Way of the Wicked (Pathfinder IC)

[Lost Demiurge]

The door swings open, revealing a roomy kitchen. The scent of good food wafts over the group.

Of more immediate concern are the elderly man wearing servant's clothing in the middle of the room. He's currently talking with a guard who's holding a plate of food... The same kind Sirin treated not long ago. Next to them, slumped with her head down on a table, is a plump elderly woman in servant's clothes.

Beyond them, in a doorway opposite yours, a third guard leans against the doorjam, looking tired as hell. That doesn't last for long, as all three of the conscious people in the room snap their heads over to look at you.

"Oh hell." Says the guard in the doorway.

SURPRISE ROUND ACTIONS
(Bridget's gonna drop a sleep spell. Everyone else, choose a STANDARD action to take. If any hostiles are left standing at the end of this, we'll go to standard rounds.)

[Sjurd]

ooc: How far are we from the two in the middle of the room?

[Lost Demiurge]

ooc: How far are we from the two in the middle of the room?

OOC: About 10 feet. It's a 20 foot by 20 foot room. Also, the OOC thread is better for questions like this.

[Sjurd]

ooc: Sorry. I will post short questions in the OOC thread from now on.

Silas takes a 5-foot-step to step into the room and to the side of the doorway to make room for the spell-slingers.

[Frivolous]

Sirin Starshine


Sirin looks confused as she rushes past the half-orc Silas.

"Why are you just standing there?" she hisses in passing.

She moves 10 feet to the left until she reaches the corner, then abruptly changes course and moves 20 feet forward, stopping just as she reaches the next corner.

Intentions

Spoiler

Show

Sirin's move is 30 feet. She wants to reach the guard leaning against the doorjamb, since he is the most likely to escape.

However, she also does not want to provoke an attack of opportunity by passing near any square the guard in the middle threatens.

Thus, since the room is 20 x 20, she moves 10 feet to the left and 20 feet forward. If my guesses are correct, this should bring her within 10 feet of the opposite door and the guard leaning against the doorjamb without provoking any AoO's.

The knowledge that Bridget will soon fill the room with sedative magic does not seem to deter her at all.

[Finkmilkana]

If possible (and the guard still standing when he gets to act) Marthras will partial charge the Guard in the doorway.

Spoiler

Show

(1d20+6)[11]
(1d6+6)[10]

Otherwise he'll move next to him, ready to attack next round and trying to block the door.

[Morbis Meh]

Jodiah simply walks up and casts mage hand, levitating a piece of the drugged meat which she will shove into one of the guard's open mouths.

Spoiler

Show

Yay for creativity!!!

[Morbis Meh]

Variel, with his newly acquired longsword in hand lashes out at the nearest conscious victim despite his apparent distates of brutish melee weapons.

Spoiler

Show

So Attacking if in range of anything conscious...
to hit (1d20+2)[8]
damage (1d8+1)[4]

[Lost Demiurge]

Briget throws her spell, and the two guards crumble to the ground!

The elderly servant alone remains standing, and he turns to the unoccupied door... Only to see hope dashed as Sirin and Marthras dash over to it.

He drops his ladle and raises his hands.

"I... Please. Myra and me just cook the food. That's all..."

[Frivolous]

Sirin Starshine


Sirin beams at everyone, including the elderly servant. She seems really cheerful now.

She tells Bridget, "Good work, Bree. Really wonderful."

She then addresses the old man. "Don't worry, I'm not going to harm you. It's hard enough to get good help already. And if we killed all the servants, who would do the dishes and sweep the floors?"

Then her tone becomes businesslike and she stops smiling.

"What's your name? Who are these two guards and where are all the rest? When are the rest coming?

"Tell us true, please. I'd hate to think of what my friends will do to Myra if you lie."

If the opposite door is open, she closes and locks it. She also gently disarms the two sleeping guards but doesn't slice their throats yet.

[Morbis Meh]

Jodiah walks over to the elderly fellow, with a piece of meat floating next to her, she pauses for a moment unsure of what to do but settles on directing the hot morsel of flesh to rest atop the terrified man's head. "Now listen here sir, don't be a meat head and tell me where I can find the pottery exhibit? Or better yet the lavoratory, I have had to go for the past five minutes and there aren't any signs anywhere! As an employee of a museum you should no better, proper signs are needed how else will your patrons know where to go? Bah, I have had enough of this terrible place, I want my money back and I demand you direct me out of this place!"

[Lost Demiurge]

As she closes the opposite door, Sirin and Marthras get a glimpse of a mess hall beyond. There's four guards in there, slumped over their meals. The only other exit from that room looks to be a door to the west, quite shut at the minute.

