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You move along to the anacite, who turns toward you. In a confident demeanor, the robot says, "Greetings, friend Starfinders! I am Posit-Certitude, leader of the Aballonian group exploring Investigation Site A01. We appreciate your help in saving our city of Striving from destruction last year, and look forward to working together to ascertain the true nature of this new mystery we are encountering. As you know, very little is known of the First Ones, though there is much speculation - most of it based on scan evidence to be sure - and we look forward to finding solid data upon which to establish a better understanding ..."

Round 5
Killik
Cyprium
Shadir
Yjun

Recommended Skills:
* Demonstrate knowledge of Aballon or the First Ones (Aballon Lore, First Ones Lore, Society)
* discuss advanced technology (Computers or Crafting)
* feign interest in a dissertation on the use of heuristic techniques for wardrobe selection (Deception or Fashion Lore)

Jax frowns and shakes her head. "No, the Rust Wraiths were independent agents ... but sad about that little skittermander, though." She glances among you, apparently taking your measure, and then leans over, "Okay, I can tell you this. The Consortium teams have found some weird, modified corpses. Mutated animals and undead creatures that disintegrate into rust. That kind of stuff. That is something that I think you guys should definitely be looking into."

Posit-Certitude or Voss next for Round 5?

Jax gets flustered at being called out by Killik. "I mean, there's been some ... interesting technology ... to be sure ..." She glances around, clearly thinking that maybe she's underestimated how savvy - and how easily manipulated - the Starfinders might be.

Influence Points: 3/6
Actions recommended, though other creative options are allowed:
* Demonstrate business acumen (Corporate Lore or Society)
* Paint the Starfinders as capable rivals (Deception, Diplomacy, or Intimidation)
* Catch Jax in a lie (Perception to Sense Motive)

Round 4
Cyprium
Shadir
Yjun

Jax eyes the group of you with skepticism, as you do little to persuade her of your competence.

Eventually, though, as Shadir mentions pulling units from the Wreck, he notices Jax seeming startled and a bit alarmed at the suggestion, but then trying to recover. "Oh, no, of course not. We're a business, after all, and there's profit ... I mean, a slim chance at profit, that is ... in this enterprise. So we'll be sticking with it."

Influence Points: 1/6
Continue trying in Round 4 (and Killik still gets Round 3 attempt)

Round 3
Killik

Round 4
Cyprium
Shadir
Yjun
Killik

As you are about to move on, Sarmak says, "You exemplify the best of the Society, fellow Starfinders. We could use more dedicated agents like yourselves. The Wreck of the Returned appeared following a signal sent by an anacite faction named "Those Who Call," summoning them to the Pact Worlds. It crashed here and was explored by two local mercenary companies. The mercenary Rust Wraiths lost one of their companions, a skittermander named Gremmik, in that exploration, and the group has since disbanded."

As you move on to Jax, the female ysoki in a suit has a cut-throat air about her that may vaguely remind you of another ysoki in a suit that you've encountered. "Oh, look, more Starfinders," she groans to her associates (lackeys). She then turns her conversation toward you. "Listen, you guys really need to convince Sarmak to back off of this whole exploration of the Wreck of the Returned - stupid name, by the way. You don't know how dangerous it is. We've had a ton of teams going through there, and have lost many of our front-line agents. We've got the capacity to absorb that, of course ... but you want Sarmak just throwing your lives away like that? For what? We haven't found anything useful or interesting at all."

Go ahead and do round 2 & 3 rolls, except for Killik.

Rounds 2/3
Cyprium
Shadir
Yjun
Killik (Round 3 action only)

Actions recommended, though other creative options are allowed:
* Demonstrate business acumen (Corporate Lore or Society)
* Paint the Starfinders as capable rivals (Deception, Diplomacy, or Intimidation)
* Catch Jax in a lie (Perception to Sense Motive)

Well, that went very well..

