The Pact Stone Pyramid (Inactive)

Game Master Pact Stone GM

A Pathfinder Module, converted from 3.5 to the Pathfinder system, with a party of level 7.


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Male Half-orc Barbarian (Invulnerable Rager) 4 / Sorcerer 1/Dragon Disciple 3

Hurgah pulls the familiar red sack out of his pack and offers it up so Karek can pull it over the head of the basilisk. He then grabs his waterskin and empties it out on the flagstones.

"Here - use this to collect the blood."

Oh, and Hal, if you or Donkor have any channels left, you may want to use those to keep the beast alive instead of clw spells. Hurgah is down a bit of hp, and he could use the extra boost.


Male Dwarf Cleric 8

I don't want to give this thing THAT many hp back but I will get you afterwards :)

Cure Light Wounds on the Basilisk 1d8 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10


Female Elf Druid 5 (desert)/Rogue 3 (spy)
Moonpate wrote:

"I must study the beast's hieroglyphs more, but in the meantime we must rescue our comrades. Quick, let's get a sack or cloak wrapped around its head and bind its jaws and legs as best as possible. We need to bleed it and keep it alive long enough to get enough blood to thoroughly coat every inch of these statues. That may mean having to heal the beast slightly. It will be tricky but we must prevail while I try figure out how these creatures are conjuring amongst us."

Props!Props!Props! Extra transfusions for the win. ER for basilisks. Well done Mr. Phrip and Mr. Hal.


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8
Hurgah the Reaver wrote:

Hurgah pulls the familiar red sack out of his pack and offers it up so Karek can pull it over the head of the basilisk. He then grabs his waterskin and empties it out on the flagstones.

"Here - use this to collect the blood."

After making sure the basilisk is well bound, Karek will nod and cover the beast's head, beginning to collect blood from the creature's wounds.


Male Human Wizard Level 8 - Conjurer
Pact Stone GM wrote:
Moonpate wrote:
Beetle, let me know if you need me to do another linguistics roll, or if I can use the previous one.

-

I would love a new one. Assuming he's trying it immediately while his comrades are binding the beast with 8-legs the difficulty will be quite high. Otherwise if he's patient, once the excitements over it should become much easier. But can he wait?

The focus will be on collecting enough blood and immediately applying it to the stiffs. He will help with the collecting and applying, first to Gandel, as he is the smallest and will be able to help the most with potentially deciphering these hieroglyphs. We should then apply to Xerissa followed by Lydia. Once Gandel is back in the flesh, he will attempt a linguistics check.


Hurgah the Reaver wrote:
Hurgah pulls the familiar red sack out of his pack and offers it up so Karek can pull it over the head of the basilisk. . .

-

And here I was lamenting not having an NPC left to comment about how the tent canvass left behind in the emerald tent would have been quite useful here. However, the famous red sack should be just about perfect.

You know one day, we might just have to imbue that thing with magical properties. It’s slowly becoming a classic.


Karek Kogan wrote:
After making sure the basilisk is well bound, Karek will nod and cover the beast's head, beginning to collect blood from the creature's wounds.

-

Karek does his best to create two hog-ties of four legs each and then wraps the rope around the creature’s jaw clamping it shut. He has to chase away the snarling Bunky who is still engaged in his fearsome victory dance.
-----

OOC: Karek actually carries 100 feet of rope to do this. I don’t want to think about the size of that coil.

While I’m not sure you can just drain a basilisk like a maple tree tapped with a spigot, we’ll see how this goes. We’ll need a heal check from Karek, or perhaps Knowledge (nature) for his veterinary skill. He’s trying to bleed the creature without killing it.

The rules provide that a basilisk has enough blood for 1d3 transformations. The idea here is to bolster that with curative spells. Based on the creature’s hit point total, I will give you +1 to that for every 20 points of healing. Halstadt has already provided a [i]cure light wounds[i] which will provide 10 hit points of credit towards the first 20.

If Karek’s bleeding check fails, the basilisk is injured and potentially dies. If so, only the base 1d3 will be left and even then, only assuming the creature does not vanish like the girallon.


When Morgrym casts his curative spell, the beast suddenly awakens. It immediately begins trying to kick like a bucking bronco. It cannot though get enough leverage to do much more than vibrate along the flagstones. Its tail whips side to side, but it is ineffectual. The red sack remains secure around its neck, preventing the monster's deadly gaze attack.

OOC: I’m still not wild on the new rules for tying people (er basilisks) up. But you’ve definitely chosen the right guy for the job. Those knots look to be holding up well. A struggling basilisk though is even harder to bleed without risk of injuring it.


