This is the gameplay tab, post your gameplay actions here. Everything else goes into the discussion tab. Also, once you have posted here this thread should appear under your campaigns tab in your profile.
Cheers.
Your boots squash with fetid water as you plod through the Puddles District. A thick fog hangs in the air, seeming almost to caress the flesh with an unnatural chill.
As you stand outside in a foot and a half of dirty black brine, you try to recall what was so damned important to demand your presence in the halfflooded slum during Absalom’s rainy season.
You remember your meeting at the Lodge just a few hours earlier with your Venture-Captain, Adril Hestram.
A bear of a man with only a few teeth remaining in his head, he motioned you into the meeting hall with a casual wave of his grizzled hand. The human captain outweighs most of Absalom’s half-orcs, and though a layer of beefy blubber coats his frame, those of you who have tangled with him in the Lodge sparring ring know that beneath this thin veneer of fat lies nothing but solid, steely sinew.
Adril’s wild beard wags to the ponderous shake of his massive head as he examines a scrap of ancient parchment on the table before raising his eyes to greet your gaze and speaking:
Come in then, friends, and thank you for answering my summons so swiftly.
The society is in need. An old and quite penniless historian, a bespectacled wag-beard by the name of Yargos Gill has recently made a discovery in an old archive that we have a great interest in obtaining: an ancient codebook, left behind in the wake of one of Taldor’s many failed attempts at invasion. This several-hundred-year-old text would prove an excellent addition to our collection, and must be preserved.
Yargos makes his home in ‘The Puddles,’ Absalom’s poorest district, suffering from a well-known reputation as a haven for lowlifes. Following an earthquake ten years ago, parts of the Puddles now rest below sea level, resulting in frequent and untimely flooding. Those who can afford not to live there—don’t.
The district is the stomping ground of pimps, harlots, addicts, knifers, and hoards of unseemly derelicts. It’s never been a kind place, but recent reports reveal some new nameless terror on her waterlogged streets. Several persons claim to have seen cloaked, skeletal-like figures marching through an unnatural fog.
Ill tidings indeed.
Tracking down Yargos is now a priority—--lest some yellow-toothed thug cut him down, or one of these strange wraiths carry him beyond the pale. Find him, fellow Pathfinders, and find the codebook. Your exploits will be recorded in the Chronicles if you succeed!
The memory fades as a fresh deluge of cold seawater rounds a bend in the lane and assaults your knees as you walk deep inside the puddles district searching for the old scholar.
You need to locate the old historian as soon as possible. When you start to ask around about the man you learn...
|
Yes Joplin, the poor districts are usually a collection of scum and despicable folk. I dream of the day when I will be powerful enough to order people to do my dirty work in this sort of place.
Irik-Hai, be my guest, it seems this culture is somewhat different from what I'm accustomed.
It would seem I don't care about this place enough. Even the basic knowledge of these streets are fugacious in my mind.
After some back and forward and around the pathfinders finally discover the old sage usuaslly hangs around for dinner an eatery called The Soggy Piper.
Arriving at the place there is some sort of commotion at the door and the group quickly realises they just missed a fight. Listening to the conversations at the place they learn that a gang of dangerous young tattooed toughs arrived ahead of them. They grabbed Yargos and several of his friends from their dinner table including the waiter and dragged them to a nearby cliff at the edge of the Puddle District. The watch was called, but they will arrive too late, as they often do in the Puddles, when they bother to venture there at all.
It is early evening, the first Wealday of the month of Desnus, an old man is about to face some awful fate at the sea cliff known as Torsen’s Maw, and the pathfinders are no closer to finding the codebook Adril sent them for.
As the group makes haste to the cliff they arrive to encounter brash young toughs covered with tattoos of vicious, snarling dogs are prodding four terrified older men off the edge of a cliff into the sea. The prisoners are shackled together in a line with heavy chains, which shall surely drag them to the sea floor in short order should they tumble from the cliff’s edge into the churning waters below.
Right after the elven witch cast her spell the thugs spring into action. Three charge the group while two remain staring blankly at Herisille before starting to unshackling the prisioners. They free Yargos and the tavern waiter. The last thug curses and throws Yargos from the cliff into the sea waters twenty feet below.
