The Khatovar-Pitax War (the Kelis conundrum)

The member 'Admin' has done the following action : Dice roller

'd20' : 3

I'm pretty sure I've figured out what Irovetti's goal is.

He wants to usurp the King and Queen's position as a lord/ruler of the Fae.

That's why he is/became fae and why he wants all of the stolen lands so much, since he'll need the power bound in them to assume their place.

It also means the whole place will be ripped from Eberron, which means we have a wedge we can use. Though it's clearly not going to be simple to persuade the population of this. We also need to notify the druids of this, that might push them in the direction of supporting us.

Admin wrote:

"I'll admit that I hadn't seriously considered the idea of a personal contest settling things. I'm also a little skeptical about how willing the rulers of Khatovar would be to risk everything on such an affair, but I'll give it some consideration."

"Are you kidding me? Grabthar would love to personally... ah... end this without unnecessary loss of life."

Quote :

The guard who had spoken smiles slightly at the comment and says, "Thank you, ma'm. Since you don't mind ...." She fetches a chair and seats herself next to the doorway, as does the other guard. "We'll try not to disturb you," the first guard says, before lapsing into silence.

"Thank you for being so... professional. How is it Cas... Duke Irovetti comes by such quality help? Does he pay well? Or does he truly inspire his subjects?"

OOC: thanks to her alternate racial trait, Kelis can use Dream as a spell-like ability:

Dreamspeaker: A few elves have the ability to tap into the power of sleep, dreams, and prescient reverie. Elves with this racial trait add +1 to saving throw DCs for spells of the divination school and sleep effects they cast. In addition, elves with a Charisma of 15 or higher may use dream once per day as a spell-like ability (caster level is equal to the elf’s character level).

So Kelis will lie down, close her eyes, and send a detailed Dream to Leonis explaining her situation/location and a glowing review of Irovetti's treatment of her as a POW. At the end she'll add a curt, "And I'm sorry".

On the insanity saves front, Grabthar and Leonis are the only ones who succeed, which currently puts the group's insanity points at 0 for Grabthar, 1 for Rowan, 2 for Kara and Kelis, and 3 for Leonis (had 4, but improves due to the successful save). I'll email each of you the current effects or give it to you at the game on Saturday.

Nameless wrote:

I'm pretty sure I've figured out what Irovetti's goal is.

He wants to usurp the King and Queen's position as a lord/ruler of the Fae.

That's why he is/became fae and why he wants all of the stolen lands so much, since he'll need the power bound in them to assume their place.

It also means the whole place will be ripped from Eberron, which means we have a wedge we can use. Though it's clearly not going to be simple to persuade the population of this. We also need to notify the druids of this, that might push them in the direction of supporting us.

Interesting deduction. I'm not saying you're right or wrong, but the process of finding out should be entertaining.

Kelis wrote:

OOC: thanks to her alternate racial trait, Kelis can use Dream as a spell-like ability:

Dreamspeaker: A few elves have the ability to tap into the power of sleep, dreams, and prescient reverie. Elves with this racial trait add +1 to saving throw DCs for spells of the divination school and sleep effects they cast. In addition, elves with a Charisma of 15 or higher may use dream once per day as a spell-like ability (caster level is equal to the elf’s character level).

So Kelis will lie down, close her eyes, and send a detailed Dream to Leonis explaining her situation/location and a glowing review of Irovetti's treatment of her as a POW. At the end she'll add a curt, "And I'm sorry".

OOC: I'd forgotten that her Dream ability is a spell-like one. And that it replaces her elven immunities. I'll have to keep that in mind

For Kelis…

Kelis finds that Leonis is sleeping when she activates her ability and she is able to deliver the message in as much detail as she wants. The guards do not distract or speak to her in any way and she is able to drift off to sleep.

In the morning, when she awakes, the guards are no longer in the room. They are obviously present outside, however, since the first movement on her part is followed by the entrance of a guard (not one of the two she saw last night), who inquires politely if she has any particular preferences for breakfast.

Kelis’ requests are (within reason) catered to and, while she eats, she is informed that Baron Irovetti would appreciate it if she would join him at her leisure. The attendants offer to draw a bath for her if she wants, and provide additional clothing if the options in the room are not to her liking.

