Planescape: Center of All - IC

[Toliudar]

Ash

To protect herself from the maddening sounds in the cave, Ash pulls out a rod from her bag and casts a simple spell of protection on herself.

She flies back to confer with the others.

*Interesting. There's a symbol of weakness protecting the door. We could trigger it safely, but then we'll be stuck here for hours. I might be able to dispel it, but risk setting it off, with the same result. The easiest way around this might be through teleportation magic, but I'm no expert in this. What do you all think?*

Spoiler: OOC

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Will save: (1d20+33)[48]

Using her lesser rod of Metamagic Extend, Ash casts Protection from Chaos on herself. 40 minute duration.

[paradox26]

Taric feels the negative effects of the poisonous gas, but it isn't too bad, so he is prepared to endure it. But when he finds the creature is dead, he immediately steps out of the mist again. His wounds are healing already, but he isn't sure if they have time to allow them to heal completely right now.

He approaches the door and studies it. "I am no expert in magic, but would triggering it and then waiting not allow it to reset? I think dispelling it completely might be the better option. Teleportation would, of course, be the better option, but I know little of such magic either. I assume you could get us to the other side of this doorway safely?" he says.

Spoiler: OOC action

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(1d20+25)[31] Fort save versus the poison. Unless I roll a 1, it will be a pass, and the damage would be half a point, which if I am not wrong, will round down to nothing.

[Cavir]

"Ash, could you use that wand from Joel on me please?"

"Need to know where we are teleporting to so we don't end up falling down a chasm or into lava. If your dispel doesn't work I can try the same. How far back is safe for the Symbol?" Avakuss moves back to safety.

[Archmage1]

Holding off on activating any pearls of power, pending a more clear need, Eilyra flicks her blade clean, before it vanishes, and she carefully approaches the door. "Assuming it is just the symbol protecting it, and no dimensional lock on the other side, I could teleport us past, and I could even use a spell to take a look at the other side, to see what's there, although there is probably a less powerful spell that could be used." Eilyra's voice continues to come from nowhere, and she pauses her speaking for a moment, before looking to Ash. "Ash, would you happen to have a clairvoyance spell available? I would cast Eye of Stone, but it's a bit more potent than what we really need." She pauses for another moment, as she realizes that she was getting ahead of herself. "That said, if we teleport through, that does leave it as a barrier should we need to make a quick retreat. A greater dispel might be safer. The symbol most likely has a range of sixty feet, although it could be larger, depending on the caster. If it is triggered, I can still teleport us through, after using my scouting spell. I'll move back now, because Symbol of Weakness is not an enjoyable effect."

With that said, she backs off, making sure that she is far enough away to be out of the 60 foot area, and hopes that the spell wasn't enlarged in some fashion.

[Toliudar]

Ash

Pulling out the wand, Ash taps Cavir as gently as she can.

*Let me know when you're feeling better.*

She repeats the tapping until Cavir signals to stop.

*Sadly, clairvoyance only reveals a very small area in the dark, and takes a long time for me to cast it. I'll try dispelling the symbol first.*

Making sure that everyone is well back and away from the door, Ash attempts to remove the magic of the symbol.

Spoiler: OOC

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If I understand correctly, one tap of the wand should cure Cavir's con damage, but if he's still hurting, she'll give him a second charge.

Once everyone is well over 60' away from the door, Ash attempts a greater dispel magic on the symbol. (1d20+20)[32]

[Cavir]

Avakuss chuckles as Ash tries to be gentle with a near 30 foot tall goliath warrior. After one tap he shifts his leg back to signal that was all he needed. "Thanks"

"If that dispel doesn't work I'll try it.

Spoiler: OOC

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Just one charge will remove all damage

[kinem]

Ash's casting of Greater Dispel Magic removes the symbol above the door.

[paradox26]

Taric was well back when the symbol was being dispelled. With it now gone, he says, "I will go through the doorway first, since I am small enough to do so easily." He then carefully opens the door and looks through, staying on the original side of the doorway and not going through it until he can see what is on the other side.

