Legacy of Fire: PoW/SoP Edition! (IC Thread)

[digiman619]

Legacy of Fire: Spheres of Power/Path of War Edition!

http://i.imgur.com/aK0mZfr.jpg

More than a week has passed since you were all hired by Garavel, the no-nonsense major-domo of Almah Roveshki, a merchant princess of great cunning. Nine days of long, boring camelback rides and poor meals have brought you to across this desolate and seemingly empty desert. Now your journey is coming to an end, as Sultan's Claw, a massive five branched tree, begins to clear the horizon.

[Doc_Maynot]

"Ack, finally! Something that isn't just sand!" Yenna takes a swig from one of her several canteens, obviously not built for this weather.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Hearing the dwarven woman's raised voice, Rowan opens his eyes from his meditation and says, "So soon? I must have been meditating too deeply, to lose track of time so horrendously." Reaching to his belt, he also takes a sip from his waterskin to help ward off thirst.

[GimmeAllTheEggs]

Kaladan drummed his sword hilt impatiently as the Sultan's claw came into view. He had lived in Katapesh all his life and grown to love even its deserts but even the hot, uneventful journey had began to gnaw on his patience. "By Sarenrae's mercy! Not even a scorpion in the boot for days. Finally, some action is in sight."

[pfm1995]

Trudging along next to Garavel's camel; Dariush was busy trying to trim his beard with no water and a snaggletoothed sickle. He heard the camel low gently and stepped quickly to the side, dodging a wad of spit before tripping over his own feet and tumbling back down the dune.

Struggling to his feet and catching up with the others, he realized everyone was staring at the horizon. "Everybody, look, - he spat sand - a tree."

[digiman619]

The tree stands as a testament to hard work and perseverance. While it is old and gnarly, it still maintains some of its leaves. Even after no doubt centuries in this harsh land, it still remains a living part of the landscape in this desolate place. See a tree manage to survive in this desolate place fills you with DETERMINATION

[GimmeAllTheEggs]

Kaladan digs his heels into his camel's sides excitedly, in an attempt to urge it to speed up. "Go comrades, go! Towards adventure!"

[pfm1995]

I'm confused, is the tree running away? That man has a very strange definition of 'adventure'. With the first of probably many weary sighs, Dariush begins to gingerly lead Garavel's camel towards the beckoning shade.

[Doc_Maynot]

Yenna*moves to join in with the others enjoying the shade.

*seemingly filled with DETEMMIENATION,

[stack]

"Where there are trees there is water. Shade is welcome too." Akaash intones dispassionately.

sorry, missed the link going up. Had a crazy week at work and am off the coming week, so my posting won't be as regular as it usually is. Normally I am very consistent.

[digiman619]

As you crest that final hill, you see a caravan of a half-dozen wagons and a large tent clustered around the distinctive tree comes into view. Camels in a nearby pen prance in agitation, and a clutch of confused goats and livestock wander the grounds around the wagons. Perhaps a dozen men and women rush around the campsite, chasing down an animal or hastening toward the center of the cluster, near the great tree, with pails of water in their hand. One of the caravans is on fire.

Lush orange and red flames engulf an elaborate wooden wagon emblazoned with painted moons and stars. A gout of smoke pours from an open door, and as you approach an ill wind blows a number of colorful fortune-telling Harrow cards from inside the wagon. One of the Harrow cards, blown on the wind, hits Rowan. It is The Cyclone.

The central flap of an elaborate tent flies open and a regal woman who can only be Almah steps out into the fire lit night. “Douse that flame!” she shouts to the men surrounding the wagon before turning in your direction. “Ah, Garavel!” she says. “And just a moment later than the nick of time, as usual.” Looking specifically past her major domo and directly at you, Almah barks out a simple order before running of toward the fire: “Find some way to help!”

The fire is dangerously close to the great tree, as well as another wooden wagon that four burly men are trying to move. Some of the people who had been fighting the fire are off to the side, as a cleric of Nethys tries to work on them.

[pfm1995]

Lacking the strength to move a caravan and the healing knowledge to help the wounded; Dariush settles for setting his pack down and running to join the bucket line. Skipping and weaving and barely touching the sand, he grabs a bucket from the end of the line and starts wetting the nearest parts of the great tree.

[Doc_Maynot]

Yenna rushes in as fast as they can to the wounded, performing some battlefield medicine. Quickly applying some bandages soaked with a foul smelling healing salve to the major wounds of any the cleric is not actively attending.

[GimmeAllTheEggs]

Kaladan jumps off his camel with his sword hilt in hand, heading straight for the fire. Waving his sword hilt about, he briefly considers tapping into the elemental power of water and quickly abandons that idea. They were in the desert afterall, channelling a sufficiently large amount of water to douse a fire like that would be a sketchy attempt at best. "Sand will have to do, I suppose." With his mind set on an answer, Kaladan whips up a blade of damp sand onto the flame, hoping to smother it.

[stack]

Akaash closes his eyes and focuses inwards, then calls to the sky. Over the next seconds a light rain starts falling on the wagon.standard to use spiritualism to temporarily buy off the focused weather drawback, then control rain, concentrating so it goes to category 3. 4 rnds of actions needed, then keeps concentrating on the rain.
3 is a light rain, best he can do at this level

[bcool999]

Rowan

Catching the burning harrow card before it disappears in the wind, Rowan sees the burning cyclone in his hand, the fire leaving him unharmed due to his heritage. A Burning Cyclone? I have had my fortunes told to me before, but one brought to me without mortal agency seems somehow profound. Rowan thinks as he tries to extinguish the flames on the card with a swipe of his hand, only for the burnt card to fall to ashes and scatter with the wind. Frowning, Rowan refocuses himself on the current situation. Not knowing how he could be of more help, he grabs his staff and teleports himself off of his camel trying to hold back the sudden surge of sickness, not trusting his meager skill in riding to see him safely off the beast, before moving with haste towards the tree.

Standard action: Teleport 25ft. with Warp Sphere.
Fort save vs DC 10 [roll0] Sickened for 1 round on failure.
Move Action: move towards tree 40ft. (not sure if 65ft. of movement is enough to reach the tree or not)

OOC: Also, I reread and I am actually not sure if the cyclone card is on fire... so if it is an important Item that I am supposed to keep, let me know and I will retcon the part about it turning to ash.

[digiman619]

As Yenna rushes to help the overworked cleric, she sees that he's focusing on keeping a mercenary alive, unfortunately leaving the sword-wielding woman next to him in dangerous condition. Yenna applies a bandage to to the woman's horrible burns, causing her to gasp, but her breathing soon steadies as the burns seem to ease
While she's still hurting, she's stabalized, currently at -2 HP, but will be up on her feet in a few rounds

Rowan blinks out of existence, only to reappear near the wooden wagon. After a second to recover, he stands ready for action
Okay, you're here. What are you going to do now? I kinda skimmed over the turn it'd take to reach them, so whatever you're going to do, you'll probably get a small bonus on it.

Akaash closed his eyes, a fine mist forming as he focuses his power to call the rain.
It's gonna take you a bit to actually summon the rain, so I'm starting with mist forming first. You are also still on the hill, as you haven't moved.

Kaldan focuses on smothering the flames with his moistened sand, While not as effective as he'd like, it does seem to be helping.
You're officially helping extinguish the fire.

Dariush quickly rushed to the bucket brigade, joining up to help douse the fire.
You're officially helping extinguish the fire.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Closer to the scene, Rowan ponders a moment how to assist. Merely blasting the flames with magical force is likely not very effective, and at worst can hurt others and spread the blaze faster. Seeing a nearby Suli flinging moistened dirt upon the fire, he walks over briskly to him. Stopping in arms reach, Rowan firmly plants his stave in the sand, gesturing about with one hand while the other reaches for the warrior, briefly, the ground shows a magical circle reminiscent of a clock, with the hands spinning ever faster around it's face.

Casting Alter Time: Haste on Kaldan which should give him an extra dirt attack per turn.
Painful Magic: [roll0] Passed

[stack]

Akaash keeps concentrating, positioning himself to center the forming most on the fire.not sure on the distance from the cart, but weather has medium range by default, so he will concentrate as a standard and move with his move to get into position

[Doc_Maynot]

Yenna, having patched up the swordswoman, gives a quick nod to the cleric before rushing to help the men push the cart away from the fire.

[digiman619]

Yenna, upon seeing that her patient is starting to recover, quickly rushes to help the men moving the cart. As she tried pushing the cart, she luckily started pushing at the proper leverage point, allowing the men to finally get it moving
That was a DC 26 Strength check. Even with your result of 21 (bravo on the 19, BTW), three of the men had to succeed on their Aid Other check for this to work. All four passed wonderfully

Kaldan notices that the speed of his sand increase, though the fire still burns.
Thanks to Rowan you are hasted; though until Rowan gets the Improved Haste talent, that only means that you get an extra attack rather than the normal Pathfinder spell

Akaash moves forward, finally focusing his power to cause a light rain to fall. In addition to helping combat the fire, seeing such a downfall raises the spirits of some of the firefighters.
So you are making it rain, but only singles. :smalltongue:



Between your combined efforts, you manage to quench the flames! The Sultan's Claw was burned, but not too bad; hopefully this will be another trial this great tree has endured. Thankfully, there was only one casualty in this disaster: Eloais, the astronomer. Almah, the woman in charge of this caravan, seems largely unmoved by the loss. She tells Garavel, her major-domo and your companion for the journey here, to lead up an investigation into what started the fire. She also suggests, not too subtly, that he should use your talents, as she is reasonably certain that you guys weren't behind it.

He addresses you, concern on his face. I'd very much appreciate your help on this matter. Do you have any suggestions on how to proceed?

[pfm1995]

Looking up at Garavel, Dariush steps forward slightly.
"Baan, the fire started inside the caravan. Perhaps if we were to sift through the ashes, we might find what started this."

[Doc_Maynot]

Yenna, currently sitting and catching her breath after the affair, looks around confused. "You mean that isn't a common occurrence out here? Doesn't wood just catch fire when it gets hot enough? I know I'm about ready to." She takes a break, long enough to take another swig of one of her canteens. "Though, if someone did start this, then they should be brought to justice. This Eloais, what exactly did he do?"

[digiman619]

His name was Eloais and he was from a distant land known as Varsia, and practiced the Harrow, a native divination technique. Almah hired him a month or so ago. He then addressed Daruish Our investigation does give us right to search the scene and ask around, so if you want to see what you can on the scene itself, feel free.

[bcool999]

Rowan

"Hmm... A fortune teller is the only victim. Did his sight show him secrets worth silencing him for, or was he merely careless with his candles?" Rowan muses outloud before refocusing on those around him. Looking to the dwarf who he thought he saw earlier giving medical treatment he calls out, "Yenna correct? You are a healer? Could you examine this Eloasis's body? The fire appears to have started in his wagon, and I wonder if it was flame that killed him or something else."

[GimmeAllTheEggs]

Kaladan scratches his chin as he considers how to find the mystery arsonist. "We could start with getting statements from each person and seeing how their stories match up."

Edit: Kaladan heads to the nearest caravan personnel and starts asking for each of their accounts of the events.

Take 10 for 16?

[pfm1995]

Nodding to Garavel, Dariush moves over to the husk of the caravan and steps inside, running his fingers over the charred wood and trying to find the source of the fire.

At what best he can tell is the fire's centre he closes his eyes and tries to feel the past-flames, reaching out with his hands to gauge their nature and texture.

