I should probably resume posting here! I've been busy lately, but we just finished our eighteenth session and it's been a lot of fun. There've been some great developments. Olivia's phantom, Isabelle, was revealed to the group (and is super scary), Aktri and Paz are growing more distant, Aktri is bizarrely heading towards a love triangle with a genderswapped Gorvi and Rynshinn, Wormbasil is on the verge of receiving a blessing from Lamashtu, they just found Koruvus's new mutated form and destroyed it, and Blue Moon has been enjoying its cider.
Alright, time for the low-effort notes. These were taken by Aktri's player. SESSION FOUR.
Aktri of the Seven Tooth (she/her), Goblin Inventor: An insecure, borderline narcissistic tinkerer who will do anything to secure the admiration and attention of others. Having shown off Thuz's capabilities in combat, she's quite excited at the new attention she's getting--but infuriated at Olivia's gaslighting earlier.
Wormbasil Deverin (he/him), Human Rogue: The mayor's shy, awkward nephew whose best friend/secret crush, Nualia, died in a fire five years ago. He's hating the new attention he's getting.
Olivia Milotti (she/her), Human Summoner: A synthesist summoner haunted by the Wrath Phantom of her friend Isabelle Sera (she/her), who was one of Chopper's final victims. She's disturbed at Isabelle's bloodlust during the fight, and extremely pissed with Aktri.
Blue Moon (they/it), Poppet Investigator: A very curious, very polite, kind of terrifying barn owl-like minor cryptid determined to understand its own origins. Alternates between intently curious and utterly terrified around strangers, but has proven incredibly capable in combat.
CHAPTER TWO: LOCAL HEROES
----
The Hagfish, Pt. 1
As Olivia and Paz are taking their leave, an inescapably familiar voice bellows from nearby. “Oh, hey, Milotti!” It's the human embodiment of a sledgehammer that is Jargie Quinn. The peg-legged innkeeper is leaning out the window, his bulbous head only narrowly fitting through the porthole-like opening. “And Mvashti’s girl! Why don’t you c’malong for a bite to eat, on the house! I hear we’re in for traitorous weather this week, so you’d best pick a proper seaworthy breakfast!”
The two of them are briskly ushered into the Hagfish. The atmosphere of the Hagfish is intentionally meant to evoke a ship, with round windows, decorations of driftwood and sea glass, and a board covered in pinned drawings and accounts of a mythical giant sea turtle. The air smells of the sea. The Hagfish gets its name from the large glass aquarium that sits behind the bar, the home of a repellent hagfish that Jargie affectionately calls Norah.
The bar is styled to resemble a taffrail, with one end arching up in the grand manner of a ship’s figurehead—but culminating in a blackened, burnt stump. An old rusty hatchet is buried in the center of this stump, like an ancient woodsman meant to demolish the whole bar but never quite got back to it. Nobody sits at that end.
Jargie lost someone to The Chopper, and the ordinarily temperless innkeeper was especially vehement in the cause of destroying Stoot's work wherever it could be found in the aftermath.
The Hagfish is surprisingly quiet this time of day, but Olivia and Paz notice a silence take hold when they walk into the room. A few customers wave or greet the pair. Olivia’s used to that kind of awkwardness.
Olivia does what she can to ignore everyone else, though she does give a little hello to Norah, who gives an air bubble in response. The two of them are fairly intimidated by Jargie's intensely boisterous demeanor, but Olivia and Paz eventually both manage to place their orders—two servings of "Murdermaw-in-a-cup", an herb-infused turtle soup.
The three of them have a bit of conversation. Olivia comments to Jargie that Norah blew a bubble at her, and Jargie playfully scolds Norah for her rudeness.
Olivia raises an eyebrow. "I think she's more than welcome to be rude if people keep coming in bothering her in her home."
Jargie gives an awkward laugh and goes to prepare the pair's orders.
----
A Misunderstanding, Pt. 1
Aktri, while on her way to Madame Mvashti's home to look for Paz, notices that she's being followed by a hapless watchman, Nilas Bagman. When confronted, he awkwardly tells her that he's coming with her as an escort at the sheriff's insistence, just in case she receives any trouble.
Aktri is puzzled by the need for protection, both because she sees no reason for hostilities from the townsfolk and also because Thuz can clearly handle any trouble. She's considerably more troubled by Nilas's reveal that the town’s attempts to get in touch with the Seven Tooth have been met with nothing but silence.
aktri: ...if I tell you to go away, are you going to try to sneak after me again?
nilas:
aktri:
nilas: ⁿⁿⁿⁿᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ
nilas:
nilas: yeah.
