Tirion will use his wand to cast Message on each person as they go down.
"How far down is it?"
Cavern floor is 20 down or so.
Jan looks down in surprise at the sinkhole.
I don't know what's worse - the fact that we're going into a giant hole, or that I'm going to be fired for doing this.
Tirion will leap down into the cavern, taking two points of damage (Boots of the Cat!) -- which will regenerate in a couple of hours (thanks to the cracked Pearly White Spindle dancing around his head)...
for his standard action, he'll activate the Disguise Self from the Western Star Ioun Stone: for the next two hours, he looks kinda like his brother (and his Ioun Stones are invisible)!
Ok, everyone is in the cavern. Other than you folks it is empty other than a spiral staircase going down.
Invisible bander leads the way down with his trapspotter and take 10 on stealth
Tirion quietly takes the tail position:
and "checks six" a lot:
The stairs are clogged with cobwebs and being invisible while tearing through cobwebs isn't exactly sneaky.
Well we all do our best. At least I'm quiet
Fortunately Jan has a big knife - which he'll use to cut his way through while allowing his sneaky comrades to bravely hide behind his semi-armored back.
Thick webs clog these stairs. Visible here and there through gaps in the unusually thick webbing are deep scratches along the walls and floors—this, along with the absence of any mold or mildew, suggests the stairway has recently been cleared.
The stairs appear to come to a dead end at the bottom.
Tirion hides, and checks six!
There's a secret door to the west. Your spider sense does not register a trap.
Let me get the map updated.
Can't wait to fight the spiders
Continuing on and cutting webs with snicker
Bo takes up the rear guard as they move forwards..
He will activate Illuminating touch on Jan, Tirion, Bander before the secret door is open..
Once the light is there, Bander will attempts to open the door
DD
Opens easily enough.
The walls, floor, and even the arched ceiling of this place are covered with writing, the words spiraling and trailing in the ancient language of Thassilon. Some of the phrases are immense, with words nearly three feet high, while others are written in tiny, spidery script. The medium for the writing varies as well—sometimes dark ink, sometimes blood, sometimes carved into the stone itself. Passageways to the north and east lead into fog- filled tunnels, and a pair of stone doors, their faces carved with an immense image of a three-eyed jackal’s head, stand to the south. To the west, light flickers in what appears to be an immense cathedral.
Bo pulls a comp lang scroll and uses it to try and decifer what the writing means..
He also casts extended see invis on himself..
Yap will casts Detect Undead and starting scanning the area..
As you start to translate the scribblings on the walls (which appear to be mostly diatribes about the hold word of Lamashtu), a voice comes from the foggy corridor to the north.
"Ah, I have visitors. How nice. I so rarely have new people to talk to. Might we have a little chat and exchange information? I'd like to know more about the current world. "
Yap detects no undead in the area.
Well, fantastic. Someone's living in the creepy tomb.
Jan will look over at the others.
Via Message: So, who wants to talk to the...ghost? Or whatever.
"I'm no ghost, I just have been out of touch for a while. I wish to be informed. "
Bo speaks up.. "I don't mind having a talk if you can be civilized.. My name is Bo Hardin, I am a paladin of Sarenrae so you know my there can be no falsehoods in my words.. Before we speak I need to know two things though. First off where are the soilders that ventured down here before us? What are the howling noises heard emanating from down here?"
"One question at a time. You can ask one, and I get one. The soldiers had an unfortunate accident with some of the creatures that live in this place. They won't be returning. Now mine. What happened to the Thasselon?"
"I am no scholar, but I do know the ancient civilization was destroyed many thousands of years ago and no one really knows why or how.. Thasselon has been no more for quite some time now. Now what are these creatures?"
Tirion remains hidden...
Bander sneaks forward a bit to try to see who is talking
"I believe they ran into the hounds of Lamashtu. Not a friendly lot of puppies those. So for my next question, if Thassilon is gone, then who rules in their place now?"
whispered to Bo via Message: "tell him the Pathfinder Society rules now!"
...
"As far as I know there is no singular ruler. There are many independant nations with their own sovereign rulers now."
"Who are you? Would you mind showing yourself to ease some concerns?"
While it does appear you were sleeping in class during the section on Lamshtu, you do seem recall she was an evil goddess.
"Me, I'm just a man out of his time. Xaliasa is my name. As for showing myself, no, we'll just have to live with a talk. Who is the local ruler?"
"Why do you wish to know all this? With pets of an Evil Diety roaming around and you seemingly stuck here forever how am I to know if I am helping someone evil or not.. If you wish to talk more you will show yourself, so that we will know what kind of person we are talking too.. I will promise you no aggression will be taken towards you as long as you dont offer any first."
The local political situation in the area is sort of complicated. Varisia is a competing set of city states which each control some surrounding territory.
"Poor choice of question. I wish to understand the world I find myself in. I've already said I'm not willing to be seen. If that is not good enough, I will depart. You can continue looking around, though it likely will be at your peril. "
Sense motive
Any knowledge for that name he gave us?
Bo whispers to his crew.. "While its obvious there's more to this fellow that can be seen, I think it might be worth it to try and get some more infomation about what this place is and why he's here.. Thoughts?"
Sense Motive is not telepathy. It will tell you if someone is lying or being evasive. He wasn't. He didn't want to be seen, and he was curious about current conditions.
Jan stands there, waiting for developments.
"Fine, you seem truthful enough. the ruler is this area is, insert rulers name, and he resides in Magnimar.. What is this place?"
Tirion wonders of he's heard the name Xaliasa during the extensive study mentioned in his backstory:
You hear no more talking. You guess he decided you'd had enough discussion.
You've never heard of the name before.
Hello?
"Well i guess he was tired of talking.. Be on your guard folks.."
Don't see a knowledge planes check.
There is no way that you can get information on that name (just so you know).
The knowledge planes yields nothing.
Bo will cast Invisibility on Jan to help him be a bit more quite for now..
Bander moves forward, taking 10 on stealth and percep
So stealth 57 and percep 34
Note, it is not particularly well lit down here.
You walk into the room :
Although portions of this cathedral have collapsed, leaving mounds of rubble on the floor and crumbling walls, the chamber retains its sense of menacing awe. Four black stone pillars support the arched roof forty feet above, and on the floor between them the image of a three-eyed jackal seems to glower from striations in the stone itself. This image glows with a soft rusty light that illuminates the entire room from below. Alcoves to the north and south contain statues of a jackal-headed pregnant woman. Each clutches a pair of kukris crossed over her chest, and a reptilian tail winds down around her taloned feet. To the west, what once might have been a stone pulpit featuring other statues seems to have been partially buried under an ancient collapse. The walls of this room are densely decorated with hundreds of scribblings and sprawling runes.
There are 2 huge critters in here. Four arms grace the torso of this towering monstrosity. The monster's eyes shine with a mix of intelligence and cruelty.
One of them watches you walk into the room. The other seems oblivious. Seems time for initiative.
Everyone make initiative checks.
Don't think they go first.