Tarrasque

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82 posts. Alias of dwilhelmi.


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Although the evil aura and psychic presence within this cave is no more, and Camazotz's plans to open a portal to Golarion have been thwarted for now, the cave maintains an aura of danger and a persistent smell of blood. Exploration of the room reveals several collapsed passages that have been sealed with many tons of rock. For now, the question of whether they can be cleared and further investigation of the cave system can be done will have to wait.

The entire group make their way out of the cave and down the cliff face. They perform the burial rites for the elven heads that had previously been on the spikes, Kaghaze in particular working very hard at this. Once complete, the group quickly makes their way back to Jalunth. Once there, Elder Kalwe meets with them and listens patiently to the story of what they found. Afterward, she sits silently for a few minutes before replying.

"What you say is troubling in many ways. Some of our stories spoke of the evil in Dehu Inu, but not of its nature. That an Ekujae's spirit could become so corrupted so quickly and completely by this bat-god makes me wonder what other secrets our long-held stories may contain. I cannot thank you enough for what you have done. I will spread word of your deeds. Perhaps one day we Ekujae may find that we have room for friendship with your Pathfinder Society."

Elder Kalwe invites you to spend the night in Jalunth as her guests, and to participate in a ceremony that evening, a celebration of the returned elves. You join the ceremony, and in addition to a generally pleasant party you each end up having your face painted by Elder Kalwe in the Ekujae style. Kaghaze, forgiven by the clan if not yet by himself, adds a mark to your faces as well, representing his gratitude, and Fola Barun adds hers as well.

While some time must still pass before healing can complete, through your actions the area is once more safe and the process of healing can at least begin. The Ekujae won't soon forget your help.

Scenario Complete!


Illarien's magic heals Kaghaze enough to bring him back from unconsciousness and into the real world once more. The transition does not appear to be a peaceful one, though. The elf's eyes snap open and frantically look around the cave in fear, and his breathing increases into a panic. After a couple of seconds of this, you can see a change come over him; a look of realization, disgust, and eventually pure horror cross his face. "What have I... What did I... All those people!"

You eventually are able to calm the distraught elf enough that he can begin speaking in whole sentences again. Fola touches his shoulder with kindness and says "Tell us what happened Kaghaze". Finally, he takes a deep breath and begins his story.

"Several weeks ago, I was leading my patrol on a hunt for a mobat that had been attacking the eastern portion of our lands. We followed the beast to the ancient stone markers that delineated the outskirts of Dehu Inu. I knew the area was off limits, everyone did, but the beast was close! What would it hurt to come in just a little and finish the job? I convinced everyone else that our duty to rid our community of the beast was greater than our need to stay away. I was so stupid, so arrogant..." A tear slides down the slender elven face as he remembers all this. He is quiet for a moment before continuing. "We tracked the beast to a cave, this cave, and cornered the thing in here. I didn't realize that this was a shrine to Camazotz. I was so focused on the mobat I didn't even really notice the altar. Our battle was fierce! The beast tore apart Lahalion, one of my best men, and hurled his remains atop the altar. What dumb luck that he landed there... As his blood, the blood of an Ekujae, flowed over it, a flash of the demon god’s power broke through to this world. It struck me head on, and I could hear that, that voice in my head! It was like I had become a passenger in my own body. It corrupted my mind and my body, and it transforming me into that... thing!"

He paused again, building himself up for this next part. "With this new power, I made quick work of the mobat. It didn't know what had hit it. Everyone else thought they were saved! Vile as I looked, they assumed I was in control. They were wrong. I quickly captured them, every single one of them, and one by one I sacrificed them to my new god. Camazotz!" He spits out the name as if it were a curse word, a vile thing in his mouth. "As I did this, as I committed these vile acts, I could sense that their deaths had an effect on the altar. Whispering demands for more blood invaded my mind, drove me to more and more evil! I began nightly hunts for new victims. Our people, they sent patrols out to find and eliminate this new unknown threat. These new patrols were easy to deal with, though, because they all followed the strictures to avoid Dehu Inu. I could fly out, pick them off, then retreat here. This lack of pursuit made me bolder. At first I took great pains to cover my trail, but the death I was delivering wasn't enough. Eventually, I was driven to leave enough evidence behind for the scouts to prove that my lair was here, within Dehu Inu..."

"I suppose you know the rest. I don't know who you are, but thank you for dealing with me before I could hurt more people." He takes a deep and quivering breath, then looks up at everyone. There are tears lining his eyes, and so much pain. He looks at his fellow Ekujae and says "I am so, so sorry for the pain my foolishness caused. I am ready to face whatever punishment comes next..."


With Ilarien's healing touch, the bleeding wound seals itself, and Kaghaze's shallow breathing becomes more stable. While still grievously wounded, the healing has taken away the threat of death.

With that, there are no longer any time sensitive activities or any active threats, so I'm going to say...
Combat Over!

Between the slams of the earth elemental and the wicked strikes of Sakura's greatsword, the group makes short work of the altar. When the final blow rings out, there is a sharp burst of psychic feedback and a distant shriek as the voice finds its connection to this plane severed. The feedback is sharp enough to cause everyone in the room to flinch and close their eyes for just a moment.

When your eyes open, you find that the evil form for the werebat that Kaghaze had assumed is no more, and in its place is one very injured and unconscious Ekujae elf, lying in a pool of his own blood but still just barely alive.

Fola rushes in and quickly sets to work freeing the elves in the cage, and soon everyone is free and gathered around the broken remains of the altar and the shallowly-breathing form of Kaghaze.

Kaghaze is still at -10 HP, so is unconscious but stable. How do you deal with him now?


Illarien, I added 1 additional damage per your adjustment.

Regarding dying / bleed / HP loss, as the rules are unclear when in the turn you lose HP if dying, I'm going to rule that if someone is stable going into their turn they don't lose 1 HP from dying, even if bleed damage then occurs and makes them dying again. So, 1 HP is lost if he is stable going into his turn, 2 HP is lost if he is dying going into his turn.

Bob rushes to the elves in the cage, but is unable to free them just yet. The captured elves are all rather stunned at the crazy events in the cave, and just sort of stare at him in a daze.

Kaghaze's shallow breath rattles in his chest, and he seems to be inches away from permanent death.

Combat round 5

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-35 HP, dying, 1 bleed)
Altar - (21 damage)

The bold may act!

For the time being, I'm keeping us in combat-time and initiative order. Kaghaze is currently unconscious and dying. The altar still throbs with demonic power, but currently presents no direct threat beyond the debuff. No other active threats are apparent.


