As you move up to surround the coffin the lid flies off and the coffin bursts open before you can touch it. The broken boards lay scattered at your feet and a foul stench assaults your nostrils. One of the rotting Draugr stands up from the mess clutching a rusty greataxe, its red eyes filled with hate. You can hear more noises of awakening Draugr coming from the opposite side of the room .
Kelvar steps over to another coffin making noise and prepares to strike the creature within it once it tries to rise.
Kelvar studies the rising undead and then strikes at it with his axe, looking to send it back to death from its state of undeath.
-----
Move to B4 and ready an attack if Coffins 5 or 6 open.
Attack Draugr. If it dies, step to B4
The Doctor lifts the mace, tired arms straining. Unused to the item, he more lets it fall than actually swings it at the creature. It would be...generous to say this esteemed approach wasn't very effective.
[dice=Mace "Attack"]1d20+1-1+1[/dice]
His next attempt at using the, in his mind clumsy, glorified stick is even more pathetic than the last. He simply wasn't built for such brutish weapons. He preferred finesse and grace. Precision more than just 'hit it until it stops moving'. He gives the weapon a glare as though it were purposefully trying to offend him.
Marvin also takes a swing at the Draugr as it stands up.
The Doctor moves to set someone up for flanking on coffin 2 and swings at the creature as soon as it appears, missing entirely.
Kelvar steps over to another coffin making noise and prepares to strike the creature within it once it tries to rise.
Rose moves with Kevlar to the next coffin taking up a flanking position.
Move to B4 and ready an attack if Coffins 5 or 6 open.Attack: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (17) + 10 = 27
damage: 2d6 + 7 ⇒ (6, 3) + 7 = 16
You quickly reposition around the room and just as quickly 2 more coffin lids are thrown off and coffins smashed outwards as 2 more Draugr try to stand.
Rose brought her axe down again in two quick overhand blows.
Kelvar and Rose destroy the second Draugr to rise. Marvin steps towards the other one about to rise and lands several hits as it stands. It swings its greataxe powerfully and breaks past Marvin's armour to wound him . More noise of waking Draugr from three corners of the room can be heard.
Though he hears the ripping of flesh of his ally, the sound only vaguely filters through the back of his mind as he's distracted by the now rattling coffin in front of him. He carefully raises his borrowed mace above his head, prepared to strike.
Though his arms shake at holding the clumsy implement aloft, it seems the extra time to prepare at least made his aim less absolutely terrible.
Marvin takes a deep breath and swings hard at the Draugr near him.
Kelvar motions Rose towards the coffin the Doctor is next to before moving over to where Marvin is and taking position next to the rattling coffin to prepare for the next one to burst out.
Kelvar notes Marvin having trouble with the Draugr and moves over to assist him.
Talia springs over to help Marvin with his foe.
Marvin caves the creature's chest in but it somehow still stands so Kelvar and Talia rush over to help, destroying it. Three more coffins break open and Draugr rise, anger and hatred in their eyes. The Doctor knocks off half of one's face as it stands up and grips its greataxe.
Kelvar sees the Doctor in a bad position, about to be trapped between two of the creatures, so he moves over to take the attention of one so it doesn't trap the Doctor from behind.
Talia swings instinctively, and then follows up with a backswing to finish it off.
After it drops, she steps over to one of the unopened coffins.
Rose moved in next to the Doctor and swung at the Draugr he'd just struck, hoping to finish it off before the next one moved in to flank them.
"Get behind me, Doc." she said, her voice slightly muffled through her faceless helm.
Seeing that nobody had bothered to take advantage of the flanking he had set up, the Doctor glances at Rose. Unwilling to simply retreat after carefully positioning himself, he takes a swing at the creature once again before stepping not exactly 'behind' Rose so much as to her side to allow the more martial of the group better access.
Marvin moves to attack the closest draug still standing after the others had taken their swings.
With Rose's help the Doctor destroys another Draugr as do Marvin and Talia while Kelvar engages a third, catching its attention and its axe in his leg .
The remaining 2 coffins break open and 2 more Draugr stand from them holding greataxes.
Rose stepped in next to Kevlar and took a swing at the damaged Draugr, but missed and lodged her axe briefly in a coffin.
[b]
With Rose having stepped up to hopefully draw attention of the one Draugr away from him, Kelvar studies the one that just woke up before lashing out at it with his axe and shield.
