Pavel's page

Well, one way or another let me say that I truly appreciate all the effort you've put into the game, CB. I've had a very good time playing the game with you all and I'm sorry if my posting wasn't consistent enough recently. I hope this won't turn you off to running another game at some point- PBPs are more difficult than they seem and any criticism I've had is more aimed at the authors of the campaign than you.

And sorry, Tark. Sucks that you joined just in time for the game to come apart at the seams.

Pavel kneels to get a good look at the kid. He nods.
"Got his fuh'father's eyes. May Ph'Pharasma watch over 'im, and when she's not we will. Welcome aboard kid."

Pavel works on learning the vagaries of the katana from his sword, practicing his Tien and tending to the caravan's horses.

Between Ogre, his ill-tempered horse, and Kazuko no Hogo, his formal (and condescending) sword, Pavel looks pretty well vexed throughout the winter.

Pavel sneers.
"There's better ways to get your people to luh'listen to you than plotting to have 'em killed, idiot. But I guess being shuh... shaman... wasn't enough, was it? You wanted more. Who's this Sithhud, then? Someone else whose boots you're luh'lickin'? Someone else to write in on my s@#@ list?"

"So let me translate this: she puh'picked everybody else off with th' cold, sent their dead bodies after you and since you survived she tuh'took you under her wing, right? And ever since you've been her little errand boy, killin' off your own people at her whim? Do I have that right?", Pavel says, as tactful as ever.

"Hmph. And whuh'where will we be going for this auspicious meeting?"

"Muh'maybe she's a duh'duh'des..."
"Descendent.", corrects the elaborate sword's voice from Pavel's hip.
The ranger sighs, takes a deep breath.
"Maybe she's a descendent of your ancestor and some suh... sort... of wind spirit. Would make a bit of sense for Tun... Tunuaq to have a shrine set up for her that way."

I'm not sure what I can do in the intervening time that would be practical. Would we have access to Tunuaq's hidden shrine now that he's being exiled? Maybe I could do one more search for clues, or signs that something else was there?

Pavel scratches his chin, looking confused.
".... what? So you weren't really mad? Cuh'coulda fooled me... But why would you pretend?"

Hey, I'll have you know I have an enchanting musk!

"Listen, Theo, luh'like I said and the pruh'priestess lady told me: to these people, Tunuaq is the voice of the spuh'spirits. Gods, demons, the average truh'tribesman doesn't make a distinction between 'em if it's comin' from their shuh'shaman. I mean, yeah, that human sacrifice s+++ he suggested at the beginning was a dead give away but if they worship anything it's through him. Tunuaq's the ruh'root of it, you know? And since Guh'Garand's stayin' he'll probably set 'em straight as soon as he's accepted."

"And come on, man, I know you love the suh'sound o' yer own voice, but that speech wasn't gonna help anybody. You know we're stuck here for the winter, whatever yer pruh'principles. I don't think they have the strongest chieftain in the world by any means, 'specially if all this crap happened under her nose, but tellin' her off in front of everybody? Even I know that's bad for buh'business. I think the cuh'cuh'comm'... Community. The community's only crime is blindly following their shaman. So we gotta keep an eye out for Big T's suh'supporters, but we can't go runnin' off across the tundra just yet."

Pavel nods toward Seila.
"So is this Pruh'Prince of the Moon satisfied with the trial? We all muh'mediated up?"

Pavel steps to Ameiko's side, thick forearms crossed over his chest.
"I'm guessing our nuh'next priority is them monoliths, then."

"Besides- don't you wanna stuh'stick around while we wipe that smug look off his face?"

Pavel shoots a panicked look between Daeron and Theoden before addressing the paladin.
"Whuh'would you think for a second?! We gotta suh'see this through- until wuh'winter's over, this place is our only chance for sur'survival. He admitted everything- all we had to do is fuh'finish convincing the chief he deserves to be puh'punished- at least 'till you both decided to insult her! It's not just Tuh'Tunuaq we need to beat, it's his position as shuh'shaman. They think he's unquestionable because of their suh'society. You think you're gonna undo that with a tirade like that?"

He crosses his arms.
"We gotta finish this if we want any hope of guh'getting to Minkai."

Leaning in near Pavel, Theoden keeps his voice low. "You know, mighty Pavel, I'm thinking this is one big waste of time. You see how they agreed with Tunuaq when he mentioned about 'some parts of the cults must remain a mystery'? I would gather that none of them truly care what happened to the dragon or its eggs. Or anything else for that matter. And if that is the case... then this case is over." He leans back out, shrugging, as if to say: 'What are we to do?'

Pavel shrugs himself. "Whuh'we had to try I guess..."

"Daeron- whuh'what about the demon he worships? Ask him about it spuh'spuh'.... specifically, by name."

I think he meant her baby bump.

"This is our cruh'credibility as much as hers- wuh'we see an opening, we gotta hammer it so the Chief don't think we're truh'trying to stir up s@#~ for no reason, you know?", he adds quietly.

"Ask her whuh'whether she and Tunuaq fuh'fought in the last year. Ask her whuh'whether she noticed a change in his behavior. Did she ever think to mention the suh'secret shrine to the chief? Whuh'why did she keep it quiet?", Pavel says, rattling off follow-up questions.

Pavel points at Theoden, then at Daeron.
"Either wuh'one of you guys should do it."

