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@Mun: Can you please choose two of these boons? Foes of the Forge Father (Monument District): Extensive wall carvings document the dwarves’ struggle against their ancestral enemies, and having read the atrocities committed by giants, goblins, and orcs, you have dedicated yourself to defeating them. You gain a +2 bonus on attack rolls made to confirm critical hits against humanoids with the giant, goblin, or orc subtype, and you deal additional damage equal to your weapon’s critical hit modifier when you score a successful critical hit against such a foe; this additional damage is added to the final total, and is not multiplied by the critical hit modifier itself. Shrine Savior (Temple District): Thanks to your efforts, the shrines of Jormurdun are better understood and cleansed of evil influence. You may use this boon to reduce the Prestige Point cost of a spellcasting service by 2 (minimum 0 Prestige Points). When you use this boon, cross it off your Chronicle sheet. Sight of the Unseeing (Seer’s District): You exposure to Jormurdun’s prophecies and ancient cults has given you exceptional insight into future events. You gain a +1 insight bonus to AC and on saving throws when flat-footed or during a surprise round. You may cross this boon off your Chronicle sheet before rolling attack roll, initiative check, ability check, skill check, or saving throw to add 1d6 to the result. Alternatively, you may cross this boon off your Chronicle sheet before rolling d% as part of a divination spell (such as augury, divination, or contact other plane) to either add or subtract 1d6 from the result.
Hmm.. was going to request this go inactive before Monday, to ease on the campaign lists with the onset of Outpost II... I don't like to keep campaigns active longer than necessary, it'll vanish from your list as soon as possible =) And on the ASAP note, I usually fill the Sheets when I have the info for all of them, but with out next PbP Con just around the corner, I'll start shippping out the ones I have to the following Drive folder.
Chronicle Boon wise, each of you can choose two different boons from the following list, the rest will be Foes of the Forge Father (Monument District): Extensive wall carvings document the dwarves’ struggle against their ancestral enemies, and having read the atrocities committed by giants, goblins, and orcs, you have dedicated yourself to defeating them. You gain a +2 bonus on attack rolls made to confirm critical hits against humanoids with the giant, goblin, or orc subtype, and you deal additional damage equal to your weapon’s critical hit modifier when you score a successful critical hit against such a foe; this additional damage is added to the final total, and is not multiplied by the critical hit modifier itself. Shrine Savior (Temple District): Thanks to your efforts, the shrines of Jormurdun are better understood and cleansed of evil influence. You may use this boon to reduce the Prestige Point cost of a spellcasting service by 2 (minimum 0 Prestige Points). When you use this boon, cross it off your Chronicle sheet. Sight of the Unseeing (Seer’s District): You exposure to Jormurdun’s prophecies and ancient cults has given you exceptional insight into future events. You gain a +1 insight bonus to AC and on saving throws when flat-footed or during a surprise round. You may cross this boon off your Chronicle sheet before rolling attack roll, initiative check, ability check, skill check, or saving throw to add 1d6 to the result. Alternatively, you may cross this boon off your Chronicle sheet before rolling d% as part of a divination spell (such as augury, divination, or contact other plane) to either add or subtract 1d6 from the result.
Had you noticed I forgot to ask for sheet stuff? So I'll quietly leave this here. Can you please provide me with the following for your CS? Player:
This Chronicle #:
OOC from here on out. First, for the record, Smarmy did swap the parchments from the blind seer, that happened before the bubble dissipated. Of note, you guys were absolute combat monsters! Thanks for playing at my table, I hope y'all had a great time and I apologize once again for those days where I was less available than I should have been.
Er, my 1-2 group was towards the end of a fight, getting ready to kill the last of the three common enemies. Do they count as being 'safe'? ;A; Redelia had said the following some days ago, If we end early because we got enough successes, I will assume that the remaining time would be used to move back to the cathedral, so they will be fine.
Looks like someone else rotated a couple of those pieces, and fitted them in. I did rotate the last two pieces, to show the success your PC's had in remembering the future. Not sure if that's the actual pattern they're in now, but if so, having just three tiles rotated differently, was mean! (if a good way to stop us overthinkers from attempting to reverse engineering the graphic =)) I didn't cut out the pieces, just moved them around a bit to make space for a grid, but your meta analysis paid off =P
This large cave’s condition is strangely similar to that witnessed three millennia later: dirt and stony debris lie scattered across the floor along with discarded scrolls, bits of bone, and several jawless skulls. Crouched over the seven natural pools on all fours are seven humanoid figures clad in dusty, rust-colored robes. The seven sway back and forth in unison muttering an inaudible mantra.
Perception DC 18:
"Lass mich durch meine Blindheit sehen, lass die Zukunft durch mich hindurchschauen."
