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Kaveman26
2012-06-05, 05:59 PM
Chaotic GoodFellas

Sabremane (catfolk) Barbarian1/Urban Ranger3 Str 14 Dex 24 Con 12 Int 15 Wis 16 Cha 12 HP32 Feats: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Focused Shot.

A fast moving tracker and bounty hunter, Sabremane became the parties eyes and ears on the rooftops of the city. She was also our number one resource for finding persons of interest. A natural loner who felt drawn to the wilderness of the city she has made Malabith a second home and is very familiar with its every alley and dead end street. Played Psychic Warrior in Calimshaw

Pernell Carnish (human) Diviner4 (barred necromancy and evocation) Str 10 Dex 17 Con 13 Int 19 Wis 14 Cha 13 HP19 Feats: Skill Focus Spellcraft, Skill Focus Sleight of Hand, Spell Focus Illusion

Pernell is the consummate grifter and con man. A divination and illusionist specialist he is the brains of our operation and the front man for most schemes. Played by the guy who was Paladin in Adversarial Process and DM’d Calimshaw. If the group ever does something completely out of the box he probably came up with it. Stated early on…his eventual goal is to have a genie as a servant.

Thimble (aasimar) Street Performer4 Str 12 Dex 17 Con 12 Int 16 Wis 15 Cha 20 HP 24 Feats: Skill Focus Sleight of Hand, Skill Focus Diplomacy

Thimble is the partner in crime for Pernell. Together they can fleece an audience blind and then get complimented for doing it. When they brought a pair of characters to me with these set up’s I knew I was in for a headache that would probably never go away until they died or quit. Played by the Rogue from Calimshaw

Waits (goliath) Fighter4 Str 20 Dex 14 Con 17 Int 14 Wis 12 Cha 14 HP44 Feats: Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus Spiked Chain, Weapon Specialization Spiked Chain, Improved Disarm, EWP Spiked Chain.

Waits was designed as a former travelling strongman and weapon performer. He was borderline gestalt as we gave him Perform and Bluff as class skills. Meant to be our muscle and intimidating “collections agent”. Played by the guy who ran the Sorcerer in Calimshaw

Khorn Bre-Ad (oread aka earth gensai)Cleric4 Str 17 Dex 12 Con 17 Int 12 Wis 19Cha 14 HP:31 Feats: Craft Arms and Armor, Craft Wonderous Item

Khorn (read Cornbread) Bre-Ad was a cleric in service to Waukeen and had the stated goal of creating a new sacred experience to drive worship and create profit. He basically wanted to formulate the Wal-Mart of Religious temples where you could do one stop shopping for all your spiritual, physical and entertainment needs.

Across the board everyone pretty much picked up two class skills as trait bonuses.

The Setting-Malabith

Malabith was intended to be a D&D Vegas. It is a sprawling metropolis ruled over by a loosely organized oligarchy. There are races and denizens from many origins and planes, and everything is available for a price. I collected several maps from old 1st and 2nd edition campaign settings and adventures and made a rough working map of the entire city. I made some extensive notes as relates to people of interest and some standard operating procedures for guards and laws. I gave the group the capability to roll for about 20 different races and they could pick the stats for the race they liked best. The expectation going into this adventure was that it would be an open sandbox type game where the story was going to be created and driven by the players. There was no impending end of the world villainous plot, no far reaching and dire consequences looming overhead, just a group of five players trying to make a profit and stay out of prison. By design certain persons would keep popping up and be active in the world around them, but the pacing was meant to follow what the group wanted. Some stand out points

*No Fly Rule is in effect.
*Raise Dead etc are allowed but expect them to be expensive
*Wealth by Level will not be followed. This is a for profit campaign and big risks lead to big rewards.
*The guards are all well versed in magic and the tricks associated and possible. A standing procedure is for guard towers to be equipped with wands of web and at least one person per guard tower is proficient with their use. The guard towers are arranged in such a manner that you can be hit with a web from just about anywhere.
*The characters all began at 4th level with mundane equipment and a small former warehouse in the poorer district of the city.
*There are three central districts with sections broken down by wealth, the higher wealth areas of town are much more heavily guarded and enforced.
*132 taverns/inns are in the city.
*24 Gambling Houses/Casinos are legally operated
*16 illegal gambling houses are also in operation

Session 1:
The group begins the campaign after having received correspondence from the Ranger that she had closed the sale of a small warehouse that could serve as a storefront/base of operations. She was requesting they come join her in the big city and carve out their fortunes amidst the walls. The characters are allotted mundane starting equipment such as weapons and armor and one basic “professions tool” for the ranger…a lockpick set, and for pretty much everyone else a disguise kit.

The Warehouse has good square footage at a moderately busy intersection. It needs lots of work on the inside and is barely fit for habitation. I actually make them roll fort checks to determine if they wake up with any more commonplace diseases. I want them scrabbling a bit for the first session so I can gauge where they are aiming to take things and get an idea of how they are going to work together.

Their first order of business after getting to the city proper is to press me for a city map and which I provide. Second order of business they decide to start out nice and slow and set up a pick pocket exhibition, and five minutes into the campaign I am scratching my head as to what a pick pocket exhibition is.

The Show and Snatch:
The group heads to a larger public square with street performers and jugglers, dancers etc. Once there and fully outfitted with disguises from their disguise kits, Thimble starts his carnival barker shtick. His attraction…the nearly 8 foot Goliath starts to put on a show spinning his spiked chain in complicated patterns. Then from the crowd a heckler…Pernell acting as a drunken fool…tries to show how the chain is fake, and he gets tripped up and knocked into the crowd, and in the scrum of people laughing and trying to sort themselves out he starts picking pockets. As Pernell the heckler gets himself back up he immediately starts to argue with Thimble…the Wizard shoves the bard and the bard shoves the wizard right back into the twirling chain and the goliath wraps him up and then spins him back out into a different section of the crowd.

At that point Pernell lets off a dancing lights and tells everyone how pretty the lights are. While he is looking up into the sky…the ranger sprints through the show and knocks him over. As he curses and gets back up he dramatically he pats his sides and then starts to run after the “confounded cat thief” who just picked his pocket. Everyone turns to look at the fleeing thief and as Pernell blusters and stumbles to try and chase her he trips over his own robes and picks another pocket from the onlooker that is watching the fleeing pick pocket. Khorn the somewhat round and jovial priest grabs him and promises him some warm coffee and a nice place to sleep and then escorts him away to sober up. The crowd are having a blast and they throw tips to the Golaith and Bard for their show.

Yeah…I am in for a long couple weeks. They alter their disguises and do a similar routine in a different portion of town. All told they pull off four separate Show and Snatch –Pick Pocket Exhibitions.

This makes it very clear to me that I am going to need a good means of knowing who is carrying anything in a given area. I took the week between sessions to brew up some tables for npcs.

They repeat this same con for the next two days and mix it up a bit with the ranger being the attraction and the bard being the idiot stumbling into an impromptu William Tell act. In this scenario the goliath becomes the cutpurse interrupting the wizard who is the barker. By the end of day three I have wanted posters and warnings posted at nearly guardhouse warning against the pick pocket epidemic.

Their solution? Time for a different scam. In their first three days they make about 2,000 gold and get a handful of gems from their initial thefts. They find a cheap jewelry store and purchase 5 cheap gold chains with emerald stones, and 5 worth 300 each. The Cleric then goes to a different jewelry store and tells them he has to sell off the family’s emerald necklace to pay for a new wing on his orphanage…he hands the merchant the appropriate 300 gold stone and he appraises it accordingly. As the merchant is purchases it the wizard who was “browsing” comes over and makes a bluff check asking if the merchant will sell it for 500. The merchant thrilled to make a profit is more than happy to sell for 500 what he just bought for 200.

After getting it the wizard gloats about having received a rare and highly valuable stone from an old family that will easily sell for 10,000+ to the right collector. The next day the cleric returns and says he has four more to sell but that he recently received an offer from an outside collector for 1,000 each and he could really use the money..you know for those kids. The merchant is caught hook line and sinker and offers 2,000 each…as he does the bard busts in and says that he will triple his previous offer to 3,000 each. The merchant goes to 5,000 each and the bard storms out to go find his “buyer”. The Cleric is thrilled to get such a big mark up and he eagerly sells the four remaining stones…only as the merchant is so busy providing the right funds and hoping the wizard doesn’t come back that he doesn’t notice when the stones are switched out for the cheaper ones.

They try to repeat this scam the same day on opposite side of town and this merchant passes his check and isn’t falling for it. They did clear nearly 20,000 in profit from the con and they eagerly spend the majority of it to buy masterwork tools for such actions as lockpicking, disguise, burglary, and forgery. They also sink 5,000 into the warehouse to renovate the whole interior and convert it to a temple and general goods store.

That evening they start what becomes their pattern of operation. The core group of four works their shtick from 4-around midnight. From midnight til 8 am they join up with the ranger who spent the previous night casing the various building in the comfort of night and then she sleeps from 4-12 while they are out doing their cons. The core four then sleep from 8am til around 4.
By no means can I allow them turning 20,000 a day doing a scam like the merchant, but if they make the rolls I typically am cool with the first attempt. I do keep fairly good notes of where they pull what and in the background I have some investigators and guards starting to amass a file on their actions. Character creation sucked up a good portion of the first session and they were kind enough not to push forward too aggressively which gave me another week to make some adjustments.

Concurrent to this I am going to write up the much more ruthless city campaign I DM'd. I need to grab most of the notes and character sheet type stuff from a friend's house, but I will get that one started in a few days and then alternate updates between the two. With the same players it should make a nice mirror to look at difference between Chaotic Neutral and Chaotic Evil.

CoffeeIncluded
2012-06-05, 07:09 PM
This seems like it's going to be a lot of fun.

Bigbrother87
2012-06-06, 01:58 PM
Having read your other campaign recaps, I have to say that it's very interesting to get the DM's perspective now, and you've certainly got a fun group of characters.

...I will be reading this with great pleasure, and anticipation for more.

Kaveman26
2012-06-06, 03:42 PM
Session 2:Partial
Given a week to adjust I make some updates to my notes and city. First and foremost I attack the pre built npc templates like a fiend and make myself some charts of who to find and what to expect at each section of the city.
Second I ensure the group sees various wanted posters and reward posters for information during their Gather Information checks to see that the police are getting interested in their actions very quickly.

I also introduce the first of my planned NPC’s a well dressed and stoic merchant named Braedon who functions as a zoning inspector for the area. I intend him to be a nuisance that will suck gold up in bribes and blackmail. A cliché corrupt politician. Something nice and predictable to start them out with.

I have Braedon stride into their warehouse which is now in the midst of a full overhaul and redesign. He makes a great show of making notes in a small ledger and tsking over several building features. The bard approaches him and asks how they can be of assistance.

