☠ Season of Ghosts w/ DM rainzax ☠

Game Master rainzax

Occultism, Pick Bonus: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 6 + 1 = 19
I'm worried we're not on track to make this and it seems pretty important, so I'm going to Hero Point this despite the nat 12.

Occultism, Pick Bonus, Hero Point Reroll: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 6 + 1 = 17

Lan tries his very hardest, but still can't make heads or tails of the head or tail.

Round 2

Reaching up to hold Lan's hand, Auntie Wu spares a moment to murmur: "Follow your heart; no need to try so hard." Then she continues praying, reaching out her mind to tug the ley lines so they align with the vestiges of Ugly Cute's spirit.

All my other applicable skills are -2 or +1, so repeat Religion it is.
Religion, Pick bonus: 1d20 + 10 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 10 + 1 = 29

Vekka nods at Auntie Wu's wisdom.

Life forces are not to be struggled against, but to flow with. We need merely coax Ugly Cute's spirt back to his vessel...

Round 1 Crafting: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (9) + 7 = 16
Round 2 Crafting: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

Sigurd remains silent. Sometimes words fail to express your true feelings.

Religion: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 7 + 1 = 23

He already feels stronger. "You can do it. We believe in you."

Kazuki stays quiet through the entire interaction with Pick. He is quite anxious to find Ugly Cute and get the guardian back to help protect the town. The thoughts of his missing mother hang heavy in the back of his mind. He hopes that while ugly cute is helping to protect the town, Kazuki and the gang can set off in search for his mother.

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Not much of a spiritual person, Kazuki assists the best he is able with the ritual.

He shifts the heavy stone body of Ugly Cute into a more comfortable looking position. Even each stone leg seems to weigh a ton as he spreads them out.

Athletics (T) to aid & Pick bonus: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (16) + 6 + 1 = 23

Kazuki Aids Auntie Wu, Lan, Sigurd, or Vekka: 1d4 ⇒ 4 Vekka by lifting some stone for him.

Ugly Cute's spirit seems to be lingering on the threshold between planes of reality...

...will the Party pull though?

Awaiting Kazuki's 2nd check plus any last minute Hero Points!

Kazuki continues assisting his friends...

Athletics (T) to aid & Pick bonus: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 6 + 1 = 15

I might hero point that. Is the DC on an aid check the same as the skill check DC?

Kazuki Aids Auntie Wu, Lan, Sigurd, or Vekka: 1d4 ⇒ 4 Vekka again by continuing to lift stone for him...

A couple hours in, and the party’s progress seems pained and strugglesome…

…the soul of Ugly Cute slowly begins to slip beyond their grasp…

…unless…

Four Successes needed with only one final round and Hero Points for the final round only! Go!

Sigurd continues his silent vigil.

Religion, Pick: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 7 + 1 = 20

Pick encourages him, and somehow it helps.

Occultism, Pick Bonus: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 6 + 1 = 13

Lan tries his best to fight through his desperation, and focus on the task at hand. Hero Point!

Occultism, Pick, Hero Point Reroll: 1d20 + 6 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 6 + 1 = 14

Sorry folks. :( Lan will go 0 for 3.

Please, please, please... Sensing Ugly Cute's spirit drifting farther away, Auntie Wu reaches with all her heart.

Religion, Pick: 1d20 + 10 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 10 + 1 = 31
Wahoo!

We are running out of time and I have no idea how to arrange things so that the spirit will be happy. There I go trying to project mortal expectations onto spiritual matters... That is probably why we'll fail.

Crafting: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13 believe it or not I typed out that flavor text before the roll. But, ye dice gods! oof

HERO POINT Crafting: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20

As Vekka is fretting over the arrangement, and in his heart starting to give up, he notices a something hidden in the leaves and sticks around the base of the statue. In the transformation Ugly Cute’s spider eyes had become sapphire gems lodged in the stone head.

Except one of them was missing. Vekka smiles, picks up the errant gem and places it back in the guardian spirit’s stone head.

8 mighty stone spiders legs lift a two-ton thorax up off the ground as the Mystical Town Guardian, "Ugly Cute", rises once more, easily a head and a half taller than even the tallest among the Villagers-turned-Heroes of Willowshore. It speaks.

"Little ones. I knew it would be different this time. I felt it even though I haven't yet seen it!"

