Now that the lodge in Sedeq has been rescued, it's time for the Grand Opening party!
But before we get to that, why don't you introduce yourselves?
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Dressed in practical traveling clothes and quilted armour, the goblin looks as respectable as any other wandering merchant - and merchant is what he appears to be, with a backpack clearly full of assorted wares "Pennypockets" he introduced himself before enquiring whether anyone was in the market for a good deal on chalk, writing supplies, or pottery mugs.
"Cheap magic items! The dagger of rusting, the candle of melting, be amazed by the rope of fraying, or scare your enemies with a club of splintering!"
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A young human teenage boy, adorned in full plate mail that's a tad too big for him, is hoping to arrive early for the Grand Opening. He tries to hurry along, but slowing him down is a large halberd strapped to his left hip and a longbow strapped to his right. Both weapons are comically dragging on the ground behind him, as he approaches the Lodge.
Breathing heavily, the 5' tall boy looks to the group with wide-eyed excitement. "Is this where the party is?" Catching his breath, he looks around and spies the familiar goblin. "Pennypockets! You're here too! Mimi and I just finished another important Pathfinder Society mission. She's on her way."
Dennis excitedly greets his friends from the previous adventure in Sedeq and introduces himself to anyone new. "Hi new people. I'm Dennis. My armor is a little big, but my daddy says I'll grow into it. I'm a real good fighter, but I'm still practicing with my new bow." The bow still appears to have never been used.
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A small and green vine leshy, sitting on her trusty legchair companion, arrives at the scene. She sits like a queen, her face smug as ever despite her name. Her legchair Upuan resembles a throne, with a plush seat for the leshy to comfortably sit on.
"It is nice to see you here, Dennis and Pennypockets. I am glad to see familiar faces." she sends flying kisses to both. She is good mood for today because they are having a celebration and not out for the usual mission. At least she can relax, they are just here to celebrate the lodge's grand opening. What could go wrong?
"I believe you still remember my companion, Upuan." she tells them and the legchair slightly bows. "Actually I have tamed another companion, it's a chair too, but a rootball one. Not really into gatherings, so I did not bring him."
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Mimi went to some effort to clean herself up for the Grand Opening party and is looking particularly fine with her long flowing red hair framing her white-skinned and well-freckled face. "I see dat my old friends are all 'ere. 'Ow excellente. I look forwaard to un exciteeng partee." Her eyes roam around the room trying to see if anyone enticing catches her eye.
As the construction of the lodge neared completion, the Society’s leadership sent a group of agents to take residence and formally open the lodge. Due to the other crises springing up across the Inner Sea region, the Society’s leaders failed to notice they hadn’t heard from their agents in Sedeq for quite some time. Eventually, Sedeq’s government informed the Society that no agent had claimed the building. It stood abandoned and would be auctioned off if the Society didn’t take possession soon. Venture-Captain Ambrus Valsin quickly dispatched a group of agents to avoid losing the building.
During that incident, an aspiring genie binder with an unknown grudge against the Pathfinder Society commanded his newly bound genie Safa to confound and destroy the incoming Pathfinders, only for the genie to twist his desires and help the Pathfinders emerge victorious. The binder commanded Safa to withdraw and has remained hidden ever since.
A few months have passed, and the Society has prepared a grand celebration to commemorate the opening of the new Sedeq lodge. Aristocrats, diplomats, merchants, and other important figures have come from across Sedeq and Qadira to celebrate.
Our adventure begins with the Sedeq Lodge’s opening celebration already in full swing. Our heroes are among the Pathfinders charged with hosting this event by Venture Captain Esmayl ibn Qaradi, who’s unable to attend due to important business in Katheer. In addition, Fola Barun, leader of the Envoy’s Alliance, sent a letter ahead, requesting that the Pathfinders take special care to make a good impression with a few of the more notable guests.
