City of Strangers (Inactive)
Game Master Nebten

"We should follow them up these stairs. In a few hours from now, of course." He nods to the skelettons. "So we have plenty of time to explore this place some more and to get ourselves un-reversed. But if there is a secret way in and out of the Ossuary, then I'd like to know it. Maybe there is even a way for us to keep it open for ourselves, but locked for Svily and Esme."

After a moment of thought he adds "Wait. How did they get the bodies they stole through the sealed doors? We haven't solved that part of the puzzle yet."

"I think they were deposited by the priests of Pharasma,"[b], says Garuneh, [b]"and stealing them under their noses was Svil's form of revenge. I still do not trust them."

I believe Svilneus had a way to freely enter and exit. Elizabeth said to Gunder. THey could keep returning here, but that would be a very bad idea since this place will be commonly used by the Pharasmians and thus too riskly.

"Huh? I thought that story about them wanting to use this part of the ossuary again was just a story we made up for Svil. As far as I remember the Pharasmians hired us because bodies were disappearing from the upper parts - not because the want to move in here."

Elizabeth looks a little confused. I guess I got my facts mixed up, I thought they wanted to both solve the mystery and move in for more space. In any event, will we be heading back to get our reward in a few hours?

"I'd like to explore the back entrance first. Chances are, they won't let us back in through the front gate, once we have collected our reward."

"I really am not pleased. With that book, the whole paradigm of healing and medical treatment could have been changed. Instead, a necrophiliac madman retains the information while we are stuck in this undead-infested maze."

Aldous looks slightly put-out, gripping his longbow tight.

Elizabeth sighs. You are correct in what you believe, but there is still the oppurtunity to get in contact with him later and learn what you wish to know.

"Theres also the chance that you would have turned into a necrophilic madman yourself if you had studied that book for too long. Cheer up, Aldous. Some things just aren't meant to be known by us."

"It may not have been necromantic magic, Aldous, but Pharasma--and nature--would not approve of his arts," says Garuneh, with a hint of sternness on the word 'nature'.

"I would have to agree with Garuneh on the matter."

Well what should we do now? We can continue to explore this complex or go back and claim our reward. If we wish to eventually exit this way we can probably send some time hunting around.

"Yes, yes. You are all correct. That does not make me feel better, though."

"I'd just as soon clear everything else out down here as well. There definitely seem to be some areas we've missed."

Let us go back to the heart changing room and see if we can get everything back to here it belongs. Hut-hut.

First let us check Esme's room to see if there was anything valuable left behind. Elizabeth leads the others to Esme's room.

Please continue with your conversation as I dress the stage. Congradulations, each PC recieves 150 XP for evacuating Esme and her 2 alchemical skeleton handmaidens.

Upon crossing the board bridge, the hall opens into a room. This large chamber has a vaulted ceiling, and unlike the rest of the ossuary, bears a distinct impression of habitation rather than abandonment. Lit candelabras reveal old tapestries hanging from the walls to ward off the subterranean chill, and a threadbare carpet covers the floor. Shabby furniture—a few chairs and tables, an armoire, and a dresser—flanks a large canopied bed in the center of the room, topped with satin sheets and a heap of lumpy pillows. There does not appear to be anything of value within the room.

Elizabeth starts examining the room for anything of value, or traps as well.

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20 +1 for traps

883 xp. A long way to Level 2!

"I feel like an intruder here..." Garuneh wrinkles his nose at the bed.

Seems empty, looks like Esme took all of her portables. Not surprising.

Let's keep the conversation going over here before we look too far ahead.

Well we cleared out the source of the corpse thefts, and got some treasure. So shall we head up after a few hours and report our sucess to the priests?

"May I suggest we sneak out through the back door, then sneak back in through the back door again, and then exit through the front door again to report to the church of Pharasma. That way we won't have to tell them about the secret back door. Also, I'd like to get un-inverted before leaving. But other than that I am ready to leave. I'm growing tired of sleeping on the dungeon floor and eating rations."

Sounds good to me.

"I still get the feeling we're missing something, and I'd hate to leave a job half done. Didn't something unknown sneak off into parts unknown past the lying snake lady?"

I remember, I think whatever it was vanished because we broke into their room.

"I would prefer not to leave a job half-finished. I say we map the place, exterminate any other aberrations, and perhaps get our hearts back in the right place, as it were."

May we see a map, Nebten?

Very well, let us deal with our hearts first.

Here's the Map from what I believe you've seen. The URL is always the same. Cheers

Elizabeth manhandles everyone back to the heart changing room.

Except, Tina since she did not enter it.

The party leaves the eerie bedroom and starts to head back from which they came. At the final T-junction, it continues on forward into the darkness, to the right are a set of double doors and to the left is the familiar hallway. After making a left the group find themselves between 2 rooms. The smooth floor and ceiling of these circular rooms have been
polished to a glossy shine, and the curving walls appear to be made of a faintly silver reflective material as smooth and flawless as glass.

Hmm..Okay. Shall we step in and see if everything can get placed back where it belongs?

"Unless someone has a better idea, yes."

Elizabeth will step inside with the others.

"Yes, we might as well try. I would prefer to resume my appropriate handedness."

For those who enter the northern, mirrored room, low-grade vibration begins to resonate throughout the characters. After a half a minute, a deep vibration in the walls rises in a crescendo until an audible hum fills the entire room. At the same time, the curving walls begin to move, rotating faster and faster. The quickly moving mirrors makes one unsteady when viewed upon too long.

After a minute, the spinning room slows and the vibrations decrease. Those that entered the northern room are now in the southern room. Upon very close inspect, it appears the features of the person have flipped, as if looking upon a mirror.

For those of you that this is there second time through the mirrored room, your features have returned back to their normal state.

"Well that feels a right lot better."

My heart is back where Brigh intended it to be.

"Yes. Feels good to be myself again. I wonder what would happen if one of us entered this door, and another one entered that door at the same time."
Gunder first points to the northern door, then to the southern door.
"Anyone wants to volunteer?"

"I volunteer Svil," says Garuneh with a laugh, inspecting his hands to ensure they are flipped back the right way.

I would rather we not, lest we end up some mishmashed horror.

"At least your not inside out."

So I believe there is a corridor going south from where we went north to the pit. Let us cgeck down that hall.

Gunder is a little bit disappointed that no one volunteered for the experiment.

"Okay, lets go south. Maybe we find some corpses we can throw into these two rooms simultaneously to find out how this works."

"Lead on, Elizabeth...Gunder, you and Aldous would make a fine alchemical necromancer combined." Garuneh twirls his scythe and makes ready to follow.

"Hmm ... I know of a lab that we could use. It has become vacant very recently."

Elizabeth will head south along the N/S passage to the west of the mirror rooms.

"Most of the joy in being a mad alchemist lies in the madness. If Gunder takes that portion, all I have left is science. And books. So, maybe that could work out. No zombies or necrophilia, though."

Oh come on Aldous, all the cool kids are into zombies & necrophilia nowadays.

The passage south ends after 30'.

To the west, the cooridor continues then turns south.

To the east, the hallway travels for a bit before opening into a room. A small suit of elaborate lacquered armor stands sentinel against the far eastern wall of this octagonal chamber. Silver chains attached to the armor’s neck and chest run across the floor of the room, their ends clutched in the bony hand of a skeleton sprawled on the floor ten feet away.

Aldous: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28
Durnolf: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Garuneh: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23