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The sun bears down oppressively through the jungle’s humidity, causing the air to shimmer and lending an even greater feeling of otherworldliness to the Mwangi city of Nantambu. Aya Allehe enters the sweltering room in the local Pathfinder Lodge with a worn and harried look in her eyes. “Thank you for agreeing to meet here on such short notice,” she begins. “As you may already know, the venture-captain of this lodge, Nieford Sharrowsmith, has been away for several weeks heading an expedition into the interior of the expanse. A week ago, I received a letter addressed to Sharrowsmith from our agent working in the Aspis Consortium-controlled city of Bloodcove, Malika Fenn. The letter appeared to be a routine report, though I recognized that it hid an encoded message that describes an impending Consortium expedition up the Vanji River, planned to depart within the week."
“Malika additionally informed us that this expedition’s aims are of great concern to the Pathfinder Society. She has collected substantial intelligence to this effect but is unable to get the information out of the city for fear that the Consortium will detect and intercept it. To make matters worse, Venture-Captain Sharrowsmith has failed to check in with any other Pathfinder contacts in the region or send back any messages during his own expedition. The timing of these two events is too convenient for my liking, so even though I am only overseeing this lodge in Sharrowsmith’s absence, I ask that you travel into the lion’s den to retrieve the information that Malika has gathered on this expedition so that we can find out if it is connected to Sharrowsmith’s disappearance. Malika has indicated that she left a message for us in the Witchlight Inn that will help us find her information, so head there first."
“Though these are grim circumstances, they also present us with an opportunity. Once you have infiltrated the city, try to sabotage the Consortium’s preparations for the expedition. You won’t be able to stop it completely, but you can at least buy us some time to determine its nature and formulate a response. I also want you to make some inroads for the Society in the city. Gaining the ability to move agents and supplies through Bloodcove more easily would be a massive boon for our operations in the Expanse. I have some information on some disenfranchised citizens of Bloodcove who may be up to the task. Finally, gather some intelligence of your own. Talk to the people of Bloodcove and see how complete the Aspis’s control over the populace is. Report to me any groups or people of influence who may be sympathetic to our cause and support us in future moves against the Consortium. Once you’re done, get out of the city. Leaving in a different way than you arrived tends to be best.”
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Lin Ki Chin stands at attention as the group is briefed. A snarl appears on his face as he hears they will be facing the Aspis Consortium. "Those snakes are up to no good again! They shall feel the wrath of my blade!"
"Retrieve Malika's message at the Witchlight Inn, sabotage Consortium activity, network and gain allies in Bloodcove. Objectives received!"
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Bloodcove sits on the headwaters of the Vanji River, and much of the city rests atop the roots of massive mangrove trees. Wealth from the jungle interior flows through Bloodcove, making the dingy city surprisingly wealthy. Prominent features in the city include the Witchlight Inn and Free Trade Square.
The trading houses brutally crush any criminal organizations that interfere with their business. As a result, most of Bloodcove’s criminal activity revolves around exports (such as the drug trade) or else focuses on the poorer citizens. The local guard only investigates crimes if well paid for the service, leaving most of the city subject to vigilante law.
The Aspis Consortium watches the local Pathfinder chapter house constantly. Foreign Pathfinders who visit it frequently disappear.
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The young Tian-Min woman wipes sweat from her brow and offers the Pathfinder agent a respectful, if shallow, bow. Stony-faced, her chin-length platinum bob and icy-blue eyes only seem to enhance the unapproachable aura that seems to radiate off of her--the distinctive beauty mark to the right of her chin may be the only thing that makes her look more like a painting than an ice statue. Outfitted in a short red kimono, thigh-high tabi stockings, and zori sandals, she is armored in leather lamellar armor. A samurai's customary daisho rests at her hip, and a backpack rests at her feet.
After Aya Allehe concludes her briefing, she says simply, “We will see to it.”
