DM-Camris' SECOND DARKNESS Part 1 and 2: Children of the Void (Inactive)

Game Master Camris

Round 5

Thief #1 "Thuvalia"-- 23
Desperately, Thuvalia jumps up off the central platform to swing on a chandelier towards the
main doors.
Acrobatics: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 8 = 22

Maelorn-- 20
Maelorn will pause long enough to give Thuvalia the option to surrender. She does not, he continues to attack. And misses.

Thug #12-- 18
Takes a step gestures with his closed fist, then glances to the ceiling and speaks the command, "Open".
The locks holding the mystic cage shut cycle; click, hiss, click.
The cage door springs open and the berserk imp shrieks, flies out, turns invisible, and only reappears as he crashes into Maelorn.
Sting attack: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28 for 1d4 ⇒ 1 points of damage plus poison; 1d2 ⇒ 1 points of Dex damage.
Fort Save DC13 to stop further damage.
Critical threat? 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (6) + 8 = 14 Not confirmed.

Thief #3 "Mr. Blue"-- 18
Moves up next to Bor and attacks.
Rapier attack: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22 Hit! For 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5 points of damage.
Critical threat? 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16 Critical hit confirmed for an extra 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (3) + 1 = 4 points of damage and Bor is knocked prone.

CLICK for a map at this time.

Maelorn gruns at the sting (1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9), feeling the poison take hold.

"This could get old fast".

Shrugging, he speaks to Thug #6, "So far, you've harmed none but myself, and I am willing to forgive that. Leave now, and I will not stop you."

Alexandu makes a disgusted face as Maelorn speaks of forgiving. "Forgiveness is for the weak", he snarls as he bashes at thug #6.

Attack:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20, damage1d8 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12

Eros takes one 5-foot step to the west.

He curses under his breath for missing last time, and this time he swings more carefully at Thug #12.

+2attack/+1damage for Bless/Inspire Courage

Attack Roll:1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15
Damage:1d8 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 2 = 6

Pre-posting Round 5 actions, as I don't expect #6 or Thuvalia to impact my actions.

Maelorn shrugs, "Forgiveness does not weaken me, "
Poison Save:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (18) + 2 = 20
"in fact, it makes me more whole. Now, to business..."

Maelorn swings at the Imp.
Silver Hammer 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (11) + 6 = 17 - a hit, I believe.
Damage (bypassing DR) 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10

Zane strides right up to the thug in front of him hands swirling in an intricate pattern as he avoids leaving himself open to attack.
Concentration check1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19

He extends his fingers, an explosion of color envelopingthe man and Thuvalia as well as the bodies of their compatriots.

Color Spray

Eros attempts a DC 15 Will save from the color spray.

1d20 ⇒ 4

Eros falls to the groud unconscious. He is dreaming about what he is going to do with all of this loot.

Darcy will basically do the same as previously posted, jusy try to flank the imp instead, since it's now the one where he was generally heading to.

(Witty comments about Eros' collapse will be reserved for after the DM has confirmed that such a thing happens... ;) )

Bor bites back a scream from the pain, as he falls to the floor, releasing a bolt...

Attack 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (19) + 5 = 24
Confirm Critical 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Damage 1d8 ⇒ 2
Crit damage 1d8 ⇒ 5

Continuing round 5

Bor-- 15
Bor bites back a scream from the pain, as he falls to the floor, releasing a bolt which strikes thief #3 in the neck. Blood fountains, covering the wall, the bathroom door and Bor with blood. The thief screams as he tries to staunch the flow, but he falls unconscious and bleeds out in seconds.

Thug #6-- 15
Loyally continues to attack Maelorn.
Shortsword attack: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (6) + 4 = 10
Shortsword damage: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3

Eros-- 14
Eros takes one 5-foot step to the west.
He curses under his breath for missing last time, and this time he swings more carefully at Thug #12, and still misses as skillful defensive staffwork foils his attack.

