I'd like to submit Pendleton, lawful neutral human witch.
He was in a CoCT campaign a few years ago that petered out quickly, as they sometimes do.
I think I just need to bump him up to a 25pt build, and maybe tinker with equipment, but he should be good to go otherwise.
Backstory is in profile, but briefly he was an aspiring legal student before he was framed for murder. Since then he's had the opportunity to focus more on his magical abilities and looking for a new way to advance in life.
Rolewise, he's got good diplomacy for the non-combat side of things, in combat he'd be buffet/debuffer with hexes, plus some backup healing.
Pendleton here was in a short-lived CotCT game about 4 years ago, apparently we made it to level 2, but I can't remember what happened and I'd like to give him another chance.
He is a witch by class, but is/was a lawyer by trade.
Rolewise, he'll be buff/debuff with some healing.
I need to level down and check that he aligns with the other build reqs, but crunchwise he won't be changing much.
Backstory:
As a student, Pendleton would have been content to go through life as a trade lawyer - one who organises trade agreements and works out the appropriate legal documentation. He was personable enough to be able to negotiate agreements between two disagreeable parties, and though the minutia of his work would generally be considered uninteresting by most, he both enjoyed and excelled at it. However, fate, or someone else had him marked for more. One night, when he had been studying late into the night, he was roused from his writing by a sharp tapping at his window. Opening the shutters, he discovered a thrush, who fluttered in and took up position upon his desk. Staring at it, there was... communication of a sort between them. A small gift of power, and the knowledge that this gift could be nurtured and trained into something greater. Intrigued, Pendleton accepted, and since that night the thrush (named Perkins) has been his companion, although for a time he was content to focus more on his legal training.
Later, in his final year, he finally had a chance to use his skills on a job. He was working for Kistol, a small fisherman who was just getting big enough to start exporting. Everything seemed to be going well, when one night when Pendleton went to meet him, he found the fisherman murdered - and before he could do anything the guards arrived and he was arrested. Later, he found that Kistol had made an enemy of a man named Gaedren Lamm, but the source of this information - a fellow fisherman who had been badgered into providing false witness - had also been killed before revealing the truth to the authorities. Pendleton was released, but was forced to leave his training. In the months after this - when he had little else to do - that he began working to develop his own magical ability.
We have enough trouble with them, let alone the AWOL guardsmen doing harm.. He says wistfully.
"Yes, I was shocked when we found out what happened with your men - I can't imagine how it feels to have those you trust turn on you - and attack those they swore to protect. You have my deepest sympathies. I do think it's important that it gets reported to the Field Marshall - I'm sure she'll be keen to track down any other guards that cannot do their job properly. Fortunately it seems they can spare you here - the locals are keeping the peace themselves - we met them on our way to find you, and we would have run into trouble had we not been friendly."
Diplomacy:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (13) + 13 = 26 to try to phrase things, um, diplomatically.
As the two combatants headed back into the bar, Pendleton adds to the others. "Well, I must admit I was slightly alarmed when I saw weapons being drawn, but it seems this might have been the best course of action. Mister Soldado does seem to be slightly more spirited after the bout. He may not have been such had we just used words."
Pendleton will wait until they are headed back through the city to speak about what happened with the guards turning on him.
"Goodness, that's worse than I imagined." exclaims Pendleton. "The Field Marshall wasn't aware of that, I am sure she will want to know about trouble within the ranks. Well, it's good that the locals here are keeping the peace, we did run into them outside. Hmm.. I'm afraid we will still need to take Grau back to the main guardhouse. His skills are needed, as well as reporting what happened here. Now I'm hoping we can do this without violence, but.." Pendleton glances over his shoulder and stops talking as he sees Grau and various others squaring up. "..excuse me." he says and hurries over to see what's happening.
Pendleton approaches the bar and speaks with the bartender.
"Has he been here long?" he asks, indicating Grau. "I heard that he's had some bad trouble with the men under his command - I'm not surprised that he's drowning himself in drink."
oh wait, I'm Chelish and Alexio isn't, so she was flirting with me.
"I suspect to persuade the Soldado, we will need more delicate methods than your bluntness. If he has been injured defending this area then he may also appreciate some healing. However, if there is no problem, I shall of course return to converse further." He bows again to Vivia.
