Beyond the Eyes of the Iron Gods: An Iron Gods Adventure Path (Inactive)

Game Master Terquem

...She hides her activity from Stella, Azariah, and Robert

John yells at Robert to get back to his own game and stay there! One multiple personality per game please. Otherwise the voices get loud in my head.

John takes a look at the scene in front of the group for anything out of the ordinary.

"That sand around the rock in the center looks shiny while the rest isn't" he points out to the group.
Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18

Trying to have too many documents open and update too many games at once, I'm a moron, but I did get it edited in time

You're not a moron, just busy. It's funny how it's Robert who keeps getting in here, but I guess that Bud or Gemdar showing up would be really out of place.

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (9) + 4 = 13

Azariah followed the pointing finger, squinting, but after a moment gave up and shrugged. "I'll have to take your word for it. If it's different, it might be worth looking into - shall we?"

While John and Azariah creep closer to the large rock in the middle of the passageway, Stella and Kleora hang back, unsure of what dangers lie ahead.

Azariah kept an eye out, and examined the shiny sand.

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16

The mention of "shiney sand" drew Kleora's attention and she went forward to take a look at it.
Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (18) + 9 = 27
Intuition: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
"I see it now," Kleora said, "I'm not sure what it is though..." Her voice trailed off as she examined the sand from the doorway.
Knowledge (engineering): 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21

Stella would shift watching them but didn't want them to get to far from her so would try to stay within 30 ft of them.

"Be careful of the strange colored sand," Kleora said, "Some kind of compound has done something too it. It might still look like sand but I wouldn't trust it to act like sand." She looked around for a scrap of metal or a rock she could toss on the strange patch.

Azariah stopped, nodding. "Diana, can you identify the sand?"

Granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles. Origin, unknown. The sand has been mixed with a calcine and organic polymer secretion, origin unknown. The large rock appears to contain a living organism with a body temperature of seventy five degrees. Recommend approach with caution as species cannot be identified.

"Diana says the rock is alive - the weird sand has a lot of organic residue, so it might be the rock's...waste." Regardless, Azariah backed away from the rock. She did not want to stand in rock poop, nor become the rock poop.

"Waste?" John questions Azariah. He then steps more cautiously and pokes the rock with his musket.

While the others hang back, unsure of the danger that might be in front of them, John moves forward, extending the end of his gun out ahead of him to test the rock for traps when suddenly, as his feet reach the edge of the peculiar sand, he sinks up to his knees.

The sand is not firm, but the good news is, his sinking stops almost as soon as it began and he is not trapped in a situation where he might suffocate, but when he tries to lift one leg out of the morass, he realizes that there is more to this discolored sand than meets the eye

John may become Entrapped – He must immediately pass a Fortitude Save, DC 14, or become stuck in the glue like sand for Duration?: 1d8 ⇒ 8 rounds

Almost immediately, strange, purple tentacles emerge from the rock in the path through small cracks in the surface and lash out at John.

Initiative: 1d20 ⇒ 20

John screams out, "What the..I'm stuck!"

Fort Save: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6
Init: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15

Initative: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20

Well...rock poop.

Azariah opened her pack and pulled out a length of rope, tossing it to John. "Hold on to that, and I'll try pulling you out."

Move Action: Retrieve Item. Standard Action: Toss rope end.

She tried to identify the creature drumming up the stories she knew of creatures that sat in sand pits

Knowledge:??: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 1 = 19
Init: 1d20 ⇒ 9

"Oh dear." She moved closer to help Azariah as she spoke up.

"Okay John don't panic. We will get you out of there."

Kleora Intitative: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

Round 1...

John tries to pull his legs out of the sand but he cannot, just then tentacles come at him from the front while a rope is thrown at him from the rear.

Melee attack, reach, vs John: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 = 8
Melee attack, reach, vs John: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24

Critical?: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19

John ducks as a long purple tentacle takes a swipe at his head, but then a second strikes him hard from the opposite direction

As moments slip by, John begins to feel a stinging sensation in his legs

Damage: 2d6 + 3 ⇒ (5, 3) + 3 = 11

The blow knocks him unconscious

Azariah, do you still want to toss a rope to John?

At the end of John's turn he takes another point of damage

Shoot! Sorry bout that guys, lost track of replying to this one.

Kleora looked on in fascinated revulsion as the tentacles appeared from the sand and attacked John. It seemed a bit off to her as she always thought tentacles went after the ladies but she certainly wouldn't be complaining about not being attacked. She wasn't sure what she could do to help John get free, especially after he passed out from the beating, and so settled on drawing her crossbow and firing a bolt into the creature...whatever it was.

light crossbow: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 171d8 ⇒ 2

Muttering a curse most unladylike, Azariah instead lunged forwards to try and grab the unconscious gunslinger and yank him out.

