Mummy's Mask

Game Master Samy

Qari wants to be about 30' away from the swarm, so she can stay in PBS range.

Okay I'm gonna say that Turel retreated before the swarm got him and before Kito cast the spell, so Turel can negate the damage he got. Either way Kito damages the swarm and then it moves forward, or the other way around -- either way it moves on top of the biggest concentration of enemies it can find in range. That would be the four squares containing Polux, Ra-Khefer, Deseri and Harmose, whom the swarm chooses to envelop when Turel withdraws. So while Turel does not take damage, the four of them do.

Swarm Damage vs Polux, Ra-Khefer, Deseri, Harmose: 1d6 ⇒ 6 plus disease and distraction (Fort DC 13 to avoid disease, separate Fort DC 13 to avoid nauseated for 1 round)

Everybody who was delaying can now act. And everybody who wasn't gets a new action after the swarm's action, so...everybody's turn, I guess.

Fortitude DC 13 to avoid Disease: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (13) + 0 = 13
Fortitude DC 13 to avoid Nausea: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (1) + 0 = 1 Fort Saves, my old friends....

The swarm eats him alive. Harmose successfully shakes off the disease, but runs out of the swarm and spends the rest of his turn vomiting into a corner of the courtyard. "Have I mentioned that I hate bugs?"

Can someone please move me out of the swarm?

Qari blasts away, focusing cold energy toward the nasty swarm, as her fiends move away from it. Afterwards, she again moves away to a 30' distance.

RTA with PBS 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 = 8

Damage 1d6 + 4 ⇒ (1) + 4 = 5

Okay, I'm assuming my previous action needs to be redacted since things went down a little differently than expected and Aleris wouldn't bomb the swarm while it's got half the group enveloped. If so, here we go...

Round 1

Although thankful that Turel manages to evade the swarm without getting eaten alive by the bugs or scorched from Kito's spell, Aleris is dismayed to see it move much more swiftly than she'd expected and envelop several of the others before there's a chance to do anything. She retreats back and waits for either an opening to throw her bottled fire or apply healing magic to one of her friends.

Harmose, I moved you on the map at your full move speed; let me know if you want him somewhere else instead.

Turel winces as the swarm engulfs his friends. That could have been executed better... Gripping his bottle of alchemist fire and holding it ready to throw, he moves back from the swarm and calls out, "Get out of the swarm!"

Move: Move back away from the swarm.
Ready action to toss alchemist fire at the swarm once everyone moves out of it.
Ranged Touch: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15
damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1 fire.

Swarm has to make a Will save DC11 or avoid my square. (Scarab Shield).

Excellent catch, thank you, Ra-Khefer!!

Will vs Scarab Shield: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4

Only Polux, Deseri and Harmose are beset upon by the swarm, then. Ra-Khefer's scarab shield repels them!

...And then he immediately voids the protection by waving his torch through the swarm for 1d4 ⇒ 4 fire damage again.

Fort DC 13 vs disease: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15
Fort DC 13 vs nausea: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18
I did not expect to make both saves

Twisting and shaking her arms as the bugs crawl all over her. Yelping and running away from the swarm. Turning back around and gripping the alchemist fire waiting for the others to move.

Moving away and then readying the alchemist fire to hit the swarm once the others are out of the way.
Ranged Touch: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3 And reminding me who is boss. Samy how do you want me to do the crit fail on throwing the fire into what i hope is not a PC
damage: 1d6 ⇒ 2

Looks like from my position I can do this without hurting anyone on the team. Good!

Kito unleashes another burst of flames from her hands.

Cast Burning Hands, Reflex DC 16 for half damage

Fire damage: 2d4 ⇒ (3, 3) = 6 9 to swarm

"I do hope that is enough..."

Aleris: Your fire attack would have been a miss anyway so you just saved a use then. :)

I think torches do no damage against swarms. Since Ra-Khefer already tried this on the last round he would have found that out then, and he may change his action for this round if he wishes.

Deseri, I don't off-hand recall any critical miss rules for splash weapons, so it's just an automatic normal miss. Normal miss rules say we roll 1d8 and that determines which direction it lands 5' off in.

Miss Direction: 1d8 ⇒ 7 The miss lands to the right of the swarm from Deseri's perspective. Since none of the party is there, it causes nobody any damage.

Kito's spell roasts a considerable amount of the scarabs, and together with the previous spell she's done quite a bit of damage to the swarm, but it still holds together.

Qari's both blasts so far have been misses, which is unfortunate considering her powers do full damage against swarms.

Samy, a 15 TOUCH attack would miss?

That is correct. 15 TOUCH would miss. ;)

Curses under breath... "Damn you, evil swarm of doom!"

Ra rolled back ten feet, dropping his useless torch and pulling out the sole Alchemist's fire. He threw it down in the middle of the swarm.
Ranged touch attack: 1d20 + 2 - 1 ⇒ (1) + 2 - 1 = 2 for 1d6 ⇒ 5 fire damage.

This is probably the most complicated fight mechanically yet. Let's see.

I'm gonna assume that "middle of the swarm" means the center of the swarm, the intersection of the four squares it occupies.

