Opening Crawl: https://docs.google.com/file/d...b0k/edit?usp=sharing

Player's guide:
https://docs.google.com/file/d...VEk/edit?usp=sharing

Map of Kakishon:
http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/...s/94794/Kakishon.jpg

Map of Katapesh:
http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/...855/Katapesh_map.JPG

City of Katapesh:
http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/...PosterMap_Page_2.jpg

Link to Roll20 page:
https://app.roll20.net/join/85511/ZLp1pw
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:22, Thu 21 Feb 2013.

You have been traveling together for more than a
week on a dreary camel caravan from the town of Solku to an
unknown location in the northern scrublands of Katapesh.
The man who hired you is Garavel, the no-nonsense
major-domo of a merchant princess awaiting them at their
destination. In the distant haze to the west, you can just
make out the immense outline of Pale Mountain looming
over the mid-evening horizon like a tombstone.

[ Give each
player a chance to describe his character, what he looks like,
how he acts and so forth. Everyone has had a few days to get
to know one another, and this is a good way to engage the
players from the very start. ]

As Sahba

Wrapped from head to toe in a light wool material Sahba marched along side the caravan heading west. His feet and back ached from the long march. He was not used to wearing armor and toting a shield and sword, as his brothers and pact mates had done before him. Having been forced out into the wilds of Katapesh to 'earn his mane', Sahba took the first job he could find -- that of guarding this caravan.

There was no pay, but the offer of food, and future employment opportunities sounded good enough. So Shaba returned to his pack and informed them of his eventual departure, to which he was tossed an old sword and a worn out piece of hide.

Having been considered an 'adult' for the past several years, Sahba should have earned his mane ages ago. But when his parents feel ill, he chose to stay and care for his den, while his brothers, sisters, and friends, set out to claim their manes. When the gods gave the mercy of death to his parents, Sahba tried to take a place within his pack. But by then the pack had moved on. He was now an outcast, even among his family.

So when the armor was carelessly tossed at his feet, he was not surprised. It was their way of telling him to leave. To earn his mane or die trying. And, more or less, to just not come back. In his pack, when items became old and useless, they were tossed aside -- something many felt he should have done to his parents.

Picking up the old sword and armor he left. That was several months ago. Since then he has primarily kept to himself. Engaging in light conversation here and there, but never revealing anything about himself. He even has gone to great lengths to keep his face covered, for fear that other races would not take kindly to a Longtooth Shifter.
This message was last updated by the player at 05:43, Sun 17 Feb 2013.

The trip was not boring, though. A bright, cheerful halfling provided music and optimistic commentary. If Garavel ever objected, the halfling would defend her music with simple concepts like "Positive Mental Attitude is the number one survival necessity. Even more important than food." or if that didn't work, "If my music bothers you, then you can provide the entertainment." or if that didn't work, "Your stuck with me. Too bad." which, if Garavel threatened not paying, Emerald would threaten exposing him as a man who doesn't keep his word (And having the rest of the troupe as witnesses).

But no-nonsense probably only means the guy doesn't have a sense of humor and doesn't believe in fun that would endanger the troupe. Emerald is not one to endanger her allies for fun, so chances are she gets along just fine with Garavel.

Emerald had a painful background of her own, but like Sahab, she doesn't talk about that. However, throughout the trip, she DOES talk about all kinds of things, included snippets of her past, where she learned of "the magic of music." Most people who hear her go on about such things usually assume she means music is magical the same way a kiss or newborn baby is. But interpretations aside, she does mean literally. Even if she phrases it in ways that leave it open to interpretation.

Emerald also admits to not being from this land and having come from all over the place (though she doesn't admit to any ONE place as her origin), but she wears the clothing style of the locals, having decided ahead of time she would do so wherever she went.

Emerald is very social and happily picks up any topic she can with those she travels with, learning what the people she is traveling with enjoy.