Round 1
Cyprium entertains the crowd. (+2 Influence Points) Doctor Killik reinforces the wards. (+1 Influence Point) The two kasathans stow the delicate equipment. (+2 Influence Points)

5/6 Influence Points

Round 2
Doctor Killik continues reinforcing the wards on the building.

That's 6 Influence Points.

Sarmak gathers you together. "Wow, you have done an excellent job helping up. Why don't you all go ahead now and talk to some of the delegates?"

Where to next? Only Killik needed to use his round 2 action, so Cyprium, Shadir, and Yjun will get Round 2 actions on the next delegate.

Assume we dont need to impress him?

Actually, yes, impressing the boss is part of this social encounter. Who says art doesn't imitate life?

Round 1

You approach the izalguun First Seeker, who sees you and waves with one of his arms. "Greetings. Always nice to meet some of the new recruits. I hear you are all being quite helpful ... which is great, because I could use some help. Turns out I had a few tasks I wasn't quite able to finish up, but I need to focus on talking with the delegates myself. We need some help with the anti-scrying ward security, some additional entertainment of the attendees, and storing up some equipment. Also, um, would any of you have any experience with holographic work? My graphic design skills are okay, but my presentation could use a little polish."

Here are the checks (DC 15, or DC 13 for Lores) offered, although other creative solutions are welcome:
* Calibrate the lodge’s anti-scrying wards (Arcana, Nature, Occultism, or Religion)
* Entertain attendees (Acrobatics, Performance, or many Lores, including Art Lore, Cooking Lore, Music Lore, Sports Lore)
* Stow delicate equipment (Athletics, Labor Lore, or Thievery)
* Finalize Sarmak’s holographic presentation (Computers or Crafting)

Because the holidays will likely slow things down, go ahead and make your Round 1 and Round 2 checks. Unless there are substantial crits, it's unlikely that you'll impress him entirely in a single round.

During the 10 minutes that Doctor Killik is humming, the others are able (without incident) to search the area to their satisfaction that no other drones are hiding around here.

You proceed several minutes to climb up the footpath, finding a pre-fab building that has been assembled for the purposes of the summit. As you enter the building ...

A conversational din dominates a room crowded with colorful delegates and their entourages. Numerous beings mingle, exchange pleasantries, and trade information, promoting a dynamic, collegial atmosphere.

Most gather around a well-stocked bar topped with numerous food options, including an impressive fondue fountain. Tables and chairs arranged around the room allow for discreet discussions. A stage rises in the room’s southwest corner equipped with holoprojectors and vid-screens to facilitate communal presentations.

As you enter the room, Zizenzi is standing at the doorway greeting entrants, and seems excited to see you all. "Oh, excellent, you're here ahead of schedule. Thank you so much for sending that information from your patrols! I dispatched an engineering team to check on that undermining, and it turns out there was a khefaks tunnel in this region, as well. Fortunately, you gave us plenty of warning and they've been able to put in some reinforcement supports, so ... potential crisis averted!"

He points out the three groups of delegates, and First Seeker Sarmak. "I'm sure you've already read the dossiers. (Slide 11) Our schedule is tight. You are all scheduled to meet as a group with each of the delegates . Remember, your aim is to convince the delegates to share information and work together. Be sure to use what you learned from the dossiers to help make a good impression. Oh, and Sarmak also wanted to speak to you, when you have a chance." They wave you into the room to begin being diplomatic.

Terrain: Brightly lit. 15-foot ceilings

The summit lasts 8 9 rounds, with each round representing roughly 15 minutes. The delegates have a lot planned, so you can meet with each delgate as a group once. Each round each person will be able to do one skill check to impress a delegate. Default DC 15 (DC 13 for appropriate Lore). You can also choose to Aid (but since Aid is also DC 15, you might as well to go ahead and aim to impress them).

Round 1
Who do you visit first?

Killik's shot takes it out.

Combat over. Let me know how you are proceeding and I will post to move us along to the summit this evening or tomorrow morning.

Cyprium's strike connects breaks off a chunk of rock as it also connects with the drone.

