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  1. - Top - End - #901
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Leaving Dam'ess- Stage Coach Interior

    As Selissa's warning fills the cabin and Mal's finger's come together there is a faint ringing like a bell and the two halves of the coin, as though by some form of magnetism, come together quite easily. The wound in the metal seals shut and the tarnish on the coin disappears, leaving a shining gold coin in Mal's hand. One one side is a face, but it is old and worn enough to be nearly illegible, and on the other a cruel looking eagle holding a snake in it's claws and a bundle of arrows in it's beak.

    Spoiler: OOC
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    DC 5 Wisdom Save for Mal if he wishes to resist putting the coin in his purse. It wishes to be near others of it's kind, apparently.
    The Bear is Back.

  2. - Top - End - #902
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Selissa Betula
    Wood Elf Scout Rogue
    AC: 16 HP: 38/38 -> 48/48
    PP: 16
    Conditions: Aid
    Concentrating: --

    Stagecoach

    As the coin clicked back together, Selissa's eyes narrowed in readiness. Her fleshen hand gripped her knife, but didn't draw - when nothing happened, she still didn't let go, but a fraction of the tension in her body uncoiled as no counting devil appeared.

    With a click of her tongue in annoyance, she held out her wooden hand.
    "Pass it."Her bow had worked before. This time, she'd shatter it in two and bury one half deep, toss the other into the river when they got to Harumvale - see it come back from that.
    "Not worth meddling with devils for coin. Evil little thing."
    And the far stars cried, and the planets yearned;
    But no man may know, for she'll ne'er return.

  3. - Top - End - #903
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Mal
    Levistus Tiefling Bard 5
    AC: 14 HP: 40/41
    PP: 11 PIv: 13 PIs: 11
    Spell Slots: 1st - 2/4 2nd - 2/3 3rd - 1/2
    Fey Touched: 1st - 1/1 2nd - 1/1
    Levistus Legacy: Armor of Agathys - 0/1 Darkness - 1/1
    Bardic Inspiration: 3/4
    Healer's Kit: 20/20
    Mal Conditions: See Invisibility and Ethereal Plane (Range: Sight)
    Mal Concentrating: ---

    Soreshu
    Ancient Companion: Sage
    Companion HP: 30/30
    Companion AC: 14
    Companion PP: 18 PIv: 12 PIs: 12
    Sage's Counsel: While within 15 feet of the companion, you and your allies gain a +2 bonus to Intelligence and Wisdom checks.

    The Stagecoach to Harumburg

    Mal ignored the impulse to pocket the coin. For now. He instead closed his hand around the gold eagle, resting it on his lap. The tiefling replied, "This gold piece has many uses, whether a creature or a farewell parlor trick of a dying devil. If a coin, it could be spent to further our work for ending this demon cult and aid Lady Bo’Tel. If a creature, then better to invest its talents to serving an orderly cause than cast it aside wantonly."

    Mal looked to the other members of the team. He asked Set directly, though addressed the group generally, "Did this creature of law cheat or harm you? Would you rather we rid ourselves of any tool with dubious designs, or cautiously administer these resources to strengthen our cause? The first maxim of summoning is ‘Do not call up what you cannot put down.’ Do you fear you may not subdue this tiny bean counter if it deviates from our designs? I trust Selissa’s oaken might to be more than sufficient to constrain the devil if this proves more than currency. What do you say?"

    Soreshu added thoughtfully, "Unlike a fey token, a devil’s coin is more an enticement than a ruse. The oath-bound creatures will not demand more than the terms you agree to."

    Mal watched the others to see their response. He knew placing the decision upon the group would present more opinions and perhaps bring more options than a blood demand. He then recalled Set’s question. "I have not seen one of these trifles in person. However, I have read several accounts of their uses for financing endeavors great or small, ensuring financial prudence, and minimizing the sort of corruption wanton spenders tend to burden their people with."

    Spoiler: OOC
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    Wis save 16

    Spoiler: Mal's Notes
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    Spoiler: Cast and Crew
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    Set: outcast exiled princeling of Abydos. Two princess sisters (Sisi and Sythpen Al-Sayyid). Romantic connection for Moira?
    Selissa: Blighted or reconstructed wood elf? Purported Scout.
    Vargath: Afflicted Lycanthrope seeking to suspend his curse. A Bloodwolf?
    Mandaras: Rival to Dr. Fixer.
    Dr. Fixer: Moira's lieutenant and cultivates relations with the locals of Vale.
    Elder Maus: Seeks to kill Moira. Hired mercenaries who betrayed him.
    --Healed to his full 9ft height.
    --Disbelieves Moira's insights; seeks to end her directly or indirectly.
    --Seeks us to verify the truths of Moira's claims--or stop her by any means necessary.
    Maulei: Successor to Elder Maus as elder of Dam'ess.
    Uluthando Mikoso "Ulu:" Paladin? of Order. From beyond the Vale. Reacts by gripping her dagger and declaring Tieflings are treated differently...Lawful (N/E?) Order? Calls Mal 'Mdala Ohlonishwayo.' Professes to serve no god, but spirits whose reach may be weaker in the Vale than elsewhere.


    Spoiler: Dream of Leng
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    Spoiler: In Full
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    Mal has had this dream before. He finds himself in the legendary Library of Leng, an ancient home of virtually all worldly and mystical knowledge that burned when the city it was located in was razed nearly nine hundred years ago, half the world away. Still, in his dreams it still existed, and these dreams always played out the same. Hours of dutiful research, referencing and cross referencing sources from multiple tomes, carefully reconstructing ancient languages, until EUREKA! Some devastating and profound arcane truth became evident to him, and the sense of accomplisment and relief normally carried with him for several hours after waking up, even if he could never actually remember anything he learned. But this time is different. Mal is well versed enough in the arcane and divine arts to know that sometimes dreams carry real meaning. And as he stares down at what he has been working on, he instinctively knows this bears some significance. Where normally he would have arcane formulas and theorems, he sees only "The One Who Stalks Behind" scrawled over and over again in his own hand, though the words are manic and look like they were written in distress. He searches the paper for any further omen, and down at the bottom of the page, in the smallest script he could possibly manage, it says Behind you!. Just as he is about to turn, a claw as strong as iron grips the side of his head, snaps his neck to the side, and ends all feeling in the bard's body. But he can still hear the deep throated growls, along with the wet noises of whatever killed him beginning to eat him alive. But he never gets to see it before the dream ends.


    The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. RIGHT BEHIND YOU! The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind.



    Spoiler: Bence's Secrets
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    Spoiler: Bence's Journal
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    ...is a backwards plane, so far removed from the Prime Material that it has not seen an angel or the work of a god in a millennia. I hear that far to the west they do not even worship the gods. Proper savages, but I must remain vigilant, as their knowledge of the ways of this world is far more educated than most. But it is ripe for my conquest. While my Master was tasked with corrupting Avendor, my home plane, a bastion of good and law, my chore is simply to tip the rat into the bucket of the Abyss as it prowls the rim looking for cheese. This plane is already so flooded with the energies of the Abyss that demons spontaneously emerge, monsters manifest in the dark, and their weak leaders bargain with forces they would be wiser to repulse. It will be child's play to nudge it the last few inches into anarchy and destruction, mostly due to the efforts of Pale Night herself. For thousands of years she has been grasping and clawing at this realm, dragging it further from the light and closer to her realm day by day, inch by inch, soul by soul. While my home plane was beyond my ability to destroy, this place will be my masterpiece. With my death at the hands of the forces of good, a symphony of destruction will play the anthem to my ascension to demonhood. The Pale Mother has promised me that each death will bring me closer to my true form, and each rebirth will increase my power, just as our pact promised. I can't wait to die. When will the heroes arrive? I've been planting and tending the seed of the idea in the old giant's mind for weeks now. When will it bear fruit? When can my dark rise to power begin? (The rest is a combination of burned and Abyssal that becomes impossible to read)

    Dam'ess- Mass Quasit Summoning. Magic Mouth to Levy Commands re: Retrieve Mirror of Leng, Scepter of Rulership, And Aniot's Cube. Disperse to Appropriate Parties Per The Plan. Burn The Cabin.

    Harumburg- Sending to Lord of Bone re: Portal to the 113th. (Indecipherable Due to Burns) In Accordance with Their Great Alliance.

    Falluneer- Sending to Lord of Flesh re: (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Ebon Spear.

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)light: Sending to Lord of Blood re: Assassination of (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Yukkot, Recovery of Blood (More Burns).

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)odge- Sending to Cult of Pale (More Burns) re: Initiate Divining Ritual Sacrifices. FIND THE DAMN ZIGGURAT.

    Garrunrow- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Kill the Last Bloodwolf. Recover (More Burns) Key.

    Mountain of Smoke- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) crypt. Seize the Ebon (More Burns).

    Sussoon- Ensure the Prophecy (Indecipherable Due to Burns)... Pay the Bounty Hunters to Find the Abydossian and the Princesses. re: Sacrifices of The Old Blood

    (There is more, but seemingly out of paranoia Bence switched to Abyssal. It is impossible to tell how many lines there are, as the last half of the paper is fully burned away)


    Spoiler: Arcane Lore concerning Bence's Notes
    Show
    The magic of Contingency is a nearly mythical bit of spell work that was said to be lost when the Library of Leng burned down. It allows a caster to prepare spells in advance for a predetermined event, in this case John Bence's own death, and the spells will automatically cast when the event happens. If Bence is capable of such sorcery, he is likely far more powerful than his flashy death at the party's hands would indicate.

    The Mirror of Leng is a artifact of the Library of Leng, said to contain a frozen moment of time where the library was at it's height that a person can temporarily step in to, giving access to the greatest magical library this world has ever seen. Supposedly several mirrors were made, though some are confirmed destroyed after their use led to come calamity of forbidden magics long lost to time. The Scepter of Rulership is said to be an even more powerful version of a Rod of Rulership, a magic item that allows for mass mind manipulation of people to believe that the holder of the Scepter is their rightful ruler. The last time the Scepter was confirmed in play it toppled an entire nation.

    Though numbering and organizing the layers of the Abyss is a fool's errand, there are some realms that are constant enough to designate. The one hundred and thirteenth layer is Thanatos, layer of Orcus, the Lord of Death. It is a lifeless frozen landscape where life is snuffed out almost as soon as it arrives, either by the untold legions of undead denizens, the magical aura of the layer itself, or, in the worst cases, by Orcus himself, using his fearsome Wand.


    Spoiler: John Bence's Wall Art
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    There are no invisible objects in the room, but the entire back wall of the cabin is plastered with profane runes and abyssal scribblings. Where there was nothing to the naked eye, there is an extensive patchwork of spell work, seemingly scribed in the rusted red of blood. More disturbing is the fragments of souls that have been bound to the wall. Faces of people rise and seethe from the wood like a strange and rippling tide, mouths open in anguish. There are not many of them left, presumably due to whatever spell was used here absorbing so much energy, but there is a fine layer of ectoplasm that would indicate that once there were dozens of soul fragments powering this spell. The sight turns Mal's stomach, as the chaotic, destructive magic of the Abyss is written as plainly as news script, but as subtly as any devil could manage.



    Spoiler: Monsters
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    Barlgura: Demon loosed by summoning ritual on the road to Dam'ess. Slain with its summoned partner by team. (Bless helped with accuracy issues due to invisibility. In the future, layer mind sliver to aid with saves.)
    Brazen Hart: Spirit of the wild wood around Dam'ess. Seeks to test the party's mettle by forcing an open fight with the Barlgura.


    Spoiler: Instrument of the Bards
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    Mal needs a translator, the spells, and woodcrafter to create a new relic.
    Spoiler: Full Description
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    Still, tucked among the primers and amateur books he finds a book that deals with the blending of magic and music. Specifically, it holds the instructions and rituals for a new version of the famed artifacts known as the instruments of the bards. Unfortunately, about a third of the book is in a language Mal does not understand or recognize, including most of the rites and rituals to imbue it with magic. Still, with a translator, appropriate magics, some study, and someone skilled in wood craft, he may be able to produce one of these relics for himself.


    Report daily updates to Mistress Moira at last light.


    Last edited by Theophilus; 2021-06-13 at 03:58 PM.

  4. - Top - End - #904
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    SwashbucklerGuy

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Set Al-Sayyid
    Changeling Fighter/Hexblade
    AC: 17 HP: 36/36 [44]
    PP: 11 PIv: 12 PIs: 9
    Conditions: Iumenta Pox (-8 max hp); 3rd level Aid for 8 hours (Mal, +10 max hp)
    Concentration:

    Bence's Home

    Set slowly digests the words doled out by Selissa. She never said much. Asking her to say more right now about the incident that lead to her losing an arm seemed like it would be too much, despite his own mounting curiosity.

    "He sounds powerful indeed to have wrought such an arm. No doubt he would make a good ally," Set says, staring into the flames before glancing back at her. "It suits you." A pause stretches out to fill the space between them as Set tries to find the right words to explain further, but after a few moments he abandons hope of figuring out how. Instead he moves away, keen to investigate the man-of-stone Mal had summoned.

    With mounting confusion, Set watches Ulu bow to the "Honored Elder" who now held Bence's axe in his belt. Did Ulu know? Was this the Elder? Or was that simply a phrase she'd used, and this thing was simply another power granted by Mal's true-Elder. Set holds his tongue, thoughts swirling as he examines the scholar-statue. It didn't feel like an Elder, or at least it didn't feel like the Shadowkeeper, but the booming, gravely voice gives him pause. If anything, Soreshu's regal, commanding tone sounds more like what Set thought an Elder or even a God should sound like. The Shadowkeeper's voice was altogether different. Even in the confines of his own mind, Set felt his nerves fray every time that voice echoed through his thoughts.

