Alensia

[thethird]

Jorel sits at his desk. At his left there is a disarrayed pile of papers, at his right the pile is uniform, neat and protruding with markers. He spends his time taking notes from the first to the second. Pulling a document, exhamining it, straightening it, making some corrections as necessary, numbering it and leaving it on the second pile. This is an evergrowing task for he tends to be interrupted by an adventurer coming in and putting a paper atop the left pile. He acknowledges the operation with a grunt, and makes sure to put the paper at the bottom when the donor leaves. The right pile grows big and when it threatens to fall Jorel pulls atop it an ashtray, filled to the brim, to keep it under control.

He doesn't take long, perhaps ten or so documents, to asses that the two warforged are in fact staying. He looks at them and sighs. He stands up, goes to the office door and puts a note on the door. "On break, leave me be, don't break my door"

He turns back in and observes the room. Three of the four walls are lined with shelves. They all contain neatly arranged books, and some token or trinket. There are several skulls that would make a necromancer jealous, mechanical trinkets from before the Empire's fall, arcane tools, holy artifacts, druidic seeds... It doesn't matter what they were nor what their higher purpose is, on Jorel's office they are bookends. He approaches a wax pool on a stand nearby to the desk with a disapproving look, he fiddles in his drawers till he pulls a candle and lits it replacing the older one. The candle's scent helps focus and masks some of the haunspeir smell on the room.

The man sits at the desk and looks at the warforged. He is wearing a red robe, from head to toe, his face this time isn't obscured by the everpresent hood. Jorel is almost handsome, he is definetively not hard to look at, he simply isn't eyecatching. One peek at him reveals everything one needs to know, there is a familiarity of his features. His chin isn't too prominent, his brow isn't too unsetting, his nose isn't too small, his lips aren't too thick... His eyes are dull brown only lighting from time to time with a smirk when the man finds something funny. Jorel's little hobby is finding funny things. Jorel's little curse is finding those funny things on his job as head scribe for the reclaimers.

"Now, you might be wondering why I called you. I like you. You cause me little trouble. So I try to push some your way." There is a smile on his eyes. "This." He says as he unrolls a parchment revealing a map and holding it in place with a bird skull, a stack of iron coins from the third era, a pelter cup, and a perfectly cut dodechaedron. "Is a map. Allegedly of the undercity leading to the alleged vault of the Mother Saw. I'm sure you've heard enough of it. Now I've had some notes taken and checked some things. This here is the gorgon's gate, over here there are the spires of kuldar, and well, you get the idea. The map is old but we can navigate. Problem is this corridor. "He points at an interjection, and what appears to be the only rute to the final destination. "There was no corridor here. So we estimated where it should be and did some dungeon redecoration. Apparently there is a corridor there. After we took down a section of the wall. "Taking down a section of the wall is difficult or impossible at best. The stone and metal used in them has been magically treated and when it has been cut in the past it normally lead to a cave in. To the point that messing with the walls in a destructive manner is prohibited. So whatever the reclaimers are going at they are serious. "Problem is... there is a force wall. Not a normal force wall. It isn't anything like we have seen before. It's purple. When we tried it with a pole it went through easily, stones, metal, they can pass through it. But nothing alive. Or undead. Nope, those can't get through. Constructs on the other hand... might get a chance. You are after all of andoreen craft and if we are dealing with an andoreen magic you have the biggest chance. Would you give it a try?"

[Gunhaven]

The twins, Alpha and Omega, had been inseparable since they reactivated. Thankfully they were relatively easy to tell apart. Alpha had a coating of adamantine over it's body, below which gears could be heard. Every few minutes a bout of steam would emerge from within it's body, leaving few questions about it's means of propulsion. The third distinguishing feature of the warrior mechanic was it's golden eyes that shone with it's cunning nature. Omega meanwhile was mostly wooden, albeit enhanced at some point to be as strong as steel. His joints were iron, buffered against excess damage or wear. Unlike Alpha, Omega's eyes were the cold gaze of sapphires as they calculated what needed to be done.
Omega was the first to make any indication that they heard anything and slowly shifted it’s head to look at the map presented. Alpha then turned to Jorel and nodded once, saying ”It will be good to return below.” Omega then asked ”What do you mean removed a wall section? Was that not unnecessarily dangerous?” Alpha turned to Omega and said in the same deadpan voice ”Do not worry about such things. Our allies have opened the passage for us, it is our duty to see what’s beyond the wall.” Then to Jorel Alpha added ”How do we get to this wall?”

