Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
Dragonchess Player wrote:
Vorsk, Follower or Erastil wrote:
There is the animated undead head of a succubus in Council of Thieves
Erinyes, not a succubus (What Lies in Dust, pg. 10-11).
Also not animated undead head. Living head. Which was a means to punish her and torture her to insanity. Moloch destroyed her body but she wasn't dead.
I loved having her as a NPC in my CoT game. One of my players eventually stole a scroll of wish to get her body back.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
Perpdepog wrote:
And The Hive feel like one of those species that are really intended to be monsters. It's hard to be a good guy when your only way of reproduction is to infest someone with worms and then erupt out of their cocooned body. I could see them being a corruption though, if we get corruption rules in PF2E, which I'm personally hoping for.
It's an underrated series, but Andromeda had Rev Bem who was amazing and totally this. (*note the magog were not insectoid, but that is their mean of propogation)
Udarra's description of the vampires is very evocative and detailed. While she calls them vampires, they seem to you to be a different kind of bloodsucker - the urdefhan. Offsprings of the daemons of Abaddon and like their progentitors they wish to wipe out life.
Áine Aiman wrote:
"Be right back." Áine says, following some bloody claw prints on the ground. "One of them decided not to stick around, I think."
Aine/TFP:
There weren't any drops of blood, the creature's paws were bloody from climbing out of the corpse and those blood footprints quickly were no longer bloody. The occasionally fresh claw scratch is few and far between. The creature didn't seem to be heading in a straight line but there is a plethoa of old buildings nearby in the ancient city. It is heading south by that is likely an artifact of the Udarra's manor being past of the northern wall in this section.
Zaine Kildare wrote:
Zaine keeps track of the various tribes of enemies on his fingers.
The old hunched morlock woman talks a lot, but Zaine only has two fingers used: vampires and serpents.
Faith Dagger wrote:
Faith slowly nods as the woman explains the vampires. "I think we have seen their like before," he says. "I believe I can protect us to some extent. They sound like a foe worthy of extermination."
Faith is much happier about the sound of this than he was fighting the morlocks and intellect devourers.
"Neither the vampire or serpents is good." The old woman says, "They both hunt us, torture us, enslave us and eat us." She shrugs, "The Kline says that the serpent are the worse evil, that we must work with the vampires to destroy the snakes. [b]"With or without the vampires, Kline offered to lead us against the snake people, to help us become we what we once were. You must go to the vampires. Find Kline, and return him to us. Without him, we all fail, and the snake people will rule both worlds, Above and Below.” Udarra is very sincere about this point as her followers go about disposing of the morlock bodies and blood, taking the manor house back to its delapitaed by liviable condition.
Udarra reaches out and grabs Faith's arm, "You find the Kline, bring him back so that we can fight the serpents, yes?"
.
Flex: Downtime Before the Trip to Snake City
Áine Aiman wrote:
"One hour, got it."
Despite the lack of audience, the hole is filled with rocks, with the shreaded remains of banana stalks, combustible stater material and sweet smelling wood. In just about the hour Nali mentioned, woven baskets of food are lowered into the hole, covered by several layers of tightly woven maps at which point the fire is lit until the wood has caught, then everything is covered in all the dirt that Aine, Tulip and Zaine dug out of the hole.
The smell is fire, burning wood and, by the time morning dawns, the hint of foods cooking.
Aine:
Before the Trip to Snake City
Aine is quite good at what she does and is able to hunt up deep point in the lake where she eventually lands a several hundred pound catfish.
Once the fish is aboard the carpet, Juliver shakes her head, "You know traditionally you are supposed to get catfish with noodling."
And the When of the Conversation
Quote:
Anyone, you know, special, in your life?"
Juliver shakes her head, "No I wasn't in love or sleeping with anyone in my adventuring group." She shrugs, "They were just my friends. My comrades."
A pause, "I'm going to get maudlin again if we keep up this talk." Juliver says with a shake of her head.
Faith:
She snuggles into his chest, "Pakshee no complain, because make babies fun with Faith and she try anytime." She shrugs, "But we try for long time and," she puts her hand down on the flat belly, "no baby." She smiles, "But want to try more, we try more."
Zaine:
Quote:
Zaine gives her a nod, leaning down to kiss her, his tongue stroking hers. Then he parts, his hand sliding over, and then inside of Zaira. One finger, then two. He keeps his strokes in rhythm with Sasha's own explorations, periodically leaning down to kiss Sasha again and again.
Sasha goes with Zaine's technique, teasing and building, only diving in on the more sensitive areas once Zaira's body is already begging for it. Except for the pauses when Sasha gasps and moans and wiggles, Zaira clearly more direct in her eating out the redhead.
Quote:
He gets up, repositioning himself so he is at Sasha's head, Zaira's splayed body in front. He leans in and assists Sasha with her delicious task, no longer f+&!ing Zaira with his fingers, but with his tongue.
Zaira makes a low growl, her body trying to keep their tongues on the clit, on the small spot inside that makes her body go stiff, but she just gets more wet, more desperate to come. But Sasha not willing to give her the extra push, keeping her on that edge.
Quote:
He takes the position he had before, though now he is by Zaira's head. He sinks his fingers into her hair and pulls her up out of her work for a long, slow kiss. His tongue seeks Sasha's taste inside in the other woman's mouth. He locks eyes with her and nods, his fingers still in her hair.
More upright, Zaira's hips move her body rocking down on Sasha, f~%*ing the red head's tongue.
Zaira's own tongue, teases Zaine's deeper into her mouth, her hand going down to caress his impressive hardness, groaning into his mouth as her hand circles him and fingers barely touch.
Quote:
Then, his manhood is in front of her mouth, and he slides it in, inch by inch. There's no mercy, if ever there was. He goes into the impressive length is tickling the back of her throat. Then he withdraws. It wasn't about the sensation, it was about Zaira knowing that in this place, he is her master.
She keeps eye contact with him as he moves her mouth down to replace her hand. Her head tries to move, for her mouth to take him in faster at first, but the pressure on her hair keeps the pace to the one Zaine sets. Pressure as he touches the back of her throat then with a swallow, deeper. Sasha levers herself up, to look at Zaine across Zaira's back, face glistening with Zaira's jucies. His red head smiles, "She just clamped down on my fingers, love." Sasha lays a kiss on Zaira's backside, moving her fingers, causing a small shutter to go up the blonde. Which encourages Sasha to bury her tongue back where it had been.
Quote:
Then he places himself at the gates of Sasha, and slowly penetrates her writhing body.
Sasha's whole body shudders as Zaine moves into her with aching prescion, her mouth falling away from Zaira's body his name torn from her lips.
