Keildrithe gets in line behind Pharris.
Alton rummages in his pack for his rope and grappling hok, and tries to secure the hook around the plug.
Nicholai nods.
"Lets use the rope as a backup. But since my mystic platform lasts for so long, and it might be useful down there,..."
The dandy makes a few gestures, mumbles few vague phrases, and makes a final, forceful, gesture with his hand out, palm down. The small, shimmering disc appears in front of him. He makes a small gesture, and the disc obediently and silently slides sideways to float over the hole.
"Ladies first!" He declares, holding out his hand to assist Pharris up onto the floating platform.
EDIT: Nicolai posted while I was taking my time posting!
The group can easily get down, one at time, on Nicolai’s magic disk, which fits neatly through the five foot diameter hole.
Laithe had been readying himself for his descent into the hole, but defers to Pharris as Nicolai ushers her onto the disc. When it re-appears, he takes his turn and heads down into the conical room below. He jumps lightly from the disc as it nears the ground and immediately turns his senses towards the four tunnels which lead from it.
The party makes it safely down to the dusty floor of the conical chamber below. A single damp stone walled tunnel leads away from the chamber, to the west, its end beyond the reach of the light from the glowing coins. All is silent, although at the extreme edge of the dim light from the coin, down the tunnel, Laithe thinks he sees a hint of movement.
When she lands Pharris takes a moment to attune her elven ears to the surroundings and see if she can here the approach of evil.
Slowly she turns with her greatsword held two handed out ahead until she faces the tunnel.
Kajetan looks down the hole and swallows hard, "I am beginning to get a bad feeling about this," despite his protest, he asks to go down the hole next, clinging to the disk with all his might.
Kajetan looks down the hole and swallows hard, "I am beginning to get a bad feeling about this," despite his protest, he asks to go down the hole next, clinging to the disk with all his might.
"Nonsense!" Nicholai says jovially, but softly, whispering to Kajetan as the mage climbs onto the disc.
"It's merely your perfectly normal, average, ancient, hidden, necromatically-infused, deep, dark, spooky well!" He grins. Then glances down the hole. His grin slowly fades.
"After you!" He adds quickly, and mentally lowers the magical disc, carrying Kajetan down into the hole before the mage can do more than glare at him in protest.
Alton laughs softly at the exchange between his companions. 'Im sure glad your here to keep us all at our ease Nicolai.' Alton rolls his eyes then winks at his friend before taking his turn to descend on the disk.
When she lands Pharris takes a moment to attune her elven ears to the surroundings and see if she can here the approach of evil.
Slowly she turns with her greatsword held two handed out ahead until she faces the tunnel.
All is silent, other than the noise you bring with you.
Your eyes are better than Laithe's in dim light - you see the faint swirl and eddie of mist or fog obscuring the end of the passageway ahead.
She will start down the tunnel a ways. While the others are descending. Just because she is curious to see what lies ahead..
Kajetan picks up the illuminated coin and waits for the others to arrive in the chamber.
He stares down the tunnel with a grim look on his face.
After some forty feet the corridor opens onto another circular chamber, filled with a thin and unnatural mist that eddies and swirls to the rhythm of an unfelt breeze. The chamber is thirty feet wide, and four passages, including the one that Pharris stands in, march away from it in the cardinal directions.
Through the misty veil, Pharris can make out in the centre of the chamber a large stone pillar sculpted to resemble four entwined skeletal serpents, each facing one of the passageways. The pillar supports the twenty foot high tiled ceiling. Carved into the southwest portion of the chamber’s wall is a nine foot tall bas-relief depicting a powerful looking warrior with savage, inhuman features standing at fierce attention.
Nicholai holds up the other glowing coin, and peers at the mist-shrouded chamber.
"Yep. All perfectly normal." He whispers, nervously straightening an imaginary wrinkle in his clothing.
Nicholai holds up the other glowing coin, and peers at the mist-shrouded chamber.
"Yep. All perfectly normal." He whispers, nervously straightening an imaginary wrinkle in his clothing.
