Ereviss continues to hold the magic of the wand and advances boldly into the skeletons to rescue Kendra.
"I am coming."
He grabs a skeleton with holy energy.
Unfortunately the elf is still affected by the Piper and unable to grab a single skeleton after what seems to be an eternity of fighting them.
Dominia and Theodoric throw caution to the wind and make a mad dash(charge) for the piper with flanking if possible Dominia for
Theodoric and
Round 4_______________
Rushing to the site where Persimmon was looking, Domminia swings into the swirling disturbance and feels herself hitting something!
Theodoric swings more forcefully at the same place, but meets nothing.
Ereviss tries to hit one of the skeletons holding Kendra, but misses.
Kendra tries to Disrupt one of the skeletons, but can't concentrate enough to do it.
Xiuj spits something unpleasant in Tian and starts to draw another bomb, when he grows slackjawed and stares off into space.
[npc] Ysabot approaches and snaps a staff at the Piper.
but misses.
[npc]Merenso attacks
and hits! for points damage.
[npc]Fengring attacks
but misses.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
ROUND 5_____
Players take their turn as they post, enemies will go last.
Dominia and Theodoric flank the piper still. Dominia for
Theodoric and
Ereviss tries to touch a skeleton with holy energy.
Round 5_______________
Somehow, contact with Theodorics' sword seemed to change things. A misty translucent form seems to coalesce out of mid air. It seems to be a grinning young man playing a flute dripping with blood.
He plays a sudden trill, an you hear the fluttering of many wings...
Domminia swings into the misty image and misses.
Theodoric swings at the same place, but also meets nothing.
Ereviss tries to hit one of the skeletons holding Kendra, but his run of horrible luck continues and he almost breaks a thumb on one of the bars as he misses again.
Kendra manages to concentrate enough to cast Disruption and shatters one of the hands holding her. She struggles but still can't free herself. She calls out for Ereviss as the claws dig into her flesh, trying to draw her through.
Xiuj crouches down in fear.
stares off into space.
[npc] Ysabot swings her staff at the Piper.
miss.
[npc]Merenso attacks
miss.
[npc]Fengring attacks
miss.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
ROUND 6_____
Dominia and Theodoric flank the piper still. Dominia for
Theodoric ⇒ (9) + 5 + 2 = 16 and
Theodoric Knowledge History
Round 6___________
The image of the piper becomes clearer somehow, and the sound of fluttering wings louder.
You remember now;
Originally, Harrowstone housed only local criminals, but as the prison’s fame spread, other
counties and distant lands began paying to have more dangerous criminals housed within this prison’s walls.
At the time of the great Harrowstone Fire, the number of particularly violent or dangerous criminals imprisoned
within the dungeons below was at an all-time high.
One of the most notorious of them was The Piper of Illmarsh:
Before he snatched his victims, the Piper taunted his targets with a mournful dirge on his f lute.
He preferred to paralyze lone victims by dosing their meals with lich dust and then allowed his pet stirges to drink the victims
dry of blood.
Domminia swings into the misty image and again misses.
Theodoric swings at the same place, and connects somehow! The image wavers as it seems to flinch in pain.
[npc] Ereviss tries to hit one of the skeletons holding Kendra, but again misses!
Kendra struggles to concentrate but fails.
Xiuj continues to stare blankly into space. You see a spot of blood well up on his head, then one on an arm, and another appear on his neck.
[npc] Ysabot swings her staff at the Piper. and hits for crush damage.
[npc]Merenso attacks hits and shatters another skeleton.
[npc]Fengring attacks hits and shatters another skeleton.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
for a possible claw damage.
ROUND 7_____
Players take their turn as they post, enemies will go last.
Having failed to touch a skeleton, Erevis steps back from skeleton range touches himself with healing energy for
"Watch for stirges!!"
The wounds from the last two attacks close.
..
Dominia and Theodoric flank the piper still. Dominia for
Theodoric
Fortitude (D) add 2 for Fear
Fortitude (T)
When Domminia and Theodoric swing through the Piper, he seems to waver and then break up and disappear; the riveting sound of the flute trilling off wildly.
The skeletons all freeze in place.
Ereviss rushes to Kendra, a look of concern on his face.
Domminia searches the area staying alert.
