ProfPotts' Serpent's Skull PBP

Game Master Alexander Scott

Still staggered and leaning against the wall, Tony tries to locate the creature; maybe if he can get one good hit...

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18

Tony has the same chance as everyone else to locate Mother Thrunefang's 'space' - a simple DC 10 Perception check each round which doesn't take any action. What he does after that is up to him.

Shisa and Aerodus nearly become entwined in an embarrasing embrace as they both stumble around in the dark, swinging towards the eerie sound of Mother Thrunefang's chanting...

"I can keep this up all day, b$~+~."

... announces Marik as he fires off more acid and hears the hiss as it strikes flesh... only it seems to have painfully struck Shisa's rump, rather than the ghoul queen! No damage to Shisa - amusement value for firing into melee only! ;)

'Be my guest!' comes the cackled reply to Marik's bravado... swiftly followed by a choked cry of pain...

'Hah!' Sasha's voice can be heard in the dark, 'Finally found my mark!'

Next round please!

Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 8

The near collision with the Songstress throws off Aerodus's balance, leaving him spinning around the room unable to target the ghoul queen's location as her voice seems to echo off the walls. He spends the round parrying against his other unseen combatant, as the blood continues to streak down his face and onto his torso.

Inheritor, grant your servant the senses to strike down this evil that skulks in the darkness!

Full Defense: +4 AC

HP: 3/19 AC: 23 FF: 23 Touch: 17 +3 from smite +4 full Defense
FORT: +7 Ref: +3 Will: +7
Initiative: 19

If Aerodus spends a move action to find her... could he have the option throw something at her? I think Aerodus has a dagger, and the spears on him for ranged 'weapons'. Of course he would have to unready the shield or sword to get his free hand to draw/throw the next round.

Other option, detect evil, and spend move action to focus. Should give Aerodus at least a hint? to where she is at? Although it looks like it would grant him nothing, (since standard to keep the concentration going).

Or an even crazier option... since Continous flame is a 2nd level wizard (3rd cleric) spell. If Blinky left the area of darkness and came back in... would it neutralize it? Or for that matter de-activating and re-activating? (Now the discussion on 'activating an Ioun Stone'....) Or the merits of walking into magical darkness (Heck even deeper darkness, if you pay the extra for the 3rd lvl slot) and automatically dispelling with a mere 75gp (bit more for the 3rd lvl slot) free floating torch seems a bit crazy. Or.. since the object is merely an after effect of the spell it doesn't affect the spell being cast? In either case Aerodus does not possess the spell level knowledge to put this tactic into being (and definitely not in this encounter!)... but it made me think for a bit (although I may be missing a very simple part in the first place!)

Her ears pick up heavy footsteps a bit too near for comfort. "A little too close there whoever you-OW!" she exclaims as she dances back from the paladin, punctuated by a sharp burning pain in her backside.

Perking her ears, she focuses in again on the ghoul and moves to the side to once more try and skewer the creature.

attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
miss?: 1d100 ⇒ 66

Marik will move slowly through the darkness over to where Yipper is hiding. Once there he will pick the little dinosaur up and place him on his shoulder.

Tony, thinking he's got a good idea where the target is, hesitates.
Just clinging to consciousness, he didn't want to risk blacking out while throwing his dagger away.

So he slides down the wall and pretends to fall unconscious. It was all too easy.
Bluff: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12
Sleight of Hand (hiding the dagger up his sleeve ready to strike): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

When the enemy comes in close to loot him, he would strike when he couldn't miss.
Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

Mother Thrunefang's laughter echoes around the chamber,

'This is almost too amusing to end...' she cries with obvious macabre glee... although she quickly resumes her chanting, and another wave of destructive energies rips through the room...

2d6 negative energy damage all round - half with a successful DC 14 Will save... same as before...

Will Save: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (8) + 7 = 15

How much damage?

Oh yes - I roll this one, don't I... that'll be... 7 on a failed save, 3 on a success.

