I run at the dragon and put my dick in it.

>>12433858
There was talk last thread about tipping off Cygnis to the fact that the cult had blatantly walked back into their old hideout to clear stuff out at their leisure, and perhaps telling her about the address that we also found.

Though that's a pretty serious move, we should probably try to build a consensus before doing that.

>>12433858
I'm wondering if the KV refers to the wizard we robbed... I keep forgetting his name. I think we should seriously re-investiage the sword we took from the orcs on the ship. Get a second opinion since that wizard was making a big deal at losing it when we were listening in on his conversation.

If we do mention it to Cygnis, paint us in the best way possible although I personally don't think we should yet. I also think we should ask our guest about the book in general. Maybe she has info on it or other insights we and Scinnari lack when it comes to it. Maybe she knows why black fire erupts from it.

Fuck yes dragon quest.

Did we ever commission that ring that protects from poisons and hides the fact we are polymorphed?

I think we should tell Cygnis that the cult was able to enter her home without her knowing, and that they were cleaning out the old place... perhaps even that they have people in positions of power in the city guard. Ramp up the paranoia to extreme levels.

I'm still hung about about the fact that the cult can pretty much just stroll right into their hold hideout, collect up all the stuff at their leisure, and stroll right out again, with the guards not only not stopping them but actually helping cover for them. They've got some serious clout. We really need to inform Cygnis about what they're up to. She's pretty much one of the only person who we know is not in their pocket.

>>12433944
The wizard was named Kazmiri, so it very well could be him.

We should ask Scinnari to come with us to investigate the address we found. Probably change forms to some random human so they don't recognize us. If we find that it's a big cult hideout like I suspect it is, clear it out. We should inform Cygnis that the cult was still active in their old hideout, but not tell her about the new address. That way anything we find their is ours, and if we want to tell Cygnis about it we can do that after we've taken the juiciest bits for ourselves. Also, it would allow us to use our dragon form without tipping off Cygnis.

Please reach consensus. I'm going to relocate temporarily. Back in twenty minutes, plenty of time to hammer something out.

And if you are going to ask Asha about it, roll me 1d100.

>>12433947
vote from me goes for this

rolled 73 = 73

>>12434101
I say ask Asha about it but we'll be sure to hide this book from her in the event there's more to it than she lets on. So unless everyone is drastically against this, I'll roll for it.

In regards to Cygnis... I don't think I'll stop you all from wanting to tell her so at least think up a reason and why we went back to that place in the first place before talking to her. Alternatively, we might want to murder brother Arman or whatever his name was and make it look like the cult did it, to further drive Cygnis paranoid and reliant on us in general.

I also ask people again to consider re-examine the sword we took from the Ork's ship in the lead lined chest.

Alright. Tell Cygnis about:
1. The cult sneaking into her home.
2. The cult freely operating in their old hideout.
3. The guards helping them. Make sure to mention "KV."

Do NOT mention the address we found. If she asks, give nebulous answer about us investigating further and that we'll get back to her if we find more.

Then, go with Scinnari to the new address to investigate. Make sure to use different forms than our usual ones so that we aren't recognized.

Cygnis paranoia.

>>12434185
I agree with this. Also do the magical protection against poison and poly-find. We don't want to be recognized and half the things Scinnari found that incapacitates a polymorphed dragon were poisons.

This >>12434185
And also this >>12434211

We really need that anti-poison ring. We've been talking about it for several threads now, and with us going up against the cult we really need to get one.

True seeing is a bigger problem. There are very few ways to counter it, it's a very good spell. It is a 6th level spell after all.

Could we perhaps get an inventory of all the stuff we have? It would speed up decision making if we had a list of what we have at our disposal that we can quickly reference.

>>12434285
Sword
Staff
Gold [500]
Silver [9653 is what I have in my notes, but I'm pretty sure we've spent some...]
Copper [18]
Polymorph-compatible anti-scrying amulet [wearing]
Anti-scrying amulet [with Jerrik]
Work-of-Art gold dragon pendant [not finished, not enchanted, paid for, being made]
anti-poison/detect magic ring
Cult knicknacks [a bunch of (at least six) gold goblets, silver candlesticks, and two golden candelabras]
Book of the Binder The Unspeakable One
Book of learner's magical theory

[I may be forgetting things, but I believe that's a fiarly complete list. I'm going to eat some of the food I got, and start writing up our inquiries with Asha shortly.]

The cult was able to stroll into their old hide out. They obviously have very high contacts in the city's power structure.

Perhaps the gold could be persuaded of this. More importantly, perhaps the gold could be persuaded to work toward tearing down the oligarchic structure for a benevolent dictatorship?

A dictatorship with us as the figurehead. She'd be the power behind the throne "of course".

>>12434349
Oh, so we do have an anti-poison ring already. Good to know. Thanks.

rolled 1, 1 = 2

Hello again writer dude.

I'm a bit reticent about telling Cygnis, but I'm willing to roll with it.

I think that perhaps we could use Asha to try and find those guards?

>>12434349
Good we have the ring. Cygnis is my vote then.

>>12434350
Another thought occurs to me. Instead of suggesting that we be placed as a figure head, we beg the gold to take decisive action and work to insinuate into her head that the leadership of this city is mostly corrupt.

She will refuse to exert overt power on our own, and would probably turn to us to be her figurehead anyhow.

Also, as for the cult's we have to deal with them quickly.
May I suggest Kobaldian traps?
And entirely prevent anyone from entering there ever again? (not even bother putting a treasure there, just let it all be trapped.)

>>12434349
Of course, once I post, I immediately remember a bunch of things I forgot

Platinum [20]
'A treatise on Base and pure metals', a book found in Devlin-AKA-Eidomon-AKA-snakeman priest's apartment. It has a two page sketch on the last page of architectural plans for a lighthouse, with rather complicated architectural equations, and arrows pointing to certain portions of it.
Some lead figurines of innocuous gods, and one of with the Binder/Unspeakable Ones' yellow sign.
Probably still forgetting some.

rolled 7, 5 = 12

Could we have a recap of the inventory at the start of the next thread too?

>>12434175

Asha proves to be in, and just in case, you decide to ask her opinion, in the probably-vain hope that she knows anything about this cult.

"I've never heard of this god before. Perhaps of another plane? Hm.... The dragon looks familiar though... Sort of."

"Really?" You ask surprised. "What do you mean? Sort of?"

"Well... Dragons all sort of look the same, unless they have massive distinguishing characteristics. Sorry, 'of the same type' all tend to look the same." Asha amends without looking up. "If it was missing a wing, an eye, if it was in more detail, or perhaps half it's face, then it would be easier to identify; I'm only guessing here, because it seems to be in the same pose and type..."

