Julie Dei Vult |
Julie was taken by surprise, the chain lashing down, sure to hit her, when Kraken's Maw wrenched her arm up into a parry, knocking aside the chain.
Clockwatcher. I is not flatfooted. :P
Kraken's Maw Eldritch Fang 1 Anima to hit 1 Anima to damage: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (4) + 14 = 18
DR bypassing Slashing: 2d6 + 5 ⇒ (5, 5) + 5 = 15
Force: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 3) = 7
Lightning: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 2) = 4
DC 14 Fort Save or be Staggered
Other Maneuver: 1d5 ⇒ 4
Oh, hey, it's probability twist!
Rerolling to Hit above, no swift action next turn: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (4) + 14 = 18
Bleh. Oh well, got a point of Anima.
Overlord Jon |
The Kyton was able to dodge Julie's blade, but Kiyomi's touch attack landed, bypassing the chain armour it wore. How much it hurt the creature, however, was another question entirely. The creature's chains lashed out again, a rusty sounding chuckle rattling from it's throat as it struck.
Attack (Ellara): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (16) + 11 = 27
Damage: 2d4 + 2 ⇒ (1, 2) + 2 = 5
Attack (Karneila): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (5) + 11 = 16
Damage: 2d4 + 2 ⇒ (1, 1) + 2 = 4
Attack (Julie): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (15) + 11 = 26
Damage: 2d4 + 2 ⇒ (1, 4) + 2 = 7
Attack (Kiyomi): 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (8) + 11 = 19
Damage: 2d4 + 2 ⇒ (1, 3) + 2 = 6
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
Another chain clubbed Ellara, right before she stepped backwards and exhaled curtly. Some instinct (or rather, the multiple flailing chains) was telling her that getting too close probably wasn't a good idea. Instead, she inhaled slightly, then spat out a long line of fire that rushed straight through the attacker's area. Its firepower was still a bit low, but... well, she'd fix that when she could.
Fire Damage, Reflex DC 16 Halves: 2d8 ⇒ (1, 5) = 6
Julie Dei Vult |
Maneuver?: 1d3 ⇒ 2
Calm the Storm.
1 Anima point, 7 damage taken
Kraken's Maw: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (12) + 13 = 25
Slashing Damage: 2d6 + 5 ⇒ (4, 2) + 5 = 11
Stance Lightning: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 3) = 8
1's 2's become 3's Slashing: 3d6 ⇒ (6, 6, 6) = 18
Overlord Jon |
Spell Resistance (Ellara): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (19) + 10 = 29
Spell Resistance (Kiyomi): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (11) + 10 = 21
Spell Resistance (Karnelia): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (7) + 10 = 17
Spell Resistance (Julie): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (5) + 7 = 12
All of the magical attacks punch through the creature's spell resistance with ease, bar the magical damage from Julie. The Kyton, now afraid thank's to Kiyomi, broke off and bolted for the door.
Attacks of opportunity those who can reach it. If it lives it's running for another round.
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
Ellara, on the other hand, kept watch just in case that creature (or something else) returned. If it was magical, they'd probably let her know - her house was good at analyzing that sort of thing.
Overlord Jon |
It is an ancient variation of the symbol of House Umvarell, from before the ascended to becoming a High Family. As with the other houses, they changed there sign when they ascended. This suggests that this city fell before then - several thousand years ago.
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
"I don't know, would it?" Ellara asked. Her magical talents didn't run in that direction - but it sounded like something that could be worth a try, assuming anyone was capable of it...
Overlord Jon |
The wand is a smooth metal rod, oddly flexible and with a fine etching of runes running in a spiral along the length. A little investigation reveals that it casts the Serendipity talent, or by using two charges the Greater Serendipity ability. It currently has 17 charges remaining.
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
Ellara's been trying to open the door next to her for awhile. XD Let's do that? And then finish off with the other doors down that short hallway.
Overlord Jon |
The door remains sealed. However, ripping through the box with a chainsword and kicking up dust during the fight has revealed that the barrier of force covering the door is no flat - some kind of indentations can be very vaguely seen now, as dust particles gently gather within them.
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
"Well, it could be damage... or a sign of some sort of writing." Ellara noted. "Anyone got some paper and something to mark it with?" Or, you know, they could just break it... but if there was a warning here, she wanted to hear it whether or not they heeded it.
Julie Dei Vult |
Julie didn't have much to contribute to the puzzle solving, having had her share of "poke it and see" at the moment, and her typical endeavors didn't require much more thought than "check for false bottoms and walls that are too wide".
Overlord Jon |
The indentations form Dwarvern runes, which translated, form a riddle.
What is it men love more than life,
Fear more than death or mortal strife?
The poor man has, the rich require,
What is the contented man's desire?
The miser spends, the spendthrift saves,
And all men carry to their graves.
Lady Karnelia |
Lady Karnelia ponders the question for a moment, but is unable to find the answer. "I'm afraid I have nothing."
Instants later, a younger voice pipes up, as Little Sister manifests amongst the group.
"That's it, big sister!"
"But... I said I had nothing..."
"Nothing. That's the answer! Nothing is more precious than life... I would know. Nothing is more frightening than death, the poor man has nothing, and the rich and the contented want nothing."
The final sentence is perhaps grimmer.
"... and one takes nothing along when they die."
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
Without hesitating, Ellara opened it - she was very curious about what lay beyond.
(Which was absolutely nothi- kidding, kidding! ...Probably. But if it was, nobody could say they hadn't been warned.)
Overlord Jon |
It is clear that the door was what the occupants hoped for. Nothingness. Inside, sealed away from whatever had devastated there city, a small group of dwarf casters chose to end there lives peacefully. Five bodies, now little more than rag clad skeletons, are arrayed in the room, forming a small circle.
But not pointlessly. In the centre of the room and the bodies a glowing circle crackles with force and charge. The circle glimmers faintly, the blood it was drawn in apparently still fresh after all these years. It barely leaves enough space between the wall and itself for a person to pass.
And in the centre of the circle sleeps a single Dwarf child.
Ellara of the Hundred Forms |
"To keep somebody safe for a long time, obviously." Ellara said. ...She wasn't surprised by magical things anymore, not after her twelfth birthday. That had been quite an incident. "The kid'll probably wake up once the circle is broken. ...Which we probably shouldn't do without having an important representative of their race here to help, actually. Diplomatic repercussions and all that. I could probably go find one." If there was anything she was good at, it was getting wherever she needed to be.