GM Chadius 3-04: The Devil-Wrought Disappearance (Inactive)

Game Master chadius

Dreadfang peers at Cinder, trying to figure out if these boons are worth the price.

Edit: Updating the damage to clarify it is 2, not 1/2.

Burning with hellfire and cryptic advice from an infernal source are the benefits? Those both sound more like things one should avoid.

Liam shakes his head. "I can do without any hellfire, thanks."

With all due respect, I will decline. The price is a little steep. And it is also a tenet of my faith that anyone deserves a chance to surrender peacefully. Aydrian... might not be the type to do so, but I would be remiss not to leave the possibility of her redemption open. As in all work for the Society, I will accept any decision made by a majority of our group but... my vote is, strongly, against promising to deliver Aydrian to the queen before she has a chance to speak for herself.

"Bah! Sounds like a no for the Infernal Insight." Cinder pouts. "Well, Boon of Hellfire is on the proverbial table. Mister Tinkerton here says no." She sticks a thumb at Liam. "And a Shelynite... right."

"The rest of you? Boon of Hellfire? Yes? No?"

"I am not dealing with someone from Hell, if you came from there." Charlies tells Cinder. "Good damage is enough for us to bring down evil." he adds, signifying his non-acceptance of the Boon of Hellfire.

"As much as I want to get the Count back alive, I respect our cleric's choice to not participate in such agreement." though his words seem to falter, thinking the mission at hand.

"I don't need the hellfire either, thank you very much" Shayla says firmly.

Xun looks at Cinder

"Sure, infuse my bow if you like. If you ever feel like you feel like eating a dinner at candle lights I wouldn't mind that as well"

Seeing the look from his allies he says "Can you imagine the stories that she must have, the knowledge that she posses."

So I always say no to such boons and gifts and all that. But Xun dabbling in occult arts could actually consider it, He also has a boon with devil tied to a throne ;)

Cinder barely stifles a yawn as Charlies talks about good and evil and all that. "You'd think professional adventurers would take the loot presented to them, but here we are-"

"Oh! Now we're talking!" Cinder winks at Xun and writes his name on a scroll. "Now comes the fun part." She takes his bow and raises them overhead in a strong, controlled motion. Brimstone rises from her hands, coating the weapons in smoke. "And there! A Boon of Hellfire for you!" She returns the weapon.

I'll add a spoiler for the Boon of Hellfire to the campaign notes and the slides.

"As for the dinner, I'll have to fit it into my schedule, somewhere. I'll find you once your mission finishes and you skedaddle. As long as it's not near... Andoran." She shakes her head.

"The Delvehaven lodge lies at the border of Chileax and Andoran. We'd like to stay friends, or at least not at war. Aydrian's made a mess by using Thrune authority to use the building as an outpost. If Andoran finds out about this, the Andorans will make noise, and then we have to placate them and it's a bother." Cinder reaches for something on her hip, realizes nothing is there, and then walks over to pull a chair to sit on.

"So. The Queen does not want to officially march there. Too noisy. The Pathfinder Society does not want to expose Count Jeggare's treachery to the public. The Queen would be further justified in banning the Pathfinders. And someone told Aydrian this was a good idea. If we have her body we'll figure it out real fast."

"Luckily, you Pathfinders already snuck in. So you rescue him and defeat Aydrian. The Queen ignores the incursion, maintaining the Pathfinders' reputation. You get your friend back, completing your mission. Andoran thinks Aydrian went rogue, peace is maintained. Very simple."

She pauses to look at Dreadfang. "So, do you want the Boon of Hellfire, or not?"

Dreadfang looks at his claws, then at Cinder. ”Feh!”, he proclaims. ”Fighting evil with evil! My claws are sharp enough!”

"He's so cute when he's ferocious! I'd pinch his cheeks if I could." She sighs.

"Remember the deal. You have until noon tomorrow to leave. Take the Count with you. House Thrune doesn't care what you do with Aydrian." She points and giggles.

"Alright, now go burn some heathens." Cinder leaves where she came from: the shadows of the doorway.

The candles finally settle into a predictable pattern, and silence fills the hall again.

You have one last opportunity to purchase goods and figure out your approach to Delvehaven.

