That sucks, hopefully your family is okay. Thanks for this while it lasted, and if/when you're ready to run another game I'll be at the front of the line to play in it.
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Now that the battle is over, Haddek carefully searches the room for anything else of interest, paying particular attention to the dead body in the stall.
That done, he walks over to the unconscious man and feels for a pulse, checking to make sure he isn't dead. "You ok? Wake up!" It would be very inconvenient if we accidentally killed an innocent man. I hope we still get paid.
Now that the man is surrounded by Haddek's allies, he decides he's probably safe to enter the fray. Taking a few steps forward, he fakes a kick at the crazed man's knee, hoping to distract him enough to open him to someone else's attack.
He's learned his lesson lol.
Seeing the situation devolve into violence, Haddek shrugs and steps back to watch it unfold. I'd just be in the way anyway. As he gives the combatants some space he pulls out his bow just in case the fight goes against his new allies.
Haddek begins to move toward the snake when he hears Ileum's warning. He pulls up, looking at the monkey man warily. "Easy there, we're not going to hurt it. What's your name? My name is Haddek, that lady's name is Caro; she's just going to knock it out so we can catch it, okay? We're not going to kill the snake." He takes a step forward, hands out to the side to indicate a lack of aggression.
Haddek places his bow on his back and slowly begins to circle the room in the opposite direction of Caro. He watches the madman carefully, wary of being attacked. "Ok, we'll help catch it. You stay there, we're covering the other angles. Careful now!" He glances back at the others, making sure he has help if the madman turns on him suddenly. Keeping his eyes on the threat, he waves his allies forward into the room.
Haddek nods and moves to open the door with sounds coming from behind it. He takes a deep breath, readying himself, and then pushes it open quickly and steps back, ready to dodge an attack.
"That was terrifying! Thank you Berta!" Haddek shudders at the thought of how close to a gruesome death they all were. Well, that's going to give me nightmares. Not being able to move while a grotesque flying head takes its time killing you has to be the worst way to go. Picking his bow up off the ground, indicates the south-most door with a nod of his head. "Pretty sure there's another fog-affected person behind that door. No sound behind the other one though, but as we just saw that doesn't mean there's no danger." He moves up to stand in front of the door with no sound coming from behind it. "Let me know when you're ready to move on."
Hits like that last one is why I want to get an improved crit or keen rapier with butterfly's sting. Crit on 15-20 and pass off the actual crit to the next person to hit the baddie? Expect Berta to be doing that kind of damage at least once per fight :)
As he hears a cracking sound behind him, Haddek turns to see two masks disintegrate and some sort of flying monstrosity come out. "What in hells is that!" Without thinking, he pulls an arrow from his quiver and fires at the nearest one.
Haddek walks around the room, looking at the specimens in awe. Standing next to Sustos in front of the great beetle, he smiles wryly. "I suppose it does. Strange, but living in the shadow of Ulunat for so long sort of makes you forget how awe-inspiring it really is. It's just kind of there, a normal part of the backdrop." Continuing his circuit of the room, Haddek examines everything, paying special attention to the relics on the walls. + = 17 "These artifacts are fascinating. Can you imagine facing down terrors like these with nothing but a spear?" His circuit of the room complete, Haddek listens at both doors for movement in the next rooms.
Haddek looks back at Tiasar. "That would be helpful. Are there any shops open right now though?"
"Stabilizing them after taking them out is also fine with me. We just have to be careful not to kill them outright. Won't be a problem for me, but I don't hit as hard as some others here." He glances at Berta's longhammer.
"That's a good point. Can't have them climbing the fence and marauding across the city. Fair warning though, I'm not exactly great at fistfighting." Or fighting at all, when you get right down to it. For most of my 'fights' the other person didn't know until it was over. "As for keeping pets in the tavern, you'd have to ask Spud. i don't know why it'd be a problem though, as long as their cages were kept clean. Nobody wants to live in a building full of manure stench." Haddek enters the building and stands at the door marked "Hunting the Beasts of Legend". "Are we ready to go?"
"I don't know if it's the source of the fog, but the room at the far end of the hall sounded like it was full of affected people. There was no sound in the two side rooms, so they're probably empty. If we deal with those rooms first maybe we find the source of the fog and simply wait for it to wear off of them."