Decoding Ugly Cute
Speaking in obscure phrases, alluding to things non-tabgible, and positioning query at times from a narrative omniscient perspective more akin to reading a story than having a conversation, it turns out Ugly Cute, despite speaking the common tongue, is difficult to understand!

➤ Level: 5 (base DC 20)
➤ Complexity: 3 rounds
➤ Timeframe: 10 minutes
➤ Synergies: Multilingual, fluency in 5 or more languages
➤ List of Skills: Arcana (hard), Occultism (easy), Nature (hard), Religion (easy), Society (moderate)

Players can "ask" one question per ⭐, but GM will give answers cryptic and vague, only "decoding" one answer per additional ⭐⭐ for now. Unless told otherwise, I will assume party would like to spend ⭐+⭐⭐ per question to both "ask" and "decode" it. In short, what I need from you is: 1) a list of questions and 2) how many you'd like to decode (GM will choose which from among questions listed)

And they say Pathfinder is all about combat!

Sigurd silently thanks Shizuru for her aid. Everyone paved the way for her assistance.

Ugly Cute is alive... and well?

"Ah... hmm. You speak in riddles. You must be a bit dizzy from your return."

Sigurd is glad to have an ally return but there are so many questions.

Occultism: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10
>Oddity Identification< You gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Occultism checks to Identify Magic with the mental, possession, prediction, or scrying traits.
I'm only posting this to avoid a Critical Failure

So many questions!

”All of what we share together, all of this cycle, is a riddle, or if it isn’t, it’s repetition leads me to feel as though I am unsure of my purpose of Protection” he turns to face the cleric ”Take you for instance. You have felt the sun on infinite summer brush your skin. And yet! Revere it you continue to do with your eyes wide open!”

As Ugly Cute rises from its stony oblivion, Auntie Wu whooshes out a deep sigh of relief. Craning her neck to look up at its face, she steps forward to touch its nearest leg. "We thank all the gods for your return. Welcome back, Ugly Cute." Tears well up in her eyes.

And then he speaks in riddles. Oof. He didn't speak in riddles during the fight. I really hope that isn't a bad sign. She keeps her thoughts to herself, focusing instead on translating his almost-free-association wordplay.

Round 1
Religion, base DC 20: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (20) + 10 = 30
Guess I'm using up all my nat 20s now.

Occultism: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11

Standing in awe, Lan is starstruck, and cannot ask anything!

When Sigurd looks as Ugly Cute, some of the things he says seem like they might actually make sense...

Vekka's eyes watch the stone drop to the ground. Curious, he picks it up and looks at it, turning it over in his hands.

He then returns his attention to Ugly Cute.

Riddles indeed...

Round 1 DC25 Arcana: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (3) + 9 = 12

It seems Vekka won't be asking a useful question for the moment.

"The sun does brush on my skin every day. Sometimes my skin turns bright red from over exposure." Sigurd checks a spot on his hand. "But it reminds me every day to continue on, to never falter. The sun is good role model for me to follow."

Religion: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23

"We are never fully certain of our need to protect, but it is a driving goal. We never forgot your bravery against the faceless."

Cycle? Has this happened before?

Kazuki is ecstatic that Ugly Cute has come back to life. He is quite confused about it's cryptic riddles.

Round 1: Religion (T): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17

Kazuki throws his arms up in the air in disappointment.
"I don't get what Ugly Cute is trying to say." he says shaking his head.

”Nor I yours!” the Stone Spider counters Sigurd ”I had not seen that you would survive, but felt it” it smiles here, it’s heavy mandibles contorting into a sideways grin of sorts ”It is not always so, for many times have I travelled the journey I have travelled, my Vision one and the same” he makes direct eye-contact with the entire party here - 50d6 ⇒ (2, 1, 2, 1, 5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2, 3, 1, 6, 5, 5, 4, 1, 1, 4, 1, 2, 6, 5, 4, 4, 3, 1, 5, 5, 6, 4, 2, 4, 6, 6, 2, 2, 5, 2, 2, 2, 1, 4, 1, 4, 4, 5, 2, 4) = 160 multi-facets concentrating 30ish at a time focusing intently like staring into your souls through it’s open windows”But today? This is a new sunrise…”

...Just on the verge of understanding one sliver, two more slip from grasp, as the party tries to make sense out of the Beneficent if Strange town guardian's words...

"Ugly Cute and Sigurd at Willowshore. When the walls fell. His arms wide!"