Zaira, on the other hand, can not look away, pure lusty want on her face as she watches Zaine's dick sink into Sasha's body. She leans forward to suck hard at Sasha's clit, making the redhead scream and convulse around Zaine's buried inside.
Zaira straightens, a soft kiss on Zaine's lips that smears more of Sasha's taste there. Then she turns, rotating to kiss Sasha, chest to chest. Zaira's legs on top of Sasha's, her clit rubbing against Sasha's, her naked lips just above Sasha's red patch.
Zaira leads Sasha's hands to her breasts then gleefully starts to play with Sasha's nipples. All the while her hips moving against Sasha's.
"That solves that problem. When we have to go through again, remind me. You can borrow my bottle of air."
"Stupid racist Azlanti." Juliver complains as she get her breath back. She smiles at the offer, "Thank you, Zaine." She blinks, her face going white as a memory surfaces, "The spell used on me jacked up my brain, so my memories here aren't the best, but I think we all came up here." Thekola nods. "They don't attack non-humans on the way out."
The morlock waves the group forward, clearly eager to take you all to Udarra. The buildings in this area are a mix of older serpentine architecture and classic early Azlanti, suggesting that an Azlanti force moved into an already existing city. Ahead you see a pile of rubble standing in the middle of a field of fungus. Thekola waves for everyone to make a wide berth around the collapsed remains.
In a intersection break of the buildings, Thekola starts to head right, but Juliver's attention is grabbed by a huge domed structure deeper in the area and to the left. She nods, her eyes sad, before following the morlock.
Thekola leads you to a large building sitting atop a ledge against the cavern wall. Though partially ruined, it still has an air of faded glory - spiral carvings decorate the walls, and carved serpentine heads rise above the wavy lines of the buildings eaves. A wide stone stairway climbs up the ledge, flanked by a line of large stone snake heads on each side. At the top of the stairs, dual portals lead into the building, both marked with the same crude symbol - the Glyph of the Open Road.
Clearly on guard, three morlocks, twice the size of your guide, wait. Thekola freezes as soon as the stairs come into view, desperately looking for something on the clothing of the guards and not seeing it. He starts to shake his head, muttering in Undercommon.
Zaine:
Quote:
I do like giving Sasha spankings
Zaira gets a oh look on her face at this. "My mind went somewhere a bit different when you asked about pain. If we are talking hand spanking, that can be fun on both sides." She blinks, "I also have a good heat tolerance because I wax, so I don't tend to think of that play as pain." There is a blank thinking look on Sasha's face, but after a moment it clears as she figures it out.
Quote:
"You two are better at this than I am. All I can think of are extremely filthy ones."
Zaira's voice is dry and totally self-depricating, "At least that means I'm probably not the only one thinking about what the two of you are going to do after I leave for the night."
Quote:
"I enjoy watching Sasha pleasure herself.
Sasha leans into Zaine, smiling, whispering even though Zaira is still close enough to hear. "I like you watching me."
Zaira shoots Zaine a look. A look that very clearly is, What idiot wouldn't enjoy that?
Quote:
"If we're using toys, I'd like to start slow. I'm insecure enough that I think I want my cock being the only one in the mix at least to start. That might change depending on how this goes."
"Fair," Zaira says, "but quick clarification, does that mean I shouldn't bring a dildo for self-pleasure purposes only?"
Quote:
"What about the two of you? What are your thoughts about where I finish?"
Zaira does a little, 'good thought' finger point. "Connected to that, I'm sure the two of you have your birth control method figured out. Even when I don't have a male partner, I take a dose of maiden's tea daily." She breathes out, "I'm not going to know the answer completely until we get into this fully, Zaine." She motions to the both of them, "I had a partner once and, she makes a face at the memory, "I could not stomach his taste, and that was on the list for why that relationship ended. For the moment, assuming you taste as good as you look, as long as I can get cleaned up after in privacy from the general public, I'm good with in or on."
Sasha sits up, clearly focusing and thinking. "Still caught between turned on and jealous about you f@%$ing someone else." She leans over and carefully gives him a long kiss where the only place they touch is mouths. "But the idea of licking Zaira and also tasting you is a turn on."
Sasha is clearly moving more than she was earlier in the conversation. Then she straightens, smiles at Zaine, "What safe word do you want to use if we ever go to a place you don't like? Zaine has me use Zephyr."
Zaira looks at Zaine, mouthing, good on you. She thinks, "Rhubarb."
After Zaine has his own chance to speak, Zaira quickly follows up with her question, with a smile at Zaine, "I'll help you go a little dirtier, current favorite position. With men, I adore doggy style. And girls I'm partial to a good sixty-nine."
Sasha blinks clearly stymied, "We haven't found a bad one yet..." the redhead says after a long moment. Zaira closes her eyes taking a deep breath, of course mouthed before she rejoins the conversation. Sasha still thinking, looks Zaine up and down, "Riding you last night was the last, so that can be the current."
With the discovery of the room with the crystals, the group can find not other passages or rooms in the muddy complex.
Choices of things you know about: Troglodyte community, golden tower you don't know how to get into, magic portal, various lower-level dangers all over the city.
Home Camp Flex - Just this morning!
As you get up, get ready for a day of taming the not-quite-jungle city - breakfast and all that - you see an line of pirates schlepping in gear from the cliff entrance to the city.
Explicitly - if you have anything on order from the city you now have it.
One of the more curious things are a set of small boats.
And a ton of kegs. Many of the pirate crew (and quite a few of the Pathfinders as well) look cheerful. You see the tired ship's caster following the group and speaking with Kassata. Word quickly goes out that the caster will only be in Savenith-Yhi for the night so that another set of purchases can be brought into the far off jungle camp in time for Winter Solstice and Turning Day the week after.
The day is Kuthona 7.
Zaine:
There is a certain redness to the area Zaine has been slapping, but really all the slap does is cause to move on the finger inside her, which causes a different kind of gasp.
Towards the beginning of the 'lesson' Sasha continue to watch Zaine, but as her body convulses riding the growing pleasure, her head falls back, her body stretching out, her hips lifting giving him all the access he could want, her heels moving on Zaine's back, her fingers digging into the surface of the bed.
Her voice has very little in the way of words. His name. More. Yes. Please. Very little of it quiet although movement of her hips tries to still as the second finger joins the first - at least until her body adjusts to the new girth.
Juliver cautiously prods the broken stone with the tip of her rapier a few more times before she moves to the door. Keeping her attention and eyes focused on the fallen statue, she reopens the impressively large doors. Thus everyone else gets to see within the revealed room before her. The vast chamber is immense, it's floor, walls and ceiling made of a stone fitted together so tightly that you can't make out a single seam. Blue crystalline veins run through the stone touching every part of the room.
