Sami smiles at her confidence. What is your plan, Eretria? I'd rather not get in the way of any spells you wish to cast on this creature.
It is at this point that the plant begins to move in your direction. You have four rounds before it gets within thirty feet.
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Eretria will prepare mage armor on herself and just in case lays out the chain.
"We have to assume it can easily bite down on anyone it wants so I suggest someone volunteers attempting to get its attention while we fight... if it isn't intelligent that might mean just flat out being the first to attack it. Otherwise I will try fire on it first but if its anything like the rest of the stuff we fought it may be resistant to magic. Lum, Versey if you two wish, you may back up out of range of where we intend to fight."
With that explanation she will hold her action until it is in range and someone else attacks before attempting a scorching ray spell on the plant-like creature.
:
:
I will cast divine favor when it is 2 rounds away from reaching 30 feet.
Darc first casts Enlarge Person, on himself calling on the power of Gorrum to aid his strength he then casts resistance, followed by divine favour.
Eretria, you know it's an animated plant, not an aberration.
As the great plant approaches, it is clear to even the most urban of the party that there is something wrong with it. The party could already see that one side of it is withered and brown, but at shorter range it can be seen that there are shallow fissures in its trunk, and it moves in fits and starts. Its base is quite large, though, and when it straightens up it is close to fifteen feet tall.
The party's spells are prepared. The situation is THIS as of the beginning of Round 1.
Just before the end of the round, Eretria can cast her scorching ray, then we move on to Round 1.
Round 1:
Initiative Order:
Xavier
Eretria
Besmarial/Moonflower
Versey
Sami
Rashun
Darc
Lum
As the creature comes into range, Eretria casts scorching ray. The needle of flame lances from her hand and strikes it a glancing blow, but the ray still burns deep into its stalk and ignites small secondary fires that take a few seconds to burn out. It straightens up to its full height, tendrils and rootlets quivering, and all of you feel for just a moment the merest touch of an alien mind in agony.
On to Round 1. Xavier charges it, sword flashing, and runs into an unfortunately accurate bite. The creature grabs the hapless fighter in its jaws and hauls him into the air before he can land his blow. He manages to twist in its grasp and slash at it with his scimitar, though, drawing sap.
Eretria, you're up.
Sami grits his teeth in frustration at the sight of what had become their leader being engulfed by the creature. He charges around the side of the creature, looking for a good angle to attack, letting fly a bullet from his sling as he moves.
Round 1 (ongoing):
Initiative Order:
Xavier-acted
Eretria-acted
Besmarial-acting/Moonflower-acting
Versey-acting
Sami
Rashun
Darc
Lum
Eretria's force missiles leave welts in the animated plant's trunk. Besmarial drops to just over the creature and emits a line of fire onto it. The moonflower evades the worst of the damage, but is still left with a large scorch mark. Simultaneously with Besmarial's attack, the plant turns its withered side away from the party as it moves ten or fifteen feet closer. Its undamaged side suddenly flares like the sun. Everyone except Rashun, make a DC 18 Fort save or be blinded for 1d4 rounds; please roll the d4 at the same time as your save. Besmarial flits upwards, Lum clutches his eyes, and Xavier and Versey managed to look away in time.
Versey moves up on the moonflower, saw in hand. Its tentacles lash out at him but he presses on despite the damage and opens a wide slash on its base with his crude but effective blade.
rounds
rounds
Sami curses at the sudden darkess before his eyes, but maintains his composure enough to continue on his course and loose a bullet, which missed terribly.
Sami is still able to make his move and sling attack, since it would have missed in any case.
rounds.
As the flash lights up the air, Darc blinks a couple of times to save his eyes from the lights effects. He then runs forward with his flail held high, seeking a flanking position for this attack or the next.
Sorry about that....
I will attempt to go for a flank...I don't have acrobatics...I did have the bow in had, but I will drop it as a free action while drawing my melee weapon..
attack:
damage:
It's used up all of its AoOs for the round, so Rashun makes it to the creature's side without being attacked. His blow, however, glances off the plant's tough and woody exterior. But his presence distracts the thing enough that Darc's blow hits.