Braedon: I am very concerned. I was recently contacted by the carpenters guild who told me they were hired to make renovations on a property in my zone and I was positively shocked to see I had not received any requests for the necessary building permits.
The player running Thimble asks me what the actual permits required are and which ones are the ones he is trying to chisel us with. I tell him that you are probably just going to have to guess…
Thimble/Bard: I have maxed ranks in Knowledge Local and Profession Lawyer. I should have more than a passing familiarity with any local zoning laws and the offices where such permits are housed.

Fantastic…I now literally have a rules lawyer. The two of them leave with Thimble putting his arm around the shoulder of Braedon (and he picks his pocket in the process) and the two of them make a trip down to the local zoning office to fill out the required paperwork. While in transit he chats up the shikester and makes a diplomacy check to more or less employ him as an ally. My would be blackmailer becomes a contact for the group and their first friendly face. To that end he arranges the return of stolen goods to Braedon and gives him a voluntarily bribe of 500 along with a commitment to help drum up other business. Thimble volunteers his service as a lawyer and tells Braedon that he will serve as a partner in future shakedowns. And this ladies and gentlemen is why I love my gamers.

They push me into creating a loose set of rules and regulations for zoning and permits. The Ranger is then tasked with casing properties in Braedon’s domain and she sets out each night in search of buildings that match the criteria of what can be considered violations. When she located buildings in violation or buildings that can easily be manipulated to being in violation she alerts the group who then breaks in and makes the necessary reverse-repairs. The following morning Braedon makes his routine yearly inspection and finds a list of violations (some legit and several puffed up ones) he then confides that several loopholes can be exploited and he has a lawyer friend that specializes in such loopholes. The now hopeful business owners are directed to our renovated warehouse and taken to the ad hoc offices of Carnish, Thimble and Bre-Ad. Pernell and Thimble then go through a series of Diplomacy, Bluff and Gather information checks to ensure their clients are protected from potential prosecution or fines (for a reasonable fee) and they offer added protections and insurances for items of value held on the premise.

From this they have about a 60% take rate…they also start to build a legal pad worth of notes on potential houses and businesses to canvas for breaking and entering purposes. Five nights into their newest schemes I hit them with a midnight incursion. I have felt like enough time has passed for them to have gathered the attention of the thieves guild and its time for them to make their presence known. I have to blatantly admit that when I think of a Thieves Guild it is impossible not to think about Order of the Stick and Bozzak…its also impossible to not think of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld and the Ankh Morpork Thieves Guild.

For me the challenge lies in making them creative enough to not be a straight translation of those two representations. My Thieves Guild is direct and to the point. In the middle of their night the Wizard’s Alarm goes off and they are roused from their sleep by three half orcs swinging warhammers just smashing everything inside the warehouse. Waits is the first one down the stairs unarmored and equipped with only his spiked chain. He actively engages the three half orcs and starts tripping attempts at every opportunity. Within 3 rounds Pernell and Thimble are also coming down the stairs as well.

The minute they are faced with equal numbers I have the half orcs take off. Waits gets one of the three prone and jumps on him. As he is wrestling on the ground the ranger slips in from a second story window and puts an arrow six inches from the half-orc’s face. That is enough to get him to stop. They tie up the half orc in the basement and reset the Alarm on the building.
My group holds a little DM-Less pow wow and then reconvene in the basement. The four of them, minus the goliath all pull up chairs and start taking bets from each other. They emphasize that each of them is holding a tarp in their lap. After a few minutes a scraping of metal on sound becomes audible and I have the Half Orc start to fidget.

The Cleric goes up to the half orc and asks him he is aspires to any particular faith. He wants to know what proper burial rituals he subscribes to if any.
Half Orc: I aint talking
Pernell: Fine by us…the Cleric can speak with dead, much easier and less hassle
Half Orc: What??
Thimble: You broke into our residence and caused destruction to our property…we can legally kill you with no consequence. We figured it would be nice to give the big guy some fun. He has been telling us for weeks now that he can castrate a humanoid without touching a blade and frankly we want to find out.
Pernell: Yes the process by which a male has his…well you will find out in a minute. I think he is about ready…tarps up gentleman…there could be some splatter
As he says “tarps up” the Goliath comes into the room with a long and honed dagger. He strides across the room despite the half orcs protests and grabs him by the neck lifting him about 2 feet off the floor with a single hand. As he does so the free hand slams the dagger into the wall between the half orcs legs.
Waits: Now I just let go and gravity does the rest. I wont even have to lift a finger. He just slides down and ceases being a man.
Thimble: Fascinating.

No dice rolls needed from my perspective…this guy is going to give up his own mother at this point. And he starts spilling everything he can think of. Namely the location and manner of the thieves guild in Malabith.

I explain to them through my half orc proxy that the Thieves Guild is small enough to avoid the problems with a sprawling institution but proficient enough to keep a dangerous reputation. Anyone who wishes to operate within the city limits is subject to paying them a cut of their profits or facing the wrath of their silent assassins. He insists he is just a hired thug that wanted a chance to break into the limited job openings the guild allows. No one knows the true leader of the guild and he says he was recruited and paid by a man named Callobe.

I was surprised by the direction they ran with this. They let the half orc go after taking a lock of his hair and a fingernail…the cleric cackles as he collects these and places them in a vial.

To this point there spells prepared and outlook has strictly been for profit and mischief. They took this warning as a sign that they were about to under attack and they adjusted all their spell lists and prepared spells in a very different manner. They sunk another 5,000 grand into upgrading all the locks in the warehouse and fortifying all the entrances into the building. They also have the ranger start putting some well hidden traps through the less obvious entrances to dissuade unwelcome visitors.

Thimble informs Braedon that he will unavailable for a few days. Then they start to beat the streets to get information on Callobe and the Thieves Guild. Pernell and Thimble are very explicit in that they are not masking their search in any way and are being very abrasive in their requests.

I have already planned on having Callobe interrupting their first major burglary attempt and them having to get into a scrum that could involve some awkward exchanges with the law. I stir tensions a bit more by leaving a note stuck to the warehouse/temple door with a dagger.

I admire those who have ambition…but I tend to bury those who display too much. You don’t need to find me-we will meet soon enough C

The wizard is amped up and ready to go into a full blown lockdown. I normally have the most aggressive bash down the door player base. These guys are either taking the whole social aspect of this campaign too seriously or they think I am ready to send in a commando death squad at any moment.

Now in the past I have thrown some wild stuff at my player’s while DMing but we have barely raised a fist in anger and we in the middle of our second session. They spent just about every waking moment on high alert and only leave the warehouse in a group to keep up their investigation for more information on Callobe.

I finally throw them a bone and say one of the guard stations they visit to gather information perks up at mention of the name Callobe and more or less excuses himself and rushes off. They jump all over the lead and have the catfolk ranger take to the rooftops and follow the guard. She tracks him to a sprawling and well decorated tavern and legal gambling establishment in the upper middle class of the city. She set up shop on a nearby elevated roof and just watches to see anyone coming or going…in particular the guard.

Sampi
2012-06-07, 01:42 AM
Woo! More Kaveman Kampaign reKaps(tm)!

SowZ
2012-06-09, 02:36 PM
Curious where else they go

Kaveman26
2012-06-09, 02:45 PM
I am working on a new longer section to this, but it's going to be a few days. I had to shuffle through a lot of paperwork to get things organized. And truthfully I am finding it harder to write and include my thought process as a DM things seem very jumbled

Averis Vol
2012-06-09, 05:57 PM
take your time =D it'll make the story better.

Vknight
2012-06-09, 07:58 PM
I am working on a new longer section to this, but it's going to be a few days. I had to shuffle through a lot of paperwork to get things organized. And truthfully I am finding it harder to write and include my thought process as a DM things seem very jumbled

No problem I think we can all wait even though we'd prefer not to because of how awesome these campaigns are

Kaveman26
2012-06-28, 12:34 PM
I am more or less throwing this and the other city recap on indefinate hold. Even after taking a full week's vacation and trying to organize all our notes and sheets it's proving real tough to organize this into something cohesive.

I also got the blessing/encouragement from some of my gaming group to start on our longest running campaign. They read a lot of what was up on the site already and prodded me towards a different direction. I look forward to some of their comments in the near future too. Their perspective on similiar events should prove intriguing.

Vknight
2012-07-08, 02:32 AM
:smallfrown:
Oh well sadness away time to focus on what we have today

Kaveman26
2012-07-13, 04:36 PM
Session 2 Continued: Deal me in

So my now suddenly paranoid and cautious group has a lead on someone that might be reporting to Callobe a crime boss and member of the thieves guild. The catfolk ranger, Sabremane, has her eyes trained on a casino in which Callobe may be inside. The rest of the group meets up with her on the rooftop and try to come up with a plan of action. I am expecting them to make some kind of “hijack the employees and pose as them inside” scheme to gain entry and mobility in the building. They instead settle on upping the ante.

Given the nature of this campaign and the sheer audacity of law breaking involved I shouldn’t be surprised when they throw me a big time curveball. They purchase a pair of Bags of Holding and come up with the following plan ( I alluded to something along these lines in the Snippets thread). The group pools their money together and heads into the casino section as standard patrons. They are looking for a middle stakes roulette table. For an added layer of immersion, Pernell has an actual roulette wheel so we can physically play real roulette. They all sit at the table and begin gambling. Waits and Khorn immediately start taunting each other at the table and verbally chide each other.

Within a few minutes their taunts escalate into violence and they start an impromptu brawl in the center of the casino. The aasimer bard, Thimble tries to intervene only to be hurled across the roulette table. He stretches his arms out and functions as a rake sweeping everything off the table including himself into a bag of holding the catfolk is holding. Sabremane immediately bolts from the table and runs from the casino…why?...well for all purposes it looks like her clothes are on fire.

Security goes diving to try and stop her, but with a 50 foot movement rate and with her at a sprint it literally takes her all of 3 seconds to get out the door. Once she hits the streets alarms go off and webs start flying from all the over place. The guards capture her and begin to question her, only to discover the bag she is holding is completely empty.

They pulled a switch with illusions to make it look like Thimble went into her bag, when in reality he never left the casino…he was instead swept into a bag held by Pernell. Now one of the provisions I had laid out was that the casino guaranteed a player’s table stakes. Waits and Khorn are both arrested and banned from further interactions at the casino, rendering their table stakes void. Pernell had the better part of 2,000 they grudgingly give him. All told they swept up the better part of 50,000 in chips. I am quick to inform them that the chips are traceable and will be very hard to cash in. They are perfectly fine with that, they just wanted to piss off whoever ran the place , and if they can fence the chips for a tenth of their value, they are fine with that.

