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"Pathfinders!?" With an enthusiasm, Rain begins a long winded explanation about what happened during his Confirmation. "Well you see, after I left Absalom, I got on a boat...
...It was a holiday season so Inns were expensive, I counted my gold and ...
...I think i was followed by some Kobolds after I had a bit too much to drink...
...I could not find my pack mule! I searched high and low, from the tavern...
...Slipped in the mud... smugglers?!
... and that's how I ended up here!"
But in a modest summary, After bad weather delayed his voyage to Cassomir, Rain ended up spending all his remaining gold on increased inn costs. During his one-night stay in town, half of his provisions were stolen, along with the pack mule he had stabled at the inn. After that, the guide he hired to help him navigate the swamp never showed up. Following all of this, Rain still decided to brave the swamps with his low provisions, hoping beyond hope to uncover something within the Blackwood Swamp that could let him pass his Confirmation.
Rain got lost. He stumbled upon an enclave of lizardfolk, who mistook him for a smuggler or other miscreant and took him in for questioning under suspicion he was a smuggler, but once they determined it was an honest mistake, he got permission to explore the ruins.
A few moments later, Thakik returns.
“Ah, I see you have reconnected with your fellow Pathfinderin-training. I wish this reunion could be under better circumstances.” Thakik pauses and looks back in the direction of the enclave.
“Our scouts report that the creatures that attacked came from a larger set of these ruins, deeper in the swamp. They emerged from a partially submerged structure, meaning we have no idea of the threat within—but we assume the site is quite dangerous. I know Rain in Cloudy Day has been interested in investigating these ruins, but the risk is too great. However, our enclave can’t afford to withstand more of these attacks.”
Thakik looks over the assembled group, as well as Rain. “Would you be willing to venture into this structure and find out what has agitated the creatures within?”
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marI/Os will drink his healing potion if no one else can provide healing at the moment.
"Greetings, Rain in Cloudy Day. You seem to have made quite an adventure of this confirmation. I am marI/Os, and in addition to helping the Pathfinders, I am on an adventure of my own. I am looking for another one of my kind, who uses the designation cos8. I suspect your own trobles have occupied enough of your mind, but I would appreciate it if you would send me word should you come across news of her on your travels.
"In the meantime, I believe it would be efficient for us to combine our resources to explore this location."
Brask as always will provide out of combat healing to everyone at a rate of 1d6 every 10 minutes.
"Well Rain, it seems your adventure has been quite an interesting one. Are you sure you didn't break a mirror or something before leaving Absalom? Your luck seems to be all wrong, though you still somehow managed to do all you wanted to despite that. Good job little fella."
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marI/Os will drink his healing potion if no one else can provide healing at the moment.
"Greetings, Rain in Cloudy Day. You seem to have made quite an adventure of this confirmation. I am marI/Os, and in addition to helping the Pathfinders, I am on an adventure of my own. I am looking for another one of my kind, who uses the designation cos8. I suspect your own trobles have occupied enough of your mind, but I would appreciate it if you would send me word should you come across news of her on your travels.
"In the meantime, I believe it would be efficient for us to combine our resources to explore this location."
"Are you... a metal leshy? Metal man?" Rain circles MarI/Os with a fierce curiousity, studying what manner of creature this is. "I will look out for cause-ate."
Once the party is rested, Rain in Cloudy Day turns to the group, "Well! I believe we are off to finish this confirmation!" and leads you deeper into the swamp.
A stone platform sits at a skewed angle out of the muck, and rampant foliage covers most of it. A long stone stairway descends below the plinth and into the structure. The stairway would normally be obscured, but the recent movement of creatures in the area has pushed the obfuscating foliage aside.
The interior of the ruins has a ceiling 15 feet high unless otherwise stated. The walls, floors, and ceiling are made of stone. There’s no light in the area but Rain in Cloud Day whips out an everlasting torch.
A polished tan white stone stairway leads down into a large, worked chamber made of similar styled stone. Stairs ascend along the chamber’s northern end to a raised platform. Two halls branch from the raised area, one to the north covered in debris, while the other to the west connects to a wider hall heading north. A sealed stone door to the east bars access beyond. A large crack along the eastern wall of the lower section continues into a damp cavern replete with the smell of flora.
