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tragicThaumaturge's 4e Zeitgeist Campaign
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<blockquote data-quote="tragicThaumaturge" data-source="post: 7635756" data-attributes="member: 6975610"><p><strong>4th of Summer</strong></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The party spent a good amount of time during and after the last session discussing an issue that had come up, namely Rider’s involvement with all of this. Jasbeer and Uzziel had learned of the boy’s role as liaison between professor Kindleton and an unknown group, whom they could only suspect (correctly) were Kell’s people. They were all worried, Juza most of all, but they had wildly different ideas on what they should do with this information. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The thing is, they thought Rider had been lying to them, withholding information from Juza while at the same time working for Lorcan Kell. He was an orphan and had four younger siblings to support, so they figured he must be in it for the money. But in truth the boy was a bit too loyal to Juza, one of the few adults he trusted, and had been diligently scouring the Nettles for any sign of the “men who smelled of burnt engine grease”, as per the constable’s instructions. He knew nothing of Wolfgang and had only incidentally become involved with Kell’s people. Neither had any idea who the other was, they had just hired the boy to deliver the letters because he didn’t know how to read.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">However, after witnessing Kell’s cruelty, Jasbeer was determined to shake up the boy as much as necessary to make sure he would leave the life of crime behind. And nobody could argue against her because they all thought he was falling in with Kell’s people. Gwen, however, made an argument for a more understanding approach, saying that perhaps the boy needed people whom he could trust to feel better and reject a life of crime. She thought that if they ambushed him and treated him like a criminal, it would only reinforce his idea that he couldn’t trust others and could only look out for himself by any means necessary.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Those two spent a long time debating this, and the argument did escalate somewhat. It finally ended when Juza took a stance and told Jasbeer off, saying she would talk to the boy to see what was happening and would make him see reason. Or at least that was the plan. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">That night they all stayed at Jasbeer’s house because it was close by and it was late, but Juza took a midnight stroll to North Shore where the party had left their boat. She took it for a ride to get away from the city smog so she could see the sky and have a vision. She wanted to know what would happen if they handed over the stolen wands to Lorcan Kell, where they could find the doctor and who was Kell’s competition. She saw fire and explosions, a dark forest and a bald man fishing in a small pond and drinking coffee. The vision itself didn’t help them too much this time, but at least it confirmed that helping Lorcan Kell would have unpleasant consequences for the city. The important thing about this, however, was that because of the time Juza spent stargazing, she woke up late the following day.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The other three constables got up early and headed for HQ. There they spoke with professor Kindleton and got her to lend them the keys to her house. Uzziel also wanted to talk to Serena to see if she would be willing to help them with their investigation (that is, transfer her to their team for the day). Jasbeer insisted he didn’t have to talk to her, they could just ask Stover to transfer her, but the others thought that might rub Serena and the others the wrong way. So Uzziel went to ask her and she said it was ok, but they would need to get Delft’s approval. Unfortunately they didn’t manage to do that, since the most he could do was approve it for the next day once they had more concrete leads to follow. They told him that wouldn’t do, and he offered to assign them four officers so they could search a wider area (because of Serena’s level, the favor was too high to get approved quickly, but they could get the policemen). The PCs refused, preferring to save the favor for later when they might have more info.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">After settling that Gwen decided to wait for Juza while Jasbeer and Uzziel left for the professor’s house since they didn’t want to miss Rider. They got there before he did and waited for him inside the building. By now Juza was already up and with Gwen, both of them hurrying towards the professor’s house. Uzziel saw Rider approaching through the window and Jasbeer went towards the door. The boy knocked and was greeted by the woman, whom he did not recognize. This is when everything fell apart. Jasbeer’s player told me he used a minor action to mark the boy with </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>battlemind’s demand</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">. He (the player) wanted to make sure the boy did not run off, but I asked him what the power did in-game. According to the book “you draw your foe’s concentration, taunting the foe to strike at you”, but I let players reflavor stuff if they want and just roll with whatever they say, as long as it makes sense. So the player tells me he is using psionics to make a creature see Jasbeer as the biggest threat, thereby drawing the creature’s attention. I said sure, and now Rider was immediately wary and his attitude shifted from neutral to unfriendly, his fear preventing him from being outright hostile.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The two constables took the boy inside for questioning, but they decided to wait a bit for Juza. Once she and Gwen arrived they went inside and Juza began talking to Rider, trying to figure out what he knew. By this point Juza had actually told him about Wolfgang (the previous day if I remember correctly, the point is Rider hadn’t had a chance to relay this information, but he wasn’t withholding it. He had managed to figure out the letters he was delivering had something to do with it, but he had kept doing it so he could get more information for Juza, knowingly putting his life in danger to help her). But he was still under the effect of Jasbeer’s mark, and his discomfort had built up. He felt uneasy, angry and scared because he didn’t know what was happening to him, since he doesn’t know anything about psionics. So he wasn’t really in a talkative mood, and was dodging Juza’s questions. She managed to learn that the letters were given to him by a man and a woman in the Nettles, and decided to press the issue to make Rider more helpful. So he told her where in the Nettles he met with them.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Rider was pretty angry by now, because up until this point Juza hadn’t done anything to make him feel better, or more relaxed, or explained anything. She had just been pressing him for more information. So he felt used, like one of his only friends didn’t care about him and didn’t trust him. They had all ganged up on him, made accusations and not once had any of them apologized for treating him like a criminal even though he hadn’t done anything wrong. He just wanted to be left alone, so he told the group that was all he knew and proceeded to leave. They told him to stop but he was having none of it, he wanted to be alone and had already told them everything he knew. Jasbeer enforced her mark to move next to him and grappled him and he began fighting to break free. Juza began talking to him and telling him to calm down, saying they needed him to take them to the place where he’d met with the couple. So now Rider was being grappled by Jasbeer, was even more scared, and Juza wasn’t standing up for him, instead acting like he was in the wrong for wanting to be left alone. I allowed a very difficult check to get him to calm down but they didn’t make de DC, so I told Juza she could try again and risk ruining her relationship with the boy, or could let him go and try to fix things later. Reluctantly she told Jasbeer to release him, and she had no choice but to comply.