Lorant stabs at the troll again.
His sword can't even break the monsters' warty, leathery skin this time.
Search Posts
"I'd advise against that, I've heard horror stories about people who've eaten troll flesh, where it continually regenerated in their stomach even as they constantly digested it. They ended in several different ways but none of them were pretty," Lorant comments.
Lorant's sword lashes out at the troll that clawed at him!
To be fair, you haven't missed too much. <_<
That's a very good question...
I wish your wife a speedy and relaxing recovery!
Lorant strikes at the troll with his sword, knowing the monster would heal quickly so they had to take the thing down quickly.
Lorant advances, shield raised. "Hold the line!" he calls. "Make the door a chokepoint!" He raises his sword in salute. "Iomedae, grant me the strength to protect the just. Pharasma, grant me the strength to bring a swift and painless end to the wicked. Andoletta, grant me succor when my body is battered but unbroken."
I'm back!
Going to be leaving tomorrow on a family trip to Milwaukee for a few days. I'll return on Friday, so if a post is needed from me in the meantime, please feel free to bot me. See you then! :D
"Off to a good start," Lorant says cautiously as he lowers into a defensive stance behind his shield.
I hear that! I work at a hotel, and we've got a big influx for this weekend (and an Indian wedding to boot)!
Question, we got a map for this encounter?
Lorant looks to Judah and Dylan again. "Would you like to be our opening gambit to put those "dogs" down?"
Lorant grimaces at the news. "This will be difficult. We need as much fire and acid as we can muster to put trolls down for good. Nothing for it, though. Let us enter." He marches up to the door and tests it to see if it's locked.
Lorant looks up at the Schloss somberly. They'd have to make sure the Beast was safe quickly, because a mob rampaging through such a precarious place was sure to get people killed, whether by whatever defenses the former Count had left to deter unwanted visitors or simply by accidentally pushing someone out a window or breaking that rope bridge. "Judah, Dylan, can your 'friends' scout ahead to see what might await us in the gatehouse?"
I figured that was the case, this is one of the steadiest games I've ever been in despite the ups and downs, thanks in no small part to your dedicated GMing. You rock! :)
Is everyone okay? It's been almost two weeks since the last post.
Good news, new router already!
Bad news, our router at home died so I'm gonna be limited to phone-posting until we get it replaced. Please feel free to bot Lorant as needed to keep the game rolling.
So, are we ready to pay the Beast and his "father" a visit?" Lorant asks.
After talking with our GM, I have rejiggered Lorant back to an Inquisitor like he was originally designed, and he has taken his first level in the Knight of Ozem prestige class! The New and Improved Lorant Endronil!:
Lorant Endronil
Dhampir inquisitor (sin eater) of Iomedae 5/knight of ozem 1 (Pathfinder Campaign Setting: Paths of Prestige, Pathfinder RPG Advanced Player's Guide 38, Pathfinder RPG Bestiary 2 89, Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Magic 46) NG Medium humanoid (dhampir) Init +5; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +11 (+12 vs. Undead) -------------------- Defense -------------------- AC 11, touch 11, flat-footed 10 (+1 Dex) hp 39 (6 HD; 5d8+1d10+5) Fort +5 (+2 vs. hot or cold environments and to resist damage from suffocation (does not stack with Endurance)), Ref +2, Will +6; +2 vs. disease and mind-affecting effects Defensive Abilities negative energy affinity; Resist undead resistance -------------------- Offense -------------------- Speed 30 ft. (20 ft. in armor) Melee dagger +7 (1d4+3/19-20) or . . longsword +7 (1d8+3/19-20) or . . morningstar +7 (1d8+3) Special Attacks bane (5 rounds/day), judgment 2/day Inquisitor Spell-Like Abilities (CL 5th; concentration +7) . . At will—detect alignment, discern lies (5 rounds/day) Inquisitor (Sin Eater) Spells Known (CL 5th; concentration +7) . . 