Zane looked alarmed as he heard Azarra tell of a 'flesh golem'. Not really caring to interact with something like that, he is all too eager to follow the half-elf to the north.
Ser Armithia grins; but follows.
Ishta also agrees to continue their path. A fight would alert everyone around. However, as she follows her comrades, she mentally tries to recall what she once read about golems, and the flesh type in particular.
A magical attack that deals cold or fire damage slows a flesh golem (as the slow spell) for 2d6 rounds (no save).
A magical attack that deals electricity damage breaks any slow effect on the golem and heals 1 point of damage for every 3 points of damage the attack would otherwise deal. If the amount of healing would cause the golem to exceed its full normal hit points, it gains any excess as temporary hit points. A flesh golem gets no saving throw against attacks that deal electricity damage.
The Watchers of Dawn move north through a once majestic marble corridor which has suffered from looks like generations of graffiti and tags scratched in by youths on a lark. This opens up into what was once a guard station. To the east and west are massive steel vault doors, both of which appear to be locked by a complex looking combination system. The one to the west is labeled "Vault #3" and the one to the east is labelled "Vault #5" (that was the one you where given the combination to). A short corridor heads to the north and ends in a stout looking stone door.
Azarra silently points out Vault 5 to the others, having seen a boot print. Hopefully this following someone was a good thing and not a set-up.
Azarra checks for traps and also listens at the door to see if she can hear anything inside.
Using the message spell, she reminds everyone that they know at least one person is inside, so they need to be ready.
If there are no traps, and no sounds that sound like an ambush, Azarra will enter the combination and then, when everyone is ready, open the door.
As Azarra went about inspecting the door as she warned them of a likely occupant, the priest grasped his holy symbol and started attuning himself more tightly with the Morninglord, whispering short prayers before casting beneficial spells on the group.
Ser Armithia stands ready....
Azarra places her ear against the cold metal vault but nears naught but the sound of her own breathing and the soft clink of Ser Armithia's harness as the knight awaits what lies beyond. The combination takes a while to enter because it's quite long and the mechanism is heavy. When the final number is specified there is the faintest click and then the half tonne door opens inwards with a light touch.
Inside the vault is a grim tableaux, with various body parts stacked like cord wood in one corner and a filthy table in the center with what looks like a half constructed flesh golem. There are piles of books here and there and a bed in the corner, next to which are a collection of humanoid looking bones - tibias and fibias mostly. There is a large stack of silver trade bars in another corner. Nothing stirs.
The floor is dusty and there are bootprints everywhere.
Zane's eyes widened at the sight of the wealth glowing within the dimly lit chamber. It seemed that the Council's records of wealth in this chamber had been correct. Now to find the necromancer and fulfill their end of the deal. Arching a brow at the sight of the bed in the midst of the macabre setting, he looked at the others and said through the message spell, "Who else might know the ins and outs of this place? The necromancer? Let's take a look around..."
The Paladin cast Detect Evil.
Ishta can see the footprints but no one in here. Even if they're old, someone has been around and the door didn't appear to have been used, so she suspects there's a hidden way of getting in. Sadly, her capabilities doesn't allow her to find it, but she trusts in her companions. If everything else fails, she'll then rely to her magics.
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The sight failed to surprise Kardas. After all, with the maddening things necromancers do, surely it is to be expected that their personal surroundings will reflect said madness?
(fail)
(pass)
Azarra notices that the bones near the bed have all been gnawed on, and points it out to the others.
She wonders if there is an invisible foe ahead, and asks if anyone has a spell to detect that.
She waits to see if anyone else is going to go first, but if they don't, she proceeds.
She casts unseen servant and asks it to start moving the silver trade bars over to the side of the entrance. She walks in after it, to make sure it doesn't get out of range
Zane followed Azarra into the vault as the magical servant began the onerous task of moving the silver trade bars closer to the door, keeping an eye out for trouble, dawnbringer in hand.
"I could give it a try, just give me a moment..."
Ishta concentrates and murmurs some strange, arcane words. Then she opens her eyes, smiling.
"Be careful, the aura of this spell might blind you. You already know it."
Azarra moves out of the radius of the spell until after it is cast, and then returns, making sure her unseen servant stays close during that time.
Azarra summons an invisible servant and tasks it with retrieving the silver trade bars. This isn't a particularly quick process but it faithfully starts the task of moving dozens and dozens of silver trade bars. Each of which is the length of a grown mans forearm and is worth around 100 gold.
Ishta spends a moment to prepare a spell for dealing with a potential invisible opponent and gets ready to cast it.