I’m afraid there’s nothing for it. These negotiations are simply too time-sensitive for me to slip away to Sedeq for the week. I must leave the role of host at our new lodge’s grand opening in your capable hands. Don’t worry, all the arrangements have already been made. All you need to worry about is playing nice with the guests when they arrive. Tell some stories, work the crowd, make sure everybody has a good time, and most importantly, make a good impression. Remember, most of this crowd agreed to come so they could judge the mettle of the Pathfinder Society with their own eyes. The friends you win today could make all the difference for our future prospects here.
Good luck.
Venture-Captain Esmayl ibn Qaradi
P.S.—I’ve forwarded a request from Venture-Captain Fola Barun, leader of the Envoy’s Alliance, who wants you to make some new friends for the Society. Please do your best to fulfill her needs. To avoid making mistakes, be sure to mingle and learn what you can about our guests. Work first, then enjoy the party!
I hope this letter finds you well. For that matter, I hope it finds you at all; I know how easy it is to mislay things while running hither and yon the way you do.
I just wanted to remind you of the honored guests we discussed who were interested in the Lodge opening. We burned quite a few favors getting all of them to agree to an appearance, so let’s try to get our fair share of the bargain, yes? There’s three in particular who I believe are already inclined to favor us. They just need a little nudge to seal the deal: Kendesh al-Maren’s little sibling, Khayrat; the historian Casira bint Meji; and Sir Agdal Karga, head priest of the Shrine of the Cleansing Flame.
We need to dig our roots into the local culture as soon as possible, lest all the good will we’ve fostered dry up and get blown away. If you find the chance to make a good impression on those three during the party, take it!
Yours,
Fola
Laughter, music, and the chattering of dozens of curious voices waft through the wide-open doors of the newest Pathfinder lodge, which have been thrown open to the public in celebration of its grand opening. It feels like half of Sedeq has come to tour the sun-drenched, mudbrick chambers and gauge all that the Society has to offer their city.
The heart of both the building and the party is in the central courtyard. Scores of visitors stand, sit, or lounge on benches as they enjoy the sunshine, the newly-planted gardens, good conversation, and delectable finger foods. Waiters weave between guests, topping off wine goblets, coffee cups, and pots of steaming tea, all to the tune of sweet music drifting from the balconies of the upper floors. To the west, a pair of wooden doors stands open, from which guests drift in and out of a dining room full of tables heavy with food. At the courtyard’s center, a three-tiered marble fountain babbles with fresh water.
None of the people mentioned in Fola's letter are currently in the courtyard, but perhaps that's a good thing as it may provide an opportunity to learn about them first.
The Pathfinders have some time now to ask about those prominent people, observe the crowd, or provide entertainment in the form of performances or physical feats.
The party is currently in the courtyard, entrance hall, and dining room, and the doors connecting those rooms are open while the building's other doors are closed. But the Pathfinders know this building well!
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"Achurius, at your service," he says with a quaver in his voice during the mission briefing. "I hear some of you had quite the adventure securing this place. Something about a genie?
A decent sense motive check should allow anyone to tell that he is trying to act confident and competent in spite of his lack of experience. Ever struggling with self confidence he wonders if he was assigned this diplomatic mission because of his lack of fighting skills. Of course if it was a combat oriented mission he would be wondering if it were because of his lack of diplomatic skills.
He is a middle aged elf, though, as with most elves, that is not immediately apparent.
He is dressed in worn and comfortable clothes and about the only weapon you can see is a staff with the emblem of Nethys on the head of it.
During the briefing:
Mingling skill check:
Seeing that Khayrat is a fellow erudite, he approaches, more to glean information than to share it. But, to remain faithful to the mission he attempts to draw him out with his knowledge of religious history.
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When the cleric approaches, Dennis waves, "Hi Mister Archurius. I'm Dennis. Yes, a genie helped us. Her name was Safa. She was nice." He looks around for the others. "We're missing Qen. And BK. You would have liked BK. He dressed funny."
The young fighter starts reading the letters, but he loses interest partway through, due to all the festivities grabbing his attention. He listens as someone else reads aloud. "So...mingling? My mommy say I'm charming. I can mingle."