Male Human Cleric/8

Is it possible for Donkor to make his own heal check, and if he sees the beast getting to what he deems dangerously low levels, to take a readied action to channel energy and try to keep it up?

Barring that, Sooron will Aid Another on Karek's heal check.

Heal check:1d20 + 11 ⇒ (19) + 11 = 30


Male Dwarf Cleric 8

Hal will channel energy assuming that Pate has explained that we need to keep the best in relatively good health to save our friends! Plus Hurgah needs a boost as well.

Channel Energy 4d6 ⇒ (3, 4, 3, 5) = 15


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8

Heal check to play surgeon: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

Knowledge (Nature) to remember some possibly relevant facts about normal animal anatomy: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (18) + 5 = 23

Hope there's a cleric on standby!


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8

Karek is happy to stand by and let a cleric do it, by the way. (Bunky may not be.)


Would it be plausible for Breach to continuously knock it out with his shield? To be the non-lethal damage machine? :)


Karek Kogan wrote:
Karek is happy to stand by and let a cleric do it, by the way. (Bunky may not be.)

-

The Heal skill is Donkor's most invested skill and his origin involves him being trained at the hands of a legendary pharasma priestess. He's a good choice.

But I'm not sure from Donkor's post if he means to step in or not. It sounds like he is standing by with magic in case Karek fails or at most he means to aid. And there is the matter that Karek already rolled. It sounds like Karek sees that the Dune Squad cannot afford to wait and so he has been a man of action and done his best with his limited skill.

I'll let him use his Knowledge (nature) skill instead of Heal (for a +5 bonus). Karek's knowledge of animals persuades him that if he positions the creature so that it triple-pulsing heart is elevated higher than its injury points, it will bleed out with less stress on its heart chambers, perhaps increasing its chance of survival.

But Karek's still got to go with his first and lower roll (unfortunately, a 7). That gives him only a total of 12.

The dwarf harvests enough blood for one statue, but injures the basilisk in the process. The creature's skin is turning a paler color. It's bleeding out too fast! One of Bunky's gash attacks looks to be mortal.

Karek's intervention does 3d6 points of damage: 3d6 ⇒ (6, 3, 1) = 10

Fortunately, Halstadt added a channel as a prophylactic. The creature remains stable, or rather, it is both dying and rapidly healing at the same time.

In addition, Donkor is standing by with his palm outstretched. Somehow the spiral of his goddess is glowing on his palm, like magical tattoo.

Donkor's assessment is that thanks to Halstadt's two interventions, the basilisk could quite likely survive another one of Karek's bleed sessions, but not two. Let me know if that means he wants to fire that channel off or hold off. His Heal check is pretty fantastic so he's monitoring the beast closely. Nevertheless, this is far from an exact science - who can say who Pharasma will call and when she will call them. She has been known to move swiftly, particularly against those with puncture wounds of such staggering depth.

Lastly, Karek quickly passes the fruits of his grisly labor, the blood-loaded waterskin to Moonpate.


Moonpate takes the sloshing bloodskin from the crimson-caked dwarf, who is now slick with red.

Moonpate rushes back towards the Gandel statue. He pours a good portion over top the halfling and then uses his scroll brush to coat it as best he can.

The results are as marvelous as they are near-instantaneous. Color begins returning as stone turns to flesh. A half-minute later, Gandel is coughing and choking, but with a rather crazy grin on his face.

Gandel strikes me as the kind of adventurer who would actually enjoy the bizarre sensation of being transmuted to stone for a time, just to experience it. He should probably get XP for it. Though I am sure he would not like it were it permanent.

Welcome back Gandel!


Breach Shattershield aka Javell wrote:
Would it be plausible for Breach to continuously knock it out with his shield? To be the non-lethal damage machine? :)

-

Yes he can. And it will help by providing a lower DC for Karek's future attempts.

This totally works under the rules, but I think it could become a tad unrealistic. At some point, Breach would place the creature's life at risk. Presumably he is only going to batter the basilisk after it comes to from a heal of some kind though.

It sounds like Breach is becoming a bit of a specialist in the KO blow - a handy skill to have these days it would seem.


Male Dwarf Cleric 8

Can we get a third drought of blood from the thing if I give it a cure moderate wounds as a third follow up? Hal would like to restore Lydia!

Hal turns to Donkor, "If I intervene further will we get more blood from this stone gazed beastie?"


Male Human Cleric/8

Sooron nods to Hal, "Better safe than sorry. Let Angrad's power revive it one more time if you please."

He himself stands by and monitors the beast like a compassionate nurse, ready to intervene himself should the need arise.

Still holding readied action to channel if needed


Male Dwarf Cleric 8

Hal converts another spell to heal the beast.

