Some are harder than others, and tier 4-5 has higher difficulties than the lower tier. Survival checks are slightly easier than the others, although as Halkale pointed out, you have the highest chance of everyone aiding when using the Perception skill.
Is the consensus to stick with the Perception checks? If I don't hear otherwise I'll roll some more of them. Since some additional healing might be helpful here, I'll give Ophelia a little longer to respond.
Female LG Gnome Paladin of Erastil/Life Oracle 7/4 | HP 88 | AC 28 T 13 FF 27 | CMB +14, CMD 26 | F: +16, R: +12, W: +15; +2 vs. illusions, death, and haunts | Init: +1, addtl. +2 vs haunts | Perc: +0, SM: -2, Low-Light Vision, Darkvision, blind past 60 feet, +2 on skill checks to notice a haunt | Speed 15ft | Active conditions: Life Link on 4 of the party. Probably wand of shield for +4 AC.
Quiella declines the use of Mel's wand. Once everyone is out of the pit she says "Lead the way Valik. I believe in you."
After the painful lesson of the last hour, Valik and the group sniff out the Minotaur's cologne once again. However, the passage abruptly ends at a smooth, white wall.
Doubling back slightly, the group then runs into a skeleton lying against the wall ahead, a message crudely sketched in charcoal next to it: 'Left is back but back is clockwise and right is too hot. I’m sorry, Garanel.'
After that grim discover, the trail stays hot and the group begins to move a little faster. You suspect you're on the right track as a low, rhythmic hum buzzes through the stones of the floor, causing a jaw rattling vibration.
With the distraction of the hum, another hour goes by and the group doesn't seem to make any real progress, but the journey remains blissfully free of traps.
After going around in circles for the better part of another hour with that headache inducing hum, Melufiuos strays slightly from the group only to set off another wall scythe trap that easily slices through his side. Mel takes 11 damage from the trap.
After the elf's unfortunate discovery, the olfactory search picks up again as the leftward-curving passage dead-ends, but turning around to backtrack reveals a brand new passage that slopes gently upward.
The jaw-rattling vibrations cease as a giant, bronze door appears in the passageway ahead.
Congratulations, the skill checks are over! It's back to regular play once again, so let me know how you're dealing with the door. Also, it's been about 16-18 hours since you've entered the maze, you'll probably need to rest soon or start taking penalties from fatigue.
Male Elf | Magus 7 / Rogue 1 |HP: 54/54 | AC19 T 14 FF 15 | F+7 R+9 W+7 | Init +6 | Perc +12(+2) | SM +1 | CMB +7 | CMD 21 | Speed 30
The vibrations stopped suddenly when we found the door?
The brave elf limps over to the door to check for traps, shrugging "yeah, I know, but better late than never." Shortly, though, he realizes that he does not need to limp because he was healed. He looks around for traps, but is too gunshy to do a good job. "Ya know, maybe we should take a break"
Yes, the vibrations stopped suddenly when you reached the door.
As Melufiuos begins to search for traps, the comforting embrace of the bronze door ahead slips further away. The world spins as colors and sounds blend together into a sickening maelstrom. The chaos passes just as quickly, but the passage is suddenly gone and instead there is now only a scrap of rock, surrounded by inky blackness dotted with distant points of light. Fractured sounds, like whispered curses, float across the darkness.
Across from the rock is a horrid mass of eyes, mouths, and formless flesh that stares in all directions, its countless maws yammering ceaselessly.
Everyone needs to make a Will Save DC 13 or you will gain the confused condition from the creature's babbling for 1 round. You'll need to make the save every round until you successfully save, then you're immune for the duration of the combat. To speed things up, you can roll the d100 to determine your confused behavior that round. If you're prompted to attack the nearest creature and more than one are equidistant, please determine your target randomly.
Confused Condition:
A confused creature is mentally befuddled and cannot act normally. A confused creature cannot tell the difference between ally and foe, treating all creatures as enemies. Allies wishing to cast a beneficial spell that requires a touch on a confused creature must succeed on a melee touch attack. If a confused creature is attacked, it attacks the creature that last attacked it until that creature is dead or out of sight.
Roll on the following table at the beginning of each confused subject’s turn each round to see what the subject does in that round.
