It all started on the 3rd day after we left the soaring mountains of the Wingheld kingdom and entered the Great Aranian desert with our Sandskimmer.

It was very difficult navigating it up and down the narrow, winding mountain paths. Clearly it was not made for traversing my land and it didn't help that none of us had ever ridden one, much less piloted such a vehicle. But once big brother Loki got a hang of it and we were out in the flat open wasteland...we were soaring faster than the sparrowhawks back home. If I spread my wings and closed my eyes I could almost believe I was back home, free falling from the mountain before pulling out of the dive. But such daydreams were short lived as the troubling weight of our quest strayed not far from my thoughts, eager to drag me back to wakefulness.

We were heading to the city of Cruilla, the last known location of my sister Helen before she disappeared. We had a local with us by the name of Irfan to make sure we don't get lost or ride right into trouble. But I feel like it was his eagerness and enthusiasm that we needed the most because brother's worry over Helen was sapping the life out of him...and us. In the event we did get into trouble, we brought in a hired blade with us to get us out of it. He was a kitsune and claimed he was from the Grasslands, but also wasn't. Acknowledged brother Loki as a chieftain, but also didn't. His name also seemed to change every day. I liked him, he made me laugh and I don't even know if he was doing it on purpose.

Cruilla was far to the south, deep into the desert. All we had to do was cross it...


2nd week of Lamashan, Oathday, 485 IR (Ironian Reckoning)

-Exert from the journal of Princess Hana Pintherastus

---

It was mid-afternoon. The skimmer was cruising through the desert. So far, knock on wood, no problems. Loki was steering the skimmer, Irfan standing next to him, the kitsune laid back, feet propped up, dozing off. Hana was all the way up in the front, standing on tip toes, head cranked back, arms spread wide (like in that scene in Titanic).


She was still like that for a while then she jerked her head, "Oh look nii-san, a shooting star!" she exclaimed but it was fleeting. Her mood had been progressively dour with each passing day. She walked back from the tip of the skimmer towards Loki, standing on the opposite side of the steering wheel, face to face with him, "We're ganna find Helen, nii-san...won't we?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:54, Tue 18 June 2019.

Loki smiled at her pleased to see her, but he takes a moment to consider her question before responding to it. "You have made an adult decision in forcing me to choose between letting you go off alone and letting you come along. But adult decisions have adult consequences. So, maybe you aren't old enough to understand that you are about to grow up faster than you needed to, or what that means. But it is too late to change things. Unless you choose to go back, you need the whole truth. You are smart enough to get what you want, so it seems you will need the truth more than you need comfort." he says with a sad sigh, regretfully, as a man beginning an unpleasant task.

"And the truth is I don't know. She may be dead already, in which case I will avenge her or die in the attempt. We may not find her at all, no matter how long we search. I will die before I stop searching for her, but that is not what she would want for either of us. She would be mad at me, but she would hate me if she learned that I let you throw away your life too. So, if I think it's hopeless, you are going home, or I will have to stop searching for her because of you. But there are no guarantees Imotsu. If there were, you would be safely at home, because I would have been able to tell you that if you came with me you would slow me down. But I didn't, did I? Because I don't know how long this will take, or how dangerous this will be. All I know is that if she is in trouble, I am the trouble that will soon follow, and only her safety will inspire my mercy."

His eyes and tone at the end grew cold and distant, and he seemed to retreat inwardly, lost in whatever spectres his own words had conjured within him. After a moment he seems to see her again, and offers a comforting smile as he says, "I am sorry if that seems harsh, but it is true. Do you have other questions?" he says, his eyes sad, almost wounded, and perhaps they glistened a bit more in the light...

Irfan starts edging away from the helm as Loki starts his winded monologue, that was his grave to dig.
...

And the man kept digging deeper.

Jeeze, all she wanted was looking for was a distraction. Why go and make her even more worried.

Sighing, he contemplates kicking the moody half-blood into the girl, but decides against jostling the driver.

"And we will find her, I know all the ways in and out of Cruilla, have friends in every guild. Even if she left, I can find where she went." Moving towards the bow to sit down, "Have you ever heard of a mysterious group of sea creatures called cel-kyse?"


Take 10 on Lore: Sea Tales to distract her.

The kitsune lowers the bottle, raises his hat to look at Loki.

Hana
"...No"


She then turned to Irfan, "No I haven't. Who are they?"

---

Everyone had expected the desert to be hot, but nobody but Irfan had been prepared for the reality of it when it happened. The speed of the skimmer helped, but the more and more you traveled deeper into it the less this helped as it became a near constant wave of hot air, sapping one's strength. And then of course there were the constant mirages on the horizon that were more elaborate than one would think possible. It was like one unending shadow puppet theater play but with color and breathtaking background.

I need everyone to roll fortitude save (-4 penalty if not wearing hot-weather clothing) vs heat or be fatigued. A survival check with a -2 penalty and a will save.

 Irfan rolled 9 using 1d20+4.  Will save.
 Irfan rolled 14 using 1d20+4.  Survival.
 Irfan rolled 7 using 1d20+1.  Fort Save.



Irfan explains away about the mysterious race of friendly sea otters that help guide and save sailors in colder regions but often confuse the sailors needs and wants leading to mischief and trouble. He skims over the bit about shape changing and leaves out the parts about forming families with sailors only to return to the sea. In particular he tells the fable of the often ill fated pirate Beakbrain who spends a month following one around, asking for it to find treasure only to be disappointed each time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As the heat really began to ramp up, Irfan began to contemplate camping during the day. Using some of the sails to build make shift tents, and traveling closer to dawn and dusk. He was also taken aback by how unconditioned his body had become in just a month.

Irfan sees a familiar landmark and advises Loki on a course correction.

Irfan course corrects a bit too much, pointing Loki unknowningly towards a farming settlement they would have skirted on their current path, one well known for supplying the region with textiles(flax) and crops. It had the luxury of being home to numerous small wells and springs, whose water and minerals combined with sufficient irrigation and a bit of shade lead to fertile fields.

He hoped to resupply their food and drink, and perhaps purchase other supplies like clothing and perhaps trade goods depending on who Loki had decided he wanted to be. In the mean time he draw permit for the sand skimmer. It wouldn't fool someone willing to check the books, but it would pass general scrutiny if the mint condition of the vessel didn't draw suspicion.


The landmark it'self was a plateau of redstone commonly refered to as Sister Abbey that stood firm against the abuses of the desert winds. Some said that it moved slowly, but all that was really know about it was that it marked a general boundary between the livable desert areas and the demon sands that actively tried to confuse, swallow, and kill you. (Bermuda sands) No ever returned from there with anything good to say about it or that could be found there, just monsters, death, misery, and misfortune.

ooc: You still have plenty of water and supplies. Loki broght barrels of the stuff.
Rolling for Loki now since he's AWOL.

You ride for a while after the course correction towards the detour town. It's a laborious, boring trip. The heat makes the air seem stale, and the dust quenches any other scents. The glistening sand, reflecting the sun waves in and out just like waves at sea. And it grows old quickly.

"Whew. It's hot out here" Hana absentmindedly comments. Loki turns to look at her and she quickly adds "Oh no, I'm ok Loki, don't worry!" putting on a forced smile then visibly relaxes as he returns back to driving the skimmer. She eventually figures out the kitsune had the right idea from the start and slumps next to him. At first when you had begun this journey she had chatted about nothing and everything because she was, well, still a child and needed to amuse herself. Now she reduced her movement and speech to the absolute minimum, though nowhere near the master the kitsiune was. If you didn't know any better you'd think he was a dead, unmoving corpse.

Looking at the kitsune and thinking that exact same thing he turns to his guade, Irfan, and "Maybe it would be better if we didn't move around the day so much..." implying he wanted his opinion on the matter. "Perhaps we should find some shade and wait-"
-"Really, I'm all right big brother. Besides, I want to find sister Elena as soon as possible."
-"Calm down, we've come this far. We'll be making a stop soon anyway, we can take that time to-" he breaks off and starts staring off into the distance, squinting his eyes, off in the starboard side of the ship somewhere just above Hana's head. "Hey, Irfan, what do you make of that?" he asks you and points to something.

Irfan looks there, sees nothing, then strains a bit toom squinting his eyes to focus. It was a blimp. Moving up and down. Disappearing from view than reappearing. Out in the far distance.

It grows larger. Quickly. It's almost like a parlor trick. One eyeblink it's there and then....much closer. Irfan realizes far too late that the heat had been playing tricks on him, creating the infamous Arcanian mirages, in this case messing with your ability to accurately gauge distance.

His eyes grow wide in terror, "^{An exalted}"

and it was heading straight for you.

He knew Arcania had at least 1 exalted, the Lonely One at the bottom of the mud sea, and you were nowhere near that! But some rumors claimed there to be more than 1 exalted in Arcania.

The Kitsune sprang to his feet to look, taking his hat off to get a better look. "We just had to be lucky enough to find it, didn't we?" he growled with sarcasm.

-"IT'S COMING!!!" Hana screamed, then turned to the grown ups "Do something!" she screeched hysterically.

ooc: This thing is gynormous. You know Elder Centepede from One Punch Man or the Kraken from pirates of the Caribbean? That. Except not as long. Large but not long. Think fish rather than snake.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:07, Mon 24 June 2019.

We need a skilled pilot now, best we can do Is aim for the Stomach and hope for the best, try to dodge and hope it doesn't turn at us lowly mortals. or run and hope it veers off.

Or try to distract it and lighten the boat I Guess, Chicken, we bought that special chicken right?

Words fail him as he faces the reality, When the adrenaline hits he pulls out rope and starts trying to loop it around (any?) central mast or other anchors, trying to get himself and Hina lashed though the order isn't clear to the boat. "Push it or we no ones getting away.".


"Wouldn't this thing look like a angry sandstorm at first with all that kinetic sand displacement, a one creature stampede?

Would trapsmithing cover this aspect of use ropes, or just profession sailor and escape artist.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:01, Mon 24 June 2019.

ooc: He would, but you failed the save throw and he's above ground only half the time, swimming through the earth effortlessly.
Doesn't transmit as trap (and even if it did you don't have the ability to quickly make one). Sailor yes. And I'd also say knowledge engineer and Finesse. Roll any one (just one) of those to see how successful you are in the heat of the moment, with the pressure wracking your nerves.

Irfan rolled 16 using 1d20+2.  Untrained Profession Sailor Check.

Loki  swings, the Skimmer in a U-turn, "Yelling will not help us, Calm yourselves." driving the sandskimmer down the Exalted's path of travel. " I suggest you brace yourselves tightly." Counting intervals to himself as the exalted approaches.


Irfan continues to struggle with the ropes, As the calamity gains on them, "Sear it, sear it all!" he contemplates rushing the wheel himself but is tangled up.


Loki intends to abuse it's bobing and Weaving movement and the manueverability of the skimmer to go up and over it. https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pm.../Main/DodgeByBraking  But he is too prideful to waste time saying it to jis passengers.

Inside Loki's Mind
 https://i.pinimg.com/originals...bb15e517c43d7ab8.jpg
This message was last edited by the player at 06:48, Wed 26 June 2019.

Make a finnesse or spellcraft roll to see what his piloting skills are like

Today: Irfan rolled 3 using 1d20.  Loki Raw SpellCraft check. There a roll worth less then 10! It's so low it just might work. Unfortuantly I think he might have flooded out the magic and killed the sandskimmer for a while.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:51, Wed 26 June 2019.

The kitsune jumps the ramp and dives for the mast where Irfan and Hana were, hugging it for dear life. 14:40, Today: GM rolled 16 using 1d20+1.  Kitsune athletics check.
"I've never heard of an exalted going out of its way to attack people before!"
-"Doesn't matter if it means to or not, we can't let it hit us," Loki responds as he nods rhythmically, counting the intervals. Then, suddenly grabs both levers and pushes them forward all the way! The skimmer roars straight at the behemoth! as there were no safety measurements installed in the creation of the cobbled together vehicle. And magic does not care about silly physics stuff like momentum, and acceleration of mass


All of you were nearly thrown off the ship right there and then. Thankfully the haphazardly thrown ropes around at least kept Irfan and Hana onboard, if somewhat worse for ware from being thrown around like rocks in a sack. Loki, being in the back of the ship, was thankfully least affected.
-"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" the kitsune screams as he realizes they were heading straight for the monster rather than way from it.
-"Trust me, I know what I'm doing!" Loki remains on course, waiting for just the right moment.
-"Left, left, turn LEFT!-" Ship veers off to the left, "-MY LEFT!!!"
-"WE HAVE THE SAME-" *CRASH* "-LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeee_eeeeeft!!!!!"

The sand skimmer and all its cargo and passengers are flung into the air like leaves in the wind, scattered in the wake of one of the gods that walk the earth.

---

ooc: I need a reflex saving throw.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:55, Wed 26 June 2019.

Reflex saves
 Loki: ? = 7
 Irfan: 17 = 13 +4
 Hina: ?? = 11
 Ultra-bombtastic Myrmidon: ?? = 16 lucky drunk +
 Skimmy the sand Skimmer: 11+ = 9 + (2+)



If the boat is non-magical as a whole, it shares the saving throw of anyone able to hold on(logic dictates to the helm only) or Skimmy gets none at all by raw.


This message was last edited by the player at 02:39, Thu 27 June 2019.

.

.
^pain
.
^*Groan*

.

^confusion

.

^-san

.

^{*dull throb*}
_*intrusion*

.

^{*disorientation*}
_*lost*

.

^Nii-san!
*intrusion*
_*danger*

.

You crack open your eyes, blinking quickly as something trickles into it.
*Groan* Your voice comes out hoarsely.
You feel dull throbbing pain all over.

Nii-san, please, wake up! you hear it again. You don't know what it is but it sounds familiar and important.

You try again. You open your eyes, just a crack at first so that no sand gets in this time, then wider. You see clear blue down and golden yellow up. The world was upside down...and shaking side to side.

After the strangest, most confused 5 seconds of your life, you realize it's not the world that's upside down. It's you. You were still tied to the mast of the now crashed sandflyer ship.

Memories start flooding back, from your childhood, your life, the past few months. The last thing you remember was spinning in the air with Hana, Loki and the kitsune whose name kept getting longer by the day. You remember the tengu girl saying a coherent word in between the cacophony of screaming and suddenly getting yanked upwards out of the group free-throw. You remember the kitsune making a flip in midair, stabilizing himself, then make a 3-point landing like cat. This was just before you yourself, or rather then sandflyer, hit the ground and then there was just dark. You blacked out.

The suddenly jolts. The others! you realize. Then you remember the voice. You look around and, it takes you a moment to make sense of the world since you were upside down, but you see the unmistakable figure of a small, white feathered tengu in bright blue clothing kneeling and crying over the unmistakable, unmovable body of the Grassland's kingpriest.

The kitsune in his green and brown robes was quickly limping over to where they were.

Irfan, take 14 dmg (7 vigor and 7 wounds in your case). To get free you need to beat your previous tie ropes roll (since you're untrained in sailor it caps out at 10 so make a DC 10 acrobatics check to get free).

10:08, Today: GM rolled 29 using 6d6.  Impact damage.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:51, Thu 27 June 2019.

Irfan Rolled a 11 using 1d20-6 Acrobatics.
Irfan tries to groan, just to check if he was alive, and that was a mistake as his body informs him he is very much not dead, yet, with disgruntled and angry cacophony of pain. Gasping at the onslaught, he wiggles in the rope trying to get arm loose. A few of the ropes just slide off almost immediately and he began to tilt, sliding out of the ropes feet first and  dropping to the sand. Thank Bond Forger the mast was near the ground. Hitting the ground knocks the wind out of him, and he reflexively reaches up to cover his mouth as his body burns in the heaves. Pulling back his sleeve, he saw blood, If he was coughing blood why couldn't he taste it? No that wasn't right he could taste something, he just was too shocked to process it.

Pulling himself up with the hanging ropes, Irfan blinked at the tengu,.. Hina, the weird guy.... Grass P-King?, and the orange fuzz ball.. Chickensplitter? Life sucked right now, but thats what happens when the ground literally runs you down and tries to eat you. Irfan Reaches for his canteen to take a drink?

Sighing, he stands up, both his legs were working fine-ish, even if his head wasn't. Man if he hurt now what would it feel like tomorrow. Irfan steadily make his way over to the others, makeing sure each step was going to hold before taking the next one. Once over there, he tries to sit down, but falls forward to his knees instead. Close enough.

Irfan opens his side bag and down a vial of translucent blue liquid,(lets call it asprin),  and drops it. he reaches around Hina to check on Loki's pulse, and then coughs with his mouth closed. Wheezing a bit, he tear open Loki's Shirt reveal massive bruising"Ya,.. That will hurt. atleast the boat broke my fall. *cough* He reaches into his bag a and fumbles around for a dried thin reed, some moss in a jar, and a small glass knife. It wasn't leeches but it would have to do.

Hina -> Unconcious Loki -> Irfan Kneeling over him with a knife(1d2).
" Chika Whiskers, hold her." He reaches down part the skin, and use the reed as stint to drain some of the bruising and take the pressure off his vitals.

Irfan rolled 23 using 1d20+3.  Heal Check appraisal  vs Group, or just loki.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:11, Fri 28 June 2019.

It's actually Hana, but meh Hina's not that far off. We'll just say you're missing the pronunciation because of your accent or because Tengu names sound weird. Cudos on remembering the -5 penalty due to no vigor and -1/4 wounds. +50 xp to Griffindor.

When you arrived you took 1 look at Hina and knew she was fine. Dirty from beak to talon in whitish-yellow dust, with dark brown streams of damp sand down her cheeks where tears had passed, but otherwise not a scratch on her. Loki on the other hand...

You cut open his clothes and Hana nearly passed out (close enough, she went mute and frozen in place with her mouth in open terror). He had a broken leg, with the bone sticking out of the skin, a rib sticking out of his chest, numerous bruises that were unmistakably internal bleeding, and speaking of bleeding he was gushing from every orifice in his body and then some. He had a weak pulse but he wasn't breathing. If he wasn't dead already he soon would be. (2 wound points away from 0)

Your own vision was going double, probably hit your head against the mast as you were being thrown around like a rag doll, but you needed to stay focus if you were ganna save this man so you took a stimulant. As you worked with your tool you speak to Hana, "Listen, you know healing magic, right?" you said dead serious.
-"U-Uh huh," she nodded weakly.
-"I need you to do that, but only where I tell you to. I'm guessing if you had enough raw power to heal him completely you would have done so already so instead I need you to- STAY WITH ME! *slap*" you give her 5 across the face to keep her from breaking down in hysteria as you started releasing some of the internal bleeding "-Are you with me? *nod nod* Good. I need you to focus the healing on the worst wounds to prevent him from bleeding out. For now our priority isn't to make him better but to prevent him from getting worse. Go that? Ok. First here..." You realigned the leg. 'Shit, there's sand everywhere. That's ganna make things more complicated.'

Just then then kitsune arrived. Aside from a small limp, 'probably just a sprained ankle' he too didn't look worse for ware, very composed in fact. But, when he reached for his gourd, you noticed his hands were shaking like an old man's and he was having trouble opening the cork. 'The gourd. ALCOHOL!' You grabbed it out of his hand ^hey! and cleaned the wound before nodding at Hana to proceed. 'Oooooh boy. If he was conscious that would have hurt like a mother f-'

You proceeded to do the same with the rib in the chess and the last healing she had you told her to focus on the head. (Loki +3 wounds. Stable.)

In reply to GM (msg # 19):

73%,  -6 (-2 50-74% wounds)Still think -2 For being worn out(vigor 75 and 25 would be enough.) If Irfan didn't have tools, he probably couldn't remember what to do. even on a 20.

Correct me when I butcher names, if i get into the habit, i'll be insulting them forever, like i did with worren/warren.


A anime drunk is surprisingly useful, Atleast your never in danger of dying sober...


Irfan seals up whatever is still bleeding, or open. Turning Loki on his side with WeedMilker's help so he didn't choke on his own fluids and relieve pressure on his heart.

His could try apply ointment to his wounds, but he was super dizzy. " get..Blankets, Fire ..  don't let sand.. bury..boat. " Irfan hits the ground, the surprisingly warm nice ground. Adrenaline gone, Irfan passes out.

Time to regain some vigor points... -4 is harsh 'crippling despair' levels of exhausted. Wounds add salt to the.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:46, Sat 29 June 2019.

When you wake up again, your head was still throbbing, it was still light outside, although much dimmer, the sun was probably setting as you thought this. Aside from the whistling wind, and even that sounded hollow, it was deathly quiet. You look around, see Hana cradling Loki's head, her eyes empty, the kitsune was wrapped around in blankets, like you and Loki, sitting across the clearing of the two. Nobody was saying anything. You notice there was no fire in the clearing.
"We don't have anything to burn" the kitsune answers your unasked question, not making eye contact. It was still warm so that wasn't a problem yet but once night falls...they probably didn't realize just how cold it could get.

Rising from your bedroll, you go over to Loki to check his wounds. It wasn't good. Despite your best efforts (which isn't really saying much since you had passed out right after fixing the worst of the damage) some of the wounds had gotten infected. (-1 Wounds)

Your throat was feeling parched. Just as you reached for your canteen, the kitsune shares some more bad news "The barrels of food and water were lost in the crash. The only thing we have left is what was on us," again, not looking up.

Loki was sweating, delirious, muttering Elena's name over and over. Ignoring the warning, you bring the canteen to Loki's mouth and make him drink.

To everyone's surprise he stirs, cracking his eyes open. He was awake and looking very weak. (Loki check vs unconscious, success).

Summary:
Irfan, Loki, Kitsune 8 hours rest. Hana 8 hours sentry duty.
Irfan full Vigor, +0 wounds.
Loki full vigor, -1 wounds.
Kitsune full vigor, +1 wounds.

His headache had receeded to a dull throb, he barely even noticed it when he wasn't moving, His good hand was still shakey though. They needed food, water and shelter and he had only a rough idea where they where before everything happened.

Knowledge Nature covers geography, the Kitsune has no reason thus far to actually know things about where towns are in the desert.

Looking around for the boat, and taking in the scenery in hopes of finding where the landmark was in the fading light, hoping it hadn't wandered off.

It didn't seem like the exalted had warped the land in any unusual way.

Closing his eyes he takes a deep breath, No fire mean they couldn't sit around all night. Loki needed to stay put, drugged if need be. If they had no boat, then they needed a sled.

He might be able to ectract some compounds to help with their situation, but he needed fresh materials.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Givening Loki some medicine from his bag for the pain, any applying a salve to the infect. He perfer to clean it, but he didn't have the water and Loki was already in bad shape to go reopening wounds.


He gets up, and searches the area for a hour, looking for anything he can find to help (Catti(water, food, alchemy), boat pieces(sled, fire), boat(transport), minerals(alchemy), ruins(never know what the sands were hiding), bones(splint)).

: Irfan rolled 15,21 using 1d20+4,1d20+4.  Perception, survival

Returning he set about mixing up a a magically charged salve for Loki, and others if he could manage.


Take 10 Alchemy +7 -2 wounds= 15. over 1 hour = 2 doses, 1d8+3. I can spend another hour making 4 doses total for Loki, but then he is dose capped for 24 hours.

Irfan contemplates using his flashbangs as a emergency signal, but they werenx't on a respectable route. Any town close enough to see them would have seen the exalted too and the giards would prefer to keep suuden anhilation secret from the people inside the walls.

ooc: A salve can only heal 1 character only once per day. The extra doses would have to go to someone else. A 4th dose is useless unless you're saving it for Hana. The kitsune hasn't volunteered any such information thus far so he probably doesn't know. You're the native here.

"I can't create food, but I can create water and purify food so...there's that Oh, NII-CHAN you're all right!!" Hana hugs Loki and starts crying. Loki tries to move his right hand, winces, then moves his other hand to hug and comfort Hana.

That was good news, you could harvest some things that were normally uneatable because they were poisonous or such (like cacti and roots and bugs) but could be made eatable if purified, and prepared properly. Taste might leave much to be desired, but it would sustain. (4 rations from Survival)

The boat was back where you left it, when hanging from its mast. It was broken, but it still looked mostly in 1 piece from what you could tell. There was no sign of the Exalted and no sign of any living creature (no surprise there. Creatures usually go into hiding, sometimes for days, after an Exalted passes through). Bones, sure. Wood, only what splintered off from the boat.

Something interesting you do find is a trail. A long caravan trail. And caravan trails led to of from...towns! And you knew for a fact there was a town around here. Looks like you just found your way to it. But you'd have to move quickly. Before long it will be swallowed by the winds and sands of the Arcanian desert.

---

Back at the camp you find Loki trying to go to the boat to examine it to see if it's still usable with the kitsune and Hana trying to convince him to stay down.

Irfan throws the sack of food and the sack of primative tools he had collected towards the group, his temper flairing.

"Leave him or Help him, but by the Lonely Ones Whiskers quit pestering him. Can you you get the skimmer working? He might be able to. I Sure can't sail it without magic or a mast.

I've got some fuel for a fire, If Loki would be kind enough to light it, and some plants, it's not pretty, last long, or smell good, but should be enough to make some soup if you cleanse it.

Pulling out 4 relatively straight bones  from the sac as he stomps over, Pulling some of his rope off the mast and cutting it.

 And you, get off that leg, till i can get and split on it."

Irfan proceeds to split Loki's leg, probably under protest. The works on setting up a pulley using the broken mast and Chicken slicer's help.

If Hana wants to sulk, help, cry herself to sleep that up to her, we are stuck with whatever trail rations i have if she does I guess.


Fun time, does careful packer apply to lifting capacities wjen using rope and pulley (s).

Intelligence score in place of her Strength score when determining her carrying capacity(when lifting said containers?).

ooc: Sure, why the hell not, we can say you Archimedes this. As long as you have the tools for it. Did you make the potions yet?

The kitsune throws his hands up in resignation and just walks away.

Hana walks over and lights the splinters.

There's a heavy atmosphere of depression and anger and whatnot in the entire camp. Everyone is on edge, sulking, but nobody's talking.

If breaking for camp for the night tell me who does what.

Hina Cooks, Loki keeps trying to spellcraft the skimmer. Kitsune applies muscles if willing to zirfan's rope system or does whatever he feels best in the meantime(no clue about him, maybe getting drunk or stress sword practicing.

Really hoping for a short rest/2 hour lay over. We have a caravan or town to catch but Irfan doesn't want to get their hopes up if they can't get the ship up in a short time.

Once the ship is righted, Loki should have a easier time tinkering with it. So once the ropes are in place Irfan and Kitsune can pull it when Loki says to. The camp fire probably won't last, even the best bones are light branches, and smell bad when burnt.

If Loki is lucky we might be able to make a mad dash for community and a chance at restocking n recovering. If Loki can't get the ship working, I'll roll percentage for camping longer or leaving on foot.

2 potions for Loki. +2 to Wounds.

Irfan rolled 5 using 1d20.  Raw spellcraft for loki, using boosts if able, follows up with take 10.
Irfan rolled 62 using 1d100.  55 camp/take 20, 56 travel.
Guess we are traveling to stay warm and find shelter (in numbers) if loki can't fix the ship or insists on taking 20 rather then abandoning it.

Irfan rolled 22 using 1d20+4.  Survival follow tracks. (should work until our kitsune can get within alcohol smelling distance.)

Irfan does what he can in relative silence while Hana manages the food, asking for help as needed. Then mixing his compounds, distilling a azure fizzing compound, which he gave to loki and told to apply where it hurt the most when he was done.

Warming himself by the fire when he was done, he (was give/asked for/ took) a bowl of the watery soup. Blowing on it, then coughing as he exerted hims lungs, spilling half his bowl. Look at his mess, he put down the bowl and spoke.
"I'm sorry, we all in pain, tired, hungry and stressed out. I didn't mean to snap at you, but Loki is doing what he can to give us our best chance of surviving. I know your worried about him but it's necessary. I don't like him moving any more then he has to, but I can't do what he is doing. And if he can't do it, we have to start moving tonight which is even worse."
Irfan rolled 5(1) using 1d20+4.  Influence vs Hana, Apology. I'm Going to get slapped underlines are suggested things to take fault with, not sneering.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:38, Sun 30 June 2019.

The kitsune had to help Loki over to the skimmer, practically carry him there, had a brief discussion with him then came back alone to the campfire, leaving him them there for his long, slow examination of the ship.

Hana, who had been silent, meek and generally just kept to just looking at the ground most of the time since this whole thing happened suddenly looks up, locking eyes with you. For the first time you see anger in them "This is all YOUR fault! You're suppose to know the desert! Know what the dangers are and how to avoid them! You scammed us just for the money! We would have been better off without you to begin with!" she lashed out and tries to attack you with her tiny clenched fists. The kitsune quickly steps in and embraces her going ^{shhhh shhhh, it's going to be ok} in order to calm her. At first she started thumping against him as well with her fists but them stopped fighting against the embrace and dissolved into sobbing.

The camp fell back into the oppressive silence.

The longest hour of all time later, Hana broke the silence. "...Do you think that exalted attacked us on purpose?"

The kitsune shrugged his shoulders, "Hard to say...all I know is we haven't seen it since so ether it didn't and we just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Or it figured it had already done the job the 1st time around."
-"But why would-"

Further theorizing was cut short by Loki emerging from under the hood of the boat and called over for the kitsune to come and fetch him, which he did. When he brought him back you could tell the strenuous activity had reopened some wounds (-1 Wound). And if you had thought it would've been worth it, you'd have been disappointed for the expression on the kingpriest's face said it all.
"The skimmer's shell is mostly in one piece, it can be fixed to be serviceable. The problem is this" he pulls out a cracked orb, "This is the magical component that moves the ship. Without it it's just a pile of wood. It can't be fixed. We'll need a replacement."
-"Well, he said he found caravan tracks earlier so we can't be too far from a town. We can just go there and get a replacement" the little tengu offered helpfully, but you saw a glaring flaw with that problem before she was even done.

By your calculations the nearest town would be days of travel on foot, if not more. You figured you could track the trail for a few more days before it faded too much to notice. Loki, however, was in absolutely no condition to travel. At absolute best case scenario (and you wouldn't put your money on it) he'd be slowing you down significantly (speed 1/4 because he's disabled). And even if he was fit to travel and the tracks remained, leaving the skimmer out here unguarded was just begging for scavengers to just come over and, well, scavenge it. There wouldn't be a whole lot of point in getting a replacement orb if you don't have a sandskimmer to use it on.

Irfan couldn't defend himself against that, but he choose to encounter that thing. He got them food and fire that they failed to get while he was out cold. He had kept them on the direct path in the uncivilized backyard of the desert. He had a lot to take fault with but none of it changed the out come.

So long as it wasn't some completely new part, he should be able to find a replacement in a shady shop, but no gurantee he'd find one in the first or second town depending on it's rarity.

What they needed now was a third miracle, or just mounts, same thing really. Either something to carry Loki, or something dumb enough to pull the whole skimmer.

Irfan chugs what is left of his soup. Loki wasn't going anywhere tonight. Hana was exhausted, and he needed supplies, to restock the bones, and find a solution. He takes a scarf out of his bag for a bandage.

Takes 10 heal check.

"Both of you need your rest, and he is going to need your warmth. I'll wake you when morning comes, and Milkweed will take first watch while I gather more fuel."

Irfan leaves it at that, and sets out to think in the desert while collecting more plants to distill positive energy from. They were all going to need their strength tomorrow if nothing else. He wanders for roughly a hour, maybe it was two going over old tales, fairy tales, lost shipments, war stories, even his mom's bedtime stories, back before...  he wouldn't die out here, but they would if he let them, just like he failed his dad.

Irfan rolled 23 using 1d20+1d6+8-2 Wounds.  Knowledge History, Local(society), Brainwrack the desert has many stories and a long history.
Irfan rolled 18 using 1d20+1d6+6.  2nd Brainwrack if possible.

Frustrated, he drops to his knees and hits the ground, and Voices his frustration in the simple fashion possible, a long, Tortured yell, followed by coughing then silence. He needed to head back, now, he staggered to his feet, and wiped his face. They could all use some healing, and morning would be here before he knew it.

He heads back to camp to prepare more mixtures for milkweed and himself, and have 4 ready for loki by the time he wakes up.

(Irfan has a max capacity of 4 at a time i think, so 2 (1 hour)for the Kitsune before he goes to bed, and 4 (2 Hours) that I make for myself and 4 for Loki (2 hours). So i'll be finishing the 2nd batch for loki when he wakes up, and those are the ones that will need to be given in the afternoon.

Irfan rolled 19 using 1d20-1.  Sleep Deprivation.

(So knowledge check(s) may or may not influence my options, but it sounds like it's a long walk tomorrow.)

+2 wounds to Loki (again), +2 to Irfan and +2 to Milkweed(isn't he sober enough to correct us on his name yet?
This message was last edited by the player at 03:04, Mon 01 July 2019.

You weren't too worried about finding the needed parts. As a rule of thumb, if an Arcanian merchant didn't have what you needed, he knew somebody who would. As for money...one could always offer services in exchange, and they were rarely not taken up on that offer, especially if that service turns out more valuable than the money they would otherwise had to fork over.


No response from the kitsune.
"Milkweed?" still nothing.
"YO, Milweed! I'm talking to you!"
-"Hm?" he finally turns to face you and has this bewildered expression on his face. "^Me? Oh, OOOOOOOOH!" he does a doubleback. "Riiiight, right ^right _right, sure, no problem."

ooc: 2nd brainwrack not possible. Knowledge is one of those 1/week per topic kind of skill check. And the recheck needs a research in a library or consultations with wise people.

Your depository on stories and myths was extensive...unfortunately, the vast majority of them were cautionary tales. Arcania was a very hostile, dangerous place. You yourself had thought the speed of the skimmer would be enough to cruise through the dangers so you didn't advice Loki on a path that you might have avoided otherwise. And now paying the price for it. You couldn't think of a single creature that was readily available to find (especially after a march by an exalted like that) that was both naturally benevolent enough and capable enough to carry/pull an entire ship on dry land. And taming a wild beast(s) capable of doing so would be extremely time consuming to not only find but also train in doing so, if any of you could do it at all.

...Well there was this one legend about praying in the blistering sun at noon for hours, and making a deal for a part of your soul, and not react when the pack of wolves show up. But you didn't think you were THAT desperate just yet.

---

At one point during the long night of you just working on poultice after poultice, the kitsune takes a break from his guard duty to come over and talk to you.
"Hey, I think it's time for you and I need to have a little heart to heart" he said in a serious tone. "Those 2-" he nods at Hana and Loki, having fallen asleep in each other's embrace in front of the now charred fire, "-they're too emotionally invested in this to make objective decisions, but you and I, we're on the outside of this, we're just the hired help."
-"What are you trying to say?" you said cautiously, unsure where he was leading with this.
-"The kingpriest is in no condition to travel, and even if he was it would be too risky to leave the skimmer unguarded. What we need to do is split up. Loki should stay here, with the skimmer, heal up and guard it while doing so. You know the desert, you're from around here, so you should be the one to go to town to fetch the parts. If there's anyone who could do it and find his way back, it would be you. That leaves me-" he turns back at the sleeping pair "-and the little one" nodding at Hana's direction. "Do both of us stay, do both of us go, or does 1 stay 1 go so that we're 2 by 2 in both groups?"

Irfan sighes. He had wanted to avoid this.

The Skimmer was just junk at the moment, but if they left them, there would be no telling if Loki would be alive when they got back without shade. The smartest thing to do clearly would be to leave it, and them.

Looking back at the Birdfolk,"She won't leave him, probably even if we dragged her... I looked, theres nothing remotely resembling shelter anywhere, Just the boat, sails, and what we can set up. I Don't want to tell someone that can blast my face off to leave his expensive toy to the sands, Or that he is probably going to die. Atleadt with them both here, he can defend, and she can provide water. With the disturbance they should last a week before anything comes around looking for food.


I can probably get what we need, and a beast to get back here on, but in the unlikely chance I can't get the gadget, they including you, might not make it to town even with supplies and camels at that point. If I don't make it there or back, everyone dies."

Turning back to the kitsune,"
It's in your best interest to go with me, but it's in their interests for you to stay. Have a sword and a hand will help me, but you would also be a second pair of feet slowing me and drawing attention. So the question is, do you want to take the easy way or put your faith in a stranger to come back."
... "
These are decisions each of us has to choose, Like you said, I'm the only one that do This and it's what I promised to do. If you care for them stay, if you don't trust me, care more for yourself come with me or some mixture of all of the above, stab or watch my back as you see fit.

If something goes wrong, I don't want the burden of making the wrong choice.
"

Loki would abandon the Skimmer to live even more so for Hana, but I can't justify that call as another player it's a investiment and  our best bet of reaching Cruilla in any reasonable timeframe, since we'd have to risk smuggler route or connect up with major convoys and backtrack towards the heart of the trade network.

In the morning, Irfan has Loki describe the part, and it's function, then combines the two descriptions with a sketch on paper, and has the Kitsune rig up a makeshift tent and shade, dugging a little into the side of the boat before restocking his water supplies with Hana, and leaving 4 days of trail rations from his supplies.

He leaves his traveler's cloths, including a wide brim hat with explicit instructions to avoid going outside in when if they felt the need to squint because of the brightness unless they had to.

Lastly he leaves the vermin repellant and tells them not to use it for one or two of the things,  but 4 or more, the amount beating off with a stick wouldn't do for, since it would only last a few hours at most.

If they felt they had to leave, to bury the rope on the mast in whichever direction they went if they had time.

He doesn't address the kitsune at all, leaving him to his choice. Irfan takes his walking stick and heads out to intersect with where the caravan trail was heading.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:19, Mon 01 July 2019.

The kitsune crossed his arms as he listened to you, mulling over what you said, then shaking his head "We can use the boat as shelter but what's really bugging me is how wise would it be to leave a scared little girl as the only protection to the 3rd most important man in the world. They might both be powerful, but they're also both eggheads. Magic might not be as useful when things get up close and personal. Furthermore, I don't think they'd agree to have one or both complete strangers just walk away with only a promise that they'd return.

I think I should stay behind with the kingpriest and you take the little chick with you. She'll do it if Loki orders her to do it so when we bring this suggestion up with them we should focus of trying to convince him, not her. There will be 1 mage and 1 swordsman on each party that way so we'd both be more likely to handle any trouble that might come our way. You can find food in the desert and she can create water, so our group should be the one to keep all the food rations and water, just in case. We'll ration it as best we can and I'm sure we can find a barrel or make a makeshift container to store some more water in before you guys leave. If we're lucky we might even manage to hunt down a giant scorpion or something and eat it. Plus, by having one of them go on the retrieval mission the other one can rest easier knowing they'll return, that each of them are keeping an eye on us to make sure we stay honest. Morale/peace of mind in a situation like this could prove more important than food." just as he says this, the 1st lights of the morning sunrise begin to shine through.

A decision would have to be made soon.

ooc: I'm ganna redcon this just a little bit because you kinda ran ahead with the story. You haven't left yet, you're still in the process of breaking the news to your employers.

Always feel free to retcon, esp if there is plot involved.

Irfan left the decision up to his companion and he talked good sense. He doesn't like the idea of dragging Hana across the sands, but it makes good sense on several levels. First and foremost women and children first, but it has it's flaws too. Irfan and the kitsune are the only two with survival(istic) skills, so the leaving one in the behind group is less likely to allow panic without cause.

It's also one big trust exercise. Hana isn't trusting Irfan right now, misguidedly, with some reason, a lot of stress, and some negative reinforcement.

 Finding/Scavenging a barrel would make this seem considerably less risky since it could be topped off with water before they leave.

If you wish to act this part out, we can but Irfan really doesn't feel like pushing the issue very hard almost to the point of Hana being a risk while traveling and in town.

The one argument either-way which is metagame, would be whoever has handle animal/ride skill should go, and even if anyone did, Giant scorpions and Camels would probably be out of their 5E background portfolios.

Counting the 8 flasks, 2 canteens, and 1 wine-skin, and not the bottle of wine which probably broke during the crash. Irfan probably has 4-5 days worth of water if rationed for 2 people in this heat. He can always find more on the move(survival skill, Explorer story feat), but putting both him and Hana in the leaving party removes all water from the staying party I believe. The flasks may not even be your first choice to drink from given their use as alchemy component mixers and holders. That is the basis for why Irfan and Hana I choose to split the way I did. Loki is the least useful member to either group, and is largely defined by his wounds at the moment. The Kitsune is presumably over his sprained leg or hiding it, and presumably sensible skills and information. At least he wouldn't recklessly announce his title in the black-market and demand someone help his brother at the worst time.


Loki will probably fear Hana being ransomed, but more importantly feel like this is her best chance at surviving even with risks.

If Loki accepts the proposal, then we do it Milkweed's way, and if all goes well, we have a big happy trust exercise reward.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:04, Wed 03 July 2019.

ooc: Ok, lets see the kitsune's skill check. Oh and btw I forgot to sasy that you found this with the perception check earlier.

Kitsune went over to wake the 2 while you went to the boat to find something serviceable as a container for water. Unfortunately the barrels were all shattered, save for the lower 3rd of one of them was still intact and could hold water so that was consolation news.

The sounds from the group proceeded much as you had expected it to. An initial outburst, followed by angry shouting, followed by silent attentive muttering, followed by a high pitched outcry and vocal objection, then a deep voiced scolding, and finally silent muttering again.

You look up to see a sullen tengu girl stop over to you while the kitsune gave you a thumbs up (influence success, bonus xp) then went back to discuss some more with the kingpriest.

Hana said nothing to you, filling the empty containers with water while you prepared the shelter (you were surprised to see the bottle of wine not broken. Packing it wisely, in the center of the bag surrounded by the softness of your clothes,, had done the trick). While doing so, you found something peculiar lodged into the helm of the ship. A fist sized scale of some sort, probably from when the ship collided with the exalted.

