Realm of the Dead

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Pain... The memory of pain. Images and recollections of the past flash through the darkness of the mind:
Fires devouring the sere grasslands of a blighted land. A blackened ruin of a building that could have been home once but no longer. Thousands upon thousands of bodies piled in a valley where two armies met. A river running red with blood. A black cloud covering the sun while the dead walk against a city in the east. A commander of the militia frantically ordering retreat. Shadows and mists dancing among the lightning bolts as a tide of dark spirits overruns the gate. Moments of frantic fighting and chaos and death, swords cutting off heads and limbs left and right, claws tearing out throats and armored men falling dead at a single touch. Darkness. Bound hand and foot, carried away by four men in red cloaks. A dungeon, painted in red, hordes of mice and flocks of bats scurrying around, people screaming. A man burned alive in a pyre. A woman dangling upside-down, blood draining away from a wound in her neck. Darkness...

Suddenly, the chaotic flow of images tangled so you can't recognise what is what ceases. You open your eyes and it is dark. It is pitch black, no trace of light at all, but somehow you can see in the darkness as if in a candle-lit room. You are in a tiny, windowless cell with rough stone walls and an old, rusty but thick iron door with a closed viewing hole. Apart from your sorry selves, dressed in the ragged remains of your old clothes no less, nothing is in the cold and empty room. Cold is the word. So cold you feel as if you're freezing to death, numbness already having settled in every muscle and every joint. Strange though-the air is stale and the stone walls slightly damp-you must be underground. Such places are supposed to be warmer than the open plains this time of the year. So why do you feel as if you stand in your shift, drenched in water and in the wind's path?

Faint sounds can be heard from above and almost imperceptible vibrations shake the walls. You cannot be certain but they appear to be sounds of a furious but relatively small battle too far away to discern anything else-in fact, too far away for you to have heard it in the first place. But you have bigger problems than a faraway battle to worry about. You're in a prison or dungeon of sorts, in torn and bloodied clothing that looks nothing like your own and you're alone in a 10-foot square room with nothing else inside. Most important of all, you have no recollection of how you got here-the last thing you remember is hearing talk of an impending disaster in the town tavern. You try to remember what town, what tavern and you fail. Your memories are all jumbled, faded, names and faces barely recognisable. You have a headache the size of Chauntea's backside you're surprised you're still standing. First order of buisness would be to find where you are and find a way out...


Each character starts in a different such cell. You have no equipment at all and no knowledge of what's going on and how you got there. You barely remember your own name and a vague recollection of important events in your lives though the memories of old are becoming clearer. The characters have no recollection of their being forcibly turned to undead (the last month is a blank in memory) and they don't know they're undead yet. Though seeing in the dark, sharper senses and a numbed sense of touch should give hints that something is seriously wrong.

What does your character do now?

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj cries out in the abyssal blackness
"Marpha~!" He cuts off and hunches over, his fingers seeking the dirty bandage muffling his mouth. Moving along, the tall man feels with leaden fingers around the side of his face and the top of his head. Bandage, bandage, and more bandage. Had he been injured? Captured? Why couldn't he remember?
Lifting his hand once more slowly to his face, Noj grasps the edge of the bandages across his mouth and tugs gingerly on them. No pain, that was good...
Crackle khhhht
moving his other hand quickly, Noj catches the small objects that fall from beneath the bandage as it he tears it away with a crackling noise. Peering closer in the strange otherworldly light, he peers at the two objects in his hand. They were lips. Reaching with trembling fingers in the clammy silence, he feels the smooth enamel of his teeth, drying in the damp air. Before he can scream, he feels his fingers pushed aside by something, and two new lips now cover his teeth once more.
What's happened to me...?
"You're Dead."
With a crackle and rustling of bandages, Noj jumps to his feet, turning his head frantically from side to side as he looks for the source of the voice.
In the corner...he could almost imagine there was a shape to the darkness there. Suddenly, there were two yellow eyes, round and glowing in the darkness.
"Who are you?"
A crackle of straw like laughter, and the eyes fade away.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Where has all the colour gone? Where is the light coming from?

Suzette looks all around her, taking in as much as she can of the ceiling, the walls, the door, the floor, and lastly, herself.

My clothes are dripping. Is it water, or blood? Whatever it is, the smell makes me want to retch. I should get out of them, before I get sick.

Carefully peeling off the many layers of cloth that used to make up her robes, Suzette is surprised at how light they are, especially since they're soaked. Nonetheless, it is a painfully slow process, as the rotting fabric sticks together like wet toilet paper.

What has happened to my robes? These are made from thick, tightly woven linnen, almost impossible to cut through and now I can barely look at them without tearing them apart. We used to have contests to see how many monks could hang from a single band and I have never seen it rip before. What have I been lying in?

Now that she has gotten rid of her clothes, she is at the same time relieved not to find any wounds and horrified at how pale she is, and at the foul smelling liquid that is seemingly oozing out of her pores.

Yuck. I must have caught some rare disease. Yes, that's it. A fever would explain my addled memory, and why I feel so... numb. Perhaps we all caught it, and were found by people who didn't know the Senue rituals. If they thought I was dead, this might be a tomb of some sorts. I must get out of here. But first I should probably cover up again. In my current state I don't think I should worry too much about catching a cold.

Reluctantly, Suzette wraps herself up again as well as she can and then investigates her cell, methodically working her way from one end of the wall to the other, up and down, feeling the stone with her hands and moving her lips closer to the cracks to catch any slows of air.

[roll0]
She takes 20 on her search (no ranks, int modifier +3)
[roll1] (in case she needs to climb the wall to get to the top)

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Noj:

Noj is horrified to find the hands holding the bandages are blackened, decrepid and dry though moving with as much speed as he ever had in life. These weren't his hands! They couldn't be! He feels an itch in his mouth and letting the broken-off mummified lips fall, he slowly raises a blackened hand. Over his teeth there are lips again. They feel dry and age-worn but they are as supple as they ever were in life. Moving his hand, he finds a hole in the flesh at the other side, a hole closing rapidly within moments as the flesh regrows. He looks at his hands again. Burned off and ruined pieces of flesh begin to fall off and a similarly blackened and dry flesh regrows but one that is as hard as iron and not brittle at all. The cold sensation recedes until it is only a tiny reminder in the back of his mind and new strength flows through his limbs. Ashes and tiny pieces of rotting skin fall off his bandages as he moves, as his body adapts to the new state.

Suzette:

As Suzette focuses on searching the room, the crippling cold diminishes and her moves become faster, stronger. Her muscles seem to flex on their own accord, her skin growing even paler, almost completely while. Disregarding these changes to continue her search, she finds that her cell is truly empty and that the rusty iron door must be at least an inch thick, maybe even three inches thick. But the iron is rusty and old-perhaps she could find a weak spot in the lock or strike at heakened hinges. If only she knew something of a thief's art the old door might be easy to open.


Undead Fast healing kicks in, slowly healing every bruise and wound and cut or other damage you had due to your capture and transformation ritual. Noj's flesh wouldn't peel that easily after fully regenerating-his damage reduction 10 equals the hardness of steel (also 10) in protecting against physical harm. Even if someone tried to gouge out his eyes it would be like hitting an iron statue.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Encouraged by her returning strength, Suzette pummels the door, aiming for any visibly weaker parts (lock, hinges, rusty patches). When her hands get sore, she takes a short break and does some ritual moves to stretch her muscles until she feels ready again.

I am less ill than I thought. Rest rusts; I was probably stiff from lying immobile for so long. Squatting by the side of the road is good for mushrooms, but I must keep moving, keep the blood flowing. My only way forward seems to be through this door, so through the door I shall go.

[roll0]An untrained heal check to see if she notices that her blood isn't really flowing anywhere anymore.
I'm not rolling for attack and damage, she just keeps hitting, even if it is to no avail.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Suzette

Suzette strikes at a rusty part in the door and her fist makes the three-inch iron bend as if it was just a thick piece of clay, sinking fully half an inch into it. Pieces of rust fall off and the high-pitched screetch of iron grating on iron accompanies the gong-like sound of the blow. Suzette falls back a step, really susrprised. Against such a door, she should't be able to do more than a few scratches, even if the door was rusty. Either the door looks like iron but is not-unlikely-or Suzette is several times stronger than she used to be. Looking at her deathly pale hand she tries to grasp how her slim human arm could ever perform such a feat of strength, she realises that there is no pulse in it. Her arm simply follows her will-but there is a great deal more than muscles moving it.


Noj

Noj hears a gong or something similar pounding once from somewhere nearby-possibly no more than a couple dozen feet-and metal grating on metal...



A strength increase by 10 points in DnD means four times as much actual strength (lifting capacity). The standard human strength is 10. Suzette having a strength of 25 means she's as strong as eight normal men, thus the description.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Wait, what?

Suzette checks her pulse again. Then she looks for the arteries in her neck. Still nothing.

No wonder they left me for dead. Even I could swear I have no pulse. Yet here I am, stronger than ever before, my Ki fuelling my muscles where my body cannot. This can mean only one thing: it is not my destiny to succumb to this disease, my journey is not over yet.

She looks back at the dent she made in the door.

This may have seemed a dead end at first, but clearly, it is not!

With that, she attacks the door with renewed conviction until it gives way.

[Paladin Latham]

"Jail Again" Oathbreaker says to himself reflectively, though why he says it he can't remember. Pulling himself up from his troubled rest he moves to the door "Funny, I think this is the part where the hangover is supposed to keel me over" he thinks aloud. Moving to the cell door he calls out "Hey jailer! There's someone dying in here! Bring help hurry!". (Heh, dying of hunger more like it) he cackles softly to himself, somehow getting a familiar thrill from telling a lie. His mirth is stopped by some very important thoughts. (why did that lie actually come out right? How am I seeing in the dark? Why are my thoughts so clear? How am I crumbling stone with my bare hand?). He pauses in his thoughts to look to the side at the wall he'd absent-mindedly been clawing a deep gash into, then quickly turns back to the door and resumes his questions to himself as though nothing important had happened (who do you have to kill to get some food around here? Can I pick locks? No. Damn. My clothes look tattered. OH NO! CAN IT BE!?! No, no, everythings still where it should be. And I'm still a handsome devil *SHINE* <- mental shine effect. Geez, who do you have to kill to get some food around here? ...). For many long seconds Oathbreaker will simply stand there thinking and absent mindedly checking his clothes and clawing the walls.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
A sudden, intense feeling of claustrophobia seizes Noj, and with a rattling moan, he throws himself against the iron door, pounding on it with his fists.

[Paladin Latham]

Hearing jarring clangs and a scary moan Oathbreaker will snap out of his hunger filled reverie, stare at the door, and say "Hmm... thats probably not good, maybe if it comes this way I can reason with it. Yep, its probably best to stay here". After saying this he will Frantically attack the walls opposite the door trying to tear 1lb. chunks out of the wall that he can dual wield as improvised weapons.

[Lochar]

Virmas gives a low moan as he wakes up, holding his head. "Note to self. Make sure that you're not being snuck up on when sneaking up on a wizard." He gets up, brushing himself off.

As Virmas walks around the room checking it out, he talks to himself. "They'll probably fine me again for doing that, if I don't get out of here. Let's see what they left me."

Assuming taking a 20 on Search turns up nothing...

"They well and truly made this place empty. Not even a catflap for food. Wonder how long I've been here, anyways?" Shrugging to himself, he moves to the door again. "Best try to get out of here before I enjoy the local jailers hospitality."

Grabbing at the lock, Virmas is shocked when his hand passes through it. "Umm, not a real lock? Does that mean the door is unlocked?"

Tenuously, Virmas pushes at the door, only to find his hand and then arm passing through the door as well.

"An illusion for a door? Umm, ok..."

Slowly, Virmas walks through the door, scared that at any moment the door will become real and then hurt him.

Once out, he hears and sees one of the doors being bashed in.(If I can see Suzette's work on her door) "Crap!" he whispers to himself, pushing himself up against a wall, trying to be as quiet as possible. He doesn't recognize himself either halfway phase through the wall, or turn invisible.

Until he realizes he's actually dead, abilities and such are accidental and quite subconscious.

I'm assuming Natural Armor bonuses don't apply when manifested, as normal, so 23 AC, all touch.

Hide: [roll0] + 40 for immobile invisible.
Move Silent: [roll1]

[Belial_the_Leveler]

As Vilmas crosses his own door with ease, the door opposite his own in the room is blasted off its hinges as if by a rapid barrage of explosions and falls down ten feet away as if kicked by a giant. Neither Vilmas that walked through his door nor Suzette that simply kicked out her own notice eachother at all. All they have eyes for is the room.

A massive, cylindrical chamber or crypt, nearly two hundred feet wide, that seems to have been carved out of the very rock of a mountain or beneath the earth, with a relatively low ceiling-hanging a mere twenty feet above the floor-and an array of identical iron doors that must lead to identical rooms at its periphery. What lies at the center of the room however is what draws the eye-and has both Vilmas and Suzette very nearly trying to empty their stomachs.
Hundreds upon hundreds of corpses litter the floor, killed in any conceivable way from dismembering to frostbite to incineration to starvation, some rotting for weeks while others no more than a day or two old. Dried blood crusts the floor and walls, brown and brittle and barely distinguishable from the rusted iron doors. As before, there is no light though you can see well enough-if only you could not. The are does not look like the massacres you've heard of in tales of wars. It looks more like a mass grave or a crypt where the dead are dumped to rot. The stench assaulting your senses is much worse than anything else you've ever felt and you sense something else too-some sort of aura of power that presses down on you. At that exact moment, two more iron doors burst, two more prisoners walking out of the safety of their cells and into the nightmare of reality.



The walls are magically treated to bar passage to incorporeal entities though the doors are not.
It is a good idea to describe your characters now, focusing especially in any inhuman appearance they might have as others might interact differently to a bloodlord that looks almost human and to a doomknight with a skeletal face and green fire instead of eyes (oooo Skeletor :smalltongue: )
Also, always write your names at the top of your posts even if you haven't introduced yourselves yet, preferably in bold.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Standing in the charnal gloom of the mass grave and framed by the open doorway to a cell stands a tall scarecrow of a man, easily six and a half feet tall and lean as a rail. His blackened fingers dig into the stone of the doorframe as he stares out at the grim tableau. His face and head are almost entirely covered in swaths of blackened and grimy gauze and bandages which spiral down to encompass his neck, shoulders and arms. Between the bandages on his face, twin yellow lights glimmer like sick glowworms in the darkness. Scraps of leather and cloth cling gamely to his chest and legs, and a large set of worn boots rest upon his feet. At his feet, shadows waver and twist like black candles on the grimy stone. He takes one wavering step forward, and there's a crackle like fried gristle peeled from the bone.
"What..." the word is choked out, like a muffled gunshot as the tall man with the glowing yellow eyes looks around at the hideous chamber.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Dropping to his feet, his body becoming visible, Virmas grabs his stomach. Had there been anything in there, he would be heaving it out now at the sights and smells.

As the man kneels there, he is suffused with a slight blue glow and quite translucent. The longer he heaves though, the more it seems that parts of flesh are appearing and building a body.

What is left of stringy blond hair falls down over blackened eyes, and chunks of flesh appear missing all over his body. Parts of his arms and legs are wholly missing, seemingly held together by the barest of strips of flesh.

His clothes are rags of the finest trash. What appears to have once been a vest covers at best half of his front, and only two strips of cloth hold it together in the back.

Finally he stops heaving, and sits down, pushing his back against the wall. "What happened?" he questions the world out loud, his voice echoing.

[Ramos]

Myriel

There is a low, hissing sound like a red-hot iron plunged into water and a small silvery tongue of magic pierces yet another door. The tongue moves along the door, slowly cutting open a round hole. There is a metallic groan and a large piece of the door falls outwards, revealing the inside of yet another cell. The woman that comes out of the cell does not look like a prisoner at all. Oh, she does wear a torn white blouse and a matching skirt but they are perfectly clean as if they were just washed. There is not a grain of dust on her, no grime or dirt, no blood at all. The long blond hair falling down to the small of her back seem just as clean as her clothes and she appears largely untouched by her imprisonment.
Moving as sinuously as a snake, she steps over a few corpses and frowns at them, distaste evident. As she closes, her otherworldly features become evident. The speed and grace by which she moves, her presence drawing the eye, her blood-red eyes. Pointed ears mark her an elf and her height-she's about six feet tall-and golden hair might mark her a sun elf if not for the pale color of her skin. Nails shaped like claws tip her hands but rather add to her image than spoil it. A supernatural aura draws every eye to her and seems to make her presence stronger, more important than that of others. Ofcourse, being as alluring as a succubus to begin with, she hardly seems to need the supernatural enhancement.
Her hand pointing in an arching motion at the corpses around her she speaks, seemingly not paying attention to whom she's speaking as if making a rhetorical question.
Rather crude, don't you think? I can't imagine this being a tomb-shows far too much irreverence towards these rotten bags of bones and flesh-nor does it seem like a necromancer's study. At least not a good necromancer's study-it's sloppy. So, where do you think we are?


Beguiling Influence, Dark One's Own Luck and Cat's Grace active. Used Prestidigitation to clear self. Used Lesser Orb of Sound repeatedly at point-blank range to open the door. Still writing down background and description.
http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28485

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas looks up at the voice, noticing the other people for the first time. Slowly he stands, his stomach still giving him a bit of trouble, but as there is nothing in it there isn't much of a problem.

At the ladies' words, he frowns. "I'd say have some respect for the dead, lady, but it doesn't look like anyone else has either." Looking over the room, he starts at the other standing people.

"Umm, is it just me, or are some of the dead still moving?" He points at some of the more obviously dead looking people that have just broken out of cells.

Yes, he's oblivious. He obviously hasn't looked at himself yet, but hey, that's part of the fun.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Standing half-hunched, the tall shrouded man gazes with detached horror at the other denizens of the dungeon.
"Who..." he rasps, his words muffled, "Who are you?"

[Ramos]

Myriel

Hahahahaha... oh, excuse me but that's rich. Mr mummy over there is terrified of us-you do know you look like a mummy right?-and you are complaining about him moving while it is you who are missing a limb or three!
The gold-haired elf takes a moment to surpress a fit of laughter then smiles at the others.
I hate to break it to you but you are obviously dead-or rather, undead. I may not look it but I am as well-I suspect we all are. I suppose for some this is a blessing and for others a curse-but the first order of buisness would be to find where we are and how to leave this place. I doubt whoever put us in those cells and turned us into undead did so from the goodness of their heart.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas finally looks down at himself and curses. This goes on for a moment before he manages to calm himself down.

"Alright, so apparently it wasn't an illusionary door that I walked through, that was me."

Attempting to ignore the bodies in the center of the room, Virmas moves over to the door he came through and attempts to push his arm through it. It doesn't work.

"I did it just a minute ago, how'd I manage it?" Virmas punches the door a couple of times, denting it slightly, but not much else. He stops and concentrates for a minute. Come on, I wanna walk through the wall again.

After a moment, the meaty parts of his body disappear, leaving him glowing slightly blue and translucent again. This time, he manages to push his hand through the door. Alright, maybe I can walk through the walls then and find a way out?"

He then walks into a wall. And bounces off. "Oh come on, I know I managed it that time." Putting his arm through the door again, he moves it until it hits the wall.

He looks at everyone else. "Alright, the easy way is out. Something's keeping me from walking through walls. Guess whoever turned us didn't want to lose us that easily." He shrugs. "I'm Virmas." he introduces himself. And then looks around. Anyone else have an idea?"

[Ramos]

Myriel

I am Myriel, follower of Malcanthet. As for finding a way out, shouldn't we check out all those rooms that are still locked? Perhaps we'll find a way out there...
The elf lady frowns and looks at all the locked doors, her next few words barely audible.
And perhaps I'll find my sister...


