Sometimes the nightly equatorial rains that washed away the worst of the city’s intolerable heat and filth didn’t come, or were only a sickly drizzle that just increased the humidity. On these nights Sasserine stewed in its own juices, and the city’s inhabitants suffered under the oppressive heat while moisture seemed to trickle down the walls of their bedrooms. On these nights Benilla was scared to sleep, and tonight the dark boiling clouds that would signal a strong downpour several hours later were nowhere to be seen.

The heat always made her nightmares worse, more real and more vivid. The dreams differed a little each time, but were usually related to her parents and their death, and her part in that. She also dreamed of her life on the plantation and the terrible conditions her family had lived in, and of her first terrifying days in Sasserine when she had managed to sneak in through the south gate. Worst of all, sometimes she dreamed even deeper, and met terrible things that forced her to unleash her powers whether she wanted to or not. She finished her breathing exercises and lay down on the mattress in her very simple sleeping room, praying to Wee Jas that she would somehow be granted a gentle night’s sleep. But within seconds of her closing her eyes she felt herself being sucked into a dream more real than any she had experienced before.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:54, Thu 04 Dec 2014.

She was back in the small home – not much more than a two room shack really – that had been her family’s back on the plantation. She found herself lying on her small cot in a corner of the single bedroom that she shared with her parents. The sound of arguing comes from the next room.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 2):

Child Benilla first tries to listen, but eventually creeps closer to the opening into the next room, wondering what's going on.

Benilla couldn't hear anything but muffled voices from her bed so she got up and moved to the doorway, being careful to stay out of sight as she peered around the corner. She saw her parents in the middle of a heated discussion - her mother was pacing up and down one side of the small family table while her father sat in a chair on the other.

"I am telling you, she isn't right! In fact she is dangerous! Have you seen the charred wood around her bed? She is going to burn this house to the ground one day," hissed her mother in a hoarse whisper. "We need to take her to one of the temples. They will know how to look after her."

Benilla father was shaking his head strongly. "She is learning already," he answered in a low subdued voice. "Just give her time. We can't just dump her on the steps of some temple, there is no guarantee that they will look after her, anyway, where would we take her? We can't leave the plantation."

"I will take her all the way to Sasserine myself if I have to," spat his wife. "And remember, you seem to think she has your blood in your veins, but I am damn well sure she doesn't have mine! I owe her nothing!"

This message was last edited by the GM at 19:12, Fri 05 Dec 2014.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 4):

benilla sits stunned at the ramifications at what her mother had just exclaimed - if she understood correctly what she meant by "her blood". She just sits there...

Young Benilla/Older Celene listened as her parent's argument intensified. It was hard to watch - she simply hadn't remembered her parents ever fighting like this, but she supposed she must have found the memory so painful that she had suppressed it.

Her parent's argument was silenced by a sudden knock at the door. The surprise of it jarred them into silence. "Who could it be?" asked he mother in the quietest of whispers. "Probably the neighbours," muttered her father, as he rose from his chair and headed towards the door.

"Pay attention Benilla!" said a voice from behind her that made her jump. "This is the most important part!" Celene whirled around and saw an incredibly beautiful woman standing behind her, standing incongruously next her small cot. She woman had an exquisite face that reeked sensual beauty, complemented by dark hair and a red dress of the finest silks. Celene noticed that she wore a skull ring on her left hand.


This message was last edited by the player at 12:38, Sun 07 Dec 2014.

In reply to Mysterous Woman (msg # 7):

Celene frantically (in the blink of an eye) takes in the sight of the mysterious woman, trying to memorize as many details as possible. Particularly, she tries to discern if the skull ring also carries a fire-motive (or the dress).

Would Celene at her present state of training at the temple know if this could be a vision of the Ruby Sorceress - or if it was someone else impersonating her?

If lacking any certain knowledge, she assumes:
"Mistress, your word is my life." Celene turns towards the other room again, before her father reaches the door knob. She breathes steadily, preparing to take in every sight, sound and scent of the scene.

Celene does he best to remember everything she can, although she has only a second. She does note that there is no fire motif anywhere on the lady's dress or ring.



No, she has no way of telling, other than weighing up the content of the dream and seeing if it is in keeping with the Ruby Sorceress' teachings and perhaps asking a more senior member of the church for advice.

The door is kicked down in two stout blows, much to the gasping horror of Benilla's mother. Her father has moved around the table to place himself between the door and his wife, and has picked up the only weapon available, a kitchen knife.

A tall and heavily muscled man stands in the doorway. He physique marking him out as a priest of Kord as much as the holy simple on his chest. The priest took two confident steps into their home, and Celene saw that there were several people behind in similar robes.

"I am here for the girl," barked the man as he rested his hand on the mace linked to his waist. "We know what she is and she is a danger to this village. Hand her over now!"


Holy Symbol of Kord

"She's just a little girl," said Celene's father, the knife in his hand slowly coming up in defence. "She has a gift for magic, nothing more, there is no reason to be afraid of her."

"I am NOT afraid," bellowed the priest. "But she must be checked, for all of our sakes." The strong man glanced towards the doorway where Celene was tucked around the corner and reached out a hand. "Come little one. If you are untainted by chaos you will not be harmed."

Her father seemed surprised that she stood there, but moved to place himself in front of her. "Stay away!" he warned.

"This is it!" said the mysterious lady. "This is where you learn the strength of your powers!"

Celene felt a tingling grow in her hands, and felt pure energy begin to collect in the palm and spread to the tips of her fingers until it began to hurt.

"Protect your parents! Save them!" cried the lady.

In reply to Mysterous Woman (msg # 10):

Benilla the child stands, fists clenched at her sides, and tears welling in her eyes. Fearful, angry and righteous tears. However, angry as she might be, she cannot just attack someone outright, unless they attack her.

"NO! You're the chaos here! You have no right to this! We have done nothing wrong. Step away from my parents, and LEAVE!" Benilla almost screamed.

But her anger doesn't subdue, it just boils hotter and hotter, adding to the surge of energy coursing through her body. This is her HOME and her PARENTS - true or not. One wrong step, and she will snap, defending them with all she has got, however little that may be.

"I'm warning you..." She adds.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:18, Mon 08 Dec 2014.

The priest just bellows in rage and unsheathes his mace. With the weapon in hand he takes a step towards Benilla and raises the weapon as though to swipe her father aside. Benilla’s mother lets a loose a shrill scream as it becomes clear that her husband is going to be hit.

The fiery hot energy in Celene’s hands cannot be contained any more. With a cry of pain, a bolt of radiant white hot flame bursts out of the palms of her hands and jets down to the floor, instantly igniting the floorboards and splashing against her shins. Celene yanked her hands up, palms outwards, and the flame traced a path across the floor of the next room, across her father’s back and then directly into the startled priest of Kord.

Her father cried out and fell to the floor. Celene watched in horror as the fire from her hands continued to arch towards the priest, and he stopped even being able to scream. Then the flame died, leaving her hands feeling like they were holding red hot coals.


Welcome to your first bloodline power:

Flame Lance: Starting at 1st level, you can cause a bolt of flame to erupt from the palms of your hands as a standard action, targeting any foe within 30 feet as a ranged touch attack. The acidic ray deals 1d6 points of damage +1 for every sorcerer level you possess, and will also tend to ignite flammable material it comes into contact with. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 12):

Awesome - Spectacular - Perfect! Fire is just perfect for her and her story!!

But don't you mean 'scorching ray' or 'flaming ray' instead of 'The acidic ray'?


"Father!" Benilla screamed, bolting towards his prone body, and ignoring the burning body of the cleric. Reaching her father, she tries to smother the flames with what she can find. Looking up, she yells: "Mother - help him!"

Yes, I do mean flaming ray. Opps, I may have given you a hint about which power I stole the stats from! ;)

The priest remained flat on his back on the floor, not moving as Celene tried to help her father. Celene saw that those who had been watching from the door – a group of villages which she strangely didn’t recognize – were watching in stunned horror. “Lock the door! Keep her inside there and let her burn!” cried out a shrill voice from near the front of the crowd. Celene saw a dark haired boy in his teens screaming at the top of his lungs and trying to give commands to the still frozen crowd. Finally the boy grabbed the door to the hut himself and yanked it closed.

“What have you done!” snarled Celene’s mother at her. She ran to the door and tried to pull it open, but it only opened and inch, and it was clear that some sort of wire or chain had been used to tie it from the other side. “No! Please no! Not me too!” Voices from outside yelled incoherently but Celene could hear phrases like “Cleanse the taint” and “Burn the demonspawn”. The voices were surrounding the hut now, someone broke a window by shoving the tip of a sword through it. It looked like escape was going to be difficult.

