"I agree with declaring ourselves innocents, but certainly if the king is in dager, we could help him, unless he is planning this plot, not all the kings are good" he says as he gets really serious and crosses his arms.
"Running is for cowards, and might only make us seem more suspicious! I prefer the plan of being open and honest about our situation. If we can save the king, then there will be no reason to suspect us. However, we are jumping ahead of ourselves.
What can you tell us of the king? Is he a good man? Would he listen to reason?"
"You misunderstand me Lulu ( @booinyoureyes ). I would readily die to defend a good king and uphold the honour of my family name, which I cannot allow to be associated with any misdeeds as you have suggested. But I know nothing of this king, so I merely suggested one possible option, given our circumstances. How can we be blamed for an attack that occurs after we've left?"
Jin's response is stern and serious, his earlier good-natured mood gone. He does not take kindly to questioning of his integrity and courage.
"You misunderstand me Lulu (booinyoureyes). I would readily die to defend a good king and uphold the honour of my family name, which I cannot allow to be associated with any misdeeds as you have suggested.
"My life matters much than the King's to my people, and for me, of course" he says as he starts to smile again.
Wait what if these things in our arms allows someone to control us from afar? If we go near the king we may be forced to attack. Priest you said you had a spell that could remove the markings? Use it. If I can't pay for it I'll be glad to render any service you name... As long as it does not involve any explosive devices.
Smoke stood to one side, attempting to be unseen while he tried to see the big picture. They had been abducted, seemingly easily, by persons unknown. They had been rendered unconscious, for some time, and tattooed with the magical glowing symbols of 5 of the most evil organisations around. Then their wounds had been treated and they had been brought to a strange town. There they were put up in one of the best inns, without anything about their abductors being revealed. All of this indicated a rich, powerful and efficient organisation. So far so obvious.
From here though, things got murkier. A high priest and the king's daughter had been missing for a year. The daughter had supposedly been seen. The king was coming to town. Why should this be related in any way to our abduction.
OK, scenarios. We are about to be framed for a pending attack on the king? Except we are marked with these symbols, so if so, then it is so these organisations can claim responsibility, or so another organisation can frame these organisations. Then there's the daughter. If their target is the king, it seems obvious that they already have the daughter, and the priest.
Now simplify. Why are we even required for that plan? It's too complicated. So, scenario two. We are being set up to attack the king ourselves. Perhaps he has been warned of a group bearing these marks, and will attack us on sight?
Scenario three. as above, but replace the king with Elminster? By all accounts Elminster would wipe the floor with us, so this may be a plan to set Elminster on these 5 evil organisations? Which is kind of a chaotic good action, but it would be simpler to meet Elminster for tea and ask him to help?
So, pending further information, scenario 2 is the best of a bad lot? Smoke decides now would be a really good time to leave town, although he is interested to see what happens if the priest attempts to remove the magical tattoos. From someone else. While Smoke stands behind a large pillar.
"When and where is this meeting exactly?" Jin ( @Heindrich) asks. "Is there any chance we could be granted an audience with the king? Or be allowed to serve as guards in some capacity?"
"The king is meeting with Burlan here in the temple sometime today...or maybe it was tomorrow morning," Castar replies. "But that's all I've been told. His Majesty doesn't precisely share the details of his movements with just anyone. As far as getting an audience with him...I suppose you could try. He's staying in the Gunderstone mansion, not too far from here. But it's bristling with the royal guard and they haven't been too keen on letting anyone in without an appointment. My ma is absolutely smitten with His Majesty." Castar looks keenly embarrassed. "I told her he didn't want some silly wilted flowers or her sticky old cake, but she insisted on making a fool of herself." The gnome winces. "Anyway..."
"What can you tell us of the king?" Lulu ( @booinyoureyes) asks. "Is he a good man? Would he listen to reason?"
"They say he's a kind and fair ruler," the gnome shrugs. "But we're not exactly on a first-name basis. I'm afraid I can't tell you much about his personality."