Dennis wanders around and notices some colorful coats of arms. Remembering that one of the guests was an historian, Casira bint Meji, Dennis approaches, "Your crest is neat. I like the colors. I'm Dennis. My daddy taught me lots about history and crests." He frowns momentarily. "But I don't know this one." Brightening, he quickly says, "Do you know Casira? I'll bet she knows all of them!"
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"My first time to be a host for a party. Looks not that bad." she tells her companion Upuan before heading to the guests to entertain them. She and her legchair joins a group of leshies, performing tricks in front of them to give them entertain, after which she asks if they know something about a certain Khayrat al-Maren.
"Do you know Khayrat al-Maren? They are on the guest list but I don't know if they have arrived here yet." she asks.
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Mimi wonders if sweet talking the guests would be best but instead decides that giving an impromptu demonstration of her tumbling and rapier wielding abilities for the appreciation of the crowd might get their tongues flowing faster. She then mingles and inquires about the historian Casira bint Meji. "I vas told dat de famous 'istorian Casira bint Meji vould be in attendence tonight. I do not see 'er yet. Ees she reallee as attractive as I've 'erd?"
Pennypockets's antics get a mixed reaction, with some people nervous around the fire-wielding goblin and some others impressed by the display. Among a smattering of applause, he picks something up: "You're interested in Agdal Karga? He's the head priest of Sedeq’s largest Sarenite church, the Shrine of the Cleansing Flame. He’s a long-time correspondent and political ally of Shahiyan Deena al-Parishat and often invokes her name in fiery polemics against the city’s infamous genie-binding trade."
Achurius knows about the same information that Pennypockets picks up, and doesn't get much else that sounds useful.
Dennis gets a raised eyebrow. "Casira bint Meji? I don't know about all of them, but all of the local ones. She is the curator of the Southern Qadiran History Museum and a renowned scholar, having penned four popular tomes on local history. You know, her contacts in the academic community would make her an invaluable resource for your Society’s historical excavation projects."
Sunshine's acrobatics get a heartier round of applause. "No, they haven't. He hasn't, I mean." She learns that Khayrat al-Maren is the younger sibling of the Peerless Kendesh al-Maren and a popular attache of the Imperial Court. Party guests note that Khayrat is “bearing his shoulders today,” a tasteful way of communicating that the genderfluid sylph currently presents as a man and uses he/him pronouns.
Mimi hears information that's very similar to what Dennis hears, but someone also smirks and says, "If you're looking for her, Casira is known to disappear from social events for long periods of time to get a good look at her hosts’ private libraries."
The Pathfinders barely have time to share the information they've learned before a delighted gasp rings from the center of the courtyard, drawing the crowd’s collective attention to the fountain. A sweet, fruity scent floods the air as, before the guests’ very eyes, the fountain’s waters shift from clear to a dark red-purple hue.
A round of appreciative applause follows shortly, with a few guests voicing their praise of the magical surprise. Someone dips their goblet into the stream and takes a sip, then dissolves into sputtering laughter—the drink isn’t wine, as they’d all assumed, but non-alcoholic grape juice. “And a lovely vintage, too!” That declaration spreads the laughter to the surrounding guests.
A resounding crack interrupts the merriment. Despite the sheer weight of the marble pieces, the fountain’s tiers have separated and begun spinning at high speed! The guests go from laughing to shrieking as they scatter, the nearest already splattered with juice that has no doubt ruined their fine clothes. More and more of the sweet liquid spews from the fountain while its tiers spin faster and faster, flinging grape juice in all directions!
If the Pathfinders want to stop it, somebody will have to hold one of the tiers in place before someone else can try to figure out what's going on and disable it . There are three spinning tiers to disable.
Mimi's turn!
Initiative:
Mimi
Fountain
Dennis
Achurius
Sunshine of Happiness
Pennypockets
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Mimi looks on in surprise as the fountain starts spinning wildly and threatening to fly apart as it sprays grape juice in all directions. Her lightning reflexes get her moving towards the fountain, but she realizes that she's not strong enough to stop the spinning. She beckons to Dennis to grab one of the spinning tiers as she prepares her tools to disable the faulty mechanism. "Duhnee! Over 'ere! Stop de spineeng so I can deesebel de fountain."
