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"Agreed." The paladin rests her teacup on her knee where it's crossed over the other leg. "There are many forms of love and devotion, and not all need be akin to those recounted in the tales. The same is true of faith; for every martyr willing to throw themselves screaming upon the foes of their religion, there are tens of thousands quietly wrestling with their beliefs even as they go about their lives, doing good works."
Konstiantina holds Arabella's gaze, her own growing kind. "Further, you were already intent on attempting it. Nothing has changed now other than our being by your side. Together we can try to break this curse, and if this attempt fails, it won't be from lack of trying."
Having suffered a recent intrusion with its accompanying threats, Velvet's own intrusion is met by Konstiantina with swift suspicion; the paladin rises to her feet and turns to inspect the well dressed woman with narrowed eyes, swiftly checking her for signs of evil or depravity even as she listens intently to the stranger's words for duplicity.
Sense Motive:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26
"Do you often take liberties simply because you can?" asks the paladin, who finds the woman's light and pleasant tone at odds with her effrontery.
She pauses and takes a sip of tea, both to calm her nerves and to give the others a chance to speak.
Konstiantina frowns at the note, then hands it over to Marius.
"What's clear is that we need to increase security. We've grown to comfortable here over the past few weeks, and we should be grateful, I suppose, that this was a threatening letter from the Swan and not a group of assassins sent by Lotheed. What do you think, Marius? Should we set up patrols as if we were camping in the wild till this business is over?"
She considers Lotti, going over the gnomes' words, and then give a slow nod. "I think you're right in that whomever did this most likely has inside intelligence as to what's happening in the manor. I'll speak with everyone who has normal access and see if I detect anything unusual. I hope I don't, but I dislike even more the idea that our activities are being reported to outside enemies."
Konstiantina is going to speak with each person who has access to the house, and use both Sense Motive and Detect Evil on them as she goes.
Konstiantina listens with a hard expression, stepping back and crossing her arms as the other woman makes her case.
"I'm sorry Rose." Her tone is flat. "I've spent enough time with you to know when you're deploying your skill with words to get away with something. I'm not convinced. That was an impressive web of excuses you just wove, but the fact is you're a crucial part of this team and your leaving us now will hamstring our efforts."
It's clear the paladin isn't interested in debating the matter. "If you feel you must leave, then obviously you should go. But don't disrespect me by pretending your absence will be an advantage."
Sense Motive:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20 "Oh Rose." Konstiantina steps in and embraces her friend, holding her close until she finally steps back. "I'm so sorry. As busy as we've been, as positive and tireless as you are, it's too easy to forget it's been only a year. I'm so sorry."
"But I know you don't want my commiseration. All I can say is that I hear you. Your frustration, your anger, your masks - I know them all too well. You saw me that other evening when my anger got the better of me. I believe it's the same frustration. That we have to jump through these hoops and play this game the best way we know how so as to raise the odds of our eventual success, even if it means tolerating evil all around us."
"One of the hardest aspects of this life, and my faith, is knowing that we shall never win. Humanity is reborn each generation with all the same strengths and weaknesses, with some achieving sainthood while others plumb the depths of wickedness. Each victory of ours is struck only in the moment, and then lost against the tides of time that wash over it with new rulers, new perfidies, new hatreds and petty corruptions. We face the ocean, you and I, and demand that the waves cease washing up the shore. At best we can for a time build bulwarks of sand, but we both know how permanent that is."
"Does that make our efforts futile...? Some nights, I'm not sure. But then I think of the tangible good we've done, the lives we've touched, the difference we've made. Even if the consequences of our actions are washed away in time, if those we helped die and are forgotten, if new despots arise to crush our little sandcastles, it doesn't change those moments of grace we were able to bring those in need. And I suppose that's what gives me comfort, in the end. We have precious little control over the fate of nations, the systems of government, the taxation rates, the endemic corruption, the venality of nobles, and the far worse horrors that lurk beneath the surface of civilization. But if we take strength from the small acts of kindness we can make, and take solace in knowing there are men, women, and children who breathe a little more easily for the deeds we've done, then perhaps we can arise each dawn with renewed purpose and resume tilting at windmills with naive and over-wise vigor."
"After? There's an after? I jest. But no, I haven't given it much thought. The scope of what we're up against seems a lifetime's work. The entire rotting edifice of Taldoran government needs to be improved, and while I pray that the princess be the agent of that change, I don't doubt for a second that a hundred old ministers and noblemen will line up to denounce her. No. I'm afraid this feel's like a lifetime's calling. But - for the sake of argument - should we win through? No. Stachys is a fine town, and will be a finer place still if you and Marius decide to live here. But for myself... Iomedae is a tireless goddess. And as her paladin, I, too, must be tireless. There will always be another battle worth the fighting, if not in Taldor, then in a hundred other places. I'm afraid I shant be settling down anywhere till this golden hair of mine has turned quite, quite gray."
Konstiantina takes the opportunity to catch up with the Baron, finding herself seated next to him at dinner and proving herself an attentive listener and sophisticated interlocutor; her years being raised at court might be resented, but not forgotten.
With the evening a success, she's tempted to turn in for the night and sleep deep, but Sir Gul's presence keeps her on edge. She urges Aiza to get some sleep, and then decides to take a midnight prowl of the home and its grounds, dressed in her armor and with sword at her hip. She moves without lantern, unhurried, but after several hours of prowling the grounds, returns for a few hours sleep.
The tour is a pleasure; she takes pride in what Marius and Rose have accomplished as if she were not involved, but rather glad for her companions to be finally able to demonstrate their advances. She follows to one side, smiling and as attentive as if she, too, were on the tour, and when they finally repair to the manor finds a moment to walk alongside Rose.
"I've been so caught up in the minutiae of our day-to-day affairs that I'd lost track of just how much we've accomplished in so short a time. I say 'we', but my I must pay you my compliments, Rose. You and Marius together are a truly formidable team."
Konstiantina takes the Baroness's stately tone - if not as a challenge, then perhaps as an inducement to continue her covert assault.
"Would that our lands had more cause to celebrate like this. Would that there were bountiful crops of every kind, and not merely that of grain. If this world remained true to its roots and traditions, perhaps we would see civic engagement, fair rule, and prosperity for all."
Konstiantina takes a sip of the wine. "Instead, everywhere my friends and I have traveled we have found lawlessness, poverty, and despair. What little we have managed to accomplish this past month we have done with an eye to bringing the world back in line with how it should be. It is my most fervent hope that our efforts soon bear greater fruit for all who are deserving."
Again she takes a sip, and then smiles at the Baroness. "And I don't know - I think this vintage is quite fine. It's just that some wines take their time in displaying their true qualities."
Konstiantina's eyes widen as she takes a step back from Rose, but the other smiles and counts and suddenly the moment is upon her.
A leisure activity - taking care of saddles and tack? Wait, that makes less than no sense, something enjoyable, a - sharpening swords, or - or - what do people - this is foolish, there must be - walking? For no reason? Or - riding horses? With no destination?
Konstiantina's cheeks flame as she finds herself frozen before Rose's no doubt wilting smile. In desperation she blurts out, "Ah - you sold me on the apple pie. I've never - ah - baked in my life. Do we - do we need to fetch apples? An oven? Surely we have an oven in the house. Wood? Do you know... a recipe?"
"Sepsinia?" Konstiantia laughs. "I'm afraid I've put her off, or, I'm not sure, intimidated her? She seems so young, so... nervous? I find myself growing ever quieter around her, which only makes her more uncomfortable around me. Consequently she doesn't spend much time in our room."
Konstiantina sighs and looks up, searching the heavens. "Sometimes I feel ill equipped to being... to not. being a paladin, if that makes sense. If I'm not training, or praying, or seeking to help around the manor or town, if I'm not engaged, then I begin to feel... at loose ends? Untethered? My thoughts stray constantly to the injustices that we face, and any time spent... not frivolously, but unproductively, makes me..." The paladin stops, searching for the right word, then sighs.
"Saying it out loud makes me sound faintly ridiculous. But there is a surety in purpose, a comfort in dedication. I suppose... outside of being a devotee to Iomedae, and when I'm not fixated on our goals, I'm not quite sure who I am. What I would do with myself if I did not have Aiza to train, monsters to slay, nations to save, and so forth." She smiles, clearly self-mocking.
"Sometimes I wonder if it's my angelic blood that places a... what feels like a pane of glass between myself and everyone else. If that divine blood doesn't have some role in driving me to always be of utility. I'm not sure. Nobody else in my family manifested our heritage."
The paladin frowns, momentarily lost in her own thoughts.
Konstiantina links her hands behind her back as they walk, her lips lightly pursed as she gazes about the garden, seeing it anew through Rose's eyes. She cants her head to one side as the other woman continues speaking, her expression friendly if a little distant, but smiles at the last.