In the center of the room, two immense feet lay amid a pile of rubble, counterpoint to a single immense hand that still holds the ceiling as if a giant stone guardian once held aloft the ceiling of the chamber.
On each of the far walls a colorful mural glows in the darkness depicting a jungle scene, a cityscape, and an elaborate room, respectively.
A) K:arcana/Spellcraft DC 20:
Although you do not recognize the strangely veined rock, you can see that it is highly conductive to magical energy.
B) K:engineering DC 20:
Although the statue stretched from floor to ceiling, it's positioning makes you certain that it wasn't load bearing and that the room is quite stable and safe.
C) K:geography DC 20 (jungle):
The mural of the junglescape has the same waterfalls and lake that exist in Saventh-Yhi today, making you believe it is a representation of the valley before the city was built.
D) K:geography DC 15 (urban):
The very familiar tall spires, seven visible in the mural, make it quite obvious the cityscape was Saventh-Yhi at the height of the Azlanti Empire.
E) Perception/Sense Motive 10:
The blue veined stone and the statue in the final mural make it obvious it was painted of the room in which you stand.
E and F) Perception/Sense Motive DC 23:
The mural of the room also depicts the murals. However, in the mural of the room depicted on the room mural, you can see that in it's center there is a open doorway, surrounded by seven glowing runes.
F and G) Speak Azlanti?:
The runes are recognizable as the seven Azlanti virtures of rule - abundance, eager striving, fertility, honest pride, rest, righteous anger, and wealth.
H) Perception DC 15:
You see several broken crystal shards on the floor in front of the jungle mural.
F and I) Sense Motive DC 20:
The crystals depicted in the mural look a great deal like the crystal your group found a day or so earlier in the flooded broken structure sunken in the farming district.
H and I) Sense Motive DC 20:
The shards of the crystal on the ground look like broken remnants of the crystal your group found a day or so earlier in the flooded broken structure sunken in the farming district.
J) F or I or Perception DC 15:
In the mural of the cityscape you can see a number on odd marks. One is located in the same place as the manor you used to enter this catacomb. Another is very close to the area where you found the flooded tomb in the harvest district.
Zaine washes his hands without any hesitation. He's just interested in the whole process, asking the woman what's in the mixture.
Once she realizes his interest, the woman very happily tells him all of the varied plants that make up the mix. A few she doesn't know the Taldane word for, but the man who brought out the heated tincture is able to show dried leaves or root that they use.
Áine/Arcadia/Eleder Day 3:
Properly attired, Arcadia looks around and does not spot the tall man. However, after a long semi-panicked look at the crowd, she does see Pakshee going into the bathhouse. A Pakshee dressed in bland greys and carrying a small bag that looks oddly familiar.
Faith/Aerys:
The pips still there, occasionally with a quiet fizz, mocking Faith all night. As the previous time, after a few hours, Aerys's breathing changes, her eyes close and she falls into a deep, more normal sleep.
She wakes a bit before sunrise this time, stretching, a happy smile, "I had the most incredible dream." She says as she pulls parchment from its holder. "Tell you about it later."
Zaine:
She smiles up at him, "Anyone who has been with you in combat would definitely know to not point that end," touching the barrel, "at anything that doesn't deserve to be exploded." A pause, "Boom. Sea urchin very exploded."
"So, we could start now. I'd like to start now." A smile as she thinks, green eyes actually considering, "Do you think it is safe for me to learn in the city?" A smile, "If so, we could make time between protection shopping and..." She thinks of phrasing, "Having a bath."
"What interests you about the Expanse, anyway? What drives you to lead an expedition into it?"
"Treasure." Kassata says with a piratical grin. "Enough to buy a seat on the council." Though she is grinning while she says it, there is a dead seriousness in her amber eyes.
K: local DC 15 or Spent Time in the Shackles:
The Council Kassata is referring to is most likely the Pirate Council - which is as much of a ruling body as the Shackles allows. It's a loose group of powerful and rich pirate captains, led by Bonefist, the Hurricane King.
The number of people on the council is highly variable and buying your seat is a well honored tradition. Normally the money coming from picking on merchant ships that have to travel through the Shackles and haven't bought protection from the Pirate Council.
Dinner at the Pathfinder Lodge
Finze grins at Arcadia's excitement. "The meeting room only has the maps and books Glaur thought would be useful for planning." A smile, "As friends of Gelik," his face gets a somber for just a moment, "and, more importantly, as you found the fate of the crew of The Nightvoice, you are all welcome in the Lodge to look at the resources we have."
He leans a tiny bit closer to Arcadia, speaking in a quiet voice that isn't at all quiet or secretive, "I even have extra copies of the chronicle were I wrote of my adventures with Mirian and Jekka when we found and explored the Fortress of Fangs in the Expanse."
Unless there are more questions, he takes his leave, presumably to arrange for food. Gelik leads you down a hallway, into a large room with enormous windows that overlooks the bay. Open wooden slats below the window allow some of the evening breeze to cool the room. Although there are few people in the room, your attention is drawn to the ginger-haired man with a mustache and small beard. He shifts as he stands, talking to the others, looking uncomfortable in the Cheliaxian suit - even though the tie has already been abandoned on the table and the top button of the shirt undone.
Everyone in the room turns when the door opens, the conversation trailing off. The red-headed man smiles, "Your adventurers, Gelik?" And a appraising look. A smile as he sees Tulip. "That's just a baby, Gelik." He sounds a little disappointed.
He motions for everyone to come in and you can see what a number of papers filled with notes, books open with certain passages circled. In particular, you see a number of notes referencing someplace called Taizon.
He nods, "Amivor Glaur, Pathfinder." He motions to the group of four other, giving their names. "My seconds, as if you've really found a path to Saventh-Yhi it will take bodies to discover things quickly." A grin, "Wouldn't do to let government bureaucrats make discovers when there are Pathfinders on scene."
He sits, his legs moving as if he wants to prop them on the table but retaining himself at the last moment. "Gelik has told me about your adventures on the Shiv." A pause, "Even if I discount it for good storytelling, I'd much rather be allies than enemies if we are looking for the same lost city."
"Hey hey hey." The carefully crafted persona fully gone, although the man still looks exactly like the red haired cannibal. "I don't have a blimy clue what he," motions to Faith, "is talking about."
"I just had a nice little plan about getting waited on hand and foot after seeing if that lighthouse could be shined up and possibly getting off this living death trap."
To Faith, "The crabs on this bloody place are the worst, they get everywhere."
Aine:
Jask shakes his head, "Don't think anywhere in Eleder would want me, even if I'm innocent, my name wasn't for more decades than you've been alive."
