The Pathfinder Society begins a perilous trek through the swamps and jungles of the Mwangi Expanse, searching for the location where the founding members of their organization formed the Open Road Pact. The clues the Pathfinders must follow are centuries old, however, and their best lead is the final logs of an ancient Pathfinder whose true fate may be markedly different than the world has been led to believe.
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Uhhhhhh... Salaish is at a loss. She's pretty sure this girl is *way* too young for Society work. She's also pretty sure that any child who manages to get this far on her own is probably pretty stubborn and hungry and tired. She'll probably throw a tantrum if I just call her out like that. This calls for tact.
"Sure, I'd love some tea. Thank you! I can offer some ration cakes to go with it if you'd like. I'm Salaish, by the way. Nice to meet you Alice and Alice. So, what do each of you like best about the Pathfinder Society?" She asks brightly.
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The little girl pours some imaginary tea into a tiny teacup, and passes it to Salaish.
She leans down and confers quietly with the doll, takes the rations, and says, "Here you go. And, thank you for the rations." She'll pretend to eat some and feed her doll. There's less of the rations in her hand, but it is unclear whether you saw her actually eating any of it.
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Khaul watches the little girl and the little gnome and their little tea-party.
"Greetin's to yer Alice, Alice and Salaish." he rumbles.
"I be hopin for once that this indeed be a mission suitable for the youngsters. The amount of time I spend trying to buff dents out of Myrsa here...." he shakes his head at the shield, as if he wasn't very good at looking after itself.
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A happy-go-lucky gnome enters the room. "Uhh, I was told to report here? I don't normally leave my coffee stand for any reason but- " His voice trails off as he recognizes a familiar face in the crowd.
"Salaish! How nice to see you again! My, you've gotten better since our meeting at the Dacilane Academy!"
I did tell you that Gnimish has sort of a crush on Salaish. He's just trying not to show it... Call it hero worship (the same way kids ogle at singers, etc...) :)
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A goblin, in a draconic jump-suit approaches the agents assembled so far. He eyes the ongoing tea party with vague confusion and the dwarf tending lovingly to his shield with curiosity.
Hey! I'm Arfsnarf! Fortune-teller extraordinaire! My clacky rock can tell us what may become of this mission. So far it has never let me down! Oh, hi Salaish!
He retrieves a multi-faceted, round'ish object roughly the size of his fist and lets it roll onto the ground and into the midst of the forming team. It lands on one of the flat sides, such that one face shows clearly at the top to present a number.
Uh oh...
He quickly retrieves it and stows it away before others can ask about what the result foretells.
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Salaish's eyes light up when she sees Gnimishmeijinomu. "Oh, hi Gnimish! It's been so long. Good to see you! How've you been?" She seems genuinely pleased to see him.
Her eyes light up again when Arfsnarf enters. "Oh, hi Arfsnarf! Do me! Do me!" She assumes that roll he didn't announce didn't count because it was just a demonstration or a warm-up or something. "Alice, come watch! You too, Khaul!"
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"Oh, Arfsnarf, don't feel bad! I remember getting a low roll on it before one of our last missions, but nothing really bad happened to me. I didn't manage to come up with a good song about it, though, no matter how hard I tried. Maybe that's what it means for me." Salaish puts her arm around the goblin and gives his shoulder a friendly jostle, giving Khaul a wink as she does so. It seems she doesn't take it as seriously as Arfsnarf does.
Many days ago, the Pathfinder Society mustered an expedition to the Mwangi Expanse, including the five Pathfinders currently on the Risen Albatross. Each of them received a similar missive in Absalom to invite them on this mission.
Illustrious Associates,
I write on behalf of newly commissioned Venture-Captain Stella Fane. The Pathfinder Society has need of your services again in an expedition to the Mwangi Expanse. New information has come to light regarding members of the Open Road Pact and their adventures in said region. The venture-captain shall impart specific details of the mission to you later.
However, you are to be the lead team for an expedition that starts in the Sodden Lands at the mouth of the Frogmarch River. From there, you are to proceed inland, exploring a few sites along the way. I say lead team, because a support team of experts and others shall follow the trail you forge. Although these secondary personnel have guards, we suspect you would agree that your skill allows you to trailblaze and move faster than they. To be clear, your responsibilities include marking a trail for this slower group and clearing said trail of hazards. This entourage shall rejoin you late each day to provide you with supplies to aid your trek and to help you catalog and store any important finds.
You set sail with Venture-Captain Stella Fane aboard the Risen Albatross at dawn in five days. If that schedule is not agreeable, please report it to the lodge or Venture-Captain Fane, who can be found fitting the Risen Albatross in the Docks, or else most likely at the closest tavern to the ship, the Spinning Coin.