The -2 penalty is only to the attack roll, not the damage roll. Unfortunately, I don't think the earth elemental has anything that gets it around the hardness of the altar, so it still doesn't do very much damage.

The earth elemental appears and slams into the altar. A few new cracks appear, but not quite as much damage as you might expect.

Combat round 4

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-34 HP, stable, 1 bleed)
Altar - (20 damage)

The bold may act!

For the time being, I'm keeping us in combat-time and initiative order. Kaghaze is currently unconscious. The altar still throbs with demonic power, but currently presents no direct threat beyond the debuff. No other active threats are apparent.


While Essilor stabilizes their demonic-looking foe, Ash quickly moves to help the bound elf. He is able to get the elven man untied quickly, and the elf quickly moves to the other elves in the cage and away from the evil altar.

The telepathic voice continues to pound into your skulls "All is for naught! Kaghaze is mine, and will die mine! You cannot stop me!"

Combat round 4

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-34 HP, stable, 1 bleed)

The bold may act!

For the time being, I'm keeping us in combat-time and initiative order. Kaghaze is currently unconscious. The altar still throbs with demonic power, but currently presents no direct threat beyond the debuff. No other active threats are apparent.


Sakura makes a mighty swing with her sword!
Sakura sunder attempt, pa, inspire, whispers: 1d20 + 7 - 1 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (19) + 7 - 1 + 1 - 2 = 24
Sakura damage, pa: 2d6 + 6 + 3 ⇒ (6, 3) + 6 + 3 = 18

The sword takes a healthy chunk out of the altar, damaging it, but the unholy aura still radiates. Kaghaze, meanwhile, marches ever closer to death.

Combat round 4

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-34 HP, dying, 1 bleed)

The bold may act!

For the time being, I'm keeping us in combat-time and initiative order. Kaghaze is currently unconscious and dying. The altar still throbs with demonic power, but currently presents no direct threat beyond the debuff. No other active threats are apparent.


Sakura:

You know that the markings on this altar associate it with Camazotz, the god of bats, blood, and nocturnal predators. You know that an altar such as this is often used in rituals and mark magic, and that an altar such as this can often be used as a focal point in such a spell. Finally, you know that breaking such an altar might be an effective way of countering magic emanating from it, and you know that you hold an adamantine greatsword that is terribly effective at breaking things.


Essilor attempts to finish off the downed man with another wave of missiles. While they all hit, it still isn't quite enough to finish off Kaghaze, who still stubbonly clings to life.

You'll have to try murder hoboing a bit harder than that!

Combat round 3

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-33 HP, dying, 1 bleed)

The bold may act!


Sakura's well-aimed sword strike dives deep into Kaghaze's side, and he drops to the ground with a solid *thud*. As his blood pours out of the wound, it gathers around the altar, which throbs all the harder at this fresh application of blood.

Combat round 3

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-27 HP, dying, 1 bleed)

The bold may act!

For the time being, I'm keeping us in combat-time and initiative order. Kaghaze is currently unconscious and dying. The altar still throbs with demonic power, but currently presents no direct threat beyond the debuff. No other active threats are apparent.


Kaghaze is clearly hurting, struggling after the barrage of magic missiles. His desperate gaze looks around the room before falling to the demonic altar. Hope gleams in his eyes as he quickly takes flight from the ledge and straight over to the altar.

Eagle AOO: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14

The eagle tries to take a swipe at him as he pulls away, but the sharp talon misses the mark. Kaghaze makes it safely to the altar, where he lands with a thud right next to the bound elf. When he lands, his own blood which has been flowing out since the missiles first hit falls from his body and land with a light splash on the altar.

As soon as it hits, you feel the presence around the altar seem to pulsate and surge, and the dark energy seeps deeper into your bones. The voice in your heads cries out in joy "Kaghaze's lifeblood flows into me, and soon yours will as well! Give yourself over to the inevitable!"

The demonic whispers power grows stronger, and you now suffer a -2 penalty on all attack rolls and saving throws.

With his blood having served it's purpose, he raises his bow once more to target the hated Essilor.

Attack, studied target: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 5 + 1 = 10

His wounds seem to be impacting his aim, though, and the shot flies wide.

Combat round 3

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -2 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-20 HP, 1 bleed)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


The fighters surround and easily dispatch the last remaining zombie, which falls to pieces on the cavern floor.

Illarien:

Your inspection of the altar reveals that it is in fact magical. You can tell it is the source of the evil aura pervading the room, and that something is clearly using it to communicate with you all telepathically. It also seems to be having some level of influence over Kaghaze.

For summons, I don't mind helping out on occasion with stats, but would expect you to normally have that available. I assume you were just phone-posting or something and so didn't have access to what you would normally have?
Illarien's eagle appears in a dark blaze of glory, and quickly heeds her instructions by taking a swipe at Kaghaze with one long talon.
Damage: 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3
Negated by DR
Unfortunately, the talon doesn't appear to actually draw any blood against the tough hide of the werebat. He doesn't even appear to notice, keeping his gaze focused much more tightly on Essilor.

Essilor proves himself worthy of such consideration, as another stream of missiles flows forth out of him and cross the room in a flash. They burrow into poor Kaghaze once more, and he lets out a wail of pain!

Combat round 2

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -1 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-19 HP, 1 bleed)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


You are correct, sneak away!

Ash expertly scampers around the zombie, and before it even has a chance to respond, Ash's rock-hard elbow plunges into the zombie's neck. A sickening crunch of bone follows shortly thereafter, and the zombie immediately collapses, his body flapping about like an utterly disgusting sculpture made out of jello.

Botting Bob
From further back in the hall, Bob takes up another rousing sea shanty, the song echoing madly back and forth through the dark cavern. It causes all of you to stand a little straighter and makes your blood pump a little faster.

Kaghaze's hate-filled gaze maintains its steady focus on the little thing that hurt him so from a distance. His dark eyes look Essilor up and down, looking for weaknesses. Finally, his bow sings out again as an arrow flies across the room toward Essilor.

Move action to use Studied Target
Attack, studied target: 1d20 + 5 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 5 + 1 = 15

The arrow looks like it is flying true, but at the last second there is a flicker of energy, and a ghostly breastplate would briefly flash visible as the arrow gets deflected wide.

The one remaining zombie charges in toward the wayang caster as well.