Celene’s father raised himself on his elbows, his back has been badly burnt by her magic fire but it looked like he would survive. “Benilla. You need to go. You can slip under the floorboards – I can make a gap that big at least. We will try and follow.” The flames were climbing rapidly in the house now and had reached the roof timbers.

The mysterious lady behind Celene spoke up again. “You have been reminded enough and it is time for you to wake now. Tell Magus Eseriel that you want to be sent to ‘Vorsh’. And remember that taking back that which is stolen is not an unlawful act. Go now.”

Celene woke with a start in her bed inside the temple of Wee Jas. Thick smoke choked her, and as she looked around she saw that her bed and most of her furniture was on fire.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:42, Tue 09 Dec 2014.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 16):

Well, as I don't know any of the powers, and can't even remember the titles of the bloodline, it's hardly a problem.

Waking with a start, Celene stumbles out of the bed, finding a jar of water to douse the bed sheets, hopefully stopping the fire in her bed with wet linen.

She is astounded that she apparently has taken no hurt from the flames. If she succeeds in stopping the fire, she tries to remember whether this also was the case at earlier uses of her powers.

She also memorizes as much of the dream as she can, including the face of the dark haired teenager who condemned her parents - perhaps.

Does Celene has any equipment she would carry with her, when going on a mission? If so, she takes whatever she has.

Knowing the urgency in a vision of the Stern Lady, Celene goes before Lady Eseriels chamber as early as she deems appropriate. She knocks gently on the door. "Magus Eseriel?" she whispers
This message was last edited by the player at 19:34, Tue 09 Dec 2014.

Excellent idea! Now she won't have to explain how she set her bed on fire, she'll just have to explain how she wet her bed. That will be soooo much better!



She doesn't have anything. Not even a sack.

This message was deleted by the player at 22:12, Tue 09 Dec 2014.

Ha! I was getting there!

It took almost a minute, and few more soft knocks on the door before it was opened and Magus Eseriel, second in command of the Temple of Wee Jas of Sasserine, stood before Celene in her nightdress.

"Celene! What is this! What time is it? It isn't even dawn prayers yet!" The old lady was still rubbing sleep out of her eyes as she stood in the doorway. Celene got the idea that she'd better have a good explanation or she would be relegated to cleaning pans in the kitchen for a month.

In reply to Magus Eseriel (msg # 21):

"Yes most esteemed Magus Eseriel, I am sorry to come at this hour. But the reason for my urgency is... I had a vision tonight. May I come in for a moment? Just to explain myself, before you judge me, which I will obediently submit myself to afterwards?"


"I have no-one else to turn to for help in understanding this vision. I fear it should fade from memory any moment. It may have just been a simple dream, if not for two things:
First and most extraordinary was that in the 'dream' I was visited by a woman of exquisite beauty and immense power, to say the least. In contrast to her intense presence and beauty, she wore a skull ring on her left hand. She commanded, and I obeyed, without a thought for anything else.
Secondly, when my vision faded, the woman told me to go to you and ask to be sent to 'Vorsh'. I have no idea what or who 'Vorsh' is! Do you - does this make sense to you?"

"And well, yes, also, in the process, I burned my bed to cinders. I am sorry - but I feel as if i am consumed by power and energy!"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:32, Tue 09 Dec 2014.

”Oh very well then,” grumbled the old lady. “But if this is a waste of time, I’ll come up with some very nasty jobs for you to see to. I hear that the toilets in the adepts quarters are blocked again. That should do for a start…”

The grey haired cleric grudgingly stepped back from the door and allowed Celene to enter her cell. Despite the lady’s standing there wasn’t much more to it than Celene’s room, it was slightly bigger and had a sitting area as well as a separate bedroom, but even the furniture wasn’t anything fancy. The privileges of rank in the church in the Church of Wee Jas were more centered around better research and spellcasting facilities, not to mention the ability to boss around anybody of a more junior rank than you. Celene did notice that Eseriel’s nightdress was definitely not standard church issue – it had little pink frilly edges around the hem of the arms and bottom – but that was the only concession to Eseriel’s place as the second ranked Magus in the city.

“You have two minutes girl. Use them well. And be warned, it takes more than a bad dream to make a ‘vision’.” The Magus sat back in one of the three chairs in the seating area and motioned for Celene to sit in the other.


Eseriel listened to Celene’s dream rather disinterestly, until the final part where the name ‘Vorsh’ was mentioned. “What?!” she barked. “How did you learn of that name? That is a very dangerous name to be using in these halls. Are you sure that is what the ‘mysterious lady’ said to you?” When Celene confirmed that this was the case, Eseriel made the girl tell the story all over again, and hovered on every detail. What did the lady look like? What was she wearing? What did the villagers say? What did the teenage boy look like? When she was convinced that she had gleaned every last piece of information from Celene, the cleric leaned back in her chair and puffed out her cheeks with a quick breath. The heat of the night had retreated as the conversation had taken place, and the bell for dawn prayers was now ringing.

“Listen to me Celene. This is very important. Go back to your room and get changed for morning prayers, then come back her after breakfast. I will cast a spell to commune with Wee Jas straight after prayers and I will check out your vision and find out what is to be done. Yes, I do know a man named Vorsh. A dangerous man. A killer actually. But a man which I must help if I am to follow Wee Jas’ will. Go. I will tell you more after breakfast if I confirm your story to be true. Oh and Celene,” Eseriel pauses. “Do not tell anyone of this. Trust me. These are not safe times in the city and we need to watch our tongues, agreed?”

“Well damn it girl! If you do not learn to channel your power it is going to be the death of you. Maybe all of us if you burn the damn temple down around our ears!” Eseriel seemed quite annoyed by this additional piece of information. “Skip breakfast. Bind up anything that is burnt and bring it with you when you return. If anyone asks say you are doing my laundry as punishment. We will find out someone to replace your bedding without the serving girls figuring anything out. No go! Neither of us should be late for prayers.”

In reply to Magus Eseriel (msg # 23):

Celene hurries from Eseriels room, and quickly gets ready for prayer. Meanwhile, she ponders if Lady Eseriel was genuine about following the wishes of Wee Jas, or was perhaps equally interested in some agenda of her own (sense motive?)

She also goes over her own recitation again, thinking of any points where lady Eseriels reactions betrayed her, showing where her main interests lay.(sense motive?)

This morning's session she spends in contemplation of everything but the morning sermon.

She again wonders that she apparently has taken no hurt from the flames, and (again) tries to remember whether this also was the case at earlier uses of her powers.

She also tries to  remember if she knew who that boy in the dream was - Eseriel showed interest in him.

Other than the dream there is not much she can do or think of. Who may this Vorsh be - he sound genuinely nasty. But Celene feels obliged to follow the command of both the mysterious lady, and lady Eseriel - if she agrees with the vision - and therefore go to this man.

Celene realises she would really like lady Eseriels assurance whether her nightly visitor was really Wee Jas - and was this a particular aspect of her, such as Death's Guardian, since the ring was so prominent?

After prayer she gobbles down some breakfast, despite having no hunger, and hurries to her room. Bundling up the damaged parts, she hoists them and goes to Eseriels room, knocking again on the door, this time at a more appropriate hour.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:22, Wed 10 Dec 2014.

:) I see this ‘sense motive’ skill check being a very popular one for you! You can use it to detect if people are lying or trying to bluff you, not if they have some long term masterplan. So you can check ‘did it seem like she was REALLY going to cast commune and ask questions of our goddess?’. Keep in mind that the Magus has spent several decades climbing through the heirachy of the Wee Jas church and is a skilled political operator, she would have a pretty good poker face – not that I am saying she WAS using that during your last conversation! So that would be a sense motive check versus her bluff, and I will roll it secretly, so you will only know if Celene succeeds and Esriel is hiding something. Failures, or if Eseriel is being totally honest with you, give the same result. Still want to give it a shot?!



:D Err, no. You can’t just keep making sense motive checks about effetely the same thing again and again, no matter how creatively you phrase them! You can take one attempt for the whole conversation.



Err. Yeah, I actually forgot to mention that she does have some minor burning around her ankles where she accidentally targeted herself during the dream. She isn’t fire proof or anything! No, she didn’t hurt herself previously when learning about her powers, but then, the others weren’t as strong as this.