Now I know that this is definitely an establishment Callobe oversees and maintains a steady revenue stream in kickbacks from. He is also making some nice bonus money from a protection racket. The owners are super pissed that someone could pull off something like this, and they want amends quickly. That afternoon Thimble goes to the local magistrate and begins legal proceeding to spring our ranger from jail. He actually has the gall to demand compensation for wrongful arrest. More interesting is how they run with the results of their evenings Gather Information. Word on the street is loud and buzzing about the casino job and how the owners are pissed. It is definitely a stain on the the Thieve’s Guild and I lay heavy foreshadowing that there will be reprucssions. Their response?

Pernell: We are going back to the Casino to give them back their money.
DM:…you are doing what?
Pernell: We are going to give them their money back.

The whole group shows up late at night to the same casino…banned members and all and demand to speak to the owners. The floor staff tells them they need to leave and make an appointment. Pernell and Waits make some Intimidation checks mostly just to shake cages and get themselves moved up the chain of command and manage to speak to a floor boss. Waits spills all the stolen casino chips onto a table and says “We just bought an appointment with the owners”

I oblige and take them to the “VIP Room” a sub level three floors below the stated blueprints of the building. They are a bit shaken as they enter a heavily decorated and opulent gaming room. All the tables are crafted from pure crystal and the chips on the tables have an eerie otherworldly glow to them. The players get audible gasps from them. Devils of all shapes and breed line the tables. Succubus waitresses move back and forth leaving drinks and hookas. A Pit Fiend in shimmering silk robes sits in an office overlooking the VIP Room.

Floor Boss: The boss is waiting for you…
Thimble: I am suddenly re-thinking our plan.

A quartet of chain devils, their chains polished and shining like crome, casually block the exit leading to the upper public levels. The five of them walk on figurative pins and needles as they enter The Boss’s office. I have him seated behind an overwhelming desk fashioned from ivory. They are left in the room with just him. I more or less figured a Pit Fiend would have little use for bodyguards.

The Boss: I have been around a long time. Much longer than any of you. I like being surprised. As the millennia add up you tend to get bored. Surprise means there is new things to experience.
Pernell: We aim to please?
Boss: You really are a smartass huh? See the thing about being surprised is…its nice, but I’ll take boredom for 10,000 years before I take one minute of getting ripped off. And right now I am feeling ripped off.
Pernell and Thimble both look at each other and give each other the barest of nods.
Thimble: We don’t see it that way. We just wanted to put some mud on Callobe, and maybe give you a business opportunity in the process.
Boss: You have my attention.
Pernell: He is charging you for protection, but we came up with something he had never seen before. I think we can do better for you. We can make you vulnerable!

*blink blink*

Boss: Why would I want vulnerability?
Pernell: If you have an elite operation with no cracks, then only the best professionals will attempt to penetrate your defenses. If it’s well guarded it’s worth guarding. If there are cracks, the true elite will stay away and only the amateurs will make attempts to pull the wool over your eyes. Better to be plagued by gnats, then circled by sharks.
Boss: You would have me bled dry by mosquitos, as opposed to fighting off a stirge.
Thimble: Hardly. Any amateurs can be easily handled or converted to more productive means.
Boss: You speak boldly and your words show cunning. Words are wind, and where I come from the wind can sheer meat from bone. Words alone are not enough to impress me.
Khorn: Well what would impress you?
Boss: Bring me Callobe, in one piece or several and bring me 100,000 gold by months end. Do this and I will hear you further. Fail and I will show you what gnats look like in Hell.

Needed some extra time on The Big One, and decided to finish off some of the stuff I was stalled on earlier.

Kaveman26
2012-07-18, 05:08 PM
Dancing to the Devil’s Tune

Having made their tentative bargain with a Devil the gang leaves the establishment and heads back to their warehouse. Once there they leave a sign on their door that reads…

This message is meant for Callobe. We made a deal with one of your former employeers. It is in your best interest to meet with us in a safe location to discuss business matters of the greatest urgency.

Following that, they head back out and start beating the streets to have a good time. They start bar hopping and casino hopping, rolling through most of the lower end joints spending a lot of money and acting like they are drinking like crazy. They pick a lot of pockets and spread a good amount of cash at various table games. All of this meant as a front to appear as if they are celebrating without a care in the world, and to make it look like they are completely sloshed.

When they get back to the warehouse, Callobe is waiting for them, a half dozen thieves guild archers in sniper position throughout the building.

Callobe: The pragmatic part of me was ready to open your throats while you slept. But now that you have made this affect my income, I wanted to see the lights go out in your eyes.
Pernell: Not so fast hoss. You are in a pretty little pickle. (he says this with slurred speech and swaying slightly in his chair)
Callobe: Nothing I can’t smooth over.
Thimble: Ahhh….and there is the rub. Yesterday you could have talked your way out of this with The Boss. Just bring him our heads and call it a night, knock off for a few rounds. Fact of the matter is we presented him with something you couldn’t and he is ready to back us instead. We got his attention, and if you kill us now it will be an opportunity lost.
Waits: He is right. The Boss struck us as the kind of devil you don’t cross
Khorn: Actually, crossing any devil is bad…
Pernell: Yeah…crossing any devil is bad…crossing a pit fiend that is already cranky...? That is just foolhardy.
Callobe is more than a little concerned at that prospect. He is more a middle man than ranking member of the guild and has limited strings to pull for support.
Callobe: What are you suggesting?
Thimble: The Boss wants your head and a 100,000 by month’s end. We think there is a way to keep your head attached and still make him happy. Interested?
*nods yes*
Thimble: Then you need to be more valuable alive than dead.
Callobe: I feel that way already.
Pernell: Your feelings on the subject are hopelessly biased I am afraid.
Thimble: Right now you are a middle man that botched up security on a good gig. It makes the guild look bad and they figure that mistakes like this are best washed away with blood. So you are going to give them blood. Tomorrow you are going to take us bound and gagged to the leadership of the Thieves Guild. We will take it from there.
Callobe: Your solution to screwing me over is it to LET me take you into custody and bring you to my bosses?
Sabremane: We could take off your head and call it a day.
Callobe: I like your plan better.

Boys and Girls this is why I both hate and love RPG’s

At this point I am sitting here wondering what the heck they are planning, because each step along the way I am feeling outmaneuvered in terms of knowing what is coming next. I have so far predicted zero of what they have actually done.

The next morning they have themselves prepared and ready, and Callobe comes back with an escort of 10 armed guards. They complacently go with him, unrestrained to avoid suspicion and follow him to the Guild Mansion, a high end nobleman’s house in the upper class portion of the city. Security in the area is much tighter than the other regions and I emphasize the military presence. As they approach the grounds of the mansion, Callobe has them hooded and bound. He then parades the five of us inside to stand before guild leadership.

Guards remove the hoods from the group to reveal a number of high backed expensive chairs cloaked in the shadows being cast from a low burning fire. For all intents and purposes they are inside a very expensive parlor creatively lit to avoid the identities of the guild’s leaders. Callobe bows before them and presents “the unlicensed miscreants responsible for the untidy recent events”

Unknown Leader1: I applaud your ambition. We need more of that creativity. Too bad your deaths will serve a greater purpose.

Thimble: In other words you want us to make it worth your while to keep us alive.
Leader1: No, we simply want you dead and the matter settled.
Pernell: Then we would have been dead already. You know we are more valuable alive than dead.
Leader2: Enlighten us.
Thimble: A few days ago you had a good revenue stream from Callobe’s endeavors. Today you have the full fascination of a pit fiend and an opportunity to make tons more money. We introduced a reverse long con to the Pit Fiend that he is likely completely familiar with, but willing to go along for the ride to see where we are heading. Once word gets out that we “duped the devil” any number of idiots thinking we can do the same for them will come out of the woodwork.
Leader1:Go on…
Thimble: We need to fulfill our previous agreement with The Boss and we need some weight behind us. That is where you come in. We need the Thieve’s Guild to support us as silent partners. A percentage of anything we make goes to you.
Leader3: How much?
Pernell: That will depend on contract negotiations with The Boss. I suspect he will be a hard sell.

A voice from the largest armchair and the chair in the center of the room speaks in a very powerful voice.

Head Honcho: What assurances do you provide this is not simply another con?
Khorn speaks up at this, and he takes the center.
Khorn: If it is, it will still be profitable for you. I doubt you mind us getting our fingers in more than one pie as long as you get the biggest piece?
Leader7: What do you require from us?
Thimble: I have actually taken the liberty of drawing up a document that perfectly sums up what we seek from the guild…

I’ll be damned if he doesn’t hand me an actual contract requesting immunity from guild justice for anything done in respects to generating revenue by fleecing any non guild members. It even requests a 100,000 donation for the purposes of contract negotiation and “cost of acquiring new client”
Leader1: We will take this to our lawyers to examine.
Pernell: Good…I know it’s way beyond us. Good knowing you Callobe.
Callobe: Excuse Me?
Ballsy Bluff Check in 3…2…1…
Thimble: The Boss gave us that contract along with strict instructions to present it to guild leadership. I have no idea what clauses and provisos a Pit Fiend can think up. Just glad someone other than me has to pore over it and hope they don’t miss a loophole that makes them lose their soul…

To be continued…

Kaveman26
2013-01-28, 10:53 AM
The Dance Continues:

I take the stance that the leadership is deeply concerned about signing any contract presented by a devil. They don’t want to anger a powerful denizen and they don’t want to lose face over the botch. I am borderline tempted to have them follow through on killing the PC’s and seeing what escape attempts or dramatics they can improvise. Instead they present a logical alternative.

Pernell: We are willing to take the risk and still split the profit. What we need for that is cart blanche to act as proxy leadership for the Thieves Guild. Ultimately you seven are in charge. That is clear. We will write an amended agreement between us and we will sign The Boss’s contract. In matters relating to him we will hold responsibility, like true sub contractors, but you still get a portion of all proceeds.

Pern and Thimble give me a second contract and without actually stopping to read the whole thing I go along with it and have the seven sign off on it. They leave the estate of their own free will and with a certified note for 100,000 gold. I feel like their progress and developments merit a reward and bump them up to level 5.

Sabremane (catfolk) Barbarian1/Urban Ranger4 Str 14 Dex 24 Con 12 Int 15 Wis 16 Cha 12 HP41 Feats: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Focused Shot, Shot on the Run

Pernell Carnish (human) Diviner5 (barred necromancy and evocation) Str 10 Dex 17 Con 13 Int 19 Wis 14 Cha 13 HP24 Feats: Skill Focus Spellcraft, Skill Focus Sleight of Hand, Spell Focus Illusion, Greater Spell Focus (illusion)

Thimble (aasimar) Street Performer5 Str 12 Dex 17 Con 12 Int 16 Wis 15 Cha 20 HP 30 Feats: Skill Focus Sleight of Hand, Skill Focus Diplomacy, Skill Focus UMD

Waits (goliath) Fighter5 Str 20 Dex 14 Con 17 Int 14 Wis 12 Cha 14 HP54 Feats: Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus Spiked Chain, Weapon Specialization Spiked Chain, Improved Disarm, EWP Spiked Chain. Improved Trip

Khorn Bre-Ad (oread aka earth gensai)Cleric5 Str 17 Dex 12 Con 17 Int 12 Wis 19Cha 14 HP:31 Feats: Craft Arms and Armor, Craft Wonderous Item, Extra Channeling

They don’t even bother stopping to cash the check and bring is straight back to The Boss. He is positively enthused over the turn around time. He is even more pleased with their next request.

