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1) I am based in Southeast Asia (UTC +8) so my posting hours may be unusual (especially for those in North America). I usually update at least one or twice per day. Just to keep the game moving, please post at least once every day and at least once during the weekend.
2) Please label all three of your actions. Even if you think what you are doing is obvious.
3) If I am unavailable for longer than 24 hours, I will let you know in the Discussion Tab. Out of respect for your fellow players and myself, I ask that you do the same. Real life happens, and real life will always take priority over the game, but out of fairness for your fellow players, please let us know if you will be unavailable for an extended period of time.
4) Please note that on the following days, my posting can get unpredictable:
Tuesday/Thursdays - all day, as they are the 2 busiest days of my work week
4) Please complete the Macros and the Slides linked at the top of the page.
5) Questions, concerns? Feel free to share them in the Discussion tab.
6) Let's have some fun and tell a great story together! After all, that's what we are here for.
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Elven wine is ever so sweet...
A human Chileax woman in her late 20s kicks her heels over the table. She has the mark of nobility about her, yet the manners didn't follow her.
"I am Issil Telfae. A pleasure." She nods and pulls up another table. "My assistant is around here somewhere, probably procuring more wine. Come, sit, sit."
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A young and handsome Varisian male enters into the room. He is dressed in blue and black leathers with a pair of sturdy boots. He carries a few daggers and 2 light clubs on his back. He has a few pouches as well. He nods in greetings.I am Graeyson, acrobat and ranger he says. But more acrobat he states with a smile.
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A halfling who seems to glide as hebsteps along, sandy hair stinking of smoke and belly full and poking out from under his leather armor.
Howdy yall, its Thunders comma Truck at your service or as most people call me TRUCK THUNDERS he makes a gesture like he sorr of assumes lightning is gonna strike before continuing.
The Thunders Clan has a long storied tradition of doing some lovely agriculture work on the Elemental Plane of Air and Im proud to say I was there as the herald to a Pathfinder when Ranginori was freed from his prison. So if youre not down to clown with the Lord of Lightning then well....uhh...why not?
Truck looks like hes lost his train of thought as he swirls around a mirror and an oversized knife.
Anyway, as a Liberator of Ranginori, I travel the globe as a roving Freedom Specialist so watch out bad elves!
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Trudging up in through the doorway is a young garlic headed leshy, sets of roots coming down at strange angles to form what seems close enough to a proper bipedal form. The leshy's form wears a shining batch of scale mail and hangs a very prominent relgious symbol of Sarenrae off its belt.
"Right. I was told by my knightly mentors that every good knight should offer a proper introduction." He then puts his arms on his hips and stands as best at attention as he can with his rugged, clearly not well-kempt appearance. "I am 'Life Sprouts Anew and so Hope Remains' as I was such named by the batch of knights wandering the Gravelands when they were looking for any morsel of food still edible in the doomed Farmlands abound. What they found, pulled up from the ground was me, instead! Yet for some reason most people just call me 'Hope' instead."
He pulls out his trusty sword and parry dagger, swing both around and then continues. "Anyway, I myself train to be a capable knight of Lastwall as well, but as it turns out the group out there has little time to train a fledgling like myself so I have come here to the Pathfinder Society to learn the skills I would need to help out on the fronts back home. Hopefully I can be of assistance."
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Your adventure begins in a grand meeting hall in Iadara, the capital of the elven nation Kyonin. The air in this cavernous room holds a palpable excitement as Pathfinders fill it, joining together in small groups as they evaluate supplies and whisper excitedly about why everyone has been summoned to Kyonin. Representatives from all the nations of the Inner Sea and beyond have come, gathering together amid the haphazard assortment of tables and chairs, seemingly pulled together in support of this unprecedented mustering.
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A pair of dwarf druid and leshy familiar sitting on his shoulder arrives at the scene, singing happily in Druid. Once they enter the hall and finds it filled with agents, the druid ends the songs into a hum. He then approaches some of the agents and introduces himself. "Greetings! Tandang Boreas is me and here is my lovely familiar, Plantina." he says heartily. "So what is our mission here, anyway?"
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The raucous excitement that has filled the room comes to a calm as four figures step to the center. Fola Barun and Eando Kline are accompanied by a scholarly elven man and a lithe, hooded figure. Eando clears his throat and begins.
