Runelords 2E IC

[Farmerbink]

Jannis follows resolutely. In the antiquated torture chamber, he glances around uneasily. His frown deepens as he follows Lysander into the cells and looks down at the desiccated remains. "Never heard of a 3-armed man..." he murmurs with a worried look. When Jon returns and reports of a huge three-armed Goblin, his worry turns a bit pensive.

"Cripples, or experiments?" he asks, disgusted by the thought. Suddenly he finds himself angry again, an echo of the previous night's dreams- only this time there's a tinge of righteousness to his wrath. "It's good this place is in disuse. We should collapse it or fill it with rubble once we've learned all we can."

He turns to face Jon and Lysander. "Let's draw that manic Goblin in here and put it down."

Spoiler: OOC

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Making no efforts at stealth, as Jannis would prefer using the bow from the top of the stairs.

[DrK]

A single shout and a kicked shard of a broken metal torture implement is all it takes to alert the mad goblin. the clatter of the metal on stone leaving the mad mutate goblin whirling around, then its beady eyes spy Lysander atop the stairs with Jannis and Jon by his side. it screeches in rage, "Oh, she not happy, my queen wants more play things... Korvus be a favoured one" before madness seems to cloud its eyes and its screeches in rage and begins to bound up the stairs!

Initiative

Jon/Lysander
Korvus the goblin
Jon/Alexej

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 34\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

"No worries, after we're done with you we're going to play with her too." Lysander growls, sword in hand and murderous intent in the eyes. He stands his ground, ready to stop the deformed goblin's attack and unleash his own, capitalizing on his height to strike from above and split the skull of his enemy.

Spoiler: Actions!

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Action 1 - Snagging Strike (1d20+10)[23] Damage (1d8+4)[6] (Enemy flat-footed if hit)
Action 2 - Strike (1d20+5)[11] Damage (1d8+4)[7]
Action 3 - Dueling Parry (+2 AC)

[stack]

(Sorry, saw Jon at the bottom of initiative and missed that he was double listed)

Jon spares the quips and launches electricity at the charging...thing.

Spoiler

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electric arc hitting the mutant goblin thing and another enemy if possible (1d4+3)[4] electric basic Reflex DC17

[DrK]

As Lysander appears at the top of the stairs there is a sizzle as Jon sends a crackling bolt at the strangely mutated three armed goblin that is spitting in fury and charging up the ramp waving a selection in its gnarled hands. It shrieks in anger more than pain as the lightning sizzles around it but then howls as it reaches Lysander, the mercenary landing a heavy blow that sends Korvus reeling! The goblin gnashes it teeth snarling and chanting "Pits for you, pits for you, meat for me..." strange acrid saliva dripping from the ad creature's maw, hissing slightly as its hits the floor. Even as it reels from Lysander's strike it lunges back with longsword that you all realise looks to be of ancient design!

Spoiler: Korvus

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2 move actions
1 attack action vs Lysander (1d20+12)[28] dam (1d8+6)[14]

[Farmerbink]

Jannis winces as Lysander takes a substantial blow. "No messing around now, get him!" He does his best to follow his own advice, sending an arrow and a bolt of divine energy across the room at the freakish Goblin.

Spoiler: Jannis, Round 1

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Jannis Sotheby
M NG Human Cleric, Level 2, HP 26/26, Speed 25
AC 16, Fort 5, Ref 6, Will 10, Perc 10
Composite shortbow +6 (1d6+2 Piercing) deadly d10 (Emblazon Armament)
Sickle +6 (1d4 slashing) trip, agile
Dagger +6 (1d4 piercing) versatile slashing, agile
Abilities Str 10, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 14
Conditions
Divine Spells: Cantrips: Divine Lance, Forbidding Ward, Guidance, Read Aura, Shield
Soothing Words (1/1 focus)
Bless 2/2
Magic Weapon 1/1
Heal 3/3 (d10)

(1d20+6)[25] composite shorbow attack
(1d6+2)[6] piercing damage
(1d10)[1] deadly, in the case of a crit success

(1d20+3)[22] Divine Lance (includes MAP)
(1d4+4)[6] Good damage

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 20\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

Lysander loses his footing for a moment when the strength of Korvus' blow cuts through his armour and flesh; then howling with rage and pain, the sellsword presses forward again: first he feints to have a better opening for a quick stab, hoping the strike will be enough to finish the mad goblin - still Lysander does not forget caution and after the stab goes immediately on the defensive, unwilling to test his luck again against the deformed enemy.

