S1:E14: The Complicated Next Steps for the Kingdom of Pathilia...

In the depths of Filla, the party finds a crypt which exploration reveals some unsavory history. Back in Pathilius, the king gives them a new mission for which they must prepare...

Transcript

Episode 14: The complicated next steps for the Kingdom of Pathilia…

The party, having entered the ancient crypt and begun their mapping, identified that the remains in the sarcophagi are human. But, disturbing their graves has awakened them!

[Everyone rolls for Initiative]

[Skeleton E attacks Enacelle with dagger] Rolls 13 for a miss

One of the skeletons tears out of the wrappings, leaps to its feet brandishing a dagger, and charges towards Enacelle. It stabs wildly at her but she blocks it with her shield.

[Umgurn moves into melee with Skeleton D and E, attacks Skeleton D with scimitar and Divine Smite, attacks Skeleton E with second scimitar swing and Divine Smite] Rolls 22 for a hit versus AC13 for 7 damage plus 10 Divine Smite; Rolls 23 for hit for 6 damage plus 16 Divine Smite

Umgurn rushes towards the skeleton charging Malege and slashes with his scimitar infused with divine power, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. He backswings with his scimitar at the second skeleton attacking Enacelle, shattering it into hundreds of pieces as well. 

[Ghost appears, uses Horrifying Visage] Party (Fo, En, Ka, Ma, Um, Th, Pi) makes DC13 Wisdom Saving throws, rolls 6, 12, 5, 12, 20, 19, 7; Age roll of 1d4 for 1 - 10 years aged for fail by 5 

A ghastly form of a grayish green figure appears on the far side of the room, unmoving, staring at the party. It wears a long flowing gown covered in embroidered stars. Around its neck is a necklace of several dozen large gems. Fodinis, Enacelle, Kace, Malege and Piece are frightened of the creature. Umgurn and Theophania are not, recognizing it as a ghost. Fodinis, Kace, and Piece feel older by 10 years.

[Piece attacks Skeleton C with three ki-enhanced claw attacks] Rolls 19 for 9 damage, 15 for 8 damage, and 9 for a miss.

Frightened by the ghost, Piece lashes out with slashing claws at the closest skeleton, decapitating it with the first blow, shattering its rib cage with the second blow, and then missing with the third as it collapses to a pile of dust.

[Skeleton A attacks Theophania with a dagger] Rolls 5 for a miss

Another of the exhumed bodies erupts from its wrappings and charges towards Theophania with a rusty dagger but she parries the thrust with her shortswords.

[Malege uses Wand of Magic Missiles with 6 charges] Rolls 8d4+8 for 29 damage.

Malege whips up his Wand of Magic Missiles and fires 8 darts of force energy at the ghost, disrupting its form and causing it to wail loudly.

[Encelle casts Flaming Sphere, rolls it toward Ghost forcing saving throw] Rolls 11 damage, Ghost rolls 8 Dex Save (fail).

Enacelle brandishes her magical quarterstaff, mumbles a few words and gesticulates with her free hand to produce a 5 foot flaming sphere in front of her. She then forces the sphere directly at the ghost, slamming into it, causing it to shimmer, fade slightly, and wail again.

[Theophania attacks Ghost with Longbow with +1 arrow] Rolls 12 versus AC11 for 12 damage.

Theophania notches a magical arrow and launches it at the ghost. The head of the arrow pierces the ghost’s form and it dissipates completely.

[Fodinis attacks Skeleton C with shortsword (assassinate), attacks Skeleton A with shortsword (sneak) ] Rolls 23 (crit) for 16 damage; Rolls 21 for 12 damage

Fodinis charges the skeletons around Theophania, shattering the first with a short sword slash and ripping through the second with his off hand strike, though it's still on its feet.

[Kace attacks Skeletbon  with Spear (advantage)] Rolls 19 for 7 damage.

Kace, out of melee with the last skeleton, hurls his spear at its bobbling head, shattering it and collapsing it to the floor.

[The party receives 200 xp]

[Malege makes an Arcana check] Rolls 21

Malege moves quickly around the room to the misty remains of the ghost and the five skeletons. Using his pearl, he collects a residual amount of spiritual essence into the pearl, creating a spirit shard. For the skeletons, he sifts through the remains and finds 5 pouches worth of bone dust which he collects in a vial from Enacelle. Fodinis, Kace, and Theophania look through the wrappings of the skeletons and find 350 gp, 4526 sp, 7126 cp, two scrolls (darkvision, longstrider), (41 gems) 18 gems worth 10 gp each (4 eye agate, 2 banded agate, 1 azurite, 1 tiger eye, 2 Hematite, 2 Lapis lazuli, 1 Tiger eye, 2 Turquoise, 1 Azurite, 1 Rhodochrosite, 1 Malachite) and 23 gems worth 50 gps each (1 citrine, 2 zircon, 2 Bloodstone, 2 Onyx, 3 Star rose quartz, 1 Carnelian, 4 Quartz, 1 Chalcedony, 2 Citrine, 1 Carnelian, 1 Sardonyx, 1 Chrysoprase, 1 Chalcedony, 1 Moonstone). Malege also pockets the magic necklace. Enacelle gathers the remains as best she can and returns them to the wrappings. The others help her place them back in the crypts and she places flowers, herbs and shiny stones on the remains. Fodinis and Kace replace the tablets on each grave and secure them with pitons. Enacelle burns herbs and incense in the cavern to cleanse the area. When she is satisfied, Umgurn nods to her and the rest of the party. 

[Enacelle makes a Perception check] Rolls 25

As they move towards the exit of this section, Enacelle pauses. 

“Malege, can you read this tablet?” She points at a slightly more ornate sarcophagus that no one seems to notice when they came in. He studies it for a few minutes.