"But?" you prompt, somewhat irritated at her delay, and a little more irritated by her comments about dragon kind. Of course, the humanoid races tend to not have the memory, perception, or knowledge of dragon physiology that dragons themselves do, so it's not exactly her fault.

"Well, minus these... puppet strings, tentacles, around the edge, it looks like Skauryazeiss. In... the ancient history of Tashz, and I use 'history' very loosely, it's believed that the royal family was descended from a great blue dragon-"

"Pure?!" you ask, again surprised.

>>12434745

"No, no, that the first of the Emperors or Empresses of Tashz had their child of the blue dragon. I don't particularly believe it myself, it seems far too... mythical, but that has been the explanation any time one of the royal family, or, to be quite honest, anyone else, exhibits... sorcerous powers. Like mine." she adds, after a brief pause. Painful memories, you suspect.

"Anyway, part of the alleged 'history' states that the blue drove off or killed Skauryazeiss, a great black that had inhabited the region prior to the arrival of the blue and the ancestors of Tashzmen today. It looks like representations of Skauryazeiss, perfectly, except for the background. Of course, as I warned, all black dragons look alike, unless they have severe differences, and the size and quality of this rendition doesn't help... I just mentioned it because he looks posed the same way." Asha finishes, handing back the lead ornament.

>>12434757
This is of interest to me then. I would ask for any information you have on this dragon.

>>12434757
Hmmm. So if we do go to Cygnis, this might be something worth asking her about. I wonder if Asha might have any idea on why the book erupts black flame at anyone that tries to read it... Maybe you need something to identify yourself as a member of the cult like a token or scales...?

>>12434819
I suggest research on all ancient black dragons of note.

rolled 7, 4 = 11

Might they have different names in different societies?

So it is concluded...
We research ancient black dragons, and probabbly ancient blue's as well.

Alright. Now we need to talk to Cygnis.

We should do this >>12434185

Also, remember to be as polite, charming, and generally gentlemanly as possible. When the topic of the cult is brought up, tread carefully and act properly worried about her. This shouldn't be too difficult, as the cult really is something to be very worried about. Anyway. Be polite, be sensitive, and generally do everything we can to paint ourselves as her ally in this. After all, the cult is a threat to both of us, especially now that they know we're the one who trashed them the first time around.

rolled 94 = 94

>>12435175
Shall we say, TWO life-debts?
Also, we need to find her lair.......>.>

Actually we can trust brother Arman since he was the one who tipped us off. should ask him questions since he is a scholar.

don't like the idea of trying to drive the gold into paranoia. makes manipulating her harder and last thing we want is an insane gold dragon.


however we can get information out of her without tipping her off. ask her about her nightmares and visions under the guise of trying to help her out emotional. maybe even show her the lighthouse planes if she is deemed able to talk about it.

gets her to trust rely on us more and we get the information we need.

if we are going to take down this cult and save our hide we will need ever available resource.

Finally back. Sorry. Know I took my time.
###############################
"Do you know anything about this dragon beyond that? Or the blue?" you ask, pursuing the topics of interest.

"No, I'm afraid. Like I said, ancient legend, probably not true. I didn't pay much attention to it." Asha responds regretfully. "Why, is there something you need help with?"

"No.. Well, unless you can tell me why this causes readers to spontaneously combust." you reply, holding out the book of the Binder. "Black flame. Evidently pretty painful. I'm not sure why, exactly, but it's done that when others have tried to read it." you elaborate.


"Strange.... Let me see.... Yes, I doubt that's actually Skauryazeiss. Probably some local beast of legend, instead." Asha says, looking the cover of the text over. Casting a spell, her eyes glow blue as she examines it with magical aid.

"It... seems holy magic, of strange god. Very odd..." opening the book, she starts skimming the first page. Remembering the last person to read it, you take a step back, and start to order her to shut it, until you realize that she doesn't seem to be undergoing any effects.

"Strange... general religious babel, nothings for the believers. 'The Binder was the greatest of the ... favored of.. chosen by... to challenge gods... repeat, repeat." she says, turning the page, "Might have worthwhile information somewhere in there, but I don't think I'd have the patience to find it." she says in conclusion, handing it back. Saving you the trouble of demanding it back; damned if you're going to let anyone else read anything about this that you haven't mad sure is safe.

"Thank you, Asha, you've been of great help." you say, turning to leave. Scinnari is standing just outside the room, not looking at Asha. Just as 'ordered'.

What now?

>>12435231
Hmmm. So it affected Scinnari, who is a devil so that could be expected. Why would it of affected the beggars we picked up though? Unless we somehow only picked up super evil beggars...

I say investigate the sword we took from the Ork ship. No one else seems to care but there must be more to it than we saw in the first place for Kazmiri to be annoyed with its loss more than the magical staff we found.

>>12435231
why was she unaffected? we should probably find this out...

And go talk to our scholar friend.

well since the book seems safe to those of draconic lineage should we take a look? being extremely carefully since it might be a trap of magical nature for dragons.

Repeating a previous question from the previous thread:
Did we melt off the Ring of True Seeing the thief had returned to the female cultist?

>>12435332
Right. Forgot that she might actually have draconic lineage. Maybe we will be safe reading it... But that means either the cultists have someone with draconic lineage amongst them or they're considered draconic, correct?

Hmmm. Draconic lineage. Or reptillian at least. I still think it's too dangerous to read.

We need to research all the powerful ancient lizardlike beings in this area in the past few thousand years. To the temple!

And freak out Cygnis already.

She's dragonblooded, just said so. Possible relation to ancient bound dragon, best to ask her to research the book, have someone watch her to make sure no strange shit goes down. Scinnari would be bad for that, but kobolds would be even worse.

rolled 9, 2 = 11

I vote that we open it with a ten foot pole.

Also - just had a flash of inspiration - maybe it can only be safely openned by those who have no malice or anything towards it, or even only openned if the person doesn't want to use it.

This thread reminds me.

Two of my players mentioned offhandedly that they play monster hunter.

Now, as an expedition into a newly discovered land they're about to embark on a cursory land-grab trying to beat other kingdoms who are doing the same.

Just to fuck with them I'm thinking of throwing down White Fatalis or Lao Shan Lung as the absolute, and very ornery, lord of this new land.

we could start spreading rumors of a cult that secretly controls the city calling themselves the binders. will make it far harder for them to hide their activities.

this may or may not be a good idea but we could also spread rumors of an inquisitor investigating the cult who arrived months ago.

lets do some more investigation and maybe later we will read the book.

also brother Arman might have information. he is a scholar after all.

