What Dreams May Come - IC

[AngelOmnipotent]

What Dreams May Come
Chapter 1 - Introduction

You'd never really dreamed about passing into the inner cloister of the Narazian mage tower before. The furthest you’d ever been allowed to travel as a bystander is the outer ring of markets, but here you are standing in one of the biggest halls you've seen; a lot bigger than the tower should physically be able to accommodate. The entire city is made from magic though, so what else would you expect? It would be foolish to be surprised. Even from the outside the runed obelisk that makes the tower itself is only attached by the way of a sustained beam of energy, floating freely in the twilight breeze. If anyone needed any proof that magic was still around then they just needed to look up.

You'd been standing there all morning, all afternoon, and as the sun begins to set without anything happening your feet are beginning to get tired and your patience a little frayed. A lot of people have walked out already and the crowd has thinned from closer to ten-thousand to little over five-thousand. Maybe it’s a test? Maybe they’re just laughing at the looks of discomfort on so many faces; even after so many had left there’s still no real room to sit down. A hall that shrinks and grows depending on the number of occupants? How quaint. Although you soon start to question the practicality as your feet start to feel the numbness creeping in.

Then of course at the peak of frustration, something starts to happen. A door opens at the far end of the room and after appreciating the small draft it causes your eyes are drawn to the figure that approaches through. A tall, robed man steps onto a small pedestal that stands in relief at the head of the room. Casually floating up above the crowd the amalgamation of adventuring voices becomes nothing more than a disgruntled whisper, but there’s no real need; the voice you need to hear is being transmitted directly into your mind.

"Your patience is appreciated, and your curiosity is now going to be rewarded. We shall explain everything to you.
"As many of you already know, the world is changing and it’s not for the better. More dire creatures are surfacing and wreaking havoc on our land and while we’re not hiring you to get rid of them, at least not directly, we’re hiring you to sort out the cause.

"The world is in fact split into two…" They continue to ramble onto you about the history of the world, the war between Raziel and Dolus, and amidst the gasps of shock and mutterings of disbelief, something stirs inside you and you feel that somewhere deep inside you already knew this, it just needed to be reawakened.

"…and the fact that Raziel sleeps within the earth of this world is what grants us our gift of magic, and manages to sustain us. The second world is empty of any magic and we know very little about it, but what we do know of it they are starting to have the same problem as we are. Trapped between the two worlds is an extraplanar chaos where everything else got trapped during the split, and monsters are able to leak through into both worlds where the boundaries are the thinnest. Everything merged into everything else, and it is where us, the Mages of Narazia, are currently trapped as wandering souls; we call it the Underworld and it’s only due to the powerful conduit Narazia is built on that allows us to project to you. Unfortunately Dolus is also here, trapped with us.

"It’s all well and good filling you in on a little history, but there is a task at hand that needs your help; both worlds are dying, and so is Raziel. Soon we will cease to exist as we crumble into nothingness as the Underworld begins to reorganise itself and launch attacks on Raziel in his weakened state. The only way to prevent this is to merge the two worlds back together, but even then it isn’t straight forward.

"There are two ways to do this; we find a way to merge the two worlds back to the way they were, putting the planes back to their rightful place but sacrificing the lost souls trapped within the Underworld due to the split in the first place as it all closes. This includes sacrificing ourselves and Dolus to make sure that both worlds survive and unite into one once again.

"The second way is the one that Dolus favours and is currently working towards. There is a way to merge the two worlds, but risking their destruction at the same time. This method will merge even the Underworld with the new creation and release Dolus to finish his job of controlling Raziel himself; in his weakened state, it wouldn’t be difficult to do so. There is a high risk of one or both worlds being destroyed just by trying this, but his view is that if it isn’t done this way, he’s going to be destroyed regardless. He would risk everyone else in existence just for that last bit of power. Of course he would have us to contend with if it succeeds but in the meantime Dolus is even attempting to neutralise us as well.

"In order to stop him from doing this and to return the land back to normality for everyone involved, we need to destroy the work Dolus has managed to complete thus far which we have only just recently discovered ourselves. He has set up twelve relays scattered between this world and the other world that connect from one to the other; their purpose to pull the two worlds together with such a force that the collision will cause his intended reaction.
“We need you to form a special task force with the mission of destroying these relays and to prevent Dolus’ uprising. We cannot physically interact with this world, but we can fight Dolus from the Underworld to keep him at bay on this side of things."

There is another silence that falls over the room, but this time no one speaks. Everyone is dumbfounded and too awestruck to put two words together. You knew that walking into this room you would be asked to do something big because of the offered reward, but to save the world? What is this, a storybook? Yet once again you get the feeling in the pit of your stomach that is impossible to ignore, that everything said is true and irrefutable.

"However…" The word springs to your mind, cold and callous. Nothing much has ever been known about the Mages of Narazia the more you think of it and the promise of the reward seemed to overshadow that train of thought. "You came here with a choice to be recruited or to walk away once you hear those terms; so if you do not wish to join us then your mind will be erased on the way out."

It was sounding so good up to this point. Until they threatened to erase the mind of everyone who disagreed. Regardless of that prospect, a further two-thousand or so slowly filter out through the doors and leave you standing in the room. It wasn’t until they had all left that the voice calmly returns to your mind.

"And those that remain…" The coldness again. Always the coldness. "Prove yourself, or die in the knowledge that your death now will be less painful than the one you would suffer at the hand of Dolus."

Of the three-thousand-or-so people left, two-thirds of them twist and contort from their humanoid form and transform with a blood-curdling scream into beasts the likes of you've never seen before. Their form is constantly changing as they attack, engulfing their prey as several of the remaining adventurers fall victim straight away.

"Prove yourself."

---

COMBAT

Initiatives
Loren - 14
Annabelle - 10
MONSTERS
Tomitec - 8
Mia - 6

This combat will not have a map. You're outnumbered 2-to-1, within a 30ft radius there is likely to be 4 other people and at least one monster within a 5ft step in any direction. The room itself changes size depending on how many people/things are occupying it at any one time, so if you wish to know the size of the room you'd need to ask on a round-by-round basis.

They look like this (although I'm not as evil to make them be what the picture is of :smalltongue:):
http://www.iwozhere.com/SRD/images/MM35_PG33.jpg

By what you can see so far, the monsters are mindless, fragile and whilst they're not accurate with their attacks, if they hit then they do quite a bit of damage. They're falling to at least one slash of a blade but they move as fast as you do and just seem to swarm the closest living being. Also if one of the monsters is injured in any way without dying, the other monsters will swarm that one and devour that instead of another humanoid.

Any further questions, please post in the OOC thread :smallsmile: have fun!

[Corey]

Loren thought as he listened.

Well, if they're telling the truth, they're asking us to help them sacrifice themselves to save two worlds, and by the way today's delay might be excusable due to difficulties getting a message through.

One has to wonder about their ability to dole out rewards, of course -- but that's hardly important if the rest is true ...

... and with any luck we will have considerable autonomy in how we go about doing what is needful.

And so it went, until the large magical place suddenly erupted into battle.

What the ____? They're that powerful and they let in more infiltrators than anybody else even so???

Loren's head swiveled rapidly. Then he did what he did at the beginning of most dangerous-seeming fights -- he reached down into his magical core and began to sing.

And he had just the perfect song in mind, too -- one about a failed invasion.

Sigurd, the Jarl of the Orkney Isles ...

--------------------------------------------------
Recommended reading for anybody planning to fight the enemies:

Casting Inspirational Boost (swift action) and firing up Inspire Courage. Sustained +2 morale bonus to everybody's attack and damage rolls, including -- I have been told :) -- those of summoned creatures.

[Sallera]

Mia

Well, some tasks tend to take a certain importance, don't they... but really, this seems a little excessive. Still, these don't seem that different from my usual targets. Smelly, disgusting, and overly fond of squelching noises.

The midnight-haired girl grins as she hears the beginning of song. Someone's got the right idea. Seems some of these people could likely use a little encouragement. She raises an arm above her head, and the scythe at her back leaps upward into her hand. "Have no fear, squelchies! Lura's light will send you back to your prison soon enough!" A spark of light in her silver eyes grows to encompass her entire body, flowing around her loose brown clothing and illuminating every link of the chain shirt she wears. Unnaturally shadowless, she laughs, dancing between the creatures to put herself next to another adventurer.

