Pathfinder 1E IC - Tideruler: The Fall of Laholt

The Bat motions to decline the proffered drink as politely as he can. "Thanks to a particular talisman of mine the only thirst I need sake these days is the thirst for knowledge," he says mirthfully. Then he leans in a bit conspiratorially with a glance towards Calliope and adds, "Besides, I think our dear host would be a bit put out if I accepted. She has been trying very earnestly to get me to eat one of her delicious looking treats."

The knight stands up straight again. "When I was a bit younger I took a fancy to climbing around all day in caves. I cannot say my parents approved!" In his mind he thinks this the understatement of the millennium, but he continues. "Something odd happened to me, and now every so often I start to get jumpy unless I am safely ensconced is a million tonnes of solid rock. I have heard your people have something of the run of the caves around here. I was wondering if perhaps you could tell me a bit of the lay of the land in these parts - what places to avoid, and maybe what to keep an eye of for so I do not intrude on anyone with, shall we say, a cultivated dislike of strangers."

Archon Basileus said:

The priestess seems satisfied with both Arduniel's and Charlotte's answers. "Well, both of you know the consequences of not following through..." - she says, lowering the crown. "An elf would know better than to break a sworn in here... And a demoness..." - she smiles for a moment - "...well, yours is a tricky kind, but even the demon-blooded are bound to respect certain pacts... And that is something I can respect" - she turns to the Firbolg, as if to allow him to talk.

"The humans are perfectly capable of swearing..." - he says in a rough tone. "They're just unwilling. Good. That's our way as well. A sworn is sacred, but it follows the heart."

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"I would be unwilling too if the task could take half my life to finish it especially to unfamiliar people. Do not judge, you could be judged in turn." Arduniel replies heatedly.

Archon Basileus said:

Without him, the Fields of Honor are closed to us, and no pact can be enforced through the Root of Wisdom. Because of it, we are divided. The Satyrs consider leaving. The priestess holds no sway over what happens, and rumor has it that she deals in dark magics and deals with demons." - he points out to Charlotte. "Can you say that such things are lies? We care not if she wants to deal with the lower planes. But as she does it, the gods refuse to answer. Our oracles are silent. The sacred oaks are silent. The sacred birds are gone. We need guidance, and we need answers. And if the priestess has, in fact, offended the gods... She needs to pay." - he falls silent, giving an ample idea of the problems.

All heroes are somehow familiar with the peculiar aspects of the Fey law. The Fields of Honor are inhabited by magical forces that would take a heavy toll upon those inclined to break vows taken there. Blood would be spilled over the Root of Wisdom and, as legend goes, a pact broken would lead the involved to be cursed in strange and unique ways. Considering the erratic nature of the Fey, the Root of Wisdom is basically the only thing to keep them united. Otherwise, intrigue and uncontrolled desire would be the downfall of Alessia. As for the priestess, the Fey tend to indifference as far as dark forces go. Their usual neutrality allows for a wide range of alliances, and demons are a peculiar lot as far as desire goes. Still, profaning sacred soil or breaking sacred vows would still bear truly negative effects...

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"It is not unheard of that fey casters consult or use demons...or angels for what it's worth. And what, are you children so caught up in mothers skirts that you cannot live for your self? Are you not creatures of centuries? Even with short attention most of our races hold, I'd expect more cool heads and less histeria for what is but a blink of an eye. I mean, even humans wouldn't consider months serious time span. And you all, didn't you ever have trouble in your lives.

You, Phileal, you're much older than me. What happened to your years? And you, Latineassurrusia, are dryads so weak they cannot live without outside guidance? Are we all children? Calm down, think on what you know and as I said, we can go and talk it over a drink. You get to know these strangers and you may realize they are not as different as you or I. Even demon-spawn is mortal. And having success in her life despite obvious disadvantage of her looks. Take a hard look! Imagine how it would be for you if one look at you caused those around you to mistrust you. Now...let's move. If you need guidance, here is some. We go to the tavern, you talk to us all and than you go home and don't cause trouble. If there is someone trafficking with dark powers or betraying The Fey, we have the group to deal with it. Attacking fortified and warded castle will resolve nothing especially since I heard an 'if she offended the gods' in there. Come." He leads the group away.

