[Rise of the Runelords AE] The Swallowtail Festival

Joanna first thought of reaching father Zanthus once for all, but seeing him busy just supported her reluctance; so she decided to wander around the plaza, trying out samples of ale and food while trying to connect what she had seen of the town so far with what little she had saw the few times she had been able to be outside in the past. She wondered about the rest of the Shelyn clergy that have been talking of coming here in pilgrimage. Had they managed to pay visits? Maybe she could join them to wherever they would be going after the festival....


(ooc: not a solid idea on what to do in this time, so if you want to introduce a plot point or an NPC you haven't been able to cue in yet, feel free to make Joanna trip unto it ;p )
 
Sarzain thanks the mayor for her time and promises to return. The sylvan wizard happily meanders back to the town square, his eyes continuing to examine his surroundings.
 
Joanna wanders a bit, looking for her fellow followers of Shelyn, but finds instead a pair of young men harassing an old woman in the street. The boys appear to be from out of town, and when they saw that the house she was going home to was pretty big even if it's a little rundown, and thought they'd get a pretty penny from "politely" asking for her purse.


The paladin doesn't have to do anything, though, as by the time she's recognized the situation the old woman has taken care of it herself. She pretends to reach for her purse, instead grabbing a bit of sand from a pouch at her belt, and with a gesture and a word conjures a burst of multi-colored light that stuns both the thugs. In several seconds, they reawaken and stagger to their feet, to find the woman holding flame in both her hands and looking very angry. They apologize, back away, apologize again, and then flee.


The woman looks up the street and spots Joanna, probably looking stunned her assistance wasn't needed, and smiles. "Hullo the crusader," she calls, "I am Madame Mvashti, and I thank you for being so ready to come to my rescue. What I could use more than rescue, though, is a little help up these stairs. I can reward you in tea and conversation, what do you say?"
 
Cyril is quite pleasantly surprised by the friendliness of the scholars and arcanists, and gladly accepts the invitations - making a mental note to drop by each of the locations at some point after the festival events are over with. Speaking of those, he also accepts the offer to accompany the four to the town square, seeing no reason not to. He may be trying to blend in, but company is always good. And hey, not like people are likely to bother him unless... that happens.
 
"I'm Auria, and this is my companion." She looks over at him, waiting for him to introduce himself before she continues. While waiting she tries to decide if she wants to make a request in her first conversation with Father Zantus. When Maedre finishes she decides to state her intentions. "I was wondering if there might be need of a healer here in this town. I am looking to offer my services in return for resources to aid my research."
 
Joanna lets her hand out of pommel of her sword with some relief. "Of course madame, and... It's no problem, not at all. I was hoping to scare them away first."
 
Joanna


Madame Mvashti was old when Sandpoint was founded, reasonably talented as a seer of some renown, and possessed of more magic than one could reasonably expect of an old lady who sits on her porch drinking tea. She conjures water for the tea, pulls the leaves from her purse, and then uses the fireball she'd used to scare away the opportunistic visitors to bring the pot to a boil. "No sense in wasting it once it's cast, dear. I don't normally display quite this much of my talent, of course, but no one's watching but you, and you've already seen." She claims to have an interest in divine magic - "Some of my own works a bit like the magicks of the pious, but it's not quite the same," - and thus takes a special interest in priests and paladins, especially since the death of Aroden.


Madame Mvashti offers to read Joanna's fortune while she's there, since they have some time before the Swallowtail release.


Auria and Maedre


Father Zantus smiles at the news Auria is a healer, though he seems to misconstrue it slightly. "A priestess, of course, I should have known! You would be welcome in our Cathedral anytime, of course, and all the resources we can make available for your research we shall. Were you planning to formally join the Cathedral's clergy? We could use more learned clerics in all six wings, but a few of the altars remain particularly understaffed..."
 
Joanna does her best at helping Madame Mvashti set the tea afterwards, but falters at the mention of the fortune reading, glancing at the exit. "Oh, well... Yes, if it wouldn't be much issue. I remember some lessons, but they were mostly focused towards asking for guidance. Are...are you going to use the teacups? Or another method? A Harrow?, perhaps?"
 
