Continued from before...

The Half-Orc identifies himself as Thord, and insults Dante, threatening to make his skull into a trophy. Dante taunts him back. And so they fight.

The rest of the thirty-plus ruffians are comprised of mostly Orcs, and a couple Goblins. The PCs lunge forward, and engage in a violent melee with the monstrous humanoids....

...and it erupts into a bloody mess.

In this combat, the PCs gain initiative, except for Lucy. Meaty lunges forward, tearing and ripping into the Orcs with his jaws, and Jocelyn impales her first assailant on the tip of her blade. Rufus downs his opponents in a flurry of punches and kicks.

The Orcs try to overwhelm the characters with sheer numbers.

Lucy sweeps her blades around, with near-inhuman speed, causing Orc to nearly erupt into a panic.

As all this is happening, Dante, and the Half-Orc, Thord, are locked in combat. The Half-Orc is armed with a large sword, and continually swinging it in Dante's face. Dante heals himself by manifesting a psionic power that drains hit points from the victim transfers them to himself. I don't exactly remember, but the psionic power is probably "Empathic Transfer, Hostile"...

So they're both putting a world of hurt on each other, when a couple Goblins sneak up behind Dante, and try to bash him with their weapons...

The other characters are doing an admirable job of fighting off the Orcs, however, Jocelyn temporarily becomes separated from the others and is overwhelmed in the melee. She's struck down by one of the Orcs...

The other characters are defeating or driving off their remaining assailants. Thord (the Half-Orc) is furious, but decides that he's had enough of Dante, and flees at superhuman speed. Meanwhile, the two Goblins are still trying to hammer away at Dante...

Dante tries to use his psionic power to drain hit points from them...

...but it doesn't work. :cool:

The Goblins laugh derisively at him. They struggle with him for a little longer, and then decide to run off, and join the others.

Things get chaotic for a while, as most of the Orcs are fleeing, so a couple Orcs try to run off with one of the captured women. The Orcs are encumbered by the girl, and drop her...when the PCs approach. They look at each other for a second, and decide that discretion is the better part of valor. Wisely, they flee...

Dante brings back the young woman, slinging her over his shoulder.

Take note that this combat was not without consequence as most of the characters were pretty badly mangled in the fight.

At this point, Lucy is freaking out, because Jocelyn is near death. Then suddenly, something unexpected happens. Meaty (the bulldog) nonchalantly walks over, and licks Jocelyn's face....

...and her wounds then begin to partially heal! :jaw-dropping:

Needless to say, people are very surprised.

Lucy: "Meaty, how did you do that?" :confused:
Meatlips: "....."

After this, the PCs loot the bodies (priorities!), when Rufus mysteriously becomes the recipient of an unusual message...

During the combat, Horatio and Kratos were traveling towards Delzar. Horatio used an infusion to duplicate a sending spell, in order to send the PCs a message. Rufus is the recipient of this message.

These are the messages they wrote down on a piece of paper for me (the DM)...

Horatio: "We're en route joining you, four hours behind. Meet you in Delzar in the morning at Town Square." :cool:

Rufus: "Ok. How are you messaging my brain?" :confused:

To be continued...

The PCs try to reorganize themselves after the battle, when Lars rolls up with his horses and carriage, incredulous of all the carnage...

The characters speak with the women they rescued, who explain that they are sisters traveling on the road after burying their aunt. Their names are Vladlena, Alyona, and Galina. Apparently, they were intercepted by a band of Orcs, though the situation was unusual because there are rarely so many Orcs traveling so boldly in this area.

They are very complimentary of Rufus, and softly touching him, while seeming to hang on his every word. He is distant, but polite. Take note that Rufus has the "Girl/Guy Magnet" defect from BESM d20, and it can sometimes make his life extremely complicated.

The ladies mention that they're traveling to Gaxaral's Grove, but before they get there, they'll need to pass through Delzar. Dante and the others tell the young ladies that they may travel with them, as they're heading in that direction anyway.