Anyone have Knowledge: Religion? If yes, you might know who Malcanthet is.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

With the sound of the other doors bursting open, Suzette drops down on all fours.

Curse this abyssal light that casts no shadows! Now where shall I hide?

She crawls back into her cell, like a cat moving backwards and pressing against the wall. She hears an unrecognisable man's voice mutter something, but before she can even consider whether or not to hail him, another man drops on his knees out of thin air, straight ahead of her. His appearance makes her blink, then blink again. He seems almost... transparent, for lack of a better word, and faintly glowing with a pale light.

Is this the light again, playing tricks on me? I wonder why everything is black and white.

Then she notices the missing pieces of flesh, hears the conversation, looks at her white, wet hands again and slowly, realisation dawns.

Necromancers... I am dead. That man must be a ghost and I am... something. How come I can still think? And feel, and see, and hear, and for all that is holy, why can I still smell?

Trying in vain to suppress her nausea, she stands up again and walks out of her cell. She looks over at the moving mount of rags and the neat, imposing woman, then back at the ghost. She reflects on how she must appear to them: a tiny, slim, sallow woman, drenched from top to toe with decomposing robes hanging from her limbs.

"My name is Suzette. Suzette Thompkins."

If I'm already dead, they can hardly kill me.

"If you want to rescue people, we can just bash the doors down. It isn't that hard."

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas nods to her. "And here, ladies and gents, we have another example of a grand undead. Welcome to the club." He says sarcastically. "I'm afraid it's not very lively around here though."

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
There's a cackle of straw like laughter in the voice of Noj, but full-throated and raspy. In the corner stands a dark silhouette, almost the mirror image of Noj except outlined only in shadow, even in the strange black and white world. Its eyes blaze with a yellow light, and its arms are splayed outwards like a scarecrow.
Noj turns his head and regards it silently.
"Was I so evil in life that this is my reward...?" he asks the phantom.
Noj's voice answers
"Reward, punishment...it's all the same, isn't it? Ha-hah..."

[Ramos]

Myriel

So you do have a sense of humour. I was beginning to think it was gone along with some of the more important parts of you.
The elf lady walks towards the wall, turns to Virmas and smiles widely, showing pointed, elongated fangs. She raises her left hand and touches one of them and her smile turns miscevious.
If these are not just for show then I am vampire. Not that I wasn't expecting a necromancer to turn me into one-looks like mine would be wasted in a wight, you know. How about testing our abilities? If you can pass through objects like a ghost, perhaps I could display one of the powers of vampires. So, I am open to suggestions-which power would you like me to try for?


First sentence is an intentionally lowered use of Bluff: innuendo. :smallbiggrin:

[Lochar]

Virmas

"Well, as there isn't any running water going through here, and I don't think you can turn one already undead, I know that vampires have been able to turn into other beasts. Are you capable of that?"

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
"What?"
As if from far away, the patchwork man returns his gaze to the strange sinister jezebel in front of him. So unlike Maggie, this statuesque creature.
Maggie...
"GWUOOOH!"
With a bellow like a scratched fog-horn, Noj howls and slams a cadaverous fist into the frame of the cell, sending chips of stone flying.
"Hee hee!" comes the scratchy laugh of Noj's voice,
"Now it's hit you, hasn't it? If you're very lucky, she's dead!"The voice of Noj clears its throat with a horrid rattle, and then whispers with a rasp "And if you're very very lucky, you're not the one who killed them...hope is a wonderful thing, isn't it, Noj?"

"S'not my name. I'm Jon. Jon the miller," he mumbles, indistinctly.
"You think so?" he replies, his tone bright and brittle like glass shards. "Well, take a good long look at those hands of yours, mister miller. Do those look like Jon's hands?"
The hunched figure shakes his head, mutely.
"That's right. You're about as far from being Jon as you can be. You're Noj now. And what will you do now, Noj, with your lips that grow back and fists that break iron?"
Noj looks away at the floor, "Die."
"No no no," comes the reply, somewhat peevish. "You're getting out of here. And these fine folk can help. Now, chin up."

[Ramos]

Myriel

And how do you expect me to know what to do to turn into a beast?! I am a mage, not a tree-worshipper!

Hmm, I remember my sister and I discussing the simplest form-altering magics. Perhaps it works like they do...

Myriel concentrates for a moment and her form seems to flow into the shape of a massive wolf with white fur and the same blood-red eyes. She stays in that shape for a few moments then turns towards her clothes, reverts into her true form and busies herself with getting dressed for a few moments. Turning back towards the rest of the group she smiles.

Did you enjoy the show?

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas nods and leers before smiling and laughing slightly. "I guess this happening isn't all bad. Just mostly."

BTW, what's the stats on that wolf? :smalltongue:

He then looks over to the scarecrow looking guy. "Although, I think he may be having a little more problem with it." Virmas shouts at him. "Hey, you're already undead. If you want to die, you'll have to find something capable of killing you. Just sitting there won't kill you. Come on out and talk. Best to figure out what you can do before we go attempt to 'entertain' our creators. Besides, if you want to die, you'll have to figure out what kills you first."

[Paladin Latham]

Realizing that the walls are pretty damn tough Oathbreaker tentatively creeps to the door and knocks "Hello out there! I'd be ever so grateful (snicker under breath) if you would open the door so we can (barely contained giggle) talk!".

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
"You heard the man."
The rag man lifts his head, the dim gleam of his eyes showing through the wrappings.
"I can't die...but the man who did this to me can!" In the corner, the scarecrow silhouette opens its jagged mouth in a grin, dim yellow light spilling out onto the unclean stone. With a cackling noise, it spirals down into the stone and then back into space, now planted firmly in the stone by Noj's elbow. In the dingy gloom, it's still quite plain that this scarecrow shadow is just that; a shadow made vivid, and with glowing eyes and gaping mouth. It shifts to one side, and for a moment it overlaps perfectly Noj's frame before vanishing.
The lanky patch man stands up straighter, and the yellow glow in his eye flares.
"I'm Noj. And I'm getting out of here."

[Lochar]

Virmas

"Glad to have you aboard, Noj. Do the guy behind that door a favor though, would you, and open it? Since he seems to not want to come out and all. I think I'll stick my head through the rest of the doors as well, and check. See if there's a way out, or anyone else that isn't loud enough to be heard."

Putting action to word, Virmas stands up and walks to the remaining doors that haven't been battered down yet, and pushes his head through each of the doors. Should he see stairs, he'll note which ones it is. Should he see another undead, he'll ask Noj or one of the others to assist in battering down the door.

[Paladin Latham]

"No, no I can't hear you properly! Wait a second!" Oathbreaker batters down the door (he's as stong as the monk). Aghast at what he sees he declares "Ugh, look at this mess! Picked clean! No food, no valuables!" To the others, Oathbreaker looks like a Handsome and powerfully built man of Kara-Tur (asian) descent. Though his cloths are in tatters he carries himself with a competant, though subtly decietful, air. Ever practical, he immediately picks up two severed limbs that look petrified or in severe rigor mortis, ever keeping his eyes on the others (especially the two hotties) "So, uh, come here often?" he asks the others fully expecting to have to fight such hideous (or unnaturally beautiful) undead.
The average human arm weighs a little over 8lbs. so two spongy improvised weapons of that weight would deal 1d4 damage.

Edit: Of course, seeing as how legs can be up to 40lbs. I'll take those instead If I can find them. :smallbiggrin:

Come to think of it, how would you size limbs as weapons? Would the leg of a child count as a small improvised weapon? the leg of a giant, large? These are important questions. :smallamused:

Edit2: Answered my own question. I'd only be able to take arms because anything over 11 pounds counts as a two handed improvised weapon. :smallfrown:

[Revlis]

With a start and a gasp Ethan awakens in cold dark cell. The cell that is not nearly as dark as it should be. Even the gasp was not required, merely an old reflex of an older life. Ethan stares at the blank walls, at his tattered clothing, and at the rusty iron door. Completely unaware of his changed existance.
Trapped. Imprisoned. he half whispers to himself, Sure beats dead though.
At hearing the voices outside, he heads towards the door, and begins banging on it. He shouts at the people outside Hello? Anyone out there? I think there has been a mistake!

[Lochar]

Virmas

A head pokes through the cell door, it is translucent and has a faint glow. "Oh, hi. We got another one I see." The head pulls back, and you hear the voice shouting to the others. "We got one in here, someone wanna come rip the door off for him?"

The head pokes back through again. "Anyways, give us a second, I'll get Noj or one of the others to beat the door down. Just don't stand in the direct path, in case they send it flying through. Unless you can walk through the door or beat it down yourself?" His voice is entirely too cheerful, though you can tell it's at least slightly forced. "Oh, by the way... You're dead. Or at least undead."

At this, the head disappears back through the door and Virmas continues checking the other doors.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Following Virmas on his round to check out the doors, Suzette tries to make out any footprints on the floor that might indicate the way out. She gladly takes down any doors, enjoying her enhanced strength.

So we can all do new things now. Well, I can't walk through doors, so I'm not a ghost. No fangs either, so no vampire. And if they meant to mummifiy me, their experiment failed miserably. Maybe I'm supposed to have a talking shadow, like Noj? I'll have to pay close attention to how he does it when he makes it come out again.

When they get back to the point where the others are gathered, she addresses Virmas and Myriel:

"I know nothing about undead. Am I supposed to be able to do anything special? I... I don't even know what I am. Maybe a zombie, but I've never heard of one that could think for himself..."

[roll0] and [roll1]

[Lochar]

Virmas

((If this is too much knowledge for my character, I'll remove the post Belial.))

"Well, I'm not exactly a ghost, I don't think Suzette." With effort, Virmas' rotting body reforms. "I can still become physical, see? I don't think any of us are normal undead, if there is such a thing. I don't know where you came from, but I grew up in Thay, where there was a war of undead going on. Who knows what's happened to us."

Virmas shrugs. "I assume you'll find out eventually what's happened to you, once we get out."

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
With a wheezing grunt, takes a few more steps down the hallway, the faint snap and crackle of residues unguessable shifting beneath the swaths of bandage. Now and then a fine dust or small chunks of charred flesh drop from between the bandages and skitter across the floor. Reaching Ethan's door, Noj reaches slowly up to the very top of the iron door and punches his fingers through the gap. His exposed glowing eye flares once more, and shadows bunch around his arms and shoulders and bulge like cancers as he hauls on the door, slowly peeling away the ancient iron like clay. Towering in the doorway, the dirty lanky figure stares inside at the newest wretched to appear, and for just a moment the grinning silhouette of a sinister scarecrow wavers on the floor, then vanishes.
Wordlessly, Noj offers a blackened hand, the fingers long and crooked.

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan was simply stunned. Not afraid, for fear became a foreign thing to him, but he was stunned speechless. First by the head poking through the door, then by what it said... finally by that impressive display of strength. He had retreated a few steps at first, and retreated all the way back to the wall when the creature tore open the door.

"Imposible, I am not dead... am I? I will play along for now, and then find out the truth later." Ethan thought to himself

"Thanks, err.. Friend. I'm Ethan." Ethan said a bit hesitantly, as he slowly walked forward and shook hands with the mummified creature.

When not cowering, Ethan stood just over 6 feet tall, a good height for a human. His blue eyes had a strange flickering light within them, as if they were reflecting the glow of a torch burning nearby. His dark hair was shoulder length, and was filthy from the cell he was in. His skin was very pale, as if it was made of marble.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker, his grizzly task done (hopefully he is now carrying macabre clubs) props one of his 'clubs' over his shoulder and smiles to the others. "How rude of me, I forgot to introduce myself, seeing as how you all don't look like you are going to kill me. My name is... Jacob, yes Jacob Mayweather." {Bluff [roll0]} "It is a pleasure to share such, well, non-murderous company" (truth)

[Lochar]

Virmas

Sense Motive: [roll0]

Jacob, eh? Sounds like a decent assumed name.

"Nice to meet you, 'Jacob'. I hope you don't get yourself in trouble with those body parts." Virmas nods to Jacob, not mentioning that it sounded like a quickly thought up lie to him.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth awakens slowly, on hard stone. She tries to remember what happened, where she is, and can't. No! What happened? I remember... a fire, and twisted shapes... She calms herself, meditating and carefully regulating both breth and heartbeat.

That is when it becomes perfectly obvious. She has neither breath nor heartbeat. Unnecessarily, she expels air in a gasp, then collects her thoughts. The dead were common in Thay. In all likelihood, she had been killed by one of the factions contending for Thay's rulership, and raised by them. She opens her eyes, and sees the world through the cover of darkness. "Of course," she murmurs, covering over the shock. She could not give in, she could not... "Only logical." She inspects both herself and her surroundings. She looks much the same as she always had... but she can feel small points on her teeth. The surroundings were a small cell, and a closed door. Empty, aside from that.

She hears voices from outside, and presses her ears against the door. Her hearing wasn't dull before, but now it is as if every last sound echoes in her ears. One voice, in particular, makes her heart leap—or it would have, at least... She hadn't realized how worried she had been until that moment that her sister was dead. Of course, maybe she was... but not gone, at the least. She calls out, "Myriel?"

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
"Noj," he replies to Ethan's unspoken question. "I'm Noj." He stand silently in the doorway for a moment, apparently lost in thought. As the voices outside the cell filter in, he shakes his head abruptly with a crackling noise and steps out of the doorway, allowing Ethan to pass.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Suzette gingerly walks up to the door where the new voice comes from, turns towards Myriel and asks:

"Could this be that sister you're looking for? Shall I get her out?"

Unless one of them objects, she kicks the bottom of the door until there is a hole, then grabs the edges and rolls it upwards.

[roll0]

[warbacon]

Hellstar (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28417)

"Ughhhh .. Nghhh..." Hellstar opened his eyes and blinked. All he saw was stone. He lifted his head to get a better look, only to be stopped by a splitting headache. "Oh my aching head! By the gods, what did I drink last night?" The last thing he remembers is rushing towards a tavern, which fueled his confusion, but what he saw nixed the likelihood that this was merely a hangover. There was blood everywhere. All over his shirt, pants, with dried bits of flesh scattered about. This isn't mine ... he thinks as he examines his clothing. Apparently, his hands were bloodly, too. Patting himself all over, he looks for wounds and finds none. Actually, he seemed to be in great shape, except for a rapidly fading headache. He stands up and examines his surroundings.

"I must have been imprisoned by Thay ... But ... Why can't I remember?" He heard commotion outside his cell ... banging, tearing of metal, and soon talking. He did not know what was going on, so he prepared himself for conflict: Mage Armor, All-Seeing Eyes, Entropic Warding. He heard talking a few cells down. How can I hear any of this at all? And why can I see? Putting aside his insecurities, Hellstar thought it best to go down fighting, and so he spoke a single word in the Dark Tongue, and the steel door shattered with a loud -snap-. He leaned forward and threw his shoulder against the broken metal chunks blocking the door.

The view outside surprised him far less than the fact that it didn't hurt to slam himself against steel. And his movements ... he was so fast! He had scarcely a moment to ponder that when he noticed the others -- undead. Hellstar had been battling the Thayvian armies for the past few years, and he knew undead when he saw them. But they weren't mindless -- clearly they were just talking, and their looks bore no malice. Perhaps ... fellow escapees? Wait ... that meant ... He looked himself over again, and suddenly the dried blood on his triggered something deep inside him.

He was hungry. And that blood was what he wanted.

Crushed with shame over who he had become, and overwrought with despair, Hellstar collapsed onto his knees and cried out, "No! No! This is the cruelest irony!" At that point, he didn't care whether he lived or died.

Hellstar would be a beautiful specimen of a human, if not for the blood and dirt currently covering his lithe frame. He was gaunt in life, and even more so in death, with sunken cheeks and deep eye sockets harboring two starry eyes which now shine blood red. His hair is a black tousled mass caked with bits of dried blood. Currently he is wearing something resembling a potato sack around his torso; that's how coarse the threads were. His pants were a mite better quality, but were filthy and reeked of death. If he were standing he would be just over 6 feet tall, and weighing around 160 pounds.

[Ramos]

Myriel

Recognising her sister's voice, Myriel steps close to the door, her beautiful features forming an angry scowl. As Suzette asks if she can open the door, she directs an angry glare at the other woman.
Step aside.
Not really waiting for Suzette to move away, Myriel points at the door and a deafening clang that shatters steel tears a hole into it, rusty fragments flying left and right. Shooting the almost imperceptible magical blast repeatedly, the sorceress blasts the door off its hinges faster Suzette would have done. Iron was no bar to her magic. Stepping over the debris, she enters the cell and helps her sister to her feet.
Are you well enough to walk, sister mine? I swear, by the Red Rose and the Infinite Layers whoever did this to you-to us-will pay

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker or 'Jacob'

Oathbreaker approaches the obviously distraught Hellstar and intoduces himself "Jacob Mayweather pleased to meet'cha. Say, your not looking so good there, can I give you a hand" (offers a 'hand' and by hand I mean 'club') "Heh heh, I kid, I kid. Seriously though, I'm famished how about we get a bite to eat before we get out of here"

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Leaping aside as Myriel commences her furious magical assault on the door, she hears how yet another one is blown to pieces.

That makes eight... Whoever created us must have been building an army, though it seems as if they went through quite the number of failed experiments.

She stares at the festering heap of bodies in the middle of the room. Then she remembers what that mysterious shadow told Noj.

Could this be my... our work? Some of us certainly seem to have the temper for it, but I wonder...

She wanders towards the pile, looking at a man whose chest was obviously bashed in.

What would it feel like to kill someone just like that?

At that moment, Jacob addresses the new arrival and she falls in with him.

Yes, let's get out of here.

If her survival taught her anything, she now tells the others about that

[warbacon]

Hellstar

"A bite to eat?" Hellstar uncurls himself and stands to face the stupidly grinning man. "A bite to eat? Are you mad? Or just stupid? We are cursed. This pile of bodies -" As he swings his arm to bring force to his statement, he looks over and stops speaking, his mouth agape. "Jhules?" Taking a few extraordinarily quick steps, he grabs a torso sticking out of the pile and pulls on it, revealing a maggot-ridden corpse whose legs separate as he brings it out into the open. "Jhules they got you too ... Why?" Just then he sees bite marks on his neck ... He turns back to Oathbreaker, his red eyes aflame with rage. "Why did they choose me? Or you, for that matter. You unfeeling wretch! These were people! Flesh and blood, with family and hopes that were stolen away from them by ... by ... Agh, it's no use talking to you." He turns away, scoffing. They cannot be saved. I cannot be saved. Vampires ... they can be destroyed by sunlight. Yes ... we'll escape and I'll throw myself into the sun. Determined, he goes to join Noj and Suzette in finding other prisoners -- but their task looks complete. He introduces himself, to nobody in particular but to everybody at once. "Hellstar, Magister of Aglarond. Let's find a way out of this hell. I'd rather not be around what could be my own handiwork."

Searching for a way out, taking 20, resulting in 40 (20 + 6 [Int] + 6 [All-Seeing Eyes] + 8 [Bloodlord]). My, my ... that's a lot.

Also he'll be scouring his memory for what he knows of vampires:
1d20+9

EDIT: That's weird... they probably don't allow parentheses in the roll description field. No matter, Invisible Castle saves the day: Knowledge(Religion) (1d20+9=21) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=1317428)

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob"

"Ya know its kinda funny, I know that I wouldn't have thought of this before whatever happened to us, but I suddenly had to urge to tear out the insides of one of these bodies and wear it as clothing because I'm so freakin' FREEZING. Does that seem strange to you guys?" Oathbreaker casually looks at the pile with a ponderous look and a slight shiver (<-from cold, not conscience) "Cause I'm kinda thinking I'm gonna do it."