The kitsune approached the 2 of you, helping Loki a lot less to walk than he had done the previous night. Between your salves and Hana's healing magic, he was looking a world better.
-"Irfan, you are our only hope it seems. It is a responsibility I never expected to place upon you, and I'm sure a burden you never wanted to carry, but alas here we both stand, doing what must be done..." he looks you straight in the eye in all seriousness. "Here, take this sword-" he hands you the most beautiful weapon you had ever see. It was hefty to be sure, but sleek and graceful, simple yet captivating. "<Purple-there is little this sword can't cut but I pray you never be given cause to use it. And even if you do, use it only if absolutely necessary, only if Hana's life's in danger. Do not sell it or lose it. If you can't afford the ship parts we need you may use it as capital for a loan, and only if you're absolutely sure they won't lose it, but Do. Not. Sell. It.</Purple>" he pauses dramatically to make sure the point reaches home, and then he unexpectedly embraces you. "May your path be clear, your step be swift, you sight be true, and my your skies laways be blue," he recited what sounded like a tribal charm or something for safe travels. He pulls you back then, takes another good look in your eyes, a good sturdy thump on both shoulders, "Godspeed man," and sends you on your way.

You were barely 3 steps out when "Oh and 1 more thing...If you let anything happen to Hana, know that I will survive this. I will look for you to the ends of the earth. And I will, find you."

ooc: You gain 1 scale, 1 ? sword, the bottle of wine isn't broken. You lose all trail rations, hot weather outfit, torches, bottles, canteens, wine/water flasks (correct?). Hana can create water so do you still take some with you?
 canteen,
To surmise, the group that's staying has a total of : 8 flasks water, 1 canteen, 3 waterskins, 1/3 barrel of water, 30 torches, 20 trail rations, 1 Hot Weather Out.

I understand the confusion. Corrections/Clarifications, we need 1 canteen(2 if squimmish) since create water is now a cantrip, we still need a device to collect it in(a mug or bottle cap would do if we wanted to be munchkins) That reduced the need to refill every sip, and have some spar room in case something happens and Hana becomes incapacitated. The hot-weather outfit should go with us since we will be without any form of shade,(whoever has the smaller fortitude save should use it, but it's sized for me so that probably the best way to use it.) I wanted to leave the explore's outfit(at least in a significant enough part to count as all) since it has small parts like scarfs and wide hats that at least provide some protection from the sun when moving out in it, I've always found sun's rays to be more a penetrating heat that affects me even after dark. It's better then nothing, and probably would be better used by Hana.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Oddly the Hotweather outfit seems to be missing from my equipment list, Give this to Hana since it doesn't stack with my survival skill.

Mechanically that leaves the explorer's outfit which has the hats, it's better then nothing if they do have to go out during the day, I'll just make do with a Dilettante’s outfit (also has hats).

Hana is free to grab a canteen for herself from the pile(realistic option) instead of sharing one, Canteens are just a fancier waterskin. She can use her own water skin if she had one. ? Canteen/Waterskin.

Lets keep 2 torches, torches are useful, and I can't burn things like Loki. -2 Torches.

The Sealord's wine is (trade good) expensive, but I'll probably let the kitsune have one to down (bluff to lie about having more.) So Hana can refill it before we leave. +1 bottle of water, -1 bottle of sealord's wine.
Irfan rolled 22 using 1d20+5.  Influence -1 wound, Bluff wine.

The Wine was packaged in a hay, in a box. bucket, +1 bucket of water.

Literally the worst case scenario is a local poisonous critter that survived but is too small to realize the scope of the exalted poisons someone.

I need to speak, because that sword is seemingly a hazard to irfan, if expensive and if he isn't proficient. It's emergency funds at best to him, but i guess a magical weapon can be self-proficient if epic.

Seems to be about 3-5 days worth of water depending on the barrel before rationing, we should probably take 8 of the trail rations with us, which can save us time moving. Them starving a day or 3 won't matter, and if we aren't back in 6 days they are going to die of thirst long before hunger after that. 12 and 8 Trail Rations, that is 4 nights we can push on a bit father instead of scavenging.
 1 blanket per group by necessity.