"I haven't heard of a mystic bow of legend," Jask gives the words the deep resonance they need, "but I've heard of a number of magical bows with historical significance. What type of mysticism are you looking for?"
Zaine:
Sasha, who has been totally distracted either complimenting Tulip or checking on the broken baby,"[/b] blinks at Zaine for a moment. She looks down at the beach, "I don't which of the two, 'stalker ghost' or 'falling insane', is actually the better option."
You do make good time back to the lighthouse, arriving hot, sweat drenched and with a complaining baby dinosaur. And a young adult dinosaur who really thinks she deserves a snack.
Sasha's eyes go a little wide, "Thats... more than I was planning on but it sounds good."
One afternoon, after a hard morning of hunting and fishing to provide supplies for the camp, Sasha leds you both to the blind she found, watching one of the dimorphodons tend to the three eggs in the aerie.
Faith or Perception DC 15:
hmmm Aerys considers, "So in the next evening or so, when you make the beer, I should round up the tackle?"
Zaine:
Tulip chirps and butts her head into Zaine's chest.
Towards the Grey Island - Crow's Tooth Camp
Zaine Kildare wrote:
Zaine listens intently to Sasha, nodding when appropriate. Then, when she's finished, "That's weird," he decides. Then he breaks into a smile. "But hey, my best friend is a dinosaur, so what am I gonna say?"
Sasha smiles at Zaine for a moment before dropping the broken weapon, "It is weird. And sad, because I wasn't able to take the weapon I'd been trained on since I could walk."
She bites her lip, "If the captain survived her ship wrecking," she looks up the game trail, "I don't think she would have been taken out easily."
"I think we should be careful and not leave an obvious trail back to the cave."
Towards the Grey Island - Ginormous Crab!
Another mile down the beach lining the bay, you spot a house sized giant red and orange crab. The waves that crash on the white sand of the beach swirl around the creature's legs. As you get 'close' the crab begins to move, the pincers rise and fall and its legs twitch.
A little closer and the crab begins to make a horrible noise, a mix between ghoulish cry and a shriek of a bird.
*close in this case is 100 feet
A) Sense Motive DC 18:
Although the crab is moving a lot... it isn't moving away from its place in the top of the surf.
B) K: nature DC 15:
... That is not the sounds giant crabs make.
.... and that isn't the way giant crabs move...
Scouting Down the Coast to TREASURE!
The snake stares at the group with unblinking eyes, waiting for the group to come close enough for it to perform its death from above maneuver.
Once the figure stumbles its way to the deck entrance, you see a slender female form outlined in the starlight. A pause as she slips something from her pocket and brings it to her lips after a moment. A moment of effort and she pushes away from the security of the wall to move forward in her fall until she reaches the rail. The few night crew on deck give wide berth.
On the Beach: Áine has harvested 4 units of Orchre Eurypterid venom.
Arcadia:
Yes, the shackled man is the prisonser you say brought aboard at Coretyn.
Áine did it for you, but generally the Survival DC = poison DC, for every 5 you beat the DC you get an extra dose of raw materials that can be alchemicized into weapon-ready poison. In this case, the Orchre Euypterid has a DC 10 so Áine collected 4 units of venom, which could be distilled into 4 doses of poison with the following stats (Orchre Eurypterid Poison: Injury - save Fort DC 10; frequency 1/round for 4 rounds, effect 1 Dex, cure 1 save.) It is a DC 10 C: alchemy to distill the poison from the venom. For every 5 points you beat the DC you decrease the amount of time the distillation takes by half to a minimum of 10 mines. The base time is 1 hour per point of DC (so 10 hours for this poison, but a hitting a 20 on the check lowers that to 2.5 hours.)
Spoilers are all good :), and noted re SM
Zaine:
Sasha looks at Zaine, confused, then winces. "I'm not part of the order. Never have been."
"Don't buy the tenants and really had a problem with being told to do things that I felt weren't right. This," motioning to the ship, the voyage, "was a way for me to be gone and her to save face."
Shakes her head, "Not important." A curious look, "As a mercenary you don't have to follow the commands of the person who hired you?"
Shipwrecked
The midday sun beats down on the beach, as waves lap the high water mark of the sand. You are able to use the tarpaulin wrapped around the meager gear on the beach to create a shaded area just large enough to provide relief from the burning sun... if you don't mind the close quarters. There are some groans from the unconscious as they are dragged up cove to be a safer distance from the crashing waves.
Arcadia wrote:
"So, ah... anyone know a reason why someone on the crew might want to poison us all?"
The red-headed woman, after cheerfully keeping her fingers away from Tulip's meal, scans the horizon, seeing the same wreck that Áine pointed out further. "Whatever their reason, it doesn't look like they got very far after."
She moves up to the start of the camp, looking through the small amount of gear that you have for your survival. Finished and just as empty handed, she hisses under her breath, "Vernai's t&~&."
The shackled man groans, shifts. A moan as he opens his eyes, wincing at the bright light. His husky voice is ragged, "What happened?"
A) Heal DC 10:
Everyone seems to be suffering aftereffects of the same thing. Those who are still unconscious seem to have a less hardy constitution, but (with one exception) are not noticeably injured. Squeezing a little water into parched throats would probably help bring them around sooner, but no one is in immediate harm of death.
A) Heal DC 15:
The scruffy Tian man who boarded in Bloodcove has a knot above his temple, an injury probably aiding his unconscious state.
B) K: Geography DC 10:
The beach on which you find yourself is within a protected cove north-facing to the open sea.
B) K: Geography / P: Sailor DC 12(trained only):
Looking at the sea, the clouds, what you knew of the Jenievre's course, you think that you've found yourself shipwrecked on Smuggler's Shiv.
Nalo drops down near Ceri, not close enough to disturb her concentration, "Do you think you could manipulate it to bypass the settings on the door?"
Kilo:
Nalo digs around in her bag until she finds the charcoal she uses to sketch. She places a small "x" on the map. "Should be right about there. Unless the book lie."
"It'd be easy to find passage to Auspar, less so to Jyrek." Pointing out each city in turn, "But the land between those points of civilization and your goal are not often traveled, so it'd be foot or hoof along with all the dangers that encompasses."
Esha:
Nalo's quick mind brings the image of the beaker with the two immiscible liquids, one bright like the sun, the other a dark grey - mixing but never integrating, the glass beaker bulging under the strain.
For brief moments the beaker turns completely one color or the other, "I don't mind sharing experiences, but I don't like giving control of myself to anything."
The beaker again, the color blue, but the sunlight liquid inside, not mixing with the blue but not taking over, a quiet passenger.
A smile at the excitement, "It's about 200 miles east of Kordech and 100 miles north." A shrug, "We can try to find a decent map of the area and I'll mark the approximate."
