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Mrs Crinkle gets angry, turns into a large upright wolf, charges the jug, and bites it. A loud can be heard and bits of some sort of outer layer breaks apart (). He punches it and her fist creates a spiderweb pattern in the ceramic.
Tirion marks the jug as prey, pulls the spear off his back and stabs it.
for
The spear punches clean through the wine jug and it shatters.
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You enter the office and take in the lavish decor and furniture.
This room contains an elegant and expensive floor rug, velvet covered chairs, a small wooden chest and a grand looking desk.
If you take some time to read the diary
The Golden League cell has been hiding within Silvertree village for decades, integrating with the villagers and blending in seamlessly, so they can use the settlement as a hiding spot for stolen or smuggled goods until it was safe to move them. The other residents are unaware of the cell’s affiliation and are equally unaware of the labyrinthine smuggler’s den they slowly built over the decades underneath the unassuming business the cell uses as a front. The Golden League made sure not to disturb the forest directly outside of the village and skirted the kami Sakura’s wrath with secret offerings. Those offerings, though, would not work this time.
Then the events of Godsrain caused the cursed weapon Bloodmoon to fall to earth in a literal rain of blood, where it found a cell of Golden League smugglers. Bloodmoon is the naginata that the deity Fumeiyoshi, Lord of Envy, used to slay his brother, the moon god Tsukiyo. Though Fumeiyoshi later tossed the bloodstained blade away, the cursed weapon has sought opportunities for both mischief and self aggrandizement ever since.
Sakura, already on edge with the chaos wrought recently due to the Godsrain, was in no mood to host an unholy item such as Bloodmoon in their territory. They can feel its ill intent like a cloying stench, undetectable to the residents of Silvertree, even the cell. Sakura blamed the entire village for the actions of the Golden League Cell and, as punishment, sealed it off from the rest of the trade route with a bank of disorienting fog. Travelers trying to pass through will find themselves leaving the fog in the same place that they entered. Sakura has demanded the removal of the “filthy source of miasma,” but will not elaborate. The innocent villagers have no idea what their guardian could mean. Ever inscrutable, the will of the kami seems, to them, impossible to carry out.
Meanwhile, the Golden League cell has been overwhelmed by the cursed naginata. Bloodmoon has stoked their greed and paranoia, causing them to shutter their businesses and act aggressively to outsiders and each other.
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As soon as the wine jug shatters, Mrs. Crinkle drops to all fours and begins lapping up the wine, even as she shrinks back down to her normal self. Eventually her tongue isn't long enough to lap it up efficiently anymore, so she begins the process of wringing out her dress and tying it back up. "Mmmm! I smell like a fantastic party! Heehee!"
Once she's decent, albeit quite stained and still dripping the odd droplet of wine, she enters the office.
"Ooo! What a fancy desk!" She bustles over to sit/squelch into the chair and puts her feet up on the desk. "Ahhhh! It's hard work being on top. Heehee!" Dropping her feet, she begins shuffling through the drawers of the desk, checking for secret compartments and whatnot.
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vs DC 17
"I spy, with my little eye, a diary that details the boss’s rise to power within this cell of the Golden League! Ooo, this reveals a ruthless cunning and honest self-appraisal. But in the most recent diary entries, the handwriting becomes erratic as the boss extols Bloodmoon and expresses violent sentiments like, 'They don’t want me to succeed, but I will crush them all like the insects they are.' - EEW!"
Insects help trees procreate, so Thevenin's not sure where this diary is going. They sit down and look at the murdered tree with macabre fascination.
The Golden League cell has been hiding within Silvertree village for decades, integrating with the villagers and blending in seamlessly, so they can use the settlement as a hiding spot for stolen or smuggled goods until it was safe to move them. The other residents are unaware of the cell’s affiliation and are equally unaware of the labyrinthine smuggler’s den they slowly built over the decades underneath the unassuming business the cell uses as a front. The Golden League made sure not to disturb the forest directly outside of the village and skirted the kami Sakura’s wrath with secret offerings. Those offerings, though, would not work this time.