    All Aboard the Stagecoach

    Set is slow to keep up at first, but eventually he realizes that they're talking about the coin as if the imp still lives within it. Split in two, perhaps it was just a coin, but fused together it was alive?

    Turning to Mal, Set answers him. "It did not cheat or harm me. It may not be innocent, but it is not guilty of that." Meeting Mal's golden gaze, Set's mouth twitches as he considers the tiefling's words. 'A tool with dubious designs.' Set is one such tool, though what his master's designs are, he doesn't fully understand.

    It felt wrong to think of weighing in against Selissa when her outlook mirrored Sythpen so perfectly. She was only concerned with what was right, regardless of the cost. And yet her choice of words triggered something in him.

    "An 'evil little thing,'" Set says, the words coming slowly. "There was a time when that would've been enough. I would've known the right thing was to kill it and cast it into the ground," Set says cautiously, watching Selissa. "The world used to be simpler. I used to know what good and evil were, and if I didn't, my brother and sisters would remind me."

    Set looks to Vargath. "Are werewolves evil? If you turn, am I supposed to try to kill you?" Set shakes his head, breaking into an inappropriate laugh. "Maybe I am, for all the good that would do. Even with His power, I couldn't hope," Set begins, faltering after referencing the Shadowkeeper.

    A few heartbeats pass, and then Set says, "I was glad of the chance to help Dam'ess, and I would do it again, but if you ever become the wolf howling at the door..." Set shrugs, biting the inside of his cheek. "Someone else can hunt you." I already killed Sirus.

    Set looks back to Selissa, but he's unable to hold her green gaze. "I am not a good man. I don't think I'm an evil man, but I've done some terrible things. Things that no good person would ever do, for any reason," Set says, wiping away a phantom splatter of blood that had erupted from Sirus' mouth and splashed across his face when he'd run his brother through. "Things that can't be undone." The Shadowkeeper's laugh wasn't there, but Set could hear it all the same.

    "I meddle with devils, of a sort. Worse even, I am bound to Him. But," Set says, looking back up finally to meet Selissa's eyes, "whatever else I may be, I'm here. If Moira lied to us, I promised I'd follow you to make sure she doesn't lie further. If you go charging into the abyss tomorrow," Set continues, turning to Vargath, "I'll only be a few steps behind you." Looking to Ignacius, Set pauses a few beats before saying, "if you fall ill tomorrow, I'll do whatever I can to ensure you get better. I am sorry I didn't believe you in the first place when you told me I was sick. Hopefully I can make amends."

    Set had accepted a glass from Mal, but left it untouched until now. Taking a long drink, Set lets the burn wash down his throat before continuing. "In my homeland, we always say to take whatever water is offered. I don't know if this thing is worth the trouble, but I'll not be the one to turn away any sort of help after everything we've seen these last few days. I'll use what's at my disposal, cursed or not." Shrugging one more time, Set looks to Vargath, Ignacius, and Ulu. "Do you wish to cast this evil thing aside? I'll not object further. Just remember the company you keep."

  5. - Top - End - #905
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Doctor Ignacius Madaras, Medicus Extravagant!
    Gnome Artificer/Transmuter
    AC: 18 HP: 36/37
    PP: 11 PIv: 17 PIs: 11
    Conditions: Aid (8h; 10 mHP)
    Concentration: -

    On one hand Ignacius was happy about the entertainment during the travels. His new allies were a colorful bunch, and the coach ride was too wild for any proper alchemical experiments. On the other hand, they lacked a clear line, a guiding intellect. Ulu was a proper leader, since Vargath did not follow the call, but she was very much too strict for the gnome's taste.

    Into a pause of arguing, he interjects: We have a professional demon slayer in our midst. Mayhaps just let her check the coin for the essence of the Abyss, and we should be sure. But if it was in the possession of the imp merchant, it should show up corrupted regardless.

    Personally I feel this is an enticement or way to resummon the imp merchant again by putting the halves together.
    He looks in amused annoyance at Selissa's try to separate the coins. They'll find back together. In our mindful watch or to someone else's bumbling abilities.

    The law was what brought him to this pitiful existence. Law followed strictly to the letter, ignoring talent and passion and skill. Gnome crafters were not wanted. They were too weak, too slow, and whatever they produced was a masterpiece, but it did rarely meet the specifications. But on the turn, he was a gnome, not personified chaos itself. He knew order could be a good thing.

  6. - Top - End - #906
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Vargath Hubrecht
    Half-Orc Rune Knight Fighter
    AC: 19 HP: 49/49
    PP: 13 PIv: 12 PIs: 10
    Conditions: Infected (Lycanthropy), -1 INT
    Concentrating: --

    'Are werewolves evil?' The question rings in his ears. A question for philosophers, academians who spend their time debating the nature of mortality and whims of the gods. They all lacked the time for such diversions. "Werewolves are true to their nature. They're beasts. Outside of their pack little else matters. We fight them because they threaten us, not because of some inherent evil soul. Actions, not being." He inhales deeply through his nose, finally turning away from watching the window. "I know enough of devils to know they won't stop at a few coins. That is their nature. Eventually they will make you an offer you can't refuse. Not immediately, but eventually. 'It's just a transaction', you'll tell yourself, as you ask for more and more and more. 'I'm still in control', you will lie to yourself. Ask yourself if there's anything - or anyone - you'd sell your soul for. If you hesitate even for a moment, you should probably stay away from devils. " He turns away again. His input was requested, but he couldn't force it one way or the other. His last bit of advice, before falling silent: "You shouldn't be so eager to embrace curses."
    DMing:
    Iron Crisis IC | OOC
    Cyre Red IC | OOC

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    OotA IC | OOC

    Master Homebrew Index (5e)

  7. - Top - End - #907
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Northwest of Dam'ess- Stagecoach Interior

    Ulu, finished washing her hair, sets about rebraiding it, adding the beads not at random but with dedicated purpose. Though it looks difficult, a pattern is already appearing in the beads- black and white geometric shapes tinged with deep greens and bright reds. She waits for each of you to weigh in before giving her very measured response. "It is not my place to judge. You have five people in your party, which is a sacrosanct number without ties. However, Vargath is right. Devils always crave more and more. But if you temper your reach with that knowledge they can provide you with things that no one else can, or at least that no one else is willing to give. I am... familiar... with counting devils. They are less powerful than imps, with no poison or invisibility to protect themselves. They are also easily cowed into submission. If you never, EVER forget that their job is to corrupt you into greater deals with greater devils, they can be quite useful. In Nguni, the wealthiest families often use them to manage their finances. Their math is impeccable, whether it is cataloguing your gear or managing your coins. Besides tempting, they exist entirely to count. In the Nine Hells they are often abused and relegated to counting the same thing over and over again, and therefore they relish coming to our world to count new and interesting things. If you show it interesting new things, treat it with respect, and never forget it's true nature, they are capable enough tools that will act with some degree of loyalty. But as I said, you are five, and a sixth only serves to muddle your discussion. I will leave the decision to you, with the assurance that the coin is not tainted by the Abyss. The Hells come with their own danger, but they do follow agreements to the letter." Soon enough, Ulu's braids are restored, and with an entirely new pattern of beads that is too careful and meticulous not to hold some significance. She draws the string on the bag of beads and secures it to her belt.
    Last edited by purepolarpanzer; 2021-06-14 at 12:18 PM.
    The Bear is Back.

  8. - Top - End - #908
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Doctor Ignacius Madaras, Medicus Extravagant!
    Gnome Artificer/Transmuter
    AC: 18 HP: 36/37
    PP: 11 PIv: 17 PIs: 11
    Conditions: Aid (8h; 10 mHP)
    Concentration: -

    Vargath's monologue and Ulu's support make Ignacius finally understand. They want a coin devil to do their finances? Did they really just propose that? With all due respect, my friends. Are you flipping mad? You would give a fiend power over reality by dealing in our name? Signing with our permission? And then what? We would need a gaggle of barristers to keep such a haggling little monster in check.

    Nonono, I will proceed to manage our finances. Despite my front as a peddler of alchemical wonders, I am both indeed a capable alchemist and a merchant at heart. Plus I am still a being of the woods, a carefree spirit much akin to benevolent fey and thus I will not tolerate this idea. No offense, Ulu, but law or not should not come into this. I am not fond of demons even though their free spirits rage on as does mine when I see the great outdoors. So you should not either when we are talking about devils when all they are good for is betraying someone else for our benefit.


  9. - Top - End - #909
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Selissa Betula
    Wood Elf Scout Rogue
    AC: 16 HP: 38/38 -> 48/48
    PP: 16
    Conditions: Aid
    Concentrating: --


    Bence's house

    It suits you.

    At these words, Selissa took a moment as she had a sudden moment of doubt on her understanding of common. Slowly, her eyes narrowed, and she settled a fierce glare on the cursed human. She let the moment stretch out, her glare not lifting, until finally Set looked away and began to focus on the statue man thing.

    Finally, she gave a tiny shake of her head, almost resigned and stalked away.

    Humans. She'd never understand them, she thought, if she lived another thousand years.

    Stagecoach

    Selissa clicked her tongue in annoyance as the devilblood spoke not just to her, but to the group as a whole. In a moment, it turned into a battlefield the elf knew she was outmatched on; her nature had never been one of clever wordplay. The wood elf listened carefully to each of the words spoken by each member, her green gaze sliding between each.

    "Weldry himself said it tried to tempt him. Has an agenda. Not somethingto give use to. Beating demons no good if devils win instead. Different kind of death. By chains rather than claw." She sighed and met the tiefling's eyes. Her tone wasn't accusing, just - a little tired, perhaps. "Not stupid, devilblood. Not worried about the killing of it. Already have once, after all. But devils are evil. Always a cost, even if it's not you paying. Never just trifles."

    She glanced sideways at Set as he spoke.
    "Cursed one. Set,"
    she paused, thinking about her words. Her words were slow, methodical, as she picked each out and strove to put emphasis in her normally emotionless voice. "Good not something you just are. Is something you strive for. Sometimes you fall short. But means trying. Making amends means not making things worse. You're cursed. Doesn't mean you should seek a different evil. Don't- betray yourself. Even though it's hard. Especially."
    She cocked her head as something occured to her.
    "Also, coin devil did hurt you. Exploded when I shot it. Hit you with coins."
    She added a tad awkwardly. "...Not sure that counts, though."

    She angled her head briefly at Vargath after he spoke, giving him a tiny nod. Simple words. Good words. Once again, with the weight of the majority behind her, she held out her hand. Personally, she didn't quite get the human obsession with shiny metal currency, but then, maybe not being eaten by undead monsters wasn't motivating for some.
    "Not pretending this is going to be easy, but this isn't the right way. Limit the evils we have to deal with. Let the gnome can do the counting."

    Root, though, that was more talking than she liked to do.
    And the far stars cried, and the planets yearned;
    But no man may know, for she'll ne'er return.

  10. - Top - End - #910
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Northwest of Dam'ess- Stagecoach Interior

    The matter settled, Mal hands the coin over to Selissa, who stows it appropriately for it's danger. The coach rolls on for the next few hours in relative peace, providing scenic views of field after field after field to excite the mind and indulge the senses. It isn't till after the fields fall away that the true beauty of Dame'ss is revealed. On your right, a large river cuts through virgin terrain, the carefully curated wilds of the Hartswood, tended faithfully by the Green Faith for generations. Vargath spots a jumping fish, while Dr. Madaras is quick to point out a cadre of hunters, standing aside on the road to let the coach by, each one carrying poles being used to haul a massive wild boar. "Spirits go with you! Hart bless your journey!" shouts one of them. On your left, the untamed forest of the Banewood, where Ulu stares as though searching for threats, while Selissa spots the largest bear she has ever seen, it's coat touched by grey. But before you can signal the driver to stop, it is already moving deeper into the forest at a good pace. Perhaps it is it's taboo home that has allowed it to survive into old age, or perhaps there is something more mystical about it. But as the gentle rocking of the stage coach continues on, you travel most of the day without incident.

    Then, just as the sun was setting, there are a few cries from the front of the stagecoach and Kagiso slows the stage coach to a halt. He is speaking loudly in his native language to someone as Maus shouts over the din. "Barricade set up in the road. Armed men. You should all come out and look at this." The banner of the king hangs down from a nearby tree branch, and from the shouting Kagiso is in disagreement with being stopped.

    Northwest of Dam'ess- Along the Delvus River

    Outside the stagecoach, even the fading light of the sun seems bright, as though the star were resisting the call to rest beyond the horizon. Along the left hand side of the road is thick forested hills. The land appears to be rising in elevation, and all who traveled to Dam'ess before know that the road passes through a mountainous region for the next few days. It is impassable by the stage coach, and wound be rough terrain to try to hike through as well. To the right, the Delvus River comes down from the mountains to as one of many rivers that feed the local lakes. It is nearly forty feet across and would be a difficult swim for a skilled athlete with the speed at which it flows and the many large rocks either protruding from the water or hiding beneath it. Straight ahead, the road is blocked with several rocks of varying size. While it would be a simple matter to walk through the gaps in the stones or shove them aside, until they are moved the stage is somewhat trapped. They are piled in diagonal lines that Vargath notes is prominent in military theory. Whoever is blocking this road knew how to do it right.