Attack, charge: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 4 + 2 = 26
Crit confirm: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 4 + 2 = 8 Not confirmed!
Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7

It catches the caster in a distracted moment, with one arm slamming hard into the wayang's midsection, knocking the breath out of him.

Once more, a disjointed voice echos in your skulls as a psychic communication flows forth into everyone present. "Kaghaze now serves The Master of Black Wings. Soon you will as well!" You can sense the voice and the dark energy both radiate out from the altar, almost as if it was alive.

Combat round 2

Active Effects: Inspire Courage +1, Demonic Whispers -1 to attack and saves

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-8 HP, 1 bleed)
Zombie - green (-2AC from charge)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Devin's gleaming battleaxe slices deep into the zombie's side, creating a gaping hole, but the zombie remained steadfastly standing and vicious looking.

Combat round 1

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-7 HP, 1 bleed)
Zombies - red (-8 HP, -2AC from charge)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


That is a neat trick. Those missiles are depressingly effective!

The twin blazing bullets of magical energy shoot across the cavern in the blink of an eye. They each ram into Kaghaze, causing him to cry out in pain as blood splatters from the point of impact. The bat-like creature turns a hate-filled gaze of loathing toward the source of this pain, and the longbow begins to sweep around as well.

Combat round 1

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze - (-7 HP, 1 bleed)
Zombies - red (-2AC from charge)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


That seems like too many actions? You moved forward on the map (move action), unleashed your Dark Half (another move action?), and fired magic missile (standard action). Am I missing something? If not, how do you want to adjust?


Sakura is as good as her word, as her greatsword flashes forward and cuts the zombie clean in two! The legs stay standing for just a second as the torso falls to the ground, but quickly the magic that gives the unnatural thing life fails, and the legs fall lifeless to the ground as well.

Combat round 1

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze
Zombies - red (-2AC from charge)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Since this is a surprise round, you get only one action, so you can't both draw your shortbow and attempt to intimidate. I'll take the drawing of the shortbow as your action. FWIW, attempting to use intimidate to avoid battle wouldn't have worked, at best you might have demoralized him, which you can always attempt again next round :)

Ash's entreaty to the crazed batman falls on deaf ears. Kaghaze lets out a little snarl and looses an arrow at Ash in response.

Attack: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13

The fighter easily bats aside the flying arrow, which was coming in offcourse anyway.

A zombie comes charing out of the west in a surprisingly fast shuffle, and takes a swing at Ash as well.

Surprise round standard action only, so charing only up to his speed instead of double his speed.
Attack, charge: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 4 + 2 = 22
Damage: 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

It has better luck than it's master, and successfully gets an unnaturally stiff blow in on his side.

Two more zombies shuffle forward as well, though from a greater distance, so they are not yet able to land a blow.

Combat round 1

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze
Zombies - red (-2AC from charge)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Going to assume you all keep moving forward into the cavern. You detect no magic along the way.

A cool breeze flows through this large cavern from a ten-foot diameter hole near the center, carrying with it the metallic tang of blood. The floor and walls look to have been shaped long ago and stained with mineral deposits over time, but the ceiling fifty feet above remains in its natural state, covered with stalactites.

North of the hole is a crude stone altar formed of rock. Just past the altar to the north, a massive stalactite hangs from the ceiling and stops five feet from the floor. It has been carved into the shape of a gigantic bat, its wings outspread and its fangs exposed as if about to consume a victim below. Bloodstains cover the altar.

When you fully enter the cavern, you notice several things all at once. In the northwestern corner there is a bamboo cage in which there currently reside three Ekujae elves. Currently tied to the altar is another Ekujae elf, prepared for a sacrifice. One of the caged elves is calling out "Kaghaze, please, stop this madness! Why are you doing this?"

When she hears this, Fola's eyes widen with fear and surprise, and she whispers quickly "Kaghaze is one of ours! Our best scout. His disappearance was the first sign of these recent troubles..."

The altar radiates an evil magic that you can all feel deep in your bones. It is jarring enough to throw you off your normal combat moves. (While within 60ft of the altar, you take a -1 profane penalty on all attack rolls and saving throws). Reverberating through your skulls pierces a deep and evil sounding telepathic voice that calls out to you "Open your veins and give your lifeblood to The Hungry Dark!"

GM:

Stealth
Kaghaze: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

Perception

Perc(Devin): 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5
Perc(Essilor): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21
Perc(Ilarien): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17
Perc (Ash): 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28
Perc (Bob): 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (12) + 0 = 12
Perc(Sakura): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (3) + 5 = 8

Initiative

Init(Kaghaze): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11
Init(Zombies): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Ini(Devin): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19
Ini(Essilor): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17
Init(Ilarien): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20
Init(Ash): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16
Init(Bob): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19
Init(Sakura): 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (13) + 0 = 13

Ash alone notices a shadowy outline of a bat-like humanoid standing on top of the 20' tall ledge to the northeast, with a loaded longbow pointed straight at the party! He has but a second to react.

Surprise round!

Ilarien - Mage Armor
Devin
Bob
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash
Sakura
Kaghaze
Zombies

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale any of the ledges in the cavern, all of which are 20' up. You may not take 10 during combat. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


yup!


Fola shakes her head briefly at Essilor's question. "This is enough for now. I'll see them properly laid to rest after." She nods her thanks at those who help retrieve the heads, then gathers herself to follow them into the cave.

The persistent heat and humidity of the jungle fades away quickly beyond the cut in the rock that leads to a sloping passageway. A subtle breeze, tinged with the odor of bat guano, flows from deeper within.

Sakura notices a series of ancient cave paintings that begin at a height of 20 feet off the ground. There are two layers of art. The older layer depicts humans and some type of bat-winged creatures worshiping a massive shadowy figure that resembles a gigantic bat. Over top of this layer are depictions of human figures battling and trapping the older figures. In fact, the newer art incorporates these older images into its own, imprisoning the old artwork within the new. These paintings continue for the rest of the cave tunnel, culminating in a series of images celebrating a carved stalactite.

Know(religion) DC 20:
You know that the older images contain iconography associated with Camazotz, the god of bats, blood, and nocturnal predators.

Know(history) DC 20:
You recognize that the human figures are depictions of Old-Mage Jatembe and his Ten Magic Warriors. You also know that Old-Mage Jatembe and his warriors are legendary heroes, responsible for protecting the people of Garund from countless evil forces and establishing schools of arcane learning, such as the world-famous Magaambya academy in Nantambu.


