Carrion Crown: The Haunting of Harrowstone, Pt. II [IC]

[BuckGodot]

Alexandru will help with the hammer and as Marius lands, he asks… ”You had a rope?”

[lostsole31]

And with that, everyone is now down in this massive chamber. This cavernous chamber may have once been an underground cellblock, but it has long since collapsed. The crumbled walls are thick with mold and stained with soot, and heaps of fallen stones and charred wooden beams line the area. Water drips and seeps along the walls, collecting in a dark, murky pool in
the middle of the room. To the north, the twisted remains of a wood and iron lift lie in a heap in a shallow portion of the pool. A jagged hole in the roof yawns twenty feet above this ruin. To the west, a partially blocked opening seems to open up after several feet into a dark but stable tunnel.

But before that, everyone except Wren was half to fully immersed in the freezing waters. Luckily, the spell Hargrimm protects you all ... as long as your clothes dry before the spell expires.

What do you do?

[Ason]

Marius winces sheepishly at Alexandru's question. "Yes..." he admits guiltily, before blurting out an anxious explanation, "But climbing up a swinging rope with no supporting wall, over a lipped rim and with all our armor and equipment, seemed risky. When it comes to safety precautions, I prefer to have redundancies. Still... I am sorry if my reticence caused undue burdens. I will try to make it right going forward."

He follows the party into the current chamber in shamefaced silence. As the water dripping off their clothing accompanies the tune of the water dripping off the walls, Marius looks at the magic users of the party and finally speaks again, meekly asking, "I hate to impose, but... do any of you happen to know the prestidigitation cantrip? I'd be grateful if someone could magic that pit-water off me. Meanwhile, there's an extract I should craft while we decide our next steps."

Deferring to the others to decide the party's next steps for now, Marius starts mixing an extract.

Spoiler: Mechanics

Show

Marius takes one minute to mix one extract of Monkey Fish, assuming the current space and conditions allow for it to be done easily.

[Tippnick]

"I did not prepare it, my apologies. I should have foreseen an issue like this. If we had some time I could substitute a centrip", Zauberei apologizes.

[SwordChucks]

Hargrimm shakes his head as he wrings out his beard and clothes as best he can. "Sorry, that's not in my repertoire either. If only we hadn't exorcized that malicious oven." he jokes lamely while fetching his quarterstaff.

[lostsole31]

"Shall we move forward?" asks Wren. "Shield-wearers, will you ready yourselves or keep hands more free and responsive for now?"

[BuckGodot]

Alexandru looks at Wren and nods, drawing his sword and fitting his shield...

"Although, I wouldn't mind if we at least started a fire in an attempt to dry out..."

[lostsole31]

Wren looks at Lexi for several long seconds. "The vast majority of these prisoners were killed in a fire that swept through these lower halls, creating a massacre. And ... you want to get all of their attentions by making a fire?"

[BuckGodot]

Alexandru grins, sheepishly.

[lostsole31]

The party gathers and moves west into the next large chamber. Four dark hallways exit from this large empty chamber, each striking out in one of the four directions of the compass, and each decorated with a soot-caked brass nameplate affixed to the ceiling just above the entrance. A rubble-choked stairway leads up in the middle of the room, while eight skeletons dressed in scorched prisoners’ robes lie on the ground.

What do you do?

[SwordChucks]

Hargrimm eyes the skeletons warily. "Perhaps caution is called for here. Can we check that the dead won't rise before choosing a direction?"

Hargrimm offers to cover the others with a readied vortex should they agree.

[Tippnick]

"If you have a way to detect undead please do so", Zauberei agrees.

Spoiler: zauberei learning

Show

Zaubereiwill try to determine what Hargrimm is doing]

[Moriar]

"Sorry alll and brother, I must have been lost in thought or something, " Angelo guesses.

"Though I don't currently have the ability to detect undead, I can be rather charming with them once they introduce themselves. As for the dampness, I shall begin taking care of that." Angelo casts a spell and then begins to dry first his brother and then everyone else including himself over time.

Spoiler: Blow dry time!

Show

Angelo casts prestidigition and begins drying everyone off beginning with Lexi.

While drying everyone, he will use his senses visually keep an eye out.

[lostsole31]

Angelo casts prestidigitation on Lexi, but finds out that he cannot dry clothes with the cantrip.

Just then, with no sense of surprise from the party whatsoever, the corpses start to stir.

Surprise Round!

S24: Marius, what do you do?

[Ason]

Marius quietly gasps in alarm before frantically thwacking at the nearest undead with his hammer and shifting slightly to the southeast.

Spoiler: Mechanics

Show

Standard Action: risky strike at red+blue (the undead immediately north of Zauberei) or, if for some reason that is not a viable target, purple

• Attack Roll: (1d20+7)[12]
• Damage Roll: (1d12+4)[12] bludgeoning

Five-Foot Step: to the southeast

My understanding is that Marius already has his polearm in-hand (since we've established he can't really sheathe/stow it) but that his shield is still unequipped. Thus, I calculated his damage as if he held his hammer in two hands, since he doesn't have a shield to get in the way right now.

If Marius needs to first spend an action to hold his polearm properly in both hands, he will use his action to instead equip his weapon in order to allow for opportunity attacks as well as attacks next turn.

[lostsole31]

S24: Marius quietly gasps in alarm before frantically thwacking at Red-Blue with his hammer, but missing with allies in the way. Marius adjusts to the southeast.