"Or maybe Ceri or Anson could build you a numenara to guide you. Like Bulma could."
Esha:
There are a series of flashes, mercury quick through Nalo's mind. All kinds of cultures, images in books, imagined and real based on readings. Hunter/gatherers. Domestic. A pause, a blankness as Nalo centers her thinking.
There are cultures who still only hunt and gather rather than cultivate. Humans have a multitude of cultures.
Nalo directs to Esha the feel of warm sun reflecting in the sky and off the water. But talking about food when you are hungry is impolite
What do you want to know? About me, where we are, anything. Nalo's mind waits open and curious.
Kordech - Day 1
Kilo/Panamax:
Nalo, who seems to be washing already clean hands in the light fall of rain, [b]"They were lucky that you were out and about. Otherwise at best he would only have one and worse he'd have nothing." Her smile is real, but her eyes are distant.
Sweet Shiul
When Panamax and entourage gets back from the healer's errand, Nalo looks wide-eyed and too alert. She smiles when she sees the group already in the dry warmth of the inn. Approaching Anson, "Can I borrow you for a little bit in private?"
Kordech Day 2
Jalopy wrote:
"This is the closest I could get to recent plans for our next destination." The glint keeps his voice low at the table, and slides the container to Anson. "It's been a long while since anyone updated them, so we should go in with great caution."
Nalo slides closer to where Anson is sitting, looking curiously at he synth protected papers. She cocks her head to the side, considering the room, "We should at least look at them beforehand, even if they are out of date."
Is there a place in the Shiul where the whole group can have a little more space from prying eyes?
The visions of Esha's world... dimension... wash over and through Nalo and she takes in as much as she can with a breathless wonder. A wonder that stutters on the wrongness of the void and the humanoid in that place of light.
how did you eat in your homeplace there is the briefest flash of Esha feeding on Panamax the image in Nalo's not entirely controlled memory focused on the paleness of Panamax's skin and the shock in the lines of his face. After the briefest moment, Nalo stomps down on the memory, trying and mostly succeeding at sending curiosity. there was nothing like us, so you must be other things that can sustain you
Panamax/Kilo/Kordech:
Worriedly, and flinching at something she see on the kitchen counter when she looks for the needed knife, Nalo gently puts down the woman's hand. Halfway to the kitchen, she blinks at Kilo - noticing him there for probably the first time. She grabs one of the knives and hands it to the healer, returning the the woman's head, holding her hand.
GM:
Since she can't figure out what might have caused the surprise pregnancy, Nalo instead focuses on the woman's energy. If it dips so low, that Nalo thinks she is about the lose, then she tries to supplement it with her own - to give the woman more of a fighting chance.
Nalo stares down at the belt, looks at the people around. "That was... anticlimatic." Her lips twist in disappointment.
"Should I leave it on?" Asking both Anson and Ceri.
Post-Library Kordech:
Nalo's eyes narrow with the 'not even pregnant until this morning' so although she is shaken by the blood and pain, she nods at Panamax's quiet command. She moves up towards the head of the bed, taking the unconscious woman's hand in at seemingly useless gesture of support - unless the woman regains the world. It also allows her to watch everything in the room... except Panamax's hands.
She murmurs quietly to the woman, the freak out obvious in her eyes only showing in her voice a little.
1) Looking for someone or something that might have led to the pregnancy. Or anyone too interested in the woman's trial in the wrong way. Or anything useful. Perception, currently Trained, spend effort:1d20 ⇒ 1Edit - Technically a difficulty 2... but also a natural one which allows for a free GM intrusion
2) Does the woman's energy feel off? Electricity PASSIVE, trained, spend effort:1d20 ⇒ 14Edit - Difficulty 6 (but I am aware there may not be much to get from this roll... It just seemed like a good use of new skill
Edit post preview: At least I can't actively kill anyone with a perception check...
Esha:
Where I come from everyone has a name dream, but not all people want to see the dream. Nalo pictures her moving story again, then sinks the image onto a page, leaving the same story only in words. Some prefer the words, some the images.
Quote:
I like your name-picture
Warmth and happiness hiding a touch of sadness.
It is beautiful. Nalo's spoken words are far simplier than the emotions, awe, sorrow, a little anger.
Was it... a pause as her words fade into image, the dark night sky flooded with specks of light, the image shifting, moving upwards to a point of light, a jump and the speck has become a sun, a planet so close to the sun that it is only another light in the dark. elsewhere? Another star than ours? the midday sun as it beats down on the caravan
Kilo:
She shakes her head, "It isn't so much that they died that bothers me." She stretches, letting a hand play in the fall of the rain, "Death should be an release, an end. A part of them, memory, ki, soul, whatever, is still being held hostage to their killer's will."
"But I didn't know if destroying the bushes would free them or hurt them further."
Nalo laughs a little hopelessly. "Someone tries to hurt me physically, I'm happy for the help getting them back." She taps the left side of her chest, "Hurts here, espcially if they are not done malicously, those don't call for return hurting." Her eyes are a little far away, "They just let you learn, and grow."
"After the job?" She starts, then stops her forehead furrowing, "I said I'd help Ceri with something. Which is the most I can say without violating her privacy."
There is a little hurt in Nalo's eyes, but she shakes it off with a quick swallow, "The jameris, the plant monster, we fought was wearing the belt." Her eyes move over to the little girl on the far side of the caravan, "It had made what appeared to be a safe place using," considers, "either illusion or mass hallucination. It had fake people welcome us and offer food. The food started turning Miyuki into a plant, but when Panamax noticed the jameris broke the illusion. Then we could see it, before that it only had a puppet show."
"When I stole the belt, it's eyes went... dimmer. Then Kilo and Zoe sliced and diced it into smaller plant matter. It had been collecting creatures for a garden, turning them into plants like it tried with Miyuki."
"If you want more specific details then we'll have to go out into the rain, I don't want to give the kids nightmares with the bloody specifics." She flashes one of the boys a 'I'm not sorry' smile.
Kilo:
She sits on one of the studier lugage piceces, looking in each direction for a while. Occasionally just looking up at the sky letting the rain wash the little hairs away from her face.
Early Morning Day 5
She smiles, "'Ae ke kunāne." She looks around, "But it should be quickly, Ada seems eager to get us on the road."
"Oh, wait. You mean the hedges?" Kilo looks a bit hesitant to continue, but continues against his better judgement, "there does seem to be some residual ki there." he says softly and a little uncomfortably.
"Are they trapped? In pain?" Nalo walks over the hedges, touching one gently.
Nalo lets out a happy half laugh half sigh. Leans back on her heels a bit, and then epps when she almost touches the suddenly there Panamax.