>to the temple, talk to Arman

Informing Scinnari of your plans, you depart. She says she'll wait on you outside, though you convince her to test her choker, and see whether it protects her from, among other things, being on a temple's grounds. The Scinnari's verdict is 'yes, but it is extremely uncomfortable'.

Leaving her to wait for you outside, you go to find Arman. He's busy copying a scroll as you approach, re-writing it in a neat almost-printed script on the new one.

"Ah, Arman... I'm afraid I have some bad news and questions. I may also have to bring Cygnis in on this too, I fear." you say, nodding to him. He looks up, worried, but allows you to explain.

"I returned to the cults' chapel, after investigating Eidomon's room;" you begin, compressing the tale fantastically, "And, while it had city guards outside, with a 'K-V' emblem, who claimed they were guarding the 'excavation and investigation' of the cult temple, inside it had cultists and more of the snake creatures like Eidomon, though dumb this time. They seemed to be removing their relics, and, for some reason, bricks, in shipping crates. The obvious fear is that they have some serious pull in the city, to get their followers in the Guard assigned to that post, or to get themselves hired to clean out their own temple. I fear we must bring Cygnis into this, we need all the help we can get." you tell him, exaggerating for effect where useful. He's obviously worried and scared, both for telling Cygnis and about the cult.

>>12435761
"What do you think Cygnis will be able to do to help?" he asks, worry strong in his voice. Yeah, he's definitely oblivious to Cygnariassis.

"I suspect she has more resources than we'd think." you say, considering whether to reveal the truth. Cygnis probably wouldn't loike it... and you don't want to gain her animosity yet. "Besides, she may have information from her missing years... It's possible."

"I.... I don't like that, Cibach. I think it is too close to what Eidomon tried to do to her, after all, that's what he wanted..." Arman says, gathering himself up to tell you 'no'.

"But he wanted that knowledge for his cult's power." you reason, cutting his steam, "We want it to help combat them, and it would help Cygnis get revenge upon those who wronged her...."

"I'm not sure I approve of that, Cibach, that sounds-" he begins again, and you cut him off again.

"Please, Priest Arman. I admit you are superior in matters of knowledge and divinity, but let me tell you, assure you, if someone hurts you, badly, there is... mental stability and peace of mind to be gained in punishment."

"I suppose such a well-travelled person as yourself would know. Very well. In that case, what do we do?"

"First, we must- No that's second. First, have you found anything about this 'Binder' or 'Unspeakable One'?" you ask, almost jumping; Just as you say 'unspeakable', the church bells start tolling out the hour. Three.

>>12435779
"I.. Not much, I'm afraid. The 'Unspeakable One' is a god dedicated to madness, chaos, and destruction. Generally focused on the later two, as the first usually isn't very popular. Proscribed in many nations, and extremely old, as far as religions go. However, I'm not actually sure; other accounts describe it as a Tyrant, a god who walked the earth, and ruled a vast ancient nation with an iron fist. I'm afraid I have very little to believe on, records are either very vague, indistinct, or of very poor reputability. Er, what was number two?" Arman finishes, becoming calmer and more collected as he recounts his research.

"We must decide whether to tell Cygnis." you say reasonably, in a manner that invites argument or agreement. Arman seems on the verge of doing one or the other, before bowing his head.

"I apologize; I am not the authority I am in more normal fields on this subject; I will go with whatever you think wisest. I have minimal experience with... cults." he finishes with distaste.

>>12435786
Part of me still thinks we shouldn't tell her unless we really, really need to. It'll be hard but I think still doable if we do it on our own.

Also ask Arman about the dragons Asha told us about and if there any local beasts of legend that could match the symbol.

how mentally stable is the gold dragon right now? to be fair i kind of want to know what kinds of visions and nightmares she is having since we may have to deal with it later.


we could ask brother Arman how she is doing. don't want to make planes until we can get a good idea how she will behave.

I think we should suspect Arman.

He brought us in both times, we've already ruled out that priests are incorruptible, and if anyone is in a position to know about her being a gold dragon it's him.

If we take him and flay him alive after telling Cygnis about the cult that will only fuel her desire to crush them. If it turns out he is part of the cult we've removed a serious influence against us. Win-win. Well, not for him but who cares about him. We have the gratitude of the entire temple, we don't need him anymore for access.

>>12435889
No point suspecting him. We only found out about the cult because of him. He ignored Eidomon's order to drop the matter in the first place and asked us to find her. If he was apart of the cult, why would he do that?

right now we don't need her yet. i don't think we should tell her will have to at some point. however we should have planes in case the cult goes after her, maybe a token that she can activate if she is in trouble again (tracking device so we can find her), for irony sake it could be an additional enchantment for the choker we plan on giving her.

we need her strong right now. we should try to improve her mental state all the while getting her around our claw so to speak.

>>12435907
Power play. Maybe Eidomon never ordered any such thing. Maybe Eidomon was really his second in command. We have no idea. A better question is, how does it hurt us to have Scinnari interrogate a low ranking priest? Sure we lose him, but we gain massive gold dragon paranoia and help mobilize the temple resources behind us if he really is innocent.

What do we do, then?

[Also, apologies if I'm writing more errors than usual. No-sleep-zombie right now.]

>>12435907
Research ancient dragons. Tell Cygnis without Arman there. Then wait a few days to abduct and torture Arman to death. Scinnari would like that job, she already hates him.

We get the trifecta: knowledge, paranoia, and the temple thinks the cult is active again.

>>12436206
For an added twist, have Arman's body be found with Cygnis' dagger in it. As far as she knows, the cult had it last.

>>12436233
are there spells to detect who had the dagger last? if so, then I think we hire an assasin that isnt a valuable asset...

Or just a thug to kill the dude with.

>>12436291
As long as we 'find' the body for her and give the dagger to her ourselves, that won't matter, will it? Because we were the last to hold it before her. Assuming the spell works that way.

In the meantime, shall we look into records or research the activities of this 'KV' person and his troops? Might be able to figure out once and for all whether he has a motive to be helping the cult, is a cultist, or is oblivious.

Scinnari recommended searching the temple or visiting the city's records, right? All paper-trail PI style? Maybe we can get a bottle of whiskey to take while we do this, and narrate cynically to ourselves.

>All seem to be suggesting killing Arman off in a few days, >>12436363 mentioned something to do in the interim. Confirm?
###############


"Finally, it's been brought to my attention that the cult's symbology might refer to ancient dragons, or beasts." you say, unpalatable as it is to liken dragons to crazed monsters, "Do you know of any great black dragon in this region? Or something that could be taken as one?" you produce the lead token with the picture on it, and he flinches, but studies it.

