08: 38s (The High Roller Room)

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## Summary

### **Blackjack, and Some Familiar Faces**

In the previous session, Mujie, Tira, and Bran had just received their invitations to the High Roller Room, and the party sat down at Keller’s blackjack table in hopes of amassing enough coin to get Mahi and Luca clearance of their own. While Mahi plays a few hands, Cat gets some time to survey the gambling floor for any suspicious patrons. After a round or two, he sees a familiar face—Lillet, a half-elf from the Celestine Collective of Lhoam, an order of Ark scientists working under Ander Broadleaf with the permission of the Lhoam High Council and the Lhoam Police.

Cat sees Lillet leave the casino from the direction of the stairwell leading to the High Roller Room, wearing plainclothes instead of the robes and brooch customary for Collective members. He sends his spider familiar to tail her, but loses her trail not fair from the pier around the Sabre, where she is last seen heading for the mainland. Cat decides to roam the floor to see if he can pick up on any other information.

Meanwhile, Luca is spotted swapping cards out of his hand, and is brought downstairs by one of the bouncers under suspicion of cheating.

While roaming the gambling floor, Cat also picks up on a conversation between an orc bouncer and one of the Kalkes the gang left back in Lhoam’s city jail. Not realizing he had an audience, the Kalke divulges that Pombo’s crew is expecting a mysterious shipment from Pombo’s connection in the North Highlands. He mentions someone named Garris—a scientist for whom Lillet is serving as a messenger—and suggests that Pombo is buying both Cascan crystal and ark en masse.

Shortly after Luca is taken away by a bouncer, Mahi finds his luck, and wins enough hands for an invitation downstairs with the rest of the party.

### **The High Roller Room**

Reunited with Luca in the stairwell, the six travelers enter the fabled High Roller Room, where they finally meet **Pombo** and his entourage. Never one to pass on an opportunity to flex, Pombo’s High Roller Room is decorated floor to ceiling in velvet and gold, with Ark seeping up from the swamp and giving the room an ethereal golden glow. Pombo, from his throne-like chair opposite the entrance, directs the party to make themselves comfortable around a giant wooden table. In the middle of the hollowed-out wooden table is a pit, where the floorboards have been broken through by mangrove roots growing up and out of the swamp itself. At the base of the tangle of mangrove roots in the pit sits a sandstone pillar with a symbol etched into it that the party immediately recognizes as the Arkring. They share loaded glances across the broad table as Pombo begins to speak.

After explaining the rules to his favorite game, his six guests settle in to play 38s, a winner-take-all, every-man-for-himself test of pure luck. Cat, having charmed Pombo—a self-professed cat-lover—seeks to distract the big man while the rest of the party uses sleight of hand and general trickery to ensure their victories in the early rounds. Seemingly undeterred, Pombo continues to raise the stakes, while Cat has his spider familiar survey his office on the sly.

### **Things Go South**

Having caught wind of the party cheating and losing more than a few rounds himself, Pombo loses his cool and thinks it time to teach our unarmed party a lesson. The two women bring him his shortsword and an Ark cask, which he quickly crushes and absorbs. Now powered up on Ark, he deals Tira an impressive blow. While Pombo’s croc bouncers engage with Mahi and Bran, Tira takes on Pombo with her bare hands, supported by Luca and Mujie’s ranged spells. Meanwhile, seeing an opportunity to create a diversion, Cat has his spider snag Mahi’s earring to try to open up the Arkspring. When Mahi’s earring makes contact, the whole casino begins to rumble as the Arkspring opens up beneath it, flooding the pit and breaking open the hull even further. Mostly undeterred save for a few fighters knocked prone, the fight rolls on. But despite his impressive opener, the party shortly proves Pombo to be all style, no substance, and knocks him out just in time for Keller to burst into the room, the party’s weapons in tow. With their bossman down for the count, the girls and the Kalkes flee the scene, and the pragmatic croc bouncers lay down their swords while the party gets Keller up to speed.

### **Pombo's Office**

Post-scuffle, Cat raids Pombo’s office for several goodies: a ruined spellbook with three intact pages, a blank ledger, and a letter with Ander’s seal disguised by illusory script, as well as some parchment and odds and ends. Meanwhile, Mujie nabs a pack of Cleric Killers from Pombo’s desk, but notices a much *fresher* pack of Menthol Mythril Magics in the bottom drawer…

## Quotes

### *CRITICAL EAVESDROPPING:*

> “There should be a shipment coming in from the highlands in a few days. We’re still pulling good numbers from the swamp, but it sounds like Pombo’s connection found a new hotspot by Casca. Thought that Ark thingy in the Wilds blowin’ up woulda been good for us, but going there attracts too much attention nowadays. We all know what happened to Krim...”
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> “Ain’t many people up in the Highlands no more, so it should be easier to get it from there, anyway. Kind of a bitch of a journey, though, huh?”
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> “Pombo’s guy in Casca, Gary—Garris? That scientist dude, whatever, found some kinda fountain or something. That elf broad’s his messenger. He’s lettin’ us take as much as we want long as we pay for it. Guy’s a sucker, if you ask me. Sure, Pombo’s floatin’ him good money for the crystal, but we’re skinnin’ him on the Ark...”
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> *-Kalke overheard talking to an Orc bouncer*
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### *THE MAN OF THE HOUR:*

> “Welcome to the High Roller Room, lady… and gentlemen… and feline. Please, have a seat, make yourselves at home.”
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> “You six sure love trouble, huh? You’ve been busy, hittin’ the Snakepit one night, cheating your asses off in my fine establishment the next. I’d have thought you’d be a little more discreet on my turf, but you’re bold, I’ll give you that.”
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> *-Pombo*
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### *TOP 10 QUOTES HEARD SECONDS BEFORE DISASTER:*

> “You might have dealt with Krim— but coming into *my* casino unarmed… You don’t know what you’re getting into.”
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> *-Pombo*
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