[LPF] Distant Relations

[deisenhut]

Yoshiki Akita (Human Monk 4)

"Yes, the others are very damning", Yo responds. "We should probably sneak back out through the tavern, though we don't know what sorta mess Inar left there in his distraction. Maybe we can get some rest somewhere." Packing the ledgers back in his bag, "I wonder where Thon ran off to."
[sblock=Ministats]Initiative: +4
AC: 23 Touch 19 Flatfooted 18
HP: 20/28
CMB: +8 CMD: 23 Fort: +4 Reflex: +8 Will: +7 (+2 vs. Enchantment)
Defensive Abilities: Evasion, Deflect Arrows
Speed: 40 ft

Conditions in Effect: Mage Armor (+4 Armor bonus to AC)
Elemental Fist: 0/4 remaining
Ki Pool: 0/5 remaining
Expenditures: 50 gp
Additional Equipment: 2 flasks alchemist's fire, 10 silver holy symbols, 2 ledgers, 22 PP.
[/sblock]

 

[jkason]

GM: Looks like you're all still debating your exit strategy. No rush as far as I'm concerned; I think things have been quite hectic for a while and we can probably all do with the slight breather. In any case, when you come to a concensus, let me know about: 1) If you want to try to identify anything before leaving 2) How you're distributing whatever you're taking 3) If you're wearing your cult gear out with you 4) Which way you want to try to exit. So far I have people debating between the front gates and the secret tunnel to the tavern.

 

[Qik]

She looks expectantly at the other two, nodding to Qui.

Thanks. I feel so much better now.

Quioan returns the nod. "Absolutely." With a ghost of a smile, he adds, "I'm just sorry it took me so long to show up. Hopefully it's the last time on this little job of ours that I have to jump out of a second-story window."

"And I agree with Elenka. It looks as though we've ample evidence for Inar, so I suggest we make haste to meet with him. While I don't like the idea of marching out the front gate, given the ties of the tavern where the passage leads to the church of Owbej, I don't think we're doing ourselves any better by exiting that way. Even so, myself or Yoshiki could always scout ahead to make sure the coast is clear before we all exit."

Even in his haste, Quioan gives the items retrieved from their enemies a quick once-over before they exit to see if he can identify anything of use. As the group prepares to leave, he gives the sprawled bodies a brief once-over, shakes his head that it came to this, and then exits the temple for what almost assuredly is for good.

[sblock=OOC]1) Q'll take 10 on Spellcraft if he can to identify the items (19). I'll roll in case that doesn't work.
2) Given this post, Q is 38 lbs over light encumbrance. In an ideal world, I'd drop him below that, but if that's not possible, he's good to add 29 lbs worth of gear before he exceeds medium encumbrance. Don't see anything in particular that would pique his interest, but that might change after we identify some of the items.
3) I say NO to wearing cult gear. Most of the cult wouldn't recognize us, since we've been masked, so we'd only be drawing more attention to ourselves.
4) I'm torn on which way to exit, so I'd prefer to hear opinions if someone has them. If I had to choose, I'd say through the front gate; it's a bit indelicate, but exiting through the tunnel just keeps us in the domain of Owbej all the longer.

Still finalizing my leveling updates, but the combat stats are ready for when they need to be.[/sblock]

 

[Artur Hawkwing]

Audra listens to Qui, her eyes moving around as if keeping watch. When he mentions going through the gates, she gives them a little more than a cursory glance this time, looking to see if, from the inside, there's an obvious viewport or something that a guard would use to see who was on the outside of the gates, seeking admittance.

 

[jkason]

Quioan is more successful this time than he was with some of the items from upstairs, and is able to determine that the studded leather armor of the priests has minor protection magics, the brooch has an enchantment allowing it to absorb magical missles like those which nearly felled Elenka, the ring provides a minor shielding magic, the potions are of a variety of strengths of healing magic, and that the wand Garthia dropped hasn't seen much use.

Audra can't see any kind of porthole in the gate, but that probably has to do with the fact that there have previous to this always been guards assigned to the top of the wall around the courtyard, from which the other side of the gate is perfectly clear; Garthia's alarm and orders brought those guards down and lead them to their deaths (or, if they're lucky, near deaths in a few cases).

[sblock=ooc]Several of the cultists made their stabilization rolls, so they 'aren't quite dead yet.' My assumption is that you aren't planning on coup de gracing all of them, but I may be sorely misjudging the hatred your characters have developed for Owbej over the past week and change.

Updated the first post with identified items. Quioan can't re-try on anything he failed for on the second floor, but that roll and the take 10 gets him everything from this fight. It's in the post, but just for quick reference:

+1 studded leather on each priest
Each priest has 2 CLW potions
Garthia had 2 CMW potions, and 1 potion of Stabilize.
Garthia also had a brooch of shielding, ring of protection +1, and the wand of shield with 41 charges in it.