"Suh'so who is the Pruh'Prince o' the Muh'Moon, then? Since he's determining our hon'honesty? I mean, sounds fine to me, I just wuh'wanna know all the in'interested parties, right?"

Pavel- a burly and slouching giant of a man wearing patchwork clothing and a shirt of silvery mail- knits his brow skeptically and frowns, crossing his arms. (The rest of the party wouldn't find this all that different from his typical expression, but for Seila this might be new.)

"Pruh'Prince o' the Moon, eh? So that pillow's ruh'royalty?"

If Pavel has to spend more than a couple of hours bored and sequestered, he first naps. Then tries talking to the guards. Then he starts drinking. Then he argues with his sword, swearing up and down in Tien that he isn't drunk. Then he naps again.

Once the chief's words are translated and no one makes a move to take his weapons, Pavel shrugs and complies without even making a rude gesture.

"Yup. Puh'pissin in the wind."

Pavel's action:

"All right. Luh'let's all calm down. Daeron, can you dismiss this spell so everyone else can see Tuh'Tunuaq?"

"Whuh'when we confronted Tunuaq, he told us the both of you had planned to destroy the druh'dragon's eggs- to make sure the Erutaki kept their ruh'reverence for the old ways, to keep foreigners like us from in'influencing your culture.", Pavel says. "Is the shuh'shaman lying?"

Pavel just keeps an eye on Tunuaq, watching the proceedings impassively.

I haven't read the spoilers, but I had assumed Akulayok was translating for us and Sonavut likely for the Chief- it would be down to Daeron and Akulayok to make sure everything is on the up and up as far as her translations go.

I didn't know if CB had plans in mind for it as a character or if I should just talk to myself like a sock puppet, but it's something I could work in here and there.

Pavel puts a hand to the sword's hilt and invokes its power to see invisibility.

"You are also slouching, Pavel-san. I believe we discussed this."
"I stand the wuh'way I stand, sword. Think I also tuh'told you to keep that in our huh'heads, right?"

Pavel looks between everyone.
"Whuh'well I don't... Uh..."
He looks quizzically at the foreign sword on his belt.
"Pavel-san, need I remind you once more that I can grant you such power?", says a voice from the katana.
"What? Oh, ruh'right. The talking sword'll let me. So I can kuh'keep an eye on that guy."

Pavel rubs his cold hands together.
"Hmmmph. We wanna kuh'keep this discreet, huh? No need to get everyone worked up 'till the Chuh'Chief weighs in. Akulayok, Theoden- whuh'why don't you go speak to the Chief and convince her to meet with us to talk about our findings, eh? Daeron and I can bring Tunuaq home- or I could do it, if you wuh'wanna talk to the Chief, Daeron. This way, gums don't start fluh'flapping as much..."

"Well. We're puh'pissin' in the wind now, eh? How shuh'should we approach this? All we got is the egg shells, as far as hard proof. If Tuh'Tunuaq and Sonavut won't fuh'fess up... it's their word against ours and I duh'don't like our odds."

Isn't Sonavut the chieftain? Who was the third community leader, we could talk to her, maybe.

Pavel nudges Tunuaq.
"Hey. Is there a buh'back way outta here? Without a nuh'narrow ice shelf?"

Pavel raises an eyebrow.
Sense motive: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3

"Uhh.. wh'what?"

Pavel descends shortly.
"Not too much of in-interest... except these."
The ranger holds up a fancy bag and shakes out fragments of hard silver eggshell.
"Souvenirs, huh?"

CB:

"Y-Yeah, fine.", Angry Face responds, eyeing all those assembled. "Let's kuh'keep it civil, though, eh?"
Pavel gets back on the ladder, seeing as he's got little to contribute to the negotiations.

Pavel looks over his shoulder to the others and at their signal he descends back down.

"Fine, I'm cuh'coming up.", Pavel says, starting to climb the ladder.

Pavel surveys the room, looking for any accomplices the shaman may have.
Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (10) + 12 = 22

"Wh'What's that say, next to the drawing and the skulls?", he says quietly to Akulayok.

Pavel pushes the door open, listening closely for any movement.
Perception: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (19) + 12 = 31

Pavel snorts, jerking a thumb between the two elven blooded men.
"Anybody's heavy compared to these two. Now- we buh'bustin' this thing down?", Pavel says, gesturing to the stone door, flexing his shoulders in preparation for some more destruction of property.

"We can slay a druh'dragon, but an icy ledge will nearly kuh'kill us all!", the ranger curses.

Feeling the whole clumsy group slipping, Pavel pulls back harder.
Strength: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21
Pavel carefully works his way back on the ledge, assisting Akulayok in pulling Theoden back up.

"S&~&!", Pavel curses as quietly as he can manage before grasping at the falling cavalier.
What would I need to do to try and grab him?

With boots of the winterlands, I don't think ice effects my movement. I can take point proceeding forward.

Pavel unsheathes his weapons and walks carefully up the ledge.

Pavel shimmies along the ledge Akulayok tested first, trailing a rope for Theoden and Garand.
Climb: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (8) + 13 = 21

Is there room enough to climb over the same way Akulayok went? I trust my climb skill far more than my (nonexistent) acrobatics.

Is it stone inside or packed snow? I have a grappling hook- we could send a rope over and cross that way- beats risking fall damage.