Blackheath's page

Boo

Was that an Intimidate skill check?

Hey,everybody. Again, apologies for the delays. Real life has me slammed right now.

It's all good. We are in it for the long haul. Do what you need to do and don't worry about us!

Yeah, sorry for all the delays. The site I was called to work on the other week is likely going to be destroyed in the immediate future, so we have all been working overtime on site analysis. But I'm back now! And I've updated Blackheath's stats.

Apologies for lack of posts. Unexpected job came up. Just got back in from the field. Should be ready to post in a day or so.

Blackheath holds up white card rating the jump a 6.4.

"Pity he didn't stick the landing."

It's okay. I'll eat the AoO because if it is still in the room on its turn, it will probably hit me regardless.

"It seems to be putting bigger dents in us than we are in it!"

Blackheath tries to knock the construct out the window...

Attempted bull rush CMB: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21

if I need to back up to do the move, I'm willing to take the AoO at that point and hope it doesn't have combat reflexes.

@Party - are we fighting, running away, or trying to knock it out the window? Whatever we choose, we need to act as a group.

Arcane long sword strike: 1d20 + 7 + 2 ⇒ (12) + 7 + 2 = 21
Damage: 1d8 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 3 + 1 = 12

Blackheath moves in to flank the construct with Grog.

"Grog, can you push it out the window?"

Hmmm. Hardness of 10. I'd prefer to neutralize it if possible rather than blowing all our resources on what might be just a guardian.

@GM, I think the room has a window. Would the window be large enough for say Grog to bull rush the construct out the window?

If not, maybe we can find some sort of grapple to sideline it. I have manacles.

Bardic Knowledge: Arcana: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15

Blackheath examines the organic material...

Bardic Knowledge: Nature: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

"Animal...No! Mineral! Errr... Vegetable! Yes, I'm sure it is vegetable."

Hmmmm. Can we discern the nature of the switch? Or how it is usually triggered from the other side of the threshold?

Maybe we could summon a creature on the opposite side of the threshold and have them follow commands to disarm it.

Thoughts anybody?

Would it be possible to use Mage hand to throw the switch but not trip the trap?

If so, Blackheath will try that.

Blackheath, armed with this new information, looks around for the "off switch."

Perception: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (11) + 11 = 22

Can we make out any detail of the portrait from where we are?

Pause and listen sounds fun...

Perception: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (1) + 11 = 12

Wow! well, better to roll 1 here than in combat.

"I hear something... I think it's my mother calling me!"

Awesome! Will try to get the new stats up by tomorrow.

"Well, now that they know we're here, let's hope they at least add extra places at dinner. Onward?"

Blackheath stands where he is and quickly fires two arrows at the hound...

Rapid shopt arcane-imbued point blank arrow 1: 1d20 + 8 + 1 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (2) + 8 + 1 + 1 - 2 = 10

Rapid shopt arcane-imbued point blank arrow 2: 1d20 + 8 + 1 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (20) + 8 + 1 + 1 - 2 = 28

Damage arrow 1: 1d8 + 3 + 1 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 3 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 12
Damage arrow 2: 1d8 + 3 + 1 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 3 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 13

Inspire courage continues +1/+1, round 3/11.

Possible crit...

Attempt to confirm crit arrow 2: 1d20 + 8 + 1 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (3) + 8 + 1 + 1 - 2 = 11
Potential extra crit damage: 2d8 ⇒ (1, 8) = 9

Blackheath advances until he has a clear shot at the beast with his bow and then he looses an arrow...

Point blank arcane imbued arrow: 1d20 + 8 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 8 + 1 + 1 = 19

Damage: 1d8 + 3 + 1 + 1 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 3 + 1 + 1 + 1 = 12

Inspire courage +1/+1 is still up round 2/11.

Blackheath begins to inspire courage in his friends. (+1 to attacks and damage. round1/11)

"Well, that's pretty horrible. Grog, could we tie a rope through the manacles and leave the troll to hang here over the wall until we come back? For sakekeeping."

"Grog, perhaps?"

Blackheath whispers to his friends: "I have manacles. Perhaps we coud surprise and grapple him, pin him, and 'cuff him. What do you think?"

@group: Would it make sense to come down in the F tower?

I'm very happy with how the trolls have turned out. That was some nice RP Gravleon!

Blackheath whispers to his friends: "They have not yet responded aggressively, but we still only have a short time to get them out of the way of the mob. Let's make sure they know that we will make sure that no evil escapes the castle—but for Serenrae (and us) to protect them, they will need to move deeper into the swamp for the night and avoid any groups they see. Gravleon, would your god view that as some kind of test of their faith? If they can try to be good for a night?"

No rush here! :)

Go for it!

Awesome! So, Graveleon, if you want to try to convert them to Sarenrae and we will offer to protect them from the thing in the castle then give it a shot. The worst that can happen is that we would end up with the combat that we would probably have engaged in anyway. So no matter what happens, it will be okay.