The drone begins rapidly flying away.
◆ Fly
◆ Fly
◆ Fly

Battlemap Slide 12
Terrain: Dark brown rocks provide cover/block line of sight. Two 10-foot bursts of difficult terrain.

Round 5
Yjun
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Round 6
Cyprium (-2 HP)
Killik
Baddy Green

Shadir, these things fly, so you wouldn't expect to see any tracks. I will treat that re-roll as on Perception instead.

Round 4
Killik remains far distant, with many rock formations between him and his allies, and probably any potential remaining enemies, hoping for an opening within range of his force barrage.

Yjun stays where he is but peers around. Unfortunately, from his vantage, he sees no remaining drones.

Shadir, these things fly, so you wouldn't expect to see any tracks, so I'll treat that as a re-roll. I'll that re-roll as a Seek, and it beats his Stealth DC (without a cover bonus), so ...

Shadir moves around the rock formation. Looks like 2 Strides? Stride, Stride, Seek? As he is walking, a pulse of warped reality flashes out from a corner of the rocks, altering the landscape and creating obstructing sand formations. Another 10-foot burst of difficult terrain. From his new position, he sees the drone ... but is out of actions.

With the clue of where it is hiding from the warped terrain, Cyprium is thinks he can make out the hiding drone. Successful Seek takes it from undetected to hidden. You see a bit of it sticking out from behind an outcropping of rock.

Killik - There are 4 rock outcroppings between you and it, so you can't see it (or Shadir) and can only see Cyprium because he's large and flying over the rocks. The only one you can see clearly and without any obstruction is Yjun.

Round 5
Cyprium (-2 HP) - 2 actions left
Killik - delayed
Baddy Green - observed by Shadir, hidden to Cyprium, unobserved to Yjun & Killik
Yjun
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

The two Kasathas look around for the remaining target but see none. With no enemies in sight, you have to decide if you are going to keep looking around the area or move on to the summit.

Battlemap Slide 12
Terrain: Dark brown rocks provide cover/block line of sight. Two 10-foot bursts of difficult terrain.

Round 4
Killik
Yjun
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Round 5
Cyprium (-2 HP)
Baddy Green - undetected to all (or maybe it's run off at this point, who knows ...)

Cyprium, I believe you're trying to go after green ... I'll reposition you to where you last saw it, because you're over where you fought blue.

Cyprium flies to where he last saw the green drone, looks around a bit, and then powerfully swings his sword at the spot ... but nothing is there.

Yjun hits the red drone ... which violently sparks and then explodes, pieces of debris falling to the ground.

Yjin - You only expend the first shot. You have one action remaining.

Shadir is up. Killik & Cyprium believe they saw a third drone when you reached the area, but they haven't seen it since that first glimpse.

The red drone was within reach of Shadir, but still hidden to him. Since it was hidden (behind rock) at the start of its movement in Shadir's threatened space, he is off-guard when it made that movement. I thought reactions don't trigger when off-guard, but I'm having trouble finding that officially spelled out in the rules for off-guard or reactions. Is that everyone else's understanding?

Battlemap Slide 12
Terrain: Dark brown rocks provide cover/block line of sight. Two 10-foot bursts of difficult terrain.

The red drone darts from its cover, lights flicking, then fires at Shadir.
◆ Fly (see Gameplay for discussion of Nimbus Surge here)
◆ Record Video
◆ Strike
Laser beam attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (1) + 7 = 8
Laser beam damage (fire): 1d6 ⇒ 5
The shot goes wide. However, the drone just reaches the periphery of the waiting Killik's spell range ... and the shirren unleashes a trio of force missiles toward the drone. Its lights flicker, and is dips a bit, but remains aloft and (barely) intact.

Killik's re-enters initiative order in round 3 after Red. Yjun, Shadir, & Cyprium are up.