Beyond the snoozing guards, sits a rack of pots, with cheap flimsy bowls by them. Looks like they were going to carry the prisoner's food upstairs after they finished dinner.

The old man gulps as the questions come in.

"I'm Kelvan. That's Myra... well, you know her name I suppose. The guards on the floor are Jordi and Narvel."

"Uh, the guards, you're asking about all the prison guards? Well, the inside ones eat first. Except for the door guards, they're out in the hall next to the mess hall right now. And the upstairs guards, they eat last. After the inside ones are done, prisoners get fed and the outside guards come in to eat and the dogs get the scraps."

"The Sergeant and the captain have their meals delivered. Myra took care of that, before we started in on our own dinners." He gestures to some plates off near the dirty dishes. "I wondered why mine tasted a little off..."

When Jodi deposits the pork chop on his head, the old man looks like he's a heartbeat away from crying. He DOES cry when Grumblejack steps into the room behind the group, and growls at him.

"Please, I don't understand any of that... But if you want to go out, the front door's just in the hall to the west! Just go through the mess hall and there you are. But there's two guards out there, and there's the courtyard and gatehouse besides, and a causeway to the mainland that's all lit up. If you get caught it ain't my fault!"

[Frivolous]

Sirin Starshine

Sirin nods encouragingly to Kelvan as he answers her questions. Then she addresses the other escapees.

"Everyone pick up armor and weapons. If you can use them, take them."

"But don't harm anyone. We don't want to alarm Kelvan here, not while he is being so gosh darn friendly and generous with his time."

Sirin takes a moment to giggle and toss her straight and shiny black hair over her shoulder and wink at Kelvan. She seems much too cutesy to be a poisoner.

"Now, Kelvan, tell me about the Captain and the Sergeant. Who are they? What are they? Where are they?"

"And... Do you know what they can do? Are they fighters, or do they have magic or what?"

"Are there any magic items in this place?"

She glances down at the two who are asleep by virtue of Bridget's spell.

"Oh, and if you can find some rope, we need to tie these two bozos up."

Sirin unlocks and opens the door she is standing near so that Grumblejack and the others can begin disarming and robbing the four guards who fell asleep mid-meal.

[Angstrom]

Branderscar was failing to live up to its reputation. The hard part was still to come however, getting to the mainland wouldn't be easy.

Bridget gags Jordi, Narvel, and Myra with scraps from her rags as they get tied up. If anyone moves to deal with the guards in the mess hall, Bridget whispers to them, "The guards in the hallway won't be asleep, so perhaps its better if you don't bother with ropes. Please close the door behind you, we don't want any sounds of a struggle here reaching the hallway."

[Sjurd]

Silas smiles a toothy grin at the servants. "If you deliver that special stew to the rest of the guards, we won't need to kill anyone else." His grin turns slightly sour and he leans forward toward the old man. "Don't you think that's fair?"

[Lost Demiurge]

"The Captain is... Well, I guess he's the warden. But he lets Sergeant Blackerly handle the day to day stuff. Just stays up in the southern tower, reading all day and playing with his pet owl. Rumors say he's some kind of mage, but I wouldn't know, I just leave his dinner at the door and knock when it's my turn, and pick up the empty tray when it's my turn for that. South tower's outside, and... Well, south. Largest one, you can't miss it."

"Sergeant Blackerly's office is the southwest door in the main hall, just west of here. But he's only in the office sometimes."

SIRIN

Spoiler

Show

Ah, that's about where the guards took you to talk to Tiadora.

"He's... Ah, he takes charge of things. Very... Competent. Used to be a soldier before he got- Uh, before he switched jobs."

SENSE MOTIVE DC 16

Spoiler

Show

Kelvan doesn't like Sergeant Blackerly one bit.

"I don't know of any magic or anything."

The man quivers when Silas suggests he take the meals out to the guards. "I... I, sure. I can just take the stew and go, then?"

[Frivolous]

Silas smiles a toothy grin at the servants. "If you deliver that special stew to the rest of the guards, we won't need to kill anyone else." His grin turns slightly sour and he leans forward toward the old man. "Don't you think that's fair?"

Sirin Starshine


The half-elf thinks about it a bit, then shakes her head firmly at the half-orc.

"Negative. Either he tells the guards and scuttles our escape, or they notice he's agitated and ask what's wrong."

She smiles and addresses Kelvan.

"Not that I don't trust you, sir, but right now you can't bluff worth a darn."

"I'm still not going to harm you, but you are not going anywhere."