She remembers that the boy/young teenager was related to the owner of the plantation. She never found out his name. It wasn’t like she ever hung out with him. Eseriel wasn't that interested in him, it was just one of the many things she asked about.



Fair enough, you can ask her about that.



Actually, she was told to skip breakfast, hmm, just couldn’t manage without her first cup of coffee, huh? ;)
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:32, Thu 11 Dec 2014.

Celene knocked but no-one answered. After a couple more knocks she tried the door but found it was locked, leaving her stuck out in the corridor with a bundle of singed laundry under her arms. An uncomfortable quarter of an hour followed as she nervously waited and tried to remain inconspicuous as servants, adepts and clerics flowed around her on their morning business, but none of them gave her a second glance. In the hierarchy of Wee Jas is it all too common for the lowly ranked to be given jobs and then kept waiting for their ‘betters’. Finally, Eseriel appeared around the corner, with a serving girl in tow. “Where were you?! I said to come straight after prayers!” she said, as she unlocked the door to her quarters. “This is Belinda.” The servant behind the Magus gave a small, but slow curtsy. Celene saw that she was a pretty girl with long blond hair tied back tied up at the back of her head. “Belinda is going to help with your bedding. Hand it over and she will see that it is replaced. We can trust her to be discrete.” The serving girl looked at Celene slyly, her full red lips turned up very slightly at the corners. She didn’t seem like the type of person that Celene would have choosen to trust.

<assuming that Celene hands over her dirty laundry>

Eseriel led Celene into her quarters and gestured at a chair. “Please sit down. We have quite a bit to talk about.” The old magus pulled another chair across the floor so she would be closer, and then sat down herself. “I have be in commune with our goddess, and I now believe your story. I asked her  if she was the ‘mysterious lady’ in your dream last night. The answer was ‘yes’.” Eseriel paused and looked into Celene’s eyes. “Such an  honour! I have received only a handful of such visitations in all my decades of service. My second question was ‘should I take Celene to Vorsh’, which is hindsight was rather superfluous, anyway, the answer was an emphatic ‘yes’. “

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 25):

Thanks for clearing up the sense motive skill rules, didn't know them.

Better late than never on telling me of the burns :-D

What was the name of the plantation owner, and does Celene know how they were related?

Ok, Celene will as Eseriel about Vorsh at an appropriate time

oh, must have misread your posting, I thought she was supposed to definately call on her AFTER breakfast :-(

In reply to Magus Eseriel (msg # 26):

After handing over the bedding, Celene follows Eseriel into the room.

Magus Eseriel, I am so sorry for misunderstanding your orders. I am still dazed by the enormity of all this - it is far beyond my simple level of comprehension.

I am so grateful you chose to get a confirmation of the Goddess involvement in my dream. I did not know what to believe!

>sense motive< on Eseriel to gather if she is telling the truth about the confirmation from her Communion - if that is correct usage of the skill?

But you are right, it is an immense honour - but also an incomprehensible assignment for me. But incomprehensible as it is, i am still happy you made sure we understand Wee Jas' intentions correctly.

But of course i am most anxious what you asked about in your later questions. What is most on my mind is how I should interact with this man, Vorsh. Should I give aid to him? If he is, as you say Lady Eseriel, a killer, should I instead hinder him, or spy on him?

Is he in favour with our temple, or with Wee Jas herself? Or if not, does his intentions simply run parallel with our aims? Or is his intentions contrary to ours, so he should be stopped?

So many questions. If I knew this man better, it would of course make guessing at the answers easier, but still, the intentions of our Goddess are unfathomable to me.

If you have more knowledge of this man Vorsh, it would of course help me - what is it he is doing, and why should we interact with it?
This message was last edited by the player at 19:23, Fri 12 Dec 2014.

The plantation owner was Kallum Vanderboren. A rather absentminded old man who left the running of the plantation to his overseers. The boy was his... nephew? Definitely not his son, but a more distant relation.

After handing over the bedding, Celene follows Eseriel into the room.





Sure, rolls made. As far as Celene can tell, Eseriel ready did cast commune and is telling the truth about the answers.



"He is currently working to crush the forces of chaos, or at least a small part of them working in our city. When it comes to that at least, I think we should help him."


"No, of course if he asks you to do something that would be against the teachings of Wee Jas then you must not do it. But as far as we have discussed, he is not asking for anything unreasonable."



"I have nothing more to say about him. I think you should ask him yourself - if you dare after meeting him." Magus Eseriel raises herself up and motions that Celene should do the same. "Come now Celene. We need to go to the opera."

BTW, Eseriel is a well known patron of the Sasserine opera house which is not too far away. Celene has never even been inside the building, let alone seen a show of course!

Day 2 0900

Magus Eseriel led Celene out of the room and looked the door behind them. With a conscious glance at her clothes, the young girl realised that she was only dressed in her daily novice garb and not even the single set of ceremonial robes which were at least slightly more presentable. It seemed that Eseriel noticed her discomfort. "Don't worry Celene, it isn't as uncommon as you think for young Jasdian novices and adepts to visit the opera house, at least not via the back door we will be using." The Magus seemed a little saddened as she said that, but then her face tightened and she walking through the temple to the front doors, with Celene following closely behind. Eseriel herself was only wearing her normal temple robes, but Celene noticed she seemed to have the time to dress up a little at least as she was wearing ear-rings and a necklace.

The pair crossed out into the morning sun and walked the short distance along Warlock's Run that separated the Temple of Wee Jas from Sasserine's large opera house. If the novice was expecting to get a grand tour of the building then she was to be disappointed, because Eseriel turned up an alley and they arrived at a loading bay at the rear of the establishment. At the top of the loading deck, a rough looking half-orc was leaning back on a chair, seemingly asleep despite the lit cigar in his mouth. Either he was guarding the back door or just taking a break from work. The magus climbed the five steps onto the bay quickly and seemed to be upon the half-orc before he even realised she was there. "Get the hell out of my way," she barked. He was so startled that he almost fell off the chair, and his face darkened in anger. But when he opened his eyes and saw who had addressed him he snapped to attention, and pulled the chair to one side. "Yes m'dam," he said with a lot of courtesy. Eseriel didn't even have to break her stride.

The inside of the building was a little busier, with men in leather jackets carrying crates and scenery around. Celene could hear the sound of music coming from somewhere deeper in the opera hall, and also what sounded like dancing feet. Eseriel never hesistated while navigating through the confusing tangle of ropes and small passageways, although she did bark out, "Where is she?" to one startled looking porter. "Up in one of the private boxes miss!" the poor man replied before scuttling off. The Magus took them up a winding set of back stairs until they reached the top, and then pushed through a small door. Celene had to pauses for a second as she passed through. They were now near the top of the opera house, and a grand view was spread out before her. On the stage we a group of dancers - ballerinas she saw - and she could also see the small orchestra that was helping them practice. The music was clear and sounded good, at least to her untrained ears. The mezzanine floor they were on was covered with a thick red carpet, that was also laid on the walls and the balustrade.

"Come along, we are a little late," said Eseriel, showing some irritation. The magus was now looking left and right, as though not sure which way to go. Celene saw that there were private boxes on either side with excellent views of the stage area. "Nylaria, where are you!" she called out rather loudly. One of the ballet dancers on the stage actually looked up.

A huge woman burst out of one of the doors to the private boxes a second later. "Eseriel! Over here my dear!" she exclaimed.



Eseriel's face hardened a little more, if possible, and she shook her head a little. She walked towards the obese lady with Celene at her side. "This is hardly discrete Nylaria," she chastised.

The lady called Nylaria did not look concerned despite the angry apparent on the face of the second highest magus in Sasserine. "This is a safe place, it always has been to us. AAAWWWWLLL!" the fat lady gave a squeal of delight as she fixed eyes properly on Celene. "Is this our offering as a helper?! Oh my goodness, whatever will he say?!" The diva pulled a small box from a pocket in her dress, and took the lid off. Inside were a wide range of different chocolates. "Would you like a chocolate my sweet?" she said as she held the box squarely under Celene's nose.

"Do. Not. Eat. A chocolate." said Eseriel with remarkable seriousness in her voice.

OOC: They smell delicious. And Celene didn't have a proper breakfast, what with wolfing it down and all. She is a little hungry.

In reply to Nylaria Absalee (msg # 32):

OOC: are you kidding? A chocolate for breakfast? With the magus saying a definite no? Do I need to roll a skill check to resist them or what?

"Thank you kind lady, but I must decline."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:21, Fri 12 Dec 2014.

OOC: Ha! Well, it was worth a shot!