Thimble: We would love your assistance with another matter. We have recently come into ownership of a warehouse that we have begun renovations on. The expertise you bear with regards to utilizing people’s desires would be greatly appreciated.
Boss: What did you have in mind?
Pernell: We want our warehouse to serve as a temple for decadence. We want people to come in…spend a ton of money and have a great time.
Boss: What is my end in this?
Thimble: 20% stake in profits, we take responsibility for any losses. You also get a population that will drive itself into depravity and destitution because they are going to spend everything they have on the lures of temple.
Boss: So you are bringing me 100,000 and basically asking me to give it right back to you?
Thimble: not give…invest.

Boss: I like your bravado. What I don’t know is if you are willing to get your hands dirty. How do I know you are willing to make the hard choices?

It actually occurs to the group that they have been playing for several weeks and they have not taken a single life. They have fought a few minor skirmishes but they have talked their way out of everything til this point.

Pernell: We leave the dirty hands to other parties better suited for such means. We will mark the fish…daze the fish and then slap the fish on the back and send them into the shark’s mouth. It’s up to you to do the biting.

Boss: I will give this investment opportunity some thought. I will be in touch…good day gentlemen.

Khorn: Well we have the Thieve’s Guild in our pocket, a Pit Fiend as a prospective investor and the gratitude of an assassin who we just yanked from the fire. We have adequate cash flow and some major hijinks in the works as far as insurance scams are concerned. Where do we go from here?

They go to work on their temple from there. Installing casino gaming, a full scale bar, and a variety of other games. They set about hiring the best bards, bartenders, and the most enticing members of the world’s oldest profession. They dedicate a ton of capital and time to building up the warehouse and they dub it Serenity.

The whole group starts beating the streets and papering flyers all over the place for their gala opening. They promise a night of hedonism and entertainment the likes of which the world has never seen.

The night before the grand opening they set up a meeting with Callobe and his best thieves. They lay out their plans for the next night.

Khorn: We are going to make this is the mother of all grand opening. Booze is going to be flowing…dice will be flying…and the women are all going to be interested in whatever our patrons have to say…

Callobe: Sounds great…where do we come in?

Pernell: you come in after. We have retained the services of a carriage company that will be providing luxury escorts back to the patrons homes. Every person that comes in tonight will leave happy and RICHER than when they arrived. We are going to give the house away and rig every game to our disadvantage.

Callobe: You guys are nuts…

Thimble: once our patrons leave their grand opening having won at the tables and in the bedrooms they will be escorted home by their new drivers…your thieves. Being a luxury service they will help these patrons directly into their house…where upon they will adminster a simple draught to make memories fuzzy. They will reclaim the wealth from the night's festivities and maybe help themselves to whatever else is in the house.

Callobe: you want us to rob the customers blind after you fatten them up?

Waits: You are the Thieve’s Guild…certainly that is in your job description.

Khorn: The best part is…they will come back the next night and the night after…because they will keep winning…that is until they start losing. The first rule of entertainment is this: The House always wins.

Sabremane opens up a basket of silk ribbons…and spreads them out on the meeting table.

Sabremane: Three color of ribbons. Gold, Silver and Bronze. Just like an awards ceremony. The carriages with gold ribbons are marked as the fattest fish. We definitely want special drivers on those. Silver are decent and bronze are the least profitable. Mix up who you rob. Don’t just target the wealthy elite, and don’t target them all.

Pernell: Gentleman you have your assignments. Now if you will excuse us…we have a public to rob blind.

Kaveman26
2013-01-28, 11:23 AM
A Night to Remember:

The group does what they do best. Khorn walks around as the ceremony master in his intricate robes adorned with coins and flash. He provides quite actual blessings in the way of clerical spells and acts the gracious host. Sabremane does a whole William Tell performance with Waits as the bumbling mark. They incorporate the spiked chain into twirling targets that Sabre picks out of the air.

Thimble dances through the crowd playing the part of a bumbling clown who somehow manages to keep a circle of juggling balls in the air despite his constant and random prat falls and spills. Every burst of laughter as he tumbles into a table sending drinks flying while keeping the balls in air is accompanied by pick pocket checks. Pernell uses his prowess with illusions to bring the stage performances a whole new degree of splendor and intrigue. Dragons burst forth from trick shot arrows and the spiked chain takes on strange musical qualities thanks to Pernell’s tricks.

As the booze is spilled more than swallowed and everyone starts stumbling, Sabremane sneaks her way to a sniper’s nest atop the temple and begins marking carriages with ribbons as patrons leave. Callobe is our valet and his thieves are in place as drivers for the carriages. Khorn and Thimble make sure to shake everybodys hands and wish them a fond evening (sans the rings they had been wearing) and off they go like market day goose’s to be picked and placed into the pot.

The whole group is constantly searching for more information on their patrons and making detect magic checks to identify the best marks. The event goes off almost disaster free, but as if on cue trouble breaks out amidst the crowds and a would be brawler with too much to drink starts causing a ruckus.

Waits moves to break it up and begins non lethal trip attempts on the fighters. He doesn’t injure anyone badly and even makes his twirling chain somewhat theatrical. The bards in the crowd begin playing music in time to the falling fighters. The paid bouncers step in and remove those who don’t get the hint to stay down.

As the night gives way to dawn, the exhausted group compares notes and assembles a dossier of wealthier patrons that gave off the strongest detect magic pings. They sleep throughout the morning and into the afternoon when they rouse to prepare for their follow up meeting with Callobe.

They pulled off the first night of carriage jacking and breaking and entering with nearly flawless execution. The group goes from down 25,000 to up 45,000 after they paid off the guild and all their hired help. They also pick up another 5,000 in various jewelry and a few minor magic items they lifted from the crowd.

Callobe: Some of the gold ribbon marked carriages had fortunes in their houses. If we had opened a few veins we could have triple profits and then some.

Waits slams his hand onto the table and growls something as if it was drilled into him a thousand times over.

Waits: if you have the choice of skinning a sheep and butchering it…skin it. The wool grows back, the mutton doesn’t.

The next few nights Serenity’s patrons leave uninhibited and remain unrobbed. By night four the word of mouth is overwhelmingly positive and we have lines waiting outside the door. Sabremane is relegated to our eyes in the sky as our easily beaten casino games have lured in the card sharps and hustlers. Her perception checks and a few custom made drow poison added darts let us isolate the cheats and remove them discreetly. If anyone noticed a coincidence from the grand openings and robberies from the first night, they have not reported it to any authority the group can locate.
The group hires additional staff and starts accepting voluntary donations as a sort of religious cover charge. Remember all of this is done as part of a temple…

Within a week’s time the temple Serenity is the talk of the city and the single “it” spot. Nobility and the super elite wealthy begin coming complete with their entourages. A new ribbon, white, is added. The Thieve’s Guild has orders not to jack a white ribboned carriage under any circumstance. Those patrons will receive much more focused and specific attention.

The group starts tilting the odds in their table games to their favor and begin fleecing customers legitimately. The robberies become supplemental income and much more deliberate. They also build up a dossier of prime targets they intend to work on when things settle down. The group themselves move from the nightly entertainment to more of special attractions. VIP rooms are opened up and the group moves and works the VIP crowds with deft precision.

Khorn takes the forefront of the next endeavor. He begins recruiting clerics of various faith and creed and enlists them to provide spiritual succor to those who require it. Further real estate is purchased and overhauled in rapid fashion as adjunct reliquaries from various deities join Serenity.

Come for the prayers…stay for the show!

At month’s end they have amassed the better part of a quarter million in profits and they have to pay the piper. Percentages go to the Thieve’s Guild, The Boss, and the various officials they have constantly been bribing. After expenses they still clear over a 100K .

Then the Tax Man Comes…

Kaveman26
2013-01-30, 12:47 PM
Death and Taxes:

After a 30 day blitzkreig of opulence and excess the group is faced with a new challenge.

Finneus B. Fontworth, the cities tax collector supreme. A slight man in severe attire Finneus inspires fear in the most ruthless of gangster, his clout and reach are vast. No enterprise is outside the scope of his juridiction. And while trying to recuperate from a night of revelery and drinking he is waiting in the central lobby of Serenity, suitcase in hand. Legends say that when not on business Finneus does show traces of humanity, but if the suitcase is present, all bets are off.

Finneus: I have come to personally inform you that at 4am on this morning you officially came into violation of the city's tax code with regards to establishments providing, but not limited to the distribution and consumption of alcohol and the solitication of humanoids.

Khorn: I do not understand good sir. You did identify yourself as Finneus B Fontworth? The reputable and incorruptible city tax official?

Finneus: I certainly did.

Khorn: It is said that you are a man of inegrity with intricate understandings on the principles and applications of the law...my friend Thimble has rambled on and on about your legacy.

Finneus: All of these flattering platitudes are irrelevent to the matters at hand. Are you prepared to come into full compliance with the back taxes this property owes and are you prepared to pay the appropriate related to their tardiness.

Khorn: Only if you break the law...

Finneus: I am amused by your attempts to dissuade me using illogical and baseless claims. I am however not inclined to perform any lawbreaking. Do you deny that you are the owner of this entertainment establishment?

Khorn: Well yes...

(ok now I am completely perplexed on what is going on here)

Finneus: You filled out the zoning permits and all documentation for this building known as Serenity are in your name. You still deny owning this establishment.

Khorn: I am the ranking priest of this temple. But I make no claims on running a business. I am simply a cleric who is leading services for my followers...

*blink blink*

Khorn: You are surely aware that no temples or religious entities fall under the civic tax code. Therefore pressing fines or levies against our donations would be a violation of city law...

Finneus: You are claiming a spiritual exemption clause on a building with a casino,prostitutes and alchohol???

Khorn: I worship Waukeen...who urges profit. I have adjuncts for a dozen major faiths on the premises. Turns out a lot people like having fun and if we can turn a profit off their spiritual enlightment then it all works for us.

Finneus: By your logic...any business owner, shopkeeper or tavern could simply claim to Worship Waukeen and declare all their income tax deductible.

Khorn: You know...that is a damned good idea. Thimble we should draw up documents to that effect and pursue legal remedy for the rest of the town...

I'll be damned if they don't turn my city campaign into a class action lawsuit.

