Session0076

==March 21st==
Around sundown, in the west end of Mimrinoth's Face District, seven new recruits of an adventuring guild called Pax Mundus arrive at an abandoned pool hall called Snooker's, having each been summoned here to receive their first assignment for the guild. The recruits briefly introduce themselves as Fulmín de Leon, Licen, Taylor, Konohana, Brigg B. Mamba, Taro Tarot, and Logic's Compact Imlaq Colossus, Mark 2 (a.k.a. "Laq"). Finding the door to the pool hall unlocked, seemingly having been broken open with a crowbar, the party heads inside.
Inside, the party find the pool hall opens, and after briefly raiding the bar for liquor, begins searching for clues as to what they were summoned here to do. Investigating, they deduce that the pool hall, while abandoned as a place of business, does seem to be used on a fairly regular basis, showing signs of frequent coming and going by multiple people. They find evidence that most recently - within the last few hours - someone broke into the pool hall and went upstairs. While searching, Fulmín spots a large rat acting somewhat conspicuous and unnatural, seemingly spying on the party before scurrying off when noticed. 
Heading upstairs, the party finds no sign of the rat, but they find a living quarters, also seemingly used fairly recently by someone. On a desk in the chamber, they find a gramophone and a record sitting on a desk, seemingly placed there by whoever recently broke into the pool hall. Noticing that the record is emblazoned with the Pax Mundus emblem, the party gathers around and listens to the record, which plays back the following recording:
Good morning, recruits. Welcome to Pax Mundus. Your group has been assembled to fulfill assignment number 1-48-022, the details of which are as follows:
Three days ago, a shipment of military-grade arcanotech - mostly weapons and armaments - was stolen from an Aerzenian transport caravan en route from Hartwell to the Golden Wastes. We have very little intel regarding the theft. The caravan was attacked, nearly all of the soldiers in the convoy were killed, and Hartwell has been unable to track down the assailants. We received a request from Sergeant Marco Baar, the Hartwellian officer in charge of the transport, to find and return the weapons to Hartwell. Pax Mundus has not yet responded to this request, or made any obligations to fulfill it.
Your group’s assignment is to find and, if possible, recover, the shipment of stolen arcanotech. At a minimum, find out who took it, where it was taken, and for what purpose. If you’re able to recover the shipment, all the better. If you do recover the shipment, we request that you do not return it to Hartwell without first contacting us. We want to stress this point: Pax Mundus has not responded to Hartwell’s request, nor have we made any commitment to returning the weapons to them. Without more information, Pax Mundus has not yet determined if it serves the best interests of our organization’s goals for the shipment to return to Hartwellian hands. Use your best discretion if you choose to speak with Sergeant Baar, and refrain from making any firm commitments on behalf of the guild.
In the desk drawer, you will find your per diem, as well as passports for travel into Aerzen, and tickets for rail travel from Mengen to Hartwell to begin your search. You will also find a remote communication device which you can use to report the completion of the assignment. This device is one-time use; refrain from using it until the assignment is either completed or failed.
Upon successful completion of the assignment, you will each be awarded 80gp, and the opportunity to accept future assignments with Pax Mundus. If you’re able to recover the shipment, the payment will increase to 120gp.
Please bring this gramophone with you for collection upon completion of the assignment. Best of luck, recruits.
As the party is discussing the recording, they hear someone enter Snooker's pool hall downstairs, whispering and seemingly try to avoid detection. The party heads downstairs, where they find a small group of gangsters, accompanied by a witch with a rat familiar - the rat they spotted earlier. The gangsters' leader introduces himself as Nicky Ferrari, and accuses the party of breaking into territory owned by the Needlers, his gang. He instructs the party to leave their valuables behind and get out. The party refuses, and after a brief standoff, a fight breaks out. In the fight, the party kills a couple of the gangsters and knocks Nicky Ferrari unconscious, after which the remaining gangster surrenders. The party ties the two remaining gangsters up, then flees the scene.
The party leaves Mimrinoth, heading out into the Silverslate Mountains toward Mengen. About an hour outside of the city, they set up a campsite for the night, away from the road.
At camp, Licen tells the party that their home, a village in the Taruki Jungle called Charmin Hollow (or locally, The Holler), has been repeatedly attacked over the last year by a creature that the village elders have dubbed the Beast of Circumstance. They describe the beast as a shapeshifting monstrosity that always attacks in the form of different giant animals, but regardless of its form, it always has eight eyes that glow purple. Licen explains that the elders of the Holler have tasked them with finding and slaying the Beast of Circumstance, and they ask the rest of the party for their help in doing so, offering rewards in exchange. The party offers to help Licen after they complete their work for Pax Mundus. Taro also shares that he has heard accounts of similar attacks in other small rural towns all around the continent. 
==March 22nd==
In the morning, the party sets out along a mountain pass through the Silverslate Mountains toward the town of Mengen.
Along the way, the party encounters a lone traveler being attacked by a chuul and its larva. The party battles and defeats the monsters, rescuing the traveler.
Afterwards, the traveler, who introduces himself as Iris, expresses his gratitude, and offers the party a paltry amount of money as reward, which they refuse. As Iris is leaving toward Mimrinoth, the party finds traces of bumble - a powerful Fey drug - in a spot where he had been knocked over during the fight. Before he can get away, the party confront Iris about the bumble. He deflects for a short time, and attempts to place a magical charm on Licen, but eventually reveals himself as a fey creature in disguise, and admits that he is taking fey drugs to Mimrinoth for his clients: Brook, the Princess of Summer, and her partner. In exchange for their aid, Iris gives some bumble to the party from a secret stash he is transporting. He requests the party's secrecy and discretion in the matter, worrying that he has already said more than he should have.
