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M Rattus norvegicus

You decide you're going to try to get intel on the Yerath and Undead armies. There are four key tasks to accomplish this and acquire the most information.

Task 1:
First, you must capture a person with significant knowledge. A bit of spy work and investigation can determine who this will be.

Spy - Two Rolls. A hide check and a perception check. For each bane you apply to the hide check, gain one boon to your perception check.

If you fail the hide check, then you've raised suspicion by the enemy and they will investigate your position. Elude or otherwise survive this encounter to try again.

You must succeed on the hide roll to make the perception roll. If you succeed on the perception check, then you can roll on the following table.

Perception Success (1d6, +1 if you rolled a 20+).
1: You overheard the name and location of a guard, who heard some rumors about what's going on.
2: You heard the name and location of a sergeant, who was critical to the success of the invasion.
3: You discovered the name and location of a war academic for the undead army.
4: You hear the name Mr. Kraund, and you get a lead on where he is.
5: You overheard the name and home of a necromancer who may or may not have spell exhaustion.
6: You discovered the name and location of a high ranking officer in the Yerath army.

Task 2:
Now that you know who to capture, it's time to actually kidnap them. You must find a way to lure them out and ensure them in a trap.

Lure Roll. Intelligence roll - each bane you apply leads them further away from safety and increases your odds at capture.

Failure to lure them out simply means you must go in and capture them yourselves. This may involve combat, but you have the benefit of being able to plan if you want to avoid a fight. Don't let them escape.

Success on the lure roll brings them out into the open and available to capture. How you capture them is up to you.

Task 3:
Get them to talk. It's up to you how you do this. If you get them to tell you everything, then they'll not only reveal some of the history of the armies, but also where to acquire secret documents to determine their plans.

Task 4:
Acquire the secret documents for the full information. You must find a way into a set location so you can steal the documents.


M Rattus norvegicus

You have several options and goals you can aim for during your time in the city. The more you try to accomplish, the greater the risk.

1) Human Rescue. Rescue some humans from their enslavement, and provide them a path to safely escape the city.
2) Aquire Goods. Gain funds and potentially magical gear for yourselves.
3) Inhibit the Yerath. Halt or reduce the Yerath's ability to advance their army and accomplish their goals.
4) Inhibit the Undead. Halt or reduce the Undead's ability to advance their army and accomplish their goals.
5) Mushu Restoration Path. Perform Step 1 on Mushu's long path towards breaking away from the Yerath Queen and gaining mental freedom.
6) Gather Information. Find out more about the Yerath and Undead armies, and about Mushu. Discover their plans, their accomplishments, and more.

You can attempt to do one or more of these tasks, with your success dependant on your actions and how well you roll. For each attempt you make, the risk of getting caught becomes higher and higher. Getting caught could result in capture or death.


M Rattus norvegicus

As the rest stay behind, Keri makes her way inwards towards the city, avoiding guards and patrols seemingly easily. Its a mix of her natural talents, some blessings from her god, and the general complacency of the guards. Believing they already have the city conquered, they're less paying attention to anyone sneaking in, and more trying to look out for escaping humans.

During the excursion, Keri witnesses a horrifying site - something she's seen before.

Keri:
As you duck behind some rubble, you overhear a familiar voice. Daring to peak out, you see a horrific amalgamation of a large insect merged with a snake - but it's no ordinary snake, it's M'ushu. And he's the one giving the orders to yerath and necromancer alike. You hear one of them say "Yes, General," after he gives them a command.


M Rattus norvegicus

The giant accidentally crushes the hiding spot Con was sequestered behind, and Con narrowly jumps out of the way. With quick thinking, he lays still, pretending to be dead.

"Be more careful!" the necromancer calls out to the giant without even looking up from his book. The two continue on their way out of the alley, not even noticing the hidden party.


M Rattus norvegicus

The giant zombie comes stomping through the alleyway you had set up as an ambush site. It doesn't even see you as you walk past, stomping it's way through.

By sheer happenstance, it nearly crushes CKTV: 1d4 ⇒ 1

Make an agility challenge roll. On a success, you jump out of your hiding spot, revealing yourself. On a failure, take 3d6 damage from being stepping on by a giant zombie.

Mere seconds after, a human with pale skin, dark sunken eyes, and dirty purple robes comes walking behind the zombie giant. He seems mostly unaware of his surroundings, as his nose is in a book as he walks, with a magical floating light bobbing just above and behind him shedding light enough for him to read by.


M Rattus norvegicus

You set up your ambush in an out-of-the-way location, with a clever lure to draw the attention of a curious guard. (Please describe where your characters are).

Unfortunately, instead of luring a guard in, an undead giant comes stumbling into your trap. A full 15 feet tall hulk of rotting flesh.

What do you do?


M Rattus norvegicus

You search for and set up a good ambush site. It's about midnight now, and it's fairly dark. Gas lamps light the inner streets, which creates heavy shadows this far away.

Roll a d6 to determine which kind of group shows up for the ambush:
1: A yerathi general
2: An animated Hulk
3: 3 yerathi elite soldiers
4: 2 encaged
5: 3 yerathi scouts
6: a poltergeist


M Rattus norvegicus

It takes over an hour, but Vultan manages to find a ship that is suitable for an escape. One that doesn't require more than a handful of people to sail, but still allows for multiple passengers in the event you manage to rescue someone. It's still amazing that he can suddenly do all this, even if it took some time to try and figure out.

Meanwhile, Con and Tamien search the abandoned streets to try to find anything useful, or a good passageway into the city.

You can find common gear scattered throughout the streets, but anything more valuable has already been scavenged or is too damaged to be of use.

As you search, you discover that most of the streets and alleyways that leads further into the city have been blocked off. Some of them with rubble from damaged buildings that collapsed during the battle. Others have been deliberately blocked with wood and stone, creating barriers and preventing escape from those inside. The few passages that are clear are guarded by yerath soldiers or with undead - mostly zombies.


M Rattus norvegicus

You disembark from the ship, taking a smaller rowboat towards the docks, gliding silently along the waters as the shallow waves reflect the moonlight in scattered sparkles.

You connect to the dock with a solid thunk, but the sound doesn't travel into the city.

"This is where we leave you. Good luck," the captain says, before quickly getting back into the boat and pushing off.

You turn and face the dark city; the gas lamps have not been lit, and the only light comes from the two half moons. They cast a silver sheen over the cobblestone roads and brick houses.

There's not a soul in sight; the docks have remained empty ever since the yerath attacked; as testament to the remains of fallen goods and the skeletons of the ships still moored. For now, you're safe. But it won't take much to get past enemy lines.


M Rattus norvegicus

The sailors think you're crazy and don't want anything to do with what's going on in Nessus. "But if you're so insistent, at least let us drop you off in the cover of the night. Won't help against the undead, but those bugs can't see in the dark any better than anyone else."

"I see two ways you can enter. The docks; the Yerath seem to have completely abandoned them. From what I've seen, they're afraid of the water. Likely cause they drop like a sack of rocks as soon as they enter, and then quickly drown. The buggers can't swim. I can glide next to the docks with a smaller boat and silently get you to any part of the city's shoreline, but then you'll have to cross over the surface inwards, facing whatever dangers you might come across. The city seems to be swarming with bugs and undead."

"The second is the sewers. The sewers pour directly into the ocean, and they're a long time smuggling port. Yerath have always avoided the sewers, but there are other dangers. However, it will allow you to cross under the city undetected if you're able to navigate them. The major downside is your travel options will be more limited; it's easy to get trapped and surrounded down there. And no one will be able to hear you scream for help if you need it."

"So what'll it be? The docks or the sewers?"