"I'm afraid I don't know anything of the sort. I shall see what research I can do. If that is all, then?"

"I believe so, I'll be back in a day or two to see what you can find. Hmm...." you turn and walk away, caught up in thoughts. The next thing would be to research the 'KV' individual, or the address. Perhaps send Scinanri to investigate it, and you could check the city archives... Decisions....

>>12436513
city archives.

Also, lets go find out if there are any who know the legends of old...

>>12436513
Check the sword people. The one we took from the ship that was supposed to go to Kazmiri. If it is magical, its properties might give us an idea on what kind of role Kazmiri is playing in this whole thing. We have our house bloody warded now so we can open the chest in peace and it does also have a magical staff in it. Unless the mage who gave us the anti-scrying stuff lied but what can ya do then.

>>12436513
Have Scinnari investigate KZ and let's investigate the sword ourselves.

>>12436558
We did examine it at the time, it didn't seem particularly magical. If you want to examine it further, specify how, please.

>>12436363
>>12436547
'Office of Public Records' is a rather grandoise title for such a thoroughly ordinary building in the warehouse district. Pirates don't keep too much written down, so most of it should be from the most recent century or two. . As you approach the small building, you hand Scinnari the emerald, and instruct her to go investigate the address while you look into what evidence there may be in the records. She nods and smiles, vanishes, and a moment later you feel a faint breeze moving to fill where she was; teleport.

Moving as if you noticed nothing out of the ordinary, you enter the building. A small lobby/reading area and a counter with a window, minus glass, and the record keeper.

(Hallo? ist jemand zu Hause?
Ich möchte weiterhin ein Drache ...)

>>12436889
"What are you here for?" he grumbles at you, standing up behind the counter.

"I'd like to know, first of all, what is known about this symbol." you reply, drawing the KZ and circumscribed circle.

"What d'ya mean about that, huh? Plain enough. I don't have time to play your games." he mutters, obviously resentful and annoyed. Obviously an unwanted response. You try another tactic.

"I'm sorry, I must have miscommunicated; I want to know who's this symbol is. I saw several soldiers dressed like the Sealord's Guards, but with this on them. I'm a recent arrival, I don't know all the important people here." you explain in a friendly manner.

"Oh. Well. In that case, that's the symbol of High captain Kazmiri Verlaine, of the Captain's Council." he says, still somewhat uncomfortable, but willing to explain.

"I should assume not a nice person, judging by your responses?" you ask, trying to sound both interested in the answer and sympathetic.

"I've never met him, but his guards, as you described, are a pain like no other. You sound like you ain't with them, and that's good, I'd advise you keep it that way. Bastard group of worthless hides, the lot of them. They come storming in here, out of uniform sometimes, too, that's why I was worried," he confides, and you make appropriate interested listener noises, "but I can tell 'e even without their KV patches. Hmmph. A couple came storming in here , last week, de-man-ding maps, on business for the council, they say! Horrible customers, no manners at all!" he rants. As he gestulates wildly, you manage to catch sight of some of what he was writing behind the desk. 'Reed' seems to be his name.

>>12436892
Sorry. I'm apparently congenitally incapable of single-post updates.

>>12436889
Hmmmm. Does the blade have any specific markings on it or anything that stands out? Anything on it match what's seen in the sketch of the lighthouse?

Also, we might want to have another spell caster examine it if any enchantment it has on it is very subtle. Are there enchantments that would require a more in-depth look to discover?

>>12436908
As suspected, they have a man on the council. This is bad. We really, really need to inform Cygnis about this. Our entire council plan is likely in jeopardy.

>>12436940
It doesn't seem to match the lighthouse, no.

We could try to get another individual to examine it, Asha or Azan, or any of the probably pretty numerous wizards of the city.

>>12436997
I think we should have Asha look at it first then... Still hesitant to ask Azan after we spotted him in the inn we were at last night and then we suddenly got accosted by the cult. It may be coincidence but I still dislike it.

No emblems or symbols on the sword? If it's not magical, I'm wondering if it might be historically important and would be a useful item for someone on the council to have to back up his authority or something. Maybe it's Drake's original sword or something along those lines. Maybe I'm just over-thinking what was said by the damn wizard when we were spying on him.

Dicks. Tell Cygnis. Whatever happens, we probably win.

>>12437039
>Azan
>Spotted in the inn last night
WHAT? I'm sorry, what? Lemme go check, I must have missed that.


Obvious thing to do looks like ask what KV's men were after last night week. Be friendly, ask what he knows about 'this KV- fellow, he sounds quite important', etc, etc. Get what he knows, find out what they were looking after. Maybe we can find out what KV is into around town.

>>12437140
He was sleeping near the fire I think it was? Regardless, we did see him in the inn with his feet up. Which makes me suspicious on the things we got from him and on him in general. It's entirely possible he just lives there permanently but the paranoid part of me doesn't want to risk that just yet.

rolled 8, 4 = 12

Which maps?

[Okay, I've given up on citing each post I'm going off of, but, just saying, Azan made no appearance in the previous thread. He was mentioned because we were wondering if our anti-scrying amulets were frauds/fakes/tampered with. It was the kid-then-cultist-then-pile-of-ash that was faking sleep with his feet on the table. I can see how it might have been misread, though.
##############################
"What were they looking at?" you ask, conversation interest showing. Reed, apparently willing to talk for an audience willing to listen, goes off.

"Oh, they wanted 'maps'! What kind of maps, I ask them? They wanted street maps for the Eastern District and Scurvy Town! I ask you! So I get 'em out and they go off and jabber away in the corner for a bit, messing up my map, damn straight. Then they come back and demand 'more ex-ten-sive plans'! What the hell does that mean? That's as extensive as it gets! So they tell me they want maps of the sewers, how the Eastern District matches up with the Merchant District! They don't! Everyone knows that-" he shouts, and you start to interrupt. He gets what you are after, though, and elaborates, "Everyone knows the sewers for the Merchant District is sealed off, with their own outlet and special keys for the manholes, so no louts go in an start swipin' the nobs stuff. But they keeps at me, so I bring out what I got. Street maps, and old buildin' records, an' such. That got 'em excited." Reed seems to run out of steam as he comes to the end of his tale, so you ask.

"What were those maps? Could I see them?"

"Sure, I still have them, right..." Reed disappears into the paperwork on his rather wide desk. "...Here you go. Gahn, look at this mess they made!" he grumbles, pointing at an oily smudge on the map. You notice, upon further examination, that the smudge is almost exactly where the bricked up house that hides the cult-temple is located... Though on this map, it's what appears to be a sewer grating. Apparently this access was abandoned and later covered up during the house's construction.