Darcy-- 13
Glancing down at the thug he's just skewered, Darcy sighs,
'Why do they never listen to the whole "wrath" bit?' he mutters, then shakes his head and runs to vault up on the stage once more, trying to flank Thuvalia (and gain a high ground advantage), orating as he goes, 'The day is won, the thugs are doomed! What say you that fair Thuvalia comes with me for ... questioning... while the rest of you try to... um... "resize" the loot?'
Executing a perfect double backflip with a half twist, he lands with a dashing pose.
He is disappointed to find Thuvalia swinging towards the door and her place taken by a small red skinned creature screaming rude epithets in Infernal and trying in a frenzy to take Maelorn down.

Zane-- 8
Zane strides right up to the thug in front of him hands swirling in an intricate pattern as he avoids leaving himself open to attack.
He extends his fingers, an explosion of color envelopingthe man and Thuvalia as well as the bodies of their compatriots.
Color Spray: Will save DC15
Eros falls to the groud unconscious. He is dreaming about what he is going to do with all of this loot.
Thuvalia: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (9) + 0 = 9 Fails and falls onto a craps table, scattering dice and chips everywhere. She is blinded and stunned 1d4 ⇒ 3 rounds.
Thug #12: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17 Succeeds. He turned his head aside at the last moment.

Alexandru-- 7
Alexandu makes a disgusted face as Maelorn speaks of forgiving. "Forgiveness is for the weak", he snarls as he bashes at thug #6 with his morning star, opening his ribcage the wrong way and dropping him.

CLICK for the map-Casino floor, top of round 6.

Round 6

Initiative order:
Thief #9-- 24 Dead
Thief #1 "Thuvalia"-- 23 Blind, Stunned
Imp, "Old Scratch"-- 22
Maelorn-- 20
Thug #8-- 19 Dead
Thug #12-- 18
Thief #3 "Mr. Blue"-- 18 Dead
Thug #2 "Mr. Green"-- 17 Dead
Thug #4 "Mr. Gray"-- 17 Dead
Bor-- 15
Thug #6-- 15 Dead
Eros-- 14
Darcy-- 13
Thief #5-- 13 Dead
Thief #11-- 12 Dead
Thief #7-- 9 Dead
Thug #10-- 9 Dead
Zane-- 8
Alexandru-- 7

Crap! how does the wizard end up toe to toe with a fighter, not good!

Round 5

Thief #1 "Thuvalia"-- 23
Currently blind and stunned.

Imp, "Old Scratch"-- 22
Screetches, attacks Maelorn again.
Sting attack: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28
Sting damage: 1d4 ⇒ 2 points of damage with 1d2 ⇒ 1 points of Dex damage. Fort save DC13 to resist.

Maelorn-- 20
Maelorn shrugs, "Forgiveness does not weaken me, "
"in fact, it makes me more whole. Now, to business..."
Maelorn swings at the Imp and strikes true, penetrating several layers of protections. The imp shrieks.

Thug #12-- 18
"Thuvalia!" he calls out, but Thuvalia is in no shape to answer.
He moves to the door, [Zane is eligable to make an attack of opportunity] and unbars the door.

Next up:
Bor-- 15
Eros-- 14
Darcy-- 13
Zane-- 8
Alexandru-- 7

Note:
Eros is unconscious, blinded and stunned for 2d4 ⇒ (2, 2) = 4 rounds; then blinded and stunned for 1d4 ⇒ 4 rounds; then stunned for 1 round. So he'll be back up in round 15.

Attack of Opportunity 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10
1d6 ⇒ 5

Taking a quick swing at the man trying to leave Zane advances on Thuvalia, his cane winding up for the blow as he summons a fraction of his innate magical power to rewrite the substance of his weapon.

Uses Arcane Strike. Stiking a blind, Flat footed prone opponent.

1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6
1d6 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

Dammit! Fish in a barrel and I fail.