[Revlis]

Ethan

As he steped past Noj, Ethan heard the exchange between Jacob and Hellstar. He also heard what Jacob was saying about wearing the skin of one of the dead bodies, but hearing it didn’t prepare him for the sight of it. Perhaps, in another life he would have retched, he would have felt sick, but now only a cold detachement, and a distant sorrow, for those who lay there. He had his burdens to bear, while they were free of theirs.

Don't even joke about something like that. Ethan said to Jacob, Give respect the dead... you were one of them not so long ago.

Mentally, he made sure not let his guard around Jacob, even more so than any of the others. Ethan was still praying that these abominations were wrong, and that he was still alive.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth recognizes her sister's voice, and at the first loud blast she moves well back from the door, having no wish to test the limits of the energy that now animates her body. "I am well, sister." Embracing her sister quickly, she takes Myriel's hand and steps out of the cell, gazing in disgust at the bodies.

In some ways, she is her sister's mirror image; the two have identical features. And like a mirror, some of it is reversed. Her hair is as dark as Myriel's is golden, and her eyes a deep black, as if her pupils had swallowed up the irises. She shares her sister's pale skin... and, it becomes clear as she speaks, her fangs. She is dressed in what was once a finely made, elegant red dress; now, the dress is torn in places, and marked with dust and bloodstains. Although beautiful, she does not draw the eye quite so much as her sister; she is more distant, a touch less alluring. "This is a charnel house. Is nobody but us present?" she asks, glancing about the chamber as if searching for necromancers, or some sign that they are present.

Spot [roll0].

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

"Respect, yes respect" Oathbreaker waves the thought away "It would have smelled horrible anyway..."

[Lochar]

Virmas

"None but us, or at least none that I've seen. Doesn't look like any other bodies are going to get up and start moving around, either."

Virmas shrugs and looks at the others. "As I think we'd all get bored past undeath if we just sat around here forever, what do you all suggest we do?"

((OOC: Anyone seen Belial recently? With all 8 of us here, I'd like something in the realm of direction.))

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

*Strikes a heroic pose* "Fight our way free!" Oathbreaker exclaims, shining like a tarnished golden god.

[Ramos]

Myriel


Moving purposefully towards "Jakob", Myriel steps over the corpses, raises both hands and a tongue of blood-red flame forms in each palm. The flames elongate until they meet then form a five-foot long, two inches thick cylinder then stretch further to shape a two-foot, one-edged blade attached at the cylinder's end. She raises the conjuring with an ease that suggests both a weightless weapon and one she has proficiency in that belies her slim frame.

Every one of us alone stands no chance to survive against those that captured us-undeath made us stronger but not by that much. We can only get out of here as a group.

I do not mind you desecrating these rotten pieces of meat-you can piss on them for all I care if you still can-but intentionally baiting the others here threatens the integrity of the group and thus our chances of survival. More specifically, mine and my sister's. Therefore, you'll either stop being a fool or stop being period. And just in case, note that this weapon ignores any form of defence from armor to the toughness granted by undeath to magic immunity.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth laughs inwardly. Even if he were not stupid, the man was at least a buffoon, and her sister had small tolerance for foolishness of any sort. "I might add that I am unsure force of any sort will be required to get us free," she chimes, arching an eyebrow at the others to see if any of them look like they understand her; regardless of whether they do not, she continues, voice taking on a lecturing tone. "Many of you are not any sort of undead I know of. The bodies here indicate that somebody was experimenting with killing people in different ways..." her mouth twists with disgust again, but she doesn't pause... "which was most likely in hopes of creating new servants. A common practice in necromancy. However, we have awoken without anyone here to guide us. In theory, they could be observing us to see what the effects are, but in practice doing so would be foolish, and achieve little." If the necromancers had intended to enslave them, they would not have allowed them to meet and collaborate before making themselves known. "Therefore, I think it likely that the experiment was judged a failure and abandoned before completion. Most necromancers are at least practical enough to clean up the bodies, and some of these are weeks old."

"If that is so, than all we need do is find the exit from this place."

[Lochar]

Virmas

"That's all fine and dandy, but they must have expected something. I can walk through the doors just fine, but not the walls. So they have treated this place with at least a bit of setup for undead like I appear to be." Virmas adds to Alaeth's talk.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

"Naturally," Alaeth answers. Her tone is... either condescending or soothing, it's hard to tell. "They expected results, so they would have made preparations to hold the undead before they created them. It would do them little good if they created you, only to have you escape. But a ward like that is easier to leave up than to take down, and they do not seem to have been assidious in removing anything."

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Scratching his head with the finger end of a 'club' Oathbreaker says"If there isn't some kind of gaurdian waiting to keep someone in or keep someone out then I'm Elminster in disguise"
As for the angry woman threatening him, Oathbreaker can only think [*sigh* angry women, this is so familiar...]

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
The silent Noj barely seems to be listening to the others talk. With a cackle, the shadowy head of the grinning scarecrow sprouts from his shoulder and begins whispering to the bandages covering Noj's ear. Darkness swirls around Noj's worn boots and he clenches a blackened fist with a crackle of flesh and bone. The shadow spirals around him, as if a punctuation of the scarecrow's words, shifting from a billowing cape to a skeleton to armor to a mouth of shadowy teeth lit by a dim yellow glow. The effect is...unnerving.
[roll0] Not targeted at anyone...just a general indication of spooky.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

The conversation going on is distracting to Hellstar's efforts. Strangely enough, he can hear them perfectly despite the distance and bad acoustics in the cavern. This damned undead body ... he muses. Passing his hand along the wall rather absent-mindedly, he senses an almost non-existant vibration in the walls, and now that he notices it, faint sounds of ... a pitched battle?

He pauses in his search to address the group. "Perhaps our captors are currently fighting in that distant battle? That would explain why they aren't here to chaperone us. I suggest we find a way out and help in dispatching them." Without waiting for a response, he gets back to searching.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

A thorough search of the room doesn't reveal anything and battering down the rest of the doors only reveals more corpses in various stages of decomposition. The room appears to be sealed until you remember the faint sounds of combat coming from above. Quickly, you check the ceiling and find that at the very center of the room a rectangular patch of stone five feet wide and thirty long is of slightly different color than the rest of the chamber. Tiny runes form an inscription that follows the pattern of an elaborate magical diagram similar but not identical to those used for binding demons.


About time SB remembered the battle raging above.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth shakes her head dryly at the Kara-Turan man. "Did you listen to nothing I said?" she queries, half exasperated and half amused but not really expecting any answer. There are more important things to do, in any case, as one of the others points out.

Spotting the man on the ceiling looking over a slight inscription, Alaeth moves to the center of the room and murmurs a minor spell of Seeing, then pauses, frustrated. She had to be closer than that... Maybe she could be. She concentrates, and her form blurs, dissolving into a cold, black mist that begins to spread outwards. It drifts upwards until it is floating just under the circle, and hovers there, examining it.

I'd forgotten about the sounds of battle; I guess Alaeth did too. A Search of +27 should be plenty to discover the circle if need be; Gaseous Form gets her up there. It's one of the better-known powers of a vampire, so she should know about it... Casting Detect Magic, and then Spellcraft to discern what the circle is for and how to work it: [roll0]

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Clenching his fist again with a *snap*
Noj turns his gaze towards the ceiling.
"Yes...Our creators..."

(Can the ceiling be reached from the floor?)

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

She spurns my help with all the narrow-sighted arrogance of an geriatric wizard who's never been outside of his tower, blasts out a door without knowing whether her sister is capable of getting out of the blast radius and all but attacks a man who is obviously still trying to get the better of his new violent urges. If anything here is "threatening the integrity of the group" it is her own hot-headedness. She may look like a queen, but she has all the social graces of a chipmunk.

Suzette is distracted from her train of thought when she notices the shadow creature dancing around Noj again. She moves closer and observes it eagerly.

"How do you do that Noj? Do you know why you have a shadow, when nothing else here does? Would you mind if I tried to touch it?"

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Frustrated by the lack of an obvious exit, Hellstar runs his hand through his hair. He doesn't get very far, though: it's caked with blood and dirt, and could use a serious cleaning. Leaning his head back to shake and rub it out, he notices the discoloration on the ceiling. "Oh."

Well, I've heard some interesting things about vampires ... let's see what this body can do. He puts his hand on the side wall between two doors, find a hand-hold, and plants a foot on a slight bend in the rock about two feet off the ground. He lifts himself up effortlessly. Taking a few tentative steps up the wall, he becomes fairly certain that he can crawl all the way up. Before continuing, he frees his left hand and swings his head and torso around, saying, "You would think that the necromancers would have thought of this." He drops down, and makes the arcane gestures for the Detect Magic spell. Hopping back onto the wall, he makes his way towards the runed piece of stone, and stops about 60 feet away, examining the object. Then, moving closer, he tries to look for some kind of opening or crack along the edge that he might exploit ...

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj looks down to regard Suzette with a glowing yellow eye. He shakes his head, mutely.
The scarecrow head emerges from his shoulder again and grins at the damp woman, the black laces stitching its mouth criss-crossing the glow of its mouth.
"Everyone has a shadow," it says in Noj's voice, "But Noj is cursed, you see. Ha-ha. In fact, I'm Noj. He just won't admit it yet."
The mummified man growls and swings a dessicated fist at the scarecrow's face but goes right through it. The shadows twist and coil around his arm and flow up until the shadowy scarecrow springs from his hunched shoulders like a standard, bobbing and curling in an imaginary breeze.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob"

"Maybe if one of us could get up there" Oathbreaker starts what he thinks will be a futile attempt to climb only to realize that he is climbing the wall, and then the ceiling without any apparent effort. "woah!... YES!"

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The sigil is an elaborate binding diagram turned outwards preventing the passage of creatures. Normally, such a diagram could be used to hedge off extraplanar creatures but this one has been altered to affect undead instead. What's more, at the center of the circle lies a simpler sigil, that of a keyhole and key. Known to most mages, that is the symbol for the hold portal spell. Persumably, the stone is a trapdoor of some sort and the symbol is holding it shut.

Neither Alaeth nor Hellstar can cross the barrier in either physical or gaseious form and Alaeth suspects the ghost-like characters won't be able to either. Hellstar realises his detect magic does not extend beyond the outer reaches of the barrier-it has been made to stop magic as well as attacks or physical entry. It is as if the presence of the sigil's creator is brushing them and their efforts aside without him being there at all.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

It appears that we are all cursed in some way.
Slowly, as if anxious not to scare away a small animal, Suzette moves her hand in the area between Noj and his shadow to see whether it would be visible on her arm. Strangely, it isn't. Sensing that her overeager attention puts Noj in a gloomy mood, she tries to bring his mind back to other things.

I think I lost my family too when they captured me. Of course, I cannot know for sure, since my memory is blurry. I don't believe we should dwell too much on that question, though. If they are dead, then maybe we are destined to avenge them. If they are not, then our paths may cross again some day. The only way to find out is to move forward, though it appears there is a block on our road.

She looks at the presumed exit, thinking about a way they might get up there.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Frowning up at the sigil, Virmas starts digging through the body pile. "Wonder if there's anything usable in here that we could use to break that sigil..."

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

The dark mist flows downwards more rapidly than it rose, reforming into Alaeth, who purses her lips in vexation as she stares upwards at the sigil. "Warded against our passage, and the door is magically locked as well. I suppose one of you could force it open, if we could bypass the circle... but such spells are usually impossible to violate if prepared correctly." She continues to frown upwards, then turns to Myriel. "Sister, could you bring the trapdoor down? Your magic cannot pass the circle, but you might be able to weaken the stone around it. Or simply blast a new way through." That might be faster.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj listens silently to Suzette's speech, and the shadow slowly withdraws once more. He wordlessly reaches a hand forward and squeezes her shoulder as he bows his head. After a moment's silence, he straightens up a bit more and jambles to where the others stand crowded about the sealed stone. Silently, he draws back his fist and lets fly at the stone, seeing if even his strangely-powerful hands have a chance of harming the surface.

[Lochar]

Virmas

After digging through the corpses again, Virmas again peers up at the sigil. "The whole ceiling isn't runed, is it?" Shifting to his non corporeal state, which is becoming decidedly easier, Virmas concentrates and rises up.

"Can I pass through the ceiling where the runes don't reach?" Virmas pushes up against the ceiling where it touches the walls, well away from the center of the room.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker attempts to force his way through the barrier through shear force of will.

Charisma Check [roll0]

"Solid air... magic... (grumble)" (pokes at barrier with 'club' fingers)

Edit: Thats my attempt for this 24 hour period...

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Shaking his head in disappointment, Hellstar dismisses his spell and drops down from the ceiling, landing on all fours. "That's a hold portal spell. Magically fortified, looks like. We might be able to do something to it with dispel magic or knock, but I don't have those spells memorized. We could also try forcing it, but from the looks of it, it's a very heavy stone trapdoor with arcane magics on it -- it would be very difficult. May I suggest that us Magisters take a shot at breaking stone supporting the door instead? But first we should clear out of the way of any rubble which may fall."

The door is only five by thirty feat; logic would dictate that any hinges would be on a long side. Stepping back a good twenty feet, Hellstar begins launching eldritch blasts around the portal, hoping to find that hinge and bring the whole thing down.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth gives both Oathbreaker and Hellstar amused glances; the one for ignoring what she'd said about being unable to pass the circle, the other for repeating more or less what she'd suggested. "I wonder if death has made their hearing worse?" she remarks idly to Myriel, moving back to stand well out of the way if the magister's blasts should bring the door down.

"Go ahead and try," she calls to Virmas as he tries to rise through the ceiling. "I doubt they were that careless, but if they were, the runes may not protect the other side of the trapdoor."

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan moved away from the center of the room, and then decided to leave the arcane casters to their business. He felt vulnerable without a weapon in his hands.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Between blasts Hellstar walks over to Alaeth and whispers in her ear, "I hear you, you know. The first and the second time. But it's sometimes good for the ... more vigorous folk to hear a second opinion, don't you think?" He smiles sweetly at her and her twin, firing an eldritch blast with his off hand; despite their disgusting undead appearance, they were rather cute. Very cute, really, now that he looks at them. Why, if they weren't trapped underground ... Gah! What am I thinking! No, I must end this unlife before I become enamored with it!

[Ramos]

Myriel

Smiling at her sister the blond twin raises a hand towards the trapdoor.
Eldritch energies do not deal nearly as much damage on inanimate objects as they do on the living-or those creatures sustained through necromancy or transmutation. However, this shouldn't be a problem. I have been breaking down things with magic for decades.
Making repeated throwing motions and wispering an incantation again and again, Myriel employs the same sonic blasts she used on her sister's cell. She aims the blast not on the door itself but at the stone around it. Between attacks, she speaks at the other warlock.
I am not sure but I believe you are mistaken. If the trapdoor would merely open to allow access why would they make it five by thirty feet? If, on the other hand, it was some sort of retractable staircase, it would need to reach the ground at an angle. Thus the thirty-foot length. In case you didn't notice, the room is only twenty feet high. Also, we should probably be careful-demolishing the door completely or opening up a hole won't do-most probably not all of us can fly, turn gaseous or climb up walls.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

"Virmas, did you happen to see anything we could use as a rope when you went through those bodies?"

While calling out to Virmas, Suzette walks towards the wall where Hellstar climbed up with such ease. She tentatively feels the stone, looking for any cracks that might give her toes and fingers some support. It takes her quite a while to make any progress, and when she does it is with far less elegance than he did.

Not having spider climb, she takes 20 to climb up (total of 40) Let's see how far she can get.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth bestows a smile on the man, curious, amused and approving all at the same time. It was flattering, but also felt slightly... condescending was not truly the right word, but the elf was clearly looking at someone much younger than her.

But when she speaks, it is to Myriel. "I know, sister. But I think that all we need to is break through the ceiling. Certainly, from that point onwards our options will be much greater. And..." Her black eyes are rather hard to read, but for an instant they seem to flash sadly. "I think..."

Abruptly, she seems to flash, as if the world blinked for a moment, and is replaced by a great raven, standing taller than any in the room. It half-spreads its wings before abruptly hunching; a completely black eye stares at Myriel for a moment before the raven shrinks back into Alaeth, looking slightly distraught. "My familiar..." She glances about as if expecting to find the raven somewhere in the room, but cannot.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker ties a 'club' to his belt with the shredded scraps of his shirt. Walking up the wall to the struggling Suzette he smiles and offers his hand "A hand for the lady". If she does take his hand he will help her to the roof and support her in her efforts.

It costs nothing to help a maiden in need of aid.

Edit: Of course if this is some kind of butch prove yourself thing thats cool...

[Belial_the_Leveler]

'Jacob' fails to penetrate the barrier, recoiling from it. Further attemtps to penetrate it do not neet a rebuke but the barrier is as solid as iron. Jakob suspects he's lost his chance to pass through for the time being.

While Suzette slowly and carefully climbs up the chamber's stone wall, meetes the ceiling, and realises she can go no further, magic blasts at the door itself simply fail to cause any damage. Cracking the stone would break the circle and the magic of the warded object prevents that even indirectly. When the first blast falls on the stone around the door however, the door groans and loosens a quarter of an inch at one side. It is clear the hold portal rune keeps the door closed and locked-but it needs the surrounding stone to do so. Breaking the stone would open the door.

Unfortunately, the creators of the dungeon seem to have prepared for that. The pattern of runes flashes and fades in intensity a bit and suddenly black smoke seeps from the inside of the circle and into the room. The smoke was not there a moment before...

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Provided that Suzette doesn't take my hand in favor of preparing for combat, I will do the same. I move down the wall to the floor drawing my stowed 'club' as part of the move.

Edit: Otherwise I will hold her close to comfort her. :smallamused:
If its necessary I will roll initiative, spot and listen:

Initiative [roll0]
Spot [roll1]
Listen [roll2]

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth clears her thoughts. I cannot feel him... my death would have broken the bond, but he is most likely dead. Her mourning must be put off as the door cracks open, and smoke begins to pour out.

She moves back, and chants in Elven, weaving the gestures for a spell. "Varna, ingóle ar vilya." That finished, she watches the spell carefully, trying to analyze what sort of magic this might be. Smoke, in and of itself, would not harm the dead... thus, it was either a side effect or was magic itself.

Cast Mage Armor. Spellcraft [roll0] to tell what the smoke is.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

As the smoke oozes towards the ground, Alaeth realises that, though magical, it is not a spell. It is a creature reeking of necromantic energies in gaseous form, perhaps some sort of guardian responding to the attack on the door.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Suzette gratefully accepts Jacob's offer to work together, and is slightly surprised when the appearance of the dark mist sends him off an into a combatative (sp?) stance. Reminiscent of Noj's shadow, she assumes it is the same type of creature, though larger, and calls out to it:

"Hello there! Have you found a way out of here?"

[Ramos]

Myriel

Stopping her barrage and waiting to see what this new development will amount to, Myriel crosses her arms and readies herself for a fight-if that is a guardian, it will be needed.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas pauses from looking for a space in the ceiling to pass through and comes down, looking at the cloud oddly.

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan instinctively covers his mouth and nose with one of his hands, seemingly still caught in the habits of life. Finally snapping into action, he pulls on his long sessions of training, and begins to assess the magical energies in the area, focusing on the smoke.


Detect Magic, Spellcraft [roll0]

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The smoke coalesces into a huge undead monstrosity, hideous to behold. The head, hands and torso of what used to be either a very large human or a very small giant end in ten thin, whip-like black tentacles that extend twenty feet beyond the creature's main body, the upper part only of a mummified man's remains-though without the wrappings-radiating a palpable aura of evil. Black ooze seems to drip from the creature but quickly disperses into black smoke and red malignant magic smolders in its eyes...