[dice 1d100 for examining]

rolled 6 = 6

>>12437386
I see what you mean now. Totally thought you meant Azan in last thread.

rolled 70 = 70

>>12437401
Wow, that was an insane roll.

>>12437422
Thankfully we use best of two in this quest. Dragon's fortune.

>>12437422
>>12437401
>70

The map reveals no more pressing information, so instead you turn to city records, occasionally asking Reed for the dirt on Kazmiri. What you learn does not exactly clear his name. Kazmiri came to his position on the Captain's Council in the chaotic days following the assassination of Sealord Anton Drac, and he was a wealthy merchant and self-taught wizard at the time, with stakes in several ships sailing to and from freeport. A dominating presence, he became a significant power on the council, bending even the most reluctant coucilors to his will when necessary. He ammassed a power bloc, and finally managed to have himself elected head of the council. He pushed Sealord Milton Drac's platform through, including a forceful argument for the lighthouse being constructed near the harbor, "Milton's Folly", Reed is quick to offer the populace' nickname. Not Kazmiri's folly, though; he managed to acquire significant chunks of the city's masonry trade, and has grown ridiculously wealthy off the whole deal. The thought of such massive ill-gotten finances almost makes you salivate.

Currently, he seems to oversee a number of projects for the Sea Lord, of whom he is a primary ally on the council, the most visible of which is the lighthouse. And one of his primary consultants on the lighthouse, you find, was a priest from the temple of Alset by the name of 'Eidomon'. Really not doing anything to clear his name here....

[further/next actions?]

>>12437512
If only we had someone who was locked in the wizard's tower for 12 years.

rolled 12 = 12

>>12437512
We need to get Cygnis in on this. Possibly find out what she knows about Kaz.....maybe even turn the two against each other. We know that Kaz would probably win, so he would kill Cygnis for us AND we could possibly get rid of him at the same time if he is weakened...or even distracted to be honest.....thoughts?

>>12437570
I rather take Kaz down and have Cygnis in our pocket longer. A dragon's knowledge and resource base is superior to a mortal wizard. Assuming he's mortal I suppose... I rather have Cygnis alive longer anyways. We're closer to her and have more plans that will work in comparison to Kaz.

I do think it might be time to tell Cygnis although we should pump Scinnari for info on Kaz and see if she can enlighten us on his dealings. I wonder if she conveniently forgot to tell us these things or not.

We definitely should get some people to examine the sketch of the light house though and see if they can make sense of it. Scinnari or Asha. That might give us some info on what side he's on.

Does he know the location of Kazmiri's residence?

i don't see any reason to kill off Arman we already determined he is not in league with the cultists and so far he has provided some very good leads to investigate. need i remind everyone we will need every resource we can get to defeat this cult.

i do agree that we should ask Scinnari for information also lets ask Arman, jerrkin and Cygnis about this Kaz and this light house.

>>12437609
>>12437570
Well, that's that. You have to talk to Scinnari now, and/or possibly Cygnis. Probably Cygnis. And you might as well get Asha to look over the staff and sword you found, as well... After turning back in the papers and records, you walk out the door preoccupied with your thoughts. You think you're onto something here; the cult has obviously moved, and done their best to cover their tracks; also obviously, 'best' wasn't enough, you've got the pieces, you just need to put things together...

Two streets later, youa almost run into a patrol of guards, Sealord's Guards, except with the 'KV' patches. How did Reed describe ti to you? Each High Captain may have guards, use the uniform and authority of the Sealord himself, but they are identified to their employer by the patches. Meaning that these are on the authority of-

"'Captain' Cibach Azal. I am Guard Captain Riekert Lloyd. Your presence is requested in the Courts by Councilor Kazmiri Verlaine, in connection with your entry into a restricted area. The serpent-cult temple." the guard captain, a grizzled middle-aged man with decent looking armor, and a rather excellent looking sword on his belt. The other guards similarly look several notches above the regular patrols, obviously the difference between 'city' quality and 'the Councilor's own' quality.

"And I'm afraid that for someone of your import, " Lloyd continues, "'requested' means 'Required'. If you will allow me to show you the way...?"

>>12437672
Kaz has both a 'Wizard's Tower' on the fringes of the city (there is apparently an ordinance against high-powered summoning within city limits. You wonder what the history behind THAT is....), but he also has a rather generous estate in the Merchant District.

>>12437747
Son of a... How many guards are there? I assume they have no surrounded us?

"Entering a restricted area? I thought that matter was settled after the city guards were informed of what was going on in that location?" I don't know. Someone think of something better to get us out of here.

This is the last time we go about in public alone. If we go with him no one knows where we're at. We don't know how much this wizard knows, or if he has designs on our life.

Either we fight, or we stall for enough time to get a message out. We can't just go with them not knowing what to expect.

>>12437747
Well then. Since we were never there we have nothing to be afraid of. And even if we were scryed to be there, we of course saved that unfortunate priestess. And even if we were scryed to be there after that point it can surely be explained after we hear the evidence against us.

>>12437870
I think we should avoid going to this thing. If he's singling us out, than we're in trouble.

>>12437855
If we are aiming to be someone of import it would probably be a bad idea to cut down his guards in the street. He has much more pull than us or Cygnis. We should go quietly in my opinion. We are visible and have connections, he can't just make us vanish... and if he tries we have a few options for that. If he suspected anything serious he wouldn't have just sent some city guard.

garr most likely cover has been blown. if it is a council meeting. we should probably go along, doubt we can deflect the accusation but if worst comes to worst we could try denouncing him, probably won't work if evidence is needed.

this is all speculation.

oh just realized zone of truth is a cleric spell not a wizard spell. and he casted zone of truth, is this Kaz a cleric as well?

>>12437808
The captain plus four. They haven't surrounded us, nor have they made hostile move. They look like they think they're ready, should it come to that.


"Restricted area?! I thought the Guard had been informed after the cult was dealt with? Shouldn't that have been settled?" you scoff.

"It is restricted nevertheless, I would imagine to prevent individuals from altering the scene, fabricating connections between their enemies and cultists of dark gods. You broke and entered. Now, your presences is required at the courts. If we may proceed...?" Riekert is neither hostile nor belligerent, but has an attitude which suggests that he puts up with no trouble from anyone.

How the hell.

Hmmm. You know, we forgot to polymorph before talking to those two guards. Then something happened inside. It's probably just hearsay evidence. And he can't have magical means because we were under scrying protection that entire time.

Looks like our magical nondetection items are about to be put to the test.