Laithe hurries after Pharris towards the mist shrouded room, eyeing the skeletal serpants disdainfully. He feels the nerves of the party members around him and, though he shares many of them himself, he straightens his back and steps forwards into the room, shield held protectively in front, eyes scanning for the slightest hint of danger.
Keildrithe follows his companions into the mist-shrouded chamber, behaving in a very subdued manner as he does so. He never strays beyond the reach of the light source.
As Laithe and Keildrithe enter the new chamber, they hear the measured impact of heavy boots on the rocky floor, and the clinking of metal armour, getting closer, approaching from the west. Both men can make out a tall figure surrounded by a faint radiance like faerie fire, its features difficult to discern in the darkness and mist, walking towards the room from the western passageway.
Nicholai peers at the faint figure as it approaches. He places the glowing coin in his teeth and readies his crossbow.
"Careful. She's right. We can't get complacent. At some point the illusions will cease and the dangers will be real!" He whispers to the others as he raises his crossbow. His usually precise speech is somewhat muffled from being mumbled around the glowing coin in his teeth.
"Is that another ghost? It doesn't sound like one." Pharris speaks aloud her thoughts without thinking. She grips the greatsword tighter and steps forwards to give the spellcasters space.
"A guardian in armour, will probably cause us harm. Get ready!"
As Laithe spies the creature pacing towards them he too remains uncertain as to whether it is real or merely another illusion. He decides to test the theory, pulling forth one of the two remaining magical stones and hurling it at the creature.
Keildrithe takes a few steps back. "How many more of these unholy abominations can we face?" murmurs the bard, shaking his head from left to right over and over, as if doing so will dispel the sight of the ghostly warrior headed their way. Then he stops abruptly, holds his grandfather's sword up with both hands, closes his eyes, and again begins to recite the same ode he had recited when the group faced the shadows... the one about the chosen ones...
Her red hair flicks out as Pharris fixes the men with a quick grin, taking the slung stone as a declaration of intent.
"Time to die."
Pharris steps forwards again to the forefront of the party. Her eyes roll up briefly as the elven maiden enters the mind state of a wardancer.
"I am death, the blade is death."
Alton moves into the chamber, glancing at the statues of the snakes and hoping that they are nothing more sinister that just a statue. He draws his magical dagger once more, preparing for the fight ahead.
Kajetan freezes, unsure if this is an illusion, quasi-real or the real deal.
He holds his breath while he waits for the others to act, glancing over his shoulder and wondering how the hell he can climb up the rope on his own.
Laithe’s stone clatters into the passage, the clear miss doing little to reveal whether the approaching figure is solid, ghost, or illusion.
As the words of Keildrithe’s ode fill the chamber, masking the ominous approaching footsteps, an imposing figure steps out from the western passage, surrounded by swirling mist and a faintly glowing spectral halo. The figure wears a wolf fur cloak, an ornate breastplate, and an open-faced helm with a draconic crest. A darkness seems to shroud the features within the helm, and all that can be seen is the chilling gleam of two ghostly glowing eyes. The warlord stops, and raises a hand towards where the hilt of a large sword rises above his shoulder.
Pharris lifts her greatsword and beckons the unholy warrior spirit on, stepping forward again to ensure that she is the first target.
DM
Nicholai finally gets his crossbow loaded, and swings it up just in time to see the helmed figures approach.
Initiative: +1
Keildrithe continues to recite the stirring words of his ode, but now decides that he is probably better off sheathing his sword and taking in hand the presumably enchanted javelin the group found earlier...
Pharris steps forwards, the mist eddying and swirling about her slim form, as she holds her blade ready to strike. Kajetan hesitates, wondering, his gaze flicking between the approaching figure, his companions, and the eastward passage. Keildrithe continues his ode, but sheathes his sword, drawing forth the magical javelin in its favour.
Kajetan:
Apart from the glow, the eyes, and the obscured face, the figure resembles a powerful Sya-Negan chief or warlord, though you are not sure if it is a known historical figure. Everything suggests that this may be some type of undead, but your mind is too flustered to identify which type. There is one calm, analytical part of your brain that notes that this could be another illusion – illusions with both auditory and visual components are not that difficult to construct, and you’ve certainly encountered illusions before in this place (the shadows if not the phantoms) that seem to react to (or appear at) your presence.