Then the events of Godsrain caused the cursed weapon Bloodmoon to fall to earth in a literal rain of blood, where it found a cell of Golden League smugglers. Bloodmoon is the naginata that the deity Fumeiyoshi, Lord of Envy, used to slay his brother, the moon god Tsukiyo. Though Fumeiyoshi later tossed the bloodstained blade away, the cursed weapon has sought opportunities for both mischief and self aggrandizement ever since.
Sakura, already on edge with the chaos wrought recently due to the Godsrain, was in no mood to host an unholy item such as Bloodmoon in their territory. They can feel its ill intent like a cloying stench, undetectable to the residents of Silvertree, even the cell. Sakura blamed the entire village for the actions of the Golden League Cell and, as punishment, sealed it off from the rest of the trade route with a bank of disorienting fog. Travelers trying to pass through will find themselves leaving the fog in the same place that they entered. Sakura has demanded the removal of the “filthy source of miasma,” but will not elaborate. The innocent villagers have no idea what their guardian could mean. Ever inscrutable, the will of the kami seems, to them, impossible to carry out.
Meanwhile, the Golden League cell has been overwhelmed by the cursed naginata. Bloodmoon has stoked their greed and paranoia, causing them to shutter their businesses and act aggressively to outsiders and each other.
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"What? No secret stash of sublime liquor! What a travesty! --Oh well. Let's smash that chest open, shall we? Heehee!" Mrs. Crinkle declares as she totters over to the chest. She hefts it high above her head, but sways with the uneven weight of it and drops it to the floor with a dull thud.
She stares at the still completely intact chest as if confused. "Huh. Bad chest! You will rue the day you defied me! Heehee!" This time she kicks it against the wall. Mayhaps her toes will hurt something fierce once she sobers up enough to notice.
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"Hello? Is anyone there?" comes a female voice, "Staff are only allowed back here, you know? Hello?"
Stepping back out into the hallway, you see an old lady who came up from the stairway at the end of the hall. "Oh my! Who are you and what are you doing here? This is my tofu shop but you're not allowed back here!"
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I know that trick! Mrs. Crinkle has done the cute-old-lady-offering-candy schtick many a time. It disarms all kinds of people, but not Pathfinders on high alert for treachery! She doesn't hear whatever Pennypockets and Thevenin heard, but she trusts their instincts.
The only question is: Is the cute little old lady in on the nastiness or being used by it without her knowledge or consent? There's only one way Mrs. Crinkle is willing to find out: Dive right in!
In her sweetest, most innocent little old lady voice, she replies: "Why, yes, I'd love a sweet! Thank you, dearie! Heehee!" She reaches out to accept the candy, all her senses alert for trickery...
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Mrs Crinkle takes the sweet from the old woman. It proves to be a delicious, chewy caramel.
It is only then you notice something tiny. A glowing ... thing ... rising from the old lady's back. "Why wait... KILL THEM MAMA TOFU!" Though its voice is slightly louder than a whisper, it's pretty clear it doesn't like you...
The old lady's demeanor changes as she sighs. "I'm the boss here, Bloodmoon!"
Seeing your startled looks, her voice hardens, "Oh so you know that name. No matter!"
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COMBAT TRACKER
Round: 1
Tactical Map
Active Conditions:
Special Conditions: Bloodmoon
* Disable (2 actions): DC 20 Occultism/Religion, 2nd Rank Dispel (Counteract DC 18)
* Successes needed: 0/2
* +2 bonus on disable checks due to 1st time success in purifying the shrine
* You can also spend 1 action to taunt Bloodmoon using DC 18 Diplomacy/Deception/Intimidation
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Those with ** may go
**Thevenin Serkat - AC 20 (21 w/shield) 52/52;
**Pennypockets - AC 19 (21 w/shield) 34/34
Bloodmoon
Mama Tofu
Lande Striden - AC 21 62/62
Onye Dawon - AC 20 53/53 (Clumsy 1: AC 19; temp hp - 6/6)
Mrs. Crinkle - AC 20 (22 w/shield) 53/53 (AC 22; temp hp - 4/4)
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Penny squares up defiantly, the fire of bardic bravado burning bright in his eyes. :
"Bloodmoon, your time here is done,
We’re stopping what you have begun.
