Xin Shalast Discussion

[Tahlvin]

Let's open up the discussion on how we want to handle Xin Shalast, so DMDarcs knows what to prep for the next session.

[Eliahad]

We should also discuss quill questions.

I feel like we don't have enough information and I'm not sure how to get the information we need.

Like, are we going to be attacked on sight?

Are their factions within this city that we can use as a safe haven?

Who are the Spared and how can we get what we need to find them?

If we do make ourselves giant size, would we also need to make ourselves look more like them?

Does this city have a sewer system to deal with the excess of waste that these gianta would create?

Are the aurochs in that walled part of the city their food supply and that's what the bird demons are guarding?

[Tahlvin]

Here's just some stream of conscious thoughts that we can sort out later.

We've got a big city with unknown number and types of bad guys between us and the mountain peak. We're above the altitude where we need to adapt, so we need to take things slow. Our immediate threat is the vulture-looking creatures that are guarding the aurochs. Do we eliminate them or sneak past them?

Beyond that, we know there is a refugee camp with a bunch of tired workers. We need to figure out if they're here voluntarily or against their will.

We need to track down whoever these Spared are, and we need to watch out for the vampires and the Hidden Beast. Again, do we try to eliminate these threats or just get around them? If we try to eliminate them, how many can we eliminate without drawing the attention of the man in the high castle?

Another thing I asked about during last night's session that we need an answer on: Are we still able to use Sending to contact Sandpoint/Fort Rannick? We were planning to contact them every few days to keep them apprised of our progress. We've now been several days on the other side of whatever barrier that was that was preventing Sam from seeing the ghostly river, so we should have either tried to contact our friends back home already, or will be planning to do so very soon.

[Zen]

We should be able to find out pretty quickly if Dothan can identify the vulture headed guards of the livestock.

Supersizing ourselves... not really something that I expect will work well. I DO expect that we would need to try to disguise ourselves to LOOK like we were of one of the races in question, for one thing. Most of them probably don't have equipment anywhere near the quality of ours for another. And, making the presumption that many of the folks around here slant toward the evil side of the spectrum, anyone using a low-level detection spell would be able to tell that we are a big, honking, shining pile of goodness personified... in various flavors... especially now that Nellah isn't around to temper our good with a little bit of chaotic neutral sass.

I second the notion of asking the quill questions about who the "Spared" are and how we can get in touch with them and whether there are any other factions within the city we can use as a safe haven.

[Tahlvin]

What about sihedron runes? We don't want to use the necklaces we have because we're worried Kharzoug can track us while wearing them, but what about making our own? Can Dothan do a little charm to whip up some fake necklaces, or fake tattoos or something like that, to make it look like we're part of the "in" crowd? Maybe that will allow us to get around town and investigate without having to go all Rambo on everybody.

[bralbovsky]

Counterfeit sihedron is brilliant. We should all have one.

Definitely question or two about spared.

My hunch is that we'll run into either a relatively homogenous cadre of things that all draw from the same spectrum, or because of the plane disruption, from a hodgepodge that might include us or things like us.

While high quality cloaks are maybe not the norm, I'd not expect we'd just waltz in naively. I'd assume some storm giants could look like us, not sure about size, but at distance, size is harder to distinguish. Until the cloudkill, Hal had been planning to dimension door up to the cave entrance and occupy the guards until reinforcements arrived. Now that I'm reminded we have some serious artillery (If a not very deep bench) we could certainly set up a situation where we could handle a normally daunting number of creatures with a little strategic thinking. Using a chokepoint or something similar, we could make a serious dent, especially if Thor snipes any leadership individuals while AOE and a determined defense position can be established. Hal would be willing to walk into, say, a giant encampment, and either figure out if these are thralls (could ask the quill) or zealous helpers, and in case of hostility draw the pack into an ambush. Would likely need language support.

Do we have "normal" day and night cycles? That may determine our actions vs the vulture people. (I'd suggest they must roost at some point, and if they fly, I'd just as soon not be caught in the open by a flock of anything, despite our capacity to fly) Again, if there's a tower, invisible Hal could dimension door into their space, with one other person. That move worked very well against the golem archer, if I recall.

[Tahlvin]

Alright, we have a few more days to help DMDarcs prep. Any other thoughts? What are the questions we will be asking the quill? Anyone?

[bralbovsky]

One word answers: (I'm definitely praying to Iomedae about how to modify or train this peacock god thing)
How many groups of creatures would seek to help us?
What is the largest? (order them by number or strength, since we don't know how many)
Who is the best contact
What language does HHH speak? (HHH is whatever the name is, so we're prepared)

How many vulture creatures are there? do they sleep? Tough to use a once a week item on scouting intel. I think mostly we're on our own. Thoughts about strategy and tactics separately

[bralbovsky]

Summary: Plan to kill everything that doesn't help us. Maybe it will take another three years.

