Murder at the Chancers Invitational - An interlude
The Crime Scene
DM Ken - The Final Round! Final Arena Wednesday January 27th, 2021 12:59:01 PM
(Module approved, we can proceed!)
Terser and Rill ask the basics.
1. "Somewhere around 3 or 4 hours ago." 2. "The only ones that anyone has reported seeing is Gort, his team, and his guards." 3. "It doesn't look like there was much fight at all. Take a look inside." 4. "Just... go take a look."
Tahni asks the guard, in his opinion, what happened. "William. Um.. as to what I think.. you see. No one saw anyone but Gort and his friends coming or going. And there's also no broken windows or doors or anything, so I think someone teleported in... maybe. I'm no wizard, but even I can abundant through a wall when needed. There's not a monk out here who cant." He's quiet for a bit. "Hey dragon, what turns a person into water? That seems like a terrible way to go."
--------------
The rooms for the Talons were a pair of hallway linked bunkhouses, one presumably for the men and one for the women. While the outside of the building is in perfect condition, the inside is a collection of carnage and mayhem.
In what was apparently the womens room, a typical square room, with some tables and lounge space. There's also a small pool of water, magically heated to be pleasantly hot. There are three beds, none made, one of which serves as the final resting spot for the body of Riverwind. The proud barbarians large bulk has been greatly diminished. She appears to be withered to little more than a husk. Near a small table with a shrine to Flower, is a pile of greasy ash, with what appears to be a few smears ran through it.
Going through the adjoining hall leads to the men's room, which is just as bad. The blood and carnage seem to somehow enhance the well made rock garden, which is the decorative focus of this particular room. Then there's four beds, all unmade, but at least no one is dead in any of these. Near the stone hearth is Gorts body, his armor and bones crushed and bludgeoned. Even worse, his head is missing. All around him, there are a number of clay and stone body parts. Near him is what remains of another Talon, presumably. There's only the lower half of the body remaining, the top is completely absent. The elven scribed leather armor on the legs hints strongly that this is the remains of Tasin.
Then there's the arm, large and muscular, severed cleanly at the shoulder. The weapon it was holding lies unbloodied and useless on the floor. The final bit of mayhem is what appears to be two dead monk guardians. Sort of. One is a battered and beaten corpse, the other is a pile of gear such as robes and fist wraps, floating in a small puddle of water.
The guard who escorted them in blanches, only for a moment. "This is.. what was found by the menials and servants today. Please... please feel free."
Jozhur finds a curiosity as he searches. Near the door frame, taped to the wall in colored tape that makes it hard to spot, is a small tuning fork.
Rill notes that near one the beds in the males room, the smallest, and entire chest of untouched gear, mostly small sized, is left behind.
Aexdog sniffs out a pair of mice near the hearth.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision d20+32=37 ; Wednesday January 27th, 2021 7:19:07 PM "Thankyou William. We'll see if we can find out anything else. Wait, did you say turned into a puddle of water?"
She alerts the rest of the party "A water or ice elemental wouldn't leave behind any water I would think. Could be a melted simulacrum though? They're sometimes made from ice, aren't they? If that's the case there may be more constructs inside. We should be careful. You might finally get the chance to blow one of them away, Rill"
Tahni enters the hallway and looks for any signs of danger before proceeding.
"I'm going to check out the womens room" she notifies the rest of the party "Watch out for any puddles of water or watery footprints"
On entering the women's room Tahni starts to slowly walk around the perimeter carefully so as not to touch anything. She takes a wide berth around the pool of water.
She shakes her head on seeing Riverwind. It looks like all the liquids from her body have been drained away. She still lies in her bed which would indicate she was unaware of her attacker, or perhaps knew them.
Tahni looks back at the pool of water with renewed suspicion.
------------------ Perception: 37 Knowl Arcana: 35 (Take10) to determine what may have turned Riverwind into a husk Spellcraft: 44 (Take10) to determine what may have turned Riverwind into a husk
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Wednesday January 27th, 2021 7:29:32 PM
Sorry for the brevity - haven't had power all day
Those were questions I was gathering to ask the stones when Terser drinks the potion. To add to the list would be if the monks fought for or against the team, and confirm if one was a simulacrum before being beaten back to water.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 d20+9=10 ; Wednesday January 27th, 2021 10:03:16 PM
Fang does what she can do diagnose the cause of death but is unable to determine anything that wasn't already obvious (nat 1 on heal check, 10)
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Thursday January 28th, 2021 11:20:59 AM
Bralin looks in the rooms, but mostly stays out of the way.
"Some kind of mage team," he opines. "At least four, possibly as many as eight."
He considers. "Would we expect any Talons to have Spell Resistance at rest?"
DM Carl Thursday January 28th, 2021 2:15:41 PM
What a mess. There is a lot to sift through here, so our heroes get to work.
Tahni thanks the guard, then latches on to his last question. "Yea," he starts. "Just a puddle of water left behind with all their clothes." No doubt some of the man's concern is caused by the fact that the clothes in that puddle match his own. Tahni's mind seizes on the possibility that they're dealing with a simulacrum. It's certainly possible that's the case. She carefully enters the women's room, stepping around anything that looks important. The puddle of water is in the men's room, and there's no such puddle in here. Just a pile of ash, a desiccated Riverwind, and signs of struggle.
A quick search through the ash reveals a scrap of metal. Half of Flower's symbol is engraved in it. The ash is almost certainly the remains of Cammie. Riverwind's body is coated with a very thin film of dark, sticky goop. Tahni has no doubt it's ectoplasm.
Tahni remembers there was a third female Talon: the eternally unpleasant wizard Majorie. There are no signs of her, but the third bed that must be hers looks like it was slept in and the sheets thrown back violently.
Terser receives the guard's answer to his questions, then imbibes Aexana's Stone Tell potion and asks the same to the stones in the room.
OOC: There are two potential stone witnesses, the rock garden and the stone hearth. The spell description indicates the stones only know what's touched them. I'll extend that range a bit, but not too much.
The stones answer without any embellishment, getting straight to the point. The hearth answers that the dwarf living there battled 4 clay men and two humans in heavy black armor. The dwarf was overwhelmed, pinned down, and beheaded. The rest of the action was too far away from the hearth for it to know more.
The rock garden is just off-center in the room. It also answers with complete, cold indifference. The half-elf that lived there was eaten by a big skull after being bit in half. His legs were dropped in the garden as the skull flew over. A large rock near the outside wall says a halfling hid in his shadow until the intruders left, then left himself out a nearby window.
Terser has to ask a few separate stones, but manages to get an idea of how many people were involved. Besides the Talons' menfolk, there were 4 clay men, 4 humans in heavy armor, 3 humans in suits, and 2 of the monks. The monks seem to have ended up fighting each other. Stones aren't good at keeping time, but sunlight hit one of the stones through a window about an hour after it was over.
Fang tries to discern anything special about how the Talons died. She's distracted, but even so there's one oddity that stands out: the dismembered arm is clean. There should be a lot of blood from that kind of wound, but there is very little. There are no signs of the arm's owner.
Bralin wonders if the Talons could have had some spell resistance at rest. Maybe? None of them were of races that had any innate spell resistance, other than Tanin's elven immunities to sleep and resistance to enchantment. They were adventurers of no small means, though. More than that, they were sponsored by the Kingdom of Aisildur. They would have had access to magics that granted spell immunity should they have sought them out.
There is still a lot of crime scene to investigate.
***
Couldn't wait till later to get more players posts in since I'll be busy later today. Big thanks to Ken for pulling so much weight while I dealt with life.
He closely examines the tuning fork (perception: 32, 39 for traps) and points it out for Tahni to look at with detect magic.
Jozhur takes one look into the men's quarters and decides to go to the women's side with Tahni. He prods the body of Riverwind, then looks in the pool, then the beds. (Perception 44)
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 d20+38=55 ; d20+38=56 ; d10=9 ; d20+38=44 ; d20+38=54 ; Thursday January 28th, 2021 7:04:45 PM
Rill will look the place over very carefully - all the rooms. He makes it a point to look up in the rafters and get on his hands and knees to look under the beds and furniture as well. Not sure how many perception rolls should be made. Some rolls are: 55, 56, 44, 54.