"Priest you said you had a spell that could remove the markings?" Falagrim ( @mlnevese) interjects. Use it. If I can't pay for it I'll be glad to render any service you name... As long as it does not involve any explosive devices."
"Ehm, why I believe I do have something that would do the trick. No explosions, I promise! If you'll follow me, I would be glad to see what I can do." He opens the door to a smaller room off of the main hall, which is full of piles of scrolls and books. "Come in, take a seat."
Castar rummages through the piles of parchment, eventually producing a spell scroll. He pulls his goggles down over his eyes and squints at it.
"Yes, this is the one," he mutters. "I believe this one costs...let's see...300 gold."
OOC: All spellcasters notice that the scroll is a simple dispel magic scroll.
"Dispel Magic? I could cut my arm with the 300 GP and clean the blood with the scroll" he says as he starts to laugh "Now, tell us, were you trying to trick us with that scroll or you are sure that it will work"
OOC: I will search the room with my eyes for valuable scrolls and books. If there are scrolls of level 4 or higher I'll ask if I can take them. I will also search for books related to Moander and the Zhent.
There are plenty of scrolls around, but since they're rolled up and you can't look at what's written on them, you would need to cast Detect Magic to know which ones are magical (this spell is not in BG2, but you will be able to find/buy detect magic scrolls later during this game). Also, Castar doesn't have the authority to give spell scrolls away for free (and they are probably all divine spell scrolls anyway). You can try to steal them, but you would need to let me roll for that. Also there are a few books, but they all seem to be about metalworking and the teachings of Gond.
"Eh...There's nothing wrong with the spell scroll, if that's what you're asking." Castar stutters, looking somewhat flustered by Crevs' interrogation. "I can't promise it will get rid of the marks though. If they were put there by someone very powerful it might not work. The only way to know is to try. But I have to charge you for the scroll either way because...well as I'm sure you know, it will be destroyed when the spell is cast. I'll get hung by my ears over the forge if I give temple property away for free."
IF it is possible to dispel the marks in the first place (they might be "immune" to dispel magic) there is always at least a small chance of success. No matter how powerful the wizard who cast the spell is, a natural 20 on a roll to dispel will be a success. But if the bonds are immune to the spell, it won't work at all no matter what the roll is.
"I suppose I could sell you the scroll if you want to cast it yourself," Castar says. "It's the same price though...I'm charging you for the scroll, not to read the words off of it."
How does levels work in D&D lore? Like do characters know what level they are? Is it a thing?
If there was a way to objectively determine the mage levels within the party, Jin would probably suggest that the most capable spellcaster ought to learn Dispel. (I am kinda suprised that nobody has it already... what about Lulu ( @booinyoureyes ) and Nona ( @Nonnahswriter )? Don't they have it automatically via divine spells?
I already have Remove Magic as a wizard spell, and I believe Dispel Magic is an automatic thing for divine spellcasters. Sadly, I don't have either memorized right now.
Nona wasn't so sure she liked the idea of removing the bonds on her arms. Filani had warned them against such an action, and she did not have much reason to lie. Still, the priest did say that there would be no explosions...hopefully. Maybe. And she was certainly not sure she trusted this wily elf to have enough power for a spell. He seemed...too confident. Too eccentric. Perhaps he thinks he's more powerful than he really is?
"I'm unsure if removing the bonds is a wise idea, at least not until we know for certain what they are for..." Nona says to @CrevsDaak, "Filani warned us from tampering with them as well."
Yes, you and @Nonnahswriter are correct. Divine spellcasters know that spell automatically but of course need to memorize it. And levels, I think, are just like hit points, THAC0, and lots of similar things--meta-knowledge that the characters themselves don't necessarily know (at least not in terms of specific details) but is still considered fair game as a basis for in-character decisions. Yes, perhaps your character does not know that he has precisely 5 HP left, but you're still allowed to use his precise number of HP (or level, or saving throws) to make decisions in the game. At least in my book. I consider that a reasonable amount of metagaming.