    Speaking of who is blocking the road, a stout human woman stands in your path. She is wearing chainmail armor, bearing a shield with the king's seal on it and a longsword. She is simply staring at the ranting Nguni man, as though she is waiting for someone to come along and have a proper conversation. The feathered helmet she wears identifies her as a lieutenant in King Haram's armed forces. Flanking her, behind the nearest stones, are three men who are wearing the same equipment, though without the feathered helmets, wearing iron caps instead. All of them look vaguely threatening, as though they are passively trying to exude an aura of authority. Selissa notices Ulu's gaze go beyond them, and she spots two more lightly armored people further back, each of them wielding a longbow. Ulu moves to silence Kagiso, speaking a single word that immediately halts his shouting. Then Ulu begins striding toward the armored woman, her impassive mask in perfect form. The lieutenant holds her position, a small grin upon her features, as though she enjoys making people come to her. Either that, or she may just have the good sense to stay by her cover and her back up. Maybe some combination of both.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Who wants to negotiate and who wants to stay by the stage coach? Charging head long into battle is also an option, of course. In that case we can roll for initiative.
    The Bear is Back.

  11. - Top - End - #911
    Barbarian in the Playground
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Mal
    Levistus Tiefling Bard 5
    AC: 14 HP: 40/41
    PP: 11 PIv: 13 PIs: 11
    Spell Slots: 1st - 2/4 2nd - 2/3 3rd - 1/2
    Fey Touched: 1st - 1/1 2nd - 1/1
    Masquerade Tattoo: 1st - 0/1
    Levistus Legacy: Armor of Agathys - 0/1 Darkness - 1/1
    Bardic Inspiration: 3/4
    Healer's Kit: 20/20
    Mal Conditions: See Invisibility and Ethereal Plane (Range: Sight)
    Mal Concentrating: ---

    Soreshu
    Ancient Companion: Sage
    Companion HP: 30/30
    Companion AC: 14
    Companion PP: 18 PIv: 12 PIs: 12
    Sage's Counsel: While within 15 feet of the companion, you and your allies gain a +2 bonus to Intelligence and Wisdom checks.

    The Stagecoach to Harumburg

    Mal flicked the coin to Selissa, forcing her to catch with her wooden hand. He answered succinctly, devoid of emotion or disturbance. "The group has achieved a quorum. By your consensus, so by your hand."

    The tiefling noted their arguments, moreso their vitriol. He would not press them concerning creatures of the Nine. Their bluster would soon be put to a better test. He figured the capital would yield more dangerous lore and tools than a imp's runtling. He did reply to Ig, "As to the handling of coin, I would prefer to place such a matter into more...regulated hands. You've admitted to a mercurialness that would not behoove managing accounts."

    Soreshu neither commented nor reacted, its stoic face watching the wood elf to see how she went about her business.


    At the Barricade

    The tiefling listened to the exchanges and then decided it best to don a concealment. Checkpoints into the Vale were a nuisance, but he figured looking the part of a human would better smooth the situation. He invoked his disguise, molting into a pleasantly tanned man in his thirties with a brown beard and hair in a similar style to his own. He slipped from the carriage and looked about the area. Quite an advantage they have taken.

    When Ulu marched forward, the attache followed with measured alacrity. He desired to have the measure of the foe, and this woman appeared a good candidate to obtain some knowledge. He smiled and asked politely, "A pleasant day to you, Lieutenant. What do we owe the pleasure of making your acquaintance?"

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show


    Masquerade Tattoo: An action to make a DC 13 investigation to discern he is not a human and is a tiefling under the ruse.

    Spoiler: Mal's Notes
    Show
    Spoiler: Cast and Crew
    Show
    Set: outcast exiled princeling of Abydos. Two princess sisters (Sisi and Sythpen Al-Sayyid). Romantic connection for Moira?
    Selissa: Blighted or reconstructed wood elf? Purported Scout.
    Vargath: Afflicted Lycanthrope seeking to suspend his curse. A Bloodwolf?
    Mandaras: Rival to Dr. Fixer.
    Dr. Fixer: Moira's lieutenant and cultivates relations with the locals of Vale.
    Elder Maus: Seeks to kill Moira. Hired mercenaries who betrayed him.
    --Healed to his full 9ft height.
    --Disbelieves Moira's insights; seeks to end her directly or indirectly.
    --Seeks us to verify the truths of Moira's claims--or stop her by any means necessary.
    Maulei: Successor to Elder Maus as elder of Dam'ess.
    Uluthando Mikoso "Ulu:" Paladin? of Order. From beyond the Vale. Reacts by gripping her dagger and declaring Tieflings are treated differently...Lawful (N/E?) Order? Calls Mal 'Mdala Ohlonishwayo.' Professes to serve no god, but spirits whose reach may be weaker in the Vale than elsewhere.


    Spoiler: Dream of Leng
    Show
    Spoiler: In Full
    Show
    Mal has had this dream before. He finds himself in the legendary Library of Leng, an ancient home of virtually all worldly and mystical knowledge that burned when the city it was located in was razed nearly nine hundred years ago, half the world away. Still, in his dreams it still existed, and these dreams always played out the same. Hours of dutiful research, referencing and cross referencing sources from multiple tomes, carefully reconstructing ancient languages, until EUREKA! Some devastating and profound arcane truth became evident to him, and the sense of accomplisment and relief normally carried with him for several hours after waking up, even if he could never actually remember anything he learned. But this time is different. Mal is well versed enough in the arcane and divine arts to know that sometimes dreams carry real meaning. And as he stares down at what he has been working on, he instinctively knows this bears some significance. Where normally he would have arcane formulas and theorems, he sees only "The One Who Stalks Behind" scrawled over and over again in his own hand, though the words are manic and look like they were written in distress. He searches the paper for any further omen, and down at the bottom of the page, in the smallest script he could possibly manage, it says Behind you!. Just as he is about to turn, a claw as strong as iron grips the side of his head, snaps his neck to the side, and ends all feeling in the bard's body. But he can still hear the deep throated growls, along with the wet noises of whatever killed him beginning to eat him alive. But he never gets to see it before the dream ends.


    The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. RIGHT BEHIND YOU! The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind.



    Spoiler: Bence's Secrets
    Show

    Spoiler: Bence's Journal
    Show

    ...is a backwards plane, so far removed from the Prime Material that it has not seen an angel or the work of a god in a millennia. I hear that far to the west they do not even worship the gods. Proper savages, but I must remain vigilant, as their knowledge of the ways of this world is far more educated than most. But it is ripe for my conquest. While my Master was tasked with corrupting Avendor, my home plane, a bastion of good and law, my chore is simply to tip the rat into the bucket of the Abyss as it prowls the rim looking for cheese. This plane is already so flooded with the energies of the Abyss that demons spontaneously emerge, monsters manifest in the dark, and their weak leaders bargain with forces they would be wiser to repulse. It will be child's play to nudge it the last few inches into anarchy and destruction, mostly due to the efforts of Pale Night herself. For thousands of years she has been grasping and clawing at this realm, dragging it further from the light and closer to her realm day by day, inch by inch, soul by soul. While my home plane was beyond my ability to destroy, this place will be my masterpiece. With my death at the hands of the forces of good, a symphony of destruction will play the anthem to my ascension to demonhood. The Pale Mother has promised me that each death will bring me closer to my true form, and each rebirth will increase my power, just as our pact promised. I can't wait to die. When will the heroes arrive? I've been planting and tending the seed of the idea in the old giant's mind for weeks now. When will it bear fruit? When can my dark rise to power begin? (The rest is a combination of burned and Abyssal that becomes impossible to read)

    Dam'ess- Mass Quasit Summoning. Magic Mouth to Levy Commands re: Retrieve Mirror of Leng, Scepter of Rulership, And Aniot's Cube. Disperse to Appropriate Parties Per The Plan. Burn The Cabin.

    Harumburg- Sending to Lord of Bone re: Portal to the 113th. (Indecipherable Due to Burns) In Accordance with Their Great Alliance.

    Falluneer- Sending to Lord of Flesh re: (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Ebon Spear.

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)light: Sending to Lord of Blood re: Assassination of (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Yukkot, Recovery of Blood (More Burns).

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)odge- Sending to Cult of Pale (More Burns) re: Initiate Divining Ritual Sacrifices. FIND THE DAMN ZIGGURAT.

    Garrunrow- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Kill the Last Bloodwolf. Recover (More Burns) Key.

    Mountain of Smoke- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) crypt. Seize the Ebon (More Burns).

    Sussoon- Ensure the Prophecy (Indecipherable Due to Burns)... Pay the Bounty Hunters to Find the Abydossian and the Princesses. re: Sacrifices of The Old Blood

    (There is more, but seemingly out of paranoia Bence switched to Abyssal. It is impossible to tell how many lines there are, as the last half of the paper is fully burned away)


    Spoiler: Arcane Lore concerning Bence's Notes
    Show
    The magic of Contingency is a nearly mythical bit of spell work that was said to be lost when the Library of Leng burned down. It allows a caster to prepare spells in advance for a predetermined event, in this case John Bence's own death, and the spells will automatically cast when the event happens. If Bence is capable of such sorcery, he is likely far more powerful than his flashy death at the party's hands would indicate.

    The Mirror of Leng is a artifact of the Library of Leng, said to contain a frozen moment of time where the library was at it's height that a person can temporarily step in to, giving access to the greatest magical library this world has ever seen. Supposedly several mirrors were made, though some are confirmed destroyed after their use led to come calamity of forbidden magics long lost to time. The Scepter of Rulership is said to be an even more powerful version of a Rod of Rulership, a magic item that allows for mass mind manipulation of people to believe that the holder of the Scepter is their rightful ruler. The last time the Scepter was confirmed in play it toppled an entire nation.

    Though numbering and organizing the layers of the Abyss is a fool's errand, there are some realms that are constant enough to designate. The one hundred and thirteenth layer is Thanatos, layer of Orcus, the Lord of Death. It is a lifeless frozen landscape where life is snuffed out almost as soon as it arrives, either by the untold legions of undead denizens, the magical aura of the layer itself, or, in the worst cases, by Orcus himself, using his fearsome Wand.


    Spoiler: John Bence's Wall Art
    Show
    There are no invisible objects in the room, but the entire back wall of the cabin is plastered with profane runes and abyssal scribblings. Where there was nothing to the naked eye, there is an extensive patchwork of spell work, seemingly scribed in the rusted red of blood. More disturbing is the fragments of souls that have been bound to the wall. Faces of people rise and seethe from the wood like a strange and rippling tide, mouths open in anguish. There are not many of them left, presumably due to whatever spell was used here absorbing so much energy, but there is a fine layer of ectoplasm that would indicate that once there were dozens of soul fragments powering this spell. The sight turns Mal's stomach, as the chaotic, destructive magic of the Abyss is written as plainly as news script, but as subtly as any devil could manage.



    Spoiler: Monsters
    Show
    Barlgura: Demon loosed by summoning ritual on the road to Dam'ess. Slain with its summoned partner by team. (Bless helped with accuracy issues due to invisibility. In the future, layer mind sliver to aid with saves.)
    Brazen Hart: Spirit of the wild wood around Dam'ess. Seeks to test the party's mettle by forcing an open fight with the Barlgura.


    Spoiler: Instrument of the Bards
    Show
    Mal needs a translator, the spells, and woodcrafter to create a new relic.
    Spoiler: Full Description
    Show
    Still, tucked among the primers and amateur books he finds a book that deals with the blending of magic and music. Specifically, it holds the instructions and rituals for a new version of the famed artifacts known as the instruments of the bards. Unfortunately, about a third of the book is in a language Mal does not understand or recognize, including most of the rites and rituals to imbue it with magic. Still, with a translator, appropriate magics, some study, and someone skilled in wood craft, he may be able to produce one of these relics for himself.


    Report daily updates to Mistress Moira at last light.



  12. - Top - End - #912
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    SwashbucklerGuy

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Set Al-Sayyid
    Changeling Fighter/Hexblade
    AC: 17 HP: 36/36 [44]
    PP: 11 PIv: 12 PIs: 9
    Conditions: Iumenta Pox (-8 max hp); 3rd level Aid for 8 hours (Mal, +10 max hp)
    Concentration: Detect Magic

    Northwest of Dam'ess - Stagecoach Interior

    "Ask yourself if there's anything - or anyone - you'd sell your soul for. If you hesitate even for a moment, you should probably stay away from devils...You shouldn't be so eager to embrace curses."

    Set listens solemnly as Vargath lays out his reasons, stiffening as the Mighty calmly instructs Set to consider what his soul is worth, and whether he could sell it for any reason without hesitation. In the time since he'd passed into the Shadowkeeper's service, Set had learned many things, but he hadn't yet learned how to crawl into his own shadow and disappear. He wished for such power now.

    His soul was forfeit already, but he hadn't sold it without hesitation. He'd made the Shadowkeeper wait as he agonized over the choice, everlasting service to Him in exchange for his sister's safety, and Abydos with them. But even weighed against all that, it was still his soul. Eternity stretches out in one's mind when faced with the possibility of never, ever finding peace. Without a push from the coin, he might not have been able to take what was offered.

    "It is not my place to judge. You have five people in your party, which is a sacrosanct number without ties. However, Vargath is right. Devils always crave more and more."