Darc, you knock loose a spray of splinters.
Round 1 (final):
Lum steps backward in a defensive stance, weapons out, blinking his eyes furiously to clear them.
Situation at the end of Round 1 is HERE. Rashun, Xavier, Versey, and Darc are close enough to see that some of the marks of violence from Darc's attack seem to be fading.
Round 2:
Xavier attempt to break free of the plant creature's jaws, but his struggles are futile. Eretria is up!
Initiative Order:
Xavier-acted
Eretria-
Besmarial-/Moonflower-
Versey-
Sami
Rashun
Darc
Lum
Round 2 (ongoing):
Initiative Order:
Xavier-acted
Eretria-acted
Besmarial-acting/Moonflower-acting
Versey-acting
Sami
Rashun
Darc
Lum
The arcane darts again score the creature's trunk. In a sharp spasm, it swallows Xavier whole, then lashes out at Darc with a pair of tentacles.
As the fighter passes into the massive plant's gullet, it spasms again and vomits him out, tightly wrapped in a dark green, pulsing cocoon.
Versey takes advantage of the creature's distraction to chop into its trunk again, spraying greenish sap in all directions.
Sami is up!
Sami moves forward from memory, headed towards the what he remembered to be the rear of the beast. He takes only three long strides, his movement hampered by his impairment. As he continues to stalk the creature, he hurls another bolt at where he figured the creature to be.
Darc, seeing the sap fill and begin to harden in the cuts made by his weapon, sees red and tries to trash more damage into it. "It can heal itself, strike hard, strike firm for Gorrum."
The monk's sling stone rebounds from the monster's trunk; although Sami can't tell, those party members still able to see can tell that it did no apparent damage.
Rashun, over to you. It's looking kind of peaked at the moment.
The inquisitor brings his curved blade around in a lethal slice, opening a wide gash on the base of the great plant. Landing on a spot already weakened by Darc's heavy blows, the scimitar attack splits the moonflower's trunk, and with a creaking groan it falls.
Xavier is still stuck in a pulsing green pod, though.
Round 3:
At the top of next round, Xavier's scimitar pokes out of the pod, but he is unable to cut himself free.
Seeing his friend struggle to free himself from being devoured by the green pod, Darc with his eyes full of fury strikes at the pod, his flail rising high in the air before rushing down aimed at the pod, hoping to free Xavier. "For freedom, for Xavier!" rings through the air
That is for anyone in the group.
Sami moves closer, but stays sligtly back, waiting for his vision to clear. After hearing Darc's words, he puts away his sling and prepares to pummel the creature as soon as he can see it once again.
Round 3 (ongoing):
The pod contracts around the imprisoned fighter like a leafy fist. Sizzling green liquid drips out of the slash Xavier opened in its side, and his struggles cease.
Versey hurries over to the pod, dropping his serrated blade and drawing out a flask from a belt pouch. He pours the flask's contents onto the pod, which shrivels in spots but remains largely intact.
Rashun can act before Darc.
Initiative Order:
Xavier-acted; tried to cut himself free
Eretria-acted; cast magic missile on the pod
Besmarial-nothing/Moonflower pod-acted; attempted to digest Xavier
Versey-acted; poured weed killer on the pod
Sami-blinded
Rashun-nothing he can do at the moment
Darc
Lum
Eretria's arcane darts raised great welts on the surface of the pod, and with the damage she inflicted Versey's weed killer was able to finish it off. Xavier's still form is revealed by the disintegrating greenery, scarred by the pod's acid juices.
Darc, Xavier is free of the pod, so you don't have to attack it. What do you do? (I should point out that your fighter isn't moving, and looks pretty badly beat up.)
Initiative Order:
Xavier-acted; tried to cut himself free
Eretria-acted; cast magic missile on the pod
Besmarial-still blinded; nothing/Moonflower pod-acted; attempted to digest Xavier
Versey-acted; poured weed killer on the pod, freeing Xavier
Sami-blinded; nothing he can do at the moment
Rashun-nothing he can do at the moment
Darc-pounded remains of pod (avoiding Xavier's body, presumably)
Lum-still blinded; nothing
With that, we're off melee time. The collapse of the creature has cracked open its trunk, revealing a glistening metal cylinder roughly three inches in diameter by six inches long. The plant tissue around it is withered and blackened, as if by fire.
