Pathfinder 1E The Haunting of Calithil Manor

So, with the server crash and all I'm going to repost as much as I can from cached page versions. Hopefully once that's done we can pick up right where we left off. If you have any issues since the reset, let me know and we can work it out. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience!

A spooky haunted house adventure designed for APL ~3.

A rich merchant's son has gone missing in an abandoned manor house. Can our intrepid adventurers find him and break the dark manor's curse or will they join the immortal household?

DM: Ealt
Judge: GlassEye

Start Date: June 21, 2016
End Date: TBA

Starting Characters as of June 21, 2016

Zinnelis Laediril (Ranger 2) @KahlessNestor 1306 XP at start

Leira Olren (Fighter/Monk 3) @Anastrace 5379 XP at start - Removed September 26, 2016

Rak'tan Veragni (Fighter 3) @Trogdor1992 4404 XP at start - Removed September 22, 2016

Theia Merryweather (Witch 4) @FrancisJohn 6000 XP at start

Aelspeth Noromiel (Wizard 3) @MerryMortician 5554 XP at start - Joined July 12, 2016

Notes:

1. Use the local roller or one of the reliable online rollers such as Coyote Code.

2. I'm borrowing the following from Aura: "We're doing group initiative using average initiative value, which means that once your team has the initiative, actions can be resolved in whatever order people post. Those on the losing team (initiative-wise) side, with above team average initiative scores, might be awarded (a pre-initiative action if their individual value beats the entire winning team."

3. Be sure to check for updates Monday through Friday. It's a small group, so if everyone is ready to progress I might throw down an action on the weekend, but of course I'd wait for everyone to respond before continuing. Ideally, I would like to see at least one post from each player per weekday; however, life happens, so one post every 1-2 days is acceptable.

4. If issues arise hit me up about it. I'm human and make mistakes, and I'm not usually a jerk about those kind of things.

[sblock=Encounter XP Earned]
Groundskeeper Marcus (July, 26, 2016) - 800 XP
Chef Giuseppe (August 11, 2016) - 800 XP
Librarian Fortis (September 26, 2016) - 800 XP
Mistress Arianna Calithil (January 12, 2016) - 1600 XP
[/sblock]

[sblock=Encounter Treasure Earned]
Scroll of Burning Hands (25 gp)
Scroll of Glitterdust (150 gp)
Scroll of Reduce Person (25 gp)
[/sblock]


[sblock=Final Experience and Gold Totals]
Aelspeth Noromiel - 5256 XP, 6240 gp
Leira Olren - 2369 XP, 2865 gp
Rak'Tan Veragni - 1715 XP, 2061 gp
Theia Merryweather - 5501 XP, 6520 gp
Zinnelis Laediril - 3257 XP, 3664 gp
[/sblock]

Zinnelis Laediril

Zinnelis Laediril, Elven Ranger (Level 2)
Magistrate’s office
Late Afternoon

Zinnelis finished his wine and left a tip for Grog before gathering up his pack and bow. Following the official, he headed to the man’s office for the briefing on the mission, falling in beside Rak’tan. Once in the office, he dropped his pack by the door and leaned his bow nearby before leaning against the wall to await the official’s pleasure.

Magistrate Simon

The magistrate leads the intrepid adventurer's through Venza's winding streets, crossing through several districts before arriving in Incudine. The smoky stifling air, filled with the scent of hot metal and coal, is a familiar scent to many who have frequented the craftsmen district. Magistrate Simon leads them through the increasingly crowded streets, ensuring that they all stay together. He eventually leads them to the famous Benedetto Piazza, home to the wondrous Cathedral of Glass. Despite the temple's majesty, Simon hardly seems to take note of it as he leads them past it to a small, but official looking building. The sign above the door frame reads "Magistrate's Office, Incudine Branch."

Simon opens the door for our adventurers and leads them down a short hallway past many offices filled with busy-looking scribes, each hard at work transcribing or reading large volumes on Venzan law. He reaches a small office at the end of the hall, where he takes a seat behind a finely crafted, yet worn, mahogany desk. His office is otherwise sparsely decorated, and most of the space is filled with rolls of parchment and thick legal tomes.

"You'll have to forgive the mess, things have been busy lately what with the incessant squabbling between merchant families and then this sudden disappearance on top of it. I'm glad you responded so quickly, this is a most urgent matter. You see, there are always disputes between the various merchant families, but they are usually of a much more mundane variety. Squabbling over the price of goods or a missing shipment." He gestures to a large pile of scrolls in the corner. "But this is something entirely different. The heir of one of the most prominent glassblowing families in Venza has gone missing while on a hunting trip in the country side. What's worse is that his disappearance coincides with the resolution of a lengthy dispute his family has been having with another rival family over the quality of sand being used to produce their glass. Many fear that his disappearance is a form of retribution by the rival family. We're prepared to offer you a tidy sum to recover the young man and return him safely to Venza. What do you say?"