”Yeah, this is pretty bad. Who does this sort of thing? I mean, if there are parts missing, why wouldn’t you just take all the remains? Clearly the murders are either not worried about leaving such evidence behind, or they’re doing so hoping to provoke us into following them.”
“Clay men? Clay Golems are traditionally created by clerics I think. Anybody know what abilities Clay Golems have?”
Rill will use his Sense Outsider and Sense Construct abilities to find the direction and distance to any outsider, fey, demon, devil, elemental, construct, animated object, or golem within 1,080 ft., even through solid objects.
Rill casts Detect Magic and searches the whole place for lingering auras, attempting to identify them. (Rill is only +6 on his Knowledge Arcana so while he can spot them, he has a pretty limited ability to determine what school they might be - DC is 15+spell level). He will point them out to Aexana and Tahni hoping they maybe better at that part.
”Hmm. A tuning fork. This may be a trap, or it may have been left for us to know what plane they went to. Or both.” Rill looks at the tuning fork. He frequently casts Plane Shift, so he has a pretty good idea which tuning fork may be used for which plane. Once Jozhur has checked the taped thing for traps and we look for magic on it, Rill will compare it to his own set of tuning forks hoping to determine which plane it is attuned to.
"I can cast Divination now but I’ll need about 15 minutes to pray for Commune, which will provide only yes or no answers. Any thoughts on what to ask?”
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Thursday January 28th, 2021 11:29:51 PM
Tahni gathers with the others to share what they have all learned.
The motives Rill has suggested sound plausible. "The other option is that they left this scene as a warning or as an act to intimidate others. Based on how the other teams are feeling it would seem to be working"
She casts her own Detect Magic spell and scans for any magical auras or spells still in effect. She also looks for the gear that belongs to the Talons to determine whether it is still here or has been taken.
"Do we know who the fork belongs to? If it belonged to one of the Talons we may be able to use it to scry on them. If they're alive." Tahni then follows that train of thought "The only members of the Talons who could make use of such as thing were Cammie and Marjorie. Cammie has been turned to ash. It either belongs to Marjorie or one of the attackers. It was found in the mens quarters so perhaps one of the attackers?"
"The halfling that escaped may have been Whirfoot. His corpse isn't here. He may still be nearby". Tahni casts Locate Creature and slowly turns to try and sense him. Unfortunately she didn't know the Talons well enough to know of any items of significance to them. A Locate Object spell would have been nice.
"If there is no body to that arm, then it's former owner might also be alive." Tahni tries to deduce who the arm might belong to. Riverwind and Cammie are dead. Gort was the dwarf that was killed. Tasin was the only half-elf so he was the one that got eaten. Whirfoot probably escaped. That would leave it as either Majorie (a female human) or Lummox (the half orc muscle). She suspects they have very different arms. If she can work that out she will cast another Locate Creature spell to try and find that person. If that doesn't work then it is possible the arm might belong to one of the attackers, which would make it another good clue.
She casts a Locate Creature spell for Marjorie and Lummox as well.
"Those spells are a good idea, Rill" Tahni considers other spell options "I have a Legend Lore spell prepared. The Talons were quite powerful and being in this place I may be able to learn a lot of what happened. I'll just need some incense to cast it." She then has another idea about the arm and winces a little. "Um, I know we usually only use the spell with a piece of hair or something like that, but an arm might make for a strong connection for a Scrying spell."
------------------ Cast Detect Magic. Knowl Arcana: 35 (Take10) to ID any auras or spells still in place Standard action: Cast Locate Creature to try and find Whirfoot. Range: 1200ft Standard action: Cast Locate Creature to try and find Marjorie. Range: 1200ft Standard action: Cast Locate Creature to try and find Lummox. Range: 1200ft Standard action: Cast Greater Scrying on the owner of the arm (either Marjorie or Lummox). Will Save DC28, though the arm will probably add a +10 to the DC!
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 d20+19=29 ; Friday January 29th, 2021 7:50:47 AM
When Fang is told what the stones said she jumps right on a particular detail. "Sounds like we have a survivor. I'm a decent tracker, I can try to pick up his trail." She goes to the mentioned window and tries to spot his trail on the ground outside of it (29 survival)
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 d20+27=29 ; Friday January 29th, 2021 1:46:47 PM
(Woops I was surprised about yesterday's early DM post and seems I already missed two now... I usually post late at night and found that matching the DM posts. Have to adapt my schedule. Sorry)
Aexdog is happy the stones seem to clear some of the mystery. She doubts though the mice she spots near the hearth with be of any use. Had she been in mouse shape perhaps she could have talked to them... So it seems a Halfling took off through a window then? Aexdog hops to where the Halfling was hiding just before getting away... she sniffs the area trying to catch a scent... can she follow it to the window? If she hops outside... can she still track the scent?!? (scent 29)
Aex casts Foresight on herself... and wonders if tracking this Halfling would be good for the investigation... and safe to track...
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) d20+11=28 ; Saturday January 30th, 2021 12:39:18 AM
After relaying the info from the stones, Terser thinks t he best lead he can do is to find the escaped halfling. He provides what assistance he can to Fang.
(Dc10 - adds 2 to Fang's toll)
If there are more stones on the half halflings trail, he'll ask them for directions if they are able.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Saturday January 30th, 2021 5:30:29 AM Should we all follow to be safe, or send a few?" Fang asks.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Saturday January 30th, 2021 7:15:39 AM
Aexdog looks up at Fang with her nose in the direction the scent goes... together they can certainly track down this Halfling.
Through the rings she communicates "We can go together... see where he went and then bring back the rest... he's probably hiding. Meanwhile the others can see if there are more things to learn here... "
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) d20+18=35 ; Saturday January 30th, 2021 2:29:53 PM
Bralin gives a nod to Terser.
He will stay here with Rill, Tahni, and Jozhur. Terser can accompany Fang and Aex in the hunt for Whirrfoot.
The dwarf wanders through the quarters, seeing if he can discern anything new. [Perception 35]
DM Carl Sunday January 31st, 2021 12:35:05 PM Jozhur examines the tuning fork he found. He finds no traps, just the thing taped to the wall. He hands the thing to Tahni for inspection before heading out of the carnage in the men's room. The woman's room isn't pretty, but it's decidedly less messy. Riverwind's body is completely desiccated and crackles a bit as it's touched. His finger leaves a trail of the sticky ectoplasm Tahni found.
Rill gets to investigating. With his knowledge of constructs, Rill's certain the clay chunks in the room used to be parts of clay golems. His hunch that these are the "clay men" the stones talked about is almost certainly correct.
He senses no outsiders nearby, and for the first time in a while, no constructs either. All the monks around the crime scene's perimeter are flesh and blood. That's probably a relief? His detect magic spell registers a bunch of different conjuration auras, as well as a number of magical items the Talons no doubt carried. It's unlikely our heroes had a list of the magic items the Talons carried, but Rill can tell at a glance that a number of valuable items were left untouched. Probably not a robbery, then. A fading aura of illusion is coming from the puddle of water.
His hunch about the tuning fork proves correct, and he finds it's attuned to this plane. Conjuration magic still lingers around it.
Tahni's own detect magic finds a transmutation aura around the ash pile. It's consistent with a disintegration spell. Other than that, her results mirror Rill's. She puts together some solid deductions about the owner of the tuning fork.
She turns her focus to the missing Talons. Marjorie and Lummox come back empty, but Whirfoot does not. Tahni turns and turns until she gets a bearing and distance. If her hunch is correct, he's at the docks. In fact, that's the exact direction the Mailed Fist ship the Seven call home.
The two of them discuss their divination options, eager to get past the mystery part and right to the rescue/justice part.
Fang is indeed a skilled tracker, but can tell both Marjorie and Lummox did not leave these rooms by the doors or windows. They must have been magicked out. There is no trace of Whirfoot, but that's not much of a surprise considering his skill set.