And her music... when she sings, one could swear their own heart was swaying and beating to Emerald's voice. When she strummed the lute, skill flowed from her fingers as naturally as dew from flower pedals. This was no standard bard who just sang songs and plucked strings. There was something more to this bard...

---

thoroughly enjoyed hearing Sahab's backstory. Emmy's will only be revealed in RP, though. :P

  Any problems Kyle may or may not have had with Shifters in the past had been purely professional, and with Razorclaws anyways.  Not that racial profiling was something for Kyle to worry about in the primarily Human and Halfling populated city around these parts.

  He also had a generic wisdom modifier, so Saab might have a 50/50 chance hiding their species from him with just a fake mustache.

  As for No Nonsense Businessmen, Kyle considered himself somewhat of one.  Of course, this was in the sense he tried to work in a professional manner.  A fellow redhead providing a pleasant song and dance routine was hardly worth complaint so long as it wasn't causing problems.  There was a difference between a desire to always get paid and keep people alive, and a dislike of social interaction.  Even if it could otherwise at times.

  Kyle was on hand as much as maintenance as he was further protection, broken trade wagons in the middle of the desert being repaired quickly was an easy way to more than make up the cost in ritual components.  As for exposition regarding his own past, we'll skip that for now.

  Though he might have a Halfling and Vryloka for grandparents on one side of the family tree.

Only the far-away eyes of this woman completely wrapped in black are visible, but the features suggest she must be human.  She isn't one for conversation, and when spoken to she responds in cryptic rhyme, saying things like,

"The birth of a new world awaits in your hands
With only your hopes and your dreams may you stand."

Among these eccentricities, she does not leave shoe or sandal prints on the hot sand, rather footprints of bare feet.

Tym Spiritwolf

Among the guards is what appears to be a golem. Standing 6'2", this sandstone colored creature rarely smiles and his obsidian eyes seem to measure everything they see. Wherever his leather armor isn't covering his "skin" you can see veins of obsidian accentuating the curves of his body, making a striking display of biceps and abdomen. He wields a black Greataxe the way a human would a shortsword or a halfling would a dagger, which is to say with apparent ease and skill. While not necessarily anti-social, he has a hard time bringing himself to share in the camaraderie around the fire with people he doesn't yet know or trust. As a result, he spends a lot of time on roving guard duty, both while the caravan is moving and when at camp.

His back story is rich and deep. Will also come out only if someone works for it.

Omira Bloodletting is not easily approachable. Standing 6”, long black hair tied back with leather straps and her purple eyes along with her sleek obsidian body protruding blades of iron and bone from hide armor is an intimidating sight. A long bow is strapped across her back, Omira’s eyes always seem to be searching but, for what, no one can say.

Omira left the city life of Zoronor to carve her own path in this world willing to risk her life for the adventure and great hunt.  After spending a few days being rejected from most jobs she applied for she was easily recruited for her long bow by Garavel.  His no nonsense attitude and kindness has earned him great respect in her eyes.  Omira has enjoyed her travels with the caravan getting a chance to study so many other races and building a respect to replace the ingrained fear she has always known.

She is slow to engage or divulge any information about her history or her people although she has enjoyed all the other conversations and stories her companions have shared of their adventures.  Always willing to listen to someone tell a story or sing she has found herself trying to make new friends to her surprise. She often disappears and returns with food to share among her new companions.

http://s148.beta.photobucket.c...zps5130f6ab.jpg.html
This message was last edited by the player at 22:15, Wed 20 Feb 2013.

Surya reaches her hand forward and prophesies,

"Beneath the glow of the burning claw,
A fell wind portends the star seer's fall.
You did your best, Eloais,
but none mourn thee, Alas.
Now follow Sarenrae's light
and know the fiend dies tonight."

