Init:
The assassin dexterously fits a new quarrel to the slide with the same hand she uses to pull back and respan the little crossbow. She quickly points it and fires again.
Hand Crossbow ... damage
The bolt skips off the floor by Livia's head and flies past Fiosa.
Do your worst
The wall next to the intruder erupts in a shower of sparks which do no harm.
Zarabeta stares at the redhaired woman for the barest second. Then a quick word and motion send a glowing green snake flying toward her.
... damage
The acid hits the horned woman, hisses, spits, and smokes on her black leather. She flinches.
Fiosa stays prone (for the extra AC against ranged attacks) and tries casting Charm Person on the assassin.
The woman's red eyes flare. "I'll remember you, little one."
Marius hits. Up close she's grey-skinned, nearly indistinguishable from her tight black leather armor. Woman flees, elusively.
Marius hit her and she runs.
Pursuit?
"Or she was trying to kill me! SHE must be crazy." Livia pushes her head and torso of the floor and flaps her wings weakly.
The party settles down for some more rest.
Livia turns herself invisible but keeps chatting with Marius. She's really interested in why you're there and what you've done, especially interested in Zarabeta.
Seven entrances into this room -- corridors on the corners and north and south walls. A door in the west wall. Marius puts his back to the east wall.
After a while Livia stops trying to tease information out of the taciturn man. Marius occasionally hears a whumpf of wingbeat or rush of air she when she flies near, but she stays invisible.
Marius' watch passes without event. Still on the Fiosa for 2 hours alone plan?
Livia Perception
Assassin Stealth
If I don't hear anything by noon, I'll just decide.
It's an edgy uncomfortable night. In the morning, or at least when you decide you've had enough, Marius looks haggard and even for the sleepers don't feel fresh. Last night's feast has made its way through your stomachs and you're hungry.
Zarabeta studies her spellbook with a frown. Livia stays invisible, but she must be crowding the wizard because Zarabeta keeps pushing away something unseen.
Once Zarabeta's done, Livia says, "I'll take you to Molikandus like I said. It's a bit tricky getting there. There's all these pits and the doors between them open and close."
Livia says brightly, "Last night's attacker fled north, but she could be anywhere waiting in ambush. We have to cross the pits. There's four entrances. Two north of here, one through that door [ooc~she points to the door in the east wall~[/ooc], and one to the south. That one's pretty stinky. Which way do we go?"
Got the marching order. Door 1,2,3, or 4.
This chamber lacks a visible floor and ceiling—instead, what appears to be an endless shaft stretches to infinity both above and below. A ring of stone stairs winds upward counterclockwise around the room’s perimeter, winding back on itself in a mind-bending twist that, impossibly, brings one back to the starting point’s elevation despite the fact that the stairs themselves seem never to change their ascent or descent.
Two stone archways, like a doorway but sealed with stone, extend off from landings on the stairway. One is diametrically across from you. the other is 120 degrees around to the south.
Livia sighs. "We're blocked, but it's just as well. You can learn how this works. There's two ways to open and close the arches between pits. The first is to magically shape the stone of a doorway. The second is for someone to leap into the pit. When you do, a doorway opens and another closes. Who wants to jump first?"
"A few feet thick," Livia replies.
Fiosa pipes up: "I can make sure anyone who jumps down lands as lightly as a feather, if that helps."
Livia sighs. "You'll fall slowly and loop around so that you can land here again."
Zarabeta looks down into the infinite seeming pit and then up at the infinite looking hole in the ceiling. "It might work and I think she likes us now. She might not like us as much if we show a fear of heights."
"The shadows only guard the outer hallways. There are none in the pits." Livia seems quite certain.
Zarabeta looks down again and then stares at the little devil with a very hard glare indeed. "Livia, couldn't you just fly down there to activate the doors?"
The imp immediately rounds on the wizard. "What!? All alone with that blackhearted assassin after me? No way. I'm staying with the party until she's dead or gone."
Zarabeta draws breath for a refutation ....
For Marius the fall seems like slow motion. He doesn't plummet down into the middle of the pit as he'd normally expect to. The increase in speed is more gradual and his velocity is a real surprise when he sees the ledge with his friends on it rushing up toward him.
Watching Marius drop away, Livia says, "He wasn't afraid. I'm not sure you others are as sane as I thought."
3 and 4 open when Marius jumps.
hardness 8, hp 540, break DC 50
The pit itself is not truly infinite; anyone who falls into it
quickly falls out of sight after falling for 2 rounds, only to
fall back into this area from above. Gravity works strangely
on those who fall in here—falling builds acceleration only
slowly. Every 2 rounds, a falling victim may make a DC
15 Reflex save to land on the stairs. He takes 1d6 points
of damage from the fall per round spent falling—thus,
someone who manages to land after only one “revolution”
takes 2d6 damage, while someone who only manages to land
after 6 takes 12d6 damage. As with all falls, the maximum
damage one can take is 20d6.
Roll 1d4 as soon as a falling character lands—exits bearing
that number open if they were closed before, and close if
they were opened before. Then roll 1d4 a second time and
do the same changes—it’s possible a falling character
doesn’t effectively change the combination if you roll the
same number on both d4 rolls (indicating an exit changes
and then changes back).
It will be an easy toss to Marius. DC 8 dex check or AC 8 thrown attack roll.
Marius still has to make the reflex check to land, but he gets +1 for every 2 points that the rope throw exceeds the toss requirement of 8.
Waifrin tosses the line perfectly to Marius.
Edit:
Belay that perfect toss!
If any of you have rope and I missed it, let me know. Or come up with an alternate plan. Waifrin has 3 bolts of silk ....
Edit 2:
Or....
This time around Marius is better prepared. He manages to crash land heavily on the ledge.
Nonlethal damage
Regular falling damage
As soon as he lands the stone walls in the doorways shimmer, but nothing changes.
Livia shrugs, "Occasionally it doesn't work. Why don't you try again?"