Aexdog does have the advantage of a nose. Even hours later, she can still smell the fear sweats that passed through the window. Looking past it, she sees the docks.
OOC: Obviously I'm still getting back in the groove myself. No worries.
Terser, after relying the stones' info, tries to help with the tracking.
Bralin lends his eyes to the investigation. He fixates on Gort. The now headless dwarf is surrounded by broken stone and clay body parts and blood. Too much blood for it all to be his. Perhaps Bralin takes some comfort in knowing that Gort went down swinging. He's about to turn away when something catches his eye: a chunk of clay has an etching of a chain carved into it. Rolling the stone over, Bralin finds an amulet carved into what used to be a construct's chest. It's not a symbol he recognizes: a looping, almost fractal pattern that vaguely resembles a shield. It's visually appealing and well made. Bralin's eye for stonework can likely appreciate it.
Knowledge dungeoneering or arcane DC 15, Highlight to display spoiler: {This golem was a shield guardian golem, and this amulet has a matching one somewhere out there.}
It's decided that Fang, Aexdog, and Terser will hunt for Whirrfoot while Jozhur, Bralin, Rill, and Tahni keep looking here.
***
A rat woman, a dwarf, and a dog trot after Whirfoot. Terser casually strikes up conversations with rocks along the way, but none report seeing a halfling. Aexdog's nose is certain he came this way, though. Between her nose and Tahni's divination, the trio arrive at the Sapphire Seven's ship. Min stands outside, smoking something pungent wrapped in a large, dried leaf. For once, an honest to goodness look of sorrow sits on his face and he fails to insult anyone.
"Wondered when you lot would get here. Come on in, but he won't be happy to see you." The trio are lead below deck. Most of the Seven aren't home. The only other one here is Tora, the canine beastfolk. He sits between Whirfoot and the door, a mug of something steamy in his hands. Whirfoot is already on his feet when the Sea Dragons enter.
"No. Nonononono NO. Whatever you Dragons are up to don't involve me no longer!" He's near hysterical already.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Sunday January 31st, 2021 11:02:53 PM
Fang is surprised at the response to their appearance. "Oh. Ok." She almost turns and leaves but thinks better of it. While she doesn't want to do an uninvited interrogation they probably need to ask him questions anyway. Does he look injured or just scared?
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp d20+29=35 ; Monday February 1st, 2021 3:16:37 AM
Jozhur examines the strange substance on his finger, "Yuck, what is this? And what sort of magic would do this to a person?" He wipes his finger off on a clean bit of floor nearby before moving on.
The young man goes to the beds next, since they appear out of order. He carefully looks over and under each one, before pulling away the covers and lifting the mattress.
Perception: 35
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Monday February 1st, 2021 1:51:10 PM
Aexdog acts as if she thinks Whirfoot wants to play. She waves her tail and barks back... hopping on her front feet bowing dog to play.
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 d100=17 ; Monday February 1st, 2021 2:35:28 PM
Rill turns to the Head Monk. "Master Abbot, there are no construct monks nearby anymore. Something has changed. Please find out what happened to a large part of your monk force. If they answer to another, this could be very bad indeed."
He asks Jozhur, Bralin, and Tahni, "Can you think of a thing or person I can focus on? Discern Location is a powerful spell. It works across planes and pierces most protections. It may lead us to what we seek."
Rill will cast Divination, asking "Who or what is responsible for this attack on the Talons?" (Rolled a 17% - success!)
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) d20+7=21 ; Monday February 1st, 2021 3:12:46 PM
Terser is happy to let Aexdog try to calm Whirfoot down before trying to get any information. He tries to soothe his mien into something not so intimidating, but rather solid and comforting. It's a stretch for him.
Can I get a cuppa that? diplomacy 21
DM Carl Monday February 1st, 2021 3:59:40 PM
On the Seven's ship, Fang almost honors Whirrfoot's request. She's probably right about questioning being important. Aexdog does her best to calm him. He absentmindedly starts to pet her head when he looks down suddenly, curiosity plain on his face. "You guys have a dog? I don't remember you guys having a dog."
Hin is halfway through pouring himself a cup when Terser asks for his own. Hin casually grabs another mug, then changes his mind and grabs a small tea-pot. He pours the contents from the kettle into it, then brings the whole thing to the table along with two extra mugs. It looks like tea, but Terser can smell it is strongly spiced. Hin's cup is heavily laden with milk and honey before he drinks it, and he still grimaces at it a bit. "Let this steep too long," he comments to no one in particular.
Terser takes advantage of the fact that everyone looks a little less threatening behind a mug of tea to set Whirrfoot at ease. The halfling sighs, resigned to the fact that our heroes aren't leaving. He sits back down and grabs his tea back, bringing his legs in criss-cross underneath him. He doesn't seem eager to open conversation, he just sips. One hand finds Aexdog's head and starts petting.
***
Jozhur wipes the gunk on the floor, and why not? They need heavy cleaning anyway. He goes through the beds, but finds nothing untoward. The ones without Riverwind's corpse were slept in and hastily left. There are personal effects here and there: a novel with a feather for a bookmark on Marjorie's bed, a small shrine to Flower next to Cammie's ash pile. The usual. Nothing seems to be hidden.
Rill brings up the lack of constructs to the Abbott, who peeks outside at the assembled monks outside. "I will take your word for that, Rill. I'm still not able to tell them apart. You make a good point, though. Excuse me..." He leaves. Our Soulseeker turns to divination, eager to get to the bottom of who did this. Unfortunately, the divination spell answers questions about the future, not the past.
OOC: a divination spell can provide you with a useful piece of advice in reply to a question concerning a specific goal, event, or activity that is to occur within 1 week. You may use the same roll if you still want to cast the spell.
He ponders casting discern location as well. Having seen both Lummox and Marjorie, he won't need an item that belonged to either. Plenty are available if he'd like some insurance, though.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Monday February 1st, 2021 5:09:38 PM
Tahni lets Rill know the results of her attempt to scry on the owner of the arm. If she was able to scry on them she will suggest the Discern Location on that person, otherwise the other person might be the best bet.
Bralin seeks out Rill, carrying the torso of one of the shattered clay golems.
An amulet carved into what used to be a construct's chest. The symbol is a looping, almost fractal pattern that vaguely resembles a shield.
"Tis a Shield Guardian," Bralin points out. "The Guardian serves as a bodyguard of a wizard, who possesses a matching amulet. Mayhap this will aid your search?"
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp d20+29=35 ; Monday February 1st, 2021 7:11:03 PM
Jozhur begins a methodical search of the women's room, starting at one corner and covering the entire room, floor to ceiling before he moves on to the men's side.
----------------- Perception: 35
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Tuesday February 2nd, 2021 1:57:47 AM
(Sorry about the Divination thing. I interpret this to mean it relates to our action instead of general information about others absent action by us? In this case, I will focus on our ability and actions to find whoever did this.)
Rill will instead ask, "How can we find those responsible for this attack on the Talons?"
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Tuesday February 2nd, 2021 5:59:36 AM
Oh well... Aexdog thinks as Whirfoot starts petting her head... it's been a while... hmm... kinda fun... oooh yes behind the ears... Aex shakes her head like only dogs can.
As long as Whirfoot is calmed by her presence she won't disrupt things by changing back to her own Gnome self. It would probably scare the poor guy. So... even though it's kinda awkward she plays along...
With a very big wide open yawn she puts her front legs on Whirfoot and lays down... turning her dog head so he can scratch better behind her ears.
Through the rings she mentally says to Fang and Terser : "Not a word... this is kinda fun.... but not a word... I dare you."
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Tuesday February 2nd, 2021 6:17:56 AM
Fang finds nothing unusual about the situation and is a little confused at Aexana's mental message. "We just came from your barracks. What happened?"
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Tuesday February 2nd, 2021 2:10:34 PM
(with Aex's comments she wanted to say that Fang and Terser should not say a word to the others about how she's behaving right now :-) )
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Tuesday February 2nd, 2021 3:29:39 PM No family is complete without a pupper. And there's nothing better than her sniffer when it comes to finding someone. Terser makes a mental note to get a real pet. Maybe Jada can make him something! Robo-puppy is probably easier to care for the a real dog.