The ghosts that you made,
To rest have been laid,
And your evils have all been undone!"
Occult Disable
He spins, points at the foe, now all firey light in his eyes and snarls:
"We are goblins, we're a crew!
Blunt your blade ‘cause we hate you!
We’ll smash you up to bits,
Wreck you with our nasty hits!
We don’t care about Bloodmoon,
You're just an overblown goon!"
Intimidate
◆◆ Disable
◆ Intimidate
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Penny and Thevenin make short work of Bloodmoon. It crumbles to dust even before it got a chance to act...
Mama Tofu's face pales as she sees Bloodmoon, the source of her power, crumble. Screeching in rage, she takes a swipe at Mrs Crinkle.
for plus Soporific Touch
She then turns to Onye and makes funny faces at him, attempting to get him to laugh.
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COMBAT TRACKER
Round: 1
Tactical Map
Active Conditions:
Before your Turn:
DC 20 Fortitude vs Soporific Touch: Mrs Crinkle
DC 20 Will vs Laughing Fit: Onye
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Those with ** may go
-2-
**Thevenin Serkat - AC 20 (21 w/shield) 52/52;
**Pennypockets - AC 19 (21 w/shield) 34/34
-1-
Mama Tofu
**Lande Striden - AC 21 62/62
**Onye Dawon - AC 20 53/53 (Clumsy 1: AC 19; temp hp - 6/6)
**Mrs. Crinkle - AC 20 (22 w/shield) 38/53 (AC 22; temp hp - 4/4)
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CONDITIONS AND EFFECTS REFERENCE
--------------------------------
CS/S: Unaffected
F: Enfeebled 1 (1 day)
CF: Falls unconscious and dreams of eating delicious sweets
** If a creature fails a second save vs Soporific Touch, treat as CF**
CS: unaffected
S: Uncontrollable laughter; no reactions
F: Slowed 1, no reactions
CF: Fall prone, no actions or reactions (1 rd). Subsequent rounds as failure
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Penny launches a loose rock at Mama Tofu but she easily ducks out of the way. Mrs Crinkle (literally) bites the hand that fed her. Thevenin drops another Happy Tree to protect Mrs Crinkle.
Onye begins to snort and sneeze and laugh as he steps forward to slash at Mama Tofu but he overbalances and almost removes Mrs Crinkle's head instead...
Lande declares Mama Tofu prey, steps forward and opens a wicked slash along Mama Tofu's front.
Mama Tofu looks a Onye. "That's right, keep laughing, dearie" before taking swings at
for
for
She screeches as the Happy Little Tree blocks both strikes.
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COMBAT TRACKER
Round: 2-3
Tactical Map
Active Conditions: Courageous Anthem (2/4)
Before your Turn:
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Those with ** may go
-3-
**Thevenin Serkat - AC 20 (21 w/shield) 52/52; Happy Little Tree AC 10 4/20
**Pennypockets - AC 19 (21 w/shield) 34/34
-2-
Mama Tofu (-48; 14 < AC <= 29)
**Lande Striden - AC 21 62/62
**Onye Dawon - AC 20 53/53 (Clumsy 1: AC 19; temp hp - 6/6)
**Mrs. Crinkle - AC 20 (22 w/shield) 53/53 (AC 22; temp hp - 4/4)
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Penny drills Mama Tofu right in the head with a piece of the wine jug.
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COMBAT TRACKER
Round: 2-3
Tactical Map
Active Conditions: Courageous Anthem (1/1)
Before your Turn:
------------------
Those with ** may go
-3-
**Thevenin Serkat - AC 20 (21 w/shield) 52/52; Happy Little Tree AC 10 4/20
Pennypockets - AC 19 (21 w/shield) 34/34
-2-
Mama Tofu (-62; 14 < AC <= 29)
**Lande Striden - AC 21 62/62
**Onye Dawon - AC 20 53/53 (Clumsy 1: AC 19; temp hp - 6/6)
**Mrs. Crinkle - AC 20 (22 w/shield) 53/53 (AC 22; temp hp - 4/4)
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Lande reprimands Mama Tofu for hurting the Happy Little Tree. His axe removes her head.
