The Slave and Her Sovereign

darkbard

Legend
Before the High Cleric seals the doors to the Sanctuary of Light, Lucent Messenger Arunny briefly pulls Chanvati and Pa’avu aside. “These gauntlets (Gauntlets of Blood) belonged to my brother, a noted warrior who was slain fighting the Bladeling Horde upon the steppes. Take them, half-giant, with my thanks for exorcising the demon that sought to take hold of me. And for you, mystic, a draught to heal your wounds (Potion of Healing), should you be so unfortunate as to be in danger’s way again.”

The next morning is a flurry of activity in the familiar Audaseie estate, as Chanvati scribes a missive for Inquisitor Eyo-uth-shala, informing her of his certainty that the Scrolls of Xanthar are located in Amna’s private chambers. He suggests meeting there at dusk to bring Tarquin and Amna to justice for their crimes.

He sends a second letter to Bita-Bousseh, informing her of the previous day’s successes and arranging to meet with her at a later date to discuss, in heavily couched and indirect terms, the goals and activities of the 2nd Nation.

Chanvati dispatches the slave Neari with his letters.

In the intervening time, Chanvati and Pa’avu visit The Genie’s Lamp, a luxury consignment shop in Bantouk’s upscale merchant district, to pawn some of their trophies in return for a grisly but potent ward to Pa’avu’s mobility in combat (Badge of the Berserker +1).





I rolled a 5 +3 = 8 on my Streetwise check to acquire the Badge of the Berserker +1 vs DC 19 (Uncommon at-level item), so that introduces a complication of some sort. The cost of the item is normally 520 gp, which we would pay with the head of our enemy slain encased in gold (250 gp), the two gemstones (100 gp each), and 70 gold coins. Out of sentimentality, Chanvati wishes to reserve the jade hairpin from Bita-Bousseh (250 gp) from inclusion in the transaction, but if you want to include that in the complication….

Once whatever complication arises is dealt with, we intend the next scene to be the bringing to justice of Tarquin and Amna, as we coincide our arrival at their estate with that of Eyo-urth-shala and the might of the Inquisition. Should Hakhaman die in the process, all the better.

Outstanding/New Quests:

Chanvati Major Quest: Depose Tarquin as Prince of the family and bring rightful vengeance down upon Tarquin and Amna.

Chanvati Minor Quest: Discover the goals of the 2nd Nation.

Chanvati Minor Quest: See Hakhaman die.


Pa’avu Major Quest: To access the mythical aspects of my heritage, I will travel to Stoneroot’s Perch to commune with the venerable K’mniich’ himself.

Pa’avu Minor Quest: Redeem Hakhaman’s remaining hound. (Pa’avu has become increasingly dismayed at the death of innocent work animals, slaves, in truth, working only to serve the wicked deeds of cruel masters and paying the price on their behalf.)

Extended Rest: All Daily & Encounter Powers are refreshed. Reset to 1 AP each. Both PCs are at 2044/2250 XP for L3.
 
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Perched near about the middling point of a considerable elevation, as you exit The Genie's Lamp, you're spat out onto endlessly descending and ascending stone stairwell that can comfortably fit a pair of rickshaws side by side. Posh shops and high-end food-carts carve out the scene with unharnessed bleating goats accompanying string and wind instrument players as the musical track.

When you're out of the shop and affixing the bone & leather magical badge to Pa'avu's garb, a pair of gaunt but cleanly kids rush you with an array of excited obscenities. They flood you with marveling words at the newly acquired magical badge, replete with the typical refrains of "I wish I had the money for a fancy trinket from The Genie's Lamp...must be niiiiiiiiice" and the sort.


CHANVATI PASSIVE INSIGHT 21 VS BLUFF +10 + r(16) = 26; FAILURE

PA'AVU'S PASSIVE PERCEPTION 17 VS THIEVERY +10 +r(5) = 15; SUCCESS


The beguiling and preoccupying pair do their "mark-distraction" long enough (a moment) for their pickpocket to do a "fly-by", unclasp one of Chanvati's pouches (or satchel) and relieve him of the contents inside; the Jade Hairpin!

It happens so fast, but Pa'avu sees the blur of activity that is the swipe as the light of the sun catches the green gemstone. Two "bounds away" in the densely packed stair, the kid rears to fling it like a frisbee to a fourth kid on a nearby tile rooftop as all the children prepare for a mad runner from the scene, eager to disappear in storm drains, through establishments, or into the tiniest of alley crevices between these hill-built structures.





Though you can fit two rickshaws "abreast" here, its still rather cramped for a large person like Pa'avu. There is no shortage of street-vendors and animals on these stairs so, along with passing rickshaws, each momentarily open space on the cramped stair is brief.

A misstep or abrupt move could lead to a precarious collision and a daisy chain avalanche of people, food-laden carts, animals, rickshaws!

