Episode 46 - Research and Developments

General Summary

Downtime was not quite the way most of the Guardians of Golarion would have described their two weeks.   For Sir Godric and Telith Nordhof, the Iomedae worshippers spent their daylight hours training and retraining. At night, they visited the Publican House, church of Cayden Cailean, looking for information. Arnando Rolf, High Publican of the Publican House, approached the two and recognized Godric from days gone by. Godric asked if he knew anything about an entity known as Zalatas. Arnando said that he hadn’t heard of Zalatas personally, and shouted out to the patrons to see if any of them knew about “someone named Zalatas.”   A few people felt that it was related to the evil dragon god Dahak somehow. But an elven theology student approached the two and gave Godric and Telith the information they were looking for. Zalatas was not actually a celestial dragon. Algolon was not a celestial guardian. Zalatas had been an antipaladin worshipper of Dahak, The Endless Destruction and evil dragons. Algolon, on the other hand, was a paladin of Apsu the Waybringer. Both were very powerful, almost god-like in their own right. Zalatas was trying to bring Dahak back to Golarion. Algolon tried to stop him. Time and time again the two warriors clashed without any clear victor.   Zalatas gained powerful artifacts and became so powerful that he could not be killed. He had the power to tear open reality and create a gateway from Caina, Hell’s eighth layer and the place Dahak was imprisoned. Algolon fought Zalatas trapped him within an item called the Soul Stone and shattered it, scattering it across the world. If enough pieces of the Soul stone reform, he could use it to return. Until then, Zalatas remains powerless and Dahak remains trapped.   Reh tried to access the pyramoid once again. This time she attempted to bring Kuuro in with her. The two both appeared in the familiar library. Books were piled and scattered everywhere. Naebler gathered books while the animated suit of armor are pushed a broom. Chakos sat at his desk, bringing books to him via mage hand and sipping tea. He would read the spine, then send the book off to an appropriate bookshelf.   Chakos told Reh that there was a disruption to the flow unlike anything he had ever experienced. It made a mess of things. In fact, he had not even think such a disruption would even be possible. Reh asked to look for information regarding the Orcadian Disc, while Kuuro looked for information regarding Zalatas.   Rooker Shango and Fjord discovered a shop of spiritual guidance, “The Green Thumb Apothecary and Herbalist”. The shop was tucked away in a section of Riddleport often frequented by adventurers, accounting for the popularity of a number of noisy taverns nearby. Its neighbors included a tavern called The Azure Staff and a large public square that usually played host to public speakers giving sermons, prophesying, or hawking their wares from lands near and far.   The shop was a single storey half-timbered building, with a white tile roof. It was well lit by flasks of glowing oil set upon shelves. The shopkeeper was a tall, lean, androgynous bald human named Macha. Rooker was fascinated by a beaded bracelet that Macha wore, and the storekeeper was only too happy to pass it along to Rooker.   In the back of the shop, Rooker and Fjord sat upon prayer mats and meditated. Macha burned scented oils that cast clouds around them. Fjord found relaxation, but Rooker seemed to reach another level of enlightenment while getting in touch with the universe within him and without.   Rooker also reached out to Kwava using a Sending spell to find out where he was. Kwava told him that he was following an armored man who had taken Anen, Maly’s daughter. He was not going to risk the child’s life by attempting a rescue so he would continue to track them until they stopped riding. Kwava qualified the armored man as “dangerous”.   In the cafeteria one evening, Reh’s cousin Liam approached the group with a friend of his - Satsui the Handsome. Satsui confessed that he was magically altering his appearance because people were eating and beneath his illusion, he was a burned mess. He had been attacked by pirates that wanted to see how long a person could stay aflame.   Liam asked if Reh and the other Guardians could help him out, having found himself in a bit of a pickle. Elias Tammerhawk had requested that Liam accompany Satsui to an upcoming Dragon’s Den auction going on tomorrow night. Elias had seen the docket and wanted Liam to obtain an old adventurer’s journal. Satsui was skilled in History so he could authenticate the old journal. Liam would be there to bid and keep Satsui safe.   These events were usually civil but this was Riddleport after all. The man hosting this Dragon’s Den, a halfling named Vamuk Longroot, disliked Liam. There had been an accidental lighting bolt issue that Vamuk still held a grudge over. In any case, Liam would not be allowed into the Dragon’s Den and Elias was unaware of the issue between Vamuk and Liam. Liam wanted to keep it that way. Liam didn’t want to send Satsui by himself with a bankroll so he wanted Reh and her friends to go with. Maybe there was something there they could pick up for themselves too.   The following evening, the Guardians and Satsui made their way to the warehouse district near the docks. As they made their way between the large buildings, some of the Guardians recognized a few of the surrounding warehouses as the location where they fought the leader of the Rat Street Renegades named Ressin.   Just then, two large figures stepped out of the darkness. One of them appeared to be an enlarged Shoanti barbarian was a massive great axe. With him was a construct that Reh recognized as a former fighter from the Golemworks district in Magnimar named Ultimus. Ultimus’s owner was a known drinker and had been rumored to have lost his golem construct during a card game in Riddleport.   The barbarian, Glator, was a former member of the Renegades. He told the party that if had he been in town when they confronted Ressin, the outcome would have been far different. Glator ordered Ultimus to “kill them all” and the two attacked.   The Guardians and Satsui divided and conquered, blinding Glator and sending him fleeing before Kuuro put him down with a devastating headshot. Reh mimicked Glator’s voice and ordered Ultimus to kill himself. The construct looked at the dead barbarian, called him an idiot, and disappeared in a flash.

Rewards Granted

XP

66 048 + 3 840 + 1 900 (Bonus) = 71 788 XP!

Character(s) interacted with

• Fjord - The half-elven monastic sorcerer continues to be apprehensive with his involvement in the world. He still has no idea what might set him off and release the rampaging goliath within him.

• Liam - Reh's cousin and cypher mage. Reh's mother continues to contact Liam to see if he can get Reh into the cypher lodge to take up the mantle of a cypher mage.

• Satsui - A magic-user from the Tian Xia region of Golarion, Satsui aids the cypher lodge in authenticating historical artifacts. He also wears a magical disguise to conceal terrible burns he received at the hands of sadistic pirates.