[Gameday XIV] PFS2 #6-99 Under the Eye of the Mantis (tier 5-6) (Inactive)

Game Master cmlobue

Roark's beak was actually enough.

The door opens easily for the Pathfinders.

Inside is a dust-covered tavern with a balcony in its center. At the moment, this open area is covered in a shroud of swirling steam.

Perception: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (16) + 14 = 30 Low-light, Darkvision plus Cloud Gazer if that would apply
Religion: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (2) + 15 = 17 E Shining Symbol

“There is a lot of furniture down there with human and animal motifs.” Shaking her head, she says “I don’t know why that would prevent scrying.”

Immaculately triumphant, Don Jurri wriggles his brushed mustachio in pleasure.

"That steam sure don't belong here..."

perception: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (13) + 14 = 27
arcana: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (13) + 14 = 27

**HOUSE GM ANNOUNCEMENT**
Giovana of the Red Mantis assassins nods her head with a predatory smile. “You Pathfinders don’t disappoint. Hmm... your swordsmanship is a bit imprecise though. Perhaps a minor boon from He Who Walks in Blood might help.”

Table GMs, the Crimson Blessing condition is now in effect

**HOUSE GM ANNOUNCEMENT**
A savvy thief has been set free from captivity and has handed over a Chelaxian contract to the Dispatch for the assassination of Zarta Dralneen, as well as a trove of insight into their combat tactics.

The Stool Pigeon condition is now in effect.

Assuming Dreggar passes on the info from the 2nd spoiler...

Voron's eyes go wide as he quickly glances at the various pieces of furniture in horror.

Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (6) + 12 = 18
Survival(U): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7 Didn't think so! :)

Roark's eyes are equally wide at the decor... "Why the obsession with humans or animals??"

When the Crimson Blessing condition is in effect, the PCs gain the ability to, once before the end of the adventure, reroll their damage on a successful (or critical) Strike or a success (or critical success) using a spell with the attack trait as a free action.

When the Stool Pigeon condition is in effect, the PCs gain a +1 circumstance bonus to Armor Class and Saving Throws against members of the Red Mantis Dispatch until the end of the adventure thanks to intelligence gained regarding their tactics.

The Pathfinders decide not to hire whoever created this furniture for their interior decorating needs.

>Slide 17< - place yourselves where you would like to investigate.

I had not assumed they relayed the information. I will do that now.

Kit pales and looks like she may be sick. She manages to recover, but is obviously horrified by the decor now that she knows.

Placed myself and Jinglemane on map.

Roark stays close to Jinglemane

The dwarf moves in with shield raised...

**HOUSE GM ANNOUNCEMENT**
Zarta Dralneen has a satisfied smile on her face as she check-marks a list she’s carrying in a slender hand. “A hostage rescue under dire circumstances... ah, this really brings me back.” She gives any nearby Pathfinder agents a wry look. “Oh, come now, you do find this a little bit thrilling, don’t you? In any event, we’re just about done here, so catch your breath and be ready to move underground, where the Dispatch leaders are holed up.”

Table GMs, you have 2 days to resolve your encounters. The Deep Breath condition is in effect.

Don Jurri has Smee read him the collected notes on Aspis tactics...

"Excellent Smee - these uncouth assassins are not just sloppy in their style, but in their footwork"

~) Don Jurri +1 AC / Saves vs Aspis
~) 1/adv Reroll on damage (even crit)

Deep Breath: All enemies flee at the end of the round. Not so helpful here.

Alphabetically: 1d6 ⇒ 5

The Pathfinders feel a surge of hostility as a table overturns itself violently at Roark.

Table Flip: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (14) + 15 = 29
Bludgeoning Damage: 2d8 + 7 ⇒ (4, 8) + 7 = 19

Round 1 - bolded may go

Don Jurri
Jinglemane
Kit
Haunt
Voron
Roark (-19 HP)
Dreggar

"Yeow! HEY!!"

Kit will try to figure out what is happening.

Seek if there is something undetected to Seek otherwise whatever is an appropriate reaction. Right now all we know is that a table suddenly attacked Roark.