"If that doesn't work, though, dealing with other people affected by the fog may be as simple as leading them outside the building and letting them loose on the grounds for an hour. We just run outside the gate and let it close behind us." Haddek looks from face to face. "Thoughts?"
Haddek follows Caro's rambling with growing confusion. What the hell is she talking about? Mutagen... I'm familiar with that word, at least. Is she saying that.... "Hold on, are you saying that you might be able to replicate that with alchemy? The good parts, at least? I mean, I dabble a little, but that's just so far beyond my expertise. How would you even begin? You'd have to-" He stops talking abruptly, mind racing faster than his mouth can go. After a moment he comes back to himself. "Ah, yes, as Berta said, I think your spear is still inside." He looks around at the others. "Are we ready to begin again?"
"As I see it, our only options are wait an hour or knock her out. She's already riled up enough; I'd rather not have her hate me, so I vote we just wait." Haddek shrugs as he walks back to the group, keeping his distance from Caro to prevent setting her off again.
Haddek looks to the guards snickering and shakes his head. Idiots! Walking over to them - careful to circle around out of Caro's reach - he puts on his friendliest smile. "It seems you've seen this before. I'm sure smart guys like you have noticed what other people have done to clear the head of the afflicted. Care to let me in on the secret?"
Before Haddek leaves the building, he goes down to the end of the hall and listens at the door again to check if anything has changed.
After listening for a moment, he follows Sustos out."How long do you think it'll take to clear her head? Shouldn't take more than a couple minutes of breathing fresh air, right?"
Haddek lets go of Caro and slowly gets to his feet, panting with exertion. "Damn, she's stronger than she looks. Wait, what the hell happened to Ilium? Is he ok?" He wipes his nose uselessly with his sleeve, but the blood still runs fairly heavily down his face. "Someone else can carry her out of here. I'm not going near her until she's no longer a CRAZY MONKEY!" He leans over her and shouts that last into her face angrily. Then steps back quickly, putting Berta between himself and Caro. "I need a little patching up anyway. Can anyone do something about this?" He waves at his bloody face.
He takes out his leather case again, filling another vial with powders and liquids. After a vigorous shake, it's mixed well enough and he downs it in one shot. He shivers a little as he puts his case back in his backpack, the extract taking effect quickly.
I thought of that right after, but when she started getting defensive about being called a monkey of course I had to double down on it. Haddek is intelligent, but not particularly wise :)
This is off topic and it won't come up for awhile, but I'm glad there's retraining for this campaign because we haven't even been in a real fight yet and I already want to change my 1st level feat. I've been looking it over and using a single rapier with a hand free for extracts, potions, etc will work out better than TWF, so I'll retrain that as soon as we have 5 days downtime. The extra feats will also allow me to get Butterfly's Sting, so I can use a keen rapier and feed crits to Berta to crush heads. :)
vs CMD 14
As Caro wriggles partly free and begins to get to her feet, Haddek shifts his hold and wraps his legs around her, pulling her back down to the ground. "Any day now, guys! This isn't as easy as it looks!" He buries his face in her back, wiping blood off his nose. Leading with my face on this tackle probably wasn't the best idea. Damn that hurt!
Kicking one of Caro's legs out, Haddek throws her to the ground and falls on top of her. "Quick! Tie her up!
Honestly if I was you guys I'd just beat me unconscious with non-lethal damage at this point I won't deny Haddek thought about it after you almost 1-hit him. >( lol it was stupid of me to tackle you like that, I'm just lucky it worked out (maybe)
Lol Great job RPing the change. It's also kind of funny that our first fight as a group is against a member of our group. :)
Haddek dodges out of the way of Caro's wild swing, then leaps forward to tackle her to the ground. "Everyone help me hold her so Ilium can tie her up!"
Haddek watches, bemused, as Caro easily climbs a pillar. "Yep, definitely some type of monkey brain thing going on here. Uh, Tiasar, you said we'll eventually become immune, but judging by the sounds in the next room once you're changed you stay that way unless someone changes you back. Anyone have any ideas?"
