DM Eric's The Prophecy of Icarus Campaign (Inactive)

Game Master Eric Swanson

You dream…dreams of warm desert sands, dreams of waking on the throne of the Sand-shaper Empire…and then finally you dream of your death, of feeling the blades plunging into your back and your sides, and then darkness closing in on you. Knowing that your death is real. Now, for the first time in many years, you breathe air, the hot dry air sears your lungs for the first time in decades.

As you look in your sarcophagus, the memories flood back into your mind,. Of your last night spent alive and the banquet thrown in your honor. Thoughts of REVENGE flood your mind.

A quick search of your burial chamber reveals some equipment buried with you, of particular usefulness is the ‘Replenishing Skin’, which allows you to slake your thirst. But hunger soon rears its ugly head and you realize if you do not find food, then your second life will be quite short. Already, the growls of your stomach have grown noticeable.

The chamber itself is 25 ft by 15 ft. and the only other thing you see in here is 2 large rubies that are affixed to the wall above your sarcophagus. Looking closer, it appears there were 2 other niches that also held gems, but no longer. It appears to be otherwise empty and undisturbed. You do see a door in one wall, and it appears the only way out of here.

Edit, lurkers welcome, he he

lurk dot ;)
Go on, you can admit it... you are impressed I can lurk you that fast.

After I take stock of the room that I am in,taking a deep drink from the water skin that I find, and equipping the equipment that I find.

Knowing that you cant do much without money when you are not in a dungeon I attempt to find a way to pry the rubies loose from where they are in the wall before I make my way to the door and look out cautiously, wondering what exactly it was that woke me.

The water tastes brackish to you, unlike when it did when it was first bequeathed to you.

You reach to pry the gems loose with your dagger, and are quite suprised when it pops out easily in your hand. Holding it, you notice it feels slightly warm in your hands. The second one also is easily removed, with the same sensation.

What ever woke you, you are not sure, all you remember is an impression of blinding light, and little else.

The door appears to be stuck Strength check please.

After a cursory inspection of the gems Knowledge(Arcana) 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6 I stow them in my pack.

After a brief glance around the room to make sure I didn't miss anything that was not obvious perception1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21 I brace my self to tug open the door.

And then I stop just before pulling the door open. Despite the rumblings of my stomach urging me on I drop to my knee and begin rummaging around through my backpack for a moment. With a smile I pull out 3 of the 6 Ironthorn Extract bottles that I found and begin to work it into my clothing for the next few minutes.

effectively turns my desert garb into +3 armor for a week/untill thoroughly washed, new AC 15

After completing that task I stand re-don my backpack and give a vicious yank on the door Str1d20 + 1 ⇒ (11) + 1 = 12

My current ammount of equipment puts me at a medium load, giving me a -3 check penalty and a 20ft movement speed, just so you are aware.

Nothing else in the room of note.

The door gives way suddenly as you yank on it with all your might. You see a 10' wide passageway leading into darkness. All is quiet, after the sounds of the door have echoed away, that is.

Light source?

light source is just a common torch lit with my flint and steel

I peer down the hall for a moment allowing my eyesight to adjust to the flickering torch light and shadows before stepping into the hall. I will scan the walls, ceiling, and floor as I move down the hall looking for any other alcoves for equipment, valuables, things that are planning on jumping out at me and what have you as I go.

just out of curiosity, does the area I am in appear to be well constructed and stable, or is it obviously falling apart?

Can I get a Knowledge, dungeoneering check, please?

Lurky Mclurklurk here

Knowledge(dungeoneering)1d20 + 8 ⇒ (2) + 8 = 10

You cannot tell much about the construction features, although you think you are is a desert climate due to the dryness of the air.

I make my way slowly down the corridor watching for sudden movements. I have my torch in my left hand and my cold Iron kukri in my right ready for any action that is needed.

I rack my memory about the ecosystem of desert "dungeons" to figure out if there would be an eatable creature around that I could capture to ease my hunger pangs. (i.e.rats, scorpions, scarab beetles)

Knowledge(dungeoneering) 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (9) + 8 = 17

As your sense grow accustomed to the quiet around you, you realize there are faint sounds that echo all around you, Shining your torch around the floor, walls and ceiling you do see signs of desert scorpions, and also spy rat droppigns along one side of the corridor.

You know the tiny scorpions are useful as a source of nutrition, as long as you avoid the poison stinger. Let me know if you want to try to capture several of them.

As you walk down the corridor, your acute sense of smell picks up the scent of moisture.

I am not quite hungry enough to mess with scorpions yet, perhaps soon though. I continue down the the hall for now.

After about 50' or so, the corridor ends. You see a door to your left, and the smell of moisture is quite strong here.

I listen at the door for a second and if I hear nothing I will open the door and pass through.

Perception 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (5) + 5 = 10

When you listen at the door, you hear nothing, so you open the door. As you look in you see a diamond shaped chamber around 50 paces wide from corner to corner. There is a landing step that leads to a pool of water that covers the entire chamber. You are not sure, but you think it is shallow enough to wade in.

