Return of the Pharaohs
Chapter 10B – The Trap
Details
Tour the city of Sothis, including modern functions
If the party wants a safe tour of the city and the chance to shop in the Malhitu Bazaar or specialty shops, Khemet will offer the service of Setep and 8 of his Guard to assist them. The morning of the tour, the group will be escorted by an honor guard of Risen (they may get the story of the Risen Guard from Setep).
Risen Guard CR 5
Human fighter 6
LN Medium humanoid (human)
Init +2; Senses Perception +6
Defense
AC 21, touch 11, flat-footed 20 (+8 armor, +1 Dex, +2 shield)
hp 49 (6d10+12)
Fort +8, Ref +5, Will +5 (+2 vs. fear)
Defensive Abilities bravery +2
Offense
Speed 20 ft.
Melee +1 khopesh +11/+6 (1d8+5/19–20)
Ranged heavy crossbow +8 (1d10/19–20)
Special Attacks weapon training (heavy blades +1)
Statistics
Str 16, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 8
Base Atk +6; CMB +9 (+13 trip); CMD 21 (23 vs. trip)
Feats Bodyguard, Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (khopesh), Greater Trip, Improved Trip, In Harm’s Way, Iron Will
Skills Heal +6, Intimidate +8 (+10 vs. Osirians), Knowledge (local) +7, Perception +6, Sense Motive +6; Racial Modifiers +2 Intimidate vs. Osirians
Languages Common, Dwarven, Osiriani
SQ armor training 1, the Constant
Ecology
Environment any (Osirion)
Organization solitary, squad (3), team (6–12), escort (3–12 with government dignitary), or royal detail (24+ with pharaoh)
Treasure NPC gear (half-plate, heavy wooden shield, +1 khopesh, heavy crossbow with 10 bolts, cloak of resistance +1, potion of bull’s strength, potion of cure moderate wounds, 72 gp)
He will make stops in the following order:
13 – Temple of the Eternal Sun – he will describe the history and symbolism
3 – Eye of Sothis
9 – Sanswept Hall – Pathfinder lodge, old prison, still ‘in use’
7 – Necropolis of the Faithful – stewarded by church of Pharasma, expanding area
4 – High Temple of Pharasma – see encounter detail below
During their tour, a bald-shaven priestess of Pharasma will approach the armed group and ask them for their tale. Her name is Gharitha and she says that the Goddess has foreseen their arrival and that they have a story to tell the Faithful of the high Temple of Pharasma. If they agree, the group will be allowed entrance to the Temple where they will find a large group of Pharasma priests and priestesses gathered, over 150 of them. Once the group finishes their story, the one called Gharitha will gift each of them 4 CMW potions, 4 CSW potions and the party 3 remove disease and 3 remove curse potions.
Continuing the tour…
12 – Temple of the All-Seeing Eye (Nethys – God of magic)
1 – Azghad’s Spire (inside of #12) – rebuilt by Forthbringers
2 – The Black Dome – the group will see a gathering of people waiting to see if they are one of the lucky 100 people who will be allowed in this day. The tour will not enter the Dome today.
And finally, the tour will end at the massive Malhitu Bazaar. See separate document for specific magic to be found. See below for encounter The Trap.
The Malhitu Bazaar is a large open-air marketplace with semi-permanent structures as well as more portable tents and canopies. It takes up a good amount of te southeast corner of Old City and is bordered by streets with a number of permanent larger warehouses for supply and storage.
When the group reaches the warehouse, Setep will post his guards at the door. He asks Watjep if there is a back entrance and will send four of his men to that side as well.
Warehouse
- Double door entry is locked with DC30 lock as well as Glyph of Warding CL6 DC17 (DC28 disarm), which Watjep will use a password to bypass.
- Rear entrance is used to deliver goods outside of the general public’s view. Same wards as #1.
- This functioning warehouse has not been used in a few weeks as the owner is abroad and Watjep has been hired to maintain and watch it (thus he has a key and the bypass word). Sets of sturdy wooden stairs lead to the upper level.