[kinem]

Taric finds that the door is locked shut.

[Archmage1]

Eilyra watches with interest as the burst of anti-magic sweeps over the symbol, and the symbol vanishes. Well, either her dispel worked, and countered it, or... it failed, and triggered it. Either way, I'm not going to be going first. In the immediate aftermath, she remains still and quiet, and waits to see if someone was willing to find out.
After Taric approaches, and tries the door, to no ill effect, Eilyra's unseen form approaches. "Locked, I take it? And I didn't find a key on the Black Beast either. Perhaps a trigger mechanism, rather than a key? Or the Bloodhulks have a key?" Her voice drifts off thoughtfully as she starts to examine the door, carefully looking it over for any sort of unlocking mechanism, trying to draw upon her knowledge of Tharzidun's religious iconography to see if there were any clues in the carvings in the door.

(1d20+16)[24] Search, (1d20+36)[38] know: religion

[kinem]

Eilyra doesn’t find any clues on how to open the door, other than the large and obvious keyhole.

[Archmage1]

Eilyra frowns as she fails to find any alternative ways to open the door, before she drifts over to the bloodhulks, and uses her sword to shift the behemoths around a bit, in search of a key.

(1d20+16)[33] Search the third!

[kinem]

There is a large keyhole in the door, and numerous geometric carvings on the door itself, including the inverted Y on a triangle shape often used as a symbol by the Cult of Tharizdun.

The door would open away from the cave by the looks of it, and some of the carvings could be used as handles.

Other than a huge amount of foul-smelling blood, Eilyra finds nothing with the dead bloodhulks.

[Archmage1]

Eilyra frowns as she heads back towards the group. "I'm not finding any keys on these fellows, which doesn't leave me with a lot of options for opening the door. Perhaps one of you might have more success? I could remove the door, but that may not be the best approach here."

[Toliudar]

Ash

Once the dispel is complete, Ash confirms what the others have surmised. *I believe that the symbol is gone now, probably for good. I'm afraid that I'm much better at finding these devices than in removing them - or opening them, in the case of tharizdun locks. If we're not able to batter our way through the door, then I can probably dislodge it from it's joist.*

Ash moves up closer to the door, behind Taric, and looks at the way the wooden door is set into the natural cave wall.

Spoiler: OOC

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Search: (1d20+37)[41]

[Archmage1]

Eilyra shakes her head at the suggestion of battering through the door, before she speaks up. "Battering through may be an excellent way to alert whomever is inside that someone is attacking. For all the fury, the fight with the guards wasn't very loud. If we're not finding a way though, I could teleport a couple of us" She looks to Ash as she speaks, "To the other side. The door's not likely to be more than five feet thick, and the passage should be about as wide as the door, so it should be fairly safe, and there may be a way to open the door from the inside without the key."

[Cavir]

Avakuss ponders the situation. "Center, the portal key. Try that on the door. I'll do it if you like."

[Toliudar]

Ash

Ash considers Eilyra's proposal to teleport, her brow furrowed. It was hard to think in this maddening noise.

*But if there's no way to unlock the door from the other side, then we're no further ahead by teleporting only two of us.*

She steps back to let Centre, or Avarkuss, try to portal key, and hopes that that opens the door. Failing that, Ash will lightly touch the wall where the hinges are most likely to be on the other side of the door.

*Please stand back.*

Once a possible drop zone in front of the door is clear Ash quietly shifts the entire section of wall out and to the side.

Spoiler: OOC

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If the portal key works, great!

If not Ash will try using Stone Shape on the section of wall on the hinge side of the door. She has 30 cubic feet she can effect, and a person sized doors are generally 6.5 to 7 feet tall. So if she takes out a section of wall that's the same height as the door and about 18 inches wide and 18 inches deep, that should free the door from any hinges. The locking mechanism may still hold it in place, but worst case scenario, the medium sized among us should be able to squeeze through the missing section of wall and help jiggle the door free.