Round 3
Yjun
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Round 4
Cyprium (-2 HP)
Baddy Green - undetected to all (or maybe it's run off at this point, who knows ...)
Baddy Red (-7 HP)
Killik

Cyprium flies above Shadir into the photon field. Everything outside of the field is concealed to him now by the hazy shell of light ... and though he can see well inside the field, he cannot yet find the well-hidden tiny drone hiding among the big rocks. He has no reason to think that it's moved from its previous location, though.

Killik is up

As Shadir gets 30 feet away from the red drone, reality ripples out around it, deforming the ground in uneven mounds and spikes. Fortunately, due to the speed increase from Stellar Rush, he is still able to reach the location he was aiming for.

The dark 10-foot burst centered on the red drone represents difficult terrain.

Battlemap Slide 12
Terrain: Dark brown rocks provide cover/block line of sight. Two 10-foot bursts of difficult terrain. Photon field centered on Shadir.

Round 2
* Killik - greater cover, delayed - Let me know where you want to drop into the initiative order for your next action

Round 3
Cyprium (-2 HP)
Baddy Green - undetected to all
Baddy Red - hidden to all
Yjun
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Round 2
* Killik - greater cover, delayed - Let me know where you want to drop into the initiative order for your next action
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Round 3
Cyprium (-2 HP)
Baddy Green - undetected to all
Baddy Red - hidden to all
Yjun

Yjun darts forward and shoots at the drone. It sparks at the strike ... and then begins sparking some more and collapses to the ground.

Killik - Since Yjun's shot took it out, you still have your full round of actions (and spell slot).

Round 2

Though initially the rest of you cannot see what is happening with Cyprium due to the rock formations, the drone responds to Cyprium's assault by floating away from the dragonkin ... which brings it out from behind the rocks, and into clear line of sight to you all. Cyprium, I don't see one on your character sheet, but if you have a reaction or AoO it could be triggered by this movement.

Yjun, prepared for this, fires his arc pistol narrowly past Shadir's head at the drone as it enters his line of sight, but misses ... both Shadir and the drone in the distance.

The drone fires a laser beam toward Cyprium, then pivots and fires toward Shadir.

◆ Fly
◆ Strike
Laser beam attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24
Laser beam damage (fire): 1d6 ⇒ 2
◆ Strike
Laser beam attack w/ MAP: 1d20 + 7 - 5 ⇒ (13) + 7 - 5 = 15
Laser beam damage (fire): 1d6 ⇒ 3

The laser beam at Cyprium connects, lightly scorching the finish on his skyfire armor, but the one at Shadir hits the sand a couple of yards in front of him.

Boldface is up

* Killik - greater cover, delayed - Let me know where you want to drop into the initiative order for your next action
Yjun
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Round 3
Cyprium (-2 HP)
Baddy Green - undetected to all
Baddy Red - hidden to all
Baddy Blue

Quick rules question. Force Barrage says that it always hits. Does it ignore the miss chance of hidden or concealed or not? Opinions vary and we have no official answer.

The spell targets a creature rather than a space, and specifically says "You fire a shard of solidified magic toward a creature that you can see." Hidden says the creature is unobserved by you and the miss chance represents you blindly targeting the space and hoping you hit. So I'd say it can't target hidden creatures. Concealment, on the other hand, says the creature is observed by you, which means you can see them and the spell would automatically hit, so no miss chance.

As Cyprium approaches, there is some sort of strange shimmering pulse ... the ground ripples. Spikes of solid sand begin protruding from the ground around it.

10 foot burst (shaded template around blue) is difficult terrain. Doesn't have impact on fliers, obviously, but the Akitonian Kasatha heritage doesn't ignore this difficult terrain. I would also say this effect means the blue drone is hidden rather than undetected, since you can all assume it would be at the center of the burst.

Cyprium flies over the transformed terrain and swings at where he suspects the nearest robot is.

Flat DC 11 check to attack hidden creature: 1d20 ⇒ 5
Ouch. I was really hoping that check would make it.... I hate to see a crit go to waste.