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Kiyoko offers Ki Chin a small smile in return. "It has been a while, has it not? I think I preferred the weather in Absalom. This...this reminds me of the jungles of Dtang Ma, back when Venture-Captain Li had us escort her to that island where we met that old samurai at his ancestral mansion."
She looks to the halfling. "This one, I do not believe I have met," she says. "I am Kiyoko."
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Elemenar is already in the lodge when the others enter. As is usual, he remains standing near a wall with his hands folded behind his back. The acting venture-captain delivers her information and Elemenar nods slightly when Ki Chin summarizes.
To be honest, this mission sounds better than some of the other ones that the Society has sent them on lately. At least there won't be any insufferable formal parties to attend.
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Bloodcove sits on the headwaters of the Vanji River, and much of the city rests atop the roots of massive mangrove trees. Wealth from the jungle interior flows through Bloodcove, making the dingy city surprisingly wealthy. Prominent features in the city include the Witchlight Inn and Free Trade Square.
25+ Retired Shackles pirates founded Bloodcove to enjoy their ill-gotten fortunes. As a free trade port, the only laws genuinely enforced are those that keep trade flowing.
Though ostensibly ruled by the elected Grand Admiral, fiercely competitive trading houses wield the genuine power behind Bloodcove politics. The Aspis Consortium currently dominates the political and economic scene.
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Aylanna upgrades her armor and shield to +1, and buys a 2 scrolls each of calm emotions and delay poison, and a partial wand of invisibility (from a chronicle sheet).
She responds to Kiyoko "Pleasure to meet ya, Aylanna's the name. Heard from the others about that town you saved from those bandits! Good stuff!"
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Once you are ready to depart, Aya secures them passage on a convoy of small, fast riverboats bound for Bloodcove. The rest of the voyage is relatively uneventful.
* Keeping a low profile and sticking to crowds and back alleyways requires no special skills or preparations, however PCs attempting to avoid notice need to attempt Knowledge (local) or Stealth checks as they go about their business.
* PCs who attempt to pose as swords for hire need to attempt Disguise or Intimidate checks to prevent others from noticing their defining attributes.
* Weapons and armor on a merchant would draw suspicion and must be hidden or discarded, along with any obviously magical gear. These PCs use Appraise and Diplomacy to maintain their cover.
* PCs of native Mwangi origin might attempt to disguise themselves as local tribespeople coming to town to find work. Use Knowledge (nature) and Survival to avoid detection.
* Pathfinders might choose not to disguise themselves at all, but rather pose as former members of the society that are interested in switching sides to join the Aspis Consortium. You're guaranteed to be under close surveillance by Aspis. PCs using this disguise use Bluff or Diplomacy to maintain their cover.
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First when you arrive to the city, you see a local bar, Witchlight. The dim atmosphere inside the Witchlight contrasts sharply with the bright Mwangi sun. The sour stench of unwashed bodies and stale beer fills the air as a throng of warehouse workers, ship crews, and less reputable folk take their morning meals. The innkeeper stands behind the bar chatting amiably with patrons, while servers hurry between tables.
Your objective, the bounty board, hangs prominently near the entrance to the common room and is covered in over a dozen listings detailing various fugitives, missing persons, or unfortunate souls who’ve simply made wealthy enemies. Looking for posting, which contains the message you are after, you find a bounty requesting the recovery of a stolen amulet supposedly posted by Kreighton Shaine.
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Kiyoko glances around the room, observing the servers’ routes. Best keep a guard on my tongue, the taciturn woman observes silently. Then she turns her attention to the board by the door and notes the bounty on the stolen amulet. Taking a closer look, she asks the others quietly, “Is this what we were looking for?”
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As you glance the posting, the inn’s door slams open with a bang, and the room goes quiet. The new arrival is Na’alu, a tall, slender Bonuwat man with long but neatly kept dreadlocks wearing long robes and a brightly colored necklace of beads. Two Bekyar men accompany him and leer menacingly at bystanders. Na’alu draws a rolled piece of parchment from his robe, opens it, and announces in a clear voice, “We have ten jobs available for today, working the warehouse at dock twenty-two. Any strong, able-bodied person is welcome to see me for assignment.” He then moves to a table near the door and sits down, and a line begins to form in front of him.