[Archmage1]

Taking advantage of her hasted state, Eilyra quickly backs away as the door is interacted with.

[kinem]

Center tries placing the gate key against the 10' tall stone door where the corresponding symbol is, but nothing happens. He then tries to insert it into the key hole, but it won't fit.

Ash's stone shape spell cause the stone to warp away. It opens a passage that a human could enter. The door itself doesn't fall but a metal hinge that was on the other side does, causing a loud clang.

Through the hole you can see a rough stone passage about 10' in diameter. There is a bit of light from up ahead but its source is beyond a bend in the tunnel.

[Archmage1]

Eilyra offers Ash a quick smile as she lithely slips through the gap, her wings folded behind her, and heads towards the far side of the door, taking a careful look down the passage, to see if anyone or anything noticed the hinge falling.

(1d20+19)[27] Spot

[Cavir]

Supersized Avakuss grabs the 10' stone door and lays it against the wall to the side. He waits for the others to go through then squeezes through, propping the door back in place behind him to minimize the noise and wind. He can dismiss Expansion at will (which lasts about another 1.5 minutes) but keeps it for now in case the tunnel is short.

[paradox26]

Taric stepped back to allow the casters to work. Then when the doorway is open, he offers to be the first to go through to the other side, being smaller than the others. He steps through the doorway, then waits a moment, to see if anything bad happens to him. He then starts to proceed towards the bend in the corridor, from where he should be able to see the source of the light.

[Archmage1]

Unseen in the darkness of the corridor, Eilyra grins as Taric moves past her, to find out what was up ahead. Perfect. Another forty seconds of invisibility, and haste left. Should be enough to handle whatever he finds ahead. Moving quietly, she follows behind the Bariaur, but not too closely behind.

(1d20+15)[27] Move Silently
(1d20+30)[47] Hide(Including the +20 from being invisible)

[kinem]

The air inside the tunnel is a bit musty but not as bad as you might have expected. There is a slight breeze in the tunnel, as the air pressure was a bit different on each side of the door.

If there were ever any hope that anyone inside might not have heard the breach, it is certainly gone now, as Avakuss manhandles the stone door. Indeed, you can now hear some kind of heavy stomping noise from up ahead.

With Taric in the lead the party proceeds forward through the tunnel. After the bend, and another straight section, the tunnel opens up into a roughly triangular shaped room which must have been carved from an existing cavern.

The room is lit by continual flames at several points along the 15' high ceiling. It contains three large bookshelves and numerous tables with chairs meant for human-sized creatures.

Blocking the entrance are a pair of large wooden soldier constructs wearing plate mail armor and brandishing greatswords.

A bit further in and to your left is another wooden soldier with similar gear. That one has a Symbol on its armor much like the one that had been over the stone door.

Further in and to your right is a gaunt and skeletal humanoid with withered flesh stretched tight across horribly visible bones. Its eyes have long ago been lost to decay, but bright pinpoints of crimson light burn on in the empty sockets.

The lich says in Common "Who the hell are you?" He appears ready to cast a spell, but holds off for now.

Spoiler: see invisible / true seeing

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There's also an invisible quasit in the room holding a magic rod.

Spoiler: Ash / greater arcane sight

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The lich has False Life active on him, and numerous magical items.

The lich and the constructs have Mass Bull's Strength on them.

The construct in the back also has Owl's Wisdom, Listening Lorecall, Heart of Earth, and Antilife Shell on it. Most likely, it's the Avatar that a Wooden Avatarist is occupying.

OOC: PCs to act

Spoiler: map

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A = Avakuss (squeezing), C = Center, H = Ash
E = Eilyra (invisible), T = Taric

Wooden Soldier = 1, 2
W = Wooden Avatar
L = Lich, Q = ?