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Well that could have gone better, I thought. They were all pretty bummed about losing their lead, but at least they had an address. They decided to investigate the Nettles, and I granted them a Streetwise success because of Rider’s previous investigation (I had previously rolled to see if the boy had managed to find anything, granting him a +8 bonus from 16 CHA and training in streetwise, simply because it sounded reasonable since that’s his main method of income. I’d rolled a 25 total, so that was a success). The PCs only needed two more to find the doctor the hard way. Juza decided to stay behind because she needed to come to terms with what had just happened, and Gwen decided to keep her company. Jasbeer and Uzziel went ahead and hired a guide to take them to the address Rider had given them. And this is when they realized things weren’t going to be as easy as they thought. They had an address, sure, but the guide told them there were multiple streets with the same name in the Nettles, and many of the locals didn’t know how to read so they actually called streets by different names because the nomenclature had been changed several times throughout the years as the district expanded. So they had no real way of knowing exactly where to look, and would have to visit several places and ask around. Knowing it would be faster if they split up they hired different guides, haggled a bit and set off. Juza and Gwen ran into the same situation when they got to the Nettles, and after a while they crossed paths and shared information. I granted them a Streetwise check, which Jasbeer rolled (taking only 2 hours since the four of them had been searching). She rolled high and they narrowed things down, learning that a group of Danorans had been active in the northern part of the district, looking for someone.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Fearing walking into an ambush they decided to stick together for the final search even if it took longer. I began counting the hours: one, two, three, four, five… the player’s eyes widened with each hour that went by, their disbelief evident. I was waiting for them to tell me to stop, so when I announced six hours had passed I made a long pause. No one said anything so I went to the seventh hour. Now everyone told me to stop, said they thought I had finished at six and told me they would call off the search after six hours to discuss what the hell they were going to do. They had spent all day walking around the Nettles, it was already 8 pm and they still hadn’t found anything. They knew they risked running into a dead end if they kept this up, and now they were mere hours away from failing to stop the smuggling. They didn’t even know where it would take place, and they were desperate. </span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">They discussed going back to HQ to ask for reinforcements so they could split up and send half the group over to Pine Island (Jasbeer had taken a guess where the smuggling would occur, and although she was right they didn’t know that). They even looked around for an information broker to ask about illicit activities and found one, but since they were pretty far from the district he didn’t know anything about Pine Island. He offered to point them to someone on that district who could give them more information, for a fee of course, but after thinking it through the party decided they didn’t have time to go on a wild goose chase. They decided to go all in on finding the doctor and spent two more hours looking around the Nettles. It was 10:30 p.m. by now. I asked them to roll Streetwise. Jasbeer would roll. She had several bonuses, including a +1 from her background, and the player realized he needed a 13 on the d20 to reach DC 25. They knew if they messed this up the doctor would be a goner and their investigation would take a major blow. He rolled: 13. We all got very excited, and they all cheered and high-fived each other. That +1 streetwise from her background made all the difference.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The constables followed rumors of a doctor hiding in an abandoned church, and found a couple begging to be let in so the man could reattach the husband’s severed thumb. They were driven away by a group of beggars who had settled in the church, and the party decided to try and convince them to let them through. They approached and told the men Juza had been bitten by a venomous snake, and they were somewhat convincing. Still, the beggars refused to let them through, insisting there was no doctor in the church. They said they didn’t want to lose the place they’d found, since they had no place to live, and the party offered to pay them. The men asked for a remarkable sum (10 gp for each) and the party was a bit tight on money, so they didn’t want to go giving away that much. Uzziel’s insight tipped them off that the men were probably asking for that much because they had been bribed to keep people away, and were trying to come out on top. After being told of this Jasbeer had no reservations about getting a bit more violent. She recalled her </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>summoned armor</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> (they had requested it earlier, don’t remember the day) and drew her weapon. The didn’t even need to roll Intimidate, since the beggars weren’t about to get into a fight with an armed person. They fled and the party ventured inside the church.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">They searched the inside of the church and found the secret passage in the latrine. Uzziel noticed one of the saw traps and they avoided it. It was a good thing he was leading the group, or else it might have crippled someone. They reached the heavy curtains that led to Wolfgang’s hiding place and used an e</span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>lixir of clairvoyance</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> to spy on the men. They’d been pretty sneaky and had avoided triggering the alarm or the saw traps, so the doctor and his “bodyguards” didn’t know they were there. One of Kell’s men was stoking the fire, another one was lying on a cot, and the third one was sitting on a chair while Wolfgang wrote a letter on the table. The group charged in taking them all by surprise and made short work of the criminals. They were surprised when Wolfgang attacked them with </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>stop your heart</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">, since they weren’t expecting him to be hostile. He managed to heal one of his bodyguards but the constables avoided attacking him, and once they had knocked everyone else unconscious they stopped fighting and told him they knew their friend Lynn Kindleton and that they were here to rescue him. He didn’t believe them at first, but they put their weapons away, handed him the letters and rolled well on Diplomacy. I found it hard to believe he wouldn’t believe them after all that, especially since they hadn’t harmed him during combat.