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View Full Version : City of Progress - Campaign Journal: Chapter 12 (Updates upgrades and grave-robbery)



Nibbens
2014-11-12, 12:39 PM
For those of you just tuning in – get acquainted with the game here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?330770-City-of-Progress-Campaign-Journal).

For those of you who missed the last session – click here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?378779-City-of-Progress-Campaign-Journal-Chapter-11-(End-of-Arc-2))

Joining us at the table were the usuals:

Beable Bamford - Halfling siege mage and Golem Lord for Rab's Progress, and his trusty Golem "Mouse 2.0" which is a cannon golem (http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/bestiary3/golem.html#golem,-cannon) in the general shape of a giant Foo Dog. One of the cannons is decked out with plenty of enchantments and the other is just normal.

Galarend - Human Shining Knight Paladin of Iomedae and General of Rab's Progress' standing army. He is never far away from his trusty steed "Bolba" (A huge flying Triceratops decked out in spiked full-plate armor. (yes, it flies. I approved a permanency of a Fly spell in his case due to particular circumstances.))

Lady Wisteria - Human verdant Sorcerer who is the Rab's Progress' herbalist and "tea-master." (In the front yard of her home stands the only tree in the entire city - a huge oak tree)

We were also joined tonight by an old friend of the group. He was playing an interesting cleric. Dr. Jarvius Havishim Worcestershire. (Yes, he “invented” Worcestershire sauce in the game) Dr. W. is a paraplegic cleric and surgeon of Cayden Cailean. He built a small golem by the name of Sprocket to be his legs. (Using a de-netted Clockwork Servant (http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/bestiary3/clockwork.html#clockwork-servant) to carry him) The good doctor may be solemn and serious, Sprocket, on the other hand, is annoying and serves as comical relief (as well as a foil to Dr. Worcestershire’s stern attitude).

The third arc: Updates, upgrades and grave-robbery.

The game started with just our original three in the meeting room of the duke – who was asking for a debriefing from Galarend. Sitting at the table listening to the story of what was recently accomplished, the duke gave Dr. Worcestershire a chance to introduce himself. After it was all said and done, the duke mentioned that he gathered the best of his city to accomplish his missions for a reason, and he wanted them to consider the doctor a part of them.

After the doctor was dismissed, he went back to his clocktower in the city. The DM handed out individual slips of paper which each characters shop had to deal with while they were away. They are reproduced here:

a. Everyone: Poorer citizens complain about the recent tax increase, all are compliant, however. There’s also been rumors of grave robbing been happening – but looks into the cemeteries mentioned reveals nothing.
b. Galarend: Diviners employed by the duke have mentioned that offensive action may be taken by someone/something at an unknown time. The Duke’s sent Spies as well as official inquiries into the surrounding nations. Rab’s military has been suffering as well – it’s having problems upkeeping the wear and tear on supplies from increased training. A few near misses with malfunctioning equipment and one death has begun to affect the moral of the standing army itself. The tax raise was in part to help mitigate this. Also, there seems to be a series of grave robbing on hand. The guards have been covering it up to not stir up the public.
c. Beable: His shop has been doing fairly well, with only minor setbacks to its production. A frequent customer named Nith Thessialbar came in a week ago, inquiring about giving the constructs sentience and free will – Your servants released the names of several books to him, and he left, with a spring in his step.
d. Lady Wisteria: Her shop has been prospering well, and the plants have been rather happy. The Duke, once again ordered a large shipment of exotic teas – which was complicated by a shortage/price hikes of a certain type that he buys often. Regardless, all seems well. People have been coming in for more sleep aids than normal. A common elderly customer, “Shay Reddy” was among them.

At once, the chaos ensues. All players wanted to act on the information they received but eventually decided on doing so in an orderly fashion. Beable went first – berating his fellow workers for not contacting him with matters of this nature sooner. He decides to pay Nith a visit and when he does he’s met by a 50 year old man who’s two story home is in the center (and rich section) of the city. Nith invites him in and immediately, Beable can tell that the man is lonely. His home is empty, and the only sign of someone other than him comes in the form of the pictures of his late wife over every wall.

