I am sorry, but I will step down as GM. Obviously it's not working, even with cutting back on my other games, GMing this just keeps sitting on my To Do list and constantly creating guilt for not getting to it. Sorry to be GM #3 to jump ship on this one game.
I can leave it open for a bit if you want to try for the off chance of recruiting a new GM or if any of you know someone who is willing to do it or are yourselves willing to GM.
You know, since recruiting GMs can be so difficult, and I feel bad that two failed Crimson Throne games spawned out of that original one that was abandoned by the GM before recruitment was even over, I'm willing to send a $50 Paizo gift card to someone to GM a Crimson Throne game for any of you as well as any of the players from the other CotCT game related to this one. They can use it to get the PF version of Crimson Throne (since I don't see a way to gift PDF products, just gift cards, but that extra flexibility might be enticing anyway if they already have it).
Maybe that will help encourage someone to step forward and run this thing and actually stick with it like you all deserve (and maybe help fix some of my karma on this). :)
It is up to all of you, but either way, it looks like I need to step aside and let this go. I am sorry it didn't work out.
Giovatia studies everyone very closely, and then looks over at the guard by the door and nods. The half-orc guard lets out her breath and relaxes, her hand moving away from the hammer on her belt.
"I certainly do recommend returning it. I have not received word of it missing, but once it's noticed, they will surely ask jewelers like myself to watch for it. I will, of course, inform them of what you said, but..." she hesitates once more, examining the group with the precision of someone who devotes her life to details. "But I will wait until they contact me first rather than reporting this immediately. So I recommend returning it sooner rather than later, and being very clear on how you acquired it. In the future, if you have other needs, please keep me in mind. For now, however, I would prefer that as far from my shop as possible." She smiles broadly, "I hope you understand. Thank you and goodbye."
The guard opens the door in a not even remotely subtle hint.
Can you tell to whom this brooch belongs to? If not can you appraise it and make an offer?
"Gladly, it would be my pleasure." Giovatia takes the brooch and nods approvingly. "My, my, this is a beautiful replica. Someone certainly spared no expense making it as authentic as possible.... It's..." She looks at it closer, a bit puzzled. "It's really good!"
She then moves over to one of her magical lights and puts on a pair of goggles. "Wait. How can...? This is not a replica!"
She looks up at Edita and the rest, shock on her face. "Where did you get this? Do you know whose this is?! No, of course you don't or you wouldn't have asked, or wouldn't even have it out in the open. Stupid question. But this brooch, my dear, why it belongs to Queen Ileosa Arabasti herself! It's not one of her finest pieces, but certainly not one of her worst either. I definitely recall seeing it on her myself at a gala less than a year ago. How did it find it's way to you?" She glances back and forth at the odd assortment of people, sizing you all up.
If anyone wants to retcon more conversation or activities within reason before this, that's fine. Otherwise, there should be plenty of time after the jeweler.
The only thing you are missing is a DM who has time. I am terribly sorry yet again about that. However, I am done teaching now (it was a second job at a college I used to teach at, that I took on for the semester after someone canceled on them at the last minute), plus I am also scaling back the PbP games I'm involved in as well to have a tighter focus.
I am still interested in this campaign, but I know that my track record has been awful so far. I can try giving it one more go, but if you want to try recruiting a new DM, that's understandable. (Fourth one's the charm???) I honestly would not take it personally, and I'm surprised you all put up with my lousy posting schedule this long. But I will try to keep things moving better now, unless you decide otherwise.
Again, my sincere apologies for letting this game stall so much.
Kyoden heads out in search of city guard, and has to wander for a while before finding any sight of them. However, when he finally does near dawn, it is a very unusual sight. Rather than the typical patrols, they march in squads of a couple dozen guards - several of them still buckling on their armor. Every couple blocks, the guard leading the squad points to a street corner, and two of them break off and take position on that corner.
Assuming Kyoden still wants to speak to them...
As Kyoden approaches a pair, their hands go to their swords but they do not draw them quite yet. One barks out, "State your business!" After he asks about the children, the guard let's out a sigh and replies, "I am sorry, but there are greater concerns right now. The King has died -"
The other guard interrupts with, "Long live the Queen!" a bit too eagerly and a bit too loudly.
The first guard side-eyes him and continue, "The King has died and there is already unrest over it. If they are at the church of Serenrae, then they are likely safe there. We have other matters to attend to. If you must, go to the Citadel* and ask there. They should have information on any missing children if they can spare the time." He then turns his attention back to looking up and down the streets, clearly considering the conversation over. The other guard, however, continues to watch you closely.
* He is referring to Citadel Volshyenek, which is the headquarters of the Korvosan Guard, acting as both barracks and administrative office.
Up to you if you want to do or say anything else or hurry back and catch the rest of the group before they head out for the day.
-----------------------------------
In the morning, after some disagreement, there is at least consensus on getting the brooch appraised. The children are still sleeping deeply - probably sleeping better than they have in quite some time.
