GM Erich's Salvation Of The Sages (Subtier 7-8) (Inactive)

Game Master Thereus, Silver Crusader

Ru looks for anything out of the ordinary, as he heads toward the cabinet to grab the magical item.

Perception 1d20 + 15 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 15 + 2 + 4 = 41 +4, if for a trap.

"Just uh... be careful. It's from the Universal school, so it could be almost anything."

Doh. Detect Magic is such a mundane spell, it didn't trigger my senses when Cirri cast it earlier to look into this room from the observation window (and subsequently the other trapped room). As this is an important part of the scenario, I'm going to retcon a bit to that moment. I don't think it will change anything up until the new room just entered, but it will highlight how important it is to figure out what is going on down here.
Again, my apologies for missing this the first time.

When Cirri casts detect magic, a sudden cloudiness enters her head. The spell casts, but she seems noticeably... weaker.

negative levels for Cirri: 1d2 ⇒ 1

I need another fort save vs disease from Cirri.

"Ack!" Cirri shudders as she seems weakened.

Fort vs Disease: 1d20 + 9 - 1 ⇒ (6) + 9 - 1 = 14 Nope, time for my GM Reroll.
Fort vs Disease: 1d20 + 9 + 1 - 1 ⇒ (10) + 9 + 1 - 1 = 19

If it matters, Riddywhipple's Magic Circle vs Evil is still up...

Cirri coughs. "Oh boy. I think I caught something when I looked at that. Riddy, can you use this? Also, make a note to buy a scroll of lesser restoration."

Does Cirri know she caught a disease? If so, she will ask Riddy to use the scroll on her.

As characters you would know it is likely the effect of either a poison or disease. Given the nature of the adventure and what you have heard, disease is obviously more likely. You definitely noticed the symptom, though. When you cast the spell, you immediately felt worse (the neg level).

Despite Riddy's best efforts, Cirri still feels mysteriously odd.

---------------------------------------------------

Back to the room at hand

There are copious notes strewn about the laboratory. On the shelves along the far wall are forty numbered canisters. The sealed metal one on the floor is numbered "14".

The cabinet that Cirri identified as detecting magic before holds a single unnumbered vial. Nothing looks trapped.

Amenopheus steps into the room. "This was my...the plague laboratory. Those are..." He almost continues, but stops.

Sickly looks over at Amenopheus with alarm. "Your laboratory?" He whispers.

He looks over at the others, to see if they heard what he did.

Hassam shudders to see Cirri suffering as such but does not have a good way of helping him.

Well, if plagues were studied here, then maybe there are notes on how to cure them.

Loxx starts looking around for any notes, being careful not to touch anything in case they are delicate with age.

Perception: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (15) + 13 = 28

Loxx finds a few pages of notes that are particularly interesting.

Hassam further shudders as he reads the words over Loxx's shoulders, almost unwilling to speak them aloud.

I don't understand what it says...

Ru reads the words aloud so that everyone could hear the madness and evil contained therein. ”I’m not sure if I want to touch this vial or not. It might be a terrible plague. It might be best to leave it here and check the rest of the place before coming back.”

Cirri steadies herself against her staff. "It's okay Riddy. We'll... have to be careful on the way out, alright?"

Cirri listens carefully as Ruprecht speaks."I would prefer to take the vial with us. If this place collapses the vial could spread into the river bed." She takes a deep breath, trying to deal with the energies about her. "More importantly though, it sounds like the plague couldn't deal with those crystals. We should definitely get the sample of the crystals and her notes in the southern archive. Cause I don't know about you guys, but I am definitely gonna need to speak to a cleric or four afterwards."

"Hey, Amenopheus! You alright? Don't lose focus, here. We gotta exorcise and destroy her, quick!"

"I think I am fine." Amenopheus begins "I think that my jewel seems to be speaking to me. But it may very well be Tahari that does so. The spirit of each jewel offers its bearer wisdom and knowledge from the past, but this second voice whispers and drives darker impulses. I feel like I may be able to help you greatly in discovering the true meaning and purpose of these archives and laboratories down here, but I do not know at what cost. That is why I am repressing these thoughts unless you truly want their aid."

With encouragement; Ru picks up the magical vial. He lets anyone tty to identify it and then stows it away.

"Very well, I shall remain silent and offer no insights to this complex, unless you change your minds." Amenopheus says after a few silent moments.

The substance in the vial is a clear viscous fluid that spontaneously crystallizes into fractally complex formations before melting back to a liquid state. No one can seem to identify it any further than that.

With the potion (hopefully) safely stored, Ru heads back to the open area. ”Any if you casters able to identify what that muck is in the floor?”

Perception 1d20 + 15 + 2 + 4 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 15 + 2 + 4 + 4 = 36 if for a trap.

"Uh, if it's magical, and it doesn't try to kill me..."

Cirri tries to tell if it's magical.
Spellcraft: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (7) + 14 = 21

If it's alchemical, she has no idea.

Hassam warns Cirri "Be careful, last you you tried detecting magic you went all pale in the face."

"Woo. Tell me about it. But sometimes you gotta take risks..." Cirri leans upon her staff.

Spellcraft check is 20, not 21 due to her negative level.

Sickly looks at Cirri with some concern as she endangers herself again.

He still refuses to step into the plague lab though, eager to be moving on.

@Cirri, you can keep the concentration up on the previous detect magic for several minutes (just move at half speed). Or you can cast it again, but I will need another fort save vs disease (and thus potentially more negative levels) if you do that.

Cirri checks out the muck, which seems mundane. Wall alcoves hold rust-covered stone pits into which the soupy liquid covering the floor spills. Along the north wall stands a complex gold and bone framework linking dozens of crystals set into the stone. Ancient, rusty blood covers bronze shackles bolted to plates in the floor near the mechanism.

