Olegaro is not as convincing as he sounds to the worried crowd.
Moist and Hanu are partly hurt while Zepth is unscathed.
Thanks to Otani, despite being hurt much, manages to calm down the mob with squawking the truth.
Olegaro (44/44 HP) [2☘️]
Rybar Ganon (35/35 HP) [0☘️]
Moist Definitely (19/24 HP) [1☘️]
Hanu, Friend of the Wood (37/42 HP) [1☘️]
Zepth (35/35 HP) [0☘️]
Once the crowd is calmed, Ulthun takes control of the fundraisers from Lady Embersplitter.
Meanwhile, Watcher-Lord Ulthun II raises his voice to address the crowd.
“Honored guests,” Ulthun says with worry evident on his face, “I apologize that this evening has not gone as planned. We planned this dinner to be in a well-decorated planar palace. This is a secure place, where we can catch our breath, enjoy our meal, and come together as a community. While we dine, I will make arrangements for everyone to be escorted back to their homes this evening.”
“Due to the quick action of the Pathfinders in attendance, we were able to save the attendee we thought had died. Please express gratitude to them this evening.”
The crowd close to any of them murmurs their thanks, some giving a courteous nod. As the dinner course begins, guests are ushered through a portal opened next to the central fountain. Entering the dining hall feels like descending into hell. Illusory flames rise between platforms and the entire area feels oppressively hot. Placards around the hall explain that this is a recreation of Vigil after the radiant fire destroyed the city and include additional donation boxes.
The Pathfinders are ushered at the table closest to the stage, as they have been installed there as favored guests of Ulthun for saving Danbry.
As the dinner begins, Fawlynd stands up from her chair and declares, “The Watcher-Lord may not be bothered by the Pathfinder Society attending this event, but I am. Every event they appear at, something goes wrong. It’s simply not safe to have them in polite company!” The other attendees murmur in a mix of shock, agreement, and disapproval at the outburst. Watcher-Lord Ulthun II attempts to stand, but Lady Embersplitter voices her support with a sly smile, “If they are indeed innocent, they can present their case to everyone present. I believe we all deserve answers for what happened tonight.”
Lady Embersplitter is now looking at the Pathfinders with the same sly smile.
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Moist shrugs again. I hope they're happy with how the evening is going.
--------------------
Defend ourselves? I thought we defended others here. That's gratitude for you! he remarks, mostly muttering to himself.
Out loud he makes his appeal.
We did not bring any trouble. We encountered it, and chose to aid. There was a whole ritual that someone else planned and we foiled it! What did we have to personally gain from that?
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whispering to the group "Is it just me, or does Hesla seem happy with this chaos?"
But when challenged, Olegaro will be indignant. After some initial blustering about Pathfinders protecting them from things they'd prefer not to know about, Olegaro will catch the mood of the room and get to the point. Pointing to Danbry he'll say loudly "It is only because we Pathfinders were there and able to provide immediate treatment to Danbry AND that we then foiled this ritual that your colleague Danbry here survived! While pale and wan, he is alive and will recover because of our actions."
--
hero point!
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Hero Point:
As much as he tries, Zepth cant put a finger on that nagging sensation he gets everytime he looks at Lady Embersplitter.
When faced with the accusations, Zepth responds angrily steps forward and addresses the whole situation.
"I believe our actions talk by themselves, did we not heal the dying man while everyone else just stared, but also stopped the ritual that was killing him? Had it not been for us, you'd have a dead man to be responsible for in this party."
Hanu keeps giving bananas to heal allies. EVeryone points out some evidences on helping and how Pathfinder Society is not what they think. They reveal the details about the murder-in-proxy ritual that just happened, and the almost death that could have happened to Danbry if not for the Pathfinders.
They manage to dispel any suspicion by the rest of the guests. Lady Embersplitter seems sour at the result.
Watcher-Lord Ulthun II fulfills his promise by having hired carriages arrive to carry home any attendees that arrived on foot. He also dispatches knights on horseback to accompany guests as they leave Vigil’s Hope. The Pathfinders are brought to the Grand Lodge, where Csilla has stayed up waiting for them as she received word from Ulthun that there had been an incident at the party. As they return, she immediately moves to assess their injuries (if any) and apologizes for sending them to such a difficult event. She asks the Pathfinders to explain what happened and listens carefully to their story. When they’re done, she pauses for a moment before stating that Lady Embersplitter seems to be no friend of the Pathfinder Society, and that the sudden emergence of cultists obsessed with Tar- Baphon but not associated with the Whispering Way is concerning. She thanks them for behaving admirably under pressure before bidding them to take a well-earned rest.