Fola slowly makes her way up the rope behind the adventurers, once she is sure the danger is passed. When she takes in the scene at the top of the ledge, her eyes widen in horror as her gaze bounces from head to head. "They are Ekaujae, all of them..." she says with a slight quiver in her voice. "I recognize that one" she says, pointing at one of the less decayed heads still on the pike, "he was one of the recent victims of this evil. Rastel was his name." Looking around at the others, she points out the elven features of the half-decayed heads. Her own head shakes with outrage. "This isn't right. Please, help me take these heads off the spikes." She struggles for a moment as she removes Rastel's head, and gently lays it on the ground. "We can give them a proper burial later, but at least lets get them off the spikes..."

No magic presents itself to your spellcasting. The ledge opens up into a narrow and dark tunnel that leads into a cave.

Sakura, I presume you have no way of getting your horse up to the ledge? Is he staying behind?


Fighting through the fear, Sakura loads her sling once more and lets the stone sail. It flies through the air near perfectly, hitting with another sickly crack, and the last head falls dead to the ground. There are no other sounds other than the faint echoing of the dead head's final scream, a scream of frustration and pain that even in new life, death was inevitable at the hands of this merciless group of pathfinders and their mighty stones.

Combat over! You are now free to take 10 on the rope climb, which should be an auto-success if your climb modifier is -5 or higher.


Devin tries and tries again, but once more the rope eludes his attempts to scale it. Not even attempting to get back up, with his pride being injured more than his body, he has a front row seat to the excellent climbing performance of their resident pirate. Bob grabs hold of the rope, and his lighter armor doesn't interfere nearly as much as the heavier armor of the poor fallen fighter. He quickly scrambles up the rope, and in a very short amount of time finds himself standing on top of the ledge, taking in the fight scene.

Just as Bob begins to look at the floating heads, he sees Sakura fling her stone at one of them. It smacks the head right between the eyes, you hear a sickening crack, see splattering ichor, and the once-floating head falls lifeless to the ground.

Botting Ash
Ash looses another arrow at the last head.
Shortbow: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 91d6 ⇒ 1
Unfortunately, the arrow flies wide.

The one remaining head, seeing now three enemies prepared to engage it, lets out a sickening scream. Those of you on the ground can hear it, but while it makes you uncomfortable it has no ill effect on you. The three on the ledge, though, feel the scream in your bones and struggle to remain focused on the task at hand.

Ash, Sakura, and Bob all must make a DC 10 Will save or be shaken for 1d4 rounds.

AshBot will save: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16
Ash shakes his head a bit at the horrible sound, but quickly moves on from the impact of it, ready to finally end this fight.

Combat round 6

Beheaded - red (1 damage)
Devin
Bob
Ilarien - Mage Armor
Sakura
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash - 19 fire damage, 7/26 hp remaining

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale the cliff face, or a DC5 climb check to climb the rope. You may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Devin hops right back on the rope again, climbs up 10 feet, then slips and falls right back to the ground again. Your speed is 20ft in armor, so 1/2 climb speed is 10ft, which means you only fell 10ft, which is 1d6 damage rather than 2d6. Ignoring the second dice, Ilarien's healing should completely heal this fall damage. Ilarien once again applies healing to the armored man.

Essilor continues to bide his time.

Sakura pulls out a sling and prepares to engage the floating heads.

Bob goes to grab the rope again to steady it, and instead smacks the rope away from everyone, causing it to bounce around like crazy for a few seconds.
Nat-1 on the aid causes a bit of turbulence, but not enough to cause a real penalty. This time :).

Botting Ash
Ash looses another arrow at one of the annoying floating heads.
Shortbow: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 201d6 ⇒ 1

The arrow grazes the side of the next nearest head (red), but it doesn't slow the head down at all.

The two heads belch again, trying to bring down the injured half-orc.
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22
Crit confirm AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11
Fire damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22
Crit confirm AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6
Fire damage: 1d6 ⇒ 6
Two crits, no confirms - close one!

Both lines of fire come screaming in, looking for all the world as though they were going to hit some very delicate areas, but Ash manages to be agile enough to dodge the worst of it. Still, he is clearly struggling with all the direct fire hits.

Combat round 5

Beheaded - red (1 damage)
Devin
Bob
Ilarien - Mage Armor
Sakura
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash - 19 fire damage, 7/26 hp remaining

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale the cliff face, or a DC5 climb check to climb the rope. You may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Devin falls 15 feet to the ground with a sickening crunch. As he stands up, he sees a spectacular dent in the ground where his armor hit. Luckily, Ilarien is on hand to heal up the fighter, and the warm magic flows gently through him and knits him back together again.

Essilor continues to bide his time.

Sakura easily bounds up the remaining length of rope and crests the ledge, taking in the creepy floating heads that continue to hover back from the edge in fear of the magic missiles.

Botting Ash
Ash nods in welcome to Sakura when she crests the lip. "About time. I've had about enough of those things." He pulls out his shortbow and sends an arrow flying in at the nearest head.
Shortbow: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 201d6 ⇒ 4

With a sickening splat, the nearest head (green) gets skewered by Ash's arrow and quickly falls to the ground, rolling a little until it settles on its side, empty dead eyes staring at the one who killed it. Again.

The remaining floating heads respond in kind, still focusing their fire on the singed Ash.
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18
Fire damage: 1d6 ⇒ 6

The first one Ash easily dodges, but in doing so puts himself directly face-to-flame with the second shot, and he takes a rather painful hit. One eyebrow is completely burned off, the other half-burned and still smoldering.

Combat round 3/4

Beheaded
Devin
Bob - feel free to still take your round 3 turn retroactively in addition to your round 4 turn, since I didn't respond to your discussion question for a while.
Ilarien - Mage Armor
Sakura
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash - 12 fire damage, 14/26 hp remaining

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale the cliff face, or a DC5 climb check to climb the rope. You may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


You can use Aid Another on a climb check by making a DC10 climb check of your own; if it passes, you can add +2 to one person's climb check. You can flavor that however you want (holding the rope, calling out handholds, insulting them to make them try harder to prove you wrong, etc), but you can't apply the +2 to more than a single climb check in the round.

This round, the aid another wouldn't help Devin or Sakura, since Sakura easily passed the check and Devin failed by 7, so even with a +2 he would fall.


Devin, since you are already on the rope, you can climb with both your move and your standard action. Going forward, you have to decide whether you want to do an accelerated climb before you do the actual roll, you can't decide based on the roll output. To move things along, I'll take what you have and bot another roll for your standard action.
Devin climb bot, with armor: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 - 4 = 2
Devin climbs 5 feet up the rope, dangling halfway to the top.