“Agents, thank you for braving the not-quite-so safe trip to join us here in the heart of Iadara. While publicly still unwelcome within Kyonin, when we received a cryptic message bearing her majesty’s seal, asking us to come here and lend aid, we took the chance. One of our foundational principles is cooperation, and in doing so here we have opened the door to an opportunity to foster mutual respect, loyalty, and trust; perhaps even to rebuild a bridge long burnt. However, this is better explained by the envoy the queen has sent to us.”
With that, the hooded figure takes the center of the floor. A feminine voice begins to speak from behind the cowl that obscures their face. “Thank you, Pathfinders, for obliging the request to come. You see, things here in Kyonin are not what they seem... And, let me start by clearing some of the confusion by introducing myself properly.”
As the elf lifts her hood, it starts to shimmer, and then falls back upon her shoulders. She lifts her head, making eye contact with the audience surrounding her, all the while the crystal in the center of the circlet encircling her fair forehead glows with the new day’s dawn.
“I am Queen Telandia, and I hope you will accept my apologies for concealing my identity, but there are many here in Iadara, in Kyonin as a whole, who still hear the title Pathfinder and find a bad taste in their mouth. For them to find me meeting with you would be very... bad for my health. However, I know this opinion doesn’t need to stay the case—even if the glacial pace of elven politics seems nigh impossible to change. After speaking with your former Venture-Captain of Kyonin,” she gestures to the other elf in the entourage. “I have come to ask a great favor from your society, one that is surely dangerous, though I’m still trying to discern how much so. I am certain that your success at this mission will help me to prove your worth as allies to others, possibly even speeding up politics.
“As for why I have called you to this place: the Tanglebriar at the edge of Kyonin is a horrid place. A twisting swamp filled with abyssal energy and other horrors one dares not speak of. Thankfully, the corruption within Kyonin has been kept to there—that is,until now. My agents have found information that indicates an individual named Nathatel Zephon is actively working to spread the message of his ‘elves first’ manifesto and is possibly involved with the spreading corruption.”
Amplifying his voice for the room to hear, Venture-Captain Ciobanu comes into the explanation. “There are pockets of woods in Kyonin that are starting to resemble places that have been tampered with, not the least of all my hometown of Folien. Reports state the area around the town has become darker, more sinister. You can never take the same way home as how you got there, and the shifting navigation has made it nearly impossible to get through if you don’t already know exactly where it is you’re going.”
The queen continues, “I’m certain something is messing with the town, working to find a way to take control of it and the ley lines running through there. What I need from you is to find your way to the town, find out exactly what is causing these concerns, and neutralize it with whatever means you must.”
Fola looks to the agents gathered in the large underground tavern, and then back to the queen. “Your Highness, I believe this is a challenge we can take on, and we’re grateful you’ve determined we’re the right people to help you.”
Eando smiles. “Of course we are. Containing power from being accessed by an evil enemy? This happens to be my area of expertise.” Venture-Captain Ciobanu looks at the rest of the agents in the room. “What say you? Are you with us?” As a cheer erupts from the crowd, he smiles. “Well, we have but a few moments for questions, feel free to come and ask, but then we must be on our way.”
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Issil nearly spits out her drink as the queen reveals herself. "The queen... is here?"
Right. Focus. "I... have a ping from my assistant. I'll pass my notes onto her. Good luck, everyone. I'll secure the pier from here."
She dashes off to an unknown corner of the tent, quickly checks her gear, especially the white powdered ash.
"Ah, there you are!" A woman wearing white ash on her face along with vibrant, loose red clothing. "Issil Telfae, my employer, sent me to here to do her hard word. You may call me the Carnelian Signet. Or Signet for short. Whichever tickles your fancy."
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"Ah, there you are!" A woman wearing white ash on her face along with vibrant, loose red clothing. "Issil Telfae, my employer, sent me to here to do her hard word. You may call me the Carnelian Signet. Or Signet for short. Whichever tickles your fancy."
You again. Thought you stayed at the volcano. Anyway, you missed a spot.
Haka raises a hand to get Eando and the queen's attention.
Are there any specific things from the Tanglebriar we should watch for that might be tied to the effects? Plants, symbols, etc
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Hope gives his best good noble salute, which looks about as awkward as you'd expect it to when one's head is a bulbous as a literal garlic bulb.
"I understand now. I'm quite good at navigating in sinister lands from my homeland of the Gravelands. So, I think I will be able to serve you well, Your Highness. However, if I can ask... what sorts of corruptions do we know have been witnessed? Any further specifics? I know knights of greater rank deal with a great many kinds of evil corruptions upon the land."
