Legacy of Fire SoP/SoM/PoW III: The Revengening

[stack]

Akaash grabs the door frame and flips up, running across the ceiling to get behind one foe attacking Goma, giving a flipping kick as he returns to the floor.

Spoiler

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move due east of Goma, flanking.
edit:acrobatics to avoid AOOs (rolled OOC)
(1d20+17)[31]
Enemies whose threatened area he leaves must make a will save or be nauseated for 1 round, DC 18

energy blade (1d20+13)[26]
damage (1d6+6)[10] + (5d6)[13] nonlethal
Bullrush (Goma's DR should eat any damage he takes from this) (1d20+18)[28]
deals (1d6)[2] damage for each 5' he cant move (Goma would take this too)
extra damage roll if needed for not be able to move an additional 5 ft. (1d6)[6]

[lostsole31]

"Open the door," says Khwaja Malak to Shahrazad. Once she does so, Khwaja Malak steps past her into the hall to see a brigand 10' from him. He casts a spell and says, "Run away, little boys, or earn your death today."

Spoiler: K-M Crunch

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Once she opens the door...
MA: Move 10' to be next to the door, but in the hallway.
SA: Cast group (greater) charm ... to catch all three of the brigands standing in a vertical (broken) N-S line, but not including the one threatening the Water Prince.
Perform (oratory) (1d20+15)[22] vs. DC 20. Costs 2 SP. Will DC 17 negates, but does not include the -2 to Will saves that they all suffer.

For his part, the Water Prince sets up a low shell of blade and tumbling body before kipping up to his feet.

Spoiler: W-P Crunch

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SA: Begin total defense action.
MA: Stand, provoking AOOs.
Current AC = 24.

[pfm1995]

Tempo: 4

Alssariq plants a foot on the couch for a fly leap that takes him up and over both Rowan and the intruder threatening him in a terrific leap. Once he has his feet back under him, he sprints up the stairs.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Acrobatics - (1d20+18)[27]

[SwordChucks]

Goma rises to his feet catching the flying thief with his chest. Not wanting to risk interrupting Malak's spell, he continues the assault on the man to the south of him.

Spoiler: Combat

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Move action: Stand from prone.
Standard action: Enduring Crane Strike on the thief to the south. Healing Goma.

Flanking bonus included, +1 to hit and damage if the target is evil not included.

Shield: (1d20+13)[27], (3d6+8)[13]
Healing: (1d6+5)[7]

[bcool999]

Rowan
HP 45/45
AC 21

Rowan nods in thanks as Akaash deals with the intruder that lurched towards him. He casts a spell of protection on himself and the frontliners before ascending the stairs.

Spoiler: OOC

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Standard action: Alter Time: After Image cast with Group Time for 2 SP. Gives Rowan, Goma, Akaash, and the Water Prince 30% miss chance for 7 minutes.

Move Action: Ascend the stairs staying 10ft from enemies.

[digiman619]

Between Akaash's blast and Malak's honeyed words, all the thugs on the bottom floor are either dead or have fled. As Rowan rushes up the spiral staircase. he hears noises from above; following it, he rushes to the roof, just in time to see Reyhan, his eyes glossed over as one who is enthralled. Surrounding him are three thugs and the halfling Tamir. As he turns the corner, the five of them disappear in a rush of green fire, leaving only a charred rug where they once stood.

[pfm1995]

"Hellfire and damnation." Alssariq says flatly. "At least we know who to kill."

So saying, he heads back indoors to check over the bodies.

[lostsole31]

Rafiq, with his monkey on his shoulder, bounds up the staircase at the head of the group. He hisses an Abadaran epithet meant for thieves and robbers.

When Khwaja Malak make it upstairs, just barely catching the sight of the disappearance, he nods slowly in angered admiration. "If we are going to have thieves manage to trick us and steal from us, at least they are capable and outfitted well, and not lucky. The cost to make a rug like that - and its mate - is no small matter. So, while we have the dishonor of failing to have protected the scroll, yet our adversaries were capable."

"I don't know why you're smiling," said the Water Prince.

"Would you rather they have been inept robbers and succeeded, and therefore spotlighted our own incompetence instead?

"After our search for any clues ... and Goma, be mindful of specfic scents ... I will conduct an autopsy on the bodies."

[SwordChucks]

"An autopsy? What do you hope that will tell us Khwaja?"