M Rattus norvegicus

You say your goodbyes and set off into the ocean, aiming to dock at Nessus, the city of decay. Nessus was once a great metropolis, with industry and a renowned magical school. But that was long ago, before it gained its name as "the city of decay." It was called so because the great city has fallen into decayed over time.

A year ago, after the emperor died, people decided to take back the city for itself, reclaiming lost land from the encroaching wilderness. At the same time, the yerath decided to take the ruins below the city for themselves. Undead were also a constant problem for all, and the yerath kept living and dead alike away from their new homes.

The Bone Queen is still a known threat.

And all of this was true until about two weeks ago, when a new yerath commander took charge of the hives below the city and made a massive move of aggression against the surface dwellers.

As you come close to the city on the waters, you can see yerath solders marching along the streets. Skeletons also walk feely in the city, suggesting that the yerath have allied with the Bone Queen. Non-yerath still alive are kept under chain, and are put into forced labor camps to rebuild the walls and buildings after the damage from the siege.

Probably the only thing good about this entire scene is the fact that yerath and undead alike keep away from the waters.


M Rattus norvegicus

The idea for a special signal turned out to be a good one. You were able to find a log book run by the keepers, and in it held codes for signalling for help. Help doesn't come quickly way out here, however. It took nearly a week before a small ship showed up. But it did provide you the means to escape the island and get back to the mainland.

You can decide where on the map you'd like to land.


M Rattus norvegicus

Vultan's singing is surprisingly soothing to your souls. His voice brings truly brings out the concept that music can ease your burdens and lessen your pains.

Each day you travel, the easier things become on your mind.

As you approach the lighthouse, dragging the boat behind you in the snow, you see something disconcerting. Off in the distance, far away across the ocean, there is a plume of fire. Its coming from the north, slightly to the north-east of where you are. Something over on the other shore is burning, and it's burning big.

You're welcomed back with open arms from the sailors you left behind. The lighthouse is operational, with the yellow-white light shining brightly and beaming out from the cliff edge.

Back at the house, they have warm fish soup ready to eat.

"Since the fog has cleared, we've seen some boats out there, but none have made their way to the island yet. We don't know how often they come here, but we're sure they'll come soon. The people who lived here couldn't have survived on their own for so long without supplies.

But that fire worries me. That's the direction of the Kingdom of Skulls, of Nessus, the City of Decay. I don't know what's causing it, but if the city is burning, then something big is going on."


M Rattus norvegicus

Yes, you can get some of that root. They'll give you a root that has 1d6 doses.

You rest on the landing and continue your way down after a cold sleep. At the bottom, you find your boat where you left it, and begin the arduous journey back to the light house.

It's actually faster on the way back. Now that you somewhat know the terrain and have been given a power boost, making your way back isn't as difficult. You take advantage of the waters, especially in part to Vultan's new profession, rowing around ice sheets and avoiding having to constantly take the boat in and out of the water.

After days of travel, you find the lighthouse's beam shining. You follow it and make your way back to the house you spent so much time cleaning and repairing.

Write a story about something you witnessed or encountered during the journey. Feel free to make it as ordinary or fantastic as you like.


M Rattus norvegicus

You spend the next several days resting and getting used to your new equipment and talents. With warm clothing and full bellies, you're ready to depart. The skies are clear and the air is crisp. It's hard to remember the last time you breathed in air so fresh and pleasant.

It's a long walk to the bottom of the stairs; and while you may have suspected it would be easier, it wasn't. Walking down steps is almost harder than climbing up; you're constantly having to stop yourself from falling, praying you won't slip.

You find the same landing you had camped at originally; do you camp or keep going?

You know that when you reach the bottom, you'll (hopefully) find the boat you left behind. The one you carried all this way. Are you going to use it to travel east, likely hitting land even if you go off course? Or will you return to the lighthouse and seek guidance from the sailors?

What do you do?


M Rattus norvegicus

"WITH THREE GATES OPEN, THE VEIL TO THE VOID IS STARTING TO TEAR OPEN. DEMONS WILL START TO ENTER INTO THE WORLD, CAUSING CHAOS, DESTRUCTION, AND DEATH.

EXPECT THAT YOUR RIVALS WILL START TO GET DESPARATE IN THEIR OWN QUESTS FOR POWER, AND WILL SEARCH FOR THE REMAINING GATES IN EARNEST. THERE IS A MAP IN THE OTHER ROOM; THE MONKS WILL SHOW IT TO YOU. FROM THERE, YOU MUST DECIDE WHAT SHALL BE YOUR NEXT GOAL.


M Rattus norvegicus

Gax takes a moment to pause at the questions...

YES... the immensely powerful being ponders, YES, I THINK THAT WILL BE FINE. YOU MUST FIRST CONVINCE HER TO JOIN MY SIDE AND HELP ME, AND THEN YOU MUST WORK HARDER TO GAIN ALL THE NECESSARY GATES CLAIMED IN MY NAME. BUT I THINK IT WILL BE OK FOR YOU TO GRANT A GATE TO THE SUMMER QUEEN.

After a moment, the genie then addresses Con, I DID NOT CHOOSE YOU. I REACHED OUT INTO THE MANY DIMENSIONS TO FIND SOULS WHO COULD HELP, WHO MIGHT BE WILLING TO TRY. YOU ARE WHO SHOWED UP.

AND I HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN YOUR QUESTION, KERI. MY OTHER GIFT OF SUPPORT IS THIS.

When the being says "this" you all feel a surge of energy flow into you.

Congratulations! You have made it to level 3! You may choose any expert path from any book. Some expert paths may need to be slightly altered if they are particularly weak or strong.


M Rattus norvegicus

"I HAVE TWO THINGS PLANNED FOR YOU RIGHT NOW. THE FIRST IS SOME GEAR TO HELP YOU ON YOUR JOURNEY."

Gax pauses for a moment, as if in thought. A few moments later, the door opens and several monks come walking into the room carrying various items. They lay the items out before you. You see a pendant, a stone, a pair of sturdy boots, and a ring.

One of the monks bows to you. "The first item is the Flame Pendant," he says. "Long ago, genies shaped the worlds. To assist them in their endeavors, they created elementals to assist - the gnomes to shape the earth, the undine to fill the oceans, the sylphs to move the winds, and the fiery salamanders to protect them all. This pendant was forged by the salamanders so that others may survive the heat while working with them. Over time, the magic within began to grow, so that a bit of that fiery essence would transfer to the bearer. When worn, you become inured to fire and flame, and your fire magic becomes more potent. It is here in our care because the genies will it to be here." Mechanics: You take half damage from fire, and when you deal damage with fire, you deal 1d6 extra damage.

Next he gestures to the stone, "This is the Sepsis Stone. This stone has been passed down from master to apprentice in a secret guild for generations. We know not how it was first created. It is in our care because the last owner found herself here at our temple, during her final days. She did not impart any further knowledge other than this: When you sharpen a blade with it, your blade glows a poisonous light." Mechanics: When you spend five minutes sharpening your blade with this sharpening stone, your blade glows an eerie purple color (shedding light out to 2 yards). While your blade is glowing, any time you deal damage, you also cause the poisoned affliction for 1 round. If the creature is already poisoned, you deal 1d6 extra damage. If you roll a 20+, the creature remained poisoned until they take a rest. If you roll a 0 or less, your blade stops glowing. The glow ends when you take a rest, or when you use a triggered action on your turn to end it the effect.

Moving to the boots, he says, "These are Jumper Boots. Created by Nigel Schumacher, a wizard of the Tower Arcane in Caecras. As you can guess by the name, he grew up as a cobbler. Despite being a wizard, he still loved shoes. With these boots strapped to your feet, you can quickly travel short distances with them." Mechanics: You can use an action to teleport to a location you can see. This item has 3 uses. Uses reset when you take a rest.