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 34):

Celene holds back, waiting for the two older women to,spill the beans on what is going to happen

If Nylaria felts any disappointment at her offer not being accepted it didn't show. With an inane giggle she popped two chocolates into her mouth in quick succession. "Awwwl. You're just like a little porcelain doll," she said as she reached out to cup Celene's face in her hands. Eseriel swatted her hands away. "Which box is he in?" she barked.

The fat lady pointed down the mezzanine floor in the direction she had some from. "The Islaran booth. The old man never uses it anymore anyway." Celene recognised the representative house from the Azure district. Keltar Islaran was famous for being the harbourmaster of Sasserine, a position of immense power and respect in a port town like this, but he was old and his days were running out. Unfortunately all his surviving children were too lazy or ineffective to take over the job when he died. It was one of the scandals of the decade.

Eseriel nodded, and walked in that direction and motioned for Celene to follow. Nylaria stuffed the box of chocolates back in a pocket and wiped her hands on her dress. Now that Celene studied it, the novice realised that it was a bit scruffy and creased, almost as though the enormous lady had slept in it.

The reached the door to the private box and Eseriel pushed it open. Inside was a smallish balcony overlooking the dancers practicing below. Just like the rest of the area, it was decked out in plush red carpet so deep that Celene could feel her feet settling into it. Thin curtains of fabric hung from rails at the top of the balcony, and the curtains had been pulled closed, meaning that although it was possible to see out it would be difficult to see in. Six chairs were in the box in two rows of three. In the front row in the left hand most chair sat a figure wearing a dark hooded cloak. "You're late," said a menacing man's voice from beneath the hood.

"Only a few minutes," said Eseriel, not cowered in the slightest. She took the set on the furthest right and gestured to Celene that she should sit in the middle seat. "As we agreed, I have brought someone to help in your mission."

OOC: Are you going to sit down?

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 36):

Is nylaria coming into the booth as well? Are there any places that could hide a spy, or holes where eavesdropping is posible from?

are they curtains completely closed, or are there any holes in front of us, that could be a danger?

While walking to sit in the middle seat, Celene glances at the hooded man, trying to get a glimpse of his features or any other significant marks of recognition. She does her best to keep a calm, unexpressional face.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:48, Sat 13 Dec 2014.

Nylaria eased herself into the box as well and closed the door behind her. She took the middle seat in the back row. Celene saw that the box was covered in red carpet from floor to ceiling which would do a good job of stopping their conversation carrying far. That, combined with the closed curtains and the orchestra playing, made it a very private meeting place.



The curtains are completely closed but they are only net curtains.



You are in the left hand private box


This is what the interior looks like.

They are completely closed, but only made of very thin material so it is possible to see through them.

The figure in the hood turned and Celene saw a serious looking man with grey hair staring out at her. "She isn't what I expected," the man said simply.

"She can be trusted," replied Eseriel.

"It is on your head if she can't," said the man. "Very well. My name is Vorsh, what is yours?"

<assuming Celene replies>

"I am trying to root out a very strong and very old evil from this city, and I need some help in this. Eseriel has been kind enough to offer..." The old magus at Celene's right made a grunting noise at the word 'offer'. "...your assistance. Your task will be simple. You need to help a man break into a house and steal an item of evil - it is a sword - and return it to me at noon tomorrow. Do you think this is something that you can do?"

"She is ready," insisted Eseriel.

"I asked her fiend! Now be quiet!" barked the man.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 40):

Did he call Eseriel fiend or friend? Celene is equally shocked either way :-)


Celene turns to the man with an icy stare.

"Yes, i 'think' i can do that - but that is only half an answer. To answer fully If I can do it, I need more knowledge of the assignment - in essence, if we are to succeed.

If things go awry, and they will, i need to know enough to improvise in the best direction. What is the purpose with aquiring the sword. Is it to be destroyed, taken somewhere, or kept away from the forces of evil?In essence, what is to happen with the sword afterwards, as i will need to know to lead us down the right path."


This message was last edited by the player at 20:08, Sun 14 Dec 2014.

It wasn't a typo, he said 'fiend'.

Vorsh pauses some time before replying. Below them the music changes and a new group of ballerinas come on stage to practice some sort of complex dance manoeuvre. Vorsh stared out at them through the curtains and made a disgusted noise in the back of his throat. "This place has always given me the creeps," he grunted.

"The weapon is an intelligent force of evil. Do NOT even touch it, as it has the power to overcome minds and control people. Yes, it will be destroyed as soon as I can figure out a way to do that safely. You need not be involved in that part of the mission though. Just help the thief bring the sword to the place I say at noon tomorrow. If you do this you will be striking a great blow against evil and chaos - isn't that what you want to do?"

In reply to Vorsh (msg # 43):

Celene ponders the answers of Vorsh for a while.

Sense motive: again not sure how the rules are/work
- I suppose you would check secretly if he succesfully bluffs me about what he is intending to use the sword for - and I wouldn't know if he succeeded? Or should I ask to be allowed to 'call his bluff' with sense motive?
- Other than that, can I use the skill to determine if Vorsh is trustworthy?
- Should I supply dialogue with the skill check, or can I just use it, then answer afterwards?
This message was last edited by the player at 22:10, Sun 14 Dec 2014.

He needs to make a bluff skill check to tell a lie to you. e.g depending on the size of the lie it would be a DC of 5, 10, 15, 20 etc. If you are ALSO using sense motive then he needs to pass BOTH the bluff skill check and your sense motive with the same roll i.e. he needs to beat the highest number to get away with it. You need to say if you are using sense motive, although I guess that knowing you I should assume that you are ALWAYS using it!



Sort of, as per the rules you can use 'sense motive' to do the following:

1) Detect if someone is trying to 'bluff you'/lie to you. As explained above.

2) Make a 'hunch' check. I think this is what you are asking for.

Hunch: This use of the skill involves making a gut assessment of the social situation. You can get the feeling from another's behavior that something is wrong, such as when you're talking to an impostor. Alternatively, you can get the feeling that someone is trustworthy.

Note, that 'hunch' isn't ESP or some sort of empathy check. It isn't 'detect evil'. The 'hunch check' lets you detect if someone is acting strangely, e.g. does the merchant not seem to know his way around his own shop? Does the tavern keeper not know how to pour a cup of ale without getting too much froth on it? Does the noble have poor table manners and the wrong accent?

So if Celene used it now she would be asking 'is Vorsh behaving like some sort of homicidal maniac obsessed with destroying an evil sword?'. Well, the answer is yes. Does that help?!

3) Sense Enchantment: You can tell that someone's behavior is being influenced by an enchantment effect even if that person isn't aware of it.

4) Discern Secret Message: You may use Sense Motive to detect that a hidden message is being transmitted via the Bluff skill.




No, not in this case because I need to roll for you and Vorsh secretly - not that I am saying there is anything to detect though!

Celene pauses and considers what Vorsh has said. He certainly seems to mean that he will destroy the sword once it is brought to him.

OK, Celene is now officially in a RP holding pattern until Logan catches up. He is only at day 1 1400, and Celene is at day 2 0900. Feel free to ask as many or as few questions as you want to, then she will get a chance to do a bit of shopping and get some adventuring equipment.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 46):

Aaaach, no, you can't do that to me!!! :-)

Ok, you sound like i'm not completely pacified :-) - can I still talk a bit with Vorsh?
This message was last edited by the player at 20:05, Mon 15 Dec 2014.

Sure! I don't mean we have to move on, quite the opposite. We have plenty of time here.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 48):

Great!

So my sense motive tells me that he seems to be telling the truth about wanting to destroy the sword, and that he's in fact as he appears to be - right?
This message was last edited by the player at 20:57, Mon 15 Dec 2014.

Yes, correct.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 50):


Was his face all that Celene gathered from looking at him? If any additional significant things are seen, it may of course alter the following...




"Although I personally will gladly help in the stemming of evil, what I want to do is irrelevant. What Wee Jas desires is not. But maybe you are not a man of faith, mister Vorsh?

Good and evil will always do battle, and are only relevant to the Ruby Sorceress if one or the other threatens the order and law of this world. The temple of Wee Jas would normally not be concerned by an item of magic, evil or good, as long as it does not voilate the laws of magic. Can you tell me how this particular evil is of importance to the upholding of the lawful order of Sasserine? Also, who is in fact the rightful owner of this sword?"