Shayla's good to go... she doesn't have much in terms of funds anyway :)

Estes stares daggers at Cinder while she leaves. When everything gets back to normal, both he and Charlies relax. "I think we should keep moving and find the Count. We don't know what kind of hell will befall us when we keep staying longer in this hellish place." Charlies says, but he is just afraid of Estes' presence in Cheliax.

Me too, funds depleted here.

"Hellfire. Is that even helpful against devils?" Liam shakes his head. "And a 'cryptic clue' from infernal sources sounds more like a cost than a benefit. It is scary that she found us. I don't know whether it's worse if I believe her or not.

...but staying here isn't going to improve that either way."

After finishing your purchases, you decide to quickly get to your destination. No point staying here any longer.

The former Pathfinder lodge of Delvehaven is located along the meandering Adivian Walk, the road that runs along the eastern shoreline of Westcrown’s Rego Sacero. At this point on the road, the shoreline has risen to a bluff with a 30-foot drop down to the surf below. The building is surrounded by 12-foot-tall stone walls encrusted with bird droppings and salt deposits due to the sea below. The gate in the wall has been forced open, so it hangs slightly ajar. The stately but strange compound and the graceful walkway that connects its upper floors loom beyond the walls.

The sounds of the surf lap back and forth. You don't hear the marching of town guards anywhere, rumors of Delvehaven's curse must keep them away.

Dreadfang looks around at the others. ”So, just go right in?”, he asks.

I've a feeling if Cinder knew we were coming, others might. We DO have to get in though so... if there is no better way, I guess that'll have to be our path.

Fingo, not thrilled at the idea of using the front door, looks around the fort for any sign that another entrance might exist.

The once lovingly tended grounds are now overgrown with weeds. Around the courtyard stand algae-choked fountains adorned with Ancient Osirian hieroglyphs. The inner side of the front gates is lined by a pair of statues depicting human women in battle, too detailed to be from anywhere else other than Geb’s infamous Field of Maidens, created when the necromancer Geb petrified an entire invading army. A weather-worn wooden sign and rusty chain have been discarded in front of one of the statues. The oak sign reads:

“By order of Her Infernal Majestrix, this lodge is condemned and has been warded for your protection. Trespassing prohibited.”

The ground floor is huge and sprawling, while the two structures of the upper floor are connected with a graceful, open-air walkway that arcs over an inner courtyard. The windows of the lodge have been boarded shut with thick wooden planks, and all the side doors have been barred from the inside.

Fingo already sees 5 sentries wearing dark robes near the entrance. They haven't seen the group yet.

Liam readies his shield. "Think we can just tell 'em the queen sent us?"

Charlies draws his shield and draws his throwing knife. " Do you think they are expecting company? I am not sure we can do that." he answers Liam while he raises his shield.

Given Adrian's relation to the Queen... that claim might not endear us to them. Depending how much those guards know... Damn. I wish we knew more about Chelaxian politics. As it is, we'd be taking a blind bet. Pretend to be the Queen's agent? Mercenaries? Friends with information about the events we caused a few days ago?

Dreadfang takes in his surroundings, using his keen tactical insight.

If we’re gonna jump these guys, I’d like to sneak in closer, if that seems feasible

"Pretend?" Liam asks, surprised, "I mentioned it because it's true, if misleading. At least, it's true if that Cinder was telling the truth when she said it to us."

Fingo clasps his chest in overdramatized horror.
I certainly do not consider myself an agent of this devil-loving government. Even if they like us right now. Somehow.
He winks at Liam as he finishes.
But eh, I'll take any attempt to talk our way past these goons over the brute force method.

At the doorway, you find a group of guards at the gate.

“I was tired of looking at that ugly beast staring at me from the painting, good riddance!” Another guard responds dryly, “Quite the monster slayer you are, I’m sure your little tantrum had nothing to do with you getting yelled at for collapsing the stairs.” They laugh it off until they see you approach.

With crossbows drawn they shout. "H-halt! Who goes there! We are under orders to not let anyone in. T-turn away or face punishment!" One of the guards trembles but holds his ground.

"Pretend?" Liam asks, surprised, "I mentioned it because it's true, if misleading. At least, it's true if that Cinder was telling the truth when she said it to us."