Soon you are nearing their
destination. As soon as the craggy tree appears over the
next hill, it becomes obvious why it is called the Sultan’s
Claw. With five immense, mostly leafless branches, the
growth looks more like a giant skeletal talon than a thing
of living wood.
As you top the last rise, a caravan of a half-dozen
wagons and a large tent clustered around the distinctive
tree comes into view. Camels in a nearby pen prance in
agitation, and a clutch of confused goats and livestock
wander the grounds around the wagons. Perhaps a dozen
men and women rush around the campsite, chasing down
an animal or hastening toward the center of the cluster,
near the Sultan’s Claw, with pails of water in their hands.
One of the wagons is on fire!

Lush orange and red flames engulf an elaborate wooden
wagon emblazoned with painted moons and stars. A gout
of smoke pours from an open door, and as you approach an
ill wind blows a number of colorful fortune-telling Harrow
cards from inside the wagon.  One of these
singed cards blows directly at Surya, catching against
her chest in a burst of orange cinders. It is the Cyclone,
signifying a force that tears through whatever it meets at
the behest of an intelligent being. The card portends war,
arson, and destructive plans. As the PCs’ eyes shift their
focus from the Cyclone back to the wagon, the whole of the
Sultan’s Claw erupts into brilliant flame!

The central flap of an elaborate tent flies open and a regal
woman who can only be Almah steps out into the firelit night.
http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/f9c53ebb9d.gif
“Douse that flame!” she shouts to the men surrounding the
wagon before turning in your direction. “Ah, Garavel!” she
says. “And just a moment later than the nick of time, as usual.”
http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/...s/853738/garavel.png
Looking specifically past her major domo and directly at
you, Almah barks out a simple order before running off
toward the fire: “Find some way to help!”

Everyone has the opportunity to help in one of the
following ways:

Put Out the Fire: Almah, Garavel, and four soldiers
dressed in the distinctive red chitin-plate armor of the
Pactmaster Guard run back and forth between the burning
fortune teller’s wagon and an uncovered wagon about
20 feet away. The latter contains a huge barrel holding
enough drinking water to serve the entire campsite for a
week. At present, it will take the six people 10 rounds to
quench the fire using the pail-by-pail method. There are
more buckets to be grabbed , and
each person assisting in this manner reduces the number of
rounds it takes to put out the fire by 1.

Pull Wagon Out of the Way: Four burly mercenaries
struggle with an enclosed wooden wagon within feet of the
burning wagon, hoping to move it to safety before an errant
spark causes it too to burst into flame. This will occur 6
rounds after you arrive unless they successfully haul
it out of the way. Moving the unhitched wagon requires a
DC 26DC 15 Strength check. The four mercenaries each attempt
a DC 10 Strength check (each mercenary has a +1 bonus
to this check) to aid a PC attempting to move the wagon,
potentially adding as much as +8 to the check.

http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/.../420775/zastoran.gif
Heal Wounded Firefighters: A red-headed halfling
cleric, Father Zastoran, kneels next to two severely burned
mercenaries who tried to enter the burning wagon. Father
Zastoran is tending to a badly wounded mercenary called
Trevvis, but he is unable to focus on his second patient,
a female sworder named Kallien, who lies near death
from terrible burns and smoke inhalation. Any magical
healing is sufficient to stabilize Kallien, who is currently
at –6 hit points and counting. A DC 15 Heal check is
also sufficient to stop Kallien’s decline.

Deal with Frightened Animals: A
modest collection of pigs, goats, and
sheep accompanies Almah’s party
on the journey to Kelmarane. The
flaming wagon has unsettled
these creatures, which
somehow escaped from their
pen in the confusion surrounding
the fire’s outbreak. The middle-aged
human camel driver and his wife
do their best to wrangle the panicking
animals, but their efforts are quickly
being overrun by the chaos of the
situation.
Five animals must be calmed in order to keep
them out of danger and out of the way. Calming
a panicked animal requires a DC 20 Handle Animal
or wild empathy check. DC 15 Nature. The goal is to manage to make 5
successful checks before the fire is quenched.