Goma mulls over his options.
"If they didn't teleport into the villa then we should be able to work backward from the breakin and find where they came from."
Goma stalks around the villa, sniffing deeply and commiting smells to memory.

Spoiler: Tracking

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Wisdom check to track by scent: (1d20+2)[5] vs, I believe, DC 8.

[digiman619]

Before Malak could begin cutting open the bodies, Two things happened: First Akaash checked his room and the scroll was still there, so this assault wasn't fully successful. Almost a second later, Rowan came down the stairs with a grim look on his face. The intruders had left a note:

Spoiler: The note

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Before you could dwell on that , there is a loud rapping on the door. Will you open it?

[lostsole31]

The Water Prince, knowing that the sound of battle magics likely carried, goes to answer the concerned neighbors or guards at the door.

[stack]

Akaash wipes the blood from his bare feet, then corroborates Malak's findings. "We guarded the scroll, not our host. Tactical error on our part, we failed to properly analyze our own weaknesses." He rubs his temples and sits. "We will need a way to find them before the allotted time expires. I am not eager to give up the scroll to thieves and kidnappers, even if I did trust them. Which I do not; I expect handing them the scroll would get us a corpse in return."

He pauses while others see to the door.

[lostsole31]

Khwaja Malak nods and says, for Goma's benefit as well, "By 'autopsy,' I do not mean the cutting-the-body-open type. There is a ritual I can perform that might help me get a few questions answered. In the meantime, while I am doing that, please plan our rescue efforts."

[digiman619]

The rapping quickly became pounding. As the Water Prince opens the door, you see a contingent of armed men, all wearing the raiment of Zephyr Guards (the local constabulary) at the door. they quickly drop the miniature battering ram they were carrying and enter the building. Bringing up the rear is a middle aged woman wearing the clothes of a Cleric of Abadar, his holy symbol hanging from her neck. She tells them to stand down and takes a seat at a nearby table, asking you all to do the same. Regardless of if you do, she get s to the point quickly.

“Greetings. I apologize for my abrupt arrival, but there is a matter we must discuss. My name is Kazin and you should know that I am here on both the authority of the church and that of the Pactmasters—and I bring word of their displeasure. Both have been troubled recently by your arrival in our city. They had hoped your claim was false, or that if it were true, you would conduct your business swifty and be gone. The traffic of powerful artifacts is welcome in Katapesh, but it also causes the worst of men’s natures to rise. What we have seen here tonight is proof of that.

“While the city respects the value of an individual’s property, and thef violates the highest laws of the land, inciting riots and disrupting trade is equally offensive to our codes, and you currently walk a fine line in that regard.

“Know that several parties have come to the Pactmasters and demanded that the city force you to relinquish control of the Scroll of Kakishon to the highest bidder. Specifially, the One Source Merchants’ Guild is threatening a trade embargo if they are not allowed the opportunity to bid for the map. Though you are the rightful owner and cannot be forced to sell, they therefore ask you to choose a buyer within the next day or else leave the city. It is one thing to hold out on a trade for the best price, but another to hold out so long that our merchants lose sight of their civility.

“You have but one other option. If you can find out who perpetrated this crime against you and the master of this house, and if you can bring me proof that the situation has been resolved before the time limit elapses, both the church and the Pactmasters will be appreciative of your efforts and turn deaf ears to the complaints of a few jealous merchants.”

[lostsole31]

The Water Prince, retrieving the note from whomever is currently holding it, shows it to Kazin. "We recognize the halfling that was with the group as being a member of the One Source. We shall deal with this and retrieve Rayhan."

Khwaja Malak, for another reason, looks to Kazin. "Just because people make offers for property doesn't mean that the owner must sell that property. That is chaos. We did not advertise our ownership, but it someone became known nonethless. We have no intention of selling the scroll. Should a rich man be forced to sell his home to the highest bidder? His slaves? His wife? The foundation of trade must be not only that a potential purchaser wishes to purchase, but a potential seller wishes to sell. To force them to sell is extortion, not trade, and ruins the trust we have in the social contract in those that enforce, oversee, and otherwise protect trade."

[digiman619]

The cleric shrugs "If you find the terms unsatisfying, you could always leave the city. Of course, that would only give your assailants the ability to attack in force rather than just a small raiding party like this." She then turns to the Water Prince "Hmm. If the One Source Merchant's Guild is behind this, that would be troubling indeed. But the Pactmasters would need more evidence than simply your word; It was in the dead of the night after allm and there are hundreds of small folk in the city."

