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Hear me, yon acolyte of the gods. I am the Inquisitor and I have been dispatched to enlighten, warn and provide notice
of a test of faith to which you will soon be put. I am a representative of not just one, but all. Good or evil.
Law and chaos have agreed on this task. I bear no judgment. I bear no stake. It will be my responsibility to render unto
you that which the gods have deemed necessary.
Know this, you have not acted improperly and are not an intended recipient of punishment. The gods have deemed you an apt representative to resolve questions that have arisen. Your participation is not optional. You have been selected by the court of your deity. Refusal will result in the removal of your religious powers.
Soon you will be visited during prayers to assist in the resolution of this quandary. Your spirit will be gathered, your physical presence protected. The test will occur in a safe place but much will lay in your hands and choices. Respond with openness and honesty. Respond in your faith and with what you believe to be its best representation. The future of clerics everywhere will rest in your actions.
Kenny tries to shake the vision out of his head of this 'Inquisitor' person and gets up from his designated area where he makes his daily prayers from, when in Midway. He looks around the inside of the room and his first thought is to cast his Protection from Evil spell but he gets the feeling that this entity was not evil or good for that matter. 'Was it one of these S-3 clowns playing games with him? Nah, couldn't be! That would take some work to pull off and why would they waste the time on a wagon driver? Why would the gods put the future of cleric's everywhere on his shoulders? Maybe some breakfast will give me some clarity!'
Kenny goes and finds himself something to eat hoping that it helps with his mysterious vision from his divine prayer session. He laughs to himself that he was 'Deemed as an apt representative of the Gods' and how his powers would be removed if he didn't participate. 'What the hell have I gotten myself into?' he thinks as he pushes away his half-eaten plate of food before paying and leaving. He returns to his tent/room and begins to clean up and heads out to the Elven church to see if he could inquire about any texts or knowledge of this Inquisitor.
Kenny will approach one of the attending clerics and introduce himself.
Good day sir. My name is Kenny and I am
a worshipper of Labelas Enorath and I have some, uh, questions. I'm not sure how much you can help me, maybe I just
need some solid prayer time to reflect on my quandary. I was wondering if you have any tomes or scrolls that I may
use for research, maybe related to anyone or anything named 'The Inquisitor'?
The attending church cleric you approach will have no idea who the 'Inquisitor' is but another church official,
one you know is a church elder, will stop dead in his tracks as he was passing by. He'll turn to you, lean in close and speak in a hushed voice.
Do not use that name lightly. If you have been deemed worthy of his attention consider yourself truly honored.
If the gods wanted to cause you harm he would be more than capable. But be wary. Be honest. Know that your actions are now
considered representative of more than just yourself and a decision of the gods is at stake.
And with that he will slowly walk away.
Kenny was about to walk away from the 1st cleric when the other church official approached them both. He bows respectfully when he stops and makes no move to step away from him as he leans in to speak to Kenny. His eyes go wide but, tries to keep his composure. 'You've got to be kidding me, right? Of all the people in this realm and they choose a wagon driver to represent the God's and this Inquisitor,' he thinks to himself as the elder priest begins to step away. He bows and smiles to the elder, "Thank you for your words of Wisdom sir. I understand." 'Did he understand though? Apparently this is a thing. Shit! Now what?'
Before exiting the church, Kenny drops 5 gold into the collection basket and walks outside. He realizes that this is obviously something very real and he has to take this very seriously. But, what needed to be done? 'Gywn,' he thought to himself. 'Maybe they would know! I've got to try and talk to someone who is attuned to the divine ways. Gwyn it was then...'
Here is your first test…
With that, he will fade from sight and the fog will clear. Everything will feel completely real to you. For you, right now, this IS real. You will find yourself in the following situation.
You are in a new town, one with which you have little familiarity. It is later in the evening and there are not many people out and about. You walk around a corner on to a main thoroughfare to see a man lying in the road. He would appear to be a local and not an adventurer. Some blood can be seen emanating from under him.
--- I await your email to tell me your actions or ask any questions ----
When Kenny sees the Inquisitor coming towards him, he will bow his head slightly but keep his eyes focused on him/it. He makes eye contact with him as he speaks and nods that he understands when he is done speaking and disappears.
He notes the people or clothing that the sparse amount of people around may indicate if he recognizes the place he's in. As he rounds the corner and sees the man laying on the ground, Kenny will look around at the surroundings and slowly approach the man on the ground. Noticing the blood, he kneels down next to him and places his hand gently on his side/back. "Hey," he says in a low voice. "Are you OK?" Kenny tries to see if there any obvious wounds that are visible before attempting to roll him over and evaluate further.