Basically Celene is more than willing to help in finding and destroying an evil magical sword, but to try and goad more information out of Vorsh she is attempting to >Bluff< (make a roll?) Vorsh into believing Celene is a cleric of Wee Jas (she's assuming Eseriel has not been able to, nor desired to, tell Vorsh about Celene beforehand), and that she is therefore more concered about upholding order and law than coming after a minor evil item, as that is what one would expect Wee Jas to prioritise (even though Celene is very aware that the Witch Goddess has asked her to aid in this endeavor - Vorsh is not).

Yes, I'm playing a bit around with skill use here, as it's the intro, and my chance to hopefully try it out a bit.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:35, Mon 15 Dec 2014.

He has a dark jacket on with a hood up and it is dark in the private box. I think he is keeping what you can see of him to a minimum.




Vorsh grunts. "No, not any more. Not in the sense that you mean. What I care about now is destroying this evil, not following a bunch of nonsense rules made up by some distant god or goddess."



"This sword seeks to overturn our control of the city. And when I say 'our', I mean control by humans. Think how that would affect your precious 'lawful order'! It seeks to make the city its slave, nothing less. I suppose that it is not violating the laws of magic - but then not much does - but when it has control it will no doubt root out your little temple and all those in it. It does not want competition after all."


Cool. I wouldn't normal request a roll on this, but lets test if Celene can pass her self of as a confident and capable cleric of Wee Jas rather than just being a novice. We will roll in the open since Vorsh is going to show his feelings after the result. You role a 'bluff', Vorsh rules a 'sense motive'.

quote:

19:51, Tue 16 Dec 2014: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Vorsh, rolled 29 using 1d20+9 ((20)).

Hmm, I think he is going to see right through you!!

Whew, is that the kind of rolls we're up against, then i better keep skill rolls at a minimum :-). Except of course if my impressive dialogue grants a hefty bonus. :-D

ok, my roll wasn't too bad, but...


This message was last edited by the player at 20:47, Tue 16 Dec 2014.

Vorsh looks at Celene as though he can see straight through her, making the young women feel very uncomfortable. Fortunately, he is soon distracted by the orchestra below starting a new piece of music at an increased volume. Girls dressed up in pink leotards soon appear on stage with linked arms dancing backwards and forwards.

"Get those damn girls of the damn stage!" explodes Vorsh, his hand moving to the sword that Celene has just realised he is wearing at his side. Down in the orchestra pit the music stops with one abrupt screech from a violin hanging in the air, and the dancers freeze and stare up at the private box.

"I said I wanted a safe and private place to meet," growls Vorsh. "Get them all out of here."

Nylaria shoots out the door from their balcony and Celene hears her a second later. "Thank you girls! That is enough for today! We have some repair work to carry out so please return to the school." No doubt she is referring to the prestigious Telvanta Dance Academy in the merchant district. The novice returns her attention to Vorsh. The man still has his hand on his sword hilt and his face was flushed. She realised that she didn't have a single weapon if he did become violent, not even a kitchen knife, not that anything would help her if he pulled out his long sword. But surely Eseriel would protect them? Celene looked across at her mentor and saw that her face was pale.

"Let us finish this then," said the old women.

Vorsh grunted and loosened his hand slightly. "I asked for assistance and you send me this girl. Very well. We will see what she can do and how long she can survive." He turned back to Celene. "Go to 'The Skinned Man' tavern in Shadowshore and find a young half-elf named Logan. He will be there at noon today. He knows the details of what must be done. Help him as you can and keep and eye on him as well. Make sure he doesn't touch the sword! Or do something even more stupid like try and sell it. It is a mithral rapier with a jewelled pummel and a single large ruby set in the hilt, so I guess it must be worth a few coins. Obviously if he were to steal the weapon and then not return it I would have to come after both of you. The rapier is currently in the house of Hans Aubreck who lives in the noble district - again, Logan will have worked out exactly where and how to get in by now. He should also have figured out where in the house the sword is being kept. Follow his lead and you might be able to survive the night. Understood?"

Celene swallows nervously before answering in a low voice.

"Yes, I understand.

I have a few more questions to improve our chances of success - and survival.

Do you have further information on the item? Does it come with a scabbard, and can we safely touch this, or should we bring one to avoid contact?

Can this sword also try and dominate us by thought without contact, and if so, can this be blocked somehow?

Did you discuss any particular skills or talents required for the 'assistant' in this mission, that would aid in this break-in?"
This message was last edited by the player at 18:55, Thu 18 Dec 2014.

Unfortunately we are missing that exact phrase, which is a shame because it is such a great one. The closest we have is 'she swallowed hard' or 'she swallowed nervously'. If it is done in quoted speech then it is just 'gulp!', but that has always seemed so cartoonish to me.



"I honestly don't know if it has a scabbard. I don't think you should count on there being one and you should go prepared with some way of wrapping it up yourselves."


"No, it must touch your skin to try and control you. There is no other way for it to influence you."


"Hans Aubreck has fallen on hard times and has started to dabble in necromancy. You are there to take care of any undead he may have created and also to heal if necessary." Vorsh gets to his feet. "I must be off. I need to be out of the city within an hour if I am to avoid detection." He sets Celene in his piercing glare. "Remember, meet Logan at noon, do the job tonight, then I will see you both at noon tomorrow. Do not fail me!" The man swirls out of the balcony without another word leaving the novice alone with her patron.

Celene turns slowly towards her mentor.

With a calm face she quietly states "Well, if you've promised an assistant to do this job, I think it would be wise to equip her for these tasks. I may handle undead my own way, even though it might get messy. If you have something that will help against such creatures, but not ignite the city around us at the same time, it might be worth your investment, unless the temple prefers to pay repaired damage and burn healing spells. But healing is certainly out of my area of expertice - I sure hope you have something to remedy this?"

"It was not my idea to send you Celene, not by any means. But it appears our goddess knows something more than I do. But yes, you need something to help you." Eseriel dips her hand into her magus robes and pulls out two items, a ceramic via and a pouch. "This is a potion of healing, it can help you or your soon to be colleague."

Potion of Cure Light Wounds (1d8+1)

"And this is 10 platinum pieces. Take it down to one of the markets and spend it on whatever you think will help you tonight. But before you go, make sure that Nylaria supplies you with a change of clothes. I do not think that it is proper for a novice of Wee Jas to be skulking round in the night."

"But even though I was not your idea, before our goddess sent me, you had an agreement with this man. Why? What did he promise in return?"

Are novives dressed recognisably (in a particular dress/gown etc), since she should change? I thought Celene was simply dressed as a servant?

"Vorsh is, or rather was, an old friend. He means well, but he needs to keep a low profile, so he asked me for help. He didn't promise anything in return."



I've upgraded(?) Celene to novice, and yes, they do dress recognisably. They wear a simpler version of the black and grey robes that the magus wear. Celene would really stand out if she wore those clothes in certain parts of the city, especially Shadowshore.

Nylaria returned to the private box. "Is he gone?" she asked nervously.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:30, Thu 18 Dec 2014.

Eseriel sighs. "Yes Nylaria, he is gone. Your head is safe on its shoulders for another day. Now would you take Celene down to your costuming room and find her something more appropriate to wear. She has to go shopping in a market, find a tavern in Shadowshore and then go... rob a house. Please find something suitable for those tasks." The magus rises. "And now, if you will excuse me, I need to get back to the temple."

Celene urgently gets up.

"Magus - our misstress said that 'taking back that which is stolen is not an unlawful act', but Vorsh said nothing on my question about who was the rightful owner. How do I know that this sword is stolen, making all this acceptable to our misstress?

And who should we then be taking it back to?"

After a hopefully reassuring answer, Celene adds "And why does he need to keep a low profile? Who IS this man?"

This message was last edited by the player at 21:28, Thu 18 Dec 2014.

N.b. Does Celene know about holy water, and can she get it at the temple?

"You can take my word on it. This sword was not purchased. It would never allow itself to be purchased by one as weak as Hans Aubreck. The only explanation for him having it is that some sort of dirty trick was used."


"As long as it is destroyed I don't think it matters. We are not giving it back to Vorsh to use, we are giving it to him to be destroyed. I will make sure he does that."

"Why, I told you before. He is a killer. But he also seeks to destroy this evil, so we will help him in this one thing. That is all I want to say - for the protection of both of us."

Yes, she most definitely does! And as a member of the clergy of Wee Jas, even a novice, she can get as much free holy water as she wants! Just be aware that each dose weighs 1 lb (450 g), and with your strength you can only carry a total of 26 lbs (12 kg!) before becoming having reduced speed and dexterity effects.