[stack]

Akaash lends a hand to the search, having no particular experience in determining the cause of fire nor in questioning witnesses, he is possessed of a pair of hands.[roll0]

[Doc_Maynot]

Looking to the dwarf who he thought he saw earlier giving medical treatment he calls out, "Yenna correct? You are a healer? Could you examine this Eloasis's body? The fire appears to have started in his wagon, and I wonder if it was flame that killed him or something else."

"Aye, you are correct on both counts. And I'll go and take a look, sure. Hopefully I can find that the whole fire was an accident while I'm at it and we can avoid a whole sordid ordeal of finger pointing..." Yenna heads over to where Akaash and Dariush are combing through the ashes to find the body and begins to examine it.

[digiman619]

As you inspect the cart and the remains, you come to the conclusion that the fire wasn't magically created, and that the astronomer seems to have died to smoke inhalation, as there are no wounds that you can see.

You guys will need to make a Diplomacy check for the interviews in order to see what they'll say. Do you guys want to that individually, or as a group?

[Doc_Maynot]

"Ack! Poor man... Oi!" She shouts at whoever is listening. "Died of smoke lung! And it wasn't magic that set the fire. Looks like we'll have to start asking questions after all. Lets start with anyone who wasn't around helpin' put the fire out."

[bcool999]

Rowan

Following Yenna's autopsy, Rowan thinks for a bit before examining the cart, trying to determine if the astronomer died in his sleep, or if not, why he didn't leave the cart before choking to death on smoke.

Gonna take 20 on searching the cart. Might find something hidden/useful and Rowan isn't great at social interactions... good at appraising shiny things and deciphering languages though.

[digiman619]

Rowan

Following Yenna's autopsy, Rowan thinks for a bit before examining the cart, trying to determine if the astronomer died in his sleep, or if not, why he didn't leave the cart before choking to death on smoke.

Due to the point of ignition being near the window, and the body being found near the remains of the bed, you determine that the astronomer was almost certainly asleep when the fire started, and didn't wake up until it was far too late. There's no way to know if his slumber was due to some sinister action or mere fatigue that lead him to that final sleep, however.

[stack]

Akaash helps where he can, but leaves the actual interviewing of the survivors to others.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Knowing that there is little left that he could discover, Rowan joins Yenna on her investigations into witnesses, aiding where he can, but mostly listening and trying to piece events together.

[pfm1995]

Opening his eyes again, Dariush quickly moved out of the burned-out caravan and towards where the other slaves were loitering, now that the panic had died down. He's sucking on the flesh of his thumb; to an enquiring look he responds: "Burned myself."

[digiman619]

One at a time, Garavel introduces you to the members of the caravan

Almah is a beautiful young merchant princess, the latest in a long line of wealthy agents of the Pactmasters of Katapesh. Her family, originally from Varisia far to the north, has dwelt in Katapesh for several generations now. Unfortunately, her family has been down on its luck for most of those generations as a result of bad investments and the economic intrigues of rival merchant princes, but Almah is ready to steady the ship and rebuild her family legacy.
Almah is a canny competitor who knows that she will not get a second chance to impress her mysterious superiors. Thus she has thrown everything into this expedition. Almah hired Eloais in Solku about a month ago to read his cards for her—she hasn’t visited the land of her ancestors, but having a harrower at her side felt “right.” She’s hesitant to reveal what his readings told her. She isn’t convinced the fire was arson, but if it was, she hopes the PCs find out who started the fire quickly.
She does seem somewhat distraught at Eloais’s death—if asked, she bitterly asks the PC how they would feel if one of their friends burned to death. She admits that Eloais and she didn’t have a romantic relationship, but she did spend a lot of time with the Varisian.


Zastoran hails from the coastal capital of Katapesh. A cleric of Nethys, the god of magic, Zastoran joined up with Almah years ago when she was just starting out in business, and has been her personal physician and spiritual advisor ever since. Zastoran is a friendly, chatty chap who misses the comforts of his home city and who naturally gravitates toward good conversationalists with interest in culture and the arts.
Zastoran’s small wagon contains an enormous chest that holds dozens and dozens of potions, an entire stock of medicinal supplements and magical aids meant to protect Almah’s band and the early settlers who will flock to Kelmarane once it has been liberated of gnoll inflence. Despite this, he is loath to give out his potions and treats the loss of each as more serious than the injuries that they heal.The cleric was reading a book by the fire-pit, but the mercenaries were being too loud for him and he’d just stood up to return to his wagon when the fire started. He can attest that all six of the mercenaries were at the fire-pit and nowhere near the astrologer’s wagon when the fire broke out, and that Dashki was not. He thought Eloais was a charlatan and that Almah is better of now without his attention, but admits she did seem quite fond of him.He finds Dashki to be unsettling, and his obsession with Almah somewhat disturbing; “No one with healthy desires skulks around a pretty woman the way he does; who knows what a scoundrel like him is capable of?” He also ruefully admits that while he thought Eloais was a fake, he did appreciate his conversation; “Not a one of these others here can discuss the poetry of Bellianais or the music of far-of Absalom. Eloais was well traveled and intelligent. I will miss him.”

The caravan's gnoll expert (i.e., know a lot about gnolls, not a Gnoll with levels of the Expert NPC class), is a foul man named Dashki. Even ignoring his foul hygiene and horrendous table manners, his crude manners and obvious lust towards his employer are enough to keep him away from anyone with a modicum of class.The gnoll expert claims to have been fiishing up dinner by the campfie when the wagon went up. As the interview progresses,
he grows more and more frustrated, crying out, “No! I had nothing to do with the fire! How do we even know the fire was set? That idiot burned a hundred candles in his wagon. Perhaps he just got unlucky. We’re in gnoll country. It was probably pugwampis.”
If asked about pugwampis, Dashki is grateful for the change of subject and says, “Terrible critters what crawled up from the Darklands below the earth. ‘Jackal rats,’ some folks call ’em, on account of their pointed little heads. They worship gnolls as gods and infest their communities like rats. Wherever pugwampis go, bad luck is sure to follow. The gnolls hate pugwampis because of it, and try to kill them all the time. But they always come back. Perhaps their bad luck caused the fortune-man’s candles to start a fire? Yes, pugwampis. I am certain it was pugwampis.”

There are 10 in total, more or less evenly split amongst men and women. Some of them work for the Pactmasters and were assigned to Almah, and the rest are mercenaries that she hired. All of them exude an aura of arrogance and competance; they are convinced they could wipe the floof with you and treat you thusly for the most part.Almah's personal guards were guarding her tent and saw nothing as the tent doesn't have a clear line of sight to the burnt wagon. They did notice Dashki observing the tent and trying to be hidden; it's clear that he was spying on Almah when the fire started.
The Mercs were having fun near the fire-pit. None of them though much of the deceased astrologer, thinking him weak. They do mention that the caravan scuttlebutt is that Almah had a thing with Eloias, and perhaps Dashki offed him to "get rid of the competition"

A friendly, late middle-aged human couple that tends the dozen-or-so animals kept by Almah’s band as food or transportation. The merchant princess hired them from the nearby town of Solku. Everyone seems to like the man, Hadrod, and his wife, Hadrah, who also help cook the camp’s meals and take care of many additional menial tasks. Both are tremendous gossips and make a game of keeping tabs on everyone in the camp. The arrival of a new group excites both of them almost more than the recent commotion, and Hadrod and Hadrah pepper you with questions about their backgrounds, clothes, and interests while they attempt to conduct their interview, making it somewhat unclear who is running the interrogation.The camel drivers are excitable and prone to fiishing each other’s sentences. Hadrah was the first to notice the fire, but she and her husband were distracted by trying to get their animals under control soon thereafter. Hadrod in particular seems on the verge of tears—his favorite goat Rombard went missing during the chaos, and he fears the worst. The two thought that Eloais was “nice enough for a foreigner,” but didn’t really understand his talk of “Cyclones and Fiends and Uprisings.” But Lady Almah’s trust in the astrologer was good enough for them to know he was a good man. When asked about Dashki, their expressions darken but they refuse to say more.

[pfm1995]

Re-grouping with the others, Dariush looks puzzled.

"Maybe the fire was an accident, as Dashki suggested. Still, something doesn't feel quite right. Why would he have a fire lit if he was asleep? And, worse, where did Rombard go? I don't suppose any of you are decent trackers or know some small divination magics?"

[stack]

Akaash shakes his head. "I am not a tracker. My divination ability is limited, if there was magic to be looked for I might be able to help, but beyond that..." he shrugs.

[bcool999]

Rowan

"Hmm..." Rowan says in response to searching for a goat, "While I am not against doing a good deed and returning a lost goat, I think we should first remove the contradictions in our witness testimonies. Both the Mercs and Doctor were at the firepit, but neither mentioned seeing Dashki while he said he was there. The guards clear up that Dashki was busy with his... fascination... with his employer, but I wonder if that is all of his deceptions?"

[digiman619]

Garavel takes you to Almah, who is intrigued by your findings. While she has never heard of these "pugwampis", she is willing to let Dashki prove his innocence by finding one. She then instructs you to accompany him in his search, for if this is a shallow attempt to cover the truth, he will almost assuredly take this opportunity to flee. She further informs you that if he does take this opportunity to escape, she wants him captured and returned alive; she wants this investigation to be as above-board as possible.

I might have sent you guys search for these alone, but none of you are trackers,

[pfm1995]

"Of course, bannu. A pugwampi or a guilty man will be returned to you." With a deep bow, Dariush walks backwards out of her presence and pulls a sharpening stone out of his pack, making the snaggletooth on his sickle even worse.

[stack]

Akaash simply nods to the request, trying to recall if he had heard the name before. [roll0]

[stack]

"A species of evil fey, gremlins. Bearers of ill fortune. I could not say how likely it is that one would be here, but they do exist."

[bcool999]

Rowan

Leaning on his staff somewhat, Rowan strokes his chin before nodding and saying, "While we are searching anyway, we can also keep an eye out for that lost goat. Let us check our supply of water and begin shall we?"

[pfm1995]

Looking up, "Agreed, we should leave as soon as possible... could someone else talk to the creep about it? It's just that I'm pretty sure he can afford to strangle me." Dariush says softly.

[stack]

"I will fetch him. If he causes trouble then he will be dealt with." Akaash goes to get the foul man so they can depart.

[digiman619]

Dashki leads you out as you grab torches. As you go out, tracks are immediately visible the heading southwest, towards more hilly terrain. Phantom creatures seems to haunt the underbrush, until you get close enough to see their true nature as ordinary nocturnal creatures.
As you ravel further and further from the caravan, a sense of dread seems to hover over you. As you come closer, a sound that sounds like a child in pain hits your ears, as you get closer, the sounds become clearer; the camel driver's goat must be nearby.
Eventually, following the sounds and tracks, you get to what can only be described as a cactus forest; Many of the prickly plants are tightly gathered; no doubt an underground water source feeds them. You see, tied to a cactus near the middle, the goat, clearly terrified. It'll take about 3 turns of carefully maneuvering around the cacti to get to him though.

[pfm1995]

Dariush shivered. He didn't like the desert at night, it was too quiet. All you could hear was the wind, and the smallest animal noise echoed louder than a desperate merchant. He shivered again, pulling his flickering torch closer. Plus, it's *cold*.

Some time later, Dariush stands outside the forest. He looks at the goat, looks at the cacti, looks back at the goat... looks back at the cacti.

"This... is very obviously safe. Clearly we should simply walk in and take the goat; we could even leave our weapons out here." He turns to Dashki. "You first."

[stack]

A trap that was set by someone either too ignorant to realize it is obvious or set for something that wouldn't be expected to notice."Hold a moment." He closes his eyes in concentration.using spiritualism tradition power to grab divination sphere for 1 minute as a standard action, then spending a spell point to divine using the life sphere aternate divination as a standard the next round. Medium range.