[thethird]

Jorel nods at the brothers comment. He shrugs, then adds.

"Well, we believe the wall was something of a later construction. The coven." He is referering to the Stone Coven, one of the disparate groups that made the providers. In particular the coven was formed mostly by gnomes who specialized in finding good spots to build foundations for buildings in Alensia. They were rather trustworthy when it came to rocks, even if they kept referring to them as minerals and taking offense. "The coven checked it and they made certain it was safe before we took it apart. Whoever built it didn't do a job as good as that with the other parts of the wall."

He stands up and turns around the table to be standing besides the two warforged. He signals one spot in the map.

"This as you probably can tell is the gorgon's gate." You've been here before. It is one of the main entrances into the Undercity. Normally a couple of reclaimer guards stand arround keeping miscreants but since it is close to the city center it doesn't need much guarding. "From there you have two options. You either cross the forest of columns." You also have been here, it is a wide room and there are many columns there. Naming conventions aren't always too original. There are many corridors leading to the forest, but with a map you should not get lost there. It is still a nexus point, and many might roam here. "There is also the silent corridor." The silent corridor plays tricks on noise. There are several brass-like pipes there that whistle with steam from time to time making the place anything but silent. "Don't take the lateral route, though, cleaning is scheduled. "Cleaning means that a gelatinous cube is patrolling the area, large enough to fill the whole passage digesting what dirt has been left behind. The lateral route is a path that runs parallel to the silent corridor.

"Either way you will reach this avenue here. And from it you can easily reach the way to the torn section of the wall. There should be some of our people there keeping watch, or getting drunk. I would bet on the second."

Navigating the forest of columns isn't easy. There isn't much light there and sometimes path between columns are cut so turns are to be expected. Arcane Mark Graffiti though are usual if not always helpful.
In a direct path the forest is much faster.
The silent corridor being a straight line is impossible to miss.
There are those that boast that the silent corridor is named as such because due to the noise ambushers are comparatively much more silent. So close to the city some urchins sometimes hide there and try to make a hit.
The lateral route would also get you to the path. But in theory there is at least a gelatinous cube there, which is reclaimer's property.

[Gunhaven]

Omega ponders the options for a moment while Alpha says "Either route will have it's problems." Omega replied with "Then it will be best if go down the Silent Corridor. Better to face the known danger versus the unknown." With a nod, Alpha turned to Jorel and said "We will return with a report of what's behind the wall, detailed as always." Omega reached into the bag the duo shared and pulled out a journal and pen to begin writing a new entry. Alpha meanwhile lead the duo through the city and toward the Gorgon Gate to head down into the Undercity.

[thethird]

The way to the gorgon gate is not too crowded. The city is misty, so close to the sea, and people keep to their business. The warforged cross a couple of beggars. That shake effortlessly their caps at the passer-by and mumble a thank you and a blessing. There are also a group of tunic wearing apprentices, skipping class from the tower, being too loud about how they partook in a wild party last holiday at a tavern. There are also a couple of ambulant food sellers, one offering pies and the other some battered pastries.

Overall life goes as usual in Alensia. It comes then as no surprise when an all too tired guard simply ignores the warforged as they cross the gate. Inside the guard post there is a tally and a younger, more energetic, guard adds Alpha & Omega to the list. Tabs are kept on those who enter the undercity. Rarely someone disappears for good for too long and search parties are sent.

As they make their way into the undercity the atmosphere changes. It is always an ominous step. The air feels thicker there, heavy under Alensia's mass. Light isn't scarce so close to the gate, with glowing orbs glued to the walls that normally get renewed when smashed. The smell isn't too bad, acrid, stale, but not putrid. The undercity isn't quiet. Alpha and Omega hear a rhythmic clatter echoed across the walls. It mixes some of the chatter from above, with a native tune. The clang of metal, the hiss of steam, the percussiveness of drops, all playing together in a concerto. The undercity is unlike any cave. It is perfectly cut into the ground. Ten feet wide, enough for four people to stand shoulder to shoulder and march along. Navigation there, so close to the exterior, isn't difficult. The walls made of a hard dark mineral have been vandalized with many layers of arcane marks over the ages. Not only can someone capable of seeing them go without a light source, so numerous they are, that it is hard to miss the arrows integrated in the paintings. If Alpha or Omega had made any inscription on the past they can easily locate it and follow it. Either way since they had already been to the silent corridor there doesn't prove difficult.

