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I think a hiatus is a good idea. I hope we can return to the game, but if not, I want you all to know that this has been one of the most rewarding and fantastic play-by-post games I’ve been in. I really felt pushed to be a better writer, in a friendly manner. These are my preferred boards for pbp, so I’ll be hunting for additional games soon. Thank you all for the adventures. Take care everyone!
”Also,” Rilka asks after Dalton’s question is answered, ”are we teleporting between cities or traveling by land? I think teleportation would give us speed in averting a war, but traveling by land and river barge may give us a better sense of the country.”
”We could acquire information about the merchant families as we pass through the cities,” Rilka says making a note. ”See which one would be best for infiltration.” She pauses, tilts her head slightly, looking at Heff. ”Though you may have suggestions?” Rilka consults a map of Brumik, finger tracing the proposed journey. ”What about weather?”
”Would Takaral want to do this?” Rilka asks Dalton in an tone that suggests being incredulous that a being would want to impersonate another possibly for years on end.
I see this as collaborative fiction bounded by the rules of Pathfinder and DM Omen’s campaign world. Are each of us having fun and getting some manner of fulfillment from this game? I hope so! What has impressed me about this game is that were are able to discuss out of character issues without them getting too heated and dramatic. I appreciate the maturity displayed. My vote is to proceed with the campaign.
”I think the others have said enough about the uncertain motives of Brumik’s rulers and how they appear at odds with the general thought of war interfering with trade especially long term. I’m willing to go to these cities and investigate more. Are any adamantine mines close to these places? Especially in the Muskegons where we’re starting first.”
”Pazeek, I grew up in Andril. I’d be pleased to show you the city’s various districts. Restaurants, taverns, markets, and entertainment too. I’ll even help you find some quarters if you’d like.”
Rilka pauses and taps her pencil on the table’s top. “Do you know what the rational will be given for the hostilities?”
Rilka observes the tension between Pazeek and Toramin with increasing concern. In general, she’s noticed that some competition between people helps bring out their best efforts. Sometimes that competition can go too far. He was fairly confrontational with Akip. She was too. Maybe it’s a tengu trait? ”Describing rune giants that way Toramin is very clear. Two golems? I’m at a bit of a loss for words.” She shakes her head and chuckles. ”Then for the time being, we’ll gather more information on them but instead focus on the looming war to the south. Any change of that situation in the last day or two?”
”I second your thinking, Bjorkus,” Rilka says. She appears more energetic since the healing. ”I’d like to research rune giants in the library. All the information we can gain I think will help us. Contacting your flock’s elders is a good idea Pazeek. What about you Toramin? Any giant lore from your homeland that we might be able to acquire?” She turns to Krokar. ”I would like to pursue this rune giant. Not only for protecting the tengu of those mountains, but also for any links to our previous mission in Grastle Hollow.”
Rilka answers Dalton quickly, ”We simply need to secure her then we can be on our way,” she says bringing out an iron chain (made of three chains braided together) that she wraps around the giantess’ wrists then “sews” the ends together with a length of fine mithral chain. Finally she throws a tanglefoot bag against the chained wrists for an extra bit of security. ”Oh, do you mind doing a bit of prestidigitation?” Rilka asks Dalton hoping to get him focused on something else. She’s pointing to her clothes and armor, stained with fresh blood and the grime of battle. ”I really appreciate it. I remember firing my pistol and then...pain and darkness. Still got a small headache and my body feels like I’ve been trampled.”
”Ah didn’t I mention that?” Rilka says helping another fledgling from the pit. ”There was its chain shirt and falchion obviously. A very fine sky-blue sapphire necklace. I suspect it is magical. Dalton can confirm it. I didn’t find any notes or papers...though maybe his pants have back pockets. I couldn’t search there.”
”That’s a good idea, Toramin,” Rilka says as she helps lift a fledgling from the pit. ”Pazeek, will your flock be disappointed if we take these two cloud giants?”
Rilka finishes her search of the old giant’s corpse while listening to the conversation between Ianna and the giantess, plus Toramin’s questions and Pazeek’s taunts. She watched the giantess’ demeanor brighten when she spoke with Ianna. Imagine a giant and a dwarf conversing like that. If one can truly love, genuinely and fearlessly, like Ianna does...what strength! As the fledglings are revealed, Rilka takes out a rope from her backpack. ”If anyone is unable to climb the rope, do not worry. We can pull you out. One at a time please.” She ties one end to a column and throws the other end to one of the fledglings.