Before they go, the PCs finish looting the bodies. While routing through the Orc's stuff, Dante encounters a rather large, fleshy bullfrog leap out of a leather bag. He's surprised, but just takes it in stride, stuffing the frog back in the bag, and goes right on looting....


MONSTERS DEFEATED

* Orc bandits (30)
* Goblin skulkers (2)
* Half-Orc leader (1)

INVENTORY

ITEM...................................................................................VALUE

* Studded leather armor (20)............................................25 gp each
* Falchions (20)..............................................................75 gp each
* Javelins (20)...................................................................1 gp each
* 100 gp
* 120 sp
* 140 cp
* Vial (unidentified)..........................................................?
* Scabbards (20)................................................................3 gp each

Wow, we might actually be getting together again for some more gaming tonight.  I need to write faster.

....continued from before.

Before I do continue, please take note that I make extensive use of random tables. Treasure tables, random encounters, etc. I don't always roll, but when I do, something interesting usually happens.

At this point, Lucy, Dante, Rufus, Jocelyn, Meatlips, and Lars leave the area, and travel eastward to Delzar. They cross the western gates, and enter the city....

Meanwhile, Kratos and Horatio are traveling eastward via horse carriage. Kratos is pulling the wagon, because they want to catch up to their comrades, as Kratos does not get tired.

I have them attempt a Spot skill check to see if they notice anything "unusual" in the vicinity. They both roll natural 20's, and hear the rustling of wings, and see three very small red-scaled dragons (around the size of cats) fly in a circle around their heads.

The PCs are alarmed, and ready for a fight, but then one of the small dragons asks for food. Tempers cool down, and then Horatio begins to parley with the dragons.  He discovers that the dragons' names are B'thore, Gar-tor, and Aqwers. Disturbingly, they seem to already know the PCs mission.

Horatio: "How do you know why we're here?"

Aqwers: "We're dragons. We just know things..."

Despite that, the little fellows seem friendly...and so the PCs give them some food. With the judicious use of a Knowledge (arcana) skill check, Horatio determines that these are Pseudodragons. One of them even perches itself on Kratos's shoulder.



Kratos: "Get off my shoulder, please."

The Pseudodragon hops off.

The dragons and the PCs chat a bit more, and travel with each other all the way to the gates of Delzar, at which point they quietly fly off.

To be continued...

Lucy, Dante, Rufus, Jocelyn, Meatlips, and Lars have crossed the western gates of Delzar, and are traveling through the center of town. They decide to unload the armor and weapons they acquired from the Orc bandits, so they travel to Geldor's Armory & Weapon Shop.

The shop is an imposing structure, with a large wooden sign next to the front door. Dante and Rufus enter the building, while carrying one of the Orcs' suits of studded leather armor, as well as one of the falchions and javelins.



Whoops! Looks like we're gaming again in minutes, so....to be continued.

They enter the building, and enter a large room filled with a myriad number of swords, knives, axes, hammers, and assorted weapons hanging upon the wall. They see a few shirts of mail armor, as well as an elegantly-crafted full suit of plate armor.

On the other side of the room is a brawny-looking man with a short-cropped beard, and a huge Half-Ogre leaning up against a glass case filled with small knives. The PCs approach them, and speak with the man, and discover that his name is Geldor, and he is the proprietor of the shop. The Half-Ogre quietly watches nearby. Dante and Rufus showcase the armor and weapons, explaining their recent acquisition of them, and their desire to sell them. Dante explains that they have more such armor and weapons outside in their carriage. Intrigued, Geldor and the Half-Ogre follow them outside...

Geldor carefully examines the items outside, and offers them a price of about slightly less than a third of their retail value. The PCs would like a bit more money, but they do understand Geldor's need to make a profit in resale value, so they conclude that the deal seems fair...

* Studded Leather Armor: 20 suits, 500 gp total value (sold to Geldor for 150 gp)

* Falchions: 20 weapons, 1,500 gp total value (sold to Geldor for 400 gp)

* Scabbards: 20 scabbards, 60 gp total value (sold to Geldor for 20 gp)

* Javelins: 20 javelins, 20 gp total value (sold to Geldor for 6 gp)

Both parties thank each other, and then the characters make their way to the Chainmail Inn...