Pendleton bows politely to the Varisians (and pays, if necessary)
"Thank you for the information and the pleasant time. I shall be sure to come by again, hopefully in more peaceful times. Come on Alexio, let's go and try to speak to him."
He waves to the others to show that they are headed to the tavern.
Pendleton partakes of the offered fare and chats with the Varisians.
"Thanks you. It certainly does seem much less tumultuous here than in the rest of the city. We've had a trying couple of days so it is good to relax, even if just for an evening. I hope that everything calms down soon."
Pendleton nods at Alexio's words. "Alexio speaks highly of the entertainment to be had here. Surely there must be some establishments open, even during such a time."
Diplomacy assist:1d20 + 13 ⇒ (16) + 13 = 29just made the assist check lol
Imps:
Pendleton watched the multitude of imps with some shock. "Far more than a just a few pests. Could they be drawn by the chaos in the city?" he wondered in a low voice.
VQ: Pendleton will assist with dip or intimidate, I can't fail either assist roll. Letting Alexio take the lead though. I can also use Fortune if you like.
"Greetings, Field Marshall. We apologise for taking up your valuable time during this period - we can see you are very busy with all the trouble in the city. As well as the record of Lamm's activities - which we've passed on to the clerks below - we also discovered a number of miscellaneous objects, and we were seeking to find more information about them - whether any have been reported missing, so that we might be able to return them to their owners."
"Yes, we apologise - I'm afraid we've all been a little jumpy in the rioting - only this morning we had to calm down a mob in the streets. Let us go to the Field Marshall now."
Pendleton attempts to smooth things over. "Come now, Inquisitor Crowler has delivered a valuable piece of evidence, and provided the key to decoding it. We are all working together here."
"We can try to track him down ourselves. Hopefully he is safe amidst the current chaos."
Addressing the guards: "We apologise for taking up your time - I know everything must be hectic here, with the rioting, and I'm sure the new queen is settling into her role."
A new hex: Evil Eye
some new spells in my familiar: Shield of Faith (patron spell), Ray of Enfeeblement, Remove Sickness.
Extra cantrip and 1st level spell slot: Light for the cantrip, not sure what to do in the 1st level slot. Could always just do another CLW, but I can also do a buff or utility spell (hexes will probably give me enough to do during combat). If we have a plan for a particular day, I'll vary it up.
Pendleton addresses the clerk. "I don't suppose you know where Sergeant Vancaskerkin is? I know the book has information regarding cases he was involved with in the past."
How long would it take to write down the key? Pendleton can help if necessary. If we can also find a list of missing items to compare to the ones we have, some of us could go find that instead.
"Delivering the book to the guard is of most import to me. That will start the long process of clearing my name properly. But, that will take some time and it can certainly wait until there is less unrest and the guard have more time for less urgent matters."
"Until such time, I would be glad to journey together. Myself, I find Zellara's words compelling so I would like to try and discover this darkness she fortells. The change in ruler certainly could be the catalyst, so I'll be glad to accompany Crowler to deliver the message."
"I think the children should be safer where they are than making another journey. The sisters were capable of fending off one attack. We could certainly head back to help defending them - and if the greenhats are trying to increase the rioting, stopping their work would help the city recover."
Pendleton mutters " Crowler, we'll distract the crowd, you get the children past."
Moving up towards Reynetto, Pendleton also speaks to the crowd. " "In addition, this sort of behaviour will just provoke those in charge to send more guards to keep the peace. Kill this man and they'll respond in kind. And it will have no effect on the new queen at all. There are more proper ways to protest. Why not gather in front of the palace and let your voices be heard there?"
" Yes, of course. It is only a little, but it should help."
Pendleton steps forward and lays a hand on each of the women in turn, channeling healing energy.
" Thank you for taking the children - it was bad luck that the day we rescued them was the start of the unrest. We shall be watch out for the Groetites. "
"Thank you, Zellara" Pendleton says after the readings. "There's much to think over.
As her image becomes weaker, he picks up the cards and places them carefully away.
Looking out the window, he remarks, "It appears the rioting has died down slightly. I doubt the quiet will last though, there's always a period of instability after a monarch dies here. Did you know the castle was built over an ancient Shoanti pyramid? It may be that some lingering magic is why the kings and queens never seem to produce an heir. At any rate, we should head off soon to have the best chance of safely escorting the children."