Sakura grabs the bottom of the rope and begins climbing right behind him, easily making it up 10ft himself.

Asb the horse calmly looks on from the floor, his tail flicking back and forth nervously.

Illarien and Bob both wait patiently at the base of the rope.

Essilor casts another spell, causing ghostly armor to once more flare briefly to life around him.

Botting Ash
Ash takes the end of the rope he is holding and ties it off to an earlier loop in the rope, thus securing it and allowing him to have his hands free going forward.

The floating heads once more belch their flames toward the now-rope-free Ash.

Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15
Fire damage: 1d6 ⇒ 3

Ash dodges the first two cases of massive heartburn from the floating heads, but the third connects, singeing some more hairs off his arm.

Combat round 3

Beheaded
Devin - 15ft up rope
Bob
Ilarien - Mage Armor
Sakura - 10ft up rope
Essilor - Mage Armor
Ash

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to scale the cliff face, or a DC5 climb check to climb the rope. You may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by choosing to take a -5 penalty before you roll. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Hope you enjoy the trip!

An update from me - after a very busy holiday weekend, I do plan on getting back to your regularly scheduled posts tomorrow. Hope everyone had a good weekend!


Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13

The three remaining heads belch out more fire against the distracted Ash, but the half-orc is nimble enough to dodge all three of them. The heads then fade back from the edge of the cliff to avoid any more ranged missiles.

With them being 15ft up, and the ledge being 30ft up, any line of sight to them from the bottom would be blocked unless you back up an awful lot. To make the math easy, I'm gonna say you need to be twice the distance from the ledge as they are in order to see them. Without being able to see them, they have total cover, so you can't magic missile them.

Combat round 2

Beheaded
Devin
Bob
Ilarien - Mage Armor
Sakura
Essilor
Ash - shaken (1 round)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to get up to the ledge, and you may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by taking a -5 penalty. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Assuming you are wearing your armor, Devin, and assuming you had to use one move action just to get to the base of the rope, that would put you currently on the rope 10ft off the ground - your speed is 20ft, so half speed on the climb would be 10ft per move action.

The map is on slide 4. When you select the slide, it will look entirely grey. You need to scroll down to see the active part of the map.

The group quickly starts to work through the logistics of getting people up to help Ash. The solo half-orc quickly braces the rope with only a modicum of complaint. Sakura quickly dismounts and moves over next to the rope. The armored Devin makes his way over as quickly as he can and begins to climb, though he still has a way to go.

Meanwhile, the clever Essilor takes the better part of valor and chooses to not throw himself into elevated melee with floating screaming fire-belching heads, and instead uses his magical talents to send a stream of energy flying quickly upwards. The missiles easily drop one of the four heads.

Combat round 1

Beheaded - 3/4 still flying
Devin
Bob
Ilarien
Sakura
Essilor
Ash - shaken (2 rounds)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to get up to the ledge, and you may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by taking a -5 penalty. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


When Ash completes his climb, he has just a brief second to take in his new surroundings - a semicircle of twelve wooden stakes, each topped with a severed head, is arranged in front of a wide split in the cliff face. Some are barely more than skulls, their flesh nearly gone, while others appear to be more recent. Two are almost completely covered with ants, busily working to take anything they can eat. The victims appear to be elven. Eleven of the heads have been mounted in such a way that they face toward the split in the rock, while one faces outward toward the clearing.

GM:

Heads stealth, tiny: 1d20 + 2 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 2 + 8 = 24
Ash Perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9

Initiative
Init(Devin): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17
Init(Essilor): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Init(Ilarien): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11
Init(Ash): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7
Init(Bob): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12
Init(Sakura): 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (10) + 0 = 10
Init(Beheaded): 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18

However, just after Ash crests the climb and takes a look around, four of the heads float up off of their spikes; the one facing out and three others. The one facing outward lets out a horrible scream, while the other three belch out a stream of fire toward him.

Ash will save DC 10: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 = 7
Ash is shaken for 1d4 ⇒ 2 rounds

Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
Fire damage: 1d6 ⇒ 3
Belch vs touch AC 14: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

Combat round 1

Beheaded
Devin
Bob
Ilarien
Sakura
Essilor
Ash - shaken (2 rounds)

The bold may act!

Reminders: it is a DC15 climb check to get up to the ledge, and you may not take 10 during combat. The ledge is 30ft up from the ground. You can climb at 1/4 your normal speed, or at 1/2 your normal speed by taking a -5 penalty. Failing the check by 4 or less means you make no progress. Failing the check by 5 or more means you fall.


Please refrain from any other posts - combat incoming :D. Probably won't be able to post it until late tonight or tomorrow, though. Feel free to rearrange your icons on slide 4 (scroll down to see unfogged part of map). Only restriction is that Ash is somewhere on the ledge, and the rest of you are not.


The brief sidebar concluded, the group quickly disperses and is shown where they can rest for the night. Now that the elders have given the group their approval, you find the rest of the elves to be more friendly to you than they were before. You have plenty of time to make any final purchases you would like to make here. There is also the ability to purchase more castings of lesser restoration for 60gp if you would like. Ash, after resting for the night you should now be at either 1 Dex damage or 2 Con damage, your choice. One purchase of lesser restoration would get you back to 100%.

In the morning, Fola gathers you early to begin your quest. Once more you push forward into the jungle, heading toward whatever vague evil awaits you in Dehu Inu. After just a couple of hours, you begin to notice the jungle changing again. Ahead the jungle foliage thins and becomes an open area of stunted, low-growing brush and grasses that is nearly half a mile wide. The perpetual sounds of life in the jungle fall silent. A series of worn stone monoliths, each roughly ten feet tall and spaced evenly every 100 feet, marks the perimeter of this clearing. On the northeast border, a 60-foot-tall cliff rises to a plateau above. More of the stone monoliths loom from the top of the cliff. About halfway up the cliff, a ledge juts sharply into the clearing. It is a DC 15 climb check to scale the rough cliff face. There are 188 markers all told, each covered in ancient elven script.

Linguistics DC15:

The elven script on the monoliths is a dialect that is seeral thousand years old, and they all contain dire warnings of the dangers beyond. They describe some variety of winged, shadowy evil. You also discover that Dehu Inu roughly translates to "Blood Maw".