=THE SESSION IN DELZAR=

The characters are recently arrived in the city  of Delzar, where they went to Geldor's Armor & Weaponry Shop to sell recently acquired weapons and armor. From there, they travel to the Chainmail Inn, as they have the need to rent a room for the night....

Rufus, Dante, Lucy, Jocelyn, Meatlips (the bulldog), the three sisters, Alyona, Galina, and Vladlena, as well as their guide, Lars arrive at the Chainmail Inn, and check in at the front desk. They see a frail-looking, gray-haired man seated there, and chat with him, finding out that rooms are 1 gp per night, and that the "Executive Suite" is 5 gp per night. They go with regular rooms instead, and are housed up on the second floor. Each are given a brass key for their rooms. They take rooms as follows:

* Lucy, Jocelyn, & Meatlips: room 23

* Dante & Rufus: room 26

* Galina, Alyona, & Vladlena: room 34

* Lars: room 25

Now take note that immurx's other character, Max, is in town. He's also staying at the Chainmail Inn..

* Max: room 41

While the characters are here, they recognize that Jocelyn still needs more healing, and they believe that priests at the Church of Arkus might be able to help them. So they travel there...

After reaching the church, they enter the building, and see a beefy, jovial-looking, bearded fellow in priest's robes. They approach him.

Priest: "Hello, there! Can I help you?"
Rufus: "Yes, our friend here (points to Jocelyn) is in of some help. She's been wounded."
Priest: "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that! My name is Ian. What's your name, young lady?"
Jocelyn: "Jocelyn. We were traveling on the road, and I was wounded by Orcs."
Priest: "That's bad. Maybe I can help.."

Ian leads the characters to another room, and he and Jocelyn step partially behind a partition. He carefully examines her wound, and then heals her.

Jocelyn: "Thank you!"
Ian: "You're welcome."

The PCs leave a little money for a donation, and then make their way back to the inn...

Meanwhile, Max is working on a farm with a man named Gregory, just slightly east of the city. He's finishing up for the day, and decides to head back to the inn for some much-needed rest and relaxation...

To be continued..

I'm both frustrated and happy at the same time. Our gaming sessions have been going great lately, but we've been gaming so many times this week, that I've been unable to keep up on the gaming journal!

I move in slow motion, and it takes me time to write this stuff down. Problem is, the longer the interval between the actual game session and the time I write it down, the more I forget. Crap.

Oh, well. I might be forgetting the chronological order of events, but I'll just do the best I can...

The PCs make their way back to the Chainmail Inn from the Church of Arkus. Lucy, Jocelyn, Dante, Rufus, and Meatlips go back to their rooms, while Max visits the tavern inside the inn. He runs into Lars, whom he hasn't seen since their time at Castle Ashlahn, and they chat for a bit. Meaty plods into the tavern, and happily greets Max.

Meanwhile, Kratos and Horatio finally pass the western gates of the city of Delzar, and make their way to the Chainmail Inn....

To be continued...

Kratos and Horatio make their way to the Chainmail Inn. Kratos takes the wagon over to the stables, and waits there, guarding Karen's body. Horatio goes inside the inn, and rents a room....

The other characters decide to run a couple errands. Lucy and Rufus want to clean up, and so they decide to visit a local bathhouse. Rufus specifies wanting access to warm water, in order to avoid activating the curse that transforms him into a female....

Meanwhile, Dante travels to Jenna's Apartments, which has a small side studio for massage. He goes there, and is introduced to an attendant there named Karina. So Dante is soon just lying there on the table in only a towel, while she massages him, and rambles on. Suddenly, they hear:

"Ribbit!"

Dante: "That sounds like a frog. It must be the one I picked up earlier today..."
Karina: "Oh, it's probably just crickets."

"Ribbit!!"

Dante: "Hmm..."
Karina: "It sure is getting loud.."