Konohana says that he knows Brook, and asks Iris if he knows where a crossing to the Feywild is. Iris tells Kono about the crossing into the Changewood on Nakuloko Island, of which Kono is already aware. Iris offers to take Kono with him to meet with Brook, who might know of other crossings, but Kono declines for the time being, saying he might take Iris up on it later. 
After parting ways with Iris, the party follows the mountain path to Mengen, arriving in the early evening. Here, using the train tickets provided to them by Pax Mundus, they board a train to Hartwell. 
During the train ride to Hartwell, Laq asks the rest of the party what their objectives are, stating that his are to field test is functionality, and complete some other objective which he cannot share because the party lacks authorization to know about it. Taro explains that he is seeking fame and renown as a heroic adventurer. Konohana doesn't have any objectives in particular, and is just experiencing life in the Material Plane. Taylor says that she is gathering money to help her in her search for somebody, though she doesn't offer any other details. Fulmín is in pursuit of adventure and payment. Licen likewise is in pursuit of adventure and exploration, but also wants to find people to help him search for the Beast of Circumstance.
Licen purchases a newspaper, and the party spends some time looking through it. The front page story in the paper is about the stolen shipment of arcanotech. According to the story, the arcanotech is presumed stolen by the Golden Wastes, with whom Aerzen is in active conflict, ever since a large new deposit of Material Chaos appeared on the border between the two nations. Statements from Sergeant Marco Baar blame the international community for their support of the Golden Wastes, referring to the theft of the arcanotech as a war crime. The article also speculates that the Weavers Conclave might be involved in offering aid to the Golden Wastes.
Another article in the newspaper describes attacks on rural communities by a monster fitting the description of the Beast of Circumstance. One report states that a robed figure was seen riding away on the beast after its attack.
Another article explains that the Alviren Empress Roslyn Alvira is bedridden with an illness, and her condition has been deteriorating. Questions have arisen regarding the readiness of her son and heir, Ryne Alvira. In the meantime, territory talks between Queen Porcini and King Marcello of the Mcyorrhizan Empire have been delayed due to the Empress' illness.
Finally, there is news that Shaeserin has broken ground on the construction of an airship harbor.
After the train makes as stop in Hillenbrook and picks up some new passengers, the party overhears a conversation between a priestess of Ioun, Odette, and another young man, Ralf. The priestess expresses concerns that her goddess has seemingly become somehow distant or distracted in her communications, and that according to her colleagues in divine magic, followers of other gods have experienced similar issues. 
The train arrives in Hartwell around nightfall, and the party successfully makes it through customs using the forged passports provided by Pax Mundus.
The party splits up, with Fulmín and Taro going to meet with Sergeant Marco Baar, while the rest of the party heads to the market ward to pick up local gossip and news. 
The market ward group sells some wares, and gathers rumors that the Golden Wastes are responsible for the theft of the arcanotech shipment. They learn that the attack took place off the main road towards the Golden Wastes, but they can't find an exact location. 
Meanwhile, Fulmín and Taro meet with Sergeant Marco Baar. They say that Pax Mundus needs more information about the incident before they can assemble a team to complete the job. Sergeant Baar gives them the location of the attack. He also explains that there was a lone survivor of the attack, Private Lennard. When asked, Baar is hesitant to allow the party to speak with Lennard, citing his injuries and that fact that he is still in recovery. He offers the party a manifest of the contents of the shipment, which included weapons, magical gear, military equipment, and a great deal of refined material chaos (a.k.a. "salt").
After some discussion, Sergeant Marco Baar eventually agrees to let the party meet with Private Lennard in the morning, after Fulmín plays up his anti-Golden Wastes sentiments and rhetoric. Baar cautions that parts of Private Lennard's story do not seem to implicate the Golden Wastes in the attack, but he is nonetheless certain they are responsible. 
Afterwards, the party reconvenes at an inn for the night, and shares the information they've gathered. 
==March 23rd==
In the morning, the party goes to meet with Private Lennard, finding him in the infirmary ward of the military barracks. They find Lennard being treated for his wounds from the incident, which seems to have left him covered in bug bites. Lennard tells the party about the attack, explaining that their caravan was attacked by black-robed figures accompanied by a great number of spiders of varying sizes, ranging from normal to giant. The spiders seemed to be natural creatures for the region, they acted in unison and according to the direction of the robed figures, seemingly magically under their control. 
Lennard further describes the robed figures as having extra eyes carved into their flesh, such that each appeared to have eight eyes. Suspecting a relationship to the Beast of Circumstance, the party asks if their eyes glowed purple, which Lennard confirms. Lennard also confides that he did not see any gnolls, orcs, or other expected people's of the Golden Wastes among the assailants, though he presumes this to be the result of some sort of magical illusion or transformation. He also speculates that he might face repercussions for fleeing the encounter instead of staying with his troop.
Taro speculates that the assailants might have a connection to Lolth based on the spiders and imagery, but says that he's never heard of followers of Lolth using this particular methodology or carving extra eyes into their flesh. 
Having gathered all the information needed, the party departs. Before leaving, Brigg tells Lennard that he did the right thing by escaping with his life, and shouldn't face punishment for it.
The party buys some mounts so that they can travel faster, then departs Hartwell toward the site of the attack. 
Category:Pax Mundus Session Log