Chronicles of Arcania: B/X Homebrew game.

Game Master Peet

Embarrassed at his last effort resulting in stabbing a nearby pile of junk, Montague tries once again.

1d20 ⇒ 19 Stabby

1d6 ⇒ 6 Hole

Taklishim tries to swat another of the stinging insects.....before it stings him...

Thaco 19: 19 - 1d20 ⇒ 19 - (13) = 6
Baton
1d4 ⇒ 4

"I tire of bugs..."

"And here I thought everything was under control after Ana's sleep spell. I sensed something magical coming from that hole, so let's try to take care of this infestation," Zynazyr says as he tries to send a ray of energy at the nearest awake bug.

Cantrip: 1d6 ⇒ 6

Ferrous misses, but Montague manages to stab the last conscious bug. Talikshim squashes the sleeping bug next to him. Zynazyr fails to cast a cantrip. Ana circles around and squashes the last sleeping bug.

But...

One more bug emerges from the hole in the floor.

Talikshim: You didn't roll your second health save, so here it is:
DC12: 1d20 ⇒ 12 Just barely!

Talikshim still feels dizzy, but at least his symptoms don't worsen.

Round 3 Initiative!
Block 1: Ana, Ferrous, Fistep, Monatgue, Zynazyr
Block 2: Bug
Block 3: Talikshim

Two Points of Order:

1: The bugs are coming out of a hole in the floor; the hole is where one corner of a flagstone is broken off. It seems clear at this point that the hole is only big enough for one bug to emerge at a time. The stone looks loose and sticking something in there to pry it loose is possible. Such an attempt would be in place of an attack.

2: Yes, you can ready an action to attack a bug as it emerges from the hole. You may roll this attack in advance, but please put it in a spoiler tag - other players shouldn't know what you have rolled until it happens. Or you can wait, or have me roll.

Laughs, "Aye good dwarf, that it is! and then grimmances at the missing swing.

Begins to ready for his another bug to pop his head out of the hole, but it seems to have obliged him so he swings his sword in a downward arc. "Bug killin' time!"

Begins to ready for his another bug to pop his head out of the hole, but it seems to have obliged him so he swings his sword in a downward arc. "Bug killin' time!"

Fistep easily kills the last visible bug (really overkill, actually). If there are more, they must still be in the hole.

However, the dizziness from the bug bite begins to overcome Fistep.
Fistep now has a -2 penalty to hit (and to any other d20 checks involving coordination). This penalty will last 1d6 ⇒ 3 turns. Fistep does not need to make any more saves unless he is bitten again, so this is the extent of the symptoms.

woohoo!

Fistep now has a -2 penalty to hit (and to any other d20 checks involving coordination). This penalty will last 1d6 turns. Fistep does not need to make any more saves unless he is bitten again, so this is the extent of the symptoms.

"Perhaps if we blocked the hole?"

Or place a passed out Goblin Wizard over it? Bwahhahhahah!
Ferrous jests as he readies his axe to take a swing at the next thing to creep out of the hole.

Laughs at the dwarfs comments and shakes his head groggily at the shaman. And give us no excitement?!

Okay guys...

Fistep has made an attack, and Ferrous is in position with his axe ready to strike anything else coming out of the hole. Talikshim's action will be later.

What does everyone else want to do? You could:

* Ready an action (like Ferrous)
* Delay
* Pry up the flagstone with a weapon or some other kind of lever (I wouldn't just use your hand though)
* Kill the goblin while nobody is looking
* Something else

kill da woblin, kill da woblin, kill da woblin!

Montague decides to repurpose his lousy bow, and uses it as a pry bar to lift the flagstone, standing behind it if possible.

"Get ready, I'm opening this sucka up".

"Let me aid you."

aid another action

"Let me aid you."

aid another action

No kind of check is required for this so I don't think there is any way that you can help, but it won't be necessary. However, you still need to make one more health save:

Montague decides to repurpose his lousy bow, and uses it as a pry bar to lift the flagstone, standing behind it if possible.

"Get ready, I'm opening this sucka up".

Montague sticks one end of the bow into the hole and pries the 1' square flagstone up easily.

A small recess under the floor houses the nest and there is one bug left inside. It raises it's head to sniff the air just as Ferrous' axe sweeps by, decapitating it.

Combat Over.

In the nest below the flagstone there is a cluster of about a dozen grape-sized eggs; they are jellylike, like frog's eggs. There are also a variety of articles in the hole; it seems like someone used it as a secret spot to hide things before the bugs moved in.

There are:
* A small glass vial of holy water
* A silver key (worth 5gp)
* A silver holy symbol (in the shape of a rod with two snakes twining around it)
* A small scrap of Papyrus. Most of the writing is illegible but you can make out "...when the path is blocked Usamigaras can lead you out of darkness. Ask and..."
* Three cones of incense (Zynazyr detects magic on them, but it will take more time to identify them)
* A silver sling bullet
* A moldy and badly chewed up spellbook. The last page is intact but it will take more work to decipher it.
* A small metal five pointed star. The tines of the star are sharp and it has the weight of a dagger. This is like a shuriken; anyone proficient with daggers can use it as a thrown weapon. It does the same damage as a dagger but uses the range of thrown spears instead. It cannot be used in melee without damaging the wielder.