>>12437954
If we're going to keep our political stuff on, we have to go. If we want to abandon it all, we escape. I guess we have to go... I can't see any way out of this without compromising our political situation.

Seems possible the guards recognized us as the hero/guy who cleared out the cult, trying to get it, then realized the interior party had been slaughtered.

If they were 'in' on it, then ADVENTURES must have come in and fried the workers! If not, then the BARBARIC SNAKEMEN must have attacked and slaughtered the clearing-out team.

Either way, they can't have any proof, (we were invisible, anyway!). Maybe he just wants to scare us a little up lest we disrupt his 'making money hand over fist' efforts.

>>12437915
Follow for now. Get into a private place. Then destroy them.

Also, we should NEVER walk around in our elf form anymore. We should always just be a mundane looking human unless we need to talk to someone important who knows our elven form, like Cygnis.

If we want to preserve our identity we will have to most likely have to go with them and denouncing kaz in front of the council unless we can get away of pretending we where not there. that would be hard since kaz has a lot of influence. depending on their evidence we could play the card of someone must want us out of the picture (planted evidence).

Also since we where in another form, undetectable from scrying, warded, and scrying does not last nearly long enough to track a crate (unless all his 4th level spell slots are occupied by scrying) he probably only suspects but does not know for sure.

This >>12438063

Our elf form is now way, WAY too recognizable for us to stay in day-to-day. The entire point of polymorphing is to be discreet. We need to constantly be assuming new faces in order to fight the cult without people banging down our door.

>>12438087
Better yet, our amulet is for area scrying prevention and was left in an anti-scrying zone when we were not around. So the crate could not be tracked.

rolled 95 = 95

"Alright then.....Don't know why I am being summoned for entering a restricted area BEFORE it was technically restricted.....and saving a priestess.....and discovering a dark god's cult......."

if worst comes to worst we probably will have to fight out of there and create a new identity. if this happens we could take out kaz before running.

however lets not completely blow our identity until it is truly blown.

be careful for traps.

>>12438112
Our elf form is a public figure. We just need to make sure that when we're walking around like this, we have an entourage.

However, I agree, when doing other tasks, leave the elf shape at home.

Guys, evidence does not matter. Whether they can prove anything does not matter. The cult owns this entire city. The courts likely consist entirely of cult members, or people on their payroll. KV and Kaz are both cult, and they control everything official in this city. Cygnis and Scinnari are the only people we can trust against them, and we really need to bring the cult down before they catch us.

So get somewhere private and kill the guards. They're cult, we cannot allow them to take us.

rolled 42 = 42

>>12438142
This is a bad idea........don't kill them. I don't think that this is a trial that would idict us....if anything I think Kazmiri is going to test us on things we may know. Also, he has already seen us once remember? We were in this from with wings at the inn when he used his truth zone spell.......we will just get past it again.

>>12438142
We have no reason to suspect that. In fact, the lack of tentacles and unspeakable horrors everywhere suggests that's just not true. There's ONE cultist on the council, and there may be others, but they cannot possibly hold a majority. Things would be too fucked up if they did.

However, if we were to try and paint that picture to Cyg, I wouldn't be opposed to that.

doubt they have the whole city but they have lots of influence and well if the council are all cultists guess the town will be without a council when they get incinerated.

is it just me or half of the pictures are not loading?

>>12438157
That was BEFORE we destroyed one of his cult hideouts. He knows we're the enemy. Remember those cultists we killed last time? They were talking about us, and killing us. We're on the cult's hit list, and Kaz and KV are cult. This isn't a test, this isn't an investigation, they're all on cult payroll and are going to try to KILL US.

>>12438166
They have the money. In a city as corrupt as this one, that means everything. They can just walk around, doing whatever they feel like, and because the guard is on their payroll it doesn't matter. Remember their old hideout? They just walked right back in and started backing up all their stuff. Like it was nothing, just an average moving day. That's how powerful they are here.

>>12438180
It's not just you.

>>12438185
Killing them is not off the table, but we cannot do it in public. There's also the possibility that we might not be able to kill them at all without reverting to dragon form. If we do that, then we might as well give up on this town.

No, we have to play along for the moment, and hope we see someone we recognize on the way so we can get the word out.

"Very well, Captain, I will come along." you reply, and fall into step in the center of their group. Lloyd leads you through streets, working towards the old city. To your moderate relief, he sticks to fairly major streets, and you are lead to a large plaza, with a low slung gray-stone building on one side. Above imposing steel doors, the crest of the city is carved; legitimate courthouse, it's a bit difficult to maintain a fake one in such obvious sight.

As you enter, Riekert asks for your sword, and you reluctantly hand it over to him, not volunteering your boot knife. He doesn't ask, though, and he leaves you sitting on a bench in the hall, your rapier leaning against the opposite wall.

"Kazmiri will be along presently, wait for him. I would advise not causing trouble, there's a few dozen constables within earshot of us right now. Good luck." he finishes, not particularly heartfelt. On the other hand, he seems non-mocking, and neutral as always, and you hardly know him, so it's fair enough. You suspect he treats everyone with the same casual respect.

It's two hours until Kazmiri shows up, which you let pass with increasing irritation, eventually falling asleep, leaning on the alcove wall, feet up on the bench. If he wants you he can wake you.

That he does; a thunderclap as he teleports in.

>>12438157

> I don't think that this is a trial that would idict us

That's because it's not a trial. It's a hit. These men work for the cult and they're here to kill us. They know we're the one who wrecked their hideout the first time around and rescued Cygnis, and they want us dead.

>>12438239


"So you're the one causing trouble." he says, with no pleasantries, "Adventurers. Worse still when you think you're respectable. Hmph." Kazmiri says, not waiting for a response. He seems different, right now; presumably wearing his 'High Captain' hat, rather than his 'Famous privateer' hat. Or possibly his 'business magnate' hat.

"I don't object to your profession, but you people always go too far. You've done good work for Freeport, I know you're responsible for clearing out the temple to begin with, but that doesn't give you the right to ignore the law. I remind you that breaking and entering is a crime here. This isn't a dungeon; it's a city, and a damned important one at that.


"I don't know what you were doing down there. Maybe looking for some loot you left behind teh first time. Or maybe meeting friends, I don't know and I don't care. It doesn't matter.

"I don't want you in this city one more day. You'll clear out of here by dawn. There are plenty of boats you can take out of here. I own most of them." The last sentence seems to be somewhat sinister.

[questions or actions, 1d100 with each. He doesn't seem intent on sticking around to answer questions, but you could probably get one or three done.]

rolled 72 = 72

>>12438249
Isn't this usually the sort of thing handled with a fine, never meriting the attention of someone on the council?