---

Cast Light of Lunia.
Tumble: [roll0]

[Gorgondantess]

Annabelle stands stone still while waiting, inwardly fuming. She smirks at the irony of her situation- after all, the only reason she was here was because of the desolation of the worlds- but her smirk turns into a grimace as he releases the monsters on them. She glares up at the space he formerly inhabited. "Well, that's hardly polite, or practical." With those words, wings spring from her back, and she comfortably sails up to the top of the room. Tying a rope to one of the rafters, she quickly fastens a harness and sighs, putting her chin in her hand and watching the combat below.

[AngelOmnipotent]

As the fight breaks out, several people bolt towards the doors and manage to get out of the room screaming both for help and various curses at the top of their lungs. The guards are letting them through but only one at a time, and a flash of light follows their departure through the door. The overwhelming panic is evident.

--

End of Round 1

Loren - As your voice reaches out over the room, it spurs on a lot more people than you realise and even encourages many others to join in the song with you. The bonus is increased by +1 while the others are singing.

Annabelle - As you fly out of the way several monsters take a swipe at you but none land their blows. You can see below you that there are as many skilled adventurers as their are unskilled, but the monsters seem to be going down easily.

MONSTERS - Quickly spreading out amongst the people battling in the room, they squirm across the floor towards you lashing out at whomever they can but all of their initial attacks are uncoordinated and fall short of their mark.

There are currently two adjacent to Loren, two are drawing closer to Tomitec, and the others seem to be coming closer as you move to either attack or defend yourselves.

Tomitec - (DM Action) Drawing his weapon, Tomitec is the first to slash at the creatures and takes one down with a powerful swing (Damage: 6), almost testing the water as to how much these creatures will take to destroy. (One currently left in front of you)

Mia - Illuminating the room with the glow from your spell, the creatures seem to recoil slightly before almost being drawn to you; 4 soon surround you. (currently adjacent to you in all 4 directions)

Round 2 Begins

[Corey]

I read that to say the bardic buff is up to +3/+3. Other mechanical notes below the spoiler button.

I'm going to assume Loren is flanked, leaving him no option for a five-foot step that gets him out of AoO range.

Loren is going to drop Linked Perception to cast Summon Nature's Ally II, specifically a hippogriff, with its three attacks, two of them at +9.

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/hippogriff.htm

I presume that can be located so it can get at both the monsters threatening Loren; beyond that the goal is to screen him from as much other monster action as possible.

He's casting defensively, so at least one Concentration check is needed. Perhaps a couple more will be needed (full-round spell; blech), so I'll roll three in total, just in case. These are against Perform due to the feat Melodic Casting.



I'm still getting the posting mechanics down. This is continued in the next post.

[Corey]

Concentration checks:

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

Heartened himself by the rising chorus, Loren raises his voice over the din as best he can

... has called to his banner a Viking band ...

His eyes dart to the monsters on either side, but then he grows calm. Losing himself in his music, he fingers the candle in his pouch and reaches out for help.

Forgive me, friend, for bringing you into unwholesome place. But the need is great.

[Sallera]

Mia

Mia frowns as the creatures surround her before she can reach an ally, and rolls her shoulders in resignation, holding her weapon at the ready as they close in. "What, do you have a brain in there after all, squelchies? Shall we find out the hard way?"

Shorter-hafted than a farmer's scythe, with the blade angled slightly outward, the weapon in her hands is clearly built for harvesting corpses rather than grain. Slamming the point down behind what passes for the creature's head, she twists the blade as she slides past, then draws it out overhand, slicing mouth and eye in two.

---

Attacking one, then 5ft stepping between two of them to get out of the way.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[KingRexII]

Tomitec (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)
[Round 2 Actions]

Except for the more interesting bits, Tom thought nothing of the lecture, his mind wandering when the voice blathered on and on about a history he is sure he has heard or read of before. When the creatures start attack, he states his brief moment of singular thought: "Cool."

His first swipe of his blade hits cleanly, prompting him to say, "Well... that was disappointingly easy." He disdainfully swings his sword at the other one in front of him. He calls out to the room hoping that the source of voice in his head can hear him, "So when does the test start?"

---
Rolling a knowledge check to see if Tom's seen these things before, using one of his three inspiration points to boost it. I don't know if you want me roll it myself (probably not), so here are the total modifiers (with the inspiration bonus added in already) of the usual suspects: Arcana +16, Dungeoneering +14, Nature +14, Religion +14, Planes +13.

Unless his knowledge check tells him otherwise, he'll attack the other one next to him:
[roll0]
[roll1]
5' step away from any monsters if any have gathered around him.

[AngelOmnipotent]

@ Totemic - 1 Insp. spent: Your Knowledge leads you to believe that these creatures are part of a very elaborate summoning ritual and are somewhat similar to Chaos Beasts (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/chaosBeast.htm) with regards to type and origins. You'd take a guess that these creatures were actually engineered from a Chaos Beast for this very purpose.
These creatures are less malleable, have more maneuverability, and are able to smother their opponent if grouped together. Basically, one of these things hitting you would not be a good idea so it's best to keep moving to avoid being surrounded.
By seeing what has happened when Mia cast her spell, they are drawn to magic and/or light.

[KingRexII]

Tomitec (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)
[Free actions]

Tom eyes light up in recognition. Oh, wait. These aren't the real test. You're summoning something else...

He calls out to those that have not lost themselves: "Conserve your strength! These are just the appetizers. And whatever you do, keep moving! Don't let them touch you." He calls out to the woman [Mia] who's attracting them like moths to a light, "Don't cast another spell unless you want them swarming you like that! They're attracted to magical energies."

[Corey]

Well, that doesn't sound like good news. I guess we have to beat them all before I try to save the wounded and dying.

Isn't that always the case?


Loren continues his song, weaving two kinds of magic into his words and melody.

[AngelOmnipotent]

You can see now that a lot of people are falling prey to these creatures around you, but there are also as many standing proud and holding their own.

End of Round 2

Loren - Expertly managing to concentrate on your spell as the monsters surround you, you have no doubt that you will succeed, but what situation you'll be left in afterwards is weighing in your mind. You're starting to be surrounded.

Annabelle (DM Action) - Having secured yourself to the rafters a lot of angry jeers are being shouted up at you; some of the adventurers below you are even starting to think that with your wings you're actually part of the monster attack. Those not surrounded by the creatures are beginning to ready their bows.

MONSTERS - There seems to be some collective intelligence with the creatures although it's still evident that on their own they're still relatively mindless. You start to witness that when they do indeed group up on someone, their engulfing attacks seems to sap people of their 'soul' and leave an empty shell with no visible injuries.

Loren's spellcasting has attracted at least four more creatures to head towards him, and they seem to be even more drawn to him than they were to Mia.

While no longer flanked, two creatures bear down upon Mia and seem to co-ordinate their attacks to become successful. They only manage to glance a blow off her shoulder (4 Damage) but the area is left feeling very cold, but not in a temperature sense.

Tomitec - You take down another one with ease and try to move away from the second creature in front of you but it manages to land a rather savage blow (Critical for 13 damage). It doesn't leave a mark, but you get the sensation that it tried to tear a part of your soul with it's blow but something was blocking it.

Mia - Easily managing to slices the creature that hit you, you notice that the other two that were surrounding you are moving towards someone else. (Loren)

Round 3 Begins

[KingRexII]

Tomitec (http://coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)
[Round 3]

Well, that was less than pleasant. They go down easily, but they've got a little bite to them. Can't be one of ones to fall. And I can't let Loren get surrounded.

"Hey, you! Leave the singing idiot alone!" Tom shifts his position to stay as far away from any of the beast's reach. He casts a defensive spell to try to attract the beasts away from others.

---
First, I'd like Tom to move away from the beasts so that he's not threatened, preferably just a 5' step. Barring that, if there's a safe spot to which he can tumble, he'll take that instead (Tumble +15). If neither of those options are possible, then he'll just concentrate on his second level spell, using the second of the three inspiration points (Concentration +12).

Then, he holds his greatsword in one hand, and he casts Extended Mage Armor.

[Corey]

Loren and friend Round 2
(Not responding yet to Tom because that hasn't happened yet)

A magnificent hippogriff materializes between Loren and some of the advancing monsters.

(Rolling full attack w/ +3/+3 bonus)

Edit: Never mind. I had 1d20s in here for some reason. Really having issues with the roller. Sorry.

Edit: This is really embarrassing -- I did it right the first time and deleted it! The rolls were pretty good too. OK, let's see if I can reroll in the thread and get past these glitches.