%d Behavior
01–25 Act normally.
26–50 Do nothing but babble incoherently.
51–75 Deal 1d8 points of damage + Str modifier to self with item in hand.
76–100 Attack nearest creature (for this purpose, a familiar counts as part of the subject’s self).
A confused creature who can’t carry out the indicated action does nothing but babble incoherently. Attackers are not at any special advantage when attacking a confused creature. Any confused creature who is attacked automatically attacks its attackers on its next turn, as long as it is still confused when its turn comes. Note that a confused creature will not make attacks of opportunity against anything that it is not already devoted to attacking (either because of its most recent action or because it has just been attacked).
It's a Knowledge (dungeoneering) check to identify this creature.
Initiative (Round 1)
Ophelia [8 Dmg]<= Up
Halkale [8 Dmg]<= Up
T'kk'tck [1 Dmg]<= Up
Moadis [1 Dmg]<= Up
Valik [4 Dmg]<= Up
Melufiuos <= Up
Creature
Quiella [3 Dmg]
Ophelia, Halkale, T'kk'tck, Moadis, Valik, and Melufiuos are up, please remember to make your Will Save against confusion before acting.
Male Human Ranger 7 | HP 61/61 | AC 18 | T 15 | FF 13 | CMD 24 CMB 9 | Fort +7 | Ref +10 | Will +4 | Init +7 | Perc +12 | Sense Motive +3|Low Light Vision| Frostfur: HP 57 AC 23 Large
Will:1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22
Halkale moves around his companions for a better shot at the thing.
Easily shaking off the mind warping gibberish, Moadis advances on the misshapen monster and brings his lucerne hammer hard down upon it. He does some significant damage, despite misidentifying it as evil.
T'kk'tck keeps his senses as well, and punches the thing in one of its many eyes.
Halkale is also able to ignore the babbling, shooting a well placed arrow into the mass. However, the rolls of unformed flesh merely absorb the arrow, apparently without taking any damage whatsoever.
It is too much for the young magus as he faces something he was truly never prepared for. A thought briefly flits across the surface of the chaos in his mind...If I can get my head together, I should be able to identify this creature but then it is gone. Instead he just stands there babbling incoherently.
Female Varisian cleric of Pharasma 7 | AC 21, T 10, FF 21 | HP 20/52 | F +8, R +4, W +12 | CMD 17 | Initiative +4 | Perception +16 | Channel 4/4 | Eerie Sense 60 ft
Will:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (4) + 6 = 10Crap. Confusion effect:1d100 ⇒ 90Double crap! High is Quiella; low is Mel:1d100 ⇒ 29
Sorry Mel!
Ophelia clutches her head, trying to shut out the babbling, but to no avail. As if in a dream, she draws her morningstar, looking across at Mel. He was responsible! With a yell, she swings her weapon at the elf.
Valik, this creature is immune to flanking, but that attack still hits without the bonus.
Melufiuos, Valik, and Ophelia all find their minds becoming clouded from the hideous creature's gibbering. Melufiuos begins just babbling to himself, while Ophelia finds herself trying to harm her elf companion, but luckily misses. Valik manages to keep his wits long enough to move next to the monster and hits it with his sansetsukon.
From what I understand about the rules concerning confusion, if you are attacked by someone in the confused state, you have to attack that person/creature on your next turn. Ergo, if Mel remains confused next round, he'll have to attack Ophelia. No percentage roll allowed in his case.
Continuing its maddening gibberish, and jiggling rapidly, the disgusting mass of mouths and eyeballs first spits a stream of acid at Moadis' face. The paladin manages to side step the caustic liquid just in time. The various mouths then proceed to try to bite Valik and T'kk'tck, with four on the human, and two on the tengu. Although T'kk'tck manages to make it through the barrage with no bites, Valik gets gnashed twice, but avoids the creature's attempt to grapple him. Valik takes 6 damage total from the monster's bites. As with Mel, if Valik remains confused he'll have to keep attacking the creature.