Doing a search of the room, Ana discovers a secret door hidden in the western end of the north wall.

Updated spreadsheet

Zynazyr looks over the items as they are pulled out of the hole. He seems excited about the find. "Nice job everyone in dealing with the bugs. I hope there is some useful things here. I'll have to take a closer look at them later," he says as he puts the spellbook and incense into his pack.

He looks surprised when Ana discovers the secret door. "Well done. Maybe there's even more treasure in there." He positions himself near the statue to be able to see through the door once it is opened.

I haven't moved on map yet.

"Tha stings pack a whollop at first, but the effect is passing....I am still deciphering the parchment so Anna should look to the book...."

His stomach making a growl louder than his previous laugh Ferrous looks around a little sheepishly.
Any of you lot know if we can cook these beasts? They seem nice and juicy. I wouldn't mind butchering them up while you magic using types try to decipher those scratches on papyrus.

"Like the serpent the venom is in the head, cut that away and the meat will be pure."

Zynazyr looks at Ferrous and Taklishim and then back to Ana. "I think we should check to see what is behind the secret door before we spend time getting our next meal or studying these items more closely. I wouldn't want something to jump out at us while we're distracted. We can always come back in here when we're done."

He then takes another look at the metal star. "Hmm, I wonder if I can throw this. Unless someone else wants it, I think I will see if it works as a weapon." As he is waiting for someone to open the secret door, he experiments with different ways to hold the star as if to throw it.

"I could fasten the metal to a wood rod, then it could be used for striking."

Grumbling a little under his breath Ferrous glares at the wizard who didn't participate in the last fight to produce the current source of food. Alright we can wait to eat I guess. I'm doing fine I thought some of us could use the fresh meat to soothe our parched throats but let's open the door and see where it leads. And if there's a door behind this one will we keep going until we drop of starvation while we leave this food here to be eaten by who knows what?
With a shrug of his shoulders Ferrous snaps his mouth shut realizing that his complaining is not putting him in the best light.

"I could fasten the metal to a wood rod, then it could be used for striking."

If you wanted to use the Ustar in melee, I would allow this, though it would ruin its value as a thrown weapon and would only be as effective in melee as using a dagger, and you already have plenty of daggers. The main benefit of an ustar is that you can throw it an extra 10 feet before range penalties kick in. So the ranges are short (+1): 5-20 feet, medium (+0): 21-40 feet, long (-1): 41-60 feet.

Zynazyr is concerned that something might come out the secret door to the north and wants to go there first, while it seems that Ferrous would prefer to clean and skin the dead centipedes first.

If you want to take care of the potential food first then some people could watch the door while others deal with the dead centipedes.

So what's the verdict? Deal with the room to the north first? Or deal with the food first?

Looks at the wizard, then laughs at the dwarf. I hear you friend wizard, but I think Ferrous has a point. We are low on resources, so we should gather then while we have a chance. With that he readies his sword and shield and steps over by the now unsecret door to stand guard.

Gather and prepare, then proceed. "We can die of thirst or starvation as well as monster bites and claws. Let Fistep watch the door, then we'll go on. Don't want to take the chance of any other creature coming back and taking our food source while we're gone".

Taklishim's eyes fall on the silver holy symbol....
"Coyote first led me to shamanism, but it is serpent who has been visiting my dreams, perhaps this talisman will reveal more mysteries to me. Let us cook the kill quickly and move on after we eat."

He examines the holy symbol....

3:00 PM, Day 1

While Fistep guards the door, the rest of the party gets to work flensing the centipedes. There's not a lot of meat here, but every bit counts. But it doesn't take too long to deal with it (1 extra turn).

The centipedes add up to eight half-meals. You lose some because you are removing the part that you believe is venomous, but "experimenting" with those parts would be unwise.

The party is just finishing up, when Montague hears some kind of sound in the hallway, like a faint clattering.

"I could fasten the metal to a wood rod, then it could be used for striking."

Zynazyr looks up from the metal star at Taklishim's comment. He seems to consider his offer as he continues to inspect the weapon. "I appreciate the offer, Taklishim, but I'm not interested in getting close enough to use it as a spear-head. I prefer to deal with enemies from a distance. I'll be interested to see if I can throw this any farther than a dagger."

After the others weigh in on the next step, he concedes and helps as he can preparing the food.

Taklishim nods, knowing that his people would use the rare metal to the best benefit, making a throwing weapon of metal is unknown to the tribes...

Taklishim is careful to remove not just the heads, but a few segments further back as well. He had left the eggs in the hole seeing no reason to kill the eggs...he did not suggest eating them knowing in serpents venom is concentrated in very young...

Ana takes enough of the food to take the edge off of her hunger, remaining quiet as she does so. "I need to rest," she says at length. "I am out of spells for the day and need to study to regain them."