That Scale is a big deal, also who knows about it is a big deal. It's almost a ominious object due to it's being a part of a exalted and what that could entail both in getting hunted down by a kingpriest or exalted, or being warped by an exalted. If that the assumption that it takes a piece or conduit to become a kingpriest usually, is common knowledge. Irfan would want to hide that if possible, both in fear of what it could do and fear of what others would do, but it's the kind of thing you you don't get rid of without some thought either.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Irfan begins to object when Loki passes the sword to him, it's a simple masterpiece, every working meaningful and effective with no embellishments. Regain his focus, "I had some training in cudgels before I left, but was always told that using a weapon without proper training is a good way to lose something. I'll use it, but only when normal means fail."
(.5 Bab, +0 Str, -4 proficency +1 masterwork, +?-1 enchantement)

~~~

In fact, at our first break we will have plenty every hour or two to refill and breath, I'll try to pass the sword to Hana, she can't be much more inept with it then I am, and I won't have to drop my staff,and it will be at hand if we need it. I'll pack it away when we get within sight of town to avoid attention.

Heck she is probably proficient in it by RAW, since it isn't a very useful thing to trade out. Tengu in this game don't seem to have the same racial fixation on swordplay though, and she could have claw proficiency instead, or something homebrewed or just to lower their Race Points.

"Here, I can't really use this and it's for your protection. I can defend you better with my staff unless a bizarre creature appears. So it would be better for you to carry it, and use it to defend yourself if needed, or as a mirror if we get separated. If it is needed, you can hand it to me." Presenting the sheathed sword to Hana after she refills his canteen.

If she declines, he offers his mirror instead.

Irfan also pulls out 10 ft of rope (uncut) from his pack and ties it to his waist, leaving a (6) ft tail he tucks back into the rope belt. If she asks, it's incase of a sand blizard so they don't get seperated.(pun'g does those sometimes right?).


Thats all the preperation work i can think of. Little else to do but play the travel montage, maybe answer a few of Her questions she thinks up during the day when we stop.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:27, Thu 04 July 2019.

Many hours pass. Noon comes and goes. The tracks were fading but still traceable. You could only hope your luck would hold this way. And all that time you get nothing but silence from Hana. She was so silent, being smaller and making less of an impression on the sand, you would have thought she wasn't behind you if you didn't know any better. You didn't dare look back left you found her glaring daggers at you, and you felt making eye contact right now would make the situation even more uncomfortable. 'And I gave her that big-ass sword too' that stray thought suddenly had you conjuring up images of the little tengu plotting and getting ready to stab you in the back. Any second now. Any second.

Your paranoia set your nerves so much on end that, when there was a sudden movement behind you -the first to break the monotony for so long- your first reaction was to turn swiftly around, your staff held defensively in front of you. 'Huh?' only to find empty space. Nobody.

There was a swooshing sound. You look above to see the tengu flying/floating several dozen feet off the ground and fighting to stay aloof. She was looking intently at something out in the distance, straining to make it out. "Hey, what's that?" she asks you, pointing up ahead.

You look, ^{01:16, Today: GM, on behalf of Irfan, rolled 22 using 1d20+6 ((16))} and you couldn't quite make it out from this distance or elevation, but it looked like a wide deformation in the path ahead. Right in the middle of the path of where the tracks were leading (unless they radically altered their path ahead).

Hana lands back down, heavily winded. Seems like flying wasn't something that came naturally nor easy despite being, technically, a bird. "It looked like a hole or something. Is it suppose to be there?" she explains.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:21, Thu 04 July 2019.

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2Nj...tlion%2Bhole%2B2.jpg

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"No.

Unless something just happened to collapse the roof of the undersea in the past few days right where this caravan passed through.

It could be a new oasis created by the Lonely One, or it could be the result of that new?crazed exalted, surely there aren't two of those things running around the desert unknown. That said we might be the first to see it and live thanks to her brother..

 It simply too big to be any of the normal creatures, though there is this one tiny(diminutive) vermin that does something similar, but even even the monsterous ones are only big enough to go after a dog or camel at most. Whatever did this could and probably did go after the whole caravan at once."

Many hours pass. Noon comes and goes. The tracks were fading but still traceable.

"Lets get a little bit closer so I can observe it better from the ground while we break for dinner. It probably came after us after it ..ate attacked the caravan, but lets take some time to make sure it's moved on before we go around it." Why the bloody sands would a Exalted be munching on things, weren't they supposed to be immortal, surely it didn't get any pleasure out of the hunt, could it just be a glutton? Exalted weren't supposed to care enough to notice lower beings, but maybe a town or caravan was big enough to appear as food to this one...

Irfan enters a long pause with a frown on his face


 or was it something else. Ironia had designed the skimmers with the desert creatures in mind, it appears as a unappetizing wind to most of the underground inhabitants, and was much smaller then the caravan... the only noteworthy thing about it was it's magical components. Could someone have been transporting a shipment of magic dust(crystals?) out this way, the fort was out here afterall..

Irfan rolled 25 using 1d20+8.  Trade Routes Magical shipment? (or probable caravan goods we established (mostly) smugglers use this region of the desert)


Sgt Bilko, excellent movie, must watch even if it's a cult classic of a sort. While no where near accurate in details or overall story to my experiences, still personifies my feelings, elements, and reasoning behind things I encountered in the army. I wish someone had made me watch it before i enlisted, and told me this what to expect. I don't thing any none-combat solider can't relate to it.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:21, Fri 05 July 2019.

ooc: Sgt.Bilko is actually a tribute to the TV series called The Phil Silvers Show (who's main character was sgt.Bilko). It's in black and white but I am telling you, to this day, it still brings me to tears with laughter. I highly highly recommend you watch it on youtube or download it from a site, or torrents, heck I think they even sell it on DVD or something. Not every episode is a masterpiece, but most of them are. You should definitely watch it.

The town ahead was called Saraj, founded by a middle son from one of the merchant families from Cruilla, trying to get out from the shadow of his family and start out on his own no doubt. He must've failed because it was still a small little place, off the main trade routes, not really famous for anything, the kind of place whose name you don't hear being dropped in conversation. Once however, you did hear that some...well nothing in Arcania is shady, but some business that the founder would prefer stayed on the down-low, was going on up there. Mind you that had simply been speculation by a pair of merchants at the tavern that had exhausted other topics and were just coming up with theories on why anyone would go to do business there, especially low to mid sized caravans. Purely out of a mixture of boredom and curiosity, you had checked the logs and indeed caravans did go there more often and in size that didn't warrant merit. And with normal, everyday shit, like consumables and utilities for the residents there. When you had chatted up a merchant that actually goes there he had left you with an enigmatic response something about sometimes the patron being happy is more important than the customer being right or some sttuff.

As you approach the hole you realize it's a crater. A really big crater, at least 15ft radius and just as deep if not deeper. Inside you see a hodgepodge of broken wagons, dead camels, dead humanoid bodies and other...stuff, sacks, barrels, chests, you name it, all in there. They weren't grounded to a pulp though, in fact some of the stuff looked in surprisingly good condition (all things considered).

"Should we go down there and check to see if there's anyone alive? They may need our help," Hana said uneasily and very concerned. The sight was horrible and she wanted to look away, but she just couldn't, so her instinct was to fall back on an adult for guidence.

The heavy tracks of the caravan abruptly end at the edge of the crater, 'Looks like I found out what happened to it' but on the other side you notice heavy drag marks up the side of the crater then a small trail, only 1 set of footprints, leading beyond. They were fresh, possibly made earlier today, leading in the same general direction the caravan had been on, but you'd have to get closer to make out any details.

As you look more closely into the crater, you notice a 2nd, smaller crater (5x5 at most), right in the epicenter. And...was your eyes playing tricks on you or did you notice a bit of movement in the mess down there near the smaller crater? Maybe the wind just blew something over?

So my guess at the scale was off then. I'd need a knowledge check to know more here.

"No, even if there was, I'm not sure I'd throw them a rope. See that hole in the center spot towards the center, whatever did it is still there. stepping backwards directly away from the pit a healthy distance without taking his eyes off it. Pulling Hana back if need be, I'll try to give the place 50ft of space from where the slope starts, and circle around to the tracks.

 ( this guy seems to be headed in the same direction as before, but i think i need to keep checking north ever hour or two to keep on the direction the caravan was heading instead of trusting the feet)

Look over there, the wagon tracks go in, but only one pair of feet come out and those feet left the rest here. Anyone else who was here is sun-baked bait for scavengers now.


Yes there are probably useful things down there, probably expensive stuff to, but it's not safe.

Please please don't be untrusting helpful stupid.

If Irfan sees something burrowing at them he throws a flashbangs back the way they came, as far as he can (40 ft, maybe 50ft depending on incremental level ups). Whatever it is, it probably uses blind or tremor sense to track prey, and flashbangs have a strong enough sonic component to deafen.


https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pm...rowingTheDistraction

ooc: The wagon tracks didn't go in. They ended abruptly where the edge of the crater starts. There are drag/climb tracks on the other end of the crater then smaller tracks leading away from the crater.

BTW, kudos for playing the Neutral Lawful aspect. +100xp for sticking to character.

"Huh?" Hana looks at you aghast at what she was hearing "B-But, what if they're still live? I saw movement down there. How can you be so heartless?!" she protested as you started pulling/dragging her away while she dug her heels in.

You hear more movement down in the crater, this time accompanied with a faint groaning. "See! I told you!" she pulls free and takes a running jump into the crater, gliding down beyond your view.

A few moments later you hear, "KIYAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

For being a weak realist with a goal, and a clock hanging over his head? Didn't feel like a alignment decision, anyone still there has massive sunburns at the least, not including whatever damage they took to incapacitate them, and probably lack of eating or drinking judging by the unopened equipment.

Can't see what trouble she got into, Very important to see what to know how to react, KIYAA could mean anything from chopping wood, to a battle cry, to horror, to some Tengu phrase.

Irfan moves to the rim to get a better look, fearing the worst, and unsure which item to ready. The rope would be a good bet, but there was nowhere to anchor it, so he would be lucky to pull the little birdfolk out by herself. The staff would only get him trapped too, and if he missed his firecrackers(flashbangs) he could do more harm then good.



Zombie grabbed her -> Call out to" use the sword", Throw rope
Sand Monster -> Throw Flashbang, Yell at her to fly if possible, pull out rope
Decaying/vermin infested body -> Throw Rope
Grabbed by Sand monster -> Get in there with Staff

Gotta be the worst, scavengers moving a body around given the illusion of life. Too macabre? I don't really have a filter, but I understand other people have limits, like my sensitivity to pain imagery. Movie "May" was horrible, but only because of the glass cuts scene, not the corpse composite boyfriend.



Not sure the purpose of re-interating about the wagons, Irfan assumes the pit was either opened underneath them, or they rolled into the pit unaware and it filled in the tracks behind them. He is pretty sure the wagons in the pit are the track makers, not that some wagons flew out and went away from the pit leaving the tracks. They obviously didn't go around, and making a wagon roll backwards without turning is a mighty find trick.

I think Initiatives I rolled while suck-key will fit here. Hana is surprised and Irfan is taken aback by her stupidy caring.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:29, Sun 07 July 2019.

ooc: btw the crater is much larger than 15ft radius. More like 15 meters radius, curse you imperial measurement system

You run to the edge of the crater, staff in one hand, flashbang in the other, rope at the ready in your mouth, and freeze there like a man on a cross as it takes a couple of seconds for your mind to compute what it's eyes were telling it.

Hana was standing there, looking away from something. That something was a young man, long blue hair down to his heels, looking very groggy and disoriented as if he'd just woken up. Oh and he was as naked as the day he was born.

"Uh, um-" the little princess tried to sneak a peek at him from the corner of her eye (yup, still naked, absentmindedly scratching himself) then looked away even harder "C-Could you, please, um...put some clothes on please? I-I'm sure you can find some-some somewhere over t-there," her voice was trembling and even more high pitched than usual (and that's really saying something).


The young man looks around confused, "Huh?" then looks down at himself as if only just realizing he wasn't wearing anything. His reaction wasn't one of shock or embarrassment or anything nearing Hana's outburst, it was almost a shrug really. "Is that funny looking man with you?" he asked her as he nodded in your direction then started looking around for some clothes.

Irfan shakes his head. No not happening.


It didn't work.

At a loss at how to react to this developement, he defaults back to his previous objective. Thats right the danger. He throws the rope from his pack at towards Hana. Besides the visual assult, the man didn't appear to be a immediate threat, how he got there wasn't as important as that he was.

"Atleast Tie the rope to your waist if your going to jump into this thing, " Irfan shout to Hana. He was relieved and upset, she could have atleast thought first before diving into danger. It's not like he could have stopped her, and what good is trying to save someone just to die together, an extra minute would't have mattered that much at this point.

And as far as someones go, he didn't look like soneone that had been trapped in the desert overnight, let alone days.


My immediate meta game reaction is conjured or construct. Lack of modesty is a advance learned behavior in most humanoids. Seems very suggestable but that could just be the situation.

This is the last time i make a character with 5 outfits in your games...

15 meters = 48 ish feet = 10 game squares in radius. Thats half a long rope.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:30, Sun 07 July 2019.

"-so you're saying you weren't working for the caravan master?"
Hana was safely standing next to you, out of the crater, questioning the young man behind the wagon as he got dressed.

-"No. I don't even know where in the world I am, or how I got here," he answered. Then there was a grunt, like someone forcing down a shirt too small for his size. He stepped out from behind the wagon. Nothing really stood out about him, _{human, average height, weight, build, no markings, no tatoos,} save for his long long hair, and the way he was fidgeting with it did seem to indicate he wasn't too fond of it himself, ^{waving around, blocking his view, being a nuisance}. The clothes were just whatever he threw on that he could find that fitted him. Could easily pass for a peasant. "I just know I have to hurry and meet someone...it...it's very important, I must hurry..." now he started to come out of his mellowness, grow more focused and agitated as he looked around for a way out of the crater. And not seeing any easy ways out. "Could you pull me out please?" he held out his hand, waiting for a rope.

-"Well...where do you need to meet this person? ^{Irfan, don't be rude, give him some rope.}"
-"I...I don't know..."
-"Well, what is this person's name?"
-"^{...I don't know}"
-"Okaaay, well what is this person like?"
-"I don't know"
With each question his eagerness deflated, replaced by fear and uncertainty.
-"Well what-"
-"I DON'T KNOW! What is going on? I should know who they are but I don't! I-I don't know who I am, what is my name?!" he falls to his hand and knees and is now in outright hysteria. Hana looked very concerned.
-"Are you sure you're ok?"
-"I can't remember anything-" he looks up and replies with a pleading expression, as if hoping she had the answers "-I just know...that person is calling to me, even right now. And I must go to them..."

Irfan was not impressed, whatever it was, was clearly hysterical. But wouldn't you be too if you knew nothing, well it obviously knew some things, like words and how to use stuff. He doesn't like any of this, but it's Hana's mission so he throws the rope again, "Focus on what you do know, this call coming... Could it be in that direction? pointing the way perpendicular to the path the caravan had gone, testing to see what it knew.


Hana isn't going to abandon it without a headache, So Irfan pulls out a cloak from his dwindling supply of clothes, and hands it over once the stranger is up.

Turning to Hana, he (slightly beratingly) addresses her, "If your done playing in the sand, Your brother is waiting on us and I'd much rather not spend the night next to this pit."


None of this answered the question of where did the sand monster go or why it was playing dead.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:05, Mon 08 July 2019.

Hana avoided making eye contact with you, but neither was she rebutting your claims.

The young man climbed out but still looked just as distraught "...No, no I can't say that it does. I...I can't really say it's pulling me towards any direction. I just feel it in here" he puts a hand on his chest.

-"Oh, so you're lost" Hana concluded.
-"W-Well, I wouldn't say-"
-"Yes it does, admit it. It's ok, no need to be embarrassed, I used to get lost all the time when I was little."
-"Err-"
-"^{Oh where are my manners?} My name is Hana Furnariidae, I'm from Pintherast-" she did a little curtsy. "-and until you get your memory back why don't you come with us? We're heading to the nearest town. Who knows, maybe you're from there and it will trigger your memories or you'll find someone who recognizes you. In ether case it'll be safer to travel in greater numbers."
-"I guess" he couldn't really argue with that logic.
-"It's settled then!"

"Oh but we can't go around calling you "hey you". Until you get your memories back what should we call you?"

ooc: What sand monster?

The one that is bound to have created the pit, surely it wasn't just a natural sinkhole that sunk the caravan. Something had to have caused it, surely it couldn't have been what they were transporting exploding.

Just a tad bit paranoid, a tad. The earth and sky spinning like the world is just the inside of giant dryer has that kind of effect on you. Also the sands outside the walls of the cities is a dangerous place. Strange and mysterious things happen there, everything is suspect.

Irfan is can be quite a bit colder, I'm trying to channel hope and logic with Irfan, and happiness and emotion with Liv.

Irfan winced as she started introducing herself, then sighed internally with relief as she failed to mention her title. The girl may think with her heart, but she still had presence of mind it seemed. With a few years under her belt she might make a halfway decent noble.

He didn't like the suspicious circumstances of their new companion, but he wasn't going to turn down a extra pair of hands but that didn't mean he had to arm those hands either. For now it was best to watch him to see what kind of strangeness this was. To top it off Hana wanted to name him like some kind of pet. Stepping in to the conversation, he offers "If you can't recall one, we can call you Horst till you can or you find your own name."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:29, Tue 09 July 2019.

ooc: Assuming that a monster created the crater is not what's confusing me. It's "the monster is playing dead" part that's confusing me.

Also, wasn't Irfan suppose to be this bright eyed youth with wonderlust, wanting to see and explore the world?

Hana wrinkled her nose at that, "Nah, that sounds too much like horse. How about...Hor'us?"
The boy mulled the name over for a bit, as if savoring it, seeing how he liked the sound on his tongue, then finally nodded satisfied, "Horus...I like it."
-"Ya taaa, then it's settled! Please to meet you Hor'us," she smiled with delight and shook his hand with both of hers.

-"^Ugh, yeah."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:45, Fri 12 July 2019.

Well it seems the monster has either left, or not reacting to things entering or exiting it's little trap, so it's playing dead since irfan assumes that extra pit at the center is a sign of habitation.

Just he is just a little traumatized here with recent events. He thinks logically, but he is hopeful and always looking ahead to new sights and experiences he is concerned about staying healthy enough to travel and not getting saddled with responsibility like he is here. Stuck babysitting a rebelous teenager while trying to get help for a noble. He is going to try to minimize his risks and think things through.

 Liv is the opposite, she thinks emotionally(or as best as i can manage) and dwells on the good things in her present and past. Less likely to consider things beyond how does this affect my friends and family. She is going to make mistakes, sometimes for the best.


Irfan notes the first bit of real reaction from the man, and promptly harumphs to get Hana's attention, "I'd like put some distance between us and here before nightfall, if you two can talk while we walk if you want."


Stupid complications, I can't very well leave Hana alone with a unknown stranger to go scavenger for food, or not feed him. -3 trail rations that day.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:46, Tue 09 July 2019.

ooc: I said there's a smaller crater in the center, 5x5ft, not a pit. But I feel like I'm just splitting hairs at this point so I'll just drop it.

You traveled for several more hours before Hana started to show signs of fatigue. Traveling at night wasn't as bad in the desert as it was in mountains as you had recently learned, but you thought it prudent to call it a day and break anyway.

Eating trail rations instead of scavenging left you free to get more rest and keep an eye on the newcomer. You took turns with Hana to keep watch, not trusting this clueless boy to watch yours and Hana's helpless bodies just yet.

2 things happened that night.

The 1st thing, you woke in the middle of the night, sweating and panting hard, having just had an extremely vivid dream. It felt extremely important, but for the life of you you couldn't recall what it was about. The memories of it were slipping so fast from your mind. It was like trying to hold onto water with your bare hands. No matter how hard you tried it still somehow managed to drip through your hands.

You have gained(?) the Prophetic Dreamer feat. https://www.d20pfsrd.com/feats...s/prophetic-dreamer/

The 2nd thing, when you woke up the next morning, Horus had this ridicules hairstyle. He had been very irritated with his long hair so...he found a solution it seems.

When Hana woke up you saw her struggle not to burst out in a fit of giggles.

Only way i can see that working is if it(hair) was boundled up around something or he had some kinda gel. Not a braiding expert, but that looks like it would take some measure of skill points to get it tightly packed and layered on top of each other. At least some pins or bones to hold it in place.


Irfan couldn't contiain a snicker, nor a sniggle, not even a giggle or two with a snork. The absurdity of it was so out of place with the stress of the last few days, the irony it'self was quite humorous.


If questioned about his humored vocalizations, he attempts to downplay them  the after effects of a silly dream.

Irfan rolled 22 using 1d20+6.  Survial Check on weather Just another day in the desert? or possibly some rain or even thunderstorms? or dust storm? (insects, birds, clouds, Color of sunrise/set)



Packing up camp, "Soo, did you remember anything, or maybe realize anything last night Irfan inquires rather indifferently, hoping for some insight into the mystery man, but glad he was contributing, in this case to Hana's well being in one fashion or another.




OOC:"Also Hana, today there will be much running for life or falling down waterfalls, eitherway make sure you stretch out before we begin."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:36, Mon 15 July 2019.

Ooc: He just tied it in knots...over and over again.

Recovered 1 more wound.

Horus seemed oblivios, even somewhat perplexed by your and Hana's behavior, not really getting it.

Your meriment soured significantly though as you took stock of the weather. It would rain today. Not a storm or a flash flood or whatever, just typical short desert rain. That was good for someone who didn't have water but also very bad because monster activity greatly increases, especially those who were typically averse to the scorching sun. Water was a rare comodity and everyone wanted it. And those who didn't wanted those who came out for it

The worst was the dreaded desert ooze. It came out only when it rains (or near a large pool of water) for both the moisture and the other creatures.

"No, not really, just a dream" Horus answered when you asked him if he hadcremembered anything.

Ooc: Any recommendations you want to give Hana on which spells to prepare? BTW I'm changing the rules to instead of taking penalties when both vigor and wounds go down to only when wounds go down. However I'm thinking of ether doubling the penalties or making them happen at shorter increments.

In character, not a clue. is she a cleric or oracle?

Meta wise, a 3rd party damage cantrip (anvil sparks would be nice), endure elements and cure light are probably the most in character.  Cause fear is probably her best combat option, but is kinda mean. Pathfinder hates lv1 and 2 spells, durations are often bad for almost no effect.

Oozes he could deal with if he had the time, and supplies (which he didn't). They would just have to avoid any if they encountered any, luckily they didn't need to stop at any ponds thanks to Hana.




Travel slower today, with intent to make survival checks, enjoy the cooler breeze and make more perception checks.

Feel free to roll for me to save time.

Irfan rolled 11 using 1d20+6.  Survival check daily food/travel, would prefer to take 10.

Ooc: You have no idea, you never asked her.

I meant the request to be a general one like "prepare 2 offensive/protection spells for combat, we may encounter trouble".

The rain is dangerous because it makes oozes come out anywhere they were dormant, not just oasese/ponds. Can't take 10 on survival.

I need you to roll 1 fortitude, 1 will and 1 Perception check for me.

As you continue traveling in the general direction of where you believed to be the town (the trail long gone, especially with the coming rain) Hana and Horus really got into the swing of chit chatting about nothing.

"So, do you think maybe you were one of the hired help on the caravan?"
-"I dunno."
-"-and you just hit your head when the monster attacked it-"
-"Maybe, I guess"
-"-guess it's a good thing we found you when we did-"
-"Yeah, I'd imagine
-"-can you imagine what would've happened if you went off on your own and walked into town naked^*giggle*"
-"Ugh, _{e heh ha haa} ^.^; ^{*nervous laugh, sweatdrop*}"
-"Why is your hair blue?"
-"Dunno. Why do you have feathers?"
-"...huh?"

The rain was a welcome reprieve for them. It took the sting off the heat, though it did make it more humid. There was no real need for shelter since the dampness evaporated almost as quickly as it came.

You started seeing a lot more black spots  on the horizon, monster activity no doubt, and thus made sure to steer well clear of them.

As the hours dragged on so did the shape of the landscape a bit. It gradually transitioned from a sandy desert (with dunes and such) to a more rocky, cracked wasteland. Small, isolated hills and mountains would mar the previously featureless plain. At one point, not far from one such rocky mount, you thought you had found the town you were looking for, but upon arriving closer you realized it was just the ruins of some old settlement. It was not an uncommon sight in the desert. Very few settlements (such as Cruilla) could boast permanent residency in the unhospitable land of Arcania.

Your disappointment however was very short lived for as soon as you turned away from the sight of the ruins to your original course, there, out in the distance, far yet as clear as day, the unmistakable walls of a town. There was human activity, coming and going, you could even see sandskimmers parked right outside between palm trees like camels at an auction. And not a moment too soon, what with nightfall approaching, out in the open on a rainy day.

It annoyed you that the enthusiasm wasn't shared by the 2 kids in tow. Probably too distracted yattering on about nothing when they should be conserving their strength.v

(Not modified by wounds atm, I believe i went from -1 to -2 at 84% )
Irfan rolled 12 using 1d20+4.  Will check.

Irfan rolled 21 using 1d20+6.  Perception.
Irfan rolled 19 using 1d20+1.  Fortitude check.

(Yes, but other monsters would be attracted to water sources, literal deathtraps right for the next day or two.)

There was no point in trying to talk sense into either one of them, so he merely mentioned and pointed the town at out to the pair. Trying to pick up the pace a little more, and asking Horas "So what are your plans when we get to the town, we need something for our friends and will be returning the morning after we locate it."

~2-4 days on foot, i'd say 3 to get to the town. and this old settlement gives a good directional indicator of which way to return. On camel we might make it in a 2 day round trip.



A nagging suspicion that Horas might draw unwanted attention as 'stolen' property lingers in the back of Irfan's mind, but there wasn't anything to do about it since his most notable feature was nearly impossible to cover. Maybe he would be allowed to cut it back, and he might be able to find some dye but now wasn't the time for such things.

Hana was thrilled when you pointed out the town, she even started outpacing you as she hustled eagerly.

Horus on the other hand just stood there confused. "Errr, what town?"

You felt a bit annoyed at this. Yeah sure, it was far and shimmering a bit (it's a fucking desert, everything shimmers from the heat) but how can he not notice an entire town?

You looked back and forth from the town and Horus in bewilderment. Mirages were simple things like the appearance of water or dunes/rocks/hills, basically a reflection from surrounding terrain. A mirage couldn't possibly be something so complicated as a town unless it was reflecting a nearby town (which same difference at this point).

"All I see is just a guy waiting for us" Horus reiterated, adding to the confusion.
-"What do you mean Horus-san? How can you not see the parapets and winged statues on the walls?" Hana gives him the same bewildered look as you. "The sun must've gotten to him Irfan-sama, I'm sure he'll be fine once we cool off in the public bathhouse right over there"

Horus, being told by two people his eyes were wrong, starts questioning himself and, lowering his head, starts trudging along to catch up to you two.

Horus's words turn a spark of panic into a moment of realization, too detailed to be a random mirage, and having a man at it's center. Either this was some reflection of what they were individually seeking, or some form of illusion. He didn't know if it was a good intentioned or a malicious lure, but it something in the vastness of the desert. Irfan slows his step, "Hana, I think perhaps Horus is right, or at the very least seeing something other then what we are. Someone or thing may be using magic to draw us closer, so keep a keep a open mind that what we see may not be be the truth." he doesn't change his direction though. If someone was willing to use magic like that just to attract them, then who knows what else they might do if ignored.

The more you thought about it the less it made sense. If you didn't know any better you'd have sworn the town was closer.

"Um, the guy somehow seems to be closer, but I didn't see him walk. Or fly or float or vanish from 1 spot and appear another or whatever. He's just...I mean I think he is...just closer."
-"Now that you mention it..."

But while the 2 youngsters were staring at the open desert, your attention is drawn by the subtle sound of shifting sand.

You look around and see...bulges just under the sand, traveling in long lines like crop fields being plowed by an invisible plow, or better yet mole trails, all heading towards the approaching town. There were several out in the far distance off to the left side, some more somewhat closer, moving from somewhere generally behind you (still off to the side) and also slithering/burrowing towards the town.

You notice 1 breaking off from the pack and heading in your direction, but halfway through the bulge stops. Or rather, the trail it was making stopped.

Looking straight behind you, you just caught sight of a similar mole trail abruptly stop, but judging by its trajectory you were right in its path, right between it and the mirage ahead.

You saw no such trails coming or passing by from your right where the rions and cavernous hill was.

Will post, probably late tomorrow. Leaving this for now as concept, minus the rabbit.

your wording implies that one of the tunnels goes under us and resurfaces behind us? or two tunnels are approaching us submerged? interesting.

GM: No, the tunnel behind you was coming from somewhere way way behind you, and was going in your direction, then you noticed it, it kept going for a couple more feet then stopped about 100ft away. The 2nd one if to your left and behaved in pretty much the same way. Headed in your direction then a 100ft away just stopped.

So yes, both tunnels were approaching then just stopped (or submerged (can neither confirm or deny).
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:39, Fri 26 July 2019.

Your using active warding here, so I can visibly see new sections being created/pushed up.


Irfan Takes a defensive stance, afraid something was going to jump them



, only to realize later that whatever it was passed under them benignly.

Some kinda worm herder maybe? Either way they should be able to get some kind of directions from whoever this stranger they couldn't see was. So he stayed the course.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:59, Sat 27 July 2019.

There was a moment of pause where nothing happened (save for the remaining burrow trails continuing towards the town/man mirage/illusion).

Then there was a brief shaking/trembling sensation beneath your feet-
"Huh? *looks down*"
-"? *looks down*"

-before a disguising, abomination of a spider the size of a horse shot out of the sand, inches away from your feet, for a sudden surprise ambush feral predatory attack (I ran out of adjectives!!!).

Had you not been ready, had you not been expecting an attack, it would have surely gotten you. (Irfan total defense +4 AC, injured -1 (total 18), enemy atk 15 miss)

-"KYAAAA!!!" For Hana it was worse because the ground itself underneath her feet parted open in a giant toothy gaping maw, rushing up to swallow her whole! (gain grappled condition)

-"!" Horus could do nothing but stare in frozen terror as the scene seemed to play out before him in slow motion. The high pitched screams of the little tengu echoed as the maw closed in over her. It was up to her waste and she desperately clawed at it in panic.



1 is Irfan, 2 is Hana, 3 is Horus.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:13, Sat 27 July 2019.

Irfan has his own problem, but Hana may not be able to help herself, freeing up another hand on deck would certainly help his own situation.

Giant TICKS!

➚ Irfan takes a 5 foot step, and shouts Cover your eyes and he pulls out a small carved gourd, lights a wick, and tosses to it at the beast mandible-ling Hana, with intent to startle it and free her form it's grasp. Any further instructions comments would be drowned out by the imminent boom and ringing.


Initiative 1d20+2Dex -1 wounds -0 Standard Action: FlashBang ability. +4 Unused Move Action.Ranged attack+Light weapon?
Irfan rolled 14 using 1d20+2.  Ranged touch Attack.
Irfan rolled 1 using 1d4.  1d4 Flashbang damage (physical).
14:20, Today: Irfan rolled 10 using 1d20+5.  Initiative Irfan.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:50, Sun 28 July 2019.

The bomb went off just below where Nina ended and the giant leech tick thing started. There was a loud bang and a flash. Then all was white and this incessent buzzing wherever you looked.

Slowly it subsided and faint sounds started overiding the buzzing, the light lessened and moving silluetts came into view. The sounds, you realized, were Horus' cries of despair and the silluette was him, fallen to his knees, pumping his fists in futility against the now fully erect and indifferent worm. You saw a little chip in its flesh where your bomb had went off but if the light or sound had bothered it at all, or Horus' tiny thumping fists, it wasn't showing it. There was a huge bulge near the top of its gullet which eased its way down its length. You knew, without a doubt, that was the princess.

This momentary shock would have spelled your death had the spider that had attacked you decided to continue its assault. But the appearance of the giant worm, a rival predator, seems to have caught the spider by surprise as much as you. It backed away a step then reared on its hind legs, making itself seem bigger, then clicked and hissed with its front mandables (just like in the picture in the previous post). As if an 8 foot spider wasn't scary enough already.

At the sound of this, as if only just realizing its presence, the worm thing coiled around to face the spider, its body  fully out of the ground now and contorted in an S, like a snake preparing to pounce.  You didn't know if it wasn't backing away because of a hunting grounds thing or simply too scared to show a vulnerable back to this creature, but honestly what difference did it make at this point? Horus was too grief striken to care, still wailing at the worm that didn't seem to even notice him.

Worm resists flashbang. 1 vigor dmg
Horus uses aid another (Hana).
Hana tries to break grapple (fail).
Worm uses Swallow Whole Hana (Success, provokes Aoo, Horus has no weapon)
Spider uses 5ft step (left) and...lets call ot "Song" (DC 15 Con-based Will save or be frightened)
Worm and Horus (nat 20) resist effect.

Interesting, so two different monsters types showed up, picture was far too big for that to be immediatly obvious, hmm.


Irfan rolled 19 using 1d20+3.  (my con save or his con dc?) assume it's mine. I'm partial to the Intimidating Chittering as adescription, though clicking or chattering might work too.

Is base attack +1? No, full move action required to draw dagger, convert move action to pass by Horus, if the spider indeed move to the left, and since they are both non bipedal large creatures, there should be space to run in between them without provoking.

*Move* Draw dagger.
*Move* Travel around or between the monsters safely.
Free Action Drop dagger next to Horus if possible.

Move action: Draw, Standard action Throw, Ranged attack.(I assume small weapons and thrown attacks won't stack.) Initiative 3 = 2 Dex + 2 thrown weapons (+2 Weapon size) - 1 Wounds



Irfan rolled 8 using 1d20+3. Initiative Convert Standard action.

Figures Dice roller would make me drop the ball immediatly as soon as real combat starts.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:45, Tue 06 Aug 2019.

Irfan rolled 15 using 1d20+2.  Throw to hit Horus' square.

Irfan Treks across the desert with the young Hana and Mysterious Horus in tow, on cresting a hill he mistakes something for a town, with aditional input from Horus he reactionalizes what he sees as a magic user and approaches for help. Meanwhile burrow ed trails begin to appear nearby. When one appears to head for them he reflexively tenses, even though he assumed they were some kind of herd owned by the mage.
His surival instinct quickly proves right as a large  maw opens beneath him and only being able to stick his staff in it's jaws allows him to avoid getting his leg trapped or worse.
Turning he finds his young charge has  recieved similar treatment from a worm, and that his agressor reveals it'self to be a spider.
He throws one of his alchemy specials at it hoping the light or sound would startle the creature enough that it would  be distracted from it's meal.
The bright flash fades to reveal the (eyeless) worm was more then content to simply finish it's meal, and that the spider was beginning a noise form of territorial dance. Much to the spiders disappointment the other creatures were much more concerned with the immediate survival or food then it's chittering gestures.
Horus is futile pounding on the worm's absorbent body with his fists, So Irfan reasons that Hana's life is in the most immediate danger and contemplates his options of arming Horus with a weapon capable of helping free her.
Gambling that the spider would either back down or possibly even try upstage the bigger predator, Irfan pulls one of his daggers out of his belt and throws over to Horus.
The worst situation here would be that worm would flee underground, leaving the spider behind now that it had a meal.

Slowly it subsided and faint sounds started overiding the buzzing, the light lessened and moving silluetts came into view. The sounds, Irfan realized, were Horus' cries of despair and the silluette was him, fallen to his knees, pumping his fists in futility against the now fully erect and indifferent worm. He saw a little chip in its flesh where his bomb had went off but if the light or sound had bothered it at all, or Horus' tiny thumping fists, it wasn't showing it. There was a huge bulge near the top of its gullet which eased its way down its length, like a snake that had swallowed an egg. He knew, without a doubt, that was the princess.

This momentary shock would have spelled Irfan's death had the spider that attacked him decided to continue its assault. But the appearance of the giant worm, a rival predator, seems to have caught it by surprise as much as its bipedal prey. It backed away a step then reared on its hind legs, making itself seem bigger, then clicked and hissed with its front mandibles.

At the sound of this, as if only just realizing its presence, the worm thing coiled around to face the spider, its body fully out of the ground now and contorted in an S, like a snake preparing to pounce. Irfan didn't know if it wasn't backing away because of a hunting grounds thing or simply too scared to show a vulnerable back to this creature, but honestly what difference did it make at this point? Horus was too grief stricken to care, still wailing (both figuratively with his cries and literally with his fists) at the worm that didn't seem to even notice him. Irfan on the other hand was cursed to remain in control of his faculties and behold the 8 foot, 8 legged monstrosity and it's slithering counterpart in all their terrible glory. And he found himself in the smack middle of both. As discreetly as he could muster, he stepped back, vacating the proving grounds between them in case it came to blows.

Across the other side, Horus was still not taking the hint. Irfan whistled at him and tossed him a knife. If he was going to die, which seemed very likely, at least he could tell himself that he gave the boy a fighting chance and have a clear conscience. The boy picked it up, but just as he rose it high above his head to strike down at the worm and carve Hana out if he had to, the body suddenly uncoiled, bumping him aside onto the ground. It seems Irfan hadn't given the 2 monsters their space a moment too soon because someone had blinked during the stare-off and it did come to blows, both lunging at each other, locked in a savage battle for survival, sand flew everywhere as bodies thrashed all over.

Then just as quickly they disengaged, each on their hind legs/coiled, aggression on full display, preparing for the next skirmish but also waiting to see, gauging its enemy if it still had the will to fight. But this stare-off would not be like the last. The worm's upper body started to lull, a little at first then more and more. The spider jerked a step back, spitting and hissing, but the worm ignored it and simply collapsed with a thud, muscles relaxing, laying motionless. It's hairy counterpart, stayed wary for a while longer, not moving, not breaking eye contact, unsure if this was a trick. Horus, on the other hand did not care nor wait. The bulge was coming back up its body. He went to the mouth, could see the little tengu desperately clawing her way out, he reached inside to pull her out. With trembling nerve-distraught hands she took hold and held on for all she was worth, tightly with every ounce of strength her petite body could muster. *gasp* Air! Her lungs filled, breathing in as if for the first time in her life, breathing as if it may be stolen from her again. She was coughed and she cried. She had cried many times in her life, but never like this. Horus hugging her and whispered calming words. Injured, shaken, clothes half-melted and skin swollen red from the worm's acid, but alive. She cried and hugged him back. But unfortunately they didn't have the luxury of time to compose themselves. They were still very much in danger. Realizing this "Come on, we need to get out of here" said Horus and took her hand. But just as he got up, "*hissssss* *snap* ARGH!" the hyper-vigilant spider snapped at the 1st sudden movement it detected.
-"KYAAA!!!" Hana shrieked as she saw Horus get stabbed in the back, those long, vicious mandibles easily piercing through the cloth. A burning sensation spread throughout his body from the wound followed by cold numbness. Suddenly his feet give out
and he collapsed face first into the sand, dead. She could do nothing but cower in the shadow of the giant spider. Too scared to run, too scared to fight back. Too scared to even cry anymore. She was completely helpless and at the mercy of this abomination.

But strangely enough, convinced now that the worm was no longer a threat and there were no other distraction, the spider turned its many eyes back on its original prey, Irfan, ignoring Hana and the body of Horus.

Curled up in a fetal position, she rocked back and forth in silence as Irfan's desperate struggle echoed in her ears "^{Get back! GET BACK! Get back you ugly, disgusting, sonovabi- AAAH!}" he kept the monster at bay for a few moments by gripping the end of his quarterstaff with both hands and swinging it back and forth in wide arcs. The monster had cringed back the 1st few times when the stick had passed inches away from its face, but then having gotten a sense of it, it pounced in-between swings and knocked Irfan to the ground with its sheer size. then it bit down and moments later he had gone limp too.

'Its over, it's over-' Hana thought to herself as yet another person she cared for died. 'there's no more hope. It's going to kill me next. And we'll never find the parts. And big brother will never know what happened to us. Will he think I abandoned him? Will he die too waiting for us? And big sister Helen...' her thoughts grew darker and darker as she descended into despair. But when she hit rock bottom, "...No," there was nowhere else to look but up. Up where the light was. Where hope was.
"Oh great lord of the sky, I beseech you, part the clouds that shade my clarity, grant me wisdom that I may choose the right path, and give me courage that I may see it through to the end" she prayed. Energy surged from the holy symbol on her necklace and through her body, energizing her like a hit of adrenaline. Suddenly she found herself regaining her composure at an unnatural speed. Where once was a scared, trembling little thing, now stood a silent, calculating maiden ready for action.
-"Ugh" Horus's body grunted and started pulling himself up.
-"Are you ok?" Hana called over to him.
-"Yeah, I'm fine. The spider's venom sacks must not have refilled enough after biting the worm"
-"Quickly, go over and help sir Irfan. We can't just leave him here"
Horus' eyes went wide as saucers. He looked at the giant spider wrapping Irfan in a web, then back at the dead-serious little tengu. He was going to ask if she was being serious, but her expression said it all. So instead he opted out for
-"What are you ganna do?"
-"I'm ganna take care of business" she said while glaring at the spider, her tattoos flaring up as she did.
*movement*
-"Hm? Was that your doing just now?"
-"Er, no."

---

Twice in as many minutes, Irfan found himself cursing himself for being in full control of his facilities. The venom from the spider had left him paralyzed but still very much aware of what was happening. He was about to be eaten alive and get to witness it all happen from start to finish. 'Of all the bad ways to die, this has got to be if not the worst then at least among the top 5!'
The spider let out a soft seething hiss-like whisper as it began wrapping Irfan into a web. It sounded eager, pleased. If an arachnid could do an evil, hungry, greedy savoring-the-moment grin, then this would be it.


Suddenly the angry, fully erect visage of the gigantic worm shot above the frame of the spider. The startled spider had just enough time to turn around and see the angry, towering behemoth come crashing down upon it, maw spread out as wide as it could. Biting down and getting a good grip on a sizable chunk of the hairy 8 legger, the furious worm started savagely swinging the spider every which like a rag doll until 2 legs simply tore off and the spider was sent flying.


The spider immediately scrambled up to his feet and backed off. The worm roared again, but didn't move to pursue. The spider backed away again until there was a good solid 100ft between them if not more. It wasn't challenging back by standing on its hind legs and hissing like it did last time. The alpha had been established. But neither did it seem willing to run away completely. Not without it's prey. This simply meant the worm would have first dibs and the spider would have to settle for the leftovers.

...10 seconds ago...
Hana's tattoos flared up, her scepter began glowing and spinning in midair, a thread of light came our of the tip which she directed it with her left hand to create -or rather sew would be a more accurate description- some swirling symbols and glyphs, geometric forms, all the while writing in midair with her right hand. It was a big, huge, chaotic mess.
The unmoving body of the worm moved just then.
-"Hm? Was that your doing just now?"
-"Er, no." she answered absentmindedly, not taking her eyes off her work. Patterns began forming in the apparent chaos.
Righting itself back up, the giant worm took a moment to orient itself.
-"Well it makes sense. I got up didn't I? Guess the venom only paralyzes. And I'm guessing it's ganna take a lot more juice to keep this guy down for lon-WOW!" the worm suddenly slithered away like a snake at a speed much greater than seemed possible for a creature this size. Then the bloody carnage began.
-"HOLY SHIT!"
-"Well come on, this is our chance. Go get Irfan" Hana prompted Horus again, the shapes slowly converging into one.
-"Ugh" the boy gulped and did as he was told. He went way around the giant worm granting it ample space as he edged closer to the fallen Irfan. Seems like his paralysis wasn't wearing off so easily.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
<sup>battle summary
surprise round:
Spider attacks Irfan, miss
Worm Grapples Hana, success

round 1:
Worm swallows Hana
Horus attacks worm, miss
Spider uses "Song", fails on Worm and Horus, Irfan shaken.
Irfan uses flashbang, fail

round 2:
Irfan gives dagger to Horus, moves away
Worm full defense.
Spider bites worm. paralyzed
Horus pulls Hana out

Round 3:
Irfan attacks spider, miss, moves away
Spider bites Irfan, paralyzed
Horus Aoo from spider, paralyzed
Hana heals herself, vigor
Worm resists poison, attacks Spider, hit

Round 4:
Spider withdraw
Worm waits
Irfan paralyzed
Horus moves towards Irfan
Hana casts Sacred Geometry, Bitting Winds on Worm

Round 5:
Spider waits
Irfan paralyzed
Worm goes underground
Horus picks Irfan up
Hana diverts bitting wind at spider, then runs

Round 6:
Irfan paralyzed
Horus carries Irfan up
Worm ???
Spider double move
Hana moves

Round 7:
Worm grapples Hana
Irfan Flshbang vs spider
Scorpion breaks stealth and charges worm, hit
Horus atks Worm, crittical hit
Spider charges Irfa, bites, paralyzed
Hana casts 2nd bitting Wind (normal) and directs both at worm. Breaks Grapple

Round 8:
Worm grapples Scorpion, Aoo hits
Scorpion atks, hit
Irfan paralyzed
Horus atks Spider, crittical hit
Hana withdraws directs both spells at spider
Spider is frightened

Round 9:
Worm swallows Scorpion, leaves
Irfan paralyzed
Horus picks Irfan again and runs
Hana runs
Spider is frightened

Round 10:
Irfan paralyzed
Horus runs
Hana runs
Spider is frightened

Round 11:
Irfan moves
Horus moves
Hana moves
Spider moves</sup>

---

The monsterous surge of sand from the worms impact rolls Irfan's limp body over, giving him a brief look at the horizon revealing flying rainbow-hued spiders as he spun. Or at least that is what his poor eyes managed to process before he hit the sand again. Any Question of poisons or delusions is quickly rushed away as Horus appears, grabbing Irfan's shoulder and pulling at him. Barely able to make his mouth move Irfan mumbles "Get away from here." to which Horus shakes his head, pulling irfan's limp arm over his shoulder and dragging him away from the fight.

Irfan unsure of what lay ahead, took stock of what little he remembered and could see of their surroundings. Right now there was little they could do to defend themselves if the beasts(vermin) kept popping in and out of the ground underneath them. The ruins looked to have firm ground and plenty of buildings to hide in and around as well as alleys and narrow streets. Speaking in Horus's ear, somewhat clearer then before, "Make for the ruins, which ever one survives is going to come back for us so we need a place to hide."

"Get away from here" Irfan mumbles groggily as Horus cuts him out of the web and hoists him up.
-"Yes, I know, whataya think I'm doing right now?" the boy snaps back somewhat irritated as he runs away from there with him in tow. Realizing they needed shelter, "Make for the ruins...we need a place to hide" Irfan grunted out.

He was confused as to why the giant spider wasn't pouncing on their backs. Also where was the worm? Looking around there was no hair nor hide of him. As the haze of the venom started to lift, the picture got clearer.

Being unencumbered, Hana quickly outpaced the two of them, but she wasn't leaving them to their fate. Some sort of wind was blowing from her general direction that seemed to be keeping the spider at bay. It wasn't particularly strong, but the howl it produced sounded more like the lamentations of the dead. It had chased away the worm and now she was redirecting it at the spider. However, it didn't quite seem to be as effective for some reason. The spider seemed to be fighting the effects and winning. Gaining ground on the two fleeing men.

Now, well ahead of her male companions and almost within reach of the ruins, Hana turns around and immerses herself in another lengthy, flashy, complicated spellcasting ritual. By the looks of it, she intended to stop or at least slow down the spider enough to give Irfan and Horus a chance to reach the ruins.

And then Hana got an answer to her question on why more wizards out in the world weren't using this clearly superior method of spellcasting. A giant scorpion had laid half-buried in the sands of the ruins waiting to ambush prey. Bursting out of its hiding spot it charged straight for the little tengu, who was so deep into her spellcasting she was oblivious to all else.

"No!" Horus yelled as he saw the scorpion close in. Dislodging himself from Irfan, who thankfully by now had gotten most of the motion in his limbs back, he tried to rush to Hana's aid. It was a futile attempt right from the start. He was way too far away, the scorpion much too fast, but his mind simply refused to accept it.

Slow motion

The scorpion reaches the tengu. The tail cranes back. Horus is in mid-stride, tears streaming sideways, arm stretched as if trying to reach Hana despite the many dozens of feet  of distance still remaining, deep drawnout "NOOOOOOOoooooooooo"