Cure Moderate Wounds 2d8 + 7 ⇒ (4, 6) + 7 = 17


That's 42 points of healing from Halstadt in total. Minus 10 from the crude bleed leaves a net 32 points. That's a +1, so we know there's at least one more coating in there. (I'm not revealing the 1d3 roll just yet)

Karek can go ahead with another check to harvest another wineskin's worth. And assuming he succeeds, which statue is next?


Female Elf Druid 5 (desert)/Rogue 3 (spy)

Pick me! Pick me! I'd be a great left fielder. This is like elementary school all over again. But as long as we keep that thing alive, there's enough gore for everyone to enjoy right?


Male Human Wizard Level 8 - Conjurer
Pact Stone GM wrote:

Moonpate takes the sloshing bloodskin from the crimson-caked dwarf, who is now slick with red.

Moonpate rushes back towards the Gandel statue. He pours a good portion over top the halfling and then uses his scroll brush to coat it as best he can.

The results are as marvelous as they are near-instantaneous. Color begins returning as stone turns to flesh. A half-minute later, Gandel is coughing and choking, but with a rather crazy grin on his face.

"Ahh, Master Gandel, it is so wonderful to see you in the flesh once again. Come, we have quick work to do. We must make sense of these arcane runes surrounding the creature while we have the chance."

Moonpate will hand the bloodskin and scroll brush back to Hurgah and ask him to take over the reviving of Xerissa and Lydia. He will then try to study the strange heiroglyphs surrounding the basilisk. Not sure how best to tag team this.
Linguistics Roll: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (5) + 11 = 16 urgh...drat!


"Alright! I'll bash it on the head when ya heal it, Morgrym. That way, maybe when can keep it near unconsciousness. And when I say bash I mean real nice like o' course. Unless you lads think that might kill it too soon? We can't afford ta make a mistake here; we have ta make sure there's enough!"

Quote:

Yes he can. And it will help by providing a lower DC for Karek's future attempts.

This totally works under the rules, but I think it could become a tad unrealistic. At some point, Breach would place the creature's life at risk. Presumably he is only going to batter the basilisk after it comes to from a heal of some kind though.

This in bold. That's the plan anyway. Unless the others would rather he didn't or if it actually might wind up being detrimental to our cause.


Moonpate wrote:

Moonpate will hand the bloodskin and scroll brush back to Hurgah and ask him to take over the reviving of Xerissa and Lydia. He will then try to study the strange heiroglyphs surrounding the basilisk. Not sure how best to tag team this.

Linguistics Roll: 1d20+11 = 5 + 11 = 16 urgh...drat!

-

Unfortunately, between the giant sack covering the beast's head and the three dwarves plus Donkor crowding around, Moonpate can't make out enough of the glyphs, at least not any hieroglyphs that he recognizes. Context is everything with these kinds of symbols.

OOC: That roll is not high enough I am afraid.


Male Half-orc Barbarian (Invulnerable Rager) 4 / Sorcerer 1/Dragon Disciple 3

Hurgah grabs the sack of blood and the brush and begins to splosh blood on the petrified Xerissa.

PC's before GMPC's - I vote we leave the slave as a statue - you know, for his own safety and all.


Male Dwarf Cleric 8

I agree with Hurgah. Do want to try to rescue Lydia though as she is a Pathfinder and our contact here. Plus Hal and Breach will feel pretty badly if she is left a statue.


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8

Let the bloodletting continue!

Knowledge (Nature): 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12


Male Human Cleric/8

I certainly agree that the slave should be the last up, but if we can get the blood to do it, I think he should be unstoned. From the good perspective, it's the right thing to do, from the less-good perspective, he could always be used to trigger future traps.


Halstadt Morgrym wrote:
Plus Hal and Breach will feel pretty badly if she is left a statue.

That's true! And angry!


Pact Stone GM wrote:
Welcome back Gandel!

Thanks! Glad to be back!

Gandel shivers as sensation returns to his body. "Well, that was a fascinating experience! Rather restful," the halfling scholar comments.

Moonpate wrote:
"Ahh, Master Gandel, it is so wonderful to see you in the flesh once again. Come, we have quick work to do. We must make sense of these arcane runes surrounding the creature while we have the chance."

"Why thank you, Master Moonpate. Just let me take a look at those runes."

Linguistics check: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20
Gallant Inspiration if needed to add 2d4 ⇒ (3, 3) = 6 to the Linguistics check, for a total of 26.

Plus, Gandel knows Osiriani and Ancient Osiriani if that helps.


Karek Kogan wrote:

Let the bloodletting continue!