[Lochar]

Virmas

(From about 35' away) "Ah, another one. Can you help us get out of here? We're trapped, and we'd like to leave."

Edit-- I choose you, my good buddy, for dodge ball!

non corporeal AC: 24, all touch.

Coporeal AC: 31, Touch 19, FF 22

Currently non corporal.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Suzette slides down the wall with surprisingly more grace than she had climbing up, ending up next to jacob. She looks up at the creature attently and awaits its answer to their questions.

Slow fall 20ft to slide down without taking damage.
[roll0] and I declare my dodge on you! the creature (AC 32, 20 touch)

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

The Oathbreaker will do what he does best: lie (free action conversation, not feint) "Thank goodness you're here! These other creatures were trying to escape but we killed them all" waves a 'club' toward the heaped bodies we will return to our cells if you'd only let us" {Bluff [roll0]} (he doesn't even try to hide the smirk on his face, so thats a penalty if it's even listening I guess)
Oh, and it's my dodge buddy.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
watching the mist-creature coalesce into its normal form, the patchwork man can't help but shudder.
Is that what I'll end up being? A monster of mist and tentacles?
Noj murmurs a prayer of protection he'd learned long ago, the syllables strangely bell-like in the gloom. As he does, spiraling out of the ground by the new monstrosity comes a black shadowy scarecrow. Noj's scarecrow. It leers and cackles and dances, twirling about on its post in a grim fandango. Noj shudders and jerks along with the scarecrow, clearly growing more and more upset.
"No...NO!" he shouts, his voice scratching like torn velvet, "I'll not become like you! Damn you....DAMN YOU!" He thrusts an accusing finger forward and for a moment shadows lick at the tentacled monstrosity...


Cast Protection from Evil on self.
Dark Companion moves to opposite side of newcomer. (-2 to saves and AC)
Then Free Action to use Hexblade's Curse Will DC 18 or The target of a hexblade’s curse takes a –2 penalty on attacks, saves, ability checks, skill checks, and weapon damage rolls for 1 hour thereafter.
Declare Dodge on the Creature. Assuming it's Evil, new AC is 33.

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan knew he should be afraid, he should be frightened, but he simply wasnt. He blamed the shock of the recent event for that one. Ethan knew that he was not much use without a weapon, but he decided to prepare himself for the inevitable attack anyway.


Searching for something to be used as a weapon (an iron bar from the doors perhaps) [roll0], designating "Big Ugly" as the dodged opponent.

[Ramos]

Myrel

Seeing the newcomer is a hideous undead monstrosity-OK, an undead monstrosity more hideous than those in the group anyway-Myrel does not resort to pleasantries. She immediately launches a bolt of sonic energy at the creature.


[roll0]
[roll1]

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Seeing that his magics had released a monstrosity, Hellstar felt responsible but unafraid -- he had, after all, faced undead before. Nothing quite so hideous, but monster nonetheless. He had to remind himself that undead were immune to certain mortal concerns like fear, and that he was probably benefiting from that fact more than he'd like to admit.

"Prudence may be the better part of valor, but I doubt it's here to talk." he says as he backs up, giving himself nearly 60 feet of space between him and the mass of tentacles. His newfound speed should give him room to maneuver around the thing, but he has no idea how fast it can move. He gathers eldritch energies in his hands, and scans the room for some sort of advantage he could use against it. Maybe collapsing the roof onto it, or ... Everything I think of requires spells I don't have memorized!


Current AC: 23. touch 13

[roll0]
See if I can recognize what that thing is, or at least figure out what might be a good course of action:
[roll1]
[roll2]

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Not waiting for anyone else to attempt a parley with the creature, Myriel blasts it with magic of her own that, surprisingly, has no effect. Like some denizens of the lower planes, this being seems to have a resistance against elemental attacks.
Vilmas turns fully incorporeal and, standing away from the creature, waits to see what the creature will do.
Suzette glides down slowly as if by a feather fall magic-though no magic aura emanates from her-and lands on her feet without a sound.
Ethan searches for a weapon around the room then realises his own hands are probably as good as a steel blade when it comes to fighting now.
As Hellstar moves well away from the creature and Jacob tries to bluff his way past the fight, Noj bestows a portion of his curse upon it, his shadow double laughing crazily, and invoces a charm of protection. Surprisingly-to him anyway-magic responds to his wispered charm and forms a barrier against evil around him.
Its tentacles writhing and extending, the undead monstrosity reaches out to anyone too close to it. Alaeth, Noj, Jacob, Suzette, Myriel and Hellstar are slapped by a slimy tentacle each, the corruption in the creature almost making them vomit. But that is not nearly as dangerous as the necromantic energy coursing from the creature's tentacles into them. Flowing through their bodies, this spell of necromancy seeks to halt the flow of negative energy animating them and thus paralysing them outright. The energy seems to flow around Noj without touching him-perhaps a benefit of his protection from evil-but the others find their muscles responding less than before, on the verge of collapsing outright.


Anyone touched 'benefits' from halt undead will save DC 19. To keep acting you must make the save otherwise you're paralysed. Arcane Resistance and similar abilities apply. Noj's protection from evil shields him from that.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Ghrrk!


Will Save [roll0]

Oathbreaker spends the rest of the round paralyzed (and possibly the rest of the fight...)

Edit: actually, if someone damages me I'll be free

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj stares for a moment as the tentacle rebounds off of some unseen force. he could feel the corruption streaming off of the giant; a symbol of everything he feared becoming.
Maybe I'm not damned yet...Maybe there's still hope.
Grimly, The mummified man stalks forward and pivots on both feet, swinging his mighty fists around in a sledgehammer blow at the horrible creature in front of him.

Power Attack 4
[roll0]
[roll1]
EDIT EDIT: Subtract 4 from damage; the Slam is not a two-handed weapon.
EDIT: AC Vs. Thingy: 37

To his shock, the blow has far far more follow-through than he had expected. With a hideous crack, Noj faces the other way, his torso completely reversed on his waist, until whatever tension that still exists in his leathery muscles forces him back to facing forwards.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth resists the urge to cry out in shock as the tentacle slaps her—physical combat was not what she was best at! Or had not been, at least, before her... transformation... but she could feel magical energy stored within her in any case, ready to use.

Will save [roll0], will edit with actions once I know whether I can move.

[Ramos]

Myriel


Easily ignoring the paralysing power of the undead thing, Myriel moves away in a blur to avoid any forthcoming melee attacks.
The power of my patron defends me, fiend. I cannot be held.
Turning around, she raises one hand and thin, jagged bolts of lightning-or what looks like lightning-strike out from each finger at the monster.



Force Lightning Eldritch Blast.
[roll0]
[roll1]

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth is not so lucky as her sister; the necromantic energies powering her body drain away and leave her frozen in place, unable to utter the words that could perhaps take control of the foul entity set to guard them. Still, she may not be utterly helpless—her studies with her sister have taught her things most mages do not learn.

She draws on magical energies through sheer force of will. Heat drains out of the air around the creature, and black and blue flames flicker over its frame for a few moments before winking out.

Using Fiery Burst; it's a supernatural ability, so she can do it even while paralyzed as long as she can take mental actions. If she can't even do that, I'll edit this out. [roll0] fire damage, Reflex DC 24 half.

And Knowledge (religion) [roll1], to see if she knows anything about what the creature is.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Oh, yes, attack the newcomer, then call him a fiend when he defends himself. And now it is too late to halt a fight.

[roll0] I'll wait to see if she can actually do anything.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Since I don't want to edit a post with a roll in it: Suzette was thinking that, not saying it. I just forgot the colour and italic.

As the creature lashes out at her with its tentacle, Suzette's attention is involuntarily drawn to the revolting, dark slime trail it leaves on her. "Will I become just like this?" flashes through her mind before a freezing cold bursts from the spot where she was hit and spreads through her body like an internal explosion of ice.

She wants to run over to Myriel and hold her down before she can do any more stupid things, she wants to yell out at the tentacled one and assure him that at least she doesn't mean it any harm, but whatever she might want, she isn't moving, as if the link between mind and body has been forcibly cut. Helpless and frustrated, Suzette has to watch how the fight unfolds.

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan realizes that he has to help stop this monstrousity. The others may be undead, but atleast they seemed partway reasonable. Then again, we did fire first. The thought continues in the back of his head as he runs towards the creature, his fist in full swing.


Charge, To hit: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
AC: 18 (19 vs the big guy with dodge) HP: 33

[Lochar]

Virmas

"It would have been nice to at least see if it was like us, you know? Instead of attacking it outright.

Virmas moves closer, becoming corporeal again, and is surprised at how quickly he moves.

He raises his arms above his head, bringing them down against the creature with a hard blow.


AC: 23, including dodge declared on creature. Incorporeal.

Double move to the creature, and then power attacking for 3.

[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

I fumbled a natural attack. Do I drop my fist?

[warbacon]

Hellstar

As Hellstar was putting some distance between himself and the creature, he gets as far as "I'm pretty sure it's design-- Urk!" before a tentacle catches him on the cheek. Necrotic energy flows out of him, a feeling he rather likes. He is powerless, but that strange coldness that kept him moving is subdued, for now.

Question: Hellstar had an eldritch blast readied ... could I try to fire one off, even though I might be off-target?

Status:

AC vs. 'it': full 28, flat-footed 25, touch 14
HP: 27
Effects: Mage Armor, All-Seeing Eyes, Entropic Warding

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Jacob, Alaeth, Suzette and Hellstar are immobilised by the vile undead being's paralysing touch but not without Alaeth answering with a bolt of fire. Alaeth's evoked flames seem to be capable of harming the creature unlike her sister's conjured orb of sound.

In answer to the creature's attack-or rather, continuing her own attack-Myriel blasts it with magic bolts that look like lightning she shoots out of her outstretched hand. Hitting the creature squarely, the bolt burns a head-sized hole in its torso, the stench of burned, rotting flesh spreading in the chamber.

Immune to the creature's paralysing attack, Noj strikes out with his bare fist with a strength several times that of a common man. His blow, powerful enough to punch through iron, crushes one of the ribs protruding from the beast's torso, more damage than most weapons would have done but still less than Noj expected of his newfound strength-just like many undead, the creature's supernatural flesh is hard as iron.

Charging at the tentacled horror, Ethan strikes with less strength than Noj but still enough to dent the creature's body. Much more than that would be needed though if they were to defeat it.

Closing in his incorporeal form, Virmas strikes at the undead guardian while turning corporeal at the same time but misjudges the distance and his fist flies wide.

In retribution to the attacks by the group, the creature strikes out with its tentacles at everyone nearby, all except Myriel. Instead of using his paralysing attack-or maybe he can't-the undead guardian tries to crush you in its grip. Noj and Ethan are strong enough to throw the grasping tentacles off them and Virmas is, surprisingly, swift enough to avoid a not very well aimed blow. The four members of the group still held in the grip of the paralysing enchantment can do nothing to avoid the snare though. Even though their paralysis breaks at the creature's direct attack, they are momentarily disoriented and fumble for as long as it takes for the greature to get a good grip. The foul slime on its tentacles seeps into their undead flesh and a sudden weakness overcomes everyone held.


Jacob, Alaeth, Suzette and Hellstar take 12, 11, 8, 11 damage respectively (before DR-apply it yourselves) and 1 strength penalty. They are grappled and may try to escape (either with a grapple check or with an escape artist check) on their turn.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Seeing the holes created by magic, Virmas scowls. "Here's where I wish I had a real weapon!"

He slams he fists against the creature again.

Power attacking again for 3.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage:[roll1]


Stats:
Corporeal:
AC: 31
Touch: 19
Flat: 23
HP: 32/32

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
The abyssal light that forms Noj's exposed eye flares again in the darkness as his blow strikes home. The crunch of that rib had been...satisfying. Exciting. For a moment, he had almost felt alive again.
In the heat of battle, Noj cackles, his voice forming an eerie duet of manical bloodlust with his shadow that still capers about the monster.
Noj clenches his fists once more and turns on the worn heels of his boots. With a sound like a bone ratchet, he crouches and spins at the waist, the motion contorting his spine as no living man could manage. His long arms swing outstretched like vile cables as he sweeps them towards the creature's legs, trying to trip it up.

Trying for a Trip attack.
[roll0]
[roll1]
(If the curse affected the monster, it'll take a -2 penalty on its opposed strength)

[Revlis]

Ethan

At seeing the creature's (appearent) vulnerabilty to lightening, Ethan focuses on his arcane training, as he attempts to dodge the creature's tentacles. Ethan bringning a pale nimbus of lightening around his hand. As the energy crackles around his hand, Ethan pull back, and then swings at the creature with full force. At contact, Ethan discharges the electric energy stored in his hand.


Casting Shocking Grasp definsively (DC 16)
Concentration [roll0]
Attack [roll]1d20+7]
Damage: [roll1] physical + [roll2] electric
AC: 21 vs big ugly with dodge HP: 33

(I'm assuming that with the +1 move action I can make 2 standard actions, if not, then just the shocking grasp)

[warbacon]

Hellstar (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28417)

As soon as the oozing tentacle touches him, Hellstar springs back to unlife. He has no time to react, however, and is instantly grappled. Reflexively he holds his breath, but two things flash across his mind: first, he doesn't need to breathe. Second, he wanted to finish his previous statement. But it was already clear the thing was specifically designed to keep undead where they belonged -- underground. But thinking of breath gave him another idea. Vampires are known to be able to take on a misty form, and so he concentrates, and imagines it in his mind.

If Hellstar is near the pile of bodies, he uses that as a route and double-moves (40 ft.) to a safe distance. Otherwise, he'll just move straight away from it.

Is dismissing gaseous form a standard action?

Status:
AC vs. Keeper: 18 (10 + 4 dex + 4 force armor + 1 dodge - 1 flaw)
HP: 26 / 27 EDIT: 27/27 because of Fast Healing
Effects: Mage Armor, All-Seeing Eyes, Entropic Warding, Gaseous Form

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

As the slimy tentacle painfully wraps itself around her body like an abominal cross between a black slug and a constrictor snake, the warm feeling she had after waking up flows through her limbs again and with it, her self-control. Immediately, she twists to shrug off the filthy appendice.

[roll0] that's 3 base attack + 7 strength + 4 from Improved Grapple. Fast healing 3, current hitpoints = 30

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth gasps in relief as the tentacle breaks the hold on her even as she struggles to get away from it, to no avail. She is stronger than she was in life, but only a little... and then as she struggles, her form shifts. In place of the elf woman, there is now a wolf with fur black as night being gripped by the creature's tentacle, easily the size of a small horse.

Making no sound, the wolf tries to rip itself out of the creature's grip and bound out of its reach.

With Quick Change, it's a move action to change to dire wolf form. Grapple check to escape: [roll0]. If she succeeds, Alaeth moves 50 feet away from the creature.

HP: 31/31 (DR and fast healing). AC as dire wolf is 17, setting the thing as my dodge target for 18.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

"By the GODS you stink!"

He attempts to break the grapple:

Grapple [roll0]

If I break the grapple I'll use the extra move action of mine to exit it's threat range (even though it provokes AoO, remember my mobility though...)

Fast Healing 3 kicks in, so current HP 30.

[Ramos]

Myriel

Those of you who can attack from afar do so-and spread in different directions so it can't grab us all at once!
While directing her allies to better effect-she appears to be arrogant enough to believe they should listen to her-Myriel blasts the abomination once more with Force Lightning an Eldritch Blast.


[roll0]
[roll1]

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Another bolt of eldritch energy blasts the undead guardian from Myriel's direction, punching yet another hole to its torso.
Myriel's sister Alaeth is having problems though-even in her wolf form she can't escape the undead being's hold and her strength slowly leeches away.
Jacob, in trouble as well, tries to push off the tentacle holding him but his attempt proves futile as well. His strength too continues to diminish.
Suzette, far stronger in undeath than the petite woman she appears to be manages to break the creature's hold and, using her supernatural speed, move away from it. No sense remaining within reach when her higher mobility would enable her to charge back and attack easily.
Hellstar, while not as strong as Suzette, has the presence of mind to turn into mist and use the hundreds of corpses littering the ground as cover until he's beyond the creature's reach as well.
Ethan casts a minor lightning spell at the undead monstrosity while simultaneously dodging its attacks. Succeeding, he discharges the built-up energy with a touch that burns away a portion of the creature's flesh.
Noj, remembering from his time in the militia that a tripped and prone opponent is easy to dispatch attempts to use that tactic against the tentacled monster. Its many tentacles and greater size however give it substantial stability and it retains its balance.
Attacking again, this time Virmas manages to connect-though his blow seems not to be doing more than negligible damage.

Despite being undead, the Guardian is not stupid. It realises Myriel has so far harmed it almost as much as the rest of the group combined-to say nothing of her being the first to strike a blow in the fight. Slithering forward and dragging its two victims along with it until its long tentacles can reach her, it lashes out and manages to get a hold of her. The sorceress, not being used to physical combat, is a relatively easy target. The corosive slime of the tentacled undead covering her and seeping into her pores begins to diminish Myriel's strength though despite its strength, the monster cannot harm her physically.


12 damage to Alaeth, 15 damage to Jacob, 10 damage to Myriel. Strength penalty increases to 2 for Alaeth and Jacob, strength penalty 1 to Myriel.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj is also not blind to the effect the woman's magic has been having on the creature. Hitching up his ragged trousers, the gangly cadaver vaults across the charnal ground until he stands next to the ravishing woman and murmurs his prayer once more...It had worked for him; Maybe it would work for her...
(Drawing AoO and moving to Myriel, then casting Protection from Evil on her)

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker, attempting anything to get free, feels himself get lighter, less substantial. Smirking at the possibilities of the abilities he's discovering he says "Here one minute, gone the next..."

He uses his standard action to take Gaseous Form and move 20ft. (because of two move actions) toward the nearest door thats torn off it's frame (outside the creature's threat range of course).

Fast Healing 3 so I'm at 18hp

[Lochar]

Virmas

Growling, Virmas moves and picks up one of the doors, moving back again and swinging it at the huge creature.

Assuming I can pick up the door and get back to the creature to wield at as a weapon.

Probably around 100 pounds?

If so... Attack:[roll0]
[roll1]

If not, normal attack on it.
[roll2]
[roll3]

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Filtering through the bodies was quite the experience. It may have provided cover from the monster, but it was a mind-altering experience. The intensity of being in a pile of bodies was indescribable. In fact, the more Hellstar used his new powers, the more his mind was being twisted.

Dismissing his form, Hellstar reappears about 50 feet away from the inky horror. He dashes to within 30 feet, launches an eldritch blast, and dashes back to safety. He doesn't have the time to launch an eldritch blast yet, but he charges his hands with energy and readies himself should the creature make a move towards him.

OOC:
Dismissing a spell is a free action, no? Otherwise I will edit my post to fit. I'm also assuming that the battle grid is laid out in such a way as to enable the maneuver above; let me know if it isn't.

Rolls:
[roll0] (3 BAB + 4 Dex + 1 Point Blank Shot)
[roll1] (Point Blank Shot)

Dismissing a spell is a standard action; my previous decision is null and void. Instead he is readying a move action to keep a minimum distance of 30' from the creature.

Status:
AC / FF / touch: 23 / 20 / 13, Dodge target is Keeper.
HP: 27/27
Effects: Mage Armor, All-Seeing Eye, Entropic Warding

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

The battering she is getting is not really affecting the wolf-elf, but a growl arises deep in the black wolf's throat as she sees the tentacled warden snatch at her sister. She can feel her strength leeching away slowly; clearly this method is less efficient than those employed by the others. The wolf dissolves into tendrils of black mist, which drift out of the warden's clutch.