The powerful blow cleaves through a chunk of rock, which crumbles away to reveal the hidden blue drone to Cyprium. It orients toward him, lights flickering and the wide lens on the front of the drone rotating and extending slightly. Despite lack of technical acumen, Cyprium gets the distinct sense that the drone is recording him.

Killik is up.

Though Shadir thinks he knows roughly where a couple of the drones may be, as he peers ahead he gains no additional sight of them.

Round 2
Slide 12 map - You are heading to the summit, which is beyond the bottom edge of the map.
Bold is up.

Killik - greater cover
Cyprium - standard cover
Baddy Green - undetected to all
Baddy Red - hidden to all
Baddy Blue - undetected to Yjun & Cyprium, hidden to Killik & Shadir
Yjun - readied attack reaction
Shadir - Attuned: Photon

Terrain conditions: The dark brown formations block line of sight. Since I believe everyone here is either an Akitonian Kasatha or has flight, it doesn't matter if the uneven sand creates difficult terrain.

Killik and Cyprium inform the others of robots up ahead, and then duck behind large rocks. You see some glints of metal and flashing lights ahead as the drones move dart between rock formations, but find it difficult to identify their exact positions.

Round 1/2
Slide 12 map - You are heading to the summit, which is beyond the bottom edge of the map.
Everyone is up.

Killik - greater cover
Cyprium - standard cover
Baddy Green - undetected to all
Baddy Red - hidden to all
Baddy Blue - undetected to Yjun & Cyprium, hidden to Killik & Shadir
Yjun
Shadir

Terrain conditions: The dark brown formations block line of sight. Since I believe everyone here is either an Akitonian Kasatha or has flight, it doesn't matter if the uneven sand creates difficult terrain.

Just because it might be relevant in this encounter (since the robots are using stealth) and some people might not be aware of all the mechanics, here are some relevant action/condition descriptions and links to Archives of Nethys pages (which often cross-link other useful terms).

From the high vantage points, you quickly map paths through this area and are able to scout to your satisfaction that there are no additional threats in the area.

Having completed all of your scouting activities so efficiently, you are able to move on to the summit with a bit of time to spare.

In addition to a +1 in the initiative rolls for this upcoming encounter (included in my rolls), you get an extra round to interact with any one delegate of your choice at the summit.

You park your d-vees back into the garage, submit your reports to Zizenzi (including information about the undermining you discovered), and then proceed on foot. Occasional dust devils swirl across this rugged area pocked with craters and gullies. To the south, an opening within a wall of jagged rock begins an uphill footpath to the summit.

Killik Perception init w/ bonus: 1d20 + 8 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 8 + 1 = 29
Shadir Perception init w/ bonus: 1d20 + 7 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 7 + 1 = 10
Cyprium Perception init w/ bonus: 1d20 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (16) + 3 + 1 = 20
Yjun Perception init w/ bonus: 1d20 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 4 + 1 = 14

As you approach the rock formation, Killik (and, shortly after, Cyprium) see the glint of some metallic creatures, perhaps drones of some kind, up ahead. Of course, given the technical expertise of this group, for all you know these are vacuum cleaners.

Round 1
Slide 12 map - You are heading to the summit, which beyond the bottom edge of the map.
Boldface are up.

Killik
Cyprium
Baddy Green - undetected by Yjun & Shadir
Baddy Red - undetected by Yjun & Shadir
Baddy Blue - undetected by Yjun & Shadir
Yjun
Shadir

Terrain conditions: The dark brown formations block line of sight. Since I believe everyone here is either an Akitonian Kasatha or has flight, it doesn't matter if the uneven sand creates difficult terrain.

You successfully navigate the potholes and loose soil of the North Quadrant, feeling comfortable that the area has been fully patrolled and is secure.

Round 5: East Quadrant

You proceed on to the East Quadrant, finding several rocky outcroppings, hollows, and rifts requiring up-close investigation and manual exploration. Killik quickly identifies some formations that have color gradients in the stone rather than hollows, avoiding the need for exploring one of the cliff faces.