Ahh, but Celene is sure she can charm some lucky scoundrel to do a bit of heavy lifting :-)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:38, Fri 19 Dec 2014.

"Thank you Magus for your assurances, I will gladly take your word as my comfort.

The only confusion left to me is why the temple of our misstres will still have dealings with a man so obviously on the wrong side of law and order. I do not understand that from what i have been taught during my initiation to the lower circle of the order. The Stern Lady IS the law. Is that because i still do not know all of her holy principles? Or is it due to the human part of the order?"


After too short a time for Eseriel to answer her rhetoric question, she lets it go. Celene decides that a human slip up on her mentors part is only natural - but worth pointing out a potential significance of, for a later time when Eseriel is not keen enough to support Celene...

"Thank you Magus Eseriel, for your patience with me. I will not delay you further from your business at the temple. I will be going to get equipped. I will be back at the temple for some vials of holy water later, as it sounds like to be of use. Depending on the report I get at noon, may I consult with you if something is amiss, endangering the mission?"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:05, Fri 19 Dec 2014.

"Real life is more complicated than the simple teachings given to a novice Celene! You will understand in time."


"Yes, if it is important. But I don't want you coming into the temple to see me if you are dressed in street clothes rather than your novice's habit. Come through the back alley into the servants' entrance and get one of them to send for me." Eseriel pauses and gives Celene a knowing look. "You still remember that alley and the servants' entrance I take it?"

Perhaps that is the Magus' way of reminding Celene that is was Eseriel who took her in off the street, first into the servants' quarters, and then raised her up from a servant to a novice. Perhaps it is time for Celene to start paying back that favour before she starts worrying about the balance flipping the other way...

With that Eseriel leaves and Nylaria leads Celene back down into the bowels of the opera house. The vivacious woman can't seem to stop talking and keeps up a constant chatter for the entire time it takes to get downstairs. The speech is delivered in such a high speed blur that Celene isn't able to follow all of it, but it is mostly emptyheaded gossip about which eligible bachelors will be attending the upcoming shows and which girls will be entering society for the first time. It certainly seems that Nylaria knows a lot of people in the city.

When the reach the costuming department, Celene is confronting with large racks of costumes that have been used in operas over many years.

"Let's see what we can find, shall we?" Nylaria starts poking through the racks and pulling out outfits of various types. It soon becomes clear to Celene that despite the huge amount of clothing down here, many of it is the same thing repeated twenty or thirty times. Also, Nylaria's idea of what would be a good disguise doesn't agree with what the novice thinks would be sensible.

"How about this?" says the diva. "I think it will be a good fit!"



"Yes, you are right. Not appropriate for the streets. You need something more rustic. Oh! You would be so cute in this one!"




"OK, something more martial? You could carry a weapon while wearing this one and no-one would bat an eyelid."




"Hmm. You are tough to please. I suppose if you are going to the poorer side of town then it might have to be this."




OOC: OK, which one do you choose?

In reply to Magus Eseriel (msg # 69):



Hmm, in fact you're right, that's not really how Celene is. She's not at all scheeming like that (yet). It's more of the line of thinking of her puppetmaster (me), i'm afraid. Good thing she didn't express anything more vocally...



"Yes Magus, thank you for reminding me. I will do my best not to let down your trust in me."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:54, Sun 21 Dec 2014.

In reply to Nylaria Absalee (msg # 71):

Very OOC: Hmmm, that shepherds attire is cute - are you crazy, I don't want to kill people (men) walking down the street!!

Celene goes for the street wise attire, but tries to come up with a set that isn't too beggar like - more servant than poor. Also, she tries to find some less fluffy (more tight fitting) and in darker colours for her night job - if she can have two outfits.

"Say, Nylaria, you obviously are a very informed lady - you get to know a lot of sophisticated people through your work and life here. Do you know this man, Hans Aubreck? He's apparently some minor noble or previously wealthy man - he lives in the noble district? Or do you know someone who does know him or his home?"
This message was last edited by the player at 00:46, Sun 21 Dec 2014.

OOC: Yes, it is strange. Celene has never been to the opera, but the costumes are nothing like she expected they would be. Far more flesh exposed than she would ever have guessed.

Nylaria is more than happy for Celene to take two outfits.



"Oh yes!" Bubbles Nylaria. "I know everybody who comes to the opera, and that is everybody that is important in the city! Now Aubreck is a sad case. He used to come regularly with his wife, never a private box mind you, but often in the grand circle. But he has business problems and had to stop coming, couldn't afford the tickets I heard." Nylaria sniffs. "He should have cut back on something else. A season ticket to the opera is a necessity if one is going to conduct any sort of serious business in Sasserine. Anyway, what was the problem again? His biggest ship disappeared in a typhoon I think."

The large lady holds onto both of Celene's hands. "You look perfect! Now off you go and complete your secret mission. And don't forget to come back here and tell me all about it. You don't need to tell Eseriel if you just want to come for a quick visit!"


OOC: So, shopping is next. Just buy what you want up to 100gp and write it on your character sheet. Then you'll have to wait around a little until Logan catches up.

This message was deleted by the player at 20:39, Sun 21 Dec 2014.

Will do the shopping, almost there I think. And can I just add holy water, or should I roleplay it?

What time is it?

OOC: Hmm, I never thought about that tactic.

Nylaria thinks for a moment. "Of course, many of our patrons work in castle Taraknian. But what we need is someone who works in city planning and is... amendable to cash. Yes, I think I know such a person! You could go see Boris Zakayev. If I give you a note of introduction, that should be enough. I don't know how much he would want for information at such short notice though. Hmm, you might have to just owe him a favour..."

In reply to Nylaria Absalee (msg # 78):

Celene is delighted. "Excellent, Nylaria! I'll keep your letter for if it needed, in case my contact needs more info. I will know later.

But is this Boris apt to deal with lowlives such as this beggar or servant that I'm dressed as, or will he only deal with higher ups, such as someone from the temple of Wee Jas?

But I will be sure to drop in later, and tell you the whole story!"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:52, Sun 21 Dec 2014.

Time is now day 2 1000. You have 2 hours before you have to meet Logan in Shadowshore. In regards to holy water, and shopping in general, no I don't want to roleplay it. Just write a throw away sentence about getting it.

two questions about shopping:

No cost of a scabbard (for covering the rapier) - it says such stuff is included when you buy a sword.

Can I get anything simpler than a climber's kit (that's too much, with crampons, pitons, ropes etc.) that will help Celene simply climb a rope, such as some gloves which I could then cover in resin or similar clever stuff? I have a feeling that rogue is going to suggest Celene climbs a wall - ludicrous, and she will tell him that, but better be prepared if that's the only option - and she CAN'T climb .-)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:08, Sun 21 Dec 2014.

Re: The scabbard. How can you buy a scabbard for a sword that you have never seen and don’t know the dimensions of? All you know is that it is a rapier of some type, you don’t know how long. You’ll have to come up with some other way of wrapping it up.

Re: Climbing assistance. Hmm, you can get some good quality climbing gloves which will protect your hands and give a small bonus, i.e. +1 to a climb skill check for 10 g.p. But no, they can’t be coated in sticky resin so you can cling like spiderman! There are magical ‘gloves of swimming and climbing’, but they cost 6,250 gp. A bit much!

Celene can still try and climb even though she has no points in the skill, she is just going to be really bad at it. But maybe Logan can climb up first, lower a rope to her and she can tie it around herself, and then he’ll basically just pull her up. What could possibly go wrong?!

“Oh, don’t worry. He’ll definitely see you if you say I have sent you and you have the letter, no matter how you are dressed. Although… if you put on the shepherdess outfit that would guarantee…” she sees Celene's look and stops. “Alright, no doubt you can make it work.” Nylaria gets a pen and quill and writes a short letter – which she does NOT let you see the contents of – and then seals it with some wax and her signet ring.

quote:

You’ll have to come up with some other way of wrapping it up.

Ok, I'll find a large piece of rough leather (that rogue probably have no clue how important this is, so I'll take care of it). What's the cost and weight?

quote:

they can’t be coated in sticky resin so you can cling like spiderman!

No, course not, didn't expect that, but thought that a bit of resin would aid in the gripping of a rope, like it's used on the ball in handball (something we play here in Europe, for you from 'abroad').

Ten gp, outrageous! I will try and bargain that down to half (how are the rules on this?).

That reminds me, that healer's kit i'm going to get for the sake of the poor rogue's health is pretty steep. Can I find a bargain somewhere?

quote:

What could possibly go wrong?!