----
Town Hall
Basil heads up the stairs of the Town Hall to Mayor Deverin's office, where he hears raised voices talking about the raid, the aftermath, and things "crawling out of the grave". He doesn't try to listen in, but he doesn't try not to, either.
The door opens, and Sheriff Hemlock and Father Zantus take their leave. They both greet him with slight surprise.
His aunt pops out and invites Basil into her office, which is a little bit of a mess right now. So is she, really. She praises Basil for his actions during the raid, adding that it's nice to see him "making friends".
Mayor Deverin: "Would you like some coffee?"
Basil: "... you could probably use it better than me."
Mayor Deverin: "Ugh, I've been trying to kick the habit, but I need a little to get me through a day like today."
Basil: "Nothing wrong with coffee, but. You should try sleep."
Basil always speaks very softly and haltingly, as if never quite sure what to do with his own voice.
The two of them discuss the matter of the goblin raid. She, too, mentions that the town's attempts to reach the Seven Tooth tribe have been met with complete silence. It's also made clear that it's very strange for the Thistletops to have gone and organized a raid at all—they're usually more preoccupied with harassing the other tribes.
Kendra asks Basil if he can possibly bring Aktri in so she can maybe shed some light on the situation. She also lets him know that Alma of Sandpoint Savories wanted to see him today. Basil is clearly still concerned about his aunt's health, but since she seems eager to get back to work, the two bid each other good luck and good rest, and Basil leaves to see where that goblin has gotten off to.
----
The Hagfish, Pt. 2
Back at the Hagfish, Paz and Olivia are approached by a boisterous fisherman named Javin, who heard quite a few tall tales about the party's exploits in the raid--mostly from a known rumormonger named Chod Bevok. One particular rumor is that Olivia was apparently conjuring up "spectral knights". Paz and Olivia are not in any particular mood to be drawn into the gossip, but the regulars are eager for a yarn. "Yarning" is a game in which the goal is to tell as elaborate a story as possible without contradicting oneself.
It's at this point that Blue Moon emerges from a shadowy corner, having been here all along.
While Blue Moon is also quite reluctant to spin a story for the crowd, they have an offer in mind: If they were given apple cider, they would tell the tale. Javin, desperate for a firsthand account, runs off to Risa's place to get Blue Moon a mug.
Jargie comes out at this point with their orders and quickly launches into a yarn of his own, the story of how Old Murdermaw cost him his leg. This causes one of the other random patrons to yell out, "Last week it was a buzzsaw!" Jargie is about to retort when he notices Blue Moon.
Blue Moon raises its hand and meekly asks Jargie for "a bird. A dead one. Or recently alive is fine too."
Later on, it's revealed that they couldn't find any proper birds, so Jargie provides some roasted sea quail instead. Blue Moon cries tears of tragedy. They still eat it, though.
Javin returns with the apple cider before too long, which Blue Moon instantly gulps down.
Blue Moon: "There were...so many goblins. At least ten of them. No...a hundred of them!"
Javin: "You already lost."
Blue Moon, without missing a beat: "I fought them off...using my bare...hand-things that are attached somewhere on my body."
Javin: "You have bear hands, too?!"
Blue Moon: Yes, I got them in a fight, with a bear."
Blue Moon: "and a hundred and one goblins too"
Blue Moon: "so... this was really nothing for me"
Javin: "Bear-owl hybrids. What will they think of next?"
Seeing that Blue Moon is floundering, Paz cuts in to explain that they've all had a rough time of it and could use a break. Good-natured Jargie agrees and backs off.
Javin immediately asks the party if it's true that one of the goblins they fought was in a giant, twenty-foot tall machine that was crushing buildings.
Paz: "Um. That one was my friend, actually."
Javin: "You have one of those on your side?! A twenty-foot tall machine! Ha! Sandpoint's never gonna be in trouble again!"
Paz: "Um! I don't! I don't know if twenty feet is accurate, exactly...""
Olivia: "Yeah, more like thirty."
Blue Moon: "a hundred!"
Javin assumes that Paz is the one who made Thuz, but she clarifies that Aktri is the one responsible. Javin praises the amazing power of such a creation. "You must be pretty proud of your friend!"
Paz is saved from the need to reply by Olivia starting up a yarn of her own, taking advantage of the whole "ghost army" misconception to spin a thoroughly spooky tale. This fully absorbs the attention of the patrons, and the tension eases.
----
Madame Mvashti's
Aktri reaches Madame Mvashti's place and bangs on the door in search of Paz.