Perception
She then swivels on her somewhat elevated heel and makes her way to Kendra and says, Kendra, I was really worried about you but Theodoric and I somehow stopped the fiend, it was really more him than me. His combat experience is invaluable I shall say. Are you hurt, is there anything I could do for you.
Theodoric decides on destroying all of the skeletons with his fists.
The skeletons all collapse, all the way dead again.
Domminia waives her hand through the air where the piper was. She feels only a cold spot that diminishes, but never entirely fades. Theodoric roams the corridors and cells, smashing skeltons apart with his armored fists.
Kendra hesitates, in the grip of strong emotion, but she falls into Ereviss' arms trembling.
"Thank you..." she whispers, choking.
Xiuj shakily comes out of his paralysis. He bitterly curses himself for a fool and anyone else who shows concern.
The skeletons, before Theodoric got to them, did not appear to have originally died by violence.
When you decide to move on and explore, you find that while the cellblocks occupy the western side of this floor, the eastern side is for the guards.
You can see here wooden benches once lined this large hall, but several are now stacked in a jumble and others are overturned in disarray.
Weakened by fire, the entire east wall has collapsed away, creating an unintended entryway to a wooden deck beyond.
The view of the lake beyond would be beautiful if the silence were not so eerie.
South of that, you can see that once a kitchen, this room is now nothing more than charred, blackened remains.
In the middle of the floor, guarded by solid iron bars, is the stairway down.
Theodoric, standing by the grilled viewing port to a southern cell, turns to you all and says in his eerie hollow voice; "What is this,I do not understand."
When you look through the port, you see that although this cell is rather spacious, it contains no concessions to comfort. A bare bunk against the west wall, a table, a chair, a cup and bowl lie on the table, as well as a moldy journal.
A skeletal body dressed in the rotting remains of a prisoner’s robe lies slumped against the eastern wall, wrapped in numerous chains on which are affixed numerous weights emblazoned with several different holy symbols.
You recall one of the celebrity prisoners held here was knows as "Father Charlatan".
This must be "Father Charlatan" (Sefick Corvin):
Of the five notorious prisoners, only Father Charlatan was not technically a murderer, yet his crimes were so blasphemous that several churches demanded he be punished to the full extent of Ustalavic law. Although he claimed to be an ordained priest of any number of faiths,
Father Corvin was in fact a traveling con artist who used faith as a mask and a means to bilk the faithful out of money in payment for false miracles or cures. He became known as Father Charlatan after his scheme was exposed and his Sczarni accomplices murdered a half-dozen city guards in an attempt to make good the group’s escape.
Ereviss gratefully recovers Kendra and looks around alertly.
"The body of Father Charlatan I presume."
Ereviss asks with concern:"Anyone hurt?"
The elf leads the group into the special cell.
Domminia says to Ereviss Can't a girl get some healing?
She then hugs Kendra to make sure she is alright.
Xiuj grumbles like he's giving up his weight in gold, but he gives Domminia three potions of Cure Light Wounds, and Kendra one of the same.
"Any you others hurt?" He demands of the others.
Shooting aside the three bolts, you trip the latch and pull the special cell door open with an ominous creek.
This cell is as still and deserted as the others you've seen; but somehow, you don't know why, you don't feel alone in there.
Xiuj looks at all of you as if you are out of your minds.
"I no go in there! You crazy?"
"We can leave it then. Let us return to the mansion."
Ereviss leads the group back.
Domminia arches her eyebrow in disbelief.
"So we are going to go back after just fighting our way inside this place, that is complete nonsense!! says Domminia in exasperation.
She then looks at Kendra and says, I am sure you agree this place needs to be thoroughly searched and its not even lunchtime.
Diplomacy on Kendra
"Lead on. A piper a day I say."
Xiuj looks back and forth.
"Door open you no go in?" He spits in disgust. "Shut door and go downstairs!"
Kendra shakes her head.
"We can lock this door behind us and continue down below, but..." She looks at you all.
"Domminia is right. Sooner or later, we will have to look into this; if only to make sure he really is dead."
Shooting aside the three bolts, you trip the latch and pull the special cell door open with an ominous creek.
You see that although this cell is rather spacious, it contains no concessions to comfort. A bare bunk against the west wall, a table, a chair, a cup and bowl lie on the table, as well as a moldy journal.
A skeletal body dressed in the rotting remains of a prisoner’s robe lies slumped against the eastern wall, wrapped in numerous chains on which are affixed numerous weights emblazoned with several different holy symbols.