Divine Life: If you possess the Life sphere, you may divine the location of nearby living creatures. These creatures do not have auras; you instead determine their condition according to the list below:
• Normal: Has at least 90% of full normal hit points, free of disease.
• Fair:30%to90%offullnormalhitpointsremaining.
• Poor: Less than 30% of full normal hit points re- maining, a icted with a disease, or su ering from a debilitating injury.
• Weak:0orfewerhitpointsremaining,a ictedwith a disease that has reduced an ability score to 5 or less, or crippled.

[digiman619]

You sense two life-forms, one normal and the other poor.

[bcool999]

Rowan

"I can teleport us past the cacti, and even teleport the goat back if it is calmed, but I am unfortunately not yet mature enough in my art to teleport more that a single being at a time, and not from range either." Rowan tells the others as he inspects the situation. "If I did teleport someone over there, there might be quite a gap in time before aid could be arranged."

[digiman619]

Dashki swore up a storm. "It's gotta be me, doesn't it? None of you fools know anything about handling animals, so I've gotta stick my neck out to go get the ****ing goat. Because gods forbid that one of you morons are remotely useful!" He swears again, but a serious look crosses his face. "I want covering fire. If you won't be in the thick of it, you will at least be helpful." He pauses for a second, anger once more his visage, "And I swear, if any of you fools hit me, I will beat the **** out of you!". He takes a breath, and looks to Rowan and says "Once the rest of you are in position, do it."

[pfm1995]

Nodding, Dariush unloops his crossbow and loads a bolt. Lying down on the sand, he motions to Rowan and says,

"I'm ready. I'm also better in a fistfight than I am with this, so if things go wrong forget the goat and get out of there."

[stack]

Akaash opens his eyes and holds up a hand to halt the others. "There is another living thing out there, aside from the goat. Rather than teleport in, perhaps we should all go. Move so that we can support each other as we do. Sending one in there alone is too dangerous, let us attack into the ambush."

[bcool999]

Rowan

Hearing that there is indeed a creature lying in wait, Rowan revises his earlier plan slightly. "In that case, let's spring the trap, but reduce the danger. I shall place... a tether -for lack of a better word- on Dashki before I teleport him over, and if he becomes endangered, I can quickly pull him back to us. Meanwhile, we can engage it at range. That way, we can use the cacti against it as it wished to use it against us."

Thus explaining, Rowan reaches for Dashki with a slight bow and an 'excuse me' as he applies the 'tether'.

Using Dimensional Beacon Talent to mark Dashki. No spell point cost for simply marking, lasts for an hour. DC 10 Fort Save vs sickened [roll0]

[digiman619]

Well, that sounds like a better plan. Everyone in position?

[bcool999]

Rowan

After obtaining the permission of the one actually being flung into danger, Rowan stands ready with one hand on the mans shoulder and the other on his staff, ready to begin the incantation once the others are prepared.

[pfm1995]

Dariush nods again, his eyes not turning from the cactus patch.

[digiman619]

As Rowan finishes his technique, Dashki blip out if existence, only to reappear a few feet away from the goat. As he calms the goat, he reaches for his dagger to cut the rope, a strange hyena-headed beast, no bigger than 2 feet tall jumps out, wielding a small shortbow.

Roll for Initiative!

[pfm1995]

As soon as hyena-face shows his hyena face, Dariush pulls the trigger and sends a bolt whistling over the thing's shoulder.

[digiman619]

Daruish's bolt seems to fly true, but a sudden gust of wind alters its trajectory enough to miss. As the imp screeches, Dashki attempts to stab it.
Attack: [roll0]
[roll1]
Damage: [roll2]

Unfortunately, he missed by millimeters. He then drew his scimitar, getting ready to attack the imp in earnest.

[lostsole31]

For whatever reason, I have subscribed to this thread under thread tools twice, and I still don't see it in my subscriptions. So, I am actually posting to jump-start getting this in my queue.

EDIT: Success! We now return you to your regularly scheduled of a handful of titanic creatures picking on a poor teeny-tiny little fey who just wanted some goat's milk to warm it on the cold, humid desert nights.

[bcool999]

Rowan
Spell Points: 1/2 Warp
3/3 Time

Having drawn the creature out, Rowan pulls back on his staff, much as one would to set the line on a fishing pole, while muttering an incantation, a small circle with arcane symbols appears near to the Tiefling, and Dashki appears within it. "Wonderful work. Now that the creature is exposed let us attack."

Useing a Spell Point to teleport the Beacon on Dashki back to me. 1 spell point remaining in the Warp sphere, 3 remaining in the Time Sphere.
Fort Save vs Sickened [roll0]
And yes... I did make a bait joke with the way I teleported Dashki back.

[stack]

"Oh look, an ambush. If only we had advanced together like someone suggested, we could surround and destroy the evil creature. Huh, who could have guessed." Akaash grumbles half to himself as he pushes through the cacti toward the fey.double move toward the pugwampi

[digiman619]

The needle of the cacti seem to be drawn to you, and you take a few cuts from them, most notably on your left cheek, which starts bleeding a bit heavily. Nevertheless, you reach the pugwampi.You take 3 points of damage from the cacti you ran through. The gash on your cheek is just cosmetic; you aren't taking bleed damage or anything

[bcool999]

Rowan

Having retrieved the bait, ahem, the brave and adventurous Dashki from melee with the Pugwampi, Rowan once more holds forth his staff and chants as a glowing red abyssal runic circle appears before him. His chant ends as a glowing ball of force shoots out of it and attempts to home in on the Pugwampi.

Destructive Blast Attack: [roll0]
Disadvantage: [roll1]
Damage: [roll2] Bludgeoning

Fort vs. Sickened [roll3]

[digiman619]

The pugwampi, focused on the charging Akaash, giggled when he began bleeding. This unfortunately drew its attention away from Rowan, whose blast sent it flying into a cactus, impaling it. The imp had DR 2/cold iron, but even counting that you did enough to kill it twice over. Neat!

Dashki manages to calm the goat and take it with them, the cacti no longer as much as a threat due to the pugwampi's defeat. You take the body back to the camp and prove Dashki's innocence. The camel drivers are also quite pleased you managed to save the goat. Impressed by your ability, Almah, offers you 200 gp in order to get you on retainer.

[lostsole31]

Seeing the new heroes returned, Twixanel removes herself from prayer at the Sultan's Claw and goes up to Dashki and the others. "You brought back Hadrod's goat! Looks like you guys must have swum through a thicket to get it, though. Can I get any of you some water? Hadrod! Hadrod! They found Rombard! They found Rombard!"

[stack]

Akaash temporarily patches up his cuts before they depart. Happy enough to have cleared a man's name, he is a bit put-off with the gratitude shown for recovering the goat. "Yes, we are the mighty saviors of small livestock, praise and song unto us. Or I could settle for that water." He gives the man offering it a thankful nod.

[pfm1995]

"Yes, we are the mighty saviors of small livestock, praise and song unto us."

Already drinking, Dariush snorts loudly and starts coughing violently.

"Mighty saviours of small livestock, that's good. We should get that embroidered on our hats."

Later, with Almah:

"Bannu, your generosity knows no bounds. I would be honoured to serve as your retainer, after the gnoll menace is dealt with."

[SwordChucks]

Goma waves as the party approaches.

Goats need heroes too, it seems. His nose wrinkles. And baths.

[stack]

"I suppose 200 makes for a fair retainer for such mighty heroes. I will take it."

[lostsole31]

Akaash: "Yes, we are the mighty saviors of small livestock, praise and song unto us. Or I could settle for that water." He gives the man fairy girl offering it a thankful nod.
Dariush snorts loudly and starts coughing violently."Mighty saviours of small livestock, that's good. We should get that embroidered on our hats."
Goma waves as the party approaches. Goats need heroes too, it seems. His nose wrinkles. And baths.
The good-natured girl doesn't really catch on to the irony until Goma makes his quip at the end. As she gives water to the Windborn, she laughs and says, "Okay, okay, but the measure of our hearts can be seen in how we treat lesser creatures from whom we can engineer no social advantage. Sure, the advantage did exist in a connection to Hadrod and so on, but don't you see? You didn't just clear dear Dashki's name, and put out a fire, but without prompting from Almah you went and saved Rombard. It was during this act of charity that things worked out. My name's Twixanel, by the way, but you can simply call me Twix."

Twixanel (or simply "Twix") is some sort of fairy creature you've likely never seen before. She stands no higher than many halfling, at an even three feet in height. Despite the fact she is shorter than any gnome and as short as some of the shortest halflings, her physique and proportions are not unlike a 12- or 13-year-old human girl. Her "skin" appears to be a light red made up of incredibly small bark segments, not unlike scales. Her hair is the same color, though shot through with small streamers of brown, and her amber eyes are practically jewel-tone, and not unlike the amber color of tree sap. What appears at first to be a curtain of ivy on her shoulders is a strange set of ivy-and-bramble wings. She does not fly terribly often, as when she does so she is a bit clumsy; the strange wings that provide the thrust and lift for flight are the very things that increase drag.

She is outfitted as someone might be for some type of adventure, but to say that she is "well-armed" might be misleading. True, she carries a longspear, sickle, and light crossbow, and so it seems like she could pass for a peasant warrior of some sort. But when you notice that her "armor" is a terrible patchwork, multi-layered camel-hide shirt (designed to accommodate her wings) one takes a closer look at her weapons and sees that only in the most liberal weapon shop would these items be considered effective arms. Old, worn, second-, or even third- hand, and of the 10 meager bolts in her case, only three share the same fletching. She has a backpack, but other than some food and a waterskin, but outside of that, her colorful (but equally worn and in some placed patched over) Katapeshi garb and pouch, she is not someone whose demeanor, bearing, or speech suggests that she is useful at anything worthwhile when it comes to "adventuring." She does have light, colorful scarves that wrap around her neck, wrists, and ankles. Given that much about her is patchwork that might be overlooked, and yet there is something a little asymmetrical.

She was already with Almah when Garavel's crew rendezvoused tonight. She can't really be an effective guard, she seems clueless around animals, and assists Hadrod and Hadreh (was that her name) as much as she flits about and assists anyone. She is almost like a caravan's version of a cabin boy and jester in one. Jester? She has no formal training of any kind as such, but given that no one else is skilled at anything, as the night begins to settle more she will help entertain the men and buoy their hearts with stories and songs. She might be someone that can be annoying if they manage to get underfoot, and don't appear to serve a real function, and yet Almah's men seem to treat her as they would a favored daughter or little sister.
Perform (untrained) ... used for jokes, stories, song, and dance [roll0]

[bcool999]

Rowan

"While it is true that saving a lost goat is usually not the stuff of legends, there is no deed that is without consequence, good or bad, boon or bane." Rowan reassures his allies as they drink to refresh themselves and clear the grit from their mouths. Then the Lady's reward and offer is placed before them.

Sending the others a look at having his point proven, Rowan graciously accepts Almah's generosity. Doubtless there will be more gold in his future if he stays near the wealthy young woman, and even a year or two of service is nothing compared to the life he has lived to date. To one with demonic lineage, this adventure is merely a blink of the eye compared to the years I shall spend, but now is my chance to set my foundation. To hone my skills and obtain material assistance as well is a great boon. The fact that she is such an earnest young girl also warms the heart.

[stack]

Akaash gives Twix a nod. "Akaash. Thanks for the water."

[digiman619]

After everyone gets patched up and has a good night's sleep, Almah lays down the next mission: This camp is too open, there are too many ways it can be attacked and they need a better home base. The good news is that there's a temple not to far away. The bad news is that it is in disrepair and infested with foul beasts. She then tasks you with clearing out the temple to act as a forward base for her operations out here.