"If I played any role in your courtship it was merely to encourage him to be himself. I've seen him charge the Iron Lash and run into rivers to fight stone snakes, but at the thought of placing the wrong step in the dance you two were engaged in, well..."
Konstiantina's smile is effortless, and she reaches out to squeeze Rose's forearm. "I'm very happy for you both."
"But yes. I would like it, too, Rose, if we were better friends. It's something I have virtually no practice at. I grew up surrounded by scheming relatives and leering older men; I learned quickly to keep my thoughts to myself. The church was a literal godsend, but even there... well."
They walk a dozen paces as the paladin chooses her next words carefully. "When there is so much to be done, service goes beyond a calling and becomes your way of life. All becomes... transactional, I suppose. Opportunities to further honor the goddess, and idle moments, idle conversations, friendships... "
Again the paladin trails off. Then she laughs and smiles self consciously at her companion. "I suppose I'm trying to say that I'm ill trained at thinking of others as possible friends and not a means to a righteous end. But yes. I would enjoy that. What is it that friends do?"
Full Image | Constant: Nondetection, darkvision 60 ft. | HP: 68 | AC 28/16/25 | +12 F, +12 R, +20 W | Resist 5 cold, electricity, fire | CMB +9 CMD 25 | Spd 20ft | Channel (4/day), Darkness (1/day), Sudden Shift (9/day), Copycat (9/day), Master's Illusion (9rounds/day)
Thank you for your patience, everyone, and huge congrats to all involved for bringing this adventure to its conclusion. An especial thanks to the DM for not dropping this when I'm sure there were many opportunities to do so. Take care, everyone!
Konstiantina finds herself enjoying these morning sparring sessions with Aiza more and more each day. There's a purity to them, a simplicity, that stands at odds with the world of politics and moral nuance they exist in. The clack of blades, the back and forth flow of guards, the probing, the testing, the revealing of weakness or assumptions - it brings a light sweat to Konstiantina's brow and a smile to her lips each time Aiza curses at another inadvertent opening taken advantage of.
Sensing her companion watching, Konstiantina ends her sparring session a little earlier with Aiza, and handing the practice sword over approaches Rose, mopping at the nape of her neck with a small towel.
"But of course. Perhaps we could walk the gardens while we talk? The fresh air would be most welcome."
Konstiantina is a cool presence at the back of the room, refreshed from their travels and wearing a clean, albeit severe, traveling gray surcoat over her glimmering chain coat. She listens with sharp attention, but neither speaks nor accepts a cup of tea; hers is a gracious if removed presence, and when Marius rises she is the first to slip out the door.
"I had ample opportunity to watch the Abidarians ply their faith while at court," she murmurs to her companions as they step back outside. The paladin raises her face to the sunlight which casts dappled shadow coins across her features through the canopy of a tree above. "So professional, so well spoken, and always so soothingly confident. No matter that they enabled some of the worst excesses with injurious loans, or stepped fastidiously over the poor and the muck on their way back to their temples with forced repayments in hand."
Turning with a smile to the others, she arches a brow. "I believe there are other options worth exploring when it comes to temples at home, but for now, what do you all suggest we do next?"
To prevent Aiza from simply standing around and gawking Konstiantina sends the girl off to collect brushwood for a fire, with the stern command that she not stray out of earshot.
She then sets about moving the carriage off the side of the road, busies herself with tending to the horses, and once events seem to be moving to their climax intones a prayer to Iomedae and launches into a stilted sermon to the struggling mother that she be brave and bold as the goddess was when facing down Rovagug that one time.
She's remains to one side as the birth takes place, ready to step in and heal as necessary, but breathes a sigh of relief when all takes its natural course.
"I think you could probably use that money to provide for the child," she says, voice warm. "I don't know exactly what's involved, but there's probably need for small articles of clothing, a crib... a rattle? Or at the very least, ensuring that her parents stay well fed and happy."
While all else takes place Konstiantina does not fail to take her obligation to her new squire seriously.
Perhaps, eventually, to Aiza's chagrin.
For the paladin is cheerfully adept at rising before dawn no matter where they may be and rousting her young charge from her sleep. She brooks no denial, and so calmly confident and assured is her manner that to complain would seem churlish, or, worse yet, weak.
They begin each day with a series of stretching exercises that the young and nimble squire probably finds redundant, and then move to drilling with wooden swords. For now Konstiantina contents herself with the very basics: how to hold a sword, how to move ones feet, and how to do both at the same time. The different basic guard positions, and why one would choose one over the other.
It's dull work but the paladin does not allow Aiza's pleas for my excitement to sway her. Dawn after dawn they pace, shift, swivel, and then transition to Konstiantina calling out the different guards for her squire to move into. The paladin circles the poor girl, pushing her off balance when her stance is incorrect, rapping her elbow or knuckles with her own wooden blade when her guard is out of form, and clacking her sword against the young woman's own when it's correct and showing how and why it would block said attack.
From there they move into physical exercise, with a focus on building stamina. Runs are de rigeur, as are lifting ever heavier stones. Technique is next to useless when you're so winded you can't stand straight, and for all Aiza's electric energy, what Konstiantina wants to see is a deep and abiding resilience.
Each and every time the young squire complains and asks for something more exciting, the paladin just smiles. "Soon," she promises. "You've been training for less than a month. Mastering the sword is the pursuit of a lifetime."
Worse yet, from Aiza's point of view (no doubt) are the afternoon lessons where Konstiantina takes the squire for long walks and explains Iomedae's teachings. They review the goddess's acts, her principles, her tolerances, and the sins that are most grave in her eyes. Konstiantina spends much of these lessons engaged in Socratic dialog, presenting the young woman with the same thorny moral problems she was faced with as a young initiate, and then asking Aiza to reason her way through the correct course of action as would be most pleasing to the goddess. They end each session in devout prayer and then the squire is released to do a three mile run around the estate.
Their passage around the lake is slow and difficult and the paladin finds herself sinking knee if not hip deep several times as they progress. Still, she struggles on in good humor, not minding the mud, and teases Aiza when the girl loses her boot to the sucking squelch and is forced to feel around for it in the mire, her turned face but an inch from the dark water.
Perception:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22
When they reach the northern shore the paladin slows and spends more time scrutinizing the shallows, parting the reeds with her sheathed blade and reaching out with her divine sense probing for evil. After a few minutes she slows and gestures to the others.
"Notice how the area's grown quiet? More so than usual? Might have something to do with all these remains. See there? And there? And... there? Something has been feasting on the wildlife. Perhaps there's a more natural cause for these supernatural rumors."
"Would that I had wisdom to share." The paladin's voice is pitched low, and she waits for them to be out of earshot before continuing. "My heart urges clemency, for surely the penalty is too severe, but my mind cannot help but consider the consequences if we find a means to save his life."
She turns in frustration to gaze out over the sedge, the cattails and the river beyond. "We do not have the authority to change the law, and we shall have to face Count Lotheed's wrath if we fail to enforce it. We cannot allow this to be an example that others will seek to emulate, nor should we kill those driven to feed their family from sheer desperation."
She sighs and looks sidelong at her companion. "There is no neat and clean solution, at least, not one that satisfies all sides of my being. If the law is unjust, then I would see it changed, not merely sidestepped. But how to convince a man such as the count to relinquish his wealth? Unless."
Konstiantina frowns. "Unless we make this the rallying cry that turns the people against the count, and provides us with the justification to remove him."
Konstiantina leaves the shivering cleric to the others. Instead, she calls Aiza over to where the half-eaten body now lies beside the corpse of its killer.
"Take a good luck, Aiza. This is what our business leads to. As much as we may wish it otherwise, Pharasma calls to us all, and in the wilds it is often a monster such as this that comes to collect."
The paladin sighs and hauls the body out of the water. "I hope her end was a brave and valiant one."
For a moment she considers the dead woman, and then she looks sidelong at Aiza. "You've probably seen your fair share of death. Livestock being butchered, mothers dying at birth, villagers going too soon due to accidents. Maybe worse. But this is different. The path we walk leads us toward danger, not away from it. And as fun as that may sound in the stories, this - this, is what it all to often ends in."
The paladin rises from her crouch and claps Aiza on the shoulder. "If we're to avoid such a fate, then we must work hard. Starting tonight you shall begin training with sword and shield - or their wooden equivalents. You'll be on double rations to help you gain some weight and strength, and each morning you'll begin the day with a run carrying a loaded pack. It's time we started stacking the odds in your favor. And most importantly?" Konstiantina smiles. "We'll begin teaching you Iomedae's sacraments after dinner."
Konstiantina takes her farewell from Vort and Felsha with her customary gravity and good will; her face reflects none of the prior night's emotions, and she wishes them both safe keeping in Iomedae's light.