"And lastly," he says, gesturing to the golden ring, "The Ring of Life. This ring is a one of a kind - created by the First People before the rise of Ashrakal. It is very powerful; you can use it to bring someone back to life." Mechanics: The ring has two uses. First, you can use an action to grant one creature you are touching a +5 bonus to Health for 1 minute. This effect has three uses, and uses reset when you take a rest. Secondly, you can concentrate for 24 hours to bring one deceased mortal with a soul back to life; you must be touching the body while you concentrate. When you use this ability, the ring become inert for 1 week.

"You may each take an item of your choice. In addition, we have plenty of other gear at your disposal. Weapons, armor, clothing, and more. Please, help yourself." Mechanics: You can choose any items from any book, up to a combined total of 5 gold crowns for each PC.


M Rattus norvegicus

"THE TROLLS AND THE FAE BOTH HATE GENIES, AND WOULD LIKELY TRY TO TALE THE POWER FOR THEMSELVES, BELIEVING THEMSELVES STRONG ENOUGH TO DEFEAT THE DEMON LORD. DO NOT BE FOOLED; NONE OF US WILL EVER BE STRONG ENOUGH TO DEFEAT THE DEMON LORD. WE CAN ONLY HOLD IT AT BAY. I BELIEVE FATHER DEATH AGREED TO JOIN MY FIGHT ONLY BECAUSE HE WISHES TO DIE.

"IF WE FAIL, THE WORLD WILL BE CONSUMED AND WE SHALL ALL PERISH. UNLESS YOU CAN SOMEHOW CONVINCE WHICHEVER CREATURE TAKES ALL THE POWER TO WILLINGLY SACRIFICE THEMSELVES SO SAVE ALL OTHERS. ONLY THE GENIES HAVE EVER BEEN SHOWN WILLING TO SO SUCH.

"THE NEW GOD IS FALSE. DIABOLUS INVENTED IT IN ORDER TO GAIN MORE POWER AND MANIPULATE THE REST OF THE FAE. UNFORTUNATELY FOR DIABOLUS, FAITH HAS POWER, AND SHIFTS THE GODS INTO FORMS IMAGINED BY THE FAITHFUL. DIABOLUS IS TORN, WITH PART OF HIM REMAINING THE DEVIL AND PART OF HIM BECOMING THE NEW GOD. HE IS TRANSITIONING."


M Rattus norvegicus

"THE OTHER GENIES THOUGHT I WAS CRAZY TO VOLUNTEER FOR THIS TASK." Gax explains. "BUT IN THE END, I WAS RIGHT. THEY ALL WENT CRAZY, THOSE WHO SURVIVED. BUT I AM STILL HERE."

"THE SECOND GATE WAS NOT OPENED BY ONE OF MINE. EACH GATE THAT OPENS RELEASES SOME OF MY POWER. BUT IF IT IS OPENED IN THE NAME OF SOMEONE ELSE, THEY CLAIM THE POWER INSTEAD OF ME.

“THE SECOND GATE WAS OPENED BY SOME SORT OF INSECT; ONCE THE GATE WAS OPENED, MY VISION OF IT WAS GONE. I CAN NO LONGER SEE WHAT IS HAPPENING THERE. IT IS NOT A GOOD SIGN; I MUST REGAIN MY FULL STRENGTH IF WE ARE TO RECREATE THE BARRIER AROUND THE WORLDS AND KEEP THE DEMON LORD AT BAY.

“EACH GATE THAT IS OPENED DESTROYS THE BARRIER A LITTLE MORE. WITH THREE GATES OPEN, I EXPECT THE DEMONS TO START INFILTRATING THE WORLD TO STOP YOU ON YOUR QUEST. EACH GATE THAT IS OPENED IN THE NAME OF SOMEONE ELSE GRANTS THEM POWER AND DIMINISHES THE POWER OF ALL OTHERS.

“THERE ARE FIVE PLAYERS ON THE TABLE RIGHT NOW:

“THE DEMONS, THE TROLLS, THE FAE, THE INSECTS, AND MYSELF, THE LAST SANE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE GENIES.

“BEFORE WE GET TO THAT, LET US SPEAK OF SOME HISTORY. LONG AGO, BACK WHEN I WAS STILL FREE, WE GENIES WARRED WITH THE FAE AND THE TROLLS. WE CREATED THE WORLD AND MORTALS USING THE SUBSTANCE OF THE DEMON LORD, BUT THAT REALLY ANGERED THE DEMON LORD, AND IT SOUGHT TO ERADICATE ALL WE CREATED. SO WE MADE A BARRIER TO PROTECT OUR CREATIONS. I VOLUNTEERED TO BE CONFINED BEHIND THE GATES, TO KEEP THE BARRIER POWERED AND TO KEEP THE DEMONS AT BAY. THERE WERE ORIGINALLY 20 GATES, BUT EACH TIME ONE IS OPENED, THE INDIVIDUAL CAN CLAIM THE POWER FOR THEMSELVES. THIS IS HOW THE FAE LORDS AND LADIES BECAME GODS; THEY TOOK THE POWER FOR THEMSELVES. SOME OF THE TROLLS DID THE SAME, AND BECAME WHAT IS NOW KNOWN AS THE DARK GODS. THERE WERE NINE GATES REMAINING, AND I WAS ABLE TO WHAT LITTLE INFLUENCE I HAD ON THE WORLD TO HIDE THEM OR PROTECT THEM. NOW THERE ARE SIX.

“TO REGAIN ENOUGH POWER TO RECREATE THE BARRIER, I NEED AT LEAST TEN GATES TO BE OPENED IN MY NAME, OR I NEED THOSE CURRENTLY HOLDING THE POWER OF THE GATES TO BE KILLED SO THE POWER MAY BE RELEASED AND RETURNED TO ME. ALREADY, ONE OF THE GODS HAS PLEDGED TO DO SO - FATHER DEATH. HE UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE, AND SEEKS TO BRING THE FAE TO THEIR WINTER. THIS IS WHY HE BROUGHT NICK BACK AS A REVENANT.

“THERE ARE SIX GATES REMAINING. YOU MUST SEE TO IT THAT THEY ARE OPENED IN MY NAME; EACH TIME YOU OPEN ONE, I GAIN MORE POWER AND CAN DIMINISH THE POWER OF THE OTHERS. AS THEIR POWER DIMINISHES, YOU WILL GROW STRONGER AND BE ABLE TO CHOOSE WHICH TWO GODS TO HUNT DOWN AND KILL. FOR EACH GATE YOU FAIL TO OPEN, YOU WILL HAVE TO HUNT DOWN ANOTHER GOD, AND THEY WILL BE THAT MUCH STRONGER.”


M Rattus norvegicus

The next day Nick takes you to meet Gax. You’re taken to the Gate, but this time it looks vastly different from the keep in the ocean, the one you’ve colloquially called the “water gate.” Here, the gate is themed with ice and snow; it’s cold inside, and there are snowflakes carved into the walls. The gate itself is in the middle of the largest snowflake, with active ice crystals forming and growing from the center.

Other than this, and yourselves, the room seems empty. Then you notice it - a translucent entity takes up almost the entirety of the room, from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. You’re practically standing inside of it!

”GREETINGS!” the entity booms inside your head. It sounds incredibly loud, but you’re not hearing it through your ears - as such, the loudness doesn’t hurt. It’s just, well, LOUD.