2nd (3/day)—focused scrutiny[ACG], see invisibility, shared training . . 1st (5/day)—cure light wounds, divine favor, protection from evil, shield of faith . . 0 (at will)—create water, detect magic, disrupt undead, guidance, oath of anonymity, stabilize -------------------- Statistics -------------------- Str 17, Dex 13, Con 11, Int 8, Wis 15, Cha 9 Base Atk +4; CMB +7; CMD 18 Feats Heavy Armor Proficiency, Life Dominant Soul, Power Attack, Shake It Off[UC] Traits born in the light, chance savior Skills Acrobatics -2 (-6 to jump), Diplomacy +8, Intimidate +1, Knowledge (religion) +7, Perception +11 (+12 vs. Undead), Sense Motive +13 (+14 vs. Undead), Survival +10, Swim +0 (+2 to resist nonlethal damage from exhaustion (does not stack with Endurance)) Languages Common SQ eat sin, monster lore +2, resist level drain, sentinel against undeath, solo tactics, stern gaze +2, track +2, vampiric empathy[ARG] Other Gear scale mail, heavy steel shield, dagger, longsword, morningstar, backpack, bedroll, belt pouch, candle (10), flint and steel, hemp rope (50 ft.), holy text[UE], manacles, mess kit[UE], pot, soap, spell component pouch, torch (10), trail rations (5), waterskin, wooden holy symbol, 25 gp -------------------- Special Abilities -------------------- Bane (+2 / 2d6, 5 rounds/day) (Su) Make the weapon you are holding a bane weapon. Darkvision (60 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white only). Detect Alignment (At will) (Sp) Detect chaos, evil, good, or law at will. Discern Lies (5 rounds/day) (Sp) Discern Lies at will Eat Sin 2d8+5 (Sp) 1 min, eat sins of adjacent corpse to heal self. Rush as full rd for half benefit. Judgment (2/day) (Su) Variable bonuses increase as the combat continues. Life Dominant Soul Heal half from energy channeled to heal living or undead. Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in dim light, distinguishing color and detail. Monster Lore +2 (Ex) +2 to Knowledge checks when identifying the weaknesses of creatures. Negative Energy Affinity (Ex) You are alive, but react to positive/negative energy as though you were undead. Power Attack -2/+4 You can subtract from your attack roll to add to your damage. Resist Level Drain (Ex) Negative levels don't impose penalties or become permanent, but still kill if exceed HD. Sentinel Against Undeath (+1) (Ex) Bonus against Undead on Perception, Sense Motive, dodge AC and CMD Shake It Off Gain +1 to all saving throws per adjacent ally Solo Tactics (Ex) Count Teamwork feats as if your allies had the same ones. Stern Gaze +2 (Ex) +2 to Sense Motive and Intimidate. Track +2 Add the listed bonus to Survival checks made to track. Undead Resistance +2 bonus to saves vs. disease and mind affecting effects. Vampiric Empathy Speak with bats, rats, and wolves and +2 Diplomacy dealing with them. Hero Lab and the Hero Lab logo are Registered Trademarks of LWD Technology, Inc. Free download at https://www.wolflair.com
What do you boys think?!
Sorry for holding us back, I haven't gotten around to leveling Lorant up.
"Would the former Count Caromarc even have the ability to create those kinds of defenses? From what I recall he was an intelligent man, and a scientist, but not a wizard or anything..."
Lorant thinks on what he remembers from that time.
Lorant shakes his head. "Dylan, the whole reason we got involved in the first place was because Judge Daramid did not want to display bias for or against the Beast. Spreading a rumor that she has hired mercenaries to enforce the court's judgment, or to circumvent it? All her work and ours would have been for naught. No, we need to keep this quiet and resolve it quickly." He turns back to Judge Daramid. "Though now that I think about it, there's a question that arises: from how the Beast spoke of his 'father,' it seems like he was welcome in his home...so why HAS he been roaming the County, sleeping rough, knowing the fear his appearance sparks, when he could simply hide in the castle his father owns?" "And on that note, who IS the Beast's father? Who dwells in Schloss Caromarc? Lepidstadt is a Palatinate County, is it not? You have no feudal lord anymore, correct?"