“It says her name was Kellistrian Thamatage and that she was a lonely queen who died with no children. Do you think that was the ghost?” 

“I’m not sure but the ghost was wearing very distinctive clothes and a large necklace. Let’s check.” Enacelle steps aside and nods to Kace who opens the tablet carefully. Fodinis again assists. Piece and Kace remove the body and place it on the floor. Malege opens the wrappings and there, inside, is the remnants of the long flowing gown with faded stars rotting away. Around the neck is a large platinum necklace with at least 6 large diamonds and many dozens of smaller stones of various sizes and colors. Umgurn walks forward and pulls a handful of silver dust from his bag, says a long litany of holy words, and sprinkles them over the body. He removes his water skin, says additional holy words, and sprinkles the water on the body. He then nods to Malege who picks up the necklace carefully. 

“It must be… priceless?” He places it gently in his bag of holding. Piece walks over to the body, removes a piece of parchment and their ink pen, and recites a poem of love, longing, and loss which they also write on the parchment. They fold it and place it with the body.  Kace and Fodinis replace the body after Enacelle additionally blesses it and secure the tablet with the pitons. 

“I’ve think we’ve taken quite enough from these people today. Let’s finish this mapping and get back to the ship.” Enacelle strides out of the room quickly.

“Lizard folk are not too keen on graverobbing.” Fodinis winks at Malege and smiles. Malege blushes and his hair bursts into embarrassed flames. After another two hours of sending their familiars down corridors and rapidly scribbling out the map, Enacelle looks up from the parchment.

“There are no unexplored corridors.” She smiles and leads the party back towards the spiral staircase. As they approach the staircase from the south, the same grayish green figure appears at the stairwell to the exit. Unlike before, she shines with a pearlescent light and smiles. Her visage is warm and inviting. As the party approaches, she moves forward, smiles broadly, and quickly enters Enacelle’s body.

“Thank you for the poem. Thank you for freeing the souls of my brothers and sisters. Many of the souls in this crypt are bound by earthly trinkets. A relic of our ancient past. If you return, I beg of you to free my people from their entrapped sleep in this dank crypt.” Enacelle flutters with bright white light and then the visage of the ghost vanishes through the stone ceiling. Enacelle recovers and looks at the party.

“I think it’s definitely time to go.” She charges up the stairs. The rest of the party follows her. On the surface, they return the stone door to its place and Fodinis and Kace slide a large stone table over the hole in hopes of preventing grave robbers from violating the tomb. As they exit the building, Isvara is near the western horizon. The Lonely Lady appears in the sky out of a shadow and touches down with the ladder deployed. The party quickly climbs the ladder and Umgurn, again, nods to Captain Fishsdwain to take off. But, next to Captain Fishdwain, Umgurn sees something peculiar and pauses for a moment to make sure he is sane. Callia, King of Pathilia, stands next to Captain Fishdwain and to his right is a cleric in formal robes of the Grand Cathedral of Mysteries in Cantheria. Before Umgurn can respond, the cleric rushes forward and begins casting spells on the party. Callia moves to Umgurn and smiles.

“I thought I would pop in with my dear friend, Bishop Polmeroy of Theswain. She’s here to help you recover from the ghost.” 

[Polmeroy casts Greater Restoration on Fodinis, Kace, and Piece] They return to their normal ages but each has acquired a 1 inch shock of gray hair. 

“How did you get here?” Umgurn shakes Callia’s hand and stares in amazement.

“Our king teleported here.” Piece stands and holds their paws face up and open. The king  turns around quickly with a smile. “You are, as we have seen, all seeing and all knowing in this world.” Piece bows.

“Go on.” The king moves a few steps back into the room.

“You are… if we may posit… a great wizard, no?” Callia bows deeply and smiles. “The Hall of Narvandor is a multiverse crossroads. Kace and ourselves came to Angedrian through some similar magic. Would you, in your infinite wisdom and knowledge, be aware of any such magic that could return us to our homes?” The king smiles broadly and walks a few steps closer to the party who are all now standing and listening intently.

“Piece of the Puzzle. Kace Amberdream. Angedrian is in desperate need of your strength and focus for the time being. However, I can personally assure you that, should you wish to return to your home, I can see to it personally.” The king bows. Piece, emboldened by the king’s generosity, moves a step closer.

“Have you, sir, been to the Hall of Narvandor yourself?” Piece places their paws together pointed down.

“I have not had that pleasure or benefit, though, perhaps one day.” The king’s face seems suddenly sullen.

“Then, let us give you a small gift in return for all you have done for us.” Piece pulls a piece of parchment from their notes. They hand it to the king who examines it closely.

“Such a thoughtful and uncommon gift from a kind soul. Thank you, Piece.” The king bows. He smiles at the party. “If you will allow it, I will accompany you back to Pathilia on the three day journey. I would be delighted to hear all that you have found in The Blight.” Everyone bows deeply and nods happily. Callia smiles and moves to the back of the ship, watching the dark horizon behind as the ship moves towards the setting Isvara. The party moves together down below deck to discuss the sudden change of events.

“Piece! What was all that stuff you said to the king about?” Fodinis looks directly at Piece intently.

“After observing our king in person twice and from our conversations that we have had around town with many many different people, it is very clear to us that your king is… in fact… a very powerful wizard. And an uncommonly kind soul. A rare combination in wizards. His appearance on this ship proves it for he could have only done so by teleportation. The diagram we gave him was of a magic circle in The Hall of Narvandor which he, of course, knows how to use. The platform we spent our time on was clearly meant for wizards to scribe spells or copy them into spellbooks though we only used it to catalog much of our life and thoughts. So, we assumed the magic circle scribed on the floor allows wizards to return anytime they like. And his acceptance of the gift and his response confirm, for us, that he is in fact a truly powerful wizard who appreciates it.”