S23: Alexandru, what do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Alexandru drops his sword, draws his warhammer, and lashes out at Purple.

Spoiler: Technical Information

Show

Drop sword
MA: Draw warhammer
Attack using Risky Strike: (1d20+6)[13]

Damage: (1d8+6)[8]

[lostsole31]

S23: Alexandru drops his sword and draws his hammer.

Spoiler: Alexandru

Show

Had to move you 5' to engage. Also, a surprise round means you get an MA or an SA, not both (which also means no FRA or FAA).

S22: Zauberei, quarterstaff in hand. This is a surprise round. What do you do?

[Tippnick]

Zauberie moves about 5 feet to the southwest and then concentrates for a moment.

Spoiler: deflection

Show

5 ft step to SW and the activates his domain deflection aura.
He will also assess the creatures to see if they are more than just normal skeletons

[lostsole31]

S22: Zauberie moves about 5 feet to the southwest and then concentrates for a moment. Everyone feels a subtle energy about them.

S17: All of the skeletons are getting to their feet now. As they do, Alexandru is able to dust Purple with a powerful thonk of his warhammer, but now they are all on their feet.

S16: Paula squeaks in alarm (delaying)!

S12: "I hate skeletons," Wren says flatfly with his almost useless choppy-stabby dagger in his hand. He acrobatically darts to the east into the ruined corridor.

S11: Angelo, this is a surprise round. What do you do?

[Moriar]

"Too many fans," Angelo admits grudgingly.

He then begins to hum a tune to himself and lashing out the whip quickly.

Spoiler: Whip it good

Show

SwA start Archelogists luck

Then SA with serpent lash to trip red/blue. Trip roll: [rol]1d20+7[/roll]

If trip successful then trip red as well. Trip 2 roll: (1d20+7)[24]

Last is 5' step to east

[lostsole31]

S11: "Too many fans," Angelo admits grudgingly. He then begins to hum a tune to himself and goes to lash out with his whip when he realizes he never took his whip back out after the whole climbfest. He sighs and draws his whip, now being as good a time as any.

S10: Hargrimm, what do you do?

Marius on deck, Alexandru in the hole ...

[SwordChucks]

Hargrimm steps away from the skeleton bearing down on him and throws two vortices at the two nearest him.
"You may use this if you'd like Mr. Elbourne!" Hargrimm says holding his quarterstaff aloft.

Spoiler: Combat

Show

5ft step southeast.
Standard action: Attack Red/Blue and Red with Banelight Vortices.
Move action?: Offer the quarterstaff to Wren.

Vortex 1 (Red/Blue): (1d20+4)[14], (6d6)[22]
Vortex 2 (Red): (1d20+4)[16], (6d6)[22]

[lostsole31]

S10: Hargrimm steps away from the skeleton bearing down on him and throws two vortices at the two nearest him, missing one but destroying another. "You may use this if you'd like Mr. Elbourne!" Hargrimm calls out, holding his quarterstaff aloft.

End Surprise Round, Begin Round One ...

R1T24: Marius, what do you do?

[Ason]

Marius hurriedly straps his shield back onto his arm, and then with unnatural speed he darts between Zauberei and Angelo. Skidding to a halt, he swings his lucerne hammer down at the skeleton in front of him.

"At least no stirges this time..." he says with faint optimism.

Spoiler: Mechanics

Show

Move: ready shield
Swift: Grim News to move 5' west and 5' northwest to end up between Zauberei and Angelo
Standard: Temporal Burn on Red/Blue; attack roll (1d20+8)[22]; base damage roll (1d12+1)[2] plus maneuver damage (2d6)[9]

[lostsole31]

R1T24: Marius hurriedly straps his shield back onto his arm, and then with unnatural speed he darts between Zauberei and Angelo. Skidding to a halt, he swings his lucerne hammer down at the skeleton in front of him, smashing through shoulder and torso to destroy it.

"At least no stirges this time..." he says with faint optimism.

R1T23: Alexandru. What do you do?

[BuckGodot]

Alexandru moves forward and brings his hammer down on Blue.

Spoiler: Technical Information

Show

MA: move south 15'
Attack using Risky Strike: (1d20+6)[22]

Haste

Undead Exterminator

Damage: (1d8+6)[7]

[lostsole31]

R1T23: Alexandru moves forward and brings his hammer down on Blue, destroying it!

R1T22: Zauberei, what do you do?

[Tippnick]

"Great job friends, there is still a couple North of me", Zauberei points out. He then directs a beam of positive energy at a skeleton.

Spoiler: disrupt undead

Show

Standard action cast disrupt undead at yellow.
(1d20+3)[21]
He will maintain his aura
Then 5ft step to SE

[lostsole31]

R1T22: "Great job friends, there is still a couple north of me", Zauberei points out. He then directs a beam of positive energy at a skeleton that hits it in the bony knee for 3 PE.

R1T17: The skeletons go .... Yellow charges Marius, but the latter dusts it with his lucerne hammer! Pink also charges him, and this time Marius can't stop it, but the retraction of his hafted weapon is enough of an obstacle to throw off that rush as its claw misses the him. Green makes a hard charge that Lexi's armor barely resists. Brown double-moves to close on Lexi.

R1T12: Wren rushes past Hargrimm, drops his own dagger, and grabs the proffered staff.

R1T11: Angelo, what do you do?

Hargrimm on deck, Marius in the hole ...