The place you are in looks like it could be almost any human town. It is good sized but would not rise to the level of being a city. The attire of the inhabitants is generic enough it could be any temperate location. You approach the man, who is lying face down, and see no wound visible. As you place your hand on him and speak to him the man groans but does not speak. He is still alive. As you gently turn him over you see a slash wound across the man's mid section.
Kenny looks down at the man's face and then down to his wound on his midsection (also noting the race of the man) to see how serious it is. Regardless of race, he reaches for his holy symbol and then places his other hand across the person's wounded area, closing his eyes in prayer. Kenny casts one of his four memorized cantrips, Cure Minor Wounds. "Lord of the Continuum, grant your healing grace upon this unfortunate person left in the street." Maybe, that stabilizes him.
You notice the man is a human, most likely in his 30's. You cast your spell and see the wounds respond nicely. The reaction informs you the man is no adventurer but rather a typical townsfolk. He comes around nicely and meets you with a "Thank you."
Kenny will help the man up and ask, "Are you OK? What happened to you friend?"
As you look down at the man a fog swirls in around you. The Inquisitor appears from the fog. He nods at you.
You have completed this test to our satisfaction.
We thank you for your first contribution to our process. You displayed courage, honor, intelligence and compassion. All qualities we seek to confirm. It is now time for the second event. As before, your behavior, decisions and actions are what we want to see. The first test was rather simple. Straight forward. Each test will be progressively more involved. More… complex. Each test stands on its own as regards your actions and capabilities. No artifice, no play acting. It is YOU we wish to know.
The same fade out of the Inquisitor and fade in of a new reality happens. You find yourself in what would appear to be the same place you were during the previous vision. The place, the time and the lack of others in the area all appear the same. But this time, as you walk around the corner as you see the same body lying in the street you also see another cloaked figure rising away from the person on the ground. Your quick glance reveals he is holding something that he places in a pocket. Then the cloaked figure turns revealing a short sword in his had that drips what could only be some blood. With that he turns and begins walking away.
--- I await your email to tell me your actions or ask any questions ----
Kenny takes a few moments to take in his surroundings....
Is there anyone else in the street passing by or watching? Lookouts?
Is the cloaked figure wearing anything specific other than the cloak?
The item placed in his pocket, paper, scroll, physical item? Which pocket does it go into?
No other visible weapons on the 'assaulter'?
What he sees ....
You see no one that appears to be a lookout. There are some passersby walking the street at this later
hour but anyone in sight is obviously trying to avoid th situation.
You see no armor under the cloak. He has typical pants on and a sturdy pair of boots.
With the sword in his right hand, you see he placed the item in to a pocket or pouch with his left
hand on his left side. The item was in his hand as it disappeared under the cloak.
Only the sword is visible.
Without saying a word, Kenny casts Hold Person on the cloaked figure.
You cast Hold Person and the man stops moving.
Seeing that the man has stopped moving and the spell appears to have worked, Kenny will approach the man laying on the ground (again) and kneel down next to him and immediately cast the Cure Minor Wounds Orison on him before turning his attention to the man held in place. He will reach into where the man took the item and see what it is. "Attacking a poor man sir is not good practice!"
You find your Cure spell has taken effect just in time. You can tell the man was
fading quickly but your efforts were not a moment
too soon. After completing the cure spell you walk over to the held man and remove a jeweled pendant. As you begin to
inspect the item the fog begins to swirl about you. The street scene fades and the Inquisitor reappears. He gives you a
smile, a nod and a gentle hand on your shoulder.
Thank you. It would seem your choice was a wise decision.
And with that the fog clears and you are once again back in your prayers.
Use this link to hear what he says.
For a third time the process of swapping realities is the same. Once again, you find yourself in that same place in the same surroundings. As you walk around the corner this time the scene is different again. The local man is still lying in the street, blood revealing itself around him on the ground and a short trail leading away from a his body. This time there is a fight happening only a few yards away. You see a man with a long sword in a melee with what looks to be another local man. The attacker is cloaked and no armor reveals itself. The local figure is dressed in common local garb but he is also armed with a short sword, defending himself…
--- I await your email to tell me your actions or ask any questions ----
Kenny takes a few moments to evaluate the situation. Still the same 'person' lying on the ground bleeding? Is the blood leading away going towards any one of the two men facing off? After the last encounter, I'm leaning towards the person with the short sword. Do either of the men facing off have any blood on their swords? Any similarities between the man I 'Held' last encounter? Clothes, weapons, etc.? There are only two [2] men facing off in melee?
