Descending the shaft, you arrive into a room at the bottom. A thick layer of mud, rainwater, and a few shards of broken statuary litter the area slowing your progress slightly. The strangler fig roots that drop down into the shaft extend only a negligible distance past the ceiling, ending 10 feet from the floor.
To the south you find a door that leads to a short hall which ends at another door.
The door does not seem trapped and the party enters the next room with Faerin in the lead.
The sickly sweet smell of rotting meat fills this perfectly square, low-ceilinged chamber. The east wall features a large bas-relief carving portraying a wide-eyed hag devouring her own hands.
The bloated, wormy corpse of a Kuru—now missing its left arm and bearing several horrific bite wounds on the torso and neck— sits propped up in the room’s southwest corner.
Faerin:
You notice the hag's eyes suddenly lock on to your eyes with an icy glare.
There is also an aura that extends about 10' from the carving of the hag.
Knowledge Arcane DC 16:
Divination and enchantment schools.
Spellcraft DC 17:
This is a magical trap that can compel someone to a specific action if they step into the area. It also activates a sleep spell that targets other creatures in the room.
As he said, however, he's never seen *this* before.
Actually, looking beneath the spoilers, the DC 16 ones are something that anyone capable of detect magic will divine without the need for a skill check, and the DC 21 one should be a Spellcraft check (not that that would have helped ME any).
Spellcraft:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19
Luckily, his general knowledge of magic delivers when it matters most.
"I'm...not entirely sure what we're looking at here, but comrades, whatever you do, do NOT step too close to that thing - especially not you, Marduk!"
Sahba continues to focus he detect magic spell, looking for the strongest auras."These auras are quite strong," she says. "I cannot divine what the are, however. Could be quite dangerous."
Looking at the spell description, I think GM has the right of it re identifying schools, although those DCs are high enough to be scary. It used to be that detect magic identified school after concentration (long, long ago), but not any more.
Faerin glares back while saying in a reproving voice, directly back at the Hag
"I do not like being glared at for no good reason."
And upon hearing her companions speak uip about the room,
"Aye. Also those eyes on yon hag turned and glared at me. It's a right cold feeling though I still do not like being glared at."
F Human (Qadrian Keleshite) Sorcerer (Elemental: fire) 2 ~ AC 12 (t 12) (ff 10) | F+1, R+3, W+3 | CMD 12 | Init +4, Per +0 | HP 10/10
"There is some illusion here," Sahba says. "Enchantment and divination as well, nearby."
Sahba picks up a pebble, and tosses it toward the eyes of the hag statue.
Ranged touch, pebble+ PB shot:1d20 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (16) + 2 + 1 = 19
If nothing happens (no change in the statue or wall) (or, if it's an illusion, and the party is attacked), she tries again with a sling.
Sling+PB shot:1d20 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (20) + 2 + 1 = 23 dmg:1d4 - 1 + 1 ⇒ (1) - 1 + 1 = 1 Holy cow. Sling CONFIRM:1d20 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (18) + 2 + 1 = 21 confirm dmg:1d4 - 1 + 1 ⇒ (1) - 1 + 1 = 1 First time I've every critted for a total of 2 dmg.
The skills needed for figuring out magic were modified a long time ago, but no one made a point of illustrating the changes. Knowledge Arcana is used for schools and spells in effect. Spellcraft is used for spells being cast and magic items (which is how I'm treating the permanent aura). Detect magic is required to identify schools and magic items. It isn't normally needed to identify spells in effect, but if the effect is not normally visible I think detect magic would be appropriate.
F Human (Qadrian Keleshite) Sorcerer (Elemental: fire) 2 ~ AC 12 (t 12) (ff 10) | F+1, R+3, W+3 | CMD 12 | Init +4, Per +0 | HP 10/10
Like I said, sounds good to me, although I had to look it up. I played long enough ago that my initial thought was like Nectanebo, and I didn't realize it had changed by PF, even as long ago as my beta CRB (but then, I've been away for a while)
Skirting the magical aura, the group passes through the next door and enters a long, high-ceilinged hall partially flooded with murky, stagnant water. The sound of slowly dripping water echoes ominously throughout. A massive banyan tree has breached a large section of the south wall, and the tree's enormous invasive roots now extend several feet into the hall. Long sheets of thick moss and other detritus cling to the twisted tree roots, forming a curtainlike barrier.
Skirting the magical aura, the group passes through the next door and enters a long, high-ceilinged hall partially flooded with murky, stagnant water. The sound of slowly dripping water echoes ominously throughout. A massive banyan tree has breached a large section of the south wall, and the tree's enormous invasive roots now extend several feet into the hall. Long sheets of thick moss and other detritus cling to the twisted tree roots, forming a curtainlike barrier.