We're trying to find whoever attacked your team and bring them to justice. Anything you can tell us will be helpful. They can't be allowed to harm anyone else. We're also sourcing some diamonds so that we can bring your friends back, if they wish to come.
DM Carl Tuesday February 2nd, 2021 4:07:37 PM Tahni and Bralin begin to confer with Rill regarding future divinations. There's no specific spell to locate the other half of a shield golem amulet, but perhaps a cleverly worded casting of some other divination spell will work? Tahni no doubt realizes she has all she needs for a Discern Location spell to work, assuming Lummox or Marjorie aren't some place even that powerful magic won't work. That should not be construed as some foreshadowing from your DM (seriously).
Rill rethinks the question he wants his divination spell to answer. The spell, however, portends future events, not responsible parties. All the same, he gets a response, and the answer is simple: wait. Meeting whoever was behind this attack is a matter of certainty. There doesn't seem to be a possible future where they do not openly reveal themselves. The fact that the spell only predicts events up to one week in the future should not be lost on Rill.
Meanwhile, an itch develops in Rill's brain. Something's wrong about...something in the men's bunkroom. Nothing jumps out, but something is wrong.
Jozhur, not on team divination, tears the room apart looking for anything else. His hands snake in and out of any potential hiding place. Under Marjorie's bed, his hand vanishes as he feels around. There's a small invisibility field there. Reaching inside, there's only a large book. It is crudely bound with twine, the cover unremarkable, the pages heavy and probably half cotton. Opening it, he finds a scrap book, a log the bitter-seeming wizard kept of her adventures with the Talons. Photographs don't exist in this world, of course, but she had a knack for drawing. There are also several permanent illusions showing past victories. In several pictures with her brother Lummox, she scowls at him as he embraces her. The existence of this scrapbook calls how genuine the scowls were into question. Should he peruse it for clues, he finds nothing useful. It's just a sad reminder that the Talons were more than just a state-sponsored team competing here.
Aexdog gets into character. Whirrfoot only continues giving her casual pets, but the old gnome no doubt feels his heart slowing and his anxiety dropping. She's doing her part. She asks her friends not to blow her cover, though Fang doesn't pick up on that right away. Thank goodness for those rings.
Terser puts in one last bit of casual conversation before getting down to business. Whirrfoot listens impassively, though he brightens just a tiny bit at the mention of raising them. It doesn't last. "I don't know that Tasin can come back. One of the people who attacked us summoned this real big skull that ate him. Didn't chew him right away, just held him in its mouth until he stopped moving, then closed its mouth and bit him in half. I don't think he's got a soul to bring back any more."
Knowledge, Religion DC 25, Highlight to display spoiler: {There is a creature described in story as The Mother's Maw, a herald of some extraplanar power. It attacks like Whirrfoot describes and does in fact devour souls.}
Whirrfoot tells the story of what happened. He keeps his voice flat, his emotions subdued to get through the telling.
We were asleep, then the room got full of people. Lummox's screaming is what woke us. Think he got woken up by having his arm chopped off, but I ain't sure. I rolled out of bed and into the shadows. That's what I do. I hide, I look for an opening, and I attack where it counts." A pause. "Only, there wasn't no place that counted. There were just too many and we never stood a chance. So I just kept hiding. One of the priest looking ones was holding a tuning fork. Seemed important, so I nicked it when she put it in her belt and left it for you. She pulled another one out when they were done and magicked away. One of their big armored guys was holding Lummox when they did. He wasn't moving.
"I was gonna go check on the girls. I swear I was, but I saw Riverwind through the hall and just ran." He wipes his eyes on his sleeve. "Left the fork where I thought someone would see it then just ran."
Hin exhales slowly. Tora looks like he's about to say something, but thinks better of it. Whirrfoot looks at Fang and Terser. "I'm the only one that lived, aren't I? The only Talon left."
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp d20+29=39 ; Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 1:14:00 AM
Coming up empty so far, Jozhur continues his thorough search. If satisfied he has covered the women's side, he will move on to the mens', continuing his methodical search.
Perception: 39
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 4:46:23 AM
Tahni keeps an eye open for any equipment that might have belonged to the Talons. Anything with a really strong magical aura. She plans to place such things in her haversack to keep them safe. Leaving valuables unattended might not be such a good idea.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 4:48:23 AM
Aexdog listens to Whirfoot... smells like some powerful adversaries and there would have been nothing this guy could have done to change the outcome...
In Whirfoot's eyes the dog on his lap seems to understand the pain he's in. Aexdog lays down her head on his lap and softly yelps.
"What trouble are we heading in to... " she sends through the rings.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 6:40:27 AM
Fang listens to the story but decides to let Terser handle the interview.
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) d20+18=24 ; Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 10:34:00 AM
Bralin goes back into the men's bunkroom, and resumes his observations.
[Perception 24]
DM Carl Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 5:53:46 PM Jozhur doesn't find anything else of importance in the woman's quarters. Tahni gathers up valuable equipment in her haversack, just so nothing goes missing. Bralin, along with Jozhur, give the men's quarters a good sweep, but they're pretty sure they've found all the clues lying around they're going to.
Tahni comes to the arm left in the men's quarters, the one that's almost certainly Lummox's. She uses it as a focus to cast greater scry in an attempt to locate him. A small sensor pops into existence and flies off at impossible speeds. Off it goes, past the Dragon Isles, past the peninsula, up into the sky. It rockets past the moon Wardd and leaves Jericho Space entirely. Tahni knows other planes exist, some of them Woldian minds are pretty knowledgeable of. Where her sensor ends up is a mystery to Tahni, but wherever it is, Lummox is there.
His situation is not good.
The enormous man is strapped to a polished metal table. His legs, remaining arm, and torso are all held down by heavy chain. Tahni notices torn leather straps still attached to the table. Evidently Lummox had some success tearing free once. Seven tubes feed into (or out of) his body, filled with an unhealthy green colored liquid. Tahni's arcane knowledge suggests the setup is probably related to one used to create flesh golems. Zooming out a bit and rotating to get the whole picture, Tahni also finds Gort's head. It's stitched to the stump Lummox's arm used to occupy. Where Lummox's face is near catatonic, Gort's is a mask of naked panic. He moves his mouth like he's speaking, yelling in fact. No sound comes out, though. In fact, there's no sound at all; it is completely silent. Tahni knows there should be sound, assuming sound exists in whatever plane she's found.
Heal DC 20, Highlight to display spoiler: {There are no marks of any kind of Lummox's body that indicate a mortal wound. Other than the missing arm, obviously, but that doesn't look to have killed him.}
***
Conversation lulls in the bowels of the Seven's ship. Perhaps the silence is answer enough to Whirrfoot's question regarding survivors.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision d20+6=25 ; Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 6:21:14 PM "Holy Mother Maab" Tahni's face goes white at the sight of Lummox and what remains of Gort. She feels nauseated by it all and tries her best to keep her breakfast down.
Unsure if the others can see what she can see, Tahni tries to explain the grisly details to all via the rings.
It may be a futile attempt but Tahni tries to cast a Message spell through the sensor. She tries to speak calmly and soothe the pair. By her reckoning they may not hve much longer. "Lummox. Gort. It's Tahni Wyrmrider from the Sea Dragons. Hold on. We're searching for you. Whirfoot is safe and with us. Just, hold on a little longer. Blink twice if you can hear me"
She considers casting a Detect Evil spell through the sensor but realises there is no point. She already knows the answer. Wherever Lummox and Gort are, and whoever did put them there is evil. There's no other way to think of this. She does cast a Detect Magic
"I like to think I know quite a bit about the planes, but I've never seen or heard of this one before. I'm not even sure I know how we could even get there." she says quietly.
As much as the sight repulses her, Tahni keeps the sensor going. She could keep it active for up to 20 hours. "I might be able to see something else that gives us some more clues. At the least though, if this is the end, Lummox and Gort deserve to have someone watch over them during their final hours". Should that time come, she will ask Rill if he can say a blessing to Gargul for the pair.