Pendleton is keen to look through the book to see if there's anything relevant to his history with Lamm. If there is, he'll want to take it to his contact in the guards: Verik Vancaskerkin. May want to work out what I'm going to tell him about *how* we got the book.
But our first priority should be to get the children sorted out. damn escort quests!
We should get a harrowing done to see if Zellara can reveal anything more about the coming darkness.
If we get all that done without anything else cropping up, Pendleton will share his address with the group if they wish to contact him, and return home.
Although, he might move into Zellara's house as it is nicer.
Pendleton glances over Crowler's shoulder at the notebook, but frowns at the unrecognisable writing. "I also know little about codes and ciphers, I'm afraid."
"Yes, I can take first watch."
Pendleton picks up the Harrow deck, and takes it over to the window, occasionally glancing out as he shuffles and randomly draws a card.
Pendleton looks a little relieved when everyone else can see the ghost of Zellara.
"I wonder if the darkness is related to the death of the King - a lot of people do seem to be riled up about it. I suppose the morning will show whether things have calmed down at all.
Could it be related somehow to Lamm himself? If the ones who stop Lamm can stop the darkness, that may mean some connection."
He pauses in thought a moment.
"Crowler, have you had a chance to look through that journal yet? It may contain some pertinent information."
With the night ahead of them, Pendleton also takes the opportunity to look through the assorted loot again and relays the information about the Key Lock Killer.
"'For an inspiration of a father' - it's a somewhat disturbing inscription, for a blade with those connotations. Zellara, can you perform a Harrow reading on a specific object?"
Yeah, I had a look at that. Only thing that would change at L1 is that I'd have to swap familiar for the deck.
Not sure I'd switch though - main benefit is that you can cast touch spells by flicking cards at people - I'd probably have been a bit more dextrous to do that.
I'll probably retake Persuasive, which I swapped out at the start. Although, I'm checking out the Harrow themed feats, now that we have a deck and all.
"Yes, well, we should hang on to the head for now, given that its previous owner can apparently still communicate with us.
We still need to search Lamm's other henchmen for anything valuable or useful. The children may also be aware of any hidden stashes."
"She's been dead about a week, I believe. Certainly since before we apparently met her tonight."
He looks at the deck again. "She was famous as a Harrow reader - perhaps it is capable of stronger magic than mere fortune telling. I would hypothesize that her spirit is linked with her deck somehow - I heard her saying she would explain tonight - perhaps because I was holding the deck. " He offers the deck to anyone who wants to try to communicate.
"Our immediate priority should be the children though. We may need contact the authorities - they will have be able to return the children home if possible, or place them in the appropriate care - be that orphanages or with one of the temples around the city."
Pendleton looks up, startled. "Did anyone else hear that? I thought I just heard Ms. Intoya answering me."
He shakes his head slightly, as if to clear his ears, then takes the lid off the box, and drops it with a cry.
"But, but how? Surely we came straight here! Are Lamm's agents that fast, or is this some magic?"
Taking a second to recover, he examines the cards again, picking out the card he received. "These are her cards. She said that we should return to her home once we ensure the children are cared for."
Heal:1d20 + 5 ⇒ (11) + 5 = 16 examining the head to check how long it has been dead
Pendleton picks up the harrow deck and ruffles through it. "Our informant said the Lamm stole her Harrow Deck, though she managed to get it back. I wonder if this one is also stolen, or if it was his own. From the little I know of him, I wouldn't have expected him to have an interest in it - but I supposed appearances can be deceiving. I must admit I am intrigued by it - does anyone object if I keep this deck?"
He then turns his attention to the hat box and opens it.
Was Yargin using a wand before, and is it still on his body?
Pendleton moves over and attempts to heal Lamm with healing hex, but it is too late.
"No, he is dead. I would have found it preferable to keep him alive, but after hearing all the grievances against him, I wasn't expecting it."
He looks over the bodies, then around at the room. "If he was living here, we should find and search his quarters - if he kept any sort of records, then we may find the information we need there. We will also need to work out what to do with all the children - if Lamm had any other subordinates, we shouldn't let regaining control over the children."
Pendleton moves over and casts on Alexio, then Crowler and himself.
"Remember, I can grant each of you a brief burst of luck that will greatly increase one attack's chance of success. I expect we'll want to use it against Lamm, so shout out when you need it."