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">They rested for a bit to recover and the constables told Wolfgang they needed to leave quickly and mentioned the hidden passage near the latrine. Unbeknownst to them Cillian Creed and the Obscurati were already in the church with them, and they overheard them talking. Wolfgang told the party he wanted to talk to them about what was happening before going anywhere with them, to make sure he could trust them and so they would hear his side of the story, since he didn’t want any trouble with the police. They agreed and he told them what had happened that day on the consulate. They realized he had just been an innocent bystander who had been at the wrong place at the wrong time (up until this point they thought he was involved somehow). They assured him they would keep him safe and he told them about the documents, asking for help to retrieve them from the hole in the ceiling. He said he hadn’t read them since he figured the more he knew, the worse things would be for him.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">As the party prepared to leave Creed struck. The only one to notice him was Uzziel. He saw the man appear from the shadows, cover Wolfgang’s mouth with his hand and stab the man’s neck with a syringe. He scored a critical hit and dealt massive damage to the doctor. Everyone freaked out. Uzziel shot a </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>divine bolt</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> but missed, and he saw the man fade and disappear (he’d become invisible, merged with Wolfgang’s shadow). Then the nethermancers destroyed their light source and plunged them into darkness. </span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">As the players realized this was an assassination attempt they got really scared. They hadn’t known what they were dealing with. It was the sort of fear that came with knowing that even if they made it out alive, they and everyone they knew were in terrible danger. They didn’t know how they’d been found, and since Uzziel told them the attacker had become invisible, they could only assume all enemies could do that too, and they’d been following them since god knows when. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">They fought desperately to stay alive and to keep the doctor alive. For all they knew, if he was reduced to 0 HP he would die and they would lose a key witness. Jasbeer’s potions and other consumables saved the day. Almost all their potions were used to keep Wolfgang alive (they were the kind that doesn’t consume healing surges if the creature is bloodied). They tried lighting more torches but the nethermancers destroyed them, and the party realized they would only take more damage if they kept trying. They all fought pretty well, and Jasbeer used a </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>vial of darkness</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> to grant total concealment in a burst 1. I ruled this would block the enemies' line of sight, so despite their darkvision they were now fighting on less unfair terms. They told Wolfgang to stay within the magically obscured area so enemies wouldn’t be able to hit him as easily. They had several of those vials too so they managed to keep it up for a good chunk of the fight. Juza’s radiant powers were especially effective against Creed, and in the brief flash created by the </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>blazing starfall</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> the constables were able to see the man’s skin peel away, revealing oil and raw muscle. They even had an </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>elixir of invisibility</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> which helped the doctor survive more easily. Eventually they defeated the assassins, and Creed escaped upon being bloodied. Another nethermancer escaped too once he was the last one standing, taking Jasbeer’s sword with him (she had dropped it during the fight). </span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The party took a bit to realize the shadow man had fled, but they did see this last enemy flee the scene, and they decided to bail too. Unfortunately Creed had already warned Leone Quital of the secret passage, and he ordered his people to guard it. Before fleeing Jasbeer suggested they kill the unconscious enemies, or else they would report to Kell. Gwen and Juza didn’t want to kill defenseless people, but Uzziel agreed it had to be done. The doctor offered to stop their hearts painlessly so they wouldn’t suffer.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">After murdering everyone the constables tried to escape through the secret passage, but were met with gunshots and had to back down. They contemplated making a run for it, but took so long debating this that Leone just sealed the passage shut. He called for them and said he just wanted to talk, and with no other option the constables agreed.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">They met the man at the church’s entrance, and he introduced himself as “the Steelshaper”. I wasn’t sure if he was supposed to tell them his real name, but I thought it would be more interesting if the PCs had to figure things out, so he only gave them a nickname. He said he wanted the doctor and the documents, and in exchange he would let them live. They were in no hurry to hand over Wolfgang and the documents, so Leone told them he would give them an hour to make up their minds or else things would get ugly.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">They retreated to the area with the fireplace and decided they would read as much of the documents as they could while they thought of a way to escape. Wolfgang suggested the fireplace, but said it was too small to climb, although they could try to destroy the wall that separated the chute from the well. They recognized LeBrix as the author of the documents and Jasbeer wrote down the names of all the companies involved in the smuggling with a special invisible ink she had purchased. They realized the materials were going to the construction of something big, but didn’t know what. After their hour was up Leone called for them. They decided they needed to get the doctor to safety, so the plan was as follows: they would distract the Steelshaper while Uzziel accompanied Wolfgang to the fireplace. Using the </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>canary in a coal mine</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> Wolfgang would fly and escape through the fireplace, since that way he wouldn't need a lot of mobility and thus the enclosed space wouldn’t be a problem. He would then cast </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>pyrotechnics</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> with a scroll they had bought, and the assassins would have to escape when they realized the police would be on its way. Wolfgang was thankful the party weren’t going to hand him over, and were even offering to cover for him while he escaped, so he gave Uzziel his </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>malice-wrought rapier</em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"> and told him to give it to Jasbeer so she would be armed, since they were pretty much going to attempt a suicidal last stand.