”I AM THE MARQUIS OF LUNACY, GAX THE UNFATHOMABLE AND DISREPUTABLE. THE THIRD GATE HAS BEEN OPENED, AND I AM FINALLY FREE OF MY CONFINEMENT.”


M Rattus norvegicus

As you talk, Nick leads.you inside. It's not warm, but it's better than outside. Soon you make it to soom rooms where Nick stops.

Another bundled-up, long-haired monk says, "These are your rooms. These is plenty of wood, and fires will be started soon so you can warm up. Food will be ready in an hour. Someone will deliver it to you."

There are four rooms in this hall, but Nick already had one of them. As you settle in, a younger monk - pethaps 19 years old with a shaved head - shows up to see Tamien. "Here you are, mister!" he says, a bit jubilantly. "The head master says it will heal your wounds." The salve given to you is a thick gel with an oily feeling, almost like hair gel, but with a pungent odor. Using it will definitely give you a very unique scent that everyone will be able to smell from around the corner.

Using the Salve:
Using thg gel and spending a rest will heal you an extra healing rate, and alleviate your speech impediment from your injury last downtime. There are 1d6 uses of the salve, and using it tonight takes up 1 use. If there's any remaining, you can use it when you take a rest to heal an additional healing rate, but it grants 1 boon to track you until you bathe.

You settle in for the night. Warm soup is delivered to your rooms. The beds are made of a pile of furs, which turns out to be surprisingly comfortable and warm.

You wake up the next morning, finally getting a good night's rest.

Vultan - You. Are. Sore. The long hike did a number on your muscles, leaving you walking a bit funny for the rest of the day. This counts as "partial" fatigue. You'll have a bane on agility challenge rolls until your next rest.

Tam, Keri, and Con - Make a will challenge roll. On a failure, you must make a second will challenge roll on your next rest. If you also fail that one, you become addicted to the root.

Addiction:
If you are addicted, then each day you must chew on the root; failure to do so means you must make a will challenge roll when you take a rest. On a failure, you are impaired until you chew on the root again, or until you take three rests without taking the root.

Chewing on the root makes you immune to the fatigued condition until you take a rest.


M Rattus norvegicus

"A lot has changed for me since I died," Nick says, with a bit of introspection. "I am on a path I cannot veer from. There is a desire within me, a need, a compulsion to continue forward and accomplish my goals. You stayed behind to help, and it was a good thing, but I could not have stayed. I could not choose otherwise."

You notice that Nick doesn't breathe very much. He seems to only breathe when he needs to speak; air passing over his vocal cords. It's a function of having to communicate, rather than a function of life.

"A side effect of working for Thanatos, I suppose. Speaking of which, there is a gate here, exactly as we were told. I have already claimed it. Thanatos wants all the gates claimed for Gax. The time of winter is approaching, and we are on a path to ensure it comes."

"Gax would like to speak to you, whenever you are ready. You are free to sleep first, I imagine that climb must have been tiring. I'm sure I would have been exhausted if I hadn't have died."


M Rattus norvegicus

Nick looks pale and unemotional - likely a consequence of his newfound ancestry. The cold weather didn't do any favors to his complexion, but the fact that he's a revenant keeps him going despite how his body looks.

"Yes, welcome. Glad you made it," he says in a flat tone. "I lost you in the fog, and decided to come straight here. Took me a while to find it, but I've been here for several days. I told them to expect you soon. What took you so long?"


M Rattus norvegicus

You set off once again, a little warmer, a little less hungry, but not quite rested enough to get to the top. Fortunately for you, you seemed to have found the half way point. It only took you the rest of the day to get to the top of the stairs.

The mysterious man introduced himself as Pange (pronounce Panj), a monk at the temple. He has been living there for three years. He offers you some herbs to chew on to help ease the pain of the steps - it looks like a root, and you simply chew on it as you walk.

Any questions you ask of him are met with, "Please, conserve your strength. You may talk after you rest."

Taking the root:
It eases the pain enough so you can keep going. It doesn't eliminate it, but it provides that extra endurance you need.

Not taking the root:
Make a strength challenge roll with 2 banes. On a failure, you are fatigued for the rest of the day. Any boons you may have apply, as appropriate.

As you approached the top, you could see the temple - a small keep with high walls. After this long day, it looks like heaven. You imagine there is warmth inside, and perhaps a comfortable place to rest. You make it those last struggling steps up to the gates, where they're opened and you enter.

Inside, waiting for you, is Nick.


M Rattus norvegicus
Quote:
Then they spotted some one coming down the mountain. "Hello? Tamien called out to the individual." waving his arm "We're travelers, heading to Monastery. You probably saw fire smoke?"

The newcomer waves back at the call, but doesn't respond quite yet.

As they get closer, you can see they're wearing heavy furs to keep warm from the cold; their hair is long and dark, and they have a long beard to match their hair.

"Hello!" a masculine voice finally returns the greeting. "Yes, I came down from the monastery. We were expecting you. I believe you have a friend here waiting for you. Please, rest as long as you like. When you are ready, I shall escort you up to the temple."


M Rattus norvegicus

It takes another solid day to get around the mountain, following the base of the mountain. Your avoidance of the steep climb paid off - the next day, you discover a long set of steps leading up the mountain. It will still be difficult - those are a lot of steps - but not nearly as difficult as climbing up the nearly shear slope on the other side.

(Do you leave the boat at the bottom?)

After you make your decision, you begin the ascent. It's easy for the first couple dozen steps, but soon it starts wearing on you. Especially for those who are of less physical strength or those carrying a lot of gear.

Step. Step. Step. Step. Step.

After a half hour, your calves are absolutely killing you. Con and Tam manage to hold off a while longer before their calves are burning from the climb. It's a hard, arduous climb - but a lot easier still than trying to scale the mountain side. At least the steps allow you to pause and rest.

About half way through the day you pause on a relatively wide step that serves as a flat open area. You start a fire to warm up; not only is the terrain cold, but the higher elevation makes it worse. The sweat from working out is making your clothes damp, which ends up freezing and makes the cold even worse. Of course, only Tam and Con have to deal with that aspect of it.

Without Keri's fire spells, it would be nearly impossible to start a fire; there's very little dry wood, everything is either wet or green. The green wood gives off thick smoke, which rises into the air. You cook some meat over the fire and have a lunch that warms you from the inside, while the warmth of the fire sheds the freezing cold away.

After an hour of warming up, delaying the inevitable pain and cold of continuing the steps, you see something. It's a person! They're coming down the steps from the monastery.


M Rattus norvegicus

It's hard work getting the boat up the cliffside, but you manage to accomplish it. The next day, the trek begins. You pull the small boat like a sled; once you get to the ice and snow, it becomes easier. But there's no two ways around it; it's challenging. The ice and wind sap at your strength, even with the heavy clothes on - except for Vultan and Keri, who seem to be as if they were walking through a park on a sunny day; they're not affected by the cold at all.

Bringing the boat ended up being a lifesaver. Multiple times you had to cross bodies of water to get between ice shelves, so you could continue. Swimming in that would have been the end, you're sure of it.

After days of hard travel, cold bitter days and worse nights, you finally get a glimpse of hope - there's some sort of light up ahead. It's small and flickering through the windswept snow, but it's there. As you get closer, the faint outline of a keep starts to appear. Tam's idea about the trinket guiding the way turned out to be correct.

The keep is at the top of a steep mountain peak; you'll have to leave your boat behind to climb up from this angle.

What do you do? Do you want to venture up towards the keep, or keep going in hopes of finding another place that's easier to get to?