Spoiler: Rolls!

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Action 1 - Snagging Strike (1d20+10)[16] Damage (1d8+4)[5] (Enemy flat-footed if hit)
Action 2 - Strike (1d20+5)[10] Damage (1d8+4)[8]
Action 3 - Dueling Parry (+2 AC)

[stack]

Jon continues hurling lightning, hoping to put the creature down.

Spoiler

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electric arc (1d4+3)[7] basic REF DC17

[DrK]

Korvus shrieks in pain, "Bad food, food no hit Korvus!!" squeaked in outrage as Jon hurls more lightning at him and Jannis launches arrows (both wooden and glowing holy power). Holding him at bay Lysander hacks down once but the blow skitters off the goblins multiple weapons as it parries his attack with its ancient looking longsword. Behind Lysander their mage focuses and hurls fire at the goblin who lets out more cries of pain as the flame hits him.

Korvus reels, his stomach rolling as he shifts sideways to line up Lysander, Jannis and Alexej before a vast belching blast of vileness erupts from the creature coating all three of them in burning acidic bile, the goblin retching, "Bad pink skins, Mistress will be angry"

Spoiler: Korvus

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1 action: 5ft step to line up 3 heroes
2 actions: Vomit bile catching Lysander, Jannis and Alexej (4d6)[12] ACID damage, Reflex DC17 for Half

go go players

[Farmerbink]

This time, the wince isn't vicarious, as a glancing spray of acidic bile splashes across Jannis' arm. "Ah! What in the hells?!"

Spoiler: Jannis, Round 2

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Jannis Sotheby
M NG Human Cleric, Level 2, HP 20/26, Speed 25
AC 16, Fort 5, Ref 6, Will 10, Perc 10
Composite shortbow +6 (1d6+2 Piercing) deadly d10 (Emblazon Armament)
Spell attacks +8 (damage and type varies)
Sickle +6 (1d4 slashing) trip, agile
Dagger +6 (1d4 piercing) versatile slashing, agile
Abilities Str 10, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 14
Conditions
Divine Spells: Cantrips: Divine Lance, Forbidding Ward, Guidance, Read Aura, Shield
Soothing Words (1/1 focus)
Bless 2/2
Magic Weapon 1/1
Heal 3/3 (d10)

Complicated round. If Lysander takes full or double damage from the spray, I'll use a 2-action heal on him: [roll]1d10+8[roll] fixed OOC: 18
Followed by a one-action short bow attack:
(1d20+6)[22] attack
(1d6+2)[7] piercing
(1d10)[2] bonus on crits for deadly

If Lysander saves, I'll use the above attack roll and follow up with another divine lance:
(1d20+3)[12] attack
(1d4+4)[7]

[stack]

Jon, safe from the spray, keeps on tossing bolts of lightning.

Spoiler

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electric arc (1d4+3)[7] basic ref DC17

Could use lay hands, is someone was in reach and wanted it

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 14\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

The sellsword raises his arm just in time to cover his head and face from the disgusting (but highly corrosive) remains of Korvus' last meal, so disgusting that Lysander seems about to puke as well "Calistria be my witness, I'm going to gut and skin you alive!" even though his voice is full of rage, wounds seem to have weared him down quite a bit - still, Lysander again tries to put and end to the fight by kicking the goblin in the soft underbelly to distract him and follows with thrust meant to skewer the deformed creature.

Spoiler: Rolls!

