Megan's Carrion Crown

Game Master Megan Robertson

lol, never showed up as a new post to me, sorry 'bout that folks.

Dillan cautiously moves into the room ready for anything to spring to life. Noticing the branding irons the rogues' grip tightens on his blade; now those have got to hurt.

Perception 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (18) + 11 = 29 +4= 33 vs hearing conversations, finding traps, concealed or secret objects

Dillan, please roll initiative as several of the brands animate, rising from the floor, their tips begining to glow with heat...

The rogues eyes go wide at the movement and the sudden glow of heat coming from the brands...

Initiative 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23

"I'm really beginning to not like this place."

"Is everything possessed by these spirits?"

Initiative1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10

Better roll some bones for the branding irons:

Intitiative: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7

A brand darts at Dillan... who does his best to dodge but although slow-starting, it propels itself with unerring accuracy!

Attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 2 = 22

Damage: 2d6 + 1 ⇒ (3, 4) + 1 = 8 *ouch!*. I'll let you pick which part of your person is now decorated with a large 'H' :)

It then clatters to the floor, cold and inert once more.

Terrified by the sudden movement the rogues' mind jumps back to child hood, to objects being thrown at him in the orphanage, his hands instinctivly move to block his face...thankfully his hand bares the burned 'H' instead of his face.

Current HP 5

The rogue drops his blade and attempts to cradle his burned hand; the pain something he clearly is not used too...

"The evil in this place is getting stronger and dusk is not far off. It maybe we might regroup our forces for the morning, before we continue. Although, more knowledge might also be helpful, as we see what we shall face." sat a concerned elven mage.

Initiative 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21

Barret sees Dillan get hit with the branding iron and gets incensed. He rushes up to the front and tries to block anymore animating objects from hitting the rogue or anyone else in the party."You should stay back for a while little man, I can take the lead for a while. We have gone this far in, we may as well keep going."

Everything is quiet again.

What do you want to do now?

Sorin, how're your spells holding up? I've got two more today, but one of us should probably hit Dillan with some healing.

Sorin walks up to Dillan, "Let me take a look at that Dillan. We need your hands in good condition." Sorin begins gently rubbing his hands over Dillan's scorched hands. "Distilate, rachiuri, te-am chema acum să vină şi să vindece mâinile prietenului meu."

Cure Light Wounds 1d8 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8

"There, that looks much better, has that improved things Dillan?"

The cure light wounds spell restores hit points and stops the pain, but the brand remains.

Dillan relaxes with the healing effects and smiles at Sorin. He takes a look at his hands noticing the mark still there, "Don't suppose you can take care of this?"

The rogue recovers his sword and re-sheathes it then turns to the others, "Shall we start going in order to our last intersection?"

As long as everyone is in agreement, Dillan will move to the next door.

Perception 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (5) + 11 = 16 +4= 20 vs hearing conversations, finding traps, concealed or secret objects

Barret will nod his head in agreement. He will stay right behind the rogue as he moves to the next door.

Sorin looks askance at Dillan's hands. "What manner of devilry is this? I have never seen my gift fail to heal the hurt and knit the flesh back together. This prison is a strange place, stranger than some of the fell locations in my homeland. But yes, let us proceed and see if we can undo whatever disturbs this building."

Heal check (to see if this is just a brand or something more dire) 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21

Knowledge (arcana) or Spellcraft?

The mark on Dillon's hand is what would you would expect to see if he had been branded... the sort of scar you'd see once he had healed fully.

Merian, it's possible that really powerful magic such as restoration or regeneration might remove it... or maybe laying the haunt to rest would do the trick?

Which way now, o intrepid ones?

Going back up the hall to the nearest door. :D

How many hours of light do we still have left for today?

You estimate a couple of hours of daylight at the most... but there are some dark rainclouds rolling in so it may get a bit dim earlier.

The next door along is locked, but the wood from which it is made is rotten and it looks like a good kick would knock it down.

A kick? Really? My dear I don't kick doors.

The rogue almost smiles at the locked door, finally something interesting, and he pulls out some of his more delicate tools.

Perception 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (6) + 11 = 17 +4= 21 vs hearing conversations, finding traps, concealed or secret objects

Disable Device 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (14) + 14 = 28

Tre watches with interest as Dillian starts to pick the lock. "A more subtle approach." he says quietly in an approving voice.

Hearing & seeing nothing untoward, Dillon plys his tools with precision, soon hearing a satisfying *click* as the wards disengage. He pushes the door open...

... and it falls promptly off of its hinges, landing with a resounding crash!

This chamber looks like some kind of workshop. Tangled mounds of moth-eaten fabric sit on several wooden tables, each surrounded by workbenches. Various sewing tools - shears, needles, rolls of thread, boxes of chalk, and other objects lie scattered over the floor, while the arm of what appears to be a skeleton protrudes from a stained heap of fabric to the west.

Anyone want to go in?

Map update - you are peering in the door of S11.

The rogue musters his courage and moves into the room to begin his search; his sword in hand...