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Jasbeer, Gwen and Juza went to talk with the Steelshaper, who once more told them to hand over the doctor and the documents. To up the ante he ordered his people to bring the boy out, and the constables realized they had captured Rider. The boy was terrified and Juza was about to have a nervous breakdown. Leone allowed her to touch the boy so she would know it wasn’t an illusion, and then telekinetically placed a knife on his throat, threatening to kill him unless they did what he asked. He began to count down from 10, and the players began discussing amongst themselves. Jasbeer did not want to hand over the documents, and in fact seemed pleased Rider had gotten in trouble. The player let slip his most arrogant side, I think, since he was completely OK with letting an innocent die simply because he hadn’t agreed with Jasbeer before. Juza was, of course, not OK with that, and she began to discuss with Jasbeer. Juza was concerned for a boy who was like a son to her, and Jasbeer wanted to keep the document because the safety of their nation was more important. It was finally Gwen who stopped the man at the last second and submitted. She handed Leone the documents and he pushed the boy to the ground and bent the steel bars so he could crawl towards the group. </span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Once reunited Rider hugged Juza and cowered behind her. Leone told them now they had seen he was a man of his word, and promised to let them live if they gave him the doctor too. Gwen broke the news that the doctor was gone by now. Leone didn’t believe it at first, but once the </span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'"><em>pyrotechnics </em></span></span><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">lit the sky he had no choice. They unloaded explosives and bid the party farewell, and then set off to catch Wolfgang. But the PCs had been tested to their limits and they were more determined than ever to survive. They rushed to the fireplace and Gwen began to climb, with Juza following to push her upward (I made the chute small to complicate things). The woman got into position and attempted to break the divisory wall, and succeeded on her Strength check. The constables began to climb and used ropes to help those who were having difficulty. They managed to get away from the explosion in the nick of time as the church collapsed behind them. They still couldn’t believe they’d gotten away from that.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The walk back to HQ was not a pleasant one. The group had had enough of Jasbeer and they gave her a piece of their mind. They told her she had almost gotten Rider killed and almost got them kicked out of the Thinking Man’s Tavern. For her part she refused to accept any of it and told them off, saying they also did all sorts of imprudent things, particularly Gwen. She recalled how on Axis Island they had let a group of rebels live, which had allowed them to report to the other rebels. It had been needlessly risky but she had allowed them to do it because they were all for it, so now it was hypocritical of them to accuse her of putting them at risk or for making deals with criminals. Gwen, who was just now hearing of Jasbeer’s deal with Jered Lawman, got angry. She couldn’t understand why Jasbeer had actually followed through on her promise to the man instead of just getting the information and then reporting the planned sabotage. Jasbeer told her it was important to foster relationships with people who could prove valuable sources of information, and that they weren’t going to do anything too serious anyway. Gwen told Jasbeer she wouldn’t allow Jered’s band to commit the crime tomorrow night, and Jasbeer replied that she could do as she pleased, but she wasn’t going to help foil the Band’s efforts.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">The players were all a bit on edge. I might as well give my own opinion on the characters, which I keep to myself during sessions to let them sort things out.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Jasbeer is very utilitarian and Uzziel, though pragmatic, has a stronger moral compass in my opinion. Juza is a lot more empathic and is frequently annoyed by Jasbeer’s actions and opinions, but she has a hard time thinking straight when she's stressed. Gwen is probably the one whose philosophy most strongly disagrees with the veteran’s, and I cannot help but see a curious situation arising. On one side we have a woman who, after a traumatic experience in the war, has become brave and heroic but also cold and single-minded in the execution of her duty. And on the other we have an altruistic and empathic machine who sees the good in others and encourages them to choose their own path in life while at the same time unsure if she herself is free to do so. Jasbeer is thought of as a mindless bully and servant of the government by many people she has met, but sees herself as a kind leader (that’s how the player described her to me). And at the same time Gwen is seen as understanding, compassionate and humane while being uncertain of her free will and not even being human.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">It might sound as though players are bringing a bit too much of themselves to the table, but I believe that’s important for this campaign, so I actually encourage it. Obviously I don’t encourage making things personal, but I think letting players discuss things and offer arguments in favor of their point of view is valuable, and I trust my friends so I can assure you things are fine.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">After that brief argument Juza decided to stay in the Nettles and search for Rider’s sibling, which Jasbeer thought was a terrible idea. She proposed going to HQ to report and request backup, which would make the search safer and more likely to succeed. “If you find them and they’re in trouble, what are you going to do?” she said to the skyseer. I found myself agreeing with Jasbeer on this one. Juza wasn’t thinking rationally, being sick with dread, but this was something she needed to do. She countered by saying “if it were your family would you leave them in danger to report first?” And Jasbeer say yes, she would, because it was reckless and foolish to rush into what could very well be a trap. Juza didn’t care. She took off to search for the children and Gwen went after her.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">During their search Juza and Rider talked, and Gwen listened. Rider told them what had happened, explaining why he’d acted the way he did when they interrogated him. He explained that he'd been afraid when he saw strangers waiting for him at the professor’s house, especially because he had already come to suspect she had something to do with the people Juza had been investigating. He didn’t know Jasbeer or Uzziel, and he felt something strange in his mind, like he was suddenly angry and didn’t know why. That only made him more scared, and being forced to wait for Juza to come only to be questioned like he’d done something wrong made it worse. He was hoping Juza would arrive and make things better, explain things to her companions and believe him, but instead she hadn’t stood up for him. Gwen, who had been worried about Rider’s behavior during that interaction, realized that Jasbeer had used her psionic powers on the boy, and that had caused the entire ordeal. If it hadn’t been for that, if they had approached trying to understand instead of making accusations, Rider would have been calm, his trust in Juza wouldn’t have suffered a blow, and he would have agreed to help them look for the doctor. This would have made things easier and would have let them keep an eye on him, preventing Steelshaper from kidnapping him and using him as leverage to get the documents. If it hadn’t been for Jasbeer, they would still have the evidence.</span></span></p><p></p><p><span style="color: #000000"><span style="font-family: 'Arial'">Back at the constabulary Jasbeer and Uzziel sent for Delft and Saxby, who showed up a few hours later. It was past midnight by now, and their bosses wanted to know why they’d been summoned. The two constables explained the situation and Jasbeer handed them the list of factories who had showed up in LeBrix’s reports. They mentioned finding doctor Wolfgang, the assassination attempt and meeting a crissilyri man who called himself “the Steelshaper”. Since the doctor hadn’t arrived yet they got worried and quickly mobilized the police to search the Nettles. They didn’t find him.