The tail snaps forward, but just as it was about to hit Hana's nape, a wall of sand erupts all around her. The stinger buries itself into something much tougher than a lithe frame of a petite tengu. The scorpion realizes it's in the shadow of something much larder than itself.

"Not again," Horus cursed as he saw Hana get swallowed whole a 2nd time by the same giant worm. Her spell hadn't chased it away at all, it just seemed like this was it's hunting method. Furious he charged straight on ahead with renewed vigor, gripping his dagger tightly with both hands he jumping the last dozen feet between himself and the monster, putting all of his weight and momentum behind his thrust. It pierced the thick hide, spilling foul ichor from the wound. Having been stabbed from both sides, the worm roared in anger. Then began swelling like a balloon.

Irfan, who had been limping behind Horus, saw this. He had heard stories told by merchants of giant sand worms that spit out acid and feared that is what it was about to do, but before he could call out to warn the recklessly brave boy, a much more pressing realization came over him. The wind was gone. Looking back he saw the spider gaining speed like crazy, it would be upon him in mere seconds at this rate. He fished out another flash grenade from inside the folds of his coat and threw it at the spider. Then he heard a *pop*. Like a campaign cork flying off only louder.

Instead of acid, Hana flew out of the worm while it continued to deflated. It would seem, by some miracle, she had not lost concentration of her spell when eaten by the worm, and then 'Not again' she had directed both the ongoing previous spell and the current one (which were both the same spell) in the inside of the worm, filling him with wind. Sent tumbling very ungracefully across the sands, Hana found herself once again sprawled out in pain. Horus ran to her, fell to his knees and gently lifted her head.
-"Are you alright? Are you ok?" he panted in panic as much as fatigue.
-"^Argh...*cough cough*yeah" she groaned but she was alive. Even tried to give a small reassuring smile.
-"AAAAARGH! Dammit, not again!" but both of them got snapped out from the moment by Irfan's cry.

The venom hadn't quite worn off so he had thrown the grenade like a girl. Coupled with the fact that the spider had already seen that thing in action, it had breezed right past it, letting it go off harmlessly behind it while it swooped in and bit Irfan. The same burning sensation from the wound spread out through his body, followed by the same numbing coldness. This time the spider seemed like it would even bother with the webbing and just go straight for the kill and sloppy feast.

"You must...save him" Hana implored Horus then pointed her finger at the spider. A blast of wind twice as strong as before knocked the spider like a battering ram, sending it angrily screeching and hissing^{(Not again!)} away from the helpless Irfan. Horus came running over and picked him up again.

Meanwhile, right after Hana had expeditiously vacated the worm's stomach for a second time, the monster had roared louder than ever ^{(Not again!)}. If it had been angry before, it was furious now. Its head wildly swung around seeking the nearest thing to vent its anger and sate its hunger on. With Hana sent flying and Horus running after her, the only thing remaining was the startled and extremely confused scorpion. [insert Tom and Jerry like montage] If a giant faceless worm could leer, this would be it. And it was very effective. *gulp* The scorpion took a cowering step back. No reaction from the looming, menacing monster above. Then tried another, only to realize it can't. It's stinger was still buried in its flesh. There was an awkward moment where the scorpion tried to gingerly wiggle its tail out, while the worm monstrosity just stood erect there. *blip* the stinger came out. Another awkward pause. . . All pandemonium breaks loose! The savagery between the worm and the spider didn't even come close to the sheer viciousness of the worm and desperate struggle for survival by the scorpion. Eventually, the worm gobbled up scorpion but it hadn't gone down without a fight. There were many pincer and stab wounds on the worm's body. Finally sated, the worm slithered back underground, more than happy to leave these troublesome creatures behind.

With the path clear before them, Irfan, Horus and Hana (limping a bit herself now) made their way towards the ruins. The spider was growing more angry and determined by the second, muscling through Hana's spells. They managed to reach the ruins though and not a moment too soon. But even inside the ruins they knew they were far from safe. They had lost sight of the predator but he had been too close on their trail and too determined to get them.

These ruins were fairly fresh, no more than a few dozen years old, maybe less, and in true Arcanian no-urban-planning fashion, it was a freaking labyrinth. However, there was a pattern to the chaos and Irfan being a life long Arcanian himself could make sense of it. He could tell based on the increasing size of building in which direction was the richer or poorer parts of town, figure out in which direction a particular kind of building would be located like one dedicated to worship or wholesale trading. Ideally, he knew they needed a cramped, narrow, underground place, like a basement or thieve's hideout or something, anything, they could hole up in and wait out the danger, get their shit together, rest and heal up even. He was about to direct them towards the slightly richer part of town, traders that hadn't hit it big yet tended to have basements that weren't as big those of the more successful ones, and they'd build sturdier buildings than those in the slums, but then he started noticing something else about these ruins. Something familiar. Something...alarming.
"Shambala? B-But...how?...This isn't..."
All 3 turn towards the source of the sound. The spider, like any good predator, had sought the higher ground so that it had a better vantage point to hunt down its prey. It had crawled up the walls to the rooftops and it is from there that if had spotted the party.
"Quick, that way!" Irfan directed the others. They hustled in the indicated direction. The thing was fast and agile as fuck. It's long legs gave it the appearance of a massive creature, but the torso wasn't any larger than a normal man so the narrow streets did little to slow it down. It would be on them in no time.

It had been an educated guess, but Irfan finally saw what he was looking for. A dive bar, "Everyone, inside!" They rushed inside before hearing the thud of the spider jumping off the roof and landing right were you had been moments earlier. In their haste to get inside the dark, dusty, littered with broken wood and glass and who knows what else, Horus tripped on something mushy and soft, causing him to stumble and lose grip on Irfan. The venom had worn off, but he was in such a bad shape that even with his limbs functional he had needed assistance, and now tumbling into the wall wasn't making it any better.
-"Quick, shut the door, shut the door!" he implored Horus as the spider turned around and was just about to come charging in after them. The door however had long ago fallen off its hinges, so the boy did the next best thing. Thinking on his feet, he picked up the largest piece of wood he could find that would at least semi-plug the doorway and counter-charged the spider, using the wood as a barrier between them to prevent its pincers killing him.

-"GAH!" Horus tried to hold back the monstrosity but was failing. Its hairy legs flailed from the sides of the doorframe trying to nick the incessant pest that was impeding its progress. Hoping to help, Hana directed her spells to blow at it from ether side of Horus, before stepping next to the boy and helping him push. She may not have been very helpful in that regards, but the winds were definitely electing a cry from the spider.

In an attempt to join the struggle for survival, Irfan tried to push himself up but with a loud groan he realized he wasn't going anywhere. He was bleeding, he definitely had more than few broken ribs, and now he was losing consciousnesses.
-"Irfan-san!" Hana heard this and abandoned her position to rushed over to him. It didn't take a qualified physician, even though she was one, to figure out he was dying. She started chanting a spell he was very familiar with. A healing spell.
-"^{No...don't...}" he managed to whisper out a warning.
-"^{He must be delirious.} Don't worry Irfana-san, you'll be ok, I'll fix you right up. We'll all get out of this soon" she tried to sooth and reassure him as the holy light of her healing magic cast the first rays of illumination upon this danky, putrid, forgotten place for the 1st time in a very long time.
-"AAAARGH, I DON'T THINK SO!" Horus rained on that parade as, despite the magical biting winds, the raging spider was winning, having pushed almost half of itself inside.
-"No Horus, you have to stop it! You have to fight harder!" Hana called back to him, not daring to leave Irfan's side before the spell was done.
-"I, ugh, can't! I'm not strong enough!"
-"Yes Horus, yes you are! You just have to believe in yourself!"
-"I...I, can't..."
-"You can! Just look at what you've already done! You are much stronger than you give yourself credit for! You can do great things! You can do anything! You just need to believe in yourself! I believe in you. I see the greatness in you. Now you need too..."
-"^{I can?...}I can...I can. You're right! YES I CAN! I believe in myself!!! ORAAAAAAAA!!!!!!"

Just then, Horus seems to swell up and push the spider all the way back, causing drag marks as even digging all its remaining legs in hadn't been enough to keep it back. Once out, Hana redirected the winds to blow through the small windows on ether side of the door towards the center.

Yet despite this monumental achievement, it was only a temporary victory. The duration of Hana's spells was almost up and the spider was bound to try again sooner or later, probably as soon as the spells ended and approaching the door wasn't painful anymore.

Just then Irfan regained consciousness.
"Welcome back," the gentle smile of the little tengu greeted you back into the world. "I have 1 last spell remaining, a healing spell. Let me heal you ag-"
-"No wait!" you reached out and grabbed her arm before she could begin weaving the spell. "This place is somehow connected to Shambala. It is...was, the largest city in Arcania. Rumors had it that it had a vast underground network of tunnels they used for smuggling and, more importantly, as secret supply lines for the Alliance's military. The Kwon-Yuu may have figured this out and it might be the reason why it was one of the 1st cities to get targeted by the Curse Bomb. The curse bomb is pure evil, it is semi-gaseous, semi-liquid, kinda like water. If that is true then it must've seeped down into the tunnels and spread around. This must be one of the outposts or connected cities and the cause of its destruction. That's why I didn't take us underground. You might awaken the evil with your holy magic!" Irfan gravely warned.

And speaking of gravely, the mushy soft stuff Horus tripped on. It stirred just now. 2 green dots a finger apart from one another slowly came to life. Followed by something else that shouldn't be coming alive.
"What is going on back there?" Horus asked, still holding the improvised door against the doorframe.

Irfan rolled 10 using 1d20+5.  DC 15    +9(Skill)-5(Wound) Heal Check vs self.
Pfft of Course. Irfan wastes a turn, but he may not be staggered any more due to vigor.


Irfan tries to staunch his bleeding to prevent him from passing out again, but struggles with his materials partially because of the blood loss, and partially from the lack of strength. Looking up he goes a 3rd shade of pale for an entirely different reason. Dragging a candle out of his pack and holding it out to Hana.



No one willingly went into the cursed cities after the mass exodus, the initial attempts to regain control by Ironia, and the dumbest of scavengers. So accounts actual conditions were vague and the stuff of ghost stories and horror. The one thing all accounts agreed upon was that laws of natural and magic alike were horribly twisted and malevolent on top each city being home to thousands of un-buried dead that resulted in a single day.

Here they were with Horus trapped that haunted legacy, and the (wolf)spider at the door, not to mention any of other manifestations lurking in the bar. He wasn't even sure how they would react or if there was some way he could use this. He judges the window as an escape route, if the spider wanted in, then all they needed was to get out and let it.

"I don't think were alone in here, and I'm not sure which one is worse."

ooc: I was wrong, healing you was her last spell. I forgot that she healed herself earlier. You are still staggard and still bleeding if you do a stranious activity, but you lose vigor instead of wounds when you do so and you won't pass out when you do.

Hana takes the candle, lights it with quick cantrip and lets the light fill the room.

"Huh, what's that?...KYAAAAA!!!" she screams, drops the candle and falls backwards next to you. The thing that was moving was a rotting human-ish corpse.

Horus hears the cry of distress and turns around "Holyfuckwhatdashit!" he freaked out, drops the door and jumped on it, repeatedly stabbing at it with his knife. "This is not working!" he yelled as the huge chunks he was tearing off weren't even slowing it down.

Atk hit, no dmg

"No time for that!" Irfan shouts, sliding against the wall to stand himself up, and trying(and failing) to pull Hana back up with his weakened muscles. "Out the window, give Horus the sword!"

"No!" Hana pulls herself from you when you try to usher her towards the window and tries to aim what little magical power she could muster at the corpse that just came to life. Tries by fails out of fear she may hit her friend because, following Horus' ineffective attack, the thing grabbed him and literally tried to eat him. The two were locked in a rolling, twisting struggle on the ground with the thing raking at him with its sharp, filthy skin-peeled hands and snapping him with its even more rotten maw.
^{"Give Horus the sword!"}
In her panicked state those words grounded her. Pulling out the huge blade off her back she pointed it hilt first at the two locked combatants. Horus held the snapping maw back with one forehand while reaching for the hilt with the other. The rotten mouth was inches from his face, it oozed some sickly ichor-like drool, emitting a deep hungry throaty wheeze. He grimacing profusely, but stayed focused muttering over and over "I believe in myself, I can do this, I can do this" Until finally, in a great feat of conviction, he kicked the thing off him, grabbed the sword firmly with both hands and before the thing could pounce on him again he took a huge arcing swing. The sword sliced through it like it wasn't even there, sending 2 uneven halves of the now-permanently dead monster.
Panting hard, Horus rises to his feet, holds the sword up in triumph and unleashes a cathartic scream.
Meanwhile the unattended "door" left just propped against the opening...remained undisturbed. Made you wonder why the spider didn't just effortlessly push it aside and walk in wile it owns the place.
ooc: *Sigh* So many great chances to use pictures to augment the story but I can't...

Praise the lonely one that worked., breathing a sigh of relief causes Irfan's chest to seize up as the abdominal and leg pain catches up to him. He falls back down stiffling the urge to cough. Good thing too. Wait, wasn't there something else? blinking and looking over the room, his eyes reached the warped remains of a round table top in a rectangular door. Good the door is keeping the .. SPIDER!, wheres did the spider go?..Tightening the bandage in the momentary lull to keep him from dying from blood loss, and effect he was really starting to feel now that the rush had worn off.



Standard action attempt to bandage self.
Move action Listen.
Irfan rolled 15 using 1d20+5.  Heal Check. Sucess +1 hp(so Vigor) Point. -1 Vigor point for wound leakage?

Irfan rolled 16 using 1d20+1.  Perception: Listen 1d20+6-5Wounds.
 I'd need a 16 or better to restore 1 wound point, can we call it enough to *stabilize* me as long as I move slowly and stay out of combat.

(Healer's Kit -2 uses today(- however many used on loki, 1,2? I'll check later, 5+/10 uses remaining)

ooc: You do not bleed wound points as long as you have vigor points, nor do you become unconscious and you are always stable. Any damage you take (barring crits, negative energy and precision dmg like sneak attack) is subtracted from vigor first instead of wounds.
Realizing the spider could come right back at any moment and kill you all returns you back to full alertness. Seeing you in excruciating pain, Hana and Horus rush to your side, they were talking and fussing all over you, but to you it was like they were mute. Mouths move but no sounds come out because your senses were hyper focus to the disturbance outside. With the immediate danger over they seem to have forgotten a worse fate could be waiting just outside.
You heard...hissing. Angry hissing. Angry giant spider hissing. Some sloppy plup plup sounds. Some scraping and...harsh, hushed sporadic whispering.

I'm at how familiar Irfan would be with C-bomb effects, So for now i'll continue with the assumption that most of his knowledge is from field notes he managed to find, and a lot of horror/ghost stories, with one thing that goes bump in the night having appeared already.

He will also assume one of the major effects of the curse bomb is manifesting a counter effect of most magics nearby,  a mage that casts fireball while in the effected area is liable to be hit by a deadly cold snap in addition to the fireball effect otherwise working mostly normal.

So far you established Irfan is afraid of holy magic being used in such a zone, and the outcome he expected happened.


The good news at the moment, was the spider was performing the job of distraction rather nicely, the bad news is something worse then a horse sized monster was out there. Putting his hand on Horus's concerned Shoulder, he reaches out with his other hand. "Up, we need to go up right now." Everything he had heard said the restless souls inhabiting the cities were confused and not very bright individuals beyond glowing bits. If they could reach the roof by some ladder they should be able to make it out of the city tonight with far less trouble then going deeper where the sun never shown on the cities' inhabitants, or out in the streets they lived in. As long as they could last till dawn, the threat should evaporate with the sun. "No time to argue, Listen....  There should atleast be a smoke vent in the back corner if not a passage."

ooc: Yes, you are staggard but you are not bleeding (that ended automatically when Hana healed you) and taking 1 move action per turn doesn't count as a strenuous activity. A strenuous activity has to be at least a Standard action that requires physical activity. You cannot heal wounds with a heal check (not counting longterm care), unless you have a special class ability that heals at least 1d6 or 10 flat vigor, in which it's 1 per 1d6 or 10 vigor.

Official info on the C-bomb is next to impossible, and it's a touchy subject so getting normal people to talk about it is hard. Those that do have shared contradictory rumors. What you DO know for sure is the long term effects of low level exposure because after the C-Bomb was dropped on Cruilla they walled off that section of the city thinking to contain the problem (and it mostly did) until "The Janitors", however your father's job took him near the wall and over time he lost both his health and mind and finally his life. You also know that the sun only mitigates its effects. It's very magical and heavily tied to undeath, necromancy, negativity and other such unpleasant things. It's basically the polar opposite of holiness and goodness, and as they say opposites attract (in fact the early attempts to "handle the curse ourselves" had only led to the clerics being attacked/affected first, with all sorts of horrors manifesting right out of it when cleansing spells were cast into the mist. And yes, the curse appears as a Silent Hill-like mist/fog that is heavier than air. They also tried more conventional methods of "burning the evil away", but fire neither ignited nor chased it away. And you don't remember any backlash to arcane spellcasters when they had tried cleansing the curse, at least certainly nothing like the holy men, but then again you were just a little kid back then and memory can be unreliable at times). Think of it like activating a light spell in a dungeon. Yes you'll be able to see better but you'd also be signaling your location like a beacon to every monster within eyesight and beyond.

Necromancy is a huge no-no just so you know, and I don't just mean the social stigma. So finding spells, mages and info on it is hard. The only real place where it's researched/practiced (for academic purposes only, of course) is the Wingheld capital because that place is archwizard-central anyway.

Nodding in solemn understanding, this much more confident, capable and mature-looking Horus took charge and pulled Hana along to search the area you indicated. They had to toss aside some rubble, broken furniture and the like, clear a fallen beam from the ceiling, but sure enough a path revealed itself where you had said it would be. Unfortunately it had collapsed a long time ago and evil mist was smoking from the cracks, which would explain the animation of the dead corpse so it's not like you would have wanted to go that way anyway. "Hey what about this?" Horus called over eagerly as he inspected the chimney. Hana looked inside but was far less enthusiastic.
-"I dunno, it looks in bad shape. Would be a tough climb and Irfan is in no condition for that"
-"Well...I could climb up there and drop a rope. You can tie Irfan and I'll pull him up, then you,"
-"I dunn-"
-"It's ok, it's ok, I can do it! ^{I know I can...}" he said as his newly found stoic persona practically melted right in front of your eyes back to the goofy...well, even more goofy, eager, spastic self. He clenched and unclenched his hands eagerly, bobbing on one foot to the other like a kid high on sugar, eyes wide, biting his lower lip with barely contained excitement over the challenge, and before ether you or Hana could say anything he started climbing up like a monkey.

As Horus started climbing, and Hana calling after him to remind him he forgot the rope then sending the end up after him with a minor spell so that he doesn't have to come back and start over, you heard the sounds outside intensifying. Hana's 1st spell ended and with it the draft that had been at least keeping the round table propped against the doorframe.

You could now see that the spider was standing over an immobile corpse with fresh webbing but with a whole bunch of other corpses slowly lumbering towards the spider and more rising out of piles of trash and such every second. The spider was hissing at them like a spitting cat, but they didn't seem the least bit intimidated by it, slowly closing the noose around it.
-"^{I'm half way up! Told ya I can do it! It was a little touch and go there when that brick wobbled off but-}"
-"JUST KEEP GOING!"

Suddenly, those nearest to the entrance of this building stopped and turned around. Their faces were drawn out in like a perpetual expression of terror before death, moan-like howling whizzed out their throats, their eyes glowing in bright green beads of hate and anger. They just stood there, staring blankly. Then the 2nd spell ended. The moaning grew shriller (kinda like that body snatchers film) as if a fog had been lifted from their vision and they could see you clearly now. They lumbered towards your location, while the ones closer to the spider stayed on course.

ooc: If you want Horus to climb faster (higher) I'll need you to roll the climb check. Just a straight 1d20 so you don't think I'm fudging rolls.

I'd rather you did fudge the rolls, given assurred life or death.

   https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_hole

Something like this for Hokah smoke, in a adobe construction, would create natural suction at night, and otherise allow ventalation on demand with it's own trap door. Chimeny seems out of place, but building materials ect haven't been discussed.

Adobe features excellent erosion resistance and desert tempature management, the downside is more it's too rigid a material and earthquakes easily crack and knock it down.

Irfan rolled 49 using 3d20 with rolls of 14,16,19.  Horus d20's.

Rolled 11,1,8 but didn't hut record.

This message was last edited by the player at 16:30, Sat 24 Aug 2019.

ooc: I said only if you wanted him to move faster, I also needed only 1 roll. Meh I'll just use the other 2 for his other upcoming checks with the rope and stuff.

Anyway, I don't have the best access to internet. I have to ration what I have so I can't do my usual research nor most picures because it's fucking expensive, and I don't usually have the time for any significant time for the internet on the ports. And even when I do they limit it to 10 or 30 minutes. So like I've said before, "Needs must when the devil decides to shit in your backyard".

With that being said, not all Arcanians are native born Arcanians. Every outcast in Hestia that has nowhere else to go (or run to) goes to Arcania to disappear and they bring with them their culture and knowledge (hence the chaotic nature of Arcanian settlements due to no urban planning and centralized government). They build structures with anything they can get their hands on and they can afford (like mud and straw), and they build then in any way they can improvise to, lest they pay the exorbitant prices of the local builders/architects. Many buildings, especially the slums, are build by unskilled hands. Probably like this very bar. Also, not counting the few and far between, settlements in Arcania tend to be semi-permanent. Kinda like those frontier towns you see in old westerns. Someone discovers gold somewhere in some mountains and POOF the whole town is gone overnight.

With a *huff* *haaah* *grunt* it sounded as Horus made it to the top.
"Horus-san, please hurry! More dead people are coming after us!" Hana pleaded up to him through the opening.
-"O-Ok, right. I'm lowering the rope now."

As soon as the rope appeared you and Hana hastily tied the rope around you like a harness. You entered the hole, facing the scene outside as you waited him to pull you up. The last thing you saw before Horus yanked you up was undead jumping on the spider from all sides while it furiously bit and kicked and tried to push them off. Much closer though, the undead were beginning to enter the pub and Hana again took that very technical school-like stance to oppose them. But there was hesitation, wavering, doubt. She knew she had no more than the meagerest of power left and it wouldn't even come close to prevailing against them. (rolling a flat Int check)

Before you could see what happened next, Horus' muffled grunt came from above and the scene was snatched from your line of sight. You couldn't rely on him pulling you up all on his own to you climbed as well, lightening the task as much as possible. About halfway up though the improperly tied rope snapped "^{Whoaaa, shiiit!} *crash*" and you fell down. It wasn't a big fall, nor a bad one, but in your condition there were no good falls (take 1d3 dmg, unless you beat a DC 15 Acrobatics check, in which case only take 1 dmg for strenuous activity).

Gritting your teeth against the pain, you grabbed the rope when Horus lowered it again and tied it more carefully this time. Meanwhile, this gave you a chance to see what Hana was doing. Seems instead of trying to injure them or stop them, she had decided to try to slow them down by sending rubble and furniture and all manner of tricks and illusions and sounds to distract them. (Natural 20. Hana casts prestigitation using Sacred Geometry. She makes every affected square difficult terrain)

Pulling up with renewed vigor, you were determined not to screw up again. Moments later you came face to face with that stoic, serious, confident Horus from earlier. He took charge, grabbed your hand and popped you out the chimney like a champagne cork.
"Hana, come on! Your turn! No time to tie yourself, just grab it and pull yourself up!" he yelled down the shaft and lowered the rope a 3rd time. He started pulling while, presumably the little Tengu was also pulling on her end. But then-
-"KYAAAAAA!!!" her high pitched scream resonated up the shaft. Shifting over to see what was going on you saw her holding on the rope desperately halfway up, but an undead had reached her and was grabbing her leg, trying to pull her back down, with more undead heads peeking out the tight hole, trying to push themselves in the tight space. She was trying to kick it off but to no avail.
^{...just believe...}
In a grand act of awesomeness, while holding the rope with his left hand, heels dug into the edge of the chimney, Horus reached for the sword on his back with his right hand and threw it straight down the shaft, straight at the undead (ranged attack with the natural 19 you rolled). There was a ghastly shriek at the sword zipped past the little tengu, struck the undead straight in the head, pierced down its throat, disappeared, then came out the other end, leaving a perfect slit-hole from head to heel. The green glowing beads in the eyes went dark and the thing simply collapsed in a lump of flesh. Seizing the moment, Hana scrambled up the rest of the way in Horus' expecting arms. She cried, her head buried in his chest as she tried to block out the rest of the world while he embraced her and whispered reassuringly in her ear.

But your attention was drawn elsewhere. Across the road you saw the giant spider climbing desperately up the side of a building, undead still clutching and raking its body. By the time it reached the roof most had fallen off from the vigorous motion, and the ones that didn't the spider quickly and easily dispatched now that they didn't have the massive advantage in numbers.

It looked very hurt, missing a few more legs, ragged patches of skin gone, open wounds with sickly fluids oozing, and panting. But as soon as it spotted you it froze, then lowered its stance calmly and menacingly. It's 9 eyes locked with your 1-and-a-half and if a spider could glare in hate this would be it. Slowly it broke contact as it rotated around, scanning the layout of this new evolving environment, figuring out its next move and which path to take in achieving it. Jumping off the roof you lost sight of it.

Homebrew Template. 5 and 1/2 legged arachnid. We won't be seeing him again. Nope.



"So you are stranded on a roof in cursed surround by angery undead. What do you do next?" Nope, nothing could possibly have prepared him for this. On top of that his wound was bleeding again. He needed to get the kids somewhere safe, and the streets were closed off to them now, atleast nearby.

The only good news was that it was a tall building, but it wouldn't last long against all that thrashing. He had time to treat his wound quickly, but the question remained as where to go and how.They had rope, Horus could probably throw it to get part of a bridge. Hana could probably fly, but he doubted she could share that benefit directly.

Taking part in a collective sigh as the spider vanished.

Irfan throws away the bloodied bandaging pulling herbs and a clean bandage from his bag. Recalling the bubbled sliders from earlier, he didn't know what to make of it, spider vemon, head wound, heat, or something else, but if there was some a magic user keeping watch over the ruins thats where they should go. Anything seeming safe in town would probably turn into a tomb out side of miraculous(?? has the term changed in setting??) luck.

"Horus, Hana what do you see out there on the horizon besides the city. Any lights or fog (If horus is pure a (inland) desert dweller fog might be foreign to him). He needed to inform them atleast after stopping the bleeding, just in case. Take 10 (or roll if distracted) to give (self)first aid.

 The one good thing about the slums is the buildings were tightly packed for better or worse, and right now it was for the better. They could move (north?) towards that old man and spider bubbles realatively easily for the moment, but eventually they would probably be forced to get on the streets, preferably far away from the current awakening.


The good news is you can probably keep the web page open and post quickly from notepad give rpol's simpleness.

FFFFF!, rolled a 24(20) good enough for 10 vigor if I had used medical training (ex)

Hana strains on tip toes, hand on brow to make shade over her eyes, looking at the horizon, "I see the hill with the cave just outside the ruins...The town from earlier is gone. And I see...a bunch of floating monsters in various states of half-melted decomposition where the town was suppose to be. And they are slowly moving,...Ah, wait, I can make something out. There, right there, do you see it, where the winds are blowing sand and it just vanishes?" she points at it with her finger and now you could make it out as well. It was like seeing an icecube in a glass of water, except the water in this case was desert wind sands and the icecube was of gargantuan proportions, just lazily moving by. You indeed see no town anymore. You call Horus to take a look whether he sees "the man" again, but he just shakes his head. By all accounts this looks like the very rare and 2nd worst ooze one could find in the desert. It was extremely large, semi-gaseous which is why it only came out during rains or right after them to feed, and it had the ability to make things see what they desire the most in order to lure them in. It must've been full now so it didn't bother anymore.

Horus on the other hand had been scanning a little closer to home. Gone was the brave stoic posture he held, replaced instead by this wise-old-man expression, complete with the sagely rubbing of his long, white, none-existent beard. "The anatromical posthumourous cadavers are roaming the streets aimlessly, only a few at a time since they're narrow and convuol-, conpuls-, all maze like. I hypostricize they can tell there are living people around but they just can't geocenticulize- er, pinpoint us, yet. There's not a set pattern to their movement, but they are rather simplistic eye cue in behavior. If we know the starting point of a given "zombie" I think it would be easy enough to predict where they'd next. Our current position gives us an advansagious overview to the nearest expolution from the ruins so according to my calculations I propostulate that it would be conceivably executable for us to outmaneuvriate them in the streets without meeting and engaging in fisticufs with them. The farther away and more time it takes us to reach it however, the more errosneous the predictions might get. And speaking of which, I advice we do so STAT because see there? Notice how that fine dustious vaporious mistus is congalgulating?"

Before, you were running for your life and the subtle difference in the air had escaped you, but the ruins were a lot like a dusty room where someone had just fanned around. You couldn't really see it, it didn't really impair your vision, but there was a faint mist-like presence. And now that it was moving like a current it's presence became more obvious. It was swirling around and moving, concentrating, building up at the other end of the ruins where the fancier, more important buildings once were. "It doesn't take a geniusus sagicus professorious magister doctorum alumni to figure out something much smarter and more powerful is coming to the fore as the awakening of the ruins prostitutes."

Irfan wanted want to correct Horus, his words choice weren't technically wrong but they were so far from right, let alone his new complex just when Irfan was starting to trust him. Eitherway it proved one thing, he really is looking for someone.

Satisfied with his adjustments, he took stop for himself. Heading deeper in search of cover was out given the eerie serpentine way the fog was billowed up and down the streets towards them.

The ooze would provide a excellent barrier if they could get around it safely, and it seemed to have sucked up most of the nearby wildelife. So their priority should be escaping the city first, then getting thier bearings, returning to the hill would be ideal.

"Archaic, but agreed. For need to get across a few roofs till we can make it to a main street leading out.

Hana, you have to refrain from using any magic till we are outside the city. That Mist a Kwon weapon, all anyone really know is that perverts magic, and has a amorphous physical form, and seeks out magic users. We don't even know if it animates those corpses or simply corrupted some other magic. It even wiped out life even in surrounding cities within hours of appearing by traveling through underground supply networks. We can't afford to draw any more of it's attention to you, especially now that we no longer have your brother's sword.
"



"I'm thinking variant of the elf city minigame? A series of parkour problems for us to solve."

ooc: You were never on a hill, you were on the open desert. There was a nearby hill, just north of your current location where the cave is. The gargantuan ooze seems to be moving in the general area where you came from originally. IC:

 Horus gives you this patronizing intellectual look "Irfan, please don't try so hard and please don't make up words. ^{Pfft, tch, "ArCAHic" hah, "Armorphous" hmph.}"

Hana just has a blank expression, blinks, and shifts her gaze back and forth between the 2 of you.

"Anyway, let me calibrate the monster's current locations," he looks back over the layout of the city. "Once I give the signal we must move quickly....a hah...predicting their movements...ok GO!"

ooc: Ok at this point I'd normally use the Chase rules, but internet is a bitch so I'll just give you the abbreviated version.
Usually you need to clear 5 obstacles (in this case avoid the undead), each approximately being 30ft from each other to escape. A single obstacle can be bypassed ether by magic/ability/witty use of roleplay like flying or invisibility or something that makes sense in the setting, using a fullround action (which in a normal chase would delay you by twice as much, but in your case that's x4 as much due to your staggered condition), or making 1 of two possible skill/save checks from DC 10 to 25 (however the difference between the checks is never more than 5. So if you have a DC 10 Athletics check, the other check can't be more than a DC 15, for example a stealth check to wait for the undead to pass by then sneak behind its back). If you fail a check the undead will notice you and probably attack. You can fight it (which will alert any who make a successful prc check to hear sounds of combat) or you can run away from it (possibly provoking an Aoo) and it will give chase (attacking you again if you fail a check or slow down). I also think there was on option to clear more than 1 obstacle in one go if you rolled a crit or really high or something. Anyway,

1st I need you to roll a society check for Horus for me with a +11 (+13 and/or +15 if you and Hana aid him successfully, DC 15 society check). This will grant you a bonus on all future obstacle checks, but it will diminish each round.

2nd, ordinarily I'd be more organized with this (allowing the choices of of the previous obstacle was handled to determine what the next obstacle would be) however for now I need you to randomly compile 6 skill/save checks and randomly assign 2 of each in 3 slots. THen roll two 1d2 for each of them. The 1st determines the DC of the 1st check of the obstacle
1 = DC 15
2 = DC 20
The 2nd 1d2 determines whether the 2nd check for the obstacle is ether 5 DC lower or higher than the 1st.

3rd, see if you can pass the obstacles. If you fail a check by 5 of less of its DC you are not detected (unless you fail it again) however you will lose time.

Word of advice: Don't dilly dally too long.
Also, roll 5 straight 1d20s for me. No modifiers, it's not related to your party.

First: Irfan rolled 24,23+6(20),1 using 1d20+11,1d20+3,1d6,1d20.  Horus, Irfan, Hana Society checks.

Hana No Help, Irfan rolled max 2x I think he knows which city he is now from old maps, Horus did better then average.

2nd:  randomly compile 6 skill/save checks and randomly assign 2 of each in 3 slots.??

Fortitude, Reflex, Will, Stealth, Acrobatics, Atheltics, Finesse,  Spellcraft, Perception, Society.

unique dice with rolls of 2,1.  1. Long Jump? (For Irfan in poor health)
  1st: Fortitude DC 15, Reflex DC 20

unique dice with rolls of 5,6.  2. Jammed Door in a alley we need to pass through
  2nd: Atheltics DC 15, Finesse DC 20

unique dice with rolls of 3,4.  3. Sense Illusionairy wall to bypass a ghoul trio?
  3rd: Will DC 15, Stealth DC 20

unique dice with rolls of 5,3. 4. Leap through fog, the fog is obscuring gap we need to jump.
  4th:Will DC 15, Acrobatics DC 20

Fortitude, Reflex, Will, Stealth, Acrobatics, Atheltics, Finesse,  Spellcraft, Perception, Society.
4d2 with rolls of 2,2,2,2.

Trial 1:  Fortitude Save DC 15 or Reflex DC 20
So Horus
Irfan rolled 19 using 1d20 with rolls of 19.  Trial 1: Horus vs Fortitude. Horus Catches/Carries Irfan Like  a Champ.

Trial 2: Finesse DC15 or Atheletics DC 20
Ouch, this will slow us down.

Irfan rolled 6 using 1d20 with rolls of 6.  Trial 2: Unknown Finesse check D20.
?
Irfan rolled 13 using 1d20 with rolls of 13.  Trial 2: Kick the door in.
?

Trial 3: Will Dc 15 or Stealth DC 20
Stealth to create a diversion. Le flashbang throw.
Irfan rolled 15 using 1d20+5-5 with rolls of 15.  Trial 3: Irfan Overwhelming Stealth.
Irfan rolled 2 using 1d20 with rolls of 2.  Hana Will Save Trail 3

ooc: Ok so aid another +2 for a total of 26. 26:5=+5 bonus (rounded up), -1 after each time unit.

The 3 of you took a running start and jumped from the roof onto the roof of the next building.

Jumping you, unsurprisingly given your condition, fell short. You caught the edge of the roof, grunting hard when your body slammed against the side of the ruined building. Pain racked your body, but gritting your teeth you willed yourself not to pass out for it would mean certain death. Just below you, on the street, the undead roamed menacingly and the sound had just alerted them to possible nearby intruders. They stopped and looked around, moaning more raspy. It was only a matter of time before they looked up.

You knew you needed to pull yourself up and climb over the edge, but you simply couldn't muster the strength. You were barely holding on as it was, and not for long ether. You could feel your battered muscles growing tired already, your grip was slipping.

And then it slipped. Time slowed to a crawl 'So this is how it ends.', you thought as you floated in the air, your hand drifting away from the handhold, your life started flashing before your eyes. Then an arm shot out from behind the cover and grabbed your own, yanking it from midair. And then time resumed again at it's normal breakneck speed 'was it always that fast?'. You recognized the hand as Horus', in fact looking farther up you could see its owner giving you a forced reassuring smile as you strained from the effort to pull you up. You wanted to say something just then, but your heart was pounding way too loud and fast in your ears, your breaths fighting so hard to get in and out that your throat was simply to constricted to do anything. You were sweating so badly you got damp all over faster than had you stayed out in the rain.

With a grunt, you were pulled over and not a moment too soon. You two stood there for a hot minute, just panting hard. You nodded to you. He nodded back. Words weren't really necessary at this point anyway.

"...Come on. We need to keep going" Hana as gently as she could, but as urgently as she had to, roused you two to get back up and push on. The two of you looked at her for a second then nodded stoically. You weren't out of the woods yet.

Horus led the way through the interior of the building, down the stairs and onto the street. He kept doing this rhythmic tapping with his finger as he walked and every once in a while he'd stop, usually just before you were suppose to round a corner, then keep going again. Despite hearing more and more distant ghastly moaning, you had yet to encounter an undead.

As you guys navigated the streets and saw more and more of what remained of the city, you were starting to recognize the buildings, their purpose. Before long you knew where you were. This was Ortited. Before *I forgot the name of the city where Loki bough the sandskimmer* was the repurposed sandskimmer market capital of the, that titled had gone to Ortited. No one knew how they managed to gather all the salvage across entire Arcania during the heat of the conflict between the Kwon-Yuu and the Ironia no less, but they did it. Every demilitarized commercial-use sandskiller could be (unofficially without a paper trail) tracked back to this town. The Kwon-Yuu must have thought they were aiding the Ironians by acting as a repair and maintenance station or something for their war machines (and who knows, maybe secretly they did), but the point is they dropped a c-bomb on this place because of it.

"Shit!" you were brought back to the situation at hand as your leader out of this mess called for a stop and cursed. "Too many undead ahead, no way to sneak past or wait for them to move. More will come from the other direction and see us before they do" he explained as his calculations were beginning to err.

-"Go inside this building. We'll go through it and walk out the other end without being seen by the undead" you advised.
-"How do you-"
-"It's a chop-shop. They're made with good support due to the secret underground chambers and they always have a back exit," you explained then started heading there.

Horus looked at Hana, she looked back at him, shrugged, then followed you in, the Horus brought up the rear.

It was dusty and musty inside, pretty much wrecked like all the other places, but this looked more like the damage of a wind animal or a monster or maniac with a club would cause rather than structural damage from fallen debris. Making your way back, surely enough you find a 2nd entrance. But it's doors were still holding and it was locked.

Telling the others to stand back, you pull out some knick-knack metals you use to tinker with and decided to use them as improvised lockpicks. However the lock was rusted, the tools weren't exactly intended for this, the lighting was poor at best, you had the threat of a fate worse than death looming over you, of course there was your condition and Hana and Horus were doing you no favors by fidgeting, tapping their feet impatiently, rushing you as they kept looking back at the entrance and expecting the undead to come storming in any second.

"...Fuck it. This is taking too long" you heard Horus say and you had just enough time to step aside as he came rushing in, kicking the door aside. So much for stealth. "Come on, we have to make a run for it" he called out and you followed him, hearing the undead already heading towards the noise they head in the building.

It seemed like a good plan, you were almost out of the ruins anyway, but then your heart sank to your feet. It's almost like some cruel being that controlled the fates of man had purposely dangled that shred of hope in front of your faces just so it snatch it away at the last moment. Round the last corner there were more undead but there was no place to hide from them, the clear open desert planes were just beyond.

As Hana fell to her knees and Horus just stared in dismay, you kept looking around for a possible solution. You refused to give up until the very last moment. You indeed saw something and right after thought of something crazy enough that it might just work.

In 1 section of the streets, right there in the open, there was an open manhole and the c-bomb's miasma was smoking out of it in much greater concentration than the wisps sneaking through the cracks in the rubble elsewhere. If you guys were to go into the fog, the evil negative energy of it could hide your lifesigns from the vision of the undead because, as you understand it, they don't see the way normal people do because their organs are rotten away. They see life. The 2nd part of the solution however would be to get them to move away.

You told the other 2 the plan, Hana gasped but you assured her temporary exposure won't hurt them. They just need to steel their minds, block everything out, then run. You then gave Horus an additional task,"You've seen me use ones of these before, right?" you say to him as you pull out a flashbang grenade. *nod*
"I'm too injured to throw it so you'll have to do it for me, ok?" *nod* *nod*
"To use it just hold the safety, pull the pin, release the safety, throw the grenade, drop the pin. Got it? *nod* *nod*
"HOLD the safety. *nod* Pull the pin. *nod* Release the safety. *nod* Throw, ^{and this is the important part}, THROW the grenade. *nod* *nod* Then drop the pin. Got it? *nod* *nod* *nod*"
"*Irfan stares*...Ok. Let's do this" and hands him the grenade.



ooc: You can only use 1 standard action per turn. If you throw the grenade you can't more. Also, throwing the grenade would count as a strenuous action. So I just framed it this way for RP purposes.

Summary:
1st obstacle: 1st round (success)
2nd obstacle: 1st round (Fail, but not more than 5 so not detected), 2nd round (success)
3rd obstacle: 1st round (Fail and detected).

You are technically out of the city, but there's a horde of undead on your heels. They move (at least the one's you see thus far) as fast as you Irfan (they are stagged by default and their speed is 30), so Horus and Hana can outrun them but you can't as far as you know because they will never tire where as you will eventually.

So what do you do now? Where are you running towards?

BTW, I won't be able to make Liv's post tonight. Know that you encountered some dolphins and manta ray. They are peaceful by nature so unless you go out of your way to attack/hunt them, you'll be fine. A ship doesn't stop sailing even at night (that's why it's a preferable mode of transportation to land), so yes use x3 speed for distance covered. I didn't see any Sailor checks though. Only those trained in said skill can aid another, and if they do they can't do anything else meaningful (like training/crafting). Also the crew can't aid another you because it's an overall Sailor check on how to command with them and make right choices based on the circumstances. They are all considered average, trained sailors.

How many modes of transport you use increases the Sailor DC check (except for rowing), and the direction of the wind (if it's in the same direction you are heading in, perfect, but the more off course the wind is the harder it becomes to use it as a means of propulsion. A wind that's blowing more than 90 degrees of the direction in which you want to go cannot be used for sailing. Also, having below ! wind cannot be used, and !! wind or above increase the DC). But rowing comes with a different problem. It takes 16 people to row, 1 to steer and 1 to, presumably be in the crows nest or something. You are operating with a skeleton crew. You can't use rowing for more than 8 hours per day (unless you start making Constitution checks), and they can't train/craft of course.

Rowing and crappy weather will require Morale checks (similar to mass combat rules). The constant rains did nobody a favor, but the small storm (strong wind + rain) could be useful to dip their toes in real sailing, prep them for the real thing one day perhaps.

Roll constitution checks after the cold night with rain and rowing to see if anyone got sick. And roll constitution if you made them row in the scorching heat.

The training earned you XP. Go see retraining rules for XP. I think it was a CR equivalent to your lvl. Reduce that to 1/5th (round up). Or would you want HP training instead, if yess add the hours towards the required total.

I already mentioned the name of the place you are going to as part of a different post (as ether backstory or in the timeline post), in ether case I can't remember it now and I can't go looking for it with my internet so just call it Port something, or Something port, make something up.

Anyway, even with crappy sailing you should reach your destination within 7 days if not less so just make an rp post if you'd like so that when I post your arrival it's not too jarring.

ooc: And of course I forget to finish the post. Anyway what happens is when you get into the mist, nightmarish creatures try to manifest (or at least that's what you see) but they just barely fail to do so, instead being whispy-like ghost things. Hana screams (failed will save), and Horus' throws the pin, drops the grenade. With a SHIT! you grab Hana and rush out, using the confusion to slip between the momentarily very confused undead. Horus follows.

You are outside the ruins, but there's a Horde after you. Your move.

I did adequate?

It's zombie run time, Horus could carry me again (if he has 18 strength). What we need is a oil slick, or terrain advantage. Lack of mudane and alchemy items is killing me, just one grease bomb or ice patch.

Hana should have flight uses, if she flies safely out of reach (a cliff, bluff, ledge, dune, chasm) she should be able to draw them away with magic then fly away quickly.

Beyond that or another horus special surprise, this seems like a flat chase situation.


----------------------------
Ship travel is a bit complicated since profession sailor isn't even used to row acvording to srd, and the checks for none sail powered are all 5 out of combat, 20 in, barribg bad weather penalties.

A small boat like ours will probably close down  just a watch for the night given we only have a one set of crew and can't run sails and row, but we have more  travel time since there isn't really as much make/break camp.  12 on 12 off/hygene sleep/food.

I said run for the 2nd day because I intended to use the sails+the oncoming storm (proffession sailor or knowledge nature to use sails) to try to get as far as possible riding, Theoretically we can get pushed 3 or 5 times as far as normally possible.

Will try to clean it up a bit tomorrow, Hawke can try to force march if he feels it's needed.

Day 4 just sucks, no wind, no clouds, just humid heat. Hawk would have to push us if he wanted there, we would, but it would drain moral.

Horus, strangely enough, can't seem to carry you anymore. It's why he struggled so hard to pull you up from the ledge.

Hana has nothing but cantrips left, and her tengu wings only let her glide.

In which dorection are you running too? North to the cave? North to the way you were going? West where the massive ooze is? Or south where you came from? (Back east is the way you came from so that's out of the question)

Also, could you rp it up a little? I'm hoping to put this in the prequel book.
-----
The sailor check is for using anything else but rowing or using it in conjunction with rowing.

Day 4 is when you misread the weather so it might be possible he pushed them/keep them on standby thinking the weather would improve.

Bump
Edit: Come to think of it, it would be possible for Horus to carry you again.
Also, wouldn't it be sumpler to just let Tomo join the other game and read the original posts himself before we edit them?
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:36, Fri 30 Aug 2019.

* Yes it would, but that would require him having the time, and by copying and pasting them into a coherent document it's much more convenient for him to edit, read, and distribute as needed. I'll have him register and you can approve him when you get a chance, but I will be start scribing  the other game into a word document later today after I post in both games.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


https://previews.123rf.com/ima...r-they-find-a-lo.jpg


Irfan hurries along as best as possible through his foggy head, sluggishly willing himself forward step by step as he kept pressure on his bandage. Hana and Horus were getting farther and farther away by the second, he needed to hurry. Leaning on his staff in an attempt to shuffle faster, his grip slips sending him face first into the dirt. Pushing himself up weakly he looks back, to find most of the corpses seemed as bad off as him, dragging the fog along with them as they advanced.

 Trying to push himself back up, he stares at his hand for a moment at a loss as to how to use it, before remembering how. Standing back up, he gets an idea, they didn't need to outrun the bodies, just the fog, to do that they needed to go up. Up was... back towards where they first saw the city, up that hill. Hobbling forward hurriedly he calls out at his frantic companions, "Left, left towards the dunes!"
This message was last edited by the player at 18:40, Wed 04 Sept 2019.

Hana and Horus indeed wouldn't have had any problems outrunning the undead horde but when they noticed you were falling back and doubled back for you, you knew you'd just be slowing them down and they'd be putting themselves in danger for your sake. Thankfully your quick wits spared you any noble heroic sacrifices this day.

Following your advice, Hana ran uphill a little further before turning around and doing the same thing she did back at the shack hoping to aid Horus and you make your escape. The bad news is, stumbling a few zombies at a time did next to nothing to slow down them as a whole. The good news is it didn't matter ether way. Horus shifted his attitude from the annoying brainac to *insert that old "Just do it, do it, do it!" meme* the most offensive stereotype of a strongman meathead you've ever seen. The cringe aside, it worked. He flipped you across his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and started running uphill with no sign of tiring (No Con check needed because even a fail would make no difference)

At first the undead maintained the pursuit, but as the fog thinned out the further it got from the ruins they started dropping off like flies because the magic animating them was running out. Finally, at the top hill, you were safe. You surveyed the scene below, see the dig marks and footstep trails, the lingering bodies sprawled motionless in the sand as the mist and the rest of the living dead retreated to their cursed homes, see the signs of battle that testified to your struggles and triumph. And it would all be washed away by tomorrow. Unknown and uncared for by the rest of the world.