Qik asked about Garthia's build, and I forgot to expound on that one. He was a Sorcerer 5 (fire elemental bloodline) / monk 2. The summons on the 2nd floor was from a single-use magic item he had, so there weren't actually summoner levels in there, though leading folks to believe that lead to a fun little surprise when Garthia finally decided to start punching (though he couldn't manage to hit Yoshiki's killer AC, so the punches weren't much good. ).

And because I'm feeling a little guilty, I'm going to offer this minor advice: Quioan detected magic on the heavy bag he found upstairs that he couldn't fully identify. So far as I'm aware, though, you don't have identify a bag's properties to try reaching inside it or putting things in it... *ducks and runs for cover*[/sblock]

 

[Artur Hawkwing]

Audra eyes the door and sighs.

I've been of little use, aside from bait, to you so far, but in the condition my robe is in, it'll be hard to pass for a cultist.

She rubs her arm and shoulder where Qui had torn the sleeve from her robe.

However I can still go up high enough to see over the tops of the wall and see what is going on outside. If we two take the walls, Qui can rest for a minute, as can, Elenka, and consider our ways out.

Not waiting for a response, she turns on heel, gives a quick sideways nod to her fellow Monk and looks for what she assumes would be stairs or ladders leading up to the areas the lookouts would normally be posted.

[sblock=action]As stated, she will look for ladder, stairs or whatever will get her up where the guards would normally be. From there she will peek out into the surround part of town to see what is going on, trying to keep low profile. She will keep her robe on for this, as it will still cover her red hair and the mask will still cover her face. Let me know if you require any kind of roll here.[/sblock]

[sblock=Items]Audra wouldn't mind carrying a potion and either one of the protective items might serve her as well. She's already going to have to sell or store some gear when she gets back to Venza, as she's pushing encumberence right now.[/sblock]

 

[Qik]

And because I'm feeling a little guilty, I'm going to offer this minor advice: Quioan detected magic on the heavy bag he found upstairs that he couldn't fully identify. So far as I'm aware, though, you don't have identify a bag's properties to try reaching inside it or putting things in it... *ducks and runs for cover*[/sblock]

OOC: OF COURSE that's what it is.... I had been afraid it was one of those bags with badgers and such: don't want to be wantonly reaching into there...

 

[jkason]

Audra skirts the courtyard until she finds the door to the stairs in the northwest corner. The heavy door still swings open from where the priests came through in their hurry to respond to the alarm. Making her way quickly up, she finds the northern watchtower, which looks out over what seems to be a fairly sedate city at night. As she works her way around the upper wall to the gatehouse, however, she begins to hear more and more chatter and bickering.

Above the gate, she can tell that the source is some kind of crowd near the entrance to The River's Tears. Perhaps it was the near death experience, but Audra's senses seem to be especially sharp, and she picks up a fair amount of detail despite the distance. The crowd is a conglomeration of cultists, guards, and more ragtag citizenry. At least a few of the commoners are pointing accusingly to the cultists, though the guard don't seem to be especially responsive.

Whatever the specifics of the conflict, it seems to have thus far been of a vocal rather than a physical nature, and the guard appear to be beginning to calm the various parties, ushering the cultists back into the tavern as the others begin to slowly disperse. She catches sight of Inar in those dispersing, furtively heading in the direction of the feast hall.

While she's there, Audra finds the mechanism for raising the portcullis. The bars they'll need to raise seem fairly hefty; she'd likely have a much easier time of it with some more help.

[sblock=ooc]Audra rolled an awesome Perception.

Qik: No comment. [/sblock]

 

[deisenhut]

Yoshiki Akita (Human Monk 4)

"The charade is over, thankfully. These robes do us no good now" Yo says, removing his mask and tossing it on the ground. Nodding to Audra, he heads in the other direction looking for the way up to the guard's post on the other side of the courtyard wall.

[sblock=Ministats]Initiative: +4
AC: 23 Touch 19 Flatfooted 18
HP: 20/28
CMB: +8 CMD: 23 Fort: +4 Reflex: +8 Will: +7 (+2 vs. Enchantment)
Defensive Abilities: Evasion, Deflect Arrows
Speed: 40 ft

Conditions in Effect: Mage Armor (+4 Armor bonus to AC)
Elemental Fist: 0/4 remaining
Ki Pool: 0/5 remaining
Expenditures: 50 gp
Additional Equipment: 2 flasks alchemist's fire, 10 silver holy symbols, 2 ledgers, 22 PP.
[/sblock]

 

[jkason]

"The charade is over, thankfully. These robes do us no good now" Yo says, removing his mask and tossing it on the ground. Nodding to Audra, he heads in the other direction looking for the way up to the guard's post on the other side of the courtyard wall.

Having seen Audra take the only set of stairs, Yoshiki has no trouble following her up to the wall and around to the gatehouse.