So begins the role played case of Malabith-Vs Khorn Bre-ad

They press a lawsuit against the city looks for reparations on behalf of any business owner that paid taxes in the last five years and seek recompense for these "illegal" taxes. The city countersues claiming the religious clause is non applicable.

Their case rests along the idea that anyone working to make a buck is indirectly a follower of Waukeen. Anyone who operates their business in a profitable manner is tax exempt. They conceed that anyone who is operating at a loss is not a follower and subject to taxes. So basically the city should only be taking money from those who can't earn it...*sigh*

The city is claiming that unless the temple is somehow contributing to the spiritual benefit of their clientale...then its simply a business with a religous theme. In order to benefit from the spiritual exemption clause they would need to demonstrate a significant benefit to the community as a whole for worshipping in their temple and not somewhere else. And therein lies the twist...

Thimble: So what you are telling us is that we need demonstrate clear and significant proof that we are helping save the community or benefit it as an effect of our temple.

City Attorney: Yes.

Thimble: In that case we would like to call Callobe to the stand.

Callobe is brought into the courtroom and put on the witness stand.

Thimble: For purposes of this trial you have immunity from prosecution.

Callobe: K

Thimble: Would you describe how we met?

Callobe: You sure you want me to do that?

Thimble: Yes...it's alright.

Callobe: You knocked over a casino that I was providing security for. Then you went behind my back and bribed my employeer to basically muscle me out and have me murdered. After that you hired me to work for you.

Thimble: That seems accurate...now tell me...who do you work for?

Callobe: The Thieve's Guild.

Thimble: No your employeer at the Casino...

Callobe: I don't think I should answer that.

Thimble: Please do so anyway.

Callobe: The Boss.

Thimble: Ahh yes. And does the boss operate a casino and bar?

Callobe: Yes.

Thimble: Would it be fair to say The Boss lost a lot business at his establishment when Serenity became popular...

Callobe *very uneasy now*: Yes...

Thimble: Now I know this last question will be the hardest but I gurantee you it is the last. Who is The Boss?

Callobe: A pit fiend.

Gasps from the crowd...riots amongst the lawyers and outrage from the panel of judges follow those three simple words.

Thimble: Your lordships...I move to dismiss all charges against my client Mr Bre-ad...clearly the temple Serenity has benefitted the city if it is taking patronage away from a Pit Fiend.

City Attorney: That means nothing. An incidental side effect. What proof do you have that this alledged Pit Fiend was even aware of your existance, or that you knew of his?

Pernell: Would receipts work? Cause we got him to sign a paper on kickback we were pressed to pay him and we also have his signature on some murder for hire documentation. Maybe the cities forces should compel him to appear in this court.

City Attorney: I don't think that will be needed. Maybe a short recess is in order...

During the lull as the city attorneys scramble for their bearings...Finneus approaches the group with a small note in hand...

Finneus: This arrived for you...marked urgent.

You have made a serious mistake. A mistake that will end in an extended and highly personal visit to my home plane-The Boss

Pernell: So what do you think Finneus? Will we win our case?

Finneus: I think you just declared war on the citys beauracracy. No one can beat death or taxes...you are now looking a future that certainly contains both.

Kaveman26
2013-01-31, 01:56 PM
Sharp Dressed Man:

The gang are highly pleased with themselves. They just wrangled legal tax exempt status from the city and yanked a Pit Fiend’s pants down. The fall out from their legal showboating is widespread…Waukeen has a sudden surge in followers and prospective “priests”. The temple Serenity is now the premiere hotspot and out of town travelers suddenly become far more frequent.

City guards and investigators are all over the temple and interrogating everyone they can. Word gets out that The Boss skipped town, abandoning his casino altogether. Any aspirations towards additional charges evaporate owing to the ground swell of popular support being shown for the temple. Only Pernell seems saddened.

Pernell: I was having so much being crooked…and now we went and got ourselves legitimate. What’s the point in robbing someone when they are lining up to GIVE you their money. Takes all the sport out of it.

Thimble: what would you rather do instead?
Pernell: I was contemplating setting up shop in Thay…
Waits: you want to walk away from a lucrative and now tax free business to travel to the single most oppressive and rigid society of slavers on this plane?
Pernell: It was just a thought.

Not sure where they want to take matters next they settle in for their roles on the night’s entertainment. The festivities are packed and the money flows faster than the wine. As the night winds down Sabremane picks up the noise of one her alarms going off in the group’s private chambers. She alerts the rest of the party and they make their way to their personal quarters to find a trio of severely dressed men in black. They are wearing business suits, but heavily customized suits to reduce sound and allow them free reign of movement. All three are equipped with rapier/sword canes. They drop what they are doing upon being spotted and slide into fencer’s poses as they flow forward to engage the group.

Waits pushes himself to the forefront and gets his chains going, while Sabremane starts sending arrows through the hallway towards the intruders. Thimble and Pernell put out color spray and hypnotic patterns. Khorn draws a mace and takes a shield off the wall. The black suited intruders are agile and evasive, dodging in and out of the chains as they move to reach the casters. Sabremane lets out a soft yelp as a quill stands out from her throat…in the shadows a fourth black suit with a fountain pen blowgun just hit her with a tranq dart.

The attackers move with calculating calm and smoothly set themselves up to provide flanking bonuses to each other in the confines of the living quarters. Sneak attack damage comes into play and Pernell and Thimble are heavily targeted. Khorn trys to trigger a Hold Person and the invader makes his save. Pernell tries another color spray and this one stuns one of the invaders. The remaining three maintain a fierce fighting retreat and work their way out the window they broke in through.

Waits rouses Sabremane and they take their stunned captive and secure him to a chair. A search of his belongings uncovers masterwork lockpicking tools, masterwork forgery and duplication tools, a garrote wire, the sword cane and a tightly organized ledger with impossibly perfect handwriting ciphered in some manner of code. They also reveal a blowgun fountain pen in a shirt pocket.

Thimble: It’s like some kind of accountant assassin.
Pernell: I think we must have really pissed off the city for them to send ninja clerks at us.
Pernell: maybe I was wrong…there could still be some fun to be had here.

Kaveman26
2013-01-31, 02:37 PM
A new Tune:

The group tries to interrogate their captive but he is stoic and not interested in anything they can do to him. They take him to the proper authorities and report the break in. He is transferred to their custody and they receive a document telling them John Doe is now with the proper authorities. They expect little to come from it and are intrigued to see what happens next.

The following night a pair of cloaked figures enter the temple and gasps erupt from the whole building as a pair of Erinyes reveal themselves. A male and female both stunning and clearly devils. They walk up to a pair of open seats at a roulette table and begin to place wagers. The presence of these devils kills the action at all the table games as people go scrambling. Our uneasy dealer goes through the motions and within minutes the devil’s have taken us for 5,000.

Khorn kindly asks them to leave and their ignore him…they just continue placing bets. Waits a little more forcefully asks them to leave and the male turns to the strongman and says calmly.

Erinyes: It is a public temple and you must serve those who come to worship…I am currently winning and no wish to leave…

All told the pair leave up over 20,000 and they post their first losing night since the temple opened for business.

The following night a pack of six erinyes visits the temple and they all begin smashing the table games by constantly winning.

Thimble: If we don’t come up with something quick they are going to put us out of business.
Pernell: Illusions are useless, they have true seeing at all times.
Waits: not to mention they are smarter than us and have centuries more experience with this stuff.
Pernell: I got an idea…probably get us all killed or worse…also might work…
Khorn: I am more inclined to shut down then contemplate “or worse”
Pernell: if we shut down they win…can’t have that. I am going to need to do some research…

The next several nights Serenity is closed for renovations. Pernell and Khorn are hard at work behind the scenes while Thimble, Waits and Sabremane get down to some serious work. They are sinking the majority of their money into hiring “some damn good plumbers” and scouring religious texts for something they are playing very close to the vest.

When they re-open it is to mixed fan fare…the present of devils has really stained the temple’s reputation. Like clockwork a group of erinyes are waiting for their seats at the tables…this time Khorn happily seats them. Within minutes of their arrival…the newly installed pipes circling overheard spring leaks and it begins raining inside the temple…a rain that is burning the devils who howl in pain. Khorn is apologetic.

Khorn: forgive me kind patrons…we recently renovated to add a holy water cistern and it appears the plumbers did some shoddy work…ack you are a mess…holy water does tend to stain silk Im afraid.

Furious the devils leave and there is an amused cheer from the folks who braved the devils to show up. Within a week the repeated malfunctions cause the devils to stay away and business picks back up. The temple receives a zoning violation for its poor plumbing and Khorn assures the powers that be that he will clean it up.

All is back to normal and no further ninja clerks assail the temple and no further devils look to interrupt. At least that is what happens for a little while.

Two weeks after their holy water shenanigans a storm rages outside the likes of which is only seen every generation. Most people came inside just to get out of the rain. A fierce hissing noise draws everyone’s attention to the door. The doors open to reveal the smoking form of a Pit Fiend.

The Boss is back…

People start running for the exit in a panic and within seconds only the group and The Boss remain inside the temple.

Boss: You have done well yourselves…but not well enough.

The holy water starts pouring form the ceiling…but it evaporates before contacting the pit fiend.

Boss: I like your joint. Think I will stay here for a while…maybe a century.

As he talks he removes a deck of cards from his bizarre suit coat pocket. The cards are much larger than a normal playing deck and the images on the cards twist and writhe in agony. He shuffles like a world class professional card sharp and the deck dances from hand to hand, sometimes pausing in the air and shuffling itself.

Thimble: you looking for any game in particular?
Boss: I always liked poker…
Pernell pulls everyone aside for a group huddle.
Pernell: We knew this was coming…the question now arises…do you trust me?

Kaveman26
2013-02-01, 09:41 AM
Game of the Century

Pernell: What stakes are we talking?
The Boss: The only kind that matter…souls.
Pernell: We don’t exactly have a stockpile of souls…
Boss: Really? I count at least five
Pernell: Would you promise to play fair?
Boss: Would I dream of doing otherwise?
Pernell: I consider myself a heck of a card player…I am willing to play your game with your stakes using my friends souls…but not my own.
Boss: How selfish you must be.
Pernell: They trust me…
Boss: I’m ready when you are…

Pernell: Tomorrow night…midnight…you and I at a table. No interruptions.

The following night the entire floor of the temple is cleared except for one raised table. Pernell is waiting at the table as the Boss walks in.

Boss: Let’’s Play….

Pernell is a good poker player in real life, but this game goes far deeper. The Boss is a notable Pit Fiend and a true master. The first hour is back and forth but the pit fiend seems to have an uncanny ability to bluff at the right times and always folds when beat.

For his part…Pernell remains calm, despite being down. The stakes are a 1/10 and 2/10 of a soul for blinds and after an hour Pernell is down to 22 soul chips while The Boss has 58. The second hour sees a swing as Pernell forces the Boss to make some tough laydowns. And he takes the edge 45 to 35.