Fauxish, Marduk, and Nectanebo notice movement in the murky water and spot a giant leech approaching!
No applicable knowledge
Mikail stays in the back of the room while everyone discusses the Hag. He shivers as he walks quickly past the image, and follows the group into the next room.
Female Human (Tian-Shu) Monk 1/Unchained Rogue 1 | hp 16 | AC 16, T 16, FF 12 | CMD 17 (19 v trip) | F +3, R +8, W +4 | Spd 30' | Init +6 | Perc +7:
actually she's Kitsune (gains low-light vision and +2 acrobatics in hybrid form) )
Difficult terrain, I wager.
Fauxish moves to the fore and takes up a defensive stance.
Fighting defensively:
Fighting Defensively as a Standard Action
You can choose to fight defensively when attacking. If you do so, you take a –4 penalty on all attacks in a round to gain a +2 to AC until the start of your next turn.
|AC 20, T 13, FF 17|HP: 39/39*|F +6*, R +4, W +5 (+2 vs Necr/curses/TNLs, +1 vs fear/conf)|Init +2, Perc +8|CMB +6 CMD 18|Deadspeaker 3/3, Ghostly Horde 1/1, Focus: ?? Gloaming, ?? Azrael, ?? Guidingstar, ?? Perun
Has it been more than 10 minutes since I cast heightened awareness?
Knowledge (Nature):1d20 + 6 ⇒ (18) + 6 = 24
"It's just a big leech, Nectanebo says calmly as he draws his bow. They can suck even a Dwarf dry given a minute or two, but keep your distance and we should be alright. I don't suppose anyone brought any salt?"
I forgot to mention that this is a surprise round (1 move or standard action only). Nectanebo, I'll assume your bow was already out. Fauxish, you won't be able to move and be defensive yet.
Beyond the steps is difficult terrain.
@Nectanebo: heightened awareness is still up. A rough calculation has you with about 2 minutes left.
Hearing about a potential snack, Marduk advances into the room. She sort of gets in Nectanebo's way, but his aim is good and the leech sprouts an arrow.
Undeterred, the leech swims forward and lunges at Faerin, getting its mouthful of teeth firmly attached to her leg.
Attach (Ex) When a giant leech hits with a bite attack, it latches onto its target and automatically grapples. The giant leech loses its Dexterity bonus to AC but holds on with great tenacity and automatically inflicts bite damage each round. An attached giant leech can be struck with a weapon or grappled itself—if its prey manages to win a grapple check or Escape Artist check against it, the giant leech is removed.
Female Human (Tian-Shu) Monk 1/Unchained Rogue 1 | hp 16 | AC 16, T 16, FF 12 | CMD 17 (19 v trip) | F +3, R +8, W +4 | Spd 30' | Init +6 | Perc +7:
actually she's Kitsune (gains low-light vision and +2 acrobatics in hybrid form) )
Fauxish shrugs and delays (since Mikail is standing in her place anyhow ;)). If the slug thing is still up and about by the end of Faerin's turn she pounces in to attack.
Female Human (Tian-Shu) Monk 1/Unchained Rogue 1 | hp 16 | AC 16, T 16, FF 12 | CMD 17 (19 v trip) | F +3, R +8, W +4 | Spd 30' | Init +6 | Perc +7:
actually she's Kitsune (gains low-light vision and +2 acrobatics in hybrid form) )
Fauxish uses her wisdom to get out of water and scout ahead (staying with in enough light to see by). She's as quiet as she can be after the din of the battle in the water.
Stealth:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20
Once away from the party she cocks her head and listens for any sound beyond.
Perception (listen):1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4
Convinced all is well, she waits (some might say impatiently) for the rest before moving on. If they take too long (anything over a minute) she investigates the tree, looking to see perhaps whether or not it could be used to escape the dungeon.
Faerin stares at the remains of the leech.
"Well now. I guess that's that. Didn't even need to lift a hammer. Shall we move on?"
She shrugs despite the bite stinging from the bite marks on her leg.
By the way:
Stoneblood (Ex):
At 3rd level, a stonelord’s vitals begin to calcify and her blood transforms into liquid stone. She adds her paladin level on checks to stabilize at negative hit points and gains a 25% chance to ignore a critical hit or precision damage. This does not stack with fortification armor or similar effects. At 9th level, this chance increases to 50% and she becomes immune to petrification. At 15th level, this chance increases to 75% and she becomes immune to bleed and blood drain effects. This ability replaces divine health and her mercies gained at 3rd, 9th, and 15th level.