Sense Motive

Spoiler

Show

Sense Motive: (1d20+2)[16]

[Frivolous]

Sirin Starshine


"The Captain is a mage with an owl, eh? And Blackerly is a very competent fighter?"

Sirin bites on a strand of her glossy hair and clearly seems to be thinking about trying to rob one or both of them before they depart from the prison.

Then she sighs.

"We should probably avoid Blackerly and definitely avoid the Captain. I don't want to mess with mages."

She suddenly smiles and turns to the addled gnome, Nana Jodi. She starts talking in a very enthusiastic manner, raising her voice so she sounds like a little girl.

"Ooh, Nana Jodi! The museum is very generously offering all gnomes a chance to pick up weapons, armor, and other souvenirs at a real good discount!"

"If you see anything you like, take it. Daddy will pay for it. Just don't eat the food. I hear it's gone bad. Very very bad."

[Angstrom]

"Just stays up in the southern tower, reading all day and playing with his pet owl."

"Is that what they're calling it these days?"

"I agree with Sirin" Bridget says as she smiles at Kelvan, "It too risky for you, Kelvan, we don't want you to get in trouble. If you cooperate and tell us everything we need to know, you, Myra, and all these guards can walk out of here unharmed."

Spoiler

Show

Bluff: (1d20+9)[17]

"As you've probably noticed, we are leaving. We want to avoid any harm befalling the guards; so do you I imagine. If you want to keep those people alive, you need to tell us where they are and how to avoid them. Where are these dogs kept? If Blackerly isn't in his office, where would he be? How likely is it that his office will be empty?"

[Sjurd]

Sirin Starshine


The half-elf thinks about it a bit, then shakes her head firmly at the half-orc.

"Negative. Either he tells the guards and scuttles our escape, or they notice he's agitated and ask what's wrong."

Silas smiles. "That's why the little old lady is staying with us. One wrong move, and I tear out her throat with my teeth." He looks back at the old man. "Savvy?"

[Morbis Meh]

Jodiah regards the half orc with bewildered disdain "You shall not do such a thing young man! Biting is an awful and disgusting thing to do, come to think of it when was the last time you brushed your teeth? Come down here and show me at once or I will wash your mouth out with soap!" She blatantly ignores the old cook, satisfied with the response he gave Jodiah turns to Sirin. "So dearie shall we be making our way out then, I do have to relieve myself and it isn't very ladylike to do so in the presence of others."

[Lost Demiurge]

Kelvan's eyes flick to Bridget. "There's a kennel out the northwestern door in the main hall. It's on the way to the barracks. I'd guess maybe two or three of the dogs are out at most times patrolling with the walking guards outside in the courtyard."

"There's more guards in the gatehouse. I don't know how many, it depends on how many are actually in there today. The Sergeant... Sometimes schedules people who don't actually show up, and pockets the money." He frowns. Clearly this bothers him.

He gestures at a fresh row of pots on the fireplace. "We have to make extra because not everyone always shows. So there's enough for eight on there right now for the outside crew, but there's no guarantee it's eight that will show up. At least the dogs eat well most days."

He shrinks when Silas threatens Myrta, and looks back and forth between the hulking half-orc and the protesting half-elf.

Meanwhile, Grumblejack has found a ham and is eating well for the first time in quite a while.

[Frivolous]

Silas smiles. "That's why the little old lady is staying with us. One wrong move, and I tear out her throat with my teeth." He looks back at the old man. "Savvy?"

Sirin Starshine

Sirin shakes her head again.

"Some people are better at acting under stress, but others get stage fright. We don't know which kind Kelvan is, so it's very risky. There has to be a better way."

Jodiah regards the half orc with bewildered disdain "You shall not do such a thing young man! Biting is an awful and disgusting thing to do, come to think of it when was the last time you brushed your teeth? Come down here and show me at once or I will wash your mouth out with soap!" She blatantly ignores the old cook, satisfied with the response he gave Jodiah turns to Sirin. "So dearie shall we be making our way out then, I do have to relieve myself and it isn't very ladylike to do so in the presence of others."

Sirin addresses Nana Jodi.

"If you like, you can relieve yourself in that room, Nana Jodi. It should be safe. Just close the door so no one can see."

Sirin points at the door to the south, through which they had entered a short while earlier.

Sirin then addresses Kelvan.

"Kelvan, tell us about the layout of Brandescar Prison."

"Where are the entrances and exits, including the entrance to the sewers and the midden?"

"Do any of the exits avoid coming too close to the Captain's Tower or Sergeant Blackerley's office? We don't want either to see us."

"You should help us as much as you can. The faster and easier we can get out of here, the less danger you will be in."