Joanna


Madame Mvashti smiles at Joanna's hesitation. "Don't worry, dear, I was only offering to be polite. If you'd rather not, well, I'd always rather not. These days, not sure how much good it would do anyway. It's nearly time for them to tell the story of the Swallowtails, you won't want to miss that. Thank you for the tea, and if you do want a reading, now or later, just come let me know. I'll do it. And I imagine you'd prefer the Harrow, so that's what I'll use, if it's all the same to you."
 
Auria blushes from embarrassment, "I'm sorry I wasn't more clear. I am an oracle, though I do have a bit of training as a priestess. I hope since you are in need of clerics, you will still need my help." She doesn't wait to see Father Zantus's reaction before she turns to Maedre and whispers "Thank you for checking on me. I don't want to bore you with my business. If you want to go wander around and meet back here, feel free to." She smiles at him then turns back to Father Zantus.
 
"Alright then. Come find me later. I'll just be walking around."


Maedre leaves to look around and see if anything interesting catches his eye.
 
"Well, it's just a little...complicated. But i am a little curious. Never had one of those before" She sighed as she got up and prepared to go out. "I assume you will be staying in during the festival, madame? I'll check on you another time then!".
 
Noon


Several acolytes drag a covered wagon into the square in front of the Cathedral. Father Zantus takes the podium and tells a parable in his ringing voice, a tale of Desna's arrival into the world. He tells how she fell from somewhere above and was injured. He tells how a young blind child found her, and nursed her back to health. He tells of their conversations and the child's wishes voiced unto Desna. And he tells how Desna granted them - transforming the child into an immortal butterfly. As he tells this last bit, the acolytes throw aside the wagon's coverings to release a furious storm of butterflies. Known as swallowtail butterflies, or today, the thousand children of Desna, the riot of color spirals skyward and spreads across the town. Children take to chasing the butterflies in the streets and parks, but never seem to actually catch them. After the wonder settles down, the hawkers and vendors start up their calls again, enticing festival-goers into their stalls for food, drink, games, and competitions once again.


A few young boys go through the crowd looking for mercenaries, thugs, and other strong types to spice up the series of somewhat more martial competitions. Archery, arm-wrestling, bell-and-hammer, and more await those who would show their strength.


A handful of acolytes (Gil and Balthazar among them) offer to take a few tourists around the Cathedral to show off the original standing stones it was built (and re-built) around. They were here before the first church was built and are thought to be altars to forgotten gods.
 
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Joanna stood up on the same place trying to understand if there was a deeper meaning on that story for a few minute before groaning "Okay, maybe it wasn't THAT deep... Not everything has to be some overly mystical...".


She took a walk towards the activities and competions, she was a little concerned about getting preferential treatment due to her status...but hey, she had indeed worked hard for her figure and well... she was already wearing the attire, wasn't she?
 
Maedre decides he wants to try his luck at the Archery contest to show off his skills.


"Now this is going to be interesting." He says with a little too much excitement in his voice.
 
Though briefly tempted by the idea of cheating his way through the physical contests, Cyril ultimately decides to stick to more educational activities and follows the acolytes to the standing stones.


There's really no need to anger the villagers already.
 
The tour


At least a half-dozen acolytes total lead a group of the curious into the cathedral. The north side houses administrative and sleeping quarters mostly, and during this part of the tour, Moloch talks about Sandpoint's history and the founding of the city. As the nearby city of Magnimar found itself needing more farmland, a few of the mercantile houses decided to work together and start a new colony... only to find their chosen site already occupied by a tribe of native Varisians. Deals were cut, agreements were honored, betrayal was attempted, retribution was sought, and justice was served - and in the end, the native tribe agreed to allow their land to be used as the site of the new town of Sandpoint. One of the key points in the final charter was that the town prominently include their patron deity, Desna, in their worship - and so, construction began around a sacred site with seven ancient standing stones - representing the seven towers of Desna's other-world palace - of the original Sandpoint Chapel, honoring the patrons of each of the four houses - Abadar, Gozreh, Sarenrae, and Shelyn - Desna for the Varisians, and Erastil, the most popular among the initial settlers.