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Action 1 - Snagging Strike (1d20+10)[18] Damage (1d8+4)[7] (Enemy flat-footed if hit)
Action 2 - Strike (1d20+5)[11] Damage (1d8+4)[12]
Action 3 - Dueling Parry (+2 AC)

[DrK]

The insane mutant goblin reels back from its own bile opening the way for both Jon and Jannis to strike as another arc of lightning rolls down the sword blade to its arm and an arrow embeds itself in the side of its mishapen skull. Covered in the vile caustic bile Lysander proves he speaks true as swings the sword down, hacking through the bemused creature's defence and finally cleaves his sword into its skull. Pausing there is silence save for the slight sizzling of acid on the floor and the dripping of green blood flowing down the steps.

Alexej looks up, his left arm a mass of burns and filth. "What a disgusting beast. Why has everything in here been touch so horribly. I had thought Lamashtu, the mother of monsters gone from these parts. Not in an ancient Thassilonian complex under its very stones"

Whilst Alexej muses Lysander can see the quality of the longsword, an ancient design with a slightly S-shaped blade with old thassolianian runes etched into the hilt. Its feels light and razor sharp to the touch. He also spies a couple of potions, although marked with the stylised "T" of Nisk Tander, the half elf alchemist who runs "Bottled Soloutions" an alchemical shop in the town above.

Spoiler: Treasure

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(ancient thassilonian) Longsword +1
Wolf fang Talisman
Moderate Juggernat mutagen

From where you stand you can still see down to the room below. The prisoner pits echoing with muted moans and faint shuffling as you can see under the grates at the bottom of the maybe 5ft square (10ft deep) pits the shuffling zombified remains of maybe half a dozen creatures. Two seem recent, and Lysander can recall them as visitors to the town, two more are goblins, and two are ancient looking things that you realise must have been original inhabitants their almost fossilised remains held together by the old sin magic. The zombies though are harmless as you can avoid walking on the grates and can destroy wiot the fire and lightning from Jon and Alexej without effort should you wish. Extending south from that room is a narrow tunnel that plunges south some 60ft before branching to the east and the other branch ending a in stout black iron bound door.

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 14\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

Even though Korvus seems quite dead, Lysander keeps kicking and stabbing him a couple more times more out of spite and frustration than a real need to make sure the deformed goblin has been truly killed; after getting it out of the system, he groans, grimaces and grunt while trying to clean himself a bit after being covered by the acidic bile of the horrible greenskin "Can't say who I hate more - this filthy dog-eater or the Sheriff for sending us down here." the sellsword complains with a gruff but ever so slightly whiny tone. After having removed the grossest part of whatever was inside Korvus' guts from his body, he starts doing what he always does after a fight: looting.

The sword immediately catches Lysander's eyes and after trying it a couple times he whistles in appreciation "Old as Hemlock's grandmother, but still quite sharp; a bit lighter than mine, so I'm going to need a couple of fights to get used to it - nothing I can't handle, though." then he looks at the others and says "Hope you don't mind if I give this sword a new home. There're a trinket and some weird bottle too, you can have them if you want. Might be worth something."

He gives the undead a cursory look, then nods and points towards the tunnel going south "Believe we should leave the Guard the clean-up duty and try to find this Quasit fast before she has time to prepare some nasty surprise for us."

[stack]

Jon eyes up his companions to assess their health. "Anyone need some patching up?"(can lay on hands for 6 HP, repeating at 10 minute intervals if we wait)

[Farmerbink]

Jannis nods in satisfaction as the misshapen Goblin falls. He watches Lysander with an uneasy expression as the man releases the rest of his frustration on the deceased. After several moments, he interrupts a bit with a hand on the shoulder. "Let me give you a hand, Lysander" Without waiting for approval, the young cleric intones the grace of Erastil, substantially easing his companion's wounds. "It's all yours," Jannis gestures towards the sword. "I'm not sure I know how to use it, and I'm quite sure I don't want to be close enough to anything like that to do so." With one final grimace to the slain "Goblin," Jannis turns towards the stairs.