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Leena pulls out her light cantrip deck and draws a card from it and has the light which she initiallly places the the center of her light cantrip so that it is 25 feet in front of Leena so that is currently 'centered' in the farthest 'outer' 5 foot 'ring' of the dim light caused by Rain in Cloudy Day's light.
Seeing a figure that was within the shadows made Leena wonder if it might be her shadowdancing trickster brother, her companions might detect a tinge of disappointment in Leena's voice as she uses her cantrip deck to create magical light, "Who are you?"
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Squinting pays off, Zoila hits the undead creature right in the head. A large thunk is heard and echoes throughout the room, "WAARGGHHHHH" The creature growls and makes it's way towards the group.
It closes in on MarI/Os and Biold, the party's front, and makes a huge swing with it's greataxe. It cuts the frontliners with a clean and fairly deep wound.
Rain sees the commotion and begins to inspire a courageous anthem, "Pathfinders! Danger comes in all shapes and forms, be not afraid, you can do this!" And swing some more pods at the undead. One of them hits the creature, but barely makes a dent.
~~~
Encounter Round 1/2
Bold may action!
Conditions: Courageous anthem: +1 status bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, and saves against fear effects.
Zoila
Undead!? -11 ⛨19
Rain
Biold ♥️-15 Fort Save DC17
Brask
Leena
Azorch
MarI/Os ♥️-15 Fort Save DC17
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Biold grunts as the axe swipes at him.
The initial pain is so overwhelming that the following grotesqueness doesn't even register within him. Once the pain of the slash subsides, he lets the rancid smatter fall away while he turns his focus to his mechanical warhammer.
Success Your gizmos go into overdrive, adding power to your attacks. As critical success, except the additional damage is equal to half your Intelligence modifier.
He tries to smash its head in with his hammer...
and being used to what tends to happen next , he retreats shortly to the corner.
I am not down and out yet!
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Biold strikes true and hard hard to knock the undead creature slightly off balance, but it still stands strong.
The draugr is heavier than Leena expects, and stays put.
~~~
Encounter Round 1/2
Bold may action!
Conditions: Courageous anthem: +1 status bonus to attack rolls, damage rolls, and saves against fear effects.
Zoila
Undead!? -20 ⛨19
Rain
Biold ♥️-15
Brask
Leena
Azorch
MarI/Os ♥️-15 Fort Save DC17
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A barrage of attacks from all angles from the party knocks and injures the creature badly. It barely is able to keep standing, but continues to fight till the end! He picks up his axe, and swings it across MarI/Os, Brask and Leena.
Seeing the creature fairly injured, Rain attempts to finish it off! a spore pod barely touches the draugr, but knocks him down. Falling over, the bones spread everywhere! "Phew! I thought we were goners there."
Biold ♥️-15
MarI/Os ♥️-20 + Grotesque gift
Brask ♥️-7 + Grotesque gift
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Biold grips his shield extra tightly. This time he was able to at least stay standing, though he suffered no less pain and injury for it.
He nods at Leena's remark.
I don't doubt it.
and steps forward to survey the room more closely with the immediate danger gone. He peers into the darkness of the broken wall, that he suspects might conceal more undead.
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Leena takes a good look, and discerns no other danger or anything for that matter within the darkest corners of the current room.
Biold sees no immediate threats through the broken wall but finds a network of caverns. Caves stretch out from several breaks in the walls of the stone complex. Though the cave is mostly damp, patches of permafrost show up regularly within the dug dirt walls. In several places, moisture has come through the dirt, only to be frozen in place. Additionally, while glancing through the dark, Biold notices some unassuming brown mold, something looks unsettling about the way the mold reacts to the surrounding.
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Hearing the talk about mold, Rain in Cloudy Day's ear's perk and he takes a peek. "Let me talk to the plants! Surely we can find some middle ground."
"Mi mi mi mi mi mi mi.. mi mi mi.. mi miiii mi."