M Rattus norvegicus

The days and weeks pass. The weather never shifts from the cold bitterness of the storm - the sheer proximity to the frozen wastes to the south mean that the icewatch isles are also bitterly cold - at least for those who don’t have magic vestments to keep them warm. The dense fog and moisture in the air from the demonic rituals made the ground muddy, and the constant trekking back and forth has created muddy grooves into the ground between the house and the lighthouse.

As the skies clear from the evil fog, you can actually see a good distance into the sea. Whales, dolphins, and other sea creatures occasionally appear on the surface. Ocean birds fly overhead.

The house turns out to be a comfortable living place, and everyone helps out with keeping it maintained. One of the sailors ends up being a decent cook, while the others take turns operating the lighthouse. Without a boat or ship of their own, they are out of a job. With a free house and an empty lighthouse, it serves as the perfect opportunity for a new career. When the sailors aren’t working the lighthouse, they’re down by the ocean trying to fish to provide food.

Once you have everything settled, you are able to start making excursions south. It gets cold fast. You quickly learn that the majority of the icewatch isles are covered in snow; practically glaciers. The ocean waters between them are filled with ice bergs, and much of it can actually be crossed on foot. It seems that the lighthouse was located on the northern most part that wasn’t frozen over, making it a relatively comfortable living place for a lighthouse, without having to deal with the more extremes that start a day's walk to the south.

Before you head too much further south, you’re going to have to find a way to deal with the freezing colds for anyone going with you. At the very least, Keri and Vultan are covered. But what about Tam, Con, and Kil’hara? Or any of the sailors you may want to bring with you?


M Rattus norvegicus

The next several days are spent cleaning first the house, so you have a place to sleep, and then the tower. It takes a while hauling water up from the ocean, but you manage to do so with many hands.

You contemplate using the religious vestments of Keri and Vultan, the ones granted to them by the Summer Queen herself, Do you want to risk corrupting the vestments?

For each vestment used, the owner must make a will challenge roll subtracting your corruption score from the result. On a failure, the vestment becomes infused with demonic energy. Mechanical effects to be determined. Using the vestments will decrease the time to clean everything by 1/2. Current time to clean is one week. Using one vestment drops that down to 3 days; using both drops it down to 1.5 days.


M Rattus norvegicus

You quickly call to them and meet up. They're astonished and amazed at everything you went through; and saddened by what happened to the crew. There are three of them. There were four, but one of them fell off the cliff while they were wandering in the fog.

You make your way back to the lighthouse and set up camp in the cellar - the only clean place in the house. A guard shift is set up, but the sheer exertion and exhaustion of the past few weeks proved too overwhelming and soon everyone was asleep. You awake in the darkness of the cellar, and when you emerge, the sun is out and shining.

The next day is spent dealing with the dead. You bury those worthy of such a dead and burn the rest.

The fire attracted sea birds, who flew around overhead and cawed frequently, but none dared go near the flames. The bodies at first brought about the smell of cooking meat, which made your stomach rumble with hunger, juxtaposed with the realization that it was dead fishmen that was causing the smell - the thought nearly made you nauseous.

But eventually the scent turned to overcooked meat and then the stench of overly cooked flesh. By the end, it was a foul burnt smell that didn't leave your nostrils for days.

Your next major decision is to stay and clean the house and lighthouse (one or both), or move on and search out the next temple.


M Rattus norvegicus

You spend the next hour bringing the bodies of the sacrificed men down the tower and outside, covering them with what you can find. As the hour passes, the dense fog begins to lift. By the time you have half the bodies out, you can already see the keeper's home from the lighthouse.

By the time the hour is over, you can see much farther. You head back up to the top floor to remove the skin from the light itself, removing the red light of the lighthouse back to its normal color, and realize that you can see quite the distance from up here - in fact, you can even see some people way over there. It's several of the crewmen from the ship! They were wandering lost in the fog. It looks like not everyone from your ship was killed by the fishmen, and perhaps some of these bodies were actually from somewhere else.

More to come, just posting what I can for now...


M Rattus norvegicus

As the fishman falls dead at Con's feet, the once-human-turned-lizard redirects his attention to the crab monster. With a quick strike, Con decapitates the beast; arterial blood spurting out of the open neck, spraying several feet into the air.

With the monster gone, the fishmen all surrender - those who are alive, anyways. All of them are still under the effects of the terror spell, and without their summoning and creation, they are too afraid to do anything else. Killing them will be easy, as they will not resist - but you may also choose to let them live.

As the moments pass and you finally have a chance to catch your breath, the air also starts to clear. It becomes less foggy. The red light is still prominent, thanks to the skin stretched over the lighthouse light. And there still is some fog, as the barnacles releasing them still live. But the demonic magic which was enhancing everything seems to have been broken.

Things to address: What to do with the fishmen. What to do with the barnacles. What to do about the light. What to do with the horrific third floor and the viscera spread over everywhere, including the demonic ritual symbols made out of entrails and blood. What to do with the bodies of your fellow sailors. What to do with that sudden feeling of nausea now that it's all over and you realize that there's still blood and guts everywhere and that you just barely survived by the skin of your teeth.

Congratulations! You are now level 2! There will be no downtime event. Your level gain will take place after your next rest. There will be no more dangers today. Please start thinking about level 3, as level 2 will be a fairly short level. Your next official downtime event will happen at level 3.


M Rattus norvegicus

Crab: 1d20 ⇒ 2
Miss even with boons

A3 Will to Act: 1d20 ⇒ 18
Succeed, even with banes
Boons: Fish. Banes: Prone, Terror 2
A3 Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 6) = 8
A3 Attack vs Tam: 1d20 + 3 - 6 ⇒ (13) + 3 - 6 = 10
Miss

A5 Will: 1d20 ⇒ 3
Fail, even with boons

A7-10: 3d20 ⇒ (5, 9, 9) = 23
All Fail

End of round stuff:
Crab Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 4
A7 Bleed: 1d3 ⇒ 1
A8 Bleed: 1d3 ⇒ 3
A10 Bleed: 1d3 ⇒ 1

Tracker:
Crab: 23 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), on fire
A1: Dead.
A2: Dead
A3: 10 (injured), Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A4: Dead
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: 6, Bleeding (3 rounds), Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A8: Dead
A9: Dead
A10: 7, Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (1 rounds)


M Rattus norvegicus

NPC turns coming soon.

Logging damage and status after Player Turns.....

Tracker:
Crab: 19 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), on fire
A1: Dead.
A2: Dead
A3: 10 (injured), Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A4: Dead
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: 5, Bleeding (3 rounds), Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A8: 13 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (1 rounds)
A9: Dead
A10: 6, Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (1 rounds)


M Rattus norvegicus

A4 Agility roll for forced movement into peril: 1d20 ⇒ 7
Fail!
Damage: 8d6 ⇒ (4, 4, 2, 1, 4, 2, 2, 1) = 20
Splat!

Kil'hara watches Vultan go down, and casts his last spell! Vultan, heal 1/2 your healing rate.


M Rattus norvegicus

Peril Agility: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13
Success

Tam throws the fishman off the balcony, but it catches the rail and manages to stay up!

Battle Scar Chance for A2: 1d20 ⇒ 20
No Scar

Enemy Actions
Crab: The crabman focuses on the horrific energies around it, sucking in the terror and pain to hela itself!
Abyssal Mending: 1d3 ⇒ 3

A2: It uses the last if its life to desperately kill Con.
Boons: Fish. Banes: Demoralize
A2 vs Con: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (9) + 2 = 11
Miss.

A3: It is terrorized and lying on the ground. Does it have the will to move?
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 1) = 6
Will: 1d20 - 1 - 5 ⇒ (11) - 1 - 5 = 5
Fail

A4: The fishman scrambles back up over the edge from nearly falling down. It then tries to bite Tam, but the halfling deftly dodges.
Strength to climb: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (12) + 3 = 15
A4 bite vs Tam: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (11) + 3 = 14
Success, Followed by Miss.