Spoiler: Heal

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(1d10+8)[15] HP for Lysander.

"I highly doubt Hemlock knew anything about this," Jannis muses. "He can be crotchety when he's in the wrong mood, but he'd never send us into something like his without a warning, if he knew. It's.... This is really, really big. Just the revelation of its existence might save Sandpoint. We can cave it in after we're done clearing it out and make sure nothing ever comes up from here again." It's clear Jannis is increasingly uneasy, and Alexej's comment prompts a slow nod.

"Clearly, she still has a presence," he mutters. "Seems impossible after all these years, but if Tsuto knew about these caverns, perhaps others did too. It seems these caverns aren't quite as abandoned as we might like."

Exploring the chamber beneath the stairs, Jannis all-but retches at the misshapen zombies. "If there's not a good reason to not, I'm going to destroy these poor creatures," he prompts, giving his companions an opportunity for academic approaches first. Any impulses satisfied, he conjures down dozens of bolts of holy energy, blasting them with impunity from the safety of the floor above.

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 29\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

"Took a bit of a beating, that's true." Lysander groans and gives Korvus' corpse another kick for good measure; still he nods quite appreciatively to whatever heealing power Jannis can share with him. When the priest talks about this dungeon bein the salvation of Sanpoint, the sellsword laughs and shakes his head "Salvation, you say. That would be so only if we leave nothing alive in these halls and tell no one about what we found down here. Word comes out, it's just a matter of time before someone like Ameiko's half-brother or the celestial lass are going to try to find this place with malicious intent."

[DrK]

As the zombies are destroyed to fragments of bone and necrotic flesh safely the heroes are able to peer down the long corridor and the the two small rooms that lead off it. A sudden faint howl echoes from the branch to the right, but fades and sounds as it it is far away. Reaching the fork you glance right and see a massed pile of twisted rock and stone. Although a faint howl can be heard again, this time is even fainter and is clearly coming from below...

The room to the south is far stranger. As you push open the door you realise that this room is a fiffteen foot sphere. Several objects float within the room hanging lazily in space as if they had no weight at all. A ragged book, a scroll, a ottle of wine, a dead raven surrounded by a halo of writhing floating maggots and a twisted iron wand with a forked tip. Yet perhaps the most unnerving aspect of the room is the walls for they are plated in sheets of a strange red metal that ripple every so often with silent black electricity that seems to coalesce into strange runes or even words far too often for it to be mere chance.

Alexej looks at the room, and shakes his head, "Mysterious, a room enchanted to allow things to float, runs that come and go. I can barely make them out but they seem associated with wrath, anger, hate... Much like the other symbols we have seen here." He peers into the space, reaching out from the doorway but the strange metal wand and book etc... are too far away."So.... a gold for your efforts" he mutters to Lysander and nods towards the spherical space.

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 29\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

The sellsword frowns and suspiciously watches the floating objects inside the mysterious room, unsure to what make of it; certainly he doesn't seem keen in stepping inside and Alexej's proposal is cause for a nervous chuckle "Wouldn't go inside for a hundred sails, Alexej. Luck I got until now, I step in and become a cripple or barking mad because of this old thassilonian magick. Uh-hu, no chance - Pharasma doesn't care how rich you were in life." he shakes his head, still laughing - up until when he stops, mumbles and says "Wait. Got an idea." he then kneels and starts rummaging through his backpack and after a couple of moments he pulls out a grappling hook and a rope, roughly fifteen meters long; the sellsword ties them together and tries to catch the stuff inside the room with it.

Spoiler: Rolls!

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Here an Athletics roll just in case:

(1d20+8)[13]

[Farmerbink]

Jannis starts briefly at Lysander's response. "Oh, this cavern isn't a good thing. The fact that we found it, though. I shudder to think who or what could take Sandpoint from within if left unchecked." Just then, one of the faint howls peals out, and Jannis' eyes widen. "This place is very, very bad," he mutters. He gazes nervously at the floor (and a few moments later at the clutter blocking the stairwell), and visible staves off threatening shakes.