Feeling like you were releasing a breath you've been holding in this whole time, all 3 of you collapse on the ground. At first there was naught but the silence of your collective panting. Then Horus began to chuckle. Then Hana joined in. It was infectious, you couldn't help but join in. It grew louder. And faster. Before you knew it the air crescendoed in loud hysteric laughter as the 3 of you found yourselves once again fighting for breath as tears rand down your cheeks and your sides threatened to split apart.

Eventually it subsided and you got up, with Horus' aid, to your feet and look around. It was a rocky, canyony-like bit of land, not too large really. You could see where it began to slope back down the other side and there, way out there on the horizon...a town? You couldn't be for sure, it was quite far, but certainly that bit of landscape stood out against the rest and you were quite sure it wasn't an illusion or a mirage this time around. It was way too far, on lower latitude and the hottest part of the day was behind you. Not that it mattered because you weren't going anywhere for the rest of the day. The adrenalin wore off and with it the realization of just how badly banged up you were. You didn't even dare look down at your leg.

"We need to find shelter," you wheeze out at the others, not because of any need for caution but because it was all the strength you could muster. "If there are lights coming from that place tonight then we might have just found our destination."

You omitted the fact that even if all of you were in top condition you'd be hard pressed to get there in 1 day. In your condition it would easily take 3 times as long if not more. But that was a problem for tomorrow.

ooc: Aaaaaaand done!

Wheew, what a ride huh? You're lucky. The spider wanted to pursue but you kinda went the hardest direct for it to follow and it rolled low on its tracking check.

Speaking of which, the spider was a Sand Stalker (CR 4). As the name implies, it's an aggressive territorial ambush-type predator that usually picks the closest prey, imprints on it and chases it through thick or thin. They come solitary or in colonies (as was the case here), the others were deceived by the mirage (seeing irresistible food), this 1 that came after you resisted.

The worm was a Death Worm (CR 6). It's kinda lethargic, solitary, not territorial and it doesn't need much food nor to hunt often because of its slow metabolism. It's satisfied with choosing the least troublesome pray (which in the wild usually means the smallest, hence targeting Hana), ambush attack and leaving as soon as its sated, but rarely before that unless it's life is in danger. It gave up on Hana because she was more trouble than she was worth and at the time it was already annoyed to all ends so it decided to just eat the nearest thing (the scorpion) and just leave, which it did. It's blind so it couldn't see the illusion.

And speaking of the Giant Scorpion (CR 3), solitary, extremely territorial, can't burrow like the worm and stalker but it can hide just beneath the sand for ambush attacks and loves making man-made ruins and dungeons as it's hunting ground.

The giant ooze was a Living Mirage (CR 9). They lure in prey by casting an illusion that makes them see their heart's desire.

Now you may wonder, why all this activity at once? Well it's bad enough that it rained (which is when all monster activity increases, especially the ooze, they ONLY show up when it rains or right after while the moisture is still there), but it rained a few days right after an Exalted passed by (which means all the monsters were cowering and starving for days in their lairs). It's like the royal flush combination of monster activity.

There was a sleeping basilisk in the cave up north BTW.

Now before I continue, I just like to say there was an easier way out of this. Vermin Repelant. And with a high enough Prc to see the statues (or simply a decision to go there) you could have gone to the basilisk lair and had it finish off any monster attacking you. But in all honesty this was a very knowledge nature heavy encounter which you unfortunately didn't have. It would have given you a lot of info before they all attacked and stuff.

Anyway, I am satisfied how this played out. In all honesty the safe route wouldn't have been as exciting nor rewarding. Ok so we have ((800+6400+2400+1200+)x2 for unhallowed zombies and ruins):3 = 7,200xp each

I'm willing to bet Irfan will be very motivated in getting lore books in Unhallowed sites after this encounter huh?

*lets hold off on leveling till we get to town, and Irfan can reasonably purchase materials. He is going to be a bit more open to risky/dangerous ideas give how 'toothless' he was in combat.

Any rolls I need to prepare for you? Shelter is kind of beyond us right now, though i'm sure Horus will try his best.
Irfan rolled 7 using 1d20.  Horus Tries his best to shelter.


So Irfan is exhausted by effort, blood, injury, hunger, thirst, tempature. It's time to eat trail rations, drink, cover his open wounds and sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oh what a sleep deathly sleep, filled with loops a loop of a angry Loki/spider be-rating him in spider chittering, and jabbing the abandoned sword into his leg. (right where the spider bit him.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'll assume Hana is healing him while letting him sleep a bit longer then she should. (should put him back up to -4 or -3 wound penalty, I assume she heals Irfan twice)

Irfan spends 2 hours foraging for camp supplies nearby then doing alchemy.
Irfan rolled 10 using 1d20+2.  Morning Survival/forage check.
Irfan rolled 11,16 using 1d20+3,1d20+3 ((8,13)).  Fail, Pass

Applies Alchemy salve to leg wound +1 wound point.

Irfan rolled 8 using 1d20+2.  Survival: Know direction.
Irfan leads them off at a 10-20° angle from where the lighted town was throughout the day.


Irfan wakes with a startled yelp to sight of his beaked tormentor standing over him, blinking as he recalls who that is, then where he is, and how he got there. "AAUGGH!.. Sorry, I thought you were something else"Trying to snap into a upright position, he groans as his gut angerly reminds him of it's condition, sending back flat halfway through. Turning his head to looks back over the ruined city, breathing a sigh of relief as the fog had once against retreated inside the walls. Holding his hand out for hana to help him up, he takes stock of their impromptu camp and weighs his options.

He should be able to travel at a decent pass if he leaned on his staff but it wasn't going to be a comfortable ride. Sighing, he had them break open another set of trail rations for today, and went about finding enough materials to warm up the rations and create some medicine, over boiling the first batch because he spaced out.

As the put fold what little they have before heading out, Irfan looks over his small group.
Irfan rolled 13 using 1d20+2.  Perception: Sense Motive.

Irfan is going to be a bit spacey blood loss, and a bit distracted by pain.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:26, Thu 05 Sept 2019.

ooc:
*Yeah, especially against enemies that were already blind and/or had alternative means of perception (such as tremorsense).

I don't so much as need a survival check for shelter (Horus will do that) and direction (the town is within eyesight), as much as I needed 2 Con save/checks (1 for the poison damage to Str and 1 to see if you recover a wound point, or get worse). I'll just use those rolls for that purpose instead.

Foraging for your alchemy stuff is fine. We'll assume Hana or Horus was with you to do the heavy lifting (which is basically anything other than walk, talk and point "check here, check there, I need that...")

Mentioning shelter, Horus spits on his fingers, rubs them in the dirt, then smears 2 lines of mud under his eyes, hunches forward drooping his shoulders. "Unga....munga..." he says, skips little to the left, then a little to the right. Looks around. Sniffs the air. Puts his ear to the ground. "This way..." he half grunts,"...little feather, pale face, follow..." he points and skitters off. Nearby there's a large crack in the rock formation. It's not exactly a cave per say, but there was a hollow inside large enough for the 3 of you to spend the night without resorting to be out in the open.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Your dream was very violent that night. And convoluted. Almost as if images and thoughts were fighting over which one to win the lasting impact into wakefulness. The Loki spider was definitely extremely vivid, but in the final fleeting moments of memory after waking up you could almost swear there was 1 more person somewhere in the periphery, in the background of the all-encompassing spider and you weren't you as you remember yourself supposed to look. But as any dream it passed too quickly in the drowsiness after waking up to give it a second thought.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


And it was. You turn your head, see the ruined city through the crack, see Hana, breath a sigh of relief. *blink* *blink* You turn back and see Hana holding your hand. Or rather, you see Horus wearing 2 pieces of strapped wood that acted as a beak and a bunch of desert weed that were meant to simulate feathers.

"Oh niichan, I'm so glad you're ok! *hug* Ah, you still have a boo boo. Let me fix that for you, nyaa," said Horus then proceeded to mumble gibberish. "Bee bee di boo ba, bab pa daa!"

Looking back at the "other" Hana, she looked just as weirder out. "He's been like that for a while" she whispered.

Despite the weirdness though, you felt a familiar warmth spread through your body after Horus completed his gibberish chant. Your wounds got better just as they did when Hana cast her healing magic. Whatever your initial reaction of confused outburst was it dwarfed to Hana's though when she witnessed this.

"Wha-WHAT!? Horus how did you do that?!" she demanded.
-"What do you mean?" he asked back, dropping his "Hana" outfit and going back to normal.
-"How did you cast magic?"
-"Well I saw you do it so I just repeated it" he answered with a no-big-deal shrug.
-"That's not what I sound like! *red face*" *insert anime image of a girl digging her heels in, >.< BAKA*
-"Are you sure? That's what it sound like to me."
-"But, but...HOW???"
-"It's like you said, just believe in yourself. And I do Hana, I really do, thank you for showing me that. If you believe you are strong you will BE strong. If you believe you are smart then you'll BE smart. If you believe you can cast magic why wouldn't you be able to?" *anime image of typical shounen "power of friendship" emblem*
-"...that's...not how it works. ^{I'm pretty sure that't not how it works-}" Hana then turns to you "-does it?" *pleading anime expression*  starting to question her own sanity and beliefs, "^{All those years in the academy and temple...all that hard work...}" she mumbled to herself.

That little bit of drama aside, you were feeling a lot better and more hopeful about the upcoming day. Horus confirmed he saw lights from what you suspected was a town and that settled it. Aside from Hana having a small crises and Horus being a little bewildered by her actions, even looking like he was blaming or doubting himself a little having heard her say that, they were both ready for the road.

ooc: You did not recover 1 Str ability dmg nor 1 wound naturally. Horus healed 7 of your wounds, Hana 4, and your alchemy 1, for a total of 12.

Horus recovered his 1 Str dmg from the poison.

Roll a 1d100 for me. How man lbs of "material" did you gather for your stuff. Remember it's 1 lbs per flashbang/charge/use.

BTW, do you like Horus's class? It's not a custom class I made up, it actually exist in PF.

Also, Hawke requested Liv to accompany him when he delivers the scroll/message. You can refuse and star aboard though.

the question remains, is he a construct, is he Multi-Personality disorder, or is he channeling ancestors or something else, or utilizing some form of self hypnosis.

Well I asked for this so he is doing pretty well.
https://dndtools.net/classes/chameleon/
Dm gave me
https://www.d20pfsrd.com/class...blishing/taskshaper/


Is he a artifical being, a awakened mimic, something stranger? Should show a scene later where he tries juggling after seeing someone in the street do it.



7 wounds though, did he have to use channel energy for that, or did he get levels boosted higher then Hana?

Irfan rolled 24 using 1d100.  Materials.


  Irfan didn't know what to make of Horus, and to be honest, really didn't care to question it at the moment. His wounds had been reduced to small scabs, even if he still had trouble lifting things. "Maybe he used to be a priest too before he wound up in that pit with a bump on his head, could be how he survived." Irfan postulates as he does a check on his remaining weapons, passing out his boot daggers to each of the kids, and handing Horus his sling. The last thing he wanted was for them to be caught defenseless in another ambush, and it's not like he would be much help in a pinch.

 He considers joking about her dad having taken a liking to Horus, but swallows it as he remembers how much love was lost between them back outside Pinterest. For now it was time to focus on the trek ahead and keeping Hana focused instead of worrying. It was already 4? days into the journey already and probably 2 full days without trouble to reach the town. It would be almost 10 days before they get back to Loki. Maybe more if they couldn't find someone willing to drive camels past the ruins. Thankfully the rain would have helped if they had managed to catch it in time.

Irfan Sets course for the where the lights appeared on the horizon, thankful for Hana's ability to create water and the opportunity that created.

Irfan rolled 14 using 1d20+6.  Lore Sea Tales, Spin a travel yarn.


-1 wound 96.5%
Irfan rolled 61 using 7d20 with rolls of 8,1,6,4,18,12,12

ooc: Oh shit, after looking at the class more closely I realize he can cast a lot more than 7 spells. More like 21. All your wounds and Hana's are healed (and no, I haven't leveled up ether of them until they have a chance for a proper rest and a chance to collect themselves like you do). And speaking of his class I don't know if I should reveal it and spoil the fun or keep you guessing, but I will say he is not a taskmaster nor a chameleon.

As for his race...you don't know. He looks human (minus the blue hair but that kind of fashion is not uncommon in certain parts of Ironia, nor among eccentric mage circles), he bled red blood when the zombie was attacking him and he eats, drinks, sleeps ect...so he can't be a construct,right?

Since you're no longer staggered you could make it to the- no wait no, you spent 2 hours foraging. You could have reached the town had you hassled a little but now if you want to make it you'd need 4 con checks for the extra travel time. Which you all failed (and Hana has a -4 on all endurance based stuff because she has the flaw that's the opposite of the endurance feat) so she's pretty screwed too. And she has only 5 vigor points so a 4d6 exhaustion from travel is nothing sneeze at, especially if you add the exhaustion from the hot weather. Yeah I'd say 2 days before you reach the town. Good news is you'd be reaching it in the afternoon instead of at night so that opens more possibilities.

Anyway, back to the game. IC:

You travel through the merciless sands of Arcania, bearing the blistering sun above, but all things considered your luck seemed to be changing. You saw no monsters, their reduced activity probably attributed to the proximity of the town and the recent culling and feasting following the rain and Exalted's march. You were approached by no bandits ether. Perhaps they figured it was too soon for traffic to pick up after the recent events, or they didn't see a point in bothering with 3 half-dead travelers who looked like they had naught but the tattered clothes on their backs (probably victims of robbery already or worse), or perhaps this region simply didn't have bandits because it was so far removed from the trade routes. You simply didn't know and, honestly, didn't even care at this point.

What you did care about is that you were finally there, in the town, your feet stepping upon civilized lads once again after what seemed like an eternity.

It was a small town. Surrounded by a shabby wall clearly intended to keep mindless monsters away rather than any real threat. A deterrent rather than defense/protection if you will. You had to pass a stone archway (the only "gap" in the wall) in order to enter the town, or leave it seems.

There were no guards, no surprise there this was an Arcanian settlement after all, but immediately upon entering the sudden shift in atmosphere was jarring, like entering a very hot room after being out in the cold or vice versa. Small town or not, it was bustling with people, with noise, with life. Stalls with merchandise were on the streets, its purveyors doing everything they can to attract attention or already in deep loud haggling with potential customers...or both (making it into a theater scene for other onlookers. It was a skill rarely taught outside of Arcania and rarer still used).

In true Arcanian style, there were no wide or long streets even in a small town. Every corner of space that hadn't been occupied by a stall had a performer of some kind. Be it a musician or a storyteller or a ventriloquist or pretty much any form or obvious scam artists (like this "blind" guy hosting a 3-shell monty game). Not all of them were good, but hey, at least they were there.

Wires with laundry were hanging above the streets from one end of the street to the next, blocking out much of the sky, making the whole place and buildings seem much larger than they were.

"Well...we're here," Hana stated, a bit dizzy. "Does any of this seem familiar, Horus? Trigger any memories of home?" she asked lightheartedly, but even you could sense the trembling trepidation in her voice. She had grown to like this boy she had found and named. He had saved her life and she found his quirkiness, after the initial shock, kinda endearing it seems. You could tell what she was really trying to ask was "Are you going to leave us?"

Horus looks around too, his face drooping down with concern "...no, I don't think so. Nothing really jumps out-" then he sees her apprehensiveness and quickly recovers and puts on a wide, confident grin, "-Ah, but don't worry. I'm sure I'll be alright. I'll figure something out and land on my feet like a bat."
-"...you mean a cat?"
-"Yeah, a cat. That's what I said," Mr.Oblivious gives her a reassuring thumbs up.

Eh, I'm not really guessing, I'm just enjoying it and worried about the down side to all that power, 21 Cure light spells is a lot for first level even on a dedicated healer type, even assuming he could refresh his class abilities multiple times, I'd rule spells per day takes something away from you when used. I'll piece it together as i go. You have to admit that the taskshaper class is pretty nice, and whatever he is, it's filling in for chameleon nicely. I kind want to theory craft his background, but it keeps coming back to him being some kind of experiment in adaptability or mimic/doppleganger/shifter genetics hybrids. I want him to be something that was uncovered by accident by whatever took out the caravan or was the source of the caravan explosion, a relic of a lost age perhaps. Pathfinder has a lot of android stuff even if it doesn't fit science wise, magic can do anything science could.


Irfan was indeed happy, out of the world of beasts and into a world he knew. Even better despite being a small town, the proximity to the Ironian supply lines meant there was a better then average chance he could find what they needed to fix the skimmer here. Now he just needed to get shelter for the kids, arrange for camels tomorrow, hit the market... the market, and he still had that scale that thing that hit the skimmer. He probably didn't want to carry that around. Eitherway Horus needed his own clothes, Irfan's seemed kind of (tight) on him given they were all tailored. He didn't want to drag the kids around with him, or leave them alone either.


Deciding to hit a tailor first, to get horus measured, it wouldn't hurt for Hana to have proper desert wear either, so make that a seamstress, then find a (Inn/Tavern) to stash people and things before hitting the deep markets where he could procure services(camels(something more fun?), commisson clothing), supplies( tent, rations, First Material Imposition class ability(Ex/Su),First Knack) and materials(parts, cloth, books). Irfan Figures 2 Outfits each will do nicely, and he could have Hana pick out something in her brother's size while they were at it.

Addressing the kids( are they really that much younger then you) Irfan uses his little spell to clean both himself and them up, till they were only a third smelly and dirty and somewhat presentable, as he issues their marching orders. "Alright, first things first we to get you(Hana) off your feet for a bit, but before that we need to get you both some reasonable wear, and while there's still time to prepare it by tomorrow." Even if it's just modifications of whats on hand."<seagreen>Then we can see about

I'll Have a itemized list after the tailor encounter since we can assume everything except the Skimmer part is readily available and haggling will be a mini game. I'm thinking having a list of different outfiters, and secondary check I can attempt for a +5 or -5 depending on if Hit it. How much i hit or miss the mark determines how many 10% I'm market up or down the market price (dc 4 is 130%, dc 16 is 100% price, DC20 is 90% of Srd? 24 would be 80% checked for each group of same items?)

I'm thinking Salt(dispel-bangs) or Ammonium Nitrate(Ice-bangs + Mr.Freeze/Cooling breeze)or Brimstone(Fire-bangs +Stench) are the most chemical/grouned/common-ish, with Ammonium Nitrate Imposition being the most immediately useful to lower hot weather. I'll take Dm's choice of availibility, I'll do the legwork on what the unrefined form if it needs processing. Ammonium Nitra is related to saltpeter, hydrogen peroxide, and distilled shit of many kinds, so it's probably a stinky process depending on local resources. Both Ammonia and Nitrate are pretty basic organics compounds.

Normally I'd Question Desert hygiene like sweat tents and public baths, but Magic is atleast moderately common place enough to think most towns have a item of a form of endless decanter fountain, and Hana can fill a bath herself. So we can have the portable bath tub.

For Knacks I Suggest, Rapid Alchemy (create 150gp or less alchemy items in 1/2 a hour) or Lightning Rod(wave modified stick/staff to call lighting 1/round (Ex or super/magic magnets) high lightning damage.

P.S.Aeronautics (Avatar gliding staff) would fit here, between the seamstress and seeing Hana's flight ability not the most useful ability yet.(Pinterest Guards: If you could fly up there you belong up there)


Bonus points if there is a difficult mini game to acquire a portable alchemist kit without theft.

I kind imagine Irfan's silhouette like this sometimes, lets say i'm willing to devote upto 30 lbs to packing raw alchemy materials at the moment.

The good news is tomorrow Hana should have the ability to prepare lesser restoration, bonus points if procuring the Part's quest takes an extra day due to plot reasons and ends in some kind of rogue's guild encounter over a pricey item.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:49, Sat 07 Sept 2019.

ooc: You're not ganna try to convince Horus to stay with you? Oh. Oh shit. This changes things. I didn't see this coming. Oh man.

BTW, the town isn't near Ironian supply lines (that would be Yuzna, the place where Loki originally ordered the skimmer from) nor Arcanian trade routes. I can't really do much with the map right now, but the town should be around the northwestern corner of Arcania, near the ocean. The proverbial "middle of nowhere" because to the north (across the channel) are the steep mountains of Western Wingheld, and there is no naval trade this side of Hestia because, again, West Wingheld is a dump and the people of the Grasslands aren't much of traders nor seafarers. The only other points of interest would be other west coastal Arcanian towns, and like I said, this town isn't along-the-way but at the very tail end of such a trade chain/route.

Which makes it all that much weirder that it would be this lively, well supplied and crowded. Surely all these people can't all be locals? And if not then why would anyone come her? It offered nothing. I mean yeah, sure, Arcanians thrived on trade (Hong Kong, remember) but still...

Yes, magic does make things simpler in the world. There is a public fountain at the 1st intersection which I guess counts as the town's center-ish.

Tailors? Now you were speaking Arcanian! If there was one thing Arcanians had in spades it was tailors, seamstresses and other cloth weavers. If cheap, practical clothes, carpeting and the like didn't exist, Arcanian tailors would have invented them! Maybe not the high end gold/gem embroided stuff, but if you're looking for the needs of the everyman, Arcania was the place for you even in this thrown-off backwards little town. (you can buy any outfit you want for half the price listed in the PF manual. I mean they could haggle or try to scam but you're a native, you know the deal, and there's no shortage of competitors so what would be the point)

The thing about Arcanian settlements was there were no "markets" because the town itself was the market. If however one was to look for more "specialized" kinds of goods, the tavern was the best place to start.

PF actually has haggling pretty well covered. Check out d20pfsrd.com look up diplomacy and scroll down the page. It should get you a rough idea how it works, but use it for bulk buying not item by item. I believe I used a slightly simplified version of it in the previous game, where the 1st opposing rolls sent the starting price and every 1 point of difference between the secondary opposing rolls lowered or increased the starting price by 1% or was it 2% + 1% per point? Anyway, knock yourself out. There seems to be a shop/guy for any mundane stuff. In fact you could find people that covered radically different skills sets by themselves (like the blacksmith/physician/scribe). Like I said, the more specialized/important/shady business aren't as out in the open, hence the tavern. Taverns hold a more special place in Arcanian culture for this reason, which is why tavern brawls are a lot less frequent and frowned upon in general).

Salt they have in abundance (because the sea is so near). Amonia as well due to the local cattle, and the hills aren't tha far away so minerals like brimstone are fairly common too.

Alchemy counts as mundane, especially in this place where magic wouldn't be as common as other places due to its size and remoteness.

Also keep in mind that EVERYTHING is for sale in Arcania. This includes services and information. So trading some of your own alchemical knowledge for material goods (alchemist kit) with the local alchemist could be done...IF you have something worthwhile to provide.

After the level up Hana will have access to lesser restoration. Aeronautics would be more on a commoner Wingheld thing than an Arcanian thing due to the low wind frequency and strength and the overall altitude of the place (not a lot of high places for testing). And it does tend to be a bit too "blue-sky" research for Arcanians. You see Arcanians aren't the kind of people that invent stuff. They're the workers, the producers, the "doers", the cunning shrewd exploiters, not the innovative thinkers (can I turn this into money today? Not what it could be tomorrow, hence why applicable knowledge is valuable and marketable).

As you explore the town and attend to business, something odd strikes you. The town had only 1 tavern (understandable enough given its size), but it was noisier than usual. And not in the hustle and bustle of people kind of noisy but rather the loud-music playing kind of noisy. Taverns were considered public domains for business so loud music tended to be rarer. Perhaps after "work hours" when deals had been mostly concluded and a call for celebration was needed, but it was far too early in the day for that.

Irfan doesn't see Horus Leaving, right now he is dragging both of them to a seamstress instead of a hot meal and warm bed to get them fitted in acceptable hot weather wear. Horus doesn't know which direction to go in, and while he could make a living off healing magic alone, Ifran doesn't see Horus thinking about leaving Hana Yet, or feel like it's duty to stop him besides general concern about his worldliness.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:14, Sun 08 Sept 2019.

Oh well he does turn and start to walk away after assuring Hana he's ganna be ok. After all the deal was that he'd accompany you to the town, right?

Irfan has 50-51 gold on him, he can sell the wine for 62 ishx4

Thats a total Capital of roughly 298

Tent, Large    1x 30gp  40 lbs  4 people
Bedroll        4x 40gp  20 lbs
Blanket        5x .5gp  18 lbs
Candle stick   1x  -     - lbs
Candle         1x  -     - lbs
Shovel         2x  -     6 lbs
Hot Weath out  5x 20 gp 20 lbs
Rations       40x 20 gp 40 lbs
Barrel         2x  8 gp 60 lbs
------------------------------------
                  125gp x .95 haggle = 120gp

Inn stay       1x 16 gp  - lbs
Camel          5x 750gp  - lbs (rental though?) 1 guide, 1 irfan, 1 Hana, 2 If skimmer is totaled by now.
Guide/Handler  1x 10 gp  - lbs (roughly a 7 day round trip, bundle with camels?)
               (5 camels * 2gp per day? + 1 handler * 1gp per day) x 1 week = 77 gp?
43g Left over
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Doctor Guide (1 gp/day): A Guide is a person skilled in non-magical healing and medicine Wilderness survival, monster aversion, and handling animals. A typical guide is a 3rd-level expert with 3 ranks in survival, the Skill Focus (survival) feat, and ranks in other valuable skills such as Knowledge (nature) and handle animal. ??


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Seeing Horus turn to leave, Irfan speaks "Wait, atleast let us get you proper clothes to wear and a roof for the night. We owe you at least that much after all your help." In part worried because the young man literally had nothing he hadn't been given, even though he would be able to find income anywhere as a healer,  knowing where he wanted to go next and how to do it didn't seem like things he was capable of yet despite being full of surprises. "I'll get you fitted for some desert clothes, and help you figure out what you want to do next." and having someone to watch out for Hana while he was busy trading would be a blessing.
Irfan rolled 22 using 1d20+6.  Influence vs Horus.

Tailor commision fitted clothing for to be ready tomorrow -> get a nice room for the night(average suite, 2 bedroom)-> Sell Sealord's Wine(trade good) -> put out word about needing camels and a handler for them -> and finally find out where to get sandskimmer parts for tomorrow.

-> Get strength damage healed because Hana is a nice person -> Pick up clothes? Say good by to Horus with advice on accomplishing whatever he wants? -> Get Equipment list, -> procure sandskimmer part. -> pay for and load up camels, -> Caravan out>


Lots of role play opportunities here, including Hana throwing a fit or otherwise changing Irfan's mind. Pathos vs Logos. Ugh still way more orange then meat on this post.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:16, Mon 09 Sept 2019.

"Ah, thank you Irfan-san" Horus bows in deep respect.

With that out of the way you nod and turn to get back to business "Alright, the first thing we need to do-"
-"Hey! What are you doing? Are you ganna pay for that, thief?!" an angry yell interrupts you. You turn around and see Horus a few paces back with a loaf of bread in his mouth giving the angry baker a blank, confused look. He had apparently just taken the thing right off the stall.
-"I...I was just hungry. What does "pay" mean?" he cocks his head sideways.

Face-palming, you hurry back apologize and pay the merchant then pull Horus along. Back on your original course "Horus you can't just go around and take whatever tickles your fancy. You need to give people money if you want them to give you something back. Horus are you listening?...Horus?" you turn around and once again he's gone.

You look around and see Horus near a ventriloquist with a hand puppet. Then he stands next to him, puts his own sock on his hand and starts doing flawless ventriloquism himself, earning him wide-eyed adoration and excited giggles from the gathered kids, and daggers from the original entertainer. 'Damn it, can't take my eyes off of him to 2 seconds' you curse under your breath as you stomp over and drag him away again.

"Hana, watch him" you order the little tengu and she nods with all the seriousness she could project. "This is serious stuff guys, " you tell them as you make your way to a tailor "^{*psst, hey*} Arcanian towns are by no means safe. We need to get find someone that sells skimmer parts, rest up and be out of here at first light tomorrow. There are scam artists and swindlers all over the place. You can't just wonder off and- xalt damn it!" you turn around and both Hana and Horus are gone. Back at the end of the streets you see Horus and Hana looking up at a shady normal looking man, and eating up every word "^{Skimmer parts, eh? Yeah, sure, I can hook you up, he he}" but with a single look you could tell he was a manual worker of some kind rather than a merchant.

You go back, grab each of them by a shoulder and usher the two of them to go marching in-front on you, giving the man a dirty look as you did, to which he just fake-apologetically shrugged in a 'can't blame me for trying' sort of way.
"This is ganna be harder than I thought..."

From that point on you didn't take your eyes off of them, which made haggling and the whole business of procuring supplies in general longer than it needed to be. (ooc: You won't know if the skimmer is totaled until you return. Also, the wine sold for 5% more, even with poor haggling, so make that an even 275 instead of 246. You got the feeling the wine was a lot more valuable in this remote region despite the large number of other outsider traders. In fact you saw a lot of merchants but very little actual trading. But you were on a schedule and needed the cash now.

Finding the usual stuff was easy enough and people were accommodating enough. But whenever you breached the subject of skimmer parts, whoever you were talking to would just close up. They were still polite and to an outsider it may have seemed like they didn't know then it was business as usual, but not to you. A change would come over them and they'd stop trying to make a sale as hard, almost as if they wanted to get rid of you, to say nothing of information on parts. And they all had the same response "Oh I'm sorry sir, we don't get such fancy stuff way out here. May I suggest you try *damn it, I forgot the name I used for the town Loki ordered the skimmer form* instead?"

Figuring it was one of those more exclusive "high end" items you couldn't just find on the open market, you decided to try the tavern. Your path would have led you there anyway as the "service" related trade like camels and guides seemed to be handled from there.

As you approach you hear music (as per previous post). When you enter it you find a very unArcanian-like tavern scene. The patrons were cheering and laughing and dancing and booze was flowing all over. On a makeshift stage at the far end of the room were 4 dwarves, very obviously foreigners from very far way if their clothes were any indication, and very obviously bards based on the fact they were jamming out a tune with bagpipes and other traditionally dwarven music instruments. They were singling in common, but had really thick dwarvish accents and the song was obviously a not-ideal translation of a dwarven song. It was still extremely catchy though.

Dwarf Ale! Dwarf Ale! Dwarf Ale! Dwarf Ale! HEY!
Dwarf Ale, you're feeling stronger
Dwarf Ale, no more feeling bad
Dwarf Ale, your eyes are shining
Dwarf Ale, now you're a real man!
Dwarf Ale, wipes away your tears
Dwarf Ale, removes all your fears
Dwarf Ale, and everybody's gorgeous
YEAH DWARF ALE!

(choris)
Drinking's good for you
Soon you are unconstrained

Drinking's good for you
Here comes the womanizer

Drinking's good for you
No more being lonesome

Drinking's good for you
And you will feel awesome
HEY!

Out of respect for nature
Our dwarf ale and drinkers.
Promising, that the dwarf ale
We make, is as pure as it was
Thousands of years ago
Out of respect for nature
Our dwarf ale and drinkers!!!

And then it kept repeating in a loop but it was still really catchy. So catchy in fact that, well, you were starting to feel a bit thirsty yourself. Thirsty for some...DWARF ALE!!!

Roll Will save throw DC 13. If you fail you are compelled into ordering a mug of dwarf ale. Keep rolling until you succeed or pass out in a drunken stupor. Also roll for Hana and Horus.

ooc: Sorry for the delay, I've got 80 hour work weeks and shitty net. Liv's post will have to wait till tomorrow. Did you upload the file with the All men are brothers posts to Slack? Tomo also opened a folder in google drives but I've never used google drive before so I'm not sure what to do with it. If you can send it there that's fine too.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:18, Tue 10 Sept 2019.

Irfan rolled 38 using 11, 11(+Hana), 20(+/-?Horus) with rolls of 7,11,20.  Irfan - Hana - Horus will saves.
Hana should be able to get +2 from class and not have a negative Wis.

Irfan rolled 5, 22, 16 using 3d20+4 with rolls of 1,18,12.  Irfan Will Saves 2nd, 3rd, 4th.
Irfan rolled 19, 20 using 2d20+1 with rolls of 18,19.  Con Saves.

Ooc: well I was hoping for a more inteesting reaction than that.

This message was deleted by the player at 18:01, Wed 11 Sept 2019.

While Hana and Horus just look around confusingly at the chaos, you take to the party at full swing. You had so much pent up stress after everything that's happened this part week or so you really needed to blow off some steam. This skinny old-ish man was the bartender and by the looks of it he was running the whole place on his own (except for this giant bull-of-a-man leaning against the wall and glaring intimidatingly at the patrons, "keeping them honest" if you will). He was just pouring drink after drink and sliding it down the table at outstretched hands. Panting, sweating, working himself into an early grave by the looks of it. After the 2nd round however, when your thirst is more than sated and the loss of weight in your purse started weighing on you, you start questioning the wisdom in your decision to have some in the beginning. (ooc: See what the price for ale is on d20pfsrd and buy 2 at double the cost, you can't reduce this cost via haggling)

You suspected the ale may be watered down a bit, considering it didn't quite had the kick you thought it should (that or it wasn't really dwarf ale), but nobody else in here seemed to mind. That or thet had had way more to drink than you. And speaking of the people inside, you saw a whole slew of curious people. Some local, some foreigners. Some weren't drinking at all, like that one shady looking guy in the corner just observing the room with a keen eye or the obvious lady-of-the-night just leaning on the wall, cigar in hand, watching with an amused look, or that older gentlemen with the glasses, just leaning back on his chair, keeping his eyes closed as if napping and just enjoying the music. There wasn't anything exceptional about his physical appearance, other than being a bit on the fat side and a local, but he did seem confident and serene, giving off this impression of an experienced man of the world you could say.

Some patrons were just being happy-drunk slurring off tune and waving the mug around while swinging back and forth with their hand around the equally fashnukered friend next to them, some older men giving advice to their younger counterparts,
"You walk around looking like someone trying to buy something and you're liable to find someone to sell you something. And no necessarily what you wanted." said the 1st fatherly figure (if not the actual father).
-"And remember, nothing is free. Nothing! If you're not the customer then you're the product." added on the other guy, wagging his finger at the young man.
Some were sad drunk, like that one guy talking about his cheating wife, that other guy nearer to the bards, face down on the table, occasionally banging it with his forehead, bawling his eyes out and another one patting him on the back and borrowing a sympathetic ear.
"^{I was makin' my way here like I always was, I was I tell ya. D' Cruel One ran by and I was like happy I was, figurin monsters won't cause trouble till I get here. Was ganna shave off a few days too I was, didn' wanna get caught in the monster hunger surge after the pass I was,}" this arcanan guy explained, but clearly an outsider since he wasn't sporting the local fashion. His clothes marked him as a well to do trader, or at least they would have except they showed signs that the man had fallen on hard times recently.
-"^{But you were too slow and got caught in the rain, lost all your stuff trade goods and made it here with just your life?}" the sympathetic man, a local but obviously a long time friend rather than a stranger, tried to guess what happened next.
-"^{No, I've been here for a couple of days now, I have. Haven't enough had money for a decent meal let alone a place to stay or a bath or anythin'. What happened was my caravan just blew up, it did.}"
-"^{...what do you mean "blew up"?}"
-"^{Just blew up. Out of nowhere.}"
-"^{You weren't bringing any-}"
-"^{-No! no, nothin like that, why would I, I have a nice gig going on with the big boss 'ere, I do. And I was coming not leavin, I was, so it couldn't be falty cargo ether. Ya see I was leadin the caravan, as always I was, there was a loud noise, then I felt myself bein' thrown forward by this...wave, this force, it pushed me it did. Knocked me on my face in the dirt an everything it did. Then I felt like something was pullin me, but it was over quick. By the time I was up an dusted my face off, there was a giant hole right in the middle where my caravan was, most of just gone the rest smashed up, it was.}"
-"^{Shouldn't an explosion strong enough to make a crater that big just, I dunno, vaporize you or something?}"
-"^{I dunno, and I wasn't ganna stick aroun' to find out, I wasn't. Grabbed the nearest camel that was still alive and walkin, kicked it up, got on and rode over here like the Cruel One himself was chasen me!}"
-"^{What about your men-}"
-"FUCK 'EM! After that shit it's every man for 'imself, it is!" the trader slams his fist on the table and shouts, then collapses into his arm crying again. His friend patting him again, a little more reluctantly this time.

For some, the booze seems to have brought paranoiaclarity and were discussing serious stuff beyond them you doubt they'd otherwise bother talking about.
"^{Sure, there's peace between the kwacks and then dings now, but those kwacks have been poking around a lot lately and I don't like it.}" said the 1st at the table, drawing the other 3 into a conspiratory-like huddle, as if sharing some super top secret or something.
-"^{All the way up here?}" his worry adding to the tension.
-"^{Think they may be planning another war?}" pilled on the 3rd, increasing the tension further. This was so important. They felt so important right now, like kingpriests deciding the fate of the world in some secret meeting on top of the tallest tower in Pintherast.
-"^{They're always planning another war. Both of 'em! Useless, lazy, jacknapes, always puttin' us 'onest folk in the middle. You can't even bribe an official anymore without a permit, tch!}" the 4th one hand-waved it all away, leaning back, slurping on his mug and breaking the spell.

The dwarven bard band seemed to be finishing up their number and retiring from the stage to a nearby table. Whether for just a break or the rest of the evening, you didn't know. And with the pause in music so did the influx of orders, to which the bartender was very, very grateful as he took a seat on a chair, on his side of the bar, at the far end next to the door that led to the...kitchen? Or the storage for the drinks, probably. Whatever taverns use back rooms for.

I was at a loss as to what exactly to do with this, the fact this man is related to horus got noted and forgotten without realizing the implications, my mental capacities have were shot the past two weeks apparently. Also those dwarven ales are 4 coppers, these probably were marked upto 6 due to demand and being magically delicous.

-1.2 silver for ale.

Irfan leans in closer something that exploded inwards instead of outwards, he he had assumed the caravan feel in to a sand pit given dug by something since the hole was so deep. He hadn't considered something going off and removing the sand to create the hole and dropping the caravan into it. Finishing his first cup, he gets a second as he listens in looking for something as to how Horus fit into it. So  atleast Horus wasn't related to whatever secretive shipments were being sent to this backsands settlement, which was one concern off his chest. This man might recognize Horus, but he could also to scamming him, Irfan didn't even know if he was the caravan leader or just embellishing since he hadn't seen any camel tracks, and it was a awfully steep pit by the time he found it.

Irfan decides to sleep on this information, the man wasn't liable to be leaving soon.
Irfan rolled 25 using 1d20+6.  Sense motive.




Realizing his funds were quite low, far too low to be drinking idly, he heads to the room to massage his feet and hopefully regain some his strength. He hadn't been this sore since he was convinced to ride a barrel down  the street and wound up going off the pier.


Is he calling that Deathworm Exalted the cruel one? Is that a name Irfan would recognize or just assume.

So you're just ganna leave, rent a room and sleep?

Is there something i'm forgetting, i thought i had done all i could tonight and don't really think putting off a good nights sleep is in Irfan's favor given the venom and strength damage. He could talk to Horus tonight, but thats something Horus can ask for tonight or he can deal with in the morning. Since letting somone as skilled and naive as Horus loose in Arcania is bound to wind up with him exploited.

Well there is the skimmer parts issue.

Actually, I'm pretty sure I mentioned there was 1 set of tracks leaving away from the site when you were there, leading in the general direction of where the caravan was originally headed (this town).

Thinking back on it, you did recall a trail, but a single trail fades a lot quicker than a whole caravan so you lost sight of it not long after. And quite frankly you had bigger troubles at the time to give it a second thought.

Observing the man, as you had noted earlier, his clothes definitely indicated a reasonably wealthy merchant that had recently and very abruptly fallen on hard times. The local with him clearly knows him so it's not like he could lie about his identity, and if this whole thing was an elaborate con by the two of them you couldn't see how they'd benefit from it. You could reasonably say he is who he says he is and was probably drowning his problems away. Whether he'd remember Horus on the other hand, or try to take advantage of him (or anyone for that matter giving his situation) was a different question altogether.

He probably would.

Deciding you shouldn't do everything in 1 breath, thinking it better to resume your task in the morn when you were more rested, collected, gotten a better feel for this place, and more importantly get Horus and especially Hana out of this place. Drunk, rowdy men with no law enforcement or social norms in sight? It was no place for a woman.

The innkeeper tried the usual tourist trap bullshit to jack up the price, it was to be expected, part of Arcanian culture just like saying "good morning", you were suppose to keep up pretenses even though it was a public secret but you were really REALLY not in the mood. "I'm Arcanian too, I know the deal, cut the bullshit."

Put off by the rudeness, he gave you a room at the usual price. It was still a bit more expensive than the usual prices in other settlements, but it was to be expected in a place so far off and with no competition. (10% higher than listed in d20pfsrd.com Are you choosing good, medium or cheap stay? Remember there are 3 of you.)
.

.

.

That night, as your body was finally given the chance to properly rest and your mind to loosen the grip on constant vigilance, the stress washed away (or at least simmer down to a more manageable level), information and events became puzzle pieces in your mind and started merging together, falling into place. A detail in the conversation between the unfortunate merchant and his friend that seemed irrelevant at the time came to the forefront now. "I was coming, not leaving, so it couldn't be faulty cargo ether.", which means...whatever this place exports it has the same potential for explosive destruction as whatever contraband (well there is no "contraband" in Arcania, but perhaps dangerous substances normal merchants avoid to use).

Anyway, since you're from Arcania, it is common knowledge that there are 2 (there have always been 2) Exalted in this region, not counting the ones that come and go occasionally. The Lonely One, which is like the patron saint of contracts/bonds and the "good guy", and The Cruel One, which is the "bad guy". If you want to see if Irfan knows more than that you'll need to roll a religion check. Also roll Con save for the night to see if you recover 1 ability damage (tell Hana how many spells you want her to prepare for healing the ability damage), and finally don't forget to level up and update your sheet. You can also rp some scene with the local alchemist if you'd like to justify the level up.

Ooc: Sorry for the lack of activity and lackluster posts, been really busy and I needed the rest. And more rest means less time to devote to this.

Irfan rolled 12 using 1d20+1.  Con vs recover.

Irfan would normally be good with 'common' rooms, but he puts in a bit extra to vet 'good' for Hana. 3.3 gold total
Irfan rolled 8(1) using 1d20+7.  Knowledge religion


Irfan gets the arrangement for the rooms set up, and his group settled in. He puts down his traveling gear to lighten his load before heading back out when his legs give out sending him face first into the bed. His last thought was that he really didn't have time to sleep, but it was so comfortable.

He wakes to the sound of carts rolling and the markets opening. He chuckles at himself, foolish enough to believe a kingpriest (even a young one) would need his help. He needed to get to work before he was late again. PAIN

Sitting up fast was the wrong move to make, his muscles screamed at him for interrupting their recovery. This wasn't his room, He was still suffering from those spider bites, and that meant there was most certainly a angry kingpriest waiting for him to return. He had a charge in the next room, and that strange blue hair boy too. He needed to round them up before they wander outside the Inn, and he still had to deal with the shaded market before leaving today.

(For fun, make the shadiest goings on happen in the darker parts of the market where more tarps and blankets block out most of the sunlight. A free universal sign that the ignorant should turn back.)

Irfan gets out of bed slowly and makes himself presentable, He knocks on both of his companions doors (and if no responce, or after informing them) heads down to breakfast to find/wait for them.

ooc: Sorry for the late reply. I kept refreshing the page on my phone every day, but it didn't show me an updated page, just the same initial one. Didn't discover you had posted until just now when I checked the last logged on date.

Before entering the room you hear the sawing of wood. Fearing the boy was up to more of his weird shenanigans, _{who knows maybe building something using the furniture,} ^{shit the bills the innkeeper would slap on you} so you enter without asking for permission only to you find him half out of bed (head on the floor, legs still in bed) still asleep in a small puddle of drool. The sawing was in-fact him snoring really really loudly due to the obstructed breathing pathways, mouth WIDE open hence the drool. *insert anime snot bubble*

Thankfully, rousing the tengu princess was less hazardous to your health.
*knock knock*
"...Come in," a soft voice invited you in. Opening the door you find Hana still praying on the floor, the sunlight coming from the small window giving the effect of a stage spotlight, outlining her and almost making her seem like an angel ^{what with her white feathers and all}. She doesn't immediately get up, just resumes praying in silence. She could have told you to wait for her outside, but instead she had let you in to witness this, be apart of it if only as an observer. To share with you an aspect of her life.

You waited patiently in serene silence.

Finally she finished and got up. "Thank you for waiting. I beseeched the Sky Father to grant me the power to help you. I haven't asked for anything like it before, but then again I had never needed it before. I was afraid he wouldn't grant it, afraid he might get angry at one so young to presume so much, one still so lowly ranked in the order, one with still so much to learn and devote and prove herself. But-" she turned to look you straight in the eye, "-my need, or rather I should say your need, your wellbeing was more important, was stronger than the fear. I know I've given you a hard time, I know I haven't said this before, but all things considered you have done well by me, by big brother. You have seen us through impossible perils and are still suffering for it. Well, no more," she says as she approaches and puts her hand on your chest. A warm light shines from it, you feel like it lifts you up, or rather as if it was unburdening you. Your breathing becomes easier, you feel as if you had unknowingly been clenching all this time and now you were finally allowed to relax (recover Str ability dmg). Your mood improved, you were ready tot tackle the day!

As you both exit, Hana remarks in a peeked-curiosity sort of way "By the way, I've noticed an increasingly red spot forming on your forehead over the last few days. I might be able to heal it if I knew what it is. Any idea what's causing it?"
*insert Sokka from Avatar. That red mark he had on his forehead from too much facepalming when he was stuck with those dumb hippies*
-"Nevermind" aaaand the mood went right back to sour again. -_-

---

Normally in Arcania, both in Cruilla while growing up and the city you were working at before the adventure (can't recall what it was called), there are shady areas, both literally and figuratively. A lot of them in fact thanks to the maze-like architecture of the cities. This settlement however strangely enough doesn't seem to have one. Yet another thing in the mounting bucket of strange about this place you just couldn't put your finger on.

ooc: Ok I realize I may not have given you much to work with with that last post so allow me to expand. Just ignore that last paragraph.

You spent the morning and a good chunk of time after noon once again trying to track down merchants and people who peddle in sand skimmer parts, but were met with much the same results. What was even more surprising however is that, spare parts aside, you couldn't even find traces of the shadier aspects of Arcanian merchant culture. Yes, regulations and prohibition wasn't a thing in Arcania, but even then there were practices, goods and services that were frowned upon or simply dangerous by nature. Or really were criminal, such as fencing stolen goods and such. And every Arcanian settlement to your knowledge does or at least should have a "black market". Yet this place doesn't despite merchants coming and going at a much more frequent rate than a small backwater place with no apparent natural resources or goods should have. Yet another thing in the mounting bucket of strange about this place you just couldn't put your finger on.

While pondering this misery and unwinding yourself from the tight places back into the open, you notice even more crowdedness than usual, but without the lively trading hustle and bustle that should accompany it. If anything the excitement seems to have died down as folk were more on edge. This mystery however was not hard to solve at all for the influx of people were men in matching outfits. Very well armed and armored men unsuited for prolonged desert travel (so no way they were some caravan bodyguards) in unmistakably military uniforms.

They weren't harassing anyone or searching or questioning anyone, but neither were they partaking in trade or goods perusing. They were just poorly attempting to act as if they were casually strolling (which for them was just 1 step short of parade marching) while intently keeping a vigilant eye out.

Before you could discreetly ask one of the nearby arcanians what was going on, you hear a muffled but still loud crashing sound coming from the only tavern in town.

The locals jumped up and fright and looked around worriedly, scared mutterings abuzz, while the soldiers acted as if nothing was amiss, or even glare down any inquisitions a local may have had before he could even voice it at them.

"What's going on?" Hana asks as she clings closer to your arm.

At first not picking up the que of the overall increased edginess of the atmosphere, Horus now furrows his brow upon seeing Hana frightened and reaches for a sword at his hip, only to realize he didn't have one. He grunts disappointingly but wasn't discouraged from matching a warning glance from a soldier with a defiant one of his own. *insert anime intense staredown*

Irfan basks in the feeling of his body relaxing for a moment, till his stomach angrily reminds him what time of day it was. Appologizing, he asked Hana to get ready for breaksfast before the inn Keeper charged them for a second day. He really didn't have the funds for it, Double checking on Horus to make sure he was up, and offering him a place to use his skills as a bodyguard for Hana, the nagging though of everyone trying to fit on the skimmer at the back of his mind. The kid had done a lot for them, and he didn't want to see him taken advantage of, not by some stranger atleast, worst case he could ride back and work with the camel master.