Round 2: Religion (T): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9

Auntie Wu continues mulling everything Ugly Cute has said in her mind. Not *seen*, but *felt*...

Round 2 Religion, Base DC 20: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (17) + 10 = 27

"My Vision one and the same..." Hmm...

Round 3 Religion, Base DC 20: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (19) + 10 = 29

Now Kazuki is speaking in riddles. Who will be next?

Occultism (easy): 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Travelled the journey I have travelled... how circular. All of it is escaping Vekka at the moment.

Oof, maybe he should abstain.

Occultism: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25

"... his eyes uncovered!"

Auntie Wu's intuition proves strong - Sigurd and Lan begin to maybe understand - Vekka and Kazuki have yet to gain purchase on the Statue Guardian's strange words...

"The Wall!" Ugly Cute spins on Kazuki "Have you seen it?" he mimics the ranger's spoken words, opening his "arms" wide "The Wall around Willowshore. The Wall around us All. The Wall: a closed eye!" he turns to Lan now "Or no, not this time. I have felt it too. Have you? Have you truly Uncovered your Eyes?"

"You shall soon see as well" addressing the entire group "If you cannot feel it, only then shall you know. The Wall is the Answer. The Answer is the Wall..."

The wall? Please Ugly Cute, start making sense. Is the roof on fire too?

Vekka's mind desperately feels around for any thread. His studies of the arcane and Nethys are too anchored in stable concepts. Not being a full-time wizard, he has't yet advanced to studies of arcane dynamics.

DC22 Society: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6 aaaarg

Occultism: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

"The wall... our path must lead there. Thank you, Ugly Cute."

Sigurd feels Ugly Cute is speaking of a future that is the present. Sigurd has had trouble interpreting Shizuru's missives. Even Kolphanir's messages are buried in misdirection.

Occultism: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (2) + 6 = 8
I will reroll that if it's a Crit Failure, but not if it's a regular Failure.

Occultism, Hero Point Reroll: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17

Auntie Wu's eyes glaze over as she continues trying to make sense of Ugly Cute's words, mumbling: "The wall around Willowshore, around us all, a closed eye..."

This player is clueless.

It could mean that the wall prevents us from seeing through. Like, someone has surrounded us and cast a giant wall of fog or something. That's my hypothesis, anyway.

Botting Kazuki for Round 3 roll

Centering himself, Kazuki sifts through the teachings he's heard over the years, trying to make sense of Ugly Cute's confusing statements.

Religion, Base DC 20, easy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (1) + 7 = 8
Noooo! Sorry, guys.

Kazuki can use my special Hero Point Reroll.

Religion, Campaign Coin Reroll: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11 vs easy DC

At least that's not a Crit Failure. I think that leaves us with +6, so two full questions.

3. Do you know what this crimson fog is all about? ⚔⚔⚔

"It's Breath, you can feel it, that of a Malign Spirit, permeates all: Prophecy, This World, the Next, and the Last. Unnatural is the Cycle, for if Escape were possible, would not Recapture be Imminent?" he spins on Sigurd "Lead you there, it has. I have seen it. The Wall awaits those who Would and Could, even as you will find that you Will Not and Cannot. Unless..." he looks to Auntie Wu now, coming close to her, as if to observe her brain through her skull - or perhaps her spirit through her body "You. You might be the One to Break the Wall!"

Decoded: Ugly Cute believes the Crimson Mist is the "breath" of a Malign Spirit that is somehow situated behind a "wall" of some sort - Some entity that is able to observe the world and influence it (specifically in the form of supernatural weather) but unable to fully materialize due to what he vaguely refers to as a "wall" preventing it from doing so (he does not have complete knowledge - this is his current hypothesis) - perhaps something as Lan has postulated HERE!

4. What is the ultimate goal of the entity that is orchestrating this uprising? ⚔ ⚔ ⚔ ⚔

"Up? Rising? The Sun has made it's Mark upon the Land! And yet, to question it's Repetition, than just Accept it, leads us... Where?"

Decoded: GM needs players to clarify first what is meant by "uprising"? Do you mean all the monsters invading Willowshore? I presume you do, but I would phrase that as more of a hostile takeover than an uprising... or did I miss something and you mean something else?...

"Hmm... your words are wise, Ugly Cute." Sigurd bows with deep reverence. "You seem to have your strength restored."

"I believe we are returning to the Matsuki Estate. You are welcome to join us- your presence will boost morale."