Will save: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (15) + 0 = 15

Tony summons his will to resist, but the effort is too much and falls unconscious for real.

Dang, should have kept quiet, and just ignored the damage!

As another wave of energy washes over Aerodus, he manages to shrug off the worst of it, yet is still barely able to stand on his feet.

Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 5

HP: 0/19 AC: 19 FF: 19 Touch: 13 +3 from smite
FORT: +7 Ref: +3 Will: +7
Initiative: 19
DISABLED!

will save: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6 or will not save..

Trying to keep the ghoul's approximate location fixed, she reels as yet another wave of energy seems to drain her strength. Hoping she's on a flank, she attacks again, swinging her entire body behind the blow..

Attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16
miss?: 1d100 ⇒ 46

and lets out a string of Elvish when her blade fails to connect yet again.

******************
AC 14, touch 12, flat-footed 12 (+2 armor, +2 Dex)
hp 2/ 14

Marik's Will save: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20 8/14 Hit points
Yipper's Will save: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19 -3/7 Hit points

Marik attempts to shield the little dinosaur from the waves of negative energy, to no avail as the lizard slumps in his grasp barely breathing.
Infuriated Marik let's out a wordless cry and lashes out into the darkness. Acid Splash

Perception check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18
Attack (ranged touch) roll: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 2 = 17
Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 1
Miss chance (51%+ = miss): 1d100 ⇒ 22

There's more flailing about in the dark... although Marik's flung acid does at least draw forth a gurgled scream of pain from Mother Thrunefang - momentarily interupting her echoing laughter if nothing else...

Then, under cover of the darkness, there's a flurry of claws and biting from the crone-like ghoul... swiftly followed by the sound of all except Marik hitting the cavern floor... Aerodus takes 5 Hit Points of damage, Shisa takes 6 Hit Points of damage, Sasha is down too... the related saves Vs ghoulish effects seem a little pointless at this juncture...

So - it looks like it's all up to Marik to save the day! As a hint, Mother Thrunefang still has enough Hits that even the best critical with an acid splash won't be enough to drop her in one...

On the bright side, it's been a while since I ran a game for all undead PCs! ;)

Go Marik Go!

Stabilization Roll: 1d20 + 1 - 5 ⇒ (1) + 1 - 5 = -3 HUZZAH! Ghouldom Here I come! How do ghoul paladins work? Or is it welcome to subpar fighter land?

Well... technically don't need to save Vs ghoul fever unless you got bit. But if Marik goes down, probably a moot point!

HP: -6
Condition: Bleeding, Unconscious, (Tasty!)

HPs: -4 / 14

Stabilize (DC 10): 1d20 + 0 - 4 ⇒ (15) + 0 - 4 = 11

Well.. at least she's stable..and won't be a bloodless ghoul.

Fort save (DC 15): 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (10) + 0 = 10

but..infected

Run Forest..run!

Perception check: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (1) + 7 = 8

As the sounds of battle suddenly cease, Marik calls out tentatively "Aerodus? Shisa, Sahsa?" Hearing no reply and unable to locate the whereabouts of the ghoul queen, panic begins welling up from within and Marik begins to back his way out of the cavern, cradling Yipper in the crook of his arm.

Marik stumbles out of Mother Thrunefang's cavern as quickly as he can in pitch darkness, the old ghoul's mocking words echoing after him as he flees...

'Yes, run - you'll meet your friends again soon enough!' The taunt is followed by maniacal cackling laughter...

Soon enough Marik has found his way down the narrow passage and back out into the long cavern where he and his friends last fought some ghouls... he can hear the sound of waves from the opening in the floor of the north-west of the chamber, but without the holy, guiding, light of Blinky to illuminate his way, he remains in pitch darkness...

Marik huddles in the darness, waiting for the inevitable strike from the darkness to end his life. After a few minutes of despair, hope suddenly rises up from within the mage.
Searching around in the cavern, Marik will pick up a piece of bone or driftwood and tearing off a piece of his shirt and wrap it around the stick making an impromptu torch.
Then reaching into his pack he will pull out his (as of yet unused) flint and steel and attempt to light it.