Once she is ready to join him, Kelis is escorted out of the chambers. Once able to see some windows, she finds that she is in a fortified castle, which stands at the center of a walled city, presumably Pitax City. Her chambers are close to the center of the castle and she is quickly brought to a largish hall, where Castruccio Irovetti is waiting for her, along with a couple of other people.

Irovetti greets Kelis as if meeting a newly made friend rather than a captive and quickly proceeds on a tour of his castle and city. Over the next few hours, Kelis is shown some of Irovetti’s favorite artwork and statuary, attends a troop inspection, accompanies him on a ride around the city, is invited to display/practice her archery, etc. There is a break for lunch in a private, if lavishly appointed, chamber and later tea as well. Irovetti does excuse himself on a couple of occasions to deal with some business, but in each case it is for only half an hour or less.

There is relatively little that Kelis encounters which is overtly to do with the war, though the constant presence of armed guards and soldiers is a sign thereof. The only thing which specifically refers to it is a short stop by Irovetti during the ride around town at a public stage, where an announcement is being made about the attack on the bridge and the treachery of Amina Trask, Quintessa Murray and Terrion Numesti, the first of whom is in prison in Fort Drelev and the latter two of whom have absconded to Khatovar. Irovetti displays no discomfort about Kelis’ presence for this, though some soldiers and members of the public (discreetly) look askance at her. While the announcement is being made, he does say casually, “By the way, I contacted your friends and they’ve agreed to negotiating with me about—to quote them—what I really want. I will be sending an envoy tomorrow. I also reassured them that you’re safe. I figured that,” he grins a little slyly, “someone of your resourcefulness might have contacted them already, but I wanted to be safe and ensure they don’t worry.”

Once evening approaches, Irovetti takes his leave of Kelis, saying, “Unfortunately, I can’t join you for dinner since I have more work to take care of. But I have made sure that you have lots of reading material in your rooms and, if you want, I can arrange for a musician or two, perhaps even a private play performance—if your tastes run in that direction—or simply someone for you to play cards or talk with. Whatever you prefer. I’ll see you tomorrow again, of course.”

OOC: I figured I’d cover a fair bit of stuff, but if Kelis does something that might forestall any of the above, let me know and we’ll proceed accordingly. Also, she’s still charmed.

For the other PCs…

On the morning after Kelis’ capture, Leonis awakes after having received a message in a dream from her. He—and presumably the other rulers of Khatovar, once he tells them, now has a fairly good idea about the surroundings she is in and the interactions that she has had with Castruccio Irovetti.

OOC: Leonis would have had this info when the second set of sendings from Irovetti came through, in case that matters. Since we’re working on two slightly divergent timelines, here’s the progression thus far.

7 Sar – PCs damage Snake Bridge while Irovetti’s forces are crossing, but Kelis is captured. Quintessa and Terrion Numesti come to Khatovar. Irovetti contacts PCs via sending. Kelis sends Leonis a dream.
8 Sul – Kelis is shown around Pitax City. Amina Trask is imprisoned and her (and others’) treachery announcedby Irovetti. Irovetti has longer contact with PCs via sending and promises to send them an envoy the next day.
9 Mol – Envoy supposed to be sent this day.

Let me know if you have questions about any of the above.

Based on Kelis' comments to Leonis does he believe she is charmed? I think it would be a safe assumption - it is something we would do.
Is Kelis able to send a visual description of her surroundings, area, etc so we can use that to teleport to?

Can Leonis talk back to Kelis?
If not, is dream a wizard spell? Leonis will send a dreaming back if it is.

Does Kelis mention to Leonis the location of Amina Trask?

Leonis wrote:

Based on Kelis' comments to Leonis does he believe she is charmed? I think it would be a safe assumption - it is something we would do.

Yes, it would sound like Kelis could be charmed. You wouldn't have any certainty about it, especially with the effects of the fey power, but it's certainly a reasonable assumption.

Quote :

Is Kelis able to send a visual description of her surroundings, area, etc so we can use that to teleport to?

You can't teleport using just a description, however detailed. You need to be able to see the place she's in (via scrying or some other method).

Quote :

Can Leonis talk back to Kelis?
If not, is dream a wizard spell? Leonis will send a dreaming back if it is.