Rak'Tan Veragni

"Sounds easy enough to me, what's the pay like?" Rak'Tan says in response.

Theia Merryweather, Nihilist

Theia quietly studied Magistrate Simon as he lead the commissioned party through the town into the Cathedral of Glass. Every once in a while she smirked to herself, trying to fancy what life might be like if she could ever stomach the eternal optimism of her new elven acquaintance. She follows the man into his office, and appreciated the lack of decor.

"So, Simon, mind if I have a seat?" Theia digs through her overstuffed pack and procures a pen and parchment paper of her own. "If we are going to do this right, you might say I have a litany of questions to ask of you." She begins to ask them all, without waiting for any answer until she is done. Her eyes indicate that she strongly wants a response to each one.

"What are the names and addresses of all prominent members of the rival families?"

"Can you provide any insight to the specifics of this failed trade?"

"Why was your office contacted about this, and not the regular authorities?"

"What does the Incudine branch typically deal with?"

"What is your personal opinion on what happened to this missing?"

"When exactly did the person in question go missing?"

"Can you provide a map of the area of interest?"

"What does he look like, or is there any distinguishing features to him? Plus, you never even told us the lucky fellow's name!"

"Is there a contract to be signed?"

After her interrogation is complete, she follows up in a very business-like tone, "Sorry, if that seems too abrupt. Theia Merryweather, for hire." She looks at him with a blank face.

Leira Olren, Master of Martial Arts

Adjusting her shield on her back to prevent it from falling and contributing to the clutter in the office. "Yes sir, the return of this gentlemen can be done, hopefully quickly and easily. I'd not like to think that this poor man is hurt or worse." She shakes her head sadly. "To think people might kidnap him over a dispute over sand of all things."

Looking over at the woman next to her, she is taken aback by the amount of the questions she has posed. Smart woman, wish I had thought of any of those things.

She leans against a wall, doing her best to not knock anything over. "Sounds like our friend here has as many questions as you have books, magistrate."

Magistrate Simon

Simon chuckles softly before responding to Leira. "Quite, she has so many questions." Turning his attention to Theia, "You'd make a fine magistrate yourself, miss." He leans forward and puts his elbows on his desk, his hands together in front of him. "As to the pay, the family has provided a tidy sum of some five-thousand gold for his safe return, or barring that evidence of his passing. The addresses and names of the families are strictly confidential as is the nature of the dispute I'm afraid; however, I can tell you that the missing man is one Vignar the Lesser." He slides a crude sketch of a bearded man with deep red hair across the table. "He has been missing for less than two days, and his manservant, Bors, will be taking you to his last known location." He leans back in his chair, seemingly satisfied with his responses. "I don't get paid to have an opinion, miss. I get paid to solve problems, much like yourself."

"Not from Venza originally, eh?" He gives her a slight grin. "The Magistrate's Office handles the legal matters within the city. Whereas the White Cloaks are the enforcers and guardians and the wizards at the Tower of Chains carry out the punishments, we mete out the appropriate punishment and ensure that a fair trial is given according to the law. In essence, we're lawyers and judges. This particular branch has a focus on trade disputes and business law. We've dealt with the families in question before and they trusted us to handle this issue with a level of discretion the White Cloaks sometimes lack." He stands up and looks out the window at the back of his office, no longer facing them. "There is no contract per se, merely a verbal agreement between the interested parties. Now if that is all of your questions, Bors is waiting at the stables outside the city to take you to the site of the disappearance when you are ready."

Theia Merryweather, Nihilist

As the magistrate rambles off his answers, Theia does not fail to break eye contact with him. "Could you at least share the last names of the feuding families? The rest of the answers shall suffice for now. There are always other, more pernicious, ways to find out anything else."

When Simon gets up to take a look out the windows, Theia quickly scans the room for any further personal identification of the magistrate or anything else that could be useful down the road. As if she never looked away, she responds, "So a verbal agreement it shall be."

She waits expectantly for the rest of the hired help to ask anything else. "When the rest of you are done with Simon, let's meet privately somewhere before we head to the stables. There are some things I'd like to discuss with all of you first."

Theia patiently waits for the others. She doesn't say goodbye to Simon, instead opting to simply walk out and close the door behind the party as they leave.

Magistrate Simon

Still facing away from the group, Simon responds to Theia's veiled threat. "I'm afraid I must firmly decline to divulge that information. As I mentioned, this is a matter of some discretion. It would not do this office's reputation any service to violate the trust thus placed in me." He dismisses the group with a slight wave of his hand. "You may go now." His last statement has a surprisingly commanding tone, mixed with mild displeasure.

Leira Olren, Master of Martial Arts

Surprised at Theia's reaction, Leira glances awkwardly among the rest of the group. "I'm uh...sorry Magistrate. I'm not from Venza either, so perhaps we don't know the best manners. My apologies sir." She bows deeply, and then turns sharply towards the door to catch up with Theia.