The silent corridor is where they left it. A corridor not unlike the one they where before, teen feet wide from wall to wall, but less spacious due to a thick collection of pipes running along it. The pipes connects the old bathhouse from shall street to somewhere down the undercity from where steam rises. Someone though has smashed the continual flame orbs here, making the corridor be dark as closed night.

[Gunhaven]

The twins largely ignore the rabble. They had no need for food, no built in desire to party, or no need to feel the toil of exhaustion. They nod at the tally marker and perform a final check over their belongings before they delve into the Undercity. They remain side by side, Alpha removing an Everburning Torch fifty feet in before it unholstered it's giant wrench another fifteen feet. Thirty five feet later and Omega finally pulled out its musket, loading an alchemical cartridge into the barrel, and preparing for anything.
Yet nothing came as they closed in on the Silent Corridor. The duo waited for a moment before Alpha took a step forward and called out just shy of a shout "Ambushers! If you are waiting for us then I suggest you save us the trouble and make yourselves known. We will not hesitate in terminating you if you wait for us!" While Alpha waited for a response Omega began to peruse its spells to find the proper incantation.

[thethird]

The torch light illuminates the corridor. From their position both warforged can see a tense cable across the path. A feet above the ground without little in the way to hide it even one unskilled in trap detection would have a hard time missing it.
As the light licks at the corridor, and the challenge reverberates, someone moves far from the light. The warforged hear clear footsteps and a sharp metallic click.

OoC: In the spirit of expediting and trying new things roll 5 d20 + 1d20 per anything you summon. On the spoilers below there will be some checks. Add bonus as necessary. If both Alpha and Omega try the action at it requires a roll for them. Assume that only the one with the highest check modifier rolls.

Someone just loaded a big crossbow.

That's all answer the warforged get before the continuous steam hiss from the corridor drowns any noise. It appears that the warforged have the initiative. Wether they seized it or it was given to them no one knows. Omega can most likely hit the cable with a quick shot from where he stands. Or Alpha can disable or cut it if he gets close enough. They can also choose to ignore the obvious trap and continue forward. Or perhaps stay where they are bidding their time.



It's a trap!

The cable is inmobile but very small, i.e. has AC 12. This is the second roll by the way. Hitting will effectively destroy it and trigger the trap.

The cable snaps, triggering the trap.

This is not a magical trap. A disable device 20 DC, on your third roll, will disable it. This provides loot. See below. Otherwise the cable snaps, triggering the trap.

An acrobatics 5 DC means one can pass the trap as a full round action without triggering it. Acrobatics 10 DC to pass it as a move action. Acrobatics 20 DC to simply ignore it. Whoever tries this acrobatic check is spending the fourth roll. Failure makes the one crossing trigger the trap.

Well aren't you a smart cookie. A perception 20 DC on your fifth and last roll, as long as you are next to the trap reveals two small wooden shafts atop of which rest two small glass spheres. You can pick one of the spheres (either the left or the right) upon detecting them. Picking one though triggers a crossbow bolt to the cable snaping the trap, well half of it.

If both warforged (or summons or whateves) try to pick up the spheres at the same time. A crossbow bolt cuts the cable triggering the trap (fully) before the spheres are picked up.

Does the trap trigger?

Two crystal spheres fall from each side of the trap, they were hanging atop some wooden shafts that were surprisingly well hidden. They break as they hit the ground and a thick cloud fills the corridor as if it was a fog spell. The fog is as wide as the corridor, and extends 20 feet to each side. Those taken under the cloud need to make a fortitude DC 17 or fall asleep. Too bad warforged are constructs and immune to poison, and thus ignore the noxious effect of the clouds. But summons might fall unconscious. Either way enjoy the cloud. The extra rolls for summons are for this save.

If you partially disabled the trap, by picking one sphere there is a five feet wide corridor at the area of the sphere that you picked not covered by the cloud.