Madame Mvashti is a woman not known for her patience, especially with egos larger than her own without the clout to back it up. Her large, beautiful house is the eternal sore point for the Scarnetti family, who thought they'd get to purchase it for their own ends as soon as she died--and have been waiting forty years since with growing impatience as their own elders continue to die off. She remembers helping to drive off Alamon's attempted massacre forty years ago. She doesn't enjoy strong egos, and she's never liked Aktri much, especially not over the last year. It's hard to rattle her, and her prickly, impatient demeanor quickly puts Aktri off-balance.
Barely waiting for an introduction, Mvashti immediately demands Aktri go and get the jar from upstairs. She's too old to take the stairs for every little old thing.
Aktri, who's been here before, doesn't try to argue. The goblin goes along with her request, only to find that the indicated shelf is full of jars.
Aktri: "Which jar was it?"
Niska (shouting): "What?"
Aktri (shouting): "Which jar was it!"
Niska: "Don't shout in my house, girl. It's the red one."
Aktri grabs 'the red one' and heads back downstairs, grumbling to herself. Mvashti snaps to quit grumbling--she's not deaf. She inspects the jar, then hands it back to Aktri and tells her to throw it away.
Aktri finally manages to ask where Paz is. Madame Mvashti asks her if she knows where Paz is. Aktri sputters--why would she ask if she knew already? But the elder suggests that Paz might be hiding from Aktri, citing Aktri's "alarming" demeanor and Paz's sensitive ears. This, along with Mvashti pointing out that Aktri would probably be one of the people who should know where Paz is, just starts building Aktri's insecurities about the fact that she doesn't.
Madame Mvashti: "If I had to guess, I would say that my Paz would be with her friends. Do you know who those are?"
After multiple seconds of dead silence, Aktri smashes the jar against the floor of the foyer and storms out of the house, slamming the door behind her.
Madame Mvashti sniffs. "I do not like that girl."
The sounds of shrieking and breaking glass earn Aktri a few leery glances as she rushes from the house, and the crowd stills. A lanky man with an unpleasant sneer approaches her. It's Daviren Hosk, local owner of the Goblin Squash Stables. He's not too happy to see a goblin in town, especially after yesterday.
Aktri initially dismisses his threatening overtures--she has better things to worry about, and more interesting people to be angry with. But when she denies knowing anything about the raid, he snidely identifies her as "the goblin even other goblins don't like", and this strikes a nerve.
Tempers rise. The poor watchman tries to deescalate things, but Daviren completely dismisses him and expresses his readiness to defend himself if he must. His hand goes to his bow, and it's clear that the definition of 'must' is quite lenient on Daviren Hosk's lips.
But then a shout rises from out of the crowd, and a hunched, lanky figure emerges. It's Turch Sterglus, the old, well-loved worker of the local fish market. Turch has a gentle, imprecise sort of manner, like a bumblebee that can't quite decide which way it's going to go but will not be turned aside in whichever direction it winds up taking. Aktri, he points out, was one of the people who helped defend the town during the raid! She's no enemy of theirs.
The watchman grabs Hosk and starts pulling him away, but Hosk snarls at Turch to just go back to handling his fish and mind his own business! Turch nods sheepishly, never fully disagreeing, but admonishes Daviren for harassing someone who was saving lives yesterday. As Daviren sputters, the bumblebee shows its stinger as Turch Sterglus pointedly remarks that he didn't remember seeing much sign of Daviren's arrows during the raid, did he, now?
With Daviren thoroughly humbled, the man stalks off, leaving Aktri and Turch to talk for a moment. During this, Turch displays both a penchant for rambling and "propensiation" for malapropisms.
Turch mentions that Mavvi had apparently come to Turch the day before the festival and advised him to skip the event, an anecdote with some very alarming implications for Aktri. They chat about their mutual respect for fish as fellow fisherfolk, and Turch admires Thuz's construction. He identifies the seven-pointed logo on Thuz's core as being something he saw in one of the books of local scholar Brodert Quink. Aktri is intrigued.
Turch: "Well, I didn't go to the Festival anyways, as, well, fish don't stop for nothin'."
Aktri: "Not before you get the harpoon in 'em!"
Aktri finally bids him farewell so she can continue her search for Paz, only to run into yet another gregarious local... Sister Celia. Excited to talk to one of the "Heroes of Sandpoint", the prattling priestess immediately starts asking Aktri all sorts of questions about the raid and its aftermath. She also asks about a lot of apparent non sequiturs, like Aktri's connection to Olivia, Aktri's lack of employment, and Aktri's tail—which gets called cute again, much to the goblin's disgruntlement.