He rejoins his companions standing just outside the spherical chamber. "What in the world...." He gazes into the room with unmasked awe, enchanted by the sheer other-worldliness of it. "The engineering alone is impressive. That looks perfectly round to me... The enchantment?" He turns to listen to Alexej's explanation. "Any active magicks or just ancient remnants?"

Lysander's comment draws a snort of amusement from Jannis. "Hear hear. Ain't nothing right about that room."

[stack]

"If there is nothing here trying to eat us, we could leave it for now. There are other places we have not checked yet." Jon says, scanning the room briefly for active magical auras.

Spoiler

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detect magic

[DrK]

Scanning the room Jon can see the entire wall of the strange red metal plates glowing faintly with magical enchantments. In addition so do the scroll and the small metal forked stick and the book. With a few deft throws of the grappling hook, a few more after he learns to account for the "floating" Lysander is in short order able to hook onto the various objects and drag them out to varying degrees of excitment.

The bottle of wine is just that, a bottle of wine. The wine is fine Magnimaran vintage and ALexej nods his head in approval at the vingate. "An expensive one that one, someone spared no expense" he mutters. THe scroll as its unfulred is written on a strange foil like paper with runes scratched onto its surface and feels warm to the touch. "Ancient magics, arcane both of them," Alexej adds as he examines the scroll and wand carefully.

Spoiler: Loot

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Scroll Burning Hands (at 2nd Level)
Wand of Shocking Grasp

The book is an ancient gtome, and seemingly magically preserved based upon the abjurant magic upon it. The book seems to be a tome dedicated to Lamashtu the mother of Monsters, although written in writing that seems to make your eyes itch and water (abysaal). It seems to be a tome detailing her creations, although with the illustrations of many of the beasts it is also a good source of nighmares!

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 29\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

Lysander shows everyone his "catch"; he gives a cursory look to the book and even though he doesn't seem to understand a single word written on it, the pictures manage to get out of the sellsword a quite disgusted expression, he shudders and violently shakes his head trying to don't think too much about what he just saw. When Alexej comments on the bottle of wine, Lysander extends his hand and seems quite apparent he wants the bottle for himself - something confirmed by words said with a distraught voice "Going to soak myself in that after we're done here. You're welcome for a sip, but if I'm going to have some sleep tonight it would be because of that bottle." he then waves towards the other objects he has retrieved "See if there's something useful there. Then we move - better to check the rooms we haven't cleared yet on this floor before going downstairs."

[stack]

"May me more cost effective to sell that bottle and get a more potent potable for easing memories. Not sure what use the book will have, but it may be of interest to some. Done the spiral stair or back the the stair by the statue?"

[Farmerbink]

I can't make heads or tails of any of it, Jannis admits, after a cursory skim of the scroll and book. "Not sure I care to, to be honest," he pontificates. The young cleric waits patiently while Jon and Alexej complete their initial investigation, only backing away slightly to give them more room- not because everything about the space makes him uncomfortable.

"Don't rightly know as we'll be going downstairs any time soon, either," he mutters, though he doesn't seem disappointed. "Unless you know a bunch of folks on standby to help move all this rubble. I've done enough manual labor to know this isn't gonna be an afternoon affair for the four of us." He points to the ruined stairwell, looking decidedly unsure about the prospects of going down it.

Spoiler: OOC

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I've run this adventure before and remember a few of the details. This stairwell is collapsed and effectively impassible- it serves primarily as foreshadowing. I figure DrK overlooked that detail, but that's pretty classic tbh. Just wanting to post here that I'm confident we're not supposed to clear out this stairwell yet. Not because the stuff down there will kill us (though it seems likely), but because it's an impractical task at this juncture. At least, it wasn't part of the adventure before. I suppose there's always room for DM creativity ;-)

[DrK]

As the quartet divvy up the spoils Lysander looks at the stairway down, but then realises, possibly with some relief with the faint howls echoing up from below, that with the tons of rubble blocking the rubble it would take a concerted effort of many people and a long time to make any headway (assuming that its even a good idea!).