Nith and Beable talk golem construction for a while before Beable asks to see the golem he’s working on. Nith agrees and brings him to the basement. In one section, there is a table and a small wood golem in the beginning of its construction. When asked why he’s building it Nith replied that he when his wife died it left him in need of a companion. A Knowledge: Local check revealed that ever since his wife’s dead he’s been a bit of a shut in. Beable mentions that he can help him build it – and Nith balks at the offer, preferring to be the only one involved in the construction of it. Beable mentions that if he ever needs any help to let him know. Nith agrees and thanks him. Beable leaves.

Next up was Lady Wisteria who wanted to inquire her supplier (who’s name is Ned) about why the tea prices are so high. I informed her that Ned wouldn’t be back for another couple months, so she decides to write him a letter. Instead of having her tell me what was in the letter I made her write it. She began writing and I went on to the next person.

Galarend spends his time addressing the military issues first. Giving his commanders and all the troops three days off, during which time if soldiers want to make their pay back, they can help with equipment repairs during those days. The lieutenants he asked what was going on, and they replied that the money wasn’t available to keep up with the wear and tear on the machines and equipment and they had to make do with what they had. Galarend gives each lieutenant 100gp and tells them to go enjoy themselves tonight, but doesn’t give them the three days off. He does tell them to come in at 12pm tomorrow, however. Next Galarend speaks one on one with his second in command who tells him much the same in the way of information. Galarend gives him 300gp and tells him to come in with the lieutenants tomorrow as well.

Next, Galarend calls for the captain of the city guard to find out about the grave robbing. He learns that the city guard has been covering up the indications of it and there have been 4 such instances. When he inquires about the names of the victims, he learns that Nith’s wife is among them. After giving him an even more substantial amount, he goes to Beable.

Galarend informs him about what he was planning to do (getting the militia to assist with the repairs of the golems) he also fills him in on the story of the grave-robbings. A quick knowledge check instantly gains Beable the information that flesh golems require six bodies to construct, and retain some of the memories of the body used for the head. Instantly, the group believes that Nith is rebuilding his wife as a golem.

The two decide to meet up with Lady Wisteria and collect Dr. Worcestershire. His introduction was a spectacle, having the group flying on Bolba (and Mouse 2.0) to the top of his clock tower where he was standing (or being carried by sprocket who was standing for him) looking out over the city. A quick round of introductions were made and sprocket made his signature sound of “Sprockety-woooo!” at the sight of Lady Wisteria transforming back into a human from a plant as well as at Mouse 2.0 hovering just over the tower.

Dr. Worchester invited them all into the tower to meet his various companions who are composed of Sinsear Hade a detective, Siri a clockwork mage, Spark a Clockwork soldier and guard, Distatium a Wyrwood Alchemist, Blode, a Halforc bloodrager and information trafficker, and finally Tick and Tock, two Clockwork Spies (http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/bestiary3/clockwork.html#clockwork-spy). It’s quite the cast of characters and a motley crew at that. After some brief introductions and roleplay shenanigans the game continued.

Galarend asks if they can speak to Dr. Worcestershire in private and he agrees. Bolba, however won’t let him ride on his back – due to the Doctors Chaotic Neutral alignment, so Dr. Worcestershire cast fly and up they go – a good 400 feet above the city floor. Here they discuss the happenings of the city and all that was going on – they agreed on a plan of action and set it into motion.

***During this several week portion of downtime Beable added a third cannon to Mouse 2.0. Mouse 2.0 is now Mouse 2.1.

The first order of business was to get the next three days declared as a festival by the duke. When he heard that they were planning to use the three days to 1) generate revenue for the city 2) use the days to get the golems repaired 3) to hopefully draw out the culprit of the grave-robbings into robbing more, the duke was hard pressed to say no.

Prior to the festival, Dr. Worchester got Blode to watch the gravesites for the next few days. His services came at a hefty price, but he paid. The three days of festival went by – the soldiers worked, the watcher watched and Rab’s Progress made a load of money, but no one robbed any more graves.
Also, about this time, Lady Wisteria and Dr. Worcestershire decided to follow up on the increase of sleep aid sales. They went to question Shay Reddy at her home. While on the way there, they made small talk, and when Lady Wisteria inquired about the Dr. condition, he remained quiet and she changed the subject.

At Shay’s home they hit a dead end, finding out that she was stressed because of tax increases and the fact that she’s on a fixed income (pension from her deceased husband who was in the military (he died several years ago)) and is having trouble affording some luxuries. Dr. Worcestershire wrote a prescription for her – giving it to Tick, and sending it to fill the order for her – and he doted heavily on this old woman, grasping her hand and comforting her. She was grateful.