You can't talk back when receiving a dream spell (you're not even conscious of receiving it and only realize you did when you wake normally). It is a 5th level Sor/Wiz spell, so Leonis can use it to contact Kelis. Since he only realizes Kelis contacted him when he wakes on the morning of the 8th (see the dates in my post above), he won't be able to send back a dream till the night of the 8th.

What does he say?

Quote :

Does Kelis mention to Leonis the location of Amina Trask?

No. At the time that she sends the dream, i.e. the night of the 7th, Kelis doesn't know about Amina's situation. But Kelis' sources (as I'd mentioned in an earlier post) inform him and the others about Amina being imprisoned in Fort Drelev on the 8th.

Barring comments from others,

"Kelis, great to hear you are alive. Grabthar sends his warmest regards. You are probably under some kind of persuasion spell from Irroveti's folks, but try not to tell him any secrets. It would cause us as well as our citizens great harm. He already has a lot of knowledge and he has been attacking us with plans for more attacks.

Do you know where Amina is? Do you think you could get out of your cell at a pre-arranged time so we can get in, and get you out. I am willing to bet your cell is covered in wards."


OOC: Anyone else want to add something?

So, after Kelis' first great day of public speaking and the fake Amina rescue attempt, here's our sequence of events:

7 Sar – PCs damage Snake Bridge while Irovetti’s forces are crossing, but Kelis is captured. Quintessa and Terrion Numesti come to Khatovar. Irovetti contacts PCs via sending. Kelis sends Leonis a dream.
8 Sul – Irovetti’s army continues to cross and camp at the ford. Kelis is shown around Pitax City by Irovetti. Amina Trask is imprisoned and her (and others’) treachery announced. Irovetti has longer contact with PCs via sending and says he will send an envoy. Leonis sends Kelis a dream.
9 Mol – Irovetti’s army still at ford. Irovetti has public declaration by Kelis. PCs try to rescue Amina and are ambushed, but manage to flee. Irovetti sends PCs an envoy. Leonis and Kelis exchange dreams.
10 Zol - Irovetti's army begins to move toward the border. Darro ir'Lain meets the PCs.

We'll start off on the morning of the 10th. Kelis, do you try to remove the remaining spells on you via cleanse? For the rest of you, is there anything particular you're going to do?

Admin wrote:

So, after Kelis' first great day of public speaking and the fake Amina rescue attempt, here's our sequence of events:

7 Sar – PCs damage Snake Bridge while Irovetti’s forces are crossing, but Kelis is captured. Quintessa and Terrion Numesti come to Khatovar. Irovetti contacts PCs via sending. Kelis sends Leonis a dream.
8 Sul – Irovetti’s army continues to cross and camp at the ford. Kelis is shown around Pitax City by Irovetti. Amina Trask is imprisoned and her (and others’) treachery announced. Irovetti has longer contact with PCs via sending and says he will send an envoy. Leonis sends Kelis a dream.
9 Mol – Irovetti’s army still at ford. Irovetti has public declaration by Kelis. PCs try to rescue Amina and are ambushed, but manage to flee. Irovetti sends PCs an envoy. Leonis and Kelis exchange dreams.
10 Zol - Irovetti's army begins to move toward the border. Darro ir'Lain meets the PCs.

We'll start off on the morning of the 10th. Kelis, do you try to remove the remaining spells on you via cleanse? For the rest of you, is there anything particular you're going to do?

Plan with Kelis.

Give more sendings and dreams to The Gimp.

Also randomly scry on Irroveti, his wife, Immeckus, the Gimp, etc.

Admin wrote:

Kelis, do you try to remove the remaining spells on you via cleanse?

OOC: possibly - depends on how cautious she's feeling. Low = chicken. A 2! OK, so she's feeling like herself!

Kelis attempts to free herself of bad magic in the loo.

OOC: caster level check -

Other than that, she'll try to work out a flight path/series of possible escape routes and rendezvous points. She's not feeling optimistic about this -- if Irovetti's forces can drive back Grapthar, Leonis, Kara, and Rowan, how can she pull this off.

Plus, Irovetti has been so nice to her...

The member 'Kelis' has done the following action : Dice roller

'd4' : 2

Kelis wrote:

OOC: possibly - depends on how cautious she's feeling. Low = chicken. A 2! OK, so she's feeling like herself!