--------- Heal check vs DC20: 25=Pass! Cast Message and Detect Magic Knowl Arcana to ID any spells or effects: 35 (Take10)
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 7:46:08 PM
As Tahni relates what she sees, and Rill looks over her shoulder at her scrying device (mirror, pool of water?)
"By Garguls Teeth! Who would do such a thing? My divination focused on our ability to find those responsible within the next week, and the answer was simply 'Wait.' Clearly we cannot wait."
Now that Rill has something to focus on, he will cast Discern Location with the hope that he will get enough information to use Plane Shift to get to wherever the Lummox-Gort thing is.
------------------------------------------ Discern Location - A discern location spell is among the most powerful means of locating creatures or objects. Nothing short of a mind blank spell or the direct intervention of a deity keeps you from learning the exact location of a single individual or object. Discern location circumvents normal means of protection from scrying or location. The spell reveals the name of the creature or object’s location (place, name, business name, building name, or the like), community, county (or similar political division), country, continent, and the plane of existence where the target lies.
To find a creature with the spell, you must have seen the creature or have some item that once belonged to it. To find an object, you must have touched it at least once.
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) d20+8=24 ; Wednesday February 3rd, 2021 11:16:10 PM sorry, schedule has been a bit off lately
Terser doesn't know quite enough about religion to identify what it could have been, but he relays the info to Rill and Tahni - maybe they can ID the creature and what it would take to summon one. Skull that eats souls? religion 24
I'm sorry if Tasin can't be saved. But we'll do whatever we can to bring back everyone else. Just knowing that a body was taken may be enough. Let me relay that to our seekers.
Terser also lets the location team know that the foes used another fork to escape, and they took Lummox's body with them.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Thursday February 4th, 2021 5:29:04 AM
Fang remains blissfully unaware of events elsewhere. Ok not really blissfully, the events she already knows of are bad enough.
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp Thursday February 4th, 2021 8:44:10 AM
Jozbur shudders at Tahni's description of her scry. He replies with his thoughts "We don't outmatch these other teams by that much. They were taken by surprise, but I would stillexpect they would put up a decent fight. Maybe we should try to bring help again."
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Thursday February 4th, 2021 10:48:05 AM
Bralin's lips tighten as he absorbs Tahni's news.
"A fate even worse than death," he mutters. "Ill news."
The dwarf, having exhausted his meager research abilities, takes position near Rill.
And waits.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Thursday February 4th, 2021 12:10:38 PM
Aexdog assumes they have all the info needed from Whirfoot... the dog casually stands and begins stretching the frontlegs by bowing deep while yawning again. Next she trots towards the exit... as if to say the dog's gotta do what a dogs gotta do...
DM Carl Thursday February 4th, 2021 4:45:03 PM
The four Dragons at the crime scene deal with Tahni's disturbing discovery.
Bralin decides death is preferable to such an outcome. Jozhur notes the Talons' abilities weren't much outclassed by their own. They were caught by surprise, though, and it's obvious to him that it played an enormous factor in the outcome. Really makes all the precautions his friends took look worthwhile.
Tahni attempts to send a message. The magic travels through her scrying spell, but she can't hear it on the other end. Neither Gort nor Lummox respond in any way. Her spell worked, so something over there must be keeping things quiet. Her detect magic finds a weak illusion aura she can identify as a silence spell. There is also a strong enchantment aura on Lummox that is unique, but has many similarities to the spell insanity. Gort is not affected by the spell. There is a noticeable absence of necromancy auras.
Rill casts discern location on Lummox. It takes 10 minutes, during which Tahni can continue to monitor the situation. Nothing much changes with Lummox or Gort, but she is able to take in the surroundings more. They're in a room that is remarkably clean. This is no mad scientist dungeon, it's a stark white room unbroken by doors or windows of any kind. Light comes from glowing tubes set at regular intervals along the ceiling that flickers a bit every now and then. Another light shines from the end of an articulated metal arm attached to the wall near the bed. Joints on the arm appear to be movable, and the light itself is set into a highly reflective cover allowing it to be aimed. It's shining into Gort's eyes. There are no magic auras from any of the light sources.
Rill's spell succeeds. To no one's surprise, Lummox and Gort are on another plane. He does not have a name for the plane, and one has to wonder how to describe a plane's location, but he knows where the plane is all the same. What he does not have is a metal tuning fork attuned to the plane. Obtaining tuning forks for known planes wouldn't pose much of a problem to Rill, but this one poses an issue. There's a real likelihood that such a fork doesn't exist in all the Wold. One could be created, probably, but only after some painstaking research and precise crafting. Any mistakes and who knows where the Dragons would end up.
One might assume this is your DM being pedantic to avoid having his players arrive early. One would be mistaken, but could be forgiven for the assumption. Rill may be able to suss out how to make this happen should he decide to pursue it, but his own knowledge of these things isn't high enough to figure it outright.
***
Terser lets his friends know about Whirrfoot's story, including the bit about the fork. Kinda have to wonder what would have happened if Whirrfoot had snatched the other fork. Did they have a back up? Could have gotten messy.
Fang enjoys her last moments of not knowing what her opponent is capable of, and Aexdog makes to heed nature's call, but Whirrfoot evidently isn't done yet.
"They had a leader," he starts. It takes him a moment to keep talking. "Tall, looked human. Wore some kinda spectacles. He had such an...expressive face. Fascinated one second, bored the next. Wandered off to check on the women's dorm after they chopped Gort's head off. Came back as a squat, greasy looking man, but it was him. I'd stake anything on it. No spectacles, but the looks he gave...it was him. Never raised a finger against any of my friends himself, but he was the leader. You could just tell."
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Thursday February 4th, 2021 5:57:20 PM "No response" Tahni lets the others know via the rings "They're on their own and there's nothing I can do to bring them any comfort"
She describes the room in detail and everything else she can observe.
"Would one of your miracle spells get us there, Rill? We'd need to fully prepare for such a journey. As Jozhur said, the Talons were a very strong group and it looks like they didn't really have a chance"
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Thursday February 4th, 2021 7:42:06 PM
Terser considers inviting Whirfoot along to help avenge his brethren for a moment, but he seems in no condition to fight. Stay safe. We won't let this shifting man take us by surprise.
Through the rings, he reminds the Sea Dragons that the Talons feel from surprise, some being taken out while still asleep. Plus, it sounds like they're down at least one shield guardian. Maybe the Abbott would join us, considering some of his acolytes were targets as well.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Friday February 5th, 2021 7:16:16 AM
Fang is distracted by the conversation over the rings and gets a distant look on her face. "No response to what? Go where? If you guys found something, you forgot to tell the rest of us."
Realizes she was rudely ignoring those around her she apologizes. "Sorry, distracted by the voices in my head." She indicates her Dragon ring, though whether her explanation makes sense or just makes her sound crazy depends on how much Whirrfoot knows of dragon consortium lore.
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Friday February 5th, 2021 11:08:58 AM
Bralin fills in Aex, Terser, and Fang on what the investigative team has uncovered.
Otherwise, the dwarf is out of his depth.
He can only wait.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Friday February 5th, 2021 11:22:23 AM
Aexdog waits to leave with the rest and rejoin the rest of the group.
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp Friday February 5th, 2021 11:52:33 AM
Jozhur subconsciously fidgets with the swords hanging from his belt. Going to some alien plane to confront some very powerful foe, nothing could possibly go wrong.
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Friday February 5th, 2021 6:18:44 PM
Rill pulls out his set of tuning forks, one for each of the known planes, to confirm he doesn't have one for this place. He also compares the found tuning fork to the one he has for the Wold to confirm that's what its attuned to.
"...let's see - Lands of Rest, Koshe Marr, Air, Earth, Fire, Water. Ugh, this is bad. We cannot simply Teleport or Plane Shift there. You're probably right Tahni, a Miracle should get us there, Gargul willing, and once there I should be able to get us back. But we need more information first. And if we're watching them we should assume they might be able to hear and see us."