Alexandu moves up to smite the imp.

Attack:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10
Damage:1d8 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

To Maelorn: "Your words make no sense, but your hammer does. Well fought, comrade."

Poison Save: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (17) + 2 = 19

Maelorn grunts as he's struck, but still flush with adrenaline, fights off the poison.

He glances towards Alexandru, "We have obvious theological differences, which I'd enjoy discussing at length in a calmer venue."

Since the Imp is going before Maelorn (I had thought he was acting on #12's phase), I'd like to react to his most recent attack. Maelorn's basic action in round five (Hammer strike) is unchanged, but after striking he'll take a step west, putting the Imp directly between Maelorn and Alexandu, so that it will generate attacks of opportunity from Maelorn, Alexandu and Darcy if it moves, attacks, or tries to turn invisible.

Bor stands up from prone, and reloads his crossbow.

Frowning at the devilish imp where his true love (of the hour) should be, Darcy mutters,

'Let me introduce myself: I'm a man of wealth and taste...'

Then, with a bit more effort maintains the ongoing oration (free action - maintain Inspire Courage),

'Any thieves who want to volunteer for lying in a pool of their own blood please keep fighting us... Seriously, do you have to fail some sort of intelligence test to get into the thuggery business? Eros, you'd have first hand experience of that, perhaps... Oh... he's out again... never could handle his grog that one... probably had a half - way over his usual limit...'

Takes a swipe at the imp:

1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23

Damage (if a hit): 1d8 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

Eros is lying on the floor comfortably. There is a big smile on his face. He is dreaming about how funny cream puff looked with that surprised look on his face and the beer running off of it. That scene is forever burned into his memory. Eros thinks he needs another grog to celebrate the memory.

Attack of Opportunity 1d20+2

1d6

Taking a quick swing at the man trying to leave Zane advances on Thuvalia, his cane winding up for the blow as he summons a fraction of his innate magical power to rewrite the substance of his weapon.

Uses Arcane Strike. Stiking a blind, Flat footed prone opponent.

1d20+5
1d6+1

Dammit! Fish in a barrel and I fail.

Forgot bonus for Bardic performance if it helps.

Cleanup round 6

Maelorn had also shifted 5 feet.

Bor-- 15
Bor stands up from prone, and reloads his crossbow.

Eros-- 14 Unconscious, Blinded, Stunned
Eros is lying on the floor comfortably. There is a big smile on his face. He is dreaming about how funny cream puff looked with that surprised look on his face and the beer running off of it. That scene is forever burned into his memory. Eros thinks he needs another grog to celebrate the memory.

Darcy-- 13
Frowning at the devilish imp where his true love (of the hour) should be, Darcy mutters,
'Let me introduce myself: I'm a man of wealth and taste...'
Then, with a bit more effort maintains the ongoing oration (free action - maintain Inspire Courage),
'Any thieves who want to volunteer for lying in a pool of their own blood please keep fighting us... Seriously, do you have to fail some sort of intelligence test to get into the thuggery business? Eros, you'd have first hand experience of that, perhaps... Oh... he's out again... never could handle his grog that one... probably had a half - way over his usual limit...'
Takes a swipe at the imp and lands a solid hit, even punching through layers of resistance. The imp shrieks and derezzes in a small explosion of brimstone.

Zane-- 8
Taking a quick swing at the man trying to leave, but missing, Zane advances on Thuvalia, his cane winding up for the blow as he summons a fraction of his innate magical power to rewrite the substance of his weapon.
And even striking a blind, Flat footed prone opponent, still misses horribly.
Fumble confirm? 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17 Not Confirmed.

Alexandru-- 7
To Maelorn: "Your words make no sense, but your hammer does. Well fought, comrade."
Double move next to Thug #12, and booting Eros out of the way.

CLICK for the Map: Top of round 7.