1d20+5 = 7 + 5 = 12

-

Karek is efficient and powerful, if not skilled. He seems to treat the basilisk like a wet shirt, wringing the the blood from the beast. He soon has the wineskin filled once more, as well as much of the floor. (This game is taking a temporary total turn for the eeeew.)

The basilisk certainly does not appreciate Karek's brutal harvesting and continues to snarl from within the (appropriately) blood red sack while writhing in pain with the rest of its body that is still able to move against the restraints. That is, at least, until Shattershield smacks it repeatedly with the flat of his axe until it lapses into an unconscious haze.
-----

Further damage to the basilisk from Karek's gentle administrations: 3d6 ⇒ (3, 1, 6) = 10

Weird! Karek just made the exact same d20 roll, which I then followed with the exact same 3d6 roll. What are the odds of that? (That was rhetorical - I'm good with assuming it's pretty low.)
-----

Karek hands over the spoils of his grisly labor to Hurgah, who applies his artistic hand using Moonpate's brush to apply a coating of the blood to the Xerissa statue.

As Donkor looks on he can see the basilisk is running low on juice. There could be enough to paint one more, or even perhaps two, but there also might not be. Once more, the creature is turning awful pale.

----
Since Donkor's assessment roll was so high, let's pull back the curtain on the math so you can decide what you want to do. In game terms, we know there's 1d3 'doses' in a basilisk. Based on the healing Hal has applied and the damage Karek has administered so far, there's a net +1 (22 points of healing). So there's enough for 2-4 doses (1d3+1). You have used 2 so far. Once I roll we could discover that's all there is, or whether there's enough for up to two more. The odds look good so you can try your luck, or you can be conservative and add at least another 18 points of healing to change that number to 3-5. I say at least 18 as that number will also need to be increased by however much is needed to negate however much damage the breaker barbarian might do in his subsequent harvests. Since it's based on die rolls, perhaps he'll get better (or worse) at it. Though he's been mighty consistent.
----

In the meantime, Hurgah's paint job is a work of art. A half minute later the daughter of Auraraun of the Lost Scroll is returned.

Perhaps the half-orc has missed his calling as an artist, he really brought that sculpture to life.

Welcome back Xerissa! Surely this is something she could document in her next Pathfinder Chronicle. "Dear Diary, today I got stoned. . ."


Male Dwarf Cleric 8

Hal will call upon Angradd once again to channel his holy fire through him.

Channel Energy 4d6 ⇒ (4, 5, 4, 5) = 18 Edit: Wow, right on the dot!

At this point everyone in the group should be healed as well I would think.


Gandel wrote:
Gandel shivers as sensation returns to his body. "Well, that was a fascinating experience! Rather restful," the halfling scholar comments.

-

Gandel gets +5 for having ancient Osiriani as a language, which boosts him to a 25 total. Once Breach KO's the creature the DC drops to exactly that. He doesn't need the gallant inspiration and can save it.

The glyphs read:

I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.
I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.

The glyphs repeat all over the creature's body.

Reading it would make Gandel feels a bit like Jack Nicholson in the Shining, if he knew that reference.

The professor knows that the ancient Osirions had many different symbols for the word "curse". This particular one is fairly obscure, reserved for particularly nasty soul-crushing curses or more particularly curses involving death.


Male Human Wizard Level 8 - Conjurer
Pact Stone GM wrote:


I am the curse,
I am your curse,
I am your end.

The glyphs repeat all over the creature's body.

Reading it would make Gandel feels a bit like Jack Nicholson in the Shining, if he knew that reference.

The professor knows that the ancient Osirions had many different symbols for the word "curse". This particular one is fairly obscure, reserved for particularly nasty soul-crushing curses or more particularly curses involving death.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Indeed!

"Narzoon's nethers! I hate curses! Only the foulest and most spiteful beings use such means. Which is why I always carry with me a scroll to render such baneful energies inert. Still, what do these glyphs pertain to? The creature? This corridor? A hidden presence conjuring these beasts to torment us? The girallon dissolved when it was destroyed and I would wager a genie's wealth that this basilisk will disappear as well after we are done with this gruesome business, only to be replaced with yet another horrible manifestation. Gandel, do you have lore, wisdom, or clue as to what we should do with these glyphs? Should I apply my scroll, and if so, to what?

Now that Gandel has translated the glyphs, Pate will apply a Knowledge check to see if he has heard of this kind of particular curse or cursed being, and if any light can be shed on what to do.
Knowledge Arcana: 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (20) + 14 = 34
Knowledge Spirits: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (18) + 8 = 26


Gandel discusses the matter of the curse at length with Moonpate, trying to help the wizard solve the riddle of the glyph-bearing creature(s).

