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20:36, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council.

Posted by _ Brother BarthomewFor group 0
_ Brother Barthomew
NPC e, 59 posts
NPC - Henry's Chaplain
Priest of Pharasma
Wed 30 Jun 2021
at 05:48
  • msg #96

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Brother Bart nods along with the other two.  "It is certainly permissible within our laws, and I can see no reason why Henry would object.
Kiera Raincutter-Solanus
player, 330 posts
Tue 13 Jul 2021
at 12:20
  • msg #97

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

This, well... wasn't usually a place she actually came to- but well... she -did- have something in the works.  But then again, her own faith had seen herthrough a number of things, and it was time Ki felt like she had to repay that debt... and she always did pay them.

At least she was dressed nicely, though- in a nice dress, and her hair up- though the yellow and black ribbon worked into the braid was a new touch- as was the scroll she was bearing in her hands.

Though she'd wait to be acknowledged.  One didn't irritate the local representatives of the gods if one couldn't help it...


OOC: I think I found some other stuff on Jalaijatali- it's on another device so I'll have to go dig that up and see if I can find it.  It wasn't much, but it was something...  I'll do a little more rummaging and see if there's any other scrap I can find.
Andalon de Lebeda
Player, 1215 posts
Bishop at Cathedral of
Abadar in Tusk City
Tue 13 Jul 2021
at 15:56
  • msg #98

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Andalon smiled and raised his hand in greeting to Kiera, then beckoned her forward.

"You are welcome to join us, Kiera. I know you have some news that might interest this Midmarch Religious Council. Are you here to share that news with those who haven't heard yet?"
Kiera Raincutter-Solanus
player, 332 posts
Wed 14 Jul 2021
at 04:25
  • msg #99

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Giving Andalon a smile- though a quiet one- she nods.

"...I wanted to give you some advance warning, just in case people started coming to you and pointing fingers or something- you've done good things in making sure nobody's really been feeling all too persecuted about who they worship, and you can count both me and my friend Rila under that number.

The Bishop knows of the new business district opening up, in the northeast of Tusk- I'm opening some things there- and one of them will be a brothel with a shrine to Calistria attached to it.  I think there will be an acolyte or something coming to tend to it, but given that some don't see really eye-to-eye with the Lady in the Room- and some of her teachings- I wanted to let you know ahead of time.

The cost is coming out of my own pocket, as well.

I'm hoping if they do send someone to see to it, that it's not going to create too much of a ripple- and that also you'll see it as an opportunity."

OOC: It will be a Great Shrine, geared towards Calistria's more CG aspects if she has anything to say to it.  I'm not sure if that comes with an acolyte or someone to tend to it, though.
DM
GM, 4807 posts
Wed 14 Jul 2021
at 05:56
  • msg #100

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

OOC:  It comes with all the nameless NPC, that you need to run it.  So there will be a few adepts and sacred prostitutes - the manager is probably an Adept/Expert - who might still work 'in the business' occasionally.

Nameless NPCs just represents all those background NPCs with  standard stats and few exciting skills.  You can always give them a name for RP purposes.  Or you could specifically take an entourage to fill that role for you, allowing you to RP them.  NOTE:  This is a Family game so, in this case, the RP would not be able to explore all aspects of his/her work.

Andalon de Lebeda
Player, 1413 posts
Bishop at Cathedral of
Abadar in Tusk City
Thu 12 Jan 2023
at 15:01
  • msg #101

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

A few days after Andalon and Ethankos and friends returned from their mission to Varnhold, Andalon addressed the Midmarch Religious Council.

"My friends, we are brothers and sisters together in service to many of the deities of these lands. I have a matter that needs to be discussed with you to determine the best way to deal with it.

"You have probably already heard that we fought and defeated a lich in the final stage of our mission to Varnhold and beyond. After the lich was slain, one of the lich's eyes still glowed with a spark of red light within it, and we determined it has an overwhelming magical aura. Kendrick cut that evil thing out of the lich's skull, on my suggestion, I regret to say, but when he plucked it out, the accursed thing seized control of his mind. Kendrick plucked out his own eye before we could stop him and would have thrust that evil orb into his own eye socket if we had not managed to restrain him. I had to use a scroll of Break Enchantment to free his mind from the grip of that evil eye. The experience has left Kendrick terribly shaken. I think he means to retire to his estate and try to come to terms with what he went through.

"The magical aura of that evil eyeball is so strong that we think it may even be an evil artefact. We have it safely contained, for now, but I bring this matter before the Midmarch Religious Council, so that together we can determine the best way to destroy it or permanently neutralise it."