Gaseous Form, move 40' away. Moving in the opposite direction as Myriel.

[Ramos]

Myriel

Instead of trying to escape the creature's grasp and lose time doing so, Myriel strikes back at it with her powers, arcs of lightning cascading over the creature's form from her hands. If she was lucky, the creature would be dead before it leeched all her strength away.


Using an SU ability is a purely mental action so I can do so while grappling. Shooting an EB at point-blank range shouldn't require an attack roll-I'm already touching the thing-but rolling just in case:
[roll0]
[roll1]

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan follows in the creature's wake, not wanting to give it time to recuperate. As soon as he reaches the creature again, he focuses his arcane might once more to create another glowing nimbus of electricity in his palm. As soon as it forms, he reaches out and discharges it into the creature's back, hoping the creature would turn around and abandon it's new prey, the one which has been the most effective in the fight.


Touch Attack: [roll0]
Damage [Electric]: [roll1]

Edit: ooh, thats not gonna be pretty...

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Doing her best to stay out of reach of the creature, Suzette makes her way to where Jacob's misty form is retreating.

"Jacob, do you think you could carry me up to where we had been making a hole in the ceiling? I want to see what happens if we make it bigger. I'm not going to fight someone who's merely defending himself to an unprovoked attack, but I have no intention of being kept prisoner either."

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Even while held immobile Myriel bites-more magical energy flows from her to the undead guardian, the creature's body beginning to smoke even though some of its previous wounds are beginning to repair themselves.
Discovering another vampiric ability, "Jacob" turns into a cloud of mist as well, floating away from the guardian and towards one of the splintered and broken iron doors. Alaeth likewise dissolves and joins him then moves in the other direction, realising that spreading out will make it impossible for the creature to target them all at once.
Suzette decides not to fight the undead guardian and withdraws towards Jacob. Still in his gaseous form Jacob could not carry her anywhere and wether he will once he reverts to his true form is yet to be seen.
Reforming into his human-looking form, Hellstar retreats almost up to the wall away from the creature. Still slow from his use of this mist-form-thingy vampires do, he's not sure he can react against the monster in time.
Ethan tries to use his lightning spell against the horror again but this time swings wildly, missing the target and failing to even touch the tentacled horror.
Leaping towards Myriel, Noj feels a tentacle slapping against his back but twists free with relative ease and his newfound resilience and ability to recover from wounds prevent any damage. Touching the sorceress while wispering his protective charm a second time, he bestows upon her defencive magic.
Virmas picks up one of the doors that have been ripped of their hinges rather than broken to pieces or blasted away but realises the creature was about to lash out anew. Better to wait for it to act rather than attack and get hit while still running at it.

Now quite angry at Myriel-obviously so despite its rotten features-the undead monster from the magic circle growls and a red flash surrounds Myriel once and she collapses in a nerveless heap in its grasp. The tentacle holding her lets her fall none-too-gently face-down on the floor amidst several rotten corpses.


You note the creature has fast healing just a bit better than your own (around 5).
Hellstar can't ready an action-he has only move actions left-so he moves away in a position opposite another party member so there's an even spread of group members around the thing.
Noj draws an AoO that misses due to extreme natural armor. The Keeper is not taking AoOs against those in gaseous form because he can't grapple them and can't realyl damage them either.
Virmas moves to and picks up a door but doesn't have enough move left to both reach the creature and attack in this round. Rather than risking a possible AoO and not attacking anyway, he waits.
Myriel takes enough strength penalty to reduce her to 0 strength and is paralysed. She's dumped on the floor face-down so she can't see the creature to attack it with magic either.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj watches dispassionately as Myriel sinks to the ground
Lucky.
Stalking forward once more, Noj pistons forward with a powerful fist at the ceature...

Power Attack 4, Intimidating Strike 0
[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

The black mist reforms into Alaeth, striding away further out of the creature's reach; she has no intention of being caught again. Her expression is coolly dispassionate... until she half-turns and sees Myriel unmoving and face-down on the floor. She jerks to a halt, lips drawn back into a snarl that reveal her fangs. She had been planning on trying to take control of the creature's necromantic energy, as it was the most efficient way to counter this threat and hopefully aid them, but if it had ended her sister... She would still do so, but if her sister were dead she made a silent promise to herself that this thing would not last a day longer.

Reforming about sixty-five feet away, on the basis that it will probably go for Hellstar or others attacking it rather than her. She also makes sure she's as close to opposite from it as she can get.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Hellstar grinds his teeth as Myriel falls. Not that he feels any particular sympathy for her -- he's just worried that he might be next. But fighting undead is his specialty, and it's about time this horror fell.

Moving eerily close to the monster, Hellstar brings his hands together in a praying motion, mumbles a chant, and claps his hands suddenly. They each glow with a whitish light, which he throws at the oozing Keeper. Then he quickly shuffles back to a safe distance.

Casting Life Bolt (Magic of Faerun, p105) Blast of Force
2 rays, ranged touch @ +8 AB, 2d4 positive energy 2d6 force damage + 2d6 of same for undead bane magic + 1 for PBS, -2 hp for me.
[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]

EDIT: New damage rolls in OOC.

He was around 50' away, moved to 30', cast, and moved back out to 60'

Status:
AC/flat/touch: 23/20/13
HP: 25/27 27/27

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan recognizes that the threat is even worse now than it was before, at least before Myriel was its causing it a great deal of damage; and though he wouldn't admit it to himself, he was safe so long as she remained his target.

With a wild ferocity, that had only been acquired in undeath, Ethan swings his fist into the creature with all his might.


Attack [roll0]
Damage [roll1]

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Secretly glad that yet another person who threatened him is either dead or harmless (another? I guess there have been others...), Oathbreaker reforms outside the creature's threat range. As he hears Suzette he weighs the possiblity of a second gaurdian summoning vs. the possibility of freedom. Ever chaotic (and secretly longing for the familiar thrill that danger brings, which has been strangely muted since he awoke in that cell) he stows a 'club', takes her hand and climbs the wall whisper-singing "Clever got me this far, then tricky got me in..."

I'm guessing that I have only to move outside its threat range, standard action to reform, move action to stow club and spider climb, and free action to take an offered hand. I believe that means I am now 'wielding' Suzette in one arm and a club in the other. I don't know if that leaves her without dex bonus to AC (I hope not) but at the very least one of her hands is occupied.

I really think this is a bad idea, but I'm not really gonna hurt this thing unless I have a bastard sword or two in my hands so meh...

Fast Healing 3 brings me back to 21hp

-lyrics from "The Package" by Perfect Circle

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

The moment he starts walking over the ceiling, Suzette grabs hold of Jacob with both hands. Once they reach the spot where the stonework has been damaged, she kicks at it.

[roll0] and if moving over there is only one move action, she flurries for another [roll1]

Yes, this might turn out a bad idea, but "I'm gonna hit that thing it's protecting" has destroyed many a lich. Plus, I was counting on drawing attention away from Myriel, but that is sort of a moot point now :smallfrown:

If the creature paralyses me again, you have my permission to wield me as an improvised weapon. After all, I could still channel Ki :smallamused:

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Jacob takes once more his physical form and easily lifts Suzette off the ground with one hand while climbing up the wall and ceiling.
Alaeth also reverts to her physical form and, anger filling her as she sees her sister struck down, is more than ready to send the monster back to its grave.
Suzette, despite the akward angle, manages a solid hit against the trapdoor, chips of stone flying left and right from the stone that anchors it in place but not from the door itself-the magic circle still shields it. Much more than one kick would be needed to crack open a thirty-foot stone door though and an angry growl can be heard from the monster below.
Hellstar blasts the creature with magic like Myriel did before though his own spells are more suited to combating undead than hers. The blast of force that strikes the creature burns away a fist-sized hole and more of the vile smoke spreads in the room.
Ethan strikes at the creature again but as before his blows seem ineffectual compared to those of the others. He is neither as strong nor as adept in magic as some of the other members of the group.
Noj on the other hand strikes the creature with such strength that one protruding rib breaks off completely along with a sizable chunk of flesh, a blow more damaging than anything the group has used so far.
Virmas, attacking in a two-handed door-whacking style, smites the undead guardian with the rusty door. Unfortunately, the door slips in his hand a bit and the blow does nowhere near the damage it would, had it landed solidly.

Proving once again that it is not a stupid automaton, the undead horror torns its attention to Noj. A thin, red-black ray of necromantic energy strikes out from the end of a tentacle and Noj feels a great portion of his strength abandoning him. Where before his hands could cut iron like clay now they only feel as strong as those of an above-average human.


Noj takes a -12 strength penalty. The creature is seriously wounded now.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Finding once again that using her undead strength to destroy things is immensely satisfying, Suzette continues to hammer away at the stone, a smile spreading across her face as the stone chippings fly around her.

[roll0] and [roll1]

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Laughing at the creature's angry cries and sizzling flesh, Oathbreaker goads it "Oh no! You'd better hurry! I think we're getting away!" as he attacks the same spot Suzette is attacking with a meaty 'club' swat and a kick!
It never says that a slam has to be with a fist or arm in the monster manual so...

Meaty 'Club' Smack [roll0]
Slam Kick [roll1]

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth darts back towards the monster, the words to a spell that would seixe its necromantic energy on her lips—but the words die there before she says them. The creature has not shown the singleminded persistence that an undead automaton would; instead, it has shown cunning, betraying at least some controlling intelligence. The spell was tenuous against those undead who still possessed minds.

Besides, she did not want this creature under her thrall. She wanted it destroyed beyond all hope of restoration. A startling bloodthirst wells up in her, although this creature possessed no true blood, and she drains heat out of the air again. Black fires burst into being for a few moments, dancing about the thing's head, and Alaeth darts back again, keeping her distance from the creature.

Move to within 30 feet, use Fiery Blast, move back again. [roll0] fire damage, Reflex DC 24 half.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Hurk!
Noj staggers as the corruption floods through his skeletal frame and saps his strength. Nonetheless, the scarecrow man punches again with a sledgehammer fist.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas grips the door tighter, swinging it again. "Damnable creature, go back to death!"

Going on the assumtion that we can slam with legs...
Attack with door: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

Secondary leg slam: [roll2]
Damage: [roll3]

[Revlis]

Ethan

Aware that his actions in this fight have not been as great as those with him, Ethan is unrelenting in his attack. He pulls back his fist, and drives it once more into the creature, hoping that it would be the final blow.


attack:
Damage: [roll]16+4
AC: 21 HP: 33

[warbacon]

Hellstar

"I think we almost got him!" Hellstar yells as he repeats his newfound technique. With his arcane energies still recovering, he instead fires off an eldritch blast.

Again, dash in to 30', blast, dash back out.
[roll0]
[roll1]

Status:
AC/flat/touch: 23/20/13
HP: 27/27
Effects: Mage Armor, All-Seeing Eyes, Entropic Warding

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Jacob still holds Suzette near the door with one hand so she can bring it down and, despite his desire to do some damage himself, realises his vampiric ability to walk on walls isn't powerful enough to hold him and Suzette both without at least three limbs touching the wall.
Alaeth evokes another blast of fire, dealing considerable damage to the undead guardian. The creature is weakening-but so are her allies and her sister is already down. They must bring it down before it does so to them..
Suzette continues her attack on the door despite the angry growls of the guardian. Each blow brings the door closer to opening and then they might not need to kill the creature-they could escape and leave it behind.
Hellstar's eldritch bolt strikes the creature and does considerably more damage than he expected. It appears his innate magics are close enough to spells to benefit from his special training against the undead.
Ethan strikes at the creature again, this tim his blow little more than scratching the fiend. He either needs to find a good weapon quickly or reconsider his prioroties-his undead metamorphosis hasn't empowered him much in the unarmed combat department.
Noj, weakened by the creature's malevolent magic, is unable to even scratch it this time-his blow glances off its rotten torso with little effect.
Virmas, attacking with his door once more, slips, swings wildly and totally misses the undead horror, dropping the door in the process. Swiftly, he picks up the door again with his vampiric speed but this doesn't diminish his embarassment at dropping a weapon during combat.

The hideous guardian, perhaps realising Suzette and "Jacob" are nearing their goal of opening the trapdoor, shoots another red-black ray at Jacob. Hitting him squarely, the bolt leeches off the majority of his strength and, combined with Suzette's added weight, this drags him off the wall and into a twenty-foot downwards fall. Suzette slams on the floor hard, not expecting such a fall, and only a split second later Jacob lands on top of her.

[Lochar]

Virmas

"I'm going to beat your bloody skull in!"

Power attacking for 3.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

By the way, I'm a shade. :P

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Thoroughly pleased by how well that last bolt did against their foe, Hellstar prepares himself to unleash another bolt of force. Wait, our foe? Why should I be feeling kinship among undead? Brushing aside his misgivings, Hellstart speeds towards the creature, lets his magics fly, and moves back a ways.

Same deal. Move, blast, move.

[roll0]
[roll1] (2 dice base, 2 dice bane, 1 pt PBS)

Status:
AC/flat/touch: 23/20/13
HP: 27/27
Effects: Mage Armor, All-Seeing Eyes, Entropic Warding

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Finally catching on that yes, the creature is there to keep them from getting out, Suzette rolls Jacob off of her, gets up, and glares at it angrily. She then slowly walks over to it.

[roll0]
Since falling is part of your move and she has to roll Jacob off, get up from a prone position and walk over, she can't attack yet.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
With a single-minded tenacity, Noj strikes again. His misgivings seem lost in the frenzy of battle, and he gives a muffled cackle as he strike blow after blow with his fists.
[roll0]
[roll1]
Although to little effect.

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan pulls his fist back once more, readying for another strike, but doesnt follow through. Seeing as how magic was more effective earlier, and realizing that many creatures are resistant to physical damage, Ethan decides on a completely different course of action. Focusing on his arcane teachings, Ethan's hands begin to flow into a complicated set of gestures, as he himself mutters a short incantation under his breath. A ray of positive energy extends from his hand, and towards the creature.


Casting Disrupt Undead
Ranged touch attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[Ramos]

Myriel

Seeing as how her sister, at least, is worried about her, Myriel enters her mist-form and moves as far away from the creature as she can. At least in this form she can move around, even if she cannot use any offencive powers or speak.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

As the creature continues draining the energy from her companions, Alaeth scowls, one again skirting closer to the creature. Again, she contemplates a choice spell, but now her allies are close enough to the creature to make that difficult. She contents herself with another burst of dark flames and retreats again, dark eyes glittering predatorily even as she wonders whether her precautions are worth anything; the creature has had little trouble attacking them from a distance so far.

Move into range, Fiery Burst [roll0], move back away.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

"Well sensei, You were right, clumsy and arrogant" Oathbreaker says reflexively, not even knowing exactly why (must have said it often) he thinks. Not quite sure if he can tackle the monster all de-strengthified he swats at the floor angrily as he gets up (at least my anger doesn't seem muted)
Sorry for the confusion with Slam. Guess it really was a wording thing and up to the DM. As to my actions...
4 points into Combat Expertise as I 'attack' the floor (you need to make an attack action for the feat to work) and use a move action to get up, and another to enter the creature's threat range.

How much damage did I take from the fall?
How much strength damage did I take?

Fast Healing brings me to 24hp

[Belial_the_Leveler]

As Myriel retreats in shadow form, "Jacob" moves off of Suzette, finding lifting himself off her very difficult, most of his strength having been drained. Maybe he did want to get on top of one of the "babes" but not like that and not in the middle of the fight either. Blinking with supernatural speed towards the creature, he strikes it with all his might-and fails to even scratch it.
Alaeth conjures yet another blast of flame but this time the creature manages to dodge most of it, taking no more than a slight burn in its shriveled hand.
Suzette comes to her feet quickly, not having to push Jacob off-even weakened he was just a bit faster than her-and launches herself at the undead horror, striking it with a powerful punch.
Hellstar's blast once more proves the most effective attack against the undead horror, burning off another hole in its torso, pus and rot dripping on the ground.
Ethan tries to disrupt the energies that animate the vile creature but his attack is feeble at best-a spell so minot would not be expected to do much against the horror.
Noj once again wields his bare fists at the creature but with most of his strength drained, he does little more than a few scratches.
Virmas decides to put all his strength in a mighty two-handed blow with his door but that doesn't do much good to his aim, already fouled by the door's massive bulk. Naturally, he misses as he swings wildly...

Realising it is in dire peril, the creature disperses into black smoke and hides below and within the piles of dead bodies in the room, biding its time until its ability to recover from wounds heals it up...


Oathbraker has taken a total of -15 strength penalty. 13 from the last attack and another 2 from the grapple.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

After watching her target literally go up in smoke, Suzette longingly looks up at the ceiling.

If only I could fly... but I can't. And I wouldn't want this thing making me fall down again, anyway.

She walks over to the body pile, looking closely for any sign of the black smoke, ready to whack at it if she does, flinging bodies out of the way if necessary.

[roll0] I don't know if we can still hit it, but just in case:
[roll1] for [roll2]
[roll3] for [roll4]
A monk's unarmed attack is considered magical for overcoming DR

23 hp, 32 AC, 20 touch (with dodge)

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas dumps the door, before going incorporeal again. He rushes through the pile of bodies, searching it for the creature.

Corrupting Touch if he manages to find it.
[roll0] Touch attack.
[roll1] damage

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker, frustrated, hurt, and incapable of hurting the monster, retreats to a nearby cell to heal, hide, and think about what he can possibly do the escape this hellish dungeon.
He once again punches a wall for 4 points of combat expertise and attempts a hide check.

Hide [roll0]

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth likewise has no intention of letting the creature escape; she moves through the bodies, ignoring what would normally be a nauseating experience—she has other things on her mind right now. She attempts to find an exposed section of the smoke, methodically scourging it with her summoned fire again.

Her strides take her closer to Myriel, and her shoulders relax in relief as she sees her sister take a mistlike form; Myriel was still alive. Or as alive as could be expected, at any rate.

Trying to find an exposed section and hitting it with Fiery Blast. [roll0], Reflex DC 24 half as usual. If you need a Search or Spot check to find part of the creature to target, Search [roll1] or Spot [roll2]

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan is momentarily surprised when the creature turned to mist, but this made him realize just how dangerous it is. Even if they escaped, it could simply float after them and attack again. Ethan had assumed the original smoke was part of a summoning spell, but it seems that he was wrong. Ethan, caught in a frenzy to finding the creature, flicks the bodies aside without realizing what he's doing, or how easily he's doing it.


[roll0]
[roll1]

[warbacon]

Hellstar

One moment Hellstar is relieved that the creature has fallen back, and the next he realizes that it will be next to impossible to find it in that pile. "Alaeth, Virmas, Suzette. That thing has incredible regenerative capacity. It will be at full strength in another minute or two. I think we should focus on dropping the door instead of wading through hundreds of bodies. It will take too long."

Hellstar finds his way up the wall and to the point on the ceiling where Suzette was breaking through, and starts slamming it with his fist.

[roll0]

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The search for the undead guardian-turned-mist does not last long. Only a few moments after it vanishes in the midst of the corpses, Alaeth finds a patch of mist hidden beneath the bloated body of a drowned man. Before it has a chance to hide again, Alaeth blasts it with a burst of fire that burns away a substantial portion of the already feeble remaining mist and soon, with the creature found, the rest of the party concentrate their attacks on it. In an anguished wail that reverberates in the walls of the chamber, the mist disperses, the guardian finally dead.

The symbol on the door flares once then begins to fade, first the binding diagram then the central rune that holds the trapdoor closed. The damaged trapdoor groans, stone grating on stone, then suddenly opens up, the thirty-foot stone leaning at an angle, a flight of stairs carved on its upper surface.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

An odd ambiguous feeling takes hold of Suzette now that the Guardian is dead. On the one hand, she is satisfied that the way out is clear now, but on the other... that one hit she had given it had felt really good. Something akin to the experience of a cup of sweet, clear water after a long journey in hot weather. Slapping those tendrils of black mist at the end hadn't come close to it.