Aktri manages to cut in and ask if Celia knows where Paz is, and somehow instead of actually answering the question, Celia manages to reveal some salacious details about Paz's parents—that apparently one of them left town and the other one was a notorious con artist of some description.
Aktri interjects to repeat her question again, and after saying nothing for another few paragraphs, Celia finally says that she heard someone saw Paz having what was described as a fairly intimate sort of conversation with Olivia by the beach. She last saw them going into the Hagfish. She then gives some directions to Aktri, who immediately starts climbing back into Thuz to ride off, leaving Celia mid-sentence.
Basil stops by Sandpoint Savories and is met by the sweet-tempered Alma Avertin, who asks if Basil has had breakfast yet. She's been worried about him lately--he's clearly not eating right, just like his aunt! Her daughter Arika comes down and rather bashfully hands him a strawberry honeybun. Alma thanks Basil for his hard work defending the town yesterday. Extremely awkward and cripplingly shy, Basil thanks her and takes his leave.
Olivia, Blue Moon and Paz are taking their leave of the tavern, having had their fill of sea quail, turtle soup, and raid gossip. They're heading towards the marketplace, but at the sound of Thuz's clopping hooves, Olivia immediately hurries around a corner to beat a hasty retreat.
She collides directly with Basil. He drops the honeybun. This is already a disaster.
Paz and Blue Moon dart after Olivia and are seen by Aktri, who immediately follows after them. At the sound of Thuz's approach, Basil suddenly picks up the honeybun, grabs Olivia by the hand, and dives into the nearest public establishment with an open door. "Say hi for me!" Olivia blurts at the indignant Paz. They find themselves in the General Store, where Ven Vinder is currently arguing with his daughter over how late she came home last night.
Aktri finally reaches the abandoned Paz and Blue Moon, frantic and more than a little bit upset, demanding to know why Paz had disregarded their plans (well, Aktri's plans) to spend the rest of the day together. Paz eventually manages to placate Aktri by explaining that she was just trying to smooth things over with Olivia after their argument earlier that morning—something Paz does for Aktri rather frequently.
Accepting this, Aktri grabs the gnome's hand with both of her own. Desperation in her eyes, she eagerly announces that now they can hang out for the whole afternoon!
Blue Moon pipes up, meekly asking if it can come too. Aktri only now notices the poppet.
Paz tries to invite Blue Moon, but Aktri cuts in. She says, in an uncharacteristically quiet and weighty voice, that she wants to be with her friend. She pulls Paz away to drown the gnome in chatter about what she's learned today. Paz can only weather the storm.
Blue Moon is left alone in the street, probably twiddling its weird little thumbs.
Major changes:
1. Added a confrontation between Hosk and Aktri. I think a confrontation with Hosk is maybe a good idea for an encounter even if there's no goblin PC. Hosk is a great antagonist, but he gets little wasted in the original book because goblins used to be pure evil in Golarion. Maybe let the PCs rescue a meek elderly goblin who's always lived in town, or something like that. It was a good little encounter. It's also good to emphasize that the town watch doesn't endorse someone like Hosk early on.
2. It's a small thing, but I tweaked Turch. I felt like Jargie already fulfills our quota for "rustic old fisherman", and I liked the idea of making him just kind of a pleasant doddering old man. He was very influenced by "The Gnome" in Little Tiny Things.
3. I'm emphasizing that Sandpoint doesn't have a town guard, but a town watch. Joining the Watch is basically a volunteer position, and they're armed with quarterstaves. Their responsibilities are mostly about protection, like walking drunks home, escorting lost children back to their families, and raising the alarm if there's a danger. They're more trained in tasks like first aid and deescalation than in battle, and if you called them to evict a tenant, they'd probably be more there to help negotiate and provide witness than to muscle the guy out. This is partially due to group politics--people in my group wouldn't find characters like Belor as sympathetic if they were essentially cops on the beat--but mostly to build the stakes. The PCs, Belor Hemlock, Shalelu Andosana, and Ameiko Kaijitsu are the only real capable fighters in Sandpoint. Maybe Mvashti and the headmaster of the Turandarok Academy could throw a few spells, but Gandethus's specialty is much more in constructive and helpful magic than blasting, and Mvashti's adventuring days are long behind her. If the PCs can't get it done, no one can.