[SwordChucks]

Goma lets out a deep sigh. "It might take days to prove a connection to the One Source. So if I'm reading the situation right, you mean to tell us that this is our problem to deal with and the only aid you'll be offering is that you won't prevent us from taking action against the One Source?"

"The streets always seem to clean themselves in Katapesh."

[digiman619]

Kazin gives a knowing smirk. "Well, the One Source do have a warehouse near the docks, but all we have is your word they're involved. The One Source is officially paid up with the Pactmasters, so we need more that a split-second identification in the dark from an outsider to make a move against them. Now, if more evidence of their misdeeds were to be uncovered, we might be able to do something. But as it stands, the burden of proof lies on you."

[lostsole31]

"And where is that warehouse by the docks?" asks the Water Prince. "It just might be that the One Source themselves - honorably paid up with the Pactmasters - are possibly being framed by someone we know has ties to the One Source. Or, less of a framing and more of a corruption in their ranks. If you can point the way to them, we can possibly talk to them and determine the truth of this matter amicably without need for bloodshed."

[digiman619]

She shrugged. "I don't see why not. The warehouse's location is public knowledge, after all" She then gives you directions to the place, though she shrugs again afterwards, stating that just asking people in the docks could tell you if you bothered to ask. She then stands and begins to leave, ordering her guards to follow her.

Just before she exits the building, she addresses you once more, though she continues to face forward. "Remember, you have until midnight to find whoever did this and bring evidence of it to us. If you do not, the Pactmasters will be forced to acquiesce to the demands of the merchants and offer the Scroll up for auction. I think we all would prefer to avoid that, don't you?"

And with that. she leaves you to your thoughts and preparations. So, what's the plan?

[lostsole31]

Khwaja Malak thinks better of an arcane autopsy, but he does go and check the fallen for physical clues.

[digiman619]

Four bodies litter the floor, but closer inspection reveals that two of them still breathe. No doubt they are the ones battered by Akaash's blast the hardest. Still looking over their gear you find that each of them had the following: A moderate healing infusion (potion of CMW), studded leather,a scizore, a sap, a hand crossbow, and a set of thieves' tools, all of superior quality. Also, oddly each of them carries a pair of small flawed rubies; while not of high enough quality that you'd want to make jewelry of, each is still valuable as mineral specimens alone, worth somewhere between 200 and 300 gp apiece.

[lostsole31]

The Khwaja Malak will ask the Water Prince to aid him in prising open the likely-closed mouths of the fallen. He will ask Goma ties up the still-breathing fellows, and then cast invigorate (5 THPs) on the least-wounded of the two.

[stack]

Akaash grimaces after the door closes, "Investigation on a deadline. Wouldn't want it to be easy. I suppose slow and subtle isn't really in our idiom anyhow." He goes to lend a hand in searching the fallen and interrogating the survivors.

[lostsole31]

Here is what Khwaja Malak learns during his interrogation:

The bravo and his group are mercenaries specializing in stealth and surgical strikes (more hash'ashin than soldier), and his group was hired by the halfling guy we saw earlier. He doesn't know a lot ... he has never been down to the main base ... but he overheard someone head into the boss' office and disappear, but not before saying, "The jackal provides." It's some sort of password, but for what, the thug didn't ask. There's not much he knows otherwise, and putting a mental whammy on him did little else to drag ino out of him, other than that he is a recent hire to the guild.

[SwordChucks]

Goma does what he can to secure the still living hash'ashin. When out of earshot of the prisoner Goma lets the others know about the gemstones.

"I remember something about these stones. There was some captain that came by with a bunch of these gems. I can't remember the name of the guy but that points us to the docks again."

"We might consider talking to Radi, that guy we saved from the wurm. He has underworld connections and likely has some skills we lack due to our upstanding natures. And he owes us, so we may as well collect."

[stack]

Akaash nods, "Its a start. If we don't find anything from him, we can try heading to our captive's base too see if they have any records or more knowledgeable personnel."

Spoiler

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planes for the stones (1d20+12)[21] + (1d6)[2]

[lostsole31]

The Water Prince answers, "The clock is on getting Rayhan back and 'settling accounts' with the One Source. We can look up gems and ship captains later."

[pfm1995]

"I favor going to this headquarters of theirs and seeing who we can convince to talk." Alssariq says with a stony face.

[lostsole31]

"Well," says Khwaja Malak. "We better rest up. We want to be as strong as we can be before taking on the warehouse."