A few hours studying and a DC 15 Linguistics or DC 20 Know(history) check:

You discover that there was some sort of a deal struck in the past between Old-Mage Jatembe, who was an ancient great Mwangi wizard, and the Ekujae people. This deal declared the Ekujae as the keepers of the evil within Dehu Inu, jailers of a sort, tasked with keeping the evil contained.


Both of the elders listen pleasantly as Sakura begins her entreaty, but their faces darken as they understand more of what she is driving at. They are silent for a moment when she completes. Fola freezes, glancing quickly between Sakura and the two elders. Finally, Elder Nolanu speaks. "You would like to know if we would be willing to drastically change our culture and way of life to better suit your beliefs?"

He looks as if he is set to say more, but Elder Kalwe places a calming hand on his shoulder. Her gaze meets Sakura's, then she slowly stands and walks to the nearby tree. She places a loving hand on the tree, then speaks. "Our ways must seem quite strange to you. I assume you meant no offense with your questions, but merely seek to help. The Ekujae, you must understand, do not place a high priority on permanence. Instead, we embrace fluidity and change. When I mentioned earlier about this tree, I said that when it reaches an age when it loses a limb, we cut down the tree and use its wood and we move on and begin anew. I mean that quite literally - this entire village will move on to a new place in this jungle, and settle around a new yellowheart tree. We will begin anew. Our houses do not use the preservative magic that other peoples use. We are like the jungle around us, ever changing, ever growing."

She looks at Sakura, and a harsh look passes through her eyes. "Do not presume that our lack of emphasis on permanence means we lack a way of accurately remembering our past. We live a long time, and our storytellers are very good at what they do. Every member of our tribe is a repository of information. If the information was lost, it was lost for a purpose. Of that I have no doubt."


Current disease/damage levels:

Bob - 1 point of dex damage
Ash - 2 points of dex damage, 3 points of con damage
Essilor - 2 points of dex damage, still diseased
Ilarien - 2 points of dex damage
Sakura's Hedgehog - 4 points of dex damage, still diseased

Elder Nolanu begins a series of castings, walking among the group and touching as requested.

Devin, there is not enough castings of Lesser Restoration to go around, and you have the least amount of dex damage at only -1. Since you are spending the night here before heading out, that -1 should heal naturally overnight. So going to have the castings go to the others.

Ash, you currently have 2 points of Dex damage and 3 points of Con damage. Lesser Restoration has to target just one attribute, so your call if you want it to heal Dex or Con. Bear in mind you will also heal 1 point of damage to the other attribute overnight.

Remove Disease CL check to cure Essilor, DC13: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13
Lesser Restoration Dex Healing for Essilor: 1d4 ⇒ 4
Lesser Restoration Dex Healing for Ilarien: 1d4 ⇒ 2
Lesser Restoration Dex or Con Healing for Ash: 1d4 ⇒ 4

Sakura Kian Fane wrote:
My familiar is not going to receive any spells here.

Sakura, there is still one more casting of Remove Disease available, and your hedgehog is the only one still diseased. Are you sure you would like to decline having it cast on him?

Kridash Magath wrote:

"Anyway - what lives in that part of the jungle? Besides these evil creatures you speak of, any animals we should worry about? Is there a source of water"

He pauses, but goes on in a short moment. "Also - any local customs we should keep in mind? Like ... don't cut down trees for firewood, don't step on or anything of the sort?"

Elder Kalwe responds to Ash's questions while her husband is busy casting. "We don't know what lives in Dehu Inu, nor what natural resources it has, as we are not allowed to enter. The boundaries of this area are close enough that I doubt you will have much to worry about before reaching it."

She glances at the single tree in this clearing, the one she had touched on the way in. "As to local customs, this village operates much as most other places I would imagine. We would be quite wroth with you were you to cut down this particular tree, though. This is a yellowheart tree. Many Ekujae villages are home to one. Our oldest stories tell us that we must nurture such trees, for they help us to know when it is time to move. Once it has reached an age when it loses a limb, we cut down the tree and use its wood. Then we move on and begin anew. As you can see, this village is still quite young." She smiles at Ash, as a brief flash of fierce protectiveness crosses her eyes. "It is quite special to us, and not to be used for firewood. Regardless, you shouldn't have to worry to much about that. There is plenty of firewood around here, and plenty of other trees, and the journey isn't too much further anyway."

After this exchange, Fola gestures to Elder Kalwe, and they briefly go off to one side to chat quietly together. After just a minute, the two return. Fola speaks up to the group. "I have discussed with Elder Kalwe, and she agrees - I would like to accompany you to Dehu Inu. As I am only half Ekujae, we believe this would be allowed. As we are so close, it would be good for us to learn more about what is in there, and I normally wouldn't have that chance because I can't go in alone. Also, I would very much enjoy getting to be a part of one of your stories. May I come with you?"


Both elves nod at this request. "Of course you may stay here. My husband is a druid, and he can help with some of your illness. The jungle is regrettably hard on visitors."

Elder Nolanu can provide up to two castings of remove disease and three castings of lesser restoration for free. If more is needed, the village has stores that can sell you antiplague for 50 gp a vial, and castings of remove disease at CL 5 for 150 gp each.

"We can also supply you with your choice of four masterwork yellowheart wood weapons. We have spears, longspears, clubs, greatclubs, terbutje, and quarterstaves. You are also free to take up to 50 pieces of yellowheart wood ammunition, arrows or bolts. They don't do quite as much damage to normal creatures, but are believed to be more effective against some beasts."

Mechanically speaking, yellowheart wood ammunition takes a -2 penalty to damage rolls, but may be useful for overcoming some forms of DR. Yellowheart wood melee weapons do not suffer this damage penalty.

"Do you have any other questions?"


Ilarien wrote:
Ilarien shivers slightly despite the heat and works her fingers. "How far is Dehu Inu from here, and what dangers are between here and there? It's best to be prepared."

"It is a couple of hours east of here, and the dangers should be pretty much the same as you have already seen. It is jungle land."

Sakura Kian Fane wrote:

Sakura nods.

"We are of course going to help. Any more information that you can give us about this evil you are mentioning?"

"We do not know exactly what this evil is. From time to time, creatures of darkness, usually ones that hide under cover of night, emerge from Dehu Inu and bring increased danger to the jungle. Before now these threats were easily dispatched outside its boundaries. Lately, however, the attacker has become clever and specifically targets Ekujae. Entire families have gone missing. The first sign of this trouble was when a patrol led by one of our best scouts, Kaghaze, disappeared several weeks ago."