All is quiet, you see no other signs of life or activity.

Knowledge Dungeoneering DC 12

figured since my Ravenloft game died, time to switch to a more appropriate desert themed avatar, he he

Walking into the room before me, I look for other exits/entrances and then examine the pool before me making sure to keep an eye on any place that seems it could hold something that may jump out at me.

Knowledge(dungeoneering)1d20 + 8 ⇒ (18) + 8 = 26 (for your previous post)

does the pool seem to be fresh, brackish, clear?

The pool appears to be clear and also perfectly still. Something about this pool troubles you, but you cannot put your finger on it.

On the opposite side of the chamber you see the corridor continue onwards. In order to reach this though, you will need to get your feet wet.

And my awesomely high knowledge roll didn't net me any more info? Well shucks

I take off my back pack and sift through it quickly looking to see if I have anything useful, after a moment I close up the backpack and put it back on. I strap the pack as high upon my back as I can to make sure none of my equipment becomes wet and with a sigh take my first step into the pool, pausing for a moment after I do to see if anything seems to happen.

Sorry, you don't have the correct knowledge skill, he he.

The water is clear, cool, and quite refreshing. You estimate it is about 3 feet deep, as you step off the step. Nothing happens.

Do you continue onwards?

Since nothing seems to happen after I step into the pool I shrug my shoulders, attribute my uneasy feeling to nerves and press on through the small pool still keeping my kukri and torch at ready.

You continue onward towards the other side of the corridor, wading through the pool. While you are in the water, your movement is halved, and your DEX is at a -2 penalty.

Perception check please.

That would put my current move at 10ft and my AC at 13

perception 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (20) + 5 = 25

Ooooh, natural 20, I see EVERYTHING, realize that I am nothing but a character in a game and suddenly cease to exist *poof*

That was a quick game, he he.

Some preternatural warning shouts an alarm in your head, as you realize you are not alone...

Ahead of you, a roiling disturbance in the pool appears and starts forming a column of water. Since you did not see anything in the clear water, you suspect it is a water-based creature of some kind.

You have one round before whatever it is forms. What do you do?

I am assuming that I have only made it a about a quarter of the way into the pool, if that. I will attempt to circumvent the creature or what ever it is keeping my back toward the wall and my front facing whatever it is.

I will attempt to back into the hall that I am making my way to on the far side of the room without engaging the creature however if I think that it is endangering me or attempting to block my path I will engage and fight my way past.

On that note, I have a readied action to attack if the creature makes a threatening move, otherwise I will just watch.

OK, you had made it about 10' in and it is about 40' wide. So yes you had progressed a quarter of the way. You make it about half way, before the creature fully forms.

Once it forms it looks like a column of water, only about 5 feet high. It roils and undulates briefly, then it advances directly towards you.

Initiative. Also as you are moving along, I need a DEX check.

Dex 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15

Initiative 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (20) + 6 = 26

Assuming that I move first with that amazing initiative roll, and that the water creature is still not within melee range of me

I will take a defensive stance (Total defense, standard action adds +4 to AC Pg186) and then continue to make my way toward the door I am trying to reach (move action, another 10ft closer) AC=17

If, However, the water being is within melee range

I will take a defensive stance and attack with my Cold Steel Kukri (Fighting Defensively, standard action with attack, -4 attack roll, +2 AC Pg184) and then 5ft step toward the door I am making my way to. AC=15

Attack 1d20 - 2 ⇒ (12) - 2 = 10 (+2attack -4fighting defensively)
(if applicable) Damage 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3

The watery creature moves 10 ' away from you and then it lashes at you with a watery tentacle. It strikes at you 10' reach and you barely manage to avoid a rather stinging blow.

Reflex save please.

Reflex 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (13) + 4 = 17

Which action did I manage to take?

The creature has reach so you did not take a swing at it, you took a 10' move, while fighting defensively, (that saves you from getting hit by the way,) which places you only 10' away from your goal.

The creature is still advancing on you, though.

The save is to avoid slipping in the water, he he.

Then I will again take a Total Defense action as a standard action and a move action of 10ft backing toward the door so that I can exit this room in hope that this creature will not follow.

If the creature does follow I will fall back into the hall so that I can at least fight it on dry ground where I wont be slipping and taking penalties.

You edge your way to the hallway and as your feet touch the dry ground, the water creature lashes at you, this time connecting solidly, Take 5 points of damage.

Also, the blow has the side effect of drenching your equipment, including your torch. Normally, this is not a big deal, but as the water touches your pack, you feel a warmth spreading from it. As you glance at you pack, yo see a reddish glow coming from one of the pockets, where you secreted one of the rubies you acquired back in your burial chamber.

What do you do?

HP counter: 12-5=7 left

I am assuming that when my equipment was drenched it put out my torch yes?

Knowing that fishing through my backpack while within striking distance of the creature is not a good idea, especially with the glow emanating from my backpack marking me rather well in the darkness, that is if this creature in front of me even uses eyes to see...