What are you doing @Nephis ? Medium DC of Level +2 (14) whatever it is you do.
 
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Nephis

Adventurer
PA'AVU smirks down at the urchin who threw the hairpin and murmurs to her, "Really, Padma? You thought to get past me, again?" before grabbing a handy bit of scaffolding to swing herself up to the nearby roof. Landing softly on the tiles, the goliath draws herself up to her full height and stares down at the dumbfounded girl gazing fearfully up at her. Holding out an immense hand, Pa'avu says sternly but not unkindly, "Sophea, I believe you have something that belongs to my gosb'tar."

After making her careful way back to her gosb'tar (e.g. not by climbing or by jumping), Pa'avu hands both the hairpin and the flyer to Chanvati. "These are yours, I think," she intones without expression.




Skill Check (Athetics) to jump (vault) onto roof (Goliath: Roll twice for climb & jump checks): b(20, 20) + 11 = 31, 31 Success



Pa'avu's updated NADs: Fort 18, Ref 15, Will 14
 
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Sophea scowls and then it abruptly softens into a playful smile. She immediately turns to "roof run" as she tosses the jade hairpin over her shoulder into Pa'avu's waiting hands. "Oh man" she laments to the other kids, "I didn't even get to say the cool tag-line!" "Say it anyway(!)" another urchin challenges her. Sophea's words rebound over her shoulder "The Second Nation thanks you for your charity!"

As she and the rest of the urchins separate and disappear into the district's eclectic architecture, a folded flyer flits from her pocket and unravels at Pa'avu's feet. <MISSING YOUR DOG?! COME CHECK OUR KENNEL AT RUFFLY GELDED!>





Jade Hairpin recovered.

Alright, presumably your next scene is about @darkbard 's Major Quest and newly scribed Minor Quest w/ Hakhaman. You can go ahead and frame your next scene at the estate of Tarquin with he and Amna. I'll give you the Complexity and Level of the Skill Challenge and the first obstacle/DC via Discord after you debrief me on how you're seeing the opening of this upcoming scene.
 

darkbard

Legend
"Ruffly Gelded," Chanvati muses. "Perhaps I best watch my step--and other parts--more closely around Bita-Bousseh and her fellow conspirators."

* * *

Hours after the episode with the urchins along the Centipede Steps, a pair of moons in their third quarter crests the city’s hills and tiled roofs on the horizon. As arranged, Eyo-urth-shala, Inquisitor of Bas-Billan the Justiciar, and her force of Knights Speculative arrive to meet Chanvati and the goliath at the approach to the double doors to Tarquin’s sprawling estate.

“Inquisitor,” Chanvati bows his head slightly. “The eyes I have had watching my treacherous family have done their duty well. I was informed that the materials stolen from the Dome of Illumination are stored away in my cousin Amna’s private chambers atop that petrified wing thither. Hidden there, I might add, at Tarquin’s direction to avoid any prying eyes among visitors to the central chambers from taking note.

“There is one … minor complication. Earlier today we had a bit of a dustup with my uncle’s Steward, a twisted Warlock of no small power, barely even human any longer after his trafficking with aberrant powers from beyond. I fear he may have some foreknowledge of our intentions this night. But if the Inquisitor leave dealing with that monstrous entity to us, the path to bringing Tarquin and Amna to justice should be clear.”





Our Goal: Locate, isolate, defeat the Warlock so the Inquisitor can carry out the necessaries of their duties/arrests.




Per @Manbearcat :

Your first obstacle will be to mask your efforts from the prying eyes of Hakhaman’s agents and his divinations or otherwise defeat them.




The moment you have that exchange with Inquisitor Eyo-urth-shala, the wind suddenly picks up and blows in a sudden gust toward the estate, carrying your words, revealing your intentions, aloft. You can hear your whispers echo audibly as they move away from you.




HARD DC (22)

Level +3, Complexity 2 (DCs will be for level 5 so 10, 15, 22 while ATK vs AC is 19/21 and vs NAD is 17/18)

0 Successes (1 Hard DC Available)/0 Failures/2 Secondary Skills Available/0 Advantages Available)


Failure in the SC = I’m raising the combat encounter budget by 1 Standard worth of xp as Hakhaman will be prepared for you.
 
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darkbard

Legend
CHANVATI witnesses in horror as his words eddy and echo in the wind, almost visible as they are captured by the ectoplasmic trap laid by Hakhaman and carried away. His mind flashes back to cosmological lessons at Xerxes's School for Gifted Psicrafters, reaching desperately for an antidote to the Warlock's invocation!