A5: It is terrorized and lying on the ground. Does it have the will to move?
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (3, 2) = 5
Will: 1d20 - 1 - 3 ⇒ (15) - 1 - 3 = 11
The creature tries to put out the fire on the crabman monster.
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (6, 2) = 8
Strength: 1d20 + 3 - 6 ⇒ (5) + 3 - 6 = 2
Success, followed by failure

A7: It is terrorized and lying on the ground. Does it have the will to move?
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (6, 4) = 10
Will: 1d20 - 1 - 6 ⇒ (6) - 1 - 6 = -1
Fail

A8: It is terrorized and lying on the ground. Does it have the will to move?
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (6, 3) = 9
Will: 1d20 - 1 - 6 ⇒ (12) - 1 - 6 = 5
Fail

A10: It is terrorized and lying on the ground. Does it have the will to move?
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 3) = 7
Will: 1d20 - 1 - 4 ⇒ (16) - 1 - 4 = 11
Success!

Fishman A10 crawls its way towards the stairs to try and eat Vultan. The teeth sink into Vultan's legs, ripping flesh!
Banes: Prone, Terror 2
Banes: 3d6 ⇒ (2, 3, 5) = 10
A10 Bite vs Vultan: 1d20 + 3 - 5 ⇒ (17) + 3 - 5 = 15
Hit!
Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7

End of Round

Crab Fire Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1
A8 Bleed Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 1
A10 Bleed Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 1

Tracker:
Crab: 16 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), on fire
A1: Dead.
A2: 14 (injured), Demoralized (6 rounds)
A3: 10 (injured), Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A4: 2
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: Prone, Terror (4 rounds)
A8: 13 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (1 rounds)
A9: Dead
A10: 6, Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (1 rounds)

Summary: Vultan takes 7 damage.


M Rattus norvegicus

New Round! State fast or slow and post your actions!

Slow

Kil'hara moves to Con and casts Minor Healing. Con heals 1/2 his healing rate.

Triggered Action: A5 takes a swipe at Kil'hara as he moves away.
Boons: Fish. Banes: Prone, terror 2
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (3, 3) = 6
A5 vs Kil'hara: 1d20 + 3 - 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 - 3 = 7
Miss!


M Rattus norvegicus

Vultan runs up the stairs, stepping away from the prone fishman in a defensive manner. The fishman takes a desperate swipe at the winged human.

boons: Fish. Banes: Prone, Terror 2, Defensive
Banes: 3d6 ⇒ (3, 1, 3) = 7
Triggered Attack vs Vultan: 1d20 + 3 - 3 ⇒ (20) + 3 - 3 = 20
damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 2 = 3

Fire Damage on Crab: 1d6 ⇒ 2

Con pulls away from the grab.

Tamien tries to suplex the fish off the edge of the walkway, but the fish resists.

Enemy actions
The Crab Man attacks Keri or Kil'hara: 1d2 ⇒ 2 Kil'hara with its pincer! The attack scrapes off Kil'hara's carapace and armor.
Boons: Crab. Banes: Prone, Terror 2
banes: 2d6 ⇒ (1, 3) = 4
Crab vs Kil: 1d20 + 2 - 3 ⇒ (12) + 2 - 3 = 11

A2: The fishman, one of the few unaffected by the terror, attacks Con again, chomping at him with its toothed maw.
Attack vs Con: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16
damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

A3: The fishman has a mental struggle if it wants to move towards its allies to help of if it should flee in terror. It heads towards Con,Tam: 1d2 ⇒ 2
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (6, 4) = 10
Will: 1d20 - 6 ⇒ (19) - 6 = 13

A4: The fishman on Tam strikes back, trying to bite the halfling's hand off, but the man is too nimble!
Bite vs Tam: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (5) + 3 = 8

A5-10: The fishmen are too scared to attack.

End of round:
Crab Fire Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 2
A8 Bleed Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 1
A10 Bleed Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 1
All three took damage, and therefore their Terror condition extends one round.

Tracker:
Crab: 18 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A1: Dead.
A2: 6
A3: 10 (injured), Prone, Terror (5 rounds)
A4: 2
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (5 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: Prone, Terror (5 rounds)
A8: 12 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (2 rounds)
A9: Dead
A10: 5, Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (2 rounds)

Player summary:
Vultan takes 3 damage.
Con takes 8 damage and must make a battle scar check.


M Rattus norvegicus

Kil'hara Actions:

Kil'hara moves up the stairs at the call of Keri, stepping over the prone fishman at the base of the stairs.

The fishman lashes out with a claw as he passes.
Boons: Fish. Banes: Prone, Terror 2
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 4) = 9
Attack vs Kil: 1d20 + 3 - 5 ⇒ (3) + 3 - 5 = 1

Kil'hara deflty avoids the attack and rushed upstairs, pulling out an incantation.

Incantation: 1d20 - 1d6 ⇒ (14) - (3) = 11

Holy lights glow around him in three swirls, then depart from his body in wide arcs as they find their targets: Con, Tamien, and Vultan. Each of you heal your healing rate.


M Rattus norvegicus

Second floor enemies who fell prone fall on the glass shards and take 1d3 damage, as well as must make a strength challenge roll or bleed for 1d3 rounds (1d3 damage at end of each round).

A8 Glass Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 2
A8 Strength: 1d20 + 3 - 1d6 ⇒ (2) + 3 - (1) = 4
Rounds Bleeding: 1d3 ⇒ 3
Last End of Round Bleed: 1d3 ⇒ 1

A9 Glass Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 3
A9 Strength: 1d20 + 3 - 1d6 ⇒ (7) + 3 - (1) = 9
Rounds Bleeding: 1d3 ⇒ 1
Last End of Round Bleed: 1d3 ⇒ 2

A10 Glass Damage: 1d3 ⇒ 2
A10 Strength: 1d20 + 3 - 1d6 ⇒ (4) + 3 - (4) = 3
Rounds Bleeding: 1d3 ⇒ 2
Last End of Round Bleed: 1d3 ⇒ 2

Tracker:
Crab: 14 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A1: Dead.
A2: 6,Grabbing Con
A3: 10 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A4: 2
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Grabbing Con
A8: 11 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (3 rounds)
A9: Dead
A10: 4, Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Bleeding (2 rounds)
AC: Dead.
Kil: 7 (injured)


M Rattus norvegicus

"Do you need more heal-ing, fr-iend Vul-tan? I am nearly out of sp-ells, I on-ly have two m-ore."

The insect man seems hesitant to perform violence - indeed he's always been a bit of a pacifist - but if commanded, he will.

Enemy Actions

Crab: The crab, in it's terrified state, crawls over to Keri, its pincers just as sharp. The terror unleashes its fury, but makes its aim wild.
Boons: Crab 1. Banes; Prime 1, Terror 2.
Banes: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 6) = 8
Crab vs Keri: 1d20 + 3 - 6 ⇒ (16) + 3 - 6 = 13
Damage: 2d6 ⇒ (6, 6) = 12

A2: With its ally fallen, this fishman grabs Con, ready to pull him towards the sigil, with intent on sacrificing him to complete the ritual for the crab.
Grab: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21

A4: The fishman steps towards Tam, aiming to knock the halfling out.
Attack vs Tam: 1d20 + 3 + 1d6 ⇒ (20) + 3 + (4) = 27
Damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8

The remaining crabman are too scared to do anything.