4. Nobody’s seen anyone from the Seven Tooths since all this started. They all apparently disappeared, and accounts vary—some say they saw goblins fighting goblins, but others say it looked more like bickering over winnings. Others insist they saw Neeka in full war face racing from the scene with a bunch of other Seven Tooths in tow, fully ignoring the mayhem. In reality, the truth is more complicated--Mavvi and Neeka had heard rumors, but had chosen to brush them off. Neeka actually knew about the raid, but recklessly chose to say nothing, assuming it would just be a bit of dumb goofing off. When the raid started and immediately got bloody, they hastened to evacuate their own young tribemembers before anyone could do anything stupid. Significant tension has formed between Neeka and Mavvi as a result of this.
5. Hagfish menu: Breaded clam strips, lobster chowder, spicy oyster shooters, pink shrimp on cabbage with hot honey, ‘slum cannon’ (garlic bread bowl w/shrimp chowder), honey garlic butter salmon, urchin in the shell, Murdermaw in a Cup (snapping turtle soup with lemon dragons (edible snapdragon)
6. This party really didn't enjoy the raid and is dominated by introverts, so they're having really mixed feelings about the Local Heroes thing. It's lots of fun to roleplay, though!
Welp, I hope this won't get me into trouble.
I actually want to know more about what happened next, as it sound pretty interesting.
Also, that Blue Moon player sound so shy, it's adorable.
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As an update, for anyone still watching, we went on a lengthy hiatus after our landlord decided to subtly force us out of our home, likely in hopes of selling it. Then everyone got sick, and then... well, it's been hectic. We're going to do our first session in ages either this week or the next. They'll be finally heading to Thistletop!
I may link the recap document Aktri's player has done, although it's a lot rougher than my prose recaps. More likely I'll just try to summarize more of my changes.
Oh, I thought I'd share a peek at this little Campaign Achievements document I've been working on, though. Everyone gets a Hero Point if one gets fulfilled. The italicized pair refresh at the end of every session.
I also give people Hero Points for session/adventure milestones, like "the party reaches Thistletop" or "the party encounters Gogmurt". It's a nice alternative to the 1-hour timer that helps make sure people are actually getting points when they need them.
So, some notable changes I made to the Thistletop approach:
Horsequest is acquired in the Nettlewood as Lester Absinthe is fleeing the goblins, and is why Shalelu is forced to part ways with the party and can't come with them--she has to show this dumbass back to the road.
Lester Absinthe, the owner of Shadowmist, is a somewhat amoral messenger from Korvosa bearing the critical news that a Scarnetti son has been found murdered in the walls of his own home (tracked down and murdered by Nualia, naturally). He is a blustering, scatterbrained fellow with a pencil mustache and a thick Korvosan accent. He loves his horse, viewing her as a crucial business partner, and eagerly raves about her high quality and great expense. He also only escaped because the goblins were distracted hacking a path through for their captive horse.
Lester is a coward and a little selfish. Although he leads in with, "They've got her! Who knows what they're doing to her!", he has quite forgotten that his sister, Pavla, was also captured. He sort of rationalized that she was already dead when he abandoned her. She wasn't. There wasn't really anything he could have done, but it's still something he can't bear to think about or acknowledge in any serious way.
Not sure what I'll do with Lester, but I wanted a horse questgiver, I needed the reveal about the Scarnetti son for Nualia's story (sadly, the PCs didn't ask him what "business" he and Shadowmist were in, oh well), and he might be a useful NPC for the future.
Clearing a Path
I used Shadowmist to essentially justify giving the PCs a 10-ft-wide path through the thicket. There is a horse-shaped route through the brambles you can take without squeezing, but enemies attacking you from the tunnels around you gain cover unless you're Small-sized, since your head is up amid the brambles.
I didn't do this to fix a "plothole" (who cares), but I think it may be a good way of facilitating, say, a PC with a Large companion, or a Large PC like a centaur or minotaur.
Also, the endless cramped paths may be realistic, but they're really frustrating for a large party with a summoner and a construct inventor. I felt like the solution I gave was a good compromise--Small creatures retain some strategic advantage without it being tedious and frustrating.
Notably, there's a small branching path here--the PCs can choose to press on without Shalelu, or wait for her to return. If they wait, they'll encounter Gogmurt and his companion at the front entrance fixing things up, or might even find the thicket fully repaired (Shalelu knows from experience that Gogmurt works quick). Mine didn't wait.
I moved the Birdcruncher warriors to directly north of the Howling Hole, put them behind a thicket "door", and put a goblin dog guarding the door on their side.