[lostsole31]

"Merchant Princess Almah," says Twix with her head low, "I would like to accompany your heroes to the temple, if I may. Once they get rid of any bad things, I can fly back here with word that they're ready for you."

[SwordChucks]

Goma turns to Almah, "I'm all for clearing out foul beasts, but do you know to what the temple was dedicated?"

[digiman619]

Goma turns to Almah, "I'm all for clearing out foul beasts, but do you know to what the temple was dedicated?"

Sarenrae, or at least as far as we can tell from the outside. Perhaps you will be able to determine more from within.

[lostsole31]

"Oooh, I love the sun goddess! She's so pretty," coos Twix. "I mean, I count Gozreh and Nethys as my patrons, but the Lady of the Healing Flame is a good one, too. Her light helps Gozreh's plants to grow. What about you guys? What are your, well, never mind. Sorry. It's poor form asking others about their religion, isn't it?"

[stack]

Akaash raises an eyebrow at the request. "Do you have anything more specific than 'foul beasts'? Do you have scouting reports, reliable witness, or is it common knowledge amongst traders in the area?"

[digiman619]

Akaash raises an eyebrow at the request. "Do you have anything more specific than 'foul beasts'? Do you have scouting reports, reliable witness, or is it common knowledge amongst traders in the area?"

The latter I'm afraid. A mad cackle can sometimes be heard, but that's about it. I hate to throw you into an unknown danger like this, but now you're here, we need to get a forward base as soon as possible.

[pfm1995]

"Then into the unknown we go. Thank you for this opportunity, bannu."

Collecting his equipment, Dariush makes ready to leave.

"To answer your question, little one, I make offerings commonly to Nethys and rarely to Hshurha, the Duchess of All Winds."

[bcool999]

Rowan

Bowing politely to Almah, Rowan joins the others on their way. "Hmm... cackling in an abandoned temple? Is it truly foul beasts cackling like men, or Madmen cackling like beasts?" Rowan waxes philosophical about the nature of the threats they may soon face before shaking his head, "Well the unknown was never truly known save through direct experience. Speaking of experience, how should we organize ourselves when the fighting starts? Last time was rather too sudden and short lived to get a feel for our teamwork."

[stack]

Akaash shrugs, "I expected as much, but had to ask. As for a fight, I prefer to be near the front."

[digiman619]

In the morning, after a full night's rest and recuperation, your party rides to the northeast for an hour or two until you can see the building in question. It's seen better days, but the structure itself seems sound. As you approach the wide double doors, you brace yourselves for the challenge ahead.

http://i.imgur.com/awuwvf8.png
I'll need a marching order. Stack said he wanted to be in front; any preferences form anyone else?

[SwordChucks]

I prefer to be where I can protect others. Near the front lines or at the rearguard would be best.


Somewhere near the squishies for me please.

[pfm1995]

As soon as the tip of the temple clears the dunes, Dariush draws his crossbow and readies a bolt.

"Ordinarily I would suggest knocking, but I don't think that's such a good idea here. I will try to sneak up and look through a window; be ready in case whatever lives in there sees me."

Crouching low to the ground, Dariush slides towards the top of the ankh.

[lostsole31]

I'll need a marching order. Stack said he wanted to be in front; any preferences form anyone else?

I prefer to be where I can protect others. Near the front lines or at the rearguard would be best."
Somewhere near the squishies for me please."I nominate myself as one of the protected others." Twix, half the size of a fully-grown human male, answers to Squishy Princess.[/SPOILER]

Crouching low to the ground, Dariush slides towards the top of the ankh.... and Twix follows behind him.
Stealth [roll0]
Perception [roll1]

[bcool999]

Rowan

"Well then my friend if you are looking for one to protect, look no farther!" Rowan says with a chuckle as the temple draws nearer, "I shall stay nearby, but don't think that I merely wish to cower behind you. I will also improve the swiftness of your sword arm and hurl magical energies from afar."

True to his words, Rowan stays merely a few feet from Goma's side, ready to drop back if danger should appear.

[stack]

"Alright, we ready? See anything?" Akaash asks as he readies his buckler and loosens the kama in the sheath on his belt. perception [roll]1d20+1[/roll stealth if needed [roll0]

[digiman619]

You see the pulpit, and it has seen better days. Its podium has a tattered quilt hanging over the front. Holy implements are strewn in across the room, and there are cobwebs in the corners.

Look, it's in bad shape, OK?

Scrub brush and a light, patchy carpet of weeds invade the monastery through two huge fallen sections of the western wall. The exposed nave beyond is a huge hallway littered with bits of debris ranging from tiny rocks to enormous sections of collapsed masonry. Most of the roof above the long promenade is gone, but several jagged pillars remain.

I'll need a Knowledge: Religion and Knowledge: Local checks. Also, I've updated the map. If you think that you should be in a different order, let me know, If TheEmperor doesn't post in a day or two, I'll phase Wendy out of existence.
http://i.imgur.com/cGomLlu.png

[lostsole31]

Twix is going to fly in and towards the pulpit, over the height of the quilt. That's too much out-of-place-weirdness for her.

[stack]

Akaash looks around and gives a half smile. "Nice little place, just needs a bit of fixing up. A little paint, a tapestry, new roof."

[SwordChucks]

Goma looks at Akaash. "Yes, and throw pillows. Can't forget those."

He then follows Twix. "Don't go too far, I can't protect what I can't reach."

[digiman619]

The tattered quilt at the far end of the room showed a picture of a bearded man, pointing to a mountain to his left, You recognize the mountain as Pale Mountain, largest of the Brazen Peaks, and the site of many fell legends

As you advance through the room, you see that there are stairs going down half a floor, so that the pews of the chapel are depressed so that the slightly raised pulpit seems ever higher.

Twix, give me a Perception check.

[digiman619]

A short set of wide ceremonial steps leads down to a cavernous chapel in which the congregants would gather for sermons in happier times. The vibrant orange and red starburst of Sarenrae still stands behind a film of rusted rainwater and dirt along the north wall overlooking the collapsed altar. Between the stairs and the altar stand dozens of old marble benches, many overturned and even more broken into two or more pieces. A wide walkway bisects the pews, leading directly to the raised altar. Here and there a few clumps of the original red carpet along this thoroughfare hang on against rot and neglect.
Above the center of the chapel, dangling about ten feet from the floor, hangs a cluster of gnoll skulls in various stages of decay. Strung together like a ghoulish candelabra of twine and bone, the boulder-sized ornament hangs from the wooden rafters about twenty feet above the ground.

As Twix flies toward the large tapestry, she sees more of the dog-faced imps that harried you party earlier. While they weren't really paying attention before, they notice her with a start and get ready for combat,

I'm going for group initiative, so that's what my last OOC post was about. The pugwumpis and Twix discovered each other, so they act in the surprise round. After the surprise round, you guy act, then them. I'm also declaring a new rule regarding the unluck aura of pugwumpis: If you roll a natural 20, you overcome the disadvantage, unless the other roll is a natural 1.

http://i.imgur.com/OtLvZuy.png

[lostsole31]

"EVIL PUPPY GREMLINS!!!" Twix shouts and points to the batch. "I'll entangle them!"

She takes to the air, moving 10' into the air while 20' forward, she'll then drop her entangle right in the middle of the doubled group.
Simple movement requires no Fly check. She does have her longspear on the off-chance one of the baleful chihuahuas provokes an AOO underneath her.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Moving forward at the sound of Twix's warning, Rowan stops right behind Goma and reaches out with one hand, the other hand firmly grasping his staff as he chants,

"Chain's of time, loosen your fetters!"

A magical circle appears as he finishes his chant and shows a clock face speeding up as he lays a hand on Goma's shoulder, passing the glowing energies to him.

Using Alter Time on Goma to speed him up. He gets 2 attacks on a full attack (like haste but no AC Reflex or speed boost save for attacks)

[digiman619]

Um, lostsole. entangle has a range of 400 feet and a 40 ft radius. You could literally cast this from outside and they'd still be in range. If you want to fly a bit backwards, rather than at them, I'll let you retcon that. They're also not on the ground, so if I was being sadistic, I could argue that since they're not touching the ground it doesn't affect them, but that would be mean and not fun.

Dude, it's the surprise round. Unless you have an ability that lets you act during a surprise round, you'll have to wait your turn.

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[pfm1995]

Dariush
HP: 10; AC: 18; CMD: 16; Conditions: None
Animus: 3; Active Element: Air
Maneuvers Available: Fluctuation Movement, Minute Hand

Twitching upwards a second before Twix shouts her warning, Dariush sends a crossbow bolt whizzing past Akaash's shoulder and into the grotesque light-fixture's inhabitants. Fumbling, almost dropping his crossbow, he loads a second bolt.

Using Clockwatcher to act in the surprise round.

[digiman619]

In an instant, roots raise from the ground, attempting to nab the hyena-faced menaces. the center group darts out of the way of the brambles, but the trio near the window weren't so lucky. They were luckier than the one on the chandelier, though; he was knocked clean off as a crossbow bolt caught him between his third and fourth ribs. The two that managed to avoid the vegetative assault darted through a hole in the ceiling; they escaped to the upper level of the chapel. Before they left, they shot their bows, but both fell wide.

As for the the the three pugwumpi "unlucky" enough to be caught, two unsuccessfully attempted to free themselves from the vines, but the other one managed to get a shot off on Daruish, hitting him in the forearm for 2 damage.

Now bcool's action resolves; everyone else can make their actions now, but remember, the entangle will hit anyone that goes into the green circle, but even if you get there, the remaining foes are near the rafters, so getting to them might be difficult.

http://i.imgur.com/XNBgRL8.png

[lostsole31]

Twix mentally says a prayer to Gozreh while using energy-catching gestures, winding up her arms as some of the ivy gathers down her arm, separates, and coalesces into a hardened, tiny ball of bark. She clenches it in her fists and blows hard into the thumb side while at the pinky side of that fist there is a loud rush of water as the bark-ball is propelled at one of the entangled puggy-pups, the whole accompanied by the sound of something not unlike a water-cannon. There is a spray of water that comes out of her hand, but within seconds the water will seem to have evaporated, never having had enough time to actually saturate the surrounding area.
Wood & Water = Gozreh. :smallsmile: Actually, if she has to close a little she will, but it will be out of reach of a fellow Tiny on the ground.

Crunchwise, just a humble, non-SP-enhanced destructive blast.
RTA [roll0]. Hopefully between 20' and 30' ... past pugwampi unluck range (not that she'd know), but still w/in PBS range. She can't fire a destructive blast farther than 30', so PBS automatically applied.
* If Pug-Luck exists, the other d20 ... [roll1]
Damage (w/ PBS): [roll2]

[pfm1995]

Dariush
HP: 10; AC: 19; CMD: 16; Conditions: Prone
Animus: 4; Active Element: Air
Maneuvers Available: Fluctuation Movement, Minute Hand, Variable Flux

"Nanat sag suk mizaneh!"

Cursing violently, Dariush dives to the ground and fires a bolt at the free pugwampi.

[SwordChucks]

Goma repositions himself and begins to form a defensive perimeter.


5ft step back so Goma is adjacent to Twix and Akaash.
Full Round action: Defensive Focus - Threatened area is 10 ft, and I'll move to intercept any enemy that enters that area. Any attack on Twix or Akaash (or any other ally that enters that area) I'll use my immediate action for saving shield and AOOs for bodyguard.

Also: any ally in 10 ft of Goma gets +1 AC and Will.