Don't get her started again!
This message was last edited by the player at 09:31, Mon 22 Dec 2014.

You hunt round the market and it costs 15 s.p. and 1/8 lb. E.g. nothing to worry about, just write it on your character sheet! Well done on remembering it though.



Oh, like gardening gloves. I get it. If you want it half price then make a DC10 diplomacy check - and this is only because this is a none standard item we are talking about.



Nope, no discount on that. Don't worry, you are going to be using it a lot. And after you start adventuring you are going to be swimming in cash anyway.

quote:

Oh, like gardening gloves. I get it. If you want it half price then make a DC10 diplomacy check - and this is only because this is a none standard item we are talking about.

quote:

21:47, Mon 22 Dec 2014: Celene rolled 16 using 1d20+4 ((12)).

All fine. Sturdy gloves for climbing (+1 to climb ropes), 5 gp (half standard)
What's the weight?

quote:

Don't worry, you are going to be using it a lot

That's why I worry. It's only got 10 uses. :-)

quote:

And after you start adventuring you are going to be swimming in cash anyway.

You must be mistaking Celene for someone who doesn't tithe everything from each adventure to the temple (yeah, I know, tithe is only 1/10, but in lack of a better word...:-).

In reply to Nylaria Absalee (msg # 83):



"Yes, I hope, thank you for your confidence." Celene smiles knowingly at Nylaria, to ensure her that they are each other's confidentials.

"I will be off, but I promise you to be back with a story for you."

Celene discretely leaves the theater to go shopping for her equipment and stop by the temple, before her meeting with Logan.

Since we have a bit of time, how about we do role play a market scene? Which market are you going to visit? The closest possibility is the High Market in the Noble District, but prices are high and they won't have all of the adventuring stuff you need. The market in the merchant district is the largest. You have an hour or two you can spend there before meeting Logan.


Hmm, the climbing kit is 50gp and only gives a +2 on climbing checks. You bought some gloves that give +1 and they only cost 5 gp. That was a good deal! They don't weight anything.



Are you really going to take cleric levels? I thought you might have changed your mind.

Yes, by all means.

Celene wanders off to the piers, catching a gondola instead of taking the long walk around to Merchant District where she'll get her supplies. She keeps a tight hand on her pouch, and her wits about her, making sure to look around her.

She'll try to finish the plain purchases quickly, to have a little time to wander around the district, taking in the sights and maybe stop at a interesting place or see what she otherwise should bump into, as she has rarely had any time outside the temple for herself.

She has heard of the Harbour Market, where she should be able to get most of what she needs. It even has the odd minor magical item.

She should perhaps be looking for items that could help her overcome her poor physique, that makes swimming and climbing a problem. She doesn't have much money, but maybe other arrangements could be made. Otherwise, that will have to be another time, at least she'll have an idea what's available.


Did she get the adress to Boris (which district was it in?), or was she to call on him at castle Teraknian?
This message was last edited by the player at 21:14, Tue 23 Dec 2014.

Celene buys the mundane adventuring items she needs and then spends the rest of her free time wandering around the harbour market, taking in the sights, sounds and smells. There are many street performers entertaining the morning crowds for the price of a few coppers. Tumblers, fire breathers, sword swallowers, a very sweaty looking dancing bear which has apparently come all the way from the forests of Karameikos and some impressive stilt walkers from Alphatia.

The young novice becomes enthralled in a funny puppet show which is practising the ancient Sasserine comedy form of 'making fun of people from other districts'. They carefully satirise Zasker Grankus, who runs the arena in the Champion district and who has a great deal more brawn than brains who is more barbarian then 'reformed barbarian'. Then Victor Saint-Demain, the self proclaimed genius of Cudgel district who is the city's most famous sleuth is shown as an effeminate silk covered bumbling fool. Then Keltar Islaran, habourmaster of the city and representative of the Azure district is showing pleading with his four children for one of them to take over his position, but all of them are too lazy or stupid to do it. The crowd laughs and hoots appreciatively, but when Zebula Meravanchi of the Noble district is lampooned for the excesses which take place during the parties in his manor house they go quiet. Lord Meracanchi is well known for not being a man to make fun of unless you want a midnight call from some of the thugs on his payroll. The puppeteers deftly shift to making fun of Nylaria Absalee, the enormous manageress of the opera house and High Magus Annah Teranaki of the Temple of Wee Jas, who in sock puppet form spend much time arguing over who should eat the last donut.

Finally the show is over and Celene must pay a few coppers for watching.



She was told to see him in Castle Teraknian, and told which department he worked in. The castle 'belongs to all district but is not in any of them', although it is worth noting that the island it sits on is a stones throw from the noble district.

That's it really, just wanted to foreshadow a few future NPCs... but which ones?!

EDIT: Added the habourmaster!

This message was last edited by the GM at 09:27, Tue 30 Dec 2014.

quote:

That's it really, just wanted to foreshadow a few future NPCs... but which ones?!

Well, at least one is already a present one, but let's see - excited!

After checking her wallet once again, Celene head back, but is still on the looking for any magical remedies for her poor swimming and climbing talents, checking the prices for later. I.e. wanders around while waiting for her rendevouz with that rogue..
This message was last edited by the player at 11:13, Mon 29 Dec 2014.

You need one of these:

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic-...ngs/ring-of-swimming (1,250 gp)
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic-...g/elixir-of-swimming (250 gp)
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic-...wimming-and-climbing (6,250 gp)
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic-...oak-of-the-manta-ray (7,200 gp)
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wands.htm (2,250 gp)

Unlike oD&D, buying magic items is common and expected in pathfinder. It is considered part of character customisation.

quote:

buying magic items is common and expected in pathfinder. It is considered part of character customisation.

ha, not even worth the time to roleplay her snooping around in nifty little magic shoppes, i see :-)

Kassius had some suggestions too. Would that spell be available to celene somehow?

Celene goes to the temple to unload a few of her purchases, and get the holy water, and then gets ready to meet with the burglar.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:47, Mon 29 Dec 2014.

You mean as a scroll? Sure, if you can afford it! Just look up the price, anything less than 15,000 gp is freely available in the city somewhere - no roll needed.

A scroll of monkey fish (or any other first level wizard/sorcerer spell) will cost you 25gp.

Edited my foreshadowing post...

wow, then even i can afford one, if i reprioritize my shopping a bit! Will do so,just to have it an emmergency!

Does Celene know, other than through other's description, any of the puppet. characters besides Nylaria?

Such as the high magus, or is she above and beyond? Anyone else she has seen?
This message was last edited by the player at 19:27, Thu 01 Jan 2015.

Celene has heard about all of the people mentioned in the puppet show, there are all subjects of city gossip in a big way. She has only ever seen Nylaria and the High Magus before though. And she hasn't been that close to the leader of the Wee Jas church, just seen her at a distance.

Ok, on hold for now.

Celene gathers up her stuff, and dons her street clothes,before heading towards shadowshore on foot. She asks around for the Skinned Man.

Great. See you in thread 0A!

After the events in the House of Porphyry, Celene joins the rest of the party in the old Dragon Lotus lair under the city. Despite Angati spending a considerable amount of money on the place it remains dark and damp, but the cleric of Wee Jas has little choice - she has nowhere else to go. Now that she is accused of murder and there is a hefty reward for her corpse, she will never be able to return to the temple.

Once Alohan and Logan are packed away for the night (the barbarian and rogue are still blind thanks to Nylaria - Lady Silvermane has promised to heal them the next day) the sorceress lowers herself into one of the mouldy beds in the large bunkroom. She is so exhausted from the drama and tragedy of the day that she is asleep within minutes.

Celenen dreams that she is back in the small home she has dreamed of many times before. This dream also feels exceptional real, but something is different this time. No sounds of arguing come from the next room.

She gets up from the tiny sleeping bed and moves to the doorway leading to the kitchen/dining room. Her parents are not there, but someone else is...

The mysterious woman is sitting on the table, both hands stretched back to rest on its rough surface. She drums the fingers of her left hand on the table and an unhappy frown mars her otherwise extremely beautiful face.

"Why did you do it?" she asks simply.

”Cycles of pain and torment shouldn’t be allowed to continue in perpetuity.” Celene said as she stared into the eyes of Malcanthet. ”It ends with me. I’m the only one left who could resurrect your house of horrors from the ashes and I refuse to be a part of it.” she spat her hands clenched at her sides. ”Eseriel and Nylaria had a choice to make something of themselves to rise above whatever evil lurked within their blood; to reject their upbringing. They chose to worship you. I choose not to follow.”

