Setting up the Gameplay Thread.
The rain finally stopped and Myrp pushed his wheelbarrow full of disassembled toy Unicorn through the shortcut in the alley beside Master Glynn's shop. His smile faded as he saw Big Freddie and his gang sharing a cigarette on the corner. Too Late... They had spotted him.
"Come on Myrp! We're playing a game called Tag and you're it. You've just got to run away, and we'll try and catch you".
Freddie teased the strange looking wooden boy and tagged him... hard on the shoulder almost knocking him to the ground. Myrp began to run but getting his balance caused one of his loose wooden shoes to pop off.
Well I can't run in one shoe... and why are they being nice to me and inviting me to play with them. They're usually so mean.
As Myrp began to run their true intention was revealed as a large rotten tomato thrown by little Nancie hit him full in the back... but he ran... fast. None of the little street gang could catch him... but they could and did outflank him, knocking him to the ground several times. Each time Freddie would shout out. "Nope! Still, it".
He noticed out of the corner of his eye that a couple of the smaller little rascals had taken the wheel from his wheelbarrow and were scurrying away.
"Hey that's mine"!
Khal let out a small, pleased burp and took another savage bite out of the drumstick of ...chicken? Turkey? Fowl-of-some-sort...as he strolled down the street, doing his best to avoid the largest of puddles. The rain had been fierce, but was finally over.
Munching hungrily, the dromaar ranger was pleased with the way things had turned out thus far. Stopping in town for some supplies and grub, he figured that he might even get a room for the night and sleep in a real bed. Not a comfort he normally required, but it was nice once in a while.
And then he heard the commotion ahead. From the youthful, arrogant catcalls and laughter, he assumed it to be of the usual menacing kind, and one that he himself had run afoul of far too often in his youth.
The ranger sighed, took a last, full bite of his dinner, and squared his shoulders back, stepping forward into into the group's view. "You there. What are you about? Leave 'em alone. Stop messing with that...boy?" Khalaros' gruff voice trails off in surprise...
"Aye!" another voice yaps from the crowd. Shuffling out from the forest of legs and ankles comes a short robed figure carrying a sturdy wooden staff topped with a dragon's claw. They tramp towards the group and pull their hood back to reveal a frilled reptilian face with shiny, metallic-looking scales (apart from a little green on her chin).
"Did your elders not tell you stealing and bullying are wrong?!" she says, tapping the staff on the ground to emphasize her words. "Or at least to pick on somebody your own size?!"
The kobold puffs up her chest, drawing attention to the ornate amulet around her neck, a silvery sword gripped by the blade in the claw of a dragon.
"In the name of the Waybringer and Wyrmknight both, unhand that hatchling and return his property!"
Vasily stared at the sights of Absalom in wonder. His family's former lands in Rostland were a far cry from this bustling place of urban wonder. Even Restov, now far to the north, seemed small compared to this metropolis.
Fresh off the boat, the swordsman tucked his coin purse into his belt and started off to look for a group of adventurers -- he had heard of the Pathfinder Society which was headquartered here -- to help him earn enough coin to buy the muscle he would need to take back his ancestral home. He was lost in thought about the eventual great day, when the sounds of disturbance broke his reverie.
Looking about, he saw the young thugs pummeling a smaller boy, and nodded in agreement as a large dromaar and small kobold begin to intervene. Vasily also stepped forward, he sense of noble manners offended by the unfair odds.
"Fighting one on one is fine, but ganging up on someone smaller is ignoble. You should be ashamed."
Big Freddie pushes Myrp one final time sending him butt first into one of the larger puddles. He then flicked his cigarette at Khalaros and retreated into a door next to him shouting back over his shoulder... Mind your own business butt-in-ski.
Myrp rose from the puddle looking down at the wet and tattered but still ridiculous outfit the noble girl had dressed him in. "Uh... Thank you, I guess. They weren't going to hurt me... too much They were just fooling around. I'm Myrp". The small poppet curtseys.