The party all stare, eyes open, jaws dropped. Malege begins handing out roasted dragon meat as Piece starts boiling water for tea. 

On the three day journey from The Blight to the southern reaches of Pathilius, the party explains their adventures with Callia in detail. Though there is much repetition and over excitement about useless details, Callia is rapt by their story and pays everyone lip service and kindness for sharing. Although the stories are full of details, Malege does not mention, nor does anyone else, the multi-diamond necklace of the ghost, which is merely a forgetful omission and not an intention.  As they approach the landing field south of Pathilia, he speaks to them all in a serious tone over afternoon tea, expertly prepared by Piece.

“You have done so well, my children. Proving that the Blight, at least Filla, is habitable, is an enormous boon to Pathilius. We can repopulate the area as soon as possible, despite winter. We must, of course, carefully explore the rest of the Blight. But, if we can move our people there and establish strongholds, thwarting the plans of Santernafulse will be easily accomplished.” Callia pauses and sips a long, slow drink of wine. He looks directly at Piece. 

“My feline poet extraordinaire. I know you wish to return to Filla and catalog every tablet in the crypt in detail. I applaud your enthusiasm. And the rubbings are, of course, proof that this endeavor is of value.  And, let me assure you, before that tome of knowledge is made public, you will be the sole author to review and approve it. All of you will be named as contributing. But, let me be clear. Your enthusiasm aside, I need you to do something much more important for the kingdom. I have droves of brilliant minds who will catalog every inch of Filla and present it to you for review. There are clearly treasures of unspeakable value that I will make sure you are privy to.  But, your skills are needed in the rest of the Blight. After two quindays rest in Pathilia, I beg you return to The Blight and move on to Charl, Sayne, Hespa, and Kersepinee as quickly as possible. If we can confirm that all of the Blight is safe and habitable, we can reclaim it, fortify it, and secure a new border against Santernafulse. It requires a small group with a mixture of talents and not the brute force of my soldiers.  Can I beseech you, my friends, to do this for me?” Callia pauses and smiles at the party, arms open, palms up.

“What about the rogue mindflayer. Varkidar?” Malege stands tall, shoulders back, staring intently at Callia. The rest of the party gasps or sighs at the genasi’s defiance. Malege’s eyes quickly cut to Fodinis who has a look of admiration and love glistening in his eyes.

“That one. Yes. Well. I must confess, little genasi. Enicryn is more slippery than I thought. She is, in fact, a changeling. We haven’t seen her in a while because she assume a new personality. But she remains in contact with Varkidar. And he continues to pursue his mind control experiments. It is clear his target is me or my closest allies. But he is far from succeeding. For now, please trust me that he is not the most pressing threat. Will we have to deal with him? Yes, of course. But, today, I think The Blight is more important. Can you trust me?” Callia smiles sadly at Malege, drops to his knees, and takes the genasi’s hand in his. Malege smiles with an embarrassed look, his hair flaring, and nods.

“Excellent. Now. I have a few rewards for all of you for a job well done in Filla and then I must go. Fodinis, this is for you.” Callia pulls, from thin air, a leather armor. “It’s slightly better than what you have now. I hope it fits.” Fodinis removes his magical leather armor and replaces it with the new magical armor. He smiles and bows deeply.

[Fodinis receives Studded Leather +2]

“Enacelle, please accept this scimitar, made of crystal, that provides you with light when all other lights go out.” Enacelle takes the scimitar, swings it a few times, and bows to Callia.

[Enacelle receives Crystal Scimitar]

“Kace, a warrior such as yourself cannot be making loud noises when you are trying to sneak up, unarmed, on the enemy. Though the armor I gave Fodinis is rare, he is rarely at the front lines. So, I have saved this very rare armor for you.” Kace takes the magical studded leather armor, bows to Callia, and dons the new armor. He smiles at the light weight.

[Kace receives Studded Leather Armor +3]

“Malege, my dear sweet genasi fire elemental visitor to Pathilia. You are adept with your wand and have done well with it. But, I think you could do with something a bit more powerful.” Callia hands him a wand with a metal base and multiple silver branches emerging and fusing into a silver tip. Malege takes the wand, smiles, and bows deeply.

[Malege receives a Wand of Lightning bolts]

Callia turns to Theophania. “You, my most beloved ranger, paragon of your people, refuse me a place in the court. But, I know your heart is in the forest. I want you to have this most precious elven bow which was a gift to my mother from the far elven courts in the north.” Callia hands Theophania a large, slightly glowing bow with dark ebony wood and a humming bow string. Theophania observes the bow, smiles, and bows.

[Enacelle receives a Ranger’s Deadly Longbow +1]

“Umgurn, the weapon of your people is the hand crossbow. Please have this special weapon as your gift from me.” Umgurm takes the hand crossbow, replaces it with his old one, and bows.

[Umgurn receives a Hand Crossbow, +2]

“And Piece. My beloved poet. As a wizard, armor is not something I can wear but I have found these bracers have protected me well.  I impart to you these bracers which, I believe, will serve you well.” Piece accepts the bracers, places them on their wrists, and bows deeply.

[Piece receives Bracers of Defense]

“Now, my friends, I must leave you. Please spend your two quindays as you wish, resting, recovering, studying, or improving. At the conclusion, The Lonely Lady will be ready to take you back to the Blight with the same crew plus Sister Milligan from the High Temple in Pathilia. In case you run into any more ghosts. If you need me during this time, Umgurn knows where to find me.” Callia smiles, walks to the foredeck of the ship, turns, and vanishes. The Bishop who had been standing off to the side taps a necklace and also vanishes. The ship lands in the launching field and a carriage meets the party to take them back to Pathilia.

When they arrive back in Pathilia, the party reviews their items and treasure and liquidates the non-essentials including the Plesiosaruarus skin, meat, and teeth, bat hides and wings, dragon wings, various weapons, and gems, and distributes the returns among the party. Over the next two quindays, everyone engages in various downtime activities and rests.