</span></span></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="tragicThaumaturge, post: 7635756, member: 6975610"] [b]4th of Summer[/b] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The party spent a good amount of time during and after the last session discussing an issue that had come up, namely Rider’s involvement with all of this. Jasbeer and Uzziel had learned of the boy’s role as liaison between professor Kindleton and an unknown group, whom they could only suspect (correctly) were Kell’s people. They were all worried, Juza most of all, but they had wildly different ideas on what they should do with this information. [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The thing is, they thought Rider had been lying to them, withholding information from Juza while at the same time working for Lorcan Kell. He was an orphan and had four younger siblings to support, so they figured he must be in it for the money. But in truth the boy was a bit too loyal to Juza, one of the few adults he trusted, and had been diligently scouring the Nettles for any sign of the “men who smelled of burnt engine grease”, as per the constable’s instructions. He knew nothing of Wolfgang and had only incidentally become involved with Kell’s people. Neither had any idea who the other was, they had just hired the boy to deliver the letters because he didn’t know how to read.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]However, after witnessing Kell’s cruelty, Jasbeer was determined to shake up the boy as much as necessary to make sure he would leave the life of crime behind. And nobody could argue against her because they all thought he was falling in with Kell’s people. Gwen, however, made an argument for a more understanding approach, saying that perhaps the boy needed people whom he could trust to feel better and reject a life of crime. She thought that if they ambushed him and treated him like a criminal, it would only reinforce his idea that he couldn’t trust others and could only look out for himself by any means necessary.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Those two spent a long time debating this, and the argument did escalate somewhat. It finally ended when Juza took a stance and told Jasbeer off, saying she would talk to the boy to see what was happening and would make him see reason. Or at least that was the plan. [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]That night they all stayed at Jasbeer’s house because it was close by and it was late, but Juza took a midnight stroll to North Shore where the party had left their boat. She took it for a ride to get away from the city smog so she could see the sky and have a vision. She wanted to know what would happen if they handed over the stolen wands to Lorcan Kell, where they could find the doctor and who was Kell’s competition. She saw fire and explosions, a dark forest and a bald man fishing in a small pond and drinking coffee. The vision itself didn’t help them too much this time, but at least it confirmed that helping Lorcan Kell would have unpleasant consequences for the city. The important thing about this, however, was that because of the time Juza spent stargazing, she woke up late the following day.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The other three constables got up early and headed for HQ. There they spoke with professor Kindleton and got her to lend them the keys to her house. Uzziel also wanted to talk to Serena to see if she would be willing to help them with their investigation (that is, transfer her to their team for the day). Jasbeer insisted he didn’t have to talk to her, they could just ask Stover to transfer her, but the others thought that might rub Serena and the others the wrong way. So Uzziel went to ask her and she said it was ok, but they would need to get Delft’s approval. Unfortunately they didn’t manage to do that, since the most he could do was approve it for the next day once they had more concrete leads to follow. They told him that wouldn’t do, and he offered to assign them four officers so they could search a wider area (because of Serena’s level, the favor was too high to get approved quickly, but they could get the policemen). The PCs refused, preferring to save the favor for later when they might have more info.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]After settling that Gwen decided to wait for Juza while Jasbeer and Uzziel left for the professor’s house since they didn’t want to miss Rider. They got there before he did and waited for him inside the building. By now Juza was already up and with Gwen, both of them hurrying towards the professor’s house. Uzziel saw Rider approaching through the window and Jasbeer went towards the door. The boy knocked and was greeted by the woman, whom he did not recognize. This is when everything fell apart. Jasbeer’s player told me he used a minor action to mark the boy with [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]battlemind’s demand[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]. He (the player) wanted to make sure the boy did not run off, but I asked him what the power did in-game. According to the book “you draw your foe’s concentration, taunting the foe to strike at you”, but I let players reflavor stuff if they want and just roll with whatever they say, as long as it makes sense. So the player tells me he is using psionics to make a creature see Jasbeer as the biggest threat, thereby drawing the creature’s attention. I said sure, and now Rider was immediately wary and his attitude shifted from neutral to unfriendly, his fear preventing him from being outright hostile.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The two constables took the boy inside for questioning, but they decided to wait a bit for Juza. Once she and Gwen arrived they went inside and Juza began talking to Rider, trying to figure out what he knew. By this point Juza had actually told him about Wolfgang (the previous day if I remember correctly, the point is Rider hadn’t had a chance to relay this information, but he wasn’t withholding it. He had managed to figure out the letters he was delivering had something to do with it, but he had kept doing it so he could get more information for Juza, knowingly putting his life in danger to help her). But he was still under the effect of Jasbeer’s mark, and his discomfort had built up. He felt uneasy, angry and scared because he didn’t know what was happening to him, since he doesn’t know anything about psionics. So he wasn’t really in a talkative mood, and was dodging Juza’s questions. She managed to learn that the letters were given to him by a man and a woman in the Nettles, and decided to press the issue to make Rider more helpful. So he told her where in the Nettles he met with them.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Rider was pretty angry by now, because up until this point Juza hadn’t done anything to make him feel better, or more relaxed, or explained anything. She had just been pressing him for more information. So he felt used, like one of his only friends didn’t care about him and didn’t trust him. They had all ganged up on him, made accusations and not once had any of them apologized for treating him like a criminal even though he hadn’t done anything wrong. He just wanted to be left alone, so he told the group that was all he knew and proceeded to leave. They told him to stop but he was having none of it, he wanted to be alone and had already told them everything he knew. Jasbeer enforced her mark to move next to him and grappled him and he began fighting to break free. Juza began talking to him and telling him to calm down, saying they needed him to take them to the place where he’d met with the couple. So now Rider was being grappled by Jasbeer, was even more scared, and Juza wasn’t standing up for him, instead acting like he was in the wrong for wanting to be left alone. I allowed a very difficult check to get him to calm down but they didn’t make de DC, so I told Juza she could try again and risk ruining her relationship with the boy, or could let him go and try to fix things later. Reluctantly she told Jasbeer to release him, and she had no choice but to comply.