Rilka gasps back to consciousness, rolling to her side and pushing herself to a standing position. Her gaze sweeps the room, the crying giantess cradling her companion, the molten pool of stone, and her pistol halfway across the chamber, probably from the giant’s powerful strike. Her clothes are covered in her own blood she sees. Her body aches not only at the muscles and joints, but also her bones and organs. ”Thanks Ianna,” she says as she holsters her pistol. ”Everyone else feeling well enough?” Pazeek is questioning her, Rilka thinks. I’ll search the older giant. It’s going to take a lot of work to haul the corpses out of here. While searches the giant, she calls over to Pazeek. ”Ask her who the hooded man is, please.”
”Well done Dalton,” Rilka says as the giantess pounds against the magic wall. The halfling feels the haste spell course through her being. Not a jittery, clumsy speed like from drinking kaophi, but a smooth, precise quickness to her actions. The pistol’s sites align with the giantess, and Rilka pulls the trigger three times, attempting to keep her shots in a small area.
@Toramin I forgot about the sickened condition (–2 penalty on all attack rolls, weapon damage rolls, saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks) being active with Studied Combat. Thanks! As for the Studied strike, I was going to use it on the fourth round (and last) round against the female giant, but it does make sense to try to use it quickly in this fight. I’ll ask DM Omen.
Rilka slides her left foot behind her body, assuming a fencer’s stance as she levels her pistol at the female giant again. A quick breath, her gazing lining up the sites, and two silenced shots erupt from the barrel.
Before the teleportation, Rilka sets her pistol to silence. Once they appear in the tendu village, Rilka’s eyes narrow on the female giant as she studies the giant’s body posture, clothing, and weapon. She thinks she sees a weakness to exploit during her attack. Standing where she teleported, she raises her pistol and fires at the giant.
I’m still here too. The last few days have been very busy and one night filled with a headache.
Rilka listens with a grin on her face as Pazeek describes using illusions and silence to good effect. Shaking her head to Bjorkus in reply to his question, ”I do remember what a pain that was. I don’t have any and creating it takes knowledge in a branch of alchemy that I do not know. I do have two tanglefoot bags that could help slow them down. The giants are strong so they’d have a good chance of breaking free. But I do think that it’s worth trying. Good thinking.” Rilka makes a note in her book. She glances up after Tormain’s comment, giving him a quick nod. ”Dalton do you have any musings you would like to add?”
Rilka bows to the council. ”I’m pleased with our reckon efforts. According to Akip, the giants are being led by a ‘normal-sized’ person in a cloak. Three cloud giants are nearly always in the main hut. The return from the village had a longer route, but I think it may be safer to use it than our initial path into the village. We -- I -- nearly collided with a giant. Do you think it would be better to use the exit route to infiltrate the area, Pazeek?” After Pazeek answers, Rilka continues, ”With some advice from Toramin, we think a wall of force will be the best method of keeping the eggs and fledglings safe while we fight the giants. Now once the giants are under attack, I’m confident an alarm will be raised. Pazeek, do you think trapping some of the doors to the building would be a good idea to keep any reinforcements at bay?” Rilka looks down at her sketch of the village and notes. ”The mysterious person teleports in and out. None of the tengu has gotten close to them. Two of the cloud giants have morning stars and the third has a falchion. Toramin, you’re better tactically than me. How should we divide our force to meet this enemy? You and Takaral take one giant, Bjorkus and I another, leaving Pazeek and Dalton with the last. Ianna supporting us as needed?”
”That is a good idea Pazeek,” Rilka says pulling out her spider climb extract from her belt pouch. She keeps her left hand on the rope as she is led by the tengu.
”Alright,” Rilka says, taking out her other invisibility extract and about twelve feet of rope from her bag of holding. Passing it around her belt in a hitch knot, she ties the end to Pazeek’s belt in the back. ”That should be better in case we need to do some tumbling or dodging.” She drinks the extract and disappears. As they leave, Rilka proceeds on her toes, stepping quietly and softly.
You’re an umpire for the Little League World Series?! Wow, that’s really exciting.
Rilka extends her hand to Akip, ”That’s the spirit!” the halfling says. ”It is going to be good to get rid of these giants.” She puts her ear to the front door to make sure nobody is outside.