  Malege dumps his bag of holding in his tavern room and sees the necklace fall out. He gasps, having completely forgotten about it. With this very expensive diamond necklace from the tomb, he visits the local jeweler to assess its value. Gerselda, the most knowledgeable jeweler in Pathilia who sold Piece the brooch for Fodinis, looks over the necklace carefully. She uses her jeweler’s loop for many minutes. After a very long time, she looks up from the piece and smiles at Malege. She pulls a wand from behind the counter, swishes it a few times, and the door of the shop locks tight and the windows go dark. 

“Little one, this is the most impressive piece. I dare say, there is nothing in the king’s own vaults that would even rival it. I’m afraid, as is, I could not even begin to offer you a price for it. The King of Anbeth might choose to buy this piece for his queen but, other than him, few could afford it. It is hard to say this but such a piece is too valuable to even be sold on the common market. And likely too dangerous to even keep on your person.  My suggestion is that you give this to the king of Pathilia for his royal museum collection in return for favors or a reward.” Gerselda pauses, smiles, and returns the necklace to Malege. He sighs and puts it in his bag of holding. He pulls the second necklace, the gold chain with the large gem set in a gold setting, from his bag and places it on the counter.

“What about this one?” He seems defeated and sad. Gerselda looks at the necklace carefully, murmurs a few words and passes her hands over the chain and gem.

“Well, this IS interesting. The gold and gem in this one are far more reasonable in price but the magic is fascinating. Someone, I would guess a cleric or priest, used this necklace to suppress an angry and violent spirit. But, the magic was quite specific. Now, I dare to guess, this is simply worth its weight in gold and gems. And I would put that at about 3500 gps. Would that do for you?” Malege perks up and smiles. He nods vigorously and Gerselda counts out the coins. 

Malege also visits Hadrian's Heretics and purchases an outright bag of holding for 2500 gp. He visits the artificer guild and pays 2000 gp to be retrained in his infusions, choosing Homunculus Servant and replicating an Alchemy Jug to replace his replicating Bag of Holding and Repeating shot. He also acquires, from Hadrian, 20 +1 arrows for his shortbow. He visits a jeweler and acquires 15 more chips of obsidian for a high price. Malege also gives Fodinis 1000 gp towards the purchase of a manor house outside of Pathilius which can accommodate all seven party members.

With the contract on him expired, Malege performs his street fire juggling every day just after Isvara sets. 

[Malege makes two performance checks] Rolls 20 and 11

His first week of performance is stellar as he’s never performed in Pathilia and the crowd is fascinated. He earns 55 gp, 64 sp, and 72 cp. The second week, the crowds are thin as it's cold and not much travel is happening so his performance is not so inviting. He earns 8 gp, 25 sp, 35 co. His stay at the salty pig costs 75 gps for the two quindays, going back and forth between the new manor house.

Fodinis shops around with his own money as well as 1000 gps from each party member to find a manor house that can securely accommodate all of them with sufficient staff to tend to the place in their absence. He is able to locate a 9 bedroom manor that includes a main building, a barn, and a decent servants quarters on 10 acres of farm land for 21,000 gps. He shares this with the party and, within the first quinday, everyone has moved into their own room which includes a secure storage, bed, bath, and other personal sundries for their comfort. Fodinis spends much of the rest of the week gambling. He wagers 5000 gp pieces.

[Fodinis makes an Insight check, Deception Check, and Dice Skill check for each quinday] Rolls 14, 22, 22 for the first quinday versus (16, 18, 15) (2 successes - 2500) and rolls 20, 15, 18  for the second quinday versus 22, 10, 7  (2 success - 2500 gp). For the week, he is up 5000 gps. 

In addition, he bets on 2 caged fighting matches for Kace to win at 25 to 1 odds, for 1500 gps. Lastly, he asks Hadrian on the first day to try and find him a cloak suitable for his profession and is interested in a cloak of displacement, of the bat, or arachnidia. He spends 800 gps associating with potential sellers.

[Fodinis makes a Persuasion check (+10) with advantage (brooch)] Rolls 25 (no cloaks).

Fodinis gives Hadrian another 800 gps and asks him to continue looking for the next couple of quindays and he will check back with him.

Fodinis visits the rogue’s den in Pathilia and reviews the contracts available. The contract for Malege appears to have been removed or revoked and he learns from the den master that the contract was canceled. There are four contracts available at the moment which include two prominent businessmen which Fodinis determines is more competitive rivalry and not his style. There is a third contract for a monk named Seraph Silverwind who is spending her days educating street urchins which Fodinis knows many thieves try to recruit as pick pockets. He takes note of the target’s name and likely location. The last contract is for Donatello "The Butcher" Moretti, a local Half-orc Crime Lord who has been pushing into other territories and disrespecting the code of rogues. Fodinis knows Donatello well as they are bitter enemies. He accepts the contract. 

On a bright sunny afternoon, he finds Seraph easily down in the Squalor where there are several housing developments and soup kitchens sponsored by the king. She is a delightful young woman who seems to glow with an inner radiance. Fodinis approaches her with his hand out.

“Hello, there. I’m Fodinis Oradurk. I understand your working with the children?” Several small children listening to Seraph look up from their pieces of parchment and smile at Fodinis. He chucks them all a gold piece.

[Fodinis gives away 6 gp]

“Well, hello back, sir. I’m Seraph Silverwind. And, yes. I’m trying to help these children learn so they can have better lives.” She nods and looks back to the children. Fodinis walks close to her and whispers in her ear.

“You’ve made some enemies that want you dead. Does this bother you.” He carefully breathes deeply, smelling her lustrous golden hair which has a scent of lilac and roses. 