Between past experiences and asking around, the group finds a hopefully trustworthy jeweler. An older dwarven woman named Giovatia Sullio runs a rather large jewelry store. He shop focuses on the new and trendy and manages to cater to a large range of Korvosans. Nobles go there to find the latest fashions before they spread, and the upper ranks of the working class go there for the recently fallen out of fashion wares. Given what little you know about the brooch, it seemed like a good choice to handle whether it is extremely valuable or only of mild worth.
Inside the shop, a burly half-orc grunts at the group as she stands guard just inside the door. The shop is otherwise entirely vacant of customers and employees other than Giovatia herself. She waves at you, and greets you with a smile. "Ah, my first customers of this drearily quiet morning! How can I help you all?"
It's middle of the night right now. The kids have finished stuffing food in their mouths and are sleeping huddled together in just a couple rooms. The two sick ones aren't much better, but seem stable. If you listen carefully, you can hear some loud voices still in the distance, but it is quite far away and this part of the city seems quiet. Ayen is more than willing to let any of you rest here tonight if you want. There are some rooms for traveling guests and/or those requiring long term healing and care.
What's the plan for the rest of tonight and into the morning?
If what you say is true then the streets will soon be treacherous to anyone out and about. Civil unrest will spread like wildfire.
He looks around the temple again...
I fear you may be in danger here as well. They will want to blame someone and I can see them laying that on your doorsteps. Do you need aid in keeping things under control here?
Ayen replies, "If they were coming to us for aid, this far from the Castle, I'm confident they were contacting as many temples as possible. We are not a very remarkable temple, even within our own faith. So we should be safe."
She excuses herself to check on the children briefly, and returns smiling. It is easy to hear the children thoroughly enjoying a large meal in the quiet night. "Although their language is a bit... uncouth, the children do seem to be rather well behaved and take direction well. We should be able to manage them with the staff we have. If you want to assist, you could inquire with the Guard to see if any of the children are listed as missing, but if you are unable to, or... don't want your involvement known... we understand and should be able to spare someone to do that soon."
I agree. If any of you come up with good reasons to stick together for a least a little bit, that'd be great. But getting into the nuts and bolts of this AP, the beginning is actually pretty weak in that regard. I've altered a couple things to try and create more reason to stay together that will hopefully help, but I was really surprised at what little was there and how much this chapter of the AP really assumes PCs will do very particular things and just ride the plot railroad for a bit without question.
I have some ideas that should force the PCs together more and get the plot really moving but trying to figure out how to have it happen in a semi-believable time frame, which might be days rather than hours.
So if you don't have a reason to stay together, it's ok. We might have a "then a week passes" or some such but I want to at least find out your immediate actions and plans for this next day.
Semi-spoiler if you are interested, not spoiling what will happen, but more like Hey-this-is-important flags:
FYI - dealing with the expensive necklace will be useful. Also, not a lot for you to do at the moment, but the sick kids will also be important.
Surprised, she opens the door wide and ushers in the children and anyone else who wants to enter. "Yes, yes, of course, please come in." She waves over some acolytes, and directs them to feed and care for the children, as well as two of them to take the sick children into the sanctuary to try healing magic and rituals.
Looking around, the temple is truly a work of beauty, incorporating large open-air windows framed in intricate filigree and many flowering plants to create a lovely mix of architecture and nature. Even in the dark of night, the care and artistry is noticeable.
After the commotion leaves the entryway, she turns back to the group. "Thank you for your kindness in this, we will do what we can to help these children. Master Wellington, your offer is very generous, thank you. I am Assistant Priest Ayen, and it is nice to have some good news."
She leans in and lowers her voice, despite there being no one else in the room, "The head priest was called away because..." she glances about and nervously wonders whether she should share this information, "The king has fallen severely ill. If they were summoning priests this far out, it must be truly dire." She then thinks for a moment. "You say there was commotion in the streets? And Sable Company soldiers heading into the city. Oh my... it sounds as if the worst may have come to pass. We..." tears begin to well up in her eyes, "We may have lost our King this night."
The nearest temple of Sarenrae is easy to find, especially with the street savvy knowledge of the kids. At one point a squad of 6 griffon-riding Sable Company soldiers screech across the sky fast and low, nearly striking the rooftops, heading towards the center of the city, where much of the sounds are emerging in the distance. But otherwise, the group encounters no one as they avoid the main streets and instea duse small streets and alleys to navigate several blocks to the temple.
The temple is a decent size - certainly not the largest in the city, but still a sizable prescence. It is built of resplendent white stone and manages to be strikingly beautiful even at night, without excessive gaudiness. The main doors have a sun-shaped door knocker, and in response to the rapping of it, a young woman quickly answers. It seems as if she were already awake at this late hour. She opens the door slightl;y and asks, ”Yes, how may we be of service to you?” However, seeing the children, especially the two unconscious ones being carried, she quickly opens the doors wide. ”Come in! Come in! What is the matter? What else has happened this accursed night?” she asks with genuine concern.
