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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.
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5) 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
6) Please complete the Macros and the Slides linked at the top of the page.
7) Questions, concerns? Feel free to share them in the Discussion tab.
8) Let's have some fun and tell a great story together! After all, that's what we are here for.
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Your adventure begins as you are led into a somewhat damaged shop. Discarded papers and debris have mostly been cleaned up, but the location has clearly been burglarized. As you are taken into the backrooms, you find several chairs positioned around a table.
"Would you like coffee, tea or any other refreshing beverage? Immaculate-Weaving-Under-Moonlight Nairaba and Kitsch will be with you shortly."
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Nyx steps out of the shadows. He is a lightly-skinned elf with silvery-white hair tied in a neat ponytail behind his head. He's covered in a dark cloak, with a hint of leather armor visible only from the front, and a sword's black hilt juts out. He clutches a shortbow with beaver tail fur tied to two points of the string as silencers. He has a quiver full of black fluflu-fletched arrows on his back.
He'd arrived early and wandered around the shop, looking for clues.
Who did this? Who do I know would've done it this way. Who would've done it better? Could I have done better? Where? How? Why? What was the objective? What did the thief or thieves want? He thinks to himself.
He looks at the gathered Pathfinders, and nods slightly. "I am Nyx Kirath, reporting for duty."
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"Oh yes, tea would be delightful. Here, let me help you," a kholo wearing robes featuring geometric patterns in bright green, red, orange and dark black says.
An odd, midnight black hyena follows languidly at his heels.
"I'm Lioness Lapping Blood. It's such a shame what happened here," he continues.
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A rather emaciated and elderly goblin woman enters the room followed by a slightly concerning-looking wolf wearing a riding saddle and thick leather 'armour' over its vitals. "Look at all this mess" - she speaks in a slightly raspy voice that contains surprising gentleness and warmth, like an elderly kindergarten teacher about to read a bedtime story.
"I am Granny" she offers to no one in particular, broadly addressing the room, "...and this is Hungry, he's a friendly dog, you can pat him, go ahead" - but Hungry the wolf doesn't look particularly friendly, but the scars this wolf has been doing a lot of killing.
Granny places a roll of knitting needles on the table as she unpacks a few items, one of which being a bowl "Nothing for me, but some water for Hungry, he might be thirsty" she chuckles.
"So I wonder what happened here and what was stolen"
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After a few minutes, a Mwangi man and an ysoki woman enter the room. The well-dressed man begins speaking immediately. "Hello Pathfinders! I’m Immaculate-Weaving- Under-Moonlight Nairaba, head of Procurement for the Society, and this is my counterpart, Kitsch, head of Supplies. We’re extremely sorry you’ve gotten pulled into this situation on short notice, but we have a bit of a problem, and we could use your help to resolve it. You see, while we were trying to set up trade with Ravounel, some extremely rude individuals calling themselves The Silver Devils decided to barge their way in here and wreck everything. They took some gold and a few valuables, but they’ve also stolen something whose true value they probably don’t know."
Her expression serious, Kitsch speaks up. "We suspect they stole it on accident, but what they got is a cipher that contains a lot of very important information. Society business partners, trade arrangements, shipping routes, and even all known entrances to the Maze of the Open Road. This could be extremely dangerous; if that cipher is decoded, especially by Chelaxian intelligence, the Pathfinder Society in the region could begin to suffer ‘setbacks’ and ‘accidents’ across the board. Obviously, we’d strongly prefer that this not happen. These Silver Devils clearly have ties to Cheliax."
"So, to get to the heart of the matter," Nairaba says, "we really need that cipher back. We’d like you to sneak into the enemy hideout, which we’ve discovered is in a cluster of buildings near the Salt Gate of Old Kintargo, and get it back."
Kitsch straightens up, lightly waving a hand to draw the attention back to herself. "I’d like to point something out. Based on our inquiries, the Silver Council is the best thing to happen to Kintargo since its founding, and these Silver Devils are a violent reactionary force looking to drag Ravounel back into the darkness of Chelaxian rule. While we wish for the cipher to be recovered successfully, please destroy it if you have no other choice. Our priority is that it not fall into the hands of Chelaxian spies, as Cheliax is likely to use it to cause problems not just for us, but for Kintargo and all Ravounel. We really don’t want to tip the Devils off and let them know that they’ve managed to get their hands on something valuable. Caution is our best bet—after all, if they learn we’re desperate to get it back, they might just go to ground with it."