With a steadying breath, "The two of you did fantastic once I got out of the way." She hisses through her teeth at the red blood she sees mingling with the jasmeris's green blood on the floor, "How bad are you both?" Looking over Zoe and Kilo with concern though no actual training.
Ceri looks a little confused, and shrugs. "It was more of an expedition than a job, really. I didn't stake a claim on the entire building, although maybe that's not a bad idea. Jarris and Panamax seem to have fiddled a teleportation button into existance, and maybe I could use a little underground lair to store things in."
"Hmm. Numenera Palace. Anyway, anything you found down there and want to keep is all yours. But thank you." She bows her head a little and tucks the items into her bag gently.
Ceri's kind words don't have an uplifting effect on Nalo's mood. "I'm sure you'll be able to figure out it mysteries."
Jarris Oran wrote:
Jarris bounces his gaze between the two. "Nalo, my dear, no one could outclass you. In fact, I'd like to pick your brain about something."
When Anson and Ceri step away, Jarris gestures for Nalo to join him on a short walk of their own.
After a moment of watching, Nalo follows the glint with a tired nod.
Jarrid:
Quote:
"I can't help but notice you're pining. I know the look." He smiles warmly. "Have you told him how you feel?"
"Tell him what exactly?" Nalo says with a harsh laugh, her grave near voice cracking on the harsh humor. "That I felt a spark of something when I met him that made me want to get to know him better?"
A pause and then the fierce will that kept her from looking just as dead on her feet as she is drains away, "No. I was hoping to get to know someone who I felt a spark for. He met someone else. He likes the someone else more."
"I mean..." She motions back, "I don't even know if I am interested and she does."
She swallows, "And she is a talented explorer who knows how to interact with the ancients without f+#~ing up and I just blow things up when I don't mean to."
She continues, words flowing out that probably wouldn't if she just didn't have any defenses left, "She's an enigmatic woman who melds a beautiful human body with intricate machine and I'm a green skinned freak."
"She got him to lower his guard and he doesn't know if he can trust me." With barely any wind left in her, this last comes out a bare whisper.
Nalo takes a deep breath, "No. I haven't said anything about a spark to him."
Her eyes flash up towards Panamax, then she tries very hard to only be heard by Anson. She shows him something in her bag.
Anson/Overhearing Difficulty 1:
1d20 ⇒ 5
"I found this device." Opening her bag, showing a tube and valves and other things. "I think it might be a portable version of the containment system holding the light predator."
She continues in a quiet rush of words, "I know it is a stupid thing to take into the world, but leaving something sentient alone in the dark to go.." she shrugs, "more insane is..."
"But I wanted you to look at it first, to make sure that it can't escape and go on a feeding frenzy amid innocent bystanders."
"No idea!" Anson calls back. "Although I'm flattered you'd still ask for my opinion after my last colossally stupid move!"
"Stupid? I.."
Ceri wrote:
"Stupid? Nah. How else do you reproduce an outcome?" Ceri quips.
And Nalo mumbles the rest of what she was going to say.
Jalopy wrote:
"Jarris?" She calls out towards the hallway. She seems unsure of whether or not to stay with the group, or to see if she can find the disappeared Glint.
A quick glance at the still not-really-moving Panamax, "Tavene? Can you go find him? If he is paralyzed by the attack then he can't defend himself."
"I solemnly promise to not let it out of the containment unit again unless everyone agrees."
"And we know what it did to Panamax." Nalo's voice is flat.
As she waits for word on Jarris, "I don't have a clue what it is, but I've read about predators made solely of energy. When they appeared in population centers, no one was able to figure a way to kill them, but containment devices were created." Her voice is matter of fact as she continues, "Once they were contained many of them were used in experiments or as a source of power for the community they hunted."
She kneels next to Panamax, about to check for a pulse. Then he speaks. So she doesn't. "You ok?"
Listen Difficulty 5:
1d20 ⇒ 15
"...'d have let it out if I thought Panamax were trapped with it in a heartbeat."
Reading People Difficulty 0:
1d20 ⇒ 2
Despite the harsh tone and demeanor she takes when talking about the creature, when she mentions that it may have been diminished by experimentation - leaving it starving - she also looks looks sympathtic, just not enough to balance out the unprovoked attack when Panamax freed it.
GM:
Nalo is seriously figuring out if she can feed this thing without getting anyone else injured. From what she read of energy predators, is there something they need from sentient prey or would a boost of electricity mimic the biofeedback that it gets?
That said, she is also worried that feeding would just means it goes insane as it starves to death more slowly.
And yes, she will probably bring this up with the group before we leave this place. Where ever we are.
As Nalo's power moves through the machine that spits lightning, the hair on everyone's bodies stands straight up. The sound of snapping and crackling fills the air, and then...
Nothing.
The machine powers down, apparently overloaded by the additional boost of electricity. When it was activated, it looked like a single-function machine. But now that there's no electricity, you can all see that it has different pieces welded onto it.
Although the machine is off, the green tube in the other half of the room is still glowing gently, and seems to be pulsing.
"Hōʻino wale." Nalo curses under her breath as the machine powers down.
"I think I killed it." Looking down at her hands.
Before Elsewhere
Ceri Sahine wrote:
Ceri stares at Nalo for half a minute in silence. "That's fair, but maybe I want everything but the core of me to be someone else." She smiles abruptly. "But that's the beauty of everything that old worlds have left behind."
Nalo considers the words, her mouth starts to open, then closes in a soft smile.
walks over to Nalu and places his cloak around her shoulders with the hood up and over her still dripping hair, then wordlessly returns to the fire
Nalo makes a muffled sound of surprise as the cloak is dumped over her head. She struggles a bit too free an arm from the heavy leather pushing back the hood enough to see. "I'm not five anymore Makani, I was taking steps to warm up." Despite the salty tone, she doesn't push off the cloak which is, after all, dry. "Your cloak is going to get all wet."
Anson Arkadius wrote:
Anson shrugs, settling down by the fire. His old leathers cover him from neck to toe, and seem to be doing a decent job of keeping him dry, even if he does creak like an old rocking chair. "No matter which we'd taken, we'd regret it the moment it was needed. Just try to think of this moment when you're using the staff. Being miserable in a campsite is always fun in retrospect, just never in the moment."
"Ah yes, fun memories of mimicking a drenched kitten." She pours a bit of the barely heated water into a serviceable travel mug and sips it, focusing on the warmth. "First job I had was down south, a quick jaunt into the desert to duplicate old star charts carved into the stones." Her shivers, which had stopped, return with remembered vengeance, "It may have been dry but it was freezing even in the dead middle of day." A smile, "Nadine made the best chocolate drink with a kick of heat from pepper."