Alright. We NEED to tell Cygnis about this. No more mucking about, no more dawdling, this city is cult run and she's our only ally right now with any pull.

We then need a new face. And we need to consolidate out kobolds, they'll be very important. We also need to move. Get a lair, some warehouse maybe, and get it warded.

rolled 65 = 65

>>12438249
"Can our stay at least be extended a few days? I heard about what happened with the ship a few days ago... Can't we at least wait until it seems the seas are safer?"

rolled 15 = 15

Well, I am not simply an adventurer good sir. I run an organization that specializes in finding things, and was tracking a cult responsible for things up to and including murder and kidnapping. But perhaps that isn't worth concern. I did, however, hear an interesting rumor. I heard these same people recently got their hands on some stolen property. A deed to a lighthouse and a sword.

Now, I could clear out of town... or I could keep my people investigating.

Okay. After we inform Cygnis about this we need a new face.

Also, tell her everything except for:
1. We're a dragon.
2. We've got kobold minions
3. Scinnari tortured Asha
4. We started crafting an anti-poly amulet

She needs to know about everything else. Kaz, the cult, the guards, the hideout, everything. She's our best ally against the cult right now.

Then we need to move in with our kobolds. We're going to need them.

>>12438249
Ah. That's what this is, a shakedown. He probably feels more threatened by us politically than otherwise.

It's time we ask him what he wants from us.

What he really wants from us.

rolled 92 = 92

>>12438249
"I didn't go down there after I had already looted the damn thing the first time? What in the hell are you talking about. I'll admit I went over there the other day chasing a young boy who happened to steal a few coins from me.....but I didn't actually enter? Surely the guards could have told you that?"

rolled 63 = 63

>>12438335
Ouch. Going for a better roll.

would take some time but we could switch paint jobs.. i mean identities could play the political exile bit. both us and Scinnari can switch the elf assassin girl is a different story if we decide to change we will have to let her in on some information.

take a ship out switch and take another back in. We could maintain by use of letters our other identity mean while using another to continue investigation.


going for the political exile might work out and increase our popularity on our return to "save" the day.

if we do this make it look like we don't want to leave but have no choice.

rolled 49 = 49

Tell him nothing. Politely decline.

rolled 48 = 48

>>12438372
>>12438346
>>12438345
>>12438335
So far most of us don't want to leave, how we handle it however, is up to us....I say we play the denying role. It should work. Technically he shouldn't know a damn thing about us being in there. Anti-scrying/invisible the whole time.

Tell him to fuck off, intimidation probably isn't going to work out with a guy like this. We need to tell him to fuck off and prepare for the immediate consequences. Then assassinating this asshole becomes priority 1. Or maybe just kill him now and take a new face.

>>12438427
Too much invested to immediately shed the identity. We should off him stealthily. I wonder who in our retinue is any good at assassinations... maybe the assassin?

Long term plan.

First, go tell Cygnis everything we have learned about KV, the cult, the guard, and all that stuff. Tell her that we're going to need to lie low for a little while, under a different guise, and that we'll contact her again when we're reestablished.

Second, tell Asha something similar, and that we will probably have work for her soon.

Third, get a new face. Human, mundane, something that will blend in easily. Pick an equally forgettable name. This is now our default form.

Fourth. Get a warehouse near our kobolds warded against scrying. Move our stuff there, it'll be our new lair.

Then we need to hit the cult again. Because fuck them.

oh can we tell if that spell was regular teleport of greater teleport or a spell like ability?

>>12438467
>>12438427

No. This guy is a member of the council, he's the wealthiest man in the city, and owns damn near everything. Killing him won't be so easy, we need to build a power base first.

I think we should do this >>12438469
Then start building up our kobold minions into something real, cooperate more with Cygnis to take down Kazmiri, and then kill him.

>>12438346
>>12438327
>>12438281
>>12438281
"Last time I checked, breaking and entering was not the kind of crime handled by the council." you remark scathingly. Kazmiri is not amused.

"It ISN'T being handled by the council. I, under the Sealord, am handling the cult's deconstruction and illumination; you trespassed upon the operation I am tasked completing without incident. /I/ am handling this." he reiterates.

"It's not being handled by the council. It's being handled by me."

"Alright, point two, the fact that I didn't actually enter? Certainly you figured that out? I approached there chasing a boy who stole a few coins from me, but, I should hope the guards can verify that they didn't let me in?" this time sarcastically.

"Given events, I am more inclined to believe my guards than you, especially when you came here without protesting that charge." Kazmiri remarks in a cutting tone.

"Well, fine, since you're such a reasonable fellow, perhaps you could wait? I heard about what happened to that ship in the harbor a few weeks ago, It seems wise to wait until it's safe."

"Safe has never bothered you adventurers." Kazmiri barks, "And two weeks is over a hundred boats and ships in and out of the harbor. I think the odds are good enough for a maniac who makes his living going in and out of monster infested ruins."

Kazmiri doesn't wait for any additional questions, calling instead for the guards. "I want him motivated and on his way." he says to constable who shows up, before teleporting out himself.

"Oh boy, then, you hear that? We get to whack another!" the constable gloats. You're fairly sure he's exaggerating. Kazmiri did not seem the type to expect his minions to reinterpret his commands; you suspect he merely ordered them to 'work you over', and toss you out. On the other hand, your rapier is across the wall from you, if you're willing to fight your way out. Hmm... There are six of them guards, but they aren't as intimidating as Lloyd's men were, despite their obvious intent..... Still, you don't particularly like the idea of being beaten up by a gaggle of idiotic enforcers...


[I think this is a good place to cut off for the night. Woohoo for cliffhangers!]

rolled 1 = 1

Either the original posters who didn't want us to leave aren't posting anymore or we are getting outnumbered by people elaborating on wanting to stand down to him. Legally he cannot touch us. This is a legitimate area and he is just threatening us. This isn't even a damn trial. He can't touch us since there is "no conflict at harbor" or whatever it is said.

>>12438513
Oh Kazmiri... You will pay for this insolence. You will pay greatly.

>>12438469
We are now a dockside worker named Jack. Smiling Jack.

>>12438514

And you seem to think that "legal" and "legitimate" matter. He's the richest man in the city. His rule is law. He can do whatever the fuck he pleases, no one is going to tell him "no, you can't do that, that's illegal."

We should either escape from or kill the guards. Doesn't matter which, this form is compromised anyway.

Then do this >>12438469

Wow.

Maybe we can arrange for an accident to happen to Kazmir REALLY quickly? Like, a fatal one? One where he DIES?

Alternately, we could just plow bravely ahead. It would certainly be big props if we managed to take down the head of the Captain's Council, and it would almost certainly get us our seat on it.