DM:
Konstiantina stands there with her hands on her hips, eyebrows raised, and then, unable to control herself simply laughs. Surprised, amused, and impressed by the girl's resolve, she shakes her head and moves forward to inspect the donkey, running her fingertips gently over its bristly coat, searching for signs of ownership.
Finding none, she turns at last to consider the no doubt anxious Aiza. "A startling amount of initiative on your part, Aiza. That you somehow managed to find a wild donkey, catch it, and then... wash it... before dawn speaks to an uncommon amount of determination."
For a moment she considers the girl, her brow furrowed in thought, and then she gestures for Aiza to follow her to where two stumps emerge from the high grass. Sitting on one, she leans forward, elbows on knees, and fixes Aiza with her stare. "But you're wrong. As I said yesterday, I am no knight. I received my title from no lord, and have pledged my sword to none other than Iomedae herself. This is vital. I am a paladin, Aiza. A warrior of my goddess's faith. I have dedicated myself to furthering her cause in Golarion, and if you wish me to train and educate and provide you with a different future than that which is promised to you here, you must understand this."
She holds Aiza's gaze, making sure the girl isn't about to protest or complain, and then continues, her tone inexorable.
"Iomedae is known as The Inheritor, the Light of the Sword, the Lady of Valor. She is the goddess of righteous justice, bravery, and honor, and those who worship her dedicate their lives to these ideals and the rooting out of evil. She asks that we be temperate, to fight for justice and honor, and to always hold valor in our hearts. She holds the law to be sacred, and good acts their own reward. If you are to travel with me, Aiza, if you are to learn the way of the sword, you must do so because you wish to serve Iomedae first and foremost."
Konstiantina's grave expression breaks into a rueful smile. "Or at least come to do so, one day, once you understand more of what I speak."
Expecting nothing but agreement from the girl, Konstiantina stands. "Come, let us deliver this horse of yours to your mother. She will appreciate it all the more since she is losing a daughter to the goddess. Then, with her blessings, we'll begin a trial apprenticeship. If you succeed in not only impressing me with your determination and initiative, but also by displaying wisdom and temperance, perhaps, one day, you shall indeed become my squire."
Konstiantina's smile grows wider. "I am shocked. What an unexpected turn of events." She then reaches out and squeeze his shoulder, her tone turning warmer. "Truly, I'm happy for you both."
She rakes her metallic hair back and then sighs. "I think I'm going to turn in. Can the two of you try to not interrupt our sleep too much? It would be most appreciated."
And with that she turns away, her smile growing wry, and enters their cabin.
DM:
Konstiantina crosses her arms and purses her lips as the young woman leaps to her feet and tries to get her words out. She takes a moment to stare at where Aiza had chosen to sleep, her threadbare blanket, her ruined satchel, her brightly burning eyes.
Konstiantina leans forward so that they're at eye level, then frowns. "Show me."
Konstiantina regards Marius. It's a flat, level stare, no emotion in her handsome face. As if she's truly listening to him, or, more accurately, gauging how sincere he is being, and how much might be platitudes.
When he stands, however, she gives him a grudging nod. "Aye. It's a hard road we all walk, those of us who give a damn."
She looks across the impoverished village, its ramshackle homes, its blighted fields beyond. "But no. I don't walk it alone."
For a long, aching moment she simply stares up at the sky, at the low hanging moon, and then, with visible effort, she puts aside her concerns and gravity and links her hands behind her back. "You said I wasn't wrong, and were smiling like a prisoner who's been handed down his pardon. I take it things have moved forward with our Lady Talbot?"
A sidelong glance reveals the slightest of smiles; it's clear she's both amused and pleased for him.
Konstiantina's prayer pauses only briefly as she hears the man kneel beside her, and her grimace is almost perfectly masked. She resumes her silent communion with her goddess, but gives up after another few minutes.
Rising to her feet, she inhales deeply, powerfully, and then exhales all at once, letting the air go.
To fixate her stare on her companion and his effort at solidarity.
Her failure to connect with Iomedae and Marius's willingness to simply pray beside her diffuse the last of her anger. It washes away, leaving her tired and emotionally weary.
"I'm sorry," she says, before Marius has a chance to address her. "You caught me in a foul mood, but that's no excuse for me to take out my..." She trails off, trying to find the right word. What had she been feeling? Not quite anger, not quiet irritation, not frustration either... but...
And such a sharp contrast to what she'd felt just before speaking with Lisa. The elevated emotions she'd enjoyed while tending to the village. She thinks of Aiza's skinny frame, her fierce determination, her willingness to throw herself into a violent life in order to escape this poverty. Had Aiza multiplied in her mind, become emblematic of the millions of such desperate youths that peopled their continent?
Lisa's own words had been the hammer to drive that nail home.
"I find myself growing impatient with the march of progress," she says at last, choosing a different tack. "I would that everything improved immediately everywhere for everyone."
Only then does a slightly self-mocking smile quirk the corner of her lips, and the last of her anger leaves her altogether.
Konstiantina listens with a frown; even as this moment draws the pair of them closer than they have yet been, she's never felt so far from the courtesan.
Several times she has to restrain the urge to interject. To correct an assumption, or ask for a clarification. Is the other woman speaking in metaphors about her soul, or literally?
No matter. It's obvious there's no room - as of yet - to change Lisa's mind or convince her that things could be otherwise. And through painful experience Konstiantina has learned that few things are as painful to others than having people of virtue drone at the about salvation when they're not ready to listen.
So she sits still and watches the other woman depart, not once having spoken, only to turn her attention to the fire once Lisa is gone and frown into its flickering depths.
Worse yet is how Lisa's words struck a chord; she has seen for herself the terrible iniquity and oppression that rules the streets, the poverty and disease, the brutality of common life and the pain that is everyone's lot. And for every good priest who struggles to do better, ten more are content to count their coins and turn a blind eye.
Konstiantina's frown deepens into a scowl, and the firelight dances in her eyes. Even now the nobility accommodate matters after the Senate hall massacre. Even now the poor groan and collapse as the manor houses are filled with festive fools.
Konstiantina blinks when Marius appears before her and sits down, his fatuous smile and levity completely at odds with her mood.
"Is that so?" Her tone is harsh. She stands. "Then that's a first."
Konstiantina's gaze is considering and grave, and her expression remains still and focused as Lisa answers her question. An evening breeze lifts a curl of metallic golden hair and blows it across her lips. She gently teases it away, but otherwise remains unmoving.
When Lisa winds down, Konstiantina takes her time in answering.
"We are more similar than you might think. I was raised by a venal family who saw the resurgence of our angelic forebear's blood in my veins as a means to grasp at our long gone glory and power. My earliest memories are of being dressed like a doll so as to be presented at court in the hopes of earning a powerful suitor. You say that loneliness is part and parcel of women in your line of work, but so was it in mine. My childhood and early teenage years were more lonely than I care to remember. I never trusted anybody."
An old pain resurfaces, but it's a glimmer of its former self. The aasimar smiles tiredly. "I thought I was trapped. That such was my lot in life. After all, I was born a noblewoman, I had to marry, my family would make the decision, and that was that. Such was drummed into my skull from the moment I could speak. The path of my life seemed foreordained, and sorrow and solitude my only constants. Until, one day, I decided otherwise."
Konstiantina reaches out and takes Lisa's hand in both her own. "In the end, whomever we are on the inside we are by choice. Even if it feels like we have no alternatives. If you do not wish to be so transient, so easily replaced, then... don't be. You need never feel like yesterday's garbage again. All you need do is change. I left my family manor, gave up my dresses and jewels, my supposed heritage and obligations, and took to living in a garret with no coin to my name. It was hard, but I was never happier."
Her smile is genuine, warm, like the sun breaking free of cloud cover.
"And yes. It is nice to be close to Iomedae. To not be alone. To know that I am loved for who I am and whom I wish to be. To know in my heart that I face all the varied and terrifying darkness of this world with an endlessly burning brand of love in my soul."
She gives her words a moment to sink in, words that resonate with the power of her faith.
"At any moment you can make a choice, Lisa. You can choose to accept that pain and solitude, fear and sorrow need not be the whole compass of your life. You can make room for something more. Something true, something profound, something life changing. It need not be Iomedae. Perhaps Calistria would call to you more. But once you accept a god or goddess into your life, once you dedicate yourself to something immeasurably grander than you can ever understand, life - pain - our travails - all of it is contextualized, and you realize how much room we had within us for infinite new vistas."
Konstiantina, upon finding the interest in herself and Iomedae to be more than cursory, sits down on an old crate, leans forward, elbows on knees, and smiles at those who gather around.
She answers the questions honestly and openly, neither dissembling nor boasting, but her joy in her calling shines through, and this opportunity to speak about her faith is so one that her pleasure in talking is obvious.