Powering through breakfast Irfan contemplating the day ahead, expecting trouble of the distracted kind from the kids. Picking up the supplies that had needed to be touched up or assembled overnight, Irfan was on his way to pick up the tailored goods when the already skittish town went from the from already quiet loud noise level to that of a dull murmur. That could only mean one thing, there was a lot more money to be lost then gained at the moment. Looking around for the source of the distress, his eyes settled on the one thing that didn't belong, lock step armed guards. No not guards, mercenaries, they weren't part of a entourage just in a organized mass. Checking his gaze to avoid attention, he looked back at his companions realizing that they stood out and Horus was calling one out. He considered hitting him upside the head, but that would only make them suspicous, Right now they looked like a traveling mage, a guide and a guard. "Nothing we need care about, just some local business, so lets be about ours." If Horus kept provoking the man Irfan didn't know what would happen, but the clues pointed towards a light beating or worse. Whoever they were, they seemed to have their own rules about doing things, enough so they probably turned over stalls or took things if someone upset them.



( Knowledge nature(Geography: peoples+7) or Society(know Local: humaniods+10) or Lore: Traderoutes+10)
Best guess,  Ironian soldiers (thugs) patrolling around Ironian facilities/factories, the continuation of the previous cursebomb cities activities.

Irfan rolled 20 using 1d20.  identify foreigners.

ooc: natural 20, dang!
Being one at the heart of a bustling trade center at the forefront of a guild no less, you heard a lot of rumors from merchants all around the world. And although you never met one personally, you did hear on more than one occasion what Kwon-Yuu soldiers look like. *insert image of a samurai in full armor*

And these guys fit the description to a T!

The realization nearly knocked you over.

Although Arcania was officially Ironian territory and with the signing of the cease fire the Kwon-Yuu weren't suppose to set foot outside their impenetrable fortress at the southern-most edge of Arcania (the 1st foothold they had won over on this continent from which all other land invasions had followed from), in practice Ironia had only a token presence in the northern parts of Arcania while the Kwon-Yuu roamed about here and there in the southern regions. Both however left central Arcania and each respective territory alone as a buffer zone less they cause tension/skirmishes and reignite the war. For the Kwon-Yuu to so brazenly be this far up north, not only past the central region but into what could be considered the Ironian controlled-ish part of Arcania (or controlled adjacent if you will considering how remote this settlement was), was very big news. 'Are they trying to restart the war!'

And of course here you were, at ground zero, with Wingheld royalty in tow and a suicidal idiot doing his best to get their attention, a kingpriest out there holding the sword of Damacleus over your head...Oh and the responsibility of losing the most sought after item in the world.

Keeping a low profile suddenly became a whole lot more important, and you pulled Horus away much more urgently, which he complied with reluctantly, refusing to break eye contact and turn his back on the soldier while walking backwards. *insert gif of that scene in Korra where the police captain is giving Korra the "I'm keeping my eye on you" and Korra childishly returns the gesture*

If only this were that simple.

A louder crash is heard as the doors of the tavern bang open, half coming off their hinges, as a fat, scruffy merchant is thrown through them and lands face first into the ground, leaving another 5ft of drag marks before he stops. The murmurs instantly stop and a shocked silence with an even deathlier stillness falls over the market. Hana grips you harder for support, trying to hide behind you like a child behind a parent. What other people considered crimes Arcanians practiced as a part of life, in fact scanning someone was a kind of a rite of passage into adulthood, but that didn't apply to violent crimes. To be forced to face such undisguised brutality and be helpless to do anything about it, to be made to feel helpless in the clutches of a brute ^{after all this was no isolated murderer that you can just deal with in mob justice} was jarring to say the least. (think the Ferrangi from Star Trek. Specifically that episode in Deep Space 9 when the Grand Nagus faked his death to see if his son had what it takes to take over. Then reprimanded him later when he tried to "take power like a Klingon. A true Ferrangi acquires power. They use wit and cunning.).

Still conscious the poor merchant lifts his head up and shakes it to clear mind and vision. You recognize him. He was the merchant patron from yesterday claiming he was a caravan blown up. With a painful grunt he rolls over on his back and breaths heavily. You could now see he was quite hurt, trails of blood made dry by the sand leaving trails from his head down his face. Black and blue bruises showing where his worse-for-wear clothes were now in outright tatters. There's a sqweek and the merchant's head snaps up, pure terror across his face as he looks at the darkness of the entrance to the tavern.

From inside casually walks out a man. He has short cropped white hair, blue eyes, human, middle-aged, well groomed though clear wrinkle lines on his face that testify of a less than carefree life and a compassionate little smile that couldn't be faker if it said "Made in China" on the bottom. No armor, no large weapons like a sword, spear, bow or whatever that you could see. He's wearing black leather gloves and boots almost up to his knees, a belt with some kind of pouch or knife scabbard on the side. The overall design of the uniform is different than that of the other soldiers, some sort of cloth but nothing elaborate, clearly intended for function rather than presentation. That however did nothing to lessen his ability to grip attention. It didn't take a genius to deduce he was in charge of these men. *insert image of a gestapo officer, minus the armband*

Though the Kwon-Yuu officer made no apparent hostile gestures nor even an aggressive posture as he strolled over to the the prone figure, the fat merchant seemed absolutely petrified and involuntarily tried to crawl/scamper backwards away from him, unable to look away as if a mouse caught in the gaze of a snake. And snake was certainly the right word to describe him for sweet words that followed absolutely salivated with poison.
"Now now, there's no need to be scared. I just want some information, that's all. " the Kwon-Yuu officer shrugged innocently. Which was ether not effective or extremely effective, depending on what kind of effect he was really going for. His common was flawless, as in textbook standard literary common without even a hint of accent or colloquialism. Too perfect.

The fat merchant could only just mutely stammer, trying to speak but failing because he was hyperventilating. His expression on his face sent a clear enough message though. He had no idea what the officer actually wanted from him which in turn further fueled his fear since this guy didn't look like he'd be happy with that answer.

Picking up on this the officer cocked his head a little and sighed. "There we were the day before yesterday, me and my men just walking around, minding our own business, taking in the scenery, when we see a merchant in the middle of nowhere. We did the neighborly thing and invited him to share the campfire with us. We got to talking and found out he was coming from this little settlement I've never heard of all the way out here. With a little prodding-" some of the soldiers snickered at this, "-he told me a lot of other things, and I don't mean to be rude but he wasn't the best of guest entertainer. However one of his stories did catch my fancy, ^{I just love stories, I really do}. It was about a roughed up, half-crazed guy who came into town claiming he was a rich merchant who saw a very peculiar monster and had his caravan destroyed under some very-" he pauses as he thinks over for the right word "-unique circumstances. Very fascinating. Very, enthralling. All I want...is to hear more. ^{I just love stories, what can I say ha ha}"

-"...Eh???" The fat merchant was no longer stammering, his complete confusion momentarily surfacing above the fear. "B-b-b-but, there is no more. That's it. That's all I know. There's nothing else to tell! I don't know anything! Why are you doing this to me?!" his voice rising with desperation and even some outrage as he couldn't believe he was getting beaten up over this. Beaten for no reason what-so-ever!

The officer just clicks his tongue and shakes his head in a disappointingly as the merchant claims ignorance, "*Sigh* ^{Why must they always do this?} You see my friend, I've been doing this for a while, and in that time I have found that people tend to remember important details-" he raises his hand,"-when given the proper incentive."
-"I dindu nuffi-<b>UUUF!</b>"
An invisible concussive force suddenly explodes from the officer's hand and sends the merchant flying back even more, crashing into the stalls behind, sending splintered wood, nuts and fruit scattering all over. There's a gasp and scream from the people around including Hana's extremely high-pitched (compared to non-bird humanoids) trademark "Kyaaaa!" shriek, those closest to the impact site scurrying away, the murmurs coming back in full force, tension and nervousness cranking up.

The soldiers who had been acting nonchalantly up till now drew and pointed weapons all around, reminding everyone who held the power here before anyone got any funny ideas, quell any dissent or rioting before it happens.

"Stop it!" she yells above the crowd. "^Hm?" the officer looks in your general direction. You quickly smother Hana in a headlock to keep her quiet. "^{He's going to die!}" you hear her muffled voice as she fights to break free and go aid the merchant. The line of sight between you and the officer was still somewhat obscured by the crowd of bodies, but you didn't think that would last for very long. Even with local Arcanian clothes, Horus and especially Hana really stood out. A hoodie may solve the blue hair problem but the full body white feathers...not so much.

ooc: Hana is trying to break free and heal the fat merchant. You have to:
Step 1: Ether use Influence to convince/intimidate her not to do it, the DC will be high because it goes both against her religion and nature, or use a grapple check to drag her off or whatever. This will be a contested roll so make 2 rolls, 1 for your grapple check and 1 for her grapple check. You could also try to convince Horus to help you with this.
Step 2: Assuming you don't want to be seen by the Kwon-Yuu officer, roll a stealth check for all 3 of you (take the average as the group stealth). If you had to grapple Hana then don't roll for her, but know that the overall DC for the stealth check will be higher (kinda hard to blend in and sneak away when you have a tengu kicking and screaming under your arm). If you convinced Horus to help the Stealth DC will be lower.

Alternatively, you can do something completely different I haven't anticipated. I was just throwing out the most obvious options I could think of off the top of my head.

Today: Irfan rolled 15(7) using 1d20+8.  Diplomacy Remember your position/think of the people.

Natural 20s don't count by RAW on skill checks, Lets say Irfan has seen some diagrams and heard some stories, enough to know the sheer calm/unfeeling expressions are hallmarks on top of the strange gear.

Knowing he couldn't holding the tengu back for long without hurting her or ripping out feathers, he hurriedly whispered almost as a prayer, "Wait, Remember your family, those are Kwon and you are you. If they kill you too, what will they do when they hear about that on top of your sister disappearing. If they don't kill him, how can you help if your beaten unconscious too."

Irfan rolled 19 using 1d20+1.  Cmd  Bull rush/reposition vs Hana.

Bringing his other hand around, he shoves Hana back into Horus with his open palm and sheer desperation, If Hana got hurt here, P'ung would scour the face of the desert in retaliation not to mention the international relations. He could only hope she could realize this wasn't like the sand pit, hundreds and then thousands of lives hung in the balance here not just a handful.

Standing up, straighter yet purposely crooked, Irfan pushes his way towards the front, staff tapping as he goes, putting more weight on it then needed. He's talking him, but about a third survivor? How many made it out? I hope Horus realizes atleast that Hana is in danger, even if he doesn't know he is. Buying himself time to think and appear slightly inept.

" Please Sir, We are a peaceful folk, with women and children about. I don't know what business you have with this man, but for the children's sake let us go inside. playing up the innocent angle by shaking his knees as he addressed the dominant stranger well aware the man was studying him and a sense of dread running down his back as he realized that he would be recognized immediately if they ever met again and that he was no fool.

Irfan rolled 12(4) using 1d20+8.  Influence to bluff/Influence.


Irfan assumed they must be local since the whole town feels too orderly to be influenced only by arcadian ways something else must have it's hand in it, and who else would be constructing such strange devices as a inward explosive. It's a logical leap, Unusual A + unusual B = Cause and effect. Feel
This message was last edited by the player at 04:49, Wed 09 Oct 2019.

ooc: Even if it doesn't, this skill check alone was still way above the DC, that's why I even added the extra info.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think you meant to say Loki (Tomo) would be the one doing the retaliating because I don't think a literal god (P'ung) would invade a territory that already has 2/3 gods in it just to avenge 1 mortal he may not even be aware exists. Unless Irfan really did thing divine retribution might just happen, I dunno. BTW, and this is just a meh sort of thing but speaking of Tomo, had his character not been a PC character I would have had him start at a higher level (like 3 or 4, he is a kingpriest and does have some world experience under his belt), however it would have been highly unfair to have 1 player start at lvl 1 and the other one at a higher one.

1st, just to clarify something, before you left on your adventure you heard absolutely nothing about unusual Kwon-Yuu activity, and you'd certainly would since you have constant contact with trades from across the world. Which means whatever this is it must've started in-between then and now, within the last 5~6 weeks or so. Now you're no military tactician, but you'd imagine anyone planning an invasion would try to be subtle about it until the last moment rather than be this active out in the open among the biggest blabbermouths and rumormongers in the world, and this close to Ironia no less. You don't know if Ironia hasn't detected their presence yet because you haven't seen any Ironians yet (although that might be because you kinda went with the skimmer through a "non-traditional" border crossing, very quickly, then b-lined it through open land that's not usually traversed, so even if there were troops around from ether side, playing hide-and-go-fuck-yourself with each other you might not have seen them anyway). Nor do you know if Ironia has seen but choosing to ignore the Kwon-Yuu activity (out of fear of provoking a war or for whatever reason) because this settlement is the 1st bit of people you've come across in order to catch up on current events (remember in medieval times, even high fantasy ones, news and info is slow and hard to come by especially if you're just a pleb).

2nd clarification, you got the impression the fat merchant was telling his tale of woe to anyone who would listen (or unfortunate enough to be nearby and be forced to listen) for the sake of the sympathy or whatever. Based on what the officer said, the random merchant they came across was most likely one such guy. Just heard someone running his mouth and not even believed it.

And final clarification, nobody can mistake an Exalted for a monster even if they appear monstrous. Nobody in your whole party themselves (including you) had ever seen an Exalted up close in person before (maybe Hana had seen P'ung at a far far far distance) yet you instantly ^{instinctively one might say} recognized it as such rather than thinking it was just some random giant monster worm or whatever. This is because Exalted ones have a presence about them, kinda like when standing before a god, or to borrow from anime like when Hestia in Danmachi revealed a little bit of her goddly presence. Nothing about her changed, nothing happened, yet all the humans/mortals were instantly in awe.

Anyway I've rambled on long enough, back to the story. ooc:

"Agh!" Hana grunts as you shove her (roll success) into the arms of a very startled, confused and suddenly extremely uncomfortable Horus as he was at a loss at what to do. On one hand he didn't want her to get hurt and holding her back would be for her own good, but on the other hand...

"If we can't be the example we want to see in the world then by what right can we expect it of our subjects who looked up to us? Sister Helen knew this better than anyone so how can you expect me to even dare show my face before her if I shirk away from my duty when it's inconvenient" Hana shoots back a glare at you as she retorted. Despite her protest though she thankfully at least chose not to immediately free herself from Horus' tentative hold and rush out, choosing instead to first give -whatever it was you were trying to do- a chance. (influence roll partial success I guess. Or not total fail depending on how you look at it)
The Kwon-Yuu officer was rolling his eyes, not even trying to be subtle about it ether, before you even started appealing to his humanity. A cruel, tiny sadistic little smile marred the edges of his mouth as he observed you. "Ah, but how will they ever learn if they're not shown their lot in life?" he asked with that same, venomous false sympathy. He raised his hand in your direction. (influence roll fail)

It only just then occurred to you that he had been inside already when he had found the merchant, had already started the interrogation there but had deliberately chosen to take him outside, to make a show, a spectacle of the whole thing. This was more than just a job for him. He got off on spreading fear.

"STOP!!!" Hana's cry echoed again and her petite frame shot out of the crowd, placing herself between you and the officer. *insert anime image of the little girl doing the cliche arms spread wide protective gesture in front of the gigantic hurt monster against the equally gigantic enemy monster/mech/giant gun. That scene from Escaflone comes to mind*

The officer is taken aback by her appearance, "Hm??" he pulls back his hand as he tries to sort this out. Seeing that you weren't in immediate danger of getting blown away, Hana then rushes over to the groaning fat merchant and kneels to examine his condition. You hear the familiar song-like chant of her healing spell followed by a vocal grunt of relief from the merchant. Looking at the officer however you get to see his surprised expression shift to one of mild displeasure over the interruption, then to one of curious contemplation (narrowing your eyes like when you're trying to recall something or someone or place a face).

Turning around Hana aimed her challenging glare at the officer again, who by now had composed himself again and had that same amused expression again.
"Wh-why are you doing this!? I thought the war was suppose to be over?" her voice full of hurt and angst as only a child's could be when demanding of adults to make sense to them of a chaotic unfair world.

-"Why you ask? Because I don't like it when people try to hide things from me. Besides..." he gives her a sly look "The war is nor over. There's just a cease-fire, that's all little Missy. Or should I say-" a wide cruel grin spreads across his face, all pretense gone "-Princess Hana of the WIngheld Kingdom."


A stunned silence falls over again. And the officer was absolutely loving it. You wouldn't be surprised if he busted a nut right there.
"Can you believe my luck? On my way to hunt a dragon, I catch a little birdy!* I must be doing something right, eh?" he laughs outloud. ooc: To be clear, he's probably not talking about an actual dragon. He's most likely making a play on words here for witty theatric effect with a saying from this world. "I caught a hare on my way to hunt a dragon". The meaning of the saying is something like finding good fortune along the way through sheer happenstance, with effort on your own part. Kinda like finding money on the street while on your way o the supermarket. IC:

"Men...take her," he causally orders. The soldiers brace with practiced military discipline, tighten the noose and advance in unison "But NOT!" they falter after the first step. *insert comical image of soldiers given contradictory orders a split second after the initial one* Some bump into each other, some nearly trip over. They look around each other in confusion, not quite knowing what to do. "-Before I've had my fun," the officer finishes the order. You get the feeling he did that on purpose. Probably likes to fuck with his men just as he does with others. The soldiers back away where they were. Their attention, everyone's attention really, now solely on the center of this clearing, on the Kwon-Yuu officer and the princess.

With a flick of his wrist, kinda like you've seen entertainers do when they make slight of hand tricks with cards, a piece of paper with a strange symbol (A Chinese kanji) suddenly finds itself in his hand, which he tosses aside with the same movement.

By my power I summon thee,
and by my will I bind thee,
Come forth warrior spirit Yahl
And do my bidding

He chants and from the ground a translucent ghostly creature emerges. It seems to gain substance the further it comes out, but it does not disturb earth and sand itself, until it levitates about a foot of the ground then falls back down with a thud, this time really do leaving a mark. The creature looks like normal sized man in robes with a sword on his hip. *insert image of samurai Jack* It's face is mostly obscured by the paper charm that seems to somehow remain stuck these, though what little can be seen reveals an expressionless but determined face and glowing blue wisp-like lights where the eyes should.

I'd like for you to roll initiative.

ooc: If you don't want Irfan to join the fight (instead having him do something in the background. Get creative, remember I value what is realistic over rules lawyering) there's no need to roll for him, but it is mandatory for Hana and Horus.

Sadly there will be no battle map as I'm unable to create one in my current predicament, but you don't really need one. I think I've painted a pretty clear picture on what the layout is like. You got a clearing, Hana, the officer and the thing he summoned standing between them, soldiers around but not tightly packed, the crowd beyond that. Horus is in the ring of the crowd, Irfan is past the soldiers but still farther away from Hana and the officer than they are from each other (if this was an arena with the soldiers representing the boundary then Irfan would by at the very edge of it while Horus and the fat merchant out side it on neighboring corners). The distance between the ring of soldiers and Hana/Officer is about 20ft. It's not a perfect ring, the soldiers are unevenly distributed, there being none where there are house walls or doors/windows, and none behind the officer towards he tavern. They're just basically spread out in areas where the most people can congregate in the open. There's about 7 or 8 of them, the villagers outnumber them about 5 to 1 or so (not counting the kids).

If you want to abandon the houserule greyhawk initiative rules (rolling each round) and go back to the classic (1 roll for the entire encounter) just say so.

For what it's worth, Irfan does pass off perfectly as a native, even if not wearing the local clothes he still blends in (Horus and Hana not so much even with local clothes).

The game theory is quite accurate. I hope you get to learn more about it in-game because that dynamic is one part of the game I'm especially proud of.

Irfan rolled 18,25(12+3) using 1d20+8,1d20+10,1d6.  Perception, Knowledge Society:    Market and town layout.
Irfan rolled 11 using 2d20 with rolls of 3,8.  Hana, Horus Initiative rolls.
Irfan rolled 88 using 8d20 with rolls of 1,10,7,8,13,15,18,16.  8 random d20's rolls for Dm.

Irfan doesn't even have to act, he just lets the shock roll out of him as Hana gets named dropped title and all. Playing into the panic as the soldiers press in, he darts around frantically looking for anything he can use to make a distraction in the market, or the angry blue headed boy he knew would be coming. The words faulty cargo from last night echo over in his head and he tries his best to guess where such cargo would come from in this small town, raking over the inconsistencies he had seen so far in a panic for something that would help him understand the oddity of the town.

One down on his luck merchant was a death, but one princess was a hot coal in the camel feed...  Wait, if horus was as suprising as he usually was, if Irfan could get a pack of camels down the streets or a heavy cart, That could make a big enough distraction.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:53, Thu 10 Oct 2019.

With everyone's attention suddenly on this dramatic turnover, it wasn't difficult for a random nobody like you to slip back into the crowd.

Looking around you notice that the fat merchant had the same idea and was crawling out of his crash site and making himself scarce as well. Further down the main road, strategically placed right next to the entrance, was a merchant holding the reigns of 2 camels while leaning in to see what the commotion was about. There were more camels behind and next to the ones he was holding, tied together, giving you the impression he was the camel merchant around here. He looked worried and frightened, casting glanced back out the entrance just as often as he tried to see above the heads of people surrounding this spectacle.

You guessed he wasn't approaching because he was fearful of leaving his camels, but it piqued your interest on what would worry him outside. Craning your own neck now, what little you could see beyond the entrance to the town, was a larger squad of Kwon-Yuu soldiers, waiting, probably told to be on standby while the commander conducted his business less they overcrowd the place. The commotion was causing them to get curious and lean in, likewise crank up their necks, in a futile hope to see what was happening, but they weren't alarmed nor leaving their position. You get the sense they were probably used to these kinds of things happening in the presence of their commanding officer and wouldn't move unless expressly ordered to or something truly out of the ordinary happened.

The town was like a maze, but it was still small and you had lived among such places all your life so mapping it out in your time here hadn't been difficult. You were fairly certain that if it came to evading and losing any Kwon-Yuu pursuit in these twisting alleyways you'd be successful...at least for a short while. As stated before, this town wasn't big.

You had been racking your brain as to what was so off about this town. No natural resources, no unique products, yet a disproportionately large number of merchants coming and going each day, bringing the goods this town needed to sustain itself only to leave with much of the same stuff they came with but from other merchants? If they were just ganna swap stuff between themselves they could have done that anywhere, even on the open road. They didn't need to come all the way out here and lose a portion of it to the locals. Which meant...this whole town was a front, a mask, a single business! The locals weren't independent entrepreneurs peddling their own crafts and goods to make a fortune for themselves like every other Arcanian in other towns. They were all employees! As were the merchants coming and going no doubt, or at least partners. They must be putting up this facade in case someone who's not in on it stumbles upon the operation. Someone like a random Arcanian merchant curious as to where all these other fellow merchants were going and following them hoping to break into a new market, or...government goons like the Ironians or, in this case the Kwon-Yuu.

This revelation didn't help you figure out what could possibly be some important and lucrative as to merit the expenditure of an operation this big, but it lead you to a conclusion that might just be useful. Whatever they were doing was clearly not out here in the open, you had scoured the town you would have seen or picked up on something. The operation or factory or whatever must ether be below ground -^{a good place to hide from the Kwon-Yuu perhaps?}- or imported offsite, which meant there was a back door to this town -^{a good place way to give the Kwon-Yuu the slip perhaps?}

Before you could contemplate your next move or even figuring out HOW to find access to this underground place or back entrance or the people truly running this place, your attention is pulled back into the spectacle unfolding in the clearing.

You saw Hana casting a spell you were quite familiar with, an unearthly eerie wind, and sending it at the warrior thing the sadistic officer had summoned. But aside from causing its robes to flutter and lean in against the force of the wind, the puppet warrior effortlessly strolled towards the little tengu. Growing more and more scared as the monster approached, Hana grunted with effort, making her staff spin even faster, blow even stronger, but still no effect. She took a step back, not giving up, then another, maintain the spell!, she was biting down hard, her eyes shut hard in intense concentration and strain.

</b>
*GASP* Hana sharply inhaled in momentary shock, complete surprise on your face. Time slowed to a crawl. The ground was falling away. No, her vision was shifting upwards. Because, she was floating backwards, her head and face were falling backwards. As sand, then the horizon of people, then the buildings all disappeared from view, a long thin strip of metal painting straight upwards was the last to disappear before all was nothing but blue. The strip of metal that had slashed her from below then diagonally up. No, the sky wasn't perfectly blue. Little red rain droplets were moving along backwards as well.

*THUD*

And then reality came muscling back in as her body hit the floor and knocked all the wind out of her. And then the pain. Oh the pain! "KIYAAAAAAAAA!!!" she screamed as she clutched the front of her chest and writhed, rolling side to side in the sand.
Somewhere in the background she could hear the cruel laughter of that awful man.
-"^{Muahahahaha! Wonderful! Absolute perfection! But ok, that's enough. We don't wanna accidentally kill her. Bring her alive Yahl.}" she could hear the words but they somehow sounded distant.

Then she felt herself getting roughly yanked off the ground and hoisted up bu the scruff of her clothes. The blank faced humanoid monster, the true face of uncaring horror as far as he was concerned, was holding her at arms length a foot off the ground, looking straight at her. She desperately held at the hand, squirming, trying to get loose but it was like trying to pry iron. Worst of all, she was forced to look upon him, upon IT, and despair. Tears were running down her cheeks but it didn't care. As effortlessly as before, it turned around and started walking back towards its master, dragging her along the ground like a sack of potatoes, like those parodies of a brutish caveman dragging a woman except it was anything but funny.

"HALT YE CUR!!!"

The summoned warrior spirit had barely taken 2 step before a, I shit you not, literal knight in shinning armor just, just, jumps out out of the crowd with a giant two-handed sword in a bombastic over-the-top downward chop. *insert anime image of the cliche scene where the hero jumping up, the sun against his back, and comes down with a 2-handed swing*

While everyone, the officer the soldiers the citizens, everyone, were busy processing this "^{What the fuck?!} _{Who the fuck is that?!} Where the fuck did he even come from?!", the emotionless monster reacted instantly and jumped back with Hana still in hand, avoiding the heavy slash that kicked up a small crater of sand when it landed. In their defense, their reaction was very understandable considering there had been zero warning. No flash of light, no loud sound, no a guy squirming around as he put on that heavy full body armor on. He was just...suddenly there.

"How dare ye? How dare ye, sir?! Manhadle and behof such fair young maiden? Where hast thine honor begotten?! Unhand her I say! Unhander forthright right now!" although you could not see him -that voice, that attitude- there was absolutely no question who was underneath that armor, who this man standing between the Kwon-Yuu officer and its creation was.

And as if that wasn't enough, glancing at the giant sword he was point in challenge at the summoned creature you recognize as none other than...The Sword of Trust. The artifact you had lost!

Before you yourself acted upon urge to scream, you caught yourself just in time as you realized it was just an imitation. The physical appearance was perfect, but there was none of the power, the luster, the regal presence of the weapon. It was like comparing a real sword to those cheap knock offs mildly-rich people use as wall decorations. Same with the armor he was wearing. It looked just like the armor you had seem on display in a shop when walking all over town with the two of them.

*insert Sokka facepalming*

You couldn't deal with this now. You had more important things to worry about.

Hana on the other hand had saw nothing but a beacon of hope. Her tears were now tears of joy. She smiled and gave a confident nod at the white knight, which he returned. Her face now hardening, she closed her eyes once more and looked deep inside. Her smile never wavered as the subtle circuit gylph waylines all across her body flared up. Her captor didn't notice or didn't care, its attention now on this new arrival that was preventing it from completing it's master's command.

Combat summary

Surprise round:
Kwon-Yuu Officer summons Warrior's Essence.

Round 1:
Officer (initiative 12) does nothing. Just smirks and watches.

Horus (initiative 10) uses:
Fullround action: "Oh shit, OH SHIT! This is bad. Come on man, pull yourself together, you gatta do something, you can do this, you can do this, just believe in yourself..." Horus spends the time convincing himself he can do this.

Hana (initiative 5), uses:
Fullround action: Cast Biting Winds (dmg, shaken,-2 atk and dmg no effect) + metamagic Residual spell (makes affected area difficult terrain, i.e. 1/2 speed). Gain +1 deflection AC from Mystic Talent "Spell Guard".
Free action: 5ft step away from summoned monster.

Warrior's Essence (initiative 0) uses:
Swift action: Get in stance (-4 Initiative)
Move action: Move towards Hana (reaches her even at half speed)
Standard Action: Attack Hana (hit, 11 dmg)

Hana is Shaken due to her Sheltered drawback (when below 1/2 vigor or wounds, become shaken).

Irfan slips back into the crowd unnoticed. All attention is on the battle.
Fat merchant slips out of sight unnoticed.


Round 2

Officer (initiative 26) uses: "Muahahahaha! Ok ok, that's enough. We don't wanna accidentally kill her. Bring her alive."

Warrior's Essence (initiative 17) uses:
Move action: Sheath Sword
Standard action: Grapple Hanna (Success)
Immediate action: Sanguine Barrier (Counter Horus' Attack, 18)

Horus (initiative 9) uses:
Free Action: Talk
Move action: Move towards monster
Standard action: Attack (17, miss)

Hana (initiative 4) uses:
Swift+Fullround Action: Sacred Geometry (Casting time 1 round, meaning it will complete at the start of her next turn.

Round 3...

quote:

and I was coming not leavin, I was, so it couldn't be falty cargo ether.

Potentially explosive cargo leaves town here, therefore it has to be produced, stored, or packaged here.

I now know this town is entirely in on it, and the kwon don't seem to be. That means the Kwon searching the place could be a very bad thing, or go horribly right eitherway it's beyond Irfan's concern. You've given Irfan 3 escape routes, and the knowledge he probably couldn't find a specific part of a sandskimer in this town.

Things were getting worse, substituting the camels for a runaway cart in his plan to crack open the ranks, Irfan works his way over contemplating how to get the camels to charge through the Kwon ranks to provide both distraction and means of escape. As it was, they weren't nearly close enough to startle the troops so he had to get them closer somehow and untied. The easiest way to get them in position would be working with the merchant, the hardest part would be getting him to risk his livelyhood and life.

Ok, Irfan pushes through the crowd and makes it to the camels with no issue. Unless he's being sneaky about it, the merchant holding the reigns sees him coming and turns his gaze on him. What next? What else does Irfan do?

BTW I think you need to update your sheet.

Irfan rolled 12(4) using 1d20+8.  Influence Motivate camel merchant to aid scheme.

Irfan was nervious, the merchant was nervious, the whole crowd was nervious. It wasn't the time to try being sneaky or clever, it simply time for something familiar and to act. He openly approached the merchant directly while the Horus held the Kwon's attention in their little fighting ring.

*insert corny traditional Arcandian greeting? thinking italian, but thats too cheesy, lets do a russain one, a firm wrist grabbing handshake (in part to check sleeve) ?*


"Good day, I discussed arranging for camels today with you yesterday, but I'm afraid circumstances have changed a bit. glancing back over at the fight briefly, "I'll be needing to borrow them now and could use a hand positioning them to save my reckless companions, one of whom is Wingheld nobility, you may have heard. A sudden charge of frightened camels scared by the stangers is nothing anyone could have expected wouldn't you agree?" Sliding over the promised payment for the camels. Looking towards the main gate with a side glance, "Needless to say we will be taking the back entrance, and there is no reason for you to get involved."

Ifran is ready to write up a IOU but without a seal it would take to long to make an official one.


Ugh harder to start the conversation then i thought.

ooc: Just so you know, you haven't actually seen or found a "back entrance" of this city. The whole city is surrounded by this unimpressive but functional wall that goes all around the town. You simply deduced that IF whatever operation this was was done off site then it would stand to reason there'd be a secret way out. And even if there wasn't, you figured anyone doing shady stuff would want a secret way out.

Regarding your sheet...
-You are missing 1 combat sphere/talent (Scholar's are considered Proficient Sphere of Might combatants after all).
-Proficiency and more importantly, Martial Focus isn't listed as an ability (hence it's easy to forget you have it).
-Flashbang DC is 14 now, Range 60ft.
-Missing a Scholar's Knack class ability (Recommend Astrology. It's like having a 2nd Inspiration pool that can stack with the 1st, be used on any skill and attack and such, and on allies too. Or Lightning Rod. I remember you saying you wanted that one).
-Missing a Material Imposition class ability (Recommend Aspect Infusion. Flashbangs do more dmg, can make them Reflex save instead of Fort save, and you can breed elementals).

I'm also pretty sure the Spellbook needs updating

The merchant stares at you like a fish, not saying anything. Does that whole leaning uncomfortably back while someone shakes his hand.

He looks at you like you as if you had lost your mind, as if a stark raving lunatic had just run up to him on the street proclaiming "Repent! The end is nigh!", expect the other way around. Here you were, Kwon-Yuu at the gates; in the middle of what could be the last days of this town and its citizens; magic and fights to the death literally breaking out in the streets; and this stranger not only just walks up and calmly chats him up, not only expecting him to remember details of a bargain done yesterday, not only wants to get him directly involved in this whole mess (basically guaranteeing he's not ganna come out of this alive), but also wants to takes all his camels *dramatic pause* FOR FREE???!!!

His eyes go wide, he inhails deeply, lifting his arm high up in the air (index finger extended) but just as he brought it accusingly down at you he freezes in mid-pointing, his face stuck in mask of gaping-mouth-outrage *insert image of angry screaming man*. No sound escapes him as he just stands there for a moment, his eyes dart sideways. He composes himself again "^Hmmmmmm" he hums to himself as he scratched his beard. He looked at you, looked ahead, looked at your belt, pouch, looked back (at the Kwon beyond the gate), then back at you.
"Tell you what. Give me your entire belt pouch right now, and all the camels are yours for the next, mmmmh, let's say 10, no no, 5 minutes. Deal? Going once, going twice..."
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:43, Wed 16 Oct 2019.

Irfan rolled 20(11) using 1d20+9.  Appraisal.
Could you length the title of this thread to Nights of Arcania, I keep clicking the previous thread because the title is so short.


It was over priced, and there would be no chance at returning the camels so the price wasn't horrible. The merchant could collect the loose camels afterwards, and honestly say he had no part in it. Handing over the bag, Irfan begins gathering the camels' reigns and untying them. He was only going to have one shot at this, and it was going to be difficult at best.


Gathering the camels, he mounts one, and looks over the unfolding fight. He was going to have only one shot at this, and Horus would have to break Hana free before it could work, either so she could fly up or Horus could catch a camel and grab her. Retrieving a bored seed pod, he begins mixing powders to a make flashbang to startle the camels.


Readied action:  Waiting for a opportune moment to save Hana and Horus, or if impossible, just Horus.  Throw flashbang behind the camels and try to stampede/steer them through the Kwon circle.


Irfan rolled 10 using 1d100.  Percentage Roll for  3.Rich Edition.
My first dm used to intermixed 1st,2nd,3rd,3.5 editions at random. for things utterly beyond the scope of games rules (or lock picking) he would call for percentage rolls to determine how well they worked and ask for a specific range of outside circumstances for the absurdity of it to work.

DM's 10 random d20s:

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
Today: Irfan rolled 112 using 10d20 with rolls of 9,14,10,13,14,1,19,8,4,20.

---

This message was last edited by the player at 23:46, Thu 17 Oct 2019.

ooc: You don't have to use 2 lbs of materials if you want to use a cold grenade or whatever combination of chemicals (1 lbs is fine). That's the beauty of science, quality trumps over quantity. By mixing the chemicals you get a stronger reaction not because there's more of them but because if the interaction between them. Reminds me of that scene in the first few episodes of Breaking bad when Walter made that exploding crystal that looked like meth. I think you need the alchemical lab for RP purposes more than anything else. Think of it like this, right now Irfan is just scrounging up materials he can find and mish-mashing them as they are, no tools, no reference books from other alchemists, no distilling/purifying process, no containers ect...just his genius and what nature gave him, making shit up/improvising as he goes. Imagine what he could do if he DID have the right tools and resources?

You can send me the file of the 1st thread to my e-mail tome022@gmail.com since using slack with my phone has proven to be a bit of a bitch. You can also upload it on Slack for Tomo's benefit if he wants a kind of before and after version. Oh and btw the range on the flashbang is 60 ft (30+10 per lvl). Anyway... IC:

The merchant snatches the pouch -not knowing how much was in there nor pausing to count- throws the reigns at you, then bolts atta there. But you had a feeling he wasn't too far away, probably peeking behind a corner down the block, waiting to take advantage of the ruckus you were about to cause one way or another. He was obviously using you but you honestly didn't care. You had bigger things to worry about. After climbing atop the docile camel, you didn't have to wait long for your chance. In fact, you almost missed it.

Meanwhile, back in the fight...

The officer gives the theatrical intruder an annoyed flat stare before rolling his eyes. He wasn't amused anymore. He began raising his hand but paused half way, a puzzling expression on his face as he got a better look of the man, his gaze specifically lingering on the weapon he was wielding. "Oh, now where did you get that?...interesting...Guards, enough is enough, take them! But bring them alive. I have questions, ^{for both of them.}"
-"Yes, captain Rashomon!" the dozen soldiers surrounding them answer in unison.

Horus shifted nervously, looking left and right, backing a little away from the blank-faced warrior and letting his blade waver a little (btw, correction, he looks like that zombie samurai from One Piece that had Brook's shadow, minus the rot, and with the chinese charm paper on his face like they do in anime). He had thought this would have been a fair duel between champions. It began to dawn on him that he thought wrong.

Just as the soldiers were to close in on the lone knight, a booming voice of dread and unquestioning authority exploded all around, reverberating off the walls and kicking up sand, "YOU DARE LAY YOUR HANDS ON THE DAUGHTER OF THE MIGHTIEST KINGPRIEST TO EVER LIVE?! SHE WHO IS TO BE THE NEXT CARDINAL AND 1ST SERVANT TO P'UNG HIMSELF? NOT ONLY THAT BUT YOU DO IT WHILE TRESPASSING SO CLOSE TO HIS HOME, HIS SEAT OF POWER!!!" windows shatter outwards, showering all gathered in glass. Screams spread as simple folk duck and throw their arms over their heads. The soldiers stop and look around, both confused and with mounting dread. Their commanding officer and even it's abomination being no exception this time around. The mystery was short-lived as it looked down at his arm and found the source of the Omen. Hana stared back at him defiantly, her feathers puffed out to make her look bigger, her eyes crackling with pure energy like impatient lightning fight to break out from it's barely functional prison, the faint markings glowing so bright and ominously she could have passed for a messenger of doom.

Releasing her as if it had just burned its hand, Rasho's monster backed away from her as far as it could (roll 14, will save fail), but Hana's gaze never wavered from it as she was gently lifted off the ground and held up levitating a foot off the ground. Now that the other soldiers could see it was her that was the source of the power, they were suddenly keen on putting some distance as well (natural 1. it was a group roll for the sake of expediency). "WHEN MY FATHER HEARS OF THIS HE WILL BLAST THIS WHOLE TOWN OFF THE MAP!" the soldiers balk even more, while the citizens fall to their knees and beg for mercy "NO, HE WILL SINK ALL OFF ARCANIA ITSELF!!-" *more wailing* "AND THEN BESEECH THE GREAT SKY FATHER TO LIFT IT OFF THE OCEAN'S FLOOR...JUST SO HE COULD SINK IT AGAIN!!!" *insert hysterical cowering*

Then her voice changes. This loud and powerful, but somehow softer, more sympathetic, more...merciful. "BUT I UNDERSTAND. YOU ARE NOT AT FAULT-" she directs her gaze at the people, who look up confused, then hopeful, "-I WILL TEMPER HIS WRATH, MAKE SURE IT IS DIRECTED ONLY AT THE INTERLOPERS-". The Kwon-Yuu captain, Rashomon, though initially surprised by the unexpected development, had not balked like his men and creature. As the novelty wore off he composed himself and grew annoyed once more ^{the idiots. Fooled so easily by some loud noise and bright lights}. He saw the direction the little princess was taking this in "-JOIN US. STAND UP TO YOUR OPPRESSORS-" and he didn't like it "-AND THE GREATEST POWER Oh -WILL BE shut ON YOUR up SI-ack!" *insert image of guy doing the "button your lips" gesture. That's Rasho casting the spell*

And just as it came, it stopped. Hana froze in mid-speech, and the booming voice, the shimmering, the presence, was gone. A very jarring experience to be sure, followed by another understandable wave of confusion as civilians and soldiers alike tried sorting out what was happening.

"Oh please. If your daddy was capable or even willing to do that, he would have done it when your sister a-AAAAAAAAAAAARG!- with us-huh? Ugh, and just where do you think you're going?!" and ends just as abruptly as an extremely annoyed, captain Rasho throws up his other hand at the incoming Horus, a dagger(?) of light forms above his head and shoots at Horus, misses him, and strikes his shadow. As if he had been tied to a lamp post with a rope, the valian knight's charge comes to a yanking halt.

"EEEEnough! No more! I've had it up to here with these shenanigans! The next person to- *BAM!...ba ba ba ba ba*" the ground starts shaking, "Now what?" he groans with absolute exasperation.

As one, the crowd, the soldiers, the captain and his creature all turn their heads back down the road. "What the-?" he was having his 3rd?, 4th?, WTF moment that day as a stampede of camels came charging in.

Round 3:
Hana (initiative 15+6), uses:
Standard action: +4 initiative
Move action: +2 initiative
Sacred Geometry from previous round completes, casts Voice of the Gods + Residual metamagic (50ft aura, duration 1+1 round per CL, must sing/talk. Allies immune to fear, enemies that fail will save are frightened, those that fail are shaken. Ether way, the affected area as considered difficult terrain for enemies)

Officer (initiative 16+2) uses:
Move action: +2 initiative
Standard action: Casts Hold Person on Horus, changes his mind Hana (success). Still Shaken this round by Voice of the Gods.
Immediate action: Shadow Bind Horus.

Horus (initiative 12) uses:
Fullround action: move+attack monster/nearest enemy CHAAAAAARGE at the Officer. Gets locked in place halfway there by Shadow Bind.

Warrior's Essence (initiative 11) uses:
Standard Action: Attack Horus Move away from Hana (half speed, release grapple)
Move action: Move away from Hana (half speed)

Soldiers a frightened. Civilians are immune to fear. Irfan causes a stampede.

I need you to roll a Ride Athletics check to see if you can remain seated on the camel as it rears up and balks after the grenade blast. And a Handle Animal Knowledge Nature to see if you can gain control the camel you're riding (as in, make it stop, get it to steer left or right. Otherwise it's just going to keep on running forward, doing its own thing, you're just cargo along for the ride).

Oh and just to paint a picture, Horus and Hana are in the middle of a much larger circle now (because all the soldiers backed away 50ft or at least as far as they could from Hana), so they're clearly outlined. Rashomon is also inside the circle, closer to the the of it though, about 25ft to 30ft away from Horus and Hana.

ooc: I need your opinion. Do you think we should keep the rule where Swift and Immediate action are 1 and the same (meaning if you use Immediate action you can't use Swift the next turn), or have them be separated like in DnD 5.0 (1 being bonus action and the other being a reaction action). I think having them separate would be more interesting. Immediate action can simply cause a -4 initiative penalty on the next turn.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:16, Mon 21 Oct 2019.

This message was deleted by the player at 02:35, Wed 23 Oct 2019.

Irfan rolled 5 using 1d20+0.  Athletics.
 Irfan rolled 12(5) using 1d20+7.  knowledge nature.

Pretty sure that bucks me off given how most dc's start at 10, shouldn't really have expected less.

Irfan was expecting this!
https://www.deviantart.com/ris...de-Literally-4196157

Dm's 15 Random d20s.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
Irfan rolled 131 out of 300 using 15d20 ((9,13,16,2,9,8,1,7,17,15,3,7,1,11,12))

---

ooc: Ok, nvm then. We'd just be needlessly complicating a system that's probably too complicated already. Nice pic btw. Both of them.

I forgot to mention in the previous post but Hana was paralyzed by the Hold Person spell.

The enthusiastic book reader from Cruilla must've imagined things playing out much more differently in his mind, something like out of the adventuring stories he had read. Possibly seeing himself as a dashing, brave hero spearheading a force of nature, of which he somehow had full control of. Probably imagining something like coming to a halt before the helpless kids, the high noon sun shining behind him, giving him a mysterious dark silhouette while he bend down and said "Come with me if you want to live" in a cool (and much deeper) voice, the kids looking up at him in awe and admiration while the rest of the stampeding animals just parting aside for some reason, making them the eye of the proverbial storm, trampling and slamming everywhere else but them (just the Kwon-Yuu though, not the civilians) because...IRFAN! *cowboy music theme, whip cracking, Hiya!*

Reality had other plans.

As soon as you set off his explosive device to startle the animals into running, the normally docile pack animal you were seated on surprised you with its unexpected speed and strength, bucking you off as effortlessly as water off a duck's back (ugh). Falling flat on your back on the hard ground from, all the wind knocked out of you, you had but moments to get the presence of mind to roll aside before getting trampled to death by the rest of the camels in the rear, and even then you got nicked by a hoof or two before you were in the clear. (you did saddle the camel in the front)

And boy what a sight it was to see.

The animals picked up speed in no time, descending upon the stunned crowed who's attention had been upon the tengu princess but moments ago. The collision was cringe inducing (in the "hearing of bones crack" sort of way) as people were seen flying a few feet ahead of the animal that slammed straight into it before disappearing beneath the dusk cloud they were kicking up, some trying to outrun them in panic only to likewise fall down and not be seen again, even a camel here and there fell over as it tripped on something/someone. It was a grisly sort of pandemonium. Thankfully, the Arcanians ether because still emboldened by the spell to jump into action, or because they're used to camels, or simply they know when to get the hell out of dodge, quickly scampered out of the way into their homes or behind irregularly intersecting walls between buildings. Rashomon's monster, again proving it was probably emotionless, reacted instantly to this new development and darted left and right as the animals came in, avoiding to get trampled to death(?). The Kwon-Yuu soldiers and Rashomon himself on the other hand were too slow to mentally catch up to what was happening, not after what just happened with Hana. If anyone took the brunt off this little escapade it was them.

Before you could thank the Lonely One for small victories, a black nugget of dread formed at the pit of your stomach '...No. Not just them,' Horus and especially Hana had been rendered helpless by the Kwon-Yuu officer, unable to get away. Failing to keep the princess alive was one thing, but if Loki or -All Exalted forbid!- her father the Kingpriest of Wingheld learned that you had actually killed her yourself..."-oh sweet release of death-" a prayer involuntarily escaped your lips as you got back up to your feet and ran over to the scene of the catastrophe to see if life was still worth the risk of living it. One way or another, you had to act fast because you could hear the soldiers outside the city were stirring and approaching. Not to mention the confusion this stampede had caused would not last long, and it would be the height of wishful thinking to think all the Kwon-Yuu already here had been trampled to death.

Approaching the intersection where the tavern and this whole fiasco had taken place, the dust hadn't settled yet. The animals had passed, still causing havoc in the rest of the city, but there was still sound and movement. Survivors rolled over in pain, groaning, there were broken stalls, wood and squashed goods all over the place, crunching under your feet as you made your way through. The Arcanians who had taken shelter inside the buildings were not coming out just yet. Those that weren't as badly injured were beginning to get their bearings slowly climb up to their feet.

Irfan uses incantation (that's how I'm interpreting this) Summon Stampede, DC 16, and effectively ends the combat. Failed, take 2d6 dmg incantation backlash + 1d6 fall dmg (I treated your Knowledge Nature roll as it it were your reflex save to reduce dmg from falling because the knowledge roll would have only applied if you had stayed on the camel). Falling unprepared from 5~10ft (and failing the reflex save) was 1d6 lethal or non-lethal damage? If it's non-lethal then (since we're using vigor and I don't want to complicate it any further) just treat it as half as much lethal. Meaning instead of rolling 1d6 non-lethal just roll 1d3 lethal dmg.

As for the others, everyone (soldiers, civilians, Bond spirit, Rashomon, Hana, Horus everyone) takes 4d6+9 dmg, reflex save halves. I'll use group rolls for soldiers and civilians (I'll treat the civilians as a Swarm because there's about 3 dozen of them). Only the civilians and the Warrior's essence succeeded on the save throw so they take half dmg. Everyone else, full dmg.

Today: Irfan rolled 19 using 4d6+9 with rolls of 1,1,5,3.

 Ok 19 damage at 3d6 vigor is rougly 10 vigor, thats 9 wounds so unless their special forces (they seem boss dependant) They are going to be hurting, and I'm not sure if Horus got hit by Brooks before, Hana's damage is worrysome, but Horus's and the Officer's states are more pressing.

Irfan rolled 12 using 3d6 with rolls of 5,6,1.  Fall-camel damage.  Irfan should be Prone.
3/15 Vigor points left.

Do we need a countdown till when reinforcements arrive?  12 rounds, on a d6, evens = -1 and odd -2?

Irfan needs to stand, but needs to decide to attack, grab, or rush.

I'm think there might be room for a dangerous 3rd ploy depending the situation with Hana.

So Irfan needs to make a heal check, but he has that on take 10, so he needs perception to analyze his 3 main subjects from a distance.  Officer, Horus, and Hana.