I don't know what happens when we kill Karzoug. Does the place implode? Do we have to fight our way out?

No matter. Unless there's a landmine trap that wakes him up accidentally, I think if we can survive here, we can take whatever time we need.
I think we'll know when he wakes up before the outside world as well.
Would it be a bad idea to grind enough to level once more? I'm not sure it makes much difference for Hal, but it might for others.


It occurred to me, for example, that there might be coerced giants like at Jorgenfist, but do we really want to release maybe hundreds of bad things onto Golarian? Wouldn't it be better to either take care of them here or bottle them up and blow the place up when we leave?
I'm not really suggesting we murder an entire ancient city systematically (maybe a little, I am) but whether the place explodes when Karzoug dies or whether we turn around and have to fight our way home, .....I know I lost the thoroughness argument in runeforge from sheer fatigue of being there, but that's still how I feel. Almost cleansed means not cleansed.

[Tahlvin]

Taking our time and leveling up another time or two is fine with me. As for eliminating everything, I'm not ready for that. If there are enslaved giants, my preference would be to eliminate the enslavers, but minimize the number of enslaved that we kill.

One question I had for DMDarcs during last session was whether or not we were able to use Sending within the area of Xin Shalast to contact Sandpoint and Fort Rannick, to keep them informed. If we'll be spending an extended period of time here, we'll want to make sure we keep in regular contact with the people back home. (Edit: It looks like I mentioned this in my first post above. I'll keep it here as well.)

[bralbovsky]

Before I begin with the quill: repeated endorsement of Fake sihedron necklaces for all.

So without a lot of data, some questions proposed:

I'm setting the following as given: We can identify the flying things, and we have a discussion about rules of engagement before we begin.
Since Dwyn won't be here right away, the supersized scouting mission isn't as likely, but Hal would be fine to go solo if allowed. Language might be an issue, but if we decide to stage an ambush I'd be happy to be the bait.

1 How many meters away is our best contact with the spared? (gives us an idea of how deep we have to penetrate , could also ask direction, but if they're diffuse this is complicated)
2 What language do they speak? (Unneccessary?)
3 What is the vulnerability of the hidden beast? (It might give us a hint of whether it's undead or what)

4 Are a majority of the workers free contributors or thralls ? (giants? Karzoug has a thing for giants, and we've met some already, should we be specific about them?)
5 (If thralls as we suspect) What spell or action would dispel their thralldom?
6 Who is our most likely informant or ally within that community?
7 What species is this individual? (I don't have other ways to think about identifying targets we should speak to before we shoot.)

8 how many keys are required to get to Karzougs chamber?
9 Does Karzoug have a ***dang, lich thingy, soul container, whatever that vessel is called.

10 how many groups of potentially friendly entities dwell in this city? (Once we know more we can ask about specifics)

[Eliahad]

The word you are looking for is phylactery.

[bralbovsky]

exactery

[bralbovsky]

Contemplating this surreal situation in which we find ourselves, wandering deliberately into a giants' encampment, wandering deliberately into a plane which was a capital of a dead empire, in genera, way off the map in terms of us being the outsiders, the invaders....It creates a new conception of biomes.
IF giants are natural creatures, as Thor seems to believe, and
IF they have as much right to wander the world as any other of the gods' creatures,

Does this represent a cross-section of old and young, non-combatant, etc....or is this basically a refugee or slave center (the nature of compulsion perhaps not being entirely magical)?
Is there, in theory anyway, such a thing as a lawful good giant? Could there be?

[Tahlvin]

I'm worried about letting the Cthulu-vampire go. He's probably going to come after us again and again. Are the holes that he went through small enough that Thor could transform into a mouse or vole or something tiny like that and follow after it?

Edit: FYI, Thor can shape shift as small as Diminutive, and as large as Huge. So I could either try to turn into a really small animal and fit through the cracks, or turn into a huge aurochs or other beast of burden and try to move the stone dais the glittervamp fled under, if we think that's the way to get to his coffin. Thoughts?

[Tahlvin]

So one option is that I could shape change into a , which can lift about 12,000 pounds or drag about 62,000 pounds. That might help us move the dais, if that's the approach we take. Or option 2 is that I turn into a and go down the hole after glittervamp and finish him off myself. Or option 3 is that we do nothing and hope he doesn't come after us.

[Zen]

[Eliahad]

Could a mammoth fit in this room? Because that sounds the most epic.

[bralbovsky]

Mammoth seems great to me, and we'll find his little chthonic vampire nest and stab him regularly until Hal or Sam can cast a sunlight or bless or some holy thing spell in the morning if necessary. We may have to re-slaughter his minions several times as well, but I think mammoth trampling is pretty effective

[DMDarcs]