She shares her story, her past, and the reasons for which she was drawn to her faith. She speaks in glowing terms of Iomedae's virtues and patronage, and the good her goddess brings to the world. She finishes by teaching the small crowd a prayer for those in need of strength and boldness in times of travail, and then offers her blessing on all those who recite it with her.
Refreshed, invigorated, she's about to move on when the lady offers her daughter for a squire.
"A squire, ma'am?" Her first inclination is to immediately decline, but she's uplifted by this interaction and so asks further. Is the girl herself interested? How old is she? Of what faith? Has she ever held a blade, or traveled? Regardless of the answers, she listens intently to the mother, and then asks to see the girl in question.
Sense Motive:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
Konstiantina is making her way back though the village after finishing her rounds when a cheerful, brazen voice hails her - Lisa. For a moment the paladin simply stands there, genuinely taken aback, and then she gives a rueful smile - though what she's rueing can't be told - and settles down beside the courtesan on that rough and homely bench.
At first there's no space - or need - for her to interject. She listens to Lisa's drunken slurring with something that's north of bemusement and west of concern. She's about to excuse herself after taking a single polite sip, but then Lisa's voice turns somber and her words lose their slur, lose their false festiveness, and still Konstiantina where she sits.
"How do you do it? Like, what are you getting out of all of this? You always stand... alone or with others and you just... you seem so untouchable, unfazed even... Don't you ever... Isn't it lonely at the top looking down on all us mortals?"
Konstiantina sits there, eyes wide, completely taken aback. Then her brow furrows and she reaches out to place a callused palm on Lisa's shoulder.
"I'm sorry if I have been remote." Her voice is low, husky, tinged with a noble accent from the courts of Oppara, but her concern is obvious. "But I promise you I stand on no peak. Far from it. Even with my goddess I often feel as lost and confused as anyone else. But are you all right, Lisa?"
The shift from jocose to morose was too abrupt. And never in the past has Lisa hailed her in such manner. Do her questions about Konstiantina instead reveal what she herself was going through? "Has something... happened?"
After the meeting, Konstiantina excuses herself from her companions to walk amongst the settlers. She knows hers can be an intimidating presence, so she moves slowly, hands interlaced behind her back, pausing here and there to observe as the people work or go about their business.
When opportune, she inquires as to their well being; it's an artless question, but she follows it up with an offer to lend Iomedae's divine healing to help those who have fallen sickly or injured.
In this manner she goes from home to home, healing where it's needed, exchanging quiet words of reassurance to those who look haggard and exhausted, and offering time and again to lead those who are interested in a small prayer to Iomedae so that they can receive her blessing and guidance in the weeks and months to come.
Konstiatina spends the hours before dinner amongst the settlers, and will willingly use her x8 Lay on Hands on those who need it. She seeks to bolster their morale and offer spiritual guidance to those who are open to Iomedae's wisdom.
Konstiantina flinches as the doors slam closed, though whether it's from the brief flash of evil she received or the violence of her friends' exit is impossible to tell.
DC 25 Sense Motive:
It's because of both.
She steps forward after Mosle's apology, her expression somewhere north of a frown and west of puzzlement. "Master Mosle, why are you and your companions still here? You know this curse to be potent beyond your ability to handle, and the Baron seems to be degenerating. Why this loyalty to a man who is now evil in the eyes of the gods? And what is your end game? To feed and placate him until...?"
Sense Motive on Mosle:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18
It occurs to Konstiantina that the men never answered their original question. "And what happened to the messenger whose horse you have butchered?"
Konstiantina nods as Master Mosle opens with what is a perversely reassuring line. That they acknowledge most might desire to kill their leader means they are not unaware of the frightful nature of the situation, and shifts the small group of guards immediately into a more relatable and normal category.
"Thanks for that," smiles Konstiantina as Rose draws her back. The paladin waits as her friend disarms the trap, then calmly steps over it once Rose gives the go-ahead.
She drifts forward warily, listening intently as she goes, gaze trailing over the old furniture, the cobwebbed walls, the faded finery.
Without a word she pauses by the double doors and listens intently again before probing through the wood for a sense of evil.
Konstiantina listens intently as Rose explains her theory, sitting on the corner of the table as she does so. Her attention is total, her consideration grave, and when Rose finishes she nods, slowly.
"There's something to that speculation, but as you said, not enough to work on. I think setting a trap would be ideal, though of course the how of it would have to be carefully thought out. Though, now that I think of it, the very name, 'Night Swan', is both feminine and pretentious; it speaks to a romantic notion of what this banditry amounts to, which would be in line with a noble of some sort taking on the persona. I doubt your average highwayman would choose such a moniker."
Konstiantina frowns, smooths the fabric of her robe cross one thigh, then tilts her head to one side. "We also owe Baron Okerra a visit, do we not? In fact, we have several new allies that we need to connect with. What do you all think of hosting an event of our own, a month or so hence, so as to reconnect with old friends all at once? I fear we'll spend half our time on the road visiting manor houses otherwise in order to not let out friendships fade."
Konstiantina listens with narrowed eyes as Marius speaks and grows passionate, her expression inscrutable. When his last words ring out into the evening air, she purses her lips, gazes out one last time over the gardens, then drains her glass and stands.
"You should have been a paladin, Marius." The teasing is very slight. "You have goodness and fervor in equal measure. Perhaps some day you and I shall change roles?"
And on that note, she inclines her head, and steps back into the manor.
Later, back at the manor after market day, Konstiantina catches the group as they sit around the large dining table, engaged, no doubt, in a variety of different activities.
"I suppose none of you will be surprised in my interest in this Night Swan. Whether she's a gallant redistributor of wealth or a common thief, I believe the matter requires looking into and resolving. No matter her grievances, banditry cannot be tolerated." Her smile turns wry. "How will our new market thrive if merchants fear to take to the roads? I suggest an expedition to learn more, and perhaps confront this Swan in her own element."
Konstiantina looks sidelong at her companion for a moment, and then her lip curls in amusement. "Grand Prince Stavian, possibly? Or High Strategos Pythareus? I can still see Stavian licking his lips before plunging his jeweled dagger into Kalbio. How together they conspired to turn the senate floor into an abattoir, cutting down men and women who had done nothing more than exercise their legal right to vote."
Her smile fades. "I confess I had hoped for more direct retribution. No, that's not accurate; not hoped, but yearned for. Yet life continues as if that horror had not taken place. Nobody has been held to account. And here we sit, enjoying a glass of whiskey in Stachys, while Stavian leers from his throne."
The paladin sighs. "Don't get me wrong, Marius. I understand the necessity of what we do, and how this is a complex game, a game of elevated politics, power brokering, and nationhood. One can't simply stride into Stavian's throne room and demand justice. But I left that world once for a reason. My soul desired the simple satisfaction of direct service. I thought my path would be straight once I had cast off my family's machinations. Yet here I am, walking torturous paths once more, hoping that their arc shall bend sooner than later to justice."
"It's the monsters you can't see that worry me." She interposes her glass between the setting sun and her eye so that a prismatic ray washes across her features. "The ones that hide in plain sight, lurking in a seemingly innocent heart. Opilo. Our dear king. The men and women who compose the fabric of this world of ours. I almost feel fond of an honest troll or a direct beast like the Iron Lash. They at least have the dignity to be what they are openly. But the real monsters?"
She looks sidelong over at Marius.
"They're the true evil of this world."
Konstiantina takes another sip from her whiskey and then sighs. "How am I faring? Fine. Content. We're doing good work. Bringing some order and progress to a forgotten corner of Taldor so as to give our patron a springboard from which to launch more ambitious initiatives. Well and good." She purses her lips, and does not look content.
Konstiantina listens with grave attention, paying as much attention to Marius's mannerisms as she does the words. Occasionally her eyebrows rise as if in sympathy to some point, or her brows furrow at another, but she proves a good listener, not rushing, not seeking to interject, but letting Marius speak at length.
When finally he does shrug and turn to her, she sighs, shifts in her chair, and considers.
"Paladins are probably not the best source of romantic advice, but - well. I've learned enough to know that you are best off dispensing with all the normal advice offered to young noblemen intent on making a match. I think it best..."
For a moment she considers Marius.
"... to simply allow events to take their course." Her smile grows almost mischievous. "I hope you appreciate the restraint that took. I was about to advise you to do something foolish, but ah, Iomedae has certain expectations of her followers."
Konstiantina swirls the whiskey around within her glass. "No, I think you are doing everything exactly right, in that you are simply being yourself. It is by not attempting to woo her that you have won her heart; why change that formula now? Enjoy this moment, this phase in your courtship, unwitting and natural as it may be. Be attentive, flirt with her, tease her, enjoy yourselves. And one day the right moment shall present itself, and you shall seize it, and her, and this time shall come to a natural end."