Attack, right claw: 1d20+9
Attack, left claw:1d20+9
Attack, bite:1d20+4

Editing at Sallera's suggestion to try to get the original rolls back in:

Attack, right claw: [roll0]
Attack, left claw:[roll1]
Attack, bite:[roll2]

[Corey]

Loren and friend Round 2
(Not responding yet to Tom because that hasn't happened yet)

A magnificent hippogriff materializes between Loren and some of the advancing monsters.

(Rolling full attack w/ +3/+3 bonus)

[Edit: And this is FUBARed too because it wrongly used the roles from below]
Right claw: [roll0]
Left claw:[roll1]
Bite:[roll2]

(Rolling damage)
Right claw:[roll0]
Left claw:[roll1]
Bite:[roll2]

When he sees which monsters are left approaching, Loren positions himself (5 foot step or other move action only if needed). His bow leaps to his hand (free action), as does an arrow (ditto), and he takes aim at an enemy (ideally, one that's closer to him than the hippogriff, rather than one that's screened off).

... And sailed to Dublin to make himself ...

With just a moment's pause to continue his song, he fires

(rolling attack and damage)
Attack: [roll3]
Damage:[roll4]

[Corey]

Edit: As per the above, none of this is needed any more.

Rerolling the hippogriff's attacks:


Attack, right claw: [roll0]
Attack, left claw:[roll1]
Attack, bite:[roll2]

That's a lot better than I had before, which was something like 14/19/15, so please feel free to have some miss.

I'd like to end my turn by moving some place a little safer -- e.g., to put the hippogriff between me and any onrushing monsters.

Sorry -- I'll try to get smoother about the rolling!

[Gorgondantess]

Annabelle sighs, and flaunts her wings a bit. She waits to see the frustration grow on their faces with a small smirk, and sits content.
Any enemy must make a DC 20 will save to make an aggressive action towards me: if they fail, it must be directed at another foe.:smallbiggrin:

[Sallera]

Mia

"Tch. You really aren't any different. But if you like magic so much, then so be it." Sliding back out of reach, she holds her left arm out to the side, and the light swirls and coalesces around her hand. She sweeps her arm out in front, scattering motes of energy, and the last of the light scatters as twin rays of silver surge forth into the final creature before her and one of the ones fleeing.

"Feast on your own fallen, if you're so hungry."

---

Tumble 10ft away, then release the Light of Lunia at two of them.
Tumble: [roll0]
Ranged touch 1: [roll1]
Damage: [roll2] + [roll3] skirmish, if applicable
Ranged touch 2: [roll4]
Damage: [roll5] + [roll6] skirmish, if applicable

Corey, you can fix broken rolls by editing the post to include [roll0], [roll1], etc.

[AngelOmnipotent]

End of Round 3

Loren - Your Hippogriff appears and for a split second seems to gain the attention of every other monster in the room, and with a battlecry slashes through two creatures with each one of its claws. Your arrow also hits home sending a creature back to where it came.

Annabelle - Your grin may be seductive but your face soon faulters. Something is wrong; the power of this place is subduing some of the power you carry with you. Several arrows fly towards you but their accuracy is poor. You do, however, see out of the corner of your eye robed figures have entered the room and stand in each corner, being ignored by the battling people below.

MONSTERS - While some monsters continue to attack, they all seem distracted somewhat by the Hippogriff that has appeared within the room but only for a short moment.

Suddenly they all turn and face the centre of the room and slowly lurch towards a massing, crackling conduit of energy appearing just below the ceiling.

Tomitec - Your spell is successful as you step back out of the creature's reach, however your spell doesn't seem to draw the attention as well as you had liked.

You'd take a guess that it was the school of magic used rather than the spell itself that draws them more.

Mia - The monsters in front of you seem to turn away from you and head towards the center of the room. One beam of light from your spell hits home but the other flies wayward far from where you aimed but happens to land in the 'back' of another creature causing it to explode rather violently (d100 fumble roll - 05)

Round 4 Begins

[Corey]

... king of the Irish laaaaand ...

Whatever is or isn't happening, there's a good chance more fighting will ensue, so Loren keeps singing in the loudest voice he can keep melodic and clear.

Loren also nocks an arrow, taking aim at whatever is emerging -- and then changes his mind.

I don't know how fast that's happening, or what it is -- but I do know people are dying here.

With no clear target to attack, Loren takes a moment for triage.

I.e., he tries to locate somebody unconscious but breathing, and cast Cure Minor Wounds on her/him to stabilize.

The hippogriff, however, knows no mission other than to fight.

I'd like to say it Readies the action to attack whatever is emerging, but I understand if you don't buy that. More likely it just rips apart a few of the retreating monsters.

[KingRexII]

Tom (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)
[Round 4]

That... was not as affective as I'd hope. Anyway, it's time for the real test to begin.

"And here comes the main course!" Tom fiddles with his belt from which a glow of energy flows towards the wounds he received from one of the creatures. He maneuvers himself so that he can confront whatever comes out of the energy. With fascination, he inspects the magic of this summoning spell.

---
Tom is using 1 out of the 3 remaining charges on his healing belt to heal [roll0] hp. He moves to get close to the energy, without being in the way of whatever comes out. Spellcraft check at +10 to identify what spell or ritual is being used.

[Sallera]

Mia

"As you say. But if they're so eager to get in there, then we may as well get rid of a few more." Dashing forward, she slices into the nearest creature, aiming for the central mass.

---

Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1] + [roll2] skirmish if applicable

[Gorgondantess]

Annabelle narrows her eyes at the figures in the back of the room. Likely cohorts of the talking man. She didn't like dealing with underlings, but it would have to do- this wanton slaughter was stupid and wasteful. Untying her rope, she gracefully floats over to one of the figures, ready to chastise.

[AngelOmnipotent]

End of Round 4

Loren - Being intelligent enough to understand your words, the Hippogriff stands ready to battle what emerges even though it will only act when you do. You find the closest fallen person to you but after your spell is cast you realise that while the body is being healed, his soul is no longer within the empty shell.

NEW MONSTERS - The energy from the centre of the room splits into four separate rays and is absorbed into the bodies of the four figures in the corners of the room. They twist and contort into new creatures that you would only expect to see in nightmares.

Floating humanoids wearing a tight-fitting, floor-length black robes drift towards the nearest person. Their black garb contrasts sharply with the chalky white-ness of their skin. Their faces are hollow porcelain masks, and the back of their steel-haired head is missing. Hovering in the hollow of their heads is a pale ball of light that shines through the mask’s eyes and mouth.

They look like:
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/mmiii_gallery/83074.jpg

They attack the closest adventurer, grappling them with an obscenely tight grip before leaning in closely. A wisp of iridescent light starts to drain from their victim and into the mouth of their masks while the other adventurers seem to be fixated with horror. Only a few attempt to pry the creatures off their prey.

Annabelle - With the blast of energy in the centre you lose mobility in your body for a split second as the wave washes over you, but it's just enough to knock you out of the air and you tumble to the floor, landing on someone knocking them to the ground but being no worse for wear. However the weakness you felt before has now lifted as you see what has appeared before you.

Tomitec - Even for the short amount of time the spell was active, you could sense it being of almost overwhelming conjuration origin. You really didn't have to concentrate on it for long.

Mia - You launch to where one of the creatures was standing but it gets absorbed before your blade dispatches it.

--

The creatures are in each corner of the room. Each of you can reach one of them within a single move action should you wish to. If you want me to draw up a map of this part of the combat then feel free to ask, but the rest of the people left in the room (only a few hundred left now) will be helping out so it can be a bit messy. If you get into Melee you'll have a -4 penalty to hit unless you make a full round action to co-ordinate with others around you to lessen it to no penalty. Ranged attacks can only be made if you have the Precise Shot feat unless I specify otherwise.

Round 5 Begins

[Corey]

Loren is almost unfailingly polite when he speaks, but sometimes his thoughts are another matter.

It would seem many heroic people have been betrayed to their death. Let there be a reckoning -- whoever the traitors are ...

... but first we fight.

He points his bow at one of the intruders, and between verses mouths a single word to the hippogriff: Go.

In a most appropriate coincidence, Loren's song has reached the point where his voice gets grimmer, and goes an octave higher:

But crowns are never so quickly won/
The Norns they well know ...

Loren advances on the target and lets the arrow fly.

(Precise and Point Blank Shot. Closing distance as needed to that Point Blank Shot applies.)

Bow attack: 1d20+10
Bow damage: 1d8+6

IF NEEDED FOR CRITS, AoOs, HASTE. SNAKE'S SWIFTNESS, ETC.

Bow attack: 1d20+10
Bow damage: 1d8+6

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

Unless I'm missing some rule, the Hippogriff can only make a single attack and not a full attack. But I've put quite some time into automating how to post a full attack, so I'll do so anyway. :D I'd be interested in any comments in the OOC thread.

