Ironbriar's Journal [SPOILERS - I mean it!]

[Shisumo]

My PCs fought and killed Ironbriar and his minions last session; rather than using much in the way of stealth, however, they followed a strategy that is best described as "whack the hornet's nest with a stick." As a result, much of the possibilities for exposition were lost, not to mention the dangers of facing Xanesha unprepared. To fix that, then, I decided to expand a little bit on the information contained in Ironbriar's journal. Here's what I am going to offer them:

9 Calistril 4707

Spoiler:

We took a gnome named Carter Vishellan tonight. The irony amuses me no end; not three days ago, I stood in my judicial robes and awarded Vishellan a settlement of almost seventeen thousand gold, and tonight I stretch his face across the boards to join the others of my collection. I wondered, when I first dreamed of the death of Vishellan, whether this was some sort of rebuke from Father Skinsaw, but in my prayers I have come to see that it was not. Vishellan’s victory in the courts caused disruption and suffering among his opponents – his death now will stir those waters further, and perhaps only Norgorber himself knows what chaos will be unleashed. I am once again in awe of the grandeur of my great lord’s vision, and humbled indeed to be his instrument in this world.

14 Calistril 4707

Spoiler:

My faithfulness has at last been rewarded: Father Skinsaw has sent me a messenger in the flesh, rather than in my visions! And oh, how lovely she is! Her name is Xanesha, but she carries the title Wanton of Nature’s Pagan Forms, and why deny it? Anything in nature, anyone at all, would indeed wish to wanton with her!

She came to me in my judicial chambers, seeming to know already my role within the Sacred Work. In the privacy of my chambers, she revealed Norgorber’s symbol to me, and explained that she had come to give our work a greater focus. She will teach us new rites, and we will better serve our god by these new dedications. I can think of nothing but the glory that she brings us… nothing, that is, but she herself. It was all too easy to believe her when she said she came from Norgorber, for “divine” is the only word that captures her beauty. Before she left, she favored me with a smile – do I dare hope that my heavenly rewards might extend as far as to include her heart?

27 Pharast 4707

Spoiler:

Father Skinsaw’s plans are broad indeed, for my beloved (oh, how I thrill at being able to call her so!) has given us much to do; we claim a new soul for Norgorber’s glory every week, and the list my love provides runs long – and ambitiously high. The new rites we must perform in his service lengthen the ceremony as well, but the “Sihedron rune” has a certain aesthetic appeal that I find strangely compelling; I am grateful to Xanesha for revealing it to me.

18 Desnus 4707

Spoiler:

It can only be that I have won my Wanton’s heart, for today she revealed her true nature to me. Perhaps others would be disgusted by the rippling, scaled length of her tail, but not I; I find every aspect of her compelling, whether elven or lamia. What matter physicality, when she literally glows with the divine?

17 Sarenith 4707

Spoiler:

A complication today, but perhaps also a possibility. Foxglove’s heir, that idiot fop Aldern, seems to have killed his wife in a fit of jealousy, and has come to the Brothers for aid. I dislike the boy and have little taste for the extra work that dealing with the matter will entail, but the Foxglove family still has resources, financial and otherwise, that the Brothers could make use of. After discussing the matter with Xanesha, I have decided that we will take on Aldern’s… difficulty. He should be more than malleable enough to be useful in the long term.

22 Erastus 4707

Spoiler:

Oh, how I wish I did not have to write these words! Though he had served me long and well, Philus revealed himself a traitor when he burst into my rooms at the sawmill and demanded that I – that the Brothers of the Seven – cut ties with the Wanton. He claimed that she is not a messenger from Father Skinsaw, that she had turned our work to her own purposes; he even went so far as to claim she had twisted my will with some enchantment! My love was right; I had no choice but to kill him. I wept when she explained it to me, for Philus had been not only a friend for many years, but also a selfless servant of Norgorber, giving all he had to the Brothers, but the divine truth in her words was undeniable. At Xenasha’s insistence, we did not even perform the Sihedron rites upon him. He died without the new sign of Norgorber’s favor.

4 Arodus 4707

Spoiler:

I still sorrow for Philus’ death, so tonight Xanesha took me hunting with her and the faceless stalkers I assigned to her service. I am still in awe at her power: the speed with which she fought, her grace as she flew, the skill and fury with which she struck. I know these are the workings of her spells – some are even ones I can call upon myself – but somehow, they seem greater when she performs them.

The only sour note in our evening together was when we returned. I dislike the Clocktower and, for that matter, all of the Shade; the area is a festering filth, and my love does not deserve to nest in such squalor. Moreover, the Scarecrow unsettles me, though I would not show it. Foxglove’s work must have been shoddy all those years ago; ever since the golem awoke, it has disturbed me. I was all too happy to turn it over to the Wanton’s service when she asked.

But I do not like the way it looks at my Xanesha.