"Haka, dear, you are as observant as ever." She pulls out a hand held mirror and quickly smears some more ash on her left cheek. "Whatever would I do without you? Ah yes, choke on volcanic gas. I wouldn't mind going there again."
"Elves first. Consorting with demons. Reminds me of Chileax. Same garbage, different color. My only question is when can we ride to Folien?"
Before you go, it's possible that you might know something more about the situation in hand.
Any of you can give me a Diplomacy, Society, or relevant Lore (such as Pathfinder Society or Kyonin Lore) to recall pertinent details about Venture-Captain Ciobanu.
Additionally any of you can give me a Diplomacy, Society, or relevant Lore (such as Pathfinder Society or Kyonin Lore) to recall pertinent details about the Society's history with Kyonin.
"Now, let's see what my employer wrote down about the Venture-Captain..."
"Nothing useful, I bet. Oh, she rambles on about elven wine."
"And maybe our history here? It sounds like this appeal to the Pathfinder Society was risky at best."
Alas, the Carnelian's employer spent more time detailing the terroirs and bouquets of different elven wines than useful information on the history and politics of the area, or on Venture-Captain Ciobanu.
★ ---- ★ ---- ★ ---- ★
Venture-Captain Ciobanu looks at the twisted path ahead and then at his wayfinder. Closing it, he looks up. “I remember, when I was leading my lodge, the most important tasks came when I was helping other agents to overcome obstacles they couldn't on their own. Getting to our destination is going to take supporting each other in much the same way. All of us have skills that we are better at than others, and we should use this opportunity to support each other. I need you to look around at your fellow agents and help them complete any tasks they're struggling with.”
Looking around the caravan traveling to Folien, you find several groups of Pathfinders who could use their help. Each of you can attempt two checks to assist their chosen group. Each of you can pick one group to assist, though more than one of you can help the same group.
★ ---- ★ ---- ★ ---- ★
The Injured
"Gah!" A half-orc winces in pain as he limps forward, dragging another injured colleague, an unconscious dwarf. "Medic!" Some agents fared poorly against the dangers of the forest and have returned to camp injured. They need help getting patched up so they can continue.
The Porters
"Look at this axle! It's broken, and now my beautiful wagon can't move forward!" A small sprite, who has been driving a very large wagon, is beside himself, wings fluttering anxiously. "And this is full of needed supplies! How am I to get them to camp?" None of the other Pathfinders here are wainwrights, so it's going to be a group effort to lift the wagon and put it back together.
The Ritualists
"And now my brethren, we just need the a shrubbery, a coconut-laden sparrow, and wooden duck," intones a gnome wizard over her glasses. Looking at the open mouths of her colleagues, she says, "Oh, c'mon. Did no one pack these items? Really?" The casters are working to pull together items that could be used to replenish material components for spellcasting and rituals. They could use some help with locating and gathering supplies.
The Hunters
"Shh.... We're hunting wabbits." A group of Pathfinders led by a bald man with a gun has been tasked with catching some small wildlife for dinner. With the number of people they need to feed, they're also going to need to sneakily track some and trap them.
Haka has clearly been reading a lot of Pathfinder Chronicles lately. He knows Venture-Captain Ciobanu is from the town of Folien, and was the leader of the lodge in Kyonin, known as the Leaves of Talhindir. The Society had been making great headwinds in gathering information about the history of Kyonin prior to Earthfall when suddenly he disappeared.
He also knows that Kyonin and the Pathfinder Society have been on uneasy terms for many years. When the elves returned after Earthfall, they found many of their artifacts had been looted from their homes, and with the Society's reputation for taking first and asking later the residents of Kyonin have trouble trusting them.
With Haka's assurance, he patches up some of the injured, and handily manages to lift the wagon.
"I prefer to rely on the assistance of others. Although there are some books I'd love reading, forever if I could."
The Carnelian Signet approaches the Ritualists first. "Is a braised duck acceptable?" She pulls out a packet of recently cooked meat. "Soaked in red wine for 2 days. I'm certain the deities above will savor this dish!"
Then she moves on to the Hunters. "I say, it must be duck season!" She attempts to pull a fast one before sneaking over towards a rabbit hole and dropping a nearby trap.
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Tandang tries to recall if he has heard about this venture-captain from his class in the academy, and also about Kyonin.