If it is allowed to charge (because it can fly), that bonus is NOT in here. On the other hand, a melee penalty for crowding is also not in here -- because it can fly. ;)

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


Standard Hippogriff stats:
Claw attack 1d20+ 6
Claw damage 1d4+ 4
Bite attack 1d20+ 1
Bite damage 1d8+ 2

Special attack bonuses: 3
Special damage bonuses: 3

Actual Hippogriff stats:
Claw attack 1d20+ 9
Claw damage 1d4+ 7
Bite attack 1d20+ 4
Bite damage 1d8+ 5

[KingRexII]

Tom (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)
[Round 5]

Man, I've gotta learn that one.

He stays put and targets one of monsters that is currently sucking the life out of one of the adventurers. He hopes to distract it from continuing its attack. He activates his magical gloves as he summons a hawk from the lower planes to attack it.

---
Using the Rapid Summoning feature to cast Summon Monster I as a standard action, summoning a fiendish hawk right in the same space as the monster (it's tiny) around the monster's head so that it hopefully doesn't incur the melee penalty. I'm also using my arcanist's gloves to increase my caster level by 2 when casting this spell. Finally, another knowledge check, please! This time without any inspiration: Arcana +11, Dungeon +9, Nature +9, Rel + 9, Planes +8.

Hawk attack (without melee penalty):
[roll0]
[roll1]
After this round, it will stick around for another 4 rounds.


Relevant Fiendish Hawk info:
HP: 6/6
AC: 17, touch 15, ff 14
Grapple -8
Fort +4, Ref + 5, Will +2
Str 10, Dex 17, Con 14, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 6
resistance to cold 5, fire 5
spell resistance 6

[Sallera]

Mia

"I think we've all seen enough of that for today, wouldn't you agree?" Darting over to the nearest masked figure, she slides between the crowds, raising her scythe as she reaches the space between the reluctant adventurers and the creature. "Hesitate, and you'll only die one by one." Slashing downward, she buries the point of the blade in the back of the robes.

---

Attack: [roll0] (-4 included)
Damage: [roll1]

[Corey]

Loren rolls reposted, since editing doesn't work


Bow attack: [roll0]
Bow damage: [roll1]

IF NEEDED FOR CRITS, AoOs, HASTE. SNAKE'S SWIFTNESS, ETC.

Bow attack: [roll2]
Bow damage: [roll3]

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

Unless I'm missing some rule, the Hippogriff can only make a single attack and not a full attack. But I've put quite some time into automating how to post a full attack, so I'll do so anyway. :D I'd be interested in any comments in the OOC thread.

If it is allowed to charge (because it can fly), that bonus is NOT in here. On the other hand, a melee penalty for crowding is also not in here -- because it can fly. ;)

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


Standard Hippogriff stats:
Claw attack 1d20+ 6
Claw damage 1d4+ 4
Bite attack 1d20+ 1
Bite damage 1d8+ 2

Special attack bonuses: 3
Special damage bonuses: 3

Actual Hippogriff stats:
Claw attack 1d20+ 9
Claw damage 1d4+ 7
Bite attack 1d20+ 4
Bite damage 1d8+ 5


Claw attack 1 [roll4]
Claw damage 1 [roll5]

Claw attack 2 [roll6]
Claw damage 2 [roll7]

Bite attack [roll8]
Bite damage [roll9]

IF NEEDED FOR CRITS, AoOs, HASTE. SNAKE'S SWIFTNESS, ETC.
Potential extra claw attack [roll10]
Potential extra claw damage [roll11]

Potential extra claw attack 2 [roll12]
Potential extra claw damage 2 [roll13]

Potential extra claw attack 3 [roll14]
Potential extra claw damage 3 [roll15]

Potential extra bite attack [roll16]
Potential extra bite damage [roll17]

[Gorgondantess]

Annabelle pouts, seeing the newcomers are just new assailants, and returns to her spot on the ceiling, raising a protective ward.
Mage armor.

[AngelOmnipotent]

It isn't long before the creatures that have emerged end their feast upon the first person they caught in their grasp. They were very obviously desperate out of starvation, but now that has been curbed they're starting to see better targets around the room.

End of Round 5

Loren - Your arrow flies true and does indeed find its way into one of the creatures. It doesn't seem to cry out as the arrow pierces its robes, but it does seem generally annoyed. Your hippogriff, even while flying, finds it difficult to make a successful attack without risking hitting anyone else. Due to it's celestial nature it attacks with hesitation causing it to miss. It then disappears back to the home plane as its time in battle is over for now.

NEW MONSTERS -
Monster 1 (Targetted by Loren and Tom) - It swings it's lifeless head around and stares at Loren; it's drawn to him. Breaking free from the grapple it had, leaving the poor adventurer squirming on the floor, it braves the attacks of others fixated upon Loren. It's gaze is even more powerful than you'd expect as the eyes on the porcelain mask light up with a dark energy. It tries to inflict some kind of dark power over Loren but fails, so it tries to claw him instead. Somehow it still manages to miss due to Loren's nimble movements and screeches in frustration.
"You huuumannssss are sssssssssooo pitiful and annoying!"
(Adjacent to Loren)

Monster 2 (Targetted by Mia) - This creature also breaks the bonds it had made with a now-lifeless-looking adventurer and peers around the room. If a mask could be smiling, it would be right now. It's gaze settles upon Mia running towards it as it flies up slightly to hover in the air (only 5ft up, still in reach), also taking damage from the assailants below as it does so. The same dark energy swirls around in the eyes of it's mask and is targetting Mia, who also resists the power. It screeches like the first one in frustration. As there are more people surrounding this one it attempts to swat them away first, taking two down with its attacks.

Monster 3 (Surrounded completely by other adventurers) - This creature seems to have had it's grapple forcibly broken and the man in it's clutches was freed before any damage could be done. Many adventurers are leaping on this creature and attacking wildly. Some are being injured by wild friendly attacks, but one man in particular falls backwards off the creature completely paralysed and helpless. This monster then breaks free and flies upwards to the ceiling and out of reach, completely oblivious of the party members and focusing more on the other adventurers.

Monster 4 - This is the only creature in the room that was able to finish of it's target in peace, and now that it has it sneers at Annabelle, flying almost nose-to-nose with her (10 ft away).
"Ahk'braduk kreel na lasik. Frandil Dolus thran'kil el na hundar, Annabelle. Nan tek'ar dil."

Infernal Translation (Speakers only, don't spoil it for yourselves!):
Nice to see you again. The Mark of Dolus won't protect you though, Annabelle. Not this time.

Annabelle - You fly up to the ceiling and manage to get your protective ward cast, and you get the horrid feeling that these creatures are the kind you've only heard about before. (PM sent)

Tomitec - The creature you produce swarms around the mask of the creature and tears at the robes with it's claws managing to do some damage at the same time. The summoned hawk seems to do more damage that the weapons wielded by others.

Knowledge reveals
These creatures are outsiders that come from the Underworld but you don't know their exact purpose. By their movements you guess that they are attracted to people who have a high Charisma and drain it for themselves, allowing their own abilities to get stronger as they do. Their ability to fly is flawless and they move at twice the speed a normal human can (60ft), and their Gaze has the potential to paralyze you so they can move in for the kill.

Mia - Your swing misses the creature, but the gaze it gave you fills you with dread even though you know it had no direct effect on you this time.
(Adjacent to Monster 2)

--

Round 6 Begins

[Sallera]

Mia

That's right. You may speak, you may even be still breathing, but you're just the same. And you will not scare me off. Facing the creature with a defiant stare, she waits patiently, almost hanging back, watching the others around it. Then another next to her steps to the side, and she takes full advantage of the gap, spinning her unwieldy weapon through the air and bringing the blade upward across the creature's legs.

---

Taking the full-round action to avoid penalties.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[Corey]

Loren

Loren is not one to bandy insults with anybody if he can help it, even a foe. Instead, he just keeps singing, as well as looking around the room.

... The King of the Irish blocks our way ...

Stepping back carefully, his bow held out to the side in his shield hand, Loren casts another spell.


5-ft step back.
Dropping last 2nd-level spell for Summon Nature's Ally II
Thinking hippogriff again.
Concentration is +11 (his Perform rank) if relevant.

[KingRexII]

Tom (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)

Being knowledgeable in Infernal, he takes a note of the monster's remark. Fascinating... He wonders if he's heard of that before.

Ah! Maybe later. More pressing things at hand! At least I know I won't be much of a target for them yet...