Suddenly, this great, big bullfrog leaps through the air, and lands with a loud "slap" right onto Karina's face.

The girl screams. She totally panics, and runs in circles around the room, with the frog clinging to her face. Dante is watching all this, in utter shock. Finally, the frog goes flying off her face, and lands on the table with a loud, "slap", while the girl flees from the room in an utter panic.



Frog: "Hi."
Dante: "Did you just talk?!"
Frog: "Yeah."
Dante: "What's your name?"
Frog: "Mog."
Dante: "Mog....the frog?"
Frog: "Yeah."
Dante: "....ok."

And yet Dante is amused.

As insane as all this is, he decides to take "Mog, the frog" with him back to the Chainmail Inn. He's kicked out of there anyway, as they hold Dante responsible for the incident. So he returns to the inn...

Rufus, Lucy, Jocelyn, Meaty (the bulldog), and the three sisters, Galina, Alyona, and Vladlena go to the bathhouse, however, Meaty decides to wait outside...

Rufus is in dire need of a warm bath, as either a cold bath or shower will transform him into a woman. Well, he and Lucy and Jocelyn enter the bathhouse, where it's noticeably warmer than outside....and a beautiful woman with green eyeshadow explains that using the baths costs 1 gp. They have interior plumbing, and even a crude warm shower that can be used before entering the baths themselves.



So they use the baths. Eventually, the woman at the entrance enters the bath, and introduces herself as Alura. She begins a seductive and playful conversation with Rufus. While they're talking, she asks him to massage some scented oil onto her back. They speak for a little while longer, and while massaging her back...Rufus suddenly vaguely senses that he's being affected by some compulsion/charm effect (he fails his Will save), and  yet he hardly cares, as he spontaneously desires Alura above all else...

His will crumbles when she compels him to enter another room with her. Take note that Rufus possesses the Girl/Guy Magnet defect, and it can make his life more....challenging.

She leads him to another room, and they begin to kiss passionately. At this point, Vladlena peers at them from around a corner, first looking shocked, and then enraged. Without explanation, Alura suddenly faints and collapses into Rufus's arms.

Vladlena walks away.

So Rufus is shocked, and then brings her to the others, gently slapping her face to wake her up. Well, Alura awakens, and is....confused. She doesn't seem to understand what happened, but even though she's a bit groggy, she seems otherwise fine. She decides to go back to work, but not before telling Rufus that she'll visit him tonight at the inn (he tells her where he's staying). The characters decide that they've had enough of bathing for the day, and return to the inn...

Earlier, I mentioned that Meaty greeted Max at the tavern inside the Chainmail Inn. He did. However, he did so after leaving the Bathhouse where Rufus, Lucy, and the others were. Apparently, Meaty grew bored with waiting outside, and so he returned to the inn. So....Meaty plods into the tavern section of the inn, where Lars and Max are drinking. Of course, he greets Max in his own loveable way. The waitress thinks that Meaty is so cute, that she even lets him stay inside.

Meanwhile, Horatio and Kratos have entered town, and Horatio has rented a room...

The rest of the characters have returned to the inn, and Kratos, Horatio, Rufus, Lucy, Max, and everyone else become reacquainted with each other. Eventually, the characters return to their rooms...

Later in the evening, Rufus left his room, with Alura looking for him. Only Dante was there, and he insinuated that Rufus was off with another woman.

She wasn't thrilled about that.

After that, she left. The other PCs were chatting for a while, until it became very late. At which point, Rufus continued to ramble on about this exotically-beautiful woman at the Bathhouse that he simply could not stop thinking about. Meaty then peers at Rufus strangely....

Meaty: "What's the matter with you?"
Rufus: "What do you mean?"
Meaty: "Dunno. You looked weird when ya talked about her."
Rufus: "So?"
Meaty: "I think you've been magically charmed..."

Meaty's conversations are usually very short, so this was a surprise. The PCs became concerned, so Rufus decided to visit Horatio in the hopes that he could counter this magical charm...

To be continued...

...continued from before.