Haddek turns from the door, looking back at Caro as she begins acting weirdly. What the hell? Also, why are there apes in the next room? That makes no sense. Looking from Caro to the door beside him, a look of understanding flashes across his face. "Something is doing this to her. The fog, maybe, but I'm not sure why the rest of us aren't affected. I can hear apelike sounds coming from the next room, so it's affected a bunch of people already. Anyone have any idea how to fix this?" Walking slowly toward Caro, he holds his hands up defensively, trying not to startle her. "It's ok, it's just us. We're friends, remember? Or, uh, not enemies at least."
"I don't hear anything behind either door. Of course, that doesn't mean there's nothing there." Haddek looks back at the others, his gaze landing on Tiasar. "Everyone wait here a second. I'll check the door at the far end of the hall while Tiasar figures out what this stuff is." Haddek walks down the hallway, careful to keep his weight on the balls of his feet to minimize sound. Getting to the far end, he again presses his ear to the door.
I wish I'd thought to wear my keffiyeh. It doesn't feel like a great idea to breathe in this weird fog, and covering my face might help, at least a little. Haddek makes his way to first the door on the right, then the left, putting his ear to each door and listening intently for sounds on the other side.
Before entering the building, Haddek takes a minute to dig through his bag and take out a leather bound case, opening it to reveal bottles and powders of various substances. Mixing a few fluids and powders together, he stoppers a now full vial and shakes it vigorously, the liquid blending into a thick blue syrup. "This might come in handy before we're done here." He says as he slips the vial into a pocket.
Haddeks eyes scan the area, wary for threats as the group proceeds into the building. He constantly weaves from one side of the group to the other, eyes and ears focusing intently on his surroundings.
About the group's name, if someone else doesn't pipe up with one Haddek will probably just give the guards the name of his (currently one-man) mercenary outfit. Of course the rest of the group might not like it, and we can come up with an actual name later, but he'll take any opportunity to get some good word of mouth for his new business.
Yes, I like it. Really helps with setting the mood.
Standing beside Tiasar as he speaks to the guards, Haddek absently loosens his weapons in their scabbards as he looks over the imposing building before them. Taking out his bow, he strings it carefully and gives it a few pulls to feel the weight of the draw. Damn, if ever a building was intimidating it's that one. I wonder what's causing that fog? I guess we'll find out soon enough. He digs in his backpack, making sure his prepared extract is ready and easily reached. Looking towards the guards, he asks, "So, which way to Mr. Walsh's office?"
GM:
After talking with Kagen Blackhall, Haddek wanders around the city aimlessly for a while, deep in thought. Well, that gives the rescue mission a little more urgency, that's for sure. I hope we can get to them in time. The Quarterfaux first, because we need time to gel as a unit before taking on the Emerald Flame. Desna willing, it won't take too long though. "The abyss" has a decidedly ominous ring to it. When he gets back to the tavern he pauses for a second. Should I tell her? Will the knowledge of where they are calm her a little or make her too distracted to focus on our task tomorrow? Barbarians aren't exactly known for their calm demeanor, so I think I'll wait until we get back from the Archives before I tell her. It's not as if we can do anything about it before then anyway. With the decision made, he heads up to his room to pore over his map for the hundredth time.
At the sound of yelling coming from downstairs, Haddek reflexively pushes his chair back from the table and reaches for his weapons. Realizing it was just some vagrant being kicked out, he taps the hilts of his short sword and dagger to reassure himself they're there, and stands calmly. "Very well, it sounds like we have a plan of attack. I have some errands to run this afternoon, so I'll meet you all in the morning." As he turns to the stairs he stops with a chuckle. "Before I leave, I can't very well look for your family if I don't know what they look like. Berta, is there anything particularly distinguishing about your family? Anything more specific than just 'a bunch of dwarves' would be helpful."
He heads on out the door and down to the docks. GM: When he gets to the docks, Haddek wanders around for a little while until he finds Kagen Blackhall. "Hello, friend. I have a job for you. I'm looking for a group of slaves taken by the Emerald Flame a little while back. I need you to find out where they're being held, and if possible any details about the area you think might be useful for someone trying to get them out. You will be well paid for this information, and you have my word that nobody will ever know you helped me.
Can you get me that information?"