Round 7

Initiative order:
Thief #9-- 24 Dead
Thief #1 "Thuvalia"-- 23 Blind, Stunned
Imp, "Old Scratch"-- 22 Sent back to hell
Maelorn-- 20
Thug #8-- 19 Dead
Thug #12-- 18
Thief #3 "Mr. Blue"-- 18 Dead
Thug #2 "Mr. Green"-- 17 Dead
Thug #4 "Mr. Gray"-- 17 Dead
Bor-- 15
Thug #6-- 15 Dead
Eros-- 14
Darcy-- 13
Thief #5-- 13 Dead
Thief #11-- 12 Dead
Thief #7-- 9 Dead
Thug #10-- 9 Dead
Zane-- 8
Alexandru-- 7

'All hail Darcy: slayer of devils!' announces Darcy with a rather devilish grin of his own (free action... as always... maintaining Inspire Courage). With that he pushes through the (I presume) still milling crowd to get to Thuvalia's side.

Zane takes his time lining up his swing as he strikes at Thuvalia again.1d20 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11
1d6 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

Eros starts to snore loudly. He also starts to giggle a little bit. He is reliving the escapades he had yesterday afternoon when visited the brothel down the street and broke the bed. He got really excited when she ...........!

With the imp gone, and Thuvalia unlikely to do anything functional this round, I'll pre-post again

Looking about, Maelorn realizes that the while the battle is nearly won, the likely mastermind may still get away. There is little he is able to do at this moment, but perhaps...

"Darcy, is it? With the woman down, can you rouse the patrons to stop that man?"

In the meantime, Maelorn will move closer Double-move east 20', to the northern end of the table where Thuvalia is. This is presuming the casino is still difficult terrain. If the crowd has cleared, then he'll move all the way to stand over Eros.

Round 7
The crowd has cleared the center floor and doorway area, where most of the combat has been. Consider it clear terrain for movement.

Thief #1 "Thuvalia"-- 23 Blind, Stunned

Maelorn-- 20
Looking about, Maelorn realizes that the while the battle is nearly won, the likely mastermind may still get away. There is little he is able to do at this moment, but perhaps...
"Darcy, is it? With the woman down, can you rouse the patrons to stop that man?"
In the meantime, Maelorn will move closer Double-move east all the way to stand over Eros.

Thug #12-- 18
Thug #12 will open the door...
Maelorn and Alexandru are eligable for Attacks of Opportunity.
... take a couple of steps through...
Maelorn and Alexandru are eligable for Attacks of Opportunity.
... stop and make ready to close it in your faces.

Bor-- 15
[npc] Unable to see a shot, he double moves over to where he can.

Eros-- 14
Eros starts to snore loudly. He also starts to giggle a little bit. He is reliving the escapades he had yesterday afternoon when visited the brothel down the street and broke the bed. He got really excited when she ...........!

Darcy-- 13
'All hail Darcy: slayer of devils!' announces Darcy with a rather devilish grin of his own (free action... as always... maintaining Inspire Courage). With that he moves to Thuvalia's side.
Action?

Zane-- 8
Zane takes his time lining up his swing as he strikes at Thuvalia again, knocking the blind and stunned woman fully unconscious.

Next up:
Alexandru-- 7

Attack of Opportunity: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11...feh, and no combat reflexes, so no 2nd attack.

While swinging his hammer, Maelorn will look to identify the pocket where the shoebox-sized chest has been placed Perception:1d20 + 4 ⇒ (12) + 4 = 16

Maelorn spots a boxlike bulge in the coats right front pocket.

Game paused till Sunday evening.