The fountain accelerates its spinning, spraying juice for 10 feet in all directions! In addition to staining things purpley-red, it's just... really sticky on the floor.
All PCs' turns.
If the Pathfinders want to stop it, somebody will have to hold one of the tiers in place . There are three spinning tiers to disable.
All PCs' turns
Initiative:
Mimi
Fountain (3 tiers, 10 feet of juice)
Dennis
Achurius
Sunshine of Happiness
Pennypockets
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Dennis looks at the spinning fountain. He's very excited. He sticks his tongue out to catch some of the juice. "Yummy! I like parties!" In his opinion, the fountain isn't spinning fast enough.
He considers jumping in the fountain, when he hears Mimi asking for him to stop it spinning. "Stop it??? Why would we wanna do that?" He pouts momentarily, but obliges his friend. "Okay...fine." Mimi always knows the right thing to do. He moves near the fountain, and tries to grab hold of one of the tiers.
While holding onto one of the tiers and getting sprayed by juice, he tries to grab another ...
... with the success one would expect.
The heavy, spinning marble has enough sheer force to crush the hands of those trying to stop it. But Dennis has no trouble restraining the first tier.
Mimi and Pennypockets look at it. They can't find any cause for the spinning or the tranformation into juice, but they can disable the pump. Between them they accomplish it, and now that they have a handle on how the next one should be easier.
Dennis isn't able to halt a second tier simultaneously, but... he might have slowed it down a little?
Achurius and Sunshine of Happiness's turns.
Initiative:
Mimi
Fountain (2 tiers, 10 feet of juice)
Dennis
Achurius
Sunshine of Happiness
Pennypockets
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Achurius stands back and watches helplessly as the other deal with the crazed fountain.
"I could try and break it with a spell. Should I?" he asks indecisively.
If even one person breaks his indecisiveness he will cast a Cry of Destruction, attempting to target one of the spinning tiers (aiming high so as not to break the walls and release a flood). But if nobody says anything he will stand there paralyzed with indecision which, frankly, might be for the best.
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"Do we really have to stop that?!" Sunshine complains. She then looks at her newly-polished fingernails. "But, I just got nailpolished these." She shows them her fleshy fingers. Nonetheless, she kicks Upuan to make them move and helps Dennis in grabbing the fountain tier.
She tries again because she is so conscious of her nails.
"Huhu! My nails..."
◆ Command an Animal (◆ Stride)
◆ Grapple
◆ Grapple
On her second attempt Sunshine gets her hands on it and... almost gets it, but it slips from her grasp as the spinning accelerates again. It's a little easier to get at with the first tier disabled.
She's splattered with juice--as is everything within 15 feet now.
All PCs' turns.
Initiative:
Mimi
Fountain (2 tiers, 15 feet of juice)
Dennis
Achurius
Sunshine of Happiness
Pennypockets
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Dennis is getting all purple and sticky trying to grab onto the tiers. He's having the time of his life! "I would've joined the Pathfinders a lot sooner if I knew we'd get to do this." Probably not a lot sooner given his already young age.
He reaches into the juice to stop another tier of the fountain.
Getting the hang of it now, with his other hand, he tries the last tier ...
While the others try to disable the tiers, Dennis is lapping up as much delicious juice as he can. "I like drinking at parties!"
Dennis manages to restrain both remaining ties without being hurt by the heavy, spinning stone. With enough time left over to slurp some juice!
And Mimi quickly disables the mechanism to one of them, which splutters as the pump dies down.
Just the one left, already held in place.
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Sunshine releases holding the spinning tier she fails to stop rotating, but thankfully, Dennis manages to hold them for her. Checking her nails, some of them are slightly damaged, looking at her and Upuan, they are both soaked with the juice.