They play deep into the night and Pernell slowly creeps further and further ahead. When the Boss is down to 11 chips Pernell offers him a chance to reload. He agrees to eagerly and produces five more souls to bring his total to 61. The team watches with bated breath as the stakes grow higher and higher. Pernell is beating the devil at his own game and the amount of souls at the table increases and increases. With more than eighty full souls in play the Boss draws closer and closer to being even. The Boss moves all in on the river on an ugly board…and Pernell contemplates for a long time…if you are familiar with Texas Hold Em imagine the following board…

A-J-4-7-2 no more than two to a suit on board.

The Boss just showed all in…and Pernell sizes him up and lets out a long sigh…

Pernell: you are holding 5-6 or 5-8 and you missed the straight draw…I am calling with 9-10…if you can beat 10 high then you got us…

In complete and utter shock the Boss turns over 5-6…the table begins to smolder as heat pours off the Pit Fiend in waves…

Boss: how…no human can beat me!!!!!
Pernell: no human did…

As he says it…he slumps over in his chair and falls down. When he stirs it is as if out of a daze…From the rear of the temple a second Pit Fiend emerges….

Boss: What…how…?

Pernell: took me a while…but I tracked down the best card player in all of Hell and gave him a chance to play you heads up through me. Had to give him my soul as collateral, but with no downside he was eager to take you down a peg. Netted himself a good chunk of souls in the process and helped stunt a rival. One of the best rules to follow…there is always a bigger fish.

Pit Fiend Rival: Always told you that you reached too far too fast.

The Boss is enraged and absolutely furious, but before he can do anything the second fiend hands him a scroll…

Rival: Asmodeus wants to chat…

The Boss goes from furious to panicked and disappears.

Pernell: So as promised I delivered on my end. Now if you would kindly give me my soul back.

Rival: Ahhh yes, about that. We never set a timeframe for me delivering it back to you, so I think I am going to hang onto it for a while.

Pernell: Yeah about that…we never a set timeframe for delivery…so I think I will have to keep all the souls I won off the Boss for the time being. That is unless you want to take it up with YOUR boss.

Rival:You really do learn quick don’t you.
Pernell: I think we can come to a good arrangement. I will give you all the souls I won off the Boss, minus those of my associates and you can keep my own as collateral.
Rival: Collateral for what…

Pernell: I have always wanted control of a genie. Kind of a personal servant. Think you could set that up?

Rival: Timeframe?
Pernell: I would like full control of the genie until the day I die. On that day my soul becomes your property. I want full access to his abilities and he must obey my commands.

Rival: I am amenable to that agreement.

They shake hands/talons and upon the poker table a crystal ball carved from translucent ruby appears…inside the gemstone swirling mist forms into the shape of an efreet.

Rival: The crystal ball is it’s home. He is all yours.
Pernell picks up the crystal ball and from it emerges the captive efreet.
Pernell: Do you have a name?
Efreet: I am called Sardis.
Pernell: Sardis you are fully capable of granting me three wishes correct?
Sardis: Yes.
Pernell: Then I have my first wish…I wish to die only upon the day that I ask for my soul back.

The Rival who was juggling and admiring all his new souls pauses and turns…

Rival: But I have your soul until you die.
Pernell: yep, and I don’t plan on asking for it anytime soon.
The Rival smiles and begins to disappear…”we will meet again and often little mortal”

Pernell: That went well

Thimble: You gambled our souls against a Pit Fiend and trusted ANTOHER Pit Fiend to somehow work in your best interest. We now have both devils firmly attached to all our business as they seem to have taken an intimate interest in our operations…especially after you just humiliated one of them and tried to pull a fast one on the second. Not even mentioning the fact that you just sold your soul!

Pernell: yeah but I got a genie…

Amidus Drexel
2013-02-01, 04:58 PM
That bit was brilliant... I would say which, but really all of it. :smallcool:

Here's looking forward to more.

Kaveman26
2013-02-02, 10:17 AM
Job Interview:

(Before I put this up I need to say that this was a priceless exchange and I can’t do it justice without you hearing Pernell’s voice. I am going to do my best)

The pit fiends has left Serenity. The thunderstorm persists outside and the group is looking at Pern far differently than before. The guy just sold his soul to the Devil to steal back souls from a Devil and used that to parley a genie. We pick back up the action with a mentally worn Pernell and an emotionally spent group talking to their newly acquired Genie.

Pernell: Sardis…I would like to introduce myself… I am Pernell Carnish, a con man and diviner. I am eager to establish a strong working relationship and would love to utilize the fullest range of your abilities…

Sadis: You are my master….no relationship other than you giving orders and me following them exists…
Pernell: I would like to alter that perception. Those who enjoy their work do much better than those who are forced into it.
Sardis: You forced a Devil to press me into servitude…
Pernell: Ahhh yes…But I didn’t force you. So I hope you come to think of me as a senior partner and not your master. I have your interests in mind as well.
Sardis: Doubtful.
Pernell: I see that a gesture of good will is required…I am prepared for my second wish…
Sardis: As the master commands…
Pernell: Upon my death I wish for you to take full ownership and control of my soul.
Everyone including the Efreet: What?
Pernell: I want you to have my soul when I die. I am entitling you to take command of my afterlife as recompense for working alongside me in this world.
Sardis: That is certainly unique.
Pernell: I am a gracious employeer. Now unto the matter of your job references….
Sardis: My what?

Pernell: Job references…I am interested in your former masters, what wishes they desired. How those wishes turned out.
Sardis: Not at liberty to say…
Pernell: Why is that?
Sardis: Genie’s are obligated to keep the secrets of their master.
Pernell: Interesting. Then I shall pose a different question. How would you like to spend your free time?
Sardis: Free time?
Pernell: What do you do for fun?
Sardis: I enjoy making money…collecting expensive gems and seeing mortals quake in terror.
Pernell: Gentleman…I think we have found Serenity’s new table boss.
Thimble: You are putting your efreet in charge of our casino?
Pernell: You are right Thimble…not sure if he qualified for the job even if he has the aptitude.

Pernell goes on to drill the Efreet on his abilities and skill set. He is particularly interested in the ability to Plane Shift at will and his 1/day permanent image ability. He then goes over salary requirements and makes concessions for time off.

Waits: You are cutting in your captive genie for profit sharing?
Pernell: He isn’t here by choice, don’t want him to feel bitter.

When all is said and done Sardis is appointed Pit Boss in charge of our casino and is made a minor partner in the Temple’s profits. He is allowed 3 days off each month…his choice on which days but days not to run consecutively. The first job he is assigned is to create a permanent image of a marquee floating above the temple. The second job he is given….is to Plane Shift back to his native Plane and post a job opening sign asking for any other Genies to come work in the casino…the same terms he was given are offered to any other genie that wants to come work for us as well.

Sardis tells us that no other efreet would likely take the offer, and that Djinn would sooner try to kill him. He says some Shaitan might take the offer.
Pernell: Well gentleman…I am going to turn in for the night…meet you all in the morning.

The following morning…the other shoe drops. Sardis Plane Shifts back to Serenity with a trio of Shaitan interested in work. Pernell greets them happily and asks them if Sardis explained the agreement to them.
Shaitan: Yes he told us what you offered him and said we would be entitled to the same agreement that he has.
Pernell: Down to the letter.
Shaitan: We are in…

A few pen-strokes later…there are three signatures and as the ink dries Pernell gets that looks in his eyes…
Pernell: Gentlemen…we now have four genies in our service til the day I die…

Shaitan: Sardis didn’t say anything about this being a lifelong contract…

Pernell: That is because Genie’s can’t share their master’s secrets. Sardis is in my service because I desired that. I did tell you that you would all be subject to the exact same agreement that he was.

Well I’ll be damned…he duped me too. Any Genie that sees a decent job opportunity is now potentially indentured for life. Most of the details revolve around profit sharing…if they close the temple the next day…they still have indentured genies…

Rolled A Three
2013-02-02, 12:32 PM
Brilliant.

Bigbrother87
2013-02-02, 04:51 PM
Amazing. Well played on the player's part, I look forward to reading what they do with their genies.

Kaveman26
2013-02-03, 10:32 AM
Trying to predict what my players will try next is always futile, but I found a commercial that sums up my thoughts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk7yqlTMvp8

Kaveman26
2013-02-03, 11:49 AM
Profit Mining:

For the first time in weeks the Serenity is devil free. Business quickly swells back up to booming and every night brings a new splendor to the temple (in the form of a permanent illusion). At their beck and call, and much to the wonder of their patrons, An Efreet wanders the floor as pit boss and three Shaitans serve as casino dealers. Subtle changes have also taken effect.

The group purchased a tract of land just outside the city limits and they have begun a wholly new and grand scale project. Shaitans can stone shape at will, they can also soften earth and stone at will. They also have an ability called metalmorph, that lets them change the composition of a substance to a different metal. The Shaitans spend 6 hours a night at the casino, 8 hours a day at rest and 8 hours each day excavating a tunnel system beneath the city. They use their abilities to create durable tunnels and begin honeycombing the structures beneath the city. The gang hires a team of thieve’s guild “specials” basically those who are too crippled or maimed to function as proper thieves and buy them a wagon team. They follow a shifting daily path selling “fools gold” metalmorphed by the Shaitans.

As the days press on, several additional Shaitan’s decide to join up based on the steadily rising profits. It’s the greatest trap imagineable. As profits go up…more genies are drawn to the job offers and as more genies are drawn in…profits rise. By the end of the next month 7 Shaitans and 1 very old Marid have joined the ranks. For tracking sake the 7 Shaitans are named Red,Orange,Yellow,Green,Blue,Indigo,Violet (ROYGBIV) and the Marid is called Pops. Pops has the ability to manipulate water and allow water breathing. With the inclusion of the Marid, further job hunters are dissuaded and seek other opportunities. The gang gets the hint that their genie workforce has reached its maximum.

A few things coincide at the same time. First, the Shaitan’s complete work on connecting a tunnel from the vacant lot outside the city to the temple Serenity. Secondly the Shaitan’s begin stone shaping a new temple on the vacant land with all the material they are moving. Lastly…Sabremane as the head of security and constant lookout begins picking up evidence that the temple is being cased. As more and more money flows in and out and the reputation of the gang being on the cities “****” list grows the non guilded thieves and freelancers see a great target. After a quick team meeting the gang decides to make an example of the first people that try to ambush them.

They allow word to be spread that a decoy wagon will be heading straight for the largest bank in the city for money to be deposited, but the real wagon…the one less guarded is being taken from the city and stashed in a safehouse in the country. Shaitan’s take the actual kickbacks for the Thieve’s Guild and walk through the earth below ground, depositing the funds directly in the thieve’s vault. Meanwhile a wagon loaded with mercenaries and archers makes a big deal of leaving Serenity while a second wagon with a single driver (Waits) takes a heading out of the city towards the country estate. Like clockwork Waits gets outside the city and encounters a wagon train crippled and blocking his path.