Meanwhile, Grumblejack has found a ham and is eating well for the first time in quite a while.

Sounding alarmed, but too cautious and shrewd to just grab food out of a hungry ogre's grasp, Sirin asks Grumblejack, "Grumblejack, is that food warm? Where did you get it?"

"If it's warm, you might want to find something else to eat. You could fall asleep like these fellows have."

[Angstrom]

"Kelvan, are the hounds likely to bark if someone other than you delivers their dinner? If one of our group delivers their meal, using Kelvan's clothes to mask their scent, we could deal with that threat quite easily."

"You mentioned a barracks. Are there off duty guards in there? When do they eat? Really Kelvan, things would be easier for all of us if you made us a map. You'll do that for us, won't you?"

[Lost Demiurge]

"Um, I don't know what the hounds will do if you do that. I don't work with the hounds, I just drop off the scraps, me and Myra do. Um, the off-duty guards in the barracks count as inside guards. So anyone resting in there before the meal would be eating with the others now, unless someone's sick or overslept or something."

"Sure. Sure, I can draw a m-map. Please don't kill me the second I'm done with it."

He starts hunting around the cluttered kitchen for paper and writing utensils.

SENSE MOTIVE DC 20

Spoiler

Show

He's stalling, hoping for something to happen.

IF YOU ROLLED A 25 OR HIGHER

Spoiler

Show

You know, he mentioned that the outside guards came in to eat after the inside guards were done. He never mentioned how long it takes the inside guards to finish their meal. It could be that the outside guards are due into the mess hall any time now.

Meanwhile, Grumblejack shrugs at Sirin and shows her a hanging hook, with part of a hambone still attached to it. There's also a few strands of onions, and cupboards and tubs full of dried food and ingredients. Looks like the guards eat REALLY well.

[Morbis Meh]

Jodiah looks around then finally grabs a kitchen knife and slits throat of one of the sleeping guards. She picks up a carrot, dipping it into the fresh, spurting blood then walks over towards the passed out scullery maid. Using the knife to cut off a piece of her blouse she drops the knife and brings the two items over to the obviously distraught man.

"Here you go dear, just remember now, to do it quickly, we don't exactly have a lot of time... You never know what would happen one of us just may get even more upset about the poor administration of this museum!" She leans up on her tippy toes and whispers "Hurry up now or else I will skin the woman and force you to write on her flayed skin. That's a good boy!"

Spoiler

Show

Intimidate (I am taking the -4 penalty for being smaller but I hope due to the circumstances that I will get a bonus)
(1d20+1)[3]

[Frivolous]

Sirin Starshine


Sirin looks relieved and nods in acknowledgement at Grumblejack.

"Eat hearty then, dear and extremely large Grumblejack. Pick up a sword and shield for yourself when you're done."

Sense Motive

Spoiler

Show

Sense Motive: (1d20+2)[18]

[Finkmilkana]

After only watching the interrogation so far Marthras finally decides to join, gazing coldly into the mans eyes:
"You don't seem to be in a hurry to get this done, do you? So tell me old man, what exactly are you waiting for? And don't even try to lie, I believe we both know that you are quite bad at it. You would only reap pain for your troubles, so please spare us both with any feeble attempts

Intimidate

Spoiler

Show

(1d20+11)[22]

[Sjurd]

The half-orc chuckles at the mercurial savagery of the little gnome. After listening to her demand the old man draw a map, he walks over, reaches out, and grips him firmly on the back of the neck. He leans in close, letting the servant feel his hot, fetid breath on his cheek. He growls, low and menacingly. "Do what she says, or I will make you watch as a savage her body."

Intimidate check (1d20+8)[28] woot!

[Lost Demiurge]

Kelvan looks in horror and disgust at Nana Jodi, not taking cloth or carrot. "You... You just..."

He recoils from Marthras, straight into Silas. Closing his eyes, he sighs, shaking. "No escape," he whispers.

"Okay. Okay... Sure... Look, it's-" He fishes out a charcoal stick and a grocery list, and starts drawing on the back. Poorly. "The fact of the matter is," he looks at Marthras. "The f-fact of the matter is that sooner or later the outside guards are gonna come in looking for dinner. The inside guards don't take THAT long to eat. If they stick to schedule, it'll be about five or ten minutes or so."

SENSE MOTIVE DC 15

Spoiler

Show

He's telling the truth. And also appears to be working as fast as he can.

He's still scribbling, but now he's shooting uneasy glances at Nana Jodi and Silas.

Meanwhile, Grumblejack follows the nice girl's advice and picks up a sword and shield.