"Well the best lies bare a grain of truth" says Xun smiling

When the guards yells at them

"Oh yes, we were send here by Her Infernal Majestrix, Queen Abrogail II of the Thrice-Damned House of Thrune! We need to go inside and get some answers, you should keep the doors locked and make sure that no one is coming in."

Deception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (16) + 12 = 28

"The Queen herself? Wh-where is her edict? Show it to us!" The guard continues to yell, reloading their crossbow.

"Captain's Orders! Let no one inside!" Another yells.

The Deception probably didn't fail, but you may need some more convincing to get past non violently.

Oooh, you poor thing. You must never have received personal orders from her Majestrix. It was simply grandiose. The Lady Cinder came to us, wrapped in infernal flames, commanding us to do the Queen's bidding. Every torch in the room flickered in rhythm with the flames in her eyes. Smoke swirled from every candles, and she infused our weapons with hellish energies. Just look!

Fingo gushes, pointing at Xun's bow. As he speaks, his mask takes on the appearance of Cinder, flames flickering on his cheeks.

There is nothing like the exhilaration of this experience. I hope that you will one day have the privilege to feel it yourselves.

The tone of the last sentence might leave the guards with the impression that Fingo strongly doubt that such an outcome is likely.

Performance to Make an Impression: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (20) + 12 = 32

"I... w-well..." The guards look amongst themselves. "I've heard... rumors, of one of Her Majesty's agents around here recently."

"Alright, but..." The guards step aside. "If the Captain comes by, we didn't see you." The guards step aside.

A sagging veranda with mildew-covered columns adorns Delvehaven’s front facade. Two weather-worn oak doors stand at the center. Each door has a circular carving of a road receding into the horizon decorating it. A wooden placard lays trampled on the veranda. The carvings on the doors are the Pathfinder Society’s Glyph of the Open Road, and the inscription reads in Common Taldane:

“To liberate the Past for the knowledge of Today; to live the maxim that fortune is earned by the bold; to prove there are no boundaries.”

From here on, the lodge is Dimly Lit. You'll need some way to deal with low-light conditions.

This moldy smelling vestibule has motes of dust drifting in the air. One of the wooden stairs curling around the room has a section that has collapsed into a pile of rubble. Cushioned chairs line the east and west walls, all facing an empty display platform in the center. Defaced paintings, each six feet tall, hang on the walls, though one of lays on the floor. Dust covers most of the surfaces, showing footprints around the room.

The painting on the floor depicts two hunters overlooking a slain horned beast but recently someone has kicked through the middle before discarding it on the floor. Several backpacks are set on top of the cushioned chairs, and one has a bronze plaque sticking out of it. The plaque reads: “Triceratops slain by Donatalus Bisby–4599 ar.”

Footprints on the dusty floor indicate a pathway deeper into the old lodge.

Perception: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (19) + 11 = 30

Dreadfang points at the crumbling stairs to the east. ”Not that way!”

Perception (or +11 if Engineering Lore is close enough): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

"Agree with Dreadfang's assessment," says Liam, drawing his weapon, "Anyone have light that's not a wayfinder? Although it might be moot since I doubt bluffing is going to keep working. I have some torches, of course, but I'm not sure it's worth going without my shield."

Should've bought some sunrods. Foolish.

Charlies activates his wayfinder so that he can see, unless the guards are following them. Estes has darkvision.

Heeding Dreadfang's warning, he looks around to see if they can find another way to keep going. Seeing a trail of footprints, "Maybe we can go down there?" he points out the more profound pathway into the lodge. Before he goes to the path, he rummages into the contents of the backpack, perhaps there's a torch in them.

Charlies has 5 torches as part of the adventurer's pack. I purchase this for all my characters even though I find it not that useful, except for the backpack in most adventures.

"I actually have torches and flint and steel if you prefer that than wayfinders." Charlies shares to Liam.

Perc: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (13) + 8 = 21

Shayla follows Charlies, though she stays a bit in the shadows.

She'll light her wayfinder if necessary, but she'll try staying unseen for now. Stealth +12

Charlies looks through the backpacks, and finds two vials, clearly labeled. One contains a dosage of >silversheen< and the other is a >lesser elixir of life<.

You travel deeper, past the courtyard. A hall separates two repositories lined with dusty, mostly empty bookshelves. Several books and ripped pages lay scattered on the floor.

If you decide to search through the books, make a Perception check and open the corresponding spoiler.