Perception 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (13) + 11 = 24 +4= 28 vs hearing conversations, finding traps, concealed or secret objects

Barret waits patiently for the rogue to open the door. He lets out a chuckle when Dillan's efforts lead to the door crashing down anyway. He walks into the room and looks around.

Perception
1d20 + 5 ⇒ (8) + 5 = 13

Merian has come to expect the threats to be in the rooms rather than coming from outside them, but she nevertheless maintains a sharp watch in the hallway while the others explore the workshop.

As Dillon and Barret enter the room, the ghost of a beautiful young woman dressed in a tattered but lovely blue dress rises from the mound of mouldering fabric in the corner. In fact, much about the ghost is blue, including her hair, the tears that run from her pale blue eyes, and the clouds of smoke that drift from her lips when she speaks.

"Are you the new guards sent to replace that last cowardly lot that locked me in here and deserted their posts?"

Dillan looks at Barret; a slight confused look on his face then he grins and turns to the ghost.

"No my dear," He pauses, "We've come to set things right. Some have been imprisoned here for crimes they did not commit, we have come to set them free."

Those behind Dillan can see his left hand behind his back, fingers crossed.

Tre enters following Barret and Dillan, watching the blue apparition rise in front of them. "Madam, who might we have the privilige of speaking with?" He looks at Dillan, with a look not quite understanding his reply to the lady, his mind races. As hough we are here to rescue the criminals whose spirits remain here, we must know more of the prisoners here.

If the apparition reacts with violence towards Dillan, Tre uses his Command over Undead ability as a standard action, Will Save DC=13.

Barret raises his guard instinctively when the spirit appears. "What do you know of this place, spirit?"

"Why, I am Vesorianna Hawkran, the governor's wife... widow, now," the ghost says. "I came here to be be reunited with my husband, but now my mission is to see that the ghosts of Harrowstone are defeated, to ensure that the criminals my husband gave his life to keep imprisoned are prevented from escaping. Can you help?"

The rogues' left eyebrow raises, well now never thought i'd be talking to a ghost let alone fighting with one, giving a slight bow to the noble, "Indeed lady." He looks to his companions then back to the apparition, "Exactly how can we help?"

"I hope you know what you're doing, little man. Agreeing to work with a spirit may come back to haunt us." Barret laughs as his unintended pun.

Fascinated by the Lady Hawkran's apparition before them, Tre nods in silent agreement to the woman's request. He looks around at the others, seeking signs of agreement, addressing them in hushed breath "You're in for this, yes?" He turns back, "If we are able to help you, you must know what we might be up against, surely you must know about these criminals or where we might learn more. Who are these prisoners, what they did and how they did it? the records must be about somewhere, did your late husband tell you?"

He waits for the apparition to reply, adding afterwards, "But then, we too are making our own investigations, into the death of the late Professor Lorrimor. Of course if we help you, are you able to help us? " his eyebrows rise in anticipation of the ghostly figures reply.

Diplomacy 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25 .... Anyone else can roll diplomacy to aid Tre in his questioning might be helpful.

"What do you need to know?" the apparition inquires.

"The conflagration that led to the current situation was caused by a few felons who - facing their own executions - rebelled and succeeded in gaining the upper hand over the gaolers. Until, that is, my cherished husband sacrificed his own life to ensure that they could not escape. He triggered a deadfall in the dungeon level that trapped not just the convicts but himself and some of the guards, with the only way out being the supply lift, which of course could only be operated from the surface.

"The convicts, of course, did not take this lightly and took my beloved hostage and tried to bargain for his life with those guards that were above, wishing to be allowed to escape via the lift. But my husband had trained his men all too well, and they refused, setting guards to prevent even any attempt to climb the lift shaft.

"They tried to keep the situation a secret, to prevent panic in the township below. However, when my darling was overdue by several hours for his dinner, I came to the gaol to find out what was keeping him. In their panic, the guards had left the main entrance to the prison unlocked, so I was able to enter the prison with ease, only to find it strangely empty. Following the sound of shouting, I came to the training room where the remaining guards were gathered near the lift shaft to the dungeon.

"Here I learned from the increasingly frantic guards that my husband was trapped with the madmen below, and I regret that pleaded with the guards on the ground level to remove the deadfall and stage a rescue. When they repeatedly refused, I became hysterical, desperate to save my beloved. I managed to dodge the guards, run to the lift winch, and throw the release, causing the heavy wooden platform to plummet into the dungeon below in the hope that my husband could leap onto it and be pulled to safety. Alas all I heard were appalling screams as the lift crushed several guards and a few prisoners who had been standing directly below it — I was convinced my husband was among the dead. Taking advantage of my shock, several guards managed to finally apprehend me and swiftly bustled me off here to the prison workshop at the other end of Harrowstone, locking me inside 'for my own safety' they claimed.