With the +4 circumstance bonus, that is enough to pass the check. They are now Helpful, and will answer pretty much any question. Congrats! Use your power for good; if you get too personal, like asking if they like pears or something equally in poor taste, I may have to knock you back down a notch or two...

Kalwe and Nolanu look at each other happily, a quiet smile on both of their faces. Nolanu speaks up for the first time. "We had thought Sharrowsmith had backed out of our arrangement. It speaks well for you and your organization that you are willing to step up and keep his agreement in his stead. Thank you."

Kalwe continues after him, "There is an evil that has been troubling our people, but the source of this evil is a place where our people are forbidden to go. It is a place in the east called Dehu Inu. Sharrowsmith promised to investigate this evil, since we were unable to do so ourselves. If you wish to settle his account, please stop whatever it is that has arisen there. Since our stories tied to this place tell us of great battles in the past fought by heroes wielding yellowheart weapons, you may wish to take some of these weapons."


Bob Fort Bot: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10

The group makes steady progress through the next couple of hours, chatting about their various exploits the entire way as the elves look on in silent amusement.

As you walk, you notice that the appearance of the jungle shifts subtly here over the course of a few hundred yards, moving from thick undergrowth among towering trees to more controlled vegetation. Several small buildings formed of woven branches and grasses rise out of the ground. In the surrounding trees above are many other buildings that match the style of those on the ground, although they seem to flow even more gracefully from the vegetation even than those below. A series of vines hang from branches throughout the area. Some are short enough only to swing from one treetop building to another, while others reach all the way to the ground. Colorful birds and noisy monkeys call out from all around, yet their calls are fainter here than those in much of the surrounding jungle.

You have finally arrived at the Ekujae village of Jalunth. However, not all of you made the journey quite as healthily as the others. The mosquitos of the jungle bring strains of disease with them, and though your preparations have helped, they could not fully prevent the effects of the journey through the jungle.

The scenario handwaves some of the disease management of the jungle journey in a sort of summed up way. I have calculated the impact each of you have from disease below. This is based on the sum total of your various fort saves along the way.

Bob:

You arrive in Jalunth very hot and tired from your long journey. While the bug repellent helped stave off the worst of the environmental factors, over the course of the trip in the jungle you did contract dengue fever. You managed to shake off the disease successfully, but ended up with 1d2 ⇒ 1 points of Dex damage.

Devin:

You arrive in Jalunth very hot and tired from your long journey. Luckily, your various preparations and your own strong fortitude prepared you well enough for the trip through the jungle, and you managed to avoid contracting any disease.

Sakura:

You arrive in Jalunth very hot and tired from your long journey. Luckily, your various preparations and your own strong fortitude prepared you well enough for the trip through the jungle, and you managed to avoid contracting any disease. Your horse manages the trip equally well, and arrives safely. Unfortunately, your poor Hedgehog was not as prepared for the trip. He has contracted dengue fever (save Fort DC 13; frequency 1/day; effect 1d4 Dex damage; cure 2 consecutive saves), and is still suffering from the disease. So far, he has taken 1d4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4 points of Dex damage, and has not yet managed a successful save against the disease.

Ash:

You arrive in Jalunth very hot and tired from your long journey. While the bug repellent helped stave off the worst of the environmental factors, over the course of the trip in the jungle you did contract dengue fever. You managed to shake off the disease successfully, but ended up with 1d2 ⇒ 2 points of Dex damage.

Essilor:

You arrive in Jalunth very hot and tired from your long journey. The bug repellent was a marginal help, but unfortunately the mosquitos seemed to particularly like you. Over the course of the trip in the jungle you contracted dengue fever (save Fort DC 13; frequency 1/day; effect 1d4 Dex damage; cure 2 consecutive saves), and are still feeling ill. You have made one save of the two needed to recover, and have 1d4 ⇒ 2 points of Dex damage so far.

Ilarien:

You arrive in Jalunth very hot and tired from your long journey. While the bug repellent helped stave off the worst of the environmental factors, over the course of the trip in the jungle you did contract dengue fever. You managed to shake off the disease successfully, but ended up with 1d2 ⇒ 2 points of Dex damage.

When you arrive at the village, you encounter yet more Ekujae guards; they have a quick discussion with Fola and the various elven guards that are traveling with you, and you are quickly lead deeper into the village. As you walk, you are given a rare glimpse into the lives of these very secluded jungle elves. Most go about the daily business of survival, as they prepare food, repair buildings and tools, and share stories. Only about a third of the village is on the jungle floor, however, and much of the activity takes place in the trees above.

On the south side of the village in the branches from 10 to 20 feet above, the Ekujae children play a game where the goal is to hit a target with a blunt arrow, but they move only by swinging on vines. Most startlingly, each team has a player with a knife who tries to cut the vines of the opponents. The elves call this game Makasse. If you approach or try to communicate with them, the children stop their game suddenly and stare.

Both on the ground and above, Ekujae work to shape and change their homes through a combination of magical and mundane effort. As the PCs move about the village, it becomes clear that the Ekujae are continually reinventing its appearance and function. There is a sense of action, motion, and life, while permanence and the past don’t seem to be valued much. Any investigation would reveal a lack of preservative magic that is often seen in the structures of other elves.

Scattered groups of elves, mostly younger, sit and listen to storytellers. The oral tradition is the primary means the Ekujae use to communicate about the past and hold information, and there are very few examples of writing anywhere at all. Most of the stories being told are about day-to-day life in the jungle, and typically revolve around hunts as well as patrols of the borders of the land by the scouts. If these storytellers notice you listening, they stop and stare silently until the outsiders move on.

Near the center of the village is a 60-foot-wide area where the canopy does not block the sunlight. This space has been cleared of underbrush, and a single, 20-foot-tall tree with a straight bole, smooth gray bark, and a wide crown of emerald leaves stands alone. Arranged in a seemingly haphazard way around the tree are a series of smooth river stones each two to four feet in diameter. Nearby elves offer your group places to sit on the stones, then take seats themselves.

Within a few minutes, two elves, a male and a female, move to the tree and pat it gently. They then approach your group. Although the jungle elves eschew anything resembling a hierarchy, they treat these two with great deference, and the paints that decorate their bodies are so intricate that their faces are almost entirely covered. They are the oldest members of the tribe and its primary storytellers and record keepers.

The female elf speaks first. Her gray hairs attest to her great age. She is soft-spoken, but has an edge of iron in her personality. "My name is Elder Kalwe," she says, "and this is my husband, Elder Nolanu. We have been told of your deeds in resucing our people, and for that you have our thanks. Fola also speaks very highly of you." She smiles gently at you and says "you certainly seem to have a knack for impressing others. You have shown yourselves to be friends thus far, so let us speak to one another as friends. Why are you here?"