Sense Motive
The young / old poppet is very worried and on the verge of tears, if he was capable of crying. Though this wasn't a pleasant place at least it was somewhere to call home. Now it would be even less safe.
Myrp then picks up the wheel that had been thrown, inspects it for damage, and as if he was used to fixing things quickly reinstalls it. He then steps behind a rubbish container and picks up a ragged and torn pink backpack decorated with flowers and butterflies and tosses it on top of the junk in the wheelbarrow. He looks around as if not sure where to go, then kicks off his remaining shoe and starts off in a seemingly random direction.
The kobold curtsies back to Myrp.
"It was nothing, young friend!" she says. "I am called Jikah. Would you like some help gathering your things?"
Then she notices Myrp's unique appearance and tilts her head a bit.
Vasily looks at the walking toy with some amazement. He then remembers his manners and bends to help pickup the pieces that have been scattered about the area, dusting things off as he places them back in the now-repaired wheelbarrow.
Vasily gives a rather too formal bow as the poppet introduces himself. "Vasily Ant...Vasily, at your service." he stumbles not ready to give his full name in case there are agents of his enemies around. "How did you come to cross that uncouth lot, Myrp?"
Khalaros absently wipes with the back of his hand at the spot where the cast-off cigarette hit his studded leather. The dark-haired dromaar chuckles and shakes his head at the combined cowardice and bravado of the small gang of ruffians. "Well, Myrp sometimes it starts with fooling around, and then it turns darker. Best not to give it time to simmer."
The ranger steps forward assist in the collection of ...bits...of things that had been strewn about and recovers a small gear of some sort, and offers it over to the others. He gives each a nod as introductions are made and says,"I'm known as Khal. Everything ok here, then?"
Inwardly, Khalaros smiles, proud of himself for resisting the reflex to whistle for his Bear companion...obviously he wouldn't have been needed...nor likely available. He'd left his ursidae friend outside the city borders to forage.
Myrp is a bit cautious and apprehensive at the assistance and friendliness being offered simply stares as the others help him pick up parts... just waiting for them to start taking his stuff.
"It's really not worth anything. Here I have some leftover pie and scraps of meat... and even a few coins if you'll just let me keep my worthless junk".
He is further amazed when it becomes clear that they are helping not trying to steal from him.
"Thank you. I'll just be on my way". Myrp starts to wheel his barrow away, seemingly choosing a direction at random, and goes only a few yards when his hastily repaired wheel comes off again. He simply sits on the broken barrow and puts his face in his hands and begins to sob.
Sense Motive
It's obvious he has no idea where to go.
Vasily looks at the walking toy with some amazement. He then remembers his manners and bends to help pickup the pieces that have been scattered about the area, dusting things off as he places them back in the now-repaired wheelbarrow.
Vasily gives a rather too formal bow as the poppet introduces himself. "Vasily Ant...Vasily, at your service." he stumbles not ready to give his full name in case there are agents of his enemies around. "How did you come to cross that uncouth lot, Myrp?"
"My friends you mean? I think they got kicked out of where they live and are just trying to get by".
Vasily rolls his eyes a bit. "It seems you might need to make friends of a different nature, little one. Come let us buy you a pint and some dinner. All will be better with a full belly, at least that's what my old cook used to say."
Vasily doesn't know where a nearby tavern is, but there can't be one far from here.
Ready to leave, Khal pauses at Vasily's suggestion. "But I've just eaten..." he begins, but then shrugs. "Bah. Why not? Another pint wouldn't hurt, and I'm sure our small friend here could use the company, and perhaps guidance."
He then adds, "Need a hand with pushing that cart?"
"I'd be happy to dine with you... but must fix my cart first. Would it be asking too much for one of you to hold the cart steady while I fix the wheel better"?
The Poppet reaches into his torn backpack and pulls forth a bag of miscellaneous metal parts and after a bit of sorting pulls forth a long thin nail. "There! I can make this work".
"Are all of you friends? I would like to have more friends".
Jikah struts up to the wheelbarrow and helps hold it up.
"Happy to help! Did stuff like this with the family all the time back in the Puddles. We're in the construction business. And Apsu smiles on those who help others to stand on their own!"