    Set returns to the present in time to hear Ulu's measured words. Although she speaks with direct knowledge of the counting devils, honestly relating their merits and drawbacks, Set's mind refocuses on just a few of her words. 'Devils always crave more and more.' The Shadowkeeper is no devil, as far as Set knows, but would he start to crave more? He'd seemingly been content with binding Set to Him and entertaining himself at Set's expense, but would He come to crave more? Would He ask Set to do something that would see him banished from these people just as they wished to banish the imp?

    "With all due respect, my friends. Are you flipping mad? You would give a fiend power over reality by dealing in our name? ...Nonono, I will proceed to manage our finances. Despite my front as a peddler of alchemical wonders, I am both indeed a capable alchemist and a merchant at heart."

    The gnome's words break Set out of more morose thoughts for a moment, tugging at him to take notice. Madaras had already proven himself to be a master of medicine, diagnosing Set easily before he'd even realized he was sick. Ignacius was a solver of cyphers with a mind capable of penetrating Bence's best attempt to leave behind a mystery. And apparently he had a mind for finance as well.

    The number three, much like five, was similarly blessed in matters that required careful consideration. A master of medicine, a mystery-solver, and a merchant at heart, Ignacius was Thrice-Blessed with gifts of the mind. Set considers the coin-purse tucked away in his pack atop the coach, but the thought escapes him as he listens to Thrice-Blessed's closing argument.

    "Good not something you just are. Is something you strive for. Sometimes you fall short. But means trying. Making amends means not making things worse. You're cursed. Doesn't mean you should seek a different evil. Don't- betray yourself. Even though it's hard. Especially."

    Set nods slowly, mouth twitching as he struggles to respond. "I strive to do good where I can, Selissa, but if I ever stop believing that good can come from using evil," Set says, trailing off for a moment. He looks away, takes a breath, and looks back. "I don't know where that would leave me." Biting down on the inside of his cheek to hold Evergreen's gaze without flinching, Set's shoulders sag as the tension drains from him. He looks back and forth between Vargath and Selissa, two people he'd watched slay numerous werewolves, monsters, and demons alike. "I will try to do good without devils, but I am only a spear without the Shadowkeeper. I can't go back to feeling like Hans, helpless while those around me or those I care about are threatened."

    He hadn't been strong enough to turn away the monster that had come calling in Abydos, and now Sirus was dead and Set was bound to Him. He'd already paid the cost, but the thought of Sirus weighed heavier than his own soul. A deal with devils would cost less than losing his sisters too.

    "The group has achieved a quorum. By your consensus, so by your hand."

    As Iceblood settles his account with Evergreen, Set looks around at the others and tries to shift his thoughts away from thinking about what he would be willing to pay for them, or for Moira.

    Northwest of Dam'ess - Along the Delvus River

    Set examines the river flanking them as he looks around while Kagiso berrates their impediment. It may not have been the Great River that slaked Abydos' thirst, but it's waters looked dangerous all the same. The road ahead was blocked. There was only the road behind, and the forest, which looked like a perfect spot from which to launch an ambush. Set peers out into the shadows as they stretch longer and longer from the trees on their left.

    <"Residual."> Set reawakens his sense of magic before exiting the coach, glancing back at those who hadn't had a chance to move yet. "Just talk, right?" Set asks quickly, voice hushed despite the distance, before turning after Mal and Ulu. He is not as eager, but he shifts forward enough to support them from a distance, putting himself within 30 feet of the woman-in-charge. Cursing himself for a fool, his mind turns to the spear on his pack atop the coach and the empty strap on his belt where his hatchet should be.

    Deals with devils. Set's fingers twitch anxiously, feeling naked without a weapon, but at least the Shadowkeeper's power would be there if he needed it.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show

    Perception check the forest for signs of additional troops lying in wait: (1d20+2)[10]

    Detect Magic, if allowed to cast in addition to the perception check.


  13. - Top - End - #913
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Spore's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Doctor Ignacius Madaras, Medicus Extravagant!
    Gnome Artificer/Transmuter
    AC: 18 HP: 36/37
    PP: 11 PIv: 17 PIs: 11
    Conditions: Aid (8h; 10 mHP)
    Concentration: -

    Stagecoach

    "As to the handling of coin, I would prefer to place such a matter into more...regulated hands. You've admitted to a mercurialness that would not behoove managing accounts."

    These were the first honest words Maledictus spoke that were genuinely his, and not some facade used to misguide people into friendliness. While Ignacius enjoyed the honesty, he resented the hostility in them. If we ever find someone more capable, I am sure to entrust them with it. But for now, my skills are the next best thing. Or would you rather have a third party whom you don't have control over handle our finances? I am very okay with it, but the discussion is not for the present either, since we barely have a hundred talers between us combined.




    At the Barricade

    There they were, the king's highwaymen, wasting everyone's time by collecting a ransom. Or as they called it, road toll. Even in his liberal nature, Ig understood the need for funds to keep the highway system working, the roads guarded and maintained. But the king could do with a little less intimidatory tactics. Of course there were people who would not pay, and other kinds who would try to circumvent this.

    So Ig laid back, as their position was seemingly well represented by their very own infernal barrister. The gnome climbed onto the coach box sitting next to Kagiso's former position with a wide smile. This will be good!

  14. - Top - End - #914
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Amnestic's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Vargath Hubrecht
    Half-Orc Rune Knight Fighter
    AC: 19 HP: 49/49
    PP: 13 PIv: 12 PIs: 10
    Conditions: Infected (Lycanthropy), -1 INT
    Concentrating: --

    There were many things that Vargath was good at, but if his inability to convince peasants not to throw themselves at demons was any indication then being a wordsmith was not one of his gifts. He's not even sure exiting the stagecoach would be a good idea, given his blood background. While it's unlikely to get any worse attention than Mal's, adding fuel to a fire wasn't wise. And so he stays put, quietly listening to the events unfold and keeping a watch - though also not approaching the windows of the stagecoach. Whether he stood outside the stagecoach or remained inside was unlikely to make a great bit of difference if fighting should break out.
    DMing:
    Iron Crisis IC | OOC
    Cyre Red IC | OOC

    Playing:
    OotA IC | OOC

    Master Homebrew Index (5e)

  15. - Top - End - #915
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    purepolarpanzer's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Northwest of Dam'ess- Along the Delvus River

    Lagging a few seconds behind the others, Maus steps up to address the officer as well. The lieutenant looks over those who have left the stage coach to approach, then looks over their shoulders at the stage. The sun sinks lower and lower, and the sky, which has been filled with scattered grey clouds all day, seems to be growing even more overcast. Single drops of rain begin to fall, and in the distance there is a rumble of thunder. She speaks loudly enough to address Ulu, Maus, and Mal while the others can all hear her as well. "There's been an accident in the road ahead. You're going to have to wait here while we take care of it. Don't worry, I'm sure we'll have it cleared up soon." She gives you all the once over yet again, giving Set and Ulu lingering glances. "You lot don't look like the doddering Greenies we expected to see out here. What's your business in Harumvale?"

    Spoiler: DC 5 Insight
    Show
    When the ranking officer said "accident", all three of the soldiers behind her glanced at each other with uncertain looks on their faces, as though they were surprised to be hearing of this "accident" for the first time themselves.
    Spoiler: DC 10 Insight
    Show
    The exchanged looks between the rank and file don't just show surprise. One of them men quivers slightly, biting his bottom lip and closing his eyes, as though he has recalled something soul quakingly horrible. The other two quickly try to regain military form when they get a backwards glance from their commander, but as soon as she turns fully to face you again they begin whispering to each other behind their gauntlets, eyes wide with fear.
    Spoiler: DC 16 Insight
    Show
    The lieutenant is a bit better at hiding her feelings than her soldiers, but not by much. There was a sizeable pause between "been" and " an accident", as though she were conjuring the right excuse for why you can't pass, not relaying fact. Her eyes are bloodshot and her sword hand trembles, there's fresh vomit still wetting her boots as well as those of two of the footmen, and there was an unmistakable twitch of fear in her eye that is unbecoming in an experienced soldier, so she tries to disguise it as something of a wink. This woman recently witnessed something to shook her to her core, and now she is lying about it to all of you. More so, she is specifically trying to divert the conversation to questioning you to avoid having to give any answers herself.


    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Greenies is a derogatory and dismissive term used as a slur against members of the Green Faith, almost exclusively by Harumites. It conjures imagery of inbred country bumpkins wasting their time talking to trees.
    Last edited by purepolarpanzer; 2021-06-16 at 09:42 PM.
    The Bear is Back.

  16. - Top - End - #916
    Barbarian in the Playground
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Mal
    Levistus Tiefling Bard 5
    AC: 14 HP: 40/41
    PP: 11 PIv: 13 PIs: 11
    Spell Slots: 1st - 2/4 2nd - 2/3 3rd - 1/2
    Fey Touched: 1st - 1/1 2nd - 1/1
    Masquerade Tattoo: 1st - 0/1
    Levistus Legacy: Armor of Agathys - 0/1 Darkness - 1/1
    Bardic Inspiration: 3/4
    Healer's Kit: 20/20
    Mal Conditions: Disguise Self (DC 13 Investigation)
    Mal Concentrating: ---

    Soreshu
    Ancient Companion: Sage
    Companion HP: 30/30
    Companion AC: 14
    Companion PP: 18 PIv: 12 PIs: 12
    Sage's Counsel: While within 15 feet of the companion, you and your allies gain a +2 bonus to Intelligence and Wisdom checks.

    The man stroked his well groomed and oiled brown beard as he considered the lieutenant's words. He then leisurely drew a pipe that appeared plain briarwood and without designs. Fey skulls drifted into the air as he puffed with a slow, measured draw. Mal answered the woman pleasantly, "We travel for humane causes, healing infirmities and dealing with troubles along the way. The 'Greenies' had an infestation of less savory souls, which we cleaned up for them."

    He nodded his head toward the direction of the 'accident.' Mal briefly locked eyes with the whispering guards as he nodded, as if to affirm their mutterings. His added just loud enough for her cohort to hear, "An accident, you say? Our physician could assist you in tending to any wounded in body or mind."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show


    Insight 14.

    Spoiler: Mal's Notes
    Show
    Spoiler: Cast and Crew
    Show
    Set: outcast exiled princeling of Abydos. Two princess sisters (Sisi and Sythpen Al-Sayyid). Romantic connection for Moira?
    Selissa: Blighted or reconstructed wood elf? Purported Scout.
    Vargath: Afflicted Lycanthrope seeking to suspend his curse. A Bloodwolf?
    Mandaras: Rival to Dr. Fixer.
    Dr. Fixer: Moira's lieutenant and cultivates relations with the locals of Vale.
    Elder Maus: Seeks to kill Moira. Hired mercenaries who betrayed him.
    --Healed to his full 9ft height.
    --Disbelieves Moira's insights; seeks to end her directly or indirectly.
    --Seeks us to verify the truths of Moira's claims--or stop her by any means necessary.
    Maulei: Successor to Elder Maus as elder of Dam'ess.
    Uluthando Mikoso "Ulu:" Paladin? of Order. From beyond the Vale. Reacts by gripping her dagger and declaring Tieflings are treated differently...Lawful (N/E?) Order? Calls Mal 'Mdala Ohlonishwayo.' Professes to serve no god, but spirits whose reach may be weaker in the Vale than elsewhere.


    Spoiler: Dream of Leng
    Show
    Spoiler: In Full
    Show
    Mal has had this dream before. He finds himself in the legendary Library of Leng, an ancient home of virtually all worldly and mystical knowledge that burned when the city it was located in was razed nearly nine hundred years ago, half the world away. Still, in his dreams it still existed, and these dreams always played out the same. Hours of dutiful research, referencing and cross referencing sources from multiple tomes, carefully reconstructing ancient languages, until EUREKA! Some devastating and profound arcane truth became evident to him, and the sense of accomplisment and relief normally carried with him for several hours after waking up, even if he could never actually remember anything he learned. But this time is different. Mal is well versed enough in the arcane and divine arts to know that sometimes dreams carry real meaning. And as he stares down at what he has been working on, he instinctively knows this bears some significance. Where normally he would have arcane formulas and theorems, he sees only "The One Who Stalks Behind" scrawled over and over again in his own hand, though the words are manic and look like they were written in distress. He searches the paper for any further omen, and down at the bottom of the page, in the smallest script he could possibly manage, it says Behind you!. Just as he is about to turn, a claw as strong as iron grips the side of his head, snaps his neck to the side, and ends all feeling in the bard's body. But he can still hear the deep throated growls, along with the wet noises of whatever killed him beginning to eat him alive. But he never gets to see it before the dream ends.


    The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. RIGHT BEHIND YOU! The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind.



    Spoiler: Bence's Secrets
    Show

    Spoiler: Bence's Journal
    Show

    ...is a backwards plane, so far removed from the Prime Material that it has not seen an angel or the work of a god in a millennia. I hear that far to the west they do not even worship the gods. Proper savages, but I must remain vigilant, as their knowledge of the ways of this world is far more educated than most. But it is ripe for my conquest. While my Master was tasked with corrupting Avendor, my home plane, a bastion of good and law, my chore is simply to tip the rat into the bucket of the Abyss as it prowls the rim looking for cheese. This plane is already so flooded with the energies of the Abyss that demons spontaneously emerge, monsters manifest in the dark, and their weak leaders bargain with forces they would be wiser to repulse. It will be child's play to nudge it the last few inches into anarchy and destruction, mostly due to the efforts of Pale Night herself. For thousands of years she has been grasping and clawing at this realm, dragging it further from the light and closer to her realm day by day, inch by inch, soul by soul. While my home plane was beyond my ability to destroy, this place will be my masterpiece. With my death at the hands of the forces of good, a symphony of destruction will play the anthem to my ascension to demonhood. The Pale Mother has promised me that each death will bring me closer to my true form, and each rebirth will increase my power, just as our pact promised. I can't wait to die. When will the heroes arrive? I've been planting and tending the seed of the idea in the old giant's mind for weeks now. When will it bear fruit? When can my dark rise to power begin? (The rest is a combination of burned and Abyssal that becomes impossible to read)

    Dam'ess- Mass Quasit Summoning. Magic Mouth to Levy Commands re: Retrieve Mirror of Leng, Scepter of Rulership, And Aniot's Cube. Disperse to Appropriate Parties Per The Plan. Burn The Cabin.