Strength Check: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12

Azariah, let’s say, for the moment, you can see the danger of the sand that has trapped John, and you are trying to keep back from it while also reaching to get hold of him. Can I ask you to make a Reflex Save, DC 12, to see if you manage to keep your feet back while making the attempt? If you fail, then you must pass the fortitude save required to avoid becoming entrapped as well. Your strength check is not going to be high enough to succeed, but if someone grabs you from behind, an aid another roll 10+, you can add +2 to your next attempt. If you become entrapped you may be attacked by the tentacles, but if you avoid it, either with the reflex save or the fortitude save, you are out of reach.

A crossbow bolt flies past Azariah as she tries to come to John’s aid, and strikes the part of the purple mass that is extruded from the rock at this moment formed into tentacles.

Reflex Save: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17

Azariah's boots slid, but the heavy, hobnailed soles found a solid purchase after a moment. Grunting, she bunched her muscles and prepared to try again. She glanced over her shoulder. "He's stuck tight and badly hurt. Can one of you give a hand?"

Stella grabbed the rope Azariah dropped and wrapped it around Azariah and started to pull.

"If you can put that rope around him and more of us can pull."

Str: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5

Stella, unaccustomed to feats of pure strength, fails to get a good grip on the rope, while Azariah struggles to pull John free

Round 2…

The Monster flails tentacles in Azariah’s direction, and then the rock rises up from the ground slowly, until it is standing on thick purple stalk-like legs. It advances toward the group with a shuffle

Melee attack vs Azariah: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15
melee attack vs Stella: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11

One tentacle comes close to Azariah, while another hits Stella
Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7

Kleora loads another bolt, takes aim, and fires, hoping to draw the monsters attention away from the others

Crossbow Attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

The bolt ricochets off the rock wall, a complete miss

Azariah and Stella can try again to pull John free- The DC is 14, I will give you a +2 for using the rope, and if Stella can roll a 10+, another +2 to Azariah's Strength Check

Azariah nodded to Stella, looping the rope and then setting both feet against the ground, preparing to heave once more.

Strength Check: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (11) + 2 = 13

*Turns Puppy Dog Eyes on Stella.*

With effort being made to free John Kleora grabbed onto the rope and helps to try and pull him free.

Str check: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (20) - 1 = 19

Stella feeling

"I can heal him. Try to get this thing away."

Once he was out she would Cast defensibly.

Cast Def vs DC17: 1d20 + 1 + 5 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 1 + 5 + 4 = 21

Round 2, wrap up

Kleora takes hold of the rope and pulls just as Azariah heaves. Together the two free John from the sticky sand, and drag him ten feet backward.

As soon as John is near Stella she ducks, and cast a spell, hoping to revive the poor man from unconsciousness

Meanwhile the monster focusses its attacks on Kleora and Azariah

Round 3…

Melee attack vs Azariah: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11
melee attack vs Kleora: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 15

Kleora is struck by a tentacle
Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

And knocked to the floor, unconscious

Swearing, Azariah reaches out and heals Kleora.

Cure Light Wounds: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

CLW From last round: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

Stella took a defensive stance in front of everyone. "All of you back up. I'll fight it off as you guys retreat. We can't have you fall."

Grabbing her rapier as she did so taking a full defensive action

AC 14

Kleora felt the tentacle smack her and knew this could be the end as she spun and fell to the ground blacking out. It seemed like an eternity of darkness when she suddenly opened her eyes and saw the angel that was Stella fighting to protect them and felt a burgeoning emotion coming up as she heeded the woman's words and tried to scramble away from the thing that was attacking them.

Moving as far from the tentacled thing as I can, sadly this probably provokes an aoo since I'm prone.

John stands and bows as he does so to Stella, "Thank you! Let's move back and see if we can destroy that thing from range." He then begins to move back.

Azariah moved back, keeping one eye on the rock. "Ranged is your department, guys. Hopefully we can take it out at such range."

Round 3…wrap up

After pulling John from the sticky sand, the group quickly puts a few healing spells to use, and drops back, trying to determine their next course of action.

Round 4…

The strange rock-like monster continues to advance slowly, attacking with tentacles at random

Melee Bash vs Kleora: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 = 23
Melee Bash vs Stella: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19

Damage vs Kleora: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
Damage vs Stella: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Stella stays on her feet, but unfortunately, Kleora goes down again

"Anyone got a way of sticking it in place?" John asks as he raises his musket and fires. He then continues to move back.

Musket PBS: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20 Damage: 1d12 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6

"Damn. Next time, no poking the pooping stone!" With a grunt, Azariah charged the damned thing.