I take a five foot step back (free action), out of the creatures striking range and pull one of the rubies from my pack (move action) not knowing if the glow and heat is a good thing or not I tentatively hold it toward the water being taking a Total Defense action again (standard action)

is there enough light coming from the crystal to see by?

I am stealthily lurking....

All you lurkers out there may want to order Icarus a pizza, he is kinda hungry, he he

Yes, your torch did go out.

Okay, you pull the crystal out of your pack, and you can see it did get wet a little, but as you hold it, it suddenly flares with a reddish flash and grows burning hot, causing you to drop it. It shatters on the corridor floor , and then you see a small humanoid creature with thin, leathery wings, small horns, and reddish skin, which does give off a dull reddish glow.

The creature appears directly in front of you and when the water creature sees it, it immediately strikes at it, which strikes a glancing blow.

An inner sense tells you discretion is the better part of valor, here.

I will retreat down the hall, feeling my way if I must, allowing the two... whatever they are, battle it out. I grumble to myself as I go,"I don't know what my father paid my tutors for, they obviously didn't teach me enough If I can run into this many things that I never heard of in that short amount of time."

perception 1d20+5

As soon as I get around a corner I will stop and listen to see if I hear anything ahead of me. I will then relight my torch or light another torch as needed and continue down the hall hoping that the creatures behind do not pursue.

Congrats for surviving, that was a CR 5 creature. normally worth 1600 XP, but you only bypassed it, so you will get half which means you get 800 XP. Needless to say, avoiding or otherwise bypassing these encounters would be a good idea.

You continue down the corridor, leaving the sounds of combat behind you. After a few moments, the sounds of combat cease, and all is quiet again. Thinking about the areas of knowledge you are lacking, you realize your planar knowledge skills are lacking.

The corridor continues straight down 50 paces, and ends at a closed door, directly ahead of you.

800xp is good enough for me I'd rather have a little less xp and survive then stand my ground with a strange creature I know nothing about and die. lol it took me too long to find a DM that would actually do this campaign for me I don't want to throw it away now. I'm just a little bummed that I am now down a gem lol

I will listen at the door, and depending on what I hear I will open the door and pass through.

Perception1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22

lol I knew that, just messed it up

I will listen at the door, and depending on what I hear I will open the door and pass through.

Perception1d20+5

Are you trying to use the Paizo die roller? You need to put {dice}{/dice} on each side of the die expression.

fixed it

You hear nothing on the other side of the door, so you open it. On the other side of the door is a large hexagonal chamber, which appears to be empty. The only thing you see are three exits, one on each side of you, in the angled wall next to you, and one on the far wall directly ahead of you.

I walk into the room and examine each exit, standing before each one testing air movement, apparent slope of floor etc. trying to determine which is the exit from the dungeon.

starting at the right exit and moving counter clockwise around the room.

Exit 1 perception 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (17) + 5 = 22
Knowledge(dungeoneering) 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (19) + 8 = 27
Survival 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

Exit 2 perception 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Knowledge(dungeoneering) 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (9) + 8 = 17
Survival 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (11) + 5 = 16

Exit 3 perception 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (14) + 5 = 19
Knowledge(dungeoneering) 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23
Survival 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15

respectable rolls

You walk over to each door and examine it for any clues, but unfortunately, since your memories do not include those detailing the construction of this crypt. You are forced to admit you don't know.

I approach exit number 1 and say "well there is always trial and error..."

I am about to open the door when my stomach gives out a growl, I sigh and decided that since this may take a while before I find my way out I may as well try to catch some of the scorpions/rats that I know to be here and at the very least curb my hunger.

Survival 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (15) + 5 = 20

You camp out in this chamber for a few hours, and soon you track the trail of rat spoor to the nest, and then also a small nest of scorpions. Needless to say, this is not gourmet fare, but it does assuage your hunger.

No danger of starvation now.

According to PZO core rule book it is DC10 to find food and you gain enough to feed 1 more person by every 2 you beat the check by, does this mean I now have 5 days worth of rat and scorpion munchies?

After finding some "food" and eating my fill of rat and scorpion, the toll of everything that has happened to me in the last few hrs begins to catch up. With my newly filled stomach, the weariness left over after the fear of meeting the water being, the pain of the injury I got from it, the shock of seeing the devil or demon appear from crystal, and the worry about what will happen once I escape from this dungeon all catches up to me and I fall into a deep sleep.

I will attempt to sleep for 8 hrs in this room to regain some HP since I don't know what surprises are in store up ahead.

If nothing happens between the time I fall asleep and the time i wake up I will make my way through Exit number one like I was planning to before I decided to get some food.

OK basically, you don't have to worry about any starvation checks for another 5 days.

Your sleep is uninterrupted, and you wake up refreshed. Gain 1 hp. Following up on your plans, you move over to the door on the right side. Hearing nothing you proceed. On the other side of the door, a corridor leads, proceeding 25 paces, then angles 45 degrees to the right, then proceeds another 15 paces, before ending at another door.