In Dwarven: Spoiler: “Through my blindness let me see, let the future peer through me.” When addressed, they cease chanting and stand, which causes the hoods of their robes to fall back. Each sage has gouged-out eyes partially filled with scar tissue from years of natural healing. Two also draw out jawless skulls with tightly rolled scrolls stuffed into their eye sockets. As the seers speak with you—a process that is more like chanting than conversational speech—they pass the skulls back and forth as if using them as the focus for some supernatural sense. One seer challenges the Pathfinders to explain themselves by intoning, “Some say the future is unwritten. I say it is written right here. Should others be enlightened?”
After a bit of probing, and seeing the pattern being put in place, the whole group brainstorming as a unit decides on the correct placement on the last two tiles. Happy with your choice, Holuqui shares on several of the cult's secrets and offers to heal some of the damage you may be sufffering.
Holuqi's spells: 4th—cure critical wounds, neutralize poison, restoration
3rd— cure serious wounds, remove curse, remove disease 2nd— cure moderate wounds, lesser restoration 1st— cure light wounds, protection from evil, remove fear[/ooc]
The chief augur interrupts Smarmy before he begins talking in the tongue of their race, introduces herself as Holugi, "I know you seek to erode the duergar's presence in Jormurdun, but before you can partake in the prophecies, your intentions must be judged." She then makes a small pause, and starts muttering while examining each of you, on several passes. When she's done judging your intentions, she praises Kitajo and cautions the others against forsaking discipline, encourages Mun and Edmund to continue a life of good-deeds, advises Jey to put others’ needs ahead of his own, and finally chastises Smarmy for placing too much value on freedom. She leads you to the altar, where there are 16 brightly colored tiles and a small silver hourglass.
Dwarven:
"The statue was there before my father's time, perhaps some cult thought that paying some respect to it could help ward against darker dangers, clearly, they were not in the correct state of mind. I'm not aware of any worshipers. Getting to the Seer's District a large two-tier platform with a rectangular stone altar and four braziers filled with burning coals dominates this chamber. A narrow channel runs red with oily liquid, twisting in strange patterns. The platform is flanked by six statues of demonic mien that reach out with wicked claws. Four hooded dwarves in dingy brown robes linger near the altar, and one acknowledges your presence when you enter the chamber. She lowers her hood, revealing a very old female dwarf. She extends one hand in welcome and speaks. “Strange travelers visit our shrine, perhaps seeking the wisdom of the Vision Unveiled in these troubled times. I am the chief augur of its mysteries. What draws you here?”
The apparent leader of the dwarven guard replies to Mun in broken common, "Of course, if it pleases your grace, we can continue your imprisonment in the tongue of the taldan people." But the traveling dwarf makes a compelling argument. Perplexed and dumbfounded the leading guard apologizes directly to Mun, in Taldane. "My apologies sir, it was unknown to us that you had the King's blessing." Looking back at Smarmy, but still speaking in dwarven for the benefit of his party, "Most of the district is currently overrun, but the news that King Gutheran thinks that we can still survive this ordeal will travel fast along our kin. We will keep fighting those duergar as soon as we lay eyes on them! Please don't let us keep you any longer, King Gutheran needs your aid!"
The hound statues don't move when Jeeves passes between them, and he removes the bronze axe from the larger toad-like stone. Seeing that the room's defenses are inactive, the group of Pathfinders moves forward, and after making some noise, removing the opals from the Dweller Below is an easy task. Without enough time to place the second eye in a pouch, members of the Jormurdun city guard arrive with weapons drawn. "Was? Diebe auch? Als ob die hasserfüllten Duergar Eindringlinge nicht genug beleidigen würden! Lassen Sie Ihre Beute fallen und wir ziehen Sie sanft zu Ihren Zellen, wo Kriminelle gehören!
Dwarven:
“What? Thieves as well? As if the hateful duergar invaders weren’t insult enough! Drop your loot and we’ll drag you gently to your cells where criminals belong!”
Taking notes of the translation provided by Smarmy, with a few pointers by Kitajo, the Pathfinders are ready to continue their exploration. Once back in the Hall of Hounds, This torch-lit chamber is decorated with extravagant carvings, canine statues and polished pillars. A grotesque statue on the western platform stares toward the eastern door with sparkling gems for eyes and a bronze axe planted firmly in its head.
Based on this,
Each district-specific encounter includes a task—typically accompanied by another encounter—that the PCs can perform to contribute to this goal. Each time the PCs successfully complete a task, the Table GM should send a Runner to HQ Staff or flag down a Courier to report the success. The number of tasks the House completes determines the level of their success at the end of the adventure. I believe it's per task, for example one in F1 (The Brothers' Arches Restored) and another in E1 (Cohort confrontation), the latter can also give an exceptional success. So 3 possible successes in areas E-F (?) Since I just finished F1 I'll hold my reporting for that success until we get some clarification =)
Our friendly dwarf doesn't seem to find whatever triggers the gigantic trap. Both Barbo and Smarmy speak the name of the king, and Jeeves make it across the room in complete safety. He gets to the bottom of the western statue, and ponders about dusting the runes to make himself useful before his master moves towards him, but he just awaits his next command. With the Plaza safe for the Pathfinders, they cross the hall, and may begin to examine the statue. The legs of the western statue are covered with an archaic form of Dwarven runes.