Sorry for the delay!

I like Gravelon's IC approach that the trolls should be given a chance. Blackheath is limited as far as what he can achieve with his diplomacy and intimidation. However, he can try to taunt the trolls and then lure them away from the mob (+11 Stealth) but that would mean splitting the party as the rest of you would need to hit the crowd... and there is always the chance that I blow my stealth and they eat me.

I actually think Gravleon and Grog should lead on this one, though. Gravleon has a strong in-character dynamic going on here, and I don't want to get in the way of that. I'd almost wonder if Gravleon could try to convert the trolls to worshipping the Dawnflower - and he will protect them from the thing in the castle if they are faithful. But I don't know how that would play out mechanically, like would it be diplomacy or religion checks?

If we are okay with the conversion attempt, then maybe Gravleon could get a chance to post a nice heart-warming speech for the trolls. and we can take it from there?

@GM: are we in a rush to get past this scene, or does Gravleon have a chance to get into some heavy roleplay here?

"Okay, we've got to stop the trolls from getting to the mob, and then we need to defuse the mob situation before they unleash some eldritch evil from the castle. Shouldn't be hard at all."

@GM: about how much time do we have before the trolls collide with the mob?

@team:

1. If we can, do we want the mob to see the trolls so that they know we are rescuing them from them and thus gain some leverage when we try to tell them to go home?

2. I think we will need to hit the trolls hard, but we should also keep back any "crowd control" or nonlethal spells and attacks in case we cannot convince the mob to disperse through diplomacy. For instance, I can throw some Sleep spells, and maybe Sharien can use a glitterdust (though temporary blinding might incite them more). Gravleon could drop something like 10 gallons of water on them, but again, that might not dissaude a mob.

Blackheath readies his bow at Sharien's words, but then takes a closer look at the trolls...

Know Local: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Wow.

"I think I recognize them from various bars around town. I'm pretty sure I dated one of them."

Anyone else have a better knowledge local or sense motive?

Perception: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (9) + 10 = 19

"Okay, if we are going to try and intercept one of the groups, which should we choose? If we let the mob proceed, they may storm the castle while we are meeting the unknown group. If we focus on the mob -- well, we will never know what the shadowy group was up to and we might not be able to stop the mob short of violence. Do we intercept the mob or the shadows? Let's vote on it!"

"Agreed. It looks like we need to get up the waterfall with some ropes and Grog's assistance. But first..."

Blackheath quickly rearranges the glowing rope until it says: BLACKHEATH LIVE IN CONCERT and in smaller text Ladies drink free after 9.

"Let's go."

Right, I expect that the mob will be its own problem, but, as with the villagers in part 1, we don't to have to like them to try to save them. Whatever we can do to minimize potential loss of life seems to fit with the alignment of our group. We will just have to deal with the mob on our own rather than letting a unknown danger deal with them for us. Does the group agree with that plan, before we go forward?

Blackheath finishes his rope-sign but before "lighting it up" looks to his companions.

"Those shapes that Grog saw down near the base of the waterfall -- that couldn't be the Beast, could it? But there can't be more than one Beast, right? I mean -- did he find a girlfriend? But he should already be ahead of us, not behind us. I don't want to be shifting a bloodthirsty mob onto some other innocent group."

The clown bangs his head against a rock for a minute. "Let's give both groups a warning message so that they both have a chance to hide or retreat."

He fiddles with the rope a moment before producing a sign that says: "BEWARE AMBUSH".

"If the rest of you are ready, it is time to fire this thing up."

Does the hound fly? If not, it might not be able to deliver the message -- even if it can, I'm not sure if it would reach the target in time (1 round to explain the message, 1 round to give the message to the target, leaves 5 rounds of travel time). It's your summon, Sharien, so I vote that you make the call on how you want to use it.

Blackheath will try to quickly organize the rope-writing trick to create Golarion's first "neon sign". To cut down on time to assemble, he can cast unseen servant. I'd like to give some sort of one-word message and the compass direction of the threat. Does anyone have a good idea on how to sum up "cohort of shadowy beasts heading your way" in one word?

I could, but I already used my SMIII slot for the day. Would need to rest to re-prepare. :(

OMG! We brought you to an evil castle without giving you time to prep spells! This could be bad. lol

@GM: I know you are traveling, so here is something to think about between stops -- If we scavenged some pieces of the barricade to provide a framework for a creatively cursive use of 100' rope to write out something like: "Ambush NW" or some such thing and then cast a light spell on the rope... well, would such an idea be feasible to make a sign that the villagers could see and if so, how long might it take to prepare?

Hmm, I don't think we've got fly -- unless someone has a potion or scroll for it. I was wondering if we could send up a flare and then use an illusion or something to produce a visible warning in the air, but I don't think we have any illusion spells that would handle it.

@Sharien, if you have Monster summoning III, could you summon a lantern archon? It has flight of 60 I think -- though we would only have it for 5 rounds, I guess. It can speak, so maybe it could deliver a message to the villagers for us. I wish it could just use its teleport power but I guess summoned creatures can't.