To Hit: 1d20 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 4 + 2 = 15
Damage: 2d4 + 6 ⇒ (4, 1) + 6 = 11

At this point she would grab Kleora and drags her away as she tried to keep them both from being hit.

round 4, wrap up

As the strange monster plods forward on its stubby legs, Stella drags the unconscious Kleora back closer to the door and is pummeled hard for her efforts

Seeing that the creature has cleared the area of sticky sand, Azariah wastes no time closing the distance between her and the creature and with a swing of her weapon cleaves off a thick purple tentacle

Taking one step back, John lifts the musket. The retort of the weapon echoes off the walls as the ball pierces the monster’s body

Round 5…
Enraged, apparently, the monster lunges forward attacking Azariah with its tentacles

Melee Bash vs Azariah: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (17) + 4 = 21
Melee Bash vs Azariah: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19

Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

And Azariah goes down hard from the beating

John and Stella are the only two standing - the monster has 3 hp...eeeek! Kleora, please make a Constitution Check, DC 11 to try to stabalize, or lose 1 hp

As kleora lay there after Stella pulled her to safety, it seemed that the movement had caused her harm as her wounds began to bleed even more.

Stabilize Check (dc 10): 1d20 + 1 - 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 - 1 = 5

John quickly reloads his musket and fires at the creature again. He yells out to Stella "If you can heal someone please do it now. If we don't kill this thing quick we are all dead."

Musket PBS: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (5) + 6 = 11 Damage: 1d12 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

"I am well aware of that. I had to get her to safety so I could do so and not get killed."

Pulling on her power her halo glowing brightly as she healed Kleora.

Cure Light Wounds: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

Once she was awake. "Kleora, use what magic you have to take this beast down."

Standing she would look at the creature ready to move in and strike to get to Azriah. "I've only got one more healing spell. So make your next strike count."

Azariah remained unconscious.

Stabalize(DC 10): 1d20 + 4 - 3 ⇒ (6) + 4 - 3 = 7

Kleora looked up as she once again saw the angel that was Stella bring her back and knew that she was going to have to get to know this woman better, and maybe show her gratitude as well. For now though there were greater problems to deal with. This thing had to be stopped and stopped now. She rose to her feet and prepared to move away if she could as she spoke, "I'm afraid my magic will be of little use against something like this. I need a mind, preferably a humanoid one, to manipulate for my better spell to work, and I don't think it will be slow by grease on the ground." She felt resolve as she said, "I hope this works as it's my best chance to hurt it." With that she focused and called forth a glob of acid with her thoughts, a glob that then flew at the creature.

acid splash: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 2 = 161d3 ⇒ 2

Round 5 wrap up

John shouts a dire warning, just as Stella drags Kleora another few feet out of the reach of the monster’s tentacles. A few words of divine magic are spoken, and Kleora is conscious once more.

Staggering back as he reloads, John swings the musket up and squeezes the trigger hardly taking even a moment to aim. The bullet smashes through the hard shell of the monster and an explosion of purple goo comes shooting out the other side. The monster falls to the ground dead just as Kleora comes around.

For good measure, Kleora hurls a ball of magic at the rock, and its purple tentacles sizzle from the magic as it turns to acid upon impact.

The monster is dead

"Holy heavens! That was too close! What can we do for Azariah?"

John and Stella move to the unconscious Azariah, and pull her away from the remains of the monster.

Kleora puts one hand to a bruise on the side of her head behind her ear and feels a knot the size of a walnut.

it was an experience that they will not soon forget and though they are a bit worse for the wear they all feel that something was learned about strange unexplored places left better undisturbed.

Azariah begins to come around, though for a moment it looked as though her recovery might be touch and go at best. Even she has learned a lesson in heroics and might think better of charging at a monster like that again.

I am assuming that with the sudden increase in hp, due to Azariah gaining a level, will stabilize her and give her a low, but positive hp total. The four of you have taken some lumps, and do not have a lot of resources. What will you do?

"Let that be a lesson to us all," Azariah muttered as she woke, rubbing her aching head. "No charging or poking the pooping rock." Shaking her head, Azariah looked around. "I think we either need to head back to town or make camp and rest."

With the fighting over, for now, and Azariah back on her feet, Kleora gave into a rather rash impulse. She attributed her lack of self control to the rather large knot behind her ear as she stalked up to Stella and attempted to pull her into an embrace and plant a rather thorough kiss on the aasimar woman's lips.

Azariah's eyes widened at the sudden surge of emotion. She glanced over at John, silently asking if he had any idea that was comming. Azariah had been oblivious to the attraction. "Oh my," she murmured, "It suddenly seems much warmer in here."