Tandang, with her fleshy familiar Plantina, joins the ritualists in gathering what they might need. "Let me help you find what you need. You just keep what you are doing." he says warmly to them.
"I wonder where I can even find those items, especially the wooden duck." he tells Plantina when they are out of earshot. He looks around and begins walking and wandering to places nearby.
He looks for more supplies he can find so that he won't be going back and forth.
The casters find both Tadang and Carnelian's offerings acceptable! Life Sprouts is alas not used to this particular abyssal-tinged elven forest, and comes up empty.
However, enough of you succeeded that the Pathfinders go on their way, much aided!
Upon approaching Eando Kline, he folds a piece of paper and puts it in his pocket as he begins to pace. “There are a few of our number who have, for lack of a better description, decided this mission doesn't emphasize our core values as Pathfinders and have instead opted to desert. Due to your repeated dedication to the Society, I am sending you to catch up to them and convince them to come back—remind them of who the Pathfinders really are.”
Let the searching begin!
"You want me to track?" The Carnelian Signet cocks her head to the side. "I'll let you handle this."
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Tandang volunteers himself to do the looking. He begins by taking some soil from the ground and smells it. After a while he begins moving as if following some unseen trail.
He stops, and this time, he touches the bark of the trees nearby to feel something from them, perhaps vibrations? Or maybe he is telepathically talking to them while he closes his eyes?
With Tadang's adept tracking and Graeyson's adept assistance, you are able to track down the missing Pathfinders within an hour. You see four sodden and dispirited-looking elves huddled around a campfire.
One of them looks at you, wearily. "Well, it seems as if we have company. Have you come to track us down, or have you seen sense as well?"
"Well, that depends. Are you ready for the victory celebration? You wouldn't believe how much wine they've prepared for it. I've seen the victory banners. The Society wanted to celebrate in style, and thank the residents of Folien for simply showing up."
"Now come on. You mustn't be tardy!"
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"Hey, fellow agents! We are here to help. We followed you to convince you to get back to the mission. There is nothing to be afraid of. This is no different from the other missions. If you need help, we are here for that. Please, come back, we need you for the mission." Tandang tries to be as sincere as possible.
The agents look somewhat unconvinced. "You know we're here when the elvish government doesn't want us. This mission sucks."
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Hope looks over at the agents across the river. "Look, at the very least don't head out and leave on your own. It's difficult out there if we don't keep as a group. I understand you don't like the government here but as Pathfinders together we're safer. If you head out there and desert the mission you're on your own getting back, and being frustrated with this mission isn't worth risking that out there."
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First, you did catch that that was the queen, right? At least some of them want us here. Second, that's why we're here, to show that the society's reputation was overblown and we aren't like that. Third, don't you think they'll have a lower opinion of deserters than agents trying to sneak through their territory?
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"Well, I think my friend here is right. Let's remember why we are here, why we are Pathfinders: to explore, report, and cooperate. Whatever is making you think twice about this mission, if we just cooperate, we can succeed, right?" Tandang makes sure his words have conviction this time. "If you can't do it for the Queen, at least do it for yourself as a Pathfinder, for the Society."
Hero Point!
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TRAVEL EVENT 4 - NAVIGATING THE OVERGROWTH
Eando swears softly at the maps he’s holding, frustration creasing his brow. "Looking at these charts, the way to town should be clear from here. Unfortunately, with all this overgrowth, I’m not sure which way we need to go next. I need you to go ahead of the rest of us and find a way through it, otherwise who knows what could happen while we’re stuck here?"
Engaging in some good old-fashioned pathfinding, you need to explore the area and mark the safest routes. This involves a combination of environmental knowledge, searching for danger, and physical prowess moving from each spot.
"The celebration party will begin as soon as you help us win." The Carnelian Signet rolls her eyes as they rejoin the main group. "It's not like the demons are going to take a break..."
"Oh, NOW we're pathfinding!" The Signet chuckles.
She attempts to vault over some of the underbrush but is soon caught against it.
So instead she prays to Grandma to help her out.
Granny's busy.
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Hope takes a moment to analyze the type of overgrowth around them to help determine the safest way to remove it without causing any harm to both themselves and those coming after them.
"Ah, long-stemmed Liana. I should be able to clear these vines if I put a little muscle into it."
Having learned what family of plants they all are he starts clearing away portions of it, pulling vines out of the way and climbing up to cut off branches that are too in the way.
He is less effective at clearing it than he is at identifying it, sadly.