Oooh, you poor thing. You must never have received personal orders from her Majestrix. It was simply grandiose. The Lady Cinder came to us, wrapped in infernal flames, commanding us to do the Queen's bidding. Every torch in the room flickered in rhythm with the flames in her eyes. Smoke swirled from every candles, and she infused our weapons with hellish energies. Just look!

When they enter Xun comments "Nicely done Fingo!" the half orc smiles and pats him on the back

Xun keeps on going staying away from the stairs

Liam moves his own wayfinder from his pocket to its clip on his belt and lights it. "A wayfinder is better, but we've no chance to bluff again if we have them out. Although that probably wouldn't work anyway."

Seeing the books he stows his weapon again. "Well that's tragic. Maybe we can see what they were looking for, though."

He gives the collection a quick scan.

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11

"Hm. Not sure."

Dreadfang looks unimpressed by the books, but he checks through them, sniffing for anything unusual. Draconic Scent

Perception: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (8) + 11 = 19

Fingo blushes slightly at Xun's praise, but tries to play it cool. Seeing that everyone's Wayfinder is coming out, he follows suit, then start looking at the books.
Perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9
As he grabs a book, the tome gets stuck in the bookcase, and Fingo's clumsy attempt at recovery just brings the whole section of the library down. As he shamefully gathers the remnants of the book, Fingo finds a large folded map.
Uh. That was lucky. This has... a lot of information on the Lodge...
Fingo continues to analyze his serendipitous find.

"No torches on these bags but I found these vials." He shows them what he found before pocketing them. "I'll keep it if no one takes it. But this silversheen can make your weapon silver something" he shares, just in case there will be takers.

Charlies already has low-grade silver throwing knife. He can apply the silversheen to his dagger if no one will take it from him.

"How does that--oh, you said silver is effective against devils, didn't you Fingo?" Liam asks, "Maybe I should use it. But when? If I wait until we see devils, I might not have a chance to apply it. But if I do it now, it may wear off before we need it. What do you all think?"

Come to think about it, Liam's the only one in the party who regularly uses a melee weapon isn't he?

Did I mention silver? Well, it does sound familiar at least, now that you bring it up. This thing lasts an hour or so? I'd hope that we'll be in and out faster than that but... you're right, that's a risk.

Fingo uses a glaive... but as he alternates between weapon and spells, Liam probably would use the silver better.

Fingo searches the bookcase and finds one book irrestable. The Adventures of Pathfinder Society, First Edition. He yanks the book off the shelf and finds all sorts of details about all-evil goblins, a lack of redeemers and liberators but lots of paladins, and drawings of non specific nymphs. It's quite an intense read. Maybe too intense...

He looks up just in time to leap away as the bookcase collapses like an oversized domino. The book is torn apart, but in his hands remains one page.

The Delvhaven lodge is well defended, especially the basement. Based on the reports I've gathered, as well as a few scouting expeditions, I drew a schematic of the bottom level. One day I'll break in, but not today...

The Delvehaven basement map is on >Slide 4<

Now that you looked at all the books, which ones are worth keeping?

Make a DC 18 Academia Lore, Library Lore, Society check to determine which books are worth keeping.

Fingo discreetly pockets The Adventures of Pathfinder Society, First Edition. He has spent too many nights bored around a campfire; this should provide quite the entertainment. He then reluctantly moves on from this riveting reading to consider the rest of the library.

Society: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18

Fingo is able to pick out a few books in the library that would be very important to the Pathfinder Society as a whole, detailing information beyond the Inner Sea.

There's nothing remaining here besides a closed door. Recent footprints indicate plenty of people have used it recently.

"Out of date, drawn based on little information by someone trying to break in, and describing the Pathfinders' defenses rather than those of the current occupant," Liam notes, looking at the map, "A good find, but we shouldn't assume it's accurate."

He looks over the books again.

Society: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (3) + 11 = 14

Fingo looks a bit deflated, yet can only nod at the wisdom of Liam's words. He then moves to listen at the door.

"Sorry."

Liam sets down his shield to apply the silversheen to his flickmace, then readies it again.

Fingo checks the door but hears nothing but the wind.

Dreadfang walks up to the door, and carefully tries to open it.

Xun walks after Dredfang being ready for whatever could be on the other side of the door