His first mention of the seven towers is perfectly timed to coincide with the group passing through an archway into a large open-air courtyard. The seven mighty stones ring the courtyard, with paths leading between each pair of stones into the six chapel-wings of the cathedral, for each of the gods and goddesses honored here. A different acolyte takes over the story at this point, continuing to talk about the layout honoring particular deities in particular aspects and going on about key points of their shared belief systems and more of the recent history...

Those who took the tour can add +1 to Knowledge checks that specifically relate to the information shared by the acolytes, especially involving the unique local religious customs. I'll get a longer write-up shared sometime this week with more of the information.


I don't expect anyone to hit the DC, but if you like, you can roll Knowledge (religion), Knowledge (arcane), or Knowledge (history) at DC 27, or Spellcraft or Use Magic Device at DC 30, to study the standing stones a bit more in-depth. Even if you hit it, you should only expect vague hints - some of the most learned and ancient scholars have studied the stones and come away with very little more information than they started with. If you break away to look around on your own, feel free to choose a deity's wing to explore, otherwise in a few days I'll assume everyone who hasn't posted is sticking with the group and move things along.


Maedre


The archery range has five targets of different sizes at different ranges. Each contestant is given five arrows, and may use their own bow or use one of the organizer's bows (a common longbow). There are two large targets, at 130 ft and 70 ft. These are worth one point per ring, plus one for a bullseye making it worth six. There are two medium targets, at 100 ft and 60 ft. These are worth one point per ring, plus an extra point for the innermost three rings, making the bullseye worth eight points. Finally, there's one small target at 110 ft, worth two points per ring, with an extra point on the bullseye for thirteen points there. Finally, each hit is worth an automatic extra point on a hit for every two targets that are closer. That means the back medium and the small are at +1, and the large in the very back is worth +2.





You can choose how hard you're trying for each shot, making more accurate shots at higher risk. On the large targets, you can choose to try for AC 10, 12, or 15. For the medium targets, you can try for 12, 15, or 17; on the smallest target, it's your choice between 15, 17, or 20. If you go for the first difficulty on any target, you'll hit the outer ring, plus one ring for each four points you hit over (so you'll need to beat it by 16 to get a bullseye). At the second difficulty, you'll hit the third ring, plus one per three points over (so you only need to beat it by six for a bullseye). At the highest difficulty, you'll hit the fourth ring, or the bullseye if you hit by at least two points over. If you score a critical hit at any point, you gain two extra rings on where you would have hit. If that makes you one better than a bullseye, you'll hit dead-center, not worth extra points but it'll get the crowd talking. If it goes higher than that, well... I have a plan. There's a reason you're shooting last in each round.


In any case, you can divide up your shots between the targets however you like. Don't forget when firing at long targets to remember you may have a range penalty. Check your weapon's range and your feats.


Joanna


There are a few arm-wrestling competitions and some people playing tug-of-war, but after looking a bit, Joanna sees one that's rather interesting to her personally - a javelin toss. Ranges are marked out with ribbons on the ground, and there are targets that are worth extra distance. Hitting the ribbons - either the ones marking the distance or the ones marking the targets - is worth additional range as well. You get five throws, but instead of totaling your score (like the archery competition), only your best throw counts.





Hitting a given range is ridiculously easy for someone with levels in a PC class and a BAB. You automatically hit the first three range increments for your +3 Str mod, and past that is AC 3 for the 91-120 ft increment or AC 5 for the 121-150 range increment (use Str instead of Dex to calculate these, since it's supposed to be a strength competition - and don't forget to add the penalty for range, so you have a CHANCE to miss at least. Getting further (technically the past the max range of your weapon) or hitting a target, though, complicates matters. To go past max range, add a modifier that starts at +3 and increases by +1 per range increment past that. (AC 8, then 12, then 17, then 23, then 30...) That's still in addition to the range penalty.