“Yes, it’s actually Lucas Morgan, a tiefling with the constable’s office. You may know that he recruits these children to pick pockets.” She whispers back to Fodinis. Very blatantly, she also breathes very deeply and smiles. “You smell like… adventure.” Fodinis blushes a deep purple. He shakes his head and furrows his brow.

“Lucas is actually well known to me. We are… not friends. In fact, I’d prefer he were no longer… working in Pathlia.” He smiles knowingly and looks at the children who are all staring blankly at the pair. 

“I’ll make a deal with you. If you can… find Lucas another job… I’ll let you take me to dinner.” Fodinis blushes an even deeper shade of purple and laughs nervously. 

“Deal.” He turns towards the children, throws them a handful of gold, and walks away.

[Fodinis gives away 20 gp]

Later that evening, Fodinis dons his darkest clothes and shades his daggers black with his command word. He waits outside of Donatello’s main business where he always had drinks at the end of the night. Donatello lives a few blocks away and, filled with liquor and confidence, he often walks home alone without heavies. Fodinis stands in a dark shadow, invisible to anyone passing by. After more than two hours of waiting, Donatello appears out of a side door. He has a female elf with him and they are walking close together.

[Fodinis makes a Perception check] Rolls 13

The female elf looks very familiar to him but he can’t quite place her face. She wears skin tight red leather pants and a flowing red silk blouse. Her hair is tied in a high bun with a gold pin in the front. He can almost remember her name but it escapes him. The pair move down the main street which is well lit by oil lamps. Fodinis knows they have to turn down an alley two streets up to make it to Donatello’s house. He ducks down his own alley, sprints to one street over, and races up to the opposite end of Donotello’s alley.

[Fodinis makes a Stealth check (advantage, brooch)] Rolls 9

Despite the darkness of the hour and his dark dress, Fodinis runs past a small tavern as a door is opening, flooding him with light and causing him to run into the door. 

“Watch it, speedy!” A very drunk halfling supporting an even more drunk gnome holds up his fist in anger.

Fodinis makes it to the alley and slips into the shadows again moving as close as he can to Donatello’s door.

[Fodinis makes a Stealth check (advantage, brooch)] Rolls 22

The darkness and silence of the alley shrouds him in ebony stealth. He pulls both daggers from their scabbards on his back and holds them at the ready. Donatello and the elf turn the corner and walk towards the door which is illuminated only by a lamp from inside. There are no windows on either side of the alley. As Donatello reaches the door, he turns to the elf and gives her a long, deep kiss. Fodinis chooses this moment to strike.

[Fodinis attacks Donatellow with dagger (assassinate, sneak, surprise)] Rolls 23 versus AC18 for a hit for 40 damage 

Fodinis slides his dagger to Donatello’s throat and pushes his opposite forearm against the back of his neck, slicing through the half-orc's throat to the spinal bones. The half-orc drops, spraying blood all over the elf.

[Fodinis attempts to grapple elf] Rolls 22 (crit) versus 17. Elf is grappled.

Fodinis slides behind the elf before the scream erupts from her mouth and covers her face with one arm while grabbing her chest tightly with the other.

“Who are you?” He whispers very quietly close to her ear. She huffs and fights briefly then seems to relax. When he is confident she isn’t going to scream, he removes his arm from her mouth but places his dagger on her throat.

“Cassandra Blackthorn.” She almost sobs the words. Fodinis, however, smiles. Cassandra is a casino owner in Pendegen where her specialty is cheating soldiers out of the pay by offering them free carnal services if they gamble on their pay day. Fodinis observed the casino for two quindays and determined how she was fixing the games to rake in the soldier’s hard-won wages. He brought it to the attention of the local authorities and confronted Cassandra with them. But one of the local authorities was in on the scheme and Fodinis barely escaped Pendegen with his life. He currently is unable to travel there in the open because of a standing order by Cassandra to bring her his head.

[Fodinis attacks Elf with Dagger (assassinate, sneak, surprise)] Rolls 27 (crit) for 25 damage.

With much less force than was needed for Donatelle, Fodinis slices Cassandra’s throat quickly, dropping her next to her would-be lover. He cuts a leather bag from Donatello’s neck, the required bounty mark, and quickly searches both bodies. He finds 110 gps between the two of them, three gold bracelets, a gold necklace, a gold hairpin, two steel daggers, and a set of skeleton keys. Fodinis pockets the items except for the keys. He quickly uses the keys to open the door to the house and extinguishes the lamp, plunging the alley into total darkness. 

[Fodinis makes an Investigation check] Rolls 7

At first glance, Fodinis sees a simple parlor with a door off the back to what looks like a bedroom and a small kitchen off the parlor. He takes about 10 minutes to do a more thorough search and finds a trap door in the kitchen which leads to a deep cellar. He drags both bodies to the cellar and moves them to a far corner. There are several barrels of salt which he uses to cover the bodies and then throws several piles of oil cloth and burlap over them. Finally, he moves a large cask of wine and the half empty salt barrel on top of them. Back upstairs, he searches the house thoroughly. In the bedroom, behind a painting of Donatelle on a gray horse leading a charge of orcs into battle, he finds a wall safe.

[Fodinis makes a thieves’ tools check (advantage, brooch)] Rolls 22

After a moment of manipulation, the safe opens. Fodinis grabs everything in the safe and dumps it in his bag of holding without paying much attention. In the rest of the house, he finds a few gold trinkets and some silver candlesticks which he takes to make the whole scene look like a robbery. Satisfied, he exits, locks the door with the key, and then drops it in a sewer grate. 

Later in the quinday, Fodinis learns Lucas Morgan’s work schedule and arranges to be in one of the alleys near his home after he finishes a late shift. As the evening drifts into night, Lucas comes into view. As expected, he is alone and wanders aimlessly, observing everyone and everything around him.