Making her way out of the heap of bodies and towards Jacob, she looks at herself. The water oozing out of her is slowly dissolving and mingling the puss, blood, slime and unidentifiable chunky bit from the Guardian and the corpses that she's waded through. As a result, her clothes look a bit like a vile work of modern art with blotches, runs and streaks through the different types of gore, except for the slime trail from the monster's tentacle. That tarry substance seems to be water repellant.

"Are you allright, Jacob? What did that creature hit you with?"

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas looks around, first to the body of whatever the creature was, and then to the others, before finally looking at the new exit. "I do have to wonder. Was that creature supposed to keep us down here and quiet, or was it a test by whoever created us to see what we could do? The newly open door is strange."

Virmas, still incorporeal, will slowly float up the stairs to peek just slightly above the top. He doesn't notice that he goes invisible again.

Hide: [roll0] + 20 for moving invis.

Move Silent: [roll1]

As an incorporeal, I don't think I make any sound anyways, since I don't have a body to scrap against anything, but rolled the Move Silent anyways.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
With a crackle and a hiss, Noj lets his arms fall to his side, and the glow in his eyes fades for a moment. The shadow scarecrow wordlessly spirals into the stone floor and vanishes. He didn't feel tired. Weaker, perhaps, but he knew if it came down to it, he could punch and strike and fight for hours. Whatever foul ritual had instilled him with life had granted him strength and endurance as well. And now the door was open. A world full of the living, any one of whom would scream and run away at the very sight of him. Did he even belong out of this crypt?

Screw that. I'm not spending eternity here.

Lifting his bandaged head, Noj looks up, and begins walking up the stairs towards freedom.

[Revlis]

Ethan

The fight opened something inside Ethan's mind, inside whatever is left of his soul. Though he was almost ineffective in the fight, it brought out a certain kind of excitement, a thrill he didn’t feel before. In the back of his mind, he knew what it was. This was what being alive felt like. He had always considered any conflict to be in poor taste, to be a necessity, but now things were beginning to change.

Only now did he begin to accept that he might be an undead creature. Overall, it didn’t feel too different than from being alive. Except for the cold.

"So, how are we going to get out of here?" Ethan asks, and as he does his body begins to fade and dematerialize slowly. Tendrils of wispy smoke began replacing what used to be limbs. Until he was nothing but mist. "Wow, this is amazing..." his disembodied voice emanates from the mist, as he floats in place.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

"Presumably by climbing the stairs." Hellstar takes a few tentative steps to see where the newly opened hole goes. Finally ... now I can end this unnatural existence. Provided that it's light outside, of course ... But even as he thought these things, he started to lost his determination to follow through with them. Unlife was treating him pretty well, all things considered.

So what happened to the sound of pitched battle upstairs? and what can we see through the opening?

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Responding to Suzette's question as he slowly emerges from the cell, Oathbreaker will warily look at the newly emerged staircase. "I'm unhurt, but sorta...drained, I feel like I could barely lift a sword. Wierd." He shakes his head and laughs a little "Kill the gaurdian and the door just opens? Ha, yeah right. Sounds like a con to me, but since we can't stay here..." He clumsily picks up a door shard (a 20lb. jagged shard will do) keeps one 'club', fumbles over the corpses and exits the room (slightly towards the rear of the group, but not at the end). I'm so feeble... and shaky...

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Suzette, feeling slightly responsible since it was her idea that got Jacob attacked, stays towards the back of the group as well. When they reach the stairs, she once more looks down to see if she can find any footprints that might show her a way out or tell her what else lurks here.

[roll0]

[Revlis]

Ethan

"That’s not what I meant. Like our companion there put it, it seems too simple. The door simply opening as soon as we kill the guardian is a bit too convenient. Don’t take this the wrong way, but its foolish to assume that anything here," and Ethan tries to wave a hand, completely forgetting that he is currently nothing more than formless mist, "is convenient for us. Who ever did this is likely to test that we are a success, or worse, wants only those that are deemed worthy to 'survive', as it were."

It takes Ethan a moment to realize that this is the most he's said to anyone since waking up, and for the implication of the last thing he said to sink in. Everyone might have to turn on one another soon enough, and to garner what reward? Eternal damnation and Servitude?

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Stopping after two steps, Hellstar turns around and shakes his head at Ethan. "No, it makes perfect sense, really. This set of stairs," he says gesturing below him, "were held in place by means of arcane magics that I am familiar with. However, they were suspiciously well protected and were clearly being sustained longer than the usual duration. I now believe that the Keeper, if you mind me naming it such, was powering and defending the relatively simple Hold Portal sigil. When it was destroyed, the power source was gone." He shoots and inquisitive look at Myriel and Alaeth, hoping to get their opinion on the matter. Then he looks back up and cups an ear to get an idea of what's ahead. Speaking in no-one in particular, "Or I'm just wrong and it was indeed a spell trigger. The fading of the sigil matches my hypothesis, but that strange flaring of energy on the door is somewhat out of place isn't it? Hrmmm."

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth moves to the misty form that is Myriel, bending down to whisper to her, "Can you keep up with us, my sister? We cannot linger here for long." If Myriel couldn't move... She didn't know what she would do then.

She straightens as the others discuss leaving, calling, "Whether it is a trap or no, we do not have much choice. Staying here for fear that there might be a trap does us no good." Still, she does not move towards the stairs until her sister shows she is following.

Hellstar's suggestion causes her to tilt her head, re-evaluating the other vampire. Surprisingly well reasoned for one so young. She smiles at him approvingly. "It is possible. Certainly the binding that held us from leaving was altered from the spells I know of, and the keeper was most certainly meant to keep back the dead." A watchdog for necromancers to set over their less certain minions.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Walking up the stairs-or floating for those that are incorporeal-the group exits the underground chamber and enters a bare, though this time built rather than carved out, corridor. The twenty-foot thick ceiling of solid rock gives way to the passage that extends to the left and right of the exit for thirty feet up to two massive, ten feet high iron doors. The passage itself is empty except for a row of spherical crystals roughly five inches wide each and a foot apart set at eye-level at both walls. Fifty crystals in each row, each has a red, leather-bound notebook stored into a hole in the wall beneath every crystal. What the crystals and the notebooks might be you cannot know-but the notebooks are numbered from one to a hundred and the doors in your room below number a hundred as well.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas looks at the notebooks, before trying to recall if his cell had been numbered previously. If so, he goes to the numbered crystal and looks it over.

Searching it for anything dangerous: [roll]1d20+9/roll]
If he finds something, disabling it: [roll]1d20+9/roll]
And then reading his own notebook.

If he doesn't know his own cell number, then obviously he's not going to do this. :P

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
His worn leather boots soundless on the cold stone, Noj shambles along the row of crystals, gangly arms hanging loose at his sides.
What on Earth?
The cells, you moron. Somewhere here is a notebook about YOU.
casting his mind back, Noj recalls the number next to his cell. 45. Yes.
Lighter on his feet, Noj paces to crystal number 45 and with trembling hand picks up the notebook and opens it.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Bounding back down the stairs, his head screaming, Those vile bastards!, Hellstar finds his shattered door and looks at the cells next to it to figure out which number his door used to be. Then he rushes back upstairs and finds the appropriate slot in the wall, searching for anything suspicious before grabbing the book.

As far as I remember, there were only two doors that were shattered: mine and Alaeth's. Her door was pushed in by Myriel, and mine was pushed out by me. So, I go find the one door that has shattered pieces outside the cell.

Assuming the doors are in some sort of order, I'm going to look at the numbers on the doors to the left and right and determine what number my cell was. If they're out of order, I'm going to examine the pieces of the door. Now, the shatter (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/shatter.htm)spell description implies that you break an object into dozens of pieces. Hopefully I'll be able to find the number.

Check to examine the book:
[roll0]

Then going to check some random other books from cells I know are empty.

And yet another Listen check to hear the battle above:
[roll1]

[Revlis]

Ethan

'I wonder what they have written about me here? What do they know that I don't?' Ethan thinks, and his mind jumps to the missing section of his memory, 'Is it possible that they recorded what I can't remember? What about the information about what they did to me. My newfound limitations and abilities.'
Ethan tries to squeeze the number of what was written on his cell, if there was even a number there, and then hesitantly approach the correctly numbered notebook.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

"Well, what have we here?" Oathbreaker moves to the book that corosponds to his cell and with mock flattery he says "A book about me, they shouldn't have" as he opens it (not a wizard or a rogue, so it'll either be trapped or not in his eyes)

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth glances about the room with a keen interest; obviously it was the records of the experiments. The purpose of the notebooks is obvious; that of the crystals was less so. A control device? A magical recording of the rituals used? She had never had any real interest in reanimating the dead, but all magic was fascinating in its way, and new ways to use it would always spark her interest. She examines the nearest crystal, pondering its purpose.

"Do you," she asks Myriel, "remember which number my cell was? Or yours?" Her sister couldn't answer in that form, but she could lead Alaeth to the proper records. Theory aside, this might shed some light on their predicament.

Spellcraft to tell what the crystals are for, if magic: [roll0]. Alaeth will investigate both her own records and Myriel's if possible.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Suzette does not remember what her own number was, but since Virmas' cell was across the room, she assumes 'her' notebook would be opposite his. She has very little interest in these books, however. What could they tell her that would be of interest? How she died? The exact nature of the process with which she was made undead? The number of creatures she had killed? Their names? None of that would serve her on her way out.

She stands in the middle of the passage for a while, observing the actions of the others and what happens as a result, then she walks over to the iron doors and tries to figure out how they would open. She listens to hear what lies beyond, and if there is a keyhole or a slit underneath the doors, she attempts to peer through it.

[roll0]; [roll1]; [roll2]

[Belial_the_Leveler]

A few moments of searching are enough to find the notebooks that match the rooms you were in. Each notebook contains notes in the same flowing script, including a short but accurate physical description of what you looked like when alive as well as the location and means of your capture. This description brings back memories of being overrun by undead or overcome by vile magic though the images are fleeting and more than a bit incomprehensible. Perhaps the horror of your capture and subsequent transformation has forced your minds to bury the memories. Apart from this first part that is basically the same in every notebook, there are two more parts. The second is a several dozen pages long essay of arcane formulae different in each notebook with the formulae written in a mixture of common and Netherese. Mostly unreadable-perhaps a code is used or your knowledge of the language is incomplete-the formulae seem to evolve with each page. The third part of the notebook contains what looks like directions for a ritual. The arcane part of the ritual follows patterns of high necromancy way beyond your ability to understand though they contain the final form of the formulae from the previous chapter. The physical part of the ritual is not difficult to understand at all. For many of you, the physical part is identical. In fact, there are three distinct rituals that some of you share:

In the first, the "subject" is prepared then bound within a magic circle then a Netherspirit of suffering is forced to posess it. The ritual continues with the killing of prisoners near the pentacle and the bound Netherspirit feasting on their souls and growing stronger until it becomes too powerful for a mortal body to support-upon which time the body dies, the Netherspirit is banished and the animating magic is applied.

In the second, something called a "Nightcrawler" is called from the plane of shadow and slowly leeches the life-force of the "subject" while a constant flow of magic ensures the "subject's" life-force is replenished continiously until the necromantic magic prepared beforehand takes and the subject is killed. Again, banishment follows for the called entity and reanimation magic is applied to the "subject"

In the third ritual, the "subject" is force-fed a mixture of a vampire's blood and ichor from a powerful demon for days with the analogy being slowly increased in favor of the demon ichor and supportive magic holding the "subject" in life until the mixture becomes poisonous enough to overcome the supportive magic and slay the "subject" at which point reanimation magic is applied.

It looks like all three rituals would last for days and be excruciatingly painful. From the description, it is clear the "subjects" would be awake though immobilised and silenced magically. It is a godsent gift you have no recollection of those days. A look in the other notebooks indicates the rest of the corpses have been similarly treated-but the experiments failed nineteen times out of twenty. In the case of the posession ritual, the Netherspirit eviscerated the subject telekinetically from within-that would be the mutilated corpses you saw below. In the case of the "Nightcrawler" ritual, the subject seemed to age and rot away, resulting in a useless pile of maggot-ridden flesh. In the case of the demon blood ritual, the subject's blood would spontaneously combust resulting in a fiery death. It would seem you are very, very lucky to have survived the process but exactly how lucky does not become apparent before you reach the last pages of the notebooks. It would seem that various animation techniques-many similar to your own-are described in passing and the vast majority of them resulted in either total failute-corpses that could not be used further-or partial failure, resulting in weak or mindless undead. From the notes and the number of notebooks it seems this specific castle handled in the recent past thousands upon thousands of captives. It is also clear that from these notes that the animation techniques have been refined and the creation of new, advanced types of undead is now possible with a chance of success of about one out of a hundred attempts. You are, perhaps, some of the first real successes this undead manufactury has had but if this information is spread you might not be the last.


Distracted from the contents of the notebooks, you do not realise the battle has escalated above until you put them down. Now, instead of just clashes of metal on metal and the still faint screams of men, there are frequent tremors spreading through the walls and floors indicating catapult fire-or evocations-employed against the building above. It can't be more than ten minutes since the battle begun though-you remember the sounds starting not long before your escape from your locked rooms.

Time spent reading through the notebooks has another side-effect. The curse of weakness applied by the Guardian is slowly fading, a portion of your strength already restored. Perhaps in a couple of hours, your full strength will have returned.

Checking the crystals you're surprised a single touch suffices to give you an image of what looks like the corresponding cell below. The image fades and a fleeting warmth remains in the crystal for a few moments. The crystals corresponding to your own rooms have some residual warmth from recent uses while the others are dead-cold. The crystals corresponding to Suzette's, Alaeth's and Myriel's rooms are warmer than the others with Myriel's crystal the warmer by far. That would either indicate a very recent use-unlikely-or very frequent and lasting uses in last hours.


I can't write down the contents of the notebooks for every single member of the group separately thus the general description. Now you remember the time and place of your capture-add it in your backstories. Also, quite obviously, the nightcrawler ritual applies to all Shades, the demon blood one to bloodlords and the Netherspirit posession to Doomknights.

Also, it appears there were far more male red wizards in the compound than female ones. :smalltongue:

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas is quite horrified at the words coming from the book. He takes the thing and holds it though, almost afraid to let it go.

He then looks to everyone else. Someone, one of you, must have fire spells. Keep your own book if you need to, but we MUST burn everything in here. No one can get these. Can you imagine what would happen if they managed to control an army of undead, such as us? If they refined the procedure to where any mage could cast it without problems?"

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

"Well thats...well..." Oathbreaker, uncharacteristically grim and molified by the violation that has occured not only to him but the others, leans against a crystal for warmth. Letting the book slip out of his hands he says "I want you guys to know that I'm in this with you. You've done me a good turn and that counts for a lot to me. Doesn't happen very often, you understand. I think I owe you guys, even you, you mean elf chick" (he looks at the cloud/miriel).

With this pronouncement his smirk/smile returns and he can't resist the urge to push it too far. "Well with that said, I say we get something to eat, I'm so famished I could eat a baby. You guys want to join in?" Before anyone gets too angry he finishes "I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" but thinks (man I'm hungry...)

Turning to Virmas he shruggs and says "I can't use magic man, sorry"

[warbacon]

Hellstar

"Virmas is right ... we should burn these books. Alaeth, weren't you using a fire spell?" As he speaks, Hellstar is flipping through his notebook to make sure he didn't miss anything that might reveal where he is and who his captors were. Red Wizards, almost certainly, he thought, but I need to know how far up this goes. Did Shzass Tam himself order us to be created? A distant rumble forces him back into alertness. Grabbing nearby books and throwing them in a pile near the trap door, he says hurriedly, "We must start these books burning before the invaders get here. More than likely they will kill us along with our creators, but they might keep the books. They must be burnt. Alaeth, and anyone else who can cause fire, start working on this pile. Everyone else, pile the books or look for a way through that door -- we must leave time for ourselves to escape."
So if Alaeth is the only one who can make fire, can she be setting fire to multiple places in the pile? And before we make the pile itself, so that we're adding books on top of already burning books? I just want to make sure we have good coverage...

After the pile is complete and burning well, Hellstar will check out the doors.

[roll0]

He can easily shatter small objects, but these doors are too large I think. Now, if he can find the hinges he might be able to shatter those. That's his first plan.

[Revlis]

Ethan

In a flurry of movement, Ethan (rematerialized while reading the notebook) begins running down the corridor, grabbing all the books he can, and tossing them in the pile to be burned. His mind was distracted with the new memories, they flared like hot embers inside him, but he supressed them, for now. Other matteres were more important, such as survival and the eradication of these arcane formulas.

"I'll collect them, somebody start burning them." Ethan says, before sprinting for another batch of books.

OOC:
I always wanted to be part of a book burning party :smallcool: , here is my chance.
Background story will be updated soon

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
His eye flaring in the abyssal night, the bandaged man whispers softly as he reads over his book, his voice like the rustling of dry paper.
"Aye, it was at the medic's tent...I remember Mrs. Bridget now. Were there really so many...?"
Turning a few pages, Noj shudders with rage and revulsion as he reads over the ritual. Reaching his long blackened fingers into the book, he tears out all the pages he can find that contain magical formulae, leaving only those that talk about him directly.
The shadow scarecrow ducks its head out of Noj's shoulder and grins.
"That there, in that little book: That was your life, Jon the Miller. 'Subject 45 captured in medical tent around town of Barnard's Cross. Extensive burns on upper body, but skeletal structure promising.' "
The scarecrow reads a few lines from the book in an austere mocking drawl.
" 'minor lacerations on legs and hands, strength rated at about 1.6. Tibia/Fibia ratio favorable.'"
it cackles again
"Warms the heart, doesn't it, Noj? You're a travesty and an abomination, and a living corpse, but at least your Tibia/Fibia ratio is A-okay! Gwah-ha!"
Clenching his fist, the towering bandaged man crushes the torn-out pages in his hand, and tosses the crumpled ball onto the growing pile of books, silently with head bowed.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Before Suzette has the chance to tell anyone what her inspection of the doors reveals, the others begin their fevered burning of the books. Without questioning why, she follows suit. After all, she had had her doubts about their content from the start.

Seeing as there are enough people gathering the books already, she runs back down and scours the dead bodies for anything that might fuel the fire, such as dry rags or even hair.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker will follow Suzette and grab some of the more 'flammable' corpses. "I've heard that it helps guide the spirit to the afterlife. At least thats what the Hathran in Rashemen say" as he begins the macabre task of dragging bodies to the fire.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

With Alaeth's help, the books soon begin to burn and smoke rises towards the ceiling. Burning a hundred books as well as the corpses "Jacob" is carrying is no small thing.

After closer examination, the doors do not appear magically sealed like the trapdoor was though they are quite thick and do not appear to have locks from the inside. Only a couple of minutes into burning the books and examining them though, you hear the hurried steps of men in armor from just outside and keys clinging into unseen keyholes on the outer surface of the left door. You realise some guards must have been alerted from the smoke that passed through the gaps in the doors...

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas stops burning books at the jangling and sets himself against the door, holding it closed (If it opens towards us).

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Virmas moves to block the door then realises that with the locks on the outside, the door almost certainly opens outwards too.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
With surprising quickness, Noj steps stands nearby the smoking pile of paper of corpses and lies down on the cold stone floor, adjusting his limbs to look splayed out, and allowing the the yellow gleam in his eye to dim.
((OOC: Noj is going to 'play dead' to try and get the upper hand.))