At Myrp's question, she shakes her head.
"Can't say I've met these strapping gentlemen before, but their eagerness to jump to the aid of a stranger speaks well of their character! You can never have enough friends like that, say I!"
Myrp seems to struggle with basic things like raising his eyebrows or pursing his lips, so he settles with speaking. He feels comfortable with the little dragon as he doesn't need to crane his stiff wooden neck to look up at her when speaking.
"Thank you. Will you be my friend? I don't think Freddie will be so nice next time I see him".
He is very surprised when he hears a growl from his lower torso area.
"They do seem very nice. Perhaps after we finish fixing this we can go to dine with them".
Khalaros, already unclear as to the nature of the youth that he and the others were assisting, arches a bushy, dark eyebrow when Myrp apparently responds to their own stomach. "Well, with that, I suppose we should find a place to settle in and get some grub and ale."
Not a native to the city, the half-orc glances around at the others for direction.
Myrp seems to struggle with basic things like raising his eyebrows or pursing his lips, so he settles with speaking. He feels comfortable with the little dragon as he doesn't need to crane his stiff wooden neck to look up at her when speaking.
"Thank you. Will you be my friend? I don't think Freddie will be so nice next time I see him".
He is very surprised when he hears a growl from his lower torso area.
"They do seem very nice. Perhaps after we finish fixing this we can go to dine with them".
"Absolutely, Myrp!" Jikah says brightly. She holds out a claw to shake his hand before letting him tend to his wheelbarrow.
Then she turns and looks up at Khalaros.
"You're in luck! I happen to know a few of the nicer places to dine. Nicer by virtue of them not being in The Puddles. I have a few measures to spare, so why don't I treat you all?"
Knowing no other place, Vasily follows the kobold for a dining and drinking establishment, but he quietly worries just what kind of place a kobold would consider fine dining...
For the first time in his new "Awakened" existence Myrp smiles.
"I'm sure any food will be fine... I've never actually eaten anything, and this hunger is strange to me. Hopefully dining will soothe what I am feeling".
"...never actually eaten anythin...? Yeah, we're gonna have to talk about that..." Khal mutters, then grins at the Kobald and says more clearly, "A free meal? Aye, you have my attention. Lead on. We've mead to drink and tales to tell!"
The ranger waves his newfound companions forward with a flourish.
"Follow me!" Jikah says, pointing her staff forwards. "I'll show you one of THE best-kept open secrets in Absalom!"
She begins escorting the not-so-strange band (for Absalom anyway) to the Foreign Quarter. Weaving and ducking through the crowds, occasionally raising her staff high in the air to signal where she was to the taller folks, eventually she swings her staff towards a gloomy-looking one-story building. The wood is dark and discolored, the windows stained and barred, with only a few blurry lights shifting from spot to spot indicating there's anyone there. A lantern, seemingly lit by sparkling magic, hangs from the sign over the door that reads "The Wounded Wisp."
"Not much to look at, I know," Jikah says. "But you'd be hard-pressed to find a more interesting dive bar in all of Absalom, for it is HERE that the venerable Pathfinder Society was founded! And despite the shining glory of the Grand Lodge over there," she points just down the street, where a magnificent palace of white stone rises to the sky, "you're more likely to rub shoulders with Pathfinders here, both great and wanting-to-be-great. We Apsans have a lot in common with Pathfinders. The Waybringer himself maintains no fixed abode, his Immortal Ambulatory travelling throughout the cosmos to wherever he's needed."
Vasily shrugs and considers himself fortunate to have hooked up with this unusual crew just after arriving in Absalom. Maybe he can find a Pathfinder or two to come to his aid, and what better place to start than the dive bar where they hang out after hours.
Khalaros gives a small, dismissive chuckle and mutters "Pathfinders..."
"I'm sure this will do, Jikah." he offers, amicably.
Vasily hears his countryman mutter the word that was bringing him some hope, and files it away to ask about later. Maybe there was more this group of Pathfinders than stories in Rostland had told.