    Harumburg- Sending to Lord of Bone re: Portal to the 113th. (Indecipherable Due to Burns) In Accordance with Their Great Alliance.

    Falluneer- Sending to Lord of Flesh re: (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Ebon Spear.

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)light: Sending to Lord of Blood re: Assassination of (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Yukkot, Recovery of Blood (More Burns).

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)odge- Sending to Cult of Pale (More Burns) re: Initiate Divining Ritual Sacrifices. FIND THE DAMN ZIGGURAT.

    Garrunrow- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Kill the Last Bloodwolf. Recover (More Burns) Key.

    Mountain of Smoke- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) crypt. Seize the Ebon (More Burns).

    Sussoon- Ensure the Prophecy (Indecipherable Due to Burns)... Pay the Bounty Hunters to Find the Abydossian and the Princesses. re: Sacrifices of The Old Blood

    (There is more, but seemingly out of paranoia Bence switched to Abyssal. It is impossible to tell how many lines there are, as the last half of the paper is fully burned away)


    Spoiler: Arcane Lore concerning Bence's Notes
    Show
    The magic of Contingency is a nearly mythical bit of spell work that was said to be lost when the Library of Leng burned down. It allows a caster to prepare spells in advance for a predetermined event, in this case John Bence's own death, and the spells will automatically cast when the event happens. If Bence is capable of such sorcery, he is likely far more powerful than his flashy death at the party's hands would indicate.

    The Mirror of Leng is a artifact of the Library of Leng, said to contain a frozen moment of time where the library was at it's height that a person can temporarily step in to, giving access to the greatest magical library this world has ever seen. Supposedly several mirrors were made, though some are confirmed destroyed after their use led to come calamity of forbidden magics long lost to time. The Scepter of Rulership is said to be an even more powerful version of a Rod of Rulership, a magic item that allows for mass mind manipulation of people to believe that the holder of the Scepter is their rightful ruler. The last time the Scepter was confirmed in play it toppled an entire nation.

    Though numbering and organizing the layers of the Abyss is a fool's errand, there are some realms that are constant enough to designate. The one hundred and thirteenth layer is Thanatos, layer of Orcus, the Lord of Death. It is a lifeless frozen landscape where life is snuffed out almost as soon as it arrives, either by the untold legions of undead denizens, the magical aura of the layer itself, or, in the worst cases, by Orcus himself, using his fearsome Wand.


    Spoiler: John Bence's Wall Art
    Show
    There are no invisible objects in the room, but the entire back wall of the cabin is plastered with profane runes and abyssal scribblings. Where there was nothing to the naked eye, there is an extensive patchwork of spell work, seemingly scribed in the rusted red of blood. More disturbing is the fragments of souls that have been bound to the wall. Faces of people rise and seethe from the wood like a strange and rippling tide, mouths open in anguish. There are not many of them left, presumably due to whatever spell was used here absorbing so much energy, but there is a fine layer of ectoplasm that would indicate that once there were dozens of soul fragments powering this spell. The sight turns Mal's stomach, as the chaotic, destructive magic of the Abyss is written as plainly as news script, but as subtly as any devil could manage.



    Spoiler: Monsters
    Show
    Barlgura: Demon loosed by summoning ritual on the road to Dam'ess. Slain with its summoned partner by team. (Bless helped with accuracy issues due to invisibility. In the future, layer mind sliver to aid with saves.)
    Brazen Hart: Spirit of the wild wood around Dam'ess. Seeks to test the party's mettle by forcing an open fight with the Barlgura.


    Spoiler: Instrument of the Bards
    Show
    Mal needs a translator, the spells, and woodcrafter to create a new relic.
    Spoiler: Full Description
    Show
    Still, tucked among the primers and amateur books he finds a book that deals with the blending of magic and music. Specifically, it holds the instructions and rituals for a new version of the famed artifacts known as the instruments of the bards. Unfortunately, about a third of the book is in a language Mal does not understand or recognize, including most of the rites and rituals to imbue it with magic. Still, with a translator, appropriate magics, some study, and someone skilled in wood craft, he may be able to produce one of these relics for himself.


    Report daily updates to Mistress Moira at last light.



  17. - Top - End - #917
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Spore's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Doctor Ignacius Madaras, Medicus Extravagant!
    Gnome Artificer/Transmuter
    AC: 18 HP: 36/37
    PP: 11 PIv: 17 PIs: 11
    Conditions: Aid (8h; 10 mHP)
    Concentration: -

    The gnome looks onto the situation while the fiendish 'human' tries to negotiate a swift continuation of their travel. As they ridicule the faith in the Vale, the gnome needs to bite down on his lip. Aye. I have bandages and healing for physical wounds, and a bit more of the strong stuff for the mental aches. He should have remembered to bring drinking spirits. Well, I guessed Ulu was not mad if the shared drinks of her coach were used to continue the travels; a bit of wastage for her 'handler'.



  18. - Top - End - #918
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    purepolarpanzer's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Northwest of Dam'ess- Along the Delvus River

    "I am a paladin of Order. This vehicle and it's occupants are travelling with me to right wrongs, slay monsters, and promote Order in your lands. If I can lend my hand to help with this... "accident"... then I am sworn to. Simply move your barricade aside and I and my companions will give whatever aid we can." Ulu gestures back towards the stagecoach, freely giving the information that there are more to her party. Maus, his teeth gritted against the insult, says "I am the... former leader of Dam'ess, the community several hours southeast of here. I have knowledge of magic and basic herb craft that could aid any wounded." He notably does NOT say where that magic comes from, properly reading that identifying himself as a member of the Green Faith may cause more harm than good. The officer snorts, holds up her hand, and spits in the road. "We have soldiers and priests of the True God working on cleaning up the scene. Your assistance is not needed. You will have to wait, just like anyone else that comes up this road. I'm sure you have the NOBLEST of intentions, but we don't need outsiders to handle an internal matter." Ulu, her voice raising a single iota, responds almost immediately. "Your country is beset by monsters and demons. I sense there is more to this "accident" then you are sharing with us. If it is beyond our abilities, then we will wait patiently within your cordon for your priests and soldiers to resolve the situation. But if it is within our ability to help, you would be ill advised to turn down our offer. Or impede our path. We do battle with great evil and can afford no delay." Both of her hands, gauntleted once again, are squeezed into fists, the metal releasing a metallic squeal from the pressure.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Ulu is providing advantage on any Charisma check anyone feels like throwing out.
    The Bear is Back.

  19. - Top - End - #919
    Barbarian in the Playground
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Mal
    Levistus Tiefling Bard 5
    AC: 14 HP: 40/41
    PP: 11 PIv: 13 PIs: 11
    Spell Slots: 1st - 2/4 2nd - 2/3 3rd - 1/2
    Fey Touched: 1st - 1/1 2nd - 1/1
    Masquerade Tattoo: 1st - 0/1
    Levistus Legacy: Armor of Agathys - 0/1 Darkness - 1/1
    Bardic Inspiration: 3/4
    Healer's Kit: 20/20
    Mal Conditions: Disguise Self (DC 13 Investigation)
    Mal Concentrating: ---

    Soreshu
    Ancient Companion: Sage
    Companion HP: 30/30
    Companion AC: 14
    Companion PP: 18 PIv: 12 PIs: 12
    Sage's Counsel: While within 15 feet of the companion, you and your allies gain a +2 bonus to Intelligence and Wisdom checks.

    Mal's pipe alternated between fiend skulls and human skulls in an almost intelligible sequence. He leaned slightly forward to direct his comment to the Lieutenant, "You would be most alarmed to discover what manner of creatures escape your notice, Lieutenant. We have seen demons aplenty in less than a day's ride from here. I would prefer we each concluded our business here swiftly, so we can be about our business. It'll let you get the green wood smell out of your nostrils much faster than a delay."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show


    Persuasion 23.

    Spoiler: Mal's Notes
    Show
    Spoiler: Cast and Crew
    Show
    Set: outcast exiled princeling of Abydos. Two princess sisters (Sisi and Sythpen Al-Sayyid). Romantic connection for Moira?
    Selissa: Blighted or reconstructed wood elf? Purported Scout.
    Vargath: Afflicted Lycanthrope seeking to suspend his curse. A Bloodwolf?
    Mandaras: Rival to Dr. Fixer.
    Dr. Fixer: Moira's lieutenant and cultivates relations with the locals of Vale.
    Elder Maus: Seeks to kill Moira. Hired mercenaries who betrayed him.
    --Healed to his full 9ft height.
    --Disbelieves Moira's insights; seeks to end her directly or indirectly.
    --Seeks us to verify the truths of Moira's claims--or stop her by any means necessary.
    Maulei: Successor to Elder Maus as elder of Dam'ess.
    Uluthando Mikoso "Ulu:" Paladin? of Order. From beyond the Vale. Reacts by gripping her dagger and declaring Tieflings are treated differently...Lawful (N/E?) Order? Calls Mal 'Mdala Ohlonishwayo.' Professes to serve no god, but spirits whose reach may be weaker in the Vale than elsewhere.


    Spoiler: Dream of Leng
    Show
    Spoiler: In Full
    Show
    Mal has had this dream before. He finds himself in the legendary Library of Leng, an ancient home of virtually all worldly and mystical knowledge that burned when the city it was located in was razed nearly nine hundred years ago, half the world away. Still, in his dreams it still existed, and these dreams always played out the same. Hours of dutiful research, referencing and cross referencing sources from multiple tomes, carefully reconstructing ancient languages, until EUREKA! Some devastating and profound arcane truth became evident to him, and the sense of accomplisment and relief normally carried with him for several hours after waking up, even if he could never actually remember anything he learned. But this time is different. Mal is well versed enough in the arcane and divine arts to know that sometimes dreams carry real meaning. And as he stares down at what he has been working on, he instinctively knows this bears some significance. Where normally he would have arcane formulas and theorems, he sees only "The One Who Stalks Behind" scrawled over and over again in his own hand, though the words are manic and look like they were written in distress. He searches the paper for any further omen, and down at the bottom of the page, in the smallest script he could possibly manage, it says Behind you!. Just as he is about to turn, a claw as strong as iron grips the side of his head, snaps his neck to the side, and ends all feeling in the bard's body. But he can still hear the deep throated growls, along with the wet noises of whatever killed him beginning to eat him alive. But he never gets to see it before the dream ends.


    The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. RIGHT BEHIND YOU! The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind.



    Spoiler: Bence's Secrets
    Show

    Spoiler: Bence's Journal
    Show

    ...is a backwards plane, so far removed from the Prime Material that it has not seen an angel or the work of a god in a millennia. I hear that far to the west they do not even worship the gods. Proper savages, but I must remain vigilant, as their knowledge of the ways of this world is far more educated than most. But it is ripe for my conquest. While my Master was tasked with corrupting Avendor, my home plane, a bastion of good and law, my chore is simply to tip the rat into the bucket of the Abyss as it prowls the rim looking for cheese. This plane is already so flooded with the energies of the Abyss that demons spontaneously emerge, monsters manifest in the dark, and their weak leaders bargain with forces they would be wiser to repulse. It will be child's play to nudge it the last few inches into anarchy and destruction, mostly due to the efforts of Pale Night herself. For thousands of years she has been grasping and clawing at this realm, dragging it further from the light and closer to her realm day by day, inch by inch, soul by soul. While my home plane was beyond my ability to destroy, this place will be my masterpiece. With my death at the hands of the forces of good, a symphony of destruction will play the anthem to my ascension to demonhood. The Pale Mother has promised me that each death will bring me closer to my true form, and each rebirth will increase my power, just as our pact promised. I can't wait to die. When will the heroes arrive? I've been planting and tending the seed of the idea in the old giant's mind for weeks now. When will it bear fruit? When can my dark rise to power begin? (The rest is a combination of burned and Abyssal that becomes impossible to read)

    Dam'ess- Mass Quasit Summoning. Magic Mouth to Levy Commands re: Retrieve Mirror of Leng, Scepter of Rulership, And Aniot's Cube. Disperse to Appropriate Parties Per The Plan. Burn The Cabin.

    Harumburg- Sending to Lord of Bone re: Portal to the 113th. (Indecipherable Due to Burns) In Accordance with Their Great Alliance.

    Falluneer- Sending to Lord of Flesh re: (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Ebon Spear.

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)light: Sending to Lord of Blood re: Assassination of (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Yukkot, Recovery of Blood (More Burns).

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)odge- Sending to Cult of Pale (More Burns) re: Initiate Divining Ritual Sacrifices. FIND THE DAMN ZIGGURAT.

    Garrunrow- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Kill the Last Bloodwolf. Recover (More Burns) Key.