Here are the options. You had 4 successes before Killik's roll. Since his Nature & Survival modifiers are the same, I'll just take that as a Nature check on the East Quadrant ... and 27 gives a crit success, so you're at 2/4 Patrol Points on this sector. Everyone may do their Round 5 roll:
* DC 14 Acrobatics to Squeeze into crevasses
* DC 14 Athletics to Climb overlooks
* DC 15 Nature to identify predators’ lairs
* DC 16 Perception to Search for danger

None of you have any idea what that strange bit of technology was.

Round 4: North Quadrant

After a half hour of exploration of the North Quadrant, you're making some progress, but it's clear that this is more of a challenge than the previous two quadrants. You have reached about the halfway point of your time before heading to the summit.

Status: 2/4 Patrol points. Another round of checks:
* DC 14 Piloting to Navigate hazardous terrain
* DC 15 Computers or Crafting to recalibrate the d-vee’s suspension
* DC 15 Survival to survey land features
* DC 16 Perception to Search the region for danger

I feel like the benefit of the Akitonian Kashatha heritage would be to reduce the difficulty of an Athletics check, and that roll would be an Athletics success ... which means ...

Responding quickly, with the natural abilities of the native Akitonian Kasathas (and Doctor Killik's extensive emergency preparation research), you deftly get around the sandstorm with no injuries. When the storm passes, you discover a half-uncovered technological component sticking out of the sand.

You can try DC 13 Robot Lore or DC 15 Crafting check to identify the component, if anyone wishes. Let me know if you're passing.

Continuing clockwise around the map, you move on to the North Quadrant.

Round 2/3: North Quadrant

This quadrant is littered with hidden potholes and deposits of loose soil which make navigation challenging.

Cyprium can make 2 checks (for Round 2 & Round 3) and anyone else can make their Round 3 check:
* DC 14 Piloting to Navigate hazardous terrain
* DC 15 Computers or Crafting to recalibrate the d-vee’s suspension
* DC 15 Survival to survey land features
* DC 16 Perception to Search the region for danger

Indeed, having encountered the native fauna of Akiton once before, Doctor Killik has taken it upon himself in recent weeks to make a study of them. He easily recognizes that these instabilities were created by khefaks, but notes that strange trench marks and plasma burns suggest the khefaks making these tunnels are atypical of their species and possibly the product of some further bioengineering or mutation.

Round 2: West Quadrant

Having completed an efficient and thorough scouting of the South Quadrant, you move on to the West Quadrant on your maps. As you drive through the wind-hewn hills, however, a sandstorm rapidly rises up and strikes your area.

Check Options (again, the goal here is to obtain 4 Patrol Points):
* DC 14 Crafting or Survival to find or fashion shelter
* DC 15 Society to recall local advice about sandstorm safety
* DC 16 Acrobatics or Athletics to avoid injury.
* Per usual, can swap in a relevant Lore at -2 DC

Shadir realizes that khefaks, arthropods once bioengineered to help mine thasteron, created the undermining tunnels. When the thasteron market on Akiton crashed after the advent of Drift travel, the corporations mining thasteron for starship fuel abandoned their facilities and the khefaks. The neglected khefaks thrived on their own, spreading across much of the planet.

There is potentially some additional knowledge from a Critical Success, if anyone else wants to try the roll. Anyone else want to proceed to the West Quadrant?

Doctor Killik & Shadir each earn 1 Patrol Point, while Yjun (with Cyprium's assistance) gets 2 ... for a total of 4 Patrol Points.

Within a half hour of searching, you do a good job of mapping out the instability, and have completed the survey of this quadrant.

You may attempt a DC 15 Nature check to Recall Knowledge on the cause of the instability. An appropriate Lore can be used in its place for a DC 13. Since it's Recall Knowledge, you can assist this untrained if you wish.

Which quadrant do you want to proceed to next?

Cyprium - You want to aim for a DC 15 Aid on Piloting? If you hit it, you'd knock Yjun into a critical success. And, even a critical fail wouldn't cause Yjun's roll to fail.