Your eyes are, however, drawn to the still form of your fighting compatriot. Xavier is dead.
Sami rushes to the side of his fallen friend, falling to the ground and feeling around the fighter to check his vitals by touch and not sight. As the truth of the situation sinks in, he growls in frustration and hammers the ground beside Xavier's body with a tight fist.
As his vision clears, Sami spots the cylinder and motions to it as he inclines his head to Versey. Though he means it only as a question, his words come out as a predatory growl. Do you know what that thing is?. Is that from your ship?
Sami's face falls in open sympathy. She just seemed to be opening up to this man, and now he's... With a snarl, he turns to Darc and Rashun. Is there nothing you can do for him?
Rashun shakes his head wordlessly, his face a mask of grief.
Eventually Versey gets around to replying to Sami. "That's it. The poison light it gives out must have been killing the moonflower from inside. Can any of you move it without touching it?"
Sami frowns, then shakes his head. He looks to Eretria, whom he would typically defer to with such a request.
Darc looks down at the fallen warrior dispassionately. "No friends, he fell with valor. Let him meet those who die so honorably, meet with Gorum, Pharesma and other god that brave soul followed." Darc picks up Xavier's weapons and lays him down, his two weapons crossing his chest, protecting his heart. "We burn him here, let fire cleanse spirit and soul, it revel in the flames of passion and battle. Rid us of poisoner too."
Besmarial drops from the sky and transforms into a cherubic-looking human child of androgynous appearance, clad in robes and wearing a (non-winged) helm that otherwise looks like its "normal" self. "I will try to reach Prester Gallowsmith. A moment." The angel closes its eyes, then rests a hand on the fighter's acid-scarred forehead and concentrates. A minute passes without any change in the tableau, angel and corpse. Then a mote of intensely bright light appears on Xavier's body, untwisting somehow into a line that runs from the crown of his head along his side to his feet. Then the line splits, spinning off brilliant threads that cover his body with a gleaming latticework. All at once the light dies away, but there is now something different about the ground on which Xavier rests. Before you can figure out what the difference is, Besmarial opens his eyes again and speaks with Prester Gallowsmith's voice. "He does not belong there, so I am able to call his body home. This gate I have opened will not last long, though. Rashun, please carry him through it; once on our side, I should be able to preserve his body for revivification. If possible, I shall send you reinforcements before the gate closes again."
This oddness made much more sense after you learned of the rifts. The defense of your town became a priority over the next several months as wave after wave of peculiar creatures made their way into your Golarion from countless strange places, but the hostiles were balanced by those who were benevolent. You and your companions were eventually able to organize things well enough to run without your direct intervention for a time.
It was then that you received a message, delivered by a thrush, that invited you to come to Absalom, to the home of Prester Gallowsmith in one month's time to discuss the end of the world. The letter is signed with a signature and a sigil: three interlocking circles with a spiral at the center. It's not a symbol you're familiar with, but it seems to evoke a sense of familiarity none the less. With some difficulty you make your way south; it takes longer than you anticipated, though, and you miss the deadline. Nevertheless, you are able to reach the great city of Absalom and locate Gallowsmith's home.
The house is modest by the standards of the city, an older manse, its glory fading, its paint peeling. It smells faintly of roses and soap, a pleasant enough smell for such a foreboding day. In the sky above, clouds swirl around one of the Great Rifts, a rip in the sky that reveals another sky beyond, one with two suns perilously close to Golarion, even at night. The heat radiating from the rift has lead to a sweltering summer and the people of Absalom have taken to wearing as little as is modest, preferring the threat of the sight of flesh to the heat stroke which has become too common.