Nice.

Okay, I need a bunch of rolls now. Give me three caster level checks and three Knowledge (Arcana) checks.

rolling caster level check...

Kelis's rolls (again):

First set: caster level - 29, 25, 19

Second set: Knowledge: Arcane - 17, 23, 22

The member 'Kelis' has done the following action : Dice roller

#1 'd20' : 17, 13, 7

--------------------------------

#2 'd20' : 12, 18, 17

Kelis wrote:

Kelis's rolls (again):

First set: caster level - 29, 25, 19

Second set: Knowledge: Arcane - 17, 23, 22

Intriguingly, when Kelis repeats her now regular morning ritual of casting detect magic in the privy, she once more detects three magical auras on herself, instead of the one that she had expected to find. Two are of minor (1st-3rd level) power and one is medium (4th-6th), all three being of the enchantment variety.

OOC: If she decides to use cleanse on them, let me know in which order you go and roll me six caster level checks (tell me how many attempts you make if any fail).

[quote="Kelis"]

Admin wrote:

Other than that, she'll try to work out a flight path/series of possible escape routes and rendezvous points. She's not feeling optimistic about this -- if Irovetti's forces can drive back Grapthar, Leonis, Kara, and Rowan, how can she pull this off.

Plus, Irovetti has been so nice to her...

Make the attempt to get out. We don't want to stall the campaign too much longer

Leonis wrote:

Plan with Kelis.

Give more sendings and dreams to The Gimp.

Also randomly scry on Irroveti, his wife, Immeckus, the Gimp, etc.

Okay, but just remember that each of the above means you're going to have one less spell for the day, which might be a factor if you get into a fight or even need to teleport somewhere. Sending and dream are 5th, and scrying is 4th. Let me know how many of each you are casting on the day we're starting with (besides the dream for contacting Kelis).

Also, if you're scrying someone, let me know who and approximately what time of day.

Lastly, Irovetti doesn't have a wife. Did you mean the nymph who serves as his magister and whom he's rumored to be involved with?

Admin wrote:

Leonis wrote:

Plan with Kelis.

Give more sendings and dreams to The Gimp.

Also randomly scry on Irroveti, his wife, Immeckus, the Gimp, etc.

Okay, but just remember that each of the above means you're going to have one less spell for the day, which might be a factor if you get into a fight or even need to teleport somewhere. Sending and dream are 5th, and scrying is 4th. Let me know how many of each you are casting on the day we're starting with (besides the dream for contacting Kelis).

Also, if you're scrying someone, let me know who and approximately what time of day.

Lastly, Irovetti doesn't have a wife. Did you mean the nymph who serves as his magister and whom he's rumored to be involved with?

I figured from the time we came back from the fight, until the next attempt was going to be a few days. I wouldn't do it on the day we attempt to have Kelis flee

Yes, the nymph will work.

Leonis wrote:

I figured from the time we came back from the fight, until the next attempt was going to be a few days. I wouldn't do it on the day we attempt to have Kelis flee

Yes, the nymph will work.

Yeah, it'll take a few days, but I'm going day by day since there's a war on and there's a whole lot of stuff that might happen. If, for example, Irovetti sends a few of the powerful NPCs to attack Lakeshore and try to draw the PCs out, it might make a big difference if Leonis has used a bunch of his higher level spells.

So let me know who you're scrying on the 10th (the day after the fight) and if you're using any sendings or dreams beside the one to Kelis.

I will do that the first day.

Leonis wrote:

I will do that the first day.

Do what?

Admin wrote:

Leonis wrote:

I will do that the first day.

Do what?

Scry, send, dream - annoy the people. It's relatively safe choice since most of things are done before going to sleep.

Leonis wrote:

Scry, send, dream - annoy the people. It's relatively safe choice since most of things are done before going to sleep.

Okay. Are you doing the scryings and the sendings before going to sleep as well?

Admin wrote:

Leonis wrote:

Scry, send, dream - annoy the people. It's relatively safe choice since most of things are done before going to sleep.

Okay. Are you doing the scryings and the sendings before going to sleep as well?

Yes. Do a scry. Then do send. Then go to sleep with a dream.