Ser Armithia points out the bad book.
I am sensing another presence of Evil also, but...
The Paladin continues to concentrate.
Ishta's sudden spell conjures a roiling cloud of golden gunk which covers every surface, neatly outlining the form of a particularly savage looking orc. His bestial face surrounded by a necklace of shrunken heads and his ceremonial garb containing what appear to be the horns of some fell beast upon which numerous skulls have been impaled. A throaty chuckle escapes his lips revealing teeth filed to points, with a flourish he waves a wand and steps into a rent in the very fabric of the universe and vanishes!
"Draegor'thak..."
The word travels through Ishta's brain, and she speaks it while she thinks about it. Then the creature vanishes again.
"Damn! He's used Dimension Door."
Her mind works fast to find out how to locate the orc, but sadly she hasn't got any helpful spell.
"The spell must have taken him about 500 feet away, so he's still in the catacombs. Let's be very careful."
Looking around, the paranoia increases as a certain feeling grows inside, something that reminds her of stolen memories and hidden past.
Ser Armithia stands guard at the entrace; watching for the Orc.
He may be the other source of Evil that I detected. Let us retrieve what we can from here. That may prevent any plans he may have had.
Zane looked at Ishta as she spoke some nonsense words, his brow furrowing as he tried to focus on both her and the area where the thing had just disappeared. "What???"
The priest wasn't too sure what a dimension door was, but the studious woman was obviously more of an expert on the arcane than he, so he took her word for it. If the orc had went only 500 or so feet away, he could be up top or further in the complex they were exploring. The group had been sent specifically to find the necromancer...the vault and its contents had been the reward.
"Gather the loot or go after him? He might be bringing every undead imaginable to us, if he's the cause of all this. Let's find him..." Of course, they were a group, so the priest waited a few seconds to see what the others had to chime in with.
"We should get moving. We don't want him to have too much time for preparations or escape." Ishta is secretly hoping the orc hasn't got a wand allowing him to cast that teleportation once and again, or the chase is going to be tough for the Watchers of Dawn...
Azarra wants to gather the loot, because if they leave it they might never get back to it, but when Zane asks, she realizes that he's right. She takes whatever silver she can on the way out, provided it doesn't cause her to fall behind the group.
The Raumathar's response is predictable. "We should hunt the hunter and strike. He'll most likely hide behind his minions while weaving protective magics, only directly intervening if he must. From what we know he's a bookcaster, after all."
Azarra's servant slowly but surely moves the silver trade bars, forming a small pile by the door. It would be possible to grab a handful easily now but if you want the lot you'd have to venture inside. There's quite a lot and they're going to be heavy.
Azarra just takes what she can get immediately, so as not to delay the group.
"Any ideas on where he went? Should we just backtrack, then?" If nobody offered a different suggestion, Zane would get in his usual spot of support behind the gold elf and hurry along after, anxious to defeat the necromancer.
Ishta shrugs. "No idea. I think we should keep on moving in, though, instead of moving out."
Just in case, Kardas clutches his fist and incants ancient Nar words of protection. "We best get on the horse before it bolts, friends. Call upon the powers you can and let's get a move on. We forced him to act, so we best ride into the heart of the storm and force him to retreat ... or die."
Having already prepped his spells and indeed wanting to find the necromancer before the effects ended, Zane looked left and right outside of the vault to see if there was movement of any sort. In that moment, he heard a distant sound...
The priest looked around at the others with foreboding, whispering, "Did you all hear that? A drum or gong sounded in the distance. Probably a signal or summons of some sort. What to do?"
Ser Armithia begins moving in the direction Zane has pointed out.
"I'm not a necromancer, but I do know that the undead creatures they create tend to be mindless. Perhaps it is a programmed call of sorts, one they're bound to obey. I ... I say we attack, cleanse as many of the unliving as we can and, if need be, fall back. Every walking corpse that falls is one the necromancer will have to reanimate - and that's where we, in the end, win out if we keep up the pressure."
Nothing much happens at first but then the undead from the surface start tumbling down into the entry chamber! As yet they don't seem to have noticed you, but if they did...
"I'm really not sure, but maybe if we manage to take down the necromancer, the hordes of undead will crumble or, at least, act without command. I think we should head into the wolf's lair."
These are nothing. We need to take advantage of the Spell, while searching for that Orc.
Zane eyed the undead around them with unabashed anger, but nodded to Ser Armithia to lead them on. The priest grasped his pink holy symbol tightly, ready to call upon his patron to destroy the hordes around them if the mindless beasts became aware of the group.
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