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Well that could have gone better, I thought. They were all pretty bummed about losing their lead, but at least they had an address. They decided to investigate the Nettles, and I granted them a Streetwise success because of Rider’s previous investigation (I had previously rolled to see if the boy had managed to find anything, granting him a +8 bonus from 16 CHA and training in streetwise, simply because it sounded reasonable since that’s his main method of income. I’d rolled a 25 total, so that was a success). The PCs only needed two more to find the doctor the hard way. Juza decided to stay behind because she needed to come to terms with what had just happened, and Gwen decided to keep her company. Jasbeer and Uzziel went ahead and hired a guide to take them to the address Rider had given them. And this is when they realized things weren’t going to be as easy as they thought. They had an address, sure, but the guide told them there were multiple streets with the same name in the Nettles, and many of the locals didn’t know how to read so they actually called streets by different names because the nomenclature had been changed several times throughout the years as the district expanded. So they had no real way of knowing exactly where to look, and would have to visit several places and ask around. Knowing it would be faster if they split up they hired different guides, haggled a bit and set off. Juza and Gwen ran into the same situation when they got to the Nettles, and after a while they crossed paths and shared information. I granted them a Streetwise check, which Jasbeer rolled (taking only 2 hours since the four of them had been searching). She rolled high and they narrowed things down, learning that a group of Danorans had been active in the northern part of the district, looking for someone.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Fearing walking into an ambush they decided to stick together for the final search even if it took longer. I began counting the hours: one, two, three, four, five… the player’s eyes widened with each hour that went by, their disbelief evident. I was waiting for them to tell me to stop, so when I announced six hours had passed I made a long pause. No one said anything so I went to the seventh hour. Now everyone told me to stop, said they thought I had finished at six and told me they would call off the search after six hours to discuss what the hell they were going to do. They had spent all day walking around the Nettles, it was already 8 pm and they still hadn’t found anything. They knew they risked running into a dead end if they kept this up, and now they were mere hours away from failing to stop the smuggling. They didn’t even know where it would take place, and they were desperate. [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]They discussed going back to HQ to ask for reinforcements so they could split up and send half the group over to Pine Island (Jasbeer had taken a guess where the smuggling would occur, and although she was right they didn’t know that). They even looked around for an information broker to ask about illicit activities and found one, but since they were pretty far from the district he didn’t know anything about Pine Island. He offered to point them to someone on that district who could give them more information, for a fee of course, but after thinking it through the party decided they didn’t have time to go on a wild goose chase. They decided to go all in on finding the doctor and spent two more hours looking around the Nettles. It was 10:30 p.m. by now. I asked them to roll Streetwise. Jasbeer would roll. She had several bonuses, including a +1 from her background, and the player realized he needed a 13 on the d20 to reach DC 25. They knew if they messed this up the doctor would be a goner and their investigation would take a major blow. He rolled: 13. We all got very excited, and they all cheered and high-fived each other. That +1 streetwise from her background made all the difference.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The constables followed rumors of a doctor hiding in an abandoned church, and found a couple begging to be let in so the man could reattach the husband’s severed thumb. They were driven away by a group of beggars who had settled in the church, and the party decided to try and convince them to let them through. They approached and told the men Juza had been bitten by a venomous snake, and they were somewhat convincing. Still, the beggars refused to let them through, insisting there was no doctor in the church. They said they didn’t want to lose the place they’d found, since they had no place to live, and the party offered to pay them. The men asked for a remarkable sum (10 gp for each) and the party was a bit tight on money, so they didn’t want to go giving away that much. Uzziel’s insight tipped them off that the men were probably asking for that much because they had been bribed to keep people away, and were trying to come out on top. After being told of this Jasbeer had no reservations about getting a bit more violent. She recalled her [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]summoned armor[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] (they had requested it earlier, don’t remember the day) and drew her weapon. The didn’t even need to roll Intimidate, since the beggars weren’t about to get into a fight with an armed person. They fled and the party ventured inside the church.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]They searched the inside of the church and found the secret passage in the latrine. Uzziel noticed one of the saw traps and they avoided it. It was a good thing he was leading the group, or else it might have crippled someone. They reached the heavy curtains that led to Wolfgang’s hiding place and used an e[/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]lixir of clairvoyance[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] to spy on the men. They’d been pretty sneaky and had avoided triggering the alarm or the saw traps, so the doctor and his “bodyguards” didn’t know they were there. One of Kell’s men was stoking the fire, another one was lying on a cot, and the third one was sitting on a chair while Wolfgang wrote a letter on the table. The group charged in taking them all by surprise and made short work of the criminals. They were surprised when Wolfgang attacked them with [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]stop your heart[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial], since they weren’t expecting him to be hostile. He managed to heal one of his bodyguards but the constables avoided attacking him, and once they had knocked everyone else unconscious they stopped fighting and told him they knew their friend Lynn Kindleton and that they were here to rescue him. He didn’t believe them at first, but they put their weapons away, handed him the letters and rolled well on Diplomacy. I found it hard to believe he wouldn’t believe them after all that, especially since they hadn’t harmed him during combat.