Irfan rolled 26 using 1d20+8.  Perception-heal-status. On vigor, Wounded, or Bloodied/dying.

Worst case Officer and oet is the only ones standing/not shell shocked. Irfan technicalky isn't magically inclinded enough to recognise hold person quickly and at a distance.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:01, Thu 24 Oct 2019.

Incantations are a way for low level characters to use power beyond their capability by increasing the risk. If I limited incantations to your CL you'd never be able to bridge the gap between opposition beyond your power, in other words you'd never be able to "change your fate" (a.k.a. break the scale) which is the whole point of adventurers. You could even perform the equivalent of a lvl 9 spell with a level 3 character, but good luck making all the checks and/or surviving the backlash. But at least it's still possible. I suggest you check out the incantations on d20pfsrd it's quite interesting since it came as a package deal with the sphere system (of which your character class stems from I might add).

I did treat soldiers and civilians as separate groups with separate rolls (in addition to treating the civilians as a swarm). Everyone was a mish-mash collective due to Hana's spell forcing them away so it's not like 1 group got hit first then a 2nd. Although the people nearer to the initial collision took it worse than the ones further down the road which is why I'm treating them as groups where some took it worse than others (hence the swarm trait). Using individual CMB vs CMD + individual hoof atks would take too much effort and time due to scale. And if we treated the entire stampede as a single roll then it would be quite unrealistic to think that 1 guy would escape unscathed from and entire stampede of creatures just because his CMD was higher. By treating the stampede as a spell I do give opportunity to competent characters to reduce the damage, and those exceptionally skilled (meaning those with the evasion class skill) to come out unscathed. Summon stampede is an actual spell btw, reflex save halves dmg, no spell resistance.

The reinforcements is treated the same way as guards arrival in a settlement when a fight breaks out (I think it was some kind of diplomacy roll with a ration to minutes, I dunno I'll check in detail when I have free Wi-Fi at a port city, but you at least have a minute)

My personal thoughts on the matter, I think Irfan made the best out of a bad situation. As soon as you resolve this encounter I'll have more to say *Matt Mercer "Ok...That's fine" face*

The Irfan spell/alchemy prep thing is already a thing, right? With rapid alchemy it's halved and with access to a lab is halved again if I'm not mistaken (don't wanna waste MB browsing d20pfsrd). I see no reason to change it.

Irfan was prone but then got up and moved back to the scene of the crash. Combat is over, use common RP sense from this point on, no need to roll for grab and stuff ike that. I'll let you know when shit hits the fan again. Horus did not get hit by Brook's zombie shadow before. Hana did and she did take wound dmg. In fact, she's 2 wounds away from dying. 5/15 vigor -19 dmg = 16/16 wounds - 14 dmg = 2/16 wounds.

Please do an actual RP post please. There's only so much I can rp your character for you.

Roll check results: Hana is fucked up, a huge pile of bloody unconscious mess on the floor (failed Con check), but still breathing, still alive. For now.

Horus was down and groaning, but he's getting up and seems reasonably fine, all things considered. His magic armor took the brunt of it. (11 vigor-ish (I forgot to roll for his vigor points), no wound dmg)

Brook zombie seems fine and is staring at you (kinda hard to tell due to the charm on his face), probably looking at you Horus and Hana as a whole, but is keeping his distance. You don't know if it's because of Hana's spell or the lack of further instructions from his master.

And speaking of his master, the Kwon-Yuu officer is screaming like a bitch, throwing a fit, writhing on the ground, something about "You filthy little!...My beautiful face!...How dare you!. He had been caught completely off guard when the camels ran him over (1 hand on Hana, the other on Horus, what was he ganna use on the stampede, his dick?), in fact they trampled him in the middle of his sentence "What the-?" *goes under a cloud of dust*
If he was angry before now he is really pissed off, but he doesn't look out of the game, probably some magical defense saved his life, and he's probably ganna be up in arms any second now.

Irfan was the first down, and had been expecting it, it made sense he would be the first up. He was relieved most of the Arcanians had managed to roll with it. As he took stock of the situation it looked like the soldiers had taken the brunt of it, their circle representing an open space to run through. Those that weren't down were still shocked by the occurance. Horus was down, but still writhing against what magic held him.

The officer had gotten rolled a bit, but also appeared more livid then hurt, That just left  Hana who was winded already. It took him a moment to find her, small figure, most of her feather being pink and her form bent ackwardly.


Irfan was face with two options, come to Hana's aid immediatly, or play innocent and bet on the Officer ordering him to aid her.

The marching troubles weighing heavily on his mind, he hoped he could find a opening to heal Hana without getting labeled as a combatant yet. Horus should hold the Officer attention still.

Irfan makes his back towards the crowd before approaching. He had to capitalize on his earlier neutral bystander appearence, and that the officer wanted Hana alive as much as he did. Getting into position he reached into his medicine pouch and pulled out some bandages and stood near the front of the arcadians trying to look dumbfounded.

He needed to get Hana in bandages and splints, and apply some healing salve while letting the officer think he was harmless, and the Kwon had things under control.


8 random d20's.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
Irfan rolled 80 using 8d20 with rolls of 18,1,14,11,5,9,18,4.

---

ooc: Man, I love those Yugioh card pics. They're so accurate.

Horus isn't pinned anymore by the thing the officer used. That only lasts for the duration of Horus' turn. When you arrived he was already getting up on his feet and looking around (doing that whole unsteady on his feet/teetering thing) trying to orient himself.

The Officer can't see you yet, or at least make heads or tails of anything just yet. The dust and shock and confusion is still up. Are you waiting 1~2-ish round a short period of time for the Kwon-Yuu and the Officer (and Horus technically) to gather their bearings and take stock of the situation?

EDIT: Also, there is no crowd. Other than those caught in the stampede, everyone else ether went into their homes or bolted from the scene. You're the only one walking around upright for the moment.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:11, Thu 24 Oct 2019.

Can't hide with the locals if there are no locals. I'm would just move up and start a heap check, would probably be better to use healing salve straight, and heal.



Realizing he would just stand out, Irfan knew he needed to get Hana quickly, and that they would need to make a break for it. Calling out to Horus would only draw attention to what he was doing so he focused on reaching Hana and apply his Salve to her worst apparent injury. He will check to see is Horus has his bearings between the first and second salve.  Wounds first, then Vigor second.

Once Irfan has Hana stabilized He will gesture Horus over, pick up Hana and carry her into the town. He pass her to Horus when he catches up, and lay a trapwire trap around the corner connected to a instant foam container as a full round action.(standard if I have martial focus still)

Irfan rolled 19 using 1d20+9.  trap set check dc 5, full round action. 19/5 = 3 5ft squares in a line.

We need to escape pursuit, optimally grab some camels and leave out the backdoor to another town (Irfan should have his bearings) and visibly leave so the Kwon don't have to shred the city looking for us, Irfan thinks they might anyways.


question for Horus, would be take the time to equip himself with an enemy weapon.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:09, Fri 25 Oct 2019.

Today: Irfan rolled 4 using 1d8+3.  Salve Vigor.

While the dust was still up and nobody knew what was going on just yet, you fell down on your knees next to Hana and immediately got to patching up the worst injury that was killing her the fastest. A collapsed lung. Not only was she going to bleed out externally if left unchecked, but the internal bleeding would suffocate her.

You took a square patch of leather and applied alchemical adhesive on 3 sides of it, then stuck it on the wound. It was your own innovation. Placing the adhesive upon the entire surface would poison the patient when it mixed with her blood and also restrict breathing. The way it was applied like this it allowed air to go in, basically breathing through the wound if her normal pathways were crushed, while not allowing anything out, allowing her to naturally clear out her pathways. (I'm basically bastardizing what I remember from driver's 1st aid 13 years ago)

By now the dust settled, everyone was on their feet, looking around. And they see you, cradling/fondling(?) the tengu princess' half-naked corpe(?). For a moment everyone's stunned at the sight.

You needed to get out of here NOW! You had discovered how to make a powder that when in contact with something wet, especially blood, it coagulated very quickly. You had found that it could be used extremely effectively for medical purposes (provided the patient wasn't allergic to it) by clotting up the blood thus hastening the natural crusting of open wounds, effectively stopping the bleeding. When ingested in measured doses of a liquid solution it seemed to accelerate natural healing too. But Hana was bleeding badly from all over, too many small open wounds, not to mention internally too. There was simply no distribution system you could use that would administer the powder in a timely manner nor for digestion to outpace the more immediate hemorrhaging. Unless...

"Horus, you have to trust me on this, grab Hana and RUN!" you yell at him as you cut off the tip of your water flask with your knife, downed the solution (puffing our your cheeks like a blowfish), stabbed the severed water-flask stopper right into her jugular, lean in, bite the tip then blowing, your cheeks deflating as the solution was injected straight into her bloodstream. Nature had invented a very good distribution system already, so why reinvent the wheel?

"GAH!" you gasp for air as you pull back. Instead of the expected gushing stream of red blood, what came out of the wound was a weird bubbly red foam. It grew the size of a cherry tomato then it just stopped. No bleeding no nothing.

Everyone, even the Kwon-Yuu officer Rashomon who had already been pushing his way through to get to you, murder in his eyes and a hoofprint on his face, stopped and had a WTF moment. Everyone except the faceless killing machine, who was not moving till further orders, and Horus who had indeed trusted you and took action while everyone else processed...whatever the hell this reverse vampirism they had just witnessed was.

With Hana in his hands and you a step behind, the boy knight bolted down the only escape avenue he could see, further into the town. Thankfully Hana's previous spell had forced the Kwon-Yuu to back away significantly so that when Rashomon ordered "Wha-Duh-A-AFTER them! Don't let them escape!" they couldn't close the noose fast enough.

However, you didn't have much of a head start on them, not at all. 1 wrong step, 1 wrong turn and that was it. Even if you came upon a camel, they'd be upon you before you could get 1 leg up to mount it.

Rounding the corner you knew you had but a second to think of something slow them down if you were to have any chances to lose them in the labyrinth that is an Arcanian settlement. Being crafty didn't help if they could see you the entire time.

After the initial rush (as per the Summon Stampede spell effect) the camels had scattered and, based on the path of destruction, some of them had already passed through here, knocking over some laundry wire with clothes among other things. Throwing 1 end in a loop around a pole you tightened it so that at least it stood off the ground, using a vile instead of a stick as a fasten.

You barely took 2 step to catch up to Horus when you heard the angry yells from the soldiers rounding the corner, followed by a telltale "Oof! *thud* *klink* *shhhhhhHHHHHHHH", then the unmistakable sizzle of science at work. An artificial sponge-like mimicry of an ooze filled the entire narrow alleyway, blocking the pursuer's path and sight.

You were pleased to hear the impotent protests of meatheads trying to curse their way through your genius as you put more distance between them, and even more so when "^{Wait, no no no, don't. Gaaah, damn it, the stupid thing ran right into it}" the mindless faceless monster hadn't even perceived the alchemical foam as a threat. But your jubilation was drained from your face and replaced by dread again as you heard the Officer's reaction "^{You idiots.} *BOOM* *Splat* ^{Alright, the way is clear now. After them! Find them even if you have to...}"

ooc: To my knowledge you did not use your Martial Focus. I used your knowledge check roll (a 5) on the reflex save when you were thrown off the camel. This is essentially a chase at this point.

Soldiers rolled nat 8 vs your trap's DC 16
Warrior's Essence rolled a natural 1.
Rashomon rolled a natural 17 which I treated as a strength check but with a spell for flavor purposes.

Yes it is a chase. I should have bought a small lead, 2-3 rounds, cut down to 1 by the infernal commander's quick acessment. Irfan is really getting the 3 stooges vibe from his underlings, but mostly because their commander treats them like expendable trash so they second guess everything and take commands a bit too litterally without thinking because of fear.

There isn't much of a speed advantage here, it's basically society and track checks to keep our lead and secure 2-3 working camels without getting cut off. Irfan has home field advantage, but that spirit and commander are relentless. Fighting those 2 head on would take too long.

Option 2 is find a quick place to hide, and get Hana healed up properly but become traped in a occupied town, outcome grim since the kwon reinforced. They might be able to break past while the guards are combing, but the commander would need to be disabled first.

Survival is dependant on reaching a different settlement with a stronger Ironian presence. Irfan doubts he can make it back to the sand skimmer, before scavengers find it and a parched Loki. Since the boat was in such good shape, the scavengers might bring it back to fix up instead of scrap.




----------------

Running after Horus and gaining a bit even though his butt was starting to feel that tumblewith every step. Irfan called out "Left!" as Horus was running towards a street that still had it's clutter stacked neatly instead of scattered, presumably trying to hide. They needed to follow the wreckage right now, the only silver lining is that camels don't stay worked up for long, so they would be close, probably at the nearest food vender. He just had to listen for the outraged merchant's curses.

Irfan rolled 26 using 1d20+8.  Chase check. Oerception.

Alright, I hope wonderboy has animal magnetism because irfan isn't much of a rider.

Guiding Horus down the streets, what came next was getting on the recently spooked animals without scaring them off again.

Handle animal low dc, group stealth high dc,
Today: Irfan rolled 24(12)using 1d20+7+1d6(5).  knowledge nature chase check.

Irfan has Horus come to a stop as the ragged trio round the corner. Grabbing bananas off another stall as the merchants were trying to shoo the camels away. Irfan quickly peels them and sugar coats them from his supplies.


Holding his sweetened nanna bouquet forward, he lures in the animal with one hand. All protest from the merchants ends at the sight of so much blood, as they put 2 and 2 together sith the earlier ruckus. Calling Horus forward his other hand now that the canels were distracted.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:27, Sat 26 Oct 2019.

Ooooh, with a perception check that high...

While trying to woo the camel into obedience, you looked around nervously for any signs of the Kwon-Yuu. You had given them the slip for the moment, but you knew it was borrowed time at best.

While the camel was munching on your offering you noticed something peculiar, something you hadn't been looking for yet there it was all the same. In the obscured shadowy background behind the stalls and tarps, the fat merchant from earlier was limping along, holding himself against the wall of a building for support, clutching his stomach with the other hand, then stops for apparently a rest but is in actuality giving a quick scan to see if anyone was looking, moves the hand he was using to support himself a little higher than would be comfortable and leans in. The tile gives way to the pressure and a secret entrance opens up. He quickly sneaks in and the entrance closes again, the tile moving outwards back in place.

Any other time, Irfan would have been intrigued. He didn't know what the city really produced, or for whom, but he had little reason to think whatever group was operating here would trade all those years of secrecy to help him. They would probably give up all 3 of them to hide their own goings on, which might be as disruptive to the peace as the Kwon capturing Hana.

Now that they had camels, they just needed to find a way to sneak out of the city. If there was a secret panel there, that means whatever shady exit the town used to smuggle goods out unseen had to be close by. Normally it would be as simple as looking for whichever backstreets showed the most wear and were kept clear, but he had a proverbial snake in his turban. If Hana could fly, she might have been able to spot their destination. If the camels were smart he could probably lead him, but they were just animals. Horus may have been here before, but he had memory loss. And unfortunately the locals were too spooked to just give up their well kept secrets, it didn't help when the truth was so grandiose it seemed like a con.

The biggest trick was going to be keeping the camels moving fast enough to out speed the soldiers. They really only had 4 speeds: Stationary, Sloth, Walking, and Sprinting. He had already showcased how dangerous sprinting was.
<did Horus manage to get a camel to let him on, is holding Hana securely on it's back?>


I'm thinking 2-3 more obstacles before we are out, But the nature of those obstacles are kind of up to you. We hopefully managed to pick up a little bit of a lead, but now are almost as destination-less as the Kwon.

The camels make me want to immediately start rolling handle animal checks constantly.
The Kwon Moving around will require some perception/society/stealth checks to get around, we can't really bluff our way through them. identifying Short cuts, not walking into them, waiting for them to pass.
There may be one or two unique challenges that pop up. Perhaps it becomes obvious we can't sneak the camels past the Kwon, and we have to backtrack.

Irfan considers which direction to go, he needed to find atleast 1 more camel, and he needed to reach the outer wall of the city.

With any luck the Kwon leader would be too busy trying to catch them inside the town to issue proper orders about sealing off exits first.

If he got the beasts out into the desert they could easily ouy manuever the kwon foot soldiers, or limit meaningful pursuit to how ever many camels they could scrounge up.

You look and see an intersection ahead. You haven't been this way before but you were fairly sure that the left one should take you to the wall where as the right one loops around and takes you back to the entrance of the town. There were freshly dug up camel hoof tracks in ether direction so reason dictated there should be at least one more along the path (assuming someone else didn't already take them aside or they kept running).

You made your decision but just as you were about to head out, from behind you hear the sliding of boot against light sand and ground scraping to a sliding halt as their owner hadn't anticipated the sharp turn while running at full speed. And the dreaded words "A hah! Gatcha!" of the last person you wanted to see.

Rashomon cast Force Punch at Irfan.
You're ganna have to search that spell yourself https://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic...pells/f/force-punch/ as I'm not ganna be in a port with wifi anytime soon and I don't wanna waste the trafic because d20pfsrd drains it like a bitch.

ooc: You gave up the initial advantage to double heal Hana and, you forget, he succeeded the save throw against your foam trap. So that leaves you with only the slight advantage you had of knowing the town better than him and that can only take you so far.

This spell charges your hand with telekinetic force. Your successful melee touch attack deals 1d4 points of force damage per level (maximum 10d4) and causes the target to be pushed away from you in a straight line up to 5 feet per two caster levels. Fort negates movement.
It's a touch spell, but i'll definitely rule of cool it as his indignation as granting it close meta magic, or maybe he has his own way of extending. I'm always down for casters taking magic/curse attribute damage to push a spell effect beyond it's scope, like pulling a magic muscle or ankle.

Today: Irfan rolled 5 using 1d20.  Officer Ranged touch attack.
at +2 dex +  5 (min lv7 spiritualist) BaB = hits 12 ac vs Irfan Touch AC 12. (maybe he had wound damage lol.

------------------------------------------
Today: Irfan rolled 13 using 1d20+2.  Irfan save vs spell: fort. fails but without attribute bonus (atleast (13)+1 for a lv3 spell).

Irfan is knocked 15+ feet back into the town building/alley.
Irfan rolled 15 using 6d4 with rolls of 1,1,3,3,3,4.  Force damgae.
  Irfan rolled 4,1,6,3,4 using 4d4 with rolls of 4,1,3,4.  Force damage part 2.
  wow 10 rolls, 3 1's, 0 2's.

Ok factoring in previous incantation damage (15-12) = 3/15 vigor -19(minimum cl 7)+ = 10/26 wounds (38%) -3.5 wound factor.

---------------------------

Did he dismiss his phantom, or recall it. (summoning time 1 minute, if more then 50ft away full round action to maintain connection, lv6 summon phantom as a immediate action 1/day(2/day lv10).  Slowing down his phantom should force him to wait for it or lose it otherwise(full round concentration check if more then 50 ft away to maintain).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If hit, Irfan goes flying like a sack of potatoes.


Chances are, he blacks out, hopefully he went into the alley and hit something soft.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[
If not hit


Flight mode became fight mode. Irfan doesn't have any options left, they could try dogpiling 3 on 1 camel but......

Irfan rolled 9+? using 1d20+?.  Officer Initiative.
Irfan rolled 8 using 1d20+2.  Come on Super initative check.
Irfan rolled 7 using 1d20+3.  Ranged attack Ammonium Nitrate direct attack('glacial flask').
If that miraculously hits, dc 14 or be Mr.Freeze-d for 4 rounds. If range is too short, use flashbang.


Irfan moves away as best as possible, trying to break Line of Sight (round a corner, down a alley.)


The Dice roller is legit trying to kill me.
Irfan rolled 98 using 10d20 with rolls of

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
5,5,13,15,4,16,9,14,2,15.  Dm's 10 random rolls.

---

Since I'll be denied the option of reacting if the hit lands squarely. (I can only assume he launched the spell from a distance) I'll post as if I can act.

Irfans blood freezes over, as he hears the voice, then feels a massive wind blow by his face, and only his face, it throws his turban off and snapping his head around. There stood the Kwon officer, his face a mask of pure vengeful rage, like that of a lion having cornered hyena's that dragged off it's kill. Dropping the Bananas, Irfan didn't have time to process anything, besides the fact that running was no longer a option for him.

 Staring directly at his would be killer, he drops his hand into his pouch and pulls out the most dangerous compound he had produced. A drop could shatter beer in it's mug, a whole flask could engulf a person in a thin but strong sheet of a ice. Nerves racing, he chunked it at the imposing figure hoping it would at the very least bamboozle him enough that he got distracted.

(does this count as him the turn he beat me in initative, or was his attack a suprise round or already had initative rolled?)

Irfan's attack goes wide since it was such a shakey underhanded throw, hitting the ground, the jolt alone transforming the supercooled salted water into ice and shattering the container both exploding and freezing nearly on contact, leaving a spikey ball of ice and glass shard in the dirt.



Irfan rolled 20 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 18.  Initative 2nd Turn
Irfan rolled 12 using 1d20+2 with rolls of 10.  officer Initiative 2nd turn.

Irfan rolled 10 using 1d20+4 with rolls of 6.  (throw anything feat)  2nd Glacial Flask.


Seeing the impact, snapped Irfan back to reality, maybe it wasn't sorcery, but it was defiantly the next best thing. His second throw is much closer, it would have hit a stationary target, but his target was neither immoble or a idiot. Side stepping the attack rather then parrying it.

Irfan hears Horus' growing signature mark "AAAAAAAARG!" battle cry he uses when he charges. His blood freezes over, as he hears the voice of the Kwon-Youu officer, then feels a massive wind blow by his face as Horus is sent flying past him, crashing painfully into some stalls and tarps behind. And there he remained, motionless.

Rashomon raises his hand, index and middle finger pointing at the incoming projectile. It stops on midair, hovering, slightly rotating, several feet from his head "Really now? We've resorted to throwing rocks? Or...wait, what is this? Some piece of junk? Meh-" he flicks his wrist dismissively, the canister following the command and discarding itself aside. It clinks as it hits the ground then a moment later _fsssssssssSSST the floor and part of the wall on the building freezes over. "WOW! What the-?" he turns to you, sadism throwing its hat in the ring with vengeful rage, "-well aren't you the tricky on-WHA!" he throws up both hands just in time to stop the second projectile. "Will you stop doing that?!" the cockiness had definitely left the building as he discarded the 2nd projectile (a lot farther away this time, just to be safe) and turned back to you "OH NO YOU DON'T! Not this time."

And that is when Irfan's world got turned upside down...shaken all around, fly high, fallen to the ground. (you are on 9 wounds. Roll Con to see if you pass out or not)

ooc: Oh is that what it does? I was looking for a ranged attack (options are kinda limited)...buuuuut I guess I can play that off too. He's not the kind of guy who wants to get up close and personal if he can help it, and certainly not if he thinks there's a chance his prey would get away so adding the Pinpoint Spellcasting meta feat isn't a stretch at all (he already has a different ranged attack option similar to a ranged force punch but it would be overkill considering the situation. It's not something he'd use unless it was a balls-to-the-wall kind of situation, plus it requires more mental investment. Right now he's pissed off as hell and is going off on mostly emotions so going with the attack that comes the most naturally would be the logical step). BTW, since this is a fight now we can have Horus chip in as well (I was operating under the assumption that you mouned the camel and he was securing Hana on it when Rashomon showed up). Let's see first random number...5. Yup, Rashomon still goes first.

Also, this is meta knowledge, but you shouldn't base your assumptions/decisions on him being a spiritualist, you should know me better than that by now. The thing he summoned did however run head first into the foam though (natural 1), so it got delayed the most as per both chase rules and common sense. You could run down the alley 30ft, but he'd just more 30ft after you since both you and him use standard actions to attack each other. The best you can hope for is soft cover (won't help) or a stealth check.

Eh it's supposed to be force punch, right now he's jacking it up to jedi force push. It's just DMing on the fly.

Irfan rolled 22(20) using 1d20+2.  Con check.

Irfan rolled 11(3) using 1d20+8.  Stealth check.


I figure you like the spoiler because it gives you a chance to think before accidently seeing the results.
 Irfan rolled 115 using 10 Random d20's with rolls of

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)

 4,12,8,15,2,14,14,20,10,16. 

---

.

As Rashomon turned back to regard the tricky Arcanian who was beginning to be an almighty thrown in his side, the coward was running away! Scurrying away like a rat round yet another fucking tight corner in this damned forsaken town made of nothing but dingy alleys, tight turns and sharp corners. "OH NO YOU DON'T! Not this time."

Just as Irfan rounded the corner, the wall next to him exploded! For a moment he saw nothing but grey dust and debris chunks as he was sent flying sideways by a concussive shock-wave. The Kwon-Yuu officer's spell had blasted through the stalls, hanging laundry, even the edge of a shabby building. He hit the wall on the opposite side of the street with a sickening crack, fell down slack, then got showered by broken glass as the concussive force had shattered those of the nearby buildings if not the whole block.

You didn't feel pain, yet, but from very similar all-too-recent previous experience you knew that was only due to the shock and still being warm. No doubt soon you'd be in so much of it you'd be hard-pressed to do anything beyond sprawling on the ground. 'But until then, I can use this numbness to my advantage. I have to get out of dodge because if this psycho finds me I'm dead.' And so, not even waiting to test if everything was working properly, if a limb was contorted in ways it shouldn't and applying pressure on it would only make it worse later, you crawled out of your nest. Pushing through the shattered wood of stalls, fallen food, textiles, decorative tacky junk, glass, and who knows what else, your mind worked overtime on filtering through options. 'The street is deserted, folks probably wisely bailed a soon as trouble announced its coming. The street is already a bit of a mess, ah yes, the camels came by earlier, the spell probably made it worse. I can't outrun him, I can't call for help, my best bet is to hide. But where? Right where I am under some fabric and clothes? No, that's the first place he'll look. Into the dark space between those two buildings? No, too slow, he'll see me before I'm on the other side. Further down the road? No, I'll start bleeding soon and leave a trail. The less I carve a path through the chaos the better. I'll just go right across the street and hide under what's left of that stall, where the beam and rocks are hanging dangerously above it. Common sense dictates that people have a knee jerk reaction to get away, put distance between the source of the perceived danger. Which is exactly why I should go there' *Inspired by Sherlock Holmes series cutscene when he got shot and had this huge monologue on whether to fall forwards or backwards as he collapsed*

Irfan darted across, slid under then went went still, didn't even dare to breath. *click, click, click* He felt like a child hiding under the bed as he saw a pair of boots stroll past. Shards protested and cracked as they stepped on with disregard. The boots stopped indeed where his impact site had been, showing him their heels as he heard some ruined carpets get tossed aside. There was an dissatisfied grunt and the boots turned right. *shuuuup, click, click, click* they moved a few steps to the right, just inside the visual range from his hidy hole. Irfan could just imagine the officer appraising the scene with a critical eye, walking a little further down the road, checking side to side. Then the boots turned...towards him! *click, click, click* They approached. A lump was forming in his throat. *click, click, click* They grew bigger. He never wanted to swallow so badly as he did right then, it felt like bugs were trying to claw past his throat and crawl down his pathways straight to his lungs! *click, click...* They stopped so close he could smell the now tarnished but well maintained leather. His heartbeat was pounding so hard into his ears he couldn't head anything else.

"Bah, must've missed. Slippery little rat-" you hear above you then the boots turn left and walk away from sight.

ooc: Oh ok, then let me use his real ranged attack and see if you complain less about it when Irfan is a stain on the wall. You forget, training is a thing. Did you think that only applied to you? That NPCs couldn't use it to buff themselves up above their character level? Besides, it's not like I completed his sheet to the minute detail (I haven't even touched his equipment) what with my lack of proper internet and all, certainly not considering you weren't even suppose to meet him (at least not this early in the game). But yeah, he used force punch on you too (used your original roll on Irfan and a new roll for Horus (divided the d20 rolls by 5 to get the d4s for the spell)).

And yes, I do prefer the spoiler.

4

...4. ^{(insta-regret previous statement)}

Perception 4 (not a class skill) + mod. Are you kid- *deep exhale, compose yourself*

Ya know, I must say, this entire counter has gone...way WAY different than I thought it would. I spent all day during my free time at work thinking on how the interaction between Rasho and Irfan would or could roll out. Him basically threatening to crush his head, maybe even torture him, as he asked for a reason why not to kill him. *(Ah but Irfan has wound dmg and his Stealth skill mod is lower, no wait he also has advantage due to home turf terrain and cover (fukin high society check) so they cancel each other out. Plus Rasho is still affected by the Voice of Gods spell, shaken penalties an all, and the -1 range penalty for every 10ft difference. nevermind. I'm just writing down my thoughts as they come)* Then the possible things you(Irfan) could say and how he'd react to them, thinking on what the DCs for an influence check would be depending on how you went with it. Maybe playing a bit more cat and mouse if Irfan kept rolling well. I even considered Irfan offering to sell out Loki for clemency (hoping to buy time of course, not really sell Loki out). But this...*looks back at previous posts* Oh wait I did mention a stealth check. I guess that just slipped out as I imagined the street/scene in my minds eye. It was conceivable, sure, I just didn't consider it very likely so I put it out of my mind almost instantly. Like I said, most of the time I'm just writing my thoughts as the come, as I see the story in my imagination. It's more serious/adult western cartoon animation or action movie CGI with anime action scenes or highjinx from time to time.

I'm ganna retcon that last scene juuuuust a little bit for flavor sake because the way it stands now it basically sounds like Rashomon threw a spell into his back as Irfan was running away.

Maybe we need a blooper/cinematic thread for you to jot things down, "It could of been this awesome but no.. Nope you had to act out of character and meta didnt' you."




Irfan knows he is close to an alley way, he just needs to wait for The big bad wolf( Guy really needs atleast a nickname, don't want to call him Mendula) to turn his focus to his prizes so that Irfan could clear the distance and remove any chance at being seen by him.

   Irfan rolled 26 using 1d20+8.  Wait a 2nd turn.

With the threat walking away, Irfan knew the chances of being spotted were greatly deminished, but he didn't want to take the chance of a suprise look back or some of the debris he was hiding under making noise.

Once he was sure he was tending to  Horus and Hana, Irfan creeps out in to the alley. Bruised, battered, He knows he needs a quiet place to recover. Trying that secret passage way from before was a bit risky, but the wounded merchant thought it was a good enough place to hide. Staggering into the shadows of a doorway, He fumbles for his last prepared item, and applied it to his back.

Irfan rolled 5(1) using 1d8+4. I hate dice roller these last 2 weeks, but like usual dice have thier own take on the story.

It's ackward to reach his back espesially with how stiff his right shoulder is, so he knows he isn't getting the full effect of the salve, but he still feel it working even if he couldn't soak it into a bandage.

Creeping out into the alley as he hears Orders and accusations of incompetence flying, he has to make a split decision on where to hide. He could try for a local family building, an abandoned building, a pub, or take his chances with whatever underground group worked out of this town. He couldn't stay here out though, the town was in full batten down the hatches mode, he would have some trouble getting in anywhere, but not enough to be impossible.

Torn between going to the local alchemist shop that he could make use of and hide in, and the trusting the unknown group he decides that only one within reach. Irfan makes his way to the next street over, where the merchant had gone.
Irfan rolled 24(19) using d20+5.  Finesse secret door.

Forwarned with the knowledge the switch was up high, and where to stand, Irfan has no trouble disappearing as into the wall as fluidly as a ghost when he reaches the spot. Tumbling down into the ?Darkness? ?the short stairs?

ooc: Hey, sometimes the deviation from the story comes out better. Who's to say?

Just a tangent, this town had only 1 pub, and that was the original tavern where you visited and the fight started out of today.

You can choose a nickname. Irfan would certainly have ample reasons for it. I'm forced to pull names out of my ass due to my lack of net (usually I research them to give them meaning, glimpses into their character, past and possible foreshadowing to their eventual fate).

The rest of the soldiers had caught up to their commander and were now busy tending to the camel with Hana on it or spreading around down other intersections and alleys at Rashomon's command. With that taken care of he turns back to his own task. Slowly he strode slowly toward the broken Horus, as is the grim reaper was announcing his arrival ahead of time so that you may despair. It was having the desired effect because you notice the boy see him coming, try to push himself up but immediately give up with an agonizing groan as a wave of protesting pain keeps him lying down.

The officer picks up the discarded factsimally of the Sword of Trust along the way, examining it curiously, making a point to ignore the prone knight's suffering as he loomed over him. While waiting for everyone to clear out or at least be distracted by their task, you witness what passes between Rashomon and your valiant but ultimately powerless ally-by-happenstance.

"Very interesting. A perfect copy, I admit I'm impressed" he says without looking at Horus, who could do nothing but glare back. "Now I may not know exactly the kind of cheap, parlor trickery you barbarians used to conjure this-" the sword, along with the shining while armor, shimmer out of existence. Rashomon doesn't even bat an eye, probably expecting it "-but I do know enough about making things that aren't there to be there, that you'd have to be intimately familiar with the item you're trying to copy, ^{at least if you're going to make a copy this good.} So what I'd like to know is," he now turns to look at Horus in earnest, and matches his glare with his own so well that you notice some of the defiance drain from the boy, "how in the ever loving fuck did a pleb like you get access to an artifact like that?"

Silence.

This was your chance. From what you gathered earlier, this man loooooved his theatrics and once he got started he just kept going. With the remaining 2 soldiers otherwise preoccupied, you emerged out of your hidey-hole then started crawling in the space between the street stalls and the street, over to where the secret entrance was. It was slow progress but better that then drawing attention to yourself.

"Oh, a tough guy, eh? Normally I have ways to make people like you talk, ^{I enjoy it and take my time while doing it}, but unfortunately I'm a bit on a schedule, falling a bit behind in all honesty, and you don't look like you're in any condition to survive it, ^{probably keep over any minute now if your internal injuries are as bad as I suspect}. So how about..." he pauses, tapping his finger on his chin, "...unless you tell me what I want to know, I kill the little birdy?"
-"*grunt* You're -gah- bluffing!" you hear Horus wheeze out in great pain through his teeth. Your heart went out to the boy's defiance, a silent pride glowered in you.
-"Ha ha, ok, ok, you got me, you got me," Rashomon raised his hand in mock surrender, "I do need her alive and in good health I suppose, until I'm told otherwise. Wanna err on the side of caution when dealing with that psycho sicko Azula. Which reminds me-" he whistles sharply. The soldiers fumbling with the camel and the princess perk up "-make sure she gets treatment!" he snaps sternly at the men.
-"Yes sir!"
Then he turns his attention back to Horus and switches back to speaking in that sickeningly sweet manner "Your other friend on the other hand, he turns to look back."
'FUUUUUCK!!! SHIT, FUCK, DAM-' your heart shot to your throat. You were dead, you knew it. Of course you couldn't sneak away, what were you thinking? But as you risk stealing a glance you realize the officer was looking back down the street that was ruined by his spell, back where he had previously searched and you had sneaked away from. He was lying! Trying to trick Horus into talking. It took inhuman effort to catch yourself from releasing the mother of all relief sighs and probably reveal your location.

"I must say, he's in a pretty bad shape. Worse than you in fact. If nothing is done..." he let it hang in the air. "Perhaps I should go over there and-"
-"Leave him alone ^aaaargh"
-"^Heh Tell you what, I'll make a deal with you. You tell me what I want to know, and I won't kill him. Deal?"
-"..."
-"Going once, going twice-"
-"Alright! ^*gasp* *pant* *pant* Princess Hana was carrying it. I got to see it and use it to defend us while traveling with her,*pant* *pant*"
-"Oooh, interesting. So she has it right now? I would have noticed something that big on her. Did she stash it away somewhere?" he got on one knee and leaned in closer, very interested to hear more.
'This is good,' he was distracted, far away and had his back turned. The only thing you had to worry about now was edging closer without the soldiers noticing.
-"No,*pant* we lost it when fighting dead monsters in some cursed ruins nearby. There was this purple mist and-"
Rashomon throws his head back and groans in frustration.
You were making great progress. Almost there... you started rising up.
-"What is it sir?" the soldiers pause and perk up again.
-"The morons were exploring Shambala and lost the sword," he barked at them as he come stomping over.
<i>Shit!</i> you immediately fall back prone out of sight. With him facing in your general direction, even if distracted, you didn't like your odds of just standing up in full view and slipping into the secret passage undetected. You only got 1 shot at this and you had to make it right.
-"Shambala? You mean the ghost city down south we past just yesterday? But isn't it still under the hex?"
-"Assemble the men, we're heading out," he barked again as he inspected the girl on the camel.
-"To Shambala?!!" the fear and distress in full display.
-"NO, you idiot, the sword was probably dragged off to the core by now. You think I'm crazy enough to go diving into it without preparation and a specialized team? Fuck that, we're heading back south to *what's the name of that Kwon-Yuu foothold at the very tip of Southern Arcania?*"
-"What about the lead, and the search for the Tenrybitto?"
'Come on! Just look away alrea-wait what?' hearing that word made you pause. You had gathered earlier that the officer was using some kind of magic to facilitate communication, but even when using magical means of translation when someone used a word in one language that had no equivalent in the other, the word came out in its original phrasing.
-"That retarded fatso knows nothing of use. Even if he did witness the Tenrybitto he's too much of a coward to have payed attention to anything other than saving his own skin. It could be anywhere as anything by now."
-"Soooo, are we resuming the search?"
At this the Kwon-Yuu officer stopped and pondered for a moment before answering. "...No," he said at length, "the whole operation was a wild stab in the dark from the start, ^{I called it right from the start,}, a waste of manpower and needless loss to the wild creatures of this forsaken place. No, we're heading back to base then *make the jump back home via the Cursed Crossways."
-"Um, won't the sic- er, general be displeased we abandoned the mission?" the soldier didn't bother hiding his fear.
-"The next full moon is ways off. We'll just make a show of putting in the effort, take our time going back, take the scenic route if you will. Without some better means of tracking the Tenrybitto right now it's like searching for a needle in a haystack anyway. Hopefully by the time we get back they'd have came in contact with the other half on their side ^{if not dealt with it already}. If they got something to use as a medium we could use divination magic to find it on this side. Until then there's no point...Besides-" an evil grin spread on his face as he ran a caressing finger along the cheek of the unconscious and battered Hana, "-it's not like we're coming back empty handed. A fine consolation prize, wouldn't you agree? And I'm sure they'd be more than interested to hear that the Alliance lost their precious Sword of Trust, ^{ha haah! Ooooh boy}" he said as he was preparing to leave back the way he came.
'Not good, not good! He's ganna see me as he passes by!'
-"Whait! *cough* *cough*" Horus desperately rasps out, coughing out blood as he did, "What about my friend? *cough* Please, you must safe Irfan. *cough* *hack* You promized!"
Rashomon turns back to look at the boy with a bit of puzzlement, mumbling something like Oh right, I forgot about him under his breath.
It's now or never!
-"I said I wouldn't kill him. I never said anything about saving him,"
-"No...no...you, bastard, ^<small>aargh. Irfan!</small>"

The last thing you saw before the wall closed was the Kwon-Yuu officer laughing, taking perverted pleasure at watching Horus try to drag himself towards where he was fooled into believing you lay dying, creating a trail of blood from his own injuries as he did.

The scene had captivated your attention so much so that you stepped back on the stair with half your foot, causing you to lose your balance and fall backwards. Thankfully it was a short flight of stairs, just two or three, and found yourself harmlessly crashing open through a door. Your dynamic entrance caused 2 figures in the dimply lit room, who were in the middle of a heated yet hushed yammering discussion (ya know, the kind where both people are talking, quickly escalating into shouting but neither is listening), to abruptly stop and simultaneously turn to look at the intrusion with surprise. Looking up, they appeared upside down in your view so it took you a moment to recognize them as the fat merchant and...the bartender of the tavern???

A few moments passed as everyone just stood frozen in stunned silence.

Now that you had the time to think about it, given the turns you took and layout of the town, you should be somewhere behind the tavern. The building adjacent to the rear of the tavern to be precise.

Irfan is sure the  Arcadian pair has twice as many questions as he did, but regardless he struggles to stand up, holding the shoulder where he had gotten hit once he does with a painned grimace. He moved towards what he expected to be the front of the tavern, mindful of the gaping hole.

He hasn't expected the Leon to want to leave so soon, it even sounded like they had no reason to stay or go.
Irfan tried to get to a corner where he could both see the town plaza somewhat, but remain unseen. An upstairs room would probably be ideal if they had windows, but a shady corner of the tavern where he could partially see out the hole the officer opened in the wall would work.

It was clear he was having trouble moving, and by all rights should pay down but Irfan possessed some form of mission.

It's up to the Arcadian pair of they want to stop him or warn him there are wounded soldiers being treated in the tavern lobby. Trying to get a wounded individual to sit down seems natural to me, and he could hardly resit one pair of hands, let alone 2.

Irfan wants to glean as much info about the Kwon as he can before they leave presumably on foot. He knows he has to catch them again off guard in a few days, and every bit of Info helps.

The two Arcanians parted in mute awe to make a path for you. Even though a gentle breeze could knock you down, they didn't want to get in the way of a man with such determination in his eyes.

The path led to a downward slope, a relatively long narrow passage, then slopped up again. There was a small chamber, a broom cupboard really, then beyond that door the area behind the bar of the tavern. There was another door to your right but you weren't interested in that right now. Looking around you saw that some damage had been done to the tavern, broken tables and chairs when Rashomon had tried to make a point when weeding out his prey, but it was otherwise empty.

There was no upper floor so you settled for sneaking up to what was left of the door and peering through the wreckage. The tavern was position well enough to give a good view of the street leading all the way to the gates of the town. The same street the officer had toyed with Hana, Horus and the fat merchant before you had decided to crash the party.

And speaking of the fat merchant, you hear hurried steps behind you. The 2 Arcanians had decided to follow you after a spell. You threw a quick glace at them to make sure they weren't trying to stop you, or perhaps to warn them against exercising such thoughts. The bartender had went down the door you had ignored as soon as coming in, while the fat merchant had tried to approach you non-threateningly, but stopped half way when receiving your stare. He was struggling to say something to you, nervously fidgeting and changing his mind whenever he was about to start. You ignored him.

Out in the street you see the soldiers that had come from the inside were attending to the ones caught in the stampede. Potions changed hands, some of them had magical healing powers. Soon enough they were, perhaps not in perfect condition but at least stable enough to travel or move. Those that could be helped anyway. A few remained motionless on the ground, and you were relieved to see none of them were Arcanians.

Rasho was already marching back into view, having retraced his steps from the chase. This could mean ether good news or very VERY bad news for Horus, depending on whether the officer had lingered behind to want him struggle to the end or just walked away and leave him to his fate. The 2 soldiers that were with him were following suit, carrying Hana. He barked a few orders, some of those soldiers that could heal clustered around the tengu princess, a couple of blue lights glowed, the others collected their. The officer started flailing his hands in complex patterns and speaking in some foreign tongue similar to how you've seen Hana do when casting spells. Before your very eyes a bunch of horses(?) materialized out of nowhere! He repeated the process a few times and pretty soon there were enough mounts for the entire Kwon-Yuu platoon, all few dozen of them. After securing Hana, the dead, discarded gear, and those still too injured to ride alone, they rode out without any further flare nor fanfare.

With nothing left to see you turn your attention back to affairs inside the tavern. The fat merchant was still standing nervously in the middle of the room, perhaps waiting for you to initiate the conversation. The bartender just then emerged from the side door with the giant minotaur bouncer from the other night. He pointed at you and the minotaur's gaze, following the finger, rested and locked on you. Sidestepping wreckage, he started making his way to you.

Mount communal lv2. School conjuration (summoning);

Of course the bastards had horses, but some kind of pocket horse? Horse seeds? It seemed like a spell, they could out run camels, but would out so them over a day out in the sands.

 With the threat finally cleared out, Irfan relaxes a bit just to find himself in danger of a good pummeling. He has better things to do then put up a fight, heading out of his own accord he made his way to into the plaza.


Did any of the Kwon casualties still have their equipment? Any options they had left in haste would be useful to grab quick, no time to damage or loot blindly.Looks any potions off up to 2 Kwon, maybe a belt pouch while he is at it.

Making his way back to the backstreet where Horus had been, Irfan goes to tend to him. If he could pull it his healing trick still without Hana, that would be amazing, but Irfan needed to keep him alive first, the poor kid probably has pushed himself half to death instead of trying to build himself together.

Insert feedback on Horus situation.
Expect a thank God your alive hug, let's save Hana now responce.
That will be a painful hug, better if he is unconscious till later. So Irfan can point out the other wounded and pull a WWHanaDo to cool his jets.

------------

Irfan had time, the Kwon had a schedule to wait o  and he was in bad shape, even with Horus's help. He could take the time to undo some damage while he recovered.

Anticipated wounded possibly even Horus initially, not anticipating a healer or a low level druid or ranger one. (Arcadians aren't magically wealthy to begin with as a whole, and the cursed bomb did a number on their faster population I'd guess)

Irfan expects to haggle his way into the alchemy shop making medicine and playing doctor. He created this mess so he only charges cost+ the Alzheimer's cut, he couldn't bring himself to profit off this even if he was short gold.



His mind wanders as he works. The man had been strong, and his magicks battletested, able to easily deflect his attacks. There were too many to fight even indirectly, and any kind of trap he dreamed up would endanger Hana.

Either he needed to find them, infiltrate and escape with Hana unnoticed in the night. Or he needed some one able to overpower that officer, the rest he could handle with a little planning and some surprise.

Applying -2 from wounds now, I rolled a 20 on stabilized check, so I shrugged it off in escaping.
perception: search for potions
Rolled a 18(12).
Profession Healer: triage nurse He isn't that experienced
Heal check stabilized Horus.
Rolled a 21(16).
Society: Find Help, convince Render Aide
Rolled a 10(2), gets Horus in with others but has to carry him himself and Horus is ignored?

Influence: Diplomacy Alchemist use his stuff (side quest, Alchemist wants to create a stable version of salve, burning hands spell vs Alchemist's fire item)
Rolled a 16(10)
Craft Alchemy: make salves for Villagers and Horus.
See below.
Diplomacy: cool off Horus.
Roller a 16(10).
Alchemy 9-2wound+2 lab = 1d20+9 vs dc 15 = 6-20 success, prefer take 10.
1 salve /15 mins without/with lab, = 4 a hour (8 if Irfan could skill up incrementally.

------------

No need to play this out all at once, i'm horrible at small talk, but good chances for roll role play.


Irfan Alchemy rolls or other rolls as needed, prefer take 10.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
Irfan rolled 227 using 20d20 with rolls of 15,3,20,1,13,5,14,12,18,2,14,7,17,15,19,17,11,15,7,2.  Alchemy checks if needed. 3/4 don't wiff,4/5 with aide other.

---

Irfan tries to play the Samaritan card.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:40, Sun 26 July 2020.

ooc: The Kwon-Yuu did not leave in a hurry, they just didn't linger around needlessly (kinda like the army when they need to deploy). The casualties had the equipment they wore, the rest was scattered when they got trampled. The others gathered their equipment when they left (it's kinda standard military procedure not to leave army property laying around), however...(roll perception check, checking random rolls...15+mod nice).

As you see the minotaur approaching, you quickly slid back outside to the open area at the crossroads where all of this had started. The sand had soaked up the blood and pulverized organic matter, but other than that it was deserted. As you make your way back to the back streets you had chosen to flee last time a bit of glean catches your eye, a reflection of the sun off of something shiny. You pause for a moment and notice a glass vile just peeking inside a nook of a crashed stall, the sunlight squeezing down just the tiniest of holes in the canvas and cracks in the wood above it. You noticed ever so faint traces of rolling marks in the sand leading into the crack. Your guess was that it had to have fallen off of someone when they had been trampled by the stampede then rolled off. You'd never have noticed it had you not passed through the sunbeam's path. Reaching inside you pull it out and hold it up to your eyes. It was filled with some sort of silvery liquid that seemed to shift in nuance the more you looked at it, from bright mercury to soft pewter.

But a more thorough examination would have to wait till later, right now Horus awaited so you hobbled as quickly as you could (without spilling your guts out). And surely enough you found him where you had left him. Having believed Rashomon's cruel mind games, he had managed to drag himself another dozen of so feet, leaving a ghastly redish mud trail in his wake, in his desperate attempt to reach you before finally succumbing to his own injuries. So now he laid there, in a pool of red sand creeping ever so wider, motionless.