I tweaked pretty recklessly here. I left it implied that the northwest region of the thicket is reserved for new recruits, mainly (but not entirely) Birdcruncher warriors and noncombatants. The warriors have been ill-treated and abused, but some are still hopeful that they'll be welcomed into the Thistletops eventually.
Of course, they keep getting thrown into the Howling Hole.
As far as they know, the grandiose Chief Mukwick died in the raid while aiding in the Boneyard heist. In reality, Ripnugget had one of his henchmen murder Mukwick en route (Tsuto was extremely annoyed, but didn't have time to worry about it). This was either out of a desire to grab power or, more likely, petty envy over Mukwick's beautiful scrub jay-feather cloak. The warriors' new de facto leader is Lental, because she is the oldest and also the loudest and most stubborn. She and three others are Unfriendly towards the PCs. The other five are Indifferent--they are exhausted and close to despair.
The most effective line of persuasion is to convince the Birdcrunchers that they will never be welcomed among the Thistletops, and perhaps to promise to deal with Gogmurt for them. Revealing that Ripnugget murdered their chief could also work. You can consider dropping hints about this earlier if you like, perhaps as rewards for PCs who interrogate captive goblins after the raid. Maybe a body turns up post-raid with a blue feather cloak and a dogslicer in its back.
I say I was reckless because the PCs would find it close to impossible to fight the Birdcrunchers in practice. Eight goblin warriors, plus a goblin dog, plus them sounding the alarm, plus the possibility of pursuers from the other recruits and refugees sequestered in the northwestern quarter. I wasn't prepped for a real fight. Luckily, the PCs spoke wisely and rolled well.
Part of the reason I wanted the Birdcrunchers to be entirely a roleplay encounter was to try to avoid this feeling like a goblin meatgrinder. The Thistletops may be awful, but they're also people being manipulated by cult-like leaders. The Birdcrunchers are half-indoctrinated, and their treatment is there to expose the cruelty of Thistletop conditioning. Helping the refugees leave the Thistletops by killing or persuading Gogmurt is a huge part of truly defeating the Thistletops in the long-term, allowing the refugees to leave and expose the cruelty and pointlessness of the cult.
I did kind of want to put Seven Tooth members there. I honestly just ran out of prep time. I think if I include Mavvi (the Seven Tooth peddler who's been trying to undermine the Seven Tooth alliance with the Thistletops), she'll be a captive in the Thistletop base itself. Maybe I'll have a character foreshadow that at the start of the new session.
So, Gogmurt is a plant druid now. It felt fitting for a goblin taking care of the thistles. He carries a shillelagh fashioned from woven teasels* and usually wears his goblin warface around guests to conceal a relatively soft, pleasant normal appearance.
Gogmurt is a gruff, angry, somewhat cruel sort who has mostly been having the Birdcrunchers thrown into the Howling Hole because of his orders--and because it's cathartic. He is loyal to the Thistletops, but less so to Ripnugget nowadays, and he detests the Prophet. Despite his callousness, Gogmurt doesn't like seeing Thistletops killed needlessly, and takes immense pride in both the Thistletops and his place among them. I almost considered basing him on Richard Nixon.
Gogmurt is Hostile towards the PCs, but willing to hear them out if they haven't attacked his companion yet.
Overall, Gogmurt must be made Unfriendly to let the PCs pass unhindered (but will still alert Ripnugget after they leave), and at least Indifferent to be persuaded to release the captives and not alert Ripnugget--an unlikely task indeed for his DC 22 Will save. A check gains an untyped +1 bonus for each of the following strategies, for a maximum total of +6.
- The PCs bring up the nuisance of the Thistletops wrecking the tunnels to bring that stupid horse in here.
- The PCs have a member who demonstrates the ability to speak Wildsong.
- The PCs suggest the Prophet's war will leave the Thistletops shattered and weak, their status lost. Invoking the Goblinblood Wars or the current state of the Birdcrunchers can help with this.
- The PCs suggest that with Ripnugget and the Prophet dead, there will be a power vacuum he might be able to take advantage of.
- The PCs have managed to make Thrakle friendly.
Thrakle
Before the PCs encounter Gogmurt, they will likely encounter a little leshy watching them. Thrakle (a Goblin word referring to death by getting entangled in brambles) is a sweet, amiable, almost flirtatious briar leshy who talks kind of like an AI personal assistant. If you've seen The Wild Robot, she talks and acts like Vontra. She acts friendly even when making threats. This is her home, and she loves Gogmurt dearly.
"Oh, I'd better tell Gogmurt, I'm sure he can clear aaall of this right up!"