"It's puzzling that they left a tuning fork attuned to the Wold, other than to tell us that is how they travel and to imply they can come and go with ease. Everyone knows we just won a few wishes, so they should know we can get there. So why leave this tuning fork taped to the wall?"
"I guess we could just use Wishes or Miracles to restore Lummox and Gort. I mean we did all get 100,000 gold. So there's gotta be more to this. Sounds like it's time to pray for and cast Commune."
Rill will take 15 min to pray for Commune. (I'll post my 19 yes/no questions.)
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Friday February 5th, 2021 6:46:22 PM
Tahni repeats what she told Fang earlier.
Highlight to display spoiler: {From post on Wed: "Unsure if the others can see what she can see, Tahni tries to explain the grisly details to all via the rings."}
She keeps watch through the sensor while Rill does his thing.
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Friday February 5th, 2021 10:01:02 PM
Terser fills Rill in about the forks as they're coming back to the party, since he must have forgotten to pass it on before.
Whirfoot knicked the fork from the planeshifter's belt, then left it on the wall for us to find.
He gives his 2 coppers on questions to ask of Lord Gargul, then waits for the answers with the others.
DM Carl Saturday February 6th, 2021 7:48:24 PM Tahni regrets she's unable to offer any comfort. She asks if a miracle spell could get them there. Rill believes it would, and there's a pretty good chance he's right. He checks his tuning forks just to be sure, but isn't surprised when he comes up empty. He decides to commune with Gargul.
Tahni's able to continue scrying during the second 10 minute long spell Rill casts. She discovers that if her sensor gets far enough away from Lummox, she can hear a faint buzzing sound.
[b]Bralin makes sure his friends are filled in while Rill and Tahni do magic.
***
Back at the Mailed Fist ship, our heroes take their leave. Whirrfoot looks a little relieved that they're leaving. Probably nothing personal. They will make it back to the crime scene before Rill can ask his questions.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Sunday February 7th, 2021 6:55:21 PM
Fang spends the trip back deep in thought.
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Sunday February 7th, 2021 11:47:06 PM
Once Rill has finished praying for a Commune spell, he will cast it and ask:
1-Will Gargul allow us to restore the dead members of the Talons of Asildur to life using clerical spells like raise dead or resurrection? 2-Can we use a Wish or Miracle to bring Lummox's body back here? 3-Can we use a Miracle to go directly to where Lummox's body is? 4-Is whoever took Lummox's body expecting us to go there? 5-Does whoever took Lummox's body intend to return here within two days? 6-Does whoever took Lummox's body intend to return here within a week? 7-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, are we walking into a trap? 8-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, will we face constructs? 9-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, will we face undead? 10-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, will we face extra-planer creatures that can be Banished? (I assume that creatures native to that plane are immune to a Banishment spell.) 11-Does whoever attacked the Talons control the construct monks? 12-Are the construct monks working with whoever attacked the Talons? 13-Are the Chancers working with whoever attacked the Talons? 14-Is someone intending to have the Lummox/Gort creature fight us? 15-Does Domi really want the tournament to proceed? 16-Is Marjorie safe? 17-Was Marjorie abducted? 18-Is the "leader" that Whirfoot described the same person as the Tinker we thwarted before? 19-Does the "leader" that Whirfoot described expect us to come to the place where Lummox’s body is now?
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp d20+29=36 ; Monday February 8th, 2021 12:27:25 AM
With nothing much else to do, Jozhur continues looking over the rooms while Rill communes.
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Monday February 8th, 2021 6:10:28 PM
Bralin falls into his standard relaxed posture, legs slightly apart, knees very slightly bent, arms behind him with his hands joined at the small of his back.
He watches Rill without any apparent emotion or impatience.
The dwarf looks as if he could maintain this pose for days.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Monday February 8th, 2021 6:55:56 PM "I can only see ten feet around Lummox, but I haven't seen anyone else there yet." Tahni relays to the others "There is some sort of buzzing sound though at the outskirts of the sensor. Perhaps the silence spell, or whatever it is, is focused squarely on Lummox?"
DM Carl Monday February 8th, 2021 7:10:36 PM Rill asks his questions. Like last time, the voice that answers is Gimp's. Whether that's just what the commune spell sounds like or if Gimp is actually doing the answering isn't clear.
1-Will Gargul allow us to restore the dead members of the Talons of Asildur to life using clerical spells like raise dead or resurrection? "Gonna have to ask him, Chief."
OOC: I know that's what you're trying to do here, but the site's particular about raising the dead and how it's handled. I can't commit one way or the other right now.
2-Can we use a Wish or Miracle to bring Lummox's body back here? "Nope"
3-Can we use a Miracle to go directly to where Lummox's body is? A pause..."Not directly."
4-Is whoever took Lummox's body expecting us to go there? 5-Does whoever took Lummox's body intend to return here within two days? 6-Does whoever took Lummox's body intend to return here within a week? 7-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, are we walking into a trap? 8-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, will we face constructs? 9-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, will we face undead? 10-If we go to this place where Lummox's body is, will we face extra-planer creatures that can be Banished? (I assume that creatures native to that plane are immune to a Banishment spell.)
The answer to all these questions is "I don't know." Rill would know that Gargul's power does not extend past a handful of planes.
11-Does whoever attacked the Talons control the construct monks? "Yup"
12-Are the construct monks working with whoever attacked the Talons? "With is the wrong word, but yea."
13-Are the Chancers working with whoever attacked the Talons? "Not that I know of."
14-Is someone intending to have the Lummox/Gort creature fight us? "Not sure of that either, buddy."
15-Does Domi really want the tournament to proceed? "Oh yea."
16-Is Marjorie safe? "I doubt it."
17-Was Marjorie abducted? "Yes"
18-Is the "leader" that Whirfoot described the same person as the Tinker we thwarted before? "That's a real possibility, but we aren't 100% on it."
19-Does the "leader" that Whirfoot described expect us to come to the place where Lummox’s body is now? "Maybe? All this was to get your attention. That's all I'm sure of."
The rest of the party waits for the above answers. The next step is in the party's hands. There's still the meeting planned for this evening, but that's several hours away.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Monday February 8th, 2021 8:35:47 PM
Fang gets back as the questions are being answered. "We have their location? Lets get going then. The sooner we got after them the more likely we are to get them alive. If it's the same one who's been causing havoc till now we'll no doubt be walking into some sort of challenge or trap but there isn't much choice in the matter."
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Tuesday February 9th, 2021 1:09:24 AM Not directly, eh? Sounds like he's got the place warded or something. Is miracle good enough to take us outside his lair so we can knock down the door?
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Tuesday February 9th, 2021 4:07:32 AM "If we're going after them we need to take a few steps in preparation, including buying a few things from the vendors. Do we tell the abbot that we are going? How close are we playing this?"
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Tuesday February 9th, 2021 9:42:42 AM
Aex changes back to her own Gnome self and intently listens to the outcome of the communing efforts. So far she doesn't like the answers much but then again... wasn't that to be expected?
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Tuesday February 9th, 2021 5:46:48 PM
"We must tell someone our plan, 'ere we do not return by this evening's meeting," Bralin answer Tahni. "If not the abbot, then mayhap the Sapphire Seven."
The corner of the dwarf's lips curl upward slightly. "I'm sure they could find a contract to cover confidentiality."
DM Carl Tuesday February 9th, 2021 7:06:12 PM
The group discusses their next steps, including who to tell and how to get there. That answer about not being able to use miracle directly was a bit...obtuse. Tahni, with her abundance of knowledge skills, likely realizes that a god popping a group of people into a plane they have no power in may not be possible. A more likely approach is fabricating the tools needed to do so using more traditional ways.
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Wednesday February 10th, 2021 1:30:18 AM
As Rill relates how Gimp responded to his Commune spell, he tries not to sound angry. He fails.