Proceeding down the stairs Mama Tofu came up from, you open the door and find the remnants of what used to be a grand hallway.
Heavily scuffed marble that’s seen better days covers the floor of what was clearly once some sort of ceremonial hall. There are lamps in the alcoves and their light reveals bits of uneven raised floor where statues once stood. Crude graffiti bearing names and rude pictures cover every pillar, but underneath the dirt and graffiti are pictographs and the carved faces of hobgoblins.
If you read/speak Goblin
Down on the other end of the room you make out a halfling sitting on the floor, rocking and murmuring to himself. There is a doorway to the north.
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After returning to her human form and re-assembling her oversized dress of lumpy bundles, Mrs. Crinkle steps right over Mama Tofu as if she's nothing but a pile of dirt on the floor and bustles into the next area.
"OooOoo! This fancy place used to be a community hall for the shortlived Rahk Lo hobgoblin trading post that was once here. It was supposed to impress guests. I can't make out what's written on this here thingy, but I'd bet my bloomers it's Goblin! Heehee!" The whole party has seen her bloomers. They're nothing fancy, and most folks really wouldn't want her to go without them.
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"Do they really bloom?"
Thevenin is imagining a giant flower, like the stinking corpse flower.
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Penny easily deciphers the writing on the columns. You head north and open the door. You emerge, surprisingly, behind the counter of the tofu shop.
Mrs Crinkle pulls open the adjacent door and find that it's the kitchen.
The kitchen contains tubs of soaking soybeans and coagulating soy milk. There is a dusting of flour and sugar all over the counters, and there are trays of sweets in various stages of production. There doesn't appear to be any other door in this room.
Emerging from the tofu shop back into the village, you notice that the fog is beginning to clear and that the Risuchō leave one by one to deliver the mail from Silvertree to other villages. The villagers cheer as the fog clears. Mayor Kimi approaches you. "What did you find? Whatever you did, it seems that it's worked!"
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Before moving on, Mrs. Crinkle tries to gently, then vigorously, shake the muttering halfling back to consciousness.
In the kitchen, Mrs. Crinkle drags her finger through the flour and sugar dust on the counters, drawing rude pictures and erasing just enough of them for plausible deniability. And of course, she fills her "pockets" with candies, sampling far too many than is good for her as she does so.
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"Oh, we found out the trouble, all right. Mama Tofu was working with a Bloodmoon-thingy, and doing all sorts of evil. There are a bunch of innocent folks in there who look like their minds are lost. You'll want to take care of them. But we destroyed Bloodmoon, and when she tried to kill us we killed her first. Heehee!" Mrs. Crinkle fills the mayor in on the Golden League's activities in the village and shares the evidence that was found.
Mrs. Crinkle's voice softens to an uncharacteristically tender tone. "I know this must be hard to accept, dearie. But some people are bound and determined to be awful, and the only thing we folks can do is make them shove off--a cliff, preferably. Heehee!" Ah, now she's back to her non-serious self.
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"They were Golden League, but not so much any more - other than that, pretty much what Granny said" Penny offers helpfully.
Penny then gives the worlds longest account of EXACTLY what happened (as Penny saw it anyhow) to ensure the whole story is captured, less anything that makes the Pathfinders look anything less than fully respectable.
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Mayor Kimi and the other villagers are saddened to hear the fate of Kenji and Daisuke. Mayor Kimi thanks you for helping to cleanse the shrine and set the souls of the two young men to rest. The village invites you to a feast partly as a memorial to the two young men, and partly as a celebration that Silvertree has been cleansed. Before you leave, a Risucho appears, delivering a single cherry blossom as thanks from Sakura before departing.
By the time you return to the Three Gates Lodge to report back to Amara Li, merchant traffic along the Spirit Road has resumed. Amara Li takes great interest in the history of the former Rahk Lo trading outpost, and wonders if the Rahk Lo might be invited to return to their trading post given all the merchant traffic that now passes through Silvertree. As for the records of criminal activity from the accountant’s office, her eyes gleam as she looks over the document. "Excellent work, Pathfinders. Studying this document will hopefully provide leads to tracking down some of the other Golden League cells throughout Tian Xia."
Thanks for playing! Thank you also from being a part of this milestone!