Initiative (Rounds 1-2)
Ophelia [8 Dmg; Confusion save needed]<= Up
Halkale [8 Dmg]<= Up
T'kk'tck [1 Dmg]<= Up
Moadis [1 Dmg]<= Up
Valik [10 Dmg; Confusion save needed]<= Up
Melufiuos [Confusion save needed]<= Up
Creature
Quiella [3 Dmg; Confusion save needed] <= Up
| Per +22 | F/R/W 9/9/14 | CMD 23-32 Human 8.1 Monk (sensei/Ki mystic) HP: 54/54 | AC 20 (MA 24) (MA + CW 33) | TCH 29 | FF 23 | Init +7
will:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (15) + 6 = 21
That hurt, but I refuse to succumb to your mindless babbling ANYMORE!
Valik retaliates with a strike of his own. He swing his sansesukon around and bashes it as hard as he can into the side of the creature. The sickening this can be heard as the weapon impacts the mound of flesh. Valik puts all his weight into it, seeing as he may not be able to continue on much more.
Female LG Gnome Paladin of Erastil/Life Oracle 7/4 | HP 88 | AC 28 T 13 FF 27 | CMB +14, CMD 26 | F: +16, R: +12, W: +15; +2 vs. illusions, death, and haunts | Init: +1, addtl. +2 vs haunts | Perc: +0, SM: -2, Low-Light Vision, Darkvision, blind past 60 feet, +2 on skill checks to notice a haunt | Speed 15ft | Active conditions: Life Link on 4 of the party. Probably wand of shield for +4 AC.
Quiella shrugs off the confusion and runs forward, drawing her greatsword as she goes. When she reaches the mass she brings her blade down upon it. No more!
Male Human Ranger 7 | HP 61/61 | AC 18 | T 15 | FF 13 | CMD 24 CMB 9 | Fort +7 | Ref +10 | Will +4 | Init +7 | Perc +12 | Sense Motive +3|Low Light Vision| Frostfur: HP 57 AC 23 Large
Halkale sees the arrow fly true but doesn't see the monster react like it should so he drops his bow and pulls out his sling.
Mel shouts, "What is that thing!?" as his head clears a bit, throwing off the confusion. But with all the noise and such, he is unable to concentrate and cannot recall ever hearing of such a hideous creature.
Mel attempts to reason with his assailant as he calls on the power of his wand of shield to protect him, "Ophelia, come to your senses. It's me, Mel. Focus on the creature!"
If I can, Mel then moves toward the creature, staying just out of reach. Next round, he is hoping to go full attack with his mace and shocking grasp. (Hopefully Ophelia will save and/or not hit me as I move away from her. And if Ophelia does hit him, Mel probably deserves it anyway, for earlier comments!)
My math may be wrong, but I currently show that you've only taken 10 hit points worth of damage, Valik.
Ophelia's Will Save:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26
Ophelia overcomes the effects of the babbling only to realize that she's attacked Melufiuos. She pauses to consider her next course of action.
Valik strikes the mass of teeth and eyes, hitting it again with his weapon, but the creature stays together.
Melufiuos advances closer to the monster and prepares to attack it next round, activating his wand of Shield on the way.
T'kk'tck, Quiella, Halkale, and Moadis all make attacks against the oozing mound of flesh, but it manages to avoid being struck by any of them.
The monster focuses its aggression on Valik once again, but this time its second attempt to bite him succeeds and the creature surrounds him, with a number of its mouths latching onto the monk in a grotesque spectacle of feeding on his blood. Valik, you take 2 more damage and you are grappled. The mouths feed slowly, so you won't get any negative effects from that until the next round.
Initiative (Rounds 2-3)
Ophelia [8 Dmg]<= Up
Halkale [8 Dmg]<= Up
T'kk'tck [1 Dmg]<= Up
Moadis [1 Dmg]<= Up
Valik [12 Dmg]<= Up
Melufiuos <= Up
Creature
Quiella [3 Dmg] <= Up
| Per +22 | F/R/W 9/9/14 | CMD 23-32 Human 8.1 Monk (sensei/Ki mystic) HP: 54/54 | AC 20 (MA 24) (MA + CW 33) | TCH 29 | FF 23 | Init +7
I think I took some damage from the 2nd fight with the dark folk things. Then I took the falling damage in the maze. Then I took the damage from round 1 mouther. Unless I mistracked somewhere along the way??
Valik, can only defend himself so much as the tentacled beast grabs a firm hold of his arm and pulls him in. His weapon clangs to the ground, but luckily he has trained with his fists as well.