He yells to Loren, "You're much too pretty for you own good, you moronic minstrel." He maneuvers as best as he can to flank the monster attacking the bard and swings hard with his sword.

All the while, his summon continues to pester its prey.

----
As Tom knows Infernal, Knowledge check (without inspiration) to learn more about it's talking about. Tumble if he needs to (at +15) and maybe even burn a few charges from his acrobatic boots if Loren's attacker is far away. Then, hopefully, he can be flanking with Loren:

[roll0] + bard morale bonus + flanking bonus (if applicable)
[roll1]

Please add 5 to the damage roll if the attack hits. This would use up the second of Tom's three inspiration points.

EDIT: All right, a natural one! /sarcasm Yea... don't use the inspiration point for damage that's clearly not going to connect...

[Gorgondantess]

Anna slumps down in her harness, putting on an innocent air.
Infernal:
"Oh, dearie dear. You've tracked down little old me. Do you know how many of your kind I've slaughtered over the years? Of course, you didn't come here for me, now, did you? You came at the call of humans, to serve under them. What self respecting fiend allows themselves to be bossed around by a mortal? You know my power is beyond that. Turn around and go, and we can forget this ever happened.
Her voice, though speaking a harsh language, keeps a seductive cast, with a perfect, silky tone. In her gestures she moves innocently and coyly, belying her words.
Intimidate:[roll0]
Readied action to full attack if it closes in.
[roll1]: [roll2]+[roll3] fire damage.
[roll4]: [roll5]+[roll6] fire damage.
Intimidating strike: [roll7]

[Corey]

Wonder what he means by that?

Between verses, Loren has time to say nothing more to Tom than Please explain?

But his raised eyebrow shows his interest as well.

[KingRexII]

Tom

He responds to Loren's question: "Your allure. Your charm. Your charisma and raw animal magnetism. They are drawn to it like pigs to slop and eat it just as hungrily."

[AngelOmnipotent]

End of Round 6

Loren - You successfully manage to begin casting your spell but the creature in front of you looks extremely angry with you so you hope that when the time comes, you'll be able to keep your concentration.

NEW MONSTERS -
Monster 1 (Targetted by Loren and Tom) - Swinging it's claws around almost in a wild attack, it launches for Loren and tries his best to grapple him, but somehow (Natural 20 opposing, critical success) Loren manages to escape the creature's grasp and continue casting his spell with a look of determination.

Monster 2 (Targetted by Mia) - Quickly flying upwards and out of sight, it swoops around behind Mia, out of the way of the other adventurers to attempt to attack her also.
Infernal: So much beauty, we must have it all!
Managing to land it's claws in her back, Mia is taken aback by the powerful blow and feels the blood trickling down her back. (7 Damage to Mia)

Monster 3 (Surrounded completely by other adventurers) - Still fighting off the other adventurers it cries out in pain as they manage to swarm the creature and land blow after blow after being pinned to the ground. Whilst it isn't quite dead yet, it soon looks like it will be.

Monster 4 (Grappling Annabelle) - The porcelain mask actually grins at this point as the monster reaches out and grabs hold of Annabelle in a grapple in front of it, hindered by her harness.
Infernal:
You speak too highly of yourself, you filthy harlot. We come at the beck and call of no human, we are here under His orders. It just happens to be that their little spell they were testing you with was an easy conduit to piggyback on. Time for you to scream for help as I send you back to the abyss.

Annabelle - Failing to break free of the grapple as the harness does its job wonderfully of holding you in place, you feel yourself getting drowsy as the effect of the creature starts to take effect.

Tomitec - The attack you try and land goes wide as your ankle takes a turn on a piece of loose rubble on the ground. You thank Raziel that no one was standing next to you or they would have gotten the attack in their back instead.

Mia - As you feel the burning sensation down your back, you swiftly whip your body around and take the creature by surprise, slicing it's robe clean open revealing a twisting nether of dark energy swirling within it. Your blade glows with a silvery light as it does so causing the creature to recoil with agony. While these things are indeed deadly if they manage to get hold of you, they're also very fragile indeed.

It cries out to the rest of them in Infernal:

They are touched! The master underestimated the wyrm, he has hold here still. Kill them, kill them all; their influence must not be allowed to spread!


--

Round 7 Begins

Info: A hint for those who act after the monsters in the initiative, be aware that what you post won't happen until they've moved, so its helpful to include a "if it moves away" or "if it hits me" or something similar. Annabelle's held action wouldn't have come into effect until they moved on the next round, for example. Just a head's up :smallsmile:

[Corey]

Oh great. It's after me personally, and it wants to wrestle ...

... but that's not my sport. Let's keep things simple, or at least as simple as they may be.

Loren continues his song,

We must to battle go!

As he sings, another hippogriff materializes behind the enemy, and lashes out with all the means at its disposal.


Standard Hippogriff stats:
Claw attack 1d20+ 6
Claw damage 1d4+ 4
Bite attack 1d20+ 1
Bite damage 1d8+ 2

Special attack bonuses: 3
Special damage bonuses: 3

Actual Hippogriff stats:
Claw attack 1d20+ 9
Claw damage 1d4+ 7
Bite attack 1d20+ 4
Bite damage 1d8+ 5


Claw attack 1 [roll0]
Claw damage 1 [roll1]

Claw attack 2 [roll2]
Claw damage 2 [roll3]

Bite attack [roll4]
Bite damage [roll5]

IF NEEDED FOR CRITS, AoOs, HASTE. SNAKE'S SWIFTNESS, ETC.

Potential extra claw attack [roll6]
Potential extra claw damage [roll7]

Potential extra claw attack 2 [roll8]
Potential extra claw damage 2 [roll9]

Potential extra claw attack 3 [roll10]
Potential extra claw damage 3 [roll11]

Potential extra bite attack [roll12]
Potential extra bite damage [roll13]

[Corey]

Stepping back carefully,


5-ft step

Loren nocks an arrow and lets it fly at the creature's midsection.

Bow attack: [roll0]
Bow damage: [roll1]

[Corey]

Crit confirmation and damage

Bow attack: [roll0]
Bow damage: [roll1]

[Sallera]

Mia

Tears briefly obscure her vision at the unnatural touch of the creature's claws, but she spins around regardless, the silvery light on her blade filling her with a quiet calm as it rips into the creature's substance. Blinking her eyes clear, she offers a small smile at its reaction, before sliding back a step and drawing a small portion of the light into herself.

---

5ft step back, Lesser Vigor.

[KingRexII]

Tom (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)

Tom attempts to regain his composure after that embarrassing attack. If Loren's attacker is still around, he'll try to down him. If Loren was able to finish him, Tom drops his greatsword, draws his longbow and lets it fly towards the monster attacking Annabelle.

---
If in melee, 5' to get to enemy.
If shooting an arrow, 5' to step away from any enemies.

[roll0]
if melee, attack + 4, [roll1]
if ranged, attack + 6 - [shooting into melee penalties] + 5 [inspiration point], [roll2].
Don't forget that my summon is still flying around too!

[AngelOmnipotent]

End of Round 7

Loren - You attack in unison with your summoned creature. It's attacks hold it still while your arrow deals the finishing blow. However something unexpected happened as you fired your arrow; as it left your bow a swirling light amassed around it and you could swear that within the light, even for the brief split second it was there, you could see a dragon.

NEW MONSTERS -
Monster 1 - The robes of this creature disintegrate from the arrow and the porcelain mask drops to the floor, cracking and distorting from the impact. It doesn't even make a sound. DEAD

Monster 2 (Targetted by Mia) - Still semi-reeling from the attack landed on it, it shuffles forward and tries to land a grip on Mia. As soon as the creature's hands touch her armour, they sizzle and seem to burn until it recoils with anger. It's only then that the dark energy from it's eyes try to penetrate Mia's will, but only manage to succeed slightly. The look of surprise it gives Mia shows that it definitely didn't work as intended.

Monster 3 - Breaking free and flying as high upwards as it can, this creature seems to be almost fading back to where it came from but in it's last second shoots a glare to Loren with powerful negative energy who is now Paralyzed.

Monster 4 (Grappling Annabelle) - Almost quivering in anticipation about gaining the presence of the woman it has in it's claws it begins to drain through the link it had already established. Once again, however, things do not go as planned. The first taste of Annabelle's soul causing an ear-shattering scream to fill the hall from the creature. It reels back, loses it's concentration on flying and falls to the ground writhing in pain.