[Fodinis makes a Stealth check versus Lucas Perception check] Rolls 16 versus 7.

Despite being curious or nosy, Lucas has no indications that Fodinis stands in darkness in the alley. The door to his home is on the front of the building where Fodinis hides in the alley. As Lucas unlocks the door to go inside, Fodinis slides in behind him, pushes him through the door, and closes it behind him. There are no lights on inside but they can both easily see in the dark.

“Fodinis Oradurk. What brings you to my humble abode?” Lucas folds his arms across his chest, each hand holding a nasty steel dagger with curved blades and long, thin sharp points. Fodinis daggers are also in his hands but at his sides.

“I want you to cancel the contract on Seraph Silverwind. Now.” 

[Fodinis makes an Intimidation Check versus Lucas Insight check] Rolls 12 versus 19

Lucas bursts out laughing and smiles. “Are you trying to scare me, bugbear?”

“Consider it a polite request if that suits you. But the contract will be canceled.” Fodinis moves a step closer to Lucas with his daggers poised in his crossed arms. 

“I’ll make you a deal, Fodinis. You convince Seraph to return to whatever bastion of goodness she arose from, and I will cancel the contract.” Lucas moves causally over to a large fluffy chair and sits down. He places his daggers on a small table and sits back.

“That doesn’t seem like such a good deal to me, Lucas. How about this counter offer? You take your operations to Canville Port or Excillia and leave Pathilia behind. Forever.” Fodinis takes a slightly less fluffy chair across from Lucas but keeps his daggers in his hands, crossed on his lap. 

“Canville Port? Or Excillia? And why, pray tell, would I do that?”

“Because the alternative is that you cease operations AND breathing, permanently.” Fodinis leans forward and with a swift kick, knocks Lucas’ daggers into the air briefly. They clatter back onto the table and fall onto the floor at his feet. “I’ll have your answer now.” 

“You’ve made a lot of enemies, Fodinis. I am among them. I’ve met a few. What’s to say I don’t just have a nice hefty contract put on your life or maybe my friends will do it if something happens to me?” Lucas smiles and stares intently at Fodinis, unblinking.

“Actually, you just gave me a great idea, Lucas. Why don’t you go to Pendegen and take over the casino there? My understanding is that their current owner is… out of sorts.” Fodinis stares back, unblinking.

“Cassandra? Hahaha. I just saw her at the Racing Starling two nights ago getting cozy with Donatello, the owner. If anything, she’s probably going to open a casino here. That would be bad for you. I hear you’re not allowed in Pendegen any more?” Lucas laughs and causally bends over and picks up his daggers. When he sits up, Fodinis is next to his chair with both daggers pressed to his throat.

“I will tell you this because I think you’ll keep the secret. Donatello and Cassandra are sleeping, permanently, in his cellar.” 

[Fodinis attacks with two daggers (assassinate, sneak, surprise)] Rolls 23 and 22 for 43 damage

Lucas drops his daggers and reaches for his throat but has exsanguinated before he can even place his hands on the wounds. He slumps over in his chair, dead. Still in darkness, Fodinis searches the house thoroughly. He finds a small chest under the bed in the bedroom.

[Fodinis makes a thieves’  tools check and a traps check] Rolls 28 (crit) and 22

The chest does not have any traps or hidden surprises. He opens it easily and sees a pile of gold, platinum, and gems and a leather parchment bag that contains a stack of folded papers. He dumps the contents in his bag of holding. Unlike Donatello’s where hiding the bodies was to delay suspicion and destroy evidence but under contract, he’s not going to be paid much for ending Lucas, aside for maybe a date. He tosses the places, searching for anything of value to make the robbery scene look more realistic. Lucas, despite being networked to a large number of child pickpockets, doesn’t seem to keep much of value in his home. He finds a few papers with Lucas’ handwriting and pauses to think. From a small writing desk, he takes some parchment and a pen.

[Fodinis makes a forgery check (disadvantage)] Rolls 13

Although the handwriting is not a perfect match, the form and content seem appropriate for a last will and testament. He places the will in the chest and relocks it. When he leaves, he makes sure the front door is locked then darts back down the darkened alley.

Later that evening, he empties his bag of holding and sorts through the safe and chest contents. From Donatello, he finds records of his criminal activities including contacts, dates and places, names of business and citizens he is extorting, and a “hit list” of people he wants out of the way. Fodinis notes that his name is on the list, towards the bottom. Lastly, he finds the deeds to the Racing Starling, The Madame’s Repose, and Luxurious Leathers, the three main businesses that he runs all of his criminal operations out of. Fodinis sets all of Donatello’s documents aside. In Lucas’ documents, he finds a list of names, likely of children, with notes about them including their gambits and where they hang out or sleep. A few of the names have an amount of gold pieces written next to the name and the name is crossed out. Another document appears to be the deed for his home and a deed for a farm outside of town. He sets those aside. All total, the other items from the safe and the chest includes 129 pp, 4532 gp, and 10 gems including tiny eye agate (130 GP), brownish-green garnet (250 GP), huge deep purple amethyst (1,000 GP), huge muddy blue star sapphire (5,000 GP), muddy green zircon (50 GP), huge chipped light green jade (100 GP), small black pearl (250 GP), huge pink pearl (1,300 GP), tiny blue azurite (50 GP) and a pale green tourmaline (800 GP). He separates the gems into a pile with the jewelry and daggers. He sits back from the four piles and thinks.

[Fodinis makes an Intelligence Check] Rolls 20 (crit)

Far from his normal line of thinking, Fodinis has a moment of pure clarity and determines a brilliant plan. He gathers up all of the deeds and puts them in one pile. He gathers all of the criminal evidence and places it in a separate pile. He places the deeds in the leather parchment bag and wraps all of the evidence documents in a piece of loose parchment that he folds and seals with wax. Checking the hour, which is very late, he gathers everything and heads back out. His first stop is Lucas’ house which is still dark as he left it. He replaces the leather parchment bag in the chest along with the leather bag from around Donatello’s neck and puts some gold and a few gems inside. 