The boy replies, "Temple a' Sarenae it tis then. We know it." He tells the rest of the children where to go. They skillfully scout around corners and the boy directs when they should dash across intersections. After a couple blocks moving south toward the temple, Kester moves back to the group and whispers, "I'm worried. There no sign a' guards yet, and it sounds like there's some kind of commotion deeper inta the city. A block over is Harborview Boulevard – it's wider and might give us a better look. Or we can stick to side roads and just be glad we don't run into any guards. Some of the night patrols aren't the friendliest."
There are very faint shouts or loud voices toward the west, but sound quite far away. Otherwise, the streets seem strangely empty so far.
You gather up the sick children, the strongbox, and the ledger and head back upstairs to gather together the children. A couple of the older ones vaguely remember Mivaela from her days among them, and she manages to convince them to go along with you. Several begin tearfully asking if they will be able to go back to their families soon.
Staying together as a group, they head out with you into the night. Several show deep concern for the sick ones and stay close to those who carry them. The other children, once into the street, naturally move to the shadows, skulking silently along - some even turning coats inside out to show a darker side or pulling rags up to cover their faces.
One of the oldest of the children, a gangly, dark-haired boy named Kester, carries a pitchfork with bits of fish guts still hanging off of it, and says, "We're ready to go. Don't worry about the kids. As awful as Lamm and 'is bunch was", the boy spits towards the Old Fishery, "they at least taught us well. We can be quiet and know not to spread out too much. But where's we going?"
Feel free to retcon anything else you wanted to do before leaving the Old Fishery. And however you divide up the loot in Discussion is fine by me. Just let me know if you have any questions. Otherwise - where to now? It's currently middle of the night and the streets are actually rather quiet and empty.
Also, just FYI, considering the speed of most PbP (and this one in particular, sorry again), once you find an established place I'm willing to hand wave converting valuables to gold unless anyone wants to roleplay out haggling for deals. :) Otherwise, just stating that you swing by so-and-so's to sell off the loot you don't want is enough. I'll chime in if there's ever a story reason why that might not work automatically.
With magic items, I'll try to keep an eye on things to find stuff that's useful to everyone. By default, I'll go with what's in the book, but with shuffling and condensing some sections, I already know I need to redistribute where some loot is. But also as we get to higher levels, feel free to speak up about stuff you might want for your PC. I'll probably be more generous with having items for sale as well.
Oh, and speaking of leveling - once you rest, you will all be level 2. You will be fine if you want to just go ahead and do that now. That includes going to standard Pathfinder skills (with background skills) rather than consolidated skills. Makes it easier for me for running things out of the book as well. :)
As it turns out, I will need to withdraw. RL will begin to keep me too busy to play in the number of games I am currently playing in. Thanks for the opportunity DM.
No worries. As you know, I certainly understand having RL interfere. (Speaking of which, I will try to get a post from Kaine today in your Eberron game!) :)
Ok, let's get this going again and see if I can at least get us through Book 1!
Through the night, the children do show some minor signs of improving. They are a long ways from full recovery and not out of danger, but maybe, hopefully, the worst has thankfully passed.
The priest says, "I'm not sure what else we can do or what would have caused it. Normally, I would say they just show signs of dying of old age and their bodies simply giving up. But obviously that's not the case here. It looks like whatever caused it, their youth is working in their favor, however, and with care, they may very well pull through."
When asked where the Chief Priest was called away to, he hesitates and gets nervous, but seeing your determination replies, whispering unintentionally, "I... I really shouldn't... but... well... he was called away to the Castle. It seems the King is direly ill and they were summoning all the high ranking priests to his side to aid him. So, unfortunately, I do not think you can take the children to him, but hopefully he will return to the temple soon and I will tell him of these children and implore him to help!"
Samantha studies the drug through the rest of the night. Most samples appear to be a typical crude drug that causes a euphoric sensation, but long term use can lead to nerve disorders and uncontrollable muscle twitching (in the poorer sections of the city, the addicts are quite apparent, although a rare noble occasionally goes too far and scandalously show mild signs as well). However, one of the samples appears slightly different. The normal vinegar-like smell is barely apparent, but initial testing shows it to be much more potent. Examining it for a longer time might reveal more.
Ok, let's give this a try and see if I can get us through the rest of Book 1, and if I lapse again, we can try to find a new GM. I am sorry to draw this out so long but have a better plan for the rest of Book 1.
Also, Lamm had 2 keys on him (ug, my bad!), but you picked the lock masterfully.
This foul-smelling room seems to be a combination bedroom and study. A wooden bed with a lumpy mattress is against the east wall, while a round table heaped with dirty plates, bread crusts, stained goblets, fruit rinds, and scuttling cockroaches sits nearby.