'Who dares wins'?

>>12438562
I think we can keep Asha with us. Just insinuate we're also sorcerer's and then polymorph. Don't see why we have to sever ties with her. Hopefully our kobolds can dig a way to the mansion. After all the upgrading to it, it'll suck to lose access to those anti-scryed rooms.

You know what we should check on? The guys we initially robbed Kazmiri's tower with. See what happened to them and if they escaped. If so, we might want to take those deeds for ourself.

>>12438579
We've probably been seen entering and leaving that mansion. After all, the cult controls the city guard, they probably know about it. It's gone. We need to clear out, find a lair in a warehouse somewhere less visible.

Well, I feel like a bastard for cutting it off suddenly, but it IS 00:30 for me, it IS a good place to stop (And a better place to resume, oh, just you wait... [insane cackling])

Archived
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/12433858/

Don't forget to vote.

>>12438643
>controls the city guard
I must point out the inherent difference between a Commander in Chief controlling something and a Colonel or a logistics officer deciding who to assign to a particular position. For all we know the cultists just posed as high-level adventurers and got the job of securing potentially hazardous materials and carting them out.

Also, I suspect I'm alone, but does anyone else think that our blue-blood sorceress friend might make a better fuckbuddy/toy than our helltart devil friend? Cinnamon-smelling skin non-withstanding.

>>12438821
A better one? You're probably alone. A very good one? I'll agree with you there.

Nothing says we have to be monogamous. We're a dragon, we're not the kind of being that's content with just one gold piece. We want a hoard. Same goes for beautiful human(oid) women.

And that's not misogyny, mind you, it's just good old fashioned racism.

>>12438879
Don't red dragons normally EAT beautiful humanoid women?

>>12438906
Only if they are completely annoying, useless, boring, or to spite someone.

After all, as most rulers know, a harem of beautiful women is another kind of treasure, and, quite possibly, another tool


Also, I think dragons actually tend to be polygamous. There was something about younger females often claiming territory adjacent to powerful and ancient wyrms in a sort of mutual-gain relationship (ie, a veteran badass to learn from, a nubile maiden to, uh, teach).

It's probably a good thing that dragons get nothing but larger and better at everything as they get older.

>>12438906

Well yes, it's one of their preferred meals. Reds are the ones the that normally force people to sacrifice beautiful women to them.

Of course, we're not a normal red, and such behavior is a terrible waste of beautiful women.

>>12438960
>not a normal red
I kind of feel like we're disregarding alignment except as an excuse to be evil.

IE, "Red dragons are always chaotic evil, so we should do this, but that's stupid. We don't have to be like the rest."

but also going, "We could be a good guy, but red dragons are always evil, so let's take the evil option."

It's not a very strong feeling. But it's there.

>>12438942
Instead of getting wrinkly and soft as they get older, they get tougher, smarter, and bigger. In effect, the older a dragon, the 'sexier' it is to others. At least, I'd assume. Maybe I should stop talking before it gets wei- too late, huh?

>>12438985
Well, so far what we've been is pragmatic, selfish, and a bit of a dick. We generally don't do evil just because, we do it if it's beneficial to us. So we are evil, just not pointlessly evil. It's been discussed before, but we're probably neutral evil more than chaotic evil. That's how we're different from most reds. Much less pointless violence, or in this case much less senseless waste of perfectly good playthings.

Right. Status report.
KV = Kaz = Wizard, has a position on the council, with his own guards.
Cult is friendly with Wizard - we can consider these to be the same entity. We shall call this entity KazCult.
Fortunately, that leaves everyone ELSE on the council as not being directly involved with KazCult, but most likely paid off and/or intimidated into falling in line.

KazCult has temple, a lighthouse, and a few houses that we're investigating. They've ordered our humanoid form, Cibach Azal, to gtfo - Cibach has KazCult aggro.

Relating to KazCult, we have a book of the binder (which seems to be readable by the dragonblooded), an enchanted (or historical) sword, a lighthouse to investigate, a few addresses already being investigated, Kaz himself, and it looks like KazCult's men wanted sewer plans.

Our allies include a dragonblooded Assassin, an Erinyes, a Gold dragon, a group of Kobolds, and possibly a temple. Our holdings include a bunch of anti-scrying shit, a lot of gold, and a kobold warehouse. We must assume Cibach's manor has been compromised after KazCult aggro told us to GTFO.

I think we should IMMEDIATELY have our Cibach form start talking to everyone on the council, get as much support as we can from them, get them aggro'd onto KazCult, or at least get more info from KazCult out of them. Since Cibach already has aggro we don't lose anything from spamming about KazCult to the council.

We should investigate the Lighthouse, the Sewers, read the Binder book ourselves, move all our valuable shit to the Kobold warehouse, then assume a new disguise.

Finally, we're going to murder the everloving shit out of Kaz and raid his stuff. Whether we do this openly or covertly depends entirely on council response - for all we know, the rest of the council wants Kaz dead and is cool with Cibach staying in town.

>>12439245
Sewers, Lighthouse, Council, Book of Binder, Enchanted Sword, and whatever leads Scinarri picks up are likely next plot points to follow.

Our next goals are to collect our shit in a safe spot to shed aggro, and then to start wrecking KazCult's shit - any person belonging to KazCult is an acceptable target.

Additionally, we should accumulate Allies for dungeon crawling. We have a Red dragon, a Gold dragon, an Erinyes, and an Assassin. We need a healbitch to round out that team. We got any healbitch contacts?

>>12439286
Brother Arman?

>>12439394
Isn't Arman a scribe? Doubt he has priest levels.

>>12439245
I have a problem with this. Why do we assume Kaz is working with the cult? It could just be that his low level guards were bribed or stupid. Actually, the fact that the cult had to sneak into Cygnis's house to steal back books suggests they do not have a strong influence on his guards, otherwise they would never have let the books go there in the first place.

I think he is just being political. We just made a bid for the council and this is a pirate city. I think he is trying to run us out.

Now, I don't think this is something we have to say up front. He is obviously an enemy now. I think we should get Cygnis paranoid about the cult still being around, sneaking into our house, and attacking us. Then tell her what Kazmiri has done and how is guards were at the site. She will completely freak and being traumatized already... well, she will be using her already established pull and connections in this city to take down our foes. It seems excellent. And if we do the thing about killing Arman then it's even better, she will be super paranoid and likely codependant on us.

Also Scinnari may be more dangerous than Asha but that's why she's fun to have around.

WD here; dropping by to say continuation will be either Saturday evening, or sunday afternoon. Thank you, all, and I'm glad you're enjoying it too.