Only Herisille manages to duck the vicious dagger punches.
|
Ouch. That punch hurts! It brings up so many childhood memories...
I could be one these thugs. Yes, i could, easily. If just one of the many choices that lead me here were different, one left instead of one right is all it takes.
Who could blame them? They did not know back then when they made their choices, neither did I. It is pure luck, thats what it is. Just damn luck!
Poor fellows, they just draw the short straw. And again!
Irik swings his heavy flail firmily aiming for the thugs head while his efforts breath turns into a yell. Than moves into position to hit the next one.
|
|
While worried with Yargos, Antarah focuses on the more immediate issue, the thugs.
While shouting
Now you've done it! Flee now or deal with forces you will never understand!
he draws his Scimitar and casts Enlarge Person on himself, taking a 5-foot step if necessary to stay 10 feet away from the nearest thug.
As a swift action, Antarah draws from his arcane pool to grant his Scimitar a +1 enhancement bonus.
After being freed the waiter runs for his life. The two man who feel for the elven maiden's charms keeo looking at her mesmerized with empty eyes while the bandit by the prisioners
Fights to keep his eyes open and resists the sleep hex. He grabs the two still shackled prisioners and throws them in the sea. The last one manages to grab the edge of the cliff and hangs suspended in mid air while his fingers slowly slips.
Fools, you will pay with your life for crossing the War Hounders!
Joplin's arrow bury itself deep into her attacker's chest yet the man still stands. The thug fighting the half orc does not have the same luck as he meets a quick death with his skull bashed in. The remaining thugs press on with their charge.
Joplin shoots to arrows at point blank range but miss both! But her enemy dont have time to smile as Antarah steps in and beheads the man.
|
|
Irik opens his eyes really wide when he sees the men beeing pushed over.
S+%&. These guys aren't kidding. It will all be a big waste of time if everybody drops. I am already too close to this thug to turn my back on him, i need to strike true to get there in time.
Irik takes a deep breath and swings his flail aiming for the ribs of the thug who is still distracted battling Versylia.
With a heavy blow Irik puts down the last of the attackers before moving to help the prisioners. Three thugs remain near the cliff's edge. Two of them still mesmerized.
Tusk moves closer to the remaining thugs and cleaves a helpless one in half.
|
|
Antarah analyses the situation and acts accordingly.
Take a 5ft step so the enemy stays at 10ft away and full attack using Spell Combat with the Scimitar and Shocking Grasp.
Move toward the enemy and attack with the Scimitar. If he's too far (> 40ft), charge.
Sheathe the Scimitar and dive after Yargos.
Antarah yells:
I'm coming for you Master Yargos, hold on!
Tusk's attack misses the fascinated thug by inches. The man seems to realize just how close his life was to come to an end and snaps out of his trance. He runs away but Antarah charges the withdrawing man and cuts him down with a powerful twohanded slash.
The last thug follows his friend's lead and also runs for his life.
Irik manages to grab hold of the hanging prisioners. The man says with fear in his eyes.
Yargos is still alive, you can barely see his shape in the moon lighten sea water. He is swimming in the waves 20ft below trying to remain afloat. There are no beaches or easy paths to the sea, just hard rocks and crushing waves.
Hey, help! Help! Help! Throw me a rope! The old man yells frightened in the middle of the waves.
Irik still holds the two other man by the cliffs edge, preventing their certain drowining.
Irik pulls up the two chained man before thy dive to their deaths and the group's effort pay up and they manage to save the old man from the dark waters below. He is wet, miserable and shaken but not hurt.
The book!! Yargos grabs on to Tusk. You must get it from him before all is lost!!! Black Echelon!!! Black!!!!
The man breaks down sobbing, hands maintaining a death grip on Tusk's arms threatening to cut off the blood flow in his arms.
Yargos is distraught and seems close to blind panic. He might need to be brought to his sense before he completely loses it and starts blabbling.
Antarah Khaled
Tusk Turean
Irik-Hai
Versylia
Merck