[Fodinis gives away 200 gp, a muddy green zircon (50 GP), a huge chipped light green jade (100 GP), small black pearl (250 GP)]. 

He reseals the chest, places it back under the bed, and rearranges the room back to order. He puts both of the daggers in Lucas’ hands and passes the blades through the wounds of his neck, covering them in blood. He leaves the house and goes by the constable’s office where Lucas is stationed. The building is locked because anyone on duty is patrolling at this hour. 

[Fodinis makes a thieves tools check] Rolls 28 (crit)

He easily opens the door and slips inside. On the constables desk, he places the packet of evidence and writes on a blank piece of parchment a brief but detailed enough confession by Lucas of his long-term dealings with Donatello and how it ended a few nights ago when Lucas was forced to murder him and his consort. Satisfied with a sufficient trail of confusing evidence, Fodinis exists, locks the door, and heads to his fence. 

Even at this hour, a fence is always available and within a few short minutes of discussing the goods (the gems and jewelry), he receives 4930 gps but keeps the sapphire. His stay at the salty pig costs 75 gps for the two quindays going back and forth between the new manor house.

Theophania accepts a short contract from the local ranger’s guild to survey some of the forests north of Pathilia. At the guild, she pays 2000 gps to retrain her learned spells to Jump, Longstrider, and Zephyr Strike as her new bow allows her to cast Hunter’s Mark, Ensnaring Strike, and Hail of Thorns by expending its charges. She contributes 1000 gp to the manor house. During her contract, she meets several other rangers, none of which are centaurs, and they mentor her for being a member of the ranger’s guild. She becomes a probationary member, able to join as a full member when she is a bit more powerful. As probationary member, she is given a small metal insignia brooch to wear on her clothes which will alert other rangers to her potential for membership.

She visits Hadrian’s Heretics and negotiates having her short swords upgraded to be magical for a cost of 2000 gp. She spends most of the days and nights when she is not in the forest with Enacelle discussing her surveys and what Enacelle has learned from her expeditions into the woods.

After the two quindays, she is paid 100 gps for her contract. Her stay at the salty pig costs 75 gps for the two quindays going back and forth between the new manor house.

Kace has quite a bit of gold at the start of the first quinday and has Malege help him also purchase a bag of holding for 2500 gp. He checks in with the caged fighting matches and the fight master has only two fights lined up for him which he confesses are going to be pretty tough. Kace agrees to accept both matches for 150 gps each plus 300 gps if he wins. Fodinis, Malege, and Piece all go with him to the arena for both nights of the fights. Only Fodinis bets and did a progressive bet of two victories for Kace and odds of 25 to 1 for 1500 gp. The fight organizer is very unhappy with Fodinis bet but accepts it because he is confident his two fighters will be too much for Kace.

Kace enters the ring with the first opponent, Mongo Gravehide, a half-orc, who stands at least a foot taller than the man-lion and has shoulders twice as wide. He wears only a rough hide kilt with a large leather belt. The crowd is hushed as the match begins. Kace throws the first punch, landing a solid strike against Mongo’s jaw. Mongo laughs and swings back immediately, stunning Kace with a blow to his head. Kace takes a few deep breaths to regain his composure, and roars with a surge of energy. He leaps onto Mongo to grapple him but slides off the hulk’s back. Behind him, he tries for a solid kidney blow but it feels like striking iron. Mongo swings around and pummels Kace again in the ribs. Kace stumbles back a bit and takes a half-hearted swing but only finds Mongo’s hand grasping his own. Mongo attempts to punch him with his opposite hand but Kace likewise grabs it. They push off of each other. They exchange another round of weak swings that miss. Kace throws another punch to Mongo’s stomach but the half-orc side steps and brings his elbow down on Kace’s back hard. Kace stumbles away and then rushes back with a solid punch that seems to bounce off of Mongo’s ribs. The half-orc returns the swing but Kace steps back, avoiding the blow easily. As Mongo swings, Kace notices a scar along Mongo’s left ribs that he hadn’t notice before. The man-lion smiles and leaps at the half-orc, slamming his fist into the left rib spot. Mongo howls with pain and misses with his return punch. Kace quickly assaults the half-orc with two more punches to the head, one of which is matched by a punch from Mongo, sending Kace reeling backwards. They exchange another round of weak swings. Mongo closes his eyes tightly and blinks a few times. Kace smiles again and leaps into the air, landing a punch to Mongo’s throat. As the half-orc tries to return the swing, Kace bounds over his shoulder, lands, and waits for Mongo to turn to face him. When he does, he sends an upper cut into the half-orcs chin which drops him to the cage floor. The crowd goes wild and Kace can hear Piece, Nir, and Fodinis yelling over the crowd.

The second match occurs a few days later. Kace enters the ring to see a four-armed yuan-ti, named Szillizia, that seems to be made of muscle, stretching and sliding around the cage anxiously. With four arms to contend with, Kace takes the initiative when the fight begins, leaping high in the air, and bringing his elbow down on the yaun-ti’s shoulder. Caught off guard, the yaun-ti swings back wildly but misses. Kace dances around the yuan-ti and then leaps on it’s back, locking two of its arms in a grapple with one of his. The yuan-ti manages to land a punch with a free hand but only lightly. Now with an advantage, Kace pummels the snake-man with another solid blow to the neck. Szillizia lands another blow as well. Kace, still holding on, takes a deep breath and roars with a surge of energy. He throws two hard punches in a row but is off balance from the yuan-ti’s thrashing and misses with both. The snake-man’s own punches are wild from the thrashing as well. They exchange four rounds of weak swings as the yaun-ti continues to spin trying to throw off the man-lion. Suddenly, the snake-man hisses loudly and flexes all for of his arms, throwing Kace off his back and onto the ground. They charge at each other, both landing a blow, but Kace’s seems to take the snake-man off balance. Kace proceeds to land three punches in a row only countered by one solid hit from Szillizia. After several more rounds of weak punches, Kace leaps in the air and swings down on the yuan-ti’s head when it was trying to shake off the previous blow, and the snake-man drops to the ground. The crowd explodes with excitement.