Lorant proudly smiles as their hard work and diligence has paid off. He whispers a prayer of thanks to Iomedae that justice has been served. Maybe now, the people of Lepidstadt would look inward, and things would begin to change for the better. The reaction of the crowd casts doubt on that, but they'd achieved a near impossible feat in humanizing the boogeyman of an entire county's nightmares to the point that he was able to get a fair trial. He gives a nod to the Beast as he takes his leave. "May Iomedae shelter you with her shield, Pharasma judge you fairly and Andoletta comfort you in your time of trouble." The next morning, Lorant wakes from a death-like sleep looking refreshed, restored and ready for action. He bows when he receives his share of the inheritance from Professor Lorrimor's will. "Thank you, Madame Judge. It was an honor and a pleasure." When Judge Daramid informs them of the burgeoning mob forming to kill the Beast, he frowns. "I agree. I doubt a group of angry townsfolk could simply storm a schloss, but those townsfolk would likely get themselves hurt or worse before giving up. We beat them there and resolve this, and it becomes a non-issue." On her other request, he gets a pensive look on his face. "Controlling the Beast may be more of a possibility than you suspect, Madame Judge: given how the Beast was in some sort of fugue state when it raided the University, seemingly guided by a will not its own, there may very well be some magic or device that enabled that, and the mystery of what happened to the Seasage Effigy can be solved."
Tis cool!
Lorant gives Dylan a bemused look. Being a knightly person, appealing to the base language of commerce and mercenary work was an approach that hadn't occurred to him. It was likely one the common folk would find more convincing than high-flung notions of justice and the distant gods.
Lorant watches the crowd, looking to see what it would take to get them to disperse now that the momentum of their anger had been stopped short.
"You already know?" Lorant says loudly. "Then you have not been in the courtroom these past few days! It has been proven that two crimes the Beast was accused of were committed by other monsters! Monsters who got away with what they did because people jumped to blame the Beast for them. If you wish to be sure of the Beast's guilt, let it be proven in the court of law before the eyes of Pharasma, the final judge!"
"What in the name of Iomedae, Pharasma and Andoletta above is going on here?!" Lorant demands.
Lorant takes the hint. "Come, let us away. We've got to interview our client, maybe see about retracing his steps."
Lorant raises an eyebrow at Dylan's interjection. "Interesting," he says. "You're both right...we definitely need to know what happened to the Effigy, and just what was going through the Beast's head, magic or otherwise, when it did this." He turns to Mathus. "Any thoughts, Doctor? You've been a bit quiet since Hergstag..."
I'm sorry to keep you waiting, but I wound up stranded at the hotel I work at overnight due to a winter storm. May I please request a grace period so I'm not trying to write long complex posts on my phone? :(
"We know the Beast IS capable of gentleness, but you're right, that kind of contrast is incredibly strange. We will definitely need to question him about this, see if he remembers anything." Lorant pauses. "Come to think of it, our previous two investigations have been in outlying villages, places where the Beast could easily retreat to the wilderness to avoid angry mobs. What reason could the Beast have to come here, to the capital of the county, to arguably the very heart of the city to commit this crime?"
Lorant looks about the auditorium, memories flooding back of the last time he'd been here, decades ago...a fresh-faced student who'd scraped together enough to make tuition, sitting here listening to Professor Lorrimor's lectures...where private conversations had revealed his dark heritage and a letter of introduction to the Crusader War College had been written...where his whole life had changed. When Dr. Crowl speaks, however, his eyebrow rises. "What makes you say that, Dr. Crowl?" Not in control of its own actions...depending on what that meant, it could be a mitigating circumstance in the Beast's involvement...
"Yes, Petros. He was a good friend."
Lorant nods at Judah's frank assessment of the Professor's last wishes. "Would you mind if we took a closer look at the scene of the crime?"
Have fun! :D
Lorant yawns. "Compared to what we've been through recently, I'd say this next one should be easy. We can perhaps take a look at dawn...Even an insomniac like me is feeling exhausted."
"Just to clarify, which is the accusation we're defending our client from next?"
"Dylan, I don't think these are connected events," Lorant says, shaking his head. "It's just that The Beast had the unfortunate luck of being in the area when they happened, and being something of a local legend, was an easy target to blame when those experiencing them had no other answers. When people are scared, they will often take whatever answer comes first and most easily, and Ustalav's people, for better or for worse, have much to fear."
I will try to get a move out in the next few days. I just wanted you all to know that if I should suddenly disappear, it's not any of you. Know that I have enjoyed the game and it has been an honor to be your GM. Thank you, WhtKnt. Honestly I'm feeling the same way...please, PLEASE take care of yourself.
You and me both, my friend. :(
Everyone having a good spooky season? :)
|