Talia moves to the north to deal with the lonely draugr.
Figuring that Talia probably has the lone draugr (and that he couldn't really get in a position to assist her anyway), the Doctor moves to help box in the two others, swinging at the closer one.
Marvin moves, and swings at another Draugr. "One per coffin, then? Is that the whole puzzle?"
With a quick step forward and precision swings Talia takes the head off the lone Draugr. It swings its axe wildly through the air at her in its last death spasm before collapsing.
Kelvar, the Doctor and Marvin overwhelm their opponent crushing and cutting it down.
Only 1 remains and swings its axe at Rose, somehow just slipping past her armour .
Rose snarled through the pain and swung back.
The Doctor steps backward slightly to give the far-more-effective-with-annoyingly-heavy-weapons Talia easier access to the last remaining undead.
Kelvar looks at the final Draugr and, snarling, strikes at it with axe and shield.
Talia bounds over to join in on slaughtering the dead. While it is not nearly as fun as watching Mithran clergy bleeding out, it is necessary to prove their worth to the Cardinal.
Kelvar cuts off an arm and pushes it against the wall with his shield as Talia moves in and destroys it with one final blow. The room is a mess with coffin shards and wooden boards scattered all around. 8 rotten corpses lay still with rusty greataxes and mouldy leather armour; all worthless.
The third door reveals another hallway 20ft. in length that ends at a reinforced door, different to the rest. It is locked, but a heavy iron key hangs from a peg besides the door. Above it is a new inscription.
Kelvar motions the others back a bit, then says in a low voice, "Timeon said Sir Balin was down here somewhere. We've not encountered him, and this should be the ninth room. If he is back there, do we simply want to rush him and try to take him down, or do we want to do something more...Asmodean..." With that last, Kelvar taps his circlet, and suddenly he takes on the appearance of a Knight of the Alerion, complete with tabard.
"I like the way you think, Kevlar." Rose's form wavered and melted into a uniform that matched his. "I'm not sure it will work though. He's a Witch Hunter. I'm pretty sure he can sense you and I's connection to Asmodeus, in the same way I can sense his connection to Mitra. If we want to trick him, you and I should hang back and let the others do the work until it's time to kill him."
Once the last draugr is dead again, the Doctor hands the mace over to Harker. "Clean then and then return it to Master Kelvar."
He then nods to the man in question. "I thank you for the loan of your weapon. Though you will excuse me if I also hope to never have to do that again; I'm afraid your weapon is...not to my tastes."
He then steps back to address the rest of the group. "Ahh, but where are my manners? If I am not mistaken, some of you were injured in that last skirmish. Might I offer you a healing beverage before we continue? I can make more if desired." He holds up his vial of blue liquid once again.
-----
The Doctor frowns thoughtfully at Kelvar's suggestion. "Hmmm, I'm not sure how well I myself might pass as a knight. As you may have noticed, my talents lie less with the martial than the two of you. If this is our ruse, I might do better as a squire perhaps. Though we will also have to have a reason why the two of you might hang back. Though depending on how thick this stone is, if you simply stand on this side by the walls rather than next to the open door--guarding the entry as it were--that might be enough to block Sir Balin's senses, if it is indeed him."
"How much of that stuff do you have, Doc? Who else is hurt?" Rose asked looking around the group.
"Right now, just the one. If we pause for a couple of minutes, I can make up to two more though."
Nodding at the Doctor's remarks, Kelvar says, "You are welcome. There is a lighter version of this weapon that may be to your style. Perhaps we should look into acquiring one for you."
Remembering his wounds as his leg nearly buckles, Kelvar pulls out his wand of infernal healing and says, "I also have the wand of healing, if any of you would prefer. It would also allow you to whip up some concoctions that can either increase our fighting prowess or make us more difficult to hit."
With that, Kelvar stabs his hand with the wand, and the wound on his leg mostly closes.
Marvin considers asking for a charge from Kelvar's wand, just in case, but in the end decides he's willing to expend his prepared copy of the same spell.
Talia will shake her head. The damage to her vitality is the worst issue.
"Save the potion, Doc. Wands are a better option when we aren't fighting."
"Ow! Is that really necessary?" she asked at the end of the wand stabbed her in the arm.