He sees a quick look only reveals he 'could' be the same man. The blood streaks the ground in the direction of the melee. It is impossible to say which of the two fighting men inflicted those injuries. The man in local garb is facing away from you and your ability to make out the detail of blood on his sword is very restricted. The cloaked figure's sword does have blood on it. The attire of the cloaked figure appears the same. He is wielding a similar sword and has no armor you can detect. Your first impression is he is similarly clad. The fight you see as you turn the corner is between just those two men.
Kenny comes walking around that same corner again, not really expecting the same thing but, when he sees the same man on the ground bleeding, he can almost see where this is going. Before he can act, he notices that there are now two men in the area who are squaring off with one another. With it not as obvious who stabbed this guy on the ground, Kenny kneels down next to the man and administers a Cure Minor Wound spell on the man without saying anything other than the words necessary to cast the Orison.
Once you have completed healing the injured man you notice everything has stopped moving. As that realization settles in you spot something very different out of the corner of your eye. Something you had never spotted before. The Inquisitor standing on the porch of the pub…
Use this link to hear what he says.
I warned them, but they would not listen. Eternal deities can be difficult to convince once they have made up their minds. I told them their test was merely a training mechanism. See how quickly the subject learns to heal the injured man and reinforce it as the proper action. I said these were being with the ability to think independently. Develop and exhibit thoughts and behavior beyond that of rote learning. Perform actions that would greatly contribute to the power pool each collects in the form of worship from their followers. This was not a test of what they truly wanted to evaluate. So now I exercise my authority in this process. I reset the scenario, change the formula. Prove me right….
There is a flash of light and the setting has changed. The man you healed is no longer lying on the ground. You stand in the street in front of the bar. 15 yards away a melee rages. The two local men are now engaged in a battle with the cloaked figure. From the few moments of combat you can see the cloaked figure is definitely more skilled. Onlookers watch the fight from a safe distance, not moving to get involved beyond the occasional verbal encouragement thrown out. Which side they support is indistinguishable.
---- How would you like to proceed? --- Kenny once again takes the moment to assess his situation. Are any of the men familiar from the previous encounters? The 'Cloaked Figure', injured man or suspected attacker? Are the 'other two' men dressed alike, designs, markings, affiliations, etc.? Weapons being used?
He finds the combatants would appear to be the same as before with the previously injured man now engaged in the combat. The cloaked figure is the 'suspected attacker'. The other two are dressed in a similar style. They look to be common folk. Not adventurer types. The cloaked figure has a long sword. The two locals are wielding short swords.
Trying to keep watch on the men fighting and wishing his spell selection was slightly different, Kenny kneels down to the ground and begins to trace a 3' diameter circle upon the ground with holy water and begins to invoke the vocal part of his Protection from Evil spell.
He knows that will not immediately identify if anyone is evil but, if one of them tries to touch him, they should not be able to as he understands the spell.
You are able to complete this spell without any difficulty. As you cast the battle rages on. The cloaked figure displaying an obvious superiority in combat versus the two locals.
Keeping his hands free of any weapons, Kenny will approach the combatants, "What is going on here? Stop this immediately!" If he can, he will approach the 'familiar' man with the long sword to test his theory that the Protection from Evil spell might give him a feeling. At the least, he is good or neutral. He tries to make sure that he keeps eyes on the other two men, not giving them a 'free swing' at him.
As you approach you can see the cloaked figure reacts negatively to your presence. Almost as if it were a discomfort. As if her were hit by a wave of something unseen. The man ignores your questions and somewhat more clumsily attempts to attack one of the locals, but misses.
Kenny will take a 5' step backwards from the melee and cast Hold Person on the 'possibility' of the evil man.
You cast but the man resists the spell effects.
Not willing to give up so easily, Kenny will cast his second Hold Person on the same target.
Unfortunately, the second casting is also shrugged off. And the cloaked figure now begins to press his skill advantage. He scores one hit against one of the locals.
Kenny will quick draw his Elven crafted bow and moves on the downed man. "Tie him up while you can," he yells out to the other two men.
Kenny turns his attention to the man in the Spiritual Whip, "Please stop! We can figure this out without any more
senseless violence! I don't know what the problem is and I don't want to hurt you! Please, yield!"
The two locals move in to tie the man up and the world begins the familiar fade in to fog.
The Inquisitor appears giving you a reassuring nod.
You choices were well made. You reaction to adversity admirable, if not a little stubborn. Prepare for your next trail. You will not return to this setting.