Oops, forgot the stabilization rolls for Yipper.
1d20 - 3 ⇒ (16) - 3 = 13
Well, that was easy
Stable at -3 HP's

Strips of shirt wrapped round a femur may make Golarion's worst torch, but it works well enough for Marik to get the thing lit for some light... at least for the short while it's likely to last. Peering around in the flickering light it seems, for a brief moment, that the wizard is surrounded on all sides...

... But that proves to just be a trick of the light, causing random shadows to dance across the uneven cavern walls. In truth the cave appears empty - aside from the ghoul corpses left from the recent skirmish. At the far end of the cavern, to the south-east, is the passage the group entered by, and nearby, to the west, is a drop through the floor to the 'beach' area found a little before that. Besides those two, the only obvious way would be back to Mother Thrunefang's lair...

With the sounds of the sea so near, Marik does recall that the ghouls back in the treasure pit (which seems such a long time ago now) were of an aquatic variety... and that there's a good chance that all the ghouls on the island - assuming they're all 'children' of the same 'mother' - have similar inclinations... So, if undead reinforcements are on the way, there's no telling from which direction they may appear...

As Marik gathers himself up in the dim torch light,"Forgive me, my friends. I will be back to rescue you." he thinks to himself as he begins to make his way, numbly, back towards the surface.

A nerve-wracking trek, with the distinct possibility of more ghouls leaping out at any moment, eventually leads Marik, unmolested (which is more than can be said for what's happening to the rest of the PCs... ;) ) back to the opening to the surface. There hangs a rope, and Gelik's face peering over the edge of the hole, into the cave,

'Master Whiterose!' exclaims the little man, his smile quickly fading as he appears to notice the Wizard is alone, 'What happened? Where are the others?'

"I'm afraid that Mother Thrunefang was too much for us. She is indeed a ghoul of some sort in death, but apparently she was some sort of priestess in life. The others fell trying to defeat her and I barely escaped with my life afterwards." Marik begins climbing the rope to the surface "We need to gather the others and return to the cavern and slay the she-b#+!# before she can corrupt the others."

Helping Marik up out of the hole as best he can, Gelik glances around, then beams a smile,

'Try not to let on the others were caught,' he says, his tone jovial as his gaze passes over the assembled cannibal onlookers, 'I doubt that the loss of their new king would go down to well with the locals... although I'm sure we'd go down pretty well soon after they found out, probably with some light seasoning and maybe a homemade chutney on the side...'

Still maintaining his facade of good cheer Gelik head towards the stone lighthouse,

'You say he sent you back to pick up the... um... thingie? Oh well, that's inside - let's go and get it!' the gnome declares loudly, his actions mimicing his words, even though the locals don't seem to understand the common tongue...

Once safely (relatively speaking) inside the tower, Gelik slams the door shut behind him and Marik... banging his head against it a couple of times and growling... before straightening up, sighing, and heading up the stairs to where the other castaways are resting up...

Hearing Marik's tale Jask mutters a prayer to Nethys under his breath, then shakes his head,

'I'll need to rest and pray before I'm any help to you,' he explains, 'I've spent everything I've got trying to heal us all.'

'Lkewise,' adds Gelik with a shrug, 'and I doubt my flashing blade - stylish though it may be - will succeed against some undead priestess where our erstwhile paladin has failed.'

Although still looking tired and beaten, Ishirou stands, adjusting the belt holding his katana over his shoulder,

'I'll go,' he states, simply and flatly.

'I'll go too' Aerys says, although she wobbles a little as she stands, still clutching the stump where her hand used to be, 'I won't be using a bow any time soon, but I have one good fist left, and I'm really in the mood to kill something right now...'

