"Nice find." Avendryl says to Orveiss. "Let me have a look at that to check for traps."
"Bet he thought that was good hiding spot," Fezzik says with a laugh, proud that he was able to help the group with his strength.
He then moves over to the secret door, drawing his great sword, and gets ready to enter the next room.
"Elf-eyes see, elf-eyes me," Orveiss grins. He also draws his sword. "Looks like it was quite a fight the last time you came this way."
After examining the bejeweled silver bracelet, Bat whispers her estimate to Avendryl and Orveiss, hoping there's a measure of consensus in their estimates.
Avendryl shrugs and nods in agreement with Bataleigha, trying not to blatantly give away that he has no clue as to the bracelet's value.
(123)
Carpets and tapestries cover the plain stone walls of this room, and a few rugs are on the floor as well. From the appearance of all this, the room was once the quarters of some fairly important person — an underpriest of the Earth Temple, from the scenes depicted on several tapestries. Whatever furniture was once here is now gone. Heaps of cloth lie near the walls, showing where the inhabitants sleep. A small brazier stands in the northeast corner. A small keg of cheap beer is in the center of the room. The only exit is the door in the south wall of the alcove.
Whatever creatures were living here have moved, but based on the wet dog smell and the clumps of fur, you suspect gnolls at the very least.
Fezzik looks around the room. "Maybe troops joined first attack. That or waiting in next room," he says as he points to the door to the south. He stands guard watching the door as the more detail oriented in the group search the room.
While Fezzik watches the door, Andrezi gives the room a thorough inspection.
Bataleigha helps Avendryl search the room, starting in the opposite corner.
Domeric senses nothing but the usual background buzz of the evil in this temple.
Bat checks carefully and finds clumps of fur and bits of chewed bone that confirm the suspicion that gnolls once barracked here. She also finds a torn-off piece of a playing card and a hobnail from a boot that are probably from hobgoblins.
Avendryl can tell that the room was cleared out, probably shortly after your attack. Likely the temple is reallocating forces to shore up some areas and abandon others until they can get reinforcements.
Avendryl also smells stronger wet-dog scent to the south. The next chamber is possibly still inhabited?
Avendryl sniffs the air followed by a look of disgust. "Likely more gnolls in the next room. Everyone ready?"
Fezzik moves up behind Domeric and nods his head at Avendryl's question. He grips his greatsword, waiting for the door to open.
Once everyone's gathered and ready to go, Bataleigha opens the door to allow her comrades to rush in like some righteous tide.
Orveiss is also ready, wielding his sword and an excited gleam in his eyes.
(122) The walls of this place are of plain stone. Doors to the north and west are normal. Four heaps of bedding — rags, torn tapestries, rugs, etc. — lie by the south wall. Two stools stand near the entrance to the southeast passage. Opposite this entrance, along the wall, is a crude shelf, supporting several samples of pottery — bottles and mugs. Under it, in the northwest corner, stand four spears.
Orveiss is ready to leap into the fray, followed by Fezzik. Four armored gnolls inhabit this room, one watching to the side, two across the room, one in the corner. They are more heavily armed and armored than the gnolls that you fought before, and as soon as the door creaks in under a heavy shove one sets up a loud barking and howling.
Orveiss throws his oversized sword through the doorway, arcing it over his allies with his mind to cut squarely into the head of the barking gnoll.
His point made, so to speak, Orveiss's sword flies back to his hand with a thrumming, metallic whine.
Orveiss' sword buries itself in the sternum of one of the gnolls with a gthunk noise, then shakes and pulls itself loose a second later, accompanied by a spray of blood and viscera as the creature falls limply to the ground.
Bat raises an eyebrow, both impressed with Orveiss's opening gambit and glad she didn't rush in blindly. She steps forward, spies a sneaky gnoll in the near corner, and engages it.
for
Bat smacks the gnoll, but it knocks her mace to the side and doesn't take the full brunt of the swing.
Fezzik's eyes get a little wide as a sword flies over his head. The confused look on his face is replaced with a grin when the gnoll collapses. His grin vanishes quickly, replaced by concern when the sword flies back at him. "New guy better know what doing," he thinks, his eyes getting larger the closer the sword gets to him. He let's out a slight sigh and relaxes once it's past him.
When Bat moves into the room, he surveys the situation again. "My turn," he thinks, gripping his sword and stepping into the room. Stepping on the body of the fallen gnoll, he swings at the one next to it.
Slicing down on the gnoll, he manages to find a gap in his armor near his neck and splits him in two!
The devastating attack even surprising him, he laughs out loud looking down at the body.
"Ha ha ha, me can do too," he says as if to prove he is still the master of killing things.
Orveiss grins and calls out "Excellent work!" to his companions. He listens to see if he can hear any reinforcements mustering, either before or behind them.
He also considers what he knows about gnolls, hoping to produce some useful lore that could improve their side's chances in the skirmish.
Orveiss notes - just in the nick of time - that the gnoll in the corner by Bat is about to grab a rope secured to the wall. The end of the rope is fairly high up, above the usual sight-line for human-sized people, making it easy to miss on a cursory examination of the room.
He calls out just in time to let Fezzik twist away as a net drops from the ceiling.
The remaining gnoll, against all sense, advances on Fezzik with his axe. He bays wildly, letting out a savage howl that will surely be heard deeper in the compound.
Of course, the large warrior is too deft for a simple swing like that to faze him.
Avendryl moves in closer, bow in hand. Seeing the congestion in the room, his shoulders slump, knowing that the best way he can contribute is to begin singing again.
Dom's wild swing is easily sidestepped by his gnoll foe.
Bat keeps swinging with gusto at the gnoll in the corner.
for
"Thanks for warning," Fezzik says as he moves further into the room to unblock the door. He swings at the gnoll who attacked him.
Orveiss, seeing that the gnolls are well in hand, moves down the slanted corridor and listens carefully for sounds of approaching enemies. Whether or not he hears anything, he will return to the gnoll room to report his findings.