Mitnal |
"There's a lever on the other side," says the goblin, using rather good common. "The priestess is likely there somewhere. But she does not know you're friendly. We just yell and tell her your here and she turn it off."
Mitnal, not knowing how charm spells work keeps his mouth shut.
Kenzo |
"What?!?" Kenzo exclaims a little incredulously. "How do we know he's being truthful? I expect the little gobber is lying, and wants us all to fall victim here!"
As he speaks, Kenzo looks for any sign of a trap, paying particular attention to the two statues on either side.
A perception roll for each, just for good measure.
1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18
1d20 + 6 ⇒ (19) + 6 = 25
Hmmm . . . How far are the two closer alcoves? How long is the hallway? Are there any obvious exits at the end?
Jeslara "Jessa" Eventide |
"He has no reason to lie now, Kenzo," Jessa explains, "He's a friend now. Our only friend in this place, it seems..."
She then looks down at the small creature again and asks, "We don't really want to disturb Nualia by asking her break away from the important work I'm sure she's doing. Is there any way we can get past this trap without calling her? You goblins are usually pretty crafty at that sort of thing, right? Getting into places that aren't so easy to enter..."
"Or..." she suggests, "If you can tell us how Nualia deactivates the trap on the other side...and where the mechanism is located...maybe my raven could fly over and deactivate the trap? Would that be possible?"
Jeslara "Jessa" Eventide |
"Maybe we should just jump across?" Jessa suggests out loud, "Kenzo? How far do you think you could jump? And, if you can get across, maybe you can find the lever and deactivate for the rest of us?"
She looks back down at the goblin? "Do you think that would work?" she asks him, "How much of the hallway is trapped? How far would we have to jump to avoid it?"
Kenzo |
Kenzo hears Jessa's suggestion, and straightens and turns to face everyone. He then walks toward them, (through the door, if need be, to get a running start) turns to face back down the hall, shrugs, hands off his spear to Jessa, and breaks into a sprint. About five feet before the niches with the statutes, he leaps into the air, diving into a somersault as far as he can past any perceived danger zone. Que Kenny Loggins
Acrobatics 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29
Edit: Damn! 29 feet! I'm going to figure five feet before the niche, five feet for the niche, and nineteen feet after? Yeah, Kenzo! >crossing fingers hoping trigger wasn't ten feet before niche<
DM Wicht |
Kenzo slams hard up against he far statue, barely keeping his balance. There is a door to his left and a door to his right. The door to the left is cracked partially open and as kenze makes the leap he hears a voice chanting softly on the other side of the door.
And then the howl erupts. A bone chilling howl, eerily similar to one heard once before earlier in the day. Everyone has to make a will save.
Gyorgy Elberion |
Gyorgy Elberion |
"Kenzo! The tra..." I watch him flee: "Dammit"
"Maybe we can see where the edge of the trap is." Guessing that it is a magical trap, I cast detect magic, hoping to see the outline of the trap.
Jeslara "Jessa" Eventide |
"Oh dear...run, Kenzo, run!" Jessa urges.
As Mitnal goes to leap the trap and chase after him, she obviously frets and worries about her own ability to follow everyone. 'I had no idea it would be so...strenuous...to venture through Thassilonian ruins,' she reflects.
Then, she looks down at the goblin and tells him she's going to cast a spell to change her appearance, but he should stay close to her and she'll do what she can to protect him. "I'm going to make myself look like Lyrie...you know, the dark-skinned woman? It'll be a game. And you can pretend I'm her. Okay?"
Jessa casts disguise self to make herself look like Lyrie with a goblin guard accompanying her. It should last 10 minutes. Jessa intends to call out to Nualia and get her to shut down the trap, pretending she and the goblin are also chasing after the same PCs as the dog if she appears. Meanwhile, she urges everyone else to go help Kenzo. And Blackwing will be able to help her find her way to them.
"You guys go ahead," she tells everyone, "We'll catch up. Or try and delay Nualia if she's following that dog."
Gyorgy Elberion |
DM Wicht |
Apology:
Mitnal, Gyorgy and eugen clear the space easily, each vaulting well over ten feet across the hall.
The goblin looks at Jessa with nefound respect as she shifts her appearance.
Kenzo runs heedlessly through dim rooms he scarcely notices.
Mitnal |
Killing the dog will require chasing after it as it has about a ten second headstart.
"First, we chase the dog. Then, we kill the dog. Finally, we find Kenzo. Agreed?"
Mitnal begins chasing the dog without waiting to see how his plan is received.
Jeslara "Jessa" Eventide |
While the others go chasing after Kenzo, Jessa nervously tries to summon up enough courage to carry off her ruse. Her heart beats fast, but she trusts in her newfound faith that Sivhana's illusion will hold true. 'After all, it's worked out pretty well against the goblin,' she tries to reassure herself.
"Okay," she tells her fawning companion, "Let's wait here and see if Nualia comes. If she does, you keep pretending I'm Lyrie...okay? And we'll tell her we chased some troublemakers down here before her dog ran them off. And we'll ask her to disable the trap so we can cross and give chase, too."
DM Wicht |
Kenzo flees through one door and then through a second ten feet further on. He scarcely stops to look at the strange architecture in the dim room, lit only by a flickering lantern. He instead bears to the right and then comes to a halt at a door he can't open.
The hound, sensing his prey has come to the end of its run, stops and savors the moment, which allows Mitnal and Gyorgy and Eugen all enough time to likewise burst into the room.
The southern wing of this L-shaped hallway ends at a pair of stone doors carved with the depictions of two skeletons reaching out to clutch a skull between them. Kenzo cowers, clawing at this door.
To the east the hallway narrows down to frame a circular carving of what seems to be an immense stack of gold coins that rises from floor to ceiling. The edges of these coins are carved with tiny, spiky runes.
Yeth hound Initiative: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (18) + 6 = 24
Meanwhile, Jessa waits nervously...
Gyorgy Elberion |
DM Wicht |
The hound, sensing the men behind it, turns and rushes at Eugen, who has moved just in front of Mitnal.
attack: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19
damage 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (6, 5) + 4 = 15
trip attempt: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14
The teeth strike Eugen (who must pass a DC 14 Will save or become shaken) who nonetheless keeps his feet.
DM Wicht |
Meanwhile...
A tall, white haired woman strides out of the door and into the hallway north of Jessa. She is clad in a reddish breastplate which leaves her scarred stomach exposed. There is something strange about her left arm, but its on the other side of her bidy and Jessa can't quite make out what it is.
Jeslara "Jessa" Eventide |
Jessa's eyes widen with enough real fear that she hopes the woman (whom she assumes is Nualia) takes it for the cowering of a devoted minion. Her mind whirls quickly through everything she can remember about Lyrie, all the way down to her voice inflection in case she has to pass herself off as the wizardess.
"Stand still and keep quiet," she whispers to the goblin. And she quickly mutters a prayer to Sivhana that the goddess of the veil will help keep her hidden.
The prayer is a simple guidance orison in case Jessa needs some help passing off a Bluff check.