[Ramos]

Myriel

Standing over her sister's shoulder in mist-form, Myriel reads her own book as her sister leafs through it for her. When the others begin to burn the books she doesn't say anything though she'd like to learn a bit more about necromancy. Returning to her normal form with only a fraction of her strength returning, she stands up straight-as straight as she can in her weakened state-then clears her clothes and the rest of her body from any filth accumulated while battling the tentacly undead guardian. She then turns to her sister and repeats the process then moves to Suzette and does the same if the other woman allows her to ofcourse. She doesn't bother with the men though-unless they ask her. Nicely.
On hearing the door unlocking, she turns towards it and says to the others:
It would be best if I did the talking. Stay behind me and look harmless. Ofcourse, try to prepare for combat while doing so-I'll distract them to give us the advantage.
Turning towards the door, she makes her long, golden hair flow down her shoulders, magically enhances her strength of personality again and lowers the perfectly clean but taterred white dress she's wearing an inch or three.
And I can be very distractive when I want to.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth aids reluctantly in the book-burning, setting the piles alight with swift bursts of flame. It is not that she doesn't agree that this knowledge must be taken out of the hands of the Thayans, or that she would really want to create more of the dead, but destroying any sort of knowledge is anathema to her. She keeps her own record-book, intact. No matter how foul the ritual, knowledge could teach. She could always destroy it later if they were captured. She smiles gratefully at her sister, both at having her back and at the cleaning.

With the lock rattling, Alaeth moves back and sits down, drawing her knees up and huddling in on herself so as to look harmless. The men coming would know what they were, but the remembrance of what had happened to her could easily have incapacitated her. Surprising that it had not happened to any of the younger ones, really. She stares listlessly at the floor just by the door as she waits for them to enter.

Bluff [roll0] to look listless and nonthreatening.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Nodding, Virmas goes incorporeal, raising above the door. Again, his form slips into invisibility.

Imagine him laying against the ceiling, invisible.
[roll0] Hide, +40 unmoving invis

Really, do I even need to roll that? LOL

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Unsure of what to do in such close quarters with an unknown force about to open a nigh-unbreakable door, Hellstar takes a few steps down the stairs and crouches. If they're coming to re-imprison us, we'll have to fight, and with my newfound speed I should be able to pop out from the steps and back down before they can hit me. If they're coming to destroy us ... well I just might let them. We are truly cursed abominations. But it is good that we burned the books. He hadn't noticed Alaeth keep her own notebook, or he would have stopped her.

As he sat huddled down just out of sight from the door, Hellstar was hit with a sudden urge. He was hungry. Unconsciously it was unfocused, but his studies told him for what. And he hated himself for it.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Myriel's offer to clean her up takes Suzette by surprise - why would someone with unlimited arcane power use it for such a mundane task - but it is gratefully accepted. After all, everybody likes to look presentable.

Being downstairs, Suzette is one of the last to hear that someone is coming. She walks back up the stairs, doubly glad now that she is no longer covered in filth - looking harmless is a lot easier if you aren't covered in the bodily fluids from the previous being you encountered.

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan more than half expected Myriel to clean him up as well, but chose not to ask for it when she didnt offer. Being clean or dirty is a distracting thought to what truly runs through his mind, though his very being: hunger, anticipation, and something bordering bloodlust. He feels the urge to kill, to crush a living life with his newfound power. It was a strange feeling unlike any he'd ever had before.

Slowly, he tries to rein it in, to control himself. However, unsure of how much control he has over his hunting instincts, he decides to turn into mist form once more, and float into the smoke produced by the fire.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

As Miriel passes him by with passive contempt (despite his god-like form) he has to wonder (Is she just a man-hater or a total bitch? Maybe both...or a lesbian...) Outwardly however he gives his most wicked smile and asks "Oh beautiful one, if you would be so kind as to clean me as well I would be eternally grateful" Bluff [roll0] (bitch) <-mental conclusion

Regardless of whether she responds or not, as soon as Oathbreaker hears the jangle of keys in the door he will spider-climb the wall above the entrance and wield a 'club' one handed and at the ready.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The door opens slowly outwards-it must weight almost a ton seeing as it is several inches thick-to reveal a group of twelve men in black studded leather armor bearing shortswords. They don't look very confident and from their moves you realise they aren't very experienced either-perhaps that's why they were assigned to guard duty even during the battle upstairs.

When you see them, those of you with pointed fangs feel them slightly elongating and some sort of thirst surging within you. You hear their hearts beating within their chests and can feel the heat of their blood coursing through their veins. The vampire's thirst is not very strong though-not yet. Those of you without fangs-or the ability to turn incorporeal-instantly feel your bloodlust rising. These men are your enemies and it would feel good to kill them, to use all that newfound strength to crush their bones, tear them limb from limb. But the bloodlust you feel you realise it is a supernatural, demonic urge that doesn't yet control you. An unreasonable hatred blooms within the incorporeal members of the group-fear that you'll not be accepted in the society of the living, envy for those still alive. Why should they be alive and whole while you are empty shadows? The hatred lasts but a moment then reason reasserts itself...

The group of soldiers at the door is halted in their tracks, one or two of them staring at the fire and the corpses, most of the others staring at Myriel. The apparent leader stares at both the fire and the elf sorceress for a few moments, at a loss for words. Finally, he manages to piece together a few syllables and utter them with difficulty:
What... who... who are you lady? H-how did you come here? The door was locked, it was.

[Ramos]

Myriel

The elf sorceress returns "Jacob's" smile and employs her magic into cleaning him. That doesn't stop her from doing a snide remark-after all, he asked for it.
Maybe you think me beautiful-most men do and quite a few women-but I don't think you're grateful. Two lies so far-it is becoming a habit, is it not? Just so you know, I am not cleaning you because you asked-but rather because I can't stand the smell. As for your bad luck with women, remember that they don't like being lied to even if they do lie back.
Cleaning "Jacob's" clothes and body to perfection, Myriel leaves his face dirtier than before. It might be some time until he realised and it would be fun seeing him try to hit on her sister or Suzette with his face like that.

As the door opens, Myriel looks at the patrol leader in the eye and gives a winning smile, not showing teeth ofcourse. She did not want to alarm her next meal. While others may fear the curse of vampirism and try to fight it, Myriel did not see why she had to. Most probably, they'd have to kill these men anyway and why let them go to waste? Besides, she had heard that a vampire drinking blood from a human was almost as good as sex-and much cleaner and faster. She always wanted to try it.
We are here on Red Wizard buisness, leutenant. Though we do need some help-perhaps you and your soldiers could help us?


Dominate DC 21. Myriel will give no commands so that the strange behavior from a dominated person won't alert the other guards. She'll command them all after she's dominated them.
[roll0] to make the lead guard believe her.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

With an effort, Alaeth holds her gaze listlessly on the ground as the doors open, drawing one foot about in a small circle aimlessly. It is difficult not to glance up to see who—or what has come yet, but she manages it.

When she finally does look up, there is a new shock. Since waking, she had not been able to feel a heartbeat. Now, it is almost as if she can feel blood pumping through her veins again, intoxicating and alive. But the feeling had a sharp edge. It was not really hers, she deduces; it was theirs. She had known, or guessed, that she was some type of vampire before. She had not considered what it would mean.

Until now. None of her inner turmoil shows on her face, however, as she glances up at the guards. She finds that she can almost see their thoughts in their eyes, if she concentrates. As her sister informs the men that they are on business of the Red Wizards, she reaches out experimentally, wrapping her own will about one of the men's thoughts as he glances her direction.

Also using Dominate, DC 20. Assuming any of the guards can take their eyes off Myriel, of course.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

All the men now focus on Myriel-no distraction better than a scantily clad female vampire-sparing only glances for the rest of the group. The leader of the guards-Myriel doesn't know his rank and that would be suspicious under most circumstances-thinks about her words when his will is utterly crushed by the sorceress. It was so very easy-like crushing a sheet of vellum into a ball in your fist. Alaeth also employs her dominating gaze against a soldier that glances her way and similarly rips through his mental defences with ease.

One of the guards that doesn't seem as convinced yet as his fellows-or perhaps he noticed the burning books and is a bit alarmed by the fire-frowns at Myriel and the others-those that aren't hiding, that is-and asks:
But what of the fire? And the corpses? What happened here?

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Slinking down the wall silently and standing next to the door Oathbreaker chimes in "You missed out on fighting hundreds of undead baddies friend" *throws severed arm 'club' into the fire* "trashed our equipment and weapons we fought so many. Its been kind of a long day so don't give us trouble now!" He finishes as he attempts to will this man into believing him.
Bluff [roll0] [I meant to write +16 so its really 29]
Dominating Gaze on Mr. Reluctant (how do you figure the dc again? I forgot to write it down.)

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

The man was impetuous, or a fool. Myriel had them well distracted, and there was no reason to suddenly alarm them with the appearance of another person. A far more threatening person in appearance, at that. Still, done was done; she might as well make the best of it.

Alaeth begins to stand, dusting off her dress and shivering slightly—for effect; if she appears shaken by their supposed battle with the dead, so much the better. She allows herself to appear as if her confidence were gradually restoring itself; in truth, the man's weak will had already reassured her that she need not worry overmuch about this group. "That," she chimes, gesturing to the flaming books, "is why we were here. Someone should have thought sooner of a strike on the crypt." Her lip curls contemptuously, as if to add that it was just as well that they had. "As it was, we were unable to prevent many of the records from being lost, along with the guardian."

Call it an Aid Another to either Oathbreaker's or Myriel's next bluff, automatically succeeds. And another Dominate against one of the guards. She doesn't command them to do anything yet, except to not alert the other guards to her control and to act naturally aside from that.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas is quite content to float invisibily above the enemies, allowing those others to do the talking. If they can talk our way out of this, so much the better.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

thump-thump. thump-thump.

There was a conversation going on upstairs, but Hellstar could barely hear it. What was merely a hunger a moment ago was now full-fledged starvation throwing his senses in disarray.

thump-thump. thump-thump.

Hellstar bundles up a piece of his ragged shirt and bites down on it. It's caked with dried blood, and only serves to fuel his hunger. He freezes, but his insides are boiling. Goddamn you necromancers!

thump-thump. thump-thump.

But secretly, he almost likes this feeling. He wants to climb those last few steps and appear, blood and rags be damned, and use the powers of domination that he knows he possesses. He wants to will the poor fool over to him, where he will move aside that useless head and sink his teeth into the jugular.

thump.

But he won't. At least not right now.

[Revlis]

Ethan

It was a strange sensation to Ethan, to feel so alive when he lacked a real body. The thirst, the hunger, the need; it was all almost too much. He continues to fight it, and does not submit. He needs them lulled first. For the moment, he remains amongst the smoke, a small cloud of mist indistiguishable from everything else.
"Soon," He thinks to himself, "oh, so very soon."

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

So this is what it is like, being undead. Instead of eating dead things, you want your food to still be alive. No, that is not correct: I don't want to eat these people, I just want to feel them die. Watch the blood run out of them. Hear their last breath escape their frail body. That does not mean I have to go and slaughter anyone who crosses my path, though. I might be dead, but I am still a Senue monk. I will not be the slave of my cravings.

Suzette shakes off her desire to charge and butcher the soldiers and listens to the conversation, casually leaning against the wall.

What are these people, blind and stupid? Can't they see what we are? How can they let themselves be fooled so easily? Let's just hope these soldiers aren't working against the Red Wizards. It still baffles me how the weakminded always try to lie their way out. Not surprising from those who already showed a total lack of selfconstraint. And those books obviously didn't do anything to promote emotional stability. Maybe that's why they were here in the first place, to weaken our minds against our murderous urges.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Lying still on the cold stone, Noj experiences...peace. With his abyssal eye closed and his body still, he could almost believe himself dead. It was odd how noisy was the heart and the rush of blood and breath in the body, and how...loud the silence of their absence.
But then the door opened. The door opened, and the living stepped through.
Abruptly, the still pool of Noj's thoughts erupt in a malevolent geyser like an underground volcano.
In a second, the peace and solitude of the moment was shattered, and a maddening itch like straw scraped across the brain replaced the serenity he had been savoring.
How can anyone relax with the sound of all that BREATHING?! Shrieks the scarecrow in his mind,
Kill them Kill them KILL THEM!
Images tinged with red flash through the tall man's mind of his own blackened hands twisting off heads and crushing windpipes...ANYTHING to stop the noise of hearts pumping and air wheezing in lungs. It was grotesque! And there they stood, mocking him just by living!
But then, amidst the frothing manic sea, a small smooth patch. Not still, like it had been before, but billowing gently, like a field in summer.
I see. That's the demon-blood...

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The man "Jacob" tries to dominate scowls at him then points at his face and is about to argue when Alaeth's gaze locks on him too. Myriel crushes the will of another man then another with Alaeth's third victim making six before the remaining six soldiers realise what's going on.
VAMPIRE!
Somebody yells and all six of them draw weapons but before they can act, Myriel and Alaeth have enthralled two more and this time "Jacob's" gaze proves strong enough to control the man he attempts to dominate. The dominated men turn and easily subdue the last three and the near-battle ends within seconds as Myriel, Alaeth and Jacob each crush the will of a soldier before the rest of the group can stand up, drop disguises and get close enough.


Jacob has dominated 2 men. Myriel and Alaeth have dominated 5 each. Noone else tried domination and I resolved the "battle" quickly so as not to lose time. Your decision now is what to do with the captives.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas descends, coming visible as he does so. "Whatever you want to do with your new toys, I suggest we at least disarm them." He looks at 'Jacob'. "Not literally, by the way." He then continues on. "A real blade will do us much good. I'd rather have steel in my hands than nothing."

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

"I second that notion" Oathbreaker takes 2 short swords and a set of studded leather from one of the subdued gaurds. Dropping the jagged metal and stripping out of his cloths with a suprising lack of shame, he addresses his allies as he dresses in the captive's armor "I recommend that we disguise ourselves as gaurds and keep at least some of these men around to maintain the charade" He stops to look intently at everyone "Unless your hunger overrides your sense of caution that is". Internally, he seriously considers sating his hunger on a gaurd until he reminds himself that he likes WOMEN. Its still too soon to share something that intimate with a man. He will however ask questions of his dominated 'friends'. Questions like:
"Whom do you serve? What are those sounds above? Is there a password or hidden latch to reach the outside? Describe your superiors to me. Now!"

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
In the smoky dark, Noj's eye flares yellow again, and he tries to stand. It works out...oddly. Planting his booted feet on the ground, his knees crackle and he pivots upright, as if falling over away from the floor.
His arms swinging like pendulums, Noj hunches over and stalks towards the captives, watching them with an expression masked by layers of dirty bandage.
Seeing the fear on their faces brought back...recent memories. Sunshine and apples, wheat in the fields, a smiling man handing over a mug of something strong...
Like a sable cancer, the grinning head of the shadow scarecrow sprouts from Noj's shoulder and giggles to itself.
"Those got burned down, didn't they, Noj?" it asks, in Noj's voice
Noj answers,
"Yes. They were."
It laughs again.
"It isn't fair, is it? What did you do, nothing, right?"
"No. Nothing."
"So," the scarecrow asks, as if playing a trump card, "how does that make you feel, John the Miller?"
The bandaged man's head droops to his chest with a crackle of charred flesh and stiff wrappings, and he stands stock still for several long moments...

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Suzette walks up to one of the captured men and waves a hand in front of his face. Assuming it is all Myriel's doing, she addresses her while looking for a response in the man's eyes.

"Impressive. Not what I thought you meant when you said you could be 'quite distracting'. Can you still ask them questions like this? Like, who they're working for, what they're doing here and what's going on? Could you make them escort us out?"

[warbacon]

Hellstar

With the cry of "Vampire!" emerged from the trapdoor, but it was over so quickly he didn't even bother to help. The sight of blood being drawn was ... entrancing.

He walks over to the guard troop, and approaches the poor sod with decent-looking clothes closest to his size. "Jacob has a good point. Some of us could hide as guards, and while the armor will only get in my way, I wouldn't mind some new clothes."

Having most recently spent weeks traveling with a rough-and-tumble expeditionary force into the heart of the undead scourge, Havok had lost that fragile thing which is the fear of exposing yourself to others. It's not that he idly spent his time with them in the buff, but when a man saves your life time and time again, things like nudity lose a few priority levels. Nevertheless, something about being naked around a lady, let alone a pretty lady, kept him from removing his filthy breeches without at least mentioning it first. He asks with a slight movement of his hand indicating the guard before him, "Myriel, you offered to clean us up before ... would you mind if the three of us retired downstairs to exchange some clothes?"

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The man "Jacob" asks his questions opens his mouth as if to speak and suddenly he gasps, hands rising to his throat, falls to his knees then to the floor, thrashes for a few moments then lies still, his heartbeat no longer audible. Blood pours out of his mouth and ears along with smoke. Obviously dead-and messily so-he appears to have been burned from the inside out possibly through some necromantic spell or another. It seems this man-and most probably all of them-are bound against betrayal...



Just to clear things up-no guard died in the fight, all twelve were dominated. As for the anti-traitor ward, blame Szass Tam (and R.L. Byers who wrote Unclean). The fact that it saves a DM the effort of writing down what every NPC knows and restricts easy access to information is purely coincidental. Honest.

[Lochar]

Virmas

"I wonder how far this binding against their betrayal runs. If we force them to let us leave, or go along with a ruse to get us out, will they die as well?"

He looks to one of them, which seems to least important. "Well, will you die just by showing us the way out?"

[Revlis]

Ethan

The sight of blood made the hunger almost unbearable. Ethan, as a mist, descended to the ground, rematerializing as he did. Ethan approached the remaining guards. He was aware of how easy it is to simply crush their will, almost as easy as crushing their windpipes. Nothing would give him nearly the same satisfaction. But, with pure force of will, he stopped himself.

'Then again, one less would not make a big difference.' Ethan thinks to himself, with a sense of self satisfaction.

"I will be taking one for clothes, weaponry, and such..." Ethan says.

If no one objects, Ethan will take one to one of the cells below.

[Ramos]

Myriel

The sorceress looks at Hellstar with a smile on her face.
Are you sure exchanging some clothes is the only thing in your mind right now?
With a touch she makes the filth on him and his clothes fall off as if water falling off glass then looks back at the soldiers.
Jacob's idea has merit-suprising as that might be for someone of his intelligence. I, however, aren't going to fit in armor tailored for human males and neither will my sister-to say nothing of impeding our magic. Besides, studded leather was never my preference, despite my beliefs.
Looking closer at the captives, she searches for the two most handsome of the remaining eleven and hands one to Alaeth, keeping the other for herself. Glancing back towards Jacob and Hellstar, her smile becomes miscevious.
Ofcourse, those of you that fit in this armor could bind the rest of us that do not. Then we could pretend that Suzette, Alaeth and I-in these half torn rags-are your prisoners. And if that thought hasn't crossed your minds then you're sleeping on the job, boys.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Does it anger you, Jon the Miller, That these men are still alive while you are dead? It does. I know.
The tall ragged man Clenches his fist at his side, his head still bowed. In his head, the scarecrow continues
"...And just think of the others here! They'll drink their blood, and maybe worse...In a way, you'll be doing them a favor by killing them. Or just one of them. That'd make you feel better, wouldn't it, Noj? Killing just one of them? In fact, they were probably the guards you brought you in here in the first place. I can tell!"
To an onlooker, it would seem that the bandage-wrapped man is holding a murmured conversation with himself in the dingy gloom

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Graciously thanking Myriel for her help Hellstar switches into the clothes of a guard, minus the armor. He shakes his heads slightly at Myriel's rather naughty remark. "I prefer binding rituals, not binding women. And what would a group of off-color guards be doing transporting prisoners in the middle of a battle? Any close inspection will reveal us as who we are -- it's better to just get those who are comfortable in armor into it quickly, and simply have them guard us in formation. We also can't risk the casters being tied up since that limits our capabilities."