Jask fliches a little as Aerys volunteers, but remains quiet. Gelik sighs again,

'We'd have a better chance if we could wait until tomorrow - Jask and I can recharge our magics... you too, I'd wager, Master Whiterose... and we can all rest and heal up a little more in preparation...' he frowns, and rubs his hand across his chin in thought, adding, '... on the other hand, from what you tell us, that would give this Mother Thrunefang more opportunity to turn our friends... not to mention the chance for more of her "children" to return from their wanderings across the island...'

Ishirou looks to Marik for a descision, Aerys leans against the wall, the fire in her eyes not matched by the fatigue in her body, Gelik shrugs, and Jask turns to Marik,

'It seems to final descision is yours, my friend...'

No pressure!

It builds character!

Quiet, you. You're (un)dead.

Marik nods at the priests words. "Unfortunately rushing back down in our depleted state can only guarantee that we meet the same fate as the others." heaving a great sigh, Marik continues "A fate I sealed when I abandoned them." Hid mind made up, Marik stands and walks across the room "Tonight we rest as well as we can before journeying back down to rescue the others and put paid to this abomination, this Mother Thrunefang, once and for all."

Quiet, you. You're (un)dead.

Ok, I think it's time we haunt Marik while he's sleeping.. OOOooOOOOooooh :)

Marik's fellow castaways each nod their grim assent to his plan...

The morning finds the rag-tag group gathered round the hole into Mother Thrunefang's caves, the cannibals looking on with mixed fear and awe as Gelik does his best to laugh off the serious nature of their mission. Jask and Aerys both stand unarmed (although even lacking a hand it's doubtful that Aerys should ever be considered 'unarmed'...), whilst Ishirou shifts the katana strapped across his back to a more comfortable position for the descent, and Gelik strings his shortbow, ready for action...

Taking a lit torch, Ishirou drops it down the hole then, with a stolen glance towards Aerys, shrugs and prepares to climb down first...

... although they all seem happy (if that's the right word in the circumstances...) to follow whatever plan Marik may have devised. If Marik mentions it, either Gelik or Jask could have used a cure light wounds spell to heal up Yipper (making the chosen guy down one spell for the day).

The nest morning before heading underground Marik will parse out the three remaining healing potions. One to himself and the others to Aerys and Ishirou. He then arms himself with a tanglefoot bag and gives the others to Gelik and Jask. "The plan is to glue her to the ground before the lights go out. That way we will at least know where she is in the darkness." looking over to Gelik Marik will say to him ""Master Gelik, would be able to spare a curative spell for Yipper? He was a great help to me in the fight and it pains me to see him incapacitated."
Marik will then tuck the newly identified wand into his belt before leading the rescue party to Mother Thrunefang's lair.

Gelik happily lends his healing talents to Yipper's hastened recovery... Yipper's now back up to full Hit Points... as Marik will be too by this point.

The castaways all nod their agreement to Marik's plan, Gelik and Jask accepting the alchemical weaponry as Aerys - with a little difficulty, and a great deal of swearing in elvish - manages to climb down, despite her handicap, after Ishirou. Gelik, Jask, and Marik himself all follow, with Yipper circling down beside them (the usual feelings of rather smug superiority Marik's become accustomed to sensing from his familiar whenever a situation crops up where the ability to fly is a dramatic advantage, being muted by the sheer amount of trepidation the poor lizard is feeling, heading back into the den of the monster who imprisoned and near killed him...).

Reaching the uneven floor of the ten-foot high cave which serves as the first port of call on the delve into Mother Thrunefang's world Gelik peers around in the flickering light of Ishirou's touch for a moment, before picking up a small, smooth, rock and muttering a few words. A moment later and light shines forth from the stone. Glancing towards the gnome, Jask nods before stooping to pick up a stone of his own which he also casts a spell of light upon.