The ravages of time erased, this grand hall sweeps open before you. A gigantic archway is formed by the arms of enormous twin statues, each proudly holding a hammer aloft. Other smaller statues stand at attention, firm and resolute, painted in lifelike detail. A pool of cool water fills the center of the chamber, lit by mirror-reflected sunlight cast through skylights cleverly carved into the ceiling.
About the Plaza of the Brothers' Arches, your This is what it should've looked like the first way through.
Mun of Ashava delivers a passionate speech, while Kreighton Shaine hastily writes notes on several sheets of paper. “Very well. It seems circumstances have brought me the enemy of my enemy. You have come at a difficult time. The duergar have breached our defenses, and despite our bravest efforts, they are winning Jormurdun. I have sent my heirs from this dying place to forge a new future for our people, that they might one day return and claim these halls as their own. Some have stayed behind out of duty or out of love for their homes. I do not know if the duergar or some worse threat still plagues the citadel. Slay my enemies, but spare my people; they are the only legacy left to Jormurdun. If a dwarf should trouble you, inform them that you travel with King Gutheran’s blessing.” Kreighton Shaine looks up from his writing and says, “Thank you, your majesty. Pathfinders, I’ve studied our surroundings and can conclude that whatever has shifted our place in time is unstable and cannot last. We have perhaps an hour—maybe two—before it collapses, and when that happens, I think it wise that we not be inside. Make your way back to the Grand Cathedral in a timely fashion. But…” he trails off while gazing at the beautiful throne room. “We can’t ignore this splendid opportunity to explore Jormurdun as it was thousands of years ago! Retrace the steps you took to get here, see what has changed, and document what you see. I’ve been able to record brief instructions based on what I have already learned of your earlier discoveries. Be wise, be brave, and make haste!”
Handout 5: Monument District Tasks:
First and foremost, avoid harming any subjects loyal to King Gutheran. We are their guests here.
In our time, the plaza known as the Brothers’ Arches was too damaged to study in detail. When passing through that area, take time to note if the ages wore away any rune work from these masterful monuments, and record what you find. In the Hall of Hounds there stood a statue once fitted with gems for eyes, but they were gone by our time. Since we know they’re going to get removed, I’d rather we were the ones removing them, for the sake of posterity and research. Make it happen. Handout 6: Seer’s District Tasks:
Jormurdun’s strange seers followed divination practices now lost to time. Learn what wisdom you can from them, and attempt to obtain a copy of their prophetic verses. Such a text would be priceless. Handout 7: Temple District Tasks:
We found at least one of the shrines to Torag desecrated. Discover what happened and do what you can to right the wrong. Also, learn what you can about this strange cult of the Dweller Below. It is hard to reconcile the worship of Torag and the apparent veneration of this repugnant entity. Any texts you recover on the topic would expand our understanding considerably, especially if they were complete.
: • Recover one or more spells whose total levels are equal to your character level.
• Regain one daily use of a class feature. If you would normally be able to use the feature five or more times in one day, instead regain two uses. • Heal 1d2 points of damage to all ability scores. • Heal 1d8 hit points. Add your character level to the number of hit points recovered.
The stout, middle-aged dwarf wears a simple crown of iron on his balding pate and stands before a throne made of the same blackened metal. An honor guard of six armor-clad warriors wielding blood-spattered halberds crowd him protectively. He looks at you and barks, “Has the Dweller Below chewed off your tongue? Begin making sense!”
Edmund whistles to Kissan, his arrows whistle to the demon, it shrieks in pain. Before the babau can lift its spear again, a dwarf appears from behind the bear, driving his battleaxe into the babau's skull, any strength leaving its body as it lumps to the floor. Maybe the demon was dead before Smarmy got there, he could have a falling corpse for all we know. For now, he'll take the credit. The group of Pathfinders begin huddling for survival, as they realize that battles are still going, both above and below them. They have to choose wisely.
The bear climbs to the demon's level, but the Babau evades her bite. The cornered demon moves westward, annoying Smarmy once again, then tries to get the bear with its spear. The first thrust runs clean through Mun's companion, the second bounces off the column.
Kissan's attacks prove ineffective against the demon's hard skin, and while Edmund's second arrow dug deep into the babau, the first barely made a scratch. Jey hits the ground, proving it's hard to hit an enemy nearly 5 feet above you. Smarmy believes to be expertly hidden from the demon. Kitajo... he knows he could fell a blackwood tree faster than this red skeleton in front of him.
