourself."

The sheriff is quite happy to hear that!

”Oh that is wonderful! A menace like that, especially one that could kill Amenira, needed to be dealt with. Thank you.”

He leans down to reply, ”I will bring it up, but know nothing of tree health. Did you mention it to her earlier?”

Arriving at the church and knocking gets a response pretty quickly. The priestess from earlier pulls the door open, ”Good morning sheriff. And… guests. And, oh no! Amenira!!! What happened?!?”

She ushers you inside.

"Yea, let's go. With Amenira dead and her killer destroyed, I think we need to tell you and your priest about the rest of the cave and probably be on our way. But I will leave the telling to my companions."
Kimlo states this with a sad far away look. "I think I have had enough of the mana waste."

She nods, ”Let me get some tea going. It sounds like quite a story.”

I looked over the success conditions again and you all need to play this out and make a decent report to the Venture Captain when you get back. Both prestige and gold will be determined based upon your findings on this mission. This will be your last chance to gain any further information in town for said report.

Barcher Fort: 1d20 ⇒ 9

Barcher does not feel well, but it seems any effects from the plant are slow acting.

"I don't know if you know about this. We found a stange plant in the cave after we defeated the cloaker. It was some kind of seedling that said it was a verdent spark. It claimed to protect the town. Did you know about it?" "Corba maybe could explain better. She talked to the plant."

The priest seems quite intrigued, ”Oh? That’s… quite interesting. It would make some sense. See, we don’t even know who or what ‘Robori’ is. My grandfather was the first priest of Robori by accident. The children were afflicted with the blessing of Robori, though at the time everyone thought it was a curse. Anyway, he invented an explanation, based around the large tree at the center of town. He declared that the transformation was a blessing from Robori, God of Trees, and the children would flourish despite the strange changes they were undergoing. He had only hoped to buy time to protect the children, but when the transformation proved to be a boon, the villagers flocked to his fake religion and he, dumbfounded, became the high priest of Robori. ”

She stops, a bit concerned, ”Can I trust your discretion to not tell the townsfolk this news? The sheriff and I need to take any information to the council before letting everyone know. It seems that our fake religion is actually sorta real.”

Corba is excited.

"Wow, that's a great story! And don't worry, I won't tell the townsfolk. Although afterwards, you might want to check on the big tree here. It's affected by a blight and needs treatment or it'll die in a few years."

She takes a deep breath, then continues.

"The seedling said it was a verdant spark, but did not elaborate further what that means or who called it that. Its magical aura - if you try to detect magic - is overpowering! I have never seen (or even heard of) anything like that!
It claimed to protect the town, making everyone stronger with its blessing. We also saw the trees underground that were used to shield the town from the manastorm.
If the seedling was moved, 'all the green would die. The city would be barren.' So I wouldn’t do that, if I were you.
Also, if you want to talk to it, you will need the same magic one uses to speak with plants."

The halfling turns to her comrades.

"Did I miss something?"

"You mentioned something about the tree being diseased? But it's not related to the seedling. I think."

She and the sheriff listen intently. At the end the priestess replies, "We most definitely won't move the seedling. It seems it may be responsible for protecting our entire town, even if it is a little odd. I will look immediately into the health of our tree. Thank you."

And with that, the group heads back to Alkenstar to make their report.

Barcher, I'll need to resolve your disease before I can issue you a chronicle. We can do a set of rolls and see if you cure it on your own. Allies can help those rolls with Heal checks on each daily try (any can roll these untrained, but only one success grants a bonus). Or you can purchase a Remove Disease spell with gold OR prestige.

My recommendation is to try to beat it with fort saves and if that goes poorly, use a remove disease spell. The DC is not horribly high, but you need two successful saves in a row to be cured. A successful Heal check administered by yourself or an ally would grant a +4 on your daily save. If you wish to roll or anyone wishes to help with heal checks, I'd say start with three days of rolls.

Two days later, the pathfinders arrive back at the lodge to make their report. The venture captain is quite intrigued as to what they found!

Kuikka will try to "help" Heal. Probably aiding someone who is actually good, rather than doing it herself.

Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (12) - 1 = 11
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (12) - 1 = 11
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (8) - 1 = 7
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (13) - 1 = 12
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (2) - 1 = 1
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (8) - 1 = 7
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (7) - 1 = 6
Heal: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (18) - 1 = 17

"Here let me help" Dwalin tries some herbs on the disease.

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (1) + 6 = 7

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (18) + 6 = 24

Heal: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11

22 and 16 with help from the paladin?

Nice rolls Dwalin! Barcher will gain a +4 to at least his first three fort saves. Hopefully that will be enough to get this disease kicked.

Corba will also try to "help" Heal.

Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (17) - 2 = 15
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (5) - 2 = 3
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (17) - 2 = 15
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (3) - 2 = 1
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (7) - 2 = 5
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (1) - 2 = -1
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (14) - 2 = 12
Heal: 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (7) - 2 = 5

Kuikka high fives Corba in Wisdom penalties

Kuikka high fives Corba in Wisdom penalties

lol, nice.

I pm’d Barcher about making some rolls. Their player hasn’t posted anywhere since the end of May. Which isn’t that long, but they may not be coming back too. I’ll give them 48 hrs, bot some rolls if no post, and wrap up the game. Thanks all for playing.

Kimlo stands around looking worried. "You can pull through this Barcher. You can do it."

Barcher Fort + Heal Bonus: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10
Barcher Fort + Heal Bonus: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10
Barcher Fort + Heal Bonus - Con Damage: 1d20 + 4 - 2 ⇒ (9) + 4 - 2 = 11

Well, that was very unfortunate.

Barcher does not do well, even with all the help. The venture Captain quickly calls in a favor and gets a cleric there within the hour.

I’ll mark 2 Prestige Points used for the Remove Disease and call it good!