[stack]

Akaash skirts around the magically animated plantlife. As he moves, a sharp wind begins to spin around him, gathering strength and whipping dust and debris briefly before he lashes a hand toward the gremlins, sending a miniature tornado toward the nearest. go up and closer, skirting the edge of the entangle to get just at the 25' destructive blast range

attack [roll0] vs touch (PBS applies because max range is <30'
damage [roll1] nonlethal
trip [roll2] (bonuses to attack apply to maneuvers as well, I believe so PBS included) (thought I had air blast, but its gale blast, so trip instead of bullrush)

[lostsole31]

Twix throws out another wood-wad at an entangled.
Attack [roll0], damage [roll1], CL check [roll2]
* If w/in 20' of a puggle, 2nd attack roll [roll3], CL check [roll4]

[digiman619]

Akaash's gust of wind knocks off one of the remaining pugwampis of its ledge. While the vine that grabbed him hindered his lateral movement, it didn't have the tensile strength to arrest his vertical movement, as he crashes to the ground, smashing his little head. Of the other two, one continues to try unsuccessfully to escape the vines, and the other shoots at Twix... or possibly Goma. It's hard to tell, as it landed nowhere close to either of them.

I really don't feel like redrawing the combat map right now, so the only major change form last time is that the closest pug is gone.

Annaaannd NOW lostsole's action resolves.

[pfm1995]

Dariush scrambles for another bolt and manages to get it cocked, firing at the attacking pugwampi.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Rowan moves slightly closer to the enemy skirting the entangling foliage, letting his spell on Goma fade in favor of engaging in the ranged battle sooner. Lifting his staff, he barks out an incantation and a red aura releases itself from his body before condensing into a solid mass and shooting off towards the Pugwampi that remains free.

Destructive Blast! ranged touch attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1] Bludgeoning (so effectively -2)
SR Check: [roll2]

ranged touch attack: [roll3]
SR Check: [roll4]

[stack]

Akaash curses the plants blocking his way. "I can't get close enough for a shot with these plants in the way and callng the wind would both take to long and foil our own projectiles." no action at the moment since there is little he can do without getting closer. Doesn't seem to warrant spending a tradition power and a standard action just to boost range against enemies that shouldn't last very long

[SwordChucks]

Goma sidles up to the edge of the vegetation and resumes his defensive stance.

Friend Twix, your mastery of plant life is truly amazing. I see that I'll have to improve my ranged capabilities in the future.

5ft step closer to the vegetation to include as many party members in my aegis and defensive focus.

[lostsole31]

"But ... but Akaash doesn't like it. Should I get rid of it?"

[lostsole31]

Despite what seemed like ingracious bellyaching to what takes an immense bit of personal power for Twix, she does recognize that it is time to now press the advantage against the puglies. She disconnects her spirit from the surrounding plants and then takes cover behind the wall.
SA: Dismiss entangle.
MA or 5'S: Twix gets behind the wall (on the outside of the structure) to take cover from enemy arrows.

[stack]

As soon as the plants recede, Akaash closes to just inside his range and hurls another miniature tornado at the near gremlin. "Much obliged." He nods to Twix. move to 25'
attack with gale blast [roll0] (PBS included)
damage [roll1] nonlethal
trip [roll2]
SR [roll3]

[digiman619]

Guys, I know I'm not posting in the fastest manner possible, but please wait until it's your guy's turn; it hasn't even been a full day since we hit the bottom of the initiative! I'm not going to forget about this, as some of you can attest when I PM'd you that you were needed. Just be patient.

The Pugwampi, realizing that this is a losing effort, struggle to get free of the vines. One of them succeeds and shimmies toward the hole the other pugwampi left through.

http://i.imgur.com/cjh40mv.png

And now lostsole and stack's actions happen; stack, do you want to specify which pug you're approaching?

[bcool999]

Rowan

Rowan moves forward into range of the pugwampi' and takes cover behind the nearest pew for safety after the entangle effect disperses. He then once more calls on his power to try and assault the pugwampi near the center aisle despite the discomfort he felt after the last attempt.

Destructive Blast Ranged Touch: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
SR: [roll2]
Fort: [roll3]

Destructive Blast Ranged Touch: [roll4]
SR: [roll5]

[pfm1995]

Dariush pokes his head up above the pew and fires another shot, aiming for the Pugwapi ensconced in the pews.

Attack roll: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[SwordChucks]

"We can do this! Just a couple more of them!", Goma shouts to the group before moving up towards the nearby pew.


Swift Action: Encouraging Roar - +2 morale bonus to attack and damage for allies in 30ft for 1 round
5ft step toward the pew
Full Round Action: Defensive Focus - recovering Encouraging Roar, and if an adjacent ally (should be everyone but Twix at this point) is attacked use saving shield to grant a +2 to AC

Everyone should be in range of Aegis as well, for a +1 to AC and will.

[digiman619]

The final two imps lay dead, felled by blast and bolt. Now that you are no longer hindered by the embodiments of misfortune, you may investigate the pulpit and pew at your leisure.

[pfm1995]

Poking his head above the pews, Dariush takes a quick shufti of the area before standing up. He walks up to the altar, still favoring his injured arm and cursing like a Dog Town whore. Brushing aside wind-tossed sand and other detritus, he searches it for any signs of the mysterious cackling witch.

[lostsole31]

Curious, Twix flies up to that whole section above the pulpit ... the tapestry ... any of what was hanging down (or hanging up).

[SwordChucks]

Goma moves back towards the doors to the east, looking for any hidden foes.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Sighing in relief that the battle is over, Rowan stands straight and wipes the sweat that had beaded on his brow. Despite not having sustained any damage, a fight is a nerve-wracking event and he was glad it was over. "Now then... were those all that were desecrating this place? Or do we have even more to be wary of..." Rowan lightly speaks aloud to himself, before moving to the pulpit and asking, "Shall we search the area before moving on?" To which he immediately answers by searching the area lightly.

[roll0]

[stack]

"More pressingly, ought we see if any linger on the roof or outside that could flank us?"

[digiman619]

There is a ladder near the back that leads the the upper level of the chapel, where the other pugwumpi ran. As for the pulpit itself, it is in a sad state of affairs; the podium is worn, there are candlesticks knocked all over and the pages of Sarenrae's holy book (The Birth of Light and Truth) have been ripped out of it and lie all over the floor. There are some interesting things you find, however. In the pile of gnoll skulls is what appears to be an uncut gemstone of some sort (Appraise DC 15 for more info), as well as a few other bits and pieces that are worth a bit, but surely no more that 50 gp altogether.

As for Goma, looking down the first door shows an apparently empty passageway that is cut off by a wall about 25 feet from you.

Where next, brave explorers?

[SwordChucks]

Goma volunteers to be the first up the ladder, saying "If it can support me in full armor it should be safe for everyone."

[lostsole31]

Twix has trouble following that. "Do you really think that's wise? That's like asking a leaky old boat to brave a storm to prove that the storm is survivable. If the boat gets sunk, nothing is really discovered. I'm willing to go since I only weigh 30 poundsw, but I defer to the collective wisdom."

[pfm1995]

Dariush, still looking at the altar, starts slightly at Akaash's warning and steps away from the windows, back towards the group. Re-focusing on the altar, he clears his throat.

"You are also very fragile, little one, and Akaash brings up a good point. If we leave them to their devices they will almost certainly try to trap us later. I will jump up - it is not so far that I worry about jumping down and I am more sturdy that you, little one."

He stows his crossbow and, gulping before starting in on his litany of swearing again, begins to climb.

[stack]

[roll0] "I can follow on the ladder if you wish to go first."

[bcool999]

Rowan

Spying the uncut gem amidst the gnoll skulls, such... quaint interior decorating, Rowan holds it up to the light getting a good look at the color and clarity of the gem as well as feeling it's weight for clues as to it's worth before joining the others in perusing their far-fled foe.

[digiman619]

Looking up, you see that the ladder is in surprisingly sturdy. The floor up there has been replaced with canvas in some places, but otherwise seems to be in good condition.

[pfm1995]

"It looks clear, and the ladder seem sturdy." Dariush yells back down the hatch.

He walks slowly into the room, drawing his sickle and avoiding the canvas sections of floor.

Quick Perception check: [roll0]

[lostsole31]

Twix flits in, hop-flying (almost like a leafy beetle) from safe section to safe section (i.e., where companions safely walked before) and looking around.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Finishing his inspection of the uncut gem, Rowan lets out a pleased smile as he thinks of the small chunk of wealth that has fallen into their laps. Noticing the others making their way above, Rowan waves his staff and with a word a bit of heat haze appears before him, after stepping through, Rowan is standing at the top of the ladder looking around along with the others.

Fort save because magic: [roll0]
Rowan teleported up the ladder, because style.

If anyone else wants a teleport let me know.

[digiman619]

http://i.imgur.com/R6EpBlu.png

The light grey areas are the floor, the brown areas are holes in the floor. Remember; you're 20 feet up, so you'll take 2d6 falling damage if you drop. You will be at the curve on the right side of the map.

[stack]

"Looks dicey. See anything worth pursuing up there or shall we instead continue searching the ground level?"

[pfm1995]

"Maybe... there's a curtain blocking my view."

Moving as lightly as a he can, Dariush uses his sickle to pull the curtain back.

I'm assuming the red line on the map is a curtain of some sort. If not, I'm walking past it.

[SwordChucks]

Goma glances around to make sure he is not followed before heading up after the rest of the party.

[digiman619]

After everyone had climbed up (and Akaash fixing Daruish's shoulder in the OOC thread), you see that there isn't much to the upstairs. Apparently when this temple was still in use, the choir would congregate up here, so their song would rain down on the parishioners, but there's little evidence of their stay still remaining. The guardrails, while still intact, look flimsy; you wouldn't want to bet your life on their stability. All in all, it keeps with the "rundown, but definitely salvageable" aesthetic that the rest of the building has thus far.

http://i.imgur.com/7M2sHPb.png
Unfortunately for Daruish, before he can get to the curtain, part of the floor gives way! Make 2 Acrobatics checks or Reflex saves (your choice) to see if you can aviod falling through. If he does fail his chosen check/save, Twix or Akaash can attempt the same to grab him.

[pfm1995]

[roll0] : [roll1]

Lunging forwards, Dariush grabs onto a spur of wood only to have it break off in his hand and send him plummeting downwards.

[lostsole31]

I am sooo sorry. I was coming out of the movies and read it with the intention to update when I got home last night.
There is no way a 30-pound girl with the carrying capacity of less than an average human is going to try and grab poor Darius. Instead, she swings her longspear in a wide arc to push him back.
What would you do? Bull rush? Yes, mathematically-metagaming I would have a better chance reaching out to grab him, but RP-wise that is ridiculous. (Sorry, pfm.) At least this makes some sort of sense.

CMB check for Bull Rush [roll0]

[digiman619]

I'm pretty sure this shouldn't work this way, but it's cinematic and cool, and it saves pfm from taking 2d6 fall damage. Plus, I can see this working, as opposed to "let me push you with a stick to arrest your fall"
As Twix tried to knock Dariush aside to prevent him from falling, he grabbed the weapon, desperate to arrest his fall. On the bad side, it ripped it from Twix's hand, giving her a nasty sting (no damage or penalty, though). On the plus side, it was just wide enough to not go down the hole, and Daruish was able to hang there for a few seconds before the rest of the party helped him back up.

http://i.imgur.com/fWj3I5d.png
The black square is the newly created hole.