Nalo's head cocks to one side, considering Anson, "Does this make you rethink of one of your old camps?"
Nalo is delighted at the perfect hole the coconut makes in the wall of the crate. Then her head cocks to one side. "Can we move the device when it is active? Because then it could be used to make a hole in structure we want to go into, we all go in then deactivate to close the hole behind."
Night in Keford
Nalo nods rotating the mug in her right hand.
She looks at Ceri, "Are there any local stories about that area? Old cults or the like?"
History, trained:1d20 ⇒ 3(Similar to the question she asked Ceri, does Nalo know of anything interesting in the Keford environs?)
"I don't have many tales of my own to tell." Nalo says with a smile, "And the ones I have normally end with, And then I found the book that had the information that helped us."
"And the stories I grew up with, don't know if any of them are real or fabricated."
Jarris/Reading people Difficulty 3:
Hiding Information:1d20 ⇒ 11
Nalo isn't comfortable with Jarris easy flirting, either she isn't used to it or she doesn't consider herself actually attractive.
Tavene/Caravan Hunting:
"Can't say anyone has asked me for my dirty underthings." Nalo says with a chuckle. "Although I remember a story about one of the previous worlds, where dirty underwear was sold in a machine."
"Do you think he'll give Sherine any problems?"
Makani:
"We need to be at the docks at daybreak. Think you can build a shelter quickly enough that we'll actually get any rest?" Her voice lifts in just a hint of the challenge she is throwing down.
Stick Flex:
Nalo dives for the bucket of water, but Kilo easily gets there first. "Thanke, Kani."
"It could be," Nalo says considering the fire-spurting end, "but probably only if it could light water-sodden wood or something else when your nomral skills wouldn't work."
She grins at everyone, "So I know what all the buttons do, but lets see how the teleporting power works."
Nalo waves bye to Anson as he heads off with focus. She takes a moment to assess the streets of the brand-new city, then points. "Caravans will be on the outskirts of the city, I think in that direction." Unless Tavene indicates she was wrong, Nalo heads out.
"So what was your driver's name?"
Stick Flex:
Nalo rubs one of her ears as she turns off the high pitched noise. "Do the Banshees hurt themselves when they scream? Because holding the staff didn't give any protection."
She moves her finger down to the third button. "So this was my other choice for when he engaged the staff," presses it.
Oh he definitely gets a residual charge, but not enough to count as damage.
Nalo gives him a sheepish grin as the charge zaps through his body to ground in the stone beneath them. She starts to pat down the wisps of hair sticking out, "Little stuff a few months after you left, control it just over a year ago."
"How is the training to be the strongest person ever?"
Anson/Crew's Hold:
Nalo almost breaks into Anson's words a few times based on her grin and wide eyes, "Keford is the only city in Ghan that I haven't been to." A sheepish pause, "It's one of the reasons that I hoped we'd use the ship option for travel."
"What was the big wheel of cheese for? Do you think they will still have it when we get there?"
Anyone with even the most basic people reading skills can realize that the green-skinned girl has filed away the rest for more questions.
"Cultural, most everyone in my family has them. They help focus the mind."
Semi-deception, since not lying but obfuscating the information she doesn't want to tell Jarris:1d20 ⇒ 10
"You indicated you've been to Kordech, have you been to the cemetery Zi mentioned?"
Anson/Crew's Hold:
She shrugs, the motion starting the hammock swinging slightly, "Not the best in a fight either, my brothers thought it was fun to teach me how to dodge, hitting them back wasn't high in their priorities for some reason." Her tone is dry but her body is relaxed. "Kilo aside, if we indicative of the fighting capacity of the group, our plan to recover the numenara might need to focus on stealth or guile. Or dumb luck."
"Explorer of antiquity..." She turns her head and grins, "That is a much better title than any I've come up with."
"What is the most interesting thing you've encountered that you weren't able to keep?"
Makani:
Quote:
"Seriously Nalo? You really don't recognize me?"
Her stance doesn't change an iota, suggesting that she does not.
The crazy martial acrobats on the other hand can not be faked. "Kani?!?" Her hands - still flickering with electricity - drop by her sides, leaving her open.
"When...? She holds one hand near her lowest rib, then raises it to above her head. "Really?"
Just a hint of confusion dims the suspicion on Nalo's face. "You don't get to call me that, only my brothers call me that."
A pause, a blink, something almost there, "And Kani. But you aren't any of them."
Her muscles relax just a tad, as if she has come to a decision.
Anson/Crew's Hold:
"It is a job designed to send you into circles. A misson to save the queen. A device that was in the possession of the Aulifex but is now conviently in a far less guarded crypt. But as long as we are going for the numenara then those matter less, its just interesting history."
"The real question is how far can we trust Jarris and Tavene?"
"That and finding out the strengths and weaknesses of our group so that we can plan. And have ideas of what to do when the plan fails."
She shifts in the hammock so she can see Anson a bit easier. "I collect history, bits of information both useless and important." A pause, "I'm more inclined to think that Zi kept me because my family are lightning riders."
"Jokes on him because my own ability is much more limited."
Jarris:
Nalo nods, puts out her hand.
"I didn't think you meant any malice by it, I just wasn't expecting it and ..." she shrugs. "No hard feelings."
"As a hypothetical." She sighs. "I mean, that's part of the question. He vetted us."
"At least, I think he did." Her voice goes sharp in the darkness, "I don't like someone poking around my brain and I'm not even sure if he did."
"And if he did, f#@%er was really damn charming about it, which makes it..."
"I'm not even sure if it makes it better or worse. But I can understand wanting to vet someone before you hire them, but if they pass then they don't need keepers."
Quieter, "He did something to you too, right? That left the aftermath of lightning in your fingers?" A pause, "I didn't leave the table when he touched my hand, right?"
Makani:
The scream of surprise as some person lands on the ground is cut off with an oath as purple-white light begins trickle down Nalo's arms adding dark scorch marks to the grey of her long-sleeved tunic. She holds her arms in front of her in a defensive stance, breathing quick and wild, "You're bloody well following me!" she hisses.
"Who are you and why are you stalking me?"
There is ... something... familiar about the young, tall man who just appeared out of NO WHERE, but this is not a face she knows...
Nalo, more caught up in examining unique architural details in the ancient city, doesn't notice being watched for quite a while - but when she gets to the first inn she was considering for sleeping, she does. Shifting uncomfortably, she pauses at the door, looks around, - trying and failing to pierce the night induced gloom - and moves on.
Quicker.
Less random observation and more intentional movement.
Anson/Crew's Hold:
The first night on the ship, after everyone has settled down. Nalo's voice is quiet, pitched to stay in the (possibly packed) small hold. "Anson?"