"Isn't holding it enough to stop it spinning???" Sunshine asks, but it looks to her that the fountain is just resisting. "Pennypockets, do something!" she encourages the goblin in almost condescending tone than she intends to. She then draws her club, getting ready to smash the thing if it needs to come to that.
◆ Interact to draw club
Pennypockets successfully disables the third pump. Juice stops spraying, and Dennis finds that whatever force was causing the tiers to spin has also abruptly stopped.
"Look at my new dress--it's ruined! Is this your Society's idea of a party? Or a joke?"
The guests mutter, distraught at the sudden mess. The Pathfinders need to calm them down if they're going to convince them to enjoy the rest of the party.
In an uncharacteristically sensible move, the goblin cuts away his usual hijinks and takes a more serious and consoling tone. "We assure you, this is no joke, it is a serious matter and we are sad to see your dress ruined. We will do our best to work out what went wrong here, and we want you to enjoy the rest of the evening and enjoy the entertainment..." he bows politely.
Diplomacy + Level bump
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When the fountain stops, Dennis climbs out slowly. The youngster smells of juice and his face is a purple mess. He pleads with Mimi, "Can we do that again? Can we?"
He notices, however, the other guests don't share his ... enthusiasm. When he's chided for not taking things seriously (which happens alarmingly often), Dennis wipes his face, approaches a nearby guest, and bluffs, "It's okay, Miss. This juice will wash right out." He quickly adds, "Besides, purple looks good on you. Brings out your eyes."
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Once the fountain is disabled, Mimi stands up and seeing the distraught guests, gets to work trying to calm them down. "You 'ave my most profond regrets for vhat juste came to pass. De broken fontaine vas un unfortunate évént but ve 'ave taken care of eet and de partee can continue vonce ve've cleaned up de mess." As Achurius wanders about removing all the juice from the room and from the guests, Mimi continues to use her charm to calm everyone down...
Mimi uses her charm to calm everyone down...
The guests seem to find Pennypockets charming.
Achurius less so, even as he uses magic to start cleaning up the mess. "Genie? There's a genie trying to sabotage the party?? That doesn't sound very safe!"
Dennis, however, is a delight. "You know, I think it does look better!" laughs the guest, and the laughter spreads through the crowd.
"Psst! Pathfinders!" calls a whispered voice from the now-still fountain, "Dennis! Mimi! Sunshine! Que--no, she's not here. Uh, Pennypockets! And, er, new guy!"
Reflected in the juice, as though they were standing in the middle of the group, is the face of a genie--one familiar to most of the party. "Goodness gracious, Pathfinders," they coo with exaggerated, feigned innocence, "It looks like I, the clever Saga, have been sent to spoil your precious little party! If only there were some brave, competent Pathfinder agents around to foil my meddlesome pranks. Oh well. One down, four to go!"[/b]
Safa's reflection grows briefly serious and they add, "The man who holds my seal came to watch your struggles in person this time. his fury towards you may even overpower his cowardice now. Watch your back--and take this."
Safa lingers for only this brief moment and then vanishes without waiting for questions. Although their voice does linger for a moment, "Ask the others, new guy. They'll get you up to speed. The big secret is I am on your side."
Bottles of juice magically materialize on the rim of the fountain in front of Dennis, Mimi, Sunshine of Happiness, and Pennypockets--and another cluster of four inside. But it isn't juice, not really. They're healing potions, cleverly dressed up--though how they're so sure of this, none of the Pathfinders quite knows.
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"Hey, look what you did. We were soaked with the juice. Good thing I managed to remove the stains on mine." Sunshine complains at Safa. After listening to her. "Where is this man that I may kick his butt? Been wanting to do it since when he kidnapped the first Pathfinders who arrive here." she says to them while taking two of the moderate healing potions and puts them in her pockets.
The Sedeq lodge is made of mudbrick and mortar walls atop a solid stone foundation, with most of the floors likewise being made of stone covered in rugs and carpets. Most of the ceilings on the first floor are 15 feet high. Most rooms have large windows on the exterior walls and are illuminated at night by wall sconces or iron chandeliers.