Killik knows that eons of wind and ice erosion have carved crags and fissures in the Sloughscar Hills. He also knows that the Starfinder Society has established a new lodge in the area to study the Wreck of the Returned, which crashed some distance away ... which he of course knows, as he has been at this lodge for some time, and has helped establish it.

With Killik and Yjun driving the d-vees, you move into the south quadrant.
It consists primarily of porous rock and eroded, sandstone slopes. As you explore, it becomes clear the ground is unstable.

You have 4 hours until the summit, so with travel time you have a total of 6 rounds to clear and secure all 4 quadrants. Here are the checks available for the Southern Quadrant:
* DC 14 Nature or Survival to survey the terrain,
* DC 15 Piloting or Stealth to tread lightly and mark unstable regions through trial and error,
* DC 16 Perception to identify signs of undermining,
* DC 13 relevant Lores, such as Akiton Lore or Geology Lore (or another Lore you can justify),
* DC 17 any other skill you can get me to approve (if you don't have any of the others available).
Critical failures may hurt your progress, so if you're choosing to just forego a roll, let me know.

Zizenzi shakes his head. "Oh, no, the beacon perimeter is working fine. We just want to scout outside the perimeter, to be sure everything is clear in the region. First Seeker Sarmak is exercising an abundance of caution, wanting to be sure nothing goes awry."

Looks like you're starting in south quadrant. Who is driving the second d-vee?

Zizenzi shakes his head. "Unfortunately, Doctor Killik, the communication issues makes the remote control of drones impractical for this mission. We lose the signal as soon as they get beyond our network perimeter. This is a boots on the ground sort of situation."

He is of course more than happy to answer any additional questions.

Sorry, forgot to mention this, but you may also make any of the following secret checks:
* Society DC 15 to Recall Knowledge
* Diplomacy DC 15 to Gather Information
* Akiton Lore, First Ones Lore, or Starfinder Society Lore DC 12

When you're done with questions, Zizenzi shows you to the d-vees. Each can hold up to 3 medium or smaller creatures, with a Large creature requiring two spaces.

While two of you have flight speeds, the d-vees will typically move at about twice your speed, so you would have to do the Hustle activity to keep up with the d-vees going out to the site and that isn't sustainable. You'll need two d-vees, and two people to drive/pilot them.

Looking at the mission packet sent to your comms, you find not only the dossiers on those attending the summit but also a map divided into four quadrants:
* North Quadrant
* East Quadrant
* South Quadrant
* West Quadrant

In addition to any knowledge rolls and questions, please let me know who is piloting the d-vees and which quadrant you want to start in.

Zizenzi nods to Cyprium. "Excellent question. There are of course many wild beasts native to Akiton which could cause difficulties, so that would be one thing to look for. The second category of possible threats would be those willfully looking to do harm to the summit. Despite the size of this impact, I don't believe we have been targeted much by media interest ... though if you do stumble upon a news crew or something, hostile or otherwise, please direct them to me for any official press inquiries."

To Yjun they say, "Yes, you'll need to check it out yourselves and deal with the matter as best you can. Communication within the Sloughscar Hills
is disrupted by the Wreck’s presence. Short-range comms work, with irregular interference, but long-range comms are less reliable and can fail altogether. I’d prefer to minimize chatter so not to tax the system.”

They motion toward some nearby hover vehicles. “The d-vees are compact and sturdy hover vehicles designed to endure Akiton’s deserts and frequent windstorms while hauling salvage. They’re reliable and easy to pilot, so I would expect you to have no problems with them. I’ve put a few aside for your team to use.”

You have all either been deployed at the fledgling Sloughscar Hills Starfinder Lodge on Akiton for some time, since you began helping investigating the nearby Wreck of the Returned. Or are perhaps you are new arrivals. Either way, the administrator of the Lodge, the enthusiastic host shirren xenoarcheologist named Zizenzi (Slide 10) asks you to meet them for an urgent assignment.