Under the light of the two enchanted rocks, Marik's companions take a moment to look around - noting the blood stains, scattered pieces of wood, fallen leaves, broken weapons, and bits of bone which Marik was already aware of. Without a word, his expression grim, Ishirou offers his torch to Marik (dropping it if Marik doesn't want to take it) and draws his katana, turning towards the one passage (apart from the hole in the ceiling) leading from the cave. As the Tian man steps cautiously forwards, Aerys - her one remaining hand balled into a tight first - keeps close behind him. Gelik exchanges a glance with both Marik and Jask, then sighs, and follows on. Jask utters a prayer to Nethys before joining the rest...

The bravest heroes in the land were Marik Whiterose and his band...

Following both the passage and the smell of decay soon leads the castaways into the wide, low-ceilinged, cavern with the six 'pods' set into the rock wall on one side - the cavern Marik and the others (briefly) rescued Shisa from... This time, more of the pods are occupied - as not only Shisa, buy Sasha, Aerodus and Tony are all stuffed, unconscious, into pods as well! For a moment it seems like things may be going the good guys' way... but that just doesn't seem to be how things work on the Shiv, for an all too familiar (to Marik) cackling laugh echoes around the chamber as not only Mother Thrunefang, but four of her ghoulish 'offspring' step from the shadows on the far side of the cavern - the ghoul priestess staying behind the line of her four children...

'I knew you'd return to me, child,' she casts her words in Marik's direction, 'and you brought new members for the family - how sweet!' Gesturing towards the 'pods' her tone is mocking as she continues, 'Alas, we only have two beds left... so I guess three of you get to be dinner...' she ends with another bone-chilling cackle...

There's no surprise round - as they were expecting you, and you them - so it's time for Initiative and declared actions!

Initiative: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (19) + 4 = 23

Marik will use the wand to cast Mirror Image on himself.

1d4 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2 images

A moment after two extra Mariks blink into existance, the ghouls scream and charge forwards... although Mother Thrunefang herself hangs back behind them...

Aerys deftly sidesteps the ghoul charging her, bringing her good fist down across its distended jaw in a jarring hammer-blow as she does so...

The ghoul attacking Ishirou leaps bodily onto the Tian man, its fang-teeth sinking deep into his shoulder - with a shudder, Ishirou goes stiff as a board and collapses back, unmoving, to the cavern floor...

Ducking under the flailing blows of the ghoul trying to snag him, Gelik steps a few paces away and hurls his tanglefoot bag towards Mother Thrunefang... scoring an absolute bullseye! Natural 20! The alchemical goo explodes over the decaying priestess - causing screams of abuse to stream forth - coating her... but she manages to avoid being stuck in place...

Barely avoiding the swiping talons of the ghoul attacking him, Jask also steps to the side and hurls his tanglefoot bag... missing Mother Thrunefang completely as the bag sails past her to plaster sticky alchemical goo across the far wall of the cavern instead...

Mother Thrunefang (who seemed to be holding back to see how her children's initial attack went) keeps screaming obscenities as she tries to scrape off the sticky goo she's coated in...

Next round please!

Starts reviewing the rules for 'monsters as PCs'...

Marik will lob the final tanglefoot bag at the ghoul queen.

Attack(ranged touch)roll: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19

The three (amigos!) Mariks all lob tanglefoot bags towards the gunked Mother Thrunefang... although the three merge into one mid-fight, before splattering all across the ghoul priestess's legs as she keeps trying to scrape off the goo already coating her. She's glued to the floor now - the extra -2 Reflex save from being pre-glued helped: good plan there!

The ghoul facing Aerys sinks its teeth into her stump, dragging one set of claws down the arm, ripping it open in crimson lines... but the half-elf merely snarls elven obscenities as she smashes her good fist into the thing's head once more, dropping it to the cavern floor...

... But then - with a yelled instruction from Mother Thrunefang - the ghoul who just paralysed Ishirou drops his 'meal' and instead leaps at Aerys, sinking his teeth into her shoulder as he lands, and dropping her, staggered, to one knee...

Chasing after Master Gelik, the ghoul he was ducking manages to tag the gnome bard with a swipe of its claws... sending the little chap, stiff as a proverbial board, to the floor...