The door of the home is open. As you stand upon the threshold, a mouth appears from the stone of the wall, small and magical. An old man's voice pipes out from it in a pleasant tenor. "Come in, my friend. We have much to discuss. There are food and drink for you inside. Make yourself comfortable, I will be joining you presently."
You enter the quiet house, hoping that the scholar will not take long. On a table at the side of the large room past the entrance hall is a serving plate of fruit, a stack of smaller plates, a stack of cups, and a pair of pitchers. One of the pitchers is dewed with condensation. In the center of the room, the flagstones of the floor give way to a tiled mosaic, depicting the legend of the drowning of Old Azlant. (The mosaic is so skillfully made that the water almost seems to move.) As you watch it, though, the tiles swirl together and rise into a column, which takes the form of an old man in robes the color of the sea. He smiles at you, and speaks in the voice you heard from the mouth at the door.
"Welcome to my home, and thank you for coming. I am Prester Gallowsmith." He indicates the table with a wave of his hand. "Please help yourself. The road has doubtless been tiring."
"Aye, that it has." I Pat my companion, Selvesahnea, on the head and pour out a bowl of water for him. Then a glass for myself.
"I was angel-touched but an entity from the rifts took that from me. I'm still getting used to walking everywhere."
I give the man a steady look, "That symbol, three circles and a spiral, what does it mean? Why does it ring a bell?"
"I am a member of a brotherhood of men who study the planes and the stars and the space between. For many years we have met quietly to share our insights and to speak of the knowledge that we have gathered. The death of Aroden changed everything. Suddenly all the omens and prophecies ceased to function, and even basic divinations could not be trusted. It was in that moment that a brother of mine observed a strange occurrence heretofore unknown to us. During a simple teleportation effect, he observed that the Golarion of his destination was not the Golarion of his departure. Fortunately he was not stranded on that strange shore and was able to return to us with his findings. From that moment, we were able to make several discoveries. Bear with me; the path ahead is not a clean one."
He pauses, gathering his thoughts. "We have discerned that every major event in the history of our world holds a certain temporal energy...an energy whose potential is detectable on certain individuals: those who respond to the symbol as you did are marked by that potential. More importantly, it also permeates the planar boundaries and as we found out, alters them. You see, every major event or keystone moment creates a potential for an equal and opposite outcome. The very energy that causes history to hinge upon that moment creates its opposition. When this occurs, a new Golarion is produced, divergent from our Golarion in that moment. If the event is strong enough, that Golarion continues, evolving in its new path separate from our path, spawning its own alternates. If it is weak, it will die, usually within a few days, but we have seen such realities persist for longer before fading. Indeed, in Pharasma's Boneyard, there may well be a graveyard of such realities. But I digress. In this garden of forking paths, there is always a prime path, a Golarion from which all others sprang. I first believed that our world must be that world, but of late I am reconsidering that conclusion. That does not change the basic point: it seems as if the weight of these other realities is becoming too much for this world to bear. The rifts are the result of this stress. They are the tears where one reality intersects with another, and if they are allowed to continue, they will eventually cause all realities to collapse in upon each other, destroying them all. We know not why or where this threat comes from, but we believe we may have a way to stop the collapse."
Gallowsmith pauses and the mosaic tiles composing him rearrange to form a sort of network of roots. "In each reality, we have identified a keystone, a place or person or thing upon which that reality rests. Some aspect of these things has become lacking in some way and must be rectified if that reality is to be shored up against the collapse." A portion of one root lights up, and as it glows, you see an island in the midst of a vast oval lake, surrounded by scorched and blasted rock. It is night. There is a circle of stones on the island, and from the center of the circle a faint line reaches skyward; the line is a black so intense it stands out against the night sky.
Gallowsmith's voice comes from all around you. "This is the Dark Road, a tangle in the fabric of reality that, when combined with the rest of what is happening, threatens to tear all apart if it is not destroyed. Break the terminus before the Road is strengthened by the conjunction, and this reality shall be strengthened and the threat against all of us is lessened by the weight of a single grain of sand. Minor, perhaps, but taken in total with others and it may be enough to save us all.
"You must have questions. Ask, and I shall answer as best I may."