So Rufus goes up to the second floor of the Chainmail Inn to room 50, where Horatio resides. He implores Horatio to help him with this magical charm he's enduring. Since Horatio is an Artificer, he has many resources at his disposal.

He's angry with Rufus and the others for just leaving his wagon out in a ditch after that Ghoul attack, however, he still agrees to help.

One of his infusions is called "spell storing item", and it can be used to imbue any spell of 4th level or lower into an item, as long as its spell level is no greater than one-half his Artificer level. Now the troubling issue here, is that using this infusion requires the caster to make a successful Use Magic Device skill check.

Take note that we're using the Pathfinder Gamemastery Critical Hit Deck and Critical Fumble Deck.

Horatio fails his Use Magic Device skill check twice.

The second failure induces a Monster Rift.

Monster Rift: Your spell is converted to a summon monster spell of the same level. The monster attacks you.

As a result of this failure, the air next to Rufus and Horatio shimmers. Suddenly, a huge, sinewy leopard appears!



Rufus is a character designed using the BESM d20 rules. He possesses the Phobia (cats) defect. It seems that the universe has a sense of humor...

It immediately attacks...

you stopped where it was getting good.

I am going to write up a new boot and loot google docs file that we can post here.

Quote from: imurrx;654700you stopped where it was getting good.

I am going to write up a new boot and loot google docs file that we can post here.

Go for it. Oh, and I got your e-mail.

Now....let us continue.



The leopard immediately attacks....

....and Rufus flees from the room in panic. The big cat leaps at Horatio, and digs its claws in.

Horatio is having some problems here, as he's not wearing his armor, and has a weaker Armor Class than usual. He's getting raked by the leopard's claws, and is having difficulty breaking the grapple initiated by the big cat. It pins him to the floor, and he can feel its hot breath on his back. He finally pushes himself back up, and then both man and leopard are locked in a near-fatal embrace, stumbling around the room...

During all this, Lucy, Jocelyn, and Dante heard Rufus's panicked flight down the hallway, as Rufus flees in panic to room 26, which is the room he shares with Dante. He nervously tries to explain that there's a very big cat attacking Horatio....

...so the characters run to Horatio's room to investigate.

Horatio has had enough of this nonsense. Half his hit points are gone, and he's getting mangled. He finally escapes the leopard's death grip, and grabs his magical "duck umbrella" off the table. Then he leaps through the door, and out of the room...

Lucy, Jocelyn, and Dante arrive just in time to see a mangled-looking Horatio make a headlong rush out of the room. Horatio and the leopard stare at each other for a moment, and then the leopard leaps right at him. Horatio raises his umbrella, and points it at the leopard....

....stopping the big cat in mid-leap.

The air at the pointy end of Horatio's Duck Umbrella shimmers, causing the leopard to draw back and make a startled noise. It immediately recoils away from Horatio in horror, and leaps away....right through the window, breaking the glass, and disappearing into the night....

The other characters warily approach. A thoroughly disgusted Horatio turns away, and walks back to his room, slamming the door shut. He's just in no mood for talking, so the characters soon decide to return to their rooms.

Here are the stats for Horatio's Duck Umbrella, created by imurrx. Please take note, imurrx, that I have edited the e-mail for the umbrella you sent me, adjusting it for typos and needed changes in game mechanics. If you see any errors or misinterpretations, please let me know. Thanks.

Quote from: Horatio's Duck Umbrella

Horatio Tortolla wanted to create a device that would help to protect him from a dragon's breath weapon, as well as to avoid falls from great heights, and shield him from the rain. Horatio's Duck Umbrella is a finely crafted umbrella with a duck handle. It has several functions besides protecting the user from the rain.

When open (and if the user is falling), he falls at a slow rate as if he was affected by the feather fall spell. There is no limit to usage, except the umbrella needs to be in-hand and open. It can be activated for this purpose as an immediate action.

If the umbrella is opened and closed rapidly, while pointing it at a target and making a "quacking" sound, it grants the wielder the power to cause fear on a target. Such an act can be performed as a standard action, and does not provoke attacks of opportunity. This ability can be used only once per day.