With two more passages unexplored the four of you make your way, some limping slightly, back to the statue of the imposing Azlanist runelady. Witha choice between the route back to the small shrine to Lamashtu or the narrow passageway leading to some stairs up directly behind the statue you head down the narrow passage. Heading up the narrow stairs you can all see the narrow walls inscribed with depictions of monsters doing unsettling things to mortals leaving you with a vague feeling of unsease. Reaching the door its unlocked and opens easily to a gentle push from Lysander.

Beyond is another small room, this time lit from a shimmering blue candle that glow atop a plinth in a pool of water. The room is some 15ft in diameter with a 5ft wide pool of water in the centre of the room. The pool of water looks to be ~waist deep and the rim of black marble is carved with all manner of mishapen skulls. In the centre of the pool a narrow spire of black stone is carved into the shape of a misformed foetal creature with a blue crystal shedding light atop its raised hand. Another door leading further into the complex lies on the far side of the room.

Spoiler: Jon

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Pausing the in doorway behind Lysander you notice ripples on the surface of the water on the far side of the pool as if something was moving under the water

[Bunny Commando]

Lysander - HP: 29\34 - Conditions: None - Active Effects: None

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

Even if he tries to avoid looking the depictions on the walls, Lysanders fails enough to groan and curse between his teeth "Ameiko's brother has to be barking mad to have chosen Lamasthu as his patron goddess. What in the Nine Hells you people did to him and the celestial lass to have pushed them to believe this" he points at a particularly unsanitary potrayal of monsters and men "would be a capital idea?" he shakes his head with incredulity and keeps going. He enters the room, sword first, and looks around with caution; when he sees the glowing crystal he whistles in appreciation and asks the others "Believe might be worth something? I mean, we should clean the place before Hemlock and Deverin have the chance to do it themselves."

[Farmerbink]

Jannis follows dutifully, though Lysander's remarks leave him feeling (and showing) more than a bit of shame and introspection. "By the gods, I swear I don't know," he mutters, sadly. "Like I said, we were never friendly, but this is all just so... wrong. Wasteful." He shrugs off the funk as they enter a new chamber, and glances around in wonder.

"Well that's gotta be magical," he murmurs, pointing to the pool. "The crystal too, I figure. I don't much like the odds they're anything nice, though."

Spoiler: OOC

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If not interrupted, Jannis will read aura, first on the crystal, then the pool.

[stack]

Jon puts his hand on Lysander's shoulder. "On the left, something under the water. Everyone, let us back up; if it attacks, best to fight in away from the edge."

[Farmerbink]

Jannis starts, a bit surprised by Jon's declaration in the beginning of his spell casting. Without waiting for further encouragement, he draws his bow and nocks an arrow. "How sure are you, Jon? Should we toss a rock in or something to draw it out? I can fire into the pool, but it's unlikely to do any good- and if whatever it is isn't hostile, that might change it's mind..."

He watches the pool intently, listening for his companion's suggestions.

Spoiler: Jannis, Pre-combat?

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Jannis Sotheby
M NG Human Cleric, Level 2, HP 20/26, Speed 25
AC 16, Fort 5, Ref 6, Will 10, Perc 10
Composite shortbow +6 (1d6+2 Piercing) deadly d10 (Emblazon Armament)
Spell attacks +8 (damage and type varies)
Sickle +6 (1d4 slashing) trip, agile
Dagger +6 (1d4 piercing) versatile slashing, agile
Abilities Str 10, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 18, Cha 14
Conditions
Divine Spells: Cantrips: Divine Lance, Forbidding Ward, Guidance, Read Aura, Shield
Soothing Words (1/1 focus)
Bless 2/2
Magic Weapon 1/1
Heal 2/3 (d10)