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"And thus, the thrice-vaunted vector of pure Entropy/ Did plummet from the Maelstrom like a fluttering dovelet/ Alighting in Elysium among the droplets of pure ambrosia, and the twilight reeds did bend......No, no, that doesn't scan. Bother! It's far too difficult to come up with poetry whilst on a horse."
Cëanel vaults from his mount a bit awkwardly. "There, there, um, Chestnut, or whatever your name is, O celestial steed, hang on a bit while while we fearless heroes reconvene." He pats the horse's muzzle, and it obliges with a whicker. As usual, he has a Mount and Mage Armor, typical of the 'fearless' wizarding types.
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Desh frowns up at the elf's poem, then barks a laugh as he dismounts.
"Chestnut, huh?" He yanks on the tether to the mule he's been leading during their return trip, a shaggy, surly thing that seems to have taken a serious dislike to its half-orc owner. "I'm gonna name this one večera if he don't quit nippin' at me." He gives the beast a wolfish grin, "Means 'dinner'."
The half-orc seems to have grown a few more weapons—now looking more and more like a walking arsenal—as well as a fancy new cloak and similarly fancy wooden shield on his back.
"So, we been in two levels of this place." He looks at the smarter group members (pretty much everyone), "What do ya think it is?"
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Take your time; continue leveling up your characters. We'll begin when everyone is ready.
(2) Except where noted, all corridor and room floors are covered with large, unevenly-spaced tiles.
(3) Except where noted, small oil lamps illuminate all areas. They are not very bright, providing only dim light.
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OK. The entrance is as described above: Broad stone stairs open into a small, irregularly shaped chamber lit by oil lamps. To the east, a short flight of steps leads up to a sturdy door set in the middle of a wall and flanked by arrow slits. To the north, a wide gate of iron bars blocks an archway leading to a larger chamber filled with the eerie green glow of the Emerald Spire. Feel free to move/arrange yourselves on the map.
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Following your standard operating procedure from previous levels, Desh leads the way, looking for traps. As he moves forward and messes with the gate, a voice says: "Hey! You're not one of us! What are you doing here?!?"
,
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,
The half-orc drops unconscious. Unless he decides to use orc ferocity.
The party is up! The enemy is clearly behind the arrow slits.
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Surprise registers on Desh's face as two bolts thunk into his side, burying themselves deep and sending him staggering a few steps. In a show of resilience any orc would be proud of, the scout keeps his feet and lurches back across the room .... where he collapses in a heap on the stairs.
"Ambush," he chokes out as his eyes roll back in his head. Only his labored breathing indicates he's still alive at all.
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Garrett is happily watching Desh from around the corner when he suddenly grunts in pain. The halfling frowns until he spots the two bolts protruding from his side! Before Garrett can say anything, he is pushed backward by his newfound friend, Flyn!
"Whoa! Desh, that was amazing! Desh?" He then notices their half-orc scout is unconscious. "Kohi! Do your healing thing, dear!" When talk turns towards tactics, the bard hmmmmms. "I think that might be an excellent idea, Ceanel! I can even utilize some of my illusion spells to assist. We need to make it across without being turned into pincushions..."
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As Desh goes down under a hail of crossbow bolts, Kohi puts a hand to her mouth. Her other one goes to her waist and fishes out her holy symbol, which she raises to let forth a burst of healing power.
"If you need more than that emergency dose and there's time, I'd be glad to use your wand. As for strategy, I don't have a great many insights beyond shutting those bows down somehow."
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Nice! Glad to see everyone getting really flavorful posts in. I'm going to give you all circumstance bonuses for such a strong start to the module.
A couple of you notice a secret door! (Desh didn't notice it before because both he and I rolled 1's for his perception check.) You wonder if this door might provide alternate access to your ambushers.
(On phone, will update map later today to show door.)
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Desh gasps as the healing brings him back to consciousness, and he begins growling out an unbroken string of orcish that anyone could guess was not complimentary of their hidden attackers.
After taking a few moments to have Kohi put his wand to good use, he picks his longspear back up and nods to the team’s success at finding the hidden door—where he had been such an abysmal failure a few painful moments ago.
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[dice=Wand of CLW, 5 charges]5d8 + 5
Somebody opens the secret door. Weapon racks and wooden wardrobes line the walls of this room. The dummies in the center of the room wear suits of armor. Masks hang on the wall near the door; each consists of a brass nosepiece with cheek guards, from which a veil of red silk hangs.
(Map updated.)
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As Desh considers the new room, he whispers to to the crew. "Lie to'em. Tell'em we're sorry and we're leavin." Then he hands Kohinoor his wand, "Heal me as we move forward."
Then, after the first charge from the wand, Desh stalks forward, watching carefully for traps ... either of the mechanical or ambush types.