You can instead target a specific grid intersection. Treat this as a ranged attack against AC 5. However, if you target a grid intersection, creatures in all adjacent squares are dealt the splash damage, and the direct hit damage is not dealt to any creature.

So even if it were a miss, it would land 5' in some direction and still deal the splash damage. HOWEVER

You can't target a grid intersection occupied by a creature, such as a Large or larger creature; in this case, you're aiming at the creature.

Okay, fair enough. So it targets the creature, and is a miss. Then I roll 1d8 to see in which direction it is a miss.

Direction: 1d8 ⇒ 1 In Ra-Khefer's direction.

Then, count a number of squares in the indicated direction equal to the range increment of the throw.

Range increment for alchemist's fire is 10', so if Ra-Khefer is 5' away, he actually throws the flask *behind* him if I'm reading this right. :D

After you determine where the weapon landed, it deals splash damage to all creatures in that square and in all adjacent squares.

So anyone adjacent to the square behind Ra-Khefer from the swarm's perspective (including himself) takes 1 fire damage from the splash, if I'm reading this right. If dissenting opinions, present them in discussion thread.

Harmose (nauseated) moves.
Qari misses.
Aleris retconned her previous round action but didn't post a current round action, so she's still to go.
Turel's ranged touch is a miss, I need to see to that miss direction.
Deseri misses, splash doesn't hit anyone.
Kito damages swarm 9hp.
Ra-Khefer takes 1hp from his own fire, whoops.

(Incidentally I'm not entirely sure which square I should be counting splash weapon miss from. It says that when you miss, you count squares in a certain direction, but when a Large creature has multiple squares...I guess I'll just make it the most beneficial for the thrower.)

By my count, Aleris and Polux to go. Bot Buddy, remember Polux needs to make the two saves too.

Apologies for the delay peoples - the end of last week sucked big time as far as work and health go. Things should improve from now on.

Fort to avoid disease: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17
Fort to avoid nausea: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18

Polux spits and sputters as he moves out of the swarm as fast as he can, tumbling this way and that - "Burn it!" - he roars, turning around and throwing his own vial of Alchemist fire.

Touch Attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24<- I am assuming this can't crit :P
Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 3

I assumed getting over that 'fixture' in the map (a table?) would be kinda like Difficult Terrain? Double move cost to enter, normal to navigate, and normal cost to leave? So I have moved Polux 30' in the map. Let me know if that is ok Samy. If not I stand on the table or bench :D

Wait, is Ra still in the middle of the swarm..?

Nope, I believe that alchemical weapons can crit on a 20. Roll it.

Yeah, alchemist's fire specifically has a "x2" in its critical entry.

I'm going to assume that you target the southeast corner of the swarm since it's the most beneficial to you (that way the splash only hits Ra-Khefer, instead of him *and* Qari).

Ra-Khefer is next to the swarm, but not inside it. Still, that does mean there is no square of the swarm you can target that would not cause splash damage to him.

Crazy dwarf... Thanks for the assumption Samy :D

And CRIT?! WOOT!! I had absolutely no idea... Let's see...

Alchemical Crit?: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20
Additional Damage if it crits: 1d6 ⇒ 6

MUAH!!

Kito's flames on two rounds had already roasted a significant part of the swarm, and Polux's flask shatters in the still thickest part of the swarm, disrupting it as well. The swarm discorporates and flies to all corners of the earth, evaporating. It is gone. Combat is over.

I'm gonna say Turel didn't throw his flask because I can't be bothered to adjudicate the miss direction and splash right now. Take it as a gift horse.

Ra-Khefer should have taken a total of 2hp fire damage, one from his own flask and one from Polux's.

Ninja'ed by the GM!

As the swarm finally disperses, Aleris lowers her arm from where she had prepared to throw a vial. "Is everyone okay? Harmose?"

She hurries over to check on her betrothed.

A few persistent scarabs remain here and there, clinging to your clothes or getting in your eyes or whatnot, but they are sporadic enough that they have no game mechanical effect and are there purely for the annoyance factor. You can stomp or smoosh them at will.

"Ow! Ow! Stupid torches!" Groused Ra as he picked up his torch and brushed off any remaining beetles with it.
"Why aren't you more effective?" He yelled at it. "Stupid lying bards..." He mumbled, looking around for more threats.
If the door is still open, he'll stick the torch in first, then cautiously look in.

B9. Granary

A small granary with a domed roof and a small door in the front sits against the north wall of the compound.

Shaking off a few bug, At least they didn't get in my hair. Is everyone ok?

Nature: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24
Planes: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23
Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 5

Harmose shakes the bugs out of his hair and stomps the rest of the insects that fall from him, thoroughly. "Ugh." He prestidigitates the vomit away, and gets up. "Double ugh. That swarm really bugged me."

"Yeah, I'm pretty hurt." He's covered, head to toe, in bug bites, and he's still reeling from the nausea. "Do we want to use a wand, or should I use one of my own spells to clear this up?"