Trying an Intelligence check gives clues to the posting. Taking 20 is possible, but has a downside of certainly looking suspicious.
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Elemenar finds out that:
* Terra Fas DeQuere is not any language known in the Inner Sea. Also the reward amount is both too small for such a job and strangely specific.
* The words “mixed up” in the listing are a strange addition, and thus significant.
* The words “search every part of Bloodcove” could be suggesting that the answer is a location in the city.
In addition to above clues Kiyoko also knows that Merchant-owned buildings in Warehouse Row and Free Trade Square are assigned numeric identifiers instead of names, as they change hands frequently. In Bloodcove, these tend to be two or three digits long.
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Ki Chin looks around the room as he joins the others by the notice board.
"Search the city for the amulet with no clue on who took it? Like needle in a haystack this is." Ki Chin murmurs as he read the message. The magus looks to Alyanna at her words. "That might is as good a guess as any. I agree to try looking there."
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Free Trade Square is the busiest part of Bloodcove. The streets swarm with merchants and wagons buying, selling, and transporting food, spices, and antiquities. Lot number 342 sits on the southeastern edge of the market, bordering the fringes of Warehouse Row. A run-down-looking stall dealing in lamps and oil occupies the space, though the poor quality of the lamps may be an indicator of why no customers are anywhere near the stall. The owner, a thoroughly bored middle aged Mwangi man, sits behind the counter making fishing lures. He barely looks up, when you approach. "What do you want?" in a terse manner
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Kiyoko loiters nearby, idly browsing the wares of the stalls around their contact. Hand resting on the hilt of Reitenseiya, her ancestral katana, she finally shifts her gaze to the merchant--with what seems like about as much interest in him as he was displaying toward her.
"Seems like you may have heard about an amulet recently. A man named Shaine was looking for it," she says evenly. "We are here to help him find it."
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Mention of Shaine seems significant as he flashes you an angry look before signaling you to go around to the back. He emerges from the back of the stall with a small clay oil lamp in one hand. He once again checks the area no one else is watching before handing the lamp over to you and saying “This will lead you to what you seek. Only one of your number can use it, but keep it protected and out of sight as much as you can. Good luck.” With that he returns to his stall.
The clay lamp is unremarkable, but it rattles slightly when handled, as though there were a broken piece of clay inside. Cracking it open, you find a hematite ioun stone.
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Regardless of several curious onlookers, Kiyoko finds the right direction. Wayfinder leads you to fountain standing in a small plaza, and the needle points to an unoccupied storefront. There is little of interest inside the building beyond its cellar door, which is sealed with an imposing iron padlock.
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As you reach for the hidden panel, a trap springs and you feel painful sting.
In the niche, you discover a second ioun stone as well as a broad, wax-sealed scroll case that contains dozens of pages detailing Aspis activities in Bloodcove, qualitative data about the upcoming expedition, and even dossiers on several of the agents involved. Some entries stand out from the others, including Pahwoki the Blade, a murderous Bekyar who wears a necklace of ears and is believed able to make the trees walk; Lilianna Alazzario, an agent relocated to Bloodcove after she burned down an Isgeri village just to collect a small debt; Yola Hask, a one-handed smuggler banished from Rahadoum for “crimes against the state;” Micky Threetoes, an Andoren exile with a history of aiding slave traders; Zamil Namoth, an Ustalav aristocrat known both for his charm and his claiming trophies from his macabre hunts; and “Fiveknives” Kalim, a seasoned explorer of the Mwangi Expanse infamous for his callous treatment of the native people. Malika also suspects that the mission’s primary purpose is looting, and she reports that the Consortium is particularly interested in a giant golden statue of some type. Finally, her report suggests the Consortium knows about Venture-Captain Nieford Sharrowsmith’s expedition to the Bandu Hills, though it seems the Aspis are merely planning to attack him but have not actually done so yet.