Valik, after reviewing the thread, you didn't take any damage from the first fight, so you just had falling damage (some of which was healed by a CLW wand) and damage from the two rounds with this creature. You currently have taken 12 damage for 9 HP left.
The grappled condition gives a -4 to Dex, so that lowers the AC by 2.
Valik attempts to punch the creature into submission, but the folds of flesh hold him much too tightly to get in a good jab.
Female Varisian cleric of Pharasma 7 | AC 21, T 10, FF 21 | HP 20/52 | F +8, R +4, W +12 | CMD 17 | Initiative +4 | Perception +16 | Channel 4/4 | Eerie Sense 60 ft
Ophelia shakes her head in amazement, glancing from Mel, to her morningstar, and back again. At least her wits were clear now.
Hoping to prove of some assistance, she closes in on the creature. Her next swing would strike true - and at the right thing.
Male Human Ranger 7 | HP 61/61 | AC 18 | T 15 | FF 13 | CMD 24 CMB 9 | Fort +7 | Ref +10 | Will +4 | Init +7 | Perc +12 | Sense Motive +3|Low Light Vision| Frostfur: HP 57 AC 23 Large
Halkale pulls another sling bullet and fires it at the monster.
Female LG Gnome Paladin of Erastil/Life Oracle 7/4 | HP 88 | AC 28 T 13 FF 27 | CMB +14, CMD 26 | F: +16, R: +12, W: +15; +2 vs. illusions, death, and haunts | Init: +1, addtl. +2 vs haunts | Perc: +0, SM: -2, Low-Light Vision, Darkvision, blind past 60 feet, +2 on skill checks to notice a haunt | Speed 15ft | Active conditions: Life Link on 4 of the party. Probably wand of shield for +4 AC.
Got another bless in ya', Amelia? Quiella says after her sword clangs against the ground from another failed swing.
Now less nimble due to tightly grappling Valik, the monster is unable to avoid Melufiuos electrified mace. As the weapon hits with both a smack and crackle, the creature chokes out a death rattle in all six mouths before releasing Valik and becoming an inert flesh puddle.
For a moment as the creature dies, your vision becomes blurring once again and the chamber is full of white noise. Both senses quickly clear up and you find yourselves in front of the same bronze door from earlier. Melufiuos finds no traps.
Male Elf | Magus 7 / Rogue 1 |HP: 54/54 | AC19 T 14 FF 15 | F+7 R+9 W+7 | Init +6 | Perc +12(+2) | SM +1 | CMB +7 | CMD 21 | Speed 30
Mel stares around at the walls..." What.... was that ? I... I couldn't think straight. Did that really happen? " but as his eyes fall on his bloodied companions, he hugs himself "I guess it did."
To Valik, "you have the way of it. Everyone heal up completely. That could have been ugly." He offers his wand to anyone who needs it and refuses to touch the door until everyone is fully healed.
Female LG Gnome Paladin of Erastil/Life Oracle 7/4 | HP 88 | AC 28 T 13 FF 27 | CMB +14, CMD 26 | F: +16, R: +12, W: +15; +2 vs. illusions, death, and haunts | Init: +1, addtl. +2 vs haunts | Perc: +0, SM: -2, Low-Light Vision, Darkvision, blind past 60 feet, +2 on skill checks to notice a haunt | Speed 15ft | Active conditions: Life Link on 4 of the party. Probably wand of shield for +4 AC.
Female Varisian cleric of Pharasma 7 | AC 21, T 10, FF 21 | HP 20/52 | F +8, R +4, W +12 | CMD 17 | Initiative +4 | Perception +16 | Channel 4/4 | Eerie Sense 60 ft
Swallowing hard as she stows her morningstar, healing herself from her own wand, hands shaking, Ophelia glances at Mel. "I... I don't know what came over me. Did I hurt you?"
Valik, did you use someone's CLW wand or did you have the potions on you? I'm just making sure everyone is on the same page as the group uses its resources.
Also, is the group going to rest at its current location? That's what I'll assume unless someone says otherwise, and move on tomorrow in case there is anything else someone would like to do before trying the bronze door. Please remember that when you sleep, you heal your level in hit points.