A group of “Farmers” all well armed and wearing chain mail apologize for the delay and offer to help him steer around it. As the farmer’s approach a volley of crossbow bolts bury into Waits…who slumps over on his side dead. The “farmers” swarm the wagon and Sardis from inside the wagon waves off his illusion of Waits and gives the trigger for the Shaitans to “Drop the road”. As soon as the bandits are dropped into the underground tunnel, Shaitans Stone Shape it back to it’s original form. To anyone watching bandits killed a wagon driver, ran to loot the wagon…the ground opened up and swallowed all of them and sealed itself. The band of Shaitan’s and the Efreet dispatch the bandits and leave them in the walls of the tunnel.

The gang is promoted to level 6…

Sabremane (catfolk) Barbarian1/Urban Ranger5 Str 14 Dex 24 Con 12 Int 15 Wis 16 Cha 12 HP50 Feats: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Focused Shot, Shot on the Run

Pernell Carnish (human) Diviner6 (barred necromancy and evocation) Str 10 Dex 17 Con 13 Int 19 Wis 14 Cha 13 HP31 Feats: Skill Focus Spellcraft, Skill Focus Sleight of Hand, Spell Focus Illusion, Greater Spell Focus (illusion),Spell Penetration

Thimble (aasimar) Street Performer6Str 12 Dex 17 Con 12 Int 16 Wis 15 Cha 20 HP 35 Feats: Skill Focus Sleight of Hand, Skill Focus Diplomacy, Skill Focus UMD

Waits (goliath) Fighter6 Str 20 Dex 14 Con 17 Int 14 Wis 12 Cha 14 HP63 Feats: Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus Spiked Chain, Weapon Specialization Spiked Chain, Improved Disarm, EWP Spiked Chain. Improved Trip, Greater Trip

Khorn Bre-Ad (oread aka earth gensai)Cleric6 Str 17 Dex 12 Con 17 Int 12 Wis 19Cha 14 HP:38 Feats: Craft Arms and Armor, Craft Wonderous Item, Extra Channeling

Their hijinks are arousing lots of interest in their activities. City audits and inspections become almost daily events. Associates of the “farmers” that went missing file civil suit against them and the city starts requesting subpoenas over the events surrounding our alledged intrusion by ninja clerks. Their happy go lucky grifting has drawn the attention of many parties…and those parties are about to make their intentions known.

Averis Vol
2013-02-03, 04:59 PM
Man, I wish for one session I could get the kind of playing you guys do from my group, it's gotta be an amazing experience. Keep the write ups comin, still lovin em.

Kaveman26
2013-02-04, 08:40 AM
Man, I wish for one session I could get the kind of playing you guys do from my group, it's gotta be an amazing experience. Keep the write ups comin, still lovin em.

I actually had a conversation with some of them about that notion. My one friend (the guy that plays Pernell) said

"Well yeah you are writing all the stuff where we didn't outthink ourselves into a TPK. You are making us look too good. Need to show some of the campaigns that ended in the graveyard"

Kaveman26
2013-02-04, 04:54 PM
Always a Bigger Fish:

Life for the gang is good. Profits are soaring, their reputation is spreading as the coolest joint around and their enemies know not to mess with them. A host of genies compromise a fair portion of their workforce and they have plans for additional long term grifting. The honeycombs beneath the city continue to expand.

Innocently enough one of their bartenders comes to them and says that his voucher to draw a paycheck was deemed invalid…inadequate funds. Curious. Thimble takes a ride to their bank and inquires as to the error. The head of the bank’s accounting services tells him there is no error. He goes on to say that perhaps Thimble forgot coming into the bank a few days ago and emptying out all of their accounts.

Thimble: I did what in the who now?
Accountant: Two days ago you liquidated all your funds with our establishment.

The accountant hands him several documents that bear his signature and stamp.

Thimble: Are you sure it was me? Cause these signatures could have been forged.

Accountant: We have a trap that monitors everyone entering or leaving the bank. It is equipped with true sight and automatically replicates a silent image for anyone entering or leaving the bank.

Basically the d20 version of a security camera. He pulls the plates from that day and sure enough there is Thimble walking into the bank.

Thimble: Did I empty out our safe deposit boxes.?
Accountant: I do not know.

Thimble opens up their deposit box…the deed for Serenity and a few other land properties they purchased were held inside. The box is empty except for a small scrap of paper.

I do love playing with new friends-M

The gang is furious that they got robbed.

Waits: Try and kill me in my sleep…that is expected, but to rob money we stole fair and square is despicable.

They go to the proper authorities who ooze smugness. Finneus himself “consoles” them.

Finneus: it sounds like you drew the attention of Mario…
Khorn: Who is Mario?

Finneus: A legend. Whenever a bank is robbed or a secure vault goes empty the authorities investigate and if they cant find anything they chalk it up to Mario. He is considered the greatest thief in history and has operated out of this region for at least twelve years.

Pernell: I would love to meet this gentleman.
Finneus: You and me both. There is a price of 5,000,000 gold pieces for his live capture.

Waits: that’s a lot of zeros.

The gang tracks what leads they have. First they try to track the paper their note was written on…it came from the bank. Then the ink used to write on the note…also from the bank. With true seeing active on the trap, they next work under the belief that he is an absolute master of disguise and used a mundane disguise kit to replicate Thimble’s appearance.

Thimble: That means he has observed us for some time. He also replicated my signature which means he has access to our temple or he might have worked there. If he was working for us in order to case the joint then he would have had ample time to observe me and my writing. We have any recent employee turn over?

Pernell: just a few people we paid severance when we replaced them with Shaitan’s.

Thimble: We should find out if any of them went missing or left town recently.

The whole gang puts out feelers and tries to gauge possible suspects. They do isolate a single displaced dealer that hasn’t been seen in a few days. Gather information tells them that he might have taken up with a group of bandits that recently went missing. They get a good description of him and undertake the gruesome task of digging out the ambushed “farmers” from the tunnel walls. Sure enough their missing dealer is amongst their number.

Pernell: This guy is the ultimate rat and we are going to need some world class cheese to catch him.

Kaveman26
2013-02-06, 11:50 AM
A Cheese to Wish for:

Suddenly the profitable grifting troop is on the verge of bankruptcy. Their ill gotten gains have just been snatched by a legendary Con Man and thief. Their leads in tracking down this elusive fraudster are dry. As could be expected they escalate the stakes and lay out a trap with a giant heaping pile of cheese…

They suspend all operations of illicit natures and pull in every last scrap of money they have available. The Temple Serenity is temporarily closed and they bring their entire force of Shaitan’s to their slowly building suburban estate. The earth and stone they are tunneling out from under the city is being redirected to constructing a stone mansion on their tract of land. It is on that track of land that they begin constructing a giant bowl…A few hundred feet deep and absolutely smooth on every side. Into the sides they craft dozens of slanted tunnels that flow into the basin. It literally occupies weeks of in game time.

Lots of interest from the city and its political structure is arisen, and daily visits are common place. After everything that transpired in the Palace they are very curious as to what is happening out in the country. All the gang will tell them is that the basin is part of a grand contest to be held for astonishing prizes. Once the basin is created they spend every last copper piece left to them to buy up some spell support. They soak the entire basin floor with Anti Magic Fields, Dimensional Anchor effects and a constant True Seeing effect. Anyone stepping into the basin floor is going to be bare for the world to see and incapable of magically interfering with the contest.

This is where it gets interesting. Thimble and the rest of the gang resume their original street performer shenanigans all while spreading the word of what the contest will entail. Anyone wishing to enter the contest must may 1,000 gold. The winner of the contest will receive 75% of the entry fees, with the remaining 25% going towards costs and expenses. In addition…the winner will receive the transferred servitude of all 7 Shaitans, the Marid and The Efreet. All wish capabilities will be fully available. They also make a great show of saying that anyone, no matter their origin or alignment is invited to participate. Their only stipulation…no magic, no tricks…sheer cunning alone.

The contest is designed to run for 24 hours. A series of events will whittle the competition down to a limited field of finalists. They get hundreds of entrants…including other genie, devils, a few demons and even a lone Yuan Ti. For the purposes of this recap…the notable participants include The Boss, The Rival, An Efreet Noble…just called the The Noble. And The Plain Looking Guy. A whole slew of riddle games, shell games, and what really amounts to a series of bar tricks are played out whittling the field down to the Four mentioned above. There is virtually zero doubt on the group’s behalf that the Plain Guy is Mario. But they now have a pair of Pit Fiends, a Noble Efreet and “Some Guy” as finalists for a few hundred thousand in gold and the ownership of nearly ten genies. They bring out the final “game” At this point the time is approaching 11pm…nearly 23 hours into the contest. There is a gaggle of onlookers from the rim of the basin and Pernell and Thimble get into character and work up the crowd for the final contest.

Pernell: we thank everyone for participating. Truly never have mere mortals witnessed such astounding displays of trickery and cunning. I urge everyone to check their wallets and back teeth because with this crowd you never know.

Thimble: Now for the last test of cunning. We are going to roll out the red carpet.

A luxurious and thick red carpet is draped over the basin floor by the Shaitans who then respectfully back away to the edges of the basin. The group does likewise except for Sabremane who takes out a scroll and places it on the center of the carpet.

Khorn: To win…all you must do is retrieve the contract from the center of the rug. If you touch the surface of the rug you are disqualified. No flight…no magic…no aid other than your own two hands….have at it!

The Noble is given the honor of going first (which in this case might be a detriment). He take a running start and tries to make a horizontal leap to snatch the scroll…he comes up at least 20 feet short and lands on the rug. A groan rises from the crowd and he leaves in frustration. The two pit fiends size each other up for a long moment while the Plain Guy seems practically bored. The Boss stretches his wings and tail out as far as they and tries to crawl over the sides o the carpet…wing tips supporting his body weight. As he reaches the center of the rug his balance gives out and he falls. He is practically breathing fire and waits just beyond the edge of the carpet for the two to take their chances. The Rival shrugs his shoulders and gestures to the plain guy…

Plain Guy acts half asleep and surprised they are pointing at him. He stretches and walks to the edge of the carpet. He bends over and puts his hands under the carpet…and begins to roll it up from under the bottom…walking behind it as the scroll gets closer and closer. The crowd watching is going wild and the Pit Fiends are fit to be tied.

Pernell: ok…as he is rolling up the carpet we are all getting to the very edge of the basin…just outside the anti magic field. A shaitan is going to be fifteen feet away from each of us.

Plain Guy picks up the contract and smiles for the first time.

Plain Guy: I was right…you lot are plenty of fun. Always good to have new blood in the game. Too bad you lost. I looked forward to further games.