Your exploits in the scenario thus far, as well as your hiring of Mitarat as a guide, have increased the elder's starting attitude toward your group to Friendly. You may make a diplomacy check with a total of a +4 circumstance bonus to try to improve their attitude to Helpful if you would like - this may impact what questions they are willing to answer. You also may take this time to ask them any questions you might have.


"I've never encountered a demon before! They sound scary. I wonder who would win if a demon tried to fight a dragon? I suppose it would vary greatly depending on the kind."

She looks slightly puzzled. "Why only ever six? It seems like there is safety in larger numbers for some larger threats. Our clan scouts with smaller parties, but when there is a larger threat we come together to bring it down. Is it not so for Pathfinders?"

I am going to move us along narratively tomorrow morning, just so everyone knows. Thought about doing so today, but it is a lot to write up, and I'm painting today.

Bob, can I get one more fort save from you? My last call for fort saves came when you were otherwise distracted by migraines and it got missed I think.


To Sakura, Fola gives a small bow of her head, disappointed but respectful.

To Essilor she smiles widely and says "I don't think even a small dragon is a small thing. A small dragon can be a great deal of trouble! How many of you were there to bring it down?"


Fola's eyes swell to the size of saucers, her face rapt with attention as the group moves deeper into Ekujae territory. She pushes her way through some low hanging vines and says "You lead with time travel, then tell a story of an unexplored basement? I would hear more of the first! Not that an ancient ruin is nothing, but it does pale in comparison..."

To Ash she replies "Oh, I'm interested in pretty much anything outside of this jungle! I've made quite a home for myself among the Ekujae, but world travel isn't a part of that. Why were you fighting a devil?"

Her eyes twinkle with joy at the mention of a dragon, and a rather unladylike snort escaped her at the tail comment. She quickly composed herself, though, and move on. "The clan took down one of those once. A rather nasty jungle drake. I got to help, though only just. What sort of dragon was yours?"


Fola bounces up and down happily, and immediately hops up. To Ash, she says "Sure, you can leave whatever you like here, but we likely won't be able to easily retrieve it. There are healing services available at Jalunth that should be able to help you feel better, if it helps."

The group quickly gets their things together and they head off, the elves sticking largely to themselves, but Fola showing a lot of interest in the Pathfinders. "I get so little information about the outside world. What sorts of things have you done?"

Going to leave a little bit of time here for RP, if anyone wants to brag to Fola about their various exploits (real or imagined). I can fast-forward to Jalunth if people aren't interested or when the RP action slows, just let me know!


Fola's face falls. "Sharrowsmith has passed? We didn't know. We thought he had backed out on his deal..." She seems genuinely sad at this news, but then perks up as the conversation continues. "I don't know the details of the deal he had made with us, only that there was one. Will you go with me back to our village, Jalunth? The elders there know more about the deal and are eager to see it completed. It is a lovely place, and we get so few visitors..."

The other elves looked shocked at this turn of events, particularly when she named the village, but don't say anything. Mitarat looks very impressed, and mutters to you "I didn't know the name of the village, nor have I ever been there. She must like you!"


One of the elves that the group rescued speaks up as well. "They speak the truth; we have guided them here to speak to the elders."

The main speaker for the tree-bound elven group smirks somewhat skeptically at the talk of a "relationship" that Essilor mentions, but nonetheless he puts up his bow, grabs ahold of a nearby vine, and gracefully jumps out of the platform and swings to the ground. He lands quietly on the jungle floor and says "We will take you to Fola. Follow me." With this, he turns and walks deeper into their territory.

After about half an hour of travel, you come across a small clearing. A broad, shallow stream cuts across the path here, flowing around the edge of a 10-foot-tall boulder. The air is slightly cooler and there are few insects flying about.

Standing atop the boulder, a slip of a woman holds her hands empty and relaxed at her sides. She appears to be a half-elf; while you can clearly see her Ekujae heritage, she also has distinct Mwangi features as well. She does not appear to be surprised by the new arrivals. The elves traveling with you remain quiet and passive, standing back to allow the Pathfinders to interact with her. She begins to speak, "I am Fola Barun, speaker for the Ekujae. Why are you here?"


It is common. For the lot of you, they would assume you don't speak elven.


Mitarat nods in support of Ilarien. "She speaks the truth - they came out in good faith to deal with your people, and hired me to help." The elves both nod in acceptance, obviously not comfortable with outsiders but accepting your good intentions. One of them nods toward some discarded sacks nearby and says "In gratitude for your assistance, I believe those are bags of mulue that these men had harvested. Please take them." There are three bags worth 60 gp each. "We will guide you back to our home to speak with the elders."

Your group once more sets out through the jungle, this time with the two elves in tow. They reassure you it is not too far, another day at most, but after the exertion of battle and the previous days through the jungle, it feels like an eternity. The bugs are just as thick as always, and the heat just as oppressive.

Everyone please give me one more fort check, same bonuses as before. Ilarien, I never got a second fort check from you, so can you give me two please?

Another night passes, and another day arrives. Ash heals another point of Con damage, bringing you down to just 3 points of Con damage. As you set out today, you begin to notice that the jungle is starting to change, albeit in rather subtle ways. There are fewer large predators in the area, and several vines hang down from the canopy of trees above you. Mixed in among the trees and vines are a handful of elevated 10ft by 10ft square platforms. "We have reached Ekujae territory, won't be far now" one of the elves inform you.

Sure enough, you soon hear a voice above you call out "Hold! Why are you intruding on Ekujae lands!" Looking up, you see four elves spread out on four different canopies, each holding bows at the ready.

As a reminder, you all get a +2 circumstance bonus to Diplomacy, Intimidate, and Sense Motive checks against Ekujae elves because of the high gather info check at the beginning. You'll also get a +5 bonus to Diplomacy checks here because you healed the captive elves.


Most of the wounds on the elves close up, leaving them looking much more solid than they were before. When Ilarien frees them from their bonds, they rub at their wrists and slowly stand up. While they definitely look grateful, they still seem somewhat wary, particularly at Sakura's questions.

"We are Ekujae. We found those men in our territory. When we confronted them, a battle ensued. We killed many of them, but not enough. They planned to sell us off..." A dark look of anger crosses the elven face as he recounts this.

"What is your purpose here, Pathfinders? You are a long way from home. What do you intend to do with us?"