Tracker:
Crab: 14 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A1: Dead.
A2: 6,Grabbing Con
A3: 10 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A4: 2
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: Prone, Terror (6 rounds), Grabbing Con
A8: (injured)8, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A9: 13 (injured), Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A10: Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
AC: Dead.
Kil: 7 (injured)


M Rattus norvegicus

Terror affects all creatures of the caster's choice. From this position, Keri can hit all enemies nearby.

Crab: 1d20 ⇒ 6
A2: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (17) - 1 = 16
A3: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (6) - 1 = 5
A4: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (15) - 1 = 14
A5: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (5) - 1 = 4
A7: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (8) - 1 = 7
A8: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (6) - 1 = 5
A9: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (1) - 1 = 0
A10: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (10) - 1 = 9

A9 Shock Damage: 3d6 ⇒ (5, 6, 2) = 13

Tracker:
Crab: 14, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A1: Dead.
A2: 6
A3: 10, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A4: 2
A5: 4, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A6: Dead.
A7: Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A8: 8, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A9: 13, Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
A10: Prone, Terror (6 rounds)
AC: Dead.
Kil: 7

Terror: The creature cannot stand up, grants 2 boons on all attack rolls made against it, and makes its own attack rolls with 2 banes. Each time a frightened creature takes damage, it extends the duration of the affliction by 1 round.


M Rattus norvegicus

Tam shoves HARD, and the fishman tumbles over the side, grasping for the railing to no avail.

fall damage: 8d6 ⇒ (5, 4, 2, 6, 1, 3, 4, 6) = 31

The fishman splatters against the ground, blood and guts spraying in all directions and leaving an imprint of its body.

Inside, Con tries to shove the fishman into the flaming crab, but it barely dances out of the way, avoiding the burning oil.

enemy turn

Crab: The burning crab once again tries to remove the flames.
Str: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 17
Success!

A1: The fishman is also focused entirely on itself, desperately trying to remove the flames as its flesh burns.
Banes: Frightened
Str: 1d20 + 3 - 1d6 ⇒ (12) + 3 - (6) = 9
Fail!

A2: With the crab unflamed, the fishman ignores its fellows and moves to help kill CK: 1d2 ⇒ 1 Con.
Claw Attack vs Con: 1d20 + 3 + 1d6 ⇒ (15) + 3 + (4) = 22
damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6
Con takes 6 damage! Con goes down, unless someone can prevent this attack from happening! Con is incapacitated and must make fate rolls. He is prone. He cannot use actions, but is capable of moving, talking, and is aware of his surroundings. He is defenseless. Any damage he takes will kill him. Con must also roll for a battle scar. Flat d20.

A3: The fishman continues to focus entirely on itself, desperately trying to remove the flames as its flesh burns.
Str: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19
Success!

A4: The fishman is trapped between flaming friends, and tries to help them get the flames out.
Help: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9

A5: The fishman continues to attack Keri.
Bite vs Keri: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9
miss!

A7: The fishman tries to grab Con, ready to drag him towards the wall, where a sigil is drawn. You notice that each of the bodies in the room are at locations where these sigils are located, and are feeding into the crab man.
grab: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 3 = 18
Success! Con cannot move from his location.

A8: The fishman downstairs looks to attack Kil'Hara!
Claw vs Kil'Hara: 1d20 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (15) + 2 + (5) = 22
damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7

Kil'Hara Battle Scar, Injured: 1d20 ⇒ 20

A9: The fishman from downstairs finally makes it's way to KV: 1d2 ⇒ 2 Vultan, where it swipes with a claw.
Claw vs Vultan: 1d20 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (17) + 2 + (6) = 25
damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Vultan takes 8 damage! Vultan goes down, unless someone can prevent this attack from happening! Vultan is incapacitated and must make fate rolls. He is prone. He cannot use actions, but is capable of moving, talking, and is aware of his surroundings. He is defenseless. Any damage he takes will kill him. Vultan must also roll for a battle scar. Flat d20.

A10: The fishman from downstairs finally makes it's way to KV: 1d2 ⇒ 2 Vultan, where it tries to grab the man to drag him upstairs.
Grab vs Vultan: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15
Vultan cannot move from his location.

Tracker:
Crab: 14
A1: Dead.
A2: 6
A3: 10
A4: 2
A5: 4
A6: Dead.
A7:
A8: 8
A9:
A10:
AC: Dead.
Kil: 7

END OF ROUND
A1 Fire damage: 1d6 ⇒ 6
The fishman burns to death.

PC Summary:
Con: 6 damage. Incapacitated. Must make Fate Roll. Must roll for Battle Scar. Grabbed.
Vultan: 8 damage. Incapacitated. Must make Fate Roll. Must roll for Battle Scar. Grabbed.


M Rattus norvegicus

Some of these guys should have battle scars, for hitting half health and being officially injured. Let's roll that now.
Crab Battle Scar?: 1d20 ⇒ 17
A1 Battle Scar?: 1d20 ⇒ 9
A3 Battle Scar?: 1d20 ⇒ 12

A1 suffers a battle scar.
Injury Fate: 1d6 ⇒ 6
"Near miss" but frightened for 1 round.

Tamien tries to shove the fishman off the balcony, while Con tries to shove the fishman into the flaming crab.

There are two forced movements into peril. Each one gets an agility challenge roll.

Preil Check, Agi +3: 2d20 ⇒ (4, 17) = 21

One success. One failure. I'll let you guys decide which roll applies to which fishman. One could get thrown off the lighthouse, taking 8d6 damage, the other could get caught on fire, taking 1d6 now and 1d6 at the end of each round for 1d6 rounds.

Keri tries to stab and misses!

Kil'hara casts a spell on Vultan, just after Vultan fires a bolt right into the fishman! Heal your healing rate.

A8 Battle Scar?: 1d20 ⇒ 16

Pausing here before starting enemy turn.

Tracker:
Crab: 14, On Fire (ends next end of round)
A1: 9, On Fire 3->2 rounds, frightened until end of next round.
A2: 6
A3: 10, On Fire 4->3 rounds
A4: 2
A5: 4
A6:
A7:
A8: 8
A9:
A10:
AC: Dead.
Kil:


M Rattus norvegicus

From Discord:
Vultan fails agility challenge roll. Vultan passes strength challenge roll. Fall damage, glass damage. Bleed effect avoided.
Fall Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1
Glass damage: 1d3 ⇒ 3

Kil'hara moves to assist Vultan in getting back up, "Do you need heal-ing, fr-iend Vul-tan?"

End of Round
Crab Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 6
A1 Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 5
A3 Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 6

Tracker:
Crab: 14, On Fire (ends next end of round)
A1: 9, On Fire 3->2 rounds
A2: 6
A3: 10, On Fire 4->3 rounds
A4: 2
A5: 4
A6:
A7:
A8:
A9:
A10:
AC: Dead.
Kil:

PC Summary Update:
Tam takes 7 damage.
Con takes 6 damage.
Vultan takes 4 damage.


M Rattus norvegicus

Crab: The crab man monstrosity is on fire. It screams an unholy chorus of pain as it writhes on the ground.
Boon: Help from A4. Bane: Frightened.
Str Fire: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 = 9
Fail. Still on fire.

A1-A3: The three fishmen are also still on fire and are writhing on the ground or wildly flailing about.
Banes: Frightened.
Str Fire +3 : 3d20 - 3d6 ⇒ (8, 19, 8) - (5, 6, 5) = 19
A1: Fail. A2: Success. A3: Fail.

A4: The still sizzling fishman tries to help the crab extinguish the flames.
Help: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (15) - 1 = 14
Help successful. Adding a boon to Crab's roll.

A5 strikes at Keri with its deadly sharp claws.
Boon: Fish. Bane: Frightened.
A5 vs Keri: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
Miss.