And the fog fades out leaving you once again in your prayers.
Kenny will step back and let the two locals secure their prisoner, resecuring his bow when they are finished. Before the mists consume the area, Kenny will simply bow to the Inquisitor and return to praying.
Use this link to hear what he says.
I trust you have been enjoying this trial. It is fair to say your actions, as a group, have run the gamut and in many ways surprised the gods. Some, good. Some, not as much. But now we turn to a more real world experience that you would encounter and leave the isolated and antiseptic town setting behind. It is time to complicate the situation to represent something you could have experienced. Something that addresses your connections and represents a more direct threat to yourself. This will rely on your instincts and preparedness. The test will be more involved and perhaps more lengthy.
Your reality swirls into a fog once more. This time the location is different. It is mid afternoon, you are in the wild, a woodland setting, traveling with several companions you know well. But your mind is not able to discern exactly who they are. Only your close connection to them registers in your mind. One is a mage, one a thief and one a fighter. They are all of equal or higher experience in comparison to yourself. A surprise attack occurs as a band of orcs numbering between 10 and 14 breaks in to the open engaging your Fighter and Thief. You stand in the middle of the party. The mage begins the battle with a Magic Missile dropping one of the assailants.
--- I await your email to tell me your actions or ask any questions ----
Recognizing that he's not in the town anymore but, in a woodland setting, Kenny tries to quickly get acclimating to
the new surroundings coming out of the swirling fog. Almost immediately, he thinks he recognizes the three [3] people that
are with him and before he can ask, the Orcs break through and begin to attack them. Once he sees the Magic-user loose a
Magic Missile, he says to him, "Cover the Rogue!"
"May the god of the setting sun (Labelas Enorath) help us defeat our opponents," Kenny says as he casts Prayer on 'his' group.
For some reason the exact identities of your companions eludes you.
You do have the sense they are close companions. Going by size you might guess the fighter is a dwarf, the magic-user a human
and the thief an elf.... maybe. Your brain is not really able to process this bit of information.
As for weapons... the fighter has a long handled weapon. Most likely axe. The thief is wielding a shorter one handed weapon. Most likely a short sword.
The Prayer spell is cast without problem covering the entire party.
Kenny will take no more than two [2] steps out target one of the Orcs not already engaged in melee combat and fire two [2] arrows from his Elven crafted short bow using his Zen Archery talent. He yells out again to the Mage, "COVER THE ROGUE BEST YOU CAN!"
You step forward to fire and the Inquisitor steps in front of you, the test freezes. I must apologize. This is a test of your holy powers and actions. While you may attempt to use the bow in your hands this test will treat it as a weapon that is not proper for you... unless that is a weapon of your deity, of course. I will hold the test until you have had an opportunity to reconsider your action. It will resume when you are ready.
I understand your stoppage. Labelas has no listed favored weapon for any of their Clerics that I noticed. It is an Elven Crafted bow that can be used as a club which I'm sure you're already aware of. I would understand about the short bow but, the club is an obvious blunted weapon.
You certainly may use the bow as a club. The test will commence when you are ready. That means, you do NOT fire arrows as your previous action indicated you wanted to do. I will wait for your next directions.
Kenny nods and bows slightly to the Inquisitor, "I understand."
Kenny looks at the line and tries to get as many Orcs in a Hold Person spell using Sculpt Spell. If he can sculpt it to get more
Orcs attacking the Thief and maybe one [1] on the fighter?
The max is 3, yes. You can sculpt the spell and catch 3. You will get the one on the Thief and 2
on the fighter. This will leave 3 Orcs still moving, including the leader.
The fighter is engaged with one, the thief with another. The leader is still about 8 hexes away from the front line. There are 3
held by your spell.
Fuck it. Here it comes, Casting Dust Devil...
"Cover me, casting."
You begin... it will take time. The battle continues....
There are 3 orcs left standing, including the leader. He cast what looks to be a Hold Person on your Magic-User. The 2 remaining continue
to battle with the fighter and thief as you cast. The leader begins to cast again. His casting completes and he evokes a Spiritual Hammer,
slinging it at the fighter, causing damage.
You continue casting. It takes 3 full rounds (I am presuming you are targeting the leader with the location for the spell - please confirm). The other 2 are trading blows with the fighter. The thief has moved to a position to protect the magic-user. The melee and the shamans spell are hitting the fighter hard now. By the time you conclude your casting he is hurting.
Correct, targeting the Orc Leader.