~Brother Lutz Stigmar
NPC-E Ally, 13 posts
Cleric of Torag
Moderator: Aeris Estates
Thu 12 Jan 2023
at 17:41
  • msg #102

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Lutz listened intently, with a quite grim look on his face. "I am no expert in curses or artifacts, but perhaps we could devise a box of some sort with magical wards to contain the accursed eye until a solution is identified? Might we also bring in some of the arcane experts within Midmarch as well? They might have some additional insight. New Dawn has an Arcane Academy with some magical researchers as well as quite an extensive arcane library that might be helpful."
This message was last updated by the player at 17:41, Thu 12 Jan 2023.
Alisa Medvyed-Solanus
Player, 611 posts
Like the moon, the truth
does not stay long hidden
Thu 12 Jan 2023
at 17:38
  • msg #103

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Alisa listened to this news with an expression that varied between that of an aggrieved friend and the full loathing a priestess felt for such a thing.   She was not looking forward to telling Domitius about this.

"This is terrible to hear! Praise Elysium you were on hand, Bishop, and that it wasn't any worse, at least."   She shook her head. "I wish I had some meaningful suggestion, but I've had no experience in dealing with unholy artifacts.  Lutz's suggestion seems a good, beginning idea.   While destroying it would be better, it'd surely be dangerous, when we don't know what we're doing.   Most things like that need to be destroyed a specific way, if I've heard right.  Hopefully, the lore can be found.  I'll volunteer to aid in research, if that's useful." 
This message was last edited by the player at 17:42, Thu 12 Jan 2023.
Marceline Gray
player, 407 posts
Half-Elf Inquisitor
Thu 12 Jan 2023
at 20:02
  • msg #104

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Marceline stands quietly as she absorbs the news about the accursed eye, unsure if the revulsion within her is her own or an echo of her patron goddess.

"Lich." She mutters through gritted teeth as she thinks back on numerous texts read about the unholy creatures but only able to offer speculation. "It's possible the eye is the creature's phylactery, given the aura and the insidious enchantment, but I am no expert; I have not fought such a creature, only read about them - my suggestion is to destroy it."
Andalon de Lebeda
Player, 1414 posts
Bishop at Cathedral of
Abadar in Tusk City
Fri 13 Jan 2023
at 03:14
  • msg #105

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Andalon nodded at Lutz’s suggestion.

“Good idea, Brother Lutz. We will consult the Arcane Academy too, as you suggest.

“Fortunately we do not need to worry about the lich anymore, Marceline. We found and destroyed its phylactery before we left the tomb. The evil eyeball is something else entirely. Jensen was unable to damage it at all with his enchanted lucerne hammer, so we know it is going to be hard to destroy it. That is still my preference, though, so I will exhaust every avenue of research before simply agreeing to lock it away somewhere safe.”

~Aranel Romanese
NPC e, 12 posts
Sun 15 Jan 2023
at 09:40
  • msg #106

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Prioress Aranel weighs in on the discussion.

"You can also count on the support of the church of Andolleta in your efforts to destroy this foul thing. And if all our efforts fail, perhaps we could request help from abroad. The Pathfinder Society might have knowledge on how to do this. And the crusaders of Lastwall would have extensive experience in dealing with magical items of the undead."
_ Brother Barthomew
NPC e, 77 posts
NPC - Henry's Chaplain
Priest of Pharasma
Sun 15 Jan 2023
at 10:01
  • msg #107

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

After a while, a document is delivered to Brother Bart.  "Lord Henry has had some reach carried out.  It appears to be something known as an Eye of Abadon, one of the four horsemen.  Some say they were created by priests in years gone-by, others that they are a creation of the gods.  Regardless, they must be destroyed in Pharasma's Boneyard, and by someone who is permanently blind, crushing it with a holy weapon against their own gravestone".

He looks almost stunned by what he has just said, and sits quietly without an suggestions for how that might be accomplished.
Andalon de Lebeda
Player, 1416 posts
Bishop at Cathedral of
Abadar in Tusk City
Sun 15 Jan 2023
at 14:31
  • msg #108

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Andalon sighed when Brother Bart read the report he had been handed.