The demon catches Kitajo and Kissan as they close in, but its longspear only cuts into the monk. Desperate, it takes a step towards the column, and thrusts his spear twice, once for Kitajo and once for Kissan, Finally finding some accuracy.
Working together, Jey and Selûne make short work of the clockwork soldier, the Pathfinder attention centered in the demon now, Smarmy still finding his way around the large hall.
Jey swings wildly and misses his target. Kitajo is unable to strike the demon as it was backing up, stepping forward and lowering his guard the monk makes up for it landing a hard punch square on its' torso, to Kitajo's surprise it feels harder than he is used to. Smarmy is getting there, slowly but surely. Barbo flicks another small ball of acid, this time to the soldier. And Edmund nails one arrow deep into the construct's body.
Barbo remembers a little too late, that his acid splash won't be effective on the demon.
Barbo's knowledge of the babau.:
They have the following resistances: DR 10/cold iron or good; Resist acid 10, cold 10, fire 10; SR 17
And, Special Attacks: Sneak Attack, almost as good as a novice rogue. The dwarf climbs the side of the stairs without losing his breath, and Kitajo lands a punch on the demon, barely makes a dent. Edmund's arrows whistle before getting lost somewhere to the east.
You stand in the western half of the throne room, a veritable army of demonkind is here, scattered across the tiers. Two enemies come to find you. The red one, an emaciated figure, looks like a horned human skeleton smothered within a bone-tight hide of slimy leather. For the second one, cogs and gears are visible in the gaps of this metallic creature’s armor. It wields a polearm as it stands ready at attention. Initiative:
Knowledge (Planes) DC 16:
The babau is an assassin, a murderer, and a sadist—certainly not traits unusual in the demons, yet the babau’s penchant for stealth and surprise sets it apart from its generally less-subtle kin. With no need to eat (although most babaus relish the flavor of mortal meat on their thin, raspy tongues), a babau can wait in ambush for years or decades—their inhuman patience in anticipating a well-conceived murder also setting them apart from the other denizens of the Abyss. Babaus obsess over the act of killing and take great pride in their grisly art, often leaving behind some form of grim marker or obscure signature, whether it be a distinctive modus operandi, an unnerving token, or other profane evidence. Knowledge (Arcana) DC 16:
The clockwork soldier is a mechanical mercenary that fights to the death for its creator. With the ability to wield most weapons with full proficiency, clockwork soldiers are versatile and wholly unpredictable foes. A magical halberd is their most common armament.
Between Edmund's accuracy and Selûne's raw strength, the yellow construct is brought down. While Jey puts on a strength show of his own, two swings of his axe is all that's needed to break the Red servant, he takes a single step forward to reach the last servant killing it in two swings as well.
The constructs stand and turn to the Pathfinders.
Jey starts swinging at the animated objects, breaking the first one on the second strike, also lands his third blow against a construct. Edmund shoots three arrows, hitting his target twice. Barbo also connects with his acid blob. You can see some of the damage on the greener servant start to repair, before it takes a step back, and somehow heals itself some more.
:
Clockwork servants:
No resitances. Immune to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, morale effects, patterns, and phantasms). Immunity to bleed, disease, death effects, necromancy effects, paralysis, poison, sleep effects, and stunning. Not subject to ability damage, ability drain, fatigue, exhaustion, energy drain, or nonlethal damage. Immunity to any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects, or is harmless). They possess the following Special Ability: Repair Clockwork (Ex) Clockwork servants are adept at repairing other clockwork constructs. As a standard action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity, a clockwork servant can repair damage done to either itself or an adjacent clockwork creature, healing 1d10 points of damage to the target. Animated objects:
Edmund's arrow strikes the redder construct right on its' center of mass. Selûne's bite, even boosted by Mun's prayers, is not enough to pierce the construct's metallic cover, and Kitajo is able to land just one of his blows. The dwarf nimbly finds his way to the front lines, but if flabbergasted when his spinning attack, instead of disorienting the construct, forces it to crumble down in bits and pieces! Almost as if this was the cue they were waiting for, two cages holding skeletons rattle forward, only one tries to attack Smarmy. The dwarf missteps, perhaps recovering his balance, at the right time and turns a dangerous blow into a goblin-killing one.
Green, Arcana DC 13:
Clockwork servants
Since clockwork engineers can’t always be present to make sure their devices are working at full capacity, the clockwork servant was invented to serve that role. Clockwork servants excel at repairing themselves and other clockworks on the battlefield, proving useful for skirmishes and campaigns alike. Clockwork servants are about 5 feet tall and weigh over 400 pounds. Pink and Yellow, Arcana DC 13: Medium animated objects.
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