Kenny is going to cast Silence 15' Radius spell directly on the Shaman himself hoping to shut him up to give
the Fighter a better chance to deal with the Orcs and to try and get Kenny closer to get in some healing.
You change tactics and use the silence spell, which has the intended effect, but he continues to use the spiritual hammer on your fighter. The fighter has killed one orc leaving one and the shaman. After the spell you are able to move to the fighter.
As long as the Shaman is 'approximately' out of range, he will start with a Cure Minor Wounds on the fighter to start.
You cast a cure on the fighter and bolster his health a bit. As you do this the Dust Devil begins to take effect, attacking the shaman who is now fully engaged with the elemental.
Kenny will cast one of his Spiritual Whips on the Shaman
The shaman is not attacking it, more so trying to avoid it. But that action has him distracted and he
may lose his control on the hammer.
You cast a Spriritual Whip at the shaman and strike him for significant damage. As the whip strikes you see an
unexpected blue glow appear where the whip hits. It fades quickly. The shaman is hurt badly by this attack. The fighter
and thief finish off another orc leaving one and the shaman still standing.
Kenny will advance on the Shaman, quick drawing his Elven Crafter Short Bow to attack with it.
The Mage is still frozen. You draw the Bow. The Shaman continues to attack with the Hammer, striking the fighter several times.
Kenny tries to get to the Shaman and attack with his Elvencraft Bow.
The fighter cuts his way through the last frontline orc. You all close in on the shaman who steps back a few behind a large rock. There is silence and he is now obscured from your sight.
Kenny will signal to the Thief and Fighter to circle around one side of the rock he's hiding behind while he moves up along the otherside with the Dust Devil to see what he is doing.
You gather your party and surround the rock. As you move around the orc shaman is no longer there. But you see the Inquisitor.
Your quarry is now gone and the test completed. You have once again performed admirably. Your actions are in line with what we had
hoped to observe. Rest now. There will; be one more test to come....
The fog swirls in removing the setting and leaving you once again in your prayers....
Kenny bows first to The Inquisitor and then to his three other companions in this test before letting himself fall back into his prayers.
Use this link to hear what he says.
The gods have determined it is time to reveal more. They have a purpose for testing you. They look to gauge your response to situations. Your actions, your choices. More specifically…. How you use the power they grant. Specific applications have been specially noted. Further, you have not been alone in your role. Others of your ilk have also been tested. It is the roles and actions of the group as a whole they seek to evaluate, for no one individual dictates judgment of all. The situations you have experienced have been designed to be the same for all to understand a range of reactions to a common situation. A baseline, if you will. But here we diverge. This time each participant will have a situation tailored to ask questions of you, how you as an individual respond. This is where the test might become … a tad strange….
You find yourself conducting a church service. You are the primary officiate leading 3 young acolytes. The service proceeds as you would expect until you are interrupted by a dwarf racing in to the church. He is frantic, raving and wielding a miner’s pick. He forcefully bursts past he door attendants and charges towards the dais…
--- I await your email to tell me your actions or ask any questions ----
Is Kenny familiar with the three [3] acolytes at the service with him?
Does he recognize the Dwarven Miner?
He would have knowledge of them. When organizing the service he would have spoken with them to lay out plans. He does know they are either in training (as in only cantrips) or 1st level Clerics.
Kenny changes his focus of the service to the Dwarf charging at him on the dais and gives him his full attention. "What is the meaning of this good Dwarf? We're in the middle of a religious service here!"
The Dwarf races up the main aisle of the church. He does not respond directly to you but continues his incoherent rant scream as he approaches.
Kenny will posture to a more defensive stance and will call out to the Dwarf in his language, "Good Dwarf! What troubles you? How can we help?"
The crazed dwarf continues his charge towards the dais. Wielding a dwarven hammer he pushes past one of your acolytes and leaps on to the altar, kicking many of the accoutrements placed there off, scattering them abouts the dais. He continues screaming in a language you do not recognize, twirling his hammer about in an aggressive manner.
Keeping his hands visible to the Dwarf, Kenny yells out to his acolytes, "Any ideas younger ones?"
He knows of the special qualities that Dwarves possess against magic but he feels it is worth a try. He casts Hold Person on the Dwarf.
Kenny casts Hold Person but it does not seem to slow the crazed dwarf. The Acolytes move to create a wall of their bodies between the altar and the interloper.
This page and its contents are presented solely for the purpose of the RPG game events conducted by a private group. Any references to people or places is explicitly within the context of these RPG games and has no connection to any other similarly named source.
Bob Senkewicz / Howell, New Jersey / senk@optonline.net