As the guests have been encouraged to explore the first floor and see what the lodge offers for themselves, every room save for the kitchen and storage areas are likely to have at least a few guests milling about, sipping drinks, and making casual conversation.
The Pathfinders are currently amidst the cooling chaos and scandalized chatter left by the spinning juice fountain. Following the juice incident, all of the double doors leading into this wide central courtyard are being propped open by the staff, encouraging guests to explore the ground floor and familiarize themselves with the Pathfinders’ good intentions. The one exception is the door leading into the kitchen, which remains closed but was never locked.
The majority of guests, around 50 people total, can be found here and likely will be at any given time. Other Pathfinders and hired servants mingle among them, freeing the party to deal with Safa’s promised tricks--and seek out the notable people from Fola’s letter.
What next?
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Dennis, still wiping himself off, leaps for joy when the genie arrives. "Safa! You remembered me! We're all back. Well, most of us. BK and Qen are on other assignments." Staring at the juice everywhere, the youngster continues rattling on. "That was fun! Are there more like it? Any hints? I like hints." After he finally stops talking, he realizes the genie is long gone.
As Dennis is grabbing one of the potions of grape juice, he whispers to the cleric. "It's Safa, not Saga, Mister Archurius." If there are any remaining healing potions, he takes one more.
With the doors to the lodge open, Dennis runs to the only closed door. "Let's see what's in here!" The fighter waits at the door to the kitchen.
As Dennis comes within 5 feet of the kitchen door, he can hear muffled shouting and banging from the other side.
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Mimi sighs at Safa's news and pockets two of the potions. She make sure that Dennis takes two for himself. "Duhnee, I beleeve dat ve vill veree probablee be de ones dat vill most need deez before ve are don 'ere."
She's about to mention going to look for Casira bint Meji in the library before the historian ended up on the wrong end of one of Safa's tricks, when Dennis points out the muffled shouting and banging coming from the kitchen. "I suppose dat ve better see vhat dat ees all about, non?" She leans over Dennis and opens the door.
The mouth-watering scent of cooking spices bursts through the opening doors, welcoming newcomers into a kitchen large enough to feed a small army. Fresh baked goods cool on the countertops, and bundles of dried herbs rustle in the breeze left by scattering sous chefs as they scramble away from the huge ovens in the far corner.
There, a whole roast goat that had been cooking steadily over a low fire has leapt from its position, thrashing about as though alive once more. The cook, a dwarf with thick silver hair, lies sprawled on the floor beside it, winded from a kick to the chest.
“It’s making a break for it!” she bellows, pointing at the
goat. “Don’t let it get away!”
In addition to the roast, two large stock pots start moving.
These things may be dangerous, but the cook is probably right--keeping the roast from bursting into the middle of the party in the courtyard may be most important.
Dennis and Sunshine's turns.
Initiative:
Dennis (56/56)
Sunshine of Happiness (38/38, Upuan 32/342)
Animated Cookware (Yellow)
Rampaging Roast
Achurius (28/28)
Pennypockets (28/28)
Mimi (56/56)
Animated Cookware (Blue)
The roast seems to follow Dennis's movement enough that it sees the halberd coming, but makes little effort to dodge. Dennis's weapon sinks into medium-rare meat about as well as he'd expect.
Which might not be quite as effective as against a living animal actually using its organs, but it's still effective enough.
Sunshine of Happiness's turn.
Initiative:
Dennis (56/56)
Sunshine of Happiness (38/38)
> Upuan (32/32)
Animated Cookware (Yellow)
Rampaging Roast (-17)
Achurius (28/28)
Pennypockets (28/28)
Mimi (56/56)
Animated Cookware (Blue)
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Sunshine lightly kicks Upuan to enter the kitchen. Seeing the Roast, she throws a vine covered with sticky sap at it. "You're not going anywhere!"
◆ Command an Animal (◆ Stride, ◆ Support)
◆◆ Cast a Spell, Tanglefoot