At the foot of the bed sits a large strongbox; a slightly rusted lock secures it and a moldy ledger with pages rippled from moisture sits atop its lid. A sagging dresser filled with moth-eaten clothes well past their glory days is in one corner.
What appears to be a wooden hatbox surrounded by a small cloud of flies sits atop this dresser.
Two children - a boy and a girl - lay on the floor, unconscious and wheezing with each gasping breath coming difficultly. There are no obvious signs of injury or illness (i.e. boils, rashes, etc.) but they are clearly not well and you fear for their lives. Healing helps stabilize the children somewhat, but unfortunately does not cure them or wake them.
Ledger:
This is a very detailed ledger that appears to be written in some sort of code. If someone spends some time with it, they might be able to decipher, but it will take more than a passing glance to sort it out.
Strongbox (which one of the keys opens):
Inside the strongbox are an odd assortment of valuables that Lamm has collected and individually wrapped in cloth tied shut with twine:
narrow teak cigar case inlaid with bits of jade (25 gp)
2 pound gold ingot bearing the Cheliax coat of arms (100 gp)
miniature gold crown (350 gp)
fist-sized scrimshaw carving of a kraken with garnets for eyes (200 gp)
a silver ring of ornate design that Alistair recognizes as his sister's
a tree carved of jade inscribed "Kyoden, my love for you is eternal. Liliana"
a highly realistic and highly scandalous ivory figurine of two entwined succubi (450 gp)
masterwork shuriken
adamantine arrowhead
glass tube containing a dose of oil of keen edge
masterwork dagger with a strange blade shaped almost like a key with the inscription "For an inspiration of a father" (750 gp)
abalone-shell holy symbol of Shelyn (300 gp)
obsidian wand of magic missle (23 charges)
bejeweled brooch with a broken clasp (???? gp but looks FAR more valuable than the rest of the stuff)
Hatbox:
The fly covered hatbox contains the head of Zellara who sent you to this location! It is weeks old and poorly preserved. Underneath is a smaller wooden box that contains a very old, but high quality Harrow Deck.
Sorry, real life kicked by butt hard lately (nothing bad, thankfully, just crazy busy). It’s calming down and I have a better plan for the rest of Book 1 if people are still up for it. However, I do know my schedule has been spotty in the past, so if people want to move on or recruit a more reliable GM, I understand. No guilt or anything, I picked this up to fill in after the original GM bailed. So I’d like to continue and give it another try, but absolutely wouldn’t take it personally if any of you don’t want to. :)
I'm still alive and well, just was utterly swamped at work (and brain drained when home from work). I do web programming work at Michigan State University in the fundraising dept and the place went kinda insane the past month or so with all of that stuff that's been in the news about MSU. I even went job hunting some with how fed up I am with those in charge.
Sorry, I should have tried to keep this going or at least posted something. As a player in a couple games, I was at least able to take 5 minutes to post an attack roll on occasion, but I should have chimed in here as well. But GM posts take more brain power and I've been a bit drained lately. Despite knowing better, I got stuck in that loop of "I'll post a REAL update soon" rather a quick note.
But it's calmer now, and I'm excited about this game. So I will get things updated and rolling this weekend. I'm looking over this chapter of adventure already to see how better to work it for PbP because there is a lot of little encounters and between PbP and my spotty GM posting, it would just be too much of a slog rather than fun. So I have it about sorted out to run much smoother for PbP, but have free time tomorrow scheduled to finalize those plans.
Again, I'm sorry for the lack of updates or even warning about a lack of updates. Thank you for the concern, as well.
Between Alistair, Garran, and The Oni, there is little left recognizable of this wretched scourge of Korvosa. Silence falls across Lamm's den.
Searching around, this room is a disaster of trash and filth. On Lamm himself, the only thing that looks of any value is the remarkably shiny dagger that stands out against the rest of the mess. +1 dagger Among the tables is a darkwood coffer that might be of value, and inside are about 20 doses of shiver - a highly addictive drug Lamm and his crew sell.
There is also a locked door to a small room in the corner.
The Oni's arrow skewers Gobblegut, finishing off the creature.
Lamm slithers on the ground, feebly failing to stab Alistair in the feet. Alistair easily steps out of the way, leans over, and casually stabs the wretch in the back twice, causing Lamm to screech in pain.
Mivaela slides deftly across the grease, her face twisted up in furious rage muttering under her breath, "Die-die-die-die." She stabs repeatedly at Lamm but just glances off of him - tearing his vest but failing to injure him.
Lamm tries again to stand and... face plants... hard. As Mivaela swings wildly trying to stab him, he turns and plunges his dagger into her chest. She stumbles back, hurt severely, but still conscious.
As Lamm continues to fail to stand, is increasingly surrounded, and seeing Gobblegut sink to the ground dead, his hissing and spit turns to a feeble whimper, punctuated by bloody coughs from a likely collapsed lung.