"Well, I expected it to be difficult. But this?" he sighed again. "It seems we shall be guardians of this evil artifact for longer than any of us would wish. So where shall we store it? I will offer to seal it deep beneath the Cathedral of Abadar in Tusk, in a block of stone. We can bore a hole into the centre of that stone, drop the eye in and seal it with molten lead before burying it deep beneath the cathedral. I suspect that would be enough to block the influence of the eye upon anyone's mind and would make it extremely difficult for anyone mad enough to steal it away, but we would investigate suitable magical protections to further secure the accursed thing. Unless anyone else has a better suggestion?"
_ Kendrick Winters
NPCx, 658 posts
Marshal-Dominus
Knight Paladin of Iomedae
Sun 15 Jan 2023
at 17:24
  • msg #109

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"No!  It must be destroyed.  I have lost one eye, and almost lost Iomedae's blessing to that thing.  I will sacrifice the other to ensure that I retain her favour.  I am sure that Rikka can make me a holy weapon, so all we need is a way to get there.
~Brother Thaddeus Riverson
NPC e, 17 posts
Acolyte of Iomedae
Domitius Companion
Sun 15 Jan 2023
at 22:35
  • msg #110

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Lord Bishop, Lord Domitius has the service of a stone singer, she may be able to assist sealind the stone up until such time as we are ready to deal with it.
Ethankos
player, 369 posts
Cleric of Pharasma
All stories end in death
Mon 16 Jan 2023
at 06:21
  • msg #111

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Brother Bart:
they must be destroyed in Pharasma's Boneyard, and by someone who is permanently blind, crushing it with a holy weapon against their own gravestone

"The path to the destruction of this foul creation seems difficult, if not impossible," Ethankos moots, "but mayhap not ..."

"I spoke before of perhaps calling upon the Mother of Souls to dispatch one of her servants to aid us, and in light of these revelations, that still seems the most likely means to our end."

"Amongst Pharasma's servitors are numbered the Ahmuuths ... psychopomps that are charged to assist mortals in ushering the undead back to the afterlife." 

"These beings are, as I understand it, protected by a shield composed of shards of a gravestone, assumedly their own."

"There are other prayers that might aid us ... for one, a curse of permanent blindness, which might still be undone after."  The priest snorts.  "If permanence was all it should be then the dead would never rise from their graves, would they not ?!!"

"Another prayer might imbue an aura of holiness upon a weapon ... though I doubt that this would suffice - better we find or fashion a weapon that is dedicated to good, or still better, perform whatever ceremonies or rituals that might thus bless the dagger that the Ahmuuth itself wields."

"But even if my guesses are right and would suffice to destroy the Eye, there is no guarantee that the Ahmuuth would so serve ... and e'en so it may require some service in return."

OOC: Talking:

C4 Planar Ally, Lesser to summon an Ahmuuth (6HD) https://www.d20pfsrd.com/besti.../psychopomp-ahmuuth/ - doesn't say if the gravestones are its own or not, but it's a fair assumption
C3 Blindness/Deafness (duration listed as Permanent, but C3 Remove Blindness/Deafness can deal with that)
C2 Align Weapon - Good ... though I think we'd be better off with a Craft Magic Arms & Armor to add the Holy property to the Ahmuths +1 returning, undead-bane dagger

Andalon de Lebeda
Player, 1417 posts
Bishop at Cathedral of
Abadar in Tusk City
Thu 19 Jan 2023
at 13:53
  • msg #112

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"Thank you, Brother Thaddeus. A stone singer may be very helpful," Andalon responded.

"Ethankos, the cost of making an Ahmuuth's dagger into a Holy weapon would be exorbitant. A +1 Holy sword would cost something like 9,000 gold to create, plus the cost of the masterwork weapon, or over 18,300 gold to purchase one. I don't think we have a Holy weapon anywhere in the Southern Region, and I'm not sure we have anyone who could create one yet.

"The spell of Blindness may be sufficient for that part of the requirements. We can research that further.

"Travel to Pharasma's Boneyard could be accomplished with a spell of Plane Shift. That much we can do, although it is likely to deliver us hundreds of miles away from our destination, and we would have the same problem on the return journey.

"As a priest of Pharasma yourself, can you enlighten us about the gravestones in Pharasma's Boneyard? Would a living man find his own gravestone waiting for him there, or must he have died already before his gravestone exists there?"
he asks.
_ Brother Barthomew
NPC e, 78 posts
NPC - Henry's Chaplain
Priest of Pharasma
Thu 19 Jan 2023
at 16:15
  • msg #113

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"Perhaps I can help with that." Brother Bart offers, "AƧcording to my teachers, every one of us already has. Grave stone in The Boneyard.  For the living, it bears the name and date of birth.  The date of death is not added until the appropriate time, although it is said that dates are recorded in a strange manner that does not appear to correspond with a number system that we are familiar with."
Ethankos
player, 371 posts
Cleric of Pharasma
All stories end in death
Fri 20 Jan 2023
at 04:52
  • msg #114

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"If the spell won't suffice," Ethankos bows to Andalon's superior knowledge of such things, "then I'd thought perhaps it might be possible to imbue the weapon itself, though as you say, the cost and the lack of skill would seem to preclude that." 