“Welcome to the Sloughscar Summit,” Zizenzi exclaims, their voice warm and inviting in stark contrast to the cold, forbidding atmosphere. All around, bustling Starfinders unload equipment from vehicles while others construct temporary structures for the event. “I know it doesn’t look like much now, but in a few more hours, we’ll host an invitational meeting-of-the-minds regarding the Wreck of the Returned. As administrator, I’m overseeing preparations. Your assignment is security. Patrol the surrounding area. Ensure it’s clear of potential threats and dangers.”

Zizenzi focuses on their datapad for a moment, talking while they work. “I’m sending you a data packet with a map of the area, divided into four quadrants. It also contains dossiers on our guests, but those can wait. For now, you have a patrol to complete! Start anywhere along the perimeter you wish. Take some d-vees and avoid using the comms, if possible, but notify me of any concerns.

[b]“When you’re done, I’d like you to attend the summit. It starts in four hours, so don’t be late! Talk with the guests and try to convince them to work with us to explore the Wreck of the Returned—if nothing else, we can share information. In the dossiers, you’ll find information on all the important movers and shakers who’ll be at the summit. Any questions before I check in with the next team?”

The dossiers are on Slide 11.

Sorry for not getting anything posted earlier today. I was facilitating a work meeting, and then had to cover for a co-worker in the afternoon, so the day kind of got overloaded.

Looks like everyone is on RPG Chronicles and dotted in. I realized that I didn't add a table to the slides for Exploration Activities, so that's now on Slide 2. Please update when you get a chance.

Yjun & Copper, we also need your tokens when you get a chance, but we can go ahead and start for now, once I get the intro post written up ... ;)

Hiya still here!

This one wasnt showing up with activity

Happy to get into it :)

Great! We'll aim to get moving on Monday, Dec. 1.

Hello, everybody. I see that Killik is still the only one signed up in RPG Chronicles or on the slides for this one. Now that the website is back up, hopefully we'll be able to get all set up.

Please get signed up so that I know who we've got for the table and whether I need to put out a recruitment call to fill up slots. I am travelling this weekend. I could begin as early as next Monday, but it is Thanksgiving week in the United States, and so I'm thinking we might hold off on starting the actual first posts until Monday, December 1, to just avoid that holiday entirely. Let me know if that works for everyone.

Looks like the website and forums will be skittish through next week with the update to the website & Paizo store, so I'll check back in once things are back up.

Pinging over here to see if we still have a group or if I need to open recruitment.

Hey everybody. Just checking in on the status of getting ready for this one. No problem if it takes a couple more days for people to have their characters ready. I had expected more of my Gameday games to be done by now, but we've hit that point in a PbP convention where the games that were moving along at a good clip are over and the ones that were moving more slowly seem to be slowing down even more.

What is the ETA on when the remaining players will be ready to start?

Out of character discussion thread.

As part of a massive effort to explore and develop an uninhabited planet full of valuable resources, the heroes are placed in control of a settlement and must deal with challenges from both within and without. Far from home, can the heroes establish a thriving community and survive the uncharted system’s terrible secrets and mysteries?

Planetfall (Part 1 of 6)
With the discovery of an uncharted, resource-rich, and uninhabited planet in the Vast, several factions begin a joint settlement effort, and the heroes are given the chance to be the scouts and administrators of one such charter. As they explore the surrounding wilderness and grow their new settlement, they must contend with all manner of problems, from wild animal attacks to dissatisfied settlers. And the planet holds mysteries beyond counting!

Horizons of the Vast player's guide

Thanks! Should be fixed now.

Got some of the prep work done. Please complete the following when you get a chance:

* Dot your character into the Gameplay thread
* Place your token on slide 2
* Enter your RPG Chronicle info

Does starting next week work for everybody? I was hoping for Monday, but the weekend looks a little hectic, so probably something more mid-week.

Discussion of OOC stuff related to this scenario.

Players should dot and delete