There are three target sizes in each range, as well. Large targets are AC 5 in your first three range increments, or +3 to the AC of the range past that, and count as making it one increment further. Medium targets are +2 AC over large targets, and worth two increments. Small targets are another +3 over that, for a third added increment. Deliberately hitting a ribbon is +5 to the AC of a target, but worth another range increment. If you crit on a general throw, you hit a target. If you crit on a target shot, you hit the ribbon. I DON'T have a plan for if you crit on a ribbon shot, but I'll make something up :D


If you're hitting a target or ribbon past your 3rd range increment, you can add both your Dex and Str mod to your attacks. So, you know, that helps... a little. You can take heart that half your opponents are drunk and only one of them has your Str mod, and he has neither BAB nor Dex bonus. You are the most skilled contestant of the ten, so if luck doesn't go against you, you should have this in the bag. And even if you lose, you'll make a good showing.
 
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Sarzain examines the stones, intrigued by the tale and their innate presence. After several moments of looking and remembering, he turns and moves away from the tour, heading to the wing dedicated to his patron, Abadar. Perhaps the Gold-Fisted One would bless his stay in this town.


[dice]2924[/dice]
 
Maedre steps up to fire his weapon. He takes aim at the two medium targets, then two at the smallest and then lastly the large target closest to him, attempting a bulls eye for each shot.

[dice]2951[/dice]


[dice]2952[/dice]


[dice]2953[/dice]


[dice]2954[/dice]


[dice]2955[/dice]
 
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After a quick glance at the stones, Auria heads off towards Sarenrae's wing. Humming to herself as she walks, she silently prays to find answers to some of her questions...
 
Joanna takes some moments weighting the javelin. For a bit she doubts, fearing that her training would give too much a small chance to the other participants in comparison. Then again... "If i don't test myself, how can i be sure i'll be able to stand my ground when the need arises? i think i'll use this chance to do some experimentation...". She picks up the first javelin and throws it as hard as she can.


[dice]2992[/dice]


She then picks the second one and aims it at around the 110 ft mark.


[dice]2993[/dice]
 
Joanna


Joanna's first throw soars past many of the javelins that have already landed, and sets her in the top three for distance so far. But that's before scoring... the second one lands in a medium target at 110 ft. Technically the same score, but showing more skill than raw strength. Half the murmurs and comments that started when a woman stepped up to the throwing line that men were competing at cease, but the other half get louder. Apparently at least a few men are getting their masculinity threatened here today.


(After a handful of rolls, you're tied for furthest range increment with two others. I rolled three of their five throws already (and one of those throwers was stretched to their limit - the only person who can beat you without a very lucky critical right now is the one other guy with a 16 Strength).


Maedre


Maedre has a bad run of luck, but it might not have mattered: The third person to shoot, an elf who doesn't look like he spends much time in town, chooses the nearer medium target, nailing the bullseye with his first shot, the ring around the bullseye with two of the next three (one missing the target, much to his irritation), and then his last shot splits his first. The sound of the arrow shattering as the other arrow blasts through the splintering wood mingles with the sharp intake of breath from basically everyone watching. That was surely luck, right? In all, he walks away with the prize (a few free meals and plenty of free drinks at Risa's Place, a tavern that seems to be pretty popular with the locals) while the fourth shooter gets a single, oversized tankard of an expensive liquor for his second place finish (21 points off two hits on the small target, one of them a bullseye). Maedre, in third, gets a little respect from the locals, while the other two shooters don't even get that.


A kid that was watching the competition nearly gets run over by one of his friends, coming to urge him to check out a different game going on. The friend basically drags the boy away, not that he's resisting much, toward whatever competition is so interesting.


Cyril


The tour continues into the west wing first, overlooking the Old Light and the sea, and honoring Shelyn and Gozreh. While parts of their prepared speeches are interesting in a general sense, they're rather general about the deities themselves, covering domains and responsibilities. They're not pushy about trying to get people to join the church, at least - it seems they really are just proud of their new cathedral and wanting an excuse to show it off. Cyril is distracted for a moment at one point when he looks out of a high window and sees Brodert, one of his new acquaintances from the little knot of friends from earlier, climbing onto a rooftop below, but it appears the old man was just looking for a decent seat. He sits on the rooftop and looks out over the town.
 
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