The dwarf smiles to himself as the group has seen the wisdom behind his grumbling and sets about harvesting the meat from the centipede carcasses. He starts humming an ancient dwarven working chant as he deftly cuts off the poisonous portions and peels back the skin slcing free the edible portions and placing them neatly untop his sack getting his sack covered in bug guts and blood in the process. All the while he continues his soft humming smiling to himself amid the gore.

waiting for Montague to inform the group of the noise, so we can go running pell mell after it. :)

The party is just finishing up, when Montague hears some kind of sound in the hallway, like a faint clattering.

waiting for Montague to inform the group of the noise, so we can go running pell mell after it. :)

Point of Order: When I put a note like this in the thread, the player can post a specific in-character response, but to save time let's assume that the character has alerted everyone generally. A player might be unavailable for unforeseen reasons. If I put something in a spoiler tag then only the character will know unless he/she shares the information with the party.

Ana takes enough of the food to take the edge off of her hunger...

@ Ana: How much are you eating?

"I need to rest," she says at length. "I am out of spells for the day and need to study to regain them."

You may be out of spells, but you still perform pretty well in melee. The other spellcasters are still at their full compliment of spells.

Gestures to Ferrous, Wanna check out that sound while I keep an eye on this door? he says in a whisper.

Looking up from the carcass he was dressing the dwarf had a puzzled look on his face. And then he recalled that someone had said something just prior and he didn't quite hear it over his humming. But not that he stopped he heard a soft clanking sound coming from the hallway. Ferrous nodded to Fistep and grabbed up his axe and went cautiously to the door to the hallway that had the sound and very slightly cracked the door to get a look into the source of the sound.

Ferrous looks out the door into the hallway, shielding his eyes from the light in the room, trying to let his infravision take over.

He can make out nothing in the darkness... wait, is that movement to the north? Might be something cold-blooded, which would be nearly invisible to his infravision.

Realizing that whatever it is must have already seen the light coming out of the room into the hall, he gambles and takes the cluster of fire beetle glands the party is using for a light source and holds it out the door to see. To the north, just coming into the range of his light source are scorpions, three huge ones, each as big as a dog. They are moving slowly down the hallway towards you.

You can presumably engage them in combat, shut the door and hope they go past, or perhaps lie in wait in case they enter the room you are in.

Map updated.

Seeing the man and dwarf whispering and checking, Taklishim asks quietly to Fistep in the doorway.....

"Is there cause for concern in the halls?"

Ferrous quickly pulls his head back into the room and closes the door behind him.
Giant scorpions by the Flames they be as big as a wolf or at least that coyote you keep talking about. He blurts out breathing heavy. The claws on those things look pretty deadly. Should we fight them or leave through the other door and spike this one closed behind us?

I just assumed that Montague would share this information since it wasn't spoilered as well

Montague curious about what might make that sound steps up to Ferrous.

"Well? What it is"?

or leave through the other door and spike this one closed behind us?

Remember there is a largish hole in the bottom right-hand corner of the door, but you could put some of the wrecked furniture to block the hole.

"These are known to me to have poison and they can find prey without seeing it. I know not if it is heat or vibrations or breathing or smell that draw the skittering near. In the forests with plentiful game they rarely attack human beings."

Well, as much as I'd like we can't fight everything.. we're going to have to pick our battles as we can. he says in a moderately quite voice. He points to the secret door, I say we duck in here and see what it holds and see if the go by...

He moves over to start pushing some furniture pieces to cover the hole in the door.

"Placing two doors between us and them may be more useful."

At the mention of the scorpions, Zynazyr puts the metal star into his belt pouch. "Let's not forget our wizard friend in the corner," he says as he moves over to the goblin and does his best to drag him towards the secret door.

Assuming a consensus and moving ahead...
The party quickly shuts the door and blocks it with the broken furniture in the room. There is no evidence that the scorpions outside are trying to force the door.

I'm removing them from the map as you can no longer see them. That doesn't necessarily mean they aren't there.

3:10 PM, Day 1
The party opens the secret door...

The walls of this dusty room are lined with clay jars and urns of various sizes. Inside this room you see seven bird-like creatures with long beaks like tubes. A faint glitter catches your eye from the center of the room as the bird-like creatures fly toward you.

Ana, Talikshim, and Zynazyr all recognize the creatures as stirges, flying vermin that drink blood from living prey.

Round 1 Initiative
Block 1: 2 Stirges
Block 2: Ana, Fistep, Montague, Talikshim, Zynazyr
Block 3: 3 Stirges
Block 4: Ferrous
Block 5: The last 2 Stirges

Two stirges sweep in and attack Fistep, who is guarding the entrance...

Stirge 1: 17 - 1d20 ⇒ 17 - (11) = 61d3 ⇒ 3
Stirge 2: 17 - 1d20 ⇒ 17 - (6) = 111d3 ⇒ 3

But neither of them is able to penetrate Fistep's armor.

Everyone is up except Ferrous, but Ferrous can post a conditional action if he wants.

Seeing and recognizing the danger Taklishim summons a spirit for defense....

"Ware the drinkers of blood, dehydration is swift through the lose of blood."