The lady laughs. "So bold! So dramatic! Not very fitting of a cleric of Wee Jas but very in line with a succubus. Don't you see? What did you do when you saw that useless old fart Eseriel was dead? Did you try and explain? No, you jumped out the window like a thief, lied to the High Magus, ambushed your pursuers. You become more and more one of us every passing day."

The lady advances on Celene, and the young cleric finds herself unable to move. In the dream she is stuck solid, one hand locked against the rough doorframe of the peasant house. The lady's face changes a little, sharp pointed incisor teeth growing out from her canines and a jagged snarl appearing on her lips.

"But no this little sorceress. By the time all this is over, you, "Bends-wills-to-her", will come to me on your knees BEGGING to be my anointed. This I swear. I, Malcanthet, Queen of the Succubi!"

With a lightning flash the succubus reaches out and slaps Celene across the face. The pain is intense and jerks the young girls head back.

When Celene opens her eyes she is back in the mouldy bed under the city. She feels her cheek - it is red and flushed. And then... Celene explodes.

Harsh purple flames burst out of her skin obliterating her night clothes and setting all of the nearby bunks on fire. Logan, who is sleeping a respectable few beds over, is nearly barbequed in his sleep. Celene screams but can not draw her breath. Such power! She is unchained and ready to meet her destiny as a sorceress, but looks down at the holy symbol of Wee Jas that hangs at her neck and finds it gone - the symbolic metal dagger evaporated by the heat. She finally manages to yell out and finds that although her connection to the Abyss (for that is what it is) is redoubled, her connection to the gods has been broken. She is no longer a cleric of either Wee Jas OR Malcanthet.

OOC: Celene loses a cleric level and gains a sorceress level. She also realises that she can speak and read Abyssal fluently.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:49, Tue 13 Dec 2016.

"What the frac!?"  Logan spills out of his bed, dagger already drawn, his half-asleep mind resorting to instincts well-honed in Shadowshore.

The half-elf looks around, trying to gather his wits, then finally spots Celene.  "Celene...what, what happened?"

Celene covered herself as she sat up and tried to manage the pain. She turns her head towards Logan framed in the light of the smoldering fires she had inadvertently caused "I spoke with Malcanthet in my dream. She broke the divine connection we had. It must have awoken latent powers within me; manifested as an eruption of flames?" she mused "She's angry with me for my part in the destruction of House Porphyry. She's trying to pervert my actions, make me doubt myself, soften my will for the future." Celene looked down at her uncovered body and moved away to find something to wrap herself in. "She can't... I won't..." she said to herself softly.

OOC: <DM shrugs> Sure, why the hell not.  :D



OOC: Well... that is one way of looking at it. You have to admit that Celene has been acting in a more morally ambiguous way lately, and it is not as though Malcanthet has been 'forcing' her to be like that.

Please scrub out 'Lawful Good' on your character sheet and write in 'Chaotic Good' instead you evil succubus spawn.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:36, Wed 14 Dec 2016.

That is more the player changing than Celene. I'm sure if Johannes was here things would be different. Also there is the fact that had Alohan and Celene tried to stay behind and answer questions there would have been a distinct possibility that Nylaria would have completed her ritual while they cleared their names.

By "pervert my actions" I meant she is trying to make me think, in retrospect, that what I did was evil and not the best course of action to save as many lives as possible. It was a very Batman like thing to do. Take the position of a criminal in order to save lives.

You can definitely say she is Chaotic but she hasn't been acting the least bit evil. :)
This message was last edited by the player at 14:43, Wed 14 Dec 2016.

Logan rubbed his eyes, resigning himself to a night with little sleep.  Something about nearly being burned alive in your sleep tended to ruin the rest your chance for the rest of the night.

"Wait, Malcanthet?  In your dream?"  The rogue laughs.  "Sorry, but I'd just be happy if she could reach out and interact with you while you were asleep, the worst that happened is some bedclothes got singed."  Logan stood up to comfort Celene, but decided the new (demonic?) sorceress might need some space right about now instead.

"Do you know...is that common?  I mean, beings like that talking with people?"  Logan was already turning things over in his mind, wondering if he could expect similar nocturnal visits from Gwynharwyf in case he managed to mess something up royally..or if he already had, by betraying the secret of the temple in the first place.

Celene now wrapped in some moth eaten blanket than was only half burned moved closer to Logan "I don't know. Maybe... maybe it's just me. This isn't the first time she has come to me in a dream. I just didn't know who she was before. My room was set on fire after that conversation as well. Back then she sent me to seek out Vorsh." Celene's eyes narrowed in though "It seems strange she would send me to seek out the man that had almost completely destroyed her last cult of worshippers. It doesn't make sense does it?" she asked.

Logan shook his head.  "Well, she's a chaotic evil succubus, right?  Maybe she felt like Nylaria and Eseriel weren't doing enough to further her own goals?  Or maybe she was worried they were getting too powerful and would challenger her?  I don't have any direct evidence of this in...in powerful planar beings, but I've seen it in a score of low-level street gangs.  People who rely on intimidation for power can't allow their subordinates to get too much power or prestige, or they'll lose their hold over the rest of the gang.  Maybe Malcanthet just set you up to introduce Vorsh and Nylaria again.  Best case, they'd both get killed, and she'd be rid of a troublesome subordinate and an enemy who vowed to destroy her cults.  Worst case, she'd probably be rid of one of them.  And look what actually happened: most of the Whirling Furies were killed, along with Nylaria.  Probably not a bad outcome."

Celene frowned "She sent me to Vorsh before we went looking for that sword. Vorsh and Nylaria were already acquaintances. If her intent was for Nylaria to die than why would she be angry?" she shook her head again "None of this makes sense."

OOC: Now just hang on a second here!

THe original cult that Vorsh destroyed 50 years ago wasn't one of Malcanthet's. It was a cult of Shami-Amourae, the Lady of Delights.

True, Malcanthet did set Celene on the road to accepting the mission that Vorsh and Eseriel presented her with (stealing the sword), but Malcanthet didn't know that Celene would go and trash everything... committing this crime was meant to be the first step on the road to Celene's corruption, but unfortunately (for the Succubus Queen) the Shadowshore rogue that Celene got set up with had a heart of gold and also the young sorceress was not easily swayed to the dark side.

It was really just bad luck for Malcanthet that Celene was sent out to Kraken's Cove (by Lavinia) and got involved with the Black Pearl and the Savage Tide - and got the clues that let her track the ship with purple sails back to Eseriel. And then rather than confronting her mentor, Celene bluffs her way into the House of Porphyry just at the wrong time and figures out what the cult was. What were the odds of that happening?!

I think the real question is 'What was the cult of Malcanthet going to do with the Black Pearl'? Why would a succubus cult want to change a whole city into savage creatures?

I actually had no idea that Nylaria was involved. I wanted to get insight about Eseriel from her. Were we not supposed to have dealt with that at this point in the adventure?

Also I think talking to Eseriel might have led Celene further down the wrong path had she been convincing enough.

OOC:  Man, that is an involved plot line!  Kudos to you on juggling it all and keeping it straight.  Sometimes it's hard to piece all this together getting it fed one piece at a time through a score of different threads and plot lines, so thanks for giving the info-dump to clear everything up.

Would a succubus want everyone changed into demon-creature because they become fully subsumed by their lusts?  I mean, succubi could like more than just physical sex, right?  Giving into any kind of lust would be in their "wheelhouse," and maybe if you had any city engaged in a (literal) orgy of destructive lusts, it would give Malcanthet a lot of potential worshippers.

Thanks dude! But I underestimated the time it would take us to get here so I feel like a lot of the story line is diluted by the months and years that pass in-between elements of the story being revealed. I mean, I started this plot line in the final months of 2014 with a different player for Celene, and now I reach the middle of it and there are two years' worth of posts between us and that original information. <shrug> Oh well, probably better in a way that trying to do it over the table top.



I don't know man. None of the savage creatures they met were interested in sex. I mean, quite the opposite. They were just hungry and wanted to rip people apart. Doesn't seem like converting all the people in the city to mindless savage monsters with zero sex drive would have helped Malcanthet at all...



Well, it is all good, I was just more surprised than anything else. Yes, you were meant to deal with Nylaria now. Eserial was racked with guilt and ready to spill the beans - she would have told everything to Celene if the cleric had turned up and asked, and then still drunk the tea of death.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:56, Wed 28 Dec 2016.