Okay... if I'd known Darcy would get to Thuvalia with an action to spare I would have posted something a bit more dashing than having him stand there whilst Zane staves in the skull of a defenceless woman... but to avoid disruption (and to try to not metagame by having him head to the door thug #12 headed out of), I'll just say he sheathed his sword as he reached Thuvalia and saw that she was pretty helpless, and was reaching towards her when Zane the Ripper struck... ;)

Next round, since it looks like nearly everyone is higher in the Initiative order than Darcy right now and we're starting to bunch together, I'll probably wait to see what happens with other actions before posting... although messing with a KO'd Eros is pretty high up there in the possibilities... :)

Maelorn - Top of Round 8 (I realize Alexandu has his Rd 7 action coming)

I'm not entirely sure how the rules are going to work on this. I *think* it will be a touch attack, but might provoke an AoO. I'm just going to roll the dice and take whatever decision you go with as far as the details

Dropping his hammer, Maelorn steps forward and brushes his hand across the outside of the wizard's pocket, attempting to place his palm squarely upon the bulge of the shrunken chest.

"What is made can be unmade, when used for vile purpose."

Attempted touch on Thug #18's pocket 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12..urgh, probably not, but I can hope most of his AC is from Mage Armor/Shield...

If the touch is successful, Maelorn will use Artificer's Touch to destroy as much of the robe as possible so that the box drops to the floor Damage is 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3, bypassing 2 DR/Hardness.

Sigh, now I've got to wait until Sunday to see if it works...

Zane looks at the expression on Darcy's face with a raised eyebrow.

"What? She was annoying."

Alexandu smiles a wicked smile at Zane's comment, as showing the right spirit. He takes a swing at the escaping thug:

Attack:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23, Damage:1d8 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12

If and when the thug gets out the door his actions will be: Drop shield (free action), transfer morningstar to left hand (move action), move 5 feet to door and open the door (standard action).

Zane looks at the expression on Darcy's face with a raised eyebrow.

"What? She was annoying."

LOL - brilliant answer... can't think of anything better he could have said to Darcy! :)

For a brief moment Darcy stares at Zane with an aghast expression on his face... which is quickly replaced by a broad grin as he shrugs and replies,

'Fair point.' (the observant may notice Darcy's 'posh' accent slip a little into 'Riddleport commoner' as he replies to that one, genuinely amused by Zane's witty retort).

"Darcy, is it? With the woman down, can you rouse the patrons to stop that man?"

He's been orating for six turns straight to little response from the crowd... at this point I think it's safe to say the good citizens of Riddleport have decided to elect the PCs the heroes of the hour... ;)

Cleanup round 7.

Zane looks at the expression on Darcy's face with a raised eyebrow.
"What? She was annoying."

For a brief moment Darcy stares at Zane with an aghast expression on his face... which is quickly replaced by a broad grin as he shrugs and replies,
'Fair point.'

Alexandu Trefilidis
Alexandu smiles a wicked smile at Zane's comment, as showing the right spirit. He takes a swing at the escaping thug, striking him in the back of the head. Thug 12 reels a bit and staggers outside.
Alexandru then drops his shield, transfer morningstar to left hand, moves 5 feet to door, grabs it and keeps the door from closing.

Round 8

Initiative order:
Thief #9-- 24 Dead
Thief #1 "Thuvalia"-- 23 Unconscious
Imp, "Old Scratch"-- 22 Sent back to hell
Maelorn-- 20
Thug #8-- 19 Dead
Thug #12-- 18 Staggered
Thief #3 "Mr. Blue"-- 18 Dead
Thug #2 "Mr. Green"-- 17 Dead
Thug #4 "Mr. Gray"-- 17 Dead
Bor-- 15
Thug #6-- 15 Dead
Eros-- 14
Darcy-- 13
Thief #5-- 13 Dead
Thief #11-- 12 Dead
Thief #7-- 9 Dead
Thug #10-- 9 Dead
Zane-- 8
Alexandru-- 7

Round 8

Maelorn-- 20
Dropping his hammer, Maelorn lunges forward and brushes his hand across the outside of the wizard's pocket as he staggers away from Alexandru's strike, attempting to place his palm squarely upon the bulge of the shrunken chest.
"What is made can be unmade, when used for vile purpose."
He touches Thug #18's bulging front pocket and use Artificer's Touch.