The Pathfinders begin the adventure having already arrived at the Open Road Lodge located in northern Mwangi Expanse. As they enter a meeting room, Venture-Captain Sigvard Tornkvist (female dromaar archaeologist) peers at them through her eyeglasses and greets with a stoic nod, introducing herself to them. There’s a large table in the center of the room, and along the walls are several bookshelves and a few display cases with maps and other items of archaeological significance.
The Venture-Captain, seated at one end of the large table, quickly glances around the room and nods approvingly. “You’re all here. Very good, let us begin. What I’m about to tell you concerns the Maze of the Open Road. Some of you may have already traveled through it, but for those who don’t know, it’s a network of magical portals, which Pathfinder agents use to quickly reach lodges and other sites across Golarion.
“Recently, our field agents assigned to missions through the Maze have started reporting strange happenings. On many occasions, Pathfinders using well-known routes and portals have exited the Maze in completely different locations than they expected. What’s more, several Pathfinders have encountered traps and other dangers that certainly were not there before.”
She sighs, removes her glasses and places them on the table, pinching her brow in an attempt to avoid a headache, then continues, “Thankfully, there have been no serious injuries yet, but many missions have been delayed or gone wrong. I’ve collated the reports, and it seems obvious all these incidents are connected. I don’t know what is causing it, but I’ve come to the conclusion that something or someone is altering the landmarks our agents use for navigation.”
Sigvard opens a scroll, which seems to contain a list . “I need you to enter the Maze and study at least three of the landmarks in this report. Find out what the source of these issues is and, if possible, put an end to it. Any questions?”
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Hanu wakes up early, before the light, before the others, spends the morning meditating by a tree with an open view of overcast skies above. The heavens stir, and there is a light rain, which falls across his fury body, collecting like dew upon a fuzzy flower.
Hours pass, until awakening from his trance, he casts his eyes up to see raincloud directly above him, heavy with evaporated moisture, dark and damp. And in a flash of a moment, a bolt of lighting strikes our hero, lifting him up cross-legged, a crackle of thunder stirring the others from their slumber below. Looking upon him, his body is no more, instead: a ball of electricity, in the shape of a humanoid body, buzzing with the brilliance of light generated from the energy contained within. Our hero, transformed into a being of pure current!
The moment is short, and as quick as it happened, Hanu appears right where he had sat once more, his vanara pelt and limbs returned to their ordinary state. He uncrosses his legs, punches his powerful arms down, and lifts himself to a standing position.
Smiling.
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Olegaro will have spent much of the break practicing healing, making full use of Fola Barun's medical tutorials and field labs. He fervently hopes to never have to face the battle medicine 'beep' test again but has come out with new found healing skills.
---
As they enter the lodge, Olegaro will quip "Back in the Mwangi Expanse, friends. Reminds me of fishing!"
After the briefing he will respond "Oof yeah the maze was super weird when we took a trip in there a month or two ago. Something something elemental I think, but very strange."
he then thinks for a second and turns to the party "Hey, what happened to those two wood and metal people we saw in the maze - could they be the ones creating trouble? They seemed a bit sketchy."
After looking over the scroll he'll agree with Hanu and Moist "Yes the Feyhenge sounds as good a place to start as any. And ah no questions unless there is some extra information about the maze that you think would be useful to us?"
Have any unusual or unexpected characters been seen hanging around these sites? Anybody that the field agents don't recognize?
"Field agents suspect something or someone is behind these anomalies but they can't pinpoint what or who, unfortunately."
"Hey, what happened to those two wood and metal people we saw in the maze - could they be the ones creating trouble? They seemed a bit sketchy."
"That's another lead that you can use." the venture-captain agrees, but with hesitation in her words.
"Yes the Feyhenge sounds as good a place to start as any. And ah no questions unless there is some extra information about the maze that you think would be useful to us?"
“I believe everyone of you knows that The Maze of the Open Road is a vast hedge maze, technically located on the grounds of the Woodsedge Lodge in Galt, but it’s more complicated than that. The druid Narven gifted it to the Pathfinder Society hundreds of years ago to help with travel, filling it with portals connected to locations of interest to our Society. One of those entrances is right here at the Open Road LodgeWhen you’re ready to enter the maze, I’ll give you directions to the maze’s central courtyard, from which it should be easy to find these locations. Moreover, according to the reports, when you’re near the affected parts of the maze, the walls look less neatly trimmed.”
You remember too that the most recent connections that the Pathfinder Society has created include Tian Xia. Further, the reemergence of the wood and metal planes has impacted the demiplane significantly, causing an apparent need to form new connections. Other well-known connections to locations outside Golarion include the planets Akiton and Aucturn.