Annabelle - Snapping back to reality you feel slightly dazed, but you can see that the creature is on the floor below you getting approached by the other adventurers. Dazed for the next round

Tomitec - You see the fallen creature and run towards it brandishing your sword and striking a mighty blow on the wailing creature, then your summoned hawk swoops down and manages an almost brutal attack that tears off half of the creature's robes in one swoops. (Auto max-damage crit for the hawk for not remembering last round :smallbiggrin:) It isn't quite dead yet, and if you didn't know any better you'd say that it was almost pleading for mercy with garbled words and mumbles.

Mia - You feel the negative energy coursing through your veins trying it's best to paralyze you but somehow you manage to fight back long enough to cast your spell. It's difficult to concentrate but you manage it just fine. However you will be Dazed for the next round.


--

Round 8 Begins

[Corey]

Whoops

Testing his muscles, Loren finds himself unable to do ... well, pretty much anything.

Inspire Courage bonus continues for 5 rounds


The hippogriff shoots upward after the monster who cursed Loren, trying to grab the enemy in its teeth.

Charging -- +2 to attack with a single attack. Since the bite is its only attack, I'm adding +5 back in that is usually deducted.

Bite attack: [roll0]
Bite damage: [roll1]

[KingRexII]

Tom (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=8015)

"Now, that's much better. Though I can't believe that you're still breathing... ...er, whatever it is you do to keep alive." Tom repeats his last action.

---
If in melee, 5' to get to enemy.
If shooting an arrow, 5' to step away from any enemies.

[roll0]

if melee, attack + 4, [roll1]
if ranged, attack + 6 - [shooting into melee penalties] + 5 [inspiration point], [roll2]
The summon should keep attacking for another two rounds including this one.

[AngelOmnipotent]

End of Round 8

Loren - The blow your hippogriff deals is the final one and it rips it's target to shreds. Loren feels the negative energy fade from his body as the monster falls, but it's taken the wind out of him. Fatigued for 1 round.

Monster 2 - Backing away from Mia, it looks around the room and sees that it's a losing battle. All the other adventurers are moving in slowly and the other creatures are either dead or in serious trouble. It swipes and takes down two more adventurers that charged in for a clumsy attack.

Monster 3 - Writhing in pain, the robe slumps to the ground and disintegrates into a cloud of black smoke, and the porcelain mask smashes on the ground. DEAD

Monster 4 - Struggling to get up from the ground after falling, this creature stares up at Annabelle with a look of confusion and a heavy scowl. Almost in a split second it's body poofs into a cloud of smoke and dissipates into the air, disappearing.

Annabelle - Still hanging from the ceiling, your vision stops being blurry just in time to see the monster that attacked you disappear in front of your eyes.

Tomitec - You ready your next attack only to see the creature disappear from in front of you. Looking around you notice that the one next to Mia is the only one remaining so you fire your arrow and hit it in the back of it's head. Your hawk notices your change of target and follows your arrow, swooping in for another successful attack.

Mia - While the creature who attacked you should have easy pickings while you were dazed, it seemed apprehensive about attacking you. Then before you know it, it slumps down in front of you, the robe fades away in a silent scream that you can hear in your mind and the mask rattles to the floor.

--

End of Combat - 4050 EXP

What you see around you is the remains of an arena of death, and the remaining people look utterly confused. It's not long until one of the Mages appears in the room and makes another announcement, his voice booming out over the hall.

"While things did not go to plan and you were assailed by those masked creatures, we congratulate those who remain. You have indeed proven yourself worthy to aid us save this world and collect your reward." Even with this announcement, the room is filled with jeers and shouts of anger. The Mage doesn't seem surprised, but he manages to calm the room down enough to continue his speech. "Those who fell to the minor beasts have not been truly harmed. They will be returned to their families with no recollection of what has happened. Those who have fallen to the fate of the masked creatures shall also be returned."

A set of double doors in the back of the room open and it feels like a breath of life enters the room, and the bodies of the fallen fade and get swept away through the doors. The ethereal Mage then steps down from his dias and stands by the doors.

"I would like to ask those that remain to please come through these doors. You shall be given a place to stay for the evening and your initiation shall be completed with tomorrow's ritual."

[Corey]

Loren looks around and notices that all those apparently in need of help are gone.

Okay ... there are some powerful forces at play here ...

Then he seeks out Tom.

They call me Loren Greenheart. Thank you for fighting by my side.

[Sallera]

Mia

The dark-haired girl returns her scythe slowly to its sling, muscles inching their way back to usefulness. Rolling her shoulders as flesh and soul knit their way back together, she stretches both arms out, a grin returning to her face. Not truly harmed? Certainly felt real enough. But this is power I haven't a hope of understanding. Not yet, at least. I suspect we'll be seeing it again...

Glancing around at the other survivors, she hears a familiar voice and spots the singer. Still alive, then, at least. But the mage seemed to have a good idea; walking all day wasn't so bad, but standing in one place was somehow even more tiresome. Heading toward the door, she looks once more at the remaining adventurers. Quite the interesting collection. Well, I suppose all we can do at this point is trust that the Mages know what they're doing.

[KingRexII]

Tom

"Yeah, well, it looked like you needed the help. Tom, by the way." He waves a hand at Loren. He purses his lips as if he looks bored again. "That was fun while it lasted, eh? I hope the job's always this stimulating." Tom takes a second look at Loren.

"Wait. You look familiar. Have we met before?"

[AngelOmnipotent]

"Wait!" A rugged man turns and calls to Mia as she walks towards the door. "Are you insane?!" Several other adventurers gather around at this point and wonder what he has to say. "Those people have some sort of sick fetish about watching people fight, and some even die in this room, and you're willing to just walk through that door into whatever else comes?" He shakes his head and turns to head towards the exit door from earlier only to realise that it is no longer there.

He soon begins to pace and several other adventurers walk over to the wall where the door once stood to try and find out what might have happened. "See! We've been herded in here like cattle waiting for the slaughter. We can't even leave if we choose to."

[Sallera]

Mia

Mia sighs, rocking back on her heels as she turns around again. "Could I ask you, then, what you would do instead? They've been testing us all day. Presumably, they think the ones still remaining have passed - at least this stage. They've already proven that we can either go along with them, or we can die or lose our memories.

If you find that door you're looking for, you know perfectly well they'll cast that memory-modifying spell of theirs on you as you leave. How careful do you think they'll be? Having heard what they told us earlier, do you really want to just gamble on the chance it was all a lie? Or would you rather go forward, knowing that even if the people you're working for seem like heartless monsters, the one you're opposing is worse?"

[KingRexII]

Tom

Tom nods in assent at Mia's words. "Always forward!" he says to himself as he follows the rest through the doors.

[Gorgondantess]

Shaking herself out from her daze, Anna glares at the mage. As soon as she gets a chance, she swoops over to him, staring him down with narrowed eyes. "Hey, you! What's the deal with all this, anyways? I'm all for weeding out the weak, but the way you go about it is just wasteful. Why not utilize all the resources at your disposal? All you've done is senseless carnage, pitting your resources against each other, rather than to a common goal. It's not pragmatic, it's stupid."

[AngelOmnipotent]

"You're all f**king crazy." He mutters to himself and slumps back against the wall, sliding down to the floor and sobs into his hands. He says nothing further to you, but is also generally ignored by the rest of the people in the room. They're all acting embarrassed to know that he made it through and stand in the room proud for their achievement.

---

The Mage stares at Anna and puts one hand on her shoulder. He just smiles but Anna can tell that it's just the benefit for the others in the room. He leans in and whispers to her,

Honour system roll: DC 20 Listen check to overhear.
"If it were up to me you would be banished back to the Underworld and torn apart limb from limb for your evil deeds and your soul left to the mercy of the Caretakers. Somehow you have been lead and sent here, chosen to stand before me with your insolence and I have been tasked to stand here and take it, it seems. Don't test my patience. There is a lot that can happen to you that doesn't end in your demise."

Soon after, the Mage leaves the room and starts to urge for people to pass through the door. "The violence is over. You have already proven your place within The Circle, the testing is at an end. You shall reap your first reward tomorrow, and begin to understand the importance of our task even more."

[Sallera]

Nodding shortly, Mia heads to the door. Time enough for whatever was to come on the morrow.

---

Listen: [roll0]

[Corey]

Listen: [roll0]

[Corey]

Loren changes into panther form to catch up with Tom, then rematerializes next to him as a half-elf.

As I was saying before the crowd separated us, my name is Loren Greenheart. I get around a lot. I sing. I heal things. When something needs protecting, I fight.

And yes, you do look familiar.