As they walk he joins the priestess in tells her quietly.
"Sister, please don't try the gods. We have enough problems already without creating our own. Now that we lack the guidance of Mawdir, it falls to you not to give in to mass pressure."

THE PLAZA

The crowd falls back in line as Arduniel speaks. The only reaction is a "well spoken", muttered from the priestess mouth as she falls back and every single member of the crowd start following the group to the tavern. The words held great impact, shaming some of the Fey into submission, while calling others to awareness. Clearly Arduniel managed to please some and offend others... But his disposition has been made clear, and in due time everyone would be brought to see the light.

As the party progresses and the gathering follows, the heroes can hear their names being mentioned, their deeds retold by an impressed collective. Passionate, respectful and lustful observations mix up, and any distrust is set aside, added to the mixture as a 'tempting danger'.

[Ok, [MENTION=87106]MetaVoid[/MENTION], I rolled a secret diplomacy test for you, and one of my 20's ended up being yours. Boy, you made some friends today.... AND some enemies, hahaha!]

THE HONEYDEW

I was wondering if perhaps you could tell me a bit of the lay of the land in these parts

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The gnome smiles slyly at the remark. "Suuuure, my friend... Down with us is the safest place I'd say. Old Dorcas rents good space downstairs, near the fungal fields, for a fair price. I'd avoid the Black Chapel, though. The fanatics are going rampant, if you know what I mean... Secretive and violent and all." - she glances over her shoulders once or twice. "And you'd do well to avoid the lower layers... Only the boldest - or most stupid - go there these days. Word is that something... Inhuman found shelter down there... I wouldn't be surprised if the stone digs went a tad too far and kicked the wrong galleries, you know!" - she smiles, her small fingers emulating a pair of horns. Great. Someone might have dug down towards a drow settlement. And with them, demons, of course...

The conversation is suddenly interrupted by the appearance of a huge crowd of Fey. they stroll inside the Honeydew following a small entourage of mixed origins. Even humans are amidst those that lead the row. By now, the fey managed to pull high-pitched flutes and have been singing and dancing half the way through the Causeway. Odd fellows, no doubt, but there you have it: a lynch mob turned into a festive procession. Sometimes it seems that everything the Fey do is a ridiculous excuse for a party afterwards.
[MENTION=6847138]Charlotte of Oz[/MENTION] [MENTION=24380]Neurotic[/MENTION] [MENTION=87106]MetaVoid[/MENTION] [MENTION=6801311]KahlessNestor[/MENTION] [MENTION=1231]Kaodi[/MENTION] [MENTION=4936]Shayuri[/MENTION]

Not interested in fraternizing with big humaoids, but recognizing the need, Moss appears amongst revelers, starting with Arduniel and Alice so that everyone knows he is friendly. He than hops from one to the other of the fey introducing himself.

Once in the tavern he lands on the bar in front of the eggbearer human.
"Mammal juice, if you have it. With chicken eggs. Chicken eggs in a something strong if you don't."

He drinks his milk in the rafters, enjoying an egg or two as an aside.
He notices strange fellow who doesn't participate in the revels and hides his face and he approaches from the above trying to listen in (just to make sure he is not interrupting anything important ) before dropping down.
[roll0]
[roll1]

With soft rustle of wings and barest of sloshes he lands next to the table right beside the gnome and black-shrouded big-folk. He takes naive persona, something his warlord nature abhorres, but it is needed to put these soft city folk at ease. He tries to keep clicking of his claws to a minimum, not hard with all the music and song around.