- Shelves contain various household goods, metallic tools, cases of jewelry (semi-precious), stores of feathers, scales, blankets, sacks, etc.
- Textiles such as carpets, rugs, tapestries on display, bolts of cloth are stored in this area. Some are rather rare and could fetch over 10,000gp on the market.
- The second floor of the warehouse has stacks of crates and boxes as well as old rolls of carpet, fabric and burlap. Watjep will move over toward a long bench on the south end of the far wall and gesture to where several items are waiting (these are just pieces of junk – tools, old rusty weapons, iron rods, wooden sticks, etc.). Once the party has fully entered the room, Watjep will back up to the closest pile of crates as the Brothers close in and attack. The hiding Brothers may be perceived with a DC 29 Per roll. Anyone making the Per roll will not be surprised as they close.
The next part was a narrative device used to move the story forward, but the players did not know this – only that they got their butts handed to them. It was a planned “Kobayashi Maru”. Sorry guys.
The Trap
Setep will take the group to meet with a contact named Watjep who was recommended to him by one of the court advisors. The contact has gathered a number of newly imported Osiriani items of magic that he will allow the party first sales if they have interest. Unfortunately, the Brothers have intercepted information regarding the meeting and have used an item to charm Watjep into bringing the group to the wrong warehouse. Watjep really does have a warehouse nearby with the collection he promised, but only if he survives the ambush.
(8) Brother of Anhumet (Mummy Lord) CR 10
XP 9,600
Male human mummy lord cleric 9
LE Medium undead (augmented human)
Init +2; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +5
Aura great despair (30 ft., DC 19)
DEFENSE
AC 25, touch 14, flat-footed 21 (+6 armor, +2 deflection, +2 Dex, +1 dodge, +4 natural)
hp 103 (9d8+63)
Fort +13, Ref +9, Will +13
Defensive Abilities channel resistance +4, rejuvenation; DR 10/—; Immune cold, electricity, undead traits
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee +1 spear +14/+9 (1d8+10/×3 plus insidious mummy rot) or slam +13 (1d6+9 plus insidious mummy rot)
Special Attacks channel negative energy 8/day (DC 21, 5d6), channel rot, insidious mummy rot (DC 19), sandstorm wrath (DC 19, 6d8 fire and slashing), scythe of evil (4 rounds, 1/day), undead mastery (DC 19)
Domain Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th; concentration +14)
8/day—touch of darkness (4 rounds), touch of evil (4 rounds)
Cleric Spells Prepared (CL 9th; concentration +14)
5th—dispel good (DC 20), greater contagion (DC 21), slay living (DC 21)
4th—divine power, unholy blight (DC 19), shadow conjuration (DC 19), Freedom of Movement
3rd—animate dead, bestow curse (DC 19), deeper darkness, invisibility purge (45’ radius), sands of time
2nd—disfiguring touch (DC 17), bull’s strength, desecrate, dread bolt (DC 17), hold person (DC 18), silence (DC 17)
1st—bane (DC 17), cause fear (DC 17), command (DC 17), detect good, divine favor, protection from good, sanctuary (DC 16)
0 (at will)—detect magic, guidance, read magic, resistance
D domain spell; Domains Darkness, Evil
STATISTICS
Str 24, Dex 14, Con —, Int 10, Wis 20, Cha 20
Base Atk +6; CMB +11; CMD 25
Feats Blind-Fight, Combat Casting, Dodge, Improved Channel, Lightning Reflexes, Spell Focus (enchantment), Spell Focus (necromancy), Toughness
Skills Intimidate +17, Knowledge (religion) +12, Sense Motive +20, Spellcraft +12, Stealth +16; Racial Modifiers +8 Intimidate, +8 Sense Motive, +8 Stealth
Languages Common
SQ eyes of darkness (4 rounds/day)
Treasure NPC gear (mithral breastplate, +1 staff, headband of inspired wisdom +2, carcanet of detention)
Notes:
Great Despair Aura (Su): All creatures within a 30-foot radius that see a mummy lord must succeed at a Will saving throw or be paralyzed with fear for 1d4 rounds, then shaken for the following 1d4 rounds. Whether or not the saving throw is successful, that creature cannot be affected again by the same mummy lord’s great despair aura ability for 24 hours. This is a mind-affecting paralysis and fear affect. The save DC is Charisma-based.