Despite having luckily avoid the first attack of the ghoul who was after him, the middle-aged Jask's luck runs out - the ghoul leaps on the man's back, claws and teeth ripping him to shreds in fountains of blood and gore... Jask's a gonner...

Mother Thrunefang keeps cursing as she tries her best to free herself from alchemical bondage...

Next!

Marik will cast Grease on the floor near Aerys, hoping to catch her ghoul in the area of the slippery substance.

A buttery scent tries its damndest to overcome the stench of Mother Thrunefang's caverns as Marik conjurers grease beneath the clawed feet of the ghoul attacking Aerys - sending it toppling over as it flails its stringy, claw-tipped, arms comically before landing on its boney behind!

At the screamed command of an increasingly angered Mother Thrunefang (herself still caught up with trying to scrape off the tangle-everything goop) both the ghoul who paralysed Gelik, and the one which slaughtered Jask, leave their prey to leap at the brothers Marik... The first ghoul sinks its fangs unerringly into Marik's head... or looks like its just about to, when that Marik blinks out of existance! Well - that mirror image just saved Marik's bacon from a confirmed critical... The second ghoul - still covered in Jask - seems confused at it leaps at the remaining two Mariks, fails to make a choice, and misses them both...

A sneer on her lips, Aerys pulls out the potion Marik issued to her... pauses a moment... then shrugs,

'At least it's not grog...' she mutters to herself, before quaffing the healing brew. As the crimson streaks on her arm fade to white she straightens up a little...

Still not dead! Marik has two of the ghouls in melee with him, and is down to one mirror image. The third ghoul is trying to stand in the grease. Mother Thrunefang is scraping off goop. Aerys is no longer staggered. Next round!

Marik will take a 5' step away from the two ghouls, if possible, and cast Vanish on himself.

Both Mariks vanish as they step back from their ghoulish assailants - who swipe uselessly at thin air as Mother Thrunefang tries her best to direct them to use more constructive searching methods (which appears to involve a great deal of insults and swearing by this point...). With the third ghoul still struggling in the grease, Aerys glances around for a moment, before calling out in elvish...

... then charges full-pelt at Mother Thrunefang herself, landing a powerful punch across the decomposing priestess's jaw and, if nothing else, managing to momentarily silence the screaming...

Next round please!

AS Marik moves over to Aerodus he glances at Mother Thrunefang and thinks to himself Oh, please don't speak elvish, oh please don't speak elvish. Marik kneels beside the fallen paladin and check for signs of life "Oh please don't be dead, oh please don't be dead".
Heal check: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (9) + 1 = 10
Unable to find a pulse Marik, with a quick prayer to the gods, pours the potion down Aerodus' thoat.
CLW: 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (7) + 1 = 8

As Marik moves invisibly across to the 'pods' where Aerodus and company are stuffed in, naked and unconscious, the ghoul in the grease keeps floundering in its attempts to get up (seriously, how hard is making a DC 10 Reflex check anyway?), while the other two keep swinging at empty space in their attempts to find the vanished wizard - as per their last instructions from Mother Thrunefang. Faced with Aerys's unrelenting fist, the ghoul priestess herself manages to carefully cast a spell, despite the goo she's still coated in, and suddenly all the lights wink out, plunging the cavern into darkness...

'Damn!' swears Aerys, apparantly missing her target in the dark...

Thankfully right next to Aerodus, Marik manages to find the paladin's mouth and administer the potion... just as he feels (rather than sees...) himself become visible again... at least, to those who happen to be able to see in the dark...

Aerodus stirs... ... on 7 Hit Points...

The two ghouls tasked to find Marik apparantly do just that, as they both rush him in the pitch blackness of the cave... One swings wide (in fact swings at Marik's final mirror image, taking it out - although the characters can't really see that rignt now...), but the other manages to land a bite on the wizard's arm, sinking its teeth in deep... Marik takes 3 Hit Points of damage, and gets to attempt a DC 13 Fortitude save to avoid 1d4+1 rounds of paralysis).