You feared the worst as you rushed over to his side, your own protesting limbs be damned! He wasn't breathing 'Not good' you thought but you weren't giving up. No, you came too far. You just needed to get him conscious then hope against hope he can use his own weird magic to heal himself. Running your mind through what you knew about the human body, you decided to emulate what works on hopefully trick the rest of the organism to resume working. So you placed your hands on Horus' chest, just above his heart, and started pumping rhythmically. It wasn't an ideal solution but then again you couldn't think of a single instance in the past week where that word could apply. You could hear the creaking of squeaky doors and windows as curious Arcanians were starting to peer out, see if the danger has passed and more importantly, see what that weirdo is doing??? You didn't care. In fact you can't remember the last time you had cared less about anything. (heal check, restore 2 vigor points to Horus due to Medical Training class feat)

With a sharp intake of breath Horus gasps, then coughs once. You carefully embrace him with both arms, one across the back the other supporting his head and you lean him foreward and up. With a groan he opened his eyes but the eyelids could barely manage more than slits. It takes a moment for him to get you into focus, then a tired smile blesses his face, "^{Sir Irfan...you're ok...I'm so...glad,}" he whispers out through labored breathing. It looked as if he was now ready to let go and sleep back into sleep forever.
-"No no no no NO! Horus! *slap* COME ON! Stay with me, we're not done yet! Hana still needs us, Hana, remember Hana?"
-"^H...H-Hana?"
-"Yes Hana, the Kwon-Yuu still have her and we need to go get her. Come on think of Hana,"
-"^Hana"
-"Yes yes, Hana! Do what Hana does. BE Hana, just believe and fix yourself. You can do it I know you can,"
-"..." Horus closes his eyes and tilts his head back.

There was a long pause where you feared you had failed, he had drifted off. But then this soft glow started to radiate from him and his wounds started to visibly close. His heartbeat was faster. His breathing was getting better.

The weight of the world slides off your shoulders. Even the scorching sun didn't feel so punishing anymore. It takes you a moment to realize that wasn't just because you were feeling relieved. Looking down you realize you were in the shade. Looking up you find the source of the shade.
"The boss wants to see you," the horse voice of a near 7ft all-muscle minotaur says. And he wasn't asking.

ooc: Oh, you already rolled a perception check. Oh well nvm. Btw, the only money you have left is the ones you didn't keep in your pouch because you gave your pouch to the camel merchant, remember?

Just to point out, At any point Irfan could have been manhandled by the average commoner, let alone a minotaur, so he is being pretty nice.

Well who was Irfan to disagree with such a muscular gentleman, well besides being in rough shape, but that wasn't liable to change it'self anytime soon. With Horus secured, he really didn't have much else on his agenda to do but treat the wounded if they'd let him. Talking to the guy in charge wouldn't be the worst thing possible. Irfan goes along, deciding to leave Horus to recover unless the minotaur insists otherwise.

ooc: I've been meaning to say this but I kept forgetting, you really should use your scout ability more often. I'm sure it would have come in handy with Rashomon.

You are led back to the inn, back through the door behind the bar that the bartender had ran off to fetch the minotaur. There's another narrow corridor that eventually opens up to a bigger room. It's well lit, though you can't see the light source. It is scented with incense of some sort, but unlike some other Arcanian establishments you could name where the sweltering heat poorly mixes with the heavy-handed room fresheners, this place was cooler than the outside giving it a cozy, welcoming, comfortable atmosphere. There are fine decorations, display swords, nice carpeting, an open cabnet with fine hanging clothing, a bookcase on one end but with only half the shelves holding actual books. There were some oddities in the rest, on top of bookcase and on the wall such as a piece of old parchment propped up inside a glass box, some different colored vials, some liquors, a colored rotating ball on a pedestal, and many other nick-knacks. At the center of the room is a very low, wide table. On the opposite side of the table sitting atop a pile of luxurious cushion/pillow heap and smoking hashish is...the alchemist you had met yesterday?

The minotaur moves behind him and crosses his arms defiantly at you, daring you to try anything funny. The bartender is already sitting on the right side of the table, kneeling, his legs tucked a little under the small space there is under it, head bent down and fidgety. He tries to steal a glance from the alchemist, but nervously turns back looking down at the blank surface of the table. On the left is the fat merchant, sitting on a cushion gazing admirably at the alchemist, "Oh this is such an honor, sir, I cannot tell you how honored I am to be given this privilege to meet you in person, the honor of-" while an older pudgy, well dressed man with glasses and a beard is wrapping him with bandages. The bartender gives him a warning 'shut up you idiot' but he pays no attention. He does pay attention though when his physician "accidentally" presses a little too tightly on a wound. He then started asking him what you recognize as routine medical questions. And that's not all you recognize. Thinking back, you recall seeing this man in the tavern the other day as well, sitting by himself and not drinking.

*Vrrrrt, Click*

You are startled as you hear the door close by itself and turn around. Behind it, leaning nonchalantly against the wall and closing it with one hand is yet another person you recall catching your eye back at the tavern. The assassinesque guy that had stuck to the shadows, leaning against the wall. Seems like sitting down wasn't his thing.

Nobody says anything and the alchemist ignores them all, focusing his piercing gaze solely on you. He was nothing like the nobody you had met yesterday. There was this presence about him that told you in no uncertain terms he was in charge here.

"Welcome to my home. I am Evna Abraku," he finally speaks after a long pause.
ooc: If this game was in real time I would have waited for some back and forth, but for the sake of some brevity I will go on a more longwinded monologue.
"As I'm quite sure you've surmised already, I am not an alchemist. Or at least I should say not just an alchemist. That's more of a hobby really. But tell me, who are you, stranger? And why have you come to my city?

You see, I have an eye for talent. I pegged you from the moment I laid eyes on you as more than just a street urchant of a wanna-be trader out to set it big and stumbled upon this place by happenstance. Such talent rarely goes unnoticed so at first I thought you may have been an agent sent by a guild. The bigger ones know of me, and yes, I hold a secret seat at the union so we have an understanding, but honor among thieves is just a myth. A smaller up-and-coming guild might pick up on signs and trails and send someone to investigate.

But then I noticed you had a tengu mage with you, a high Wingheld tengu mage no less, so I figured maybe the old kingpriest finally decided to come out of his hole from atop of the world and where better to expand his territory than Arcania?

But then I saw the blue haired one and if that doesn't say "Hey I'm from Ironia" what with their crazy fashion of the week, I don't know what does. So it made me think maybe the Sorcerer Supreme was finally clamping down on his territory in hopes to, I dunno, make better preparation against a future war with the Kwon-Yuu, maybe the peace treaty is legit and he can finally get back to his world conquest plan, taking out the small fish before turning his attention to the Grasslands and Wingheld again, or maybe it was just tuesday and he finally just decided to put this place under his better management. So imagine my surprise when every hypothesis comes crashing down all at the same time.

The tengu mage is none other than the princess, the next Oracle no less. So that rules out Wingheld preliminary scouting.
The blue boy is an idiot so there goes the Ironia thread.
And then there's you..."

He takes a long swig of the pipe connected to the hashish bottle and blows a big circle of smoke in the air. Then focuses that intense stare at you again, like a man trying very hard to read a book in a language he can't quite understand.
"You were far more resourceful than I ever though possible. You are more than just talented, but a genius and no guild, nobody competent in charge would ever throw such a man into danger. They'd keep him close a safe in order to harness his potential.

So, as you can imagine, that leaves me with quite the conundrum. So I decided to just cut to the heart of the matter and as you in person. Who are you and why are you here? Why was the Wingheld princess with you and what does this have to do with me? Who knows about my operation? What do you want?"

ooc: Whatever you say to him (unless you make a bluff check and fail) he will ask you at the  end "Can I trust you?" this will be a prompt for him to reveal his involvement in all this. If you say "Yes" and mean it he will tell you, but if you later reveal his secret your alignment will shift 1 step towards chaotic, possibly even evil depending on the situation. If you say "Yes" and are lying you'll need to make a bluff check against his insight check. Roll random for me as usual.

 As Irfan a site down, mind racing with situations and hazards, worried over what to say. The FauxAlchemist quickly dispels any possibility of half brained or measure stories. He was obviously a intelligent man with things to hide, so the truth that his town was only as important as the updated supply caravan was a must. He could supply side or in direct assistance a at leash , so Hana's truth was important,up including the nature of the excursion as backed up by the Kwon.

Horus's truth should stay hidden or unmentioned as he was repeated to the Caravan, but not to their side of it so that would be a needless complication. He could use that Kitsune's background, for now, another hireling. Level 3 is a experienced but unworthy adventure/Mercenary/guard. Mostly a omishion, of his origin. He was fulfilling that roll now anyways.

 "By nature of story, we should refrain from introducing Loki back in for now. Even though logic says grab the powerful Kingspriest and let him Handle the Kwon commander."

 The sandskimmer should stay, if, Irfan things it could help.

this man thinks higher of Irfan then he himself does, and that might be working in his favor. It's a tough call, leave him in the dark, or present the impossible truth, forfeiting any advantage imaginary allies give him here.

----------------------------



So firstly I can confirm that Hana is as stated, and that she is in Arcadia because of her sister's apparent disappearence. Horus, the blue haired boy was a traveling swordsman in withheld that answered a sizeable quest. And that a freak encounter with a exalted... Maw for lack of a better term.. crashed the sand skimmer barely avoiding being eatten.

 These they were traveling out of the usual routes due to the princess' status when it occured, leaving the a bit lost as to where they had been, where they wound up, that they had followed the Caravan here by sheer luck.

As for Wingheld this is a simply a matter of entitled siblings worried about each other, but Irfan is afraid of why the Kwon would be interested in the Wingheld princesses and what Pintrest may do if he felt insulted.

I'll text this in two days time.

--------------------------

Your story teller call on Loki, Irfan is willing, that would be his benefactor.


Can I trust you?

Irfan counter deduces

No doubt Irfan will feel a chill down his spine here, one doesn't hold and keep a secret seat long by blabing.

Irfan decided to challenge this challenge. He uses a background check to list what he does know about how methodically boring and almost repetitive trade shipments involving this town are 52 blankets at the start of fall 6 years in a row. He points out the as abnormally larger and windowless homes inside the city? How small and upfront the market is, almost as if keeping people near the entrance is the goal.

As you well know due to the drunken fiasco last night, it's obvious whatever goes on here is dangerous, and your position on the council points towards it being in Arcadian interests. So it would cause nothing but trouble if he revealed this to anyone. Least of all my foreign employers.

And lastly since blunder merchant of the exploding exports is here, Irfan holds up the vial seeking it's local or Kwon Origins from the loose lipped man. Obviously his reaction will give Irfan The information, so testing a theory will be his answer if asked what it was for.


The proximity of this town, and it's timeline? Suggests not only observations but experiments into the curse, but that idea is too heinous and a stretch for Irfan to stick his neck out on while trying to keep an impression. Surely Arcadia wasn't planning to use it's anti magic properties to levels the fields against stronger nations. That stuff is nightmare fuel.

----------------

FauxAlchemist can trust Irfan as a Arcadian, but that Irfan is both intrigued by and scared of knowing what merchant thinks could explain a reverse explosion.

He simply wound up here looking for shelter and a repair part, and he had party members stranded still waiting for him to return with supplies and/or a replacement part. The Tengu royalty had been rather insistent and arrogant in their planning, and Irfan had mistakenly allowed th to leave unprepared due to the power of said skimmer and it's cargo capavity.

He had the supplies now, a workable starting point to navigate from, and doubted he would find his skimmer component here given the faux nature of this town.

Irfan is worried about Hana, but not concerned.
Irfan had closer goals like getting Horus healed, rescuing Loki.

White Lie, Horus, protective.
ommission He isn't Bond, Irfan Bond.
ommission Loki's title.

Waiting as the man tried and succeeded in impressing Irfan with his deductions and title. Under other circumstances this would have been a golden opportunity, even at the risk of being forced to settle down for several years. However he was contracted already, and he took his word seriously. This was business and both sides had wants.

He began by briefly relating his tale of being hired by a Wingheld noble to investigate her sister's whereabouts in Arcadia, omitting Loki as anything more then another hireling. The event leading to their stranding, and the role the ill fated caravan played in helping them find the city and get their bearings. He doesn't go into detail about the cursed city, but the chilled expression as he reached that point and cut off spoke plenty, and he didn't want to go into detail of actually having spent half a night there.

Finishing up with their reaching of the city and taking a day to recover, intent on returning to their travel companions with repair materials or at least supplies when the market place was invaded.

Irfan rolled 11(3) using 1d20+8.  Irfan's lack of guild connections.
Irfan rolled 13(5) using 1d20+8.  Influence Loki's background of needed.
Irfan rolled 25(17) using 1d20+8.  Influence Horus background.


Addressing the man directly, "From what I've heard, this city is purposely bland, so much so your holding of a seat makes perfect sense. That being the case whatever goes on here is both for Arcadia, and probably a good thing the Kwon left before having a good look around. I see no reason inform anyone, especially not foreigners of council business. I merely came here seeking supplies and civilization, and the Kwon seemingly chase something of their own, perhaps even what devastated the caravan. The only connection I see is us both stumbling on the remnants your lost caravan in pursuit of our own goals."

Pausing a moment, "I have no reason to think that man guarded his tongue or even cared what he said. He spoke in frustration and considers us dumb lifestock."


" Perhaps as a story teller here would be a good place for it to be explained that the area we crashed in is tribal lands of some desert dwelling race and that anyone we left at the skimmer is long since eaten or worse. Give loki some background C3P0 and the Ewoks time to give survival, experience, story, and explain why Irfan is now on his own. Details don't matter, but Loki should be presumed dead only to turn out whatever should have killed him ended up helping him willing or unwillingly.

Irfan needed to get some impartial aid here, be it time to recover or even mounts. Horus could heal him later if it came to it, but without Hana they no longer had unlimited water supplies so they would have to manage off what he could gather off the land and air if they had to leave empty handed. His Alchemy while rooted in understand was as much gut and instinct as knowledge, so he couldn't exactly train someone else in it (but he suspected Horus could do it somehow).


It's hard to say blindly yes to trust someone yet here we are, two intellectuals, who out of mutual respect, offer to trust each other explicitly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You can trust me to keep your operations a secret, however not all my secrets are mine to give, much yours would be with me."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:55, Sun 17 Nov 2019.

ooc: Kitsune. The hireling that hasn't actually been hired, lol.

Well to be fair, you gave the OP I-can-flatten-this-town-all-on-my-own Kwon-Yuu officer the slip not once, not twice, but 3 times, and got to live to tell the tale. On top of taking out a few of his soldiers, hurting him, saving 1 of your own, and created a situation where escape was plausible. That's pretty damn impressive Irfan Bond.

I don't think the roll for the guild connection is necessary since you really did quit your job in order to go adventuring. (looking back at the older random rolls for the other checks...)

You didn't actually go to the cursed city of Shambala. Those were just ruins from an outpost which, according to legend/rumor/deductive reasoning, it was connected by the actual Shambala city through underground tunnels.

Abraku nods his head solemnly as he hears you out. He comments here and there as you tell your story, like "So it seems destiny has brought you here instead of design, but the end result is still the same. Please go on," when you told him how you got here or "Not being able to share secrets that aren't ones to give is something I can understand. I'm talking to you though, not your comrades, so it doesn't matter anyway."  when you were vague about the others.

He takes another puff of the hashish before continuing, "So, do you know what I do with people, like yourself, who discover my operation?" he didn't linger before answering the question himself "I offer them a job, or if they refuse it..." the mood in the room grew dark. The bodyguard, the alchemist, the physician, the rogue-ish guy, even the bartender, they all somehow brooded, leaving you and the fat merchant feel anxious.
-"*gulp* I-If they refuse it?"
-"...well in all honesty I don't know, nobody's declined the offer before" the mood lightened again as they all kinda sheepishly shrugged, "Why should they? The work is easy, just keep doing what you were doing anyway, and the money is more than generous," there was chuckling going all around. Now that you think about it, Arcanians aren't really the murdering violent types (roll Knowledge Society if you want more info on the Guild Union. Union, not council). "Mind you I don't usually do the hiring in person. I delegate that task to upper, and middle management" he cast's a glance around, ending with the bartender and a bit of an edge in his voice. The skinny man sunk his head even lower, "so it's better for all around the less they know. Some of my transporters were so oblivious they just thought they were just making a killing buying goods off the black market, or 2nd hand off of other salvage crews that had sold their stuff here," he didn't look at the fat merchant, but the man looked away uncomfortably all the same. "You are the exception. But I see now a job offer is impossible. Both by circumstances and prior contracting.

Which brings us to our current predicament. The most powerful wizard in all of history, our closest neighbor who's spitting distance away from MY town, has lost not 1, but 2 important daughters in Arcania. The Sorcerer Supreme's personal pet project and magnum opus was lost here as well, jeopardizing the stability of the Alliance itself let alone incurring his personal wrath. Oh and the Kwon-Yuu are walking around willy-nilly doing whatever they like, disrupting business and inviting trouble to say the least." (wasn't sure if you told him about the sword but it wouldn't have made much difference in the dialogue. It might further down the path though. Did you tell him about the sword?)

"So I have 2 questions for you:
1) Do you know what it is that we do here? and
2) What do you intend on doing next?"

In answer to the 1st question you pull out the vial of silvery liquid you had found. Everyone gives you puzzled looks, including the fat merchant.
"That's not one of ours."
-"It must've belonged to one of the Kwon-Yuu. Probably dropped it in the stampede."
-"Hush," he says to the fat merchant then turns back to you. "No, so what we do here is...we primarily salvage skimmers and repair said salvaged skimmer parts," he said with a small smile.

'Well that certainly explains why everyone was so skiddish whenever I brought up skimmer parts. Kinda hard to keep a low key when if you're selling the thing you're trying to keep low key out in the ooOOH-WAIT A MINUTE, BACK UP!!!'

Looking at your face he looks a little taken aback, "What did you think we were doing here?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:33, Mon 18 Nov 2019.

"Well given the secrecy, size, founding time frame, building so close to (insert town name), and comments about the violativity of the cargo I assumed... well lets just say I assumed a research operation of the worst possible nature, but not of the people conducting it." embarassed, but very much relieved, rubbing the back of his head.


Putting the Kwon Vial down between them in the meeting place (I'm assuming Floor pillows, low tables)


Irfan retrieves his sketch of Loki's missing part, he wasn't sure of the value or nature of the part, but he did know anything related to handling magic was usually expensive.  Better test the waters to see how much trouble procuring this part will be...
If this man is the one bandaging the honcho, then either the best healers are busy with the wounded, or he is the best. He is good enough to prevent the injuries from getting worse, but isn't working with the body to heal the injuries either. Perhaps it would be best if Horus doesn't make full recovery overnight.. putting forth the inked image for exhibition, Irfan expounds "This seems to be our problem part, having sustained quite the physical impact either our skimmer was thrown up or came back down. You may have a better understanding of the whole system then our amateur assessment, given your trade."



/shrug Sometimes with cars, if one part went out, it did so because another part failed, or it going out ruins another part. Heck this could be the piece where a problem earlier on finally manifests making Loki think it's the problem. I'd trust a chop shop's word on a problem over a dealership's most days of the week even if this one could have a vestige interest in new Ironian designed parts, something even if Irfan hasn't mentioned, the drawing could reveal here.

I'd like it if this guy was impressed with Irfan, but also recognized his talents were a solid mixture of luck, knowledge, and unconventional tricks. Definintly  someone that could be useful, easily trained, but also someone who needed to be groomed carefully.

The fact that a none-merchant Arcadian even left Arcadia is pretty telling about Irfan. I probably should have mentioned him over explaining the mountain views a bit as he explained about traveling in Wingheld. The two logical (to me) reasons for this are 1. Irfan was intended to spy on wingheld, or 2. Irfan is a deviant that is unhappy with life in the cities.

Someone the Honcho would want to keep tabs on and keep indebted, it's not every day you can get a skilled favor you can call in from someone seemingly unconnected to you when needed.


Also of note, to my knowledge Irfan has only Himself, Horus, and the (unnamed) Exalted Scale to bargin with. Selling or majorly exploiting Horus is unthinkable, and he is free muscle and aligned with Irfan's goals, Irfan is willing to sell his services or future services as possible, and has a last resort he is willing to bring the exalted scale to the table(but feels like that would be trading that could upset politics worse then Hana dieing(logos), but the lesser of two evils to Irfan personally(pathos)).
Why worry about a future political upheavel if that scale was actually harnassed when he had a impending one he was invested in. Having a Arcadian Kingpriest would surely unite not divide Arcadia right? :)

Two of Irfan's viable skills here are Alchemy and Healing(Medical Training + Alchemy salves), and here he is showcasing his ability to accurately render objects on paper.
I'm reluctant to roll a heal check to aide other or instruct the (barkeep?) because I know it will be a stupid high or low roll.

Already showcased: "Reverse Vampyrism" "Foam Trap"

ooc: The mere fact that he's meeting you in person shows that the alchemist (we should stop calling him that since he's not really an alchemist, he just dabbles as a passing fancy) thinks highly of you. If Irfan wants to glean anything more specific than that he'll need a DC 15 Insight check for a "hunch". Using the consolidated system that means a Perception check.

"^Volatile?" you hear the guy leaning against the door behind you peep for the 1st time since seeing him, but goes back to being a fly on the wall right after.

Abraku's expression sours. Clearly he wasn't amused at being thought of as a potential mass murderer. "I have, in ways it cannot be tracked back to me, funded the best team of Purifiers money can buy to cleanse Shambala, and that is as far as my interest, as well as knowledge, into the curse extends. So as the old Arcanian saying goes 'If you can't be first, hire someone else to be first for you', ^{although I'm beginning to question whether the lack of results is due to them deliberately stalling in order to milk me for money}" he tried to be lighthearted about it, but there was a bit of an edge in his voice, especially that last muttered remark. You got the sense there was more he wasn't sharing. (the proverb basically means if you don't know how to do something, find/hire someone/an expert to do it for you)

He resumed his usual composed stature afterwards though, "Still, I understand why you'd wonder why we go through all this trouble just to sell sandskimmer parts. That's because dealing in sandskimmer parts is dangerous business-"
-"Is it because they were originally used as war machines by Ironia? And if you sell them openly, if they can pinpoint the source of the dealer, it may bring down the wrath Ironia upon him, er us, um you? I'm guessing secrecy has been your best weapon thus far" you interrupted him, hoping to impress him.
-"Well...yes and no. Or should I say partly," he answered enigmatically. He noticed your confusion so he clarified, "You see Arcania has always prided itself on remaining neutral, but that's not quite entirely true. During the Kwon-Alliance conflict we did take a side. We chose to secretly aid the Alliance, ^{or should I say Ironia, come on lets be honest here.} Yes, Ironia is an oppressive authoritarian government, but the Sorcerer Supreme is smart enough to know that subjugating us is more hassle than it's worth and what value he currently gets from us is entirely because we are left to our own devices. Take that away and we're just a worthless piece of sand and rock. So he leaves us alone for the most part," Abraku explains matter-of-factly, but then grows much grimmer, "The Kwon-Yuu on the other hand, won't. Ironia has nothing on them when it comes to oppressive regime. They don't care about the cost benefit analysis, they are ideologically driven. 'The government knows what's best for you, so let us take care of you'. They want absolute control, absolute authority, no personal freedoms and rights, individuality is bad. They would conquer Arcania if they can and they would reduce it to a worthless piece of sand and rock. We figured this out early in the conflict so we decided to service the Ironian war machines in secret, particularly the Sandskimmers.

I'm sure you know that things left in the desert tend to be swallowed up by it, the smaller the faster, buried under the dream/vision of the Cruel One. I'm sure you already know that The Lonely One, the weakestgentlest of all the Exalted resides at the bottom of the Golden Lake, too afraid to resurface and oppose the Cruel One directly, choosing instead to aid us by creating oasis' whenever he can," the suddenly change of topic seemed out of place, but from your interaction with the man thus far you gathered he was no scatterbrain that went off on tangents for no reason. You remained attentive and followed along, figuring this would tie back to his original point eventually. And you weren't disappointed, "What you probably don't know is that beneath the surface the Lonely One's will persisted. There is an entire network of "rivers", strong tunnel-like currents of wet sand, of what Arcania would look like if not buried under the sand. Everything that gets swallowed up on the surface eventually sinks down into one of these currents and gets carried off. They all converge into one place and then get jettisoned out back to the surface like a very slow sand geyser. Just think. Salvage is already a huge business, yet all those guilds and groups and bands don't recover even a 10th of all that is lost. That place is..." he stops. Looks at you. You can doubt pass by his eyes, "That place is close enough to make the founding of this town, right here, economically viable. In fact Shambala itself was founded not far for that exact same reason. Until the Kwon discovered Shambala's involvement..."

Then he lowers his head and goes very silent, very still, for a long minute,"The very 1st curse bomb the Kwon-Yuu ever launched...wasn't on some Ironian stronghold, wasn't on some fortified military installation...It was on Shambala."

He lifts his head to look at you again and he wasn't bothering to hide the sadness in his eyes, "That is why the secrecy, the size, the scope of this operation. The one's we truly fear finding out are the Kwon-Yuu, not Ironia. If a war breaks out again this will be the first place they destroy if for no other reason than to send a message to any Alliance affiliated parties. But I've learned from our past mistakes.

Don't you find it strange that Yuzna is the Sandskimmer capitol of the world even though they don't actually produce them or service them? They just buy sell and rent. That's because Yuzna is a front. This town's front. My front. We find the parts, we fix parts here and smuggle them there. All they have to do is assemble them. This way, if Yuzna gets destroyed or raided, it's not the end, it's not Shambala all over again. All I'd have to do is re-divert my smugglers to a different settlement and overnight you'll have a new Sandskimmer capitol of the world."

-"Well if this place finds and fixes parts then seems I came to the right place after all. This seems to be our problem part, having sustained quite t..." you show Abraku the sketch. He takes it. Turns in sideways, the other way, upside down, flips it on the other side to see if there's anything drawn or written on the back. "...Ok, so I know I run the business, but I know about the actual mechanics of it as much as I know about the curse," he looks past you to the guy leaning by the door. "La Fleux!" he call to him. The man straightens up and walks over, leaning over your right shoulder to snatch the paper. He looks at it, blows a low whistle in admiration of the accuracy of the sketch, which turns into a high pitched one as he examines it longer. "Oh damn. You've got a busted mana capacitor. You see this thing is what gathers magic from the ether from which the mana conductors siphon it in order to power the enchantments and basically the rest of the of the skimmer, ^{ya know steering, speed,}-" the alchemist loudly clears his throat. "-Oh sorry, anyway, it's the heart of the skimmer, the most important part. And this crack here, if the picture is right, is causing the magic to leak out. Now the good news is the crack isn't on the inscription so the enchantment isn't broken, meaning it can still gather magic, but it peaks it as fast as it can gather it so in the end you're still left holding a pig pile of nothin."  (to put it in a car metaphor, you have a ruptured gas tank)
-"Can it be fixed?"
-"Yup. Buuuut..." he looks over to the guy with glasses as he finishes up with the fat merchant. He takes it from there as he too examines the paper.
-"It will take a long time. ^{Not to mention it more than all the other parts combined.}

The exterior shell is easy, it's basically a wooden boat, any shipwright can do it. Even in Yuzna. The actual parts that make the Skimmer work though, the actual magic...let's just say there is a reason why skimmers are so expensive.

It takes skill, real specialized skill, to do it. Our operation is small by necessity, the demand for manpower is high, and La Fleux is the only one with knowledge to work on the most crucial and complicated parts, in addition to training other workers into the craft. He's a former Ironian magitech worker, a low ranking one so he's had to figure most of this stuff on his own on the job, based on what he took with him when he "left" Ironia, and the people he's got to work with...well let's just say there's a reason why Arcania isn't famous for it's spellcasters. They're few, far between, and not the sharpest sword in the armory.

Jax is the name by the way, nice to meet ya, he gives you a hearty, vigorous handshake, and gets in reeealy close as he speaks to you "I'm in charge of...well let's just say pretty much everything else around here. Jack of all trades, that's me, ^{oooool' Jacky,} _{the Jax man they call me-}"
-"Don't you have a replacement? I could just trade this one in for a repaired one and you can just fix this one later and use it yourself," you reasoned, getting a little desperate.
-"No can do daddy oh. There's a reason we sell them parts in Yuzna instead of here. We've got a backlog 8 miles long. Every part is already paid for and owned by someone else, waiting for it to be delivered to Yuzna and installed. If we sell it to you here we ruin the shipment and screw over the customer. And that's...well let's just say not the best way to do business."
-"The reason-" Abraku speaks. Jax and La Fleux immediately stop talking, look at him, and back away. The room is silent once more. He takes a wiff of his hashish then speaks again directly to you,"-why I told you all that I did is because Arcania still stands with the Alliance. If I had to choose between the Kwon and Ironia, I would choose the latter. These recent developments, the increased Kwon-Yuu activity, the missing princess, everything, have me worried for the future. I will make arrangements for myself, but if I can do something to prevent a disaster I would.

So, once again, I ask you. What do you intend on doing next? And if it involves me why should I invest in you instead of someone else, instead of finding some other means/methods towards solving this issue?"

What to do next: Recover tonight, head out to salvage Loki tomorrow.

Invest: Such a Irfan instead of player concept.

Other means: Communication risk of being exposed, timeline, independently motivated group willing to work for cheap, expenditure of resources.

How many scores of Kwon were there? 3 score in town? 7 score were outside of town? 9 score left? Probably too late to get a real estimate unless he could have counted when they were tending wounded.

4 lv1-6's vs 100 lv3+'s? disaster in a straight fight. Better to use the numbers to their advantage, and someone was kind enough to leave Kwon gear lying around.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

quote:

-"The next full moon is ways off. We'll just make a show of putting in the effort, take our time going back, take the scenic route if you will.

Whatever means you undertake, it will involve considerable risk to the parties involved and take time to organize. I already have a small diverse group that is willing to act on the matter without dragging any ironians forces or other arcadians in. I'm sure even the most expensive ( bounty hunter, assassins, problem solvers, kidnappers, theives) shadowes would have reservations about taking on this task, and who paid for and informed them that the Kwon were in the area with the princess.

For now, I'm exhausted and my companion is worse off. I need to rescue my other companions foremost, and from there decide what to do. Barring fate, with camels and a few days rest we should be ready to act in a week. Conveniently we have several disguises to make use of here  despite the language barrier with the Kwon. One of my companions may be able to use translation magic to overcome that issue. With the cover of night, the princess should be able to fly outside of the camp if we can free her without having to sneak her out.

 If we had a functional skimmer, it would make getting away considerably easier, as they seemingly have accessed to horses at a whim.  It would also let us lead them away from here, deeper into Arcadian towards our destination.

 With your man's experience and one of my companion's skill we might be able to speed things up if your merely lacking spell power or technique . Unfortunately he is foreigner, but one you may be interested in speaking with, or owning a favor. If we can repair two in the time it takes you to repair one normally there would be no net loss.

I can offer up the entire skimmer as collateral if we can't help fix the part, as it's useless to us even though scavenge-able to you already, now or in the future. You can send some men along to appraise or salvage what they can from the ship, at the very least putting in a working part would make bringing the ship back for salvage easier.



But for now, I'm nearing my limit. If you could put us up and (Bull, Muscle) bouncer could carry my companion Horus out of the street that would be appreciated. It was the princess' decision to intervene that saved your man, and possibly your operation after all.

However they cross the border, it's planned for the full moon and some kind of rendezvous so pitting them against time, chase us or make their appointment should work in our favor, and give us time to prepare properly.

1 score in the city, 3 score waiting outside. Total of 4 score-ish + the commander (1 score = 12 people, right?). Irfan has a high Int, he could have gotten the gist of it from the brief glances he got. Come to think of it he did take his time observing them from inside the tavern when Rashomon was doing the communal mount so he'd know for sure. Mind you, based on the conversation you overheard, you did get the impression that there could be other parties elsewhere in the desert also searching for whatever it is they're searching for.

Abraku nodded along as he listened to you, "True, true. Plus I'd have to clue in even more people into this whole situation, which I'm loath to do. Please, go on." he muttered but otherwise allowed you to speak unimpeded.
Jax and La Fleux were up in arms, yammering and loudly protesting in outrage at the same time on ether side of their boss.
The man's loony! We couldn't possibly spare the manpower, not after what just happened Oh mister don't-know-jack-about-magic-let-alone-this-specific-kind-of-craft is ganna give advice? We're already behind schedule! Just because someone can do magic- All the way there, then all the way back- It takes years to learn the delicate nature- with a full repo team- -and years to actually apply it- we don't even know IF it's functional! -bringing in an amateur, more outsiders no less and that's even before we can even get started on working- ^{Ummm, I could guide-}SHUT UP you! In such a short time he couldn't even become an assistant, If we send a functioning part with them that's 5 figures right off the bat let alone an apprentice or a partner, -canceled contract, ruined shipment, that's at least 6 more figures down the line -Even if naturally talented, I'd lose more time getting them up to speed than the effort I'd get in return Brand new capacitor for a ship that might not even fly with it? I smell a scam. Who's to say he won't just take it and bolt? Me too, I say he's from a competitor out to steal corporate secrets-
"ENOUGH!" the alchemist finally stirs and they both fall back cowed in silence. He then turns to you "My boy, you are correct. You are tired and hurt and have been through a lot. Go to the inn with your friend and rest, no charge. You have given me a lot to think about. We will talk again tomorrow and you will have my answer by then. Peace be with you. Oh and don't forget your flask. Spoils of war rightfully earned, no?" he says gently and motions with his head to the minotaur, who up up till now has been as still as a statue. And just like a gargoyle, he came back to life and starts leading you back out. "Come. The boss says we fetch your friend" was all he said.

As soon as the sun hits your eyes again, making you squint a little before you readjust to being outside again, you hear a feint commotion in the distance.
"^{By what right thee helst mine companion most dear?! Yeald, I say, the place ye withholdeth from me, forthright!}"
-"_{I don't know-}^{Tricketh me thou shall not, cur! I know him beith here!}-WHAT.YOU'RE.SAYING!"
You, followed closely by the horned mountain, turn the corner and find a familiar knight in new shining armor swishing his new sword at a group of Arcanians who had come out so see what was going on. He had one poor cowering chap cornered against the wall, hands as high up in the air as they could go, interrogating him at sword point.

You didn't need to look back to feel the flat stare from on high bore into your back.

Ooc: What Jax was saying was basically that the feat Craft Wondrous Item is necessary for someone to be of any use when it comes to repairing skimmer parts, because they are magical items. And since obtaining feats takes a very long time...

BTW, you haven't actually given then the damaged orb.

Finally, I should have said this in the previous post, but roll an influence check against the alchemist (Abraku Alba) for me.

My first main DM had a low opinion of Influence checks, he figured for story reasons how a character presented themselves and their words mattered a lot more. I'm of the boat there is what your character strives for, and how things play out. A low role is a chance to add to the story by adding things beyond the character's control or knowledge.

Irfan rolled 11 using 1d20+3.  Int Check vs Horus dialect.
Irfan rolled 15,10(2),19 using 1d20+8,1d20+8,1d20+8 with rolls of 7,2,11.  Influence vs Alchemist Alba Subtract 2 for wounds as wanted, take only first roll if wanted.

Pain has a way of shortening one's day and ability to think clearly.

----------------------------------------------------
 He should have know Horus would be up and about, but he had hoped had slipped unconcious after invoking Hana's magic. He had just been in a fight for his life and might even be mixing up parts of what happened and to whom.

Surely Horus hadn't healed his injuries this much in such a short time.

Tapping his staff loudly with a accented cough to announce himself before anyone got cut by accident. Irfan did know the boy was a bit unpredictable at best but any outside way you looked at it this was unwarranted, and almost like the boy was used to not being believed or rather lied to. That aside where had such a young boy learned such old (Arcadian?) Irfan hand only seen some of those words.


 Irfan had to think of something to tell him that wasn't the truth. He had been meeting with the mayor, no inn keeper, about the kwon, yes the kwon, they were strangers that had arrived with those bad men, obviously they thought there was a connection so they had questions for him.



N-B-4-Horus


Dm's 10 random Dice rolls.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)

Irfan rolled 85 using 10d20 with rolls of
1: 1,

2: 6,

3: 4,

4: 20,

5: 7,

6: 10,

7: 1,
8: 10,
9:  7,
10: 19. 

---

ooc: In my case I use how the player/character presents himself, the strength of his arguments, to determine a secret increase or decrease in his influence. I still leave an element of chance/randomness up in the air because the character might not be as presentable/compelling as he imagines in his head that he is (ever seen one of those conspiracy theorists try to explain something to an outsider where "don't you see? It's all connected! I can see it right there"), maybe he's the kind of person who gets tongue tied. You also you never know what the NPC is thinking, what's going on with his life, his level of understanding you (imagine a genius wizard making very compelling rational intellectual arguments to an ogre who can't understand half the big words the man is using). Maybe he's having a really bad day, some traumatic event in his past similar to the current situation where he had to trust someone is making him more cautious than usual, might be racial/cultural, a language barrier, might be some secret agenda/long game you don't know about...

Only 1 roll was need. 15. Ok, thank you.

A helmed head turns in the direction of the disturbance and freezes for a moment.

As you stood there pondering the gibberish he had just spoken, and determining it was indeed just as bad theater gibberish as that time he had tried to be act all "intellectual" in the haunted ruins, "IRFAN-SAAAAAN!!!" you get sucker-tackled by a blue haired human projectile. *insert flying hug tackle* 'Oh the pain' you are reminded of just how bad of a condition you are in as you lie sprawled on the ground with Horus sitting on top of you, taking turns further cracking your bones in a bearhug and barraging you with questions you couldn't even hear above the buzzing in your ears and white pain in your head. (what was your health, like 11/226 wounds? Also, your meeting in the secret lair was not that short.)

"Oh thank goodness you're alright" the boy sighed in relief.

This message was deleted by the player at 01:54, Thu 28 Nov 2019.

No the armor and sword disappeared as he saw you. So anyway what do you do next? Go to the inn? Stay till nightfall or go directly into the next day. Any RP you want to do?

1-3 hour meeting? Honestly hoped Horus would sleep it off once he got out of the danger zone health wise.


Irfan is pretty wounded (internal injuries, bruising mostly maybe a few fractures or breaks in his shoulders/ribs,), even if Horus no longer is. Horus's little bear hug will be quite painful.

Goals Irfan needs to heal, Obviously convincing Horus to heal him here and now is the dnd way to do things. This is a story though, and Irfan has multiple concerns. #2 getting some sleep,  #3 getting his bones braced/bandaged, #4 getting a good meal, and #1 fixing the harm he has caused, #5 checking over horus.

Roleplay to the wounded townsfolk.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Hug -> Are you alright.
=======

The pressure of the hug aggrevates Irfan's injuries, prompting him to cough. Absently wiping the blood on his other sleeve, he replies weakly, "Not gonna lie, I'm tore between this and the spider." cutting off Horus as he starts to recall, "Wait, I've got somewhere to check first, how much more energy do you have? " absently counting 1. when hana got caught, 2. at the camel, 3+? healing himself, 4+. threatening the townsfolk.

He eyeballs Horus' state of health, for the good that would do, he hadn't the slightest how or why Horus had the abilities he did. Irfan himself wasn't in the best of shape, so it probably wouldn't be unreasonable to get medical attention. The problem was he wanted Horus to do as much as possible to help out, so it would be best to use his powers there as magical was far more effective then anything.

Turning to the minotuar, Irfan asked "Please take us to where the wounded were being treated."

--But that wasn't the orders...
   "We were both wounded, sleeping without treatment wouldn't be a very safe thing to do.

--So your partner can slaughter them?
   "That would certainly sour any business deals, and you'd be quite able to finish any problems that arise starting with me first, wouldn't you?

Needs input on the situation of the wounded, I imagine it's a disorganized and misinformed mess. If Horus protests, reminding him why Hana put herself in danger should focus him on the task of treating the people.

Feels like bad taste to put a mini-game here, the problems are supplies, triage, and skill. A profession heal/healer/doctor check to organize things probably. A Influence check(s) to get people to listen/calm down/help. And finish up Alchemy check  to whip up some antiseptic for the minor injuries (good old Iodine tincture, stains  brown, but does it job)


 It would be more beneficial to start with the workers, but Irfan wanted to deal focus on preventing any crippling and treating deadly wounds suffered by any children, as this would be the same display of capability and sit better on his conscience. Irfan will start with however much emergency healing Horus can squeeze out to treat the worst of it and move into proper bandaging (boiled water, splints ect.)

Irfan will work for two hours before his injuries make him start to faint from blood sugar/loss.


If things are going well, he will send someone out to start feeding people(amazing the little things you forget in a crisis.)

Ooc: Clearly you're not a man who's had to do a lot of meetings or corporate training/lectures (and count your blessings for it too). It's a 1 hour minimum and you're always exhausted afterwards.

"Energy?" he cocks his head sideways.

You look him over and even he didn't look like he was back to 100%. Worse than his physical condition was his mental one though. Now that the elation of discovering you were safe and...well, safe, had passed he spiraled into depression right before your eyes, giving you only the faintest of fake reassuring smiles that everything was ok. *insert Giminy Cricket from Disney's Pinocchio cartoon gif saying "buck up. Things could be worse. You should be happy, like me (voice cracks)"*

Option 1, The Minotaur is a little uncomfortable you weren't doing as the boss had suggested but ultimately just shrugs and lets you do your thing.

The place where the injured had been gathered was right across from the inn. On the outside it looked like a typical 3 story residential building with too many wanna-be terraces, windows and entrances. But as soon as you went in you find it was just one giant chamber. No floors, just 4 walls and a ceiling, with the one wall facing the street having all the orifices that gave the impression of too many small rooms crammed together where people probably lived like sardines.

It was obvious at first glance this place wasn't specifically dedicated for medical treatment purposes. Hastily made beds (a cloth on the ground and some more cloth as a pillow) littered the stone floor with people in various states of distress. One had to step over them if he wanted to get from one end of the room to the next. You doubted there was such a place in the entire town or these people would be there instead. In all likelihood, Alba never expected casualties on this scale. A visit from the physician for occasional isolated work accident or wild beast attack didn't require much. And speaking of the physician, now that the meeting was over Jack was back in here (Alba must've wanted him present for the meeting. It would explain why the fat merchant nobody was there. Jack probably took the patient with him). Still, there was some order to the chaos, the patients had been segregated into groups of injury severity. Jack was tending to the ones who looked like they needed the most immediate attention. He wasn't using any magic so your guess was he ether couldn't or had already used it up. Thankfully tough it didn't seem necessary since even the worse cases didn't seem life threatening. They'd ether already been treated or the Arcanians had been good at getting out of dodge. You didn't notice any children among the injured. Thinking back you don't recall seeing any children in the streets ever since the Kwon had appeared. Parents must've reeled them in at the first sign of trouble and not let them out. 'Good call' you mentally praised them.

You tell Horus to start helping people while you go over to the nearest patient that you believed needed your help the most. The man was distracted, hand on his head, eyes closed, rocking back and forth and softly moaning/grunting from time to time, left alone in lieu of other patients who looked worse. He slowly looked up, forcing his eyes open to see who it is when he noticed your presence, then suddenly jerked back, eyes WIDE open when he saw you.
"Don't worry, I'm here to help," you assured him, but he just looked you up and down uncertainly.
-"Are you sure it's not the other way ar-"
He didn't finish as both of you turn at the same time at the disturbance nearby. You see another patient leaning as far away as possible with the most awkward WTF expression you've ever seen, from a sobbing Horus who was pouring his heart out while bandaging the man's arm (basically holding onto him and not letting him escape). *insert image of "According to Jim" when Daina tries to talk while crying and it just comes out as hysterical woman speech*.

You sigh, "Hold on I'll be right buh-" you tell your patient and get up with a grunt, but you don't know how far you got or what happened afterwards. *thud* Suddenly there was just black. (your Wounds are below half, meaning your basically stabilized but still in the "dying" condition range. Any strenuous activity (and using the heal skill to treat people counts as such) makes the condition worse and requires a check to remain conscious. Which *checking the 1st of the random rolls you gave me last time* you fail with a natural 1).

---

When you awaken again it's dark. You look around and realize you are still in the same building except sunshine wasn't coming through all the windows. And you are in one of those makeshift beds on the floor, surrounded by many other sleeping people as well.

You may insert dream scene in your next post if you wish. Something odd will happen again. You can roll an Int check afterwards to commit to memory as much of it as possible (same as the last dream). A Wis check might be needed to try and interpret it (you don't know, you're not a dream expert).

 you tell your patient and get up with a grunt, but you don't know how far you got or what happened afterwards. the last thing you remember is thinking the the floor shouldn't be chasing the wall to your left, followed by.. Nothing as you hit the floor

==============================================

  The darkness retreats from a fire, a torch flicking in the wind, a gust of cold wind desert wind informing him that he is laid out like a plank, and on the sand. He tries to curl and roll his back into the wind, but his body doesn't respond. The wind gusts a second as he lay there helpless in a cavernous darkness, then a third each piercing then the last. Dead cold, he hears a fourth wind rising. Shivering in anticipates snaps Irfan free of his paralysis letting him jolt up into a sitting position, but what he sees doesn't make sense. As far as the torchlight goes, are bodies dead, but bandaged as if someone had been more interested in the bodies whole then keeping them alive. The weirdest part was it wasn't his body he saw, but a small white tengu's. The fourth wind hits, snuffing the torch and rolling Tengu/Irfan over, the darkness ravenously reclaiming everything. The darkness was different, it wasn't the same solid darkness as before, there was something in it. A faint reflective glow, the kind can only see the dark is there, floating above the sand, some kind of person, a ghost? An Unsettling laugh from behind sends a chill down Tengu/Irfan's Spine. (I'm thinking our least favorite ghost channeller in the darkness behind him.)


Irfan rolled 5 using 1d20+3.  Int based Dream check.



 You can roll an Int check afterwards to commit to memory as much of it as possible (same as the last dream). A Wis check might be needed to try and interpret it (you don't know, you're not a dream expert).

==============================================
When you awaken again it's dark. You look around and realize you are still in the same building except sunshine wasn't coming through all the windows. And you are in one of those makeshift beds on the floor, surrounded by many other sleeping people as well. You were panicing and covered in a cold sweat, whatever you had been dreaming of, your kind of glad you don't remember. A makeshift bandage binds your right arm to your chest giving the impression it couldn't move and your left is pinned underneath you.

Irfan is aware he isn't quite processing things normally yet, Questions and answers feel painstakingly slow as he processes where he is and why. He was in whatever they had converted to be a makeshift infirmary, it was dusk, he had hurt those people, Horus wasn't over that direction, Hana was hurt, Hana was gone, Hana had been abducted.


Squeezing out his good arm, Irfan props himself up. He needed to rest, but whatever dream he had been having had knock any drowsiness out of him. Even if he laid back down, it was going to be am hour before his heart calmed down again. Not really sure of his own condition, moving around would disturb others here, and probably get him clobbered if he left and started moving around in the dark.

Irfan purposely takes a deep slow breath, At the very least he didn't want to catch a cold. He wasn't wearing his pack so should be next to him somewhere...


==============================================

Once again, you feel like some sort of intrusion to your dream, like a dream within a dream, but for the life of you you couldn't remember what it was.

Looking around you find your backpack next to you being used as a pillow by Horus. You retrieved a blanket and decided to sleep till morning. (roll 3 con checks to recover wounds and roll 3 for Horus while you're at it)

You awaken the next day at the crack of dawn.