"I agree with Nona ( @Nonnahswriter ), whoever is behind this... conspiracy, is likely very powerful, and I doubt these markings can be removed with simple Dispel magic... and they may have counter-enchantments against such an effort. I would rather not tamper with them until we understand better their purpose and origins."
"... if this does have some sort of mind control power, then the last thing we'd want to do would be to get close to the king... Is anyone capable of casting Chaotic Commands? Nona or Lulu ( @booinyoureyes )?"
"I can cast it, but I have not prayed to Chauntea for that spell yet. It would take a night's rest, however. I can also pray to The Great Mother for a dispel as well, so there is no pressing need for @CrevsDaak to expend our limited resources on this scroll"
ooc
I'm also a pure-class caster, so higher level. So therefore I would have a higher level of success with dispel right? Or is that not how it works in 2E?
@CrevsDaak, If you want, you can tell him you've changed your mind. Doesn't hurt to have that spell, but you're also low on cash. Up to you! @booinyoureyes, I believe the dispel level is based on the level of the class you cast the spell as. So yes, if you're a higher level you have a somewhat greater chance of success. And if you were, say a dual-classed Cleric 7/Wizard 10, or whatever, the arcane version would have the higher success chance.
"I've reconsidered and found out that some of my companions already know this spell, you can have it back, and you can have 50 of those 300 GP for you" he says as he gives the scroll with one hand and prepares the other hand to receive the money.
"Ah...alright. I suppose that's OK." Castar seems a bit crestfallen, but he takes the scroll back anyway. "I can't keep this gold for myself, but...I'll consider it a donation to the temple."
"I agree with Nona ( @Nonnahswriter ), whoever is behind this... conspiracy, is likely very powerful, and I doubt these markings can be removed with simple Dispel magic... and they may have counter-enchantments against such an effort. I would rather not tamper with them until we understand better their purpose and origins."
"... if this does have some sort of mind control power, then the last thing we'd want to do would be to get close to the king... Is anyone capable of casting Chaotic Commands? Nona or Lulu ( @booinyoureyes )?"
Falagrim knocks on his helmet.
"No spells that control the mind will pass through the dwarven runes of my helmet. But I don't know if it would protect me from magic that is already under my skin."
Smoke rather liked the priests of Gond. In his experience priests seemed somewhat boring, and prone to a distinctive rotund shape as they aged. Although when young they were often full of fiery enthusiasm, but of a sort he could never understand. These priests crackled with enthusiasm of an entirely different sort, one that Smoke could actually relate to. Nevertheless, it seemed they could provide neither information nor assistance.
'Right, should we go see this Elminster? It sounds as if he's a fair distance away, so perhaps we should buy extra rations? And horses, or at least a donkey to carry our stuff? It seems that for now we are a party. Do we have a leader? Do we need a leader? Dibs it's not me.'
'Hey, if we find a caravan heading our way, we can tag along, and I might be able to earn some gold as a guard.'
"I am eager to meet the great Elminster regardless, but if we leave now, we would miss the king's arrival... which instinct tells me is not a simple coincidence with our arrival in Tilverton."
Jin ponders his options... thinking out loud.
"I would like to seek an audience with him, he might hold some answers to this mystery... though as a precaution encase Falagrim's ( @mlnevese ) concern holds some truth, perhaps only one or two of us should go, with the protection of Chaotic Commands..."
"Of course we will need your help for that, and I think we still have enough time for you to prepare sufficiently to protect at least one or two of the company... My concern is that we will be denied an audience... In which case..."
"... we will need to use stealth. I have invisibility spells, and you two look like you could melt into the shadows if you so pleased?"
Jin pretended not to hear Smoke's question about a party leader. He appreciated the need to work together given their circumstances, but though he was tempted to claim leadership of the group, he was acutely aware of his youth and inexperience beyond the safety of Phsant, and yet he would also feel uncomfortable being told what to do by anyone else in the group, so it would be best to let the issue lie.