"Ought you to come out and say something?" It's a rhetorical question, and the paladin again subsides into a pensive silence, this time pressing the edge of her glass against her lower lip and slowly rolling it from side to side. "I suppose you ought, if you are impatient to remove all doubt. But Rose..."
Again she subsides. Her eyes grow heavy lidded. The warmth, the comfort of the old chair, the rich, mellow burn of the liquor.
All so very relaxing.
But she bestirs herself and looks sidelong at the inquisitor. "I suppose I ought to say that it's risky to the group if you press your suit, in that we have much work that lies before us, and to bring such a question out into the open could make things awkward if Rose proves less than interested. But she is, so that's not a problem. No, instead... I think it more a question of style."
She pauses for a moment, and again that amused gleam enters her golden eyes. "What is your style, Marius, when it comes to courting?"
"Oh come, Marius, I was using your title in mock protest." Konstiantina seems to have slipped into a languorous mood; the last rays of the dying sun slant into the balcony through the broad canopy of leaves to dapple them with golden coins, the warmth and whiskey making her feel almost drowsy with indolence. "And of course you can call me Konstiantina. You've yelled it in earnest during how many battles when we move to flank? You've more than earned the right to use it in casual conversation."
She slips into something of a reverie, her lips pursing, one finger tracing the circumference of the glass's lip, and then finally sighs and comes back to the moment. "And why 'just as well'? Lady Talbot - Rose - is remarkably formidable. If she desires you, then I fear your fate is sealed. I've yet to see her fail at anything she sets her mind to."
There's the slightest pause as the paladin considers their mutual acquaintance. "She is remarkably accomplished at all manner of pursuits. One might almost wonder just what she was taught while attending Sinora Academy."
Konstiantina's smile shades toward a smirk, but more, humor gleams in her eyes, as well as possible affection, and she taps the side of her glass with one long finger. With impressive gravity, she responds: "We paladins are bastions of honor, virtue, and decorum. I object most strenuously to the accusation, Lord Erallan."
She sinks a little deeper into the old chair, its bindings groaning, and crosses one leg over the other, the position making the muscle of her calf swell. Looking back over the balcony, she sips the whiskey and studies the grounds.
"So you harbor hopes for Lady Talbot?" Her tone becomes almost speculative. "Just as well, really."
Konstiantina's smile remains wry, her amusement subtle, her manner relaxed. "Then you are holding up surpassingly well, Lord Erallan." There's just a shade of teasing to her voice. "I had thought the attention you've been receiving from Rose and Lisa might have your head spinning, but you are handling it with aplomb."
She raises her whiskey in a mock toast and inclines her head to one side, a thick platinum braid sliding across one shoulder. "Well done."
Konstiantina wishes the world were otherwise. Wishes she could feel the right amount of outrage and horror, the shock and rage that should accompany such a revelation.
But she was raised at court, raised with chaperones and protective guardians, her body and all it promised and portended guarded as the House treasure it was. Raised to know the dangers inherent in the honeyed whispers of the courtiers and old, musty-smelling men who'd love a moment of her time. Raised to suspect every kindness, every crooked finger, every promise.
The more a man told you they were sincere, the more predatory they revealed themselves to be.
So it's with an old and weighty sense of grief that Konstiantina listens to Sespinia's tale. Her expression hardens, her jaw clenches, then she softens and similarly restrains the urge to offer physical comfort, to extend a hand and touch Sespinia's own.
By the time the full extent of the horror is revealed, the paladin, like Rose, can also do nothing but stand, to pay witness to this tragedy, her heart swelling with that old bitter anguish at the world they all live in.
"Sespinia, I can only echo Rose's words, and thank you for your bravery and willingness to share what happened. This nightmare is over. You are free."
She lets the words hang in the air, and then, more tentatively, as if stepping onto thinner ice, continues. "If you find that your pain doesn't abate, however, and are haunted by what happened, then I would be more than glad to speak to you of Iomedae. She is the goddess of justice, and if that is what your soul cries out for, then her teachings, her presence, her strength might bring you solace."
Betany Manor:
Konstiantina is deep in thought, but at the sound of Marius's call her brow clears and she searches for a moment before espying him in his corner nook, bottle at his elbow.
She moves to stand in the archway that leads out onto the balcony and there leans against the arch with arms crossed over her chest. She's wearing a simple robe of dove gray, that plain, severe cut that offsets her otherworldly beauty and metallic hair so well. Yet even here, in the safety of their home, she wears her sword belt and sacred weapon.
"Well, this is a pleasant spot," she observes wryly. "And most wise of you to take advantage of it. Our duties grow by the day, don't they? If we continue at this rate, we'll be buried in paperwork and only snatching three hours rest each night. I approve."
She pushes off the archway, steps out onto the balcony, and for a moment simply stares out over the grounds, her expression complex, a combination of pensive, concerned, focused, and resolute. Then she dismisses the thoughts the sight of the unkempt manor grounds evokes, pushes down on the hilt of her blade and sits with unnatural grace yet obvious relief beside the lord.
"I haven't had a proper drink in years," she says, taking up the cut crystal bottle and turning it so that a spray of prismatic sunlit gems washes over her gray robe. "But why not? As Imoedae is prone to saying to the irresolute: if not now, then when?"
She pours a couple of fingers into the cup, inhales the scent, then drinks just enough to wet her lips. Her stormy gaze considers her companion for a moment before she smiles anew. "How do you fare, Marius? You are embattled on all sides. Besieged. Do your battlements remain sound?"
"I also must regretfully decline," says Konstiantina. "But I hear the sincerity and generosity behind your offer, and am touched by your desire to thank us. Please. Bringing peace to your home and helping Sispenia is reward enough." Konstiantina smiles. "It warms my heart to know that we shall be such good neighbors moving forward."
A look of horror passes over Konstiantina's noble features, and for a moment all she can feel is a terrible pity for Sepsinia, who has been subjected to this abuse for... how many months? No matter; the scene is as pathetic as it is ghastly, and the paladin strides forward, determined to end it.
She lifts her blade, and it blazes forth with divine light. Breaking into a charge at the last, she powers forward and slashes at the Lovelorn, intent on hewing it in two.
Casting Smite, activating Divine Bond, using Precise Strike.
Konstiantina allows the others to take the lead during their visit; during tea she consumes a fair amount of pastries and several cups of tea, and listens attentively while not making any comments of her own.
Yet as they enter the gardens and interact with Sepsinia, concern slowly turns over and becomes suspicion, and her mind starts turning to childhood tales of succubi and incubi who visted young nobles to consume their passion and dominate their thoughts, or of vampires who would steal into bed chambers to accomplish much the same deeds.
As a young girl, such tales had been thrilling and illicit; now she considers Sepsinia with growing alarm. Was there foul play behind her betrothed's death? Depression after such a loss was natural, but to this extent?
For the first time, Konstiantina begins to cast around with her ability to Detect Evil, following the group about the garden and examining servants, locations, throwing a wide net in the hopes of turning up some source of danger.
"The ghast was probably a member of this Sandaris family, then," says Konstiantina. "And at a thousand years old, it was either raised from the dead a millennia ago and only now escaped its crypt, or a necromancer brought it back recently along with restoring its body to some degree. Though I doubt it was keeping the ghouls from the village, Rose. More likely it lacked the leadership, awareness, or interest in exploring further. The town does lie a good ways away. Regardless. It seems a visit to the cemetery is in order."
"What a treasure," breathes Konstiantina as she reluctantly hands the spear over to Marius, then crowds in to examine it further. "I wonder to which god it was dedicated? Is there a way to tell?"
Her tone is yearning, and when able to she takes it back from Marius as well, following him outside so she can experiment with thrusts and swings. Only later does she catch herself, and look at the others with a pang of guilt.
"Not that I'm saying I should have it. We should inquire in town to see if there are any legends, or a way to track down its owner, of course." She gazes down at the spear again and runs a finger along its edge.
From the moldy floor rises ghastly creatures, emmaciated and foul, and for a moment Konstiantina freezes, the sight of bared yellowed fangs and ropey gray flesh, of beady black eyes devoid of all humanity and their awful hunger filling her with dark, shocked fear.
But then she feels her goddess' presence, the bulwark of her faith, and raises her hand so that blazing, glorious sunlight bursts forth from the pebble she tosses into the room, filling the rancid pumphouse, as warm and shining as that of a beautiful summer's day.
"Come, then," she whispers as she steps back through the doorway and to one side. "Come to us so that we may grant you peace."
And with that her longsword blazes to life, as if in communion with the daylight, its wicked length radiating golden fire as she feels her goddess's blessing as never before.
Five foot step back, casting Daylight in the center of the room before them, activating Divine Bond for a +1 bonus.
Konstiantina raises her blade and grips the hilt with both hands. She draws a deep breath, and as the last rays of the dying sun paint the marshland a lurid palette of crimsons, umbers, and burgundy, she intones a soft prayer.