Myrp looks to Jikah to see how she reacts before making an introduction. He won't give away his sentience unless it is clearly approved by the others.
When they enter the tavern, he waits and watches the others to see what they eat so he won't accidentally eat something he shouldn't.
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Two weeks after the group met...
Over the last couple of weeks, the group that came together accidentally via bullying has seemed to gel, and at some point within that time, the group learned a bit about the two Brevans' goals.
Also, during that time, the Pathfinder Society heard of storms in the Lake of Storms and Mist that may have uncovered ancient ruins and tasked Chishik, one of their newest members, to investigate.
Soon enough, the little group was formed, and with travel expenses provided by PFS, set out on the long journey back to Brevoy and the lake.
So began a long voyage.
First, across the Inner Sea to Taldor.
Then, north along the busy Taldor/Andoran border, where the Taldans seemed to be sending a lot of supplies west, and where rumors of impending conflict between Andoran and Cheliax were in the air.
Further north, skirting the border of Kyonin, wary for any demons that might slip the border as the elves and allies were fighting the demons of the Tanglebriar.
The foothills of the Five Kings Mountains were next. The journey slowed a little there, but the group ran into no trouble.
Finally, they came to the River Kingdoms, the last nation, if one could call it such, before Brevoy.
Despite never spending any serious time on board of a ship, Khalaros surprises himself with his own ability to maintain his balance and stomach.
His animal companion, an adolescent bear, isn't quite as lucky. Or rather, none of those daring to go near him fare well, aroma-wise. While only a day or so of actual vomiting occurs for the ursidae, the beast's stomach gurlges and erupts in moments of burping and flatulence for almost four days.
Khal supports his black-furred friend without complaint, sitting in the hold or on deck with him, petting his belly and scratching the bear's head and chin as needed. "Easy, boy. It's ok, Grumble. You'll be fine. Heh. Never realized what a perfect name that was for you, buddy..."
As they board the vessel to leave Absalom, a group of about 23 kobolds, her entire family, meets Jikah there to bid farewell. She takes the time to introduce the group to each of them, and the difference between the enthusiastic young priestess and her largely polite but sullen siblings, cousins and elders couldn't be starker (she notably doesn't single out any individual pair of kobolds as her "parents," noting kobold eggs are incubated collectively and whose egg was whose is not really important in their society). They wish the rest of the group well, and advise them to rein her in if she gets too intense.
She is up and down the rigging throughout the voyage, looking out at the sea with awe as she leaves Absalom for the first time. Somehow she always manages to be nearby when someone needs assistance and ready to help in her small way. When they make landfall in Oppara, she makes a point to visit the local branch of the Platinum Band, taking the opportunity to further inform the rest of the group about her unique faith, venerating Apsu primarily, but also venerating Iomedae in some strange draconic aspect she calls the Wyrmknight, and the celestial golden dragon Peace-Through-Vigilance as a living saint. It comes as much of a surprise to the largely non-religious party as it does to the Apsan priests, who seem somewhat perplexed at the direction her worship has gone, looking at each other with awkward glances as they listen to her speak.
As they journey north, Jikah remains ever the awed city-girl seeing the countryside for the first time. She is saddened by the possibility of war she sees in Andoran, saying that despite Apsu's continual preparations for the Grand Conflict with Dahak at the end of all things, he still would seek peace for all, and comments how quickly mortals seem to abandon it compared to the gods. She's not as blown away by the elves as, say, a halfling gardener from the far west, but Kyonin's natural beauty impresses her deeply, as does the soaring peaks of the Five Kings Mountains beyond.
The journey through the River Kingdoms is what surprises her the most, with the ability to move freely up the Sellen relatively unimpeded despite the constant threat of banditry. She tries her best to see the good in the people here, noting in the Five River Freedoms a hardy dedication to standing on their own, even if Apsu and Iomedae's other codes did not appeal to them. She makes sure to buy the warmest coat she can afford as they go further north, noting the cold is making her feel sluggish and slow to wake in the mornings.