N# | Opp AC  | Opp to Hit (1d4 +2) | Hp | Opp Damage (1d6 + STR) | Opp Str (2d6 + 8) | Results
1 | 20 | 7 | 46 | 1d8 + 4 | 18 | 19()/24(10); SW(5),AS,Gr(f), 11()/20(9); 12()/8(crit); 15()/9();10()/22(9); 18()/8(crit); 25(6)/11();27(crit, 19)/18(); 20(12)/22(8); 18()/10(); 21(7)/17(); 27(crit, 20) = Victory
2 | 18 | 6 | 62 | 1d6 + 4 | 18 | 22(7)/15(); Gr(s)/22(7); *2,27(crit,8)/26(6); *3,AS,16(),13()/14(); *3, 17()/10(); *1, 16()/19(6); *2, 9()/8(); *3, 11()/20(5); *4, 9()/Str(s); 20(8)/24(6); 25(7)/15(); 9()/14(); 20(11)/ 9(); 18(6)/ 24(8); 13()/24(5); 26(6) = victory

Kace receives 900 gp for two matches and two victories. Fodinis receives 3750 pp. After the second match, Piece escorts Kace back to the tavern and cleans him up, feeds him, gives him a cup of calming tea, and puts him to bed. They sit by the bed all night and read while watching Kace sleep.

Kace spends every morning of the two quindays in front of the tavern exercising, usually with Piece present. 

[Kace makes two Athletics checks] Rolls 8 and 14

The crowds are pretty thin due to the weather the first quinday; however, after his victory in the caged matches, a few additional admirers pay him visits in the morning. 

[Kace receives 68 gp, 43 sp, and 460 cp]

Kace spends 2000 gps with the local cartographer’s guild to study with them for a few hours every afternoon for the full two quindays, practicing with his tools and studying old and new m aps of Pathilia. He gives Fodinis 1000 gp towards the manor house.

[Kace gains proficiency in Cartographer’s Tools]

Enacelle travels with Theophania to the forests north of Pathilia on her first day and then spends the entire quinday in the forest, learning or perfecting her wildshapes, gathering flowers, herbs, and shiny stones, making potions of healing, and working with Sister to scout around the forest both in and out of her wildshapes. 

[Enacelle makes 20 potions of healing for 1000 gp]

She revisits the spider’s nest where Fodinis’ sister's items were found and spends many hours over several days with Sister and wildshaped into a giant spider asking them about the remains.

[Enacelle makes a Persuasion check] Rolls 11

Despite her best efforts, Enacelle can learn very little from the spiders but feels confident after several discussions that the bugbear is actually still alive because the spiders insist that the items were on the body of a male human. However, where she could be is impossible to know. 

She manages to connect with Circle of the Moon Druids in the wilds of Pathilia and spends several evenings with them. She provides them with 2000 gp worth of reagents and supplies and they, in return, help her retrain her basic magical spells to be more in line with her needs going forward.

[Enacelle learns Gust, Shape Water, and Mold Earth]

When Encelle returns to Pathilia, she discusses what she’s learned about Fodinis’ sister which makes him very happy but confused and concerned. Enacelle offers him comfort and assurance. Malege and Piece, who are also present for the conversion, suggest that perhaps the mindflayers or Callia can help. Fodinis agrees but decides it is not critically important at the moment. He confesses that he doesn’t know this sister, had already assumed she was dead, and, if he gets his hopes up, will be further crushed. Everyone nods in understanding. 

Umgurn, delighted by the gift from Callia, manages to find some magical crossbow bolts at Hadrian’s and adds them to his retinue of equipment. He also purchases one of Hadrian’s last bags of holding.

[Umgurn receives 10 +1 crossbow bolts and a bag of holding for 2600 gp]  

Umgurn works with the local constable for the two quindays and spends several days investigating a double-murder/suicide of a local crime boss, a crooked casino owner, and a corrupt city guard. He concludes after reviewing all of the evidence that the city guard, disgruntled with his relationship with the crime boss, murdered him and his girlfriend, stole property from the crime boss’ home, and then, feeling guilty or remorse, turned over all of the evidence to the constable and killed himself. The city guard left a last will and testament leaving all of his possessions to the king’s charity for local street urchins. Based on the incriminating evidence, it appears to Umgurn that part of the city guard’s corruption was selling some of the children but not enough information was found to understand what happened to them. The constable congratulated Umgurn on a job well done and paid him for working the two quindays.

[Umgurn receives 75 gp]

Umgurn gives Fodinis 1000 gp towards the manor house. When he hands it to him, he pulls him to the side in a quiet corner of the tavern.

“So, interestingly, three people that I am pretty sure I remember discussing with you at some point in the past as being… bitter enemies of yours, all turned up dead recently. Donatello, Cassandra, and Lucas… Seems they didn’t like each other very much. I guess that should make you feel a little more comfortable, eh?” Fodinis gathers a rather perplexed look on his face and slowly shakes his head.

“Fascinating. They honestly haven’t crossed my mind in ages. Terrible how these criminals can just have it in for each other.” Fodinis smiles and leaves the tavern. Umgurns smiles in his wake.

“Never will admit the good you do because it's always drenched in blood, bugbear.” Umgurn laughs out loud.