18 Rova 4707

Spoiler:

As I thought he would, Aldern has proven easy to manipulate. He has run out of funds, and now my beloved has turned him to her own purposes. They involve the festering plagues that incubate in the Manor’s depths, the “Legacy of Vorel” – I believe she plans to sell them to the Red Mantis in Korvosa. I admit, this seems strange to me; I cannot see what Norgorber plans for Vorel’s Legacy. But of course, Xanesha’s word is Father Skinsaw’s – I will meditate as I have before, in hopes of having my vision opened. In the meantime, Aldern has been sent back to the Manor to harvest the Legacy, and I have washed my hands of him.

5 Lamashan 4707

Spoiler:

Ah, that fool Aldern! Somehow he drew the attention of busybodies from Sandpoint, of all places, and they sought him out at the Manor! If he was not careful… I will have to make arrangements at the Foxglove townhouse, to assure that nothing connects to the Brothers, and place my followers on alert here…

[Mary Yamato]

Very, very nice. Revealing Xanesha's nature is perhaps a little forced--you might prefer just to hint at it--but the rest is perfect.

You might consider adding a musing on the upcoming death of the Mayor and what it will mean politically--Ironbriar's rank is so high, he must be pretty politically savvy.

Mary

[Jodah]

Sigh...if only...if only I hadnt already run Skinsaw. This would have been soo great to have on hand. handouts are so much better than descriptions.

Damn Damn Damn.

[Blue_eyed_paladin]

Very impressive, Shisumo.

My players just hacked up the cult (although they got heard coming up the stairs, and the cultists started hurling spare sawblades down the staircase at them, cutting off the left ear of our elf scout) and managed to capture Ironbriar.

After a lengthy interrogation process (including a bestow curse to drop his Will saves, a touch of idiocy to lower his cunning, a discern lies and zone of truth from High Chaplain Tira Ronnova) they managed to get him to spill the beans, and they're looking forwards to a quick trial.

Our wizard has been trying to decipher Ironbriar's journals, and this will make for a really great handout. At the moment, they still believe that maybe Xanesha made Ironbriar do all the killings, this will shock them.

[Phil Ridley]

I love it, and have snagged it to use when I finally get round to starting my RotRL campaign. I might edit it a bit to make Xanesha's description a bit more ambiguous. I'd rather not give away the lamia bit until they actually meet her.

[Salama]

Jodah wrote:

Sigh...if only...if only I hadnt already run Skinsaw. This would have been soo great to have on hand. handouts are so much better than descriptions.

Damn Damn Damn.

Did your players decipher the journal? My players still have the journal, but haven't been able to read it because it's written in three different languages. I think I'm going to use this journal, thanks to OP.

[finerion]

That is a great write-up Shisumo. My players are about to go after Ironbriar next session so this is perfect timing. Thanks!

[Elorebaen]

Well done, and thank you for sharing.

[Shisumo]

Mary Yamato wrote:

Very, very nice. Revealing Xanesha's nature is perhaps a little forced--you might prefer just to hint at it--but the rest is perfect.

Philip Ridley wrote:

I might edit it a bit to make Xanesha's description a bit more ambiguous. I'd rather not give away the lamia bit until they actually meet her.

I confess to having used the heavy end of the hammer on this, and I strongly encourage anyone else who uses this to modify Xanesha's description (or any of the rest of it, for that matter!) as best suits their campaign. For me, the decision to be so unsubtle was based on my desperate desire for the PCs to have some preparation for facing Xanesha when the time comes, and every description I tried that was less blatant wound up making her sound like a naga. YMMV, absolutely.

I'm glad a few people are finding it handy!

[Brian Carpenter]

Thanks for writing these up, Shisumo.

My group is just about to head to Magnimar and this will come in handy.

[Anglachel]

Shisumo wrote:

Here's what I am going to offer them:

...

Thanks for sharing that, I going to use it!

Regards

[Warforged Goblin]

This was a great help for me. The fact that "lamia" was mentioned and not... well, y'know, threw my players for a loop. They researched lamias and came up with all the information on the lion-bodied creatures they thought they could use. The looks of WTF were priceless. Great stuff!

[Shisumo]

Warforged Goblin wrote:

This was a great help for me. The fact that "lamia" was mentioned and not... well, y'know, threw my players for a loop. They researched lamias and came up with all the information on the lion-bodied creatures they thought they could use. The looks of WTF were priceless. Great stuff!

LOL

They, ah, didn't wonder about the "scales" reference...?

[Watcher]

Brillaint stuff sir, glad I found it.. We're just finishing Foxglove Manor.

Thanks for sharing.

Man, we need an offical Paizo player support center for cool player made add-on's like this.

[Slime]

Great stuff!

My players will get big kick out of this.

Many thanks for sharing your great work.

[Ebolav]

Awesome stuff! This is the kind of fluff that my players go crazy for, and most of the time I don't have the time to write...thank you!!!! (we're finishing # 2/starting # 3 on the 23rd, so perfect timing)

[Varun Creed]

Thanks Shisumo!

For everyone, I've made it pretty using Homebrewery:
http://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/SkcEevzex

(I've made a comment in the SOURCE how to change the handwriting font.)

Or just the PDF https://goo.gl/311Twm