"Ewww." Cirri shudders. "I'll just maintain my concentration and move carefully. Nothing magical in the goo."

"The crystals may be important- the plague couldn't infect those according to the notes. I could fly over there and try to pick out a few, if no one sees any traps or poisons or whatever."

If it looks OK, Cirri can use her Flight Hex to fly over to the crystal lattice and see if she can retrieve the crystals.

Is there an obvious source for where the liquid is coming from?
If its spilling into the pits, yet still all over, it must be replenishing from somewhere

Sickly, looks at the next room worriedly. "This is the memory extraction room?"

Amenopheus winces and nods at Sickly's comment, careful not to elaborate...

There is no obvious source for the liquid, perhaps the shifting of the rooms from the seismic activity has caused a slight imbalance that causes it to spill over now. It is more of a consistent dripping than constant flow.

Once satisfied there are no obvious dangers, Cirri flies over to the crystals. Just as she is about to reach them, a humanoid-shaped distortion manifests on the ground near her, as if bound by the shackles. Note: Activating your flight hex will break your concentration on Detect Magic.

know planes: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14

Hassam looks to his allies to see if any of them understand what's going on.

Cirri stops focusing on her Detect Magic spell and calls upon the wind to fly over to the crystal.

K Planes: 1d20 + 10 - 1 ⇒ (20) + 10 - 1 = 29

"This looks like... a mindscape." Cirri hovers in midair. "If you enter it, you can remove or retrieve memories from there." Her hair flaps like wings as she stalls in the air. "Should I enter it, or..."

Does Cirri know the risks involved in entering a mindscape?

Sickly shuffles nervously, looking around at the others.

"But its the memory extraction room." He finally says quietly.

"Are you sure it's for retrieving memories instead of... you know... removing them...?" His voice trails off, clearly not trusting the device to work as Cirri expects.

Well, there must be a reason for ex.. extra.. taking memories out. Maybe it is so you can study them later. Would we all be able to enter?

"The good news is I know how to enter it for retrieval and not removal. Lucky me!" Cirri ponders some more. "They can be dangerous, so I'd love some backup in there. Basically we can find out more if we can deceive or satisfy the mind and overcome its defenses."

"This may have valuable information on it. I'd love to look into it if it gives us any insight on what's-her-face's weaknesses."

"So, anyone wants to hop in there? I'm not going alone. No offense, Riddy."
Yes, multiple people may enter at once. Cirri figured out how to set it to 'memory
retrieval mode'.

Let me know who wishes to go in with her. I'll give it some time so we can include all who wish to make the "trip".

Hassam will go with Cirri.

"What happens to us... ?" Sickly asks. "While are brains are in there."

He points at the muck on the floor with dismay. "That doesn't look sanitary at all."

"Oh! Well, the good news is that we're not helpless. It's not like someone can walk up and slit our throats- we'll still defend ourselves. The bad news is that all of our senses are in the mindscape. So if we ARE attacked in the physical world, you won't realize it in the mindscape." Cirri ponders a bit. "Oh! Sickly! Do you want to maintain watch from the doorway?"

”You’ll need someone to find any traps in that mindscape. Guess that means I’m a volunteer. We do need to leave a guard or two out here, though,” Ruphrecht volunteers.

I can guard if you need. There really hasn't been a lot of plants around, which is the other thing I know.

Sickly seems to shrink in on himself, at Cirri's suggestion... becoming even more withdrawn, if that were possible.

"I... I guess." He mutters.

He looks at the doorway, and then back at the muck-covered floor and the strange crystalline device, and shrugs resignedly.

Looks like Cirri (+Riddy), Hassam, and Ruprecht will go in. Loxx, Sickly and Niko will remain outside.

Loxx and Sickly and Niko stand guard next to Amenopheus. As the others enter the distortion, their bodies simply relax and sway.

Hassam looks around before responding "Greetings Marouf, is there a library or other such font of wisdom you might point us to?"

"Library?" Marouf looks around before heartily laughing. "My friend, there is no library. And yet, everywhere here you can find knowledge and wisdom!" Might I suggest you and your companions travel through this door to see the memory within... it was from when I first started working here. Most enlightening."

He gestures to the closest building, where you see a vague door manifest.

Sickly looks at the saying forms of Cirri, Ruprecht and Hassam with a worried frown. He then goes over to examine the crystalline device wondering if they might have to figure out how to disable it to get the others back.

This was a quite new experience for the elf. He’d never been to any sort of realm like this before. He headed in the direction the guide suggested. Almost by second nature, he checked the area for traps. Maybe you cant even trap a memory...who knows?

Perception 1d20 + 15 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (17) + 15 + 2 + 4 = 38 +4, if for a trap.

Cirri is scribbling as many notes as she can. How does that work, anyway? If she's committing them to memory, is writing them down simply a metaphor? If she forgets a distant detail, will the words simply blur and disappear? Cirri begins wondering about the theoretical implications of viewing her own memories when Marouf greets the group.

"That would be great, actually. Also, if I scan for magic, will bad stuff happen to me?"

Ruprecht is surprised to see how real this all feels and looks, knowing that it is but someone's lost "memory". It does not appear trapped (whatever form that might take in an astral playground).

Cirri feels very similar to before and is reticent to cast a spell again.

"Do not fear, young girl. Everything will be fine. This place will take care of you." Marouf reassures her.

Just waiting on if Hassam will enter the door, as well.

Sickly ponders the contraption. The only sounds in the room are the unsteady buzz of the humanoid "prisoner" that they entered and the occasional drip of soapy liquid into the floor-pits.

1d20 ⇒ 91d20 ⇒ 151d20 ⇒ 61d20 ⇒ 15

Hassam nods and enters as well.

Memory room