Haddek nods as Caro finishes speaking. "That's a good idea. I also have people I can task with finding out more about the slavers, specifically where they're holding Berta's family. Perhaps while our informants are working, we can spend our own time handling the problem at the Archives? If there's one thing I've learned, it's that detailed information on your target is worth its weight in gold. Knowing exactly where to strike will eliminate a lot of the danger in going after the Emerald Flame. He rolls up the map and puts it back in an inside pocket, nodding acknowledgement of Sustos' offer of help. "We'll also deal with this eventually, but not until I have a better idea of what exactly I'm up against. It's certainly not as urgent as saving Berta's family."
"Vampires?" Haddek seems momentarily stumped. Her eyes! I knew there was something weird about her eyes. And her two stone-still guards! He shivers. By the gods, I worked for years and the most difficult thing I had to deal with was a pair of unusually vigilant guardsmen, and my first job as an independent is hip deep in vampires? Well, now I understand why she was so confident that she could find me and make me regret it if I didn't finish the job. "Even so, I agreed to the job and I will complete it, vampires or not. Although it may take more resources than I presently have." For a moment, his eyes cease shifting about the room and settle solidly on Berta. "As for your family, I will certainly help as much as I can. Family is the anchor that keeps us attached to the world, and losing them would be like being set adrift in a storm. I'm familiar with a few people in the criminal world, and it's possible I can find out from them where your family is being held. I will also, of course, assist in their retrieval. I agree, too, that we should perhaps attempt the museum job as a sort of 'trial run', just to see how we work together as a team. Once we have some idea of what we're capable of, only then will we know whether we can handle a more demanding challenge. Facing down an entire slaving organization or a cabal of vampires is presumably a more difficult task than clearing out whatever pests are inhabiting the museum."
As Caro finishes speaking, Haddek smirks slightly. "You may not be mercenary, but I certainly am. That's not to say I'm heartless, however. It's simply a job; we all need to make a living. It's the reason I came to Caliphas, after all. I'm here on a job." He takes a scroll out of an inner pocket and spreads it out on the table, first slipping something that was inside the scroll back into his pocket. "This is a map to a vault somewhere in the city sewers. I haven't had the chance to find out where it is, exactly. I have been hired to re-acquire an item from that vault. It was stolen some time in the past, and I have reason to believe that the vault is currently controlled by those thieves. Now, I can get in most places without much trouble, but I'm not certain what kind of resistance I might face on this job. Therefore, I can use anyone who can handle themselves in a fight. In return, you may take your payment from whatever is in the vault. I've been led to believe that there is considerable wealth in there. We split everything evenly, with the exception of a particular locket that my employer wants returned." He looks around the table. "That's the rough overview. Any questions?"
As Haddek listens to Caro summarize the situation, he nods along with each point but seems most interested in Berta's problem. Asking about the Emerald Flame, and it's something to do with her family. By Desna, I hope I can help her. If my mother were taken by slavers I'd rip the world apart to find her. Despite his attempts to appear positive and in control at all times, his eyes soften as he looks her way. "Yes, let's figure this out together."
Coming to the second floor, he sits at the end of the table next to Caro with his back to the wall.
At the sound of the door opening, Haddek's eyes immediately dart toward the entrance, scanning for threats. He watches silently, hand resting on his sword's pommel, as the elf posts his scroll on the board and leaves. + = 14 Pushing his chair back, he begins to stand but glances at Caro and sits back down comfortably as she checks out the posting. "I think you're right, we should head upstairs for a little more privacy." He looks Sustos over carefully, deciding whether to involve the new arrival.
He certainly looks like he'd be useful in a fight. Until I know more about what I'm facing it's probably better safe than sorry. I'll get all the help I can find. "Sustos, you should join us. I may need assistance with my job, and it pays well if you're interested." Finishing off his ale, he gets to his feet and begins to make his way toward the stairs.
"Osirion? What are the odds, that's where I'm from! Haven't been out to the desert much, though. I grew up along the river and currently live in Sothis. I'm here in town for work; I don't really know my way around much, but maybe Caro can help me with that." Haddek turns to the girl, looking at her intently. "Maybe we can help each other. We should talk about it in a less public place, but I believe we each have information the other needs." He takes a sip of his ale, fingers tapping idly on the edge of his cup as his eyes constantly scan the room around them.