All PCs are up! I think only Mivaela moved that round, so map is still accurate enough. There's only Lamm left, pitifully flailing around on the ground. :)
Lamm Acrobatics to stand DC 10:1d20 - 1 ⇒ (9) - 1 = 8 Lamm dagger attack:1d20 + 6 - 4 ⇒ (5) + 6 - 4 = 7
Garran's sword smashes deep into the gator's back as Edita's spell causes it to slip onto it's belly. Being so low to the ground, it goes manage to get back to it's feet and it's maw is nowhere near Garran, but it's tail crashes hard at Garran's legs, but Zellara's words echo in your mind and you will not be deterred and manage to leap at just the right moment for the tail to miss.
Snorey scurries over to the tables and begins throwing bottles, plates, and various other junk at Gobblegut. It is not particularly effective in injuring the gator, but certainly annoys it.
Lamm sneers at Alistair, but as the grease takes effect, does a hard face plant into the ground! Unfortunately, Mivaela's dagger then spins uselessly above him and barely misses Alistair. The wretched Lamm then tries getting back up, cursing and spitting, but one of his legs has a severe limp and he collapses down again.
Now laying on his stomach, beyond words and simply hissing, he pulls out his dagger and tries stabbing Alistair in the foot. However, it is feeble and pathetic as he barely even manages to scratch the wood.
PCs' turn! FYI: Gobblegut is AC 14 with only 3 hp left.
Sorry about that, I've been using Roll20, and you all are welcome to sign into that and I think you can control the tokens. Or if people prefer, Google Slides is popular and I can take some time to learn how to set those up. Either way, I will still try to post images of the map in a timely manner.
Zellara looks sullen hearing Weyland's words, barely keeping back tears. "I... don't care... I... burn it if you can, or bury it if it's easier. It's... not m-mine... it's not me anymore." With a deep breath she continues, "I am not sure what's happening elsewhere in thr city. I don't really understand this very well yet, but I am most bound to my home here. I can exist beyond here, but it's... difficult and unclear. But I can see if I can sense anything."
She starts to proceed towards the door, but pauses and looks at Vedika, genuine concern in her eyes, "I hope your sister recovers and there are no more deaths due to Gaedren Lamm." Then she heads to the front door and doesn't bother opening it before fading through it.
Soon Bellis arrives with the acolyte - Assistant Clerk Luthson. He examines the two children and looks extremely concerned. He spends the next hour performing various rituals, mixing herbal concoctions, muttering to himself about "Dire, dire omens" and countless looks of concern and meek apologies to Vedika and the others that he can only do so much.
Unless the characters want to do anything, I'll keep it fast forwarding to make up for lost time.
As the night passes, Luthson eventually slows in his work and says "I have done all that I can. We just need to wait and let Abadar's will be done. Hopefully the chief priest will be back in the morning and can possibly do more than I can. My sincere apologies that he was called away." He looks again at the two sick children, "I just have never seen something like this. Their young bodies are just giving up. The only time I have seen something like this is when I have comforted elderly devotees in their final days. But never in children. I... wish I could do more. I am sorry."
The Oni's arrow thunks into the back of Gobblegut, sinking deep but not slowing him much.
Mivaela runs towards Lamm, pure rage and fire in her eyes, a dagger in each hand, ready to tear into him.
Gobblegut leaps up out of the water surprisingly fast at Garran, it's massive wicked looking jaws snapping well short, and his tail swinging back and forth but only finding air. He growls and hisses at Garran, moving to try and protect Lamm.
Gobblegut bite attack:1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10
Gobblegut tail slap attack:1d20 ⇒ 2
Gaedren turns and fires his hand crossbow at Alistair, but a coughing fit causes the bolt to fly wide and hit the wall several feet away.
Lamm covers his mouth as he coughs and it comes back covered in bloody phlegm which he flicks at Alistair - again missing pitifully.
"Fancy yerself a pretty boy, eh?! You won't be so pretty when ol' Gobblegut craps ya out tamarrah morn!"
The mean looking alligator slows... but shakes it's head, then hisses and grunts menacingly.
Snorey: There are all sorts of various junk on the tables that could be thrown as improvised weapons. However, even for a monkey, you almost feel like you want to wear gloves to touch the stuff. (No mechanical impact, it's just nasty down here.)
I believe that's all but The Oni. Mivaela will go after y'all.
"Lamm, you tried to use my magic for your own gains. Now it will be your downfall."
..aaaand waiting for my place in initiative order :-)
I’m doing group initiative plus as a little apology for disappearing, I waived initiative for this combat and just let you all go first. :) So all PCs can go, no need to wait.
HARROW POINTS
Also, I forget if CyberMephit or I explained this, and I don’t have tie to dig back through the posts, sorry. But I will put this in it’s own post for easy reference.
From Zellara's Harrow reading everyone has 4 Harrow Points, if I recall. You can use them at any time during Chapter 1 (which is about levels 1-3, and FYI once you are done with Lamm, you will be level 2). You can spend a Harrow Point to gain any of the following benefits:
Dexterity Rerolls: A PC can spend a Harrow Point to reroll an initiative check, Reflex save, attack roll modified by Dexterity, or Dexterity-based check. The PC must abide by the new result (although if he has additional Harrow Points, he can use them for additional rerolls).