Rain sigh's relief and turns back to the party, "Well, I'd have you know that's some pretty dangerous stuff, it sucks heat out of the air and leaves you ice cold! But the mold would allow us safe passage. Should we head down this path?" He asks.
"Quite the useful ability you have there, Rain. Lead the way!"
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The small chamber close to the hole contains a small, unlocked metal chest. The chest contains several precious emerald gemstones worth a total of 25 gp, as well as a single dusty rose stone.
As you enter the tunnels, Rain in Cloudy Day looks back and admires the stonework of the ruins. "This is definitive proof that there was an Azlanti civilization here! And I bet this tunnels will have more! We need to find what is the source of the attacking creatures..."
"Hopefully you'll be able to do something about it ... I have no other ideas but to bash whatever it is into inactivity..." Brask just shrugs, his knowledge on the Azlanti or summoning devices coming to an absolutely nothing.
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"I could have the benefits of a shield while wielding my boarding pike? Dibs!!"
Realizing she resorted to how her, her brothers and their friends tend to decide on who gets what, a bit of darker colour appears on Leena's cheeks, "Sorry, old habits can be hard to break. If the group thinks it would be more beneficial for someone else to use it, so be it."
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At the end of the cavernous path, the group encroaches back into the ruins. A massive stone column ten feet wide rises from the tiled floor of this circular chamber. Strange glyphs dance along the column, pulsing with dull green light, though many of the glyphs wink in and out of existence as though malfunctioning. The ceiling here ascends twenty feet from the floor. Collapsed stone debris prevents the use of two connecting halls to the west and southwest, while breaks in the eastern walls open the area to an adjacent network of caves. A single five-foot-wide hall exits to the north.
The central column sheds some light, dim light in a 20 foot radius. An extremely large and hostile plantlike creature is in the chamber somewhat protecting this structure. Azorch would have detected varying traces of magic from the structure, as if it's not stable.
"That must be it!" Rain shouts, "That's what's causing the monsters to attack the tribe, we must stop it!"
~~~
Encounter Round 1
Bold may act!
Zoila
Biold
Azorch
Brask
Plant
Leena
MarI/O
Rain
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Well, we certainly have to deal with that.
Critical Success Your gizmos go into a state of incredible efficiency called critical overdrive, adding great power to your attacks. Your Strikes deal additional damage equal to your Intelligence modifier for 1 minute. After the Overdrive ends, your gizmos become unusable as they cool down or reset, and you can’t use Overdrive for 1 minute.
Biold explains the column to the team around him.
Brask will cast tremor upon the creature hoping to slow it down and then reopen his gate while attacking it from a distance.
◆◆ Tremor Fort DC 17, Earth and stone in the area is difficult terrain until the start of your next turn.
◆ Channel Elements
◇ Ranged 30ft Elemental Blast ,
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Unable to help with the runes, Zoila focuses on the plant.
♥️ 18/18, ☀️□□
◆) Recall Knowledge vs Plant
◆) Strike vs Plant
◆) Reload
Arcana (*) +8
Crafting (*) +8
Lore: Astronomy (*) +8
Lore: Tea (*) +8
Lore: Thassilon (*) +8
Nature (*) +6
Occultism (*) +8
Religion (*) +6
Society (*) +8
Survival (*) +6
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Biold gets an idea of what means would stop the runic column from activating, but the immediate action of the group seems to be to focus on the threat of the living plant!
Zoila is unaware of what this creature would be.
Brask misses his projectile, but the remaining volleys from Azorch and Zoila strikes the creature true. It shrieks as the heat from the flames visible scars it.
The creature moves forward and attempts to reach out to MarI/Os with it's leafy vines. Fortunately, it does not seem to get it's bearings right, and only deals a fraction of it's damage to the Automaton.
damage on a critical failure. This counts toward the flytrap’s multiple attack penalty as a number of attacks equal to the number of leaves the flytrap has.
~~~
Encounter Round 1
Bold may act!
Zoila
Biold
Azorch
Brask
Plant -9
Leena
MarI/O -10
Rain