Rejuvenation (Su): One day after a mummy lord is destroyed, the necromantic energies that created the abomination begin to rebuild its body. This process takes 1d10 days. If the body is destroyed before that time passes, the process starts anew. After this time, the mummy lord awakens fully healed in its tomb. To permanently destroy a mummy lord, it must be destroyed and then its remains must be targeted by consecrate, hallow, and then dispel evil, cast in consecutive rounds and in that order.
Channel Rot (Su): A mummy lord can deliver its insidious mummy rot through melee weapon attacks, its slam attack, and any natural attacks it possesses.
Insidious Mummy Rot (Su): Curse and disease—slam; save Fortitude DC 10 + 1/2 the mummy lord’s Hit Dice + its Charisma modifier; onset 1 minute; frequency 1/day; effect 2d4 Constitution and 2d4 Charisma damage; cure —. Insidious mummy rot is both a curse and disease, and can be cured only by first removing the curse and then curing the disease. Even after the curse element of insidious mummy rot is lifted, a creature suffering from it cannot recover naturally over time. Anyone casting a conjuration (healing) spell on the afflicted creature must succeed at a caster level check (DC = 20 or 11 + the mummy lord’s CR, whichever is higher), or the spell is wasted and the healing has no effect. Anyone who dies from insidious mummy rot transforms into a pile of sand and cannot be raised by means other than resurrection or greater magic.
Sandstorm Wrath (Su): Three times per day as a standard action, a mummy lord can exhale a blast of superheated sand in a 40-foot cone. The blast deals 2d8 points of fire and slashing damage for every 3 Hit Dice a mummy lord possesses. A successful Reflex save halves this damage. Creatures that fail this save are blinded for 2d4 rounds.
Undead Mastery (Su): As a standard action, a mummy lord can attempt to bend any undead creature within 50 feet to its will. The targeted undead must succeed at a Will save or fall under the mummy lord’s control (the save DC is Charisma-based). An undead with an Intelligence score is allowed an additional save every day to break free of the mummy lord’s control; for undead without an Intelligence score, the control is permanent. A creature that succeeds at its Will save cannot be affected again by the same mummy lord’s undead mastery for 24 hours. A mummy lord can control 6 Hit Dice of undead creatures for every Hit Die it has. If the mummy lord exceeds this limit, any excess undead from earlier uses of this ability become uncontrolled, as per animate dead. If another creature is currently controlling an undead that fails its save against undead mastery, the mummy lord must roll an opposed Charisma check against the current controller. If the mummy lord succeeds, it wrests away control of the undead. Otherwise, the mummy lord’s undead mastery attempt has no effect.
Touch of Darkness (Sp): As a melee touch attack, you can cause a creature’s vision to be fraught with shadows and darkness. The creature touched treats all other creatures as if they had concealment, suffering a 20% miss chance on all attack rolls. This effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to 1/2 your cleric level (minimum 1). You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
Touch of Evil (Sp): You can cause a creature to become sickened as a melee touch attack. Creatures sickened by your touch count as good for the purposes of spells with the evil descriptor. This ability lasts for a number of rounds equal to 1/2 your cleric level (minimum 1). You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
Combat Strategy:
- Prior to attacking, the Brothers will cast on themselves; Protection from Good, Bull’s Strength
- The Brothers will emerge from their hiding (3 are down below and will ascend the stairs.)
- As the party sees the Brothers, anyone within 30’ will need to save vs. their auras
- They will cast Deeper Darkness (eyes of darkness cans see through)
- They will cast Touch of Evil on nearby targets
- They will cast Dread Bolt at range
- They will cast Silence on spellcasters’ areas
- If within melee range, they will cast Slay Living