"However, I don't know that we are likely to find a Holy weapon in the Boneyard," he ruminates. "Death is a natural thing, neither good nor bad.  Such terms are meaningless except so far as they serve to guide the soul on to its final destination."

"Do we need to trust to the Stone Singer to secure the Eye until such time as we might procure a Holy weapon ?"

"It is said that the Boneyard itself is timeless, its lands immeasurable.  If we find ourselves far from where we need to be and it takes forever to get there, at least we'll not die of old age before we reach our destination !" Ethankos snorts.

"Though be cautioned, those days, months, even years will catch up with us when we return."

The priest nods at Brother Bart's recollection of the Boneyard's gravestones.

"The Graveyard of Souls stretches for more than a thousand miles," Ethankos rumbles.  "It is possible that each soul will be drawn towards their own stone marker ... if not, we should pray that there is a willing guide close to hand."  He looks to Marceline for confirmation of his understanding.
_ Brother Barthomew
NPC e, 79 posts
NPC - Henry's Chaplain
Priest of Pharasma
Fri 20 Jan 2023
at 07:36
  • msg #115

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"There are spells which will draw a guide to us, at least they wil do so here in the land of the living.  Uwe can hope they work in the same way in the Boneyard.. Bart suggests, then with a slight grimace continues, "Both Mother Beatrix and I have access to those spells."
Ethankos
player, 372 posts
Cleric of Pharasma
All stories end in death
Fri 20 Jan 2023
at 08:47
  • msg #116

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"Still the quest would seem more arduous and perhaps problematic than fraught with danger," Ethankos notes.  "There is also the threat of Candlemere which must be faced, and that likely the more perilous, if less difficult."

The priest grins broadly.  "Perhaps you and Mother Beatrix should toss a coin for the honour, as should Marceline and I ... save that I believe Lord Henry has his own thoughts on the matter of the disposition of us, his loyal troops."
Andalon de Lebeda
Player, 1418 posts
Bishop at Cathedral of
Abadar in Tusk City
Fri 20 Jan 2023
at 14:19
  • msg #117

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Andalon sighs.

"There are many pieces of this puzzle, answers to many questions that must be found, before we can finally destroy this accursed Eye of Abadon. We will do it, eventually, but it will take time. We will secure the wretched thing beneath the Cathedral of Adadar until that can be done. I wish it could be accomplished swiftly, but logic tells me this is the only viable option that has been presented so far."

He looks around at the various religious representatives present at this Council meeting and smiles ruefully.

"Never would I welcome a better suggestion more than right now."
Marceline Gray
player, 409 posts
Half-Elf Inquisitor
Sun 22 Jan 2023
at 07:03
  • msg #118

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

Marceline is quiet as it quickly becomes clear that destroying the unholy artifact might be currently beyond them - for the time being.

She sighs in mild frustration from that knowledge and looks at Andalon, nodding and says. "If it will be safest there, I have no arguments. If there's anything I can offer to help securing the artifact, it's yours." Looking to Ethankos she asks "Is there a way to entreat The Gray Lady? Surely we can do something?"
Ethankos
player, 374 posts
Cleric of Pharasma
All stories end in death
Thu 26 Jan 2023
at 06:37
  • msg #119

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

"Our Goddess does not reckon good nor evil," Ethankos replies to Marceline, "I think she will neither help nor hinder our efforts to destroy this foul thing."

"And speaking directly with the Lady of Graves is somewhat beyond my poor learning, while even the prayers I have heard of might provide a simple yeah or nay in reply."

"To be honest, I've always been rather suspicious of those who claim that their God speaks directly to them ..." the priest snorts with laughter.
Alisa Solanus
Player, 617 posts
Like the moon, the truth
does not stay long hidden
Thu 26 Jan 2023
at 20:41
  • msg #120

Re: FUZZY: Midmarch Religious Council

She winced faintly at the Pharasmite's last statement.   Though uncertain the whispers and dream-sends she received counted as speech in the simplest definition of it. Her own experiences aside, she did grasp his view.

In any case, she claimed nothing, merely heard and learned. And then practiced and acted.  There'd been no temple to train at, no mortal priesthood to study under. Her capability as a cleric was its own testimony.
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