Scholars opined that Dread Caiphon, that star that wanders across the night sky with its putrid purple cast, facilitated the bleed of aberrant power from beyond to those who submitted their will to its fell service. That was it! If he were to disrupt the local influence of Caiphon by augmenting the psionic pathways in countervalence to the ectoplasmic field, the interaction should short-circuit Hakhaman's magic!

Chanvati gathers his reserves, touches both forefingers to his shaved forehead, and emits a wave of pure psionic force.





I'm using one of those Secondary Skills to make a Dungeoneering Skill Check r(4) +2 = 6 vs 10 Easy DC, yields -1 forward to

Primary Skill Check Arcana r(11) +10 -1 = 20 vs 22 Hard DC. Fail.
 

0 Successes (1 Hard DC Available)/1 Failures/1 Secondary Skills Available/0 Advantages Available)




Whether its some foul collision of harnessing the latent psionic energy of the immediate environment with the wake of The Dread Star's magical influence or Caiphon's intervention alone, it doesn't matter. The "earth" at Chanvati's feet wobbles and heaves...but only in The Ethereal Plane. But it matters not, because that wave trough undulates to crest suddenly and violently as it washes over Chanvati....taking him...elsewhere.

It happens so fast that its unclear if Pa'avu reaches for him or he reaches for her. Nonetheless, the two instantly shift out of this world as the wave washes over them.

They're falling.

Their fall is suddenly arrested by a splash-down in pulsing, amoebic sea of purple. Actual waves of extreme color and viscosity threaten to consume them...to drag them down into the hungry maw of The Dread Star. The sea does not turn them into their constituent molecular beginnings (as the sea of a star should)...it does not scald...instead it is freezing beyond words (2).

Reaching one of the black-green "ectoplasmic bergs" that are bobbing in this terrible sea would be nice...finding an Ethereal Rift to return home would be nicer...but the first order of business is not being drawn down into the ravenous purple depths (1)!





NESTED SKILL CHALLENGE - ESCAPE THE ASTRAL PROJECTION OF CAIPHON'S HUNGER

Level +6, Complexity 1 (DCs will be for level 8 so 12, 16)

0 Successes (0 Hard DC Available)/0 Failures/1 Secondary Skills Available/0 Advantages Available).

* Any Micro-Failure here = 2 x Healing Surge lost

* Failure in the SC = you're spat back into the prime world but you suffer a Disease Attack of a Level 8 Disease.
 
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darkbard

Legend
The first thing CHANVATI'S senses take in is the absolute cold, his whole body on fire and an acute pain in his extremities, as if his fingers and ears are being crushed and ground in a mortar and pestle. He gasps, inhaling a viscous mouthful of ... something gelid ... and feels himself sinking, sinking below.

But then Pa'avu's powerful grasp closes on his brocaded jubba as he descends, and he feels her legs kick upward, dragging him along. He emerges, sputtering, in a purple expanse of liquid, colder than any ice.





Group Athletics Primary Skill Check to swim with sufficient proficiency in the alien fluid to maintain their momentary equilibrium: Pa'avu Athletics check r(10) +11 = 21 vs 16 Moderate DC. Pass. Chanvati Athletics check r(3) +0 = 3 vs 16 Moderate DC. Fail. 1/2 Succeed in Group Check = Success.
 
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Nephis

Adventurer
PA'AVU gasps for breath as she bobs in the purple ocean and twists this way and that to try to glimpse a berg of some sort to which they can swim and on which they can pull out of this viscous liquid. All of this happens as she assures that Chanvati's face is above the surface. Usually her gosb'tar's nearby presence seems to aide her visual acuity, but now it distracts her in her worry ... or is it interference from the purple "water" which sends wave upon wave directly at her, each one crashing over her head and blurring her vision still more.



Perception Primary Skill Check to find somewhere they can swim to: Pa'avu Perception check r(2) + 7 + 2(w/in 10sq of Chanvati) = 11 vs 16 Moderate DC. Fail. Lose 2 healing surges.

Pa'avu's surges: 9/11 remaining.
 

1 Successes (0 Hard DC Available)/1 Failures/1 Secondary Skills Available/0 Advantages Available)




Limbs and senses are growing ever colder...ever distant...

Pa'avu is thrown wildly this way and that in the volatile, thick stew of this alien sea. She slams brutally against the underside of a berg, fighting to retain consciousness and not get dragged under the massive bummock (underside) of the formation by the flow dynamics.

Chanvati is spiraling omnidirectionally by the grasp of the powerful near-giant and the angry, roiling...goo that intends to batter and suffocate them (best case scenario). A stray gasp for air quickly shuttered by yet another plunge. Something is...in...the "not-water" with them...right next to them. A massive eye. A beak. A bulbous head. A vast array of long, powerful tentacles. The beast collects and coils itself for an explosive vertical stroke, preparing to breach and...who knows...liberate itself from the Dread Star's plasma?





What are you guys doing?
 
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