"Do we have any way to signal to that mob? We can't just let them blindly walk into their doom."

Whenever Grog is ready to begin his climb, Blackheath tries to inspire competence in his friend with a quick joke: "If you fall, remember to flap your arms. It won't do you any good but it will cheer the rest of us up immensely."

Grog, inspire competence gets you a +2 on skill checks -- and I think it should continue for as long as you can here Blackheaths voice or until his Bradic performance runs out, but hopefully you will have a few rounds of it.

Let's also tie a rope around Grog and anchor it... just in case.

With a dour expression, Blackheath listens to Gravleon's observations.
"Maybe removing the barricade isn't a good idea. I wouldn't want to free any eldritch evil... Not before supper, anyway."

He considers the waterfall and Grog's offer and sighs. "We might have to try scaling it. Do we have anything --magical or nonmagical -- that would help Grog? Perhaps we can set up some kind of rope system for the rest of us."

What is the distance that Grog will need to climb?

Hmm. Roughly how long would it take to clear the barricade through nonmagical means?

"I don't think scaling the waterfall is a the waterfall is a sensible idea... however, we can suspect that the villagers are busy grabbing their pitchforks and torches and we may not have time to clear this barricade. Additionally, we might find that leaving it as an impediment to an angry mob might help us down the road. What do you think, friends?"

Will an acrobatics check work for trying to get atop the barricade?

If so...
Acrobatics: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (10) + 10 = 20

"This tunic isn't one of the brands that I wear," observes the clown stylishly while looking over the cloth.

Perception: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (3) + 10 = 13

I'm back in the country, sorry about the delay!

EDIT: wow, we aren't very observant lol!

I'll be traveling by plane on and off for the next few days. I'll try to post between stops. Apologies for the delay.

Do we have anything left to do before we venture out to Schloss Caromarc? Did we deliver all the Professor's books and do we need to resupply?

Blackheath wow dude that was awesome worth the wait I have read it 3 times now lol

lol, I'm glad you liked it. I figured if I'd try something different with it.

Blackheaths jogs into the courtroom behind Gravleon. "'Tis true, my good citizens, judge, and jury! We have evidence that the crimes attributed to the poor and pitiful Beast were actually the work of a dark cabal. Behold, I shall present this evidence in rhyme...

Doctor Brada's deceased,
and you blame the Beast,
but given some time
I'll show it was Vorkstag and Grine.

Lepidstadt's been fleeced!
Now check out my priest,
he'll show you by signs
that the Beast's been maligned!

Blackheath gestures for Gravleon to bring for the evidence exhibits in order -- Exhibit A, the collection of skins...

See this wardrobe of skins?
They are made for a man to get in.
If you're a sinister fey,
You can wear them all day.
Perfect for the commission of sin.

The bard encourages the court to examine the skin walker's "suits".

We found them at V&G chymic works,
where a dark creeper and other things lurked.
We followed the trail
from these bills of sale,
and that's how we got to these jerks.

He introduces the body of the dead dark creeper with a tag hanging from its toe that reads "Exhibit B" and another collection of Dr. Brada's documents with the names Vorkstag and Grine marked "Exhibit C."

Dr Brada had good intentions,
but he bought bodies for experimentation.
Caught in this criminal ring,
V&G were frightened he might start to sing,
so they killed him in a great conflagration.

The ledger from Vorkstag and Grine is entered into evidence as Exhibit D to show that Brada was buying bodies from the body snatchers.

Good Karl is our only eyewitness,
and I'm not going to question his fitness,
suffice it be said,
this "skin" had him misled
He mistook the Beast for the arsonist.

Blackheath shakes out the giant and grotesque mongel-man skin for the jury.

But think back a few days past
to the testimony gained from Morast:
"The bite of a blood caiman"
Now, let me show you them same 'un
on the shoulder of this resurrectionist!

The bard waits for the skin-shifting body snatcher to be brought forward, and then pulls down the man's shirt to reveal the scars on his shoulder.

'Twas he who posed as the Beast
while snatching Morast's dead from their peace.
The severed face that we found,
was carved by this hound
who has run free as the Beast was policed!

Both Morast and the fire at Sanctuary
Were the result of a criminal conspiracy
with a "beastly" disguise
they decieved everyone's eyes.
Poor Beast! He used these skins to appear as thee!

Versatile Performance: Diplomacy: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (16) + 11 = 27

If I missed any other evidence we want to bring in, maybe one of you can mention it while aiding me in my diplomacy attempt.

Sorry for the slow posts, at a conference. I would also opt for big and dramatic, though I will need to shuffle the evidence around in my head a bit. So, anyone who wants to get the ball rolling should just jump in.

Is anyone trained in linguistics? @GM: We can't do that one untrained, right?

Blackheath will take 20 to disable device on the locked not-secret door.

Of course!

Basement it is.