[AngelOmnipotent]

As you walk through the double doors a large barrack-like structure spreads out before you, almost tailor made. Then again, knowing Narazia, it probably was. A gigantic carved oaken table was laid out in the centre of the room garnished with the most lavish spread of food you'd ever laid your eyes on, and a chair for each one of the remaining survivors.

The adventurers that did make it are mostly men, but some are women, and they all look like they've had training at some time in their lives. The looks on their faces are semi-worried, but at the situation rather than the battle. They all seem to have a glint of something in their eye; a determination not usually seen in the eye of a regular soldier, something special.

At the far end of the room hang elaborate tapestries depicting a battle between a mighty wizard and a dragon, which you guess to be Dolus and Raziel, and it seems to spread from the tapestries and adorn all the stone pillars of the room in some way or another. Beneath the tapestries float a quartet of instruments playing pleasant melodies without masters to direct them. It doesn't take a genius to see what the first part of your reward is.


This is a chance to interact with each other if you wish, but if you don't then I'll move it along.

[AngelOmnipotent]

After a hearty meal you see that around the main room there are several off-shoot rooms that contain ten small-but-comfortable looking beds each, and several bathrooms. Other people are already heading to these beds and getting comfortable ready to sleep. Their apprehensions evidently left at the door.

After some deliberation you find yourselves falling to sleep rather easily and getting some well-earned rest. The next day rolls around and you wake up as dawn breaks to the sound of a fanfare echoing through the main hall, then the loud booming voice you heard the night previous.

"The Day of Judgement has come. Feast, ready yourselves and be presentable. Gather in the main hall when you are prepared."

A lot of mumbling is heard throughout the various rooms followed by groaning and shuffling. Many amongst the adventurers were obviously not morning people.

You find the food on the table has replenished for breakfast. After you have had your fill you don your clothes and armour, strap your weapons into their resting places on your body and take a deep breath, ready for anything. Ready for apparent Judgement. Walking out back into the main hall the doors close once everyone is standing where it all began and the Mage once again appears before you.

"I trust you all had a good nights rest?" He doesn't wait for an answer, "I stand before you as a Mage of Narazia, a tool of Raziel, and a Saviour of this world yet as helpless as a newborn child. You stand before me chosen to become the aid needed to accomplish these goals. There is one more final trial that you must go through, but it is not a physical or mental test, but a test of being. A spell shall be cast and those ready to be awakened shall be separated from the rest of the group, and the others will be free to go, memories cleared of these events."

For once a silence falls over the hall. No murmurs, no muttering, no comments. Somehow a reverence surrounds everyone standing in the hall, hearing the name of Raziel. Regardless of beliefs, everyone knows that the Great Wyrm created everything around them, and that commands respect.

Several other Mages once again materialise within the room and begin casting a spell.

Spellcraft DC 25:
It's a variation of a Greater Teleport spell, but even more refined. Designed to target only specific individuals that fit a defined set of parameters.

It's over quicker than you think, and to each one of you your vision turns blurry, blacking out as you feel your body jolted from the ground you were standing on until you reappear inside what seems to be a naturally formed cavern underground somewhere. There are now only a handful of you standing around; 20 at most.

The rock shimmers with a white hue and ebbs with latent magical power. As you look around you find out that you are standing in the courtyard of an ancient temple that towers behind you, carved into the side of the cavern. The stone of the walls itself hewn and polished into what looks similar to pure white marble.

Throughout your body you feel a pulsing, then your ears begin to hear the subtle sound too. It takes a while to pinpoint the familiarity as you've never heard it on this scale before, but it soon becomes clear what you can feel through you and hear through every inch of your body; a heartbeat. Slower than your own, and it feels a lot slower than it should be. It's then that your eyes catch glimpse of the far cavern wall where the shimmering stops and the stone darkens to crimson. The longer your eyes settle on the stone, you realise that the stone itself is beating.

"You are within the hidden depths of the Great Temple of Raziel, the source of the power in this area and the power of Narazia." A different voice speaks up, and a man walks out of the temple behind you. His dazzling white robe is long and heavily adorned in gold. While it flows like silk it is clearly made from white Dragon scales. "They say that Raziel sleeps within the depths of the land. Many believe this to be a figurative statement, but what you see before you is the trapped, still-beating heart of the Great Wyrm. While it is keeping him alive, his energy is slowly fading and soon his heart will beat no longer, and this land will die." He steps out to greet you falling to his kneed with a deep bow, showing you a considerable amount more respect than you would ever expect. "You have been through battles, trials and now stand here because you have all chosen by the Creator himself. It was said that many centuries ago people were born into this world imbued with the power of the Creator, able to do many wondrous things outside of the limits we know of now. Ever since the Creator was sealed within the ground no one has been born with this gift, and those who had it have long died of old-age. The reason you stand before the temple at the Heart of Creation is because you all contain this power within you, and you are to be awakened."

His bow remains low, but he looks up at you and smiles. The Creator saw this tragedy about to happen and bestowed upon many people as much power as he could, but he did not have enough power to make this gift apparent. We have been tasked with finding these people and awakening them to their gifts. Only those gifted by the watchful eyes of the Creator can hope to defeat Dolus. That is why I am here on my knees in front of you begging for your help."

He lowers his head once again, muttering a prayer to the Creator and rising to his feet once more. "Please, follow me."

Leading you into the temple you see before you a large fire pit in the centre of a perfectly circular room. The fire is burning here tall enough to reach the ceiling, but giving off no heat and no smoke. There are twenty individual backless seats surrounding the fire, and atop each once is a bowl of clear liquid.
"Take the bowl into your hands, sit down and drink the potion. It shall do you no harm, but give you a vision of what it is the Creator wishes for you to see, and you shall be awakened."

---

I can continue, or you can once again choose to roleplay amongst yourselves or ask questions if you wish.

[Sallera]

Mia

And to think, some people were trying to get out of this. Raising an arm toward Raziel's heart, she bows her head in respect, before following the Mage into the temple.

Taking a seat next to the singer, she gazes into the bowl. "Does everything here scale to the number of people around, or did they know how many were coming beforehand?" she mutters, one hand fiddling with the silver symbol around her neck. Time for a dream from someone else, it seemed. Did Raziel want her allegiance now? I guess he'll have to settle for service.

[Corey]

Loren

The most immediate crisis over, Loren curiously investigates his surroundings.


Detect Magic in every venue they wind up in, looking around.


In the evening he makes smalltalk with the other adventurers, in a discussion active enough that playing music doesn't seem suitable for the occasion.

Not one to sleep indoors, alone, in human form, he changes into panther form.


Even in the modern era, cats can sleep more comfortably on human furniture than humans can. With medieval technology I'd think the gap would just be greater.

Besides, Loren feels safer as a cat. He can escape faster if startled.


At breakfast, it is more of the same.

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

After the mage finishes talking, Loren almost asks skeptical questions about the 1000s of mindwiped adventurers, what the presence of same means for society going forward, and so on. But then he reflects that if the mages are untrustworthy in their mindwipes, asking skeptical questions is unlikely to do much good. So he bides patiently.

[AngelOmnipotent]

"It has been foretold that there would be twenty to make it this far." It almost seems like he cuts his own sentence short but remains quiet as you all proceed to take your seats.

Loren
Everything is inherently magic, so every surface has a subtle glow of magic, but nothing stands out directly. Not even the mages.

One by one you drink the potion and your eyes slowly close. Even though you should not be able to see, you are all standing barefoot in a luscious meadow on a bright summer day; you can even smell the perfume of the wild flowers all around you and feel the blades of grass caress your feet. Your clothes have been changed to bright white robes and while they look clumsy, they are extremely comfortable.

Before you towers a magnificent white dragon, larger than you ever imagined. Without needing to ask you know that you are standing before Raziel himself and your heart is filled with nothing but peace and tranquility. As hard as you may try however, you cannot bring yourselves to look him in the eye just yet and bow your heads with respect.

"Welcome my Children." His voice is surprisingly soft and caring, and carrying a smile within his words, I am as honoured as you to have you all standing before me, and I thank you for your faith in the world you live in. You are all special, and you all carry a gift that I have given you which when you wake will be a part of your lives. Dolus threatens everything we have worked hard together to achieve, and this must be stopped." He takes a deep breath and settles down sitting in front of you all.

"I will first apologise for my method of choosing. I must know that you do now cower with fear of death, that you fight for what you believe in, stand for and value your own life without question. Above all, if you do not firstly believe in yourself, your belief in others will grant no favour."