"If you're not guests, should I tell Gogmurt you're intruders? :)"
Overall, Thrakle is much more diplomatic than Gogmurt, and as long as the PCs are polite to Thrakle and don't lie to her (she has a lowish Int, but a good Perception), she will happily alert Gogmurt to their location and allow a dialogue to be broached. Or she'll warn him so they can kill the intruders.
Thrakle starts out Unfriendly, but will shift up one step for every step Gogmurt improves by. If she becomes Indifferent and Gogmurt becomes Unfriendly or Indifferent, she will be heard asking Gogmurt in Fey, "Should we tell them about the trapped bridge?", to which he'll shrug. She sometimes likes to watch people cross the bridge, thinking it's funny when goblins forget to tie off the rope and fall in.
*A species of super-invasive thistle called Chelaxian teasel, abrogail, or fury thistle, depending on who you ask.
Of course, Blue Moon couldn't resist giving Thrakle its business card, so now I'll have to do some sort of noir sidequest for Blue Moon now where she comes into its office with a case.
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Great timing! It is still going, and we're returning from a couple weeks' hiatus today! I can get back to posting, if there's interest.
For what it's worth, the party just defeated Nualia after a tense rematch and is now advancing into the lower levels.
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Alright! I'll try to get back to sharing the changes I've made. We're over thirty-two sessions ahead of the recaps, so I probably won't resume posting those unless there's a lot of interest. I could keep posting the low-effort notes Aktri's player takes, if people like!
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Alright, let's run through the sessions and go over notable changes. I'll do these in small bursts.
SESSION FIVE
Aldrena asks the PCs endless questions about themselves, flattering them effusively.
When inviting them to the boar hunt, she also suggests that in thanks for her rescue, she'd like to take them to Vernah's Fine Clothing and get them outfitted properly. Her treat.
Ameiko comes in and makes conversation, setting up her father's illness and generally being her charming self.
Easily the largest building in Sandpoint, the Sandpoint Cathedral is not dedicated to the worship of a single deity. Rather, it gathers under its eaves the six most commonly worshiped deities in the region, providing chapels for all of these deities in a communal forum.
The Sandpoint Cathedral is nearly totally empty at this time of day, morning services having already been completed. Nearby, Father Zantus and several other acolytes pace between the shrines, swinging sweet-smoking censers and chanting hymns to the six gods. To the south, facing Sandpoint’s heart, are the shrines of civilization: Erastil and Abadar. To the west, offering a view of the Old Light and the sea beyond, are the shrines of Shelyn and Gozreh. And to the east, offering a view of the Sandpoint Boneyard and the rising sun, are the shrines of Sarenrae and Desna. Father Zantus and the others appear to be casting the consecration ritual that was interrupted two days ago.
The previous chapel wasn’t the first holy site in this location. The core of both the original chapel and the new cathedral is an open-air courtyard surrounding a set of seven ancient standing stones surrounding a circular stone altar. It is here that Sheriff Hemlock waits for you, accompanied by Kendra Deverin and, oddly, the gravetender Naffer Vosk.
Information covered:
- The Seven Tooth goblins seem to have abruptly returned to Shank’s Wood. Nobody's sure what's going on with them.
- There are no captive Seven Tooth goblins, but they’ve arrested a handful of goblins from other tribes—especially the Thistletops and the Mosswoods.
- There’s reason to believe someone from within the town was involved. There were signs that a ladder was left against the cemetery wall, and the north gate was left ajar. It wasn’t a goblin—signs point to someone of human height.
- Finally… there’s been a graverobbing at the cemetery. It happened during the raid. Father Tobyn’s and Nualia’s graves were dug up by a third group of goblins during the attack. Nualia’s body—and Ezakien’s, well, arm—have been stolen.
Hemlock seems dismissive of all the inside job stuff. In reality, he’s wary of pissing off the power players, especially as he privately suspects one of the founding families may have been involved.
Without Shalelu or Neeka the Bard, the town is flying blind. Hemlock is planning to take some guards and visit the Seven Tooths personally today. He doesn’t know what he’s in for, but someone’s got to figure out what's going on.
Luzane suggests that the party help hold down the fort while he’s gone. Hemlock is annoyed. He’ll be back by tonight, and he doesn’t want to make a habit of appointing deputies without a damn good reason.
The PCs are also free to investigate the graverobbing/inside job stuff; the sheriff is stumped, and reluctant to even touch it for now. Hemlock knows his position in town is a little tenuous.