Kit recognizes that the entire inn is a Very Haunted Hollows, a complex haunt. The spirits of innumerable dryads and peaceful wood elementals, ripped from their bodies as they were turned into furniture, writhe and seethe, lashing out at both living and undead alike.

What one thing would you like to know about it?

Round 1 - bolded may go

Don Jurri
Jinglemane
Kit (2 actions)
Haunt
Voron
Roark (-19 HP)
Dreggar

What skills to disable it.

Unlikely I will be on for the rest of the day, so go ahead and perform the action.

Diplomacy (trained), Nature (expert), or Religion (expert) to set the spirits to rest; or harder Deception (trained), Intimidation (trained), or Occultism to convince the spirits that their eternal rest is coming soon. You can also Aid in disabling the haunt by Striking a table or chair.

"Your signifance is proportional only to the effort it will take to dispel you" a cruel insult!

Diplomacy (T): 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (15) + 12 = 27

◆◆) Disable
◆) Interact

Stowing his rapier, and drawing his modest gun from his vest pocket, Don Jurri prepares to shoot!

Kit soothes the spirits, doing what she can to guide them. She reminds them of how the wind feels.

Religion E Shining Symbol: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (16) + 15 = 31

Jinglemane is horrified when Kit tells everyone about the murdered dryads and wood elementals. "My girl is a geniekin who wished me alive, and taught me that it was important to protect her people. Lost and wounded elementals and geniekin were always welcomed and healed at our door. I cannot right this wrong, but I sure can beat up the person who did this to you. Please, rest, knowing that I and my friends will avenge you!"

◈◈ Disable Diplomacy E (Glasses of Sociability): 1d20 + 14 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 14 + 1 = 24
Hero Point!): 1d20 + 14 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 14 + 1 = 35

◈ Aid Roark in his disable, if needed.

"My buddy Roark will help me bring you justice!"

Aid to Roark plus Helpful Poppet Feat- Diplomacy E (Glasses of Sociability): 1d20 + 14 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 14 + 1 + 2 = 26
That should be a crit success for +2 to Roark's roll

The spirits of the furniture calm, knowing that they will move on soon.

That's 5 out of 2 successes needed. The DCs on this are way too low to make sense in tier 5-6.

The steam fades, revealing Brileg, a metal elemental with pieces of wood grafted onto them by Sotroz. Brileg has been stuck here spinning in a field of magically charged water ever since the Red Mantis Dispatch began operations on this island, fueled by the haunted spirits to generate the anti-divination field. Brileg is thankful for their freedom, revealing they’ve been a captive of Sotroz ever since the ghoul was based in Nex. They tell the Pathfinders as much as they can about Sotroz’s history, including an important detail—that Sotroz can ritually drain the life from living creatures who are in special wooden cages in order to fuel the ghoul’s most powerful magical abilities—an important clue for the Pathfinders’ final encounter against the Red Mantis Dispatch’s leaders.

Brileg removes a sliver of wood from their arm and gives it to their rescuerss. This functions as a 3rd-rank wand of shardstorm.

Starting the final mission, but it is not likely to be done before Act 4. No penalty if that is the case.

Eando Kline catches up to the group. “Pathfinders, our intel has revealed that the Dispatch is holding a monkey goblin thief named Chirper hostage who might have more information about their motives and tactics. We think he’s being held in a solitary cell in this general area. I’ll leave it up to you on how best to proceed, though. Good hunting!”

As the characters reach the indicated area, the two mercenaries keeping watch over Chirper lock themselves in a narrow hallway just outside the goblin’s jail cell, commanding the Pathfinders to keep back while leveling their crossbows at them.

Talk? Sneak? Fight?

Note - the scenario specifically says "no dice" if you choose negotiation. Your words alone matter. Not what I would have chosen, but it is what it is.

"Jurisdiction!"

Yelling without context "On what Graduated Authority do you hold My Prisoner!?" he allows them to reply - probably with some "well my boss told me" non-sense before countering "Clearly ignorant of the Chain of Command, that you don't know that your boss answers to Me! Remand him unto my custody forthwith!"

No dice: 0 = 0

This tact will definitively not work without dice

Looking to Khione, Kit asks “Got any information on these two guards? What do they think of goblin songs?” She has a mischievous grin as she asks this.

