(#Q-09) "Wayfinder Origins" w / QM rainzax for Outpost (Secondary)

Game Master rainzax

The Aeon Nexus

Nearby, two hostile constructs with organic plant parts (!?!) move to defend their contraption against intruders - shifting their spoken language into a perfectly fluent Taldane (Common):

"Your tamperings with the trapped Aeon Nexus inflict distress needlessly - although our Security Protocols identified you without Flagging, we are equipped to defend with Subordinate Overrides based upon Empirical Observation"

Says the Black Robot Tree, while the White Robot Tree agrees:

"Resistance will be met with swift physical Conflict Resolution - an Imperative to Recycle any Usable Detritus also stands in effect, that your interruptions may inadvertently preserve the Mission of this Workshop"

In tandem, they wave long electrical whips which crackle menacingly (10 foot reach - see Map), and spring to the counteroffensive!

[dice=Black Robot Tree to Initiative]1d20+8[/dice]
[dice=White Robot Tree to Initiative]1d20+8[/dice]

Unfortunately for these ancient workshop guardians, they were unable to account for the presence of Aldonza altogether, and failed to register Zug as a threat at the priority proportional to his reflexes!

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THE AEON NEXUS

Reactions: Ready
Lighting: Normal
Terrain: For a Large creature to Squeeze, treat the human-sized doorway as Difficult Terrain
Monster ID: Recall Knowledge (◆) w/ Crafting or Nature or Azlant Lore as Secret Checks
Hazard ID: Recall Knowledge (◆) w/ Crafting or Nature or Azlant Lore as Secret Check
Disable Hazard: (◆◆) Thievery (Trained) vs DC ??; but may Aid (◆) vs DC 15 w/ Arcana, Crafting, or Azlant Lore; Must be adjacent to Disable and/or Aid
Destroy Hazard: May Strike machine vs AC ??, HP ??, Hardness ??

Aldonza
Zug
White Robot Tree w/ electrowhip (reach)
Nanoc @ Basic Reflex Save (10 electricity vs DC 21)
Aeon Nexus
Fran
Black Robot Tree w/ electrowhip (reach)
Raash

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Aldonza and Zug are Up!

GM:

Creature: Prefect, the wyrwood guardian of this
chamber built from wood, metal, and magic, believes
it will one day merge with the aeon nexus and become
“Perfect.” The wyrwood can command the aeon nexus
using its wayfinder. Prefect now believes the arcane
assistant in the wayfinder is the infallible voice of the
aeon nexus, reciting facts in response to his ravings.
With its wand and firehose in hand, Prefect attempts to
lure the PCs with promises of power, only to attempt to
“extract aeon stones for imbuement” by force.
Hazard: A collection of glowing aeon stones hovers
in the center of the room, surrounded by discarded
fragments of aeon stones on the floor below. When this
hazard activates, the sharp fragments leap into the air,
whirling around the central nexus in a cloud of electricity.

The encounter begins when the PCs open the door into
area A2. In this area, a guardian wyrwood called Prefect
protects a nexus of aeon stones that it created. If the
PCs failed to repair the actuators before time ran out in
Opening the Workshop (page 4), the area is foggy. This
fog is not dangerous to breathe, but it does obscure vision,
imposing a –2 penalty on visual-based Perception checks;
this includes Perception-based initiative rolls. Additionally,
the fog makes it more difficult to see the individual stones
in the aeon nexus, increasing the DC of the Thievery check
to disable it by 2.
Creature: The wyrwood Prefect defends the aeon nexus
to the death, slowing down characters who approach with
its electrowhip.
Hazard: The aeon nexus attacks intruders with a
barrage of aeon stone shards and electricity. It does not
target creatures that carry a wayfinder with one of the
aeon stones from its core slotted into it (such as Prefect).
A PC who takes an aeon stone from the hazard’s nexus
can slot it in a wayfinder they carry to benefit from this
immunity to the hazard.
AEON NEXUS HAZARD 3
RARE COMPLEX MAGICAL TRAP
Stealth +8 (DC 20 to find the cluster of aeon stones at the
center of the nexus in the fog)
Description A small cluster of aeon stones floats two feet off
the ground, orbiting by shards of shattered aeon stones
that crackle with electricity.
Disable DC 23 Thievery (trained) to remove one nexus aeon
stone from the center
AC 22; Fort +14, Ref +8
Hardness 10, HP 42 (BT 21); Immunities critical hits, electricity,
object immunities, precision damage
Static [reaction] Trigger A creature who is not carrying a wayfinder
with an aeon stone from the nexus slotted into it approaches
within 15 feet of the aeon nexus; Effect The trap shocks
the target, dealing 2d8 electricity damage to the triggering
creature (DC 21 basic Reflex save), then rolls initiative.
Routine [three-actions] The trap loses one action each turn for each
nexus aeon stone removed from its center. On each action,
it shoots a jet of electrified, razor-sharp aeon stone shards
at a different creature within 30 feet, dealing 1d8 piercing
damage and 1d8 electricity damage (DC 21 basic Reflex save).

PREFECT CREATURE 3
UNIQUE N SMALL CONSTRUCT
Perception +8
Languages Azlanti, tongues
Skills Acrobatics +9, Athletics +10, Crafting +9, Stealth +9
Str +4, Dex +3, Con +2, Int +2, Wis +0, Cha +1
Items archaic wayfinder (Pathfinder Lost Omens World Guide
17) with nexus aeon stone
AC 21, Fort +10, Ref +11, Will +6
HP 44; Resistances electricity 5; Immunities bleed, death
effects, diseased, doomed, drained, fatigued, healing,
necromancy, nonlethal attacks, paralyzed, poison, sickened,
unconscious
Attack of Opportunity [reaction]
Speed 25 feet
Melee [one-action] electrowhip +12 (disarm, finesse, magical, reach 10
feet, trip), Damage 1d10+6 electricity plus Knockdown if
the target is wearing metal armor
Arcane Innate Spells DC 20; Constant (5th) tongues

10–11 Challenge Points: The aeon nexus has 56 Hit
Points and starts with 4 actions.
12–13 Challenge Points: Add a second wyrwood to
the encounter with the same statistics as Prefect. This
wyrwood’s name is Preserver.
14–15 Challenge Points: Add a second wyrwood to
the encounter with the same statistics as Prefect. This
wyrwood’s name is Preserver. The aeon nexus has 56
Hit Points and starts with 4 actions.
16–18 Challenge Points (5+ Players): Add a second
wyrwood to the encounter with the same statistics as
Prefect. This wyrwood’s name is Preserver. The aeon
nexus has 70 Hit Points and starts with 5 actions.