[lostsole31]

Twix is easily the most surprised that worked out, and she just gives a spooked nod to Dariush as he is helped to stable footing. She recovers her longspear.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Startled at the sudden break in the floor, Rowan doesn't even have a chance to react. Thankfully, the couragous Twix was able to somehow knock Dariush back from the ledge. "I believe we should be more cautious now... Since Twix need not fear falling, shall we not let her explore this level? I can also place a beacon on her should she run into trouble so that I may teleport her back to safety. I fear that if we continue as we are we risk the entire level collapsing..."

Will use Teleport Beacon on Twix if lostsole agrees. Will let me teleport Twix to me for 1 hour at the cost of a spell point (Spell point only used on teleport setting the beacon is free)

Fort save in case combat erupts while doing this so sickened becomes relevant: [roll0]

[lostsole31]

Twix nods and starts to search ahead.

[pfm1995]

Breathing so hard he's shaking, Dariush nods his head deeply at Twix. "Thank you, little one. Perhaps it would be best if you scouted ahead."

[SwordChucks]

Goma curses his armor for hindering him yet again. He looks around for weak spots in the floor with the intent to point them out to his allies.


[roll0]
[roll1] (in case I'm in the unluck aura)

[digiman619]

Upon closer inspection, you can see where the wood was decayed, and you see no evidence of other weak spots.
Are you splitting the party? If so, who's on the top floor, and who's on the bottom?

[lostsole31]

Twix is on the top floor. She wants to stay together on the same level, but give her >20' to move stealthily and search.

[pfm1995]

"Give me..." *pant* "...a moment." Taking a few deep breaths, Dariush closes his eyes and focuses. Another breath, and his entire body settles. His feet rest more firmly on the ground and his shoulders relax. When he starts moving again, his movements are sweeping and languid and more flexible than before.

I'm staying up, but while I'm here I'm shifting my active element to Water. My AC decreases by 2 but I gain +2 to reflex saves and +4 to Acrobatics.

[SwordChucks]

Goma remains on the top floor near the ladder to ensure an escape route.

[stack]

After helping the fallen back up, Akaash elects to hold position. "I am lighter than some. I will stay here to be able to assist if needed."

[lostsole31]

Twix doesn't fly, but rather walks ... carefully and at no more than half-speed. Her wings are at the ready in case she should fall. She begins to carefully check forward, watching her footing as she goes.

[digiman619]

As Twix pulls back the curtain, you are greeted to an unwelcoming sight: This is the part of the floor that is replaced with a tarp; clearly the parishioners were repairing the upper floor before they were forced to abandon it. The pugs have taken up residence in this part of the upper floor, and they haven't treated it very well; they have used this section as a outhouse and garbage dump. The two pugs from before are in this room, using it for its primary purpose before you interrupted them.

You folks have won initiative. Here's the new map:
http://i.imgur.com/UGS6MDt.png

[lostsole31]

"Pug-uglies! Two of them!" calls Twix. She takes aim at one and rolls a really thick, but almost rubbery-barked ball into her hand while she holds her longspear loose in her offhand to keep the tarp to the side. She sends this one forth with the hope of bowling it over. She will then steps back 5' (still keeping the tarp to the side, but with both hands).
She forms a force blast.
Attack roll #1 [roll0], Attack roll #2 [roll1], damage [roll2] ... bonus given to all for PBS.
* If hit, it must make a Ref save vs. DC 15 or fall prone.
Her longspear is not usable as a reach weapon this round ... I'm using it as a tool to keep the flap open as I step back so friendlies can get through.
5' free move.

SP: That cost 1 SP. Used 1:6.

EDIT: Swish!

[pfm1995]

Dariush
HP: 10; AC: 16; CMD: 16; Conditions: None
Animus: 3; Active Element: Water
Maneuvers Available: Fluctuation Movement, Clock Watcher

Moving in leaps and bounds, Dariush runs in front of Twix and seems to... stutter. His entire body blurs as he makes two quick slashes with his sickle at the same time.

Using Minute Hand
Attack 1: [roll0]
Attack 1 reroll: [roll1]
Attack 2: [roll2]
Attack 2 reroll: [roll3]

[bcool999]

Rowan
HP 8/8
AC 13

Upon Twix's warning, Rowan cautiously withdraws to Goma, "Ready for some action?" Rowan says with a slightly devilish grin as he reaches out with one hand and chants, causing a magical circle to form which gives an instinctual feeling of bent space and transference. With a touch (and assuming Goma does not resist) the large armored man disappears, only to reappear behind the furthest, and least prepared, Pug.

Moving adjacent to Goma so that I can Teleport him. Spending 1 SP from my warp sphere to make it medium range so that he can reappear behind the farthest Pug (and on solid floor... I hope). 1/2 Warp SP remaining.

[stack]

Akaash grimaces, once again outside of his preferred range, now with allies between himself and his foes. He gathers a blast of air and waits for an opening, threading it between the others.move to 25'
gale blast [roll0] includes -8 for firing into cover and for attacking a target ingaged in melee, +1 PBS
damage [roll1] nonlethal, trip [roll2]
SR [roll3]

[SwordChucks]

Goma grins back at Rowan. "You bet I am."
He eyes the filth on the tarp. "My poor boots though."


Swift: Encouraging Roar to give everyone in 30ft +2 to hit and damage for one round.
Standard: Ready an action to use Flurry Strike when Goma appears.

Assuming I don't immediately plummet here are my rolls:

Flurry Strike 1: [roll0]
Flurry Strike 1 reroll: [roll1]
Damage 1: [roll2]

Flurry Strike 2: [roll3]
Flurry Strike 2 reroll: [roll4]
Damage 2: [roll5]

[digiman619]

The pugs quckly went down (one had the misfortune to knocked back from Akaash's wind blast only to eat Goma's flurry). Thankfully Goma was teleported onto one of the struts, so he wasn't directly on the tarp.

This is where is good fortune ends, however.

Unbeknownst to him, there were more pugs behind the second curtain. One of them, clearly of great importance,as he was wearing armor; a breastplate that must have belonged to a gnome once upon a time. He was flanked by a pair of pugs, each wielding a shortbow. The pugwampi king batted him aside on his way to Daruish, causing him to loose his balance.

This caused him to take a step on the tarp in order to balance himself.

This resulted in him falling and taking 7 damage, as the tarp could not bear his weight.

And finally, to add insult to injury (and I'm so sorry), the fluid waste was now free to flow down the newly-created hole onto Goma, covering him in filth.

Back on the top level, the pug king, wielding a small warrhammer, smashes Daruish's ankle, dealing 3 damage. Of the two pugs, one of them managed to hit Twix in the leg for 1 damage.

http://i.imgur.com/owXVqOP.png

[stack]

Akaash moves up to support Daruish, gathering wind around his fist to enhance his punch.
move to space above Daruish
energy blade + unarmed strike (no AOO from class ability) [roll0] [roll1] take worse
damage [roll2] + [roll3] nonlethal
SR [roll4]
trip [roll5]

[bcool999]

Rowan

Wincing as Goma disappears below, accompanied by the splatting of raw awfulness descending from above. Rowan makes note to try and make it up to the stalwart warrior in the future when he has greater control of his powers. For now, he decides to try and remove one of the pugs from play. Moving in line with the southern Pug at a distance of 25' away (1 space below where the red dot is on the map), Rowan gains inspiration from Goma's recent misfortune and sends a blast not at the pug itself, but at the tarp beneath it's feat.

Attacking the Tarp under the southern Pug.
Attack (ranged Touch against an immobile object): [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
Outside of unluck range so no rerolls needed.

Fort Save: [roll2]

[pfm1995]

Dariush
HP: 7; AC: 16; CMD: 16; Conditions: None
Animus: 4; Active Element: Water
Maneuvers Available: Fluctuation Movement, Clock Watcher

Crying out in pain, Dairush lashed out at the pugwampi king, feeling his sickle grow cold and jagged with ice.

Using Variable Flux, if the attack hits the pugwampi has to make a DC 13 Fort save or be fatigued.
Attack roll: [roll0]
Re-roll: [roll1]
Damage: [roll2]

[lostsole31]

Twix hisses in pain. She used to be lashed as a slave before, and in truth this injury was not bad all things considered, but it hurt a lot more than some of the more minor injuries wherein she was cuffed or punched or kicked by her master or his friends for entertainment. She had never actually taken up arms to do battle before, and it was easy against so strange and seemingly weak an opponent that she might actually be injured ... then she sees Goma fall and suffer real injury, and it dawns on her that there is real danger here.

Twixanel steps into the room and this time she forms a heavy ball (no springy bark outer) of hundreds of cords of thin plant material, spins it, and zips it at the far pugwampi. As it zooms towards her target, lots of thorns and nettles form around it. If it hits her target, it digs in with the brambles and the plants release in the immediate area, effectively strapping the gremlin to his spot. Meanwhile, she is 10' from both the other pugwampi and its leader, and she is ready to stab them if they give her an opening.
FA: Move W 5' to get in the room, placing her 10' due E of a pug (and I am guessing the blue-in-black is the leader)? She now threatens both leader and normal pug.
SA: Form a basic full-power destructive blast (1 SP) and turn it into a crystal blast (fluffed to nettles and numerous grasping tendrils for plant-fluff.
* Attack #1 [roll0], Attack roll 2 [roll1], damage [roll2] piercing damage. Ref save vs DC 15 or be entangled (see below).
* Target is not engaged in melee, so no -4 penalty. Target w/in 30', so PBS applied above.
* Cost 1 SP to make full-power, so she has now used 2:6 SPs.
Your destructive blast becomes an explosion of crystal, growing
where it strikes. A crystal blast uses d4’s instead of d6’s as its
damage die and deals piercing damage. The target of your crystal
blast must pass a Reflex save or be entangled and unable to
move. In addition, the target’s square (or the blast’s affected
area) becomes overgrown with crystal and counts as difficult
terrain. Breaking free of the entangled condition is a move
action, requiring either a Strength check or an Escape Artist
check against the crystal blast’s save DC. A target may also destroy
the crystal on a square or creature by dealing 3 damage per
caster level to the crystal. This removes the entangled condition
from the creature and destroys the difficult terrain. Crystal
disappears after 1 minute.
If her directly threatened opponent 10' away (longspear) or the chieftain provoke an AOO, then ...
* Attack [roll3] or [roll4], damage [roll5]

[SwordChucks]

Goma uses the fall to think about his life choices. Upon his harsh landing he lets out a loud grunt before a brown rain covers him.

"Well, I know who I'm going to kill." He thinks shortly before he loses the ability to altogether.

"Blood and fury!" he bellows as he rises from the floor like a poo covered spirit of vengeance and heads toward the ladder.



Stand from prone and head toward the ladder.

[digiman619]

Once Rowan knocked the tarp down, both the pug king and one of the pugs down to the floor below. Unfortunately, it also pulled Daruish down as well, who took a nasty bump as he landed on a pew, taking 8 damage. The king survived his fall, but his associate wasn't so lucky. Though he dropped his hammer in the fall, he draws his shortbow and hits Goma for 2 damage.

Up on the upper level, Twix, who flew to avoid falling, blasts the remaining pug, who had leapt of the rafter before the tarp fell out underneath him, for all the good it did.

http://i.imgur.com/Ldx5f5a.png

[pfm1995]

Dariush
HP: -1; AC: 16; CMD: 16; Conditions: None
Animus: 5; Active Element: Water
Maneuvers Available: Fluctuation Movement, Clock Watcher

Crashing through the rafters, Dariush hits his head on a pew with a sickening thud. He doesn't stir.

Con check, DC 11: [roll0]
Reroll: [roll1]

[lostsole31]

Twix dives down one of the several holes that were made. "Somebody help Dariush! He isn't moving! I don't know how to help him!"