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]They rested for a bit to recover and the constables told Wolfgang they needed to leave quickly and mentioned the hidden passage near the latrine. Unbeknownst to them Cillian Creed and the Obscurati were already in the church with them, and they overheard them talking. Wolfgang told the party he wanted to talk to them about what was happening before going anywhere with them, to make sure he could trust them and so they would hear his side of the story, since he didn’t want any trouble with the police. They agreed and he told them what had happened that day on the consulate. They realized he had just been an innocent bystander who had been at the wrong place at the wrong time (up until this point they thought he was involved somehow). They assured him they would keep him safe and he told them about the documents, asking for help to retrieve them from the hole in the ceiling. He said he hadn’t read them since he figured the more he knew, the worse things would be for him.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]As the party prepared to leave Creed struck. The only one to notice him was Uzziel. He saw the man appear from the shadows, cover Wolfgang’s mouth with his hand and stab the man’s neck with a syringe. He scored a critical hit and dealt massive damage to the doctor. Everyone freaked out. Uzziel shot a [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]divine bolt[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] but missed, and he saw the man fade and disappear (he’d become invisible, merged with Wolfgang’s shadow). Then the nethermancers destroyed their light source and plunged them into darkness. [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]As the players realized this was an assassination attempt they got really scared. They hadn’t known what they were dealing with. It was the sort of fear that came with knowing that even if they made it out alive, they and everyone they knew were in terrible danger. They didn’t know how they’d been found, and since Uzziel told them the attacker had become invisible, they could only assume all enemies could do that too, and they’d been following them since god knows when. [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]They fought desperately to stay alive and to keep the doctor alive. For all they knew, if he was reduced to 0 HP he would die and they would lose a key witness. Jasbeer’s potions and other consumables saved the day. Almost all their potions were used to keep Wolfgang alive (they were the kind that doesn’t consume healing surges if the creature is bloodied). They tried lighting more torches but the nethermancers destroyed them, and the party realized they would only take more damage if they kept trying. They all fought pretty well, and Jasbeer used a [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]vial of darkness[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] to grant total concealment in a burst 1. I ruled this would block the enemies' line of sight, so despite their darkvision they were now fighting on less unfair terms. They told Wolfgang to stay within the magically obscured area so enemies wouldn’t be able to hit him as easily. They had several of those vials too so they managed to keep it up for a good chunk of the fight. Juza’s radiant powers were especially effective against Creed, and in the brief flash created by the [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]blazing starfall[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] the constables were able to see the man’s skin peel away, revealing oil and raw muscle. They even had an [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]elixir of invisibility[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] which helped the doctor survive more easily. Eventually they defeated the assassins, and Creed escaped upon being bloodied. Another nethermancer escaped too once he was the last one standing, taking Jasbeer’s sword with him (she had dropped it during the fight). [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The party took a bit to realize the shadow man had fled, but they did see this last enemy flee the scene, and they decided to bail too. Unfortunately Creed had already warned Leone Quital of the secret passage, and he ordered his people to guard it. Before fleeing Jasbeer suggested they kill the unconscious enemies, or else they would report to Kell. Gwen and Juza didn’t want to kill defenseless people, but Uzziel agreed it had to be done. The doctor offered to stop their hearts painlessly so they wouldn’t suffer.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]After murdering everyone the constables tried to escape through the secret passage, but were met with gunshots and had to back down. They contemplated making a run for it, but took so long debating this that Leone just sealed the passage shut. He called for them and said he just wanted to talk, and with no other option the constables agreed.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]They met the man at the church’s entrance, and he introduced himself as “the Steelshaper”. I wasn’t sure if he was supposed to tell them his real name, but I thought it would be more interesting if the PCs had to figure things out, so he only gave them a nickname. He said he wanted the doctor and the documents, and in exchange he would let them live. They were in no hurry to hand over Wolfgang and the documents, so Leone told them he would give them an hour to make up their minds or else things would get ugly.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]They retreated to the area with the fireplace and decided they would read as much of the documents as they could while they thought of a way to escape. Wolfgang suggested the fireplace, but said it was too small to climb, although they could try to destroy the wall that separated the chute from the well. They recognized LeBrix as the author of the documents and Jasbeer wrote down the names of all the companies involved in the smuggling with a special invisible ink she had purchased. They realized the materials were going to the construction of something big, but didn’t know what. After their hour was up Leone called for them. They decided they needed to get the doctor to safety, so the plan was as follows: they would distract the Steelshaper while Uzziel accompanied Wolfgang to the fireplace. Using the [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]canary in a coal mine[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] Wolfgang would fly and escape through the fireplace, since that way he wouldn't need a lot of mobility and thus the enclosed space wouldn’t be a problem. He would then cast [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]pyrotechnics[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] with a scroll they had bought, and the assassins would have to escape when they realized the police would be on its way. Wolfgang was thankful the party weren’t going to hand him over, and were even offering to cover for him while he escaped, so he gave Uzziel his [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]malice-wrought rapier[/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial] and told him to give it to Jasbeer so she would be armed, since they were pretty much going to attempt a suicidal last stand.