OOC:
I just realised (from another thread) that this scenario is apparently an old game... I have avoided reading about it to avoid spoilers. So apologies if my contributions drive things in unintended directions. I genuinely don't know what's happening!
When I roleplay 'rest' in BG, I don't always imagine that the party are sleeping. So if the group agree with Jin's proposal, then I am not asking Lulu to go to sleep so soon after waking up. Just to find somewhere safe and quiet and pray/rest so that she'd have the spells that we might need.
@Heindrich these modules usually have built in mechanisms against players driving things in unintended directions. So unless somebody cheats and goes out to buy/download the module we should be fine!
According to the AD&D rules, memorizing a spell requires a full night of sleep, plus 10 minutes of study or prayer for each spell level being memorized (so if you will memorize 4 level 1 spells, 3 level 2 spells, 2 level 3 spells and a level 4 spell, you will need 3 hours and 20 minutes AND a full night of sleep.) I am willing to relax the requirement for extra study time, since that wasn't in BG, but you still need to sleep restfully for 7-8 hours in order to memorize new spells.
Comments
Jin's response is stern and serious, his earlier good-natured mood gone. He does not take kindly to questioning of his integrity and courage.
From here though, things got murkier. A high priest and the king's daughter had been missing for a year. The daughter had supposedly been seen. The king was coming to town. Why should this be related in any way to our abduction.
OK, scenarios. We are about to be framed for a pending attack on the king? Except we are marked with these symbols, so if so, then it is so these organisations can claim responsibility, or so another organisation can frame these organisations. Then there's the daughter. If their target is the king, it seems obvious that they already have the daughter, and the priest.
Now simplify. Why are we even required for that plan? It's too complicated. So, scenario two. We are being set up to attack the king ourselves. Perhaps he has been warned of a group bearing these marks, and will attack us on sight?
Scenario three. as above, but replace the king with Elminster? By all accounts Elminster would wipe the floor with us, so this may be a plan to set Elminster on these 5 evil organisations? Which is kind of a chaotic good action, but it would be simpler to meet Elminster for tea and ask him to help?
So, pending further information, scenario 2 is the best of a bad lot? Smoke decides now would be a really good time to leave town, although he is interested to see what happens if the priest attempts to remove the magical tattoos. From someone else. While Smoke stands behind a large pillar.
"The king is meeting with Burlan here in the temple sometime today...or maybe it was tomorrow morning," Castar replies. "But that's all I've been told. His Majesty doesn't precisely share the details of his movements with just anyone. As far as getting an audience with him...I suppose you could try. He's staying in the Gunderstone mansion, not too far from here. But it's bristling with the royal guard and they haven't been too keen on letting anyone in without an appointment. My ma is absolutely smitten with His Majesty." Castar looks keenly embarrassed. "I told her he didn't want some silly wilted flowers or her sticky old cake, but she insisted on making a fool of herself." The gnome winces. "Anyway..."
"What can you tell us of the king?" Lulu ( @booinyoureyes) asks. "Is he a good man? Would he listen to reason?"
"They say he's a kind and fair ruler," the gnome shrugs. "But we're not exactly on a first-name basis. I'm afraid I can't tell you much about his personality."
"Priest you said you had a spell that could remove the markings?" Falagrim ( @mlnevese) interjects. Use it. If I can't pay for it I'll be glad to render any service you name... As long as it does not involve any explosive devices."
"Ehm, why I believe I do have something that would do the trick. No explosions, I promise! If you'll follow me, I would be glad to see what I can do." He opens the door to a smaller room off of the main hall, which is full of piles of scrolls and books. "Come in, take a seat."
Castar rummages through the piles of parchment, eventually producing a spell scroll. He pulls his goggles down over his eyes and squints at it.
"Yes, this is the one," he mutters. "I believe this one costs...let's see...300 gold."
OOC: All spellcasters notice that the scroll is a simple dispel magic scroll.
OOC: I will search the room with my eyes for valuable scrolls and books. If there are scrolls of level 4 or higher I'll ask if I can take them. I will also search for books related to Moander and the Zhent.