It is at this point you feel and know that you are free to look him in the eye and see the pride he holds dear in his heart. In fact you almost feel compelled to do so, just so he can show you his sincerity.

"Dolus has created twelve pillars of energy connecting the two worlds. He plans to use these pillars to gravitate the worlds together and cause them to collide, likely to destroy both but there is the potential for them to merge. He feels no remorse in risking the lives of everyone if there is a slim chance that he will survive and rule supreme. He will also govern my power if he completes this task.
"The restoration of the world calls upon the sacrifice of myself and the other mages trapped within the void. This guarantees the rest of my creation may prosper using a merge that risks no further lives. I am happy to die with the knowledge that I have done my people my duty as their Creator, and the mages are willing to give themselves to free them from the torment of eternity in the void." A crystal tear falls from the cheek of the dragon as he speaks these words, and where it falls on the ground a tree sapling sprouts ten inches and sways gently in the breeze.
"You shall be separated into groups and given the known location of these pillars, and they must be disabled and ideally destroyed. They are well guarded and within fortified locations, usually using old ruins left of past civilisations. We shall call them 'Towers' for sake of being easier to say. My disciples shall give you any further information on specific locations but for now, that is the outline of your task. As soon as it has been completed, we can worry about dealing with Dolus directly. Do you have any questions before our time here is over?"

[Sallera]

Mia

It was interesting how you could find yourself face to face, to a degree, with the world's Creator, and be unable to think of anything to ask him. For Mia, the world had always simply fallen into place; she had been given a purpose and a duty before she was even old enough to worry about them, and that had been enough. Now, Raziel's task seemed almost as simple, yet remaining completely silent didn't seem quite right.

Finally falling back on the mundane, she asks "How are the pillars sustained? Do we know what it is that must be destroyed to remove them?"

[Gorgondantess]

Sorry, workload's increased quite a bit, and to read, take in, and whittle out a good response to your post is more than I have to offer, some of these days.:smallsigh::smallfrown:
Annabelle takes the bowl and drinks deeply, immediately. She barely has time to scoff at the answer of "foretelling", before she's sucked into the vision.
At Raziel's question of questioning, she steps forwards, hands on hips. Even in the awkward robe, she looks stunning and graceful. Still, her face is contorted in sheer annoyance.
"Yeah, I've got a question. Why only 20? There were thousands willing to work for you, resources at your fingers. And you killed them off? Even if it was all some trick, and they didn't die, I don't see why you have to pit your resources against each other. It's ineffective and a waste." She quirks an eyebrow, tapping her foot impatiently while waiting for a response.

[AngelOmnipotent]

@Mia:

"The pillars themselves are a pure source of energy but like everything it needs to be controlled somehow. If you shut down the control device, it should become evident how to destroy or disable them."

@Annabelle:

"The method of selection was not my choice; I trust the Mages of Narazia or I would not have put them in charge. The task was completed and no one was truly harmed." He does nothing but smile.
"There are more of you than just twenty in total as many selections shall happen after this; you are the first. Those born without the inability to be infused with my power would perish at the first sign of any interaction with Dolus. Needless sacrifice is not needed for this, so I only ask that those capable of receiving my protection shall be chosen. I can't say that I was able to forsee that you were amongst those chosen but there must be a reason for it."

[Sallera]

Mia

Mia nods. "Find something important and break it. Seems straightforward enough. I'm sure the difficult parts will make themselves clear once we arrive."

[Corey]

Loren has been watching and listening, but now he speaks up.

First, I thank you all for your care for our world, and your sacrifice.

He pauses, bows respectfully in several directions to dragon and mages, and continues.

Beyond that, I ask that you consider whether, in your wisdom, you possess some additional knowledge or insight that could help guide us. For example, are there other prophecies that affect us? Are there any general principles by which we may detect the right course from wrong, or friend from foe, when more obvious clues elude us.

And perhaps you could help us understand what went against your plans in the grand hall, and how we may separate other planned surprises of yours from attacks or even errors we need to respond to.

[AngelOmnipotent]

"The difficulty will be reaching the pillars rather than the pillars themselves. I know nothing about the exact threat, but I can feel the pulse of power." He smiles at Mia, and nods his head, "My child has been grateful for your service, and you shall be greatly rewarded for your faith."

He then looks at Loren with a sudden sadness in his eyes, and nods again in a sagely manner, "Whilst I once created this world, I have little contact with it now. I can only act through the power of my agents and give advice through visions such as these. I can only point you in the direction of the Narazian Mages to answer all your questions, and they will do so without faultering. The truth is all yours for the taking, you just need to ask for it."

In the blink of an eye, Raziel dissipates into a fine diamond-dust mist and floats away on the meadow breeze leaving a whisper in your mind. [i]Be fearless in your quest and we shall meet again soon. My blessing be upon you, and look into your heart if you ever get lost.

As soon as the whisper leaves your mind, you find yourself awake sitting in front of the fire pit. The blaze has burned down to a pile of smouldering ashes and several more robed figures surround your position. You feel intensely light-headed and your heart is pounding in your ears, but somewhere inside of you, you can feel a new, raw power ready to be tapped into.

Mia

You have been granted the ability to see in the dark. You have Darkvision out to 120ft, if you spend a full-round action and stand still this can extend to 240ft until you move again. This also includes the ability to see through any kind of Magical Darkness.


Loren

By spending a full-round action you gain Tremorsense 60ft for as many rounds as you choose concentrate, and you're only able to move at half speed while concentrating.

Annabelle

You can see and interact with the Ethereal Plane. This also includes ignoring any magical concealment penalty (from spells such as Blur, Displacement, Blink, but not see through things such as Invisibility) and ignoring penalties from fighting Incorporeal creatures.

Tom

You can use the spell Rage as an SLA 3/Day with a CL equal to your current HD. You also do not suffer any of the negative penalties of the spell (such as the -2 AC and Fatigue), only the benefits.

OOC:
This is what I got you to roll the d100 for beforehand. These abilities will grow over the course of the game, some being faster or slower depending on your own choice of character development.

---

The robed figures seem to be watching over you, and each one of you is given a small tray which holds a small meal and a drink of fresh water. They say nothing but have a smile on their face and look at each one of you with respect.

"You must rest." the man who guided you to your visions speaks up again. "Everything will be explained fully and all your questions will be answered soon, as well as preparation for your first mission with us. Welcome, and may Raziel's blessing be upon you. Whenever you wish to leave, come and speak with me and I shall teleport you back to the barracks where you will be treated as kings and queens."

[Sallera]

Mia

Taking the tray contentedly, Mia holds the crescent symbol briefly before downing half the glass of water. It was comforting, in a way, to know that Raziel approved of her allegiance; reassuring, even. Especially since she had no intention of shifting it.

For now, however, it seemed that such metaphysical concerns had been replaced by the mundane. Food, rest, and a hunt in the morning. Not so different from before, really, save for the time of day.

[Corey]

Loren accepts the tray with a polite, silent bow. He nourishes and refreshes himself, observing the others, and contemplating what he has experienced. If there's a good alternative to taking these experiences more or less at face value, he fails to find it.

Knowing he is unlikely to return to place again, if ever, he examines it with all means at his disposal.

Detect Magic yet again. Why not? And his new Tremorsense, not that he expects much of it.

A few Knowledge (Arcana or History) rolls, in case they're relevant:

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[AngelOmnipotent]

Loren

Your tremorsense actually reveals that things are moving in the walls. When I say things it's because you can't quite put your finger on what it would be. It's not creatures or monsters, but something is moving regardless.

As for Detect Magic, the more you look around you see life-sized historical monuments to previous heroes weilding weapons and wearing armour depending on the statue. Champions of Raziel and other important figures stand here, and some pieces of their equipment seem to glow more than others. With your knowledge in history you would guess that they were buried here with their belongings; magical items included.

The lingering magic in the air seems to have lifted, but you're guessing that was due to the fire which is now almost burned away entirely and the vision potions having been consumed.

[Corey]

Loren asks a simple question of the most helpful-seeming mage:

Once we leave here, will we ever return, during our lifetimes or after?

[AngelOmnipotent]

"Should your travels or your calling require you to return, or whether you feel in dire need of quiet contemplation at the heart, then you shall return." The Mage once again bows his head with respect, "Do you wish to leave now?"

[Corey]

Loren

In that case ... yes, I am ready.

[Sallera]

Mia

Well then, Raziel, let us hope I am capable of performing the task you set me. She looks around at the others, already noting a few with a certain degree of recognition. Time enough to get to know them once I find out who I'll be traveling with, I suppose.

Approaching the Mage, she nods her head. "I am ready as well."