"Hello, my name's Moss. I need to introduce myself to everyone so we're all friends of Fey and we can continue to help you."

Listening to the gnome woman, the Bat frowns. If the people here had roused the ire of drow cultists it would likely go poorly for them and he would be duty bound to step in. His thoughts are disturbed though by the arrival of the procession and he glances up to see what the commotion is while reflexively becoming more reserved.

He scans over the small group of leading the crowd: two humans, a male and a female, the latter of which carried herself with the familiar bearing of a warrior. An elf, perhaps a mage from the look of him, and a tiefling too. He knew the type, though the analog among his own people was not precise. The last, most formidable looking among them had some familiar elvish features, but if she had ever been an elf she appeared to be something more now, something from out of a story.

He is taken slightly by surprise by the sudden appearance of the kobold and his eyes widen slightly before regaining his composure. This must be a real sneaky one to escape his notice. Taking a closer look at him, he seemed distinctly more regal than most of his kind the knight had encountered before, and perhaps had as much in common with that other woman as with most kobolds.

He was not particularly taken in by the little draconians facade, but he could not fault the attempt at social niceties. "A pleasure," he says. nodding slightly. He glances up at the rest of the company and suddenly has a sinking feeling in his stomach. This looks a lot like a...

Zyara mingles among the crowd attempting to listen in on any remaining dissent among the crowd. If she finds any she tries to suss out if it is just the normal "wanting to do something" frustration or if it is something more sinister.

Laholt/Alessia
Afternoon
Round 0

The others seemed to have the situation well in hand. The crowd seemed amenable to redirection. Well done. Daxio followed to the Honeydew. He moved through the crowd and got a couple drinks from the attractive bartender Calliope. Then he sat down next to the priestess that had been one of the leaders of the mob.

“Please, tell me your concerns,” the handsome human said, setting the drink down in front of her and flashing her his best smile. “We are here to help. Where did you get that interesting artifact?” He nodded to the crown. “May I see it? I am sorry. I didn’t seem to get your name in all this commotion.” He gestured to the crowded tavern.

[sblock=Actions and Rolls]
Move:
Action:
[/sblock]

[sblock=Ministats]
HP: 122/122 NL: 0
AC: 19 FF: 14 T: 15
CMD: 20
Fort: 10 Ref: 10 Will: 13
Armed: Dagger
Arcane Reservoir: 9/15/day
Consume Spells: 5/5/day

Conditions: Detect Magic (116 r), Message (1199 r)

Spells Prepared
0 (9): Acid Splash, Detect Magic, Ghost Sound, Light, Mage Hand, Message, Prestidigitation, Ray of Frost, Read Magic
1 (4/4/5): Burning Hands, Charm Person, Disguise Self, Magic Missile, Vanish
2 (4/4/5): Darkvision, Hideous Laughter, Invisibility, Scorching Ray, See Invisibility
3 (4/4/4): Dispel Magic, Hold Person, Suggestion, Fly
4 (4/4/3): Charm Monster, Confusion, Greater Invisibility
5 (4/4/2): Dominate Person, Hold Monster
6 (2/2/1): Mass Suggestion

Spell Book:
0: All
1: Burning Hands, Charm Person, Disguise Self, Enlarge Person, Featherfall, Grease, Liberating Command, Magic Missile, Obscuring Mist, Ray of Enfeeblement, Shield, Silent Image, Vanish
2: Darkvision, Hideous Laughter, Invisibility, Scorching Ray, See Invisibility
3: Dispel Magic, Hold Person, Suggestion, Fly
4: Black Tentacles, Charm Monster, Confusion, Greater Invisibility
5: Dominate Person, Feeblemind, Hold Monster
6: Greater Dispel, Mass Suggestion
[/sblock]

Arduniel enjoys the glow of job well done and gladly pays what's needed. He doesn't bother talking to anyone in particular, content to watch for trouble before it can develop into real problem.