Greasy ghoul stays greasy... His rolls are actually getting worse - that was a '1'...

Meanwhile there's the sound of flesh being sliced from the direction of Aerys and Mother Thrunefang... followed quickly by an elvish scream... then silence...

Elsewhere, Ishirou can be heard muttering as he retrieves his sword and pushes himself to his feet...

Next round!

Initiative: 1d20 ⇒ 7

Do I have... my gear? Is it a move action to get out of my 'pod'? DC 10 (a'la last darkness encounter) to locate anyone (ghoul)/(humanoid)?

Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 14

How close is/was the nearest pod person (is/was it occupied?) may be irrelevant as darkness just consumed... the room

Aerodus - and all the 'pod people' - are naked... so I guess he's got his 'junk' hanging out, but not his 'gear'... ;)

That Perception check is fine to wail on the two ghouls right next to Aerodus and Marik, sure - and moving away without some ghoul-beating action will be AoO-city, naturally...

1d20 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

As Marik freezes stiff as a board he thinks to himself "Oh man, I didn't want to die a virgin."

Wha? With his charisma of 16, that sir, is no junk but a great club! A simple yet massive, all natural weapon.

Shuddering as he awakes, he whispers "Who is that... where am i--" stopping as the wave of stench closes in. "GHOULS! Whoever you are, grant me a weapon to slay these abominations!"

In effect Delay until after his rescuer (marik), in case he/she can hand Aerodus a weapon to swing at the ghouls.

If so Attack! 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

And misses horrendously.

Else: (I guess if Marik gets paralyzed try and frisk him for a weapon?)

Although I don't know if Aerodus knows Marik is there.. maybe he doesn't smell as bad as the ghouls.. or hears yipper etc etc.

Swift: LoH self: 1d6 ⇒ 5

HP: 13/19 AC: 10

Edit: (SON OF A $(#@($ They got the wizard!)

At this point.. Aerodus will be praying fervently, and silently in his mind. "Oh mighty Inheritor, your servant is in more need now than ever! My comrades and I are in great peril, and death is hovering over our heads. Give me a weapon! Give me a sign! Do not forsake me in my time of need!!"

Aaannnddd... Slippy the Greased Ghoul fails to stand up again... 'Mother Thrunefang - are your ghouls on the right pills? Maybe you should execute their trainer?'

Although he has little time to assess his situation, Aerodus manages to realise that Marik (he'd recognise that aftershave anywhere!) woke him with a potion... then promptly fell, paralysed, against him... They seem to still be fighting Mother Thrunefang in the dark (as they were when Aerodus passed out...) although the paladin finds himself naked and moved somewhere, and there seem to be other ghouls in whatever chamber he's in now - more than one right next to him and the stiff Marik... Quickly locating and pulling Marik's dagger from his belt (assuming Marik's sheet is up to date and he still has a dagger...) Aerodus takes a wild swipe in the dark, but fails to hit anything...

'Stop that one!' Mother Thrunefang's screech can be heard through the darkness from across the chamber - obviously one of the larger caverns and not her own little lair, 'The one with the sword!'

Aerodus hears the two (he thinks it's two...) ghouls near him retreat... and the weight of Marik's body goes with them, suggesting that at least one has dragged the paralysed wizard with it... He also hears Ishirou's voice, a little distance off, respond to Mother Thrunefang's latest orders with what sounds like Tian swearing and...

'Lights! For the love of the gods someone turn on some lights!'

Next round in the 'active-PC-tag-team-tournament' please!

Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 7

If Aerodus's cant determine any locations, will try detect evil and movement to focus (for the purposes of locating ghouls!)

If can.. charge one of the ghouls!

Charge: 1d20 + 5 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 5 + 2 = 10
Damage: 1d4 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Why you hate me so dicebot??!?!

HP: 13/19

AC: 8 (from charge)