”I’m satisfied with what we learned,” Rilka says looking at the maps she sketched and the notes she made. ”Akip, what’s your opinion to be the best time to strike? Is there a shift change at night?” When Rilka gets an answer, she nods in thanks and extends her hand to the old bird. ”Thanks for your help.”
”Giants can eat what I’d consider spoiled food,” Rilka says with a soft shake of her head, ”so unless we have poison they’d probably be fine from rancid meat. Plus a number of giants suddenly falling ‘ill’ may alert them that an attack was imminent.” She opens her book and starts a new map, showing the room where the eggs and fledglings are. She gets Akip Swifttrap to help her with the layout and dimensions and where the guards normally are. ”Thanks,” she adds. ”Anything else you want to do Pazeek before we return?”
Rilka cuts into the conversation, not wanting it to get too cantankerous. ”Okay, so you can lead us there when the guards are minimal. We can use a wall of force spell to protect the eggs. If only we had half-a-dozen dwarves to help. They’re exceptional giant slayers.” Rilka finishes the rough map in her book showing the village’s layout. ”What are the giants eating? Do they have tengu doing the cooking? I’ve found a little intestinal distress can go a long way.”
”Good point about the darkness spells and the webbing,” Rilka says. ”You too, Toramin. Thanks for reminding me about wall of force. Shall we do more scouting of the area?”
”Great, smarter than average giants,” Rilka says. ”Illusions may be a possibility to hide the eggs. Our wizard is better at transmutation though. Is there a spell that transmutes eggshell to steel? A web spell would be good at restricting the giants’ movements, but its flammability is too risky. Perhaps we could use darkness and darkvision in conjunction.” Rilka sighs and makes some notes. ”These giants are devious. How easy would it be to give the fledglings potions? Tell them to drink it when they hear a specific signal. We could use some invisibility spheres or tiny huts I think. It might take longer to procure though. I like thinking out loud. Some of my ideas aren’t very feasible, I know.”
It’s a good time for you to be away at camp with brief access to the Internet. I’ve been having trouble accessing Paizo’s site since Saturday. Sometimes the pages load, sometimes there’s nothing. Other people have mentioned similar problems on twitter and reddit. Anyway, have fun in the great outdoors.
”I realize securing the young is difficult, otherwise you’d have done it already,” Rilka replies writing down the weapons the giants are using. ”Do they guard differently at night? Are the eggs and fledglings in a ground floor room? What I mean by that is, could we dig under the floor and steal them away at night?”
”I’d like any suggestions,” Rilka says in a soft tone, ”to prevent any more loss of your flock. Do you know how many giants guard the eggs? What type of weapons are the giants using? How many eggs and fledglings are there? If we could safeguard them the adults would fight, right?”
”Pazeek and I are here to scout,” Rilka says. ”We’ll take that information to my companions and devise a plan.” She takes out her book and a pencil. After writing a few notes down she asks, ”A cloaked...person? Excellent! No presumption of male or female. Just details. No speculation. Where did you see this person?”
”Our plan is to aim for the head,” Rilka says with determination. ”It has worked before. Have you heard of Targ of Yenrick? We’re the ones responsible for that.” She pauses listening towards the door. ”We believe there are three cloud giants and possibly a rune giant leading the others. We will bring destruction upon the giants. I’m not saying it will be easy. I’m not even saying I’ll survive.” Rilka looks at the ring Dalton made for her. ”What do you suggest otherwise? Getting an army? From what I know, the clandestine locations of your flocks is prized. Would you want an army of humans and halflings, gnomes and dwarves marching through your mountains?”
Rilka bows to Akip Swifttrap when introduced. She has a slightly confused but mostly neutral expression on her faces as the two tengu exchange insults. Seeing the old crone’s finger close to Pazeek’s face doesn’t worry Rilka. She’s confident this has happened before. Many times. She clears her throat. ”Excuse me,” Rilka interupts adding the halfling word for honored elder with a slight bow of her head. ”The only deaths we’re looking for are the giants. Now, Pazeek could have just said he found some adventurers to help fight the giants, but he didn’t. He told you the truth. The Aestherics are a fairly clandestine group. That’s why hopefully you haven’t heard of us before. I can tell you more about that if you like. We are here to reconnoiter because in less than an hour my five companions will join us. Why are you so certain all will die here?”