"Honorable Iomedae, help us to trust you in these times of uncertainty. Let us rest on your valorous example. When we are weak and overcome with fear and doubt, help us to feel your presence. Remind in our inner hearts your words to fear not; to rest assured that today you promise that you will fight our battles."
Those words spoken, she steps up to the door, and with her inner senses yet alert to the presence of evil, passes inside once Rose gives her nod.
Reading an action to cast Daylight when most opportune, using Detect Evil still to indicate to everyone where the presences are if hidden. I also have Dodging panache readied as an Immediate Action to 5 foot step away, giving me a +4 to my AC to avoid the first attack.
Konstiantina turns her attention to the pumphouse completely, assured that Rose will hold the otyugh at bay with her barrage of questions and explanations.
"All the evil auras come from within. Shall we strike before dusk falls?"
Full Image | Constant: Nondetection, darkvision 60 ft. | HP: 68 | AC 28/16/25 | +12 F, +12 R, +20 W | Resist 5 cold, electricity, fire | CMB +9 CMD 25 | Spd 20ft | Channel (4/day), Darkness (1/day), Sudden Shift (9/day), Copycat (9/day), Master's Illusion (9rounds/day)
Chyvvom:
Anethra responds with tacit resignation: Alas, Great Lord, we are ourselves but pawns before the greater pieces at play. This party of mortals has crushed all opposition without effort. Their might is unparalleled. If I thought I had hope of besting them by joining efforts with you, I would. But there is no hope. I speak this in the name of Asmodeus. Their might could be checked by our Master, perhaps, in direct confrontation, but you and I? Not a chance.
DESCRIPTION Android | Female | Portrait Age N/A Height 6'2" Weight 191lb, Hair: White, Eyes: Silver Blue Body: Slender and Tall, Skin Tattooed, Voice: light: TN:
Onyx a tall Android. Her clothing is practical adventurers outfit. Her body is covered in fine silver magic tattoos [circuitry]. That light up when she uses her magic. Around her wast is also a light well made utility belt. She had a simple dagger in one boot and no other weapon that can be seen.
--Ranged:
TH+10 [+2 Enchantment arm Cannon] [+1 trait bonus TH with Blasts]
RTA [+13[+11]+8]* [2 or 3 Attacks]. range 0' to 640' [Mid 400'+40' Level]
Rapid-shot + [1 more attack at Full ABA-2]
Right Arm - RTA [+11[+9]+6]* range 0' to 640' [Mid 400'+40' Level]
Left Arm - RTA [+11/+6]* range 0' to 640' [Mid 400'+40' Level]
[20d6+10][+15 DMG When Electrical -3 to AC and Saves]
Arm Cannon (Su) [2d6+2d6+2] [5/round]
At 1st level, the blaster blaster binds a unique weapon known as the arm cannon, which counts in all ways as a bound weapon. This arcane construct covers most of one arm and could appear as anything from a cluster of levitating silk ribbons to a glimmering tube of metal or an oblong block of crystal (although whatever an arm cannon appears as, its appearance does not change). When summoned, the arm cannon occupies one hand and cannot be disarmed. The arm cannon is a ranged weapon that makes ranged touch attacks, and deals 1d6 bludgeoning damage +1d6 at 5th level and every four levels beyond 5th. The weapon has no range penalties, but has a maximum range of Close Long [Talents]. In all other ways, the arm cannon counts as a destructive blast from the Destruction sphere with a caster level equal to the armorist’s level, but also as a ranged weapon, even being augmented by feats such as Rapid Shot, Deadly Aim (as if it were a firearm), Weapon Focus, etc. While the arm cannon is not directly tied to the armorist’s caster level, he may nonetheless augment his arm cannon with (blast type) and (blast shape) talents, the Extended Range talent, or the Crafted Blast talent. He must still spend any spell points required by the applied talents, and must spend those spell points for each attack. The Admixture talent may be applied as a full-round action, or as part of a full-attack if the additional costs are paid for every attack to which it is applied. The arm cannon can gain enhancements as normal for a bound weapon.
Destructive Blast [3d6+2d6] [1/round]
As a standard action, you may deliver a burst of blunt magical force as a melee touch attack or a ranged touch attack within Close Long range. A destructive blast deals bludgeoning damage as indicated on the table below. [3d6] This damage bypasses DR/magic, but being bludgeoning in nature, does not automatically bypass other forms of damage resistance. A ranged destructive blast counts as a ray attack.
Electric Blast (blast type)[+3DMG] Fort Save DC18 [DC21 -3ac*]
You may change the damage type of your destructive blast to electricity. Targets wearing metal armor or primarily comprised of metal suffer a -3 penalty to AC and to saving throws against an electric blast. An electric blast can ignite combustibles, and melt metals with a low melting point, such as lead, gold, copper, silver, or bronze.
Mana Siphon (blast type) NL + -2SP [Fort Save DC18] [D4's]
Your destructive blast saps the magic energy from your target, funneling it to you. A mana drain blast does nonlethal damage using d4 dice instead of d6 and your target must make a Fortitude save or lose 1 spell point. This loss increases by one die size (1d2, 1d3, 1d4, 1d6, etc.) for every five caster levels. You gain an equal number of temporary spell points that last for one round per caster level, though you cannot receive more spell points than your target loses. These temporary spell points do not stack with spell points from other targets, other instances of this ability, or any other source and expire after 1 round per caster level.
Invigorating Blast (blast type) [Temp HP] [D4's]
You may spend a spell point to have your destructive blast deal positive energy damage to non-living creatures using d4 dice instead of d6. Living creatures instead of taking damage gain an equal number of temporary hit points (which cannot exceed their maximum hit points) which last for 1 hour, but also must make a Fortitude save or become dazed for 1 round.
Rebuff (blast shape)
You may use your destructive blast to shield a target within range from ranged weapons, area effects, or even other destructive blasts for 1 round, giving them the benefits of evasion, a +2 cover bonus to AC, and a +1 cover bonus to their Reflex saves. Multiply these bonuses by 2 at 5th caster level, by 3 at 10th caster level, by 4 at 15th caster level, and by 5 at 20th caster level. By spending a spell point, you may perform a rebuff as an immediate action, or provide the benefits to all targets within 10 ft of you plus 5 ft per 5 caster levels. You may spend 2 spell points to gain both of these benefits with the same rebuff.
Explosive Orb (blast shape) [15'r] [DC18]
You may spend a spell point to make a destructive blast as a burst effect centered anywhere within range. This burst has up to a 10 ft radius, + 5 ft per 5 caster levels. Affected creatures are allowed a Reflex saving throw for half damage.
Energy Leap (blast shape)
You may spend a spell point to move in a straight line up to your destructive blast’s range as a standard action. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity and you may pass through occupied spaces. Any creatures whose space you pass through are affected by your destructive blast, with a Reflex save for half damage. If you attempt to pass through an object and fail to break through it, you appear in the nearest unoccupied space and are staggered for one round. This blast shape cannot be combined with the Extreme Range advanced talent.
Resistance:
Androids gain a +4 racial bonus on all saving throws against mind-affecting effects, paralysis, poison, and stun effects, are not subject to fatigue or exhaustion, and are immune to disease and sleep effects. Androids can never gain morale bonuses, and are
Immunity's
Immune to fear effects and all emotion-based effects
Other
Protection from possession and mental control (as protection from evil).
Rebuff (blast shape)
You may use your destructive blast to shield a target within range from ranged weapons, area effects, or even other destructive blasts for 1 round, giving them the benefits of evasion, a +2 cover bonus to AC, and a +1 cover bonus to their Reflex saves. Multiply these bonuses by 2 at 5th caster level, by 3 at 10th caster level, by 4 at 15th caster level, and by 5 at 20th caster level. By spending a spell point, you may perform a rebuff as an immediate action, or provide the benefits to all targets within 10 ft of you plus 5 ft per 5 caster levels. You may spend 2 spell points to gain both of these benefits with the same rebuff.
STATISTICS:
-------------------------------=STATISTICS=-------------------------------
20 Point Buy
Str 10 [+0][10][0p]
Dex 18 [+4][14][5p][+2Race][+2item]
Con 12 [+1][10][2p]
Int 20 [+5][15][7p][+4Race][+2Item][+1Level]
Wis 14 [+2][14][5p]
Cha 09 [-1][10][1p][-2Race]
Traits x2 [from Feat]
1:Practiced Aim (Combat) +1 TH Blast
2:Unorthodox Casting (Magic)
Perhaps you are a druid trained in nature magic by a fey such as a nymph or satyr; maybe you grew up in a great library where you studied the magic of nature and geography; or perhaps you learned magic from an academic who combined study and meditation in equal measures. Either way, you embrace unorthodox techniques that change your approach to magic. Choose any one mental ability score, you use that score as your casting ability score for any sphere casting classes you have, thus affecting the use of spheres, talents, spell points, etc. This does not change or otherwise affect any class specific features they may have based on another ability score, unless that class feature specifically calls out a casting ability score anywhere in the class feature.
