The inevitable nods. "This one will remember you, and speak of your aid." It leaps the narrow stream of magma and strides around towards the larger body of magma.
Incidentally, the inevitable still looks pretty beat up.
The axiomite-built construct strides towards the lava, but stops when it reaches the edge. It scans the area, apparently looking for some means to reach the small spit of solid ground at the Spire core. Suddenly it starts, reaching back over its shoulder for the hilt of the sword it carries on its back.
Round 1 (ongoing):
Initiative order
Foes-acted
Inevitable-acted
Kali
Torque
Senja
Asvald
Eva
Before the inevitable can act, the lava in the pool mounds up in two places. From each comes a ball of molten stone, both of which sail past the outsider construct. However, as the mounds wash forwards towards the inevitable they come inside its reach. It draws a bastard sword and chops repeatedly at one of them.
DC 19 Knowledge (Planes):
These look like lave lurkers, creatures of the hottest reaches of the Elemental Plane of Earth. They are vulnerable to cold and to water, and (oddly) implode with cold when killed.
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
Knowledge (planes):1d20 + 14 ⇒ (19) + 14 = 33
On seeing the kolyarut attacked, Senja makes a quiet hmmph sound, then says, "Well, look at that, lava lurkers. They're creatures of the hottest reaches of the Elemental Plane of Earth. As you'd expect, they're vulnerable to cold and to water but, oddly enough, they implode with cold when they're killed."
Carbide - I suppose with that roll I know most of the things about them, anything else of interest?
Senja moves a few steps forward, then raises a bony finger and points it at one of the lurkers, sending a ray of shadow at the fiery earth-monster. The ray coalesces in a small, dark cloud above the lurker, where it begins to rain shadow down upon it.
Move up 10', then use Misfortune hex on blue lava lurker, DC 21 Will save.
Initiative order
Foes-acted
Inevitable-acted
Kali
Torque-acted
Senja-acted
Asvald-acted
Eva
Asvald and Torque prepare for the fight. Senja opens with his usual hex, which has its usual effect as the elemental spirit fails to resist it.
If no one has any other thoughts for Kali's action: The kitsune advances and casts a snowball at the unhexed lava lurker. The spell is on target, freezing a portion of the creature's substance.
Initiative order
Foes-acted
Inevitable-acted
Kali
Torque
Senja
Asvald
Eva
One of the lurkers slams at the kolyarut, and despite Senja's hex manages to hit it once. The other pounds on Eva, hitting her twice for 9 HP and 9 HP. Also, 2 DC 20 Reflex saves to avoid 4 and 1 HP of fire damage. The kolyarut goes after the wounded lava lurker, hitting it once.
Party up!
Dice rolls:
Blue slam on kolyarut:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (14) + 20 = 34 Blue slam on kolyarut:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (20) + 20 = 40
Blue slam on kolyarut:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (2) + 20 = 22 Blue slam on kolyarut:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (15) + 20 = 35
Green slam on Eva:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (10) + 20 = 30 Green slam on Eva:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (15) + 20 = 35
Blue slam damage:1d6 + 8 ⇒ (3) + 8 = 11
Green slam damage:1d6 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9 Green slam damage:1d6 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
Senja begins a dark, maniacal laughter, as he lifts his hands above his head. A long, slender shaft of shadow appears in his hands, pointed at the ceiling of the cavern. Holding it high, he slides one hand along the shaft, while pulling the other downward, opening a massive umbral umbrella - indoors! Still cackling away, Senja tosses the unfortunate bumbershoot at the green lava lurker!
Move action to cackle to maintain Misfortune on blue, standard to use Misfortune hex on green. DC 21 Will save for green to resist.
Initiative order
Lurkers-acted
Inevitable-acted
Party-
Eva continues to burn from the previous attacks, but avoids the creature's followup slams through her bastion stance. Take another 2 HP fire damage, Eva. The inevitable likewise emerges unscathed. Then it unleashes a rapid set of attacks, striking the lava lurker facing it three times. The foe still stands, although it does not look well. The inevitable then takes a short step back from the edge. "Retreat and let your caster finish it."
Dice rolls:
Blue vs. inevitable:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (8) + 20 = 28 Blue vs. inevitable:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (4) + 20 = 24
Blue vs. inevitable:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (14) + 20 = 34 Blue vs. inevitable:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (6) + 20 = 26
Slam damage plus fire:1d6 + 8 + 1d6 ⇒ (2) + 8 + (2) = 12
Green vs. Eva:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (2) + 20 = 22 Green vs. Eva:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (9) + 20 = 29
Green vs. Eva:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (7) + 20 = 27 Green vs. Eva:1d20 + 20 ⇒ (3) + 20 = 23
Eva rounds burning:1d4 ⇒ 2 Eva rounds burning:1d4 ⇒ 2
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
At the inevitable's words, Senja looks around, then points at himself and says, "You mean me?" He glances at Kali, then says, "Oh, you probably mean her, with the snowball, right?"