    Mountain of Smoke- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) crypt. Seize the Ebon (More Burns).

    Sussoon- Ensure the Prophecy (Indecipherable Due to Burns)... Pay the Bounty Hunters to Find the Abydossian and the Princesses. re: Sacrifices of The Old Blood

    (There is more, but seemingly out of paranoia Bence switched to Abyssal. It is impossible to tell how many lines there are, as the last half of the paper is fully burned away)


    Spoiler: Arcane Lore concerning Bence's Notes
    Show
    The magic of Contingency is a nearly mythical bit of spell work that was said to be lost when the Library of Leng burned down. It allows a caster to prepare spells in advance for a predetermined event, in this case John Bence's own death, and the spells will automatically cast when the event happens. If Bence is capable of such sorcery, he is likely far more powerful than his flashy death at the party's hands would indicate.

    The Mirror of Leng is a artifact of the Library of Leng, said to contain a frozen moment of time where the library was at it's height that a person can temporarily step in to, giving access to the greatest magical library this world has ever seen. Supposedly several mirrors were made, though some are confirmed destroyed after their use led to come calamity of forbidden magics long lost to time. The Scepter of Rulership is said to be an even more powerful version of a Rod of Rulership, a magic item that allows for mass mind manipulation of people to believe that the holder of the Scepter is their rightful ruler. The last time the Scepter was confirmed in play it toppled an entire nation.

    Though numbering and organizing the layers of the Abyss is a fool's errand, there are some realms that are constant enough to designate. The one hundred and thirteenth layer is Thanatos, layer of Orcus, the Lord of Death. It is a lifeless frozen landscape where life is snuffed out almost as soon as it arrives, either by the untold legions of undead denizens, the magical aura of the layer itself, or, in the worst cases, by Orcus himself, using his fearsome Wand.


    Spoiler: John Bence's Wall Art
    Show
    There are no invisible objects in the room, but the entire back wall of the cabin is plastered with profane runes and abyssal scribblings. Where there was nothing to the naked eye, there is an extensive patchwork of spell work, seemingly scribed in the rusted red of blood. More disturbing is the fragments of souls that have been bound to the wall. Faces of people rise and seethe from the wood like a strange and rippling tide, mouths open in anguish. There are not many of them left, presumably due to whatever spell was used here absorbing so much energy, but there is a fine layer of ectoplasm that would indicate that once there were dozens of soul fragments powering this spell. The sight turns Mal's stomach, as the chaotic, destructive magic of the Abyss is written as plainly as news script, but as subtly as any devil could manage.



    Spoiler: Monsters
    Show
    Barlgura: Demon loosed by summoning ritual on the road to Dam'ess. Slain with its summoned partner by team. (Bless helped with accuracy issues due to invisibility. In the future, layer mind sliver to aid with saves.)
    Brazen Hart: Spirit of the wild wood around Dam'ess. Seeks to test the party's mettle by forcing an open fight with the Barlgura.


    Spoiler: Instrument of the Bards
    Show
    Mal needs a translator, the spells, and woodcrafter to create a new relic.
    Spoiler: Full Description
    Show
    Still, tucked among the primers and amateur books he finds a book that deals with the blending of magic and music. Specifically, it holds the instructions and rituals for a new version of the famed artifacts known as the instruments of the bards. Unfortunately, about a third of the book is in a language Mal does not understand or recognize, including most of the rites and rituals to imbue it with magic. Still, with a translator, appropriate magics, some study, and someone skilled in wood craft, he may be able to produce one of these relics for himself.


    Report daily updates to Mistress Moira at last light.



  20. - Top - End - #920
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Awful's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Selissa Betula
    Wood Elf Scout Rogue
    AC: 16 HP: 38/38 -> 48/48
    PP: 16
    Conditions: Aid
    Concentrating: --


    The coin debate

    At the tiefling flicked the coin towards her, her fleshen hand began to rise - before she was forced to catch it between two wooden ones with her other hand. She looked down at it with a expression of disgust, before she put it away carefully, glancing up at Mal one more time - she stared at him for a moment, then without a word, turned back to staring out the window.

    Stagecoach

    As the stagecoach came to a stop, the elf spoke up.
    "Two more at the back. Archers."
    She debated disembarking the carrage and making her way to observe whatever lay ahead in the cover of the treeline, where she could lay eyes or arrows on things as necessary; but as others went forward, she decided to wait and see. If they didn't like members of the Green faith, seeing a wood elf who's hair was literally green probably wouldn't assist matters - and stealthing into the woods might cause problems if she had to later reveal herself to them.

    She had no concern that they'd see her if she didn't want to be seen.
    And the far stars cried, and the planets yearned;
    But no man may know, for she'll ne'er return.

  21. - Top - End - #921
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    purepolarpanzer's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Northwest of Dam'ess- Along the Delvus River

    The lieutenant, looking between Mal and Ulu, swallows heavily, some of her actual emotion coming to the forefront and pushing aside her confident and authoritative mask. "Well... you can't hurt, at the very least. The mummers aren't getting any more dead." She motions to her men, who begin hefting the stones and hauling them out of the way of the road. When she turns back to you all, her demeanor is almost pleading. "It's... a mess up there. Blood and guts strewn about, bodies desecrated, and the damn smiles... prepare yourself. It's not for the faint of heart... if you can help, you help. Whatever... or whoever did this needs to be caught and slain." The small boulders moved aside, she moves to the side of the road and waves you onward. Kagiso pulls the stagecoach up the road to pick you all up, then drives the horses up the road, the steadily growing incline slowing your pace, and the mounting rain making the journey all the more miserable for the driver and the former village elder.

    In the Foothills of Mount Beldrin, Along the Delvus River

    It is a twenty minute journey to arrive at the scene. First you spot the horses and their mounted riders, circling the area nervously. One of these riders comes out to meet you, but a few shouted words from Maus and he wheels his horse and leads you closer. You smell the murder before you see it, with the rich, sweet smell of rot slipping into the cab of the stagecoach like a burglar, assaulting your noses with a foul preview of the carnage to come. Before long, Kagiso has halted the coach, shouting back to Ulu, who immediately opens the door and slides out. She turns, and a single curse of Nguni escapes her lips as her eyes go wide in surprise. "You... are going to want to get out and see this." She murmurs uncertainly before moving forward.

    Any who follow her are presented with a fresh assault on their sanity. To your left, a steep embankment rolls off into the darkened wood. To your right there is an even steeper rise upward, forming a small cliff. Directly in front of you is a massacre. Twenty seven corpses are scattered across a small clearing in the road, a rest stop that Set recognizes from his journey to Dam'ess where he slept the night before arriving. Standing over several of them are grey robed Harumite priests, all of them with lit candles, chanting prayers, though some do it through a rag or handkerchief to keep out some of the powerful scent of decay. One of them pauses his chanting and approaches all of you, easing around a tipped over cart and the bodies of four horses that must have died in their traces, faithful to the last. The priest is a middle aged man with a balding scalp and pock marked skin, and when Maus and Ulu explain that you are all here to help he sags with relief. "Thank you all. I am Father Ilim, of the faith of Harum, Lord of the Vale. I honestly prayed that someone would come to help us shoulder the burden of this unseemly task, and I am not foolish enough to turn down the Lord's blessing just because it comes in the form of strangers. Lord of Mountains and Valleys be praised that you've arrived. Come, I will tell you what we know... and show you what we've seen." The man's eyes bulge slightly from the sockets, and they do little to hide the fear and disgust he feels at this moment. Turning around, he leads you to the closest body to examine it.

    The body is decayed, but still recognizable, skin going grey with dark lines where the major veins and arteries run. Or, to be more accurate, what is left of it. All four limbs have been wrenched from the sockets, three of them hanging limply like the limbs of a broken doll, while one has been torn away and rests several feet away. Though this could be the arm of another corpse, as closer inspection reveals them all to be similarly broken into pieces. Their stomachs are all torn open, and the majority of their organs have been tossed to one side or another. Dr. Madaras can make out the remains of lungs, hearts, intestine, and kidneys amongst the wreckage of humanity. Each body also has scratches, scrapes, and gouges around their eyes, and those with keen eyes can see there is flesh and blood caked around the fingernails of the dead. Some managed to claw their own eyes out, but most did not live long enough to purge the horror from their eyes. Most unsettlingly, each corpse bears a small, serene smile, akin to the look of someone waking from a long, restful sleep when they reach over and blindly find their lover next to them. Selissa notes that there is a crow sitting in a nearby tree, but it waits vigil, cawing softly now and then, but not flying down to eat the unattended bodies, as would be the norm for scavengers. This sends a tingle up Selissa's spine as repressed memories start to float up through her consciousness unwillingly.

    Father Ilim kneels down to the corpse and places coins on they ragged eye sockets. "I have studied some physiker books. It seems that all the organs have been discarded and destroyed except for

    A Memory of Selissa

    "the liver. Just like the others, the liver is gone, and everything else is shredded." Gnarl stood up and whispered a rite of the Green Faith, while Sara was quietly sick in the nearby bushes. Selissa felt an urge to go comfort her, but she could not take her eyes of the corpse of the young man. Jonath also stared, though his determination came more from stubbornness and refusal to turn away from that which Gnarl handled with stoicism. He spit out a curse and finally looked away, fingers on his greatsword. The abdomen had been ravished by claws, the purple and pink of organ meat splattered across the trees and rocks of the path. The young man smiled as though he had just come to some great truth, a stark contrast to his savaged eyes and visceral death. Jonath spoke up, as Sara returned to the group, looking ashen pale. "Village elder back in Yurl said they are all found like this. Sneaking through the woods to meet a jilly girl, out in the forest to pray to spirits. Even if they stray too far to take a piss. Limbs broken. Guts played with. Eyes scratched out. Creepy smiles. This is the third one this month." Sara's voice, soft and airy like a cloud, spoke up next. "Then it is an ambush predator. It only strikes when people are alone in remote areas. Perhaps we can somehow bait it?" Gnarl shook his head. "Too risky. This could happen to whoever we used. Selissa, can you track what did this?" The forest elf nodded and finally tore her eyes from the corpse, looking to the ground to see

    Rest Spot in the Road, Along the Delvus River

    "Odd tracks. Some of them look almost avian, others like they were made by paws, some that even look like hooves, though with all these horses around, those might be ours." Father Ilim gestured toward a set of tracks. "See how on this side you have what look like a massive dog paw print, and here you have some sort of claws? And this wavy line... our tracker says that's like the tail of a great reptile. But it's not present in the bird-like tracks right over here! It's almost as though they were attacked by the population of

    A Memory of Selissa

    "some sort of zoo?" Jonath snorted after Selissa reported her findings. The wood elf shook her head. One set of tracks. Different feet. Sometimes tail, sometimes not. Sometimes close together, sometimes long stride. Even a sweeping track you get from turkey tail feathers. Not natural. In any way. Shapeshifter? Gnarl shrugged and looked into the forest for his own counsel, while Sara tried to read the tracks herself. "So it doesn't have a constant form. No wonder we've heard so many different descriptions from the villagers who caught glimpses of it. But we are on the right track. I sense great evil before us. Ready your weapons, and let the light

    Rest Spot in the Road, Along the Delvus River

    bless us in our task, shepherd these poor souls to the afterlife, and helps us find whatever is responsible." Father Ilim ended his short prayer, the fourth one he had rendered since beginning to show you the dead. "They were a mummers troupe. Witnesses at the village at the other side of the mountain say they put on a show, then asked for directions to the next village. They were heading to Dam'ess to ply their trade, when... this... happened." He looked to each of you in turn. "So, do any of you know what could have done this?

    Selissa knew. As cold began to spread from her heart and fill her body like freezing water, she knew precisely what had done this. The Horror of Yurl. But it had never attacked more than one person at a time before. If whatever did this was some kin of the Horror's, it must be much larger. And much hungrier. Suddenly Selissa felt very alone, with no Sara, Gnarl, or Jonath here with her to face this aberrant spawn of chaos for a second time. Doubt and fear raked at her mind, and her normally stony composure was challenged by the terrors of the past.

    Spoiler: Insight DC 5
    Show
    The quavering tone of Father Ilim holds so deception, only an attempt and summoning inner strength to do battle with the fear that threatens to destroy his mind.


    Spoiler: Investigation DC 5
    Show
    The corpses are all wearing bright colors and flamboyant costumes. The claim that they were mummers holds water. Too repulsively rotting to get very close, though.
    Spoiler: Investigation DC 10
    Show
    The priest's assertion that the liver is missing from the carnage is true, as well. Either you've cleaned an animal or eviscerated a man, but the large telltale organ is missing, while the other organs of the body are smeared and splattered about the landscape.
    Spoiler: DC 15
    Show
    Despite their decaying state, the muscles of the body are relaxed and loose. Normally, even with broken limbs, the body's muscles would be tense right now. The only tensed muscles are the ones causing those eerie, serene smiles.
    Spoiler: DC 20
    Show
    Each of these mummers, whether it be on an anklet, a necklace, a bracelet, or a piercing is wearing an identical charm. It is tough to find them all, with the muck and the blood and the gore, but when all are accounted for there are 27, one for each body.
    Spoiler: DC 15 Religion, Advantage for Members of the Green Faith
    Show
    This charm is a bit of rabbit fur tied around a thorn in a circle of horn. It is meant to invoke the favor of Brother Jackalope, a fictional comic hero in many nursery tales of the Green Faith. He is the patron spirit of children, entertainers, wanderers, and vagabonds.