"Eh...There's nothing wrong with the spell scroll, if that's what you're asking." Castar stutters, looking somewhat flustered by Crevs' interrogation. "I can't promise it will get rid of the marks though. If they were put there by someone very powerful it might not work. The only way to know is to try. But I have to charge you for the scroll either way because...well as I'm sure you know, it will be destroyed when the spell is cast. I'll get hung by my ears over the forge if I give temple property away for free."
OOC: Do I have the enough level to dispel the tattoos?
"I suppose I could sell you the scroll if you want to cast it yourself," Castar says. "It's the same price though...I'm charging you for the scroll, not to read the words off of it."
"I'll buy you the scroll, I prefer to it by myself, also, I'll be able to do it more than once." he says as he offers the 300 GP to the gnome.
How does levels work in D&D lore? Like do characters know what level they are? Is it a thing?
If there was a way to objectively determine the mage levels within the party, Jin would probably suggest that the most capable spellcaster ought to learn Dispel. (I am kinda suprised that nobody has it already... what about Lulu ( @booinyoureyes ) and Nona ( @Nonnahswriter )? Don't they have it automatically via divine spells?
Nona wasn't so sure she liked the idea of removing the bonds on her arms. Filani had warned them against such an action, and she did not have much reason to lie. Still, the priest did say that there would be no explosions...hopefully. Maybe. And she was certainly not sure she trusted this wily elf to have enough power for a spell. He seemed...too confident. Too eccentric. Perhaps he thinks he's more powerful than he really is?
"I'm unsure if removing the bonds is a wise idea, at least not until we know for certain what they are for..." Nona says to @CrevsDaak, "Filani warned us from tampering with them as well."
Jin ponders Falagrim's ( @mlnevese ) words...
"... if this does have some sort of mind control power, then the last thing we'd want to do would be to get close to the king... Is anyone capable of casting Chaotic Commands? Nona or Lulu ( @booinyoureyes )?"
ooc
I will scribe the spell on my spellbook (it's the only thing I can do unless the gnome accepts the scroll back and he gives me back my money...).
"No spells that control the mind will pass through the dwarven runes of my helmet. But I don't know if it would protect me from magic that is already under my skin."
'Right, should we go see this Elminster? It sounds as if he's a fair distance away, so perhaps we should buy extra rations? And horses, or at least a donkey to carry our stuff? It seems that for now we are a party. Do we have a leader? Do we need a leader? Dibs it's not me.'
'Hey, if we find a caravan heading our way, we can tag along, and I might be able to earn some gold as a guard.'
Jin ponders his options... thinking out loud.
"I would like to seek an audience with him, he might hold some answers to this mystery... though as a precaution encase Falagrim's ( @mlnevese ) concern holds some truth, perhaps only one or two of us should go, with the protection of Chaotic Commands..."
Jin turns to Lulu ( @booinyoureyes ).
"Of course we will need your help for that, and I think we still have enough time for you to prepare sufficiently to protect at least one or two of the company... My concern is that we will be denied an audience... In which case..."
He turns to Smoke ( @The_Potty_1 ) and @CrevsDaak
"... we will need to use stealth. I have invisibility spells, and you two look like you could melt into the shadows if you so pleased?"
Jin pretended not to hear Smoke's question about a party leader. He appreciated the need to work together given their circumstances, but though he was tempted to claim leadership of the group, he was acutely aware of his youth and inexperience beyond the safety of Phsant, and yet he would also feel uncomfortable being told what to do by anyone else in the group, so it would be best to let the issue lie.
OOC:
I just realised (from another thread) that this scenario is apparently an old game... I have avoided reading about it to avoid spoilers. So apologies if my contributions drive things in unintended directions. I genuinely don't know what's happening!
When I roleplay 'rest' in BG, I don't always imagine that the party are sleeping. So if the group agree with Jin's proposal, then I am not asking Lulu to go to sleep so soon after waking up. Just to find somewhere safe and quiet and pray/rest so that she'd have the spells that we might need.