Botting Kali, since I believe she's got more 1st-level spells left:
Rolling her eyes at Senja, Kali tosses another ball of ice at the most badly wounded of the lava lurkers!
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
DM Carbide wrote:
Is Kali going to wait until Eva has acted?
Yep. Meant to put that in my post but forgot. It shouldn't affect the to-hit roll, since blue isn't in melee any more and doesn't have cover, but who knows what kind of crazy thing Eva might do that will affect Kali's actions?
Eva hits the lurker twice, wounding it severely but not dropping it. Then Kali's snowball hits the other one. It freezes solid, then implodes in a blast of icy air that triggers a similar reaction in the one that Eva hit. When the fog clears, neither target remains, but they have left an island of stone in the lava pool. (Marked by the rectangle on the map.)
Out of combat!
From this position, the party can now see another creature on the narrow spit of stone next to the Spire core. It has a stony body, three legs, three arms, and a mouth on top of its body. It is clinging to the Spire core and occasionally licking it.
Knowledge (Planes) DC 16:
This is a xorn, a creature of elemental earth able to tunnel through stone. It is fond of gems and precious metals, which it finds delicious.
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
Knowledge (planes):1d20 + 14 ⇒ (6) + 14 = 20
"Or.....it's a xorn, that's the other possibility," Senja weighs in to the discussion. "And if it is a Xorn - which it is - it's a creature of elemental earth, able to tunnel through stone. Strangely, they are very fond of gems and precious metals, but not because of the beauty of these things. They like them because they find them delicious." He considers the xorn a moment and says, "I do hope it doesn't try to eat the Spire core. I don't think that would be healthy for any of us."
It certainly appears, now that the party has a chance to look more closely at the xorn, that it occasionally tries to bite it as well. Its teeth leave no mark on the glowing surface, though.
Without another word to you, the inevitable takes a running start across the frozen lava and leaps the narrowed gap, ending up next to the xorn. Whatever speech passes between the two does not carry over the sounds of flowing lava and creaking rock, but its result is clear: the kolyarut attacks the xorn. Unless you interfere the fight is brief and one-sided, and at its end the xorn lies dead on the stone. The inevitable produces a small green object (you recognize it as a Spire transport token), concentrates, and vanishes.
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
Wow, I totally missed that Carbide posted 12 days ago. Also, can we (or at least some of us) just use the new stone island in the lava pool to get to the stairs? It looks like it gets to within 10' of the stairs, so a running jump would get most of us across (though Senja might fly anyway).
Carbide - would you allow taking 10 to jump across the gap to the stairs? Or would the risk of falling into lava count as being in immediate danger?
You won't be able to take 10--not only because of the hazard involved, but also because the frozen lava is not solidly fixed in place (it bobs a bit, plus it's obviously going to remelt soon). Asvald is strong enough to toss Senja over.
The party troops up the shallow steps to another part of the lava pool, previously concealed behind the Spire core. Senja, Asvald, and Torque easily notice ripples in the molten rock, harbinger of another of the elementals of the sort fought in the other chamber. There is something else under the surface, but it's not moving.
Round 1:
Initiative order
Kali
Asvald
Lava lurker
Senja
???
Torque
Eva
Initiative order
Kali-acted
Asvald-acted
Lava lurker-acted
Senja
???
Torque
Eva
Kali holds to get a shot when/if the lurker surfaces. It obligingly does so, and promptly eats a snowball. The lurker returns fire (literally) with a glob of incandescent lava, but the kitsune ducks just in time.
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
Unsure what might be lurking beneath the lava's surface, Senja opts to deal with the threat he can see. He waves his long, slenders fingers in the air and a fat, buzzing mosquito of shadow appears and wings its way over to the lava lurker. Undeterred by the intense heat, the umbral insect buzzes and flits around the elemental's head-like upper portion, distracting it!
As he does so, he calls out to his friends, "Try to destroy the thing where it is, it may give us another bridge across the lava pool when it dies!"
Misfortune hex on lava lurker, DC 21 Will to resist.
Unfortunately, it seems to be able to sense where the kitsune is, and dodges in time to avoid her precision damage. It's still chilled by the spell effect, though, and Senja's hex distracts it so its hurled lave glob misses Kali.
M Wayang Witch 10 | HP 70 | AC 18 | T 17 | FF 14 (w/mage armor: 22/17/18) | CMD 18 | Fort +10 | Ref +11 | Will +11 | Init +9 | Perc +21
Frustrated that his magic can’t just kill the lava lurker, and that he can’t see what the critter under the lava is, Senja groans amidst his mad laughter, then further complicates life for the lava lurker, tossing shadowy confusion at the thing!
Cackle, use Evil Eye hex for -4 to attacks. DC 21 Will save to have effect only be for 1 round.