"Insofar as we’ve been advised, the cipher was being updated with information regarding contacts in Kintargo who wish to do other business with the Procurement and Supplies Division, which as you might understand is very important. Operating within this area is still rife with a certain amount of danger due to Chelaxian interference, so we keep those records secret. It just happened to be here at the wrong time."
"We have a few contacts who might enable you to infiltrate the location, and we’d prefer if you kept force to a minimum. The more force we bring to bear, after all, the more important the information may be deemed. Besides, the thieves are likely to bolt while a battle is being fought. If this information goes to ground, we might be unable to find it again, or it could just be turned directly over to Chelaxian intelligence. As we’ve said, we’d really prefer to avoid that."
Kitsch speaks up, "It should look like a sealed tube, like a scroll case made of metal. A locked latch holds it closed, and it has a tiny emerald embedded at the top to help us keep track of it in the event it gets mixed in with other scrolls."
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"Do you have any suggestions how we can "sneak into the enemy hideout"? Do you have contacts who can get us in?" He pauses for a bit, then asks "Moreover, what does this cipher look like?"
Nyx tries to recall what he knows of the area in terms of illegal trade, gangs, underground networks, and contacts he may have.
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Lioness listens quietly, somehow sipping tea even with his strangely shaped mouth.
"A mission with no fighting will be a refreshing change," he comments, though his mind wanders a bit as he tries to think of what he has heard about the area, especially the Silver Devils and Chelaxian influence.
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"Stealthy doesn't always mean skulking around in the shadows" Granny looks about at the party appraisingly "...it can also involve misdirection"
"Interesting politics, we will do our best to ensure there are no regional scandals. Time to go to Kintargo"
Granny picks up her knitting needles, Hungry instinctively looks up at her to see if she is ready to go.
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Naraiba winks at Atlach. "If we knew where it was, we would have tried to get it back ourselves. " Addressing the rest of you, he continues, "We would like you to find out where their base is, then sneak in and get the cipher back. If they get wind that we are attempting to do so, it might spook them and they may spirit it out of the city. I would suggest attempting your infiltration at sundown. Before that, there are a few things you might do to lay the groundwork"
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You ask around about the Silver Devils in taverns and bars near the Salt Gate.
DC 16 Society to RK
DC 18 Diplomacy to Gather Info
By scouting the warehouse district, you can not only find the location of the Silver Devils’ base, but also be made aware of its potential defenses and the gangs’ numbers when infiltrating the hideout.
DC 16 Perception to Seek
DC 18 Stealth to Sneak
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Granny finds out about a local sports team also called the Silver Rebels. These Silver Rebels appear to be the top of the table in a sport that sounds like awsee rules...
You learn of several structures in the gang’s territory that seem worth investigating
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"Seems like these Silver Devils may not be so bad. They sound more like a bunch of dilletantes being a nuisance than a real threat," Lioness says to Granny.
"But they have made some enemies," he continues with a sly grin. "Want to come with me to stir up some trouble?"
Perhaps with Granny in tow, he heads off to find the Burning Daggers and rile them up against the Silver Devils.
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Flutters locates the base and which building is most likely to contain the cipher.
Gilgamesh attempts to locate the hideout but doesn't succeed.
Lioness and Granny head off to stir up trouble and succeed.
"The Silver Devils are a menace, but mostly insignificant muckrakers, and there are maybe 10 of them total. Most are brats from a bit of money, but not much. They make trouble even for the other gangs in the area—hell, the Burning Daggers really hate them! The Silver Devils hide out in one of the old salt warehouses."
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You manage to get someone to talk to you about the Silver Devils.
"The Silver Devils are a menace, but mostly insignificant muckrakers, and there are maybe 10 of them total. Most are brats from a bit of money, but not much. They make trouble even for the other gangs in the area—hell, the Burning Daggers really hate them! The Silver Devils hide out in one of the old salt warehouses."
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You ask around about the Silver Devils in taverns and bars near the Salt Gate.
A local gang in the area known as the Burning Daggers has a bone to pick with the Silver Devils and can be convinced to create a distraction.
By scouting the warehouse district, you can not only find the location of the Silver Devils’ base, but also be made aware of its potential defenses and the gangs’ numbers when infiltrating the hideout.
[ooc]Skills:
DC 16 Perception to Seek
DC 18 Stealth to Sneak scouts the area without being noticed.
You might pretend to want to join up with the Silver Devils, ingratiating yourselves with the gang.