Depending on the reply, I could easily see us singing our way out of this with a goblin song to annoy the guards. ‘We are willing to take the goblin with us, if you are tired of this type of song,’
If someone else wants to carry this out, great. I am at a convention so may not be back any time soon.

**HOUSE GM ANNOUNCEMENT**
Zarta, Eando, and Giovana gather the Pathfinders together once again, now joined by the rescued hostages and Viore. Zarta smiles at the assembly. “Well done, darlings, but we’re not finished yet. The remaining Dispatch forces have withdrawn into the smaller buildings, and we think their leaders have an underground lair beneath us.”

“In order to fulfill our obligations to the Red Mantis, we need to track down those leaders and take them out,” Eando says, while looking over to Giovana, who just grins back at him while cleaning her twin sawtooth sabers. “You’ll be heading into the remaining buildings and underground passages, so look out for one another—”

Kline is cut off as Viore finishes consulting with the hostages and barges forward. “I’ve figured out what they’re doing, and we have to hurry! One of the Dispatch leaders was recently in Kyonin, you see and stole pieces of several aiudara—teleportation gates. Combined with what we’ve learned today, I think they’re trying to build their own version of an aiudara here and might use it if we don’t stop them first!”

Zarta nods assertively. “That’s it, then. Get moving, Pathfinders. Let’s track the rest of the Dispatch down before they get away!”

Table GMs, please begin Act 4!

Zarta Dralneen cautiously points toward a newly discovered underground passage, keeping her voice low. “The way ahead goes straight toward the Dispatch’s inner sanctum. No twists, no turns, just a straight shot. It almost seems to be too good to be true... which means it’s almost definitely a trap. Check it out but be careful!”

When the Pathfinders embark down the indicated path, they find it’s a wide corridor that does indeed take a straight course from a set of doors on the surface straight toward the Red Mantis Dispatch’s inner sanctum. The way is lined with mirrors and reflective surfaces.

Exploration: Search
Perception: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (20) + 14 = 34 E; low-light vision, darkvision

“Voran, do you detect some magic ahead? I see something that might be a magical trap.”

Space changes around the Pathfinders, turning the corridor into a mirror maze with warped passages and mirror-walled chambers extending in every direction. The characters see reflections of themselves on every surface, appearing normal in some, but as unearthly monstrosities or bloodthirsty cannibals in others.

A hazy image of Sotroz coalesces in the center of the room and speaks to the agents directly, sharing their knowledge of the Pathfinder Society’s good works in the past and remarking how disappointed they are to see the Society’s agents “stooping” to act as mercenaries for the Red Mantis rather than extolling their own ideals of “explore, report, cooperate.” He claims that this isn’t the Pathfinders’ fight, and they’re being used by the Red Mantis Assassins for their own ends.

He then offers you a choice: if you abandon your mission and leave the island immediately, Sotroz will telepathically share the location of a treasure cache they buried elsewhere on the island that nobody knows about - not even Rowan.

This act will earn them additional Treasure Bundles beyond what is normally possible, but it will also result in earning Infamy for abandoning the rest of the Pathfinders in the middle of this event.

Sense Motive Perception: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (20) + 14 = 34

Turning to the group, Kit says “I can sense no trickery in their offer. That said, I still would not recommend taking it.”

Kit votes reject the bribe

"What do you think Smee?" Don Jurri winks at his servant.

"Anti-chivalric, sir. I cannot let you be tempted, sir"

Smee walks over and waves his arms in a blocking motion, then slaps his master across his handsome face.

SMAAP!

Don Jurri, handsome as he is smug, over-compensating as he is delicate, cowers before his servant, apalled at the gesture.

"Well I never..."

His ego dashed, he finds himself unfit to take the very-tempting payoff...

"We don't abandon our fellow Pathfinders!" Jinglemane says. "Some things cannot be bought."

Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (16) + 12 = 28

Roark is absolutely livid when he realizes what they're proposing. It's all he could do to not slam his beak into one of them.

"ARE YOU KIDDING?! KEEP THE TREASURE! WE DO NOT ABANDON OUR OWN!"

