Session 20220105 Report
General Summary
Sunday 1 Resplendent Wood 768, Calendar
Marag-ang learns Mastery of Small Manners and Shadow Over Water, One of Us stunt for spotting solars/abyssals (rather than a refresh).
Mathias Stormcrow learns Sun and Moon Method, Anointment of Miraculous Health and a Refresh.
Marag collects the painting and guards, transforms into a beautiful woman and takes the painting to several "fashion houses" looking for orders, he/she collects a large number and some money in advance, probably enough to pay for the silk.
Mathias is followed from the ship by a non-descript Tengese man, loses him and follows him back to the docks where he poses as fisherman, and seems to be setting up for the long haul.
Heads off again to find Little Heron, who at the end of a martial arts lesson anoints the foreheads of her students with a dab of oil infused with frankincense. She reports the kidnappers are still using the same apartment and they do not seem to have contacted anyone else, agrees to wait until Mathias returns to town to deal with them, and to warn her students to wear masks at the time (she will not, this and a few things she said lead the PCs to wonder if she plans to kill the kidnappers).
Mathias buys two fine horses (that look slightly better than they are) and arranges long term stabling at the same place, will later go back and rent another horse and a cart (for the painting and guards).
Marag talks with Old Man Fig, and using his new stunt determines he is not a Solar Exalted (or Abyssal Exalted)
After travelling on horseback for about half the day they reach City of the Steel Lotus, a city that lies on one side of the Queen of Rivers at the lowest point it is navigable (noble estates are on the other bank). Reaching the river docks Marag enquires about a "fashion district" and learns no such thing exists, the more expensive shops of all kinds are scattered throughout the city, often down back alleys or half concealed in a residential building. The best chance of a guide would be a dock rat or a beggar from near the palace in the city centre, they decide on the latter are are given directions that curve away from the direct route from docks to centre. The Palace of Threefold Magnificence, built of ornate materials in a mix of Realm and Tengese styles stands alone in a large paved area, surrounded by an Immaculate Temple and temples to the Golden Lord and Pale Mistress. Hiring a guide is a matter of agreeing to feed him (no small money in this city either). Eating lunch they determine the cuisine is more exotic here than in Dragon's Jaws, a matter of ingredients rather than methods.
Spends the rest of the day visting fashionable clothes shops with the painting Marag again drums up a large number of orders, though with a smaller percentage up front payment
Mathias investigates how to become a licensed thaumaturge, and determines it takes a minimum of a years apprenticeship and passing tests administered here. Arranges to skip the preliminaries in exchange for a hefty (Resources 4 each, with the ruby he acquired on Nightfall Island as a sweetener) bribe for him and Marag. Under his current name Mathias is now an Adept level Alchemist and Weather-Worker. Marag (TBD). Gets a recommendation to a book shop that is likely to have some occult tomes ready for sale. In the evening he goes out pickpocketing, and considers establishing a backup store of wealth
Moonday 2 Resplendent Wood 768
Marag (still in his model disguise) takes the manuscript from the Grey Hermitage to the copy shop, after brief discussions with the proprietor the latter invites Sister Rafala (one of the heretics mentioned by the monk at the hermitage) to tea, where they discuss theology and heresy. Somewhere between 10 and 15 percent of the Golden Lord monks in the city (almost none in the rest of An-Teng) believe that their god is an aspect of the Unconquered Sun. They are thus strongly anti-solar as they believe the Immaculate position that the power was stolen. If convinced of the truth they would become pro-Solar. Marag starts talking her into the second position by referencing a "Solar she knows" that she's had extensive discussions with, honestly goes through the experience of Exaltation. Rolls so well that the monk and copyist are now a sub-heresy of two. Arrange to have tea again at some point in the future, and the possibility of having the Solar talk to potential recruits.
Looking into improving their restaurant Mathias searches the Great Market for ingredients they have eaten that are not used in Dragon's Jaws (mostly foreign ingredients rather than spices or herbs), they are easiest to identify here but anything foreign and almost everything from the principalities will be easier to find in Dragon's Jaws in the future as it is the port serving this city.
In the occult book shop Stormcrow buys a short list of Geomancy rituals, a longer list of Alchemy rituals and an Adept level Alchemy text. Also finds a hidden trapdoor (with magical and physical concealment) that he sneaks down and finds a small basement setup for summoning demons, including hand written notes on particular rituals, steals the one currently open, for summoning a Neomah (which he remembers is not physically overly dangerous), has a free invoke left for his next book finding trip
He eats at the best restaurant frequented by the Tengese (or mortals, take your pick) while Marag eats at the Sunset Dancing House after his guide panics at the idea of going to the currently most fashionable House of Courteous Attention (he eats in the kitchen and would probably now die for the PCs). Both PCs get a list of further ingredients to try (later bought at the market) but Mathias cannot find a cookbook on the premises as those operating at this level are expected to have memorised all the dishes they prepare.
Returning to Dragon's Jaws, they buy the silk necessary for the collected orders and arrange for it to be delivered to the Passing Glory. The spy who was watching the For Play is no longer present and Old Man Fig does not know anything about him, but has seen someone who could be watching the Glorified House of the Golden Lord, takes him about an hour to go out and find his best shadower. Their chef is (professionaly) short tempered but will try the new ingredients in the restaurant.
Mathias openly heads to the House of the Jade Fox and is indeed followed by the watcher, he makes himself just hard enough to follow that the latter is distracted and has no idea he is also being followed (the PCs do not think they have seen this shadower before). The spy eventually heads back to a residence that will be watched for several days to determine its role.
Speaking to Snow Melt, Mathias offers her a job that will let them spend more time together, manager of still to be named pleasure/opera barge (mentions a gambling operation as an incentive). She refuses to become involved in a competitor to her family's casino but counter-offers to find one of their employee ready for such a position (no current openings at the casino) and that the Jade Fox will be willing to run gambling on the barge, but only after it proves itself as an upmarket operation. She tactfully lets Mathias know that she is "senior management" at the casino (though he has never seen her do anything particularly manager like, so maybe that's a simplification) but is pleased that he didn't realise previously and so could not be after her money.
Rewards Granted
- Thaumaturgical Licences
- Thaumaturgical books & Neomah summoning ritual
- New ingredients for restaurant
- Orders for Shogunate style clothing (Dragon's Jaws & City of the Steel Lotus)
Missions/Quests Completed
- Orders for clothing
- Made contact with Golden Lord heretics
Character(s) interacted with
- Old Man Fig
- Little Heron
- Snow Melt
- Sister Rafala
- Beggar guide
- Chef who never posioned anyone
- Painting guards