As Pazeek leads them through the warren of nests, Rilka does her best to remember the way. We might have to flee in a hurry, she thinks as they cut down an alley. After a few minutes she admits to herself that the last turn to avoid detection broke her concentration and she isn’t as sure as she likes to be regarding retracing a reverse course. A lot of the houses are close together, maybe I could climb to the roofs and escape that way...but I’d be more revealed to the giants. Hmph. Finally they come to a red door and stop. ”Does she prefer using her first name too?” Rilka whispers as they wait for the door to be answered.
Rilka clamps her mouth shut, attempting to keep herself from making any noise. She wraps Pazeek’s cloak around her fist to ensure it won’t slip from her grip and let Pazeek know she’s still with him. We should have set up a meeting place in case we did get separated, she thinks. Watching the giant, she gets ready to roll away from any further feet stomping.
With her left hand, Rilka takes the hem of Pazeek’s cloak before he disappears. She takes the invisibility extract and keeps pace with Pazeek, stepping as quietly as possible. The cloak becomes slightly taut so Rilka knows where her companion roughly is. She attempts to step where she will leave little evidence, stones and low growing plants priority.
”Climbing would reveal us too much,” Rilka whispers to Pazeek. ”I could attempt to lead them away, but one might remain and you’d still have to get past him, plus any others if they sound an alarm.” She removes a vial from her belt. ”I think you’re right, going invisible is our best option for now.”
”You’ll be fine Dalton,” Rilka says with a chuckle. ”I don’t think you’ve forgotten your name once.” ”I’ll do my best to shadow you and live up to my name,” Rilka tells Pazeek.
After the tengu explains the plan, she nods and follows behind him, doing her best to keep her feet light and quiet. No reason for the invisibility just yet. She appreciates him trusting that she knows enough to keep quiet and rely on stealth. She’s a little slower than Pazeek by about two of her steps, but she’s faster than most halflings.
That was my understanding.
”I can silence it,” Rilka says, patting her pistol. ”But I’ll take the crossbow and bolts as insurance.” Her features change into that of a generic, male tengu. ”Okay, I’ll change my clothes and then I’ll be ready.”
Rilka looks at the map and nods as Pazeek taps a talon on the northeastern building. ”If you think that is best, I’ll follow your lead.” She gets to work with her reagents and vials. First she gives Bjorkus, Toramin, Ianna, Pazeek, and herself shield extracts. ”Sorry, Dalton, only so much magic to go around. I’m sure you can relate.” Next she makes and gives Pazeek two invisibility extracts. ”Hopefully we can use them during the assault, not sneaking around. Best to be prepared, right?” ”How are you at climbing?” Rilka asks Pazeek. ”I think having some magical assistance for a climbing escape, wouldn’t go amiss either.” Rilka makes Pazeek and herself a spider climb extract then makes another extra one. Finally she spends another five minutes making other extracts that she tucks into padded pockets on her belt. She double checks that her backpack and other gear is not showing signs of excessive wear. She cleans her pistol with a singular focus. ”What colors do you recommend?” she asks Pazeek, indicating shirts and leggings in different muted colors she has pulled out of her backpack. ”I was thinking gray and brown mostly since your village is above the tree-line.”
”I’m happy to provide it, Bjorkus,” Rilka says. ”You too Pazzek and Ianna. Invisibility and darkvision always are useful. Can’t forget an extract for protection from ranged attacks. She laughs, shaking her head. "Maybe when I retire, Dalton."
”I like your philosophy and practice of being adaptable with weapons, anything on hand,” Rilka says to Pazeek. ”I’d like to follow such behavior, but I’m too committed to my pistol, and the occasional bit of rapier work.” She pats the pistol on her hip. ”Toramin, two shield infusions,” she writes down in her book. ”Any other requests?” she asks the rest of her companions.
Rilka nods her head at Geoffrey’s suggestion. ”If we defeat the leaders there’s a good chance the rest of them will attempt to flee. Is the rapier your main weapon, Pazeek?” The halfling looks at her other companions. ”Toramin, what do you know about rune giants?” she asks. ”Dalton have you prepared any fly spells today? Or anything that might help us in fighting multiple giants?”
”I like quiet,” Rilka says with a grin. ”Stealth is a good thing. Securing the eggs and fledglings is even better.” She makes some notes as Pazeek points to the image and describes his desires.
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