  Kyle had picked up a few things about medical procedure in his studies.  But while he was confident he could stabilize Kallien given time to work, this wasn't exactly a situation where time (or Take-Tens) was an available luxury.  So instead Kyle bypasses all that hard work in the realm of medicine in favor of his more practiced talent for the arcane.

  The Artificer comes to a stop by the sworder and infuses them with arcane vitality, somehow doubting he would get metaphysically reimbursed for the expenditure.  "I can do that one more time, so considering the tendency of wildfires to spread I'm going to save it in case any other near fatal injuries come about."

  Once he can get around to it, Kyle will work towards putting out the fire.  If only because he somewhat safely assumes he is terrible with large panicked animals beyond shooting them.

OOC: Healing infusion.  Surge+1 healed if you want some numbers.

Seeing that Kyle has already helped with the woman, Emerald rushes to help with the fire. Pushing the large cart away doesn't even cross her mind as she is not exactly strong. Helping with the animals *does* occur to her, but Emerald knows she isn't good with animals. Besides... the sooner the fire goes out, the sooner all the other stuff will either be unnecessary or just easier. She trusts her allies to take to their best suited jobs, but keeps an eye open as she carries buckets of water to see if any ally winds up looking lost, dumbstruck, or otherwise in need of guidance.

A visual representation of the scene:
http://img.photobucket.com/alb...3689/SultansClaw.png
This message was last edited by the player at 14:55, Wed 20 Feb 2013.

Fire. Animals. Prevention. Heal.
Sahba tried to break every situation into its most basic component. Making it easier for him to access what was a priority.

The Fire had a bucket brigade -- though it could spread, which would mean further trouble for the caravan(s). Four people there.
The Animals/Horses -- without them these people would be walking to where ever they were going, or starve trying to get there. Two people there.
Prevent further spread of the fire -- by moving nearby carts, the fire couldn't spread. Four people there.
Heal the wounded -- he had no skill in medicine, but there were others here who fit that mold. One person there.

Helping with the animals was priority. They had the fewest hands to deal with a large problem. And so he rushes over to the husband and wife to to assist them in corralling the livestock and horses.

"Woah! Easy there!" he shouts at one horse, spreading his arms wide and bring the horse's attention to him, rather than the raging fire behind him. "Easy boy." The horse calms and allows itself to be removed from the chaos.

---

Nature Check (1d20 [7] + 8 = 15, Success!) 1 out of 5

I quickly move to take control of the covered wagon, arranging the mercenaries to best utilize the design and available area. I take position behind the wagon and brace myself, feet digging into the ground and hands firmly against the wagon wall.

"On the count of three," I yell. I count off loudly in measured intervals, ensuring that all four mercenaries are in time with me.

On three, I push hard, shoulder muscles bulging against the weight as I walk slowly forward away from the threatening fire.





Strength Check (1d20) [10] + 4 str bonus = 14
14 + 4 (assuming min bonus for mercenaries?) = 18
14 + 8 (max bonus for mercenaries) = 22
I'd say that's a success

Omira sees the animals and people in need and reacts without thought.  She reaches into her bags and grabs her blanket, draping it across her arms to increase the area screened using it as shield to direct the goats and sheep back to safety.  Believing animals can feel your emotions she works to stay calm and to project that emotion to the animals hoping they will relax and be guided. She looks to see if she needs to do it again; however, seeing her companions assisting, she decides to use her blanket to help screen the animals view away from the fire and continues to work at keeping them calm.

“Over here, I'll block their view. I believe they will stay calmer where they can’t see the fire.”

{(nature +9); I rolled Nature checks: 14 + 9 = 23, 16 + 9 = 25, 3+9 = 12, 11 + 9= 20, and an 8 + 9 = 17}
I wasn't sure how many times you wanted/needed me to roll.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:12, Thu 21 Feb 2013.