The warlord draws his black bladed sword, and holds it out in front of him, pointing towards Pharris who stands several paces away from him. He begins chanting something in a foreign tongue and a cold, dead voice.
The warlord draws his black bladed sword, and holds it out in front of him, pointing towards Pharris who stands several paces away from him. He begins chanting something in a foreign tongue and a cold, dead voice.
Laithe is filled by dread at the thought of what evil magic the warlord might be calling forth to afflict his companion. He grabs at the final remaining magic stone, takes aim and hurls it at the armoured figure, preying to Ehlonna that the stone hits and does enough to disrupt spell.
The magic stone from Laithe’s sling flies true – and passes straight through the chanting warlord (without him apparently noticing or even faltering in his chanting) to clatter on the stone floor behind him.
Nicholai hisses as Laithe's stone flies true, and misses?!? He blinks,...
Nicholai hisses as Laithe's stone flies true, and misses?!? He blinks,...
... and sees the warlord for what it really is – a vague transparent outline, with colours splashed in two dimensions over the top of it, making a tinny, hollow sounding chant. Or, in other words, an illusion.
The magic stone from Laithe’s sling flies true – and passes straight through the chanting warlord (without him apparently noticing or even faltering in his chanting) to clatter on the stone floor behind him.
Laithe is shocked to see the stone fail to connect or disrupt the warlord in any way. He too rubs his eyes, trying to discern what exactly happened.
He then looks sharply to the other passages, to ensure that nothing was sneaking up on them while they had their attention focused on the warlord.
Laithe too recognises the apparition as an illusion. Looking quickly around, he spies nothing else but the swirling mist.
The figure of the ancient warlord keeps chanting for several moments before yelling out what seems to be a battlecry, that echoes off the old stone walls, before fading from sight.
"Another illusion," murmurs Keildrithe with a mixture of relief and apprehension. "How many more mind games must we overcome down here... and to what end?"
Hauntings, traps, undead, illusions, monsters ... it is hard to know what is real and what is not in this place.
It may occur to the more insightful members of the group that at almost every turn they have wasted resources on illusions ... there may come a point where these resources are sorely missed ...
Alton shakes his head, once again sheathing his blade.
'This place is really starting to get on my nerves. Im really missing the good old days with our Artonite friends.'
"If this place wasn't so spooky, I would love to stay and study it," Kajetan almost sighs with regret.
"Is it safe to enter the room now?" he asks from the safety of the entrance way.
Nicholai mutters to himself under his breath, then looks up and gives his usual charming smile.
"It would appear to be perfectly safe,... for now." He answers Kajetan cheerfully if wryly.
"Illusions,... phantoms,... Either this place is guarded by nothing but (nearly) harmless phantasms,... Or the builder was a genius, and used several layers of harmless distraction to cause any intruders to waste ammo and mystical resources, which means that the final guardians will most likely be anything but harmless." Nicholai purses his lips.
"Perfect, just,... Brilliant." He mutters almost angrily, his tone of voice at odds with the apparent complement to the long-dead designers.
With another smile, he begins to try and search the room through the fog.
"Anything in here to investigate, or shall we press on?"
"Illusions,... phantoms,... Either this place is guarded by nothing but (nearly) harmless phantasms,... Or the builder was a genius, and used several layers of harmless distraction to cause any intruders to waste ammo and mystical resources, which means that the final guardians will most likely be anything but harmless." Nicholai purses his lips.
"I fear the later is probably true" Laithe says, taking out a few more sling bolts from the pouch where they are housed. "I suggest we test everything we encounter moving forward before we exhaust any more of our magical reserves."
He joins Nicolai in searching the room.
Pharris moves up to the tunnel that the ghost vacated and readies her sword again.
"Just makes me more determined to stop this evil."
"That's the spirit lass!" Nicholai grins.
"We need to be prepared to make a quick escape should things turn against us. Nicolai's magic disk can only carry so many at once... but can more than one be conjured at a time?"