Note to self raise the DC of this traps. Wait... Did you disable it?

You get two crystal spheres full of smoke. They appear to be quite brittle.

Oh, cool. PARKOUR! Feel free to keep doing PARKOUR! to go arround the trap. It's still there. You will trigger it. EVENTUALLY! Then I'll cackle my manic laughter.

Surely I can't. Feel free to do whatever you want.

[Gunhaven]

Omega pondered for a moment before it began to chant an incantation and waving in the air. From the air a creature was summoned, a dire bat that just oozed evil. Omega in a calm voice said "Cama, stick around for a while longer. While you're at it tell us what we are facing." Alpha meanwhile flexed it's muscles before it turned to Omega and said "Your shot may due the trick in this instance. This body still hampers me to this day." With a nod, Omega drew it's rifle and took careful aim at the offending wire, letting loose a shot. Before the shot even made it to the wire Omega was busy reloading the musket.

Summoning: Bluff Check [roll0] versus Sense Motive ([roll1] if you want me to do it). If successful then the summon lasts for double the duration (10 rounds instead of 5 rounds).
Summoning a Fiendish Dire Bat (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/animals/bat/bat-dire/summoned-creature-dire-bat).

Perception Check: [roll2] from the Dire Bat, who also has Blindsense 40ft.

Trap: Omega will shoot at it, seeing as how Alpha only has +1 compared to Omega because of the damn ACP.
Attack: [roll3] (It ignores any miss chance as long as I aim at the right square)
Damage if it matters: [roll4]

Extra Rolls: [roll5]

[thethird]

The cable taunts the sharpshooter by simply staying put. Dodging the bullet in it's immobility. The bat sees farther than the warforged do and shrills at seeing what lies ahead. Unfortunately fiendish bats aren't smart enough to communicate in a meaningful way. Still the summon blurbs something that sounds close enough to food in infernal. As it does two crossbow bolts whistle through the darkness towards the warforged. The bolts are smeared in a dark substance that had they been fully living creatures might have made them sick.



Against Alpha [roll0],[roll1],[roll2] (Miss)


Against Omega [roll3],[roll4],[roll5] (Hit, sneak attack not ignored, Omega takes 9 damage).

Alpha didn't do anything this round, did he? Omega rolled a 1 on the shoot, anything else would have dealt with the trap. You didn't check my last post spoilers?

[Gunhaven]

Alpha lets out a low chuckle at the answer, saying "A good response. Foolish as it was, though. Once more, twin, so that I may deal with these foes." Even as Omega aims for a second shot Alpha begins to clomp forward. Once the second shot whistles past and hits the trap Cama charges forth with Alpha following.
So let's get tricksy. Alpha will use White Raven Tactics (Swift) to give Omega another chance. Alpha will then move closer to the wire (20ft if it doesn't bring him on top of it).
Omega will take the shot (with the 3 for 14?) to disable the trap. His move action will be to reload.

Cama will then charge forth, keeping an eye out for future danger (with the 12 for 24?) and if something was within 80ft attack it (with the 4 for a total of 13?) and if he hits deal [roll0]

After that their turn is finally accounted for :smallamused:

[thethird]

As the trap springs, this time the cable being cut by Omega's bullet, a cloud fills the corridor. Both warforged's visions are impeded, light having trouble to deal with the mist. But that's not the direst effect as Cama enters in contact with the cloud it feels drowsy. (fort save [roll0], DC 15).

The bat just falls to the ground with a snore, not that the forged can see it they are still trapped within the mist. Hearing is still as difficult as normally within the corridor, but a perception DC 15 will serve to realize that whatever the mist is made Cama fall unconscious. Similarly a knowledge nature (with the same DC), or a craft (poisonmaking) (with the same DC) will gather intel on the mist.

[Gunhaven]

The twins attempted to peer through the cloud even as Alpha continued to clomp on after the ambushers. He'd stop if there was another obvious trap or he heard the scrambling of feet. Omega reloaded once again and called out "Your trap failed against us. Come out now and we won't make you endure it as well."
Alpha will do the perception check: [roll0]
Omega will attempt to bluff the ambushers out: [roll1]

Omega will reload. Alpha will continue to move forward until he hears an enemy or finds another trap.