Reluctantly, he picked up the the black studded leather he removed from the guard and put it on. "I suppose I'll be a guard, now that I'm clean and have his clothes on already. I hope nobody minds if I take the lead." He picks up a short sword and swings it around inexpertly.

Clearing his throat dry with mixed emotions and a strong thirst for blood, he takes on the role of a guard. "Awright, you maggots. Clean yerselves off, git yer armor on and help me escort these undead monsters out of this hellhole. The rest of ya, look tied up. And you," he says turning to the still-breathing guards, "form up! On the double!"

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth shakes her head slightly at Myriel's more suggestive comments, but with a little smile that says she is too used to them to be surprised any longer. She clears her throat. "I cannot say I like the idea of being bound, but as things stand right now, it will not hinder me much. I can destroy the bindings with little trouble if it comes to that, and I am more hindered by the lack of my foci and spellbook than I would be by simple ropes." She grimaces again. If she could not reacquire those, this could become truly dangerous.

She examines the dominated men thoughtfully. No use asking them what the ward would keep them from doing—the Thayans certainly would not tell them that. They might not have told them that they were being warded against betrayal at all. And even if they did know, it could be another of the factors that would trigger the spell. No, if they could figure out what the wards did and did not protect against, it would be by other means...

Knowledge (arcana) or Spellcraft, whichever is more appropriate, to know what would trigger the wards (revealing information? Attacking a Red Wizard?): [roll0]

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

As the one guard begins to implode, Suzette jumps back from the one she was staring at. She looks questioningly from Hellstar to Myriel, unsure of what killed the man. Was he put under some curse to keep him from talking, did his mind cave in under the combined pressure from the two vampires, or had Myriel simply killed him to keep Hellstar from playing with 'her' new toy, as Virmas had so aptly put it.

"I think we'd do best to leave them behind. We can't be sure what else might happen if we forced them to help us, other soldiers might notice the missing leader if they knew the man, and if you are going to strip some of them of their weapons and armour that will alert people as well. Not to mention the fact that they might very well have been under orders not to take prisoners. As it stands, I think we'll get out of here faster and easier by ourselves than if we drag them along, especially as most of you can just turn into mist and float against the ceiling."

Not to mention the fact that most of you could probably do without the temptation of having these livelings so close, she thinks, though she refrains from voicing this concern.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
With a sickening snap, Noj straightens up, his arms spread wide and his eye flaring yellow like a dying sun. An inhuman roar escapes his lips like a waterfall made of burning paper.
"GRRRAAAAAGH!!!"
He Flexes his fingers, and a tangible aura of hideous fear and dread emanates from his patchy form, whispering of madness and nightmares...

Accidentally activates Aura of Fear and Fear Gaze, Will DC18

He takes a few shuddering steps forwards the living guards...

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker approaches Suzette and speaks to her very softly (hopefully not overheard by the others) "If we don't have a use for them, they will be slaughtered for no good reason by the others" he motions to the three being taken away by the other Bloodlords ""This feeding thing doesn't sit well with me. You can feel it too can't you, the ease to anger, the ease to hate, the hunger? I didn't used to feel this way, and I don't think you did either. If we don't master this now we will become monsters. Be careful."

He snaps around at Noj's roar, turns back and says "Case in point" and moves to try and reason with Noj "Come on big guy we don't need to kill them in horrible ways, right?" (note: I do not get in his way, I only try to talk him out of it)

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Following Jacob, Suzette adds to his plea:

"Don't do it Noj, this isn't you. You are not a monster unless you choose to act like one."

When he comes close, she reaches out and gently yet firmly lays her hand on his arm.

"Don't you see?" she replies to Jacob out loud, since her words are meant as much for the rest of the group as they are for him, "As long as we stay around these living, breathing creatures, we're continuously going to be tempted to attack them. They will be a distraction and that will give our enemies an advantage over us. I say we leave them now that we are still master enough of ourselves to leave them in one piece."

In case I'm not awake to post it any more: if Noj doesn't halt, Suzette will attempt to grapple and pin him, choosing the option not to do lethal damage (which does not affect her roles, since she's a monk)

[Ramos]

Myriel

The sorceress nods at Suzette, a frown on her face. Then she grabs her guard-using her domination to have him comply rather than her own strength-presses against him as if to kiss him then bites him in the neck. She drinks and drinks, excitement flowing through her veins, his thoughts filling her mind. When the man begins convulse in pain, Myriel sinks her awareness into him so that she feels his suffering-causing pain always excited her, more than was healthy her sister always warned. When the man collapses in her hands, barely alive, Myriel aloows him to fall to the ground. Rising from him, Myriel's face is shining with exultation. Turning to her allies, she smiles.
Now I am no longer tempted to attack them-or any other living creature. Sate your hunger now-being overwhelmed by the compulsion to attack another while we're trying to sneak past a battalion of guards or bluff our way past a red wizard might be inconvenient. And, as Suzette said, leave them in one piece. They will be a distraction to our enemies then when they try to find what attacked them. Ofcourse, one piece does not mean alive and if they are dead but without struggle, it will confuse anyone that found them even more. Besides, you won't believe how good it feels to drink the blood and life of your enemies.
Turning her wicked smile at the drained guard again, Myriel strokes his cheek with a clawed finger, observing his shallow breathing, an indication he's barely alive. You get the impression the only reason Myriel allowed him to live-despite what she said otherwise-is that he's quite handsome.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

Alaeth frowns at Myriel, then half-jerks towards her as she realizes what her sister was doing half a secobd too late. She would not physically restrain her sister, and she refused to employ magic against her. Her frown persists, and she glares about at any of the others as if warning them away from trying to interfere, stalking to Myriel's side in a blur of motion. Her glare does not exclude her sister, although Myriel is likely not capable of seeing it in her present state.

When Myriel... finishes, Alaeth says in a tightly controlled voice, "That was ill done, sister." She places a hand on her shoulder, leaning in to whisper fiercely, "You do yourself no favors this way! It is... unhealthy to give in so freely to desires as compelling, as addictive as this. Control is key, Myriel." Her sister's rationale that they should feed now, harmlessly, while they can, had some logic to it, but she knew her sister better than that. She had enjoyed the sensation, given herself to it far too much. "And you do us no good with the others, as well." She very much doubted they would find favor with Myriel's actions, not since two of them were arguing—and not without merit—for sparing the guards any trouble and leaving them here.

Maintaining her hand on Myriel's shoulder, Alaeth transfers a now-even gaze to the others in the room, studying their reactions. She would stand by her sister even if it meant being against all the others, but she did not want to have to.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

Myriel has a good point--something Hellstar had in fact considered when he first noticed the blood urge come into him. Ah that fool! His distress is partly at the enjoyment she got out of it, and mostly because now that she had bled the poor soul dry and created an atmosphere of giving in to necrotic desires in the process, he could not sate his own desires without looking like a fool. Not to mention, he thought as he stared somewhat slack-jawed at the mess, this will not bode well for controlling Noj. Heck, she just dispensed advice about thoughtful descent into vampirism, and then made a show of it. Gah! If only she had restrained herself just a bit! Shown some hesitation!

"Myriel! If we're not taking these men with, on which point I am inclined to agree, then we're not going to make fools of ourselves by losing our humanity in the process. While some of us might be satisfied with mere blood, from the looks of it, others may have more destructive ways of sating their hunger." He shoots a look at Noj and continues his tirade. "So before we go mad and get ourselves kil... destroyed, let's suit up and put them in a cell. They'll probably be safer there. And then we're getting out of here on our own power." He storms off to the trapdoor and icily says "Stop it" at Noj and Suzette (who were apparently about to go at each other) along the way. At the edge of the stairs, he turns around and looks at Myriel expectantly.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

As Noj seems oblivious to her and Jacob's words, Suzette grabs both his arms to keep him from advancing further. It is an odd sight, the frail woman holding back the towering man, and there is no way Suzette could have performed such a feat while alive, a notion she is painfully aware of.

Through their struggle, she doesn't quite catch all that Myriel is saying and only realises what is happening when she sees the blood run down the guard's neck and stain his clothes.

A wave of disgust rolls over her. If she hadn't been holding Noj, she might have staggered back or sunk to her knees, but now she merely loosens her hold, unknowingly, until her hands are just lying limply on his arms. Struck by the futility of trying to hold one man back when there are so many others, she turns her face towards Jacob and says in a choked voice:

"You were right. We have to get out of here. We have to get out of here as fast as we can."

Despite her words, she doesn't move, nailed to the floor by the overwhelming emotions that she feels.

Yes, get out of here, goes through her head, get out then get as far away from you madmen as I possibly can.

[Lochar]

Virmas

"I don't care what you do with them. Kill them now or not. But they'll probably lose their lives anyways, when it is found that they allowed us to escape. Make use of their lives."

Virmas shrugs, and leans against a wall. "Come, come. We don't have all day, night, whatever it is. Eventually their replacements will come, or they'll be required to join the battle we can still hear. or any number of things."

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker swims in a sea of red heat as he watches Miriel drink her captive, what seems as though it was minutes must have been mere moments as he hears the victims heartbeat slow and then, like a dream interrupted, she lets go. She left the hearts blood he realizes, looking at the gaurd on the ground. He can't help but feel an ache because of it what a waste... he starts to think before he physically staggers and catches himself NO! THIS IS NOT ME! I won't stay like THIS! I WILL find a way to CON them and take everything they dream from them for doing this to ME! He can't help but outwardly smile at the irony of his next grim thought I swear it. Outwardly, he recovers himself still wearing a pained and twisted smirk and says "I apologize for that... I... lets get out of here". He moves around the gaurds, ignoring their screams or fighting as Noj attacks them (he's too focused inwardly and grimly realizes theres nothing he can do) and moves into the hallway.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

Mechanically, Suzette follows Jacob out of the room, staying one step behind him and to the left. She refuses to look at anybody else.

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj strains ineffectually against Suzette's grasp for the stretch of a few moments longer, but her expert holds and superior strength keep him well in hand. Finally, he strains no longer and, like a puppets with its strings cut, lets himself sink to his knees, shortly before Myriel begins her feeding. Quiet now, the yellow inferno in his one eye dies down to a banked glow, and he draws himself upright as the man sinks to the ground, nearly bloodless. With a few long strides, Noj stands at the man's side, watching him as the others file out. Slowly, He crouches down and reaches to the man's side, where the short sword hangs. Noj draws the weapon and peers at the blade, turning it this way and that and watching the flicker of light from his own glowing eye on the blade.
"Who should I say this prayer too?" he asks aloud, but seemingly to no one in particular.
"Chauntea, to whom I lived my life? If anyone claims my soul, it's the lady of the plow and summer. Or should I say it to Loviatar? I've heard that screams are her prayers, and tears her holy water. Ha, ha."
From beneath the bandages covering Noj's face, there comes the sound of muffled laughter.
"I commit my soul to any god that can find it anymore. Peace be to you, guardsman!"
With a snap of the elbow like a scorpion's strike, Noj drives the blade into the neck of the downed and drained guard, watching intently as his lifeblood pours away.
Noj watches for a moment longer, and then his broad lean shoulders begin to heave silently. Hauling himself upright with a crackle of joints and stiff bandage, Noj drops the bloody weapon and stalks out of the door, still holding his book close to himself.

[Lochar]

Virmas

"Now wasn't that fun?" Virmas shakes his head. "We can't have any of them alert others that we're gone. Lock 'em up in here if need be. We can't be found out."

Virmas walks out of the room, noncorporeal and fading into invisibility.

[Revlis]

Ethan:

Ethan climbs up the stairs, clad in the man's armor and clothing. The self-satisfied smile on his face betrays what he has done in the cell below, as do the droplets of blood on his chin. Ethan stares for a moment at those leaving, as well as the man killed by Noj (not having seen the man drained dry by Myriel). Ethan speaks in a much calmer and more easy going manner than he has since waking up in the cell below. "Might be more useful to satisfy your urges if you take a small part of them with you." Ethan emphasizes the meaning with a grin to reveal bloodied teeth.

With a spring in his step, Ethan follows the others into the hallway, but pauses at the doorway, and looks towards Myriel and Alaeth, something about the way they stood there defiantly told him that something has happened in his absence, but he chose not to press the matter. Instead, he gave a small nod to them, and turned back towards the hallway.

One thing was clear, this was not the same restless, insecure Ethan that was found shivering in his cell, but this was the true Ethan; the one that is part monster and part human.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Suddenly, the entire complex is shaken to its foundation, vibrations coursing through the walls, the corpses still sprawled on the ground entering a macabre dance, the very stone beneath your feet cracking and threatening to overthrow you. Fissures appear at the walls and chips of stone fall from the more damaged areas. From above there is the chorus of thousands of metal objects falling on the stone and clay, glass and wooden objects breaking. The din of the explosions from the battle abates for a moment, replaced by the shouting of hundreds.

The Earthquake, while powerful, only lasted for a few heartbeats before subsiding, indicating a non-natural occurence. Still, even those few seconds were enough to damage the entire structure. Clouds of dust impede vision and the sourceless illumination of the hall beyond the iron doors has failed-though the darkness does not block the vision of the children of the night. Standing or falling, you realise that the complex has been struck by an amplified earthquake spell from a mighty elementalist or hierophant-or an entire cabal of red wizards performing a circle magic ritual. The building is still standing-but it was substantially damaged and if the attack came from those besieging it it might be repeated. You jump towards the exit of the underground crypt, surprised and pleased that in the meantime a larger part of your strength has returned.


Another 2 points of strength have returned. And the earthquake is a reminder you should not linger overlong in a besieged building-such structures have the unfortunate tendency to fall on their occupants' heads.

[Lochar]

Virmas

Virmas is unshaken from the earthquake as he is currently incorporeal, but still looks to the others. "Ladies and gents, I suggest we move quickly. You'd hate to be buried, wouldn't you?"

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj shuffles along wordlessly through the tunnel, although he occasionally fields a glance at the others in the party...

[Ramos]

Myriel

Well, it seems whoever wants to bring this place down has made our choice for us. These guards here are going to die when they get buried so we'll be saving them a slow, agonising death if we feast on them then kill them and there's no sense leaving them going to waste and remain hungry ourselves. Ofcourse, if some of us wish to be really foolish we could try to take them with us and "rescue" them.
From her tone, Myriel makes quite clear what she thinks of people that wish to be foolish on their own expense. It is also clear that, despite being what most people would call evil and unpredictable, she does care what happens to the group as a whole. Whether it is because she sees safety in numbers or because she's taken a genuine interest in the other members of the group is still unclear.
She moves carefully towards the now open exit, balanced but wary due to her lingering weakness from the previous fight.

[warbacon]

Hellstar

With his plans dashed by the earthquake and others going ahead without seeming to care what it looks like, Hellstar was in a poor state of mind to deal with the earthquake, but it quickly brought him back to his senses. He lost his footing and pedaled backwards into the door, knocked his head (which incidentally seemed to hurt a lot less than it used to), and fell into a guard. The sword fell during the shuffle. Frustrated not only by his lot in life but by the fact that he had suggested such an elaborate and hence fragile plan, he throws off the borrowed armor and marches into and through the hallway with a dead serious look on his face and muttering to himself. "We are clearly getting out of here right now."

He did not, however, sate his hunger. This pleased him as much as it fueled his determination.

[Revlis]

Ethan

To be unnatural is one thing, but to have nature turn its wrath against you... thats something completely different. Ethan thinks to himself in a sarcastic manner, as he shuffles along side his new companions. Somehow, being undead made him feel more alive than he ever felt before. Freedom, unconstrained power, and a couple of fine looking traveling companions would make any existance worth while.

As he walks through the hall, he keeps an eye out for any more surprises.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

With the earthquake, Oathbreaker kicks it into high gear, taking off down the hallway at full speed depending on his undead resiliance and luck to see him through potential traps. Besides, if he ran across enemies he could probably pull off being a surviving gaurd and get the edge before a fight starts, as he's ahead of the party.

[The_Snark]

Alaeth

With the earthquake, Alaeth moves after her sister, casting one regretful look at the guards. What the regret is for, it's hard to say, even for her. She hated to condemn so many to death... but then, they were Thayan. They worked for the same ones who had killed hundreds in an effort to create more undead to spread still more death... Part of her, too, feels that it is a waste to leave them here without sating her thirst first, and part of her is repelled at the notion, and glad that she will be removed from the temptation to do so.

Despite her misgivings, Alaeth does not tarry as she moves for the exit. A thought strikes her silently, and she prays that it not be day outside.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

The iron door opens up to a square, largely empty room fifty by fifty feet in size. The chairs, tables, plates and glasses and half-finished foodstuffs in the room indicate this must be a permanent guardpost housing more than a dozen soldiers and you suspect, from the symmetry of the building so far, that another such guardpost lies in the other side. Persumably, during the fight there would only be a light guard here, soldiers from both guardhouses joining in a single watch. You don't see any beds though so this must not be a barracks. Strangely enough, you don't see any exits in this room at all-at least at first glance.

[Taffimai]

Suzette (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=28367)

After the earthquake, Suzette had increased her speed to match Jacob's. When he stops abruptly after a few paces, she looks up. She is about to ask whether he still feels weak and whether she should carry him for a change, as the lack of obvious exit sinks in. Automatically, her eyes fly towards the ceiling, as if the obvious answer to this riddle is another trap door.

Then she looks about the room more carefully, hoping to see a tapestry or bookshelf that might be hiding a door, or maybe a hatch in the floor somewhere. Finally, she turns her eyes questioningly towards Jacob, hoping that he'll come up with something so she wouldn't have to walk past those guards again.

[Lochar]

Virmas

"Time to get the hell out of here!"

Virmas walks to the walls. Should he be able to actually walk through them this time, he looks for hidden doors. Then he'll look for what triggers them.

Search the area he finds hidden doors at, or just a plain search.
Search:[roll0]

[The Great Skenardo]

Noj
Noj shambles into the ruined room and idly reaches down to pick up a piece of stone, stowing his precious book away in the lip of his boot. He seems...quieter now. And more alert, as he tosses the stone from hand to hand.
"You can move through walls," he says, "Surely you can find the door?"

[Revlis]

Ethan

Ethan looks at the walls of the room, as if inspecting some strange and pecular beast. He glances run up towards the cieling, and down to the edges where they touch the ground.
Finally, he says to no one in particular, "I have seen something like this in the academy. Though in our case, one of the walls was an illusion to confuse intruders."
Ethan focuses for a moment, and then becomes keenly aware of the presence of magical energies around him. Using his new found awareness, he tries to locate any magical effects in the room.

Using the duskblade's ability of detect magic.

[Paladin Latham]

Oathbreaker/'Jacob'

Oathbreaker and his equipment become insubstantial as he again takes gaseous form, sweeping the room's perimeter and checking to see if he can slip through unseen gaps in the wall or ceiling.

[Belial_the_Leveler]

Both Virmas and Jacob can slip through the inner walls either through the newly-made cracks or through the wall itself as they assume incorporeal form. However, neither can pass through the outer walls at all. It is as if there's a solid surface half an inch before the wall's surface-an invisible, impenetrable surface. It appears the outer walls are warded.

Ethan however quickly employs his ability to reveal magics. After a few moments of observation, he can clearly see the powerful abjuration binding the foundations in the crypt below and the outer walls of the complex. Less powerful auras of divination emanate from the crystals in the previous chamber and a faint-obviously masked-aura of illusion comes from a square area in the wall right beside the entry to the guardpost. The area is the same size and shape as the entry to the previous chamber.


Ethan made his will save against Magic Aura.