The venture-captain draws out a box and presents it to the Pathfinders. "Get the Provisions you need before you head out. Good luck!"
When the Pathfinders are ready to enter the Maze of the Open Road, Sigvard shows them to the lodge's portal.
"I suggest you first head toward the maze’s central courtyard." she then gives directions so they can find it. From there, all landmarks in her report are reasonably easy to find.
Upon entering the portal, the sounds and sights of the Open Road Lodge quickly fade into a muted darkness beyond the portal's threshold, but just as suddenly, the darkness unravels as the twisted branches of a hedge wall rustle and uncurl to create a round entrance into a hedge maze. The air carries the scent of freshly cut grass, mixed with the sweet aroma of bright red roses that sporadically dot the lush, green maze walls.
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Olegaro will take a look around and then have a look over the walls of the maze, tap against something at the top of the hedge wall. With a puzzled expression he'll clamber back down before trying to push through the hedging to little success.
Finally he'll break into a grin and say "Oh nice, Narven must have been serious about needing to explore this place properly. There's a wall of force covering the top of the maze and you can't push through the foliage either! Its looking a bit overgrown now though wouldn't you say?"
--
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The venture-captain draws out a box and presents it to the Pathfinders. "Get the Provisions you need before you head out. Good luck!"
Moist fishes around in the box for a lesser healing potion.
While doing this he shares with the others that...
You know that despite the fact that the Maze has been mostly stable in recent years, it can still grow new connections to not only locations across Golarion, but also to dangerous planes and planets. Furthermore, the Pathfinder Society has also intentionally extended the network to better enable rapid travel to new regions and lodges around Golarion.
--------------------
Once they pass through the portal...
He notes Olegaro and Otani's observation that some walls look overgrown (Magic?)
Okay, I guess we get to climbing and pushing...
He tries to go quickly after others and make use of their progress and force.
He plonks back on the ground soon after he starts trying.
Oh... you'd think my kind should be good climbers, but alas, I am still a city frog and a cook.
Cough, sputter, spit Leaves fly out of Moist's mouth as he fights the overgrown hedge wall.
Does somebody have a machete?
He casts Imaginary Weapon and starts to hack at the wall.
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As they get into the maze, Zepth takes a look at the foliage in awe, not really knowing if there's something special or not about them, other than the unusual overgrow areas in some places.
Try as he might, he's not able to climb the walls to take a better look, so instead he decides to dig instead, having no luck as well with his enterprise.
"Well, I see no way to find our path other than just pushing forward, what about you guys?" he asks his fellow pathfinders as he continues looking around.
After their initial assessment of the Maze upon their arrival through the portal, they follow the venture-captain's direction toward the central courtyard without too much difficulty.
After a few minutes’ walk and a series of turns and short dead ends, the Pathfinders eventually arrive in a wide central courtyard. As they enter the courtyard, the twisting path of the hedge maze widens to a long stone causeway roofed by marble arches. The causeway leads to a courtyard surrounded by ancient stone structures, the largest of which must have been a palace. An enormous marble statue of a robed figure stands on a pedestal at the center of the courtyard, and a garland of red flowers adorns the statue’s brow.
The large statue depicts a bearded, balding man in a rustic, voluminous robe. He carries a staff made from a gnarled oak branch in his right hand and has a sparrow sitting on the left hand’s palm.
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Otani braves the foliaged interior of the Maze as any grounded bird might. The Tengu swings, slices and parrys every fallen branch, tripping branch and swinging branch that comes the Samurai way!
Medusa!
The old man is Forest King Narven, who created the maze.
The Tengu's black-blue feathers seem to be fluttering....
Once they are done investigating the courtyard, the group proceeds to the first location of interest.
Deep within the hedge maze, a small clearing holds a ring of eight standing stones. Each stone is five feet tall, three to four feet wide, and arranged in a perfect circle with a diameter of 20 feet. The stones are rough and weathered, covered in ancient symbols that pulse with a faint green light.
From the center of the circle, a green mist emanates, swirling and dancing above the grass.
Within the ring, there is something wrapped in an orange cloth.
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Yes, a medusa. Condria. Since her departure, the Pathfinder Society has used magic to rescue as many of her victims as they could. Note the distinct lack statues, which were previous victims.
Except that one of course. Forest King Narven.
Looks like I'll have to climb the statue to really see. Why didn't I just know that before... seems so obvious!
I'm definitely letting Hanu take care of this. I keep thinking frogs can climb!
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"So this is the Feyhenge. Its looking a bit overgrown though and while the mushrooms there are a nice touch, they don't look like they are intended."