Dodge Bonus: A PC can spend a Harrow Point to gain a +2 dodge bonus to his Armor Class for one encounter. They can spend up to 3 Harrow Points per encounter to increase his Armor Class in this manner.
Speed Increase: A PC can spend a Harrow Point to increase his base speed by 10 feet for one encounter.
Again, I am very sorry for the unexpected hiatus. I'm back now, and let's just dive right in!
The Oni manages to get the door unlocked, and as everyone takes a deep breath, he opens it to face the dreaded Gaedren Lamm - twisted thieving snake, plague on Korvosa's forgotten children, and all-around despicable wretch!
You enter the den of the foul Gaedren Lamm.
The air in this large room is chilly and stinks of the river, thanks to a huge opening in the floor that drops away to the river shore three feet below. Several pilings emerge from the waters to support the roof eight feet above the floor, with mossy ropes slung between them. In two places, rusty manacles hang from the ropes over the water. Two five-foot-wide walkways cross the hole to the other side of the chamber, where a collection of old cabinets, lockboxes, and piles of clutter are strewn about. Chipped porcelain plates, a cracked goblet, badly rusted silverware, an old wooden shield with a crossbow bolt embedded in it, the odd dinged helm, and other "treasures" litter the floor of this side of the chamber. Three tables heaped with clutter stand amid this mess. In the corner, a wooden door provides access to a walled-off section.
Your blood boils and rage builds as you look, face to face, with the viper himself, Gaedren Lamm. At his feet is a nasty alligator that looks almost as mean as Lamm himself. Gaedren's eyes widen in surprise and then he sneers at you, licking his lips. With a swift kick to the side of the alligator, he commands his pet, "Gobblegut, go enjoy your midnight snack!"
As all of you see Gaedren Lamm, your blood burns with the desire for vengeance. However, Garran, you hear Zellara's voice echoing in your mind...
Garran:
The Locksmith. In Zellara's Harrowing, you choose the Locksmith. "Your pursuits may open the keys to a new destiny." You do not know how, but you know Fate has led you here and readied you to strike. Now is your moment to strike and free them all from Lamm's clutches.
You get a +4 to all Dexterity-based checks (Dex attacks, Reflex, skills), and a +2 Dodge bonus to AC for the duration of this fight.
Again, I am sorry for the unexpected hiatus for several weeks. But I am back now and let's jump to it. Also, just a reminder that you are all Level 2 now.
BELLIS
The acolyte of Abadar hurries off to quickly throw on some vestments and gather several vials into a bag. "This is truly a dark night, I am sorry. The head priest was called away earlier this evening for-" and then he catches himself, "- another dire emergency. I will do what I can for these children. Now let's hurry!"
OTHERS
Everyone else manages to get to Zellara's home without problems. However, the night is definitely unsettling. Most of the streets are unusually empty where you are, but you hear yelling and commotion echoing from the distance. At one point, a squad of 6 hippogriff riding Sable Company marines soars low and fast overhead towards the heart of the city. They are close enough that you can see an intensity on their faces but they do not even look your way even as one skims so low over an apartment building, that it knocks a few shingles loose.
Arriving at Zellara's home, the children file in, filling much of the small building. Thankfully, they seem quite used to tight quarters. Most of them look and try to huddle around the sick children, but Kester and the other older ones force them away into small side rooms.
After they are out of the way, Zellara's spirit manifests, her face a swirl of emotions. Relief, worry, joy, sadness, and then a focus on the sick children. "What has happened to them? Are you all ok?" As she looks around at the group, her translucent hand goes to her mouth in shock, "No, no! Please, not another. Where... where is Bellis?"
Oh, also, I guess while waiting for me, you can all level up to 2! Figured it’d happen when you rest next, but resting real soon and unlikely anything really requiring stats will come up in that short time. So go ahead and level! :)
Sorry I had to emergency fill in for teaching a couple classes after another professor had a sudden conflict. So prep over the holidays and beginning of the term kicked my butt hard. But I should have things all set and running smoother in the next day or two and will definitely get back to this. Sorry for not posting earlier and leaving you all hanging. Even if I have occasional lags, I won't ditch you all (unless hit by a bus or something, of course, but let's hope not.)
So in the next day or two I will get things going again. Thanks!
Sorry I had to emergency fill in for teaching a couple classes after another professor had a sudden conflict. So prep over the holidays and beginning of the term kicked my butt hard. But I should have things all set and running smoother in the next day or two and will definitely get back to this. Sorry for not posting earlier and leaving you all hanging. Even if I have occasional lags, I won't ditch you all (unless hit by a bus or something, of course, but let's hope not.)
So in the next day or two I will get things going again. Thanks!