A6: The fishman outside with Tam barely avoids getting shoved backwards by the fierce halfling. It screeches at Tam and then tries to bite him as he moves away! Triggered Action for a free attack! He then chases after Tam, but cannot reach him with the halfling's faster movement.
A6 vs Tam: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22
damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (4) + 3 = 7
Success!

A7: Standing next to Con, it strikes with a claw.
Boon: Fish.
A7 vs Con: 1d20 + 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (9) + 2 + (5) = 16
damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6
Success!

A8 is standing above the stairs, the opening wide beneath it with Vultan standing right there. Though Con tried to attack it, he missed, giving the fishman the opportunity to focus on the priest. It jumps down onto the stairs behind Vultan and grabs the priest, twisting his body in an attempt to throw him off the steps and onto the shattered glass below.
Bane: Frightened.
Shove: 1d20 + 3 - 1d6 ⇒ (12) + 3 - (2) = 13
This movement grants Con a free attack. Requires your triggered action.

Success! Vultan must make an Agility Challenge Roll to avoid being shoved into peril. On a failure, you take 1d6 fall damage and 1d3 damage from the glass shards, and then must make a strength challenge roll with 1 bane or bleed 1d3 damage for 1d3 rounds.

A9-A10: They keep moving towards the enemy, through the difficult terrain.

PC Summary:
Tam takes 7 damage.
Con takes 6 damage.
Vultan must make rolls or take damage.

Tracker:
No change.

End of Round:
Coming soon.


M Rattus norvegicus

Vultan casts the spell, invoking the power of the Summer Queen; a holy symbol of fire wraps around him, clearly marking him with her divine power.

At the same moment, Keri stabs with her spear, killing her "dear friend," the nameless fish man monster she had under her charm.

Tam and Con continue to fight valiantly, but are unable to strike lasting blows.

To be continued.... Too tired to write all this up tonight.

Tracker:
Crab: 9, Frightened (end this round), On Fire 1->0 rounds
A1: 4, Frightened (end this round), On Fire 4->3 rounds
A2: 6, Frightened (end this round), On Fire 4->3 rounds
A3: 4, Frightened, On Fire 5->4 rounds
A4: 2 (fire extinguished)
A5: 4, Frightened (end this round)
A6:
A7:
A8: Frightened (end this round)
A9:
A10:
AC: Dead.
Kil:


M Rattus norvegicus

Vultan casts Blessings, granting everyone immunity to fear and a boon to their actions! (moving this spell to the front of initiative so everyone can benefit).

Tam rushes over to the opposite side and escapes out to the balcony, tossing the grappled rope over the edge. allowing for an escape route should the whole building catch fire.

Con throws the oil and Keri lights it up!

Had to move Con to a position on the map where it makes sense that he could throw the oil to hit the crab guy. Moved Keri to a position where she can both see the crab guy to move the fire. "AC" on the map is the charmed fishman.

The room explodes into chaos and fire! The fire catches on the crab monster and so do each of the nearby fishmen!

Catching Fire: You are on fire for 1d6 rounds and take 1d6 damage at the end of each round. You can use an action to extinguish the fire. Due to the nature of this scene - using oil and also all the blood and viscera everywhere, I feel like it should be more challenging to remove the fire. They will need to succeed on a strength challenge roll to extinguish the fire when they use an action.
Fire Damage, Crab: 1d6 ⇒ 5
Fire Rounds: 1d6 ⇒ 2
Fire Damage, Fish: 4d3 ⇒ (1, 1, 3, 2) = 7
Fire Rounds: 4d6 ⇒ (5, 5, 6, 5) = 21

The keeper and two of the fishmen (A1, A2) automatically become frightened due to Con's frightening visage.

Frighten Checks: 6d20 ⇒ (6, 14, 2, 13, 17, 7) = 59
3 fail

Kil'Hara stands back, ready to heal someone in an emergency!

Enemy Actions
The crab monster screams in pain. The screams become an unholy chorus as two of the fishmen join in, while those who saw what happened stare in unbelief for just a moment before they reaction violently.

AC: The charmed fishman rushes up the stairs, nearly knocking Vultan off balance for just a moment as it rushes up to protect Keri. Vultan, make an agility challenge roll or fall off the stairs onto the glass shards below. On a failure, take 1d3 damage and you must make a strength challenge roll or bleed for 1d3 rounds (1d3 extra damage at the end of each round you are bleeding.

Note: Successful roll in discord. Vultan does not fall.

The charmed fishman then attacks the fish next to Keri, swiping a claw at it!

Boons: Blessing, Fish
Boons: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 1) = 5
AC vs A5: 1d20 + 3 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 3 + 4 = 14
Damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

A1, A2: Surprised, no action.

A3: The frightened fishman tries to extinguish the fire on him! Strength: 1d20 + 3 - 1d6 ⇒ (8) + 3 - (4) = 7

A4: The fishman tries to extinguish the fire on him! Strength: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17

A5: The frightened fishman attacks Keri, AC: 1d2 ⇒ 2 the charmed fishman!
Boon; fish. Bane: Fear
A5 vs AC: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (18) + 3 = 21
Damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
The damage removes the charmed condition, and now the fishman no longer sees Keri as a friend!

A6: A6 steps out to the balcony to attack Tamien! He misses the nimble halfling wildly!
Boons: fish
A6 vs Tam: 1d20 + 3 + 1d6 ⇒ (2) + 3 + (4) = 9

A7: The fishman moves towards Con to try and kill the interloper!
boons: fish
A7 vs Con: 1d20 + 3 + 1d6 ⇒ (4) + 3 + (5) = 12
damage: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

A8: the frightened fishman moves away from the scary dragonman, headed towards the stairs to swipe at Vultan!

boons: fish. banes: fear.
A8 vs Vultan: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10

A9, A10: The two fishman who were hiding behind the crates on floor 1 move up the stairs. It's a slow progress, due to the difficult terrain.

End of Round Actions:
Frightened reduces by 1 round. 0 rounds remaining. Will end at the end of next round.
Fire reduces by 1 round. Variable rounds remaining.
Bless reduces by 1 round. 5 rounds remaining.
Crab Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 4
A1 Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 3
A2 Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 5
A3 Fire: 1d6 ⇒ 1

If you have a specific end of round effect, please include it in your next post. Then, state fast or slow turn and post your actions! I'll reorganize any post orders so they make sense.

PC Summary:
Con takes 6 damage unless someone can make the fishman take a bane.
Keri is now surrounded by two aggressive fishmen.
Vultan is on the stairs, not quite all the way up, but can reach both A8 and AC by attacking upwards.
Tamien is on the walkway, and A6 is out there with him.

Tracker:
Crab: 9, Surprised, Frightened (1r->0r), On Fire 2->1 rounds
A1: 4, Surprised, Frightened (1r->0r), On Fire 5->4 rounds
A2: 6, Surprised, Frightened (1r->0r), On Fire 5->4 rounds
A3: 4, Frightened, On Fire 6->5 rounds
A4: 2 (fire extinguished)
A5: 4, Frightened (1r->0r)
A6:
A7:
A8: Frightened (1r->0r)
A9:
A10:
AC: 8, Blessed 6->5 rounds, (charm removed due to damage!)
Kil:


M Rattus norvegicus

Surprise Checks

Anglerfishmen (Perc +3): 8d20 ⇒ (13, 8, 15, 11, 11, 14, 2, 4) = 78
The Keeper (Perc -1): 1d20 ⇒ 6

6 anglerfishmen are not surprised and may act this round.

2 anglerfishmen and the horrifying monster are surprised and may not act this round.

I'll work on a map later on.

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