    Spoiler: History DC 15
    Show
    A series of attacks similar to this happened in a village named Yurl in the eastern part of the Vale.
    Spoiler: DC 20
    Show
    A group of heroes did battle with some sort of monster, but not all of them survived.
    Spoiler: DC 25
    Show
    One of the heroes was supposedly a elven archer who never missed, could track a falcon in flight on a cloudy day, and fought the beast with a strong, stoic spirit, said to be green of hair and fair of skin.


    Spoiler: Set's Magic Vision
    Show
    This places is steeped in powerful energies, as though many middling powered spells were cast in the immediate area that had not faded yet. But underneath the haze of divinations and consecrations, there is something more.
    Spoiler: Set DC 15 Arcana Check
    Show
    Like craters from a catapult's boulder, there are areas of magic that have been near permanently stained on the metaphysical landscape of this place. Clouds of residual enchantment magic rise from each body like the soul escaping the tortured form, and powerful auras of necromancy radiate like bruises in your vision. There is potential that if this place is not properly consecrated undead will rise in the area. In fact, there is no assurance as of yet that these mummers aren't about to step up and kill you right now.
    Spoiler: DC 20
    Show
    The nature of these spells are psychic in nature, which is a spectrum of energy that is very difficult to detect normally. No actual spells were cast, whatever used magic here could render fearful magic with merely a though.


    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Everyone who gets out of the carriage and looks at the scene needs to make a DC 13 Madness Save, except for Selissa, who needs to make a DC 15 Save due to the personal nature of the scene.
    Last edited by purepolarpanzer; 2021-06-17 at 06:10 PM.
    The Bear is Back.

  22. - Top - End - #922
    Barbarian in the Playground
    Join Date
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Mal
    Levistus Tiefling Bard 5
    AC: 14 HP: 40/41
    PP: 11 PIv: 13 PIs: 11
    Spell Slots: 1st - 2/4 2nd - 2/3 3rd - 1/2
    Fey Touched: 1st - 0/1 2nd - 1/1
    Masquerade Tattoo: 1st - 0/1
    Levistus Legacy: Armor of Agathys - 0/1 Darkness - 1/1
    Bardic Inspiration: 2/4
    Healer's Kit: 20/20
    Mal Conditions: Disguise Self (DC 13 Investigation)
    Mal Concentrating: ---

    Soreshu
    Ancient Companion: Sage
    Companion HP: 30/30
    Companion AC: 14
    Companion PP: 18 PIv: 12 PIs: 12
    Sage's Counsel: While within 15 feet of the companion, you and your allies gain a +2 bonus to Intelligence and Wisdom checks.

    Mal puffed his pipe vigorously as the stench drenched them. The offal's sweetness threatened to churn his stomach, tainting the flavor of his tobacco. A glance at Ulu's expression as she descended from the carriage warned him how dire the moment may become. The attaché invoked his art, adding to those not included in his balm, "Let's steel ourselves for what evokes such strong emotion in the lady-at-arms."

    He disembarked out the opposite side, trailed by Soreshu. This provided a moment's respite from the trauma ahead. The tiefling-in-man's skin rounded the carriage. The tormented dead assailed his mind with the brutal, unnatural carnage. However, the regimented art absorbed the psychic blow, and Mal surged forward prepared to conduct his inspection.

    Soreshu followed until he noted the corpses. The smell did not reach his spirit, but the sight...the grotesque rending, splayed and flayed bodies...the smiles...those horrid smiles...The powerful statue swiveled in the opposite direction, tromping off as he cursed fervently in the fiendish tongue.

    "The farce gazes blindly upon the gate of death, then lies dreaming..."

    The Repository

    "Mari Soreshu, another has been found.

    The boy's trembling hands and quavering voice warned the scholar. Despite the elder's prime, he could not help feel mortal as those words chilled his spine. Thirteen. This is the thirteenth.

    "Is the corpse as the others?"

    The pupil giggled uncontrollably, an ill-fitting sound for what followed, "Torn and twisted, yet serene...Like she enjoyed the experience 'ere she died."

    The Butcher's Roost

    Soreshu rubbed at his bald head, then paused. No, the smiles were different...formed, not carved...no blood runes...only torn... His mouth firmed and stoicism returned. The statue stomped back to his ward and remarked in an instructor's tone toward Mal, "What have you found?"

    The man looked up, holding a snuff box under his nose. He answered, "I had only begun to look. Something severed these mummers without causing suffering as a mortal understands the word. They lack both liver and gall, laying about placidly in their dissected state."

    "What else? What of their other bit of uniform?" The mentor prodded.

    "The trinkets? Some woodsy talisman, a lucky charm--an homage to the Jackalope. Served no one present..."

    "Yet, all bore these," the matter-of-fact statement hinted at a criticism. "Have you heard of similar instances as this?"

    Mal looked away from the grinning dead, his eyes wandering to the wood-armed elf. He answered distractedly, "Whispers told of Yurl suffering these sorts of terrors. A group of would-be heroes sought to deal with the menace, though the affair turned costly."

    The man blew out a set of skulls: A raven, a bull, a lion, and a lizard. He watched these float into the ether, pondering what manner of creature or menagerie could have accomplished this devastation.

    "Then keep your vigil. The path forward through this charnel field appears on the trail of a malign foe." Soreshu forebode grimly.

    Mal maneuvered toward the others and asked, "Do you see any sign of entrance or egress of the culprit?" He then whispered softly so as not to rouse the attention of the clergy. "I could beseech the spirits concerning the last moments of their ordeal, but I suspect their words may prove muddled or worse."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show


    Mal Sanity save: 16
    Soreshu Sanity Save: 12 then 13 (one round of frightened and running off)

    Soreshu helps Mal with his search once he finished pooping cement bricks.

    Insight 12
    Investigation = 26
    History 21
    Religion 22

    Spoiler: Mal's Notes
    Show
    Spoiler: Cast and Crew
    Show
    Set: outcast exiled princeling of Abydos. Two princess sisters (Sisi and Sythpen Al-Sayyid). Romantic connection for Moira?
    Selissa: Blighted or reconstructed wood elf? Purported Scout.
    Vargath: Afflicted Lycanthrope seeking to suspend his curse. A Bloodwolf?
    Mandaras: Rival to Dr. Fixer.
    Dr. Fixer: Moira's lieutenant and cultivates relations with the locals of Vale.
    Elder Maus: Seeks to kill Moira. Hired mercenaries who betrayed him.
    --Healed to his full 9ft height.
    --Disbelieves Moira's insights; seeks to end her directly or indirectly.
    --Seeks us to verify the truths of Moira's claims--or stop her by any means necessary.
    Maulei: Successor to Elder Maus as elder of Dam'ess.
    Uluthando Mikoso "Ulu:" Paladin? of Order. From beyond the Vale. Reacts by gripping her dagger and declaring Tieflings are treated differently...Lawful (N/E?) Order? Calls Mal 'Mdala Ohlonishwayo.' Professes to serve no god, but spirits whose reach may be weaker in the Vale than elsewhere.


    Spoiler: Dream of Leng
    Show
    Spoiler: In Full
    Show
    Mal has had this dream before. He finds himself in the legendary Library of Leng, an ancient home of virtually all worldly and mystical knowledge that burned when the city it was located in was razed nearly nine hundred years ago, half the world away. Still, in his dreams it still existed, and these dreams always played out the same. Hours of dutiful research, referencing and cross referencing sources from multiple tomes, carefully reconstructing ancient languages, until EUREKA! Some devastating and profound arcane truth became evident to him, and the sense of accomplisment and relief normally carried with him for several hours after waking up, even if he could never actually remember anything he learned. But this time is different. Mal is well versed enough in the arcane and divine arts to know that sometimes dreams carry real meaning. And as he stares down at what he has been working on, he instinctively knows this bears some significance. Where normally he would have arcane formulas and theorems, he sees only "The One Who Stalks Behind" scrawled over and over again in his own hand, though the words are manic and look like they were written in distress. He searches the paper for any further omen, and down at the bottom of the page, in the smallest script he could possibly manage, it says Behind you!. Just as he is about to turn, a claw as strong as iron grips the side of his head, snaps his neck to the side, and ends all feeling in the bard's body. But he can still hear the deep throated growls, along with the wet noises of whatever killed him beginning to eat him alive. But he never gets to see it before the dream ends.


    The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. RIGHT BEHIND YOU! The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind. The One Who Stalks Behind.



    Spoiler: Bence's Secrets
    Show

    Spoiler: Bence's Journal
    Show

    ...is a backwards plane, so far removed from the Prime Material that it has not seen an angel or the work of a god in a millennia. I hear that far to the west they do not even worship the gods. Proper savages, but I must remain vigilant, as their knowledge of the ways of this world is far more educated than most. But it is ripe for my conquest. While my Master was tasked with corrupting Avendor, my home plane, a bastion of good and law, my chore is simply to tip the rat into the bucket of the Abyss as it prowls the rim looking for cheese. This plane is already so flooded with the energies of the Abyss that demons spontaneously emerge, monsters manifest in the dark, and their weak leaders bargain with forces they would be wiser to repulse. It will be child's play to nudge it the last few inches into anarchy and destruction, mostly due to the efforts of Pale Night herself. For thousands of years she has been grasping and clawing at this realm, dragging it further from the light and closer to her realm day by day, inch by inch, soul by soul. While my home plane was beyond my ability to destroy, this place will be my masterpiece. With my death at the hands of the forces of good, a symphony of destruction will play the anthem to my ascension to demonhood. The Pale Mother has promised me that each death will bring me closer to my true form, and each rebirth will increase my power, just as our pact promised. I can't wait to die. When will the heroes arrive? I've been planting and tending the seed of the idea in the old giant's mind for weeks now. When will it bear fruit? When can my dark rise to power begin? (The rest is a combination of burned and Abyssal that becomes impossible to read)

    Dam'ess- Mass Quasit Summoning. Magic Mouth to Levy Commands re: Retrieve Mirror of Leng, Scepter of Rulership, And Aniot's Cube. Disperse to Appropriate Parties Per The Plan. Burn The Cabin.

    Harumburg- Sending to Lord of Bone re: Portal to the 113th. (Indecipherable Due to Burns) In Accordance with Their Great Alliance.

    Falluneer- Sending to Lord of Flesh re: (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Ebon Spear.

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)light: Sending to Lord of Blood re: Assassination of (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Yukkot, Recovery of Blood (More Burns).

    (Indecipherable Due to Burns)odge- Sending to Cult of Pale (More Burns) re: Initiate Divining Ritual Sacrifices. FIND THE DAMN ZIGGURAT.

    Garrunrow- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) Kill the Last Bloodwolf. Recover (More Burns) Key.

    Mountain of Smoke- (Indecipherable Due to Burns) crypt. Seize the Ebon (More Burns).

    Sussoon- Ensure the Prophecy (Indecipherable Due to Burns)... Pay the Bounty Hunters to Find the Abydossian and the Princesses. re: Sacrifices of The Old Blood

    (There is more, but seemingly out of paranoia Bence switched to Abyssal. It is impossible to tell how many lines there are, as the last half of the paper is fully burned away)


    Spoiler: Arcane Lore concerning Bence's Notes
    Show
    The magic of Contingency is a nearly mythical bit of spell work that was said to be lost when the Library of Leng burned down. It allows a caster to prepare spells in advance for a predetermined event, in this case John Bence's own death, and the spells will automatically cast when the event happens. If Bence is capable of such sorcery, he is likely far more powerful than his flashy death at the party's hands would indicate.

    The Mirror of Leng is a artifact of the Library of Leng, said to contain a frozen moment of time where the library was at it's height that a person can temporarily step in to, giving access to the greatest magical library this world has ever seen. Supposedly several mirrors were made, though some are confirmed destroyed after their use led to come calamity of forbidden magics long lost to time. The Scepter of Rulership is said to be an even more powerful version of a Rod of Rulership, a magic item that allows for mass mind manipulation of people to believe that the holder of the Scepter is their rightful ruler. The last time the Scepter was confirmed in play it toppled an entire nation.

    Though numbering and organizing the layers of the Abyss is a fool's errand, there are some realms that are constant enough to designate. The one hundred and thirteenth layer is Thanatos, layer of Orcus, the Lord of Death. It is a lifeless frozen landscape where life is snuffed out almost as soon as it arrives, either by the untold legions of undead denizens, the magical aura of the layer itself, or, in the worst cases, by Orcus himself, using his fearsome Wand.


    Spoiler: John Bence's Wall Art
    Show
    There are no invisible objects in the room, but the entire back wall of the cabin is plastered with profane runes and abyssal scribblings. Where there was nothing to the naked eye, there is an extensive patchwork of spell work, seemingly scribed in the rusted red of blood. More disturbing is the fragments of souls that have been bound to the wall. Faces of people rise and seethe from the wood like a strange and rippling tide, mouths open in anguish. There are not many of them left, presumably due to whatever spell was used here absorbing so much energy, but there is a fine layer of ectoplasm that would indicate that once there were dozens of soul fragments powering this spell. The sight turns Mal's stomach, as the chaotic, destructive magic of the Abyss is written as plainly as news script, but as subtly as any devil could manage.



    Spoiler: Monsters
    Show
    Barlgura: Demon loosed by summoning ritual on the road to Dam'ess. Slain with its summoned partner by team. (Bless helped with accuracy issues due to invisibility. In the future, layer mind sliver to aid with saves.)
    Brazen Hart: Spirit of the wild wood around Dam'ess. Seeks to test the party's mettle by forcing an open fight with the Barlgura.