Thug #12-- 18
The thug staggers into a wall of smoke...

Running fruitlessly after the thug into the smoke, Maelorn trips over somthing.
The rest of the heroes collect at the door, ready to mount a pursuit when Maelorn appears out of the smoke, holding a miniaturized treasure chest.
"I think he forgot something."

You are now out of combat.

Maelorn smiles. "I believe miss Thuvalia did not understand that they were outnumbered six to twelve."

His expression turns more serious as he begins to examine the nearest thief. "I'd appreciate it if you would all help me disarm the injured and gather them to a central location along with the bouncers so that I can heal them. I'd just as soon keep the fatalities to a minimum. If any of them are still alive, I can heal them, but I want to make sure they are no threat."

He looks directly at Alexandu, "This is not forgiveness, it is justice. Dead people do not learn to change."

He looks directly at Alexandu, "This is not forgiveness, it is justice. Dead people do not learn to change."

Alexandu shrugs: "Death is a change, isn't it? In their case it might be for the better."

Maelorn nods as he is positioning the wounded, "It may be that death is the best option for them. It's certainly the most likely one if any of the bouncers died in the initial attack."

"As we are in the middle of town, and not in the heat of the moment, I'd rather the community judge upon their sentence, rather than us. Were I in the wilderness or at sea, I'd more likely be giving each of these criminals a mercy blow to make sure they died quickly."

Once the bodies of the living are in a central place (and the criminals disarmed), Maelorn will positive burst to heal/stabilize everyone. If there are any who are not going to last long enough to get them to a central spot, Maelorn has 2 spells left he can convert to Cure Light Wounds. Victims will get priority over criminals for all of this.

Bor approaches Maelorn, Alexandru, and the others, tying a make-shift bandage around his wound, and tightening it with his teeth "Well fought friends. Boyar Skulkiem he says, extending his calloused hand to Maelorn "Me friends call me Bor"

Darcy casts a couple of prestidigitation cantrips...

... the second of which cleans and tidy's Darcy's fancy clothes - including removing any lingering stains from oaf-spilled beer!

Seeing Maelorn return with the mini-chest Darcy laughs out loud,

'Well done that man!' he declares, 'What fun!'

"I'd appreciate it if you would all help me disarm the injured and gather them to a central location along with the bouncers so that I can heal them. I'd just as soon keep the fatalities to a minimum. If any of them are still alive, I can heal them, but I want to make sure they are no threat."

Darcy nods,

'I like the cut of your jib, sir,' he replies, with a slight bow. In contrast he simply rolls his eyes at Alexandru's words, as if he'd heard such nonsense before, and doesn't consider it worthy of retort.

"Well fought friends... Me friends call me Bor"

Taking Bor's hand and giving it a hearty shake Darcy nods,

'An unfortunate sobriquet,' he notes with a smile, 'and hopefully one you'll prove in contrast to your character! I'm Darcy DeWinter... in case you didn't catch that earlier... and I'm pleased to call you friend, Bor.'

Darcy proceeds to help Maelorn move those in need of healing, making sure fair Thuvalia is made comfortable and well looked after.

In an aside to Maelorn Alexandu says: "Rather full of himself, that one, isn't he? " and proceeds to give him a hand. "Probably his first real fight."

'You call that a "real fight"?' Darcy grins at Alexandru, his elven ears picking up the comment, 'My, my - someone has a lot to learn...'

Maelorn shakes, Bor's hand, "Faust kheluz vel klaen aulf, dorinan Bor."

"I am Maelorn, a Maker of Torag. The Goblin was lucky to have you all here today."

To Bor: "I am glad you are alright, friend. You took some heat there. I am Alexandu."

I have some backup healing but I think Maelorn's got it covered.

Hearing Maelorn's words to Bor, Darcy comments...