Thimble: Don’t worry Mario…there is always time for a grand finale. Alright boys…voluntarily fail the opposition to the bull rushes…last one out has to pick up the tab.

The Shaitans break into a sprint and bull rush the gang directly into the walls of the basin. The Pit Fiends and Mario are all in shock…as the group is bull rushed into the wall Mario unfurls the blank scroll.

From the surface of the basin the remaining Shaitans remove the stoppers on the elevated tunnels…revealing their 23 hours of hard work. Crammed into every tunnel are 10 pound silver cannon balls. Using metalmorph every six seconds for 23 hours they converted all the metal and stone in the basin into 10 pound silver balls. Silver balls that are now pouring out of the tunnels and flooding the basin floor. By their calculations they have 579,000 pounds of metal bombs now falling.
DM: The Pit Fiends are going to Plane Shift out…
Thimble: Dimensional Anchor…
Dm: They have damage reduction…
Pernell: not against silver.
DM: They can fly…
Khorn: into the silver shotput hail storm? Go for it.
DM: I hate you guys sometimes…

No need to pulling out dice…nothing will survive that storm.

The city is shocked at what has happened. Excavation crews begin digging out the basin and while it takes them weeks…they are shocked to find no bodies other than a severely damaged Mario. No sign of the gang is present. What they do find is a series of honeycombed tunnels that lead to the city. While they were originally meant for robbing the city…they became escape tunnels for the gang. All signs of them in the city vanish.

A few things happened at this point.

1st: I never allowed a genie as a servant ever again.
2nd: Pernell and Company went down in our gaming circle as the lowest level characters to ever kill a Pit Fiend…matter of fact they killed 2.
3rd:Off camera the gang became a wandering circus and travelled the world incognito always wondering when a group of devils would come for them in the night.
4th: I realized that if I were ever going to DM another campaign again…it was not going to be sandbox. It was going to be structured and controlled. Without the benefit of controlling circumstances they are too smart for me to challenge effectively.

SowZ
2013-02-06, 12:30 PM
A Cheese to Wish for:

Suddenly the profitable grifting troop is on the verge of bankruptcy. Their ill gotten gains have just been snatched by a legendary Con Man and thief. Their leads in tracking down this elusive fraudster are dry. As could be expected they escalate the stakes and lay out a trap with a giant heaping pile of cheese…

They suspend all operations of illicit natures and pull in every last scrap of money they have available. The Temple Serenity is temporarily closed and they bring their entire force of Shaitan’s to their slowly building suburban estate. The earth and stone they are tunneling out from under the city is being redirected to constructing a stone mansion on their tract of land. It is on that track of land that they begin constructing a giant bowl…A few hundred feet deep and absolutely smooth on every side. Into the sides they craft dozens of slanted tunnels that flow into the basin. It literally occupies weeks of in game time.

Lots of interest from the city and its political structure is arisen, and daily visits are common place. After everything that transpired in the Palace they are very curious as to what is happening out in the country. All the gang will tell them is that the basin is part of a grand contest to be held for astonishing prizes. Once the basin is created they spend every last copper piece left to them to buy up some spell support. They soak the entire basin floor with Anti Magic Fields, Dimensional Anchor effects and a constant True Seeing effect. Anyone stepping into the basin floor is going to be bare for the world to see and incapable of magically interfering with the contest.

This is where it gets interesting. Thimble and the rest of the gang resume their original street performer shenanigans all while spreading the word of what the contest will entail. Anyone wishing to enter the contest must may 1,000 gold. The winner of the contest will receive 75% of the entry fees, with the remaining 25% going towards costs and expenses. In addition…the winner will receive the transferred servitude of all 7 Shaitans, the Marid and The Efreet. All wish capabilities will be fully available. They also make a great show of saying that anyone, no matter their origin or alignment is invited to participate. Their only stipulation…no magic, no tricks…sheer cunning alone.

The contest is designed to run for 24 hours. A series of events will whittle the competition down to a limited field of finalists. They get hundreds of entrants…including other genie, devils, a few demons and even a lone Yuan Ti. For the purposes of this recap…the notable participants include The Boss, The Rival, An Efreet Noble…just called the The Noble. And The Plain Looking Guy. A whole slew of riddle games, shell games, and what really amounts to a series of bar tricks are played out whittling the field down to the Four mentioned above. There is virtually zero doubt on the group’s behalf that the Plain Guy is Mario. But they now have a pair of Pit Fiends, a Noble Efreet and “Some Guy” as finalists for a few hundred thousand in gold and the ownership of nearly ten genies. They bring out the final “game” At this point the time is approaching 11pm…nearly 23 hours into the contest. There is a gaggle of onlookers from the rim of the basin and Pernell and Thimble get into character and work up the crowd for the final contest.

Pernell: we thank everyone for participating. Truly never have mere mortals witnessed such astounding displays of trickery and cunning. I urge everyone to check their wallets and back teeth because with this crowd you never know.

Thimble: Now for the last test of cunning. We are going to roll out the red carpet.

A luxurious and thick red carpet is draped over the basin floor by the Shaitans who then respectfully back away to the edges of the basin. The group does likewise except for Sabremane who takes out a scroll and places it on the center of the carpet.

Khorn: To win…all you must do is retrieve the contract from the center of the rug. If you touch the surface of the rug you are disqualified. No flight…no magic…no aid other than your own two hands….have at it!

The Noble is given the honor of going first (which in this case might be a detriment). He take a running start and tries to make a horizontal leap to snatch the scroll…he comes up at least 20 feet short and lands on the rug. A groan rises from the crowd and he leaves in frustration. The two pit fiends size each other up for a long moment while the Plain Guy seems practically bored. The Boss stretches his wings and tail out as far as they and tries to crawl over the sides o the carpet…wing tips supporting his body weight. As he reaches the center of the rug his balance gives out and he falls. He is practically breathing fire and waits just beyond the edge of the carpet for the two to take their chances. The Rival shrugs his shoulders and gestures to the plain guy…

Plain Guy acts half asleep and surprised they are pointing at him. He stretches and walks to the edge of the carpet. He bends over and puts his hands under the carpet…and begins to roll it up from under the bottom…walking behind it as the scroll gets closer and closer. The crowd watching is going wild and the Pit Fiends are fit to be tied.

Pernell: ok…as he is rolling up the carpet we are all getting to the very edge of the basin…just outside the anti magic field. A shaitan is going to be fifteen feet away from each of us.

Plain Guy picks up the contract and smiles for the first time.

Plain Guy: I was right…you lot are plenty of fun. Always good to have new blood in the game. Too bad you lost. I looked forward to further games.

Thimble: Don’t worry Mario…there is always time for a grand finale. Alright boys…voluntarily fail the opposition to the bull rushes…last one out has to pick up the tab.

The Shaitans break into a sprint and bull rush the gang directly into the walls of the basin. The Pit Fiends and Mario are all in shock…as the group is bull rushed into the wall Mario unfurls the blank scroll.

From the surface of the basin the remaining Shaitans remove the stoppers on the elevated tunnels…revealing their 23 hours of hard work. Crammed into every tunnel are 10 pound silver cannon balls. Using metalmorph every six seconds for 23 hours they converted all the metal and stone in the basin into 10 pound silver balls. Silver balls that are now pouring out of the tunnels and flooding the basin floor. By their calculations they have 579,000 pounds of metal bombs now falling.
DM: The Pit Fiends are going to Plane Shift out…
Thimble: Dimensional Anchor…
Dm: They have damage reduction…
Pernell: not against silver.
DM: They can fly…
Khorn: into the silver shotput hail storm? Go for it.
DM: I hate you guys sometimes…

No need to pulling out dice…nothing will survive that storm.

The city is shocked at what has happened. Excavation crews begin digging out the basin and while it takes them weeks…they are shocked to find no bodies other than a severely damaged Mario. No sign of the gang is present. What they do find is a series of honeycombed tunnels that lead to the city. While they were originally meant for robbing the city…they became escape tunnels for the gang. All signs of them in the city vanish.

A few things happened at this point.

1st: I never allowed a genie as a servant ever again.
2nd: Pernell and Company went down in our gaming circle as the lowest level characters to ever kill a Pit Fiend…matter of fact they killed 2.
3rd:Off camera the gang became a wandering circus and travelled the world incognito always wondering when a group of devils would come for them in the night.
4th: I realized that if I were ever going to DM another campaign again…it was not going to be sandbox. It was going to be structured and controlled. Without the benefit of controlling circumstances they are too smart for me to challenge effectively.

Man, I could not disagree more. That campaign was brilliant! I am sure all the players were satisfied. Just fantastic.

So, in the end, they stole all the entry fees, right? Hundreds of entry fees at 1000 gold each? I take it they were able to walk away with at least 100K each, then? Not to mention any magic items. Not a bad haul at all for level 6 characters.

I think I would pay to get reincarnated or an alter self, spell though, to avoid any retribution.

CoffeeIncluded
2013-02-06, 12:37 PM
That...That was absolutely glorious.

Averis Vol
2013-02-06, 01:11 PM
What a great end. it's amazing what you can perform when you don't tell your DM your intentions :P

Kaveman26
2013-02-06, 01:26 PM
It's very hard to seperate knowledge. I would be the first to admit that if they had told me in advance the endgame for their little contest I would have been hard pressed to not build in some loophole or escape clause for at least Mario. Them playing things close to the vest preserves that aura of honest discovery and makes for a great experience when you pull off the wilder stuff.

Axinian
2013-02-06, 02:47 PM
I'm actually really surprised Mario fell for that. Given that this occurred right after he fleeced them i would've thought it would be pretty obviously a trap. Perhaps he knew it was a trap and was overconfident? Still a good ending, but it seems like you didnt need to have this trap work.

SowZ
2013-02-06, 03:01 PM
I'm actually really surprised Mario fell for that. Given that this occurred right after he fleeced them i would've thought it would be pretty obviously a trap. Perhaps he knew it was a trap and was overconfident? Still a good ending, but it seems like you didnt need to have this trap work.

I thought of that, too. But it made sense to me. Basically, when Mario figured that so many devils, including Two Pit Fiends, were going to be present, he probably assumed the party would HAVE to play by the rules since the Pit Fiends would make sure of it. He probably didn't consider that the party had a way to kill two pit fiends as well as an assortment of other powerful creatures attending the contest. Shoot, I would assume that Pit Fiends would be enough of a deterrent not to cheat if it were me as Mario.

Kaveman26
2013-02-06, 03:06 PM
My thought process was...it was very much a Robin Hood type situation. This is Mario's chance to prove he can outthink and outwit Pit Fiends and gain a whole slew of genies in the process.

Of course its a trap...but what trap can they devise that I can't get out of?

580,000 pounds of silver falling damage that is what. It was also a public event and while they have surmised his identity once he decided to gloat, there was no evidence to prove it.