25% and below to ignore critical hit. 1d100 ⇒ 45<--Yep crited. Ouch.
Female Human (Garundi) Wildling 7 | Diehard! | HP: 81/81 [95/95] | DR 1/- | AC: 20 [18] | T: 13 [11] | FF: 17 [15] | CMD: 25 [27] | Fort: +12 [14] | Ref: +9 | Will: +7 [9] (+1 vs fear and confusion) | Init: +3 (+5 in forest) | Perc: +12 (+14 in forest, +14 vs Humans+Aberrations) | SM: +2 (+4 Humans+Aberrations) | Spd: 40 ft.
Tracked Resources:
Spells: 1 - 2/2 ; Rage: 67/9
Thanks for DMPCing Marduk, I was away in the mountain and didn't find wifi over there.
Marduk doesn't get the accusations about her biting off people's body parts. Nevertheless, she tries to taste the leech but quickly spits it all in the water.
"Urgh, kinda taste like stone!"
After that, she offers healing to the party members who need it.
Just roll the dice yourselves, Marduk is always eager to help.
F Human (Qadrian Keleshite) Sorcerer (Elemental: fire) 2 ~ AC 12 (t 12) (ff 10) | F+1, R+3, W+3 | CMD 12 | Init +4, Per +0 | HP 10/10
Are the triangle spaces in the wall windows?
Sahba moves up to the dry part of the room, happy to be out of the water. She examines the south and east sides of the room, leaving the door to someone more skilled.
Faerin moves up and uses Detect Evil as she once again calls upon her divine gifts to aid her and her companions, she also accepts the healing from Marduk to heal her wounds.
Mikail walks up to the door with Sahba. "Mind if I take a look?" he asks.
Going to take 20 looking for traps, trying to dicern whats beyond the door. Total perception 26
Just found out what those triangular shapes in the walls are - small skylights that serve to provide light for some of the chambers within the Gloomspires.
The door seems safe, so Faerin opens it. Beyond is a dark room, and those without darkvision or low light vision cannot see much further then the area immediately around the door. Faerin, Mikail, and Nectanebo can see a cathedral-like chamber with high, vaulted ceilings supported by square pillars.
Dominating the middle of the hall is a huge mound of undulating gray-green flesh covered with weeping scarlet boils. The entire mass stinks of a weeks-old corpse. Clustered next to the mound are a half dozen figures, gluttonously feeding on its putrid flesh. Four have long teeth and pallid flesh stretched tightly over emaciated bodies. Two others are malformed, hairless, pustule-covered corpses that move and snarl more like an undead hound than an undead man.
As light spills into the room three of the humanoids turn red eyes your direction.
Knowledge Religion DC 7 (for the humanoids):
The four are undead ghouls.
Knowledge Religion DC 12 (for the humanoids):
A ghoul's attacks can cause paralysis.
Knowledge Religion DC 17 (for the humanoids):
A ghoul's bite can cause ghoul fever, which slowly turns a victim into a ghoul.
Knowledge Religion DC 7 (for the hounds):
The two others seem to be undead festrogs.
Knowledge Religion DC 12 (for the hounds):
Piercing and slashing weapons cause the pustules on a Festrogs to burst, those splashed by the fluids sometimes develop a disease called necrotic boils.
Knowledge Religion DC 17 (for the hounds):
Festrogs feed on the living, becoming tougher for a short time after biting someone.
"What is this," Nectanebo asks declares in reaction to what he sees. "A self-parody of repulsiveness? I would strongly recommend everyone keep their distance, but I'd think your natural desires would tell you that for me! Especially if you are not an Elf, or your body has otherwise not been blessed by some higher power, DO NOT let them touch you, and use bows or bludgeons!"
"Or bodies. Bodies work, too...." He says as he spies a stray heap of bones on the floor. His coat begins its incongruous billowing again, and one of the stray tendrils of cloth at the bottom seems to reach out and stroke the bones, which assemble themselves into as complete a skeleton as they can manage and scuttle forth to defend the party.
Spending another Focus from the Gloaming Shroud to create another 4-hit point skeleton, which readies an action to attack the first (other) monster (not including Marduk) to come within its current reach.
"Ghouls." Faerin breathes out even as she steps forward to bear the brunt of their assault.
"I'll take their attacks head on, the rest of you back me up and take your hits as you can. Let me back up so that only one of them can come at us while facing 3 of us." She calls out.
Delay until everyone falls back to allow only one of them to come in through that door, while the rest of us can wail on them.
Mikail takes Faerin's advice, backing back into the other room. As he does so, he sheathes his rapierr and draws his bow.
"Sounds good to me, Faerin. Lets send these things back to the grave!"