With a +11 bonus in Knowledge (arcana), Gandel auto-succeeds a DC 10 Aid Another check to add +2 to Moonpate's check. If possible, Gandel will also use Bardic Performance (Inspire Competence) to grant Moonpate a +2 competence bonus to the check, granting Moonpate a total Knowledge (arcana) check of 38.


OOC: Although those rolls are downright fantastic, I'm not sure there's any more information to be had. Moonpate knows a remove curse scroll is normally very handy for dealing with curses, but he would have known that regardless. Whatever this thing(s)/effect/glyph is, it's something that's never been seen before as far as the Professor and the Potentate know. Usually a cure effects a victim. Outside of the fact that two monsters have just attacked the Dune Squad, everyone seem to be fine (a little petrification aside). And for the moment at least, even the monster attacks have stopped. A remove curse spell can be cast on both a creature or an object.

Is there any further healing beyond Hal's extra 18 and if not shall we have Karek's next harvesting check?


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8

Harvest away!: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6

Leaf id alife and bound. We moof vorward. Karek grunts, as he continues his bloody work.


Karek Kogan wrote:
Leaf id alife and bound. We moof vorward. Karek grunts, as he continues his bloody work.

-

As Karek squeezes away he begins to become concerned that the creature is simply running out of stone-transforming goo. In response he wrings the creature all the harder, getting the last of it that he can. This though causes him to trap several of the beast's vital arteries, cutting off the supply of blood to its brain and heart.

Karek's damage for his harvest result of 6: 5d6 ⇒ (6, 3, 4, 6, 6) = 25

The creature's extremities are turning blue. It is difficult to tell if the creature is dead, dying or simply sleeping from one of Breach's repeated thunks to the noggin.

Karek nervously looks to the wineskin to see if he was able to get enough for one more dose. . .


Male Human Cleric/8

Sooron will step in as he sees the butchery and do a channel of his own, hoping to will the thing back to creating more goo.

Channel Energy4d6 ⇒ (1, 6, 6, 6) = 19


OOC: That's a total of 79 points of healing off-set by 45 points of damage for a net healing of 34 points. That is enough for a +1 pip to the die, but not a second. Let's have that roll:

How much stone to flesh is in these basilisk gusts? 1d3 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

Yikes! There is not enough to restore the Scarab or the nameless slave after all. The basilisk goes dry.


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8

Is the basilisk dead?


Karek Kogan wrote:
Is the basilisk dead?

-

Hard to know - it's not moving and there's a lot of blood. Karek's not even sure where the creature's heart would be to listen. The symbols on its body have not winked out.

Really the problem is that every time the creature has moved in the last several minutes, Breach whacked it until it stopped. That was handy for the harvesting, but makes this kind of assessment tricky.

How would you like to check?


Check its eyes - see if the pupils are dilated!


Gandel wrote:
Check its eyes - see if the pupils are dilated!

-

I am tired. It took me a few seconds to figure out you were joking. . . You totally got me. That was awesome.


Male Dwarf Barbarian (Breaker) 8

By... guessing?

Heal check: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12

Donkor, is id alibe? Heal id again.


Karek Kogan wrote:
By... guessing?

-

Sounds like - Karek has no idea. Perhaps he should follow Gandel's suggestion and remove the creature's hood, if he wants to be certain.


Male Human Cleric/8

Sooron will check once again to see if the thing might have a little more in it to give,

Heal:1d20 + 11 ⇒ (9) + 11 = 20

And if he thinks there is some hope, here is another channel energy to get it going: 4d6 ⇒ (5, 3, 6, 4) = 18


Pharasma is not done with this creature just yet. When Donkor hovers a small hand mirror over the red sack where the creature's mouth and nostrils should be, a tiny amount of condensation beings to collect on the mirror's surface.

He then calls on his goddess once more. The beast quivers and is back awake again, renewing its struggles. Does Breach clonk it unconscious as usual? The creature is still 'out of juice' so to speak. Presumably it will regenerate, but you have no idea how long it could take.

With all this area effect magic going down I can't imagine anyone is still injured at this point.


Male Half-orc Barbarian (Invulnerable Rager) 4 / Sorcerer 1/Dragon Disciple 3

Nope, even the battered Hurgah is just peachy now.

Once he is done sloshing blood on Xerissa, Hurgah picks up his axe and moves back into the tunnel past the people working on harvesting blood, ready to block the way if another threat should appear.


Hurgah takes up a defensive position in the front. In the distance, deeper into the pyramid shaft, he can see Anyo lighting up the edge of that bridge chasm.

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