"I am not sure precisely what happened next. I think some of the guards hit on the idea to pour lamp oil down the lift shaft to prevent those below from attempting to climb up. Then one of the convicts, the muderer called the Splatter Man, began to cast spells... in the ensuing panic, someone dropped a lit torch down with the inevitable result: a massive conflagration. Those below died horribly, whilst fumes threatened the lives of those above. Some managed to flee, others succumbed... and nobody remembered to release me, and I too perished.

"Until recently, the spirit of my husband, trapped so near yet so far from me in the dungeons below, had contained the ghosts of the dead gaol-birds. Yet unsettling visitors — men and women in dark robes who spoke only in whispers — came to Harrowstone a short while ago and began to work strange magic around the building's foundations. I am unable to leave this room, but nonetheless I was able to observe through the walls to the northwest as these strange people inscribed
runes along the ground. They also they murdered some poor man who happened upon them, and not long after that they finished their ritual.

"I do not know what that ritual was, but it felt like a horrific storm, yet one with no wind that chilled the flesh. This windstorm chilled the soul — it felt as if my very being was being pulled apart. Yet the horrific sensation passed in an instant... and when it had, the presence of my husband's spirit was gone. Every day since then, the spirits of the murderers and sadists trapped within the walls of Harrowstone have grown more and more powerful. I believe now that my husband's presence kept the other haunts in line, as he had maintained control over them in life, and that with his ghost gone, they would have escaped to wreak unimaginable havoc, had I not stepped in to do the job that he until recently had done so well. But I struggle with this task, and would beg your assistance to destroy them utterly that the world might be safe... and that I might rest, maybe even rejoin my beloved in whatever hereafter there might be."

The ghost sinks down, exhausted and sobbing.

Dillan perks up and turns to the others, "I think perhaps this stranger was the Professor. So it would seem we would need to go underground?"

"You are hasty Dillan," observes Tre, "We should comfort this Lady and learn more about these criminals, for if they are getting stringer, we need to understand how we can defeat them. These haunts maybe powerful and we know nothing to help us fight them." He turns back to the ghost, "Dear Lady is there anything more you can tell us that we can use to fight these haunts for you. For after such a story, I am sure I speak for our friends and say we will aid you in this. For in doing so we shall be following the unfinished business of a friend."

Merian nods at Tre's words. "You have done a duty you did not ask for, for the sake of your husband and your own sense of rightness," the crusader murmurs. "We owe it to your sacrifice, as well as to the memory of our friend, to do whatever we can for you. Just tell us what we need to do to end your struggle."

"Your husband was an honorable man, as was Lorrimor. No one should be denied eternal peace. I will help you."

"Thank you," the ghost whispers.

"There are five key individuals amongst the spectral convicts. Research their lives of crime to understand them and so defeat them. I know little of them, and cannot leave this room, but I believe that if you can defeat all five of the covicts, and if you can bring me a symbol of my husband's office here at the gaol (his badge of office would work best — I think it's hidden somewhere in the dungeons below, if not still on his body), I shall be able to banish the haunts from Harrowstone entirely. Doing so will release me from this world as well, and will effectively end the haunting of Harrowstone for good, we all can rest in peace, sinner and victim alike."

"So...", the rogue pauses, "Is there a records room around here that has files on all the prisoners? Or perhaps something in town?"

Five bucks says it's these guys.

Assuming Merian sums up the sordid details..

"So, did the book have anything to say about this Mosswater Marauder or the Piper of Illmarsh?"

"So how do we defeat these spirits?"

Actually, I didn't put that comment in character because I'm not sure Merian would make the connection. It's a purely metagame kinda thing. Tre, on the other hand, has the pieces to put together, and the brains as well...

A thoughtful Tre takes time to respond, his eyes looking towards the ceiling and around the rags on the room, looking for inspiration. His voice is quiet, "Let us return now, for it is obvious that our enemies are not the normal foes fought in forest and mountain. These are evil malevolent spirits, seeking freedom to continue their destruction, or whatever caused their incarceration in this place." His eyes show interest in the knowledge that must be acquired, this is surely his destiny, to overcome and control these. Seeking victory, glory and knowledge, unsurpassed.

He says with more assurance, "We may not know now how to defeat such foes, but we will, we will pick the time and ground, we shall win. To you my friends will come great glory, of this I am sure. Such victories are born of patience, our time will come. Let us regroup ourselves and renew our strengths back at the late professor's abode."

Dillan nods at Tre's wisdom then turns back to the ghost, "My lady do the men in robes still come to these grounds?"

"Not since that dreadful night, no."

"Hmmm, so back to town then? I still have most of my resources available should we need them."

Tre takes in the stranger Sorin, looking him over once again, "Then weigh up what is to be gained by further investigations and the dangers we face. We have a short time before we must leave as darkness approaches. For my own part, we need to take stock of our situation, to determine where in here we might be safe, such as we can make more extensive explorations later. If we have a safe haven here, to which we can return?"

His hand covers his chin and falls, before he continues to those listening, "We have explored blind so far, perhaps there are documents containing the layout of this building before it's demise. Finding them might provide us with valuable insights. That and knowledge of the inmates, perhaps Kendra can help."