    Spoiler: Instrument of the Bards
    Show
    Mal needs a translator, the spells, and woodcrafter to create a new relic.
    Spoiler: Full Description
    Show
    Still, tucked among the primers and amateur books he finds a book that deals with the blending of magic and music. Specifically, it holds the instructions and rituals for a new version of the famed artifacts known as the instruments of the bards. Unfortunately, about a third of the book is in a language Mal does not understand or recognize, including most of the rites and rituals to imbue it with magic. Still, with a translator, appropriate magics, some study, and someone skilled in wood craft, he may be able to produce one of these relics for himself.


    Report daily updates to Mistress Moira at last light.


    Last edited by Theophilus; 2021-06-17 at 08:47 PM.

  23. - Top - End - #923
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Amnestic's Avatar

    Join Date
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Vargath Hubrecht
    Half-Orc Rune Knight Fighter
    AC: 19 HP: 49/49
    PP: 13 PIv: 12 PIs: 10
    Conditions: Infected (Lycanthropy), -1 INT
    Concentrating: --

    When Vargath swings his way out of the stagecoach to observe the carnage that has been wrought, his first thought is a rather disturbing one - "What a waste of good food." It's the beast, gnawing at him - and at his belly. These were rot and wouldn't satisfy anymore. If nothing else it seemed unlikely that this massacre was done for sustenance - though the lack of a liver speaks to either a particularly picky palette or perhaps a ritual significance. They were sometimes used in sacrifice both for good health and to cause ill, depending on the intentions of the ritualmaker. Mal and Soreshu's voiced observations match his own, and so he doesn't feel the need to add anything more to the deductions.

    "At a guess from the rot they've been dead a few days at least, maybe more? Unless the attacker has a habit of lurking at the scene of the crime, I expect they'll be long gone." His eyes glance over to Selissa, "But perhaps they could be tracked to their lair or abode if they have one, and if we want to spend time on this. I'm not against helping, but we should all remember we have other things that also require our attention. Time spent here is time not spent in Harumburg." There was no right answer to this situation. It was clearly a cursed attack, some magical monster if the expressions and scratches around the eyes were anything to go by. They should help. Yet, the overarching problem remained, and time would not wait for them.
    DMing:
    Iron Crisis IC | OOC
    Cyre Red IC | OOC

    Playing:
    OotA IC | OOC

    Master Homebrew Index (5e)

  24. - Top - End - #924
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Spore's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Doctor Ignacius Madaras, Medicus Extravagant!
    Gnome Artificer/Transmuter
    AC: 18 HP: 36/37
    PP: 11 PIv: 17 PIs: 11
    Conditions: Aid (8h; 10 mHP)
    Concentration: -

    Ignacius is assaulted by a plethora if sensations. The smell, the view, the grotesque smiles. Smiles... he thought. Fey could be so cruel....muscles are not tense yet, alchemy? Maybe magic?

    Most puzzling. The bodies should be within rigor mortis for a few hours, but they are still loose. Aside from the huge carnage worthy of a band of marauders, the smiles are what disturb me most.

  25. - Top - End - #925
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Awful's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Selissa Betula
    Wood Elf Scout Rogue
    AC: 16 HP: 38/38 -> 48/48
    PP: 16
    Conditions: Aid, bardic inspiration
    Concentrating: --

    Selissa had discounted the carriage with her normal caution, looking expressionlessly at the corpses. The smell was unpleasant, decaying meat and spilt bowel-contents, hot and heavy in the air as sin. Within a glance, a deep feeling of unease began curdling in her gut, dread creeping up her spines like worms. Each of the mummers, their bright clothing horribly contrasting against the gory reds and purples of their rotting innards was torn apart, with livers missing-

    and each a smile-

    There was a ringing in her ears. Her movements growing in speed, she moved forward, searching for tracks. There couldn't be. It couldn't be. They'd killed it. It has cost Selissa an arm. It had cost Sara, oh dear Sara, her life-

    Tracks. Shifting, like a menagerie in motion. There, the deep heavy imprint of bear prints shifted into the stalking stride of an oversized bird, twisted to the sinous motions of a serpent. She carefully walked a dozen steps away from the corpses, staring without seeing in the direction of the tracks.

    She wanted to laugh. She wanted to cry. She could feel the talons in- She clutched at her wooden arm, dug her fingers into the unyielding wood until it hurt-

    "Sel- gods! Get away from her, monster!"

    Livers missing, and each a smile-

    "Jonath! Is Sara-"
    "She's dead! Goddamn it! Help me get Selissa back to town, she's going to bleed out-"

    A distant part of her was aware that the doll tucked in the small of her back was clinging to her like a drowning man to timber, and that was enough for the wood elf to realise she was sucking in great shuddering breaths and trembling like a newborn fawn.

    Another Horror. Another, or the same, returned to ugly abominable life, larger and hungrier, utterly antithetical to everything good-

    "<I->" she said in elvish, very quietly, trying not to let her voice hitch, facing the far distance so they couldn't see her face. "<I know what- what this is.>"
    And the far stars cried, and the planets yearned;
    But no man may know, for she'll ne'er return.

  26. - Top - End - #926
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    SwashbucklerGuy

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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Set Al-Sayyid
    Changeling Fighter/Hexblade
    AC: 17 HP: 36/36 [44]
    PP: 11 PIv: 12 PIs: 9
    Conditions: Iumenta Pox (-8 max hp); 3rd level Aid for 8 hours (Mal, +10 max hp)
    Concentration: Detect Magic

    In the Foothills of Mount Beldrin

    "You...are all going to want to get out and see this."

    Set steps out of the coach, wary of Ulu's words, but the stench seeps through his shemagh before he even gets a chance to look past her. A feast for vultures, or at least for the crows this far north. Even from a distance, the carnage is horrific. Set takes a moment to glance about, though clearly whatever did this was long gone. All that remains are the dead, a few soldiers, and some holy men.

    A memory tugs at him. He'd stopped here before to rest a few nights ago. A few days and nights that had come to feel so much longer. This was where his dreams had changed. Or rather, this was where he'd started having nightmares about the fate of Abydos and his sisters.

    Set reaches up to pull his spear free from it's lodging atop the coach and fastens it to the strap at his back before stepping forward after the others. His mouth is a firm line in contrast to the smiles surrounding him as Set wanders amidst the casualties, subconsciously searching the faces for anything familiar as he tries to make sense of the magical haze hanging over the scene. Despite his best attempts, however, the arcane remains as much a mystery as ever.

    The scene, at least, was straightforward enough. With each new discovery, Set listens to Mal and Soreshu idly discussing the same topic, even noting the Jackalope-charm each mummer carried. It was familiar to Set, if only just. He'd met a woman in the Vale with dreams bigger than serving ale or turning down beds, and she had shared those dreams as well as her charms. Set's attention, only briefly diverted, snaps back to the present.

    "Whispers told of Yurl suffering these sorts of terrors. A group of would-be heroes sought to deal with the menace, though the affair turned costly."

    Set flinches at the mention of Yurl, looking from Iceblood to Evergreen as she studies the ground around the mutilated corpses. The limbs strewn about take on new significance as Set gazes at the wooden arm. Set's stomach roils, stepping back as if struck by one of the disembodied hands. He stumbles over a loose arm, it's shoulder missing as it terminates in a twist of bone and meat. Set pulls down his shemagh, hands on knees and breathing heavy as he faces away from the worst of it, spitting in the dirt.

    A vision turns his sight inward, the grotesque image behind Set creating a new one in the depths of his mind. Smiling-Sisi stares up at him with empty eye-sockets, innards spilling out into the dirt...no, spilling out into the sand. Set seizes up, the sand and heat choking him as he looks on her tan skin, already turning grey. His eyes dart around looking for the only sister he might have left, but she's nowhere to be found. 'Sythpen? Sythpen!' He runs forward blindly calling out to her, but finds only a patch of quicksand instead. His cries grow even more desperate as he sinks, but then she appears. His sister, his savior, only Sythpen has no arms. 'Set!' she calls, but she can only watch him sink further.

    As sand covers his mouth, nose, and eyes, Set holds his breath, and a hand plunges after him, clamping roughly around his robes and dragging him out of the depths. Transformed, Sythpen stands before him a patchwork-person made of flesh and stone. Tan skin gives way to light-colored rock, an arm of limestone socketed into her bare shoulder. Noticing him staring, Sythpen asks in a voice that doesn't belong to her, 'don't you like it?' with the same odd smile and empty eyes as her sister.

    Set can feel his sanity slipping, riding the ragged edge, but it's just a vision. Just one more nightmare. It isn't real. Nearby he can hear the Mighty's stable voice quietly discussing what to do next, anchoring Set to reality as Thrice-Blessed examines the bodies nearby. Out of the corner of his eye Set can see Evergreen still standing tall despite the fact that this nightmare must've been real for her.

    "<I-...I know what- what this is.>"

    Clearing his throat, Set chokes down his first attempt at speech before trying again in common. "Selissa?" Set asks carefully without stepping closer. "What is this thing?"

    Spoiler: OOC
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    Madness save: 13
    Insight: 6
    Investigation: 22
    Religion: 22
    Arcana: 4


  27. - Top - End - #927
    Titan in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Doctor Ignacius Madaras, Medicus Extravagant!
    Gnome Artificer/Transmuter
    AC: 18 HP: 36/37
    PP: 11 PIv: 17 PIs: 11
    Conditions: Aid (8h; 10 mHP)
    Concentration: -

    Ignacius does not share Set's sense of distance and rushes to Selissa's aid as she clutches her head.Are you alright? Focus on my voice for a second. This is all real, but it cannot hurt you now. They are gone and dead, you hear? There is nothing we could have done. But you need to pull yourself together in case we do get jumped.

    As nothing works, Ignacius is pulling down her right arm and pressing them close to her body in a hug. It was no passionate hug between friends, but the doctor knew that pressure similar to an embrace of a friend can calm people down during panic attacks.

  28. - Top - End - #928
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Selissa Betula
    Wood Elf Scout Rogue
    AC: 16 HP: 38/38 -> 48/48
    PP: 16
    Conditions: Aid, bardic inspiration
    Concentrating: --

    Something approached from behind pulled at her wooden arm, dragging at it-

    With an animalistic growl, she span and shoved whatever it was gripping at her, sending the assailant sprawling and springing back in a single smooth motion.

    "<Don't touch me!>" she snarled like a dog defying thunder, her normally blank expression wide-eyed. Her lips were drawn back, her sharp white teeth bared in a furious grimace. Her flesh hand clenched spasmodically on the hilt of her sabre before she arrested the motion.

    She was silent for a moment except for her panting as she took the doctor in, then the others, looking between them in quick jerky movements of her head.
    "Don't touch me," she finally repeated in common, more quietly. She rubbed her natural hand across her eyes and straightened up.
    "Killed- fought this before," she said after another long moment, carefully looking away from any of them in particular. "At Yurl. Four of us. This one - this one's... bigger. I think."
    And the far stars cried, and the planets yearned;
    But no man may know, for she'll ne'er return.

  29. - Top - End - #929
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Set Al-Sayyid
    Changeling Fighter/Hexblade
    AC: 17 HP: 36/36 [44]
    PP: 11 PIv: 12 PIs: 9
    Conditions: Iumenta Pox (-8 max hp); 3rd level Aid for 8 hours (Mal, +10 max hp)
    Concentration: Detect Magic

    In the Foothills of Mount Beldrin

    Eyes widening in surprise as Ignacius rushes to Selissa's aid, Set reaches out a hand too late, wincing as Evergreen turns on him, teeth-bared. Set moves like sand through an hourglass, slow and steady as he offers a hand up to Thrice-Blessed if the gnome is willing to accept it.

    "This one's...bigger. I think."

    "What is?" Set asks, quietly prodding Selissa further. He raises an arm, gesturing around them without turning his attention away. "How did it do all this?" Set's vision blurs with a flash of Sythpen's smiling face and empty eyes, but the image disappears an instant later. "Why do they smile?" he asks, looking down at the mummer at his feet. Sisi stares back at him, but only for a moment. A young man lies there instead, smiling up at him with both eyes still intact. Had he been strong-willed enough to resist the urge to claw his own eyes out, or had his arms been ripped off before he could make the attempt? Set spares a moment to kneel down and close the young man's eyes, but the eyelids are a shredded mess and there's nothing to close. Biting the inside of his cheek, Set stands back up and focuses on the others, avoiding the mummer's gaze.

  30. - Top - End - #930
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    Default Re: The Madness of Men in a World of Monsters (D&D 5e IC)

    Vargath Hubrecht
    Half-Orc Rune Knight Fighter
    AC: 19 HP: 49/49
    PP: 13 PIv: 12 PIs: 10
    Conditions: Infected (Lycanthropy), -1 INT
    Concentrating: --

    Vargath adds onto Set's questions, cutting to the core of what he needed to know. Perhaps Selissa would be glad for that, perhaps not, but she was an adult and didn't need coddling, at least in his eyes. "Can you track it, and how do we kill it?" Academically he might be interested in the exact minutiae of how it worked but such things were for seminars in lecture halls. Perhaps given time and ample subjects they might make significant breakthroughs with it. They had neither though, and so they just needed to focus on the important part: ending the threat before it killed more.
    DMing:
    Iron Crisis IC | OOC
    Cyre Red IC | OOC

    Playing:
    OotA IC | OOC

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