Perception: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23
Knowledge Nobility: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23

"How interesting that the Pentheru's had a granary of their own. That was really unusual in those days..." Then he points at both the skeletons and the weapon that had been in the granary. "Those poor sods. Eaten alive. I know just how they feel!" Then he squints at the weapon again. "By Horus, is that an adamantine flail? If we get it cleaned up, it'll bash through those hard constructs in no time!"

"Let's use the wand, that's why we bought it right? Our magic and potions are better for use in combat if we have to use them," Aleris suggests gently. She grimaced at the sight of the stripped skeletons inside the granary. "Poor souls, whoever they were. I guess taking the flail won't hurt."

"I agree. Use the wand. Save your spells until something gets really dire. I really hope there are no more of those crazy swarms, though/"

Harmose detects magic in the granary and on the adamantine flail, then uses the wand.

CLW Wand: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6

"Ooh, that's much better!" he says as the bites recede.

Nothing in the granary/flail detects as magic.

"I am SO glad that is done. Ick!" Kito proclaims.

Wand Count decremented. Boo-Boo Be Gone so I can find this in a search. :)

Turel nods in approval, "Well done everyone. The swarm was difficult to destroy but teamwork prevailed. Now I believe the crypt awaits us?"

Thera flies off Aleris's shoulder and over to where the swarm was destroyed. She pecks at a few of the roasted scarabs.

Evidently she does not find them to her liking, as she quickly flies back to her normal perch on Kito's shoulder.

"أحرق لك بشكل سيئ للغاية!"

Chuckling, Kito feeds a bit of Thera's mixture to her and says "كنت أحاول أن قتلهم، وليس مشوي لهم."

In response to Turel's statement about the crypt, Kito asks "Would it be too much of a bother if I were to meditate for about 20 minutes before we go in there? I have one more incantation I can study today and would like to do so."

I had left a slot open in case the swarm wasn't killed by just two castings. Now that I know we are headed into the crypt, I want to fill out my last spell slot.

"Waiting 20 minutes does not seem like a problem to me. It's a beautiful day, and we don't have any other limited buff spells running."

Harmose takes the time to say some prayers over the dead bodies in the granary and to clean off the flail. "Which one of you warriors would like to use the flail? Ra-Khefer, are you interested?"

With a nod, Kito moves over to the steps and sits down. She takes Thera in her hands and seems to be staring into the bird's eyes. The two of them sit there for several minutes. About the only thing surprising is that the thrush stays still for the whole time.

After several minutes of this, Kito places Thera back on her shoulder and stands. Brushing at her clothing to get any sand off, she says "Ready!"

"Sure, we can wait," Aleris agrees as she moves to have a seat on the nearby stone bench and enjoy the sunlight for a few minutes. "Oh, Polux - do you want this other alchemist's fire? Looks like you're a fair shot with them!"

I think Polux and Deseri are also down 6 HPs so they might need to have boo boos patched too :)

Perception: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (16) + 0 = 16

"Which one of you warriors would like to use the flail? Ra-Khefer, are you interested?"

Ra peered at the weapon.

"Good. I think it would work well for you." Harmose prestidigitates whatever Ra-Khefer does not get clean with the sand.

CLW, Polux: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4 "Boo-boo be gone!'
CLW, Deseri: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6 "Boo-boo be gone!"

He looks over Polux. "Perhaps one more?"

CLW, Polux: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7 "Boo-boo be gone!"

Then he looks at Kito. "How do you get the wand to be more even in its application? It seems awfully random." Then he shrugs. "Off to the Crypt! Everyone ready?"

Lead on oh fearless leader. Did I say fearless? I meant pretty not fearless.

Smiling at the use of the 'Boo Boo Be Gone' wand, Thank you Harmose.

Nodding, That is why we are here.

"Buy a more powerful version of the wand?"

Wand charges updated.

Aleris rises to her feet and readies herself once more. "I'm ready to keep going. And a more powerful wand might be nice, but at this rate we're going to end up spending our gold before we've even earned it!"

Nodding, Kito agrees. "Sorry, was answering the question asked. The type of wand we have is by far the most cost effective."

"I didn't mean to suggest we should change what we were doing.

Twenty minutes pass. The house grounds are silent and the air is still and windless. What do you do next?

[dice=CLW, Polux]1d8+1 "Boo-boo be gone!'

[dice=CLW, Deseri]1d8+1 "Boo-boo be gone!"

He looks over Polux. "Perhaps one more?"

[dice=CLW, Polux]1d8+1 "Boo-boo be gone!"

"And the Boo is indeed gone" - Polux spits out one last bug and smiles at Harmose.

"Yep, it is crypt time" - he adds, moving to the other side of the courtyard - "Let's move"

Will pause at the crypt doors, waiting for the others.

Harmose thinks a moment. "Let's do the following marching order. First rank: Ra-Khefer and Turel. Second rank: Me, so that I can help guidance hits and prepare for haunts, and Polux who has a reach weapon. Third rank, our ranged, Aleris and Qari. Fourth rank, Des and Kito and the charming Thera. Does that sound good? Any objections? If not, then let's go!"

Qari falls in line with the others. "Now that the swarm has been dealt with, I'm sure it'll be all smooth sailing from here on out," she says with a smirk.