Exploration: Search

[dice=Perception]d20 +14 E; low-light vision, darkvision

“Voran, do you detect some magic ahead? I see something that might be a magical trap.”

Voron turns his arcane eye on the area, though it may take a bit of time.

--------------------

Voron frowns at the offer as well.

I am not convinced we are being used. In fact I find this offer more likely a manipulation.

"So be it."

Voron does not have time to investigate further, as the illusion of Sotroz vanishes and a wave of magical energy washes over the Pathfinders as soon as it is clear that they will not accept Sotroz' offer.

No map for this combat; assume that you can reach any other Pathfinder with a Stride or Step action.

The team finds their minds clouded by the magic of the trap.

DC 22 Will save vs.confusion, duration 5 rounds. Nothing else happens in this encounter except dealing with the results of your saves.

Round 1 - everyone may go

Don Jurri (Will save)
Dreggar (Will save)
Voron (Will save)
Jinglemane (Will save)
Roark (Will save)
Kit (Will save)

Will (E): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (18) + 10 = 28

Confusion is an emotion effect, and the success becomes a crit success.

Jinglemane feels his brain being befuddled and shakes his mane vigorously to clear his mind.

Will: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (8) + 12 = 20
Will, HP, Vestments: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (6) + 12 = 18

"AGH! A Lion!! Do I know you?!"

"What's happening?"

will save: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (17) + 14 = 31

Confusion, Initiative Order: 1d5 ⇒ 1

Roark, that swashbuckler looks suspicious. Better do something about him.

Round 1 - bolded may go

Don Jurri (Will save)
Dreggar
Voron (Will save)
Jinglemane
Roark (confused, targeting Don Jurri)
Kit (Will save)

if affected, unwavering mien reduces the duration by 1 round

Voron’s expression becomes fright, his eyes going wide as he anticipates the mental assault.

DC22 Will: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (18) + 13 = 31

Fending it off, though perhaps leaving a slight headache behind, Voron turns to start rapping his companions on the chest with his staff.

◆ staff Roark, non lethal B damage: 1d20 + 7 - 2 ⇒ (15) + 7 - 2 = 201d4 ⇒ 1

◆ staff Roark, non lethal B damage: 1d20 + 7 - 2 - 5 ⇒ (8) + 7 - 2 - 5 = 81d4 ⇒ 3

◆ staff Roark, non lethal B damage: 1d20 + 7 - 2 - 10 ⇒ (16) + 7 - 2 - 10 = 111d4 ⇒ 2

Hold still!

Kit is startled as the sudden wave of magic passes over her.
Will: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (2) + 14 = 16

By the time it gets down to me, I suspect that I will have had to make at least one DC 11 check

Wait! We have hero points!

☘️ staff Roark, non lethal B damage: 1d20 + 7 - 2 ⇒ (17) + 7 - 2 = 221d4 ⇒ 4
Hehe... any chance Roark is off-guard while confused? I'm not inclined to waste more ☘️ with MAP

Yes, confused makes you off-guard.

Confusion, Initiative Order: 1d5 ⇒ 1

Qitarah, you never really trusted Don Jurri either, did you?

Voron notices Roark looking at Don Jurri oddly and tries to bonk him repeatedly. With effort, one eventually makes contact.

Round 1 - bolded may go

Don Jurri (Will save)
Dreggar
Voron
Jinglemane
Roark (-4 HP, flat check, confused, targeting Don Jurri)
Kit (confused, targeting Don Jurri)

"You daft lumpen!" Don Jurri tries to evade the (perhaps deserved...) attacks from his teammates.

But first...

↺) Charmed Life

Don Jurri Will (E) w/ Charmed Life (+2) vs Confusion (DC 12): 1d20 + 12 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 12 + 2 = 31

◆) Extravagant Parry (to AC 26; Panache if causes Miss)
◆) Stride towards Kit or Roark: 1d2 ⇒ 2 Roark
◆) Non-lethal Slap

Wrist (non-lethal) vs Roark: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (10) + 14 = 241d4 ⇒ 4

Confused

So we have two people confused, Roark and myself. We get a flat check each time we are hit. We are both at the end of initiative.

Do the non-lethal attacks and allow us our flat checks to snap out of it.