During the festival Nith was not seen. While it was common for the man to be somewhat of a recluse, this circumstance was a bit odd. When he wasn’t seen to emerge from his home in the next week – or the next – or the next – the players decided to act.

The four showed up at the home to Nith Thessialbar's houme and the group threw down the prep-spells and Galarend knocked. With no answer, he knocked again and called out for Nith. Again, there was no answer. Galarend opened the door. When he did, Dr. Worcestershire cast a lovely little spell: forbiddance (http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/spells/forbiddance.html#forbiddance). He locked the entire house down, in which no one could teleport or shift out of, and people coming in would be damaged entirely based on alignment. Thinking themselves relatively safe and Nith successfully trapped, they enter.

The impossible: reviving the un-revivable.

Upon entering they are greeted with Nith’s sprawling foyer. However, crumpled on the floor is a small humanoid shape made of wood – the wood golem that Nith was working on when Beable checked in on him the first time. They approach the wood golem to find that it’s been broken in ways that would be excruciating for a human – its fingers twisted around, its legs snapped and broken, its body mass bears deep pockets and pits where wood was gouged from it. Then it moves, looking up to Galarend – and startling everyone around it. Galarend called Lady Wisteria to figure out if she could speak to it, and it startled them again by speaking out in common.

They ask it questions about “what happened” and “where’s its creator?” The golem was confused and hurt, but it answered nevertheless – he “woke up” down stairs, was brought up to the top floor to a woman. When its creator went down stairs, she began to “cause pain” to the golem – laughing all the while.

Lady Wisteria had to help get the wood golem outside of the house, and it limped to do so – having its legs busted. Galarend chained it up outside on the gate near the entrance. The golem didn’t argue or about this, but Lady Wisteria comforted it and said they would return soon.

They continued into the home and were surprised to find a thin layer of dust on everything, as though things hadn’t been touched or moved in a while. They let Lady Wisteria scout the entire house with her Arcane Eye. She scouted the basement and second floor. While the second floor gave her a view of several open rooms and 1 closed door, the bottom gave an elaborate maze of a laboratory.

However, the scouting of the lab revealed several contraptions. One of which was a table covered with alchemy supplies and enough embalming fluid to choke a horse. She also found a letter on top of one of the tables. Using the arcane eye, she read it aloud to everyone else:

Insane Ramblings?

When my wife died, she took with her my heart – my morality. She resists the resurrection spells, and for no reason! The priests tell me that no soul can come back if it is unwilling. I reject this notion. There is no reason for her not to come back to me. I need her!

Then, the Irixa came. She told me that she could give me the power to bring her back. The price was small, she said. She wanted my love. I told her this was impossible – my love was for my wife. She smiled and touched my arm, telling me it’s not so much “love” she wanted, but a worshiper. She proclaimed to be a god in need of them, I laughed in her face, but then she showed me the way. She showed me Truth.

I should have balked at the idea. The spell she leads me towards reeks of necromancy, but the sigils and magika pathways and conduits all point out this to be a resurrection spell of a type – one that will prevent anything from stopping Serena from inhabiting one of the bodies I had to collect for the spell. The mere idea of such a thing being possible should have turned me away. I should have shunned and Banished the bitch where she approached me. But I admit, to my own fault, I was weak. It’s been so long, Serena. I long for your touch again, and I’d cross every level of Hell and the Abyss to find you.

So I gave my service to this woman and became her acolyte. Heh, me, a man of the cloth now… I could care less, and Irixa senses this. My only real purpose is the spell – and I will have her back, regardless of the cost!


A quick Knowledge check reveals Irixia to be a Nemesis Devil (http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/bestiary4/devil.html#devil-nemesis). It’s a being who tricks others into worshiping them in exchange for power – however, those who do worship them are damned to hell instead of whatever paradise they promise. The players now get a fuller view of the situation and decide to go into the second floor to beat the snot out of Irixia, the “woman who caused the wood golem pain.”

So, on they march and buff and kick in the door. Click here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?398488-City-of-Progress-Campaign-Journal-Chapter-12-1-and-13-(Irixia-and-Serena)&p=18816803#post18816803)for the next game.