----------------=Drawbacks=-----------------
1:Focus Casting [Magic Tattoos on her body] [casting-tradition]
Your magic requires you to use an item such as a wand, holy symbol, ring, or staff to create magic. Using magic without your focus requires you to make a concentration check (DC 20 + 1/2 the caster level) to produce the desired effect. Failure means time (and any spell points) are spent, but no effect happens. If a focus is lost, stolen, or broken, the caster must create a new focus by securing the necessary item and spending 8 hours bonding with it. At the GM’s discretion, however, another caster’s focus may be used instead.
2:Magical Signs [Tattoos light up] [casting-tradition]
Your magic is accompanied by a tell-tale sign; for example, your body glows brightly, the sound of tortured souls shriek as you cast, feelings of a deep chill affect all creatures within 30 ft. All nearby creatures know when you are using magic, as well as the nature of the magic used.
3:Limited Telekinesis (metal objects)
You may only use your telekinesis on one type of material (water, metal, stone, etc.) chosen when you gain this drawback.
Class Feats Elecyokinetc
-:Telekinesis Sphere
1:Electroreception (Su)
You can sense electricity around you, including bioelectricity. You gain blindsense 60ft, except you can only sense sources of electricity and living creatures, and do not require line of effect to sense these things with your blindsense.
2:Rapid Shot [Combat]
Weapon and Armor Proficiency:
All simple and martial weapons, light armor, medium armor, and shields (except tower shields).
-------------------------------=SPECIAL/CLASS ABILITIES=-------------------------------
Protection from possession and mental control (as protection from evil).
Dos not need to eat or drink
can sleep 2 hours a night to get benefit of 8 hours sleep [Item]
Electroreception (Su)
You can sense electricity around you, including bioelectricity. You gain blindsense 60ft, except you can only sense sources of electricity and living creatures, and do not require line of effect to sense these things with your blindsense.
Racial Traits
Ability Score Racial Traits: Androids have swift reflexes and are very intelligent, but have difficulty relating to others. As a result, androids gain a +2 bonus to Dexterity and Intelligence, but suffer a –2 penalty to Charisma.
Size: Androids are Medium creatures, and they have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Base Speed: Androids have a base speed of 30 feet.
Languages: Androids begin play speaking Common. Androids with high Intelligence can choose any languages they want (except secret languages, such as Druidic). See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.
Feat and Skill Racial Traits
Alert:
Androids gain a +2 racial bonus on Perception checks.
Emotionless:
Androids have problems processing emotions properly, and thus take a –4 penalty on Sense Motive checks (-1 RP)
Senses Racial Traits
Exceptional Senses:
Androids have darkvision and so can see perfectly in the dark to a range of 60 feet and in addition, they possess low-light vision.
Other Racial Traits
Constructed:
For the purposes of effects targeting creatures by type (such as a ranger's favored enemy and bane weapons), androids count as both humanoids and constructs. Androids gain a +4 racial bonus on all saving throws against mind-affecting effects, paralysis, poison, and stun effects, are not subject to fatigue or exhaustion, and are immune to disease and sleep effects. Androids can never gain morale bonuses, and are immune to fear effects and all emotion-based effects (2 RP.)
Emotionless:
Androids have problems processing emotions properly, and thus take a –4 penalty on Sense Motive checks (-1 RP) (Note: this trait is called Logical in the Book of Heroic Races: Advanced Androids.)
Nanite Surge:
An android's body is infused with nanites. Once per day as an immediate action, an android can cause her nanites to surge, granting a bonus equal to 3 + the android's character level on any one d20 roll; this ability must be activated before the roll is made. When an android uses this power, her circuitry-tattoos glow with light equivalent to that of a torch in illumination for 1 round (3 RP.)
Class Skills: The elementalist’s class skills are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Escape Artist (Dex), Fly (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (Arcane; Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Stealth (Dex), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).
Skill Ranks Per Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency
An elementalist is proficient with all simple weapons and light armor.
Casting
An elementalist may combine spheres and talents to create magical effects. An elementalist is considered a Mid-Caster and uses Charisma Intelligence as his casting stat modifier. (Note: All casters gain 2 bonus talents and may select a casting tradition the first time they gain the casting class feature.)
Spell Pool [11 day]
An elementalist gains a small reservoir of energy he can call on to create truly wondrous effects, called a spell pool. This pool contains a number of spell points equal to his class level + his Charisma Int modifier (minimum: 1). This pool replenishes once per day after roughly 8 hours of rest.
Magic Talents [x4]
An elementalist gains 1 magic talent every time he gains a caster level, according to Table: Elementalist.
1:Greater Blast +1d6
The damage of your destructive blast increases by one die. You may take this talent an additional time at 5th caster level and every 5 caster levels thereafter; the effects stack.
2:Electric Blast (blast type) [Fort Save DC18]
You may change the damage type of your destructive blast to electricity. Targets wearing metal armor or primarily comprised of metal suffer a -3 penalty to AC and to saving throws against an electric blast. An electric blast can ignite combustibles, and melt metals with a low melting point, such as lead, gold, copper, silver, or bronze.
3:Invigorating Blast (blast type) [5d4 Temp HP]
You may spend a spell point to have your destructive blast deal positive energy damage to non-living creatures using d4 dice instead of d6. Living creatures instead of taking damage gain an equal number of temporary hit points (which cannot exceed their maximum hit points) which last for 1 hour, but also must make a Fortitude save or become dazed for 1 round.
4:Greater Blast +1d6
The damage of your destructive blast increases by one die. You may take this talent an additional time at 5th caster level and every 5 caster levels thereafter; the effects stack.
Electrokinesis:
An electrokinetic gains the Destruction sphere, the Telekinesis Sphere, and the Electric Blast Destruction talent as bonus magic talents, but also gains the Energy Focus (electric blast) and Limited Telekinesis (metal objects) drawbacks without gaining bonus talents from them.
If the electrokinetic already possesses the Destruction sphere or the Telekinesis sphere, she does not gain those spheres but also does not gain their connected drawbacks. If she already possesses the Electric Blast talent, she gains one free magic talent of her choice. She uses her class level as her caster level when using a destructive blast to deal electricity damage and when using telekinesis on metal objects.
This ability replaces Weave Energy.
1:Rebuff (blast shape)
You may use your destructive blast to shield a target within range from ranged weapons, area effects, or even other destructive blasts for 1 round, giving them the benefits of evasion, a +2 cover bonus to AC, and a +1 cover bonus to their Reflex saves. Multiply these bonuses by 2 at 5th caster level, by 3 at 10th caster level, by 4 at 15th caster level, and by 5 at 20th caster level. By spending a spell point, you may perform a rebuff as an immediate action, or provide the benefits to all targets within 10 ft of you plus 5 ft per 5 caster levels. You may spend 2 spell points to gain both of these benefits with the same rebuff.
Evasion (Ex)
At 2nd level an elementalist learns to avoid damage from many area-effect attacks. If an elementalist makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, he instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if the elementalist is wearing light armor or no armor and carrying no more than a light load. A helpless elementalist does not gain the benefit of evasion.
Bonus Feat
An elementalist’s martial focus grants him a bonus combat feat at 2nd level and every 4 levels thereafter, chosen from those for which he qualifies.
Electrokinetic Stunts:
An electrokinetic can select electrokinetic stunts for which she qualifies in place of elementalist bonus feats. All stunts are supernatural abilities. Unless otherwise specified an electrokinetic may only select any given electrokinetic stunt once.
1:Electroreception (Su)
You can sense electricity around you, including bioelectricity. You gain blindsense 60ft, except you can only sense sources of electricity and living creatures, and do not require line of effect to sense these things with your blindsense.
2:Rapid Shot [Combat]
Favored Element (Su) [Energy]
At 3rd level, the Elementalist chooses one damage type he may inflict with his Destruction sphere (the basic destructive blast, or a blast type talent he possesses). When creating a destructive blast of this type, it deals an additional +1/2 damage per elementalist level.
Dodge Bonus +1
At 4th level, an elementalist gains a +1 dodge bonus to their AC. This increases by one for every 4 levels thereafter, to a maximum of +5 at 20th level.
Elemental Defense (Su)
At 5th level, an elementalist gains resistance 5 to acid, electricity, fire, and frost.
