Uwais sling attack:
Waya bite:
Sister Mara's second crossbow bolt goes too high, perhaps for fear of hitting either of the burly men attacking the flapping monstrous head. Uwais and Waya both have similar difficulty striking the monster, as Kua swings wildly at the erratically flying head.
Badang whips his flail around his head (getting a bit close to Kua's unprotected cranium) and crushes the flying head with a powerful blow.
The flying heads were assaulting a strong wooden door in the northeastern wall for some reason. On your right, the room extends into a long rectangular chamber about 45 feet in length, counting the ten foot corridor you just emerged from. It's decorated with large carvings of religious ceremonies and priests handing down judgements to the common people. Stone benches are lined up before a podium at the southern end of the room.
What is so interesting behind that door? *pauses to hear*
Perception
DM Screen:
Through the door, Badang can hear only silence.
"Do you hear anything?" Mara whispers to Badang, placing her own ear against the door to listen.
Let us see what is beyond, the creatures so eager to get through.
You push the door only to find that it refuses to budge. Since the lock isn't bolted, it seems to be barred from the inside.
O Lord In Iron guide me in this task! Cast Guidance
Strength Check
With a crash you hurl the door open, sending the wooden lectern used as a brace crashing to the floor. With the door battered open, your light suddenly dims.
From what you can see the room is carved with more religious bas reliefs depicting judgement of souls. Wooden cabinets and drawers line the walls you can see from the doorway.
From behind Badang, Mara's eyes narrow as she sees that a wooden lectern was used to brace the door closed.
"Hello? Is anyone in there? We disposed of the vargouilles... It's safe to come out now," Mara calls into the room, crossbow loaded but pointing downward.
Again, the dimming of lights! Is there any of those flapping beasts about?
*scans area*
Perception
DM Screen:
Sister Mara calls out but receives no answer. Badang scans the ceiling and corners for any of those octopus creatures but can spot no sign of them.
While the others bash the door open, Yang gives a frowning glance their way. He stands in the spot he was in, having been ready to loose another force missile at the head if it hadn't gone down.
When Sister Mara tries to get a response from the room, Yang's eyes go to the likely shrine to the right, to see if anything else lies that way.
perception
By the cold illumination of his magical light, Yang can see no threats or objects of interest in the rest of the room.
"The room is empty," Uwais says bluntly from outside the room. "Let us find somewhere more worthwhile to go." He gives a growl to Waya - not to follow him, but to guard the entrance of the door and attack any non-comrades that follow behind them after they leave.
The wolf moves to follow... but sits obediently at her companion's growl. Within the dim room, Uwais can see a stone pedestal with a bowl-shaped depression in the northwest corner. There's a closed wooden door in the eastern wall, which is lined with cabinets.
DM Screen:
Badang's curiosity overtakes him as he goes in and investigates the cabinets.
Yang approaches the dim room and peers inside. Wary of more of the darkmantles, he looks to the ceiling and upper walls before entering.
perception
Assuming he sees nothing, he'll shuffle into the room, leaning heavily on his staff. The pedastal with the depression is what draws him, and he looks it over carefully.
In the cabinets you find mundane priestly vestments- they're clearly Pharasmin in nature, but different from those worn by the priests above. There are also remarkably preserved altar cloths, hangings and holy books. Folded up amongst the clothes is a cloak of fine make- black with a pattern of thornless roses worked in silvery thread along the hem. There are also two scrolls tucked into the religious texts.
The stone pedestal is worked on the top like a basin, though there is no liquid within. Given the rest of the materials in the room, it is quite likely to have been used as a font for holy water.
DM Screen:
*picks up fine cloak and admires it*
Anything of value here? Does the Pharasmin priestess see anything that may be of use?
*casts Detect magic*
The cloak has a faint aura of abjuration, the scrolls each have a faint aura of conjuration.
Watch my back, I want to examine the scrolls.
casts Read Magic on the scrolls
*tries to ascertain cloak's magical properties*
Identify(Spell-craft):
Badang isn't able to discern the cloak's properties, but he can tell the scrolls both contain the spell slow poison.
Kua is standing watch outside of the door with Waya. The half-orc gives the wolf a pat on the head. "You and I don't need all of that bothersome light to keep a look out, do we?"
Mara stands watch with Kua, keeping a wary eye on the passageway by which the party entered this room.
Detressa has been wary about entering the room, trying to figure out why the flying heads were so interested in getting in. Upon spying the priestly vestments and accoutrements, she forgets her caution and enters to examine the relics.
“This is a great find,” she says in wonder. “I don’t think we can carry all these robes and books with us though ... either way I am torn whether to take them back to the cathedral or leave them in reverence where they have lain so long. For now ... I suppose we must focus on the task at hand. Take only what may be valuable and immediately useful. What do you have their Badang?”