Sincerely,
Amita Dugada, senior clerk
Numerous experts, warriors, and porters are aboard the Risen Albatross. Venture-Captain Stella Fane has kept the details of the mission close, vowing to reveal everything once the ship nears its destination. After a long voyage, including skirting the northern edge of the Eye of Abendego, the time has finally come.
About midmorning, Fane calls for the crew to gather in her quarters. Inside the cabin, a large desk faces the door; a worn leather chair faces away. Papers clutter the desktop, some of them weighted down with sailing cleats and tackles. Curtains adorn the room, accompanied by an unmade bed and a long table with benches. Wall shelves hold books, maps, and more bottles of various spirits than can be counted quickly.
The leather chair turns melodramatically. In it reclines Venture-Captain Fane, her hair pinned back from her face. She stops the spinning chair with a firmly planted boot on the desk and takes a swig of dark-brown liquid from a glass in her hand, then breaks the silence by saying, “Have a drink and a seat.”
She grins and gestures to the bottles and glasses on the desk, and then to the benches along the table. Most of the bottles are sealed and full of good, dark rum from the Shackles.
One is already open and half empty.
Fane begins, “I know this a weird one. It has been, all around. But I’m going to get to the point, short and sweet.” She looks at her glass and takes another swig, savors it for a moment, and continues, “The Society has come across some information that’s led them to believe that what they know about Gregaro Voth isn’t true. And whether or not that’s right, they think he left a trail to follow. You’re going to see if the loremongers know their stuff. When the Albatross drops anchor, your mission is to go ashore, make your way inland, and find three sites the Society believes Voth left clues in. I won’t blather on about it. Wrote the details down for you, I did. Harder to forget, right?”
Fane grins and slides a few papers across her desk.
"Questions?"
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Khaul eyes up the instructions warily.
"I be not that knowledgeable about such things..." he starts.
"But I've heard a thing or two in my time.".
He settles in to tell his tale, glass of rum in his hand.
"Gregaro Voth was a half-orc explorer and member of th adventuring group that formed the Open Road Pact centuries ago. Good lad, even if he be orcish."
He continues. "Voth be famed for exploring the Mwangi Expanse; his last mission aimed at finishing the Pact had once failed at. However, he failed again and died a year later in Absalom in disappointment. According to history, he is thought to be the last surviving member of those who formed the Pact, which included other famous Pathfinders, such as Durvin Gest, Kerinha Napsunar, and Selmius Foster."
He raises his glass to each time. "To the Society and its founders!"
Stella Fane is on the verge of answering Arfsnarf's question, when the dwarf know-it-all jumps in and answers it for her. All the better - that leaves her mouth free to take a swig of rum. She does give a half-hearted toast to the Society's founders, and then adds an unladylike belch.
Fane leans forward, saying, “If you need any kit, go see the quartermaster, Akin. You can take your drinks if you like. Give him your glasses when you’re done.” She smiles, leans back, puts her feet on the desk again, and says, “He loves bringing them back to me.”
She winks.
“Oh, and like the instructions say, please don’t get yourselves killed. That’s all I need. I mean—good luck!”
Akin is bald and tattooed from pate to toe, with some ink peeking from under his beard. Akin is cheerful and friendly, and he has a particularly deep, gravelly voice.
It turns out Akin is happy to take any glasses the Pathfinders bring him.
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"Well, since the Idol might be underwater, I'd like to buy a potion of Water Breathing. Anybody else want one? I'll also take a pup tent. No way I'm sleeping out in the rain!"
The Risen Albatross drops anchor in the mouth of the Frogmarch River, and a longboat ferries the PCs as far up a tributary river as it can before the overgrowth forces them to disembark and continue on foot. The sky is red above - a warning of rough travel ahead - as the rising sun strikes a heavy cloud ceiling that extends to the horizon. As the group continues on their travels, steady rainfall begins and persists for the journey.
Overland Travel, Day 1
During the trek through the jungle, the group focuses on making progress on distance, rather than being prepared for combat. While the usual Exploration activities (Search, Defend, etc.) are available, the following will be as well. In addition, I'm willing to entertain other skills not listed if there's a good case to be made from them.
Acrobatics: Balance on narrow spots of elevated ground, even in shallow water, to help the party navigate.
Nature or Swamp Lore: Search for signs of bogs and other hazards based on their knowledge of the local vegetation.
Perception: Identify hazards by finding them directly rather than by applying knowledge of the terrain (Lore or Nature) or sense of balance and body awareness (Acrobatics).
Survival: The Sense Direction activity is the most useful application of Survival.
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Alice, the Doll Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (2) + 9 = 11
Alice, the little girl Perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23
Perception DC 21: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (19) + 11 = 30
The party makes good time, traveling at one and a half times the normal miles per day (24 miles). As a matter of facct, the Pathfinders have such an easy time traveling that they can afford to keep their senses peeled for things of interest off the trail, which comes in handy when the sound of bubbling signals the presence of water just beyond a nearby thicket of vegetation. In the clearing beyond, massive tusks, skulls, and other bones protrude from the ground’s cracked, muddy surface, the mud loosening slightly in the ceaseless rains.