As soon as she thinks she has gotten his attention, "I think I'm being paranoid, but how likly do you think it is that this mission is designed to go pear shaped and we're supposed to be the fall guys?" A quick intake of breath, "I mean, he seems to have all these resources, all these people he can tap, and he decides to do a blind role call?"
"I mean, yes, it is always possible that he is looking for new talent, but this seems like a bit of a high trust job for that. Heck a uber-healing numenara? Sketchy contract hires and that disappears into a rabbit hole."
Jarris:
Nalo keeps a bit of space from Jarris, but doesn't seem overly guarded. After a moment she smiles softly, "Not offend, just surprised. My family isn't big into spontaneous gestures of contact."
A pause, "That said, nose bopping seems an odd gesture to get into a habit of using." A longer pause and a wicked smile, "How did Tavene react when you did it to her?"
Nalo claims one of the hammocks in the crew quarter leaving most of her heavy gear secured in case is sudden weather. She moves around the ship with practiced ease, ready and able to help with sails or ties - although she tries hard to not be in the way of Prauss's small crew.
When the sun hits her just right faint intricate lines reflect the light on her arms.
"I'm not fond of speaking for others but the tacturn one is Kilo," Nalo half smiles as she shrugs, "he lived with my family for a while a few years ago."
"Apparently he heard about the possible job, but arrived on the later side. "
"So he decided to stalk me when I was leaving the inn yesterday."
Roshan seems to consider for a few moments, stands a bit straighter, taps his chest with his right fist, then makes a grasping motion bringing items towards him then sweeps his hand off in the distance somewhere in the direction of Kenabres.
Cautiously, "You want to go instead of them, Roshan?"
Konstantin Argentaev wrote:
Konstantin's expression deepens into a frown. "I dislike the concept of a religious test being the metric to decide whether someone is truly on the side of the demons. I do not worship your deity, nor any others, and let anyone question my righteousness."
Irabeth nods, "It is not a metric I would normally use, but when I'm picking between men I know carry faith because of true hearts and faith it was the most expedite."
Chancre gives Nurah a look. "I don't believe you," he says.
Nurah give a disheartened sigh, "You never do." She shrugs, "Maybe you harbor anarchist tendencies from your deity and since I was asked to help you by the very lawful and rule abiding queen your discontent colors your view of me."
Sense Motive DC 29:
1d20 + 18 ⇒ (11) + 18 = 29
For no particular reason other than I need to throw up a SM every time she speaks now.
Back in the dungeon with the unconscious body and Nurah in tow, Sosiel looks over injuries, then quietly asks Samirah, "No sign of Aron?"
Nurah's face goes sad, "Demons got him."
Samirah glances at Nurah, frowning a little, and turns back to Sosiel.
"There are a lot of places in which he could be hidden away. I am afraid I will need a little bit of sleep before I continue the search, but..." she rests a hand gently on his arm, "we will not leave until we find him, or evidence that he was taken."
Sosiel nods, although he looks back towards the way you guys just came from.
Sense Motive DC 20:
Beyond just the worry for Aron, which is obvious, Nurah's words seem to have made him think - and perhaps question something.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path Subscriber
For a shipment like this month - with all the thin books in a cardboard envelope and the hardcover having corner guards... I wish there had been no fill. Really hop you can look into a no-fill option for shipping.
Miril unlocks the double doors and they swing open to reveal...
Templars' Court
A once-beautiful court now laying in disarray. Walls that had been decorated with murals of angels and templars fighting the good fight have been defamed, morphed into being engaged in all manner of foul acts with beasts and demons.
Collapsed stone completely bars the way north, as only five decorative columns still support the thirty foot ceiling overhead.
On the far side of the room, using one of the columns for cover is a vrock demon, her feathered hide matted with blood.
Of more immediate concern, the doorway is flanked by beaked human looking demons and minotaurs whose eyes flash with red fiendish light. The minotaurs smile at Samirah as she bursts onto the stage.
Perception DC 25 (no-take 10):
At the far end of the court, near the fallen masonry, there is a flash of silver.
If you get the chance to examine it more closely, there is a ethereal-woman glowing with starlight, leaning against a silver flank of a creature much larger than herself. Sadly the wall is destroyed at the creature can not be made out.
The second secret door, opened with rapidity by Miril, reveals a skinny long room. At the far end from the entrance, is an armored Iomeadae holding a metal rod horizontal from her hands, a magnificent red banner depicting a sunburst star that seem to glow in the darkness of the room. Just below the banner is an alabaster altar.
Flanking the room are four more statues, each dressed in metal armor.
A) Perception DC 15:
Irabeth on seeing the clean, room and its contents. "Oh my goddess."
A) Perception DC 40:
The statue and the altar don't look quite right - there is a sheen to the stone that stone just does not have?
You get to act in the surprise round. But please no shouting it....
As the majority of the army sets up a cold camp, the scouts move into the growing gloom of the evening. A quick discussion amid the scouts goes with small groups or individuals going out so that the lay of the land can be determined in a efficent fashion.
At Camp:
Irabeth watches the leaving scouts for a moment, before turning her attention to the camp proper. She smiles at Samirah, although it doesn't quite wash the tension from her eyes, "I really hate this part."
Next to a tent that is being set up for him Aravashnial suddenly stands up and starts to pace back and forth with ill-contained excitement.
Roshan:
As quick as Roshan is, he is the obvious choice to scout the far side of the city where a small hill mirrors the rise on which the Citadel stands. Moving through the streets of the city the first thing that the silent man notices is the wretched smell - a cross between randy goat and brimstone.
Keeping to the shadows, although that will do little good if he runs into demons with their nightvision, it is slightly surprising that most of the squat, study building are still in one piece and solid.
Near one building Roshan could swear that there is movement inside.
Miril:
While the speedy Roshan is sent to the far reaches, Miril with her better stealth skills is asked to look into the area near the dried river - since even from a distance you occasionally spot a humanoid moving in the area.
In the southern part of the city, Miril needs to take her time as the place is crawling with tieflings.
This is of course assuming Roshan, Miril and Anevia are the primary scouts. There are a few other minion scouts (like Pan) but the information and skill assumption is based off those three.
North by North of Kenabres - After Scouting Valas's Gift
About two hours after the army settles in for the night, you are woken by a clear chiming bell.
Konstantin:
Having cast the overlapping alarms which currently ward the entirety of the army encampment, Konstantin knows exactly which alarm was triggered and is able to move just enough to look at the break in the tents. At first he sees nothing - no one - but as he hears the heavy footfall of the perimeter guards running towards the alarm, he see just a bit of dust move where it shouldn't.