Until, finally, they see the banner of the two-headed red dragon. Jikah's snout wrinkles a bit at the sight of it, commenting on its resemblance to Dahak, the Great Enemy, and he was bad enough with just one head. But nonetheless, they had arrived.
There are parts of the River Kingdoms that are civilized, and there are a lot that are not. Those areas are easy to get lost in, and during your trip, that is exactly what happens to your group one rainy day in an area where the roads have not been maintained in years. You lose the road, and while trying to get your bearings, you accidentally stumble upon a swamp troll!
Swamp trolls are bigger and slower, cousins of the typical troll, and this one starts to pursue you. The party flees, but they will need something to let them put enough distance between the slower predator and themselves so that it will stop chasing them.
Stari's dragon eidolon takes to the sky, and while the eidolon can only go up 100 feet, that lets it see a bridge through a break in the clouds. A bridge could mean a road, and a road would easily let the group outdistance the troll.
After slogging through the swamp, the group gets to the river, and to the bridge, and the bridge has collapsed. The party will have to ford the river and get Myrp's mechanical horse across as well, all before the troll catches up!
But it's still a good distance back, and so the group has some time.
"Oh My! This is terrible. Is this what adventuring is like. I don't want that big monster to eat us... but that water scares me".
Myrp looks around for something to craft a float with to keep him from drowning then quickly tries to throw something together.
Perception to find suitable materials
Crafting to make a suitable floating device.
"I don't mean to impose... but perhaps one of you could help pull / push me along".
Jikah sees the rushing river and thumps her fist into her open claw.
"Gimme a line! I'll swim across and tie it off so you've got something to hold on to and not get swept away. I ain't afraid of a little choppy water!"
Frowning at the thought of running from the grotesque creature, but agreeing with the wisdom of the choice, Khal strides up to the bank of the river, glances around for the best spot for the group to cross.
(+1 more if his Terrain Expertise (Forest) applies here.)
Khalaros' frown becomes a scowl as he starts to think that rushing to cross like this might be a bad idea. However, Myrp's call for assistance brings the ranger out of it and he calls back "If you think you can hold on, little man, I'm pretty sure Grumble would allow you to ride on his back as he crosses." A pause, then he adds, "I can ask him, at least."
Vasily draws his dueling sword and waits till the others are safely across. He is ready to fight the troll if it arrives before his friends are safely on the other side. Once he feels they are secure, he jumps atop the wreckage of the bridge and balances along the edge, leaping from the one side of the structure to the other, as means to cross the rest of the river.
Myrp and Khal are able to find some intact planks and rope from the fallen bridge that can be used to create a rickety pulley system that could be used to both assist people in crossing the river and get the mechanical horse across as well.
It will need to be set up on the other side of the river as well. Khal and Jikah are able to cross over and secure it on the other side of the river.
Jikah jumps into the river and swishes her tail back and forth to help her get across.
It's easy enough for the dragon to leap and glide across.
The group gets across the river, thanks to the guide line and the quick thinking of the group. You then cut the line and move onto the road, leaving the swamp troll far behind!
Glad to not have to deal with the troll in combat alone, Vasily is pleased to be on the other side safely. He checks with the others, "Everyone safe? Anyone hurt? A troll is a lot to deal with, even for all of us." When it appears everyone is unharmed, he looks at Starigati with some amazement. "What exactly was that? A dragon inside you? How can this be?"
”Whoa! That was awesome. Can you teach me how to do that”?
The troll is not going to try and cross the river. The group has made it too much work for the lazy creature to get to them and it slowly walks back to its lair.
Adjusting his gear as he takes stock of the group's situation, Khal eyes the slowly retreating troll with a critical eye. Satisfied after a few minutes that it's not some sort of hunting trick on the dull creature's part, the ranger states, "Troll's gone. Pretty sure."
Khal pauses with a slight shrug, looking over at Vasily for his assessment. He's come to trust the swordsman's instincts since they've been traveling together.
Then, addressing Starigati's 'friend' he says,"Y'know I can't say I've ever actually seen a dragon, much less met one...but, your assistance is appreciated, Great One."