"I've about had it with being jerked around by the God's of the Wold! They send us here, tell us we MUST compete in these meaningless games, but refuse to say why. Domi puts an Abbot in charge of security here, but somehow lets him get duped into believing Domi sent a bunch of Simulacra when they owe fealty to what ever psychopath abducted Lummox."
"It wouldn't be so frustrating if the Gods would let us in on their little schemes here. We have done what they asked. They could at least let us know what in Gargul's name is going on."
Then he clasps a holy symbol that he believes was given to him by Gargul himself, an item that started him on his holy service to the Lord of Life and Death so many years ago. As he does so, he speaks in a strong voice.
"My Lord Gargul. I have sought nothing but to serve you, forsaking my family to travel the Wold with companions you have sent, to bring hope and healing in the Wold. I come humbly before you, seeking your guidance. Why have you brought us here, to watch people being dismembered and abused with no way to respond? Why does Domi allow his dedicated Abbot to be misled? What powers could so silence the Gods of the Wold, challenging their authority in this realm? I pray you, do not abandon us. Do not lead us here only to leave us to despair. You call us to life and accept us when it is over. Show us what we must do to end this carnage and cruelty."
Rill will expend a Hero Point as he says this prayer aloud.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Wednesday February 10th, 2021 2:06:09 AM
Rill is clearly having a private discussion with his deity so Tahni elects to give him some space. "Ok, I'm heading to the markets to stock up on supplies. If anyone thinks of anything we need just let me know over the rings"
Tahni will end her scrying spell and leave the building.
She will give a nod to the monks she passes and approaches the abbot as she leaves. "We may have some leads to follow. I need to get some supplies first though to be sure." She doesn't let on any more than that. "Probably best to keep this building closed off for the time being"
With that she proceeds to the market stalls (or readies to teleport to the Catacombs).
OOC:DMs.. please let me know if Tahni can do some shopping?
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Wednesday February 10th, 2021 9:29:53 AM
Fang is startled at Rin's outburst. It wasn't the god's fault that some near-do-well is causing trouble here. If it is the Tinker no doubt this is their best chance of stopping them before they try to destroy everything again. Still she's not going to rebuke a fellow priest of a different faith. His relationship with his god is his own concern.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Wednesday February 10th, 2021 11:56:45 AM
Aex quietly listens to Rill addressing Lord Gargul... she can't remember him ever sounding like that before but she feels he's pushing the right buttons. Without saying a word she nods in agreement.
When Tahni plans to go shopping she realizes it's been a while she herself did some upgrading... (probably lost track of actual wealth so I'll need to see what I can find :-) )
The little Greenmage has never been the decision maker of the team so she checks her gear and wonders how to prepare best for the perils that lay ahead.
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Wednesday February 10th, 2021 4:38:53 PM
Terser doesn't know if he should break into Rill's reverie, since he's clearly going through something. He knows what it's like to feel like the Gods are jerking you around, having had his own falling out with Domi many years before.
Had another thought, buddy. Maybe that Miracle can be used to make the tuning fork? Or at least give us the frequency to let us make it ourselves?
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Wednesday February 10th, 2021 5:15:43 PM
Bralin nods at Terser's bright suggestion.
Otherwise, he waits patiently.
DM Carl Wednesday February 10th, 2021 8:33:59 PM Rill has words with his god.
"Rill," comes a voice from behind him, "why do you think you're here?" Turning around is Gargul on his throne. His posture is stiff, but his demeanor is calm. "You are here," he starts without waiting for an answer, "to investigate a threat to the Wold from outside my own personal influence. The answers you're seeking are ones I expect you to discover." He leans forward. "So you'll understand that I might find your outburst..." he turns his wrist, seeking for the correct word. He settles on "Inappropriate." He sighs and sits back in his chair. "I will not speak for Domi, but I am not one for games. When I tell you that I am uncertain about something it is because I am uncertain about it. I am not omniscient.
"But, since you've asked so passionately, let me tell you the situation as I see it. You have discovered a grisly crime scene. Some of the Talons are with me now, but four are not. You have located two of them, and they are in significant distress. Given the chance to aid them and potentially discover the location of our mutual foe, you have chosen to spend your time asking me questions you yourself have been sent to answer. Even as we speak, your team has struck upon a method to travel to this new plane and have begun to prepare. I am unclear on why your course of action is not evident. Now..." Gargul reaches a hand out and closes it, and Rill finds himself pinned in an invisible grip. Gargul brings his hand close to his own face, and Rill is hurtled forward. Gargul grows in size until his face fills Rill's vision. "SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT AGAIN AND YOU WILL FIND YOURSELF OUTSIDE MY GRACE." Rill is dropped from about 2' in the air. When he recovers from the fall, he finds himself back where he started.
Tahni figures she should stock up on supplies. That is a good idea. It's so good that I'm going to break a rule.
OOC: You folks are on the doorstep of level 20, and things are going to move fast once you hit it. I'm not saying this is your last chance to go to the Catacombs, but in the spirit of keeping things moving please go ahead feel free to spend up to the 880,000 gold that level 20 characters are allowed.
The rest of the party has their own opinions on Rill's questions, but all agree that it's his personal business. Terser lands on a good idea for getting to wherever it is Lummox and Gort are.
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Wednesday February 10th, 2021 10:20:08 PM
Rillet Savenport is visibly shaken. He stands from a short fall, smoothing his surcoat from where he was grabbed by a God. He looks around at everyone staring at him.
"OK, so the good news is I'm not dead. Also, I learned a couple of important safety lessons - Gargul has little patience for whining, and he's not real keen on mortals blaming him for their current circumstance. Anyway, he says you guys came up with an effective way to travel - good job Terser and Tahni. We need to do our best to stock up and then go."
"I'm still kinda sore at Domi though."
Rill pulls out 25,000 gp in diamond dust and casts Miracle to create a tuning fork that is tuned to the plane in Tahni's scrying.
Rill will relate what Gargul said, word for word, knowing it reveals not just information but the consequences of his own hubris. Still, there may be things others pick up on that Rill missed. (Feel free to assume you all know what Gargul said above.)
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Thursday February 11th, 2021 1:02:49 AM "Interesting. Gargul said that four of the Talons aren't with him. It sounds like Marjorie might still be alive as well then. Though having seen what has happened to Lummox and Gort, alive may not be a good thing"
Her thoughts then turn to preparations "There are some basic supplies that I plan to stock up on, but does anyone have any specific ideas that might help us? Constructs seem likely. I have a Planar Adaptation spell I think will be handy too"
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Thursday February 11th, 2021 5:51:08 AM
(OOC - Yikes... gotta go shopping!!! 373K to spend.... bring on that CC Catalogue! )
Aex recovers her breathing after Gargul having berated Rill. The fact that four Talons are missing sounds intriguing... but lets not jump to conclusions yet...
"Yeah I need to check the Catacombs also... I wonder how I could best prepare. Leafy's got some Ghost Touch armor but that hasn't come in handy yet. Probably never will... they were on sale when I bought them and the CC cleck was a very good salesman. "
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Thursday February 11th, 2021 5:54:56 AM
Addendum
"Guys what potions would be best? here's what I have on me...
Remove Paralysis CL18 Remove Blindness / Deafness CL18 Remove Disease CL18 Neutralize poison CL18 Protection from Energy CL18 Water breathing CL18 Resist energy CL18 Barkskin CL18 Heal CL18 (with help from Rill) Breath of Life CL18 (with help from Rill) Air Walk CL18 Stoneskin CL18
I used the Stonetell earlier. Know that I can only bring a handful of potions so we need to take the right ones... if we have some time I can still brew a couple as a replacement.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Thursday February 11th, 2021 7:11:49 AM
While surprised at the personal appearance Fang is no surprised at the reaction. You don't yell at your patron deity, not without consequence.
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp Thursday February 11th, 2021 11:39:28 AM
Jozhur watches as Rill seems to be having some sort of episode.
"Brilliant idea, Terser!" He gets ready to run off with Tahni while thinking about what he might purchase.
DM Carl Thursday February 11th, 2021 3:41:03 PM
Post is still coming this evening, but...