She looks at the disgusting little monster-king and drops more plant matter that begins to coalesce into her hands, the creaking of expanding xylem and phloem with fibrous cords being heard. As she flies in a circle overhead, she spins this in a fast whirl before she gives an underhanded *SNAP!* and it goes flying at the king, nettles forming much the same way as before.
Full-power Crystal Blast, as before, shooting at him in a range of 25-30' (no closer or farther). [roll0], damage [roll1], Ref DC 15 negates entangle effect of crystal blast.

[bcool999]

Rowan

Rowan was surprised that his attack shredded the entire tarp instead of merely the spot he had hit. Sheepishly, he takes a step towards the nearby hole that Daruish nearly fell through earlier. Looking below, he sees that Daruish is down and not getting up. "Daruish is injured! Akaash you are a healer correct?" Rowan shouts as his mind works quickly, his staff already beginning to glow as arcane syllables stream from his mouth. Another magic circle appears around him, depicting space itself bending to his whim as he reaches out and attempts to send Akaash below to aid their companion.

5'ft step to the right. Should let me get line of sight for teleporting Akaash down to the main floor. Don't even need to spend a spell point since it is only 20 feet high. But I can only send Akaash directly beneath the hole, not adjacent to Akaash.

Fort Save: [roll0]

[stack]

Akaash gives a quick affirmative to the inquiry. He staggers a bit from the disorientation of the teleportation, but quickly finds his bearings, stepping clear of the pug and touching Darush while chanting, a warm breeze circling them both. 5' step to be out of melee if needed, life sphere cure [roll0]

[SwordChucks]

Goma steps toward the pugwampi king, a manic gleam in his eye.


Move action to get closer.
Standard action: Enduring Crane Strike, healing Goma as Dariush has been healed.
Attack Roll: [roll0]
Reroll: [roll1]

Damage if applicable: [roll2]
Healing if applicable: [roll3]

[digiman619]

The pug king scrambles away (incurring AoOs from Asaash and Daruish), taking a pot shot at Goma that arcs wide.
http://i.imgur.com/HwTys5X.png

[pfm1995]

Feeling the twin magicks fill him, Dariush opened his eyes and lashed out at the fleeing pugwampi's feet. Pushing himself back upright, he turns and chases after the foul thing.

AoO Trip Attempt: [roll0]
Reroll: [roll1]

If that first attack didn't work, this is a second trip attempt. If it did, this is an attack:
[roll2]
[roll3]
Damage if necessary: [roll4]

[lostsole31]

Twix circles around and comes in again for the same parameter - shooting at the king with a full-power nettle-ball at the edge of her maximum accuracy.
MA: Adjust flight to maintain the king at a distance of 25-30'.
SA: 1 SP (used 4:6) to amp full-damage on a crystal blast (Ref DC 15 or entangled, if hit). Attack [roll0], damage [roll1].

[bcool999]

Rowan

Feeling rather lonesome up above the battle, Rowan once again works his magic to teleport himself back down to the main floor. He then takes what cover he can amidst the pews.

Teleport as a standard.
Fort: [roll0]

[SwordChucks]

Dashing forward, Goma swings his klar at the Pugwampi king's face.


Attack: [roll0]
Reroll: [roll1]

Damage: [roll2]

[digiman619]

Goma's charge after the pug king yielded devastating results, as the foul creature now hangs limp on his klar. As the last of the filth rains from the ceiling, you take a moment to relax after your hard fought victory.

Congrats. you've all just hit level 2! I want everyone to let me know when they've updated their sheet. If you want to know if an option is available, put it down on your sheet and I'll give the yay or nay on it then. Please tell me what you got; I didn't print you level 1 sheets out or anything, so I might not instantly get what the change is.

Remember, when you roll for HP (and use the forum roller, please), if it's less than half your die (1 or 2 on a d6, 1-3 on a d8, etc), you get half instead (3 for a d6, 4 for a d8, etc.), as per the houserules in the Big 16.

Oh, and if it matters, remember we're using Fractional Bonuses for BAB, CL, and Saves

[pfm1995]

Stopping and swaying slightly, Dariush bow's at the waist to Akaash and Goma. "Thank you both for saving this slave's life. We should continue searching; pugwampi don't look capable of cackling so I doubt we've found all of the occupants of this place."

Before moving on, Dariush takes a moment to stretch. In a few brief moves he loses the liquidity of movement and regains his light-footed nature.

Shifting active element back to air.

[SwordChucks]

"Think nothing of it." Goma says as he flings the carcass to the ground. He calms himself with deep breaths before turning back to the rest of the party.

"I don't suppose any of you have a spell for my current situation?" He says motioning to the filth covering him.

[stack]

"Anyone else seriously injured?" Akaash inquires, patching up any cuts and bruises. invigorate for +1 THP on anyone that took 1 or 2 damage

[lostsole31]

"I have a flesh wound," says Twix, seemingly lost in her own confused reverie about a subject ethereal, "so I am definitely at the bottom of the list."

[pfm1995]

"I'm still a little woozy and a bit banged up, but I'm ready to get moving." Dariush says as he wipes a bit of blood away from his forehead. Stumbling a bit, he starts to make his way towards the abbey's back rooms.

[lostsole31]

"If someone can check the Boss Pug and the other puggies down here, I'll fly back up above and check things out."

Twix will fly back up into the upper area. She will stand by the pug she killed, not sure how to feel. It was evil, it had to die, but she didn't kill for food ... she never had to kill like this before. She doesn't feel traumatized or anything, just a little weird that the first creature she ever killed that wasn't for food was a fey. Sure, not a "fellow" fey, but it is odd how things turn out. She says a brief prayer to Gozreh and then checks her fallen foe and the rest of the area up here.

[bcool999]

Rowan

"Unfortunately, I lack a spell for cleanliness Goma. My apologies that my haste to throw you into the fray ended up throwing you through the floor." Rowan bows in apology to Goma before moving over to the corpses and rifling through their belongings.

Take 20 on perception searching corpses for 21.

[lostsole31]

At some point during her search above, she'll call the lower area to clear so she can drop the dead puggie.

[SwordChucks]

"It's alright Rowan, I knew the risks. Though the next time we encounter something, I hope it'll be on solid ground." Goma says with a weak smile. He heads over to inspect the hammer the king pug dropped.

[stack]

Done tending the wounded, Akaash looks over the remains. "Anything interesting? Probably still out to make sure there aren't any other rooms or hidden nooks to be thorough."take 20 searching the building for 22 if we have time

[digiman619]

After a thorough check of both the upper and lower levels of the chapel area, you find a ring, a bunch of leather cords and the small warhammer he was wielding. A ring of feather fall, muleback cords, and a Small sized+1 warhammer, respectively.

[stack]

taking 10 for 19
if we aren't allowed to take 10, [roll0] and if that fails use spiritualism and a spell point to divine magic "Ring makes falling safe, useful given recent events. That increases one's ability to carry a load, and the hammer bears an enchantment."

[pfm1995]

"Hm, that's interesting. Would anyone mind if I took the ring? My head still hurts from my last fall."

[lostsole31]

Twixanel winces a little at feeling selfish. "Actually, Dariush ... one of my top fears is that I'll lose consciousness flying one time and I'll plummet to my death. What happened with was situational and sucks, but for me, heights is an ever-present occupational hazard. I'll accept any group decision."

[pfm1995]

"Then take it. You've more than earned it, saving my life once already."

[lostsole31]

"Thank you, Dariush," says Twix, genuinely touched. "My mentor, Abu ibn Hussain, would be honored to hear it, as I am." She bows with the last and takes the ring. Though she speaks for herself just fine, yet there is something about her personality that is rather submissive overall.
Roll vs. a Perception DC 16. Just you, since her posture might reveal it.
Unless there are further objections, Twix puts on the ring.

[digiman619]

Assuming no one claims the remaining objects, I (as GM will assume that "the party" has it packed somewhere.

http://i.imgur.com/awuwvf8.png

[lostsole31]

Well, the warhammer is on the fast-track to be sold, I'm sure. I'm the only one here of the right size, and a warhammer is a big "no."

I recommend looking at that arrow-shaped extension to the north, once we head out of the nave.

[pfm1995]

"You're more than welcome to the cords; and searching this place from north to south sounds like a good plan."

Without further ado, Dariush moves to investigate the northern nave. If he finds nothing, he moves to check the southern one.

Perception roll, if it's necessary: [roll0]

[stack]

"Perhaps clockwise from where we entered after that. No point in spreading out and rushing."

[lostsole31]

"You're more than welcome to the cords; and searching this place from north to south sounds like a good plan."
"Not me," says Twixanel. "This ring will probably be one of the most precious things I will ever own that I can call mine. I am carrying too many things if I am in need of the cord, and if it's a group thing, I can't make the best use of it anyway. Honestly, even though he's already slowed down by his heavy armor, I think for pure capacity Goma can make the best use of it. Otherwise, probably you [Dariush] since you need mobility."

"Perhaps clockwise from where we entered after that. No point in spreading out and rushing."
Twix doesn't say anything just nods her head and does a little bobble. "I'll be air support, or stealth if you need it."
Modus operandi ... fly above the ground in a wide circle (wide enough to not need Fly checks), and hop here and there, but within a tight area of the group.

If someone wants to make use of a scout, then she'll go to ground and serve that function.

[bcool999]

Rowan

"Indeed and organized approach seems best." Rowan says in response to akaash's suggestion. "It may also be wise to stay on this floor until we have cleared it before moving on... assuming the floor holds..." Rowan adds with a hint of a sigh, perhaps hoping that their possible future base of operations will at least be sturdy enough not to collapse on them if nothing else.

[SwordChucks]

"I agree with going clockwise from here. If anyone else is here they must have heard us. Or smelled in my case."

"I'll go first through the doorway. Anyone that feels they need my help in defending them should stay as close as they can without gagging."

[digiman619]

A sweeping bas-relief sculpture along the north wall depicts five bearded, larger-than-life humans riding the wind with triumph carved upon their faces. Though some of their arms and hands are missing, each is clearly meant to wield a distinctive weapon. One of the five warriors holds a large axe, while another holds a fragment of what must once have been a regal staff In the distance, an ominous mountain looms over the quintet. East of the wall decoration, two open arches lead into small rooms of the north wall. The south wall is little more than a series of open arches that look out into an open-air courtyard.

The fie figures as legendary genies known as the Templars of the Five Winds. The stone carving bears a name for each genie, engraved near their feet. They are, from left to right, Kardswann, Pazhvann, Vardishal, Zayifi, and Davashuum.

http://i.imgur.com/RemNZll.png

[lostsole31]

Twix looks at the statues. "These are really neat. Anyone know old stories and stuff?"

[stack]

roll twice take best [roll0]
[roll1]
"Templars of the five winds, genies well known in the lore of this region. Studied them a bit myself." He calls a breeze to blows the dust off the relief, then gives the genies a bow before proceeding.

[pfm1995]

Hm, interesting. Dariush turns and keeps moving.

[digiman619]

Do you guys want to go into the central chamber, or do you want to head toward one of the two doors you see on the wall near the corner?

[stack]

Akaash moves up and opens the first nearby door once everyone is in position, searching in side if its clear, then repeats the process with the next before proceeding to the central chamber.

[pfm1995]

While Akaash is checking the doors, Dariush sticks his head into the main chamber and gives it a quick look around.

[digiman619]

In the first door, there is a small hallway and ending in a small door 20 or so feet away. Behind the second is a beautiful room that with a small staircase leading down.