The umbrella gains additional utility when wielded by an Artificer. If the artificer infuses this umbrella or another item on his person with any of the armor enhancement infusions, the effect of any resistance special abilities are empowered as the metamagic feat, Empower Spell (even for special abilities without variable, numeric effects). If the umbrella is closed or stowed away, the enhancement stops.

Moderate transmutation; CL 9th; Craft Wondrous Item, Empower Spell, cause fear, feather fall, armor enhancement, greater; Price: 27,538 gp; Weight: 1 lb.

Continued from before....

Eventually, the characters decide to retire for the night. It's been a long day, and they need the rest. The night seems uneventful for most, except that Horatio, Rufus, and Max have horrible nightmares all night long.

Take note that Max has the "Recurring Nightmares" defect from BESM d20, and has been suffering from horrible nightmares for a long time. But this is a bit of a surprise for the other two characters. Max dreams of being mauled by monsters, Horatio dreams of being mauled by a leopard, and Rufus dreams of being attacked lots and lots of cats. When they awaken in the morning...

....each of them feels sorely weakened, suffering a point of Constitution drain. :eek:

Something is up. :pundit:

At this point, the charm effect that plagued Rufus seems to have worn off.

The PCs are concerned with this dramatic turn of events. They talk with each other for a while, and first decide to travel to the Church of Arkus for some advice on reviving Karen. They figure that they'll handle the Constitution loss later. Meanwhile, Horatio focuses on crafting a scroll of restoration to restore his weakened Constitution. So he is occupied...

Kratos is outside, guarding the wagon holding Karen's body, when he spots a huge Half-Ogre walking over to the Chainmail Inn. It's the same Half-Ogre that was over at Geldor's Armory & Weapon Shop. The big fellow stops in his tracks, and glances over at Kratos curiously..

Half-Ogre: "...what are you?"
Kratos: "I'm a Warforged."
Half-Ogre: "Hmm. Is that like a golem?"
Kratos: "Yes. I was crafted for a war, but eventually I gained my freedom."
Half-Ogre: "Huh. What's your name?"
Kratos: "Kratos. And you?"
Half-Ogre: "Gourne."

The two big fellows chat for a while, mentioning how people never feel fully comfortable in their presence. Eventually, Gourne wishes Kratos well, and walks over to the inn....

Rufus and the other characters travel to the Church of Arkus, and end up speaking with the jovial, bearded priest, Ian. They ask him for assistance in reviving their friend, Karen, but discover that there isn't anyone with enough divine power there to do so.

Ian: "You really only have two options. A priest at the Temple of the Gods might possess the necessary power for what you seek, or you could seek out someone named Hrothgar, who has demonstrated the mystic power to revive the dead..."
Rufus: "Temple of the Gods? Is that the same as the Temple of the Elder Gods?"
Ian: "No, they're different..."
Rufus: "Hmm.."
Ian: "Remember that a soul that has passed on might not wish to return, so this is something that needs to be carefully considered.."
Dante: "Rufus, I can speak with the dead....and then we can determine what Karen really wants."

Ian glances at Dante oddly for making that last statement.

Ultimately, the characters decide to visit Hrothgar.

Some of the PCs have long adventured with Hrothgar, so they decide to go with the man that they know, even if the choice entails risk. Before they do that, the PCs decide to Kratos, and the wagon he's guarding, which holds Karen's body.

Kratos: "I'm getting tired of guarding this wagon." :mad:

The characters bring her body into the stables (where no one can see), so that Dante can mentally prepare himself to ask Karen's corpse some questions, via his speak with dead, psionic power. It takes Dante a full ten minutes to manifest this ability, and at the end of this interval, Rufus, Dante, and the others ask her three questions...

Dante: "Do you know that you are dead?"
Karen: "No."
Dante: "Do you want to return to your life?"
Karen: "Yes."
Dante: "Do you still love Rufus?"
Karen: "Yes."

The characters decide to revive her.

To be continued..