SESSION SIX
Shayliss seeks out an attractive female partymember telling him she’s got a problem with birds in her attic. Big birds. Crows. She just kept leaving the shutters open when she wasn't supposed to, and she doesn’t want her father to know. Could Basil please help her shoo them out? One of them looked awfully big, and she’d feel a lot better with someone with her.
Shayliss intends to tell the PC about her situation, but a mix of getting flustered and wanting to deflect will lead to her coming onto them instead—her bodice slipping off and so on. The PC will see a lot of black feathers and a big sheet hung up like a curtain, cordoning off Shayliss’s bed from the rest of the attic.
The other side of the curtain reveals a full-on nest and collected trophies, including the object she took.
SESSION SEVEN
A character approaching Vernah's from the north will encounter Aldrena herself.
As you make your way to Vernah’s, you notice a bit of a scene at the Sandpoint Lumber Mill. An elderly, very well-dressed man is emerging from the mill, tugging at his cravat as he turns to shake his eagle-headed cane at a rugged, good-looking fellow you recognize from that rigged Lighthouse Smash game at the festival. “This is my mill, Harker! My money built it, and by the First Vault, if I think it’s being used to bleed me, my money will tear it right back down! May you never forget it!”
“Of course, Mr. Scarnetti.” Banny Harker rolls his eyes. “Got forgetfulness on your mind lately?”
The old man’s eyes bulge. “You… you rough-hearted jackanape! One of these days, your own greed’s going to nip you in the rear!” He turns to storm off as Harker slams the door behind him.
Aldrena raises an eyebrow at you.
A character approaching from the Rusty Dragon or through the town square:
As you pass through the town square—relatively empty today, since it’s not a market day—you notice that one of the stalls has been vandalized. Raw eggs drip from its sides and begin to cake into the driftwood, and someone has crossed out and written over the words on the sign with red paint so it now simply reads, “Murderer Mavvi’s”. A handful of passersby tactfully ignore the stall. Nearby, children prance across hopscotch squares, chanting a nursery rhyme about a living scarecrow.
Mumble Mumble Scarecrow,
Alone in the maize.
Sleeping in the daytime,
A stitched man he stays.
But when the moon she rises,
Up Mumble gets.
He shakes his hands at first
And moves his feet the next.
And when the dog is snoring,
And when you’re fast asleep,
Mumble Mumble Scarecrow
Will find you good to eat.
The initial pursuit of the boar is a Chase Encounter.
Obstacle One: Mud Patch [Requires 3 Successes]
The boar attempts to lose the party by racing through an ancient graveyard filled with sinkholes.
Guess Direction of the Tracks and Circle Around (Survival 15)
Ride Your Horse Through (Nature 17)
Identify the Sinkholes (Perception 17 or Religion 15 to recognize the cemetery)
Obstacle Two: Angry Ganders! [Requires 4 Successes]
The boar runs by a pond F~+* IT'S GEESE
Befriend the Goose (Nature 17)
Battle the Goose (Athletics or Strike 16)
Just Ignore Them (1 damage and Will 12)
Obstacle Three: Mischievous Fairies [Requires 5 Successes]
The party's way is hampered by a group of troublesome sprites.
Bribe With Sweets or Pretty Things (Crafting 15)
Greet Respectfully (Nature 15)
Flirt (Deception 15)
Avoid Notice (Stealth 15)
The PCs will chase the boar to a thicket by a pool, where they encounter a giant tick feeding on a dead juvenile firepelt cougar. It gets excitable when so many arrive and rushes to attack.
Aldrena
(Aids attacks) (AC 16, 20 HP)
With her cutlass, Aldrena throws enemies off-balance when her allies create an opening. Until the start of your next turn, allied Strikes that deal damage to a creature within her reach make the target off-guard until the end of your next turn, and dazzle it on a crit.
After the Fight:
As the party is recovering from the battle, they will hear someone running towards them from the hill above. Shalelu appears above, pierced through the shoulder with two long silver-fletched arrows. She sees the group, then collapses.
This DC is lowered back to 15 for flat checks granted by an ally providing assisted recovery, provided the attacker is not also that ally’s most hated enemy.
These outlines do get harder to write in this area, where so much of it wound up being open-ended improv based on where the PCs decided to go next.
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As a note, the boar hunt is Day Four of the campaign--aka, three days after the Swallowtail Festival. Belor will not return until Day Five, because he's gonna run into trouble at the Seven Tooths.
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We finished Book One tonight! :D
I'll try to get another batch of recaps in tomorrow. The town sections are hard to recap, but we'll be in the Glassworks soon enough...