"I'll be right over. Don't mention this to anyone else though, except maybe later to your friend over there. You never know who's listening." Haddek glances over at the table the dwarf had indicated and nods, heading to the bar to pick up the drinks. He orders three ales and a stout, and saunters over to the table, balancing the four drinks easily. "Hello. Drinks everyone?" He hands the dwarf her stout and passes an ale to the girl and the white-skinned man. He confidently sits at the table without waiting for an invitation and takes a pull from his own ale. Offering handshakes around the table, he introduces himself to his new acquaintances. "Well met. My name is Haddek Balmont. Don't mind the harsh words from the barkeep. Some people's natural reaction to new or unusual things is to get defensive. Others, of course, is curiosity. Where are you from, if you don't mind me asking?" He smiles, clearly having had the latter reaction to the newcomer's arrival.
The Looking Glass:
Haddek staggers over and slumps into the indicated chair. "2 gold? Tha's a lot o' money! I dunno if I have tha' much." He begins digging through his pockets while glancing around the room. While squinting and swaying to give the impression of being drunk, he's actually paying close attention to details and looking for any hints on the type of person the woman is beyond just a fortune teller.
After rooting through his pockets for a minute, he clinks a few coins together and pulls them out triumphantly. "Here! I got, uh, three silver. Huh. Not as much as I thought. Y'know what? I don' need ya. I'm gonna take that job, 'cause if I got only 3 silver I sure need a job." He laughs uproariously, punctuated with rough coughing as he stumbles his way back out the door.
When he's out of sight of the fortune teller he straightens, ending his drunken act. He takes off his ale-stained outer jacket to avoid attention and passes through the Grain and Grog's common room, up to his rented room and changes into a clean outfit. Coming down the stairs to the smell of eggs and bacon, he looks around at the common room's occupants, instinctively taking note of possible threats and escape routes if needed. Noticing the dwarf woman from before sitting alone and nursing her drink, he walks over, pasting a charming smile on his face. "Hello there. Sorry for intruding, but can I buy you a drink?" He leans in, appearing to flirt with the dwarf, but as he whispers to her his words are very different from his manner. Berta (or anyone who's close enough to overhear): "I hear you're looking for the Emerald Flame. I can help, but I'll need your help with something in return."
More Grog Than Grain: Haddek slowly sips his ale, absentmindedly tapping the scroll on the table with his other hand. He occasionally shifts in his seat or pulls at the neck of his shirt, not used to the local clothes he was wearing. Part of the job is looking nondescript, but I sometimes wish it wasn't necessary to wear strange clothes to do that. I feel exposed without my Khaffiya. Looking around the room, he notices the girl selling alchemical supplies and is about to go over to take a look when she walks up to the bar and begins speaking to a dwarf. Judging from their faces, the conversation is a little more in depth than a simple purchase, so he gives in to his curious nature and tries to listen in from his table.
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Hmm, slavers. A green flame insignia? That should help make them easier to find. The dwarf looks like she can handle herself in a fight, perhaps I should recruit her for my job. A little quid-pro-quo perhaps, if I can help her find these green flame slavers. Who knows, the girl might be useful too. She doesn't look like much, but then neither do I.
Finishing off his ale, Haddek gets to his feet, stretches, and slips the scroll he'd been contemplating into an inside pocket. He heads out the door to find a library, intending to find a book on local noble houses and finally identify the seal on the scroll he'd been given. + = 24
After spending a few hours in the library, he decides to pay a visit to Claresa Hamton. He probably wasn't supposed to make contact before having the locket, but Claresa didn't need to know it was him that she was talking to. Stopping in at the Grain and Grog first, he orders an ale and drinks it quickly, making sure to spill most of it down his front. Seemingly now drunk, he staggers back out, weaving and bobbing his way next door to the fortuneteller's shop and pushes the door open loudly. "Hello! I wan' my fortune told! I jus' got an offer f'r a job tha' seems too good t'be true and I wanna know if I should take it!" + = 23
Finally back, and not dead even though I wanted to be at times this week. Worst flu ever lol. Haddek will spend the rest of his downtime attempting to make contacts. I'll spend the week in Caliphas trying to get in with the local criminal underworld, either developing a network of informants or dealing with someone who has a ready-to-go network already. The time in transit will be spent developing a useful relationship with the captain of whatever boat he's traveling on up the river. It might be useful knowing someone who can smuggle a few people or an important item later on in his career :).
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