I made a mistake! Gargul said in his little speech that four of the Talons were not with him. That's wrong! Five Talons are not with him. Since Gargul doesn't make mistakes, let's pretend that's what he said.
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (25% no crit, rage 35/45, channel 7/7) Thursday February 11th, 2021 4:34:18 PM
Terser muses that Gargul must have briefly lost track of the soul that got devoured as he accompanies the others to the shops.
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Thursday February 11th, 2021 5:47:26 PM
"Heal and Breath of Life," Bralin answers Aex. "I am unsure which others will be most needed."
The dwarf muses. "We shall engage constructs, golems, summoned creatures, and spellcasters."
"I shall also purchase items."
Bralin heads out to get more weapons.
DM Carl Thursday February 11th, 2021 9:27:16 PM Rill is alive, and that's good. He burns through enough diamond dust to keep a small hamlet in comfort for generations and miracles up a tuning fork. It's a plain looking fork, but striking it produces a decidedly discordant noise. He fills his friends in on his meeting.
The party discusses what to bring, and some of them have already made their way to the Catacombs. Terser muses that Tasin's soul may be still digesting.
Rill is confident he can plane shift the party to Lummox/Gort's location. The party just needs to finish preparing...
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp Friday February 12th, 2021 1:01:03 AM
Jozhur rushes off to the Catacombs for a couple quick items.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Friday February 12th, 2021 7:15:04 AM
Fang is always ready to go.... but she should maybe go buy some upgrades first.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Friday February 12th, 2021 11:34:57 AM
Aex too hurries of to the Catacombs. She just hopes to be back in time for all the fun...
Bralin - MikeK - (AC41 T16 F36, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Friday February 12th, 2021 5:44:04 PM
Bralin continues discussing his purchases with the very helpful attendant at the Catacombs. The dwarf is about to drop an awful lot of gold on the fellow.
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Friday February 12th, 2021 5:57:02 PM "Well, it seems we need to prepare ourselves for a journey of sorts. Assuming the tuning fork works, I will be able to take eight willing creatures there."
Then he says to Heather, "Heather, you should let the Chancers know we may be delayed. Five of the Talons are dead. Please make sure the Chancers are prepared to provide sufficient diamonds to raise them. Our group won three wishes. If the can prepare those to go, in say, a Ring that would be most helpful. Also, if you could have some food prepared for us to take on a short trip, that would be great."
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Friday February 12th, 2021 5:59:20 PM
(DM Carl - not sure what happened, but I'd prepared that post last night. When I checked today it was not there. Probably forgot to hit submit - ah well.)
Terser (Warren) [AC22/13/19 - CMD 30 - HP 270/270, DR 4/-, SR21, Regen 1, Mind Blank] (75% no crit, rage 45/45, channel 7/7) Friday February 12th, 2021 6:37:01 PM
Terser returns from the catacombs poorer in gold but with a doubly shiny weapon. He's ready as he can be for his plane trip.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Friday February 12th, 2021 7:11:22 PM
Tahni nods to the others in the Catacombs as orders get filled.
Things are moving pretty quickly there. The staff must have known the group was coming.
DM Carl Friday February 12th, 2021 11:08:56 PM
The party ditches Rill to go shopping.
OOC: All your orders are available for use immediately.
Rill has some requests from Heather, namely to let the Chancers know they're going to investigate and to ask for food.
"Food? Yea, sure. That's no problem. I'll let them know, but Rill...if you're going to do this, and I don't think you should but I doubt I could talk you out of it, be careful, ok? If you guys never come back and all this keeps happening here..." she lets her voice trail off, figuring the silence will get her point across.
Rill thinks to ask for a ring or something to store the wishes in, but probably remembers they're stored in the prize medals awarded when the wishes were granted. The gold one with 3 wishes was awarded to Bralin, but it's a team prize. He's just the one who won the actual tournament.
Heather will come through, having a small bag of holding delivered with plenty of nuts, dried meats and berries, water skins, and even some kind of fancy elven bread. Food will not be a concern for some time.
OOC: If you folks indicate you're ready between now and Monday, we'll get the next part started then. We can start Tuesday if you need one more day, but I'd rather not draw it out any longer than that.
(Brock) Jozhur AC27 / Touch 18 Flat 19--CMD 30--HP 195/195 --Shadow Companion 97/97hp Saturday February 13th, 2021 12:32:48 AM
Jozhur returns from the catacombs, "All set, when everyone else is. Umm, I'll be right back actually."
He rushes off to say goodbye to Urlryn again.
(StevenVdB) Aexana Gnome (S) HP185/185 - AC29/21/24 - CMD 27 and Leafy (L) - HP108/108 - AC30/12/27 - CMD 20 Sunday February 14th, 2021 6:08:46 AM
Aexana nods... "All set indeed... "
Purchase completed and char sheet updated
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 30/20/26 -- CMD 24 -- HP 199/199+20 -- DarkVision Sunday February 14th, 2021 5:44:51 PM
Tahni waits patiently in line in the Catacombs. It looks like most of the crew have been served.
Fang (Mitch) HP: -38/239(+38 while raging) AC: 30/21/24 (-2 while raging, ) DR 2 (3 while raging)CMD: 36 Sunday February 14th, 2021 9:35:40 PM
Fang's ready.
RobC - Tahni Wyrmrider -- AC 41/22/36 -- CMD 31 -- HP 218/218+20 -- DarkVision/SeeInvis/ArcaneSight Sunday February 14th, 2021 10:32:46 PM
Tahni returns from the Catacombs decked out in some new kit.
She doesn't hesitate to take out some scrolls and use them to finally return her Arcane Sight. It's true, she could have just prepared the spells herself and cast them tomorrow, but time it seems is of the essence. No time to swap out spells. She casts a Barkskin spell as part of her final preparations.
"I'd prepared spells assuming we were going to be fighting in a magical tournament. Most of my spells are versatile enough though. I hope."
Tahni is ready to go when everyone else is.
"You know. Something's been bothering me. You remember the guy I geased? Patrick? He had a Planar Adaptation spell cast on him. Do you think he's been to the plane we're going to?"
OOC: CC purchases done. Sheet and header updated
Rill (MarkB) AC32 T19 F30, CMD 27, HP 181/181 Sunday February 14th, 2021 11:37:12 PM "Aww. Heather. You do care. Thank you for the food. But no need to worry. If we didn't make it back, you'd have to deal with some of the other Dragon groups. And we wouldn't want to leave you dealing with folks like Restlin or Sesha."
Rill smiles, half expecting that the Iron Dragons might just be scrying the Sea Dragons to keep an eye on how things are going - since they are the ones that delivered this assignment.
Bralin - MikeK - (AC43 T16 F38, CMD 43 HP 260/260) Monday February 15th, 2021 9:15:28 AM
Bralin arrives back from the Catacombs.
He's sporting a new helm, a new ioun stone, leather gloves, a mantle over his armor, and a heavy mace seems to have replaced the waraxe at his hip.
"I am ready," he announces.
DM Carl Monday February 15th, 2021 3:19:43 PM Jozhur tracks down Urlryn. He finds her without much difficulty, and their dalliances are no one's business but their own. They will not be repeated here...
Tahni ponders if that thief was from this dimension too. It's possible. It's also possible the two aren't related. Lots happening at this year's Invitational, so it's hard to say. She rethinks her spell selection.
OOC: For Tahni and any other spell preparers: I'm gonna invoke the DM hand wave and say go ahead and make spell selections for this upcoming scene regardless of prep time. Let's not let rules get in the way of fun.
Rill gets a good-natured punch in the arm from Heather before assuring her the Dragon Consortium wouldn't leave them hanging. Whether or not that's a good thing is debatable, though Restlin's usual strategy of tripping over the right answer by accident may have worked well here.
Everyone else is ready and laden with a small fortune of new gear. Time to get going.
Rill casts his spell. The tuning fork sounds at a barely audible pitch that slowly lowers into a growl as the world goes dark around them. In the gray between dimensions, the party is hurled along at impossible speeds as Rill's spell searches for the correct destination. It finds one. Let's hope it's the right one...
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