Huge branches and overgrown weeds clog the central open air courtyard of the monastery’s cloister walk. In better times, the monastic priests would have contemplated the open space while circling the cloister, but today it is barely possible to see a few feet into the tangled mess, let alone all the way to the opposite cloister walk. Here and there the brush thins out enough that a dedicated explorer might be able to create a sort of passage, but mostly it is an impassable mess.

The branches seem to be part of a large nest

The terrain itself would be difficult to cross.

[lostsole31]

"I think we should stop at this juncture and shut the door, and continue our clockwise circuit before heading outside and branching further and further from the main. Once done with this internal section, we can start on different main sections. Just my two coppers," offers Twix.

[pfm1995]

"Agreed; we should clear this floor before going down. I don't see an easy way through this brush; I see it and I think of the cacti. Let's keep moving." Dariush begins to circle around the outside of the open area, heading west and watching it carefully.

Perception Check: [roll0]

[stack]

"There's more to see behind the doors as well, including stairs downward." Akaash adds.

[roll0] [roll1]

[bcool999]

Rowan

"Let us continue searching this floor." Rowan says.

[SwordChucks]

Agreeing with the party, Goma proceeds around the outer section of the room in a clockwise direction.

"That mess in the center looks like it would be trouble. I wonder if it could be burned safely?"


Heading to the door to the southeast if nothing else pops up.

[digiman619]

The eastern cloister walk abuts what must be the outer wall of the monastery itself. The lengthy wall bears a marred sculpture depicting the five figures from the north cloister mural in battle against numerous creatures of evil demeanor. Several of the creatures appear to be composed at least partly of five, while others are much more difficult to define, being outright monsters of unknown origin or unusual warriors with weapons bonded into their flesh like organic tools. In the background Pale Mountain looms large, and over it two titanic figures lock in a deadly wrestler’s embrace. One has the demoniac visage of a noble efreeti, while the other is a gorgeous woman who could only be a djinni princess. Opposite the sculpted wall, a series of open arches leads out into an open-air courtyard.

This sculpture depicts the great wars of genie vs. genie that cast the Pale Mountain region into chaos hundreds of years ago.

Do you want to go towards the door, or back up around the courtyard?

[lostsole31]

"The Templars of the Five Winds," Twix says softly to herself, remembering what Akaash had said. "For a Sarenite temple, this is pretty prominent. So, Akaash. What was the actualy story to these templars you studied?"

[stack]

[roll0] [roll1] if I can't take ten "Let me think a moment...There aws a war between genie-kinds hundreds of years ago, in the area of the Pale mountain." (will share any further pertinent info)

[digiman619]

[roll0] [roll1] if I can't take ten "Let me think a moment...There aws a war between genie-kinds hundreds of years ago, in the area of the Pale mountain." (will share any further pertinent info)

Aakash tells that the Templars of the Five Winds were a group of five powerful genies from antiquity. They have not been heard from in centuries, but travelers in the northern reaches of Katapesh and the southern bounds of Osirion still sometimes attribute miracles or victories to their guidance. In fact, legend tells that the Templars of the Five Winds defeated a great evil hundreds of years ago near Pale Mountain in the Brazen Peaks, a pinnacle not very far from the village of Kelmarane. Each Templar was associated with a specific aspect of the wind, and each wielded a distinct, highly potent magic weapon. Furthermore, the Templars of the Five Winds were said to be particular enemies of the cult of Rovagug, god of destruction, and many tales of their triumphs recount battles against the spawn of that vile religion. It turns out that the templars themselves are jann, mortal genie-spirits dedicated to no particular element. For some reason, these jann cannot die, though none have been seen in centuries.

I'm rolling it for him. Preform (Oratory):[roll0]. Feel free to be amazed regardless of the result, though.

As for your party's location, you go through the door and make the turn until you can see a bunch of doors (you are in the lower left hand corner hallway)

Where do you want to go?

[pfm1995]

Nodding appreciatively at Akaash's tale, Dariush turned and opened the first door on his right.

[SwordChucks]

"Thank you Aakash. Maybe these templars would give us some guidance in clearing this place out."

Goma says a short prayer to the templars and Al'asadriel before falling in behind Dariush.

[stack]

Akaash gives a polite nod, pleased that his studies have proved edifying. He takes position behind Dariush.

[lostsole31]

Twix listens to the story, though she does try (and sometimes fail) to keep from fidgeting. Once Akaash is done, "Well, that's interesting that a Sarenite temple would have all of this business about these Templars, but as a story it kind of ... isn't. You know lots of stuff, Akaash; you could probably be a good storyteller if you wanted. Just ... do something with the stories. Like romance. All great stories, especially war stories, are made better because a romance is involved. Your characters did interesting things and you gave them interesting facts, but they weren't interesting. You didn't even give them names. You told me stuff you remembered, not a story. It wasn't too bad a start, though, maybe."

Twix realizes she may have just overstepped. "But, you know, keep it coming. I still like the pieces of things."

It is obvious she doesn't understand the purpose of scholarly study of history. Or, she's incredibly rude. Or both.

[digiman619]

A sagging wooden balcony overlooks this large room, which must once have been the monastery’s library. An overpowering odor of musty, rotting paper and old leather fills the air here, and hundreds of books—most too damaged even to open without destroying them—litter the floors. Empty bookshelves line the walls of both levels.

Although most of the books are in horrible condition, one book is in pretty good condition. It's called Courts of Stone and Flame, and is a treatise on genies of the elemental planes. Using it to make a Knowledge checks gives it a +4 bonus. Give me a DC 20 Appraise check if you want to know its worth. Anyone interested in the subject can take a day to review it for more details.

[lostsole31]

Twix is fascinated by the pretty colors on decline, though she does have a weakness for anything that is a title hinting at the arcane.
Perception [roll0]

[pfm1995]

Stepping lightly around the piles of rotted books and avoiding the shadow of the balcony, Dariush gives the entire room a quick shufti before moving on - grinning to himself at Twix's diatribe.

Moving past a fallen bookshelf, a flash of red leather catches his eye. Gingerly pulling it out of the pile and blowing off the dust, he reads the title out-loud before slipping it into his pack. Now wasn't the time to be doing some light reading.

Perception: [roll0]

[stack]

Akaash gives Twix an annoyed glance. "I wasn't trying to tell a story. I am not some minstrel strolling between villages looking to trade exaggerated fabrications for coppers. I have studied history, to inform myself of the present and to enrich my understanding of the world for its own sake, not for idle amusement at gatherings."

He takes his time among the books, saddened by the ruin before him. He spots the intact volume just before it disappears. "Dariush, may I see that one for a moment?"
perception [roll0]
appraise [roll1] untrained

[pfm1995]

"Of course; we should keep moving though." Dariush says as he passes the book to Akaash.

[stack]

Akaash takes the book with a nod, letting free a small smile when he gets a better look. "My thanks. I thought I recognized it. I have studied a few chapters from it before, it could prove a useful reference for understanding the genies that have shaped this region."

[SwordChucks]

Goma eyes the room sadly. "So many crumbling books. Such a waste."

After looking around the room he says, "Is there a way up to the upper level? Not that I'm in a hurry to fall again."


[roll0]

[digiman619]

Goma eyes the room sadly. "So many crumbling books. Such a waste."

After looking around the room he says, "Is there a way up to the upper level? Not that I'm in a hurry to fall again."


[roll0]

There is a ladder reaching upwards, but it has clearly rotted through at points, and there doesn't seem to be anything of note on the upper floor (that you can see anyway).

[pfm1995]

"Best hold on to it, then - I'm no scholar."

After leaving the room, Dariush tries the door opposite him.

[stack]

Akaash looks at the upper level. "We can send someone up there once the rest of the place is checked. No sign of anything but the gremlins thus far." He continues to follow Dariush.

[lostsole31]

Twix nods and says, "Lemme know when you think you're comfortable with this place, and I'll fly above to check out the other section."

[digiman619]

As you leave the room, you see a statue of a winged woman,who you recognize as the goddess Sarenrae. Continuing down the hall you enter what must have been a dormitory before it was abandoned. Ten bunk beds in various stages of disrepair fill this chamber, The roof is mostly intact, and an open arch in the north wall leads to a large hallway. The east and west walls both bear sturdy wooden doors leading to other rooms, and an open arch in the southeast corner of the room leads into a darkened antechamber, perhaps a large closet.
The door, while unlocked, is overgrown with a fungal bloom. It's take a DC 20 Strength check to bust it down.
There's something odd about this fungus; the patterns in which it is growing are a bit too orderly. The fungus itself doesn't appear to be poisonous or otherwise harmful, though.

[pfm1995]

Dariush immediately moves to check the shadows of the alcove, then crouches to search under the beds and the rest of the room proper.

[stack]

"I'll check the alcove." Akaash states as he walks over.

nature [roll0][roll1]


Inspecting the fungus, he call to the others. "See how it grows? That is...highly unusual. I do not believe it is poisonous." He studies the pattern to see what it might reveal. tank 20 on perception for 22

wait, 22? how do I have 2 ranks at level 1

[digiman619]

"I'll check the alcove." Akaash states as he walks over.

nature [roll0][roll1]


Inspecting the fungus, he call to the others. "See how it grows? That is...highly unusual. I do not believe it is poisonous." He studies the pattern to see what it might reveal. tank 20 on perception for 22

wait, 22? how do I have 2 ranks at level 1

Other than its unusually orderly growth pattern, nothing else about it sticks out. Also, you are level 2; everyone leveled up after killing the pug king?

[bcool999]

Rowan

Following along with the others, Rowan's unfortunate habit of entering a trance like state when nothing is going on once more asserted itself. The hint of alarm in Akaash's voice at the discovery of the fungi snaps him out of it however. "Poisonous it may not be, but that doesn't ensure it is harmless, and if it is truly unnatural... Perhaps magic is involved?" Rowan asks looking to the others with a raised brow, wondering if they can detect any magic in the fungi.

[pfm1995]

Wrapping his hand in a cloth, Dariush tries the fungus-encrusted door, then puts his shoulder into it when that doesn't work.

The door doesn't budge, and Dariush looks at the others. "Whatever it is, the door is stuck fast. Break it down? Or leave it for later?"

Strength check: [roll0]

[lostsole31]

"Might as well get it now," recommends Twixanel.

[stack]

always forget to update the level one the sheet and somehow completely forget we dinged. :smallredface:
Akaash shrugs. "Let's break it down. Who wants to do the honors?"

[pfm1995]

Looking down at his sickle, then at the door, Dariush shakes his head. "I don't know that I'd be much help; I don't think starting a fire in here is a good idea. Does anyone have a spell or somesuch that can blow through the wood?"

[SwordChucks]

"I won't turn down any help trying to break through this door."

Goma steps back and takes a deep breath before shoulder charging the door.


[roll0]

[digiman619]

"I won't turn down any help trying to break through this door."

Goma steps back and takes a deep breath before shoulder charging the door.


[roll0]

Though the door seems to bend a bit, it still holds fast.

[lostsole31]

Well, no one aided him, but ... is there an old bench or something in here that can be used as a disposable battering ram?

[digiman619]

Well, no one aided him, but ... is there an old bench or something in here that can be used as a disposable battering ram?

There is an empty chest near the foot of one of the beds that you could use, especially if you put something into it to increase its weight.

[lostsole31]

Books ... especially damp, mouldering books, are nearly as heavy as the wood they came from. I wonder where we can get some of those? :smallwink:

[SwordChucks]

Grabbing armfuls of ruined books from the library, Goma stuffs them into the empty chest with any loose bits of masonry he can find.

"My mother always said that books would open doors for me. Let's see if she was right."

[lostsole31]

"Really?" winks Twix. "Because my mentor told me a good education breaks down barriers."