This cloak, I cannot discern its properties, with two scrolls of slow poison. Take a look at the cloak.
Detressa has been wary about entering the room, trying to figure out why the flying heads were so interested in getting in. Upon spying the priestly vestments and accoutrements, she forgets her caution and enters to examine the relics.
“This is a great find,” she says in wonder. “I don’t think we can carry all these robes and books with us though ... either way I am torn whether to take them back to the cathedral or leave them in reverence where they have lain so long. For now ... I suppose we must focus on the task at hand. Take only what may be valuable and immediately useful. What do you have their Badang?”
They're definitely Pharasmin, but slightly different from the robes you and your brothers and sisters wear. The cloth itself isn't anything spectacular, but they are remarkably well preserved- they could have been put here a week ago, though that's impossible. Given the age of the rest of the level, these likely date from Thassilonian times and would be prized as relics of the church's history.
If these items are worth something to somebody, it may be worthwhile to haul these back to the surface on our next opportunity. That is if Detressa has no objections.
Detressa spellcraft:
Yang spellcraft:
Yangzhun:
Uwais leaves the room in time to hear Kua talking to Waya. He smiles. "She certainly has a keen nose - it's sensed enemies before I've seen them more than once." He gives Waya an affectionate pet.
If these items are worth something to somebody, it may be worthwhile to haul these back to the surface on our next opportunity. That is if Detressa has no objections.
“I have no objection,” Detressa answers, feeling the hem of one of the robes between her fingers. “I think that the church would value these historical finds. I will take one of these robes now in case we don’t get an opportunity to return to this chamber. The rest can hopefully wait until we are on our way back.”
"Shall we investigate this door?"
Yangzhun: ** spoiler omitted **
"This garment offers protection against harm. I think it would be good to wear for someone," Yang says, holding up the cloak.
"It would be also smart of us to continue, yes, Detressa."
warden
*tries the door handle*
Lets not leave a stone unturned, a door unopened before we head the other way shall we not?
Perception:
"Agreed Badang. Allow me to check the door for any hidden mechanisms."
"Also, I would nominate Badang to take the cloak. The extra protection will do him well at the front of our ranks." Kua adds as he knees in front of the door skimming fingers along creases and prodding stones here and there with his dagger.
Yangzhun: ** spoiler omitted **"This garment offers protection against harm. I think it would be good to wear for someone," Yang says, holding up the cloak.
"It would be also smart of us to continue, yes, Detressa."
warden ** spoiler omitted **
Yang:
Finding the door free of traps and unlocked, Badang opens the heavy wooden to find another chamber of the same size as the room you are currently in. The theme of judgement in the afterlife is continued in the carvings on the walls of this room. A wide table stands along the north wall, draped with a heavy black cloth. A single candle burns in a tall, iron candlestick in the southwest corner but the rest of the room is dark. In the southeast corner you can make out another door.
Seeing her companions about to move into another room, Mara rejoins the group.
Uwais snaps his fingers to Waya to call her off of guard duty, then follows Mara into the room. He moves to look at the candle. "Lit," he says, tilting his head. "But who lit it?"
"Hrm." Kua scratches at some stubble on his jaw. "There don't seem to be any immediate signs of activity otherwise. Perhaps some sort of magic?" The duskwarden steps into the room and lets his eyes trace across the ceiling and corners of the room while walking over to the table to the north.
Mara follows Kua and Uwais into the room, and moves to examine the door in the southeast corner.
At Kua's mention of magic, Mara voices a quick prayer to Sarenrae to gain the ability to see magical auras.
DM Screen:
Waya's hackles rise as she sniffs about. The wolf begins to growl.
Behind you, from the room with the cabinets you hear a sudden crash as one of the lecterns stored near the door falls over to the floor. You catch a glimpse in the darkness of a halfling sized creature swaddled in a cloak. They're running for the door back into the hallway.
Inside the room you just opened, a sibilant whisper rises from the north wall.
"Halt, bipeds! You have entered the domain of the great and powerful Yrix, oracle and gatekeeper! For a price I may be persuaded to allow thee to access to the voluminous repository that is my brain and pull back the veil of mystery that cloaks the Godsmouth Ossuary, and reveal all the secrets of the Ancients!"
"Yrix the Great will also require a donation from each of you travellers to gain access to that door the female biped clearly covets. The secrets of it's horrible death trap are known only to me and secrets are more valuable than gold!"
Mara:
Detressa has lingered in the first room, examining the ancient vestments and books. She is taken by surprise both by the small, fleeing figure and the sudden voice from the other room.
“Stop!” she calls to the fleeing figure, spinning about.
Rag man initiative:
The small figure races out the door and out of sight.
Curiosity piqued by this "Yrix the Great", Kua yanks the black cloth off of the table in front of him and ducks his head low to see under it, searching for where the voice may be coming from.