Critical Success:
Several worn saddlebags hang against the ribs of a nearby skeleton, close enough to be reached from solid ground. Inside are several bricks of high quality rock salt, protected from the elements by wax paper.
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Overland Travel, Day 2
Alice: 24 (Success)
Salaish: 21 (Success)
Khaul: roll now, please
Arfsnarf: roll now, please
Gnimish: 16 (Failure)
The party makes good time, again, traveling 16 miles in 2/3 of a day before arriving the area referenced in Voth’s notes. The land becomes drier, though still boggy, and once intermittent signs of ancient serpentfolk habitation become more frequent. These clues consist mostly of
bits of ruins, and the remains of conical buildings, pieces of ophidian sculpture, stones covered in serpentine pictograms, and the like offer clear signs of the lost society.
They also notice additional, newer markings on larger parts of the tumbled serpentfolk ruins, as well as talismans hanging in a few trees.
Critical success:
As the Pathfinder search the area, they come across a well-traveled path with easy-to-follow footprints that clearly lead to the pool containing the sunken idol.
Trees crowd the wet path just ahead. Beyond that, the jungle parts, and a weathered chunk of sculpture stands before a clearing with a broad pool. Across this pond, to the southeast, is another large piece of a statue. The remains of an ancient, tumbled structure stand to the southwest. Whorls and snaking lines in the architecture hint at serpentine pictograms that were carved on these stones long ago.
A slow stream flows from the east into the pool. Rushes and lilies grow in the northeastern portion of the pool (), where the water slows as it pivots against a jutting portion of the bank. The vegetation tangles in the water there, but near the path is a section of the pond free of such hazards. Within the hazy, slimy-bottomed pool is a massive, crumbling statue suggesting a form part snake and part humanoid. Its diamond-shaped head almost reaches the surface, and its coils rest on the pool’s floor.
Gnimish spots two eyes poking out of the water, but as soon as it's noticed, the froglike head submerges quickly, leaving only slight ripples on the water’s surface in its wake.
--Round 1
Alice the Poppet (54/54) / Alice the Girl
Arfsnarf (60/60, hidden?)
Khaul (85/85, shield raised)
GM
Salaish (63/63)
Gnimish (42/42)
Magenta (-0 hp, hidden to Gnimish, undetected to all others)
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The Alices will quietly converse with each other. The little girl says, "This is all Boggard stuff. The talismans, that is. They are of their demon lord Gogunta. This must be a holy spot to them. Wait here. I'll get the statue."
Then, the little girl will drop the doll.
Act Together:
The doll will cast Evolution Surge to give the little girl a swim speed (30) and the ability to breath underwater.
The little girl will move (35 ft) to the edge of the water.
Then, the little girl will swim out to the statue.
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Travelling through the swampy land, Khaul takes his time but does his best to keep everyone pointed in the right direction.
"Them tailsmen... they are boggard in origin..." mutters Khaul. "Be keein yer eyes open."
Then moments later he adds "And them footprints be of boggards. They be round here I say."
Khaul taps Myrsa and makes sure she is ready for what may be an unanticipated assault. His dwarven eyes then cast about, looking for threats.
* raise shield
* perception +10
* either point out or another perception +10
Alice moves out
Khaul doesn't spot any boggards, but he does spot something unusual - a net with soil and aquatic plants on it covers a 10-foot pit dug into the bottom of the riverbank.
Khaul spends an action to point it out, and then Arfsnarf hastes him.
From the depths, boggards emerge.
A loud, terrifying croak blasts through the water, scaring Alice. Then a second croak ripples through the water, creating a wave of destruction.
plus 2 per Frightened level
A second destructive croak follows soon after.
plus 2 per Frightened level
Two others try to Sneak up on Alice.
Alice sees Green. It surfaces next to her and swing a club.
Green misses twice.
Alice doesn't see Blue, however, until it's swinging its club.
vs flat-footed
--Round 1
Salaish (63/63)
Gnimish (42/42)
Magenta [weak] (-0 hp, hidden to Gnimish, undetected to all others) [Recall: Society]
Alice the Poppet (43/54) / Alice the Girl (Fort save vs frightened, then Fort save vs -10 plus -2 per Frightened, then Fort save vs -18 plus -2 per Frightened)
Arfsnarf (60/60)
Khaul (85/85, shield raised, haste 0/10)
Red Boggard [strongest] (-0 hp, -5' [underwater]) [Recall: Society]
Yellow Boggard [strongest] (-0 hp, -5' [underwater]) [Recall: Society]
Green Boggard [strong] (-0 hp) [Recall: Society]
BlueBoggard [strong] (-0 hp) [Recall: Society]