There is plentiful fish guts and unidentifiable semi-rotten seafood of some sort to dump into the water. The shark goes into a feeding frenzy that looks like it will last a while.
You can safely pass by it. Just leaving (hopefully) a door between you and the despicable wretch, Gaedren Lamm.
Only options seem to be:
A) squeezing one by one through the opening in Yargin's floor,
B) dealing with the shark (*whisper* which I'll let you know, isn't awful *end whisper*), or
C) as usual, coming up with something else creative that I'd happily run with.
Watching longer and looking closer, the large creature looks to be a jigsaw shark! This breed of shark is not as large as some that stay out in the ocean depths, but are still fierce and can swim up into rivers in search of food. The shore must drop off rather quickly for it to come this close, but seeing the underside of the Fishery above, with the repulsive fish guts that seeped through the floorboards, it's not surprising it would find this spot a nice feeding spot.
It may be possible to stay close to the building and climb onto the walkway to avoid the shark. It seems to be circling lazily waiting for a meal than particularly enraged.
yes, Bellis will be getting a healer. Sorry for delay, holiday prep and traveling were extra busy this year. But after I get some rest from driving all day, I will get a post up in the morning.
Edita finds all sorts of records on slates and scrolls about ordinary business at the Fishery. However, in a secret compartment on the underside of the desk, she finds the real ledger. It is written in a code that can't be immediately understood, but the records do look highly detailed.
Garran and the One then slide the desk over so that one of the legs sits on the trap door, and Alistair cannot find any other means to get to the lower level other than dropping through the opening in the main fishery floor into the water.
As everyone starts to move around the outside, a few slip and stumble on the steep slope unfortunately making a decent amount of noise. Getting down to the water level, it becomes apparent that there is another walkway leading from the ship to a door on a lower level of the fishery. However, this walkway is constantly splashed with water, making it quite slippery.
You will have to wade out into the water and climb up onto the walkway. Acrobatics or Athletics check DC 10 or fall back into the water. Or given how the walkway leads to the ship, there might be a way to get to it that way without going in the water.
Perception DC 20:
There is a large creature swimming in the water near the walkway.
I'm presuming Bellis rushes off to find a healer, and the rest of you gather the children and head to Zellara's, but go ahead and ret-con any last actions before you leave the Fishery or differences in my assumptions.
Lamm's corpse is left cooling on the ground, his skull smashed in. There are two extremely sick children, including Vedika's sister, and 26 more scared children upstairs. Bellis rides off to find a healer while the rest of the group leads over two dozen children outside to head several blocks to Zellara's home.
BELLIS
You gallop along, the clank of the metallic hooves echoing through the empty streets. You hear some faint shouts in the distance, but it sounds far away and you are too focused on your search for a temple to be distracted. Much of this district is composed of merchants (closed, since it's the middle of the night), but you do find a small chapel to Abadar that doubles as a place of arbitration to settle minor disputes between merchants.
You pound on the door, and an acolyte – apparently already awake – answers. He is a dwarf, his short, blonde beard still showing some signs of youth (human equivalent, early 20's), and he has an annoyed look on his face that quickly drops away after he sees you, "What is it now – oh, my pardon, *cough*, um, can I help you?"
EVERYONE ELSE
The children are unsure of leaving, but staying together as a group, they head out with you into the night. Several show deep concern for the sick ones and stay close to those who carry them. The other children, once into the street, naturally move to the shadows, skulking silently along.
One of the oldest of the children, a gangly, dark-haired boy named Kester, carries a pitchfork with bits of fish guts still hanging off of it, and directs some of the children to scout around corners and when they should dash across intersections. After a couple blocks moving south toward Zellara's home, Kester whispers to you, "I'm worried. There's been no sign of guard patrols yet, and it sounds like there's some kind of commotion deeper into the city. A block over is Harborview Boulevard – it's wider and might give us a better look. Or we can stick to side roads and just be glad we don't run into any guards. Some of the night patrols aren't the friendliest."
Listening, you can hear very faint shouts or loud voices toward the west, but sound quite far away. Otherwise, the streets seem empty so far.
Sorry again for the radio silence, but my day job has settled, I'm mostly over this cold, and I'm ready for Lamm to die... possibly by the end of the year. :)
The halfling is tied up (sorry for not clarifying earlier when he was mis-raced), and you have found a very narrow trap door (allegedly) directly to Lamm's room, or there is the way by going around the outside and trying to see if there is an external entrance (since it's unlikely an old guy like Lamm crawls up and down through this trap door IF he ever actually leaves).
Are you having Alistair try to impersonate Yargin to get Lamm to unlock the trap door? Try smashing it open? Try going outside? Other creative ideas?
-- If you are trying to impersonate Yargin, make an Influence or Performance check (I'd say either makes sense).
-- If you are going to break it open, Str check DC 15 (but obviously, success or failure will be easily heard)
-- If you are going around the outside, make Stealth checks.