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Jasbeer, Gwen and Juza went to talk with the Steelshaper, who once more told them to hand over the doctor and the documents. To up the ante he ordered his people to bring the boy out, and the constables realized they had captured Rider. The boy was terrified and Juza was about to have a nervous breakdown. Leone allowed her to touch the boy so she would know it wasn’t an illusion, and then telekinetically placed a knife on his throat, threatening to kill him unless they did what he asked. He began to count down from 10, and the players began discussing amongst themselves. Jasbeer did not want to hand over the documents, and in fact seemed pleased Rider had gotten in trouble. The player let slip his most arrogant side, I think, since he was completely OK with letting an innocent die simply because he hadn’t agreed with Jasbeer before. Juza was, of course, not OK with that, and she began to discuss with Jasbeer. Juza was concerned for a boy who was like a son to her, and Jasbeer wanted to keep the document because the safety of their nation was more important. It was finally Gwen who stopped the man at the last second and submitted. She handed Leone the documents and he pushed the boy to the ground and bent the steel bars so he could crawl towards the group. [/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Once reunited Rider hugged Juza and cowered behind her. Leone told them now they had seen he was a man of his word, and promised to let them live if they gave him the doctor too. Gwen broke the news that the doctor was gone by now. Leone didn’t believe it at first, but once the [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial][I]pyrotechnics [/I][/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]lit the sky he had no choice. They unloaded explosives and bid the party farewell, and then set off to catch Wolfgang. But the PCs had been tested to their limits and they were more determined than ever to survive. They rushed to the fireplace and Gwen began to climb, with Juza following to push her upward (I made the chute small to complicate things). The woman got into position and attempted to break the divisory wall, and succeeded on her Strength check. The constables began to climb and used ropes to help those who were having difficulty. They managed to get away from the explosion in the nick of time as the church collapsed behind them. They still couldn’t believe they’d gotten away from that.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The walk back to HQ was not a pleasant one. The group had had enough of Jasbeer and they gave her a piece of their mind. They told her she had almost gotten Rider killed and almost got them kicked out of the Thinking Man’s Tavern. For her part she refused to accept any of it and told them off, saying they also did all sorts of imprudent things, particularly Gwen. She recalled how on Axis Island they had let a group of rebels live, which had allowed them to report to the other rebels. It had been needlessly risky but she had allowed them to do it because they were all for it, so now it was hypocritical of them to accuse her of putting them at risk or for making deals with criminals. Gwen, who was just now hearing of Jasbeer’s deal with Jered Lawman, got angry. She couldn’t understand why Jasbeer had actually followed through on her promise to the man instead of just getting the information and then reporting the planned sabotage. Jasbeer told her it was important to foster relationships with people who could prove valuable sources of information, and that they weren’t going to do anything too serious anyway. Gwen told Jasbeer she wouldn’t allow Jered’s band to commit the crime tomorrow night, and Jasbeer replied that she could do as she pleased, but she wasn’t going to help foil the Band’s efforts.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]The players were all a bit on edge. I might as well give my own opinion on the characters, which I keep to myself during sessions to let them sort things out.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Jasbeer is very utilitarian and Uzziel, though pragmatic, has a stronger moral compass in my opinion. Juza is a lot more empathic and is frequently annoyed by Jasbeer’s actions and opinions, but she has a hard time thinking straight when she's stressed. Gwen is probably the one whose philosophy most strongly disagrees with the veteran’s, and I cannot help but see a curious situation arising. On one side we have a woman who, after a traumatic experience in the war, has become brave and heroic but also cold and single-minded in the execution of her duty. And on the other we have an altruistic and empathic machine who sees the good in others and encourages them to choose their own path in life while at the same time unsure if she herself is free to do so. Jasbeer is thought of as a mindless bully and servant of the government by many people she has met, but sees herself as a kind leader (that’s how the player described her to me). And at the same time Gwen is seen as understanding, compassionate and humane while being uncertain of her free will and not even being human.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]It might sound as though players are bringing a bit too much of themselves to the table, but I believe that’s important for this campaign, so I actually encourage it. Obviously I don’t encourage making things personal, but I think letting players discuss things and offer arguments in favor of their point of view is valuable, and I trust my friends so I can assure you things are fine.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]After that brief argument Juza decided to stay in the Nettles and search for Rider’s sibling, which Jasbeer thought was a terrible idea. She proposed going to HQ to report and request backup, which would make the search safer and more likely to succeed. “If you find them and they’re in trouble, what are you going to do?” she said to the skyseer. I found myself agreeing with Jasbeer on this one. Juza wasn’t thinking rationally, being sick with dread, but this was something she needed to do. She countered by saying “if it were your family would you leave them in danger to report first?” And Jasbeer say yes, she would, because it was reckless and foolish to rush into what could very well be a trap. Juza didn’t care. She took off to search for the children and Gwen went after her.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]During their search Juza and Rider talked, and Gwen listened. Rider told them what had happened, explaining why he’d acted the way he did when they interrogated him. He explained that he'd been afraid when he saw strangers waiting for him at the professor’s house, especially because he had already come to suspect she had something to do with the people Juza had been investigating. He didn’t know Jasbeer or Uzziel, and he felt something strange in his mind, like he was suddenly angry and didn’t know why. That only made him more scared, and being forced to wait for Juza to come only to be questioned like he’d done something wrong made it worse. He was hoping Juza would arrive and make things better, explain things to her companions and believe him, but instead she hadn’t stood up for him. Gwen, who had been worried about Rider’s behavior during that interaction, realized that Jasbeer had used her psionic powers on the boy, and that had caused the entire ordeal. If it hadn’t been for that, if they had approached trying to understand instead of making accusations, Rider would have been calm, his trust in Juza wouldn’t have suffered a blow, and he would have agreed to help them look for the doctor. This would have made things easier and would have let them keep an eye on him, preventing Steelshaper from kidnapping him and using him as leverage to get the documents. If it hadn’t been for Jasbeer, they would still have the evidence.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=#000000][FONT=Arial]Back at the constabulary Jasbeer and Uzziel sent for Delft and Saxby, who showed up a few hours later. It was past midnight by now, and their bosses wanted to know why they’d been summoned. The two constables explained the situation and Jasbeer handed them the list of factories who had showed up in LeBrix’s reports. They mentioned finding doctor Wolfgang, the assassination attempt and meeting a crissilyri man who called himself “the Steelshaper”. Since the doctor hadn’t arrived yet they got worried and quickly mobilized the police to search the Nettles. They didn’t find him.[/FONT][/COLOR] [/QUOTE]
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tragicThaumaturge's 4e Zeitgeist Campaign
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