May 2012 - ongoing
June 13th Game Session
June 13th Game Session
Pathfinder
Episode Eight: The Bard's Keep - Part One
On the eight game session of the Indigo-Entertainment Pathfinder chronicle, I decided to throw a published adventure at them. Waaaaay back when I was still playing Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (not d20 or 4th edition) I had a copy of the 29th issue of Dungeon Magazine, which had a remarkable adventure in it: Ex Libris by Randy Maxwell. The Dungeon was a beautiful creation that had the complexities of movies like Cube, and the remarkable allure of mystery which I loved. I decided very early on to use the dungeon with much adjustment and changes to suit my game. The end result was an adventure which would turn out to be the first "multi-part" game which would require more than a single session to resolve.
In this game session, the following players were present:
Ramza, CG, Fighter-Wizard
Caishn, CN, Rogue
Jazintho, CN, Wizard
Rondo, CG, Sorcerer
Ironically, that meant all the players had names which started with the letter J.
Given the events of the last session, with Jazintho's treachery revealed to all (his being possessed by the Demon Child was a high plot point, as was his exorcism of its influence), I spent some time before the game started asking him what his direction was to take. After all, if he wanted the group to trust him, he had to give a good reason for them to do so.
The gist was this: Jazintho claimed to have been overwhelmed by the demon, and attempts to sense his alignment proved that he had not turned towards evil. Eventually, the group, while not unanimous, decided to give him a second chance. The group descended into the ancient ruin called Bard's Keep in hopes of find an artifact book which according to Omen, "You will know you have it once it is in your possession." The group entered the keep, noticing quickly that the ruin unlike others had been raided by others before, if not quite recently. Little did they know the trials they were to face.
While Bard's Keep was not filled with traps like it was the previous adventure, the place was strange in how the rooms next door seemed to change on their own. Suspecting some kind of clockwork dungeon, the group faced off with two of the place's guardians, with much difficulty, realizing the place was definitely a challenge which may require their full cooperation to overcome.
The rooms were moving. That much was clear. But what system existed in their movement, and what clues the previous attempts others made to conquer the place left behind were but the ingredients to a whole new adventure. After finding a few metal plates which had dwarven runes on them (each plate corresponding to a letter) and facing off with two of the place's guardians (deadly things which were vicious in combat and deadly with their fiery breath weapon), the group realized to take a strategic retreat was a wiser course of action. It became quickly apparent, however, that they would have to return to rescue the other group which had gone in with hopes of finding them. What this will result with in the end was something to be discovered in a later game session.
*
Definitely though, the players found the dungeon to be an awesome, if not challenging experience. Faced with a place which seemed to naturally move on its own, there was no doubt that the group would have to find some way to work with that complication to succeed in this quest. With the looming threat that now PC death will be respected, all carried with them the worry that the game session they played could be their final one.
One thing was certain, however: The fun only multiplied even more.
And while this game chronicle was probably to end on the 12th episode, there was no denying that all who played the Gifts of the God Mages game were definitely enjoying the ride.
In this game session, the following players were present:
Ramza, CG, Fighter-Wizard
Caishn, CN, Rogue
Jazintho, CN, Wizard
Rondo, CG, Sorcerer
Ironically, that meant all the players had names which started with the letter J.
Given the events of the last session, with Jazintho's treachery revealed to all (his being possessed by the Demon Child was a high plot point, as was his exorcism of its influence), I spent some time before the game started asking him what his direction was to take. After all, if he wanted the group to trust him, he had to give a good reason for them to do so.
The gist was this: Jazintho claimed to have been overwhelmed by the demon, and attempts to sense his alignment proved that he had not turned towards evil. Eventually, the group, while not unanimous, decided to give him a second chance. The group descended into the ancient ruin called Bard's Keep in hopes of find an artifact book which according to Omen, "You will know you have it once it is in your possession." The group entered the keep, noticing quickly that the ruin unlike others had been raided by others before, if not quite recently. Little did they know the trials they were to face.
While Bard's Keep was not filled with traps like it was the previous adventure, the place was strange in how the rooms next door seemed to change on their own. Suspecting some kind of clockwork dungeon, the group faced off with two of the place's guardians, with much difficulty, realizing the place was definitely a challenge which may require their full cooperation to overcome.
The rooms were moving. That much was clear. But what system existed in their movement, and what clues the previous attempts others made to conquer the place left behind were but the ingredients to a whole new adventure. After finding a few metal plates which had dwarven runes on them (each plate corresponding to a letter) and facing off with two of the place's guardians (deadly things which were vicious in combat and deadly with their fiery breath weapon), the group realized to take a strategic retreat was a wiser course of action. It became quickly apparent, however, that they would have to return to rescue the other group which had gone in with hopes of finding them. What this will result with in the end was something to be discovered in a later game session.*
Definitely though, the players found the dungeon to be an awesome, if not challenging experience. Faced with a place which seemed to naturally move on its own, there was no doubt that the group would have to find some way to work with that complication to succeed in this quest. With the looming threat that now PC death will be respected, all carried with them the worry that the game session they played could be their final one.
One thing was certain, however: The fun only multiplied even more.
And while this game chronicle was probably to end on the 12th episode, there was no denying that all who played the Gifts of the God Mages game were definitely enjoying the ride.
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