This cell is as still and deserted as the others you've seen; but somehow, you don't know why, you don't feel alone in there.
Overcome with curiousity, the elf cannot help but wonder what is in the journal.
"Watch my back. Maybe some haunts will appear here."
He heads into the cell to retrieve the journal.
Domminia turns to Ereviss and says, Theodoric and I will cover you as she scan the room and the hallway
Perception D
Perception T
Xiuj throws his hands up in the air with disgust as Ereviss stalks forward into the cell.
Kendra grips Ereviss' arm, holding him fast for a moment.
"Please be careful." She whispers, then lets him go.
Ereviss eases into the cell, while Domminia and Theodoric crowd into the door behind him as backup.
Pausing a moment, he looks and listens for all he's worth, but there is no movement and no sound but for the low moaning of the breeze through the gap in the wall where the fire had collapsed it.
He reaches out and touches it; an old handwritten journal decades old. The cowleather cover worn and scratched from frequent use, and covered with a layer of dust that crackles and flakes away as he picks it up.
For no reason he can name, he is much faster leaving the cell than he was entering it, and Merenso slams the cell door shut behind him when he leaves.
"You got book! You very brave. We go now?" Urges Xiuj sarcastically.
It is written in a well trained hand, covering most of two decades, as far as you can tell. The writer seems to be fairly well educated as well.
Ereviss nods to Domminia. He smiles at Kendra.
"Where too next?"
"We can do some more research with this journal. It may help us with more clues."
Sure
You have explored the entirety of the upper floor of Harrowstone.
From here on the upper floor, you can
1. Take a ladderway in an armored closet to the roof.
2. Go back out the NW secure hallway to the execution platform. You came in this way.
3. Go outside through the collapsed E wall.
4. Go downstairs through the barred guards station.
Peering out the barred windows, you can tell it's still daytime, but in all the excitement, you've kind of lost track of how late in the day it is.
If you wanted a place to rest, this is perfectly defensible. Versus physical creatures anyway...
"Well, let us rest here. I will read the journal on my shift. We can learn clues, but the town needs to be rid of this awful place."
I disagree, it would be foolish for us to stay the night in this haunted place! I think Xluj would agree wouldncha?
"Well then, let's head back to town."
Xiuj agrees eagerly.
Carefully the party retraces its steps through the cellblocks and the sallyports, out the execution doorway and down the exterior stairway without incident.
But even as you pass through the gateway and the large form of Harrowstone disappears into the gloom behind you, you cannot quite shake the oppressive feel of the prison from you.
Even in the town the feeling persists. The clouds lower darkly overhead, seemingly not having moving at all since this morning. As you enter the Lorrimor house, you see the streets perfectly empty.
Ereviss follows Kendra back to town.
"I am sorry we had problems shielding you from the skeleton attack."
Domminia turns to Ereviss and says, "Kendra is a strong woman and she really doesn't need to be protected. We ladies can take care of ourselves." as she softly touches Kendra's shoulder.
Diplomacy
.
.
.
.
.
Pungent smoke rises up from the bowl of the Dhampir's briarwood pipe, to be slowly dispersed by the faint breeze that passes over Ravengro. He watches it absently and then turns his gaze back to the foreboding ruins of Harrowstone prison, silhouetted against the near-night sky.
I wonder what mysteries you'll reveal to us...
Jevault sucks on his pipe again as he continues to examine from afar the huge edifice that had caused their retreat earlier that day.
I wonder what stories you have to tell us...
Stood on one of the main roads through the village, the air around him is alive with necromantic resonance and his acute senses tingle with anticipation.
I wonder whether you'll allow us to live so we may tell others...
.
.
.
Crunching gravel disturbs the man from his reverie and he turns to find the professor's daughter approaching. She smiles at him, weakly, her gaze directed over his head and towards the prison.
"Supper's ready, Jevault. I hope you're hungry.". He nods to her in acknowledgement and falls in beside her, moving quickly to prevent the woman from staring too long at the place of her father's recent demise.
"Extremely." he lied.
The pair head back to Kendra's house. As the Dhampir crosses the threshold, a small beetle scurries up the door-frame, over the top and then down before disappearing into the brickwork.
Jevault, Inquisitor of Pharasma, smiles to himself.