** = stone door (propped in place)
# = Table & chairs, B = bookshelf
& = bed, 0 = hole

XXXXXXXXX**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX..XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX..XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX..XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX...XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX...XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX..XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXCCXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXCCXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXHAAXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXAAAXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXAAXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX.EXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX.TXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX..XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX..XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX1122XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX.1122.XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXX........XXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXX....BB....XXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXX.....BB.....XXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXX#.....BB..WW.#XXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXX#......BB..WW..#XXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX#.....L..........#XXXXXXXX
XXXXXXX.....BB......BB.....XXXXXXX
XXXXXX.....BB...##.Q.BB.....XXXXXX
XXXXX.....BB....##....BB.....XXXXX
XXXX.....BB.....##.....BB.....XXXX
XXX.....BB..............BB.....XXX
XX.............................X0X
X&&&&&&&&&&&&&.#############.....X
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

[Archmage1]

Coming around the corner, Eilyra's attention is immediately drawn to the lich, and the pair of wooden golems, instantly recognizing the Symbol of Weakness for what it was. If that triggers, we're not likely to win this. But it wants to talk, which gives us an opening. Who knows, maybe it will even help.
Returning to visibility, Eilyra sweeps into the room. "Good evening. I'm a scholar out of Myth Drannor, and I'd heard about this library, and given the obscurity, and the rather specialized knowledge contained within, it seemed like an interesting place to visit. Unfortunately, the Black Beast out front attacked immediately, and my guards had to take care of it. Given what such creatures are known for, I thought the library had fallen to the chaos of this dangerous place, and asked my guards to force the door. If I'd known you were here, I assure you, we would have knocked."
She gives it a quick, comforting smile as she attempts to negotiate with it.
"Would you be interested in allowing us access to the library? I'd be happy to exchange notes with you; I'm sure both of us could benefit greatly from our collaboration. Are you looking for anything specific here?"

Spoiler: Epic fail, incoming

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(1d20+5)[9] Diplomacy
(1d20+5)[13] Bluff

[kinem]

The lich replies "Well you're not from the Cult, and neither are we. But I have no reason to work with you. Return in one week, and we'll have left, and you can have the place as far as I care. Right now though, you are not welcome here. Please leave immediately, and there'll be no need for conflict."

[Toliudar]

Ash

Ash surveyed the room with her senses and reports telepathically to her colleagues.

*The figure talking is a lich with some long-term protections laid onto him. An imp, probably his familiar is over there, holding a rod.*

She gives the approximately location of the probably-a-familiar.

*There's a symbol of weakness on the wooden guards - clever, since it won't affect any of them. The other statue is a Wooden Atavarist with several protections laid onto it, most notably a shell to keep the living at a distance of 10'. Although that shell will likely only work on Avarkuss.*

She does her best to augment Eilyra's sentiments.

"I'm afraid that our departure is not an option, but as my colleague has said, there's no reason for violence. We can both use the library at the same time without confict, surely! Is sharing the room with us truly worse than the possible dangers of battle, not to mention the cost of replacing those expensive symbols on your wooden figures? I'm confident that an arrangement can be reached."

Spoiler: OOC

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She'll burn Moment of Prescience for a +22 on her Diplomacy check: (1d20+39)[45]

[paradox26]

Taric pauses, weapons raised, at the sight of the inhabitants of the room. He doesn't move to attack, since the beings in the room are also not attacking immediately. He holds his position at the doorway, where he can protect the casters in the party from the wooden guards getting past. He uses his collar to shrink to small size, so the others can more easily cast or move past him, without allowing the possible enemies from doing the same. He has no skills or abilities that may allow him to do anything useful, so he continues to simply stand still and look mean, as useful as it likely is against wooden creatures and a lich.

[kinem]

The lich replies "Normally I'd be open to it. But your ally's story was none too plausible. Since you'd rather fight than delay your research, and given the timing of all this, I must assume that our purposes here directly conflict. Since you have been so polite, I give you a last chance to leave in peace, but the time for words is over."