Samantha examines the children and determines that they are suffering from both very severe heart and lung problems. Their heart is beating irregularly, rapidly speeding up and then slowing dangerously down, and their breathing is more of a gurgling wheeze from fluid in their lungs. Moving them does not seem to be a danger, but you are unsure if they will survive the night without a powerful intervention.
A quick search of Lamm by Bellis reveals he has:
+1 padded armor*
+1 dagger
masterwork hand crossbow with 8 bolts
brass key (unlocks all the doors in this building)
rusty iron key (unlocks a strongbox in this back room)
The fly covered hatbox sadly contains Zellara's head, poorly preserved and decorated with unsightly makeup in a crude attempt to give her dead flesh the semblance of life. Underneath is a smaller wooden box that contains a very old, but high quality Harrow Deck.
In the main room there are:
7 applications of foul smelling insect repellent
a darkwood coffer worth 100gp containing 20 doses of shiver, a drug Lamm manufactures and sells
a lot of useless and nasty garbage
On top of a strongbox in the back room, sits a very detailed ledger that appears to be written in some sort of code. If someone spends some time with it, they might be able to decipher, but it will take more than a passing glance to sort it out.
Inside the strongbox are an odd assortment of valuables that Lamm has collected and individually wrapped in cloth tied shut with twine:
narrow teak cigar case inlaid withy bits of jade (25 gp)
2 pound gold ingot bearing the Cheliax coat of arms (100 gp)
miniature gold crown (350 gp)
fist-sized scrimshaw carving of a kraken with garnets for eyes (200 gp)
a silver ring bearing the inscription "For Emmah - the light in my nights" (150 gp)
a highly realistic and highly scandalous ivory figurine of two entwined succubi (450 gp)
masterwork shuriken
adamantine arrowhead
glass tube containing a dose of oil of keen edge
masterwork dagger with a strange blade shaped almost like a key with the inscription "For an inspiration of a father" (750 gp)
abalone-shell holy symbol of Shelyn (300 gp)
obsidian wand of magic missle (23 charges)
bejeweled brooch with a broken clasp (???? gp but looks FAR more valuable than the rest of the stuff)
Nicolai's wife Natalia's purse that now contains 50 gp
crystalline vial (50 gp) containing a dose of silversheen that has the seal of Samantha's father's alchemy lab
* I'll just stick with automatically identifying things if that's ok. PbP can be slow enough, there's no need to drag that out as well. If it breaks suspension of disbelief, just let me know.
Lets make it DC 15 instead. Especially since the halfling gave hints. I wondered at that DC being pretty high for 1st level PCs, and it’s not essential for continuing, but it is a pretty handy for continuing.
Hello? Any one still here? :) I will assume you open the last door to finish off this area...
This foul-smelling room seems to be a combination bedroom and study. A wooden bed with a lumpy mattress stands against the east wall, while a round table heaped with dirty plates, bread crusts, stained goblets, fruit rinds, and scuttling cockroaches sits nearby.
At the foot of the bed sits a large strongbox; a slightly rusted lock secures it and a moldy ledger with pages rippled from moisture sits atop its lid. A sagging dresser filled with moth-eaten clothes well past their glory days is in one corner.
What appears to be a wooden hatbox surrounded by a small cloud of flies sits atop this dresser.
Lastly, two children - a boy and a girl - lay on the floor, unconscious and wheezing with each gasping breath coming difficultly. There are no obvious signs of injury or illness (i.e. boils, rashes, etc.) but they are clearly not well and you fear for their lives.
The children look at Alistair confused. One of them meekly speaks up, "You - you w-want us to kill him? He's a bad, bad man but I've never killed no one, sir. We jus' steal stuff. If we kill him, will you help us get home? I miss my family."
As Garran (and any others once you are done with the halfling) explores the other rooms, there is a front room, a small room with two bunk beds, and Yargin's office.
Front Room: A single desk sits in the middle of this room, with a moldy chair pushed up against it. A small pile of ratty furs and straw is heaped under the desk, likely the bed of the horrifying dog you fought earlier.
Barracks: A pair of bunk beds sit against the far wall of this room on either side of a boarded-over window.
Yargin's Office: A wooden desk sits in one corner of this room, its side preventing the western door from opening all the way. The table is heaped with dozens of slate boards covered with chalk scrawls, while to the east a cabinet slouches against the wall.
Perception DC 25:
One of the floorboards behind the chair in the northeast corner of the room is in fact a cunningly hidden trap door. The door is wedged shut and barred from below, and must be smashed open from above unless the wedge is removed.
Oh sorry, in Germany we don't even realize that it may be a holiday because we don't celebrate thanksgiving. ;-) Could have thought...
I am sorry, I try to post keeping in mind we have players from across the world. I just typed that up quickly. The main point more was that I got the family holiday version of Con Crud. :) I have a 5 year old nephew on my wife's side, so it seems like every time we visit them, we get the latest batch from that cute little germ factory.