Olegaro will then step up to the outside of the ring, but not enter and peer at the wrapped object.
Looking back at the others he'll ask "Is it safe to enter?"
As Otani steps into the circle out of curiouser curiosity, giant mushrooms sprout from the ground, appearing under some of the Pathfinders close to the circle.
Otani: nonlethal bludgeoning damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout)
Olegaro: nonlethal bludgeoning damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout)
Rybar: nonlethal bludgeoning damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout)
Hanu: nonlethal bludgeoning damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout)
Everyone is caught by surprise. After they are displaced, the Pathfinders that bounce out of their squares are also sprayed with pink spores!
Otani: nonlethal poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save
Olegaro: nonlethal poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save
Rybar: nonlethal poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save
Hanu: nonlethal poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save
Map Link: ENCOUNTER MAP
Note(s):
BEFORE YOUR TURN
❗ Hanu, Friend of the Wood: 8 NL B damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout); 7 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save ❗
❗ Otani: 15 NL B damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout); 10 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save ❗
❗ Olegaro: 14 NL B damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout); 8 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save ❗
❗ Rybar Ganon: 8 NL B damage and pushing you to an adjacent square vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout): 10 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save ❗
CHARACTER IN ➤ BOLD TYPEFACE CAN ACT! STRIKETHROUGH NAMES ARE ELIMINATED.
Mushroom Hazard |
Red Giant Mushroom |
Blue Giant Mushroom |
Purple Giant Mushroom |
Black Giant Mushroom |
➤ Zepth | |
➤ Hanu, Friend of the Wood | |
➤ Otani | |
➤ Olegaro | |
➤ Moist Definitely | |
➤ Rybar Ganon | |
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Looking back at the others he'll ask "Is it safe to enter?"
Olegaro's answer is swift as he gets buffeted out of the way by the sprouting mushroom and blasted with spores! He does manage to dodge some of the spores at least.
"Time for some mushroom harvesting then."
he'll wait for Zepth's potential inspiring song and then will swing at the blue mushroom with fervour, but not so accurately.
--
◆ Strike with his +1 striking longsword for slashing damage
◆ Exacting Strike with his +1 striking longsword for slashing damage
◆ Follow-up Strike with his +1 striking longsword for slashing damage
--
Zepth encourages allies, but not for long, and manages to bring down a target giant mushroom, slightly bouncing.
Olegaro is displaced hard and gets spore-sprayed a bit. Among his strikes, two strikes connect and are very effective.
Moist moves but misses to poke his target.
Hanu moves to fix one of the runes but is having trouble doing so.
Otani is displaced too and feeling unwell from the mushroom spores. His attacks are somewhat clumsy, and he does not hit even once.
Party Condition(s): +1 status bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, and saves against fear effects
Map Link: ENCOUNTER MAP
Note(s):
BEFORE YOUR TURN
❗ Otani: 10 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save (HP?) ❗
CHARACTER IN ➤ BOLD TYPEFACE CAN ACT! STRIKETHROUGH NAMES ARE ELIMINATED.
Mushroom Hazard |
Red Giant Mushroom |
Blue Giant Mushroom | Prone |
Purple Giant Mushroom |
Black Giant Mushroom |
Zepth | |
Hanu, Friend of the Wood | |
Otani | |
Olegaro | |
Moist Definitely | |
➤ Rybar Ganon | |
Rybar assesses one of the mushroom to know its weakness.
vs DC 20 Success
He knows that the mushrooms are prone to burning. "Fire works against them very well!" he shouts.
He draws his blade and slices the one in front of him.
vs Blue
S damage + weakness from Exploit Vulnerability
Rybar cuts the mushroom into half with ease.
The Red mushroom sprays spores at Otani and Olegaro! nonlethal poison damage (DC 20 basic Fortitude save)
Meanwhile, another mushroom pops up underneath Hanu
Map Link: ENCOUNTER MAP
Note(s):
BEFORE YOUR TURN
❗ Hanu, Friend of the Wood: 12 NL bludgeoning damage vs DC 20 Reflex save (see Sprout) ❗
❗ Otani: 10 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save ❗
❗ Olegaro: 10 NL poison damage vs DC 20 basic Fortitude save ❗
CHARACTER IN ➤ BOLD TYPEFACE CAN ACT! STRIKETHROUGH NAMES ARE ELIMINATED.
Mushroom Hazard |
Red Giant Mushroom |
Blue Giant Mushroom |
Purple Giant Mushroom |
➤ Zepth | |
➤ Hanu, Friend of the Wood | |
➤ Otani | |
➤ Olegaro | |
➤ Moist Definitely | |
➤ Rybar Ganon | |