Telekinesis [Small Metal objects]
As a standard action you can use telekinesis to lift one unattended object or willing creature within Close range and move it up to 20 ft, + 5 ft per 5 caster levels. The object levitates as long as you concentrate, have line of sight, and the object remains within Close range. The objects and creatures you may lift are restricted by size; the largest object you can lift is given in the chart below. This assumes the object is made from a dense material, such as stone. Objects made of lighter materials, mostly open space, or reduced to 1/2 weight with the lighten talent of the enhancement sphere count as being one size category smaller, while weightless objects count as being 2 size categories smaller for this purpose. Your telekinesis is simple and cannot perform dexterous actions (tying a knot, opening a book, turning a key, etc.). Any object you control with telekinesis has a touch AC of 10 + your casting ability modifier + any size modifier, and a CMD of 10 + your caster level + your casting ability modifier + the object’s size modifier.
Sustained Force [Small Metal objects]
You may, as a free action, spend a spell point to no longer need to concentrate to maintain lifting a particular object for up to 1 minute per caster level. You may give a sustained force simple orders (float in the air, go north, follow a target) that it obeys to the best of its ability. Changing a sustained force’s orders is a move action. You cannot sustain combat-related uses of telekinesis (combat maneuvers, bludgeons, etc.), nor complicated tasks (make a wagon load itself with stones and move them to another location, etc.).
Hostile Lift [Small Metal objects]
You may spend a spell point to lift an unwilling creature with telekinesis. The target is allowed a Will save to negate this effect, plus an additional Will save each round the effect is maintained. If a hostile lift is sustained with Sustained Force, it only lasts until the target succeeds at its save. A creature may suffer falling damage if they successfully save while floating high in the air.
Bludgeon [Small Metal objects]
Once per turn when lifting an object with telekinesis, you can spend its remaining movement to strike a creature or object within its square. When you use a lifted creature or object to strike another creature or object (moving the object into the target’s square and ramming them), you must succeed at an attack roll using your base attack bonus plus your casting ability modifier against the target. On a successful hit, the target and the bludgeon take damage depending on the bludgeon’s size. If the bludgeon is a weapon, the attack deals appropriate damage for that weapon (bolts and arrows are treated as daggers for this purpose). Since weapons are designed to deal damage, they do not suffer damage if used as a bludgeon.
Catch [Small Metal objects]
If using telekinesis on a projectile or thrown object within your size limit (often as a readied action), you may stop the attack from dealing damage. The originator of the attack (the creature who threw the projectile, etc.) is allowed a Will save to negate this ability. After catching an object, you may move it as normal for your telekinesis.
Class Skills:
The armorist’s class skills are Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (Arcana; Int), Knowledge (Engineering; Int), Knowledge (Nobility; Int), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Swim (Str), and Use Magic Device (Cha).
Skill Ranks Per Level: 2 + Int modifier.
BAB+6/+1
Saves +5/+2/+2
Base Caster Level CL3 [Count Blasts as CL6]
Weapon and Armor Proficiency
An armorist is proficient with all simple and martial weapons, light armor, medium armor, and shields (except tower shields).
Casting
An armorist may combine spheres and talents to create magical effects. An armorist is considered a Low-Caster and uses Wisdom Int as her casting ability modifier. (Note: All casters gain 2 bonus talents and may select a casting tradition the first time they gain the casting class feature.)
Spell Pool [11Sp/day]
An armorist gains a small reservoir of energy she can call on to create truly wondrous effects, called a spell pool. This pool contains a number of spell points equal to her level + her Wisdom Int modifier (minimum: 1). This pool replenishes once per day after roughly 8 hours of rest.
Magic Talents x3
An armorist gains a magic talent at 2nd level and every 2 levels thereafter, according to Table: Armorist.
1:Explosive Orb (blast shape) [15'r] [DC18]
You may spend a spell point to make a destructive blast as a burst effect centered anywhere within range. This burst has up to a 10 ft radius, + 5 ft per 5 caster levels. Affected creatures are allowed a Reflex saving throw for half damage.
2:Mana Siphon (blast type)[Vampire] [-2SP] [4D4 NL DMG]
Your destructive blast saps the magic energy from your target, funneling it to you. A mana drain blast does nonlethal damage using d4 dice instead of d6 and your target must make a Fortitude save or lose 1 spell point. This loss increases by one die size (1d2, 1d3, 1d4, 1d6, etc.) for every five caster levels. You gain an equal number of temporary spell points that last for one round per caster level, though you cannot receive more spell points than your target loses. These temporary spell points do not stack with spell points from other targets, other instances of this ability, or any other source and expire after 1 round per caster level.
3:Energy Leap (blast shape)
You may spend a spell point to move in a straight line up to your destructive blast’s range as a standard action. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity and you may pass through occupied spaces. Any creatures whose space you pass through are affected by your destructive blast, with a Reflex save for half damage. If you attempt to pass through an object and fail to break through it, you appear in the nearest unoccupied space and are staggered for one round. This blast shape cannot be combined with the Extreme Range advanced talent.
Arm Cannon (Su):
At 1st level, the blaster blaster binds a unique weapon known as the arm cannon, which counts in all ways as a bound weapon. This arcane construct covers most of one arm and could appear as anything from a cluster of levitating silk ribbons to a glimmering tube of metal or an oblong block of crystal (although whatever an arm cannon appears as, its appearance does not change). When summoned, the arm cannon occupies one hand and cannot be disarmed. The arm cannon is a ranged weapon that makes ranged touch attacks, and deals 1d6 bludgeoning damage +1d6 at 5th level and every four levels beyond 5th. The weapon has no range penalties, but has a maximum range of Close. In all other ways, the arm cannon counts as a destructive blast from the Destruction sphere with a caster level equal to the armorist’s level, but also as a ranged weapon, even being augmented by feats such as Rapid Shot, Deadly Aim (as if it were a firearm), Weapon Focus, etc. While the arm cannon is not directly tied to the armorist’s caster level, he may nonetheless augment his arm cannon with (blast type) and (blast shape) talents, the Extended Range talent, or the Crafted Blast talent. He must still spend any spell points required by the applied talents, and must spend those spell points for each attack. The Admixture talent may be applied as a full-round action, or as part of a full-attack if the additional costs are paid for every attack to which it is applied. The arm cannon can gain enhancements as normal for a bound weapon.
This ability modifies the bound equipment class feature.
Destruction
The blaster gains the Destruction sphere as a bonus sphere at 1st level. If the Destruction sphere is already possessed, then he may choose any talent from the Destruction sphere as a bonus talent. At 5th level, you gain a bonus talent from the Destruction sphere.
This replaces the summon equipment class feature.
1:Extended Range 100' +10' Level
Increase the range of your destructive blast by 1 range level (Close to Medium, Medium to Long). You may select this talent multiple times. The effects stack.
2:Extended Range 400' +40'Level [640']
Increase the range of your destructive blast by 1 range level (Close to Medium, Medium to Long). You may select this talent multiple times. The effects stack.
Arsenal Trick x3
At second level and every even-numbered level thereafter the armorist gains an arsenal trick, representing the ways she has chosen to focus her study of equipment and its uses. Unless otherwise specified, an individual arsenal trick can only be gained once.
1:Staff-like Cannon [+2]
You may add magic talents from the Destruction sphere to your arm cannon as a +2 enhancement equivalent as if it were a staff. You do not need to know the talent for it to be selected.
[+2] OR
-:[+1]+Distance 1280' range Increment.
2:Additional Binding (Requires Bound Equipment) [Second Arm Cannon]
You may bind an additional piece of equipment.
3:Combat Feat
You may select a combat feat as a bonus feat. You must meet the prerequisites for this feat.
-:improved two-weapon-fighting
Armor Training (Ex)
Starting at 3rd level, an armorist learns to be more maneuverable while wearing armor. Whenever she is wearing armor, she reduces the armor check penalty by 1 (to a minimum of 0) and increases the maximum Dexterity bonus allowed by her armor by 1. Every four levels thereafter (7th, 11th, 15th, and 19th) these bonuses increase by +1, to a maximum –5 reduction of the armor check penalty and a +5 increase of the maximum Dexterity bonus allowed. In addition, an armorist can also move at her normal speed while wearing medium armor. At 7th level, an armorist can move at her normal speed while wearing heavy armor.
None slotted Items On belt
-:Cold Iron Combat Knife
-Wand clip 1gp
-Wand of Shield 18/50 265gp
-Wand of Infernal Healing 18/50 565gp
-Wand of Presto 10/50 150gp
Pathfinder Pouch 1000gp
-:Normal space
Silver Wayfinder 500gp 1lb
Slotted-(Ioun Stones)
1:incandescent-blue-sphere-ioun-stone Cracked price: 200gp [cracked]
Blind-Fight Feat +1 competence bonus on one Wisdom-based skill
2:Pink and Green Sphere price: [500] [cracked]
-:This stone sustains the wearer on half the normal amount of food.
-:Protection from possession and mental control (as protection from evil).
Hidden space
-:Orders and peesonal Documenets.
-:Note Book and Pen 4p --lb
-:Signal Whistle 5sp --lb
-:Boot leg whisky x2 2gp
